Weightier Matters - Matthew 23:23

Ye have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith.

Here, Jesus rebukes the pharisees for paying attention to small superficial laws instead of the ones that really matter. Judgment and mercy are included with faith as being the "weighty" matters. We are admonished "judge not that ye be not judged" - this refers to judging the righteousness of others. This is a heinous sin considering we are sinners ourselves - making us hypocrites - and furthermore, we have no idea what their life and situation is like. Until we have experienced their life in the first person, we cannot judge.

Christ is the only one that can claim to have experienced what we have in the first person. So what are we to judge? Situations, philosophies, everything that presents itself in our lives. We must judge whether a certain situation is safe, an action is good or evil, etc. We must pass judgment on all kinds of things, but never the righteousness of others.

The Pharisees had abandoned the spontaneity of guidance by the spirit for guidance by the law. Perhaps because the Spirit is completely unpredictable. I comes when it pleases - the wind bloweth where it listeth. And trying to live by the Spirit, though exciting, is difficult, and requires a great deal of discipline. It is definitely easier to try to live an elaborate set of laws than to live ready to "jump to" at the unpredictable appearance of the whisperings of the Spirit. The former may be monotonous, but requires little thinking or ingenuity, the latter requires character, self discipline and depth of soul. The Pharisees had gone to great lengths to try to pre-conceive of what is proper to do in every possible situation. While instructive perhaps, is not a substitute for living by faith - which is actually the more important requirement.

It is said that the early doctors of the Christian church did the very same thing; replacing the office of prophets with crowns, robes and intellectualism. These things breed authority in the minds of men, but not authority from God who said that whosoever will be the greatest among you, let him be your servant.