Exposing Religious Phonies, Part 1

Today from Chuck Swindoll on Insight for living. Jesus is condemning so religious dress so impressively, so watch came across like, but in reality they were setting because they were deceived, was known for stepping into places that some deemed dangerous and he was willing to help the outcast step over cultural boundaries that many regarded controversial risk. Yes, Jesus was kind and sympathetic and generous. That is until he came face-to-face with today on Insight for living Chuck Swindoll's teaching for Matthew 20 in this passage were invited to witness Jesus responding to cunning religious account. Chuck titled today's message exposing religious so turned to the first book of the New Testament locate chapter 23 reading for us the first 12 verses of Matthew 23. These are words of warning they are not easy for us to hear not only were they relevant in the days of Jesus. Of course, but equally relevant in our day where there is so much religious fraud and so many religious phonies, not just in pulpits but among Christian ranks that messages like like this need to be delivered on occasion Justin Charlson wake and to take these things personally, since they are not just met for someone else living way back in the first century, but their map for people just like us, who can be caught up in the very same things your Bible open to Matthew 23. I'll be reading from the new living translation. Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples. The teachers of religious law and the Pharisees or the official interpreters of the law of Moses, so practice and obey whatever they tell you but but don't follow their example. For they don't practice what they teach, they crush people with unbearable religious demands and never lift a finger to ease the burden everything they do is for show on their arms.

They wear extrawide prayer boxes with Scripture verses inside, and they wear robes with extra long tassels and then they love to sit at the head table at banquets and in the seats of honor in the synagogues. They love to receive respectful greetings. As they walk in the marketplaces, and to be called Rabbi to let anyone call you Rabbi for you have only one teacher in all of your equally as brothers and sisters and don't address anyone here on earth as father, for only God in heaven is your spiritual father. I don't let anyone call you teacher for you have only one teacher.

The Messiah, the greatest among you must be a servant with those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted the message today is not something you will hear in any other place outside the church is a popular, it is a really wanted but it needs to be clear insight for living to study the book of Matthew with Chuck Swindoll sure to download his searching the Scripture studies by going to inside world.org/studies and now the message from Chuck titled exposing religious phonies.

Today I'm delivering a warning to all of us. Please do more than hear it.

Please pay attention to it and remember it. Warning is the statement of impending danger or evil. It is advised to beware it is counsel to cease an undesirable or dangerous course of action of warning does no good if it's ignored, shrugged off or forgotten warnings are meant to be taken seriously. This is no time for a Sunday morning's news this morning is also important because Jesus is the one who first delivered it. I'm simply a messenger without him. I have nothing to say. He first gave these words regarding those who were religious phonies. If they had all ended in the first century.

I would have no reason to declare the warning today, but they have proliferated over time so that now they fill pulpits they occupy places among those call elders. They were in Christian circles, Christian schools, Christian seminaries, Christian gatherings all around the world. Religious leaders of that day.

As of this day were deceived. Therefore, they were dangerous leaders.

Leaders who deceive or dangerous because they gain a following, and those who follow often realized too late the deception. What I'm saying will not be politically correct, it will not be pleasant to your ears are easy to sit through it might help you to know that these words represent Jesus final sermon before the public.

Following this is public deliveries were over.

This was it. This is his last sermon and it's a scorcher hear someone trustworthy expositor describes this sermon referring to the whole look of Matthew 23 Jesus words fly from his lips like claps of thunder and spears of lightning out of his mouth. On this occasion, came the most fearful and dreadful statements that Jesus uttered on earth." Improvement that in the latter part of his penetrating delivery.

Jesus repeats the condemning vocative to all of his listeners want to you wallow to you Walter you Walter you seven consecutive times you counter beginning of verse 13. When you read it in the message. It's your hopeless your hopeless your hopeless strong strong words I repeat, he calls those he is exposing and I quote hypocrites, sons of hell. Blind guides fools robbers vessels full agreed self-indulgence and all sorts of impurity whitewashed tombs, snakes, Vipers, persecutors and murderers still quoting outwardly.

You look like righteous people but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness is also the beginning.

These warnings were serious. Perhaps it will help you to listen little better. If you think of these people is religious terrorists. You never know their terrorist filled explosion killer.

Suddenly, a death or a series of debts and then you realize he was a terrorist is a religious phonies don't walk around telling you that that's what they are is a matter of fact, most often you're very impress by the externals. They make sure that their good see all of those that Jesus is condemning looks so religious they dress so impressively, they sounded so righteous they came across like pious saints, but in reality they were savages because they were deceivers. Admittedly, some were absolutely sincere, but down deep inside when the lights went out and the crowds left and their heads dropped their pillows and they search their souls if they were ever able to do that, they realized they were hypocrites they told you one thing and they lived another way, they were deceivers now with your Bible open to Matthew 23. Please observe that before Jesus begins his message we read that he was in front of crowds and his disciples sit in verse one. Always check the context would you turn to a chapter of the Bible. This, like every other chapter has a context. Jesus is standing among the crowd of unnamed people, as well as among those who were his disciples, his faithful followers. The crowds would be the general public. Followers you know, those who cared enough to have set aside their plans in order to walk in his steps. So there's a different agenda for the two groups. Verses one through seven.

Literally versus two through seven or for the crowds and I suggest verses eight through 12, would be for the disciples.

Let's look at them a little more carefully. First, to the surprise of many who have heard my warnings to begin with, there were some things they were to practice and obey. That came from the Pharisees look first to the scribes and the Pharisees that is the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees who by the way, don't miss it really knew their scriptures.

They really knew the Old Testament that spent their lives studying the Scriptures the law of Moses. The Psalms, the prophets, so he says the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees or the official interpreters of the law of Moses everything right about that. God drilled his wall with his finger in the stone and Moses took the ball and gave it to the people. The people David then to the prophets the prophets pass it along. Ultimately to people like scribes and Pharisees, the official religious leaders who were to take the Scriptures and declare them everything right about that. I do that every Sunday of my life every time I get a chance. I open the Scriptures and I interpret the Scriptures everything good about it.

And certainly the Scriptures are good so he says of them. It's worth your time to hear what they are telling you to understand and obey the teachings of Moses. That's what verse verse three is it begins is all about practice. He says practice and obey whatever they tell you what, that's a big contrast.

You could hear the brakes screech verbally but don't follow their example. They may deliver the truth from their lips as Moses has stated that they live a lie. They say one thing but they live another way. In fact, if I were to divide their the reason for not following them I would find three, three of them look closely. Verse three says they don't practice what they teach, so there was a lack of integrity. If I teach one thing and then I go out and live another way, I'm a hypocrite I'm a phony. I may speak it well, but I don't live it well and he says because they do that don't follow them. They don't practice what they teach.

Teaching is good there. Living is poor don't follow their example. So they lack integrity, the consummate hypocrites as a second look at verse four and you who have lived under legalistic teaching won't have any problem understanding this, they crush people with unbearable religious demands and never lift a finger to ease the burden look at those words. Their words are crushing in that they add to what Moses is written, and they make the words of a burden, so they lack sympathy. They don't help you live the life that God tells us were to live the responsibility of a faithful teacher is not only to declare what God is said but practically speaking, to help people put it in the shoe leather to help people carry it out to identify with the pains and the groans of life and to assist people as they struggle to do what God is written, and to identify with the struggle that they didn't do that, they laid the heavies on you and you had to produce and if you did the judge to so there's a lack of sympathy. Third, and don't miss this verse five. Everything they do is for show.

The way the new living translation reads like their show walls, the show's what they do they do to be seen.

So there's a lack of humility did you get the three lack of integrity they don't carry out what they teach a lack of sympathy they burden you with the requirements, the do's and don'ts, and third is a lack of humility. Whatever they do they do to be seen there, dripping with self-importance and conceit, we would say they paraded their piety, they glorified themselves appearing to be holy men of God looking like they were glorifying God when in fact they were glorifying themselves. If you read further into the work versus five, six and seven you will see that everything they wore everyplace they sat every word they prayed every act they did every title they were called, was designed to glorify themselves and oh my. They love titles they love to be called Rabbi Rev. Dr. love those tight mother way before going further, it may help me not to get dawned on you Jesus a lot of courage to say this because some of those people were standing right in front of you know were pretty good saying these things behind people's backs. Jesus is good saying to their fronts to their faces. Think of what that must've been like no one criticized scribes and Pharisees until Jesus came along. Nobody in mind when he did it he made up for loss of time he certainly did. In fact I miss of the word Dr. a moment to go find this interesting as I did the Latin equivalent of Rabbi comes from Cedar DOC ER EE long he word Dr. is derived from Cedar in Jesus day the title Rabbi carried the exalted idea, and I quote supreme one excellency most knowledgeable one great one is love that title. Rabbi they call Rabbi that was your responsibility, but they loved it because of what that represented. I read one case in my research one Rabbi insisted that he should be buried in white garments when he died because he wanted the world to know how worthy he was to appear before the presence of God was in that nice dress me in white because the world needs to know how worthy I am to appear before God. No shame, no, their religion, let me put it in a sentence.

There their religion was it outrageous display of over-the-top ostentation over-the-top ostentation is an apt description of the Pharisees lifestyle. Everything called attention to themselves and how they love the limelight. See what you think through this enough you realize this is a message for someone else. This is to you and me.

Which is why he speaks to his disciples very careful. His followers is what we are hopefully were followers of a put Jesus and he says to us, don't let anyone call you have the idea and in in other words, when he put his weight. Sean pretentious titles Sean pretentious title. Don't let anyone do that part for you have only one teacher in your all evil as brothers and sisters all of us remember that there is no status there is no rank in the Christian life. I find it quite refreshing to see how Jesus dealt with religious phonies. He had very little space for pretentious behavior.

Listening to the Bible teaching of Chuck Swindoll, a title this message exposing religious phonies. There's much more to cover on this topic, so please keep listening when insightful living continues to feature this brand-new study through Matthew's gospel and to learn more about Chuck and his ministry. Please visit us online@insideworld.org in recent days you've heard us describe a compelling book from pastor and author of Bodie Baucom called faultlines what today is my last occasion to mention how to receive a copy. Full lines comes highly recommended by Chuck is written for anyone who truly wants to understand how to engage in compassionate conversations about justice from a biblical perspective.

God is the author of unity in Christ is the ultimate human expression of justice addressing this topic. In light of God's changeless character. We help you embrace justice as the Bible defines it again.

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Call us if you listing in the United States, 800-772-8884. Give online@insight.and then as we enter into the weekend. Remember that you're invited to join us online for the Sunday morning worship service at Stonebraker Community Church. In addition to hearing Chuck Swindoll's sermon will also participate in the congregational singing find all the instructions for streaming. The live worship service insight.org/Sundance in March 2022. Insightful living ministries is hosting an unforgettable journey to Israel carefully planned to deepen your understanding of the Bible and draw you closer to God.

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No place is been more meaning to God's children in the land of Israel. The rugged landscape reminds us to find refuge in God alone. The fertile valleys invite us to follow our ship Jerusalem's position at the very center of the world announces the good news of Christ's every nation and now you can see Israel with Chuck Swindoll insightful living ministries March 6-17, 2022. Every time I visited the holy land of returned home with a refreshed heart for God and a renewed vision for the world, really. I read it every time. So I want you to have the same life changing experience to learn more, go to insight.org/events call this number 1-888-447-0444 insight for living ministries tour to Israel is paid for and made possible by only those who choose to attend now for Dave Speicher by Wayne Sheppard invite you to join us again Monday, when Chuck Swindoll continues his message about exposing religious phonies on insight for living.

The preceding message exposing religious phones was copyrighted in 2017 and 2021 and the sound recording was copyrighted in 2021 by Charles R.

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