The H Word

THE H WORD

MATTHEW 23:27-28

#hypocrisy

INTRODUCTION… The H Word

Liar, imposter, charlatan, phoney, deceiver, faker, imposter, storyteller, fraud, dissembler, double-dealer, pretender, bluffer, fabricator, fibber, fabulist. We are going to talk about a word today that has all of those words as a synonym. We are going to talk about a word today that makes us very uncomfortable. It is not a nice word. It is not a curse word per se, but if you say it to someone I don’t think you can ever say it with a nice tone or a pleasant manner or make them your friend after you use it about them. It is an attacking word. It is an offensive word.

The word is not exclusively a religious word, but the dictionary does attach “virtue” and “religion” to its first definition and so this word is almost always associated with religious people and for some they think it applies to all religious people. This word is in the Bible and is used once (1x) in the Old Testament and seventeen (17x) in the New Testament. 72% (13/18) of the uses are in the Gospel of Matthew which is where we will be at today. And in the Gospel of Matthew, a large majority of the uses of this term occur in chapter 23 which is the chapter we will focus on today. So… if you want to turn in your Bibles to Matthew 23, we will get there in a moment.

This word doesn’t ever seem to be used in a positive light in the Bible. For example, in Psalm 26, King David writes that he doesn’t even hang out with “those” kind of people. His opinion of them is that they are terrible and he would never associate with them.

READ PSALM 26:4 (ESV)

I do not sit with men of falsehood, nor do I consort with [you know who]

Jesus says in Matthew 6:5 that we must not be like this when it comes to prayer and then repeats that command later in the chapter when it comes to fasting and then again in that chapter when it comes to giving to the poor. He calls someone who judges another person falsely by this characterization in chapter 7. Perhaps it is in Matthew 15 that it is most shocking when Jesus not only defines this word, but quotes Scripture to describe the people to whom He is talking:

READ MATTHEW 15:7-9 (ESV)

[“You hypocrites!] Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said: 8 “‘This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me; 9 in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’”

TRANSITION

Let’s read from Matthew 23 today and name this terrible word once and for all.

READ MATTHEW 23:27-28 (ESV)

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people's bones and all uncleanness. 28 So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

Hypocrisy is the “H” word we are digging into today that is not used a whole lot in the Bible, but when it is used it is pretty sharp and noticeable. I was doing my regular Bible reading this past week and was reading in Matthew 23 and the H word stuck out to me. It was the word the Holy Spirit pointed out to me. The word we are focusing on happens in verse 27 and then again in verse 28: hypocrites, hypocrisy.

* This word is uncomfortable and feels full of judgmental feelings and negative emotions and is never good when connected with any person.

* The dictionary defines “hypocrite” as “a person who puts on a false appearance of virtue or religion.”

* King David uses the word falsehood as a substitute for hypocrisy and says he doesn’t even eat with hypocrites which is saying a lot considering he is a terrible father, murderer, and an adulterer.

* Jesus commands us against hypocrisy when praying, fasting, and giving to the poor.

* Jesus defines hypocrisy as saying one thing, but your heart believes another.

TRANSITION

What do we find in these verses in Matthew 23?

THE SERIOUSNESS OF JESUS’ WORDS: WOE

Jesus begins these verses with the word “woe.” This is not the only time in this passage He does this. Matthew 23 repeats this word seven times. Seven times Jesus says to the scribes and the Pharisees… “Woe!” In the Bible, “woe” is a word of holy sorrow.

In the Old Testament in Proverbs 23:29 “woe” is associated with “sorrow” and “strife” and “complaining” and “wounds” and “tears.” In Ecclesiastes, “woe” is associated with “helplessness” (4:10). In Isaiah, “woe” is associated with the hand of God being against someone (3:11, 5:20-22, 6:5) in judgment because of sin. This is a significant word.