Luke 6:46

The book of Luke, chapter 6, verses 46 to 49, our focus on verse 46. And why call ye me Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? Whosoever cometh to me and heareth my sayings and doeth them, I will show you to whom he is like. is like a man which built a house and dig deep and laid the foundation a rock. And when the flood arose and the stream beat vehemently upon the house, could not shake it, but was founded upon a rock. But he that he that heareth and doeth not is like a man that without a foundation, build a house upon the earth against which the stream did beat vehemently and immediately it fell and the ruin of that house was great and God blessed to us the reading of his sacred and holy word this morning. Travelers of the hot sandy wasteland of the Sahara Desert, are accustomed at times to seeing a mirage off in the distance. And mirage is an optical illusion. You see something that doesn’t actually exist. You’re tricked and your eyes full your mind. So as you look across the blistering desert off in the distance, you see what looks like in oasis. Maybe you see something. some palm trees, maybe you even see some crystal blue water. But when you get closer to the spot, it just vanishes. It disappears. And all you find is dry, sandy desert. That oasis never existed except in your own mind. Your eyes deceived you. Jesus Christ and our text speaks about those who are deceived about their spiritual state. They think that Christ is their Lord. They claim to be followers of Jesus Christ. However, it is all a spiritual mirage. It can be followers of Jesus Christ. It is all. I’m a spiritual marriage. I’m a spiritual marriage. complete illusion, as Jesus makes clear here. Our Lord points out that some people who claim to be his disciples are actually deceiving themselves. What Jesus says here in verse 46, I think is vital for our own day in age, just as it was, in Christ’s day. Because there is so much of what we will call superficial Christianity. Christ’s teaching here gets to the heart of the matter about genuine and false professors of the Savior. It is fitting to take to heart what he says here at the end of this sermon on the plain. as he drives home the message to those who are listening to him. In verses 20 through 45, whatever he has said, now he’s going to apply it here with an application about the importance of heeding what he has said. I want to talk this this morning about profession and practice. And let me begin by saying this. There are many who profess that Christ is their Lord. He says here, and why call ye me Lord Lord? Now you should realize that this teaching is not for the heedless masses of humanity. This is for those who we will be, we’d call hearers, hearers of what Christ has said. You’ll notice in verse 47, he says, whosoever cometh to me and heareth my sayings. And the same phrase is used in verse 49. But he that heareth. Here are the people who have listened to what Christ has had to say on the sermon on the plane. It’s not those who were in their own homes somewhere, not those who are not paying any attention to Christ’s ministry. But for those who have come and have heard him speak, it doesn’t really matter whether it’s on this occasion or another occasion. I think the application would be the same. But certainly those who in this particular situation, the great multitude listening to what he has to say, He’s making an important matter here of the heating to apply the message that he has preached. So we’re not talking about those in four lands. We’re not talking about those who the name of Christ is unknown with regard to. But here, if I could apply this this morning, we’re talking about people in our own country. We’re talking about even those in the Pittsburgh area, who willfully refuse to even hear the words of Christ. There are great masses of people who have no interest in spiritual things. Even though God commands, this is my beloved son and whom I’m well pleased, hear ye him, they do not want to hear him. They stubbornly refused. to do so. They shut their ears. I recall when Stephen was preaching that the Jews who didn’t want to hear what he had to say, the Bible says they stopped their ears. Literally, they put their hands over their ears and pressed. So they could not hear what he had to say. What a sad thing to do that? Even though Christ has the words of eternal life. And the fate of their souls is at stake. And here, there are people in the world who will not listen. In connection with our text, we would say these people don’t build any house at all. We’re talking about hearers in our text. These people who aren’t listening at all, they don’t have any, they have no house. They have no shelter when the storm of life comes. When sickness comes, they have no joy of heart from Christ to sustain them through it. When death comes, they have no hope of heaven that will uphold them and console them. When hardship comes, they have no confidence that Christ is working all these things for their good. When divine judgment comes in some form or fashion, they have no refuge in the land, no shelter when His wrath is poured out. What excuse were these people invent, who have refused even to know the way of salvation, faith comes by hearing that you don’t want to hear. What a sad fact. Friends, if the Word of God comes to you and you decline to hear it and you die in your sins, you have destroyed yourself, who will feel any pity towards you if you awaken in hell tormented in the flames? The Word of Christ’s salvation was near at hand, but you didn’t want to it. How sad there are many in that condition. So you should realize this teaching is not for the heedless masses of humanity, but we’re totally talking about hearers here. And yet the hearers have a warning given to them, too. This message is for you who profess to be followers of Christ and who say, Lord, Lord. Do you recognize Christ as your Lord. Do you believe that Jesus Christ is Lord of all? He’s the Lord of glory. That he is the Lord of the dead and the living. David calls him my Lord in Psalm 110. Thomas called him my Lord and my God. Christ himself tells his disciples. You call me Master and Lord and you say well, for so I in John 1313. Christ speaks here of those who will call him Lord. There is a recognition that of Christ’s deity that he is the son of God. That he is the blessed and only potentate, the king of kings and the Lord of Lords as 1 Timothy 615 indicates. It scarcely needs to be pointed out that there is no entrance into the kingdom of God unless Christ is owned as Lord. For the Bible says in Romans 10-9 that I shall confess with thy mouth the Lord, Jesus, and shall believe in thine heart that God has raised him from the dead thou shall be saved. By calling Christ’s Lord, you are expressing the Orthodox doctrine regarding the person. of Christ. Anyone claiming to be a true follower of Christ recognizes Christ not only as the Lord, but as their own Lord. Jesus, therefore, is not addressing those who recognize him as just a great teacher as something similar to one of the prophets of the Old Testament. No, no. When Nicodemus first came to Jesus by night. He said to him, Rabbi, we know that thou aren’t a teacher come from God. No man can do these miracles that thou do us, except God be with him. He recognized him as a teacher. That’s a far cry from Lord. There’s no wonder when Jesus in explaining the message of being born again and the way of salvation says to him in John 3.3, 16, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but everlasting life. I’m the son of God. As the Jews rightly deduced by saying that God was his father, he was making himself equal with God. John 518, he is the Lord of Glory. So, do you recognize Christ’s Lord? That’s the first thing. Now, you’re recognizing. of Christ as Lord requires. Let me emphasize that. Requires being submissive to his commands. He says in our text here, why call ye me Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? You will notice the repetition here of the word Lord. It’s not just Lord singular, it’s Lord, Lord. It’s not merely in recognition, but perhaps a fervency, a zealessness about Christ being your Lord. You may, with great enthusiasm, publicly proclaim that Jesus Christ is your Lord. You may in your prayers pronounce him as such, which is all well and good, as far as it goes. But do you realize what that word Lord implies. Because this is where I think people missed the boat. They use the word Lord, but they do not see the implications of that term. The word Lord, Curios, signifies as an adjective the one having power and authority, but as a noun, it means Lord, master, or owner. Remember in Matthew 20, Jesus spoke about the one who is the Lord of the vineyard. And what did that mean? It meant the owner. He’s the owner of the vineyard. Who hires the servants, who go out into the fields and grape vines and gather in the grapes. The son of man is also the Lord of the Sabbath. the Bible tells us. What does that mean? That he owns the Sabbath. He determines what is done on the Sabbath and whether it’s right or wrong. He’s the owner. The word also means master. That’s the one to whom service is due on any ground. Servants be obedient to them that are your masters, your curiosus, your Lord’s. Ephesians 6.5. Ephesion 6. who art thou that judges another man’s servant to his own master Lord beholden he standeth or falleth. Yea he shall be holding up for God is able to make him stand. Romans 14 4. For the son of man is a man taking a journey who left his house and gave authority to his servants and every man his work and commanded the porter to watch watch ye therefore for ye know not when the master, the curious, the Lord of the house cometh. Jesus compares himself to the master of a house, a lord of the house. And then the word is also used with regard to kingship, one to whom you are a subject, and you owe obedience and submission. We read about Caesar that when Festus found that Paul had committed nothing worthy of death and that he had appealed to go to Caesar’s court, he determined to write to Caesar and he didn’t know what to say. He says, of whom I have no certain thing to write to my Lord, meaning Caesar the king, Curios, to the king. What am I going to tell Caesar? I don’t have any charges really that I can lay against this man. Christ says in Revelation 1714, the Lamb shall overcome them for he is Lord of Lords and King of Kings and we see how the connection between Lord and King is connected there. Now all this implies put this all together that when you call Christ Lord, you are saying He is your owner. He has the right to do with you whatever he pleases you are not your own. it means that he is your master to whom you owe service and obedience. It means that he is your king to whom you owe submission and obedience. And therefore, if you call Christ’s Lord, does he not have every reason to expect that you will do the things that he says. Do you understand this vital point? Because I think it is vital. And I don’t think a lot of people understand this very point. There are many who profess Christ to be their Lord. Secondly, there are many whose profession of faith does not match their practice. Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and do not the things I say? This doesn’t match up. You’re calling me, Lord, but you’re not listening. You’re not eating. You’re not obeying. You’re not being submissive. You may pretend to honor Christ as Lord, but fail to actually obey him. Isn’t that what he’s saying here? Down through history of the church. There have always been those who are false professors. The Son of God himself had many followers who professed him as their Lord, but then denied him by their practice. In the Old Testament, you hear God’s complaint about many of the Jews who came to listen to Ezekiel the Prophet. If you turn with me to the book of Ezekiel, that Old Testament prophet, right before the book of Daniel, you got Jeremiah, you got Jeremiah, you let’s give me, Isaiah Jeremiah Lamentations, and then Ezekiel. Chapter 33. Listen to what God says here. through Ezekiel verses 30 through 33 of chapter 33. Also thou son of man, the children of thy people still are talking against thee by the walls and in the doors of the houses and speak one another to speak one to another, every one to his brother, saying, come, I pray you, and hear what is the word that cometh forth from the Lord. And they come unto thee as people cometh, and they sit before thee as my people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them. For with their mouth they show much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness. And lo, thou art unto them as a very lovely song of one that hath a a pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument, for they hear thy words, but they do them not. And when this cometh the past, lo, it will come. Then shall they know that a prophet hath been among them. Now notice here, he’s saying they claim to be the people of God. They come and they hear God’s word from the mouth of Ezekiel, but they’re still speaking against Ezekiel privately. but they’re content, in a sense, to be entertained by the prophet. And so they listen, but they don’t listen with the idea of hearing actually God’s Word, but being entertained as if he were playing some kind of musical instrument or something of this nature. They confess that they love God, but in practice they are covetous people. They contradict their profession because he says they hear God’s word, but they don’t obey his commands. What do we read in the New Testament? Do we not read James saying the very similar thing in James chapter 1 and verse 22, be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves, James 122? J.C. Ryle had a memorable comment on this past. passage. He said this, and I quote, open sin and avowed unbelief, no doubt, slay their thousands. But profession without practice slays its tens of thousands, unquote. Interesting how he puts this. Let this truth then be carefully grasped. Do you see across our land the thousands who claim to be Christians, who claim that Jesus is their Lord. Does their confession of Christ as Lord match their practice? Are they obedient to Christ teaching? Now let me make this even more personal this morning. Let me drive home this point. Are you really a friend of Christ? John 15. 14 says you are my friends if you do whatsoever I command you. Do you really love Christ? He that loveth me keepeth my commandments. John 1423. Do you really have a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ? 1 John 2.3. Hereby do we know that we know him if we keep his commandments. Are you really hostile to Christ? He that loveth me not keepeth. not my sayings. John 1424. Are you really deceived about your salvation? He that saith, he knoweth Him, Jesus Christ, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar. 1. John 2.4. Are you really someone who is a child of the devil rather than a child of God? 1. John 3.10. In this, the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest. He that doeth not righteousness is not of God. These are plain scriptures. Look at the disciple, Judas. He appeared for a period of time to be a faithful disciple of Jesus Christ. He professed faith in Christ. But we know his heart was full of covenous. We’ve talked about this before. Jesus declared he was a devil. The word there, Diabolos, means an adversary. Is an adversary of Christ. This song of perdition is heard to say to Christ when in the garden, when he betrayed Christ with a kiss, what did he say? Master, master, and he kissed him. Lord, Lord, and he kissed him. But all the time he was betraying Jesus Christ. He is the one who earlier that evening, when Christ announced that one of his one of his, disciples would betray him, said, master, Lord is an eye. Oh, he could call Christ Lord, but he didn’t mean it. He was of the devil. There are many who follow in the footsteps of Judas, and they call Christ Lord, Lord, readily enough, but the truth of the matter is they don’t obey his commands. What a serious thing that is. The truth of the matter is, there are people who, while professing to be Christians are actually adversaries of the cause of Christ and detriment to the cause of Christ. They’re still ruled by their true master, Satan. Beware of having just a form of godliness, having a show of piety, but not obeying the Lord Jesus Christ. You may pretend to honor Christ as Lord, but fail to actually obey Him. Your duty is to carefully ponder Christ’s question. Now, this is a question. Jesus wants you to think about this. You should realize many professing Christians are not genuine. He’s asking you, is it reasonable? Is it becoming that your profession and your character should be at variance? It’s a shameful thing when your actions give the lie to your words. Is this the way it is with you? Is your practice consistent with your profession? What does it profit, my friend? If a man say he hath faith and he have not works. The hypocrites hope shall perish, his hope shall be cut off, his trust shall be like a spider’s web. What are you going to do on the last day? What does despite your profession of faith. Lord, haven’t we done all these things in your name? He says to you, I never knew you. Depart from me, ye that work iniquity. Your behavior gives a lie to the fact that you call me, Lord. So ponder this question of Christ seriously. It has eternal consequences. And we’re going to look at that in the next two verses in our next study, Lord willing. You should realize many professions are not genuine. And let me say this. Even as a genuine Christian, you may not be very consistent in your practice of faith. Christ, reason to even complain of those of us who, for the vast majority of occasions, perhaps we are trying to be faithful to Christ and obey his commandments, and yet we fail. Are you devoted to him in spirit? Are you obedient to him in life? That’s proper and right for the Christian. Does it hungry you and grieve you when you do fail? Because you know you should be doing this and you do the other. The world expects you to be obedient to Christ. They’re watching your life. So does the church. And therefore, there’s a need to guard your own heart with regard to these matters. Therefore, let it be your aim to be more obedient to Christ. To be more consistent with your daily life. To be more more dedicated to serving your Lord and Master, Jesus Christ. Because isn’t this sort of a wake-up call with regard to these matters. Let me close with this this morning. Travelers of the hot, sandy wastelands of the Sahara Desert are accustomed to seeing a barrage. It’s all an optical illusion. I’m sad to say this morning there are people have an illusion about them being true Christians because of the fact that they recognize Christ or as Lord or say that he is their Lord when in fact their life puts the lie to their profession of faith. Christ expects those who call upon Him and the Lord to live up to their profession of faith to practice a godliness of life. Let’s close with a word of prayer this morning.