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Thanks to Lindy for reading this passage to us today.
You may have noticed that the passage would have started at verse 14 but we have already covered the verses up to 32 in other sermons including in our evening services on Jonah.
So, let us look at what we have got before us from verse 33 onward.
Today we are looking at religion and faith.
Religion, in the sense we are using it today, is man’s effort to please God through good works or/and obedience to the law.
Faith is not like this.
Faith is trusting in Jesus for our righteousness because of the work of the cross and then we do good works and obedience to the law as a result.
In this passage we shall see the outcome of doing religion and in what it is to be a people of faith.
In fact, Jesus starts out by saying that we are either light or darkness.
And this is evident in whether we are people of faith or a people of religion.
Let us be clear.
Religion in and of itself is not wrong except in the way we are understanding it today.
In fact, Scripture makes it clear that religion can be good or it can be evil: For example:
But, to make sense of this, we need to go back to the definition of religion which is our effort to please God through works or obedience.
Religion is shambolic for every effort to try to please God fails.
It is impossible to bridle the tongue.
Though we are able to do the good to a point.
And religion is a waste of time for as we know elsewhere in Scripture we are told:
God receives us not because of our good works or because we have kept the law for it is impossible to please God in these ways.
But we can come with confidence to God through faith in the finished work of Jesus on the cross, and His burial, and His resurrection.
We can come into the holy of holies because the blood of Jesus was shed for us: The reason He came the first time at all.
37-41
Now Jesus shocks those who hear Him.
He has been invited to dinner but He deliberately forwent the washing of his hands.
Now, the washing of hands was not about cleanliness from what one had touched and fear of contaminating the food but a ceremonious hand washing which had a number of rules laid down.
If you did not hand wash then you were unclean in the ritualistic sense.
Oh boy! Something like that was bound to be noticed.
And the host noticed!
One wonders why he invited Jesus anyway.
But Jesus has set out to provoke them, not to condemn them but to open their eyes to see that they were in a dark place indeed.
In summary Jesus places charges against them:
2. The first charge: religionists are ceremonially clean, but inwardly unclean (vv.
39–41).
3. The second charge: religionists obey God in tithing, but ignore justice and love (v.
42).
4. The third charge: religionists crave prominence and honor (v.
43).
5.
The fourth charge: religionists mislead others to become unclean and corrupt (v.
44).
6.
The fifth charge: religionists burden men with rules and regulations (vv.
45–46).
7. The sixth charge: religionists honor the true prophets of God—as long as they are dead (vv.
47–51).
8.
The seventh charge: religionists have taken away the key to the truth about God (v.
52).
Washing the outside is all well and good but what about the inside?
Now here is the key: give alms of what is inside and you will be clean.
In other words give everything within your hearts to God and His work not just put on the outward show.
Then Jesus pronounces six woes:
42 What can be wrong with tithing?
The Pharisees tithed absolutely everything.
And notice: Jesus commends them for this aspect.
In fact, most fellowships would love such people to come along: “Come, all you Pharisees, and heavy-laden givers, and you shall find rest for your chequebooks!”
Too often monies are kept for extravagant buildings and livelihoods and personal comfort—monies that God wants used to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, house the orphan, care for the widows and reach the lost.
Such extravagance and misuse of the tithe reveals an unjust heart.
It is cheating the needy of the world.
It is as Jesus said, passing over justice.
It is overlooking what is right and just in a world that just reels under the weight of millions, if not billions, who are in desperate need.
Whilst being generous to their Church they were miserly and scrooges to the world and the very needy, to the stranger, fatherless and widow.
In all their giving they had forgotten justice:
Amos said a similar thing:
The issue was that if you do not personally care and help others you do not really love God.
We should never be those who say: I gave at Church, I can’t help you.
We should be those who give and love mercy and justice
43 What was the best seat in the house?
The ones at the front.
Not like in a theatre but facing the congregation.
The loved to be seen by all.
But their folly was that they were full of pride that left no room for the God they supposedly served.
Jesus asked this question before:
You cannot look for praise for yourself AND praise for God.
You cannot seek both.
And God will not give His glory to another.
There is a flyer for a Christian event that says: All-star worship band.
Is it upon the worshippers we should concentrate or upon God? Someone said to me before the funeral that if I preach well then you may get invites all over the world.
Really?
That is the purpose of preaching?
If we are keen in drawing attention to ourselves we are doing a disservice to our God.
44 Woe to you for you are like unmarked graves that are walked over.
This is not understandable to us without an explanation.
Graves were ceremonially defiling so they were clearly marked.
Otherwise you might step unaware on a grave, be defiled and pollute the temple.
Indeed they whitewashed the graves to make sure you did not.
These Pharisees were so concerned about external religion they were actually the source of contamination to unsuspecting worshippers.
They were deceived and were deceiving.
They were ruining people spiritually.
They were spiritual Typhoid Marys: diseased, defiling, infecting and polluting.
Which is why
it is imperative that our thoughts, our desires, our actions have roots in the faith we confess with our lips.
45-46 Now this was plain daft of the lawyer.
Talk about putting your chin out there you are just about to get a whack.
I bet he regretted it afterwards.
This lawyer was thinking, right, go get the Pharisee!
Who cares!
They get things wrong for we know what is best and how to follow the law.
Though oftentimes they were in cohorts together, and indeed, at the end they really are together against Jesus.
You see the problem with the lawyer was everybody else but me.
Yes, I see that so and so has a problem.
Great preaching.
Perfect for John or Robert or Melissa but not for me.
Plainly they need to get sorted out but I’m OK Jack!
Except some of the things Jesus encroached on with the Pharisees had a direct hit upon the lawyer who spoke up.
It got a little too close to home!
But he did not know that he was about to be on the receiving on of even more condemnation for their behaviour.
But this passage is just for the Pharisee and the Lawyer right?
Not for any of us here, surely?
Friends, if there is nothing here that convicts you today then may I speak of pride.
Are you or I really better than anyone else here?
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