A Warning against Hypocrasy
Notes
Transcript
Today we start chapter 23, which may be one of the angriest chapters in the entirety of the Bilble. But it is also the end of Jesus’ public ministry. Its hard to believe but in the next 48 hours we will see Jesus death…
Jesus has spent the last three years doing public ministry and teaching the crowds repentence for the Kingdom of God was at hand. He called upon Israel to receive him as their King, but they rejected him except for a handful of followers. And after this chapter, Jesus devotes his ministry to preaching and teaching those disciples and getting them ready for what was to come after his death.
What you have seen is the religious leaders were declaring the Jesus was NOT the messiah, that he was working miracles with the power of Satan and they swayed the crowds to believe their words over the proof that they had seen.
And as a result, Jesus withdrew his offer of the kingdom from that generation. He told them their house would be left desolate and they would not see him again until they called on his name.
These statements today come from the end of a long day in the temple where Jesus was being challenged by the Pharisees, Saducees and the Herodians, but each time he vindicated himself.
In the next 24 hours he will be arrested, and in 36 hours he will be nailed to a cross. So after this in chapter 23, Jesus will make no further public statements. He goes quietly to the cross like a sheep to slaughter and speaks only to his disciples.
And in this his last teaching to the crowds, Jesus focus is Israels religious leaders and their role they played in bringing Israel to this moment.
1 Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples,
2 “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat,
3 so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice.
4 They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger.
5 They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long,
6 and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues
7 and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others.
As the chapter opens Matthew says JEsus spoke to both the crows and disciples but his message was focused on the religious leaders. Early Jesus had described them as wolves in sheeps clothing and he is about to unmask them for who they are. And what you need to realize is that before this moment Jesus has been cautious in talking against these people, knowing that if he had spoke earlier against them it would have gotten him killed. It wasnt time for his ministry to end yet, so he was waiting for the right moment to take their masks off. He is taking the gloves off and going against them. And today the lesson is about how corrupt men can use godliness as a means of personal gain.
Israel has had a long tradition of corrupt leaders leading peolpe astray and encouraging them to engage in idolatry. Pattern goes back to Aaron who failed the people while moses was on the mountain. And continued through the times of the judges and throughout the kinds north and south… and at one point in before israel was conquered by babylon the lord told Israels leaders they had failed to shepherd the people
1 The word of the Lord came to me:
2 “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy, and say to them, even to the shepherds, Thus says the Lord God: Ah, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the sheep?
3 You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fat ones, but you do not feed the sheep.
4 The weak you have not strengthened, the sick you have not healed, the injured you have not bound up, the strayed you have not brought back, the lost you have not sought, and with force and harshness you have ruled them.
5 So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd, and they became food for all the wild beasts. My sheep were scattered;
6 they wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. My sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth, with none to search or seek for them.
Exekiel told the leaders they had taken advantage of Gods flock rather than caring for them and he is saying metaphorically they have slaughted the sheep they were supposed to gaurd and feed.Instead of sacrificing themselves for the sake of the people as good shepherds do, they sacrificed the people for their desire
The pharisees and sadducees were no different they turned religious corruption into a science. Taking advantage of those under their charge at every turn for personal gain. Their corrupt ways was ultimately what caused Israel to turn on their Messiah
In vs 2, Jesus starts his explanation of their corrupt ways saying they seat themselves in the chair of Moses but they say one thing and do another. THe seat of moses was a literal chair found at the local synagogue in Jewish towns of that day. And they would sit and preside court cases concerning violations of the laws of moses. In that day the Pharaisees were the self appointed judges of the law. So they sat in the chair and performed their duties and Jesus is telling the crowd to respect their judgment. because they are judges of the law, they should be obeyed in what they say from that chair. WHen seated in the chair he is saying they aren’t bad judges of the law, the problem is their actions dont match their words. These men judged others more strictly for violating the law yet they found ways to go around it if it suited the, and to understand what he is saying in this condemnation we have to understand the way they lived.
The Pharisees were known for their scrupulous lifestyle, observing elaborate daily rituals on a scale that’s hard for us to imagine today.
They observed rules for fasting, washing, praying, studying, clothing, hair, etc....from waking until they went to bed
They lived by a rabbinical code they helped invent, which made life like a prison without bars; every moment controlled by rules
As they complied with these rules, they appeared to others as men who had achieved religious perfection
Everyone looked up to them for their religious fervor and uncompromising devotion to piety
But Jesus says in reality they weren’t the upstanding, pious, God-fearing men they portrayed themselves to be before the crowds
Their whole life was an act, an illusion to impress the people
When no one was watching, these men wouldn’t bother doing the things they told everyone that God demanded
Jesus said they were saying one thing and doing another, which is the definition of hypocrisy
The fact they set aside their rules whenever it suited them proved their public devotion was just an act
Why did these men engage in such an elaborate act? It was their means to earthly gain...it brought them influence, honor, power and money
And in this chapter Jesus lays out that case against these corrupt leaders of Israel
He exposes how they played this game to their advantage through a series of maneuvers
The first step of their strategy was placing burdens on the people
In vs 4 Jesus says these men were like a merchant who loads up a beast of burden with a bundle of goods. A merchant going to the market to sell merchandise would lay out a square section of linen cloth on the ground and fill it with his stuff and tie the bundle with ropes and then the bundle was set on the back of shoulders of an animal so the animal would have to bear the weight of those goods for the merchant.
So Jesus is saying that the pharisees begin their deception by placing burdens on teh backs of people, For a pharisee every rule and restriction incorporated into the Mishnah and was a prized possession to them. When a rabbi succeeded in adding a new rule to the mitzvot the Jewish cannon of religious practices that was a career achievement. So Phariseees cherished their rules like children in much the same way merchants cherished their merchandise. But the pharisees were like the merchants, they didnt want to bear the burden of those rules themselves. They would rather place it on the Jewish people or an animal, who would have to labor under those rules and remember we aren’t talking about the laws of moses we are talking about the pharisees manmade rules… the fence rules...
and the thing is that keeping the rules has the appearance of being holy. ANd Paul says in Romans that no one can ever come to righteousness by means of following the law to rying to follor rules merely reminds us over and over that we are sinful becasue we cant keep rules.
So the pharisees were determined to be rule followers thinking it makes them righteous before God, but even they had their limits… so when they began to strain under the burden of their own system, they began to cheat. They were hypocrites who only kept the rules when they were being watched by others and ignored when it suited them. Jesus says that they were unwilling to lift even their smallest finger, meaning they ignored even teh smallest rules. The problem is the rules were so oppresive and impossible to keep, and people kept falling further away. And thats the way legalism works, legalism substitutes rules over a true relationship with the Lord.
SO the first step was to put a lot of burden on the people, and the second step of their strategy was to try to make this reputation for piety and obedience.
5 They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long,
Jesus is saying the Pharisees did religious deeds to be noticed by men, and not God. and he gives two examples.... the broadening of their phylacteries and lengthening of their tassels on their garments… both things to serve their own purposes....
Phylacteries: small boxes on their forehead containing three passages of scripture.... from a wooden reading of Deuteronomy 6:7-8
7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.
8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.
So they actually put it on their forehead… not just kept it as the forefront of their memory like they were supposed to… then everyone started doing it.... so they had to make their boxes bigger....so people thought they were greater…because they were willing to wear a larger box. That practice showed the true reason for wearing them in the first place… it wasnt an exercise in honoring God or remembering his word… they did it so men would notice...
Andd Jews also seewed tassels around the hems of their garnments in obedience with Deut 22:12
12 “You shall make yourself tassels on the four corners of the garment with which you cover yourself.
In this case, the law did require tassels but again the Pharisees played it ot their advantage… they made theirs larger...
So step 2 was making themselves seem like experts of the law
Which brings step 3 turning religious power into political and economic power. They relied on a classic technique of marketing.... They created a implied need in the mind of the consumer so they could offer a solution/… some of what the pharmaceutical industry does today… create a disease so you have a need for them. In a nutshell that is what the pharisees did… they established rules they knew no one could keep so that people would have to come to them for help and used that for their personal gain.
People who fear teh judgment of God were willing to do anything to gain the Pharisees seal of approval.
In Matthew 23:6-7
6 and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues
7 and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others.
Jesus refers to this saying they coveted honor and power and utlimately wealth. Jesus lists four places these guys wanted honor… banquets, which is priobably jewish feasts or meals. , seating there was according to honor. Pharisees expected that seat which meant they were at the top of the pecking order.
Secondly they wanted the chief seats in the synagogues, which was the seat closest to the Torah scrolls at the front of the room. A sign of honor meaning the pharisees sought ot be recognized at the highest religious authorities
THirdly they sough respect in the marketplaces…the commercial centers… Every merchant and businessman had a shop in the marketplace. and spending time in the marketplace ment they spent time around wealthy influential men, they wanted respect and their money.
Fourthly at the end of vs 7 they sought a title… not that thre is anythign wrong with titles, but they sought it for the power behind it....
They wanted the title because it gave them powerin their society.. and that is the danger of a title, if you search after it for the notority of it...
And if you look at this it is a warning against hypocrisy,,, and we can do all of these things that they did.. we can come to church and not REALLY care… but it looks good… we need it to change our hearts and lives...
