Mark 8:15 says “Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod.”
These two groups of people were the self proclaimed erudite, the “learned”.
They quite possibly finished top of the class at their bible college of choice too.
And Jesus did not hide his feelings or thoughts about these groups.
Just check out these two scriptures from the gospel of Mathew 15:7-9
“You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
‘These people honour me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
They worship me in vain;
their teachings are merely human rules.”
Check out 23:15. He doesn’t hold back here!
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites!
You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when you have succeeded,
you make them twice as much a child of hell as you are.”
WOW!
So what does a hypocrite look like. The Greek translation reads like this
Hupokrites – an actor under an assumed character (stage-player), i.e. (figuratively) a dissembler (conceal or disguise ones true feelings or belief).
This altruistic bunch were actors on the stage of futility and eternal demise.
They knew all about God. But they didn’t know God.
I could read and learn all I wanted about viticulture and wine making but unless I make wine; unless I taste it; unless I share it; unless I get and utilise critique, then I know very little about it and miss out on the whole beauty of it!
The bible is the same. Why just read it and stop there. Pointless.
And you’re missing out on so much.
Don’t stop at knowledge. Check this out…….
2 Peter 1:3
His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge
of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his
very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine
nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
For this very reason, make every effort to
add to your faith goodness;
and to goodness, knowledge;
But wait there’s more…..
Five more in fact.
and to knowledge, add self- control;
and to self- control, perseverance;
and to perseverance, godliness;
and to godliness, mutual affection;
and to mutual affection, love.
Here’s the kicker, as we read on, the guts of what or where my heart is at today for us for if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being
ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
These hypocrites lacked self control.
Godliness was not to be found.
Mutual affection? Nope.
Love? Yeah. Nah.
I’m so blessed in being a part of C3 church. I have so many great leaders or pastors to emulate and follow.
One such man is Pastor Steve Burgess of C3 Christchurch.
To me, he is a modern day biblical Paul.
Man he knows stuff. He’s truly brilliant when it comes to knowledge of the word.
But the thing is, he doesn’t stop there.
He is everything I mentioned in 2nd Peter and more.
He’s just like what Paul wrote of himself in 1 Corinthians 2:2-5
And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with
eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I
resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I
came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. My message and my preaching
were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power,
so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.
Paul was eloquent. Paul was humanly wise (as well as spiritually). He knew truckloads. His words were wise and persuasive.
But the difference between Paul (and Steve) and the group I’ve mentioned above is like the difference between dark and light.
Steve, like Paul, is humble; he is weak; he is reliant on the Holy Spirit and not the flesh.
He demonstrates Gods power and his message. His preaching and life is nothing but Christ and Him crucified.
That’s knowledge
That’s worth knowing
That’s where I want to go and what I consider worthy of following, in the person and personality that I am.
So forget the acting.
Stop the drama.
And don’t be ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Know what I mean?
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