I remember reading a story a while back about two kids who came to their father asking him to take them to a particular movie that was very popular. It was rated PG-13, and they begged and begged him to change his stance on not allowing them to see any movies that were not PG rated.
"But dad," they said, "there’s no violence or nudity or anything like that in the movie."
"Then why is it rated PG-13?" the dad asked.
"There just a few cuss words," they replied. "Nothing big. It’s just a little bit of stuff in a really good movie."
Dad replied, "Just a minute and let me do some thinking."
With that, he got up from his chair and went into the kitchen. The kids proceeded to play around with heightened spirits. They had never managed to get this far with their dad before. He had always shut them down without even a debate. Time passed, and suddenly, they smelled the wonderful aroma of chocolate chip cookies. Their mouths began to water.
After a few more minutes, their dad called them to the kitchen. Before them was a plate of delicious, homemade chocolate chip cookies. The kids couldn’t wait to dig in. But just as they were grabbing, their dad said, "Wait a minute. Before you grab one of those cookies, I need to tell you something. I put a special ingredient in the mix this time. There’s only a little, tiny bit in it, mind you. Just a little bit."
"What’s the special ingredient, Dad?" the kids asked.
"Dog poop, but it’s just a little bit. I’m sure the cookies taste fine, and after cooking it, I know there aren’t any germs or anything left. Go ahead. Eat some cookies."
The kids refused to touch the cookies, and furthermore, they understood their dad’s point. Even though it was just a little bit of cussing, even though it was just a little bit of dog poop, the inside wasn’t totally clean.
Now, don’t think that I’m going to get on a high horse this morning and tell you that you can’t go to movies that are rated PG-13 or higher. Don’t think I’m going to tell you that you can’t eat cookies with dog poop in them. Such things are your choices, and it is blatantly obvious this morning that Jesus says it is not what goes into us from outside that defiles us, but it is what comes out of us. This is a very important teaching that Jesus gives.
As you may know by now, during Jesus’ day there were several religious groups roaming around. One of these such groups was the Pharisees. This group prided itself is holding to all the Jewish ritual commands. They only ate the foods that were considered clean foods in the Bible. They did not eat pork or shellfish or any other items in the long lists in the book of Leviticus which talk about clean and unclean animals. And when they did eat, they ritually washed the bowels and utensils and their hands before dining. They wanted to make sure they were pure and holy while they did this, and they were convinced their actions made them right with God and holier than those who didn’t wash.
But there was a problem with what the Pharisees were doing. Yes, they were following all these Jewish laws to a tee–and several others, but these folks had selective memories. Or rather, they had selective thoughts on which laws they thought they should follow and which laws they thought they could ignore. Sure, they washed their hands and ate the right types of food–this was all well and good, but they didn’t care for those who were poor and shoved out of society. They gave their 10 percent to the temple treasury, but they didn’t take care of the widow and orphan. They prayed when they were supposed to and fasted on a regular basis, but they did so not to give attention to God, but they drew attention to themselves.
And Jesus, being who He is called a spade a spade. The disciples came to Jesus to tell Him that his teaching on food had angered the Pharisees, but Jesus replied, "13He answered, ‘Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. 14Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if one blind person guides another, both will fall into a pit."
Jesus calls them blind. They are blind to the reality of what God expects out of them. They believe that keeping ritually clean and giving their tithes and not associating with sinners and by looking holy and moral and upright, they will win God’s favor. But Jesus calls all these things superficial. These things are just the surface stuff. They have nothing to do with whether or not a person is good or bad. As Jesus says this morning, "17Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth enters the stomach, and goes out into the sewer? 18But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles. 19For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander. 20These are what defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile."
The Pharisees were going through the motions of acting holy, but they themselves were not holy. The Pharisees were putting on a great facade. Their outward appearances showed they were acting like Godly folks, but Jesus saw something different. With the eyes of God’s Son, Jesus saw these folks had hearts that were not oriented toward God but were oriented toward themselves. Do you wonder why Jesus called them hypocrites? It’s because they were.
And it is so easy for us to look at the stories found in the Bible and nod our heads along with Jesus. It is so easy for us to see what Jesus says about those Pharisees and agree with His judgment. Those Pharisees are just so ignorant. They think they are so religious and so holier-than-thou. It’s so good to see Jesus putting them in their place.
Ah, but would we think the same thing if Jesus came to us to put us in our place? Would we think the same thing if Jesus showed up in our midst one day and challenged us and told us that we too were hypocrites? What if Jesus showed up and told us, "You have all the external stuff down. You go to church. You put a little bit in the offering plate. You give a dollar or two to charities every once in a while. You talk about others who are not following my commands, but I know your hearts. I know what you think. I know what you desire and how much you truly invest in trying to be my follower. I know which way your heart is pointed, and it is not totally toward me!"
Do you think we here this morning would appreciate Jesus saying such things to us? Do you think we would say, "You are right, Lord. Our hearts are not in accordance with your will. We indeed are selfish. We indeed look after ourselves first and do not honor God as well as we should. Teach us how to be more like you."? Or would we become angry, just like those Pharisees did?
I guess the answer to that question can be given with a question, "What’s inside you?" What is in your heart? Do you know yourself well enough and have you examined your heart well enough to see where it is oriented?
A couple weeks ago, I made a conscious decision to spend more time in prayer and study. On the advice of a book I read, I have daily read the Sermon on the Mount trying to internalize the message Jesus gives His followers. I have a long, long way to go before my heart is oriented rightly. How do I know such a thing?
On the way back from a hospital visit, I took my Bible with me into Taco Bell on Fry Road. I was reading through Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, and I had just finished reading Jesus’ command, "Give to everyone who begs from you..." Yes. You will find Jesus indeed says that in chapter 5 verse 42. That’s a direct quote, and He doesn’t mince words.
Not two minutes had passed since I had read that passage when someone left two pens in front of me. I looked at them. They had a piece of paper taped to them. It read, "I am deaf. Please take this pen and give $2 or $3 to help me care for my family."
Do you know what my instantaneous reaction was? It wasn’t pleasant. I had no desire to give money to this guy. None what-so-ever. I’ve dealt with such things before. I know he probably gets more cash per year than I do, and he doesn’t pay taxes on it. I know if he really, truly needed help, he’d go to a local shelter or agency and he’d be able to get it easily. There is no need for me to reach into my wallet and give this guy any money at all. If it had been up to me, I’d have left those pens right there, ignoring them and walking out with them still sitting on that table.
But I had just read Jesus’ words. His command. His teaching of how His followers should be. "Give to everyone who begs."
I reached into my wallet and left money without taking the pens. And I realized how far I still had to go with growing in faith. If my heart were oriented rightly, I would have given and joyfully. I wouldn’t have thought twice. I just would have done what Jesus said.
This morning, Jesus asks us to examine what’s inside our hearts. He asks us to examine ourselves deep down to wrestle with where we too are falling short of His teaching. And He is inviting us to move deeper into a relationship with Him–to walk beside Him on a daily basis so that our hearts become more in line with what His purpose is for our lives. Are you ready for such a journey? Amen.
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