Reflecting God - Embrace Holy Living - WordAction - The Nazarene Publishing House in Kansas City, Missouri, United States - The Global Church of the Nazarene for Tuesday, 20 June 2017 "Same Inside and Out" by Curtiss A. Hartley - Matthew 23:13-28

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"Same Inside and Out" by Curtiss A. Hartley  Matthew 23:13 “But woe to you hypocritical Torah-teachers and P’rushim! For you are shutting the Kingdom of Heaven in people’s faces, neither entering yourselves nor allowing those who wish to enter to do so. 14 [Matthew 23:14 Some manuscripts include verse 14: Woe to you hypocritical Torah-teachers and P’rushim! For you swallow up widow’s houses while making a show of davvening at great length. Because of this your punishment will be all the worse!] 15 “Woe to you hypocritical Torah-teachers and P’rushim! You go about over land and sea to make one proselyte; and when you succeed, you make him twice as fit for Gei-Hinnom as you are! 16 “Woe to you, you blind guides! You say, ‘If someone swears by the Temple, he is not bound by his oath; but if he swears by the gold in the Temple, he is bound.’ 17 You blind fools! Which is more important? the gold? or the Temple which makes the gold holy? 18 And you say, ‘If someone swears by the altar, he is not bound by his oath; but if he swears by the offering on the altar, he is bound.’ 19 Blind men! Which is more important? the sacrifice? or the altar which makes the sacrifice holy? 20 So someone who swears by the altar swears by it and everything on it. 21 And someone who swears by the Temple swears by it and the One who lives in it. 22 And someone who swears by heaven swears by God’s throne and the One who sits on it. 23 “Woe to you hypocritical Torah-teachers and P’rushim! You pay your tithes of mint, dill and cumin; but you have neglected the weightier matters of the Torah — justice, mercy, trust. These are the things you should have attended to — without neglecting the others! 24 Blind guides! — straining out a gnat, meanwhile swallowing a camel! 25 “Woe to you hypocritical Torah-teachers and P’rushim! You clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Parush! First clean the inside of the cup, so that the outside may be clean too. 27 “Woe to you hypocritical Torah-teachers and P’rushim! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look fine on the outside but inside are full of dead people’s bones and all kinds of rottenness. 28 Likewise, you appear to people from the outside to be good and honest, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and far from Torah.------- Jesus could be harsh when He needed to be, and His animus was often aimed directly at the religious establishment of His day. In Matthew 23 He constantly calls out the teachers of the law and the Pharisees as hypocrites! He pronounces judgement with an emphatic, “Woe to you!” seven times in passage. Why would Jesus be so upset? Because, He was fed up with the religious leaders of the day saying one thing and doing another. He was angry that they were leading others to destruction by their hypocrisy. Jesus used clear and ugly word pictures to describe the filth of those religious leaders. Who would want to drink from a filthy cup that had been washed only on the outside, or use a dish that was clean only on the bottom? Jesus said to be sure to clean the inside, then the rest would be clean as well. Jesus even compared the teachers of the law and the Pharisees to tombs filled with rotting corpses and decaying bones, but all gussied up with a fresh coat of white paint on the outside. Does our internal life match up to the gleam of what others see in us? "Give of Your Best to the Master" by Howard B. Grose 1. Give of your best to the Master; Give of the strength of your youth; Throw your soul’s fresh, glowing ardor Into the battle for truth. Jesus has set the example, Dauntless was He, young and brave; Give Him your loyal devotion; Give Him the best that you have. Refrain: Give of your best to the Master; Give of the strength of your youth; Clad in salvation’s full armor, Join in the battle for truth. 2. Give of your best to the Master; Give Him first place in your heart; Give Him first place in your service; Consecrate every part. Give, and to you will be given; God His beloved Son gave; Gratefully seeking to serve Him, Give Him the best that you have. Refrain: Give of your best to the Master; Give of the strength of your youth; Clad in salvation’s full armor, Join in the battle for truth. 3. Give of your best to the Master; Naught else is worthy His love; He gave Himself for your ransom, Gave up His glory above. Laid down His life without murmur, You from sin’s ruin to save; Give Him your heart’s adoration; Give Him the best that you have.Refrain: Give of your best to the Master; Give of the strength of your youth; Clad in salvation’s full armor, Join in the battle for truth. Thought for Today: Therefore, let us approach the Holiest Place with a sincere heart, in the full assurance that comes from trusting — with our hearts sprinkled clean from a bad conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.[Hebrews 10:22 Ezekiel 36:25][Hebrews 10:22].Please pray: For the development of Christian leaders in Equatorial Guinea.