SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/31/2020 9:51 AM
My Worship Time Focus:
“Self-Centered”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference:
Matthew 5:20
Message of the verse: “20 “For I say to
you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and
Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.”
I
mentioned at the end of our last SD that I would be giving a very short
Spiritual Diary for today and as you can see it is about the self-centeredness
of the Scribes and the Pharisees. I
suppose that the sin that would rank number one on the “sin list” would be selfishness
and selfishness certainly leads to self-centeredness.
We
have talked about the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees as being
external, partial, and redefined, and now we add self-centeredness to that list. This was produced by self and the purpose was
of self0glory, not something that one would want to do as a believer for all
glory is to go to the Lord. MacArthur
adds “Above all else, those leaders sought to be self-satisfied, and their
system of religion was designed to enhance that self-satisfaction by providing
ways to accomplish external, showy things about which they could boast and be
proud. Their satisfaction came when they
received approval and commendation from men.”
I have talked to several pastors who are just the opposite of what the
Pharisees and scribes were and when they preach a sermon and people come up and
tell them how great it was it seems hard to react to that praise.
As
born-again believers who are walking with the Lord closely this self-centeredness
of the scribes and the Pharisees should be in stark contrast as the godly
person is broken about his sin and he will mourn over the wicked condition of
his inner life, the unrighteousness that he sees in his heart and mind. This person will have absolutely no confidence
in what he is or in what he can do, as he longs for the righteousness that only
God can give out that comes from His mercy and His grace.
The
scribes and the Pharisees and all others like them who is righteous in his own
eyes sees no need for any other righteousness, nor need for salvation, mercy,
forgiveness, or even grace. We have
looked at several passages from Matthew 23 and I want again go to that chapter
to quote several verses: “27 “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. 28 “So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men,
but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. 29 “Woe to you, scribes
and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn
the monuments of the righteous, 30 and say, ’If we had been living in the days of our fathers,
we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the
prophets.’ 31 “So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those
who murdered the prophets. 32 “Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt
of your fathers. 33 “You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the
sentence of hell?” (Matthew 23:27-33) My point here is that these scribes and
Pharisees were doing the same things as their forefathers did and Jesus tells
them about it a very forceful way as only our Lord can do. Some of the OT prophets who were false did
terrible things, but these scribes and Pharisees were a part of the worst thing
that would ever happen on planet earth, and that was to crucify the Lord of
glory. The sad thing about this is that
these scribes and Pharisees wanted nothing to do with their Messiah’s grace and
forgiveness, but wanted their own self-righteousness which as Jesus asked in 23:33
“how will you escape the sentence of hell?”
We conclude with a verse from the pen of the apostle Paul as he writes
the following in Romans 10:3 “For not knowing about God’s righteousness and
seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the
righteousness of God.” In Romans 9-11
Paul is addressing the children of Israel.
Spiritual meaning for my life today: Humility is something that I am always in
need of, something that the scribes and Pharisees never wanted, but I do.
My Steps of Faith for Today: Trust the Lord to bring about in my life the
opposite of what the scribes and Pharisees wanted.
7/31/2020 10:24 AM
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