Part 2 of the Series: "Now That's Why You Don't Have Any Friends"
Matthew 23:14 KJV
[14] Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!

"Oh boy!" One sure fire way to make people mad is to tell someone who is in denial the cold hard truth. Matthew 23 is not the first time Jesus told someone the truth, and it's certainly not the first time He told His Jewish kinsmen, known as the scribes and Pharisees, the truth. The fact of the matter is Jesus was rougher on His Jewish religious kinsmen than He was on anyone else. Why? Because the Pharisees where Hypocrites!

Merriam-Webster defines a hypocrite as 1.) a person who puts on a false appearance of virtue or religion, 2.) a person who acts in contradiction to his or her stated beliefs or feelings.

Oh, the Pharisees put on a very good religious show because they wanted to be seen by men. Marvelous actors they were and if award shows like the Oscars or Tony Awards had been around then a Pharisee would have won every time. A Pharisee would have been a shoe in for the Best Costume category. Everything they did was to lay up treasure on earth and to receive praise by other men. On the outside, like a coffin, they appeared very clean and polished, but on the inside, they were full of dead man’s bones. (See Matthew 23:27)

The Pharisees were full of pride. They expected honor of men and received it. A Pharisee expected and received the best seat at any event, at a public event or at a private gathering it did not matter. The Pharisees were often called Rabbi or Master, and the people would clamor to be seen with and receive the attention of a Pharisee. But Jesus told the people and His disciples that they had only one Master who is Christ and that all mankind was equal. Jesus said, call no man upon earth Father, because God created us all and is our Father in Heaven.

In Matthew 7:16, when warning the people about false prophets, Jesus said we would know them by their fruits. The Pharisees shut up Heaven by their appearance of good works. Jesus knew their heart. He knew everything they did was for show. They had an appearance of good works. They would pretend to take care of widows only to gain their confidence so that the women would make the Pharisee a trustee over her money or property. Once this trust was gained, the Pharisee’s would convince the widow to give them all her wealth, which is what the KJV means by “ye devour widows’ houses”. Then they would make a long prayer about how much the widow loved the Temple and God, because she gave her money. It was all a show, they used the temple and other things of God to satisfy their own greed.

The Pharisees manipulated God’s Law to their own benefit, without fair judgement, without mercy and faith wasn’t even on their minds. Jesus called them blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. The Pharisees, in the scrolls they pretended to love, had the keys to the kingdom. Within the Old Testament books they guarded, was predicted everything Jesus was doing and was about to do. All the Pharisees needed to do was tell the people the prophets said Jesus would do these things and many more could have believed. BUT then the Pharisees would have lost their preeminence or place of prestige.

The Pharisee was just like those who persecuted Elijah, Jerimiah and Daniel. All the prophets foretold of Jesus’ mercy and grace. Through His dealings with the Pharisees, Jesus had gathered the unbelieving children of Jerusalem one more time for a final chance to believe. He did this even though they were persecuting Him, had persecuted those before Him and would persecute those that would follow Jesus. One final chance to believe and they would not! (See Matthew 23:37)

Pharisees, we still have them today, beware of their works, they will make you twofold more the child of Hell than they are!

Ephesians 2:8, 9
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:” Not of works, lest any man should boast.

To be continued…