Matthew Part 6 D

Matthew 23: 1-12 HUMBLING EXPERIENCES

1. INTRODUCTION / BACKGROUND

I have spoken a lot to you about Matthew, the tax collector, who wrote this book. Before this passage, Christ answered the Sadducees' questions. They were the Jewish religious party that said there was no resurrection, no life after death. How sad, you see. :) After our passage, Christ gives seven "woe to yous" about the scribes and Pharisees. Our passage today is the introduction to this.

2. CHRIST SPOKE ABOUT THE SCRIBES AND PHARISEES (VERSES 1 - 4): DO WHAT THEY SAY, NOT WHAT THEY DO.

The scribes were the copiers of the Old Testament texts. They were so meticulous with their work that if there was one mistake, they burned the manuscript. One positive result of this is that the copies that have been discovered (the Dead Sea Scrolls, etc.), show that the accuracy of the Old Testament has been preserved over thousands of years. This is even more true with the New Testament, but that's a different message. See More Than A Carpenter or Evidence That Demands a Verdict by Josh McDowell for more information. The Pharisees were the Jewish religious party who DID believe in the resurrection, life after death, and in future rewards and punishments.

Christ gave a warning to the religious leaders of His time, which still applies today. We need to be careful that we practice what we preach. His reference to Moses may refer to religious leaders sometimes thinking more highly of themselves than they ought. Religious leaders can put a lot of burdens on people, perhaps making them feel too guilty or by preaching AT them, instead of being WITH them in their struggles. Religious leaders sometimes do not reach out to help the unwanted. They only want to be around the important people, the ones with power. The points I make about religious leaders can apply to all believers, since we are all supposed to be examples.

Part of my 68th Corps Support Battalion is planning on leaving in a little while for Southwest Asia. I am bringing several books to read, including Who Is My Enemy? Welcoming People The Church Rejects by Rich Nathan, pastor of one of the largest Vineyard churches, 6000 in attendance, which is in Columbus, OH. We need to be open to people joining us we are not comfortable with, whether it be "gays, liberals, feminists, new-agers, postmoderns, everyone on the cultural left." We need to love everyone.

3. PHYLACTERIES AND TASSELS (VERSE 5)

Christ said, "They do all their deeds to be noticed." We see this by them wearing phylacteries. These were prayer bands, little boxes tied on the forehead with a leather strap with scripture inside them. They were also worn on the left arm next to the heart. These were a reminder, like we sometimes put a rubber band around our wrist. These phylacteries were reminders to keep the scriptures in mind and in the heart.

"The Pharisees broadened their phylacteries to render conspicuous their superior eagerness to be mindful of God's law." (Vine's Expository Dictionary) They made them bigger out of pride. Tassels are the appendages that the Jews attached to their mantles to remind them of the law. (KJV Lexicon) You can sometimes see both of these if you look at a picture of Jews worshipping at the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem. We need to be careful of the clothes we wear, so that they do not attract attention to us, instead of to God. That is one reason in my denomination, the Vineyard, the pastors tend to dress down, not wearing liturgical clothes, or even suits or ties, a lot of the time. We want to send the message that you can "Come as you are, and you'll be loved," as I have on my bumper. It is not until people get into leadership that we start setting limits & boundaries.

4. VIP SEATING AND TITLES (VERSE 6, 7)

Religious leaders need to be careful not to take advantage of their position for personal gain. The Pharisees sometimes abused this, which is not "fair, you see." :) One positive thing about the scandals we have had in the church over the years is that it has made the leaders more accountable. Church boards are looking more closely at the books to make sure the finances are correct, people are holding the leaders more accountable, etc. In the Army, it is the chaplain assistant and others, like our ushers, who handle and count the offering money. This keeps the chaplains accountable. Also, our assistants help us in other ways to be accountable as well, by asking us questions, etc.

5. DON'T BE CALLED TEACHER. (VERSE 8)

The next several verses show the Hebrew form of hyperbole or exaggeration, when Christ said to not call anyone teacher, father or leader. According to Dr. Douglas Hare, a professor from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, where I went, in his Interpretation (of) Matthew commentary, "Only after 70 (A.D.) did the practice develop of using rabbi as a technical term to designate those of the Pharisaic tradition who had been trained as teachers and set apart by ordination. Presumably it is used here in its non-technical sense (Christ died about 33 A.D.) . . . In the Greek the opening word of verse 8 is emphatic and contrastive: "As for you, however, you are not to be addressed as "Rabbi"". It must have been natural to address the next generation of Christian teachers in the same way. . . (Christ was trying to bring a word of caution or balance here.) The eagerness of laypeople to exalt ordained persons by the use of honorific titles, however, intensifies the minister's responsibility to work diligently at breaking down the barrier between clergy and laity." This is important in my denomination as well, as we teach everyone to minister to others with the Holy Spirit's fruit and gifts. The pastors, chaplains, chaplains' assistants, etc., cannot do it all. We need you to help us. That is why, during our time of prayer at the end, I allow time for you to pray out loud as well.