Matthew 23:24 “You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.”

I cannot read Matthew 23 any more the way I used to, since watching the Visual Bible video of Matthew. The whole chapter is a diatribe against the religious leaders of Jesus’ day, but by a miraculous expression of God’s grace, the actor portraying Christ in that video made it clear that it is an anguished cry of love. Jesus didn’t hate the teachers of the law and the Pharisees, He wanted them to wake up to their condition and repent, so that they could have the fellowship with the Father for which they were created. This particular verse has become well known because the imagery Jesus used is so extreme as to be unforgettable. Gnats and camels indeed! We can hardly get the picture out of our heads! However, what the religious leaders were doing was indeed that drastic, and Jesus wanted them to realize it. Elsewhere, Jesus points out that they had invented a loop hole to excuse abandoning aged parents, (Matthew 15:3-6) but they were picky about how many steps you could take on the Sabbath! That’s a major problem with legalism: rules replace purpose. When we focus on wording, we forget why the rules were given in the first place. That’s why Jesus distilled the entire law into two: love God, and love your neighbor. (Matthew 22:36-40)

As with virtually everyone else, my life has been a tension between law and grace. The problem has been that I haven’t loved God enough to be careful to follow His rules. However, each time He has brought me to repentance I have understood His grace a little better, which has caused my love for Him to grow. That has in turn enabled me to love those around me better, for blessings all around. I have learned by experience that God is indeed love, which is why He has given us instructions to help us avoid the consequences of foolish actions. As I teach and counsel others, my goal is to help them understand the law of sowing and reaping, (Galatians 6:7) so that they may repent of sowing rebellion against God and start sowing righteous­ness. (Hosea 10:12)

Father, thank You for Your grace. Help me continue to grow in my grasp and appreciation of it so that I may communicate it better to those around me. Everyone is in need of Your grace! Help me both articulate it clearly and demonstrate it consistently, so that as many as possible may be brought to repentance and faith, for their salvation and Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!