chapter 4, verse 6. But we read from Matthew chapter 12, verse 22 to verse 37. And I'm reading from the New King James. Then one who was brought to him who was demon possessed, blind and mute, and he healed him so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw. And all the multitudes were amazed and said, Could this be the son of David? Now when the Pharisees heard it, they said, this fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons. But Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city of the house divided against itself will not stand. If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges. But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you. Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man, and then he will plunder his house? He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters abroad. Verse 31. Therefore, I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him. But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come. Verse 33, either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad. For a tree is known by its fruit. Fruit of vipers, how can you being evil speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. Verse 37, for by your words you will be justified and by your words you will be condemned. May God be pleased to bless the reading of Holy Scripture. Please join me as we ask the Lord to help us in prayer. Father, we thank you for this passage of Scripture and we pray that you would Grant us ears to hear and a heart to receive your word. These are spiritual words, Lord. And we pray that your spirit would bring them and apply them to our souls. And we pray, Father, that your son would be glorified and exalted as the preaching goes forth. Oh, Lord, meet us now, we pray. We plead this of you in Jesus' name. Amen. So the title of my message, beloved, is A Kingdom Divided. And I do have an outline in my bulletin for you to follow. So please avail yourself of that outline so that you'll know exactly where I'm going. We want to consider this miracle of the man who was brought to Jesus, and he was a demon-possessed man, blind and mute. And the text we read tells us that they brought this man to Jesus and he healed him so that the blind man both spoke and saw. That's a wonderful miracle. But what we do understand is that these miracles are illustrations of greater truths, aren't they? I mean, if you think about how the people responded to this miracle, it's quite interesting. It says, and many were amazed. The crowd saw it and they were amazed and said, could this be the son of David? Now, it's interesting that they should say that because it tells you something about how they were taught. something of their background. These are Jewish people and they no doubt would have been taught by their rulers and their teachers and their parents that Messiah would come. They were to be expectant of the Messiah that he would come with power and that he would restore to them the kingdom. Remember they're under Roman rule. And they've suffered many setbacks by way of exile and subjugation. And so this view of the kingdom and the Messiah of the kingdom was very, very much in their minds and on the lips and the teachings of the Pharisees and the rulers of the day. But there's a problem. And the problem is that their view of the kingdom and the Messiah of the kingdom was an inaccurate view. They did not hold to a biblical view of the Messiah. They held to a very political view of the Messiah and a very selfish view of the Messiah. In fact, this is what we have here with the Pharisees. They had perverted this idea of the Messiah to this nationalistic view which made them out, really, ultimately, them, the Pharisees, to be the ones who would be ultimately like gods. And they saw everyone else, particularly the Gentiles, as serfs. And so they wanted the kingdom and the power of the Messiah to come, but they really wanted it for themselves. And when we come to our Lord's ministry, we realize, and they realize, that this is not the case. And when Jesus heals and He casts out demons and He's speaking and He's teaching with authority, they are threatened. They are threatened because they're being exposed as being themselves idolaters, wanting the kingdom for themselves. Whereas God is bringing his kingdom and he's establishing his Messiah and the reign of the Messiah will be a reign of righteousness and a reign of truth. Now, if they're not for the kingdom of God in its true form in the biblical concept, then what are they for? Well, they are really masquerading as religious rulers, but they're actually for the kingdom of Satan, of Satan's kingdom. And our Lord went throughout the land teaching of repentance, teaching of faith and trust, and teaching the people that the kingdom of God was light and truth and righteousness and power, and that they would be forgiveness of sin. from the least to the greatest, that Christ, that Messiah would come and bring healing and forgiveness and true restoration between man and God, and the Pharisees weren't having that. And so I'm setting this scene for you because I want you to understand that what you see here in the Gospels is a clash of these two kingdoms, the kingdom of God in Christ and a false shadow kingdom where Satan rules. Later on Paul will say of this kingdom in the epistle to the Romans, for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. So let's come to our passage that we'll be looking at. And I want us to consider how the Pharisees respond to this healing. that our Lord Jesus performed. And they really respond with the accusation. Now you've got to understand they're hearing the people say, could this be, could this be the son of David? Now, when the Pharisees heard this, they responded in verse 24 with these words, this fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons. That was the immediate response. Now, what do we make of this response? How do we understand this? Well, I think we need to, first of all, recognize that, at very least, they acknowledge that Jesus had power to deliver. They clearly see that Jesus had power to deliver this man, and they know that the people witnessed this great act of power and deliverance, so they couldn't deny the miracle had taken place. But they look at it in a completely evil way. And why? Well, once again, because of the kingdom they belong to. This is what Jesus said of them in John chapter 8 verse 44. He said, you are of your father the devil and the desire of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources for he is a liar and the father of it. So it's no wonder that they respond in this way, because the light is piercing the darkness and the darkness is reacting. That's always what happens. And they ascribe the source of Jesus' power to the devil. Now, this is not the first time they had done it. In fact, something very similar had happened, almost identical miracle, but they're two different miracles, where they had said the same thing. In Matthew chapter nine, verse 32 to 34, And I've preached on this miracle. We read this. And as they went out, behold, they brought to him a man, mute and demon possessed. And when the demon was cast out, the mute spoke and the multitude marveled, saying it was never seen like this in Israel. But the Pharisee said he cast out demons by the ruler of the demons. So they can't deny what's happening before their very eyes. They can't deny what the people are seeing. But. They ascribe his power to the devil. They ascribe his power to the devil. In fact, to the ruler of the demons Beelzebub. Now, one thing you need to know about that title, it comes from the Jewish dealings with Canaanite religion. It was a word used, a slur. to talk about their God as being the Lord of the flies. Later on in Jewish tradition and in the days of Jesus, it was ascribed to a truly evil one, namely Satan. But this is the explanation they give. Now, when the Pharisees heard it, they said, this fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, ruler of the demons. Now think about what they're saying, beloved. Think about the serious nature of what these so-called teachers and shepherds of Israel are saying, supposedly waiting for the Messiah, and they deny Him. They're saying that Jesus is an instrument of Satan. that the very power that Jesus is manifesting to help and deliver those who are demoniacs and sick and afflicted, that this is not from God, but it is indeed from Satan. It is indeed from the devil. That's what Jesus is doing, casting out the devil with the devil. There's no doubt, no question. that they are ascribing Jesus, ascribing to Jesus the power of not God, but Satan, that he is an instrument of Satan. That is a terrible thing to say. The question is, how does our Lord respond to this? How does he respond to this horrendous and deeply insulting and offensive accusation? Well, let's consider the response. And here we see the kingdom divided. Now again, follow with me from verse 25 to 30. I'm going to read the text and then I'm going to unpack it. He knew their thoughts and said every kingdom divided against itself will not stand. If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges. But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you. Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house. He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters abroad. So let's consider very carefully our Lord's response. The first thing Jesus says to them is this, your argument is insane. It's insane. Satan opposing Satan. Now it's very important to see how this begins. Look at how verse 25 begins. Jesus knew their thoughts. Our Lord didn't come into this blindsided. He understood exactly what was going on in their hearts. He understood that there was hatred in their hearts. There was evil against Him. They were insane. They were blinded by their hatred. and it's evident to see by what they were saying. How could it be that Satan opposes himself? How could it be that Satan would tear down his own kingdom? Think about this nonsensical argument. Satan would send out his demons to possess, torment, and molest a soul, only to then turn around and drive out the very servants whom he sent out to do his own evil bidding. The argument these Pharisees are making is just utterly foolish. No kingdom that ever worked on or was predicated on those principles would ever be able to stand it, would be utterly undone or fall down. So that's the first thing he says. But then he goes on and he says, well, if by Beelzebul I cast out demons, then what about your sons casting them out? the time that our Lord walked the earth, there were others who were seeking to exorcise demons. And they were religious people, and they were the sons of the Pharisees. And what our Savior is saying here, his point is, if your sons claim to have power from God precisely because they can deliver the demon-possessed, and you accept their claim and you embrace them because they're your sons, and they support you or your cause, you accept them because it profits you. You receive praise and recognition and you claim the glory for yourself. Now, says Jesus, if your sons are justified in doing that and you recognize and you say, that's from God. Well then, on what basis do you reject my power and my authority? You are hypocrites. You accept those instruments as being from God because they benefit you, but you reject me because I expose your evil hearts, because I threaten your kingdom. Therefore, says Jesus, let the sons make their judgments about the source by which I'm doing this. And you see if your sons can turn around and accuse me of doing what they were doing by the power of Satan, then what about them? You're condemning yourself. Or unless you have to accept that this is the power of God. Otherwise, this is nothing more than a double standard, right? Do you see what our Lord is doing, beloved? He's exposing the hypocrisy. He's exposing the true motives of their heart. And he's telling them now, if on the basis of those two things, you can deny that I have performed these miracles by the power of God. You can't. You can't deny that. It must be the power of God. But in the face of the power of God, you choose to deny it. You choose to spread these horrendous lies and you undermine and you oppose God's kingdom. There's no doubt that I'm laboring in the power of God and that the power that I'm manifesting is manifesting a greater truth. What is that truth? Jesus says, but if by the spirit of God I cast out demons. And what does that really mean? That means God's kingdom has come upon you. God's kingdom has come upon you. You see, with powerful divine logic, Jesus is destroying the lies of these Pharisees. He's exposing their fraudulent claims. He's showing them out to be highly. They're nothing more than Satan's tools masquerading as God's servants. And he declares very clearly that he is ushering in the kingdom of God and that it has come upon them. Look at verse 28. But if I cast out demons by the spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you. these this word if clearly means if that's what happening and it is what is happening and I'm doing it in the power of God's Spirit and if I'm doing in the power of God's Spirit what does that mean that means that God's kingdom is here that means that God's kingdom is here you are seeing this man deliver He was mute and blind. And now he's been liberated. And you cannot deny this is the spirit of God. And if it's the spirit of God, then you know that I have come, the Messiah has come and that the kingdom of God has come upon you. Now, beloved, I want to step back and I want you to understand what's really happening here. The fact that this is happening proves that Satan's kingdom is weak and vulnerable. For his servants, the demons, are being driven out of the lives of those they have bound for so long. But what happens when that takes place is the evil reacts. The evil reacts. God's kingdom is manifesting itself. It also proves the point that the Pharisees are bound up in darkness and they are reacting with such a visceral hatred because the reality is they love darkness rather than light. And they are of their father, Satan, a liar, a thief, and a murderer from the beginning. Now, I said to you earlier on when we prayed for the nation, I said, these are the best of times and these are also the worst of times, right? How could they be the best of times if they're the worst of times? because the darkness is being exposed. And it's reacting. And the responsibility we have, beloved, is to be faithful, to preach the gospel, and not to shrink back in fear, and not to succumb to error, but to be all the more diligent in following Christ and holding forth the gospel and clinging to the King of kings, the Lord of lords, the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ, beloved, is building his church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. Those gates are being shattered and the iron bars are being broken. and the earthquake has begun and it will culminate in the life of our Lord Jesus. It's gonna culminate at the cross and the resurrection and the ascension. And it is by the spirit of God that Christ's power is thus being manifested on earth. And this will be fully seen after Pentecost. And we are living in those glorious days, brother, where the kingdom of God is advancing. and gaining ground contrary to what we may think or see. But it is only through Christ who is the true Messiah and the Savior. It is by the Spirit of God that Christ's power is thus being manifested on earth. Paul says this in 1 Corinthians 12 verse 3, Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed. And no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit. This can be the only plausible explanation for the miracle that Jesus had performed. But our Lord goes on and he further illustrates what's really happening. He talks about the strong man that must be bound. Take a look at verse 29. Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods unless he first binds the strong man and then he will plunder his house? Now, once again, think about the craziness of what the Pharisees are saying, how illogical it is. And Jesus uses this illustration of a burglar. He says it would be insane for a burglar to pitch up at your house, knock on your door and say, listen, I want to break into your house. I'd like you to help me to gather your stuff so that I can carry it up to where I'm storing all the stuff I steal. That's nonsense. What's he going to do? He's going to break in. He's going to tie you up. And then he's going to plunder and raid your house and carry off all your possessions. And so what's the point here? That's exactly what Jesus is doing. It is in this, by his words and his deeds, he is taking those tools that Satan uses to do his will, namely fallen, sinful, bound men, women, and children, and he is setting them free from their sin. In his power, Jesus is showing us very plainly and manifestly that he has appeared to do what? He has appeared to destroy the works of the devil, How does He do it, beloved? I spoke a little earlier on to someone about the keys of the kingdom. I was just joking with someone, but what are the keys of the kingdom? The gospel. The gospel of Christ and Him crucified, being preached. And as the gospel is being preached, Satan's works are being destroyed. And Christ is liberating those who all their life long were held and subject to slavery in the fear of death. And what these miracles show us, though they happened thousands of years ago, the reality of those miracles goes on throughout the ages because they show us that Jesus is in the process of driving out the tyrant, the imposter who has come to steal, kill, and destroy. And he has come, our Lord Jesus, to give us life in abundance. This is happening in time and space in the time of our Lord Jesus, and it's the beginning of it, and the cross signals the defeat of Satan and the crushing of the serpent's head and the resurrection, and the ascension signals the power of that life through the Holy Spirit. with its eternal, culminating perfection when Christ returns. These are the days we are living. We are ready, but not yet. It's already happened, but the final victory's coming, right? Colossians 2, verse 15 says, what has Christ done? in His work, in His life, in His death, His resurrection, His ascension, having disarmed principalities and powers. He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. The victory is won. The head of the serpent has been crushed. Jesus has done this and He's doing it and He will do it to the end through the power of the Holy Spirit. He will bring Satan's power and Satan's rule completely to an end of the souls of sinful people. He is breaking those chains. This is what the gospel does, beloved. And this is what the gospel alone can do. But that does not mean that Satan is not doing his level best to undermine what Christ has already done. In John chapter 12, verse 31 and 32, we read this. Now is the judgment of this world. Now the ruler of this world will be cast out. And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, what will I do, says Jesus? I will draw all people to myself. Beloved, I understand we have to live in this world, and I get that, and we have to deal with terrible administrations, and we have to deal with all kinds of evil, but I do want you to understand that you are living for a greater kingdom, that you are under a perfect king if you're a Christian, and that there is no reason for you not to be hopeful. It is this power manifest in Jesus, which is the hope of the gospel, not just for you and for me, but for the nations. That's why Paul says in Romans chapter one, verse 16, for I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God for salvation, for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. I want to encourage you, we need to let hold of this reality, because the world we live in is a world that is caught in this conflict. This is the world we live in. It's a battlefield, to be sure. This is why we see such evil manifest in the day and age in which we're living in, and it's getting worse, isn't it? Well, at least we feel that it's getting worse. But the victory has been secured. The power of God has been manifest in Christ and unleashed in the gospel. And since Christ has ascended on high, what has he done? What has he given us? Has he left us as orphans? No, he has poured out his Holy Spirit, who he has given to men. He has given gifts to men. And all of time in history, beloved, all of it, the whole thing, it's his story. It's moving towards this glorious end, culminating. in this glorious crescendo of His return. And He will return. You know, when Jesus sent out the 70, they came back and they had a wonderful report. The Lord blessed their ministry. But I want you to listen to the account and what Jesus says. In Luke chapter 10, Verse 17 and 18 we read, then the 70 returned with joy saying, Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name. And he said to them, this is what Jesus says to them. I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. This battle has been going on. And according to what our Lord Jesus is saying here, he saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Satan has been unleashed and the battle is raging. And this is the point. There is no neutral ground. There's no neutral ground. People who don't have the spirit of Christ don't understand this. And ultimately they are deceived and they become tools in the hands of Satan. But Christians who have the Spirit of God in them need to understand this. Because our Lord tells us that either we are for Him or we are against Him. There's no neutral ground. Look at verse 30. He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters abroad. No middle ground. No place of neutrality. We need to understand this. that there is this aggressive darkness that is seeking to destroy and devour. We need to get this into our minds. We need to understand that we're all vulnerable to this. To be a follower of Jesus means that you follow Christ, that you submit to His yoke, that you walk after Him, that you take every thought captive to make it obedient to Him. Why? Because you are living in a world that is full of evil and wickedness, and you're living in a world with principalities and powers that are constantly seeking to destroy you and undermine your faith. This is not the time for pretending. This is the time for taking sides and you must take a side. And if you claim to be a Christian, you claim to have taken the side unless you are pretending and you are playing both sides. And you actually love the world and the things of this world. And scripture is very clear. If you love the world, the love of the Father is not in you. What a terrible indictment. This is the scriptures clearly telling us, either we are for him or we are against him. Either we are laboring with him, either we are his servants and his subjects, or we are the servants of Satan. Either our lives are the fragrance to God and the fragrance of life, and sometimes they'll be the fragrance or the aroma of death, or they're the stench of death and we're still captive to Satan. How many people will say, Lord, Lord, We claim you, Lord, and they will not do what He tells them to do. This is what Jesus so clearly says. Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and do not do what I say? But if we are living for Christ, If we are holding forth the gospel, if our desire is to see souls saved, if our desire is to raise our children so that they would love the Lord and follow Christ because they see Christ in us. Oh beloved, what blessedness God lavishes upon us, how God will use us. Listen to what Daniel chapter 12 verse 3 says. Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever. And let me tell you one of the things that characterizes those who serve the king and love the king is they're marked by love. Love for God and love for their brethren. By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, said the Lord Jesus, that you love one another. Don't tell me you're a Christian and you love Jesus, but you don't love his children and you don't desire to be with his children. Something is desperately wrong. Either you are horribly backslidden or you have never been saved. In this world we live, either we are subjects and servants of Christ We are rebels and slaves of ourselves. We can't, we can't say, hey, listen, I don't have a dog in this fight. That ain't so. Either you will end up in glory with Christ or you will end up in hell. There's no middle ground. There's no, there's no halfway house. You know, Jesus put it this way. He said, no one can serve two masters for either he will hate the one and love the other. or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. And I can tell you this, if you're not serving Christ, you're serving yourself. And you're serving the idols of your own heart. And you're a slave to your own passions. John tells us this, warns the church in Laodicea. The church in Laodicea was a compromised church. It was a corrupt church. Oh, they claimed to be a church, for sure. And no doubt there were many that were saved, but many of them had succumbed and given in to worldliness and ungodliness. And Jesus says this, I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. You're no good as lukewarm and mediocre. You're good if you're cold, at least you might be refreshing to somebody. And you're good if you're hot, at least you may warm someone. this middle ground, this mushy middle of evangelical, well, you know, my Christianity is just kind of an addendum to my life. I'll come when I feel like it, and I'll just carry on with life. That's gotta stop, beloved. Is he your king? Is this your family? Then seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and stop mucking about, and get stuck in, and humble yourself. Submit to the Lord. So then says Jesus, because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of my mouth. My friend, I need my friends. I need to move on. But if you don't stand with God in Christ. And follow him. And submit to him and call him Lord, because you do what he says. and you will know the mercy of Christ, the protection of Christ. But if you live for yourself, who are you kidding? If you're still governed by your lusts and your passions, who are you kidding? You're still an instrument and a tool in Satan's hands, and you're gonna scatter. In fact, the worst people who scatter are religious hypocrites. Men and women who think that they're right with God, but they live like devils. Look at the damage they do to their children. Look at the damage they do to their neighbors. That's Christianity. I want nothing to do with it. Right? Let me move on. I want to talk about the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit because Jesus addresses this. I want you to notice how Jesus rebuts these Pharisees. Look at verse 31 to 33. Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him. But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him either in this age or in the age to come. Let me begin by saying that God will forgive men all manner of sin and blasphemy. That's what this text plainly says. And what has Jesus come to do? He's come for sinners. Are you a sinner? He came for you. Are you broken? Have you got sin in your life? Well, Christ wants you to come to Him, because Christ wants to deal with your sin. This is what Mark 3, 28 says, Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter. Every sin men sincerely repent of and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ in will be forgiven. Scripture says in 1 John 1 verse 9, if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. God is not a man that he should lie. God forgives, Jesus forgives sins. And so the foundational truth of the gospel holds true, even to the most heinous sins such as blasphemy. However, there is this exception that Jesus raises here and we need to consider this. I do want to say, as we look at this, we probably have this very narrow view of the word blasphemy here, but here it's actually being used very broadly. Blasphemy literally means defiant irreverence. And we have in mind when we hear the word blasphemy, the cursing of God or one in authority placed there by God, the profaning of what is holy or sacred or making commonplace what belongs to God. That's the sense we have. But again, let me say that as we look at this, the Greek here is somewhat more general, except when it comes to the Holy Spirit, right? It literally means insolent language directed against God or man, defaming or railing or reviling. Ephesians 4 verse 31 uses a similar word, that all bitterness, wrath and anger and clamor and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice. It's that kind of general misuse of our language and speaking evil of others and even those in authority. So when Jesus uses the term blasphemy, He's using it in this general sense, but he makes this exception. But blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. This is a very specific reference. Now, what does he mean that God won't forgive blasphemy against the Holy Spirit? Even if someone blasphemes against the Son of Man, the Lord Jesus, he will be forgiven. But this he won't be. How do we understand it? Well, let me say this to you. I think the context here is very important. We've got to be very clear that the context is important here. What are the Pharisees doing here? They are ascribing to our Lord Jesus, the Messiah, and really more specifically to the Holy Spirit, the work of Satan. They're saying that what Jesus is accomplishing is actually from Satan. When we know that Jesus is accomplishing his work through the power of the spirit. And I want you to notice how brazen they are about it. They are deliberately, belligerently insisting on this vile accusation with no evidence and against all indication that God's power is at work. They continue to insist that Jesus is expelling demons by the power of Satan. And therefore, beloved, let me say by their own wicked, evil, hateful hearts, they are condemning themselves to the judgment of God. and their sin is unpardonable. It is unpardonable because they refuse to repent, because they refuse to tread the path that leads to their forgiveness. For the thief, for the murderer, there is hope. He may hear the gospel and he may cry out, Lord, be merciful to me, the sinner. But what do you have here with these Pharisees who are parading as religious zealots and as people who are serving God? They're pretending and they've hardened their hearts and they're so doggedly determined to resist all conviction and prompting of the Holy Spirit, not even to listen to the pleading and the warning voice. And they've put themselves on a road that leads to utter perdition. The scriptures are very clear, friends, that whoever believes in the Lord Jesus and repents, no matter what their sins, they will be forgiven. Isaiah 44 verse 22 says, I have blotted out like a thick cloud your transgression and like a cloud your sins. Return to me. For I have redeemed you. And Isaiah 55, verse 6 and 7 says, Seek the Lord while he may be found. Call upon him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts. Let him return to the Lord and he will have mercy on him. And to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. What an awful and an evil thing to insist. that the work and the power of the Holy Spirit is actually from the devil, and then to continue to insist on it. There is no forgiveness for that. There is no forgiveness for that. That's what Jesus is saying. That's the simplest, and I think the plainest understanding of the text. But let's move on. I want you to see how Jesus exposes the heart Our Lord Jesus said, by their fruit you will know them. By their fruit you will know them. And really what our Lord has done is He's exposed what's in their hearts. How has He done it, friends? How has He exposed their hearts? He's used their words in the same way the words they've used, the things they've said, The deeds they've done are exposing who they really are. Jesus has used their own words to show what evil and malice is in their hearts. And now he makes the application. And beloved, it's not just to the Pharisees. It's to us all. And he tells us. The good tree will bear good fruit, and the bad tree will bear bad fruit. Either make the tree good, verse 33, and its fruit good, or else to make the tree bad, and its fruit bad, for a tree is known by its fruits. Does anyone here expect to find apples on a peach tree? Does anyone here expect to go out and find they have a thornbush and they're hoping to get mulberries or hoping to get blueberries or whatever it is? Does anyone do that? Of course not. And that's the illustration. You cannot separate the fruit and the tree. If the root is good, the fruit will be good. The same if the root is bad. And when it comes to Jesus, when it comes to his ministry, when it comes to his miracles, The fruit is good because the root is good. He must be judged, not just by what he says, but what he does. On the other hand, when you look at the Pharisees, the sickly fruit proves that something is desperately wrong with the tree. Think about this. They can speak all day long that they are the rulers and that they are the shepherds of Israel. But what is the fruit? What do their words tell us? What do their actions tell us? There's something wrong with that root. There's something wrong with that root. And how can you expect to get good fruit from a root that is bad? You cannot. So what kind of fruit were they bearing? Well, he calls them vipers. Look at verse 34. And this, he gets very specific and very pointed. He says, brood of vipers. How can you being evil speak good things? Your hearts are evil. The root is rotten. and evil. The fruits and the words and the deeds are going to be evil. And then Jesus hits the nail on the head, doesn't he? What's the next thing he says? Look at it carefully, because this is the key issue, friends. For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. I've said it before and I want to say it again. Children, When you take a tube of toothpaste and you squeeze it, what comes out? Toothpaste, right? You don't expect something else. You don't expect butter to come out. Unless someone's playing a prank on you, right? But you squeeze a tube of toothpaste and toothpaste is gonna come out. And this is true of life. If someone claims to be a Christian and they get squeezed, what comes out? Is it going to be the fruit that a Christian should bear? It should be. Now that doesn't mean that we don't have remaining sin and we don't struggle with it. But there is repentance. There is forgiveness. There is an acknowledgement that there is still sin. There's a tender heart. This is the fruit of righteousness. And the key point here is this. A good man, says Jesus, out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. What really matters here, boys and girls, this is so important, all of us, what really matters here is what is in our heart. What is the reservoir? What is the storehouse? What is it holding? You know, our Lord, It's talking about what is in the heart. And when we think of another passage of scripture, when our Lord was born, the wise men, they came to Jesus, little baby Jesus after he was born in Matthew chapter two, verse 11. And this is what we read. When they had come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary and his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Now listen to this, same word is used here. And when they had opened their treasure, They presented gifts to him, gold and frankincense and myrrh. That's what the heart is. That's what the soul of man is. It's a storehouse. And it's storing things. It's storing things. But the question is, what kind of things are being stored? We could be storing up bad things. We could be storing up cheap things, things that are meaningless. Because our hearts are either changed or they're unchanged. If God has changed our hearts, we're storing up good things. We're storing up truth. We're storing up blessings, mercies from God. We're thinking upon and storing into our hearts things that are precious and things that are good and things that are beneficial and edifying. But if our hearts have not been changed, then we're storing up wickedness, bitterness, evil. When you think about people who have not been set free from their sin, how much they live in the past, how much they keep regurgitating things that were done against them, how much they keep regurgitating past pain and past sorrow, and they live bitter lives, because that's in their heart. Because they haven't found forgiveness and they haven't found freedom from Christ. And so whatever a person produces out of this inner storehouse, whether it is good or bad, it's all dependent upon what is in his heart, what he's carrying in his heart. And my friend, let me ask you the question, what are you carrying in your heart? What is in your mind? What is in your thoughts? What are you filling your life with? Are you filling it with the gospel? Are you filling it with Christ? Are you taking every thought captive or are you stewing and soaking in the muck and the garbage and the sewage of this world? Let me say this to you, beloved. None of us can claim to be helpless victims. The fruit of the thorns are products of what we've been sowing and what we've been investing into our hearts for years. And we are responsible for that. The fruit is the accumulative or the thorns of that investment. That is a biblical fact. What goes in is what will come out. And it's either predicated on whether a heart is good or bad, whether a heart has changed and been saved, or a heart continues in darkness and selfishness and wickedness. But notice next what our Lord says. Verse 36. But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified and by your words you will be condemned. This is a very important verse of scripture. Two verses really. Literally the word here is careless talk, idle chatter. Every idle word that men may speak. and men and women and children are notorious for speaking idle words, fruitless, futile words. And the Bible is very clear that the words we speak and the words we use so often very carelessly and very freely are actually They're reflectors, they're mirrors of what's really going on in our hearts. They expose whether our faith is real, whether our love for God is real, and our love for men and women and children are real, or they expose that we are shallow, that we are fake, that we are hypocrites. One of the things that will shock you, friends, is to go onto Facebook or Twitter and see what some Christians will write. And they'll just spew whatever it is freely. Boys and girls, you claim to love the Lord Jesus, but you speak ill. And you use your words carelessly of your brothers and sisters. What does that say about your heart? Do you really love the Lord? We think of gossip. We think of how easy it is for us to speak ill of others behind their back. Are we duplicitous, sweet to their face? Oh, and we're so kind to them. And we're so, we're so, we agree with them. And then behind their backs, when we're with our buddies, we trash talk them. We run them down. These are all reflectors. And I'm just telling you what the scripture says. Look at what the scripture says, beloved. It says this, but I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give an account of it in the day of judgment, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned. Listen to what Proverbs says, Proverbs 10 verse 19. In the multitude of words, sin is not lacking, but he who restrains his lips is wise. And Proverbs says even a fool is considered wise if he keeps quiet. Don't be deceived. Don't be deceived. Your words are indeed the measure of what is in your heart, of what is really going on in your soul. So much so, says the Lord Jesus, that based on your words, you will either be justified or you will be condemned. Because all it's doing... And when there is good things in your heart, when you are meditating on the things of God, when you are walking with Christ and you are in fellowship with God's people, edifying and building one another up, those are the things that will come out. Beloved, we are all being weighed in the balance. And the question is, will we be found wanting? Will we prove by our actions and by our deeds and by our words that we indeed love the Lord Jesus Christ? Romans 14 verse 19 says, Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another. If you don't have anything good to say about someone else or what they've done or the decisions they've made or the things that they're about to do or whatever it is, don't say it at all. Don't say it at all. Take it to the Lord. Lay it before the Lord. 1 Thessalonians 5 verse 11 says, therefore, listen to this. Words ought to be used to comfort to bless, therefore comfort each other and edify one another just as you also are doing. Beloved, listen to me carefully. Jesus said, by this shall all men know that you are my disciples. How? By the love you have for one another. Our words are the most practical things that God has given us to bless someone, to edify someone, Don't succumb to the evil temptations and the inclination of your flesh. Take those thought captive. Bring them to Christ. Confess them. Lord, help me. Help me to use my words to edify. Help me to use my words to encourage and build up. Help me to be a saver of life. Because I love you. And because I want to serve you. My time is up.