Monday: 21^st Week in Ordinary Time-B

I Reading: 1 Thessalonians 1:2-5.8-10: You broke with idolatry when you were converted to God and you are waiting for his Son, whom he raised from the dead.

Gospel: Matthew 23:13-22: Alas for you, blind guides!

The Eight Accusations against False Religionists, Mt 23:13-36

Jesus attacked and denounced the false religionists frankly and openly. He exposed their hypocrisy and inner hearts and minds which were corrupted and doomed to hell. Jesus levelled eight accusations against the religionists.

1. False religionists shut the door to heaven against seekers (v.13)

a. They do not enter themselves

b. They do not allow seekers to enter

2. False religionists are missionaries who double the corruption of new followers (15)

3. False religionists mislead others: They are blind guides in oaths and commitments (v.16-22)

a. Their blindness: They stress the secondary over the primary (two examples)

1) They stress the temple gold over temple

2) They stress the gift over the altar

b. Their folly: They try to evade commitments and responsibility, v.17,19

c. The raw facts

1) All commitments and oaths are heard by God-there is no evasion

2) All commitments and oaths are binding and  are accountable to God

4. False religionists stress the lighter commandments and neglect the important ones (v.23-24)

a. They stress the lighter duties and neglect the more important duties

b. They avoid the lesser sins and commit the greater sins

5. False religionists are blind to real cleanness (v.25-26)

a. Their outside appears clean

b. Their insides are full of greed and self-indulgence

c. Their need: First clean the inside; then the outside will be clean

6. False religionists disguise inner decay (v.27-28)

a. Illustration: They are like white tombs

          1) Outward: appear clean and beautiful

          2) Inward: full of death and uncleanness

b. Their wrong

          1) Outward: appear righteous

          2) Inward: full of hypocrisy and wickedness

7. False religionists pride themselves in a godly heritage (v.29-33)

a. Honour the relics of the past

b. Denounce the former abuses

c. Pride themselves in being better: would not have committed such sins

d. Testify against themselves (by rejecting Christ)

          1) Show themselves to be descendants of murderers

          2) Fill up the father’s cup of murder

e. Result: have become snakes, vipers-doomed to hell

8. False religionists reject and abuse many of God’s present day messengers (v.34-36)

a. Their abuse: they persecute and kill

b. Their judgement

          1) They shall have imputed to them the sins of all the righteous bloodshed throughout history

          2) All these things shall come upon this generation

Thought: The false religionist fails at both points of sin. He sins both by omission and commission. He neglects the more  important duties, and he commits the greater sins.

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