Maintaining status quo

When Jesus came to earth, the greatest opposition He faced was not from the Romans, but from the Pharisees. These were religious people who had studied the Law and had interpreted everything to great practical details. They had defined what distance one could walk on a Sabbath day, how to tithe even the garden herbs, etc. This had established them as the recognised religious leaders of the day whom the people feared.

Then Jesus came and exposed their hollowness, pointing out how their religion was external and missed the inner values (Mt.23:23). They presented an appearance of godliness while their inner core was corrupt with self-indulgence (v.25). What Jesus was actually doing was not to condemn them but to show them the right way so that they could be blessed. But to them, it appeared as if Jesus was trying to destroy them and all their work which they had accomplished through many years. Their response was to get rid of Jesus, in order to be able to maintain their position, power and influence. Imagine what could have happened if they recognised and accepted the change that was needed!

During the course of marriage counselling, it becomes obvious many times that they are not willing to make any changes, but that they are only waiting for the other person to change. Each one expects the counsellor to change the other person. Unfortunately, in many such cases, they do not really learn anything even after many sessions.

None of us is perfect, and we all make many mistakes. James was honest enough to publicly admit that (Js.3:2). But very few are willing to look for identifying their particular mistakes and make changes. On the contrary, they justify their wrong by blaming it on others or circumstances. Just like how we cannot get cured if we are not open before the doctor, even God cannot save us and make us like Jesus if we are not willing to accept our sins and change (Je.3:13).

Many times, we get to know our mistakes when someone else points them out. But unless we are careful, our tendency will be to deny what they say, and turn the tables on them by calling them names such as false prophets, Holy Joe, accusers of the brothers, Job's friends, etc., and blaming them for our problems. King Asa started out as a good man, but when he strayed away from God and God sent him the prophet Hanani to warn him, Asa put Hanani in jail!

God loves us so much that when we are unable to hear His direct warnings to us, He sends us messengers. Some people say that if God were to tell them something they would listen, but that people don't have any right to point out their faults! They fail to hear the voice of God because they have trained themselves only to hear promises and appreciation, and assigned all words of correction and rebuke as from Satan! But if we truly love God, we will realise that His greatest desire for us is that we become like His Son Jesus, and that we are a long way from getting there (2Pe.1:3,4).