Message by Dr. David Drake
Series: “Inside / Out”
Living Today The Life Of Jesus
A study through The Sermon On The Mount
Matthew 5-7
You Are What You Say!
Matthew 5:33-37
Matthew 5:33-37 (NASB)
33 “Again, you have heard that the ancients were told, ‘YOU SHALL NOT MAKE FALSE VOWS, BUT SHALL FULFILL YOUR VOWS TO THE LORD.’
34 “But I say to you, make no oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God,
35 or by the earth, for it is the footstool of His feet, or by Jerusalem, for it is THE CITY OF THE GREAT KING.
36 “Nor shall you make an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black.
37 “But let your statement be, ‘Yes, yes’ or ‘No, no’; anything beyond these is of evil.
THREE QUESTIONS
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What Are You Saying … To God? – vs. 33-34
Ecclesiastes 5:2, 4-7 (NASB)
2 Do not be hasty in word or impulsive in thought to bring up a matter in the presence of God. For God is in heaven and you are on the earth; therefore let your words be few.
4 When you make a vow to God, do not be late in paying it; for He takes no delight in fools. Pay what you vow!
5 It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay.
6 Do not let your speech cause you to sin and do not say in the presence of the messenger of God that it was a mistake. Why should God be angry on account of your voice and destroy the work of your hands?
7 For in many dreams and in many words there is emptiness. Rather, fear God.
Let your actions speak louder than your words.
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What Are You Saying … To Others? – vs. 35
1 Corinthians 2:1-5 (NASB)
1 And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God.
2 For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.
3 I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling,
4 and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,
5 so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.
Question … “What Are Others Hearing From Us?”
– Words of Wisdom – Psalm 49:3
Psalm 49:3 (NASB)
3 My mouth will speak wisdom, And the meditation of my heart will be understanding.
– Words of Worship – Psalm 145:21
Psalm 145:21 (NASB)
21 My mouth will speak the praise of the LORD, And all flesh will bless His holy name forever and ever.
– Words of Truth – Proverbs 8:6-7a
Proverbs 8:6-7 (NASB)
6 “Listen, for I will speak noble things; And the opening of my lips will reveal right things.
7 “For my mouth will utter truth;
– Words from God – 1 Peter 4:11
1 Peter 4:11 (NASB)
11 Whoever speaks, is to do so as one who is speaking the utterances of God;
– Words of Warning – James 4:11
James 4:11 (NASB)
11 Do not speak against one another, brethren. He who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge of it.
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What Are You Saying … To Yourself – vs. 36-37
Luke 12:16-21 (NASB)
16 And He told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man was very productive.
17 “And he began reasoning to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’
18 “Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.
19 ‘And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.”‘
20 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?’
21 “So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”
Luke 18:13 (NASB)
13 “But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’
Illustration:
In ancient Greece, Socrates was reputed to hold knowledge in high esteem. One day an acquaintance met the great philosopher and said, “Do you know what I just heard about your friend?”
“Hold on a minute,” Socrates replied, “Before you talk to me about my friend, it might be a good idea to take a moment and filter what you’re goin to say, that is why I call it the tripe filter test! The first filter is – TRUTH! Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?”
“Well no,” the man said. “Actually, I just heard about it and…”
“All right,” said Socrates. “So you don’t know if it is true or not? Now let’s try the second filter…the filter of GOODNESS! Is what you are about to tell me about my friend something good?”
“Umm. No on the contrary…”
“So,” Socrates continued, “you want to tell me something bad about my friend, but you’re not certain it’s true? You may still pass the test though, because there’s one filter left…the filter of USEFULNESS! Is what you want to tell me about my friend going to be useful to me?”
“No, not really,” replied the acquaintance.
“Well,” concluded Socrates, “if what you want to tell me is neither true, good, nor even useful, WHY TELL IT TO ME AT ALL?”
-David Wolfe
Jesus loves you with an everlasting love.