Woe to you - Matthew 23:13-36

Like our last study, personal questions will be a significant portion of our exploration of today's passage, but we'll also look at some elements of Jewish culture to deepen our understanding.  Also note that today we reach the end of the long interchange between Jesus and the Jewish religious leaders.

Today we cover the passage known as the "Eight Woes," filled with the phrase, "Woe to you..."  So before we dive into Scripture, let's define that phrase really quickly.

• The word "woe" itself means distress, lamentation, grief, anguish, etc.
• So, "woe to you" isn't exactly an act of cursing the "you."
• Rather, in this context, the recipients (hypocritical religious elite) will experience that woe because of the implied curse because of their evil acts that Jesus lists out.

13 "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the kingdom of heaven from people; for you do not enter in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.

Under the Old Covenant, the Mosaic Law and sacrifices and festivals and all that were the way to serve God, but salvation (because Christ's death reaches both backward and forward in time) was still based on faith, a heart genuinely striving after God (see Romans 4).  Since these religious leaders were only interested in bringing glory to themselves, they had no true relationship with God.  But the situation was far worse in that these religious leaders were teaching common Jews legalistic principles instead of God's true intent in His Law, preventing them from coming to truly know the Lord for themselves and understand what it meant to really follow Him.  False teachers are extremely influential -which is why the Church is instructed to be constantly on watch for them, so no one is sucked in (see 2 Peter 2:1-3 and Romans 16:17-18,for example).

Are you diligent to keep false teachers' words out of your ears and eyes, checking all teachings against the Bible?  Do you also try to protect weaker Christians around you from false teaching's influence?

14 ["Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you devour widows' houses, and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive greater condemnation.]

We've talked about how to handle bracketed verses before (verses found in some early manuscripts but not others), but if you are new here or need a refresher, click this post and scroll down to the blue sub-header that reads, "What about That Verse in Brackets?"  Based on my opinion on the bracketing issue, this verse qualifies as genuine Scripture.

Here, the religious elite were taking advantage of the people they were supposed to be taking care of, and engaging in religious activity just for the sake of appearing holy to others.  (For more on the issue of public prayer, look at Matthew 6:1-6.)

But what's the deal with the "greater condemnation"?  As I talked about in this post on Matthew 11 (under the sub-heading, "Speaking of the Judgment"), it's not a matter of different circles of hell like in Dante's Inferno; it seems more along the lines of those people having far more shame since they, as God's very own Israel, had far more opportunities to truly know Him than people of other nations had.

15 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves."

FYI, a proselyte was Gentile convert to Judaism.  So basically, these religious elite were going on "mission trips."  Obviously, the few Jews who really did love Gentiles enough to go tell them about the One True God were amazing people, but the religious elite referenced here were doing it for all the wrong reasons - for their own glory.  That may seem like an odd manifestation of glory-seeking, but a missionary I know has told me that some missionaries have actually gotten saved for real on mission trips (perhaps they went because it's seen as simply a noble thing to do, or a related motivation) - so this still goes on today.

But since most of these scribes and Pharisees never came into genuine relationship with God, they taught the converts the same false teachings they themselves lived by.  Think of it kind of like Mormons going on mission trips today.

16 "Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'Whoever swears by the temple, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple is obligated.'
17 "You fools and blind men!  Which is more important, the gold or the temple that sanctified the gold?
18 "And, 'Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing, but whoever swears by the offering on it, he is obligated.'
19 "You blind men, which is more important, the offering, or the altar that sanctifies the offering?
20 "Therefore, whoever swears by the altar, swears both by the altar and by everything on it.
21 "And whoever swears by the temple, swears both by the temple and by Him who dwells within it.
22 "And whoever swears by heaven, swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it.

There are a lot of little details here that may seem confusing, but the basic principle is actually quite simple:

• In Jewish culture, people often swore to do certain things in the service of God - like abstain from something for a set time, or give Him a certain percentage of their income.
• In the Old Testament, keeping your vows is treated as extremely serious (Deuteronomy 23:21-23, for example).
• But the religious elite decided to make up all sorts of little "word game" rules to let people get out of their vows.
• Obviously, this was an affront to God.

Have there been times when you've known that God wanted you to do something, but you tried to justify your way out of it?

23 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others.
24 "You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!

The religious leaders were also big on counting tiny seeds and flecks of herbs to tithe the set percentage - because such time-consuming acts were seen as very religious.  But they totally ignored the big-picture commands like loving others, which cannot be quantified and are not as noticed - and are actually much harder to do, when you really think about it.

Modern examples include spending (say) 2 hours in prayer and Bible study each day - but that clutters your schedule so much that you don't have time to show God's love to your elderly neighbor by helping her with yard-work.  Or having rigid rules of exactly how many inches below your collarbone or above your knee the clothes you buy can go - but not dealing with your pride or judgmentalism.

Does this principle "click" with your life in any way?

25 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence.
26 "You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.
27 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you are like white-washed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness.
28 "So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

Jesus Himself interprets His symbols and sums it all up in verse 28, so I won't spend much time here, except to prompt:

Are there things you do to look religious when other people are watching, but that are the exact opposite of what you truly are like on the inside?  (For example, putting lots of money in the offering plate, but refusing to lend a family member money so they can make their rent.)

29 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous,
30 and say, 'If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.'
31 "So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.
32 "Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers.
33 "You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell?
34 "Therefore, behold, I am sending you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in synagogues, and persecute from city to city,
35 so that upon you may fall the guilt of all righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.
36 "Truly I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation."

Wow, there's a lot of information in this passage!  I think I'll focus on two main points:

First:  While there are many, many ways God uses the persecution of His saints for His glory (you can check out the "Persecution" tab under "Studies by Topic" on the left, if you're interested in studying this out deeper), in this passage, the focus seems to be to give the persecutors even more chances to repent through the testimony of the martyrs, and to heap more shame on them when they reject it (as we discussed above).  God doesn't waste the suffering and death of His martyrs - He offers mercy to the persecutors, but if they refuse to accept it, His justice will prevail for the martyrs (see Revelation 6:9-11).

Second:  We as humans always talk big, claiming we would have acted nobly during some time period where radical social change led to conflict.  But a major point I see in this passage is that, while we may think times have changed and we're not faced with that same decision today, we really are facing the same choices - so if we say we would have acted a certain way, why aren't we???

• "If I were alive during the Holocaust, I would have done whatever I could to help save the Jews!"  Unborn babies created by God are being slaughtered everyday - are you standing up to help save them?
• "If I lived around the time of the Civil War, I would have helped free the slaves!"  Slavery still exists in the world today - what are you doing to put a stop to that?
• "If I lived during the Protestant Reformation, I would have been willing to die for my faith!"  (Not picking on Catholics here; I've just heard this line a lot.)  Well, today, right here and now, are you willing to bear shame and be socially ostracized, and risk your job and your grades and your family for your faith?
• "If I lived in Jesus's day, I would not have been ashamed to minister to the outcasts and sinners right alongside Him!"  Today, are you showing God's love to homosexuals, and the homeless, and people who annoy you, and people seen as "weird" - not worrying what people will think of you for spending time with them?

I say these just as much as a challenge to myself as to you guys.  We need to take it seriously.  We need to actually do what Jesus would do, instead of throwing around the cliché acronym without putting any thought into how to put it into practice.

Image credit: "The Sermon of the Beatitudes" by James Tissot.  Wikipedia.  Public domain in the United States. 

Laborers in the Vineyard - Matthew 20:1-16

The Scripture

 

1 "For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard.

 

2 "When he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard.

 

3 "And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the market place;

 

4 and to those he said, 'You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.'  And so they went.

 

5 "Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did the same thing.

 

6 "And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, 'Why have you been standing here idle all day long?'

 

7 "They said to him, 'Because no one hired us.'  He said to them, 'You go into the vineyard too.'

 

8 "When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, 'Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last group to the first.'

 

9 "When those hired about the eleventh hour came, each one received a denarius.

 

10 "When those hired first came, they thought that they would receive more; but each of them also received a denarius.

 

11 "When they received it, they grumbled at the landowner,

 

12 saying, 'These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.'

 

13 "But he answered and said to one of them, 'Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius?

 

14 'Take what is yours and go, but I wish to give to this last man the same as to you.

 

15 'Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own?  Or is your eye envious because I am generous?'

 

16 "So the last shall be first, and the first last."

 

Recap/Intro

 

Last time we were in Matthew, the disciples asked Jesus how they would be rewarded for all they were giving up for Him.  He did not rebuke them, as their question was justified at that early stage when the Gospel had not yet fully come to light, and he promised them that because of their faith, they would receive salvation - eternal life.

 

In today's passage, Jesus continues teaching on that theme, this time explaining a dangerous extreme we can arrive at if we fall into the trap of thinking of heaven as a "reward" for works.

 

Symbolism

 

Let's start by identifying the symbols in this parable before dissecting meaning.

 

Who

 

The landowner: Christ

Hired laborers: Christians

Laborers not yet hired: The unsaved

 

Where

 

The market place: The world

The vineyard: More of a concept than a geographical location - the "missions field" - the world from the perspective of a Christian sharing the Gospel and living his/her life for God

 

What

 

The work: Sharing the Gospel, living our lives for God, etc.

The wages: Salvation

 

When

 

The hours: Different times in our life - e.g. when we're a child, young adult, and right before we die

Evening: The final judgment

 

Theology

 

First off, I think it's important to clarify something: The laborers hired at later hours are not Christians who decided to wait to get serious about their faith until later in their lives; those laborers are people who did not get saved until later in their lives.  This is important because, while we can never earn salvation through good works, the fact still remains that genuine faith in Christ will "yield fruit" (meaning there will be positive change as the Holy Spirit living in us makes us more like Christ).  I encourage you to read John 15:1-11 on this topic.

 

Now, that doesn't mean that a person cannot be genuinely saved but only called to "visible" work for the kingdom (like missions or ministry work) at a later point in their lives after they are more mature.  My point is simply that this passage is talking about people getting saved at different stages in their lives! :-)

 

Second, we also need to be aware that the "wages" talked about here is salvation itself.  We have talked last time and before about special designations like heavenly "crowns" that honor martyrs, for example - that's not what's going on here.  Besides, those extra designations are still completely, utterly undeserved in light of how sinful we are, so we'd have no right to complain about who God handed those out to even if that were the case.

 

Rather, the point is that none of us, even the hardest "workers" for God (recognized saints, martyrs, etc.) deserve salvation, so we have absolutely no right to complain when someone receives salvation and does less work for the kingdom - because even our own work is not nearly enough to deserve it!

 

I'm sure you are familiar with Romans 6:23, "The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."  Eternal death (hell) is true wages - it is earned.  But eternal life (salvation) is not true wages - it cannot be earned.  It is absolutely, positively, only a gift from God that we do nothing to deserve, so we cannot think of others as "less deserving."  A serial killer doesn't deserve heaven, but neither do you and I!

 

If you have not yet received Christ's free gift of salvation from your sins, I offer you to opportunity to do so right now by clicking here.

 

In Our Lives

 

So far, we've stayed more in the realm of theology.  Let's expand this to include how we act in our daily lives.

 

First, we need to be ever conscious of how we treat others.  Any person we look down on for any reason (level of intelligence, appearance, personality, behavior, social class, nationality, whatever), whether Christian or non-Christian, is no more undeserving of Christ's forgiveness than we ourselves are.  Even if we "know" this in our minds, we also need to know it in our hearts - by putting it into action.  Look at Paul's example.

 

Second, also keep in mind that another believer may be called to a different type of "labor" than you, and that does not make them any less of a worker!  You may be called to do something flashy like leading worship at your church or smuggling Bibles into China, but if God is calling another believer to make cupcakes for people in the hospital, that makes them just as much a "laborer of the month" as you - they deserve respect for doing what God has asked them to do, instead of seeking something more in the public eye.  Unequal labor does not mean unequal laborers. 

 

Deathbed Conversions?

 

One final note - this passage brings up the topic of deathbed conversions.  A question people sometimes ask is, "If someone asks Christ's forgiveness right before they die, is it real?"  Well, it can be.

 

In today's passage, verse 6 tells us that someone hired at "the eleventh hour" (5 o'clock p.m. - at the end of the workday) is saved.  And the man on the cross next to Jesus came to faith as he was dying, and was promised salvation.

 

So, if a person isn't just doing a last-ditch effort thing on their deathbed, but genuinely regrets how they've lived and honestly wants Christ's forgiveness, yes, they can be saved.

 

Questions for You

 

What stage of life were you in when you came to Christ? 

 

And how has this impacted your view of others when you find out they believed when they were younger or older than you were?

 

Anything else you'd like to add to our discussion?  Or ask?

 

Image Citation

 

"Laborer in bib overalls digging the fire pit" by David Goehring.  Wikipedia.  Used by permission.



Eternal Life How-to: Matthew 19:16-26

The Scripture

 

16 And someone came to Him and said, "Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may obtain eternal life?"

 

17 And He said to him, "Why are you asking Me about what is good?  There is only One who is good; but if you wish to enter into eternal life, keep the commandments."

 

18 Then he said to Him, "Which ones?"  And Jesus said, "YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER; YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY; YOU SHALL NOT STEAL; YOU SHALL NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS;

 

19 HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER, and YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF."

 

20 The young man said to Him, "All these things I have kept; what am I still lacking?"

 

21 Jesus said to him, "If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me."

 

22 But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving; for he was one who owned much property.

 

23 And Jesus said to His disciples, "Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.

 

24 "Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."

 

25 When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, "Then who can be saved?"

 

26 And looking at them Jesus said to them, "With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

 

Brief Notes on the Approach to This Study

 

I know that for people who have been Christians for a while, they've heard this story over and over.  But stick around - I hope we'll all walk away with some new nuggets from this important story. :-)

 

Also, sometimes I approach a passage topically, with neatly organized notes separated out based on what's related to what.  For this passage, it's framing itself out chronologically in my mind, so that's what you'll find below. :-)

 

What Good Thing Shall I Do...

 

From our perspective where we know that eternal life is the result of accepting Christ's forgiveness, not earning it through good works, this man approaches Jesus with the absolute wrongest question.  But - he is indeed seeking the Truth...and Jesus answers him.  This tells me two things about our God: (1) God wants humans to come to know Him so much - no matter how far away a person is from Him, if that person seeks the Truth even the slightest bit, God will reveal Himself to him/her.  (2) We can apply this after we are saved, as well: We can come to Christ any time with any question about His will or His truth and ask Him to reveal the answer to us, and if we pay attention to the various ways He speaks to us (Bible verses/passages, life circumstances, spiritual insight/"words" from mature beleivers, "speaking" to us in our hearts, etc.), we will find that He is answering.

 

The first part of verse 17 has been taken ways.  We know from the rest of the Bible that Jesus is God, so in saying that only God is good here, He is not denying being God (see this fantastic list of Bible verses declaring Jesus to be God).  So, what's Jesus saying here?  I interpret it as Him saying it sort of tongue-in-cheek.  He is pointing out what the man is either unwilling to admit verbally or perhaps even to himself - that he truly believes that the "Teacher" he questions is God, the Messiah.

 

Now, Jesus's answer, at face value, appears as if He's telling the man that he really can achieve eternal life by living a perfect life - but we know that to be impossible.  Note also that this is not an exhaustive list of all that's required - He's giving examles representative of the Mosaic Law.  But the point of this list is get to the final item, "love your neighbor as yourself," which sticks out like a sore thumb because it's the only one on that list that's not part of the ten commandments, one of the two most important ones (because loving God and loving others have to do with motives, not rules), and, most importantly for our discussion, it was the commandment this man had failed at!

 

I highly doubt that this man really had managed to keep the commandments - I think he was probably pretty self-disillusioned.  But, regardless, Jesus focuses on his biggest problem: He was selfish, treating money like an idol and neglecting the poor.  But there are two points to this story - the first is salvation through grace alone, and the second is not that we need to donate our stuff to charity.  The point is that we all have that one thing that battles with Christ for holding first place in our lives.  For you or me, it may be popularity, reputation, a sense of control over your life, a particular relationship, a pasttime, a lifestyle, whatever.  But if Christ is truly our Lord, we need to be willing to give that up for Him and obey His simple call to "Follow Me!"

 

At the same time, however, I think money is quite a common idol for many people, especially in America, so I don't want to gloss over the seriousness of that facet.  I'd like to challenge us all to take a deeper look at how much we value money in our lives.  What do we spend it on?  Do we spend any on what God asks of us?  How much time do we spend obtaining more money?  How much time do we spend serving and getting to know God?  How much time do we spend longing for more money?  How much time do we spend thinking about God?  What do these answers reveal about how our love of money compares to our love of God?

 

Finally, Jesus's brief analogy about the camel tells us two things.  First, it is a reiterration that it is God's forgiveness, not our good works, that grant us salvation from our sins.  Second, it demonstrates that God can forgive absolutely any sin - no person, no matter what they have done, is beyond God's grace.

 

If you haven't accepted God's forgiveness and would like to, click here to find out how in English or here in your own language.

 

Questions for You

 

What have you asked God to reveal to you?  What did He reveal?

 

What "one thing" that competes with Christ for lordship in your life causes you the most difficulty?  How has God helped you in making progress to conquer it?

 

Image Citations

 

Number One: Chinese depiction of Jesus and the rich man.  Wikipedia, uploaded by Ai.kefu.  {{PD-ART}} Public domain in source country and the United States.

 

Number Two: Bimarin Casket.  Wikipedia, used by permission.



Spiritual Hygiene - Matthew 15:1-20

The Confrontation

 

1 Then some Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said,

 

2 "Why do Your disciples break the tradition of the elders?  For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread."

 

3 And He answered and said to them, "Why do you yourselves transgress the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition?

 

4 "For God said, 'HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER,' and, 'HE WHO SPEAKS EVIL OF FATHER OR MOTHER IS TO BE PUT TO DEATH.'

 

5 "But you say, 'Whoever says to his father or mother, "Whatever I have that would help you has been given to God,"

 

6 he is not to hnor his father or his mother.'  And by this you invalidated the word of God for the sake of tradition.

 

7 "You hypocrites, rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you:

 

8 'THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME.

 

9 'BUT IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME, TEACHING AS DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN.'"

 



We find in this passage yet another instance where the Pharisees are continually trying to find fault in Jesus.  But in this case, there might be genuine conern mixed in.  You see, the Pharisees would have fully believed that not washing the hands before eating was genuine sin.  You might recall what we've discussed before, how the Jews have both the "Written Law" (Moses's Law, the first five books of the Old Testament), and also the "Oral Law," which is extra rules passed down through the generations and which they believe are just as much God-breahed scripture as the Written Law (note here - not all Jewish denominations believe the exact same things; I'm speaking in generalities).  The ceremonial process of washing hands before a meal was a practice mandated in the Oral Law.  But Jesus has something to say about that...

 

His rebuttal is not defensive - He doesn't arge that the disciples actually do and the Pharisees didn't see it, or that the disciples not washing their hands isn't His fault, as so many others' go-to response might be.  Rather, He jumps right to the heart of the issue by blatantly stating that the "Tradition of the Elders" (another name for the Oral Law) is not God's Law, and that it is actually spiritually damaging.  In this case, the issue is that, even though financially supporting your parents in their old age is the right thing to do, the Oral Law set up a system in which that money would be given to the Jewish leaders instead.  Not only did this make the very leaders who taught the practice quite rich, but grown children would be  motivated to opt for that "charity" instead of giving it to their parents because they would receive public recognition for their "righteousness."  Meanwhile, the elderly struggled to survive, and all this was under the guise of serving God.  This one specific case highlights what is wrong with the entire Oral Law: It emphasizes the wrong things and mixes up priorities, thereby hindering those who truly wish to follow God.  Jesus only needs to give one example of the Oral Law contradicting God's Written Law, because one poignant example is proof enough!

 

I'd like to take a slight tangent now and apply that specific problem with the Oral Law to our own lives.  While making daily time for "spiritual disciplines" (i.e. spending time with God through reading/studying the Bible, praying, sitting in His presence, etc.) is immensely important, we shouldn't grow legalistic about it to the point that we don't have time to serve God in the ways that He has planned.  James 1:27 tells us that "true and undefiled religion" is helping others and avoiding sin, not racking up spiritual knowledge.  Corrie Ten Boom once said something along the lines of, We shouldn't plan our day and ask His approval for what we have planned - we should seek to learn what His schedule for our day is, and then sign our names to it.

 

Broadening the Lesson

 

10 After Jesus called the crowd to Him, He said to them, "Hear and understand.

 

11 "It is not what enters into the mouth that defiles the man, but what proceeds out of the mouth, that defiles the man."

 

...

 

15 Peter said to Him, "Explain the parable to us."

 

16 Jesus said, "Are you still lacking in understanding also?

 

17 "Do you not understand that everything that goes into the mouth passes into the stomach, and is eliminated?

 

18 "But the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man.

 

19 "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders.

 

20 "These are the things which defile the man; but to eat with unwashed hadns does not defile the man."

 

(I'm lumping together the parable and His explanation; we'll return to verses 12-14 in a moment.)

 

The whole point here is just that the Jews had become very legalistic, focusing on <the rules by which they followed God> instead of just <following God>.

 

Although Jesus is here referring to the Oral Law, there were plenty of things listed under the Written law (which is Scripture) that could make a person "unclean."  But it wasn't those things themselves that inherently made a person unclean; the act of disobeying God by partaking of those things was what made a person unclean!

 

Jesus isn't concerned with our outer selves; He's concerned with our inner selves.  We can have the appearance of utter righteousness (like the Pharisees did), but inside be corrupt, full of "evil thoughts" (verse 19).  Each of us must ask ourselves: Is our faith only an act?  Do we focus more on appearing godly than on actually, daily, surrendering our will to God and taking up His cross?  James 4:10 tells us, "Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you."  If we truly want to be righteous, we need to realize that we can't accomplish it on our own by "living righteously" - only God can bring about His righteousness within us.  And only if we are willing to humble ourselves and let Him in.

 

The Truth is Offensive

 

12 Then the disciples came and said to Him, "Do You know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this statement?"

 

13 But He answered and said, "Every plant which My heavenly Father did not plant shall be uprooted.

 

14 "Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind.  And if a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit."

 

There are two senses in which the disciples might have meant this.  We'll start with the shortest.  It could be that they're afraid of the Pharisees (for their power to criminally prosecute people), in which case Jesus is telling them, "Don't worry - the Father will take care of it (uprooted - v13)."  Or, it could be that they were concerned since the religious leaders were condeming them - i.e., they thought the Pharisees still had some degree of spiritual authority.  In that case, Jesus's point would be that the Pharisees weren't leaders put in place by the Father (v13), so they didn't have authority over the people at all.

 

That latter point, combined with His comment about the blind guides and the pit, warn us of a grave danger: We need to be very careful whose spiritual authority we put ourselves under.  False teachers abound, so if we put ourselves under one of those, of course we will get tripped up in wrong doctrine and heresy.  1 John 4:1 tells us to "test the spirits" (see if what someone says matches up with God's Word) because false spiritual leaders are so prevalent in the world - it's not paranoia, and it's not a rejection of authority - it's a Biblical command.

 

Questions for You

 

When has legalism or "churchy traditions" in your life kept you from genuinely following God?

 

Without naming names, how have you dealt with coming across false teaching?

 

Giving Credit Where It's Due

 

Image Number One: Ironstone Antique Pitcher Washbowl, by Sherry's Rose Cottage.  Wikipedia.  Used by permission.

 

Image Number Two:  Wolfsgrube, by Georg Wabmuth and Claus Ableiter.  Wikipedia.  Used by permission.  CC-BY-SA-3.0-DE.





Two Enormous Miracles, All in a Day's Work: Matthew 14:15-36

Feeding the 5,000

 

15 When it was evening, the disciples came to Him and said, "This place is desolate and the hour is already late; so send the crowds away, that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves."

 

16 But Jesus said to them, "They do not need to go away; you give them something to eat!"

 

17 They said to Him, "We have here only five loaves and two fish."

 

18 And He said, "Bring them here to Me."

 

19 Ordering the people to sit down on the grass, He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up toward heaven, He blessed the food, and breaking the loaves He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them toward the crowds,

 

20 and they all ate and were satisfied.  They picked up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve full baskets.

 

21 There were about five thousand men who ate, besides women and children.

 

Let's do a speedy review of where we left off since it's been a little while since we've been in Matthew (my fault - sorry!).  Jesus was exhausted and emotionallly distraught over his cousin getting executed, yet when he saw how much the crowds were in need of Him, He had compassion on them and chose to minister to them.

 

*That* is why is the disciples' reaction here can be considered not just "a human reaction," but in this case, a moral mistake.  Yes, it is perfectly natural to become exhausted (as they surely were) and think "logically" or "practically" and assume that the crowds were hungry, so it was time to get everything moving.  BUT, not only had they already witnessed Jesus perform amazing miracles, but they had *just* seen Him exhibit a superhuman degree of love toward the people.  In this case, telling their Teacher that it was a bad time to hang out with the crowds was second-guessing Him - a lack of faith.  Worsening the situation is the fact that, as we learn in John 6:8-9, the bread and fish were donated by a little boy - presumably what his mother had packed him for his meal.  This means that the boy had enough faith to believe that Jesus could truly do something with it, and he was willing to sacrifice his own comfort - both things that the disciples lacked.  This is a poignant example of how we shouldn't assume that those of high religious respect (the disciples then, or clergy, seminary graduates, etc. today) are more godly or spiritually mature, or have more faith, than even the lowliest of believers.  But at the same time, no matter how poorly the disciples are doing in this story so far, it still stands that Jesus chose *them* to be His closest followers - which is wonderful news for us, because we can rest assured that no matter how often or how badly we screw up, God still loves us and craves an intimate relationship with us.

 

Here's another critical thing to notice about this passage:  Jesus instructed them to do something for Him (feed the crowds), but they were unable to do it by themselves (they only had a bit of bread and fish).  So, He did everything they couldn't do for them (miraculously multiplied the food), then provided that for them to carry out His original instructions (He had them pass out the multiplied food).  In just the same way, if God tells you to do something, but it seems impossible, I can guarantee that He will provide a way for you to do it.

 

Finally, let's talk about the fact that there were 12 baskets left over.  I don't put too much weight into Biblical numerology because I believe some groups overdo it to their own doctrinal detriment, but in some cases I think it entirely appropriate, including here.  Sometimes, numbers in Scripture are symbolic.  In this story, I see two possibilities - maybe one's true, maybe they're both wrong, maybe they're both right.  I'm speculating; judge for yourself. :-)  One possibility is that the 12 baskets represent the twelve tribes of Israel, thereby demonstrating a completeness in God's care for and protection of Israel.  In Jesus's day, Israel was suffering greatly under Roman rule and felt quite abandoned by God, so if the people saw the 12 baskets and interpreted it that way, it would have been very impactful.  This would also fit with a prophetic promise of God never abandoning Israel; even though the Church is made mostly up of Gentiles (non-Jews today), Israel is still God's people, and prettymuch the whole point of the End Times is to draw Israel back to Him...so, yes, Israel is very important.  Another possibility is that the 12 baskets represent the twelve disciples.  Since they had just exhibited a lack of faith in Him, it seems to me that witnessing the huge crowd be fed, and then each having an entire basket left over would be an image they wouldn't soon forget, causing the lesson to stick in their minds longer.

P.S. I personally know two people who the above story - food multiplying miraculously - has actually happened.  God still works today.

 

Walking on the Sea

 

22 Immediately He made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side, while He sent the crowds away.

 

23 After He had sent the crowds away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone.

 

24 But the boat was already a long distance from the land, battered by the waves; for the wind was contrary.

 

25 And in the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea.

 

26 When the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, "It is a ghost!"  And they cried out in fear.

 

27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, "Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid."

 

28 Peter said to Him, "Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water."

 

29 And He said, "Come!"  And Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water and came toward Jesus.

 

30 But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, "Lord, save me!"

 

31 Imediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and said to him, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?"

 

32 When they got into the boat, the wind stopped.

 

33 And those who were in the boat worshipped Him, saying, "You are certainly God's Son!"

 

34 When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennasaret.

 

35 And when teh men of that place recognized Him, they sent word into all that surrounding district and brought to Him all who were sick;

 

36 and they implored Him that they might just touch the fringe of His cloak; and as many as touched it were cured.

 

When we transition to this account, we see that Jesus, at this point, does send the crowds away - so He can go off and pray.  Although we shouldn't get so focused in on our own emotional/spiritual states that we shove everyone out of our lives (like refusing to help someone because you scheduled that time for Bible study - because, in truth, that's wholly counterproductive in getting close to God!), we also need to be careful not to get so burned out from ministry that our own walks with Christ suffer.  I believe with every fiber of my being that this is one of the primary arrows in Satan's quiver.

 

I also find it a bit humorous that (as far as we know) the disciples didn't question Jesus's insistence on doing something they thought odd (staying behind) this time.  They had short-term memories when it came to God's power, just as we all do, but at least the lasted a few hours, lol. ;-)

 

This is one of my absolute favorite stories in the entire Bible because I'm obsessed with the power of water, so to have a God who conquers that amazes me.  If you've been around the ocean or a waterfull or a giant outdoor fountain, you know what I'm talking about. :-)  But beyond that, Matthew's account of this event is my favorite because it's the only one that mentions Peter's excursion out of the boat.  I love this because it's where we fit into the story - it's a symbol of the entire Christian walk.  And it always makes me wonder...Did Jesus wait on the mountain and arrange this whole situation *just* so Peter, one man, could have this personal experience?

 

Okay, so what's the deal with Peter asking Jesus that if it's Him, to command him to come out?  I mean, what kind of test is that - if it wasn't Jesus, couldn't the ghost they thought it was just lie and tell him to come out?  Well, what I think is going on is is Peter knows that the voice of God is POWERFUL, and that ever fiber of his being will recognize it as the very voice of the Almighty.  It's kind of like in Ezekiel 1:28-2:2 when Ezekiel can do nothing but fall on his face at the vision of the Father in His glory, but the Spirit enters him and literally pulls him to his feet - he has no choice in the matter, God is *that* overwhelming.  Just the same, I think Peter knew he would absolutely, completely overwhelmed by the voice of God and automatically climb out of the boat and walk toward Him.  So, is this a way to "test" if the figure was indeed Jesus?  Yes.  Was it also a reaction from deep, deep within his soul to seeing God Himself conquering this storm, stirring up un-squelchable yearnings to just be with the God of the universe?  I think that's definitely it, too!

 

Peter's short stroll on the waves is a great picture of our Christian walks.  So often, it seems we hit the peaks in our walk where we're all gung-ho and take off running.  But then...we get scared and lose faith.  We get bogged down by spiritual warfare, or distracted by sin, or afraid of what other people think will think of us, or afraid of financial issues, or afraid of even physical retaliation, or whatever.  But the irony is, we still believe in God's power, and while we are doubting, we cry out for Him to save us - just as Peter did.  The moment he took his eyes off Jesus and looked at the waves (lesson there!), he lacked the faith to keep walking forward - but he still held faith in God's power to save him.  It's an entirely illogical paradox, but we all do it.  It's like in Mark 9:24 when the man proclaims, "I do believe; help my unbelief!" 

 

So what's Jesus's response?  "You of little faith, why did you doubt?"  From what we know of Jesus's character, I seriously doubt He said that with anger.  Instead, I hear Him saying it very softly and kindly.  He's not reprimanding Peter here, He's gently pointing out the logical flaw we just discussed.  Frankly, I think His point is powerful enough by itself that it doesn't need angry emphasis.  Also notice that Peter didn't have to reach for Jesus - he just called out for Jesus's help, and Jesus extended His hand and grabbed hold of Peter.  God wants to save us, and wants to help us along our walk - we don't have to flail about to get His attention.  He's already there.

 

Finally, let's touch on the healings that went on after they got to the other side.  First of all, if Jesus was exhausted before - and then prayed and walked across a stormy lake - He definitely is now - yet, once agian, He ministers to the crowd despite that.  Second, this is the third set of major miracles in one day - feed the 5,000, walk on the sea, heal a bunch of people.  Yeah, our God rocks. :-)  Third, I wanted to clarify something.  Jesus's cloak was not "magic."  These people wanted to touch His cloak out of reverence - they felt unworthy to make actual contact with the Messiah Himself.  Touching the cloak healed them not because of anything inherent to the cloak, but as a reward for their faith.

 

Got a question?  Think of something I missed?  Leave a comment below. :-)

 

Giving Credit Where It's Due

 

Image Number One: Christ Feeding the Multitude, artist unknown.  Wikipedia.  {{PD-1923}} Public domain in the United States.

 

Image Number Two: Walking on Water, by Ivan Aivazovsky.  Wikipedia.  {{PD-1923}} Public domain in the United States.

It's a Calling, Not a Vacation - Matthew 8:18-34

Count the Cost...Few Are Willing to Pay It

Before reading today's first section of Scripture, I want you to keep in mind something very important: We tend to not think of ourselves as "disciples" because we call the famous group "The Twelve Disciples."  But, in actuallity, all believers are - or ought to be - disciples.  Any reference to disciples in Scripture - including those below - apply to all of us who have accepted Jesus as Savior and Lord of our lives.

18 Now when Jesus saw a crowd around Him, He gave orders to depart to the other side of the sea.

19 Then a scribe came and said to Him, "Teacher, I will follow You wherever you go."

20 Jesus said to Him, "The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head."

21 Another of the disciples said to Him, "Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father."

22 But Jesus said to him, "Follow Me, and allow the dead to bury their own dead."

Let's start with verse 18. At first glance, it's just another meaningless geographic reference like we see throughout the Gospels.  But in this case, I think it means more...  Think about it like this: There's a big crowd interested in Jesus, thinking maybe He's a great moral teacher, but Jesus isn't searching for numbers - He's searching for a real relationship with the few who yearn for him so much that they'll follow Him across the sea - and follow Him through life.

He also makes sure we know what we're getting into.  When the scribe pledges loyalty to Jesus, He responds with an honest warning: It's a hard road to follow, a hard life to live.  He's saying: I know that the suffering is worth it...but do you believe that?  Jesus expands on this further in Luke 14:28 and 31:

"For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it? ... Or what king, when he sets out to meet another king in battle, will not first sit down and consider whether he is strong enough with ten thousand men to encounter the one coming against him with twenty thousand?"

I ask you today to step back and count the cost yourself...

Are you willing to follow Christ, even if it means giving up a career aspiration, a romantic relationship, a life's dream?

Are you willing to follow Christ, even if He asks you to move to another country, to serve Him in a way that terrifies you (evangelizing, public speaking, etc.), to give all your material possessions to Him and live in poverty?

Are you willing to follow Christ, even if persecution hits - if your friends abandon you, you are arrested and beaten, you have to watch those closest to you be tortrued and executed for this same faith?

Are you willing to follow Christ, knowing that any of these things - and you don't which - could happen to you tomorrow, and you will be called to follow Him through it?

Are you willing to follow Christ, even if whatever thing most terrifies you, which you have been thinking about and were releived to not see it on this list, happens to you?

If you were able to answer yes to every one of these questions without a moment's hesitation, you are either someone more passionately committed to God than anyone I have ever met, or you're not taking the questions seriously.

Think about it. Count the cost.

Living Like Jesus

Now, what are we to make of the man asking to bury his father?  Is Jesus heartless, denying a man who just wants to attend the funeral of the man who raised him?  NO - the man's father isn't even dead yet.  The man is asking to wait until his father dies to follow Jesus.  Perhaps he simply wants to spend more time with him; perhaps he wants his inheritance so following Jesus will be easier on him financially.  But Jesus says, "I don't call you to follow Me only when it's most convenient for you - I call you to follow Me NOW.  I have to be the Number One in your life, above all else."

Luke 14:26 puts this very succinctly: (Bear in mind that in this case, "hate" doesn't mean what it does in English; it means "count as worthless by comparison," the same way it is used throughout the new testament and in Hebrews 12:2.  That is, it means "hate by comparison of how much you love Me")

"If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even hsi own life, he cannot be My disicple."

This theme of "Christ above all else" also appears in Luke 14:33: "So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all His possessions."  Does this mean that we all literally have to donate everything we own to charity?  For some, yes (see our study on that spiritual gift here), but you can give something up while it is still in your possession.  Giving it up to Christ means being willing to literally give it up if/when He asks you, and to always keep in perspective that it is worthless in light of the larger, eternal picture.

We are called to live like Jesus.  Can you deny that Jesus lived a tremendously difficult life?  True faith in Jesus is not a get-out-of-hell-free-card, it's not "fire insurance," it is not a vacation.  We live amidst a raging war for the souls of mankind, and need to treat life with appropriate seriousness.  But that also means that we are called to a great adventure in Christ!  Your actions have eternal impact...what could be more thrilling than that?

We've discussed faith versus works extensively before (most recently, this loooooong exploration of it).  I want to briefly re-emphasize that we do not do these things to earn salvation.  Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us, "God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it" (NLT).  But at the same time, a true faith in Jesus Christ will naturally include following Him.

Let's glance at a couple more verses on being Christ's disciples:

Luke 9:23

And He was saying to them, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me."

John 8:31-32

So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, "If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free."

(Here is an amazing post on Frank Viola's blog directly relating to this verse...I found it tremendously refreshing, and hope you enjoy it, as well.)

Questions for You

What have you been called to give up for God?  What does picking up your cross daily look like for you?

Actions Speak Louder than Words: The Question of Salvation - Matthew 7:12-23

I want to give you a heads up that today's passage is *extremely* controversial, and many are offended by it.  It deals with the subject of some people who claim to be Christians not being saved.  It prompts believers to question their own salvation, and leads to concern for our loved ones.  Overall, it can best be described as uncomfortable and unsettling.


Because of the nature of this passage, I'm going to be using less of my personal commentary today, and instead focusing on directing you to Scripture.

For organizational purposes, we're going to break it up as follows:
1 - Verse 12.  This is pretty mild, though still related to the passage, so it's a much happier way to start. :-)
2 - Verses 15-20.  This talks about fruit in our lives, something we've covered before, so we won't go into terrible depth.
3 - Verses 13-14 and 21-23.  Here's where stuff really starts to get scary, and where we'll spend the most time.

Let's dive right in.

The Famous "Golden Rule"

12 "In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets."

This saying is well-known even in secular circles as the simplest basis of social morality.  You're probably also familiar with the slightly longer version provided in Matthew 22:35-40:

One of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, "Teacher, which is hte great commandment of the Law?"  And He said to him, "'YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.'  This is hte great and foremost commandment.  The second is like it, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.'  One these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets."

The Law and the Prophets is what we now know as the Old Testament.  To the Jews, it was God's entire rulebook for how humans were supposed to behave.  We know that loving God is obviously first, but in today's passage, Jesus only mentions our love for others.  Why is this?  My opinion is that His following words deal with determining a person's salvation based on their outward actions - which are, indeed, the only things we can actually see.  It is far easier to observe a person in the social sphere than the spiritual sphere.

So, with that little tangent of "what connection does this have to the larger passage" out of the way, what is the main point of verse twelve?  It's that, in the social sphere, we shouldn't have to have all these little rules about what is moral behavior - if we simply treat everyone as we'd want them to treat us, if we love them like we love ourselves, we will do right by everyone.

What does this look like in practice?  Let's look at James 2:14-17 and Matthew 25:34-40 for some examples.

What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works?  Can that faith save him?  If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and be filled," and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?  Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.

[Jesus speaking about the final judgement] Then the King will say to those on His right, "Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.  For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to me."  Then the righteous will answer Him, "Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink?  And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You?  When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?"  THe King will answer and say to them, "Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine [that means any believer - see Matthew 12:49-50], even the least of them, you did it to Me."

Loving others means loving them through action, not just feeling the emotion of love for them.  We are called to sacrifice of ourselves - our time, energy, money - to help them.  True love costs something (see 2 Samuel 24:24).

Watch for the Clues

15 "Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.

16 "You will know them by their fruits.  Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they?

17 "So every good tree bears fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.

18 "A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit.

19 "Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

20 "So then, you will know them by their fruits."

Let's start out by briefly reviewing the types of fruit.  Bad fruit, according to Galatians 5:19-21:

Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

And the good fruit, according to Galations 5:22-24:

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.  Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with the passions and desires.

[For a much deeper look into these fruits, you an read our studies on Fruit of the Flesh here and Fruit of the Spirit here.]

Now, is this passage saying that if any believer exhibits one of the "deeds of the flesh" or lacks any of the "fruit of the Spirit," they are not really a Christian?  NO!  Becoming like Christ is not instantaneous upon salvation - it's a process.  The point is that we should gradually change from the bad list to the good list.  It's all about growth.  That is the entire point here - we are to have our eyes peeled for growth, for positive change, for improvement. 

Also notice that this passage is not giving us permission to start spying on other believers to determine if they are really saved or not - this is for false prophets.  We are supposed to look for this fruit in two groups of people: (1) ourselves, which we will get to later, and (2) our spiritual leaders, just to make sure we are not being led astray by false teachers/prophets.

One final note on this - verse 19 could be misconstrued as saying that if you don't produce fruit, you're going to hell.  That interpretation would mean that we have to earn salvation, which is the opposite of the Gospel (more on this to follow).  But remember, verse 15 makes it clear that these people are masquerading as believers - they're faking.  In this, verse 15 is not saying that you have to produce fruit to earn your way out of hell, but rather, that the group just talked which does not produce fruit will go to hell, because they are not real Christians.  It's a subtle difference, but it makes a huge difference in your understanding of the Gospel.

The Minority Makes It In: Big Picture

13 "Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it.

14 "For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.

...

21 "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.

22 "Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?'

23 "And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.'

Alright, prepare for this to get discombobulated. :-)

This passage makes clear that there will be many people who call themselves Christians but aren't really.  We see this a lot in American culture - "Christian" has come to mean a whole slew of things, including I was raised that way, I attend church on Easter and Christmas, I try to live with good morals, and I'm American.  But the word Christian literally means "little Christ" - that is, someone who acts like Christ.  Interesting how much society's definition has changed.  It is for this reason that I most often describe myself as "a follower of Jesus Christ" - "Christian" doesn't mean a thing in this culture anymore.

We've already talked a lot about what a Christian life looks like.  But let's differentiate some more. :-)

First off, James 2:19: "You believe that God is one.  You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder."  Clearly, then, believing that God exists is not enough.  The verse preceeding sheds more light on this: "But someone may well say, 'You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works."  The point is not that you're earning salvation through works, but that works - or fruit - are inherent evidence that your faith is real.  True faith is belief that God exists and should be the Lord - the Ruler - of your life (see our study "What Is Faith?" here).  Therefore, works/fruit will naturally flow from true faith.  So, the Christian life has fruit in it.

What, then, does this passage prompt us to do?  Let's look at a couple more Scripture references to answer that:

Philippians 2:12-13: "So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure."  Even though it is God who is at work in us - who causes the change in us - He will not do so unless we allow Him to.  That's the whole point of faith - where the relationship comes in.  So, today's passage prompts us to allow God to change us.

1 Corinthians 9:24-27 "Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize?  Run in such a way that you may win.  Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things.  They then do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.  Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified."  Today's passage pairs with this one to establish that yes, our Christian walk will be extremely difficult, and many will fail, but the ultimate goal is worth it a million times over.

The Minority Makes It In: Misinterpretations

Now, on to a couple of misconceptions.  First off, some cults have twisted the above mention of "only one receives the prize" and the narrow gate to arrive at the (false!) conclusion that there is some precise, set number of "salvation slots," and you actually have to compete with other Christians to get one.  This is heretical - 2 Peter 3:9 tells us, "The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance."

Second, some think that verse 21 ("Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven...) is a contradiction to Romans 10:9 ("that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved").  But remember that the Greek word used in Matthew is lego, which means to speak, but the word in Romans is homologeo, which means to declare and acknowledge.  The first is just saying it; the second is saying it and meaning it - i.e., meaning that Jesus is actually in charge of your life now.

The Minority Makes It In: Encouragement

With all that out of the way, does the scene of Jesus saying to people who thought they were Christians, "I never knew you" disturb you?  It should!

But that said...

There are times in our Christian walk when we need a reminder that a relationship with God means we are to follow Him - we should never get too big for our britches to the point that we think God has to save us, no matter what.  I think that, because of the entitlement culture we live in, passages such as this need to be taught a lot more.  But, there are other times in our walk when we feel unsaved and like God no longer loves us, when it is simply not true.  If you're in the latter camp today, I do not want you to feel discouraged.  Remember: you are a precious child of God.  Here's some encouragement for you:

Matthew 19:25-26: When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, "Then who can be saved?"  And looking at them Jesus said to them, "With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

"For I am convinced that neither death, nor love, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us form the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Someone in my family once phrased this issue very well.  He said that if you never question your salvation, you should be worried because that might stem from apathy, but if you're freaking out worrying that you're not saved, that means you don't have any reason to worry, because clearly you still care about God.

So What Do We Walk Away With From This?

1 - Be encouraged to press on - it is more than worth it.

2 - Keep the right perspective, the right priorities in focus - today is a part of eternity.  Are you living in a way that treats it as such?

3 - We should not only witness to unbelievers, but also share the real Gospel to those in are lives who claim to be Christians in the American sense - those who have never experienced a personal relationship with Christ.

4 - GOD LOVES YOU!!!  More than you could ever imagine...He wants you to spend eternity with Him.

5 - Hebrews 12:1-3: "Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

For Even More....

If you'd like to read more on this topic, click on the "Faith versus Works" button below this post to direct you to more of our studies on this topic.

Let's Make It a Discussion

How can we actually live out the "Golden Rule"?  What growth in your life have you seen - what fruit of the Spirit has appeared over time in your Christian walk?  Have you ever been in a time when you really, desperately questioned your salvation?  Any other questions or comments?  Think I oversimplified or overcomplicated something, or missed a big point?  Leave it all below! :-)