Christ accuses the Pharisees of being clean on the outside—of having the appearance of being righteous—but filthy on the inside in Luke 7.39-41. They were doing things that made them appear religious, but inside they were doing just the opposite. As Christ points out, they were full of greed and wickedness. Do something, Christ says, to rid yourselves of that greed, "give gifts to the poor," and you will rid yourselves of greed and at the same time you will both understand God's heart and train yourselves in living rightly.
We would like to think that we are not like the Pharisees, but in reality we are. All too often I am motivated by greed rather than generosity, and stinginess rather than freely giving. Christ condemns this attitude very strongly here.
Prayer: O Lord may I not be a Pharisee, but may I have a heart for the poor; a heart for those less fortunate; a heart filled with compassion; may I have your heart.
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