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Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, "The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat; therefore, do whatever they teach you and follow it; but do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them. They do all their deeds to be seen by others; for they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long. They love to have the place of honor at banquets and the best seats in the synagogues, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have people call them rabbi. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all students. And call no one your father on earth, for you have one Father -- the one in heaven. Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Messiah. The greatest among you will be your servant. All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted."

Mahatma Gandhi of India is alleged to have said, "If I had ever met someone who was a genuine Christian, I would have become one immediately." It is a stinging judgment of Christians. At the same time, it challenges every Christian to examine the genuineness of his or her walk and witness. We need to ask ourselves: "How authentic, how credible is my demonstration of the Christian life?"

In our scripture lesson for today Jesus criticizes certain characteristics of the Pharisees, a sectarian group within Judaism. Because Jesus was so often in conflict with the Pharisees, we are apt to think of them as enemies of the good. Nothing could be further from the truth. They were pillars of the community, ardent patriots, and respected in the community as citizens of highest character. The Pharisees probably got their name from a word meaning "separated." They took the laws of Moses and the religion of Israel very seriously. In attempting to fulfill what they felt were the requirements of their religion, their lives became very complicated and uncomfortable. In order to fulfill as many of the requirements as possible, they found it necessary to avoid the contamination of others who did not keep the religious laws as meticulously as they did; so they separated themselves from the ordinary business of life and from ordinary people as well -- hence the name. They considered it a matter of defilement to talk to, do business with, and be hospitable toward anyone who did not observe the same ritualistic requirements.

The Pharisees were not bad people. Others in the community thought of them as virtuous and that was their own estimate of themselves as well. Jesus called attention to several characteristics of the Pharisees in order to teach his followers to conduct themselves differently.

The first thing Jesus criticized in the Pharisees was a lack of authenticity. He said the Pharisees did not practice what they preached. They could talk the talk, but they didn't walk the walk. They carefully studied the Ten Commandments, but they felt that the commandments were not specific enough; so they developed 613 religious requirements, hoping to cover every eventuality. They were meticulous about religious observances, but what motivated many of them was the notoriety and respect that their observances brought to them.

I read about an elegant party that was being held in one of those big English country houses. Often after dinner at such parties, people would give recitations, sing, or use whatever talent they had to entertain the company. One evening a famous actor was among the guests. Some say that it was Charles Laughton. When it came his turn to perform, he recited the 23rd Psalm, perhaps the most beloved Psalm in the Psalter: "The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want." His rendition was magnificent and there was much applause.

At the end of the evening someone noticed an older woman dozing in a corner. She was deaf as a post and had missed most of what had been going on, but she was urged to get up and recite something. So she stood up and in her quavering old voice she started "The Lord is my Shepherd" and went on to the end of the Psalm, not knowing it had been recited once before that evening. When she finished there were tears in many eyes. Later, one of the guests approached the famous actor and said, "You recited that Psalm absolutely superbly. It was incomparable. So why were we so moved by that funny little lady?" He replied, "I know the Psalm. She knows the shepherd" (Madeleine L'Engle, The Rock That Is Higher [reported in Lection Aid, Vol. 4, No. 4], p. 22).

By his criticism of the Pharisees, Jesus was urging his followers to be authentic and make sure that their actions conformed to their words.

The second thing Jesus does in this passage is to remind us that a principal characteristic of his followers is service. He says, "The greatest among you will be your servant." The Pharisees whom Jesus criticized wanted to be great so they could be served. Jesus' followers are told that, in his estimation, greatness comes from rendering service, even something as small as giving a person a cup of cold water (Matthew 10:42).

When we help a needy person, when we offer food to the hungry and drink to the thirsty, we are actually serving in the spirit of Jesus. When we care for the forgotten of our society as Jesus did, we are actually demonstrating the call of Jesus to render service. What we do for others has eternal consequences. Leo Tolstoy told a beautiful story about a cobbler named Martin. In a dream, Jesus promised Martin, "Tomorrow I will visit you." When he woke up in the morning he was excited. Jesus would pay a visit to him sometime during the day. He swept the shop clean, prepared a delicious meal, and waited for the visit.

In the morning a hungry, exhausted child came to his shop, so Martin fed her and let her rest for a while. At midday an old lady happened by. The woman was cold and shivering. Martin gave her a warm shawl and she went on her way. Then in the afternoon, a barefooted beggar came to his door, and Martin gave him a pair of shoes. But Jesus did not come. When Martin went to bed that night he was disappointed.

That night Jesus once again appeared to him in a dream. "Lord, why did you not visit me today?" Martin asked in all sincerity. Jesus then replied, "Martin, three times I visited you: first as a little child, then as an old woman, and finally as a beggar." Martin discovered that in serving others we serve the Lord (Piero Ferrucci, Inevitable Grace [Los Angeles: Jeremy P. Tarcher, Inc., 1990], pp. 90-91).

To practice our religion is to serve our fellow humans, not to show off our religion. Charles Kuralt, the television commentator, told about Pat Shannon Baker, a young white woman, mother of three children, who lived in Reno, Nevada. The night Martin Luther King was killed, Pat Baker was sitting up late, thinking "I have to do something about this." Pat often had passed a weedy vacant lot in a black neighborhood on her way to work each day, and she wondered why the city hadn't turned it into a park. She went to her city councilman to see what could be done to convert that vacant land into a park. The councilman spoke of the strained budget and the difficulty of passing a bond issue. It would take years to get through all the red tape. Pat didn't want to wait for all that. She then went to garden supply houses, cement companies, surveyors, the heads of construction unions, and tough-minded contractors she had never met before. Pretty soon, her idea became everyone's idea.

At 7:30 on a Friday morning, in a town not famous for early risers, a crowd began to gather at the vacant lot. By 8:30, 2,000 tons of donated topsoil was being spread by front-end loaders operated by heavy equipment operators who were not used to working for free. They were working for free that morning.

A school custodian, an unemployed teenager, a roofer, and a garage mechanic began working together. A junior high school kid, who was assigned to saw two-by-fours, sawed all day in the hot sun and did so as if his life depended on it. A little girl carried water to the workers. Coast Guardsmen, Marines, and Seabees came to help. Cement was laid for a double tennis court and smoothed out by noon. A basketball court was in before the sun went down. Dozens of people worked all night.

Saturday morning a crowd of several hundred showed up for work, black and white, young and old. They sodded the lawn Saturday night and turned on the sprinkler system Sunday morning. By Sunday afternoon the park was finished, with two walks and grass, basketball and tennis courts, and trees and benches. One person with a sense of commitment brought the community together. More than twenty years later the grass was still neatly mowed. The trees were tall and leafy. In the shade of the trees people were sitting on benches and talking. Some kids who hadn't been born in 1968 were practicing shots on the basketball court. One person was prepared to serve and scores of people enlisted (Charles Kuralt, A Life on the Road [New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1990], pp. 134-135).

Jesus seems to be aware that even something as noble as service can be corrupted by pride, so he tells his followers that "all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted" (v. 12).

As a student at Oxford University, John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, along with his brother Charles and other friends shared in what they called The Holy Club. The club members practiced spiritual disciplines and devoted themselves to good works in order to render themselves worthy of God. Wesley would come away from the prisons he and the others had visited holding his nose because of the smell and thinking to himself, "God must be very proud of me for visiting these derelicts." In spite of Wesley's satisfaction with himself, God remained strangely remote. It wasn't until Wesley himself experienced God's acceptance that he could get over focusing on himself and challenge England to do something about the inhumane treatment of prisoners. The time came when he was no longer concerned about how spiritual he was in God's sight, but instead, in gratitude for God's saving love, he determined to show Christ's love by serving those in need. Pride about how good we are can separate us from God.

Jesus urges us to be wary of the human tendency to point to our own good works in such a way that we detract from what has been accomplished. There's a story told of a well-known Christian businessman who was visiting a church and as a matter of courtesy he was asked to bring a word of greeting. Unfortunately, he got rather carried away in the process and went on to tell the congregation of all the wonderful things he had done for the Lord.

"I have a large house, a fine family, a successful business, and good reputation. I have enough money to do whatever I want, and I'm able to support some Christian ministries very generously. Many of those ministries want me to be on their board of directors. I have almost unlimited opportunities. Most people would love to change places with me. What more could God give me?" As he paused for effect, a voice shouted from the back of the auditorium, "How about a good dose of humility?"
(reported in Pastors' Pulpit Resource Service, Sept/Oct 1991)

It is no wonder that Jesus taught us to do good works in secret and leave it to God to provide the reward (Matthew 6:4).

I close with this: Some years ago, while he was still the basketball coach for UCLA, I was at a gathering where Larry Brown was describing the members of his team. While he was glad to have star players, his highest praise was for those players who made other team members look good. They didn't need to make all the points. They set up others. As a result, the whole team benefited.

In these verses from the gospel of Matthew, Jesus is calling us to a life in which what we do is consistent with what we say, and what we do is to serve others without regard for who gets the credit.