Blog 5
(2) Based on your reading of Matthew’s Gospel, especially chapters 5-7 (i.e., the Sermon on the Mount), what is Matthew’s attitude toward the Jewish Law? How do the standards established by the Law of Moses differ from the expectations Jesus has for his followers?
The sermon on the mount is definitely a popular story from the Gospel of Matthew. In the passage, Jesus elaborates on laws that have been in place for ages, and also adds meaning and relevancy to them that is easier for the Israelites of the day to relate to. Jesus more clearly defines sin, and all of the varying degrees of sins that were unclear before. One thing Jesus does not do, however, is attempt to undermine the existing Jewish law. He explicitly states this in Matthew 5:17, and makes it clear that he is not telling the Israelites to disobey the law; but rather to try to understand the implications of their sins, and to realize that the path they want to follow to get closer to God is not all that easy, and requires sacrifice. Jesus wants to make it known that following him is a difficult task, but will yield great reward in Heaven. Jesus also ensures the people are trying to live their lives according to the law of love, not just the laws of the 10 commandments. Loving God and loving your neighbor were the most important aspects of Jesus’ ministry, and he clearly states these points in his sermon.
Adam's Theo 
I totally agree with you when you say that Jesus never wanted to undermine the established law. Rather, He extends the law and makes it a bit more stringent. However, like you point out, the rewards for being faithful are great, and perhaps justify in the minds of His followers the increased requirements on their behalf.
The idea that the commandments provide good rules but don’t have a lot of specifics re: how to apply them in particular cases (i.e., some things were unclear, as you put it) is a good way to sum up the motivation behind Jesus’ long speech in Matthew 5-7 contrasting the way of the old Law of Moses with the new spin on it that Jesus gives. If you remember from last week, the Pharisees in particular had lots of rules about how to apply the Law in particular cases; Jesus’ central argument throughout much of this Gospel is that these rules inadvertently make it difficult and burdensome to keep the Law. On the other hand, keeping to the deeper intention of the Law can be really simple. (E.g., want to avoid murder? Then check yourself when you begin to get angry at someone.)
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