May the mumbling commence!
Living the life of faith and righteousness is so much more than window dressing. Living the life of faith and righteousness must come from the very core of our beings. We live a life pleasing to God because that is our deepest desire. Rules, commandments and statutes become less important than the principles that these things are built upon.
Let us always be careful to examine our motives. Jesus was not hesitant to confront the religious leaders of his days. You and I should not look on that confrontation smugly sure that we are not included in the confrontation. Who are the pillars of the church today but the elders and deacons and pastors and ministers? Let us read to learn from the hard and harsh teachings of Jesus to the religious leaders of the day from Matthew chapter twenty-three:
Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: "The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. They tie up heavy loads and put them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.
Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them 'Rabbi.'
But you are not to be called 'Rabbi,' for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. And do not call anyone on earth 'father,' for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. Nor are you to be called 'teacher,' for you have one Teacher, the Christ. The greatest among you will be your servant. For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” (Verses 1-12)
Obey the teachings of those who sit in seats of authority, but do not do what they do. The religious leaders were not practicing what they preached! That is a hard teaching. “Do as they say not as they do.”
What did the religious leaders do? They did everything they did for men to see – window dressing. They loved the honor that being called Rabbi and Teacher would bring them.
Jesus tells us not to allow anyone to call us Rabbi or Father – that title belongs to God alone. Jesus tells us not to allow anyone to call us Teacher – that title belongs to Jesus alone. At the core of living faithfully and righteously is humility and service.
Without these key ingredients, look out! Woe to you! Read later in Matthew chapter twenty-three:
"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices-- mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law – justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.
Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.
Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men's bones and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.
Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous. And you say, 'If we had lived in the days of our forefathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.' So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your forefathers!” (Verses 23-32)
What is the Law built upon? The Law is built upon justice and mercy and faithfulness. Yes, we are to obey the Law, but the principles that the Law is built upon is a greater importance. These three components are what are on the inside of us – our motivations and attitudes.
Clean these up and our thoughts, words and actions will follow. May we not honor our ancestors of the faith by mere decoration. Let us honor our faith ancestors by following in their footsteps of faith.
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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