A man who chooses the Jesus script is…
A man more concerned with controlling himself than controlling the people around him.
Ever been led by a controlling man? Perhaps it was a coach or boss who attempted to control everything and everyone around him. How did you feel having a guy like that lead you? Micromanaged? Frustrated? Under-valued? Overburdened? You may have thought, Doesn’t he see the negative impact his controlling nature has on everyone around him? Turns out it can be hard to see a controlling nature in the mirror.
In his Gospel, Matthew captured his firsthand account of the following conversation between Jesus and some teachers of the Jewish law:
Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, “Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don’t wash their hands before they eat!”
Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’ But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is ‘devoted to God,’ they are not to ‘honor their father or mother’ with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition. You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
“‘These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
They worship me in vain;
their teachings are merely human rules.’”Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand. What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.”
Then the disciples came to him and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?”
—Matthew 15:1–20
The Pharisees and teachers of the law were critiquing the disciples’ failure to wash their hands before eating. This violated a Pharisaic tradition—one created by men, not God. The Pharisees had heard about Jesus healing people and saw the crowds gravitating to him. Rather than focusing on the lives being impacted, they pointed out one of their traditions that fellow Jews were overlooking.
These teachers of the law were familiar with the commandment to honor one’s father and mother. But their tradition allowed for a loophole–a man could declare his possessions as a gift to God and avoid supporting his father or mother. Jesus accused these teachers of the law of nullifying or putting aside the word of God for the sake of their traditions. But he wasn’t finished. He called them hypocrites and then quoted a prophecy from Isaiah about hearts being far from God and worship being in vain. Then he said this was prophesied about them!
Can you imagine the hush that must have fallen over the crowd that day when they heard what Jesus said? The disciples then approached Jesus to be sure he was aware that he had just offended the Pharisees, as if he didn’t know.
Insecure leaders try to control others. Secure ones focus on controlling themselves. That’s why Jesus, the most secure leader, could challenge the Pharisees who sought to control others through the traditions of men rather than the commandments of God. The man who follows the Jesus script keeps watch on what he allows to take occupancy in his heart. He doesn’t just honor God with his lips; he honors God with his heart. He’s willing to take a hard look in the mirror and determine if any “heart work” is needed. He searches for traces of any evil thoughts that could make their way out of his heart and into his actions. And he does whatever he has to do to cut it out and rid himself of it. He’s more concerned with controlling himself than controlling those around him. In the end, he’s a man others want to be influenced by because he reflects the heart of his Father.
