Matthew 23:13 (ESV)
The First of Seven Woes
13 “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the
kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in.
The scribes and Pharisees demanded a righteousness based on human achievement and by insisting on an obedience to human
rather than divine commands. As Christians, we receive a righteousness from Christ’s obedience. It comes from outside of ourselves… it comes as a gift from God.
I pray: O Lord, I give thanks for the gift
of faith, forgiveness, eternal life, and my salvation. Help me to trust all that you have done for me. Amen.