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Matthew chapter 23. Our focus 
this morning will be verses 1 to 12. I'll begin reading in verse 
1. Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes 
and to His disciples, saying, The scribes and the Pharisees 
sit in Moses' seat. Therefore, whatever they tell 
you to observe, that observe and do. But do not do according 
to their works, for they say and do not do. For they bind 
heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders. 
But they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. 
But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their 
phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments. 
They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the 
synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called 
by men, Rabbi, Rabbi. But you, do not be called Rabbi, 
for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren. Do not call anyone on earth your 
Father, for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. And do not 
be called teachers, for one is your teacher, the Christ. But 
he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever 
exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will 
be exalted. Amen. Well, let us pray. Father, 
we thank you for the Word of God and we pray now for the ministry 
of your Holy Spirit. We acknowledge our need before 
you. Our Lord Jesus said that apart 
from Him, we can do nothing. And certainly as it comes to 
study scripture, we need the Spirit, we need Christ, we need 
that ministry from on high. So we cry out to you, Lord God, 
to take your word and to make it applicable in our own hearts 
and in our own lives. We also pray that You would forgive 
us for all of our sins and unrighteousness. Certainly, when we look at Your 
Law, or when we look at these passages of Scripture that condemn 
an outward form, certainly we see our own sin, and we confess 
that to You now, and pray for cleansing in the blood of the 
Lord Jesus Christ. We would ask that you would continually 
conform us unto the image of your beloved Son. Cause us, Lord 
God, to, by the Spirit, put to death the deeds of the body, 
so that we might live, that we might conduct ourselves in a 
manner that is consistent with Holy Scripture. God, our heart's 
desire and earnest plea is that any outside of Christ today would 
be saved. We know it is by grace alone, 
through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone, and it's a work 
of God alone. So we would pray to you, sovereign, 
omnipotent Father, that you would have your way in the hearts of 
sinners in this place, and as well, God, in other places throughout 
the earth. We pray that your word would 
run swiftly and be glorified, and that more and more people 
would come to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. And we pray 
in his most blessed name. Amen. Well, as we come to chapter 
23, we ought to remind ourselves of what happened prior to that. 
In fact, chapter 23 is a bit of a transition chapter. It concludes 
what we saw in chapters 21 and 22, and it sets the stage or 
the background for the prophecy of judgment that's coming in 
chapters 24 and 25. Essentially, what we have in 
23 is Jesus' warning concerning the religious leaders here in 
verses 1 to 12, and then we have His woes of condemnation pronounced 
upon these leaders in verses 13 to 30. He then summarizes 
or brings to conclusion the judgment of God upon these persons beginning 
in verse 31. And so we see a bit of movement. Verses 1 to 12 are addressed 
to the crowds and the disciples. Verses 13 to 36 are addressed 
to these religious leaders that are occupying the temple courts 
at this particular time. And then verses 37 to 39 are 
a lament over Jerusalem, and as I said, sets the stage for 
the prophecy of judgment that comes in the Olivet Discourse 
in chapter 24. Now, if you've read chapter 23 
in your lives, you'll know that Jesus doesn't pull punches. I 
don't believe Jesus would be very popular today if he said 
the same sorts of things as he says in chapter 23. He pronounces 
woe. That's the opposite of blessing. 
We might say, you know, may you be blessed of God. A woe is may 
you be cursed of God. May the wrath of God come upon 
you. May bad things beat your poor 
shit. Jesus calls them a brood of vipers. Again, something that I don't 
think would be very popular today. He calls them hypocrites repetitively 
and repetitiously and wants to make sure they understand the 
nature of His condemnation. In fact, this chapter is such 
that some in the history of the Church have described it this 
way. One particular man said that chapter 23 is the most unchristian 
chapter in Matthew. Another said it is the unloveliest 
chapter in the gospel. Persons, of course, that think 
that any language wherein sin or sinners are condemned is obviously 
unlovely or unchristian. This is a failure to reckon with 
God's hatred, God's detestation, God's despising of sin. God condemns sin. God condemns 
sinners, and that is precisely what we find here. As well, it's 
just simple ignorance of the Old Testament. Remember some 
time ago when we looked at the parable of the vineyard in Matthew 
21. I showed that Isaiah does the 
same sort of thing in Isaiah 5. He likens Israel to a vineyard 
that is unfruitful and as a result they reap the judgment of God. 
Well following that parable of the vineyard, guess what Isaiah 
the prophet does? He issues woes of condemnation 
upon that generation. Jesus is acting in like fashion. He sets forth this parable of 
the vineyard in chapter 21, and now he pronounces woes of condemnation 
upon these hypocrites in chapter 23. Well, as I said, we'll look 
at verses 1 to 12 this morning under two considerations. First, 
the warning concerning the religious leaders in verses 1 to 7, and 
then the exhortation specifically to the disciples in verses 8 
to 12. And essentially, we could boil 
it down to two words, pride and humility. Jesus condemns pride 
in verses 1 to 7, and Jesus promotes humility. I know that sounds 
a bit oxymoronic. We don't promote humility, but 
rather he is esteeming it or showing his favor toward it. 
Humble character is what is pleasing in the sight of God. So that 
is, in essence, what we have in verses 1 to 12. Note first, 
with reference to the warning concerning the religious leaders, 
the setting. It's still Tuesday of the Passion 
Week. The Lord Christ is in Jerusalem. 
He is in the temple court specifically. In chapter 21, they ask Him about 
His authority. Jesus silences them, and then 
He gives three parables that highlight their condemnation, 
and then there is direct confrontation, four of them, between Jesus and 
these religious leaders. And so now Jesus, in the temple 
courts, addresses both the multitudes and His disciples. And in the 
first place, you ought to appreciate that Jesus affirms their office, 
the religious leaders. Notice in verses 2 and 3a. He says, the scribes and Pharisees 
sit in Moses' seat. Therefore, whatever they tell 
you to observe, that observe and do. Now, scribes and Pharisees 
here probably doesn't refer to every single one of them. But 
rather, as France says, the focus of this chapter is not so much 
on individual scribes and Pharisees, as on the nature of the movement 
that they represented. It is the religious leadership 
in Israel, specifically in Jerusalem, that is the target of Jesus' 
condemnation and reproof. The Lord Christ does not take 
it well. When persons abominate His law, 
when persons engage in hypocrisy, when persons engage in the sorts 
of things that are condemned here, Christ will condemn them. 
And I think we need to have ears to hear this as well. Note that 
He says that these scribes and Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. 
I don't think the idea here is directly successive in nature. It's not the case that you could 
trace back to Moses their particular pedigree. It probably means the 
way we refer to it today. A man holds the chair of philosophy 
at a particular university. The idea is that they are the 
official teachers in Israel. They occupy Moses' seat. Some 
have seen the stone seat that sat at the synagogue that the 
teacher would sit down in, but I don't think that's necessary. 
It's probably a metaphor. They occupy the place of Moses 
in terms of teaching, in terms of instruction. And note the 
wisdom of our Lord as He affirms their office, because there are 
two tendencies that we, the people of God, have. At the end of chapter 
22, Jesus bested these religious leaders. So people may now be 
inclined not to listen to them at all. In other words, if we 
find out one bad thing about a person, we might write them 
off forever. Jesus doesn't do that. He affirms their office 
insofar as they teach the truth of God. Insofar as these men 
who occupy the seat of Moses teach the truth as it's been 
revealed to Moses, you need to do, you need to observe, you 
need to keep that. As Gill says, good doctrine is 
not the worst for being taught by bad men. These men occupy Moses' seat, 
and insofar as they teach the truth, the Lord Jesus says you 
are to do and observe what they tell you. That is precisely the 
emphasis in verse 3. Therefore, whatever they tell 
you to observe, that observe and do. In other words, it doesn't 
matter if the Word of God comes to you from Balaam's ass, if 
the Word of God comes to you from the dog next door, or the 
Word of God comes to you from a bad man. You ought to do what 
God commands, regardless of the vessel by which the truth proceeds. It will never do for you on the 
Day of Judgment to say, you know, I'm not going to do what God 
said through His servant, because His servant is imperfect. No, 
you can't argue that. If the servant nevertheless preaches 
the truth, as it is in Jesus, you are duty-bound to the truth. 
Our affections, our demands, our wills, our pattern of conduct 
is not tied to a man, it is tied to what God's Word says. So you 
see Jesus affirming their office on the one hand. Whatever they 
tell you, as they teach accurately, you need to do what they say. 
But now notice, He goes on to qualify with reference to these 
men, 3B. He says, but do not do according 
to their works. In other words, there's a disconnect. 
When they sit in Moses' seat, and they read the Scripture properly, 
and they interpret it accordingly, you need to observe and do that. 
But don't follow their practice. Don't do what these men do. Don't 
walk behind them as patterns of life. It's a very serious 
charge that he levels at these scribes and Pharisees in this 
instance. It's a terrible thing, isn't it, for a man to preach 
and not do? I was thinking, just as I was about to come up here, 
three things terrify preachers. One, the law of God. Two, preaching. And three, preaching on leadership 
or on those who actually preach and teach. I think that's the 
emphasis that we'll glean from verses 1 to 12. We'll see the 
emphasis is certainly upon all of us. We're not to be hypocrites. 
We're not to be legalists. We're not to exalt ourselves. 
We're not to be engaged in outward show and all those sorts of things. 
but it's particularly applicable to teachers of God's Word. To 
sit in Moses' seat and to practice the works of the devil is incongruous. These men had Moses' seat, but 
they didn't have Moses' heart. They didn't have his humility. 
They didn't have his godliness. They didn't have his righteousness. 
They didn't do the things that he himself said for them to do. 
As McShane said, a holy minister is an awful weapon in the hand 
of God. And certainly when ministers come to passages like these, 
which are condemning of teachers, it's a terrifying and a fearful 
thing. That's why James says, let not many of you become teachers. 
Why? Because we shall receive a stricter 
judgment. To occupy Moses' seat, or to 
preach the Word of the living God, and then to go out and live 
like the devil himself is absolutely contrary to the Spirit of God's 
Word. And this is precisely what is in view in this particular 
passage. And then Jesus highlights several reasons why the disciples, 
why the crowds, are to follow what they say accurately, but 
then he says in 3B, but do not do according to their works. 
Now notice, there are four reasons here that he condemns. In the 
first place, hypocrisy. Hypocrisy. Isn't that the textbook 
description of hypocrisy at the end of verse 3? For they say 
and do not do. Isn't that hypocrisy? Isn't that 
wearing the mask? Isn't that being full of lies 
and deceit? Hypocrisy characterized the Scribes 
and the Pharisees. Hypocrisy can at times characterize 
the professing people of God. We're not to do that. We aren't 
to let our yes be yes and our no be no. We say we hold allegiance 
to the truth of God's Word. We need to walk in lockstep to 
God's Word. These men are condemned, they 
are called a brood of vipers, they are called sons of hell, 
they are called proselytes who go out and make men sons of hell, 
because of, in the first place, they are hypocrites. There is 
a formalism, there is an externalism, there is this outward show that 
Jesus will later condemn. You're like whitewashed tombs. It looks beautiful on the outside, 
but inside it's full of dead men's bones. Or you're like that 
cup that you have taken pains to polish the outside, and yet 
inside it's filled with filth and muck and garbage and bad 
things. You see, hypocrisy, brethren, 
is something that can settle in the heart of a man when we 
pay lip service to the Word of the Living God, but we don't 
walk in lockstep, when we disobey, when we transgress, when we do 
not act upon those things we know and we hear and we receive. 
The Christian life is always going to be marked to some degree 
by hypocrisy. None of us live as we ought. None of us live as well as we 
know. But there is a difference between 
having that settle in our heart and making peace with it, or 
seeking by the grace of God to root it out, to destroy it, and 
not to engage in the sorts of externalism that so often characterize 
Judaism. that so characterized these scribes 
and these Pharisees that would eventually bring the wrath of 
God down to bear upon that generation. That's what chapter 24 is all 
about. It's a prophecy of judgment in 
the first place concerning Jerusalem and her temple, because she had 
engaged in this sort of whoredom, this sort of apostasy, this sort 
of rejection, this sort of professing the one true living God, but 
living as hypocrites. Notice what Jesus goes on to 
say. These men are legalists. Verse 4. Now Jesus doesn't say everything 
they teach is accurate. In fact, in Matthew 15, Jesus 
does condemn their externalism. So while they sit on Moses' seat, 
they may accurately teach the Ten Commandments. But it's the 
addenda. It's the addition. It's the protection 
that they add. It's these additional burdens 
that they heap upon men. You see, this is condemned. Scribes 
and Pharisees, you're not equal to God. We talked about this 
a little bit in the last hour. You know, it's really bad when 
we make our preferences, or we make our additions to God's law, 
God's law. That sets us up as rival lawmakers. It asserts an arrogance, an authority 
that God has never entrusted to us. You know, to some degree, 
God's law, it doesn't speak to every single jot and tittle of 
your life. There are some things wherein there is liberty. And 
I think that terrifies the people of God. We're afraid at the idea 
and the reality that God has given us liberty in this particular 
area. God's not afraid, God's not worried, 
God knows that His Spirit will do these things. I've been thinking 
and musing recently upon the political climate in our country 
and in America. Government is so involved that 
every step of the way, I don't even know how it would be if 
they weren't involved. There's a sense where I think 
the heart of man naturally inclines to addenda. It inclines to being 
told what to do in every jot and dill of your life. You don't 
need God to tell you whether or not you can have a shoehorn. 
If you want to have a shoehorn, have a shoehorn. If you don't 
want to have a shoehorn, don't have a shoehorn. God doesn't 
legislate with reference to whether you eat meat or don't eat meat. 
Romans 14. If you eat, do it to the glory 
of God. Don't take that porterhouse and 
waft it before your non-meat-eating brother and say, you need to 
enjoy it. No, don't do that. But if you're a non-meat-eating 
brother, don't judge him because he's eating a porterhouse. You 
see, it's not the case that we have this detailed code that 
regulates every jot and diddle of our lives. But these scribes 
and Pharisees attempted to do that. The Sabbath in Matthew 
12. They were such fastidious people 
when it came to the Sabbath that they were upset when Jesus healed 
someone on the Sabbath. That's terrible, brethren. In 
fact, in Luke's account, The synagogue official chides the 
people, six days you labor and do all your work. The Sabbath 
is a rest unto God, so you come on those six days and get healed. 
What are you talking about? What an example of the rest of 
God and the healing of a man with a hand that is withered. 
You see, brethren, these men, as the Scripture says, they bind 
heavy burdens, hard to bear. Again, not the genuine law of 
God. Remember in Matthew 5, 21 to 
48, you have heard that it was said, but I say to you, Jesus 
is not pitting himself against Moses, he's pitting himself against 
pharisaic abuse. These men heat things up and 
know what Jesus says. They do not do according, I'm 
sorry, they bind heavy burdens hard to bear and lay them on 
men's shoulders, but they themselves will not move them with one of 
their fingers. I think this goes in two ways. One, they don't 
even do this. They heap up all these burdens, and they themselves 
don't even do this. Probably some of them tried. 
Perhaps it goes this way as well. They didn't help people. You 
don't just heap up burdens and say, you know, suck it up and 
deal with it and knuckle under, and if you complain, we're, you 
know, ousting you from the synagogue. Help these men! Help these women! And note that it's absolutely 
contrary to the Spirit of Christ as it is revealed to us in Matthew 
chapter 11. Notice in Matthew 11, verse 28, 
"...Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden." Christ 
says that He is the remedy for such folk, and I will give you 
rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn 
from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will 
find rest for your souls, for My yoke is easy and My burden 
is light. The Pharisees and the scribes are just the opposite. 
They bind heavy burdens, hard to bear. They lay them on men's 
shoulders, but they themselves will not move them with one of 
their fingers. So you see, What Jesus does is 
in contrasting the experiencer. So in contrast to experience 
the kind yoke and light burden of following Jesus, those who 
follow the scribes and the Pharisees put these heavy burdens on people. 
Enslave them. Put them under bondage. So you 
see, Jesus says, do what they say, insofar as it's accurate, 
but don't do as they do, insofar as it's hypocritical and insofar 
as it's legalistic. But notice thirdly, insofar as 
it's religious show. That's the thrust of verse 5. 
But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their 
phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments. 
That's religious show. Christ has already condemned 
this in Matthew 6. Remember those men that give 
alms and call attention to what they give? Notice there's not 
a bell next to the box back there. We don't require you to bang 
the bell so everybody can see your deposit into the box. There's 
not a trumpet sort of hanging down from the hat rack so you 
can give a little doo-doo-doo-doo when you put an offering in the 
box so that persons can see you. Prayer. Go into your closet. Don't do it on Facebook. Go into 
your closet. Don't stand on the street corner. 
This isn't a condemnation of corporate prayer. Would to God 
that more men engaged in corporate prayer. But it's the spirit of 
a man who stands on the corner and prays in order to be seen 
by men. Jesus further condemns those 
who fast, and when they fast, they look sad, and they look 
pathetic. And when persons say, why are 
you sad and pathetic? You're able to say, because I'm 
fasting. Jesus says don't do that. Anoint 
your face with oil, wash up, look happy. Don't try to, you 
know, get men to see how holy and righteous and godly you are. 
Well, that's the same thing that is done here. Note the patheticness 
of this in verse 5. But all their works they do to 
be seen by men. If your religion is about being 
seen by men, you are pathetic. I am pathetic, if that's my mindset. The things that we do, if it 
is to be done, or if it is done, in order to be seen by men, that's 
terrible. And he mentions two practical 
illustrations, phylacteries and borders on the garment. Both 
have to do with the law of God. A phylactery, kids, was a box. 
And in that box you would put four passages of scripture, two 
from Exodus and two from Deuteronomy. And you would take that box and 
you would bind it to your arm or you would put it on your forehead. 
And the idea being is to keep the law of God before you. It's 
a great tactic, it's a great technique, it's a great idea. 
And what about these borders on the garments? Numbers 15, 
Deuteronomy 22, 12. They were to make these tassels 
on their garments such that they would be reminded of the law 
in order to do it. Now, ironically, both these things 
are to set the law of God before the eyes of these scribes and 
Pharisees. But ironically, they don't do the law of God. They 
violate the law of God while they're trying to do the law 
of God. It's always the problem with legalism, trying to honor 
God by your own works. Now, they did the phylacteries 
bigger so that people would see them. This is bizarre, isn't 
it? Everybody awake there seems to 
be this sluggishness. That's why I turned the fans 
on. I'm a firm believer that Spurgeon was right. The next 
best thing to grace in the heart is oxygen in the brain! Wake 
up! Pay attention! Let's get what 
Jesus is saying. It has application for us. We 
may not have phylacteries, we may not wear these garments, 
but brethren, we do things for show. They want to be seen by men. The bigger the phylactery, the 
more the praise of men. The longer the tassels, the more 
the praise of men. It's kind of like a big Bible. 
I go to thrift stores, I look for books, and I see those big 
honking family Bibles. So just for my own edification 
or instruction, I wondered what the font size is in those. I didn't look at one of them, 
I looked at it on Amazon. It's a 12-point font, and the 
shipping weight is five pounds. Now, if you have that Bible around, 
because you're almost as blind as a bat, and that 12-point font 
really assists you, then praise God! But if you schlep that around, 
so that people will say, he's got a Bible! Or you schlep it 
around so people say, look how big His Bible is. You have sinned 
the sin of the scribes and the Pharisees. They're not phylacteries, 
they are not tassels, but it is an attempt to garner the gaze 
of men upon your religion. Whether it be in giving, whether 
it be in praying, whether it be in fasting, whether it be 
in the size of the Bible that you schlep around. Are you doing 
it for God or for men? Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, 
Jesus will condemn. When we get to the woes, we ought 
not to be surprised that he speaks in such harsh tones, or such 
severe tones rather, because of what we see in this passage. 
It's pathetic. That's sin wrapped around a man's 
heart. Wow, I hope that so-and-so sees 
this. It might be Facebook. Well, I 
hope everybody sees that I did my devotions. Or you might post 
an Instagram with your coffee cup and your Bible with the clear 
implication, that was me doing devotions. Stop! They may not be phylacteries, 
they may not be tassels, but it may be the same spirit of 
these scribes and Pharisees that Jesus condemns. Don't do what 
they do. Don't practice what they do. When, insofar as they speak the 
law of Moses appropriately, yes, by all means, esteem that, receive 
it, and obey it. But when they're walking around 
with big phylacteries and long tassels so that everybody will 
see them and prize them and praise them for their extra special 
religion. Don't be like that. You know 
brethren, the better off or the better the situation is just 
be simple and mind your own business. I love Paul in 1 Thessalonians. 
Just aspire to work with your hands and mind your own business. 
I mean, we are a socially media-connected age. Somebody in Timbuktu can 
know what I had for breakfast this morning. And instead of saying, you know, 
that might be a legitimate way for me to connect with somebody 
in Timbuktu or keep in touch with family, we exploit it to 
pursue or to parade our religion. I've often thought about this 
with the weightlifting community. I don't care that you did legs 
today. That does not move me one bit. Could the same be said for how 
many chapters you read in a day? Now, as your pastor, I'd like 
to know that you're reading your Bible. That's encouraging. But 
brethren, to do it in the spirit of the scribes and the Pharisees, 
what Jesus condemns here, has to be bad, doesn't it? Has to 
be wrong. Pride can take something that 
is good and exploit it for wicked ends. John Calvin says, and in 
this boasting there was displayed an offensive ambition. Look at 
my phylacteries, look at my tassels. A man's worth does not depend 
on the size of his phylacteries or his tassels. It does not depend 
on the validation of others. It doesn't depend on whether 
everybody knows you read your Bible this morning or not. It's 
that you receive food from the hand of God that is settled into 
your soul and it's something that will nourish you for the 
day. Perhaps if you're using McShane, you read 1 Peter 2 this 
morning, and you're a young man, and you're going to hide 2.11 
in your heart that says you need to abstain from fleshly lusts, 
which war against the soul. You're going to realize that 
what the world promotes in terms of lust and sex and all of that 
is something that is waging war against your soul. You're going 
to think back to the Psalter in Psalm 119 when he says, I 
have hid your word in my heart. Why? So that I can impress everybody 
on Facebook? So that I can be the big winner 
at my next Bible fact trivia game? No! It's so that I might 
not sin against you. You see, brethren, we do not 
do our religion to be seen by men. We do what God has put in 
our hearts for His glory, and for His honor, and for His praise. That's the emphasis of the text. And then notice finally, in terms 
of their condemnation, self-exaltation. I hope you see the recurring 
theme throughout, with legalism, with hypocrisy, with religious 
so, and certainly with self-exaltation. What is the mother's sin from 
whence these flow? Pride. Take all of verses 1 to 
7 and say, don't be proud. Notice the self-exaltation. They 
desire notoriety. And this is sad too. Verse 6, 
they love. They love the best seats at feasts, 
not because they're closer to the food. I mean, I don't think 
any of us are out when we go to a wedding reception and we 
hear that blessed statement, your table's next. All right, 
we get to eat. That's not what's driving these 
men. Where a person sat was a mark of notoriety or honor. And they 
love it! That's the verb. They love it! 
What do you love? Do you love God? Do you love 
His ordinances? Do you love the Word? No, I love 
the best places at feasts. I love when people see me and 
they think I'm superior. I love when people see me and 
they think I'm really something. I love that. That's what these 
men would say. Now, if they were exposed, Look 
at secondly, they love the best places in the synagogues. Now 
brethren, I've noticed in my life that the emptiest seats 
in all the world are the front rows in a Baptist church. I don't 
know why that is, but it just seems to be the case. But in 
this context, the place you sat in the synagogue indicated prestige. There was notoriety associated 
with it. James deals with this in James 
2. If a rich man comes and you say, oh, I want you to come sit 
up front, and then some guy comes that's in tattered clothing, 
well, you could just sit in the back. What does that reflect? 
It reflects position. It reflects places of honor. 
It reflects notoriety. And for these scribes and the 
Pharisees, one of their sins is that they loved the best places 
in the synagogues. Thirdly, they can't even go to 
the market to buy fruit and vegetables without self-exaltation. They 
love to be greeted in the marketplaces with Rabbi. Now, this isn't a 
simple greeting of respect and esteem. This is something that 
feeds and drives their ego. Self-exaltation. They go out 
to buy fruits and vegetables in the hopes that somebody will 
see them and say, Rabbi! And treat them as a superior 
being. And notice, he goes on to say, and to be called by man 
Rabbi. The use of the title Rabbi. Now, 
the use itself is not condemned and I do promise that we'll deal 
with the use of titles. I mean, we can leave this passage 
and say, there ought to be no titles ever. And that's a legitimate 
interpretation, and if we land there, we land there. But in 
this context, John 3, 26, John the Baptist was called rabbi 
by his disciples. Certainly Jesus is called rabbi 
throughout the gospel records, and specifically here identifies 
himself as the rabbi. The term was an honorary title 
for outstanding teachers of the law, and it literally meant, 
my great one. Jesus is not disparaging the legitimate First Thessalonians 
5, esteem those who have the rule over you. He's not discouraging 
that. He is discouraging the sick, 
twisted, demented mindset where a guy feeds his ego by being 
called rabbi. By thinking he's something special 
because he's called Rabbi. By thinking he's a bit higher 
up the food chain because he's called Rabbi. Jesus says, don't 
practice what these men do. Insofar as they teach the law 
of God accurately, you need to submit. These men occupy Moses' 
seat, and you need to do what they say that is true. But don't 
follow their practice, because they engage in hypocrisy, they 
engage in legalism, they engage in religious show, and they engage 
in this self-exaltation that is so obvious, and so plain, 
and so clear. Isn't it? Everybody see? It's an easy passage, isn't it? It's easy to misstep with, too. 
It's easy to engage in hypocrisy. It's easy to engage in legalism. 
It's easy to engage in religious show. And it's easy to engage 
in self-exaltation. Oh yes, I just love it when people 
call me this, that, or the other. You get offended if they don't 
use your title? Remind them that you're the Right 
Reverend Doctor? Remind them that you're Holy 
Father? Terrible! I mean, I don't know how papists 
can read chapter 23 and come out thinking he's okay. With 
their structure, with their hierarchy, with the Holy Fathers, with the 
Lesser Fathers, with the Archbishops, with the Deacons, this, and the 
Cardinals, that, and the Hats, and everything they've got going 
on, it seems to fly contra to what Jesus teaches here. There 
ought not to be hierarchy. There ought not to be self-exaltation. When you come into this place, 
brethren, the one exalted is God. The one exalted and enthroned 
is Christ. The glory of the Christian faith 
is not that we have these super-extra-special men that govern, say, from Brooklyn, 
or that govern, say, from Salt Lake City, or that govern, say, 
from whatever the Reformed Baptist capital of the world happens 
to be. It's the glory of the reality that it's Christ alone 
that is exalted in the Church. Slaves and masters are brethren. Workers and employers are brethren. Brothers and sisters are brethren. 
We're all reduced to confess in blessed obedience the exaltation 
of Jesus Christ. And these men flew contrary to 
that. Now notice, secondly, the exaltation 
to the disciples. He says to them, reject all self-exaltation. And he speaks specifically to 
the use of titles. Why? Because titles argue hierarchy. If you call this one Rabbi, and 
you call this one Father, and you call this one Master, what 
is it going to inculcate? A hierarchy. In the first place, 
he says, do not be called Rabbi. It's not your title. You're not 
supreme. You're not over them. The reason 
for this is because you have one rabbi, the Christ, the Lord 
Jesus. He was presently in their midst. 
He would ascend on high. He would be enthroned at the 
right hand of the Father. He is the rabbi, the teacher 
of his church. But notice as well, he says, 
and you're all brothers, you're all brethren. There's an equality. You see, when a man wears the 
hat and occupies the position and starts to throw his weight 
around, That betrays the spirit of this passage. Again, there 
is a place for esteem, there is a place for honor, there is 
a place as we're commanded elsewhere in Scripture. We are certainly 
to do so, but we need to take heed to this. God hates pride. God opposes the proud, but He 
gives grace to the humble. And Christ says there is to be 
no rank, there is to be no power structure. Verse 8, but you, 
the contrast, far from what these guys are doing, do not be called 
rabbi, for one is your teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren. 
That's the way the church should look. Now there's ministers. I really hate the connotation 
that we have with the word minister. In the hands of men, it's become 
An abusive title. What's the word minister actually 
mean? It means to serve. It means to 
minister. Right? What do you think of a 
minister in the government realm? Do you think of servanthood? 
You might, because you're of a nobler character than I, but 
I typically don't. When I think of a man who's a 
politician and I hear the suggestion that he's a minister, A prime 
minister, for instance, I think just the opposite. And in the church, he's the minister. He's the minister. That means 
servant. That means taking off the outer 
garment and washing the nasty feet of your brothers and sisters 
like your master did. That means helping. That means 
caring. That means giving. That's what 
Jesus teaches in the passage. Do you want to be great in God's 
kingdom? You know the path to greatness? 
Not seminary. Not saying seminary is bad. Not 
Sunday school. Not saying Sunday school is bad. 
You know what the path to greatness in God's kingdom is? It's service. 
It's doing things when nobody's around to praise you. It's doing 
things when nobody sees what you're doing but you and God 
alone. You want to be great in God's kingdom, sacrifice everything 
you've learned in the school of the world, and come to Christ, 
because He's going to say, you need to get your hands dirty, 
and you need to get busy serving. I've often been intrigued by 
this concept in the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. You know, 
you hear people say, I want to use my gifts. I want to exercise 
my gifts. It's been my observation that 
not many have the gift of showing up and doing things that nobody 
else wants to do. Oh, they're there, and thankfully 
so, but the rank and file of God's people who want to exercise 
their gifts don't necessarily mean by that they want to pull 
the pump out of underneath that floor in the women's realm and 
take out the pump that is for fecal matter and urine and reach 
their hands down in there and pull out a rack. That's not my ministry, you see. That's not what I've been called 
to, you see. In my experience, another gift 
that seems to go unseized upon is the gift of liberality. The gift of liberality. Yes, 
they're out there, and praise God for them. But it seems to 
be in short supply. Generosity. Smile at somebody 
once in a while. Well, you know, that's not my 
gift. What about making good on commitments and showing up 
at church? That could be a gift, couldn't 
it? It's a great benefit and a boon to the body when the body's 
present. Trying to walk around the street 
or walk around the block without a foot would be quite difficult. 
I need that foot. We all need one another in the 
context of the church. Why do feet or fingers or hands 
or eyes or ears think, well, I don't have to show up today? 
Please show up. That's your gift. Or it should 
be. You see, Jesus is saying there 
is to be no hierarchy. Eshu. It's a good old-fashioned 
word. Eshu. The title of rabbi. He also says, do not call anyone 
on earth your father. Do not do that. Now, he's not 
saying, you know, sons today or daughters today, don't call 
your dad, dad, or call your dad, father. The idea is this, you 
know, hierarchy, which the use of titles fosters. You have one 
Father, God Almighty, and He's in heaven. Therefore, don't apply 
that term to others who are equals. Note how Jesus argues for this 
sort of principle in the context of the church, with theology 
and with Christology. Consider who God the Father is. 
Consider who God the Son is. That ought to flow down into 
the context of the church, and it ought to destroy this whole 
hierarchical approach where we've got the Holy Father and we've 
got all these other sort of lesser fathers, all the way down to 
the schlubs that sit in the pew. That's not what God says the 
church is to be. I've shared with many of you, 
many times, as I said last week, after 19 years, you get the same 
illustrations. I could see some of you running 
out of here after Batty saying, I can't hear that one again! 
But this particular one, with reference to John Jasper, that 
man, that black slave who was converted by God Most High, and 
he was in a tobacco factory, and he's cutting apart the tobacco, 
doing his work in the South, in the United States of America, 
in the 1800s. And God saved him. He had heard 
a sermon, God blessed it, and he got saved. So you know what 
he does when he gets saved? He does what everybody does when 
they get saved. They start telling others about being saved, right? 
They start telling others about the Gospel. They found the Pearl 
of Great Price, and they want to present it to others. Well, 
that's causing a bit of stir on the tobacco factory floor. So Jasper is summoned to the 
Master's office, and he goes up there. The Master says, what 
are you doing? He says, well, the Lord God saved 
my soul. That's how the words are written 
in the book. In Ebonics, I guess we might 
call it, in our 21st century setting. And the Master says 
to him, the Lord God has saved my soul too. 
You are my brother. I want you to leave from this 
place and I want you to never stop telling people on how the 
Lord God saved your soul. And Jasper was able to say at 
the end of his life, and I never did, I will do so until my last 
expiring breath. Masters and slaves come to the 
same supper. Masters and slaves feast on the 
same bread and wine. Masters and slaves call each 
other brothers. Don't we have a taste of that 
here? People from different backgrounds, different social status, different 
ethnic background, we're all one in Christ. There's no hierarchy, 
there's no hat, there's no signs of prestige, there's no special 
parking out there. No status, well, that's the minister's 
drinking fountain or that's the minister's bathroom. It's not 
that way. And the use of titles can foster 
that if we're not careful. Jesus says, don't be called rabbi, 
don't be called father, or don't call others father. And then 
he says, don't be called teacher. It's a different Greek word. 
It probably has the idea of professor, or mentor, or instructor, or 
the really high and noble one in that regard. And Jesus again, 
in verse 10, says, and do not be called teachers, for one is 
your teacher, the Christ. It doesn't militate against Paul 
saying there are pastor-teachers in the church. Jesus is suggesting 
something completely opposite than to the identification of 
an office. He is condemning the self-exaltation 
of men who would be pronounced with woes, who crave it, who 
desire it, who instead of going for carrots, want to meet a parishioner 
who says, Rabbi, or who puts the phylacteries on, not so they 
can be reminded of those select passages, or lengthens their 
tassels, not so they can be reminded of the entirety of God's law, 
but so that people can see them, and people can esteem them, and 
people can go home and say, wow, his phylacteries are big. If that's what you are reduced 
to in your religion, it's wicked on the one hand, and it's pathetic. We dealt with that last hour. 
It's pathetic to be a fault finder and a nitpicker in Christ Church, 
isn't it? Do you have more time on your 
hands? If you have that much time on 
your hands, I'm sure somebody has a job that you can do so 
that you don't occupy your days with that sort of thing. Or if 
you're planning and plotting and building and developing larger 
phylacteries or larger tassels, you've got too much time on your 
hands and you've got a craving for something, herein Jesus Christ 
our Lord condemns. And now notice, He not only says 
that we are to reject self-exaltation, but He highlights in conclusion 
what we are to imitate or pursue. It is an ethic enjoined upon 
us already in Matthew's Gospel, Matthew 20, 24 to 28. Again, Christ is paradigmatic. 
The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to 
give His life a ransom for many. Note in verses 11 and 12, but 
He who is greatest among you shall be your servant. See, I 
don't think we define greatness that way. We certainly don't 
in the world. I mean, who's the great one? The guy who's built 
big companies. The guy who's got the most money. 
The guy who has the most accoutrements. We call him great. The same in 
the church. Oh, that guy's been to seminary. 
Wow, he's great. That guy's a preacher. Wow, he's great. No, don't do 
that. The path to greatness in Christ's kingdom is through service. 
Listen. Calvin. He said, he therefore 
declares that the highest honor in the church is not government, 
but service. John Gill says, service is the 
way to honor. He that would be most esteemed 
ought to do the most work, and the man that has the most grace 
and the greatest gifts ought to employ them for the use and 
the benefit of others. So, if you want to be great, 
and I don't think there's anything necessarily wrong with wanting 
to be great in the sense of this way. If you want to be great 
because people call you rabbi, or you want to be great because 
they saw your long tassels, or you want to be great because 
you love the best seats in the feasts and in the synagogues, 
that's a greatness that's not to be pursued. But a greatness 
through service? I want to serve my brethren, 
I want to serve my Master, I want to do so without the eyes of 
men, I want to do so without the praise of men, I want to 
do so for the glory of God. That's perfectly legit. And then Jesus ends with that 
saying, that promise of eschatology in verse 12. And whoever exalts 
himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be 
exalted. That is a common principle rehearsed throughout the gospel 
narratives by our Lord Jesus. It finds its taproots in Old 
Testament texts, vis-à-vis the Proverbs, Job. We see it repeated 
in the New Testament. Those who exalt themselves will 
be humbled. You see, that's your lot if you 
love the praise of men. That's your lot if you want to 
be prized by men. That is your lot if you engage 
in this accursed practice. You will be humbled. That means 
brought low, and I think it points to Eschaton, or to the final 
day, judgment from God Most High. He says, and he who humbles himself 
will be exalted. Spurgeon said, the way to rise 
is to sink self. The lower we fall in our own 
esteem, the higher shall we rise in our master's estimation. Spurgeon 
just said in one line everything I've been trying to say for the 
last 30 minutes, but I hope you get it. I hope you understand. Pride bad, verses 1 to 7. Humility 
good, verses 8 to 12. I mean, that'll be a good way 
for you to answer today at lunch, kids. What was the sermon about? 
Pride bad, humility good. I'm trying to reduce you to the 
sounds of a caveman or whatnot. You can use, you know, articles 
and conjunctions and other things in there as well, but that's 
the summary. Pride is condemned by God, verses 
1 to 7. Humility is promoted by Christ 
in verses 8 to 12. I just want to conclude with 
a few thoughts. First, the folly involved in 
false religion. We'd all agree that what these 
men are engaged in, in terms of their practice, is false religion. 
In the first place, the wretchedness of their sin. It's wretched. Hypocrisy, legalism, religious 
show, and self-exaltation. Those are bad things, brethren. 
Never in the Bible do you find these commended. Never in the 
Bible do you find God speaking well of hypocrisy, God speaking 
well of legalism, God speaking well of just do your religion 
to be shown, and God speaking well of self-exaltation. These 
are bad things. It's wretched. I would entreat 
all brothers and sisters in Christ to think through this and ask 
the question, are these things present in my heart? Do I have 
this tendency? I would suggest that we most 
likely do. This idea of hypocrisy. Can any of us say, yes, I'm engaged 
in perfect, exact, entire, and perpetual obedience to the law? 
Well, no, I'm not. So probably I'm a hypocrite, 
at least in some place. What about legalism? What about 
adding to the law of God and making that someone else's burden? 
Maybe you don't do that. Praise God, from whom all blessings 
flow. But there's a lot of people in 
the church that do do that. So let's pick on them. No, just 
kidding. This attempt to bind men's consciences 
with things that aren't God's law. You can't do that! It is condemned to take away 
from the law of God, but it's also condemned in Proverbs to 
add to the law of God. What about religious show? I'm 
going to church today because I want my mom to see me, or I 
want my dad to see me, or I want my pastor to see me. I hope that's 
not what's in your heart. I'm going to church because that's 
where I hear about Jesus, and I want to be where Jesus is. 
What about self-exaltation? What drives us? Is it person's 
esteem of us, or is it God's approbation of us? I hope it's 
the latter. Davies and Allison say that Christian 
history has demonstrated that all the vices here attributed 
to the scribes and Pharisees have attached themselves to Christians 
and in abundance. Now, are the use of titles or 
is the use of titles condemned? I think not completely. Again, if you don't want to call 
me pastor, that's fine. I answer to Jim. That's the name 
my mother gave me. But it is a helpful identifier 
in lieu of the guy who works at the church and teaches the 
Word of God. The pastor serves nicely to just sort of fill that 
out. I almost chose the song for this 
morning, Faith of Our Fathers, but then I thought, no, we might 
need to sing Faith of those guys who preceded us and tried to 
keep to the Word of God. That just doesn't work. Paul 
was a spiritual father to Timothy. Paul was a spiritual father to 
the Corinthians. But Paul wasn't sick, twisted, 
and demented, and have them say, well, you address me as the right 
reverend, or the Holy Father. Paul, no, it's an attitude, it's 
a mindset, it's a disposition. Paul the Apostle, it's not arrogant. He's certainly identifying who 
he is under God to the churches. The prophet Isaiah. Isaiah didn't 
have some sick, twisted fascination that everybody around him, call 
him prophet. It's a mindset, self-exaltation. Titles aren't necessarily condemned, 
it's the attitude that drives the use of them. If it creates 
a hierarchical structure, if it reduces to naught the equality 
that brothers and sisters have in Christ, if we think there's 
some sacred pecking order in the life of the church, get rid 
of the titles if that's what it fosters. Get rid of the hats, 
get rid of the parking spots, get rid of the celebrity culture. And if this passage doesn't speak 
to that very thing, I mean, it's become accepted. We talk about 
celebrity pastors as if they were the Rolling Stones or whoever, 
you know, back in the history of fame and fortune. Brethren, I don't think this 
passage gives credence to that caliber of man. Well, did you 
hear so-and-so? Did you read his blog? Did you 
get his podcast? As if the rabbi has spoken ex 
cathedra. Brethren, faithful exposition 
of the Word of God, 16 ounces to the pound, whether it comes 
from him or whether it comes from Balaam's ass, is still authoritative, 
it is inspired, it's infallible and inerrant, and we are subject 
to it. It doesn't matter if a guy with 
a big hat or a big Twitter following. He's got a million followers. 
He must be right. Is that what we've been reduced 
to? Is that what we've come to? Is that how we measure the mark 
of a man? is that he has Twitter followers? Or he got that on his Facebook 
post? What happened to the approbation 
of God? What happened to the smile of 
our Lord? What happened to a good conscience 
before God and men? What happened to those things 
that the Bible enjoins are the marks of the measure of a man? Not the sorts of things that 
we put stock and trade into. Secondly, we ought to hear this 
passage deal with false teachers. Ryle says, above all, it is an 
awful evidence of the guilt of unfaithful teachers. So long 
as the world stands, this chapter ought to be a warning and a beacon 
to all ministers of religion. No sins are so sinful as theirs 
in the sight of Christ. It's terrifying. It's a terrifying 
passage. And it certainly does teach those 
who preach or teach the Bible that they need to preach it and 
live accordingly. They need to live by the grace 
of God according to the Word of God that they preach. Listen 
to Matthew Henry. He says, those are of all sinners 
most inexcusable that allow in themselves the sins they condemn 
in others. He says, this does especially 
touch wicked ministers. For what greater hypocrisy can 
there be than to press that upon others which they themselves 
disbelieve and disobey? It does seem like such a betrayal 
when a man falls into sin. A pastor, a preacher, a man who 
sought to preach the Word of God. It turns out, you know, 
next week he was seen here, he was seen there, he was doing 
this or he was doing that. It's a letdown. Why? Because 
you have a reasonable expectation that the people who are telling 
you one thing are at least trying to live by that one thing. Don't 
you? Henry says this, and I think 
this is beautiful. When in the pulpit, preaching 
so well, that it is a pity they should ever come out. But when 
out of the pulpit, living so ill, that it is a pity they should 
ever come in. He says, like bells that call 
others to church, but hang out of it themselves. Terrifying. I wonder if this is why Paul 
tells several churches in his correspondence, brethren, pray 
for us. I wonder if this is why James 
says, let not many of you become, because we shall incur a stricter 
judgment. I mean, it's one thing to get 
something wrong in a particular job and profession that may have 
major ramifications. But if preachers of the gospel 
get things wrong, it has major ramifications for the persons 
that hear them. And as we learn in this passage, 
if we preach up in the pulpit and then go live contrary in 
the world, that is to help men on their way to hell. We need 
to guard, we need to watch, we need to pray. And finally, to 
any and all here that do not believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, 
you may think I forgot about you this morning, But I want 
you to notice what it says of these religious leaders in verse 
5. I'm sorry, in verse 4. I do think the attentive reader 
of Matthew's Gospel should hear the echo of Matthew 11 here. 
Matthew 11, 28-30. I've already rehearsed it, I've already read it. You need to hear what the Savior 
says. He says, come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden. 
That doesn't mean physically. It doesn't mean you had a late 
night last night. Junior woke up four times and 
you had to clothe him and diaper him and wipe up vomit so you're 
tired this morning. That's not what it means. The 
weariness and the heavy ladenness is because of sin. That's your 
problem this morning. It's not your parents. It's not 
your kids. It's not society. It's not the 
prime minister. It's not the environment. It's 
not those vicious Christians who try and tell you the truth. 
Your problem this morning, outside of Christ, is sin. You are weary 
and heavy-laden, loaded down with it. It's a burden that you 
cannot part with. It's a burden you can't remove 
by your trying, by your doing, by your working, by your best 
intentions and efforts. The only way this burden is loosed 
is by hating the words of the Savior. Come to me, He says, 
all you who are weary and heavy laden. And what will He do? Listen 
to the promise of the text. He says, I will give you rest. 
Now I want you just to listen and hear what Christ says in 
this passage. Some of you may have been raised 
in traditions where Jesus says, come and I will give you rest, 
and traditions may say, no, don't go, because he won't give you 
rest. Listen to Jesus versus your tradition. Listen to Christ, 
the authoritative preacher, the rabbi, the teacher, the master, 
the mentor, the professor that has rights to sit in Moses' seat. Heed his word this morning. You 
have sinned. You have been found out. You 
need remedy, and that remedy is to be found in Christ. Come, 
is what Christ says. How do we come? I can't fly in 
a rocket ship to get to heaven. The Bible tells us to believe 
on Him. We walk by faith, not by sight. We come to the Savior, we close 
with the Savior through faith and repentance, those graces 
that God Himself gives. You say, but... No, no but. Come to Christ. But that's not... Come to Christ. That's not going 
to fix it. Come to Christ. Talk to anybody 
in this church who has a history, a past, a record of great sin 
against a great God, and listen to them, with probably a gleam 
in their eye and a tear down their cheek, talking about how 
Jesus paid it all. Jesus took it all. Jesus took 
on Himself the punishment that was due for our sins, and because 
of His grace, because of His mercy, I have everlasting life. Please come to the Savior. As Paul says, you will not be 
disappointed. You will not be put to shame. 
You will have everlasting life. Well, let us pray. Our Father, 
we thank you for the Word of God and we thank you for this 
condemnation of pride and for this promotion or well-treatment 
of humility. God, if we are mindful of our 
own hearts and our own Bibles and these things, we will see 
ourselves in a passage like this and we will confess that we are 
the man and we will ask for forgiveness and for cleansing in the blood 
of the Lord Jesus Christ. And our hearts desire and earnest 
plea is that if there are any here that are not saved, you, 
by grace, would reach down and free them and deliver them by 
the power of the gospel of our Lord Jesus. Send the Spirit to 
do what is impossible with man. And we ask this through Christ 
our Lord. Amen.