Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples:
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites.
You lock the Kingdom of heaven before men.
You do not enter yourselves,
nor do you allow entrance to those trying to enter.
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites.
You traverse sea and land to make one convert,
and when that happens you make him a child of Gehenna
twice as much as yourselves.
"Woe to you, blind guides, who say,
'If one swears by the temple, it means nothing,
but if one swears by the gold of the temple, one is obligated.'
Blind fools, which is greater, the gold,
or the temple that made the gold sacred?
And you say, 'If one swears by the altar, it means nothing,
but if one swears by the gift on the altar, one is obligated.'
You blind ones, which is greater, the gift,
or the altar that makes the gift sacred?
One who swears by the altar swears by it and all that is upon it;
one who swears by the temple swears by it
and by him who dwells in it;
one who swears by heaven swears by the throne of God
and by him who is seated on it."
In this passage Jesus reminds us that religion and religious practices do not make things sacred but it is God that makes things sacred. So often we forget about God when we worship. It is so easy to get caught up in rituals, paintings, gold, and financial offerings that we often forget all this is to serve God. When we end up forgetting about God and do things for the religion, religion ceases to be a vehicle to God and becomes a tool that drives us away from God. Jesus' commentary on the religious practices of his time are a stark reminder to us that all we do we do for God and no one else.
Great comments! :)
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