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Hypocritical Preachers; and another type of greatness

By Anita Mathias

[Jesus_FordMadoxBrown.jpg]
Ford Maddox Ford, Jesus Washing Peter’s Feet

Matthew 23 1-12 Blog Through the Bible Project

How NOT to win friends and influence people.

 1 Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 2 “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. 3 So you must be careful to do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. 4 They tie up heavy, cumbersome loads and put them on other people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.


So what to do when those who preach to you are corrupt and hypocritical? Or you suspect them of being so.


 Separate the message from the man. Turn your devotion to Christ. Do the right thing for the love of Christ.


Spend more time with Christ and Scripture, and less time with the politics of your church.


Loading burdens onto people is one mark of a Pharisaical preacher (and perhaps an indicator of inner, hidden, secret sin).


(The scribes and Pharisees were two distinct groups, with some overlap. The scribes were professional interpretative experts on the Torah itself, while the Pharisees were experts in the theological matters that the Torah raised.)


  5 “Everything they do is done for people to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; 6 they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; 7 they love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and to be called ‘Rabbi’ by others.


Jesus sums up the religious hypocrite in this brilliant phrase: “Everything they do is done for people to see.”


It may be irritating to see people achieve religious or churchly respect they don’t deserve. However, this is indeed a kind of slavery and servitude–to do everything for the sake of being seen.Never to enjoy simple humble anonymous pleasures and acts of goodness. The stress and lack of freedom this involves is not worth the respect they might gain.


The Pharisees Jesus says love the places of honour at banquets, and the most important seats in the synagogues, they love the respect of men.


And here is gets troubling, for most people do love honour, and respect, significance and importance. It is one of the great conscious or unconscious human quests. 


What then are we to do? I would say that when we are aware that we are doing something mainly for the sake of appearances; when we are seeking honour and respect from others, rather than from God, it’s time to “Stop, Drop, and Repent.”


(Seating at banquets was assigned to guests according to their rank or status.


Rabbi literally meant My Lord, but it was sued generally for outstanding teachers of the law, most frequently heads of rabbinical schools.)




  8 “But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers. 9 And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. 10 Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one Instructor, the Messiah.


 11 The greatest among you will be your servant. 12 For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.


And here is where Jesus’ teaching gets really challenging–and this is among the most challenging things he says. 


We are not to run after this sort of honour, recognition, praise and importance.


He urges us to follow another sort of greatness. The greatest person is the one who can serve others. 


And he is right!!


And then Jesus makes a prophetic statement which we Christians generally ignore. That the one who seeks to exalt himself–to show off, to blow his own trumpet, to be honoured– will inevitably be humbled. 


Those who seek to be humble will be exalted.


I know the former part of this saying is true–because I have seen it played out so often in my own life and the life of others


But he who humbles himself will be exalted? What does that mean? What does it mean to humble oneself? Not showing off, for starters. Taking on some “menial” tasks?


Since I have experientially proved that so many things Jesus says are true, I take the things I have not yet proved on trust.

Like his statement that those who humble themselves will be exalted. His advice to be gentle and humble. Not to show off. And that he will take responsibility for honouring the one who is humble and gentle.



ESV Jesus’s disciples should not try to gain authority over each other as teachers and masters, since Jesus is ultimately each disciples’ teacher and master to whom each disciple is accountable.

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anita.mathias

Writer, Blogger, Reader, Mum. Christian. Instaing Oxford, travel, gardens and healthy meals. Oxford English alum. Writing memoir. Lives in Oxford, UK

Images from walks around Oxford. #beauty #oxford # Images from walks around Oxford. #beauty #oxford #walking #tranquility #naturephotography #nature
So we had a lovely holiday in the Southwest. And h So we had a lovely holiday in the Southwest. And here we are at one of the world’s most famous and easily recognisable sites.
#stonehenge #travel #england #prehistoric England #family #druids
And I’ve blogged https://anitamathias.com/2020/09/13/on-not-wasting-a-desert-experience/
So, after Paul the Apostle's lightning bolt encounter with the Risen Christ on the road to Damascus, he went into the desert, he tells us...
And there, he received revelation, visions, and had divine encounters. The same Judean desert, where Jesus fasted for forty days before starting his active ministry. Where Moses encountered God. Where David turned from a shepherd to a leader and a King, and more, a man after God’s own heart.  Where Elijah in the throes of a nervous breakdown hears God in a gentle whisper. 
England, where I live, like most of the world is going through a desert experience of continuing partial lockdowns. Covid-19 spreads through human contact and social life, and so we must refrain from those great pleasures. We are invited to the desert, a harsh place where pruning can occur, and spiritual fruitfulness.
A plague like this has not been known for a hundred years... John Piper, after his cancer diagnosis, exhorted people, “Don’t Waste Your Cancer”—since this was the experience God permitted you to have, and He can bring gold from it. Pandemics and plagues are permitted (though not willed or desired) by a Sovereign God, and he can bring life-change out of them. 
Let us not waste this unwanted, unchosen pandemic, this opportunity for silence, solitude and reflection. Let’s not squander on endless Zoom calls—or on the internet, which, if not used wisely, will only raise anxiety levels. Let’s instead accept the invitation to increased silence and reflection
Let's use the extra free time that many of us have long coveted and which has now been given us by Covid-19 restrictions to seek the face of God. To seek revelation. To pray. 
And to work on those projects of our hearts which have been smothered by noise, busyness, and the tumult of people and parties. To nurture the fragile dreams still alive in our hearts. The long-deferred duty or vocation
So, we are about eight weeks into lockdown, and I So, we are about eight weeks into lockdown, and I have totally sunk into the rhythm of it, and have got quiet, very quiet, the quietest spell of time I have had as an adult.
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Some of the things I have enjoyed during lockdown have been my daily long walks, and gardening. Well, and reading and working on a longer piece of work.
Here are some images from my walks.
And if you missed it, a blog about maintaining peace in the middle of the storm of a global pandemic
https://anitamathias.com/2020/05/04/a-mind-of-life-and-peace/  #walking #contemplating #beauty #oxford #pandemic
A few walks in Oxford in the time of quarantine. A few walks in Oxford in the time of quarantine.  We can maintain a mind of life and peace during this period of lockdown by being mindful of our minds, and regulating them through meditation; being mindful of our bodies and keeping them happy by exercise and yoga; and being mindful of our emotions in this uncertain time, and trusting God who remains in charge. A new blog on maintaining a mind of life and peace during lockdown https://anitamathias.com/2020/05/04/a-mind-of-life-and-peace/
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#valleta #valletamalta #travel #travelgram #uncagedbird
Images from some recent walks in Oxford. I am copi Images from some recent walks in Oxford.
I am coping with lockdown by really, really enjoying my daily 4 mile walk. By savouring the peace of wild things. By trusting that God will bring good out of this. With a bit of yoga, and weights. And by working a fair amount in my garden. And reading.
How are you doing?
#oxford #oxfordinlockdown #lockdown #walk #lockdownwalks #peace #beauty #happiness #joy #thepeaceofwildthings
Images of walks in Oxford in this time of social d Images of walks in Oxford in this time of social distancing. The first two are my own garden.  And I’ve https://anitamathias.com/2020/03/28/silver-and-gold-linings-in-the-storm-clouds-of-coronavirus/ #corona #socialdistancing #silverlinings #silence #solitude #peace
Trust: A Message of Christmas He came to earth in Trust: A Message of Christmas  He came to earth in a  splash of energy
And gentleness and humility.
That homeless baby in the barn
Would be the lynchpin on which history would ever after turn
Who would have thought it?
But perhaps those attuned to God’s way of surprises would not be surprised.
He was already at the centre of all things, connecting all things. * * *
Augustus Caesar issued a decree which brought him to Bethlehem,
The oppressions of colonialism and conquest brought the Messiah exactly where he was meant to be, the place prophesied eight hundred years before his birth by the Prophet Micah.
And he was already redeeming all things. The shame of unwed motherhood; the powerlessness of poverty.
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To me, today, it says, “Fear not, trust me, I will make a way.” The baby lay gentle in the barn
And God arranges for new stars, angelic song, wise visitors with needed finances for his sustenance in the swiftly-coming exile, shepherds to underline the anointing and reassure his parents. “Trust me in your dilemmas,” the baby still says, “I will make a way. I will show it to you.” Happy Christmas everyone.  https://anitamathias.com/2019/12/24/trust-a-message-of-christmas/ #christmas #gemalderieberlin #trust #godwillmakeaway
Look, I’ve designed a journal. It’s an omnibus Look, I’ve designed a journal. It’s an omnibus Gratitude journal, habit tracker, food and exercise journal, bullet journal, with time sheets, goal sheets and a Planner. Everything you’d like to track.  Here’s a post about it with ISBNs https://anitamathias.com/2019/12/23/life-changing-journalling/. Check it out. I hope you and your kids like it!
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