Woe! FOR DISCUSSION. ENCOUNTER Read God s word so that He can speak to you. Matthew 23:1-12, 37-39

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1 Matthew 23:1-12, Woe! He made free use of Christian vocabulary. He talked But all of us are hypocrites to some degree at some time. about the blessing of the Almighty and the Christian confessions which would become the pillars side we don t want anyone to see. Mark Twain wrote, We re all like the moon, we have a dark of the new government. He assumed the earnestness of a man weighed down by historic responsibility. He handed out And Jesus hated hypocrisy because He was just the opposite true pious stories to the press, especially to the church papers. He all the way through WYSIWYG (what-you-see-is- showed his tattered Bible and declared that he drew the what-you-get). And He hated it because He knows we were strength for his great work from it as scores of pious people originally made like Him, true all the way through. Sin created welcomed him as a man sent from God. Indeed, Adolf Hitler an entire class of beings wearing masks. So Jesus pro- was a master of outward religiosity--with no inward reality! nounces Woe! Woe is misfortune, grief, anguish, despair, [Today in the Word, June 3, 1989] disaster, judgment. Yet at the same time Jesus invites you to know love, life, hope, peace. He wants to gather, protect People hate hypocrisy because a hypocrite and restore you to what creation intended you to be. Because will deceive you, take advantage of you, hurt in Jesus, what-you-see-is-what-you-get: your Creator, you and you won t know it until later. A your Judge, your King, your life. hypocrite wears a mask: he or she appears to be something they are not. FOR DISCUSSION We all know hypocrisy. Share some examples of hypocrisy in your experiences, and how you felt when the truth was exposed. ENCOUNTER Read God s word so that He can speak to you. 1 Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 2 the synagogues; 7 they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them 'Rabbi.' 8 But "The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. 3 So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for Master and you are all brothers. 9 And do not call you are not to be called 'Rabbi,' for you have only one they do not practice what they preach. 4 They tie up anyone on earth 'father,' for you have one Father, and heavy loads and put them on men's shoulders, but he is in heaven. 10 Nor are you to be called 'teacher,' they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to for you have one Teacher, the Christ. 11 The greatest move them. 5 Everything they do is done for men to among you will be your servant. 12 For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; 6 they love the place of himself will be exalted. honor at banquets and the most important seats in

2 37 "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing. 38 Look, your house is left to you desolate. 39 For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.'" EXAMINE what the passage says before you decide what it means. In this passage, keep track of who said what. Underline the phrase for men to see (v. 5) and note the examples that follow Circle but indicating contrast Draw a box for indicating explanation/reason Put brackets [ ] around so indicating conclusion EXPLORE God s Word by asking questions of what you saw. The notes which follow may help you to think through these questions. 1) In verses 1-12, Jesus gives four warnings about hypocrisy. In each group of verses below, state the warning in your own words. Then take the positive lesson given and explain how you could live it with Jesus life. Verses 1-4 The positive lesson: live by example God s message of grace Verses 5-7 The positive lesson: earn respect and honor, don t demand them Verses 8-10 The positive lesson: wear titles lightly that point to God Verses The positive lesson: serve God s people to empower them to advance the kingdom

3 2) In verses 13-36, Jesus gives seven woes about hypocrisy. In each group of verses below, state the warning in your own words. Then take the positive lesson given and explain how you could live it with Jesus life. Verse 13 The positive lesson: be a signpost to the doorway to the kingdom Verse 15 The positive lesson: make followers of Jesus, not of yourself Verses The positive lesson: maintain personal accountability Verses The positive lesson: major on the majors of the kingdom Verses The positive lesson: develop inside-out motives Verses The positive lesson: develop an identity that is true all the way through Verses The positive lesson: choose carefully the traditions you will perpetuate

4 NOTES ON THE PASSAGE (Adapted from Thomas Constable, Expository Notes) Israel's rejection of Jesus as her King was now unmistakably clear. Her various groups of leaders had consistently refused to accept Him. The leaders' rejection was a rejection of Jesus' person (22:42). Consequently Jesus announced His rejection of that generation of unbelieving Israelites. That generation would not experience the blessing of participating in the inauguration of the promised messianic kingdom. Jesus' strong language reflects the seriousness of their error and its dire consequences. Chapter 23 appears to be the climax of the confrontations that preceded it (21:23 22:46). 1 - There were three groups of people present in the temple courtyard: the disciples of Jesus, His critics, namely, the various groups of Israel's leaders, and the crowds of ordinary Israelites. Jesus now turned from addressing the Pharisees (22:41) to speak to the multitudes and His disciples primarily. He denounced these enemies publicly. He did so because the decision the masses and His disciples now faced was whether to follow Jesus or Israel's established religious leaders. They could not do both. 2 - According to Old Testament figurative usage a person who sat on a predecessor's seat was that person's successor (Exod. 11:5; 12:29; 1 Kings 1:35, 46; 2:12; 16:11; 2 Kings 15:12; Ps. 132:12). When Jesus said the scribes and Pharisees had seated themselves on Moses' seat He meant they viewed themselves as Moses' legal successors, possessing his authority. 3-4 Everything is a strong expression and includes all that they say, including the traditions that Jesus has previously denounced. In fact, Jesus has just exposed their ignorance of the basic core Scriptures (22:41-46). So it is best to take do what they say as irony, along with verse 2 (as He continues to use irony in verses 23-28). In other words, you obey those in the seat of authority but don t obey these leaders (the last part of verse 3 into verse 4 is not irony but a command), because they have no rightful authority. Their hypocrisy proves it. Only God, and His Son Jesus Christ have that kind of absolute authority "Phylacteries" were small boxes of leather or parchment in which the Jews placed copies of four Old Testament texts written on vellum (fine parchment, customarily Exod. 13:1-10, 11-16; Deut. 6:4-9; and 11:13-21). They then tied these onto their foreheads and or forearms with straps to fulfill Exodus 13:9 and 16, and Deuteronomy 6:8 and 11:18. But God intended for them to obey the Scriptures, not bind them to limbs while they disobey with their hearts and lives. God had commanded the wearing of tassels to remind His people of their holy and royal calling (Num. 15:37-41; Deut. 22:12). All the Jews wore these tassels, including Jesus (9:20; 14:36). However the religious leaders characteristically wore long ones to imply great piety and to attract the admiration of the common people. The leaders wanted to sit as close to the law scrolls as possible in the synagogues. These were the chief seats (v. 6). The title "rabbi" meant "my teacher" or "my master." It was originally just a title of respect. However, eventually the term became a title expressing great veneration. The leaders in Jesus' day wanted it because it set them off as distinctive and superior to others These verses applied to all the Jews but particularly the disciples (cf. v. 1). By placing "you" in the emphatic first position when He spoke to the disciples Jesus was implying that they would take the position of leadership over God's people that the critics then occupied (cf. 13:52). They were not to love it when people called them "rabbi" because they had but one teacher (Gr. didaskalos), namely, Jesus. They were to regard themselves as on the same brotherly level as learners rather than as masters over the unlearned. The term

5 "fathers" (v. 9) probably referred to their fathers in the faith, the spiritual predecessors of the present generation (cf. 2 Kings 2:12). The only person worthy of the title of teacher in the ultimate sense is Messiah. He is the only one who can sit in Moses' seat and continue to interpret and reveal the will of God correctly and authoritatively (cf. 1:1; 16:16; 22:41-46). It would be incorrect to conclude from this teaching that Jesus discouraged all recognition of distinctions between leaders and their roles among His servants. The apostles, for example, had authority in the church that surpassed that of ordinary Christians. Elders and deacons continue to exercise divinely recognized authority in the church, and God has commanded us to respect these individuals (1 Cor. 16:15-16; Heb. 13:7, 17). What Jesus was condemning was seeking and giving honor that transcends what is appropriate since believers are all brothers and sisters, since God is our true spiritual Father, and since Jesus is our real teacher and leader. The teachers and leaders of God's people must remember that they are always fellow learners with the rest of the sheep. They are still sheep and children of the Father, and they are always subject to Jesus In concluding these warnings Jesus returned to the subject of humility that He had stressed with His disciples earlier (cf. 18:4; 20:20-28). Jesus taught His disciples to be servants of others, not lords over them. Jesus then gave a scathing indictment of the leaders with seven woes (vv ). There is no hope for them. Their judgment is sealed because of their rejection of Jesus, as they have rejected all those whom God sent. 37 The words of judgment didn t delight Jesus they broke His heart. Jerusalem was not buildings but people. And the people had a long history of rejecting those who brought God s word to them. Many times during His ministry Jesus had sought to gather and shelter Jerusalem, the people of the nation. He wanted the people to take refuge in Him as chicks do under their mother hen physically and as God's people had done under God's care spiritually (cf. Deut. 32:11; Ps. 17:8; 36:7; 91:4; Jer. 48:40). In spite of God's loving initiatives Israel had willfully rejected Him repeatedly The house in view is probably the temple (cf. 1 Kings 9:7-8). Jesus had formerly claimed the temple as His own house (5:35; 17:25-26; 21:12-16). Now He spoke of it as their house, the house of prayer that they had converted into a den of thieves (21:13). Jesus and God would leave the temple desolate by removing Jesus' presence from it. In fact, the temple would be destroyed in A.D. 70 by Rome Jesus quoted Psalm 118:26 (cf. 21:9). He was referring to His return to the temple in power and great glory when He returns at His second coming. When He returns, all will acknowledge Him instead of rejecting Him (cf. Zech. 12:10). Moreover He will come in judgment (cf. 24:30-31; Phil. 2:9-11; Rev. 1:7). "It is extremely important for one to note that Christ's rejection of Israel is not an eternal one. The word 'until' (eos) of verse thirty-nine together with the following statement affirms the fact that Christ will come again to a repentant nation to establish the promised millennial kingdom " (Stanley D. Toussaint, Behold The King, pp ). GOING FURTHER One thing we can do to train ourselves to remember, is to memorize a part of what our Father has said to us. he Holy Spirit can use this to change our thinking so that our heads are more like Jesus. This week, memorize Matthew 23: 11-12