Featured When a Critic Plays 'the Pharisee Card'

I have told this story before, but the example that sticks in my mind is the overweight Pharisee at a pot luck shoveling food in his mouth and talking about another member who bought lottery tickets as a bad example. It was hard to understand him, as his mouth was full of food. It says to me that while we worry about lottery tickets and dancing, we give a wink and a nod to gluttony and gossip.

 

:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

 

The Pharisees distorted scripture, which made it to no effect. They espoused legalism, holding to the letter of the law but missing the spirit of the law. They were quick to find fault with those, like the advocates of the Way, who held different views, especially those who claimed the Pharisees held errant views. So many false teachers are like Pharisees, making the word of God to no effect, and also like cult leaders, saying those who hold differing views are of Satan.

Bottom line, you can have folks name calling to disparage a differing view, and thus using the Pharisee Card like the Race Card, or you can have folks behaving like the Pharisees of old, finding fault with others, thinking they are holier than thou, but blind to the truth.

 

I must be the odd man out. I have preached on gossip. I did not need to preach on gluttony as those who had weight issues did not have gluttony issues, and they were working with their doctors to address the weight issue. In that church in the course of 2 years there were 3 people who lost over 100 lbs.

Of course, I also have been known to call people pharisees and legalists when there attitudes and actions warrant such/


BTW, in an unrelated matter, if you know a church needing a pastor shoot me a PM, please. :smilewinkgrin:

 

SBC, right?

 

I commend you for addressing gossip. When someone comes up to me at church and it starts off with "did you hear what..........." there are two purposes. Either to let me know so we can pray for the person and gently bring them back into God's will if necessary, or as is usually the case, the purpose is the entertainment of gossip. My normal response is that I do not want to hear it.