Jesus Last Public message MATTHEW 23 Intro: The last 40 days of Jesus life is full of teaching, rebuke and prophecy. In chapter 22 of Matthew the religious leaders tried to trap Jesus into saying something that they could charge him. With each question the questioner is silenced by Jesus. His wisdom and logic are more than any man could compete with. Chapter 23 we see Jesus now on the offensive, having silenced His enemies, Christ now rips them for their failure to see what is clearly in front of them and exposes them openly as false teachers and hypocrites. In the Sermon on the Mount, He said that our righteousness had to exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees, if we ever hoped to enter the kingdom of heaven (Matt 5:20). He exposed their hypocrisy and pointed out the fact that outward actions do not always picture the human heart. It is the heart where the issues of life are formed and without a heart for God no outward actions can compensate. Jesus showed conclusively that mere "religion" can never make people holy. This was an open rebuke of religious leaders who claimed to be servants of God, but in fact were instruments of Satan. It is no wonder the Pharisees hated Jesus; he saw through their words to their hearts and revealed their sinful actions. I. Jesus Exposes the Leaders (23:1-12) Jesus did not tell the people to observe everything the Pharisees taught, but only those teachings that were true to the Law of Moses. Christ Himself had rejected many of the Pharisees' teachings (see Matt 5:21-6:18; 12:1 ff). A. Their wrong behavior (1-7)Matt 23:1-7 1. They do not practice what they preach (1-3) Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, 2 saying: "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. 3 Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do. 2. They place heavy burdens upon the people (4) 4 For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. 3.They do everything for show (5, 7) 5 But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments. 7 greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.' 4. They demand to occupy the place of prominence (6) 6 They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues B. Their warning (8-12) 8 But you, do not be called 'Rabbi'; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren. 9 Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. 10 And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ. 11 But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. 1. Jesus warns that whoever exalts himself will be humbled, 2. The one who humbles himself will be exalted 1
II Jesus Explains Their Sin (13-36) The great sin of the Pharisees was hypocrisy based on pride. Their religion was external, not internal; it was to impress people, not to please God. They bound people with heavy burdens, while Christ came to set people free (Luke 4:18-19). They loved titles and public recognition and exalted themselves at the expense of others. They wore boxes containing the Scriptures ("phylacteries" - supposedly based on Ex 13:16; Deut 6:8; 11:18) and made the hems of their garments wide (Num 15:38) to advertise their religious zeal. They had a "form of godliness" but no power (2 Tim 3:5). Jesus identifies the things that they are guilty of: 1. First judgment: (13) 13 "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in. a. How did they "shut up the kingdom"? (v. 13) First, by refusing to receive the message of John the Baptist (21:25-27; 11:16-19). b. Second, by refusing to acknowledge Christ Himself (John 7:47 ff). c. Third, by keeping the true meaning of the Scriptures from the people (Luke 11:52). By hiding, "the key of knowledge" (Christ as seen in the Scriptures) behind their man-made traditions, the scribes and Pharisees actually locked the door to the kingdom of heaven! d. How tragic when "religious leaders" today shut people out of heaven by rejecting Christ, resisting His Spirit, and refusing to preach and teach His Word. 2. Second judgment: (14) 14 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation. The Pharisees preyed upon poor widows and took their possessions under the pretense of using them for God (v. 14). They were covetous liars and "religious racketeers." 3. Third Judgment: (15) 15 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves. Their efforts actually produce followers that ended up worse then they were. We see progression downward. 4. Fourth Judgment: (16-22) 16 "Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.' 17 Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold? 18 And, 'Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.' 19 Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift? 20 Therefore he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things on it. 21 He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it. 22 And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it. Their values were confused (vv. 16-22). They were interested in the gold and the gifts but not the spiritual worship in the temple (see Luke 16:14 ff). 5. Fifth judgment: (23-24) 23 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone. 24 Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! 2
J. O. Sanders offers this interesting description of the counterfeit nature of Satan: Satan has his own trinity the devil, the beast, and the false prophet (Revelation 16:13). He has his own church, "a synagogue of Satan" (Revelation 2:9). He has his own ministers, "ministers of Satan" (2 Corinthians 11:4-5). He has formulated his own system of theology "doctrines of demons" (1 Timothy 4:1). He has established his own sacrificial system; "The Gentiles...sacrifice to demons" (1 Corinthians 10:20). He has his own communion service, "the cup of demons...and the table of demons" (1 Corinthians 10:21). His ministers proclaim his own gospel, "a gospel contrary to that which we have preached to you" (Galatians 1:7-8). He has his own throne (Revelation 13:2) and his own worshipers (Revelation 13:4). So he has developed a thorough imitation of Christianity, viewed as a system of religion. In his role as the imitator of God, he inspires false christs, self-constituted messiahs (Matthew 24:4-5). He employs false teachers who are specialists in his "theology," to bring in "destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them" (2 Peter 2:1). They are adept at mixing truth and error in such proportions as to make error palatable. They carry on their teaching surreptitiously and often anonymously. He sends out false prophets. "And many false prophets will arise, and will mislead many" (Matthew 24:11). He introduces false brethren into the church, who "had sneaked in to spy out our liberty...in order to bring us into bondage" (Galatians 2:4). He sponsors false apostles who imitate the true (2 Corinthians 11:13). 3
J.O. Sanders, Satan is No Myth, Moody, 1975, pp. 35-36 6. Sixth judgment: (25-26) 25 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also. 7. Seventh judgment: (27) 27 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness. 28 Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. "Whited sepulchers" (v. 27) refers to the practice of whitewashing tombs so that the Jews would not accidentally defile themselves (Num 19:16). 8. Eighth judgment (29-36) 29 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, 30 and say, 'If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.' 31 "Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers' guilt. 33 Serpents, brood of vipers! How can you escape the condemnation of hell? 34 Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city, 35 that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 36 Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation. a. "The measure of your fathers" (v. 32) refers to the increasing sin of the nation from OT days to Acts 7, when they finally "resisted the Spirit" (7:51; read all of Stephen's speech for details) and God set Israel aside. b. They had killed the prophets; they had permitted John to be murdered; they would crucify Christ; they would imprison the apostles and slay Stephen and "fill up the measure." When we sin, we write our own sentence of judgment. c. "Generation of vipers" (v. 33) means "children of the devil" (see 3:7; 12:34; John 8:44 and review the Parable of the Tares found in Matt 13). Children of the devil are persecutors of the children of God (v. 35). Cain was a child of the devil (1 John 3:12). These eight "woes" easily cam be contrasted with the eight "blessings " (Beatitudes) of Matt 5:3-12. "The poor in spirit" inherit the kingdom (5:3), while the proud "shut up the kingdom" (v. 13). Mourners are comforted (5:4) while the devourers receive damnation (v. 14). The meek "inherit the earth" (5:5) but the proud send people to hell (v. 15). God fills those who are hungry for holiness (5:6), but those who are greedy for material gain go away empty (vv. 16-22). The merciful "obtain mercy" (5:7), but the Pharisees rejected mercy as they majored in trivial (vv. 23-24). 4
"The pure in heart" see God (5:8), while the outwardly religious are inwardly corrupt (vv. 25-28). The peacemakers and persecuted are the "children of God" (5:9-12), but the murderers and persecutors are called "children of the devil" (vv. 29-33). There is a sense of "pitying sorrow" in these verses, as the loving heart of Christ reveals the wicked hearts of His enemies. It was heart felt pain that He revealed, not anger. III. Jesus Expresses Sorrow Over Jerusalem (23:37-39) 37 "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! 38 See! Your house is left to you desolate; 39 for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!'" a. This final word of sorrow from Christ indicates that God had given the people many opportunities to be saved, but they would not receive His offer. God does not send people to hell; they send themselves there by their own stubbornness. b. "Your house" (v. 38) probably refers to the house of Israel, as pictured by the temple. In 24:1, Christ left the temple and never returned to it, thus symbolically saying, "You have rejected Me, therefore your temple is empty." (See Matt 13:1 where He left the house - Israel - to go by the seaside - the Gentiles.) c. He called the temple "My house" in 21:1-3; but now it is "your house." Israel will receive her Messiah when He returns to establish the kingdom on earth (see Zech 12:10). Between the "Blessed is He who comes" of Matt 21:9 (NKJV) and the "Blessed is He who comes" of Matt 23:39 (still future) lies the Church Age which was not yet revealed. Believers today do not look for an earthly king, but for the heavenly Bridegroom who will return in the twinkling of an eye! 5