Are We Neglecting the Weightier Matters of the Law?

Daily Devotional – Monday, December 27, 2021

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.

Matthew 23:23 (NKJV)

Jesus reserved, arguably, His harshest condemnation for the scribes and Pharisees. The Lord was especially critical of the apparent discord between what the teachers of the law professed and what they practiced.

Take, for example, this warning to the multitudes and the disciples:

“The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. Therefore, whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do.” (Matthew 23:2-3).

Woe Unto You Pharisees, Hypocrites

What follows is a scathing rebuke of the religious teachers of Israel. The word ‘hypocrites’ pervades Jesus’ speech. Here is an excerpt:

But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore, you will receive greater condemnation.” (Matthew 23:13-14).

All you see in this chapter is condemnation of the scribes and Pharisees. However, tucked within the chapter is something positive that Jesus said about these holier-than-thou characters.

You Have Neglected the Weightier Matters of the Law

Here it is:

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone. (Matthew 23:23).

Christ commends the teachers of the law for tithing faithfully because this is God’s will. However, Jesus exposes their hypocrisy, saying they “have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith.”

Are We Neglecting the Weightier Matters of the Law?

Christians ought to attend church, tithe, give offerings, participate in praising and worshiping God, preach, usher, and do other church work. This helps to build the body of Christ.

However, like the Pharisees, we may be guilty of neglecting the important aspects of God’s law. If we deny others justice and refuse to extend mercy to those in need of it, we are not different from the teachers of the law.

We exemplify godliness when we extend kindness to the needy, as we learned in a devotional titled, “Will God Judge Us Based On How We Practice Pure And Undefiled Religion?” How we live with and treat other people matters to God.

Practising Justice, Mercy and Faith

Apart from going to church, what do our neighbors, employers, workmates, business partners, classmates, employees, and others we interact with, know us for? Are there people who are suffering because of our deliberate actions, yet we have not made amends?

No amount of religiosity and sloganeering will please God if we neglect justice, mercy, and faith, the weightier matters of God’s law. Remember, the only Jesus some people know is you. To them, you behave the same way your God does.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, make a just, merciful and faithful Christian.