“…Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone. Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.…” — Matthew 23:23-28
Jesus did not cut the religious leaders much
slack – well actually none at all. Those
who had been set apart to point the people toward God and away from the world
were, themselves, engulfed in the natural while having the outward appearance
of being spiritually elite – living without compromise. But God sees the heart of man and Jesus could
see right through their charade.
“But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not look at
his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the
Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the
Lord looks at the heart.’” – 1 Samuel : 16-7
Recall that Samuel was sent to Jesse to anoint one
of Jesse’s sons as the next king of Israel. Samuel was looking for someone who
looked like King Saul – but God had someone else in mind. The “runt” with a big
heart for God. King Saul had a heart
that was compromised – he did not love God with his whole heart. That is a
struggle that we all have. David was not without sin – he was not perfect but
he was repentant. King Saul did not repent but made excuses for his disobedience.
“A person may think their own ways are right,
but the Lord weighs the heart.” – Proverbs 21:2
So it is with us.
We have to be careful about making excuses for what we know is sin.
Living a compromised life is living without the power of God. When David came
face to face with his sin, he repented. Read Psalm 51. The temptation is to
stuff it and move on as if the sin was not there. Like the Pharisees. I can say
that apart from Jesus, there is not one of us that is sin – compromise free. Our lives are filled with course corrections.
The great thing is that we can make them. For those without Jesus – their flight
controls are frozen. One of the helicopters I flew in the Army was the Chinook –
CH-47. The one with rotor blades on both ends.
You cannot fly that helicopter without the assistance of hydraulics. That
helicopter has three hydraulic systems … oh caught myself – you don’t need to
know how it works 😊 My point is that when all of the hydraulics fail
you are at the mercy of the wind and gravity. You are just along for the ride
or the crash more correctly. Don’t
deceive yourself into thinking that sin does not matter. That compromise with
the culture and its definition of “right” does not matter. We have been called
out to be salt and light – distinguishable to a world flying without hydraulics.
Be alert to your tendency to fly off course and when you do – make the course
correction. (1 John 1:9)
Think about it – Pray about it - Believe it –
Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.
By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His
Glory Alone
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