I have always found it easy to judge the Pharisees.
They showed off.
They cared only for themselves.
They rallied to embarrass and kill Jesus.
They influenced good people to turn away from the truth.
They lived with arrogance and attitude.
They strived for power.
They jockeyed for position.
They placed themselves on pedestals.
And all they cared about was performance and people’s approval.
Basically, if ever there were people to avoid, the Pharisees were it.
So you can imagine my surprise when last week the Holy Spirit asked me a question that convicted me of my hoity-toity, “at least I’m better than the Pharisees” attitude.
“Have you confronted the Pharisee of your own heart?”
Ouch.
The Pharisees knew how the Bible wanted them to live but failed to apply the Bible’s wise words to their lives.
Have you confronted the Pharisee of your own heart?
The Pharisees were so busy with their own religious systems and ways of doing faith that they refused to let Jesus change their lives in the way He wanted to change them.
Have you confronted the Pharisee of your own heart?
The Pharisees knew about the Messiah in Scripture better than anyone else but failed to recognize Him as He moved and dwelled amongst them in their day-to-day lives.
Have you confronted the Pharisee of your own heart?
Truth is, it IS easy to judge the Pharisees – or anyone else for that matter – until we allow the Holy Spirit to hold a mirror up to our own hearts and ask for truth to be revealed. Without Holy Spirit revelation, scripture will only ever be a reflection of what we see in others, never ourselves.
But when we’re willing to confront the Pharisee of our own hearts, that’s when our guards come down, the scales from our eyes fall off, and the hardness of our hearts begin to soften so He can shed light on our rules, our performance, our selfishness, our arrogance and our pedestals.
I guess you could say it’s now a little harder for me to judge the Pharisees. Gulp *insert sheepish grin*
So what about you?
Have you confronted the Pharisee of your own heart lately?
”Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults — unless, of course, you want the same treatment. That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging. It’s easy to see a smudge on your neighbor’s face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own. Do you have the nerve to say, ‘Let me wash your face for you,’ when your own face is distorted by contempt? It’s this whole traveling road-show mentality all over again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face, and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor.” Matthew 7:1-5 (MSG)
