Jesus went to the heart of the matter when he called the religious leaders of His day: scribes, Pharisees and hypocrites! The word hypocrite means actor -- someone who puts on a show to draw attention to themselves. The scribes devoted their lives to the study of the Law of God and regarded themselves as legal experts in it. They divided the 10 Commandments and precepts into thousands of tiny rules and regulations. They were so exacting in their interpretations and in trying to live them out, that they had little time for anything else, even the love of God. By the time they finished compiling their interpretations, they combined no less than 50 volumes! Jesus chastised them for neglecting the more important matters of religion, such as justice and the love of God. In their misguided zeal, they had lost sight of God and of His purpose for the law.
Jesus used the example of tithing to show how far they had missed the mark. God had commanded a tithe of the first fruits of one's labor as an expression of thanksgiving and honor for His intended care for His people (Deut. 14:22; Lev. 27:30). The scribes, however, went to extreme lengths to tithe on insignificant things (such as tiny plants) with great mathematical accuracy. They were very attentive to minute matters of little importance, but they neglected to care for the needy and the weak. Jesus admonished them because their hearts were not right. They were filled with pride and contempt for others. They put unnecessary burdens on others while neglecting to show charity, especially to the weak and the poor. They meticulously went through the correct motions of conventional religion while forgetting the realities. Jesus used a funny example to show just how out of proportion things had gotten with them. Gnats were considered the smallest of insects, and camels were considered the largest of animals in Palestine. Both were considered ritually impure. The scribes went to great lengths to avoid contact with gnats, even to the point of straining the wine cup with a fine cloth lest they accidently swallow a gnat. The stark contrast must have drawn chuckles as well as groans. What was the point of Jesus' lesson and humor? The essence of God's commandments is love — love of God and love of neighbor. God is love and everything He does flows from His love for us. Love is sacrificial; it both embraces and lifts the burdens of others. Do you allow the love of God to transform your mind and heart?
Now, you know me – I'm fairly exacting in the words I want to choose – even if I might not currently be able to pronounce everything just as I know it's right inside my head – but maybe this particular lesson for me is to remind others that the love of God is the important message from God and to all of God's creations. As Episcopalians, we tend to look for the positive, but reading the Gospel today makes us listen to both the chastisement and the humor that Christ brings forth. Achieving perfection is, in actuality, only achieved by God – and striving for that is certainly admirable. But when the striving for perfection makes us forget the meaning of God's love for His creation, then we need to laugh at ourselves, and remember Christ's message to us. Are you loving God and His creation?
Jesus used the example of tithing to show how far they had missed the mark. God had commanded a tithe of the first fruits of one's labor as an expression of thanksgiving and honor for His intended care for His people (Deut. 14:22; Lev. 27:30). The scribes, however, went to extreme lengths to tithe on insignificant things (such as tiny plants) with great mathematical accuracy. They were very attentive to minute matters of little importance, but they neglected to care for the needy and the weak. Jesus admonished them because their hearts were not right. They were filled with pride and contempt for others. They put unnecessary burdens on others while neglecting to show charity, especially to the weak and the poor. They meticulously went through the correct motions of conventional religion while forgetting the realities. Jesus used a funny example to show just how out of proportion things had gotten with them. Gnats were considered the smallest of insects, and camels were considered the largest of animals in Palestine. Both were considered ritually impure. The scribes went to great lengths to avoid contact with gnats, even to the point of straining the wine cup with a fine cloth lest they accidently swallow a gnat. The stark contrast must have drawn chuckles as well as groans. What was the point of Jesus' lesson and humor? The essence of God's commandments is love — love of God and love of neighbor. God is love and everything He does flows from His love for us. Love is sacrificial; it both embraces and lifts the burdens of others. Do you allow the love of God to transform your mind and heart?
Now, you know me – I'm fairly exacting in the words I want to choose – even if I might not currently be able to pronounce everything just as I know it's right inside my head – but maybe this particular lesson for me is to remind others that the love of God is the important message from God and to all of God's creations. As Episcopalians, we tend to look for the positive, but reading the Gospel today makes us listen to both the chastisement and the humor that Christ brings forth. Achieving perfection is, in actuality, only achieved by God – and striving for that is certainly admirable. But when the striving for perfection makes us forget the meaning of God's love for His creation, then we need to laugh at ourselves, and remember Christ's message to us. Are you loving God and His creation?
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