And So It Continues. . .

Looking over my last couple of posts, there seems to be a consistent theme related to Jesus and his interaction with the religious power structure. It's not that I'm trying to be repetitive or I'm just out of creative ideas (although I freely confess to never having a creative and/or original thought). The reality is, in reflecting on the days leading up to Jesus' crucifixion, we cannot escape the intensifying conflict and clashing perspectives that existed between Jesus and the religious elite. So, the story continues.

After the confrontation at the temple, and the ensuing challenge to his authority, Jesus delivers a prophecy of judgment that begins with an indictment of the teachers of the law and the Pharisees. He exposes them as blind guides and hypocrites who, like whitewashed tombs, cover their spiritual deadness with the appearance of righteousness. Despite their insistence on keeping the law, they violated the more important matters of the law, things like justice, mercy, and faithfulness. Their arrogance and self-righteousness kept them from the kingdom of heaven and hindered others who were trying to enter. As much as Jesus longed to gather them "under his wings" of love and redemption, their spiritual pride and blindness made them unwilling.

Those absolutely convinced that they were both right and righteous had gone terribly wrong. The self-professed upholders of the law had violated the very spirit of the law. The proud defenders of truth ended up denying the Truth.

The Pharisees and the teachers of the law were by no means the last to be blinded by their own certainty and arrogance. There are those who claim to follow Jesus but end up defending their concept of truth in a manner that violates the more important issues of love and mercy. Seeing themselves as above error in all things spiritual, they condemn and divide, marring the witness of Christ's Church in the eyes of the world. More concerned about winning arguments than loving others, they set out on a mission to attack and destroy. Fed by spiritual pride and self-righteousness, they judge the hearts of others and proclaim their judgment publicly.

Does Jesus weep over us as he did Jerusalem?

Humility would remind us that we are not above the blindness of the Pharisees; it tells us that the character of Christ is more important than our arguments. Ultimately, truth cannot be reduced to mere propositions to be debated; truth is found in the person of Jesus Christ and his character must be reflected in us. To defend my understanding of the truth in a manner that is arrogant, divisive, and destructive is to deny the heart and character of the Truth. Remember the more important matters - it was not long after this encounter with the teachers of the law and the Pharisees that Jesus gathered with his disciples and simply told them, "My command is this: Love each other."