Jesus warned the people against the hypocritical behavior of the religious leaders.

Matthew 23:1-12

23 Then Jesus said to the crowd and to us his disciples, 2 “Moses was the renowned teacher who taught the people the laws that God gave him [MTY]. Now, the Pharisees and the men who teach our Jewish laws have made themselves the ones who interpret those laws [IDM]. 3 Consequently, you should do whatever they tell you that you must do. But do not do what they do, because they themselves do not do what they tell you that you must do. 4 They require you to obey many rules that are difficult to obey. But they themselves do not help anyone obey those rules. It is as if they are tying up loads that are hard to carry and putting them on your shoulders [MET] for you to carry. But they themselves do not desire to help anyone obey those laws. They are like people who do not want to lift even the slightest load that they could lift [MET] 5 with one finger. Whatever they do, they do it to be seen by other people {so that other people will see them doing that}. For example, they make extra wide the tiny boxes containing portions of Scripture that they wear on their arms. They enlarge the tassels on their robes, to make others think that they are pious. 6 They want people to honor them. For example, at dinner parties they sit in the seats where the most important people sit. In the places of worship they want to sit in the seats where the most honored people sit. 7 Also, they want people to greet them respectfully in the marketplaces and to honor them by calling them ‘Teacher’. 8 But you who are my disciples should not allow people to address you honorably as ‘Rabbi’, which means ‘teacher’. I am the only one who is really your teacher, which means that you are all equal, like brothers and sisters, and none of you should act superior to another, as the Pharisees do. 9 Do not honor anyone on earth by addressing him as ‘Father’, because God, your Father in heaven, is the only spiritual father of all of you. 10 Do not allow people to call you ‘Instructors’, because I, the Messiah, am the one instructor who teaches all of you. 11 In contrast, everyone among you who wants God to consider them to be important must serve others as servants do. 12 God will humble those who exalt themselves. And he will exalt those who humble themselves.”