“The Making Of A
Religious Hypocrite”
Matthew 15:1-20
Message by Michael J. Barnard
October 26, 2014
Teaching Aim: To have each person evaluate their own heart to see if they are in a
right relationship with the Lord? To realize our manmade traditions do not replace
the law of God, rather they are to be in submission to it. To understand the
Scriptures and the Scriptures alone are the authority for what we believe and for
how we are to live our lives as Christians.
DIGGING DEEPER INTO GOD’S WORD (BIBLE STUDY)
Part I: A delegation is sent from Jerusalem to investigate the
teachings and works of Jesus (Matt. 15:1-2)
1. What two major miracles did Jesus perform at the end of chapter 14? “The
Bread Of Life Discourse” is found in John 6:22-59 and was given shortly before
this incident with the religious leaders found in chapter 15. Why was this
discourse one of the most controversial by Jesus? (See John 6:53-56, 66-56)
Was He drawing followers to Himself or driving them away according to John?
2. Word of Jesus, His teachings and His miracles had traveled all the way to the
religious leaders in Jerusalem. What other person in Matthew had also been
investigated for his teaching by the religious leaders in Jerusalem? (See John
1:19-23)
3. According to verse 1, what did this delegation notice when they first arrived from
Jerusalem? (See Mark 7:1-4) Why were the religious leaders so upset by this?
According to the religious leaders, what kind of washing needed to take place
before eating (See Mark 7:3)? Was this ritual hand washing a Scriptural practice
or was it something man had made up and mandated? (See Matt. 15:3)
4. According Matt. 23:25-26, what did Jesus indicate was even more important
than external washing? What are some ways that we can clean the inside of our
spiritual cup today?
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Part II: Jesus reveals the unholy hearts of the Pharisees (Matt.
15:3-11)
1. How did Jesus respond to the attacks of the religious leaders (vs. 3)? Do you get
the feeling that Jesus was no nonsense? What did Jesus accuse the religious
leaders of doing in verse 3? What is the meaning of the word “tradition” and
how does Jesus use it here? How is the response of Jesus in John 8:1-11 similar
to what He does here in verse 3?
2. Which of the Ten Commandments does Jesus quote in His confrontation with the
religious leaders? (See Exod. 20:1-17) How serious of a crime is it to disobey
that commandment according to verse 4? According to Jesus, were the religious
leaders in violation of this command? Are we still guilty today of at times looking
at the speck of sawdust in the eye of others before we look at the plank in our
own eyes? (See Matt. 7:3-5) Whose lives should we really be examining? (See
2 Cor. 13:5)
3. According to verse 5 & 6, how did the religious leaders in Jerusalem allow many
Jews to work their way around providing for their elderly parents? (See Mark
7:11-12) What is the meaning of the word, “Corban”? How did declaring
something “Corban” work out to the financial advantage of person declaring his
belongings “a gift to God”? (See Commentaries) What have the hypocritical
religious leaders allowed to happen according to Jesus (vs. 6)?
4. What does Jesus boldly call the Jerusalem delegation (vs. 7)? What is a
“hypocrite”? (See Dictionary) What is the number one charge against Christians
today? How does this term relate to the church and to the profession of acting?
5. Jesus quotes Isaiah 29:13 to illustrate His point, what is His point (vv. 8 & 9)?
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What are some
elevating their
commandments
is actually doing
ways that we do this today? Are religious people correct in
“traditions” and “preferences” to the same level as the
of God? What are some examples of this in our own day? Who
the sinning?
6. What does Jesus do in verse 10 as the religious leaders listen intently? What do
you think the religious delegation from Jerusalem was thinking as Jesus publically
corrected them and their teachings in front of the masses?
7. What revolutionary teaching did Jesus give in verse 11? Why would His Jewish
listeners be shocked to hear a Jewish rabbi talk this way? (See Lev. 11) Were
the foods listed in Lev. 11 unclean foods, foods that defile the body according to
the law of God? Which of Jesus’ disciples would later receive further revelation
on this topic? (See Acts 10:9-15; 11:4-12) What teaching of Paul later
amplified the teaching that Jesus gives here? (See 1 Tim. 4:4-5) Do you make
a practice of giving thanks before your meals? Why or why not?
Part III: Jesus reveals new understanding of Jewish dietary laws
(Matt. 15:12-20)
1. What concern did the disciples bring to Jesus in verse 12? Did Jesus respond
compassionately to their concern (vs. 13)?
2. How does Jesus instruct His disciples to respond to the offended Pharisees (vs.
14)? What can we learn of the spiritual condition of the Pharisees and their
followers from this verse (vs. 15)? Do you think the Pharisees and their followers
thought they were doing wrong or right? According to John 14:6 and Acts 4:12,
why were the Pharisees blind? Have your received Jesus Christ as your Savior?
3. How did Peter respond to the teaching of Jesus on “the blind leading the blind”
(vs. 15)? Peter identifies this teaching by Jesus as a “parable”, what is a
“parable”? Does Jesus respond compassionately to Peter’s request or does He
respond with a bit of sarcasm here (vs. 16)?
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4. According to verses 18 and 19, what is Jesus getting at here? In light of God’s
revelation in Leviticus 11 about unclean foods, why is this teaching in verse 18
so radical?
5. Have you ever heard the saying, “Garbage in, garbage out?” How does this
saying apply to our lives today (vs. 19)? What kind of movies and television
shows do you watch? Would you feel comfortable if Jesus were sitting next to
you also watching them? Are you guilty of looking at pornography on the
Internet or of reading sexually explicit love novels? How does opening your mind
to this sort of thing affect you spiritually? Are you aware of what your family
watches and listens to?
6. What can we learn about the human heart from Jeremiah 17:9-10? Is this a
reference to the beating “muscle” in our chest or to “the very core of our
being”? What is the only solution to the problem of the human heart? (See
Ezek. 36:26; John 3:3,5,16; Rom. 12:2; Phil. 4:8)
7. According to verses 19 & 20, what is it that defiles a man? How does Jesus
conclude His discussion that began back in verse 2 on human tradition and the
ceremonial washing of hands? Is there anything internally in your life that you
need to clean up in order to be right with God and with others? Why not take it
to the Lord right now in prayer?
8. Have you received Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord? If not, why not repent of
your sin and do that right now in prayer? (See Acts 16:31)
MINER’S CORNER ~ Manna to live by
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 Outwardly cleaning our hands for personal hygiene is important, but it doesn’t
make us any more spiritual on the inside than anybody else.
 We sin when we allow the traditions of men to supersede the teachings of God’s
Word.
 As believers we have the responsibility to obey God’s law and to take care of our
elderly parents when they are in need.
 It’s not what goes into a man that makes him unclean, it is what comes out.
 “Garbage in, garbage out” is still true for us today!
 We must be careful what we allow into our minds and into the minds of our
children, that information can have eternal consequences either for good or for
evil. (Rom. 12:2)
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