Saturday, Ordinary 31, Proper 26, Nov 1
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Meditation
Saturday, Ordinary 31, Proper 26 pondered the “finding one’s way” from the Psalmist’s review of the Exodus, where ‘some wandered in the trackless desert’ to the escape of the spies Joshua sent into Jericho to the hypocritical Pharisees that Jesus ranted about.
A choice was made by each. The Hebrews chose to disobey and they lost their way, wandering in the desert until a new generation took over, save for Joshua and Caleb.
Joshua sent spies into Jericho and they went to Rahab, the prostitute, who revealed in yesterday’s lesson that the Canaanites were afraid of the Israelites because they could tell that God was powerful and that they couldn’t win against him. The Canaanites were more aware of the power of God than the Children of Israel had been.
But the true indictment was by Christ, who had no sympathy for the hypocritical Pharisees and scribes. They had all the right words, but their hearts were evil. They put up obstacles for people to ‘get into the Kingdom of Heaven’ and they didn’t bother doing what was required to enter into heaven themselves.
For Christ to have sent so much time addressing the issue of the hypocrisy it must have really angered him. Considering how much hypocrisy by leaders in the church have driven people away from God, I could understand how he would be furious. Read an atheist blog or forum and some part of it will talk about how hypocritical people in the church made the writers never want to have anything to do with religion. This was what Jesus meant when he said the Pharisees had set up obstacles to the Kingdom of Heaven for people.
While we cannot judge who will or won’t go to heaven, we can identify hypocrisy, where church leaders preach love but are hateful to people.
I have counseled so many wounded by the peculiarities of churches. A woman shared how an elder had spoken unkindly to her in an inappropriate way, and she went to the pastor to see what to do. His response was to agree that she should leave the church. After 23 years in the same church, she began attending another church. The elder was responsible for so many people leaving the church, but nothing was done to curb the nasty attitude. Yet the elder put on a face of piousness and spoke of how loving the church was.
This kind of behavior was what angered Christ—where leaders harm those in the flock, obstructing them from access.
Believers must be very cautious about how we treat others in the church. We don’t want to find ourselves being like the Pharisees (Pastors) and Scribes (Teachers/Writers) who Christ didn’t expect to have any part in heaven because of the evil in their hearts.
So many splits in the church started over personality fights/differences and yet, people often suggest that the reason is ‘theological’ or ‘doctrinal.’ The Lord knows the hearts. God could distinguish between authentic searching/doubts/questions and the phony challenges given Jesus by the Pharisees.
Today, believers must be diligent to be honestly reflective, instead of glib and arrogant. True seeking pleased Jesus. Hypocritical obstructionism angered him. We have a choice when finding our way—to be false and hypocritical or genuine and truthful. The latter would produce great results the Psalmist noted—God would provide a great harvest.
Thanks be to God.
Prayer: Almighty God, Open my eyes that I might see. Open my mind that I might understand. Open my heart that I might make your words a part of me. May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight. Amen
Ordinary 31, Proper 26
Bible Readings
http://legacy.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm 107:1-7, 33-37;Joshua 2:15-24;Matthew 23:13-28&version=KJV;ERV;GNT;NCV;NIV (multiple versions)
Saturday, Ordinary 31, Proper 26
Psalm 107:1-7 Psalm 107:33-37
Joshua 2:15-24
Matthew 23:13-28
Psalm 107:1
King James Version (KJV)
107 O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
Matthew 23:13-28
King James Version (KJV)
13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.
14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.
15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.
16 Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor!
17 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold?
18 And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty.
19 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?
20 Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon.
21 And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein.
22 And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.
23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.
25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.
26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.
27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.
28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
OBSERVE:
Take a moment and write three observations of the verses. What strikes you? An observation is an observable fact from the Word.
1.
2.
3.
INTERPRETATION:
What do you interpret these verses to mean for you today?
APPLY:
Today, I learned _____________________________________and apply it to my life.
Prayer of Encouragement
Almighty God, we ask forgiveness for any lack of authenticity or genuine seeking on our part; for any hypocrisy in our lives. Help us to bring honor to God by our careful reflection and honest behavior. In Jesus name, Amen
[This lesson was too long for the MFP post. The rest of it can be found at http://chaplynne.wordpress.com/
Go out and be ready for God to do mighty things in your life—for the glory of God.*
*If you do not know the Lord as your personal Savior and you are seeking, please contact me. A genuine and simple prayer, asking God into your heart for the forgiveness of your sins will also do.
Saturday, Ordinary 31, Proper 26 pondered the “finding one’s way” from the Psalmist’s review of the Exodus, where ‘some wandered in the trackless desert’ to the escape of the spies Joshua sent into Jericho to the hypocritical Pharisees that Jesus ranted about.
A choice was made by each. The Hebrews chose to disobey and they lost their way, wandering in the desert until a new generation took over, save for Joshua and Caleb.
Joshua sent spies into Jericho and they went to Rahab, the prostitute, who revealed in yesterday’s lesson that the Canaanites were afraid of the Israelites because they could tell that God was powerful and that they couldn’t win against him. The Canaanites were more aware of the power of God than the Children of Israel had been.
But the true indictment was by Christ, who had no sympathy for the hypocritical Pharisees and scribes. They had all the right words, but their hearts were evil. They put up obstacles for people to ‘get into the Kingdom of Heaven’ and they didn’t bother doing what was required to enter into heaven themselves.
For Christ to have sent so much time addressing the issue of the hypocrisy it must have really angered him. Considering how much hypocrisy by leaders in the church have driven people away from God, I could understand how he would be furious. Read an atheist blog or forum and some part of it will talk about how hypocritical people in the church made the writers never want to have anything to do with religion. This was what Jesus meant when he said the Pharisees had set up obstacles to the Kingdom of Heaven for people.
While we cannot judge who will or won’t go to heaven, we can identify hypocrisy, where church leaders preach love but are hateful to people.
I have counseled so many wounded by the peculiarities of churches. A woman shared how an elder had spoken unkindly to her in an inappropriate way, and she went to the pastor to see what to do. His response was to agree that she should leave the church. After 23 years in the same church, she began attending another church. The elder was responsible for so many people leaving the church, but nothing was done to curb the nasty attitude. Yet the elder put on a face of piousness and spoke of how loving the church was.
This kind of behavior was what angered Christ—where leaders harm those in the flock, obstructing them from access.
Believers must be very cautious about how we treat others in the church. We don’t want to find ourselves being like the Pharisees (Pastors) and Scribes (Teachers/Writers) who Christ didn’t expect to have any part in heaven because of the evil in their hearts.
So many splits in the church started over personality fights/differences and yet, people often suggest that the reason is ‘theological’ or ‘doctrinal.’ The Lord knows the hearts. God could distinguish between authentic searching/doubts/questions and the phony challenges given Jesus by the Pharisees.
Today, believers must be diligent to be honestly reflective, instead of glib and arrogant. True seeking pleased Jesus. Hypocritical obstructionism angered him. We have a choice when finding our way—to be false and hypocritical or genuine and truthful. The latter would produce great results the Psalmist noted—God would provide a great harvest.
Thanks be to God.
Prayer: Almighty God, Open my eyes that I might see. Open my mind that I might understand. Open my heart that I might make your words a part of me. May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight. Amen
Ordinary 31, Proper 26
Bible Readings
http://legacy.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm 107:1-7, 33-37;Joshua 2:15-24;Matthew 23:13-28&version=KJV;ERV;GNT;NCV;NIV (multiple versions)
Saturday, Ordinary 31, Proper 26
Psalm 107:1-7 Psalm 107:33-37
Joshua 2:15-24
Matthew 23:13-28
Psalm 107:1
King James Version (KJV)
107 O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
Matthew 23:13-28
King James Version (KJV)
13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.
14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.
15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.
16 Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor!
17 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold?
18 And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty.
19 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?
20 Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon.
21 And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein.
22 And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.
23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.
25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.
26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.
27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.
28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
OBSERVE:
Take a moment and write three observations of the verses. What strikes you? An observation is an observable fact from the Word.
1.
2.
3.
INTERPRETATION:
What do you interpret these verses to mean for you today?
APPLY:
Today, I learned _____________________________________and apply it to my life.
Prayer of Encouragement
Almighty God, we ask forgiveness for any lack of authenticity or genuine seeking on our part; for any hypocrisy in our lives. Help us to bring honor to God by our careful reflection and honest behavior. In Jesus name, Amen
[This lesson was too long for the MFP post. The rest of it can be found at http://chaplynne.wordpress.com/
Go out and be ready for God to do mighty things in your life—for the glory of God.*
*If you do not know the Lord as your personal Savior and you are seeking, please contact me. A genuine and simple prayer, asking God into your heart for the forgiveness of your sins will also do.
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