1Under these circumstances, after so many thousands of people had gathered together that they were stepping on one another, He began saying to His disciples first of all, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. Luke 12:1 (NAS)

With the Pharisees and lawyers breathing down their necks and thousands of people amassing at the Lord’s feet, Jesus needed to bolster his men. He knew what he was doing but their heads were spinning. He had just issued forth damning woes against the leaders (Luke 11:37-52), and it’s likely that his men were struggling to adjust to the targets now on their backs.

First, he stated what should have been obvious, but may have been hidden behind the pharisaical garb, that these so called leaders were hypocrites, folding lies into the truth. The disciples were warned about the insidious leaven of these men, not so much their power or prestige. He went on with this eye-opening reality.

2“But there is nothing covered up that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known. 3“Accordingly, whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in the inner rooms will be proclaimed upon the housetops. Luke 12:2-3

There is wisdom out there in these dark days to remain a “gray man.” To go underground. Disconnect from your connections. To police what you say and do. But here the Lord says what is said and done in the shadows will eventually come to light.

This works three ways. Good to know that what evil people do and say under the cover of darkness will be exposed and “shouted from the rooftops,” but sobering too is that our “whispers,” and testimonies will be just as loudly proclaimed. In reality, there is no way to successfully live as a “gray man.”

Moreover, there is no way to live an obedient Christian life without sharing the gospel, the cause of the hope within you (1 Peter 3:15). Would it be that what comes to light in our cases is only our loyalty and obedience to Jesus Christ!

Another reality in this passage is that we will eventually be persecuted for our faith, perhaps harshly. Some of us could be petrified by this thought, causing great anxiety and fear. The following is for you.

4 “I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that have no more that they can do. 5 “But I will warn you whom to fear: fear the One who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell; yes, I tell you, fear Him.” Luke 12:4–5

Friends of God through saving faith in Jesus Christ who fear Him have no cause for worry. If He cares for sparrows worth only two small copper coins (pennies), how much more us!

6 “Are not five sparrows sold for two cents? Yet not one of them is forgotten before God. 7 “Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows. Luke 12:6–7