Do what they say,
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Matthew 23: 1-12.
1) Obey God
2) Practice what you preach
3) Be the greatest – Serve
4) Humble yourself. – God will exalt you. – or humble you.
1 - Ever been told to “Do what I say and not what I do?”. Often it is when someone is not able to do what they ask others to do…
And not a great way to learn. From sociology study; What we see we repeat, even if we did not agree with our parents, about how they raised us. If we are not taut otherwise, we repeat what we saw. Many have said, I will never do this or that, because my mother did that. Only to find them self, doing just that, at some point. But Jesus shows another way, he lives out what he teaches as we have read I Matthew.
Jesus said to the disciples and the crowds, observe what the Scribes and P say. But don’t do what they do. Jesus is not encouraging rebellion, instead obedience to God, and the people have set over his people. (Even when they did not obey God.).
2 -Problem: They preach, but don’t do put it in to practice, instead, they put heavy burdens on people, but they keep their hands in their pockets, they are not willing to help the people, just give them burdens. (That was not why they were put in Moses’ seat). The contrast to Moses is very great. He worked hard for the people pleaded with God for the people, intervened for them. Asked people to trust and look to God. Moses led from the front. He stood in the gab; he depended on God. (Motivation obedience to God). (Moses did get so mad at the people and disobeyed God, and hid Jesus with a stick, and said he was the one to get water to the people, he was asked to speak to the rock).
% 3-4) But the P and Scribes are motivated by: others seeing them. They love attention, and people calling them titles, getting the best seats at parties, and in the synagogue. That people greet them in the marketplaces. Even good deeds done with selfish motivation is about us and not others and does not honor God? That is the great thing about God, and Jesus he knows if we do things because we love and obey him, and love our neighbor, our we do it for the praise of man…
About 3-4 Praise of man or obedience of God? What do we live for? What is your motivation in life? Really, what is the voice inside? I want others to see, others to praise me?
Is this some of the temptations you face? Wanting to be honored by others, greeted, getting the good seats in church and at parties (treated with priority). I other words you want others to serve you, but as the last sentence reads it is the other way around, to be great is to be a servant, and if we humble our self we will be exalted.
About Pride 1-3-4 (original sin – I am better than God). Pride was seen as a something very horrible even in culture, not too long ago. It was like culture knew God would humble the proud, they would fall, and be embarrassed about their pride and boasting of gifts and skills, and DNA, that God had given them but they took all the honor for them self. But the self-esteem movement came, and said the problem is that people need to trust in them self, the problem is lack of self-esteem. The solution was; esteem yourself, think about yourself higher, (not sober judgment as Paul asks us to). Instead, everyone is a winner and gets a medal, because you are great… In my life time pride has become something that culture things is good, we are encouraged to be proud. Be proud of who you are, (why you have absolutely no control of where you were born). We are instead to give glory to the one that does. Be prod of your achievements, and accomplishments, culture would say you can be proud you can read. Well, why? Who made your brain and eyes, your ability to understand the letters? It is not about pride in me and esteeming my self better, because as I heard in a video testimony, from Deon Sanders, “If it is all about you, you have already lost.”
Life is not just about us, it is living for someone other than one self, the one that created everything, and loved, and made salvation and adoption in to the family possible, God. Praise is always to go to God. Not people and not ourself. Why all that, well because I think sometimes, we feel like we should be worshiped and served instead of giving that to God. What do you mean? Well, where culture is at the moment, even in war it is about telling your story and hope that your words can make people believe what you what them to believe and they become your followers… (People are making disciples to worship them self, and what idea they promote). Think about that, people are wanting followers so they can have get glory and money, instead of following God, that gave them everything. But God will not let them steal his glory forever. The same goes for us… - Jesus said it… the proud will be humbled.
At the core of our wanting praise and people to worship us, lies our need to be loved as who we are. But we fail to understand that how we were made, “in the image of God”. Knowing that we can rest that we are made for a purpose and that we have value, dignity and worth, not because of what we have done but because of who made us… But rejecting God, as creator, and the one we need to worship, people have tried to replace our savior Jesus, with different things, to make people feel better about them self.
What if the part of the good news is: that being a human showed you that God has a plan and a purpose for you, therefore worship him instead of yourself and others? And you will say, well life is hard, and people hurt and I get hurt, it is like the world is broken. You are right it is broken most people will not argue with that. From the weather, to people to organizations that are corrupt, I mean read the news one day, visit a school, kindergarten, hospital, home for the elderly, many jobs, frustrations, brokenness, relationships that are broken, and families. You’re saying I am made in the image of God then why is God not exalting me? God question, what did the text say? If your proud you will be humbled, to points, - some of us are just waiting for others to be humbled, so we can rejoice… (Jesus is not teaching us to delight in other falling, He calls us to be humble people that God will exalt). Yes, Yes, but right now the proud and arrogant are not being humbled the go to their graves in peace, as Job said. That is true… We may not see the proud be humbled but they will. (And how many times in life have you seen this, powerful people, humiliated because of their pride and sins having to apologize for their behavior it does happen now also). And we can’t assume that because we say we follow Christ, that he will not humble us, he will, and it may brig us true life.
Okay, the proud will be humbled, - but I try very hard to be good, and humble and well it does not seem to work my truths and concerns are still about me, that is a good point. Most of the time our “eyes” in on ourself, but what if our eyes were lifted up to see someone ells, and focus on Him.
Negative example, like I said in the beginning, if we try to live life not being something, I don’t what to be like that person, or my brother, - mother ECT. That person is still determine what you do, your are in prisoned by them, they the ones you said should not have an impact is what is driving you. Instead focus on where you what to go not where you don’t what to go.
In driving school, they said look where you want to drive, therefore don’t look at the tree on the side of the road, then your will end up there. We go towards what we look at… What are you looking at?
Having trouble keeping your eyes on what is true? That underlines that we need a savior to set us free from, What I can take care of myself? Well, yes, that might be, but you just said that humility and keeping focus is hard if not impossible, Who, then is the focus? Well, it the one that is tacking us in the text, Jesus. What, yes, why, well, that is what Jesus have been teaching from the beginning, the right way to live, what seems upside down and backwards for people. But God just sits in the heaven, I am here struggling, well that is why Jesus came, God did not stay away, but came Emmanuel God with us, Jesus came, and was at that moment, being attacked, questioned, but when Jesus spoke, they had no awser. Jesus was and is the one Moses was a shadow of and the one that Moses said would come.
What? You see who is the greatest? Not Muhammed Alie, or Usine bolt, Elon musk, mother Terresa. It is Jesus, who he was worshiped by angels came to earth, lived among us, and went to the cross not for his sins but for the sins of the people that would believe in him, Jesus did not stay dead, he rose again, because death had no hold on him it was not his sins.
Then the greatest that ever lived, lived a life given over to God the father, serving people even to his death, and he concurred Satan, death, and is able to absorb the wrath of God, for our sins that we rightly deserve,
So, the greatest became the servant, the humblest, to give life to others, by his death.
What about you what is your response?
1) Obey God
2) Practice what you preach
3) Be the greatest – Serve
4) Humble yourself. – God will exalt you. – or humble you.