ESOCS Devotional 18 February 2024 – Family Remembrance
MEMORY VERSE: “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous. And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our forefathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ So, you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your forefathers!” Matthew 23:29-31
TEXT: MATTHEW 23:29-END
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous,
30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.
31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets.
32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.
33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?
34 Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city:
35 That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.
36 Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.
37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.
39 For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.
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Moments after a baby is born a debate begins: “Whom does the baby look like?” Some say the baby looks just like dad. Others say the baby looks just like mom. Some wise guy will always chime in that the baby looks a great deal like the postman. As our children get older, the family resemblance comes out in ways we often would rather not celebrate. We cringe when we watch our children strike out in anger just like we do. We are saddened when we observe our child avoiding problems as we do. We are embarrassed when others tease our child because of some physical oddity they inherited from us. Like it or not, there are some things we are bound to inherit from our relatives.
In the last of the woes of Jesus to the Scribes and the Pharisees, Jesus talks about the family resemblance that these leaders had to their relatives (Please read Matthew 23:29-32). Jesus announced that the Pharisees were hypocrites because they built tombs for the prophets and decorated those tombs even though they were descendants of the very people who had killed those prophets.
The Pharisees and Scribes recognized that what their forefathers did was wrong. They were quick to say, “We would not have ever taken part in such activities.” However, Jesus is not condemning these men because of the actions of their fathers. He is condemning them because they have learned nothing from the sin of their fathers. They talk a good game but they were really just a “chip off the old block”.
In a matter of days, these men would be conspiring with Herod and Pilate to have Jesus executed. They would overlook their own safeguards about proper legal procedure, convene a kangaroo court, bring in witnesses who were bribed and couldn’t agree on their story, and choose the release of a terrorist over Jesus; all so they could silence Christ. And then, the irony in the story of the trial is found in John 18:28.
- True holiness is that which begins in the heart. Keeping your heart and mind perpetually clean is what God desires from you. The outside of the cup means nothing.
- Lord Jesus, help me to maintain clean hands and a pure heart.
Further Reading: Exodus 39:32-end; Psalm 106:40-end; Acts 8:1-8
ESOCS Devotional 18 February 2024
