The crowds had been listening with delight as Jesus cut through the pomposity and cynical arrogance of the religious leaders (Mark 12:37).  Now Jesus rebuked those men publicly!  Warning the crowds against the self-righteous and self-seeking clerics, Jesus was advising the ordinary people not to get caught up in the religious hatred that would finally call for His death.  But by exposing these men for what they were, Jesus knew He was also sealing His own death warrant.

Jesus was giving an identikit picture of hypocrisy.  Firstly, He identified their title of self-love 'teachers of the law'.  They did not think anybody had the right to tell them what to do: they were the authority.  Secondly, He identified their motive: they were spiritual narcissists; they loved themselves and loved to be admired, even worshipped, by others; and they dressed to confirm the illusion of holiness (Matthew 23:5-7).  Thirdly, they were hungry for honour: like Haman in the Book of Esther.  Fourthly, they were greedy for what they could get (devouring widows houses) although they looked and sounded holy.  They blatantly used their religious office to please themselves and not God, trampling over other people and getting rich at the expense of the most vulnerable.  

The power of pride is immense. The rabbis were supposed to teach God's truth but instead they used their supposed holiness for personal popular applause. And they extracted money from vulnerable people to line their own pockets. Prayer was no longer in relationship with God but a showpiece of oratory - just acting up to the crowd (Matthew 6:5).  They were hypocrites.  Pride comes before a fall (Proverbs 16:18).  Jesus said that a most severe punishment awaited them (Matthew 24:51).  

James, the brother of the Lord Jesus, realised that His comments were not just for Pharisees, but for Christians as well. He wrote, "Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly." (James 3:1).  So we need to examine ourselves and root out any self-stained motive that would like to use fellowship or ministry for personal advantage.  That is also essential before we take communion (1 Corinthians 11:27-31).  So, perhaps it is high time for a motive-audit ... before God's independent inspection starts.