And he said to his disciples, “Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin. (Luke 17:1-2 ESV)
Jesus is going back and forth with His statements between the disciples and the Pharisees. He has just given the parable of the rich man and Lazarus as a response to the Pharisees' self-justification. He now turns back to His disciples and warns them about the responsibilities of influence. Jesus was not just upset with the Pharisees' rejection of the Kingdom; He was even more upset with the way they influenced others to reject it. Because of their facade of righteousness, others could not see what real faith was like. They were like light-darkening shades on a window. In what ways do I keep the light from shining through? Am I, like the Pharisees, by any form of self-righteousness, by any pursuit of the things of this world above God, or by any complacency with sin, being a temptation for them to sin?
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