We continue our study today in all that
Jesus taught from the Gospel of Matthew.
We've come up to chapter 10.
We were looking at verses related to persecution
in our last study.
We read in verse 21, brother will deliver
up brother to death.
When you're a true disciple, even some of
your own family members may turn against you.
A father against his child, children against parents,
and even to cause them to be put
to death.
You know, the world hated Jesus Christ so
much that they killed him.
And if you're a true disciple of Jesus
Christ, the world will hate you too.
The world is not different today than it
was 2,000 years ago.
It's exactly the same.
The spirit of the world is still controlled
by the devil who ruled it 2,000
years ago and rules it today.
And so, not only brother and brother, it
says in verse 22, you'll be hated by
everyone.
The true Christian is one who endures till
the end.
We move on to verse 24.
In this connection, Jesus says, a disciple is
not above his master, his teacher, and a
slave is not above his master.
And that's a simple principle.
How can we be above the one who
is our teacher and our master?
Isn't it enough, verse 25, that the disciple
becomes like his teacher and the slave like
his master?
Think of that.
It's a principle that applies throughout the Christian
age.
The disciple is not above his teacher and
the slave is not above his master.
And if, what is he leading on to?
See the middle of verse 25.
If they've called the head of the house
Beelzebul, prince of devils, how much more they
will call the members of his household by
worse names?
How much more means worse names than prince
of devils?
Think of that.
Are you looking for honor and fame as
a Christian?
Well, you'll get it in false Christianity.
You'll get it in Babylon.
But if you're a true Christian, a disciple
of Jesus, a slave of the Lord Jesus
Christ, and one who proclaims the whole counsel
of God according to the teaching of Christ,
you'll be unpopular, you'll be called a heretic,
a false teacher, just like Jesus was called
a false teacher by the Pharisees.
They said he's not preaching from the Bible,
he's preaching heresy.
Like Paul was called a false teacher by
many people in his time.
And it's exactly the same today.
The people who don't know the Lord, don't
fear him, will call the true prophets of
God false teachers and heretics.
It's been the standard method by which the
devil has turned people away from the truth.
It's an amazing thing that Christians are more
afraid of what they think is false teaching
than of sin.
And the end result of that is that
when somebody preaches that you can overcome sin,
that's called a false teaching.
And when somebody else teaches that, well, of
course, you'll always keep on sinning till the
end of your life, that's called true teaching.
Can you believe how the devil has turned
truth upside down?
Let me repeat that.
Those who preach that you can overcome sin,
sin will not have dominion over you, and
you don't have to sin, Jesus can deliver
you, are considered heretics.
And those who say, well, we'll keep on
sinning, we'll always be defeated, our nature is
bad, they're called the truth speakers.
This is the way the devil's turned truth
upside down.
Because the master himself was called Beelzebub, Prince
of Devils, when he did something good, like
delivering people from demons.
So when he says how much more, that
means how much more the members of his
household means that I know that I'm a
member of Christ's family by being called worse
names than Beelzebub, Prince of Devils.
Now some of you may think you're very
faithful disciples of Jesus Christ and that you're
members of his household or his family.
Can you tell me some of the bad
names that people have called you, not for
the stupid things you did, but because you
stood up for Christ and for the truth
of God's word.
Only for that purpose, because you stood up
for Christ and for the truth of his
word.
For that purpose, what bad names did people
call you?
That is the way to find out whether
you're a member of his family or whether
you're a compromiser who wants the benefits of
the kingdom but does not want to stand
up for Christ in places where it's unpopular
to stand up for Christ.
So many Christians seek popularity.
They don't know what it is to stand
up for the truth.
And I believe we need to hear this
word today.
Then he goes on to speak about fear.
Do not fear.
It's one of the favorite words of Jesus.
Fear not, fear not.
Do not fear what people can do to
you.
You know, there may be a lot of
things they accuse you of, but it says
here in verse 26, there's nothing covered that
will not be revealed, verse 26.
There's nothing hidden that will not be known.
You don't have to be afraid of anything.
Everything, God is going to bring everything into
the light.
The hidden motives of people in what they
are seeking to attack you, God will bring
it to light, don't worry.
The crooked people who try to accuse you
falsely, God will bring them to light.
Bring it to light.
Leave it to God.
There's nothing covered that will not be revealed
and hidden that will not be known.
The same thing applies to our own life.
If you're a preacher and there's something crooked
in your life, be sure that one day
it will be revealed.
That's why God will walk in the light
all the time.
And therefore, he says in this also, if
I have told you something in the darkness,
speak it in the light.
And what you hear whispered in your ear,
proclaim upon the housetops.
So, God wants to speak to us in
the darkness.
That's a very interesting word.
What I tell you in the darkness, that
means in the middle of the night, that's
when it's dark.
You wake up.
Like Samuel, you say, Speak, Lord, for your
servant is listening.
And God says something to you.
We have to proclaim that.
You have the habit of listening?
When you're in bed at night and you're
awake, you say, Lord, speak.
It's one of the best times to hear
because the whole world is still.
Everybody's asleep.
You can hear God speaking to you.
Proclaim it in the light.
And what you hear whispered in the ear,
the gentle whisper of the Holy Spirit, proclaim
it on the housetops.
This verse teaches us that God speaks to
us.
Not with big trumpet sounds, etc.
But in a gentle voice.
Softly like a whisper.
And in the darkness.
But we proclaim it publicly.
And don't fear.
Again, repeat it.
Do not fear.
Verse 26 and verse 28.
It's like in the end of Matthew 6,
we saw Jesus saying three times, So here
he says, Do not fear.
Do not fear.
And again in verse 31.
Do not fear.
So there it was, Don't be anxious, three
times.
Here it is, Don't be afraid, three times.
Three times.
Don't be afraid, verse 26.
Don't be afraid, verse 28.
And don't be afraid, verse 31.
Don't be afraid of those who can kill
your body.
Every Christian, if he wants to be a
true disciple of Jesus, must listen to this.
Don't be afraid of people who call you
Beelzebul, verse 25 and 26.
Don't be afraid of those who can kill
your body, because they can't kill your soul.
It's better to fear him, who can destroy
both body and soul in hell.
If I fear God, I need not fear
anything else on this earth.
That's a beautiful verse in Isaiah chapter 8,
verse 12 and 13.
When you combine it together, the Living Bible
combines it and says, If you fear God,
you need fear nothing else.
It's a great verse.
I've had it in my sitting room for
40 years, and it's encouraged me constantly.
If you fear God, you need fear nothing
else.
I want to encourage you to believe that
verse.
You need fear nothing.
Terrible things are going to happen on this
earth in the days to come, but you
need to fear nothing if you fear God.
Then he goes on to speak about our
personal needs.
Aren't two sparrows sold for a cent?
Not one of them will fall to the
ground apart from your father, for the very
hairs of your head are numbered.
The Lord says you're of more value than
many sparrows, verse 31.
Therefore, do not fear, because even the sparrow
that falls to the ground, the father is
watching.
Now, think of the millions of sparrows that
are on the earth.
They're so cheap, and it's unbelievable.
Almighty God could watch.
It's so difficult for our mind to comprehend
that with all the millions of insects and
birds that are on earth, God sees even
a sparrow fall to the ground.
Here the Lord is showing us, teaching us
of the tremendous ability that the father has.
I mean, God is almighty.
It's so difficult for our mind to understand.
He says as far as human beings are
concerned, the hairs of your head are numbered,
verse 30.
Now, whether that means that God knows the
total number, or whether he knows this is
hair number 31, and this is hair number
897.
I can believe both.
That God knows the number of your hair.
If one hair falls out of your hair,
out of your head, when you wake up
at night, for example, wake up in the
morning, you see a hair of yours on
the pillow.
It doesn't disturb you.
And if the Lord knew the exact moment
at night when that hair fell off from
your head, can you imagine the intense care
he has over you throughout the night?
A lot of people who get fear, dreadful
dreams at night, who are afraid at night,
think of this verse.
Even the hair that falls from your head
to the pillow, which you never know when
it happened.
You only see it in the morning.
It doesn't disturb you.
God knew about it.
This is the intensity of his care for
us.
Everyone, therefore, he says, who shall confess me
before men, verse 32, I will also confess
him before my Father in heaven.
But whoever denies me before men, I will
deny before my Father who is in heaven.
So we need to see that there's a
principle here.
The Lord will deal with us in exactly
the same way.
He'll confess us before the Father in the
measure in which we have unashamedly confessed him
before men.
This whole section is talking about being a
witness for Christ.
And the fear people can have about being
a witness because they think, if I'm a
witness, I will suffer some loss.
Some people are even afraid to witness for
Christ in their offices lest they don't get
a promotion.
I've seen a lot of non-Christians in
banks and other places sometimes hang a calendar
near their table with a picture of some
Hindu idol.
I've almost never seen a Christian hang a
calendar with a Christian verse there.
They're ashamed of it.
They're ashamed to be known as Christians because
in a non-Christian world they say, hey,
I might lose opportunities for promotion.
The manager won't be so happy with me
if he sees that.
We're ashamed to confess Christ.
But when we have a need, of course
we go to him.
That's how it was in Israel.
And the Lord said, why do you come
to me only when you have a problem?
Why don't you go to the gods of
Egypt that you've been worshipping?
So the Lord says, if you deny me
before men, how do we deny him?
It's not like Peter saying, I don't know
Christ.
I don't think any of us would say
that.
But we deny him very often by silence.
By keeping quiet when we should be speaking.
By hesitating or being unwilling to let people
know that I'm a Christian.
That's one way we deny him.
We deny him when we are unwilling to
let people know that we are Christians.
So if we deny him, he will deny
us.
But if we confess him before men, he
will confess us before his Father in Heaven.
Now we need to think about that.
There's a day coming when Christ will return
in glory and we will stand before him.
Who are the ones he's going to be
proud of?
Do you want the Lord to be proud
of you when he comes back?
All that Jesus taught.
Here's what Jesus taught.
He will not confess before the Father those
who are ashamed of him on this earth.
Now whatever people may say, oh everybody's going
to be equal, we're going to have a
wonderful time in Heaven, etc.
Remember this, that if you have not been
bold enough to acknowledge that you're a disciple
of Jesus and by keeping quiet about your
faith and silent about your faith you have
denied the Lord, you can be sure, you
can be 100% sure that when Christ
comes back he will deny you before the
Father.
Now you probably never heard preaching like this.
But this is the truth.
All that Jesus taught.
What did Jesus teach?
Here's what Jesus taught.
Tell people everything that I've taught.
Here it is.
Verse 33.
Whoever, you call yourself a Christian, spiritual, tongue
speaker, whatever it is, you deny Christ before
men, he will deny you before the Father
in Heaven.
It's like saying, I don't know this guy.
Because when you were on earth you acted
as though you didn't know Christ.
It's a very serious thing.
The Lord wants us to be his bold
disciples.
He doesn't want us to be secret disciples
who hide our light under a bushel or
put it under a bed where nobody can
see it.
He says, put the light upon the lampstand.
If people reject you, let them reject you.
If they call you bilgeable, let them call
you bilgeable.
If they kill you, be willing to be
killed.
Don't be afraid of men who can kill
your body.
Be afraid of him who can destroy your
body and soul.
If you fear God, you can be sure
that nobody can touch you without his permission.
So this is all very important.
And if you confess him, if you boldly
say, Lord, I'm your witness and I'm not
ashamed to confess to others that I belong
to Jesus Christ.
Think of the joy that will be yours
one day when Christ returns and your turn
comes up and your name is called and
the Lord Jesus says, I want to confess
this person boldly before you Father.
He's been a bold witness for me on
the earth.
I hope we will hear those words.
Well done, good and faithful servant.
I want to hear it.
And I don't care what loss we have
on the earth because we confess Christ, of
course, we will lose many things.
Maybe you lose a promotion.
Maybe you lose financially.
Maybe you lose socially in the sense that
your relatives and all will think you're crazy
and off your head or whatever it is.
Be bold to confess Christ.
In the long run you'll be thankful.
And when we confess Christ like this, verse
34, there's going to come a division even
in a family.
He says, don't think I came to bring
peace.
And one way he came to bring peace.
Peace on earth, goodwill towards men is what
the angel sang.
But it's peace in the hearts and between
the true disciples of Jesus because everybody doesn't
want peace.
Most people want war.
So don't think I came to bring peace.
I did not come to bring peace but
a sword.
A sword that will bring a division between
those who confess Christ and those who don't
confess him.
And the result will be a man, verse
35, will be against his father, a daughter
against her mother, daughter-in-law against her
mother-in-law.
This is not talking about the regular daughter
-in-law, mother-in-law fights which are
universal among non-Christians and everywhere.
This is talking about one of them standing
up for Christ and therefore a division coming
between that person and the other person who
doesn't want to follow Christ all the way.
We see that happening all the time.
Here is a son, for example, who's gripped
by the truth of the gospel and he
wants to take baptism.
He wants to really live for God and
give up sinful ways and wholeheartedly follow the
Lord.
And the father doesn't want that.
And so what is the result?
A division comes between the father and the
son or between a mother and the daughter.
And very often the mother will cry or
the father will cry and say, don't treat
us like this badly and all that.
And the son and daughter is in a
bit of a problem.
What shall I do?
Well, that's where the sword comes in.
You have to love Jesus more than you
love your father or mother.
And a man's enemies will be the members
of his own household.
Verse 36.
Throughout these 2,000 years of Christianity, it
has been true that the true disciples of
Jesus, they love peace, they want peace, but
their relatives, so-called believers, will turn against
them.
It's religion that will turn against, that will
make people turn against the true disciples of
Jesus.
And the history is full of examples of
religious Christians, unconverted religious Christians, who persecuted the
true disciples of Jesus Christ, very often much
more than the heathen and the non-Christian.
Absolutely fulfilled in these 2,000 years.
And in such situations, if a man loves
his father or mother more than he loves
Christ, the Lord says, you're not worthy of
me.
I don't want to ever hear Jesus say
to me in the final day, you're not
worthy of me.
You loved your father or mother more than
me, and you wanted to please your father
and mother more than you wanted to please
me.
Would the Lord have to say that to
any of you?
All that Jesus taught, he who loves father
or mother more than me is not worthy
of me.
He who loves son or daughter more than
me is not worthy of me.
Do you compromise your Christian convictions in order
to please your son or your daughter?
You're not worthy of Jesus Christ.
I don't want the Lord to say to
me in the final day, you're not worthy
of me.
I want to love Jesus more than I
love my parents, and more than I love
my son or daughter.
If they are wrong, I have to stand
against them and say they are wrong.
There are so many Christian parents who are
partial towards their children, and don't stand up
for the Lord against their children.
The end result is those children go away
from the Lord, and the parents go away
from the Lord.
But if the parents had stood up for
the Lord and loved the Lord more than
they loved their children, their children would have
become disciples of Jesus.
Consider this.
Have you been soft towards your children and
compromised and lowered Christian standards?
Do you stand up for the Lord when
you see your daughter dressing in an immodest
way and following the fashions of the world?
Or do you love her more than you
love the Lord, more than you love the
Lord's testimony?
That will determine whether the Lord will deny
you in the final day.
And he went on to say in verse
38, If you don't take up the cross
and follow after me, you're not worthy of
me.
That's a message which we need to hear
today.
It is the missing message, the main missing
message in Christendom today is the message of
the cross.
Take up your cross daily and follow me,
Jesus said.
Otherwise you cannot be my disciple.
And that means you've got to die to
yourself, your self-will, and do the will
of God.
Otherwise it is impossible to follow him.
Let me say this.
Those who imagine that you're following Jesus without
denying your own will every day and doing
the will of God in the power of
the Holy Spirit, I want to say to
you that you're fooling yourself if you think
you're following the Lord.
You're not.
And when he speaks here about finding our
life in verse 39, speaking about this earthly,
soulish life which includes our reputation and our
honor and our dignity, etc.
And we try to preserve our reputation and
our honor and our dignity.
That's like finding our life.
You lose it.
Be willing to lose your reputation and your
dignity and your honor for the sake of
standing up for Christ.
That is losing your life.
One day you'll find it.
If you lose your life for my sake,
that means because you stand up for the
Lord, you are treated like rubbish and garbage
by the earth and evil spoken of and
called bilgeable and persecuted.
You're losing your life, your soul life, your
dignity, your reputation.
You'll find it one day.
Then he gives these concluding words to his
disciples as they go out.
It's amazing words.
He says, remember this.
If anyone receives you, he's receiving me.
What an honor.
You know that if you're a true devoted
servant of Jesus Christ, faithful to him, anyone
who receives you is receiving Christ.
And he who rejects you is rejecting Christ.
It's an amazing thing.
The reverse is also true.
And he who receives a prophet, in the
name of a prophet, will receive a prophet's
reward.
If you honor a prophet of God, because
you recognize this is a man who's speaking
as the mouthpiece of God and you honor
him as that, you can get a reward
just for that.
Amazing.
And if you receive a righteous man, here
you find a man who's standing up for
holiness and purity and standing against sin.
And you receive him as a righteous man.
I respect this man because he's standing up
for the Lord.
You receive that reward.
These are amazing words.
And then the last word in verse 42.
First he speaks about the apostles, received by,
as Jesus himself.
Then prophets, righteous men, apostles, verse 40.
Prophets and righteous men, verse 41.
And finally, an ordinary disciple.
And then a little child, even a little
child, verse 42.
See how it goes down.
Apostle, prophet, righteous man, a little child, and
the easiest thing to do, give him a
cup of cold water, you'll get a reward.
What the Lord is saying is, if you
honor my servants, God will honor you.
And if you do something for my servants,
help them in some way, even such a
small thing like giving a cup of water,
God will make sure that he repays you
because God is not the debtor to any
man.
That's a wonderful truth you can always be
sure of.
If you've done anything for the Lord or
for his people, or for his servants, you
can be absolutely sure the Lord will repay
you.
Now I'm talking about the true servants of
his, not the multitudes of fake preachers and
crooks that go out in the name of
Christ today, which constitutes 90% of today's
preachers.
Steer clear of them.
Don't believe every spirit, but discern and honor
the true servants of the Lord.
God bless you.
We'll continue in our next episode.