611. Gospel of Luke - Chapter 12 (#1) - The Very Hairs of Your Head are all Numbered - August 5, 2024

[00:00:06] Welcome to Wisdom Today. My name is Bill Kelley and I'll be your host. In this podcast we will be exploring the book of Proverbs. Let's open in prayer. Father God, I thank you for anyone listening to this podcast today.

[00:00:26] Lord, I pray that you would reveal to everyone listening how much you truly love each and every one of them. In addition, I pray that everyone listening would have favor with both God and man. I ask this in Jesus name, Amen. This is Proverbs 5, beginning in verse 1.

[00:00:47] My son pay attention to my wisdom, lend your ear to my understanding that you may preserve discretion and your lips may keep knowledge.

[00:00:59] For the lips of an immoral woman, drip honey and her mouth is smoother than oil. But in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword. Her feet go down to death. Her steps lay hold of hell.

[00:01:18] Lest you ponder her path of life. Her ways are unstable, you do not know them. Therefore hear me now, my children, and do not depart from the words of my mouth, remove your way far from her, and do not go near the door of her house.

[00:01:39] Lest you give your honor to others, and your years to the cruel one. Let's alians be filled with your wealth, and your labor's go down to the house of a foreender. And you mourn at last.

[00:01:56] When your flesh and your body are consumed, and say, how I have hated instruction, and my heart despised correction.

[00:02:07] I have not obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor inclined my ear to those who instructed me. I was on the verge of total ruin in the midst of the assembly and congregation.

[00:02:22] Drink water from your own sister, and running water from your own well. Should your fountains be dispersed abroad, streams of water in the streets, let them be only your own, and not for strangers with you, let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice with the wife of your youth.

[00:02:46] As a loving deer and a graceful doe, let her breasts satisfy you at all times, and always be enraptured with her love. For why should you, my son, be enraptured by an immoral woman, and be embraced in the arms of a seductress.

[00:03:06] For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord, and he ponders all his paths, his own iniquities, in trap the wicked man, and he is caught in the cords of his sin.

[00:03:22] He shall die for lack of instruction, and in the greatness of his folly, he shall go astray. Friends, today I'd like to take a closer look at verse 12. And proper five verse 12 says this, and say, how I have hated instruction, and my heart despised correction.

[00:03:49] Friends, we will take a closer look at that verse prior to closing today, but what I'd like to do is to begin this week continuing in our study of the Gospel according to Luke.

[00:04:03] And on last week's podcast we completed chapter 11. We spent about three weeks on that chapter, and it's a wonderful chapter. Today we're going to begin a study on the 12th chapter of Luke. So let's begin in verse 1, and this passage is entitled, beware of hypocrisy.

[00:04:27] In the meantime, one an innumerable multitude of people had gathered together so that they trampled one another. He began to say to his disciples first of all.

[00:04:43] Now friends, I'm in a pause for just a moment here, and just be cautious because I want people to realize how easy it would be to overlook this first verse.

[00:04:58] In the meantime, one an innumerable multitude of people, meaning there were so many people gathered to hear the words of Jesus that you couldn't even count the people. I want you to think about that. This is very important. Be very easy to overlook this.

[00:05:22] The people had gathered together so that they trampled one another. I want to bring that out a little bit. There were so many people, first of all you couldn't count them.

[00:05:34] And secondly, they had such a desire to hear the words of Jesus that they were willing to walk and trample over other people to get a front row seat to listen to him.

[00:05:49] I think that's awesome. In a way, I kind of think it's scary. I hope I am not one who gets trampled on. But let's continue beware of the 11 of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.

[00:06:07] So, friends, my first point of this lesson today is beware of the 11 of the Pharisees. Let's look at verse 2.

[00:06:17] For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed nor hidden that will not be known. Now, friends, I am reading out of the Nelson study Bible and I am going to go over the commentary for verses 1 and 2.

[00:06:35] When they talk about 11 here, it says 11 represents the presence of corruption. On 11 bread is what the Jews ate at Passover. The corruption in view here is hypocrisy. Practicing hypocrisy is senseless because eventually all deeds, both good and evil will be exposed.

[00:07:06] Now, friends, I am going to count here for just a moment because I know many people living on earth are hypocrites. They'll say one thing and they'll turn right around and do exactly what they suggested people not do. I want you to think about that.

[00:07:29] I call it this practice what you preach. If you are going to ask or suggest that people do a certain thing, make sure that you do that as well.

[00:07:43] And that is something the Pharisees would often be accountable for. They were often hypocrites. They would tell people to follow the law, do this, do this, do this, do this, and then they would go and break it themselves.

[00:08:03] It's very, very funny. But that is why Jesus exposed them and often would be at odds with them from the very beginning of his ministry. Let's go on to verse 3.

[00:08:18] Therefore, whatever you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the light and what you have spoken in the ear of inner rooms will be proclaimed from the house tops.

[00:08:34] Now listen to the commentary of my Bible. All secrets will be revealed by God. The inner room was a store room which was surrounded by other rooms. It was the most private part of the house.

[00:08:52] Now friends, I'm going to give a bit of my own commentary and reference to that one verse. And friends, what I want to remind everyone of is God sees everything that you do. A lot of times we live our lives and do things as though God is not watching us.

[00:09:15] But make no mistake about it. Every single thing that you do, God sees number one and number two, you will later at one point in time have to give account of what it is that you did.

[00:09:32] And I think a lot of times if we think about the reality of that, that we wouldn't do a lot of the things that we do in life. Let's go on to verse 4.

[00:09:47] And I say to you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that have no more that they can do. But I will show you whom you should fear.

[00:10:04] Fear him who after he has killed has power to cast into hell. Yes, I say to you fear him. So friends by second point of the day today is to fear him who has power to cast in to hell.

[00:10:27] Now friends, I'm going to camp here for quite a while. I really want to get this point across and I want to make sure every one of the listening audience today understands the the

[00:10:40] The importance of this, a lot of people say that God is a good God and a lot of people have a hard time with the concept of hell because if God is such a good God, how can he allow people to go to hell.

[00:11:05] And I've heard a lot of people question that reality. But friends, second Peter chapter 3 verse 9 says that God is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

[00:11:23] That is God's desire and that is Jesus' desire that not a single person on earth, go to hell or in other words perish.

[00:11:35] That is not their desire, but the one reality that some people struggle with or may not remember or keep in mind or even be aware of is that God has given everyone a free will.

[00:11:52] And friends, God will never override that fact. He won't. If you are unwilling to receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you personally are choosing to spend eternity out of the presence of Jesus.

[00:12:12] If you choose to receive Him, you will be with Him in eternity. If you choose not to receive Him, it is your fault if you go to hell. It is not God's fault.

[00:12:30] Hopefully, I made that very clear. I don't believe I can be any clear than that. Let's go to verse 6.

[00:13:00] Friends, my third and final point for today is this. The very hairs of your head are all numbered. Friends, I'd like to read the commentary for both verses 5 first, even in the context of physical persecution.

[00:13:21] The only one believers should fear is God who sees how we live and judge us. Jesus was not guaranteed physical preservation in this life, but was opening the prospect of deliverance in the next life.

[00:13:44] And what that means is deliverance from the possibility of going to hell. That is what they're referring to here. Now let's look at the commentary for verse 6.

[00:13:57] This verse emphasizes that God knows the most minute detail of what happens on earth. The copper coins mentioned with a smallest coin in circulation at that time.

[00:14:14] And they were worth about one sixth of a basic day's wage, or in other words, if you were working in eight hour day that would be worth about 30 minutes of man labor.

[00:14:32] Friends, before we close today I would like to go back to our verse of the day and we are in, probably five, and we were taking a look at verse 12. And it says, and say, how I have hated instruction and my heart despised correction.

[00:14:56] Now friends, on today's lesson we have been talking about the Pharisees. Now the Pharisees were the religious leaders of the day.

[00:15:06] We also often talk about the scribes and the Sadducees and lawyers. And friends, these are all people who would really want and had a desire to persecute Jesus and to eventually have him killed.

[00:15:22] Friends, these were not good people. And that's what we're talking about in this particular verse. Let's look at this verse again.

[00:15:32] How I have hated instruction and my heart despised correction. Now friends, all four of this group of people, the Pharisees, the scribes, the Sadducees and the lawyers had the opportunity to receive Jesus.

[00:15:55] They had the opportunity to listen to the instruction of Jesus and yet they chose not to do it. They hated the instruction that Jesus offered, and my heart despised correction. Now friends, whenever Jesus would go against these religious leaders, they hated him.

[00:16:24] Several times in the Gospels, they talk about they wanted to kill him. They wanted to take him out of town. They wanted to throw him off a cliff. They ended what Jesus represented to them, because Jesus was a threat to their way of life.

[00:16:47] Friends, Jesus is the answer. There are many people today still unwilling to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior. They feel that the Christian life means that they cannot have any fun.

[00:17:04] I want you to think about that. Many people feel that way. Well, I may do it one day, but I don't want to do it now because I don't want to give up this and this and this and this and this and this and some people there look as very long.

[00:17:18] But friends, the reality is we all need Jesus. We all need Jesus because we are headed straight to hell unless we do receive Him.

[00:17:35] Friends, my call to action today really is very simple. It couldn't be any more clear than it is. Have you received Jesus into your heart? Are you living your life to further advance the kingdom of God to make people aware of Jesus?

[00:17:56] And the fact that He has saved you of all of your sins. Have you done that? Are you in the process of doing that? Are you demonstrating the love of God everywhere you go?

[00:18:11] And friends, a lot of times when I talk about today practice what you preach. I am asking that if you are hypocritical from time to time stop it. Please do not be like a present day, Pharisee and tell people to do one thing and turn right around and do the opposite.

[00:18:38] Friends, I will never end a podcast without giving anyone an opportunity to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

[00:18:47] If there is anyone listening today and you never take in that step, I ask that you repeat a simple prayer after me today. Jesus, I confess that I am the sinner and in need of the Savior.

[00:18:59] I believe that you are that Savior for me. I believe you came to earth and died on a cross and because you did that, I have been reconciled to God.

[00:19:10] I believe all of my sins have been forgiven and thank you for that Jesus. However, I still need your help. I still go through life, tripping and falling and having all kinds of things that I have questions about and I need answers.

[00:19:25] I know you are the answer and because of that, I ask that you come into my heart. I ask that you lead me and guide me from this point forward.

[00:19:35] I make you my Lord and Savior. Friends, if any of you said that, you are now a bona fide member of the family of God. Welcome to the family.

[00:19:47] Now, may the Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make a space shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift up His cabinets upon you and give you peace. Friends, tomorrow is testimony day. Please join me and a special guest as we further explore wisdom today.