17 October 2018 - not lost in the little things

Today's Readings (Audio)

You pay tithes of mint and of rue and of every garden herb,
but you pay no attention to judgment and to love for God.
These you should have done, without overlooking the others.

High precision in smaller matters of religious observance can distract us from the weightier matters of justice and mercy and faithfulness. Jesus tells us that while these smaller matters are important they do not excuse us from our obligations to love God and to love neighbor. 

For example, absolute liturgical correctness won't excuse us if our hearts are full of "immorality, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, rivalry, jealousy, outbursts of fury, acts of selfishness, dissensions, factions, occasions of envy, drinking bouts, orgies, and the like." And this is not to say that liturgical correctness is important or even that it is unrelated to our ability to love well. It is to say that, certainly, it can become the sort of distractions about which Jesus warns.

When we start with the law and not the Spirit we often find ways to make religion self-serving. It becomes a list of accomplishments about which we can be proud rather than a work of God's mercy in us. When we look at our past week or so do we see boxes ticked on our lists of religious obligations? Do we see achievements of getting it all done? Or rather, do we see God working in our lives in spite of our weakness?

In contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
patience, kindness, generosity,
faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.
Against such there is no law.

The fruit of the Spirit never ends up feeling like an achievement. It never incites us to pride. We know that of ourselves we fail to be patient and kind. We fail to love in all kinds of ways. But the Spirit is not limited by our limits. He is able to bear this good fruit in us in spite of our limits. The scholars of the law tell us that these things are correct but only the Spirit lifts a finger to help us.

He is like a tree
planted near running water,
That yields its fruit in due season,
and whose leaves never fade.

The Spirit leads us beyond our need to satisfy ourselves. He teaches us to live for God by making us like Jesus who gives all he is for his Father.

Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified their flesh
with its passions and desires.
If we live in the Spirit, let us also follow the Spirit.