1 00:00:04,960 --> 00:00:06,920 Well, if you have your Bible, would you open it to Matthew 2 00:00:06,920 --> 00:00:10,840 Chapter 7? You can grab your Bible, grab 3 00:00:10,840 --> 00:00:12,720 your worship guide, kids and adults. 4 00:00:12,720 --> 00:00:14,880 There's one for each of you where you can take notes through 5 00:00:14,880 --> 00:00:17,720 the sermon. So I encourage you to do that. 6 00:00:17,720 --> 00:00:21,320 And then I hope you've come with hearts prepared to work in the 7 00:00:21,320 --> 00:00:23,000 words Lord this morning. All right, that's what we're 8 00:00:23,000 --> 00:00:24,160 going to do. Let's get to work. 9 00:00:24,840 --> 00:00:28,480 We are nearing the end of Jesus's Sermon on the Mount. 10 00:00:28,480 --> 00:00:32,920 Now, we have said that this is a Kingdom manifesto, if you will. 11 00:00:32,920 --> 00:00:38,120 And in the Sermon on the Mount, we are being told the Lord 12 00:00:38,160 --> 00:00:41,920 really is. He's pressing beyond an outward 13 00:00:41,920 --> 00:00:46,400 appearance of righteousness and he's exposing the hearts of 14 00:00:46,400 --> 00:00:49,240 Kingdom citizens, right? And so again and again 15 00:00:49,880 --> 00:00:54,600 throughout this, Jesus has shown that true righteousness is not 16 00:00:54,600 --> 00:01:00,520 merely about what others see in you, but it's what's cultivated 17 00:01:00,520 --> 00:01:03,080 before God in in the heart, right? 18 00:01:03,520 --> 00:01:06,880 So in these verses that we're going to look at, we're going to 19 00:01:06,880 --> 00:01:10,680 look at 7 one through 6 today. And in these verses, Jesus is 20 00:01:10,680 --> 00:01:15,200 turning towards something that impacts every one of us. 21 00:01:15,520 --> 00:01:17,880 All right? And that is, he's going to 22 00:01:17,880 --> 00:01:22,800 discuss, he's going to teach on how we view, how we evaluate, 23 00:01:22,840 --> 00:01:27,880 and how we respond to others. OK, now there's a lot there. 24 00:01:28,480 --> 00:01:30,560 That's what those are very vague ways to describe it. 25 00:01:30,560 --> 00:01:33,720 We'll get more into it. But I do want you to know this 26 00:01:33,720 --> 00:01:40,320 few of Jesus's commands are more quoted and more misunderstood 27 00:01:40,960 --> 00:01:45,080 than this one. Judge not all right? 28 00:01:45,440 --> 00:01:49,200 So we have to ask, what does Jesus really mean? 29 00:01:49,960 --> 00:01:56,440 Is all judgement wrong? Are we to ignore sin in someone? 30 00:01:57,680 --> 00:02:00,800 Or is Jesus calling us to something deeper right, 31 00:02:00,800 --> 00:02:07,160 something more searching, something more humbling, right, 32 00:02:07,160 --> 00:02:10,800 something more holy or set apart from the world? 33 00:02:11,600 --> 00:02:14,920 So we want to give our careful attention to the words of our 34 00:02:14,920 --> 00:02:17,480 Lord and King this morning. And so if you're able, would you 35 00:02:17,480 --> 00:02:21,200 please stand in honor of the reading of God's Word, Matthew 36 00:02:21,200 --> 00:02:24,320 7, one through 6. When I'm finished reading, I'll 37 00:02:24,320 --> 00:02:26,920 just say this is the word of the Lord and you can respond, Thanks 38 00:02:26,920 --> 00:02:29,960 be to God. All right, so Jesus is speaking 39 00:02:29,960 --> 00:02:34,400 here, Matthew 7, verse 1. Judge not that you be not 40 00:02:34,400 --> 00:02:38,520 judged, for with the judgment you pronounce you will be 41 00:02:38,520 --> 00:02:42,280 judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. 42 00:02:43,280 --> 00:02:47,400 Why do you see the speck in your brother's eye, but do not notice 43 00:02:47,400 --> 00:02:51,200 the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your 44 00:02:51,200 --> 00:02:55,200 brother, let me take the speck out of your eye when there was a 45 00:02:55,200 --> 00:03:00,560 log in your own eye? You hypocrites, first take the 46 00:03:00,560 --> 00:03:04,040 log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to 47 00:03:04,040 --> 00:03:06,040 take the speck out of your brother's eye. 48 00:03:06,760 --> 00:03:09,600 Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls 49 00:03:09,600 --> 00:03:14,080 before pigs, lest they trample them under foot and turn to 50 00:03:14,080 --> 00:03:16,920 attack you. This is the word of the Lord. 51 00:03:17,880 --> 00:03:21,240 Thanks be to God, let's pray. Heavenly Father, we we do give 52 00:03:21,240 --> 00:03:26,200 thanks for your word. We are grateful that you as 53 00:03:26,280 --> 00:03:33,800 Creator, perfectly holy, just, loving, righteous, you have 54 00:03:34,480 --> 00:03:38,840 sought to teach us through the written Word. 55 00:03:39,200 --> 00:03:41,440 And so, Lord, we thank you for the Scriptures that we have 56 00:03:41,440 --> 00:03:45,600 opened today, the gift that they are to us as Christians to help 57 00:03:45,600 --> 00:03:48,640 us live a life that honors you, a life that's worthy of the 58 00:03:48,640 --> 00:03:51,320 gospel we've received. We thank you, Lord, that they 59 00:03:51,320 --> 00:03:55,080 are sufficient for all of life, all of godliness, that they are 60 00:03:55,080 --> 00:03:59,080 sufficient to draw sinners to yourself and to save them by 61 00:03:59,080 --> 00:04:02,160 your marvelous grace. And so, Father, we ask now that 62 00:04:02,160 --> 00:04:05,240 you would open our hearts and our minds, open our ears and our 63 00:04:05,240 --> 00:04:11,360 eyes, to see and to understand, to hear, to believe your word. 64 00:04:12,400 --> 00:04:14,640 Lord, would you do this by the power of your Spirit at work 65 00:04:14,640 --> 00:04:16,720 among us. It's in the name of Christ, I 66 00:04:16,720 --> 00:04:18,160 pray. Amen. 67 00:04:18,800 --> 00:04:19,920 Amen. You may be seated. 68 00:04:25,280 --> 00:04:29,680 So maybe you're like me. I have found myself in many 69 00:04:29,680 --> 00:04:33,760 conversations through the years where someone will say something 70 00:04:33,760 --> 00:04:38,680 like this. I just don't think anyone has 71 00:04:38,680 --> 00:04:44,400 the right to judge others. Even Jesus said judge not. 72 00:04:45,320 --> 00:04:48,520 It just kind of stops there. And that's meant to be an end to 73 00:04:48,520 --> 00:04:52,120 the conversation, right? Well, you and I live in a world 74 00:04:52,120 --> 00:04:55,000 where one of the highest values is this. 75 00:04:55,640 --> 00:05:00,440 Do not judge others. It's one of the highest values. 76 00:05:00,640 --> 00:05:02,280 That was a bird that flew into the window. 77 00:05:02,280 --> 00:05:07,640 Everybody's OK. Just want you to know if you're 78 00:05:07,640 --> 00:05:10,480 sitting over there, you're going to make it all right. 79 00:05:13,000 --> 00:05:14,960 So the bird may not, but you will. 80 00:05:15,800 --> 00:05:18,680 All right. Hey, we're going to we, we will 81 00:05:18,680 --> 00:05:20,440 read soon. Not a Sparrow falls to the 82 00:05:20,440 --> 00:05:22,080 ground apart from the word of the Lord. 83 00:05:22,080 --> 00:05:25,120 It's Providence. I don't know what else to tell 84 00:05:25,120 --> 00:05:29,520 you. All right, so we have, we have 85 00:05:29,520 --> 00:05:34,720 to ask the question like if that's the value system, this 86 00:05:34,720 --> 00:05:38,240 judge, not we, we have to ask the question, then why do we 87 00:05:38,240 --> 00:05:41,400 make so many judgments, right? Because why? 88 00:05:41,400 --> 00:05:46,400 We'll say, don't judge. There's this problem right at 89 00:05:46,400 --> 00:05:49,880 work. We constantly make judgments 90 00:05:49,880 --> 00:05:54,000 about things right we We judge motives of others. 91 00:05:54,360 --> 00:05:58,880 We judge actions. We'll judge parenting decisions, 92 00:05:58,880 --> 00:06:02,280 parenting tactics. We'll judge political views of 93 00:06:02,280 --> 00:06:04,640 one another. We'll judge how people spend 94 00:06:04,640 --> 00:06:07,640 their money. We'll judge how they talk, the 95 00:06:07,640 --> 00:06:09,680 things they say, the things they talk about. 96 00:06:10,360 --> 00:06:16,280 We'll judge how they live their lives, and at the same time, we 97 00:06:16,280 --> 00:06:21,400 will be greatly offended if anyone judges us in the same 98 00:06:21,400 --> 00:06:23,560 way. Right? 99 00:06:24,440 --> 00:06:26,560 Maybe I'm alone in this. All right. 100 00:06:26,560 --> 00:06:34,880 OK, so which is it? Are we supposed to judge or not? 101 00:06:36,880 --> 00:06:40,840 That's the question and that's exactly the tension that Jesus 102 00:06:40,840 --> 00:06:43,560 is addressing in this passage this morning. 103 00:06:43,560 --> 00:06:46,880 Like if we misunderstand him here though, I want you to be 104 00:06:46,880 --> 00:06:49,560 aware of this. If we misunderstand this 105 00:06:49,560 --> 00:06:54,680 passage, then we will fall likely into into two ditches, 106 00:06:54,880 --> 00:06:58,840 right? Either we will become harsh and 107 00:06:58,840 --> 00:07:04,400 self-righteous, condemning others at every opportunity, or 108 00:07:04,600 --> 00:07:09,680 we will become passive, undiscerning, and tolerant of 109 00:07:09,680 --> 00:07:13,840 sin and error in people's lives. We'll just allow it to happen. 110 00:07:14,680 --> 00:07:17,840 But again, Jesus is calling us to something deeper. 111 00:07:17,840 --> 00:07:21,040 All right, And it would be better to say it this way. 112 00:07:21,040 --> 00:07:24,640 Jesus is calling us to something that's shaped by grace and 113 00:07:24,640 --> 00:07:27,080 truth, which is what John declared. 114 00:07:27,080 --> 00:07:29,520 The apostle John declared of Christ when he came that he is 115 00:07:29,760 --> 00:07:34,120 full of grace and truth. So here's the main point of the 116 00:07:34,120 --> 00:07:35,600 passage. If you're taking notes, you can 117 00:07:35,600 --> 00:07:37,200 fill in the blanks there and you worship God. 118 00:07:38,000 --> 00:07:44,960 Because we have received grace from God, we must deal humbly 119 00:07:45,120 --> 00:07:53,840 with our own sin, help others lovingly with theirs, and handle 120 00:07:53,840 --> 00:07:56,400 holy things with wise discernment. 121 00:07:57,560 --> 00:08:01,600 Because we have received the grace of God, or because we have 122 00:08:01,600 --> 00:08:04,840 received grace from God, we must deal humbly with our own sin, 123 00:08:05,120 --> 00:08:08,840 help others lovingly with theirs, and handle holy things 124 00:08:08,840 --> 00:08:12,360 with wise discernments. Jesus is going to unfold that 125 00:08:12,360 --> 00:08:15,480 for us in three clear movements. The first we'll see is that we 126 00:08:15,480 --> 00:08:18,840 must examine ourselves humbly before judging others. 127 00:08:20,200 --> 00:08:23,760 Secondly, we must correct others graciously after confronting our 128 00:08:23,760 --> 00:08:27,680 own sin. And thirdly, we'll see we must 129 00:08:27,680 --> 00:08:30,800 discern wisely when handling holy things. 130 00:08:31,640 --> 00:08:34,280 So here's what's before us if we are to live as citizens of 131 00:08:34,280 --> 00:08:37,240 Christ's Kingdom. And I trust that that's why 132 00:08:37,240 --> 00:08:42,159 you're here today, all right, as believers, to learn how to live 133 00:08:42,159 --> 00:08:44,480 as a better citizen of the Kingdom of Christ, right? 134 00:08:45,240 --> 00:08:48,720 Then we must learn to judge rightly, all right? 135 00:08:48,720 --> 00:08:54,320 We're not as hypocrites, not as harsh critics, but as those who 136 00:08:54,320 --> 00:08:56,600 have been transformed by the grace of God. 137 00:08:57,320 --> 00:08:59,440 Amen. And so let's begin with the 138 00:08:59,440 --> 00:09:01,600 first command here. Number one, examine yourself 139 00:09:01,600 --> 00:09:05,560 humbly before judging others. This is covering verses 1 and 2. 140 00:09:06,160 --> 00:09:10,280 And so as we as we come to verse one, Jesus gives one of the most 141 00:09:10,280 --> 00:09:12,440 well known commands in all of Scripture. 142 00:09:12,840 --> 00:09:16,000 Judge not that you be not judged. 143 00:09:16,680 --> 00:09:19,880 Now again, this is one of the most misunderstand understood 144 00:09:19,880 --> 00:09:25,520 commands of the Bible. Jesus is not forbidding all 145 00:09:25,520 --> 00:09:29,400 judgment. He is not telling us to abandon 146 00:09:29,400 --> 00:09:33,080 discernment. He's not telling you to ignore 147 00:09:33,080 --> 00:09:36,640 sin. In fact, later in Matthew's 148 00:09:36,640 --> 00:09:42,400 Gospel, he warns us to beware of false prophets and to test them, 149 00:09:42,480 --> 00:09:46,680 which requires discernment. Later. 150 00:09:46,680 --> 00:09:50,880 Later in Matthew's Gospel, he commands us to confront a 151 00:09:50,880 --> 00:09:56,120 brother who sins, right? So what then is Christ 152 00:09:56,120 --> 00:10:01,440 forbidding in Matthew 7? Well, he's forbidding a spirit 153 00:10:01,440 --> 00:10:07,800 of self-righteous, hypocritical condemnation of others, right? 154 00:10:07,800 --> 00:10:12,560 Yet this, this sort of posture of the heart that places us 155 00:10:12,800 --> 00:10:19,640 above others as their judge while ignoring our own sins, 156 00:10:20,560 --> 00:10:21,840 That's what he's forbidding here. 157 00:10:22,880 --> 00:10:25,440 So I don't want you to miss the reason he gives. 158 00:10:26,280 --> 00:10:28,800 Judge, not that you be not judged. 159 00:10:28,800 --> 00:10:32,640 It's the reason, judge, not that you be not judged. 160 00:10:32,640 --> 00:10:37,160 Now this is often called a divine passive, a divine 161 00:10:37,160 --> 00:10:40,160 passive. Now what that means is there is 162 00:10:40,160 --> 00:10:45,520 an implied judge here. Judge not that you be not judged 163 00:10:45,800 --> 00:10:50,400 by who? The implied judge here is God 164 00:10:50,400 --> 00:10:53,680 Himself, right? In other words, Jesus is saying 165 00:10:54,800 --> 00:11:00,080 that if you take your seed as judge over others in a proud, 166 00:11:00,280 --> 00:11:06,120 condemning style, then you are inviting God's judgment upon 167 00:11:06,120 --> 00:11:10,280 yourself. Verse 2 makes it even clearer. 168 00:11:11,800 --> 00:11:14,280 Jesus says, For with the judgment that you pronounce, you 169 00:11:14,280 --> 00:11:18,680 will be judged and with the measure that you use, it will be 170 00:11:18,680 --> 00:11:23,440 measured to you. So in other words, the standard 171 00:11:23,440 --> 00:11:29,080 you apply to others reveals your hearts, right? 172 00:11:29,360 --> 00:11:36,320 It reveals what you think about yourself and it will also become 173 00:11:36,320 --> 00:11:40,120 the standard by which God will deal with you right now. 174 00:11:40,120 --> 00:11:44,480 This is exactly what we see echoed in the in Romans 2 verse 175 00:11:44,480 --> 00:11:49,720 one, and Paul writes there he says when you judge another, you 176 00:11:49,720 --> 00:11:55,440 condemn yourself because you, the judge practice the very same 177 00:11:55,440 --> 00:12:02,400 things, right? So listen, the issue is not 178 00:12:02,400 --> 00:12:10,680 whether we make judgments, it's how we make those judgments and 179 00:12:10,680 --> 00:12:14,240 it's from what kind of heart are we making those judgments. 180 00:12:15,320 --> 00:12:20,640 You see, Jesus is exposing a critical fault finding spirit, a 181 00:12:20,640 --> 00:12:26,600 spirit that is quick to condemn others, a spirit that's slow to 182 00:12:26,600 --> 00:12:32,160 extend mercy to someone, a spirit that's blind to its own 183 00:12:32,160 --> 00:12:38,360 need for God's grace. Consider how easily we do this 184 00:12:39,160 --> 00:12:40,640 right? We see what we see someone 185 00:12:40,640 --> 00:12:47,080 else's sin, and we'll magnify it, all right? 186 00:12:47,080 --> 00:12:53,240 We'll, we'll, we'll make sure that we amplify that thing to 187 00:12:53,240 --> 00:12:57,000 the NTH degree, all right? We'll put it under a microscope, 188 00:12:57,000 --> 00:12:59,680 we'll dissect it. We'll put it under a magnifying 189 00:12:59,680 --> 00:13:04,360 glass so that's easier to see. And that's what Jesus is 190 00:13:04,360 --> 00:13:06,760 exposing here, right? We'll analyze the sin. 191 00:13:06,760 --> 00:13:08,160 We'll shake our heads at the sin. 192 00:13:08,160 --> 00:13:11,880 We'll talk about the sin either, you know, we might say it, 193 00:13:12,000 --> 00:13:15,160 anyone might use it as a as like a veiled prayer request. 194 00:13:15,160 --> 00:13:18,240 But really it's just gossip. Have you heard that? 195 00:13:18,240 --> 00:13:21,360 So and so did such and such. We should really pray for them. 196 00:13:22,040 --> 00:13:24,880 But really the motivation behind that was just to tell the story, 197 00:13:26,040 --> 00:13:27,440 right? But when it comes to our own 198 00:13:27,440 --> 00:13:32,880 sin, let's keep that private. But let's minimize that. 199 00:13:33,520 --> 00:13:35,840 But let's excuse it, right? I wouldn't have done that if I 200 00:13:35,840 --> 00:13:37,560 hadn't. Blah, blah, blah. 201 00:13:37,560 --> 00:13:39,200 All right? You don't know the way I was 202 00:13:39,200 --> 00:13:40,040 raised. You don't. 203 00:13:40,200 --> 00:13:41,560 You don't know the kind of dad I had. 204 00:13:41,560 --> 00:13:43,680 You don't know. You know the anger I deal with. 205 00:13:43,680 --> 00:13:45,440 You don't know my life experience. 206 00:13:45,440 --> 00:13:48,120 And right, all these things contribute to the kind of person 207 00:13:48,120 --> 00:13:49,960 I am. Well, excuse it. 208 00:13:49,960 --> 00:13:53,200 We justify it even, right? Well, if they hadn't done such 209 00:13:53,200 --> 00:13:56,760 and such, then I wouldn't have responded the way I did. 210 00:13:56,760 --> 00:13:59,080 But that was on them, right? They got what they deserved. 211 00:13:59,320 --> 00:14:04,360 Justified. Here's the problem, brothers and 212 00:14:04,360 --> 00:14:11,280 sisters, we are often very skilled at being prosecuting 213 00:14:11,280 --> 00:14:17,280 attorneys for others and being really great defense attorneys 214 00:14:17,280 --> 00:14:22,960 for ourselves. And Jesus says that kind of 215 00:14:22,960 --> 00:14:28,000 judgment has no place in my Kingdom, no place in my Kingdom. 216 00:14:30,840 --> 00:14:33,840 So then we have to ask, well, what should we do? 217 00:14:33,840 --> 00:14:36,880 How does this, how does this land on us? 218 00:14:36,880 --> 00:14:40,720 What's it calling us to do? Well, first, it calls you to 219 00:14:40,720 --> 00:14:45,400 humility, right? Yet before you evaluate someone 220 00:14:45,400 --> 00:14:51,560 else's life, you should examine your own hearts and examine it 221 00:14:51,560 --> 00:14:56,560 with honesty. Bring things into the light, 222 00:14:56,560 --> 00:14:59,120 Don't keep them in the dark. Examine it with humility. 223 00:15:00,920 --> 00:15:07,000 Understand that your whole life is lived before the face, before 224 00:15:07,000 --> 00:15:12,760 the eyes of God, right? Secondly, it calls us to merce. 225 00:15:14,040 --> 00:15:16,640 On one hand we have humility, on another we have mercy. 226 00:15:17,760 --> 00:15:22,600 If you have received grace from God through Christ, you are a 227 00:15:22,600 --> 00:15:25,920 believer in Jesus Christ. He's raised you to walk in 228 00:15:25,920 --> 00:15:33,840 newness of life, Then you cannot live with a harsh, condemning 229 00:15:33,840 --> 00:15:37,520 spirits toward others. All right. 230 00:15:37,520 --> 00:15:41,440 The forgiven do not become merciless. 231 00:15:42,760 --> 00:15:49,160 They don't become merciless. Thirdly, it calls us to fear 232 00:15:49,360 --> 00:15:53,800 God, to Revere Him, to understand that He is the 233 00:15:53,800 --> 00:15:58,360 perfect judge. It's not just about Jesus. 234 00:15:58,360 --> 00:16:01,440 What Jesus saying here is not just about how we treat others. 235 00:16:02,440 --> 00:16:07,160 It is also about how God will deal with you, right? 236 00:16:07,360 --> 00:16:10,200 We, you are not the final judge. You might put yourself in the 237 00:16:10,200 --> 00:16:13,240 place of judge of someone's life, but you are not the final 238 00:16:13,400 --> 00:16:15,840 judge. Again, your whole life has lived 239 00:16:15,840 --> 00:16:18,720 before the face of God. You will stand before God one 240 00:16:18,720 --> 00:16:21,280 day. So we should fear God as we 241 00:16:21,280 --> 00:16:26,320 think about judgement. So we must put away the posture 242 00:16:26,560 --> 00:16:31,480 of superiority. We put away the instinct to 243 00:16:31,480 --> 00:16:34,320 condemn others. We have to put away the 244 00:16:34,320 --> 00:16:37,240 eagerness to point out the faults of someone else. 245 00:16:38,280 --> 00:16:42,840 And instead, this text invites us to take the low place, to 246 00:16:42,840 --> 00:16:46,640 take the place of those who know their own sin, to take the place 247 00:16:46,640 --> 00:16:49,720 of those who cling to God's grace. 248 00:16:50,760 --> 00:16:53,040 Hide ourselves under the shadow of His wings. 249 00:16:53,720 --> 00:16:57,600 Amen. But that does raise an important 250 00:16:57,600 --> 00:17:00,320 question. I think that if we're not the 251 00:17:00,320 --> 00:17:04,760 judge in a hypocritical, self-righteous way, does that 252 00:17:04,760 --> 00:17:07,079 mean that we never address sin in others? 253 00:17:08,640 --> 00:17:11,640 Do do we just ignore someone else's sin? 254 00:17:12,839 --> 00:17:15,200 Do do we pretend that it's not there? 255 00:17:16,640 --> 00:17:19,240 Well, Jesus answers those questions for us directly in the 256 00:17:19,240 --> 00:17:22,599 next verses, right? So point #2 correct others 257 00:17:22,599 --> 00:17:25,599 graciously after confronting your own sin. 258 00:17:27,800 --> 00:17:31,720 Correct others graciously after confronting your own sin. 259 00:17:32,800 --> 00:17:35,760 Here we're looking at verses 3 through 5 S. 260 00:17:35,760 --> 00:17:39,280 Jesus presses the issue further here, using one of the most 261 00:17:39,280 --> 00:17:43,080 vivid and unforgettable images in all of Scripture. 262 00:17:44,640 --> 00:17:47,520 If you've got a visual mind at all, you should chuckle as you 263 00:17:47,520 --> 00:17:52,760 read this right. Why do you see the speck in your 264 00:17:52,760 --> 00:17:59,440 brother's eye but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 265 00:18:00,400 --> 00:18:04,880 Now, the word for spec here refers to something small. 266 00:18:04,880 --> 00:18:07,720 It's like a splinter or a tiny piece of debris. 267 00:18:09,120 --> 00:18:13,760 But the law, the word log here refers to a large beam. 268 00:18:14,040 --> 00:18:17,200 Literally a log, right? Something massive, something 269 00:18:17,200 --> 00:18:19,680 impossible to miss. Maybe at the very least, you 270 00:18:19,680 --> 00:18:22,800 could think of a 2 by 4 protruding out of someone's eye, 271 00:18:23,600 --> 00:18:27,280 right? Jesus is exposing the absurdity 272 00:18:27,440 --> 00:18:31,400 of hypocrisy. Why are you, with a 2 by 4 273 00:18:31,400 --> 00:18:35,240 protruding out of your eye, so concerned about the speck of 274 00:18:35,240 --> 00:18:39,440 dust in your neighbor's eye, your brother's eye, right? 275 00:18:42,720 --> 00:18:48,200 It means it's meant to be a piercing kind of humor, right? 276 00:18:48,200 --> 00:18:50,960 It's so absurd, the image is so absurd that it makes you 277 00:18:50,960 --> 00:18:53,160 chuckle. But at the same time, it's 278 00:18:53,160 --> 00:18:56,520 piercing the truth behind it because it reveals something 279 00:18:56,800 --> 00:19:01,960 true about ourselves, right? We noticed quickly where others 280 00:19:01,960 --> 00:19:04,440 fall short. But when it comes to our own 281 00:19:04,440 --> 00:19:08,480 sin, as we said a moment ago, we're often blind, or at least 282 00:19:09,400 --> 00:19:11,600 we don't want to see it for what it truly is. 283 00:19:12,320 --> 00:19:15,160 We'll minimize it, we'll hide it. 284 00:19:17,120 --> 00:19:19,520 And so Jesus continues in verse four, he says, or how can you 285 00:19:19,520 --> 00:19:23,040 say to your brother this log in your eye? 286 00:19:24,480 --> 00:19:27,560 Hey, let me take that speck out of your eye. 287 00:19:30,200 --> 00:19:35,400 Do you hear the assumption in that the man is offering help, 288 00:19:36,680 --> 00:19:39,360 but but he's in no position to give any help, is he? 289 00:19:40,680 --> 00:19:45,320 And and Jesus then names it plainly in verse 5, You 290 00:19:45,320 --> 00:19:52,760 hypocrites. That's strong language, but it's 291 00:19:52,760 --> 00:19:55,240 necessary language. It is hypocritical. 292 00:19:55,560 --> 00:19:58,960 It's exactly what it is. The the issue is not that the 293 00:19:58,960 --> 00:20:03,160 man is wanting to address sin. The issue is that he is doing so 294 00:20:03,320 --> 00:20:07,280 hypocritically without dealing honestly with his own faults. 295 00:20:07,280 --> 00:20:11,880 All right, and then Jesus gives the proper order. 296 00:20:13,000 --> 00:20:16,960 First take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see 297 00:20:17,120 --> 00:20:20,040 clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye. 298 00:20:20,040 --> 00:20:23,120 All right, notice carefully here. 299 00:20:23,640 --> 00:20:28,600 Notice the wording. Jesus does not say ignore the 300 00:20:28,600 --> 00:20:32,880 speck. He says deal with your sin 301 00:20:32,880 --> 00:20:36,400 first, then you will be able to help your brother. 302 00:20:38,880 --> 00:20:44,160 So this is not a call. This is not a call to avoid 303 00:20:44,160 --> 00:20:49,480 correction. It's a call to purify 304 00:20:49,480 --> 00:20:55,320 correction. Correction is not removed in the 305 00:20:55,320 --> 00:21:00,040 New Testament. Correction is redeemed in the 306 00:21:00,040 --> 00:21:03,400 New Testament. The correction in the Kingdom of 307 00:21:03,400 --> 00:21:08,800 God is meant to be humble, not proud. 308 00:21:11,560 --> 00:21:14,800 It's meant to be after the goal of restoration, to be 309 00:21:14,800 --> 00:21:18,080 restorative in its nature, not condemning. 310 00:21:20,120 --> 00:21:21,720 And it's meant to be clear sighted. 311 00:21:22,640 --> 00:21:26,360 I've dealt with the log in my own eye, and so that I'm not 312 00:21:26,360 --> 00:21:29,680 reacting as a hypocrite or acting as a hypocrite here. 313 00:21:31,200 --> 00:21:34,160 You see, it's only when we have honestly and seriously 314 00:21:34,160 --> 00:21:40,920 confronted our own sin before God that we are able to see 315 00:21:40,920 --> 00:21:42,840 clearly enough to help someone else. 316 00:21:43,760 --> 00:21:46,960 All right? Think of it this way. 317 00:21:48,760 --> 00:21:53,280 If you had something in your eye, all right, something 318 00:21:53,280 --> 00:21:58,440 painful, something that needed to be removed, right, you, you 319 00:21:58,440 --> 00:22:02,960 wouldn't want a person with blurred vision and shaking hands 320 00:22:02,960 --> 00:22:06,880 trying to fix that, would you? Right, you? 321 00:22:06,880 --> 00:22:09,000 You would want someone who can see clearly. 322 00:22:09,680 --> 00:22:12,760 It's not someone who's careful their hands are steady, right? 323 00:22:13,480 --> 00:22:15,320 Someone who understands what they're doing. 324 00:22:16,640 --> 00:22:19,280 Well, Jesus is saying when it comes to dealing with sin, you 325 00:22:19,280 --> 00:22:22,440 must first address your own blindness, your own lack of 326 00:22:22,440 --> 00:22:28,080 clear sight, your own shaky hands before attempting to help 327 00:22:28,080 --> 00:22:35,000 someone see better. So how does this shape us then? 328 00:22:36,160 --> 00:22:40,040 Well first it calls the serious. I'm going to use the word 329 00:22:40,040 --> 00:22:43,480 serious. Serious self confrontation. 330 00:22:45,520 --> 00:22:51,240 Not surface level confession, not vague acknowledgement. 331 00:22:52,600 --> 00:22:54,880 I'm really struggling this week. Could you just pray for me? 332 00:22:56,200 --> 00:23:00,360 No, but a real honest confrontation with our sin 333 00:23:00,560 --> 00:23:02,960 before God. Right? 334 00:23:03,000 --> 00:23:06,800 But before you speak into someone else's life, you must 335 00:23:06,800 --> 00:23:15,280 ask yourself, have I examined my own heart and have I examined my 336 00:23:15,280 --> 00:23:18,200 own heart? Am I aware of my own need for 337 00:23:18,200 --> 00:23:23,920 God's grace? Secondly, this passage, this 338 00:23:23,920 --> 00:23:27,680 portion of the passage calls us to offer what we might call 339 00:23:27,680 --> 00:23:32,480 gracious correction. You have to notice the word 340 00:23:32,480 --> 00:23:39,200 Jesus uses brother, if you can help your brother. 341 00:23:40,880 --> 00:23:45,960 But the goal is not to win an argument, but the goal is not to 342 00:23:45,960 --> 00:23:51,480 prove a point. The goal is always to win a 343 00:23:51,480 --> 00:23:53,680 brother. Amen. 344 00:23:54,480 --> 00:23:58,000 That's the point of correction, gracious correction. 345 00:23:58,640 --> 00:24:01,920 That means our correction should be marked by gentleness. 346 00:24:03,040 --> 00:24:07,320 It should be marked by patience and love and a desire for 347 00:24:07,320 --> 00:24:10,640 restoration. Our correction should be filled 348 00:24:10,640 --> 00:24:12,240 with the Spirit. Amen. 349 00:24:13,400 --> 00:24:15,360 And 3rd, it calls us the clarity of vision. 350 00:24:16,960 --> 00:24:20,560 Only those who are honest about their own sin can help others 351 00:24:21,040 --> 00:24:25,920 rightly. You see, pride blinds, but grace 352 00:24:26,160 --> 00:24:29,480 clarifies. When you know how much you've 353 00:24:29,480 --> 00:24:32,360 been forgiven. You will not come at others 354 00:24:32,360 --> 00:24:35,720 harshly. You will come with humility and 355 00:24:35,720 --> 00:24:40,800 with care for their soul. So the text is not saying ignore 356 00:24:40,800 --> 00:24:42,840 sin and others. No, it's saying don't ignore the 357 00:24:42,840 --> 00:24:46,400 sin and others. But neither can you rush in 358 00:24:46,640 --> 00:24:49,440 carelessly. Amen. 359 00:24:51,360 --> 00:24:55,200 But even that, I think, raises another question, like we're to 360 00:24:55,200 --> 00:24:59,000 examine ourselves humbly and correct others graciously. 361 00:24:59,920 --> 00:25:03,480 Does that mean that we treat everyone the same in every 362 00:25:03,480 --> 00:25:10,800 situation without distinction? The Bible take a stab at that. 363 00:25:12,000 --> 00:25:14,000 Jesus answers that for us in verse 6. 364 00:25:15,440 --> 00:25:20,360 Point #3 Discern wisely when handling holy things to serve 365 00:25:20,360 --> 00:25:22,400 wisely when handling holy things. 366 00:25:24,360 --> 00:25:29,960 Now in verse 6, Jesus had something that at first glance 367 00:25:30,720 --> 00:25:34,440 might feel surprising. It might even make you a little 368 00:25:34,440 --> 00:25:36,640 uncomfortable because it's a bit jarring. 369 00:25:39,000 --> 00:25:44,800 Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls 370 00:25:44,800 --> 00:25:50,240 before pigs lest they trample them under foot in turn to 371 00:25:50,240 --> 00:25:53,720 attack you. Now this is not a verse about 372 00:25:53,720 --> 00:25:58,080 how to handle your dog at home or your pigs, all right. 373 00:26:03,280 --> 00:26:05,280 But why does Jesus say that here? 374 00:26:07,320 --> 00:26:10,560 Why? Why offer this after what he's 375 00:26:10,560 --> 00:26:17,720 just walked through? I think it partly because he 376 00:26:17,720 --> 00:26:20,800 knows his words in verses one through 5 could be easily 377 00:26:20,800 --> 00:26:23,880 misunderstood. They could be easily 378 00:26:23,880 --> 00:26:26,560 mistranslated to mean judge not ever. 379 00:26:29,520 --> 00:26:32,440 If we hear judge not, we might think, well, I should never make 380 00:26:32,440 --> 00:26:36,960 distinctions, I should never notice things. 381 00:26:38,760 --> 00:26:40,400 I should treat everyone the same. 382 00:26:41,280 --> 00:26:44,320 I should just keep offering truth no matter how it's 383 00:26:44,320 --> 00:26:48,560 received. And Jesus here in verse 6 is 384 00:26:48,560 --> 00:27:02,080 saying no, no, listen, you have to understand, grace does not 385 00:27:02,080 --> 00:27:06,800 mean gullibility. Grace is not being you become 386 00:27:06,800 --> 00:27:09,560 gullible. Grace does not mean you become a 387 00:27:09,560 --> 00:27:11,640 doormat. Love. 388 00:27:11,640 --> 00:27:16,880 Love does not mean that you should lack discernment right 389 00:27:17,280 --> 00:27:20,560 here. Jesus is using strong imagery to 390 00:27:20,560 --> 00:27:25,760 describe a certain kind of people, dogs and pigs. 391 00:27:29,160 --> 00:27:30,960 Now if you're offended by that, just remember he called us 392 00:27:30,960 --> 00:27:33,280 hypocrites just a few verses ago, right? 393 00:27:36,880 --> 00:27:39,880 These were not household pets in the day of Christ. 394 00:27:39,880 --> 00:27:44,600 They were unclean animals. They're often used as images of 395 00:27:44,600 --> 00:27:48,560 those who are hostile dogs, aggressive like dogs, 396 00:27:48,720 --> 00:27:52,760 unresponsive to the sacred or trampling upon it like a pig 397 00:27:52,760 --> 00:27:57,520 would, right? And so here he's Speaking of 398 00:27:57,520 --> 00:28:01,880 what is holy. Here he's Speaking of pearls. 399 00:28:03,960 --> 00:28:07,440 He's talking about things that are precious, right? 400 00:28:07,440 --> 00:28:11,720 Things that are valuable, things that are set apart. 401 00:28:13,680 --> 00:28:18,240 And so the warning is this, do not take what is sacred, what is 402 00:28:18,240 --> 00:28:22,760 precious, and continually place it before those who will only 403 00:28:22,760 --> 00:28:27,160 despise it and trample on it and respond with hostility. 404 00:28:30,600 --> 00:28:32,800 Again, I don't want you to misunderstand what Christ is 405 00:28:32,800 --> 00:28:34,880 saying. He's, he's not giving you 406 00:28:34,880 --> 00:28:38,080 permission, brother or sister, to write someone off too 407 00:28:38,080 --> 00:28:41,560 quickly. You don't have that permission. 408 00:28:43,720 --> 00:28:47,600 He's not encouraging you to have a harsh or cynical spirit toward 409 00:28:47,600 --> 00:28:51,120 others. You understand that we are 410 00:28:51,120 --> 00:28:56,000 called by God to boldly proclaim the gospel and to broadly 411 00:28:56,080 --> 00:29:01,200 proclaim the gospel. But but he's teaching us here 412 00:29:01,200 --> 00:29:05,800 that there are times, there are times where the gospel is so 413 00:29:05,800 --> 00:29:10,600 offensive to someone that they display a settled, hardened 414 00:29:10,600 --> 00:29:16,360 rejection of truth, a contempt for that message which is holy. 415 00:29:18,400 --> 00:29:23,280 And in those moments Christ is saying wisdom is required. 416 00:29:25,720 --> 00:29:31,480 There are times to speak up, and then there are times to close 417 00:29:31,480 --> 00:29:38,880 your mouth. There are times to press in, and 418 00:29:38,880 --> 00:29:42,880 there are times to back off and entrust someone to the Lord in 419 00:29:42,880 --> 00:29:47,400 prayer, even Jesus himself at times. 420 00:29:47,400 --> 00:29:48,880 We'll see it as we go through the gospel. 421 00:29:51,200 --> 00:29:55,600 Even Christ Himself at times withheld further words, or He 422 00:29:55,600 --> 00:30:02,160 withdrew when faced with hardened opposition, instructed 423 00:30:02,160 --> 00:30:08,680 His apostles to do the same. So this verse does not 424 00:30:08,680 --> 00:30:11,880 contradict the call to humility and grace at all. 425 00:30:13,440 --> 00:30:16,200 It completes the call to humility and grace. 426 00:30:17,480 --> 00:30:20,440 Right. Kingdom citizens must be humble 427 00:30:20,600 --> 00:30:25,200 and gracious, yes and Amen. And they must also be 428 00:30:25,400 --> 00:30:32,480 discerning. Think of giving something to 429 00:30:32,480 --> 00:30:35,560 someone that is deeply valuable to you. 430 00:30:36,800 --> 00:30:41,320 It's something precious. If it's a family heirloom, it's 431 00:30:41,320 --> 00:30:42,920 something that means a lot to you. 432 00:30:44,320 --> 00:30:49,400 And you give it to someone and they have no regard for it. 433 00:30:51,080 --> 00:30:54,640 They don't care about it. They don't recognize it's worth. 434 00:30:55,600 --> 00:30:59,160 They don't treat it with, you know, with care. 435 00:30:59,160 --> 00:31:02,240 They they misuse it. They even mock it. 436 00:31:04,840 --> 00:31:11,640 Now over time you realize this is not helping and it's also 437 00:31:11,640 --> 00:31:15,000 dishonouring what is valuable right? 438 00:31:15,000 --> 00:31:18,120 That that's the picture that Jesus is painting here. 439 00:31:18,960 --> 00:31:21,320 The the issue is not the pearls value. 440 00:31:22,320 --> 00:31:25,760 The gospel has the value at all times. 441 00:31:26,360 --> 00:31:30,560 The the issue is the response of the one receiving it. 442 00:31:33,080 --> 00:31:34,760 So again, how does this shape us? 443 00:31:35,960 --> 00:31:39,120 How does this inform how we live day-to-day? 444 00:31:39,880 --> 00:31:42,760 Well, first it calls us to value that which is holy. 445 00:31:44,600 --> 00:31:47,560 I want you to understand the gospel is not common. 446 00:31:51,360 --> 00:31:57,640 It's it's not worthless. The truth of the gospel is not 447 00:31:57,640 --> 00:32:00,920 disposable. We must have it. 448 00:32:01,760 --> 00:32:06,600 It's highly valuable. It's the story of God giving his 449 00:32:06,600 --> 00:32:11,680 most prized possession, his own Son, for the sake of sinners. 450 00:32:17,040 --> 00:32:19,880 You know, Paul writes that we were bought with a precious 451 00:32:19,880 --> 00:32:24,240 price, the life and the blood of Jesus Christ himself. 452 00:32:26,480 --> 00:32:29,880 So we must never treat God's truths lightly. 453 00:32:32,320 --> 00:32:39,680 We must never treat the truths of the gospel lightly. 454 00:32:41,000 --> 00:32:45,600 As believers, we must be careful not to place them in context 455 00:32:45,720 --> 00:32:52,960 where they are persistently scorned and trampled upon as 456 00:32:52,960 --> 00:32:55,440 unbelievers. Many of you in here today are an 457 00:32:55,440 --> 00:32:59,440 unbeliever, that there's a warning here for you. 458 00:33:01,080 --> 00:33:06,320 And the warning is this. You want to be careful not to 459 00:33:06,320 --> 00:33:09,520 scorn or trample on gospel truths. 460 00:33:13,520 --> 00:33:16,640 Instead, you should beg God to help you believe them with all 461 00:33:16,640 --> 00:33:21,280 your heart and all your soul to trust them emphatically. 462 00:33:23,360 --> 00:33:26,880 Secondly, this passage calls us to exercise discernment toward 463 00:33:26,880 --> 00:33:30,760 people. I want you to understand this. 464 00:33:30,760 --> 00:33:34,760 Not all rejection is the same. It's just not. 465 00:33:35,440 --> 00:33:37,800 You have to be discerning, right? 466 00:33:37,920 --> 00:33:42,200 Some people might reject initially because they're 467 00:33:42,200 --> 00:33:45,320 struggling. They're questioning, they're 468 00:33:45,320 --> 00:33:47,680 struggling with the truth. They're they're questioning 469 00:33:47,680 --> 00:33:52,120 their validity, the wrestling with what you're telling them. 470 00:33:54,320 --> 00:33:56,520 They're also having to wrestle with their own sinfulness and 471 00:33:56,520 --> 00:33:58,640 wrestle with a perfect holy just God. 472 00:33:59,640 --> 00:34:01,800 And, and recognizing that they're falling short. 473 00:34:01,800 --> 00:34:04,520 You understand that, right? And so they may be hardened at 474 00:34:04,520 --> 00:34:10,080 1st and maybe even be hostile at first, but you're called by God 475 00:34:10,080 --> 00:34:18,320 to patiently walk with them. Others may harden themselves 476 00:34:18,320 --> 00:34:25,560 against the truth, right? They mock it, they attack it, 477 00:34:26,639 --> 00:34:32,199 they'll blasphemy it in crisis, saying here that wisdom 478 00:34:32,199 --> 00:34:34,760 recognizes the difference in those responses. 479 00:34:37,960 --> 00:34:40,920 Thirdly, this passage calls us to trust God with the results 480 00:34:42,840 --> 00:34:46,719 You and I cannot manufacture the results of someone's heart. 481 00:34:48,000 --> 00:34:53,360 We're not God, we don't have that power, right that I love 482 00:34:53,360 --> 00:34:55,080 this old saying from the Puritans. 483 00:34:55,080 --> 00:34:58,320 The same sun that melts the ice hardens the clay. 484 00:34:58,320 --> 00:35:02,880 And it was a description of how they would talk about what the 485 00:35:02,880 --> 00:35:06,520 gospel message does. The same gospel message will 486 00:35:06,520 --> 00:35:12,160 soften the heart, it'll melt it and it will also harden the 487 00:35:12,160 --> 00:35:17,720 heart, right? The gospel message softens sums, 488 00:35:17,720 --> 00:35:21,720 it hardens others. Your job is not to worry 489 00:35:21,720 --> 00:35:24,920 yourself about the results. Your job is to be faithful to 490 00:35:24,920 --> 00:35:28,840 God in your proclamation of the gospel and to trust God with 491 00:35:28,840 --> 00:35:31,680 their heart and soul. Amen. 492 00:35:34,080 --> 00:35:38,080 There are times when continuing to press the same truth into a 493 00:35:38,080 --> 00:35:43,480 hardened heart does not lead to repentance, it'll lead to 494 00:35:43,480 --> 00:35:48,400 greater resistance. And in those moments, you 495 00:35:48,400 --> 00:35:54,080 entrust that person to the Lord in prayer, knowing that only he 496 00:35:54,080 --> 00:35:57,880 can soften the heart. You beg him for wisdom on how to 497 00:35:57,880 --> 00:36:03,000 proceed. So as Kingdom citizens, you are 498 00:36:03,000 --> 00:36:06,160 not called to be harsh toward others. 499 00:36:07,320 --> 00:36:10,360 You're not called to be naive either about sin. 500 00:36:11,680 --> 00:36:16,360 You're called by God to be wise. You're called by God to examine 501 00:36:16,480 --> 00:36:20,640 yourself humbly, You're called by God to correct others with 502 00:36:20,640 --> 00:36:26,880 grace, and you're called by God to discern others wisely when 503 00:36:26,880 --> 00:36:29,360 handling that which is holy, God's word. 504 00:36:30,640 --> 00:36:34,040 And when all those things come together right, they reveal a 505 00:36:34,040 --> 00:36:37,960 heart that has truly been shaped by the grace of God. 506 00:36:40,480 --> 00:36:42,600 And that brings us to this question that we all must 507 00:36:42,600 --> 00:36:47,520 answer. We all must answer this. 508 00:36:49,640 --> 00:36:59,200 Am I living this way? Am I living this way? 509 00:37:02,320 --> 00:37:07,120 Am I examining myself humbly before I will judge others? 510 00:37:09,400 --> 00:37:13,600 Or am I really quick to see others faults while remaining 511 00:37:13,600 --> 00:37:19,800 blind to my own? Am I correcting others 512 00:37:19,800 --> 00:37:22,480 graciously after confronting my own sin? 513 00:37:24,880 --> 00:37:28,880 Or am I speaking up from pride rather than from love for 514 00:37:28,880 --> 00:37:35,280 others? Am I discerning wisely when 515 00:37:35,280 --> 00:37:39,880 handling what is holy? Or have I been careless with the 516 00:37:39,880 --> 00:37:42,800 truth and naive and how I employ it? 517 00:37:45,920 --> 00:37:52,320 You see, this passage exposes us brothers and sisters, by nature, 518 00:37:54,640 --> 00:37:57,720 by human nature, we do not live this way. 519 00:37:59,640 --> 00:38:03,480 It requires a supernatural experience with the grace of 520 00:38:03,480 --> 00:38:06,360 Christ. We we are quick to judge. 521 00:38:06,360 --> 00:38:11,080 We're harsh with others and we're slow to examine ourselves. 522 00:38:11,080 --> 00:38:18,360 We're gentle with ourselves. So that means that you and I as 523 00:38:18,360 --> 00:38:21,240 Christians need more than instruction. 524 00:38:22,440 --> 00:38:24,480 We need the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. 525 00:38:28,480 --> 00:38:34,720 So look to Christ today. Where you have judged wrongly, 526 00:38:35,960 --> 00:38:42,600 he has judged rightly. Where you have been harsh, He 527 00:38:42,600 --> 00:38:48,800 has been merciful. At the cross, Christ bore the 528 00:38:48,800 --> 00:38:50,480 judgment that you and I deserved. 529 00:38:50,480 --> 00:38:54,880 While we were still sinners, Christ died for us so that we 530 00:38:54,880 --> 00:38:58,040 might receive mercy instead of condemnation. 531 00:38:58,040 --> 00:39:05,560 And when the grace of the Lord takes hold of your life, it 532 00:39:05,560 --> 00:39:10,880 begins to transform you. Brothers and sisters, it humbles 533 00:39:10,880 --> 00:39:12,760 you. You. 534 00:39:12,760 --> 00:39:14,840 You see your own sin more clearly. 535 00:39:15,120 --> 00:39:17,840 You're not walking around with a log in your eye. 536 00:39:18,200 --> 00:39:23,640 You're noticing the specks now. It, it, it humbles you. 537 00:39:24,120 --> 00:39:27,960 It it softens you. It makes you willing to 538 00:39:27,960 --> 00:39:34,440 sacrifice time, to sacrifice just your own desires, your own 539 00:39:34,440 --> 00:39:38,040 whatever, to be able to help others in their time of need. 540 00:39:38,040 --> 00:39:44,680 It softens you towards their needs and it teaches you to deal 541 00:39:44,680 --> 00:39:49,600 honestly with your own sin before you confront the sin of 542 00:39:49,600 --> 00:39:52,840 others so that you might lovingly deal with theirs. 543 00:39:55,120 --> 00:39:59,000 So the call today for believers and unbelievers is the same as 544 00:39:59,000 --> 00:40:04,440 it is every week. Come to Christ, find help from 545 00:40:04,440 --> 00:40:08,200 the Lord in your time of need. But listen, if you are an 546 00:40:08,200 --> 00:40:12,160 unbeliever again, if you don't know Christ as your Lord and 547 00:40:12,160 --> 00:40:17,920 Savior, I, I implore you, turn from your sin. 548 00:40:18,840 --> 00:40:24,800 Trust Christ as your Lord today. And if you do know Christ, you 549 00:40:24,840 --> 00:40:30,640 are a believer, then I urge you as well live as one who has 550 00:40:30,640 --> 00:40:36,960 received grace from on high. Examine yourself with humility, 551 00:40:37,560 --> 00:40:40,480 Be honest in your evaluation of yourself. 552 00:40:42,320 --> 00:40:49,080 Correct others with grace, with gentleness, with a desire to see 553 00:40:49,080 --> 00:40:55,240 them redeemed, to see them reconciled to God, and discern 554 00:40:55,360 --> 00:40:59,200 wisely those holy things that God has called you to handle, 555 00:40:59,800 --> 00:41:04,600 those gospel truths as you cast them abroad, as you boldly 556 00:41:04,600 --> 00:41:08,120 proclaim them. Recognize when you're dealing 557 00:41:08,120 --> 00:41:11,280 with pigs and dogs, and when you're dealing with someone 558 00:41:11,280 --> 00:41:14,120 who's sincere and wanting to understand. 559 00:41:16,760 --> 00:41:21,720 In doing so, you will reflect the heart of your King. 560 00:41:23,520 --> 00:41:27,600 Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you 561 00:41:30,920 --> 00:41:35,480 for your grace and your mercy. We thank you for your great help 562 00:41:35,520 --> 00:41:41,320 and our time of need. Father, we thank you that you 563 00:41:41,320 --> 00:41:48,480 have given us this instruction on how to rightly judge sin and 564 00:41:48,480 --> 00:41:53,320 the world in which we live. And to God, it is my prayer that 565 00:41:53,320 --> 00:41:59,560 you would help us to be the kind of people who are humble, who 566 00:41:59,560 --> 00:42:04,040 understand our own sinfulness, who understand our own struggles 567 00:42:04,040 --> 00:42:09,720 with temptation, our bouts with fallen nature. 568 00:42:12,880 --> 00:42:15,840 God, would you help us to be wretched over our sin? 569 00:42:15,840 --> 00:42:18,600 Would you help us to be mournful over our sin? 570 00:42:21,800 --> 00:42:25,760 Would you help us to find mercy and grace at the cross of 571 00:42:25,760 --> 00:42:28,320 Christ? As we re remember our 572 00:42:28,320 --> 00:42:30,440 transgressions, as we think on those? 573 00:42:32,040 --> 00:42:36,000 May our souls be comforted by the truth that Christ bore every 574 00:42:36,000 --> 00:42:38,800 one of our iniquities on Himself, that He bore our 575 00:42:38,800 --> 00:42:43,280 transgressions, that He has made us new, that He's healed us by 576 00:42:43,280 --> 00:42:50,240 His own stripes, that He's given to us His own righteousness and 577 00:42:50,240 --> 00:42:52,280 taken our unrighteousness on Himself. 578 00:42:53,840 --> 00:42:58,840 And help us to be comforted in that, that we might go out 579 00:42:58,840 --> 00:43:04,680 boldly proclaiming the gospel, rightly judging sin, and seeking 580 00:43:04,680 --> 00:43:10,440 to truly help others out of the miry pits, to see them brought 581 00:43:10,440 --> 00:43:12,680 into the marvelous light of your salvation. 582 00:43:15,880 --> 00:43:18,160 So God, I guess my prayer is that you would help us to not 583 00:43:18,160 --> 00:43:24,320 burn with anger so much so over sin that we will not. 584 00:43:24,440 --> 00:43:29,000 We refuse to proclaim the gospel. 585 00:43:29,000 --> 00:43:31,160 We refuse to call people to repent. 586 00:43:33,440 --> 00:43:35,640 But God give us soft hearts toward others. 587 00:43:36,880 --> 00:43:39,040 Help us to be willing to help a brother in need. 588 00:43:42,480 --> 00:43:44,640 Father, I pray for unbelievers today. 589 00:43:47,120 --> 00:43:50,280 I pray, Lord, that You would help them now to judge rightly 590 00:43:50,280 --> 00:43:54,960 the state of their own soul, that you would help them to see 591 00:43:57,360 --> 00:44:00,280 that before you. They are stripped naked, they 592 00:44:00,280 --> 00:44:04,240 are bare in their own sin. They are covered in the darkness 593 00:44:04,240 --> 00:44:07,560 of iniquity, and they're in need of a Savior. 594 00:44:07,960 --> 00:44:10,480 They're in need of the marvellous light of salvation. 595 00:44:12,160 --> 00:44:16,880 They're in need of a new heart, and may they beg you today to 596 00:44:16,880 --> 00:44:20,280 save them. May they call out to you, as 597 00:44:20,280 --> 00:44:22,880 Romans 10 teaches, that everyone who calls upon the name of the 598 00:44:22,880 --> 00:44:26,120 Lord will be saved. May that be true of them this 599 00:44:26,120 --> 00:44:32,640 day. I'm going to give you a moment 600 00:44:32,640 --> 00:44:36,640 now in your seat to seek the Lord in prayer, to bring your 601 00:44:36,640 --> 00:44:39,840 sin before Him, to confess before Him today, to judge 602 00:44:39,840 --> 00:44:45,040 rightly your own hearts, to be honest in your evaluation of 603 00:44:45,040 --> 00:44:49,200 yourself, and to plead with Him to provide all that you need 604 00:44:49,200 --> 00:45:46,480 today. Heavenly Father, we thank you 605 00:45:46,480 --> 00:45:49,720 that we can boldly approach your throne of grace and our time of 606 00:45:49,720 --> 00:45:55,080 need, and we can find mercy and grace in every situation. 607 00:45:56,920 --> 00:46:00,600 That we have a sympathetic high priest in heaven who was tempted 608 00:46:00,600 --> 00:46:03,040 and tried as we are, yet without sin. 609 00:46:04,720 --> 00:46:06,520 And so he knows the need of our souls. 610 00:46:06,520 --> 00:46:13,400 He knows the need of our lives. We thank You, Father, that You 611 00:46:13,400 --> 00:46:19,200 do not leave us in our need, but that by Your mercy and grace You 612 00:46:19,200 --> 00:46:23,240 meet every one of them. You tend to our hearts and to 613 00:46:23,240 --> 00:46:25,960 our souls as a gentle shepherd does His sheep. 614 00:46:28,240 --> 00:46:30,520 You call us away from sinfulness. 615 00:46:30,520 --> 00:46:32,840 You call us away from temptation. 616 00:46:32,840 --> 00:46:39,880 You protect our lives, You guide us in the way that we should go. 617 00:46:39,880 --> 00:46:44,360 You make known to us the path of life, and at Your right hand are 618 00:46:44,360 --> 00:46:50,520 pleasures forevermore. We thank you, Father, that you 619 00:46:50,960 --> 00:46:55,760 are a good God. You're faithful to every 620 00:46:55,760 --> 00:46:57,920 generation and steadfast in Your love. 621 00:47:00,080 --> 00:47:03,600 And we know that now as we have sought you in prayer and our 622 00:47:03,600 --> 00:47:10,400 time of need and the Father help us to live a life that would 623 00:47:10,400 --> 00:47:14,160 honor your great name. And especially in this area of 624 00:47:14,160 --> 00:47:20,120 how we rightly judge. Maybe do that in a way that 625 00:47:20,120 --> 00:47:22,320 would bring honor to you. And maybe do that in a way that 626 00:47:22,320 --> 00:47:27,280 would cast a light on sin. We cast a light on darkness. 627 00:47:28,480 --> 00:47:31,160 And having cast a light, people would see it for what it really 628 00:47:31,160 --> 00:47:36,040 is, that they would be drawn to Christ our Lord, that would be 629 00:47:36,040 --> 00:47:44,550 saved. Father, forever, we love you. 630 00:47:45,630 --> 00:47:47,150 It's in the name of Christ we pray. 631 00:47:47,790 --> 00:47:48,270 Amen.