Weightier Matters

Three Things Frequently Neglected

A study of Matthew 23:23 (all references NKJV)

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.

Jesus was speaking to the extremely strict, Hacedic sect of the Jews called Pharisees. They were dedicated to keep every detail of the Levitical law. But, like all extremely religious groups, they neglected matters of the heart, particularly those affecting their relationships with other people. Their religion was all external; they used their strict practices to elevate themselves over the common folk. Though technically “perfect,” their religion was both elitist and egotistical, and they apparently oppressed and despised others beneath their elevated station.

It is no different today. Most churches are filled with people that practice religion in their favorite traditional ways, while shunning all others who don’t. To join such churches means to become like them, to fit in, to practice the church’s pet traditions and doctrines, and to abstain from the church’s pet peeves. The weightier matters of justice, mercy, and faith are usually ignored.

Now let’s see what these mean, and how they may be applied.

Justice: Treating others fairly and equally; helping the poor and needy.
Mercy: Forgiving others and showing compassion when they fail.
Faith: Not what you believe — faith is what you do with what you believe.

All three of these are connected to how we treat others. Practicing these means that we never elevate ourselves above others, no matter how “low” they may seem in our (flawed) estimations. God sees us all as equal failures in need of His mercy and grace. He expects us to see and treat each other in the same way.

Justice

The biblical view of justice encompasses much: fair treatment of widows, orphans, and the poor; giving freely to strangers; using balanced weights (fair transactions); practicing truth in all matters — all in addition to the fair judicial proceedings we normally associate with the word. Justice is a large subset of righteousness. In 133 verses, justice is seen as a practice of righteousness, and opposed to oppression. Justice is frequently related to treatment of the poor and needy. Justice is the opposite of oppression of the poor and needy. Biblical justice is built upon honesty, fairness, and mercy—not judgement, condemnation, and punishment.

Study:

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Deut 10:18; 16:17-19; 24:17; 27:19;
Psa 10:18; 82:3; 103:6; 106:3; 140:12; 146:7;
Prov 16:8; 21:3;
Isa 1:17; 59:1-15;
Hos 12:6;
Zec 7:9-10

Application: Practicing justice means freely helping the poor, without placing requirements or qualifications upon such help. Most modern church people despise the poor, and will only help them if they meet certain standards. They rationalize this unscriptural behavior as “Good Stewardship.” Jesus never pre-qualified those He helped; He helped everyone who came to Him. He showed mercy to all—but sternly pronounced WOES upon the religious types, because they did not practice justice and mercy. Churches have neglected the teaching of the practice of justice.

Mercy

Another subset of righteousness, mercy is related to justice. It is the practice of humility, compassion, and forgiveness in our dealings with others. Mercy is not pity; mercy is willingly overlooking the faults and offenses of others. Mercy appears 284 times in the scriptures, usually related to righteousness, truth, forgiveness, and justice. Mercy is a major aspect of God’s character—even His throne is called the “Mercy Seat.” Trusting in His mercy is an integral part of salvation. But we cannot depend on the mercy of God unless we practice mercy with others.

For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. —Mat 6:14-15

Study:

Psa 51:1-3; 109:26;
Prov 3:3-4; 14:21,31;
Dan 4:27;
Hos 6:6; 10:12;
Mic 6:8;
Zec 7:8-11;
Mat 5:7; 18:21-22;
Mark 11:25;
Luk 10:36-37; 17:1-4;
Rom 9:14-18; 11:30-32;
1Ti 1:12-16;
Heb 4:16;
Jas 2:13, 3:17

Application: Practicing mercy means freely overlooking the faults and forgiving the offenses of others. Failing to do so results in malice, bitterness, and resentment; further resulting in divisions and backsliding. Harboring these ill feelings drives away the Holy Spirit and leaves us desolate and powerless. It also brings reproach upon the church and the gospel. Many people who would otherwise be in church are not, because of unforgiven offenses, which they see as hypocrisy. Churches have neglected the teaching of the practice of mercy.

Faith

The author has heard hundreds of different definitions of the word faith, and most are incorrect. The bible makes clear what is faith, appearing 272 times, and nicely summarized in both Hebrews 11 and epistle of James. In every case where the gospel writers recorded Jesus’ words on faith, it was in response to some action based on belief. It is also actions in Hebrews 11, and in James, faith without works is dead. Thus, the best definition, “Faith is what you do with what you believe.”

Most of the scriptures containing “faith” are in the New Testament. This is because faith (i.e., acts of faith) were a major part of Apostolic church doctrine, because Jesus frequently commented on faith during the performance of miracles. The apostles and disciples saw faith-acts as the gateway to God’s power. But in most churches today, faith means nothing more that what one professes to believe, as in, “What faith are you?” or “Faith-based initiative.” Thus, “faith” has come to mean nothing more than “religious beliefs,” not necessarily actions.

Study: Note that almost every verse containing “faith” also contains a verb—some action. See if you can identify the relevant actions in or near these faith verses:

Mat 8:10; 9:2,22,29; 15:28; 19:21;
Mark 2:5; 5:34; 10:52; 11:22-24;
Luk 5:20; 7:9, 50; 8:48; 17:6, 19; 18:8, 42;
Acts 6:5-8; 14:9-10, 22, 27; 15:9;
Rom 1:17; 3:21-31; 4:1-5:2; 9:30-32; 10:8-17;
1Co. 13:13; 15:14, 17;
2Co. 4:13; 5:7;
Gal. 2:20; 3:2-11;
Eph. 2:8;
1Th. 1:3; 3:10;
1Ti. 2:15; 4:1; 5:12; 6:10-12;
2Ti. 2:18; 3:15; 4:7;
Heb. 10:38-12:2; (full of examples of faith = actions)
Jas. 1:2-8; 2:1-26; 5:14-15;
1Pe. 1:3-9; 5:8-9;
Jude 1:3, 20;
Rev. 2:13, 19; 13:10; 14:12

Note: In many other verses Paul seems to speak of “the faith” as if to mean, “the Christian religion.” This is not the case. Paul understood very well that faith implies actions. So when he says, “continue in the faith,” he doesn’t simply mean, “continue in the beliefs” —he means “continue in the actions; continue in what you are doing.” What were they doing? Preaching the gospel, teaching the pure apostolic doctrines, and relieving the poor. In other words, they were actively following Jesus. This is what Paul considered “the faith.”

Application: Practicing faith means acting upon what we profess to believe. It means practicing justice, mercy, and truth in our daily lives, under all circumstances. Faith is also acting as if you have already received your request—Mark 11:22-24; Heb 11:1. Faith is counted as righteousness—Gen 15:6; Rom 4:5. Faith is a complete lifestyle. It’s all about relationships!

It does not mean a weekly rehearsal of our beliefs, doctrines, songs, and traditions. It does not mean building facilities and promoting programs. It’s not some collection of denominated religious institutions. Modern churches are all too good at raising money, building things, and establishing traditions; as if, given sufficient preparation, they can somehow start actually helping people. But preparation becomes the goal, and helping people is often neglected. I once saw a church budget like this:

Salaries and expenses: $2.1 Million
Building program: $2.5 Million
Local food bank: $900.

Looks like all their preparation wasn’t doing much good… Any church that exists simply to support itself is pretty worthless. Mat 7:21-23; Mat 25:31-46; Jas 1:26-27.

Conclusion

We tend to see ourselves in opposition to the hypocritical Pharisees, yet we also tend to act like them. Perhaps more pastors and teachers should begin to lift up these weighty matters—the widespread biblical teachings regarding justice, mercy, and faith—and seek ways to practice them in church as well as daily life. In practice, this means helping the poor instead of despising and judging them; overlooking and forgiving faults and offenses; and in every way possible, acting on what we believe.

Jas 1:22 — But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

Jas 2:26 — For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

May God bless you all,
—kv5r