The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-02-12

ey lovers" On one occasion He told that
this covetousness, greed, love of money
led them dishonesty to disregard the
rights of others. He said: "Ye devour
widows houses meaning that they
would take advantage of widows to ac-
cumulate property for themselves. APP
parently many of the Pharisees were
quite rich.
Jesus pointed out that with such a
wrong condition of heart God could not be
we'll pleased with them even though they
ever so carefully observed the outward
regulations of the Jewish law. He called
attention to the fact that in their outward
observance of the tithing they were par
ticular even to those small seeds of which
they grew but a trifling quantity; but that
they neglected the weightier matters of
the law-to deal justly and to have mercy
toward others. The Master did not object
to their giving one-tenth of everything,
but declared that these things they should
dc and not leave the more important
things undone.
He declared that they chose the chief
seats in the synagogue and loved saluta-
tions In the market places. Their COW
etousness took the form of pride, as well
as dishonesty. They wanted to be very
prominent in things religious. to be very
popular and to be hailed as ''rabbi"-mas-
ter, learned one. Jesus declared that they
We're like sepulchres, outwardly clean and
whtewashed but inwardly full OF cor
ruption, uncleanness. They were holi-
ness people merely In the outward form
or ceremonial.
Without judging personally we fear
that much of the Christianity of our time
is well described by the Apostle Paul.
Speaking of our day he says: Having a
form Of godliness, but denying It's pow
er''-outwardly Christians, but inwardly
sleptics-covetous, extortionate, unjust
Men are not able to Judge rightly of such
matters today. Some who are loyal and
Jealous for the Lord are branded as hyp-
ocrites and decevers; while others, dis
loyal, merely whited sepulchres, may be
lauded to the skies as denominational
idols or generous benefactors of earthly
systems.
Some of the Pharisees especially edu-
Gated, talentel and we'll versed in the law
and the prophets. were styled lawyers
doctors of the law, the equivalent OF
what today are termed doctors of divin-
ty Jesus upbraided them, saying
that they placed upon the common people
grievous burdens, which they themselves
would not bear. He meant that they gave
such hard interpretations of Gods law
as were dscouraging to the common peo-
pie setting before them standards of per-
fection which they themselves would not
tl1nk OF even Trying 10 i've up 10. Ap-
parently the thought was thereby to i'm
press the common people with the sane
tity of the clergy. They builded sepul-
chres for the prophets OF old, forgetful
that their fathers, whose spirit they had,
were the very ones who killed those
prophets.
Woe! Woe! Woe! Woe! Woe!
While Jesus prophesied woes against
the Pharisees, we are not to think of Him
as condemnng them to eternal torment
nor as intimating that this would be the
nature of the woe that would come upon
them. The woe to the Pharisees was that
they were about to miss the great bless
ing which God had promised to the Jew
ish nation; namely, that of chief associa-
tion in Messiah's kingdom. Genesis 2S:14.)
Because of their unpreparedness, it was
taken from them, to be given to another
Israel. Had enough of them been Israel
ties indeed to complete Gods foreor-
dained elect. the kingdom offed would
not have gone to the GentiIes.
The Pharisees were in the most fav-
ored place for attaining joint heirship
with Messiah; but they recognized not
what they were losing, as Jesus recog-
nized it. His expression. Woe unto YOU
Ia therefore to be regarded as sympa-
thetic, plying. This thought is borne
out in the context which declares the
great time OF trouble which came upon
their nation at the time of Jesus cruci-
fixion and reached its completion In A. D.
70, In teh total destruction Of their city
and polity.
AS the Lord declared that awful trouble
was settlement of Jehovahs account
with the Jewish nation for all the right
eous blood which had been shed and for
which no explation had been made. Lit
tie did those Pharisees know that their
hypocrisy was not only hindering them
selves from preparation to be Joint heirs
with Messiah In His Kingdom. but also
hinderine the masses Of the people. Jesus
refers to this in the succeeding verse 52):