According To Luke: Hard-Hearted Hypocritical Haters Part 1

According To Luke: Hard-Hearted Hypocritical Haters Part 1

Opening Illustration:

There is a book entitled “The Three Edwards” by Thomas Constain. In his book he describes the life of Raynald III. He was a 14th century duke in what is now Belgium. Raynald was grossly, morbidly overweight. He was commonly referred to by his Latin nickname, Crassus, which means “fat”. I suppose that Raynald was the first person to ever be fat shamed. 

After having a fight with his younger brother Edward, Raynald was overthrown. Edward captured his overweight brother but did not kill him. Instead, he built for his rotund brother a special room with a normal size door, good ventilation, and even windows. Edward promised his brother that he could regain his title and his property if he only he could leave the room that he had built for him. For us today, that would be no problem. For poor Raynald however, this proposition was more difficult. You see, there were no locks on the doors, the windows would open. The only issue was that Raynald was just to big to get out of any of them. To gain his freedom, Raynald simply had to lose weight. 

Edward knew his older brother well. Each day he sent him a variety of foods and delicious dishes. Raynald could not refuse and he got bigger and bigger. Instead of dieting his way out of prison, Raynald just gained more and more weight. Edward claimed that his brother was not really a prisoner. He is quoted saying “My brother is not a prisoner. He may leave when he so wills”. Raynald never left the prison. He stayed in that room for the next 10 years of his life and ate himself to death. 

Point:

The religious leaders of Jesus’ day, the Pharisees and teachers of the law, were also prisoners of their own appetites. Their problem was not food, rather their problem was hypocrisy. For them, hypocrisy was like cancer that slowly ate away at their spirit. From the outside looking in, everything seemed normal, but on the interior of their heart, they were rotten to the core. 

Point:

So, what is a hypocrite? We get the word from ancient Greece. It is actually a theatrical term given to actors and actresses. These actors would wear masks and play different people. The true face of the actor was hidden while they played the part. The word means literally “two face”. 

Point:

An example of being a hypocrite would be when a politician stumps on being faithful to his wife while he carries on an extramarital affair. We saw the damage, the ripple effect if you will, of hypocrisy right here in our state just a few months ago when our very own governor stumped on being a man of God, righteous, faithful, and true. Yet, behind the scenes was scandal. There are literally hundreds of stories like this. 

Point:

This morning we are talking about hypocrisy. Remember friends, when we seek holiness, there is no room for hypocrisy. Believers should not be two faced, double minded and double tongued. 

When Seeking Holiness, There Is No Room For Hypocrisy!

Background:

The past several weeks we have been engaged in reading Luke 11. If you remember, Jesus is delivering some fairly difficult teachings. He is speaking directly to the current generation. He addresses several spiritual issues, specifically Satanic forces that influence our physical world. Today, Jesus is not just addressing a generation of people, rather He has His focus firmly fixed on the religious leaders and teachers of the day. He brings some transformative truth to the Pharisees. He does not hold back. He does not pull punches. Some have read today’s Scripture and thought that Jesus is to harsh in this exchange. He does not sound loving or merciful. Friends, speaking the truth is the ultimate act of love. Letting someone live in a lie is the ultimate act of hatred. If one of my children came to me and said that he believed that a Tide detergent pod was nutritious and yummy, what should I say? The world tells us that that is his truth. It is true for him that the Tide Pod is delicious and yummy and that I should support him, otherwise I might hurt his feelings. The world tells me I need to be more tolerant, more supportive, more understanding. Thankfully the world does not parent my children. The answer would be a swift no. Why? Because a Tide Pod is poison and could lead to death or sickness. Well friends, what Jesus is discussing is of greater importance than whether or not we should eat Tide Pods. We are talking about eternity here. This is serious business and frankly we do not have time to mince words or beat around the bush. Jesus delivers the truth, in love, but absent of the sugar coating. So, let’s open our Bibles to Luke 11:37-54. 

Scripture:

Luke 11:37-54 ESV

37 While Jesus was speaking, a Pharisee asked him to dine with him, so he went in and reclined at table. 38 The Pharisee was astonished to see that he did not first wash before dinner. 39 And the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. 40 You fools! Did not he who made the outside make the inside also? 41 But give as alms those things that are within, and behold, everything is clean for you.

42 “But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. 43 Woe to you Pharisees! For you love the best seat in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces. 44 Woe to you! For you are like unmarked graves, and people walk over them without knowing it.”

45 One of the lawyers answered him, “Teacher, in saying these things you insult us also.” 46 And he said, “Woe to you lawyers also! For you load people with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers. 47 Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets whom your fathers killed. 48 So you are witnesses and you consent to the deeds of your fathers, for they killed them, and you build their tombs. 49 Therefore also the Wisdom of God said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and persecute,’ 50 so that the blood of all the prophets, shed from the foundation of the world, may be charged against this generation, 51 from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, it will be required of this generation. 52 Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You did not enter yourselves, and you hindered those who were entering.”

53 As he went away from there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to press him hard and to provoke him to speak about many things, 54 lying in wait for him, to catch him in something he might say.

The Pharisee’s 6 Woes!

I. The Pharisee’s Were Myopic vs. 42

Luke 11:42 ESV

42 “But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. 

Point:

We do not know the name of this mysterious Pharisee. We do know one thing, he was not just trying to have dinner with Jesus. Question, I wonder if when he received the food if he prayed and thanked Jesus for it. That would have been awesome. You see this Pharisee was trying to trap Jesus. He was trying to have his gotcha moment with Christ. The Pharisees were no friend to Jesus. They did not like His popularity and the power that He possessed with the people. So, this teacher invites Jesus to eat with him hoping that he might catch Jesus say something, or do something wrong. This night was his lucky day. Jesus reclines at the table and begins to eat without washing. Washing before dinner was more ceremonial than hygienic. It was a demonstration of holiness, of piety, that proved that you were somewhat serious about keeping the law of cleansing. Jesus broke from tradition and the Pharisee thought he had caught the King. 

This Pharisee thought that he was going to expose Jesus. Jesus instead unmasks the Pharisee right there at the table. 

The Pharisee wrongly believed that righteousness was merely external behaviors of piety stretched out over one’s lifetime. Following the rituals. Playing the game. Maintaining the rules. That is where he put his faith. Jesus again uses a simple example to illustrate a deep point. What is more important, having a cut clean on the outside but filthy on the inside, or a cup that may be a bit dirty on the outside but spotless on the inside? Jesus revealed for the Pharisee that God is not impressed with the show. Jesus reveals that this man make appear holy, but he had no love for anyone else. They had no justice in their hearts. They had majored in the minors.

Jesus even calls out their giving patterns. Did they give a proper tithe? Sure. They gave a tenth. They gave a tenth of something that was abundant. Mint, rue and herbs was easily gained. It would have been bought and sold in the streets. Sure they gave, but they did not give their best. Nor did they give out of their abundance. They gave so that they could pat themselves on the back but their giving was hollow. They gave short measures. 

One might say that they missed the forest for the trees. They were so busy trying to look a certain way, they could not recognize truth staring them right in the face. 

Matthew 6:1 ESV

Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

II. The Pharisee’s Were Egotistic vs. 43

Luke 11:43 ESV

43 Woe to you Pharisees! For you love the best seat in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces.

Illustration:

Ok, crowd participation time! If you heading to a basketball game, where do you want your seats to be? That’s right! Court side. Up close to all the action! What about football? Right again, on the 50 yard line. Best seats in the house. What about a Major League Baseball game? Yep, right behind home plate so you can hear the calls and see all the action. It is natural for us to want to find the best seats. Ok, last one, what about church on Sunday morning. Anyone want front row? Not if you are Baptist. How do we know that the Pharisees were not Baptists? The simple answer is that they loved the front row. Dodged that bullet didn’t we. No Baptist in their right mind wants to sit on the front row. Only crazies sit in the front row. The mentally unstable sit there. Ok, just kidding. 

Point: 

In the ancient world, it was a big deal to sit on the front row of the synagogue. The sacred scrolls, the Torah or the first five books of the Old Testament were at the front. The thought was that the closer you were to the Word of God, the closer you were to God. Therefore, the Pharisees took the best seats. Of course they could hear everything and see everything perfectly as well. Lastly, and most important to the Pharisee, was that being up front meant being seen by everyone else. Everyone else would see just how devout, how holy, and how “righteous” they really were. I suppose, the folks in the back were really the holiest. Can I get an amen from the back of the sanctuary. 

Jesus addresses this type of behavior in Matthew 6:5-8. Let’s read together what Jesus says. 

Matthew 6:5-8 ESV

5 “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. 6 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

7 “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

Point:

Jesus is pretty clear, He has no praise for the Pharisee and their constant need to be seen and praised. He has no good words for people who play religion and turn their backs on the needy. You see the Pharisee’s had an ego problem. 

Do you know how ego is defined?

EGO Defined:

Edging 

God 

Out

Point:

These Pharisees had plenty of ego and boy were they ever edging God out. You know, we are not that different than the Pharisees. Sometimes we have ego issues as well. When we don’t feel praised enough, or thanked enough, when we don’t think that people are making a big enough deal of us, that is an ego problem. We have all be there. 

Point:

Jesus’ cousin John had the ego issue figured out. Perhaps his model should be our example. Listen to his words captured in John 3:30. 

John 3:30 NIV

30 He must become greater; I must become less.

III. The Pharisee’s Were Endemic vs. 44

Luke 11:44 ESV

44 Woe to you! For you are like unmarked graves, and people walk over them without knowing it.”

Point:

So this next verse seems like an odd thing to say. However, the peers of Jesus would have immediately understood what Jesus was talking about. Jerusalem was used to lots of visitors during the times of the feasts. Particularly Passover. Strangers to the city would not know where to go or what to avoid. If these strangers were to accidentally stumble into a graveyard, they would be considered ceremonially unclean. So, to prevent that from happening, the city would white wash the tombs. 

Again Jesus pulls no punches. Jesus basically states that Jerusalem would be doing better by people if they white washed the Pharisees instead of the tombs. It was not the tombs that were defining anyone, it was the Pharisees and their teachings leading people astray. Jesus tells the Pharisees their spiritual condition is much much worse than they could have dreamed. They thought they were righteous. Jesus told them they were rotting. They they thought they were pious. Jesus says that they were putrid. They said they were close to God. Jesus says that they were actually close to the casket. They said they were holy and Jesus said they were having a handshake to the Devil. 

Point

The real problem with the Pharisees is not just that they were corrupt, but that they were also contaminating. They teachings carried with them a spiritual sickness that was endemic of a modern day disease. It was spreading through the villages and the cities, from person to person. 

Matthew 15:7-9 ESV

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

Point:

Remember here that Jesus is a guest in the house. He is visiting with a Pharisee that actually invited Him to come. Guests are supposed to be polite, and on their best behavior. Jesus breaks from that protocol. 

Point:

I wondered why Jesus would take such an extreme approach with this man. I think that the answer is that hell is extreme. Sin is extreme. This man, if he were to die would die in his sin and God would be absent from his life. Jesus sees this man in need of a Savior.

Point:

Personally I like that Jesus does this. I like that Jesus is not playing games, not mincing words, that He is getting to the point. Jesus realizes His time is limited. He wants to get to the point.

Brothers and sisters, Jesus is giving us a warning and a witness this morning. He is calling us to stop living double minded lives and get real with our faith. In doing so, we get real with Him. We make ourselves useful vessels of the Gospel. 

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