Contemplative Bible Reading

Matthew 23:1-4 (New Living Translation)

Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, ² “The teachers of religious law and the Pharisees are the official interpreters of the law of Moses. ³ So practice and obey whatever they tell you, but don’t follow their example. For they don’t practice what they teach. ⁴ They crush people with unbearable religious demands and never lift a finger to ease the burden.

Jesus tells His followers, “Practice what the teachers preach. Don’t practice what they practice.”

First, Jesus notes that the religious teachers preached correctly. They knew the law and taught it well. Jesus encourages His followers to, “practice and obey whatever they tell you.”

Second, Jesus notes that the religious teachers didn’t follow what they taught. He tells His followers, “but don’t follow their example” because “they don’t practice what they teach.”

Hmmm, people say one good thing, but do something else that isn’t so good. How … well what can I write about that?

Here is one thing I can write about that: I give the same advice for everyone to everyone. I have yet to find any Christian that practices 100% what they teach, and I include myself in that group of say-one-thing-but-do-another. Anyone who says, “love one another” falls into this crowd as I have yet to find anyone who truly loves everyone else all the time.

What is amazing to me is that God loves us anyway. We are all a big bunch of hypocrites. None of us practices what we preach. Nevertheless, the grace of God covers this infrequently stated but always lived fault.