Matthew 23:13-15

Matthew 23:13-15

“But woe to you scribes and Pharisees – pretenders – because you close the kingdom of heaven in front of mankind.  For you all do not enter nor do you permit the ones who enter to enter into it.  Woe to you scribes and Pharisees – pretenders – because you go about the sea to make one proselyte.  And when he should become one you all make him a son of hell, twice as much as yourselves. 

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

This section of scripture begins what are called the woes.  The Greek word is “ouai” (οὐαί, pronounced oo – ai, oo as in moo and ai as in aisle).  This is a hard word to get a full handle on because the word itself connotes a meaning of both wrath and sorrow.  Jesus is absolutely angry at the Pharisees as we can see by His absolutely scathing language in these verses and the verses to come.  But ouai is not just a word of wrath.  It is a word spoken out of mourning.  It is a word that recognizes things should be different.  It is a word that knows there is an alternative that was not chosen.  Jesus is angry here, but it is a sad anger.  Jesus knows that the scribes and Pharisees have  right to choose their way, but He still desires that they wouldn’t have chosen the one that they did.

How does this word help influence your understanding of God’s wrath and His love?  Do you ever wonder how love and wrath can both exist within a single word?

Second Thought:

One interesting commentary that I read on this passage of woes takes each of these woes and contrasts them with a beatitude from the sermon on the mount.  I really like that approach, so I’m going to follow Warren Wiersbe’s example in his Bible Exposition Commentary.  If we look at the first woe, we hear Jesus telling the religious elite that they are not entering the kingdom and even preventing others from entering the kingdom, too!  Compare this to what Jesus says about the poor in spirit.  The poor in spirit – the spiritually humble people – enter into the kingdom.  But the proud in spirit – the spiritually arrogant – not only don’t enter the kingdom but the actually help other people stay out, too!  This is truly a deep point to ponder.  In those moments when I am spiritually arrogant I may well be influencing other people away from the kingdom of God in my example.  My arrogance not only hinders myself, but it horrifically detracts from any example I may set forth of spiritual humbleness.

Why do you think spiritual arrogance can keep us out of the kingdom?  When are you the most likely to be spiritually arrogant?  Who does your arrogance influence?

Third Thought:

The next woe goes right along with the first woe.  The religious leaders would go out of their way to convert someone into their legalist system of salvation through works.  But here’s the sad reality.  Since none of us can ever actually be saved by being good enough, these proselytes were being converted into no better of a position than before!  Without Christ and the grace of God, we are doomed!  Also notice that Jesus adds that the proselyte is twice the son of hell as the religious elite.  This is because often when disciples are new they go about life with increased vigor.  Disciples are often quicker to speak and they speak with more assertiveness than people who are not new in faith.  Thus, when these religious elite are making proselytes, they are actually making people who are going to speak out much more boldly and with much more vigor than their mentors.  This is what makes them twice as much of a son of hell.  But we need to take Jesus’ caution seriously here.  If we are going to look to convert people out of their condemnation, we need to make sure that they are being brought to God through His grace and by Christ!  We do not need to be converting people to a salvation founded upon doing as I say.  We need to bring people to God and teach them to listen to and obey His voice.  After all, it is the meek who shall receive the inheritance as the beatitude asserts.

How does this woe speak to the process of discipleship?  Do you look to make disciples?  If so, what are you trying to bring them into?

Passage for Tomorrow: Matthew 23:16-22