Pharisees:

the Good and the Bad

It seems that most Christians today have little or no idea what a "Pharisee" was. For most, the Pharisees seem to be the "bad boys" of the New Testament. But just how "bad" were they?

          Read what the Messiah said about their doctrine: "The Pharisees occupy the chair of Moses. You must therefore do and observe what they tell you, but do not be guided by what they do, since they do not practice what they preach." [Matthew 23:2-3] The Messiah was saying that the Pharisees were teaching the Commandments correctly, but they were being hypocritical in their practice of the Law.

In fact, the Messiah was in agreement with all the major teachings of Hillel, the greatest of the Pharisee rabbis, with the only remarkable exception being the "grounds" for divorce. Hillel was still living about 15 years after the birth of the Messiah, and might have been one of the esteemed teachers that Jesus listened to and asked questions of when he was 12 years old. [Luke 2:46]

          The Pharisees were a denomination among the Jews shortly before and for a long while after the earthly life of the Messiah. The word "Pharisee" comes from the Hebrew perushim, which means "separated ones". They did strive to separate themselves from the secular world. They were the most serious-minded believers of their time. They were "fundamentalists" who were conscientious about keeping Torah law. The Pharisees were the "cream of the crop" among the religious Jews in the days of Yahshua the Messiah.

          Yahshua was invited into Pharisee homes to eat. [Luke 7:36; 14:1]

          Pharisees warned Jesus of a plot by King Herod to have Him killed.  [Luke 13:31]

Nicodemus was a Pharisee  [John 3:1; 7:45-53]

Apostle Paul was a Pharisee. "Paul cried out in the council, Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee." [Acts 23:6] Paul boldly declared that he was a Pharisee. While that, alone may surprise some people, what is even more surprising is that Paul never said, "I am a Christian"! Interesting, is it not? Paul did not say, "I used to be a Pharisee before I was converted." No. A few years after he had the vision of the Savior, and came to believe that Yahshua was the Messiah - a few years after he had been preaching Jesus, Paul confidently said, "I am a Pharisee."  A similar statement was made in Philippians 3:5. "I am a Hebrew of Hebrews; regarding the Torah [Law], a Pharisee." Paul was tutored by Gamaliel [Acts 22:3], the grandson of Hillel.

Obviously, Jesus and Paul agreed with some of the Pharisees. And there were some with whom they had conflict. They agreed with the teachings of Rabbi Hillel, but not with the other Pharisee leader, Shammai.

So, why did Jesus call some of the Pharisees "vipers" and "children of the devil"? [Matthew 3:7; John 8:44] This was, in general, the most pious denomination of the day. They were the ones of whose teachings the Messiah approved [the followers of Hillel]. They were the denomination Paul said he belonged to. Why did Jesus say some of them were devilish? [He was referring mainlyto the followers of Shammai.] Why did He say that some of them were actually wasting their time in their worship? [Matthew 15:9] For two basic reasons. Many of the Pharisees loved their traditions more than they loved the Torah. [Matthew 15:6] Secondly, although they did conscientiously follow the Law in minute detail, they missed the point of many of its teachings. [Matthew 23:23] They followed every "letter", without comprehending the "spirit" and intent of the Torah.

What does this mean for us, more than just a lesson in history?

Does it mean we should disregard the Torah? No! Jesus and Paul never said that the Law was wrong, or done away. They did teach that how many people applied it was wrong.

  Could we be like the Pharisees whom the Messiah warned and reproached? We could. It is easily possible. When any denomination or minister ignores the Word, replacing it with their own secular or pagan traditions, they are doing exactly what the wicked among the Pharisees did. Could we talk about God, and worship God, and pray to God, and still not go to Heaven? Yes, it is possible! In fact, the Savior Himself said there will be many at the Day of Judgment who will call Him their Lord, and will remind Him of the many works they did in their churches. But, says He, they will be rejected by Him because they did not do the "will [commandments and precepts] of the Father!" [Matthew 7:21-23] Jesus said that people can be religious, and can call on His Name, but still be rejected by Him - unless they have followed the will of the Father.

Where can we find the will of the Father? In which part of the Bible did the Father do most of the speaking? In the Old Testament [which most Christian groups tend to ignore, except for teaching the stories to children]. The Messiah said that those who rely on church tradition, conference votes, or their own notion of what they think God ought to appreciate [instead of what He says He wants], will be in for a sad surprise at the day of judgment.

David Bruce Clark    Lion of God Ministries    www.lionofgod.com