Simply Stated Podcasts — V. Blaine Hill

SOM 21

February 16, 2020

Matthew 7:21-23

Season 1, Episode 18

21“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven,

but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. 22 On that day many will say

to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your

name, and do many deeds of power in your name?’ 23 Then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers.’

INTRODUCTION

1. Welcome: Hi Pals, this is Blaine Hill with the Simply Stated Podcast for you, the Journey Sunday School class at Lake Murray Presbyterian Church in Chapin, SC. This season of the podcast is on Jesus sermon on the mount, in Matthew chapters 5 through 7. Today we are reading Matthew 7:21-23

2. I’ll get the basic ideas of the passage simply stated, then we’ll try to draw some wisdom out of the passage (person of Jesus, theology, eternity, ethics)

3. Read 7:21-23

A BLOCK

1. Not …but. Jesus is uses antithesis again. We heard 6 earlier in SOM.

2. Lord: Title of honor, used of Caesar and indicates the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob. Key point Jesus will make is that one obeys a LORD.

3. Will enter …on that day…then. Here Jesus is clearly talking about the future. So while the Kingdom of heaven had some sense of being present at the beginning of the SoM, that is not the whole sense. Jesus is pointing to something in the future.

4. Did we not 1. Prophesy, 2. Cast out demons 3. Deeds of power in your name. Jesus has no interest in spiritual fireworks. [Useful to compare this to similar surprise in Matthew 25]

Jesus has not been talking about the kinds of activity that they are holding forward.

5. So what does Jesus want and make judgement based upon? He has just laid out a large and robust pattern of life. He has given two images

a. Two gates and paths—course of life

b. Tree and fruit—bearing fruit, being of service and good in the world.

6. “Go away from me, you evil doers.” Ouch!

a. Do you have some names you would like to put on the go away list?

b. Why is Jesus using such obnoxious language? Some people like to be scared or scolded. I think he is trying to get our attention for a critical issue. Evildoers means anti-law (Bruner 358). Jesus’ critic is a failure to obey his teaching.

B BLOCK

1. What are some common depictions understandings of the last judgement?

a. Ledger book of good and bad deeds

b. Judged by being decent sort of person

c. Zero. Don’t consider it in any practical sense.

d. Contrast with 11:28 ff.

2. How do verse 21-23 inform the Christian understanding of the last judgement.?

3. Deeply puzzling: The people Jesus rejects are centered on Christ in doctrine (Lord, Lord) and spiritually gifted. But they don’t indicate obedience (Bruner 355-6). They are impressed with their own devotion and success, but they don’t demonstrate the Beattitudes at the start of the SOM (Bruner 357-8). They seem to hunger and thirst for power but not for righteousness 5:6 (Bruner 358)

4. “They believe that they know Jesus, but apparently they never gave him a chance to know them (I never really knew you), that is they never gave him a chance to come into personal contact with their innermost life (the force of the biblical word “know”). It is strangley possible to serve and even to glorify Christ and yet in one’s own personal life no to obey him.” (Bruner 357).

Outline of SoM

What has Jesus taught and spoken for the LORD?

a. A gentle word of grace and blessing 5:1-12

b. As people who are part of God’s work we are to be of good to the world: salt, light.12-16

c. Jesus teaching goals—to fill up the teaching of the law and prophets 17-20

Block on relation to people: 6 antitheses you heard…I say

a. Starts with angeràseek out reconciliation 21-26

b. Starts with adulteryà intentions matter 27-30

c. Starts with divorceà we don’t rid ourselves of people 31-32

d. Starts with oathsà truthfulness in speach 33-37

e. Starts with retaliationàresponding to contempt, coercion and manipulation 38-42

f. Friends and enemiesàlove based in God 43-48

Block on religious actions 6 avoiding hypocrisy

a. Almsgiving-secret

b. Prayer—private; model

c. Fasting-internal

d. Storing up treasure

e. Illustrations: a sound eye (goals?); servants and masters

f. About worry