Memorise: But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites? Matthew 22:18
Read: Luke 11:37-44 And as he spake, a certain Pharisee besought him to dine with him: and he went in, and sat down to meat. 38 And when the Pharisee saw it, he marvelled that he had not first washed before dinner. 39 And the Lord said unto him, Now do ye Pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and the platter; but your inward part is full of ravening and wickedness. 40 Ye fools, did not he that made that which is without make that which is within also? 41 But rather give alms of such things as ye have; and, behold, all things are clean unto you. 42 But woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. 43 Woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye love the uppermost seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets. 44 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are as graves which appear not, and the men that walk over them are not aware of them.
One of the characteristics
which the Holy Spirit warns us will be rife in the last days is hypocrisy (1st
Timothy 4:2). No wonder the Lord Jesus Christ made it very clear that many who
expect to be granted access through the pearly gates will be turned back on the
last day (Luke 13:24-27). Do you know that many bishops, pastors, general
overseers, apostles, etc who are professing Christ today will not make it on
the day of judgement? May that not be your lot in Jesus’ Name. To prevent this
from happening to you, you need to periodically examine yourself to see if you
are still in the faith, as received from the Lord. 2nd Corinthians 13:5 says,
“Examine yourselves, whether ye
be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that
Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?”
Ask yourself if your name is
still written in the Book of Life. Does the Spirit of God still bear witness
with your spirit that you are a bona fide child of God? Is your conscience free
from guilt and dead works? Can the devil and his agents testify that truly, you
are no longer in their camp? Don’t pretend to be a child of God when you know
you are on your way to perdition.
The greatest challenges Jesus
had with the Pharisees was the issue of their mindset. They appeared to have
good intentions, but it was all a lie. Jesus knew the state of their hearts.
The human heart is like a computer. Whatever you feed it with will determine
what comes out of it. The heart of a man is what shapes his destiny. The reason
why some people come to church and are still not blessed is the state of their
heart. Their hypocritical hearts are hardened, and so they cannot receive
anything from God. If the Pharisees had allowed the message of Jesus Christ to
penetrate their hearts, their perception would have been different. If you
allow God to work on your heart, your breakthrough will be immeasurable. Our
heart is a reflection of who we are. Every time Jesus performed a miracle, instead
of being happy that someone in need had received help from God, the Scribes and
Pharisees would rather question by what authority He did it (John 9:13-27, Luke
20:1-2). That is what a hypocritical heart looks like. I wish we all knew that
God is watching not just our actions but also our motives. He hears and watches
everything we do behind closed doors. There is nothing hidden from Him that
will not be exposed on the last day. Hypocrites know how to find faults in the
lives of others, but their own lives are like sepulchres which appear beautiful
on the outside but are full of dead men’s bones (Matthew 23:27). God wants us
to reflect a life of righteousness and transparency, a life that radiates the
glory of God, a life of virtue and of good works.
Prayer point: Father, deliver
me from all forms of self-deception.
Bible in one year: Genesis 21:23,
Isaiah 45:14-25
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