Old Llantrisant Hill
Introduction
- Looking at religious hypocrisy
- Can often give a good impression but harbour many hidden sins
- God will judge the religious hypocrite - whether in this or the next life
- Sometimes a religious hypocrites cover is blown and this can lead others to mock
- This brings great sadness to the Church of Jesus Christ
- This can damage the faith of weak believers
- Jesus deals with religious hypocrisy differently
- Consider how Jesus treats the sinner in the streets vs the religious leaders
- He pronounces woes against the religious leaders
- What would God have thought of the funeral yesterday?
- The passage in context:
- Jesus invited for a meal in a pharisee's house
- Perhaps Jesus saw this as an opportunity to speak against their religious hypocrisy
- Jesus did not obey the religious customs
- Example - ceremonial hand washing
- Jesus know what the pharisee was thinking - v38
- Jesus speaks into the situation
- Jesus speaks against three sins:
- The sin of inward miserliness
- The sin of outward show
- The sin of corporate oppression
The sin of inward miserliness
- The pharisees loved to impress others
- Examples
- They were very good at covering up their inner life
- Jesus did not follow their outward show - v39
- The pharisees should have known the Scriptures:
- Man looks at the outward appearance but God looks at the heart
- Jesus had said that sins proceed from the heart
- Jesus told them it is what comes out of a man that defiles (not what goes in)
- Can you imagine saying this to your host?
- The Greek word for 'greed' means robbery and extortion
- Examples
- Jesus showed them to be unclean
- v40-41
- Gives alms from within - charity, pity and kindness
- You need a changed heart and transformation on the inside
- Giving to the poor does not automatically you clean
- Salvation is by faith and not by works
- A changed heart will affect you outwardly
- God knows our hearts
- What are we like?
- Questions
- Tithing
- Jesus says that the pharisees should tithe
- But they had lost perspective and gone beyond the law of God
- What about us? Do we major on minor matters?
- Christianity is not just about tithing or attendance at church - but a relationship with the living God
- Micah 6:8, Zech 7:8-10
- Example of lawyer and doctor
The sin of outward show (v43-44)
- Our society encourages outward performance
- Give honour where honour is due
- We have gone beyond this
- We love the praise of men
- The pharisees
- Loved the best seats in the synagogue
- Loved greetings in the market place
- The pharisees and scribes are hypocrites
- Like play actors
- Explanation of white-washing graves
- How many people today are being polluted by religious teachings?
- What was the mood and feeling in the pharisees house - cf v53-54
- Jesus was concerned for the pharisees
- Jesus was concerned for the masses that they would not be duped by false teachers
- Scripture warns against false teachers
- Who are those that we should be wary of today?
- Those who don't preach the gospel
- Jesus was unafraid to speak the truth
The sin of corporate oppression
- Loading people with burdens (v46)
- Example of some pharisaical laws
- We must not reduce Christianity to a set of rules
- It is about knowing and loving God
- It is about the work of God in our lives
- The commands of God are not burdensome
- Approving of their father's sin in killing the prophets (v47-51)
- The pharisees thought they were the children of the prophets
- Jesus says they are part of the group that killed the prophets
- Taking away knowledge (v52)
- Imaging Jesus saying this to religious leaders today
- Strong words from the Lord Jesus Christ
Our Response
- Not pointing the finger at others
- Ask the Lord to search and change our heart
- Consider that many of the pharisees and priests did believe when the apostles preached
- How do you respond to this message?
- Ask God to show us our sin and come to the cross
- Ask God to fill us with His love