Matthew 23 and hypocrisy

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Bootstrap
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Matthew 23 and hypocrisy

Post by Bootstrap »

What does Matthew 23 tell us about what hypocrisy is, what true religion is, and what false religion is?

Are we all tempted to become Pharisees? What kinds of temptations lead in that direction? Is Phariseeism a natural tendency for old wineskins? Are new believers also tempted by it?

Looking at this chapter, what are behaviors or attitudes we should embrace or avoid?

Feel free to comment on small sections or on the whole chapter. Feel free to agree with what someone else has said, but let's not debate it in this thread.
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CADude
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Re: Matthew 23 and hypocrisy

Post by CADude »

I had someone tell me recently that the Pharisees were actually good people, at least in the sense that they kept the law. I do see that this passage says that they didn't actually practice what they preached (in today's language), so I don't know if that means they were actually breakers of the law or not.

Regardless, there was something that God thoroughly despised about them. Reading over this chapter, I think they were arrogant, condescending, self-righteous and unmerciful. It would seem they had failed at human relationships. One of the primary ways we serve God is to love and serve the people He's created, and it appears the Pharisees were not doing this.

One of the temptations of someone that thinks they are well studied (true or not) is to believe that they couldn't possibly be wrong. While it may be true that they are correct, I think the attitude that one couldn't possibly be wrong is very much the attitude of the Pharisees. We might find ourselves arguing and being contentious if this is the problem we've fallen into.

To avoid hypocrisy I think a person needs to have a good understanding of their actual condition before God. That is, that all our righteousness is as filthy rags. Micah 6:8 sums it up pretty well: "He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?"

I personally don't think the Pharisaic "disease" affects one age group more than another. I feel it largely stems from a failure to see ourselves as we really are. I do not know exactly how we can "see ourselves as we really are" except that it seems to take a humbling of ones self and I think perhaps divine revelation. By "divine revelation" I'm not talking about visions or dreams or some big thing, but it seems to me the human condition is one of being so hopelessly fallen that many times we cannot see our arrogant, unmerciful, self-righteous selves, even when others try to point it out to us.
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KingdomBuilder
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Re: Matthew 23 and hypocrisy

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Regardless, there was something that God thoroughly despised about them.
I'd say it was their pride.
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Re: Matthew 23 and hypocrisy

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KingdomBuilder wrote:
Regardless, there was something that God thoroughly despised about them.
I'd say it was their pride.
How was that pride manifested? How are you defining pride?

Can you cite verses from Matthew 23 that illustrate this?
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CADude
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Re: Matthew 23 and hypocrisy

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Bootstrap wrote:
How was that pride manifested? How are you defining pride?

Can you cite verses from Matthew 23 that illustrate this?
I think I would define this pride as hubris. Thinking themselves to be great, to be masters, to be righteous because of their dress.
5 But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments,

6 And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues,

7 And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.

8 But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.

9 And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.

10 Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.

11 But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.

12 And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.
This last verse especially shows that they were self exalting, which I would take to be another term for pride.
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Re: Matthew 23 and hypocrisy

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CADude, KB, I like what you are saying. It rhymes with something I read today in my morning devotions:
Phillipians 3 wrote:Look out for the dogs, look out for the evildoers, look out for those who mutilate the flesh. For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh— though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
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Re: Matthew 23 and hypocrisy

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I'm a bit slow to reply lately, but CAdude cited the verses I had in mind, especially 5-7.

It's obvious that the Lord hated what he saw in the scribes and Pharisees. So much so that he calls them "children of hell". Some of the stronger words offered by Jesus, in my opinion.
We can see that the Pharisees we're proud, not only by their conduct described in the verses above, but by the way the God incarnate spills over with anger towards them. Pride is a sin that, from scripture, we know the Lod strongly hates and he resists those with it.

As for defining pride, I'd say it's a state of self-exaltation and self-righteousness that lacks any genuine humility or dependence on the Lord.
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Re: Matthew 23 and hypocrisy

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KingdomBuilder wrote:It's obvious that the Lord hated what he saw in the scribes and Pharisees. So much so that he calls them "children of hell". Some of the stronger words offered by Jesus, in my opinion.
We can see that the Pharisees we're proud, not only by their conduct described in the verses above, but by the way the God incarnate spills over with anger towards them. Pride is a sin that, from scripture, we know the Lod strongly hates and he resists those with it.

As for defining pride, I'd say it's a state of self-exaltation and self-righteousness that lacks any genuine humility or dependence on the Lord.
I like this ... if you observe people in action, how can you tell the difference between pride and boldness, between exalting yourself and contending for the Gospel?

Jesus was clearly forceful in Matthew 23, Paul was clearly forceful in Galatians 2, I suspect some people - maybe the Pharisees? - would have called that pride. But both preach against pride. So how do you distinguish the two?

(These questions are for anyone who cares to answer.)
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Re: Matthew 23 and hypocrisy

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KingdomBuilder wrote:As for defining pride, I'd say it's a state of self-exaltation and self-righteousness that lacks any genuine humility or dependence on the Lord.
This makes sense to me - often exalting our own righteousness and putting down others. Like the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. And you consistently see Jesus on the side of people the Pharisees are dissing.

There's a style of preaching that strikes me as very Phariseeical, where each point is made by telling people about all those awful people out there who disagree with us, painting a vivid picture that may go beyond reality at times, then reminds those present that we, of course, are not like that, we are the good ones who get it all right. And we can reflect that in our own speech, becoming experts on the sins of others - at least in our own minds. If the measure we give is the measure we get, that's dangerous. And we can often become false witnesses in the process. We can become very comfortable with the kind of fake religion that Jesus denounced, and very nervous about talking to the kinds of people Jesus reached out to. We want to look like fine religious people, and we want people to see us as fine religious people. We like that status.

If you read the New Testament, that's not how Jesus talked or preached, and it's not how Paul talked or preached.

I prefer a style of preaching and speaking that focuses on our own need to grow in discipleship, sees our own sinfulness, knows God's grace, and draws near to him in confidence that he is there to guide us and make us holy and effective in his love to others. Like Paul, I think we should focus on who we are in Christ, the confidence we have in him, the call to be holy as he is holy, be free of this world, and love as he loved.
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Heirbyadoption
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Re: Matthew 23 and hypocrisy

Post by Heirbyadoption »

KingdomBuilder wrote:
Regardless, there was something that God thoroughly despised about them.
I'd say it was their pride.
Matthew 15:9 and Mark 7:7 (with surrounding verses) seem pretty straightforward...
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