Pharisee Who Got an Earful — E.A. Johnston

I had just finished preaching in a Baptist church, and my message that evening was on repentance and the duty of it, and I hit it pretty hard. And one of the deacons didn't take too kindly to that, and when I was done, he walked over to me and threatened me, and there was hell in his eyes.

Jesus Confronts Religious Formalism

I've learned that any time you confront a religious mummy who is bound with the wrappings of formalism and tradition, and you go and tell him that unless he repents, he will surely bust hell wide open, then that religious mummy will turn into a Frankenstein, and you will have a fight on your hands, just like Jesus does in our passage this evening, friends, turning your Bibles to Luke's Gospel.

The Pharisee Invites Jesus to Dinner

In chapter 11, we will be in verses 37 and following, well, let's look at our text here in chapter 11. And as he spake, a certain Pharisee besought him to dine with him, and he went in and sat down to meet.

Jesus’ Humanity and the Pharisees’ Accusations

Let me pause here, friends. Jesus was hungry. He'd been preaching all day, and he was looking forward to a good meal. Do you see anything wrong with that? You shouldn't? Some folks did, however, for they labeled Jesus a wine-bibber and a glutton.

I guess they thought he should have acted more like a monk, but in his humanity, he hungered. I don't know about you, brother preacher, but I can work up a pretty good appetite by preaching. So here's Jesus, who is invited to a nice dinner, and he goes straight to the table, and he's looking forward to it, but his host finds fault with him for doing that.

Ritual Washing and Hidden Motives

And when the Pharisee saw it, he marveled that he had not first washed before dinner. Sometimes one of these religious mommies will invite you over for dinner because they have a bone to pick with you, and that bone of contention is getting them pretty hot under the collar, and they can't wait to let you have it.

I'm reminded of a story Rolf Barnard told about being invited to a deacon's home after preaching for a huge brunch that would choke a horse. Barnard said the deacon was a farmer, and he was a big man, and his table was laden with four kinds of meat, four kinds of bread, all kinds of vegetables with all the trimmings.

And Rolf Barnard dug in and began to enjoy that terrific meal, when the deacon, who was sitting opposite him at the head of the table, called out, Preacher, I don't agree with what you said today. And Rolf Barnard just kept his head down and kept on eating.

The deacon got a little redder in the face and hollered, I said, Preacher, I don't agree with what you said today. My God wouldn't act that way and send anybody to hell. And Rolf Barnard laid his fork down and replied, I reckon you're right.

Your God wouldn't act that way, but the God of the Bible would. And here we have Jesus in a tricky situation, where his host is upset with him. Well, how does he handle it? I think I can answer that by the title of my message this evening, friends.

The Pharisee Who Got an Earful

The Pharisee Who Got an Earful. Look at verse 39 and following. Now do you Pharisees make clean the outside of the cup and the platter, but your inward part is full of ravening and wickedness? Ye fools, did not he that made that which is without make that which is within also?

Jesus Exposes Hypocrisy and Inward Wickedness

Let me pause here to say that Jesus calls this religious phony out by pointing out his hypocrisy and revealing his evil heart. Then Jesus reads the old boy the right act and begins to pronounce a series of woes upon him.

I can just see his white puffy cheeks go blood red at Jesus' pointedly declaring. But woe unto you Pharisees, for you tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs and pass over judgment and the love of God.

These ought ye to have done and not to leave the other undone. Jesus calls them out for their sins of omission and their Pharisee-ism. Then Jesus goes on a tear and pronounces more woes on them, saying they love the praise of men and they love the choice seats because they consider themselves bigwigs who demand attention and respect.

Jesus sums them all up in verse 44 by saying, woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites. Jesus was not a politically correct preacher. He called a spade a spade. And we see the result of this dinner confrontation in verses 53 and 54.

Opposition to Uncompromising Preaching

And as he said these things unto them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to urge him vehemently and to provoke him to speak many things, laying weight for him and seeking to catch something out of his mouth that they might accuse him.

I will stop there, friends. I reckon the men in ministry who have had the most trouble with and who've given me the most trouble of accusing me to the point of some even saying I had no business to be a preacher were other Baptist preachers who were a little too tightly wrapped.

Preaching the Whole Gospel Without Dilution

I'll say this about that, friends. If you start preaching the gospel of the cross and you don't sugarcoat it or dilute it to make it more palatable to sinful man, you will have a disturbance on your hands from some nice church folk who never heard about all the rights and claims that the gospel has on a follower of Christ Jesus.