Intro to Matthew 7:21-29

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/25/2021 11:47 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                               Focus:  PT-1 Intro to Matthew 7:21-29

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Matt. 7:21-29

 

            Message of the verses:  “21 "Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 22 “Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ 23 “And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.’ 24 "Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 “And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. 26 “Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 “The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell — and great was its fall." 28 When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were amazed at His teaching; 29 for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.”

 

            We began our study of Matthew on November 17,2019 and today we begin the very last study in the Sermon on the Mount, and this too is the last chapter in MacArthur’s first commentary on the book of Matthew.  It has been a joy to study the Sermon on the Mount, as the Lord has been tugging on my heart concerning revival ever since we studied the “Lord’s Prayer” in the sixth chapter of Matthew.

 

            As we begin these last familiar verses in Matthew chapter seven we can see that Jesus is still giving the invitation of His sermon—calling people from false “religion” to the true kingdom.  That is what the theme of the Sermon on the Mount is as many in Israel at this time were following the scribes and the Pharisees who were false prophets, but Jesus has been telling the crowd in a sense not to follow these men as they are wolves in sheep’s clothing.  We have learned that Jesus said that few enter the narrow gate of salvation because first of all it must be found as seen in verse 14, and this implies that it must be sought and searched for.  I certainly can understand this searching as I searched for almost 27 years before I found what the true meaning of life was all about.  There is no one who stumbles into the kingdom inadvertently first of all and second, the narrow and the demanding way of salvation is the complete opposite of the way in which the world is, which is broad, easy, and indulgent.  Then thirdly, the narrow gate into the kingdom requires going through it naked, as we take no possessions, or any works, no ride, or no self-righteousness.  We move to number four, as the Lord mentions in the parallel account which is found in Luke 13:24 as we learn we must strive to enter in penitence and brokenness of heart.  One more and that is what we have just been studying, and that is that false prophets must be avoided, and the reason is because they deceive many people by luring them into the broad way and that broad way leads to destruction as we saw in verses 15-20.

 

            John MacArthur writes “Now Jesus gives a final reason why so few enter the narrow gate of salvation ; self-deception.  J. C. Ryle says, ‘The Lord Jesus winds up the Sermon on the Mount by a passage of heart-piercing application.  He turns from false prophets to false professors, from unsound teachers to unsound hearers.’  Not only can false prophets deceive us about the way of salvation, but we can deceive ourselves.  After warning us about false prophets, the Lord now warns men about themselves.  Sinful man is biased in his own favor and, because of pride tends reject the true gospel.” 

 

            I have to say that I look forward to studying these last verses of Matthew chapter seven especially the verses about the men that built their houses on a rock and on the sand as I remember singing about this early on in my life while attending Sunday school in a very small town called Lafayette.

 

2/25/2021 12:11 PM