2025.09.14 Sermon. RAPTURE READY_LIVING WITH AUTHENTIC FAITH_WOE TO HYPOCRISY, YES TO HUMILITY
Matthew 23
William Akehurst, HSWC
Scripture Readings
Matthew 23:1-39, 2 Timothy 3:5, James 1:22, Philippians 2:3, Luke 12:1, John 10:9, 1 Timothy 6:5, Micah 6:8, Matthew 15:8, 1 Samuel 16:7, Matthew 5:20, Matthew 7:21-23, Revelation 3:1-3, 2 Peter 3:9, John 14:3,
1 Thessalonians 4:16-18, Matthew 24:44, Matthew 23:12, 1 Thessalonians 5:6, Matthew 23:39
BIG IDEA: To be rapture ready, we must move from empty religion to authentic relationship with CHRIST. JESUS condemns hypocrisy and calls us to authentic faith expressed in humility, obedience, and servant leadership. Outward show can’t replace inward surrender.
Be watchful. Be faithful. Be ready.
INTRODUCTION
Authority. Authenticity. Integrity.
These are qualities we admire in leaders. When someone’s words and actions align, we call them trustworthy. But when there’s a disconnect - when they say one thing but live another - trust is broken.
JESUS confronted this very issue with the religious leaders of His day. In Matthew 23, He delivered some of His strongest words - not to sinners in the streets - but to scribes and Pharisees, the religious elite who claimed to represent GOD.
He exposed hypocrisy, warned of judgment, and called His people back to humility and genuine devotion.
The scribes and Pharisees had religion, but they did not have relationship with GOD. They looked righteous outwardly but were empty inwardly.
Today, many are in the same position. They attend church, know the words, carry a Bible, and even do “religious” things; but their hearts are far from GOD. JESUS calls us to more than outward religion. He calls us to readiness. If we are to be rapture ready, we must live with genuine faith, humility, and obedience.
Here’s the connection to us: if hypocrisy blinded the Pharisees to their Messiah, it can also blind us from being ready for His return.
JESUS is coming again. The question is: Will He find us faithful, watching and ready - or playing church and unprepared?
KEY POINT: Rapture readiness requires more than outward religion; it demands an authentic heart of faith, obedience, and watchfulness so that when CHRIST returns, we are found faithful and not exposed as hypocrites.
MATTHEW 23:1-39
I. THE WARNING AGAINST HYPOCRITICAL LEADERS
Matthew 23:1-12
Woe to the Scribes and Pharisees
The Danger of Hypocrisy (1-12)
1 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. 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. 5 But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments. 6 They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, 7 greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, ‘Rabbi, Rabbi.’ 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.
JESUS begins by warning the crowds:
“They say, and do not do” (v. 3).
• They spoke the law but did not live it.
• They laid heavy burdens on others (v. 4).
• They loved titles, recognition, and honor (vv. 5–7).
JESUS flips it all:
“He who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” (v. 11-12)
SUPPORTING SCRIPTURES:
• 2 Timothy 3:5 “Having a form of GODliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!”
• James 1:22 “Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.”
• Philippians 2:3 “In lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.”
• Luke 12:1 “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.”
LESSON: Hypocrisy is deadly. It deceives others, but most of all it deceives ourselves.
It’s easy to point fingers at the Pharisees, but what about us? Do we ever say but not do? Do we look for recognition more than service?
ILLUSTRATION:
A father told his son, “Do as I say, not as I do.” But children don’t learn by instruction alone; they imitate what they see. So it is with spiritual leadership. People follow example more than words.
POINT: True greatness is found not in titles, power, or position, but in serving others. “He who is greatest among you shall be your servant” (v. 11).
SELF REFLECTION: Am I living what I say I believe? Do others (family, friends) see consistency in me – or a double life?
APPLICATION: To be rapture ready, we must live authentically.
II. THE SEVEN WOES: JESUS CONFRONTS HYPOCRISY
Matthew 23:13–36
The Woes of False Religion (13–36)
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. 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.
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.
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.
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!
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.
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.
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.
JESUS pronounces seven “woes” – sorrows - against the hypocrisy of the religious leaders.
JESUS unmasks their spiritual blindness:
1. Shutting the Kingdom (v. 13) – blocking others from entering.
• JESUS is the door.
John 10:9 I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.
2. False Conversions (v. 15) – making converts worse.
• Some see GODliness as gain.
1 Timothy 6:5 useless wranglings of men of corrupt minds and destitute of the truth, who suppose that GODliness is a means of gain. From such withdraw yourself.
3. Blind Guides (vv. 16–22) – empty oaths.
4. Majoring on Minors (vv. 23–24) – tithing herbs, neglecting justice.
• Do justly, love mercy, walk humbly.
Micah 6:8 He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you but to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your GOD?
5. Outward Cleansing (vv. 25–26) – clean outside, corrupt inside.
• Lip service without heart devotion.
Matthew 15:8 ‘These people draw near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me.
6. Whitewashed Tombs (vv. 27–28) – beautiful outside, dead inside.
o GOD looks at the heart.
1 Samuel 16:7 But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the LORD does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”
7. Murderers of the Prophets (vv. 29–36) – honoring the past while rejecting truth.
SUPPORTING SCRIPTURES:
• Righteousness must exceed the Pharisees.
Matthew 5:20 For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.
• I never knew you.
Matthew 7:21-23 Many will say “LORD, LORD,” but JESUS will declare, “I never knew you.”
• Sardis: alive in name, but dead.
Revelation 3:1-3 The church at Sardis: alive in name, but dead. “Be watchful… if you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief.”
ILLUSTRATION:
Whitewashed tombs looked beautiful in Israel’s sunshine but held corruption inside. Likewise, a beautifully wrapped gift box that’s empty, or worse, filled with garbage, deceives by appearance.
But GOD sees what’s inside.
LESSON: Outward religion cannot substitute for inward holiness. GOD sees the heart.
APPLICATION: These woes serve as a mirror. Hypocrisy isn’t just ancient - it’s a modern danger. Outward religiosity without inward reality is deadly. GOD desires sincerity of heart.
SELF REFLECTION: Am I content with looking good to others, or am I truly seeking to be right before GOD?
III. JESUS’ LAMENT OVER JERUSALEM
(Matthew 23:37–39)
JESUS Laments over Jerusalem (Luke 13:34, 35)
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!’ ”
After His strong words, rebuking hypocrisy, JESUS weeps:
“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!” (v. 37)
• His heart was to gather them as a hen gathers her chicks, but they were unwilling. His heart was for His people to be safe in Him.
• But they resisted, preferring religion over relationship. Their rejection left them desolate (v. 38).
• He ends with a promise: “You shall see Me no more till you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!’” (v. 39)
SUPPORTING SCRIPTURES:
• 2 Peter 3:9 – GOD is longsuffering, not willing any should perish.
• John 14:3 “I will come again and receive you to Myself.”
• 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 The promise of the Rapture: caught up to meet the LORD in the air.
• Be ready.
Matthew 24:44 “Be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”
LESSON: GOD’s heart is not to condemn but to restore. Even in judgment, JESUS’ heart breaks for His people.
JESUS longs to gather us to Himself before judgment comes.
Rapture readiness begins with surrender.
Rapture readiness means responding now, not later.
APPLICATION
1. Practice what you preach – integrity matters more than words. James 1:22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
2. Focus on GOD’s priorities – justice, mercy, faith.
Micah 6:8 He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your GOD?
3. True greatness is serving others.
Matthew 23:11-12 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.
4. GOD sees the heart – outward show cannot hide inward sin. 1 Samuel 16:7 But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the LORD does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”
5. CHRIST longs for repentance – His arms are open.
2 Peter 3:9 The LORD is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
6. Rapture readiness requires authenticity – only genuine faith will stand.
1 Thessalonians 5:6 Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober.
SELF REFLECTION
• Am I living authentically, or am I wearing a mask, hiding behind appearances?
• Do my words and actions align?
• Do I live for the approval of people or the approval of GOD?
• Am I ready for CHRIST’s return—or distracted by outward show?
• Will I humble myself now so I may be exalted by Him then?
CONCLUSION
Matthew 23 is both a warning and a call. A warning against hypocrisy. A call to humility.
Hypocrisy blinded many to His first coming.
Only humility will prepare us for His second coming.
To be rapture ready is to be real before GOD.
BENEDICTION
READER: “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Matthew 23:12)
ALL: “Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober.” (1 Thessalonians 5:6)
ALL: “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!” (Matthew 23:39)
Let’s Pray,
LORD, YOU see our hearts. We hear YOUR warning through the words of JESUS in Matthew 23. Forgive us for the times we have honored YOU with our lips while our hearts were far from YOU. Cleanse us from hypocrisy, pride, and outward show, and make us inwardly holy. Teach us to love justice, show mercy, walk humbly, and live faithfully. Shape us into humble servants who reflect CHRIST in word and deed. And above all, keep us watchful, faithful, and ready for YOUR coming. When the trumpet sounds, may we be found authentic in faith and gathered safely under YOUR wings.
In JESUS’ name, Amen.
Be blessed and be a blessing,
Bill
Hymns
386 Have Thine Own Way, LORD
202 Softly and Tenderly JESUS Is Calling
303 Blessed Assurance
I’ll Fly Away
