For Sunday, November 2, 2014 – Matthew 23:1-12
Have you heard it said that when you know better, you do better? It’s a way to think about forgiving those who have hurt us—how can I hold a grudge against someone who just didn’t know better? It’s a way to think about forgiving my own sinful self. Now that I know better, I can do better.
Well, I’m not sure Jesus is buying it. Today he warns us that knowing better doesn’t necessarily lead to doing better. The scribes and Pharisees, for example, know a lot of things; in fact, you could follow everything they teach and be on the right path. But their right knowing doesn’t lead them to right doing. He says, do what they say, but don’t make the mistake of doing what they do. Beware of anyone who knows better but doesn’t do better. Beware, yourselves, when you talk the talk but don’t walk the walk.
When I was a kid in the back country of Iowa, I heard this passage of scripture and immediately thought it was a description of church. Church was the place where we were taught many things: how to treat others, what God expects of us, the difference between right and wrong. It also was the place where “the good people” could outshine and outperform “the bad people.” The sins of others (those not in attendance) could be laid out in the open, offered as illustrations of the impure life, while our own sins could be pondered privately within our hearts. Holy prayers could be offered up as thinly veiled announcements of other people’s troubles. Our own goodness could be presented for approval and admiration.
Church was a place to learn about the humble way of Jesus, while tying up heavy burdens to lay on the shoulders of others and reserving for ourselves the best seats at the holiness table. We could learn about the truth, but there was no guarantee that we would be set free.
