Then Jesus said to them, "Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees." Matt. 16:6
It is sad that so many people are turned away from Jesus today because of the actions of church-goers. Working in retail I discovered first hand that many of my problem customers where “Christians”; how unfortunate that they acted like Pharisees. When we set back and realize that we are the light of the world, we need to ask ourselves what the message is that we are sending. Are we giving people a proper representation of our savior?
Christ’s teachings leave no room for arrogance, egocentrism, or hypocrisy. However, our sin nature makes it easy for us to fall into the practice of these Phariseeisms. We as Christians must realize that we have two natures: sinful (carnal) and spiritual. We must decide to feed one nature and in so doing starve the other; if we feed the sinful nature and give in to the desires of the flesh, the spirit will suffer and our witness will be marred. However, if we will choose to feed the spirit through a closer walk with Jesus Christ (with prayer, Bible study, fellowshipping with believers, etc.) then we will starve and weaken the flesh.
Phariseeisms are not born overnight; they are developed in earthly thinking, traditions, and selfishness. They typically enter our lives in ways that seem innocent and harmless, and then they take root in our lives. We need to ask God to help us review our hearts and attitudes, that we may remove any Phariseeisms that are growing in our lives; the longer they grow, the harder they are to eradicate.
Will you ask God to reveal to you anything in your life that is damaging your witness and pushing people away from Jesus Christ? On deep review you may find that there are some habits and attitudes that need to go. Will you ask and allow God to strip any Phariseeisms from your life? If you are to show people who Jesus truly is, you must!
