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| Share Agape for July 14, 2003 |
| Obsessed with Minutia Matthew 23: 23-28 "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices�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 freed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisees! 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 white-washed 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." Since being a hypocrite is usually an act of self-delusion, few of us ever think we're one. Perhaps this is why Jesus so often told us to pay attention to the motives in our hearts. In this week's Bible study, Jesus points the finger directly at hypocrites-specifically, the Pharisees. Pharisees were primarily laymen (not professional clergymen) who were a "denomination" of the Jewish faith. (Somewhat like Baptists being a denomination of Christianity.) The Pharisees took God's Old Testament laws and scrutinized them so intensely that they wrote books--50 volumes, in fact--about the "intricacies" of the law. For example, while God commanded a tithe of the first fruits of a person's labor (Deut. 14:22; Lev. 27:30), the Pharisees went to extremes to tithe what were basically trivial things-like herbs-with great mathematical dexterity. I rather imagine them going out into their herb patches, counting the leaves on their mint plants, then carefully plucking off 10% of those leaves to give to the temple. The trouble was, while they spent all their energy being legalistically obsessed with the minutia, they forgot the most important part of the law: They didn't love each other, and they didn't truly love God. Perhaps worse, by their example, they encouraged others to carry unnecessary burdens by being obsessed with the minutia, too-consequently encouraging people to neglect what was in their hearts. My favorite verse in this passage is: "You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel." Not only does this show Jesus' wonderful way with words (and His sense of humor), but it's a vivid description of the lunacy of picking at the little things while ignoring the "biggies." Do any of us not know people who unwittingly do this? They're legalistic about tithing, swearing, how a person dresses in church, etc., yet they don't show any real mercy, compassion, or love. This is not to say that "the little things" aren't important. They are. But those who are legalistic have it all backwards. Focusing on the minutia won't make you a Christian. But if you focus on agape and God, the minutia will take care of itself. Many people would like to think that Jesus was only cautioning clergymen in this passage: Pastors, priests, perhaps Bible class teachers. But I think there's little doubt Jesus was cautioning anyone calls themselves a person of God ("a Christian"). Because any of us can easily lead others astray by setting a bad example. Ask yourself: Am I ever unjust? Have I ever kept my mouth closed about righteousness because I didn't want to "get involved?" Have I ever allowed someone to take the blame for something, when I knew the blame should have been laid elsewhere? Have I ever favored one person over another? Am I always merciful? Do I forgive readily and completely? Do I always provide a helping hand when I see someone in need? Do I always encourage the sad, feed the hungry, and welcome the unwelcome? Am I forever faithful? Do I ever not mention the fact that I'm a Christian when I'm around acquaintances who are putting down Christians, Christianity, Jesus, or God? Do I always turn for MORE~~> |
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