A Parable of Sorts

There once was a bride who, along with her dear mother, spent 11 months planning her wedding.  There were countless details to work through and decisions to make. The two of them would often argue over a number of the particulars. 

“Mom, I really think that we should use 1 Corinthians 13 for the scripture reading.”

“Oh, but honey, that passage is so over used…let’s find something more obscure”

Or

“Honey, I think that you should wear your veil down as you walk down the aisle.”

“Mom, I don’t want the veil down…no one does that any more. In fact, I am thinking of a blue dress instead of white!”

“Have you lost your mind!? You have to have a white dress! There is no other option!”

Or

“Mom, I think we need to have a vegan offering for the reception and a gluten free cake option.”

“People can just choose to eat the cake or not eat the cake.  The same goes for the meat. Let them eat the potatoes and carrots and skip the chicken if they don’t want it.”

Finally, after many months of planning, and ALL of the details set, the day for the ceremony arrived.  Everyone looked stunning, from the bride and her bridesmaids to the groomsmen, parents and even the officiant. The Church was decorated perfectly and the photographer was capturing it all!

The awkward moment in the ceremony came when the officiant asked the bride… “Where is your groom?”

To which the bride replied… “Groom? I don’t have a groom! I have all of the other details set, isn’t that good enough?”

This story is absurd, yet it somewhat fits within our context of spirituality when we place things in our lives, church or traditions in a place that is over the most important thing…Jesus. In fact, this serves as a parable of sorts of a moment that is found in Matthew 22:34-46.  Here we find the religious leaders approaching Jesus with a question of detail, “Which is the greatest/most important commandment?” Jesus’ reply not only answers their question, but it also places within it a greater context.  In Jesus’ answer the emphasis becomes on “who” is most important as opposed to “what” command is most important. 

May we come to see who the Christ is…and recognize Him and His love as the greatest…and follow Him!