“Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, 2 “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, 3 so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice. 4 They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger. 5 They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, 6 and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues 7 and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others.” (Matthew 23:1–7 (ESV)
In the immediate aftermath of Jesus’ discussion with the Pharisees and the Sadducees, He spoke to the crowds and His disciples. The masses may refer to unbelievers. Disciples refers not to only the twelve, but perhaps also to others who followed Him (Acts 1:12-15; I Cor. 15:1-7).
The Lord continued to confront the hypocritical Pharisees after dismantling their understanding of Psalm 110 (Matt. 22:41–45). Seeing that the people are intensely listening to Him (v. 46), Jesus began warning them, including His disciples, of Pharisaic hypocrisy. He set for the following principles as perpetual warnings for true believers against false teachers.
First, be observant of false teacher’s religious hypocrisy. Second, false teachers love to enslave people to their legalism. They establish rules and regulations beyond Scripture to determine and evaluate spirituality. Third, false teachers love the limelight. They love attention and honor. Their goal is self-exaltation and their opium is pride. Following Jesus’ initial condemnation of the Pharisees, He continued to diagnose their spiritual condition (vs. 5-7).
First, whatever they do is so people will see them and applaud their religiosity. “They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long” (vs. 5).
“Phylacteries were leather boxes containing a parchment on which is written in four columns (Ex. 13:1–10, 11–16; Deut. 6:4–9; 11:13–21). These are worn by men during prayer—one on the middle of the forehead and one on the left arm just above the elbow. The use of phylacteries was based on an overly literal interpretation of passages like Ex. 13:9–10 and Deut. 6:8. Evidently the Pharisees would broaden the leather straps by which the phylacteries were bound to their arms and foreheads, in order to make the phylacteries more prominent,” explains Dr. John MacArthur.
“Jesus himself wore them (Matt. 9:20), so it was not the tassels themselves that he condemned, only the mentality that would lengthen the tassels to make it appear that one was especially spiritual.”
Second, they love places of honor and public recognition. “…and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues” (vs. 6).
“Vanity and ostentatious display go hand in hand. Jesus issued a warning against this very sin of seeking the best seat at a banquet or dinner (Luke 14:8). James condemned the sin of assigning the best seat in the meeting-place to the rich, while telling the poor man to stand or else to sit on the floor near someone’s footstool (2:2, 3),” explains Dr. William Hendriksen.
“The best seats in the synagogue were those in front of the raised platform, on which stood the prayer leader and the reader of the Scriptures. Thus seated, a person had the double advantage of being near the person reading or leading in prayer, and of facing the congregation and thus being able to see everybody. Besides, being ushered to such a seat was regarded as a mark of honor.”
Third, they love being seen in the marketplace among the people. “And they love… greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others.”
“In contesting the pride many Pharisees take in their titles and honors, Jesus cannot mean that titles are wholly inappropriate or that there are no distinctions between Christians (Matt. 23:6–10). After all, titles like “apostle” and “teacher” are later given to some believers (Gal. 1:1; Eph. 4:11). Matthew 23:6–10 only means that because Christians have Jesus as their final teacher, no believer is inherently superior to another,” states Dr. R. C. Sproul.
“We should not call attention to our titles and achievements, nor should we inordinately belittle them and so be guilty of false humility. Titles must never be used to demand unquestioned obedience to oneself.”
John Calvin writes that Christ’s “authority must remain entire, and that no mortal man ought to claim the smallest portion of it. Thus he is the only Pastor.”
May each believer in Christ live lives Coram Deo (before the face of God), before a watching world and a sovereign God. Have a blessed day in the Lord.
Soli deo Gloria!
His Word Today 
Shalom
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