More Confrontation with the Pharisees
First B Jackson
2022-09-04

Automatically transcribed. Where this and the recording disagree, the recording is the record.

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There that should keep you going. Well, I'll just close this up then and play this next week. Okay.

Hey there. How are you all? We don't have to wait forty more seconds. Would y'all stand up? I think we started the timer over actually.

It's nine and I know the pastor, he goes long sometime. Would you would you sing with us? Because he lives.

God sent his son. They call him Jesus. He came to love, heal, and forgive. He lived and died. To buy my pardon, An empty grave is there to prove my savior lives because he lives.

I can face tomorrow because he lives. All fear is gone because I know he holds the future And life is worth living just because he lives. How sweet to hold a newborn baby and feel the pride and joy he gives. But greater still, The calm assurance this child can face uncertain days because he lives. Because he lives, I can face tomorrow because he lives.

All fear is gone because I know he holds the future. And life is worth living just because he lives. And then one day, I'll cross that river. I'll fight life's final war with pain. And then as death gives way to victory, I'll see the lights of glory, and I'll know he reigns because he lives.

I can face tomorrow because he lives. All fear is gone because I know he holds the future. And life is worth living just because he lives

Amen. We're going to sing another one. It's there's power in the blood and during that song, I saw somebody see me and say, he shaved. That's what they said and I cut myself so bad shaving this morning. There's power in the blood.

I have a rag over here to stanch the bleeding. If I should pass out, please carry me over to Saint John's. There's power in the blood. It was it's that's what I get for shaving when I'm not used to it. So, I don't know.

Would you be free from your burden of sin? There's power in the blood. Power in the blood. Would you or evil a victory win? There's wonderful power in the blood?

There is power, power, wonder working power. In the blood of the lamb, there is blood of the lamb. Would you be free from your passion and pride? There's power in the blood, power in the blood. And for a cleansing to Calvary's time, there's wonderful power in the blood.

There is power, power, wonder working power in the blood of the lamb. There is power, power, wonder working power in the precious blood of the lamb. Lamb. Would you be whiter, much whiter than snow? There's power in the blood, power in the blood.

Since stains are lost in its life giving flow,

Amen. Thank you. Y'all can have a seat. I have a few announcements. One of em is Monday nights at first B.

We're not doing tomorrow night. It's Labor Day. We're going give the night off. Please have fun on Labor Day. I do want to mention for Monday nights at first B though.

We took a night off couple weeks ago and we're taking this one off. Part of it is I would really love to see the whole church, I guess. Take ownership of Monday night. It's another service. It's an alternative service time.

So, for people that can't make it on Sunday morning, Monday night is a great time. We do meal, music, and a message and lately, there have been a whole lot of nights where Carl has done the meal. Carl has led the music and Carl has done the message. So, I've mentioned this a time or two in this service but if you feel led, we'd love to have some extra volunteers so that Carl does not ever have to do the meal again ever. Okay?

I mean, he's great and he he does a good job with it. But it would be it'd be better if we could spread that around a little bit. So that's not happening tomorrow night. But if you would consider it, that'd be great. Connect hour happens between the services around ten ish down the hall.

There's food and a chance to connect. That's good. Sisters Saved by Grace. This is a Bible study that's being led by Nancy Baxter. It's good.

I see some proponents already sitting in here, some participants. It's every Thursday starts up this Thursday, September 8 with a new study and it's 6PM in the fellowship hall down there to study God's word, pray, and enjoy a meal together. Actually, it's to be together, and it's really, really good. So Thursday nights at six, that's gonna be good. They're gonna be Becoming a Woman of Faith is the new study that starts this week.

Also, ladies Bible study, that's gonna be the community Bible study of Jackson Hole. So Jackson Hole Women's Bible Study, not necessarily a first b thing, but they are meeting here in the afternoon oh, excuse me, in the morning, Wednesdays ten to twelve. They'll be meeting here from September up through November or so. Deb Buckingham will be teaching and Lissa Hunter will be leading the music but she's doing it with grabbing a worship team from a different church each week. They've asked us to take one of em and we'll be playing with Lissa and we love that.

She's great. So, Wednesdays ten to twelve right here at 1st B in this room Sound booth volunteers are still needed. If you wanna talk to the guy in the sound booth up there, that's Nick Stern. He is running it right now, but he'd love to train you in how to help. And Awana is back.

Awana is back. That's starting September 26. So let school get started and let the program start up a little after. September 26, but we do need some volunteers. Mike Demetrius is asking for volunteers.

It takes a lot of people to do Awana well. And we have had several families move away, some of them pretty important in the in the lineup of volunteers. So with Katie Clark missing, it's gonna make things a little more difficult unless we can find a replacement for Katie. But the way we do it is we just keep on keeping on. Right?

So Juana is back. That's good. Dinner and movie on Friday evenings. All Friday evenings except for the first Friday. We already have something else going on on the first Friday, a craft night.

But second, third, fourth, and if there is a fifth Friday in the fellowship hall, there'll be The Chosen, the series The Chosen. They're starting with episode three this week from first season. If you want to go to that, you can call Nancy T. You don't even have to call her. You can just show up.

But 06:00 on Friday evening, just not the first Friday. Okay. Oh my goodness. There are lot of announcements this morning. If you're new to First Be or if you have a prayer request or if you wanna connect or if you just wanna tell us anything, if you got a little message of encouragement or I told the first service, our message of discouragement.

Whatever you want to write on there, write it on there and you can put it in the offering plate when it passes by. And we'd love to just hear from you. We haven't been doing this in a couple of years, but we've started back just this Sunday. So if you see the card in front of you, you're welcome to write it. And I told the first service this too.

It it struck me as funny. Years and years and years ago, Tanya and I were visiting a church somewhere and they had these little cards in the in the back of the pew in front of us. They were blue cards and they had written in dark blue. It said, my wish dot dot dot and you know, it had a place for mark a box for a pastor to come visit or I wish that that somebody would pray with me about such and such prayer request. And then it had some lines with the other box and the lines out there.

It said, my wish dot dot dot that we would sit down and remain seated. That is the most honest thing I've ever heard. They just left it in the pew right right right there in front of us. I kept that thing in my Bible for years. I wish I could find it.

Old Bills. Old Bills is happening this this week. The run is actually on Saturday. They're meeting in front of the Jackson Elementary, I believe, instead of downtown to do that. Given season is open though from August 12 up through September 16.

Our benevolence fund is what we use those funds for. If you wanna give to Firstbee's benevolence fund, you can give through the Community Foundation of Jackson Hole. There are brochures and there's a way on our website. And that will amplify your giving. So for every dollar that you decide you should give, it'll come to us as like a dollar 50.

So it's really nice. You can also give to Good Samaritan. Think he spoke last week here, Turning Point. There are lots of other really great five zero one c threes, but if you want to, you can do that. And speaking of Good Samaritan, the Fishers, you know, John and Heather Fisher, do you all know them?

They have been in church here for a long time and they have been doing a meal on the third Thursday of the month for years and years and before they were doing it, Russ and Yvonne were doing it and they did it every every Thursday for a long time. It gives the cook a night off over there but if you would, if you want to, that's Heather's number. You can call us and we'll connect you if you need to but if you would consider cooking a meal over there once a month or you and a friend might trade off. I don't know but if you want to, that is available. It sounds like we've got a lot of asking for volunteers this morning but new programs are starting up and it's just that time of year and hey, worthy is the lamb.

To keep on doing the work he's put before us. Nothing you do for the Lord is ever in vain. Did I forget anything? Good gracious, I hope not. Is there anything else?

Would you stand up? We're going to sing about the worthiness of the lamb. God, you are worthy, and I pray that you'd receive the praise this morning from us. We recognize your worthiness. God, you've given to us so freely.

And I pray, Lord, that you would use us as instruments of your mercy and instruments of your grace, that we would be reaching out and proclaiming good news that Christ still forgives sin. In Jesus name, amen. Let's sing freely, freely.

Forgave my sin In Jesus' name, I've been born again. In Jesus' name, and in Jesus' name, I come to you to share his love as he told me to. He said, freely, freely, you have received. Freely, freely give. Go in my name and because you believe others will know that I live.

All power is given in Jesus' name. In earth and heaven. In Jesus' name. And in Jesus' name, I come to you to share his power as he told me to. He said, freely, freely, you have received.

Freely, freely give. Go in my name and because you believe others will know

Y'all can have a seat. I'm gonna invite the ushers to come forward. This is the worship through giving or the operatory time this morning. Would you just pray with me? God, thank you.

Thank you, Lord, for this morning, for the contentment that we have found in you, Lord. I pray that you'd impress upon our hearts the best way, your way of sharing that kind of contentment with those who are wrestling right now. Wrestling with themselves, wrestling with you. In Jesus' name, Lord, you've given to us so freely. Would you allow us the grace to be able to give just that freely to others?

May we act out of deep agape love for the community around us. In Jesus name, Lord, we pray that you'd take these offerings and that you would multiply them, bless them like you did the bread and the loaves. I mean, the loaves and the fishes, and that you would, Lord, expand those to the very uttermost parts. God, have your way with us, and may your will be done in your way among us this morning. Amen.

The cross upon which Jesus died is a shelter in which we can hide. And its grace, all free is sufficient for me. There's There's room at the cross for you. Though millions have come, there's still room for one. Yes.

There's room at the cross for you. Though millions have found him a friend and have turned from the sins they have sinned. The savior still waits to open the gates and welcome a sinner before it's too late. There's room at the cross for you. There's room at the cross for you.

The hand of the savior is strong, and the love of my savior is long. Through sunshine or rain, through loss or in gain, the blood flows from Calvary to cleanse every stain. There's room at the cross for you. There's room at the cross for you. Though millions have come, there's still room for one.

Yes. There's room at the cross for you.

Amen. Thank you. Thank you. Wow. More confrontation with the Pharisees.

There it is. That's the title this week. Actually, most of the week, that working title on this one was mind your own business. But it just seemed a little bit confrontational, so I changed it. More confrontation with the pharisees.

Actually, you could name almost every sermon in the New Testament more confrontation with the pharisees because that's a lot of the repartee that we hear. The back and forth is often from Jesus and, oh my goodness, the religious folk. So y'all are here and I'm here. I'm pastor of the First Baptist Church of Wyoming. Oh, Jackson, Wyoming.

Oh my goodness. I'm a religious person. Right? And y'all are here. Some of y'all are here on vacation.

Y'all are religious people too and I know that it's about relationship, not about religion. I know that but if we will allow God to reach our hearts, if we will soften our hearts, instead of hardening it like pharaoh and the pharisees, if we will allow for a soft heart, God will transform our life. So more confrontation with the pharisees. God help us. We're gonna start in John and we'll go through Matthew.

Spend most of the time in Matthew, Then I'll try to rather hurriedly go through Mark's version of the same story. Context is king. John seven starts like this, after these things. If you read John six, this is after the feeding of the 5,000 and it's after Jesus put the disciples on the boat and told them to get out of there and recognize that the crowd he had just fed was gonna seek to make him king by force. He recognized that and it's the last sermon that I did here two weeks ago was Jesus walks.

He walks away from being made an earthly king by these people being swept up in a tide of political tide actually. He resisted that. He went alone by himself and then he walked out on the Sea Of Galilee and it says, finally in the text by Mark, he says, and he intended to pass the boat, but they saw him. And when they saw him, Peter jumped out of the boat, kept his eyes on Jesus. He jumped out of the boat and he was able to walk on the water.

And then when he took his eyes off of him, he sank. That's immediately before this. So after these things, they had arrived on the other side of the lake. That would be the western shore of the Sea Of Galilee and they began healing and delivering the message. The miracles authenticating that message and after these things, Jesus was walking in Galilee.

In Galilee for he was unwilling to walk in Judea because the Jews were seeking to kill him. Jesus was strategic. He was paying attention. He was walking in Galilee because the Jews were seeking to kill him. Now, this coincides with Matthew's version that starts off this way, then some pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem.

So he's walking in Galilee. If he's not gonna come to them, they're gonna come to him. The scribes and pharisees come to Jesus from Jerusalem and they said, why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread. For the pharisees, cleaning your hands and cleaning yourself completely was a really, really big deal.

Mark goes into more detail. We'll get to that in a minute. But they would come to the hand they come to the table after having completely scrubbed up with a certain number of motions, everything exactly so, and come like a surgeon to the table. If they went into the marketplace and they were around those dirty Gentiles, when they got home, did an absolutely full bath before they would get anywhere near anything having to do with food. So it's a big deal for them.

Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? Why is it that they're not going with us? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread. And he answered to them and said to them, why do you yourselves also break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? He says also, he's not denying that they broke the tradition of the elders.

He's he's agreeing that they did break the tradition of the elders, the pharisees. Why do you yourselves also and he goes beyond the tradition of the elders and say, why is it that you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? Wow. More confrontation with the Pharisees. That's which is more important?

I mean, the disciples say, who are gonna fear? God or man in Acts? But why do you yourselves also break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? For God said, honor your father and mother. Nobody's denying that.

It's one of the 10. Right? For sure, the one who speaks evil of father and mother is to be put to death. Woah. That's a very strong command from God that we are to honor father and mother.

The one who even speaks evil of father and mother is to be put to death, but you don't do that. You say whoever says to his father and mother, whatever whatever I have that I would help you with mom and dad, I've given that to God. Isn't that a holy sanctified religious way of doing things? Now it's Corbin. Mark calls it Corbin.

It is a way of setting aside some of your income for God. This is set aside, but it's still yours. It's still your account. You still got it. It's kind of a tax shelter if you look at it that way.

You're holding it off and you're saying, ah, too bad mom and dad. I'm so sorry. I'm so holy. I have given that to God. Whoever says to his father and mother, whatever I have that would help you has been given to God.

He is not to honor his father or mother. The pharisees agree with that and by this, Jesus says, you have invalidated the word of God for the sake of your own tradition. This is just the first example he's got. He's he's not gonna give a whole lot of examples to them, but he will go on and blast again. You hypocrites.

Now hypocrites, I'm gonna I'm gonna share a lot of Greek this morning. And the reason is because I wanna stay as close to the text as I can and me get out of the way as much as I can. So I'm looking up the words and putting up here what the lexicon says that it is so that you know what it is. But Hippocrates is a hypocrite, a dissembler, or a pretender. It's an extension an extension of an actor in a play.

Although, that type is never used in the New Testament. To mean actor officially on stage, it's never used in the New Testament, but it is throughout classical Greek. They are implying that they are arrogant and hard of heart, utterly devoid of sincerity and genuineness. And then the lexicon I have has a little word help down there. It says Christianity requires really that believers should be open and above board, above reproach.

They should though be themselves. Be who you are in Christ. Their lives should be like an open book, easily read. And if I were to say, you know, the reason why AA works so well is because people who have the same condition understand each other better. If we consider ourselves all to be sinners, then we can understand each other better.

Your sin may not be the same as mine, but we'll get to that before the end of this message. If you just look it up in English, Merriam Webster online says, the Greek word itself is a compound noun made up of two Greek words that literally translate as an interpreter from underneath. So a judge under a mask. So in the Greek plays, tragedies, or comedies, they had these different masks, and these are some of those masks from that time period. And you have the mask that you hold up, and the person under there is not really that mask.

That's the point. There are a lot of these. They're all over. There are lots of these. So oh, and Shakespeare.

I thought of this. Ophelia, you remember? In the same to be or not to be part of Hamlet, when Hamlet is out there and it's the get thee to the nunnery speech where he keeps on saying that to Ophelia. He says, God hath given you one face and you make yourself another. He was picking on her actually for wearing makeup, but he was calling her a hypocrite at the same time.

It's sort of a double entendre. And it's the worst thing he could say. It's in a long list of installs, but the worst thing he could say about her was that she was a hypocrite. Rightly, you hypocrites, Jesus says. Rightly did Isaiah prophesy about you.

Isaiah is the prophet that Jesus quoted the most. He quoted the book of Psalms more than any other Old Testament passage book. But Isaiah was his favorite for quoting because Isaiah's prophecies fit his time so well. Rightly did Isaiah prophecy about you by saying this people, this people, hypocrites, honors me with their lips, but their heart is far away from me. And in vain do they worship me.

This is a common theme in the prophets, minor prophets, major prophets. In vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men. Have you all had any weird traditions? If I were to give out a questionnaire, right now, if I were to hand out a questionnaire and say, what have you ever been to a church that had some weird little quirk that was just absolutely understood that everybody who goes to this church will do this or they won't do that. I know that going into church in Mexico, blue jeans were one of those things that were absolutely forbidden.

How can a Christian come to church in blue jeans? It was a big deal. Flip flops. Oh my goodness. I wear flip flops sometimes up here.

Goodness. There are some. I I saw one this week. This is not why I shaved. I saw one this week from a pastor, little clip, and he said,

beards are not of God.

They are not apostolic and he screamed and screamed about it, you know? He went on and on and on and and and I and I had already shaved but it was it was a deal. You know, it was a deal. If you didn't do certain things and they're teaching as doctrines, the commandments of men. It's cultural more than anything else.

Isaiah twenty nine thirteen says, then the Lord said, because this people approaches me only with their words and honors me with their lips, but their heart is far away from me, and their reverence for me consist of the commandment of men that is taught. They're doing every little good thing that you can do, but really their heart's far from me. After this, after he said what Isaiah said, after this, Jesus called the crowd to him. Now, he'd been speaking directly to the pharisees, you hypocrites. After this, he called the crowd and said, hear and understand everybody.

It's not what enters into the mouth that defiles the person but what comes out of the mouth. This is what defiles the person. And then the disciples came to him. So we got three crowds. There's the pharisees.

There's a whole crowd, and then there's the disciples. And they came to him and said, Jesus, do you know that you that the pharisees were offended when they heard this statement? Do you know that? Did you do it on purpose? Did you really do that?

They're the most religious folks around. Do you know that they were offended when they heard this statement? And this is the statement. Hear and understand, it's not what enters the mouth that defiles a person. This is their big deal.

This is the one for them that you show up to the table like this or you don't show up to the table. What comes out of the mouth? That's what defiles them. Did you know that that statement nailed them and they didn't like it? And he answered and said, well, every plant which my heavenly father did not plant will be uprooted.

There's an implication there. Y'all remember the wheat and the tares? So the wheat and the tares, I've got all the slides up here. I'm not gonna read them. Y'all remember the story right?

There are wheat and there are tares. And he says, let them grow up together. Let them both grow up together. Actually, Should we gather them up? And he says, no, while you're gathering the weeds, you might uproot the wheat with them.

Allow both of them to grow together until the harvest. And at the time of the harvest, I'll say to the reapers, gather up those weeds and buy them in bundles and burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn. And then he gives an explanation further and it goes all the way through it. Explain that. Well, the one who sows the good seed is the son of man in the field of the world and ask for the good seed, these are sons of the kingdom.

But the weeds are the sons of the evil one. And the enemy who sowed them is the devil and the harvest is the end of the age and the reapers are angels. And Jesus' implication, actually, let me go on. So just as the weeds are gathered up and burned, so shall it be at the end of the age. The son of man will send forth his angels and they'll gather out of his kingdom all stumbling blocks and all that commit lawlessness and they'll throw them into the furnace of fire in that place where they'll be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Then the righteous will shine forth like the sun in the kingdom of their father. The one who has ears, let him hear. Every plant which my heavenly father did not plant will up be uprooted. Leave them alone. Let them grow up together.

Yes. They're doing it for the wrong reasons. Yes. They're missing the point, and they are not doing it by the spirit of God under the will of the father, but still leave them alone. There will always be naysayers.

There will always be self righteous hypocrisy. Leave them alone. Remember the wheat and the tares. Leave them alone. They'll they're blind guides and they're leading blind people.

And if a person who is blind guides another who is blind, both of them are gonna fall into a pit. That's just the way that it is. Peter said to him, explain this to me. Please, explain it to us. Jesus said, are you still lacking an understanding Peter?

Goodness gracious. Do you not understand that everything that goes into your mouth, this is what they're upset about. They're upset because you're eating with dirty hands. Do you not understand that everything that goes into your mouth just passes into the stomach and then it's eliminated. It's the things that come out of the mouth.

They come from the heart and those are the things that defile the person. Now, we've heard this before from Jesus too. Have we heard it before? Yes. In Luke six forty five, we hear a good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings brings forth forth good, and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil.

For out of the abundance of the heart, his mouth speaks. Actually, Matthew says the same thing in Matthew twelve thirty four. He's speaking to the pharisees when he says it, you brood of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak any good things? For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks or the overflow of the heart. So actually, right now, as I'm standing here, I'm thinking of all the words that came out of my mouth this week, last night, the night before, the night before.

And I'm thinking, that's what's in my heart. God help me. For out of the heart come what? Evil thoughts. This is where I said we're gonna get into a lot of Greek.

Now, Greek we're gonna get into is just straight definitions of this list of things, but there are a lot of them. So try not to fall asleep. I know some of you are like language nerds and you'll love this and others of you are going, why can't he just say it? For out of the heart come evil thoughts. That is is a calculation, a reasoning, a thought, a movement of thought, a deliberation, or a plotting.

Means back and forth reasoning where James would say a double minded man is unstable in all his ways. Reasoning that is self based and therefore it's confused. It's self referent. It's the way that I feel. I feel that I'm right.

And so I'm gonna keep on with confirmation bias reinforcing my own point over and over and over again, especially as it contributes to reinforcing others in a discussion to remain in their initial prejudice. It is what builds teams and alliances. That's why politics make strange bedfellows. Panoro is just evil, bad, wicked or malicious. Panoras actually is an adjective that is used substantively sometimes from panas meaning pain or laborious trouble.

Properly, it is that which is pain ridden. It emphasizes the inevitable agonies or misery that always go with evil. Evil is what it means, evil. But it's painful and laborious. Out of the heart come evil thoughts and murders.

Definition of this is easier, murders. If you don't know what murder is, it is intentional and unjustified homicide. And Jesus said it comes from the heart. Actually, Jesus said in a different place that if you have killed somebody in your mind, you have murdered them. Whenever you see in the New American Standard and several other versions of the English Bible, whenever you see italics, it is because they've added those words in the text.

What the text says is adultery. Acts of adultery is the outward act of what can take place in the heart as Jesus alludes to or says explicitly later. And is adultery. That's what it means. So there's evil thoughts and murders and adultery and immoral sexual acts.

Pornea. Pornea is the broad term for immoral sexuality, immoral sexual acts. It's the root of the English terms pornographic and pornography. It's derived from perneo, which means to sell off. It is selling off of sexual purity, surrendering sexual purity.

It's promiscuity of any and every type. So it's anything outside of God's command. That is the term that Jesus uses when the pharisees and his their opponents come to him, and they're trying to trick him, and they ask him about divorce. And Jesus says divorce except for in cases of porneia. It's anything outside of marital sexuality.

Promiscuity of any and every type. That's porneia. Thefts. Thefts. This is an interesting one.

It's not robbery so much where it's like armed robbery where you take a gun and you take from someone. It is theft that is done undercover through stealth or fraud, etcetera. It is thievery that is done secretly. It's not out there in the open or with vines. Clopi, clopi.

And it's actually from klepto. Klepto mania, right? Klepto means I steal. Thefts, taking secretly. False testimony, pseudo martyriae.

Pseudo martyriae is false testimony. Martyr, you see the word in there. Martyr means witness. We are to be marturia. We are to be witnesses, not pseudo marturia, to be false witnesses or bear false witness.

And then Matthew ends his list right here. Slanderous statements is blasphemy, blasphemia, which is blasphemy, abusive or scurrilous language. And scurrilous just because we do this every time we hit it, making or spreading scandalous claims about someone with the intention of damaging their reputation. It is a scurrilous attack on his integrity. Most often we think of it as being a scurrilous attack on a capital h, God's integrity.

But it can be either. So it's abusive or scurrilous language. It's slow to call what is good good or slow to call what is evil evil, and blasphemy switches right for wrong and wrong for right, and it calls that which God disapproves right and exchanges the truth of God for a lie. So if I were to ask, and I I don't do invitations with every head bowed and every eye closed. But if I were to ask without looking at you, if you feel like we're all of us, whether in church or in society, in a place where blasphemy is the norm.

It feels like these days and it always has. According to Jesus, it was already going on at that time. Down is up and up is down. And if you mention it, it's really really hard. These are the things that defile the person.

That's the list in Matthew. These are the things. Where do they come from? Out of the heart. So they're already there.

They're already there. It's not the doing of the washing hands or the other. But they eat with unwashed hands. That doesn't defile the person. Now, this is the big deal for the pharisees.

This was their sacred act that set them apart from all of those other sinners and Jesus said to the crowds, to the crowds and to the disciples, it shouldn't be that big a deal. We're gonna go at the end today, we're gonna do the Lord's Supper. It'll be communion. We're gonna pass these around. And I don't know I don't think I'm gonna see a whole lot of y'all running to wash your hands before you do this.

Maybe. You're welcome to if you want to. Boy, would that be hard after this sermon though? So that's Matthew. Mark.

Mark tells the same story. Again, I've already said that John says this happened in Galilee. Pharisees and some of the scribes gathered to him in Galilee after they came from Jerusalem and they saw that some of his disciples, not all of them. I imagine Peter was probably washing his hands. Don't you?

He says, I've never eaten any unclean thing, lord. Never. They spent three days in Samaria. He probably did eat the whole time. They saw that some of his disciples were eating their bread with unholy hands.

Mark doesn't say unwashed. He does. He he clarifies. He says, with unholy hands. That is unwashed hands for the pharisees and all.

The other Jews did not eat unless they carefully wash their hands. Thereby, they're holding firmly to the tradition of the elders. And when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they completely cleanse themselves. And there are many other things which they have received as traditions to firmly hold such as the washing of cups and pitchers and copper pots. And honestly, if you know someone who is a devout Orthodox Jew today, or if you know someone who is a devout follower of Islam, they have these rules in place and they do not do anything without doing those rules.

That's a normal thing. It's still a part of a lot of people's lives. The pharisees and scribes asked him, why is it that your disciples do not walk in accordance with tradition of the elders, but they eat their bread with unholy hands? And he said to them, rightly did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites. My goodness.

This seems like such harsh language coming from gentle Jesus meek and mild. You know though, and it comes up a lot, but God opposes the proud and he gives grace to the humble. God opposes the proud and he gives grace to the humble. And it didn't sound terribly proud the way that they presented the question in Mark, but he recognized that in them. And there's some resistance here to their pride.

Rightly did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites. As it is written, this people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far away from me and in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men. There are some things that are just cultural. In missionary training, one of the things that they taught us was it's not right or wrong. It's just different.

It's not right or wrong. It's just different. And it's gonna it's gonna chop your head, some of you. But it's not right or wrong. It's just different.

Some things are cultural. Don't teach as doctrines the commandments of men. Teach God's command. Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men. And he also said to them, this is even further, you are experts at setting aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition.

And you'll make it just as holy as you can make it. For Moses said, honor your father and your mother, the one who speaks evil of father and mother is certainly to be put to death. But you say, if a person says to his father or mother, whatever I have that I would have given to you is Corbin, given over to God. Too bad I can't help with that. You no longer allow him to do anything with his father or mother.

Thereby, you invalidate the word of God by your tradition which you have handed down. And you do many such things as that. This is just one example Jesus is saying and I he may have listed more. These are this is what scripture gives us. So that's what we'll go with, but he's saying, it's not just this either.

There's a long list of stuff. And after that, he called the crowd to him again and he said to them, listen to me, all of you and understand this, there is nothing outside the person which can defile him if it goes into it. There are some harmful things. We have there are poisons. There are things that can go in and hurt you, but he's saying that it's you're not defiled by these things.

There's nothing outside the person which can defile him if it goes into him, but the things which come out of the person are that which defile the person. And when he laid it into a house, away from the crowd, his disciples asked him about the parable. And he said to them, are you so lacking in understanding as well? Do you not understand? It's funny because Mark, like I said, two weeks ago, is Peter's story told through Mark.

Right? And in Matthew, it says Peter asked him. And then in Mark, it says his disciples were asking. His disciples were asking. But Peter, like I said, Peter is pretty observant about the traditions of men and he struggles with it and we know that because Paul said he had to confront him face to face in Acts, right?

Are you so lacking in understanding as well? Do you not know that whatever goes into the person from outside cannot defile him? Because it does not go into his heart, but it goes into his stomach and then it's eliminated. And then right here at the parenthetic expression here, says, thereby, he declared all foods clean. Now we know that he's gonna do that with Peter particularly in Acts 10 at the house of Cornelius.

It's gonna happen. But this is Mark saying it. He was already telling us this before we got it. He'd already mentioned it. And he was saying, that which comes from outside of the person, that which comes out of the person, that is what defiles a person for.

From within, out of the hearts of people come, and here's the list again. I won't redefine the ones that we just defined. Evil thoughts, same as above. Sexual immorality, same word as above. Theft, same word as above.

Murder, same. Adultery, same. Deeds of greed, that's a new one. He adds to the list, deeds of greed and the word there

is

pleonixii. Covetousness. I I don't think greed and immediately think covetous, but it is. When we look at something that someone else has and we want it, that is greed. Avarice, aggression, desire for advantage.

Oh my goodness. It's derived from plaion numerically more and exo having or to have. Properly desire for more things, lusting for a greater number of temporal things that go beyond what God determines is eternally best. Beyond his preferred will, covetousness or coveting, deeds of greed, wickedness, same as the evil thoughts above, panorai. Wickedness or iniquities, it has to do with that pain or laborious trouble.

Deceit. This is a new one too. Deceit is deceit, guile, or treachery. And actually, in the list, there are some things that hit the pharisees really squarely, and there are other things that hit the licentious folks pretty squarely. And if we're honest, a lot of them hit us pretty squarely.

So deceit, guile, or treachery. That Corbin example is one of those. So Corbin is, oh, I've set this aside for God. Too bad, mom and dad. Aren't I holy?

Well, if you don't take care of your family, you're worth than an infidel. Properly, it is bait figuratively. Is deceit or trickery using it to bait or hook people, especially those people already festering in excessive emotional pain. When I see this, the first thing I think of is predatory lending. I think of payday loans where, yeah, we'll give you next Friday's paycheck today at 40% interest.

Deceit that is motivated by guile, we're here to help you. That's the way they advertise those things. We're here to help. You don't have any money right now? We'd be glad to give you your next Friday's paycheck.

If you'll give us half of it back when it comes in. They use decoys to snare or deceive people, which implies treachery, especially to exploit the naive and undiscerning. They bait them through their own greed. The other one is multi level marketing. Oh my goodness.

I'll stop right there. Indecent behavior. Indecent behavior. Like I said, some of the things hit Pharisees squarely, and there are other ones that are for folks that are more in the licentious. They feel free to do whatever they please.

This one is one of those. Is outrageous conduct. Conduct that is shocking to public decency. It is a wanton violence, wanton ness or lewdness. Properly, it's violent spite which rejects restraint and indulges in lawless insolence.

Oh, I probably shouldn't go there, but I'm going to anyway. Woodstock in 1969, three days of peace, love, and music. You know, that has been heralded as one of the best things and people got together great. You all know what Woodstock ninety nine was? It was this.

It was so ugly. They burned the place down after it was nearly over. Violent spite which rejects all restraint and indulges in lawless insolence. Envy. Envy.

Actually, this one's fun because it's it's literally it means an evil eye. Properly, has to do probably, it has to do with greed or envy, but literally, it is an evil eye. And in Mexico, Pascal was born there. She lived her first full year there. And in Mexico, the evil eye is a big deal.

And if people see your baby and they just look at them and they don't they just notice them, they have to go over to them and they have to do a sign of the cross. It's a cultural thing. It's weird. I know. But they'll go over and go Pascal had a little blister.

Not really. No. Because they'd see her and then and she's you know, she's a little white baby. And we're she they go over to see her and they don't want it to be evil eye, so they'd bless her afterwards. If you see them without blessing them, it's an evil eye.

That's cultural. But it probably does have to do with greed or envy. I'm not. But I give you what it says. Slander.

Slander again is blasphemy. So that is the scurrilous or abusive language. Can be to another person or it can be towards God. It is saying what is something that's actually good about them is evil, or it's saying something that is actually evil about them is good. And that same goes for whether it's a person or with God.

And then pride. Oh my goodness. Pride, the original. The original one got the devil thrown out, right? Pride.

In this case, it's not the normal word for pride that we're used to seeing, but it's pride, arrogance, or disdain. It's hyper ephonia. Properly, it is excessive shining. It is self exaltation. I shall make myself like the most high.

Self absorption, which carries with it its own self destructive vanity and foolishness. Rounding out the list. Foolishness. And foolishness is this, Afro Sunae. Sunae adds to it the quality of beingness, and it's from Ephron, but it's a want of sense.

That boy just don't have any sense. Foolishness, impiety, wickedness. It describes someone who is lacking true moderation because they fail to grasp cause and effect relationships. IE it is a willful ignorance and understanding what prompts inevitable effects. To keep doing the same thing you've been doing, expecting different results is foolish.

All of these evil things come from within. Where? From within, out of the hearts of people, and it is bound up in our hearts. Actually, that's what foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child. That's one of them.

And that's what defiles the person. And I think that's the last slide. Weird place to end, but we're not ending there. We're going here. So if you listen to that whole list, I've been wrestling with it for three straight weeks.

If you listen to that whole list and you didn't see yourself anywhere, don't take communion this morning. God, thank you for providing for us the precious blood of Christ. Thank you for providing Jesus. Thank you for walking it out. Every day by the will of the father, under the power of the spirit.

Thank you, Jesus, that you came in humility as a man and you walked it out perfectly. You had a perfect wreck that you could hand over to anyone who would believe, to trust, humbly call out. Anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Lord, help us with our own phariseeism. Help us with our own licentious tendencies.

Help bring us up out of either one of those ditches, out of either one of those pits, and help us, lord, to just follow after you with eyes wide open, not blind. Following after you and bringing along anyone with us, lord, that you would see fit to bring along. In Jesus name, may we be doing your will and your way. I'm gonna invite the ushers to come forward and we have communion set up like we used to. It's not the little plastic cups that nobody can open.

It's not the little tinfoil wrapper that gets you. This is the real deal. I get an amen on that. Yep. We're remembering the sacrifice of Jesus this morning.

He walked it out in perfect submission to God's will by his spirit and he is allowing for us to take that in and be a part of it. God, would you bless the distribution of this bread this morning? This little oyster cracker that is representative of the perfect life well lived in the body, in the flesh by Jesus. Amen. On the night that Jesus was betrayed, he gave this to his disciples there.

After supper, after he'd given thanks, he broke bread and he gave it to him and said, this is my body which is given for you. Take this and eat and do it in remembrance of me. Lord, to know that you did that on a Thursday night. And then on Friday, the disciples all scattered. Prone to wander.

Lord, we feel it. Bring us back from the things that are bound up in our hearts. Transform our lives, Lord. We ask it. This is representative of our desire that you would do that.

We pray to keep a soft heart before you. God, would you bless the distribution of this grape juice in a plastic cup? Lord, a representative of the precious blood, the perfect lamb that was spilled intentionally and voluntarily. In Jesus name, Lord, we ask that you'd bless this cup and anyone who partakes of it. And Lord, for those who must let the cup pass because they just don't believe this is not their way.

God, I pray that the the quiet witness of a loving person in this room would draw them into a relationship that matters to you. In Jesus name, amen. In the same manner that Jesus had taken the bread, he also took the cup. And he said to his disciples there and he says to us too, this is the new covenant in my blood. New covenant.

Oh, they had been waiting for it for so long. This is how God saves the new covenant. All that was represented in Jesus' sacrifice. This is the new covenant in my blood. Take this and drink.

Take it in. Do it as often as you will in remembrance of me. Amen. Amen. The Doxology.

Would you stand with me? We're gonna sing the Doxology to close. I'll just acapella?

Alright. Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise him all creatures here below. Praise him above the heavenly host. Praise father, son, and holy ghost.

Amen.

And for the benediction today. Yes, ma'am. Please do. Would you like for the people on the Internet to hear it because they can't do it from there.

I'm Liam Taylor and I grew up in this church not quite a hundred years ago, but I am so thankful. I just sing in the doxology just now. I learned that in this church, and my four or five, I thought I could sing it. I thought, I've arrived. But I am just so grateful looking around.

This church is still here. This church is still a witness for Christ. This church is still reaching out to those that don't know him yet, and it's getting close that we get to go. Meet our lord and savior, Jesus Christ, who shed his blood on that cross for us, but it didn't stop there. He rose again so we can go to.

And I'm just thankful for this church. I'm very thankful for pastor Ray. He continues to preach the word right out of the pay right off the page. And one, thank you. Thank you.

Yes, we do.

Amen. May the Lord bless and keep you and make his face to shine upon you and give you peace and may you be handing that peace out to people along the way. Amen.