3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
5 So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet: 6 ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, Are not the least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.’” (Matthew 2:3-6)
13 “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.14 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation.
15 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves. (Matthew 23:13-15)
Thoughts: The scribes were called in by Herod to find out where the king was to be born. The scribes knew the Law. But just as the priests found out where the Messiah was to be born but did not respond, the scribes did the research but did not let their knowledge move their feet.
The scribes were later reprimanded by Jesus for making rules but not listening to them. They were condemned for praying on the poor and praying for show. They were condemned for sucking people into their sin.
it is one thing to know the scriptures, but it is another to obey them. There are people today who honestly say, "we take the scriptures seriously but not literally." But like the scribes they are using such rhetoric to excuse themselves from obeying scripture when they disagree with it. If we only take scripture seriously until we disagree with it or when we don't want to believe something- then we are saying our own authority is more important than the authority of God found in scripture and in Christ.
The scribes were later reprimanded by Jesus for making rules but not listening to them. They were condemned for praying on the poor and praying for show. They were condemned for sucking people into their sin.
it is one thing to know the scriptures, but it is another to obey them. There are people today who honestly say, "we take the scriptures seriously but not literally." But like the scribes they are using such rhetoric to excuse themselves from obeying scripture when they disagree with it. If we only take scripture seriously until we disagree with it or when we don't want to believe something- then we are saying our own authority is more important than the authority of God found in scripture and in Christ.
Prayer:Lord, give me grace to not just hear you, but to listen to you.
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