The Parable

(This message was preached at Covenant Reformed Baptist Church on Wed. eve, 1/31/2018 Listen here; Watch here.)

THESIS: To define the use of ‘parable’ in the Scriptures and to explain the purpose of parables so that we might rightly grasp the parables Christ presents to us and apply them to our lives.

“And again He began to teach by the sea. And a great multitude was gathered to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole multitude was on the land facing the sea. ² Then He taught them many things by parables, and said to them in His teaching:

¹⁰But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable. ¹¹ And He said to them, “To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, ¹² so that

‘Seeing they may see and not perceive,

And hearing they may hear and not understand;

Lest they should turn,

      And their sins be forgiven them.’” ^[1] (Mark 4:1-2, 10-12)

Introduction – “You might have noticed I skipped the parable itself. But for us to grasp the idea of the parable, I felt it important to deal with this as a concept and Mark conveniently gives us material to do so here. This evening is the 18^th time I will be speaking to you on the Gospel of Mark. We began to study this book just over 2½ years ago!  The message tonight is not so much expositional as it is topical. Many of you may have a title, or a chapter heading in your Bibles, something to the effect of ‘The Parable of the Sower’. We read that and think, ‘Ah! Let’s see what this parable is all about. What does Mr. Cox think?’ – All the time not realizing we have a very flat understanding of this term, parable. At the end of this study I believe you will be far more ready to study the parables as you come across them in your studies. Next week, Lord willing, we’ll see what the Parable of the Sower is all about.

Notice that when Christ first uses the word ‘parable’ is when the Pharisees begin to call Christ’s ministry demonic (Mark 3:23). The whole concept of parables are just now being introduced in Mark. The word does not appear before this event in Mark and in Matthew. But it does occur frequently afterward.

1)     Biblical etymology

a)      The Greek παραβολή parabole is found in the gospels 48 times and 2 other times in the NT. It is a compound word; para – alongside and ballo– to throw. It means to throw alongside as a tool for comparison.

b)     The Hebrew equivalent is מָשָׁל mā·šāl is found in the OT 39 times; 19 times as ‘proverb’, and 18 times as ‘parable’ in the AV. You see it in Numbers in the account Balaam, also in Job, Psa., Pro., Eze., and a few other places.

2)     Defining a parable theologically

a)      The Breadth of meaning

i)        A saying - This could be also called a proverb.

ii)   A parable proper

(1)A similitude – John Butler defines as a comparison of one thing with another, likeness, similitude^[2].  We sometimes think it equivalent to a simile, but this is not a good comparison. A simile is as simple as, ‘He’s as stubborn as a Mule; I’m as blind as a bat.’ A similitude goes a step further.  Dr. S. Lewis Johnson says that a similitude gets at the definition from a functional point of view.[3] This word is a bit more complex. You will see when we look at the examples later.

(2)A story - a narrative…by which either the duties of men or the things of God…are figuratively portrayed.^[4] 

iii)  Examples of each, contemporary and biblical: A saying or proverb –

(1)You get what you paid for; You snooze, you lose.

(2)Luke 4:23, And he said to them, “Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, ‘“Physician, heal yourself.” What we have heard you did at Capernaum, do here in your hometown as well.’”^[5];

iv)   A similitude –

(1)Contemporary usage is primarily found in the scientific realm. “Similitude is a concept used in testing of engineering models…Similitude is defined as similarity between model and prototype in every respect.”[6]  Now let me just elaborate for a brief moment on that. Engineers are using models in development. Think of it this way – Just as we know certain properties about the model, and thereby have a reference point to observe the reality.  Folks – These engineers are really doing a similar thing as our Lord. He is teaching us Spiritual realities based upon physical ones. Consider the Scriptural example.

Mark 2:19-22, And Jesus said to them, “Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. ²⁰ The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in that day. ²¹ No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. ²² And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins—and the wine is destroyed, and so are the skins. But new wine is for fresh wineskins.” ^[7]

v)      A story –  

(1)An Aesop’s fable would be a great modern example.

(2)Mark 4:2-9, The Parable of the Sower.

3)   The reasoning and motives behind Christ’s use of parables.

a)      What his motives and reasons are not:

i)        Fatalistic hopelessness.  When I say this I mean to say that our God is not capricious in any way. And we might get that idea if we read, “to those who are outside, all things come in parables, so that ‘Seeing they may see and not perceive, And hearing they may hear and not understand; Lest they should turn, and their sins be forgiven them.’” Putting the negative another way, it is not the Lords intent to deliberately blind those who truly desire to know the truth. James Brooks comments on the phrase ‘so that’ in verse 12,

“[T]he Greek word hina…(Translated ‘so that’) at the beginning of v. 12 ought to be translated “as a result.”

The passage would likely read as follows, And He said to them, “To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, ¹² resulting in people to whom this is true, ‘Seeing they may see and not perceive, And hearing they may hear and not understand; Lest they should turn, And their sins be forgiven them.

This is a well-established meaning. Jesus did not speak in parables for the purpose of withholding truth from anyone; but the result of his parables, the rest of his teaching, and even his miracles was that most did not understand and respond positively. He did speak in parables to provoke thought and invite commitment. Therefore parables are more than mere illustrations.”^[8]

Alexander MacLaren also states,

“The statement of His reason for the use of parables is startling. It sounds as if those who needed light most were to get least of it, and as if the parabolic form was deliberately adopted for the express purpose of hiding the truth…The primary purpose of all revelation is to reveal. If the only intention were to hide, silence would secure that, and the parable were needless.”^[9]

b)   Christ’s motives are not to hide the truth

i)     William Barclay says that Jesus’ statement is clearer in the parallel passage in Matt 13:13, “Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.”[10]

ii)     The very quote in Isaiah 6:9-12 illustrates this for us. Isaiah is told to preach to people who would NOT listen.

And He said, “Go, and tell this people: ‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; Keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’ ¹⁰ “Make the heart of this people dull, And their ears heavy, And shut their eyes; Lest they see with their eyes, And hear with their ears, And understand with their heart, And return and be healed.”

¹¹ Then I said, “Lord, how long?”

And He answered: “Until the cities are laid waste and without inhabitant, The houses are without a man, The land is utterly desolate, ¹² The Lord has removed men far away, And the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.

R. Alan Cole explains,

“In spite of all their looking and listening, some people will not really see or understand; if they did, they would turn to God for forgiveness. Isaiah was describing a hard-hearted people who had turned their back on God and stubbornly refused to listen to him.^[11]

iii)  The Mystery of the Kingdom is not a mystery to everyone. Timothy Geddert puts it this way, “Is Jesus announcing the arrival of God’s kingdom? Not overtly. Not for those who do not have ears to hear what he is really saying. Not for those who do not have eyes to see what he is really doing. But if those around Jesus allow their ears to truly hear and their eyes to truly see, they will discern in Jesus’ words and deeds the arrival of God’s kingdom.”^[12]

c)    What those reasons are and what they teach us about our God

i)        The purpose of teaching in this way was to not only deliver truth in a unique way, but also to test those who heard it. (Rodney Cooper)^[13]

ii)     John Broadus commenting here, “While illustrating the truth to those who were spiritual and eager to know, the parables would make it obscure to those who were unspiritual and unwilling to be taught. Upon such persons this use of parables was a judgment. Matthew Henry quaintly says: “A parable, like the pillar of cloud and fire, turns a dark side toward Egyptians which confounds them, but a light side toward Israelites which comforts them, and so answers a double intention.””^[14]

iii)  Another commentator puts it well, “The parable is not so much a crutch for limping intellects as a spur to spiritual perception.”[15]

d)     Our Lord cares about everyone! Even those who rejected Him were presented with truth they had to reckon with. Last April we studied Mark 3:1-6, the account of the healing of the man with a withered hand. If you recall we saw that though Christ knew the thoughts of these Pharisees – he still didn’t begrudge their attitude. They asked, ‘Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?’ a question which betrayed their real motive of trying to pin our Lord down. Nevertheless, he continued teaching just as though their motives were genuine.

e)      The Parable of the Rich man & Lazarus informs us. In Luke 16:27 and following we read,

²⁷ “Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, ²⁸ for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’ ²⁹ Abraham said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ ³⁰ And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ ³¹ But he said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’”

If we consider what is said here, Christ uses the name of a real man who later was to die and be risen from the dead – and what was the result? Those disbelieving not only continued in their disbelief, but now sought to kill Lazarus as well! He who has ears to hear…indeed!

i)        Other Scriptures which have bearing:

(1)At that time Jesus answered and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. (Matt. 11:25)^[16]

(2)“The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.” (I Cor. 2:14.)^[17]

(3)“Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.” (Isa. 1:18)^[18]

f)       Notable Examples

i)        Parable of Samuel to instruct David (2 Samuel 12:1-7) Thou art the man!

ii)     Parable of the vineyard (Mark 12:1-12; Luke 20:9-19)

iii)  Parable of the two debtors (Luke 7:39-47) ⁴¹ “There was a certain creditor who had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. ⁴² And when they had nothing with which to repay, he freely forgave them both. Tell Me, therefore, which of them will love him more?”

⁴³ Simon answered and said, “I suppose the one whom he forgave more.”

And He said to him, “You have rightly judged.” ⁴⁴ Then He turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head. ⁴⁵ You gave Me no kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in. ⁴⁶ You did not anoint My head with oil, but this woman has anointed My feet with fragrant oil. ⁴⁷ Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little.”^[19]

4)     What’s our take away?

a)      Christ is a master teacher. His message always demands a response.  Do we read the Scriptures with a view to the fact that not only did Christ speak this parables for the listeners of the 1^st century, but also for the readers of the 21^st century and beyond? If our Lord was thoughtful enough to consider us, ought we not be reasonable enough to ask how do these words apply to me? Have I been in unintended sin? Do I now feel the pangs of a guilty conscious having had my sin exposed? Am I ready to do business with the Savior?

b)     We must take very seriously what He says, for there are eternal ramifications to all he says! Next week, Lord willing we will investigate the Parable of the sower. Some of us may be convicted, as we let the Savior reason with us. Let’s always be ready to let the Word of God have his way with us, since we say we are people of the Word!

Amen.

---

^[1] The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Mk 4:1–2, 10–12.

^[2] Ibid.

[3] http://sljinstitute.net/gospel-of-matthew/the-sermon-on-the-mount/the-similitudes-the-salt-of-the-earth

^[4] John G. Butler, Jesus Christ: His Parables, vol. 3, Studies of the Savior (Clinton, IA: LBC Publications, 2002), 15–16.

^[5] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Lk 4:23.

[6] Notes titled, "Hydraulic Similitude: Dimensional Analysis, Similitude and Model Analysis." uploaded by Anas Ratth on Scribd: https://www.scribd.com/presentation/368117944/Hydraulic-Similitude

^[7] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Mk 2:19–22.

^[8] James A. Brooks, Mark, vol. 23, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1991), 83.

^[9] Alexander MacLaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture: Mark 1–8 (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2009), 140,141.

[10] The Gospel of Luke, The Daily Study Bible Series. -- Rev. Ed. (Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1975), 99.

^[11] R. Alan Cole, “Mark,” in New Bible Commentary: 21st Century Edition, ed. D. A. Carson et al., 4th ed. (Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 1994), 958.

^[12] Timothy J. Geddert, Mark, Believers Church Bible Commentary (Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 2001), 95.

^[13] Rodney L. Cooper, Mark, vol. 2, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2000), 67.

^[14] John A. Broadus, Commentary on the Gospel of Mark (Philadelphia: American Baptist Publication Society, 1905), 33.

[15] A. M. Hunter, Interpreting Parables, Interpretation, 14:1 (January, 1960), p. 74.

^[16] The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Mt 11:25.

^[17] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), 1 Co 2:14.

^[18] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Is 1:18.

^[19] The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Lk 7:41–47.

 

The Word of the Lord is POWERFUL!

Therefore they stayed there a long time, speaking boldly in the Lord, who was bearing witness to the Word of His grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands. (Acts 14:3)

This chapter sees Paul and Barnabas in the city of Iconium preaching in the Jewish synagogue. The Christian Standard Bible boldly starts verse 1, “The same thing happened in Iconium...” While this bit of commentary is not fully justified by the underlying text, it is insightful. On Cypress they encountered opposition but God’s word triumphed in Proconsul Sergius Paulus’ conversion. Even more dramatically in Antioch in Pisidia – Paul preaches the Gospel, both Jews and Gentiles are converted, and then due to jealousy, those unbelieving are moved to persecute Barnabas and Paul.

Indeed – In Iconium you see a great multitude of Jews and Gentiles believed (Acts 14:1), and the unbelievers stirred up the Gentiles against them. Verse 3 is a powerful example of God’s Word accomplishing its purpose.

And consider this – because of the poisoning of their minds, Paul and Barnabas grew bold and set the lion out of the cage. God’s Word is a two-edged sword, and we far too often leave it sheathed when it is able to reach deep into the souls of its adversaries. Paul describes this in 2nd Corinthians 10:

“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh.  For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.” (2 Cor. 10:3-5)

 

Paul’s boldness was due to his confidence in the word of God and God honored that confidence since signs and wonders were being done by their hands.

Let us resolve to call upon His name trusting in His holy Word - for our God is mighty to save!

The Lord your God in your midst,
The Mighty One, will save;
He will rejoice over you with gladness,
He will quiet you with His love,
He will rejoice over you with singing.” (Zeph. 3:17)

 “For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven,
And do not return there,
But water the earth,
And make it bring forth and bud,
That it may give seed to the sower
And bread to the eater,
So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;
It shall not return to Me void,
But it shall accomplish what I please,
And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.” (Isa. 55:1-11)

Let us resolve to call upon His name trusting in His holy Word - for our God is mighty to save! 

The unpardonable sin

(This message was preached (SermonAudio) at Covenant Reformed Baptist Church on Wed. eve, 12/6/2017)

THESIS: The unpardonable sin is a great warning to all men. Yet the truth of forgiveness in Christ can still ring true in your life! (Heb. 3:15)

This evening we’ll be considering Mark 3:22-30

²² And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, “He has Beelzebub,” and, “By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons.”

²³ So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables: “How can Satan cast out Satan? ²⁴ If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. ²⁵ And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. ²⁶ And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end. ²⁷ No one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. And then he will plunder his house.

²⁸ “Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; ²⁹ but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation”—³⁰ because they said, “He has an unclean spirit.”

 

The subject of our focus this evening is just the last 3 verses of the passage in question. The unpardonable sin is one of those gotcha texts of the Scriptures. We read a text like this and find ourselves thinking of all the sins of our past, or wondering if by chance this one got us years ago and we’re doomed. Grim thoughts – so I’d like to demystify this sin. When this message is though, you should have a very clear understanding of exactly what this sin is and who is being warned of it. I’d also like to say that what I’ll be pointing out has not come by simple measure. This is probably the most difficult message I have ever prepared.

 

To begin with, let’s consider the negatives – what this sin is not. First of all – this sin is not tied to any of the warning passages in Hebrews. Both Hebrews 6 and 10 are passages which warn of apostasy. But this sin references blasphemy – a very different thing. And the audience of Hebrews is not at all the same as the audience to whom Jesus is speaking. In Hebrews the audience is Jewish Christians – who are thinking about the cost of this commitment.

 

Neither is this sin the same as that we read of in 1 John 5:16.

If anyone sees his brother sinning a sin which does not lead to death, he will ask, and He will give him life for those who commit sin not leading to death. There is sin leading to death. I do not say that he should pray about that. All unrighteousness is sin, and there is sin not leading to death.

Again let me stress that there is a difference in what John is speaking of and what we are considering before us tonight. John’s audience is clearly believers. And contextually, we all know what John tells us in 1 John 1:9 – If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us… John’s whole letter is there to help us distinguish whether we are Christians or not. Christians do sin – but they can have forgiveness for their sin, justly because of the loving sacrifice of our Lord on the Cross. The sin unto death referenced in 1 John 5:16 is something that a Christian brother could commit – whatever it is, death is the result, but here’s the key – The Christian has forgiveness for even that sin. He might pay with his life in the here & now, but his eternity is secure through the blood of Christ.

Finally – as we are thinking about what the unpardonable sin is not – it is not the rejection of Christ. To reject Christ until one’s death is surely a fatal end – but it is not the unpardonable sin. Christ is very specific as to this sin – as we will see in a moment. But ultimate rejection of Christ to the point of one’s death is not what Christ is speaking of in context. It cannot be the unpardonable sin to reject Christ until death – for it to mean that is to make Christ’s warning nonsense – those being warned were living men and if this were the interpretation, it renders Christ’s warning senseless.

Having dealt with the negatives let’s go back to the passage and positively identify the sin at hand so that we can make a proper application to ourselves. Our passage begins in verse 22 with the Scribes who had come from Jerusalem stating that he is possessed by Beelzebub and that it was with this power Christ was casting out demons. But the specifics are found in more detail in Matthew 12:22-32

Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw. ²³ And all the multitudes were amazed and said, “Could this be the Son of David?”^[3]…… ³¹“Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. ³² Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.

The healing of a demon possessed man – and not just any demon possessed man, but one who was both blind and mute. Whether the blindness and muteness was due to the demon possession we are not told. We are told that all of this man’s ailments were resolved. He was no-longer demon possessed, and could now see and speak. It was so dramatic that those who saw this miracle were beginning to suggest that perhaps Jesus was the Son of David, by implication the Messiah! This is the backdrop of the Scribes and Pharisees saying “He is possessed by Beelzebul!” and “By the ruler of the demons he expels the demons!”

Doesn’t this strike you as odd? It should! These men are laying a charge against Christ for healing a man?! For freeing a man from demons?! Yet this is exactly what these Scribes were doing! And this is what elicits from Christ the some of the strongest language so far against them.

But before we think about what Christ says – let’s consider the charge. Who is this Beelzebub? If we look to the Greek word and the history, etymology of the word there is a potential reference to the god of Ekron in 2 Kings. It may reference the idea of Baal worship. But we really don’t need to get into all that. A simple grasping of the charge the Scribes lay against Christ is all we need. Whatever the history of this word, by the time of Christ and the Pharisees, they assert that Beelzebub is prince or ruler of the demons. And we know who that is – Satan.

Those of you who were present the last time I spoke may recall that it was the outlandish claim that Christ was in league with Satan which was a backdrop to the families’ charge that Christ had gone crazy. And I noted then that it really was the Pharisees who were the insane ones. Yet it really isn’t only simple insanity which drove these Pharisees to say these things. It was jealousy. They could see the people reasoning out this amazing miracle and wondered rightly – Could this be the Christ?

But the Scribes and the Pharisees accusation isn’t as simple as a onetime comment. The verb ‘said’ in verse 22 is in the imperfect tense. This verb type indicates continuous action in past time. We might read the verse, And the Scribes kept saying, “He has Beelzebub.” They kept saying, “By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons.” This is an active continual accusation – not a single settled statement. Really it’s an intentional murdering of the very character of Jesus!

In response to this very evil accusation Christ first speaks in logical fashion to the issue laid out before the people. But the text says something interesting – Christ called them to himself. In a rather intimate manner Christ begins to destroy their accusations. We read in both Matthew and Luke’s account that He knew their thoughts (Matt. 12:25; Luke 11:17) and this is why he began to expose the foolishness of their hearts. Luke’s account includes some very pointed comments, “And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges.  ²⁰ But if I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.”

In verse 28 Jesus vocalizes this great sin. I want to point out to you the very familiar prefix – ‘Assuredly, I say to you’. This phrase has special meaning. It’s rendered ‘Verily, I say unto you’ in the KJV. Several translations put it, ‘Truly I say to you’. This preface tells us – Take Note! Listen! What is about to be stated is very important.

“All sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; ²⁹ but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation”

One matter to be aware of is the Greek word for sins in verse 28 is NOT the usual word for sins employed by NT writers. In fact Mark alone has this unusual variant for ‘sins’ which specifically focuses on individual acts of sin. This variety, hamartēma, occurs only 4 times in the NT whereas the more common hamartia occurs 174 times.  The overwhelming majority of the time when ‘sin’ is referenced it is used in a more theological manner. In other words, the Bible is more interested in our sin condition than the specific sins we commit. We might say that finding a resolution for sins in someone’s life is not so important than dealing with the underlying root problem of sin. Sins are only the symptom of the deeper root problem.

But in our passage alarmingly, Christ speaks of a certain unpardonable sin. An act so evil that it was unforgiveable. So we can’t dodge this so easily. We have to deal with the text rightly.

So what is this unforgivable sin? We might look at the very thing these Scribes and Pharisees had done. This Holy Spirit work which Christ had done – casting out a demon and restoring sight and speech to this man – was being credited to Satan. Aside from the very ridiculousness of the accusation – consider what is really happening in this accusation. This great miracle – this good deed was being called a wicked deed – done for wicked motives actually.

They were saying that Jesus’ motives were not right, that He had ulterior motives. To say that His motives were impure and wicked speaks more to their carnal eyesight than anything about Christ. Remember how I mentioned that Matthew references He knew their thoughts? The Scripture never says that they knew His thoughts. Yet they boldly asserted themselves as though they did!

And think about the goodness of this miracle for a moment. Here we have a person not only without the means to see – but also unable to speak. Christ frees this one so that he can indeed see and speak! His bondage to the demon broken! This very person could be a type of all men before conversion to Christ. We are dead in our trespasses and sins. Blind to our condition – unable to remedy ourselves. We don’t even see how bad we are. John describes the Church in Laodicea as wretched, miserable, poor and blind (Rev. 3:17) – which very aptly describes all unconverted souls.

And this healing – this conversion if you will permit – the Scribes call ‘of the devil’.  There is a very real sense that all conversions get under the skin of the devil. He is a defeated enemy. And Christ, in raising men and women from the deadness of their 1^st estate, is plundering the house of the strong man, that is to say, Satan.

So exactly how would I define blasphemy of the Holy Spirit? It is to so twist the work of God into an evil act that one can never really see the work of God in the first place. We read in Isa 5:20, “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” The Scribes knew better! These were the very men to teach the people what Messiah’s coming would be like. The very comment of the people, Could this be the Messiah actually condemns the Scribes. To admit that these miracles may indeed point out the Christ as Jesus of Nazareth meant that they would have to submit to Him. These men were never going to submit! That’s why they HAD to speak against Christ. But their continual accusation that Jesus’ miraculous power was demonic at its source also betrayed what they knew to be true – This man indeed was the Messiah.

Since it is the blasphemy of the Spirit that these Scribes were guilty of, I want to share with you just 3 verses that demonstrate the Work of the Holy Spirit in Salvation. Consider Ezekiel 36:26-27, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.” Or John 3:6, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” Finally also in John, “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.” I quoted those verses to demonstrate the critical part the Spirit of God plays in regeneration. Dead men cannot believe and those who deliberately malign the work of the Spirit are in great peril for their lives, even though they don’t see it!

Let’s look at some of the actual motives of these Scribes. The Gospel of John is a great place to see many of the motives of those who encountered Jesus. Just listen as I read some potent dialogue from John chapters 7-11. John 7 – teaching in the temple during the Feast of Tabernacles:

²⁵ Now some of them from Jerusalem said, “Is this not He whom they seek to kill? ²⁶ But look! He speaks boldly, and they say nothing to Him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly the Christ? ²⁷ However, we know where this Man is from; but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from.”

²⁸ Then Jesus cried out, as He taught in the temple, saying, “You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know. ²⁹ But I know Him, for I am from Him, and He sent Me.”

³⁰ Therefore they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come. ³¹ And many of the people believed in Him, and said, “When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?”

John 8 – again teaching in the Temple:

⁴⁶Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me? ⁴⁷ He who is of God hears God’s words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God.”

⁴⁸ Then the Jews answered and said to Him, “Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?”

⁴⁹ Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me. ⁵⁰ And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges. ⁵¹ Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death.”

⁵² Then the Jews said to Him, “Now we know that You have a demon! Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, ‘If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.’ ⁵³ Are You greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? And the prophets are dead. Who do You make Yourself out to be?”

John 9 – the man born blind:

³⁰ The man answered and said to them, “Why, this is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from; yet He has opened my eyes! ³¹ Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him. ³² Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind. ³³ If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing.”

³⁴ They answered and said to him, “You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?” And they cast him out.

John 11 – the case of the raising of Lazarus from the dead:

⁴⁵“Then many of the Jews who had come to Mary, and had seen the things Jesus did, believed in Him. ⁴⁶ But some of them went away to the Pharisees and told them the things Jesus did. ⁴⁷ Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and said, “What shall we do? For this Man works many signs. ⁴⁸ If we let Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and nation.”

In every example I just read the motive of the scribes was to protect themselves. They were more concerned about their own power and prestige than godliness and truth. Jesus is the promised Christ – all the signs demonstrated it. The Scriptures attested so (John 5:39). But they were so twisted that they would now call good evil and evil good. Rather than release Christ – they went so far as to convince the crowds to release a murderer! This is the essence of pure evil. And this is where these Scribes ended up going – they attributed to Satan the good works of Christ in order to defame Jesus and keep their own place.

The miracles of Christ are not in the Scriptures as freak side shows – They were the very essence of the identity of the Messiah. They fulfilled the Scripture in identifying Jesus as the Christ. Yet the very men who ought to have pointed the people to Jesus actually did the very opposite.

But what about us? We’re in this sanctuary, how does any of this information become useful? Why do we consider a warning to the Scribes – probably the strongest warning ever – as relevant to us? Or so what?

My comments are divided to two different parties. Perhaps you’re here and you have had a secret dread in your heart over this warning. Let me encourage you! I cannot say it better than J. C. Ryle:

Ryle’s famous words are great reassurance to any who might be anxious about this sin: “There is such a thing as a sin which is never forgiven. But those who are troubled about it are most unlikely to have committed it” (J.C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels [New York: Revell], 2:59). On the other hand, those who actually do commit the sin are so dominated by evil that it is unlikely that they would be aware of it

. (Walter W. Wessel, “Mark,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 8 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984), 645–646.)

 

On the other hand – it may be that you have never considered this because you never read it before. Are you reading your Bible? The fact that you are not likely to commit the unpardonable sin should not be a great comfort to you. There are a great many sins you can commit to damn you to hell. But it’s not the matter of sins – rather it is sin which must be dealt with. We never want to cure only the symptoms (which is moralism) we want to cure the disease (which is salvation).

I would rather warn you to examine yourself, as Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 11, to see if you are in the faith or not. Do you go to church only rarely, or only to sooth a guilty conscience? Or are you committed to a group of believers in covenant with them and ready to be where they are as often as possible?

I am not looking to lay heavy guilt on you – I love you. It takes a lot to stand up here and challenge people I care about with hard things.

So if you are thinking to yourself – I’m ok, I’ll never do that – I’ll never say a good work is evil. I’m not as bad as the rest. You are indeed as doomed as the Scribe who committed the unpardonable sin. You however have some hope. But such hope could extinguish in a moment. No one is guaranteed tomorrow. The Scripture says that today is the day of Salvation.

Please do not leave here leaning on hope, but not doing business with God.

Amen.

 

Did God get the Glory? (Acts 12:1-18)

Now at that time, Herod the king laid hands on some of those from the church to harm them. So he executed James the brother of John with a sword. And when he saw that it was pleasing to the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. (Now this was during the feast of Unleavened Bread.) (Acts 12:1-3)

Let’s try something. All things are for the glory of God. We say that we believe it. We find it in many places through all the scriptures. Can we see it here in this account of Peter's imprisonment and release?

Here we have a pagan King – Herod Agrippa – causing much grief to the church; first by killing James the brother of John in a horrendous way and then by arresting Peter. I suspect he would have killed Peter immediately also, but the timing of arresting Peter was too late, the days of unleavened bread had already started. But this would in no way dissuade this evil man – he simply planned to kill Peter after Passover.

I want to ask, How is it that James’ death glorifies the Lord? At this point first let me quote a verse from the Psalms,

Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints. (Ps. 116:15)

 

Herod meant for evil, and to set himself in a better place with the people (when he saw that it was pleasing to the Jews), yet God always gets the glory! As Joseph said to his brothers,

“Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God? But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.” (Gen. 50:19-20)

Earlier in Genesis we read,

God sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. (Gen. 45:7-8)

It may have pleased the Jews that James was killed but this is unimportant…it pleased God to take him. He was the first of the Apostles to die. He had a Ministry for about 14 years before the Lord called him home. To the Saints – his death was a call to prayer for Peter. Peter had been in prison along with all the apostles in Acts 5:17-18, but found angelic release in Acts 5:19. So the Saints perhaps had reason to think he'll be freed soon. Yet no promise was ever given that such would be true, and seeing James’ martyrdom reminded them they have a part in intercession!

In fact when John’s gospel is closing we read the account of Peter and Jesus where Peter was seeking the destiny of John. Christ’s response was that we should not concern ourselves with such things:

Jesus said to him, “If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!” (John 21:22)

In the Book of Matthew we also read of an account where the sons of Zebedee were seeking a glory not promised (through their mother)

And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Say that these two sons of mine may sit one at your right hand and one at your left in your kingdom.” But Jesus answered and said, “You do not know what you are asking! Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.” He said to them, “You will indeed drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.” (Matt. 20:21-23)

Indeed both the sons of Zebedee suffered martyrdom (or in the case of John he was twice, but survived both and due to double jeopardy laws was set free and lived out his life to a very old age in Ephesus) for all things do accomplish the glory of God – regardless of the intent of the human instrument.

Consider these passages - Hover your mouse over each of these Scripture references: 1 Chr. 16:23-29, 29:10-13; Ps. 86:8-10, 96:1-9; Isa. 43:5-7, 55:8-11; Dan. 4:34-37; John 13:31; Rom. 11:33-36; 1 Cor. 8:6, 10:31;Phi. 1:9-11; Col. 1:15-18, 3:17; Heb. 2:10, 13:20-21.

There are almost endless examples of God’s glory in the scriptures, for in the end, and even in the present he is to be praised!

 Praise the Lord!

Amen.

Reflections on God in Psalm 44

             Yet You have rejected us and brought us to dishonor,

And do not go out with our armies.

 You cause us to turn back from the adversary;

                        And those who hate us have taken spoil for themselves.

 You give us as sheep to be eaten

                                And have scattered us among the nations. (Ps. 44:9-11)

 These verses sound like charges, even accusations against the Lord but notice this - it is only by such an intimate relationship that such a volley of statements could be made. If the psalmist had not learned what a good God and what a gracious God he had, he could have no platform for complaint, nor any confidence that his complaint would be addressed much less heard.

We do indeed serve and love a living and gracious God! For though everything be against us - God is for us. Though we see all hell break loose against us, like Job in the first two chapters of his book, let us resolve to trust Him regardless.  If I were to put a structure to the whole song I would say:

Part A - Our good God

   1 – 3: You have been good in the past.

                4 – 8: I trust you to be good now.

Selah

Part B - Our difficult God

9 – 16: Accusations to our God

              17 – 22: Defense of our allegations
              23 – 26: A call – a plea – To the goodness of our merciful God.

There is only one musical pause [Selah] in this psalm. It breaks up the song into its two component parts. We look at the second part from verses 9 through 26 and read a strong complaint against the God of Grace. It’s not a complaint with no validity, but its validity is only due to the limitations of our human estate, for our God is Lord of all – even the evil which comes our way is by the permissive hand of God – but always for our good.

What is the characterization of these accusations (vs. 9-16)? First of all, they are not against His decision to treat them this way. How do I know this? Verse 12 tells me.

               You have sold your people for a trifle, And have not profited by their sale. (Ps. 44:12)

We see the psalmist seeking to reason it out. Why has God allowed all this hard way? In other words, the psalmist knows God is indeed good, which we see in Part A, yet he trusts God to be just in spite of seeming injustices.

And yet he never calls God unjust. He only records what God has allowed and his (the psalmist’s) thoughts concerning these events. Verses 12 and 15 show a little of the psalmist’s reasoning on these events.

In all this he never doubts God’s goodness. He is a man simply seeking to reason out the apparently unreasonable. But apparent circumstances are not the whole of the matter.

We do not know the mind of our God in all things. We do know that He is good and never changes and we do know He is for us. At times we must rest in such as these.

--------------------------------

Lord, Help me to trust in your perfect unchanging love. And may I never rebut you in character or actions while I wait upon you.

Amen

To God be the Glory!

Now as Peter went here and there among them all, he came down also to the saints who lived at Lydda. There he found a man named Aeneas, bedridden for eight years, who was paralyzed. And Peter said to him, “Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you; rise and make your bed.” And immediately he rose. And all the residents of Lydda and Sharon saw him, and they turned to the Lord. (Acts 9:32-35)

It was 38 A. D. Aeneas had been sick – paralyzed in bed for years – 8 years according to Acts 9:33. Which tells us that from the very beginning of the Christ’s earthly ministry healing and preaching – Aeneas was waiting. Lydda, where he was, was only 32 miles from Jerusalem. He had heard of this healer.  And Christ was a traveler. Thirty-two miles was no great distance. He went to Jerusalem regularly and that was over 90 miles. All men were talking about him – so much was going on that even the Scribes and Pharisees sent down delegations to see this teacher and healer from Galilee.

But this was now years ago. He had waited over 3 years when he heard about the crucifixion. It hadn't made sense to him – but his own troubles kept him from thinking about the incongruity of it all.

Enter Peter. This disciple of the Savior who was not. Peter said some astounding things – things which had given Aeneas new hope. He had once lived in hope that the Savior would visit Lydda and he’d find healing and redemption. But for 5 years such hope had been quelled.

Yet in 1 sentence Peter revives that hope!

And Peter said to him, “Aeneas, Jesus the Christ heals you. Arise and make your bed.” Then he arose immediately. (Acts 9:34)

Not only was the Savior alive – he was still healing and his disciples were preaching the gospel!

He arose immediately. The result of this was amazing. All who saw Aeneas healed turned to Jesus the Christ - the Healer whose power was not abated.

Lord, let us not forget how your healing power is still able to heal. And thank you that it is not restricted to physical maladies – but you heal the hearts of dead men - bringing them to new life in Christ.

Amen.