I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that
of the scribes and Pharisees,
you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven.
The righteousness of the Pharisees was insufficient because it did not touch their hearts. Their righteousness made them able to put on a good show before others but was revealed by Jesus to be hypocrisy. They were fastidious about the details of the law but in such a way that motivations such as pride and greed were allowed to thrive. Because they did not address their motivations and intentions they found ways to use the law both to build up their egos and to tear down others around them. It should be harder for us as Christians to fall into a similar trap since we have the Holy Spirit to convict us of sin. Yet we too sometimes stop at the level of external appearances. We are sometimes afraid to let the Divine Physician work as deeply in us as he desires. At such times, we should recognize that the Pharisees never found happiness pursuing a path of pride. Mere appearance will not appease our deepest longings either.
You have heard that it was said to your ancestors,
You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment.
It is not enough to merely be free of the sin of murder while cherishing in our hearts the beginnings of murder, the intentions to make us want to tear down and harm others. Even if our target is only at the level of their reputation, even if our violence is only gossip or name calling, these are still murder in incipient forms. Even, indeed, if our violence is only a thought that we cherish and to which we cling after the Spirit tells us to let it go, that thought is already the beginnings of murder within us.
Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war (see James 4:1-2).
James revealed that wars don't just suddenly appear without first growing within individual human hearts. It is not as though there are some people who simply begin with evil hearts and immediately pursue the most violent course possible. It is rather that people like us who are unwilling to let Jesus address the violence within our hearts become more and more hardened in their intentions, more insistent on their right to their desires for pleasure. If we harden our hearts to the healing hand of Jesus we may find ourselves to be the source of the violence and war that we decry in the world around us. Even if some sense of propriety, of how it would look bad to others, of fear of repercussions and retributions, keeps us from actually acting in violence we may nevertheless cultivate an inner violence that is no less for the lack of external expression. In fact, it will spill out into our relationships. It will make of us unpleasant individuals and will make it a chore for anyone who endeavors to be our friend.
Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar,
and there recall that your brother
has anything against you,
leave your gift there at the altar,
go first and be reconciled with your brother
How can we address the lurking shadow of violence that is in fact in some measure in all of our hearts? Jesus suggests that we actively act against our intentions of violence. He does not recommend being passive, suggesting that we not for our brother to come to us for reconciliation but that we go to them. If we find ourselves cultivating any animosity toward anyone the best way to purify ourselves of it is by acting with love toward them. This is true spiritual warfare that overcomes evil within us and in the world around us.
If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (see Romans 12:19-20).
Violence, even when not acted upon is a drought for the spirit. We cannot thrive while we continue to secretly cherish grudges in our hearts. No one can. Yet it seems that everyone does and that Christians are no exceptions. Let us imitation Elijah and pray that this drought comes to end by the healing rain of the Holy Spirit himself.
So Ahab went up to eat and drink,
while Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel,
crouched down to the earth,
and put his head between his knees.
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