#wrong things

“Woe to you Pharisees!”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus delivers a well-deserved rebuke to the Pharisees.

For having their focus on the wrong things. When we hear what they’re focusing on (tithing mint?), it’s easy to check out for the rest of the Gospel.

After all, none of us are tithing mint or garden herbs, so we’re good. Right?

Not exactly. While we’re not focusing on the same wrong things that they were back in the day, most of us have less silly stuff that we’re focusing on. Less obvious stuff (at least to us) that serves as our wrong things.

And most of us have a lot of wrong things that we focus on. Things that we’ve told ourselves are very important. Maybe it’s stuff like jobs and careers. Or stuff like wealth and material possessions. Or stuff like fame and how we look on social media. Or whatever else it is.

Truly, it doesn’t matter what we’re focusing on (no matter how important or godly we might think it is), if what we’re focusing on is the wrong thing.

So how do we know what is the right thing? What should you and I be focusing on?

Actually, it’s three things. Jesus gives us three things that are always the right things to focus on.

Three things that are in practice inseparable. Don’t waste your time trying to do one without the others.

Justice.

The love of God.

And bearing each other’s burdens.

If you’re thinking, “that sounds like a practical application of the Great Commandment*,” then you are not far from the Kingdom of God.

* “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. This is the greatest and first commandment. And the second is like it, you shall love your neighbor as yourself.”