I find the readings for this week generally unsettling. Normally when I think of Jesus, I imagine someone kind and loving, accepting of all, a Jesus who heals us, a Jesus who loves us in spite of our past sinful ways (as he does the tax collector in Chapter 9). But the Jesus we will read about this week is all about tough love and I’m not quite sure how I feel about that! Here is a Jesus who accuses, who speaks of woe, desolation and hypocrisy, of being sentenced to hell.
The fact that Jesus is accusing the scribes and Pharisees doesn’t let me off the hook. Notice, to whom is Jesus addressing this teaching? The first verse this week (23:1) indicates that while Jesus speaks against scribes and Pharisees, the scribes and Pharisees are not actually present. Jesus is speaking to the crowds and to his disciples. If there is a warning for Jesus’ disciples about the words and deeds of the scribes and Pharisees then I know that there is a warning here that is also intended for me.
Am I in danger of blindness? What do I fail to see? How do I extend my horizons in order to see beyond my current field of vision? Am I in danger of being led astray by false messiahs and false prophets? Who or what are these false messiahs and how am I to recognize them? What exactly is it that the scribes and Pharisees are accused of? Could I too be a hypocrite?
These sorts of thoughts are scary but I think they are necessary. If we push them aside because they are too difficult for us, “too hot to handle, too cold to hold” so to speak, then yes, I think we may find ourselves at risk of blindness. In order to grow in faith and live out our lives as true followers of Jesus we need to occasionally check in on our dark sides. Some of the things a mother tells her children will keep them out of harms way (don’t touch the hot stove!) and others are meant to keep them alive (look both ways before you cross the street!). As a loving mother points out the dangers of life to her children to keep them safe and well (don’t get into a car with someone you don’t know!) so Jesus does for our spiritual well being, to keep us spiritually alive and holy (“the greatest among you will be your servant” 23:11).
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