Matthew 12
1At that time Jesus went on the sabbath day through the corn; and his disciples were an hungred, and began to pluck the ears of corn and to eat.
2But when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto him, Behold, thy disciples do that which is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day.
It makes “perfect sense” to the Pharisee that his convictions are “Biblical.” He finds it almost incomprehensible that anyone could disagree. After all, the keeping the Sabbath holy was not a “small thing”! It was not a minor thing like tithing. It was one of the Ten Commandments! Surely anyone but a liberal Sadducee could “see” that. But Pharisee code was not scripture! It was “Super-Scriptural.”
I have no problem with a man preaching his convictions. (Even the superscriptural ones, because it’s not for me to say that the Lord may genuinely be speaking this practical application to the man’s heart.) But often it morphs into something sinister.
The reasoning goes like this: the Ten Commandments teach us to keep the Sabbath holy. Maybe we should take that as far as we can. Maybe we should run as far away from an “unholy” Sabbath as possible.
So far so good! I have absolutely no problem with that. I have no problem with convictions. Teach people how to read and interpret the Bible, share your convictions, and then teach them how to interact with the Holy Spirit to develop their own. But don’t you dare preach your convictions for scripture. Taking a little of another man’s corn (If you were hungry) was allowed by scripture (De 23:25). But the Pharisees were so mad because Jesus violated their code concerning just exactly how THEY were convicted to KEEP the Sabbath. I am all for “super structures”. We all build on our convictions. Our convictions change, as we grow in grace. Some get more strict, and some more mellow over the years.
What I abhor is when the “superstructures” built on clear Biblical commandments and precepts merge with and become equal with the commandments themselves and, thus, become binding to the group. Sometimes these superstructures are used to control others. Control cleans up messiness it is true, but the cost is conviction. The maturation process is crushed by over pruning.
9) You might be a Pharisee if you harshly micromanage (or try to) everyone in your sway.
In the book of Matthew, we see this micromanaging by the Pharisees. When to fast, when not to fast, when to eat, what to eat, where to worship, when to worship, who to hang out with, hygiene, were the things they concerned themselves with when rebuking Jesus. The beautiful thing about the gospel is freedom. I serve God because I want to. If I didn’t want to, I wouldn’t have to. Before you can ever even consider the conditional promises, you must understand that you don’t have to keep them. Without the freedom, the best code, perfectly kept is filthy rags. In fact Christ will turn some away who did “good things,” Things that Jesus himself did, casting out devils, prophesying, “Many good works.”
Inside freedom, the obeying of biblical commands and precepts, (Even the obeying – in faith – of personal convictions and superstructures) are a sweet smelling savor.
But the problem, the reason they get turned away, is lack of intimacy with their Lord. He says “I never knew you.” You can do all the right things, for all the wrong reasons. To prophesy, to cast out Devils for any other reason than as an outgrowth of a personal intimate walk with God, is called “Iniquity” by Jesus. That is why Pharisee ends up with proselytes who are two fold the child of Hell as himself. The second generation Pharisee often will blindly follow just the group superstructure. He many times has no concept of the growing process that only comes from a life of intimately “Knowing God”. He has not felt the yearning wooing heart of Christ. He knows nothing of the voice of God. His whole religion has been the code, the superstructure. “This is what the group says was good. This is what they told me to do to be a good Christian.“ He needs his own personal superstructure. Not someone else’s. he needs the freedom to follow today’s convictions, personal convictions, birthed in relationship with Christ.
Depart from me ye workers of iniquity. I never KNEW you.
To get the reward, you must in your freedom, chose to obey God’s Word and do so for the right reasons. reasons sprouting from response to the Holy Ghost’s personal dealings, from Knowing God.
I have a vivid memory of a little girl (preacher’s daughter) who walked up to my Mama who was doing dishes in our home. This cute little girl pointed at my Mama and declared, “You are going to Hell because you wear shorts.” She was much too young to know about sexuality, too immature to understand modesty, or Hell and God’s judgment. All she knew was the code of her daddy’s church. I don’t fault her. But i tell this story to point out how disconnected the second generation Pharisee can be from the process of conviction and personal growth.
Romans 14:1-12 teaches us to let folks grow.
Romans 14
1Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations.
2For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs.
3Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him.
4Who art thou that judgest another man’s servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.
5One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.
6He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks.
7For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself.
8For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.
9For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.
10But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
11For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.
12So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.
“Despising and judging.” All over days and diet. But God made us all priests, all with a main line to the same Holy Ghost with no need for any other mediator. Preacher? Preach! Exhorter? Exhort! Compeller? Compell!
CONVICTER? CONVICT!
(That last one is not a spiritual gift. It’s the sole responsibility of the Holy Ghost.)
There is Biblical judgment. We don’t ignore that at all.
But there is a very real, very manipulative, over bearing, unmerciful, nagging, controlling judgment as well. The latter is very much like witchcraft in it’s methods and purposes. It can stifle intimacy with God. It can suffocate the man’s ability to hear the Holy Spirit. At worst, it can keep him from entering the Kingdom.