Whom Shall I Fear

to preach on John 13 that we
just read. I already have a passage in hand
and I’ve preached on John 13 before, so we’ll have to restrain
ourselves this morning. If you would, we find ourselves
this morning in the Gospel of Luke in chapter 12. Luke chapter
12. If I may contextualize the passage
just briefly, Jesus has been dealing for the last several
weeks that we’ve been attending to His Word. He’s been dealing
with the frauds, the religious and spiritual frauds of the day. Those who put themselves up as
experts, those who positioned them and presented themselves
to everybody around them as the religious elite, but whose hearts
were completely vacant from God, completely void of all true worship,
completely unprepared to receive the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,
who stood in their midst. As we began to look two weeks
ago, he was dealing with the Pharisees, and suddenly last
week we saw that a lawyer asserted that perhaps he was even in his
rudeness directing some of his words at them. And we dealt with
the lawyers last week. All that to say, what it led
to is a very violent crowd, both in and around this Pharisee’s
home, where he had gone, allegedly at least, to be the guest of
a Pharisee for dinner. It really was treated to much
ruder treatment. Accosted verbally. found himself a trap set for
him. And so he finds himself now in
an increasingly hostile situation. And as only the Lord can, he
perceived his own apostles, perhaps even standing in the same room
with him, certainly around the house and around Christ’s ministry. And Jesus suddenly in chapter
12 begins to minister to them. And in doing so, for all time,
he ministers to us because we face the same exact challenges
that these apostles faced. Jesus felt the need suddenly
to turn to his own followers, not just the disciples, but certainly
including them, but especially, particularly the apostles. who
would soon be saddled with carrying forth the ministry. And Jesus
knew if it got off track here, if they succumbed to this unruly
crowd here, ministry would not continue after Jesus died. Jesus wanted to give them an
encouragement, an exhortation, not only to follow him, but to
advance in the ministry, to take great courage, to become bold
in the ministry in proclaiming Christ. Perhaps the apostles
at this latest scene were even losing heart, even after all
that they had seen Jesus do. Maybe they were faltering and
Jesus sensed it. Whatever the case or the cause,
Jesus’ words were for them, beginning in chapter 12. Chapter 12. If you will, I want to begin
in verse one and proceed down through verse twelve. Where Luke
records under these circumstances, after so many thousands of people
had gathered together that they were stepping on one another,
he began saying to his disciples, first of all. Beware of the leaven
of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy, but there is nothing covered
up that will not be revealed and hidden that will not be known.
Accordingly, whatever you have said in the dark will be heard
in the light. And what you have whispered in the inner rooms
will be proclaimed upon the housetops. I say to you, my friends, do
not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that have
no more they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear. Fear the one who, after he is
killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear
him. Are not five sparrows sold for
two cents? Yet not one of them is forgotten
before God. Indeed, the very hairs of your
head are all numbered. Do not fear. You are more valuable
than many sparrows. And I say to you, everyone who
confesses me before men, the Son of Man will confess him also
before the angels of God. But he who denies me before men
will be denied before the angels of God. And everyone who speaks
a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him. But
he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven
him. When they bring you before the
synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not worry
about how or what you are to speak in your defense or what
you are to say. For the Holy Spirit will teach
you in that very hour. what you ought to say. Jesus had been dealing with these
rude brutes, the Pharisees. Several weeks ago, we looked
at the destructive features of man-made religion, which Jesus
called hypocrisy. They had set up all kinds of
man-made standards that they themselves, as we saw last week
with regards to the lawyers, wouldn’t lift a finger to submit
to. We saw that man-made religion
is hypocritical. It’s inconsistent. Not only that,
but it’s pretentious. It’s phony. It’s a show. It’s
all for a show. But as a result, the most concerning
character of hypocrisy is that it is communicable. It can spread. And that is exactly what Jesus
wants to nail down first. It’s exactly what Jesus wanted
to do. The problem is that they, just
like in our day, were prone to live according to political expediency. To apply situation ethics and
live only according to the moment. The temptation for them is the
temptation for us. It isn’t what’s right anymore. It’s what’s right for the moment.
that really counts, many will tell you. In politics, we see
it and we’ve come to expect it in politics, but in business,
it’s the norm for the day. We’re driven by popular polls,
by popular opinion. The constant demand is give them
what they want. Politicians have learned it.
Business leaders have learned it. No longer is integrity the
virtue of the day, the virtue above all others in leadership. Now the one who waits to see
which direction the prevailing winds are blowing and then gives
the people what they want, he is called a visionary. We are
fast becoming a nation without a soul. No moorings. No firm convictions. And that
would all be sad enough if it were limited only to the sphere
of politics and religion, but it isn’t. Now it’s the rule of
the day in the church. Saddest of all, the church. The
market drives the message. The seekers is what now largely
dictates our method. And in its final analysis, it’s
due to a practical fear. And that’s what Jesus wants to
address with his apostles. A practical fear. They might
not be cowering in the corner. But a fear of what others might
do to them, a fear about what other people might think of them,
a fear about what others may say about them. That’s what drives
them. And Jesus wants to correct that.
That’s what drives our own society. What will people say? What will
people think about me if I tell them I’m a Christian? Essentially, that kind of leadership
isn’t leadership at all. It’s cowardice. But it’s not
limited to leadership only. Each one of us is susceptible
to that, to responding in fear to what others may say or think
or do to us. We’re driven, controlled by the
opinion of others. We’re steered about by the fear
of the consequences of our convictions, aren’t we? We’re hamstrung by
the horror of what someone else may say either about us or about
our doctrine or about what it is we believe. Jesus Christ,
our Lord, says it ought not be so. It doesn’t need to be so. We don’t need to cower in fear
because we serve Almighty God. Jesus in this brief little passage
gives to us, and I don’t know how far we’ll make it today,
but he gives to us three arguments. Three arguments against the practical
fear of man. If you will. This presents for us the foolishness
or the folly of the fear of man. I put the notes there in your
bulletin. As I indicated, I’m not sure
how far we’ll get today. But if you would look at verse
one, as we come to the first, the first rebuke against the practical fear of
man is that God’s truth will prevail. These disciples were
likely going to be very influenced by the crowd around them. Perhaps they were even buying
into the hypocrite’s message, the Pharisees. Perhaps they were
even swayed by their life and lifestyle. They believed them
on face value. Jesus says in verse 1, after
so many thousands of people had gathered together, He ultimately
said to them, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees. Leaven is an
interesting thing. Yeast, basically. You place just
a tiny amount. I’ve watched my wife baking bread.
You place a tiny amount and it moves through the dough with
a chemical reaction that I don’t quite understand. And throughout
Scripture, in and throughout Scripture, it’s used in that
same capacity as an analogy for sin beginning to permeate. The
first warning that Jesus gives the Pharisees is beware of rubbing
shoulders, beware of adopting what they believe, because it
will permeate. Jesus wants to encourage them.
He tells them, don’t be afraid of them and don’t adopt their
doctrine. It will run like wildfire through
your lives and through your ministries, through the church. Jesus wants to give them assurance
of success in the ministry, not a way to fail. What He wants
to tell them is how to be courageous in sincerity. Leaven. I want to go back to
this concept of leaven. When the Jews were first excised
from captivity, they were supposed to celebrate a meal called the
Passover. Do you remember it? And the Passover
had a lot of rules attached to it, one of which was the unleavened
bread. If you’ve ever seen unleavened
bread, the very purpose of leaven is to have that chemical reaction
cause the bread to rise. Unleavened bread essentially
is a large saltine. without the salt. That’s unleavened
bread. And it was to be an illustration
to them of the desire to be separated unto God, wholly unto the Lord,
apart from all sin, the leaven not in and of itself being sinful,
but representing sin as permeating everything that it touches. We
see this verse or this thought carried throughout Scripture.
We’ll see it again in the Gospel of Luke. But in 1st Corinthians,
Paul, an expert student of Scripture in his own right, said this in
1st Corinthians 15.6, pardon me, 1st Corinthians 5.6. And
if you know the context, this is where the son has his father’s
wife and the church is doing nothing about it. Nothing about
it. And Paul said this is a bad deal. His sin is going to affect everybody
in this building if you don’t do something about it. And he
uses this imagery. Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little
leaven leavens the whole lump of dough? This man’s sin, unchecked,
is going to affect everybody and everything. Galatians 5.9,
He wrote them the same exact thought. A little leaven leavens
the whole lump of dough. Jesus says, what it is they hold
to, what it is they teach, it’s just a pinch. But to get up next to that false
teaching, those false standards, the man-made religion that they
tried to advance was to take that little pinch and to throw
it into the church. And Jesus says, don’t do that.
Don’t do that. And it’s a warning that the church
has always needed to heed. It always has, in some degree,
struggled and even at times failed. Jesus delivered the message more
than once. Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees. It was intended to be a standing
warning for all time, for all of the church. It was meant to
remind us that those legalistic principles that the Pharisees
advanced would erode the heart of the
gospel. Justification by faith. Jesus
says that this leavening process is subtle, just like the process
in bread. But once it’s done, it’s complete.
Jesus turns to them and says, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees,
which is hypocrisy. And then He advances this direct
challenge to what the Pharisees hold to. Look at verse 2. But
there is nothing covered up that will not be revealed and nothing
hidden that will not be known. Jesus says one day there is going
to be a great uncovering. A great exposition of everybody’s
lives. And these religious phonies,
these hypocrites, will be seen for what they are. All men will
be seen just as they are. Hypocrisy in spiritual things
was a grave sin to God. It always was. And Jesus wants
to deal with that grave sin once and for all. Ultimately, he says
here, hypocrisy is not only a grave sin, though, it’s foolish. Because
in time, we’re all going to be seen for exactly as we are. And
these who held to this false standard would be seen. They’d
be seen as hypocrites, phonies, charlatans, shams. It isn’t just here that this
thought is given. In Ecclesiastes, Solomon there
wrote, God will bring every act to judgment. Everything which
is hidden, whether it’s good or evil. Now you think back upon
your week. That’s what Jesus wanted the
apostles to do. And really, as an act of mercy,
that’s what he wanted the Pharisees and the lawyers, the scribes
to do. Think back upon your week. Every act? Every deed? Romans 2.16, Paul there spoke
of the day when according to my Gospel, God will judge the
secrets of men through Jesus Christ. This isn’t a vain threat. This isn’t the idle ramblings
of one lone apostle. This is the consistent teaching
throughout Scripture. The one day God is going to open
the book and the book is going to contain the whole of our lives. First Corinthians 3, 13, the
apostle again, each man’s work will become evident for the day
will for the day will show it because it is to be revealed
with fire and the fire itself will test the quality of each
man’s work. Later on in that same book, chapter four, verse
five, he warns us against judging one another, which is the most
foolish activity that you can engage in. Do not go on passing
judgment before the time, but wait until the Lord, who also
happens, may I remind, to be the judge. Wait until the Lord
comes who will bring both to light the things hidden in the
darkness and disclose the motives of men’s hearts. See, there’s
something we can’t see. Sometimes we can see their deeds
and sometimes their deeds are even good, but we can’t see their
motives. God knows even that. And He will
expose even that. And then each man’s praise will
come to him from God, if at all. You see, the revealer of secrets,
God Himself isn’t going to have any difficulty replaying the
movies of our lives. And that’s what He wanted the
Pharisees to know. He wanted them to know about
their own hypocrisy. And He wanted the apostles to
know that one day they were going to be exposed. Once and for all. The saying is attributed to Abraham
Lincoln. You may remember it. You can
fool some of the people all the time. You know, some people are
just dupable. You know, you pull a trick on
them and they’ll fall for it the very next day. Right? And
all the people, some of the time. Some people, in some parts of
our lives, we can pull the wool over their eyes for all of our
lives. We can have them convinced. But
Lincoln went on and said, but you cannot fool all the people
all of the time. What he left out was this. You
can never fool God. You can’t fool God at any time.
And one day God will expose everything. I love the reminder. This is a memory verse, parents. Second Corinthians 16.9. This
is one you want committed to memory. The eyes of the Lord
move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support
those whose heart is completely His. What an incredible thought. You say, oh, well, that’s just
hyperbole. Really? Proverbs 15, 3, The eyes of the
Lord are in every place watching the evil and the good. Those
tell us that God is watching. What Jesus goes on to tell us
is that one day He will show, replay that movie for everyone. Verse 3, as Jesus concludes,
He says accordingly, whatever you have said in the dark will
be heard in the light. And I believe what he’s telling
the apostles to do here is weigh and measure and be careful about
the words that you use. Make sure that they’re accurate.
Make sure that they’re right. Make sure that they’re not teetered
with leaven. Make sure that there isn’t any
of this false religiosity. That was casting so many into
darkness. Whatever you have said in the
dark will be heard in the light. One day our words will even be
sifted and measured. The words that we even uttered
in the dark and what you have whispered in the inner rooms
will be proclaimed upon the housetops.” It’s a pretty graphic image.
I looked up that word, inner rooms. In the East, so often
the walls were just made of clay bricks. And if you put your pantry,
where you kept the most precious things in your home, food, without
which you wouldn’t last a week, Most people who put their pantry
in the outside of the walls learned pretty quickly not to do it.
Because robbers would come and they would simply carve out a
few bricks, empty out the groceries and off they went and you were
hungry. And so the inner room was where
you kept the storehouse. The inner room is where you kept
the precious things and the commodities so that the thieves couldn’t
steal them. And Jesus uses this imagery of going into the secret
room and having some kind of a secret conversation, only it’s
not secret. Then he uses another contemporary
Mideast image when he says one day that little secret is going
to be proclaimed on the housetop. The housetop was a flat roof.
And many times before the day of telephones and faxes and emails
to communicate with your neighbor, you’d simply go up on the roof.
Wasn’t exactly a private conversation to call down to somebody in the
street. Everybody would hear it. And that’s exactly what Jesus
is saying. What if you whisper in the inner
room, good or evil is one day going to be proclaimed on the
housetop? People, the temptation here that Jesus wants to get
at is the temptation to practical fear. To false standards. Here, Jesus wants to warn us
against conformity to false standards, to imbibe their hypocritical
lifestyle, the legalism and the catering to man-made standards
that is so common. Jesus says, don’t do it. The
question for us is, to what have we adapted our lives? How have
we adapted our lives to accommodate others? You know what? If you
brought your Bible in today, to please other people. Leave
it home. If you came here today only to
be seen by people, stay home. That’s what God says. If the
only reason you’re doing what you’re doing is to be seen by
men, Jesus says it’s hypocritical phoniness. Stay home. The other question Probes much
deeper. What are you hiding? And whatever
you’re hiding, how eager are we to shine the light of God’s
Word on that particular area? How eager are we to share with
another brother? Brother, pray for me on this
particular thing. Examine my heart. Am I right
here? How eager are we? I would say
in most cases, not very. Not very. But when we remember
that God’s truth will prevail, that’s a motivation that Jesus
gives to us as well, not to cower in fear of what other people
think. We shouldn’t even care what other people think of us. That leads us to point two. I
said that there were three arguments against the practical fear of
man. This fear that has a tendency to change the way that we live
and talk and think. First of all, God’s truth will
prevail. Second of all, this practical
fear of man is rebuked by the fact that God’s authority is
supreme. God’s authority. Look at the
way Jesus says it. I say to you, my friends, do
not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that have
no more that they can do. What else can they do? Years
ago, we read about Wycliffe, right? In Sunday school, we read
about Wycliffe and how the Roman Catholic Church was so against
him, they persecuted him to the point that even after he was
dead, they couldn’t get to him. So they dug up his bones, burned
him again and threw him in the river. What more can they do? Don’t be afraid of those who
kill the body. Don’t be afraid of things that can come from
them. I remember a church, you know, had offered me a full ride
to seminary if I would only bow the need to bail. No, I’m kidding.
But essentially, they wanted to control what doctrine I was
learning. I said, I haven’t been to seminary yet. So I’m going
to seminary for. Well, no, we want you to believe
this and this and this. And I can just remember. Psalm
56, for the Lord, I put my trust. What can mere man do to me? So
worse they can do. I suppose they could take away
my tuition. Worst case scenario, they could
kill me. So they took it. God paid it. The disciples, Jesus said, were
commanded not to yield in fear of men. They weren’t to yield
to the temptation of putting on a show in front of others.
Men could only kill their bodies. If they didn’t comply, if they
didn’t conform, it’s the worst they could do. God, on the other
hand, we’ll see what God possesses in a moment. The prophets gave
this constant warning, constant warning to God’s people. Jeremiah
1.8, Do not be afraid of them. Don’t be afraid of the people
in the land. Remember the courage of David standing up to that
giant. I’m going to teach you a lesson,
giant, for talking your foul talk about the people of God.
Who are you? Isaiah 51. Isaiah 51-12 says, I, even I,
am He who comforts you. Who are you that you should be
afraid of man who dies? He’s just a man. And of the son
of man who’s made like grass. that you have forgotten the Lord
your Maker who stretched out the heavens, laid the foundations
of the earth, that you continually fear all day long because of
the fury of the oppressor.” He said, this is totally irrational
behavior. And for us to adjust our lifestyle
and get in line and conform because of a mere man’s opinion is ludicrous. That’s what Jesus says. J.C. Ryle said it this way. The
fear of man is one of the greatest obstacles which stands between
the soul and heaven. Did you hear that? You got gatekeepers
now standing before heaven and they’re not going to let you
in unless you conform. What will they say of me? What
will they think of me? What will they do to me? How
often these little questions have turned the balance against
the soul and kept man bound hand and foot by the sin and the devil.
Thousands would never hesitate a moment to storm a breach or
face a lion who dare not face the laughter of relatives, neighbors
and friends. Did you get J.C. Ryle’s point?
We cower in fear. He says that there are many that
would gladly have jumped off the boat onto Normandy Beach.
There are many that would face a wild lion, but the fear of
having relatives and friends ridicule us for our Christianity,
that we can’t stand. Who couldn’t bear that? And you
know the truth of this? If we’re unfaithful in this little
thing, this isn’t exactly a day and age of persecution. If we
hand somebody a gospel tract and they give us a dirty look,
that’s persecution in our day and age. Not in the days of history
of the church, that’s not what the church would call persecution,
not really. But if we’re unfaithful in this
kind of day and age, when everything is mild and the worst that they
can do is give you a dirty look, what will we do in a day when
there is persecution? If we’re not faithful now, in
our words and in our deeds and our behavior and our thoughts, no wonder Jesus says, I’ll tell
you who to fear. I will warn you whom to fear. Fear the one
who, after he is killed, has authority to cast into hell.
Yes, I tell you, fear him. It isn’t the devil that we’re
supposed to fear. Never in any part of Scripture anywhere are
we ever told to be afraid of the devil, which makes that a
sin. The reference here is to God,
we are to defy and resist the devil, we are to fear God, a
healthy, reverent respect for God Almighty and what he can
do. Jesus wants his apostles to be
afraid, but not of men and not of the devil of God. What’s the nature of that fear?
It essentially amounts to standing in awe before God as your Maker,
who you know holds your very life in His hands. He gave it
to you. This word is a graphic, interesting
word for hell. The technical word here signifies
the valley of Hinnom. Not exactly Vacationland, USA.
It used to be. It used to be this beautiful,
fertile valley and all kinds of groves and beautiful things
there. And then idolatry came into the
land of Israel and they began to worship the God of Molech.
The God of Molech demanded that they sacrifice their children
and they would throw them down into this burning valley, this
pit. It became such a hated place
that when Josiah came and came into power, he eradicated the
idolatry and he turned it into the city dump because it was
so given over and so filthy and vile. It had been completely
desecrated, never to return to anything good. And it became
the city dump and refuse and all kinds of garbage was dumped
there. And in order to to keep the disease down, they kept a
fire burning there all the time. That’s the word for hell. And
it became this image. Hell is a real place. It’s not
just the city dump outside the gates of Jerusalem. It’s a real
place. This was just the most graphic
word that Jesus could use. He says, beware of a God. Beware of a God that has authority
that after you’re dead can cast you hand and foot into hell.
A real place. And then there’s this strangely
abrupt change here. We live so often as men who don’t
believe that there is a God. Or if we believe that there is
a God, He certainly is not going to cast anyone into hell. But
Jesus just said it’s true. But then there’s this abrupt
change. A change in tone. A change in words. That you almost
think, well, this is a different writer taking over here. This
is such a completely different thought. Maybe it doesn’t belong
in this passage. Somebody would even say that
these thoughts are unrelated, just inserted here by the author
Luke. These are Jesus words, and he
says this are not two sparrows, five sparrows sold for two cents,
yet not one of them is forgotten before God. What this is, is
an abrupt change to not only the sovereign authority of the
righteous judge, but he also wants us to know that we are
to fear a loving father. We are to serve and live our
lives in front of a loving Father who knows even how many birds
are sold in the marketplace. If God is concerned about birds,
if He cares for birds, isn’t He going to be aware and attentive
to what takes place in our lives? You know He is. Not one of those
creatures falls without God knowing it. Not even the smallest, slightest
creature. This fear of God wasn’t supposed
to be a slavish fear. It was supposed to be a reverence
for a loving, heavenly Father. That’s the kind of reverence
that we’re called to. That’s the kind of lifestyle that that
is supposed to engender. One that has lived in front of
a righteous judge, but also in front of a loving, heavenly Father.
What a great motivator He gives to these apostles and to us.
And he says this, indeed, the very hairs of your head are all
numbered, getting easier for me every day. Do not fear. You are more valuable than many
sparrows. And he knows even how many hairs
are on your head. That’s the God that we serve.
Jesus says we’re not supposed to be cowering in fear to others.
Our reverence is not for men, or for men’s opinion, or in fear
of men’s authority. Our reverence, our fear, our
service is unto God Almighty Himself. Turn, if you would, to Acts. Acts chapter 4. In Acts chapter 4, we’re given
a graphic example of this very exhortation. In Acts chapter
4, pick it up in verse 13. As they observed the confidence
of Peter and John and they understood that they were educated and untrained
men, they were amazed and began to recognizing them having been
with Jesus. Wouldn’t that be a great thing
to have people say about us? They recognized them as having
been with Jesus, regardless of whether they’d been to seminary
or been trained or whatever. And seeing the man whom they
had healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in reply.
But when they had ordered them to leave the council, they began
to confer with one another, saying, What shall we do with these men?
For the fact that a noteworthy miracle had taken place through
them is apparent to all who live in Jerusalem. We cannot deny
it. But so that we will not spread any further among our people,
let us warn them to speak no longer to any man in His name. And when they had summoned them,
they commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of
Jesus.” Well, there’s your marching orders. Unless you’re following
Almighty God. But Peter and John answered and
said to them, whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed
to you, rather than to God, you be the judge. For we cannot stop
speaking about what we have seen and heard.” You know what? People, we need more men like
that. We need more people with that
kind of a hard attitude who aren’t afraid of what people say, who
only simply want to obey God. question that I would pose to
you is, to whose authority are you ultimately submitted? Are
you bending to the wind of what men might say and what men want
you to do and what men might do to you if you don’t do what
they want you to? It is the spirit of our day to
do what others want us to do rather than what God. briefly and quickly in closing.
I can’t see the clock anyway. The practical fear of man is
reduced by the fact that God’s truth will prevail. God’s authority
is supreme. Ultimately, God’s opinion is
paramount. You know whose opinion matters
most? God’s. God’s is the one that
really matters. God is the one that we really
want to please. We’re not supposed to conform
ourselves out of fear and live in fear of others. Look at verse 8. I say to everyone
who confesses Me before the Son of Man will confess Me before
the angels of God. But he who denies Me before men
will be denied before the angels of God. It’s not the same kind
of confession. Don’t confuse that. But he’s
saying is that as we have opportunity before others, as God gives us
opportunity, we will then open our mouth. That is to confess
Christ. Some of us in a couple of weeks will have the privilege
to get a testimony in Sunday school. A testimony of what Christ
has done in our lives. What a great opportunity. Jesus
says you do that before men. I will confess you before the
angels. You zip your lips. when I want
you to speak and have it in your mind for all eternity.” It’s
a different kind of confession. It’s a testimony of the fact
that you’re a faithful follower of Jesus. That’s what Jesus says. We dealt with the thought of
verse 10 several weeks ago. Everyone who speaks the word
against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him that he who blasphemes
against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him. That is
that sin of disregarding the work of the Spirit in your own
life. Jesus says, ultimately, that is the unpardonable sin. When they bring you before the
synagogues and rulers in authority, verse 11, do not worry about
how or what you are to speak in your defense or what you are
to say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what
you are to say. So often, we haven’t been through
the program yet, so I can’t share my faith. I don’t have a good
outline, so I can’t really tell this. I’m not good at speaking,
You know, that’s the one Moses tried. It didn’t work with God. There aren’t excuses that will
work. There’s a temptation that we have succumbed to playing to other men’s opinion.
The question that I want to close us with is who’s listening to
you and what are you saying? Who’s listening to you and what
are you saying? Are you telling them the truth? Are you proclaiming
Christ to them? Are you fearlessly living out
the gospel in your lives that maybe others might come to know
the truth as well? There’s nothing more common than
holding our tongue when we’re commanded to speak. It’s a sad
feature of our society as Christians. There were two that lived about
500 years ago that were much bolder than we. Dr. Ridley and Hugh Latimer were
called before the then religious elite, found to be at odds with
their doctrine and rebuked, threatened, ultimately thrown in prison.
And after a lengthy period in prison, given a death sentence,
the night before their death sentence, it was said of Dr.
Ridley that he shaved and dressed as if he were going to his wedding
the next day. He wanted to be prepared for
the moment. Dr. Ridley was dressed and ready. They began to bind these two
men to the stakes to be burned alive for their faith. Ridley embraced Latimer fervently,
his friend, and prayed for him and said, Be of good heart, brother,
for God will either put out the fire of the flame or strengthen
us to abide it. They tied them to the stake.
They ultimately tied gunpowder around their necks, began to
light the fire at the sticks that were piled at their feet. Suddenly, Hugh Latimer broke
out back to his friend, Mr. Ridley, and he said, Be of good
cheer, Ridley, and play the man. We shall this day, by God’s grace,
light up such a candle in England as I trust will never be put
out. They were burned at the stake. England struggles to this
day, but those two men were faithful. They were faithful to death.
They didn’t fear man. They lived their life as God
commanded them to live and God glorified them in it. Let’s examine
our own hearts before the Lord as we close. Gracious God, We humble ourselves before you. We pray that you would examine
our hearts. Are we fearfully living before men? Do we care
about their opinions above God’s?