Do what they say, not what they do

“The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach.” Matthew 23:2-3
Matthew 23 gives us some insights into what it was like living in Judea at the time of Christ, with the Pharisees, the professional law-keepers, and the teachers of the law, ruling over the people and generally looking down on them. These people were proud of their position and their good works (see for example, Luke 18:10-14). But Jesus had a lot to say against them – their good works were not out of gratitude to God, but done for other people to see how wonderful they were.
Since the people couldn’t read or understand Hebrew, they relied on the Pharisees and teachers of the law to tell them what was in God’s law. So the Pharisees were teaching God’s law, but they were not living the essence of it – as we read in Matt. 22:37-40, firstly to love God, and secondly to love other people.
We can come across people like this today. They know the Bible forwards, backwards, and inside-out, but they don’t live it. Listen to Jesus’ words here: don’t be discouraged by those people. Just get on with your life, and live how God wants you to. Those people will have to give account to Him – as do we all.