Transporting dentures across state lines. Title 18 USC subsection 1821 makes it a crime for non-dentists who make false teeth to ship them across state lines. Maximum sentence: one year in jail. It’s a jaw-dropping law that hasn’t been enforced in decades, so you could say it doesn’t really have any teeth. Why is that a law? I’m sure there’s a story. Apart from God speaking the universe into existence, stuff doesn’t just happen. Crimes don’t just happen. There are dozens of decisions that lead to a crime. Under every action is motivation. Under every motivation is a belief. We’re entering a section of the Sermon on the Mount where Jesus gets to the **sin beneath the sin**. And at the heart of it all is a lie. A lie powerful enough to keep us from entering the Kingdom of Heaven. I want to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. I assume you do too. So let’s drill down and trade that lie for truth. Turn with me to Matthew 5:21. --- ### 1. HOW IT’S SUPPOSED TO BE “You have heard that it was said… ‘You shall not murder.’” The Pharisees and scribes knew that rule well. But Jesus raises the standard. “Don’t even allow anger into your heart.” That’s shocking. In fact Jesus says unless your righteousness **exceeds the Pharisees**, you won’t enter the Kingdom. These were the super-religious rule keepers. They dotted the i’s. Crossed the t’s. And even with all their devotion to “getting it right”… They were getting it wrong. So what are we supposed to do? Give up? How could anyone possibly enter the Kingdom? Knowing all the rules won’t do it. Breaking all the rules won’t do it. Jesus wants to shock us. God isn’t a gentle old man floating on a cloud. He is holy. Completely “other.” His standard should shock us. And when we see it, we begin to long for the kind of life only He can give. A life where anger doesn’t rule. Where hatred and hostility disappear. Jesus isn’t trying to crush us. He’s showing us how far we’ve wandered — and inviting us back. Because righteousness doesn’t come from inside us. It comes from Him. When we turn to Jesus in faith He saves us not only from the **penalty of sin**, but also from the **power of sin**. --- ### 2. HOW WE GET IT WRONG When I was young, Kent Trails was just old railroad tracks. Follow that path and you could fall one way into wild raspberries… or the other way into poison ivy. Following Jesus’ narrow path is like that. We fall off one side or the other. Some of us are **rule keepers**. We notice when others break rules. We get angry. We become legalistic. Focused on appearances instead of grace. Others of us are **rule breakers**. We push boundaries. We’re irresponsible. We rely on grace while ignoring obedience. Neither path is Jesus’ path. Both are marked by anger, division, and broken relationships. And when anger rules our lives we know we’ve wandered from His narrow path. --- ### 3. HOW JESUS GOT IT RIGHT In Jesus we see the ultimate rule keeper. He obeyed God’s law perfectly. But He also broke human rules whenever they got in the way of love. Jesus wasn’t ruled by anger. When they mocked Him… lied about Him… scourged Him… crucified Him… There was no sinful anger. Instead there was grace. Jesus knew exactly what He was signing up for. He knew how broken we were. He knew rescuing us would cost His life. And on the cross He asks a question: **“Are you with Me?”** Are you with Me as I take the punishment for your sin? Are you with Me in the grave where your sin is buried? Are you with Me as I rise into new life? That’s the gospel. Jesus’ path leads from cross to grave to resurrection. And when He says “Follow Me,” He’s inviting us onto that path. --- ### 4. HOW DO WE RESPOND? First: **Believe God is gracious.** You don’t have to prove yourself. Forgiven people forgive people. Someone who truly believes they’ve been forgiven has no room for bitterness or unrighteous anger. Second: **Live like you believe God is gracious.** Who do you need to ask forgiveness from? Who do you need to pursue reconciliation with? Jesus takes relationships so seriously that He says if reconciliation needs to happen, go make it right. Even if it means leaving church to do it. Perfect obedience isn’t possible. But **true obedience is**. So take the first step. Today. When bad fruit shows up — anger, bitterness, name calling — don’t just fix the behavior. Drill down to the root. What belief is underneath that sin? Replace the lie with truth. Because good roots produce good fruit. And the truth is simple: God is gracious. So I’ll end with the same question Jesus asks: **Are you with Him?**