This passage shows us how easy it is to miss the heart of God’s Word. The Pharisees loved money and used the law to justify themselves, twisting it whenever it suited them. Jesus calls them out and reminds us that while the gospel has come, the intent of God’s law still stands — it’s about love, mercy, and faithfulness, not control or appearances. The danger for us is the same: we can know Scripture, quote verses, even win arguments, and still miss Jesus in the process. The Bible isn’t meant to make us right — it’s meant to make us new. So today, let’s not read for information or justification, but for transformation. Open your Bible, listen for God’s voice, and let His Word shape your heart.

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Well, good morning! It’s good to be with you on this Wednesday morning as we continue together in Luke’s Gospel. I hope your week’s going great.

Now, I’ll be honest — it’s getting cold, and I’m against it. I’m already ready for summer. I can do without winter entirely. Some of y’all want to get rid of daylight savings time — I’m ambivalent about that — but if we could get rid of winter? I’d sign that petition tomorrow. I need warmth! That’s really my only problem in life right now — I wake up and it’s cold, and I’m against it.

Anyway, let’s warm up with God’s Word today. We’re in Luke 16:14-18 (NRSVUE):

The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all this, and they ridiculed him.
So he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of others; but God knows your hearts; for what is prized by human beings is an abomination in the sight of God.
The law and the prophets were in effect until John came; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is proclaimed, and everyone tries to enter it by force.
But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one stroke of a letter in the law to be dropped.
Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and whoever marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.”

Now, that’s a tough little section, isn’t it? Jesus isn’t just talking about money or divorce here — he’s really getting at the heart behind how the Pharisees used the law.

You’ve heard the phrase “malicious compliance”? That’s when someone follows a rule so literally that it actually causes chaos. The Pharisees were experts at that. They had weaponized bureaucracy. They used the law, and even their own extra rules, to get what they wanted. When the law benefitted them, they quoted it literally. When it didn’t, they twisted it. Their goal wasn’t holiness — it was control.

So when Jesus talks about the law not passing away, he’s saying two things:
First, the gospel — the good news of the kingdom — has come. We’re not saved by the law, but by grace through Jesus Christ.
Second, the intent of the law still stands. God’s law was always meant to point us toward love, mercy, and faithfulness — not to be used as a weapon.

That’s what was happening with divorce in their time. The Pharisees made exceptions for themselves. They piled on burdens for others but carved out loopholes for their own benefit. Jesus calls them out because they were missing the point — the law wasn’t about power, it was about transformation.

And that’s where it hits home for us, too. Jesus says, “You justify yourselves in the sight of others, but God knows your hearts.” Ouch. You can get an A in Bible trivia and still miss Jesus standing right in front of you.

The Bible wasn’t given just for information — it was given for transformation. John Wesley called reading Scripture a “means of grace.” When we open God’s Word, we don’t just learn about Jesus — we meet Him there. Scripture shapes us, humbles us, and, if we let it, it changes us.

So, how do you read your Bible? Are you reading it so you can prove your point, or are you reading it so God can speak to you? Are you using it to justify yourself like the Pharisees, or to be transformed by grace?

I always tell folks — I’d rather you read one verse well than a thousand badly. Reading well means reading expectantly, listening for God’s voice, and letting the Holy Spirit do His work.

So today, after Rooted or after this devotional, I hope you’ll go back and read this passage yourself. Sit with it. Pray over it. Let God’s Word speak to you. Because this isn’t just reading — this is sacred, holy time with the living God.

The Pharisees missed the heart of the law. Let’s make sure we don’t miss the heart of Scripture. Let’s read it to be transformed, not to win arguments — to draw closer to Jesus, not to justify ourselves.

Thanks for being with me this morning, friends. Stay warm out there — and stay rooted in God’s Word.