TOPIC: “HE CARES FOR THE TOTAL MAN“

Text:  Luke 11:37-54

37. And as he spake, a certain Pharisee besought him to dine with him; and he went in, and sat down to meat.

38. And when the Pharisee saw it, he marvelled that he had not first washed before dinner.

39. And the Lord said unto him, Now do ye Pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and the platter; but your inward part is full of ravening and wickedness.

40. Ye fools, did not he that made that which is without make that which is within also?

41. But rather give alms of such things as ye have; and, behold, all things are clean unto you.

42. But woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God; these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

43. Woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye love the uppermost seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets.

44. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are as graves which appear not, and the men that walk over them are not aware of them.

45. Then answered one of the lawyers, and said unto him, Master, thus saying thou reproachest us also.

46. And he said, Woe unto you also, ye lawyers! for ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers.

47. Woe unto you! for ye build the sepulchres of the prophets, and your fathers killed them.

48. Truly ye bear witness that ye allow the deeds of your fathers; for they indeed killed them, and ye build their sepulchres.

49. Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute;

50. That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation;

51. From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple; verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation.

52. Woe unto you, lawyers! for ye have taken away the key of knowledge; ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered.

53. And as he said these things unto them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to urge him vehemently, and to provoke him to speak of many things;

54. Laying wait for him, and seeking to catch something out of his mouth, that they might accuse him.

KEY VERSE: Luke 11:40

“Ye fools, did not he that made that which is without make that which is within also?”

MESSAGE

If a holy God made man in His own image, then it would be unthinkable that He would prefer one part of man to be holy and the other untended in the direction of righteousness. But the Almighty fashioned both the outer segment of man to be as holy as the inner being. It is hypocritical to claim that God is only keen on the inside (heart) and not the outward. Such attracts condemnation.

A Pharisee exposed this hollow nature of his sect when the Lord honoured his invitation to dine in his house. He criticised Jesus that “he had not first washed before dinner.” In His reaction, the Lord denounced the pharisaical pursuit of religiosity by the observance of codes and ceremonies instead of dealing with the wickedness in their souls. They enjoyed habits that gave the impression they were pleasing God, but their hearts brewed acts that broke His rules and killed His prophets.

If one is holy in the heart, it would manifest in his external being. Man should first release his heart to God for cleansing from sins. His inner perfection would then be manifested by outward obedience to His Creator.

At salvation, the Lord transforms our heart and makes us tuned for good external works; at sanctification, He purges the soul to produce holy acts. The Lord is interested in both the purity of our hearts as much as He is in our outward performance. We must not be like the Pharisees who invested on the physical body rather than on the heart.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
When He works on your heart, your character will be transformed.

THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
1 Samuel 23-24

Daily Manna is the daily devotional of the Deeper Christian Life Bible Ministry (DCLM). It is an extraction of God’s Word designed to draw the sincere seeker closer to God on a daily basis through an insightful exposition and analysis of God’s Word.