Whitewashed Tombs and Modern day Pharisees - Matthew 23
In this compelling episode of the Faith, Hope, and Love podcast, host Michael Whitehouse explores the powerful and challenging words of Jesus in Matthew 23. This chapter, often known for its "woe" statements and harsh critiques of the Pharisees, serves as a foundation for understanding hypocrisy and genuine faith.
Michael delves into the historical and cultural context of the Pharisees and draws parallels to modern-day practices that may similarly miss the heart of true spirituality. By examining the original language and intent behind Jesus' words, this episode aims to uncover deeper truths and provide clarity for believers and seekers alike.
Key Bible Verses Referenced:
- Matthew 23 (Entire Chapter):
- "Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 'The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. So you must be careful to do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach...'" (Matthew 23:1-39)
Highlights of the Episode:
- Introduction to the episode’s focus on Matthew 23 and its relevance today.
- Discussion on the significance of Jesus' critique of the Pharisees, focusing on hypocrisy and the misuse of religious authority.
- Explanation of the term "whitewashed tombs" and its implications for outward appearances versus inner reality.
- Exploration of how these ancient critiques apply to modern religious and spiritual practices.
- Encouragement for listeners to seek genuine faith and avoid the pitfalls of superficial religiosity.
- Reflection on how the misuse of religious teachings can harm individuals, particularly those marginalized by society.
Join Michael Whitehouse as he unpacks the stern warnings of Jesus in Matthew 23 and challenges listeners to reflect on their own faith practices, striving for authenticity and true devotion.
Contact Information:
- Email: michael@guywhoknowsaguy.com
- Website: guywhoknowsaguy.com
Tune in to this episode for a thought-provoking discussion on hypocrisy, faith, and the transformative power of genuine love and spirituality.
Transcript
Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, The teacher of the law
Speaker:and the Pharisees sit in Moses seat.
Speaker:So you must be careful to do everything they tell you, but do not do what they do,
Speaker:for they do not practice what they preach.
Speaker:They tie up heavy, cumbersome loads and put them on other people's shoulders.
Speaker:Other people's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing
Speaker:to lift a finger to move them.
Speaker:Everything they do is done for people to see.
Speaker:They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long.
Speaker:They love the place of honor at banquets and the most important
Speaker:seats in the synagogues.
Speaker:They love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and
Speaker:to be called rabbi by others.
Speaker:But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher,
Speaker:and you are all brothers.
Speaker:And do not call anyone on earth father, for you have one
Speaker:father, and he is in heaven.
Speaker:Nor are you called to be instructors, for you have one instructor, the Messiah.
Speaker:The greatest among you will be your servant, and those who exalt
Speaker:themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.
Speaker:Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites!
Speaker:You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people's faces.
Speaker:You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.
Speaker:Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites!
Speaker:You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when you have
Speaker:succeeded, You make them twice as much a child of hell as you are.
Speaker:Woe to you, blind guides.
Speaker:You say, if anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing, but
Speaker:anyone who swears by the gold of the temple is bound by that oath.
Speaker:You blind fools!
Speaker:Which is greater, the gold or the temple that makes the gold sacred?
Speaker:You also say, if anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing, but
Speaker:anyone who swears by the gift on the altar is bound by that oath.
Speaker:You blind men!
Speaker:Woe to you!
Speaker:Which is the greater gift?
Speaker:The gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred.
Speaker:Therefore, anyone who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it.
Speaker:And anyone who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it.
Speaker:And anyone who swears by heaven swears by God's throne and
Speaker:by the one who sits on it.
Speaker:Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites!
Speaker:You give a tenth of your spices, mint, dill, and cumin, but you have neglected
Speaker:the more important matters of the law, justice, mercy, and faithfulness.
Speaker:You should have practiced the latter without neglecting the former.
Speaker:You blind guides!
Speaker:You strain out a gnat, but swallow.
Speaker:A camel.
Speaker:Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites.
Speaker:You clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside they're
Speaker:full of greed and self indulgence.
Speaker:Blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and dish, and
Speaker:then the outside will be clean.
Speaker:Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites.
Speaker:You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside, but
Speaker:on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean.
Speaker:In the same way, On the outside, you appear to the people as righteous,
Speaker:but on the inside, you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.
Speaker:Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites!
Speaker:You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous,
Speaker:and you say, if we had lived in the days of our ancestors, We would
Speaker:not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.
Speaker:So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of
Speaker:those who murdered the prophets.
Speaker:Go ahead then and complete what your ancestors started.
Speaker:You snakes, you brood of vipers, how will you escape being condemned to hell?
Speaker:Therefore I am sending you prophets and sages and teachers.
Speaker:Some of them you will kill and crucify.
Speaker:Others you will flog in your synagogues, and pursue from town to town.
Speaker:And so upon you will come the righteous blood that has been shed on earth.
Speaker:From the blood of righteous Abel, to the blood of Zachariah, son
Speaker:of Berechia, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.
Speaker:Truly, I tell you.
Speaker:All this will come on this generation.
Speaker:Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent
Speaker:to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together as
Speaker:a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing.
Speaker:Look, your house is left to rot.
Speaker:To you desolate, for I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, Blessed
Speaker:is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Speaker:So my original intention was just to read that small bit, that small
Speaker:bit about the whitewashed tombs, but then I read all of Matthew 23.
Speaker:That was Matthew 23 in the New International Version translation.
Speaker:And I thought, you know, I think Jesus says this a lot better than I can.
Speaker:So you may read this and say, well, well, there's no Pharisees anymore.
Speaker:Those were the Jewish leaders of that time.
Speaker:Indeed, there are no more people who call themselves Pharisees.
Speaker:Pharisees kind of have a bad name at this point, but anything I say, did
Speaker:that remind you of anyone you've ever encountered maybe on television, maybe
Speaker:in a very large building in front of a large group of people telling them that
Speaker:they need to give their money because that will be the way to prosperity.
Speaker:Anyone who maybe preaches but then drives a fancy car and a big plane and lives
Speaker:in a big mansion and leverages the word of God for their own aggrandizement?
Speaker:Anyone that might apply to?
Speaker:Matthew 23 sums up very well why I decided to do this podcast.
Speaker:For years I've been hearing stories From people who say, God's not for me.
Speaker:Church isn't for me.
Speaker:I don't get along well with God.
Speaker:And the reason is that they grew up Often in a church, where someone would
Speaker:tell them they weren't good enough.
Speaker:God didn't love them the way they were, or would never love them.
Speaker:There was something defective about them.
Speaker:Possibly it was an LGBT aspect of themselves.
Speaker:Possibly it was something else.
Speaker:Sometimes it's simply they weren't obedient enough.
Speaker:God demands you honor your mother and father.
Speaker:What, you didn't do your homework?
Speaker:God doesn't love you.
Speaker:All kinds of reason they do this.
Speaker:And people do this for a very simple reason.
Speaker:They are human.
Speaker:They are fallible humans.
Speaker:And they find comfort in devout, unthinking, unreasoning faith.
Speaker:Because that's easy.
Speaker:I know the answer.
Speaker:Someone told it to me.
Speaker:God feels this way about these things.
Speaker:Well, there we go.
Speaker:That's simple.
Speaker:I don't need to think anymore.
Speaker:I don't need to take responsibility.
Speaker:God's got it.
Speaker:Jesus, take the wheel.
Speaker:Yes, that is what it means, but not Jesus take the judgment,
Speaker:not Jesus take responsibility.
Speaker:You have to choose to do the right thing and to choose love and faith and hope.
Speaker:Pistis elpis agape, as we talked about in the last episode.
Speaker:But I've encountered too many people who have suffered at the hands of this
Speaker:and who have been turned away from God.
Speaker:Too many people for whom the door of the kingdom has been slammed in
Speaker:their face by modern day Pharisees.
Speaker:And we've got the modern day Pharisees.
Speaker:Those are, those are the ones who are getting rich, who are aggrandizing
Speaker:themselves and filling their coffers off the backs of their followers.
Speaker:But then we also have people who've learned from them.
Speaker:People who have learned that the way to fill the hole in their soul is, you know,
Speaker:with this, this confidence superiority.
Speaker:You see, if you are doubtful, if you are fearful, which as you may be in
Speaker:times of change, which would describe the last, I don't know, 200 years.
Speaker:If you are fearful and you are doubtful and someone says, Well, you are
Speaker:the chosen of God, and you are the chosen of God because you're better
Speaker:than other people for this reason.
Speaker:You're better because you don't swear, and they do, and that makes them worse.
Speaker:You're better because you go to church, and they don't, and that makes them worse.
Speaker:You're better because they're gay, and you're not.
Speaker:Gay is bad.
Speaker:You're not bad.
Speaker:You're good.
Speaker:Good for you.
Speaker:Look at you!
Speaker:Look at all the things you're doing right!
Speaker:Yes!
Speaker:Look at you, how lucky Are you to be the chosen of God?
Speaker:You got the golden ticket.
Speaker:And what happens is, that this belief gets built into the
Speaker:framework of their, their ego.
Speaker:Their philatia, their self love, is built on this framework, this identity T.
Speaker:Of being this better kind of person who is loved by God and thus
Speaker:supported and taken care of by God.
Speaker:And, who wants to break that down?
Speaker:Who wants to give up on that?
Speaker:And if that means turning your back on a child, well, guess
Speaker:that's what you gotta do.
Speaker:Because, God said so, right?
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:And to believe that God didn't say so would be to call into question
Speaker:all kinds of other things you wouldn't want to call into question.
Speaker:But Jesus is very clear here in Matthew 23, very clear how he feels
Speaker:about people who do these things.
Speaker:About people who put the cart before the horse, so to speak.
Speaker:People who put the, the gold ahead of the temple that makes the gold holy.
Speaker:About these whitewashed tombs, beautiful on the outside.
Speaker:and disgusting and wretched on the inside.
Speaker:And here's the thing.
Speaker:This may sound like Jesus hates these people.
Speaker:But he doesn't.
Speaker:Because Jesus doesn't hate anyone.
Speaker:But Jesus hates what these people are doing.
Speaker:And he's using such strong language because this is the
Speaker:thing he's angriest about.
Speaker:Hypocrisy and abusing the word of God, misusing the word of
Speaker:God, is the thing that pisses off Jesus more than anything else.
Speaker:So he uses strong language.
Speaker:But that said, that does not mean that Jesus would not forgive the Pharisees
Speaker:and the teacher's law and the scribes.
Speaker:He would.
Speaker:Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they do.
Speaker:He's making this point not for the Pharisees because he knows
Speaker:they're not going to listen, they're not going to learn.
Speaker:But he's doing it this way because this is what the audience is going to hear.
Speaker:And this is what's going to grab their attention.
Speaker:And we're going to talk later about some of the things that
Speaker:Jesus says that are rhetorical.
Speaker:That they are used to grab your attention, make things clear.
Speaker:They're not meant to be literally true.
Speaker:As we get into some of those deeper areas.
Speaker:But the important point, the reason why Jesus gets so mad here, and
Speaker:Jesus only gets mad a couple times.
Speaker:He gets mad at the Pharisees, he gets mad at the money changers and merchants in
Speaker:the And he gets mad at a fig tree, which is I'm gonna have to look into that one,
Speaker:because that one never made sense to me, but I'm sure there's something behind it.
Speaker:But on that, he doesn't get mad much.
Speaker:Right?
Speaker:He's Jesus.
Speaker:He's, you know, beautific Jesus with the halo and the happy
Speaker:smile and the kind, loving eyes.
Speaker:Except when you got hypocrisy.
Speaker:Except when Leaders are taking advantage of the poor and the destitute
Speaker:and the scared for their own gain.
Speaker:That's when Jesus gets pissed off.
Speaker:But he still loves the people who are doing it.
Speaker:He just really hates what they're doing.
Speaker:And when he says, When he says to them, How will you escape
Speaker:being condemned to hell?
Speaker:He's not saying I condemn you to hell.
Speaker:He's not saying I want you to go to hell.
Speaker:He's not saying damn you to hell.
Speaker:He's saying how will you escape being condemned to hell?
Speaker:He's saying, you guys are screwed and I feel really bad for you, but I
Speaker:feel way worse for the people you're hurting and taking advantage of.
Speaker:Jesus is really clear about this.
Speaker:Jesus says, speaking on behalf of God, How often have I longed to
Speaker:gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings?
Speaker:And you were not willing.
Speaker:But the hen wants to gather all of her chicks.
Speaker:God wants to gather everyone, everyone.
Speaker:So if you're hearing this, because, and you're my intended audience, if this
Speaker:is you, because you have been spurned by the church, because you've been
Speaker:told God doesn't love you, you've been told you're not good enough for church,
Speaker:you've been told that you're not the right kind of person to join a church,
Speaker:you've been told, oh, you can't be a member of a church because your sinful
Speaker:lifestyle, whatever that might happen to be, that I am telling you right now.
Speaker:that you tried to get to God through the wrong humans.
Speaker:And God loves you.
Speaker:If you are human and hearing the sound of my voice, let me tell
Speaker:you right here and now, in no uncertain terms, that God loves you.
Speaker:God may be disappointed in what you've done.
Speaker:But most likely he's disappointed because you did not follow the
Speaker:true path laid out before you.
Speaker:He's not disappointed because you chose to love a man instead of a
Speaker:woman or a woman instead of a man.
Speaker:Because you probably didn't choose.
Speaker:He probably chose that for you.
Speaker:You know, if you read Matt Sammon's book, which I've been reading, If you
Speaker:read, it's called Pride and Prejudice, Healing Division of the Modern Family,
Speaker:he talks about how hard he tried to stop being gay, how hard he tried
Speaker:to get those satanic thoughts out of his head, and he couldn't do it!
Speaker:He worked so hard to stop being gay, to pray the gay away,
Speaker:and it just wouldn't go away.
Speaker:And then when he finally realized this is how God made him, he stopped suffering.
Speaker:God made you a certain way.
Speaker:Now, the way God made you is hurting people.
Speaker:If you feel that God made you to be a serial killer, or a rapist, or
Speaker:whatever, then, yeah, maybe God did not mean for you to act on that.
Speaker:Because that doesn't sound like love, that doesn't sound like agape if
Speaker:you're hurting people with what you do.
Speaker:But if you're a sexual deviant, that does not hurt people.
Speaker:Let's say, for example, that you have some kind of fetish, and, um, you know,
Speaker:Not actually hurting people, but you have a fetish for seeing people hurt.
Speaker:In simulation or whatever.
Speaker:Not hurting them.
Speaker:If you're causing pain, that's a whole different thing.
Speaker:But you, you have a fetish for something really weird.
Speaker:Whatever it might be.
Speaker:But you're not actually hurting anyone.
Speaker:Well, that's how you were made.
Speaker:You were not made to actually cause suffering.
Speaker:But if you really get turned on by, I don't know, some weird thing with,
Speaker:uh, I'm not going to say it cause I don't want to gross anyone out.
Speaker:But you know, the kind of thing that you're like, I wouldn't say
Speaker:this, it'll gross people out, but you're not hurting anyone to do it.
Speaker:You know, maybe you're consuming pornography and that's how
Speaker:you get your fix of it.
Speaker:Maybe you're doing some kind of simulated activity with a consensual partner.
Speaker:That's not real, but it simulates something.
Speaker:You know, like, uh, imprisonment or bondage or whatever.
Speaker:Well, is it hurting anyone?
Speaker:Did God make you to want it?
Speaker:So what's wrong with it?
Speaker:If you're loving people and you're supporting people and you're showing
Speaker:faith, hope, and love, and no one's getting hurt and this, you know, I
Speaker:don't think I know how many times I said no one's getting hurt by 15
Speaker:now and no one's getting hurt by it.
Speaker:Well.
Speaker:That's just how God made you and is what it is.
Speaker:Some people are really into crochet and some people are really into
Speaker:tying people up and that's okay.
Speaker:That's how God made us.
Speaker:That's how we are.
Speaker:But if, if you're really into judging people or you're really into twisting
Speaker:the word of God, or you're really into telling people they're not
Speaker:welcome in the church, Those are specific things God said not to do.
Speaker:If you're really into judging people, cool, write novels about judgment.
Speaker:But don't judge real people.
Speaker:If you're really into keeping people out of the church, then go act in
Speaker:a play about keeping people out of a church, but don't do it for real!
Speaker:Because that's a sin!
Speaker:That's bad!
Speaker:God doesn't like that stuff.
Speaker:God loves all of his children, that's why he made all of his children.
Speaker:And he loves them the way that they are.
Speaker:The way he made them.
Speaker:Now don't get this twisted.
Speaker:Don't say, well God loves me the way I am, I don't need to learn
Speaker:anything, I don't need to get better, I don't need to improve.
Speaker:No!
Speaker:God gave you the seeds.
Speaker:God loves the mustard seed, but he also loves the mustard plant.
Speaker:He doesn't mean the seed to stay a seed forever.
Speaker:He doesn't mean you to stay a child forever.
Speaker:He means for you to put away childish things and become an adult and think in
Speaker:reason as an adult So you must always grow you must always learn You must
Speaker:always find ways to improve and be able to serve god better and by serving god.
Speaker:I mean serving the people around you serving your community serving agape
Speaker:serving your friends your family the world sharing your gifts And you Whoever
Speaker:you are, however weird you are, God loves you because God knows your weirdness.
Speaker:Because God gave you your weirdness.
Speaker:God knows your flaws because God gave you your flaws.
Speaker:God knows your failings because God gave you your failings.
Speaker:And this is my message, and this is my message through every episode,
Speaker:is that God loves every one of us, and anyone who tells you otherwise
Speaker:doesn't understand the Bible, and needs to read it again with open eyes.
Speaker:So I started this off with a Jesus rant.
Speaker:Jesus does do some great rants.
Speaker:I'll be reading some others later.
Speaker:But I just want you to understand.
Speaker:You.
Speaker:Who's listening to this?
Speaker:God loves you.
Speaker:Not just them.
Speaker:He loves them too.
Speaker:God loves you.
Speaker:No exceptions, no conditions.
Speaker:And God wants to help you to serve in the way that you are meant to
Speaker:serve, whatever that way might be.
Speaker:Whatever it might be.
Speaker:Even if it means a little bit of swearing, And a little bit of wackiness
Speaker:in whatever form wackiness takes for you.
Speaker:So I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.
Speaker:My email address as always is michael at guy who knows a guy dot com.
Speaker:And if this has touched you in some way, or if you feel this would be
Speaker:beneficial to someone else to listen to, please share this message with
Speaker:someone who could benefit directly.
Speaker:Share it on, you know, share it on social media, that's great.
Speaker:But if there's someone you personally know, If there is someone you know
Speaker:who says, I don't do that God thing.
Speaker:God doesn't want me.
Speaker:Share this message with them because that's who it's for.
Speaker:Thank you and God bless you.
