Who Will Confess Him?

(Matthew 10:32-33)

I. Introduction. A. Orientation. What does the Lord look for As He searches throughout the earth? Hes looking for someone Who is committed to Him And His cause; Who isnt looking for glory and wealth in this world, But in the world thats coming.

This kind of heart Expresses itself in many ways As weve already seen Not the least of which is The desire to please God With your whole life, And to love and minister to your neighbor As you would love yourself.

B. Preview. Our theme today Focuses on how we can

2 Do both of these at the same time: By confessing Jesus to others That we know Him, Love Him, Believe in Him, And that He is the only way of salvation.

When we do this, Not only do we love and honor the Lord Who redeemed us for this, We also love our neighbor By sharing with them The only message that can save their lives.

This morning, lets consider three things from our passage: 1. The context what applies and what doesnt. 2. What it means to confess Jesus. 3. What He has done to help us. II. Sermon. A. First, lets consider the context. 1. Jesus here equips His twelve disciples Including Judas With His Spirit To proclaim His message boldly, And to cast out demons,

Heal every sickness, And to raise the dead To do crowd stopping miracles So that those who see Will stop and listen.

He sends them, notice Not to the Gentiles Or the Samaritans But to the Jews Because this was the blessing God promised them Jesus was their Messiah, The fulfillment of Gods promises To their fathers. They were to have the privilege Of hearing the Gospel Before anyone else.

They were not to take anything with them But the clothes they were wearing, Because Jesus wanted them To be supported By those who heard the Gospel.

If a city or town didnt receive their message They were to shake the dust off their feet As a testimony against them, Because they had just rejected The best news God had ever given Or ever could give It would be more tolerable For Sodom and Gomorrah in the Day of Judgment Than for that city.

There would be many Who would reject them They would be like sheep among wolves. They would be arrested, Brought before governors and kings, Handed over to the courts And scourged in the synagogues, Because of Jesus and His Gospel.

They would be betrayed By their own families, And hated by everyone, Because those they would speak to

5 Would hate Jesus.

But Jesus encouraged them:

First, He said they shouldnt be afraid They can only kill the body, Not the soul. If those they preached to rejected their message, The Father would destroy Both their body and soul in hell. He was the One they should fear. One fear cures another!

Second, that the Father loved them And would watch over them. If even a sparrow didnt fall to the ground Apart from His will, They could be sure What was happening with them Wouldnt escape His notice, Because they were more valuable Than many sparrows.

Notice love and fear Two motivations

6 We commonly see in Scripture.

We see the same in His next comments: If you confess Me before men, I will confess you before My Father in heaven; But if you deny Me before men, I will deny you before My Father in heaven.

2. Now some of these things Applied only to them The authority to work miracles, That they should go only to the Jews;

Some applied only to their office: That they should publicly proclaim the Gospel, And receive their support from the Gospel.

But some still apply to us today: We are still called to bring the Gospel to others; The Lord still gives us His Spirit To empower us to be His witnesses; We are still sheep among wolves, Which means we will still be hated as Jesus was.

The two motives still apply as well: Love: If you confess Me, I will confess you; And fear: if you deny Me, I will deny you.

7 Its also still true, by the way, That for those who are blessed enough To hear the Gospel, But reject it, That it will be more tolerable For Sodom and Gomorrah in the Day of Judgment Than for them.

So what does this passage tell us About what the Lord is looking for? Hes looking for those Who are willing to confess Him In the power of His Spirit, Even though it means You will be hated by the world.

B. Since this is what He looks for, Lets consider, second, what that means. It means simply To declare/confess Publicly/before men what you believe.

Jesus sent His disciples To tell others That the Kingdom of heaven was at hand

That their Messiah was here, They needed to repent And receive Him.

They werent responsible For how that message was received Only that they communicate it. Jesus warned them in advance That many wouldnt respond well.

Now that theyre gone Whos going to do this? Its the churchs responsibility Which includes you and me. Peter tells us That we should be ready at all times To give a reason for the hope that is in us, With meekness and reverence (1 Pet. 3:15).

Youve probably noticed That most people feel free To tell you exactly what they believe Regardless of what it is Especially in todays society

9 That wants us, Not just to tolerate, but to accept, Whatever they believe or do.

Not so strangely, The only thing not tolerated is the Gospel Which means were going to be tempted Not to be as forward as others Remember, we are like sheep among wolves, Lights shining in a dark place, Were in enemy territory Which means theyre not going to like it.

We also know that once we confess Him Our lives will immediately be on display: Everything we do will be scrutinized; Everyone who sees us Will either praise or condemn Jesus On the basis of what they see us do Which will make confessing Him even harder: No one likes to be on the outside, But thats exactly where we must be willing to be, If we are to confess Jesus and follow Him. The Lord says,

10 Come out from among them and be separate, And I will be your God, And you will be My sons and daughters (2 Cor. 6:17). We cant go the same direction as the world And confess Him.

Its not easy, But its right, And the only path That ends in heaven.

C. Since it isnt easy, Lets consider, finally, What He has done to help us. We have here at least three things:

1. First, He has given us His Spirit. He equipped His disciples With the Spirit of boldness. When they were threatened by these wolves, They prayed, And the Lord sent His Spirit To give them the power to confess Him boldly (Acts 4:31).

He will do the same for us today:

11 Paul writes to Timothy, For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, But of power, love and discipline (2 Tim. 1:7). Paul even commands us To be filled with the Spirit (Eph. 5:18), Which he wouldnt have done, If it wasnt possible.

You can be filled with His presence and power, And so pray for the Spirit. Ask God/Jesus to fill you with His Spirit. Pray as well that the Lord Might provide you with opportunities to confess Him And He will do it!

2. Second, He has given us two encouragements: First, if you will confess Christ to others, He will confess you before the Father.

He will point you out to His Father And say, That one is mine. He/she belongs to Me. I laid down My life for him/her. Keep that one for Me.

12 I dont know about you, But thats what I want Jesus To say to His Father about me.

If you confess Him to others, He will confess you before His Father, When it counts the most.

3. The second encouragement Is that when you confess Him before others It shows that you belong to Him: Jesus will only deny those who deny Him.

This is both positive and negative Because it also means If youre not willing to confess Him, You dont belong to Him.

When He says He will deny those who deny Him, He has more in view Than simply remaining silent. There are times when we are silent Because were afraid; But that doesnt mean we dont belong to Him.

13

Joseph of Arimathea Was discrete about his faith Because of what the Jews might do to him (John 19:38). But he confessed Jesus in other ways, Such as going to Pilate To ask for His body After the crucifixion.

Hes not saying That if there have been times When you didnt quite have the courage to confess Him That He will disown you.

What He is saying Is if you downright deny Him, He will deny you. If you disown Him, He will disown you. If you renounce Him, He will renounce you.

If thats what youre doing By refusing to confess Him, Or to own Him around others/your friends

14 As your Lord and Savior You had better repent of that sin and trust Him now, Or you may find that He will disown you On that final day And hand you over for judgment.

If, on the other hand, You do want to own Him You do want to confess Him But youre struggling for the courage to do so, Know that He wont disown you, But He will give you His Spirit To give you power to confess Him If youre willing to ask. Seek the Lord for this power.

So what kind of person is the Lord looking for? Hes looking for someone Who isnt ashamed of Him or His Gospel, Whos willing to stand apart from the world, And confess Him as Lord and Savior, Even if it means being hated by the world. If youre willing to do this, Hes willing to use you. Amen. http://www.graceopcmodesto.org