March 28, 2016

TAKES ONE TO KNOW ONE

Matthew 23:13–36

Rachel Powell
Monday's Devo

March 28, 2016

Monday's Devo

March 28, 2016

Central Truth

When we look at the teachings of Jesus, we can see that His heart is for us to live a life free from the weight of checklists and rules. He wants us follow Him based on our own desires, not because of expectations put on us.

Key Verse | Matthew 23:23–24

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel!" (Matthew 23:23-24)

Matthew 23:13–36

13 But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people's faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in. 1 23:13 Some manuscripts add here (or after verse 12) verse 14: Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows' houses and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive the greater condemnation 15 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel across sea and land to make a single proselyte, and when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a child of hell 2 23:15 Greek Gehenna; also verse 33 as yourselves.

16 Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’ 17 You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that has made the gold sacred? 18 And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.’ 19 You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? 20 So whoever swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. 21 And whoever swears by the temple swears by it and by him who dwells in it. 22 And whoever swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by him who sits upon it.

23 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. 24 You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel!

25 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and the plate, that the outside also may be clean.

27 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people's bones and all uncleanness. 28 So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

29 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, 30 saying, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 Thus you witness against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers. 33 You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell? 34 Therefore I send you prophets and wise men and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and persecute from town to town, 35 so that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah the son of Barachiah, 3 23:35 Some manuscripts omit the son of Barachiah whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. 36 Truly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.

Footnotes

[1] 23:13 Some manuscripts add here (or after verse 12) verse 14: Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows' houses and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive the greater condemnation
[2] 23:15 Greek Gehenna; also verse 33
[3] 23:35 Some manuscripts omit the son of Barachiah

Dive Deeper | Matthew 23:13–36

When I first read this passage, I step back and simply think, “Whoa, Jesus was really mad.” But if I take a moment to really dissect what He is saying, I see that the reason why Jesus is filled with righteous anger is because hypocrites like the Pharisees are one of the most destructive groups within the church.

When I think about my own experience with the church, who are the leaders I remember most often? One would hope that it is those who have spurred me on to draw closer to Christ and who encouraged me to live the way the Bible teaches. Unfortunately, I struggled for a long time with being part of the church because I grew up under teaching that made me think that my walk with Christ was supposed to be a checklist of things I needed to do.

For me, that is why this passage is so personal. I grew up with great, godly parents, but I was so consumed with doing things that I forgot to have a close, personal relationship with Christ. It was and is easy for me to get sucked into the habit of judging those who do not appear to be as moral as I, making me no better than the Pharisees. My sense of entitlement and the expectations I put on others oftentimes create obstacles in manifesting Christ. Instead of demonstrating the love of Christ, I can turn people away by the harshness that comes with judgment.

When I read the warnings in the passage, the discussion questions below are what I have to walk myself through mentally. If I keep these on my mind, then I can be more accountable to how I am treating others and how I am portraying the gospel.

Discussion Questions

1. Pharisee heart check: Do you ever pray long prayers in public just to seem holy or like you are closer to God than you may be in your current walk with Christ? Do you go on mission trips to make you more holy or because it is the “Christian” thing to do? Do you think that you can receive purification through any path other than Christ? Do you think that your tithes and offerings are more important than practicing justice, mercy, and faith? Do you clean yourself on the outside just to hide the mess that is within?

2. How can you stay accountable to not fall into the temptation to judge others like the Pharisees? How can you lovingly help those who struggle with that?

3. Who can you share this truth with to help relieve the weight of the false belief that Christianity is about following rules, rituals, and laws?