Read Matthew 23
The seventh
of the woes—you guessed it: hypocrites.
Have you
ever thought if you were in Adam’s or Eve’s place, that I would not have done
that? That tree would still have all of
its fruit. I would have chosen
differently.
And the
world would be a better place…
You
betcha!
Then we
realize that we have only been awake for 10 minutes and need to confess to God
for 15 minutes. It is human nature to
think that we would have done a better job.
The
Pharisees had this sanctimonious—holier than thou—nature about them. They didn’t really live according to God’s
desire, but they wouldn’t tell you that.
If they made an error, it wasn’t really an error.
If you are
the guys with all of the penalty flags, you know you can’t waste them on
yourself. You will surely need them
before marking off 15 yards for some petty offense for those who are not
sporting the pretty big boxes on their foreheads.
The
Pharisees can’t divorce themselves from the sinful world that they live
in. Like their ancestors, they have
grown accustomed to some of the comforts of the godless. While they are sanctimonious, they are not
sanctified.
They were
not growing closer to God. They made up
their own rules so they didn’t need to be.
Here is the
short version-hypocrites.
How do we
apply this to ourselves? Stay
humble. Let the word of God judge the thoughts and attitudes
of the heart.
Amen.
