Our reading today is Matthew 12: 1 - 14. Remember that the opposition to Jesus is intensifying. He is still extremely popular with the crowds ... but the religious leaders are no longer just observing ... they are beginning to openly confront. After you read these verses ... join me again.
Religion is not a dirty word. It can be beautiful. It can be affirming. It can be faith-building. It can be supportive. It can help focus. It can be calming. It can challenge ... encourage ... teach ... correct ... train. It can be so good. But then, it can also turn toxic. Our passage today gives us two vivid illustrations when exactly that happened.
One example of religion turning toxic is when religion becomes more important than God. We see that in verses 1 - 8. For these Pharisees, the rules of the religion were more important than the presence of God. And nothing, absolutely nothing, was more important than the form of the religion. Do rules and rituals matter? I think so. Are they preeminent over everything? No. Jesus reminded these leaders of that when he quoted from the Hebrew prophets - quotes these religious leaders should have known well. Jesus reminded them of words from both Hosea and Micah.
Hosea 6:6 "For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgement of God rather than burnt offerings."
Micah 6: 6 - 8 "With what shall I come before the Lord and bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."
He applied those ancient words from their own revered prophets to the current situation. Matthew does not record the reaction of these particular Pharisees ... but we can imagine the resentment, the anger ... we can imagine because of what we learn in verse 14.
The second circumstance of toxic religion is in verses 9 - 14. In this example, religion had become more important to these Pharisees than people. Religion for them had lost its purpose. Rather than being an aid to help man touch God, it had become an entity in itself ... existing outside purpose. Jesus steps in to spotlight the disparity. In essence Jesus tells them that they bend the 'rules' when economics are concerned, when their livestock are concerned ... but not for a fellow human being? And then he proceeded to ignore their 'rule' and heal anyway.
So how do we apply these illustrations to our day ... to us? An extreme reaction would be to decry all religion ... to walk away from it because of the potential for damage and toxicity. Many in our time are doing just that. They observe abuse ... they observe misuse of authority and position ... they observe rules taking precedence over people ... they observe lack of purpose ... and they walk away. I understand that reaction. But I disagree with that conclusion.
God established religion ... and it was established for a purpose and for good. Jesus established the church ... and it was established for a purpose and for good. Its purpose is beautiful and good. I know things are far from perfect in our day. I know there has been and still are abuses and self-righteousness and self-serving. In fact, there still exists the same struggles that we see in our passage today. Today - religion, or denomination, or form, or tradition can become more important than God. And that is toxic! Today - religion, or denomination, or form, or tradition can become more important than people. And that is toxic!
So - walk away? No way! Jesus did not quit going to the Synagogue and Temple. He did not compromise on who He was or what He knew was His Father's will ... but He did not blast the Temple, or the Sabbath. He blasted those who would abuse them. We can learn much from His example.
If you are part of a church body, how can you help it keep its focus and purpose? How can you help strengthen it? What part can you play in ensuring that it does indeed encourage and challenge and teach and train? If you are not part of a church body, why not? Jesus was. Is it time to step back into that world - not expecting perfection - you won't find it - but expecting to play a role in being a purpose-driven part of the body of Christ?
May God give us wisdom ...
No comments:
Post a Comment