Lead Without the Weight

Transcript

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[0:00] Right now we'll read the sermon text, which comes from Matthew 23, 1 through 12, and this is from the NLT version. Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, The teachers of religious law and Pharisees are the official interpreters of the law of Moses. So practice and obey whatever they tell you, but don't follow their example.

[0:26] For they don't practice what they teach. They crush people with unbearable religious demands and never lift a finger to ease the burden. Everything they do is for show. On their arms they wear extra wide prayer boxes with scripture verses inside, and they wear robes with extra long tassels. And they love to sit at the head table at banquets and in the seats of honor in the synagogues. They love to receive respectful greetings as they worship. They love to walk in the marketplaces and to be called rabbi. Don't let anyone call you rabbi, for you have only one teacher, and all of you are equal as your brothers and sisters. And don't address anyone here on earth as father, for only God in heaven is your father. And don't let anyone call you teacher, for you have only one teacher, the Messiah. The greatest among you must be a servant. But those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted. Let's pray.

[1:40] God, we ask for your blessing upon your word. God, would this message come from your spirit, and would you speak to each of us as we need to hear. These things we pray in Jesus' name. Amen. So did you know that this is a very important message? This is actually the last public address that Jesus gives. So after this in the Gospel, everything he says is said to either his disciples in private or someone in private. This is the last time he's addressing a crowd in public. And we know that everything that Jesus says is obviously important. But we really should pay attention to the lasts. Because after all of his life, we know that there are times when we feel like we're being held back. After all of his life, after all the things he taught and did, these final things that he says are important things that he really wants to get out there.

[2:38] So rarely in Scripture do we see that we are meant to obey the Pharisees. There's so much tension between Jesus and the Pharisees that seems a little out of place to us or confusing to us today. But the Pharisees did have a purpose in their religious system. And it wasn't always a corrupt group of people. The Pharisees were well read in Scripture. They knew the Torah inside and out. And they studied constantly. Their purpose in society was to bring the practices of purification necessary for temple participation into the everyday experience.

[3:20] The Pharisees were not attempting to earn a place in God's covenant through their Torah of the Sabbath. Instead, they, as part of God's covenant people, they attempted to live out faithfulness to the law with a strong focus on avoiding ritual defilement wherever possible. And I think this is actually a healthy and noble example to set. And furthermore, they taught the law to the lay people.

[3:52] Actually, the word Pharisees means separated one. And they generally did that. They generally are lay people because they were business owners and land owners and tradesmen. But they do dedicate themselves to learning and teaching the word. And so they spent a lot of their lives just in God's word.

[4:12] And it's said that during the time of Jesus, there are not more than 6,000 Pharisees. So they're a religious sect dedicated to knowing the law. They're known to be very strict with the observance or the deeds of God. And they're known to be very strict with the teaching of the law.

[4:29] And largely, Jesus is talking to the Pharisees here about the Pharisees in this passage. But he's also talking about the scribes. And the scribes are not lay people. The scribes are the true experts of the law. They copy the manuscripts. They're the ones who study the Torah inside and out. They teach the law of God. And they are professionals. This is like their full-time job. It's to just be a scribe and be an expert of the law. It's like, I don't know if you've seen those memes for various professions. Like, this is what I do. I such and such and I know things. That's what the scribes do. They scribe and they know things. That's what it is to be a scribe.

[5:16] So a quick glance at the Gospels may tempt us into thinking that Jesus was opposed to the law. And certainly the Pharisees were not. The Pharisees of his day probably thought that he was constantly standing against them and standing against the law and breaking the covenant or the law. But that's absolutely untrue. Jesus came to fulfill the law. He came to teach us the true intent of the law. And to be an example of the law for us. So in Matthew 5, Jesus tells you, Truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. Therefore whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

[6:20] Also, throughout the Gospels and throughout the New Testament, we are called to pay proper respect to our leaders. Leaders bear a large responsibility, one that's greater than non-leaders, and one that is God-given. They're not just responsible for themselves, but they're responsible for all those who look to them for instruction and guidance. And this is the role of the Pharisees. Jesus says that they're the official interpreters of the law of Moses. So we must practice what they teach. And these Pharisees did know what they were talking about. The people put their trust into the leaders that they will guide faithfully and teach what is right in God's eyes. Therefore, if the leaders go astray, they are responsible for also leading the people astray. And these leaders had gone astray, as we've seen in the last few chapters of Matthew, where Jesus is standing in opposition to the Pharisees. They had gone astray, and Jesus was not accepting it. They may have known what to say, but at the end of the day, they were hypocrites who were severely lacking humility. And here Jesus is calling them out because of their disobedience to the law, even as they teach it to the people, and their misguided motivation in carrying out the law,

[7:48] not to have favor with the Lord. But to earn the admiration and honor from society. And by living those standards, they had pushed the people of God away from God, which was the opposite of what they were trying to do. They, on the outward appearance, they looked like they were trying to get students, and they were trying to get converts, and they were trying to get people to surround them. So it looked like they were trying to get people to surround them. So it looked like they were trying to get people to surround them. And therefore, Jesus was trying to get people to hear their message. But really, they were doing this for their own favor. They were doing this to get honor from the people.

[8:31] and they were pushing the people away from God in the practice. And it was making it seem as though the worship of God and having a relationship with God was actually something too high and mighty and unobtainable for everyday people. So the verses following our passage today are really quite strong and they really lay it out. It says, So on earth, these teachers had everything. They had riches. They had the respect of people. They were living the high life. But that means nothing to God. And the worst of it all was that their pride and hypocrisy placed this excruciating burden on the people who looked up to them, who just wanted to come before the Lord.

[10:16] So in all my life, the highs and the lows, one thing that has always been true is that I've been able to depend on the Lord to unload my burdens at his feet, and to trust in him. And I've always been able to know that my sin has been forgiven through his grace. And the burden of my sin is one that I truly can't imagine having to carry. And I don't want to imagine a life where I was unable to receive grace from God. But that is what these people were living through every day because their religious leaders were telling them that it was so. And so poor people, not rich enough to buy the animals needed for sacrifice for forgiveness, poor people who couldn't afford to worship when worship should come without costs or strings attached, people who didn't know any better, but to follow the example of these teachers, all were being led further from God. Their burden was painful and so unnecessary.

[11:23] To be fair, God does have high standards for his people. Higher standards. Higher than the Pharisees could have known. But his burden is light. And he's filled with compassion and grace and forgiveness. And Hans-Erik touched on this last week, on this passage last week. But God's standards for his people are to love God with all our hearts and to love our neighbors as ourselves. And that is as high a task as anyone can ever know. And in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus clarifies, that it isn't just murder that's wrong, but simply having angry thoughts toward one another. How many of you have ever had an angry thought toward another person? That's a high, high standard to follow. And it isn't just adultery that's wrong, but the slightest lustful thought is a sin. Jesus didn't oppose the law. He defined it more intensely. And yet following those standards will set us free from the sin of adultery. Right?

[12:31] Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? Right? that your sins cannot be forgiven unless you pay a certain amount, or that your sins cannot be forgiven because you are not as righteous as your teacher is, or that your teacher can do no wrong, but you do all the wrong, or that we are all the same. We are all on the same page. And your teacher teaches you not because they want some high and lofty position in life, but because they truly love you and truly love Jesus.

[13:24] Not only will your burden be lighter with Christ, but you will be more compassionate to those who follow your leadership. As Christians, we should always be in a pattern of both being taught and mentored by some people in our lives, as well as being a teacher and mentor to others in our lives. So that means you are a student, and are we grateful as students to have these wonderful leaders in our lives who have given us the light burden of Christ to follow? You're a student, but you're also a teacher.

[14:02] So turn back to your groups and answer these questions. And I'll repeat them a couple times this time. So, who are some of, sorry, what does your Christian walk say about your leadership to the people in your life?

[14:20] What are some areas you're doing well? And what are some areas you could improve? Sorry, and I also meant who are some of the people that you are a mentor to or a teacher to? So I'll repeat those again. Who are some of the people that you are a mentor or a teacher to? And I'll repeat those again. Who are some of the people that you are a mentor to or a teacher to? What does your Christian walk say about your leadership to people in your life?

[14:55] What does your Christian walk say about your leadership to people in your life? What are some areas you're doing well? And where are some areas where you can improve? And we'll take just five minutes this time. Do we need to repeat the questions?

[15:07] Are we golden? All right. I'm going to start, I'm going to start the timer. Right here. Right here. Right here. Right here. Right here. Right here. Right here. Right here. Thank you. Right here. Right here. Right here. Right here. Right here. Right here. Right here. Right here. Right here. Right here.

[20:56] Thank you.