JESUS IN A DISTURBING DISGUISE
9 And he continued, “You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions! 10 For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and, ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’ 11 But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is Corban (that is, devoted to God)— 12 then you no longer let them do anything for their father or mother. 13 Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that.” Mark 7:9-13
If you want to, there’s always a way around God’s commands so that you will not be inconvenienced or that you will be able to do what you want. In this instance, Jesus was saying that the Pharisees made disobedience look “holy” by giving to God what should have been used to take care of needy parents. I say “you” on purpose because it is easy to dump guilt on other people and not look at ourselves and ask whether we are doing the same thing!
In what ways do we weasel out of doing God’s commands by redefining truth to suit ourselves? There is something very subtle about “religious” thinking that we have to be careful about. Jesus makes it clear here that it is more important to take care of parents than to “give to God”. God sets as much store on looking after other people’s needs as He does on honouring and worshipping Him. To do the one and neglect the other is equally unacceptable to Him. According to John in his first letter, the two are so closely intertwined that we cannot do the one without the other.
We express our love and obedience to God by doing practical acts of caring like clothing and feeding the poor. From Jesus’ perspective, whatever we do for the least of people, we are doing for Him. Mother Teresa called the poorest of the poor “Jesus in a disturbing disguise.”
How would we respond to people differently if we were aware that they were representatives of Jesus in disturbing disguises? How clearly do we see His face behind the person who draws out contempt in us?
We have been encouraged to cultivate an awareness of God’s presence in our everyday lives and in our fluctuating circumstances, but we also need to focus on seeing His face in the faces of the people around us, especially in those with whom we can find no connection. This calls for grace beyond us and a serious intention that engages our will and our determination to deny ourselves and to take up our cross daily.