David Bahn – Reflections

Matthew 3:7-10

But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? ⁸Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. ⁹And do not think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. ¹⁰The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

The Sunday School teacher told the children about the Pharisee and the sinner who went to the temple to pray. The Pharisee bragged on himself and thanked God that he was not like the sinner. The sinner simply prayed, “Have mercy on me, for I am a sinner.” Jesus says, “The sinner went to his house justified” (Luke 18:10-14). The Sunday School teacher said, “Now children, let’s thank God that we’re not like the Pharisee.”

We laugh.

We laugh because we are thankful that we are not like the Sunday School teacher!

John the Baptist didn’t attend the Dale Carnegie School of How to Win Friends and Influence People! Calling people a brood of vipers, and telling them of axes and fiery judgment is not exactly a warm fuzzy. It is noteworthy that John (and Jesus, for that matter) aimed his most severe rebukes dead center on the Pharisees and Sadducees. These religious leaders were noted for their religious righteousness and piety. They dotted every “I” and crossed every “T” of the Torah. Not the smallest matter of religious law escaped their scrutiny.

But their religion was perfunctory. They did all the right things but it was all for show. Their outward obedience to the Law was overshadowed by hard and cold hearts toward God and their fellow man. They would even use the law to keep from doing right by their parents!

Mark 7:9-13

And he said to them: “You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe^[c] your own traditions! ¹⁰For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’ ¹¹But you say that if a man says to his father or mother: ‘Whatever help you might otherwise have received from me is Corban’ (that is, a gift devoted to God), ¹²then you no longer let him do anything for his father or mother. ¹³Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that.”

The Pharisees had many people fooled. They were either feared for their sever self-righteous judgmentalism, or looked up to because of their supposed religious piety. But God was not fooled. Jesus’ ministry was the axe at the root of the tree for their way of religion. John’s call to repentance would be little about religious pursuits and much about loving your neighbor, being content with your pay, and doing what you are supposed to do on a daily basis.

We don’t talk much these days about the fire of hell. But Jesus did speak clearly of this. We may be fine with relegating the child molesters, murders, terrorists, and other obviously evil people, to the fires of hell. But those who would make a show of religion, and mock God by their outward righteousness and inward faithlessness are no less fit for eternal condemnation.

Jesus’ word to us today, however, is not one of judgment; it is a word of faithfulness, truth and grace. His call to repentance is an invitation to recognize the danger of a life of mere outward righteousness, and the blessing of the righteousness of faith. That’s God’s gift in Jesus himself. We can rejoice eternally in that gift!