Clean the Inside

Matthew 23:25-28
Key Verse 23:26

“You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and the plate, that the outside also may be clean.”

1. Look at verses 25-26. What were the scribes and Pharisees focusing on? Why do you think they prioritized being clean on the outside?
   1. Why do you think Jesus says ‘Woe’ to the scribes and Pharisees for being hypocrites?
   2. Why do you think they neglected to consider and clean the inside?
   3. What do you think it means to be ‘full of greed and self-indulgence’? What would this kind of life look like?
   4. Why do you think Jesus uses a cup and a plate to point to the hearts of the scribes and Pharisees? What do you think the cup and plate could symbolize and represent?
   5. Why do you think Jesus tells the Pharisees to first clean the inside of the cup and plate? What can we learn from this?
2. Look at verses 27-28. How did the scribes and Pharisees appear outwardly?
   1. Why do you think Jesus says ‘Woe’ to the scribes and Pharisees for appearing beautiful, and righteous on the outside?
   2. Here the scribes and Pharisees are being compared to a tomb. What could a tomb ‘full of dead people’s bones’ symbolize and represent?
   3. The scribes and Pharisees are described as being full of: greed, self-indulgence, dead people’s bones, all uncleanliness, hypocrisy, and lawlessness. What do you think we should be ‘full of’?
   4. What might be the right way for us to appear to others outwardly? How might we be able to appear beautiful, and righteous to others without being hypocrites?