“For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”
– Matthew 23:12
Hi James and Ellen,
Did you go to a church service yesterday? If you went to a church service yesterday, what do you remember about the church service? When you go to a church service, do you usually remember what the preacher preached? Have you ever been in a church service when a guest speaker used his speaking time to say that the guys who preach in Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, charismatic, . . . churches are not practicing what they are preaching; that what Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, charismatic, . . . church pastors love most of all is to be able to sit in the very most prestigious place during church socials, to be estimably greeted as they are met on the street and to be called Jesus level preachers. How do you think that the host pastor of a Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, charismatic, . . . church would feel if his guest speaker told the guys, gals and kids in his church who are listening to his guest speaker say that his host is a hypocrite, a blind fool, a blind guide and that his host’s tithing to his church a tenth of everything that he has is just a show because his host never practices justice, mercy, faithfulness, etc.? How do you think that the host pastor of a Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, charismatic, . . . church would feel if his guest speaker told the guys, gals and kids who are listening to him that his host’s outside appearance may look just like a clean cup or dish but that on the inside, his host’s thoughts and motives are filled with greed and self-indulgence and/or that his host’s outside appearance may look righteous or pious – just like a freshly painted crypt, but that on the inside, his host is duplicitous and wicked – just like the worthless bones of a guy who has died? How do you think that the host pastor of a Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, charismatic, . . . church would feel if his guest speaker asserted to the guys, gals and kids who are listening to him that his host is an insidious viper?
You are probably thinking that no guest speaker would ever use his speaking engagement at a church to blast away at his host pastor. Read Matthew 23. Even though Jesus would sometimes use an open air site – such as up on the side of a hill or in a boat a little ways out on the water, to speak to his disciples and to the guys, gals and kids who were following Him, Jesus may be in a place here – such as a synagogue, where there were Pharisees and/or Sadducees and/or Essenes and/or Zealots in the crowd. How do you think that the Pharisees and/or Sadducees and/or Essenes and/or Zealots who were in the crowd listening to Jesus teach really felt when Jesus may have told all the guys, gals and kids in the crowd to look at a Pharisee – who He may have been pointing to, who had an extra wide phylactery or box and who had extra long tassels attached to his garment as an example of a guy who wanted to be seen as an equal with Moses. Jesus’ take on this Pharisee and on all Pharisees is that these guys are a farce because of their baseless claim that if a guy, gal or kid wants to be as virtuous as they thought that they are that the guy, gal or kid will have to do things and live a lifestyle that a Pharisee would never ever think about doing or living. Jesus’ outburst to his disciples – and to the guys, gals and kids who were following and listening to Him teach, regarding His real feelings about the Mosaic Law ascribed and abdicated teachers – the Sadducees, Essenes, Zealots and the Pharisees especially, had Jesus exposing them to be egotistical hypocrites, self-centered fools, a brood of dangerous vipers and descendants of murderous villains. What do you think that Jesus’ disciples were thinking after Jesus said bluntly in front of them – and in front of everyone else, that the Sadducees, Essenes, Zealots and most notably the Pharisees were – through their teachings and actions, living and walking on hell’s broad pathway? Your grandpaa thinks that Jesus’ disciples were probably really wishing that Jesus would stop being so outspokenly honest about what His feelings are about . . . as they knew that Jesus was verbally taking on a very influential pool of ‘spiritual’ leaders through confrontational, sarcastic and in your face statements and condemnations who had already been doing all that they could do to make Jesus’ life – and probably their lives, difficult and now for sure, would make Jesus’ life – and probably their lives, even more difficult.
If Jesus’ disciples were really listening to what Jesus was teaching, they would have heard a couple of very important life messages. The first life message has to do with how you perceive yourself and how you want others to perceive you. Jesus says in verse 12, “For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” Your grandpaa knows that there is a pride spirit who is always prodding him to tell others about the accomplishments that are linked to his abilities to do something or to get something done. Whenever your grandpaa begins to let the pride spirit do what it has been assigned to do, your grandpaa will feel himself being hit over the head by the humble spirit – who has been assigned to have your grandpaa look at everyone around him as ‘chicks’ who need a guy or gal who is willing – for Jesus’ name’s sake, to humbly befriend them, help them mature and give them cover. Do you think more about what other kids – or guys and gals, are thinking about you or do you think more about what other kids – or guys and gals, in the context of coming alongside them as kids who care about them through unconditionally accepting, affirming and approving them and by communicating that you have their backs?
Matthew 23 (1177)