Title: Matthew 23:25-28
Contents
Matthew 23:25-28 / Front and back immobility and eating out
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for you clean the outside of the cup and the bowl, but inside they are full of greed and debauchery. Fields and Pharisees, you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but inside are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness.
There is a story like this in the anecdote of Dr. Ki-soo Kim, an American missionary who was famous for speaking Korean well. When I was a professor at Soongsil University, I had an exam period. Missionary Ki-soo Kim, who witnessed two students sitting in the front and back looking at the test paper and showing it, was one of them. Another student, knowing that it was Mr. Lee, immediately used the text message and said, "It's moving back and forth." Floating front and back means that the inside and the outside are different.
"Wisdom will save you from the way of the evil one, and will deliver you from a man who speaks differently from inside and outside" (Proverbs 2:12).
There was a person who was always envious of others because of his extraordinary speaking ability. That day too, he was leading the conversation in the meeting. Another friend, who had been quietly listening next to me, sarcastically said, 'Only your mouth will go to heaven when you are resurrected!' Hearing this, the talkative friend said, 'Honey, what are you talking about? Why is only my mouth resurrected? My whole body is resurrected!’ Then another friend replied back. 'This man, it's probably difficult to have such a bad heart like you. Your legs, your hands, your eyes, your nose, and your ears will all go to hell, and only your mouth is fun and holy.’
People express what they have in their minds through their mouths. However, although facial expressions and words are plausible, there are cases where resentment and hatred are hidden inside. Also, there are many instances of hypocrisy, thinking that not exposing one's feelings is like being well-disciplined and cultured. As long as this antagonism and inconsistency continues, the sincerity of our faith will never be restored.
The Bible says
“They only plot to bring him down from his lofty heights, and they delight in lies; with their mouth they are a blessing and within themselves they are a curse” (Psalm 62:4).
"And he said, Isaiah well prophesied of you hypocrites, for it is written, This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me" (Mark 7:6)
A rabbi, who is said to be very intelligent but has an ugly face, one day meets the daughter of a Roman emperor. The emperor's daughter looked at the rabbi and scoffed, saying, 'So much wisdom is contained in such an ugly vessel.' The rabbi then asked the emperor's daughter if there was alcohol in the palace. Of course, the princess replied that she had alcohol. asked the ugly rabbi.
"Princess, in what kind of vessel do you keep alcohol in the palace?"
“I keep it like a common jar or bottle of wine.” Then the rabbi looked disappointed and said:
"A high and wonderful person like a princess of Great Rome must have many vessels made of gold and silver, so do you use such cheap vessels?"
Then the princess thought that the rabbi was right, so she changed all the ordinary vessels she had used so far to gold and silver ones. Of course, alcohol was also transferred into gold and silver vessels. After that, the taste of alcohol changed very strangely, unlike in the past. "Who made alcohol taste like this?"
When the Roman emperor became very angry, the princess answered.
"Because it's better to keep alcohol in a precious container than a cheap one..."
After being rebuked by the emperor, the princess went to see the rabbi.
"Why did you tell me to do the wrong thing?"
"I just wanted to let the princess know that even the most precious and precious things are sometimes better to keep in a sparsely wrinkled vessel."
The Bible tells us that the outward man and the inward man are separated. It is difficult to know because the outward man is the outward man, and the inner man is hidden within. But God sees the inner man and judges it. Therefore, the most important thing in faith is how much you can see the invisible inside and how you can make it righteous and strong. But since we can only see the outside and not the inside, this is the biggest difficulty. But Jesus told us the way to see the inside through the outward appearance.
The Pharisees liked to stand in the synagogues and at the entrance to the streets to pray, to be seen by people, to be called Rabbi, to wear long robes and to be greeted at the market. But when he rebuked this hypocritical Pharisee, he said that the outside and the inside were the exact opposite.
We shouldn't just apply this to them and end up with it. This is true for all of us. This is what He said to us, who wrap the outside the more we have no inside. We must not only look at the outside, but look at the opposite inside through the outside, and always go to the cross of Jesus, where we can fundamentally solve this problem, and renew the inside. Therefore, as the inside is renewed, the outside must also be changed.
In a village there was a huge oak tree. The tree was the pride of the villagers. It existed long before the villagers were born, and everyone thought they would outlive them. Then one day, a violent storm broke the tree in half. Then the rotten inside of the tree was exposed. Outwardly, it looked like a symbol of strength and longevity, but on the inside he was sick and dying.
Many Christians in our country have contradictory personalities that are different on the outside and inside. This is our reality that cannot be deceived before God. On the outside, they shout Hallelujah and Amen as if they were the holy people of God, but on the inside they were full of dirty and ugly things. As a result, the church is losing its influence and credibility from society one by one. There can be no faith without works. It is just a whitewashed tomb. Balanced growth in words, faith, and deeds can change this corrupted age.
Saints! The Lord asks us today to dress with truth and humility. To do so, we must first put off the garments of pride and hypocrisy, and seek God's holy grace. For whoever humbles himself is exalted, and furthermore, he hears praise from the Lord rather than the rebuke of the hypocrites.
* Prayer: Remember the God who searches our hearts and the God who sees the heart, check our inner motives at every moment and act with a right heart. Help me to become a disciple of Jesus who sincerely profess faith through life, not as a religious person who is like an empty shell. May I have pure and true faith. May our lips and our lives always be sincere. Match our outward man with our inner man. Whatever we do on this earth, let us come forward with a sincere attitude with fear and trembling as before the Lord. May the beautiful fragrance of Christ always radiate in us, and only you may be glorified through us. Let me live a true language life. We pray in the name of our Savior Jesus. Amen