"A GREATER RIGHTEOUSNESS!"

MATTHEW 15:1-9

Jesus is interested in substance not merely style. He seeks sincerity not sham. Jesus praises probity not pretense. That was why He ran counter to the Pharisees so often. They were religious, they lived pious lives, they kept the Law punctiliously. But they were phony. Jesus made it clear: "For I say to you, that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 5:20. So, what would it take to have a righteousness that surpasses that of the Pharisees? What does it take to be a genuine Christian? The text gives some clue, as does the story of an old time saddler. A rich man came to him with a demand he could not fulfill. He was a man of character who refused to compromise his faith even though it cost him a customer. If we want to possess a righteousness greater than that of the scribes and Pharisees, here's the demand:

1. IT DEMANDS INNER CHARACTER MORE THAN MERE OUTER APPEARANCE: V8:
1. The Pharisees were real showmen: they strutted, they preened, they displayed themselves. They were all talk and no do; they lipped service but didn't really live it.
1. Note in Matthew 6 Jesus assessment of their religious practices:
1. When they gave gifts to the poor they did it for the eyes of men to behold.
2. When they prayed it was to impress the people with their piosity.
3. When they fasted it was to astonish others with their sacrifice.
4. Then Jesus said: "Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven." Matthew 6:1.
2. Note in Matthew 23:27, 28 Jesus' indictment of their falseness: "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness. Even so you too outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness."
3. In Luke 11:42 Jesus castigates them for their attention to small external things but disregard of big internal qualities: "But woe to you Pharisees! For you pay tithe of mint and rue and every kind of garden herb, and yet disregard justice and the love of God; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others."
4. Paul wrote of some who hold "to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power;" 2 Timothy 3:5.
2. Does this mean that there ought to be no external goodness? Not at all!
1. But external goodness must be a reflection of inner goodness, not a disguise for inner foulness.
2. Mere external labels do not have the value of genuine inner life! I once opened a can labeled "Stewed Tomatoes" but inside were peaches!  Peaches don't cut it on mac and cheese.  I wrote to the company and they sent me a gift certificate for a case of Stewed Tomatoes.
3. The poet wrote, "I want a righteous heart, a godly soul within; I'd not outward play a part and inward live in sin."
3. The Pharisees seemed content with the external goodness. But merely external works would be like:
1. Taking an old clunker of a 49 Ford. The clutch slips, the engine burns oil, the steering is loose, and the transmission grinds. But, suppose you take it to a body shop and have all the dents removed, have it painted with 100 coats of fine lacquer in candy apple red, then you have it upholstered with the finest of materials, and put on expensive Michelin tires? It looks good but it's still a clunker!
2. Or take an old sow. Yep, a mud-caked, snorting, slobbering 600 pounder. Bathe it, paint its toenails a flashy pink, put a bow in its tail, dress it in a formal gown. You might even seat it at your family table -- but it would still be a pig with all the character and nature of a swine!
4. On that last day, some who did good works externally but lacked inner righteousness will cry out, "Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?" And Jesus will say, "I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness." Matthew 7:22, 23. They went through the external motions but lacked the inner reality. Be sure you do good works, but that they issue from a good heart.

2. IT DEMANDS OBEDIENCE TO GOD'S WORD MORE THAN TO HUMAN OPINION: V9:
1. The Pharisees were full of opinions.
1. They could tell you how far you could legally walk and how much weight you could carry on the Sabbath day.
2. They believed that a man should be left sick rather than for anyone to do the work of healing on the Sabbath.
3. They knew just how to wash their hands before eating so they wouldn't be defiled.
4. They claimed that if they poured all their resources into the work of the Lord they were not, therefore, obligated to do anything for their parents. Jesus denounced that soundly! His comment was "You nicely set aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition." Mark 7:9.
2. The problem was that:
1. They established their own view, their own traditions, their own opinions as more authoritative than God's Word!
2. They valued their humanly devised customs more than they valued God's Word.
3. That is a typical human tendency:
1. It was the problem with ancient Israel, too. They rounded up prophets who told them what they liked to hear.
2. Paul spoke prophetically: "For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires; and will turn away their ears from the truth, and will turn aside to myths." 2 Timothy 4:3, 4.
4. When it comes to seeking what man thinks and says or seeking what God thinks and says,
1. Let there be no hesitation or uncertainty. As Paul wrote: "let God be found true, though every man be found a liar," Romans 3:4. Though every man might be wrong, God is right!
2. In the final analysis, it is not what man thinks but what God says that counts!

3. IT DEMANDS PLEASING GOD MORE THAN PLEASING MAN: VV12, 13:
1. The Pharisees were offended! Jesus didn't give them proper honor, recognition, adulation or limelight. But Jesus wasn't into man pleasing. He was a God pleaser.
2. The Apostles made that same choice:
1. When told to silence their preaching of Jesus, Peter and John answered and said to them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking what we have seen and heard." Acts 4:19, 20. And he sealed it with "We must obey God rather than men." Acts 5:29.
2. Paul wrote to his accusers, Galatians 1:10 "For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ."
3. You might be the toast of the town, the most popular of all your peers, the most sought after of all celebrities and be totally unknown by God. Or the reverse may hold true: you may be an unknown, unpopular with your fellows, unsought after and yet be highly regarded as faithful and upright by the One who matters most. It all depends upon whom you most desire to please.
4. Consider this:
1. A young preacher took a new congregation. A woman said, "Young man, just how do you think you will be able to please all these people?" He replied, as kindly as he could, "Ma'am, there is only One I really have to please, and that is God." That's Who we must please, too.
2. In Westminster Abbey there is a monument to a Lord Lawrence. The memorial inscription reads, "He feared man so little, because he feared God so much!" Would that we could all have that said of us.

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