Luke 11:45 – 54 Off the Hook?

Luke 11:45 – 54 Off the Hook?

Then one of the scholars of the law said to him in reply, "Teacher, by saying this you are insulting us too." And he said, "Woe also to you scholars of the law! You impose on people burdens hard to carry, but you yourselves do not lift one finger to touch them. Woe to you! You build the memorials of the prophets whom your ancestors killed. Consequently, you bear witness and give consent to the deeds of your ancestors, for they killed them and you do the building. Therefore, the wisdom of God said, 'I will send to them prophets and apostles; some of them they will kill and persecute' in order that this generation might be charged with the blood of all the prophets shed since the foundation of the world, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who died between the altar and the temple building. Yes, I tell you, this generation will be charged with their blood! Woe to you, scholars of the law! You have taken away the key of knowledge. You yourselves did not enter and you stopped those trying to enter." When he left, the scribes and Pharisees began to act with hostility toward him and to interrogate him about many things, for they were plotting to catch him at something he might say.

When I first read this passage I thought Jesus was speaking about lawyers. Upon reading it again I thought instead he was referring to the religious authorities of his day. Anyhow, Jesus had just laid the hammer down on the Pharisees, a religious group that was “full of themselves” to say the least. Now he moves on to their teachers, the religious authorities, those who believe they know the truth about the Scriptures and God, and use that control to ensure their status and power in society. He condemns them for “imposing heavy burdens” on average folks and for “taking away the key to knowledge”. Are you getting the impression that Jesus dislikes having worship of his Father turned into a power play used to exclude and include people? I am. Jesus faults these “scholars of the law” for taking advantage of their positions. He judges them especially harshly for placing barriers in the way of ordinary people who want to know about God. Jesus has a great relationship with his Father without the assistance or the interference of the religious authorities of his day. Although it is clear from his familiarity with scriptures and the law that he has studied them and learned from many teachers, he has clearly moved beyond them. His faith, a mature faith, is based more on his relationship with the Father and not on what experts and authorities have told him. Of course it is easier to just take what someone tells you on faith than it is to put in the work a relationship demands. I think in this passage Jesus is laying down a challenge - to those who seek and to those who think they have found God.