I SEE, YOU SEE, WE ALL SEE, A PHARISEE

If one stands for the truth, it is not uncommon, from time to time, to be called a Pharisee. I remember one time when I was working as an engineer being called that for challenging my supervisor for worshipping on Saturday (Christians worship on the first day of the week i.e., Sunday cf. Ac. 2.1; Lev. 23.15-16 with Ac. 2.42; Ac. 20.7; 1 Cor. 16.1-2). I have even been told I was promoting Pharisaic ways with my preaching. When I went back and looked at my outline it was a refutation of “teaching as doctrines the commandments of men” which the Pharisees were guilty of (cf. Mt. 15.1-9). Sometimes people will pull out the Pharisee card when the truth hits too close to home and challenges their false beliefs and even emotions. Jesus certainly knew about that. An examination of the Pharisees is in order.

The Pharisees were fault finders. When Jesus forgave the paralytic man of his sins the Pharisees immediately thought that Jesus was blaspheming (Lk. 5.20-21). Clearly Jesus was not, and He proved it by healing the man (Lk. 5.22-26). When Matthew (also known as Levi) invited Jesus to a feast which included a great number of tax collectors, the Pharisees went to fault finding (Lk. 5.29-30). Once again, Jesus handled the situation masterfully (Lk. 5.31-32). Over time, the Pharisees tried to entrap Jesus in His speech but were unsuccessful (Mt. 22.15-22). It will not take long to find faults in others. Oftentimes what we find in others is the very thing that we have the most room to work on with ourselves (cf. Mt. 7.3-5).

The Pharisees were hypocrites. A careful study of Matthew 23 would do well here to see just how hypocritical the Pharisees were. Hypocrisy was the very thing Jesus warned His disciples about regarding the Pharisees (Lk. 12.1). Jesus connected their doctrine with leaven (cf. Mt. 16.6-12). Leaven is typically seen as a corrupting agent in the Scriptures, and this was assuredly the case with the Pharisees (cf. 1 Cor. 5.6-8; Gal. 5.9). It is the epitome of hypocrisy to profess to be a Christian and act like a child of the devil. The Pharisees were responsible for crucifying Jesus Christ (Jn. 11.47-53). We must look in the mirror and see if Jesus is being reflected in our lives (Rm. 8.29).

The Pharisees were prideful. The Pharisees loved to be seen of others as righteous yet inwardly they were anything but (cf. Mt. 23.5-7, 25-28). Their pride was on display in the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector (Lk. 18.9-14). This Pharisee had an “I” problem and needed to follow the prescription of humility from the Great Physician (Lk. 18.14). Humility is so needed today as egos are running rampant yes, even in the church, which is nothing new (cf. 3 Jn. 9-10). Any time we allow our pride to get in the way of doing what God says we are more like the Pharisees than Jesus Christ. “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up” (Jm. 4.10 NKJV).

If we are honest with ourselves there are times when we find fault with others, act hypocritically, and are prideful. Such attitudes are Pharisaic and should be removed from our lives. To teach and preach God’s Word is never and will never be Pharisaic and we make no apologies for doing so (2 Tim. 4.1-5)!

Trent Thrasher