The Pharisee was amazed to see
that he did not observe the prescribed washing before the meal.
This ritual washing was something over and above the law of Moses, a merely human tradition. The Pharisees might have seen such washing rituals as democratizing what had previously been a clerical prerogative or duty. Jesus seemed to the Pharisees to be very much a man of the people. Perhaps it was this apparent incongruity that allowed the Pharisee to be amazed, rather than simply his awareness that Jesus was indifferent to something that was important to him, the host and homeowner. Maybe if we can begin to understand why this ritual was important to the Pharisee, and why it seemed to him to matter, we can begin to feel the surprising impact of the response of Jesus to this amazement of the Pharisee.
The Lord said to him, “Oh you Pharisees!
Although you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish,
inside you are filled with plunder and evil.
Whatever the Pharisee might have thought of these ritual washings, however important they seemed, they were in fact merely external actions that were covering over internal deficiencies. They were distractions, not purifications of the plunder and evil in their hearts. Jesus called for a concern with what was inside their hearts more than the ritual purity of their hands. The maker of the outside would not be fooled by pristine outer condition if the inside was left in untouched filth.
it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person (see Matthew 15:11)
The Pharisees doubtlessly appreciated, at least unconsciously, the fact that their rituals were well within their human control, did not require great virtue, and were not the subject of overwhelming forces of temptation. But such practices were in fact the best they knew how to do in terms of presenting themselves as pure before God. Had they wanted to cleanse the insider as well as the outsider they likely wouldn't have known where to begin. This was probably not because the Scriptures could not have guided them, but rather because of the layers of that which was merely human that they superimposed over the wisdom of the Scriptures. Hence Jesus responded by cutting through the façade and teaching a way to address and cleanse their hearts.
But as to what is within, give alms,
and behold, everything will be clean for you.
This was not merely an indifferent act, but one which, to perform it, would require them to invest themselves in it. They would need to reorder their hierarchy of values and decide in favor of the poor, their neighbor, and therefore for God, and relinquish selfishness. It ran counter to their desire to be in control, since money and possessions were an expression of that desire. Giving to the poor was implicitly choosing God's values rather than human ones, and trusting in him more than in themselves.
For freedom Christ set us free;
so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.
It was not only Paul's audience who was tempted to submit to the yoke of slavery. It is us as well. We are tempted to neglect the Gospel and replace it with the law because the Gospel insists on a continuous surgery of the deepest levels of our hearts whereas the law can be appropriated to maintain an external façade of religiosity. But anything other than Christ cannot guarantee our freedom, and leads ultimately to a yoke of slavery to sin. It is sin that is all the more dangerous for its appearance as law and religion. But it is nevertheless a fall from grace, grace that is only to be found in Christ Jesus himself. Only with he himself as the Lord of our hearts, teaching us to give alms, and giving us the grace to truly give from our hearts can we become cleansed from the inside out. It is when we are led and taught by him, motivated by our faith in him, that our works matter, become purifying, and take on value.
For in Christ Jesus,
neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything,
but only faith working through love.
No comments:
Post a Comment