Why didn’t the religious leaders of His day accept Jesus?
Misconstrue the gospel or adapt it to suit a particular subculture’s preferences, and the inevitable result will be a religion of works and a system that breeds self-righteousness. That is exactly what Jesus’ conflict with the Pharisees was all about. They represented a style of religion and a system of belief that was in direct conflict with the very heart of the gospel He proclaimed. Jesus, for instance, offered forgiveness and instant justification to believing sinners. Israel’s religious leaders manufactured massive systems of works and ceremonies that in effect made justification itself a human work. In the words of the apostle Paul, “they [were] ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness” (Romans 10:3). There was simply no way for Christ to avoid conflict with these leaders. So instead, He made the most of it. He used their false religion as a foil for the truth He taught.