Luke 11:37-53  If you think Jesus is kind of weak and waffle-y, give this a read.  Even if you know he’s not, have a read so we can talk about it.  Here’s a link: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2011%3A37-53&version=NLT

Jesus is so incredibly frustrated by the hypocrisy that prioritizes practising a ritual that is symbolic of purity when people aren’t actually living pure lives. Some days I almost feel sorry for the religious leaders who keep judging Jesus and trying to trap him.  Every single time they just make fools of themselves. But today I feel Jesus’ frustration.  

There was a pretty extensive list of laws that God had given his people so that they could distinguish themselves as his own people.  As you read them, it’s interesting to notice how often some of the random sounding ones make really good scientific sense.  The thing is people didn’t know the science back then (and we still have SO much to learn). So God, who created the science, made rules to protect his people.  They didn’t understand the rules, but when they followed them, things went well for them.  One of the rules that comes to mind every time is that God commanded them to circumcise all male babies eight days after they were born.  Abraham had no way of knowing it, but by circumcising the men in his family, he not only reduced their ability to contract and transmit many STIs but he also dramatically reduced the likelihood that their partners would develop cervical cancer.   The research is conclusive.  But that’s not all.  Why the eighth day?  Again, they had no way of knowing it, but vitamin k, our body’s natural blood clotting vitamin, is  not present in newborns.  It naturally develops in the second to seventh days after birth.  So it wasn’t safe to circumcise a baby until he was eight days old.  

All that to say, God’s laws make sense whether or not we understand them.  However, the religious leaders had developed their own set of extra laws about how to follow the laws.  One of those was this hand washing ritual which wasn’t about being clean before you ate, it was a demonstration of ritual purity.  And I’m sure it was well-intentioned.  Perhaps it was a little like praying before we eat, a tradition that reminded them that their food was a good gift from God.  I don’t know. I am not an expert in Jewish law.  What I do know, is the laws about following the laws had become more important to the Pharisees and legal experts than the actual law.  And Jesus calls this guy out.  He’s throwing a party.  Jesus, who is something of a celebrity, is invited and the Pharisee has probably also invited his most influential friends.  But it’s apparent that he hasn’t invited the poor and disadvantaged, because Jesus confronts him for placing more value on ritual than on generosity.  He says, if you actually want to be pure, take care of the poor.  Purity is important.  God requires it, but we are made pure by living lives that honour him, not by honouring ourselves with displays of superficial cleansing. 

Jesus points out a few more of their misplaced priorities.  They get so busy giving exactly a tenth of everything they earn and grow to God that they forget that the purpose of their generosity is so that people in need can be helped. Yes, God did command his people to give ten percent of their earnings to him in whatever form they come.  It’s not because he is hungry or wants to redecorate the Temple.  It’s so that the money can be used to pursue justice for the oppressed.  It’s to provide for those who serve in the Temple. It’s not meant to be a tax, it’s an expression of gratitude and love for God. 

Jesus is frustrated that God’s laws are being used as leverage.  People who study and follow them religiously gain status in society.  That was never the point.  He warns them that their focus on appearance has made them forget that God’s laws can only be truly followed by a heart that loves him and his people. 

Enter the legal expert.  He is so eager to join the conversation and vindicate himself that he hurls himself under the bus. 

 He would have been from the profession that made the rules about how to follow God’s law.  He felt like his work was noble and he wanted to be distanced from Jesus’ accusations against the Pharisee and his friends.  But of course, his work is exactly what had created the problem.  His job was to tell you what to do clearly and concisely so that you could follow the law.  It was a to do list. If Jesus’ endless teaching on repentance and the kingdom of God has taught us nothing else, it is clear that it’s your heart that matters to God much more than actions performed in the right order.  Since he had clearly missed that point, Jesus drives it home.  With painfully clarity.  All this adding of rules has only driven God’s people further from him and further from his heart.  Not only are these people ignoring the heart of God, they have been leading their followers away from him as well.  It’s safe to say the party ended on a sour note and Jesus probably didn’t make the guest list the following week.

It is worth an introspective pause, especially for us who think we have a pretty good idea of what God wants from us.  God gave us laws.  They matter.  They help us know what honours him.  Without them, we wouldn’t know how to treat one another.  God’s laws are like a manufacturer’s manual for human beings.  There is a purpose for their existence.  It is to show us how God designed us to live, how we operate best.  They also demonstrate how entirely we fail to live that way and how desperately we need Jesus to change our hearts.  If I’m being real, as a mom I have stood in the sandals of those religious lawyers.  I have focused on how my kids are behaving far more than what is going on in their hearts.  And my misplaced focus on their behaviour often came from concern for how I appeared.  God wanted me to live for him.  He wanted me to model godly womanhood not by following a list of rules but by responding in gratitude to who he is and what he has done for me.  God wanted me to protect and teach them by living a life they would want to emulate, not by endlessly monitoring their every action for how it reflected on me.  Don’t get me wrong.  Sometimes I got it right.  Some days my heart was about God’s glory and not my reputation.  But sometimes I didn’t.  That’s why Jesus needed to preach a gospel of repentance, not perfection.  The Pharisees and teachers of the law needed it.  The disciples and curious crowds needed it.  I needed it.  I still do.