Matthew 23:13-26
I once knew a man that would wind up in the same meetings I did. We were both chairs of committees. When asked if his committee had anything to report, he would invariably say "no" and then proceed to speak for 15 minutes on nothing. It was frustrating. This is what I think of when I read the term "blind guides". In life, there seems to be no shortage of those who know nothing but are more than willing to tell you all about it - and swear to it. Perhaps we are are guilty. How many times have we been willing to convict and condemn based on a media report of some incident or event?
So often we do not know the facts. The first basic skill for us should really be to listen. The clue might be why God gave us two ears and only one mouth. Listening is key. And what does this have to do with Advent?
It seems God was listening to us. God always listens to each one of us. God also heard the groanings of the Jewish people, of all humanity. Weary of rules and laws, capable of thoughts and love, his creations losing ground, getting stuck in a behaviors that will not yield wholeness or a holy people. Humanity still grumbles and prays. Even if it is a secret subconscious prayer for hope and for change, for freedom and love - we pray. God hears all our prayers. God hears the prayers we utter praying fervently on our knees and the prayers we pray silently in our hearts even if we cannot find the exact words for what our problems are.
The answer to all of us is the word. The word who is Jesus Christ. The word who was with God and who decided to become man and share in our humanity, to show us how to live. Jesus became man to answer our prayers by donning our fragile earthly shell and walk with us, eat with us and explain truths that have been tortured and restricted almost out of recognition. Jesus synthesized the ten commandments into two. Jesus showed, embraced us and showed us how to live. Eventually, Jesus showed us how to die and give us freedom and hope.
This Advent, pray and listen. Listen to your heart. Listen to what people are saying, not just with their words but with their actions and demeanor. I suspect the man in my meetings who spoke on and on about nothing simply was looking for affirmation and attention, perhaps love. Telling him to shut up or that he is an idiot would be exactly the wrong thing to do. We should listen first and the love as God loves us.
So first, listen.
I once knew a man that would wind up in the same meetings I did. We were both chairs of committees. When asked if his committee had anything to report, he would invariably say "no" and then proceed to speak for 15 minutes on nothing. It was frustrating. This is what I think of when I read the term "blind guides". In life, there seems to be no shortage of those who know nothing but are more than willing to tell you all about it - and swear to it. Perhaps we are are guilty. How many times have we been willing to convict and condemn based on a media report of some incident or event?
So often we do not know the facts. The first basic skill for us should really be to listen. The clue might be why God gave us two ears and only one mouth. Listening is key. And what does this have to do with Advent?
It seems God was listening to us. God always listens to each one of us. God also heard the groanings of the Jewish people, of all humanity. Weary of rules and laws, capable of thoughts and love, his creations losing ground, getting stuck in a behaviors that will not yield wholeness or a holy people. Humanity still grumbles and prays. Even if it is a secret subconscious prayer for hope and for change, for freedom and love - we pray. God hears all our prayers. God hears the prayers we utter praying fervently on our knees and the prayers we pray silently in our hearts even if we cannot find the exact words for what our problems are.
The answer to all of us is the word. The word who is Jesus Christ. The word who was with God and who decided to become man and share in our humanity, to show us how to live. Jesus became man to answer our prayers by donning our fragile earthly shell and walk with us, eat with us and explain truths that have been tortured and restricted almost out of recognition. Jesus synthesized the ten commandments into two. Jesus showed, embraced us and showed us how to live. Eventually, Jesus showed us how to die and give us freedom and hope.
This Advent, pray and listen. Listen to your heart. Listen to what people are saying, not just with their words but with their actions and demeanor. I suspect the man in my meetings who spoke on and on about nothing simply was looking for affirmation and attention, perhaps love. Telling him to shut up or that he is an idiot would be exactly the wrong thing to do. We should listen first and the love as God loves us.
So first, listen.
‘But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you lock people out of the kingdom of heaven. For you do not go in yourselves, and when others are going in, you stop them. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cross sea and land to make a single convert, and you make the new convert twice as much a child of hell as yourselves.
‘Woe to you, blind guides, who say, “Whoever swears by the sanctuary is bound by nothing, but whoever swears by the gold of the sanctuary is bound by the oath.” You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the sanctuary that has made the gold sacred? And you say, “Whoever swears by the altar is bound by nothing, but whoever swears by the gift that is on the altar is bound by the oath.” How blind you are! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? So whoever swears by the altar, swears by it and by everything on it; and whoever swears by the sanctuary, swears by it and by the one who dwells in it; and whoever swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by the one who is seated upon it.
‘Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. It is these you ought to have practised without neglecting the others. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel!
‘Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup, so that the outside also may become clean.
No comments:
Post a Comment