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NASB | Matthew 7:6 ¶ "Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Matthew 7:6 ¶ "Do not give that which is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, for they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces. |
Subject: throwing our pearl? |
Bible Note: Willard's book is an excellent one, but I have to disagree that Jesus was opposed to the Pharisees simply because they were "sure of their theology." Jesus Himself was absolutely sure of His theology as well; the problem with the Pharisees is that their theology was invented by them rather than derived from God's revelation. "You hypocrites, rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you: 'THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME. BUT IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME, TEACHING AS DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN.'" --Matthew 15:7-9 Jesus taught more than anyone else in the Bible on the issue of hell, and He most certainly did preach things that caused people other than Pharisees to go away from Him (John 6:66). Therefore, "preaching" and "loving" are not opposites. Here are some differences between the Pharisees' preaching and that of our Lord: 1. Jesus' theology was correct; the Pharisees added their own legalisms and misinterpreted the nature of the Law. 2. The Pharisees wrongly placed themselves in a moral category separate from those to whom they were preaching. All good preaching by sinful human beings is not from "me" to "you all," but from "me" to "us all." Jesus lived what He preached perfectly, but we get a very real sense that He does not place Himself outside of His preaching, since He was at the same time God and a man under the Law. 3. He held the truth with humility, whereas the Pharisees thanked God that they were "superior" to other men. There is much false teaching in the church today on exactly what the nature of the conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees happened to be. People have used the term "Pharisee" to describe anyone who points out a brother's sin and dares to call it so, rather than tolerating sin like the Corinthians did (1 Corinthians 5); to describe anyone who loves God's law like David did (Psalm 119) rather than despises it like modern-day antinomians do; and to describe anyone who insists that there is a Biblical pattern of church government rather than "every man for himself." We really need to get a handle on what exactly made the attitude of the Pharisees so detestable to the Holy One of Israel, so that we don't paint a caricature of Christ that doesn't reflect His true nature. --Joe! |