If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

 

 "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

"The lamp of the body is the eye.  If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light.  But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness.  If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!  

"No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other.  You cannot serve God and mammon."

 

- Matthew 6:19-24 

 

We are reading through the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5 - 7).  In yesterday's reading, Jesus taught about prayer:   "And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do.  For they think that they will be heard for their many words.  Therefore do not be like them.  For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.  In this manner, therefore, pray:  Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.  Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.  And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.  For Yours is the kingdom and the power and  the glory forever.  Amen.  For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." 

 "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."  My study Bible comments that by attaching themselves to treasures on earth, people cut themselves off from heavenly treasures.  One becomes a slave to earthly things, rather than free in Christ.  This is also a part of the cultivation of dispassion, detachment.  It notes that the heart of discipleship is in disentangling ourselves from the chains earthly things would place upon us, and attaching ourselves to God, who is the true treasure.

"The lamp of the body is the eye.  If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light.  But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness.  If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!"  My study Bible explains that the mind (in Greek, nous, the root of words like "noetic" in English; metanoia in Greek) is the spiritual eye of the soul.  It illuminates the inner person, and governs the will.  To keep one's mind wholesome and pure is fundamental to Christian life.  

"No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other.  You cannot serve God and mammon."  As a slave who serve two masters, people try to keep an attachment both to earthly and heavenly things (note the keyword "attachment").  But this kind of slavish attachment to both earthly and heavenly things is impossible -- both demand full allegiance, my study Bible tells us.  Jesus calls mammon ("riches") a master not because wealth is evil by nature, but because of the control it has over people.  

What is mammon exactly?  Some translate this word as "riches."  Others suggest "treasure."   When these Gospels were written in Greek, apparently their authors did not feel there was a sufficient Greek word that captured it exactly and so we're given mammon.  Here and in Luke 16:13, Jesus speaks of mammon in a personified way, and indicating opposition to God, so suggesting an evil force akin to a god or the demonic.  Originally it seems have been a Chaldean word that indicates "what is trusted in."  So taken altogether, it seems that the point of Christ's juxtaposition of God and mammon here is teaching us about valuing the material, or what we "treasure up," as if we rely on it to save us and fulfill all the needs we have.  This is by nature, effectively, something that is opposed to God, as it is God who not only truly saves us, but God who asks for our primary dependence and loyalty.  Elsewhere, in the parable of the Sower (Matthew 13:1-23) -- Christ's foundational parable for His gospel mission -- Jesus speaks of the "deceitfulness of riches" as that which is symbolized in the thorns that choke the word of God in human beings.  That "deceitfulness of riches" gives us another key to Christ's view of the character of mammon, akin to one we think is a friend, but who betrays us.  This is the sum total of the effect of trusting in mammon, and Jesus' warning takes on a greater weight as He speaks of needing to choose whom we serve.  Whether or not we'd like to say we're capable of choosing both or of loving or serving more than one thing at once, Christ's words are true -- this is the way that life works.  It is the foundation of creation itself; we seek Creator first to set all things in order.  To choose to serve the "creature" or even something man-made like material treasure is to be out of balance, confused.  In a sense it is the blind leading the blind; or, in this case, something with no capacity for understanding leading us altogether, like the Israelites using a golden calf to worship God (Exodus 32).  Jesus begins today's reading by speaking about treasure and the heart.  Many interpretations suggest that this is about using one's wealth in an unselfish way, through charity.  But clearly the teaching on mammon asks us what we trust in, and to make a choice what we will serve first (and obviously, we may also serve God through acts of charity; see James 1:27).  The single-mindedness Christ asks us for is embodied in His use of the eye as metaphor.  Our focus must take in the light of God to guide us, leaving out the darkness that would fill us with its own bad effects.  The nature of the mind is one that does not compartmentalize efficiently or well, and certainly not for a lifetime; our own self-contradictions if not resolved will result in a darkness indeed.  Jesus says, " If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!"   He warns us about a kind of darkness that is like a black hole; it simply keeps absorbing whatever there is into its darkness.  Christ always portrays human beings as those who are on a path somewhere, and so we must carefully choose what we follow, what ultimate guides us, where our loyalty lies.  A truly materialistically-minded person may choose to believe that we are simply a bag of cells, components of matter, and so a kind of neutral -- even stagnant -- entity which outside forces can't much change.  But this kind of trust in matter alone is deceitful and blinding, for life and the forces around us are persuasive indeed, especially when we're not really paying attention and not making a clear choice.  Christ emphasizes over and over again the importance of our focus, and here indicates the stark choice of what we serve first -- for this choice will come up over and over again in our lives.  Let us consider where our heart is, and where our eye (our mind) is focused. In the Greek text, the word rendered "good" (in if therefore your eye is good) can literally be translated as "single" or "simple," but that word is used in the Gospels to mean "pure" or "unadulterated."  If we take these meanings altogether, we have an admonition regarding how we look out at the world, and what kind of things block not only our vision but the light that illuminates our minds, bodies, and souls.  Jesus speaks of a wholistic life, and the importance of our own clarity and direction. 

Let your "Yes" be "Yes," and your "No," "No"

 "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.'  But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.  If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.   And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.

"Furthermore it has been said, 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.'  But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.

"Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.'  But I say to you, do not swear at all:  neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.  Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black.  But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.'  For whatever is more than these is from the evil one."

- Matthew 5:27-37

Yesterday we read that Jesus taught:  "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.'  But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment.  And whoever says to his brother, 'Raca!' shall be in danger of the council.  But whoever says, 'You fool!' shall be in danger of hell fire.  Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way.  First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.  Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison.  Assuredly, I say to you, you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny."

 "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.'  But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart."  My study bible tells us that the issue here is not the God-given mutual attraction of men and women, but rather the selfish promptings of lust.  This is a question of thinking in terms of acquisition.  My study bible adds that sin does not come out of nature, but rather out of the distortion of nature for self-indulgence.  But it cautions us to recall that thoughts that enter thine mind involuntarily are not sins but rather temptations.  They only become sins when they are held and entertained.  Jesus asks us to consider the wholeness of a human being, not imply outward actions, but the fullness of the soul, of who we are.

 "If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.   And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell."   This imagery is given not to be taken literally, but Christ uses metaphorical language to emphasize decisive action to avoid sin and thereby protect the whole self.

"Furthermore it has been said, 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.'  But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery."  My study bible remarks that in contrast to the easy access to divorce under the Mosaic Law, and because of the misuse of divorce in His time, Jesus repeatedly condemns divorce (see also 19:8-9), and emphasizes the eternal nature of marriage.  Additionally, however, it must be noted that the possibility of divorce on the grounds of sexual immorality tells us something important:  that marriage -- as other relationships -- can be destroyed by sin.  It is a recognition of abuse resulting in broken communion.  My study bible says that the Church allows divorce as a concession to human weakness and as a corrective measure of compassion when a marriage has been broken.  Let us note also that the possible reason for divorce Jesus names is simply that, a possibility.  This is not a command to divorce; in all cases relationships are redeemable but that depends on both parties.

"Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.'  But I say to you, do not swear at all:  neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.  Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black.  But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.'  For whatever is more than these is from the evil one."   My study bible comments here that trust cannot be secured by swearing an oath by things that are not in humanity's possession anyway, but rather only by simple integrity. 

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus seems to have an overarching theme of the integrity of the wholeness or fullness of a person.  He is encouraging each of us in a "not-so-simple" way to be what we can be, to become more truly and deeply, and with faith, what we are in God's sight.  He asks us not to settle for a worldly or selfish point of view, but for something quite different which is indicated by participation in the kingdom of heaven.  In this light, He gives us different goals than the world does, and asks us to pursue a life of blessedness, of a kind of joy that is the product of a fully-integrated spiritual life, not one separated from our worldly lives.  In today's reading, He emphasizes this kind of integrity by first of all separating out impulses that destroy or deny the wholeness of who we are.  In yesterday's reading (see above), He spoke of anger being akin to murder.  In today's He mentions lust.  Let us note that my study bible points out that lust in this context does not indicate a simple normal attraction, but rather a kind of covetousness, a selfish orientation that is nurtured or held onto.  It is here that Jesus first uses the language of surgery, such as might be applied in His time to an infection that might spread to the whole body, and so amputation is required to save the whole person although parts might be lost.  It is in this context that He speaks of the preference to lose an eye or hand rather than the whole body perish.  Metaphorically an eye covets what does not belong to the person, a hand reaches out to grasp or grab where it should not.  Jesus emphasizes integrity and wholeness by reminding us that if a small thing gets hold of us and takes all our attention and time and energy it can drag the rest of us down with it, making a mess of the whole of our lives.  Integrity is further emphasized through His warnings about divorce.  When is marriage worth sacrificing?  Should we easily cast something away that is good or does good?  In Christ's time, a wife could be cast off for almost any reason -- and we are given to understand through Jesus that such relationships are sanctified by God and should be cherished for what they are truly worth.  It's worth remembering also that He does not excuse abuse nor overlook the possibility of such a relationship being destroyed.  But in our fullness of integrity as human beings, we must remind ourselves what the goodness of communion means and especially in the context of the possibilities of marriage.  See also Jesus' view on marriage as two becoming one flesh for a fuller understanding (Matthew 19:3-6).  This concept of integrity is emphasized more fully through Christ's teaching on swearing oaths.  To "let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No' " is to act with the greatest integrity of all.  When Jesus adds, "For whatever is more than these is from the evil one" He is again giving us a sense of temptations that can lead to a contamination (so to speak) of the whole of one's integrity.  This teaching is an emphasis on what it is to be pure in heart as well, in which we are not duplicitous, but rather the same on the inside as the outside.  It seems that it is also in this sense that Jesus praises Nathanael, in John's Gospel, when He says, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!" after Nathanael asks whether any good thing can come from Nazareth (John 1:45-49).   When our word becomes truly worth its meaning, it is in some sense "bankable."  That is a certain kind of fullness of integrity that Jesus encourages us to aspire to.  It is a worthy endeavor indeed.  All in all, today's passage gives us many ways to enhance our lives and our stature, ways of making our souls full of substance.  It's important that these concepts are not given to us simply as talents or things with which God enhances us or not.  Rather Jesus presents them all as things toward which we can work in faith.  They are all things each of us can develop, acquire, and build up through discipleship.  And that is a most important and essential component of our faith:  it is one of growth, change, forgiveness, and ongoing endeavor and mission.  Indirectly we can conclude a tenet Jesus will teach later, that of endurance, and a spirit of never giving up even in what seems like the darkest or most difficult of times.  Jesus teaches us that with God's help, all things are always possible.  Our Lord is our greatest cheerleader, if you will, His mission in our world is not simply one of redemption but of promise to all human beings with humanity held in the highest esteem for the things of which we are each capable.  This is the discipleship He offers to us.  Shall we take Him up on it, and follow Him to the goals He sets for us?

Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or do evil, to save life or to kill?

Now it happened that He went through the grainfields on the Sabbath; and as they went His disciples began to pluck the heads of grain.  And the Pharisees said to Him, "Look, why do they do what is not lawful on the Sabbath?"  But He said to them, "Have you never read what David did when he was in need and hungry, he and those with him:  how he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the showbread, which is not lawful to eat except for the priests, and also gave some to those who were with him?"  And He said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.  Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath."

And He entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand.  So they watched Him closely, whether He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him.  And He said to the man who had the withered hand, "Step forward."  Then He said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or do evil, to save life or to kill?"  But they kept silent.  And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."  And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.  Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him.

- Mark 2:23-3:6

Yesterday, we read that Jesus went out again by the sea; and all the multitude came to Him, and He taught them.  As He passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax office.  And He said to him, "Follow Me."  So he arose and followed Him.  Now it happened, as He was dining in Levi's house, that many tax collectors and sinners also sat together with Jesus and His disciples; for there were many, and they followed Him.  And when the scribes and Pharisees saw Him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, they said to His disciples, "How is it that He eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners?"  When Jesus heard it, He said to them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.  I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance."  The disciples of John and of the Pharisees were fasting.  Then they came and said to Him, "Why do the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?"  And Jesus said to them, "Can the friends of the bridegroom fast while the bridegroom is with them?  As long as they have the bridegroom with them they cannot fast.  But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days.  No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; or else the new piece pulls away from the old, and the tear is made worse.  And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine bursts the wineskins, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined.  But new wine must be put into new wineskins."

Now it happened that He went through the grainfields on the Sabbath; and as they went His disciples began to pluck the heads of grain.  And the Pharisees said to Him, "Look, why do they do what is not lawful on the Sabbath?"  This isn't lawful because it was considered to be a form of work, a violation of the Sabbath-rest.  My study bible says that "'Pharisaism' is a very real danger for all.  Ruler for religious practice are not bad in themselves, but when adherence to those rules triumphs over mercy and human need, the practice leads people away from God, not toward Him."

But He said to them, "Have you never read what David did when he was in need and hungry, he and those with him:  how he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the showbread, which is not lawful to eat except for the priests, and also gave some to those who were with him?"   My study bible explains that "Abiathar was appointed high priest during David's reign (1 Sam. 23:6-11).  His father, Ahimelech, provided David and his men, who were starving, with holy bread intended for priests only (1 Sam. 21:1-6)."

And He said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.  Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath."  There is a similar saying in rabbinical literature:  "The Sabbath has been given unto you; you have not been given unto the Sabbath."  Jesus, however, says my study bible, "puts what He teaches into practice, interpreting the Law with authority.  Only God can say He is Lord of the Sabbath."

And He entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand.  So they watched Him closely, whether He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him.  And He said to the man who had the withered hand, "Step forward."  Then He said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or do evil, to save life or to kill?"  But they kept silent.   A note tells us, "Jesus is motivated by compassion.  He does not deny Sabbath traditions, but teaches that it is more important to do good on the Sabbath than to maintain the strict observance of Sabbath rest.  The religious leaders are motivated by zeal for the rigid performance of rabbinic tradition; for them outward performance is more important than doing good.  The two perspectives are incompatible."

And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."  And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.  Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him.  My study bible tells us, "In their anger and self-deception, the Pharisees believe that in order to serve God, they must collaborate with their enemies, the Herodians, to murder the One who is the true Servant of God."   The Herodians were members and supporters of the royal court of Herod Antipas, allied with and serving as part of the Roman government.

In this time of Lent and its association with fasting rules, we may well think of what it is to be healed.  One purpose of fasting is, of course, for our own healing, on many levels.  Fasting practices are designed to cut away externals, the things we think we need that we don't really need, in order to focus in on what is truly good for us, what truly feeds us.  It's to get in touch with who and what we really are, and where our heart lies, how our lives are going.  We focus in on Christ, and our relationship with God.  There is a commentary by St. John Chrysostom that, despite his setting in the 4th century, really brings home the purpose of the fast.  In a sermon, he preached that his well-heeled flock should put the servants to rest for awhile, and get out of the fuss and fire and grease spitting everywhere in the kitchen, put away the fancy utensils and all the elaborate preparations of this elegant food or that, and just basically give it a rest for awhile, to put it into our language.  Resting, in this context, is really to get in touch with God, and thereby we see what it is we really need.  This is why rest is for wholeness, and the point of a Sabbath-rest.  So, we can take all these rules as rules that are essentially for our health and well-being, on every level.  However, my study bible points out that when zealous preoccupation with the rules becomes a kind of idol, and the whole focus, then we are headed for trouble.  It really doesn't matter how good the rule is, in that case, as my study bible puts it:  "when adherence to those rules triumphs over mercy and human need, the practice leads people away from God, not toward Him."  If we remember that the purpose of every religious rule is really for our health and well-being, on so many levels -- from our basic root in spiritual reality to our psychology to our physical body -- then the goal is what becomes essential, and not the legalistic rendering of the rule itself.  Hence, Jesus' words:  "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath."  As Son of Man, and fulfillment of the Law, He is Lord of the Sabbath.  His restoring a man to wholeness is the "whole" point.  So, once again, as we are in the middle of Lent, let us consider what prayer is, what our focus is now in this time, as we prepare for Easter.  Can you cut away the extraneous, and focus in on what He would want for your healing?  Let us keep in mind that so many of the things that we think we want aren't really for our healing.  We don't really need all the things we think we need because we're surrounded with expensive luxuries available in stores, or because our brother and sister have it, or because it would be socially impressive, or all the different reasons why we think we need what we need when we focus in on the outside.  What we need is what we find we need in that relationship of love to Creator.  Wholeness comes, essentially, from love, and even in our weakness we may show the perfect strength of Christ.  We may simply need to come to understand that we are loved as we are, a healing powerful as any other.  But take time to remember, the purpose is for healing.  We find it as we center in, cut away the distractions and the externals and all the things we chase after, drop the things that give us so much anxiety for a moment if we can, and come to Him.  He is the Lord of the Sabbath, the place of all restoration and healing, the One who gives us the right perspective we need.