“Being Religious Is Not the Same as Being Good”

YEAH! Church - Sunday, March 27, 2022

Doing Life with Jesus”
Today’s Lesson - “Being Religious Is Not the Same as Being Good”

Video Story/Resource:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DlWZ-HI9B8 (Bible Heroes of the Faith - Jesus and the Hypocrisy of the Pharisees)

Jesus Corrects the Religious Leaders
Matthew 23:1-30, NLT
“Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, 2 “The teachers of religious law and the Pharisees are the official interpreters of the law of Moses. 3 So practice and obey whatever they tell you, but don’t follow their example. For they don’t practice what they teach. 4 They crush people with unbearable religious demands and never lift a finger to ease the burden. 5 Everything they do is for show.”

​Jesus accused the Pharisees and teachers of the Law of only wanting to appear ‘good,’ but were in fact not good at all. They followed very strict laws, but they lacked mercy. They did not understand the heart of God and so made obedience to God very hard for others. Jesus said they had no true concern for God and his Laws…they just wanted to have power, influence and to have people think they were all that.

Jesus told them they were in serious trouble with God for how they were behaving. God didn’t care how religious they were; if they didn’t love God and love others, all their strict rules would get them nowhere.

Engage:
• Jesus accused the Pharisees of only trying to look good. What did he tell them was more important?
• The religious leaders were experts in God’s Laws. Why did they not understand what God really wanted?
• The Pharisees loved to get attention from people. Do we ever do things just so others will like us or think we’re important?
• It is important to study the Bible. How can we make certain we don’t fall into the same trap that the Pharisees and religious leaders did, of thinking that what they knew was more important than how they behaved?

Weekly verse:
Mark 2:17, NLT – “Jesus said, ‘Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.’”

2022 Theme verses:
Colossians 2:6-7, NLT – “And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.”

Prayer – Dear God, thank you that Jesus told us what is important to you…not just obeying every law, but also of being loving and kind. Help us to know how to please you. Help us to always be honest about how much we need you and not think we’re better than anyone else.
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~ Pastor Jane