The Faith of Demons? Zeal, Confession, and the Danger of False Religion

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You know, the Church gives us an especially powerful pairing

of readers. In the epistle, Saint Paul speaks of israel

zeal for God God, but says that it's not according

to knowledge, and he grieves for his own people and

praise that they might be saved because although there is

zealous for God, they've sought to establish their own righteousness

rather than submitting themselves to the righteousness of God in Christ.

And then in the Gospel we're given Matthew's account of

the Greatest Indamiac, a man tormented by demons, dwelling among

our tombs, so fierce that going to pass by the life.

And when Christ comes.

Near, the demons immediately cry out, what have we to

do with thee Jesus, say us, on God, art thou

come hither to torment us before the time. Now at

first glance, these two readings may seem very different. Saint

Paul is speaking about Israel the law of righteousness, faith

and confession, while the Gospel is speaking about demonic.

Possession swime in a town that begs Christ to.

Leave that if we listen carefully, we end up hearing

the same warning in both of the readings, that it

is possible to be very near to holy things.

And still not be here. But it is possible to

have zeal and yet not have saving knowledge.

It is possible even to recognize Christ and confess true

things about him and still remain far from him. Saint

Paul begins his epistle with sorrow and love, brethren, by

heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is that

they may be saved.

This is that hatred is not contempt, and it's not

a rejection of Israel.

It is the grief of when apostle, whose heart burns

for the salvation of his own people. He acknowledges that

they have zeal for God. But zeal alone is not.

Enough when it's separated from the knowledge of Christ.

The tragedies that they're seeking righteousness, they're seeking it in

the wrong way. They're seeking to establish their own righteousness

instead of receiving.

The righteousness of God. Saint Augustine explains this very directly.

The Jews thought that they could fulfill righteousness.

By their own power. They did not acknowledge the grace

of Christ, and they stumbled over the stumbling stone and

the rock of ruining. Their error was not that they

had no concern for God. Their error was that they

tried to stand before God by their own power, by

their own observance, their own righteousness, and apart from the

grace of Christ.

And this is a danger of brothers and sisters, not

only for the.

Jews of Saint Paul's time, but for every religious person

even to this day. Because we can have zeal, we

can care about the doctrine, we can care about fasting,

the services, customs, rubrics, all things. All of these things

have in their proper place. But if they do not

lead us to Christ, if they do not humble us

before Christ, if they do not bring us to repentance,

then even our zeal becomes just a way of establishing

our own righteousness. We can be outwardly religious and remain

inwardly unchanged.

Theodora says that Paul.

Calls this their own righteousness because they were clinging to

the law after its proper time had passed, while the

righteous that comes from graceing and the faith in Christ

is the righteousness to God, and he adds faith in

the Lord does not opposed, but actually conforms to thela

Since the Law led us to Christ, the world, the

Law wasn't evil, and the Law wasn't opposed to Christ.

It was a teacher. It was a preparation for the people,

but it was.

Only a shadow him to the ultimate reality, whichwus Christ.

And once Christ has come, we cannot cling to the

shadow of the things before while rejecting the arm to

whom the shadow pointed. And this is why Paul says

Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to

everyone who believes.

Notice he doesn't say the annulment of the Law, because.

Christ is the fulfillment, the goal, the meaning, the life

of everything that God has revealed and intended for his people.

The Law pointed to Christ, the prophets.

Proclaimed Christ, the sacrifices foreshadowed Christ, and the righteous dead

waited for him because no man had ever been saved

under the Law.

But when He descended into Hades, he did what the

Law by itself could never do.

He broke the bonds of death and opened the way

to eternal life.

And then Paul says, somebody can also be misunderstood and

turn away from the whole life of the church.

He says, if thou.

Shalt confess with thy mouth, Lord Jesus Christ, and shall

believe in thine heart that God is raising from the dead,

thou shalt be saved with the heart and in believe

of under righteousness, and with a mouth, confession is made

under salvation. Now some will hear this and reduce salvation

to amone believing something inwardly something out They might believe

something inwardant say something outwardly. But for them the matter

has been finished. But the Church has never taught that.

They've never understood salvation in that way. Yes we must believe,

yes we must confess, and yes we're saved by our

faith in Christ. To be sure, but the faith that

saves is not a dead opinion. It's not a bare acknowledgment,

and it's not merely seeking.

Or saying true words. Saint Paul says, with the heart one.

Believes under righteousness, that means that the heart has changed,

the heart is turned, the.

Heart begins to bear fruit.

But this is where the Gospel reading becomes such a

powerful commentary on.

The epistle, because in Matthew's account.

The demons see Christ and immediately they know who he is,

and in fact, they confess him more clearly than many

people around.

Him at that time did. Because the demons say, Jesus

thou son of God.

They know he has authority, and they know the judgment

is coming, because they asked art thou come hither the

torment us before the time.

In other words, the demons have correct doctrine in certain areas.

They know that Jesus is the son of God.

They know they will be a judgment, and they know

they're going to be subject to his power, and they

even tremble before him.

But are they saved?

Oh no?

This is why the apostle James says, thou.

Believe is there's one God? Thou doest well? The devils

also believe and tremble. But wilt thou know the bank

magic faith about words his death? The demons believe. The

demons trembled, But the demons never repentance. They confess Christ,

but they did not love him or their name. They

acknowledge his power, but they did not submit to it

in obedience. Their confession may be true in its words,

but it's not a saving confession because it's not joined

the repentance, humility, love, and communion with God. And so

the Epistle of the Gospel together guard us from two

opposite errors. The Epistle warns us against religious zeal without Christ,

and the Gospel warns us against fair confession without repentance.

One man may.

Say I'm righteous because I kick through rules. Another may

say I'm saved because I confess Jesus. But both must

hear the word of God today.

The first must learn that no one establishes righteousness on

their own.

To the second of us to learn the defeating the

demons confess through things about Christ. Simply saying the worlds

is not enough. Saving faith is not self righteousness, and

it's not empty words, because saving faith is a living

union of the heart with Christ. And notice also the

reaction of the townspeople in today's hospital, after the demons

are cast out and the swine rushed wildly down to

see the whole city comes out to meet Jesus. They

have before them an undeniable sign of the divine power.

Men who have been enslaved and tormented have been lived them.

The tyranny of the demons has been broken, the authority

of Christ has been revealed to all of them. Instead

of rejoicing, they begged him to depart from their region

because they would rather have their swine than their safety.

They or rather here old life than disturb than to

have to change and embrace Christ.

This too, was part of the war.

Israel and paulsle Men has deal for God doesn't submit

your righteousness. While the demons and the townspeople know Christ,

but neither love him nor welcome him. In all three

cases they are so close to the truth but resistant

to the grace of God. They have contact with the

things that are holy that they don't have for the

healing of the heart, and brothers and sisters, this is

where we must bring the readings home to ourselves.

It's not enough to be near the church. It's not

enough to know the wise.

It's not enough to know the services of the counters,

to be the best, faster, to make the illustrations numerous,

to bow deeper than they.

All these things are good when they are in Christ,

and they lead us to Christ.

But if they become a substitute for repentance, they are

dangerous to us.

If they make us proud, they're being this to us.

If we use the establish our own righteousness in our

own minds. They're dangerous to us because the question is

not simply doing no Christ because the demon's new. The

question is not simply do we have zeal for God Israel.

That's zeal. It's not to the witness of divine power.

Because if irges Sing saw it and the told crisis.

The question is do we receive him? Do we painful

for him? Do we allow him to cast out from

us everything is unclean, violent, everything.

That dwells among the tunes and death? And do we

believe with our heart unto righteousness? Because the heart is

the thing battlefield Saint Paul doesn't say merely that a

man that thinks correctly, thought things correct thoughts under righteousness.

He says, with the heart man believes under righteousness.

If the heart is full of pride, our order is

filled with hate for our neighbor, then w these religious

words just become proud of us. The heart's full of

fear the same fashion, and we would have come truly

without the dance.

But when we hollow our hearts before God, then becomefession

in constilation. Because the mouth speaks from our heart that

has begun to live and.

This is why our faith must bear fruits, because we

don't earn salvation by the works.

If we believe that, you'd be like he is trying

to stabish our litions. But neither say just with the work.

The living faith that receives Christ follows from us.

It pretends, It forgives of praise, It struggles, It feeds

a hundred clothes and naked.

This is a stake in prison, and.

It shows mercy because Christ himself is merciful, and it endures.

If fruits don't replays faith, they would feal whether our

faith is alive. And so, brothers and sisters, as we

depart from this divin motion, let us not ask Christ

to depart from us as the hero Sings did. Let

us not cling to our own life as Israel did.

Let us not be satisfied with merely saying true things

about Him as a used. Rather, let us receive him

with humility. Let us confess him with faith. Let us

weave in our hearts under righteousness. Let us bring him

to the places and us that are still wooing and

now have to receive the precious gifts his body and wed.

Let us go forth not only as those who confess

Christ with are mouth, but as those who supplies their

witness that He has truly come to save, to heal,

and make us war.

And followed the Son of the Host period on them