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So a few things that I want to 
observe this morning with reference to Matthew 7, 6. Again, just 
to show us how the scripture is consistent, there is no contradiction, 
we don't have a bunch of jumbled teaching where we've got to try 
and piece it all together. It's very smooth, it's very clear, 
very consistent. Let's look first at the contrast 
between the parties involved, secondly, the explanation of 
the text, and then thirdly, the application of this text in the 
rest of the New Testament. But note first concerning the 
contrast between the parties. In verses 1 to 5, the emphasis 
is on situations dealing with brothers. It's very conspicuous. Notice in verse 3, and why do 
you look at the speck in your brother's eye? Verse 4, or how 
can you say to your brother? This is the emphasis in verses 
1 to 5. It's not what we have in verse 
6, rather it is a prohibition against a judgmental attitude 
over a standard or against a standard which is not biblical. Remember 
Jesus says in John 7, 29, we're to judge with righteous judgment. What Christ is condemning here 
is that mindset where we've got the plank hanging out of our 
eye and we're going to busy ourselves to try and help our brother with 
the speck in his eye. Jesus says you need to deal with 
your own situation first, and you need to put into practice 
the scriptures when it comes to dealing with brethren. We've 
got brothers dealt with in verses 1 to 5, but notice in verse 6, 
the emphasis is on situations dealing with dogs or pigs outside 
the church. The believer in chapter 7 verses 
1 to 6 is cautioned against treating brothers as dogs or pigs. Conversely, he's cautioned against 
treating dogs or pigs as brothers. You see, there is a great distinction 
between the two groups. You are not to treat a brother 
for whom Jesus died as a dog or a pig. You're not to treat 
a dog or a pig as a brother for whom Jesus died. Does everybody 
see that? The distinction is obvious. The 
distinction or contrast is clear. And we see here the wisdom of 
our Lord Jesus Christ. A prohibition against a censorious 
spirit vis-a-vis verses 1 to 5 does not mean the suspension 
of all discernment. That's why verse 6 is here. We are not to interpret Jesus' 
instructions in verses 1 to 5 as being or necessitating us being 
doormats and never speaking out against ill, whether it be in 
our brethren, or ill, whether it be among dogs or pigs. In 
Matthew 10, 16, He will tell His disciples, Behold, I send 
you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise 
as serpents and harmless as doves. Believers tend to have an imbalance 
or a tendency to imbalance. So we're prohibited in verses 
1 to 5 from being a judgmental wretch toward our brothers and 
sisters. And then we think or we conclude that Jesus wants 
us to suspend all discernment or judgment when it comes to 
dogs or pigs outside of the church. He doesn't want anything like 
that. He wants us to maintain that balance. He wants us to 
treat brethren as brethren, and he wants us to treat dogs or 
pigs as dogs or pigs. C. H. Spurgeon says, with reference 
to this passage, saints are not to be simpletons. Boy, this needs 
to be preached, doesn't it? Saints are not to be simpletons, 
but, or they are not to be judges, but also they are not to be fools. That's verses one to six. We're not to be judges in a vindictive 
and petty way toward our brethren in verses one to five, but we're 
not supposed to be fools with reference to dogs and pigs who 
are hardcore enemies of the gospel of our Lord, verse six. You see, 
it is consistent, there is a jive in this particular passage. Now 
with reference to the text itself, in terms of explanation, when 
we read that Jesus says, do not give what is holy to the dogs, 
nor cast your pearls before swine, I think Jesus assumes what the 
Bible elsewhere tells us. The people of God are going to 
witness for God, aren't they? The people of God are going to 
testify for God, aren't they? In Matthew 5, the Lord Jesus 
says, let our light so shine before men that they may see 
our good works and give glory, not to us, not awards to us, 
not kudos to us, but that they may give glory to God. The assumption 
is that we will be conducting ourselves in a manner consistent 
with God's Word in such a way that even unbelievers will see 
that and will give glory to God. In Philippians 2, the Apostle 
Paul tells the people of God they are to shine as lights in 
a crooked and perverse generation. Now, I realize not everybody 
is going to go door to door, not everybody is going to go 
armed with tracts. Not everybody's going to go out 
to the public square and stand up on the stairs and start to 
preach the way that Whitefield did or the way that other open 
air preachers in the history of the church did. But the assumption 
of scripture is that the people of God will shine as lights in 
a crooked and perverse generation. Paul, excuse me, Paul then goes 
on to say, holding forth the word of truth. In other words, 
the people of God will witness. They will testify. They will 
do those things that are pleasing to God. He saved us. He calls 
us out of darkness into his marvelous light so that we may proclaim 
his praises or proclaim his excellencies. We do that in singing in the 
local church. We do that in discourse with 
one another. But we do it as well with unbelievers. We proclaim 
the excellencies of the God who has saved us by His sovereign 
grace and His mercy. So Jesus assumes that the people 
of God are going to witness, they're going to testify, and 
He gives this prohibition. Do not give what is holy to the 
dogs, nor cast your pearls before swine. The things that are holy 
and the pearls should be understood as gospel truth. those things 
concerning the kingdom of heaven, those things concerning Christ, 
salvation, the glory of God, the good of man. Jesus says we 
are not to give what is holy, gospel truth, to the dogs nor 
cast your pearls before swine. The intention of our Lord is 
not to give holy things to unholy people who will only abuse them. 
There was an early Christian manual in the church, probably 
the late 1st century and maybe just the early 2nd century. I 
mean, conservative scholars even date it around AD 110 or 120. 
And it was called the Didache. And basically, Didache means 
teaching. So it was an instruction manual. 
for the early church on how to live the Christian life, how 
to engage in church practice. Notice what the Didache says 
with reference to the Lord's Supper. It said that, let no 
one eat or drink of your Eucharist except those who have been baptized 
into the name of the Lord. For the Lord has also spoken 
concerning this, do not give what is holy to dogs. So you 
see, they understood this prohibition. The Holy Supper is not to be 
given to dogs or to pigs or to dogs. As well, we need to understand 
that the labels dogs and pigs are not true of every unbeliever. You see, this can be an abuse 
of this text. Jesus says, we're not supposed 
to cast holy things before unholy people. Everyone's unholy. Therefore, 
I'm going to lay on my couch and wait till Jesus returns. 
No, we're supposed to witness. Not every single unbeliever is 
categorized as a dog or a pig. What we have here are notorious 
sinners, those who are especially opposed to the gospel of Jesus 
Christ. Dogs and pigs are people that 
act like animals when it comes to the truth of God. You maybe 
have seen me walking with my dog, Tika. You've been over. 
That dog is about that big. Jesus isn't talking about her. 
and the old show that had Babe the pig that thought it was a 
dog. That's not the pig in view. We're not dealing with Tika and 
Babe in this particular instance. Osborne says, and I hope I don't 
even need to take the time to explain. We're not to interpret 
this literally. in terms of we don't actually take gospel truth 
and throw it before actual pigs or actual dogs. You know that 
Jesus is speaking about human beings. He's using a metaphor. He's employing hyperbole. He 
is telling us something concerning the opponents of the gospel. 
Osborne said, it must be realized that the dogs were not pets, 
but wild scavengers who often traveled in packs like wolves. 
And the pigs were not really barnyard animals, but more like 
wild boars. So the metaphor adds persecution 
to rejection. So you see, among unbelievers, 
not every single one of them would be categorized as a dog 
or a pig. So we need wisdom when it comes 
to the application of this text because somebody raises their 
eyebrow at you when you present the gospel. Don't conclude you're 
being persecuted for Jesus and that person is a dog or a pig 
and so you will no longer have any truck with them. Don't do 
that. Jesus is speaking about a category of unbelievers that 
are especially notorious in their opposition to the gospel, not 
even especially notorious in the sins that they commit. I 
mean, Jesus was a friend for sinners, tax collectors even. 
Jesus was a kind to people that, you know, the woman at the well, 
that adulterous woman in John chapter 4. Jesus saw notorious 
sinners as still within the context of faithful gospel preaching 
or testimony or witness to them. John Calvin explains it this 
way, it ought to be understood that dogs and swine are names 
given, not to every kind of debauched men or to those who are destitute 
of the fear of God and of true godliness, but to those who by 
clear evidences have manifested a hardened contempt of God so 
that their disease appears to be incurable. Is everybody getting 
this? You cannot conclude that everybody 
you work with is a dog or a pig, and therefore you're not going 
to give them the gospel or testify or be a witness to that. No, 
these are the kinds of persons, as Calvin says, that show a hardened 
contempt of God so that their disease appears to be incurable. These are the persons that make 
it their business to oppose Christianity. These are the persons that make 
it their business to oppose the people of God. These are the 
people that you are not to take holy things and cast them before. Note the outcome that Jesus says, 
if you do this, do not give what is holy to the dogs, nor cast 
your pearls before swine. Last, they trample them under 
their feet, a reference to the pigs, and turn and tear you in 
pieces." Remember the quote that I just gave with reference to 
Osborne. The metaphor adds persecution to rejection. That's a vital 
component there. It's not just rejection. It's 
not the guy at the work or at your work that raises his eyebrow 
or you know, calls you, or says you're weird. That's not the 
guy that's involved. There's a persecuting element, 
there's a hardened contempt for God, and that translates to a 
hardened contempt for the people of God. Now let's look at, well, 
just a couple other things, a couple other quotes. Bruner says, some 
people have harmless specks in their eyes. That's verses 1 to 
5. He says, others have harmful 
clubs in their hands. That's verse 6. You see, there 
is a popular idea out there that we ought to go and die for Jesus 
every chance we can get. Oh, I believe in dying for Jesus, 
brethren, but not in some of the nonsensical ways that people 
suggest today. Jesus himself in Matthew 10 says, 
when they persecute you in one city, flee to another city. Why 
doesn't he say, just take the persecution and die for me? Because 
it doesn't further the kingdom of God. It doesn't advance the 
kingdom of God when everybody who witnesses and testifies ends 
up dead. What does Paul the Apostle demonstrate? Does he always just sit under 
persecution and take his licks? No, he escapes from the city 
through a basket. He runs from one place to another 
in order to propagate the Christian message. Again, if somebody puts 
a gun to your head and say, do you deny Jesus? No, I don't deny 
Jesus. Bang, that's the way it goes. 
But if you can, with Christian prudence and wisdom, not put 
yourself in harm's way, the Lord's okay with that. He is not calling 
you to do foolish things in order to die for His name. And this 
text should stand as a beacon against such a nonsensical interpretation 
of God's mission. Do not give what is holy to the 
dogs, nor cast your pearls before swine. lest they trample them 
under their feet and turn and tear you in pieces." Jesus doesn't 
say it's always right that you get torn into pieces. No, don't 
put yourself in that predicament if you are able to. Be harmless 
as doves, but be cunning as serpents. Use your noggin. Just like Spurgeon 
said, saints are not to be simpletons. The Bible does not enjoin upon 
us a folly when it comes to propagating the Christian message. Proverbs 
9.8 says, Do not correct a scoffer, lest he hate you. Rebuke a wise 
man, and he will love you. The grim reality from verse 6 
ought to be obvious and clear. Some persons in their opposition 
to God and His truth have an animalistic spirit. They are 
pigs, and they are dogs when it comes to holy things, and 
you do err when you give those things to these persons, because 
they'll trample gospel truth under feet, and then they will 
tear you into pieces. So everybody understand that? 
Now, as far as applying it, I confess it's difficult. I confess it's 
hard. I confess that we need to seek 
wisdom from the God who gives liberally and without reproach 
to those who ask Him. But brethren, the very fact that 
Jesus highlights this aspect in his own teaching ought to 
give us caution that there are opponents out there that God 
has called us not to try and witness to. Now in terms of application 
in the New Testament, in the ministry of Jesus. I've already 
alluded to chapter 10 in verse 14. And whoever will not receive 
you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or 
city, shake off the dust from your feet. Matthew 15, 1 to 14, 
especially in verse 14, he says, let them alone. They are blind leaders of the 
blind, and if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into 
a ditch. Can you imagine some teacher 
today saying, leave them alone. Don't continue to try to win 
them to Jesus. Jesus himself says, let them 
alone. Jesus himself says, they are 
blind, leaders of the blind. Jesus himself says, and if the 
blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch. It's intriguing 
as well in the trial of Jesus. He answers Pilate, but he doesn't 
answer Herod. He answers Pilate, but he never 
answers Herod. Why is that? Shouldn't he take 
every opportunity to testify concerning who he is and what 
he's done? He didn't answer Herod. We see the book of Acts in the 
ministry of the apostle Paul. We see this fleshed out in his 
life, particularly with reference to Jewish unbelief. Notice in 
the first missionary journey in Acts 13, 44 to 52. in Pisidian Antioch, and notice 
specifically what happens. We won't read the whole narrative 
or account, but notice in verse 51 when they depart, but they 
shook off the dust from their feet against them and came to 
Iconium. You see, Paul does what Jesus 
tells the disciples to do back in Matthew chapter 10. This shaking 
off the dust from their feet was a signification or symbolism 
concerning judgment upon that particular people group. Notice 
in 14, 1 to 6, it happened in Iconium that they went together 
to the synagogue of the Jews and so spoke that a great multitude, 
both of the Jews and of the Greeks, believed. Now, lest you leave 
today saying, Butler doesn't want us to witness, he doesn't 
want us to testify, Remember, I've already reminded you that 
it's assumed in Scripture, it's commanded in Scripture, you're 
supposed to do it. But verse 6 in Matthew 7 does 
mean something and it behooves us to understand what it means. 
And so this is fleshing out or illustrating the particular principle. 
Now whether you should continue your witness to the guy at the 
water cooler that raises his eyebrow to you or not, you need 
to go to the Lord God and you need to pray about that. You 
need to fetch wisdom from on high because we are simpletons 
and we need God's wisdom in order to know who may be a dog or a 
pig and who may just be a garden variety sinner that we need to 
be patient with, we need to be long-suffering with, and we need 
to continue to set forth the truth of the gospel to them. 
But just highlighting that every missionary and every gospel preacher 
in the New Testament did not always stand around waiting to 
be persecuted. There is a principle that God 
is not against your human existence. God doesn't want you to go out 
and die necessarily. Again, those are heroic men. I mean, Jim Elliot and his companions. We see other people in the history 
of the church. Heroes for Jesus that went out 
and did glorious things. But that doesn't mean we're all 
Jim Elliot. Just like it doesn't mean that any gospel preacher 
today is going to be a C.H. Spurgeon. God has different people 
doing the same thing, but in different ways. There are those 
who do extraordinary things, like die for Jesus on the mission 
field, and then there's the rest of us that more than likely will 
toil on for 60 or 70 years in our normal, humdrum, ordinary 
lives. And God is as pleased with that 
as he is with those missionaries who go out and die on the field. 
I don't know where we've ever adopted this mindset that God 
is somehow opposed to the ordinary. How can you read Paul and come 
to that conclusion? What does Paul tell the Thessalonians? 
I don't want you to continue working with your own hands. 
I want you all to go to Bible college, I want you all to go 
to seminary, and I want you all to go die for Jesus on the mission 
field. No, he tells them. I want you 
to work hard with your hands and what? Mind your own business. Praise God for the ordinary. Why do the people of God have 
such a problem with the ordinary? The ordinary is blessed. The 
ordinary is ordinary. We ought not to oppose that which 
God has ordained for His glory and for His honor. In fact, in 
some senses, a brother who has for 50 or for 60 or 70 years 
done the ordinary, that is an amazing thing in and of itself. 
when so many don't do that, when so many defect, and so many apostatize, 
or so many start off well and then they falter. The brother 
who does the ordinary for 60 plus years is to be commended 
before God and men. So back to our text. It happened 
in Iconium that they went together to the synagogue of the Jews 
and so spoke that a great multitude, both of the Jews and of the Greeks, 
believed. I love that. They so spoke. Yeah, 
God is sovereign. We see it in 1348. We see it 
in 16. But in the midst of 1348, the 
sovereignty of God, and 16, the sovereignty of God, there is 
this statement on the instrumentality of good preaching. Faithful preaching. Notice, they so spoke. The emphasis is upon the preaching. The emphasis here is upon the 
man. Now again, that doesn't militate against 1348. It certainly 
doesn't militate against chapter 16 where it says that God opened 
the heart of Lydia to believe the things that Paul had spoken. 
But there is an emphasis as well on good preaching in Acts 14.1. We ought not to be satisfied 
or content with bad preaching. They so spoke that a great multitude, 
both of the Jews and of the Greeks, believed. But the unbelieving 
Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against 
the brethren. Therefore they stayed there a 
long time, speaking boldly in the Lord, who was bearing witness 
to the word of His grace, granting signs and wonders to be done 
by their hands." So they were stirring up opposition against 
the apostles. They did, however, stay there 
a long time. Notice in verse 4, but the multitude 
of the city was divided, part sided with the Jews and part 
with the apostles. And when a violent attempt was 
made by both the Gentiles and Jews with their rulers to abuse 
and stone them, they became aware of it and fled. to Lystra and 
Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and to the surrounding region, and 
they were preaching the gospel there." Nobody faults Paul for 
departing, do they? Would anybody say Paul was wrong? 
You should have stayed there and taken your licks? Of course 
not. There comes a point when you 
stop throwing pearls before pigs, and you stop giving holy things 
to dogs, because the pigs are only going to trample on them, 
and the dogs are going to turn and tear you to pieces. We see 
it in Acts 14, 19 and 20. Then Jews from Antioch and Iconium 
came there, Derbe. And having persuaded the multitudes, 
they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing 
him to be dead. However, when the disciples gathered 
around him, he rose up and went into the city, and the next day 
he departed with Barnabas to Derbe. Now you all know my thoughts 
on this passage if you've been here for any time. It's an incredible 
passage. Absolutely incredible passage. Paul had been stoned to the point 
where persons supposed him to be dead. And what happens? Verse 20. The disciples gather 
around him, he rises up and he went into the city. The next 
day he departed from Barnabas to Derbe. Remember, Derbe is 
60 miles from Lystra. Brethren, if I got stoned to 
the point where they thought I was dead, I'd take a few weeks 
to convalesce. I certainly wouldn't get up the 
next day and go 60 miles to continue in gospel ministry. There is 
no other Paul to be sure, but they depart from derby. They 
don't continue to get stoned. They don't continue to take their 
licks. They don't continue to engage in that sort of thing. 
We see Paul oppose throughout his missionary enterprise. The 
book of Philippians, you can turn there. Philippians chapter 
3. Philippians 3, verse 1. Finally, my brethren, rejoice 
in the Lord. For me to write the same things 
to you is not tedious, but for you it is safe. Beware of dogs, 
not canines, not Tikka, not the pit bull that lives on the corner, 
not the Doberman pincher that charged you one time when you 
were out for your nightly walk. Beware of dogs. The apostle is 
employing a particular metaphor here in a very pointed way. Jews looked at Gentiles as dogs. Jews thanked God that they were 
not born Gentiles. Jews did not like Gentiles, and 
so therefore they referred to them as dogs. Paul, in a turn 
of phrase, says, beware of dogs. The appellation is applied now 
to the Judaizers, those who would come into the churches and those 
who would say, it's good that you believe the gospel, now you 
need to be circumcised. Now you need to subscribe to 
the law of Moses vis-a-vis the ceremonies. In other words, they 
were telling Gentiles they had to become Jews in order to truly 
be saved. Paul says these Judaizers are 
dogs, and he says, beware of them. Sort of sounds like what 
Jesus is teaching in Matthew 7, 6. Do not give what is holy 
to these people. Do not continue to sit down with 
them. They are in opposition. They 
have a hardened contempt against God and against His people. Beware of dogs. Beware of evil 
workers. Beware of the mutilation. It's 
a turn of phrase as well. They are not circumcisors, they 
are mutilators. That's what Paul says concerning 
these people. And then notice in verse 3, 4, 
we are the circumcision. In the New American Standard 
it has, we are the true circumcision. who worship God in the Spirit, 
rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. They think, by their act of circumcision, 
they're genuinely making disciples for Jesus. No, they're the mutilators. They're the ones who just destroy 
people. We, the Church of Jesus Christ, 
Gentiles included, are the circumcision. So what's the point? Beware of 
dogs. Why do you beware of the Doberman 
who charged you at one point? Because you're afraid that he's 
going to go for your throat and kill you. That's Paul's point. These Judaizers are going to 
go for your throat and they're going to kill you. In fact, what 
the Doberman on your street will do to you is nothing compared 
to what these Judaizers will do, compared to what false teachers 
will do. They will destroy the soul. They 
will take you down into hell. So Paul says, beware of dogs. Notice in Philippians 3. Verse 
17, brethren, join in following my example and note those who 
so walk as you have us for a pattern. Paul wants the people of God 
to have examples in the church of God. Paul says specifically, 
join in following my example. Paul says, my example is to be 
joined with. Paul wasn't spotless, Paul wasn't 
perfect, but Paul was faithful and he was consistent and he's 
able to tell the people to join in following my example and note 
those who so walk. In other words, look at the church 
around you and see the people that follow the example of Paul 
and make them your friends, make them your confidants, make them 
the people that you hang out with. Specifically, he says at 
the end of verse 17, as you have us for a pattern. In other words, 
you can identify faithful people in the church by comparing them 
to Paul. Paul has become a paradigm or 
an example and those who are like Paul are those we ought 
to associate with. Now Paul gives a reason for this 
encouragement or exhortation. He basically says, follow good 
examples. Notice verse 18, four, there 
are a lot of bad examples out there. That's his reasoning. 
You need to find the good examples, you need to align with them, 
because the world is filled, and even the church at times 
is filled, with bad examples. For many walk, of whom I have 
told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are 
the enemies of the cross of Christ. There are pigs and dogs out there. There are garden variety sinners 
that hate God. They don't love God. They don't 
love their neighbor. They don't do the things they 
do conscientiously, however, in violation of what Scripture 
says. They're just in Adam. They're 
dead in their trespasses and sins, and as a result, they carry 
on in sin. But there is a class of people 
out there, and I think you've seen them. There's a class of 
persons out there that know what Scripture says, they know what 
the claims of Christianity are, and they hate it, and they hate 
God. They have a hardened contempt 
for God. It's always amazed me that atheists, 
what God do they resist? It's the Christian God. Now, 
there might be a band of atheists out there that are opposed to 
Allah. There might be a band of atheists out there that are 
opposed to some other conception of God. But who typically do 
the atheists despise? They despise Yahweh of Israel. 
They despise the Lord of Glory, Jesus Christ. There is a specific 
targeting against the Lord God Most High and against His people. There are the enemies of the 
cross of Christ. And then recently we've seen 
in 2 Timothy 4 that Alexander the coppersmith was a specific 
example of a dog or of a pig that one was to avoid. Notice 
in 2 Timothy 4, Verses 14 to 16, Alexander the coppersmith 
did me much harm. May the Lord repay him according 
to his works. You also must beware of him, 
for he has greatly resisted our words. At my first offense, no 
one stood with me, but all forsook me. May it not be charged against 
them. As we observed not too long ago 
in 2 Timothy 4, Paul says very conspicuously concerning Alexander 
the coppersmith, may the Lord repay him according to his works. 
In verse 16 he highlights his own friends who forsook him and 
he says, may it not be charged against them. Paul speaks specifically 
on the one hand that God repay, and in that repayment, it's an 
imprecation where God or Paul wants God to visit upon Alexander 
judgment, wrath, and curse for his violation. With reference 
to his friends, he says, may the Lord not charge it to them. 
On the one hand, Alexander the coppersmith greatly resisted 
the words of Paul. In other words, he resisted the 
word of God. He resisted the gospel of Jesus 
Christ. He did not like holy things. He opposed holy things. Paul's 
friends, however, forsook him. And Paul says, you know, that's 
not the happiest occasion in the world, but I understand it, 
so may the Lord not, or may it not be charged against them. 
Calvin says, concerning the distinction here, because some, his friends, 
had fallen through fear and weakness, he desires that the Lord would 
forgive them. For in this manner we ought to 
have compassion on the weakness of brethren. But because this 
man, Alexander, rose against God with malice and sacrilegious 
hardyhood and openly attacked known truth, such impiety had 
no claim to compassion. So you see, Alexander and Calvin's 
comments Let's highlight and illustrate for us Matthew 7, 
6. Never lose sight, or 1 to 6. On the one hand, we treat brethren 
as brethren, not as dogs or pigs. On the other hand, we treat dogs 
or pigs as dogs or pigs, not as brethren. Calvin again says, 
in this man Alexander was exhibited a shocking instance of apostasy. He had made profession of some 
zeal in advancing the reign of Christ against which he afterwards 
carried on open war. No class of enemies is more dangerous 
or more envenomed than this. And I think as well, all of this 
serves to highlight what we are studying and what we will continue 
to be studying in our sermon this morning in Matthew 23. Why does Jesus speak so harshly 
about these poor men? Because they're dogs and they're 
pigs and they treat holy things with contempt. They step on them. They trample them underfoot. 
They turn and tear the people of God into pieces. What greater 
display of Matthew 7, 6 than what we find in the life and 
the ministry of our Lord Jesus Himself. He preaches and He teaches 
the truth, and what do the Pharisees and scribes want to do? They 
plotted against Him, how they might destroy Him. Jesus continued 
with them for a season, for a period. And yet they continue to reject, 
they continue to trample on those holy things, and they then initiate 
the process to actually tear him to pieces in the passion 
narratives and the gospel records. So if you ever doubt the existence 
of dogs or pigs in this world concerning the gospel and the 
truth of it, just look at the life and the ministry of our 
beloved Lord Jesus Christ. Well, I think it's safe to conclude 
at this point a few closing observations. In the first place, our relationships 
towards others. In Matthew 7, with reference 
to brethren, we need to guard against judgmentalism. We need 
to guard against judgmentalism. not Righteous Judgment, John 
7, 29, not Matthew 18, 15 reality. Our brother sinned against us 
and we're going to go to him. Remember we saw that in Matthew 
7, 1 to 5, it is a censorious spirit. It is marked by pettiness. It is marked by littleness. It 
is marked by an imbalance in the manner in which we go to 
our brethren. We've got planks hanging out 
of our eyes and we're going to take the time. to try and correct 
the speck that is in our brother's eyes. We need to guard against 
that mentality that has so found its way into the church that 
it's just become second nature. Brethren, I know that you know 
of persons who exercise judgmental spirits. I would suggest that 
you know persons a lot closer to home, Each and every one of 
us have this tendency or this propensity to judge others in 
a way that's not righteous and in a way that's not godly. If 
someone is not sinning against you, if someone is not bothering 
you in terms of violating God's law, leave them alone! Why do you have to talk about 
them, or I have to talk about them? Why do we have to change 
the way that we deal with them? For some perceived inequity that's 
happened that we have not been man or woman enough to deal with 
biblically. This quote has been probably 
applied to everybody in the history of the church. I have it here 
as Augustine. I don't know if he said it, but 
somebody said it, and it's absolutely correct. In essentials, unity. That's what we ought to have 
when it comes to the Trinity and justification by faith. When 
it comes to those things most surely believed among us, unity. In non-essentials, liberty. That's tough, isn't it? Because 
if somebody's liberty differs from ours, then we have the tendency 
to judge them. That's not supposed to be the 
way it is, brethren. Read Romans 14. If you struggle 
with a judgmental attitude when it comes to Christian liberty, 
take your conscience and subject it to Paul's teaching in Romans 
14. Not everybody's gonna do everything 
the way you do it, and that's okay. What's Paul's point in 
Romans 14? Some people think they have liberty 
to eat meat, and other people think they don't have liberty 
to eat meat. The meat-eater's tendency is to run roughshod 
over the non-meat-eater. Come on over. We're having a 
barbecue. I'm going to put some Polish sausage and steaks on 
the grill. I want to waft it in front of 
you and try to get you to eat. Just don't do that! But conversely, 
if you as a brother who doesn't eat meat know that somebody's 
eating meat, don't sit outside of their house and brood. Don't 
blog about them or Facebook how wretched they are in abusing 
their liberty. That may not necessarily be the 
case. You see, the tendency in all 
of us is to exercise judgmentalism. Not biblical righteous judgment, 
but judgmentalism. Persons do what we don't, and 
we think they're messed up. People don't do what we do, and 
we think they're messed up. So in essentials, unity. In non-essentials, 
liberty. In all things, charity. Can we still love somebody who 
eats meat? I hope so. Can we still love 
somebody who doesn't eat meat? I hope so. Can we still love 
somebody that may differ with us on some finer point of doctrine? I hope so. This is what we're 
called to do in the Christian church. Secondly, the believer's 
relationship with reference to himself. Take the plank out of 
your own eye and judge with righteous judgment. It may take two hands 
and it may take a bit of time, but yank it out. because you 
lose all moral authority when you try to correct people who 
have specks in their eyes and you've got a log hanging out 
of your own eye. Do a little bit of logectomy 
first before you go and do speckectomy on other brethren in the context 
of the local church. Judge yourselves far more severely 
than you judge others. Be far more harsh with reference 
to your own being than with reference to other brethren. Again, in 
essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty, in all things love or 
charity. Thirdly, towards sinning brethren. 
towards sinning brethren. We are to aid them in removing 
the speck from their eyes. I hope that if I had a speck 
in my eye and I asked my wife for assistance, she would busy 
herself to try to help me. A speck in the eye is no fun. 
I'm certain it's a whole lot better than a log out of the 
eye, but a speck is still an irritant, right? And so we need 
to go and assist our brethren. We need to help them remove specks 
from their eyes, including and up to church discipline if necessary. If God has called you to a Matthew 
18, 15 situation where you have to man up or woman up and go 
to your brother and tell them that they have sinned against 
you, then do it. Again, why do we seek to avoid 
the necessity, the necessary things because a cowardice or 
because we don't know how they'll take it? Well, if they've got 
the spirit, they're going to take it. They may not like it, 
they may get upset, they may raise their eyebrows at you, 
they may say, well, what about you? But, you know, when the 
dust settles and the calm settles and the Spirit of God works, 
I say, thanks. Thanks for helping me get that speck out of my eye. 
Toward unbelievers, with reference to our relationships, faithfully 
proclaim the truth of the gospel. Now over the last hundred years, 
there's been an emphasis on every man ministry. Everybody should 
do ministry. I don't think so necessarily. 
Well, I think every member should do some ministry, but I don't 
know that every aspect of ministry involves the declaration of gospel 
truth. I'm quite certain there are Some 
believers out there that have such a small, not small in a 
bad way, but such a basic understanding of gospel truth, that for them 
to go door to door, or for them to go and bump off people in 
the city square, it might be dangerous. It might be the case 
that they, because they can't articulate the truth successfully, 
may do more damage than harm. It's like if somebody read a 
book on how to do brain surgery. I'm certainly not sure I want 
to send them out in the field that quickly so they can do brain 
surgery. Let's give them some time. But 
nevertheless, there is that point at which every believer will 
be a witness and a testifier for God. It may be as simple 
as that man born blind. Right? What does he say? He said, 
I don't know what y'all are talking about. This is the way I read 
this guy in John. I don't know what y'all are talking 
about, but I was blind in how I see. And this Jesus did it. 
I mean, if that's the extent of your Christian witness, praise 
God. Praise Almighty God. If you can articulate, this is 
what I was and this is what I am, and Jesus gets the credit and 
the glory, you've done your job and you've done it successfully. 
And that's what we need to be toward unbelievers. Faithfully 
proclaim the truth of the gospel. Now, with reference to dogs and 
pigs, do not give them holy things nor cast pearls before them. That's what Jesus says in Matthew 
7, 6. Now, secondly, I would say we 
need the necessity or we need to highlight the necessity of 
discrimination. was musing this morning that 
on the altar of PC, we've lost a lot of words. And discrimination 
is a good word. But when we say discrimination 
today, we immediately think white people discriminating against 
black people. Or we think about black people 
discriminating against white people, which actually happens 
too, by the way. But discrimination has become 
one of those words that we have sacrificed on the altar of political 
correctness because it's offensive. Discrimination means recognize 
a distinction, differentiate. Now, ethnic discrimination is 
bad if we hate people because they're white or because they're 
black or because they're this or they're that. Racial discrimination 
is bad. The Bible doesn't sanction racial 
discrimination. The Bible doesn't say, go out 
and hate people that are different than you. It doesn't do that. 
But as far as discrimination, if the people of God aren't exercising 
discrimination, we're going to be in bad shape. We must learn 
to discriminate between brethren and dogs and pigs. It is a shameful 
thing when we treat a brother as a dog or a pig. It's a terrible 
thing to take God's people, those for whom Jesus has died, and 
treat them as if they are unworthy of holy things, or they're unworthy 
of our time, they're unworthy of our attention. That's shameful, 
brethren, and we need to be careful. It is shameful when believers 
treat other believers as dogs and pigs. But as well, we must 
learn to discriminate between dogs and pigs and brethren. I 
mean, if a guy's smacking you in the head, at some point you've 
got to count your losses and realize, I am not going to continue 
to throw holy things before him. If a guy knifes you in the stomach, 
Jesus gives you authority at that point to stop your witness. 
If you are bleeding profusely because of some position that 
you are in, go ahead and conclude that that's a pig or a dog, and 
it's time to move on. Go to the hospital, for instance. 
I mean, come on! What's happened? Believers must 
not be simpletons. And we must recognize that it 
is not unloving to rightly identify the enemies of the gospel. Paul 
said they are enemies of the gospel, right? I don't know how 
anybody can possibly or conceivably conclude that Planned Parenthood 
is not an enemy of the gospel. I don't know how anybody can 
possibly or conceivably conclude that certain political figures 
are not enemies of the gospel. I don't know how anybody can 
conceivably conclude that there are not those out there that 
have a heart and contempt for God and for God's people and 
want to do everything in their power to trample under foot holy 
things and tear to pieces those who profess the true religion. 
And then as well, we need to recognize the difficulty of the 
situation. The potential danger for the 
believer is to write off every unbeliever as a dog or a pig 
so we don't have to get ourselves dirty with witnessing and testifying. You see how the story can go. 
It's tough to go and tell people about Jesus. I don't know why 
that is, remaining corruption, whatever the case may be. But 
it takes person's time to get up the strength and the courage 
and the gusto to go to somebody and say, I want to talk to you 
about my Christian faith. Well, 7-6 can be an outlet for 
the lazy. 7-6 can be an outlet for the 
rebellious. 7-6 can be an outlet for those 
who do not want to do what Jesus has called them to do. Do not 
immediately conclude that every human being out there is a dog 
or a pig. Do not immediately conclude that everybody out there 
has this hardened contempt for God, that they know what Scripture 
says, they oppose it every step of the way, and therefore they're 
not worthy to be given holy things. That may not be the case. You 
probably live near and work with a whole lot of garden variety 
sinners, and reflect upon yourself when you came to the Savior. 
Now, if you were five, or you were 10, or you were 12, this 
may not be as applicable to you, but for the rest of us who came 
in our riper years, as the confession says, we hated God, we hated 
men, we didn't want anything to do with the Lord, but God 
in His grace saved us. We weren't the pigs or the dogs 
that are specified in this particular passage. So, do I have five steps 
on how to determine this? No. I don't, but I know who can 
help you determine. And I believe Spurgeon is right. 
He said, not Spurgeon, not Spurgeon who can help you determine, but 
it's what Spurgeon says. Great King, how much wisdom thy 
precepts require. I need thee not only to open 
my mouth, but also at times to keep it shut. Amen. Well, let's pray. Our Father, 
we thank you for the Word of God, and we are struck by the 
consistency and the uniformity of sacred scripture. And we pray 
that you'd help us with these things, help us to appropriate 
them in our own hearts, in our own lives, in our own practice. 
Give us wisdom and discernment, God. We want to faithfully witness, 
we want to testify, we want to proclaim. the glories of the 
gospel of our Lord Jesus. God, as well, we want to honor 
our Lord's teaching in Matthew 7, 6, and I pray that you would 
give us discernment when it comes to such cases. As well, give 
us love for our brethren. Help us not to treat them as 
dogs or pigs. Help us not to treat them as 
less than us in some sense. But God, give us a genuine heart 
to do well to the people of God in our midst. And we ask through 
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.