Sermon on the Mount: Dust, logs, Pigs and pearls
Notes
Transcript
Start with a Song and Prayer directly following!
Announcements: Download the app, daily reading plan for 1 Samuel, Men of integrity 1.0 tomorrow night 7pm in the agape room. (Room to the right just before you get to the Hebrews room from here.
OPENER/OBJECT LESSONS: “Your shoe is untied” (while having both of my shoes untied…lecture about how dumb it is to walk around with your shoes untied…did you know that 67% of injuries from falling are from untied shoelaces…story of girl who broke off a part of her kidney because she fell on a curb…because she did not have her shoes tied.)
Jesus’ illustration was much better…(ill: Get a board and act out what Jesus’ hyperbole of someone with a board in their eyes trying to get a speck out someone else’s eye.) Let’s read...
LOGS, SPECKS AND BLIND HYPOCRISY
Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye?
It is very effective because is funny to imagine, and such an exaggeration that it makes the point effectively, from a smaller to larger argument. It sound absurd, but so is the wrong.
THIS IS CONTINUING RIGHT OFF OF WHAT WE STUDIED LAST WEEK…WE TALKED ABOUT JUDGING OTHERS (WHEN AND WHY WE SHOULD AND SHOULDN’T…)
Stemming from judging others with the wrong motives. MANY OF THE THINGS ON THE BOARD CAN DONE IN THE SAME WAY…JUDGING AND picking out the faults of others while the person doing the judging has an even bigger (more obvious problem).
Q: WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES THAT YOU HAVE SEEN OF PEOPLE POINTING OUT THE FAULTS OF OTHERS WHILE TOTALLY MISSING THEIR OWN?
Q: WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES THAT YOU HAVE SEEN OF PEOPLE POINTING OUT THE FAULTS OF OTHERS WHILE TOTALLY MISSING THEIR OWN?
A: In the immediate context. The pharisees pointed out the sins of others, based their own righteousness on rule keeping, while totally missing the most important points.
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.
Missing the more important issue. (Like wanting to save the rain forest or an endangered species while not caring about saving unborn humans.)
When someone EXPECTS tolerance but is unwilling to tolerate others who do not agree. You see this on social media arguments all the time. People calling others who disagree with them bigots or ignorant. While they may be mistaken about the issue name calling an insulting and cussing (especially one who professes Christ) is hypocritical.
(Judging others for judging others by, or stereotyping a whole group, while at the same time judging others by the group they fall into. This is often seen and applies to race and political party, socio/economic status.)(When individuals are unique…)
Q: HOW IS IT POSSIBLE FOR SOMEONE TO NOT SEE WHAT THEY ARE DOING WRONG WHILE CALLING OUT SOMEONE ELSE DOING WRONG?
Q: HOW IS IT POSSIBLE FOR SOMEONE TO NOT SEE WHAT THEY ARE DOING WRONG WHILE CALLING OUT SOMEONE ELSE DOING WRONG?
A: It is amazing how blind we can be to our own actions when we are trying only to point out the faults of others. Watch what Jesus says next...
You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.
Calling others out (or just judging from a distance) keeps them from or helps them not see and admit their own faults, even if they are bigger.
If you are around people who are judgmental and critical, you can start being the same way without having a clear realization of what you are doing. Also
If you are around people who are judgmental and critical, you can start being the same way without having a clear realization of what you are doing. Also
We have a tendency to judge ourselves by a different standard than we do others. This can go both ways too. (One way is when we expect from others what we do not do ourselves (do as I say, not as I do)…the other way is when we are easy on others and see them in a good light while judging ourselves harshly and seeing ourselves in a poor light.
Some of you know what I’m talking about. You have respect for others and give them grace when they are not perfect but do not respect yourself unless you are perfect.
You need to give yourself the same grace and respect you give others. Do not demean a child made in God’s image? (That’s you!)
(Trans: let’s answer Jesus’ question as to why we do this…back to verses 3-4
Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye?
Q: WHY ARE PEOPLE PRONE TO SEE THE FAULTS IN OTHERS BUT NOT THE THINGS THEY NEED TO CHANGE? (Even when what they need to change is often more serious)
Q: WHY ARE PEOPLE PRONE TO SEE THE FAULTS IN OTHERS BUT NOT THE THINGS THEY NEED TO CHANGE? (Even when what they need to change is often more serious)
A: Pointing out the faults of others (even if there are smaller) make your own seem not so big. If you magnify their faults, then you shrink your own. (At least in your mind.)
Pointing out the faults of others can help you to justify your own.
Kids are good at doing this. Guess what the first thing one of my girls says when I point out something they need to clean up or that they did wrong? Yep, but she (one of her sisters) did this or didn’t do that. Or the most common one going something like this: “Child ______ did you leave your wet towel on the floor in the bathroom?” The answer is usually, “But she does it too.” To which I have to say, “This is not about what she did (I’ll deal with that later) it’s about what you need to do, regardless of what the others are doing.” It’s kind of the same thing we do with others.
We may make ourselves feel better about what we are not doing right by thinking, “everyone does that” or “at least I am not doing what they are doing.”
But we should not forget that all sin is wrong and all of it will be judged. Not only what is perceived as being worse. We need to recognize this because (I know) the enemy uses this get us to justify sins because “at least I am not doing” that other thing that is really bad.
Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God?
Trans: but it is not just seeing the flaws in others and pointing them out at times, it is that the critic is actually upset about it...
KING DAVID IS A GOOD EXAMPLE OF THIS…someone read 2 Samuel 12:1-6 and remember this is after David lusted after Bathsheba, committed adultery with her, had her husband killed and then took her as His own wife.
And the Lord sent Nathan to David. He came to him and said to him, “There were two men in a certain city, the one rich and the other poor. The rich man had very many flocks and herds, but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. And he brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children. It used to eat of his morsel and drink from his cup and lie in his arms, and it was like a daughter to him. Now there came a traveler to the rich man, and he was unwilling to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the guest who had come to him, but he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.” Then David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, the man who has done this deserves to die, and he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.”
David was blind to his own sins but was able to easily not only point out what the man in parable did wrong (which directly and intentionally paralleled his own sin) and was upset about it, even saying he deserved to die.
Then in verse 7 Nathan says, “You are the man!” So how could David do this and also...
Q: HOW COULD WE BE UPSET AND CRITICAL TOWARDS SOMEONE WHO HAS A FAULT THAT IS DIFFERENT BUT JUST AS BAD AS ONE PRACTICE?
Q: HOW COULD WE BE UPSET AND CRITICAL TOWARDS SOMEONE WHO HAS A FAULT THAT IS DIFFERENT BUT JUST AS BAD AS ONE PRACTICE?
A: As our discussion has shown, there are a number of reasons: (David for example)
It allows us to ignore, justify or minimize what we are doing when we focus on someone else’s faults. Interestingly you see with with addictions...
Drug users and alcoholics…in reading up on these problems you find that one of the most common things that these people do is look down on other addicts who are in their same position but simply have a different addiction.
Often it is because we project our disappointment or frustration with our own behavior onto those who are doing the same things. deep down we hate and are frustrated that we do it so we express that frustration towards others rather than admitting it to ourselves.
(When two people fight a lot we say they are just alike…many time what we do not like in others is the same things that we do not like about ourselves.) We can be angry at others when we are really angry at ourselves.
Or (Like David) we can mentally and emotionally exclude ourselves (in pride putting ourselves in a place where the rules do not apply to us.) So we can be angry about the other person’s sin and not ours because in our minds we are better than them and the rules somehow do not apply to us.
SO IF YOU ARE ALWAYS CRITICAL OF OTHERS IT MIGHT BE THAT YOU ARE NOT HAPPY WITH YOURSELF AND YOU ARE TAKING IT OUT ON OTHERS.
Trans: Now let’s answer another question that links to last weeks lesson...
Q: IS JESUS SAYING WE DO NOT NEED TO ADMONISH AND EXHORT OUR BROTHERS IN SISTERS TO REMOVE UNGODLY BEHAVIOR FROM THEIR LIVES?
Q: IS JESUS SAYING WE DO NOT NEED TO ADMONISH AND EXHORT OUR BROTHERS IN SISTERS TO REMOVE UNGODLY BEHAVIOR FROM THEIR LIVES?
A: We made it clear last week that we are actually commanded to help our brothers grow in Christ and get ungodly behavior from their lives.
We are clearly told in scripture to help one another grow and be more Christ like by admonishing and even correcting.
preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.
All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
A: Jesus never said do not try to get the speck out of your brother’s eye but first remove the log from your own and AND THEN you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye. The log needs to be removed, but what about the speck?
Have you ever had something in your eye? Did it irritate? Were you glad when you or someone helped you get it out? The speck needs to be removed as well. Anything that keeps us from seeing clearly as we try to follow Christ needs to be removed.
So Jesus cannot be saying we need to stop
You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.
Q: WHAT DOES THIS IMPLY THAT WE DO THEN?
A: (1) Have the right motives for wanting to help others otherwise we will not do it in love. (2) EXAMINE OUR own lives constantly to make sure we are not blind or ignoring something that needs to change in us. Let’s consider these two things
Q: WHAT ARE THE RIGHT MOTIVES FOR HELPING OTHERS REMOVE THINGS THAT ARE HURTING THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH CHRIST?
We need to have LOVE for the person we are trying to get the speck out. Love will allow us to have compassion and “complete patience” and a realization that they need help just as we did.
When we realize that we are in a constant state of transformation and can have blind spots we do not try to help others with a self-righteous or condescending attitude. We are just trying to help them as we would want to be helped.
trans: If we are going to get anything out of our lives that does not need to be there we have got to constantly examine ourselves?
Q: HOW CAN WE REALLY EFFECTIVELY EXAMINE OURSELVES? WHAT DOES IT THAT REALLY MEAN?
Q: HOW CAN WE REALLY EFFECTIVELY EXAMINE OURSELVES? WHAT DOES IT THAT REALLY MEAN?
A: WHAT DO YOU do every morning to make sure you are look presentable enough to go out in public? In looking in the mirror what do you notice? Little things that are out of place. Hair, beard (right Thomas), clothes. Then make adjustments.
What are we supposed to look to see what is out of place spiritually? The mirror of God’s word. GOD’S WORD CAN SIMULTANEOUSLY SHOW US WHAT IS OFF AND THE WAY IT NEEDS TO BE.
Q: HOW OFTEN DO YOU LOOK IN A MIRROR? (A least once a day. Sometimes more.) We can daily examine ourselves and make adjustments to our hearts and minds to match up to what God’s word and Christ example is showing us. How often do you look into God’s word? (We are more likely to live out what we take in.)
Be in God’s word daily
Think about how you are living and think about your thought processes.
When I think on my ways, I turn my feet to your testimonies;
Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts!
Trans: sometimes what we struggle with is a critical spirit that causes judging...
Q: WHAT CAN WE DO WHEN WE STRUGGLE WITH A CRITICAL ATTITUDE AND JUDGMENTAL SPIRIT IN OURSELVES?
Q: WHAT CAN WE DO WHEN WE STRUGGLE WITH A CRITICAL ATTITUDE AND JUDGMENTAL SPIRIT IN OURSELVES?
1. We can start with prayer that God will help us to have a heart of compassion for people and care for them instead of judgmental, assumption based negativism.
2. We can get into the habit of trying to find the good in people instead of the negative.
(ill: I told you about THE older lady who hinted to the preacher that she wished he would get hit by a truck. Now why would she do that? Was that he was such a terrible person?)
3. What are you saying; listen to what you are saying. Sometimes we do not even hear how negative and critical we are being.
Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips!
Watch for discouraging, negative, unnecessarily critical, judgmental comments (or conditions in your heart.) Flip the habit by seeking to encourage others.
“Anxiety in a man's heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad.” Prov 12:25 Promote the habit of giving words of encouragement…this is good thing to do when others are being unjustly critical…it will change their attitude.
4. What are you thinking…take captive every thought for Christ…2 Cor 10:5 one of the reasons you are constantly criticizing others is that you are thinking negatively.
Trans: now one more thing that Jesus says in connection to all this...
UNHOLY DOGS AND PEARLS BEFORE PIGS
“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. “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
Now this can be a tricky statement that needs to be examined within its context.
Q: WHAT DID JESUS MEAN BY “DO NOT GIVE DOGS WHAT IS HOLY” AND WHAT IS CASTING PEARLS BEFORE PIGS?
Q: WHAT DID JESUS MEAN BY “DO NOT GIVE DOGS WHAT IS HOLY” AND WHAT IS CASTING PEARLS BEFORE PIGS?
Pigs did not appreciate pearls. Dogs do not care about what is holy. (A dog does not know or care about the value of the shoes they chew up or the carpet or rug they ruin. Ha!)
Dog do not understand value and pigs do not know the how costly pearls are and they do not care either. It would be foolish and pointless to do that.
There are people who do not value what God says is important or holy and people do not see the eternal value of the kingdom or truth or Jesus.
Q: SO IS JESUS SAYING TO NOT BOTHER TEACHING SOME PEOPLE THE TRUTH?
Q: SO IS JESUS SAYING TO NOT BOTHER TEACHING SOME PEOPLE THE TRUTH?
We should have discernment about whether the people or person we are seeking to give truth to (to help them) cares at all about what we are telling them...
Jesus was not teaching to withhold the truth from certain people but that if you try to continue to give those who are unconcerned with and even haters of the truth they will either get angry at you at turn on you or they will “trample” on the truth in carelessness.
Whoever corrects a scoffer gets himself abuse, and he who reproves a wicked man incurs injury.
And if anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town.
WE can teach others the truth but if they reject it and will not listen, we can move on and seek those who are peaceful and open to dialog.
FOR OUR OVERALL CONTEXT IT IS POSSIBLE THAT JESUS IS SAYING BE CAREFUL WHO YOU TRY TO CORRECT. (SUCH AS THE RELIGIOUS LEADERS, WHO WOULD NOT LISTEN)
IN OTHER WORDS WHEN PEOPLE ARE NOT OPEN TO GETTING EXHORTATION...