Tag Archives: pride

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What Sorrow Awaits You…Blind Guides | Matthew 23:13-22 | Part 2

Mar 12:39-40 "And how they love the seats of honor in the synagogues and the head table at banquets. Yet they shamelessly cheat widows out of their property and then pretend to be pious by making long prayers in public. Because of this, they will be more severely punished."

Mat 23:14 [What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! You shamelessly cheat widows out of their property and then pretend to be pious by making long prayers in public. Because of this, you will be severely punished.]

Some of the ancient manuscripts do not include this verse in Matthew, thus the reason for the brackets in my bible.  There is a mirror of it in Mark 12 as seen in the caption under the picture of the homeless woman, and because it is in Mark I think it may be safe to assume that Jesus would have brought this point out..so let’s have a look at this verse.

Again we see the word “Hyprocrites!” So, we can safely assume that this is another definition of what it means to be a hypocrite. Let’s break the verse down a little and then discuss what we find.

Cheating widows
1. They claimed to have a clear knowledge of the law and a perfect observance of it. They pretended to have special care for the poor, friendship for the distressed, and a deep willingness to aid those who were in tough times. Through this “hypocritical” display they induced poor people to commit the management of their property to them as guardians and executors. They then took advantage of them and defrauded them.

2. They gave the appearance of great sanctity, and persuaded many conscientious but credulous women to give them much. This was all done under the pretense of religious purposes.

Pretended piety
It was all for pretense or show, in order that they might better take from the poor. They were not sincere in their prayers and pride was their master. They were not being condemned for the length of the prayers but for the evil design behind the prayers. Public prayer should always be short and to the point of the situation, never intended to draw attention to self.

Long public prayer
Their prayers are said to have lasted 3 hours. One rule among them was to meditate for one hour, pray for an hour and then meditate for another hour. All of this was included in their “long prayers” or devotions.

What were the Pharisees and teachers of religious law “doing” that caused them to cheat widows?

The short of it is this; being hypocrites. If I could go into the mind of a Pharisee I think I might find this train of thought. (Yes, this is presumption on my part)

“I have worked long and hard for YHWH. I know all there is to know about the Law. I can take care of these widows and their possessions…who better than I?”

“I have their trust because they can see how devoted I am to YHWH. They have given me their money because I am trustworthy.”

“I have worked long and hard for YHWH. YHWH would want me to have some of this money to take care of myself; after all, YHWH cared for Elijah.”

“The widow will be honored by YHWH that her money was used to support me in my ministry. She will be blessed richly in the Kingdom to come.”

Sound familiar….?

“Send in your seed money! The Lord will take that money and return it to you 10 fold!”

“Support my ministry! I’m doin’ God’s work!” [Bling flashes in the lense of the $100,000 dollar camera]

“Look at all these people I just slayed in the Spirit and also those I healed in the name of Jeeeesuus!”

“Look at this big beautiful auditorium. Did you know that we spent 50 million dollars building it and we have over 50,000 members attending weekly? How can we NOT be of God?” [Is my silk tie on straight? Is the camera getting my good side?Flash the pearly whites with slightly humble look on face - just not too humble. Smile and wave.]

Prayer:

Lord Father in Heaven,

I know that You want sincerity in all that we do. Lord, You know that I even sometimes question my own sincerity. Pride has a tendency to rear it’s ugly head at the most inopportune moments. Help me to see through Your eyes. Help me to love others with a sincere heart and with real love. I don’t want to be a pretender.

Please forgive my sins.

I praise You for what You have given me through Your Son Jesus Christ. I praise You that when You looked down at Jesus on the cross you saw me. I praise You that I am justified and reconciled by You and with You. I confess that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. I ask now that You would give me the Holy Spirit for today. I want to have the Mind of Christ.

Thank You for all that You do in my life. Protect my children. Please forgive their sins and cover them with Your righteousness. Amen.

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Day 78 | Matthew 13:18-23 | LISTEN! And obey…

Scripture: Matthew 13:18-23 [NLT]

18 “Therefore hear the parable of the sower: 19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside. 20 But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21 yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles. 22 Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. 23 But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.” (Matthew 13:18-23, New King James Version)

"...they recieve it with joy, but since they don't have deep roots, they don't last long..."

Observation: (What do you see when you read this scripture?)

I see Jesus, surrounded by a large crowd, Him in a boat just off the shore, telling stories to teach lessons. The people are there because they are thirsty for real power, real spirituality, real teaching from the lips of God. They are getting it, and it amazes them.

Have you ever tried to imagine what it might be like to be taught by someone who is sinless? No agenda other than to help you. No personal influences on the truth. No political sway. Just the simple truth intended to lift you up and take you where God wants you to be. This is what the people received from Jesus. This is what you get from the Word of God if you listen.

And now He tells the meaning of the parable of the soil receiving the seed. And the disciples become interested, wondering why He always teaches in parables. He explains that it is designed for “those that listen” because they will receive more understanding and have “an abundance of knowledge”. And for those that are not listening even the little bit of knowledge they have will be taken away from them.

What is the key in these two opening statements? The key is the action word “listen”. It is for those that listen…Do you listen? It is one thing to read the Word of God, but quite another thing to really listen for the Spirit’s instructions in those words. If you really listened wouldn’t a heart response of obedience follow? The Word of God seems to think so…look and see how many times listen is followed by obey in these verses: Lev 26:14 , Deu 4:1, Deu 5:1, Deu 5:27, Deu 6:3, Deu 7:12, Deu 13:4, Deu 28:13, Deu 28:15, Deu 28:45, 1Ki 11:38, 2Ki 18:12, Neh 9:29, Neh 9:34, Job 36:11, Jer 11:8, Jer 17:23, Jer 26:4, Jer 35:15, Hos 9:17, James 1:23, Rev 1:3

If we are listening our response to the message shows it. Jesus often referred to this as bearing fruit, or, as in this parable, producing more harvest. Obedience is a response to instruction from God. You cannot really obey if you are not listening with the intent to obey. Think about that dear friends… listen with the intent to obey and see where God can take you today.

Apply: (How can I apply what I have read today to my life?)

Wow. This was the proverbial whack on the forehead for me. Too often I know that I listen only with the intent to “gain knowledge”, but today I see that God wants me to do more than just listen; He wants a response. I admit folks, this is the hard part. This is where the rubber meets the road for me. I know what I need to do next…

Prayer:

Dear Lord,

I need Your help! I don’t have the strength to obey like I want to Lord. You have to give me that strength…PLEASE! Every time I try I fail…every stinkin’ time! I am tired of disappointing You. I love You. I need You. I listen to You. I don’t want to let You go….so show me why obedience is so hard. Take that stumbling block out of my life and let me grow in You. Is it pride? Is it selfishness? Is it stubbornness? Whatever it is, take it out…do the surgery, ’cause I can’t work on myself. I don’t do well with scalpels and I can’t heal myself. Your the physician. Your the doctor I have chosen and I am stubborn in this one thing. I will not let You go until You fix me. So there You have it…