Friday: Don't Be Empty Houses, Look to Jesus

James Welcome to Daily Recap of Sunday's Sermon. It's Friday, and we're finishing Something Greater Is Here, Aaron Anderson's sermon from Matthew 12. Today is part five, Look to Him.

Simon Yesterday we heard Jesus' warning about the house. Verse 44 says the unclean spirit returns and "finds the house empty, swept, and put in order." Then verse 45 says, "the last state of that person is worse than the first."

James And Aaron didn't leave that warning with the Pharisees. He said the same danger exists for us today. It's possible to clean up our lives without ever truly being saved. He also said it's something he's been wrestling with in his own heart.

Simon What did he find there?

James That he's attracted to the how-tos. Husbands are called to love their wives as Christ loved the church, and he agrees with that. But his heart says, well then, tell me how to do that. Step one, take her on a date. Step two, write her some notes. Encourage her, do the dishes, serve her.

Simon Those are good things, though.

James He said so too. But none of them save him, and none of them create a heart that loves Jesus and then overflows in a deep and passionate love for his wife. He finds the same pull with parenting and pastoring. He even mentioned Dave Ramsey's six steps to getting out of debt. It makes sense, and it works if you do it.

Simon And then he said this: "But those things don't actually save. What those things do is they clean up the house."

James He was careful here. He wasn't telling anyone to stop dating their wife or writing her notes. His words were, "I'm just saying don't build your life on those things." Don't go there first.

Simon Then he took it to parenting. He said those how-tos create good citizens. These are kids who know the rules and can live within the boundaries of society. They go off to college, they've benefited from living in Christian homes, and on the outside they look really good. They annoy no one.

James But they don't know Jesus. That's a sobering line for any parent.

Simon It is. And he turned it on himself, too.

James He did. He said he doesn't want us to be empty houses. He doesn't want to know a lot about Jesus, live it out well enough that everybody thinks it's good, and end up selling himself short of what God has actually given. But he said his confidence isn't in us. It's in Jesus, the one who actually saves, who creates soft hearts, changes us, and comes and lives in us.

Simon I loved his honesty about reading the Bible. He comes to Ephesians 5, the marriage chapter, and Ephesians 6 on parenting, and he's still looking for tips. He said what he wants is a manual: "Lord can you just give me a manual for Monday morning November the 2nd so I can just do exactly what you want me to do."

James We gravitate that way, he said, but he doesn't think it's meant to be that way. It's a relationship built on Jesus Christ. So how does a man love his wife as Christ loved the church? His first question is, do you know Jesus? Do you know who he is and what he's done for you?

Simon So what does he tell us to do?

James Look to Jesus. Trust him. Study him. He's being revealed on every page of Scripture. So read it, fan into flame a passion and love for Jesus, and let him live in your heart. Ask him. That's what he came to do.

Simon After all those scary warnings, that must come as a relief.

James He said exactly that. Don't forget that Jesus has come to give rest. He invites the weary and heavy burdened to come to him. His whole purpose was to die and take the punishment we deserve, so we'd be set free from the power of sin and brought into relationship with God. That way, we wouldn't be empty houses.

Simon Then he asked some hard questions. If Jesus is the greatest, why do we ignore him? If he's the King of kings with all authority, why does he have such a small place in my life? Why is it so hard to open the Bible sometimes?

James And he answered them. Sin remains, we have an enemy, and it's very easy to be distracted in this world. But his hope is that Jesus is greater than all that. If you don't believe it, he said, test it, because "he is way more committed to you than you are to him and that gives us hope, doesn't it?"

Simon He's the one who knocks down that door, comes to live in our house, and protects, guides, and leads us. And then Aaron ended with a question.

James "Do you love him?" Do you see his supreme worth as your Lord and Savior, whose body was broken and whose blood was poured out as payment for your life? And then, "Do you want to follow him? By the grace of God may we all."

Simon In his closing prayer, he admitted we can't manufacture this. He asked the Lord to save those who aren't saved, including those who think they are but actually aren't. He prayed that when we open God's Word, the Lord would reveal himself clearly and ignite a passion to deny ourselves, take up our cross, and gladly follow him anywhere.

James So look back over the week. On Monday, we saw that the Pharisees' problem wasn't a lack of evidence but unbelief. On Tuesday, Jesus promised the sign of his resurrection. On Wednesday, he declared he's greater than Jonah and Solomon. On Thursday came the warning about rejecting him, and today, the call to look to him.

Simon You can hear the full sermon at S G C Atlanta dot org slash sermons. And be in church this Sunday. We'd love to worship with you and hear God's Word together.

James See you next Monday.