Some things look good at first. But then, when you dig a little deeper, you realize that they are terribly overrated.

The website called AskMen.com has a list of “Nine of the Most Overrated Things of All Time.”

Number One: Cats. According to the website, they’re lazy, disobedient, flea-ridden, hairball-coughing ingrates. Sorry about that … cat-lovers.

Two: The NBA Slam Dunk Contest. Problem is, the NBA limits the event to pros who have been in the league for three years or less, which knocks out most the true stars.

Three: The Winter Olympics. Biathlon and bobsled events appeal to virtually no one outside Estonia.

Four: Ben Affleck. He’s more celebrity than actor.

Five: The Home Run Race of 1998. A riveting race between Sammy Sosa and Mark McGuire, ruined by the steroid scandal.

Six: The Miss Universe Pageant. Donald Trump, Miss USA, big drinking scandal, blah, blah, blah.

Seven: People magazine’s 50 Most Beautiful People. Most of these selections are determined by upcoming film and TV projects — not by beauty alone.

Eight: Starbucks. Hardly worth the price — it’s just beans with hot water.

And Nine: Sliced bread. Sure, it was a wonderful innovation in its day, according to AskMen.com, but that was before TiVo and squeezable Cheese Whiz. Today, it’s definitely overrated.

That’s it: Nine of the most overrated things of all time.

If this list were expanded to Ten, Jesus might add another overrated thing: Practicing your piety before others. Today, you can hardly flip through your cable channels without coming across a preacher or a politician talking about his faith. Not that there is anything wrong with piety, defined as religious devotion and reverence to God. What Jesus objects to is the way that it is displayed. Jesus is annoyed when people practice their piety in order to be seen by others … to be praised by others … and to show others how holy they are.

They are “hypocrites,” announces Jesus, a Greek word which literally means “stage actors” (Matthew 6:2). They are putting on a show with their public prayers, their fasting, and their giving of offerings.

Now I know that I am on shaky ground here, since I make a living by talking publicly about my faith. If you were to say, “Henry … you hypocrite,” you’d be at least half right. You could also say that I’m terribly overrated.

But let’s not talk about me. Please. Let’s talk about Jesus, and about what he is asking us to do. In today’s passage from Matthew, Jesus is giving some lessons in practical piety, and he stresses how important it is to focus on pleasing God, not other humans. Whenever you give offerings for the poor, do it in secret, he advises, “and your father who sees in secret will reward you” (v. 4).

He continues, “And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites” — the stage actors — “for they love to stand and pray in public, so that they may be seen by others” (v. 5). When you fast, do it discreetly, not like those who “disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting” (v. 16). Jesus says again and again that the Lord who sees in secret will reward us — God is not interested in gifts, prayers, and fasts that are directed toward winning friends and influencing people.

For Jesus, human priorities tend to be highly overrated, while God’s priorities are usually underrated. “Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,” commands Jesus — a tough order for those who give of us who give high ratings to our status, our stocks, our savings accounts, and our others earthly treasures. Jesus wants us to put our treasures in heaven, because “where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (vv. 19-21).

One way to put our treasures in heaven is to live a life of service and obedience. In the words of Presbyterian theologian John Leith, “The Christian is not only a forgiven person but an ethical person.” The law of God is important to us, not because we earn points for obeying rules and regulations, but because we are concerned about ethics, morality, and living a Christlike life. Leith recalls that for John Calvin, our Presbyterian ancestor, the first use of God’s law was “to stimulate and guide the Christian.” We honor the law of God not because we are strict legalists, but because we see that the law can stimulate us and guide us as we seek to live a Christian life — a life of service to others and obedience to God.

Focus on pleasing God, instead of pleasing other humans — this is an underrated Christian virtue. Look to God’s law for stimulation and guidance — this is a virtue that cannot be overrated. The point of this teaching is to move us closer to God, and to open us up to all of the good gifts that God wants to give us. The peace and happiness of Christian living cannot come from any of the overrated things of this world, not from cats and not from sliced bread. It can only come from a focus on God’s will and God’s way.

So let’s summarize: Public displays of generosity, overrated. Anonymous gifts, underrated.

Public prayers, overrated. Private conversation with God, underrated.

Telling everyone about your fasting, or what you are giving up for Lent. Overrated. A private sacrifice made to help you to grow closer to Jesus. Underrated.

Renting extra storage space for your earthly treasures. Overrated. Simplifying your life, and focusing on treasure in heaven. Underrated.

A life of service to self and obedience to whatever will get you ahead, overrated. A life of service to others and obedience to God, underrated.

A focus on pleasing others, overrated. I confess that this is a tough one for me, since I’m a people-pleaser, and I like to be liked. But I know this approach is overrated. Much better is a focus on pleasing God.

I want to challenge us all to begin to refocus today, on this first Sunday in Lent. We can do this by receiving the Lord’s Supper, the meal that nourishes us for our journey with Jesus Christ. The Lord’s Supper reminds us that the Lord who loves us is always with us. The one who has freed us from captivity to sin is always with us, working for good in our lives. Jesus is always focusing us on pleasing God instead of humans, and offering us the stimulation and guidance of God’s law. He gives us the gift of himself, so that we can experience the true treasures of heaven.

Come eat this meal and sharpen your focus on God. There’s nothing overrated about it. Amen.


Source:
Ryan Murphy, “9 Of The Most Overrated Things Of All Time,” AskMen.com, http://www.askmen.com/fashion/austin_100/133_fashion_style.html