Idle Words
A Logical Conclusion
“Pulpit of the Last Days” just finished a module on the ‘End Times Church’. At the end of the module is an article “Musings on the End Time Church Module” which is a sort of conclusion to the module. In that article, Loren brought up Matthew 12:36. We discussed that in more detail in the comments.
In Matthew 12:36 Jesus says, “But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.”
We know Jesus was sinless. [1] From the content and context of the verse, ‘idle words’ are sin.
The conclusion, logically, is that Jesus spoke no idle words. What does that mean to us? It means that whatever Jesus said is important.
John 14:6, “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” There are no idle words here.
John 11:25, “Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.”” There are no idle words here.
We can go on, quoting every passage where Jesus states unequivocally, that He IS Salvation. That is not idle words.
Let us focus on a point in time later. Jesus spoke no idle words. He was tried, crucified, died - then buried and Resurrected, sitting at the right hand of God (Colossians 3:1).
What did the Risen Christ have to say?
After the Resurrection, this is what He had to say:
Mark 16:15-16, “And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.””
John 20:21, “So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.””
“And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” Matt. 28:18-20
Luke 24:46-47, “Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.”
Acts 1:8 Jesus says, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
THERE ARE NO IDLE WORDS IN THESE VERSES.
The most important thing the Risen Lord Jesus Christ had to say, “Preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the power of God for Salvation.”
It is THE “Mission Statement” for Christians: Spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Each of us should be eager, prepared and equipped to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Yes, eager, we have the greatest gift in the world to share. What a treasure we have. A treasure that does not diminish with each added ‘share’. That, is, by adding to the family we in no way diminish ‘our’ share. Why would we want to keep that a secret?
Look in the mirror and ask the tough questions. “Why am I not EAGER to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ?” “Why would I rather engage in idle words than spread the Gospel?”
There are three logical conclusions why many Christians will not share the gospel.
1. We are ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Romans 1:16, Acts 18:9)
2. Our own behavior is nothing resembling ‘Christ-like’ so we are ashamed of ourselves. [2]
3. We do not know ‘how’ to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ. [3]
Convincing one’s self one is a ‘good Christian’ without a willingness to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ is nothing more than Idle Words.
[1] Hebrews 4:14-15, “Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.”
[2] 1 Corinthians 10:31, “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
[3] The ‘comments’ section of “Claiming Rights” lists a number of effective tools for sharing the gospel.
“Pulpit of the Last Days” just finished a module on the ‘End Times Church’. At the end of the module is an article “Musings on the End Time Church Module” which is a sort of conclusion to the module. In that article, Loren brought up Matthew 12:36. We discussed that in more detail in the comments.
In Matthew 12:36 Jesus says, “But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.”
We know Jesus was sinless. [1] From the content and context of the verse, ‘idle words’ are sin.
The conclusion, logically, is that Jesus spoke no idle words. What does that mean to us? It means that whatever Jesus said is important.
John 14:6, “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” There are no idle words here.
John 11:25, “Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.”” There are no idle words here.
We can go on, quoting every passage where Jesus states unequivocally, that He IS Salvation. That is not idle words.
Let us focus on a point in time later. Jesus spoke no idle words. He was tried, crucified, died - then buried and Resurrected, sitting at the right hand of God (Colossians 3:1).
What did the Risen Christ have to say?
After the Resurrection, this is what He had to say:
Mark 16:15-16, “And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.””
John 20:21, “So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.””
“And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” Matt. 28:18-20
Luke 24:46-47, “Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.”
Acts 1:8 Jesus says, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
THERE ARE NO IDLE WORDS IN THESE VERSES.
The most important thing the Risen Lord Jesus Christ had to say, “Preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the power of God for Salvation.”
It is THE “Mission Statement” for Christians: Spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Each of us should be eager, prepared and equipped to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Yes, eager, we have the greatest gift in the world to share. What a treasure we have. A treasure that does not diminish with each added ‘share’. That, is, by adding to the family we in no way diminish ‘our’ share. Why would we want to keep that a secret?
Look in the mirror and ask the tough questions. “Why am I not EAGER to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ?” “Why would I rather engage in idle words than spread the Gospel?”
There are three logical conclusions why many Christians will not share the gospel.
1. We are ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Romans 1:16, Acts 18:9)
2. Our own behavior is nothing resembling ‘Christ-like’ so we are ashamed of ourselves. [2]
3. We do not know ‘how’ to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ. [3]
Convincing one’s self one is a ‘good Christian’ without a willingness to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ is nothing more than Idle Words.
[1] Hebrews 4:14-15, “Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.”
[2] 1 Corinthians 10:31, “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
[3] The ‘comments’ section of “Claiming Rights” lists a number of effective tools for sharing the gospel.
posted by Unchained Slave at 10:46 AM
3 Comments:
Hi David,
Looks like something in His words gripped your heart -- or I should say everything in His words did so, for none of those words were idle!
I wanted to take a moment to share an old story, and how the Lord brought home to me that none of His words are spoken idly. I was reading one day in Luke 11:50-51:
"that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation,
"from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the temple. Yes, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation."
Honestly, based on my life's experience to that point, I was putting this statement in the category of 'venting', as in, Not to be taken too literally. But then I found it foretold in Isaiah 53:8
"He was taken from prison and from judgment, and who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgressions of My people He was stricken."
It suddenly struck me with a new and powerful sense of conviction that He really meant every word He said, and that none of them were spoken lightly.
Anyway, I wanted to share that example. Often, the Old Testament prophecy brings comparisons of this nature that are staggering.
Cleopas,
Your comments are insightful and thought provoking… (and appreciated)
I have as you said, ‘been gripped’ in the heart.
Here is what ‘gripped’ me about your comment. You talked about the connection between Luke 11:50-51 and Isaiah 53:8.
Sometimes with me, ‘connections’ are a path less traveled. That is, I see a connection between events and people as the driving force of history. An example from your ‘blog’ is the "The Lost Ministry of Amphipolis". There is a connection between Paul’s ministry before and after Amphipolis that changed the way he conducted himself and his ministry.
It is an extension of ‘cause and effect’. I do not know if I have explained that very well. At the same time, the mind (especially mine) is a unique place. You say one thing, and my mind takes off on a very different abstractly related tangent.
That happened when I read your comment - off I went.
Here is the thought that came to mind, something I never really considered before. I quote Acts 17:11 often - It is a ‘life verse’ so to speak, and one of the ‘basics of Christianity’. “These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.” We know from the following verse the result of their study, “Therefore many of them believed, and also not a few of the Greeks, prominent women as well as men.”
The Bereans were Jews. The thought struck me, “What Scriptures did they study?”
Follow me here please, the Jews in Berea were being written about before the bulk of the New Testament was written. They were Jews; they were not going to accept the writings of some ‘commoners’ from Galilee as ‘Scriptures’.
Their definition of Scriptures is what we call the Old Testament. That was an ‘epiphany’. I have read the Old Testament, but honestly like many Christians, I have been considering it an historical work of tremendous significance, but not ‘nearly’ as important as the New Testament.
That view has definitely changed in the space of your one comment. The Jews in Berea studied the Old Testament. Their study presented enough evidence that they believed the Gospel of Jesus Christ. While ‘belief’ takes faith (Ephesians 2:8-9), there must be some kind of overwhelming evidence of ‘Truth’ in the Old Testament to cause basically an entire settlement to be saved.
I am going to have to spend much more time in the Old Testament…
Thank you, brother
In Christ
Hi David,
I love it when God takes us on those instructive rabbit paths. It ususally happens to me when I'm listening to a sermon (and the preacher shouldn't mind since One is our teacher, the Christ, and we are all brethren.)
What you said reminds me of another story. When I first got saved, I read the King James version. I understood the Old Testament and the gospels okay, but the epistles were a little elusive.
During that time, the Lord was working to show me the Messianic prophecy so I spent a lot of time reading that and comparing it to the gospels. When I evengelized, I usually quoted the Messianic prophecy as proof text, since I was still basically unfamiliar with the epistles (and now that I think of it, that's the most successful I've ever been at evengelism. Hmmm.)
Anyway, I began to form conclusions by comparing the prophecy and fulfillment, sometimes in a series of comparisons like complex syllogisms. "If A, B and C are true, I think D must be true."
Then the New King James version came out, and the epistles were much easier to understand. For the first time in about a year, I gave Romans another shot. And when I did, I was overwhelmed:
Here, Paul was reaching the same conclusions that the Lord had shown to me, one after another after another, but he was stating them very plainly as truths in themselves, apart from my process of concluding through lengthy comparisons.
Anyway, that was quite a boost to my faith as you can probably imagine! It's what I thought of when you said that things get connected in the mind.
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