Tag Archives: Ascension Press

7 One day some Pharisees and teachers of religious law arrived from Jerusalem to see Jesus. ² They noticed that some of his disciples failed to follow the Jewish ritual of hand washing before eating. ³ (The Jews, especially the Pharisees, do not eat until they have poured water over their cupped hands, as required by their ancient traditions. ⁴ Similarly, they don’t eat anything from the market until they immerse their hands in water. This is but one of many traditions they have clung to—such as their ceremonial washing of cups, pitchers, and kettles.)

⁵ So the Pharisees and teachers of religious law asked him, “Why don’t your disciples follow our age-old tradition? They eat without first performing the hand-washing ceremony.”

⁶ Jesus replied, “You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he wrote,

‘These people honor me with their lips,
    but their hearts are far from me.
⁷ Their worship is a farce,
    for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God.’

⁸ For you ignore God’s law and substitute your own tradition.”

⁹ Then he said, “You skillfully sidestep God’s law in order to hold on to your own tradition. ¹⁰ For instance, Moses gave you this law from God: ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and ‘Anyone who speaks disrespectfully of father or mother must be put to death.’ ¹¹ But you say it is all right for people to say to their parents, ‘Sorry, I can’t help you. For I have vowed to give to God what I would have given to you.’ ¹² In this way, you let them disregard their needy parents. ¹³ And so you cancel the word of God in order to hand down your own tradition. And this is only one example among many others.”

¹⁴ Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. “All of you listen,” he said, “and try to understand. ¹⁵ It’s not what goes into your body that defiles you; you are defiled by what comes from your heart.”

¹⁷ Then Jesus went into a house to get away from the crowd, and his disciples asked him what he meant by the parable he had just used. ¹⁸ “Don’t you understand either?” he asked. “Can’t you see that the food you put into your body cannot defile you? ¹⁹ Food doesn’t go into your heart, but only passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer.” (By saying this, he declared that every kind of food is acceptable in God’s eyes.)

²⁰ And then he added, “It is what comes from inside that defiles you. ²¹ For from within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, ²² adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. ²³ All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you.”

Mark 7:1-23

Dear God, I heard a really good homily yesterday title “The Floor” from Fr. Mike Schmitz on this passage. Well, it was loosely on this passage. He took a different tack on it than I had considered when I prayed about it yesterday before church. He was saying how the Pharisees had taken things that were originally developed as something people would “get” to do as part of their worship of you, and they made it a “have” to do. The ceremonial cleansing the Pharisees were admonishing Jesus’s disciples about wasn’t a “have” to, but over the years it became that for them. They became legalistic about it.

So Fr. Mike talked about what is the floor? What is the minimum we have to do to be in relationship with you. He had a list of five things Catholics believe, and, interestingly, I think I was really only down for two of them as being a “have” to. For me, even those things were rules the church has made up over the centuries (millennia?). But that made me ask myself what my floor is. I talked with my wife about it last night. Our things that each of us feel we “have” to do are different, which I think is good. You have put different things on our hearts as they pertain to us. And then, even after our conversation last night, I’ve had a couple more things occur to me as being things I “have” to do to feel close to you. So what is my floor?

• The prayer journals. Spending 15-30 minutes a day in a concentrated time of prayer like this has become a have to for me. And it didn’t used to be that way. A year ago I would have said that I need to do it 4-5 times a week. But since Lent I haven’t missed a day because I know I need this time meditating on you, listening to your Holy Spirit, and learning from the bazaar thing you left us called Scripture.
• Giving. Ten percent of our gross is a minimum. Not that we are giving away even 20%, but we try to be generous when we see needs arise. Giving 10% is a floor.
• Intentional time in conversation with my wife at least once a day is a floor. If we are available around each other at a meal, we each make it a priority to sit with each other, even if one of us isn’t eating at the time.
• At least one sermon/Bible teaching a week. I need to hear someone else I trust teaching me the Bible in a way I wouldn’t see on my own (this homily is a perfect example of that).
• Communication and contact with at least one of the two male friends I have. It doesn’t even have to be a conversation, but I need to touch their lives in some way–even if it is to text about sports.
• Avoiding sexual temptation/lust. This has to be a floor. When you look at the lists of sins Jesus and Paul talk about, it’s always on there. I must do this.
• Exercising at least four times a week. I am mentally better when I am taking care of myself physically. I should probably make better eating habits a floor, but I haven’t chosen to do that yet. Perhaps it will be one day.
• Doing the things I know bless my wife like fixing things around the house, managing our money and then sharing with her what our status is, doing my laundry, making the bed, etc. Even listening to things I like but I know she doesn’t care for on my headphones instead of subjecting her to it. There’s a whole set of “floor” issues for my relationship with her that are important for her to feel loved.

So then what are some of the things I “get” to do, but aren’t necessarily something I “have” to do every week?

• Church. A lot of Christians would probably disagree with me on this one. While I feel like it is important to have a church you belong to and to be involved in that church, I don’t feel like the foundation in my life is cracking if I miss a week.
• My extra writing projects. I get joy from writing and thinking about how to bless others, but it’s a “get” to and not a “have” to.
• Teaching. Similarly, I enjoy taking what I get from you during my prayer journal time and sharing it with others through preaching or teaching, but those occasions happen infrequently, and, while they help me and teach me, they aren’t the floor.
• Engaging healthily through prayer and action in my community. This is close to a “have” to because it is part of me loving others as I love myself, but it’s not something that is foundational. Well, maybe it is. It actually might belong in the “have” to list.
• Listening to Christian music. I mix it in during the week, but I also listen to secular as well.
• Listening to Christian podcasts. Similar to music, I mix it in, but it’s a “get” to.

There is probably a lot more. I could probably type this forever. But one of the things my wife and I discussed last night and I can even see from these two lists is how the closer we get to you some of the things that we once considered a “get” to are not a “have” to. For example, doing these prayer journals daily. I need this. I am missing it without you. Yes, you are, indeed, slowly remaking this heart of stone into your image. I’m sorry it is taking so long.

Father, I’m sorry for the times I am too selfish to keep up with my “have” to list. I am sorry for giving in to that selfishness. But I am also so thankful that you are remaking me a little bit every day. I am not the man I was five years ago. I am not the man I will be five years from now, if you are willing for me to be here that long. No, I am just a work in progress. Splintered. mal-shaped. But by reaching the floor you have given to me every day, I am slowly becoming yours. So give me this day my daily bread. And lead me not into temptation. And forgive me as I forgive others.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen