There was a particular group of people back in Jesus’s day who loved to burden the Jewish faithful with extra-Biblical commands. They were called the Pharisees. By the time Jesus came the Pharisees had developed a list of over 600 different laws and laws about laws that were completely unrelated to the Jewish Bible. Some say the Pharisees were making all these commands up so they could make themselves look better and look down on everyone else.

Do we have the equivalent of modern day Pharisees? I kinda think so. Just look at all the Christian ministers who gain national fame and then fell from grace as a result one scandal or another. I won’t name them, but you likely know at least a few pf them. One of those who definitely fill the pharisee description is Franklin Graham. He is Billy Graham’s son who before dad got sick didn’t have much interest in following in his footprints.

He has tragically turned his father’s work into nothing short of partisan political warfare. Along the way he has made up numerous rules about being a “Trump” Christian. He goes out of his way to put down anyone who thinks differently than he does. Yes, he has gained a powerful hold on those who blindly do what he says. Yeah, he is definitely a pharisee type rule maker out to make himself look good.

Of course Jesus, had a LOT to say about the Pharisees of his day. His most often used description was “hypocrite” . For those of us who follow the teachings of Jesus these modern-day pharisees need to be exposed for what they are doing to Jesus’ church. Why are so many churches holding back on calling them out? Don’t they realize that by their silence they are condoning those divisive words?