Woe to Blind Guides

Woe to you, blind guides, who say, “Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.” Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold? And, “Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.” Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift? Therefore he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things on it. He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it. And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it (Matthew 23:16-22).

Jesus condemned the Scribes and Pharisees for being ‘blind guides’. They were recipients of the oracles, statutes, precepts, and laws of God, but Jesus said they were blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch (Matthew 15:14). This is a double indictment. The Jews were blind to the things of God and their leaders were blind leaders leading the blind. How is that so? All that the Lord God had given them in His Word and worship pointed to the coming Messiah. In having all these things, they failed to see the Messiah when He arrived; they failed to recognize Him because they could not or would not see beyond the letter of the Law to the God of the Law.

How true this is today. It is the damnable lie of Satan to believe it is enough to honor the tenets of the Christian religion without a personal relationship to Jesus Christ. It is emphasized by many church leaders that a person obey the dogma or doctrine of the church, the rituals, the rites, the ceremonies, etc., but seldom give no instruction on how to engage the Lord God personally through Jesus Christ. Adherent to a religious group can practice the ‘sacraments’ of their religion, commit abominable sins, return to their religion and repeat those ‘sacraments’, then go on like nothing ever happened (remember ‘The Godfather’?) all the while under the authority of their religious leader, priest, pastor, etc. The ‘blind leading the blind’. Christ-less Christianity. Having a form of godliness but denying its power (2 Timothy 3:5).

Jesus emphasized the point clearly through two examples. The Temple was the symbol of God’s presence among His people. How was the gold of the Temple more precious, important, or authoritative than God whom the Temple represented? The same is true by swearing to the altar. To swear by the altar was to swear by the sacrifice on the altar, and that was one’s gift of worship to God. To call the Temple nothing, and to call the altar nothing was to call God nothing! Instead, Jesus said (Matthew 5:34-37), Do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.' For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.

“Lord Jesus, before we begin to lead others in faith or discipleship, may we be sure our faith is genuine and our discipleship real. To Your honor and glory I ask, Amen.”

Pastor