Jesus knows about the temptation to hide behind things “churchy”, and Jesus brings his disciples away from that kind of self-deception. By simply following in his footsteps, Jesus invites his disciples to have real faith in God the Father, like the relationship Jesus himself has, which goes beyond mere appearances. Jesus frees his disciples from the demands of false piety for the sake of appearances – no more long but emotionally distant prayers, no more posturing behind religious knowledge, no more plastered-on Sunday smile when in reality, the pain of life is intense. Disciples are free to live...live in real life before their Father in heaven.
And while Jesus sees through the gifts given for public relations, Jesus also sees the hearts of those that are usually unseen – like the devoted heart of the poor widow. Jesus frees his disciples from the demands of human-compelled giving, and frees those who cannot give from the shame and guilt that's attached. Disciples are free to give...however their Father in heaven calls them to.
Jesus frees us, because he wants us to share in the relationship he has with God the Father. And that's why, as it says in the reading from Hebrews, he has appeared once for all at the end of the age to remove sin by the sacrifice of himself. He takes away the condemnation we deserve in our times of chasing after appearances, and replaces it with the true relationship with God that we could never have on our own. Jesus leads us as his disciples, and gives us HIS true heart through Word and Holy Spirit, so that we too can be genuine with our heavenly Father. We can confess to God our doubts, our fears, even our sins – knowing that this confession is more pleasing than any posturing for his kingdom. And we are encouraged by God that no matter how small our contributions seem, or how feeble our witness comes across, it is our true loyalty and our true love that matter most to him.
Gracious God, we want our hearts to be true to you. Through your Holy Spirit, help us to be genuine in our faith, and willing to do the unseen but important work of your kingdom, in Jesus name, amen.