“Barriers to
Eternal Life”
Matthew 23:13-14
©January
22, 2006 Rev. Bruce Goettsche SERIES: Learning from the Mistakes of Others
A person once wrote, “You can be sure that when
someone says, “I hope you won’t mind me saying this. . . “ you are going
to mind.”
Criticism is difficult to take. We would rather people congratulate us on
what we are doing right than point out what we are doing wrong. Some people seem to relish pointing out the
faults of others. However, there are
others who admonish us because they love us.
They aren’t trying to feel superior or manipulate us to do what they
want . . . they simply want to help us grow in our relationship with Jesus
Christ. These are among our most
cherished friends.
The rebuke of a friend can turn us from danger. A pointed observation can turn us from a
time of stagnation to a time of growth.
In Matthew 23:13-26 Jesus has
some pointed criticism of the religious leaders of the day. Jesus is telling the truth in the hope that
the truth might awaken some of the one’s He is criticizing and warn those who
are listening. There are at least seven
different indictments in this passage.
Jesus begins each with the word
“Woe”. The word “Woe” is an expression
of extreme horror and grief. It is a
statement of condemnation. It could be
said that it is just the opposite of when Jesus says, “Blessed are you . . . “
In six of the seven “woes” Jesus
begins by calling the Pharisees and Teachers of the law “Hypocrites”. The one exception is in verse 16 where he
calls them “blind guides.” A Hypocrite
was a play actor . . .a pretender.
This morning we look at verse
13,
13
“Woe to you, teachers of the law
and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces.
You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.
[Mt. 23:13]
The
teachers of the law and Pharisees were people who believed they were leading
people to God. Jesus said they were
keeping people FROM God. They were
slamming the door in the face of those who wished to know God. They were leading people to Hell, not
Heaven.
It
is a devastating thought isn’t it?
Those who think they are serving the advancement of the Kingdom might
actually be hindering its’ advancement.
Consequently we need to study these words carefully.
HOW BARRIERS ARE ERECTED
By Opposing Jesus.
The primary way the Pharisees
shut the door of Heaven was by speaking against Jesus. They told people He was working for the
Devil. They said his miracles were
sinful. They attacked Him personally
and rejected His message fully. In doing so, they were turning people away from
the source of salvation. Apart from
Christ, no one can be forgiven or know eternal life.
There are those today who do the same thing. There are those in the so-called “Jesus
Seminar” who tell us not to trust the words of Jesus in the Bible. They twist His words and try to re-make Him
into their image. They explain away the
plain teaching of our Lord. When they
do so, they are shutting the door of the gospel in men’s faces.
By Our Neglect. We hinder people in their
desire to know life with God by not telling them about Jesus. Deep within each person is a yearning for
significance. There is a desire to know
if there is “something more” to life than what we can see and touch. People are searching for a connection with
something beyond this life.
We have the key that unlocks the door to this deeper
life. We know where to find peace with
God. When we don’t share the message of
Christ with others we are like a person who watches someone frantically looking
for something while all the time we holding the sought item behind his back. We are like a Doctor who withholds an
antidote to a deadly poison or the treatment for a deadly disease. We are like those who refuse to throw a life
preserver to one who is drowning. Our
passive indifference has the same result as the active opposition of the
Pharisees.
By Bad Example. Jesus told us in verse 3 not to
do what the Pharisees do because they do not practice what they preach. There are many people who are turned off
from the gospel because of the hypocrisy in the lives of people who call
themselves Christians. People see
church people devouring each other.
They see people who profess to be Christians stealing from the job,
cheating customers, participating in adulterous relationships, filled with the
hatred of prejudice, abusing their families, indulging in drunkenness, consumed
with an indulgent lifestyle, tearing down other churches, and other sinful
practices. When others see this they
conclude that there is nothing to the message of new life in Christ.
It is true that not everyone who calls himself a
believer is a believer. It is also true
that growth in the Christian life takes time.
However, we must not sidestep the truth that when we profess Christ and
live like the Devil we are hindering others from coming to Christ.
By Preaching a False Gospel. The Pharisees
told people that the law would save them.
They told them that if they worked harder they had a better chance of
earning God’s grace. They pushed
religion rather than a relationship with God.
They pushed people to EARN salvation rather than teaching them to trust
Christ for their salvation. That same
message continues to be preached from pulpits.
There are other false gospels being taught. There are others who call themselves
Christians and proclaim that everyone will go to Heaven in the end. These people neglect the clear words of
Jesus about Hell. They give people a
false security that keeps them from running to the cross of Jesus for
forgiveness and new life.
There are pseudo Christian groups that lead people
astray. These groups have Christian in their name (Like the Church of Jesus
Christ Latter Day Saints or Christian Science, or even Jehovah’s Witnesses) but
they do not proclaim the truth of the Gospel.
They have added to, subtracted from, and distorted the message of
Scripture and are subsequently leading people astray.
There are those who preach politics. Walking
with Christ certainly has political ramifications (just as it has economic,
relational, and social implications).
However, when we make the gospel and the conservative political agenda
synonymous we distort God’s message.
This approach invites people to reject Jesus because they don’t share
our political agenda or opinions rather than because of a personal encounter
with Jesus Christ.
There are those who preach a diminished gospel. A diminished
gospel is one where we only tell part of the truth. In other words, we preach only that which is popular to our
culture. Paul warned Timothy in 2
Timothy 4,
the time will come when men will not put up with
sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around
them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4
They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5
But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work
of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
Paul knew that would be people who would preach what
is popular rather than what is true.
They will omit talk about sin, repentance, and judgment. They will preach what will please their
listeners. They will become market
driven rather than Scripture-driven.
A Pastor of one of the largest churches in America
said, “I don’t talk about controversial things. I just want to talk about the love of Jesus.” This man didn’t talk about sin. He doesn’t talk about repentance (or turning
away from sinful pursuits). He even refused
to say that Jesus was the only way to Heaven.
Yet, this man is considered to be one of the chief voices of the church
today! This man gave up the truth so he
could have a bigger crowd.
Suppose you went to see the Doctor because you
weren’t feeling well. Suppose the
Doctor read the test results with the nurse and discovered that you had early
stages of cancer and needed surgery followed by radiation and perhaps
chemotherapy.
Next suppose the Doctor came to see you and said, “We
got the test results back and I don’t think it is really anything to worry
about. Let me give you some pain
medication and you should start feeling better.” As soon as you left the office, the nurse turns to the Doctor and
says, “Why didn’t you tell him that he had cancer? If he doesn’t get treatment it will be too late and he will
die!”
The Doctor says, “Well, I knew the idea of having
cancer and needing these treatments might upset him. He’s my friend. I want him to be happy. If I tell him he needs
surgery and chemotherapy he might be upset with me and I might lose him as a
patient.”
Would you consider that Doctor to be competent? Would you consider him to be your
friend? Of course not! Sometimes we have to hear difficult things
before we can take corrective action.
In the long run such behavior is only going to make things worse. When Christians do not preach the entire
message of the gospel, when we refuse to talk about sin, repentance, and Hell,
we are just like that Doctor.
Churches are filled with thousands of people who
enjoy moral pep talks but who never hear the truth of the Bible. They listen to a popularized gospel that is
really no gospel at all. This distorted
gospel is simply serving to make people feel comfortable as they slide toward
Hell. It is not opening the door to
Heaven it is closing it.
When we proclaim any of these false gospels we are
actually hindering people from following Christ rather than encouraging them.
BREAKING DOWN THE BARRIERS
So, what do we do?
How do make sure we aren’t hindering people as they look for eternal
life? Let me draw some quick principles.
We must enter into the Kingdom of God ourselves. Jesus
said the Pharisees were not entering the Kingdom themselves. They felt godly, spiritual, and superior,
but they would not follow Jesus. They
didn’t like the idea that they were as sinful and lost as the next guy. They wanted to earn their own way. They wanted to, in effect, save themselves
by their good deeds.
There are hundreds of people just like the
Pharisees. They sit in the church. They believe they are God’s people. But they have not entered the Kingdom.
So the first thing we need to do is a personal
inventory. Are you a true believer?
1.
Do you recognize that
you are a sinful person? Do you see the
rebellious character of your own heart?
Do you see the way you make excuses for your sin? Have you repented (or turned away from) all
notions that you can earn your way into Heaven? Do you understand you deserve Hell?
2.
Do you recognize Jesus
as the only One who can save you? Do
you understand that His death was for your sin? Do you believe His promise that those who put their trust in Him
will have eternal life?
3.
Have you surrendered
your life to Christ? Have you put all
your confidence in His ability rather than your own? Are you willing to turn from your sinful ways and begin to trust
His guidance for your life?
If you cannot answer yes to these questions, then it
is likely that you have not entered in to the Kingdom of Heaven. I encourage you to confess the things that
are hidden in your heart and ask God to cleanse you and to make you new. Run to the cross of Jesus and take hold of
the life He offers.
Second, We need to Cut Out the Middleman. We are susceptible to false teaching because
we rely on other people to tell us what God is saying. It is time for Christians to get back to the
Bible. It is time that we learn to pray and have a vital relationship with God. We must seek God ourselves. Our calling is
not to proclaim the message of contemporary psychology, politics, or American
culture. Our job is to proclaim the truth
of God’s Word. We can’t do that and we
can’t recognize error, unless we know the truth ourselves. I encourage you to develop a personal
knowledge and understanding of God and the Bible.
We need to stick to the Biblical Essentials. It is easy
to confuse personal preference with Biblical essentials. We need to beware of making baptism, our
interpretation of the events of the second coming, our style of worship, our
denominational affiliation, our practice of communion, or interpretation on
debated theological issues a test of faith.
These items are secondary issues and not essential for salvation.
I was amused by this story from Max
Lucado,
A bishop was traveling by ship to visit a church
across the ocean. While en route, the ship stopped at an island for a day. He
went for a walk on a beach. He came upon three fishermen mending their nets.
Curious about their trade he asked them some
questions. Curious about his ecclesiastical robes, they asked him some
questions. When they found out he was a Christian leader, they got excited. “We
Christians!” they said, proudly pointing to one another.
The bishop was impressed but cautious. Did they know
the Lord’s Prayer? They had never heard of it.
“What do you say, then, when you pray?”
“We pray, ‘We are three, you are three, have mercy
on us.’ ”
The bishop was appalled at the primitive nature of
the prayer. “That will not do.” So he spent the day teaching them the Lord’s
Prayer. The fishermen were poor but willing learners. And before the bishop
sailed away the next day, they could recite the prayer with no mistakes.
The bishop was proud.
On the return trip the bishop’s ship drew near the island again. When the island came into view the bishop came to the deck and recalled with pleasure the men he had taught and resolved to go see them again. As he was thinking a light appeared on the horizon near the island. It seemed to be getting nearer. As the bishop gazed in wonder he realized the three fishermen were walking toward him on the water. Soon all the passengers and crew were on the deck to see the sight.
When they were within speaking distance, the
fisherman cried out, “Bishop, we come hurry to meet you.”
“What is it you want?” asked the stunned bishop.
“We are so sorry. We forget lovely prayer. We say,
‘Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be your name …’ and then we forget.
Please tell us prayer again.”
The bishop was humbled. “Go back to your homes, my
friends, and when you pray say, ‘We are three, you are three, have mercy on
us.’ ”[1]
Our job is not to make other people look and talk
like we do. Our job is to introduce
people to one who can change them forever.
CONCLUSIONS
It is always easier to see the fault in another than
it is to see it in the mirror. As we study
the woes of Jesus directed at the Scribes and Pharisees we need to remember
that we can fall into the same patterns and mistakes that they were guilty of
committing.
So let’s take this text personally. Look at your own
life. Are you opening the door of the
Kingdom of God to others or are you closing the door? Are you discouraging others from faith by your inconsistency,
your emphasis on superficial things, or your embracing of false teachers? Are you a person “of the book”? Do you make time to read and study the
Scriptures for yourself? Do you check
what others teach by asking, “but is this biblical?”
Take a good look at your life. Repent where needed and return to the
wonderful truth of the gospel of God’s grace.
The message of the gospel is the most wonderful news we could ever
share: God in His wonderful and
marvelous grace has provided a way for us to know forgiveness from our sin and
a life of fulfillment and purpose. He
has done this through His Son, Jesus.
It is a message we have the privilege of sharing with others. We need to make sure that we pass it on
correctly.
©January
22, 2006 Rev. Bruce Goettsche