Lent Day Twenty Seven
“New Heart, New Start”
Matthew 15: 11-20 The Passion Translation
11 What truly contaminates a person is not what they put into their mouths but what comes out of their mouths! That’s what makes them defiled.”
12 Then his disciples approached him and said, “Don’t you know that what you just said offended the ‘separated ones?’”
13 Jesus replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father didn’t plant is destined to be uprooted.
14 Stay away from them, for they’re nothing more than blind guides. Do you know what happens when a blind man pretends to guide another blind man? They both stumble into a ditch!”
15 But Peter spoke up and said, “Will you explain to us what you mean by your parable.”
16 Jesus said, “Even after all that I’ve taught you, you still remain clueless?
17 Is it hard to understand that whatever you eat enters the stomach only to pass out into the sewer?
18 But what comes out of your mouth reveals the core of your heart. Words can pollute, not food.
19 You will find living within an impure heart, evil ideas, murderous thoughts, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, lies, and slander.
20 That’s what pollutes a person, eating with unwashed hands doesn’t defile anyone.”
Years ago, a friend who is blind asked me to drive her from her home to a large shopping centre. I agreed but did not know the area well and had to trust my friend to tell me which way to turn as we drove along and which level of the shopping centre to head for! It was indeed a case as in Matthew 15 of the blind leading the blind, but the spiritual blindness of those ‘guides’ Jesus refers to is much more serious. All these religious leaders seem concerned about are their traditions to do with eating, but Jesus sees right through their hypocrisy. Their hearts are far from God – and this shows in the angry, critical, unbelieving words they speak.
Jesus warns the crowd to stay away from such blind, lost leaders who will only lead them further astray and explains that it is the words that come out of our mouths rather than what we put into them that can ‘pollute’ as they reveal the true state of our hearts (Matthew 15:18). It is our hearts that need to be washed clean rather than our hands – and not only washed clean but totally renewed as we confess our sins and seek the wonderful, freeing forgiveness available to us through Jesus.
At one stage last year, I recorded a segment for a radio programme about my latest book, Swansong. As my interviewer and I talked about the power of our words, he shared with me how, if he ever made a mistake when growing up, a ‘close family member’ would say to him, ‘You’re so useless!’ He then hastily added: ‘They probably didn’t mean anything – it was just a throwaway line. But it took me many, many years to undo the harm those words caused.’ Only three little words, yet what power they held! Were they spoken out of anger or frustration or disappointment – or perhaps even fear? Whatever the case, they did not reveal a heart filled with kindness or patience or understanding or love.
This Easter, may our eyes be opened to the radical change needed in our hearts that can only come about because of Jesus’ sacrifice of himself for us. This Easter, may we each open our hearts afresh to the Spirit’s cleansing work as we see again God’s own heart of love for us in our precious Lord Jesus Christ.
Jo-Anne Berthelsen
Jo-Anne Berthelsen lives in Sydney, Australia. She holds degrees in Arts and Theology and has worked in teaching, editing and local church ministry. Jo-Anne loves encouraging others through both the written and spoken word and is a keen blogger