Confession: I am a pharisee. I love rules, order and being right. Oh, how I love right and wrong. Mostly I love being self righteous, convinced I’ve got it all figured out. Honestly, when I feel all self-righteous and proud, I’ve got it completely wrong. Just like the Pharisees in the Bible, I can get so far from the heart of Jesus that I damage what He is doing in this world. Hear these words from Andy Stanley: “Jesus died at the hands of men who were convinced they were doing the will of God, men who were committed to protecting and defendng the law. Tragically, they protected and defended it to the exclusion of its purpose.” Those words pierce my heart because I am like these men, loving the letter of the law and abandoning the heart of the law giver.
But don’t lose hope, because all is not lost for us Pharisees. Take, for example, one of my favorite men from the Bible, Joseph of Arimathea. This guy was a Pharisee, probably saw or heard about (maybe even participated in) the three am interrogation session in which the Sanhedrin declared Jesus a blasphemer and sentenced him to death. At the same time, he was a secret follower of this same Jesus. After Jesus has died, Joseph’s compassion for Jesus overrules his desire to keep to the rules, so he asks for Jesus’ body to give it a proper burial. How strange that this man stands up for Jesus when his disciples have fled, the world condemns, and the enemy thinks he’s won. Joseph the Pharisee carries on the gospel story when the main players leave the stage because his rule-abiding heart recognizes and responds to the heart cry of God.
That is the core of transformation -- God changing us from the inside out. Switching the character of our hearts. Read his short story in Mark 15:42-47.
Jesus changes our whitewashed tombs filled with decay (Matthew 23:28) to empty tombs because he has brought new life! Because of God’s transforming work in me, the Pharisee in me is dying, being replaced by a new humanity: one filled with compassion, seeking the purpose of God and being a willing agent in his movement. I am following the steps of Joseph in unexpected empathy. Where does your heart need to be molded away from rules and toward grace?
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