A SERIES OF DEVOTIONS BASED ON THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MATTHEW 

A LESSON TO BE LEARNED      

Matthew 3:7-10 “But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”   

Within Judaism there were those such as the Sadducees and Pharisees who believed they were able to properly respond to God’s law. They believed that atonement of sins could be obtained through a variety of means including doing meritorious works. They had great pride in the way they followed their religious practices in their temple worship. They saw no need to acknowledge their sins and repent of them. 

Professor Jeffrey Gibbs states in his Matthew commentary: “For John (John the Baptist) repentance consists of acknowledging that one deserves the wrath of God, confessing one’s sins, and looking for the in-breaking of the reign of God through the coming of the Mightier One (the Messiah.)” The reign of God in their lives was not because they were born as covenant people of Israel nor because they did not commit gross sin and were not guilty of gross heresies. It was not because of their honest attempt to live covenant lives they would be saved. 

This led John the Baptist to say to the Sadducees and Pharisees, “You Brood of Vipers!” They were, as you confess in the weekend worship liturgy, poor miserable sinners. You confess your sins fully recognizing that you are incapable of earning God’s forgiveness and your way into heaven. Your life is parallel to the confession of St. Paul, “For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. What a wretched man I am!” (Romans 7:19-24) 

You are righteous (without sin) in God’s sight because He declares you without sin out of His love for you because of Jesus’ sacrificial death on Calvary’s cross in your behalf.   

Prayer: Turn me Lord from self-righteousness to confess my sins, repent of them and seek your forgiveness for Jesus’ sake. In His holy name. Amen. 

I lay my sins on Jesus, The spotless Lamb of God;  
He bears them all and frees us From the accused load.  
I bring my guilt to Jesus To wash my crimson stains  
Clean in His blood most precious Till not a spot remains. 

I lay my wants on Jesus, All fullness dwells in Him;  
He heals all my diseases; My soul He does redeem.  
I lay my griefs on Jesus, My burdens and my cares;  
He from them all releases; He all my sorrows shares. 

I rest my soul on Jesus, This weary soul of mine;  
His aright hand me embraces; I on His breast recline.  
I love the name of Jesus, Immanuel, Christ, the Lord;  
Like fragrance on the breezes His name abroad is poured.  (LSB 606)