The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Matthew 3:7-10,
"When he [John the baptist] saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: 'You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not think you can say to yourselves, "We have Abraham as our father." I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.'"
These Pharisees and Sadducees were the religious leaders of the day. In Acts 23:8 we read about them, "The Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, and that there are neither angels nor spirits, but the Pharisees believe all these things."
"When he [John the baptist] saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: 'You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not think you can say to yourselves, "We have Abraham as our father." I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.'"
These Pharisees and Sadducees were the religious leaders of the day. In Acts 23:8 we read about them, "The Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, and that there are neither angels nor spirits, but the Pharisees believe all these things."
From this we might categorize these two groups as the Pharisees being the more conservative and literal with the Scriptures and the Sadducees much like the churches today that have abandoned the Scriptures as representing the things of God accurately. I think you get the picture. In any event, the two groups taken together represent a spectrum of theological thought and practice.
As I say, they were the religious leaders of the day, and yet John castigates them here, as Jesus did later on. Why would there be religious leaders who bring condemnation of themselves from those sent from God himself?
Clearly, they didn't speak for the Lord.
These religious leaders represent so much of what we see in the church today. Abandoning the truths in Scripture, many, many "religious leaders" today do not speak for God. Where God condemns homosexuality, many of today's leaders embrace it. Where the Lord has provided us a gospel message of faith many of today's leaders advocate for a message of being a "do-gooder". Where God defines justice in Scripture, many of today's leaders have replaced that with their own version of "social justice" (in order to advance a political agenda). You get the drift.
Clearly, many, many religious leaders lead people away from God, just as they did in John's day. If you are under anyone's leadership that does not place priority on God's revelation of himself and his perspective on the things of this life, go elsewhere! Why allow someone to lead you into disfavor with God? That kind of leadership leads in a bad direction!
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
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Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.
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