Burunche’s Blog

Jesus continues to confront the scribes and Pharisees Matthew 23:15-28

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.

“Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.’ Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold? And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.’ Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift? Therefore, he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things on it. He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it. And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone. Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.”

Jesus is continuing to confront the Pharisees. Here are his points:

1. The Pharisees will travel long distances to make one disciple, but these disciples will become more Pharisaical than the Pharisees, carrying hypocrisy to new lows.
2. “Therefore, he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things on it. He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it. And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it.”  The Pharisees are spiritually blind, teaching that swearing by the gold of the temple or the gifts on the altar are more important than the temple itself, thus ignoring the holiness of the temple and the fact that the temple makes the gifts and the gold holy and not vice versa.
3. “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone. Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!“ The scribes and Pharisees have reduced the Law God has intended to bring forth justice and mercy and faith to a series of rules so ridiculous that they are even tithing the spices in their kitchen cabinets. Since it is easier to follow sets of rules than to become compassionate, these men are concentrating on the rules while gaining reputations as some of the stingiest and most vicious people in town. Even the tax collectors might be kinder.
4. “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also. “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.”

These men who pride themselves on appearances have spared no expense to dress as handsomely as possible and to parade themselves before the common people; yet, all these efforts are meaningless since they have focused on externals while refusing to repent. As Jesus is teaching on the east steps of the temple, he can look out over the Kidron valley, where there are many whitewashed tombs. References to these “tombs full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness” paints an unforgettable picture in the minds of Jesus’ listeners. For the rest of their days, these people will never look at a posturing Pharisee or scribe without remembering this vivid description.

Why is Jesus speaking out against the abuses perpetrated by the religious authorities? Lacking any other examples, people may believe that they must copy the behavior of the scribes and Pharisees to be serve God; meanwhile, most of these men are serving themselves rather than God. Even Jesus’ disciples might not be immune from learning bad practices from the Pharisees; after all, these men have grown up respecting scribes and Pharisees as being ultra-religious and therefore worth copying. Jesus knows his time is getting short and he must teach the disciples as much as possible as quickly as possible. If Jesus fails to combat these horrible beliefs, the disciples might be tempted to slide into them after he is gone.

How easy it is to succumb to a system of rules, regulations, and check lists! But God has never been impressed with check lists; instead, God looks at our hearts. Earlier, Jesus answered one of the lawyers questioning him by saying that the laws of the Kingdom of God can be simplified to “loving the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your spirit and your neighbor as yourself.” There are an infinite number of ways in which we can show love for others, depending on their needs and circumstances. That’s why check lists don’t apply in the Kingdom of God.

As we strive to be disciples, let us remember that self-promotion and hypocrisy should have no place in our lives. Let us love others and serve them, for it is in so doing that we will prove to be true disciples.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to hard after You all the days of our lives, taking Jesus as our example and not someone else. Help us to be true-hearted and humble, serving those around us without thoughts of rewards. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

This entry was posted on October 27, 2024 at 12:01 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.