32 Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. 33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven. (Matthew 10:32-33 KJV)
William Burkitt’s Commentary
Observe here, 1. That not to confess Christ, in his account, is to deny him: and to deny him, is to be ashamed of him.
2. That whosoever shall deny, disown, or be ashamed of Christ, either in his person in his gospel, or in his members, for any fear of favour of man, shall with shame be disowned, and eternally rejected by him at the dreadful judgment of the great day.
Christ may be denied three ways; doctrinally, by an erroneous and heretical judgment; verbally, by oral expressions; vitally, by a wicked and unholy life.
But woe to that soul that denies Christ any of these ways!
Thomas Scott
Verses 32-33: For the further encouragement of the apostles, and of others who should be exposed to persecution for Christ’s sake, he declared that everyone who boldly acknowledged him, and professed his truth in the face of danger and opposition, without turning aside from fear or shame, shall be abundantly recompensed; for he would confess and own him as a disciple, a friend, a brother, in the presence of his Father; especially in the day of judgment, and final separation betwixt his people and his enemies.
But on the other hand, whosoever shall be induced by worldly motives to deny or disown Christ, or renounce his service, would at the most awful crisis be denied by him before his Father, and left to perish with his enemies, notwithstanding his former profession, gifts, or station in the church.
In the course of time, many believers while facing some difficult times in their lives denied Jesus, but they genuinely repented and were forgiven. One such example is Peter. Hence Jesus does not mean to deny every Christian who ever denied Him but He would rather deny those who denied him for good.
In like manner every confession to Christ cannot be entitled to the blessed recompense here promised, but that only which is the genuine and the constant language of faith and love.
Spurgeon’s Commentary on Matthew
32-33 Because divine providence rules over all, the destiny of believers is secure beyond fear of harm, and they must not shrink from the boldest avowal of their faith because of anxiety to preserve their lives. Our business is to confess Christ before men. In him the truth we acknowledge begins, centers, and ends. Our Confession of Faith is a confession of Christ: he is our theology, or Word of God.
What a joy to confess him now! What a reward to be confessed by him hereafter in the glory-world! It will be a high offense against the great God, whom Jesus twice calls “my Father which is in heaven”, if we fail to confess his Son on earth. It is clear that in this passage to “deny” Jesus means,—not to confess him.
What a grave warning is this for the cowardly believer! Can a nonconfessing faith save? To live and die without confessing Christ before men is to run an awful risk. Actually to recant and give up Christ must be a dreadful crime, and the penalty is fearful to contemplate. Disowned by Jesus before his Father who is in heaven!
What hell can be worse? Lord, let me never blush to own thee in all companies! Work in me a bold spirit by thy Holy Spirit. Let me confess thy truth whatever the spirit of the age may be, uphold thy church when she is most despised, obey thy precepts when they cost most dear, and glory in thy name when it is most reproached.