Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones on Unbelief and Christ's Divine Knowledge

What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones reveal about Jesus' ability to examine hearts in John 7:19-24?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that a profound truth emerges in this passage: while the Jewish authorities thought they were examining Jesus, He was actually examining them. Jesus demonstrated His divine knowledge by knowing their murderous intentions when He said, "Why go ye about to kill me?" even when the common people were unaware of such plots. Lloyd-Jones states, "He knows us in a way that nobody else knows us," emphasizing that Christ can see all the "secret, hidden recesses" of our innermost being. He knows our thoughts, desires, and imaginations that remain hidden from everyone else. As the preacher puts it, "All things are naked and opened unto him, unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do."

How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones define the hypocrisy of unbelief according to Jesus' teaching?

According to Lloyd-Jones, Jesus exposes unbelief as fundamentally hypocritical and dishonest. He points to Jesus' words to the Jewish authorities: "Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law?" Jesus reveals their hypocrisy in how they boasted about possessing the law but failed to live by it. They reduced religion to theoretical arguments rather than practical obedience. Lloyd-Jones applies this to contemporary unbelievers who "talk about God, they argue about Christ... But the question is this: What are they doing about it all?" He challenges his listeners: "Are you really trying to practice even what you claim to believe? Or is it all remote and theoretical and detached?"

What does it mean to "judge righteous judgment" rather than "according to appearance"?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that judging "according to appearance" is the superficial approach of unbelief - making hasty, hurried judgments based on limited evidence. The Jewish authorities dismissed Jesus because of external factors: He was "a carpenter from Nazareth," without formal rabbinic training, who healed on the Sabbath. To "judge righteous judgment," however, means to examine all the evidence thoroughly before reaching a conclusion. Lloyd-Jones pleads with his listeners to consider the full evidence about Christ: His miraculous works, His teachings, His resurrection, the transformation of His followers, fulfilled prophecies, and the testimony of changed lives throughout church history. He insists that only one conclusion can account for all these facts: "This is the Son of God, the savior of the world."

How does Lloyd-Jones describe what happens when we approach Christ?

According to Lloyd-Jones, when we approach Christ thinking we are examining Him, we soon discover that He is examining us. He warns, "It's a dangerous thing, in a sense, to come anywhere near the Lord Jesus Christ." The moment we begin to speak about Him or judge Him, we actually reveal more about ourselves than about Him. Lloyd-Jones says the defining mark of someone who has truly encountered Christ is humility, not arrogant self-confidence: "When a man truly comes face to face with him, he realizes that this is true. And he becomes humble and he becomes silent. He becomes reverent. He becomes careful." The preacher challenges his listeners with the pointed question: "Are you still standing on your feet as you're considering him, or are you looking up at him?"

How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones explain Jesus' argument about healing on the Sabbath?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones highlights Jesus' brilliant logical argument exposing the inconsistency of His critics. Jesus points out that these Jewish authorities would circumcise a child on the Sabbath if that was the eighth day after birth, reasoning that this partial cleansing was permissible despite Sabbath restrictions. Yet they condemned Jesus for making "a man every whit whole on the Sabbath day." Lloyd-Jones explains that Jesus is showing how they were "so blinded by the letter that you can't see the spirit" and were "so tied down by prejudices and preconceived notions" that they became "utterly ridiculous." They focused on minor details (that He healed on the Sabbath) while missing the greater reality (the miraculous healing that no one else could perform). This illustrates how unbelief is "bogged down in irrelevant details" and misses the true significance of Christ.