What makes us unclean in God's sight?
The Bible talks about sin in a variety of different ways.
False worship, idolatry, rebellion, losing your way.
It talks about sin as sickness, as crossing a line, as missing the mark, as a stain, dirty
or unclean.
And we're going to be looking at a passage in Mark chapter 7 verses 1 through 23 in which
Jesus speaks about sin as that which defiles someone in God's sight.
Sin is something that's morally unclean, something that is morally dirty in God's sight.
The opposite of moral defilement is moral purity which is another way of talking about holiness.
So the question being asked in Mark chapter 7 verses 1 through 23 is what actually defiles
a human being in God's sight?
What makes us dirty in His eyes?
What makes us unclean in His sight?
Now if I were to ask you, why do you sin?
I'm guessing many of you would be able to give me a really concise answer.
Something like this.
Well Pastor Mike, I still sin because sin is still in me.
Even as a Christian, I am simultaneously justified and yet sinful.
I've got these sinful desires coming up from my flesh even though the Spirit has given me
a new heart.
But even though you might be theologically precise in that, there's another question related to
this that's a little bit more difficult to answer.
How are you at owning your sin?
How are you at taking responsibility for your sin?
If you're like me, I know not all of you are like me.
But if you're like me in this way, I tend to be slow to take responsibility for my sin
and I am really quick at blaming others for my sin.
The devil made me do it.
The world made me do it.
This person that sinned against me made me do it.
But here's the deal with all that.
This blame shifting that we're so prone to.
Even if there was no devil, I would still be sinning.
Even if we were not living in the world, I would still be sinning.
So would you.
Even if no one else ever sinned against me, I'd still be a sinner.
This is a classic and common mistake that we make.
We tend to push the blame of our sin outside of us.
And today Jesus blows it all up.
He's going to say the evil that defiles us.
Well, it doesn't come from outside of us.
The evil that defiles us, that makes us dirty in God's sight,
it actually comes from within us.
We are defiled not from the outside in,
but from the inside out.
Chapter 7, verses 1-23.
You can break them into two sections.
Verses 1-13.
There's a Q&A with Jesus.
It's the questions asked by Pharisees and scribes,
and Jesus answers it.
And then in verses 14-23,
there's another Q&A with Jesus,
but it's His disciples asking Him the question,
and Jesus answers it.
The first set of questions,
Jesus exposes a mistake of thinking
that we're defiled from the outside in.
And then in the latter part,
He corrects it.
And He explains it,
and He helps us to see that we are defiled in God's sight
from the inside out.
As Thomas Watson has said,
Till sin be bitter,
Christ will not be sweet.
So let's open our hearts
to what our Lord Jesus has to say.
You're going to need to behold your King this morning,
because He speaks with authority and clarity
on something that we all must hear.
And the question is,
is it true or not?
So would you look at verses 1-13 in chapter 7?
I'm going to read through them.
It's Q&A with these religious leaders.
Now when the Pharisees gathered to Him,
Jesus,
with some of the scribes
who had come from Jerusalem,
they saw that some of His disciples
ate with hands that were defiled,
that is, unwashed.
For the Pharisees and all the Jews
do not eat unless they wash their hands properly,
holding to the tradition of the elders.
And when they come from the marketplace,
they do not eat unless they wash.
And there are many other traditions
that they observe,
such as the washing of cups and pots
and copper vessels and dining couches.
And the Pharisees and the scribes asked Jesus,
Why do your disciples not walk
according to the tradition of the elders,
but eat with defiled hands?
And Jesus said to them,
Well, did Isaiah prophesy of you, hypocrites?
As it is written,
This people honors Me with their lips,
but their heart is far from Me.
In vain do they worship Me,
teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.
You have the commandment of God,
and you leave the commandment of God,
and hold to the tradition of men.
And then He said to them,
You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God
in order to establish your tradition.
For Moses said,
Honor your father and your mother,
and whoever reviles father or mother
must surely die.
But you say,
If a man tells his father or his mother,
Whatever you would have gained from Me
is Corban,
that is given to God,
then you no longer permit Him
to do anything for his father or mother.
Thus, making the void,
the Word of God,
by your tradition that you've handed down.
And many such things you do.
In verses 1-13,
Jesus has this very sharp interaction
with the Jewish religious leaders in Israel.
Some Pharisees and scribes
have observed Jesus' disciples
doing something in that culture
would have been very peculiar.
They were eating,
some of His disciples were eating food
without washing their hands.
So, the Pharisees and the scribes
asked Jesus,
What's going on here?
And then Jesus answers them
with a very sharp rebuke.
There's a question and an answer.
The question is in verse 5,
and the answer is in verses 6-13.
But preceding the question,
is some peculiar activity.
In verse 2,
these Pharisees and scribes,
they observed something
that's peculiar.
What is it?
Some of Jesus' Pharisees
were eating without washing their hands.
And you might be thinking,
what's the big deal?
I mean, I had a meal this week
and I didn't wash my hands before I ate.
What's the big deal with that?
Well, the big deal is represented
in a little word.
It's in verse 2.
They saw that some of His disciples
ate with hands that were defiled.
The Pharisees and the scribes
weren't physical hygiene police.
They were morality police.
And they had observed
a big moral no-no
among some of Jesus' disciples.
They were eating without washed hands.
And they had made themselves,
in their opinion,
spiritually unclean.
Now you may be asking,
well, how does that work?
Well, Mark tells us how that works.
In verses 3 and 4,
you see how it's in parentheses?
He's anticipating Gentiles like us
need a little bit more information.
And so what Mark does
in verses 3 and 4
is he kind of spells out
the extent of all this washing.
We read
that the Pharisees and all the Jews,
so this is a cultural norm.
They do not eat
unless they wash their hands.
Every meal,
they've got to wash their hands
a certain way.
Every meal,
it has to be done
a certain way.
And so there's this frequency
to this.
It's happening
all the time.
And it's not just frequency
dealing with
kind of like what you eat.
It's where you come from.
Did you see that?
So,
in verse 4,
when they come from the marketplace,
the agora,
from meyer,
from woodman's,
you've got to wash
a certain way
before you would even eat again
because you were there.
So it's just not every meal.
You've got to be paying attention
to where you come from.
And it's not just
having your meals
and where you come from.
Look at the scope of this
at the end of verse 4.
Such as the washing,
so there were many other traditions
such as the washing of cups,
pots,
copper vessels,
and dining couches.
Not only were they
washing their hands
and coming from meyer
and having to wash,
but they were also
having to be washing
what they made their food in,
what they presented their food in,
and what they sat on
when they ate their food.
So what we're seeing here
is this like extent
of this washing.
The idea behind it was this.
That defilement
was transmitted,
transferred by touch.
And so to stop
the transmission of defilement,
you've got to do a lot of washing.
Has anybody heard of the phrase
OCD?
Obsessive-compulsive disorder?
This is O-C-W-D.
Obsessive-compulsive
washing disorder.
They had created
these layers upon layers
of washing
in order to keep
the defilement
from the outside
from getting
into the inside.
And if you notice
in verse 3,
the Pharisees
and all the Jews
practiced these things.
It was a cultural norm.
You would have grown up in it.
You know,
you might be asking,
hey, where did all this come from?
What authority
is driving this?
And you see it
referenced twice.
It's the tradition
of the elders
in verse 3
and in the question
in verse 5.
Why do disciples
not walk according
to the tradition
of the elders?
The tradition
of the elders
was this,
these applications
that rabbis
had come up with
over the centuries.
They would take
God's commands
commands,
and then they would
think through
how to apply it
to every possible
situation
that they could imagine.
Every possible situation.
And so,
over time,
it became an oral tradition
and it started
to become more
and more authoritative.
And then it took
a written form
called the Mishnah.
And so,
all of a sudden,
what you have over time
is this new
competing authority
with God's commands
that have been
made up by man
in order to apply
God's law
to people's lives.
But,
it wasn't
the Word of God.
It wasn't
the Torah.
And over centuries,
what happens
is these
traditions
become treated
as if
they were
God's law.
And
the whole reason
why is
they didn't want
to be defiled.
Because they thought
defilement
came from the
outside in.
They had built
all these rules
to keep it out.
It's a man-made
system
being treated
as
coming from God
when it wasn't.
So,
are you starting
to understand
what's behind
the question
in verse 5?
Jesus,
why do your
disciples not walk
according to the
tradition of the
elders
like the rest
of us?
Why are you
letting your
disciples
become unclean?
They're dirty
in God's sight.
Why would you
do that?
So,
this is the
question.
Jesus,
why aren't you
enforcing the
rules?
And in verses
6-13,
Jesus answers
their question
with a
very sharp
rebuke.
Have you
ever seen
a hockey
game?
When a
fight breaks
out,
gloves are
off.
Look at
verse 6.
And Jesus
said to them,
well did
Isaiah prophesy
of you
hypocrites.
You notice,
Jesus is not
appealing to
the tradition
of the
elders.
Jesus is
quoting
Isaiah 29-13.
Verse 6-13.
This
people,
he's speaking
to the
Pharisees
and scribes,
this people
honors me
with their
lips,
but their
heart is
far from
me.
Hypocrisy.
You're saying
one thing,
tradition of
the elders,
but you're
actually,
your heart is
seeking to
accomplish
something else.
We'll see
that in a
sec.
He goes
on to say,
in vain do
they worship
me.
All of these
washings,
it's just
vanity.
It's
pointless.
It's not
accomplishing
what you
think it's
accomplishing.
Teaching as
doctrines the
commandments of
men,
they have
elevated these
traditions of
the elders,
these applications
that are not
God's Word,
on the same
par as
God's Word.
The gloves
are off.
And so
using God's
Word,
Jesus answers
the Pharisees
with quite a
rebuke.
In verse 8,
he goes on to
say,
you leave the
commandment of
God and hold
to the
tradition of
men.
This is what's
really going
on.
So verse 5
carries this
kind of like
veiled
accusation
that Jesus
and his
disciples are
not obeying
God's will
by not observing
the tradition
of the elders.
And what
Jesus does
is,
he's like,
hold on a
second.
You are the
ones who are
not living
according to
God's Word.
You've
actually left
God's commandments
to lay hold
of these
traditions.
Behold your
king.
Calling him
out.
And in
verse 9,
you see
something that
may make you
a little
uncomfortable
from Jesus.
It's
Jesus'
sarcasm.
The
sarcasm of
the Son
of God.
Sarcasm of
the Son
of Man.
And he
said to
them,
you have a
fine way of
rejecting the
commandment of
God in order
to establish
your tradition.
That is
not a
compliment.
He's using
sarcasm to
expose
their hypocrisy.
And in
verses 10
and 13,
Jesus goes
on to give
a very
specific
example of
how the
Pharisees and
scribes had
rejected the
commandment of
God to
establish their
tradition.
It was a
tradition introduced
by the elders
and the
Pharisees and
scribes called
Corban.
Corban means
dedicated to
God.
So here's
what was
happening in
a nutshell.
God had
commanded
his people to
honor your
father and
your mother.
And so I
have parents
in their
70s.
And so that
command to
me at that
time would
have showed
up like,
okay, we're
going to use
our resources
to care for
my parents.
And what
the Pharisees
and scribes
had done is
they introduced
this Corban
thinking to be
able to say
things, you
know what,
Mike?
You don't
need to give
that money to
your parents
because if you
call it Corban,
then you dedicate
it to God and
you're not no
longer responsible
to care for
your parents.
And that
money, of
course, do you
know where it
goes?
Temple treasury.
So what Jesus
is pointing out
is this.
These Pharisees
and scribes
had rejected
honor your
father and
your mother in
order to
hold to the
tradition of
the elders,
Corban,
and their
hearts were
far from
God.
It's hypocrisy.
It's self-serving.
And what Jesus
says in verse
13, he says,
and many such
things you do.
This is just
one other,
there's more.
So here's this
Q&A.
Jesus is
answering,
and what we're
seeing are two
things.
First is this.
The thinking
that defilement
comes from the
outside in,
and that you
need to be
obsessively,
compulsively
washing in
order to
keep it
outside,
it's a
terrible mistake.
And here's
what we're
going to
find out
in a second.
Because it
doesn't make
you clean.
And the
second terrible
thing we're
seeing here
is the
tendency among
human beings
to elevate
their thoughts,
their traditions,
their intentions
on the same
par as
God's
word.
You might be
thinking,
well,
whoo,
we don't
practice
Corban
around here.
We don't
do the
OCWD
thing around
here.
Well,
we don't.
But we
have this
knack for
making
applications
of God's
good word
into
pharisaical
rules.
And so,
every parent
in the
room is
called to
raise their
children in
the fear
and admonition
of the
Lord.
And in
that
command,
parents,
you're
going to
need to
decide how
your kids
are going
to be
educated.
Are we
going to
send them
to public
school?
Are we
going to
send them
to Christian
school?
Are we
going to
homeschool?
There are
groups of
Christians who
will say
something like
this.
All
Christians
must
homeschool
their
children.
That is
pharisaical.
That is
moving beyond
the scriptures.
Is it a
good option?
Sure.
Is it
God's
defined
will?
No.
So we
can't
raise it
to the
same
par as
scriptures.
Do you
see?
Here is
another way
we do
it.
No
Christian
should
drink
alcohol.
When the
Bible itself
doesn't forbid
alcohol, it
forbids getting
drunk.
We cannot
insist upon
things that
the Bible
itself does
not insist
on.
We don't
go beyond
what the
scriptures
say.
No
Christian
should
participate
in
Halloween.
People
have
different
opinions
on
Halloween.
But can
you make
that into
a thus
saith the
Lord?
Lord, you
can't.
Make a
good case.
Let's
debate it.
Here's the
ways that we
as Christians
today have
made our
applications.
We raise
them to the
same bar as
thus saith
the Lord.
Every one
of us has
an inner
Pharisee.
we like
to make
rules and
regulations
to live
by.
Because we
think we're
safe.
But these
man-made
restrictions
that go
beyond God's
Word,
they don't
keep us
clean.
And we
make the
mistake
of putting
our words
in the
mouth of
God.
So here
we have
Jesus
in verses
1-13
exposing
the
outside-in
mistake.
But then
in verses
14-23
He
supplies a
corrective
inside-out
defilement,
the way
things really
are.
Let me
read that
for you.
14-23
and He
called the
people to
Him again
and said
to them,
Hear me
all of
you and
understand,
there is
nothing
outside a
person that
by going
into him
can defile
him,
but the
things that
come out
of a
person are
what defile
him.
And when
He had
entered the
house and
left the
people,
His
disciples
asked Him
about the
parable,
and He
said to
them,
Then are
you also
without
understanding?
Do you
not see
that whatever
goes into
a person
from outside
cannot defile
him,
since it
enters not
his heart
but his
stomach and
is expelled?
Thus He
declared all
foods clean.
Amen.
And He
said,
What comes
out of a
person is
what defiles
him.
From within,
out of the
heart of
man,
come evil
thoughts,
sexual
immorality,
theft,
murder,
adultery,
coveting,
wickedness,
deceit,
sensuality,
envy,
slander,
pride,
foolishness.
All these
evil things
come from
within,
and they
defile a
person.
So this
whole passage,
verses 1-23,
it now takes
a turn in
verse 14.
And you
can see it
because He's
no longer
talking to
the Pharisees
and scribes.
He's now
called a
people back
to Him.
This crowd
comes back
to them,
and what
Jesus is
doing here,
He's saying,
let me just
set the
record straight,
everybody.
Everybody.
And He
says in
verse 15,
there is
nothing outside
a person
that by going
into Him
can defile
Him,
but the
things that
come out
of a person
are what
defile Him.
And in
that sentence,
He blows
up the
tradition of
the elders.
Blows it
up.
Because what
He's saying
is defilement
isn't
transferred
by touch.
it's not
what you
eat that
will defile
you.
And in
verses 17
through 23,
there's another
scene change.
He goes
from talking
to this
crowd outside
to moving
into a
house,
leaves the
crowd,
and is now
with His
family of
faith,
His disciples.
Remember,
at the end
of Mark
chapter 3.
And they
have a
question for
Him.
Verse 17.
And in
verses 18
to 23,
He supplies
the answer.
So the
question in
verse 17
is asked
by His
disciples.
They want
to know
about this
saying,
this parable
that He
said.
Let me
just read
it to
you again.
There's
nothing
outside a
person that
by going
into Him
can defile
him,
but the
things that
come out
of a
person are
what
defile
them.
Now,
if you
were one
of His
disciples,
most likely
you grew
up in
some kind
of Jewish
context of
that time.
So you're
thinking,
hold on a
second,
Jesus,
I don't
think I've
ever heard
you say
that before.
Are you
saying we
don't need
to wash
our hands?
Because I
grew up in
a culture,
I was being
told every
day since
I grew up,
Michael,
have you
washed your
hands so
that you
can be
pure before
you eat?
Jesus,
are you
saying it
doesn't matter
what we
eat?
So when
you think
about it,
there's good
reason for
His disciples
to be asking
questions about
that saying.
18-23,
Jesus answers
their question
and 18
starts with
a mild
rebuke.
Then are
you also
without
understanding?
You guys
seem to be
a little
slow.
The reality
is I think
everybody in
the room
identifies with
being a little
slow.
It takes
some time
to fully
understand
what Jesus
calls us
to.
And then
in the
second part
of 18
into 19,
He starts
to spell
it out
for His
disciples.
Just spell
it out
for us,
Jesus.
Look what
He says.
Do you
not see
that whatever
goes into
a person
from outside
Him
cannot defile
Him?
Verse 19,
since it
enters not
His heart
but His
stomach
and is
expelled.
What Jesus
does is He
gives us an
anatomy lesson.
He's like,
hey, do you
not realize
that what you
eat, it
doesn't defile
you because
it goes
into your
mouth,
into your
stomach,
and then
expelled.
And His
point is
this.
In verse 19,
it never
enters your
heart.
And when
Jesus starts
talking about
the heart,
He's not
talking about
the muscle
in your
chest right
now that
is pumping
oxygen-rich
blood into
your body
so that you
can live.
He's not
talking about
that heart.
He's talking
about what
the Hebrews
thought as
the core
of who you
are, the
control center
of your
life, the
seat of a
person's
emotions and
thinking and
will and
worship.
You live out
of your
heart.
Is anybody
in the room
a Star Trek
fan?
I see
that hand.
Well, I'm
a bit of a
Star Trek
fan.
Old school
Captain
James T.
Kirk of
the USS
Enterprise.
There you
go.
James T.
Kirk, do
you know
where we
see James
T. Kirk
a lot in
episodes?
He's in his
captain's chair
on the what?
The bridge
of the USS
Enterprise.
Now, if we
were a Klingon
horde wanting
to take over
the USS
Enterprise,
I would
have our
beamer
person,
beam us
all onto
the bridge
of the USS
Enterprise.
Do you know
why?
If you
control the
bridge of
the USS
Enterprise,
you control
the USS
Enterprise.
We can
hijack it.
So when
Jesus is
talking about
the heart,
he's talking
about the
control center,
your bridge
of your
life.
What controls
you?
Where you
make decisions,
emotions,
where you
make priorities
from where
you worship,
out of the
overflow of
the heart,
you live.
So what
Jesus is
doing here
is very
simple.
He's saying
what you
eat has
no defiling
influence or
consequence on
the control
center of
your being.
Food
doesn't
defile
you because
it can't.
It doesn't
enter your
heart.
And Mark
spells out
the immediate
implication.
He declared
all foods
clean.
Do you know
what yours
truly had
this week?
I had some
pork chops
and they were
delicious.
Not once
did I think
they defiled
me.
If I were
a Jew
growing up
in Galilee
at this
time,
oh, I
would have
been in a
lot of
trouble.
But Jesus
is saying
no, that's
not your
problem.
Food
coming into
you is not
your problem.
But if food
can't defile
us in God's
sight, what
does?
defiles us.
And Jesus
continues with
his correction.
In verses
20-23, he
clearly shows
us what
defiles us.
He clearly
shows where,
from where,
we are
defiled.
And it's not
outside of us,
it's inside of
us.
Look at verse
20.
And he said,
what comes out
of a person is
what defiles
him.
Look at verse
21.
He gets a
little bit
narrower.
From within.
And then the
next phrase,
he hits the
bullseye.
Out of the
heart of man.
Your control
center is a
corruption
center.
John Calvin
talked about the
human heart as
an idle
factory.
Jesus talks
about the
human heart as
an evil
factory.
You generate
evil from your
heart.
And then he
uses that
phrase,
evil thoughts.
It's like a
banner flying
over the
next 12
evils.
Let me just
list them for
you.
Out of your
heart comes
sexual immorality.
Any sexual
activity outside
the marital
union.
Out of your
heart comes
theft.
Out of your
heart comes
murder and
adultery and
coveting and
wickedness,
which is malice.
It's hate
heartedness.
Out of your
heart comes
deceit.
Out of your
heart comes
sensuality,
this hedonism
that's pursuing
pleasure.
Out of your
heart comes
envy.
Out of your
heart comes
slander.
Out of your
heart comes
pride and
foolishness.
He does
not relent,
does he?
In what he's
doing there,
this is not a
list coming
from the
tradition of
the elders.
This is a
list coming
from your
Bible.
Five of the
twelve come
right out of
the Ten
Commandments.
what Jesus
is saying,
and this is
where you
need to
just ask
the question,
is it
true or
not?
Is that
everyone in
the room,
every one of
our hearts
is capable
of producing
any and
all of
these twelve
evil things.
all of
us.
These evils,
according to
Jesus,
come from
our hearts.
They're not
outside of
us.
The devil
doesn't make
me do it.
The world
doesn't make
me do it.
The person
that sinned
against me
doesn't make
me do this.
I make
me do
this.
It's not
outside of
you.
It's inside
of you in
the point
Jesus is
getting at
and you're
responsible.
you're
responsible for
your heart.
Jeremiah 17
9 says,
the heart is
deceitful above
all else and
desperately sick.
Who can
understand it?
Jeremiah 17
10 says,
the heart,
the Lord
knows the
heart.
And so
Jesus is not
painting a
flattering picture
of our sinful
condition,
is he?
He's getting
at the
depravity of
sin.
It's at the
root,
brothers and
sisters.
It's in
our hearts.
We have an
evil factory
dwelling within.
So Jesus
is exposing
our hearts.
We have an
evil producing
control center
that we live
out of.
The question
is,
is it
true?
Do you know
how you can
test it?
Has anybody
committed sexual
immorality in
the room?
No.
I have.
Guilty.
It's true.
Has anybody
stolen?
Has anybody
coveted?
Just go down
the list and
ask, has it
come out of
your heart?
Yes.
The evil that
defiles us,
verse 23,
is coming from
inside of us.
we defile
ourselves
because of the
evil in our
hearts.
Here's what this
means.
It means you
need to decide
if these words
of Jesus are
true or not.
Either our
hearts are
producing evil
and that they
are defiling us
or your heart
doesn't do that.
if your heart
is producing
evils,
you are
responsible for
those evils.
You can't
blame the
devil.
You can't
blame the
world.
You can't
blame someone
else for
sinning against
you.
You are
responsible
for what is
defiling you
and it's
coming from
within you.
So,
why do we
sin?
Why do we
sin?
Our own
hearts
cause us
to sin.
And yet,
till sin
be bitter,
Christ will
not be
sweet.
What's the
point of this
passage?
Well, the
point is
simple.
The evil
within
defiles each
of us.
That's the
point.
It's not
outside of
us, it's
inside of
us.
And don't
forget who's
saying this.
Remember the
Gospel of
Mark, what
it says about
Jesus, that
Jesus Christ
is the Son
of God, that
Jesus Christ
is the Son
of Man.
That Jesus
Christ has
the authority
to forgive
sin.
That Jesus
Christ has
authority over
nature, Mark
4.
That Jesus
Christ has
authority over
demons, Mark
5.
That Jesus
Christ has
authority over
disease, Mark
5.
Jesus Christ
has even
authority over
death.
The all
authoritative
King of the
universe is
clearly declaring
to us this
morning that
the evil that
defiles us
doesn't come
from outside
of us, it
comes from
inside of us.
And we're
responsible for
it.
Till sin be
bitter, Christ
will not be
sweet.
You want
some good
news?
The very
one who
exposes our
defiled hearts
is the only
one who can
purify our
defiled hearts.
Isn't that
good news?
He's the only
one.
making,
obeying rules
that's not
going to block
the defilement
because the
defilement
comes from
within.
Making,
obeying rules
cannot
cleanse your
heart.
Only Jesus
can purify
your heart.
who can
forgive sins
but God
alone.
As an
example of
this, do
you remember
when King
David in
2 Samuel,
remember when
he sinned,
he had
committed adultery
with Bathsheba,
and then he
killed her
husband Uriah,
murdered him
to cover it
up.
And then in
Psalm 51,
David confesses
it.
And he uses
this kind of
language,
cleanse me,
wash me with
and make me
clean,
create in me
a clean
heart.
Where we go,
when we
acknowledge
the defiling
evil in our
hearts,
we run
to God
and seek
cleansing
from Him.
Do you want
to be cleansed
from your
evil?
Just as
David cried
out to God,
we cry out
to our
Emmanuel.
There is a
fountain filled
with blood
drawn from
Emmanuel's
veins,
and sinners
plunged beneath
that flood
lose all
their guilty
sayings.
What can
wash me
from my
sin?
Nothing but
the blood
of Jesus.
God's
cleansing
grace
is greater
than the
evil
that defiles
our hearts.
Amen.
So this
morning,
if you've
been convinced
by these
words of
Jesus,
that the
evil that
you need to
be most
concerned about
is not
outside of
you,
but inside
of you,
here are
three quick
applications.
Application
one.
You don't
need your
hands washed.
You need
your heart
washed.
Again and
again.
We know
that if
you're a
believer in
the room,
you're
simultaneously
justified in
right standing
with God,
and yet you
still sin,
which means
you're going
to need
cleansing
again and
again.
That's why
1 John 1
9 says,
if we
confess our
sins,
He is
faithful and
just to
forgive our
sins and
cleanse us
from all
unrighteousness.
Christian,
you need
your heart
cleansed.
Again and
again.
Because it's
generating
evils.
If you're
not a
Christian,
you just
need to
start by
asking Jesus
to wash
you white
as snow.
He can
and He
will.
Until sin
be bitter,
Christ will
not be
sweet.
Point two.
Sanctification
is the
hard work
of heart
work.
Jesus
goes right
to the
heart and
so must
we.
As we
want to
become less
and less
ruled by
sin and
more and
more like
Jesus,
we've got to
pay attention
to our
hearts.
Paul Tripp
talks about
how a
Christian grows
and he
compares a
root of a
tree and
its fruit to
the heart and
the actions of
a Christian.
You've got a
bad root,
you've got bad
fruit.
You've got an
evil heart,
you'll have
evil actions.
And so what
we need to be
doing to
really grow
is tend to
the root,
the heart of
the situation.
Can I
challenge you
with something?
Because I
love you.
Psalm 139
verses 23
and 24
is a
psalm of
David.
Can I
encourage you
to pray that
to God?
Search me,
O God,
and know my
heart.
Try me and
know my
thoughts and
see if there
be any
grievous way
in me and
lead me in
the way
everlasting.
God might
show you that
you are lying.
This question
is, why are
you lying?
I was
praying this
and I got
exposed of a
fear that
tempts me to
speak a certain
way to
someone.
God?
Would you
ask your
God to
expose
the evils
in your
heart and
then ask
him to make
you white as
snow?
The third
application,
till sin be
bitter, Christ
will not be
sweet.
The third
application is
this.
Because you've
got an inner
Pharisee living
inside of
you.
Remember
these words
of Jesus.
Judge not
that you not
be judged.
For with the
judgment you
pronounce, you
will be judged.
And with the
measure that you
use, it will be
measured to you.
Why do you see
the speck that
is in your
brother's eye, but
do not notice
the log that
is in your
own eye?
Or how can
you say to
your brother,
let me take
the speck out
of your eye,
when there is
the log in
your own eye?
You hypocrite,
first take the
log out of
your own eye,
and then you
will see clearly
to take the
speck out of
your brother's
eye.
Just as a
word of
process.
First, be
doing the
hard work of
your own
heart work,
before volunteering
to do the
hard work of
heart work in
someone else.
The reason
why is it will
keep you humble
and make you
helpful, because
you'll be working
out of this, I
am in constant
need of God's
sanctifying grace.
And if I can
help you, I'd
be glad to, but
I've got to deal
with me first.
Until sin be
bitter, Christ
will not be
sweet.
Why do you
sin?
Jesus is
crystal clear.
All these
evils, they
come from
within, and
they defile a
person.
But the
very one who
exposes our
evil hearts is
the very one,
the only one,
who purifies
our hearts.
Isn't that
good news?
And as we
trust Him and
go to Him
daily for
fresh cleansing,
He slowly
changes our
hearts, purifies
our hearts.
Blessed are the
pure of heart,
for they will
see God.
And over time,
our lives
change.
And we
treasure Jesus
more.
Till sin be
bitter, Christ
will not be
sweet.
let's pray.
God in
heaven,
Father, would
you just
continue to
show us our
desperate need
for you because
our hearts are
desperately wicked.
Father, thank you
for filling us
with your
Spirit, for
indwelling us
with your
Spirit, for
giving us a
new affection
by your
Spirit's power.
God, would
you make us
more and more
like Jesus
and less and
less ruled by
these evil
desires.
We look
forward to
the day
when you
purify us
completely.
In Jesus'
name,
Amen.