Tag: Hypocrisy

Three adults discuss community matters beside a “Community Event” sign and “OUR VOICE” mug.

Getting Our Priorities Straight

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“Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever takes an oath by the temple, it means nothing. But whoever takes an oath by the gold of the temple is bound by his oath.’ Blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctified the gold?” (Matthew 23:16-17 CSB – Read the chapter)

I have been working through the Gospel of Matthew with my church on Wednesday nights for nearly three years now. We’ve taken a break here or there along the way, but mostly it has just been Matthew for a while now. And I’ve got to say: it has been good. I know that I’ve never taken such a deep dive into a single book from the Scriptures, and I’m sure none of them have either. Taking time to meditate so long and so deeply on a single, Spirit-inspired author’s work has yielded much in terms of applicational rewards for us. We are currently in chapter 23 where Jesus blows up the scribes and Pharisees for their religious hypocrisy and bad spiritual leadership. It is one of those chapters that’s easy to ignore because at first glance Jesus is just berating His enemies for religious practices and traditions that are long gone. But a bit closer of a look uncovers volumes of uncomfortably relevant critiques for modern church members to consider. Let’s take a look at one of them together today.

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Digging in Deeper: Romans 2:17-24

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“Now if you call yourself a Jew, and rely on the law, and boast in God, and know his will, and approve the things that are superior, being instructed from the law, and if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light to those in darkness, an instructor of the ignorant, a teacher of the immature, having the embodiment of knowledge and truth in the law —  you then, who teach another, don’t you teach yourself? You who preach, “You must not steal” — do you steal? You who say, “You must not commit adultery” — do you commit adultery? You who detest idols, do you rob temples? You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? For, as it is written: The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

When I lived in Denver, there was a pastor of a large church in a nearby city who had to resign after a very public moral failing. He spent years calling his congregation to live with the righteousness of Christ, but then it was discovered that he had a quiet meth habit and had been hooking up with male prostitutes. The church recovered eventually, but it was a pretty tough season for them for a while. We live in a culture that hates religious hypocrisy, and loves to shine light on religious hypocrites. Paul is inclined to agree with this. Let’s take a look at what he says here in the next part of Romans.

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Digging in Deeper: John 18:28

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“Then they led Jesus from Caiaphas to the governor’s headquarters. It was early morning. They did not enter the headquarters themselves; otherwise they would be defiled and unable to eat the Passover.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Everybody knows the Pharisees and other religious leaders of the Jews were the bad guys in the Gospels. They were the bad guys because of their hatred for Jesus. Beyond His constantly presenting the Law in ways they didn’t understand and wouldn’t accept, though, the thing that most enraged them about Him was His constantly pointing out their hypocrisy. They hated that. A lot. And yet, we have scenes like this one in which their hypocrisy in displayed in technicolor, yet their own screens seemed to be set only for black and white because they can’t see it. Let’s talk about the glaring hypocrisy of the Jewish religious elite and what it might mean for us.

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And the Oscar Goes to…

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This past Sunday morning we continued in our series, What Jesus Hated. This week we talked about the charge of hypocrisy. The church is often…and often fairly…accused of hypocrisy. The world hates hypocrisy…or at least professes to hating it. So did Jesus. In this next part of our series, we are looking at some hard words Jesus had for the religious hypocrites of His day and what those might mean for us. Thanks for reading and sharing.

And the Oscar Goes to…

I want you to think for just a minute about what is your favorite movie of all time. Actually, that may be a bit too difficult of a question to answer. If you’re like me, there are several films that could top your list, and it really depends on the day and your mood as to which one is currently at the top of the pile. Let’s narrow down our query just a bit. Think about what your favorite scene from a movie is. That’s different from an entire movie. It may be that you don’t really care for the movie itself, but that one scene absolutely captured your attention, your imagination, your very heart. Personally, my favorite movie is still probably Robinhood: Prince of Thieves. In terms of a scene that makes me want to jump up and shout with excitement, I don’t think there will ever be a better film moment than the scene just before the climactic battle against Thanos and his assembled forces in Avengers: Endgame when Captain America hears his friend, Falcon’s voice (for the first time in five years, no less) on the radio, telling him to “Watch his six,” just before portals start opening and everyone shows up for the battle. I honestly don’t believe Marvel will ever top that. But my favorite single scene of all time is the climax of Apollo 13 when they are watching for the space capsule’s parachutes to open, and then they suddenly do and Tom Hanks’ voice comes over the radio saying they are safe and sound. That makes me tear up every single time I watch it. 

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Digging in Deeper: Grab Bag

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Jesus told him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

This past week, we have talked about the value of staying plugged in to Jesus, hypocrisy, contradictions, God’s sometimes painful efforts to help us grow in His image, and the importance of a response of kindness to provocations rather than one that is merely in kind. And as the week has unfolded, each one of those things have made their way into the national news cycle in one way or another. Now, this doesn’t mean anyone in the media was talking about any of the issues through any of these various lenses, but as careful observers of culture through the lens of the Christian worldview, we can see the connections. In light of this, instead of a review of a recent show or film today, I thought we’d do a quick review of some of the news of the week through the lens of what we’ve spent the last week talking about. Here we go.

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