Severe Warnings Everyone Must Remember, Part 2

I against Jesus as a passive leader who avoided conflict and spoke with political correctness is to miss the breath of his character today on Insight for living Chuck Swindoll will show us aside to Jesus may surprise you.

When facing off with the religious leaders of his day.

The Pharisee Jesus delivered a scathing review the expose their hypocrisy clearly defined what's required become an authentic follower of God, this particular moment is described for us in Matthew chapter 12 before we begin the message Chuck leads us in prayer we take your word seriously. Our father as we place ourselves under its authority. Thank you for preserving it for our admonition for our instruction guide us, we pray as our thoughts turn to what our Savior was saying and maybe realize the new that those spoken in the first century it has that ring of relevance that applies to the 21st as well deliver us. I pray from a perfunctory attitude when it comes to worship and time spent together in the instruction of your word may we bow our hearts before you and find them open. Lord is the seed is sown on the soft soil that has been prepared may believe differently than when we came.

May what Jesus taught. Make a difference in how we live in our father how grateful we are that you gave him to us to pay the complete payment for our sin. We thank you, our God, for Jesus it's all of that incredible price that was paid in our lives have been changed and as a result, our money is yours. Everything we have, you own and we give to you father with great delight and generosity in the name of the one who died for us to pray and everyone said study the book of Matthew with Chuck Swindoll sure to download searching the Scriptures by going to inside world.org/studies another message from Chuck about severe warnings.

Everyone must remember things change in chapter 12 for much of Jesus teaching goes underground because the pressure is mounting for his demise is not yet ready to turn himself over to them. He has work to do with his disciples and his followers need to hear things that would help them as they carry on without him. So Jesus draws a line in the sand. His enemies are on one side, his friends and followers. On the other and he helps them understand who the Pharisees really were not only was it true back then. It is true today. You will encounter and I will encounter Pharisee, so his warnings come in three here in the central section of Matthew 12 there's a warning in verse 30 is a second warning in verses 31 and 32 1/3 morning and 33 down through 37 will take them in that order. The first morning is this that I'll read the 30th verse, it's impossible to remain neutral. It's impossible to remain neutral.

Listen to Jesus word anyone who isn't with me opposes me.

Anyone who wasn't working with me is actually working against me is no middle ground you either working for him or you are working against him.

You either come to God through Christ or you don't come to God when you die. It's that simple.

Now the severity of blasphemy verses 31 and 32. I would suggest that he looked directly at the Pharisees because they had just committed this unpardonable sin by attributing to Satan the work of God, we saw that earlier he says. I tell you every sin and blasphemy can be forgiven. By the way, that's a great relief, blasphemy or sin itself can be forgiven. He says so more than once here, except blasphemy against the Holy Spirit which would be questioning the one who energizes the person of Christ, calling into question his motive will never be forgiven. Anyone who speaks against the Son of Man, can be forgiven but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven either in this world or the world to come. What is the unpardonable sin it is attributing to Satan what is accomplished only by the power of God is exactly what the Pharisees did remember they were the ones who said verse 24.

No wonder he can cast out demons. He gets his power from Satan, the Prince of demon. So it is a combination of a clear knowledge and intentional rejection of Jesus Christ being fully aware of the light and hating the light in earnest, persistent, intentional determination to extinguish the light that is the Pharisees MO is not simply rejecting Jesus's teachings are his miracles are his offer of salvation. It is the determination to know all that and attribute the origin of all that Satan and to continue and that disbelief, they know they are doing it. They do not care about the outcome. By the way, a little hope for you fear you may have committed it if you're concerned about it. You have not committed if you have committed your not concerned about is the Pharisees no matter what Jesus said none of them moved closer to them well. Few but the great majority of them did not.

So here's the warning.

It is incorrect to think that you cannot go too far in your rejection of Christ. I happen to believe based on Scripture that a heart can get so hard that it will not leave yourself that it will not repent, no matter how great the evident that's provided and ultimately to use today's colloquialism it's lights out. All hope is lost. So the first is a warning against neutrality. The second is a warning against intentionality. Here's the third it's about the depraved heart within all of us look at how Jesus approaches this again. I believe he was looking directly at the Pharisees because of the words in verse 34 brood of vipers brood of snakes. We have a saying that you will know their their real condition by their fruit. We say by their fruit you shall know them and that's right from the Scriptures. Jesus goes even deeper and goes to the tree if you eat an apple. You know your reading from a tree that produced apples your reading up each new reading from the Peachtree same for aplomb as a burnt orange or an apricot not talking about the fruit. Here he talked about the root. The tree itself.

Look at a tree is identified by its fruit. If a tree is good.

The fruit will be good if a tree is bad its fruit will be bad. You brood of vipers. You brood of snakes. I could evil men like you speak what is good and right for whatever is in your heart determines what you say.

I often say to people think of the tongue is up as a bucket and think of your heart is a well heart beating the inner person, not the organ that pumps blood, but the inner person the reservoir within you that holds on to places where decisions are made and and truths are held or denied down in your heart, the tongue goes to the heart and likable bucket list from what's in the heart and out spoon. The word so assisted them. How do you think you could ever speak what is right, coming from parts like you.

The word spoken or evil.

It represents an evil within the heart self occurred to me on the side no extra charge for this. I was thinking about the Pharisees realizing I don't know of one place in the Bible where they referred to their wives. I don't find a place where they speak admirably of their children.

They're not good fathers. They're not thoughtful, compassionate, loving husband's is all about. Then it's all about them. Jesus nailed. He says the things that come out of your mouth Arriba because you have a heart that is evil he goes even further less they missed the point. A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart see the word treasury record is for Cyrus. Many of us who are word vultures have on our desk of a book called a thesaurus a treasury of word's you could render it a good person produces good things from the thesaurus of a good heart and an evil person the same from an thesaurus of an evil are not tell you this, you must give an account on Judgment Day of every idle word use that's convicting is the word you say will either acquit you or continue. Here's the warning. It is foolish to forget that whatever your heart whatever is in your heart is revealed by your words. It's foolish to forget that. And by the way we say a lot all of us. I found this in my research in my research, it is been estimated that from the first good morning to the last good night. The average person engages in 30 conversation a day each day his or her words could make a book of 50 or 60 pages the equivalent of more than 100 books a year, 200 pages each. That's something we talk too much. So the way I would analyze that link the statement we don't say Mary very much, but we talk too much. You find yourself saying you know I really shouldn't say don't say it's that simple. Ethisphere's way of saying stop or I shouldn't say this about the if you're going to say something about someone, be sure you have checked to make sure those facts are correct and if is confidential. It should never be shared. We talk too much. All of us, who we say too little, I will sometimes pray before our elders meetings. Lord help us all to be better listeners than we are. Speakers.

The reason is we learn when we listen, we learn nothing when were talking to Jesus because his guard against idle word having the bucket pull up words that can be a waste of time or dangerous appreciated Alfred Plummer's words, the carefully spoken words may be a calculated hypocrisy.

Think about that.

You hear some speakers that are very halting measuring every word that, out of there mouse. I think Plummer's right carefully spoken words may be a calculated hypocrisy must learn to speak truth.

Let's learn to measure our words. Let's remember it's foolish to forget that whatever is in your heart is revealed by what you say before you think will the answer for me is just stay silent.

The rest of my life that's that's not the answer. Some of the most helpful things that happen to us, or words shared by someone else is called an education. We learn from those professors those teachers that use words to correct us to direct us to fill our minds with information we need our mothers and dads begin early in our lives we learn our language through our our our parents. It's called our heart language in we receive their reproof's and then we carry those with us in life. So the answer is not we say nothing is that we say something worth listening to. So the first warning is regarding indecisiveness. The fact the second is is a warning regarding callousness and the third carelessness. Now let's come back to being hypocrites signature three things I want to say to everyone of us. Please notice I use the word us because they apply to me as well. Do you see yourself portrayed in the first scene verse 30 is a warning against neutrality can pick you or your trying to ride the fence of indecision. Are you attempting the impossible remaining neutral when Jesus himself says you're either for him or against him. Today would be a perfect day for you to step up and say I'm hiding no longer appropriately and when it is the right time. I'm going to make it known where I stand. I'm not going to be afraid I'm not going to say it in a way that makes me look good on what is it because it's true I'm going to stand up and be counted on not saying it will always work well for you, but I'm saying you will sleep better at night knowing that you weren't hiding through the day to step up and be counted as a second when you have to admit that you've gotten calloused regarding spiritual things. Hopefully you've not going too far in your rejection that your bordering dangerously near a stone cold heart today would be a perfect day for you to step back and realize how much you need Christ. It is easy for us who love to be around Christians to think that Bob being with Christians. Somehow, it sort of rubs off. It doesn't.

God has no grandchildren, only children you not become a Christian because your mother or your dad was a Christian become a Christian by you personally trusting in Christ as your own Savior. And remember, he will forgive all sin, all of here's 1/3 maybe you now realize your words are not only too many but careless. As a result of what Jesus taught you realize your bucket is dumping a lot of things that don't even need anyone's attention is the perfect day for you to step away from that habit. Acknowledge the careless use of your tongue asking to cleanse your heart, which will then of course bring fresh water from your mouth.

You see, my main concern is not snakes ensued. That is a real problem. These days, but my concern is hypocrites and church. Thankfully, our church has built a good reputation over these few years we been in existence.

That really isn't built just on a Sunday. It's built through the week.

How we live our lives, how we pay our bills. How we treat our families how we keep our word.

How we forget, rather than bear a grudge. How we release others from things that were offensive, rather than dragging them with us. I urge you to become.

If you are not already an authentic follower of Christ, since we all must give an account of our lives when we stand before but with me. Would you please you listen so well. I commend you.

This is not one of those easy messages to deliver. Maybe by the bluntness of it. It has grip your attention maybe is just what the Lord is able to use. I hope so. To begin a process of changing you something. Most of the Pharisees never went through. And if you've never met the Lord Jesus Christ. The most important decision you can ever make in life. I never tire of making this clear.

If you have the son SO in. If you have the son of God, you have eternal life.

If you do not you do not. Don't wait until it's too late back now trusted him now help us. Our father in the journey from earth to heaven to think clearly, to believe what Jesus taught heaven make a difference in the way we treat others, but most importantly to make certain that he lives within us and is living out his life through us as you do that our father we will become the gospel that others read, we will will become the message that others will be exposed. May our message be clear regarding Jesus Christ our Savior, in the threatening days. I pray for courage. We will be willing to stand on what we believe, regardless in the name of Jesus I pray everyone's a man when we read the stories. Matthew told about the Pharisees and their blindness to hypocrisy. It's important to ask the convicting question.

How does my behavior reflect those unhealthy patterns of sinfulness you're listening to Insight for living Chuck Swindoll has challenged us to look deeply within through the study of Matthew chapter 12 and we invite you to stay with us to hear his closing remarks. To learn more about this ministry. Please visit us online@insightworld.org.

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Our current study through the gospel of Matthew has been absolutely delightful.

How refreshing to read this eyewitness account from a man who actually walked alongside Jesus and one of our recent studies we saw Jesus teaching in the public square to a weary audience.

He offered these comforting words when he said come to me all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear in the burden I give you his light all we never tire of hearing this column an invitation from Jesus. Do we his soothing words spill over us like a refreshing waterfall of hope, washing away our fatigue and replacing it with confidence. After all, the last year has been riddled with unwanted surprises as an during this season of hardship our nation and back, our entire world has been bombarded with emotional bombshells, the kind that rattlers spirit and make us feel well exhausted to his listeners and again to us today. Jesus opens his arms and says come to me and I will give you rest, my friend, this is our mission at Insight for living ministries and it's my promise to you today. As long as God gives me breath I will declare these promises from God as accurately and enthusiastically as I know how but I cannot walk this journey all alone. As we approach 30 June deadline that we face.

I need people like you to come along with me now why you may ask because you and I hold the key to liberating people from their spiritual and emotional exhaustion together.

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