The Jesus movement is gaining momentum as he continues towards Jerusalem. Thousands of people are following Him everywhere he went and they’re trampling on each other just to hear what he has to say but between Jesus and the multitudes are these religious people . . . always on the front row, taking up the best seats, with their laps tops open, wi-fi connected ready to blog about all the things Jesus is doing wrong.
These guys are just bullies. They’ve been pushing people around with their religious rules that aren’t in the bible and now they want to push Jesus around and publically discredit him.
And so Jesus has been having this conflict with the religious people. He didn’t pick the fight but he’s also not going to lose it.
And he says to his disciples, “Watch out because these religious guys with all of their seminary degrees, and big libraries, and all their rules and their fancy laptops . . . well, they’re hypocrites.”
A hypocrite is someone who wears a mask, or like an actor playing a role. So, if you look at religious people and say, “They must love God. Look, they dress a certain way. They act a certain way. Their prayers are amazing. They give a lot of money to the church and the church prayer room is named after them. They’re against all the sinful things and they seem very sincere and very devout. They must be right with God and we should strive to be just like them”
But Jesus says, I know their heart and I can tell you that they don’t love God; they love control. They love to do the right things and look good in the eyes of others but they don’t love me. They are hypocrites and you need to make sure that you don’t let them influence your walk with God.
Now Christians are often times accused of being hypocrites but I would say that a true Christian is not a hypocrite because in order to be a Christian what do you have to confess? That you are a sinner.
So sometimes a non-believer will look at a Christian and say, “You’re a hypocrite because you sin”
But if being a Christian means that you recognize that you’re a sinner and are in need of savior and yet you continue to sin . . . that’s not hypocrisy. It’s just being consistent.
“I said I was a sinner, I sin . . . . I’m working on it and I’m really struggling in some areas but that’s why I need Jesus, everyday. That’s why I need to surround myself with a community of other believers of fellow sinners to support me, and encourage me and to pray for me.”
That’s what it means to be a Christian.
The hypocrite is one who says, “You have a lot of sin, I don’t have it. You struggle with it, I don’t. I’ll judge you, you can’t judge me.”
And you follow them around because you think they have it all together and then you realize, “Hey, they’re doing all the same stuff they’re telling everyone else not to do . . . and in some cases you just follow them around blindly being led astray because you never see what’s in their heart.” They look good on the outside but it’s really ugly on the inside.
That’s these religious guys . . . they are hypocrites; they are wearing a religious mask, looking good on the outside, doing all the right things and judging people for the very things they’re guilty of . . . not being right with God in their heart.
And Jesus is warning his disciples and those who are listening, “Don’t be like that. Don’t be led astray by the hypocrites.”
But these religious guys, they’re bullies, telling everyone to obey the rules that they made up and if you don’t then their wrath comes down and they’ll shame you and tell everyone else and then all of a sudden you’re scared and you’re backing up and your feeling pushed around.
It’s something the bible calls “fear of man”. Proverbs 29:25 says, “The fear of man is a trap or a snare”.
Religious people want you to be scared of them because if you’re scared of them, then they can control you. And the more fear you have the more power they are given. And the more power they have, the more they’re going to bully people around. The fear of man is a trap.
Jesus is speaking about these religious guys being hypocrites and as he does he uses the word “fear” five times and the word “anxious” once because anxiety is often caused by fear.
You’re scared of someone, scared of consequences, you’re scared of what’s going to happen, you’re scared of what they’re going to do. You have fear of man issues.
The result is anxiety. You’re stressed, you can’t sleep, your blood pressure is up, and you’ve got this nervous eye twitch . . . your anxious.
And you go to the doctor and sometimes your doctor, in an effort to help tries to deal with all of your physical symptoms but if you don’t deal with the fear-causing source, you’re going to still have the anxiety-causing consequence.
Jesus is saying that the way to overcome anxiety is by dealing with the source of the fear . . . and he’s pointing his finger at the religious guys, “You want to know the source of your fear and anxiety; it’s these guys on the front row. They’ve been pushing you around with their rules and their threats, and out of fear, you’ve bought into it and you’ve given them power and authority over you and because of that you’re not able to see or experience the Grace of God”
Ed Welch says it this way, “Fear in the biblical sense includes being afraid of someone, but it extends to holding someone in awe, being controlled or mastered by people, worshipping other people.”
In other words, the fear of man happens when we replace God with people.
It happens when you’re afraid of people or when you want to please people because what they think matters at least as much as God. You want them to bless you. You want them to never leave you nor forsake you. You want them to tell you, “Well, done, good and faithful servant.”
When we’re in our teens, we call it peer pressure. When we’re adults we call it people pleasing. Jesus calls it, Fear of man and he tells us to beware of the fear of man because when it happens; when you put somebody on the throne of your life . . . functionally they become your god.
For some of you this makes sense of your whole life. You’ve been trying to make sense of things, you’ve been trying to find Jesus but someone who you’ve put on the throne or allowed to be on your throne is in the way. And so you’ve never experienced the peace that comes with the grace of God through his Son, Jesus.
So as we unpack this, let me tell you this, this isn’t something that you’re going to learn today and then be fine for the rest of your life. This is something you’re going to learn today and be working on for the rest of your life because sometimes people in various ways get themselves on the throne; maybe because they’ve intimidated you or maybe because in an effort to please them, you put them there.
And sometimes, we’re on somebody else’s throne. We’re in the way of someone finding Jesus. What do we do with this?
Jesus says that we overcome fear of man by living for judgment day. Here’s what bullies do, they want to be the judge, they want to judge you, oftentimes on rules they made, not rules that God made. And what Jesus says is, “Don’t let them sit on the seat of judgment” because it’s not good for you and it’s not good for them either.
Ultimately, no one knows our heart but God. No one determines our destiny but God. We don’t decide who goes to heaven or hell, God does.
And Jesus is saying leave these kinds of judgments to me. “I am the perfect judge. I know all things that have been said when nobody else was a witness, I am able to see beyond the outside appearance because I’m God and I hear and know all.”
And there is a judgment day coming, and if you let the bullies make judgment day today and you let them wear a robe and hold a gavel, you’re enabling their sin. You’re guilty of giving them power. The only power people have over you is the power that you give them.
So ignore them, argue with them, have a conversation with them and then walk away.
And then he gives a warning. He says, “If you refuse to worship people like gods and live out of fear of man, if you refuse to allow them to sit on the throne of your life, some of them will cause you to suffer.”
You’re going to suffer.
- This could be emotionally; they’re just gonna make it hard on you.
- This could be spiritually; they’re going to take verses out of context and hammer you and get a whole bunch of Christians to rally against you and poison your community of faith with gossip and rumors about you.
- This could be mentally; they could play games with you and make life very difficult.
This is what they did to Jesus. They made Jesus suffer; they beat him, they arrested him, they lied about him, they harmed his reputation, they ripped the flesh off of his body, and they crucified him.
So, if you’re going to follow Jesus and not allow religious people to bully you . . . there is a chance that they are going to say and do things to hurt you. And Jesus says, “Don’t be afraid because the worst they can do is kill you. That’s all”
And you’re like, “Really, Jesus? Kill me? That’s kind of big deal isn’t it?. . . I mean really, Jesus, is there really anything worse than death?”
Jesus says, “Yeah, there’s something worse than death . . . it is being separated from God.”
Jesus is saying that for the non-Christian, this life is their heaven. This is as good as it gets.
- They sit on their little thrones, ruling their little kingdoms and they render their little verdicts,
- Then they die and they meet the real king.
- They stand before a real throne,
- They get judged by a real judge,
- And they spend eternity separated from God . . . and that’s much worse than dying.
But if you belong to Jesus, this life is as bad as it gets. This is your hell. It only gets better from here.
Paul says, “To die is to gain”. So even if you’re killed, you’re going to be with Jesus in eternity and then you’ll say, “This is totally better than what I had”.
Right now you may be suffering and it feels like a really big deal because the bullies make it hurt. But when you’ve been with Jesus for eternity . . . it’s not going to be a big deal. This time we’re in right now, as bad as it is . . . is just barely a blip on the screen of eternity. So do not be afraid.
But Jesus loves us and he knows how difficult life can be and he knows that it’s sometimes hard . . . or impossible . . . to see beyond our circumstances so he gives some comfort. He says, “Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And yet not one of them is forgotten by God . . . fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.”
See, when you’re suffering, you can wonder, “God, do you really love me? Are you really paying attention? Do you even care?”
And Jesus is saying, “God remembers you, He’s paying attention and He loves you and He values you”.
- If we assume that God loves us and by faith know that he’s paying attention and remains lovingly committed to us, it changes how we suffer and it frees us from the fear of man.
- If we believe that God loves us, then we believe that even if what’s happening to us isn’t good, it’ll be used by a good God to teach us more about Jesus and to make us more like him.
We overcome the fear of man with the love of God. One way or another, He’s going to get me through.
And then Jesus closes with the big idea, that you overcome the fear of man with the fear of God.
Those are your options. Someone is the biggest dominant personality in your life.
- If it’s someone other than Jesus, you have the fear of man.
- You’re worshipping them; functionally, practically, emotionally, relationally they are your god
- And that’s not good for you and it’s not good for them.
But if you belong to Jesus, his death was for your sin and his life was for your reconciliation. The religious guys say,” God can only forgive you if you follow our to-do lists” but Jesus says, “I can forgive anyone for anything.” What an amazing gift of grace!
But there’s one thing that Jesus cannot forgive you of . . . “blasphemy of the Holy Spirit”.
How many of have ever heard of that? Now let’s be honest . . . how many of you are freaked out about this? Well, if you are, then you’re probably not doing it.
Let me tell you what it is not: It’s not being angry at God and shaking your fist at Him. It’s not questioning God. It’s not doubting God. It’s not breaking one of the Ten Commandments. It’s not removing “in God we trust” from the language of our culture. It’s not an ongoing sin that you struggle to overcome. It’s none of those things.
Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is resisting the work of the Holy Spirit and ultimately rejecting the person and work of Jesus. The Holy Spirit is the third member of the trinity and empowered the life of Jesus and it exists to reveal Jesus to us; to show us where we’re unholy and that we are in need of a savior and in need of the grace of God.
Let me put this in its context. In Luke 11:15, which is the section that kicked off this entire confrontation with the religious guys, they declare, “Jesus, you have a lot of power and authority. You do miracles and you cast out demons, but you do it by the power of Satan.”
When you come to the conclusion, “Jesus you are evil. You are not God, you are not savior, and you are not Lord. I reject you.” Then you are guilty of blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.
That was the commitment of the Pharisees all the way to the point of murdering him. And as Jesus is talking to the disciples he saying, don’t be like these hypocrites . . . who look good in the eyes of others but reject me and the grace I offer to everyone.
It may sound like Jesus is being harsh but what Jesus is doing is welcoming the multitudes and the religious guys to receive him as Lord. Jesus loves sinners and he loves religious guys and he’s extending to everyone the gift of grace. It’s not too late.
Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is someone who dies fighting Jesus, thinking they’re good, he’s bad. They’re right, he’s wrong. They’re Lord, he’s not.
This is the heart of a hypocrite and Jesus is saying don’t become like the hypocrite and don’t let the hypocrite get in the way of you seeing who I am and what I am offering to you.
- Proverbs 29:25 says, “The fear of man is a trap”. It won’t work for them and it won’t work for you.
- The alternative is the “fear of the Lord”.
- Proverbs 1:7 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”
- Before you can get anything straight in your life, you have to get straight who the Lord is.
- Jesus is Lord and he offers to you grace and peace and hope and love in this life that at times seems so incredibly difficult.
And so you and I have a very important choice to make. In our lives, functionally, practically, emotionally, relationally . . . who sits on the throne?
And when you’ve lived under the fear of man and it comes time to have that painful conversation, telling someone, “I’m not going to live by your rules anymore, I won’t let you sit on the throne of my life because I’ve been set free by Jesus” . . .
- You’re going to become anxious. You’re going to be stressed out.
- You’re going to have a panic attack. You’re going to have sleepless nights.
- You’re going to have high blood pressure. You’re going to give yourself an ulcer.
- You’re going to be freaking out But don’t be anxious.
This is where theology conquers biology. This is where understanding Jesus as Lord changes how your body physically responds to conflict.
And he says, “Don’t worry about what you’re going to say. The Holy Spirit will give you the words.”
So don’t be anxious. Be honest.
He will tell you what to say, and you know what? He did that right here for Jesus, who had this and many other hard conversations by the power of the Holy Spirit.
- And he sends the Holy Spirit to all Christian who need to have those same kinds of hard conversations telling somebody that they can’t control you any longer
- Some of you need to look at you life and realize, “Not only am I suffering but I’ve probably caused other people to suffer. And you need to ask, “Who have I been a bully to? Who have I sat on the throne for? Who do I need to apologize to and ask forgiveness from?”
- And he sends the Holy Spirit so that those who are not Christians can have a conversation with Jesus that maybe for them is a difficult conversation. “Jesus, I’m a sinner, I”ve tried all sort of things to make sense of my life but I need you. I acknowledge that you are Lord and I come to you for life.”
- May you . . . who have gathered in this place . . . experience the Holy Spirit in your life and find peace and hope and love and freedom in Jesus Christ. Let’s pray.