0:00 Meet with me in the book of Exodus chapter 20 verse 16. One simple verse tonight, yet we will discover together that there is so much more that God has to say to us about this. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for the opportunity to be in your house and to freely dig into your word amongst God's people.
0:36 Lord, we thank you for the Lord Jesus Christ that he has fulfilled the law on our behalf, that his righteousness has been imputed to us, and that by faith in him, you see us as perfect and spotless and blameless. But, Lord, we also thank you that you have taken this law, and you've written it on our hearts. And now it's something that we desire to walk in. And, Lord, if we had 10 lives to live, we would give them all to you. But we only have one.
1:07 Each person here only has one life to live. And our prayer through this bible study is this, that we would live that life for Christ, and we would be able to be like Paul who said, to live is Christ. To live is Christ. To live is Christ. May that be true, Lord, and may that be a greater ambition in our lives every week, and may you draw us closer to that reality as we obey your word.
1:34 Help us. Give us the spirit of wisdom and revelation as we discover this together. In the precious name of Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen. You may be seated in the presence of the Lord.
1:48 The God of the Bible is a God of truth. The God of the Bible is a truth speaking God. The God of the Bible offers us truth, and that truth does something marvelous. What does it do? It sets you free.
2:06 It sets somebody free. And this commandment, as we are going through the 10 commandments together, and we've dedicated a commandment per week, this commandment deals specifically with, like the other commandments, an act that goes against God's character 100%. It stands in direct contradiction to how God operates and moves and intervenes in our lives. Bear false witness against your neighbor, what comes to mind immediately? It's a very specific command, and a lot of people have taken this command and have used its specificity for other sins to be committed, believe it or not.
2:50 But when you think of this command, what comes to mind immediately? Slander. Sure. What else? Backstabbing is another one.
3:14 Accusing somebody of doing something they didn't do. We're getting warmer. What does this commandment deal with? I'm gonna paint a picture, and this is found in the scripture. And if you know who I'm talking about, you lift up your hand and you name that person.
3:33 I own a vineyard my whole life. At any time, you can interrupt me, you know, if you know who I am. I owned a vineyard my whole life. It was actually near the king's palace. One day, the king came to visit me and said, give me your garden.
3:49 Ahab. Ahab is the king? Who's the man that owned the vineyard? Bath. No.
3:58 Naboth. Naboth. First Kings 21. This man owned a vineyard. He would not give it up because it was something that belonged to his family, inheritance.
4:10 Ahab goes back to his palace sulking, and his wife Jezebel, who is really a witch, says, why are you so vexed? And he says, you know, Naboth wouldn't give me his vineyard. And so she takes Ahab's name, she takes Ahab's seal, and she sends out a letter to the city in where Naboth dwelt and said, proclaim a fast, make Naboth the head of that fast, and get two worthless men to say Naboth curse God and the king. And it happens. And he was the recipient of the negative end of this command.
4:50 He was a victim of somebody bearing false witness. Because what we're gonna realize that this specific sin has nothing short of deadly consequences in somebody's life. If we wanna know what this looks like in detail, you just have to flip three more chapters after Exodus 20, and it's in Exodus 23. Now this deals with how to operate in legal matters, but it's still true nonetheless concerning the principle of how we ought to operate with our tongues. Exodus 20 three:one, you shall not spread a false report.
5:24 You shall not join hands with a wicked man to be a malicious witness. You shall not fall in with the many to do evil, nor shall you bear witness in a lawsuit, siding with the many, so as to pervert justice, nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his lawsuit. This is not one thing. These are different scenarios. And the first thing that he says is, you shall not bear a false report.
5:46 That's just a general statement. So if it's a legal context or not, it's just true. You and I are to be a people that never ever testify of something that's not true. When we're talking about bearing false witness, it is accusing somebody of being guilty or wrong when they are actually innocent. So he says don't join hands with the wicked man to be a malicious witness.
6:08 So don't be in partnership with an individual who has an agenda to tear somebody down, and you add to that testimony by being a false witness. You shall not fall with the many to do evil, nor shall you bear witness in a lawsuit siding with the many. Even if a majority sides with a lie, though you be one single person that will stand for the truth, you be that person. You die for the truth. Even if everybody else wants to live a lie.
6:37 It gets even more specific than that. Look at how it ends in verse three. Nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his lawsuit. And so even if you feel sympathetic for an individual who has disadvantages in life and needs a lie to be told in order for them to advance or for even a need to be met. Be careful.
7:00 Don't bear false witness even out of sympathy. This is how much God values truth. Now some would say, well, this is a legal context, so that commandment is very specific. And Leviticus nineteen eleven tells us very plainly, don't lie. Just don't lie.
7:16 This commandment deals with lying. Though it's specific, yes. It it deals with the sin of lying. And I wonder if anybody knows how much God hates this. You know, we always talk about what God loves.
7:29 That's true, but we also need to know what he hates. As a righteous person, a person that walks righteously with God, he does not just one thing. He doesn't just love the things that God loves. He also hates the thing God hates. If you and I wanna increase in holiness in this life, it's not just about loving what God loves, it's also hating what he hates.
7:52 Does anybody know a proverb that deals specifically with this? I mean there are more than one proverbs, but there's one proverb that really expresses God's sentiment towards this. Anybody know? It's in a list of other sins. There are 16 that the Lord hates.
8:12 Seven that are what? An abomination to the Lord. That means totally disgusting. Vile. Wicked.
8:23 Proverbs six sixteen. There are 16 that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him. And in verse 19, we get a very specific sin. What does it say? A false witness who breathes out lies.
8:42 You know what's interesting? We talked about this once that all those seven things, those abominations to the Lord were actually committed against the Lord Jesus Christ in his earthly walk. He was a recipient of every single one of those abominations that God hates because he loves us so much. He took it upon himself. Why?
9:03 I mean there's always a reason why God. Yes, he's holy. Yes. He is completely different from us. Yes.
9:08 He has a different standard of morality. But remember, he's also in this for our good. He's also in this for our good, and there's a effect to this specific sin. There's something that false witnessing bears upon another person, and it's in the book of Proverbs as well. Anybody know?
9:28 I heard some of the guys were looking to Proverbs earlier today before this study. Did any of you guys find out what a man who bears false witness is like? 25 of Proverbs verse 18. A man who bears false witness against his neighbor is like three things, a war club or a sword or a sharp arrow. That's what a man who bears false witness is like.
10:00 He's like a war club, he's like a sword, and he's like an arrow. Now what do all those three things have in common? They're meant for violence. They're meant for violence? Sure.
10:13 More specifically in violence, in the realm of violence. They're meant to destroy somebody. They're meant to destroy somebody. And what's interesting is that those things are weapons, and a weapon cannot operate unless somebody holds that weapon and uses that weapon. Whose hand do you think loves to use this weapon for his purposes?
10:36 The devil himself. He's the father of lies. It's his native tongue. It's what he speaks. It's what he's best at.
10:44 He is the accuser of the brethren. He loves to find something in somebody and he loves to accuse. He loves to remind you of your past though you're covered in the blood. He even loves to go before God. The devil has the audacity to go before God and say, hey you're talking to me about Job?
11:02 The only reason why Job loves you is because you've blessed him. Take away his blessing and see what he'll do to you. Take away his health and watch what he'll do to you. He loves to go to you about your past. He loves to go to you, and he loves to remind you and accuse you and slander you and haunt you.
11:27 So when a man walks in bearing false witness, he's actually fulfilling the ministry of Satan. It's dangerous and it has deadly consequences. Bearing false witness destroys. It destroys society. It destroys harmony.
11:47 It destroys relationship. It destroys the promotion of righteousness. It ultimately destroys people. And just like an arrow, this sin can be committed from long distance and still be deadly. It's amazing what the tongue can do.
12:03 It's amazing what this thing can do. It's amazing how much poison it actually carries. Consider the victims of somebody bearing false witness in the scripture. Just think of the the scope of scripture. We talked about one individual, Naboth.
12:17 Who else has fallen victim to false witness? Old testament, New testament. Yes. Stephen. Stephen.
12:27 Absolutely. Stephen. Who else? Joseph. Joseph?
12:40 Specifically, who has been accused of a wrong when they were actually innocent? Christ? Jesus? Stephen? Naboth?
12:51 Who else? There's a guy that had to face a few lions. Daniel? Daniel? There's one who wrote 70% of the New Testament.
13:05 Paul? Now what do all these men have in common? Righteous, pursuing holiness, pursuing Christlikeness, which says something to you and I, that if you and I desire to live godly lives in Christ Jesus, we make ourselves prime candidates to be victims of this sin. We position ourselves for the enemy to even use people to experience the unfortunate reality of somebody bearing false witness against us. Isn't that what Jesus said?
13:48 Isn't that what Jesus said to us? Let me read what Jesus said in the gospel. This is red letters. Blessed are you, Luke six twenty two. You don't have to turn there.
13:58 Just hear these words and look at the the the perspective that Christ wants to give you and me. As we are entering into that life, listen, if you wanna be a true believer and listen, he doesn't say Paul does not say to Timothy, if you desire to live believing in Jesus Christ, that you'll be persecuted. He doesn't say that. What does he say in second Timothy three? If you desire what?
14:24 Oh, that's a big difference. If anyone would live a godly life in Christ Jesus, he will suffer persecution. Done deal promise. So if you wanna live not believing in Jesus, if you wanna live a godly life, you will be persecuted. And look what Jesus says in Luke six.
14:50 This is this is the renewed mind, really. Blessed are you. I'm blessed. I'm blessed if some I'm blessed if I have a big house. I'm blessed if I have a nice car.
15:04 I'm blessed if I'm famous. No. No. No. No.
15:06 No. This is how Jesus measures blessing. Blessed are you when people hate you. Now hold on. What?
15:15 Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you. Have you ever been excluded for being a Christian? Like nobody wants to invite you to their house because you're just a little weird and you're religious and you're just too holy. You know when you step into the room everybody changes their behavior. Are you that guy?
15:29 You're blessed And revile you and spurn your name as evil. Now there's a reason for that though. So the reason for people spurning your name, the reason for people excluding you, excluding you, the reason for people hating you is what? On account of the son of man. That reason.
15:52 Because you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you live holy, and you have a stance on righteousness, and you are bold with your faith. For that reason, not because of your personality, because you're rude. Don't mix it up. Oh, yeah. People hate me.
16:06 Are you sure it's because of the son of man or because you're just a rude person? Don't mix it up. On account of the son of man. Now how should I react to that? I'm blessed.
16:17 I understand, but it demands a response. You know what the response is? Rejoice in that day. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy. Rejoice in that day when somebody excludes you.
16:33 Rejoice in that day when somebody takes your name and posts something about it online. Rejoice about it when you hear people gossiping about you because of your faith. Rejoice and leap for joy. Now, I don't know about you. I've probably never met one person that has walked through church doors with a smile on their face, wanting to worship and wanting nobody to hold them back.
16:55 And for the reason being is because they have been persecuted all week. I've never met somebody like that. I've never met somebody that's come into a place like this and says, brother, I'm so encouraged. Why? What happened?
17:08 Did God use you in something? Did did you preach the gospel? No, no, no, no. I was slandered all week. I was slandered and I just can't wait.
17:14 Just I know we wanna talk, I'll tell you after. I just need to worship God right now. You're saying that's a little bit extreme. Consider the apostles when they were whipped in Acts, and they walked off that scene rejoicing because they were counted worthy to suffer for his name. And so he says, develop this eternal perspective, please, that when you are slandered every single time, not when you're invited to speak at a conference, not when everybody pats you on the back, no.
17:44 When people slander your name, you have reward in heaven. I believe that Christians will be stunned at how God and how Christ will rejoice believers on that day. Guess he'll reward us for good works, but he's also gonna reward us for these things. In fact, just a few verses later, he actually warns believers, warns people if everybody actually speaks well of you. Scroll down to verse 26 of Luke six if you're there.
18:13 Woe to you. So, okay, he said, blessed if people hate you. Three verses later, he says, woe to you when all people speak well of you, for so their fathers did to the false prophets. Now in in our understanding of success, in our understanding of what it means to be blessed, we would flip that around, wouldn't we? You're blessed if everybody speaks well of you.
18:35 When everybody mentions your name, oh, that person's awesome. Oh, I love that purse. Oh, and Jesus is like, no. Actually, if everybody does that, you're on the same level as a false prophet. Why?
18:55 What context is he what is he trying to say here? Does that mean we purposely strive for people to hate us now? Please don't leave here doing that. That's not the ambition of this. But what's the understanding when we when we grasp the full context of the Bible?
19:11 People are, generally opposed to That's right. That's right. Jesus told us in John fifteen nineteen, if you were of the world, the world would love you. The world would love you. But you're not because I chose you, therefore the world will hate you.
19:35 So if you were of the world, if you live by the world standard, if you pursue the things that the world pursues, if you live your life as though Jesus is not king of your life, nobody's gonna hate you. You're in the same path. You're in the same agenda. You're in the same place as they are. But if you don't, if your life stands as a contrast, if your light exposes darkness, if you live in a way that brings conviction to people, if you preach the truth, the world will hate you.
20:07 That's why Jesus in John seven seven says, the world cannot hate you. These are red letters. But it hates me. We have this idea that the world loved Jesus. Now, yes, he was compassionate, and he did pursue sinners, and he pursued those that were broken, he pursued those that the Pharisees would not pursue.
20:28 But Jesus said this of himself, the world cannot hate you, but it hates me. Why? Because I testify that its works are evil. That's red letters. He said, I I proclaim a standard.
20:43 I I preach against sin. I promote holiness. Yes. It's by faith. Yes.
20:49 It's through grace. Absolutely. But the world hates me because I live in a in a specific way. And then he fast forward to John 15. He's commissioning them.
20:58 He's about he's giving them the discourse before he leaves. He goes, guess what? Now the world's gonna hate you. I'm I'm leaving here. I'm gonna send my spirit.
21:04 And when you live according to the power of the holy spirit in this life, you better expect the world to hate you. And so we understand that there will be people that will bear bear false witness about your life as a believer. And so the Lord Jesus Christ tells us to be prepared to be victims, so to speak. I don't like using that word, but it's just to give an idea of false witness. But there is not one instance in the Bible that he tells us to be participants of false witness.
21:38 And so here we are as believers. We don't look at the 10 commandments just as a reminder so that we can get saved. You're saved by grace. But that law on our hearts now is written and we wanna live like Christ. And so how are some ways that you and I can bear false witness?
21:53 What are the the dangers as believers where we can actually fall into this sin even as Christians? Does anybody have any idea? Yes. Gossip. Gossip?
22:09 That's an obvious one. Is it not? Mhmm. I think this is a little too literally, like, saying you're a Christian and, like, saying you represent Christ but not living a voice. Would you categorize that as false witness, proclaiming to be a believer but living like you're not?
22:28 Surprisingly, yes. Now we're not talking about false witness against a specific person. We're talking about the general idea of false witness. It's amazing how Peter makes this argument, and I I would love for you to turn your Bibles to first Peter two. First Peter two.
22:57 So we're not talking about false witness against a neighbor specifically, but the idea of false witness in general. Look what Peter says in first Peter two twelve. He's talking to Christians. He says, keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable so that when they speak against you as evildoers right? Jesus said that.
23:18 Right? He says, when they speak about you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. So when this world criticizes you Christian because of your allegiance to Christ, because of the stance that you take, and when they attempt to bear false witness about you as a believer. Now when when a world when the world hears Christian, what's the first word that usually comes to mind? Starts with the letter h.
23:50 Hypocrite. Right? Maybe more in the West as specifically ministers, as money hungry, greedy, selfish individuals. All these things that come to mind when it comes to Christianity, especially in the West. And what he's saying here is when the world attempts to bear false witness about you, let your life stand so in contradiction to those things that they have nothing.
24:17 They have nothing to put their finger on. Here's the crazy part. This is powerful That somebody's false witness can actually become true witness when you're a false witness. Let me say that again. Somebody's false witness against you as a believer can actually transfer into a true testimony because you and I live falsely.
24:47 We give them fuel for the fire. And Peter says, don't do that. Don't do that. Be be careful. And if there's one person that comes to mind when when I was just studying that verse earlier today, one individual that comes to mind in all of scripture is Daniel.
25:08 Now there's a lot of things to admire about Daniel. Is there not? He he he, from his youth, set a standard saying, listen. I'm not gonna defile myself. He does it first.
25:18 He doesn't even wait for his buddies. You know, sometimes we need to muster up, and we do need one another. Sure. But this man was so devoted. He says, boys, Shadrach, Meshach, and Mendigo, he stands up first, and the boys follow suit from a young age.
25:34 Interpretation of dreams, visions, skill, all these things. But if there's one thing I admire of Daniel, it's this, that he lives so blameless. This this blows my mind. This was it inspires me about Daniel. He lives so blamelessly that a law had to be created to condemn him.
25:55 I mean, all those things are great, but this man lives so righteously before God. He lives so clean and public and private that when men wanted to condemn him out of jealousy, when men wanted to strip him down, they had nothing on his life. Not his speech, not his work ethic, not anything. He was so blameless, not sinless, blameless that the only way they could bring this man down was we need to actually come up with a law, and that law was specific to his devotion to God. So if anybody were to accuse you and I of anything, it should be in light of that, that there's nothing that they can pinpoint on your life that would stand in contradiction to your profession in Christ.
26:39 Because you and I need to understand something about our profession. Listen, There's this sometimes there's these Christian slang that, you know, like these phrases that sound really good, but if you just take the time to listen to it, you go, that's not necessarily right. One of them is this, preach the gospel, and when necessary, use words. Have you heard that one before? I understand the principle.
26:59 I'm not totally against it, but it's not necessarily all true. People are saved by the proclamation of the gospel, by words, by preaching. The foolishness of preaching is what people need to be saved. But there is something about our lifestyle that will determine that will determine whether people will be prevented or persuaded to hear what you have to say. That's what our behavior has.
27:24 And guess what? It's to the nitty gritty details. I have to be honest with you. The more personally I I have been walking with the Lord, the more I'm realizing how this is of vital importance. The more you study the scripture, the more you'll realize that there's a lot of practical commands in the Bible.
27:40 Is there not? We're discovering that on Sunday as we're going through the book of Ephesians that it gets so detailed that he says, listen, in Ephesians four, he says, put on the new self. And you would think he would say, fast four times a week or pray two times a day. He goes, no. No.
27:53 No. He goes, don't lie anymore. Say the truth. Keep your word. When you're angry, don't sin in your anger.
28:01 Oh, yeah. If you used to steal or if you were lazy, work now so that you have something to give. And it's like, what why? Because those things has have an effect on your testimony whether you believe it or not. The the little things in life can attract or avert people from hearing the gospel from us.
28:25 And so this is what it looks like for you and me. Every day on your way to work, on your way to school, Lord, by the power of your Holy Spirit, let nothing come out of this mouth that would destroy my testimony. Lord, let my reaction to any circumstance that might not go my way at school or at work. Let it radiate and ooze out Jesus. Lord, even if somebody cuts me open, let me bleed the love of Christ.
28:55 I can tell you so many stories of people who have tarnished their testimony by a specific habit in their life that seems so little, but really doesn't attract people to Jesus. And it can be as so simple as just the wrong type of humor. It's amazing. We're called to a high standard because the gospel is at stake through the way we live. You've heard this before, but we'll say it again.
29:30 In Acts eleven twenty six, you don't have to turn there, you have to understand that the name and the title Christian was not something that one of the church fathers came up with. It was actually a title given by the world. It says that they were first called Christians in Antioch. Before that, they were known as the followers of the way. That's what a believer would be known as.
29:52 Follower of the way. Follower because Jesus said, Well, I am the way, the truth, the light. Here's a follower of the way. But they live so much like Christ that the title Christian was given. They're like little Christs.
30:07 They respond like Jesus. They they sacrifice like Jesus. They they move forward like Jesus. They they love like Jesus. They serve like Jesus.
30:15 Christians. Christians. And so on a practical and very even spiritual, this is spiritual. Lord, I pray that you help me live every every fragment of my being. May it radiate Christ.
30:36 Remember Joseph. In that moment with Potiphar's wife when nobody else was there, we often go right away, and we should, to where he says, how can I do this great wickedness against God? How can I sleep with you? You're not my wife. But that's not the first thing he said.
30:52 That's an important thing. That's the central thing. But he said something first before he said that. You know what he said? Genesis 39 verse eight.
31:02 But he refused and said to his master's wife, behold, behold, this is his first reason, because of me, my master has no concern about anything in the house, and he has put everything that he has in my charge. The first thing that comes to his mind is his testimony to his surroundings. How can I do this? I I can't do this because I have a reputation that when I touch things, they become blessed because God's on my life. Everybody knows I represent Yahweh, and you want me to do this?
31:39 Which perhaps Joseph had a revelation that even though if he did it in secret somehow was gonna come out. I'm not doing this. I'm a Christian. I'm a follower of the true and living God. And this is important for us to understand that lifestyle that lifestyle can have a great influence on the message of life that we carry for other people to hear.
32:06 So by God's grace, he gives us the power to do it. It gets so nitty gritty. These verses are life changing if we really meditate on them. Let me give you one. Don't turn that.
32:19 Let me just give you one. In Ecclesiastes ten twenty. Look what it says here. Even in your thoughts, do not curse the king. Even in your thoughts, do not curse the king.
32:31 Nor in your bedroom, curse the rich. Listen to this. For a bird of the air will carry your voice, or some winged creature tell the matter. What is he trying to say here? He's not saying literally a bird's gonna say, okay.
32:48 I'm gonna take that to the king. That's what he's saying. He's giving a picture here that even in your privacy, even in a walled in room, those walls have ears. And that somehow, someway, even if you curse another person, it can get there somehow. And so one person said it this way, even in your home, live as though you were living in a greenhouse, that everybody could see what you were doing, that the walls are see through.
33:19 This sounds daunting, but really, if we tap into the power of the Holy Spirit, this is a privilege and it's totally possible. And it's all for the sake of the gospel that we preach. It's all for the sake for the gospel that we preach. Though it is a message, our behavior has great influence on that message. Yes.
33:44 Our practice, when it doesn't match our profession, is in a sense false witness. Absolutely. And there's another way, though. There's another way. And for us to discover that, surprisingly maybe, we're gonna go to the book of third John, that small little letter before the book of Revelation.
34:05 Meet me in verse nine of three John. Look what the apostle John says. I have written something to the church, but the Atrophys, who likes to put himself first, does not acknowledge our authority. So if I come, I will bring up what he is doing, talking wicked nonsense against us. And not content with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers and also stops those who want and puts them out of the church.
34:35 So John is describing an individual in the church that is opposing the apostolic authority, and whether he's a leader or not, he's very dictatorship like, and he's commanding things to happen and refraining people from coming in and all these different things. And one way we can bear false witness is when we slander others to promote self. When somebody slanders others to promote self. John got word that this fellow was speaking wicked things about him and the other leaders. And what was the reason though?
35:18 It's in verse nine. The second part of verse nine, Diotrephes who likes to put himself first. So what he's doing here is that in order I believe here he has an ambition to be first. He wants to be the leader. He wants to be recognized as the person that they go to.
35:40 He wants to he wants to be the one in charge. So in order for him to go up, he attempts to bring somebody down. And he slanders, and he accuses, and he speaks against. And there are people like that today. There are people like that who find it within themselves to slander and gossip and and bring somebody's ministry down and try to find something, some some fault so that people can look at them in a better light.
36:04 And this is a way in which we can bear false witness to promote me, to promote my ministry, to promote my ambitions. And what do you do? You recruit other people to join you in slander. And God, as he says in Proverbs six says, I hate this. I despise this.
36:33 So you and I have to understand that the only relationship that we have to bearing false witness is if we are the recipients of it. If we are the recipients of false witness, that's the only relationship we have, that the world is supposed to hate us. Not that we have to do anything for them to hate us, just be a true Christian. I remember when I first got saved. I mean, fresh.
36:57 Fresh out of the oven. And though this should never die, it's something that's true of a person that first gets saved. You just can't stop talking about Jesus. You you've discovered the truth that you've been set free from sin and you realize that you're a son. You realize that you're a daughter.
37:17 And so I remember I was on my way to class and I was walking with somebody towards the class and just I don't even remember what I was saying. All I know is that it was something to do with the Lord. And this specific individual, I guess, had enough and walked on forward. And before he opened that door, before he got in, he looked to his side and says, you are so narrow minded, and walked in. And I didn't walk in right away.
37:38 I just stared as he closed that door, and I said, narrow minded. Narrow is the way. Few to be that find it. I'm on the right track. Alright?
37:49 And went into class. Just live like Christ, and it's bound to come one way or another. And the world the world will bear false witness. I wanna ask this question in discussion. Is there any situation in life, even for the life of the believer, especially the life of the believer, that would demand a false witness for a good reason?
38:23 It's gonna get real philosophical in here. Is there any situation in somebody's life, a believer's life, where he would feel the need to say something not true for a specific good. To preserve life. To preserve life. I think that's the main one.
38:48 Any other reason? So with that in mind, is it right to bear false witness to preserve life? What are two examples that we find in scripture of this? Shiphrah and Puah. Shiphrah and Puah, the two midwives.
39:12 Pharaoh said, I want you to give birth to these I want you to help give birth to these Hebrew babies. If it's a boy, kill them. If it's a girl, let her live. And they don't do it. Why?
39:24 What does it say? They feared God. They feared God. And I guess within time, Pharaoh caught on, calls in the midwives and says, hey. Do you remember what I told you?
39:37 What's going on? Why are we seeing all these Hebrew baby boys? And this is the answer that he came up with. They just give birth real fast. Couldn't catch up to them.
39:50 And here's the troubling part, it says after that he recognized them and recognized the and he blessed them, and they had families of their own. What's another example? It was brought to see who is Jericho. Rahab. Rahab Rahab brings in the Israelite spies.
40:07 They come to the door and says, where are the spies? They're long gone. They're not here. Maybe if you run, you might catch up to the bell. James two tells us that her act of faith was counted as righteousness.
40:30 Is it right? Do those situations commend them for making that specific act? That's the question. Go to James two twenty five real quickly concerning Rahab. After the book of Hebrews, what does it say?
40:50 And in the same way, was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? So look at the things that she's commended for here. When she received the messengers, one and two, sent them out by another way. There's something in the middle that happened that is not mentioned in this verse, and that's her telling the people that they're not there. Same thing with Shifran Puah.
41:16 He blessed them because they feared God, not necessarily for the act that they committed when they responded to Pharaoh. So a definite conclusion we can make is that God blessed them for the right that they did, not necessarily for the wrong that they did in the midst of the right. It's not an encouragement for us to develop a habit to advance good, we develop the ability to say something that's not true. So then what do we do in those situations? Because these are real situations at different parts of the world.
41:51 Open the door. Where are they? We know that they ran in here. Tell us. Tell us where they're at.
42:00 Give us those men. And you're standing at the door. Thoughts are racing through your mind. What do you do? We've talked about this when we were in Exodus chapter two, and I'll give one verse that I believe helped me at least concerning this.
42:30 You don't have to turn there. Luke twenty one fifteen. This is in the context of the disciples that would stand before politicians and kings and different things being persecuted. And the Lord Jesus assured them, in that moment, do not think about what you will say, but I will give you a mouth and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict. I will give you in that moment listen to me, followers of Christ, and dwelt by the Holy Spirit.
43:00 You do not need to worry about what you will say. Don't even think about it on your way there. Trust that in that moment, the Holy Spirit will give you the wisdom, the phrase, everything necessary for God's will to be performed. Anybody in here familiar with Corrie ten Boom? Corrie ten Boom.
43:20 Right? Famous story of a woman and her sister and her family really during the Nazi regime and how they brought them into concentration camps. And I might not have the timeline fully there, but there was a moment where one of her relatives was at home, and they were hiding two specific men, two Jews from the Germans. And there was a specific cellar underneath their kitchen table, and so they hid them in that small little cellar because there was a trap door, and they put a rug over it, and they put a long table cloth over that table. And so the door knocks and here are these soldiers out of breath ready to come in and take these men and kill them.
43:56 And here's one of the relatives of Corrie ten Boom who opens the door. And she grew up as a believer, and she grew up learning that you must tell the truth at all times. God honors truth. God calls us to speak truth, and And she's facing the situation, and they look at her and say, we know that the men are here. Where are the men?
44:13 And she looks and says, they're under the table. The men rush in. They fling open that table. They see nobody. Were under the table.
44:31 They just didn't look hard enough. And after that situation, the family came and says, listen. You can't be doing that. These are lives at stake here. And this is the statement that's become famous.
44:44 She said, god honors truth with perfect protection. God honors truth with perfect protection. My answer to that if you were to ask me, and we talked about this early on in Exodus, is that in those moments, if you find yourself and and think about these moments with Rahab and this is not some, like, I'm calling into work. I'm not gonna come in because I'm sick. That's not one of those things.
45:11 There are lives at stake here. There are Hebrew babies here. There are there are men who live this the who serve to to and live for the living God. These situations, even in those moments, we have to trust in the Holy Spirit, that he'll give us the right words to say, he'll give us the right phrase, he'll give us the right answer. And that's a joy that you and I can take in.
45:31 And so we are called to be truth, truth sharing, truth proclaiming, truth responding people. And if there's one example, greater than Corrie ten Boom and her family, greater than Rahab, greater than all these figures is the captain of our salvation, the Lord Jesus Christ. He would never dare to say a lie, but I want us to explore how he, as the author and finisher of our faith, responded to false witness. What happened? We know this.
46:08 He comes into trial, and the only thing that they can do, the greater Daniel, is come up with lies. Come up with lies to try to condemn this man. And even when they gathered all these false witnesses, they were jumbling their words. They didn't know what they were saying. Finally, two came forward and says, he says that he will destroy this temple.
46:28 And all these different things come out. And finally, they demand an answer. This is what Jesus did to the false witness that was coming towards his way. Matthew twenty six sixty three, Jesus held his peace. ESV says he remained silent.
46:47 Now if there was anybody who had the right to defend their reputation, there's anybody who had the right to step up and say, do you know who I am? It was Jesus. And Jesus could've. And we know the reason why he does it. He's fulfilling what he came to the earth for to die.
47:04 But why is he doing this? There's one reason why, to set us an example. And that's not my idea. Again, that's Peter's idea in the very same book that says, let your conduct be honorable before the Gentiles. And we're gonna end it here in first Peter two twenty three.
47:24 Talking about Jesus. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return. When he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. When he was reviled, didn't threaten back. When he was threatened, he didn't threaten back.
47:46 Jesus, the Son of God, that could have called a legion of angels with one word. He said that, did he not? He entrusted himself to him who judges justly. You and I are called to do the same. In your pursuit of godliness, in your desire to serve the Lord, you have to realize that part of the package will be slander.
48:11 And maybe somebody's going through this right now. I don't care if it's family, it could be coworkers, it could be anybody. If you're going through this, this simple instruction is for you. This simple encouragement is for you. Hold your peace.
48:25 God will judge. God will intervene whether in this life or in the next. And when he does it, when he does it, it's a beautiful thing when he takes full control of that. Don't get involved. And that sounds really good in theory, does it not?
48:44 But when it happens, it hurts. And listen, it it doesn't just hurt when it comes to the world. When it comes to the world, you understand. They're like, they're blind. They don't understand the truth.
48:54 It hurts when it comes from people who proclaim to be believers. Does it not? As one preacher said, it's not the it's not the persecution of the world, it's the criticism of the saints that hurts the most. And if there's one example of this that I believe paints a beautiful picture of how to remain secure and how your soul can remain serene through all those things, We talked about this young lady before, whether she's young or not. I believe she's young.
49:23 Mary of Bethany. Mary of Bethany. This was her secret. When you find her in Luke chapter 10 and later in John chapter 12, There's another place where she does this, but in these two specific places, you will find Mary of Bethany in a specific posture. What posture?
49:39 At the feet of Jesus. In Luke 10, she's sitting there listening to what Jesus has to say. In John 12, she's there wiping the fragrance that she poured out on his feet with her hair, at his feet. And both situations are very similar. In Luke 10, she's sitting there, and there's somebody that's criticizing her.
50:02 Who is it? Her sister. Her sister. I mean, the closest one probably to her. Right?
50:09 Martha. Martha says, tell her. What is she doing? Tell her to get up and serve. And guess what Mary does?
50:18 She doesn't do anything. What does she do? She lets who speak for her? Jesus. Jesus speaks for her.
50:27 You go to John chapter 12, she's worshiping. I mean, she is extravagantly worshiping the Lord. And if there's anybody that would understand this act of worship, it's the disciples that were in the room. The disciples that had heard what Jesus had, and seen what Jesus had done. And there they are, the disciples.
50:45 I mean Mary was one thing, and Martha was one thing. Now you have the disciples. Jesus's crew, the main gang saying, why this waste? We could give this to the poor. Now here's Mary of Bethany.
50:59 You don't see her getting up, fixing her hair and saying, who do you think you are? Aren't you supposed to be Christians? Don't you you don't understand how you're supposed to be talking like this. This is gossip. This is slander.
51:06 She didn't do any of that. She keeps worshiping, and Jesus speaks to her defense. Why? Why? Because Mary of Bethany is so preoccupied with the revelation of the goodness and the love of Jesus for her, she is not concerned about the absence of love from others.
51:33 I'm telling you that you can come to a place in your walk with the Lord, that you were so ravished with Christ. You are so consumed with the burning eyes of love that he looks at you with, that even at the moment of slander, there's nothing in your soul that shifts because it is anchored in him. That's possible. I'm talking experientially possible where you can have people where you can have people that you thought loved you, that grew up with you, all these things. Slander your reputation.
52:07 Take it to the dirt, say things that are not true, whatever it may be, criticize your devotion, and you can be so anchored in him. Jesus, it's up to you. And that demands us to be in relationship with him continually, and it demands a clear conscience. So when you have a clear conscience in public and in private and there's slander, you walk free. And guess what you do?
52:33 You leap for joy, and you worship because there's a reward in heaven. And when when you read these verses, you realize, man, really being a Christian is a whole different thing. Is it not? You just respond to things differently. What the world counts as a curse, you count as a blessing.
52:53 And Jesus is saying, I'm inviting you into that reality. I'm inviting you into that reality. So we conclude with this. Do not bear false witness. That can obviously be done by speech, but here's the main one I wanna touch on.
53:12 Is your profession in line with your practice as a Christian, or are you giving the world a reason to slander you? Does your lifestyle promote the gospel, or does it prevent people from wanting to hear it? Is there anything in your life that would put a speck of dirt on the reputation that you and I are supposed to carry for the name of Christ? Are we seeking the approval of all men when Jesus says, if you seek for that and if you have that, you're in danger because they did that with the false prophets? Or are you in any level slandering another person?
53:57 Because there's something about gossip and slander. It feels really good to do it. We wouldn't do it if it there's something about just spending some time talking about somebody and bringing them down that makes us feel good about ourselves. But as believers, we can come to a place where the subject of your conversation can be Christ and Christ alone, and you can talk about him and his word for hours and find no space in your chitter chatter to slander anybody. That's possible.
54:26 It's possible where your life can be an endless road to Emmaus where you're simply talking about the things of God because it can be like an arrow.
