Contents
Introduction
Having silenced the Pharisees on the issue of the greatest commandment, Jesus now confronted them on one issue. With the conclusion that the entire Jewish commandment hangs on the love of God and of neighbour, Jesus asked the Pharisees, “What do you think of the Messiah? Whose son is he? They said to him, the son of David” (Matt 22:42). But if the Messiah is the son of David, how come David, through the empowering of the Holy Spirit, called him Lord? And if David called him Lord, how can he be his son? (Matt 22:43–45). After this extraordinary intervention, Matthew notes that “no one was able to give him an answer, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions” (Matt 22:46). To the questions of the Pharisees, the Herodians, and the Sadducees concerning the payment of tax (Matt 22:15–22), the resurrection (Matt 22:23–33) and the most important commandment (Matt 22:34–40), Jesus provided concrete and convincing answers. But when Jesus asked them one question, they could not provide an adequate answer. With his observation of their reply to the identity of the messiah, Jesus silenced the Jewish authority, saying that they could not ask him further questions. Hence, Jesus turned to his disciples.
Hypocrisy and humility
“The greatest among you will be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, but whoever humbles himself will be exalted” (Matt 23:11–12). To the hypocrisy and lordship of the scribes and the Pharisees, Jesus substitutes service and humility. Whoever parades himself or herself as teacher, father, and master cannot serve and cannot be humble. A servant practices what he/she says; a servant does not sound a trumpet concerning his/her religious observances; a servant does not take front seats in the church and in public places; a servant does not want to be greeted in the market place or along the road; a servant does not tie burdens on others; a servant is not presumptuous. A servant always makes himself or herself available for others.
Conclusion
Hypocrisy and pride lead to the breaking of faith in God and to the profaning of God’s name and the covenant with God. This is the essence of the words of Malachi in the First Reading (Mal 1:14–2:2.8–10). An ordained person who attaches importance to his titles and to his social status will certainly not glorify God. Such priests will always stray and stumble and will cause others to do the same. The same thing is applicable to Christians. A proud Christian will certainly show partiality in his or her administration. Like Paul and his fellow workers, Christians should not be a burden to one another (cf. Second Reading). If the scribes and the Pharisees were listening, they must have understood that Jesus was referring to them when he says, “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” According to the Greek term, to exalt oneself is to present and think of oneself better than others. On the other hand, humbling oneself is a voluntary submission. That is, notwithstanding one’s position, a person voluntarily submits himself or herself to a lower status. This is exactly what Jesus did. A voluntary submission that made Paul speak of Jesus thus “though he was in the form of God, he did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Phil 2:6–8). This is the kind of humility expected of believers.
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