In Matthew 23, Jesus told his listeners that they should listen to and observe the teachings of their Jewish religious leaders, “but do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach.” These religious leaders were caught up in the trappings of their power and privilege, and in the process forgot their humanity and what that humanity means for their relationships with others. “They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them,” Jesus said.
Jesus instructed his own disciples to live as servants of others, and not to claim even a title like “instructor—for you have one instructor, the Messiah.” Instead, operate under the knowledge that “all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.”
The book of the prophet Isaiah opens with a call to reject oppression and exploitation and do justice that reverberates through Jesus’ teaching that serving and supporting one another is at the core of the Christian life.
Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean;
Isaiah 1:16-18
remove the evil of your doings
from before my eyes;
cease to do evil,
learn to do good;
seek justice,
rescue the oppressed,
defend the orphan,
plead for the widow.
Come now, let us argue it out,
says the Lord:
though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be like snow;
they shall become like wool.