Blind guides

Matthew 15 : 1- 14

These days, when we read the gospels, we know at once who the 'bad guys' are - the Pharisees and scribes whom Jesus challenged time and again. But today, who does Jesus challenge? Who might be acting in the way those Pharisees and scribes did? Or is there no present day application?

Someone I was talking about this with pointed out that today, the church is the religious establishment, that sometimes acts in ways that resemble the pharisees. We Christians, being the 'church' may be guilty of the very things Jesus spoke harshly against. After all, legalism is quite common in the church communities we belong to - the church has its set of rules (usually man made) that determine what the members can and cannot do. There are codes of behavior that may have little to do with gospel values. The other day, I was sharing my experience of church with someone - looking back some eighteen years or so. As I described my experiences, I was surprised that I had so many memories of full time people leaving, business meetings that were full of pain and conflict and so on. Added up, the many incidents have made me a little cautious about my hope that the church be a truly gracious community.

Perhaps rules make it easier to control people. I believe there is a place for order in any community of people. But we must remember that Jesus turned the tables round each time the religious establishment held on to rules in a legalistic manner. People mattered to Jesus, who pointed to the spirit and not merely to the letter of the law.

It is dangerous to be 'blind guides' - the danger of course being greater for those who are church leaders. May our leaders embrace the true spirit of Jesus' values, and may we the community also be people who live by true gospel values.