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7/13 Reading Portions: Joshua 18-19; Psalms 149-150; Jeremiah 9; Matthew 23
“Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” Matthew 23:12
WOE
When the Lord Jesus declared seven woes upon the hypocritical scribes and Pharisees, He was addressing His disciples as well as the multitude (Matt 23:1).
Certainly, the born-again believer in Jesus Christ will never suffer the fate of those who have rejected Christ, such as being unable to enter into the kingdom of heaven (Matt 23:13) or being damned to the eternal torments of hell (Matt 23:33). Neither will the soul saved by grace receive the wrath of God poured out upon them because of the shed blood of the righteous (Matt 23:35; Rev 14:18-20). We should heed these woes, however. First, these are the characteristics of the unbelieving world (1 Jn 2:16). We must recognize the difference. Second, the corruptions still remaining in our flesh may cause some of our actions to reflect the selfishness of these sins. Our behavior, say, at times may reflect a witness which would make the kingdom of heaven and salvation in Christ unappealing to others (Matt 23:13). Our religious pretense may also rise up instead of the gentle and humble spirit of pure, undefiled religion (Jas 1:27) and genuine Christian love (John 13:35). There may also be times when we give greater value to the actions of our religious duty (Matt 23:23-24) than in trusting explicitly upon the finished work of Christ and the grace of God which produces those works (Titus 2:10-11; 3:4-8).
When are we most prone to slide into such error? When humility gives way to haughtiness; when precious submission gives place to prideful exaltation; when love for Christ becomes secondary to fleshly lusts and worldly passions. Yet when we have humbled ourselves with a look upon Jesus Christ, He exalts us by drawing us nearer to His holy presence. The nearer He draws us to Himself, the more humble we become and the more service we fulfill in Christ’s kingdom (Matt 23:11). Hallelujah! What a Savior!
Let not the woes from Jesus Christ
Define our gospel works;
For Christ’s death and atoning price
Are our most valued worth.
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How true! We should never preach ourselves but Christ! 🙏❤️. We can do nothing without Him!