Thursday
Read – Matthew 23:25–27
SOAP – Matthew 23:25-26
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, so that the outside may become clean as well.
It is easy to condemn the Pharisees, but we are all hypocrites. We want to present a perfect image to the world, but we are often full of greed, pride, and self-centeredness. We believe the lie that if we follow all the external rules, we will prove ourselves worthy in God’s eyes: going to church, memorizing Scripture, saying all the right things, and going through all the proper motions. But God cares about our hearts and our motivations much more than what kind of show we can put on.
We cannot let the standards of other people define the condition of our hearts. We need to ask God to clean us from the inside out. If all we were looking for was self-help moral improvement, we could pretty easily pull that off ourselves. But when no one else is looking, we know what a messy and broken place our hearts are. Only God can give us pure hearts that seek Him above everything else.
Lord, I am sinful. Even when it looks like I’m following all the rules, I know You really see me. Thank You for Your gift of grace, so that I do not have to fear Your knowledge. Give me a pure heart, Lord, and cleanse me of my sins.