The Truth about False Teachers

Sermon on Luke 11:45-54 - Lords Day August 31, 2025 - Trinity Reformed Church
Introduction:

Jesus is the Christ - He is the king. Through Him the kingdom of heaven is open to us. The final prophet who teaches us truth. The Gospel of Luke teaches us that Jesus is fully God in bodily form. Jesus confronts the false religion of pharisees and warns them. The world today can't take this form of rebuke that Jesus was speaking. If Jesus was here today they would not tolerate Him either. Rarely today will modern day preachers speak out or call out false teachers. They wouldn't tell them that they are the sons of hell. False teachers are dragging people to hell. False teachers don't lead people to God they shut the door to the kingdom of God. V52. Luke 11:52 (NKJV) “Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered.” - False teachers lead people to judgement. False teachers cannot and should not be tolerated. The truth of God is revealed here and what God thinks of false teachers.

False teachers prevent the truth of God:
The most important truth is about eternity. To be lied to about salvation is the most devastating deception. Jesus as fully God always told the truth and He exposed false religion and false teachers.

The pharisees were the principal religion in Israel and the people were led astray by their spiritual leaders. Think of all the false teachers and religion today? If it weren't for the sovereign God nobody would have the truth. With all the denominations and churches how many are preaching the truth? In Jesus day the scribes, lawyers were the teachers of Gods law. He is not going to join in their false religion by doing the ceremonial washing. This was a misinterpretation on their part. False religion focuses on the outside and not the inside. False religion is irrational. False religion makes lesser matters the primary matter. Love of God and neighbor is ignored. The outward things become primary.

False religion seeks mans approval: They love the best seats. They are like graves v44. But people didn't know it. They outwardly appeared righteous and holy.. they are dead inside. They must've been blown away by Jesus words. Likely no one has ever spoken to them like that or called them out. They deserve this waves of woes.

By the 3rd woe the scribe interrupts Jesus vs. 45 Luke 11:45 (NKJV) Then one of the lawyers answered and said to Him, “Teacher, by saying these things You reproach us also.” - This was likely strongly worded. But Jesus responds with another woe to them. Every curse is related is how they handle the Word of God. Every rebuke is about this. How they misinterpret, hate and shut the door to the Word of God. Instead of teaching the truth they lied. They don't recognize who Jesus is. 51-52 Jesus condemns their false teaching. They invented religion. They departed from truth. They were behind all of the rejection of Christ and His teachings. Their false religion became a heavy burden that weighed people down. This word burden is used Acts 27:10 - the ship the wrecked they had to dump the heavy load because it was weighing down the ship. They added and invented laws and traditions like the ceremonial washing. They twisted the sabbath people couldn't do anything which is why Jesus healed a man on the sabbath. An act of mercy of kindness and love they hated and condemned.

Adding and twisting the Sabbath and Word of God:

You couldn't tie a knot on the sabbath. A woman could tie a knot with her girdle. So you could use that if you needed to get water. A limit to journey: you could only go 1000 yards from your house but if a rope was tied to the end to another house you could go beyond that.
Severe and heavy burdens that brought no salvation.

They also subtracted from the law:
They left out mercy and grace. Love and faith. The promise of Jesus Christ. When they taught the law it was through self righteous merit based works. They did not teach that the law revealed our sin and that we needed Christ. They didn't that the law was our tutor. They didn't teach that by faith Abraham was righteous. They didn't teach that the messiah would come and bear our burdens. The scribes taught righteousness by works. To mercy to grace not faith no forgiveness no Christ. No wonders the religious leaders wanted to and did kill Him.

Summary:

Brothers and sisters we have to sober up and realize that false teachers are here today as well. Jesus teaches us the seriousness of false religion and how it leads to hell.

Luke 11:45-54 (NKJV) 45 Then one of the lawyers answered and said to Him, “Teacher, by saying the se things You reproach us also.” 46 And He said, “Woe to you also, lawyers! For you load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers. 47 “Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets, and your fathers killed them. 48 “In fact, you bear witness that you approve the deeds of your fathers; for they indeed killed them, and you build their tombs. 49 “Therefore the wisdom of God also said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, and [some] of them they will kill and persecute,’ 50 “that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation, 51 “from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the temple. Yes, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation. 52 “Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered.” 53 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, 54 lying in wait for Him, and seeking to catch Him in something He might say, that they might accuse Him.