And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted

 

 Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, saying:  "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat.  Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do.  For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.  But all their works they do to be seen by men.  They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments.  They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.'  But you, do not be called 'Rabbi'; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren.  Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.  And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ.  But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.  And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

 

- Matthew 23:1–12 

 

In our current readings, it is Holy Week in Jerusalem.  Jesus has made His Triumphal Entry into the holy city.  He has cleansed the temple.  He has been quizzed by the religious leaders as to His authority to do so.  He has verbally sparred with the religious leaders, teaching parables against them.  The Pharisees have sought to entrap Him in a question regarding paying taxes to Caesar, which He has skillfully answered in a way to teach.  On Saturday, we read that on that same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Him and asked Him, saying:  "Teacher, Moses said to that if a man dies, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife and raise up offspring for his brother.  Now there were with us seven brothers.  The first died after he had married, and having no offspring, left his wife to his brother.  Likewise the second also, and the third, even to the seventh.  Last of all the woman died also.  Therefore, in the resurrection, whose wife of the seven will she be?  For they all had her."  Jesus answered and said to them, "You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God.  For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels of God in heaven.  But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, saying, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'?  God is not the God of the dead, but of the living."  And when the multitudes heard this, they were astonished at His teaching.  But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together.  Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?"  Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like it:  'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'  On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."

 

  Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, saying:  "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat.  Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do."  Here Jesus begins His final public sermon, which is a grand critique of the ways of the scribes and Pharisees.  There are various themes to this sermon, which comprises the whole of chapter 23 of St. Matthew's Gospel, and constitutes an eight-fold indictment of their works.  We begin here, where Jesus notes that they have God-given authority and teach God's law, but personally they are ungodly and cold-hearted.  To sit in Moses' seat means to hold the succession of office down from Moses himself.  In the synagogue, my study Bible explains, the teacher spoke while seated as a sign of such authority.  According to St. John Chrysostom, my study Bible says, the scribes were depraved in thought and in heart, but Jesus still upholds the dignity of their office -- for they speak God's word and not their own.  Like wise in the Church, my study Bible notes, the clergy are to be shown respect because they hold the apostolic office, although they also are sinners.  Moreover, the sins of the clergy do not relieve the people from their responsibilities before God.  

"For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.  But all their works they do to be seen by men.  They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments.  They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.' "  My study Bible explains that phylacteries are small leather pouches which contain passages of Scripture, and are worn on the arm of the forehead.  The purpose is to keep God's Law always in mind (see Exodus 13:9).  But here Jesus expresses the idea that they have been instead used as a show of false piety, as the Pharisees made them increasingly larger and more noticeable.  In the ways described here, Jesus elaborates on the theme that while their teaching and authority comes from God, these are to be honored -- but their own behavior is not to be imitated.  

"But you, do not be called 'Rabbi'; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren.  Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.  And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ.  But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.  And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  My study Bible notes that Christ's warnings against calling hypocrites father and teacher is not an absolute prohibition against using these terms (some teach this is so).  These terms are applied many times in the New Testament, all of which usages are inspired by God.  "Teacher" is used in John 3:10; Acts 13:1; 1 Corinthians 12:28; Ephesians 4:11; and 2 Timothy 1:11.  "Father" is used in Luke 16:24; 1 Corinthians 4:15; and Colossians 3:21.  Since the earliest days of the Church, it notes, bishops and presbyters have been called "father" not because they take the place of God, but because in their fatherly care for their flocks, they lead people to God, and they exercise fatherly authority within the community.  Additionally, my study Bible comments on this passage that God is our true Father and Teacher.  On earth, therefore, a "teacher" or "father" is one who leads people to God.  The scribes and Pharisees do the contrary. Through their self-righteousness and hypocrisy, they put themselves in God's position. 

It is worth taking a closer look at Christ's final words in today's reading,  These teachings have a heightened importance to us because they reflect something that Jesus has repeatedly sought to teach the disciples throughout His ministry.  He has tried to emphasize to them that their leadership in His Church must be suffused with the notion of service and humility.  They are chosen not to be self-righteous, and not to be hypocrites like the Pharisees and scribes of Christ's time.  The emphasis here is on humility first of all, recognizing who they are and how they must all relate to one another in the Church (echoing the teaching on the first and second great commandments in Saturday's reading, above).  First is the One:  the Teacher, the Christ; and second, they are all brethren.  One is our Father, and this Father is in heaven.  "But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.  And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."   Each time the disciples began to question Christ about what their own positions of "greatness" would be in His kingdom, He corrected them with teachings about how they are to care for the "little ones" of the Church.  See the whole of Matthew 18, and also Matthew 20:20-28.   He has repeatedly warned all His disciples against self-righteousness, noting the importance of personal change, casting aside the habits and patterns of behavior to which we cling that are in fact harmful to others, especially the "little ones," those of lesser stature, the humble in the Church.  See Matthew 5:20-42; 18:8-9.  These issues arise once again here, as Jesus seeks to contrast the behavior He teaches to them with the hypocritical behavior of the scribes and Pharisees.  Like those who sit in Moses' seat, the disciples will also be given a mantle of authority which will be extended to their successors, and they will teach what Christ has given them, building and extending, transfiguring the teachings in the Torah as revealed through Him.  In this sense, Jesus' teachings regarding the scribes and Pharisees here in chapter 23 will all apply within the Church.  Those who are to be His followers, even those who will be called teacher or father (or mother), must also be held to a higher standard.  In fact, we all need to be on guard about self-righteousness; we all need to understand the powerful remedy that humility is for all things.  For it is there that we remember our true Teacher and Father, and our need to follow in faith and adhere to Christ's word.  For we are all brethren, as He teaches.  Jesus says, "But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant," echoing earlier teachings.  Then He adds, "And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  This is the sin of making oneself a "god," to take the place of God.  It is what the kings and rulers of the ancient world would do; it is the ways in which pagan worship would often work.  In this vein, let us not neglect Jesus' key statement regarding a necessary element for hypocrisy:  "But all their works they do to be seen by men."  However, we must always be mindful that it is God who sees us.  In a time when so many seem to think we can structure reality through media of all kinds, through a screen that reflects the image we project and demands we think only of what others see about us, let us not forget this.  Jesus brings us a reality, a picture of the true structure of Creation, and the love that constitutes and makes it all.  This is a true picture of who we are, how we are called, and how indeed we find ourselves.

 

 

 

 

Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven

 

 Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, saying:  "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat.  Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do.  For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.  But all their works they do to be seen by men.  They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments.  They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.'  But you, do not be called 'Rabbi'; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren.  Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.  And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ.  But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.  And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

 

- Matthew 23:1–12 

 

In our current readings, it is Holy Week, the final week of Christ's earthly life.  Jesus has been in the temple in Jerusalem, teaching and disputing with the religious leaders.  Yesterday we read that when the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together.   Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?"  Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like it:  'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'  On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."  While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, saying, "What do you think about the Christ?  Whose Son is He?"  They said to Him, "The Son of David."  He said to them, "How then does David in the Spirit call Him 'Lord,' saying:  'The LORD said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool"'?  If David then calls Him 'Lord,' how is He his Son?"  And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore. 

 

  Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, saying:  "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat.  Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do.  For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers."   Matthew's chapter 23 is a great indictment of the scribes and Pharisees, and their ways of practicing the faith.   My study Bible describes the themes included in today's section of this chapter in the following way:  1) The religious leaders have God-given authority to teach God's Law, but they are personally ungodly and cold-hearted.  Their teaching may be honored, but they cannot be imitated.  2)  God is the true Father and Teacher of all.  A teacher or father on earth is one who leads people to God, but the scribes and Pharisees do the opposite -- even as they place themselves in God's position.  To sit in Moses' seat means to hold the succession of office down from Moses himself, similarly to the way in the Church we have the succession from the apostles.  To be seated in the synagogue was the position of a teacher, and a sign of this authority.  My study Bible says that St. John Chrysostom noted that the scribes were depraved in thought and heart, but Jesus is still upholding the dignity of their office.  This is because the scribes speak not their own words, but God's, from Scripture.  So also within the Church, my study Bible says, the clergy are shown respect as they hold the apostolic office, even though they also are sinners.  Moreover, whatever sins of the clergy may exist, it does not relieve the people from their own responsibilities before God.  

"But all their works they do to be seen by men.  They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments.  They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.'"  Phylacteries are small leather pouches which contain passages of Scripture, and are worn on the arm or forehead.  My study Bible says that the purpose was to keep God's Law always in mind (see Exodus 13:9).  But the Pharisees, in Christ's description, use them as a show of false piety -- making them ever larger and more noticeable for this purpose.

 

 "But you, do not be called 'Rabbi'; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren.  Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.  And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ.  But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.  And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  My study Bible comments that Christ's warnings against calling hypocrites father and teacher is not an absolute prohibition from using such terms.  "Father" and "teacher" are applied many times to people in the New Testament, and each of these usages are inspired by God.  Teacher is used in John 3:10; Acts 13:1; 1 Corinthians 12:28; Ephesians 4:11; and 2 Titus 1:11.  We find father used in Luke 16:24; 1 Corinthians 4:15; and Colossians 3:21.  From the earliest days of the Church, my study Bible comments, bishops and presbyters were called "father" not because they take the place of God, but because they act with fatherly care for their flocks, they lead people to God, and they also exercise fatherly authority within the community.  

My study Bible's commentary on the use of the title "Father" is quite useful for thinking about themes in today's passage of Christ's critique of the scribes and Pharisees.  For let us consider the ways in which we expect a good father to behave, the roles in which we expect a good father to act and to fulfill, and the responsibilities that go with such a position.  Of course, our own notions of what is truly the fulfillment of fatherhood come from God, and the ways in which Scripture has expressed to us the character of God the Father.  Please note that this ultimate role model of fatherhood also applies to women who are single parents, or who must take on the role of father for children and extended family for all kinds of reasons, and so the model still applies.  But when we think of the type of historical leadership a father of a family or tribe or extended clan was expected to embody, we have to consider Christ's words taken in their fullness of what He expected from His disciples, who would become the Fathers of the Church, and all those who would follow in their footsteps, even both as Fathers and Mothers of the Church.  What Jesus condemns is the hypocrisy of those who use their positions of authority for show, for clout, and to fulfill their own inflated or arrogant sense of their place in the community.  A good father of a family (or mother in the role of leadership) does not do this to care for family or others either.  Moreover, Christ's repeated emphasis for leadership is on humility.  This comes front and center.  When He emphasizes not to call one another "father" or "teacher," He does this by emphasizing that we all have one Father and one Teacher -- we have God the Father, and we have Christ the Son our Teacher.  Keeping such a thought in mind -- for all of us without exception -- is the real key to humility.  It's also the key to the kind of service that Christ expects from us, when He says, "But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.  And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  We remember Whom it is we seek to serve ultimately, and before Whom we need to humble ourselves.   This, again, is the model for a good father or head of a family.  For the flaws of the religious leaders are the flaws of a failed parent; the humility and service Christ teaches His disciples are the hallmarks of devoted and loving parents, especially in a leadership role.  So these teachings form a model for each of us, in the Church, in our communities, among our brothers and sisters, in our families.  Let us be humble in order to be exalted.

Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness

 

 And as He spoke, a certain Pharisee asked Him to dine with him.  So He went in and sat down to eat.  When the Pharisee saw it, he marveled that He had not first washed before dinner.  Then the Lord said to him, "Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness.  Foolish ones!  Did not He who made the outside make the inside also?  But rather give alms of such things as you have; then indeed all things are clean to you.  

 

"But woe to you Pharisees!  For you tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass by justice and the love of God.  These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.  Woe to you Pharisees!  For you love the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you are like graves which are not seen, and the men who walk over them are not aware of them."  

Then one of the lawyers answered and said to Him, "Teacher, by saying these things You reproach us also."  And He said, "Woe to you also, lawyers!  For you load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.  Woe to you!  For you build the tombs of the prophets, and your fathers killed them.  In fact, you bear witness that you approve the deeds of your fathers; for they indeed killed them, and you build their tombs.  Therefore the wisdom of God also said, 'I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and persecute,' that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the temple.  Yes, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation.  Woe to you lawyers!  For you have taken away the key of knowledge.  You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered."

 

- Luke 11:37-52 

 

 Yesterday we read that as Jesus preached, a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, "Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!"  But He said, "More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!"  And while the crowds were thickly gathered together, He began to say, "This is an evil generation.  It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.  For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this generation.  The queen of the South will rise up with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.  The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.  No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light.  The lamp of the body is the eye.  Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light.  But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness.  Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness.  If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light."

 

 And as He spoke, a certain Pharisee asked Him to dine with him.  So He went in and sat down to eat.  When the Pharisee saw it, he marveled that He had not first washed before dinner.  Then the Lord said to him, "Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness.  Foolish ones!  Did not He who made the outside make the inside also?  But rather give alms of such things as you have; then indeed all things are clean to you."   Jesus speaks of the importance of the inner life.  "Cleansing" is therefore related to an inner spiritual reality, and not simply an external focus.  We can see the relationship between His preaching to followers in yesterday's reading (above) and what He is saying to the Pharisees regarding alms and the inner life, which reflects His teachings on treasure of the heart and almsgiving in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 6:19-21).  St. Paul writes that to those who are clean, nothing is unclean (Romans 14:14). 

"But woe to you Pharisees!  For you tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass by justice and the love of God.  These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.  Woe to you Pharisees!  For you love the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you are like graves which are not seen, and the men who walk over them are not aware of them."   Woe is a term which indicates complete and devastating destruction, my study bible explains (6:24-26; see Isaiah 5:18-24, Amos 5:18-19, Revelation 12:12).  It  comments that because the example of a leader can be so influential, leaders who do not love God can hinder others from finding God as well, and so leaders are held to a higher standard (James 3:1).  Therefore to be hypocrites is to fail as religious leaders.  Moreover, my study bible adds, these warnings are especially important to those Christians who come from traditions which have maintained ancient practices such as tithing ("These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone"), sacred vessels, holy rites, and following patristic tradition.  These practices, it says, can be expressions of deep faith, lead a person to deeper commitment to God, and safeguard our life in Christ -- or they can be observed without ever taking them to heart, and lead to condemnation.

Then one of the lawyers answered and said to Him, "Teacher, by saying these things You reproach us also."  And He said, "Woe to you also, lawyers!  For you load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.  Woe to you!  For you build the tombs of the prophets, and your fathers killed them.  In fact, you bear witness that you approve the deeds of your fathers; for they indeed killed them, and you build their tombs.  Therefore the wisdom of God also said, 'I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and persecute,' that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the temple.  Yes, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation.  Woe to you lawyers!  For you have taken away the key of knowledge.  You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered."  On the prophet Zechariah, there are some patristic teachings that this was the prophet at the time of Joash the king (2 Chronicles 24:20-22), while others say that this refers to the father of St. John the Baptist.  According to tradition, he was also murdered in the temple.

Let us note that Jesus' teachings here of woe to the Pharisees and lawyers are similar to His warnings to those who asked for a sign in yesterday's reading, above.  But there is a difference, in that His words in today's readings are addressed to the religious leaders, and not simply those who ask for a sign or who reject His preaching.  Here, Jesus links the religious leaders' hypocrisy -- and by implication, their eventual conspiracy to kill Him -- to the leaders before themselves who killed and persecuted apostles and prophets sent by God to call people back to God.  But this time, unlike in yesterday's reading, the warning is not about the judgment that is to come at the end of all things.  Here the warning is given to "this generation" and what shall be required of it, especially those who are supposed to lead the people (like the experts in the Mosaic Law), but whose heart is in the externals, and not on drawing closer to God and therefore lack real depth of knowledge of God in that communion of the heart.  Therefore they take away the key of knowledge to their flocks -- they did not enter in themselves, and those who were entering in they hindered.  All of this is to point to the power of God which is at work in the world (which Jesus recently referred to as the "finger of God," the Holy Spirit, in Monday's reading).  We have seen ample demonstrations of the power of God through Jesus' ministry, and that this power is also shared with His followers as it has worked through the apostles (as, for example, when the Seventy returned with joy to report healings and exorcisms in this reading).  Here, Jesus gives a negative warning about the power of God, in the sense that He warns of rejecting that true power within oneself, by neglecting the matters of the heart and real faith which is an internal work.   These religious leaders are not only the heirs of those who killed the prophets and apostles in the generations before them, but they are themselves rejecting, and will work to conspire to murder, a "greater than" Jonah or Solomon who is Christ Himself.  In this sense, the warnings about the rejection and abuse of the Holy Spirit, and the working of God in the world, also teach us what the negative power of rejection can do.  That would specifically include rejection by those who should know better, and do not act out of ignorance.  Let us consider for today our own assumptions about the power of God at work in the world.  Is God extraneous to our lives?  Does God exist (or God's power in the world) in some compartmentalized place we rationalize away, or we don't think about?  Are our services mere reminders, or acts designed to prompt pious thoughts or sentimental understanding of Christ?  Or does this power live in our lives somehow, with our awareness of how we participate in Christ's life or not, how we cooperate with grace at work or not?  Jesus' teachings certainly do not have the flavor of a powerless musing or image we're supposed to take as merely metaphorical for nice sentiments and pious thoughts.  His speech is full of power and made with absolute conviction.  The thing is, do we realize how this power is at work in our lives?  Do we make time for prayer and communion so that we strengthen our lives in Christ?  Are we aware of the subtle and not-so-subtle ways we can experience this and truly find help and wisdom in ways that help us transcend and go through our own problems?  Are we aware of what we're missing when our souls are not refreshed through spiritual communion?  Do we neglect it so that we have no idea what we are missing?  These are choices that still remain up to us, just the way that Jesus indicates through His own strong speech.  We might not have Jesus with us in the flesh, exhorting us to pay attention.  But Christ is at work through us and in us, and we are assured of that, even as He has exhorted us to follow in His light and bear that light into the world -- and even as we read of the woes for those who choose to knowingly reject it. 

They bind heavy burdens hard to bear; and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers

 Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, saying:  "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat.  Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do.  For they bind heavy burdens hard to bear; and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.  But all their works they do to be seen by men.  They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments.  They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.'  But to you, do not be called 'Rabbi'' for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren.  Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.  And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ.  But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.  And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

- Matthew 23:1-12

In yesterday's reading, Jesus was confronted by the Pharisees in the temple.  We are in Jerusalem:  He has made His Triumphal Entry, cleansed the temple, and been questioned by various groups of the leadership:  chief priests and elders, disciples of the Pharisees and Herodians, and the Sadducees.  But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together.  Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying,  "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?"  Jesus said to him, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?"  Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like it:  'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'  On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."  While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, saying, "What do you think about the Christ?  Whose Son is He?"  They said to Him, "The Son of David."  He said to them, "How then does David in the Spirit call Him 'Lord,' saying:  'The LORD said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool"'?  If David then calls Him 'Lord,' how is He his Son?"  And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore.

 Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, saying:  "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat."  My study bible introduces us to what is Jesus' grand critique of the Pharisees that begins here.  To outline what Jesus has to say, this is how my study bible puts it for the verses in today's reading:  "(1)  They have God-given authority and many God-given commandments, but they are personally ungodly, coldhearted and vainglorious.  Their teaching is to be honored, but they are not to be imitated (vv. 2-7).  (2)  God is our true Father.  A true teacher leads his people to God.  The Pharisees do the opposite, placing themselves in God's stead (vv. 8-12)."  Moses' seat was a special chair in the synagogue; the most famous rabbi in the town would be assigned this seat.

"Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do."  My study bible teaches us:  "The rabbinic teachers assumed an intrinsic value for their own office as the seat of authority.  According to the prevailing system of the Pharisees, the student in rabbinic tradition submitted himself to his master's authority in a total and servile manner.  The call of Jesus to His disciples differed radically from the rabbinic system in that (1) the disciples were not merely servants but beloved friends; (2) their calling did not imply they would themselves become independent masters; (3) the brotherhood of disciples would remain unified and loyal to Jesus."

"For they bind heavy burdens hard to bear; and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.  But all their works they do to be seen by men.  They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments."  My study bible tells us that phylacteries and borders of their garments refer to articles worn by pious Jews to remind them of God's law. 

They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.'  But to you, do not be called 'Rabbi'' for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren.  Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.  And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ.  But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.  And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  My study bible tells us here:  "Jesus warns against calling hypocrites father and teacher.  Far from being a prohibition against using these terms under any circumstances, it is a warning not to use them undeservedly.  Both terms are applied to men in the New Testament.  'Father' is used in Luke 16:24; 1 Cor. 4:15; and Col. 3:21.  In the earliest Christian communities, this term was applied to bishops and presbyters, because they represent the Father in the Church.  'Teacher' is used in John 3:10; Acts 13:1; 1 Cor. 12:28; Eph. 4:11; and 2 Tim. 1:11."

I think one thing that we can see clearly in this reading is Jesus' placement of God the Father first before all things, as indicated by yesterday's reading and His naming of the first great commandment as "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind."  Jesus is perfectly consistent in His teaching in this respect.  His criticism of the Pharisees comes repeatedly with the message that they have forgotten the priorities of God in their applications of the Law, and the customs they have developed around around the Law.  His focus in today's reading on One Father and One Teacher reflects the importance of these priorities -- and it naturally follows that to teach that "He who is greatest among you shall be your servant, and whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  The greatness of God and our love and devotion to God leads us to a sense of necessary humility about ourselves; this is a humility that accompanies the second great commandment from yesterday's reading:  "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."  When Jesus calls the Pharisees to task for using their religious authority to "bind heavy burdens hard to bear; and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers," He is criticizing a kind of self-aggrandizement that has forgotten both humility before God and love of neighbor.  And the rest of the criticisms follow this.  Therefore, what we conclude from Jesus' teaching is not merely criticism of a system that was in place at the time He cleansed the temple, but they are also commands of His that we, too, are called on to practice here and now.  He doesn't criticize the Law itself, and the Prophets, nor the teaching that takes place on the basis of these things.  But His teaching of the greatest commandments, with the love of God coming first, put us in a place where we see a necessary humility before God, without which we can't truly practice love for one another -- and through which we are expected to grow in understanding and wisdom in practicing that love.  To place heavy burdens on others, without the slightest willingness to practice or exercise mercy (to use even a finger to help carry), is to fail on both counts!  It is time, always, to understand this message, to listen both to our One Teacher and One Father, and be guided in our humility before them.