1487. The Attitude of Christ Toward the Religionists

The Attitude of Christ Toward the Religionists

"How often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not" (Mat_23:37).

We now have one of the most astounding visions of our Lord's attitude toward men.

We thought, as we have come down the line, that it was wonderful that Christ should welcome the outcast and save the criminal, but here is something more marvelous still.

There were a group of people in Israel who hounded every step that the Lord took. They gave Him nothing but bitter antagonism. They sought to entangle Him in His talk, they turned His Father's House into a den of thieves. They professed to be pious, when in very fact they were impious, going about seeking to slay Him.

Let us study how our Lord dealt with these religionists, the Pharisees and Sadducees, the rulers and leaders in Israel.

1. His attitude toward His questioners. In Matthew 22, there is presented an accumulation of questions. Mat_22:15 says: "Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might entangle Him in His talk."

First, they said: "Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not?" Next, they asked Him about the woman who had seven husbands, and who should be her husband in the resurrection. Then, they asked Him which was the great Commandment of the Law.

The remarkable thing is that in all of these attacks, the Lord Jesus never lost His poise, He never snapped back. With the mien which marked Him as the Son of God, He responded to their words.

Finally, with a heart yearning to enlighten their minds, and to draw them to His claims, He asked them a question: "What think ye of Christ? whose Son is He?"

The Lord knew how to heap coals of fire upon the heads of His enemies, and He sought to win them to Himself.

2. His attitude toward the hypocritical Pharisees. The darkest anathemas that ever fell from the lips of Christ were spoken against the Pharisees.

These anathemas are recorded in Matthew 23. In reading them one would almost think that the Christ who was willing to receive and to pardon every other class of humanity, had nothing but bitter denunciation of these false religionists, these Pharisees, the most despicable of men.

However, when one reads the closing words of Christ's pronouncement of woes against the hypocrites, he finds that the very heart of Christ was stirred with a marvelous depth of sorrow and compassion, of tender love and mercy even while He spoke His woes.

Christ said, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the Prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!"

If the Lord thus yearned over the Pharisaical hypocrites, the destructive critics of His day, let us remember that we should yearn over the critics and hypocrites of our day.

Autor: R.E. NEIGHBOUR