Luke 12:1 “…Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.” [NIV]
Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how does your garden grow? How about you? How is your garden growing? Maybe it’s time to look at what kinds of seeds we’re sowing in our hearts. The funny thing about seeds is that they share no resemblance to their final appearance. We may not recognize how some seeds, when matured, could end up destroying us.
Like Phari-seeds. Seeds that caused the Pharisees to, well, become Pharisees.
The Pharisees found their identity in their position. As the elites of the day, they felt superior to other people who didn’t know as much as they did. In spite of their pride and arrogance, the people looked up to them. And they clung to their position of honor. Until Jesus.
Jesus exposed their greed and hypocrisy. He saw through their attempts to twist his words in order to trap him (Matt. 22:15-18). It reminds me of a cousin who, even at a young age, tried to twist others’ words to his advantage. Although it seemed relatively harmless at the time, those Phari-seeds bore fruit in later years that positioned him to completely rationalize his sinful lifestyle.
In order to maintain their position, the Pharisees put unrealistic expectations on people. Standards they couldn’t keep, but by calling out others, they deflected the light from their own failures. Their stellar outward appearance blinded them to their true spiritual condition. Jesus described them as “whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness…. full of hypocrisy and lawlessness” (Matt 23:27-28). Not very appealing, to say the least.
So here’s a checklist for us to consider whether we have any Phari-seeds planted in our gardens:
- Do we find our identity in our position?
- In what other people think of us?
- Do we ever twist the truth to make ourselves look better?
- Tend to judge other people for doing the same things we do or want to do?
- Ever consider ourselves better than other people who we think don’t have it together?
If you discover any of these tendencies trying to take root in your heart, get rid of them! Don’t let them mature into a full-blown Pharisee.