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Radical Christian Living  /  How Obedience Can Become Pharisaism  /  Discussion Questions
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Question 5
Bercot claims one sign of already slipping into Phariseeism is feeling uncomfortable when Phariseeism is brought up, or defending the Pharisees, or denying that Jesus condemned their teachings (not just their hypocrisy); what reactions did you notice in yourself as you heard that, and what might those reactions expose?
Another way to ask: Bercot says a warning sign is feeling defensive when Phariseeism is mentioned. What reactions did you feel when you heard that, and what might those reactions show about you?

Direct Answer The transcript implies that defensive or uneasy reactions may expose a fear of being questioned, a desire to protect our group’s system, or a tendency to reduce the Pharisees’ sins to hypocrisy and money-love so we don’t have to face the chasm #2 warnings.

Support from Transcript:

  • Bercot anticipates discomfort: “I can almost guarantee…persons…are starting to feel uncomfortable…you might be thinking…I’ll just shut David Bercot up.”
  • He calls that a warning sign: “one of the surest signs that we’ve already slipped into Phariseism is when we feel uncomfortable.”
  • He says it can go further: “when we actually start defending the Pharisees.”
  • Or: “when we deny that Jesus condemned some of the things that He specifically did condemn.”
  • He identifies a “game” people play: limiting Pharisee sins to chasm #1—“they were hypocrites…they were money lovers”—and ignoring the other condemned issues.
Discussion Follow-ups If you felt resistance, was it because you feared losing obedience—or because you feared losing control of how obedience is defined?

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