Building a Life Upon Obeying Jesus

Luke 6:46–49

ICC’s Wednesday In the Word (5/17/23)

Introduction

Prayers

Scripture memory

Romans 8:22 ESV

For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.

What is the problem with “in one ear and out the other” listening?

Perhaps infamously, this was the story of Benjamin Franklin

in the spring of 1740 Whitefield was in Philadelphia preaching outdoors to thousands. Benjamin Franklin attended most of these messages. Franklin, who did not believe what Whitefield was preaching, commented on these perfected sermons:

“His delivery...was so improved by frequent repetition, that every accent, every emphasis, every modulation of voice, was so perfectly well turned, and well placed, that without being interested in the subject, one could not help being pleased with the discourse: a pleasure of much the same kind with that received from an excellent piece of music. (emphasis added) (Harry Stout, The Divine Dramatist, 104)”

What did he like about Whitfield’s sermons? Why could he like that without believing what he said?

What do you think some listeners were interested in jesus’ preaching the same way?

Review on the context

The greek starts off verse 46 with “and or so,” reminding us that we are in the middle of a sermon about how everyone should listen and obey Jesus.

Blessings and woes show the wisdom of the disciples’ choice (vv. 20–26)

Being merciful like God loves his enemies (vv. 27–36)

The need for Jesus’ disciples to judge properly (vv. 39–45)

The point of the sermon - listen and obey (v. 46)

The closing appeal and consequences of the decision. (47-49)

So let’s follow the sermon logic

God’s view of blessing flips what we think on to its head

It seems like opposite day in Jesus’ word

Those who have it all now actually miss the most important thing

And those who have nothing can be satisfied in Christ

Jesus’ followers are to show love for the people who hate us

We are to judge with God’s standard, not our own

the heart of the issue… it’s an issue of your heart being in the wrong place.

Then Jesus ends the sermon with a scary condemnation… if you do not actually believe the words… you will be destroyed

Not very winsome or good news Jesus!

But that is the whole point

The bad news must come before the good news

Why truly listening to Jesus is the only right choice

Not everyone who calls Jesus “lord,” follows (46)

Explanation

Jesus gets to the point of His sermon with quite the kick.

Why do you say these things without action?

As jesus said

Matthew 12:36- I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak,

Lord

An important title, meaning master, owner

The Greek words kurios often translates the Hebrew word Yahweh, the divine name

To say that Jesus is Lord is to acknowledge that he reigns and rules, that he is the king of all

Gospel Elizabeth recognizes that Jesus is Lord while he is still in Mary’s womb (1:43), and Zechariah predicts his son, John, will prepare the Lord’s (i.e., Jesus’) way (1:76).

Jesus is Lord and To call him lord is a requirement for salvation

Romans 10:9–10- because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.

But, its not just one lord, right?

Lord, lord

An intimate term, asking for something

Matthew 7:21- “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

Or said of the virgins’ trying to get in

Matthew 25:11–13- Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’ Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

What is Jesus doing for people right now that they may be requesting of him? Healings?

Then jesus rebukes them saying while professing with their mouth, they deny him with their actions

This is what Paul warns Titus of stating

Titus 1:15–16- To the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their minds and their consciences are defiled. They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work

It is faith without works; justification without sanctification; salvation without new life.

James echoes the Master Himself, who insisted on a theology of lordship that involved obedience, not lip-service.

James 2:14–17 ESV

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

This is the passive false faith without any fruits of submitting to Jesus

Illustration

So called faith without works is dead

We have the signs of life

A person moving, lungs going up and down

These show us that someone is alive

What other examples of a body having life? What show a corpse?

In the same way works is the signs of life of faith..

Someone can say they trust Jesus all the want, but if there is no actually trusting with commands by doing them, then you’re not trusting

Application

We must understand the lordship salvation controversy

Does anyone know what what that is?

1980s debate arose regarding an issue of saving faith. Zane Hodges in his The Gospel Under Siege argued that many evangelicals added works to faith for salvation by claiming that repentance and submission to Christ’s lordship were necessary for salvation. For Hodges, salvation was by faith alone and faith did not include the ideas of repentance, obedience, and submission to Christ’s lordship. Hodges also argued that good works are not a necessary result of salvation

Charles Ryrie also argued that believing in Jesus as “Lord” means recognizing that Jesus is God or deity. It is not a call to submit to the sovereignty or lordship of Christ in one’s life

They would point to the 7 churches to say not all believers followed Jesus and thus were carnal believes

But Jesus, too, says over and over again, in various ways, “If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:2

Those churches in Revelation were in big trouble and Jesus calls for not just belief… but repentance…a change of life

Clearly here he wants them to obey his words

So, we are not perfect, but Jesus point is not even to say right away that you’re not a believer… but to ask… why?

The more we follow Christ, the more assured we will be of our salvation

This chart helps us see that more evidence of faith leads to greater assurance in our own salvation

As Bishop Ryle wisely said, “obedience is the only sound evidence of saving faith, and the talk of the lips is worse than useless, if it is not accompanied by sanctification of the life.”

Why would it be loving and helpful for Jesus to make us question even if we are believers?

Because

Not all who appear good, actually are (47-49)

Explanation

Notice the build up those who come, those who hear and those who do them

Jesus is going to give some great pictures to show us that he’s not interested in making religious people

The nice-looking building

Buildings in Israel at the time were often influenced by Greek designs as They built 30 majors cities there

Gallilee was called the area of gentiles after all.

. The Greek cities were architectural models, containing planned streets, arches, theaters, public baths, temples, and a central marketplace called the agora. Jewish homes, however, continued to remain small, with flat roofs over rooms facing a courtyard

So they would get to building in different places

On the surface, what is the difference between house 1 and house 2?

On the surface people may appear normal.

Same out

This plays out in life today as those wo may go to church, read their Bible, listen to sermons, and carry on a fairly normal lifestyle. Others who see them may mistakenly think they are faithful, obedient Christians.

2) The good foundation vs the bad foundation

One dig down deep… it means hard work of removing earth

And there is this joke Israelis make

That when God made the world he sent an angel out with all the rocks

He gave a little here and little there and as he flew over Israel, the bag broke

It is not easy to dig in Israel

Below the surface, some people hear the truth and obey (House 1). Jesus graphically says this man “dug down deep” to find solid rock (v. 48).

Jesus equates this person to those who labor hard putting His truth into practice in their lives

So then something happens

3) The flood reveals

A consistent problem in Israel was the flash floods

The flood rises up and the water bursts upon the house

Throughout Israel there are these dry valleys called Wadis

You could walk through one or build next to it, not seeing anything for months

But what made this valley?

Water can come though quickly, flooding anything around it

Storms of life reveal the difference!

Proverbs 10:25 says “When the storm has swept by, the wicked are gone, but the righteous stand firm forever!” (

Those who hear Jesus but do not act must know they are setting themselves up for trouble. It is only a matter of time before the storms of hardship will bring their life tumbling down around them.

Note the adverb of verse 49, “the moment” (the deluge hit the house, it totally collapsed

And it was great ruin, destroying everything

Illustration

As C. S. Lewis has said, pain is God’s “megaphone” calling his children back to himself

Suffering can be planned by God so that believers grow in trusting him (e.g., Romans 5:3–5; James 1:2–4). When we understand the good that God plans from suffering, we are able to rejoice in our affliction

Application

The fruit of our lives comes from what we treasure most of al

We need to treasure God’s word

James 1:22–24 ESV

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like.

*James says the same thing that we must be dooers

(This doesn’t mean that we must be perfect, because built into Jesus’ words are the commands to repent of our sins and accept forgiveness). We slowly and continually reject

look at the word dig

The hard work we make for faith shows we actually value it

Can we be perfect?

No, but striving for what God has made us to be shows how much we value what He has given us

In his book, no quick fix about striving for scantificaltion is becoming what God has already made us

How does this help us push on when we know God has doen the work

What You Ar Become WhatYou Are

"We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin" (Rom 6:6)

"So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus" (Rom 6:11)

you who were once slaves of sin ... having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness" (Rom 6:17-18)

present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification" (Rom 6:19)

"To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints" (1 Cor 1:2); "God's temple is holy, and you are that temple" (1 Cor 3•.17); "your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you" (1 Cor 6:19)

The gospel requires God's holy people to mature in purity (1 Corinthians); e.g., "So glorify God in your body" (1 Cor 6:20)

"as you really are unleavened" (1 Cor 5:7b)

"Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump" (1 Cor 5:7a)

"as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ" (Gal 3:27)

put on the Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom 13:14a)

"those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires" (Gal 5.24)

"make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires" (Rom 13:14b)

Therefore

Since we have seen (Cohesion)-

We know we must (Resolution)-

I was reading the Valley of Vision prayers this morning

No sin is greater than the sin of unbelief, for if union with Christ is the greatest good, unbelief is the greatest sin, as being cross to thy command;

I see that whatever my sin is,

yet no sin is like disunion from Christ by unbelief.

Lord, keep me from committing the greatest sin in departing from him, for I can never in this life perfectly obey and cleave to Christ.

When thou takest away my outward blessings, it is for sin, in not acknowledging that all that I have is of thee, in not serving thee through what I have, in making myself secure and hardened.

Lawful blessings are the secret idols, and do most hurt;

the greatest injury is in the having, the greatest good in the taking away.

In love divest me of blessings that I may glorify thee the more;

-valley of vision

Closing prayer