Pharisaic Moralism: Features

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Characteristics of Pharisaic Moralism/ Legalism

What are the characteristics of legalism?

Jesus discourse in Matthew 23 gives us a clear characteristics of Pharisaic Moralism. Jesus pronounced seven woes on the Pharisees, Saducees and Scribes.

They seat in Moses’ seat- authoritarian and highly judgmental. They love the praise of office and religion and not the responsibility and spiritual gravity attached.

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. They display hypocrisy by appearing religious and lay heavy demands of the law on others which they know in their inner hearts they are void of such spiritual realities.

But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments. They pay attention to the externals of righteousness. It is self centered and man focused. The righteousness is to be appraised by men. They pay attention to their dressing and appearance to be seen as righteous by men.

They love the best places at feasts and the best places in the synagogues. Greetings in the market places and to be called by men, “Rabbi, Rabbi.” They love the honour of men, want to be regarded of men and seen as the best of men. They love class (and this can be spiritual class) and to be paraded before men.

Woe to them because they shut the kingdom of God against others. They are not willing to go in and neither willing that others go in also. The pathetic end of Pharisaic Moralism is that it ends in destruction because they trust in self effort for their salvation. They did not trust Christ for salvation.

Woe to them who devour widow’s houses and for a pretense makes long prayers. They use external show of righteousness as a covering to inner decay and corruption. They conceal their sinfulness of greed and covetousness.

Woe to them for they travel land and sea to win one proselyte, but when he is won, they make him twice as much a son of hell than themselves. They are passionate and zealous that they can vigorously embark on evangelism but the convert never gets saved.

Let me elaborate more on this. The Jews believe that as children of Abraham, they are sons of promise and as such special to God. They pride in this heritage and the Abrahamic covenant. Thus, they believe that if the Gentiles are to be participants of the Commonwealth of Israel, they need to be circumcised and obey the Mosaic law. However, no one can be saved by adherence to the Mosaic law. So had the Gentile not be converted, he is destined for hell and after being “proselyzed” still remains a candidate of hell even after going through all the rigours of circumcision and obeying the Mosaic law. So Jesus said that they are twice a candidate of hell than before. It must be emphasized again and again that any religion based on Moralism cannot save no matter under whatever umbrella it is disguised either as “Holiness Movement,” Christian etc

Woe to them blind guides… They are theologically bankrupt. They place more emphasis on the mundane. The gold on the temple is considered as far better the temple itself and the gift on the altar is seen as more sacred than the altar that makes it holy. So the work of Christ is trampled underfoot as good works and sacrifices are placed over and above what Christ has accomplished for us on the cross.

Woe to them, hypocrites, for they pay tithes of mint and anise and cummin, but have neglected the weightier matters of the law which is judgment, mercy and faith. They have imbalanced theology. They pay interest to the externals of religion but do not seek the inner transformation that salvation really offers.

Blind guides, they strain out a gnat and swallow a camel. They give less but expect much. Their inner lives are empty and void though they promise much on the outside or external.

Woe to them for they cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. Morality does not really curb lust or the desires of the flesh. Morality can never give a blow to the sinful nature or desires. It is only faith in Christ that brings genuine transformation and cleansing of the heart by His blood.

Woe to them for they are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. Even so they also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. Moralism makes one appear good despite the rotten nature of the inner man. Many who adhere to Moralism are hypocrites because nothing can really wash the rottenness of the human soul and spirit.

Woe to them hypocrites! Because they build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, saying, If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets but Christ said they will bear the consequences of all the prophets killed from Abel to Zechariah. They are self righteous and full of self appraisal. Oh! We cannot sin! They say whereas they are hopelessly lost and born in sin.

© Purpose Media Publications, 2020