The Prophetic Word - Day 43: The Lord will know when it’s just for show.
- Jun 1, 2023
- 3 min read
“Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, “The teachers of religious law and the Pharisees are the official interpreters of the law of Moses. So practice and obey whatever they tell you, but don’t follow their example. For they don’t practice what they teach. They crush people with unbearable religious demands and never lift a finger to ease the burden. “Everything they do is for show. On their arms they wear extra wide prayer boxes with Scripture verses inside, and they wear robes with extra long tassels.”
Matthew 23:1-5 NLT
After having begun the Sermon on the Mount with the Beatitudes, the Lord turned to reminding the people that they are to be salt and light to the world: salt to the world by demonstrating God’s way of being and doing (righteousness), and light by proclaiming and living according to His truth.
Jesus then explained to the people that He had not come to undo the Law, but to fulfill it (accomplish its purpose). Then he said this:
““But I warn you—unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!”
Matthew 5:20 NLT
So, this proclamation from the Lord begs the question: What was the righteousness of the Pharisees? And, what kind of righteousness would exceed their righteousness?
Let’s begin by answering the question concerning what the religious leaders counted as righteousness.
In Matthew 15 we see that the scribes and Pharisees came to Jesus and challenged Him as to why His disciples did not do ceremonial washing before they ate. Rather than answering that question, Jesus asked His own question concerning their hypocrisy in terms of not honoring their father and mother by refusing to supply their needs. Apparently, they did this by saying that their money was holy, set apart for the temple.
You see, they used something in their traditions to keep from having to fulfill their obligation to their parents. And, we can take the Lord’s reaction to this practice as indicating that they were NOT contributing those funds to the temple, but spending it on what they wanted, rather than helping their parents.
Then the Lord quotes a passage from Isaiah:
“You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he wrote, ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship is a farce, for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God.’ ””
Matthew 15:7-9 NLT
In this exchange with the religious leaders (concerning the fact that His disciples did not do ceremonial washing before eating), the Lord points out their hypocrisy: They made a big deal of something that did not really matter (hand washing), while ignoring the actual purpose of the Law: doing what was right. Indeed, the Lord put their practices this way:
“Blind guides! You strain your water so you won’t accidentally swallow a gnat, but you swallow a camel!”
Matthew 23:24 NLT
In our opening scripture we see Jesus bottom-lining what was wrong with the righteousness of the religious leaders with this statement: “Everything they do is for show.”
Knowing the hearts of the religious leaders, Jesus gave this commentary on their spiritual condition:
““What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy—full of greed and self-indulgence! You blind Pharisee! First wash the inside of the cup and the dish, and then the outside will become clean, too. “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity. Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness.”
Matthew 23:25-28 NLT
Remember, people can be fooled by outward appearances (and often are fooled), but the Lord—Who sees our hearts—will always know when it’s just for show.
Tomorrow we will begin looking at the kind of righteousness that DOES exceed that of the religious leaders of Jesus’ day.
Peace to you.
Jesus is coming! Get ready for Him!
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