A Surprising Turn of Events

Before you start todays devotional, ask the Lord to use it to grow you up in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

If you’ve ever tried to stand up for your faith, you know the subtle ways people can twist your words. Jesus—history’s most brilliant person—faced this same kind of intellectual attack. Those who think Jesus is “meek and mild” are in for a surprise at how strategically He interacted with the “religious” rulers of His day.

Enemy #1: Herodians (22:15-22)—The Herodians asked coyly, Jesus, should we pay tax to Caesar? If He had said, “No,” He would be a traitor to Rome. If He said, “Yes,” He couldn’t be the true Messiah.

Instead, Jesus calls them out, “Why do you test Me, you hypocrites?” Jesus asked them for a coin. Whose face is this? (Obviously Caesar’s). So, give to Caesar what’s due him and give to God what’s His. His amazing answer left them “marveling.”

Enemy #2: Sadducees (22:23-33)—This religious group didn’t believe in the resurrection, but they posed a ridiculous scenario about marriage in heaven. Their story proved they knew nothing about Scripture or God’s power.

Marriage between a man and a woman is only for life on earth, Jesus said. And as for life in heaven, we’ll be just as much ourselves as ever; we’ll simply transfer from earth to another place. Your loved ones who have died in Christ are not dead but alive. This is glorious truth—and it shut everyone’s mouths.

Enemy #3 The Pharisees (22:34-40)—The Pharisees enlisted a clever lawyer, an expert in the Mosaic Law to ask: Which is the great commandment? Jesus says, “To love God, and to love your neighbor is the next greatest.” These two commandments happen to summarize the entire Mosaic Law.

The Lord masterfully answers each group with consistent, biblical arguments. His enemies couldn’t escape the Word Himself. But rather than submitting to His authority, they now plot His death. The Lord Jesus, the Savior, knew this and sat securely under the shadow of the Cross.

But the confrontation isn’t over. Jesus turns the tables on the Pharisees. First, He asks His own question that none would answer because it would declare Him to be the Messiah. Then, in unmistakable terms, Jesus condemns them with eight “woes.” He told the crowd not to follow the scribes and Pharisees because they didn’t follow God’s Word. He accuses them of blocking the way to heaven by their false leadership. No words that ever fell from the lips of our Lord were more scathing.

In essence He says, Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees:

· You pray long but are heartless and crooked in your businesses.

· You value material things rather than their spiritual purposes.

· You make much of little things but have forgotten what brings people to God.

· You put value on externals, but inside you don’t deal with sin. You don’t even like the word sin.

· You substitute ritual for reality, formality for faith, and liturgy for God.

· You are like beautiful coffins full of rotting dead men's bones.

· You have a form of godliness but have no power to be new creations in Christ.

Jesus holds them to full accountability. How can you escape hell’s damnation? Of course, the only way out of hell stood right in front of them, but they rejected Him.

And He who just condemned them, now weeps over them. He pronounces these woes with a broken heart. Not only did the religious rulers stand there in shock, but so did Jesus’ disciples. What a strange turn of events. A postponed kingdom, a destroyed temple, and He was going away.

But He would come back, He said. And when He did, He would reign as King.

1. What did Jesus’ answer to the Herodians about taxes reveal about His mission at His first coming?

2. Jesus taught that, even though Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were dead, they are still alive. How should this impact our thinking about loved ones of ours who have died?

3. At the core of Jesus’ condemnations of the religious leaders is their desire to appear externally righteous, but Jesus wants to change us from the inside out. Are there times and circumstances when you struggle with being more worried about looking righteous than being righteous?

Additional Resources

Listen to Dr. J. Vernon McGee’s complete teachings on Matthew 22:15—23:22 and Matthew 23:23—24:3.