The Pharisees were an infamous religious sect in the Gospels. They thought they were righteous, understanding how to do everything correctly, yet they somehow missed the way to truly walk according to God\u2019s wisdom. It seems many were pious and self-righteous instead of humble and gracious. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
If I\u2019m being honest, I can often relate to the Pharisees. The Pharisees knew the law\u2014all 613 of its commands. They memorized it and monitored everyone else\u2019s behavior with it. When Jesus came, He told the Pharisees that He would fulfill this law they claimed to love. However, this promise from our Lord and Savior was not a comfort to them but rather a threat. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
I relate to the Pharisees because I like the illusion of control. It makes me feel good when the floors are swept and the clutter is cleared away. It makes me feel even better when my children behave, my husband is gracious, and my friends are considerate. Unfortunately, this false sense of calm is fleeting because circumstances always change. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In Matthew 5:20, Jesus says, \u201cFor I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never get into the kingdom of heaven.\u201d Those listening in the crowd would have been perplexed, knowing the Pharisees appeared to be the most righteous people. However, many Pharisees were known to value the letter of the law over a covenant relationship with God. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jesus summed up all 613 laws into two commands: \u201cLove the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and most important command. The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commands\u201d (Matthew 22:37\u201340). Jesus did not come to help us complete a checklist to gain access to Him. Instead, Jesus came in the form of a lowly babe and gentle Savior to fulfill the Law and help us do two simple things: love God and love others. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Is it really that simple? Love God and love others? Yes, friend, it is. Before Jesus came, people relied on the law and prophets to tell them the what and how of dealing with sin when in relationship with God. Jesus\u2019s arrival brought a new covenant based on grace and faith alone because He alone fulfilled the law completely. Sometimes we don\u2019t know what to do with the simplicity of grace. It seems easier to find peace in the illusory facade of control, but Jesus wants our hearts. When we surrender to His ways, we discover the joy of walking with Him exceeds the false control we thought we had. This is how we experience true peace\u2014by trusting the Prince of Peace Himself.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Pharisees were an infamous religious sect in the Gospels. They thought they were righteous, understanding how to do everything correctly, yet they somehow missed the way to truly walk according to God\u2019s wisdom. It seems many were pious and self-righteous instead of humble and gracious. If I\u2019m being honest, I can often relate to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":143,"featured_media":71561,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[292],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-71870","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-advent2024"],"acf":{"hero_background_image":false,"related_plans":[71574],"weekly_truth":false,"grace_day":false,"share_text":"#SheReadsTruth","devotional_text":"PEACE THROUGH FULFILLMENT<\/b>
\r\nby Jessica Mathisen<\/i>
\r\n
The Pharisees were an infamous religious sect in the Gospels. They thought they were righteous, understanding how to do everything correctly, yet they somehow missed the way to truly walk according to God\u2019s wisdom. It seems many were pious and self-righteous instead of humble and gracious.<\/p>
\r\n
If I\u2019m being honest, I can often relate to the Pharisees. The Pharisees knew the law\u2014all 613 of its commands. They memorized it and monitored everyone else\u2019s behavior with it. When Jesus came, He told the Pharisees that He would fulfill this law they claimed to love. However, this promise from our Lord and Savior was not a comfort to them but rather a threat.<\/p>
\r\n
I relate to the Pharisees because I like the illusion of control. It makes me feel good when the floors are swept and the clutter is cleared away. It makes me feel even better when my children behave, my husband is gracious, and my friends are considerate. Unfortunately, this false sense of calm is fleeting because circumstances always change.<\/p>
\r\n
In Matthew 5:20, Jesus says, \u201cFor I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never get into the kingdom of heaven.\u201d Those listening in the crowd would have been perplexed, knowing the Pharisees appeared to be the most righteous people. However, many Pharisees were known to value the letter of the law over a covenant relationship with God.<\/p>
\r\n
Jesus summed up all 613 laws into two commands: \u201cLove the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and most important command. The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commands\u201d (Matthew 22:37\u201340). Jesus did not come to help us complete a checklist to gain access to Him. Instead, Jesus came in the form of a lowly babe and gentle Savior to fulfill the Law and help us do two simple things: love God and love others.<\/p>
\r\n
Is it really that simple? Love God and love others? Yes, friend, it is. Before Jesus came, people relied on the law and prophets to tell them the what and how of dealing with sin when in relationship with God. Jesus\u2019s arrival brought a new covenant based on grace and faith alone because He alone fulfilled the law completely. Sometimes we don\u2019t know what to do with the simplicity of grace. It seems easier to find peace in the illusory facade of control, but Jesus wants our hearts. When we surrender to His ways, we discover the joy of walking with Him exceeds the false control we thought we had. This is how we experience true peace\u2014by trusting the Prince of Peace Himself.<\/p>","share_image_height":"640","day_number":"11","scripture":"Exodus 20:1-17, Matthew 5:17-48, Romans 8:1-4","available":true,"ad_banner_name":"","ad_banner_image":false,"ad_banner_url":"","songs":"","key_verse":"","key_verse_reference":"","background_image":false,"background_color":"#FBF7F3","scripture_references":false,"share_image":false,"author_name":"","author_bio":"","guest_social_media":false,"show_ad":true,"ad_override":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/shereadstruth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71870","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/shereadstruth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/shereadstruth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shereadstruth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/143"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shereadstruth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=71870"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/shereadstruth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71870\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shereadstruth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/71561"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/shereadstruth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=71870"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shereadstruth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=71870"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shereadstruth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=71870"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}