In fulfilling His ministry, Jesus was not afraid in denouncing the leaders of His time. His priority was the fulfillment of His mission. First things first and important things must be addressed. He saw how the Pharisees and supposed teachers of the law overlook or take for granted the more essential things in life and faith. The Pharisees thought that fulfillment of the obligation on tithes is enough, much worse, to regard it as a replacement for loving God. The love of God through love of neighbor had been neglected. Further, having seats of honor and being greeted in public places were given preference over service and fulfillment of the responsibilities attached to the titles. Even the scholars of the law were not spared by Jesus when He pointed out that they were willing to make laws that were burdensome to the people but were unwilling to lift one finger to touch them.
Jesus was not against rituals that would help people experience more the love and presence of God. He was not against laws that would make life more orderly. But He hates them if they were made just for show and for the sake of having them alone. Life and faith are about being and becoming. We are not here only to exist but to attain the purpose God has for us. Earthly life is just part of life's journey. Our destiny is to be with God in His Kingdom. Therefore, any ritual or law must improve one's life and relationship with God. Otherwise, the rituals and laws would just be activities devoid of meaning and worthy fruits.
Prayer, for example, is a very important act of worship. Even Jesus prayed and instructed us to pray. But it must find fulfillment in our daily life. When we pray for forgiveness, we must be willing to go and ask forgiveness. And, having experienced forgiveness, we must be ready to forgive others too! We also profess to love God and neighbor. But it is not enough. We must be attentive to someone in need. We must be available to share what we can in order to extend to them our love. In all of these, we bear in mind and fill our hearts with the thought that we are doing this to God.
Christian life is not limited to pious acts of worship. It must go with charitable works in all kinds; material, emotional, temporal etc. God created us as a humanity to live as a community. He designed creation as dependent on each other. We can not attain our end with mere thoughts and words. God Himself accompanied His Word with Deeds. When He speaks, it happens. The same way with us. Our salvation is achieved in sincere words made flesh.
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