THE YEAST OF A PHARISEE

Jesus delivers sinners from Satan, but Paul delivers them to Satan.

Jesus warns his disciples: “Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy” (Luke 12:1).  Paul is a Pharisee (Acts 23:6), and he is a hypocrite par excellence.  His words and actions often contradict his pretentions to high Christian morality and values.

Paul’s double standards

Paul warns the Galatians: “If you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing” (Galatians 5:2).  And yet, Paul himself circumcised Timothy (Acts 16:1-3).  He counsels the Romans: “Do not be wise in your own opinion” (Romans 12:16).  Then he says to the Galatians: “I have confidence in the Lord that you will take no other view than mine” (Galatians 5:10).   

He says there is neither male nor female; we are all one in Christ (Galatians 3:28). Then he insists women must keep silent in church and only men can speak (1 Corinthians 14:34).  He says Christians should not to seek justice from unrighteous courts (1 Corinthians 6:1-5); but then he himself appealed to pagan Caesar for justice (Acts 25:9-11).  He says: “no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed” (1 Corinthians 12:3); and then he declares that Jesus was accursed (Galatians 3:13).

Paul writes to the Romans: “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse” (Romans 12:14).  But he then goes on to curse his opponents and even curses angels from heaven (Galatians 1:8-9).  When the high priest ordered someone to slap him, Paul replied with a curse: “God shall slap you, you whitewashed pigpen” (Acts 23:2-3). 

Paul says Christians should not boast (Romans 3:27).  He then boasts repeatedly; claiming he prays more, labours more, and suffers more than everybody else (2 Corinthians 11:22-27).  He says it is unwise to compare oneself with others (2 Corinthians 10:12).  He then declares that he is superior to the twelve apostles (2 Corinthians 11:22-23).  He says Christ is the end of the law (Romans 10:4); nevertheless he performed Nazarite sacrifices (Acts 21:26).

Paul is a congenital liar

Paul says to the Colosians: “Do not lie to one another” (Colossians 3:9).  And yet, Paul himself was not commited to the truth of the gospel.  Instead, he says: “The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached” (Philppians 1:18).  He claims his lies promote the gospel: “My dishonesty brought (God) glory by pointing up his honesty in contrast to my lies” (Romans 3:7).  He even openly boasts of being a deceiver to the Corinthians: “Crafty fellow that I am, I caught you by trickery!” (2 Corinthians 12:16). 

Paul is so unabashedly duplicitous, he admits to being guided by the shady principle of being all things to all men (1 Corinthians 9:20-22).  Accusations that he was a liar trailed him everywhere, ensuring that he often resorted to swearing in self-defence: “The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying” (2 Corinthians 11:31).  But Jesus expressly cautions us against swearing (Matthew 5:34-37).

Paul is mean-spirited 

Paul is so malicious, he wishes those who persecute him would castrate themselves (Galatians 5:12).  Responding to his critics, he insists their “mouths must be stopped” (Titus 1:11).  Jesus delivers sinners from Satan (Luke 4:18); but Paul delivers them to Satan (1 Timothy 1:20).  And yet, this same Paul moralises to the Galatians: “Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness” (Galatians 6:1). 

He counsels the Romans: “Repay no one evil for evil” (Romans 12:17).  But instead of forgiving those who offended him, he asked God to punish them (2 Timothy 4:14).  While Jesus advocates non-retaliation so that we can be sons of the heavenly Father (Matthew 5:44-48), Paul preaches it for malevolent reasons: “For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head” (Romans 12:20). 

Paul says: “Each man’s work will become manifest; for the day will disclose it, because it will be revealed with fire” (1 Corinthians 3:13).  The “fire” Paul lit led to the burning of innocents at the stake (1 Cointhians 5:5).  He was the father of the Inquisition, whereby hundreds of thousands were hanged, beheaded and stoned to death.  His tenets were used to validate slavery (Ephesians 6:5-6); discriminate against women (1 Corinthians 14:34-36); as well as provide scriptural authority for anti-semitism and the Nazi massacre of six million Jews (1 Thessalonians 2:14-16).

Paul says to believers: “Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1).  But no Christian genuinely seeking the rightousness of God should imitate a man like Paul.  Paul’s spirit is a monstrous imposition on the Spirit of Jesus, and his word should never be mistaken for the word of God.