I tell you,
unless your righteousness surpasses that
of the scribes and Pharisees,
you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven.
The righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees was external and performative. They carried out the law because doing so resulted in the admiration of others and avoided appearing shameful in their eyes. But this did not mean they did not want to murder, to lie, or to commit adultery. They did not do so because of fear of repercussions. If they could hide their activity even from God they might at any moment bring forth any of these vices. The problem was that they were interested in compliance but not conversion. They were happy to follow the law as long as it didn't force them to change their hearts. This is why Jesus told the Pharisees that they were of the same stock as their father the devil, who "was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him" (See John 8:44).
But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother
will be liable to judgment,
and whoever says to his brother, Raqa,
will be answerable to the Sanhedrin,
and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ will be liable to fiery Gehenna.
When we initially hear that Jesus wants to help us change our hearts and be converted we tend to receive it well with an attendant feeling we might describe as warm fuzzies. But this is only until we perceive the reality of what is being asked of us. We quickly realize that we don't so much mind what is going on in our hearts. We can't be bothered by what seems in any case to be an intractable problem. But Jesus does not ask the impossible of us. Well, he may ask and even demand what is humanly impossible. But for whatever he asks of us he also provides abundant grace to accomplish. He does not ask that we never have an angry thought, only that we absolutely refuse to cherish anger in our hearts. As Paul also wrote, "Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger" (see Ephesians 4:26).
Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar,
and there recall that your brother
has anything against you,
leave your gift there at the altar,
go first and be reconciled with your brother,
and then come and offer your gift.
One thing the Gospel today has in common with the first reading is the urgency of the summons to conversion. The first reading reminds us that even a wicked man who turns from his sins can be forgiven and find life, but that even one who had lived a righteous life could fine himself liable to judgment after committing sin. And since tomorrow is never promised, we must make sure our souls are in good shape today. This is more important than almost anything else, even bringing a gift to the altar, even though it would seem much more convenient to deal with that first and reconciliation eventually.
Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court.
Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge,
and the judge will hand you over to the guard,
and you will be thrown into prison.
Jesus implied that it was better to resolve things sooner by showing mercy than later by waiting on justice. If we hold back our forgiveness then finally entering the presence of God may by a difficult transition when unforgiveness is torn from our hands, burned from our hearts. Purgatory is a great blessing since few of us are already perfectly purified at the hour of our death. But it should not be our primary goal. If we miss, there is no backup plan. And even if we don't miss, it seems that choosing mercy here in this life is much to be preferred to the cleansing fire of that place, a choice that is ours to make. But the more we delay the less likely it becomes. So may we receive the grace to change beginning even here and now, without hesitation, trusting that the one who has promised us so much is faithful
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