Beware! Part 1

During the ministry of Jesus Christ, He was constantly being confronted by a certain type of leaven. Not personally in His life and the way He lived His life, but it confronted Him.

In fact, it was combative in the way that this leaven confronted Him. It was actually a group of people who possessed this leaven. They walked around with it, they took it with them wherever they went, and it formed the basis of their actions. This leaven was present with them when they sought to trip Jesus up over His words. This leaven was present with them when they confronted Him about His disciples and the actions of His disciples. Why did they do this? Why didn't they do that? And this leaven was also present when these individuals considered their own goodness, their own righteousness, and their own standing before God. And ultimately, this leaven contributed to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Now, obviously, this is not a good leaven to possess.

And in the Bible, we have leaven that's as a symbol for sin, but you also have leaven that symbols and points to good things like the kingdom of God. As in, it starts out very small. It's like leaven in a dough, or it's like a grain of a mustard seed. It starts very small, but then it expands until it fills everything. That's the kingdom of God, and leaven's used to express that concept as well. But this isn't that type of leaven, and it is one, again, as I said, Christ constantly bumped up against. This leaven is one that puffs an individual up with pride, with self-righteousness, and it's one that will actually impact the followers of those who follow the possessors of this leaven.

So Christ said to watch out, to be aware of this leaven, to have nothing to do with it, because its presence in your life is dangerous, and so are the actions of those who possess it. As you and I come to the end of the days of Unleavened Bread, we spent the last week putting sin and keeping it out of our lives. We put it out in advance through the Passover, coming under the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, as that symbolizes, and we recognize that we live continually under that sacrifice.

And because he was unleavened, we are to be unleavened as well, and that's our continuing state. As Mr. Wilson mentioned in the Sermonette, this isn't just a seven-day process, and then we move on. It's something that reminds us of what we are to be continually as we go forward from these days. But God knows, a little interruption really in our mind, and that routine is good now and then to wake us up and get the memory and that process reignited in our minds again.

I was thinking this morning about how easy it is. I was driving around here last week, and I looked at my watch, and it was about two o'clock, and I said, oh, it's happy hour at Arby's. One dollar jalapeno roast beef sliders, you know. I thought, but very quickly, you remember, okay, not this week. And it's an important reminder, but it's out of the ordinary. It's kind of like when the power goes off, and you're wandering through the house, and you enter a room, and you flip the switch on anyway, and you're like, oh, yeah, the power's out.

God says, this is going to be different, but it's going to point to something I want you to continually remember. And so we've examined our spiritual lives to make sure we're putting that leaven out, and it's symbolized by the physical. And as we wrap up the feast, I want us to be aware, and to warn us, actually, about certain elements of this particular leaven that can creep into our lives. Again, I said, Jesus Christ, it was continually coming in front of him, not as he was threatened by it, but this was a confrontation, good against evil, light against dark, and sin against righteousness. And we all have to be careful of this leaven, because the insidious nature of this particular leaven is that it looks righteous.

It has the appearance of righteousness. And you would say, why wouldn't I do that? In my worship to God, it looks right and proper and good. And after all, if you want to be righteous, it's not like I put out murder, right?

Something hideously obvious. This looks good, and yet the end result is just as dangerous. The leaven I'm referring to is found in Luke chapter 12. So let's begin there today. Luke chapter 12. Jesus Christ had much to say about this leaven, and we're going to look at it today and at least attempt to wrap our minds around it a little better.

Luke chapter 12 and verse 1. It says, in the meantime, an innumerable multitude of people had gathered together so that they trampled one another. And Jesus began to say to his disciples, first of all, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. He said, be aware of the leaven of the Pharisees. We're going to take a look at that leaven today. What was it? How did it manifest itself? And how could it actually sneak into our lives if we're not careful?

And why did Christ said to be careful? The title for today's message is, beware the leaven of the Pharisees. It's his instruction, so that's fairly upfront and simple. Beware the leaven of the Pharisees. And as we'll see through the message, the leaven of the Pharisees falls into two basic categories. One is attitude, and it's attitude leading to actions, but it's attitude at its core. And the second category is doctrine. Doctrine. Teaching. So let's begin with the leaven of the Pharisees as an attitude.

Let's come to understand what that looks like, because if we're to be aware, we have to know what we're watching for. So again, Luke chapter 12 and verse 1, Jesus said, beware the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.

For there's nothing covered that will not be revealed nor hidden that will not be known. Therefore, whatever you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have spoken in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops. And so there's this concept here of uncovering, you know, of revealing, of taking something in the dark and dragging it into the light and exposing it.

And it's like this was done or said in secret, and the covers are going to be ripped off, and it's going to be brought out into the open. And yet it all relates back to this concept of hypocrisy. Hypocrisy. The Miriam Webster dot com dictionary describes and defines hypocrisy as a feigning or pretending to be what one is not. Or it's a feigning to believe what one does not believe. It is the behavior that contradicts what one claims to believe or feel.

And hypocrisy is actually, in definition, has changed a little bit since even Jesus' day. We'll look at that as we go along, but the general core concept's the same. And the dictionary gives an example. It says, his hypocrisy was finally revealed with the publication of his private letters.

As in, there was a person who maybe stood up and proclaimed something, appeared to stand for something, and then when his diary came out, essentially, everybody saw what was really going on inside, and the hypocrisy was exposed. It goes on to say, it is essentially the false assumption of an appearance of virtue or religion. So that's hypocrisy, as we would know today. It's saying, claiming, acting one way, but actually being something else undercover. So this is talking about exposure and dragging these things into the light. Now, the English word hypocrisy or hypocrite comes from the Greek word, hypokritis. And again, it's a Greek word, hypokritis, so you can kind of see they're similar. This is where this concept comes from. And hypokritis refers to someone who is acting or pretending. Back in Jesus' day, in the Roman culture and in the Greek culture that was prevalent, the Roman stage actors disguised themselves behind a mask in order to play a part. And so there'd be a play, there'd be some sort of production that was put on, and the audience would sit and watch, and the performers would come out, and they'd have these big masks on. And you didn't know who was behind the mask. You didn't know the identity of that person. You just knew the part they were playing and what was being presented. And a lot of those masks had this mechanism built into it that actually distorted the voices as well when they spoke. They would speak out, and the louder they spoke, it would kind of amplify, but it would distort the voice. So you really didn't know who that was. Who's the real person behind the mask? Well, they're playing a part. They're acting out a part. So Jesus often linked the conduct of the Pharisees to these stage actors, because they understood that in the Greek. These were hypocrites, essentially, as we would say it in the English. That's what these masked actors were called. They were hypocrites. And Jesus likened the conduct of the Pharisees to these stage actors, individuals who were playing a role that was different than what was actually behind the mask. So the person that was there in the heart of the person wasn't seen, but this exterior shell, and through their words and their actions, again, it was an act. An act which, in their case, pointed to supposed righteousness. Christ called the Pharisee hypocrites, and he labeled the hypocrisy as leaven, which is also sin. And he said, beware the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. So it's a sin, brother, not to be genuine. It's a sin not to present who and what you are.

You know, it's a sin to put on an act or to put on a front, because you see it's actually disingenuous, right? It deceives people. It deceives them into thinking you're someone different than you are, but you see if you take this far enough out, what happens is you begin to deceive yourself. And you begin to think, that is me, right? The mask, the front, the what it is that I'm presenting is really who I am, and it causes you to deny the heart of the matter of who and what you are. And as long as you're denying that, where's repentance going to come from? The Pharisees of Christ's day were a powerful leadership body, and I won't really go into their history other than to say, you know, God's people had over the centuries gone into captivity and were restored. The northern ten tribes were eventually scattered among the nations. Judah came back in part, a remnant, and carried on, and this was the descendants of that group. But the point was we don't ever want to go back to captivity again, and we don't ever want to be found denying God. So let's put a system in the place, and rules in the place, and certain customs in the place that will keep us from ever diving back into unrighteousness. So we'll make these rules and these standards of righteousness, and those were the Pharisees. So they were a group, they were a powerful leadership body who claimed to be more zealous and more righteous than the majority of Jewish society, and they set themselves up as the model. As in, when you looked at the Pharisees, you were to see what holiness and righteousness looked like because it was in action. But again, if they were an actor and they were wearing a mask, it was a show, and true righteousness was missing. Yet Jesus Christ actually called them out as destructive. He called the Pharisees out as blind guides. So if you can imagine that kind of visual imagery, you show up at the Grand Canyon, you've never been there before. Go to the tourist group and you say, I want a guide to take me through the Grand Canyon, and the guide comes out and he's got a blindfold on. Is that really the best person to be following? Christ said blind guides because their hypocrisy paid apart in leading others who followed them to their own destruction as well. Again, the leaven is so insidious because it carries with it the form or the pretense of righteousness, and its rituals and its customs would appear righteous to others as well, but behind the mask the reality was quite different. And the question for us on the last day of 11 Bread, brethren, is could you or I be hypocrites?

Let me say, well, I don't think I'm a hypocrite, but part of this process is, again, self-examination.

Not examining others, but examining self. And is there even maybe a sliver of our life that we could be hypocritical? That we could be putting on a front on a show as an actor, but it isn't truly who we are inside, and it isn't truly the thought, intents, and intents of our heart?

Do we say one thing publicly, but do another privately? That was the leaven of the Pharisees. That was the hypocrisy, and it must be put out. Today, I want to go through the Gospel accounts, and we'll spend a primary portion of our time in the Gospels, because Jesus, as I said, kept running up against people who just carried this leaven around with them, and bumped up against him, and there were confrontations over this. And I think it's important to look at another number of these. We can wrap our mind around what the leaven of the Pharisees looks like, so that we can take his warning to beware. Let's go to Matthew 6, verse 1.

Matthew 6, verse 1. A lot of these places we'll go through today are well known. They're common scriptures to be read, and yet, you know, maybe we don't always put them together in this pattern and package. In Matthew 6, verse 1, Jesus says, Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them, otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven. He says, Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. It's like, you know, I'm getting ready to do a righteous deed or a charitable act. I'm going to put my offering over here in the basket or the collection plate. You know, where's the trumpeters? Everybody look, how big my gift is. Or I'm about to help this poor little widow over here. I'm going to do this for her. I'm going to hand her this gift. And, you know, but it's a show. Everybody see what I'm doing here. This is a righteous act. And Christ says, assuredly I say to you, they have their reward.

People looking and saying, wow, that's a righteous person. That's the reward they will get.

Verse 3 says, But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will himself reward you openly. So again, the hypocrites wanted the praise of men. And Christ says, what you need is the praise of God. And that's what's important. And that's the source of the praise. And the fact is, we're not doing this for show. We're doing this because it is what God has called us to do. Christ said, be genuine. Don't do this to be seen by men. Verse 5, it carries on. He says, And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. And there's that word, the people with the mask, the people putting on the front. For they love to pray, standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets that they may be seen by men. Assuredly I say to you, they have their reward. But when you pray, my disciples, you go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. You know, you can't wear a mask with God. You can't have the face on, the cover on, and say, I think God is going to see this face today. God sees right through the mask, and in fact, He sees down to the heart. The thoughts and the intents of the heart. There's nothing hidden from His sight that won't be revealed. And the point of Christ here is saying is, seek God. Seek Him alone.

And don't seek the praise of men. Verse 16 as well, He says, Moreover, when you fast, nor not be like the hypocrites with a sad countenance, for they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. It's like, hello, how are you today? Oh, what's up with you? Well, I'm fasting today, and let me tell you, second time this week. My pants are getting loose. A show of outward expression, what, you know, disfiguring, contorting your face, ruffling up your hair. It's like the praise of men. That's righteous guy. Second time this week?

Well, Christ says, verse 17, But when you fast, anoint your head, and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. So God knows when our hearts are sincere, and He is the one who rewards accordingly as well. Again, He doesn't look on the outward appearance as man looks. God looks on the heart. So what we find is that one clear aspect of the leaven of the Pharisees is seeking the praise of men. You know, seeking to be acknowledged as righteous by men, and that's your reward that you're craving. And Jesus said, be careful. Beware. He says, that's leaven. Watch out. Watch out for it in yourselves. And frankly, not that we judge others' hearts, but watch out for it in those who would lead you. That they're not seeking this open praise and adoration, that they're not seeking this for themselves. He says, it is the leaven of the Pharisees. We find another aspect of this leaven on display in a parable that Jesus told in Luke chapter 18. Let's go there next. Luke chapter 18 and verse 9.

This time it's not a live example, but it is a parable and it's telling. Luke chapter 18 and verse 9. It says, also Jesus spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and they despised others.

Right? So now it's a self-righteous group. It's people who trust in themselves. I'm doing the right thing and I am righteous, and at least I'm not like them. Okay? That's the comparison. This is the audience. Verse 10. He says, I'm sure we can see the difference, okay, in these two individuals that Christ is highlighting here. Pharisee seems to be good on the outside, right? He's praying. And in fact, he says, you know, I fast twice a week. I give tithes of all I possess. He's standing there praying, and he seemed to be doing all the right things externally. But what was he inside? A couple days ago, I was thumbing through Facebook, and somebody had posted a video of peacocks. I think it would be the male peacocks, obviously. They're trying to attract females, right? So they're very colorful, and they're out there, and they're spreading their wings out, and their colorful feathers, and they're beautiful. You know, they puff themselves up, and they're just this full array of beautiful color. And I thought, well, that's interesting.

It's kind of like the heart of the Pharisee in this. He says, I pray, I fast, I do all these things externally. That was the front. That was the mass. The inside was a strutting peacock. He was proud of himself and his actions. And again, the problem was he didn't see the need to repent personally, because he was doing all the right things. And they were points of righteousness, right? Prayer, fasting. But how he was doing these things were wrong at their core, and the attitude behind it was a different story. On the other hand, we have the tax collector. And this was someone who society considered to be very low-class individual. This was a Jewish individual, but he was a Roman collaborator in people's minds, because the Romans were oppressing the Jews. That's why they wanted a messiah. Get the Roman boot off our neck. And now you have these Jews who are tax collectors for the Romans. So you have this concept of, this guy's a lowlife in our estimation. And then you have the Pharisee who's sort of the righteous of the righteous. And that's why Christ picked this comparison. But you have this tax collector then who wouldn't even look up, wouldn't even raise his eyes towards heaven. They said, God be merciful to me, a sinner. He knew he was a sinner, and he knew he needed forgiveness and mercy and the grace of God. And as a result, he was truly humble and repentant. And Jesus said, this one went away justified, went away made right in the eyes of God, as opposed to the other. From this parable, we can see that the attitude of self-exaltation and pride is also the leaven of the Pharisees. Again, self-exaltation and pride. I have done all these things, and I am good. The point is, we must do all these things. But if you stand up on the street corner and say, I have eaten unleavened bread for seven days, and I'm thankful I'm not like this Ritzcracker eater over there, there's a problem. Okay? Because, again, these are physical things that we do, but they're to affect our spirit and our heart. And they lead us to repentance. And Christ said, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees. Watch for it, and have no part of it in your life. Matthew chapter 22 gives us another example, the leaven of the Pharisees in action, and this time in a slightly different form. Matthew chapter 22 and verse 15. Matthew 22 verse 15, it says, then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle him in his talk. So you have the group of people now, they're going to confront Christ, and their motive is entanglement. They're scheming, they're plotting, you know, and this is what's in the heart, but maybe it's not what's going to be up front. Verse 16, and they said to him, excuse me, and they sent to him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, teacher, we know that you are true, and you teach the way of God in truth, nor do you care about anyone, for you do not regard the person of men. You're not a respecter of persons. You know, they're saying, you're good, you're honorable, you're just, teacher.

That was their mask, but what was their motivation? Well, again, verse 17, they said, tell us therefore, what do you think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not? You might think, well, that seems like an innocent enough question, you know, but what you need to understand here is the motivation of the Pharisees was to do Jesus Christ harm, and it was to get him to trip himself up, because they're trying to catch him in his words for the point of accusing him, and they're doing it with a smile, and they're doing it with flattery, and that's the hypocrisy. The challenge is this, if Jesus had said, yes, it's right to pay taxes, again, I come back to the Roman oppression, and they hated that, and the taxation of the Romans, they resented that. So if Christ would say, yes, it's right and good to pay taxes, then you know what? His Jewish followers would be quite disenchanted with him. Maybe that's not the right word, but they would lose their respect in a hurry, perhaps, right, if, hey, this guy is saying taxes are right and good.

But if, on the other hand, he said, no, it's wrong to pay taxes to the Romans, then they would have a point of which to accuse him and to bring him to the Romans, because if he's teaching this, this is treason as well. So it's a lose-lose question that they're presenting to him, and either way, the Pharisees are applying the tactics of malicious intent and deceit against Jesus Christ in their question. In verse 18, Jesus perceived their wickedness.

He could see what was in their heart, and he said, why do you test me, you hypocrites?

Face mask, different heart. Why do you test me? Show me the tax money. So they brought him a denarius, and he said to them, whose image and inscription is this? And they said to him, Caesar's. He said to them, render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things which are God's. And when they heard these things, these words, they marveled, and they left him, and they went their way. Nothing much, really, that they could say to that. He didn't fall into their trap, either. But you see, the hypocrisy here, the leaven, was in the attempt to set him up through words of trickery. It was an effort to get him to take himself out by his own words, to get him to stumble. And again, there was malicious intent behind it. In verse 18 says that Jesus perceived their wickedness. So this is another aspect of the leaven of the Pharisees, brother, and it is the leaven of the Pharisees to intentionally set someone up for a fall out of malice and wickedness. It's the leaven of the Pharisees to set someone up for a fall out of malice and wickedness. It's like you put on a fine front, but yet you're underhanded, and you're cutthroat in what it is you're truly seeking to do. And Jesus said, beware of it. Have no part of it. And he told his disciples as well, beware of it, because it's going to be coming to you, like after you, from those who do indeed possess it. Question, what scripture from the days of an leaven bread does this remind us of? Again, leaven filled with malice and wickedness.

It ties back into what we're to be putting out on these days. We've read this almost every service the last, I don't know, three, four weeks. 1 Corinthians chapter 5 and verse 7.

1 Corinthians chapter 5 and verse 7. You see again, it was the Pharisees' way to try to take Jesus Christ out with the leaven of malice and wickedness. 1 Corinthians 5 verse 7 says, therefore purge out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened, for indeed Christ our Passover was sacrificed for us. I think that's clear and apparent. We understand what that means. Verse 8 says, therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, okay, not with those things that were sort of already put out in the sin that so easily ensnares us. And I would say the more obvious things to us, not with the old leaven. Then it says, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness. 11 of malice and wickedness. This was 11 of the Pharisees. And who wrote 1 Corinthians? It's the Apostle Paul, who was a Pharisee, or had been a Pharisee by his own claim. So he understood the tactics, he understood the teaching, he understood the perception of righteousness through actions. And yet he says, keep this feast, not with the old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. So it's sincerity and truth that is the antidote to the leaven of the Pharisees, to the leaven of the malice and wickedness, because sincerity and truth is ripping the mask off.

After the service down in Kennewick this morning, Dale Rokes, he said, I really like the point of your message, rip the mask off. We're all suffocating behind masks, and I thought, well, let's not create a revolt. I'm with you, but we're talking about this false front, right?

But the point was, malice and wickedness and the insincerity of hypocrisy is overcome by the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. And that's what these days are about. It's about examining ourselves for these things and putting them out and walking in newness of life continually beyond the seven days. It's day in, day out, because we do live under that sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

So the above examples were all focused on the leaven of the Pharisees as an attitude, the attitude of hypocrisy that led to actions that were contrary to God, but it was an attitude. Let's now look at a few examples of the leaven of the Pharisees that is included, not only the hypocrisy of the attitude, but also an additional element as well.

Matthew 16, verse 1.

Again, if we're going to be examining ourselves and beware for the point of either put it out, but also beware if it's coming for you, we need to understand what the leaven of the Pharisees is.

Matthew 16, verse 1. Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came testing him, constantly, either trip him up or prove yourself, or, you know, are you really a messiah? Give us evidence. The Pharisees and Sadducees came testing him and asked that he would show them a sign from heaven. And he answered and said to them, when it is evening, you say it will be fair weather, for the sky is red.

And in the morning, it will be foul weather, for today the sky is red and threatening. Hypocrites, face masks, wearers, you know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the sign of the times. Because of their hypocrisy, they couldn't even see what the reality was right in front of them. They could look at the sky, they could see the weather, and they could say, uh-oh, we better batten down the hatches, there's a storm coming in.

But they couldn't see the sign of the times and who it was, the Messiah, who was right there before them. And in their hypocrisy, they were denying the one that they were looking for. Right? They were denying the one in their hypocrisy who they claimed to be searching for and seeking. But they didn't accept him as it. They were blind, and every chance they got, they tried to trip him up. Verse 4 says, So, not going to fall in this net, and he gave him an answer and on his way. But it continues on here. It says in verse 5, Now when his disciples had come to the other side, right, they're going to cross over to see Galilee, come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread. It's like we're out on today's journey and forgot the bread. Did you bring bread? I thought you were getting bread, you know, it's, we got a problem here. And Jesus said to them, Take heed, and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees. And they reasoned among themselves, saying it is because we have taken no bread. And I thought Jesus was kind of criticizing them or, or, um, rebuking him just a little bit for, for getting the meal rations for today. But Jesus, being aware of it and what they were thinking, said to them, Oh, you of little faith, why do you reason among yourselves because you have brought no bread? He says, did you not understand to remember the five loaves of the five thousand and how many baskets you took up? Nor the seven loaves of the four thousand and how many large baskets you took up? How is it that you did not understand that I do not speak to you concerning bread? He says, I could perform a miracle, guys, remember? We're not going to starve because you forgot to go to the corner deli and pick up some bread for sandwiches. We're talking about something different here. He says, but to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.

Then they understood that he did not tell them to be aware of the leaven of bread, but of, notice, the doctrine of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.

So in this warning, we see that the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees is being described as their doctrine, okay, as their teaching. And so it wasn't just an attitude of heart surrounded by a righteous-looking exterior that they were to be aware of. They were to be aware of their teachings as well, what it is that they said to do, and how they said to do it. Because those things as well, the doctrine was leavened. And Christ said, beware. Mark chapter 7, we can see a particular way in which this leaven doctrine is manifested.

You can see why the leavening of the Pharisees and their teachings now becomes so dangerous as well. Mark chapter 7, verse 1.

It says, Then the Pharisees and some of the scribes came together to him, having come from Jerusalem.

Now when they saw some of his disciples eat bread with defiled, that is, with unwashed hands, they found fault.

For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands in a special way, holding the tradition of the elders.

We've got to understand, this isn't just your typical hand washing because your hands are dirty.

That wasn't the point.

The point was, you could have been out, you could have been wandering around the marketplace. And you know what? In the marketplace, you may have touched a Gentile.

By such, now you're unclean, ceremonially. So before you eat, before you do certain things, when you get back from the market, you wash, and you walk all the way up to the elbows. You make sure you get all that uncleanness off of you.

But it's not talking dirt, okay?

But as disciples, they weren't doing this. Now they're being confronted. And they say, you know, from the Pharisees, again, verse 3, they all do not eat unless they wash their hands in a special way, holding the tradition of the elders.

So here we get some indication as to what the problem is with the doctrine of the Pharisees. It is the tradition of the elders.

It was oral law. It was the law of man. It was the traditions that were handed down from the elders that in the Pharisees' eyes held the same weight and the authority as the written laws of God, and sometimes even more.

Like if you had a tradition of the elders and you had a law of God and they bumped up against each other, the tradition of the elders is what overrode the day and was the prevailing ruling.

But again, these weren't the laws of God. They were the doctrines and the traditions of men. Verse 4, it says, And when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other things which they have received and hold, like the washing of cups and pitchers and copper vessels and couches. Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands? So clearly we have their hypocrisy linked with their doctrine. And their customs and their traditions had become their doctrine. And it was there to a point of righteousness. That is, if you obeyed this doctrine, you were considered righteous. And if you didn't obey this doctrine, washing up to the elbows and all these other things, you were considered unrighteous. So their own eyes, their own doctrine set the standard for righteousness and unrighteousness. And again, it was tradition, it was ritual, it was custom, and it was ceremony, and it was hypocrisy. This is righteous. Verse 6, Jesus answered, and he said to them, Well did Isaiah the prophet—excuse me—well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites. As it is written, this people honors me with their lips—all right, outward expression looks good— but their heart is far from me. And in vain they worship me, teaching his doctrines the commandments of men. These rituals were nothing but vain worship of God. And they meant nothing. But you know what? To the Pharisee, they meant everything. Everything was based on their custom and their tradition. And if you didn't obey this doctrine, you would be able to do it.

And if you didn't fall in line with their worship, your worship was just out of line. Christ says, no, no, no, this is vain worship if you're going to hold these customs ahead of what God has given you. Verse 8 says, We're laying aside the commandment of God. You hold the tradition of men, the washing of pitchers and cups and many other such things you do. And he said to them, All too well you reject the commandment of God that you may keep your tradition.

And so their own traditions were actually held up in place of the commandments of God.

I'll say that not all tradition is bad, because we want to be careful, too, that you don't just say, well, all tradition is bad, let's just throw it all out. You know, not all tradition is bad.

And then I can't be much observed. I talked about the fact that you know, what we did there, coming together and having in the meal together, was a tradition.

Keeping the night is not a tradition. That's the command of the Bible. We'll observe it. Remember Israel coming out of Egypt. But how we observe it. There's no instruction in the Bible how you observe it. So how we have done it as a church is we come together in one another's homes. We come together as a group, and we observe that night. And that is our tradition. We share a meal together. But that's a good tradition.

And it's good because it complements the command of God, and it helps us to fulfill it in a decent and an honorable way. It doesn't replace the command of God, and it doesn't trump it or nullify it or push it off to the side. So there can be good traditions and right traditions. But the Pharisee doctrine actually replaced certain commands of God with their own traditions, causing people to sin because they were adhering to the tradition, not the command of God. And the tradition replaced the command of God, and Jesus said it is hypocrisy. It is leaven, and it's sin.

Now it goes on in the same account here to give an example of how this actually plays out. Verse 10, for Moses said, Honor your father and your mother. This is one of the Ten Commandments, right?

Honor your father and your mother, and he who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.

But you say, if a man says to his father or mother, whatever prophet you might have received from me is Corban, that is a gift to God. I've donated this resource to the temple. It's God's gift.

All right? Then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother, making the word of God of no effect through your tradition, which you have handed down. And he says, in many such things you do. So a person, according to this tradition, could actually donate their possessions to the temple. Right? This is, I'm giving this to God. It's Corban. And yet, if his parents were in need, he could say, sorry, I can't help you out. I've given it to God. But see, the little loophole in this tradition as well was, even if you donated to God, you could keep it for yourself for your own use for as long as you needed it. And when you didn't need it anymore, then it became God's. And it essentially cut your parents out of the loop of what it was you would provide for them, because I'm okay, I'm taking care of, but I'm sorry I can't help you. It is God's. And I think we can see how that bypasses the commandments. Jesus thought that proclaiming something devoted to God as an excuse, and why you refused to help your needy parents was a mockery, because it caused you to disobey one of the Ten Commandments. And he called it sin, and he called it leaven. And he called them hypocrites for teaching such things. Jesus said, beware of it.

Again, have no part of it. It is vain traditions of men, and it takes you out of the line of perfect and proper worship of God. That's why they were blind guides. Do this for righteousness, and yet it led to destruction, if it took you away from obeying the commandments of God. Throughout the course of Jesus' ministry, he constantly was bumping up against the leaven of the Pharisees. Their hypocrisy and their doctrine formed the basis of quite a number of the confrontations that we can find throughout the scriptures. And we're not going to run through all those by any means, but I'd encourage you, as we go out of the days of the leavened bread and head towards Pentecost, just keep it in mind in your Bible study of how that leaven actually led to so many confrontations and so many lessons that Jesus needed to teach. You know, their objection to Him healing someone on the Sabbath day was a show of their hypocrisy. It's like, how could you do that? How could you perform a miracle and heal that person on the Sabbath? And Christ said, what? You don't take a burden off your animal on the Sabbath day, and I've taken a burden off of this person, a human being, right, made in the image of God. And they were angry, and He said, it's hypocrisy. Their confrontation of Christ is in His disciples over their walking through the grain fields, and it's the Sabbath day, and they just take a little grain and rub it between their hands and eat it to sustain themselves as they're moving on, and they're confronted about that on the Sabbath day. Again, it was their hypocrisy. Their accusation against Jesus exercising the authority of bells above the chief demon in order to cast out the demons was their hypocrisy, once again, on display. We're not going to go through all of those, obviously, but I encourage you to study that because Jesus said, beware. I do want to wrap up today in Matthew chapter 23, because it is an important section of this teaching of Jesus Christ, and it's revealing to us.

Matthew chapter 23 will conclude here today.

Here, Jesus gives a rather long and scathing rebuke of the scribes and the Pharisees, and in this section, we're going to see his vivid distaste, I'll say, for the leaven of the Pharisees and the traditions of the elders. As we read through it, let's consider the danger of falling into the same trap for ourselves. Matthew chapter 23 in verse 1 says, And Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to his disciples, saying, The scribes in the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. Therefore, whatever they tell you to observe, that observe, but do not do according to their works, for they say, and they do not do. I say, that pretty much lines out with our current definition of hypocrisy, right? They say, and they do not do. Verse 4, For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and they lay them on men's shoulders, but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. But all of their works they do to be seen by men, and they make their phylacteries broad, and they enlarge the borders of their garments. They love the best places at the feast and the best seats in the synagogue, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, Rabbi, Rabbi. You know, they love that great position of stature and the recognition, right? Just to, you know, walk down the street and have men and women praising them because of their righteous standard and example. Well, Christ said, their reward is coming, or they have it.

They have it, but if they don't change, there's another result that will be coming. But the point is, this isn't about you, this is about God. Verse 8 says, But do not be called Rabbi. For one is, your teacher, the Christ. And you are all brethren. And that's a point that we must never forget, brethren, is we are all brethren. And it's not like one is lifted up over the other or exalted over the other. Some may be given authority in a certain way, according to the Scripture, for the edification of the body, but that doesn't raise them up over the other. We are brethren, and we're all heading to the same place. And we're heading there together. So Christ says, this ranking, this calling out Rabbi, Rabbi, and Father, and all these things that people like to put themselves into position of, He says, this isn't to be so among my disciples. He says, verse 9, Do not call anyone earth your Father. For one is your Father, he is who is in heaven. And do not be called teachers. For one is your Teacher, the Christ. Verse 11, But 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. You see, Christianity is just the opposite of this Pharisee attitude of exaltation, of the show of righteousness, of the praise of men. It is humility, change of heart, and doing what God gave you to do because it's simply the right thing to do.

Verse 13, 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.

By their own customs and traditions, they were actually turning people away from the kingdom of God, causing them to forsake the laws of God. Again, Christ says, anything that trumps my father's way is sin, it is leaven, and the Pharisees were turning people away from the true entry to the kingdom of God, shutting out men. Verse 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. 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 the son of hell as yourselves.

Quite the damning accusation. It's, are you looking for life, or are you looking for everlasting destruction? Don't point them down the wrong road. Verse 16, Woe to you, he says, blind guides. Again, I'm here to see the Grand Canyon, but the Torah Guide is blind. It's not really the place you want to go. All right, blind guides, who say, whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing, but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obligated to perform it. Fool's and blind, for which is greater the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold?

And whoever swears by the altar, say it is nothing, but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it. Fool's and blind, for what is greater the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift? Therefore he who swears by the altar swears by it and by all things on it. Hugh who swears by the temple swears by it and by him who dwells in it. And Hugh who swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by him who sits on it. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, mask-wears, righteous outward shell, evil heart. For you pay tithe the mint, anise, and cumin and have neglected the weighty matters of the law, justice, mercy, and faith. These you ought to have done without leaving the others undone." It's like they were so diligent to, you know, one seed, two seed, three seed, you know, tenth seed was God's, four seed, five seed, and they'd stop and be like, who do you think you are? Heal on the Sabbath day. Right? Who do you think you are anyway? And then one seed, two seed, three seed, you know, Christ said, you must do those things, but you don't leave the others undone. And in fact, it is the things that are the matter of the heart that are truly important. It's not that you ate a piece of unleavened bread physically each and every day. What took place inside? These you ought to have done without leaving the others undone. Blind guides, you strain out the gnat and swallow the camel. Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside there are full of extortion and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup, that the outside of them may be clean also. Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for you're like whitewashed tombs, which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness. Even so you outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous. And you say if we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would have not been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. Therefore you are witnesses against yourself, that you are the sons of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up then the measure of your father's guilt. Serpents, brood of vipers.

I mean, can you imagine? I imagine they were getting a little hot under the collar at this point, and Jesus was calling them out directly for who and what they were. They didn't like him.

Before this, and certainly not after this. All right, serpents, brood of vipers. How can you escape the condemnation of Gehenna of hell? Therefore, indeed, I sent 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, that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zacharias, son of Berchiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation, and they did with the destruction of the temple and all that the Jews received. Verse 37.

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who were 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. See your house is left to you desolate, 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. This was a scathing rebuke from Jesus Christ against their hypocrisy, against their mask wearing, against the fact that they were not on the inside who it was that they should have been, and infuriated them all the more. And so what was the result? You know, what stemmed out of this? Well, ultimately, the greatest level of hypocrisy that could be imagined, it was the plotting of the crucifixion of the very Messiah they claimed to seek. Now, the greatest hypocrisy known the man, the people who stood up and said, we stand for God in the righteousness of God, and we look for the Savior, the very ones who plotted, the destruction, the very Messiah they sought. Brethren, the leaven of the Pharisees is real.

Hypocrisy is real. The seeking of the praise of men is real. Pride, self-exaltation, looking on oneself as righteousness is real. The mask of false righteousness is real. The judging of others' heart rather than the judging of our own heart is real. The malice and wickedness of deceitful plotting is real. The traditions of men are real, and they come into the place of the commandments of God. And Christ said, watch for it. Beware. The vain worship is real. The neglect of justice, mercy, and faith is real. And the shutting up of the kingdom of heaven against men is real. But Jesus Christ said, it's not to be so amongst you, my brethren, because we are called Christians, right? Christians, we take on the servant mind, the servant heart of the one who laid down his life in ultimate sacrifice for each and every one of us. So Jesus warned his disciples to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees. He said, watch out for it. Have no part of it. And beware, because it may be coming for you next. It came for me, Christ said. It's going to be coming for you. As we exit the days of 11 bread this year, let's reflect on the lessons that we have learned. Let's remember that this exercise of putting out the old leaven is not only temporary, but in the spiritual sense, it is continual and ongoing day after day. Taking in the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth, and Christ in us is what we must do continually from this point forward. It is who we are.

It is the sacrifice we have come under. Jesus Christ, our Passover was sacrificed for us, and in so great of the light of that sacrifice, our response must be to walk in newness of life.

And, brethren, as the special music I think so beautifully said, as the brothers and sisters lend an ear, we're heading for the promised land.

That's brethren, brothers and sisters. We're in this together, and we're heading for the same place, the kingdom of God. And as we head there together, brethren, let us do so with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.