Woe - Sermon Two

Recap

Thinking highly of ourselves leads us to shut the door on others and neglect the most important things. We start to think we don’t need God to accomplish the law, and become even more the children of hell.

Intro

Getting by:

Clean or dirty

Broke a bone or didn’t

Aiming for a D or C on a test.

Keeping a few pieces of clothing clean instead of doing laundry.

Married or not

Washing a dish when you want to eat instead of doing the dishes.

Microwaving a meal for your family.

Sometimes its all you can do to get by, sometimes all you do is what it takes to get by, and there is a big difference between those ideas...

Woe

The New International Version Chapter 23

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24 You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.

The New International Version Chapter 8

18 When Jesus saw the crowd around him, he gave orders to cross to the other side of the lake. 19 Then a teacher of the law came to him and said, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.”

20 Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”

21 Another disciple said to him, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”

22 But Jesus told him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”

The New International Version Chapter 14

25 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: 26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. 27 And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

28 “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? 29 For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, 30 saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’

31 “Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? 32 If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. 33 In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.

34 “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? 35 It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out.

“Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”

They sacrificed, but did not give of themselves.

They did just enough to be sacrificial, but not enough to have given it all away.

Application

How often we find ourselves doing the same. We prioritize many of the spiritual tenets that we have been taught, and hide behind theology, instead of asking the hard questions about what Mercy, Justice, and Faithfulness require of us.

Jesus is painting a picture of a group of people who think the right way, do the “holy” things, but neglect the ideas that require them to give up themselves.

What is it we tend to neglect? is it?

How we choose to talk about those we disagree with?

Helping the marginalized in our society that carry a label with them?

Incarcerated

Refugee

Black

Single Parent

Church attendance and vulnerable relationships

Discipleship

Tithing

Challenge:

Identify that thing you neglect, tell someone, and put accountable steps in place to adjust your perspective.

Being all in with God wasn’t the issue from their perspective, being called out as those who only half obeyed the law was an issue for them. Jesus is telling them that their version of justice, mercy, and faithfulness isn’t good enough. Or that they have chosen other things. It also places all obedience as the same in regards to importance and value in accomplishing the law.