I Will NOT Be Silent!

Luke 19:36-39 “Now as He was going, they were spreading their cloaks on the road. And as soon as He was approaching, near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the miracles which they had seen, shouting: “Blessed is the King, the one who comes in the name of the Lord; Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” And yet some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, rebuke Your disciples!””

Introduction

The text which was read to us today is quite familiar, and I’m sure that you can guess at least part of my premise based on the topic with which I have associated it. Jesus is speaking to Pharisees who are part of the multitude, but not truly walking with Him- a perfect analogy for the difference between religion and true relationship. <Elaborate> They want a people- many of whom were outcasts of society- to maintain their compusure now that they have finally found the Truth (John 14:6). “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.”, they said. Instead, Jesus makes this curious declaration, “I tell you, if these stop speaking, the stones will cry out!” What does Jesus mean? Is He being literal, mean the actual stones which may be found in the road and in the surrounding hills, will speak audibly? Or is this a metaphor…and if so, the question remains, what does Jesus mean by this?

Jesus’ curious exclamation may allude to Hab. 2:11 ““For the stone will cry out from the wall, And the rafter will answer it from the framework.” When time permits, I encourage you to look more closely at this text for yourselves; suffice it to say, God is speaking to Habakkuk in chapter 2, warning about the final outcome of the greedy, the arrogant, those who take what does not belong to them. In summary, what they have taken from others will be taken from them and- specific to the reference of stones crying out- for those who build their little empires with ill-gotten gain will find that what they have built- the stones which make up their “houses” will tell the world the truth of how they came to be! The surviving traces of exegetical tradition concerned with Hab. 2:11 support the view that Jesus was saying that if his disciples become silent, the stones will cry out, urging, even rebuking, them to continue. Whether or not the disciples declared the truth, the Truth (capital “T”) had arrived & would be declared nonetheless!

So here is my humble interpretation of Jesus’s words to the Pharisees: You can silence voices, but you can never silence the Truth! If thos who have been called out of darkness into His marvelous light as declared in 1 Peter 2:9 “that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out”. But if we chose not to stand for Truth, even the rock- the dead, the lifeless- will be called into action to get the job done!

Their crying out was appropriate. Simply put, it was the right thing to do. After all, they were giving praise to the One true King Never let the majority silence you when you KNOW you are right.

Their crying out was necessary. “Whether men praise Christ or no he will, and shall, and must be praised.” -Matthew Henry. Everythnig that has breath should- and must- praise the Lord!

Their crying out was indicative of their purpose for being. The Churh was called into existance to be the light of the word and the salt of the earth (Matt 5:13). It is through us that the world can Ps 34:8 “Taste and see that the Lord is good...”

Conclusion

I want to conclude this sermon, not with a final thought, but a challenge. Es 4:13-14: “Then Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, “Do not imagine that you in the king’s palace can escape any more than all the other Jews. For if you keep silent at this time, liberation and rescue will arise for the Jews from another place, and you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not attained royalty for such a time as this?””

To paraphse Mordecai’s words and apply it to all of I will say this:

“Do delude yourself into think that here in america we will escape the consequences of complacency more than any other nation throughout history. If we remain silent at this time, know that God will do what He has always done- and use those who are willing to be His mouthpiece, his hands & feet, to to rescue the lost and bring true freedom, and in our silence we may lose our voice & freedom. But who knows…perhaps it was divine sovereignty that slected you as royal sons & daughters to be His ambassador in such a time as this?”

Say it with me: “I will NOT be silent!!!”