Mat23WoeToUsIfLast Updated: 5/27/2012 5:12 PM

“Woe To Us If…”

(Mat. 23)

Times & Locations Preached:

Scripture Reading:

Accompanying Song: #“Purer In Heart”

Subject:

Objective:

Location:

Introduction:

  1. Emanuel NingerA.K.A. “Jim the Penman" (1845-1924)
  2. Talented artist- worked as a sign painter
  3. Eventually lived in Flagtown, New Jersey
  4. Impressed his neighbors – appeared to be very wealthy; told them he was receiving a pension from the Prussian army
  5. In March of 1896 he paid a bartender with a $50 banknote
  6. The note got wet, and the king began to smudge.
  7. The authorities were notified, and the residence of Ningerwas examined
  8. Authorities were shocked to discover Ningerhad forged his fortunes.
  9. Ninger developed a careful method of staining the paper with a diluted coffee solution.
  10. He then carefully painted with camels hair – each note took several weeks to produce with painstaking, meticulous detail. But in those days, $20 was the equivalent of almost $1300 by today’s standards (or about 2 mos. wages at the time).
  1. Today I want to spend some time talking about the hypocrisy of the Pharisees.
  2. Mr. Ningerspent so much time producing fakes that if he had spent the same amount of time working to earn an honest living he could have done so and stayed out of prison.
  3. Likewise, some people will go out of their way to make you think they are something that they really aren’t.
  4. The Pharisees remind me very much of EmanuesNinger
  5. Outwardly, they were trying their best to appear righteous.
  6. Jesus saw through their hypocrisy and exposed them for what they were.
  1. Our lesson will be taken from Mat. 23:1-36 (Title Slide)
  1. I have counted 9 woes Jesus preached against the scribes and Pharisees in Mat. 23. I would like to look at each one of these woes briefly in our lesson today.
  2. “Woe” :Jesus uses this exact word in Matthew 23 no fewer than 8 times.
  3. Unless we get the wrong impression of what Jesus is doing in this chapter, let’s observe Jesus’ comments in their contextual setting:
  4. What Jesus has said in this chapter is spoken within the last week of his life.
  5. Jesus has spent three and a half years teaching among the people
  6. Many have accepted
  7. But the scribes and the Pharisees became more and more angry with Him, so that they now reject and oppose Jesus at every turn
  8. Because of the hardness of their hearts, they have rejected the message of Christ, which was confirmed by the miracles He performed has failed to prick their hearts.
  1. This is a story of a people who were…
  2. …so committed to a “system” that was inherently evil
  3. …so grounded in legalistic self-righteousness…
  4. … that they had lost their way.
  1. Woe” is an exclamation of grief
  2. Lest we misunderstand, Jesus took no pleasure addressing the Pharisees in this manner.
  3. “Woe” indicates a feeling of mingling great sorrow with doom – He knows their future and it is sad.
  4. But Jesus has also seen their hearts… They have rejected him and nothing he could say or do is going to change their mind.
  5. What Jesus is saying is intended to be radical surgery, but it was necessary
  6. He was trying to shock and awaken some of the Pharisees
  7. Warn others, lest they be misled by these types of teachers
  1. Let’s examine the woes that Jesus pronounced against the Pharisees:

Body:

  1. Woe to us if we play the hypocrite (Mat. 23:1-4).
  2. What is a hypocrite?
  3. Some are accused of hypocrisy when their walk does not measure upto their talk
  4. But that may be an indication of weakness, not hypocrisy per se
  5. "Hypocrite" comes from the Greek "hupokrites (hoop-ok-ree-tace'), meaning an actor under an assumed character; e.g., stage-player, actor (Strong's)
  6. A true hypocrite is one who pretends to be something he or she isnot, and really has no intention of becoming
  7. Jesus addressed hypocrites in His day, in particular some scribesand Pharisees...
  8. They were among the more religiously conservative of that time
  9. Yet some of the harshest words Jesus ever spoke were directedtoward them
  1. For those who perceive that Jesus was a man who showed nothing but compassion, never uttering a harsh word, Matthew 23 refutes that notion entirely.
  2. This chapter contains the lengthiest and most unsparing condemnation of the Pharisees found in the New Testament.
  3. The tone is harsh and it serves as a harsh warning for anyone who would fall into their hypocritical footsteps.
  1. Some have criticized Jesus is treatment as grossly unfair. Jesus describes them as religious leaders who:
  2. Do not keep God’s word (23:4)
  3. They bound heavy burdens with their traditions and with their legalistic approach to righteousness (15:2; 5:20)
  4. Though they Don these heavy burdens, they would not move them with one of their fingers – the scribes that they would not make the smallest amount of effort to keep them themselves
  5. Are more concerned about the praises of men and having a prominent place in society than they are about serving God (23:5)
  6. “Hypocrites” (23: 13-15, 23, 25, 27, 29)
  7. “Blind Guides” (23:16, 24)
  8. “Fools” (23:17)
  9. He accuses them of being corrupted (23:25-28)
  10. Not Even Honest With Themselves (23:30-31)
  11. “serpents” and “brood of vipers” (23:33)
  12. Persecutors of God’s messengers (23:34)
  1. This is a story that should cause us to ask ourselves, “Are we committed to a ‘system’ or are we committed to the Savior?”
  1. Despite such strong condemnation, one can learn from hypocrites...
  2. You can heed their teaching, when it comes from God's word - cf. Mt 23:1-3
  3. Don't automatically disregard the message if the messenger isa hypocrite rather, look beyond the messenger to the original source of the message
  4. You can also learn how not to act...
  1. What valuable lessons can we learn from hypocrites?
  1. Woe to us if we love preeminence among others (Mat. 23:5-12).
  2. What made them hypocrites was their motive.
  1. The Pharisees live to be noticed by man, not to glorify God.
  2. Everything about them was for “show”
  1. Our motivation should come from the desire to seen (and thought highly of ) by others(Mat. 5:16)
  2. We do things with the motive that when people see us do good things, they glorify God in heaven
  1. Woe to us if we our actions are controlled by what others think. In order to be seen by others:
  2. Their Works:done to be seen by men(Matthew 23:5a)
  3. Compare Matthew 6:1-4
  1. Their Seating Arrangements (Matthew 23:6)
  1. Attire:
  2. They dressed to be seen by men:(Matthew 23:5b) They made “their phylacteries broad”and “enlarge the borders of their garments”
  3. A phylactery was a small prayer box containing tiny copies of scripture that Jews war on their wrists and their forehead (see Phylactery slide/picture)
  4. Some phylacteries were used somewhat like catholic rosary beads, fingered and counted in order to keep track of various prayers recited” – Chumbley, p. 402
  5. Let me be clear: Jesus was not establishing any type of dress code for religious teachers. The larger issue He was addressing was their motivation for dressing as they did.
  6. If religious leaders are dressing in a way just to appear religious or righteous, that is the attitude Jesus was condemning.
  7. Modern equivalent of “phylacteries” and broad boarders on garments (slide)
  8. What is wrong with standard clothing?
  1. Religious Titles:
  2. They loved to be known for being religious leaders holding special titles (Matthew 23:7)
  3. Likened to preachers today who love the titles:
  4. Pastor (many do not meet this qualification)
  5. Reverend
  6. Priest’s often called “father” (no man is supposed to be exalted to the title of “father” – Matthew 23:9)
  7. “His Holiness”
  8. “Doctor”
  9. All such titles are merely exalt the preacher above the congregation!
  10. This kind of attitude and forgets the Christian principle that true greatness is found only in serving others
  11. What is prohibited is not the title per se but wearing a title out of love for public recognition.
  12. What is wrong with simply using their first name?

5. Worship:Done to be seen by men (Matthew 6:5-6)

  1. Woe to us if we abuse our authority (Matthew 23:2)
  2. The Pharisees occupied Moses’ seat, meaning they were entrusted with teaching the word of God, a position of authority because God’s word carries authority
  3. Neither the scribes nor the Pharisees had been appointed by God as teachers, but had taken it upon themselves to teach the law
  4. Though they did practice many things or wrong, Jesus instructs them to observe and do what they say to do
  5. Though their hypocrisy was wrong…
  6. Truth is binding regardless of who teaches it; the critical thing is not “who’ is teaching but rather, “what” is being taught
  7. Shall the truth it was taught was to be obeyed, but the lives that they lived were not to be emulated
  8. They were the accepted religious authorities in Palestine
  9. The only true authority they held was derived solely from their accurate interpretation and application of God’s word
  1. Today the word of God is still authoritative
  2. In John12:49 Jesus said, “"For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak.”
  3. In John 14:10 Jesus said, “words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works.”
  4. In John 16:13 Jesus spoke about the “Spirit of truth” and when He came He was going to guide the apostles “into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority” – the word He inspired would be authoritative
  5. In 1 Cor. 9:18 the Apostle Paul referenced his “authority in the gospel.”
  6. 2 Cor. 10:8 Paul spoke of his “authority, which the Lord gave us for edification”
  1. We are entrusted with the safe handling of the word of God.
  2. The Pharisees did not respect it and follow it as they should.
  3. If we do likewise, then woe to us!
  1. Woe to us if our actions prevent ourselves and others from entering the kingdom of Heaven (Mat. 23:13, 15)!
  2. Making converts to error.
  1. Jesus is warning them about the lives they live…the example they set.
  2. Eyes of others are upon us – what do they see?
  3. Preach one thing – do another
  1. Who can get behind this and feel good about it?
  1. We need to be cautious about the example where setting.
  2. If we teach and practice error, and teach others to do likewise, then we do little more than make a carbon copy of ourselves.
  3. If we are lost, they are lost!
  1. Woe to us if we prevent others from entering the kingdom of Heaven!
  1. Woe to us if we prey on the vulnerable (Mat. 23:14).
  2. The Pharisees pretended to be righteous.
  3. Yet Jesus accuses them of devouring widows’ houses.
  4. Widows were thought of as people who were most vulnerable in society
  5. They had no husband to provide for and protect them
  6. Providing for their own needs would be a challenge but if they had children life was a specially difficult in many cases.
  7. Exactly what they did to these windows is not mentioned, nor is it important. The point being that they were taking advantage of the defenseless, weak and vulnerable.
  1. Their hypocrisy: To cover for their wickedness, they prayed extra long, lengthy prayers to appear “extra righteous”
  1. We could become just like the Pharisees:
  2. Privately, our lives filled with sin.
  3. Show no lover compassion for others.
  4. Dealing with others unfairly
  5. In any case, living an unrighteous life
  6. Then we could tell others about our Christian faith; attend services; speak out and Bible studies; play the part of a child of God when in reality our soul is corrupt.
  1. Woe to us if we’re putting on a show for others. Woe to us if we’re taking advantage of others while pretending to being God’s child!
  1. Woe to us if our word is not our bond (Mat. 23:16-22).
  2. The Pharisees pretended to be honest, but proved themselves to be intellectually dishonest.
  1. They would make a promise, swearing by the temple.
  2. Then when asked to keep their promise, they would argue that swearing by the temple was nothing.
  3. In other words, they did not have to keep their promise because the only promise that mattered was a promise made when wearing by the gold of the temple.
  4. Or they would say that a promise made by swearing by the altar is not binding (so they did not need to keep their word) but the only promise that had to be kept was one made when swearing by the gift on the altar. Otherwise, they did not need to perform their obligations.
  5. (Ladies, how would you like to marry a man who made promises like that? A man who keeps his vows are doing this way?)
  1. Jesus said their arguments for nonsense:
  2. The temple was more important than the gold that was sanctified by the temple
  3. The person who swears by the altars swears by it and everything on it
  4. If you swear by Heaven, you swear by the throne of God and even God who sits up on the throne
  1. Woe to us if our word is not our bond!
  2. When making promises, Jesus taught we should not have to prove are honesty by taking oaths but rather (Matthew 5:37)
  1. Woe to us if we diminish obedience to God in any manner (Mat. 23:23-24).
  2. The problem with the scribes and Pharisees was that they were critical of others who did not keep the most minute parts of the law.
  3. The law did require the tithe of mint, anise and cumin (they were required to give tithes of their first fruits – which included even the smallest of harvests of spices)
  4. But Jesus said they had been concerned about these small matters while leaving other much larger matters undone.
  1. God does want obedience in the small matters…
  2. But he wants obedience in the larger matters as well!
  3. Remember what the Lord said to the good servant: “'Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.'” (Matthew 25:21)
  1. Some people have been critical of us complaining…
  2. We are too legalistic
  3. We take stands things that seem small, minor and insignificant to the religious world:
  4. Does it matter if we have instrumental accompaniment in our worship to God? Many see this is as a trivial matter.
  5. Does it matter if we have communion on the first day of the week or any other day? Many people think fussing over such a thing is nitpicky.
  6. Does it matter how the church is organized (one man pastoral system; priests, or Elders, deacons, teachers and preachers)?
  7. They would accuse us of streaming in mat and swallowing camel!
  1. But the little things do matter! Woe to us if we fail to keep the whole word of God! God wants us to do the little things without leaving the other matters undone.
  1. Woe to us if we not pure both in appearance and in heart (Mat. 23:25-28).
  2. The Pharisees had the wrong focus.
  3. So long as they were pure in appearance, they thought they could conceal their true nature.
  4. They thought they could be righteous simply by appearing to be so on the outside.
  5. Jesus said they were as transparent as glass in a windowpane.
  1. Jesus warned them that they needed to cleanse the inside first. If the inside is “clean”, that is if they are truly righteous, then it will be outwardly evident.
  1. Woe to us if our righteousness never goes deeper than outward appearances!
  1. Woe to us if we reject the messengers of God’s word (Mat. 23:29-36)
  2. The Pharisees pretended to have great respect for the prophets of days gone by
  3. They built tombs to honor the prophets and they build monuments to the righteous saints of the past.
  4. They pretended if they had lived in the days of their fathers, they would not have made the same mistakes they had made.
  5. Their fathers had killed the prophets.
  1. Yet Jesus observers that they ignored the teachings of the prophets.
  1. In fact, Jesus was a messenger sent from God, they had rejected Him, and before very long Jesus knew that He would be murder just like the prophets had been.
  1. Woe to us if we reject Biblical preaching!
  2. One of my greatest fears is that we are entering into an age where people seem less and less interested in hearing the gospel and are becoming more and more interested in entertaining speech.
  3. People seem less inclined to be interested in listening to Bible verses read and seeing how they apply to our lives.
  4. People seem to be growing more interested in listening to inspirational and motivational stories with very little scripture content.
  5. Fewer and fewer people seem to encourage preachers to take a hard stand for the truth and a firm opposition against error.
  6. We want preachers to preach truth, but never offend anyone! (ESPECIALLY don’t disagree with what they believe)!
  7. We want preaching that makes us feel good as we walk out the door.
  8. If we don’t like it, we leave the preaching behind and it never changes our lives!
  1. Woe to us if God’s word is preached and we reject it!

Conclusion: