Matthew 23:1 - 12
Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 2 “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. 3 So you must be careful to do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach.4 They tie up heavy, cumbersome loads and put them on other people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.
5 “Everything they do is done for people to see: They make their phylacteries[a] wide and the tassels on their garments long; 6 they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; 7 they love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and to be called ‘Rabbi’ by others.
8 “But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers. 9 And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. 10 Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one Instructor, the Messiah. 11 The greatest among you will be your servant. 12 For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.
Questions:
ReplyDelete1. Why did Jesus tell people to do what the teachers of the Law told them to do and then describe the burdens they lay on people?
2. Do not be called Rabbi, father or teacher. How about Pastor or other titles?
http://www.seedofabraham.net/Do-as-the-Pharisees-Say.pdf says:
ReplyDeleteThere are some people who teach that we must adhere to the doctrines and ways of the Rabbis, the
spiritual ‘Sons’ of the Scribes and Pharisees, because ‘Yeshua Himself commanded this’ in Matthew
23:2-3. Their interpretation of the passage is not accurate and false. Yeshua wasn’t telling us to walk out
our faith in Him by rabbinic teachings, but rather to obey the authorities of the land, which at that time
were the Scribes and Pharisees, on the local level (vv. 3, 5, 7, etc.), in their judicial and legislative
capacities, not their teaching capacity.
The Seat of Moses was a judicial position from which judgments between two or more people were
issued. In Yeshua’s day the Pharisees and Scribes had seated themselves in the Seat of Moses (Mt. 23:2).
This understanding is brought out by both the Greek text and in some Bibles like the NASB,3 and reveals
that Yeshua wasn’t pleased with them being in Moses’ Seat. In other words, God hadn’t put them there,
but they had usurped God’s authority who was supposed to be there (the Levitical Priests; Dt. 17:12).
This wasn’t unusual. It’s conceptually seen in the days of Hosea when the prophet says of Israel:
‘They made kings, but not through Me. They set up princes, but I did not acknowledge
them.’ (Hos. 8:4a)
To ‘seat oneself,’ as the Pharisees and Scribes had done, was to usurp God’s authority. Yeshua was
saying that since the Scribes and Pharisees were there, obey them in their judicial rulings, and by
extension, their legislative rulings. This is what we would call civil authority today.
The ‘Seat of Moses’ is a term taken from the days when Moses would sit and judge the people
The Scribes, Pharisees and Rabbis had authority to adjudicate or to judge legal matters in the bet din (the
courts of Israel). They could also act as legislators and enact laws for the community. It’s these positions
of authority that Yeshua was speaking of for His followers to obey (adjudicative and legislative), not their
doctrines.
Another biblical perspective that reveals that Yeshua doesn’t want us to walk in the teachings of the
Rabbis are the many confrontations Yeshua had with them and the Pharisees, the spiritual ‘Fathers’ of the
Rabbis (see Mt. 23:7-8). The Gospels and Acts are filled with accounts of clashes over the very issue of
proper interpretation of Scripture between the Scribes and the Pharisees, even the Pharisees who would
come to believe (Matt. 15:1-20; 23:1-39; Acts 15:5). Proper interpretation of Scripture leads to the
biblical way of walking out our faith in Yeshua. Improper interpretation leads to a sinful lifestyle. In
Matthew 15 Yeshua sternly rebuked the Pharisees for both their hearts and their teachings
http://christianity.stackexchange.com/questions/16917/why-do-those-who-take-matthew-239-literally-not-emphasize-238-and-2310-simila says:
ReplyDeleteOf Hebrew origin [H7227] with pronominal suffix; my master, that is, Rabbi, as an official title of honor: - Master, Rabbi.
Mat 23:9 And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.
Mat 23:10 Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.
1Co 4:15 For though ye have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet have ye not many fathers: for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel. 16 Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of me.
Eph 4:11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
From G1321; an instructor (generally or specifically): - doctor, master, teacher.
1Co 1:1 Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,
In Christianity we have spiritual fathers in Christ. People who taught us the gospel. We can acknowledge their contribution to our spiritual development but we should not refer to them as "father" because Jesus said not to. It's apparently ok to say I birth you in Christ but it is not ok to say You are my spiritual father (this would be ignoring the work of Father through Christ). In Christianity we likewise do not have rabbis, spiritual guides or masters. We have the Holy Spirit instead. We do have a different set of gifts given by Christ Himself to help us work in the ministry: apostles; prophets; and evangelists; and pastors and teachers. These gifts are expressions of the Holy Spirit in our lives. It's ok to say I'm called to be an apostle or any other ministry gift. It's also ok to use that as a title however it's not ok to use that title to gain reverence or some special honor. Ministry gifts should be honored but they should not be revered. If you become annoyed when someone does not acknowledge you as a ministry gift it's a good time to stop using the title.
http://www.bethgoyim.org/BethGoyim-Statement%20of%20our%20Faith%20rabbi.html says:
ReplyDeleteWhat is the focus of his instruction not to be called rabbi, master, or father? It has to do with desiring praise of man for self-exaltation, rather than being a true servant and receiving the phrase of Elohim. In fact, this is his focus throughout the entire chapter, for it has everything to do with hypocrisy. And remember that hypocrisy is acting -- wanting to be seen by man rather than by Elohim.
Here's another way to approach these words. Are they to be taken literally? Generally speaking, if the literal meaning makes sense, then we don't need to find a non-literal solution. In this case, does his words make sense literally? After all, he told his disciples not to call anyone "father" too. Is this to be taken literally? Is it wrong to call someone "father"? Or rather, is it wrong for someone to exalt in being called "father"? Do you see the difference? We call our own dad "father" all the time. Is this wrong? No, not at all, for it is written, "Honour thy father and thy mother." Also, Abraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov are repeatedly called "fathers" in the Scripture. Is this wrong? No. Sha'ul referred to Abraham is "our father" in Romans 4:1. Was this wrong? After all Yeshua said, "Our Father which art in heaven..." No, it is not wrong. In fact, Sha'ul went so far as to call the Corinthians his sons and his own role as father in 1 Corinthians 4:14-17.
Was he contradicting Yeshua's teachings? No, he was not for this is what the prophets were called by their students. 2 Kings 2:12 shows that Elisha called Elijah "My father." The king of Israel also called Elisha "My father" in 2 Kings 6:21. There are other examples that you can find, but hopefully this illustrates a point. Is it wrong to call someone "father" in a spiritual sense if they "fathered" you in set-apart instruction? No, it is not.
Therefore, if it is scripturally accepted to call true servants of Elohim "father" then it follows that Yeshua's words are not to be taken literally. As such, his references to being called "rabbi" and "master" are to be understood in a similar fashion. So, what was Yeshua talking about? He didn't want his disciples to honor themselves and crave such titles for themselves. Rather, he wanted them to be servants and behave as servants. He wanted them to focus on others rather than on themselves.
http://www.bethgoyim.org/BethGoyim-Statement%20of%20our%20Faith%20rabbi.html (continued):
ReplyDeleteYou see, there is "our Father" and then there are "fathers." There is "our Rabbi" and then there are "rabbis. There is "our Master" and then there are "masters." This is all fine. But some may argue that this reasoning is wrong, and that we should be called "pastors" and "shepherds" or "teachers" instead. But think about it. What's the difference? Is it okay for us to be called "Pastor" (meaning "Shepherd") when there is only one Shepherd, and yet wrong for us to be called "Rabbi" when there is only one Rabbi? Do you see the illogic in that reasoning? No, it is the same as with Father, Rabbi, and Master. Equally, there is "our Shepherd" and then there are "shepherds." This is equally scriptural.
In fact, Adonai gives, "some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers." So, there are apostles and prophets and evangelists and pastors and even teachers. So, is it wrong to be called "teacher" since Yeshua is our Teacher? No, in and of itself, this isn't wrong either.
Therefore, if someone is known as "Rabbi so-and-so," you should acknowledge his office, honor his devoted years of training and dedication, and not have a problem in referring to him as "Rabbi."
The principle of Messiah Yeshua is this: "Do not accept anyone's attempt to make you their master, or their source of supply. There is only One who is your/their Master and Source of supply"