Day 2: So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. (Matthew 23:28) Do you ever want to walk into a church and say something like Will the REAL Christians please stand up?! How many pews are being warmed by the bottoms of fakers, those who are pretending to be one thing while inside they are something else entirely - as youd see from the passage in context, dead mens bones? Hypocrisy here translates closest to dissimulation in the Greek, being disguised under a pretend appearance. Wearing a Christian mask but bearing the heart of the world. Lawlessness implies not only a violation of the law, but contempt for it. Its not a one time thing but a habit of rebellion, sin and wickedness. When Jesus spoke these words, He wasnt speaking to the masses, the ordinary folks, the sinners or the unsaved. He was speaking to the scribes (according to Strongs a man learned in the Mosaic law and in the sacred writings, an interpreter, teacher) and the Pharisees (according to Strongs: They sought for distinction and praise by the observance of external rites and by the outward forms of piety, such as ablutions, fastings, prayers, and alms-giving; and, comparatively negligent of genuine piety, they prided themselves on their fancied good works. They held strenuously to a belief in the existence of good and evil angels, and to the expectation of a Messiah; and they cherished the hope that the dead, after a preliminary experience either of reward or of penalty in Hades, would be recalled to life by him and be requited each according to his individual deeds. These were respected religious leaders!!! Dont just clean your cup on the outside - clean your cup on the inside, too!
Posted on: Tue, 15 Oct 2013 18:19:37 +0000
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