Matthew 15:10-20 (NIV)
10Jesus called the crowd to him and said, "Listen and
understand. 11What goes into a man's mouth does not make
him 'unclean,' but what comes out of his mouth, that is
what makes him 'unclean.' "
12Then the disciples came to him and asked, "Do you
know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?"
13He replied, "Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will
be pulled up by the roots. 14Leave them; they are blind guides. If a blind
man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit."
15Peter said, "Explain the parable to us."
16"Are you still so dull?" Jesus asked them. 17"Don't you
see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of
the body?
18But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these
make a man 'unclean.' 19For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder,
adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. 20These are
what make a
man 'unclean'; but eating with unwashed hands does not make him 'unclean.' "
John Smith was the only Protestant to move into a large
Catholic neighbourhood. On the first Friday of Lent, John
was outside grilling a big, juicy steak on his BBQ.
Meanwhile, all of his neighbours were eating cold tuna fish
for supper.
This went on each Friday of Lent.
On the last Friday of Lent, the neighbourhood men got together
and decided that something had to be done about John. He
was tempting them to eat meat each Friday, and they couldn't
take it anymore.
They decided to try to convert John to Catholicism. So they
went over and talked to him. John decided to join all of
his neighbours and become a Catholic, which made them all
very happy.
They took him to church, and the priest sprinkled some
water over him, and said, "You were born a Baptist,
you were raised a Baptist, and now you are a Catholic."
The men were so relieved, now their biggest Lenten temptation
was resolved.
The next year's Lenten season rolled around. The first
Friday of Lent came, and, just at supper time, when the
neighbourhood
was settling down to their cold tuna fish dinner, the smell
of steak cooking on a grill came wafting into their homes.
The neighbourhood men couldn’t believe their noses!
They called each other up and decided to meet over in John's
yard to see if he had forgotten it was the first Friday of
Lent.
The group arrived just in time to see John standing over
his grill with a small pitcher of water.
He was sprinkling some water over his steak on the grill,
saying, "You were born a cow, you were raised a cow,
and now you are a fish."
We find in this story the truth that we can talk all we
like about something but talk doesn’t always equate
with reality or appropriate actions.
Such was the point Jesus was making in our Scripture lesson.
At the beginning of Matthew 15 some Jewish leaders took
Jesus’ disciples to task for not washing their
hands before eating. Washing hands back then had nothing
to do
with hygiene. Such scientific discoveries were a long
way from the Israel of 2000 years ago.
Instead washing hands had to do with keeping a tradition—a
tradition of the elders. It was ritual cleanliness that
was at issue here.
Jesus turned on the elders and told them that they should
be more concerned with keeping the law than in arguing over
traditions. Added to that was the truth that keeping the
letter of the law while ignoring its main purpose, as they
tended to do, was even more pointless.
In our lesson, Jesus called the people together and used
what had happened with the disciples as a “teaching
moment”.
Jesus spoke of being clean and unclean—ritual terms
based on whether someone had kept the law properly or
not.
To be clean meant one was right with God. People who were
clean could come to worship. They could be a part of the
faith community.
Being unclean meant that the person had broken a law or
even a tradition. While unclean they weren’t right
with God. They couldn’t worship or be a part of the
faith community until they offered an appropriate sacrifice.
One way of becoming unclean was to break the Jewish dietary
laws. There were many things that Jews weren’t allowed
to eat. But Jesus stated that what went into a person’s
mouth wasn’t nearly as important as the words that
came out.
Being clean—being right with God—being in tune
with God wasn’t about keeping rules for the sake of
keeping rules. It wasn’t about food. It wasn’t
about washing hands. It wasn’t about outward signs
of piety. It wasn’t about showing off one’s
righteousness for all to see.
Being clean was an inward thing. Being right with God—being
in tune with God was something that began in the heart and
mind. It was too easy to appear to be outwardly pious while
being inwardly full of self-righteousness—full of
oneself.
Legalistic slavery wasn’t what a relationship with
God was all about. Heartfelt living—seeking to love
God and others, was the result God desired. Thoughts, words
and actions that went against love were the things which
truly caused someone to be “unclean”.
Jesus wanted them to throw away the letter of the law and
seek its purpose.
In the Toronto Star on February 12, 2004 the following story
was reported:
“A 16-year-old youth who hanged himself in his cell
at the Toronto Youth Assessment Centre could not be taken
promptly to hospital because the jail nurse had to fill
out a form, a coroner's jury was told yesterday.
The nurse was testifying at the inquest that is trying to
determine how the youth managed to hang himself with his
bedsheet while under a suicide watch at the detention centre
on Horner Ave. in Etobicoke, where 16- and 17-year-old youths
are held pending their trials.
The nurse told the jury it was her responsibility to prepare
a health-care record called a "transfer summary" and
that the youth, who had been cut down by a guard and had
paramedics working to revive him, could not leave until
the document was finished.
To complete it, she had to go to a nursing office, consult
the youth's medical chart and fill in five sections on
matters such as significant medical/psychiatric information,
current
medication orders, including the date ordered, and current
treatment orders.”
(adapted—names removed)
HAROLD LEVY, STAFF REPORTER
The letter of the law.
Keeping the rules, no matter what.
Not using discretion for fear of doing something wrong.
Worrying about what goes into the mouth without being bothered about what comes
out from the heart
.
Such rigidity continues to plague the Church.
In our own way, Churches have lost people while making sure our i’s are
dotted and our t’s are crossed.
Legalism—the emphasis on rules—and the harshness
it brings out in people and the Church, is something that
causes as many problems as it seeks to resolve.
But—Christianity is not about legalism!
It’s not about rules!
And yet many people continue to be nervous about doing “the
right thing”.
It’s interesting to me, as a minister, that when
I’m with people who aren’t involved in the Church—and
sometimes with those who are—I find a nervousness
in some folks.
They hope they don’t say something that will offend,
as if I’ve never heard swearing before.
They hope they don’t say anything that will show
them to be less than perfect as if I spend my time quietly
assessing
and judging their lifestyle to find it wanting.
They hope they don’t do anything that puts them in
a bad light.
It’s as if, in being a minister and somehow representing
God, I become judge and jury of who they are and what
they do.
That’s so sad because it tells me that those people
not only have the wrong impression of me but, much more important—they
have the wrong impression of God.
Their God is a harsh, judgemental God.
Their God lays down rules and expects them to be kept no
matter what.
Their God expects people to tow the line or else.
Their God is police, judge and jury all rolled into one.
But that’s not my God and I hope it isn’t your
God either.
Christianity is not about rules.
Christianity is about relationship.
We too often forget that Jesus didn’t hang around
with people who were perfect. He actually spent most of his
time relating to those who were out and out sinners. Jesus
didn’t come with a morally superior attitude, harping
at them to smarten up. Jesus didn’t remind them of
all the things they were doing wrong.
Jesus simply loved them. Jesus loved them—accepted
them—nurtured them and changed them—not through
harsh rules but through love.
Indeed, the people who Jesus didn’t have a lot of
time for—the ones who even angered Him, were those
who self-righteously kept the rules while making life miserable
for the people Jesus hung out with.
Legalists in the Church and those outside the Church, who
get all nervous about words and actions, don’t understand
that. And they don’t understand that because we in
the Church, have spent too much time and effort emphasizing
rules rather than relationships.
Heartfelt living—offering love and grace—living
for relationships, not rules—is such a wonderful
gift.
It’s a gift we can offer to all we meet.
And, in a joyous serendipity, we find it’s a gift
to ourselves. We receive a gift as we begin to relax
and learn to love others without condition. We receive a
gift
when we realize that gracious people set a tone and offer
an atmosphere that others find attractive and compelling.
We receive a gift as others seek us out and desire to
be with us, learn from us, care with us and help us.
Dorothy Day once said, “Jesus declared that we should
have one distinguishing mark: not political correctness
or moral superiority, but love.”
Rules or relationships?
Legalism or love?
Which are most important for our world?
Which are most necessary for those around us?
Which are core values for we who seek to follow Jesus Christ?
Relationship is at the core.
Love is at the core.
(1568)
© The Rev. Dennis Cook, St. Timothy’s Presbyterian
Church, Ajax, ON, Canada
