What does Matthew 5:25 mean?
In giving examples to illustrate the importance of setting aside anger and reconciling relationships, Jesus has once again escalated standards far beyond what makes us comfortable. In the previous verses, He described a worshiper setting down their gift before making the offering to God in order to go make things right with a brother (Matthew 5:23–24).Now He describes someone who is being taken to court for some reason. The assumption here seems to be that the accused wasn't aware of their offense until it was brought to court, or they were not able to reconcile before then. The advice here is not only practical, it's also meant to continue the spiritual lesson Jesus began in earlier verses. If the courtroom accuser wins the case before the judge, the accused will be handed over to the guard and taken to prison. No longer is the motive simply to have a right spirit and a good relationship with people. Now the motive is to avoid judgment and prison.
Jesus is comparing the spiritual stakes of unresolved conflict to the civil stakes of an unresolved lawsuit. In either case, if you've truly wronged another person, you are in danger of judgment. The proper response is to make things right quickly— both to have a pure heart and to avoid judgment for wrongdoing.
Matthew 5:21–26 begins to expand Jesus' comments about righteousness. The underlying theme is that sin involves more than just physical actions: it also includes thoughts and attitudes. It's relatively easy to say, ''I do not murder,'' but very difficult to say, ''I'm not unfairly angry towards other people.'' The point is not that anger is literally-and-exactly the same as murder. Rather, it's that unrighteous anger is undeniably a sin, in and of itself. True righteousness—the kind that would be needed to earn heaven—requires that level of perfection. Not only does this teaching counter superficial religious hypocrisy, it underscores the fact that salvation must be by grace through faith, and can never be earned by good works.
The Sermon on the Mount contains some of Jesus' most challenging teaching. It begins with the unlikely blessings of the Beatitudes. Jesus' disciples must do good works in order to be a powerful influence: as the salt of the earth and light of the world. The superficial righteousness of the Pharisees is not good enough to earn heaven. Sins of the heart, such as angry insults and intentional lust, are worthy of hell just as much as adultery and murder. Easy divorce and deceptive oaths are forbidden. Believers should not seek revenge. Instead, God intends us to love our enemies and pray for our persecutors. In short, we should strive to be perfect, as God is perfect.