He’s Hollow!

A larger than average man stepped on a scale not knowing it was out of order. The indicator stopped at 75 pounds. A little boy, standing nearby with his mother, watched the big man intently. “Whaddya know,” he marveled, “He’s hollow!”

One of the key themes running through the writings of the Old Testament prophets and the preaching of Jesus is the condemnation of religious “hollowness’ ‘-especially as they saw it practiced by religious leaders. Jesus condemned the Scribes and Pharisees, who held positions of religious authority. They were more interested in competing for positions of honor and recognition than in proclaiming the Word of God, Jesus said. They were avoiding that Word. This is the challenge Jesus hurls at the Scribes and Pharisees in today’s Gospel Lesson. In order to learn from this Lesson we should remember that the Scribes and Pharisees were good, religious people by many of the standards we find acceptable, even today. They were serious about their religion. They…