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Integrity in Religion (Matthew 23:1–39
The Kingdom's Values (Matthew 19–23) #12
Integrity is not sinless perfection. It is refusing to protect a false appearance: bringing the truth into Jesus' light, receiving his mercy, and allowing that mercy to reshape how we treat others.
Introduction
Jesus exposes the gap between the religious story we tell and the reality beneath it, and calls us into integrity under his merciful rule.
1. The story we tell about ourselves (vv. 1–12)
Jesus exposes the gaps between words and lives, burden and help, and devotion and audience—and rebuilds life together around himself.
2. The reality experienced by others (vv. 13–36)
The woes open four windows onto religion without integrity and the harm other people experience.
3. The heart of the King towards us (vv. 37–39)
The King who exposes hypocrisy also grieves, gathers and goes to the cross to open the kingdom our religion never could.
Conclusion
The answer is not a more impressive performance. It is honest repentance, received mercy and servant-shaped belonging.
Questions to think about...
1. What story do I—or we—tell about ourselves?
2. What reality do other people experience?
3. What is the heart of the King towards people like us?
Manuscript
Integrity in Religion | Matthew 23:1–39 | Richmond Church | 30 August 2026
Introduction — When the story and reality separate
Imagine the most respected Christian leaders in the country: the people newspapers call when they want “the Christian view”. Bishops, theological professors, bestselling authors, national conference speakers.
Now imagine a controversial preacher standing at their national gathering, with the cameras running, and publicly calling them actors, blind guides, snakes and beautifully renovated graves—impressive on the outside, but hiding death within.
Social media erupts. Security moves towards the stage. Commentators call it reckless, vicious and career-ending. You can feel the hostility in the room.
We tend to sanitise Bible scenes. But Matthew 23 should take our breath away. Jesus publicly denounces the religious establishment of his own people.
Then, in the next breath, he weeps.
He weeps because the city he loves is destroying itself, and because its leaders are harming the people they were meant to guide. You hear him say, “I wanted to shelter you. I wanted to gather you and bring you home—but you would not come.”
And he does not run from the people who will arrange his death. Within days, members of Jerusalem's religious establishment will do exactly that. Yet he will willingly walk towards the cross so that people like them—and people like us—can enter the kingdom our religion could never open.
That is the shock of Matthew 23. The one who says, “Woe to you,” is also the one who says, “How often I have longed to gather you.” His warning is severe because the danger is real. His grief is deep because his love is real.
And because he loves us, Jesus refuses to leave the gap between outward appearance and inward reality hidden.
Integrity means wholeness. What is visible on the outside belongs with what is true on the inside.
The opposite of integrity is allowing a gap to open between the story we tell and the reality underneath—and then protecting the story rather than facing the truth.
That can happen to a person. It can happen to a leader. It can happen to a whole church.
We might sincerely say, "We are a friendly church." That may be true in many ways. But integrity asks a harder question: does the person beside us actually feel noticed, known and loved?
We might say, "We are serious about the Bible." Integrity asks: is that producing justice, mercy and faithfulness—or merely confidence that we are right?
We might say, "This is my church." Integrity asks whether we are willing to belong publicly—to let these people count on us, as we count on them.
Back in Matthew 5, Jesus described the life of his kingdom: poor in spirit, merciful, pure in heart and making peace. Here in Matthew 23 we meet something like its photographic negative: proud status, neglected mercy, polished exteriors and persecution.
These are not necessarily seven exact matched pairs. But the contrast is unmistakable. The woes show us what kingdom religion becomes when it loses integrity.
Matthew 23 publicly exposes religion without integrity. Jesus names the scribes and Pharisees, but warns the crowds and disciples not to imitate them.
This climaxes the previous chapters: the King entered Jerusalem, cleared the temple, answered challenges and exposed leaders refusing God. This is no sudden outburst. It is the point at which Jesus publicly names what has gone wrong.
Three clarifications matter:
- This is not anti-Jewish. Jesus is Jewish. He is Israel's Messiah, speaking within Israel and grieving over the city he loves.
- This is not anti-leadership. Jesus recognises real teaching authority and then shows what authority under him must become.
- This is not permission to identify everybody else's hypocrisy. Jesus gives the passage to his disciples—and therefore to us—as a mirror.
Jesus exposes the gap between the religious story we tell and the reality beneath it, and he calls us into integrity under his merciful rule.
Because Jesus addresses crowds and disciples, we cannot stand outside the scene listening for somebody else.
Put yourself beneath his words and ask:
- What story do I/we tell about ourselves?
- What reality do other people experience?
- What is the heart of the King towards people like us?
Brothers and sisters, Jesus calls us to become what we say we are: come honestly under his mercy and help one another towards him.
Let's begin with...
1. The story we tell about ourselves (1-12)
Before we examine anybody else, listen for the gaps Jesus might expose in us.
Look down at Matthew 23:1-7 (NIV84)
[1] Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: [2] "The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. [3] So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for...
- v3 "They do not practise what they preach."
- v4 They tie up heavy loads and put them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.
- v5 "Everything they do is done for men to see."
...They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; [6] they love the place of honour at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; [7] they love to be greeted in the market-places and to have men call them 'Rabbi'.
The background to “Moses' seat” (Exodus 18:13) It had become a way of describing recognised teaching authority. Jesus does not dismiss the responsibility they have been given. He judges what they have done with it.
Phylacteries (Deuteronomy 6:8) Phylacteries were small boxes containing words of Scripture, worn on the wrists
Tassels (Numbers 15:38–39) Tassels were reminders of God's commands.
Neither was wrong. The problem was turning signs pointing to God into self-advertisements.
Jesus exposes three gaps:
- words and lives
- burden and help
- devotion and audience
Their story is impressive: serious about Scripture, visibly devoted, recognised as teachers and respected. But Jesus sees beneath it: authority has become a stage, and teaching a load for others.
Not every inconsistency is this hypocrisy; every Christian fails and must repent. Jesus condemns protected performance: managing appearance while keeping the heart from God.
Religion without integrity asks:
- How do I look?
- What title do I have?
- Do people recognise my seriousness?
Jesus asks:
- Are you helping?
- Are you carrying burdens with people?
- Are you pointing people beyond yourself to Christ?
The positive centre
Now look at Matthew 23:8-12 (NIV84)
[8] “You have only one Master and you are all brothers.”
[9] “You have one Father, and he is in heaven.”
[10] “You have one Teacher, the Christ.”
[11] “The greatest among you will be your servant.”
Jesus does not merely tear down bad leadership. He rebuilds life together around himself.
Every Christian leader is an under-leader. True teaching keeps Christ at the centre and the teacher in service.
“You are all brothers and sisters”: belonging is not delivered by a few leaders to passive consumers.
Under Christ, noticing, welcoming, carrying and serving are shared family responsibilities.
- Am I more concerned to appear faithful than to be honest before God?
- Do I prefer seeming important to being useful?
- When someone struggles, do I add expectation (like them reaching out), keep distant, or carry the load?
- Do we expect leaders to manufacture the family Jesus calls all of us to embody?
Jesus is not another burden-layer. The servant King practises what he preaches. He came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom. He exposes our performance not to crush the honest, but to free us from having to maintain it.
These verses expose the leaders' story about themselves to ask us "What stories do we tell about ourselves?"
The next section shows....
2. The reality experienced by others (13-36)
Jesus now repeats one word: “Woe.”
“Woe” is a prophetic warning, not an irritated insult. It says "this road ends in disaster." The words are severe because the harm is severe. The hope is that disaster is avoided.
The woes open four windows onto religion without integrity and the harm others experience.
Window 1 — The shut door: religion that keeps people from God
In Matthew 23:13 (NIV84) Jesus says, ...
[13] ...you shut the kingdom of heaven in men's faces.
Those meant to guide people towards God's kingdom block the doorway for themselves and others.
The outward effect of inward hypocrisy is that other people carry the cost.
Test good intentions by what people experience.
- Does our life make Jesus clearer, or put our preferences and insider culture in his way?
- Does a newcomer meet a family making room, or settled relationships they must break into?
- Does a struggling Christian hear Christ's grace, or mainly our disappointment?
A promised helping hand becomes a heavier load when it does not arrive. If I promise to serve but do not turn up—or accept a role I cannot fulfil—I may mean well, but somebody else carries the pressure. Integrity offers honestly, keeps its word, or gives enough notice to change plans.
Jesus opens the kingdom our religious performance cannot. At the cross he will bear sin and open the way to God.
Window 2 — The gnat and camel: religion that majors on minors
In Matthew 23:23-24 (NIV84) Jesus says, ...
[23] ...you have neglected ... justice, mercy and faithfulness. ... [24] ... You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.
Tiny herbs expose our attraction to measurable religion. Picture them sorting mint, dill and cumin in the kitchen: exactly ten per cent for God. Good obedience—but “justice, mercy and faithfulness” neglected.
Jesus does not dismiss careful obedience; he restores its weight: Details cannot replace what is closest to God's heart.
What is that?
Micah 6:8 (NIV84) names the same prophetic centre:
[8] He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
We prefer what we can count. Attendance, giving and groups are good; they cannot replace costly love.
The Ten Commandments do not say, “Attempt any seven out of ten.” Selective obedience manages God's will by quietly ignoring parts of it.
The gnat and camel make this ridiculous: both were unclean.
Picture straining out a tiny gnat by pouring thier wine through gauze; while gulping down a massive, hairy camel. The joke may even have been helped by the similar Aramaic sounds.
The funny picture carries a devastating diagnosis. They strain out a minor impurity while swallowing massive moral failure.
- Mercy is harder to measure.
- Faithfulness is costly.
- Noticing someone at the edge interrupts our easy choice.
Integrity tests our story against what other people actually experience. We may sincerely call ourselves welcoming and close-knit. But ask:
Does the person beside us actually feel noticed, known and loved?
I need this too. This is not leaders examining the congregation, or the congregation examining its leaders. Jesus places all of us beneath his word.
Window 3 — The cup and tomb: religion that hides death beneath polish
In Matthew 23:25-28 (NIV84) Jesus says, ...
[25] ...you clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside... [27] ...you are like whitewashed tombs...
A cup can shine outside while filthy within. A tomb can look bright while hiding death.
Both outsides tell one story; both insides another: greed in the cup, death in the tomb.
Matthew tells us this is festival time. Whitewash marked tombs so visiting pilgrims could avoid ceremonial uncleanness. It warned: death inside—stay away.
Jesus says polished religion can become a spiritual hazard. They looked righteous outside; death within harmed those who followed.
Another coat of whitewash cannot cleanse what is inside.
Plaster can improve the appearance of a wall; it cannot create integrity in a church.
Our unplastered wall looks unfinished, and putting it right would be a substantial expense at a time when our finances are already under considerable pressure. That does not settle what we should do about the wall. But it does put the deeper question into perspective: are we more concerned with the appearance of the building, or with the life of the people?
Growth in attendance is a real gift from God. But is our shared life growing with it—including the shared giving needed to sustain our ministry?
Let Vision Sunday's values help us measure that progress honestly. Look for:
- secure foundations—Jesus and his mission being the main thing; and protecting that for the long-term
- growing belonging—membership, life groups, giving and service showing that we are sharing life together
- evangelistic urgency—praying, speaking and inviting people to Jesus?
Last night, while Peter was learning to use crayons on an old copy of Evangelicals Now, Evee spotted an interview with Karen Soole. She said, ...
“We need to help one another become committed disciples. It is easy to drift, and we have many things to distract us.”
That is part of shared life: not merely attending church alongside one another, but helping one another go on wholeheartedly with Jesus.
These are neither belonging tests nor denials of real grace. They ask whether life beneath the surface can sustain the reality of being a family on mission together.
Confessed weakness is not this hypocrisy.
- Hypocrisy says, “Protect the appearance.”
- Repentance says, “Jesus, here is the truth.”
The divide is not flawless people and hypocrites, but those who bring the gap into Christ's light and those who defend it.
Window 4 — The prophets' tombs: religion that honours truth safely in the past
In Matthew 23:29-31 (NIV84) Jesus says, ...
[29] ...you build tombs for the prophets... [30] ...we would not have taken part...
They insist that they would have listened to God's messengers in the past while rejecting God's living word in front of them.
A Christian - and a church - can honour past faithfulness yet resist obedience now. We can treasure history and programmes while resisting Jesus today. That's really dishonouring it, isn't it? We honour yesterday's faithfulness by practising justice, mercy and faithfulness today.
Growing belonging begins with ordinary acts of justice, mercy and faithfulness. We beither pretend we have arrived nor deny the love already here. Integrity gives thanks, sees the gaps and begins ordinarily:
- notice loneliness—even among those not sitting alone
- learn a name (remember it weeks later)
- make room in settled conversations
- ask a second question; listen
- follow up when someone is distressed or disappears
- invite rather than merely announce
- share relational work; don't assume someone else will do it
These are not techniques for making the church look welcoming. They are small expressions of justice, mercy and faithfulness.
Beneath the woes is the broken heart of the King. Otherwise we might hear only exposure and reprimand: Finally, then...
3. The heart of the King towards us (37-39)
Listen to the change in Jesus' voice; Let me read it slowly:
Matthew 23:37 (NIV84)
[37] "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing."
This is not a change of subject. It reveals the heart behind every woe. Jesus does not enjoy his opponents' collapse; he grieves.
Jesus offers the shelter Scripture says God provides — Psalm 91:4 (NIV84)
"He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge..."
Jesus, the divine King offers shelter, safety and home.
Now hear the consequence in Matthew 23:38-39 (NIV84)
[38] "Look, your house is left to you desolate. [39] For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.' "
Jesus longed to gather → they were unwilling → their house is left desolate.
- "I have longed"
- "you were not willing"
Mercy is not absent. Mercy is resisted.
“Your house is left desolate” warns of judgement still future. The temple is now “your house”, not God's. In Matthew 24 Jesus leaves it and predicts that no stone will remain on another. Around forty years later, in AD 70, Rome destroyed Jerusalem and the temple.
We will explore those chapters when we return to Matthew in the new academic year. As this section and series close, notice: refused shelter leads to real desolation.
Refused mercy does not leave us safe. Jesus exposes false religion because it harms people and keeps them from shelter.
Reputation, activity and buildings cannot shelter those who refuse the Son.
His open wings tell us how to hear the warning. Jesus is not saying, “Clean up, prove yourself, become impressive enough.”
He is saying: stop hiding, stop defending, and come.
The true Teacher becomes our servant. The King who sees within goes to the cross for unclean people. He bears judgement, opens the kingdom and gathers those who could never earn a place.
Integrity begins not with presenting Jesus a better version of ourselves, but with letting him gather the real one.
Jesus' shelter speaks to the bruised, the conscientious, the established and those at the edge.
- Bruised by religion: Jesus does not defend burden-layers. He sees the harm and invites you to himself, not another performance.
- Conscientious Christian: confessed weakness is no reason to hide. Come beneath Christ's mercy.
- Leaders and established members: ask whether our influence helps people towards Jesus and makes room for them.
- On the edge of belonging: do not remain at the doorway. Jesus gathers people to himself and into a visible people.
Whoever we are, Jesus invites us beneath his mercy and then calls us to help others towards him and make room beneath his welcome.
Gathered people gather rather than exclude. Forgiven people tell the truth, served people serve, and people given a home make room.
Conclusion
Integrity in religion means allowing Jesus to close the gap:
- between the story we tell about ourselves and what he sees
- between our good intentions and what other people experience
- between saying we belong to Christ and being willing to be gathered under his rule
The answer is not a more impressive performance. It is honest repentance, received mercy and servant-shaped belonging.
Let me suggest three concrete ways you might respond to Jesus in the light of this.
- Come honestly to Jesus. Name one gap you have been protecting—before God, and where appropriate with a trusted Christian.
- Help one person belong. Identify one person to notice, include or follow up this week. Do not wait for a programme or an official leader.
- Take the next public step if it is yours. If you are considering membership or baptism, come to one of the sessions I mentioned earlier. They are places to ask questions and explore, not tests you need to pass.
Jesus sees through religious appearance—but he does not expose us in order to drive honest sinners away. He exposes what keeps us from him and what harms one another. Then he opens his arms: "How often I have longed to gather you."
So do not protect the story. Bring him the reality. Come under his mercy—and, as people gathered by Jesus, let us make room beneath his welcome for one another.