May 18, 2025 • 25 mins
Pastor Ken Davis explores the metaphor of light and darkness in Luke 11, revealing how Jesus confronts the religious hypocrites of his day while teaching us about true spiritual sight. Our ability to perceive spiritual truth depends entirely on our inner condition - whether our "eye is good" or corrupted by darkness.
• Jesus identifies himself as the light of the world that cannot be extinguished
• The condition of our spiritual "eye" determines whether we can perceive God's truth
• Religious leaders focused on outward appearances while neglecting justice and love
• Jesus pronounces "woes" on those who burden others with religious rules they themselves wouldn't follow
• Believers are called to be "the light of the world," not hiding their faith but letting it shine
• True faith begins as personal but must be shared publicly
• Our light should shine in such a way that others glorify God, not ourselves
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
You're listening to Heed the Word with our pastor
and teacher, Ken Davis.
Pastor Ken is the senior pastorof Calvary Chapel, Southwest
Metro in Burleson, Texas.
Please join us as we study theGospel of Luke verse by verse.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
Only people who cannot see light are those who
are blind.
You see, you can take thebrightest search light in the
world and shine it in the faceof a blind man, and he will not
see it.
That's why he said if your eyeis good, well what does a good
(00:40):
eye do?
A good eye sees.
What does a bad eye do?
Nothing.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
Nothing.
The Gospel of Luke is the thirdaccount in the Gospels of the
life and teachings of our SaviorJesus Christ.
As believers, there are fewstudies that will benefit us
more spiritually than studyingthe life and teachings of the
Master.
Have you ever been in completedarkness, in a place where you
can't see directly in front ofyour face?
(01:08):
You see when you're in sin,when you're without the Lord,
you are in darkness.
We can't see the dangers aroundus, we're left to our own
thoughts and ideas.
But as believers, the light ofGod's Word shines, revealing the
truth.
Don't forget to stay with usafter today's message to hear
more information about Heed theWord, specifically how you can
(01:30):
get a free copy of this teaching.
But for now, please open yourBibles to the Gospel of Luke,
chapter 11, verse 33, as we joinPastor Ken.
Speaker 2 (01:39):
Now, men will die for a lie, but only if they think
it's the truth.
These men died for somethingthat they knew to be true,
because if it were not true,these men would have known that
it was a lie.
That alone bears witness to thefact that Jesus Christ rose
from the grave.
(01:59):
No other religious leader inthe history of our world has
done that.
He is unique.
He's the Son of God and yet, inspite of the fact that he was
wiser than Solomon, in spite ofthe fact that he was greater
than Jonah, in spite of the factthat there was the sign given
(02:20):
that he would die and be dead inthe tomb for three days and
then rise again, in spite of allof that, many of these very
people who saw the miracles heperformed refused to believe and
, what's more, many of themstill refuse to believe to this
very day.
There are those in our worldwho, in spite of all the
evidence you can muster, inspite of irrefutable evidence,
(02:45):
refuse to believe.
And I ask again the questionwhy?
Well, jesus answers it.
Luke 11, verse 33 no one, whenhe has lit a lamp, puts it in a
secret place or under a basket,but on a lampstand that those
(03:08):
who come in may see the light.
Now we know from scripture John8, 12 specifically that Jesus
is the light of the world.
He said it himself.
He said I am the light of theworld.
Whoever follows me will neverwalk in darkness but will have
the light of life.
John 1 bears testimony to it aswell.
(03:31):
As we look at John 1, startingin verse 1, it said, as we read
earlier, in the beginning wasthe Word and the Word was with
God and the Word was God.
He was in the beginning withGod.
All things were made throughhim.
Him and without him.
Nothing was made.
That was made in him was life,and the life was the light of
men, and the light shines in thedarkness and the darkness did
(03:52):
not comprehend it.
There was a man sent from Godwhose name was John.
This man came for a witness, tobear witness of the light that
all through him might believe.
He was not that light, but wassent to bear witness of that
light.
That was the.
Him might believe.
He was not that light, but wassent to bear witness of that
light.
That was the true light, whichgives light to every man coming
into the world.
He was in the world and theworld was made through him, and
(04:14):
the world did not know him.
He came to his own, and his owndid not receive him, but as
many as received him to them.
He gave the right to becomechildren of God, to those who
believe in his name, who wereborn not of blood, nor of the
will of the flesh, nor of thewill of man, but of God.
And the word became flesh anddwelt among us, and we beheld
his glory, the glory as of theonly begotten of the Father,
(04:38):
full of grace and truth.
Light has come into the world,we're told, but men loved
darkness rather than light.
Why?
Because their deeds were evil.
Their deeds were evil.
So Jesus is the light of theworld.
We know that.
And Jesus says that when youlight a lamp, you don't hide it
(04:59):
under a basket or put it in acellar.
You set it up on a lampstandwhere all can see.
The gospel of Jesus Christ isnot a thing that is hidden nor
difficult to understand, but itis readily available to those
that will have it, to those thatwill receive it, and yet they
don't see.
Verse 34, the lamp of the bodyis the eye.
(05:23):
Therefore, when your eye isgood, good, your whole body also
is full of light, but when youreye is bad, your body also is
full of darkness.
What is he saying here?
Kind of confusing words.
Right, jesus is the light ofthe world.
Light has come into the world,and john told us that the
(05:43):
darkness can't comprehend it.
Another way to say that is itcan't overcome it.
So that light, which is JesusChrist in this world, cannot be
extinguished, can it?
And it says that he's giventhat light to every man.
Right, he's given that to us.
The only people who cannot seelight are those who are blind.
(06:05):
You see, you can take thebrightest searchlight in the
world and shine it in the faceof a blind man, and he will not
see it.
That's why he said if your eyeis good, well, what does a good
eye do?
A good eye sees.
What does a bad eye do?
(06:33):
Nothing, nothing.
The lamp of the body.
That word lamp I like that wordin the Greek, if I can find it
in my notes here.
It's interesting.
It says that that word for lampis looknos, looknos, look.
A lamp is something that helpsyou look, isn't it?
You can't look without a light,a lamp or a candle that is
placed on a stand or candlestick.
(06:53):
The lamp is likened to an eye,which shows the body which way
to move and turn.
For instance, the prophecies ofthe Old Testament, in as much as
they afforded at least someknowledge relative to the
glorious return of Christ, werea lamp to us, weren't they?
Look nos, look at Jesus, lookat what he's done for us and let
the light of what he's done forus shine in our hearts.
(07:15):
It's when we refuse to look atwhat Jesus has done for us that
we become so hardened that wethink only of what he requires
of us.
The lamp of the body is the eye.
Therefore, when your eye isgood, your whole body also is
full of light.
What that's saying is if wehave eyes to see the truth of
the gospel, then we will befilled with the light of God,
(07:41):
but if our eye is bad, then ourwhole body will be full of
darkness.
If we are not able or willingto look upon the light of what
Jesus has done, then all that isin us is darkness.
Verse 35 of Luke 11,.
What does that mean?
That the light that's in you isnot darkness?
(08:03):
What does that mean that thelight that's in you is not
darkness.
If the brightest thing in yourlife is not Jesus Christ, then,
however bright that may seem toyou, it's not light, it's
darkness.
Take heed that the light whichis in you is not darkness.
(08:26):
You see, the Pharisees had whatthey would consider a light in
themselves.
They had the righteous outerworkings of the law, the things
that they would do, and yet thelove of God wasn't in them.
The light of God did not abidein their hearts, and so that
light which was in the Phariseeswasn't light at all.
Verse 36,.
If, then, your whole body isfull of light, having no part
(08:49):
dark, then the whole body willbe full of light, as when the
bright shining of a lamp givesyou light.
Jesus said in Matthew 6, 22,that the lamp of the body is the
eye.
If, therefore, your eye is good, your whole body will be full
of light, but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full
of darkness.
If, therefore, the light thatis in you in darkness, how great
(09:14):
is that darkness?
If the light that is in you isdarkness, how great is that
darkness?
Apart from Jesus Christ, thereis no goodness in man, however
good man may seem on the outside.
(09:36):
On the inside it's all darknessNow.
As he spoke, a certain Phariseeasked him to dine with him, so
he went in and sat down to eat.
When the Pharisee saw it, hemarveled that he had not first
washed before dinner.
Now, some of you might marvelif someone didn't wash before
(09:57):
dinner, but when you marvel it'snot that they didn't wash the
way the Jews were thinkingdidn't wash.
I mean, obviously we'rethinking for health reasons,
it's good to wash your handsbefore you eat, right?
That's not what they weretalking about.
They were talking about aceremonial cleansing.
As they would come in to eat,they would dip their hands in
the water and lift their handsso that the water would
literally drip off their elbowthere, and that was to make them
(10:20):
ceremonially clean.
You see, they had taken theLevitical laws and they had
expanded them to include a lotmore than they were meant to
include.
And Jesus never acknowledgedthese requirements because they
were not the requirements of God.
They were the requirements ofmen, and God is not interested
in acknowledging therequirements or the religiosity
(10:42):
of man.
He's interested in thecondition of people's hearts,
and he's going to make that veryclear in just a moment as we
read on.
Then the Lord said to him Nowyou, pharisees, make the outside
of the cup and dish clean, butyour inward part is full of
greed and wickedness, foolishones.
(11:03):
Did not he who made the outsidemake the inside also, but
rather give alms of such thingas you have?
Then, indeed, all things areclean to you.
But woe to you, pharisees, foryou tithe, mint and rue and all
manner of herbs and pass by thejustice and the love of God.
(11:25):
These you ought to have donewithout leaving the others
undone.
These Pharisees were someticulous in their observation
of the outward things of the lawthat they would come to their
little bushes right of herbs intheir gardens and they would
count the number of leaves onthat bush that were used for
herbs in order to make sure thatone of every 10 was taken to
(11:47):
the temple.
They were meticulous in theirtithing and in the outward
fulfillment of the law.
And Jesus says listen, you doall of this, but you completely
forego the greater principles ofjustice and of love.
He said, these you should havedone without leaving the others
undone.
He's saying look, it's goodthat you pay tithes.
(12:09):
That's great, that's wonderful,but you can be the greatest
tither in the world, but if yourheart isn't right with God,
then it doesn't mean anything.
If there isn't love in yourheart for your fellow man, then
it's worthless.
I'm sure you've heard the storyof the young pastor who was
pastoring a church and he hadtwo brothers in that church who
(12:30):
were extremely wealthy but alsoextremely reprobate.
They were ungodly, cruel men,and one day one of those men
died.
It was about this time that thepastor was going through a
building program because thechurch had been blessed and they
really needed a new facility.
And one of these two brothersthe one that remained alive came
(12:51):
to him and he says listen, Iknow you need to raise a million
dollars for your new buildingfund and I have a check for that
million dollars right here, andI will be more than happy to
give this to the church on onecondition, the pastor said.
What condition was that?
He says well, you're about todo my brother's funeral in the
(13:13):
next day or two and I want youto get up in front of everybody
and tell them what a good andgodly man he was.
Pastor sat back and thoughtabout it for a moment and he
says well, okay, I'll do it.
And so he took the check, wentout and deposited it in the
church's bank account, made sureall the funds were there, and a
day or two later, at thefuneral, he gets up in front of
everybody and he says I need tolet y'all know that this man who
lies dead here before you was areprobate.
(13:35):
He was a sinner and he was agodless man who did not know the
Lord.
But compared to his brother hewas a godly man, right?
It doesn't matter what you give,it doesn't matter what you do.
It doesn't matter whetheryou're here in church every
(13:56):
Sunday and you fulfill all ofthe outward requirements of what
you think it is to be a godlyperson.
Maybe you read the Bible andpray every day, maybe you spend
time in fellowship with otherbelievers, maybe you even go out
and tell people about JesusChrist.
But you know what, if you don'tregard love and justice in your
(14:19):
heart, if you don't really knowthe Lord that you're talking
about, then it's all for nothing.
You can make the outside of thecup look as beautiful as you
want it to, but it's not theoutside of the cup that God is
concerned with.
It's what's on the inside thatmatters.
(14:41):
You know there's a lot of talkin some denominations, about how
people should dress and aboutwhat they should wear and
shouldn't wear.
And you know, I had a man askme recently so what would you do
if someone wore a miniskirtinto your church?
How do you answer a questionlike that?
I mean, it's just a weirdquestion, you know.
Why does it matter to him whatI would do if someone you know?
(15:04):
I told him, I said, you know,brother, look.
I said if someone came into thechurch wearing a miniskirt or
whatever the case might be, I'dbe glad she was there to hear
the word of the Lord.
You know, it's not about tellingpeople what to put on or how to
wear their clothes or how toyou know this or that or
whatever.
(15:24):
I mean it's not about having alist of rules and regulations
for you to follow.
My job is to introduce you toJesus Christ and to encourage
you to live by his word, notmine by his spirit, and as you
come to know him and love himand serve him, he is going to
(15:47):
tell you how to live your life.
You know, the Pharisees hadplenty of rules and they did
their best, I think in many ways, to keep those rules, but they
didn't know the love of God, andbecause they didn't know the
love of God, they were rejectingthe one who was the very
fulfillment of the law theyrevered.
(16:08):
But I do love what he says herein verse 42, when he's
referring to the things theywere doing versus the things
that they were not.
He says these you ought to havedone.
It means we are to keep thoseoutward things as well.
We are to tithe and to serveand to fellowship and to witness
(16:28):
.
We are to do all those thingsbut not to leave the others
undone.
Woe to you, verse 43, pharisees,for you love the best seats in
the synagogues and greetings inthe marketplaces.
Woe to you, scribes andPharisees, hypocrites, for you
are like graves which are notseen, and the men who walk over
(16:50):
them are not aware of them.
What does he mean by that?
Graves that are not seen.
The Jewish people made a pointto mark graves why?
Because to come in contact witha dead body was to be defiled.
Even to walk over the top of agrave was to become unclean, and
so what Jesus was saying wasyou look real good on the
outside, but not only are younot cleansed yourself, but
(17:14):
you're defiling those that youcome into contact with, and they
don't even know it.
Then one of the lawyersanswered and said to him teacher
, by saying these things, youreproach us also.
He's like, hey, hey, I'moffended by that statement, and
Jesus turned to him and said woeto you also, lawyers.
(17:35):
Now, this isn't talk.
A lot of us might think of thatand say, yeah, right on, darn
that ACLU.
You know that's not what he'stalking about here.
Okay, when he's saying woe toyou lawyers, he's talking about
those people who were experts inthe Mosaic law, you religious
teachers.
You might also have said Woe toyou also, lawyers.
That would be almost like himsaying woe to you pastors, huh?
Well, I'll tell you what.
It's a scary thing to be ateacher of God's word, because
(17:56):
we're responsible for how weteach this.
We're going to have to give anaccount to God for the things
that we say regarding his word,and it's my prayer that I always
represent him accurately.
He said woe to you, lawyers,for you load men with burdens
hard to bear and you yourselvesdo not touch the burdens with
one of your fingers.
Woe to you, for you build thetombs of the prophets, and your
(18:20):
fathers killed them.
In fact, you bear witness thatyou approve of the deeds of your
fathers, for they indeed killedthem and you build their tombs.
Therefore, the wisdom of Godalso said I will send them
prophets and apostles, and someof them they will kill and
persecute that the blood of allthe prophets which were shed
from the foundation of the world, may be required of this
(18:44):
generation, from the blood ofAbel he was the first martyr
right To the blood of Zechariah.
He was the last martyr, from Ato Z, from the beginning of the
Old Testament to the end of it,from the blood of Abel to the
blood of Zechariah, who perishedbetween the altar and the
temple.
Yes, I say to you, it shall berequired of this generation.
(19:06):
You see, they love to say, oh,had we been alive in the time of
our fathers, we never wouldhave done something like that.
And yet they killed the veryson of God.
Woe to you, lawyers, for youhave taken away the key of
knowledge.
You do not enter in yourselves,and those who were entering in
(19:27):
you hindered.
You know, there was a time inthe middle ages when the
scriptures would literally bechained to the pulpit, because
the belief was that unless youwere a priest, you had no right
to read the scriptures, norcould you understand or
interpret them for yourself.
Thank god, thank god for menlike Tyndale, for men like
(19:51):
Luther, for men who were willingto risk their lives that the
common people would be able toread the scriptures for
themselves.
And as he said these things tothem, the scribes and the phar
Pharisees began to assail himvehemently and to cross-examine
him about many things, lying inwait for him and seeking to
catch him in something that hemight say, that they might
(20:13):
accuse him.
The queen of Sheba had heardthe report of Solomon and she
didn't believe it, and so shewent to test him.
The same way, these Phariseesand scribes and lawyers were
testing Jesus.
And yet when Solomon rightlyanswered her questions, she
acknowledged that she had beenwrong about him and she believed
.
Jesus answered every questionposed to him in a way in which
(20:38):
they were not able to trap him.
And yet, instead of realizingwho he was, they rejected him.
Now, let's be careful.
Let's not say well, had I beenthere, I wouldn't have done that
, I would you know, like theydid regarding the prophets.
But let us remember, guys, thatit's by grace that we've been
(21:01):
saved and that through faith,not of ourselves, but it's the
gift of God, not by works thatno man may boast.
In Matthew 5, 14, 16, jesussaid you are the light of the
world.
(21:21):
You see, he's already told usthat he is the light of the
world.
You see, he's already told usthat he is the light of the
world, hasn't he?
But here he tells us that youare the light of the world.
Now, how is it you, in whomthere was nothing but darkness,
now have become the light of theworld?
It's because he is in you.
You are the light of the world.
A city that is set on a hillcannot be hidden, nor do they
(21:44):
light a lamp and put it under abasket, but on a lampstand, and
it gives light to all who are inthe house.
Let your light so shine beforemen that they may see your good
works and glorify your Father,who is in heaven.
There are people who will cometo you like the Queen of Sheba.
(22:08):
They will have questions.
They'll have heard of Jesus andthey'll have heard things about
Jesus, but they won't reallybelieve the things that they've
heard.
And they're going to havequestions that they're going to
ask.
And the intention of thosequestions is not to learn but to
test you.
But, as God gives you grace, toanswer those questions in love,
(22:32):
if they have eyes to see,they'll see the light that is
shining in you and they'llreceive that light.
Now there are others to whomyou will be sent, just as God
sent Jonah.
And you will have a message forthose people that if they don't
(22:53):
repent, that if they don't turnto Jesus Christ, then at some
point in time destruction iscoming.
And when you are there speakingto them, you need to understand
that one greater than Jonah isspeaking to them, because the
one that is speaking to them isthe Holy Spirit that lives in
(23:13):
you, and if they have eyes tosee, they will repent.
Jesus said I am the light ofthe world, but then he's also
said, as we read a moment ago,that I am the light of the world
.
But then he's also said, as weread a moment ago, that you are
the light of the world and thatlight is not to be hidden.
A lot of people talk about theirfaith as being something
private and personal, and it issomething private and personal.
(23:38):
That's where it begins.
That's not where it's to stop.
God doesn't put his light inyou so that you can cover that
light up and not share it withanybody, but it's to be put on a
lampstand that it can givelight to all those that are in
the house.
That's why he said let yourgood work so shine before men,
(23:59):
let your light so shine beforemen that they see your good
works and glorify you.
No, and glorify your Fatherwho's in heaven.
Speaker 1 (24:12):
Unfortunately, that's all the time we have for today.
You've been listening to Heedthe Word, the teaching ministry
of Pastor Ken Davis, calvaryChapel in Burleson, texas.
We are currently making our waythrough the Gospel of Luke here
on Heed the Word.
The Gospel of Luke is packedfull of insights about Jesus,
our Savior, so we encourage youto join us again, same time,
(24:33):
same place, for the next studythrough Luke with Pastor Ken.
As we mentioned at thebeginning of today's broadcast,
this teaching, as well as manyothers, are available from the
Heed the Word media player.
You can listen to today'steaching, download today's
teaching, subscribe to the Heedthe Word podcast or even get a
copy on your mobile phone.
(24:54):
Everything's right there.
There's even a Bible availablefor you to follow along in the
scriptures as Pastor Ken teaches.
So log on to heedthewordorg andcontinue studying with us today
.
If today's teaching has blessedyou, perhaps you'd like to
visit us for worship.
Calvary Chapel, southwest Metro, meets each Sunday morning at
(25:15):
10.30 am and Wednesday eveningat 7 pm.
We'd love to have you stop byand join us.
For more information anddriving directions, log on to
wwwheatthewordorg.
This has been another editionof Heed the Word, the
verse-by-verse,chapter-by-chapter and
book-by-book teaching ministryof Ken Davis, senior pastor of
(25:37):
Calvary Chapel, southwest Metro.
Place a marker in your Biblesand join us next time for our
continuing study through theGospel of Luke, right here on
Heed the Word.
You're listening to Heed the Word with our pastor
and teacher, Ken Davis.
Pastor Ken is the senior pastorof Calvary Chapel, Southwest
Metro in Burleson, Texas.
Please join us as we study theGospel of Luke verse by verse.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
Only people who cannot see light are those who
are blind.
You see, you can take thebrightest search light in the
world and shine it in the faceof a blind man, and he will not
see it.
That's why he said if your eyeis good, well what does a good
(00:40):
eye do?
A good eye sees.
What does a bad eye do?
Nothing.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
Nothing.
The Gospel of Luke is the thirdaccount in the Gospels of the
life and teachings of our SaviorJesus Christ.
As believers, there are fewstudies that will benefit us
more spiritually than studyingthe life and teachings of the
Master.
Have you ever been in completedarkness, in a place where you
can't see directly in front ofyour face?
(01:08):
You see when you're in sin,when you're without the Lord,
you are in darkness.
We can't see the dangers aroundus, we're left to our own
thoughts and ideas.
But as believers, the light ofGod's Word shines, revealing the
truth.
Don't forget to stay with usafter today's message to hear
more information about Heed theWord, specifically how you can
(01:30):
get a free copy of this teaching.
But for now, please open yourBibles to the Gospel of Luke,
chapter 11, verse 33, as we joinPastor Ken.
Speaker 2 (01:39):
Now, men will die for a lie, but only if they think
it's the truth.
These men died for somethingthat they knew to be true,
because if it were not true,these men would have known that
it was a lie.
That alone bears witness to thefact that Jesus Christ rose
from the grave.
(01:59):
No other religious leader inthe history of our world has
done that.
He is unique.
He's the Son of God and yet, inspite of the fact that he was
wiser than Solomon, in spite ofthe fact that he was greater
than Jonah, in spite of the factthat there was the sign given
(02:20):
that he would die and be dead inthe tomb for three days and
then rise again, in spite of allof that, many of these very
people who saw the miracles heperformed refused to believe and
, what's more, many of themstill refuse to believe to this
very day.
There are those in our worldwho, in spite of all the
evidence you can muster, inspite of irrefutable evidence,
(02:45):
refuse to believe.
And I ask again the questionwhy?
Well, jesus answers it.
Luke 11, verse 33 no one, whenhe has lit a lamp, puts it in a
secret place or under a basket,but on a lampstand that those
(03:08):
who come in may see the light.
Now we know from scripture John8, 12 specifically that Jesus
is the light of the world.
He said it himself.
He said I am the light of theworld.
Whoever follows me will neverwalk in darkness but will have
the light of life.
John 1 bears testimony to it aswell.
(03:31):
As we look at John 1, startingin verse 1, it said, as we read
earlier, in the beginning wasthe Word and the Word was with
God and the Word was God.
He was in the beginning withGod.
All things were made throughhim.
Him and without him.
Nothing was made.
That was made in him was life,and the life was the light of
men, and the light shines in thedarkness and the darkness did
(03:52):
not comprehend it.
There was a man sent from Godwhose name was John.
This man came for a witness, tobear witness of the light that
all through him might believe.
He was not that light, but wassent to bear witness of that
light.
That was the.
Him might believe.
He was not that light, but wassent to bear witness of that
light.
That was the true light, whichgives light to every man coming
into the world.
He was in the world and theworld was made through him, and
(04:14):
the world did not know him.
He came to his own, and his owndid not receive him, but as
many as received him to them.
He gave the right to becomechildren of God, to those who
believe in his name, who wereborn not of blood, nor of the
will of the flesh, nor of thewill of man, but of God.
And the word became flesh anddwelt among us, and we beheld
his glory, the glory as of theonly begotten of the Father,
(04:38):
full of grace and truth.
Light has come into the world,we're told, but men loved
darkness rather than light.
Why?
Because their deeds were evil.
Their deeds were evil.
So Jesus is the light of theworld.
We know that.
And Jesus says that when youlight a lamp, you don't hide it
(04:59):
under a basket or put it in acellar.
You set it up on a lampstandwhere all can see.
The gospel of Jesus Christ isnot a thing that is hidden nor
difficult to understand, but itis readily available to those
that will have it, to those thatwill receive it, and yet they
don't see.
Verse 34, the lamp of the bodyis the eye.
(05:23):
Therefore, when your eye isgood, good, your whole body also
is full of light, but when youreye is bad, your body also is
full of darkness.
What is he saying here?
Kind of confusing words.
Right, jesus is the light ofthe world.
Light has come into the world,and john told us that the
(05:43):
darkness can't comprehend it.
Another way to say that is itcan't overcome it.
So that light, which is JesusChrist in this world, cannot be
extinguished, can it?
And it says that he's giventhat light to every man.
Right, he's given that to us.
The only people who cannot seelight are those who are blind.
(06:05):
You see, you can take thebrightest searchlight in the
world and shine it in the faceof a blind man, and he will not
see it.
That's why he said if your eyeis good, well, what does a good
eye do?
A good eye sees.
What does a bad eye do?
(06:33):
Nothing, nothing.
The lamp of the body.
That word lamp I like that wordin the Greek, if I can find it
in my notes here.
It's interesting.
It says that that word for lampis looknos, looknos, look.
A lamp is something that helpsyou look, isn't it?
You can't look without a light,a lamp or a candle that is
placed on a stand or candlestick.
(06:53):
The lamp is likened to an eye,which shows the body which way
to move and turn.
For instance, the prophecies ofthe Old Testament, in as much as
they afforded at least someknowledge relative to the
glorious return of Christ, werea lamp to us, weren't they?
Look nos, look at Jesus, lookat what he's done for us and let
the light of what he's done forus shine in our hearts.
(07:15):
It's when we refuse to look atwhat Jesus has done for us that
we become so hardened that wethink only of what he requires
of us.
The lamp of the body is the eye.
Therefore, when your eye isgood, your whole body also is
full of light.
What that's saying is if wehave eyes to see the truth of
the gospel, then we will befilled with the light of God,
(07:41):
but if our eye is bad, then ourwhole body will be full of
darkness.
If we are not able or willingto look upon the light of what
Jesus has done, then all that isin us is darkness.
Verse 35 of Luke 11,.
What does that mean?
That the light that's in you isnot darkness?
(08:03):
What does that mean that thelight that's in you is not
darkness.
If the brightest thing in yourlife is not Jesus Christ, then,
however bright that may seem toyou, it's not light, it's
darkness.
Take heed that the light whichis in you is not darkness.
(08:26):
You see, the Pharisees had whatthey would consider a light in
themselves.
They had the righteous outerworkings of the law, the things
that they would do, and yet thelove of God wasn't in them.
The light of God did not abidein their hearts, and so that
light which was in the Phariseeswasn't light at all.
Verse 36,.
If, then, your whole body isfull of light, having no part
(08:49):
dark, then the whole body willbe full of light, as when the
bright shining of a lamp givesyou light.
Jesus said in Matthew 6, 22,that the lamp of the body is the
eye.
If, therefore, your eye is good, your whole body will be full
of light, but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full
of darkness.
If, therefore, the light thatis in you in darkness, how great
(09:14):
is that darkness?
If the light that is in you isdarkness, how great is that
darkness?
Apart from Jesus Christ, thereis no goodness in man, however
good man may seem on the outside.
(09:36):
On the inside it's all darknessNow.
As he spoke, a certain Phariseeasked him to dine with him, so
he went in and sat down to eat.
When the Pharisee saw it, hemarveled that he had not first
washed before dinner.
Now, some of you might marvelif someone didn't wash before
(09:57):
dinner, but when you marvel it'snot that they didn't wash the
way the Jews were thinkingdidn't wash.
I mean, obviously we'rethinking for health reasons,
it's good to wash your handsbefore you eat, right?
That's not what they weretalking about.
They were talking about aceremonial cleansing.
As they would come in to eat,they would dip their hands in
the water and lift their handsso that the water would
literally drip off their elbowthere, and that was to make them
(10:20):
ceremonially clean.
You see, they had taken theLevitical laws and they had
expanded them to include a lotmore than they were meant to
include.
And Jesus never acknowledgedthese requirements because they
were not the requirements of God.
They were the requirements ofmen, and God is not interested
in acknowledging therequirements or the religiosity
(10:42):
of man.
He's interested in thecondition of people's hearts,
and he's going to make that veryclear in just a moment as we
read on.
Then the Lord said to him Nowyou, pharisees, make the outside
of the cup and dish clean, butyour inward part is full of
greed and wickedness, foolishones.
(11:03):
Did not he who made the outsidemake the inside also, but
rather give alms of such thingas you have?
Then, indeed, all things areclean to you.
But woe to you, pharisees, foryou tithe, mint and rue and all
manner of herbs and pass by thejustice and the love of God.
(11:25):
These you ought to have donewithout leaving the others
undone.
These Pharisees were someticulous in their observation
of the outward things of the lawthat they would come to their
little bushes right of herbs intheir gardens and they would
count the number of leaves onthat bush that were used for
herbs in order to make sure thatone of every 10 was taken to
(11:47):
the temple.
They were meticulous in theirtithing and in the outward
fulfillment of the law.
And Jesus says listen, you doall of this, but you completely
forego the greater principles ofjustice and of love.
He said, these you should havedone without leaving the others
undone.
He's saying look, it's goodthat you pay tithes.
(12:09):
That's great, that's wonderful,but you can be the greatest
tither in the world, but if yourheart isn't right with God,
then it doesn't mean anything.
If there isn't love in yourheart for your fellow man, then
it's worthless.
I'm sure you've heard the storyof the young pastor who was
pastoring a church and he hadtwo brothers in that church who
(12:30):
were extremely wealthy but alsoextremely reprobate.
They were ungodly, cruel men,and one day one of those men
died.
It was about this time that thepastor was going through a
building program because thechurch had been blessed and they
really needed a new facility.
And one of these two brothersthe one that remained alive came
(12:51):
to him and he says listen, Iknow you need to raise a million
dollars for your new buildingfund and I have a check for that
million dollars right here, andI will be more than happy to
give this to the church on onecondition, the pastor said.
What condition was that?
He says well, you're about todo my brother's funeral in the
(13:13):
next day or two and I want youto get up in front of everybody
and tell them what a good andgodly man he was.
Pastor sat back and thoughtabout it for a moment and he
says well, okay, I'll do it.
And so he took the check, wentout and deposited it in the
church's bank account, made sureall the funds were there, and a
day or two later, at thefuneral, he gets up in front of
everybody and he says I need tolet y'all know that this man who
lies dead here before you was areprobate.
(13:35):
He was a sinner and he was agodless man who did not know the
Lord.
But compared to his brother hewas a godly man, right?
It doesn't matter what you give,it doesn't matter what you do.
It doesn't matter whetheryou're here in church every
(13:56):
Sunday and you fulfill all ofthe outward requirements of what
you think it is to be a godlyperson.
Maybe you read the Bible andpray every day, maybe you spend
time in fellowship with otherbelievers, maybe you even go out
and tell people about JesusChrist.
But you know what, if you don'tregard love and justice in your
(14:19):
heart, if you don't really knowthe Lord that you're talking
about, then it's all for nothing.
You can make the outside of thecup look as beautiful as you
want it to, but it's not theoutside of the cup that God is
concerned with.
It's what's on the inside thatmatters.
(14:41):
You know there's a lot of talkin some denominations, about how
people should dress and aboutwhat they should wear and
shouldn't wear.
And you know, I had a man askme recently so what would you do
if someone wore a miniskirtinto your church?
How do you answer a questionlike that?
I mean, it's just a weirdquestion, you know.
Why does it matter to him whatI would do if someone you know?
(15:04):
I told him, I said, you know,brother, look.
I said if someone came into thechurch wearing a miniskirt or
whatever the case might be, I'dbe glad she was there to hear
the word of the Lord.
You know, it's not about tellingpeople what to put on or how to
wear their clothes or how toyou know this or that or
whatever.
(15:24):
I mean it's not about having alist of rules and regulations
for you to follow.
My job is to introduce you toJesus Christ and to encourage
you to live by his word, notmine by his spirit, and as you
come to know him and love himand serve him, he is going to
(15:47):
tell you how to live your life.
You know, the Pharisees hadplenty of rules and they did
their best, I think in many ways, to keep those rules, but they
didn't know the love of God, andbecause they didn't know the
love of God, they were rejectingthe one who was the very
fulfillment of the law theyrevered.
(16:08):
But I do love what he says herein verse 42, when he's
referring to the things theywere doing versus the things
that they were not.
He says these you ought to havedone.
It means we are to keep thoseoutward things as well.
We are to tithe and to serveand to fellowship and to witness
(16:28):
.
We are to do all those thingsbut not to leave the others
undone.
Woe to you, verse 43, pharisees,for you love the best seats in
the synagogues and greetings inthe marketplaces.
Woe to you, scribes andPharisees, hypocrites, for you
are like graves which are notseen, and the men who walk over
(16:50):
them are not aware of them.
What does he mean by that?
Graves that are not seen.
The Jewish people made a pointto mark graves why?
Because to come in contact witha dead body was to be defiled.
Even to walk over the top of agrave was to become unclean, and
so what Jesus was saying wasyou look real good on the
outside, but not only are younot cleansed yourself, but
(17:14):
you're defiling those that youcome into contact with, and they
don't even know it.
Then one of the lawyersanswered and said to him teacher
, by saying these things, youreproach us also.
He's like, hey, hey, I'moffended by that statement, and
Jesus turned to him and said woeto you also, lawyers.
(17:35):
Now, this isn't talk.
A lot of us might think of thatand say, yeah, right on, darn
that ACLU.
You know that's not what he'stalking about here.
Okay, when he's saying woe toyou lawyers, he's talking about
those people who were experts inthe Mosaic law, you religious
teachers.
You might also have said Woe toyou also, lawyers.
That would be almost like himsaying woe to you pastors, huh?
Well, I'll tell you what.
It's a scary thing to be ateacher of God's word, because
(17:56):
we're responsible for how weteach this.
We're going to have to give anaccount to God for the things
that we say regarding his word,and it's my prayer that I always
represent him accurately.
He said woe to you, lawyers,for you load men with burdens
hard to bear and you yourselvesdo not touch the burdens with
one of your fingers.
Woe to you, for you build thetombs of the prophets, and your
(18:20):
fathers killed them.
In fact, you bear witness thatyou approve of the deeds of your
fathers, for they indeed killedthem and you build their tombs.
Therefore, the wisdom of Godalso said I will send them
prophets and apostles, and someof them they will kill and
persecute that the blood of allthe prophets which were shed
from the foundation of the world, may be required of this
(18:44):
generation, from the blood ofAbel he was the first martyr
right To the blood of Zechariah.
He was the last martyr, from Ato Z, from the beginning of the
Old Testament to the end of it,from the blood of Abel to the
blood of Zechariah, who perishedbetween the altar and the
temple.
Yes, I say to you, it shall berequired of this generation.
(19:06):
You see, they love to say, oh,had we been alive in the time of
our fathers, we never wouldhave done something like that.
And yet they killed the veryson of God.
Woe to you, lawyers, for youhave taken away the key of
knowledge.
You do not enter in yourselves,and those who were entering in
(19:27):
you hindered.
You know, there was a time inthe middle ages when the
scriptures would literally bechained to the pulpit, because
the belief was that unless youwere a priest, you had no right
to read the scriptures, norcould you understand or
interpret them for yourself.
Thank god, thank god for menlike Tyndale, for men like
(19:51):
Luther, for men who were willingto risk their lives that the
common people would be able toread the scriptures for
themselves.
And as he said these things tothem, the scribes and the phar
Pharisees began to assail himvehemently and to cross-examine
him about many things, lying inwait for him and seeking to
catch him in something that hemight say, that they might
(20:13):
accuse him.
The queen of Sheba had heardthe report of Solomon and she
didn't believe it, and so shewent to test him.
The same way, these Phariseesand scribes and lawyers were
testing Jesus.
And yet when Solomon rightlyanswered her questions, she
acknowledged that she had beenwrong about him and she believed
.
Jesus answered every questionposed to him in a way in which
(20:38):
they were not able to trap him.
And yet, instead of realizingwho he was, they rejected him.
Now, let's be careful.
Let's not say well, had I beenthere, I wouldn't have done that
, I would you know, like theydid regarding the prophets.
But let us remember, guys, thatit's by grace that we've been
(21:01):
saved and that through faith,not of ourselves, but it's the
gift of God, not by works thatno man may boast.
In Matthew 5, 14, 16, jesussaid you are the light of the
world.
(21:21):
You see, he's already told usthat he is the light of the
world.
You see, he's already told usthat he is the light of the
world, hasn't he?
But here he tells us that youare the light of the world.
Now, how is it you, in whomthere was nothing but darkness,
now have become the light of theworld?
It's because he is in you.
You are the light of the world.
A city that is set on a hillcannot be hidden, nor do they
(21:44):
light a lamp and put it under abasket, but on a lampstand, and
it gives light to all who are inthe house.
Let your light so shine beforemen that they may see your good
works and glorify your Father,who is in heaven.
There are people who will cometo you like the Queen of Sheba.
(22:08):
They will have questions.
They'll have heard of Jesus andthey'll have heard things about
Jesus, but they won't reallybelieve the things that they've
heard.
And they're going to havequestions that they're going to
ask.
And the intention of thosequestions is not to learn but to
test you.
But, as God gives you grace, toanswer those questions in love,
(22:32):
if they have eyes to see,they'll see the light that is
shining in you and they'llreceive that light.
Now there are others to whomyou will be sent, just as God
sent Jonah.
And you will have a message forthose people that if they don't
(22:53):
repent, that if they don't turnto Jesus Christ, then at some
point in time destruction iscoming.
And when you are there speakingto them, you need to understand
that one greater than Jonah isspeaking to them, because the
one that is speaking to them isthe Holy Spirit that lives in
(23:13):
you, and if they have eyes tosee, they will repent.
Jesus said I am the light ofthe world, but then he's also
said, as we read a moment ago,that I am the light of the world
.
But then he's also said, as weread a moment ago, that you are
the light of the world and thatlight is not to be hidden.
A lot of people talk about theirfaith as being something
private and personal, and it issomething private and personal.
(23:38):
That's where it begins.
That's not where it's to stop.
God doesn't put his light inyou so that you can cover that
light up and not share it withanybody, but it's to be put on a
lampstand that it can givelight to all those that are in
the house.
That's why he said let yourgood work so shine before men,
(23:59):
let your light so shine beforemen that they see your good
works and glorify you.
No, and glorify your Fatherwho's in heaven.
Speaker 1 (24:12):
Unfortunately, that's all the time we have for today.
You've been listening to Heedthe Word, the teaching ministry
of Pastor Ken Davis, calvaryChapel in Burleson, texas.
We are currently making our waythrough the Gospel of Luke here
on Heed the Word.
The Gospel of Luke is packedfull of insights about Jesus,
our Savior, so we encourage youto join us again, same time,
(24:33):
same place, for the next studythrough Luke with Pastor Ken.
As we mentioned at thebeginning of today's broadcast,
this teaching, as well as manyothers, are available from the
Heed the Word media player.
You can listen to today'steaching, download today's
teaching, subscribe to the Heedthe Word podcast or even get a
copy on your mobile phone.
(24:54):
Everything's right there.
There's even a Bible availablefor you to follow along in the
scriptures as Pastor Ken teaches.
So log on to heedthewordorg andcontinue studying with us today
.
If today's teaching has blessedyou, perhaps you'd like to
visit us for worship.
Calvary Chapel, southwest Metro, meets each Sunday morning at
(25:15):
10.30 am and Wednesday eveningat 7 pm.
We'd love to have you stop byand join us.
For more information anddriving directions, log on to
wwwheatthewordorg.
This has been another editionof Heed the Word, the
verse-by-verse,chapter-by-chapter and
book-by-book teaching ministryof Ken Davis, senior pastor of
(25:37):
Calvary Chapel, southwest Metro.
Place a marker in your Biblesand join us next time for our
continuing study through theGospel of Luke, right here on
Heed the Word.
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