Have We Lost The Fear Of God? Series

"Have We Lost the Fear of God?"

Luke 12:1-12

A sermon for 7/31/22 – Eighth Sunday after Pentecost

Pastor John Bright

Luke 12 “4 And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. 5 But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!

6 “Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins? And not one of them is forgotten before God. 7 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.”

Pause right there. Those words I just read; they were “Breathed by God”! God wants you to hear His Word right now! So, what is your response? Do you want to transformed by that Word or do you want to be informed about the words? You have to choose.

&&&&&&&&&&&&

Two brothers are terrible trouble makers. They are always breaking things, stealing things, lying, and making all kinds of general trouble. The parents have tried everything to get the boys to change, to no avail. Finally, out of options, they ask their pastor if he can help. He says he will talk to the boys, but only one at a time. The parents drop off the youngest and go home, promising to return to get him soon. The boy sits in a chair across from the pastor's desk and they just look at each other.

Finally, the Pastor says, "Where is God?" The boy just sits there and doesn't answer.

The pastor begins to look stern and loudly says, "Where is God?" The little boy shifts in his seat, but still doesn't answer.

The pastor is starting to get angry at the boy's refusal to converse and practically shouts "Where is God?" To the pastor's surprise, the little boy jumps up out of his chair and runs out of the office. The boy leaves the church and runs all the way home, up the stairs and into his brother's room. He shuts the door and pants, "We're in BIG TROUBLE. God's missing and they think we did it!" 😊

Don’t worry – God is NOT missing, but I’m doubtful that the God being preached in churches today is like what my grandfather heard when he was a boy and went to brush arbor revival meeting. That preacher would have described God in a way that was familiar to John Wesley and George Whitfield and Jonathon Edwards and the other preachers of the First Great Awakening that radically transformed England and the American Colonies.

Today, we have offered the world a God who is nothing but LOVE. We endlessly debate if we should call God “He” or “She” or “IT.” We have succeeded in convincing many in the church and world that God would never let His children (read here – everybody) suffer in hell. Taking it one step further, some claim there is no hell. (SMH) Guess they skipped the verses we will cover today!

There will be NO SECRETS, v. 1-3

“1 In the meantime, when an innumerable multitude of people had gathered together, so that they trampled one another, He began to say to His disciples first of all, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. 2 For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known. 3 Therefore whatever you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have spoken in the ear in inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops.”

Last week, we covered the end of Luke 11 where Jesus has some harsh words for the religious leaders. Now we find Jesus warning the Disciples that they need to look out for the “leaven of the Pharisees” that is hypocrisy. When we read “leaven” or “yeast” in a warning, it should be a warning to every church. The Apostle Paul called out the house churches in Corinth for condoning sexual immorality among their members – 1 Corinthians 5 “1 It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not even named among the Gentiles—that a man has his father’s wife! 2 And you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you. “

“6 Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? 7 Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. 8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.”