30th Mar 26 | 13:54
Studies by Book
Luke 11 37-54 Repenting from hypocrisy Woe 3
📖 Luke 11:37-54
*Cleansing of our hearts* _Luke 11:37-54_
God is against all forms of hypocrisy. He sees the duplicity of our hearts and our lives. He sees through all our pretensions and show of spirituality and God hates this wickedness _Luke 11:39._
What was spirituality and purification for the Jews? It was in the washing of hands in a special way and in the washing of all the vessels _Mark 7:2-5._ This was purification in their minds and they took it to such an extreme that these outward actions of washing and other such rituals, became their doctrine and this is what they taught _John 3:25._
_We may say that we are not like the Jews but friends, let us examine our own form of spirituality that we practise today. We are involved in worship, prayer, fastings, evangelistic activities, missions, giving and so forth but are we concerned about the manipulations and manoeuvrings of our hearts? Is there self indulgence and pride in our hearts, whereas, outwardly, we put on a mask of humility? God sees through our deception and it angers Him _Matthew 15:8-9/23:25._ The woes that our Lord pronounced to the Jewish religious leaders, apply to us, too.
This was the problem of Apostle Paul. He says that he advanced in Judaism and was exceedingly zealous for the tradition of the fathers _ Galatians 1:14._ For generations the Jewish people, were made to think that the outward ritualistic procedures that they so sincerely followed, was the doctrine of God. They were caught up in this form of religiosity. They chose to be blinded to what God desired of them, which was the washing of their hearts, which was not hidden from them. God longed that they would wash their hearts and be saved _ Jeremiah 4:14/Isaiah 1:16-19/55:7/Ezekiel 18:31/33:31._
_Friends, would we today put this teaching aside and say, “This does not apply to me”? Or would we be willing to come before God and desire His correction of our hearts and our spirits? If He does show us the dark areas of our hearts, will we be willing to let God heal us and correct us, there?_
*Thought to ponder*
```Today, our nations are not healed because we, the church, did not repent before God. II Chronicles 7:14```