Missing the Forest Because of the Trees - Matthew 23

©Copyright November 5, 2017 by Rev. Bruce Goettsche

Mankind has an unending capacity to justify their behavior. Over and over attorneys argue that the defendant is “not guilty” due to circumstances beyond their control. This is often called “the Twinkie Defense” which is named after a 1978 case in which a man claimed temporary insanity after shooting the mayor and the city supervisor in San Francisco’s city hall. He insisted that a steady diet of junk food had raised his blood sugar and messed up his brain. Twinkies made him do it.

There is the story of the woman who entered a hotdog eating contest in a Houston nightclub. As the contest began she began to eat too quickly and began to choke. Did she take responsibility for her actions? Nope. She sued the nightclub because “they shouldn’t have contests like that.”

A woman walked into a ladder because she was engrossed in her cellphone. She sued the company that was using the ladder and was awarded $161,000.00. The list of ridiculous excuses goes on and one but that is not why we are here. This morning we turn to the last of the “Woes” in Matthew 23. In this we see the Pharisees and Teachers of the Law justifying the actions of their forefathers while doing the exact same thing as they did. Let’s look at the text from Matthew 23:29-39

29“What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you build tombs for the prophets your ancestors killed, and you decorate the monuments of the godly people your ancestors destroyed. 30Then you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would never have joined them in killing the prophets.’

31“But in saying that, you testify against yourselves that you are indeed the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. 32Go ahead and finish what your ancestors started. 33Snakes! Sons of vipers! How will you escape the judgment of hell?

34“Therefore, I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers of religious law. But you will kill some by crucifixion, and you will flog others with whips in your synagogues, chasing them from city to city. 35As a result, you will be held responsible for the murder of all godly people of all time—from the murder of righteous Abel to the murder of Zechariah son of Barachiah, whom you killed in the Temple between the sanctuary and the altar. 36I tell you the truth, this judgment will fall on this very generation.

37“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones God’s messengers! How often I have wanted to gather your children together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn’t let me. 38And now, look, your house is abandoned and desolate. 39For I tell you this, you will never see me again until you say, ‘Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’” [1]

Jesus observed that these leaders were building monuments (or maintaining monuments) to some of the great prophets in the history of Israel. The very same prophets the religious leaders of that day had put to death!

The current leaders excused their association with the killers by saying, “If we were alive back then, we would not have killed these great men of God!” They said this at the very time they were conspiring to kill the Son of God Himself! Jesus responds with an extremely strong statement: “How will you escape the judgment of Hell?” All the justifications in the world could not save them.

In verse 34 Jesus looked to immediate future: “Therefore, I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers of religious law. But you will kill some by crucifixion, and you will flog others with whips in your synagogues, chasing them from city to city.” He is talking about himself, the disciples and the early Christian community. These leaders, who advertised themselves as the guardians of the truth would kill God’s own people!

As a result, they would be held responsible for the long history of violence. The text mentions the death of Abel through Zechariah. Most likely Jesus looked at the first recorded murder in the Old Testament and then the last recorded murder in the Old Testament. (In the Hebrew Bible 2 Chronicles was at the end).

In w Chronicles 24:20-24 we read this account.

20Then the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest. He stood before the people and said, “This is what God says: Why do you disobey the Lord’s commands and keep yourselves from prospering? You have abandoned the Lord, and now he has abandoned you!”

21Then the leaders plotted to kill Zechariah, and King Joash ordered that they stone him to death in the courtyard of the Lord’s Temple. 22That was how King Joash repaid Jehoiada for his loyalty—by killing his son. Zechariah’s last words as he died were, “May the Lord see what they are doing and avenge my death!”

The Old Testament was filled with Godly men who were killed because they spoke the truth and people did not want to hear it. Nothing had changed. John the Baptist had already been executed. Jesus was next and all the disciples (except John) would be killed along with many other followers of Christ.

Jesus concluded his indictment with a plaintive cry to Jerusalem,

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones God’s messengers! How often I have wanted to gather your children together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn’t let me. 38And now, look, your house is abandoned and desolate. 39For I tell you this, you will never see me again until you say, ‘Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord!’”

It is a stinging indictment of the “city of God”. Within 40 years of the death of Jesus the Temple was destroyed and it has not been rebuilt since that day. Israel was subjected by the Romans and over the years has faced great persecution. Jesus said He longed to protect His people but they would not let Him. The consequence of rejecting Christ is judgment.

Hopefully, we understand what the passage is saying. However, the greater task is to ask: “What is it that our Lord wants us to learn?” I have some suggestions:

Spin Does Not Change What is True

The Pharisees and Teachers of the Law excused themselves by saying, “We would never have killed those prophets.” Unfortunately, words without action are meaningless.

Simply saying, “I did not mean it” or “I didn’t mean to hurt anyone” or even “everyone is doing it” does not change what is true. We can blame other people all we want but it does not get us off the hook for our sinful behavior. Think about the list of excuses or misdirection we give for our sin,

“They started it”

“I don’t feel anything anymore” (used to explain why we don’t need to do what we said we would do)

“But we love each other.” (Combined with the previous excuse you can justify most anything)

“Doesn’t God want me to be happy?” (The fatal flaw here is the thought that you can ignore God’s commands and be happy).

“I didn’t know this would happen.” (the excuse of ignorance)

“I didn’t have time” (the truth is, we didn’t TAKE the time. We have time for many other things)

“They make me so angry” (actually, we choose to respond in anger)

“I just wanted to have a good time” or “it seemed like a good idea at the time.”

I encourage you to add to this list. No matter what excuse we give the bottom line is that we did what was wrong. Rather than make excuses we need to turn to the Lord and seek forgiveness and restoration.

We would be far better off to practice saying these three words: “I was wrong.” We long for this honesty in our leaders and in our friends. God desires that honesty from us. Until we stop making excuses and blaming everyone else we cannot come to Christ as our Savior. The prerequisite to receive God’s grace is recognizing that you need that mercy and grace because you are a sinful person who is unable to save yourself.

The Fault We See in Others is Often the Fault We Too Possess

The Pharisees and Teachers of the Law recognized that their forefathers made a mistake in killing the prophets of God. Yet, they did the exact same thing!

It is a reality observed in modern counseling and relationships: the things that irritate us most about others are generally things we struggle with ourselves. Have you ever heard the phrase: “The pot calling the kettle black”? It means the pot sees the charring on the kettle but is unable to see it on themselves.

Jesus told us that when we start to try to take the speck out of the eye of another person we should first take the log out of our own eye.

Look at the case of what often happens in what we call road rage. Someone cuts us off in traffic or speeds around us and we get angry. What does the road rage person do? They try to catch the other person so they can cut them off and show them they cannot do that to us! We do exactly the same thing except we do it more aggressively! Which of us has the greater problem?

In the church, we often respond negatively to those people who are legalistic (always making rules for other people to follow) by imposing our own legalism. Sometimes we attack people because they are not behaving the way we think they should be behaving (which can be another form of legalism). Rather than return legalism for legalism we should respond to legalism by celebrating the gift of grace and mercy!

In relationships, we berate someone for their insensitivity while we are insensitively beating up our friend or mate with their failures!

Gary Thomas explains how this often works in marriage:

They don’t realize their own attitude is the single biggest assault on their marriage, even more than what they’re criticizing in their spouses. They think they are the mature ones for noticing the fault, not realizing they are the most destructive partners because they’re obsessing over the fault. Couples committed to cherishing each other do go to war, but never with each other. They go to war against contempt, always seeking to protect each other. This is how you know you’re cherishing your spouse: you’re protecting him or her instead of attacking them.[2]

This phenomenon is present in every part of our life. We see the fault or weakness in another, but do not see it in ourselves. So, what do we do? It would seem the wise thing to do is to stop when we are tempted to attack or criticize another and ask some simple questions:

Is it possible that this fault is a mirror that reflects my own weakness or sin? Do I need to repent?

Have I stopped to ask why this person is acting in this way? Are they responding to some hurt? Is it possible that I am the cause of that hurt?

What is going on inside of me that leads me to respond as strongly as I am responding? Is there an unresolved issue in my life that has made me hypersensitive to the actions of this person?

How would I want someone to respond to me if I was doing what this person is doing? How does God want me to respond to this situation? Why am I unwilling to do so?

The Serious Consequences of Rejecting Christ Should Motivate Us

The serious words that Jesus speaks to the Teachers and to Jerusalem should arrest our attention. If we merely shrug and move on we have missed the seriousness of what has been spoken here. All seven of these woes should challenge us to do several things.

First, it should motivate us to examine our lives. We need to see if we are rejecting Christ. Is our “Christianity” mere religious observance or deep commitment to Christ Himself. Are we just playing the game or are we “all in” convinced that the only way to salvation and new life is through Christ? Are we sincere followers or would we be called hypocrites too.

What is your chief concern in coming to this place today? Are you here to fulfil and obligation or to “pay your dues.” Are you performing a religious duty? Is it all about appearances? Or, have you come to meet the Lord on High? Are you here as one who has been saved by God’s mercy and transformed by His grace?

If you aren’t sure, ask yourself a question: Do I see myself as a sinner in need of grace or as a good person seeking to stay on course? If you see yourself as a sinner in need of grace, then you understand the gospel. Jesus is the answer to your sin problem. He died so that you could live. When you embrace Him your status changes from “sinner” to “forgiven.”

If you see yourself as a good person trying to stay on course, you are following the path of the Pharisees. You are comparing yourself to others and measuring yourself by a standard of goodness YOU have defined. We will not be judged by our standard of goodness but by His! No one can stand on their own merit. The best course for you is to admit the truth and run to Jesus.

The second way this text should motivate us is in our relationship with others. Our friends and family will face eternal misery if they do not run to Jesus. Perhaps we need to be a little less polite and a little more loving. There is nothing loving about keeping quiet about the need to admit our sin and turn to Christ for forgiveness and new life. Your family, your friends, your co-workers, your neighbors are all at risk! If they do not turn to Christ, they will be doomed to eternity in Hell.

You don’t have to beat people over the head. That’s generally not very effective. However, we do need to intentional about having spiritual conversations that lead to eternal things. Why not ask your friends what they think happens after they die? After they have shared you can say, “Can I tell you what I think happens?” If you have sincerely listened to them, they will listen to you. A door will be opened and hopefully the conversation will turn to what it means to have new life in Christ.

The point is that we need to look to build bridges and to point to Jesus. We cannot simply wait until someone asks us a question. We must invite the discussion! It is eternally significant that we do so.

In addition to sharing with our non-Christian friends it is my hope that this message will also help you to relate to all people with a greater sense of compassion. When we look at others and consider what we have done to provoke them or consider the hurt that dictates how they respond, we will become softer. We will be compassionate rather than harsh. We will stop looking for a fight and instead look for ways to build bridges. We will pursue understanding rather than annihilation. And when we do that we will find that other people will be more open to us. They will be drawn to us. And what is better than that is this: The Kingdom of God will be glorified. We will honor our Lord, Savior and King.

Woe will turn to Blessing.

[1] Tyndale House Publishers, Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2013), Mt 23:29–39.

[2] Thomas, Gary L.. Cherish: The One Word That Changes Everything for Your Marriage (Kindle Locations 1241-1249). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.