Watch out for Hypocrites - Luke 11v37-12v3

Bibles might be slightly different in some of them. Some of them are a bit newer.

We're going to be starting from verse 37 and we'll read down to the start of chapter 12 verse 3.

Luke chapter 11 verse 37.

Luke 11:37

When Jesus had finished speaking, a Pharisee invited him to eat with him.

So he went in and reclined at the table.

But the Pharisee, noticing that Jesus did not first wash before the meal, was surprised.

Then the Lord said to him,

Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness.

You foolish people! Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also?

But give what is inside the dish to the poor and everything will be clean for you.

Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs,

but you neglect justice and the love of God.

You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone.

Woe to you Pharisees, because you love the most important seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces.

Woe to you, because you are like unmarked graves, which men walk over without knowing it.

One of the experts in the law answered him,

Teacher, when you say these things, you insult us also.

Jesus replied,

Woe to you, because you load people down with burdens they can hardly carry,

and you yourselves will not lift one finger to help them.

Woe to you, because you build tombs for the prophets, and it was your forefathers who killed them.

So you testify that you approve of what your forefathers did.

They kill the prophets, and you build their tombs.

Because of this, God in his wisdom said,

I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill, and others they will persecute.

Therefore, this generation will be held responsible for the blood of all the prophets that has been shed since the beginning of the world,

from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary.

Yes, I tell you, this generation will be held responsible for it all.

Woe to you, experts in the law, because you have taken away the key to knowledge.

You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering.

When Jesus left there, the Pharisees and the teachers of the law began to oppose him fiercely,

and to besiege him with questions, waiting to catch him in something he might say.

Meanwhile, when a crowd of many thousands had gathered so that they were trampling on one another,

Jesus began to speak first to his disciples, saying,

Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.

There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known.

What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight,

and what you have whispered in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the roofs.

Thanks, Connor.

Well, let's keep our Bibles open, and let's pray and ask for God's help.

Father, would you give to us an undivided heart,

a broken and contrite heart,

so that we might not only hear your word,

but see it applied to our lives,

so that it will change us, and we will become sincere followers of you.

We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.

Amen.

You've just got your cup of coffee from the hatch,

and you see a visitor come through the doors.

So you make your way over to say hello.

And just as you're about to welcome them,

someone else comes up to the visitor and says,

Watch out!

And then pointing their finger at you,

says,

They're a hypocrite.

And then walks off,

leaving you standing a little red-faced.

Offended?

I think I would be.

Well, it seems Jesus is in an offending mood.

Look at chapter 12, verse 1.

Meanwhile, when a crowd of many thousands had gathered,

so that they were trampling on one another.

Everyone is there.

They've been following.

And they want to see what Jesus is going to do next.

Well, they're in for a shock.

Jesus began to speak first to his disciples,

saying,

Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees,

which is hypocrisy.

See that lot over there?

Hypocrites.

Don't be fooled by their big Bibles

and their well-crafted prayers.

They're a fake.

Hypocrite comes from the word actor.

So in the open-air theatres of long ago,

people would just simply put on the mask.

They didn't have all the technology,

so it's just a simple mask they would put on.

And play the role of someone else.

It's an act.

They are impersonating someone who they are not.

So when Jesus is warning his disciples about the Pharisees,

he's saying,

Watch out for those impersonators.

They're fake.

It's all show.

It's an act.

They're hypocrites.

Watch out for that bunch of people

who meet down in Carragoline Community Centre,

singing their songs.

It's very offensive to call someone a hypocrite.

Unless, of course, it's true.

Look, Jesus is saying here,

If you're going to be my disciple,

if you're going to follow me,

there is no room for play acting.

There's no point in turning up on a Sunday morning

and putting on a good show.

Turning up with our masks,

creating an image,

and looking like a Christian.

Well, in case we think following Jesus

is all about outward performance,

Jesus has some very strong words for us.

First he says,

Clean up your act.

Clean up your act.

This hypocrisy talk

all started when Jesus was invited

by a Pharisee to have dinner.

Look at verse 38.

But the Pharisee,

noticing that Jesus did not first wash

before the meal,

was surprised.

Now, it's not like Jesus

has just been to the loo

and he's forgot to wash his hands

and it's all got a little bit embarrassing.

Now, we're talking here about ritual

or ceremonial washing.

It wasn't to get rid of dirt and bugs.

It was this outward show

to say that you were clean,

that you were acceptable to God.

And the Pharisees were experts

in keeping clean.

Even their name was a giveaway.

Pharisee simply means separate one

or holy one.

And they were so meticulous

that they made up lots of extra rules

and traditions about washing.

Everything had to be washed

in a certain way

and so many times.

You even had special places

where you had to do the washing,

separate from everything else.

But most importantly,

you had to wash

when you came into contact

with unclean people.

You can get the picture,

can't you,

about the Pharisees.

It was all about

keeping up appearances.

Making sure that everyone knew

you were separate

and you were holy.

Outward performance

was everything.

Because as long as we are

outwardly clean,

God will accept you

and welcome you.

Now we might not have had

a little bowl at the door there

for you to do

a little ritual washing

as you came in.

But don't we all have

our little clean rules

that we like to participate in

so that we look good

on the outside?

We don't drink or smoke

and avoid the places that do.

We want to be clean.

We hang out with

the good living people

and stay clear of those

who are morally dubious

and those who identify as gay.

We shake our head

in disgust at those sinful people

and boast about

how I'm not like that

and I wouldn't do that.

You get the picture,

don't you?

It can be all about

keeping up appearances.

Making sure that everyone

knows that we're separate

and holy

and, well,

outward performance

is everything.

As long as I am

outwardly clean,

God will accept me

and welcome me.

Well, in case we think

it is all about

outward performance,

Jesus has some strong words.

He is saying to us

we need to clean up

our act.

It is not about

being outwardly clean

but inwardly clean.

You see,

for the Pharisees,

outward was everything.

And now,

Jesus arrives for dinner

at the Pharisees' house.

And where has Jesus been

all this time?

Well, he has been hanging out

with those tax collectors

and those sinners.

He has been hanging around

with unclean people

in unclean places.

And he sits down

for the meal

and he doesn't even wash.

Verse 39,

Then the Lord said to him,

Now then,

you Pharisees,

clean the outside

of the cup and dish,

but inside

you are full of greed

and wickedness.

Outwardly,

you look the real deal.

You look like a Christian.

Outwardly,

you're setting the standard

for every single person.

But inside,

you're rotten to the core.

You need to get

your hearts cleaned.

And we can be so busy

trying to give the impression

we're clean.

We come through the doors

on a Sunday morning

and we want people

to think well of us.

We want God

to think well of us.

We sing the song so well

and nods

at the right times

and we can even

take the Lord's Supper.

But inside,

inside we're unclean.

Private sin festers away,

eating us up.

And it's all covered over

by our public performance.

Our Christian masks

creating a good impression.

But outward performance

will never make

the inside clean.

Look at verse 40.

You foolish people!

Did not the one

who made the outside

make the inside only?

In other words,

there's only one

who is going to

clean the inside

and that's the one

who made you.

But give what is inside

the dish to the poor

and everything

will be clean for you.

That last verse there,

it's a little bit

difficult to grasp

but essentially

Jesus is saying,

look,

you need to clean

the inside.

You need to start

dealing with the heart

and once you deal

with the heart,

then the outside,

then you will be clean.

Stop focusing

on the externals

and deal with the internals.

Instead of putting

on this drama

and act

and covering up

with our masks,

he's essentially

saying to us,

you need to run,

you need to come to me.

You see,

here's these Pharisees

sitting down

for their dinner

and they're wanting

Jesus to wash.

But what they can't see

and what they can't grasp

is that Jesus

has come to wash us.

Jesus has come

to take our uncleanness

and in its place

cover us

with his cleanness.

Maybe you can remember

some of the interactions

Jesus had

with different people.

Go back to Luke

Luke 5 · chapter mention

chapter 5.

Luke chapter 5

Luke 5 · chapter mention

and verse 12.

Here Jesus is meeting

with somebody

who's considered

unclean,

unacceptable

because he has

a skin disease.

Luke chapter 5

Luke 5:12

verse 12.

When Jesus was

in one of the towns,

a man came along

who was covered

with leprosy.

He's unclean.

When he saw Jesus,

he fell with his face

to the ground

and begged him,

Lord,

if you are willing,

you can make me

clean.

And Jesus reached

out his hand,

touched the man.

I am willing,

he said.

Be clean.

And immediately

the leprosy

left him.

You see,

what Jesus

was doing

physically

for people,

cleaning them

on the outside,

Jesus is saying,

look,

this is a picture.

This is what I am

coming to do

for you on the inside.

Like that man

with leprosy,

we are to run

to Jesus,

to fall down

before him,

to reach out

in faith,

as it were,

and ask him,

will you touch

my life?

Will you

clean me?

And that's

what Jesus does.

As he goes

to the cross,

he takes

our sin,

my sin,

he takes

that upon himself

and in its place

he gives us

his righteousness.

He takes

our sinful

hearts

and he gives

us a new

heart.

He fills

us with

his Holy

Spirit,

so not only

are we accepted

and welcomed,

but now our

hearts have been

changed so we

can go the

way that Jesus

calls us to.

You see,

Jesus has

not come for

those who think

they are outwardly

clean.

Jesus has

come for those

who know

they are

inwardly

unclean.

So first,

Jesus says,

clean up

your act.

Second,

he says,

check out

your heart.

Check out

your heart.

You see,

it's easy,

isn't it,

to sit back

and read

this story

and wag

the finger

at these

Pharisees

and wag

the finger

at all those

we think

are hypocrites.

But we're

to start

examining

our own

hearts.

As Jesus

confronts and

condemns the

Pharisees,

starting at

verse 42

with these,

woe,

woe to

you.

It's a

pronouncement

of judgment

and condemnation

for the

way they're

living.

And as we

follow through,

it's,

well,

we're to

examine our

own hearts

because we're

to get rid

of all

outward

pretense.

Six things

we are to

look out

for in

our own

hearts.

First,

false giving.

Look at

verse 42.

Woe to you,

Pharisees,

because you

give God

a tenth

of your

mint,

rue,

and all

other kinds

of garden

herbs,

but you

neglect justice

and the

love of

God.

These guys

were so

meticulous

that they

gave a

tenth of

everything

that they

owned or

had.

A tenth of

everything.

Outwardly,

so generous.

Even their

little herb

gardens that

they had.

A tenth

went to

God.

So you

can imagine

them,

there they

are,

going out

to the

garden,

to their

little

mint tree,

counting off

the leaves.

There's ten

on it.

Pull one

of those

leaves off

and gives

it to

their neighbour.

You know,

this is

giving a

tenth,

but not

one leaf

more.

Nine

for me.

We too

can be so

careful in

our giving,

calculating

how much

we're going

to give a

tenth,

but not a

euro more.

Neglecting

justice and

love for

God.

Oh,

outwardly,

it all looks

good as the

bags pass

by and we

drop in

what we

drop in.

outwardly

generous,

but inwardly

tight.

Second,

approval

seeking,

verse 43.

Woe to

you,

Pharisees,

because you

love the

most important

seats in

the synagogues

and greetings

in the

marketplaces.

They loved

it.

They loved

going down

into the

town.

The praise

of others,

oh,

good morning,

holy one.

Oh,

aren't they

great.

And don't

you like a

little bit of

recognition?

I certainly

do.

Oh,

you're so

good the

way you

care for

people.

Isn't

he a

wonderful

pastor?

Oh,

what a

great

teacher he

is.

I love

those

recognitions.

But

sometimes

what people

think of

us matters

more than

what God

thinks of

us.

Craving

human

approval,

desperate

for

status.

We do

our

service,

but actually

seeking out

the praise

of others.

Look at

verse 44.

Fake

spirituality.

Woe to

you,

because you

are like

unmarked

graves,

which men

walk over

without

knowing

it.

Now,

we could

walk over

an unmarked

grave and

it's,

well,

nothing happens,

does it

really?

But for

these guys,

if you

came into

contact with

the dead,

even by

walking on

a grave,

you became

unclean,

unacceptable.

So Pharisees

avoided the

dead.

It was a

mark of

their,

well,

their

spirituality.

spirituality.

But Jesus

is saying

to them,

actually,

you're like

the living

dead.

People who

come into

contact with

you die.

They become

unclean.

That's what

you're really

like.

And so we

can impress

people with

our spirituality.

We stay

away from

those

unclean

people and

those unclean

places.

Instead,

we go to

church with

those good

people and

nice people.

But we

all leave

unchanged.

Nothing

different

happens.

Spiritually

dead.

Remember

here,

we're to be

examining our

hearts.

Verse

45,

one of the

experts of

the law

answered him,

Teacher,

when you

say these

things,

you insult

us also.

Maybe

Jesus now

is going

to tone

it down

a little

and not

be so

offensive

anymore.

Not at

all.

Verse

46,

Jesus

replied,

and you

experts in

the law,

woe to

you,

because you

load people

down with

burdens they

can hardly

carry,

and you

yourselves

will not

lift one

little finger

to help

them.

Look,

you've

just got to

stop sinning.

you've

got to

be a

better

person.

You should

obey more

and start

reading your

Bible more

and stop

behaving like

that,

and why

don't you

pray a

little and

do this

and don't

do that,

and why

don't you

just become

like me?

so easy

to say,

isn't it?

Rather than

actually getting

alongside people

and spending

time with

them and

showing them

God's grace

and showing

them how

change is

actually possible.

It's easy

to point the

finger and

condemn and

judge,

burdening

people with

all these

rules,

offering no

grace and

no help.

what about

in sincere

worship?

Look at

verse 47.

Woe to

you because

you build

tombs for

the prophets

and it

was your

forefathers

who killed

them.

So you

testify that

you approve

of what your

forefathers

did.

They killed

the prophets

and you

build their

tombs.

Again,

they love

to talk

the talk.

Oh,

those prophets.

Great people.

And build

these great

kind of

memorials to

these prophets

of the past

who were so

great and

mighty.

Remember

Jeremiah?

What a

great teacher

he was.

And Hosea?

Boy,

he knew how

to preach

a sermon.

men.

But they

never ever

listened to

the prophets

message.

In fact,

they hated

the message

so much

their

forefathers

killed

them.

But let's

not miss

out on what

Jesus is

actually saying

because,

well,

they want

to get rid

of Jesus

too because

he is the

ultimate

prophet.

And they

don't like

what he's

saying.

So,

verse 53,

when Jesus

left there,

the Pharisees

and the

teachers of

the law

began to

oppose him

fiercely

and to

besiege him

with many

questions,

waiting to

catch him

in something

he might

say.

Now,

we can

bring our

Bibles to

church.

Good at

listening to

sermons,

taking down

our notes,

talking about

our favorite

preacher,

John Piper,

always great,

isn't he?

Tim Keller,

fantastic.

We can even

attend Munster

Bible College

and earn

ourselves a

certificate.

We worship

the Bible

and all

those who

teach it.

But yet it

is actually

possible never

to apply

God's Word

to our

hearts.

And never

to submit

to what

God's Word

is actually

saying to

us.

It's hard

to look

into our

hearts,

isn't it?

What about

this in

verse 52?

Woe to

you experts

in the

law,

because you

have taken

away the

key to

knowledge.

You

yourselves

have not

entered,

and you

have hindered

those who

are entering.

people

are

or they

claim to

be experts.

They say

they are the

real deal.

They even

look the

real deal,

spouting off

their knowledge,

telling everybody

how they should

live and what

they should

do.

But in

reality,

Jesus says,

you are

ignorant

obstacles.

You

hinder people

coming to

God.

You

see,

it is so

possible to

think that

our outward

performance,

that all

our show

and how

we behave

is that

it kind

of can

attract

people to

God and

bring people

closer to

him.

Well,

the reality

is with

all the

show,

it's just

obstacles.

Rather than

giving people

the key to

salvation,

it's as if

we locked

the door

and threw

the key

away.

It's easy

to point

fingers,

isn't it?

Because that's

what hypocrites

do.

Point their

fingers at

other people

and go,

I'm not

like them.

Setting our

own standards

that everybody

else must

meet.

Our own

little rules

rules that

everyone

must follow.

But Jesus

is saying,

look, if you

are going to

be my

disciple,

if you

are going

to follow

me,

then we

must first

learn to

examine our

own hearts.

What are

our hearts

like this

morning?

So first,

Jesus says,

clean up your

act.

check out

your heart.

And then

third,

guard against

the yeast.

Look again

at the middle

of chapter

12,

verse 1.

As Jesus

is speaking

to his

disciples,

he says,

be on

your guard

against the

yeast of

the Pharisees,

which is

hypocrisy.

Be on your

guard.

We need

to be on

our guard.

We need

to be

paying

attention

for two

reasons.

First,

because

hypocrisy

spreads.

Do you

see the

connections

that he's

making in

verse 1?

He says,

be on your

guard against

the yeast

of the

Pharisees,

which is

hypocrisy.

Hypocrisy

is just like

yeast.

You only

need to put

a small

amount of

yeast into

a big

lump of

dough,

and it

begins to

spread.

Not one

part of

the dough

is left

unaffected.

It all

rises.

Now,

he says,

that's the

danger of

hypocrites.

Their

attitude

can spread.

It can

infiltrate

like a

deadly

poison.

And here's

how it can

spread.

spread.

And I

just have

to get

the book

because I

forgot to

get it

out.

Hang on.

Here's

how it

can

spread.

This

comes from

Mike

McKinley

in his

little

book.

He

says,

hypocrisy

remains a

spiritual

threat.

Whenever

Christians are

tempted to

pretend to

be more

holy than

they are,

whenever we

are unwilling

to confess

sin and

ask for

help,

whenever we

establish our

own man-made

rules as the

standard for

everyone's

holiness,

whenever we

are comfortable

with private

sins, so

long as they

do not come

to light,

in those

situations,

the yeast

of the

Pharisees is

present.

you see,

we are all

performers at

heart,

and the

danger is we

can all begin

to follow

each other,

to try and

follow one

another's

standards.

Watch out

for the

yeast of

hypocrisy.

Second,

we need to

be on our

guard because

our hearts

will be

exposed.

You see,

the thing about

hypocrisy is

we think we

can get away

with it,

because it's

all an act,

it's all a

show,

and because it's

an act,

well,

we fool

people,

and people

know,

nobody really

knows what's

actually going

on inside our

hearts.

We can hide

it and cover

it all up,

but look at

verse 2.

There is

nothing

concealed

that will

not be

disclosed

or hidden

that will

not be

made known.

Or we can

point the

fingers and

complain about

what everybody

else does,

but what's

done in the

secret,

that's

going to

be made

known to.

Verse 3,

what we have

said in the

dark will

be heard in

the daylight,

and what we

have whispered

in the ear

in the inner

room will

be proclaimed

from the

roofs.

We may

play a good

game,

but God

sees my

heart,

and he

sees your

heart.

Nothing is

hidden from

him.

And one

day the

masks are

going to

be lifted,

the drama

will all

stop,

and we

will be

shown for

who we

really are.

You see,

the Pharisees

thought that

Jesus needed

a wash,

and we

probably think

at times that

it's everybody

else who

needs to be

cleaned up,

clean.

But Jesus

has come to

wash me,

and he's

come to

clean you.

He's not

come for

those who

think they

are outwardly

clean.

He comes

for those

who know

they are

inwardly

unclean.

He says,

come to

me.

You can

take off

your masks.

you don't

need to

hide from

me,

because I

have dealt

with your

sin at

the cross.

I have

taken it

all away,

and have

covered you

with my

purity,

with my

beauty,

with my

goodness.

you don't

need to

hide.

You can

run to

me.

We're

going to

sing in

a minute

an old

song.

Let me

just quote

to you

one verse

from it.

As we

reflect on

what we

have heard,

it says,

nothing in

my hand

I bring,

simply to

the cross

I cling.

Naked

come to

thee for

dress,

helpless

look to

thee for

grace.

Foul I

to the

fountain

fly,

wash me

saviour,

or I

die.

That is

the invitation

for us

all to

run to

our

saviour

with an

undivided

heart,

to come

with a

broken

spirit,

to come

with a

broken

and

contrite

heart,

and let

him deal

with us.

Let's

stand

together

as we

sing this

song,

and may

it be a

prayer in

response

that God

would change

us and

clean us.

from the

through