Matthew 23:23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

The Weigthier Matters

The Pharisees had a problem with priorities in life.  They tended to focus their energies on things that did not matter much to God, even though it was right.  I think sometimes we do things that are good to the neglect of things that are better.  We miss out on the things that matter most to God.  Here the Lord highlighted three areas that are very important to God.  They are judgment, mercy and faith.  Those are probably not as easy to do as putting your tithe check in the offering plate rounded to the nearest cent (I hope you don’t do that, I hope you round it up a good bit).

Judgment, Mercy and Faith

Focusing on getting your judgment right in all matters is not easy.  You need to have mercy when you judge matters.  I think we are often quicker to condemn others than ourselves under the same circumstances.  It would be good to get the mote out of your own eye first.  Having mercy with others when they trespass against us is fundamental to the Christian life.  Letting bitterness and wrath build up and not have the same mercy with others that God had with you is of the devil.  Let God’s spirit give you a desire to forgive and have mercy.  Faith is what pleases God.  When we step out by faith and just trust God to take care of the problems of life, that pleases God.  We believed on Christ to save us for all eternity, surely we can trust him with a few problems in this life.  Are you getting bogged down in the details of the Christian life to the neglect of the weighter matters?  Maybe you need to adjust your priorities.