Today, Pastor Jack teaches that knowing God’s will isn’t the same as doing God’s will. So, we need to know which son we are. As the saying goes, action speaks louder than words.
00:22:13 Crossing the Line: Sin versus Transgression
SPEAKER 01 :
Today on Real Life Radio. God says, don’t do this. I’ve revealed it in my Word. Listen, you want to know God’s will? Know His Word. Listen, this is His will. This is His will.
SPEAKER 02 :
This is Real Life. Welcome to Real Life Radio with Pastor Jack Hibbs. I’m David Jay, thanking you for joining us today as we listen, learn, and are challenged by God’s Word, the Bible. Looking for real answers in real time? JackHibbs.com is your go-to destination for resources on faith, world events, and everything in between. Explore Happening Now, where Pastor Jack Hibbs takes a timely, no-nonsense look at today’s biggest issues, blending biblical insight with the latest headlines. Now, whether you’re curious about the world around you or you want guidance on a personal level, Pastor Jack has you covered. And, by the way, don’t miss the Real Life Network. It’s packed with relatable, family-friendly content that really speaks to everyday challenges and triumphs, offering something really valuable for every member of your family. Now, if you’re new to the faith, you want to refresh your perspective, start with that tab that says Know God, an accessible, welcoming space to learn and reflect and find your footing. Now, whatever your path, jackhibbs.com has the tools and the insights and the encouragement that you need. Tune in, log on, find something real. Once again, the website jackhibbs.com. On today’s edition of Real Life Radio, Pastor Jack now continues his series called The Parables of Jesus and a message titled, Parable of the Two Sons. Now you see, of course, a parable is a picture story painted by Jesus that makes the truth of the Bible crystal clear. And in this parable, we’ll look inside the heart of two sons and their obedience to their father. Now, in this parable, there’s a deeper meaning. Two sons were asked by their father to work in the vineyard. One says no, but later he relents and goes, while one says yes, but doesn’t go. Their reaction reveals what’s truly going on in their hearts. It’s not, of course, what we say that ultimately matters. It’s what we actually do. So today, Pastor Jack teaches that knowing God’s will isn’t the same as doing God’s will. So we have got to figure out and know which son we really are. As the saying goes, action speaks louder than words. And now with his message called Parable of the Two Sons, here’s pastor and Bible teacher Jack Hibbs.
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Lord, for those of us who know you, may we humbly rejoice today. Father, for those who don’t, may you tonight descend by the power of your Holy Spirit and remove the mask that some, we all know how it’s like, but for some tonight maybe are hiding behind. I thank you, God, for many of us tonight, you pulled the mask off our face. and saved us. Tonight, I pray that there are those here this evening, or maybe those watching right now, that you would knock loose the mask from their face, the facade of money, or sex, or drugs, or pride, or arrogance, or whatever it may be, and you would knock it, Lord, loose, and they would stand there in absolute soberness and realize that God in heaven knows my heart, and Jesus died for my sins, and that tonight, decisions would be made. We ask you now, Lord, in Jesus’ name and all God’s people said, amen. Well, church, grab your Bibles tonight and turn to Matthew chapter 21. Matthew 21, as we continue, in fact, we’ll be wrapping up in the next week or so, the end of our parable series. And tonight we’re in Matthew 21, verses 28 to 32, in the parable of the two sons. The parable of the two sons. And this parable… Not only is it about knowing God’s will, it’s a parable about knowing God’s will and doing God’s will. It’s not good enough, friends, listen, to know God’s will. If you know God’s will and you don’t do God’s will, it’s worse, Jesus said, to not know it. Think of it. Doesn’t the Bible say, to whom much is given, much is what? Given. Required. If you know, man, look at us as Americans. We know so much. We have so much. And God says, great. But with that, I require of you great exercise based upon what you know and great engagement based upon what you have. All these things come with a sense of profound responsibility to God. Knowing God’s will, though, isn’t the same as doing it. And God wants us to do his will. And so tonight is a parable about two boys, two young men, and the context or the theater of knowing God’s will. And to better understand this parable, we need to ask a question as to whom is Jesus speaking to in Matthew chapter 21. I’m gonna breeze through something quickly just for your mind’s sake and for the context. I want you to know this, I want you to get this. It’s important for you to understand this. In Matthew chapter 21, verses 1 to 11, we see Jesus being presented as the king to the nation of Israel. So in the context of the chapter, we know now it’s Jesus’ last week on earth. This is the Palm Sunday day, verses 1 to 11. And Jesus is coming into Jerusalem. He’s being hailed as king. It’s the presentation of the king, King Jesus, to the nation. And in verses 12 to 17, we see the purification of King Jesus. That is, all week long, during Passion Week, Jesus is being examined and tried by the Pharisees, questions and riddles and accusations. What’s really happening is the Lamb of God is being inspected by the Jewish priesthood. I don’t know if you ever thought about that, but Jesus’ last week on earth, he’s being attacked by his critics. They’re trying to find fault with him. They’re trying to catch him in traps. They’re trying to catch him in scandal. None of it works. Why did that happen on Jesus’ last week of life on earth? Because… That week at the end, the Passover lambs were to be offered up. Remember that? And then ultimately the Passover lamb in the Holy of Holies at the temple. But we know who the real lamb was, don’t we? It was Jesus Christ. And he’s being examined by the priesthood. So he’s being attacked. Keep that in mind. And then in verses 18 to 22, we see the authority of Jesus being questioned. In fact, he speaks to them about the fig tree, which every Jew knows is a symbol of Israel, the fig tree. And he’s speaking about Israel. They had all the history with God. They had the location that God had determined. They had the look, that is, they were religiously dressed up. They had the book. And Jesus makes the reference to them being a fig tree, and so they even had all the leaves, so to speak. They had the branches, they had the look, but they didn’t have any fruit. And in verses 23 to 27 in this chapter, we see the king being challenged. They’re challenging him profoundly. And now we come to the parable of the king. So Bible students, mark this down. The context, that is the chapter, explains why Jesus goes to this parable, the parable of the two sons. It’s critical. And now you guys are Bible experts on this. This is awesome. Matthew 21, 28. Jesus said to this audience of disciples, Scribes and Pharisees, biblical lawyers, they’re not lawyers like attorneys. They’re lawyers meaning they’re experts in the law of Moses. He turns to them and says, but what do you think? I want you to mark that. I’m gonna ask you that at the end of this message. What do you think? A man had two sons and he came to the first and said, son, go work today in my vineyard. And he answered and said, I will not, or forget you. But afterwards, he, the son, regretted it and went. Verse 30, then he came to the second son and said likewise, and he answered and said, I go, sir. So apparent compliance, but he didn’t go. He said one thing, but he did another. Verse 31, Jesus asked them, which of the two did the will of the father? And they said, they are the religious leaders of Israel. So note this, they know the truth. The first, and Jesus said to them, assuredly I say to you that tax collectors and harlots enter or will enter the kingdom of God before you. For John came to you in the way of righteousness, John the Baptist, and you did not believe him. but tax collectors and harlots believed him. And when you saw it, that is the salvation of those sinners, notorious sinners, you did not afterward relent and believe him. This is an awesome indictment by Jesus himself against sin. the religious leaders, but the story’s bigger than that. It deals with the religious leaders of Israel, those who were privy to the word of God, and your run-of-the-mill sinner, your run-of-the-mill tax collector or harlot. By the way, in all fairness, I need to tell you, the word harlot means what you think, harlotry, but it’s broader than that. Harlot also meaning all those who were involved in pagan worship. The Bible refers to them as being those involved in spiritual adultery or harlotry. So it’s not only sexual immorality, but it’s also those who are involved in spiritual immorality, which is interesting study all in its own. So listen, the context defines this. One young man in the story in the parable says, that I will not go, I will not obey you, Father. I will not listen. So this son, typologically, in the parable, is saying to God the Father, as it were, typologically, no, I initially know who you are, I know what you’re requesting, listen, because we’ve all, listen, can you guys hear me? Every one of us is like the first son. We all, at some point in time, when we heard the gospel, first said no. This boy says, no, no, no, I will not. And then as he goes his way, he relents. Notice the words not repent. Now, the old King James, I think, in your Bible has the word repent. It’s not the Greek word metanoia. It’s metalomia, and it’s a different word. Meta meaning after. Metanoia means to rethink and change your course. But this word means to rethink now. And to have a change of mind, regret, sorry, I shouldn’t have done this. So it’s not so much, listen, it’s not so much a word of repentance. Listen, everybody, it is a parable of salvation. And repentance isn’t mentioned, technically, because repentance is implied. The young man says, no way. Did you ever say that to Christians before you were a Christian? Get out of my face, you Jesus freak. You know? I didn’t do that because I’m nicer than all of you people. No, I’m kidding. I didn’t do that because I’d never heard the gospel. I’d never heard the gospel before. And so when I heard it, it freaked me out. This is the greatest news I’ve ever heard. Boy, am I in trouble, and I need it. I mean, I knew in an instant I was in trouble. I mean, I was doing pretty much all those sins that that pastor had listed that night in his sermon. I was convicted. But for some of you, you may have said, no, no, I don’t want to know about God. Get out of my face. Maybe you’re here tonight, your friend invited you. And you’re saying, look, if I go, will you never ask me about God again? If I go tonight, will you leave me alone? Just know this. Tonight’s all for you. Jesus said, hey, here’s the deal. There’s a guy in the parable of the story when the father reaches out, this kid says, no! And walks away, but then he starts thinking, I don’t know if that was right. I tell you what, I’m gonna go do what he said. Isn’t that interesting? Now listen, in the parable, that is sin, isn’t it? He did tell the father, no, that’s disrespect, that’s sin, right? Sin. Sin. So mark this down, Bible students. You’ve got one guy who is the first son, and he says no, but then he goes and does the right thing, because he had a change of mind. Okay, then the second son we know here, he says, I will go. These guys are the worst. This guy says, I will go. So now the father is under the delusion that the son is doing the right thing. Are you with me? So imagine that, all right, good, thank you, I knew I could count on you. By the way, what is also implied but not mentioned is the first son in the Jewish culture, the father would have asked the younger son to go do the menial labor. He says, no, get out, he’s the spoiled guy, little brat, maybe he’s had everything handed to him, he’s a little stinker, entitled little person. And he says, no, but he has to change his mind. The older son is the one who says, yes, sir. He’s used to saying yes. Yes, yes, sir. I go, sir. Notice that. Very, very, yes. Yes, father, sir. You got it, dad. You can always count on me. And what does he do? He does not do what he tells his father he’s gonna do.
SPEAKER 02 :
You’re listening to Real Life with Pastor Jack Hibbs. You know, to hear more episodes and maybe catch up in the series, just go to jackhibbs.com. That’s jackhibbs.com. And for now, let’s get back to our teaching. Once again, here’s Pastor Jack.
SPEAKER 01 :
Now watch this. One, the first boy, sins. That’s sin. He sinned, right? Did this, listen, don’t be afraid. I want, go ahead and answer. I want to hear you anyway. So don’t be afraid. Did the second son sin or was it worse than sin? Very good. I’m so impressed. You’re right. The first boy sinned and the second boy sinned a sin that’s worse. It’s called transgression. To sin is to get busy and forget and whatever and you cross the line and then you realize, you know, it’s kind of like your dad says, don’t cross this line. And you go, okay. And you’re playing life, you’re doing stuff and all this. You know, we’ve all had kids. It’s all, don’t go in the street. But they’re playing kickball in the front yard and the ball goes out, they’re caught up in it, all right? And the kid runs out on the street and gets the ball and you see him and you go, what are you doing? And you… Change his mind for him. You apply the board of education to the seat of knowledge so he won’t do that again. You love him. And then you have a boy who you say, don’t cross this line. Yes, sir. I’ll never do that. You mean, what line? This line? Yeah, this line. Now, don’t get near it. Just leave it alone. Just get away from there. You mean this line right here. Dad, is this the line you told me not to cross? Yeah, this line. Really? That’s transgression. Listen, do you know something regarding God’s will that God says, don’t do this? Do you know it? I mean, don’t say anything. I’m just, think for a moment. We all know something. God says, don’t do this. I’ve revealed it in my word. Listen, you want to know God’s will? Know his word. Listen, this is his will. This is his will. So God says, for example, don’t covet other people’s stuff. Now, listen. Last Sunday, I have to explain this, because some of you drove by me, and I’m wondering what you’re thinking. Why? A friend of mine came from Huntington Beach, great brother, loves the Lord, super blessed, and he came to service. And he just bought a brand new, did you see it? You did? Oh. He just bought a brand new, totally decked out 2015 Corvette. Now, I don’t know if you’ve seen those, but they’re so amazing that Ferraris and Porsches won’t even get near them. They just turn away in shame. And he says to me, you want to drive it? And I said, no, I can’t drive it around here. I said, somebody will see me, and the next thing you know, it’ll be Twittered, and it’ll be, no, I can’t do it. So we’re out here in the church parking lot after third service, and we’re looking at it, and I’m standing by it looking like I’m going to get in it. And people were driving by it looking, and they’re like this. Our pastor has completely bit the dust. It’s over for him. He’s gone the way of, next we’ll see him on TBN, you know. It wasn’t my car. It was my friend’s car. I didn’t drive it. I’m gonna go to his house in Huntington to drive it. But… I have a Ford truck, okay, that’s what I have, and a 67 Volkswagen, and so that’s my cars, but here’s the deal, here’s the deal. I have to tell you, I’m looking at the things thinking, oh man, this car was designed probably by the Lord for Coast Highway. And so, you know, you look at that and it’s like, man, and then you turn it on and all the displays on the windshield in the glass. Oh yes, I’m convinced you press a button and missiles come out somewhere, right? Anyway, it’s amazing. What’s my point? God says don’t covet. And I had to stop. I didn’t tell him this, but I’m thinking, oh, this is nice. And I just say, Lord, you just have to get this out of my head. God says don’t covet. Now listen, if you know the Bible says thou shalt not, by the way, this is what the law is all about. Thou shalt not covet. God’s not a bummer. He’s trying to keep you from getting killed. He said, man, I’d really like to have that person’s house, that person’s car, that person’s shoes, that person’s, I don’t know, nose. It doesn’t matter. Whatever you want, God says, don’t do that. If you pursue it, you are not sinning. It’s worse than that. You’re transgressing. You didn’t fall across the line because you’re trying to catch the ball. You went, yeah, I know you say thou shalt not covet, but man, this is cool. And boom, you’re with me. This son has said he’ll do something and he doesn’t do it. And the important thing about this is our words matter. But listen everybody, we all know words matter. The Bible tells us that out of our mouth should be things that come forth that lift people up. As a Christian, people should know that you and I have been in their presence, not because of our greatness, We don’t have any. But because of his righteousness that comes out of our lives, people should, people should actually, because you’re a Christian, people should, if they’re prone to like cussing stuff all the time, and you walk into the room, have you ever seen relatives do this at Thanksgiving? It’s awesome. You come into the room, hey, how you guys doing? It’s all, you know, oh man, blank, beep, and then beep. And you walk in the room and they go, um, Anyway, have you ever seen that happen? That’s salt and light. That’s a good thing. That’s a good thing. Words matter, but you know what matters more than words? What you do with your life, your deeds, how you live. Christian, what we say, imagine this. I’ve told you this before, it applies tonight. Imagine if the world and other Christians, imagine if the whole universe was deaf and they couldn’t hear. Imagine nobody had any ears. How would they ever know that I’m a Christian? Only one way, by my actions. This is an awesome parable announcing There are those who say they know God all the time. We know God. Father, I know you. Yes, sir, yep, got it. And then get up and go and never do. And as I thought about that, I found myself in studying for this going like this in my mind to all those losers. Shame, shame, shame. Hoo, boy, thank you, God, I’m not like that. Thank you, God, I’m not like those losers. And I felt the Lord say, Jack, you know what? If you teach on a verse, let alone just know a verse, and you don’t do it, great light has been given to you. Great opportunity Jack’s been given to you. And if you don’t do it, you’re just like that son who lied to his father in the parable. You knew, but you didn’t do.
SPEAKER 02 :
pastor and Bible teacher, Jack Hibbs, here on Real Life Radio with his message called Parable of the Two Sons. Thanks for taking the time to be with us today. You know, this message is part of Pastor Jack’s series called The Parables of Jesus. It’s a series that highlights the teachings of Jesus while he was ministering right here on this earth. And we’ll continue on the next edition of Real Life Radio. I sat right beside June Hunt in Dallas at the CBN convention for the last dinner. It was pretty cool. She’s awesome. She’s sweet, but you’d never know. I mean, when we were sitting there talking, I thought, this lady is so sweet. She’s probably with someone who’s prominent in our… Oh, yeah, she is. She’s with Jesus. She’s with Jesus.
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All the time.
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And she is, too, man.
SPEAKER 01 :
June Hunt walks with the Lord. I was so impressed with her. She is a wonderful woman of God. We’ve got a book that we could not endorse enough. And it’s not only because we love June Hunt, but this is a book that literally has over 11,000 biblical references in it. It’s the Biblical Counseling Reference Guide. Davey, this is amazing because, look, we all need this book because why? It references and answers 580 real-life topics. Yeah. Issues of life.
SPEAKER 02 :
And it’s been said it’s not a book that you’d read from cover to cover. True. Right? She covers all kinds of topics like anxiety, anger. Oh, exactly. Forgiveness, you know.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, look, in fact, I’ll do a book roulette. Okay, go ahead. Which is not a good thing to do. But with this book, you can do it. This book is good, yeah. So I’m flipping through the book. I’m going to stop. And I’m going to open it up. What do you got? And here is a string of verses on complaining and grumbling. No kidding. So the Lord must have had us open it up. Yeah. for producer Johnny. Just kidding. But you guys, this book, it’s that wonderful. Here’s another one, grief. And I’m looking, there’s, I don’t know how many verses here on what does the Bible say about grieving? We all need to know this. Please get this book. If I had the money, I’d buy it and give it to all of you. The biblical counseling reference guide, 580 real life topics, 11,000 verses. It’s kind of a tool that you turn to
SPEAKER 02 :
when life hits with hard questions and stuff. And when a counseling situation comes up, it’s great to have.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, and you mentioned the word counseling, as is the title of the book, The Biblical Counseling Reference Guide. What I would like to do is encourage everybody, because people will hear the word counseling and they’ll think either A, they don’t need it, or B, they don’t know how to give it. How about this? This book will equip you to give out biblical guidance, right? to those who ask, and for yourself. And June Hunt, again, we’ve talked about how precious she is, but she’s the founder of the wonderful ministry Hope for the Heart. And I tell you what, she’s a treasure in the church today, and we’re grateful to God for her.
SPEAKER 02 :
The Biblical Counseling Reference Guide by June Hunt. It’s our thank you gift for your donation of any size to Real Life This Month. And if you’d like to order your copy, and we hope you will, just visit jackhibbs.com slash real radio. That’s jackhibbs.com slash real radio. Order your copy right away. This program is made possible by the generous contributions of you, our listeners. Visit us at jackhibbs.com. That’s jackhibbs.com. Until next time, Pastor Jack Hibbs and all of us here at Real Life Radio wish for you solid and steady growth in Christ and in His Word. We’ll see you next time here on Real Life Radio.
