The Book of Matthew • Matthew 7:6; 12-20

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Good morning, church.

Thank you.

If you have your Bibles, and I hope you do, I want to invite you to join us in Matthew

Matthew 7 · chapter mention

chapter 7.

Here in just a moment, we will pick up in verse 6.

We will talk about it for a few minutes, and then we'll drop down to verse 12.

If you weren't able to be here last week, I would like to share with you, Chad Fry, one

of our elders, came up here and shared at the very end of the service about a sabbatical

that I will be going on this summer.

And so just kind of hit some of the high points for that for you guys.

My last message here before the sabbatical will be next Sunday on the May 31st.

And then I will be returning here to preach on June 28th.

I believe it's the 28th.

It's the last Sunday during the month of June.

I'm very humbled.

My family and I are very humbled and blessed by this opportunity.

A lot of churches do not do this.

Healthy churches do provide for this.

And so we thank you guys for this opportunity.

I do not that anybody has asked these questions, but we like to stay ahead of them just in case

you're thinking things.

There's nothing wrong.

And that's good.

This isn't a break because I've done something.

This isn't a break because I'm exhausted.

This isn't a break because there's something wrong in the church.

This is just out of the kindness and the compassion of our church is just an opportunity for me to

have an extended time of break and rest with my family.

And so we greatly, we greatly appreciate that.

If you have any questions about the sabbatical, you can feel free to come and ask me, ask any

one of our staff members, ask any one of our elders.

A lot of you were here last week.

And so, you know, I'm just going to be spending some intentional time in God's word, intentional

time with the Lord, intentional time with my family.

We're going to visit some churches, not to look to go to one, but just to be there and

to be able to take part and to worship.

And so we're grateful.

I was able to do this about seven years ago.

And then the church has kind of put this into a practice for pastoral care.

And so we're just extremely grateful that our elders and our leadership at our church see

this as important and grateful that you guys do as well.

So here's what we're going to be working through in here together for the next two weeks.

It is the goal that we will achieve short of the Holy Spirit coming

and stopping us.

We're going to finish out the Sermon on the Mount.

We're going to, so we're going to look at some bigger chunks of scripture as we see this

today.

And if we remember through the Sermon on the Mount, right, Jesus is not giving advice for

advice sake.

Jesus is talking about the kingdom and he's given kingdom characteristics and he's called

people to repent and he's called people to follow him.

And so as followers of Jesus Christ, as individuals in the kingdom, as residents of the kingdom

of God, that through the power of the Holy Spirit in us, moving us and changing us and creating

us to be more like Christ, that there are things that you and I should be doing that should be a

part of us.

Not because we're trying to earn God's favor, his kindness or his forgiveness, but because

God has given us his favor, his kindness and his forgiveness.

And because he's given us his forgiveness, and because he's given us his spirit, this is now who we are.

And so Jesus doesn't give advice.

Jesus gives commands.

And I love this, that what we see in the teaching of Jesus is the Son of God giving the word of God

God as recorded into the very written word of God.

This past week, I was asked this, this is either this past week or two weeks before,

I was asked if you could give a senior in high school one piece of advice that you wish someone had given you

when you were a senior in high school, what would you say?

Now, I'll save that answer for a different point in time.

But coming into this morning's message this week, I thought, man, as an 18-year-old, I would have loved to have

heard this.

But I'll be honest with you, as a 47-year-old, I need to be reminded of this.

And I hope that this catches at the heart of who we are.

And it is this.

The wisdom of the world will seem appealing.

Amen, brother.

I'm telling you, out of the mouth of beige, right?

The wisdom of the world will seem appealing.

But the wisdom of the word will never fail.

And for you and I, what we do in this journey of life together, right?

The reason why, there's many reasons why we gather.

There's many reasons why we come into homes of one another.

There's many reasons why we get here early.

There's many reasons why we do studies.

There's many reasons why we open up our word first thing in the morning.

There's many reasons why we download apps that will send us Bible verses throughout the day.

There's many reasons why we are called to think and meditate and memorize God's word.

But so much for us to be linked into the consistent flow of the truth of God's word.

So that when the situation calls for it, the wisdom of the word may be accurately applied.

We're going to look at four different sections of scripture this morning where Jesus imparts to his audience in the Sermon on the Mountain,

God's word shows for you and I today, the wisdom of the word.

The wisdom of the very words of the Son of God.

The wisdom of the word that God inspired and brought to paper.

So that 2,000 years later, we can gather together people of all ages and not wonder what Jesus would have said.

But we can see the truth of the very spoken word of God.

So as we do that together this morning, would you join me as we go to the Lord in prayer?

God, we thank you for the truth of your word.

Lord, we thank you for Pastor Joel who came to us last week and challenged us with the persistence and the desperation of prayer.

Lord, we come to you now in desperation.

Lord, we come to you now in desperation.

Lord, we come to you now in persistence.

And Lord, speak.

May it not be my voice, but may it be yours.

May it not be my words, Lord, but may it be yours.

Lord, speak to us.

Lord, and may we listen.

Not for the sake of knowledge, but from a transformed heart.

May we listen out of a desire to be obedient.

And so, God, work and move.

Bring people to salvation.

Bring people to repentance.

Bring comfort to hearts who are hurting.

And it's in Jesus' name we pray.

Amen.

Amen.

So, if you look at me in verse 6, we'll begin here.

Matthew 7, verse 6.

Matthew 7:6

Do not give dogs what is holy.

And do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.

Jesus here gives a nugget of wisdom, a powerful truth that he imparts into this audience.

I will be honest with you.

If you were there at that point in time, you would not just hear these words and just go,

I wonder what this is talking about.

Jesus' words and his application of what he's going to do would resonate with the whole audience

and offend so many of them.

Do not give dogs what is holy.

And do not throw your pearls before the pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.

So, as we look at the wisdom of God and the discernment of how we live in this world,

we're going to look at this morning, discernment concerning the spread of the gospel.

Discernment concerning the spread of the gospel.

Jesus talks here about dogs and pigs.

I don't know about you, but I love dogs.

I really love pigs, all right?

I had bacon this morning.

Dogs and pigs.

I want a quick survey.

The lights are up.

This is not anything that is vulnerable for you.

So, I would like the entire congregation to engage in this little poll that we're about to take.

This is just a show of hands, but if you raise your hand, leave your hand up there for a moment, all right?

Raise your hand if you've ever had a pet dog.

Leave it up.

Leave it up.

Okay.

Hands up.

Don't drop.

Don't drop.

Leave your hand up in the air if you have ever bought an article of clothing for that dog.

All right, those of us with our hands up in the air, they're all judging us.

Right?

They are.

They are.

All right, you can lay your hands down.

Thank you.

Thank you for that quick.

I believe that there's more of y'all that have bought clothing for your dog.

You just didn't want to admit it.

That's okay.

It's okay.

We don't judge you.

We didn't even talk about cats, but that's a whole nother different, that's a whole nother

different message, all right?

So, here's my point.

We have dogs and we have pet dogs, right?

Like you see the puppy jogging down the street.

We love dogs.

We will spend thousands upon thousands upon thousands of dollars on dogs.

And I don't judge you.

I would, I wouldn't love to know.

I would be scared to know over the course of my lifetime how much I have spent for dogs

and dog food and vet bills.

And yes, I have bought my dog at one point in time a sweater.

All right.

I would hate to know what we've done with this.

But dogs during the time of Jesus were not pets.

They were not domesticated.

You wouldn't walk up to a dog on the side of the road and come up and try to pet him.

You wouldn't bring a dog after school home to your mom and ask her if it can become a pet.

And you definitely, definitely, definitely would not do what the Bradberries do and every single night invite a wild dog into your bed to sleep in between you.

You wouldn't do it.

You wouldn't do it.

Why?

Why?

Because the dogs were dirty.

The dogs were wild.

The dogs were of the world.

Right here, what we see is Jesus says, do not give what is holy.

Do not give the dogs what is holy.

He's not talking about dogs.

Jesus is talking about people.

Jesus is talking about people.

Now, let's let this set for a second.

Right before this, if you were here with us two weeks ago, Jesus says, don't judge.

Jesus says, don't judge.

Jesus gives four verses on do not judge.

And we shouldn't.

But what we'll see from here is that as you and I walk being led by the Spirit of God,

there's a difference in between what God has called us to judge not that you be not judged for with the judgment you pronounce,

you will be judged with the measure you use it, it will measure to you.

And do not give dogs what is holy.

You see, Jesus, when the calling against the attitudes of judgment is the calling against the attitude of self-righteousness.

But Jesus here in verse 6 is dealing with the spiritual matters.

That you and I, as followers of Jesus Christ, that there should be some discernment in who we are.

There should be discernment in what we do.

There should be discernment in what we've been entrusted with and what we entrust others.

So as Jesus is saying, in your self-righteousness, do not be judgmental.

Yes.

And what he's saying is, and in the righteousness of God, and God is the standard, and God's word is truth, use discernment.

Don't give dogs what is holy.

Don't throw your pearls before pigs.

The dogs and the pigs here are used for us to understand.

And you guys know that this is true.

That there are those in this world that are hostile toward the kingdom of God.

Now, that doesn't mean that there are people who don't believe and don't follow and don't know the things of God and haven't responded to God.

That's not who Jesus is necessarily talking about.

But that there are people in this world who seek to destroy.

There are people in this world who seek to pull down.

There are people in this world who seek to do things that Jesus warns us against.

Just as the dogs were wild, the pigs, the pigs were unclean.

Jesus says, don't cast your pearl before the pigs.

I don't know if you ever watched a pig eat.

If you haven't watched a pig eat, come get with me.

We'll go to D's Wings, right?

I'll show you what it looks like, all right?

You slap a wing out in front of me.

I'm just telling you.

You might hear me crunching on a bone at some point in time, right?

This is what's there.

But for a pig, the point is that the pig would take and devour.

But when the pearl would have been in the pig's mouth, it would have been too difficult.

And so it would have gnarled it and sought to destroy it only to spit it out.

Do not give the dogs what is holy.

Do not throw your pearls before pigs because they'll just trample.

And they'll trample, and they'll trample.

And then, Jesus says, they'll turn to attack.

Don't offer what is holy, the holiness of the message, the holiness of the gospel.

Do not throw your pearls before pigs, the preciousness of the gospel.

Folks, there's a holiness to the message that God has given us.

There's a preciousness to the message that God has given us.

The message of Jesus Christ is the only message that saves.

Be careful.

This passage can be confusing.

So, Bo, what are we to do?

Is Jesus saying, is Jesus discouraging us from sharing the gospel?

Absolutely not.

Then what in the world is Jesus calling us to?

Just earlier, Matthew chapter 5, verses 13 through 16.

Matthew 5:13–16

Let your light shine before others.

Jesus has called us to be salt and light in the world, to live for his name, to share.

Matthew is going to end his letter by calling his gospel, by calling us to the Great Commission,

to take the gospel wherever we go, to see people come to faith.

That's not what Jesus is doing, but Jesus is calling us to be ready.

Jesus is calling us that as God is working, and that as God is moving,

that we are not doing our work, but we are doing God's work.

And that we must do the work of God.

But folks, the work of God is done by God through us.

The work of God is done by the power of God and for the glory of God.

And the warning for you and I is don't go out and try to do the work of God by the power of Bo for the glory of Bo.

But there will be points and times where those that message can bring hope

and the spirit of God is not at work, and what they will seek to do is destroy it.

We live in a culture that loves to use the phrase,

in all things, political, sports, concerning food.

Prove me wrong.

Prove me wrong.

And what I've watched happen time and time again

is in matters that are holy,

in matters that are precious concerning the gospel.

We're teeing off against one another,

claiming to do the work of God,

but by the power of man,

for the glory of man,

and the agenda that is driven

by the person who's carrying

the very precious nature

of the gospel,

is I desire to prove you wrong.

And in order to prove someone wrong,

what we need to change is their mind.

But what the gospel seeks to change

is the heart.

It's the heart.

And folks,

the only person,

the only person

who can change the heart

is God

is God

is God.

Jesus will share

and share

and share

and be rejected.

And what will he do?

It says time

and time again,

he moved

to the next town.

He moved

to the next village

and continued

on

and on

and on

as the Son of God

worked

by the power

of God

all

for the glory

of God.

I believe

that verse 6

is a challenge

of the heart

of those

who are carrying

the message.

What

are we doing it

for?

Jump down

with me

to verse 12.

Another

beautiful nugget

of wisdom

that Jesus gives.

So whatever

you wish

that others

would do

to you,

do also

to them

for this

is the law

and the prophets.

So whatever

you wish

that others

would do

to you,

do also

to them

for this

is the law

and the prophets

the golden rule

do unto

others

as you

would have

them

do unto

you.

Heard that

a thousand times

usually

from a parent

helping navigate

through the

relationship

between me

and my sibling.

Do unto

others

as you

would have

them do

under you.

Here's what

we'll see

in the wisdom

of this

discernment

concerning

the treatment

of others.

Did you know

that during

the time

of Christ

we hear

this statement

right?

We hear

the golden

rule.

That's

something

that we

share.

I would

be willing

to say

that even

in secular

settings

that this

is used

quite often

and frequently.

It's one

of those

sneaky

things that

when you

hear someone

say it

ask them

who said

it

and they

probably

don't

know.

They'll

probably

drag it

back

from

grandma

that kind

of came

from

Jesus

right?

Son of

God

like this

is who

he is

and this

is what

he said.

This

is what

he said

the golden

rule.

But that

during the

time of

Christ

there was

a statement

that was

said

but it

was a

little bit

different.

Instead

of Jesus

has said

it to

the

positive

it would

be stated

in the

negative.

So they

would say

things like

you should

not do

to your

neighbor

what you

would not

want him

to do

to you.

One

of the

known

religious

teachers

would say

what is

hateful

to you

do not

do

to anyone

else.

This

is

the

whole

law.

All

the rest

is

commentary.

Go

and learn

it.

So when

Jesus

comes

Jesus

is here

sermon

on the

mount

folks

are gathered

around

him

Jesus

says

this

and

he

does

not

simply

label

it

to

what

we

do

not

do

but

instead

he

brings

it

forth

to

what

we

should

do

unto

others.

What

we

would

want

them

to do

unto

us.

Now

the

application

of this

the depth

of this

command

the breadth

of this

command

now

goes

much

broader.

You see

because for

Jesus

it's now

not the

difference

between

not

breaking

the law

and

instead

it's

about

doing

something

that's

positive

and

influential

for those

around

you.

You think

about this

Jesus

just

said

the

words

about

dogs

and

pigs.

Jesus

is

drawing

lines

in the

sand

right?

He

is.

But

just

even

though

Jesus

drew

the

line

he

doesn't

say

just

because

you're

not

to

give

what

is

holy

to

the

dogs

doesn't

mean

that

you

have

the

right

to

kick

the

dog

when

you

pass

by.

And

I

think

for

those

of

us

as

followers

of

Jesus

in

our

flesh

there

can

still

be

this

thinking

in

our

mind

us

versus

them.

Jesus

doesn't

say

let

this

just

be

who

you

are

don't

just

treat

others

the

way

you

would

want

to

be

treated

don't

just

do

for

others

how

you

would

want

them

to

do

for

you

Jesus

says

for

this

is

the

law

and

the

prophets

and

what

Jesus

is

showing

here

this

simple

principle

the

golden

rule

summarizes

all

that

the

law

and

the

prophets

say

about

how

we

should

treat

one

another

folks

how

often

how

often

do

we

complicate

what

God

has

calling

us

to

in

the

situations

that

we

find

ourselves

folks

in

situations

be

kind

love

view

one

another

and view

others

that we've

all been

made

believer

or

non

believer

and

the

image

of

God

that

every

person

deserves

amount

of

respect

and

that

out

of

our

obedience

to

God

and

who

he

is

and

what

he

has

called

us

to

it

should

drive

us

to

not

just

think

differently

about

eternity

it

should

not

just

drive

us

differently

in

how

we

think

about

God

it

should

not

just

drive

us

differently

to

think

about

each

other

but

it

should

drive

us

to

think

differently

in

how

we

view

the

world

in

truth

in

love

in

compassion

in

empathy

Jesus

says

don't

throw

as

holy

don't

cast

your

pearls

but

you

can

still

be

a

person

of

love

Jesus

continually

speaks

the

difficult

truths

that

offend

people

and

cause

them

to

walk

away

but

it's

their

flesh

that

is

offended

and

every

time

he

does

so

in

kindness

and

compassion

Charles

Spurgeon

said

this

oh

that

all

men

acted

on

it

and

there

would

be

no

slavery

no

war

no

swearing

no

striking

no

lying

no

robbing

but

all

would

be

justice

and

love

what

a

kingdom

is

this

which

has

such

a

law

one

of the

most

interesting

things

to take

a group

of people

like I've

had the

opportunity

to do

and to

go and

visit

other

cultures

around

the world

there

are

just

things

that

we

do

within

us

that

is

inherently

American

right

and

we go

in

and

we

will

stand

there

one

of the

things

especially

in

really

fast

pace

Asian

worlds

is

like for

us

like when

we're

there

like the

first

person

that

gets

to

a

restaurant

let's

say

and

there's

a

group

of

people

right

right

like

with

you

like you'll

do

what

like

you'll

reach

the

door

and

you'll

pull

it

open

and

what

will

you

do

right

like

you'll

let

everybody

else

go

in

we've

in

San

Jose's

sometimes

after

church

on

Sunday

it

becomes

this

no

you

no

you

no

you

no

you

no

you

right

when

there's

the

double

doors

you're

trying

to

figure

all

this

out

and

to

walk

in

to

another

culture

and

do

things

like

that

doing

the

things

that

you

do

right

like

in

most

cultures

pedestrians

do

not

have

the

right

of

way

if

you

think

you

have

the

right

of

way

in

India

you'll

just

become

a

part

of

the

sidewalk

right

that's

not

how

it

works

right

but

we

go

there

and

we

act

like

Americans

because

this

is

what

we're

used

to

this

is

who

we

are

folks

think

about

this

when

it

comes

to

the

kingdom

of

God

what

if

what

if

what

is

what

is

gathered

all

throughout

the

churches

of

America

where

we

look

and

we

see

the

ungodliness

that

is

filling

and

filling

and

filling

our

country

the

people

who

desperately

need

Jesus

and

what

would

happen

what

would

happen

if

the

culture

that

left

here

was

the

culture

of

Jesus

Christ

that

reflected

not

our

flesh

but

the

person

of

Jesus

Christ

who

died

on

the

cross

for

us

discernment

concerning

the

treatment

of

others

kindness

love

compassion

and the

truth

of the

gospel

the

next

that

we

see

jump

down

with

me

13

and

14

enter

by

the

narrow

gate

for

the

gate

is

wide

and

the

way

is

easy

that

leads

to

destruction

and

those

who

enter

it

who

enter

then

those

who

enter

by

it

I'm

sorry

are

many

verse

14

for

the

gate

is

narrow

and

the

way

is

hard

that

leads

to

life

and

those

who

find

it

are

few

and

those

who

find

it

are

few

discernment

concerning

life's

choices

discernment

concerning

life's

choices

here

Jesus

gives

a

command

Jesus

begins

with

the

command

begins

with

the

command

to

the

people

enter

by

the

narrow

gate

for

the

gate

is

wide

and

the

way

is

easy

that

leads

to

destruction

so

enter

by

the

narrow

gate

Jesus

here

in his

kindness

and his

compassion

and his

goodness

he

knows

the

limitations

of

you

and the

limitations

of

me

he

doesn't

leave

it

for

us

to

figure

out

Jesus

sets

a

plan

for

us

and

then

he

gives

a

warning

he

gives

a

warning

about

the

wide

gate

he

says

the

wide

gate

is

easy

what

does

that

mean

the

wide

gate

is

where

most

people

are

going

to

go

wide

people

is

the

wide

gate

is

where

most

people

are

going

to

find

themselves

naturally

drawn

to

he

says

but

that

this

leads

to

destruction

its

end

is

not

for

the

good

its

end

is

not

for

the

glory

its

end

is

not

where

they

hope

that

it

will

lead

them

folks

the

wide

gate

of

this

world

is

an

ideology

that

is

broad

but

at

its

core

holds

no

truth

morally

it

is

open

and

it

is

not

restrictive

but

it

is

absence

from

the

command

and

truth

of

God

spiritually

it

is

open

and

open

to

many

ways

and

this

road

is

not

new

but

this

road

has

been

around

since

Satan's

deception

in the

garden

where

two

out

of

two

fell

for

the

lie

Jesus

gives

the

warning

what

road

will

you

go

down

Jesus

says

many

go

down

this

he

then

describes

a second

gate

a second

road

he

says

that

this

road

will

be

narrow

and

this

road

will

be

difficult

again

the

truth

of

Jesus

Jesus

never

over

promises

and then

under

delivers

what

he

says

is

always

true

you

see

what

he

communicates

here

is that

coming

to

Jesus

does

not

mean

that

we

will

be

removed

from

the

pains

of

this

world

in

fact

oftentimes

these

pains

are

intensified

if

you're

here

today

and

you're

not

a

follower

of

Jesus

Christ

let

me

explain

something

to

you

Jesus

Christ

will

never

lie

to

you

Jesus

doesn't

say

that

if

you

come

to

him

that

he'll

remove

all

difficulties

that

he'll

remove

all

hardships

that

he'll

remove

persecution

from

your

life

he

doesn't

promise

that

at

all

in

fact

what

he

promises

is

that

in

this

world

you

will

face

difficulties

in

this

world

he

says

you

will

face

hardships

and

in

fact

the

promise

that

he

does

give

is

that

when

you

follow

Jesus

you

will

face

persecution

but

the

beauty

of

the

gospel

and

the

hope

that

we

find

is

that

through

the

difficulties

through

the

hardships

through

the

persecutions

that

the

prize

the

reward

is

Jesus

and

at

the

end

and

in

the

middle

and

in

the

beginning

and

all

the

way

through

it

folks

it's

worth

it

it's

worth

it

it's

worth

it

and

so

in

this

as

you

make

the

choices

of

life

are

we

walking

in

the

path

of

obedience

unto

the

Lord

not

because

we're

trying

to

earn

his

salvation

not

because

we're

trying

to

prove

ourselves

worthy

of

it

because

we

can't

but

because

he

is

and

he

is

worth

it

lastly

in

verses

15

through

20

in

the

wisdom

that

Jesus

calls

us

to

he

says

beware

of

false

prophets

who

come

to

you

in

sheep's

clothing

but

inwardly

are

ravenous

wolves

verse

16

you

will

recognize

them

by

their

fruits

are

grapes

gathered

from

thorn bushes

or

figs

from

thistles

so

every

healthy

tree

bears

good

fruit

but

the

diseased

tree

bears

bad

fruit

a

healthy

tree

cannot

bear

bad

fruit

nor

can

the

diseased

tree

bear

good

fruit

for

every

tree

that

does

not

bear

good

fruit

is