Luke 11:45-46 (NIV) One of the experts in the law answered him, “Teacher, when you say these things, you insult us also.”
Jesus replied, “And you experts in the law, woe to you, because you load people down with burdens they can hardly carry, and you yourselves will not lift one finger to help them.”
The Pharisees and teachers of the law were first cousins theologically. Both of them combed through the books of the law looking for even the minutest commandment. They read the scrolls written by the great rabbinical scholars of the past, trying by their adherence to every shred of law, and by every available interpretation of the law, to be righteous before God. So when Jesus criticized the Pharisees, the same brush covered the scribes as well, and they were offended. But Jesus didn’t back off; He actually doubled down.
Jesus’ point with the scribes was not that those men were wrong in trying to please God by obeying His commandments (although, as Paul found out as a Pharisee (Romans 7:5-11), that that is ultimately not possible in one’s own strength). Instead, His focus was on the fact that these men were discouraging others that desired to be holy by loading them down, not with the reasonable commandments that God Himself put in His law, but with volumes and volumes of add-ons and interpretations that they themselves cold not entirely keep, but which they presented as the minimum requirements for someone who wanted to be truly righteous.
People confronted with so many requirements won’t naturally buckle up, dig in, and get started. Instead, they typically throw their hands up in despair, see God as harsh and unreasonable, and turn away from His commandments entirely. Thus, by making the path to the light too difficult, they doomed many to a life of walking in the dark!
The fact is, God’s real requirements are neither massive nor complicated, and they really need minimal interpretation. He didn’t drop a stack of books full of commands to earth and tell everyone, “Here you go. Obey these or else! You’re on your own!” Instead, He has promised to be with those who desire to serve Him with all of their hearts, encouraging them, teaching them, and guiding them in His ways.
Father, thank You for this reminder. We, too, can get so enamored of “the rules” that we can easily fall into the trap of communicating to new believers and seekers that the rules are what Christianity is all about. Help me, Lord, to always live with my relationship with You as the main thing, knowing that my obedience springs from that relationship, not the other way around. And help me to consistently communicate to those I am discipling the same truth. Amen.