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A Letter from a Pharisee 31 A.D.
By: David M. Curtis
Audio Sermon: Blindness of the Pharisees (December 2, 2004)
Have you ever wondered what was in the mind of the Pharisee’s? The following is an attempt to understand from the view point of a Pharisee what the life of John and Jesus meant to Israel. This is written in the form of a letter addressed to a friend by a Pharisee right after the crucifixion the Passover of AD 31.
Dear Friend,
I came across a man from Galilee. I did not know Him personally but I did watch him from a distance from time to time. His standard of righteousness was something I had never seen or heard before. I thought Him to be heretical on some things, but on other doctrines I agreed with Him, If you could only have heard how he really put those Sadducees to shame about their heresies of not believing in the resurrection. He was a Carpenter’s Son, I believe his father’s name was Joseph. Others said He was a bastard, born illegitimately, to a woman named Mary. Rumors are that she claimed an angel appeared to her and that the LORD Him self conceived in her womb this baby named Jesus, whom I write to you about. My thoughts disturb me about this man. I cannot stop thinking about Him. Well you see I put him to death. But first before I tell you about that, let me tell you why I did this. Then maybe you will see things the way I did when I had Jesus crucified.
As a boy I heard the stories circulating of some Shepard that claimed to see a baby who they claimed was the Messiah. They said they saw a host of angels. Oh my! I guess I forgot those childhood stories I heard, when I put Jesus of Nazareth on trial. Any ways no matter, listen as I present my case. According to my investigations under the reign of Augustus several years back now Joseph registered his family in Bethlehem of Judea. I understand the prophet Micah said the Messiah was to be born in that city. O yes here is the scripture, “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.” Dear friend pay no attention to that I have much evidence that will justify me in my action of putting Jesus to death. His name was logged in the chronicles at the temple in Jerusalem on the eight day after birth. That all seemed to be in order. I could find no fault with him there. He was indeed circumcised.
I have the papers here let me see something. Oh there it is. Jesus appears to be of the tribe of Judah. His line seems pure. So far I think he is a pure son of Abraham. Ah ha! I found something. A descendant of His was a Moabites woman. Not pure at all! I knew it, I knew there was something wrong with His genealogy! Ruth was her name. Oh my! Ruth’s great grand son was King David! Wasn’t the Messiah to come from the Line of King David? I read that in the scroll from the prophet Isaiah. Here it is, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.” Isaiah 9:6,7. I remember another scripture near this one, about this Child. There it is, “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good.” Isaiah 9:14,15. Was Mary telling the truth about being a virgin? Did the Holy Spirit conceive this man child in her womb? I know she was ridiculed and despised because it was common knowledge that Joseph denied that Jesus was his rightful son. Impossible! The man I crucified could not be the Messiah! Not with the life he lived! You will see let me continue and I am sure you will agree with me.
You know that one thing is peculiar about that verse in Isaiah? It describes this childs diet as very simple. “Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good.” You see dear friend there was a man that was Jesus Cousin that ate that same diet. I went to hear the words of this man a few times. His diet was simple vegetables and wild honey, Here is the report of one that saw how he ate. I will quote it for the record sake, “His diet, purely vegetable, of locusts and wild honey, was a rebuke to the indulgence of appetite and the gluttony that everywhere prevailed.” Maranatha p. 22. His cousin’s name was John. He was a curious fellow. Some of the things he said did not make any sense to me. In fact he was a rude man, I was with some friends one day listening to John and he said to us, “O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And now also the ax is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.” Matthew 3:7-10
You know what really troubles me about John was the way he began His sermons “The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.” verse 3. I studied the scroll of Isaiah and also Malachi about this and found some amazing things. Will you permit me in this letter to share several scriptures about preparing the way of the LORD and what it really means? I will get right back to my story about Jesus after these scriptures. I know they have nothing to do with my story about Jesus but I thought it was interesting.
“The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.” Isaiah 40:3-5.
“And shall say, Cast ye up, cast ye up, prepare the way, take up the stumbling block out of the way of my people. For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. For I will not contend for ever, neither will I be always wroth: for the spirit should fail before me, and the souls which I have made. For the iniquity of his covetousness was I wroth, and smote him: I hid me, and was wroth, and he went on frowardly in the way of his heart. I have seen his ways, and will heal him: I will lead him also, and restore comforts unto him and to his mourners. I create the fruit of the lips; Peace, peace to him that is far off, and to him that is near, saith the LORD; and I will heal him. But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.” Isaiah 57:14-21.
You know dear friend, do you remember when I said that my heart is troubled about this man Jesus? I feel like the troubled sea in that verse. I do not know what to do or where to turn to find the peace that is described in the verse before it. Well I had two more scriptures in this brief Bible Study then I will get back to my story about Jesus of Nazareth.
“Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway; gather out the stones; LIFT UP A STANDARD FOR THE PEOPLE.” Isaiah 62:10
“Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts. But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap: And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.” Malachi 3:1-3.
You see dear friend, preparing the way of the LORD is a refining process the LORD puts the church of Israel though. The LORD is some day going to send a messenger in the wilderness crying with a loud cry TO LIFT UP A STANDARD FOR THE PEOPLE. Israel sure needs that messenger; I hope the LORD sends him soon. I know I will be the first one to root and cheer him on in his work when he gets here. You know, I cannot get John out of my mind what a troubler that man was. The nerve he had in calling me a viper. That was implying that I was under the control of evil angels. I mean come on. I never miss going to the synagogue on Sabbath. I return the ALL MY tithes and my offerings to the temple. Everyone sees me doing so, ask anyone they will verify my good works. I have been known to fast quite often as well. Well any way back to my story.
One day John said, “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: Whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” And as John was speaking there was Jesus his cousin, and John pointed his hand and lifted his voice and cried loud enough for all to hear him say, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” John 1:29.
I mean come on, what a lunatic! He must not have been to the Temple in a long time. He must have forgotten what a real lamb looks like. All John spoke was gibberish. It made no sense to me. My companions from the synagogue I attend could not understand the words of John either. Well he made some cry and weep and call on the LORD for help to repent of their sins. I am glad it made sense to someone.
From what I understand Jesus was a decent fellow before he came to be baptized by John. He was a productive member of society, hard working, faithful in church attendance, in tithes and offerings. There were reports that he was strange even before His baptism but at least he was not a trouble maker before then. He minded His own business instead of meddling in everyone else’s affairs. After His baptism Jesus must have snapped a twig in His brain. He refused to work at the carpenter’s desk, ever again. He began to encourage others to quit their jobs and just follow him around the country side. Some of these men had families to take care of. He brain washed them all. Can you see why my friends and I began to watch him closely and try to keep him from leading all Israel into this life style he encouraged?
Jesus refused to submit his faith to the councils of the Rabbi’s. He just kept saying things we did not know how to answer. What a tongue that man had. He had to be stopped. We could not persuade him or those who followed him. Multitudes were following Him. People from every region were flocking to Him. We were desperate. The straw that broke the camels back was that Jesus was a Sabbath breaker. He refused to obey the Law of God. He said that our understanding of the Sabbath was merely based on tradition. He claimed to be a reformer of what the Sabbath truly meant. The nerve! Who did He think He was. The way Jesus talked, you would think He was the Creator Yehovah and made the Sabbath or something. He claimed He was LORD of the Sabbath Day. God is the LORD of the Sabbath, for a mere man to claim to change the observance of the Sabbath in any way He would have to be GOD HIMSELF, IN FACT GOD HIMSELF COULD NOT ALTER THE SABBATH. “My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.” Jesus was changing all Israel’s idea of Sabbath observance. In our councils we concluded Jesus was guilty of blaspheming. After all I heard Him say with his own mouth that He forgave a man’s sins. BLASPHEME NOT EVEN THE HIGH PRIEST HIMSELF MAKES CLAIMS TO FORGIVE SINS; ONLY GOD CAN FORGIVE SINS!
Another inconceivable sin Jesus did was that He claimed God was His Father. Let me explain. If Jesus was the Son of God that would mean that He is heir to the throne of God and thus equal to God Himself.
Wait! What was that scripture I quoted in Isaiah? “Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” Immanuel means GOD WITH US. “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.”
Oh MY! Friend what have I done? The Messiah the Son to be given of the seed of David born to a virgin was to be the heir to the throne. His name was Immanuel-GOD WITH US. The Son according to scripture was equal to GOD HIMSELF. That is what the prophecy said I cannot escape the truth. Jesus is of the seed of David, born of a virgin, then He was LORD of the SABBATH. HE DID HAVE POWER TO FORGIVE SINS. HE WAS WORKING TO SAVE SOULS FROM THEIR TRADITIONS CONCERNING SABBATH KEEPING. FRIEND I CRY OUT IN HORROR! HAVE I CRUCIFIED THE SON OF GOD?
You do not understand what I have done. I said I crucified Him. But I have not told you everything we did to Him. We thought we needed to do whatever it took to silence Him. We brought in false WITNESSES AGAINST HIM. Oh my! John was right I am being controlled by evil spirits. Satan has deceived me into breaking the Law of God which says, “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.” Jesus one day told a lawyer friend of mine a story of a Samaritan that helped a man that was robbed and beaten. His story illustrated that the Samaritan was the neighbor to the man robbed because he was a man dedicated to good deeds. I must confess although Jesus never worked at the carpenters bench after his ministry began he was dedicated to doing good deeds for people he never met. We have born false witness against our neighbor.
I stand at the Cross I crucified Jesus on, and His blood is on my hands how can I ever find forgiveness with God for such a crime? How can I ever find rest from such burdens of guilt.
The Pharisee walks away from writing to his friend and spends time alone in tears thinking about the trial and the crucifixion of Jesus. He believed Him to be the Son of God. He saw his personal guilt in the acts committed that Passover long ago. Then He remembers that after the third day reports were circulated that Jesus was risen from the dead. He prayed to the Son of God. He said, “I know your words, while you were on earth, you said, Whosoever cometh unto Me I will in no wise cast out” I am guilty of shedding your blood, I have sinned, will you forgive me? Against thee and thee only have I sinned and done this evil in thy sight. If you will forgive me, I will give my life to you and serve you all the days of my life, if I am called upon to die for you I will, by your grace; I will be faithful unto death.
I wish such was the way the story ended. The Pharisees that conspired to kill Christ never repented of their wickedness. Their eyes never opened to the truth of prophecy their eyes were darkened in unbelief. The Bible says that those who pierced Christ will be awakened from their sleep to experience the seven last plagues and to see the LORD JESUS CHRIST COMING in the clouds. Brothers and sisters such are the result of persistent rebellion and sin. Israel was the professed people of God. They could not see though all the evidence was there that Jesus was the Christ, and that the LORD of the Sabbath was not altering the Sabbath but was in his life simply saying “Remember.”
Traditions of men the philosophy of unconverted minds blinded the understanding and made them so completely dark that they later cried “crucify Him, crucify Him.” This Letter from the Pharisee I just wrote was an attempt to share just how dark minds can be that persist in rebellion. Sin starts out apparently innocent and small then it grows until it is out of control. This was the experience of the Pharisees that led to the rejection and crucifixion of Christ. Anyone can read the Scripture and see this. The Pharisees could not perceive the work of John the Baptist. They could not discern the ministry of Christ. All the good deeds of healing tens of thousands could not redeem Israel. Christ did everything He could. Once these men Crucified the LORD their probation closed forever. We need to be careful lest the professed people of God walk the same path as did Israel.
The work of John the Baptist was to lift up the standards of the Law and the Prophets that Israel had forsaken from their experience. We need to be as John was in the church today. LIFTING THE LAW OF GOD AND CALLING MEN EVERY WHERE TO REPENT AND ACCEPT THE HOLY SPIRITS POWER TO KEEP MEN FROM FALLING INTO TEMPTATION. What will be the result of rebuking sins like John did, and living righteous lives like Christ did? John was beheaded and Jesus Crucified.
The apostle Paul declares that "all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution." [2 TIM. 3:12.] Why is it, then, that persecution seems in a great degree to slumber? The only reason is, that the church has conformed to the world's standard, and therefore awakens no opposition. The religion which is current in our day is not of the pure and holy character that marked the Christian faith in the days of Christ and his apostles. It is only because of the spirit of compromise with sin, because the great truths of the Word of God are so indifferently regarded, because there is so little vital godliness in the church, that Christianity is apparently so popular with the world. Let there be a revival of the faith and power of the early church, and the spirit of persecution will be revived, and the fires of persecution will be rekindled. The Great Controversy p. 48.
