{"id":847,"date":"2024-02-02T03:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-02-02T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/?p=847&2024"},"modified":"2024-01-30T17:00:35","modified_gmt":"2024-01-31T00:00:35","slug":"and-is-better-than-or-matthew-23-1-36","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/and-is-better-than-or-matthew-23-1-36\/","title":{"rendered":"“And” is Better than “Or”: Matthew 23:1-36"},"content":{"rendered":"
Focus Passage: Matthew 23:1-36 (NASB)<\/div>

1<\/sup>\u00a0Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, 2<\/sup>\u00a0saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses;<\/span> 3<\/sup>\u00a0therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things<\/em> and do not do them.<\/em><\/span> 4<\/sup>\u00a0They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as<\/em> a finger.<\/span> 5<\/sup>\u00a0But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their *<\/span>I.e. small cases containing Scripture texts worn on the left arm and forehead for religious purposes<\/span>phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments.<\/em><\/span> 6<\/sup>\u00a0They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues,<\/span> 7<\/sup>\u00a0and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men.<\/span> 8<\/sup>\u00a0But do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers.<\/span> 9<\/sup>\u00a0Do not call anyone<\/em> on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.<\/span> 10<\/sup>\u00a0Do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is,<\/em> Christ.<\/span> 11<\/sup>\u00a0But the greatest among you shall be your servant.<\/span> 12<\/sup>\u00a0Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.<\/span><\/p>

13<\/sup>\u00a0“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the kingdom of heaven from people; for you do not enter in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.<\/span> 14<\/sup>\u00a0[*<\/span>This v not found in early mss<\/span>Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive greater condemnation.<\/span>] <\/p>

15<\/sup>\u00a0“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.<\/span> <\/p>

16<\/sup>\u00a0“Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, that<\/em> is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple is obligated.’<\/span> 17<\/sup>\u00a0You fools and blind men! Which is more important, the gold or the temple that sanctified the gold?<\/span> 18<\/sup>\u00a0And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, that<\/em> is nothing, but whoever swears by the offering on it, he is obligated.’<\/span> 19<\/sup>\u00a0You blind men, which is more important, the offering, or the altar that sanctifies the offering?<\/span> 20<\/sup>\u00a0Therefore, whoever swears by the altar, swears both<\/em> by the altar and by everything on it.<\/span> 21<\/sup>\u00a0And whoever swears by the temple, swears both<\/em> by the temple and by Him who dwells within it.<\/span> 22<\/sup>\u00a0And whoever swears by heaven, swears both<\/em> by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it.<\/span> <\/p>

23<\/sup>\u00a0“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others.<\/span> 24<\/sup>\u00a0You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!<\/span> <\/p>

25<\/sup>\u00a0“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence.<\/span> 26<\/sup>\u00a0You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.<\/span> <\/p>

27<\/sup>\u00a0“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.<\/span> 28<\/sup>\u00a0So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.<\/span> <\/p>

29<\/sup>\u00a0“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous,<\/span> 30<\/sup>\u00a0and say, ‘If we had been living<\/em> in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding<\/em> the blood of the prophets.’<\/span> 31<\/sup>\u00a0So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.<\/span> 32<\/sup>\u00a0Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt<\/em> of your fathers.<\/span> 33<\/sup>\u00a0You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell?<\/span> <\/p>

34<\/sup>\u00a0“Therefore, behold, I am sending you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city,<\/span> 35<\/sup>\u00a0so that upon you may fall the guilt of<\/em> all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.<\/span> 36<\/sup>\u00a0Truly I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.<\/span><\/p>

Read Matthew 23:1-36<\/a> in context and\/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!<\/p><\/div><\/div>\r\n

Tucked within Matthew\u2019s chapter full of Jesus\u2019 challenges to the scribes and Pharisees, we can find an interesting concept played out regarding what God wants from His people and how the religious leaders missed it.<\/p>\r\n

In these challenges, Matthew tells us Jesus said, \u201cWoe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!<\/strong>\u201d (v. 23-24)<\/p>\r\n

This section describes how the scribes and Pharisees were incredibly detailed and meticulous, but in their laser-like focus on certain religious instructions, they had missed the big picture of what God wanted.<\/p>\r\n

When reading this section, it is easy to get caught in an \u201ceither\/or\u201d mentality. We see how these religious leaders were exceptionally detailed with their tithing, but they missed out on the justice, mercy, and faithfulness aspects of the law. If we are not careful, any four of these sections can be focused on at the exclusion of the others. Just like tithe can become the primary focus, so could justice, mercy, or faithfulness.<\/p>\r\n

If justice is focused on like these leaders focused on their tithing, then we will find a group of believers who are critical of others and any sins they see present in those around them. If mercy was focused on like these leaders focused on their tithing, then we will find a group of believers that resemble a support group, and while it is a prime place for people to go to be accepted, they may not actually grow out of their challenges or towards God. If faithfulness was focused on like these leaders focused on their tithing, then we might find a group of believers who have such high personal standards that others may be turned off and think that they would never fit in or be welcome. Focusing on only one of the four areas Jesus describes misses God\u2019s picture for His people.<\/p>\r\n

Jesus finishes by emphasizing the importance of all four areas when He says, \u201cThese are the things you should have done without neglecting the others.<\/strong>\u201d (v. 23b)<\/p>\r\n

Moving forward with our faith, trust, and belief in Jesus should balance these four areas. We should focus on being faithful, extending mercy, displaying justice\/justness, and giving generously. When we have these areas of our lives and character in balance, then we are living as Jesus lived, and being the people God created us to be.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n

This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus<\/strong> \u201cReflective Bible Study\u201d package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here<\/a> and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!<\/em><\/p>

Subscribe<\/a> to this blog and never miss an insight.<\/em><\/p><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Tucked within Matthew\u2019s chapter full of Jesus\u2019 challenges to the scribes and Pharisees, we can find an interesting concept played out regarding what God wants from His people and how the religious leaders missed it. In these challenges, Matthew tells us Jesus said, \u201cWoe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and […]","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-847","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-text"],"nelio_content":{"autoShareEndMode":"never","automationSources":{"useCustomSentences":false,"customSentences":[]},"efiAlt":"","efiUrl":"","followers":[2],"highlights":[],"isAutoShareEnabled":false,"networkImageIds":[],"permalinkQueryArgs":[],"series":[],"suggestedReferences":[]},"yoast_head":"\n"And" is Better than "Or": Matthew 23:1-36 - Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/and-is-better-than-or-matthew-23-1-36\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\""And" is Better than "Or": Matthew 23:1-36 - Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Tucked within Matthew\u2019s chapter full of Jesus\u2019 challenges to the scribes and Pharisees, we can find an interesting concept played out regarding what God wants from His people and how the religious leaders missed it. 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