Devotions Archive Archive: 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 Search Archive Print This Article Go down today Tuesday, March 10, 2009 Matthew 23:1-4 Jesus speaks: "The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. They tie up heavy loads and put them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them. Ever had a boss like that? Or a parent, or partner, or even a friend? There is nothing he won't tell you how to do, and nothing he'll help you with. "You've got a problem, and I've got the answer" is the message he sends. "You're down and I'm up. You're little, and I'm big. You're stupid, and I'm smart. You're not OK, and I am OK." The usual response he makes to any protest: "But I'm just trying to be helpful." Words just don't get it done, though. Words without actions to back them up grate and grind inside my head. I get angry instead of appreciative. Jesus got angry too. In the rest of chapter 23 he calls those Pharisees, among other things: hypocrites, sons of hell, blind guides, whitewashed tombs, a brood of vipers. Wow! He turns their authority inside out. "The greatest among you will be your servant." This truth becomes evident when it's put into practice. It allows me to replace humiliation and resentment with peace and purpose. This is difficult for anyone who thinks life is about moving up, taking control, getting ahead. These words describe standard measurements of success, but that measurement is not the one Jesus uses. He encourages me to go up the down staircase, surrender, and stay behind. Tend to the wounded. Stay in the shadows. Build up my credit line with God, not Capital One. My own determination to be a servant often wanes. I see Jesus' point, but that awareness has to stretch into my hands, my wallet, and my time. The more I talk, the less I do ... that's very nearly always true. At the end of every day, what choices did I make to move down, to surrender, to serve? Nobody else much cares, but God really wants to know. And he wants to build me up to do it again tomorrow. It's you and you only, Lord, who made the world and all that's in it. You speak and summon the earth from the rising of the sun to the place where it sets. You shine forth, perfect in beauty. You come, you speak. Let me listen, Lord. "; Add      Edit    Delete