In Your Mouth and in Your Heart

Well, this morning as we come to the Word of God, we're back to the story of Jesus in the Gospel of John.

We're in chapter 12, verse 42.

If you have your Bible, you can open it up to that.

If you don't, you can grab one of the black Bibles in the pews there, or it'll be on the screen for the most part today.

Where we're at in the story, it's the Passion Week.

And the hour of Jesus' betrayal and death is drawing near.

Therefore, right before this passage that we're coming to this morning, we heard John give a kind of summary of how things are going.

Verse 37.

Even after Jesus had performed so many signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him.

And we wrestled with the difficult reason why, given by John in verses 39 and 40.

For this reason they could not believe, said John.

Because as Isaiah says elsewhere, he has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts.

But this is not the end of John's summary.

Verse 42.

Yet, says John, at the same time, many, even among the leaders, believed in Jesus.

But because of the Pharisees, they would not openly acknowledge their faith.

For fear they would be put out of the synagogue.

So for a moment here, John seems to be doubling back on what he said earlier.

Don't get the wrong idea here.

It's not as though nobody believed in Jesus.

It's not as though it was just a scarce few.

Actually, says John, many believed in him.

There were even some among the rulers.

The word used here is a clear reference to the Sanhedrin.

And this is maybe a little bit surprising, isn't it?

I mean, in just the previous chapter, chapter 11, we heard that the Sanhedrin officially and formally decided to oppose Jesus.

They began plotting to take his life.

That back in 11 verse 53.

And so it would seem that since then, the opinion of some of these Sanhedrin members has shifted.

They've watched as Jesus was paraded into Jerusalem by this massive crowd of people.

They've been hearing him speak and teach daily in the temple courts.

And they have even seen him perform some of these signs, no doubt, as John has been telling us back up in verse 37.

Well, this sounds great, doesn't it?

Even some of the leaders, the high-ups of the Jewish rulers, are believing in Jesus now.

But hold on.

Not so fast.

They're believing in Jesus, but, says John, because of the Pharisees, they would not openly acknowledge their faith.

For fear that they would be put out of the synagogue.

Let's remember here that there are different kinds of people on the Jewish ruling council, the Sanhedrin.

Some of them are Pharisees, and they represent the dominant religious order of the day.

The others may be more like politicians, or officials, or significant people in Jewish society.

Not that they were totally unreligious.

I mean, almost everybody was religious in this culture, in this setting.

But many of the people who were not of the Pharisees might have been more like the Sadducees.

Men who were religious, but not too concerned about the spiritual things.

All things in moderation.

So this many who believed in Jesus, which includes some of the Sanhedrin,

they're keeping their lips sealed about Jesus.

Why?

Because they don't want to be excommunicated or banished from the synagogue.

It's here we see the religious control that the Pharisees have over the people.

They were the ones in the positions of religious authority in the nation.

And they were threatening to revoke membership in the worshiping community to anyone who supported Jesus.

And I can't help at this point to feel some sympathy for them.

You know, we see this kind of thing all the time in our world today.

Agree with us, or we'll cancel you.

We'll kick you out.

We'll revoke your membership.

And as bad as it seems in our political and cultural settings today,

this is far worse.

This is tantamount to saying,

you will be cut off from the people of God

if you confess openly

that Jesus is any one of the big titles that are in view here.

Son of God.

Messiah.

Son of Man.

So I feel some sympathy for them.

They seemingly have a lot to lose, these leaders who believed.

But then, John, by the Spirit of God, gives us God's evaluation

of what's really going on here.

I'll read the whole thing again.

Yet at the same time, many, even among the leaders, believed in him.

But because of the Pharisees,

they would not openly acknowledge their faith

for fear they would be put out of the synagogue.

For they loved human praise

more than praise from God.

Literally, they loved the glory of men

more than the glory of God.

They loved to be in good standing with people,

with each other.

They loved to receive the honor and glory

that comes from other people

more than they loved to be in good standing with God

and receive the honor and glory that comes from him.

Now, this kind of raises a big question, doesn't it?

Is the faith of these many who believed really genuine?

Is it sufficient?

Are they in?

True followers of Jesus?

Is this the kind of faith or belief

by which they can be saved?

Or is this questionable faith?

Is this shallow, lacking faith?

It's not as easy a question to answer

as we might think.

At first glance, their faith in Jesus

seems genuine enough.

John sets these believers in contrast

with the people who did not believe

even after seeing so many signs.

In verse 37.

But then,

is their faith genuine?

If what the Pharisees

say

is controlling their final behavior

more than what Jesus is saying?

Do they really believe in Jesus?

Or are they kind of going back and forth

with what's popular

at the moment?

This is probably a good time to remember

that John has told us before

about some people

who have believed in Jesus

and yet their faith

seemed suspect,

lacking,

questionable.

Look back at John chapter 2.

John 2 · chapter mention

This was Jesus' first ministry visit

right after his baptism

to Jerusalem.

And it's there,

we read that while Jesus was in Jerusalem

at the Passover festival,

many people saw the signs

he was performing

and believed in his name.

But Jesus would not entrust himself

to them

for he knew all men.

He did not need any testimony

about men

for he knew what was in a man

or in each person.

There was something not quite right

about the belief of the people

back then

on that visit to Jerusalem.

And Nicodemus,

at least back then,

seemed to be an example of this.

He believed that Jesus

was at least a teacher

who had come from God

and yet according to Jesus' own words,

Nicodemus was not accepting

and believing the things

that Jesus was saying

as he should be.

we ran across this sort of thing again

in John chapter 8 verse 31.

John 8:31

John tells us there that

to the Jews who had believed him,

Jesus said,

if you hold to my teaching,

you are really my disciples.

Then you will know the truth

and the truth will set you free.

But then we saw that

by the end of that conversation,

Jesus was calling these same people

children of their father,

the devil,

and these people were trying

to stone Jesus

to death.

Again,

the sort of belief in Jesus

that seems superficial,

questionable.

Is that what's going on here again

with these

many who believed in Jesus

even from among the leaders?

Now,

some of you might be thinking,

well,

if John says they believed,

then they believed.

They're saved.

I mean,

do they really have to confess it openly

to prove that

that's what's really going on

in their hearts?

That's a big question.

I can't help but think of

what Paul says

in Romans chapter 10

Romans 10:8–10

verse 8 to 10.

This is what he said

to the church at Rome.

But what does it say?

The word is near you.

It is in your mouth

and in your heart.

That is the message

concerning faith

that we proclaim.

If you declare with your mouth

Jesus is Lord

and believe in your heart

that God raised him from the dead,

you will be saved.

For it is with your heart

that you believe

and are justified,

and it is with your mouth

that you profess your faith

or confess

and are saved.

Here,

according to Paul,

it seems that

confessing Jesus

with your mouth

as the Lord

is inseparable

from genuinely believing.

Or to put it another way,

the promise of salvation

is made to those

who confess

with their mouths

and believe

in their hearts.

Both go together.

And so this also

might call into question

the faith of these many

whom John is talking about.

Do they really believe

in their hearts

if they are unwilling

to confess Jesus

with their mouths?

Now maybe when it says

that they were not

confessing Jesus,

it means that they were

not confessing him

within the circles

of the Sanhedrin

and the Pharisees.

The really public,

sort of confession.

Perhaps they were still

confessing him

amongst their close

friends and family.

Maybe the faith

of some of these people

or even all of them

is genuine,

but they've just not yet

found the courage

to declare it publicly,

given the hostility

and the grave consequences.

But then on the other hand,

the reason John gives us

is not so sympathetic.

For they loved

the glory of men

more

than the glory of God.

Maybe some of you

might be ready

to make a judgment here.

Surely if they love

the glory of men

more than the glory of God,

well that's the answer

right there.

How can their faith

be genuine?

It must be superficial.

It must be shallow.

It must be lacking.

But then I would say,

was not Peter

loving the praise of men

more than the praise of God

the night that he denied

the Lord Jesus three times?

On the night of Jesus' betrayal?

Israel?

And yet surely

he had real,

genuine faith

long before that.

What can we learn

from all this?

I hope that as you

listen to the back and forth here,

you realize that it's

not always easy

to judge

the faith

of another person.

Or to evaluate

where another person

really stands

before God.

God.

Now of course

there are some people

who obviously

don't believe in Jesus

no matter what

they're saying.

It's just obvious

because the whole pattern

of their lives

is just to ignore

the things that Jesus

has said

and to disobey

the things Jesus

has commanded.

We're not talking

about those people.

Neither are we

talking about those

who obviously

do believe in Jesus,

who declare it,

confess it,

and whose lives

confirm it

undeniably,

consistently.

In both of these cases

it's obvious

what these people believe.

But now the people

we're talking about

this morning,

they either claim

to believe in Jesus

but their lives

look a little

suspect.

Or

their lives look

really good.

they seem kind,

they do and say

all the right sorts

of things at church

and amongst Christians

but for some reason

they don't want to

seem to confess

Jesus

too publicly

because of what

others might think.

We really need

humility

to admit

that it's not

always easy

to evaluate

the faith

of another person.

To make that

judgment

about where

another person

stands before God.

Are they in

or are they not?

Are they saved

or are they not?

Are they genuine

or are they

really good

at pretending?

There are times

in the Bible

where God

calls us

to make this

judgment.

Let's make no

mistake about that.

Specifically

when it comes time

to appoint elders

in the church

we're to appoint

believers

and to do that

we need to make

that evaluation

in matters of

marriage and divorce

in church discipline.

But thankfully

the good news

is that when it

comes to that

final judgment

of whether a person

is a believer

a true believer

or not

the good news is

it's not up to us.

It's not ultimately

our call to make.

it's God's.

He alone

knows

what's going on

in the hearts

of individual people.

Consider the words

of Proverbs 21

Proverbs 21:2

verse 2.

A person may think

their own ways

are right

but the Lord

weighs the heart.

That's a verse

that should cause us

to tremble a little bit.

It basically says

that God knows

better than you do

why you do

what you do.

In other words

it's quite possible

for us

to be self-deceived.

Let's look at

what God said

long ago

through the prophet

Jeremiah.

Jeremiah 17

Jeremiah 17:9

verse 9 and 10.

The heart is deceitful

above all things

and beyond cure.

Who can understand it?

I

the Lord

search

the heart

and examine

the mind

to reward

each person

according to

their conduct

according to

what their deeds

deserve.

Paul says it

this way

in 1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians 4:5

chapter 4

verse 5.

He says

therefore judge

nothing before

the appointed time

wait until

the Lord

comes.

He will bring

to light

what is hidden

in darkness

and will expose

the motives

of the heart.

At that time

each

will receive

their praise

from God.

So at the end

of all this

we need to take

a step back.

We need to admit

that truly

only God

knows

whether these

people here

in this passage

were true

believers

and were

saved

even many

among the

leaders

are not.

But not only

that we may

need to take

a step back

in our own

evaluations

of the people

around us

who we know

and admit

that only God

truly knows

whether some

of them

today

truly believe

and are

saved.

Now I'm not

suggesting that we

all begin to

look around the

room here

and ponder

whether some

of us are

pretenders

or not.

I'm not

suggesting that

we either

that we can't

be sure

about people.

What I am

saying

is that

there should

be some

pause

in our

hearts

when we

see a

brother or

sister in

Christ

who seems

hesitant

or resistant

to living

in obedience

to the

commands

of Christ.

We should

be slow

hesitant

careful

as we look

at a brother

or sister

in Christ

who seems

unwilling

to confess

Jesus

openly

as their

Lord.

In these

cases

time will

tell.

As Paul

said to

Timothy

2 Timothy

2 Timothy 2:19

2 verse

19

The Lord

knows

those who

are his

and everyone

who confesses

the name of

the Lord

must turn

away from

wickedness.

Now it's

easy for us

to look around

at other

people we

know

think about

them

evaluate

their faith

maybe

but far

more important

a passage

like this

calls us

to consider

our own

belief

in Jesus.

I wonder

what do you

think the

people in

this church

would say

about your

faith

in Jesus?

Would they

say that

it's obvious

that you

genuinely

believe

and belong

to Christ?

And why

would they

say that?

Or why

not?

Or might

they say

like

when we

look at

these people

that John's

talking about

I'm not

so sure.

And why

or why

wouldn't

they say

that?

And then

we should

probably

consider

that what

other people

think of

your faith

is not

the most

important

evaluation.

Do we

care more

about what

each other

thinks

of us

or about

what God

knows

about us?

Let me

ask you

this question

on behalf

of the

Lord.

Do you

know

that God

knows

the real

you?

You

just

might be

able to

fool other

people.

Probably

not

because we

all have

blind spots

and it's

not too

hard to

see when

someone else

has ketchup

on their

face even

though they

don't realize

it.

But even

if somehow

you manage

to fool

other

people,

you cannot

fool

God.

He knows

the real

you.

He knows

what's going

on in your

heart.

Do you

know that

God knows

you even

better than

you know

yourself?

With that

in mind,

let me ask

you the

real question.

do you

believe that

Jesus is

the Son

of God?

Do you

believe that

he is

the Messiah,

the King

that God

has chosen

for the

kingdom of

heaven?

Do you

believe the

things that

Jesus is

saying through

all these

gospel accounts,

Matthew,

Mark,

Luke,

John?

Do you

take those

words with

absolute

seriousness

to your

heart?

God

knows if

you do.

Listen,

there's a

very real

sense in

which it

just doesn't

matter what

other people

think of

you,

whether you're

a full-blown

Jesus freak

in their

view or

not.

Because at

the end of

the story,

at the end

of your

life,

when Jesus

returns,

there's only

one person's

evaluation of

you that

matters,

and it's

Jesus'

evaluation of

you.

Listen to

what Jesus

said,

Matthew 7,

21.

He said,

not everyone

who says to

me,

Lord,

Lord,

will enter

the kingdom

of heaven,

but only the

one who does

the will

of my

father who

is in

heaven.

Many will

say to

me on

that day,

Lord,

Lord,

did we not

prophesy in

your name,

and in

your name

drive out

demons,

and in

your name

perform many

miracles?

Then I

will tell

them plainly,

said Jesus,

I never

knew you.

Away from

me,

you

evildoers.

this is

why the

apostle Paul

spoke with

all seriousness

to the

church at

Corinth,

the believers

there,

and said

this,

examine

yourselves

to see

whether you

are in

the faith.

Test

yourselves.

Do you

not realize

that Christ

Jesus is in

you,

unless,

of course,

you fail

the test?

your

eternal

destiny is

on the

line.

Heaven

and hell

is on

the line.

Let's

come back

to Romans

Romans 10:9

chapter 10,

verse 9

and 10.

There is

assurance,

there is

confidence

that we

can have,

and this

is where

I find

it.

If you

declare with

your mouth,

Jesus is

Lord,

and believe

in your

heart that

God raised

him from

the dead,

you will

be saved.

For it

is with

your heart

that you

believe and

are justified,

and it

is with

your mouth

that you

profess your

faith and

are saved,

both

together,

in the

heart,

on the

lips.

Based on

these words

of God

which came

through Paul,

we should

not think

that merely

saying the

words,

I believe

in Jesus

is enough.

God's not

looking for

mere lip

service.

He's looking

for genuine

belief in

your heart.

Not perfect

faith,

not perfect

belief,

but genuine

faith,

genuine

belief.

And the

other side of

that coin is

true as well.

We should

not think that

merely believing

in our hearts

privately,

quietly,

personally,

is enough.

Genuine faith

in the heart,

it will,

it must result

in confessing

Christ openly

with your

mouth.

Or to put it

another way,

if you are

unwilling to

confess that

Jesus is

Lord with

your mouth,

he most

certainly isn't

the Lord of

your heart.

God.

And so I

ask you this

morning,

do you

believe in

Jesus?

Do you

believe that

he is

the Lord,

your

master,

the king,

sent from

heaven by

the father,

the one who

will judge

all of us

someday,

Jesus was

known to be

quite direct

on occasion.

This is what

he said one

day to a

crowd of many

thousands who

were gathered

around him.

I tell you,

my friends,

do not be

afraid of those

who kill the

body,

and after that

can do no

more.

But I will

show you whom

you should

fear.

Fear him

who after

your body

has been

killed has

authority to

throw you

into hell.

Yes,

I tell you,

fear him.

The glory

and the praise

that comes from

other people

is massively

overrated.

The well-done,

good,

and faithful

servant

that comes from

God

is all

that matters.

Maybe you're

here today

and you

know that

you have

been at

times,

maybe even

recently,

a coward,

where you've

said or

done something

recently that

really does

show that

you care more

about what

other people

will say

about you

than about

what God

will say

about you.

the good

news of

Jesus

is that

he will

forgive you.

He is

merciful.

If you

confess that

to him,

if you ask

for his

forgiveness,

that's why

Jesus went

to the cross

and died,

to atone

for our

sins.

I think

of Peter.

he denied

the Lord

three times

on the

night of

Jesus'

betrayal.

If the

Lord Jesus

forgave

Peter,

he will

forgive you

and me

if we

ask.

He is

rich in

mercy.

Let me

end this

morning

by reminding

us of

the words

that Peter

said in

his letter.

After all

that was

over,

but in

your hearts,

he said,

revere

Christ as

Lord.

Always

being ready

to give an

answer to

everyone who

asks you

to give the

reason for

the hope

that you

have.

And so

may the

word about

Jesus be

near

us,

each one

of us

in our

hearts

and in

our mouths.

Let's

pray.

Father in

heaven,

these are

sobering

realities

that we've

been talking

about this

morning.

And we

thank you

that your

word brings

conviction

and that you

do expose

what's really

going on in

our hearts.

You know it

already and you

expose it so

that we can

see it too.

we ask for

your forgiveness

for all the

times in

which we've

cared more

about praise

from other

people than

about the

commendation

that you

would give

us,

Lord.

Forgive us.

Teach us to

live for you

and your glory

alone,

to worship you

and you alone.

thank you for

Jesus.

Thank you for

sending him

and thank you

for the

amazing thing

that he has

done for us

that we can

be forgiven

and without

guilt,

pure and

holy,

righteous even

in your sight

because of

him.

We love

him.

We love

you so

much.

It's in

his precious

name we pray.

Amen.