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So, thank you for that. Thank you to Mighty Muscadine for sponsoring this episode. Let's jump in. I've been saved by the blood of Jesus, and when I die, I know I'm going to heaven. But would you believe it?
Most Christians actually stop right there. How do we move past that? Let's talk about it on the Clearview Today Show. You're listening to Clear View today with Dr. Abadhan Shah, the daily show that engages mind and heart for the gospel of Jesus Christ.
I'm Ryan Hill. I'm John Galantis. Welcome to the Clear View Today show. We're here in the studio with our host, Dr. Abadhan Shah.
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You guys, all that God is doing in your life, maybe some questions that you might have for Dr. Shaw, comments about today's episode. We want to hear from you. Speaking of questions, Dr. Shaw, our series through the parables has answered a lot of questions that people have about how do we understand these things, what was the purpose behind the parables, and how did Jesus use these both to teach and to obscure truth from people?
Yes, I mean. Parables are not like illustrations, and we've been learning that throughout this series that they're really like mirrors reflecting who you are. And when you find yourself in the story, I hope you won't find yourself as as a protagonist. Hopefully, you'll find yourself as as the not so good person. And when you do see that, you are actually the good person.
You know that's how those parables work, and Jesus used them throughout his ministry to expose. The the condition of people's hearts, the Pharisees, the scribes, those who were opposing him, he gave the parables so that those who were receiving him will understand even better, and those who were rejecting him that they will understand even less. And today's parable is one of those that is not very popular, you know, compared to like say the wheat and the tares, prodigal son, Samaritan. The Good Samaritan. Today's parable is actually, you know, one people go, "Oh, I never heard of that one." Yeah, it's not it's not a popular one.
It's not a particularly fun one, but I think it's one that's important because we're talking about bearing fruit. And a lot of times when we think about our Christian life, we think about this ticking clock, right? This urgency. But the urgency typically is to get saved. Yeah.
So if I get saved at fifteen, well, I can just coast the rest of my life. But God wants something better for us, and that is to bear fruit. Doctor Shaw, do you want to just talk about Bearing fruit. Why this is something that a lot of Christians really don't even think about in their day to day life? Yeah, I think bearing fruit is one of those things that are optional.
That's how people see it. It's optional for me to bear fruit. Getting saved is essential. Bearing fruit is optional, and in some sense, I get it. Your eternal life is not hinged on bearing fruit.
It's based on. Your faith in Christ and Christ alone—it's not by works. You cannot bring anything to Christ's work on the cross. The moment you do that, now it is works, and and it negates what the grace is all about. That's right, which is God's unmerited favor through the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ.
So. In a sense, these are non-essentials. But if you truly are a believer, then you would want to see some fruits in your life.
Okay, so maintaining that distinction can be sometimes difficult for people because what people will do is, oh, if I don't see fruits in you, then you must not be saved.
Sorry, you cannot play that backwards.
Okay. If you're saved, yes, there should be fruits, but you cannot say if if there are no fruits, then you're not saved, because then, you know, if my definition of fruits is is a certain amount or kind, then I can negate your salvation. Yeah, and you can do the same for me and say, oh, you call those fruits? No, no, no. This is what fruits looks like, and based on what I seen you, you're not saved.
Yeah, great. Yeah, like you'd be like for me when I think of fruits, and I think a lot of people think of fruits. They think of going out, serving, volunteering, being in the community.
So if someone's not doing those things, probably they're not even a Christian, right?
So you can't use that as a litmus weird jump of logic. Yeah, we cannot we cannot really do that. Yeah, I want to jump into the parable itself and actually get into the text. We're going to take a quick break, listen to a couple words from sponsors, and a special announcement that we're going to be doing going forward until Christmas time, and then let's jump back into this parable. Today's episode.
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Get ready for a Christmas adventure the whole family will love. Clearview Theater presents The Hundred and One Dalmatians. Fifteen adorable spotted puppies, one unforgettable villain, and a whole lot of excitement. Join us Friday, December fourth, for a special matinee performance at 10 a.m., followed by an evening performance at 7 p.m. Additional performances Saturday, December fifth, Sunday, December sixth, both at 7 p.m.
Bring your family to Clearview Church. Tickets are available now at clearviewbc.org. Doctor Shaw, talking in terms of this parable, where we focus on bearing fruit. What parable are we talking about here? When we're talking about this kind of obscure, maybe not as well known, we're not talking like Good Samaritan level parable.
What are we? What are we studying today? This one is the parable of the fig tree, and you find it in Luke chapter thirteen, verses six through nine.
So I'm going to read it, and then let's walk through it. Luke thirteen six. He also spoke this parable: A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it, and found none. Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, "Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down.
Why does it use up the ground?" But he answered and said to him, "Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it, and if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that, you can cut it down. Give the tree a second chance, or a third. I guess in this case, a fourth chance. Right, right.
In fact, this parable was given on the same journey." That Jesus embarked on in Luke chapter nine fifty one. If you remember, one of our previous episodes, we talked about Luke nine fifty one, where Jesus knew that the time had come for him to be ascended, right? Crucified, buried, ascended, and he started making his way towards Jerusalem. As he's making this one way trip. He sends his disciples out into the fields that are wide unto harvest, and they come back and they say, "Look, Jesus, even the demons are subject to us in your name." What a powerful statement!
Yeah, lives are being transformed. Everything seems to be on the up and up. This Jesus guy really is who he says he is. Exactly. Even powers and principalities are subject to him.
In other words, you know, God is moving. Yeah.
So Jesus praises God and blesses his disciples because they are participating in building God's kingdom and they are seeing and hearing the things of eternal life. What a wonderful time! Yeah.
And then a certain lawyer wanting to get in on the action tests him, saying, "What shall I do to inherit eternal life?" And Jesus asks him, "What is in the law?" Remember this? We talked about it last time, and and then he says, "Love God and love your neighbor." Jesus tells him to do that. Then, seeking to justify himself, he he then asks the question. The lawyer asks Jesus the question, "Who is my neighbor?" And that's when Jesus gives the parable. Of the Good Samaritan.
That's right. We talked about how the context makes this the parable come so much more alive because when we understand why Jesus gave it, now it makes the message a little bit easier to see. Yeah, that's right. It makes it a little bit easier to understand. Yeah, okay.
That's where I see myself.
Well, the question itself is the wrong premise. Like instead of asking like who who is my neighbor, who am I responsible to? The question becomes who to whom can I be a neighbor? Right. Who needs a neighbor?
Right. Yeah.
I will be that neighbor to that person.
So a true neighbor is someone who shows mercy. A true neighbor is someone who shows compassion. Mercy is the distinguishing mark of someone who has eternal life. You know, when we think about eternal life, it's not like oh, I have this in in in incredible joy and fulfillment in my life. No.
Real eternal life manifests itself in how you show mercy to those who are undeserving. It's outward, yeah, and rather than inward, yeah, and towards those who are undeserving. It is very easy to show mercy to those who are deserving, yeah. Oh, okay. I'll show you mercy, because you are such a good person.
Yeah, look at how you act. Look at how you behave. Show me a person who is belligerent.
Now, now, try to show mercy. Yeah, it's like I don't think so. Yeah, you want to talk about maybe this this campaign that we went on a few years ago? This I am the neighbor campaign, because we you know we talked about this idea of you know it's easy to have pity on people. And we think that that's mercy—just feeling sorry for people—and maybe.
But we were able to do this project that we were able to put a little bit of money behind it and actually go out there and enable our church family to help people. And I mean, like, really go out there and minister the gospel to them. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Back in I want to say in the in two thousand eighteen two thousand nineteen we we did this campaign where we put a hundred dollar bill. Wrapped around a cross, and then wrapped that hundred dollar bill in a a gospel track, right?
The gospel track we created here, yep, and then we gave it to our people and said. Don't keep it for yourself. Give it to somebody who needs it.
Now, just to clarify, these were the gospel tracks that look like hundred dollar bills, right? Like, so when they open it up, no, these were real hundred dollar bills. Did you? Those are gospel tracks. Were gospel tracks hundred dollar bills with real, real hundred dollar bills?
Yeah.
My dad. I remember. I'll never forget. I don't know where my dad got it, but there was because I he was never a church going guy, but there was a drawer in our house where I remember. I can still see it pulling it open, and there was a twenty dollar bill there, and you open it up and.
Said disappointed, don't be. The good news of Jesus Christ for eternal life with all who believe. Can I share with you a really disappointing story related to that? Yeah.
So once upon a time, that to make ends meet, I was waiting tables, and you know, waiters live on tips. Yeah.
So at the end of the night, I was counting through my tips, and I saw one, and I was like, "Oh, a decent tip on a on a on a check." And I looked at it; it was not money. Oh, it was a track. Which, hey, good for you for leaving the gospel message, but there was. Also, that was the only tip. I was going to say, was it that plus a tip?
No, no, it was that and also zero dollars. And I was like, oh no, my worship was hindered in that moment. I can put it to you that way. I don't blame you. Yeah, and that's not how you should do it, folks.
You know, you know, show compassion. Yeah, that's part of what it means to have eternal life. Is when you show compassion to those who don't deserve it. Yeah.
But not everyone got that message.
So when Jesus told the people to show mercy, he said, "Put some money behind it." And now we come to Luke eleven fifty three, and as he said these things to them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to assail him vehemently and to cross-examine him about many things. Imagine that. Lying in wait for him and seeking to catch him in something he might say that they might accuse him.
So he's telling them, "Show mercy to people," and their response to that is, "We're going to cross-examine this guy. We're going to we're going to catch him. We're going to catch him doing something wrong." So listen to Jesus's warning to them. This is Luke chapter twelve, verse forty. Be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
Verse forty two, who then is that faithful and wise steward whom his master will make ruler over over his household to give them their portion of food in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Truly I say to you that he will make him ruler over all that he has. But if that servant says in his heart. My master is delaying his coming and begins to beat the male and female servant.
What kind of a guy is this? That came out of left field. What a guy! Like he's not coming. Come here, you.
Why? You on a boom? Like why? What's wrong with you? I just imagine the boss going out of like going on vacation for a week, and the regional manager's like, "I'm gonna beat the heck out of these." I think too.
Jesus is saying this. I mean, Jesus didn't just pull things out of the air. Things that were just had no had no anchor in reality. No, that was happened. I mean, this happened.
Yeah, yeah. This this is a age old problem. And to eat and drink and be drunk.
So come on, man. He's eating. He's a glutton. He's a drunkard, and he is beating people up for no reason. And the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him.
Oh! And in an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in two. Ooh! Ooh! And appoint him.
His portion with the unbelievers reminds me when you're in school and you're cutting up because you think because the teacher's running late and then you turn around she's standing there at the front of the room. Yes, oh man, and your mom's right there too. And that servant knew his master's will and did not prepare himself or do according to his will shall be beaten with many stripes. Verse forty-eight: For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required. Verse fifty-six: Hypocrites, you can discern the face of the sky and of the earth, and how is it you do not discern this time?
Jesus is going in. Yeah, he went home back on these guys. He's fed up. He's teaching them the importance of mercy. While they're trying to cross-examine him, I think it's it's very telling of what what they really thought of the Messiah.
Because I think that's that's something else that you've pointed out many times. But if someone's joining us for the first time, it isn't as though the Pharisees and the scribes didn't believe him. Like like he comes on the scene, hey, I'm the Messiah, and they're like, no, I don't think so. Like they knew they they were convinced, and yet they still wanted him to come through them. Yeah, like their hearts had become so callous that this is how they.
Treated someone they were convinced could have been them. Could have been, yeah. I mean, he's he's checking every box. He's fulfilling every prophecy. Everything is lining up in him.
But how can he be the one? How can he be the one? Him? No, this can this cannot be.
Well, he is. It's him. He's the one. It just cannot be. Look look at all the things he's doing.
Look at all the things he's saying. Look at all the changes he's making in the lives of the people who are following him. I see it, but we got to ask him more questions. We need to really put him on the spot. We need to just kill him.
Let's take a quick break. Hey guys, John here with the Clearview Today show, and I want to just take a second and talk to you about today's sponsor, WatchSafe. If you're a parent, you know that your child going on YouTube unsupervised is a no-go. Even a few minutes of unchecked viewing can expose them to content that is inappropriate, confusing, harmful, downright evil. This is a very real danger in a digital world that moves too fast for us to control.
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Thanks for listening. Now let's get into the show. Yeah.
Ooh, it's like it's like almost like they're deflecting. Yeah, I think that's the most chilling thing is that when you look at the Pharisees and their response to Jesus, it wasn't that they didn't believe in the Messiah. They knew that He was the Messiah. They were just like, "It can't be you. There's no way it can be you.
We're gonna catch you." So in Luke chapter thirteen, verse one, there were present at that season some who told him, told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.
Now we don't have any historical record of this incident, but knowing what Pilate was like. This very well happened. What does that mean when it says he mingled the blood of the Galileans with their sacrifices? I mean, this is like at the temple, the sacrifices were happening or something like that, and and he must have sent his troops in there and massacred some, like slaughtered them. Yeah, yeah.
While they were doing their, while they were in their worship. Yeah.
Wow. And so, so a lot of horrible things Pilate did. In fact, once he was even ordered back to Rome, we do know this historically about Pilate. He was ordered back to Rome to stand trial for something similar that he did against the Samaritans. Wow, we think of Pilate as this kind of cool guy because he's like, "Hey, Jesus, he didn't do anything wrong.
Come on, yeah." What is the truth? What is the truth? Very philosophically minded. No, no, he was he was a cruel he was a cruel guy. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
So. What was the reason for this discussion about these Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices? I don't know. Maybe just small talk. Maybe discussing current affairs.
Hey, did you hear about this? Trying to get the heat off of them. He's talking to him about mercy.
So listen, verse two. This is Luke chapter thirteen, verse two. And Jesus answered and said to them, "Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, no. But unless you repent, you all will likewise perish." So while they were trying to deflect the conversation on what what happened the other day.
Jesus said, "No, let's get back on subject. Unless you repent, you will also suffer the same way." Wow! Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them? Do you think that they were worse sinners than all of the men who dwelt in in Jerusalem? I tell you, no.
But unless you repent, you all will likewise. Perish. Maybe it's not this radio show, but maybe it's one of the ones that we've done, or maybe it's something that someone's heard recently in church or on a podcast where the Holy Spirit's convicting them. And we respond with small talk. We we don't we want to deflect.
We don't want to address what's being said here. Yeah, maybe we see ourselves in these scribes and Pharisees a little bit. Maybe can you just talk to that person and and help us understand why it is that we do that? Why we feel? I mean, the deflection goes on all the time.
There are people who will. Feel the conviction of the Holy Spirit and feel like, yeah, I need to do something about this, but they quickly change the subject to the weather, to sports, sometimes to politics because those kind of people don't want to talk about politics because that's also a touchy subject. But they will deflect the subject to anything rather than talk about their soul. Or talk about a judgment day coming, or talk about the need to receive Christ as their Savior. They will, they will, they will deflect, and they do this constantly.
I remember one of the things you told me one time that's really stuck with me is that one of the quickest ways to Quench what the Holy Spirit is trying to do, especially around the time of invitation, is laughter. Yeah, is people will just laugh, they'll joke, they'll they'll anything to alleviate some of that pressure that they're feeling. Yeah, to to divert from what God is trying to do spiritually. Oh yeah, all the time people do that. Yeah, a lot of times if you if you say something that really gets to people, they'll end up mocking you, and you you take it personal.
You're like, well, what did I say wrong? I I preach the gospel, but at the same time, you you start to realize that. They're convicted, yeah, and that's how you get over conviction: is you mock it, you laugh at it. But going back to this parable, that is the very moment, while all this is going on, unless you repent, you will also likewise perish, and all that. The very next thing, Luke thirteen six, Jesus said, "A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it, and found none." By the way, fig tree was a symbol for Israel, and it still applies to all of us, right?
Then he said to his the keeper of the vineyard, "Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and found none. Cut it down. Why does it use up the ground?" Oh, I see. I see.
So Israel had its shot. And God cut it right out of the ground because they didn't produce no fruit. I get it. No, I'm sorry.
Someone, someone out there is going to clip that and just put it out there with no context. No, no, no. Well, the the point is is this: John the Baptist used the same imagery in Luke chapter three and verse seven. He said to the multitudes that came out to be baptized by him, "Brood of vipers." Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore, bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, "We have Abraham as our father." For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.
And even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. I mean, that is the illustration Jesus is using in this parable.
So the people asked him, saying, "What shall we do?" Then, I mean, these are the people asking John the Baptist. He answered and said to them, "He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none, and he who has food, let him do likewise." Then tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, "Teacher, what shall we do?" And he said to them. Collect no more than what is appointed for you. Likewise, the soldiers asked him, saying, "What shall we do?" So he said to them, "Do not intimidate anyone or accuse falsely, and be content with your wages." So, what John the Baptist told the people questioning him, "What shall we do?" is exactly what Jesus is saying when he says. When he gives the parable of the fig tree, the fig tree doesn't have any fruits and it's about to be cut down.
Fruits worthy of repentance are acts of mercy. That's right. And it never did Jesus or John the Baptist say, you know, if you want to bear fruit, you have to stop sinning, you have to start going to church, you got to get in the Bible, you got to pray daily. All those things are great. Or you know, serve in a soup kitchen, or you know, you need to go.
Showing mercy is much more than serving in a soup kitchen. Mercy and grace are different things. Grace is God's unmerited favor. Mercy is when they don't deserve it. Are y'all getting the difference?
Grace is yes, you don't deserve it. You cannot earn it, but I'm going to give it to you. Mercy has the deserving part. Yeah, grace is I can't earn it. I can't work for it.
It's given to me free. Mercy is you're in trouble. Yeah, but I'm giving this to you.
Okay, God shows us His grace and His mercy. Yeah.
Grace is his unmerited favor. Mercy is his forgiveness and his goodness to sinners who have offended his holiness, his righteousness. Yeah.
So, how do you and I show mercy? Is when we are willing to show kindness to those who have offended us. That's hard to do. Very hard to do. I can show grace.
I can go serve in a a soup kitchen because those people haven't hurt me. They just don't have anything, so I'm going to go over there and pour some soup in a bowl and give some cornbread with it, or or pack a plate of food for them. Man, it's it's so sad what they you know they're going through. They don't have anything. That's right.
Yeah, I mean they he's he's got some some habits, or he is, or that family's out on the street. Man, we we got to do something. Let's take up an offering and help them. That's grace. Mercy is.
I cannot believe you did that to me, but I'm going to show you mercy. Grace isn't always personal, right? Mercy is personal. Mercy is personal. I think it's a really interesting distinction because grace, showing grace to people in the in the terms of like a soup kitchen or going somewhere and serving the the less fortunate, can often make us feel good on a personal level.
It's fairly easy to do. Yeah, mercy. Often will not make us feel good. No, we don't feel good afterward, but we know that we need to. Yeah, yeah, it's the right thing to do.
I mean, if you go back to that parable one more time, all right.
So we're talking about Luke chapter thirteen and verse seven. Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, "Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on the fig tree and find none. Cut it down. Why does it use up the ground? Because that is justice." Cut it down.
It doesn't bear fruit. Cut it down. It's using up some good ground. But he answered and said to him, "Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. And if it bears fruit, well.
But if not, after that you can cut it down. Giving extra time when that tree doesn't deserve it." Is mercy. That's what God's not grace. It's not justice. Is mercy.
That's right. Yeah, I was gonna say that's what God's done for us. Every single one of us. We're living on borrowed time. And right now, Doctor Shaw, we've got maybe two minutes left in the show.
But for someone who's listening to this, who maybe something is starting to click and say, you know what, I may not have very long left. I don't think I. I don't know if I'm really a Christian, but. Concerned about the days to come, yeah. Maybe you could lead them in that prayer.
Absolutely, it's very simple. Recognize that you have offended God. You say, "Well, I didn't, you know, try to do that actively. Try to offend God. No, just by virtue of your sin and sinful nature, you have offended God.
But God, in His grace, has provided a plan of salvation." And He has sent His Son to give His life in your place. It was promised. It was prophesied, and it took place two thousand years ago. Completed, done, finished. And now it's available to you.
God's mercy is coming to you. It's not the requirement for salvation. It's simply a verification of salvation when you show mercy.
So here's what you have to do: receive God's mercy by accepting Jesus as your substitute. He is your Savior, who died in your place, and ask Him to come into your life and become your King. And from this day on, live for Him. And how do you do that? The best way is to show mercy.
And one way you can show mercy to others is tell them about Jesus. Especially your enemies, pray that they will find mercy. To the cross of Jesus, that's right. Understanding God's mercy toward us helps us then be merciful toward others, especially those around us who don't deserve it. That's right.
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