of God's Word. Hear the word of the Lord from the Gospel of Luke chapter 12. At this time, after so many thousands of the crowd had gathered together that they were trampling on one another, he began saying to his disciples first, be on your guard for the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. But there's nothing covered up that will not be revealed and hidden that will not be known. Accordingly, whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the night. And what you have whispered in the inner rooms will be proclaimed upon the housetops. But I say to you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body and after that have no more that they can do. But I will show you whom to fear. Fear the one who, after he is killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him. Are not five sparrows sold for two asaria? Yet not one of them is forgotten before God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear. You are more valuable than many sparrows. And I said to you, everyone who confesses me before men, the son of man, will confess him also before the angels of God. But he who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God. And everyone who speaks a word against the son of man, it will be forgiven him. But he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him. Now, when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and authorities, do not worry about how or what you are to speak in your defense or what you are to say. For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say. Here ends the reading of God's inerrant word. Let's pray together. Father, thank you for your word. Lord, we do pray that you would assist us in being faithful, Lord, that we would stand for Christ unashamed as you are calling these 12 to do, these disciples of yours. Lord, help us to walk faithfully. Help us to follow you both unafraid and unashamed. Lord, help us to keep each of these instructions that our Lord has given in perspective as we Seek to follow Christ. Help us, Lord. We need your assistance. May you now give us ears to hear and eyes to see the wonderful things that are found in your word. We pray these things in Christ's name. Amen. You can be seated. It is both sobering and encouraging to open the pages of church history and read the accounts of other believers throughout the ages who stood boldly for Christ, particularly those who stood for Christ unashamed and, as a result, suffered greatly, often being snuffed out as martyrs because of their allegiance to him. I remember hearing a story as a young boy about 40 Roman soldiers who were martyred in Sebasti, which is modern-day Turkey. The year was 320 AD. Constantine was ruling the Roman Empire to the west, and Licinius was ruling it to the east. And the east, in particular, had been a hotbed against Christians, a hotbed for persecution, depending on what emperor was ruling. But in 313 AD, Constantine and Licinius met in Milan and agreed on a policy. You might know it as the Edict of Milan. And it was a policy of religious freedom, that the Christians and the pagans were free to worship as they would choose. And for the first time in the Roman Empire, It gave Christianity full legal status as an officially tolerated faith. Constantine was fine in the West, but Licinius to the East was pagan, and he grew increasingly anti-Christian over the next decade. And in 320, Licinius began persecuting Christians violently. He burned churches. He dismissed all Christians from the Roman army and prohibited bishops from meeting together. And it's in that context that a group of Roman soldiers who were stationed in Sebasti were being forced by their commander to renounce their faith in Christ and to sacrifice to the pagan gods. And 40 of that battalion refused. and were subsequently imprisoned to consider the severity of their choices. After their commander attempted to persuade them with flattery and praises for their valor and their service, these soldiers, however, did not succumb to that flattery. They were not going to fall prey to the commander's empty words. And they were sent back to prison for further reflection. This went on for some time until an official came to that area and told the commanding officer to send these men onto a frozen lake. And so because these men refused to renounce Christ, They were stripped of their clothing and positioned in the middle of a lake that had frozen over. Now, to make this more difficult, along the shoreline of this frozen lake, these other officers set up warm baths and fires and blankets and food and drink in order to entice these men to turn their backs on Christ and offer sacrifices. and live. One of the 40 could no longer bear the cold and ran to the shore for the relief that was there. Seeing this, the remaining soldiers cried out to God for his strength that they might endure. And as the story goes, another soldier who began on the shoreline was so moved by the resolve of these 39 other men that he actually stripped off his clothes and joined them in their stand for Christ. Those 40 soldiers of Sebasti froze to death in the bitter cold, resolved to stand for Christ no matter the cost. They feared God more than they feared man. And as a result, they lost their earthly lives. Now, stories like these could be multiplied 1,000 times over. Our history is one of hardship and persecution and difficulty. We just so happen to live in a society where we've been mostly guarded from that kind of ill treatment. More than ever in recent American memory, we're having to decide whether we will stand with Christ or not. Those temptations of compromise are on the shoreline, aren't they? Those temptations to maybe just be quiet, to just sit back and enjoy the ride. We realize that our jobs might be, and our reputations might be on the line, and so maybe we shrink back a little. We've all probably asked ourselves, would I, like these 40 men of Sebastis, stand for Christ given such a circumstance? Would I have the resolve under that kind of pressure, and even more so, that kind of temptation? In our text this morning, we see Christ has been preparing His men. He doesn't want these crowds that we just read about, these crowds that are gathered around Him and are swarming Him, He doesn't want that to bring some kind of false security to these men. He doesn't want there to be deception. Don't let these masses misguide you. Like what I give them in terms, they like what is given in terms of what Christ provides tangibly. The blessings, the miracles, right? But he says inwardly, they hate me and they will hate you and so don't be duped. So Jesus has been preparing his men and in our text we've noted five instructions. We've looked at the first three. Five instructions that Christ gives to his disciples that would ready these men to stand under pressure. Five instructions that would serve as anchors for the waves of opposition that would be coming their way. We noted the first three. And I'll give them to you just in terms of remembering. We noted in verses 1 through 3 that Jesus tells them to be on guard, to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. And we said, listen, Jesus said this too, go to the light because everything is going to be exposed in the end. And we said, expose secret sins, don't conceal them. We don't want to be known as hypocrites. We want to come to the light continually, receiving God's mercy, but dealing with our sin. We don't want to be hypocrites. Second, he said, fear God's judgment, not man's. Because the best that man has to give, the best that man can do, is have you lose your physical life. And that is game to the Christian, right? Paul says, To live is Christ and to die is gain. So they can take their best shot because the best they can do is end our lives. And then we're with him. We see that in verses four and five and then in verses six and seven. After Jesus has told them to fear God and not fear man, he says, don't fear. Don't fear because you need to trust God's care, not your own. He knows you. He knows you better than you know yourself. He knows the number of hairs that are on your head. And so it's a reminder of God's care, that God has them, that they need not be concerned. And then in our text this morning, I wanna see the fourth lesson or instruction that we look, that we see in verses eight through 10. And it's this, that these disciples need to proclaim Jesus publicly, don't deny him. They need to proclaim Jesus publicly, don't deny him. Notice what he says in verses eight through 10. And I say to you, everyone who confesses me before men, The Son of Man will confess him also before the angels of God, but he who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God. And then he says, and everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him. But he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him. And so in verses 1 through 3, Jesus noted the temptation that we might face to compromise privately within our own hearts. saying we're one thing and actually being another. That's hypocrisy. There's always that temptation to compromise privately, that we put on an exterior when we're gathered with God's people, but we're not the same when we are privately with ourselves. And so Jesus says, beware of that. And now in these verses, he addresses that temptation to compromise publicly. That we might be tempted because of the heat of hostility, because of the difficulty, we might be tempted, we might be pressed to be quiet. We might be pressed to be kind of ashamed because of the ridicule and the mockery that comes in following Christ and in declaring the gospel. declaring Christ, and Jesus in essence says that too is a form of hypocrisy. It shows a hypocritical heart because you say privately within that you know him, that you're with him, that you identify with him, but then privately you're silent about him, or publicly you're silent about him. You've made clear that your allegiance isn't actually towards him. So Jesus says, listen, allegiance to me is more than walking in aisle. It's more than saying a prayer. It is more than simple church attendance. Jesus makes abundantly clear, and it's unmistakable, the essence of discipleship, of what it means to follow Christ. He's told them, Luke 9, right before this, he says, verse 23, if anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself. He takes that ridicule, right? He denies himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. So here in our text, confessing Christ before men is the essence of discipleship. It is standing for Christ unashamed, standing even when no one else is willing to, when you're the only one. And let's be honest. Let's be transparent with one another. Standing for Christ when there is a cost involved, not just physical, is difficult. It is challenging. Just ask the Apostle Peter. Don't you remember what happened on the night of Jesus's arrest and trials? What does Peter do? He denies the one he said he would never deny. But in the face of that kind of opposition, even someone so small as a slave girl, right? This wasn't before authorities and rulers. though there were others around. The 19th century Anglican Bishop J.C. Ryle, he said this in verses eight through 10 that I think are really helpful. He said, quote, the difficulty of confessing Christ is undoubtedly very great. It never was easy at any period. It never will be easy as long as the world stands. It is sure to entail on us laughter, ridicule, contempt, mockery, enmity, and persecution. This again, what J.C. Ryle is saying is very similar to what we see Jesus say. He goes on to say, the world which hated Christ will always hate true Christians. But whether we like it or not, whether it be hard or easy, our course is perfectly clear. In one way or another, Christ must be confessed. In other words, he is a person and the gospel is a message that must be a public confession. Sure, it will be difficult to stand, it always has been. And it will continue to be challenging. But popularity isn't the call of the Christian. It never has been. And as Jesus has pointed out, why do we seek validation from a world that hates Christ? A world that hates the gospel? And a world, as he reminded in verse four, that the best they can do is kill the body. And Jesus is very clear, fear the one who has the authority to not only kill, but to cast you into hell. We must fear God. This is more of that. We must fear God more than we do man. And we do that because of his greatness, because he is fearsome and holiness and judgment. And yet we know him also. as a father who cares for us. He knows the hairs on our heads and he provides for our needs. So, Jesus says, you confess him publicly. We acknowledge him before men and then we allow the chips to fall where they may. This is what it means to be a Christian. Romans 10, nine, the Apostle Paul says, if we confess with what? Our mouth. Jesus is Lord, and believe in our heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. We first do this at the waters of baptism, don't we? It is in essence And I know timeline-wise, it doesn't always go this way, but it is our first public confession of Christ before men. We are confessing in the waters of baptism that we identify with Christ, that I am His and He is mine. I confess that I am a great sinner and that Christ is a great Savior, and it is a public confession. It's the very reason you don't baptize yourself in your bathtub, right? All by yourself. No, it's a public confession. And, I would just say, it's probably the easiest confession, right? Because why? You're surrounded by other believers who are like, Amen! Praise the Lord! I too am with Christ. And there's something that's so energizing about baptism. By the way, just a PS, this message is not about baptism, but if you've not done that, you ought. You ought to follow Christ. If you are saying, I am with Christ, I am His, I am a great sinner, and He is a great Savior, He's a greater Savior. If that is you, your first confession ought to be in the waters of baptism. You are publicly confessing your need for Him, your allegiance to Him, your identity with Him. And so we do that. This confessing that the Lord is talking about here before men is more than just saying, I'm a Christian. It's more encompassing than that. This includes not only standing for Christ, standing for the gospel, but it also includes standing for what he teaches. Standing unashamed for the word of Christ. standing unashamed for what scripture says. We are not to shy away or shrink back from anything that Christ declares. We're not ashamed of his person, and so we publicly declare who he is. He is the God-man. He is truly God and truly man. God who has taken upon himself flesh and dwelt among us and identified with us and died the death that was deserving of us and was raised victorious from the cross and ascended into heaven. We are not ashamed of his person. He's not just a good teacher. He's not a revolutionary. He's not just a prophet. He's not just You know, somebody that encourages you along the way. He is Lord. He is Savior. And we're not ashamed to publicly declare that. We're not ashamed of the gospel. That we are sinners who need a Savior. That God, who is holy, holy, holy, is right and pouring out His judgment against all men. Because all have sinned, and yet Christ has come in the flesh. He has lived and died in our place. He has taken upon himself the penalty for our sin. He has bore our chastisement. And he has given us his righteousness. And so we stand before God righteous because of the work of Christ, because of his righteousness. And we're not ashamed of that. We publicly confess that. And Jesus here is reminding us that confessing Him before men is not an option. We open our mouths. Our faith comes out in words. And that's not always easy to do. Again, you're sitting around the break room at work and someone brings up the recent bill that was just passed that was banning transgender athletes from competing in women's sports and girls' sports. And your colleague says to you, oh, hey, so what do you think about all that? Are you going to be silent? Are you going to share what is true? Are you going to stand for truth? Or are we going to cower back? Again, it is a temptation. It is a struggle. Are you going to affirm what the Bible does concerning gender? Two genders? He made them male and female in his image. The very opening verses of Genesis. Jesus affirms that, by the way. I know modern scholars don't think Moses wrote Genesis, but Jesus did. And so he confirms the account of Genesis with regards to gender. But fill in the blank on the particular social or moral issue an atheist makes comments about creation and how ridiculous creation must be. Or a pluralist says to you, well, you know, I mean, there's many ways to God. There's many ways to heaven. Or a homosexual tells you that God's okay with their lifestyle. This seems to be that hot topic, but we could do the same about any sexual sin. Premarital, extramarital, adultery. A colleague came to you and expressed that they were involved in adultery. I hope you would not shrink back from telling him what the Lord might say and does say. And so the question, will we stand unashamed on what the Bible says or will we not confess him? Will we deny him? All the while, the vice grip of society is tightening and their acceptance of all kinds of things that are contrary to scripture. And so what results is a pressure. And it's not a fever pressure. It's not like they're going to burn us at the stake yet. Right? It's not got to that level, but you can kind of see it and it ebbs and flows at times. You can see the pressure, the temptation to compromise because silence is an easier path. And so silence becomes very tempting, very tempting. uninvolvement That that becomes very tempting. I just I'm just gonna be in my little cubicle. I'm not gonna start anything, man I I don't want to even get in these guys. I don't even go into the coffee room because I don't want to get in these conversations And again, I please don't don't misunderstand me if your work is paying you you need to do your work right, but if there are times and moments of conversation and In times that are just organic, they just organically happen as you go to lunch or you do it out. I'm not saying you need to stand at your workplace on a podium and just start preaching the gospel. You could do that, but they could also fire you, right? And that would be okay because you're using their dime to do that. But in those times where you're not on the clock and there's opportunities for you and relationships, We ought to stand, everyone who confesses me before men, that's public. And what does he say? I will confess, the son of man will confess him also before the angels of God. And Jesus knows these men. are going to be in great danger because of their allegiance. He'll tell them in chapter 21 verse 12, he says, they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you, delivering you to the synagogues and prisons, bringing you before kings and governors for my name's sake. You're gonna get in trouble for what you say. Jesus goes on in that same text to say, you'll be betrayed even by your parents and your brothers and your relatives and your friends. And then he says, and they will put some of you to death. And again, if we know the tradition and the writing of what happened to these apostles, many of them, most of them met in martyrs death. and you will be hated by all because of my name. Yet not a hair of your head will perish." Isn't that interesting? In 21, we'll eventually get there. 21, he ties it back to what he already said. This is what discipleship is. He's retelling them. I mean, think of that in contrast to the Pharisees who are hailed by others on earth. Oh, you guys are magnificent. You're holy. The disciples, on the other hand, will be objects of scorn and ridicule. So he says, confess me before men. Stand for me. And in the end, when everything is said and done, I will stand for you. I'll stand with you. I'll stand for you. He tells them before he leaves in Matthew 28, I'll never leave you or forsake you. But what if we don't? What if we don't confess Christ before men? What if we're not willing to acknowledge him and stand? He says, but he who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God. It's as if Christ says, take your pick. Would you rather have the temporal approval of men on earth or the eternal approval of Christ in heaven? Stand with me and I with you, or don't. to your own peril, to your own demise. Now, that seems equationally pretty fair, right? If you do, then I... But it's also frightening, because people have two options. Confess Christ, privately and publicly, or reject him. There's no neutral. There are two groups of people. Those who will confess Christ, those who will deny him, those who refuse to acknowledge him, and in the end, will themselves face ultimate denial. Notice in verses eight and nine that everything revolves around Jesus, me. Everything hangs on confessing me, denying me. Jesus is assuming of himself that he is crucial and ultimate, and again, He is. We read it this week in our Bible reading plan, Peter confessing Christ before men in Acts 4.12, and there is salvation in no one else. You can't get clearer than that. For there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved. That is the exclusivity of Christ. That's it. We proclaim him. He is that supreme, that ultimate. Eternal life and eternal death are determined by our connection to Jesus Christ. That is what the Word of God says. And on that day when all secrets are revealed before the throne of God, verse 3, Jesus will either testify that we belong to Him or that we do not belong to Him. And again, I would say this is pause and and is ought to lead to serious self-examination. Let me give you this preface, the denial that Jesus is talking about. Siri got involved in my sermon. I do want to preface it though, right? We want to preface this. This is not talking about a one-time denial. a failure of shrinking back. We probably all, if we're thinking about it, can identify with Peter, right? Where we walk away from an event, we think, man, I shoulda, coulda, I needed to, and I didn't. And so we confess that to the Lord. That's not what he's talking about. It's not a temporal failure of nerve, like that of Peter's denial. Instead, it seems to be a definitive rejection of Jesus. In this context, it seems to be equivalent to what he says in the middle of verse 10 when he says, those who blaspheme the Holy Spirit. He's not referring to a single incident where the nerves won the day, but a pattern of one's life. And so, if we are habitually silent about Christ, perhaps that is reason for concern. Peter's denial was one of nerve. Judas' denial was one of the heart. There's a great contrast between the two. Judas doesn't look for For Christ, he doesn't believe that Christ will be raised. He doesn't look to be reconciled to Christ, to confess to Christ. He turns to an out. His sorrow leads him to an out, turning again to himself and ending his life. These are the ones who turn their back on Christ and never look back. And that's kind of how we know Judas betrays Christ. and then goes and hangs himself. Peter denies Christ and yet when Christ appears to him and is with him, he is contrite, he sees his error. He's still a little cocky, he's not completely sanctified, right? But he's forgiven and he's restored. Listen, those who may succumb to the temptation of denying Christ in a certain circumstance or a certain moment should not think that all has been lost, there is certainly forgiveness for those who have denied. He even says in verse 10, and everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him, right? So in those times of denial or in those times where we speak a word against Christ, it'll be forgiven. Church history has numerous examples of this. Men under the heat and pressure of being in prison are martyred and they recant. I think of guys like Thomas Cranmer, an English reformer who actually, because of the pressure of Bloody Mary, ends up signing a series of several recantations, recanting the Protestant doctrines because of fear, the pressure, it was too much. Later, his courage would return and his confident faith would be restored and he'd take his stand for Christ as executioners set the blaze underneath his feet. And as the flames began to be kindled, and begin to take over his body. What does Thomas Cranmer do? He takes his right hand, the very hand he signed those recantations with, and he put that under the fire first to be burned first. It was a public declaration of having a moment of that like the Apostle Peter. It didn't mean eternal damnation for Peter. It meant that he had failed Christ, and we do that often. and we come to him in repentance. The danger of denial is hardened rejection. Denial is kind of the summary of their entire lives. Jesus then closes verse 10 out with a very discussed and debated phrase. Everyone is probably at some point wondered, have I committed the unpardonable sin, blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, You know, and Jesus says in verse 10, but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him. And this has given many sincere Christians more concern than it probably should. I don't want to commit the unpardonable sin. So let me try our best to understand the phrase. I think Matthew and Mark help us to see the various angles that Jesus has spoken of this unpardonable sin. But even in the context here, we know that Jesus has done a number of signs and wonders by the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus actually declared among his people in Luke 4, remember in Nazareth, he takes the Isaiah scroll, he reads from Isaiah 61, and he says, today in your midst, this has been fulfilled, and it's there that he talks about the Spirit of the Lord being upon him to restore and to give sight to the blind and to do miraculous things. And we've seen in Luke, we've seen demons that are cast out and withered hands that are restored and paralytics who take up their mat and walk home. We've even seen the dead raised. And what was the response by some of Jesus's opponents. If you remember Luke chapter 11 right before this, in verse 15, this was the response. He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons. And so in our text, we have these two groups, those who may be critical of Jesus's ministry, perhaps out of ignorance, maybe out of fear, maybe not being able to, you know, put it all together. And then you have, and so they speak ignorantly, they speak a word against the Son of Man, right? And Jesus says in verse 10, to them that will be forgiven. That's a forgivable offense. But then there are those who see signs and wonders. They see the work of the Holy Spirit and the ministry of Jesus with healings, casting out of demons and raising the dead, and then after seeing it, They blaspheme all of that by attributing it to his enemy, attributing it to Satan. And in essence, what Jesus has said, look, if you've done that, these are people who have known, they know better. If you've done that, you've rejected everything. They've rejected Christ to the extent that they have solidified their blindness. I mean, what possibly could be offered to them? The Messiah is present before them. The scriptures are being fulfilled in their very midst before them. The Spirit is present, convicting and working through Jesus as Jesus demonstrates that reality through many convincing proofs. It is abundantly clear this is God's promised Messiah. He is the Lord and all of that evidence, all of it there before their eyes over and over and over again. And what do they have? A hardening. A hardening that's taken place and they reject it all. really in a way of revealing and self-identification, because what did Jesus say to them? You are of your father, what? The devil. And what do they do with dad? Dad has done this. They attribute what the Spirit has done to their father, the devil. They blaspheme the Spirit, and Jesus pronounces it to them. It's not gonna be forgiven. It will not be forgiven him. So I say all that to bring you some comfort. Sincere Christian, you and I are not present for this. I don't think we can commit the unpardonable sin. I think this was very particular, very distinct. I mean, there is a sense, of course, if you reject the gospel, I suppose in a general way, you are rejecting the testimony of the Spirit, and you are, in an ultimate sense, at that final point, you are blaspheming the Holy Spirit. But I think that's a little bit different. I think that's a little different than even what is happening here. This is particular to these particular people. Here Jesus is performing these miracles, miracles that begin at Christmas and end at Easter, right? And what are they doing? They're rejecting it. So I don't think you can actually commit the unpardonable sin in the sense that Jesus is referring to here. It's very specific. It's not possible to do because Jesus isn't present doing these things. Right? He isn't on earth doing those signs and wonders. And the Spirit's ministry is not exactly identical. That's where I think a lot of people get in trouble when they get in the book of Acts and even in Luke. They get in trouble with thinking this is the same ministry that is going on today. It is in one sense and not in another. There are things the Spirit is doing. It's not identical to what was happening while Jesus was on earth and even while the apostles were spreading the gospel. During the first advent, the Holy Spirit is engaged in a very specific ministry of affirming and establishing and providing evidence for and testifying to Jesus. And in one sense, if you reject that, it's over. There's nothing else that can be offered. There's no hope for you. This analogy might be helpful, maybe not, If you're a Star Wars fan, it might be. Do you remember that epic battle between Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker? This is in Star Wars, well, chronologically it's six, or no, chronologically it's three, but it was produced number six. It's that last one. It's when Anakin becomes Darth Vader, right? And there's that epic scene where Obi-Wan and Anakin are Fighting and towards the end of the fight obi-wan says Anakin Chancellor Palpatine is evil. Do you remember that an Anakin's response you remember what he says? Well from my point of view the Jedi are evil And do you remember what what obi-wan says then you really are lost There's nothing else I can do I've already lost you right so it's a tragic scene it really is and I know that analogy breaks down because in some sense there's redemption later, but just at that moment. He's saying, you are a goner. You have totally lost it. And that's the unpardonable sin, is when you are so steeped in your own depravity. And that's what these guys are. You can't even see up from down. You can't see left from right, good from evil. Even though all the evidence is pointing you in the opposite direction of your conclusion. And you refuse. It's divine hardening even. They have this divine evidence standing before them and they reject it. And even worse, they take it a step, and they say, this is the devil's work, though Christ is there present. So I don't, this is not a sin that is committed unknowingly or accidentally, or even in ignorance, it's willful. It's a willful, deliberate rejection. So I would say, in that sense, could that be done? Sure. I mean, you know, when people reject Christ ultimately, But I think this was, again, particular unpardonable sin, something the first century Jews would commit, even though plenty of scripture was there to tell them the very opposite. And we see these kind of heavy warnings, by the way, in the scriptures. If you've ever read through Hebrews, you might be tempted to think, oh man, a Christian can lose their salvation. I don't have any assurance, man. I could get tripped up and swept into the thing of sin all over again. It's a warning. He says, Hebrews 3.12, see to it, brothers, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. I mean, it's a warning like a father telling his son not to cross the street, because you're going to get crushed if you do that. And these guys, what they're doing is they're rejecting all of that, and they're going, and they're going to be crushed. And the writer of Hebrews is saying the same thing. Listen. You need to be concerned. These are warnings against apostasy. Jesus in our text, in almost every verse, reminds them the day of reckoning is coming. The day of judgment is around the corner, so don't flinch. Not even for a second. Sure, the enemies of Christ will surround you. They will ridicule you. They will scorn you. Don't give in. Confess me before men. Acknowledge me. Speak up for me. In that heavenly courtroom, in that heavenly realm, I will confess you. Stand firm. Stand unashamed. Jesus also gives encouragement to his confessors who will be dragged into hostile assemblies and courts. It was true they needed to be unflinching, unashamed, unafraid, not in any concern. But he goes on. and tells them again, you're not alone. You need to know that in this standing for Christ unashamed, you're not alone. And that's the final instruction, verses 11 and 12. Trust the Spirit will assist, not abandon. Trust the Spirit will assist, not abandon." Don't you love how Jesus does this? He does it twice, right? In the heat of these strong admonitions, these admonitions that cause believers even to be concerned that He gives them something to be anchored to, right? Right before, after the first two, He tells them, You are more valuable, don't fear, you're more valuable than many sparrows. He knows the number of the hairs on your head. And then here, this hostility is gonna get hot, red hot. And he says, now when they bring you before the synagogues and rulers and authorities, P.S. that's a prophecy, what do you see in the book of Acts? Prophecy fulfilled. Right? This is exactly what happens. This is gonna happen. He says, do not worry about how or what you are to speak in your defense or what you are to say. Why? Verse 12, for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say. The use of synagogues and rulers and authorities. It's a nice spread, right? Because you could use it in the Jewish context, and that happens in the Book of Acts, but you can use it in the Gentile context, too, because there's other rulers and authorities, and that happens in the Book of Acts. And you read church history, it happens throughout history, depending on the government, depending on the region, depending on the hostility. But this is exactly what happens. In other words, it's gonna be coming from you both religiously and politically. It's gonna happen from within, and it's gonna happen from without. Jesus provokes both. He irritates both the other religions, the religious, and he also provokes the political, right? He irritates The religious because he declares himself to be the only way to heaven. The only way to eternal life. Eternal life is found in him. But he upsets politically because he is king. Christ is Lord. Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess. He has ultimate authority. All authority in heaven and in earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of every nation. Right? So he upsets politicians and those who are religious. And as governments becoming increasingly totalitarian, they see themselves as God. They see themselves as the arbiters of truth. They think their law trumps God's law. Does that sound familiar? And for us, that just can't be. We can't follow. I can't go with you here. The Scriptures, my allegiance to Christ doesn't allow me to go where you are calling me to go. I must stand. Because God's law is higher than man's. And civil disobedience at times becomes necessary. Peter said that in our reading this week as well. We must obey God rather than men, for we cannot be silent of what we have seen and what we have heard. And if you recall what happens in the book of Acts, it begins with threats, and then it tightens. It moves to being roughed up a little bit, and then it moves to imprisonment. It goes on from there. Think of this, friends. Governments come to us in a free land, even, and tell us, hey church, you need to recognize marriage as we've defined it. You're to respect the fluidity of gender as we have determined it. And you must teach this to your churches. Now that hasn't happened quite yet. But when it does, if it does, what are we to do? Well, I think it's very clear. Scripture is abundantly clear. We stand with Christ. We must obey God rather than men, or they come to you and they say, hey, you're not allowed to meet together any longer. Now, we've enjoyed religious freedom. And by the way, that has saved us over and over and over again. Even during COVID, I think it did, that first amendment. But they come to you and they tell you, you can't meet for X, Y, Z reason. I don't care what it is. We don't want you to. It's outlawed. There's a virus going around, whatever it might be, right? What is the response? Church means assembly. We looked at Hebrews 10 together. We have to assemble. And so what happens? You obey God rather than men and you let the chips fall where they may. Jesus says when they bring you before, not if. And again, that becomes scary. Now notice Jesus does not promise that they'll be released or acquitted or won't die, only that they will be provided with the witness they need to bear at that moment. In other words, I kind of love this as a cessationist, right? I kind of love this because it's a reminder, ah, no, the Spirit is at work, and He'll provide exactly what is needed at the moment. Right? We can't deny that. There will be moments, especially for them, right, there'll be moments where they will need the Spirit's assistance. You can't prepare for this, in other words. Not perfectly, not completely, but He will instruct them as to what they are to say. You don't have the anguish over how you're going to respond to these hostile interrogators. Because notice what it says, the Holy Spirit will give them what they need, what? In that very hour. And I realize all the cessationists freak out, right? The Spirit will speak spontaneously? You know, He's going to, at the spare of the moment, He's going to cause His disciples to speak extemporaneously. In other words, not prepared, not studied to their accusers. I know that sounds Pentecostal. It's not. Jesus said it. And again, this is not like the okay for me during the week to never study and just say, I'm just going to show up and wherever the Spirit leads. That's not what this is talking about. This is hostile fire. This is life and death. This is persecution and difficulty. It's not the pastor's allowed to be sloppy and lazy and not study. That's not what this is talking about. And that the spirit will lead. That's not, again, that would defy other passages of scripture. It's not what Jesus is referring. Rather, he's assuring these men that when the pressure is on, When the heat is red hot and you take your stand, you are not alone. You're not alone. The Spirit will assist you. Standing for Christ unashamed is not a matter of finding some strength within yourself. The Spirit will provide what is needed at that very moment. There will be guidance on how to reply to the questioners, so we need not panic. This sounds very similar to what Jesus said in verse 7. Don't fear. You are more valuable than many sparrows. Trust the Lord. Trust the Spirit that is at work. Remember in John's gospel, he says the Spirit's going to come and it's to your advantage. He's going to comfort you and guide you and keep you and direct you and convict you of sin. He is at work. So trust him. Trust that he will provide the confidence, the assurance that we need at the moment, and the words to say. He says in the face of great panic, as authorities question and oppose you, take a deep breath. The Spirit of God will come to your assistance. He is with you. The Lord will never leave you or forsake you in those moments. And by the way, church history is full of times where that happens. You see it so clearly, these men and women who stand so beautifully for Christ, with words so profound, and then die. They're martyred. And the testimony to the church is God has come through. He saw them to the very end. They accomplished what the Lord had intended for them to accomplish. Well, may the Lord help us to stand for Christ unafraid and unashamed. Amen.