21
T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
January, 1936
FEBRUARY 9, 1936 JESUS INSISTS ON RIGHTEOUSNESS L uke , C hapter 6
Li»t«n tothi* . R e c o r d * , SPEAK'
Whatever the outward action may be, its source is in the heart. Inasmuch as all men are born with evil hearts (Jer. 17:9), the new birth is essential for righteousness in words and deeds. The Lord insisted upon inner righteous ness. He declared that out of the abundance o f the heart the mouth speaketh. If the heart be right, righteousness will issue from it ; if the heart be wrong, unrighteous ness will be the result. III. R equiring W orks (46-49). It is not enough that a man shall merely profess that Jesus is Lord. The profession must blossom and bear fruit in works, or else the testimony is valueless. The Apostle James, writing long after the Lord Jesus’ utterance of these words, expressed the same truth when he said: “Faith without works is dead” (Jas. 2:20). There were many in our Lord’s day who professed to follow Him, but their works proved that they followed merely for the loaves and fishes which He furnished, and not because of any heart belief in the Saviour. With them, profession consisted simply of words, without the reality o f possession. The Lord then declared that the man who not only hears the Word, but who also obeys it, has a character which is able to withstand the storms o f life (vs. 47, 48). It is a character which rests upon the rock foundation—and the foundation is the all- important thing. The man who hears the Word of the Lord and does what that Word says is building on a firm and secure basis, while the man who hears only, and does no act in accord with what he hears, will some day come to utter ruin. What ever may be the profession, unless the foundation is sure, no superstructure is secure. “ He that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and im mediately it fe ll; and the ruin of that house was great" (v. 49). Our Lord insisted upon righteousness. He taught that “the eye” must be opened— delivered from the blindness o f nature; that the object of life must be reality— delivered from hypocrisy; and that the inner life must be purified—delivered from corruptness. To attain this, the heart must become right, and that transformation is possible only by the new birth through faith in Christ. The proof that saving faith is being exercised will be found in the testimony of the life : It will be built upon the solid foundation of hearing and doing what the Lord has commanded.
Lesson T ext: Lk. 6:39-49. Golden T ext: “Why call ye tne, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say ?” (Lk. 6:46).
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Outline and Exposition I.
C ondemning U nrighteousness (39-44). I n a series of three parables, the Lord warned the people a g a in st common hindrances to righteousness. First, Christ spoke of blind leaders. Ignorant of the futility o f human reason ing, because they are ignorant o f human sinfulness, all such leaders blindly direct their followers along a path that ends in disaster. Wherever experiments are being tried in religious matters, there blindness es present, else why experiment? True Chris tianity has long since passed beyond the borders of experimentation. The one who is “born again” knows where he treads and whither he goes. He treads on solid rock o f eternal verities found in the Word of God, and he walks in a lighted path which ends in glory. But those who are follow ing experiments in the realm o f religion, find themselves constantly groping in the dark, knowing nothing o f present sur roundings nor of what awaits them beyond the veil that separates this world from the next. And the followers of such leaders can never lift themselves above their lead ers, because “the disciple is not above his teacher” (R . V .). The Lord 'warned the people in the days o f His earthly ministry, as He would warn us, o f the danger that there is in all mere speculations, theories, and suppositions. He would have His fol lowers fully assured and able to say, “ I know,” their knowledge being based upon the Word of God. Second, Christ spoke of hypocrites (vs. 41, 42). The ancient word for “ hypo crite” meant simply an actor. Actors in those days wore masks, strange clothing, special pads, and so forth, so that they appeared other than they really were. Their dress hid their true form from both them selves and their observers. Thus they could discern what was wrong about others, but not about themselves. The Lord gave_ a warning to those who were expert in dis cerning the faults o f others, but who did not recognize their own errors. He made it plain that as long as the faults o f hypo crites remained—unconfessed and unfor saken—the individual who possessed them could never help others to whom that one should minister. In order to remove “the mote” from another’s eye, clear vision is required, but the presence of “the beam” makes that clarity impossible. Third, Christ spoke of corruption (vs. 43, 44). “A good tree bringeth not forth corrupt fruit; neither doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.” The evil fruit was proof that the tree producing it was evil and corrupt. To produce righteous living, the blind must come to true sight, the hypocrite must acknowledge reality, and the corrupt must receive purity. The Lord alone could bring about these needed changes, and He would perform the work for all who would accept it. II. R evealing S ources (45). The Lord puts His finger, as it were, on the sources o f both good and evil.
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