Jesus Confronts Hypocrisy

September 3, 2023 Background Scripture: Luke 1 1 :37 - 44 Lesson Passage: Luke 11:37 - 44 I don't know anyone who is not upset at being called a hypocrite. The use of that word implies the person is void of personal integrity. It is derived from a Greek word used to describe actors in live stage plays. The actors would literally hold a mask over their face to portray a character and they would use a different mask to portray another character. The mask implied that the actor had become someone else although in the absence of the mask, it was the same person on stage! Hypocrite is a very befitting word to describe a person who projects himself as someone else. Furthermore, hypocrisy often involves double standards. There can be one set of standards for them and one set for others. In today's lesson, Jesus confronted Pharisees and scribes for their way of life which was often hypocritical. This confrontation did not happen in the public square but rather in the home of a Pharisee. Jesus was an invited guest in the Pharisee's house. The confrontation occurred when the Pharisee saw that Jesus did not wash his hands prior to dinner. The bible does not record that the Pharisee said anything about it. It just says the Pharisee saw it and was amazed. Perhaps the look on the Pharisee's face conveyed his thoughts. Jesus addressed the Pharisee's attitude from the viewpoint of the totality of a person. A person has both a physical outside and a spiritual inside. Jesus stated that the Pharisees and scribes were concern about outside cleanliness and not about the inside. Jesus referenced their greed and wickedness as evidence that the inside needed cleaning. Then Jesus criticized their preciseness in giving tithes of the smallest herbs, and yet failing to be concerned about larger matters involving justice and the love of God. In essence, their religion was more about an outside show than it was about an internal change of heart. Additionally, their insides were made evident by what they cherished outwardly. They loved the accolades of people and to be seen as important in their society. They were modeling a behavior that would lead people away from God and His eternal love. As role models, they represented a deadly trap for anyone who followed them. People tend to be very focused on external appearances. Just as hypocrites, they wore the masks people were accustomed to seeing them wear. They gave people the show they expected. As leaders, they were dangerous to the eternal wellbeing of their admirers and followers. They were masters at doing the easy stuff. Demonstrating the love of God and helping those who could not repay them were much more difficult tasks. Those were more difficult because of the rebellion of the flesh against the Spirit of God. Human flesh does not like to submit to the sovereignty of God. What they did was for the purpose of gaining something for themselves in their society. Being motivated by the needs of others did not provide an advantage for them. However, being motivated by the needs of others is the heart of what God's love is about. Jesus did not tell them to not do the small things they did. He emphasized they should not have left the larger things undone. Would the answer be for them to do both? No. If they attempted to do the other things, they would discover the need for God in their lives. Their need for God was no different than the need of others they might have looked down on. They did the easy stuff because they could do it and it promoted their cause. The hard stuff required God' s help. They were shocked, or appalled, that Jesus did not wash His hands prior to dinner. Had they known that Jesus had come into the world to do the hard stuff for them, it might have positioned them to be better role models for others. They were trying to impress people they should have been trying to help. They were hypocrites, and Jesus confronted them. Robert C. Hudson August 25, 2023