The NXR Podcast - THE SERMON - Pearls Before Swine

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00:00:26.820 Thank you.

00:00:30.000 amen let's stand for the reading of god's word our text is matthew chapter 7 verse 6

00:00:38.640 matthew chapter 7 verse 6 i'll read the text in its entirety when i finish reading the text i'm

00:00:43.260 going to say this is the word of the lord at which point i would appreciate very much if you

00:00:47.000 respond by saying thanks be to god one final time our text for today is the gospel according to

00:00:54.020 Matthew chapter 7 verse 6 the Bible says this do not give dogs what is holy and do not throw your

00:01:01.820 pearls before pigs lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you this is the word of the

00:01:09.080 Lord all right please be seated let's go ahead and dive right in by way of introduction I've

00:01:14.340 written the following just as everyone is not fit to reprove according to Galatians 6 1 not everyone

00:01:21.800 is fit to be reproved according to our text today

00:01:25.420 Matthew chapter 7 verse 6. If you're familiar with Galatians chapter 6

00:01:30.180 verse 1 this is the text that says that if anyone is caught in

00:01:33.920 any transgression you who are spiritual should restore such a one

00:01:37.960 but do so in a spirit of gentleness and keeping watch

00:01:41.800 over yourselves lest you too should fall into

00:01:45.700 temptation. Long story short what we know

00:01:49.840 at least at minimum, from Galatians chapter 6 verse 1, is that there is a criteria for who

00:01:56.180 should be about the business of restoration. Who should actually be about the business taking

00:02:02.740 action engaged, involved in reproving others. That is confronting, correcting, rebuking,

00:02:11.700 and reproving. Now the purpose in all of this is ultimately love. The purpose is not to condemn

00:02:18.160 If the Lord chooses that the person be condemned, then that's something that the Lord determines himself.

00:02:25.340 The Lord will soften hearts and sovereignly in his mercy.

00:02:29.760 He will soften hearts and then in judgment choose sovereignly to harden hearts.

00:02:35.460 The Lord determines the outcome. He determines the results.

00:02:38.900 Our job is simply obedience.

00:02:41.880 But in this obedience, not everybody is called to do this work of restoration.

00:02:47.020 Not everybody is called to be a reprover, to be a reprover.

00:02:52.140 Again, Galatians 6.1, you who are spiritual.

00:02:54.800 We talked about this last week.

00:02:56.660 At minimum, what that includes is there's an assumption by way of implication.

00:03:01.340 It's talking about you who are spiritually mature. 0.99

00:03:04.860 Not every Christian is. 0.97

00:03:06.920 Not every Christian is. 0.70

00:03:08.600 So those of you who are spiritually mature, if someone's caught in any transgression, 0.99

00:03:13.420 you should go to restore such a one.

00:03:15.000 but not everyone those who are spiritually mature and then the next criteria that's offered is that

00:03:20.880 you should do so in a spirit of gentleness you should do so in a spiritual a spirit of gentleness

00:03:26.300 that doesn't mean that you're pulling punches it doesn't mean that there's no correction at all

00:03:30.360 if gentle correction is so gentle a a fake sense of gentleness that the correction is no longer

00:03:39.260 there then it defeats the purpose it's gentle correction that means it really is gentle but it

00:03:46.640 also really is correction if you're so gentle that there's no more correction left then that's not

00:03:52.220 gentle correction that's not correction at all and you may be doing it under the guise of gentleness

00:03:58.560 but it's not true gentleness because true gentleness actually confronts sin out of love

00:04:03.880 for sinners so that they might be restored, so that those who are caught and tangled in any

00:04:09.340 transgression might actually be restored and set free from that. But that's two criteria already.

00:04:16.760 You who are spiritual, that is those who are spiritually mature, in what manner should we

00:04:21.660 confront or reprove others? With a spirit of gentleness. And then lastly, there's also a

00:04:27.980 certain disposition that we should keep among ourselves, which is making sure that we too

00:04:34.600 don't fall into temptation. And again, by way of implication, I think what's in view in terms of

00:04:40.300 what particular temptation is the very same temptation for the sin that the person we're

00:04:46.380 correcting has fallen into themselves. There are some who would argue that the temptation to be

00:04:52.780 avoided here is the temptation to pride. I think that that is a safe assumption. Certainly we don't

00:04:59.720 want to give in to the sin of pride, but I think it's more specific than merely that. I don't think

00:05:05.120 it's just restoring someone caught in some transgression and watching ourselves to make

00:05:11.540 sure that we're not given to arrogance. I think it's also watching ourselves to make sure that

00:05:16.420 we're not given to the very same sin that that person is caught in themselves because one of

00:05:23.480 the things that Jesus is most concerned about again and again and likewise I think the apostle

00:05:28.700 Paul in Galatians is the sin of hypocrisy the sin of hypocrisy that you would reprove one person

00:05:35.620 for a particular sin while meanwhile being caught in that exact same sin yourself so those are three

00:05:44.780 criteria you who are spiritual should restore be the ones to reprove someone who's caught in a

00:05:51.080 transgression spiritual maturity you should do so what manner what mode a spirit of gentleness

00:05:57.020 so uh what what kind of person one who is spiritually mature what kind of confrontation

00:06:03.480 what what method a spirit of gentleness and and what what heart posture or or what guardrail

00:06:11.220 should be in place as you're performing

00:06:13.300 this ministry of reproving and restoration,

00:06:16.220 keeping watch on yourself,

00:06:17.400 a spirit of gentleness,

00:06:19.080 but coupled with a spirit of humility,

00:06:22.120 recognizing that you could fall

00:06:23.660 into the very same sin

00:06:25.340 that you're correcting someone else for,

00:06:28.620 being aware of all these things.

00:06:30.000 The point, long story short,

00:06:32.980 Galatians 6.1 is talking about

00:06:34.620 going and restoring someone who's in sin.

00:06:37.920 It's not being reproved,

00:06:40.200 that is corrected,

00:06:41.220 but going and reproving, that you are not the reproved, but in this scenario, you would be

00:06:47.820 the reprover. And the point is that there is criteria, there are conditions that the scripture

00:06:54.220 sets that should be met to go and reprove others. If you want to go and reprove your brother,

00:07:01.220 then you need to meet certain conditions. Not everyone is qualified to reprove.

00:07:09.020 in our text today now shifting from Galatians 6 to Matthew 7 verse 6 in our text today instead

00:07:18.140 of setting conditions for who gets to reprove here we find qualifications or conditions for

00:07:25.520 who should be reproved not for the reprover but for the reprovie the person who is going to be

00:07:33.980 reproved the bible sets conditions for both not everyone is qualified to go and confront others

00:07:41.600 and also not everyone is qualified to be confronted not everyone is qualified to be

00:07:50.260 confronted so not everyone should go and confront and correct others because you're not spiritually

00:07:56.460 mature or you cannot do it in the spirit of gentleness or you're arrogant and blinded 0.93

00:08:02.360 and hypocritical and would fall into the very same sin yourself or already caught in that sin 0.98

00:08:08.060 you have the the plank in your own eye meanwhile you're pointing out specks in another so not 0.97

00:08:14.020 everyone should go and confront because not everyone is qualified for that ministry of

00:08:19.320 confronting reproving with the end goal being restoration likewise not everybody is qualified

00:08:26.640 to be confronted not just to do the confronting but to be confronted not just to do the reproving

00:08:33.560 but to be reproved there is such a thing in this world as those who are swine and those who are 0.70

00:08:42.380 dogs and in the case of swine and in the case of dogs we are actually commanded by christ in

00:08:52.820 Matthew chapter seven, verse six, not to give what is holy to dogs and not to cast our pearls before swine.

00:09:02.800 And the reason for this is multifaceted.

00:09:08.480 But the first reason is because swine and dogs will not appreciate pearls and things that are holy.

00:09:16.580 Going on in your notes, Matthew Henry, the late great Puritan, he says it like this.

00:09:20.940 throw a pearl to swine and he will resent it as if you threw a stone at him reproofs will be called 0.57

00:09:31.080 reproaches as they were when someone is a pig when someone is obstinate when someone is deaf 0.93

00:09:42.100 when it comes to hearing. 0.99

00:09:44.700 Their ears are shut.

00:09:46.940 Their hearts are hard.

00:09:49.600 There's an unwillingness

00:09:51.920 to receive reproof,

00:09:53.880 to receive correction.

00:09:55.480 There is a certain point,

00:09:57.400 and as we'll see later in the sermon,

00:09:59.820 we don't want to arrive at this point

00:10:02.600 too hastily.

00:10:05.240 You can err in both directions. 0.99

00:10:08.180 You can give pearls to swine,

00:10:10.500 and that is an error.

00:10:12.100 That's a miscalculation, and it can cost you dearly, as we'll see.

00:10:17.000 But another miscalculation is that we can label someone, categorize someone as a swine too quickly.

00:10:26.600 And so you can err in both directions.

00:10:29.400 But the point remains that there really is a category for this type of person.

00:10:34.300 A person who refuses to hear, refuses to listen, refuses to see.

00:10:39.440 a person who is not malleable and softened in their heart,

00:10:45.460 receptive to the things of God and the message of God,

00:10:49.120 there really are such a thing as swine in this world.

00:10:52.420 There really is such a thing as dogs in this world.

00:10:55.900 And the reason why we would withhold our reproving from such a person,

00:11:02.460 correction and confrontation from such a person,

00:11:05.340 is because that person will not respond.

00:11:08.240 But not only will there be an absence of repentance from such a person, not only is that person unlikely to respond, but that person, according to our text, Matthew chapter seven, verse six, they actually will respond in a sort of fashion.

00:11:28.920 It's not that there will be no response.

00:11:30.860 The reason why we want to withhold pearls from swine and things that are holy from dogs

00:11:37.960 is not because there will be no response,

00:11:40.700 but because there will be a harmful and destructive response.

00:11:45.680 They will respond, but they will respond in a destructive fashion.

00:11:51.260 Again, going back to our primary text to read it once more so that we remember it in our minds.

00:11:56.720 Matthew 7, verse 6, do not give dogs what is holy and do not throw your pearls before pigs.

00:12:03.680 Why? What's the incentive here?

00:12:07.200 What is the reasoning that Christ provides for this command?

00:12:12.960 Lest they trample them, that is the message, the pearls, the holy things, they trample the reproof.

00:12:21.800 They trample the correction.

00:12:24.220 They trample the truth of God's word that you're offering to them.

00:12:29.820 Let's say trample them underfoot, but it goes a step further and then turn to attack you.

00:12:38.400 That if someone is truly a swine, if someone is truly a dog, it's not only that the message of truth that you might offer them will fall on deaf ears and that they'll trample the message itself.

00:12:51.160 But they also will be hostile and violent and turn and trample and attack not only the message, but the messenger.

00:13:01.700 That they will not only trample on the word of God, but that they would trample on the man of God.

00:13:10.700 That they would trample on the one who is reproving and correcting them.

00:13:16.240 And not only would this place yourself into a position of danger, but it also places the reputation of Christ in a place of being threatened, which we'll look at here in just a moment.

00:13:32.960 Psalm 141, verse 5 says this,

00:13:37.160 Let a righteous man strike me. It is a kindness. Let him rebuke me. It is oil for my head.

00:13:44.880 Let my head not refuse it.

00:13:48.400 This is the posture of the people of God.

00:13:52.200 This is supposed to be the posture of the people of God.

00:13:55.780 Those who are not swine, those who are not dogs, those who are not so dull of hearing, so hardened of heart.

00:14:03.780 They actually are able to receive reproof, receive correction and recognize it when it's done properly. 0.93

00:14:12.680 when the reproof is true right it's not just any confrontation there is such a thing as foolish

00:14:19.920 confrontation there are those who correct and think they're doing so in wisdom but are actually

00:14:28.000 merely fools but when true correction comes and it comes from the word of god and it comes by those

00:14:36.660 who are spiritually mature, 0.96

00:14:38.760 as Galatians 6.1 speaks of.

00:14:40.980 Those who are spiritual.

00:14:42.600 It comes in a spirit of gentleness.

00:14:45.580 And it comes with a spirit of humility.

00:14:48.160 A person keeping watch over themselves,

00:14:50.380 lest they fall into temptation.

00:14:52.640 Meaning it comes from the one

00:14:53.800 who is not a hypocrite,

00:14:55.620 not guilty of the very same things

00:14:58.060 which they're correcting.

00:15:00.080 Someone who is humble,

00:15:01.720 not hypocritical,

00:15:03.660 gentle, 0.94

00:15:05.020 and spiritually mature.

00:15:06.660 and this correction in itself is definitively true.

00:15:11.900 It's not bad theology.

00:15:13.380 It's not twisted truths,

00:15:15.200 but it really is a true message from God

00:15:18.440 coming through a true conduit,

00:15:22.480 someone who is above reproach,

00:15:25.580 someone who is truly seeking to restore the individual.

00:15:29.360 When that happens,

00:15:30.800 the response from the people of God

00:15:33.480 should embody what we read in psalm chapter 141 verse 5 let a righteous man strike me it is a

00:15:41.940 kindness right that should be our response to good true correction coming from again it's right there

00:15:50.780 baked into the text let a righteous man when a righteous man reproves it is a kindness again

00:15:58.360 we're assuming the same person,

00:16:00.460 when a righteous man rebukes me,

00:16:02.820 it is oil for my head. 1.00

00:16:05.900 Now, when a fool rebukes you, 1.00

00:16:08.820 when a fool brings correction, 1.00

00:16:11.100 it is not a kindness, 1.00

00:16:12.980 and it is not oil for your head.

00:16:16.380 You will be critiqued, criticized,

00:16:19.040 corrected, confronted a million times

00:16:23.300 for a million things from this point on

00:16:26.300 to the very end of your life.

00:16:28.360 That's life.

00:16:31.340 We're constantly going to be critiqued and criticized and confronted by someone for something.

00:16:38.460 So the mark of a Christian is not that they respond to correction,

00:16:43.860 viewing it as a kindness without any discrimination, without any measure of discernment.

00:16:50.940 Not all correction is a kindness.

00:16:54.580 Not all rebukes are oil for our head. 1.00

00:16:59.700 In fact, I would argue, because the world is filled with fools, foolish people, 0.99

00:17:05.980 that most of the criticisms you'll receive over the course of your life are not a kindness at all, 0.99

00:17:12.580 are not oil for the head at all.

00:17:15.840 Most criticisms you would do well to ignore.

00:17:18.660 But righteous criticism, righteous confrontation, if that be ignored, it will be ignored at risk of your own peril.

00:17:32.260 In all this, what's required, I hope what you're picking up, the common thread throughout all of this, is the urgent and vital need for discernment.

00:17:41.980 that the people of God must be shrewd as vipers.

00:17:45.980 They must be wise.

00:17:47.140 They must be cunning.

00:17:48.160 They must be discerning.

00:17:50.600 And as we already established last week,

00:17:53.520 as we looked at Matthew 7, verses 1-5,

00:17:56.880 what is discernment but judgment?

00:18:00.500 That's what we're doing when we seek to discern.

00:18:03.900 When we seek to discern between falsehoods and truth.

00:18:08.160 To see if the correction itself has merit.

00:18:11.980 The criticism itself, does it contain merit?

00:18:15.220 Is it true? Is it fitting? Is it appropriate?

00:18:18.960 And not only that, but exercising discernment not only with the criticism,

00:18:23.660 but the one who is making the critique.

00:18:26.460 Is this person spiritually mature?

00:18:28.320 Are they doing it in a spirit of gentleness?

00:18:30.520 Are they humble and avoiding hypocrisy and keeping watch over themselves

00:18:35.960 so that they don't fall into temptation?

00:18:38.000 as they point out the speck in my eye do they have a two by four that's protruding from their own

00:18:45.040 but in all of these questions as we seek to answer them accurately what are we doing but making

00:18:51.960 judgments you can't live life without making judgments the impetus of matthew chapter 7

00:19:01.640 verses 1 all the way through verse 6,

00:19:04.140 our text today,

00:19:05.260 is not that we should have

00:19:06.960 an absence of judgment as Christians.

00:19:10.460 To have a complete absence of judgment 1.00

00:19:13.920 is to be a fool. 1.00

00:19:17.100 A fool has no discernment. 1.00

00:19:20.080 A fool makes no judgments. 1.00

00:19:22.380 And when he does, he makes wrong judgments. 1.00

00:19:25.220 Now the impetus, the command

00:19:27.580 that we see again and again

00:19:29.960 is that we must make judgments,

00:19:32.500 but we should make right judgments.

00:19:35.620 We should make judgments that are true,

00:19:39.180 but seasoned with mercy.

00:19:41.700 We should make judgments that are accurate,

00:19:44.820 that are righteous,

00:19:46.600 that are also coming from a place of humility

00:19:50.940 and gentleness with an objective,

00:19:54.660 an aim of actually restoring someone,

00:19:57.540 not merely condemning them

00:19:58.960 and writing them off.

00:20:00.960 Even in church discipline,

00:20:02.480 the church as a congregation

00:20:03.760 makes a judgment about an individual,

00:20:07.220 but they do so with the prayer

00:20:09.460 and the earnest hope

00:20:11.020 that God might use

00:20:12.720 the mechanism of church discipline,

00:20:15.200 that judgment,

00:20:16.820 in order to convict such a person

00:20:18.860 that they might eventually

00:20:20.240 be brought back into the fold.

00:20:22.980 So the objective always is love.

00:20:26.760 It's gentleness,

00:20:28.320 spiritual maturity,

00:20:29.880 humility, keeping watch over yourself.

00:20:32.880 But all this requires discernment.

00:20:35.500 All this requires that we constantly

00:20:37.840 be making judgments.

00:20:40.140 Is this person spiritually mature 1.00

00:20:41.540 or are they a fool? 0.99

00:20:43.760 Is this criticism true 1.00

00:20:45.640 or is it false?

00:20:48.220 It may even be something that's true,

00:20:50.140 but it's inappropriate.

00:20:52.400 How can something be true but inappropriate?

00:20:54.680 Well, you can make true statements all day long.

00:20:57.540 But they're not fitting.

00:21:00.120 They're not timely.

00:21:02.100 It's something that is generally true. 0.99

00:21:04.600 Something that's even generally biblical.

00:21:07.500 But misapplied.

00:21:10.300 The evangelical church is a master of this.

00:21:16.080 It's not as though Christians for the last 50 years

00:21:19.260 have been just going around blatantly saying things

00:21:22.220 that are the opposite of Scripture.

00:21:24.180 That would be far too obvious.

00:21:25.500 right it's not as though pastors have been going around saying you should love satan

00:21:30.500 no they say things that are true the bible contains them they even quote scripture

00:21:38.320 but they quote it at the right uh the wrong time and apply it to the wrong things it's a word that's

00:21:46.520 not timely i mean satan himself used scripture right he didn't he didn't go to jesus and say

00:21:54.580 you should hate God.

00:21:57.660 No, he's crafty.

00:21:59.380 He's crafty.

00:22:00.660 And so he quotes Scripture.

00:22:02.480 But he quotes Scripture

00:22:03.780 and misapplies it to the wrong person

00:22:07.880 at the wrong time for the wrong things. 0.94

00:22:11.480 It's true what he says.

00:22:13.720 That the angels will not allow your foot

00:22:17.080 to strike a stone.

00:22:19.260 That is true of God's anointed one.

00:22:21.720 That's quoting the Psalms.

00:22:23.840 David speaks of this when he speaks of God's hedge of protection and shield around the righteous,

00:22:30.180 that he will not allow the righteous to be devoured or overcome.

00:22:35.200 It's reminiscent of what David says elsewhere.

00:22:37.420 He says, surely I've never seen the righteous go hungry or be without bread.

00:22:42.260 He's speaking of the providence and the protection and the steadfast faithfulness of the Lord.

00:22:49.200 This is biblical.

00:22:50.800 It's true that God protects His own.

00:22:55.440 And especially of God's anointed one that finds fulfillment in David as king,

00:23:00.640 but its ultimate, highest fulfillment in Jesus.

00:23:04.020 It is true that God would not allow Jesus, His foot, to strike a stone.

00:23:09.660 At least not before His time.

00:23:12.860 Not before His time.

00:23:13.860 And we see this throughout the gospel narratives again and again.

00:23:16.620 that the people would be riled up

00:23:18.700 because of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.

00:23:21.080 They would go around and whisper in people's ears

00:23:23.780 and rile up the people who were easily manipulated.

00:23:27.920 They would rile them up to hate Jesus,

00:23:30.640 to be against Jesus.

00:23:31.980 And there are multiple times

00:23:33.140 throughout Jesus' earthly ministry

00:23:34.620 where the people are set on capturing him

00:23:37.540 and putting him to death.

00:23:40.120 They even, at a certain point, 0.67

00:23:41.700 John chapter 8, pick up stones to stone him.

00:23:45.740 But until it's his time, they're unable to harm him.

00:23:51.100 They want to stone him, but they can't.

00:23:54.820 They want to capture him, but they can't. 0.99

00:23:57.820 They want to kill him, but they can't.

00:24:00.720 There are even certain texts in the gospel narratives where it says that Jesus,

00:24:04.480 and it says it kind of in common language, as though in passing,

00:24:09.580 to where if you're not careful, you can miss how miraculous these statements really are.

00:24:14.880 But it says that Jesus is preaching and per usual, people hate his preaching and are angered and riled up.

00:24:23.200 And they want to lay hands on him and to seize him.

00:24:28.880 And the very next verse is, but he passed through their midst.

00:24:33.680 And what does that mean?

00:24:35.040 He passed through their midst.

00:24:37.640 They can't touch him.

00:24:40.180 They can't hold him.

00:24:41.040 I don't know.

00:24:41.880 I don't want to read too much into that particular text.

00:24:44.880 But it's possible that it's miraculous at all.

00:24:48.340 As though he's just walking through the crowd.

00:24:51.120 They're trying to lay hands on him, trying to seize him.

00:24:54.060 And they physically can't in a supernatural sense.

00:24:58.300 That's possible.

00:24:59.740 But either way, the point still remains, whether it be within nature, providentially or above nature, supernaturally.

00:25:07.220 The point still remains that until it was Jesus' time, this text is true.

00:25:12.120 Not a single stone will strike his heel.

00:25:17.060 So Satan isn't lying to Jesus.

00:25:20.300 But what Satan is trying to do is to get Jesus to put God to the test.

00:25:25.340 To get Jesus to force God, his father, to prove his divinity before his time.

00:25:32.580 And through an avenue, a certain means, that was not God's preordained plan.

00:25:38.360 And so if Jesus was to listen to Satan in this regard, it would be sin,

00:25:43.800 even though Satan is quoting the scripture.

00:25:47.500 And this is what Christians, if we're not careful, can do.

00:25:51.860 And this is what Christians and even leaders historically,

00:25:55.220 at least in recent history, have done.

00:25:58.460 This is what we have done.

00:25:59.660 And so what's required?

00:26:02.240 Discernment.

00:26:03.220 What is discernment?

00:26:05.220 Making judgments.

00:26:07.500 And what are these judgments?

00:26:08.960 There's so many things that have to be weighed,

00:26:12.120 judged, discerned, assessed.

00:26:15.340 Is it true?

00:26:17.720 Objectively, the message, okay?

00:26:20.340 We've established that.

00:26:21.360 It's true, okay?

00:26:21.880 Is it timely?

00:26:24.440 Satan's message was true,

00:26:26.220 but it was said in an untimely manner,

00:26:29.800 trying to get Jesus to do something before his time.

00:26:34.700 Whether it was directly out of the mouth of Satan

00:26:36.800 or whether it was Satan through a person.

00:26:40.500 Even one of his disciples like Peter.

00:26:43.560 Remember, with Peter, Jesus has to say to him,

00:26:47.260 he says, get behind me, Satan.

00:26:49.800 Because Peter is saying something,

00:26:52.380 wanting Jesus to self-preserve, to protect himself.

00:26:56.280 But it's now the time has changed.

00:26:58.560 It's now his time to go to the cross.

00:27:01.040 isn't that funny that earlier satan directly in the wilderness says hey put yourself in danger

00:27:08.220 throw yourself off the temple and jesus says no get behind me satan as it were it's essentially

00:27:15.720 the way is it no i'm not going to do that i'm not going to put the lord my god to the test

00:27:19.840 but then later peter says the opposite satan says endanger yourself throw yourself off the

00:27:26.460 temple to prove that God is real and that you're his son because he'll protect you. So Satan says,

00:27:31.520 put yourself in danger, Jesus. And Jesus says, no, Satan. Then Peter says, don't put yourself

00:27:38.820 in danger, Jesus. And Jesus says, no, Satan. Isn't that so? So then what's required then?

00:27:48.300 discernment

00:27:50.380 time

00:27:51.900 timing

00:27:53.120 timing is key

00:27:55.500 Ecclesiastes elsewhere in the scripture speaks of this

00:27:59.200 there's a time for laughter

00:28:00.860 there's a time for mourning

00:28:02.360 there's a time for fasting

00:28:05.200 there's a time for feasting

00:28:07.560 there's a time of peace

00:28:09.420 there's a time for war 0.94

00:28:11.200 the sons of Issachar

00:28:12.900 what made them noteworthy

00:28:15.520 worthy of being esteemed

00:28:17.760 and honored. They knew the times. So even just knowing the word of God does not necessarily

00:28:25.760 make you wise. You can know the word of God at a surface level that you could quote scripture,

00:28:34.720 but you can quote scripture wrongly, missing its interpretation, that is its meaning,

00:28:42.080 and missing its application.

00:28:45.620 That is the context and its timing.

00:28:50.280 Life requires constant discernment.

00:28:54.920 We need discernment

00:28:56.220 when it comes to receiving a reproof.

00:28:59.640 Is the criticism true?

00:29:01.520 Is the person bringing it mature?

00:29:04.800 Is it timely?

00:29:06.660 Is it fitting?

00:29:07.780 Does it apply to me personally?

00:29:10.240 But we also need discernment, not only in receiving reproof, but giving reproof. 0.95

00:29:17.540 Is this person a swine? Is this person a dog? 0.95

00:29:21.420 Will they receive the correction?

00:29:24.220 Or will they turn and trample underfoot the word that I've brought?

00:29:29.420 And not only the word that I've brought, but turn and attack me also.

00:29:34.940 All these things must be considered.

00:29:36.960 Utilizing Matthew Henry furthermore he says

00:29:41.460 Among the generation of the wicked there are some that have arrived at such a pitch

00:29:46.180 A fever pitch such a high degree of wickedness 0.67

00:29:49.580 That they are looked upon as dogs and swine 0.98

00:29:53.100 They are impudently and notoriously vile 0.98

00:29:57.180 They have so long walked in the way of sinners 0.80

00:30:00.520 That they have sat down in the seat of the scornful

00:30:05.800 He's referencing here Psalm chapter 2.

00:30:09.980 That's standing, or walking and standing and sitting.

00:30:14.700 Psalm chapter 1 or Psalm chapter 2.

00:30:16.160 I can't remember. I think it's Psalm chapter 2.

00:30:18.760 But there's a way of walking in the way of the wicked

00:30:21.760 and then standing in the gates of mockers

00:30:25.500 and then sitting among the scornful and the revilers.

00:30:30.340 What Matthew Henry is saying is that there are some generations of the wicked

00:30:34.820 and some individuals among those who are wicked

00:30:38.460 that have arrived at such a high degree of evil 0.99

00:30:42.880 that they are looked upon as dogs and swine. 0.98

00:30:45.780 They are notoriously vile. 0.98

00:30:48.420 They have so long walked in the way of sinners

00:30:50.980 that they're no longer content to merely walk the path of sinners,

00:30:55.260 but they have now sat down in the seat of the scornful.

00:31:00.060 There's a progression here.

00:31:01.600 something that we find not just in the text that he's quoting or at least referencing psalm chapter

00:31:08.240 two but we find this throughout the scripture as a whole that there is a progression of sin

00:31:12.860 we find this in the book of james for instance right that sin beginning at the level of desire

00:31:20.560 right that there are evil desires and the desire if it goes unchecked desire that does not accord

00:31:27.800 with the word of God, if it goes unchecked,

00:31:30.520 fleshly desire, unchecked desire,

00:31:33.520 eventually it conceives and gives birth to sin.

00:31:36.640 Sin, if it goes unchecked,

00:31:39.060 eventually grows and brings forth death.

00:31:43.900 That's a progression.

00:31:45.540 There's a progression being described

00:31:47.300 in the book of James.

00:31:49.540 That it's not as though someone just wakes up one day

00:31:52.440 that has solid virtue, solid character,

00:31:56.140 and then decides to do something

00:31:58.880 inexplainably vile.

00:32:02.880 No, the person who does something truly vile,

00:32:06.000 truly heinous, all sin is sin.

00:32:08.960 But there are degrees of sin.

00:32:12.260 The person who says that all sin is equal,

00:32:16.040 that's not true.

00:32:16.860 The Bible doesn't teach that.

00:32:20.080 In fact, Jesus explicitly says

00:32:22.160 that there are some who will receive a light beating

00:32:25.780 and others who will receive a severe beating

00:32:29.460 based off of degrees of sin.

00:32:32.760 There's two factors.

00:32:33.940 One is varying degrees of sin.

00:32:37.060 The other factor is varying degrees of grace.

00:32:41.220 Meaning, how bad was the sin that you committed?

00:32:45.980 But also, how much grace did God reveal to you

00:32:50.340 and that you chose to sin even despite that grace?

00:32:55.780 We see that example laid out or described for us when Jesus is pronouncing woes over certain cities in Israel, Tyre, and Sidon.

00:33:07.940 And what does he say? He says, it's not just that you've committed worse sins,

00:33:12.020 and therefore you were going to incur, or incurring for yourself more judgment.

00:33:16.940 But he says, if the miracles that have been performed in you, these cities, had been performed instead in cities of old, pagan cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, they would have turned and repented.

00:33:31.560 But you have not. 0.79

00:33:33.360 In other words, what Jesus is saying is not just the degree of your sin, O Tyre and Sidon, is very great.

00:33:40.040 The kinds of sin that you're committing, the frequency of sin you're committing, the degree of sin you're committing.

00:33:45.360 It's not just the sin itself, but it's also the fact that you are sinning on the backdrop in the context of having such a high degree of revealed grace.

00:33:59.600 You're not just sinning like Sodom and Gomorrah that was committing vile acts of sin.

00:34:06.300 But you're doing it not just with righteous lot living in your midst, bearing witness.

00:34:12.520 but you're doing it with jesus in your midst bearing witness to the truth of the gospel

00:34:19.700 and performing mighty signs and wonders proving and verifying that he is in fact the son of god

00:34:27.200 that you're sinning in a city where the son of god preached to you and where the son of god

00:34:35.520 multiplied bread and fish

00:34:38.020 and literally fed you.

00:34:40.040 In that context, on that backdrop, 0.59

00:34:42.780 you're choosing to spit in his face and sin.

00:34:45.880 So there are degrees of sin,

00:34:49.080 degrees of wickedness.

00:34:50.540 And we know this because the Bible teaches

00:34:52.560 of degrees of punishment,

00:34:55.540 severe beatings, light beatings.

00:34:58.780 And we know that what merits

00:35:00.020 a more severe judgment from God

00:35:02.260 is greater degrees of sin

00:35:04.360 committed despite greater degrees of grace.

00:35:10.920 There are some who God has revealed more to.

00:35:14.840 There are others that God in his sovereignty

00:35:17.360 has chosen to reveal less to.

00:35:21.500 And so when we're seeking to discern

00:35:23.880 or make a right judgment about a person, 0.97

00:35:28.460 are they a swine? 0.80

00:35:30.380 Are they a dog?

00:35:32.360 One of the things that we're looking at

00:35:33.920 is the degree of sin that they've committed.

00:35:37.080 Also, the frequency of that sin.

00:35:40.440 Have they been sinning at such a high caliber

00:35:42.820 for a week or a decade?

00:35:49.220 Is this a mark of their character?

00:35:52.740 Are they known for this?

00:35:55.500 It's not just a moment of weakness,

00:35:57.840 but it's who they are.

00:35:59.600 It's been demonstrated again and again and again.

00:36:02.460 And then we can also, in discerning whether or not this is a swine or a dog,

00:36:07.400 we can ask the question, and have they been doing this sin?

00:36:11.560 High caliber of sin?

00:36:14.980 Vile category of sin?

00:36:17.780 Not just sin that accords with nature.

00:36:19.940 All sin, which accords with nature, is still, of course, sin which accords with fallen nature.

00:36:26.240 That's what makes it sin.

00:36:27.920 But there are some sins that don't merely accord with fallen nature.

00:36:32.460 but sins that categorically go against nature itself.

00:36:38.180 For instance, you can have a pagan society that worships Thor.

00:36:44.020 That's idolatry. That's sin. 0.99

00:36:48.100 That's also polygamous, where the men take multiple wives. 0.92

00:36:54.380 I believe that that's also sin. 0.57

00:36:56.660 And that society, if there's polygamy and idolatry, but they're patriarchal, know the difference between men and women, the men are masculine, they fight, they're strong, they provide, they protect.

00:37:19.940 and that society views children as a blessing

00:37:23.400 and they boast about households with 10 children

00:37:27.700 rather than just one

00:37:28.860 and don't see children as a burden.

00:37:32.860 That society, theoretically,

00:37:35.600 God's sovereign, He does whatever He does,

00:37:37.560 but that society, theoretically, it's plausible,

00:37:40.640 could last for a thousand years.

00:37:43.340 How do you know that?

00:37:44.280 Joel, this is far-fetched.

00:37:45.400 Where are you going?

00:37:46.600 Well, I know that because societies like that 0.88

00:37:49.120 have lasted for a thousand years throughout history human history we have seen pagan societies

00:37:56.120 that did not just last for 20 30 years one generation or two generations but lasted for

00:38:02.420 centuries centuries of idolatry worshiping false gods centuries of violence committing war crimes

00:38:13.160 they would take their opponents tribes that they were at war with and do atrocious things that we

00:38:18.840 wouldn't dream of today, right?

00:38:22.040 These are real sins, sins of violence,

00:38:25.380 sins of idolatry and pagan worship.

00:38:28.720 In some cases, they were misogynistic,

00:38:31.940 not misogynistic by today's standards,

00:38:34.140 which means nothing, 0.98

00:38:36.340 but truly degrading towards women,

00:38:40.280 treating wives as slaves

00:38:42.280 without any affection or love

00:38:44.220 for their wife whatsoever.

00:38:45.880 There were these kinds of things,

00:38:47.480 these kinds of sins,

00:38:48.440 real sins.

00:38:51.300 And yet societies like this still lasted

00:38:54.080 for centuries.

00:38:57.900 Even, I'll go a step further,

00:39:00.680 even human sacrifice.

00:39:03.900 Right?

00:39:04.160 You know, the comparison is often made of like,

00:39:06.940 well, America is just like, you know,

00:39:09.400 pagan societies of old that worshiped Molech.

00:39:12.360 No. 0.86

00:39:13.760 No.

00:39:14.400 No. 1.00

00:39:16.000 Do you know why pagan societies 0.99

00:39:17.960 in centuries past

00:39:20.340 worshipped Molech 1.00

00:39:21.600 it's because they wanted more children 1.00

00:39:25.020 not less

00:39:27.620 so what they would do

00:39:30.500 is they would take one child

00:39:32.620 usually their first child 0.97

00:39:34.980 and offer it to Molech 0.99

00:39:36.920 pass the child through the flames 0.99

00:39:39.140 and it would be burned alive

00:39:41.360 a terrible heinous practice 0.96

00:39:44.180 but even these pagan societies 0.99

00:39:47.340 only did that because there was the promise

00:39:50.860 that Moloch would make their crops grow,

00:39:54.820 send rain upon their land, 0.76

00:39:57.920 give them peace from their enemies,

00:39:59.780 and, don't miss this one,

00:40:02.260 give them more children.

00:40:04.840 So they'd sacrifice one

00:40:07.060 so that Moloch would give them ten.

00:40:10.540 That's not what America does. 1.00

00:40:12.420 women in america are not going to molek it is molek but they're not going to molek planned 1.00

00:40:20.840 parenthood to give one child so that they could have 10 they're giving one child and then two 1.00

00:40:26.240 years later another child and then two years later another child so that they can have 0.94

00:40:30.000 none in other words pagan societies that worshiped molek that were degrading to their wives 0.97

00:40:38.480 that were polygamous 0.76

00:40:40.440 and that even practiced human sacrifice 0.96

00:40:44.200 in giving one child to a false god

00:40:48.000 so that they might receive ten children in return.

00:40:51.720 These societies, as wicked as they were,

00:40:55.580 were still committing sin

00:40:57.480 that accords with nature.

00:41:02.800 They still recognize that the sky is blue,

00:41:06.160 the grass is green,

00:41:07.220 A man's a man. A woman's a woman. 0.99

00:41:10.120 Children are a blessing rather than a burden. 0.94

00:41:13.060 They didn't want their society to literally die off.

00:41:16.900 They recognized they were smarter than us.

00:41:20.280 They recognized we've got to have at least two children for two parents.

00:41:25.720 That's the replacement rate.

00:41:28.160 They didn't say, well, Americans can't have babies, 0.99

00:41:30.940 so I guess we need to import the third world. 1.00

00:41:32.900 the level of stupidity 1.00

00:41:37.580 that we have achieved in this generation. 1.00

00:41:40.240 This is what I'm trying to help us see. 1.00

00:41:42.360 The level of stupidity 1.00

00:41:44.000 and not just stupidity because that's kind 1.00

00:41:47.320 and it's a kindness that our generation 1.00

00:41:49.660 and our country does not deserve 1.00

00:41:51.240 because it's not just stupidity. 1.00

00:41:53.200 The level of wickedness. 1.00

00:41:56.900 Pure, vile, evil.

00:41:59.560 the idea that we would say i hate children i don't want any and and my neighbor's children 0.91

00:42:11.540 those who actually do have children christians in our nation that have children that are seeking to 0.77

00:42:16.780 be fruitful and multiply i want to make sure that their children don't have a country by the time 1.00

00:42:21.540 they grow up and so we're going to open up the gates and let in strangers and aliens and foreigners 1.00

00:42:29.540 that will devour like locusts 1.00

00:42:32.820 all the inheritance

00:42:34.740 that our fathers have worked for.

00:42:39.440 And we're going to do all this 0.99

00:42:41.340 while transing kids 1.00

00:42:42.900 and obliterating God's distinctions 0.90

00:42:46.580 and categories of gender,

00:42:50.180 of nations,

00:42:52.700 of different tribes and peoples. 1.00

00:42:57.180 that's a level of wickedness 0.98

00:43:01.540 that Vikings would have blushed at.

00:43:07.500 As they're going to blank and pillage other tribes, 0.99

00:43:13.800 you can fill in the blank, 0.65

00:43:15.560 family integrated,

00:43:17.360 while doing that, if they heard of us,

00:43:19.960 they'd say,

00:43:20.880 those guys are bad.

00:43:27.180 Americans? 1.00

00:43:28.760 Gosh, I hope I never meet that tribe. 1.00

00:43:35.300 Right?

00:43:36.580 Suicide is a sin against nature.

00:43:42.200 Our entire society is committing that sin.

00:43:46.540 Wholesale.

00:43:48.260 Corporately. 1.00

00:43:52.680 Putting women in combat and positions of civil power 1.00

00:43:56.440 is sin against nature. 1.00

00:44:01.200 It's not just sin,

00:44:03.340 but it's disordered.

00:44:06.100 There are sins of degree

00:44:07.440 and there are sins of disorder.

00:44:11.940 So the point is this,

00:44:13.820 again, using judgment and discernment.

00:44:17.800 What category of sin are we talking about?

00:44:22.520 This man is too aggressive. 0.90

00:44:26.440 He's rude. 0.54

00:44:30.580 Even at times violent.

00:44:33.680 Okay.

00:44:34.480 That's a sin.

00:44:36.700 It should be confronted.

00:44:38.860 But that is a sin which accords with nature.

00:44:42.660 Hear me.

00:44:44.480 The accords with nature part doesn't eradicate the first part.

00:44:48.200 That's a sin.

00:44:49.380 It's a sin.

00:44:51.640 But it's a sin which accords with nature.

00:44:54.280 Fallen nature.

00:44:54.940 but nature.

00:44:58.060 But if there's another man

00:44:59.840 whose wrist is limp,

00:45:03.920 who doesn't take responsibility,

00:45:08.520 doesn't work,

00:45:09.660 doesn't provide for the members of his household,

00:45:12.260 doesn't seek to protect, 0.96

00:45:14.440 is effeminate, is weak, 0.99

00:45:17.920 his wife rules the roost, 0.99

00:45:21.000 that's also a sin. 1.00

00:45:23.660 But that is not a sin that accords with nature.

00:45:26.760 That is a sin that's not just a matter of degree,

00:45:30.100 but a sin that is disordered.

00:45:32.640 So now we're not just speaking of degrees of sin,

00:45:36.100 but categories of sin.

00:45:40.500 There may be someone who is sinning

00:45:42.700 in terms of being immoral.

00:45:48.440 Sexually immoral.

00:45:50.780 That is a sin.

00:45:53.900 But there are other kinds of that immorality

00:45:57.800 that are disordered.

00:46:00.940 That it falls into a whole other category.

00:46:05.020 That it's unheard of.

00:46:09.000 Today it's common, but again, see point A,

00:46:11.740 we are uniquely wicked.

00:46:14.340 We are a uniquely wicked generation.

00:46:17.980 In times past, think of what the Apostle Paul wrote

00:46:20.180 when he's speaking to the Corinthians.

00:46:23.540 He says, there are sins taking place

00:46:25.760 that are not even heard of

00:46:27.880 among the Gentiles.

00:46:31.840 What is he saying?

00:46:32.880 He's saying there are pagans,

00:46:35.620 there are non-Christians

00:46:37.500 who would blush. 1.00

00:46:40.500 They wouldn't even do these things.

00:46:43.200 They know that these things

00:46:45.040 are self-defeating.

00:46:46.900 Not only do these things not honor God,

00:46:48.840 no sin honors God

00:46:50.280 but these things not only do they not honor God

00:46:52.960 but it shoots yourself in the foot

00:46:56.520 it's not just dishonoring towards God

00:46:58.920 it sins against your own people

00:47:01.940 sins against your own offspring

00:47:03.860 sins against your own flesh 0.70

00:47:06.280 sins against your own family

00:47:08.700 it's self-destructive 0.66

00:47:10.980 so as we're seeking to reprove others

00:47:18.080 These are the things we look for.

00:47:20.300 Category of sin.

00:47:22.640 What type of sin are we talking about?

00:47:26.000 Sin which accords with nature, which is still sin.

00:47:29.460 Or sin that is disordered and goes against nature.

00:47:34.120 Not only rebels against God, all sin rebels against God,

00:47:37.540 but it actually rebels and flies in the face of nature itself.

00:47:42.480 Because what are we trying to determine?

00:47:44.840 There is a progression of sin.

00:47:46.540 Romans 1, right?

00:47:48.580 We quote it all the time.

00:47:50.340 Well, think about it.

00:47:51.240 Apply it.

00:47:52.180 Romans 1 gives us, again, just like James, just like Psalm 2, a progression.

00:47:59.240 A progression of sin.

00:48:01.440 And not just a progression of sin as we find it in an individual person, but as we find it in societies.

00:48:09.420 Corporately, as a whole.

00:48:11.320 What does Romans 1 say?

00:48:12.800 it talks about how men eventually as a society is degrading progressively more and more and more

00:48:22.840 eventually you reach a state corporately as a society where men exchange natural relationships

00:48:30.500 for those which are what unnatural against nature right so there are relationships that are

00:48:40.620 with nature, even though they may still be sinful, like polygamy. And then there are

00:48:47.820 relationships that are also sinful and a higher degree of sinfulness. The category itself is more

00:48:57.260 perverse, more disordered, more upside down, more directly flying in the face, not just rebellion

00:49:06.180 against god the one who created nature but against the nature he created itself so you're seeking to

00:49:15.840 bring correction seeking to bring reproof the one you're reproving are they a swine are they a dog

00:49:22.820 okay let's consider what's the category of sin next what's the degree and frequency of sin 0.61

00:49:31.280 next the longevity

00:49:34.620 how long has this been going on

00:49:39.900 and then another speaking back to the example I gave of Tyre and Sidon

00:49:46.720 woe to you Jesus pronounces woes on Tyre and Sidon but notice this 0.83

00:49:51.360 it's not specifically now I think the argument could be made and I would make it 1.00

00:49:56.560 This is my position.

00:49:58.620 I think that the type of sins

00:50:01.440 that Tyre and Sidon was committing

00:50:03.660 were actually worse sins

00:50:05.600 than the sins being committed

00:50:07.720 in Sodom and Gomorrah.

00:50:08.900 I really believe that.

00:50:11.220 We know what sins were committed

00:50:12.740 in Sodom and Gomorrah, right?

00:50:14.680 It's the name of the city.

00:50:15.840 We get that.

00:50:16.980 But in Tyre and Sidon,

00:50:18.440 these cities weren't necessarily marked

00:50:20.800 by that particular sin

00:50:22.120 that Sodom and Gomorrah were marked by.

00:50:25.000 But they were committing another sin

00:50:27.140 that I would argue is even worse.

00:50:31.660 And it's the sin of hating the Son of God,

00:50:36.180 rejecting Him,

00:50:37.800 bearing false witness about Him,

00:50:41.020 trying to get Him arrested,

00:50:42.480 trying to get Him killed, 0.79

00:50:44.100 trying to produce false witnesses 0.99

00:50:45.780 in a kangaroo court.

00:50:48.980 tyer and sidon were vile in terms of the sin but that's not i think that argument can be made

00:50:57.860 but the argument that's explicit the argument that jesus makes so it's probably the safest

00:51:03.940 thing to go with you know when when in doubt side with jesus but jesus says if the miracles

00:51:09.800 meaning not just the degree of grace or the degree of sin you towns tyer and sidon are committing

00:51:17.420 but the degree of grace that I'm displaying and revealing.

00:51:22.420 If the miracles, the proof, the revelation, which is grace,

00:51:26.480 God revealing himself through his son, Jesus Christ,

00:51:30.140 miraculously bearing witness,

00:51:32.220 this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased.

00:51:35.280 These miracles, if they were performed in these other cities,

00:51:38.620 they would have repented.

00:51:40.760 You remain obstinate and rebellious in the face of grace.

00:51:46.120 So that would be another marker that we look for as we're discerning, judging whether or not we should correct someone.

00:51:54.800 Whether or not this person is qualified not to reprove, but in this case, Matthew 7 verse 6, they're qualified for the reproof.

00:52:05.400 Not to be the reprover, but to receive the correction. 0.98

00:52:09.540 Are they a swine? Are they a pig? 0.99

00:52:13.480 What's the degree of sin? 0.99

00:52:14.860 What's the category of sin?

00:52:16.280 Does it go against nature?

00:52:17.300 What's the longevity and frequency?

00:52:19.940 Is it every day for 20 years?

00:52:22.100 And then lastly, what's the degree of grace, right?

00:52:26.040 So then put the sin aside for a moment.

00:52:28.580 How much grace has God revealed to them?

00:52:31.120 In other words, you could find a vile, vile people.

00:52:37.520 Theoretically, speaking in theory,

00:52:40.240 it would be possible to find a people that is incredibly vile,

00:52:44.740 That sins against nature.

00:52:46.840 So the category of sin is of a high caliber.

00:52:50.800 And the frequency and the longevity.

00:52:53.600 They've been doing this for, well, not centuries.

00:52:56.380 Because then the people wouldn't exist.

00:52:58.320 Not sins that go against nature.

00:53:00.020 You do that long enough, you're wiped out.

00:53:03.340 It just literally doesn't work.

00:53:05.400 It just doesn't work.

00:53:07.020 Okay, but let's say they've been sinful for centuries.

00:53:10.200 and in the last generation or two

00:53:13.180 that sin has progressed to the point

00:53:15.520 where now categorically

00:53:16.980 it's sin that goes against nature

00:53:18.680 that's incredibly perverse.

00:53:20.680 But here's the one extra detail

00:53:23.560 in this scenario.

00:53:26.140 Let's say they're a lost people group

00:53:27.860 and they've never heard

00:53:28.520 the gospel of Jesus Christ.

00:53:31.620 Should we from a distance

00:53:33.260 without going

00:53:34.260 but hearing of this discovery

00:53:35.840 of this people

00:53:36.380 should we determine

00:53:37.560 should we judge

00:53:38.780 Matthew 7 verse 6 is telling us to make a judgment, but to make a right judgment. 1.00

00:53:44.660 Should we judge from a distance without any Christian ever going that these people are swine and dogs 0.99

00:53:49.960 and therefore determine they don't deserve the pearls, they don't deserve the holy things, 0.98

00:53:55.940 we should never send a missionary, never preach the gospel ever at all?

00:54:00.600 No.

00:54:00.960 No, because there's a lot of factors that we can observe.

00:54:05.960 categories of sin, frequency of sin, longevity of sin, all this. But there's one category that

00:54:13.000 we've yet to witness. There's a piece of data that's currently missing. And what is it? What

00:54:18.400 do these people do with grace? What do they do? We know what they do in darkness without the

00:54:28.180 Christian gospel being present. But what would they do if God did reveal himself? We know what

00:54:33.720 Tyre and Sidon did. The Son of God walking their streets, doing miracles, preaching the gospel,

00:54:42.140 and Tyre and Sidon says, nah, don't like it. Let's kill him. All right. Swine. An entire city of swine. 1.00

00:54:52.760 And for anyone who thinks that's harsh, remember Jesus is the guy who told his disciples,

00:54:58.280 And that includes still to this day, you and I, that there are certain contexts and times to shake the dust off of your feet and leave a place.

00:55:09.880 And he actually says a town, not just an individual.

00:55:13.720 I've given up on this individual.

00:55:15.780 No, Jesus actually carves out a theological category for giving up on entire towns.

00:55:22.760 Because Jesus is wise and merciful.

00:55:28.280 He's merciful.

00:55:30.240 Jesus does not expect someone

00:55:32.180 to indefinitely,

00:55:35.140 for the rest of their life,

00:55:37.820 bear witness to him and his gospel

00:55:39.980 in places like Tyre and Sidon

00:55:43.340 and San Francisco.

00:55:47.920 Yes, I would make that argument.

00:55:50.620 I would make that argument 0.99

00:55:52.440 that it is a city of swine 0.99

00:55:54.920 by Christ's standards.

00:55:58.780 This is not a lost people group

00:56:00.660 that have never heard the Christian gospel.

00:56:04.600 These are not people in a dark jungle

00:56:07.200 that have never seen a Bible or a missionary.

00:56:11.880 These are people who have lived in America

00:56:16.300 that have heard gospel preaching on airways,

00:56:21.980 on the radio, on television stations.

00:56:24.920 Many of them have migrated there.

00:56:27.660 They're not native residents.

00:56:29.640 It's a very transient city.

00:56:31.900 Very few are from cradle to grave.

00:56:35.100 Most people go there, and they go there for a reason.

00:56:38.760 One of the reasons is commerce, business, opportunity.

00:56:43.380 But another one of the reasons is because they want to leave places like this.

00:56:47.920 I hate my mom and dad and flyover country.

00:56:50.640 I hate the church. 1.00

00:56:51.580 I hate my upbringing. 0.99

00:56:53.040 I hate my history. 0.78

00:56:54.080 I hate southern morals and biblical character traits.

00:56:59.280 And I'm running away.

00:57:01.120 I'm going to the exact opposite.

00:57:03.460 Not by accident, but on purpose.

00:57:10.100 And there are times in history, in societies,

00:57:15.200 where there are real, tangible, geographic places

00:57:18.040 where Jesus says, yeah, preach the gospel.

00:57:24.080 but maybe skip that town. Now, again, hear the caveat, not skip a town that's never had the

00:57:31.520 gospel. Not talking about, hey, skip that tribe in the jungle that's never heard the word of God. 0.65

00:57:39.380 No, you don't do that, right? Because that's the last category that needs to be weighed when

00:57:45.320 making a judgment. How do these people respond to grace? Revelation. That's what Jesus is saying

00:57:53.900 about Tyre and Sidon.

00:57:55.600 They have had a high degree,

00:57:57.700 not just a high degree of sin,

00:57:59.180 but a high degree of grace.

00:58:01.760 They've had me.

00:58:03.740 And even with me,

00:58:06.540 there's no humility,

00:58:10.540 no repentance,

00:58:11.680 no desire to submit themselves.

00:58:15.480 In fact,

00:58:16.380 they actually are trampling

00:58:18.420 the gospel underfoot,

00:58:20.060 the pearls,

00:58:21.280 and they're also trying

00:58:22.580 to find a way

00:58:23.840 to trample me to turn and attack me this lesson matthew chapter 7 verse 6 is something that jesus

00:58:32.420 experienced firsthand it's not just a principle it is a principle but it's something that

00:58:39.580 he knew he himself knew this principle and he modeled it he's not just giving it a command

00:58:48.440 something for you but not for himself no he actually obeyed this command himself throughout

00:58:53.960 his earthly ministry until it was his time remember what i said earlier once it was his time

00:58:59.120 rather than fighting against kicking against the goads once he knew it is time and this is my

00:59:06.140 father's preordained will right he prays john 17 in the garden of gethsemane let the cup pass but

00:59:12.920 not my will but yours be done and once it's time and it is in fact the will of god then jesus

00:59:18.120 gives himself over to his adversaries.

00:59:21.840 Until that time,

00:59:23.640 you know what Jesus does?

00:59:25.140 He runs.

00:59:27.540 He runs. 1.00

00:59:29.840 Oh, what a coward. 1.00

00:59:31.820 Well, be careful calling Jesus a coward. 1.00

00:59:35.220 Look at his ministry.

00:59:37.080 Again and again, he goes to a town.

00:59:39.820 He performs miracles.

00:59:42.700 People hear about it.

00:59:45.120 And a lot of times, what does he say?

00:59:46.440 Have you ever wondered all the passages where Jesus would heal someone or exercise a demon

00:59:51.480 and he would explicitly tell them, don't tell anyone?

00:59:55.400 Remember those texts?

00:59:56.740 There's multiple of them.

00:59:57.860 Do you know why?

00:59:58.820 Because his primary function, purpose, was preaching, not miracles.

01:00:04.620 The miracles were to validate him as a messenger.

01:00:09.240 But Jesus was, before miracle worker, it's Jesus the preacher.

01:00:13.180 And he goes to preach and he doesn't want the preaching to be obstructed and hindered by antagonistic crowds that would come with plans to persecute him or arrest him or this.

01:00:28.940 So what he does is he goes to a town for a little while.

01:00:32.220 He performs some miracles as he's preaching.

01:00:36.300 He tells people, please don't spread the word that I've done this miracle.

01:00:41.020 that people, of course, typically don't listen

01:00:43.340 because they're pretty excited.

01:00:44.880 It's hard to blame them.

01:00:46.740 The word gets out.

01:00:48.480 Jesus is here.

01:00:49.740 He's healing people.

01:00:51.080 He's casting out demons.

01:00:52.440 He's multiplying food.

01:00:53.920 Then a bunch of people come. 0.99

01:00:55.840 With the crowds come bad faith actors.

01:01:00.160 Right?

01:01:00.520 You hit a certain metric of enough followers,

01:01:04.920 enough of a crowd, a big enough crowd, enough people,

01:01:07.320 and bad faith actors will be among them.

01:01:11.020 And then once the bad faith actors get there, what does Jesus do?

01:01:14.400 He says, oh, look at the time.

01:01:16.900 And he's gone.

01:01:19.800 He's gone.

01:01:21.280 And people try to follow him.

01:01:23.460 Right?

01:01:23.740 Like John chapter 5.

01:01:25.480 And John chapter 6, rather.

01:01:28.340 The feeding of the thousands.

01:01:31.040 He feeds them.

01:01:32.240 He preaches to them.

01:01:34.360 And then he gets on a boat and tries to lose them.

01:01:41.020 And they walk around the whole lake and find him.

01:01:43.840 And then a little later, he tries to lose the crowd again.

01:01:48.240 Because with crowds come critics.

01:01:52.400 And many of the critics are not good faith critics.

01:01:57.000 But actually conspiring.

01:02:00.640 Actually malicious.

01:02:04.080 And so Jesus, because it was not yet his time,

01:02:06.940 He's not ready for the bad faith critics to actually succeed, capture him, arrest him, and crucify him.

01:02:14.460 And so he departs.

01:02:16.920 The doctrine of fleeing, in other words, a thoroughly biblical doctrine.

01:02:24.580 There are people that you should leave.

01:02:28.520 There are places that you should leave.

01:02:32.540 There are relationships that you should end.

01:02:35.720 friendships that you should get out of there are workplaces that you should be writing your resume 0.93

01:02:44.440 you should be shrewd about it right you need a job in the meantime don't be foolish

01:02:51.160 all right have a little tact but you should be writing your resume and sending it out 0.96

01:02:57.460 you should be thinking how do i not work for this company for the rest of my life

01:03:02.800 because I'm in a den of lions at this company.

01:03:08.480 It is a ticking time bomb.

01:03:11.080 Any moment someone could find out

01:03:14.200 that I'm a Christian who believes

01:03:15.820 that men are men and women are women

01:03:17.360 and I'm done. 0.55

01:03:19.640 There are places to leave.

01:03:22.780 And there are certain people,

01:03:24.560 whether it be whole societies,

01:03:27.840 whole towns.

01:03:29.220 i would even argue further than that not just towns you could argue even whole ethnicities

01:03:38.260 tribes tongues languages not forever because every tribe tongue and language is going to be before 0.99

01:03:45.720 the throne of god but there are generations where paul says all cretins are liars and lazy gluttons 1.00

01:03:54.280 And we know that this is true. 1.00

01:03:57.000 Now, even in that scenario,

01:03:59.360 Paul ministered in Crete.

01:04:01.580 He left one of his sons in the faith,

01:04:04.560 Titus, in Crete,

01:04:06.460 to plant a church in Crete

01:04:08.460 to be led by Cretan elders.

01:04:12.480 So there was still some success,

01:04:14.880 Paul knew, that could take place there

01:04:16.540 despite degrees of sin,

01:04:19.740 obstinate hearts.

01:04:20.760 so you didn't completely write them off

01:04:23.780 but we should think about these things

01:04:26.020 how many mission

01:04:27.860 agencies

01:04:28.500 are wasting the widow's minds 0.93

01:04:31.760 like 0.98

01:04:33.600 should there be something to be said

01:04:35.720 for this people has displayed

01:04:37.860 openness to the gospel

01:04:39.260 let's go more

01:04:40.640 let's do more

01:04:42.920 this place every time

01:04:45.580 we try to preach the gospel

01:04:46.840 they hate it 0.79

01:04:49.400 let's do less

01:04:50.940 you might think

01:04:55.160 what is that place

01:04:56.840 what place just hates

01:04:59.620 the gospel

01:05:00.260 and doesn't respond to the gospel

01:05:03.540 well California would be one of them 0.98

01:05:05.780 Israel would be one of them

01:05:09.700 there's a few places

01:05:13.740 like that

01:05:14.360 you should do less 0.95

01:05:17.380 Doesn't mean each and every individual, but it means on the whole, in generalities, high percentage of swine.

01:05:28.880 High, high number of dogs.

01:05:32.820 And this, again, is not Jesus, just his permission saying, hey, ministry is hard.

01:05:39.260 Bringing correction, bringing the gospel is hard.

01:05:42.620 And I'm giving you an allowance, permissibility.

01:05:47.380 to throw in the towel if it's too tough.

01:05:52.040 No, this isn't just permissibility.

01:05:54.820 This is Jesus giving us a command.

01:05:58.280 It's not just that Jesus is leaving you an off-ramp

01:06:02.460 because he's concerned about your personal comfort

01:06:06.700 if things get too tough.

01:06:08.820 No, this is Jesus actually as the one who owns all things,

01:06:13.280 being a shrewd steward and saying,

01:06:15.380 stop wasting my money.

01:06:18.380 It's actually not him concerned about your comfort.

01:06:21.260 It's not, hey, sometimes there will be some individuals or some peoples or some towns

01:06:25.640 or some generations or some places that are really, really hard.

01:06:29.180 And that's uncomfortable.

01:06:30.880 And I don't want you to be uncomfortable.

01:06:32.540 And so I'm giving you permission to stop.

01:06:34.620 No, he's saying, no, no, no.

01:06:35.860 I own everything.

01:06:37.820 It's all mine.

01:06:39.240 And everything you're operating with are my resources, my investments.

01:06:45.040 And I don't make bad investments.

01:06:47.380 it's not just you're allowed to throw in the towel if it hurts no it's that you're not allowed

01:06:54.220 to waste the master's money that's what you're not allowed to do and there's a certain point

01:07:01.220 with categories of sin degrees of sin longevity and frequency of sin and how much grace

01:07:07.960 has this person had and yet they still rebel against god how much grace and preaching and

01:07:15.700 evangelist and gospel has this people had this nation had this city had this state had and they

01:07:23.560 yet still hate jesus at that point it's not just hey things were tough

01:07:29.680 and now you can move to oklahoma city and have a good life with conservatives no it's no these

01:07:40.240 people are vile and you need to stop wasting my investment and spend it better there's better

01:07:50.300 ground that will receive the seed and produce a crop 10 30 60 100 fold and you are commanded

01:08:01.680 to be good investors producing a return for the master

01:08:07.920 that's that's the point so it's not just your preservation that's in the text too

01:08:17.040 don't do pearls before swine pearls uh swine they don't see it as a pearl you giving them

01:08:24.040 something of value they just think you're you're attacking them why are you throwing rocks at me

01:08:28.300 it's a pearl why are you throwing rocks at me it's it's a loving correction and reproof

01:08:33.440 why are you reviling me they just see it as reviling they see it as slander even though

01:08:39.580 it's true and they're not just going to trample the pearls the message they'll turn and attack

01:08:47.220 you the messenger so that is baked into the text self-preservation jesus is essentially saying

01:08:53.760 don't be suicidal i want jesus is a shrewd manager the master who owns everything he wants as much

01:09:01.520 out of you in your life, your ministry as he can possibly get. He doesn't want you to be a kamikaze

01:09:07.560 missionary. He'd rather get 40 years out of your missionary work. He wants a return. So he doesn't 0.95

01:09:17.900 want you to do things that will get you to be attacked, your reputation destroyed to where no

01:09:27.060 one will ever listen or receive from your ministry ever again. So he doesn't just allow for shrewdness

01:09:34.280 or allow for at times throwing in the towel and moving on, pivoting, transitioning. He demands it.

01:09:42.240 He demands it because Jesus wants a return. Don't go to certain places. Don't go to certain people.

01:09:50.660 don't open your mouth don't give that reproof not just because you might not be qualified to

01:09:58.620 reprove but that person might not be qualified to be reproved that's matthew chapter 7 verse 6

01:10:06.740 use discernment make righteous judgments what do we look for to determine will this person is this

01:10:14.820 a person worth reproving? What category of sin are we talking about? Sin which accords with nature

01:10:22.720 or sin that flies in the face of nature? Not just degrees of sin, but disordered sin. Okay,

01:10:30.180 what's the longevity, the history? How long have they been rebelling like this? And what frequency

01:10:36.840 of rebellion?

01:10:39.360 And then also,

01:10:40.800 what manner of grace,

01:10:42.960 what measure, rather,

01:10:44.200 of grace have they received?

01:10:46.560 This person didn't grow up

01:10:47.840 in a Christian home. 0.88

01:10:48.780 This person has never 0.60

01:10:49.860 really heard the gospel.

01:10:50.820 This person has never

01:10:52.520 read the Bible.

01:10:53.440 This person is unchurched. 1.00

01:10:55.800 This person is unevangelized.

01:10:57.300 OK. 1.00

01:10:58.840 Well, then let's give that one

01:11:00.100 an honest shot.

01:11:01.880 Let's work hard at it,

01:11:03.280 knowing that at first

01:11:04.280 there might be a lot

01:11:05.040 of resistance.

01:11:06.840 But if this is a person who has been saturated in Christian doctrine,

01:11:12.020 saturated in the gospel,

01:11:14.140 has grown up in the Mecca of Christendom in the West,

01:11:19.940 and took all of that and said, I hate it, 0.89

01:11:23.640 and voluntarily placed themselves in a city or a geographic region 0.94

01:11:29.460 that is dedicated to sodomy, baby murder, and hatred of Christ, 0.89

01:11:35.920 keep your pearls 0.99

01:11:39.720 keep your pearls

01:11:42.580 and I know that that seems intense and some people don't like that but

01:11:46.900 if not that then my question would just be

01:11:51.240 then what do you do a lot of people know what they don't

01:11:55.280 agree with okay great that's great

01:11:57.640 quick giving problems give me a solution then how do you apply Matthew chapter

01:12:03.160 7 verse 6. If not that, then who is a swine? Who is a dog? And I think if people are honest, this is

01:12:13.360 what they'll have to admit. Now, it won't help because it's inconsistent and there's no Bible

01:12:17.680 to back it up, but this is what they would have to admit. Well, that deals with individual people

01:12:21.780 and that description of swine and dogs can never be used to describe people groups. It's only

01:12:28.400 individuals you can never describe a town a whole place to which i would just say have could i

01:12:38.000 introduce you to the bible have you ever read that before that concept is applied regularly 0.96

01:12:44.820 c tire c c sidon c crete that's entire generations this wicked and adulterous generation 0.98

01:12:54.660 that's that's a thing that's a thing so let us be wise examine yourself galatians 6 1 are you 0.94

01:13:04.120 qualified to reprove to give the reproof are you spiritually mature are you doing it in a spirit

01:13:10.040 of gentleness actually wanting restoration to be the outcome and are you humble not giving

01:13:16.480 into temptation recognizing your own weakness and propensity to sin spiritually mature gentle

01:13:23.180 humble. That's for someone to give a reproof. Also, who are you about to reprove? Are they a

01:13:32.080 swine? Are they a dog? What kind of sin are we about to correct? Notice, not just what degree,

01:13:38.760 what kind of sin, category. What history of sin do we have here? How long? How frequent?

01:13:48.820 And how many times has this person been corrected before?

01:13:53.340 And how has that worked out?

01:13:56.920 How much grace has there been?

01:13:59.600 And in the midst of grace,

01:14:01.520 has there always been obstinate hardness of heart?

01:14:07.540 A refusal to receive correction?

01:14:10.160 Then keep that pearl, baby.

01:14:13.280 Shake the dust off your feet.

01:14:15.720 Move along.

01:14:16.360 find a better investment you're not being harsh you're not being mean you're being shrewd

01:14:24.500 because jesus the master he demands a return he's given you grace and he expects the grace he's

01:14:33.160 given you over the course of your life to be multiplied in others so do not waste your time

01:14:39.860 your whole life trying to multiply that grace he gave you with one person who for all intents and

01:14:47.420 purposes all signs all indicators point that that person is not going to get it can god save anyone

01:14:56.200 yes yes but he can do it with or without you your job is to be fruitful to be fruitful

01:15:05.580 and here's the thing you could write someone off as a swine and god and his providence through

01:15:11.960 human agency could bring someone else who has not yet experienced how obstinate how rebellious

01:15:19.180 they actually don't have the data points to categorize this person as a swine so they're

01:15:23.920 actually being obedient based off of what they know and what they know is preach the gospel to

01:15:27.760 everyone until they prove that they should be written off this person hasn't had that experience

01:15:32.600 yet. And then that's the time and the sovereignty of God and his mercy that the gospel actually

01:15:37.200 bears fruit. That has happened hundreds of times. But that doesn't change the first point that if

01:15:44.580 you've been there for years again and again and again and it's no and it's no and it's no, then

01:15:50.320 move on. So you actually are called to move on. Someone else who doesn't have that experience,

01:15:56.300 doesn't have that data point, so they're not able to make a judgment, a right judgment, accurate

01:16:01.900 judgment they preach the gospel and maybe that's the time where god causes the seed to grow

01:16:07.100 blessed be the name of the lord he's sovereign working all things all these different parts

01:16:12.660 moving parts all the pieces of the puzzle our job again is just obedience obedience

01:16:18.800 go preach reprove correct witness evangelize but be shrewd get a return

01:16:29.540 Jesus demands His investment

01:16:34.500 to multiply.

01:16:36.020 Let's pray.

01:16:36.500 Father, bless Your Word to Your people

01:16:37.980 for Your glory.

01:16:38.960 In Jesus' name.

The NXR Podcast - January 26, 2025

THE SERMON - Pearls Before Swine

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