Surpassing the Righteousness of the Pharisees: A Full Preterist & New Perspective Reflection on Matthew 5:20

 Surpassing the Righteousness of the Pharisees: A Full Preterist & New Perspective Reflection on Matthew 5:20


In Matthew 5:20, Jesus delivers a striking challenge: “Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.” At first glance, this verse appears to conflict with the doctrine of justification by faith. Yet, when read through the lens of Full Preterism and the New Perspective on Paul, the tension dissolves and a richer, more coherent message emerges.




The Context of Jesus’ Warning

Jesus was not condemning the Law itself. Rather, He was exposing the hypocrisy and misuse of the Law by the religious elite of His day. The Pharisees had turned the Torah into a tool of control, status, and exclusion—especially against the marginalized, including Gentiles and even their fellow Jews who didn’t conform to their traditions.

For example:

To God: The Pharisees honored God with their lips, but their hearts were far from Him (Matthew 15:8-9). They emphasized ritual purity and external obedience, yet neglected justice, mercy, and faithfulness (Matthew 23:23).

To Their Own People: They burdened the common people with man-made traditions, shutting the kingdom of heaven in people's faces (Matthew 23:4,13).

To Gentiles: Rather than being a light to the nations as Israel was called to be (Isaiah 49:6), they looked down on Gentiles as unclean, creating a boundary of separation God never intended.


Jesus, therefore, calls for a greater righteousness—not more laws, but a deeper obedience rooted in the heart, faith, and covenant loyalty. This righteousness aligns with God's intentions for the Law: to promote justice, mercy, and faithful covenant living.

Paul and the Law: Not a Rejection, but a Reframing

The New Perspective on Paul reminds us that Paul wasn’t preaching against the Law, but against its misuse as a badge of nationalistic pride and boundary marker. His argument was not about abandoning obedience, but about re-centering it around faith in Messiah and inclusion of Gentiles.

Paul affirmed the Law’s goodness (Romans 7:12) and taught that love fulfills the Law (Romans 13:10). His issue was with those who used the Law to exclude others or to earn status before God. In Galatians, for example, he argues not against Torah itself, but against compelling Gentiles to “become Jews” through circumcision and boundary markers as a condition for belonging.


Full Preterism: Fulfillment and Full Access

From a Full Preterist view, Matthew 5:20 was a pre-AD 70 warning to Israel. Jesus was calling His people to reform their understanding of righteousness before the coming judgment—the end of the old covenant age. That judgment came with the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD, vindicating Jesus and ending the shadow system of Torah observance centered on sacrifices and the Temple.

But the Law’s moral and covenantal wisdom wasn't abolished—it was fulfilled in Christ and carried forward in the lives of those who walk by the Spirit. Since the full arrival of the kingdom, we now have access to God’s presence, and our righteousness is demonstrated not through rituals, but through Spirit-empowered living that reflects Jesus' heart.



Living Righteously Today

So what does it mean today to have righteousness that surpasses that of the Pharisees?

It means:

Obeying the heart of the Law—justice, mercy, and faithfulness—rather than clinging to religious performance.

Welcoming the outsider and loving neighbor and enemy alike.

Living by the Spirit, bearing fruit in our communities that reflects God's kingdom values.


Paul and Jesus were not at odds. Both called for covenant faithfulness that goes beyond surface-level observance. Jesus fulfilled the Law and opened the way for a people—Jew and Gentile alike—to live righteously, not by exclusion or law-keeping as a performance, but by embodying God's justice and love in the world.

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