DAILY HOMILIES #scandals

The scribes and Pharisees were more concerned about their appearance than their holiness. They invested heavily in looking good but remained ugly in God’s sight. They took seats of honour at banquets but remained unworthy of the eternal banquet. They sat in the front rows of the synagogue, but without oil in their lamps, they were destined to stay outside like the foolish virgins. (cf. Matthew 25:1-13). They enjoyed the respect of men but had no integrity in God’s sight; they didn’t deserve the titles they gave themselves.

False prophets are like the weeds sown among the wheat; it is difficult to tell the difference, and in an attempt to pull out the weeds, one may also pull out the wheat. By saying, “Beware of false prophets,” Jesus wants us to be on guard and to exercise discernment. It is not all that glitters that is gold. On the last day, many would come before God, claiming to have worked miracles in His name, and He would say: “I do not know where you come from; depart from me, all you workers of iniquity!” (Luke 13:27).