THE GOSPEL OF LUKE: - Vital Christianity

1THE GOSPEL OF LUKE:“AN ORDERLY ACCOUNT”OF THE LIFE AND MINISTRY OF JESUSVOLUME 3Lars Wilhelmsson

2CONTENTSIntroduction 41. Lk 12:1-12 Warnings and Encouragements 5-102. Lk 12:13-21Watch Out for Greed! The Parable of the Rich Fool 11-193. Lk 12:22-34 The Folly of Worry 20-284. Lk 12:35-48 Watchfulness–Preparedness and Fidelity 29-325. Lk 12:49-53 Jesus Does Not Bring Peace but Division 33-376. Lk 12:54-59 Interpreting the Times 38-427. Lk 13:1-5 Suffering and Sin–Repent or Perish 43-508. Lk 13:6-9 Watch Out for a Barren Life! -The Parable of the Fig Tree 51-559. Lk 13:10-17 A Crippled Woman Healed on the Sabbath 56-6210. Lk 13:18-21 Small Things Matter-The Parables of the Mustard Seedand the Yeast 63-7011. Lk 13:22-30 The Narrow Door 71-7612. Lk 13:31-35 Jesus’ Sorrow for Jerusalem 77-8313. Lk 14:1-14 Jesus at a Pharisee’s House 84-9114. Lk 14:15-24 Excuses–The Parable of the Great Banquet 92-9815. Lk 14:25-35 The Cost of Being a Disciple 99-10616. Lk 15:1-32 Lost People Matter to God–The Parables of the Lost Sheep,the Lost Coin and the Lost Son 107-11517. Lk 16.1-15 Plan for the Future–The Parable of the Shrewd Manager 116-12118. Lk 16:16-18 The Fierce Pursuit of the Kingdom of God 122-129

319. Lk 16:19-31 A Man Consumed With Wealth–The Parable of the Rich Manand Lazarus 130-13720. Lk 17:1-6 Temptation, Sin and Forgiveness 138-14321. Lk 17:7-10 Unworthy Servants 144-14922. Lk 17:11-19 Ingratitude–The Healing of the Ten Lepers 150-15723. Lk 17:20-37 The Coming of the Kingdom of God 158-16424. Lk 18:1-8 Persistence in Prayer–The Parable of the Persistent Widow 165-17025. Lk 18:9-14 Self-Righteousness–The Parable of the Phariseeand the Tax Collector 171-17726. Lk 18:15-17 Little Children and Jesus 178-18327. Lk 18:18-30 The Rich Young Ruler 184-19128. Lk 18:31-34 Jesus Predicts His Death Again 192-19729. Lk 18:35-43 A Blind Beggar Receives His Sight 198-20430. Lk 19:1-10 Zacchaeus, The Crook 205-21131. Lk 19:11-27 Wise and Foolish Stewards–The Parable of the Ten Minas 212-218

4INTRODUCTIONChapters 12 and the first half of chapter 13 mark Jesus’ teaching ministry in Judea whereas thelatter part of chapter 13 and the rest of the chapters until the middle of chapter 19 focuses on the ministryof Jesus in and around Perea (13:22-19:27).

5CHAPTER 1

6WARNINGS AND ENCOURAGEMENTSLuke 12:1-12In this next section (12:1-12) we will look at five major teachings or themes of Jesus:1. Religious Hypocrisy2. Whom we are to fear3. Acknowledging Christ before people4. The Unpardonable Sin5. Trusting GodBEWARE OF THE LEAVEN OF THE PHARISEES (12:1-3)Luke begins this section by repeating the warning against religious hypocrisy:” Meanwhile, when a crowd of many thousands had gathered, so that they weretrampling on one another, Jesus began to speak first to His disciples, saying:‘Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that willnot be made known. What you have said in the dark will be heard in thedaylight, and what you have whispered in the ear in the inner rooms will beproclaimed from the roofs’” (vv. 1-3)..Sin is being religiously two-faced, claiming to be righteous while ignoring the attitude andrelationships God expects from us. Those who saw themselves as helpers of God actually hadbecome hindrances to the revelation of God to His people. Religious leadership begins withpersonal obedience to God’s revelation.The point Jesus is making is that nothing hidden through hypocrisy will fail to be madeknown. This is similar to what the writer to the Hebrew Christians says:“For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword,it penetrates even to dividing of soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges thethoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’ssight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whomwe must give account” (Heb 4:12-13).God’s Word is God’s Candid Camera. It catches us at the most unexpected times.

7THE ONE TO FEAR (12:4-7)"I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after thatcan do no more. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who,after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tellyou, fear Him” (vv. 4-5).God alone has the power to throw us into hell. The Greek word for “hell” is gehennaThis word should not be confused with Hades, the general name for the place of the dead. In theNew Testament gehenna is used only in Matthew, Mark, James (3:6) and here in Luke. Gehennaderives its name from a deep ravine south of Jerusalem, the Valley of (the Sons of) Hinnom.”During the reigns of the wicked Ahaz and Manasseh, human sacrifices to the Ammonite godMolech were offered there. Josiah desecrated the valley because of the pagan worship there(2 Ki 23:10; Jer 7:31-32). It became a perpetually burning city dump and later a figure for theplace of final punishment.When Jesus says that we are to “fear” Him He is talking about respecting His absoluteauthority. This means to stand in awe of His majesty and trust in Him.It was the great Scottish preacher John Knox who said that when we fear God we haveno one else to fear.Verse 6 and 7 gives us the basis of such trust:“ Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgottenby God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don't beafraid; you are worth more than many sparrows” (vv. 6-7).God even cares for little birds, sold cheaply for food. No wonder He cares for us. Whileanimals and people are related, God places more value on people than on animal life (Ge 2:7).God is a just and loving heavenly Father, not a Celestial Cop or a Tyrant.Knowing God places such worth on us, we need not fear the physical and psychologicalattacks of other people. We need fear only God and be about His business.ACKNOWLEDGE CHRIST BEFORE PEOPLE (12:8-12)"I tell you, whoever acknowledges Me before men, the Son of Man will alsoacknowledge Him before the angels of God. But He who disowns Me beforemen will be disowned before the angels of God” (vv. 8-9).

When a person acknowledges that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God (Mt 16:16;1 Jn 2:22), Jesus acknowledges that the individual is His follower:“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven,but only he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven” (Mt 7:21).8And it is crystal clear who makes the final decision about a person’s eternal destiny: Jesus.THE UNPARDONABLE SIN (12:10)“And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, butanyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven” (v. 10).Matthew gives us an extensive account of what Jesus is referring to:“ But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, ‘It is only by Beelzebub,the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.’Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, ‘Every kingdom dividedagainst itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided againstitself will not stand. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself.How then can his kingdom stand? And if I drive out demons by Beelzebub,by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges.But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of Godhas come upon you.Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man's house and carry off hispossessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can rob his house.He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with mescatters. And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men,but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone whospeaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone whospeaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or inthe age to come” (Mt 12:24-32).The context of this saying in Matthew’s gospel account (Mt 12:24,28,32) suggests that the“unpardonable sin” was attributing to Satan Christ’s authenticating miracles (Heb. 2:4) done in the powerof the Holy Spirit:“He [Jesus] said this because they were saying, ‘He has an evil spirit’” (Mk 3:30).

9Beelzebub had once been the name of a Caananite deity or god called "the lord of the high place."By this time it was used by Jews to denote the ruler of the abyss, the dwelling place of demons. Whenthe Jews knew of this, Jesus exposed the absurdity of arguing that Satan's power could be overthrown bySatan's aid. Then He accused those who had proposed such an illogical conclusion with "blasphemingagainst the Holy Spirit." Why? It is because they deliberately ascribed the activity of the Holy Spirit todemons.Forgiveness is available for every kind of sin, for every form of blasphemy as long as there isgenuine repentance (confession and turning from sin). But when there is blasphemy against the Holy Spiritthere is no forgiveness because those who commit it and persist in it do not know that they aresinning. Therefore they cannot ask for forgiveness. Awareness of sin is fundamental to confession,repentance, and thus forgiveness. The blasphemy against the Holy Spirit makes us totally unaware ofhaving sinned.Mark points out the reason Jesus charged those scribes with blaspheming against the Holy Spirit:it was because "they had said, 'He has an evil spirit" (Mk 3:30). The Kingdom of God was beingmanifested as Jesus was proclaiming its message. He exercised its power by casting out demons and thusbringing relief to people caught in the grip of Satan. Thus Jesus argued:"But if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the Kingdom of God hascome to you" (11:20).If people were able to witness the tremendous work of Jesus as He miraculously ministered topeople and yet conclude that He did so by demonic power, then their spiritual ears and eyes were totallyshut to the light of God's truth. To become that hardened to light meant that for these people light hadbecome darkness and good had become evil.The point is, the light is available for those who will seek it and accept it, but for those whoknowingly, stubbornly, persistently refuse the obvious light, where else can they hope to receiveillumination?TRUST GOD FOR WISDOM AT THE TIME YOU NEED IT (12:11-12)"When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worryabout how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, for the Holy Spiritwill teach you at that time what you should say" (vv.11-12).

10Jesus promised His disciples that when they went on trial for their faith the Spirit would give themprophetic gifts to enable them to testify faithfully and to defend themselves effectively. In John, the Spiritis called an advocate or lawyer (paraclete) who will defend the disciples on trial (Jn 16:5-15). The Spirithelps Christians guard what has been entrusted to us (2 Ti 1:14). This protective work of the Spirit wasespecially important to Christians experiencing persecution. It is important for us to know the Spirit willdefend us, will assist us to be witnesses.APPLICATIONTrust the God of grace! We do not need “the words” until the very time we are asked to speak.Today’s grace is for today and tomorrow’s grace is for tomorrow. God gives His grace exactly when weneed it.

11CHAPTER 2

12WATCH OUT FOR GREED!The Parable of the Rich FoolLuke 12:13-21“Civilization is a limitless multiplication of unnecessary necessities.”--Mark Twain“That man is admired above all men who is not influenced by money.”--Cicero"Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's lifedoes not consist in the abundance of his possessions" (v. 15).The perils of poverty are well documented. Malnutrition and starvation kills 35,000 children everyday. Forty million people die every year from poverty’s perils–the lack of food, shelter, health, educationand hope. The poor are vilified and robbed of their self-esteem.Riches have their perils as well. A rich young man asked Jesus what he could do to have anauthentic, meaningful life. Accustomed to paying the necessary price to achieve his goals, he assumed thathe could attain or purchase the quality of life taught and lived by Jesus.MATERIALISMMany of us have either seen or heard of the bumper sticker which reads:“He who dies with the most toys wins.” (Bumper Sticker)Toys! The world is full of them. They come in every shape, size, color and price rangeimaginable.And they are not just for kids! We all have them and love to play with them. Someone onceremarked,“The only difference between a man and a boy is the price of his toy.”AN UNREASONABLE REQUEST (12:13-14)In the Parable of the Rich Fool, a younger brother makes an unreasonable request of Jesus:

"Someone in the crowd said to Him, 'Teacher, tell my brother to divide theinheritance with me.' Jesus replied, 'Man, who appointed Me a judge or anarbiter between you?'" (vv. 13-14)13What audacity! In the midst of Jesus’ instructions about the Kingdom, someone suddenly calls outand interrupts the whole group with a request—a favor—the favor of having Jesus straighten out his legalaffairs.Maybe he was a younger brother who didn’t feel he is treated fairly. After all, it was vital in Israelthat the inheritance protected any land that may be in the family instead of landing in the possession ofother individuals or tribes.Hebrew Scripture is clear:"When he wills his property to his sons, he must not give the rights of the firstbornto the son of the wife he loves in preference to his actual firstborn, the son of thewife he does not love. He must acknowledge the son of his unloved wife as thefirstborn by giving him a double share of all he has. That son is the first sign ofhis father's strength. The right of the firstborn belongs to him" (Dt 21:16-17)."If a man dies and leaves no son, turn his inheritance over to his daughter. If hehas no daughter, give his inheritance to his brothers. If he has no brothers, givehis inheritance to his father's brothers. If his father had no brothers, give hisinheritance to the nearest relative in his clan, that he may possess it" (Nu 27:8-11)The first-born son, then, was to receive double the inheritance of any of his younger brothers andwould serve as the patriarch of the family and thus the executor of his father's inheritance (specifically truein the case of "real estate." The younger son wants the estate divided so that he gets a share, but that willreduce the amount of farmable land for the landholding as a whole. The elder son would rather continue asit was under his father, all the brothers farming the land and supporting their families with it, rather thandividing it up into smaller and smaller pieces which each would independently control.Since the Mosaic Law didn't specifically cover such an instance, the younger son had a right totake the matter to court, usually formed by the elders in his village, who would rule on the issue. Inaddressing Jesus as "teacher," probably Aramaic Rabbi, the man is trying to get Jesus, as a well-knownrabbi, to act as a judge in this property case. In Jesus' day the title "Rabbi" was used of honored teachers,but it was not until the Second Century that men were ordained into the office of Rabbi and the role ofjudge was more prominent in their position.

14In turn Jesus questions the man rather directly by asking him who has appointed Jesus “judge” ofthis case. Obviously Jesus isn't questioning His own role as Judge of the Living and the Dead (2 Ti 4:1),rather he is probably questioning the man's motives.The man is talking out of both sides of his mouth since on the one hand he is asking Jesus to bethe arbiter in this case, and on the other hand he says,"Tell my brother to . . ."He has the unmitigated gall to tell Jesus what to do! This means that he has already decided whathe wants, and now is looking for a judge who will side with him. Instead of appealing for the properprocedures in such a case—the legal structure of his neighborhood—he is trying to bypass such a processand quickly and neatly get Jesus to take jurisdiction over the case. Rather than playing into this man’shand, Jesus rebukes the man's selfish and arrogant overture. It was hardly Jesus' role to judge petty probatecases when He was busy teaching about the Kingdom of God.WATCH OUT FOR GREED! (12:15)Instead of playing into the rich man’s hand, Jesus warns him about greed:"Then He said to them, 'Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed;a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions'" (v. 15).Jesus read this man’s heart. This man's desperate desire for possessions compelled him to tell noneother than the Son of God what He must do to accomplish this desire. His attitude was, “He owes it tome!” “I deserve it!”Is a desire for justice wrong? No. Is it wrong to sue for one's financial rights in court? No. God isa God of justice. But the issue of motivation is obvious in this story. Here is more than a call for justice. Infact, this man seems consumed with the inheritance. Instead of speaking to Jesus privately, He puts Himon the spot by interrupting Him to make his point publicly. So Jesus identifies his real motive: greed.The Greek word used for "greed" is pleonexia which means "insatiableness, avarice,covetousness,” literally “a desire to have more.'" This is a different word from Greek harpage which istranslated "robbery, plunder, greediness" and is used to describe the Pharisees' heart in Luke 11:39. In thatcontext greed involved taking away what belonged to others whereas in here it is a desire for more. OurEnglish word "greed" is defined as "excessive or reprehensible acquisitiveness” or “avarice” which means"excessive or insatiable desire for wealth or gain; greediness, cupidity." It comes from the word "avid"(avidus) which means "desirous to the point of greed” or “urgently eager."

15Notice that Jesus warns not just against greed, but against "all kinds of greed." Greed takes allsorts of forms, and is easily hidden. Since greed is defined by excessiveness, how much is enough? Howmuch is too much?The temptation to greed requires vigilance, hence Jesus' warning words, "Watch out!" and "Be onyour guard" (phulasso means "watch, guard . . . guard against, look out for, avoid"). Greed is firstidentified clearly as the Tenth Commandment,"You shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet your neighbor'swife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything thatbelongs to your neighbor" (Ex 20:17).Covetousness is the desire for something that one doesn't have a legitimate right to, something thatwhich belongs to someone else.LIFE IS NOT MEASURED BY ONE’S ABUNDANCE OF POSSESSIONS (12:15)After warning his disciples against greed, Jesus gives the reason for this warning, "because aman's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions" (v. 15). This is one of Jesus' themes. "Mandoes not live by bread alone" (Lk 4:4; Dt 8:3).When you think about it, Jesus' word to his First Century disciples is a radical statement even inthe Twenty-First Century: "A man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions." This runscontrary to they way our society thinks and values and lives.Rich people are more successful than poor people.Wealthy people are more important than poor people.Well-to-do people are more sought after to serve on civic boards and commissions, since theybring status, money, and presumably have wisdom.Well-off people are more believable in court than the poor. Success in our culture is calibratedlargely in terms of quantity—quantity of degrees, wealth, salary, perks, possessions, publications. We areambitious, we are trained by our society to want more, to strive for more.But Jesus says, "a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions" (v. 15). Andthat means we must choose to change, or choose to cover our base covetousness with piety in order toconvince others, and hopefully ourselves, that we aren't really covetous. Not us!

16THE RICH MAN’S GOOD CROP (12:16)In an agrarian society where most in the villages were subsistence farmers, agricultural success isa natural example for Jesus to use."And he told them this parable: 'The ground of a certain rich man produced a goodcrop'" (v. 16).This is a story about a hypothetical rich farmer. Jesus' listeners knew of rich farmers. They couldgrasp this immediately. It sounds like his own land, though he may have purchased or leased land from hispoorer neighbors. The ground is said to have "produced a good crop." The rich man was totally unawarethat it was God's grace that caused the land to bring such a good yield.BIGGER IS BETTER: BUILD BIGGER BARNS (12:17-18)Because of a large harvest, the rich man had the pleasant problem of a lack of storage. Luke tellsus what he did:"He thought to himself, 'What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.' Then hesaid, 'This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and thereI will store all my grain and my goods.'" (vv. 17-18)The rich farmer decided to "tear down" his storehouses, these are probably silos or perhapsrectangular storehouses. The most common type of above-ground granary unearthed in Palestine wascircular, with openings below the almost flat root so that the air could circulate. StThe rich farmer's insistence that he tear down his current granaries shows that he did not want tobuild on his fertile land, but rather put larger granaries in place of his present ones. And his abundance isfar greater than what he needs for his own household.He seems to be a shrewd businessman in that instead of dumping his grain on the market during agood harvest year, he aims to hold the grain for the future when he can get higher prices.PUTTING OUR TRUST IN POSSESSIONS (12:19)Jesus doesn't fault him on his agricultural acumen, but on his independent attitude:"And I'll say to myself, 'You have plenty of good things laid up for many years.Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry'" (v. 19).

17The man actually believes that his riches will now insulate his life from hardship. God isn't in theequation at all. The man's focus is squarely on goods rather than God. We may be critical, but we areprobably a bit uncomfortable with the man's portrayal, since many of us are working for just such ascenario when we can take life easy, not have to scrimp, and spend our lives in luxury. What a life!Poverty is no guarantee against greed. It can be a breeding ground for a lust for money.The writer of Proverbs recognizes the dangers as he prays,"Give me neither poverty nor riches,but give me only my daily bread.Otherwise, I may have too muchand disown you and say, 'Who is the Lord?'Or I may become poor and steal,and so dishonor the name of my God" (Pr 30:8-9).FOOLISH CHOICES (12:20)After the man has congratulated himself on his good fortune and his guarantee of a pain-free lifefor the future, God speaks."But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demandedfrom you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?'" (v. 20)"You fool" (aphron) means foolish or ignorant. Jesus also used this in Luke 11:40 where Hedirects it towards the Pharisees.How foolish and ignorant it is to think anyone can guarantee one’s own future!"This very night your life will be demanded from you." The idea here is that our life is not in ourown hands, but in God's hands. He is in charge, and he can demand our lives at any moment he chooses.Unfortunately the rich man's focus was on himself—"what you have prepared for yourself"—noton God. And so God chose that night to take back what belonged to him in the first place.GREEDGreed is the excessive love of money and is akin to the sin of idolatry in that it is erecting andworshipping a false god: materialism.

18It fuels the engines of contemporary Western life. Our national economy seems to depend on anexpanding rate of consumption. Given human nature, it has bet on a sure thing. Raising our standard ofliving is as American as apple pie. The day’s leading economic indicators are listened to with batedbreath.Bigger, brighter and more expensive is the name of the game. We see materialism in every strataof society, often resulting in preposterous consumption in a desperately needy world. Advertisementsconvince us that we must have it all, and state lotteries promise us that we can have it all now. We haveheard the seductive message: “You never know.”While we claim our love of freedom, could it be that what we really lust for is not freedom but thepower to satisfy our material wants? If we were living in a Communist country, for instance, would itreally be political freedom that we would miss the most? Or would we find almost unbearable living in atiny apartment, having to wait for many years to be able to afford a second-rate car or not having a varietyof goods from which to choose?From our cradles to our graves our world coaxes us to acquire. While the ancient Hebrews wrotethe law on their gates and doorposts and wore it on their foreheads, we do the same, but ours is the law ofsupply and demand. Our athletes are not awarded laurels; they’re awarded commercial contracts to wearconspicuous brand-name labelsAvarice in a society where everything is available, and often on sale, is a constant threat to all ofus. Passing fads rather than lasting quality easily becomes our criteria for purchases.We struggle with money because we want “more.” Maybe just a little more, but definitely more.And we are convinced, deep down where we make our choices, that if we had more, we would be happierand life would be better.RICH TOWARD GOD? (12:21)Then Jesus warns against selfish and self-centered living:"This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is notrich toward God" (v. 21).In the Book of Psalms, David pointed out that anyone who can't understand that he is a mortalcreature, and that a Higher Being has created him, is a “fool” (Ps 14:1). Many may be educated fools,nevertheless, they are still fools. When the Day of reckoning comes, our wealth or reputation will notmean anything. The only question then will be,“Is he or she, rich toward God”?

19TREASURES IN HEAVENHow do you become rich toward God? In the Gospels we see a contrast between laying uptreasures in heaven vs. laying up treasures for ourselves.What does “laying up treasures in heaven” mean?It means humbly living for God now.APPLICATIONSince what we do for others is what we do for God (Mt 25), in a very practical way we need tolive lovingly and selflessly by doing good deeds such as praying for others, fasting on their behalf, givingto the needy, etc.

20CHAPTER 3

21THE FOLLY OF WORRYLuke 12:22-34“Worry is like a rocking chair--it will give you something to do, but it won’t get youanywhere.”--AnonymousA fellow was walking down the street and as he saw a friend with a troubled look on his face hesaid, “Your sure look, worried, John.” John replied with a scowl, “Man, I’ve got so many problems that ifanything bad happens today, it will be two weeks at least before I can worry about it.”“An advantage of a one-track mind,” someone pointed out, “is that you can think of only one ofyour troubles at a time.”Although worry plagues us all, according to Jesus it doesn’t need to. Worry, in fact, is just plainwasteful. Jesus said to his disciples:"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or aboutyour body, what you will wear. Life is more than food, and the body more thanclothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom orbarn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds!”(vv. 22-24)UNREASONABLEJesus begins his argument that worry is unreasonable with the word “Therefore.” Whenever wesee this word in the Bible we must ask ourselves what it is “there” for. This word is always used to showthe connection with what is going to be said to that which already has been said. In the first part of thischapter (Lk 12:22-34) Jesus reasoned that since transitory earthly treasures do not satisfy but force us toforfeit the eternal pleasures of heaven (Mt 12:32-34), and since the hunger and searching for suchtreasures blurs our mental and moral vision (v. 33; Mt 6:22-23), and because a choice must be madebetween God and mammon (possessions or power of possessions—Mt 6:24); it only makes sense tochoose the incorruptible pleasures of heaven over the corruptible treasures of earth, the light whichenables us to see spiritual realities over the darkness that blinds us to it, God as our Master who frees us tobe all we are meant to be over mammon as our master who enslaves us by our own appetites.Once we are reasonable and make this wise choice, says Jesus, it doesn’t make sense to worryabout the less important things of life—the earthly things such as food, drink and clothing. To choosespiritual treasures, light and God over earthly treasures, darkness and mammon, is to set our prioritiesstraight. Once we choose the spiritual, says Jesus, it is illogical to become preoccupied with the earthly.

22UNNECESSARY (12:23)Worry is unreasonable and wasteful first of all because it is unnecessary. Speaking to humanbeings who have chosen to follow Him (His disciples), Jesus is making the point that it does not makesense for them to allow material things to become an obsession to them. He makes this point forcefully byasking a question:“Life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes.”(v. 23; Mt 6:25)Jesus as the logician uses an argument with the people of Rome when He reasoned,“He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all—how willHe not also along with Him, graciously give us all things?” (Ro 8:32).Paul’s argument was that if God gave His very best—His one and only Son—to us, will He notprovide for anything else that we would need (which would be nothing in comparison to giving Hisprecious Son)?JUST A BODY?The issue Jesus is confronting His followers with is: “Is man just a body or is he more than abody?” If the answer is that man is just a body then it would make perfect sense to be preoccupied withtaking care of that body. But if a man is more than just a body, then obsession with meeting just man’sphysical needs is unreasonable. Because man was made a living soul, there is more to his life than just aphysical body and the accumulation of material things.Jesus is making the point that life itself should receive greater attention than food and clothing.Food, important as it is, is not an end in itself, but rather a means to the end of supporting life. The personwhose primary objective in life is to secure good and clothing has missed the most important thing. Just asJesus told the Pharisees, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath” (Mk 2:27), so it canbe said that food and clothing was made for man, not man for food and clothing.UNPRODUCTIVE (12:25-26)Worry is wasteful because it was unnecessary since God, our heavenly Father, knows our everyneed and has pledged to take care of us. In this chapter He continues to show the wastefulness of worrybecause it is unproductive.Jesus made this point by asking the question:

“ Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? Since you cannotdo this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest? (vv. 25-26)Worry is unproductive because no one by worrying can add a cubit to his life.23This verse can have two possible meanings. It can mean that no man by worrying can add a cubitto his height; but a cubit is eighteen inches and no man would ever contemplate adding eighteen inches tohis height. It can mean that no man by worrying can add the shortest space to his life; and that meaning ismore likely. It is Jesus’ argument that worry is pointless anyway.The Serenity Prayer states:“O God, give us the serenity to accept what cannot be changed, the courage tochange what can be changed, and the wisdom to know the difference.”--Reinhold NiebuhrTwo CategoriesEverything you have ever worried about can be classified under two categories:1. Things you can’t change--If you can’t change it, why worry about it?“The moving finger writes, and having writ,Moves on; nor all thy piety nor witShall lure it back to cancel half a line,Nor all thy tears wash out a word of it.”--Omar KhayamThe past is past. It is not that a man can or ought to dissociate himself from his past;but he ought or use his past as a spur and a guide for better action in the future, and not assomething about which he broods until he has worried himself into a paralysis of action.2. Things you can change—If it is something you can change, don’t worry—get up and change it. Why worry yourself into a state of physical exhaustion whenwith the same physical and mental energy you could develop a concrete course ofaction and get something done.One fellow said, “Don’t tell me that worry doesn’t do any good. I know better! Most of the thingsI worry about don’t happen!”I doubt that they don’t happen because we worry about them. Strange logic!

24A LESSON FROM NATURE (12:27-31)In addition to God’s care for creatures such as birds, our Lord demonstrates God’s own careshown in nature. He said:"Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not evenSolomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothesthe grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, howmuch more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! And do not set your heart onwhat you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after allsuch things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom,and these things will be given to you as well” (vv. 27-31).Jesus’ argument is that if God so beautifully clothes flowers which bloom for just a few momentsand then are gone, will He not much more clothe man. If God provides for that which is temporary—flowers, will He not provide for that which is eternal—man?Jesus is not telling us to imitate the birds and the flowers, for that is impossible, but He is askingus to observe God’s providential care for creatures which are less valuable in His sight than human beings.There is not be found in birds man’s straining to see a future which he cannot see, and man’s seeking tofind security in things stored up and accumulated against the future.Jesus points to the birds of the air:A LESSON FROM THE BIRDS (12:24)“Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storehouse orbarn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds.”(v. 24)The word “consider” means “notice carefully” or “learn thoroughly.” Jesus is not telling them tojust “notice” the birds and flowers. His intention is that they may learn a lesson from them. And what wasthis lesson? In the case of the birds it was: Trust—there is no worry in their lives, no attempt to pile upgoods for an unforeseen and unforeseeable future; and yet their lives go on. Here, Jesus reverses Hisargument, reasoning from the lesser to the greater. He says if birds, who are created to serve Me, arenourished without worry, how much more ought I, who am created to serve my Maker, to be nourishedwithout worry. It was on the basis of this truth that Martin Luther once said:“God Himself would have to die of hunger before He permitted one of His childrento starve.”

25Jesus is not saying that the birds do not work. They do not just nestle on some twig and wait forfood to drop into their mouths. In fact it has been said that no one works harder than the average sparrow.She gathers insects and worms, prepares her nest, lays and incubates her eggs, cares for her young andteaches them how to fly, etc. Many birds show instinctive forethought by migrating to warmer or coolerregions as the seasons may dictate. Here is no encouragement to idleness or lack of forethought. The pointJesus is making is not that birds do not work, but that they do not worry.I have never quite understood why God always provided me with more work when there has beena financial need. I suppose what makes this so confusing is that I had a good friend in seminary whowould always receive just the amount of money needed in his mail box. Whenever there was a need, hewould pray (and he was an unusual person of prayer) and God would provide money through some friend,relative or total stranger. I also would pray, but sure enough, God would provide another job.God has different ways of providing for His children. It’s not for us to question why He usescertain ways and means in providing for us; rather, the point is that He provides.it:Isn’t it strange that Jesus needs to use mere animals to teach man His lessons? Martin Luther put“You see, he is making the birds our schoolmasters and teachers. It is a great and abidingdisgrace to us that in the Gospel a helpless sparrow should become a theologian and apreacher to the wisest of men . . . Whenever you listen to a nightingale, therefore, youare listening to an excellent preacher.”Worry happens when we assume responsibility God never intended us to have. Meeting ournecessities is not our responsibility. It is our responsibility to work hard; it is God’s responsibility to seethat our needs are met. After we do our part, we must trust God to do His.Each time that we hear a bird singing, we are witnessing living proof that God is good, that Hecares about all of His creatures.ESSENTIAL (12:30)Some people interpret Jesus’ teaching to mean that mundane, everyday things like food, drink andclothing are unimportant and that we should be spiritually-minded by ignoring such things and concentrateon other-worldly concerns. But this is not what Jesus meant. His point is that we do not need to giveundue concern about life’s necessities, not because they are not important, but because they are essential.Jesus realistically observed: “. . . your heavenly Father knows that you need them” (v. 30; Mt 6:32).

26Jesus points out that God gave us life, and if He gave us life, surely we can trust Him for the lesserthings. If God gave us life, realistically we should be able to trust Him to give us food to sustain that life.If God gave us bodies, we can trust Him for clothing for those bodies. If God gave us life, we can trustHim for clothing for those bodies. If God gave us life, we can trust Him for the things which are necessaryto support life.FAITH AND WORRY (12:32)Jesus is clear that faith and worry do not belong together:"Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you thekingdom” (v. 32).The godly man of faith, George Mueller, once said,“The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith, and the beginning of true faith isthe end of anxiety.”Nobody’s Friend“I’m old man Worry, and I’m nobody’sfriend,Though I’m called in many a home.When trouble comes, for me they willsend,And it matters not where they roam.For me they will lay awake many anight,And I pay them in shattered nerves.But they hold me and cuddle metight--I am an old man whom many a oneserves.The rich and the poor invite me in,And I go wherever they ask.But they should know I hurt like sin,And unfit them for any task.

27I rob them of friends, as well as health,And things that are held most dear.And it matters not if they have wealth,They are not happy when I am near.But there are two smart ones where Ican’t abide--They are Faith and Hope, I declare!Wherever they go I stay outside--No room to crowd in there.”--H. I. AndrewsThe old cliche is true:If you’re worrying, you’re not trusting; and if you’re trusting; you’re not worrying.Trust and worry cannot sleep in the same bed. They are mutually antagonistic. The one negatesthe other.“Faith came singing into my room,And other guests took flight.Grief, anxiety, fear and gloom,Sped out into the night.I wondered that such people could be,But Faith said gently, “Don’t you see,That they can never live with me?”--AnonymousA motto has drawn a lot of attention states,“Why Trust When You Can Worry?”This motto draws attention to the fact that we are more prone to faithlessly worry about ourproblems, than to trust Almighty God to solve them. Isn’t it strange that we seem to be able to trust Godfor the most important matters in life such as our salvation, and yet we find it so difficult to trust Him forour everyday needs and concerns?

28It is important to realize the tense of the verbs Jesus uses when telling us not to worry. Here inverse 22 the meaning is, “Stop worrying!” He is saying that if we are already caught in the habit ofworrying, “stop it!” By observing God’s providential care for creatures less valuable than us we can trustHim to also care for us. Our faith in the faithfulness of our heavenly Father enables us to stop worrying.RECKLESS GENEROSITY (12:33-34)Jesus ends this section by encouraging His anxious followers to be recklessly generous:“ Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves thatwill not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thiefcomes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heartwill be also” (vv. 33-34).Instead of gathering for themselves all they can get to become secure in this transitory world,Jesus tells His disciples to invest in the eternal Kingdom by give it all away to the poor. And they are to doso because where their investment is located—the Kingdom—that is where their heart will be as well.WHEN TO WORRYSomeone has pointed out that there is a time to worry. He put the thought in a poem entitled,“When To Worry”:“When we see the lilies spinning in distress.Taking thought to manufacture their own loveliness.When we see the birds all building barns for store,‘Twill then be time to worry—not before!”--Anonymous

29CHAPTER 4

30WATCHFULNESS: PREPAREDNESS AND FIDELITYLuke 12:35-48Jesus taught the people in parables but used a more direct approach with the disciples. On thisparticular occasion Peter asked,"Lord, are you telling this parable to us, or to everyone?" (12:41)Jesus didn’t answer Peter directly, but instead told him and the others the parable. But it becomesclear that He did not intend these warnings of watchfulness just for the disciples (Mk 13:37). In thefollowing verses He emphasizes the duty to fulfill responsibilities.“ The Lord answered, "Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom themaster puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at theproper time?” (Lk 12:42)The manager is responsible for the well-being of the servants of the household. They areto be well-fed at the “proper time.” After all, a workman is worthy of his hire.THE IMPORTANCE OF DOING WORK (12:43)Here we see the importance of doing work. Jesus is speaking of His own return and is comparingHis disciples to servants waiting for their master's return. Each one has his own work to do during Hismaster’s absence:“It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns.”(v. 43)While all followers of Christ are ministers of the Gospel and thus stewards of God's mysteries,this is especially true of pastors. They are specially bound to be found "doing" when Christ comes again.While we hear about people's intentions, hopes, wishes and feelings, we need to hear more abouttheir responsibilities. The servant who is blessed is not the servant with the best intentions who is wishingfor God’s will to be done, but the servant who is actually "doing" His will.Too often we are told that work is just a manifestation of legalism and self-righteousness whichbrings Christians into bondage. The issue is not what a person should do to be saved—but what a savedperson ought to do! While we are not saved by good works (Eph 2:8-9), we are saved by the kind offaith that manifests itself in good works (Eph 2:10).

The teaching of Scripture is clear and express upon this subject. A saved man ought to be"careful to maintain good works" (Titus 3:8).31Luke summarizes Jesus’ life and ministry this way:“how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, andhow He went around doing good and healing all who were under the powerof the devil, because God was with Him” (Ac 10:38).Paul tells Timothy, his son in the faith, to command the rich “to do good, to be rich in gooddeeds, and to be generous and willing to share” (1 Ti 6:18). But such a command applies to all God’speople.The purpose for such good deeds is the glory of God:"Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works andglorify your Father in heaven" (Mt 5:16).THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE SERVANT (12:44)The servant has a lot of responsibility:.“ I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions” (Lk 12:44).The fact that the manager is put in charge of everything shows the tremendous trust the masterhas in such a person. Such trust better not be squandered.THE DANGER OF NEGLECT (12:45-46)Ill treatment, carelessness and neglect will incur the wrath of the master:“But suppose the servant says to himself, 'My master is taking a long time incoming,' and he then begins to beat the menservants and maidservants and toeat and drink and get drunk. The master of that servant will come on a daywhen he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of” (vv. 45-46).The danger is clear:“He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers” (v. 46).

32WHO IS ACCOUNTABLE? (12:41)As already pointed out, when Peter asks at the beginning of the passage, "are you telling thisparable to us, or to everyone?" (v. 41) Jesus does not give him an answer. What becomes clear is thatwhoever occupies a position of trust is accountable.It is not uncommon to hear Jesus use harsh language. In this passage it is more severe than mostother places. No wonder it seems to surprise and even shock us. There simply is no room for diplomacywhen one’s soul is at stake!There is a heaven to gain and a hell to shun!We must so live that whenever our Master comes we may be found ready to receive Him.LIGHT INCREASES ACCOUNTABILITY (12:47-48)We also learn from this parable that the greater a person’s light, the greater is his guilt if he isnot converted:"That servant who knows his master's will and does not get ready or does not dowhat his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who doesnot know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows.From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; andfrom the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.”(vv. 47-48)Jesus’ judgment of people in the West shall be far more strict than that of the heathen who neversaw a Bible or a portion of a Bible. The Westerner who remains unconverted is in graver spiritual dangerthan someone who has had little, if any access to the message of the Gospel. We must never forget thatGod’s judgment of mankind will be based on the light they have received, that is, the opportunities toembrace Jesus.APPLICATIONGuard against amassing knowledge without using it and finding light without following it. Forthen, like the servant in this parable, you too will only add condemnation to your eternal state.1. Be sure to use the knowledge God has given you. Knowledge is a dangerous thing ifit is not embraced!2. Be sure not to hoard knowledge by keeping it to yourself. It is meant to be freelyshared.

33CHAPTER 5

34JESUS DOES NOT BRING PEACE BUT DIVISIONLuke 12:49-53At first glance the thrust of this passage sounds like a contradiction of Isaiah the prophet’sdescription of the coming Messiah as the “Prince of Peace” (Isa 9:6). Similarly, Luke refers to Hiscoming as a time on earth when there will be “peace to men” (2:14) and John records Jesus’ reassuringwords, “Peace I leave with you” (Jn 14:27). Although it is true that Christ came to bring peace—peacebetween believer and God, and peace among people—it is not so when it has to do with His coming into aworld (1 Jn 2:15-17) which is dominated and controlled by Satan (1 Jn 5:19)—“the god of this world” (2Co 4:4). The inevitable result of Christ’s coming is conflict—between Christ and the antichrist, betweenlight and darkness, between God’s children and the devil’s children. As Jesus makes clear in this passage,this conflict can occur even between members of the same family (vv. 52-53).THE SOURCE OF CONFLICTBy studying the names of Satan, our enemy, we gain insight into his personality and strategy andbetter understand the reason why Jesus’ coming would bring conflict.1. Satan (1 Ch 21:1; Job 1:6; Ze 3:12; Mt 4:10; 2 Co 2:11; 1 Ti 1:20)—The name “Satan”comes from a Hebrew word meaning “to be the enemy.” It means “adversary”(1 Pe 5:8)—the one who takes a stand against another. He is the adversary of both God and man.2. Devil (Mt 4:5; 13:39; Jn 13:2; Eph 6:11; Jas 4:7)—This name occurs only in the NewTestament (33 times). As the devil he is the “slanderer,” the accuser of the Christians (Rev 12:10). Heslanders God to man (Ge 3:1-7), and man to God (Job 1:9; 2:4).3. Tempter (Mt 4:3; 1 Th 3:5)—This name indicates that one of his chief aims is to induce manto commit sin. He would cause man to disobey God and His Word by presenting the most attractivemotives to sin.4. Deceiver (Job 12:16)--Deception is one of the most effective ways that Satan uses toinfiltrate God’s people and their work. In fact, in The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares (Mt 13:24-30,36-43) Jesus points out that Satan is so effective that only Jesus Himself knows who really belong to Him.5. Evil One (Mt 6:13; 13:19,38; Eph 6:16; 1 Jn 2:13-14; 5:19)—Satan is the source of sin in theuniverse (Isa 14:13-14) and on the earth (Ge 3:1-7). He is wicked in both character and conduct.6. Beelzebub (Mt 10:25; 12:24-27)—The Prince of demons. This term means “lord of thehouse,” that is, the one in charge.7. Prince of the Power of the Air (Eph 2:2; 6:11-12)—This shows that he is over the hosts ofevil spirits (Mt 9:34; 12:24,26; Lk 11:14-18). There is doubtless allusion here to the fact that the world ofevil spirits is organized, and that Satan is its head, its leader.

358. Dragon (Isa 51:9; Rev 12:3,7; 13:2; 20:2)—This is a great monster, whether of land or sea.The term is more commonly applied to some kind of serpent or reptile, but not exclusively restricted tothat sense.9. Serpent (Ge 3:1; Isa 27:1; Rev 12:9; 20:2)—By this term Satan’s crookedness (Job 26:13) anddeceitfulness are pointed out (2 Co 11:3).10. Belial (1 Co 6:15)—This term means worthlessness, recklessness, lawlessness (2 Th 2:7).11. Lucifer (Isa 14:12)—This may refer to his brightness (Eze 28:12-13; 2 Co 11:14).12. Prince of this World (Jn 12:31; 14:30; 16:11; Eph 2:1-2; 1 Jn 5:19)—This points out hisinfluence over the governments of this world (Mt 4:8-9).13. God of this World (2 Co 4:4)—This associates him with the false religions of the world. Assuch he has his “ministers” (2 Co 11:15), “doctrines” (1 Ti 4:1), “sacrifice “(1 Co 10:21) and “synagogues” (Rev 2:9).As someone pointed out,“The devil wrestles with God, and the field of battle is the human heart.”THE JUDGMENT AND PURIFICATION OF FIRE (12:49-53)Jesus speaks of the effects that should be produced by the preaching of the Gospel:"I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it iscompleted! Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you,but division” (vv. 49-51).Although the word fire is applied figuratively in different ways in the New Testament, here it isassociated with judgment (v. 49). Judgment falls on the wicked who are separated from the righteous. Itappears as if our Lord intended by the word fire, not only the consuming influence of the Roman sword,but also the influence of His own Spirit in the destruction of sin. In both these senses this fire was alreadykindled. As yet, however, it appeared only as a spark but was soon to break out into an all-consumingflame. The fire could not burn up until after the Jews put Jesus to death. Then the Roman sword wouldcome and the Spirit of judgment and purification would be poured out.In speaking of baptism, Jesus is referring to the suffering that He was to endure on the cross.Mark uses the Jewish expression of the “cup” He was to drink (Mk 10:38-39), a common metaphor forGod’s wrath against human sin and rebellion (Ps 75:8; Isa 51:17-23; Jer 25:15-28; 49:12; 51:7). Theimage of baptism is parallel to that of the cup, referring to His suffering and death as a baptism (Ro 6:3-4).

36The meaning of this difficult passage will become clear when we consider the importanceof the word “peace” and the expectation of the Jews. The word “shalom” was used among theHebrews to express all kinds of blessings, whether temporal and spiritual, but especially theformer. The expectation of the Jews was that when the Messiah would come, all temporalprosperity would be accumulated on the land of Judea.Jesus message was that the Jewish people should not imagine, as they generally did, thatJesus came to bring peace by forcefully expelling the Roman power. The temporal prosperitywhich the Jews longed for was not the purpose of Jesus’ coming. Using the Roman sword to cutoff a disobedient and rebellious nation whose cup of iniquity was already full, and whose crimescried out for speedy vengeance, was not Jesus’ mission.From the time they rejected the Messiah, the Jews themselves were guilty of the mostcruel and destructive factions using their time to fight and kill one another. This took place untilthe Roman sword was unsheathed against them whereby they desolated the land.DIVISION IN FAMILIES (12:52-53)Because the Spirit of Christ cannot have union with the spirit of the world, even family membersend up in conflict:“From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other,three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father againstson and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother,mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law."(vv. 52-53)A father who is unconverted will oppose a converted child. The spirit who is in those who sinagainst God is opposed to that Spirit who is in the followers of the Most High. It is the spirits then that arein opposition, and not the persons. This is why Paul said that “our struggle is not against flesh andblood”—human beings—“but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this darkworld and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Eph 6:12).By these sayings our Lord showed the people that He was the Messiah, for all these things literallytook place shortly after their final rejection of Christ. The Hebrew historian Josephus gives a detailedaccount of the desolations of those times.APPLICATIONWe must be open to the purifying fire of the Holy Spirit. The fire of Jesus burns away thepride and impurities that keep us from being a faithful steward.

37By His coming, Jesus brings purifying fire and division. The purifying power of Jesus—thepower of the Holy Spirit in our lives—could only come after He had accomplished His work on the cross.We must be open to suffering for the sake of our walk with God and for the sake of others.The baptism of Jesus’ suffering immersed Him in agony. Although Jesus did not relish the agony of thecross, He welcomed it, because, like a woman in the late stages of pregnancy looks forward to givingbirth, He knew the good that would come of it—the salvation of mankind.We must be open to conflict in our relationships, including our family. This may be the pricewe have to pay for being a faithful follower of Jesus. When we follow Jesus faithfully, there may beconflict and division for His sake.

38CHAPTER 6

39INTERPRETING THE TIMESLuke 12:54-59As Jesus came out of the temple in Jerusalem, one of His followers remarked about the building'smajestic beauty. Jesus abruptly and devastatingly replied that even this magnificent building, which forthe Jewish people was the place where God's presence was especially found, was to be utterly destroyedas "not a single stone would be left in its place" (Mk 13:2). It was their rejection of the good news ofGod's messianic reign that sealed their judgment.On the Mount of Olives, overlooking Jerusalem from the east, Jesus wept as He said:"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem . . . How many times have I wanted to put My arms aroundall your people, just as a hen gathers her chickens under her wings, but you wouldnot let Me!" (Mt 23:37).It was Jesus' persistent love that led Him to weep over a city doomed because it rejected His offerof God's forgiveness.Jesus represented the disaster to take place in Jerusalem as "great tribulation" (Mt 24:21). It wasto be unprecedented and unrepeatable in its severity. Thus it was vital that these early Christians would beforewarned and armed for the coming calamity.This disaster took place some 35 years following Jesus' prophecy. The Romans used the pretenseof putting down a Jewish civil war to sweep into the country and siege Jerusalem. These Romanspracticed sacrilege as they sacrificed pigs in the temple in repudiation of the Jewish religion. A few yearsafter this siege (A. D. 70) the Roman soldiers, under the leadership of Titus, decimated the population ofthe Holy City and totally destroyed its buildings, including the temple. Having taken Jesus' predictionseriously, the Christians in Jerusalem had fled the city in time to escape destruction. This siege beganGentile domination of the Holy City and it continues to this day as the temple area remains under Moslemjurisdiction.It was natural for Peter and his friends to link the destruction of Jerusalem with the end of theworld. However, if they thought that the world would end at the same time as the fall of Jerusalem, theywere mistaken. Jesus' made it clear in His reply to the disciples' question that what happened to Jerusalemin A. D. 70 was part of the process of the coming of God's Kingdom and His judgment on evil. Markmakes this very clear in his account (Mk. 13) as he weaves together the events of A. D. 70 and the eventsof some future unknown date of the culmination of the end of the age.Even though the detailed description of the Fall of Jerusalem by our Lord is accurately fulfilled inthe events that surrounded that fall, yet that fall did not completely fulfill Jesus' prophecy. Thus Jesuslooked beyond the events of A. D. 70 to the end of the age as He Himself stated:

"For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of theworld until now—and never be equaled again" (Mt 24:21).40Although the Fall of Jerusalem was bad—devastating—it was not that bad. For instance,lightning did not come from the east and flashed to the west, the sun was not darkened, the moon did notfail to give light, the stars did not fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies were not shaken (Mt24:27,29) as predicted by Jesus as He quoted the prophecy of Old Testament Scripture (Isa 13:10; 34:4).Thus Jesus used the destruction, the desolation, of the Holy City to foreshadow a worse calamity at theend of the age—the Great Tribulation.To the question for a sign to show when the End is near, Jesus refused to answer. Instead ofgiving them "a sign," He gave them a list of signs. But this list of signs are not always helpful incalculating when the End will be since they are characteristic of the whole period between Jesus’ firstand second advent. These signs are symptoms of the battle that is raging, and increasingly raging,between good and evil, between God and Satan, between God's people and Satan's people. Even thoughthese signs point to the fact that the End is coming, they do not enable us to precisely work out atimetable when it will actually take place.AN ACCUSATION OF HYPOCRISY (12:54-56)Jesus just finished telling the people that His coming would bring division rather than peace. NowHe rebukes the religious leaders for not being able to interpret the times:“He said to the crowd: ‘When you see a cloud rising in the west, immediatelyyou say, 'It's going to rain,' and it does. And when the south wind blows, yousay, 'It's going to be hot,' and it is. Hypocrites! You know how to interpret theappearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you don't know how tointerpret this present time?” (vv. 54-56)Wind from the west was from the Mediterranean Sea, from the south it was from the desert.Although people could use such indicators to forecast the weather, they could not recognize the signs ofspiritual crisis, the coming of the Messiah, the threat of His death, the coming confrontation with Romeand the eternal consequences these events would have for their own lives.The point Jesus makes is that there are certain signs of fair and foul weather which they were inthe habit of observing and which are regular and therefore predictable. The signs of the times—thedoctrine which Jesus preached and the miracles which He performed among them—are as sure as the signs that spring or autumn is coming.Jesus was asking, “Can ye not discover from the writings of the prophets and from the eventswhich now take place, that this is the time of the Messiah, and that I am the very person foretold bythem?”But they refused to hear and thus continued to live in darkness.

42those very laws have been published. Much knowledge is a dangerous thing if it be not improved; as thiswill greatly aggravate the condemnation of its possessor. Nor will it help a person to be ignorant becausehe will be judged for what he might have known; and, perhaps, in this case, the punishment of thisvoluntarily ignorant man will be even greater than that of the more enlightened; because his crimes areaggravated by the fact that he refused to receive the light that he might neither be obligated to walk in thelight nor account for the possession of it. So we find that the plea of ignorance is a useless refuge forthose who have the Bible available and live in a country blessed with the preaching of the Gospel of JesusChrist.APPLICATIONIf we know what time it is, we know that now is the time to get right with God, before we haveto give an account to the Judge of the universe. If we wait until we stand before His throne, then it's toolate.We must make every effort to settle out of court by accepting God's offer to settle our accountat Calvary before the Day of Judgment.

43CHAPTER 7

44SUFFERING AND SIN: REPENT OR PERISHLuke 13:1-5This is the question with which most people grapple. When Thomas Aquinas, who had one of thegreatest philosophical/theological minds ever, wrote his great Summa Theologica, he could find only twoobjections to the existence of God that were challenging, even though he tried to list at least threeobjections to every one of the thousands of theses he tried to prove in that monumental work. One of thetwo objections is the apparent ability of natural science to explain everything in our experience withoutGod; and the other is the problem of evil. 1When George Barna, the public opinion pollster, conducted a nationwide survey which includedthe question, "If you could ask God only one question and you knew he would give you an answer, whatwould you ask?" The most common response, offered by 17% of those who could think of a question was"Why is there pain and suffering in the world?" 2HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVEIn the early Christian centuries and in the medieval period, this issue was as acute as it is today.In the fifth century, Augustine was intensely concerned with the problem and worked out a systematicChristian response that has proved very influential. (Even today we speak of the “Augustinian type” ofsolution to the problem of evil.) As mentioned earlier, in the thirteenth century, Thomas Aquinas listedthe reality of evil as one of the chief intellectual obstacles to Christian theism. The problem of evil forthe Christian has been equally challenging and unavoidable in all historical periods.This issue arises only for a religion which insists that the object of its worship is at onceperfectly good and unlimitedly powerful. The challenge is thus inescapable for Christianity.It was Epicurus (341-270 B.C.) who formulated the classic theodicy dilemma, which in theeighteenth century David Hume (1711-76), the Scottish philosopher, attempted to impale Christiantheology upon one or both horns of his famous dilemma:“Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is impotent. Is he able,but not willing? Then he is malevolent. Is he both able and willing? Whencethen is evil?” 3More simply put:“Either God is all-good, but He is not powerful enough to eliminate diseaseand disaster; or He is all-powerful, but He is not all-good and therefore Hedoes not end all evil.”

45THE DILEMMAIf the only people who suffered debilitating diseases or tragic losses were evil people such as AdolfHitler, Joseph Stalin, Mao Tse-tung, Pol Pot, Idi Amin, Saddam Hussein or Osama Bin Laden. But suchtragedies seem democratic since they inflict millions of innocent people.Terminal illness, floods, earthquakes, tempests, pestilences, famines or fires, wars, racism,slavery, child prostitution, genocide or slaughter and various kinds of oppression are part and parcel ofwhat it means to inhabit this earth. Why are some babies born blind, mentally defective, deformed, orborn with cancer? Why are children abused or killed? Why are wars allowed? What about innocentvictims being blown up by terrorists?The ever-fresh images of people jumping to their deaths on that September morning, 2001, theheart-breaking news of the tsunami in the Indian Ocean whose devastating waves claimed 230,000 peopleand left around 2 million people homeless in 13 countries, the campus killings in U.S. and Canada, andthe list goes on. In fact, every day about 2,500 people will die of malaria, most of them under age 5, thevast majority living in Africa. 4 All such events remind us of the unimaginable, and often, nonsensicalnature of tragedy.Michael Peterson claims that the problem of evil is a kind of "moral protest." In asking “How couldGod let this happen?” people are often claiming, "It's not fair that God has let this happen."THE GALILEANS AND THE MAN BORN BLIND (13:1-5)In Luke 13 we have references to another two disasters about which we do not knowanything other than what we are told in this passage. Jesus uses these catastrophes to address thetraditional Jewish belief that good people succeeded in life, but that the wicked suffered, that is,catastrophy indicated that the victims were wicked.“ Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileanswhose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. Jesus answered, "Do youthink that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileansbecause they suffered this way? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you toowill all perish. Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell onthem—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living inJerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish" (vv. 1-5).The first incident is among the Galileans who were killed while offering sacrifices in thetemple, which fits the reputation of Pilate. These Galileans were known for their emotionaloutbursts and thus political trouble and may have broken an important Roman regulation, whichled to their bloody punishment.

46In ancient times it was typically assumed that a calamity would happen only to those whowere extremely sinful:“As He went along, He saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him,‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’‘Neither this man nor his parents sinned,’ said Jesus, ‘but this happened sothat the work of God might be displayed in his life” (Jn 9:1-3).Jesus performed more miracles of this kind than of any other. Giving sight to the blindwas predicted as a Messianic activity (Isa 29:18; 35:5; 42:7). Thus these miracles were additionalevidence that Jesus was the Messiah (Jn 20:31).The rabbis had developed the principle that“There is no death without sin, and there is no suffering without iniquity.” 5The Old TestamentSuch questions have baffled people for thousands of years. The Old Testament is replete withexamples of people who struggled with this issue. The psalmist David testified:“I have seen a wicked and ruthless man flourishing like a green tree in itsnative soil . . .” (Ps 37:35).“For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. They haveno struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong. They are free from the burdenscommon to man; they are not plagued by human ills” (Ps 73:4-5).Solomon lamented:“In this meaningless life of mine I have seen both of these: a righteous manperishing in his righteousness, and a wicked man perishing in his wickedness.”(Ecc 7:15)death.The point here is that righteousness is no sure protection against hard times or an earlyThe prophet Habakkuk complained:

47“How long, O Lord, must I call for help, but You do not listen?Or cry out to You, ‘Violence!’ but You do not save?Why do You make me look at injustice?Why do You tolerate wrong?Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and conflict abounds.Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice never prevails.The wicked hem in the righteous, so that justice is perverted. . . .Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; You cannot tolerate wrong.Why then do You tolerate the treacherous?Why are You silent while the wicked swallow upthose more righteous than themselves?” (Hab 1:2-4,13).Habakkuk wrestles with the question, “Why does evil appear to flourish unchecked by a just andholy God?” The prophet was perplexed that wickedness, strife and oppression were rampant in Judah butGod seemingly did nothing. When told that the Lord was preparing to do something about it through the“ruthless” Babylonians (Hab 1:6), his perplexity only intensified: How could God, who is “too pure tolook on evil” v. 13), appoint such a nation “to execute judgment” (v. 12) on a people “more righteous thanthemselves” (v. 13)?Job, more than anyone, struggled with this issue:“Why do the wicked live on, growing old and increasing in power. . . . Theyspend their years in prosperity and go down to the grave in peace?” (Job 21:7,13)The whole Book of Job addresses this perennial issue of good and evil. Job strugglesthroughout with the question of God’s justice in the face of evil, especially human suffering--and, evenmore particularly, the suffering of the innocent. Chapter 21 zeroes in specifically on this question. Job isnot persuaded by his three friends’ pious answers to the question of evil. He refutes their simplisticsolutions and points out that the wicked, who want to know nothing of God’s ways and who evenconsider prayer a useless exercise (Job 21:14-15), flourish in all they do. Far from dying prematurely, asZophar assumed (20:11), the wicked live long and increase in power (21:7). Job flatly denies Bildad’sclaim that the wicked have no offspring or descendants (18:19; 21:8,11).They were even capable of thinking that a child could sin in the womb or that its soulmight have sinned in a preexistent state. They also held that terrible punishments came on certainpeople because of the sin of their parents.In Job 4:7 Eliphaz expresses this erroneous view by his statement to Job,

48“Consider now: Who, being innocent, has ever perished? Where were the uprightever destroyed?”In Job 22:5 Eliphaz falsely accused Job by his accusatory questions,“Is not your wickedness great? Are not your sins endless?”Then Eliphaz goes on and reprimands Job for gross social sins against the needy, who arenaked and hungry:“You demanded security from your brothers for no reason; you stripped men oftheir clothing, leaving them naked. You gave no water to the weary and youwithheld food from the hungry. . . .” (Job 22:6-7)He also reprimands widows and the fatherless:“And you sent widows away empty-handed and broke the strength of thefatherless” (Job 22:9).Yet the only proof Eliphaz has for Job’s alleged wickedness is his present suffering:“That is why snares are all around you, why sudden peril terrifies you, why it is sodark you cannot see, and why a flood of water covers you” (Job 22:10-11).In chapter 29 Job emphatically denies the kind of behavior of which Eliphaz accuses him:“ . . . because I rescued the poor who cried for help,and the fatherless who had none to assist him.The man who was dying blessed me;I made the widow's heart sing.I put on righteousness as my clothing;justice was my robe and my turban.I was eyes to the blind and feet to the lame.I was a father to the needy;I took up the case of the stranger.I broke the fangs of the wickedand snatched the victims from their teeth” (vv. 12:17).

49It seems then that Job exposes the weakness of theology which equates godliness with blessing,as often taught in the Wisdom literature when applied inappropriately, since they are general maxims, notlaws.It is ironic that although the Old Testament does not give a definitive philosophical/ theologicalexplanation for the problem of evil, yet it is the context of suffering that God’s presence and goodnessbecome most apparent. It is in the dark, difficult places that people often find God’s presence andcomfort.ALL ARE SINNERSBut Jesus’ pointed out that all are sinners who must repent or face a fearful end. Thephrase “those eighteen” is another incident and the “tower in Siloam” was built inside thesoutheast section of the wall of Jerusalem. It served as part of the major water system developedby King Hezekiah.We all deserve death (Ro 3:23; 6:23). This is why Jesus calls us all to repent. The factthat we all do not experience catastrophy is purely because of the mercy of God.Jesus’ warning that if they would not repent they would perish (13:5) is prophetic of thefall of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 (21:21-24). Their rebellious spirit and their political ambitionswould eventually lead to national disaster. The Jewish rejection of the kingdom of God and theirthirst for an earthly kingdom could only end in national humiliation and destruction.While it is erroneous to automatically attribute human suffering to human sin, it is safe tosay that the nation which rebels against God is headed for disaster.APPLICATIONWe must not judge others since circumstances do not indicate that God is rewarding orpunishing an individual.We must be careful in not judging ourselves since we often do not know why thingsare happening in our own lives.

150NOTESPeter Kreeft, Fundamentals of the Faith (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1988), 54-58.2Lee Strobel, The Case for Faith: A Journalist Investigates the Toughest Objections toChristianity. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2000), 29.3Kenneth Surin, Theology and the Problem of Evil (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1986), 2.4Peterson, Michael L. God and Evil: An Introduction to the Issues (Boulder, CO: WestviewPress, 1998), 9.5The NIV Study Bible, Kenneth Barker, General Editor (Grand Rapids: MI: ZondervanPublishing House, 1995), 1611.

51CHAPTER 8

52WATCH OUT FOR A BARREN LIFE!The Parable of the Barren Fig TreeLuke 13:6-9This parable is about defeat and opportunities. When we fail, we kind of take it out on God,don't we? We take it out on ourselves, and then I think we often feel that God's against us. We often feelthat he's given up on us. So we become angry. It becomes a kind of cycle. There are many folks who justwalk away from God, faith, because they feel like failures, and they really don't think they can meet God'sstandards. They think the standards are too high, and it's kind of a movement of defeat.JUDGED ACCORDING TO OPPORTUNITIESIn the Parable of the Fig Tree Jesus teaches us that we will be judged according to theopportunities we have:“ Then He told this parable: "A man had a fig tree, planted in his vineyard, and hewent to look for fruit on it, but did not find any. So he said to the man who tookcare of the vineyard, 'For three years now I've been coming to look for fruit onthis fig tree and haven't found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?'(13:6-7)soul.The “fig tree” probably refers to the Jewish nation, but it may also apply to the individualUselessness invites disaster! While the fig tree was drawing nourishment and strengthfrom the soil, it was producing nothing in return.There are two kinds of people in the world: those who take out more than they put in andthose who put in more than they take out.As human beings, we are all indebted. After all, we came into this world at the risk ofanother person: our mother. Without her and others’ nourishment and care we would have nochance to even survive, much less grow. As Westerners we have inherited a Judeo/Christiancivilization with freedoms and values we did not create.Abraham Lincoln said:“Die when I may, I want it said of me that I plucked a weed and planted a flowerwherever I thought a flower would grow.” 1

53THE GOSPEL OF THE SECOND CHANCEA fig tree normally takes three years to reach maturity. If it does not produce fruit by thattime, it is not likely to produce fruit at all. But this fig tree was given another chance.David, Jonah, Peter, Mark and Paul are examples of leaders to whom God gave severalchances. It is not a matter of whether we fall or not, because we all fall, but whether we get upagain.JonahThe first person who turned away from God is Jonah. And the story of Jonah isn't so much abouta fish, but about the God of the second chance.Jonah, a prophet, had been commanded by God to preach to the citizens of Nineveh, the capital ofthe nation of Assyria. Jonah was to tell the Assyrians that judgment was coming. And he knew that if hedid that, they could repent and they might be forgiven. That was difficult for Jonah to deal with since hehated the AssyriansThe Assyrians were easy to hate. They were arrogant and cruel conquerors, and Jonah despisedthem. To tell Jonah that he was to preach to the Assyrians was like asking a man whose family had beenthreatened by terrorists to offer those terrorists complete forgiveness.Forgiveness? Nothing would have pleased Jonah more than to see the whole bunch of theAssyrians wiped off the earth. Those Assyrians may have mattered to God, but they didn't matter toJonah.God had directed Jonah to travel east over land to Nineveh. But Jonah booked passage on a shipheaded west toward Spain. During that journey, a tremendous storm arose, and Jonah ended up in theMediterranean Sea. That's when the fish swallowed him. But God allowed Jonah to survive beingswallowed by that fish. You might have thought that God would have given up on Jonah and draftedanother prophet easier to work with.But, in the middle of the book of Jonah there is a most interesting phrase. I think it's the mostinteresting phrase in the book. It says,"The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time."Deliberately, consciously, stubbornly, Jonah had run away from God. Yet, God came to theprophet a second time and allowed him to carry on his ministry.

54PeterThe second of the two was a man called Peter, the best known of Jesus' disciples. He served as akind of unofficial spokesman for the group. Although Peter was brash and outspoken, he was intenselyloyal to Jesus. Yet, Peter also became a tragic moral failure.This happened when Jesus was arrested and put on trial. Peter lingered outside the courthousewarming himself by a fire. As he stood there trying not to be noticed, a young woman spotted him andaccused him of being a follower of Jesus. Peter was probably frightened by the accusation so he denied it.But the young woman wouldn't back off. She accused Peter a second time. Again Peter denied anyassociation with Jesus. Then as he made his loud denial the crowd picked up on his accent. The accentwas a dead giveaway. Peter wasn't from their part of the country. He was from up north. So the crowdjoined the young woman in accusing Peter of being a disciple of Jesus. Then Peter cursed and swore anddenied that he even knew Jesus. In that hour of crisis, Peter betrayed his good friend.If you had been there and heard Peter utter a stream of profanity to deny Jesus, would you havewritten him off? If you were Jesus would you have given up on Peter? If a friend did that to you, wouldyou forgive her?That was a grim episode in Peter's life. And later, when he realized what he had done, he weptbitterly. Peter must have wondered if there was any hope for him. After all, in a way, he was no betterthan Judas who had betrayed Jesus. Peter had betrayed a friend, someone he had once sworn to protect.Yet, after his resurrection, Jesus went looking for Peter. Jesus had died for Peter, just as He haddied for everyone else. He died so that Peter's sins could be forgiven and so that our sin could be forgiven.That is why Jesus forgave this man who had vehemently denied Him. Not only that, but Jesus restoredPeter and set him free. In a matter of a few weeks Peter preached the first Christian sermon—a sermonabout the forgiveness of sin. Out of his defeat, Peter learned something. He learned that God is the God ofa second chance.GOD’S PATIENCE EVENTUALLY RUNS OUTEven God’s patience eventually runs out:“For three years” was a period of ample opportunity for this tree to produce fruit."'Sir,' the man replied, 'leave it alone for one more year, and I'll dig around it andfertilize it. If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down'" (13:8-9).Instead of assuming that suffering indicates sinfulness, as we all know, it is often the greatestsaints who have to suffer most.In this passage we see that Jesus called religious people away from judging other people andwarned the self-righteous to repent before they faced even worse tragedy at the final judgment.

55Christ expects disciples to be fruitful. His patience with fruitless disciples has limits. Eventuallyeven God says, “Time is up!”To whom much is given, much is required!APPLICATION1. Don’t give up since the Christian gospel is a gospel of the second chance. No one isbeyond hope. That's the good news of the grace of God. That's the good news of the forgivenessof sins. That's the gospel of the second chance, of a third chance, of the hundredth chance.2. Don’t presume on God’s patience since eventually it runs out. If we are honest, when we readabout Peter’s betrayal, we should be able to see in ourselves our own betrayal of Christ, our own betrayal whatwe said we really believe in.There comes a time, like in the day of Noah, when the doors of the ark shut. Therefore we mustrespond to God before it is too late.

56CHAPTER 9

57A CRIPPLED WOMAN HEALED ON THE SABBATHLuke 13:10-17We know not who this woman was. Our Lord's saying that she was "a daughter ofAbraham" would lead us to infer that she was a true believer, but her name and history arehidden from us. We only know that when Jesus was "teaching in one of the synagogues on theSabbath," this woman was there.“ On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, and a woman wasthere who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bentover and could not straighten up at all. When Jesus saw her, He called herforward and said to her, ‘Woman, you are set free from your infirmity.’Then He put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up andpraised God” (13:10-13).This is the last time we ever hear of Jesus being in a synagogue because by this time theauthorities were watching His every move ready to pounce upon Him whenever they got achance.Various disorders were caused by evil spirits (4:33), such as mental disorders (Jn10:20), violent action (Lk 8:26-29), and bodily disease (13:11,16). In addition demons can steal,kill and destroy:“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may havelife, and have it to the full” (Jn 10:10).The Book of Job gives a portrait of this very thing:“ One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan alsocame with them. The Lord said to Satan, ‘Where have you come from?’Satan answered the Lord, ‘From roaming through the earth and going back andforth in it.’Then the Lord said to Satan, ‘Have you considered my servant Job? There is noone on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shunsevil.’‘Does Job fear God for nothing?’ Satan replied. ‘ Have you not put a hedge aroundhim and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of hishands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. But stretchout your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you toyour face.’

The Lord said to Satan, ‘Very well, then, everything he has is in your hands, buton the man himself do not lay a finger.’58Then Satan went out from the presence of the LORD.One day when Job's sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at theoldest brother's house, a messenger came to Job and said, ‘The oxen were plowingand the donkeys were grazing nearby, and the Sabeans attacked and carried themoff. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped totell you!’While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, ‘The fire of Godfell from the sky and burned up the sheep and the servants, and I am the only onewho has escaped to tell you!’While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, ‘The Chaldeansformed three raiding parties and swept down on your camels and carried themoff. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escapedto tell you!’While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, ‘Your sonsand daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother's house,when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desert and struck the fourcorners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead, and I am the onlyone who has escaped to tell you!’At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to theground in worship and said:‘Naked I came from my mother's womb,and naked I will depart.The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away;may the name of the LORD be praised.’In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing” (Job 1:6-22).The Hebrew word for “angels” (1:6) could also be translated “the sons of God.” Satanmeans “accuser” (1:6). The phrase “will depart” can also be translated “will returnthere” (1:21).This was Job's first test. What a test!

59Demons can also cause rebellion against God:“They are spirits of demons performing miraculous signs and they go out to thekings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of GodAlmighty” (Rev 16:14).Here we see demons instigating rebellion for the last great battle.THE CONDITION OF THE WOMAN WHO PLEADS FOR HELP (13:12)The description of this woman’s infirmity suggests that the bones of her spine wererigidly fused together.The spirit had been cast out, and the woman was freed from the bond of Satan and fromher physical handicap (Lk 13:12).We see in these verses a striking example of diligence in the use of means of grace. We aretold of a "woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could notstraiten up." Sickness was no excuse with her for tarrying from God's house. In spite of suffering andinfirmity, she found her way to the place where the day and the word of God were honored, and where thepeople of God met together. And truly she was blessed in her deed! She found a rich reward for all herpains. She came sorrowing and went home rejoicing.The devotion of this Jewess may put to shame many strong and healthy “religious” people whoallow the most frivolous excuses to keep them away from the house of God. How many treat Sunday asany other day? How many even scoff and sneer at those who "keep the Sabbath holy"? How many think itis a sign of devotion to attend the public worship of God once on Sunday? And regard a secondattendance as a needless excess of zeal which mark fanatics? How many find religious services boringwhen they do attend, and feel relieved when they are over?How different we find David's spirit, who said,"I was glad when they said to me, Let us go into the house of the Lord" (Ps 122:1)."How lovely are your tabernacles, O Lord of Hosts!" (Ps 84:1).Now, what is the explanation of all this? What is the reason so few are like the woman of whomwe read this day? The answer to these questions is short and simple. Most have no heart for God's service.They have no delight in God's presence or God's day. "The carnal mind is enmity against God." Themoment a man's heart is converted, these pretended difficulties about attending public worship vanishaway. The new heart finds no trouble in keeping the Sabbath holy. Where there is a will there is always away.

60We see also the almighty power of Jesus. We are told that when He saw the suffering woman,"He called her forward and said to her, Woman, you are set free from your infirmity. Then He put Hishands on her." That divine touch brought the healing. At once a disease of eighteen years was gone. Andimmediately she glorified God."He can create, and transform, and renew, and break down, and build, and quicken, with divineresistible power. Our problems are no match to Him, who formed the world out of nothing, neverchanges, and loves us with an everlasting love.Let us never despair, even if our sins may be countless. If we are willing to come to Christ andcommit our souls to Him, there is hope. He can heal us thoroughly, and say,"You are set free from your infirmity”!Let us never despair about the salvation of others so long as they are alive. Let us name thembefore the Lord night and day, and cry to Him on their behalf. We may perhaps have relatives whosecases seem desperate because of their wickedness. But it is not really so.There are no incurable cases with Christ!If He were to lay His healing hand on them, they would be healed and ready to glorify God.Let us pray on, and no give up.Job put it well:"I know that you can do everything" (Job 42:2).Jesus is "able to save to the uttermost."THE REACTION OF THE RELIGIOUS LEADERS (13:14)“ Indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, the synagogue ruler saidto the people, "There are six days for work. So come and be healed on thosedays, not on the Sabbath" (Lk 13:14).A focal point of attack against Jesus was His conduct on the Sabbath (6:6-11; 14:1-6; Mt 12:1-8,11-12; Jn 5:1-18; see also Ex 20:9-10).

61Let us never forget that our feelings about Sundays are sure tests of the state of our souls. Theman who can find no pleasure in giving God one day in the week is manifestly unfit for heaven. Heavenitself is nothing but an eternal Sabbath. If we cannot enjoy a few hours in God's service once a week inthis world, how will we be able to enjoy an eternity in His service in the world to come?Jesus bluntly identified these religious leaders as hypocrites:“ The Lord answered him, "You hypocrites! Doesn't each of you on the Sabbathuntie his ox or donkey from the stall and lead it out to give it water? Then shouldnot this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteenlong years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?" (Lk 13:15-16)These religious leaders had more regard for the needs of an animal than for the far greaterneed of a person. Jesus called His critics “hypocrites” because they pretended zeal for the law,but their motive was to attack Him and His healing.We see, lastly, in these verses, the right observance of the Sabbath day asserted and defendedby our Lord Jesus Christ. The ruler of the synagogue (in which the infirm woman was healed) foundfault with her as one who did not observe the Sabbath. He drew down upon himself a stern but justrebuke—"You hypocrites, does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or his donkey from thestall, and lead it out to give it water?" If it was allowable to attend to the needs of beasts on the Sabbath,how much more to human creatures! It was no breach of the fourth commandment to show kindness tooxen and donkeys, much less to show kindness to a daughter of Abraham.Sabbath rest, not doing work on the Sabbath was not intended to prohibit works of necessity andmercy. The Sabbath was made for man's benefit, and not for his hurt. It was appointed to promoteman's best and highest interests, and not to deprive him of anything that is really for his good. It forbidsnothing that is really necessary to man's well-being.THE REACTIONS OF JESUS’ OPPONENTS AND THE PEOPLE (13:17)Notice the opposite reactions of Jesus’ opponents and the people:“ When He said this, all His opponents were humiliated, but the people weredelighted with all the wonderful things He was doing” (v. 17).APPLICATIONThis fourth commandment was given by God to promote man’s happiness. Therefore, let usfollow these two rules:1. Do no work which is not absolutely necessary. If it is necessary, then you better work withall your might.

2. Keep the day "holy" as a day of worship and service of our Lord.From these two rules let us never swerve. Experience shows that there is the closest connectionbetween Sabbath sanctification and healthy Christianity.62

63CHAPTER 10

64SMALL THINGS MATTERThe Parables of the Mustard Seek and the YeastLuke 13:18-21We all get discouraged at times. Sometimes we look at things that seem so overwhelmingthat we get depressed.Jesus has a pair of parables that speak to our weak-kneed faith and expand ourunderstanding of His kingdom.To get His disciples thinking He asked them the question,“What is the kingdom of God like?” (13:18)The disciples had trouble understanding the nature of the kingdom of God that Jesus wasproclaiming. Their own view of the kingdom of God was that the Messiah would overthrow theRoman oppressors and restore David's throne. Although they were ambassadors orrepresentatives of that kingdom, they had little understanding of the true nature of the kingdomof God.We are easily impressed by what is large and tall: large estates, aircraft carriers the sizeof football fields, large impressive cars, jumbo jets, mega-stores, mega-malls, mega-churches,multiple lane freeways, giant screen televisions, etc. Big is in!Are mega-churches are more important than small churches? Is it only the big things thatare important?Although big things can be used by God, so can small things. Just as big things matter,little things matter too.This is not true just in the spiritual life; it’s also true in life in general. The same God whocreated the big things created the small things. We are increasingly finding that small things haveas much beauty, complexity and importance as large things. We can see the incredible beautyand complexity of the heavens as we peer through a powerful telescope; similarly, we can see allkinds of incredible beauty and complexity of things the size of a pollen grain when we lookthrough a microscope. But even a flower has complexity, and each part is important and has ajob to do. We can go down even to the size of a pollen grain or a virus until we reach theincredibly small realm of nanotechnology.

65Nanotechnology (or nanotech) is the study of manipulating matter on an atomic andmolecular scale. Generally nanotechnology deals with structures sized between 1 to 100nanometer in at least one dimension and involves developing materials or devices within at thisscale.Nanotechnology is the field of the future. Nano is the size of 100,000 th of a piece of hair.If a nano is the size of a soccer ball, the piece of hair is the size of the earth.Technologically we are entering the Nano Age. We are now witnessing technologicalwizardry such as computers, M.R.I.s, smart bombs, etc. which exist because research in appliedquantum physics has resulted in techniques for manipulating the motion of electrons throughmazes of ultramicroscopic circuitry. Today scientists are talking about advances hovering on thehorizon like nanoscience and quantum computers which they believe will offer the promise ofeven more spectacular transformations in our society than in the past. Although there is plenty ofhype, nanotechnology (industry’s tiniest stage) is moving from the laboratory to themarketplace. This means cars, chips and golf balls made with new materials engineered to thelevel of individual atoms. 1What is nanoscience? “Nano” comes from the Greek word for dwarf. The standard unitof measurement, a nanometer, is a billionth of a meter–barely the size of 10 hydrogen atoms in arow. In this universe entire dramas can unfold on the tip of a pin, and a sneeze packs the punchof a raging hurricane. 2 Why so small? Because researchers have discovered that matter at thistiny scale often behaves very differently. The old rules of Newtonian physics don’t seem to applyreadily because transformations occur when matter is reduced to the molecular dimension. Thelaws of gravity, optics and acceleration represent averages, not the quirky behavior of each singlenanoparticle. As “Stephen Baker and Adam Aston point out, “For those principles, researchersmust venture into quantum physics.” 3Familiar materials display startling and useful properties. For example, breaking down achunk of a material into nanoparticles vastly increases its surface area, often by a factor ofmillions. This makes it dramatically more reactive–quicker to ignite or melt and absorbing morefaster. Scientists can now transform the atoms into carbon nanotubes, which are stronger thansteel, conduct electricity better than copper and are virtually impervious to heat. Whilenanotechnology is taking its first steps into basic materials, over the next two decades it isexpected to spread into virtually every industry and further revolutionize our lives. 4

66What is the kingdom of God like? That is the question Jesus asks of us this morning. It isimportant to Jesus because the kingdom of God is the central message He preaches. But what is akingdom? Simply it is the land and people under the rule of a king or queen. But it is more thansimply about who is in charge, it is about who defines what life is like within the kingdom.In order to help His disciples understand, Jesus shares two brief parables: the parables ofthe Mustard Seed and of the Yeast (Leaven). This is a comparison driving home one or twopoints rather than an allegory in which each element in one scene fits an element in the other.But what are the points of comparison?“Then Jesus asked, "What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compareit to?’” (13:18)like?When the Divine Order breaks into the chaos of human existence, what do things lookLIKE A MUSTARD SEED (13:19)What does Jesus say the kingdom of God is like?“It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his garden. It grewand became a tree, and the birds of the air perched in its branches" (13:19).A mustard seed was considered by the Jews to be the smallest of seeds (Mt 13:31-33; Mk4:30-32). You probably remember that Jesus used the mustard seed to describe the tiniest amountof faith (17:6). Mustard is usually identified as black mustard, which grows to a shrub about fourfeet high, but occasionally can grow to fifteen feet high and would qualify as a tree. Threevarieties of mustard were grown in gardens because of their aromatic seeds. Although Jesusmentions the growth, the main emphasis seems to be on the beginning (very small) and the end(very large).Small beginnings, large endings!But there's one more detail to consider:Birds Perching in Its Branches (13:19)"The birds of the air perched in its branches" (13:19).

67This probably means that the tree was large enough to sustain life. It isn't just a smalltree but one which provides support. Some think that the birds of the air represent the Gentilenations seeking refuge with Israel, citing Daniel 4:12, 21; Psalm 104:12; Ezekiel 17:23; 31:6;1 Enoch 90:30. That may be so (as a secondary allegory). But the more natural interpretation ofthe phrase "the birds of the air perched in its branches" is the way Jesus echoes Daniel andEzekiel.In the parable of the Sower and the Soils, the birds pecking at seed along the path standfor the devil who “comes and takes away the word from their hearts" (8:5,12). But here the birdsare not enemies but welcomed guests. Jesus' use of words is flexible. Just because an item wasused for evil in one parable doesn't mean it has to have the same significance in another.This is how God is at work in the world. Isn’t it rather strange how a tiny seed is plantedand then grows into a tree big enough for birds to nest? We get the little seeds, spread them out,maybe water them and do some weeding. But something happens that even those with a Ph.D. inearth sciences still find amazing. The little dried seed becomes life.The process of life is a reflection of the divine order. In the creation account in Genesis 1and 2, that is what God does as He “broods” over the waters of creation and brings order out ofchaos. Where there was nothing there is now the universe with its galaxies, stars, oceans, land,trees, plants, animals and human beings.Yet, because of sin, there is decay (what scientists call “the law of entropy”) whichmeans the universe is running down. Likewise, within human life there are also forces whichattack our immune system, tear down our relationships, destroy our joy in life, and eventuallybring death.Although there is suffering, evil and death, such enemies do not have “the last word."Evil and death are not the defining reality of human existence. Through Jesus Christ, theembodiment of the kingdom of God, we have discovered that which looks like death actuallyleads to new life.LIKE YEAST (13:20-21)“Again he asked, ‘What shall I compare the kingdom of God to? It is like yeastthat a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked allthrough the dough’" (13:18-21).

68The other comparison Jesus uses to explain the kingdom of God is yeast. He compares itto a small lump of dough that is kneaded into a large amount of flour until it is homogenized.Whereas we buy sealed packets of dry yeast in the stores for baking, in Jesus' day they wouldsave a little bit of one day's dough and keep it moist to mix into the dough for tomorrow's bread.If you have never baked a loaf of bread, you may not understand the radical differencethat yeast makes. You take flour, water, a bit of oil and salt and knead them together with someyeast. It is pretty compact at this point, and if you were to bake it now, the bread would be heavyand hard. As the yeast begins to metabolize the sugars in the dough, it forms carbon dioxide thatpuffs into tiny gas pockets all through the dough. As the gas can't escape because of the elasticgluten in the flour, these pockets of gas stay in the loaf. When the loaf finally goes into the oven,the gas expands even more as the temperature rises until the dough finally bakes, holding theshape of those tiny gas pockets, now filled with air. And as the bread rises, the size increasesmany fold.What's the point of the parable about the yeast? A small amount of yeast will leaven alarge amount of flour. The tiny lump of yeast will soon pervade a large volume of dough.Small beginnings, large endings!Occasionally people get confused about this parable. They reason that since leaven issometimes used negatively (12:1; 1 Co 5:6-8; Gal 5:9), it must be negative in The Parable of theYeast. As we've seen in the Parable of the Mustard Seed, that assumption isn't warranted.That is what the yeast is about. The yeast is placed amid all the flour. It is hidden in themidst of oppressive and unjust systems at work or in government or in the home. And then Godacts in secret, the yeast bubbling and warming and quietly expanding throughout the flour,changing it and converting it until what is left is a table full of puffy, soft, and tasty dough, readyto be bread shared with friends and others.God’s power! God’s power to transform!Although we can experience it, we cannot control it. But we can be controlled by it.JESUS USES COMMON, ORDINARY THINGSJesus uses the common, ordinary things of everyday life. He did not say that the kingdomof heaven was like a great, majestic oak. Instead, it is like a mustard shrub. Nor did He say it waslike silver or gold or jewels but like yeast.

69As this is good news for us ordinary people, we gather as followers of the Crucified One,willing to have God open our eyes to discover that amid the unseen workings of the world andunseen people, there is a power bringing aboutIt is easy to become discouraged when you have worked so hard to do something and ithas turned out to seem so small and insignificant. It would have been easy for the disciples tohave felt that way about the kingdom of God. Here is a carpenter-turned-preacher speaking invillages in a minor Roman province. This is not very impressive when you look at the bigpicture. Yet within a single generation after Christ's death, Christianity had spread all over theRoman Empire and beyond to India in the East, Ethiopia to the South, and to Spain in the West.What starts small becomes large. The kingdom of God begins as a small and insignificantseed or a little lump of yeast but grows to become large and powerful. Mustard seeds vs. trees,tiny lumps of yeast vs. large loaves of bread. That’s the comparison and the contrast.We all get discouraged at times. What is your source of discouragement at this time?What is the mountain that seems insurmountable?There are a couple of sayings that fit these parables:"Little is much when God is in it."“God plus one is a majority.”A. B. Simpson, the founder of the Christian and Missionary Alliance, used the followingverse as his text when he began this missionary enterprise:"Who despises the day of small things" (Zec 4:10).We all face the temptation to give up when we see the tiny mustard seed or lump of yeast,thinking that's all there will be. But the struggling missionary enterprise that Simpson started isnow made up of more than three million devoted followers of Jesus.Most of life is ordinary, consisting of going to work, eating, spending time with familyand friends, going to church, etc. All of these are important to God.We must value little things!APPLICATION

70Little things may not be interruptions but are valuable things that make a difference.Jesus chose twelve very ordinary people and He changed the world.A cup of cold water in the name of Jesus can also change the world for someone! A warmgreeting, a simple conversation, a thank you card, a phone call, a casserole, a birthday cake, asimple flower, extra time spent with someone, a gentle touch—all can make a difference insomeone’s life.These parables teach us not to judge our efforts by what we can see right now. The seedand yeast will grow and produce what God wants in His season.The power of little things!NOTES1Stephen Baker and Adam Aston, “The Business of Nanotech,” Business Week (February14, 2005), 64-65.2Ibid.3Ibid.4Ibid., 68.

71CHAPTER 11

72THE NARROW DOOR: THE DANGER OF BEING SHUT OUTLuke 13:22-30There is no doubt that Jesus shocked the person asking Jesus the question that suggestedthat only a few will be saved. After all, his assumption was that God’s kingdom belonged onlyfor his people the Jews.ONLY A FEW ARE SAVED (13:22-23)On the heels of the lesson on the parables of The Mustard Seed and The Yeast comes alesson about who and how many will be saved. During His teaching ministry Jesus isconfronted by a curious question:“ Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as He made His way toJerusalem. Someone asked Him, ‘Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?’"(vv. 22-23)We do not know who this enquirer was. It is very possible he may have been a selfrighteousJew, trained to believe that there was no hope for the uncircumcised—the Gentiles--and no salvation for any but the children of Abraham. Or he may have been a person whoenjoyed asking curious and speculative questions. Whoever he may have been, the point is thatwe can identify with such a question.In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus stated,"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the roadthat leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gateand narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it” (Mt 7:13-14).We have only to look around and it quickly and sadly becomes obvious that the saved arefew. It is a dreadful conclusion. While salvation is offered to all people, only a few embrace it.Solomon declared,“There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death” (Pr 14:12).Like one of Frank Sinatra’s song states,“I did it my way.”

Christ is willing to receive sinners, but sinners are not willing to come to Him.Therefore, few are saved.We also find here a serious exhortation:73A SERIOUS EXHORTATION (13:24-25)“He said to them, ‘Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, becausemany, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. Once the owner of thehouse gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading,'Sir, open the door for us.' But he will answer, 'I don't know you or where youcome from'” (Lk 13:24-25).We are told that when our Lord Jesus Christ was asked whether few would be saved. Hesaid to struggle to enter in at the narrow door. The Greek word agonizomai is the word fromwhich we get agonize. The idea is to agonize, struggle, contend, strive, labor fervently, 1 makeevery effort to make sure we enter in God’s door that leads to His kingdom. Since the verb is inthe present tense a literal translation is “Keep on striving to enter.”Entry into the kingdom of God is not automatic. It is the result of an agonizing struggle.The struggle to enter in must be so intense that it is best characterized as “an agony of soul andspirit.” 2 He addressed these words to the whole company of His hearers. He did not think it waswise to simply gratify the curiosity of His questioner by a direct reply. Instead He chose toemphasize with him, and all around him, their own immediate responsibility. In looking out fortheir own souls, they would soon find the question answered. In making every effort to enter inat the narrow door they would soon find out whether the saved were many or few.Jesus wants us to know in no uncertain terms what our responsibility is. The door isnarrow and the enemies of our souls are many. We must be active. Instead of inquiring whatother people are doing and whether many of our neighbors, relatives and friends are servingChrist, we must make sure that we are in fact doing so. The unbelief and indecision of others willnot excuse us at the Day of Judgment. We dare not follow the crowd to do what is popular,something that ultimately ends in destruction. Rather, we must be willing to go against thecurrent of our times and swim upstream. Whether many go with us or not, our resolve must be to"Make every effort to enter through the narrow door."

74Whatever others may think, the message is clear: we must take initiative. We are not tosit still and wait for the grace of God. We are not to continue in our sin and rest with the excusethat we can do nothing until God draws us. We are to draw near to Him through use of the meansof grace (Jas 4:8). It is through obedience that God fulfills His will in us. Therefore we are to"Strive to enter in."A DREADFUL DAY IS COMING (13:26-27)We also get a glimpse of a dreadful day:"Then you will say, 'We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.'But He will reply, 'I don't know you or where you come from. Away from Me,all you evildoers!'” (13:26-27)One day it will be too late!Having been in Jesus’ company was not enough. The fact that He taught among them didnot mean that they fully embraced His teachings. In fact, Jesus is clear that they didn’t since Hecondemned them as “evildoers.”A DAY OF REWARD AND PUNISHMENT (13:28-30)Christ is coming a second time to bring reward and judgment."There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham,Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but youyourselves thrown out. People will come from east and west and north andsouth, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God. Indeedthere are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last" (vv. 28-30).We are told of a time when the master of the house shall rise and shut the door, whensome shall "sit down in the kingdom of God," and others be shut out for evermore. A day iscoming on the earth when the patience of God towards sinners shall come to an end. The door ofmercy, which has been open such a long time, shall finally be shut. The throne of grace shall beremoved and the throne of judgment shall be set up in its place. All that are found impenitent andunbelieving shall be thrown out forever from God's presence. There will be that Day whenpeople shall find that there is such a thing as "the wrath of the Lamb" (Rev 6:16).A day is coming when believers in Christ shall receive a full reward. The Master of thegreat house in heaven shall call His servants together and give to each a crown of glory that fadesnot away. They shall sit down with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and rest forever from warfare and

75work. They shall be in Christ’s immediate presence with all the angels and saints in the kingdomof heaven where sorrow, sin, death, the world and the devil shall be eternally shut out. ThenGod’s saints shall see at last that"To him that sows righteousness there is a sure reward" (Pr 11:18).We see, finally, in these verses a heart-searching prophecy delivered. Our Lord tells usthat in the day of His second coming that many will seek to enter in at the narrow door, and shallnot be able. They will knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us, but will find noadmission. They will even plead earnestly that they associated with Christ and heard Histeachings, but their plea will fall on deaf ears. Instead they will receive the solemn answer thatHe doesn't know them. Religious profession and formal knowledge of Christ will save none whohave served sin and the world.There is something peculiarly striking in our Lord's language in this prophecy. It revealsto us the dreadful fact that people will see the truth when it is too late for them to be saved.There is a time coming when many will repent too late, believe too late, sorrow for sin too late,begin to pray too late, be anxious about salvation too late and long for heaven too late. Scores ofpeople will wake up in another world and be convinced of truths which on earth they refused tobelieve.Hell is truth known too late!THE BIG SURPRISE (13:30)Jesus also points out that there will be surprises in the kingdom of God. He put it:“There are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last” (v. 30).Those who are very prominent in this world may have to be very humble in the next,whereas those whom no one notices here may be princes in the world to come.William Barclay shares the following story:“There is a story of a woman who had been used to every luxury and to allrespect. She died, and when she arrived in heaven, an angel was sent toconduct her to her house. They passed many a lovely mansion and thewoman thought that each one, as they came to it, must be the one allotted

to her. When they had passed through the main streets they came to theoutskirts where the houses were much smaller and on the very fringe theycame to a house which was little more than a hut. ‘That is your house,’said the conducting angel. ‘What,’ said the woman, ‘that! I cannot live inthat.’ ‘I am sorry,’ said the angel, ‘but that is all we could build for youwith the materials you sent up.’” 376The standards of God’s kingdom are not the standards of earth!APPLICATIONThis passage should help us to set our priorities straight. In our society, money, pleasureand status now occupy first place. Praying, believing, holy living and devotion to Christ are thusdespised, ridiculed and considered boring and irrelevant. But the day is coming when thesevalues will be turned upside down by our Lord, when “the last shall be first, and the first shall belast.”Therefore we must be prepared for such a change.We need to ask ourselves whether we are among the many or among the few. Do weknow anything of striving and warring against sin, the world and the devil? Are we ready for theMaster's coming to shut the door? The person who can answer these questions satisfactorily isready for the life to come in God’s kingdom.NOTES1W. E. Vine, An Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words. Reference LibraryEdition (Old Tappan, NJ: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1966), 83.2William Barclay, The Gospel of Luke: The Daily Study Bible. Revised Edition,(Edinburgh: The Saint Andrew Press, 1975), 183.3Ibid., 184.

77CHAPTER 12

78JESUS’ SORROW FOR JERUSALEMLuke 13:31-35Hugh Latimer, one of the great preachers and leaders of the English Reformation in thesixteenth century, was once preaching in Westminster Abby when King Henry VIII was in thecongregation. As he stood in the pulpit, he thought to himself:“’Latimer! Latimer! Latimer! Be careful what you say. The king of England is here!’Then it dawned on him:‘Latimer! Latimer! Latimer! Be careful what you say. The King of Kings is here.’” 1JESUS IS WARNED ABOUT HEROD (13:31)This text gives us the information that not all Pharisees were hostile to Jesus, somewanted to save Him. It is not common to come across a Pharisee who warns Jesus of impendingdanger. In the following passage, however, that happens:“At that time some Pharisees came to Jesus and said to Him, "Leave this placeand go somewhere else. Herod wants to kill you" (v. 31).Jesus’ concern for everyone is evident by His relentless traveling schedule in the countryaround Him.JESUS’ BLUNT WORDS TO HEROD (13:32-33)Jesus then sent Herod a blunt message through the Pharisee:“ He replied, ‘Go tell that fox, 'I will drive out demons and heal people today andtomorrow, and on the third day I will reach my goal.' In any case, I must keepgoing today and tomorrow and the next day—for surely no prophet can die outsideJerusalem! (vv. 32-33).Because foxes were known for their cunning and destructive nature, they were consideredinsignificant or worthless. So when Jesus called Herod a fox, He did so meaning that Herod wascunning or clever, destructive and insignificant. 2

79Jesus had begun His journey from Galilee to Jerusalem (9:51; 13:22) and in no way wasgoing to be intimidated by some self-aggrandizing monarch. Jesus’ agenda had been set beforetime began. Neither Herod nor any other powerful person or force could change that agenda.Jesus took orders from the Father and He was intent on carrying those orders out. There was nostopping the King of kings who was on a mission of mercy to die for mankind.It is not often we see Jesus stand up to people in all His regal glory and speak as Lord oflords. In most instances Jesus does not react to such threats but carries on His ministry of mercy.However, on this occasion He spoke with divine authority.Another example of such a response was when Jesus stood before Pilate who asked Himwhere He was from:“Where are you from?” Pilate asked Jesus. And Jesus did not answer. ThenPilate, probably feeling rebuffed by our Lord’s silence, threatened Him:’You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have power to releaseyou, and power to crucify you? Jesus answered him, ‘You would have nopower over Me unless it had been given you from above. . . .’” (Jn 19:9-11).“Go tell that fox. . . .”Spoken like a king!It seems our Lord is being sarcastic here in Luke (vv. 32 and 33; see also Jn 19:9-11). Hecalled Jerusalem the killer of prophets and that it would not be fitting for a prophet to die outsideof Jerusalem. Jesus says He will continue to cast out demons and heal the sick. He wasconstantly concerned about the spiritual condition of those with whom He dealt.Our concern should be the same as Jesus’. If we find we hardly witness at all, could it bebecause we simply are not that concerned with the spiritual well being of our fellow humanbeings?JESUS’ LAMENT (13:34-35)"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you,how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers herchicks under her wings, but you were not willing! Look, your house is left toyou desolate. I tell you, you will not see Me again until you say, 'Blessed is hewho comes in the name of the Lord'" (vv. 34-35).

Jerusalem, rather than being the shining light on the Hill, had become a spirituallydesolate nation of legalistic laws and practices.80Notice how great the compassion of our Lord is towards sinners. We see this broughtout in a most forcible way by Jesus’ description of Jerusalem. Even though He knew thewickedness of that city, the crimes that had been committed in the past, and anticipated His ownsuffering there, yet He laments,"How often would I have gathered your children together, as a hen gathers herchicks under her wings, but you were not willing."Unlike many self-righteous religious people, it grieves Jesus to see sinners caught up intheir wickedness and headed for judgment:"As I live, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked" (Eze 33:11).Unconverted people not only grieve parents, relatives and friends, they grieve Jesus.Jesus is willing to save sinners:"He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to cometo repentance" (2 Pe 3:9).He would have “all men saved and come to the knowledge of the truth" (2 Pe 3:9; 1 Ti2:4). The will of hardened, rebellious man, and not the will of Christ, is the reason why sinnersare lost for evermore. Christ "would" save them, but they were not willing.Christ is always ready to save sinners! If we are lost, we shall have no one to blame butourselves. Christ universal offer will condemn us:"You refuse to come to Me to have life" (Jn 5:40).We shall reap the fruit of our own choice. God's sovereignty and man's responsibilityshall appear perfectly harmonious one day. In the meantime, what is crystal clear is Christ'sinfinite willingness to save.

81OUR LIVES ARE IN GOD’S HANDSLet us learn from these verses how entirely our times are in God's hands. Our LordJesus Christ teaches us this lesson in His reply to those who bade Him depart, because Herodwould kill Him. He said, "I cast out demons, and I do cures today and tomorrow." He had no fearof Herod because His time was not yet come for leaving the world. His work was not yetfinished. Until that time came it was not in the power of Herod to hurt Him. Until that work wasfinished no weapon forged against Him could prosper.We ought to seek to possess a spirit of calm, unshaken confidence about things to come(Ps 112:7).We are not to neglect the use of means, or not to plan at all for an unseen future. Toneglect means is fanaticism, and not faith. However, when we have done what we can, we shouldremember that though duties are ours, events are God's. Therefore, we should leave the futurein God's hands. It is so easy to become overanxious about health, family, finances, plans for arainy day. But how many of our cares and fears are about things which never take place? Happyis the person who recognizes that His life is in God’s hands, that he shall live on earth until hiswork is done and not a moment longer. The Herods of this life—the powers of this world—cannot snuff out our life. We will live as long as God permits. All the physicians of earth cannotpreserve or extend our life when God calls us home.Our very hairs are numbered. Our steps are ordered. All things are working together forgood to those who love God and are called according to His purpose (Ro 8:28). When we areafflicted, it is for the best.We can afford to be calm, quiet, unruffled and undisturbed since there is no such thing aschance, luck or accident in the life of a believer.In our lives and activities, we all have one thing in common, unless we repent, we will allperish. No matter how good our behavior and no matter how bad our behavior, we are all sinnersbefore God. Without divine intervention, we are all headed for hell.News.Jesus left us here to be that light shining on a hill and that voice that proclaims the GoodTherefore, it is our responsibility to bear fruit. We are the ones responsible for whetherour fellow man hears about Jesus Christ.

82If we find we don't share Jesus Christ with others, could it be because we are notconcerned about the souls of our friends and neighbors? We need a vision of hell. And we needthe love He has for the lost.Jesus was concerned about everyone. And His concern should be our concern.Herod was like so many people of our time. He knew Jesus only by rumor. Some peoplein our day know Jesus as a compassionate man, but they don’t know much else about Him. LikeHerod, many only know about Jesus by rumor. They don’t know who He really is.They listen to the sermons but don’t hear them.They may even read the Bible but they don’t comprehend it.They didn’t bother to seek the Scriptures. They were satisfied with hear-say. It isimpossible to know who Jesus is outside the Gospels and the New Testament. Rumors will onlylead to error.Luke tells us later in the gospel that Herod had sought to see Jesus, primarily out ofcuriosity. In fact, when Pilate sent Jesus to Herod during our Savior’s trial,Luke records:“When Herod saw Jesus, he was very glad, for he had long desired to see Him,because he had heard about Him, and he was hoping to see some sign doneby Him. So he questioned Him at some length; but He made no answer.”(Lk 23:8-9; see also Ps 112:7)Jesus did the same thing to Pilate. He gave him the silent treatment. But when Pilatereacted to Christ’s silence, Jesus did speak to Pilate. But on the occasion of Christ’s trial beforeHerod, He didn’t say a word to Herod. That was probably a sign of judgment. Jesus consideredthat Herod was not worthy of a reply.JESUS’ LAMENT (13:22)Jesus’ authority is seen in His refusal to have an earthly monarch setting His agenda. Thesecond is a great contrast. It is His compassion and humility. He was on His way to Jerusalem togive His life a ransom for us sinners (Lk 13:22). The city in which He would give His life for theworld was the city He had called and longed to gather to Himself (Mt 23:37-39).

83And now our Savior laments over that city.Herod had a shallow understanding of what Jesus stood for (Lk 9:3-9; see also Mt 23:37-39). Herod knew Jesus by rumor, until, of course, Jesus stood before him in judgment before Hisdeath.Jesus did not raise an army or use His miraculous powers to drive out his enemies fromJerusalem, and to throw Israel’s rebellious priesthood out of His Father’s house. Instead He letthem throw Him out of both the temple and the city. And astoundingly, what had been HisFather’s and His, He left in their hands:“Your house,” He said, “is left to you” (Lk 13:35).If people use their God-given free-will to reject the Savior, neither God nor Christ willoverrule. That does not mean that puny man has the power to defeat the will of the Almightysince it was always God’s will that man’s will should be genuinely free. It was always God’sintention that man be able to say “No!” to God. But God is also free. That means freedom to say“No!” when they arrive at God’s gate unrepentant.APPLICATIONThe question for us is, "Are we dry and desolate?" If we find ourselves in a spiritualdesert, dry and desolate, it may be because our love has waxed cold and we no longer have theconcern for others that Jesus has.NOTES1William Barclay, The Gospel of Luke: The Daily Study Bible, Revised Edition(Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1975), 186.2Ibid.

84CHAPTER 13

85JESUS AT A PHARISEE’S HOUSELuke 14:1-14The parable is about seating assignments at a dinner party. Jesus suggests that you takethe lowest seat so if the host asks you to move up, you will be exalted in front of everyoneinstead of being made to look like a fool if you are asked to move down. It is a lesson inhumility.THE SABBATH AND HEALING (14:1-4)The story begins with Jesus attending a dinner party at the home of the leader of thePharisees. This is obviously a ploy to gather more evidence against Jesus. During this dinnerparty Jesus is tested:“ One Sabbath, when Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee,He was being carefully watched. There in front of Him was a man sufferingfrom dropsy. Jesus asked the Pharisees and experts in the law, "Is it lawful toheal on the Sabbath or not?" But they remained silent. So taking hold of theman, He healed him and sent him away” (vv. 1-4).Up to this time there are six incidents when Jesus had already healed on the Sabbath day:1. The demonized man in the synagogue at Capernaum (4:31; Mk 1:21-28)2. Simon’s mother-in-law (Lk 4:38)3. The man with the withered hand (6:6)4. The woman who was bent over for eighteen years (13:13-14)5. The paralytic at the pool of Bethsaida (Jn 5:9-10)6. The man born blind (Jn 9:14)Such a record of compassion and supernatural power should have impressed everyone.Instead every miracle Jesus performed on the Sabbath day only made the religious leaders moreconvinced that Jesus was a law breaker and because of His increasing following dangerous totheir religion and therefore had to be stopped.The SabbathBecause Jesus healed on the Sabbath the orthodox Jews considered that He worked on theSabbath and thereby broke the law. And on this particular occasion, a Pharisee invited Him to ameal on the Sabbath. William Barclay gives us an example of how meticulous the regulationsconcerning the Sabbath meals were:

86“Of course no food could be cooked on the Sabbath for that would be consideredwork. All food had to be cooked on the Friday; and, if it was necessary to keepit hot, it must be kept hot in such a way that it was not cooked any more! So itis laid down that food to be kept warm for the Sabbath must not be put into “oildregs, manure, salt, chalk or sand, whether moist or dry, not into straw, grapeskins, flock or vegetables, if these are damp, though it may be if they are dry.It may be, however, put into clothes, amidst fruits, pigeons’ feathers and flaxtow.” 1It was such observance that the Pharisees and the scribes considered as religion. Is it anywonder that they could not understand Jesus and comprehend His message!By their interpretations, the rabbis had turned the Sabbath law into a minefield for theunwary. The original prohibition was against working on the Sabbath. The rabbis had changedthis into a prohibition against doing almost anything on the Sabbath such asLooking into a mirror (because you might see a gray hair and be tempted to pluckit)Giving alms to a beggar at your doorTaking a loaf of bread to a hungry neighbor next doorWalking through a field of grain that was a little too high--because you mightaccidentally knock down some grains and "harvest"These were all considered violations of the Sabbath law. None of this had anything to dowith what God had commanded. Such petty interpretations, which God intended to be a day ofrest, were turned into a grievous burden.In defining the word "work," the rabbis had concluded that giving medical attention to anindividual on the Sabbath constituted work. They ruled, for instance, that if someone broke his orher arm on the Sabbath, the arm could not be set until the Sabbath was over. They also ruled thata person with a toothache could not suck on vinegar (the common toothache remedy) to ease hisor her pain. (The sufferer could, however, choose to drink vinegar with his or her regular meals.)In light of these rulings, healing on the Sabbath was definitely out of the question.Jesus seemed to be indicating here that the alleged violation of the Sabbath by Hisdisciples did not constitute the kind of work the Sabbath law prohibited, but rather was aviolation of the far too strict interpretation of the law given by the rabbis. As such, the chargemade against his disciples was invalid.

87Even the Pharisees had been unwilling to live by these rigid interpretations; they haddevised ingenious loopholes for the enlightened so they could do on the Sabbath things they hadforbidden others to do. For instance, if their neighbor next door needed bread, the Pharisees heldthey were breaking the Sabbath if they took a loaf next door, and their neighbor was breaking theSabbath if he came next door and got a loaf; but, if they could toss a loaf out the window to hisneighbor in the window next door, that would not be considered "working."In the account of Jesus healing a man with dropsy, it seems strange that this man wouldbe invited to such a prestigious dinner party. The word dropsy comes from the words for waterand countenance because with this disease the face of the patient is often obviously bloated.Dropsy is an accumulation of fluid that would indicate illness affecting other parts of the body(this is the only time this word is used in the New Testament). Probably the insidious Phariseehad brought this person with dropsy to the place with the intention of bringing his condition toJesus’ attention and thus His compassion. This would in all likelihood motivate Jesus to heal himand thereby give him and his fellow religious leaders a basis for accusing Jesus of a breach of theSabbath.In all probability then, this man was invited by the Pharisees in order to see howJesus would deal with him.The conduct of this Pharisee was pathetic. Professing friendship and affection, he invitedJesus to his table so he could have a great opportunity to set a trap by watching His conduct.When people eat and drink they feel generally less restraint than at other times and are freer intheir conversations and actions. How spiritually corrupt a person must be to profess Christianity,yet uses hospitality as a snare for his friend!Jesus asked these religious, self-righteous leaders a second question:“ Then He asked them, ‘If one of you has a son or an ox that falls into a wellon the Sabbath day, will you not immediately pull him out?’ And they hadnothing to say” (Lk 14:5-6).Jesus saw this man with dropsy and questioned the dinner guests if they would help theirox or donkey which has fallen in a well (the Law says that would be permissible). Nobodyanswers Jesus, so He healed the man then spoke a parable. They could not answer the questionbut in the affirmative; and as they were determined to accuse Him if He did heal the man, theycould not give an answer that would not condemn themselves, and therefore they were silent.Notice the shrewdness of Jesus! By questioning them before the miracle, Jesus made itdifficult for the experts in the law to protest afterward.

88The lawyers and Pharisees, though, wisely decided to keep their mouths shut. Jesus gavehis own answer to His question emphatically and unequivocally by healing the sick man in frontof Him. He then gave the lawyers and Pharisees His reason for doing so.SCRIPTURE VS. TRADITION (Mk 7:8-13)They considered the interpretations and regulations handed down by tradition to bevirtually as authoritative as Scripture itself:“’You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to thetraditions of men.’ And He said to them: ‘You have a fine way of settingaside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions! ForMoses said, 'Honor your father and your mother,' and, 'Anyone who curses hisfather or mother must be put to death.' But you say that if a man says to hisfather or mother: 'Whatever help you might otherwise have received from meis Corban' (that is, a gift devoted to God), then you no longer let him do anythingfor his father or mother. Thus you nullify the word of God by your traditionthat you have handed down. And you do many things like that" (Mk 7:8-13).God’s commands are found in Scripture and are binding; the traditions of the elders (Mk7:3) are not biblical and therefore not authoritative or binding.The Law contained in their Holy Scriptures, the Old Testament, makes it clear that Godprovides care for even animals by giving them rest (Ex 20:10,15; Dt 5:14). It is not surprisingthen that it is lawful to heal on the Sabbath, even in the case of animals:While the rabbis had forbidden people from coming to the aid of other people in distress,no such rule applied to animals. Routinely, people who found their animals in a potentiallydangerous situation rescued them from it. There are two logical reasons for this. First, rescuingthe animal showed mercy to the animal; something that was encouraged in the scriptures.“A righteous man cares for the needs of his animal, but the kindest acts of thewicked are cruel” (Pr 12:10).Furthermore, not rescuing the animal would likely result in financial loss, which to somecould become a difficult burden. The rabbis, by their silence, gave their approval to what wastechnically a breaking of the Sabbath law. Jesus did not disagree with this practice; He simplyextended the same courtesy that was routinely given to animals to human beings. If it was lawfulto help an animal injured on the Sabbath, how could it possibly be wrong to help a human beingwho was hurt?

89Jesus’ action was “unlawful” only according to rabbinic interpretation, not according tothe Mosaic law itself.The Pharisees, their name meaning “separated ones,” numbered about 6,000 and werespread over the whole of the Holy Land. They were teachers in the synagogues, religiousexamples in the eyes of the people, and self-appointed guardians of the law and its properobservance.Practicing hospitality is essentialPRACTICE HUMILITY (14:7-11)“When He noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, Hetold them this parable: ‘When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do nottake the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may havebeen invited. If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you,'Give this man your seat.' Then, humiliated, you will have to take the leastimportant place. But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that whenyour host comes, he will say to you, 'Friend, move up to a better place.' Thenyou will be honored in the presence of all your fellow guests. For everyonewho exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will beexalted" (Lk 14:7-11).While there is nothing wrong in being placed in a position of honor by others, it is wrongto seek such a place. The law of humility and the love of order should guide what is proper inany given situation. To take the highest place when it is not our due is vanity and to obstinatelyrefuse it when offered is another instance of the same vice, even if it is private and concealed inthe heart. Humility is as careful to avoid the ostentation of a refusal as it is to seek a superiorplace. In this parable Jesus actually repeats what the rabbis had taught their pupils but were tooproud to practice themselves.The irony here is that the Pharisees invited the man with dropsy to the dinner partynot because he was welcome, but to trap Jesus. And this man would be a good candidate foran invitation to such a dinner.Taking the "lowest seat at a banquet" in the hope that you will be exalted in front ofothers is not humility.Welcoming only those that you like does not constitute hospitality.

90When have you experienced "true" hospitality? Who is the humblest person you know?Who are the "poor" in spirit? Those who are "crippled" in their faith? The ones who are "lame"and unable to move forward in life? And the ones who are spiritually "blind" who we need toreach out to and welcome? How can we live this proclamation better? These are but a few thingsI am pondering. What comes to your mind when you read this text?The unchangeable conduct of God is that He resists the proud, but gives grace, honor andglory to the humble.INVITE THOSE WHO CANNOT REPAY (14:12-14)Another teaching deals with who you should invite to a dinner party“Then Jesus said to his host, ‘When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not inviteyour friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do,they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give abanquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will beblessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrectionof the righteous" (vv. 12-14).We should not entertain only at particular times and only our friends, instead we shouldbe involved in charity to the poor. What Jesus condemns is those entertainments which aregiven to the rich, either to flatter them, or to procure a similar return; because the money that isthus spent really belongs to the poor.Jesus says that we should invite those who are not able to pay us back, because if weinvite only our friends and/or family and they return the favor, what kind of love and sacrifice isthat? In turn, where then is our reward? Obviously, the reciprocity between our family andfriends in such a case is our only reward.This is a lesson in hospitality and it is expanded in verses 15–24 when Jesus teaches TheParable of the Great Banquet.Jesus says, "But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, andthe blind." He pointed out earlier in this gospel that He was anointed to“. . . bring Good News to the poor, proclaim freedom for the prisoners, recoveryof sight for the blind and release to the oppressed (4:18-19).In this passage He is teaching and living out such a proclamation

91APPLICATION1. Accept invitations from everyone. Jesus did not refuse any person’s invitation. Henever let an opportunity slip by Him, even in the case of a hypocrite.2. Realize God is in control. Therefore we can afford to be at peace no matter what thecircumstances may be. Jesus was serene even though He was under great scrutiny by thereligious leaders.3. Keep your priorities straight. A sense of proportion is key. The scribes and thePharisees show a staggering lack of what is important and what is not. They latch onto rules andregulations that only make life more burdensome. Too often we allow trifles to separate us fromGod and destroy friendships with neighbors, relatives and fellow believers.4. Exercise humility. Do what is right no matter what the cost. Do what is needful, evenif it is not noticed by others. Look out for others and God will look out for you. Let Him takecare of your reputation and honor since only He knows the truth.NOTE1William Barclay, The Gospel of Luke: The Daily Study Bible (Revised Edition,Edinburgh: The Saint Andrew Press, 1975), 187.

92CHAPTER 14

93EXCUSESThe Parable of the Great BanquetLuke 14:15-24”There aren’t nearly enough crutches in the world for all the lame excuses.”--Marcus Stroup”Ninety-nine percent of the failures come from people who have the habit ofmaking excuses.”--George Washington Carver“He who excuses himself accuses himself.”--Gabriel MeurierExcuses! We all make them! When being asked to do things or being invited to places wedon’t really want to go, we typically say “yes” at the time, and then try to somehow get out of itlater.We have all probably heard some amazing excuses. In some cases people will stop atnothing in coming up with excuses. As someone commented, “When it comes to excuses, theworld is full of great inventors.”Just as there are great inventors today, so there were great inventors of excuses in Jesus’day. The lesson Jesus is teaching in this next study is about excuses. In fact, He refers to threedifferent people with their excuses.Jesus’ lesson about excuses is made with a story about a banquet. We can all relate tohaving invited people over for a meal with few if any people showing up. After cleaning thehouse and preparing the meal we expected the guests to arrive only to find out, typically at thelast minute, that they cannot come after all.In Jesus’ story the host who prepared a “great banquet” must have gone to great length inpreparing for the delicious meal. But instead of hearing the sound of guests arriving, he hearsapologies and excuses from the guests.The Jews lived with the expectation that one day God would enter history to destroyIsrael’s enemies and establish His people. Such a golden age will begin with a Messianic banquetin which God’s people, the Jews—“the apple of God’s eye”—will feast in honor and glory.

94EXCUSES NOT TO ACCEPT GOD’S INVITATIONThe First ExcuseIn Jesus’ Parable of the Great Banquet we get a taste of the great Messianic feast to come.When one of the men who ate with Jesus made a remark to Jesus about such a feast, He used it asthe occasion for a parable warning that not everyone would enter the kingdom:“ When one of those at the table with Him heard this, he said to Jesus, ‘Blessed isthe man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.’Jesus replied: ‘A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited manyguests. At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had beeninvited, 'Come, for everything is now ready.'But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, 'I have just boughta field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.'” (Lk 14:15-18).Association of the future kingdom with a feast was common (13:29; Isa 25:6; Mt 8:11;25:1-20; 26:29; Rev 19:9).In Palestine, when someone was holding a feast it was common to announce it longbeforehand with the invitations being sent out and accepted. To accept the invitation beforehandand then to refuse it when the day came was considered a grievous insult.The point Jesus is making is that although the Jews had long yearned for the Messianicvisitation, when it did come, they tragically refused God’s invitation. When the Jews refusedGod’s invitation and left the table empty, the invitation went out to the Gentiles who welcomedJesus. And there was plenty room at the banquet table of God’s feast.The initial invitation must have been accepted, but when the final invitation came (byJewish custom the announcement that came when the feast was ready), other interests tookpriority. The reason given here is obviously not genuine. People did not buy a field withoutfirst seeing it.Furthermore, we see here that this man was more concerned about business than hewas about spiritual matters. Worldly engagement easily usurps the claims of God upon ourlives.

95The Second ExcuseThere is no shortage of excuses for not accepting God’s invitation:"Another said, 'I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I'm on my way to trythem out. Please excuse me'” (14:19).People did not buy oxen without first trying them out. He was more interested in hisnew possession than he was in God’s service. We see this so often in society where people getso preoccupied with their toys that there is no time and energy left for God. It is easy for a newtoy, a new relationship, a new job, etc. to take up the time we should be giving to God.The Third ExcuseThe third excuse given makes no more sense than the others:"Still another said, 'I just got married, so I can't come'” (14:20).One of the unique laws of the Old Testament was that when a man is newly marriedhe is freed from normal responsibilities:“If a man has recently married, he must not be sent to war or have anyother duty laid on him. For one year he is to be free to stay at home andbring happiness to the wife he has married” (Dt 24:5).Such a law may have been in this man’s mind when he came up with his excuse. Whilesuch a law is given to protect and nurture the marriage relationship, that relationship can alsobecome a selfish and self-centered relationship. Their new relationship became moreimportant than their relationship with the Lord. If a marriage relationship means more thanone’s relationship with the Lord, then even that relationship has become an idolatrous. Assomeone put it,“Marriage is not two people serving each other, but two people serving God together.”THE BANQUET OF THE KINGDOM (14:21-24)The second part of the story focuses on those who had no claim on the king and whowould never have considered getting such an invitation.It is interesting that Jesus thought of His kingdom and service in terms of a joyous feast:

96"The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of thehouse became angry and ordered his servant, 'Go out quickly into the streetsand alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and thelame.''Sir,' the servant said, 'what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.'Then the master told his servant, 'Go out to the roads and country lanes andmake them come in, so that my house will be full. I tell you, not one of thosemen who were invited will get a taste of my banquet'" (Lk 14:21-24).Without explicitly mentioning them, Jesus warned the Jews that refusal to accept God’sinvitation would result in their rejection and the inclusion of Gentiles instead (20:9-19).There is ample room at the feast of God for outsiders. God’s invitation goes out toeveryone, that is, to the despised, the outcasts: the poor, the crippled, the blind, the lame. Thephrase “roads and country lanes” refers to outside the city altogether. Historically, this means theheathen, the pagans who are sunk to the lowest depths of spiritual wretchedness and thus thoughtto be beyond the pale of salvation. These are the people whom Paul described as "without Christ,strangers from the covenant of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world" (Eph2:12).Therefore, this parable prophetically contemplates the extension of the kingdom of Godto the whole world; and spiritually, it directs the Gospel invitations to be carried to the loweststrata of society. To the uttermost and to the guttermost!The phrase “make them” or “compel them” has been used in history as an excuse tocoerce people and even persecute them in order to become Christians. The inquisition used thethumb-screw, the rack, imprisonment and even death to forcefully persuade people to accept theChristian religion. During the Dark Ages it was not uncommon for so-called heretics to be beatenand burned.The meaning here is that we should be actively engaged in bringing people into God’sfold, that is, to be as persuasive as we can in inviting people to embrace the claims of Christ.Passive engagement is not enough. There must be the note of urgency as we realize that we areactually “snatching them from the fire and saving them” (Jude 23).

97In 2 Corinthians 5:14 Paul speaks of “Christ’s love that compels us.” While the strategyin inviting people to Christ might be aggressive and persuasive, the motive must be love. Suchlove will keep us from abusive, manipulative evangelistic practices in compelling people toembrace Christ.God wants His house “full” (v. 23).The phrase “a taste of my banquet” (v. 24) implies joy. Christianity is not a joylessreligion. Joy is the infallible sign of the presence of God which blossoms from a thankful andcompassionate heart. The 15th century mystic Julian of Norwich said,"The greatest honor that you can give to Almighty God, greater than all yourpenances and sacrifices and mortifications, is to live joyfully because of theknowledge of his love."Once we understand that God is love we cannot help but be joyful. Not only is God lovebut unchanging love, constant in His love for us. Therefore we can trust Him to look after us inall circumstances.love.All our gifts and talents are from the Lord. But our trust, that is ours. Joy is trusting God'sThis invitation also contains a warning for those who refuse it or who approach thewedding feast unworthily. While grace is a free gift, it is also an awesomeresponsibility. Dieterich Bonhoeffer contrasts "cheap grace" and "costly grace" by pointing outthat“costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift whichmust be asked for, the door at which a man must knock. Such grace is costlybecause it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man hislife, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life."1God invites each of us to his banquet that we may share in his joy. Are you ready to feastat the Lord's banquet table?APPLICATIONWhat are the lessons Jesus wants us to learn from this parable? We need to look to thisparable for an example on how we should react to peoples’ excuses.

981. We must not be discouraged by peoples’ excuses. Sometimes we talk with peoplewho may put up all kinds of smokescreens why they “can’t” accept our invitation, but this shouldnot dissuade us from continuing to invite people.2. Invite other people. Instead of getting frustrated and deciding not to ask anyone again,we need to be patient and ask other people, possibly people who we hadn’t thought of before.3. We are charged by the Master to go out and bring people to the banquet. We havebeen given a commission—The Great Commission—to invite people into communion withChrist and become His disciples.NOTEn. p.1Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship (New York: Simon & Shuster, 1995),

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100THE COST OF BEING A DISCIPLELuke 14:25-35“Salvation is free, but discipleship costs everything we have.” 1--Billy Graham“Suffering is the true badge of discipleship. The disciple is not above his master.” 2–Dietrich Bonhoeffer“Jesus has many lovers of his heaven, but few bearers of his cross; many thatdesire to partake of his comforts, but few that are willing to share in his distress . . .All are disposed to rejoice with Jesus, but few to suffer sorrow for his sake . . .” 3–Thomas a Kempis“Things have come to a terrible place,” said a famous Englishman testily, “when religionis permitted to interfere with our private lives.” Had this man never read the Bible? Had he neverheard of Isaiah who was sawed in two. Or Stephen who was stoned to death because of hisdedication to his religion? Or James and Paul who were beheaded? Or Peter who was crucifiedupside down? Or the other disciples except John who were all martyred because of theirdedication to their religion—Christianity? Had he never heard about the millions since the earlychurch period who have followed Christ cheerfully to violent death because they did allow theirreligion to interfere with their private lives?Maybe he but expressed openly what some of us feel secretly. Just how radically has ourreligion interfered with the neat pattern of our lives? I believe we live in a day which is sadlycharacterized by superficial Christianity.Why is easy believism so prevalent among us? There are many factors.• The philosophy of our American culture—pragmatism—whatever works isgood--was built upon hope and optimism. Anything that runs counter to anoptimistic view of life is thereby discouraged.• Evangelistic methods which have emphasized salesmanship have crept in wherewe are mistaking dynamic personalities for the power of the Holy Spirit andwhere we are mistaking superficial promises for the demands of discipleship.Christ is offered as a nostrum to cure our ills—a way out of our troubles.

101• The Health, Wealth & Prosperity Gospel has been proclaimed for the last thirtyyears with its triumphalistic message of reward for following Jesus.• Increasingly since the 1980's our culture of Me-ism—looking out for numberone—has made us self-indulgent. A gospel that demands obedience, sacrifice,even suffering, is therefore rejected, or at best, ignored.Thus Christianity has become a religious tranquilizer. Christ is presented for what wecan get out of Him—for selfish gain—rather than as the Lord of life whom we must seekbecause of our burden of sin. Twentieth-century prophet A. W. Tozer put it:“It has become popular to preach a painless Christianity and automatic saintliness.It has become part of our ‘instant’ culture. ‘Just pour a little water on it, stir mildly,pick up a gospel tract, and you are on your Christian way.” 4COUNT THE COST! (14:25,28-35)What a marked contrast to the conditions laid down by the Master! He did not try to makethe way easy in order to attract the crowds. Those who sought entrance into His kingdom werewarned:“Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them He said:Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimatethe cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundationand is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, ‘Thisfellow began to build and was not able to finish.’Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Will he not first sitdown and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the onecoming against him with twenty thousand? If he is not able, he will send adelegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace.In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot beMy disciple” (vv. 25,28-35).

102Common sense teaches us not to begin any costly work without first seeing that we havethe necessary resources to finish. The person who does not do that exposes himself togeneral ridicule. Similarly, any wise officer who enters a war with any hostile powerwithout first seeing to it that, despite formidable odds he be able to stand his ground andwin the battle.It is better not begin than begin and not finish

103Notice that Jesus did not want a blind, naive commitment that expected only blessings.As a builder estimates costs before building or a king evaluates military strength before he goesinto battle (14:31), so a person must carefully consider what Jesus expects of His followers.But why did Jesus give such a serious warning? It was because of the radical demandsof discipleship.Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who was a theologian and pastored an underground church duringHitler’s regime, and who was put to death by Hitler’s henchmen for his allegiance to Christstated:“When Christ calls a man, He bids him come and die. It may be a death like thatof the first disciples who had to leave home and work to follow Him, or it may bea death like Luther’s, who had to leave the monastery and go out into the world.But it is the same death every time—death in Jesus Christ, the death of the oldman at his call.” 5 (Emphasis added)Jesus put it:“‘If anyone comes after Me and does not hate his father and mother, his wifeand children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot beMy disciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow Me cannotbe My disciple” (vv. 26-27).Jesus comes first!Jesus makes it clear that our relationship with anyone else must be second to ourrelationship with Him. The use of the word “hate” is a hyperbole meaning that our love for Himmust be so deeper that in comparison to our love for others it seems like hatred.In the parallel passage in Matthew we see this clearly:“Anyone who loves his father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me;anyone who loves his son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me; andanyone who does not take his cross and follow Me is not worthy of Me” (Mt 10:37-38).This means that when we wake up in the morning, He is the first thing in our thoughtsand that when we go to bed at night, He is the last thing we think on before we fall asleep.

104Discipleship involves cross-bearing (Lk 14:27) does not refer to our common troubleswhich we all share as human beings some think they are bearing their cross every time they havea headache. Rather our cross means the trouble, the difficulties, we would not have if we werenot a Christian. “To take up our cross” is the extent to which we are to carry our devotion toChrist—our willingness to be inconvenienced, uncomfortable, stretched in our faith, that is, ourwillingness do His will no matter what.Physical DeathThe cross speaks of death. Does that mean that we Christians must suffer death if wefollow Christ? Obviously not, since most Christians live relatively long lives and die of naturalcauses like most people. However, there are 150,000 Christians who die each year around theworld because of their faith. Since the period of the early church, millions have given their verylives for Christ. This is why we have the motto:“The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.”Extreme HardshipsYet the number of martyrs throughout the centuries is relatively small compared to thewhole population of Christians who have lived. Therefore death may also mean the extremehardships we suffer because of our allegiance to Christ.Today we are told there are 200 million believers who live in countries where they sufferhardships for their beliefs, from discrimination to imprisonments, to beatings and everyimaginable kind of torture.Death to SelfSince death does not always mean a literal death, or even extreme hardships such asimprisonment and torture, death also means a death of our own desires and ambitions, that is,willingness to give up everything—which may, or may not, result in physical death.Death of our own desires and ambitions does mean sacrifice and suffering. Sacrifice andsuffering, of course, take many forms. In the passage before us it may mean financial andfamilial sacrifice. Jesus uses vivid hyperbole, exaggeration, to point out that we must love Jesus

105even more than our immediate family (Mt 10:37; Mal 1:2-3). Such sacrifice and suffering mayalso involve physical risk since Jesus says that we must be willing to give up “even [our] ownlife”—14:26). This means that we must completely surrender to Christ.But what does carrying our cross mean to us who live in free nations? What does sacrificeand suffering mean in our case?Rejection, social ostracism, because of our devotion to Christ and His values andstandards as we are unwilling to compromise our beliefs.Risking relationships with family members because of our allegiance to Christ.Putting God first may mean going against the advice and wishes of familymembers.Risking friendships as we love them enough to tell them the truth in love.Risking further rejection as we make ourselves vulnerable and reach out to tryto bring restoration to a broken relationship.Risking ridicule by reaching out to someone who has already hurt us, knowinglyor unknowingly.Inconvenience because we go out of our way to get involved in the lives of othersin helping to carry their burdens and thus fulfill the law of Christ.Generous and sacrificial giving what we cannot afford to lighten someone else’sfinancial burden.Sacrificing a larger profit margin, a promotion, or even a job because ourintegrity would not allow compromise.Sacrificing money, status, prestige in the workplace and/or in the communitybecause our integrity would not allow compromise.APPLICATIONA life of discipleship is a life of obedience. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer put it:“Only those who are obedient, believe.” 6

106This is where the rubber meets the road. Obedience to Christ’s demand that we carry ourcross—that we are dead to ourselves, the world, and sin—to follow Him is His standard.When Dietrich Bonhoeffer found out that he was to be executed for plotting to kill Hitler,he responded:“You must never doubt that I’m traveling with gratitude and cheerfulness alongthe road where I’m being led. My past life is brim full of God’s goodness, andmy sins are covered by the forgiving love of Christ crucified.” 7NOTES1Edythe Draper, Draper’s Book of Quotations for the Christian World (Wheaton, IL:Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 1992), 157.2Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship cited in “Discipleship,” ChristianityToday, compiled by Richard A. Kauffman (July 2004), 57.3Thomas a Kempis, The Imitation of Christ cited in “The Christian Quotation of the Day”http://www.eqod.com/index-04-11-09.html (7/19/2009), Page 1 of 2.4A. W. Tozer, Jesus, Author of our Faith cited in “Discipleship,” Christianity Today,compiled by Richard A. Kauffman (July 2004), 57.5Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship cited in The New Encyclopedia ofChristian Quotations, compiled by Mark Water (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1984), 693.6Ibid., 282.7Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Letters and Papers from Prison (Touchstone, 1997), n. p.

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108LOST PEOPLE MATTER TO GODThe Parables of the Lost Sheep, the Lost Coin and the Lost SonLuke 15:1-32; 19:1-10Have you ever been lost? I mean really lost? While walking in the woods maybe? In astrange city somewhere? Perhaps as a child, you lost your way? Or, while driving along one ofthe highways somewhere you took a wrong turn? Minutes seem like hours when you are lost.Many are lost and don’t know it. This has happened to me a few times. It reminds me ofthe statement, “There is good news and bad news. The good news is that we’re making goodprogress on our trip, the bad news is that we’re going the wrong way.”Some of us are going the wrong way and don’t even know it. As the Bible warns,“There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death” (Pr 14:12).JESUS SPENDS TIME WITH SINNERS (15:1-2)After listening to Jesus pointing out the cost in following Him, the Pharisees and theteachers of the law were upset with Him for spending too much time with the lost, the sinners ofsociety:“Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Him. Butthe Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, ‘This man welcomes sinnersand eats with them’” (Lk 15:1-2).Jesus responds by telling three parables about lostness and the joy of finding that whichwas lost. These parables in Luke 15 are some of the best known and most loved of all parables.In fact, Luke 15 has been called “the gospel in the gospel” because it seems to summarize theessence of the Good News which Jesus came to proclaim.1In this parable Jesus responded to the Pharisees’ complaints with a story that contrastedthe love of God with the exclusiveness of the Pharisees. To confront and reprove the Phariseesfor murmuring about the fact that He spent time with those who were lost Jesus told threeparables:

109• The Parable of the Lost Sheep (15:1-7)• The Parable of the Lost Coin (15:8-10)• The Parable of the Lost Son (15:11-31)People are LostThe Bible is clear that, apart from Christ, people are lost:• Jesus sent out His twelve disciples with the instruction, “Go rather to the lostsheep of Israel” (Mt 10:6).• Jesus answered His disciples, ‘I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.”(Mt 15:24)• Jesus pointed out to His disciples, “. . . your Father in heaven is not willingthat any of these little ones should be lost” (Mt 18:11).Again, when Jesus was criticized for giving attention to “a sinner”—a tax collector-Zaccheus (19:7) by saying, “He has gone to be a guest of a sinner,” Jesus responded, “Forthe Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost” (Lk 19:10).In both the Old and New Testament the close relationship of God and His people isprojected in the figure of the Shepherd and the sheep (Ps 100:3; 23:1; Isa 40:11; 53:6;Eze 34:11-16; Mt 9:36; Jn 10).People are lost for various reasons:Reasons People Are LostRebellion (Unbelief and Disobedience)—The writer of the Book of Hebrews useIsrael as an example of rebellion (Heb 3:7-19). Rebellion means having our ownway by going against the grain of God’s will (Heb 3:7-19). The prodigal son wenthis own way.Self-righteousness (Pride)—The Elder Brother in the Parable of the Lost Sons(Lk 15:25-31) was as lost as his younger brother because he was smug in his selfrighteousness.He thought that his following the rules and regulations of the homemeant righteousness. Yet his heart was proud and lacked love and was filled withbitterness and resentment.

110Drifting—Sheep get lost easily as they drift from one place to another (Heb 2:1).Because sheep are by nature stupid, wayward and defenseless, it was necessarythat they have constant supervision. But they continually got lost.Ignoring—Most people are lost because they either drift or ignore the gospel.(Heb 2:3)What do these three parables teach us?Diligently Seeking or Patiently WaitingTHE PARABLE OF THE LOST SHEEP (15:3-7)First, let us look at The Parable of the Lost Sheep:“Then Jesus told them this parable: ‘Suppose one of you has a hundred sheepand loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open countryand go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfullyputs it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighborstogether and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.' I tell youthat in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinnerwho repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need torepent” (Lk 15:3-7).In the case of the lost sheep we see that the shepherd went out and looked all night untilhe found the sheep. Then he called his neighbors to rejoice with him, saying, “I have found mysheep.” In the same way God seeks out every foolish and lost sheep.To emphasize God’s gladness when people are found, He says that “there will be morerejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who donot need to repent” (v. 7). Here God’s concern and joy at the sinners’ repentance are set in starkcontrast to the attitude of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law (v. 2). The ordinary peoplewho were not well acquainted with the Pharisaic interpretation of the law were called “thePeople of the Land.” The Pharisaic regulations taught that

111“When a man is one of the People of the Land, entrust no money to him, take notestimony from him, trust him with no secret, do not appoint him guardian ofan orphan, do not make him the custodian of charitable funds, do not accompanyhim on a journey.”2Pharisees were forbidden to be the guest of such people and to invite them to be guests.Furthermore, they were not to have any business dealings with them. The less contact the betterwith people who ignored the petty details of the law.When Jesus uses the phrase “the righteous persons who do not need to repent” He isprobably using irony because the point He is making is that those who think they are righteous(such as the Pharisees and the teachers of the law) and feel no need to repent are the leastrighteous.The shepherds of Judea had a dangerous job since the paths were typically narrow andthe terrain was often was steep. Because they were personally responsible for the sheep, theywere forced to take great risks in rescuing wandering sheep which often were found in desperatesituations.THE PARABLE OF THE LOST COIN (15:8-10)Second, let us look at the Parable of the Lost Coin:"Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Does she not light alamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? And when shefinds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice withme; I have found my lost coin.' In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicingin the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents" (vv. 8-10).The coin Jesus talks about is most likely a Greek silver drachma approximatelyequivalent to the Roman denarius, worth about an average day’s wages (Mt 20:2). It would beeasy to lose a coin in a Palestinian peasant’s house since the houses were dark being lit by onelittle circular window, if there was a window at all, not much more than about eighteen inchesacross. Near Eastern houses had only dirt floors covered with dried reeds and rushes making thesearch for a single coin very difficult. This was very much like looking for needle in a haystack.In this parable the woman turned everything in the house upside down, and diligentlysearched until she found it. In Jesus there is a love that will not let go.

112How different from the god of the Pharisees! A God who searches for people is not partof Pharisaic theology. It simply does not compute. In Jesus, who is love incarnate, we see a GodWho came to seek and to save that which was lost (19:10).THE PARABLE OF THE LOST SON (15:11-31)Third, let us look at The Parable of the Lost Son:“ Jesus continued: ‘There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said tohis father, 'Father, give me my share of the estate.' So he divided his propertybetween them.‘ Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distantcountry and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spenteverything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to bein need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who senthim to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods thatthe pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.‘When he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men havefood to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to myfather and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hiredmen.' So he got up and went to his father.‘But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled withcompassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him andkissed him. ‘ The son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven andagainst you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.'‘ But the father said to his servants, 'Quick! Bring the best robe and put it onhim. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calfand kill it. Let's have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was deadand is alive again; he was lost and is found.' So they began to celebrate.

113‘ Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, heheard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked him whatwas going on. 'Your brother has come,' he replied, 'and your father has killedthe fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.'‘The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father wentout and pleaded with him. But he answered his father, 'Look! All these yearsI've been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you nevergave me’ even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But whenthis son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comeshome, you kill the fattened calf for him!''My son,' the father said, 'you are always with me, and everything I have isyours. But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours wasdead and is alive again; he was lost and is found’” (vv. 11-31).In the parable of the two lost sons the old father gave his son freedom to rebel andwaited prayerfully for him to return. The father does not go into the far country in search ofhis wandering boy. The foolish son was given the right to lose himself. The father was not overlyprotective. He risked by giving his son freedom and waited. When the prodigal son “came tohimself” and returned home, his father forgave him and restored him to his love. So it is with ourheavenly Father.In The Parable of the Lost Sons the prodigal son lost at least three things:1. Fellowship with the Father2. Self-respect3. All he hadThe salvation process came in four steps:1. Self-evaluation—He came to himself—his senses: “What a fool I have been.”(v. 17)2. Decision—”I will rise and go to my father” (v. 18).3. Action—“And he arose” (v. 20).

1144. Confession—“Father, I have sinned against heaven and before You!”(v. 18)The Lost are Lost to GodIn these parables God is the Shepherd whose sheep has wandered off; He is the womanwhose piece of money has disappeared in the darkness and debris of the house; He is the Fatherwhose son has gone away, and become lost to Him.What is the lesson? There are lost people! And lost people matter to God! Becausethey matter to God, they should also matter to us.The lost are a loss to God Himself. Because of sin, the highest glory--man--is lost toHim. Seeking the lost is not a chore to God; it is a heartfelt pursuit. The sheep, the coin, the sonare not just lost; they represent loss.The lost are helplessly and hopelessly lost in and of themselves. They need to besought because• Lost sheep don’t come home by themselves.• Lost coins have no ability to find themselves.• A son who has so blatantly raped his father’s estate has no claim to recoveryunless he is received and forgiven by the father.Notice that what is missing is worth an all-out search. These people were in a searchmode.The search was intense, diligent and relentless.And when they retrieved that which was lost there was great celebration. Why?Because what was lost was so precious, so valuable!God’s love for the lost is seen in the fact that Jesus gave three parables to emphasize thesame thing, that is, that God seeks the lost. Nowhere in Scripture does Jesus speak on any subjectby illustrating it with three parables, yet that is what He does here.Taken together, it is an amazing picture of God. He is seen grieving, seeking, findingand rejoicing.

115Many people don’t look lost nor do they know they are lost. The glitter of this world haspreoccupied their souls and dulled their sense of lostness. But who will be there when the candyis gone, when the allurements of this world prove illusory, when the liberty of the flesh hasenslaved and when the trappings of success rings hollow? When they finally know they need theLord, who will be there? Who will care?NOTES1William Barclay, The Gospel of Luke: The Daily Study Bible (Revised Edition,Edinburgh: The Saint Andrew Press, 1975), 199.2Ibid.

116CHAPTER 17

117PLAN FOR THE FUTUREThe Parable of the Shrewd ManagerLuke 16:1-15The Parable of the Shrewd Manager has been confusing to most of us since our firstexposure to it. That's because this parable seems to be commending someone for being dishonestwhich is out of character for God. For God to encourage anyone to be dishonest certainly runscounter to the teachings of Scripture. And if this is not what God is encouraging, then what is Heencouraging?FEW OF US PLANHow much should we set aside for today to secure our future? This is an issue we all needto address. Yet most of us don't plan beyond this year, this month, this pay period or even thisday.Fewer than 50% of us financially plan beyond our regular pay check. Even fewer planbeyond this coming year. This typically makes us poor stewards. By buying something on acredit card and making the minimum payment, we end up paying about five times the retailprice. Why? It is because we desire instant gratification. We want to have things immediately.Instead, we should plan how much we need for giving, savings, regular bills, medicalexpenses, maintenance, taxes, gifts, vacations, etc. for the whole year and then put aside themoney on a regular basis to cover them.This is the advantage of planning! It gives us freedom to choose how we use our moneywisely.THE WISDOM OF PLANNING (16:1-9)In Luke 16:1-15, Jesus is challenging His disciples to plan, not for this life, butbeyond it. He's saying not to plan for worldly wealth, but for true riches, in God's kingdom.Many of us "Christians" don't really believe in eternal life. We may pay lip service to impressother Christians but when it comes to the practical day-to-day decisions, we belie our professionby our spending patterns. Our spending most likely don’t look very different from our neighborswho have little, if any, interest in religion.If we really believed that how we used our money in this life could change our life foreternity, how would our priorities change? Our challenge is living like we believe Him and Hismessage.

118What we do with what we've been given determines what we'll get.Let's take a look at the situation when Jesus makes the shocking revelation:“ Jesus told his disciples: ‘There was a rich man whose manager was accused ofwasting his possessions. So he called him in and asked him, 'What is this I hearabout you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot bemanager any longer'“ (vv. 1-2).Here they are told to be trustworthy and shrewd with what little they have in this world sothey can have true riches in heaven. In no uncertain terms, He tells them,"You cannot serve both God and money."A manager is being fired by his master. Being told to bring the books into balance beforeturning them over for a final accounting, he faces a serious situation. He’s too old for manuallabor and too proud for welfare, so he asks his master’s debtors to come in and review theiraccounts with him. In private meetings he has the debtors write down their accounts to a morefavorable amount. In so doing he earns points with both the debtors and his master. How couldthis be?It was against Mosaic Law for Israelites to charge one another interest on credit extended(Dt 23:19), but many merchants got around this restriction by overcharging for goods andservices, taking excess profits in lieu of interest. (You can see a current example in the autobusiness. That 0% financing you got is really a loan whose interest is paid by the manufacturerout of excess profits added to the price of vehicles specifically for the purpose of funding suchincentives.)The manager had apparently dealt unfairly with the master’s debtors, tacking on excessprofits in lieu of interest. From the story, there’s no indication the master either instigated orcondoned any over charging. Its discovery may even be one of the reasons for the manager’ssudden loss of position. Perhaps he was using these add-ons to compensate for the losses ofwhich he was being accused."The manager said to himself, 'What shall I do now? My master is taking away myjob. I'm not strong enough to dig, and I'm ashamed to beg—I know what I'll doso that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.'So he called in each one of his master's debtors. He asked the first, 'How much doyou owe my master?'

119'Eight hundred gallons of olive oil,' he replied.The manager told him, 'Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it fourhundred.'"Then he asked the second, 'And how much do you owe?''A thousand bushels of wheat,' he replied.He told him, 'Take your bill and make it eight hundred.'The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly.For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind thanare the people of the light. I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends foryourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.”(vv. 3-9)Since the master commended the manager’s shrewdness in writing down the accounts,it’s hard to imagine he was being cheated in these dealings even though the Lord calls themanager dishonest. More likely, in settling with the debtors the manager was deducting theexcess profits he himself had tacked onto their accounts, earning the gratitude of the debtorsand the admiration of the master.We see here the wisdom of providing against an uncertain future and coming evil.The conduct of the unjust steward, when he received notice to give up his place, was undeniablyskillful. Dishonest as he was in striking off from the bills of debtors anything that was due to hismaster, he certainly by so doing made for himself friends. Although he was wicked, he looked tothe future. Even though his actions were disgraceful, nevertheless he provided well for himself.He did not give up and give in to laziness and self-pity. He did not allow himself to be reduced topoverty without a struggle. He schemed, planned and boldly carried out his plans. The result wasthat when he lost one home he secured another.This is in striking contrast to the conduct of many Christians who show little regard fortheir souls. Like him, we should be forward looking and provide against the day when we shallhave to leave our present place on earth. We should make sure we secure "a house in heaven,"which may be our home, when our present life is over (2 Co 5:1). All means should be utilized toprovide for ourselves what is everlasting.Why is it that people of darkness are more diligent about earthly things than professingChristians are about heavenly things? Why is it that worldly people are more zealous in amassingtreasures on earth than believers are in receiving treasures in heaven?

120THE IMPORTANCE OF LITTLE THINGS (16:10-15)Notice the remarkable expressions which our Lord uses about little things inconnection with this parable:"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, andwhoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. So if youhave not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you withtrue riches? And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else's property,who will give you property of your own?No servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love theother, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannotserve both God and Money.The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. Hesaid to them, ‘You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of men, butGod knows your hearts. What is highly valued among men is detestable inGod's sight” (vv. 10-15).Our Lord here teaches us the great importance of faithfulness in "little things." “Littlethings" are the best test of character, that is, unfaithfulness about "little things" is the symptom ofa bad heart. Dishonesty about money is a sure sign of a heart not being "right in the sight ofGod." The man who is not dealing honestly with the gold and silver of this world, can never beone who has true riches in heaven. “. . . if you have not been trustworthy with someone else'sproperty, who will give you property of your own?” (v. 12)There are people who have the false notion that true religion may be separated fromhonesty and that integrity in matters of doctrine may cover swindling and cheating in matters ofdaily practice. Although salvation is by grace and justification is by faith, this does not mean thattrue religion sanctions any trifling with moral and ethical values and standards. True, biblicalfaith will always be known by its fruits. This means that where there is no integrity, there is nograce.We also see here the uselessness of attempting to serve God with a divided heart. OurLord Jesus Christ says,

121"No servant can serve two masters—for either he will hate the one and love theother—or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. You cannot serveGod and mammon" (Mt 6:24).People are continually trying to do what Christ says is impossible. They are trying to befriends of the world and friends of God at the same time. Such an attempt leads to a state ofconstant discomfort because they have too much religion to be happy in the world and too muchof the world in their hearts to be happy in their religion.Half-hearted Christians are not respected by either fellow Christians or non-Christians.The reason is because they are constantly compromising and thus have a muted witness. Joy andpeace in the Christian life only comes through wholehearted commitment (Ro 15:13). If it isworthwhile to serve Christ at all, then He should be served with one’s whole being. Christwarned,"Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God" (Jas 4:4).The end of undecided and half-hearted Christians will be to be cast out forever.Luke points out that the Pharisees sneered because they loved money. Jesus then turnedtheir sneers around by telling them they were the dishonest managers because they honored whatGod detested (Lk 16:15). We have already seen that in Jesus’ day the religious people believedthat health and wealth were signs of being holier and closer to God. If you were sick or poor,there must be some kind of sin in your life. They had literally made money their God, using it asa sign of godliness. Some religious people do the same today.Both the manager and his master were totally preoccupied with achieving a singlegoal: more wealth. The master was rich! And he had hired a manager to ensure that his richesgrew while he took care of other affairs. We don't know what was involved in the "wasting";maybe it was intentional fraud or maybe it was negligence. But either way, we do know that themanager caused the master to incur loss when he was supposed to bring profit.The master heard that there was something wrong and told the manager to give anaccount. This would be like demanding that he bring in the accounting record books so that anaudit could be performed.

122The manager knew that his career would be over when the results of the audit wereknown. This meant he was going to lose his comfortable job along with everything he hadprepared for his retirement. Furthermore, he wasn't about to do actual labor after having such aneasy income for so long, nor was he going to demean himself by begging. And certainly, no onewould hire him to manage their wealth after this episode.The story makes it clear that the way of the world is based on being shrewd. Thismeans being clever or wise by carefully thinking about the results of one’s actions. The rich mangot rich by carefully considering his actions to maximize his profit.Instead of God commending someone for being dishonest, He is pointedly telling thereligious people to pursue God's gift of life through Jesus as much as the worldly peoplepursue wealth.APPLICATIONNon-believers are shrewder in dealing with each other than believers are. They knowhow to use their position and authority to gain influence so they’ll have something to fall back onif they get into trouble. If they do this to help themselves in a worldly context, how much moreshould we work to gain influence in an eternal one?Just as the shrewd manager worked to gain favor with his master’s debtors so they wouldbe more likely to help him out later, there are things we can do to gain influence with otherbelievers, who may then intercede for us in difficult times. Asking their forgiveness is one.He was talking about using our wealth in a way that impresses the Lord. Wealth is agift from God, we’re told (Dt 8:18). Many people are smart, well educated and work hard, butthe Lord blesses relatively few with wealth. If you’re one of them, are you thankful? Remember,He says, if you can’t be trusted with a little (earthly riches) how will you ever be trusted with alot (eternal riches)? You can’t serve two masters, after all. The money will take you in onedirection, but God may have another direction in mind. Which will you follow?

123CHAPTER 18

124THE FIERCE PURSUIT OF THE KINGDOM OF GODLuke 16.16-18Calvinists and Arminians have debated for hundreds of years about divine sovereigntyand human freedom. The issue is whether we should take a deterministic view of the will inwhich man has categorically no role to play at all or is there still some human freedom, thoughgiven by God?The following passages seem to argue for the latter.KEEP ON STRIVING TO ENTER THE KINGDOM (13:24-25)Jesus gives a curious Jewish inquirer a serious exhortation:“He said to them, "Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, becausemany, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. Once the owner of thehouse gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading,'Sir, open the door for us.' ‘But he will answer, 'I don't know you or where youcome from'” (13:24-25).We are told that when our Lord Jesus Christ was asked whether few would be saved, Hesaid, "Struggle to enter in at the narrow door." The Greek word agonizomai is the word fromwhich we get agonize. The word means to agonize, struggle, contend, to combat, strive, laborfervently. 1 Strong says it means literally to contend for a prize and figuratively to contend withan adversary with the idea of endeavoring to accomplish something. 2 Thayer gives the followingdefinitions: 1) to enter a contest: to contend in the gymnastic games, 2) to contend withadversaries, to fight, 3) metaphorically, to contend, to struggle, and 4) to endeavor withstrenuous zeal, strive to obtain something.3 The word emphasizes great intensity of purposeand effort. It was used in referring to Greek athletic contests in which athletes would bestraining every nerve and muscle to win a contest. The idea is to make every effort to make surewe enter in God’s door that leads to His kingdom. Since the verb is in the present tense a literaltranslation is “Keep on striving to enter.”Entry into the kingdom of God is not automatic. It is the result of an agonizing struggle.The struggle to enter in must be so intense that it is best characterized as “an agony of soul andspirit.” 4

125He addressed these words to the whole company of His hearers. He did not think it waswise to simply gratify the curiosity of His questioner by a direct reply. Instead He chose toemphasize with him, and all around him, their own immediate responsibility. In looking out fortheir own souls, they would soon find the question answered. In making ever effort to enter in atthe narrow door they would soon find out whether the saved were many or few.Jesus wants us to know in no uncertain terms what our responsibility is. The door isnarrow and the enemies of our souls are many. We must be active. Instead of inquiring whatother people are doing and whether many of our neighbors, relatives and friends are servingChrist, we must make sure that we are in fact doing so. The unbelief and indecision of others willnot excuse us at the Day of Judgment. We dare not follow the crowd to do what is popular whichultimately ends in destruction. Rather, we must be willing to go against the current of our timesand swim upstream. Whether many go with us or not, our resolve must be to "Make every effortto enter in."Whatever others may think, the message is clear: we must take initiative. We are not tosit still and wait for the grace of God. We are not to go on still in our sin and rest with the excusethat we can do nothing until God draws us. We are to draw near to Him in the use of the meansof grace (Jas 4:8). It is through obedience that God fulfills His will in us. Therefore we are to"Strive to enter in."THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS ZEALOUSLY EMBRACED (Mt 11:12)The immediate context of Jesus’ statement concerning how people enter His kingdom(Mt 11), He was speaking about John the Baptist, a man of great purpose and resolve. And heasked the people what they expected to see when they were introduced to John and his ministry.Did they expect “A reed swayed by the wind?'" (Mt 11:7). If so, then they would be disappointedsince John was a man of tremendous determination. Instead of trying to please his audience bytickling their ears, he told the truth and nothing but the truth. So Jesus makes it plain to Hishearers that the kingdom of heaven was moving forward with power and that those who wantedto be a part of this movement would have to be people, like John the Baptist, of strong characterand forceful resolve, not "reeds swayed by the wind." Jesus used this occasion in which he hadsuch high praise for this prophet, this man of faith, to challenge the crowds to strive for suchfaith in their own lives (v. 15). It was in this context that Jesus made a statement that has puzzledbiblical scholars for centuries:“From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has beenforcefully advancing and forceful men lay hold of it” (Mt 11:12).

126The tax-gatherers and heathens, whom the scribes and Pharisees think have no right tothe kingdom of the Messiah, filled with holy zeal and earnestness, seize at once on the mercy ofthe Gospel, and so take the kingdom as by force from those learned doctors who claimed forthemselves the most important places in that kingdom. Christ Himself said that the tax-collectorsand harlots go before the religious leaders into the kingdom of God (Lk 7:28-30).The Greek word in question here is biastai (the plural form of biastes), which manyversions translate "violent men." This is the word that appears in Matthew 11:12—"violent mentake it by force." The verb form of this word, which appears in both Matthew 11:12 and Luke16:16, is biazo. "The kingdom of heaven suffers violence" (Mt 11:12). "Every man enterethviolently into it" (Lk 16:16, ASV). In both of these passages where the verb form appears, theform of the verb used is biazetai, which is present indicative, 3rd person singular. This meansthe action is continuous in nature.The challenge is that this particular form, with regard to voice, may be either a middle ora passive. This means the context, whether immediate and remote, must determine which of thetwo is most likely intended by the author.The passive voice suggests the subject of the clause is the recipient of the action of theverb, whereas the middle voice suggests the subject itself performs the action of the verb. Itseems plausible that in both the Lucan and Matthean passages the verb has been correctlyidentified by most scholars as a middle voice.This word is used in only three passages in the New Testament. According to TheExpositor's Bible Commentary, "In Greek, sources relevant to the New Testament, biazetai isconsiderably more common in the deponent middle than in the active or passive voices." 5 Themiddle voice, however, is used by far the most in the extra-biblical sources. In fact, the passive ishardly used at all. Therefore, "the best solution is to take the verb in its most likely voice: themiddle." 6 The middle voice then seems to make the most sense in Luke 16:16. This means thatpeople are not being violently forced into the kingdom, but rather they themselves are forcingtheir way in.The problem, however, in the minds of many people, arises when the middle voice isused in translation of the clause in Matthew. This would make the kingdom of heaven thefacilitator of the violence specified, rather than the recipient of it. The Greek term, however,may be used either positively or negatively. Unfortunately, most translations and commentatorsin the past have assumed the negative connotation of the term which has led to confusion overthese two passages.

127When used negatively, this Greek term does signify "violence; malicious aggression." Ifthis is the most accurate translation, that is, “The kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and theviolent take it by force,” then Jesus' reference to violence refers to both the intensity of spiritualwarfare surrounding the ministry of Jesus and His herald, and also to the intensity required topersevere in following God and "taking" the kingdom into our hearts.When used positively, however, it signifies "one who is forceful in eager pursuit; to pressearnestly forward" 7 It seems to make more sense that in both the Matthew and Lucan passagesthis term is not only in the middle voice, but it is also being used with a positive connotation.Vine, in his classic work An Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, agrees, saying thatthe positive "meaning is abundantly confirmed by the similar use in the papyri." 8 Lenski agreeswith his statement that "the idea of violence is too strong an idea in the present connection." 9Charles Ellicott concurs: "There is no thought of hostile purpose in the words." 10 Craig Keenersimilarly notes, "the text does not read like censure" 11 which seems to imply that Jesus views Hisstatements as depicting positive qualities and actions.If the verb should be understood in the middle voice and be used in its positive sense,then the translation for Matthew 11:12 would be,"The kingdom of heaven earnestly and forcefully presses forward, and it isentered into by earnest, eager pursuers of it."By removing the negative connotation of "violence," and adopting the positiveconnotation of "pressing forward eagerly and earnestly," and by using the middle voice in bothof these verses, Jesus’ statements become consistent with the immediate context and theremainder of the teaching of Scripture. It is not surprising that many of the more moderntranslations take this view and therefore render the passages as follows:"From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has beenforcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it" (Mt 11:12, NIV).“The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then the good news of thekingdom of God is preached, and everyone forces his way into it” (Lk 16:16, ESV)."The kingdom of God is being declared as good news, and every sort of personis pressing forward toward it" (Lk 16:16, New World Translation).

128"John introduced the Good News that the Kingdom of God would come soon.And now eager multitudes are pressing in" (Lk 16:16, Living Bible).God’s kingdom is advancing as His gospel is being proclaimed and no force can thwartthat progress as long as God wills it. The frontiers of darkness is being overcome and thosedetermined to be a part of this eternal kingdom will enter into it with a forceful determinationthat will surmount any obstacle. 12THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS EMBRACED THROUGH HARDSHIPSIn Acts 14:21-22 Luke tells about Paul and Barnabas returning to Antioch in Syria withdetermination and boldness in seeking to enter the kingdom and living for the kingdom:"They preached the good news in that city and won a large number of disciples.Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, strengthening the disciplesand encouraging them to remain true to the faith. ‘We must go through manyhardships to enter the kingdom of God,’ they said.’”Because of the difficult obstacles that lie ahead, Paul and Barnabas realized that they hadto be aggressive, forceful and determined if they were to succeed in their exploits. They had to“press on” in order to seize the prize of God’s high calling (Php 3:12-14).APPLICATIONJesus warns us that entrance into the kingdom is not easy. The kingdom of heaven needsto be aggressively pursued. It is not for the sluggish, the slacker, the faint-hearted, or the passiveHe who will take possession of the kingdom of righteousness, peace and joy must be preparedfor all hell to oppose him in every step he takes. Spiritual success requires aggressive, violentearnestness.We have to work vigorously and "violently" at times, to force ourselves to do what isright, because the kingdom of God is now under siege. This is why we have to fight as warriorsin battle and violently engage the enemy.While Jesus was not a person engaged in political warfare as the zealots had hoped, Hewas engaged in spiritual warfare. Taking the kingdom of heaven by force is an act of spiritualwarfare, both for God’s kingdom, and against any other kingdom.

129NOTES1W. E. Vine, An Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words (Reference LibraryEdition, Old Tappan, NJ: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1966), 83.2James Strong, The New Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Nelson, 1984),73. See also Young’s Concordance, 941.3J. H. Thayer, Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, 75.4William Barclay, The Gospel of Luke: The Daily Study Bible (Revised Edition,Edinburgh: The Saint Andrew Press, 1975), 183.5The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Vol. 8 (Grand Rapids: Baker PublishingCompany, 1982), 266.6Ibid., 267.7The Analytical Greek Lexicon (New York: John Wiley & Son, 1870), 69.8W. E. Vine, An Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, 189.9Richard Lenski, Hebrews and James in Commentary on the New Testament, 437.10Charles John Ellicott, Ellicott’s Commentary on the Whole Bible, Vol. 6 (Grand Rapids:Zondervan, 1971), 66.11Craig S. Keener, A Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew (Eerdmans, 1999), 340.12The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Vol. 8, 288.

130CHAPTER 19

131A MAN CONSUMED WITH WEALTHThe Parable of the Rich Man and LazarusLuke 16:19-31"If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced evenif someone rises from the dead." (16:31)Characteristically, Jesus conveys spiritual truth by means of a parable. But is the story ofthe Rich Man and Lazarus a parable?IS IT REALLY A PARABLE?A parable is a story intended to convey a spiritual truth in such a way that it enableshearers to imagine the situation. The story doesn't have to be about real people or even realsituations (such as a camel passing through the eye of a needle). But to achieve its teaching goal,a parable must make a primary point and be memorable so that as the story is retold andremembered, the spiritual truth is reinforced again and again.Some question whether this story is a parable since no other parable includes any namesand the portrayal of heaven presented by the word pictures in the Book of Revelation seemsmuch different than the story of the Rich Man and Lazarus. We must keep in mind that parablesdon’t have to be factual to be true. Jesus is not trying to teach His disciples the details of theafter-life in this parable. In all likelihood He is using a popular story genre to make a spiritualpoint. Therefore this story seems to qualify as a parable.Many scholars believe that Jesus is drawing upon a popular Jewish folk tale that hadroots in Egypt about a rich man and poor man whose lots after death are completely reversed.INTRODUCTIONThis parable follows on the heels of The Parable of the Unjust Steward in which Jesusspoke about wealth and taught that we cannot serve both God and money. Because the Phariseeswere lovers of money (16:14), they scoffed at Jesus for such a teaching. Therefore Jesuscondemns the wrongful love of money in the Pharisees who thought that riches weresynonymous with righteousness and tells them another parable about trusting in money. He evenbegins it the same way he began the last parable with the phrase, “There was a rich man . . .”

Jesus had also taught that while the Pharisees looked at the outside, God looks at theheart (6:15).132He also spoke about the law and the prophets being proclaimed until John (15:16).Although most people think of future things when they think of the prophets, what the prophetsprimarily did was condemn Israel for oppressing the vulnerable people of society—the sick andthe poor. While the Pharisees proclaimed the importance of loving one’s neighbor, the followingparable portrays one who does not.Jesus also says He is preaching the gospel of the kingdom and makes the point that“everyone is forcing his way into it” (v. 16). This speaks of the fierce earnestness with whichpeople were responding to the gospel of the kingdom. Multitudes were coming to hear Jesus andto receive His message.The Pharisees thought wealth was a sign of spirituality and blessing from God and thatpoverty was a result of sinfulness and cursing from God. Therefore they were sure that poorpeople were not going to get into heaven.In this parable, therefore, the attitude Jesus is dealing with is the Pharisees’ attitudetowards their wealth.What is God’s attitude towards the Pharisees who were devoted to money and took greatpride that they had it? Would they enter the kingdom of God? What does it take to enter thekingdom (i.e. go to heaven)?A REVERSAL OF FORTUNEIn the parable before us Jesus paints a dramatic scene of contrasts: riches and poverty,heaven and hell, compassion and indifference, inclusion and exclusion.There is also an abrupt and dramatic reversal of fortune. The rich man treated him withcontempt and indifference. Eventually there was a reversal of fortune and the rich man whoheld on possessively to what he had, lost it all in the end, while the humble beggar receivedriches in God’s kingdom.

133The name Lazarus means “God is my help.” Despite a life of misfortune and suffering,Lazarus did not lose hope in God. His vision was not limited to this life. Unlike the rich manwho could not see beyond his material wealth and possessions, his eyes were set on a treasurestored up for him in heaven.The rich man served wealth rather than God. He not only had every thing he needed, heselfishly spent all he had on himself. This rich man was so absorbed in what he possessed that hefailed to even notice this needy beggar In his preoccupation with seeking happiness in materialthings, he lost sight of the treasures of heaven.In the end the rich man became a beggar!THE RICH MAN (16:19-20)"There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived inluxury every day" (v. 19).This man was not just rich, but very rich. Purple dye was extremely expensive, obtainedfrom the shellfish murex. A purple wool mantle was costly. A finely-woven linen tunic wasconsidered the height of luxury. The gate to the rich man's mansion was typical of mansionscharacterized by opulence. The rich man doesn't need to work so he feasts like this every day.Although the rich man is not named, he is sometimes called Dives, the Latin word for "richman."Wealth is not bad. After all, Abraham was wealthy. But wealth brings with it certainresponsibilities, such as caring for the poor.THE POOR MAN (16:20-21)"At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longingto eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and lickedhis sores" (vv. 20-21).Jesus contrasts the rich man with a beggar, the poorest of the poor. The beggar's name isLazarus, the only character in any of Jesus' parables who is given a name. Lazarus is short forEleazar, which means "He (whom) God helps.” He is lying as he begs next to the rich man's gate,probably placed there by friends. He is sick with numerous ulcerated sores. And he is hungry,longing to eat the scraps from the rich man's table, usually reserved for the dogs.

134The dogs that lick his sores are not pets. In the Middle East dogs are considered unclean,scavengers who sniff at garbage and poor people’s sores.Abject misery!ABRAHAM’S SIDE (16:22)"The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham'sside. The rich man also died and was buried" (v. 22).Jesus pictures angels carrying Lazarus to Abraham. Both NIV and ESV translate theGreek word kolpos as “side” whereas the KJV translates it “bosom.” Both translations arelegitimate. In ancient times the practice of reclining at the banquet table would likely result inhaving one's head on someone's chest. So this puts Lazarus in the place of honor at the right handof Abraham at the banquet in the next world. The poor man's fortunes are reversed.The rich man, too, experiences a reversal:THE RICH MAN IN AGONY (16:23-24)"In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away,with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity onme and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue,because I am in agony in this fire’" (vv. 23-24).He is in "hell." The Greek word used here is Hades, the place of the dead, and in Jewishthought, the intermediate place of the dead prior to the final judgment. Although the Greek wordgehenna is usually used to refer to the place of final punishment, in Jewish literature torment canbe a feature of the intermediate state as well as of the final state of the wicked.He is in severe pain, tormented (basanos) because of his wickedness. His tongue is hotand dry, suffering from intense thirst. And the source of the suffering (odunao) is fire inflicted byGod.The rich man asks Abraham to order Lazarus to relieve his suffering (16:24) and later tosend a message to his brothers (16:27). He still views Lazarus as a slave who can be orderedaround at his whim.

135A GREAT CHASM (16:25-26)Abraham gives a reply to the rich man that makes it clear that justice eventuallyprevails:"But Abraham replied, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received yourgood things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted hereand you are in agony. And besides all this, between us and you a great chasmhas been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, norcan anyone cross over from there to us" (vv. 25-26).Abraham explains the situation and describes a great, impassable chasm (chasma) thatprevents anyone from passing from either side to the other. There is no hope of moving fromtorment to the blessings of Abraham's side, or of Lazarus helping the rich man. As the writer ofthe book of Hebrews puts it:“. . . man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment” (Heb 9:27).There is no second chance. The die has been cast. The outcome is irreversible.GOD’S WORD IS SUFFICIENT WARNING (16:27-31)"He answered, 'Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father's house, for Ihave five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come tothis place of torment.' Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the Prophets;let them listen to them.''No, father Abraham,' he said, 'but if someone from the dead goes to them,they will repent.' He said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and theProphets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead'" (vv. 27-31).The rich man wants Lazarus to warn his brothers of the dangers of hell, but Abrahamresponds by pointing out that if they won't listen to the truth they have already received fromtheir Lawgiver Moses and the Prophets, then they wouldn't believe even if someone rises fromthe dead.

136In the context, the rich man proposes that someone, probably Lazarus, rise from the deadto warn his brothers. Luke's readers, of course, will immediately think of Jesus, and how evenHis resurrection was not enough to convince the Pharisees to give up their hardened oppositionto the truth. What the law and the prophets say was simply not enough to the rich man.Something more spectacular was needed.NEGLECTING JUSTICE AND LOVE (11:42)The rich man’s treatment of Lazarus on earth revealed his true relationship to God.Mercy for the poor is a thermometer of the authenticity of our faith.We dare not close our eyes to the truth and we must not close our eyes to the sufferingpeople all around us.Jesus is condemning the Pharisees for their love of money and lack of mercy for the poor.Remember his comment about their scrupulous tithing?"Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and allother kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. Youshould have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone" (11:42).Piety is not only about praying, tithing and fasting, it is also about showing mercy to thepoor and seeking justice for the oppressed. For leaders who prided themselves on being suchBible scholars the Pharisees sure missed the weightier matters of Hebrew Scripture: justice andmercy.APPLICATIONWHAT ARE WE DOING FOR THE POOR?As disciples we are asking, “What should we learn from this?” “What is God saying to ustoday?”

137William Barclay titles this passage, "The Punishment of the Man Who Never Noticed."The rich man is not punished for his riches, but for neglect. Lazarus was at his door and he didn'tnotice. Who is at our door that we don't notice? Could it beThe needy illegal aliens who avoid the social welfare system for fear of beingdeported?Divorced mothers with kids who are living below the poverty level but are tooignorant of how to get help or too proud to ask for help?Families where the breadwinner is sick or shiftless or missing?The poor in third world countries who are out of sight and out of mind?The neighbor next door who is lost, like the rich man?As Christians we have the benefit of both the Old and New Testaments with theiremphasis on caring for the poor. If we don't notice and minister to the poor, what excuse will wehave?This does not mean we should give out of guilt or give unwisely or give to whoever criesthe loudest. Rather, we are to give out of the love of God within us. Instead of giving selfishly toassuage our guilt, we should give selflessly to care for someone else's need.NOTE1The following Scriptures are a sample of what God expects of us concerning the poor:Exodus 22:25-27; 23:11; Leviticus 19:9-10; 23:22; 25:25-28,35-37; Leviticus 25:39-43;Deuteronomy 14:28-29; 15:2-14; 24:12-21; 26:12-13; Nehemiah 8:10; Psalm 37:21; 26; 41:1-3;112:4-5,9; Proverbs 28:27; 29:7; 31:9; 20; Isaiah 1:17; 16:3-4; 58:7,10; Ezekiel 18:1-32; Daniel4:27; Zechariah 7:10.

138CHAPTER 20

139TEMPTATION, SIN AND FORGIVENESSLuke 17:1-6"No amount of piety on Sunday will take the place of integrity on Wednesday." 1--Elton TruebloodThis is the first of four sayings which seem to be independent teachings of Jesus becausethey are unconnected with the discourse or circumstance in which they have been placed. Markalso reported what seemed to be independent teachings of Jesus. On the other hand, there may bea connection which will become more obvious in each of the four sayings.Jesus had just finished the Parable of The Rich Man and Lazarus, with the rich man(Dives) in hell appealing to Abraham to warn his brothers of ending up in the same place oftorture. Abraham responded that they had their chance through the warnings of Moses and theprophets (16:29-31).In this next section Jesus warns those yet living against such a sin:“Jesus said to His disciples: "Things that cause people to sin are bound tocome, but woe to that person through whom they come. It would be better forhim to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck thanfor him to cause one of these little ones to sin” (17:1-2).The phrase "Things that cause people to sin are bound to come” (v. 1) shows the corruptstate of the human heart. Even with all the influences of grace and the promises of glory peoplewill continue to sin against God; and His justice requires punishment.Here are four things of which Christians should beware:1. Tempting others (vv. 1-2)2. An unforgiving spirit (vv. 3-4)3. Overlooking the power of faith (vv. 5-6)4. The belief that one can merit salvation (vv. 7-10).The fourth attitude to beware of will be addressed in the next study called,“UNWORTHY SERVANTS.”

140Although the Pharisees were typically found on the fringe of Jesus’ audiences, here theywere trying to cause the Twelve themselves to stumble. Is it any wonder that Jesus responded tosuch action in the sternest way? After all, these religious leaders were trying to pervert the faithof others.OFFENSES OR OCCASIONS OF STUMBLINGThe Greek word translated “stumbling” or “offenses” (skandalon) means “to trigger atrap” or “contact with which would cause the trap to spring." 2 Although this warning isaddressed to His disciples, it is a strong warning of God's wrath against those who lay a trap todestroy the faith of others.The phrase “these little ones” is a reference of Jesus to either young in age or to thosewho are "babes in Christ," whose faith is young and weak (10:21; Mt 18:6; Mk 10:24).Jesus’ teaching here is that physical death is a far more desirable fate than what isreserved for those whose intent is to destroy the faith of others. The millstone in view here is aheavy stone (ca. forty pounds) used for grinding grain. Drowning a person with a stone tiedabout the neck was a fairly common ancient mode of punishment. To have a millstone hungaround the neck was also a common proverb.When do people cause others to stumble, to sin? While non-Christians may do so throughridicule, shame, persecution, etc., professing Christians do it whenever they bring discredit ontheir religion by inconsistencies of attitude, thought, word or deed. We do it whenever wemake our Christianity unattractive to the world, primarily by hypocrisy, where our conduct is notin keeping with our profession. The world may not understand the doctrines and principles ofbelievers. But the world is very keen about their practice.David was guilty of this sin when he had broken the seventh commandment and taken thewife of Uriah to be his wife. The prophet Nathan said accusingly,"You have given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme." (2 Sa 12:14).This was also the sin which Paul charged the Jews with when he stated,"the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you." (Ro 2:24).It is the sin which Paul warns us all:

141“Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God."(1 Co 10:32)The inconsistencies of professing Christians too often supply the people of the world withan excuse for neglecting and rejecting religion altogether. An inconsistent believer whether heknows it or not is daily doing harm to others. His life is an offense—an affront—to the Gospel ofChrist.The eyes of the world watch us and judge us by what they see far more than by what theyhear. If they see Christians contradicting what they profess to believe, they are justly critical ofsuch a person. As Elton Trueblood put it:"No amount of piety on Sunday will take the place of integrity on Wednesday." 3Holiness must produce integrity and be a way of life. We must radiate the beauty ofChrist. Although the cross of Christ will always give offense, we must not. The natural mancannot be expected to love the Gospel, but we should not feed his skepticism by ourinconsistency.REBUKE AND FORGIVENESS (17:3-4)Jesus often taught on the subject of forgiveness. One of the longest parables in the NewTestament concerns this very issue (Mt 18:20-35). It fills a prominent place in the Lord's prayer.The only profession we make in the prayer, is that of forgiving "those who sins against us" (Lk11:4). The next two verses is a warning against withholding forgiveness (when it has been askedfor).” So watch yourselves. If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents,forgive him. If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comesback to you and says, 'I repent,' forgive him" (17:3-4).Extending forgiveness to others is a test of being forgiven ourselves. The man whocannot forgive his neighbor the few trifling offenses he may have committed against him, canknow nothing experientially of that pardon which is offered by Christ (Mt 18:35; Eph 4:32).Forgiveness is one leading mark of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. The presence of theSpirit in the heart may always be known by the fruit God causes to be brought forth in one’s life.That fruit is both active and passive. The person who has not learned to bear and forbear, to putup with much and look over much, is not born of the Spirit. (1 Jn 3:14; Mt 5:44-45).

142Is forgiveness conditional? Was John Wesley correct when he stated that "forgiveness isdue only to real penitents."The answer is double-edged: “Yes” and “No”. Yes, in that the deepest aspect offorgiveness—reconciliation—can only take place when there is penitence on the part of the oneguilty of the offense. The answer is no in the sense that we are not to hold animosity, resentmentor bitterness toward the one who has offended us. In cases in which people sin against otherswithout ever being aware that they have done so, they need to be made aware by the person whowas offended by them. Sins which are committed unintentionally should also be addressedbecause unintentional sins can have tragic effects on others.Jesus uses the conditional word “if” three times in these short two verses. He says, “If . . .he says, ‘I repent” (Lk 17:4). Conversely, if he doesn’t say “I repent” then there is no obligationto forgive him. Otherwise one becomes a mere doormat to such an insensitive person which onlyencourages him to continue in his sinful, unrepentant lifestyle.THE EFFICACY OF FAITH (17:5-6)This is the third of the four pronouncements. The apostle's reaction to the command ofJesus’ teaching on unlimited forgiveness appeared to them such a difficult task that they thoughtthey needed a special measure of faith to be able to comply with it.“ The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!" He replied, "If you havefaith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprootedand planted in the sea,' and it will obey you” (vv. 5-6).Why did the apostles want stronger faith? It was because Jesus had just asked them toperform a very difficult task. They thought they needed more faith so they could meet thechallenges of God's demands, but Jesus knew that it was not quantity they needed but quality.They did not need an increase of faith, but a faith that, although small like a mustard seed, is “thesubstance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (11:1).Jesus drives home the point that the faith they had was more than enough to enable themto carry it out. However, it was crucial that they did so. Therefore the key to increased faith is theword "say" (v. 6), that is, we are to act upon our faith.When God calls us, we may take our newly found faith for granted and may beincreasingly susceptible to becoming angry and bitter toward those who have offended us.Therefore Jesus cautions His apostles against such pitfalls. He also warns His disciples of theinevitable attacks coming their way and points out the guilt and punishment of those responsible

143(vv. 1-2). Then He admonishes them to nourish a loving and forgiving attitude and to be ready topardon when an offender repents. Knowing this is difficult and seeing this weakness inthemselves, the apostles feel the need for an increase of faith, an additional amount of spiritualhelp to enable them to comply with Jesus' requirements.This lesson (vv.1-6) seems to fit with the following parable (vv. 7-10), which emphasizesthe obligation of each disciple to serve the Master without expectation of reward.APPLICATIONHave we tempted others to sin? Have we been a stumblingblock to others? Have weweakened their faith? Have we given them an excuse to leave the church?How have we offended others? By unloving attitudes, words or deeds?How often have we forgiven people who have offended us? It takes faith to believe thatpeople won’t take advantage of us and that God will stand by our side.NOTES1Centro Platense de Cultura Cristianahttp://centroplatensedeculturacristiana.blogspot.com/2008/desde-suecia-defensa-para-p...(8/26/2009), Page 2 of 10.2W. E. Vine, An Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words. Reference LibraryEdition (Old Tappan, NJ: Fleming h. Revell Company, 1966), 129.3Centro Platense de Cultura Cristianahttp://centroplatensedeculturacristiana.blogspot.com/2008/desde-suecia-defensa-para-p...(8/26/2009), Page 2 of 10.

144CHAPTER 21

145UNWORTHY SERVANTSLuke 17:7-10This short parable is clearly designed to teach humility and obedience. The apostleswere probably contemplating the impressive spiritual attainments indicated by Jesus' promisethat they had the faith to move mountains into the sea. It would only be natural to be tempted topride by such a grand achievement.FRIENDS, NOT MERELY SERVANTS (Jn 15:15)One of the difficulties that this parable presents is the relationship between Jesus and Hisfollowers. It seems much colder and sterner than usual. After all, didn’t our Lord say,"I have called you friends," and that "no longer do I call you servants"? (Jn 15:15).While Paul did not hesitate to call himself the "bondservant" of Jesus (Ro 1:1), Jesuspoints out that there is a higher and this sterner aspect of the Christian's relationship to the Lordneeded stress then as it does now.GOD IS NO ONE’S DEBTOR (1 Co 4:7)Unworthy servants does not suggest the servants have been remiss or done less than theirduty, but that they had simply done what their master had a right to expect. The message of thisstory is that even if a person should actually do "all that was commanded" (repeated twice in theparable), he would not by such obedience place Almighty God in a position of being debtor tohim.No person can ever merit God's redeeming love. This however, does not negate theimportance of obedience for obedience shows the genuineness of faith and grace. The point isthat if a person obeys everything God commands, if it were possible, he is still saved by grace.This parable was to show that no man can merit salvation. Works are inadequate because thevery best that we can do is nothing more than our duty.This parable is a clear rebuke to self-righteous and self-satisfied Christians who thinkthat in obeying God he has done something meritorious.God is no debtor!

146What Jesus tells us is that we are to do everything possible to be as profitable as thisservant (vv. 7-8) without expecting any recognition for it (v. 9). Then we can present the sincere,humble attitude: "We are unworthy servants. We have done what was our duty to do."Paul asked the Corinthians,"What do you have that you did not receive?" (1 Co 4:7)We cannot claim to have done anything without God's oversight (Da 4:28-35). Paulmakes it clear that we owe God everything because He has redeemed us by the blood of His ownSon (1 Co 6:9-10).What good thing have we ever done that we deserve recognition?SERVANTHOOD (17:7-9)What is the relationship between masters and servants? What is the role of servants?Luke explains,"Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Wouldhe say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now andsit down to eat'? Would he not rather say, 'Prepare my supper, get yourselfready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink'?Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do?” (Lk 17:7-9).Masters do not waits on servants—servants are bound to wait on their master and doevery thing for him to the best of his ability. Neither does the servant expect thanks because he isbound by his agreement to provide such services.St. Augustine summarizes the lesson contained in the parable this way:“This parable shows us that we are useless servants when it comes to God. Thissovereign Master has a right to exact of us every kind of service, and to makeus apply ourselves to any task he may think proper, without our having anyreason to complain either of the difficulty, trouble, or length of our labors;we are entirely his, and he is master of our persons, time, and talents. Wehold of him whatever we possess, and woe to us if we abuse his trust, byapplying our talents to any use contrary to his designs. But though he be Lord

147and Master, he leaves our liberty entire. If he produces in us holy desires, ifhe works in us meritorious actions, gives us virtuous inclinations and supernaturalgifts, he sets to our account the good use we make of them; and incrowning our merits, he crowns his own gifts.”1UNWORTHY SERVANTS (17:10)What did the apostles expect from their labor? We know that the disciples jockeyed forposition in the kingdom (Mt 18:1). We also know that James and John and their mother askedour Lord to have James and John sit on His right and left sides in the kingdom of God (Mt 20:20-21; Mk 10:35-37). Position, authority and power were often sought by Jesus’ followers,especially His leaders. Therefore Jesus answers sternly,“ So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say,'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty'" (Lk 17:10).The apostles asked an important request,“Lord, increase our faith."Could it be that the hearts of the apostles failed as they heard one weighty lesson afteranother from our Lord? Perhaps they wondered, "Who is able to follow such spiritualchallenges?”We have already seen that faith is foundational to spirituality:". . . anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewardsthose who earnestly seek Him" (Heb 11:6.)Faith does not come to full strength and perfection as soon as it is planted in the heart bythe Holy Spirit. Faith often fluctuates. Therefore it is not surprising that the apostles asked fortheir faith to be increased.Saving faith is not mere repetition of a creed and saying, "I believe in God the Fatherand in God the Son and in God the Holy Spirit." Thousands who know nothing about biblicalfaith mouth these words every week. Faith is acting upon God’s word.

148Our obedience and service however excellent in themselves and profitable to others, addnothing to the absolute excellencies and glories of our GodThis is a blow to self-righteousness, a subtle disease which manifests itself in numerousways. Most of us can see it in other people even while we are blind to it in ourselves. It is a pridewhich wears the cloak of humility. No matter how wicked we may be, we tend to flatterourselves that there are others worse than we are.There is no place for self-righteousness in Christianity. He who desires to be saved mustconfess that there is no good thing in him, that he has no merit, no goodness, no worthiness of hisown. He must be willing to renounce his own righteousness, and to trust in the righteousness ofAnother.Once pardoned and forgiven, we live our lives with a deep conviction that we are"unworthy servants." At best we only do our duty and thus have nothing of which to boast. Afterall, when we do our duty it is not by our own power and might that we do it, but by the strengthwhich is given to us by God.All that we have we have received. And all that we are we owe to God's sovereign grace.The true believer dare not trust in his own goodness. Rather, he will say with Paul,"I am the chief of sinners" (1 Ti 1:15)."May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Gal 6:14).This parable is designed to guard against the subtle danger of becoming satisfied withwork with the expectation that the Master will recognize one’s service with reward. Jesusimpresses on His disciples the difficult and continuous service He requires of them and theattitude in which their service should be given.The object of this parable is to show that God claims all that belongs to us as Hisown. No amount of zeal we may manifested in discharging our duty puts God under obligationto us.Servants in Jesus’ day were mostly slaves whose condition in society was such that theygained nothing for themselves. Their toil—their very blood—was the property of their masters.

149Rewards are motivated not by what we deserve, but by God’s goodness.“We have done what we were bound to do” (17:10). When it comes to the entireobservance of the law, the most perfect of all people fall short of that righteousness which thelaw demands. Therefore the observance of the law is not meritorious. If rewards are due to theobservance of the law in respect of merit, it will not therefore follow that any man is justified bythe merits of works since we all failAPPLICATIONWe should not expect anything in return since all we are and have is because of God.We should be filled with gratitude because God who is love calls us His children andheirs and co-heirs with Christ (Ro 8:14-17) whom He will fully redeem one day (Ro 8:23) andfor whom He is preparing a place in heaven (Jn 14:2-3).Humility and obedience are to characterize our lives since even our best efforts fallshort of God’s standard.NOTE1Calmet, St. Augustine, lib. ix. Confessions and Sermons, 131.

150CHAPTER 22

151INGRATITUDEThe Healing of the Ten LepersLuke 17:11-19“God has two dwellings—one in heaven and the other in a thankful heart.”--Isaak Walton“When you drink from the stream remember the spring.”--Chinese ProverbIt is likely that our Lord set out from Capernaum, journeyed through the remainingvillages of Galilee as far as Samaria, and then passed through the small country of Samaria,preaching and teaching every where, and curing the diseased, as He usually did.”Now on His way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samariaand Galilee” (17:11).Luke mentions three times in this section that Jesus went to Jerusalem. Three differenttimes Jesus interrupted the journey to go into the religious capital of Israel on specific missions,each time returning to take up the final campaign as before. Just before this Jesus had gone toBethany to raise Lazarus from the dead, after which He withdrew for a while to Ephraim in thehills north of Jerusalem, later going through Samaria and Galilee to resume that journey toJerusalem.THE LEPERS ASK FOR PITY (17:12-13)“ As He was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met Him. They stoodat a distance and called out in a loud voice, "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!"(vv. 12-13)The dreadful malady of leprosy was a terrible scourge of Mid-East cities in the times ofChrist; and, for that matter, still is. The disease itself was considered a type of sin, notnecessarily related to specific sins of the victims. They kept a distance because they wereforbidden by law and custom to come near those who were healthy for fear of infecting them(Lev 13:45-46; Nu 5:2; 2 Ki 15:5).Sin reduced these men to a common level before God:. 1. It made them unclean

1522. It isolated them3. It made them hopeless“They called out in a loud voice” means they cried with one accord because they were allequally needy. As companions in suffering they became companions in prayer. Strong, earnestprayer is understandable when suffering from such an incapacitating and deadly disease. Yet sinis the worst of all leprosies since it separates the sinner from God.THE LEPERS ARE HEALED (17:14)When Jesus saw these lepers in their pathetic condition His heart went out to them andHe healed them:“ When He saw them, He said, ‘Go, show yourselves to the priests.’ And as theywent, they were cleansed” (v. 14).The actual healing is not described but assumed as a fact.Jesus did not touch them and command their disease to depart. He prescribed nomedicine, no washing, no use of outward material means. Yet healing power accompanied thewords which He spoke. Relief met the afflicted company as soon as they obeyed His command.A diversity of methods was used by Jesus in healing people. Whereas some werehealed in one circumstance, some in others; whereas most were healed instantaneously; one ortwo were healed in stages; whereas some were touched by Jesus, others were not; whereas somewere commanded to tell about it, others forbidden to tell it; whereas some were healed upon thebasis of their own faith, others upon the faith of friends; and whereas some were healed in Hispresence, others were healed in His absence.Notice that they were commanded to go and show themselves to the priests. It was anecessary requirement of the Law that before people could be pronounced cured and reentersociety that their professed healing was authenticated (Lev 13:2-3; 14:2-32).Furthermore, they were healed en route! It was as they exercised their faith that theywere healed.

153This is another account which shows us the wisdom of simple, childlike obedience toevery word which comes from the mouth of Christ. We are not to stand still, and reason, anddoubt when our Jesus’ commands are plain and unmistakable. If the lepers had acted in this way,they would never have been healed. It is in the path of unhesitating obedience that Christ willmeet and bless us."If any man will do His will he shall know of the doctrine" (Jn 7:17).In the spirit of implicit faith; they were cleansed. God highly honors this kind of faith,and makes it the instrument in His hand of working many miracles. He who will not believe tillhe receives what he calls a reason for it, is never likely to receive what he needs, whether healingor salvation. The highest the most sovereign reason that can be given for believing is that Godhas commanded it.A LEPER PRAISING GOD (17:15)Only one out of the ten lepers came back to praise God:“One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loudvoice” (v. 15).One of the symptoms of leprosy is the loss of one’s voice. This is why this leper’spraising God with a “loud voice” is so significant. It is a powerful testimony to the fact that thisleper was truly healed.It seems that he did not wait to go first to the priest, but turned immediately back, andgave public praise to the kind hand from which he had received his cure.Normally Jews did not associate with Samaritans (Jn 4:9), but leprosy broke down socialbarriers while erecting others.As we have already seen, it was a Samaritan, one who professed a corrupt religion; andfrom whom much less was to be expected than from the other nine, who probably were Jews,who did the right thing by praising God.

154A GRATEFUL LEPER (17:6)Not only did the despised Samaritan praise God, but he also humbly thanked Jesus bythrowing himself on the ground:“ He threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked Him—and he was a Samaritan” (v. 16).This gratitude of the Samaritan provides a powerful contrast to the ungrateful Jews!UNGRATEFUL LEPERS (17:17-18)Jesus seems to express His disappointment because those who were healed did not showany appreciation to God for their healing:“ Jesus asked, ‘Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Was noone found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?’" (vv. 17-18).Sadness seems to have been the dominant emotion as Jesus contemplated the ingratitudeof the nine. How could men be so thoughtless and unappreciative of God's favors? Why did thenine not return? Could it be because they wanted to wait to see if the cure was real or whether itwould last? Maybe some thought they would have gotten well anyway.How often do we fail to respond to the mercy and grace that saved us?These lepers had come to Jesus with the most loathsome and pitiful disease. Theypleaded with Him to help, He healed them; but nine of them never even said, "Thanks."Ingratitude is not only seen in the case of ingratitude to God, but also ingratitude ofchildren to their parents and of people toward their fellow human beings.One of the sins charged against the false profession of the last days is ingratitude:“For men shall be covetous . . . blasphemers . . . ungrateful . . . fierce . . . traitors.”(2 Ti 3:2-4)Ingratitude is listed with covetousness and blasphemy!

155God puts ingratitude along with wickedness:“For He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked” (6:35).Ingratitude is a fault always attended with other vices. Trust the ungrateful person withmoney, he will steal it; with honor, he will betray it; with virtue, he will violate it; with love, hewill transmute it into lust; with your good name—and he will defame it.Ingratitude is an affront to God!Gratitude is an inner disposition towards life as a whole. Two people gather grapes; oneis happy because he has found them and the other is unhappy because the grapes have seeds inthem. Two people pick roses; one is overjoyed with their fragrance and the other is unhappybecause it has thorns. We see what we are trained to see in life. We see what we look for.Instead of complaining because we don’t get what we want, we ought to be thankful wedon’t get what we deserve.The word foreigner (allogenes) is found on the limestone block from the temple of Israelin Jerusalem. It was placed in the court of the Gentiles next to the Court of the Women. "Let noforeigner enter," it stated. A foreigner might not be permitted to enter the Jewish part of thetemple (upon penalty of death); but one foreigner or stranger found favor with the Lord of thetemple!Twice in this episode, the worship of the healed Samaritan, was called "giving God theglory" (vv. 15,18) and as it was Jesus whom he worshiped, we must understand that Jesus is Godin human form; worshiping Jesus is worshiping God.Often God receives more praise and affectionate obedience from those who had longlived without His knowledge and fear, than from those who were bred up among his people, andwho profess to be called by his name. The simple reason is “. . . her many sins have beenforgiven—for she loved much” (7:47).A LEPER WHO WAS HEALED BY HIS FAITH (17:19)Jesus attributes the healing to the man’s faith:“Then He said to him, "Rise and go; your faith has made you well” (v. 19).

156Ingratitude was punished and gratitude was rewarded. Jesus commended only the faithwhich said, `Thank you'!"Our faith has been the means of receiving the cleansing.In chapter 7 of this same book Jesus also used the same phrase when He was anointed bya sinful woman. He assured her,“Your faith has saved you; go in peace” (7:50).Her sins were forgiven and she could experience God’s peace.In chapter 8 of Luke Jesus used the same phrase when He healed a sinful woman:“Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace” (8:48).The Greek word for healed actually means saved. In the parallel passage in Mark (5:21-43) both physical healing (“be freed from your suffering”—Mk 5:34) and spiritual salvation (“goin peace”—Mk 5:34) are meant. The two are often seen together in Mark’s and Luke’s Gospel(Mk 2:1-12; 3:1-6).In that same chapter Jesus said to Jairus concerning his dead daughter:“Don’t be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed” (8:50).Although technically it is God—the Healer—who heals, it is faith that takes hold ofGod’s promises and are thus honored by God.THANKFULNESS IS RARELet us notice last of all what a rare thing thankfulness is!We are told that of all the ten lepers whom Christ healed, there was only one who turnedback and gave Him thanks.The words that fell from our Lord's lips upon this occasion are very solemn—"Were notall ten cleansed? Where are the other nine?"

157Even the most faithful among us are far too like the nine lepers. We are more ready topray than to praise, and more disposed to ask God for what we do not have, than to thank Himfor what we do have. Murmurings and complaints are common all around us, even in Christiancircles.The wide-spread thanklessness of Christians is the disgrace of our day. It is a plain proofof our little humility.We can always find reason for gratitude before God. Matthew Henry, the famous Biblecommentator, was robbed of his wallet once. He wrote in his diary that night all the things hewas thankful about:First, that he had never been robbed before.Second, that though they took his wallet, they did not take his life.Third, because even though they took it all, it wasn't very much.Finally, because he was the one who was robbed and not the one who was robbingAPPLICATIONLet us pray for a thankful spirit. It is the spirit which God loves and delights to honor.Gratitude is the spirit which has marked all the great saints in every age of the church. After all,gratitude is the spirit which is the very atmosphere of heaven where angels and righteous peopleare always blessing God. It is also the spirit which is the source of happiness on earth. If we arenot to be anxious about anything, we must make our requests known to God not only with prayerand petition, but with thanksgiving (Php 4:6).Above all, let us pray for a deeper sense of our own sinfulness. This, after all, is thetrue secret of a thankful spirit. It is the person who daily feels his debt to grace and dailyremembers that he deserves nothing but hell who will be daily thanking and praising God.

158CHAPTER 23

159THE COMING OF THE KINGDOM OF GODLuke 17:20-37The subject of these verses is the Second Advent of our Lord Jesus Christ. That greatevent and the things immediately connected with it are here described by our Lord Himself.THE KINGDOM IS WITHIN (17:20-21)“ Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God wouldcome, Jesus replied, "The kingdom of God does not come with your carefulobservation, nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is,' because thekingdom of God is within you" (vv. 20-21).Some understand the phrase “having been asked by the Pharisees” to mean that thesewere sincere questioners; but all of the evidence seems to be against it. Instead they had alreadyrejected the “signs” Jesus had already performed, and of what He had already said about suchthings. It is more likely they challenged Jesus by their skepticism.The phrase “The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation” (v. 20)means that the kingdom would not appear visibly at all.Special attention has been drawn to the statement, “The kingdom of God is within you”(v. 21) because of the error that is associated with it in popular thought with its emphasis on theexternal expression of God’s kingdom, that is, the Coming of the Second Advent. The world willnot be converted when Jesus comes again. The earth will not be full of the knowledge of theLord. The reign of peace will not have been established. Rather, Jesus’ emphasis of the kingdomis that it is primarily internal and spiritual, not external and material. This does not meant that bythese words that Jesus taught that the kingdom of God is merely an inner, spiritual condition inthe human heart. While that applies to entrance into the kingdom, it is not itself the kingdom.The kingdom is not a state of mind or a disposition. The kingdom of God is God’s rule or reignin peoples’ hearts and a realm in which God rules and reigns in history and for eternity.THE LONGING TO SEE (vv. 22-37)In the next paragraph (vv. 22-37) Jesus explains that the visible "signs" so desired by thePharisees were to be seen, not during the church age, but at the Second Advent:

160“Then He said to His disciples, "The time is coming when you will long to see oneof the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it’” (v. 22).Oppressed by temptations and tribulations Christians will, like the Pharisees, desire to seecataclysmic events that would usher in the kingdom of heaven. Jesus shows here that those greatphysical, cataclysmic disorders and cosmic signs shall surely come take place but not now.Persecuted Christians throughout history have always cried out to God, "How long?" (Rev 6:10),but the end is not yet.GREAT PHYSICAL CATACLYSMIC DISORDERS (17:23-24)Scripture is clear that the Second Coming of Christ will be an event that all people shallsee and recognize instantly:” Men will tell you, 'There He is!' or 'Here He is!' Do not go running off afterthem. For the Son of Man in His day will be like the lightning, which flashesand lights up the sky from one end to the other” (vv. 23-24).We are not to leave our work in order to pursue predictions of Christ’s second Coming(v. 23).Christ’s coming will be sudden, unexpected and public (v. 24; 12:40).Of the precise day and hour of that advent we know nothing. But whenever it may takeplace, one thing at least is clear—it will come on the Church and the world suddenly,instantaneously, and without previous notice. The whole tenor of Scripture points this way. Itshall be "at an hour when you do not expect Him" (Mt 24:44). It shall come "like a thief in thenight." (1 Th 5:2).Unlike the First Advent, the Second Advent, will be seen by everyone and "all the tribesof the earth shall mourn for Him" (Mt 24:30). The Second Advent will be bad news for the vastmajority of mankind; but it will not be the kind of news any man will be able to ignore.SUFFERING AND REJECTION (17:25)Jesus repeatedly foretold His coming death which has to occur before His glorious return:“ But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation” (v. 25).

161The satanic insinuation that Jesus expected his glory in the final phase of the kingdom totake place soon is refuted here. The Lord envisaged a time-lapse, measured not in years, but ingenerations. Although there is abundant evidence of this in the New Testament some seemunwilling to see it. Jesus here clearly predicted that His contemporaries would reject the messageHe came to deliver.Jesus in this verse announced that a gloomy state of things would prevail on earth beforeHis Second Advent.Although some have vainly proclaimed that Christianity, like some conquering army, willsweep over every country, capturing the whole world for Jesus, such is not pictured here at all.Rather the question Jesus asks is,". . . when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?" (18:8).The next few verses tell how it really will be. As the cup of the iniquity of this peopleshall not be full till they have finally rejected and crucified the Lord of life, so this desolationcannot take place till after Jesus’ death.THE DAYS OF NOAH AND LOT AND JESUS’ RETURN (17:26-31)Jesus will return when society is very much like in the days of Noah and Lot:"Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of theSon of Man. People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given inmarriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came anddestroyed them all.It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking,buying and selling, planting and building. But the day Lot left Sodom, fireand sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all.It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed. On that dayno one who is on the roof of his house, with his goods inside, should godown to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything.”(vv. 26-31)

162Just like the days of Noah, they were preoccupied with everyday living (Mt 24:38).They were consumed with enjoying life on earth and made no provision for their immortal souls(v. 27). The flood came at last in Noah's day and drowned all except those who were in the ark.The fire fell from heaven at last in Lot's day and destroyed all except Lot, his wife, and hisdaughters. It was the same when the Romans came to destroy Judea; there was a universalcarelessness, and no one seemed to heed the warnings given by the Son of God. And our Lorddeclares plainly that similar things will happen when He comes again at the end of the world:"While people are saying, ‘Peace and safety,’ destruction will come on themsuddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape”" (1Th 5:3).Jesus warns us of a shallow profession:KEEPING AND LOSING (17:32-33)”Remember Lot's wife! Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoeverloses his life will preserve it” (vv. 32-33).This is a reiteration of the gospel message to all people. Those who run their lives as theyplease, will be lost. Those who submit to the lordship of Jesus Christ will be saved.Lot's wife was the wife of a "righteous man" and through him was connected withAbraham, the father of the faithful. She fled with her husband from Sodom in the day when heescaped for his life by God's command and protection. Though she fled with him, her heart hadgrown cold and so she willfully disobeyed the injunction which the angel had given her. She“looked back” (Ge 19:26) and turned back also to carry some of her goods away and became amonument of God’s displeasure. She looked back towards Sodom, and was at once struck dead.She was turned into a pillar of salt, and perished in her sins. "Remember" her, says our Lord—"Remember Lot's wife."The words “Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it . . .” (v. 33) or similar words werespoken on another occasion (Mt 10:39; 16:25-26).SOME WILL BE TAKEN AND SOME WILL BE LEFT (17:34-36)No matter how close people may be in this life, they have no guarantee of the sameeternal destiny:

163I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and theother left. Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and theother left" (vv. 34-35).Some of the later manuscripts add:“Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left” (v. 36).It is clear that one person may go to judgment and condemnation, the other to salvation,reward and blessing. The visible Church shall no longer be a mixed body. The wheat and thetares shall no longer grow side by side. The angels shall gather together the godly, that they maybe rewarded; and leave the wicked behind to be punished.JESUS REFUSES TO SATISFY THE CURIOUS (17:37)In response to the disciples’ question, Jesus explains that these things will take placewherever there are people to whom the event pertains:"Where, Lord?" they asked.He replied, "Where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather" (v. 37).This enigmatic statement is difficult of understanding. Even the word "eagles" is stoutlymaintained by some to be "vultures," and other scholars, as in the English Revised Version(1885), insist on translating it "eagles."Just as a dead body draws vultures, so humanity that is morally dead will inevitably drawupon them the judgment of God. It is remarkable how suddenly these birds appear after the deathof an animal in the open field, though a single one may not have been seen on the spot for a longperiod before. And as F. F. Bruce wrote,"Where there is a situation ripe for divine judgment, the executors of that judgmentwill unerringly find it out, just like vultures find the carrion."1Jesus was not speaking of just any situation ripe for judgment, but when at last, when thatfinal day of grace expires, God shall summon all people to the judgment of the Great WhiteThrone.

164Earlier (v. 20) the Pharisees asked, “When?” Now they ask, “Where?” But Jesus refusesto satisfy their curiosity as He does with all “date-fixers” and the like.APPLICATIONChrist came the first time to suffer. But He is coming a second time to reign. These aretwo landmarks of which we should never lose sight.We dare not be like the people of the days of Noah in which they were preoccupied witheveryday living.We dare not become careless in nourishing our hearts. Lot’s wife is a warning to usall, that just because we may be related to righteous people and partake in religious and spiritualactivities, does not guarantee our spiritual wellbeing. We must be constantly vigil since we don’tknow when our lives will be over as we know it, either through death or through Jesus’ return.NOTE1F. F. Bruce, Answers to Questions (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan PublishingHouse, 1972), 56.

165CHAPTER 24

166PERSISTENCE IN PRAYERThe Parable of the Persistent WidowLuke 18:1-8“When we work, we work; when we pray, God works.”--Anonymous“Continuous effort-not strength or intelligence-is the key to unlocking ourpotential.” 1--Winston ChurchillIn The Parable of the Persistent Widow, Jesus makes the point that we are to always prayand clearly emphasizes the necessity of dogged persistence.WE ARE TO ALWAYS PRAY (18:1)Notice that Luke introduces this parable by pointing to the reason for it:“Then Jesus told His disciples a parable to show them that they should alwayspray and not give up” (v. 1).Jesus was clear about the priority of prayer:“My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.”(Mt 21:13; Mk 11:17; see also Isa 56:7)The word “should” indicates that persistence is not just nice or a duty, but a necessity toeffective prayer. The word “always” implies that we should pray continually in spite of thetemptation to give up because of what we consider delayed answers.It should be obvious to us all why we should and need to spend time in prayer on a dailybasis. As human beings we have a lot of needs. The following is a list:

167WHAT TO PRAY FOR1. Thanksgiving and PraisePraise and thanksgiving to God for His continued and unfailing love, mercy, grace,compassion, faithfulness, etc.2. Mental, Emotional and Physical Healing and HealthSince our God is a God who heals, it is only logical that we would look to Him forhealing, whether in the area of the physical, mental and/or emotional aspect of life.3. The ChurchThat the Church universal that God’s glory will be manifested in her.That as a church body we will grow in our passion for God and compassion for people.That our priorities will be the same as those of God for our church family.Praise God for our church family that unity in the Spirit will be encouraged, maintainedand fostered.That those who have visited our church recently.That all leaders of our church will display integrity, spirituality and leadership skills.That the Lord will draw in young adults who are seeking to know the Lord and serveHim.That our children will find Jesus early in life and be firmly rooted in Him.4. The Persecuted ChurchThat God’s people who have undergone persecution will display a Christ-like attitude.That the persecuted will have courage, wisdom and protection.5. Our NationPresident Obama, his Cabinet, Congress, and all in authorityThe Court SystemThose who serve in the militaryThe Educational System

1687. Our CityFor those who serve us (Mayor, City Council, Police personnel, Firefighters, HospitalWorkers, etc.)That we will have leaders who have integrity and are gifted in leading.8. Evangelism9. Missions10. RevivalSalvation—For people to repent of their sins and come to have a personal relationshipwith Jesus Christ.That we will be open to the opportunities God provides to share our love and faith on adaily basis.For family members, relatives, neighbors and friends who do not know the Lord.That the far corners of the earth will be reached with the Gospel.Missionaries from our church should be lifted up in prayer regularly.That God’s people will come alive and be a powerful witness of the love and grace ofGod.11. Personal Spiritual GrowthThat we would grow in our knowledge and wisdom of Christ.That we would grow in spiritual disciplines (e.g. prayer, meditation, study, worship,service, giving, fasting, etc.)That we exercise our faith on a daily basis.That we live a life of joyful obedience.A CORRUPT JUDGE AND A NEEDY WIDOW (18:2-8)Two persons provide the focus of this parable: a corrupt judge and a needy widow:“In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared aboutmen. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to her with a plea,‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’ For some time he refused. But finally

169he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care about men, yetbecause this woman keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets her justice, sothat she won’t eventually wear me out with her coming!’And the Lord said, ‘Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not Godbring about justice for His chosen ones, who cry out to Him day and night?Will He keep putting them off? I tell you, He will see that they get justice,and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?’”(vv. 2-8)The corrupt judge is described as a person “who neither feared God nor cared about men”(v. 2). It is no wonder that our Lord calls this person an “unjust judge” (v. 6). No person isworthy to be put in the sacred office of a judge who does not deeply fear God and respect hisfellow human beings. Because this person did not fear God, he paid no attention to the demandfor justice; and because he did not respect people, he was unmoved by the complaint of thewidow. Even among the heathens this was the character of a man totally abandoned to all evil.Dion Cassius said concerning Vitellius, “He neither regarded gods nor men.” 2Because this man neither feared God nor people, it was therefore unlikely that anyonewould receive any consideration and fairness from him.The person who came to make the plea was the most unlikely prospect to gain favorsfrom anyone in that culture: a widow (a symbol of all who were poor and thus considered utterlyhelpless in the East). It was obvious that she, without resources of any kind, had no hope of everreceiving justice from such a judge. However, this particular widow had a powerful weapon:persistent prayer.Luke, in describing her actions points out that she kept coming. She did not just makeone appearance before the judge but many. And the judge’s attitude is highlighted as Jesus pointsout that “For some time he refused” (v. 4). The woman kept coming and the judge kept refusing.In the end, it was the woman’s dogged persistence that overcame the judge’s reluctance.Determination, and determination only, was the cause of this reversal. Luke points out thejudge’s reason for granting her request: “so that she won’t eventually wear me out with hercoming” (v. 5).

170“Because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice” says the unjustjudge. The merciless judge gives in to this lowly, helpless woman’s program through herpersistent praying. She desired to have justice, and that only; and by her importunity she receivedthat which the unjust judge had no inclination to give, but merely for his own ease.Our Lord intimates that we should reason that if a person of such an infamous characteras this judge was could yield to the pressing petitions of a poor widow, for whom he felt nothingbut contempt, how much more ready must God be, who is infinitely good and merciful, and wholoves His creatures with an everlasting love, to give His children, who diligently seek Him, whatthey need.As God has graciously promised to give salvation to every person who comes to Himthrough His Son, so He hears the prayers people offer to Him and grants them their requests.This does not mean that we should expect God to give us whatever we ask for. Just as aparent will refuse the request of a child because he knows that what the child asks would hurtrather than help, so God will say no to prayers that will ultimately harm us. He loves us too muchto give us what contributes to our own demise. This is why any prayers we offer in faith to Godmust be offered in the spirit that recognizes God’s sovereign will, that is, His will be done.APPLICATION“Never give in! Never give in! Never, never, never, never. . . . In nothing great orsmall, large or petty, never give in except to convictions or honor and good sense!” 3--Winston ChurchillNOTES1Winston Churchill, Success Quotes.2Winston Churchill, No pressure, no diamonds, Quotes.

171CHAPTER 25

172SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESSThe Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax CollectorLuke 18:9-14“When the devil cannot stay us from a good work, then he laboureth by allmeans to make us proud of it.”--Henry Smith“The truly humble Christian does not inquire into his neighbour’s faults;he takes no pleasure in judging them; he is occupied wholly with his own.”--AthanasiusIt is easy for us modern readers to believe that we are not guilty of what Jesus indicts inthe Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector, that is, “Pharisaism,” while partaking of thesame errors.Churches in the Holiness tradition such as ours (The Christian & Missionary Alliance)are filled with people who are scrupulous in their observance of certain values and standards theyperceive to be critical to spirituality. Many of these people are sincere believers who have cometo judge theirs and others’ spirituality by whether they conform to certain standards imposed by acertain church or denomination. In Jesus day it was the Pharisees who were the strict Jews. Theywere the ones who took the Law so seriously that they protected it by providing the Oral Law,that is, the tradition of the elders, which gave the practical interpretation of the Law. This led tointerpretation which emphasized the letter of the Law rather than its spirit and thus resulted inlegalism or legalistic, external righteousness.CONFIDENT OF THEIR OWN RIGHTEOUSNESS (18:9-10)It is no wonder that Jesus targets the following parable to those who are "confident oftheir own righteousness":“ To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down oneverybody else, Jesus told this parable: ‘Two men went up to the temple topray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector” (vv. 9-10).Did the Pharisee in this parable go to the temple to pray to God or to announce to allwithin earshot how good he was?

173Our Lord grants that the Pharisees made the outside clean, but what pride and contemptfor others were found within!But is this unique to the Pharisees? Many of us are aware of churches where there havebeen rules and regulations against any kind of make-up, sleeveless dresses, slacks for women,mixed bathing, movies, roller-skating, bowling, dancing, beards, abstaining from wine, eatingpork, eating any meat, drinking caffeinated drinks (e.g. sodas, coffee, etc.). Such rules aresupposedly hedges against worldliness.When we trust in our own righteousness to save us and justify us before God we areguilty of self-righteousness and legalism.What makes us confident in our own righteousness? What are the symptoms of thisfeeling?A young woman went to her pastor and said, “Pastor, I have a besetting sin, andI want your help. I come to church on Sunday and can’t help thinking I’m the prettiest girl in thecongregation. I know I ought not think that, but I can’t help it. I want you to help me with it.”The pastor replied, “Mary, don’t worry about it. In your case it’s not a sin. It’s just ahorrible mistake.” (Haddon Robinson)Self-centeredness and selfishness make us blind to our own faults.LOOKING DOWN ON OTHERS (18:9-10)At the very outset we see that pride makes us trust in our own abilities rather thantrusting God and in turn regard other people with contempt and disrespect rather than seeingthem as created equal in the image and likeness of God. What makes pride—spiritual pride—sodeadly is because it blinds us to our own depravity and naturally leads to the attitude and practiceof looking down on others and judging them to be morally inferior to us.The phrase "looked down on" (exoutheneo) means to consider someone as having lessworth or merit than us and viewing them with disdain.

174The Pharisee and the tax collector in this story show the vast contrast between a personwho is full of himself and one who feels his unworthiness very deeply. While the Pharisees weremembers of a very conservative party of the Jews who believed in meticulous observance ofGod's law, the tax collectors followed the rules of their Roman oppressors since it was their jobto collect taxes for the Romans. They would collect the tolls, taxes and tariffs from the people.Therefore, they were considered turncoats, traitors and also cheaters because they wouldsometimes assess more taxes than was legal and keep the extra money for themselves.Furthermore, if a person couldn't or refused to pay what they demanded, they would turn himover to the soldiers.Extortion and threats were the name of the game. Is it any wonder that the tax collectorswere considered the scum of the earth?A SELF-RIGHTEOUS PRAYER (18:12)Self-righteousness often shows up in our praying. It is certainly evident in the prayer ofthis Pharisee:“ The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: 'God, I thank you that I amnot like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this taxcollector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get‘” (vv. 11-12).When the Jews prayed they often stood, looked up to heaven and prayed out loud withtheir hands raised. The devout Jews prayed three times daily: 9 a.m., noon and 3 p.m. Prayerwas considered especially effective if it was offered in the Temple. This is why at these timesmany went up to the Temple courts to pray.Luke points out that he "prayed about himself." Instead of thanking God for Hisblessings, he thanks Him that he isn’t a sinner like others, that is, robbers, evildoers andadulterers.If such a display of self-righteousness were not enough, he goes on and reminds Godhow pious he is since he fasts “twice a week and give[s] a tenth of all [he] gets” (v. 12). ThePharisees developed the practice of fasting on Mondays and Thursdays to intercede for the nationas a whole and thereby exceeded the requirements of the law in this regard. Such religiousdevotion is in contrast to the one fast a year on the Day of Atonement required of Jews{Lev16:29} Only those who wished to gain special merit would also fast on Mondays and Thursdays

175which happened to be market days when the city of Jerusalem was full of people who had comein from the country. This was attractive to the religious leaders because there was a largeaudience for those who wanted to put on a show of piety by whitening their faces and wearingdisheveled clothes. Furthermore, they scrupulously tithed one tenth on everything they acquired,even down to the herbs in their kitchen garden (11:23; see also Lev 27:30-32 Nu 18:21-24 Dt14:22-27).The following Scriptures apply to this self-righteous Pharisee:“those who are pure in their own eyes and yet are not cleansed of their filth” (Pr 30:12).“those whose eyes are ever so haughty, whose glances are so disdainful” (Pr 30:13).“You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of men, but God knows yourhearts. What is highly valued among men is detestable in God’s sight” (Lk 16:15).“Since they did not know the righteousness that comes from God and sought toestablish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness” (Ro 10:3).A HUMBLE PRAYER (18:13)"But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up toheaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner'” (v. 13).The tax collector's posture was one of humility:He “stood at a distance” because He did not feel worthy to be close to God or thetempleHe did “not even look up to heaven” because he was deeply aware of his ownguiltHe “beat his breast” as a sign of deep sorrow and mourning for his sinThe tax collector describes himself as a sinner and makes no excuses for his sin. Instead,he takes full responsibility for it.

176This despised tax collector ends his prayer by asking God for mercy. And that is the onlylegitimate favor to ask.JUSTIFIED BEFORE GOD (18:14)Having contrasted the Pharisee's self-righteous and disdainful piety with the taxcollector's sincere and faith-filled penitence, Jesus pronounces judgment:"I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified beforeGod” (v. 14).The word justified (dikaioo) means "to be found in the right, be vindicated and thus freeof charges." When we are justified it is as though God looks upon us as though we have neversinned.What liberation! What hope for the despised, the scum of the earth!As Isaiah, the prophet, put it:“This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles atmy word” (Isa 66:2).EXALTATION OR HUMILIATION (18:14)Jesus ends this parable with a warning and a promise:"For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbleshimself will be exalted" (18:14).Jesus gives us another paradox of the spiritual life. While exalting oneself leads tohumbling, humbling leads to exaltation. Similarly Jesus' brother James says “God opposes theproud but gives grace to the humble" (Jas 4:6). Pride turns us into God's opponent, His enemy.If this parable teaches anything it is the importance of humility before God. This iswhy the offer of salvation goes to people who would normally be regarded as excluded from it.

177God is always ready to receive the unrighteous when they humbly call to Him, but Hecloses His ears to those whose pride in their religious practices and good works make them feelself-sufficient.APPLICATIONWe must be aware of pride, especially spiritual pride, since we are saved by God'smercy, not by our righteous deeds. We dare not approach God with a proud attitude, for we allhave sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Ro 3:23).God abhors the haughty, but welcomes the humble. Because the sin of pride is sorepugnant to God, we must humble ourselves and be thankful for His grace.We must not look down on others. Although some people may be guilty of sins we maynot be guilty of, we may be guilty of sins they are not guilty of . . . such as spiritual pride.We must not give up on people because no one is beyond God's forgiveness, not evendishonest tax collectors.We must depend on God’s grace because no one is saved by living a pure lifestyle.

178CHAPTER 26

179LITTLE CHILDREN AND JESUSLuke 18:15-17"Children are our most valuable natural resource."--Henry Ward Beecher“Every child you encounter is a divine appointment."--Wess Stafford"Children are the hands by which we take hold of heaven."--Herbert HooverFew of us are untouched by the stories of the children who come to Jesus. What is thesignificance of little children coming to Jesus? In all probability, it is no accident that the passagethat immediately precedes this section is The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collectorwhich Jesus concludes with the words: "For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, andhe who humbles himself will be exalted" (18:14).BRINGING BABIES TO THE MASTER (18:15)"People were also bringing babies to Jesus to have Him touch them" (v. 15).Parents wanted Jesus to touch the babies as an act of blessing. This was a commonpractice to convey a blessing.We have many incidents in Scripture where Jesus touches to bless and to heal (Mt 8:3,15; 9:29; 17:7; 20:34; Mk 1:41; 5:23; 7:33; 8:22; 10:13; Lk 5:13; 22:51).In Matthew's account we read,"Then little children were brought to Jesus for Him to place His hands on themand pray for them" (Mt 19:13).In this incident they were little children. The word translated "babies" (brephos) refers toa very small child, that is, a baby or infant. In the parallel passages (Mt 19:13 and Mk 10:13) andin verse 16 of our passage in Luke, another word is used for child (paidio), whether boy or girl,normally below the age of puberty.

This practice of bringing children goes back to the practice of bringing children to theelders or scribes for a prayer of blessing upon them on the evening of the Day of Atonement.180JESUS IS REBUKED BY THE DISCIPLES (18:15)It is astounding to think that Jesus is rebuked by His disciples! But He is in this passageas well as in other passages:"People were also bringing babies to Jesus to have Him touch them. When thedisciples saw this, they rebuked them" (v. 15).Wasn’t Jesus’ time too valuable to interrupt with little children?Not to the parents whose children were often with them when listening to Jesus. Theseparents wanted their children to join them in experiencing the blessings of the Lord. Yet thedisciples not only did not approve of such a practice, but had the gall to stop the little childrenand tell their parents off and thus seeking to stop such a wasteful religious practice.THE VALUE OF CHILDREN IN JESUS’ DAY (18:16)Is it fair to blame the disciples for rebuking the parents since children were viewed asunimportant in Palestine during the time of Jesus. The previous incident in Luke that involvedchildren is a good example:"An argument started among the disciples as to which of them would be thegreatest. Jesus, knowing their thoughts, took a little child and had him standbeside Him. Then He said to them, ‘Whoever welcomes this little child in Myname welcomes Me; and whoever welcomes Me welcomes the one who sentMe. For he who is least among you all—he is the greatest" (9:46-48).The idea of children's innocence appears in Paul’s Epistle to the Corinthians (1 Co14:20). A more common theme is the immaturity and inferiority of the child (1 Co 3:1; 13:11;14:20; Gal 4:1, 3; Eph 4:14; Heb 5:13; 1 Pe 2:1-2) and the "foolishness" bound up in the heart ofa child (Pr 22:15; 29:15).While children were prized by parents, especially boys, in society they were generallyignored as unimportant.

Jesus follows up with a warning:181DON’T HINDER THE CHILDREN (18:16)"But Jesus called the children to him and said, 'Let the little children come to me,and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these'" (v. 16).On the one had we have the disciples have arrogantly told off the parents and instructedthem not to allow their children to interrupt such an important teacher as Jesus. On the otherhand we have Jesus who rebukes those who have just rebuked the parents of the children.So much for crowd control!But what a beautiful picture! Children surrounding Jesus and Jesus giving them Hisundivided attention and affection! It doesn’t get better than that for a child!But it was confusing and embarrassing for the disciples as Jesus warned them not to try toprevent children from coming to Him.THE KINGDOM BELONGS TO LITTLE CHILDREN (18:16)Jesus uses this incident to make a point, to teach His disciples a crucial lesson about theKingdom of God:"But Jesus called the children to Him and said, 'Let the little children come to Me,and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these'" (v. 16).Jesus makes a careful distinction when He says that “the kingdom of God belongs to suchas these.” The words “such as” doesn't mean that the kingdom of God belongs to little childrenor that they are already in the kingdom. Rather, Jesus says that those who inherit or possess thekingdom will be such as these children.What characteristic of children is Jesus pointing to as an essential characteristic ofdisciples?Innocence—Even though Judaism didn't emphasize a child's innocence, but rather achild's immaturity and foolishness, Paul does imply as much (1 Co 14:20).

182Openness, joy and trust—It would have been natural for children to come running toJesus with openness, joy and trust.Humility—Children's humble station in life is symbolic of the humility required toapproach God.ENTERING THE KINGDOM AS A LITTLE CHILD (18:17)Infants can do nothing to merit the Kingdom, yet they are a metaphor of receiving theKingdom."I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God likea little child will never enter it" (v. 17).How do the little children come to Jesus? They came spontaneously and openly. There isno posturing or pretense like the Pharisee in the preceding parable (18:11-12). Rather, they comebecause Jesus calls them to Him. They come in simple faith, like the tax collector (18:13).Lack of pretension and openness are the qualities of children that Jesus seems to beholding up as necessary for entrance to the Kingdom.If little children can run to Jesus' arms, why cannot we do the same?APPLICATIONWe must recognize deeply in our souls that no one is unimportant to God. Thedisciples wanted to shield Jesus from the nuisance of noisy children. But Jesus delighted in thechildren and demonstrated that God's love has ample room for everyone, including children.We are to respect children and welcome them. Having a nursery, a Sunday school andchildren's church are important because they attract young families that feel the need for achurch. A ministry to children is important in and of itself since children are spiritual beings andcan learn from an early age the truths of the Gospel.We need to encourage our children. This means that we engage our children inconversation to let them know that we are genuinely interested in them.

183We must come to Jesus with openness and a lack of pretension. Humility andrecognition of God's grace and mercy is the only way to God. We can only enter the kingdomwhen we come depending upon Jesus and not ourselves.

184CHAPTER 27

“Prosperity knits a man to the World.” 1185THE RICH YOUNG RULERLuke 18:18-30--C. S. Lewis"You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and youwill have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me" (Lk 18:22).The perils of poverty are well documented. Malnutrition and starvation kills 35,000children every day. Forty million people die every year from poverty’s perils—the lack of food,shelter, health, education and hope. The poor are vilified and robbed of their self-esteem.THE SETTING AND THE MAN (18:18)Riches have their perils as well. A rich man asked Jesus what he could do to inheriteternal life (v. 18). This event in the Gospels is placed in the midst of a series of incidents andparables that show us the nature and character of discipleship. It takes place near the end ofJesus' public ministry, and Mark shows the desperation of the young man who came up to Jesus:"As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees beforeHim" (Mk 10:17).Jesus is about to leave the town. It is the man's last chance to ask his question, to meetJesus face-to-face. And so he runs up to Him and falls on his knees before Him. What a pictureof desperation, urgency and humility.Luke points out that this man was a ruler or official. It generally means someone who hasadministrative authority and is used of various Jewish leaders, including those in charge of asynagogue and members of the Sanhedrin. Matthew refers to the ruler as a "young man" (Mt19:22). Luke tells us "he was a man of great wealth" (18:23). Probably because of his wealth andinterest in spiritual matters, he was entrusted with governance in the synagogue and thus a veryrespected person in the community.He sides with the Pharisees (the conservatives) rather than the Sadducees (the liberals orprogressives) because the Sadducees didn't believe in life after death, and this question obviouslyimplies that he does.

186A FALSE CREEDAccustomed to paying the necessary price to achieve his goals, he assumed that he coulddo the same in the area of religion. He thought eternal life is attained or purchased, that it issomething that one earns or merits by what he does.This young man shows the first peril of riches: a false creed, that is, to see life was anachievement, a prize to win, a commodity to be bought. That is a familiar affirmation of faith.It is the rich man’s creed. It is our society’s dominant creed. If we ask the average man orwoman in our community the same question they will probably come up with a similar answer.We go to heaven if we’re good and we’ll go to hell if we are bad . . . really bad. This makeseternal life a reward for what we do on earth.Yet the Bible is clear that "all our righteous acts are like filthy rags" (Isa 64:6).Salvation is spoken of in various terms and figures:"eternal life" (vv. 18,30)"treasure in heaven" (v. 22),"entering the Kingdom of God" (v. 24,29)"being saved" (v. 26).NO ONE IS GOOD—EXCEPT GOD ALONE (18:19)The young man then addresses Jesus as "good teacher," an unusual way to address aRabbi. Jesus rebukes this young ruler with the retort,"Why do you call me good? No one is good—except God alone" (v. 19).Rather than denying His divinity, Jesus was telling the young man to reflect on what hesaid. Jesus is trying to prompt him to reflect on who He is. As Jesus said to the woman at thewell of Sychar:"If you knew . . . who it is that asks you for a drink. . . ." (Jn 4:10).After pointing out the young man's inadequate understanding of "goodness," Jesus says:

187"You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, donot give false testimony, honor your father and mother'” (v. 20).The young man responded immediately,“All these I have kept since I was a boy" (vv. 20-21).Such an answer is not so surprising since this young man was sincere in his religiousdevotion. He had been taught that the law could be kept in its entirety, which was only true whenthe commandments were defined by the Pharisees. Jesus' view of keeping these commandmentswent beyond mere legalistic interpretations to the spirit of the commandments (Mt 5:17-48).THE COST OF ETERNAL LIFE (18:22)If this young man had kept all the commandments, as he claimed, why bother going toJesus? He instinctively knew something was still missing. Such recognition gives Jesus anopportunity to speak of his need:"When Jesus heard this, he said to him, 'You still lack one thing. Sell everythingyou have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come,follow Me'" (v. 22).This young man had to let go of his idol—what was most precious to him—his greatwealth. If the man does this, Jesus assures him, he will have treasure in heaven.Instead of telling this young man that he should buy his way to heaven by contributing tothe building of some religious building, He tells him to sell everything he owns and give theproceeds to those who are least able to reciprocate—the poor.This is in keeping with James’ definition of true religion:"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look afterorphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being pollutedby the world" (Jas 1:27).

188By giving up his money and all that money had provided for him, he thought the price toohigh. After all, if he gave up his wealth, he would also be giving up status and influence thatwealth naturally brings. Wealthy people are treated differently. They get ahead of the line andget to choose the best seats—the seats of prominence. They don’t have to get their hands dirtysince they have servants to do all the manual labor. They have access to the levers of power andinfluence.By rejecting Jesus’ offer, this very wealthy young ruler showed that his possessionspossessed him.This doesn't mean everyone should sell what they have. If this were so, few would haveany money. But it does mean that our lives are to be surrendered to Jesus who said earlier in thisbook:"If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife andchildren, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be mydisciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot beMy disciple" (Lk 14:26-27)."In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot beMy disciple" (14:33)."The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, hehid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When hefound one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it."(Mt 13:44-46)"For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for Mewill save it" (Lk 9:24)."Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life willpreserve it" (17:33).JESUS’ DEMAND TO FOLLOW HIM (18:22)The story of the rich young ruler does not end with the demand to dispose of his greatwealth. He was also asked to follow Jesus as well:

189"When Jesus heard this, He said to him, 'You still lack one thing. Sell everythingyou have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come,follow Me' " (18:22)Mark points out that Jesus’ challenge and invitation was motivated by love. He “lookedat him and loved him” (Mk 10:21). What an opportunity this young man had! He could have hisdissatisfaction satisfied. He could experience the peace and joy of inheriting eternal life. Hecould join Jesus in His mission. He could be taught by HimTHE SAD REFUSAL (18:23)thatJesus’ radical call to discipleship was too costly for the rich young ruler. Luke points out"When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was a man of great wealth."(18:23)Mark uses a very strong word which is translated “his face fell” (Mk 10:22). He wasdeeply grieved as he leaves Jesus and the disciples.Mammon or money has a way of corrupting or polluting us in that it tempts us tocompromise our values in order to gain and retain it."For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager formoney, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs."(1 Ti 6:10)In C. S. Lewis’ book Screwtape Letters, Screwtape, the devil, perceptively states,“Prosperity knits a man to the World. He feels he is finding his place in it,’while really it is finding its place in him.” 2The Bible contains more warning about the dangers of wealth than about the pitfalls ofpoverty.Because he clutched to his idol—his wealth—he was unable to serve God.Our idol may not be possessions. Henry Kissinger’s idol is power. He affirms:

190“Power is the ultimate aphrodisiac.”Whatever form our idol takes, it must be given up.WHO THEN CAN BE SAVED? (18:26-27)Luke points out that those who heard this conversation asked a very reasonable question,“Who then can be saved?” (18:26) If such a sincere religious man cannot be saved, then whocan? Jesus counters with, “What is impossible with men is possible with God” (v. 27).A RICH REWARD AWAIT THOSE WHO SACRIFICE (18:28-30)In his typical fashion, Peter makes sure that Jesus knows that he and his fellow discipleshave sacrificed for Him:“We have left all we had to follow You” (v. 28).Jesus responds to Peter by pointing out the rich reward that await those who havesacrificed on His behalf:“’I tell you the truth,’ Jesus said to them, ‘no one who has left home or wife orbrothers or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God will failto receive many times as much in this age and, in the age to come, eternal life.’”(18:29-30)From an eternal perspective, it pays to serve the Lord.APPLICATIONIf we hope to follow Jesus we must be let go of our idol, we must be willing to give upeverything. We may not be wealthy, but if there is someone or something that possesses us, thenwe must be willing to give it up. Either it is our way or His. If we insist on our way, then that iswhat we will have. But if we want to follow Jesus, then we are following the One who said:“I am the way and the truth and the life” (Jn 14:6).It is either our way or His!

191NOTES1C. S. Lewis, Screwtape Letters (New York: Macmillan Publishing Company, 1961).2Ibid.

192CHAPTER 28

193JESUS PREDICTS HIS DEATH AGAINLuke 18:31-34Jesus’ mission is about to come to an end. He has prepared His disciples for Hisimpending death by instructing them about a life of faith. He now reminds them of what He willface in Jerusalem.This prediction is sometimes referred to as the third prediction of Jesus’ death eventhough the total number is more than three. The first prediction is found in chapter 9 verse 22and the second in verses 43-45 of the same chapter. The Messiah’s death had been predictedand/or prefigured centuries before in such Old Testament passages as Psalm 22, Isaiah 53 andZechariah 13:7. Other Lucan passages that record Jesus’ repeated foretelling of His coming deathare found in Luke 5:35; 12:50; 13:32-33; 17:25; 18:32; 24:7 and in Matthew 16:21; 26:24,31,54and Mark 9:9,12,31; 10:33-34; 14:21,41.JESUS’ REPEATED PREDICITON OF HIS DEATH (18:31-34)What does the third prediction of Jesus' death have to do with His teaching that precedesit regarding giving up everything?It doesn’t seem to fit.Luke points out:"Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, 'We are going up to Jerusalem, andeverything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled.”(v. 31)FULFILLED PROPHECYLuke’s statement, “and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Manwill be fulfilled” (v. 31) speaks of fulfilled prophecy.As we look back with the perspective of having seen the fulfillment of this and the manyother prophecies, we have every reason to believe in the integrity of Jesus’ claim. This is whyfulfilled prophecy is one of the most credible evidences to show that Jesus was exactly who theBible said He was/is: God in the flesh (Jn 1:1,14). While many religions claim their books to bedivinely inspired, the Bible is the only one which contains prophecies that can’t simply beexplained away as chance.

The disciples of Jesus’ day should have been familiar with many of the propheciesconcerning the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ since they had the HebrewScriptures to study. Some of these are:194Micah 5:2 states that the Messiah, who was foretold from ages past, would be born inthe town of Bethlehem. This was fulfilled according to Luke 2:4-5,7.Isaiah 7:14 states that the Jesus would be born of a virgin. This was fulfilledaccording to Luke 1:26-27,30-31.Hosea 11:1 states that Egypt is where God called his Son from. This was fulfilledaccording to Matthew 2:14-15.Isaiah 53:5 states that the Messiah would be scourged. This was fulfilled according toMatthew 27:26.Isaiah 53:12 states that the Messiah would be murdered with criminals. This wasfulfilled according to Mark 15:27Psalms 22:16 states that the Messiah would be pierced in his hands and feet. This wasfulfilled according to John 20:25-57Psalms 22:17-18 states that the Messiah’s garments would be gambled away. Thiswas fulfilled according to Matthew 27:35.Isaiah 53:9 states that the Messiah would be buried with the rich, even though he wasput to death as a wicked man. This was fulfilled according to Matthew 27:57-61.Psalms 16:10 states that the Messiah would be resurrected. This was fulfilledaccording to Mark 16:6-7.No one other than Jesus of Nazareth has or could have done these things. Isaiah 35 evenreveals what kinds of miracles the Messiah would perform.Although Jesus could have orchestrated His life to make it look like He was the Messiahin the case of certain “miracles,” such would have been impossible in the case of others. No onecan orchestrate when they are born or how they are treated when they die. And who decides whoJesus is to be executed with and who has the power to raise themselves from the dead?In his book Science Speaks, Peter Stoner claims that for one man to fulfill just eight of theprophecies mentioned in the Bible requires a probably of 1 out 10 17 . If we had that many silverdollars we could cover the state of Texas two feet deep. The probability of one man fulfilling asmany as 48 of the Bible’s prophecies equals the probability of 1 in 10 157 .JESUS AND THE GENTILES (18:32)It is interesting that Luke does not lay blame to the religious establishment in terms ofJesus’ arrest and trial. Instead, he refers to the handing over of Jesus to the Gentiles:“He will be handed over to the Gentiles” (v. 32).

The act reflects the hardness of heart of the Gentiles. Peter made this clear in hispreaching:195“Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God toyou by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through Him,as you yourselves know. This man was handed over to you by God’s setpurpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put Himto death by nailing Him to the cross” (Ac 2:22-23). \This was literally done by Herod and his Roman soldiers (23:11; Mk 15:17). Both therobe (Lk 23:11; Mk 15:17) and crown (Mk 15:17) were parts of the mock royal attire placed onJesus.Notice the abuse of the Savior:“They will mock Him, insult Him, spit on Him, flog Him and kill Him” (v. 32).Jesus will be mocked (22:63-71; 23:11,36) and subjected to the ridicule of proud scoffers.This was done by Pilate, the Roman governor. The punishment of the cross was Romannot Jewish; but the chief priests condemned Him to it, and the Romans executed the sentence.How ignorant they were! In reality, by this very process, they were jointly offering upthat sacrifice which was to make an atonement for the Gentiles and for the Jews; an atonementfor the sin of the whole world.Here is the greatest instance of the fact that even the wrath of man shall fulfill God’splan and purpose.LUKE PREDICTS JESUS’ RESURRECTION (18:33)“On the third day He will rise again'” (v. 33).In historic Christianity the bodily resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth is the pivot onwhich every other teaching rests. Do away with the bodily resurrection of Jesus and you dodestroy the very foundation and fabric of the Christian religion (1 Co 15:12-19). Jesus ofNazareth, however, was raised bodily, victorious over death, sin and Satan. He was raised in thesame material body in which He had died, but now His body was resurrected and glorified.

196Pointers to a Bodily ResurrectionThe gospels go to great lengths to attest that the resurrection of Jesus was a bodilyresurrection. Here lies the significance of the empty tomb. The empty tomb by itself was apuzzling fact that needed explanation. Mark records that the first reaction of the women to theempty tomb as well as to the message of the angels was not that of belief and excitement, but offear and astonishment (Mk 16:1-5).Luke tells us of two disciples who knew of the empty tomb but did not believe theresurrection until they were confronted by the risen Jesus (Lk 24:22-35). John relates that Marycould not conclude from the empty tomb that Jesus' body had been raised (Jn 20:2). It was notthe empty tomb that aroused belief in John, the disciple, it was the appearance of the graveclothes (vv. 6-8). John adds an explanation, "They [the disciples] still did not understand fromScripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead" (v. 9). Apart from the appearances of Jesus, theempty tomb was an enigma. The empty tomb by itself does not guarantee the bodily resurrectionof Jesus; on the other hand, the bodily resurrection of Jesus requires an empty tomb.THE DISCIPLES’ LACK OF UNDERSTANDING (18:34)Luke points out that the disciples simply did not understand the significance of what washappening to Jesus:“The disciples did not understand any of this. Its meaning was hidden fromthem, and they did not know what he was talking about." (v. 34)The disciples’ lack of understanding does not mean that they did not understand Jesus’words; rather, they cannot comprehend how such rejection and physical suffering will fulfillScripture or how Messiah could suffer. In fact, they did not grasp the significance of this untilJesus revealed it to two of His followers on the Road to Emmaus (24:13-49).CONCLUSIONPart of the answer to the initial question of how this section fits with the precedingemphasis on giving everything up for the sake of the kingdom of God is that Jesus is here sharingwith His followers how much He is willing to give up for their sakes. After all, the disciplesprobably thought about how much they were being asked to give up. Jesus gave everything—Hisvery life—to follow fulfill the Father's will and thus provide for us what is most precious: eternallife.

197Although Jesus disciples were unable to understand what Jesus was saying at the time,after it took place they remembered that He had made that very prediction. His death andresurrection were part of God's plan all along.APPLICATIONHolding on to our possessions makes it impossible to inherit eternal life. We can’t haveit both ways. We cannot hold onto the world and hold onto Christ at the same time.We must be willing to give up everything to follow Jesus!"Peter said to him, 'We have left all we had to follow you!''I tell you the truth,' Jesus said to them, ‘no one who has left home or wife orbrothers or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God will failto receive many times as much in this age and, in the age to come, eternal life.'"( Lk 18:28-30)

198CHAPTER 29

199THE BLIND BEGGAR RECEIVES HIS SIGHTLuke 18:35-43Jesus has a strange way of picking His followers. He let the religious the rich young rulerescape without becoming a follower of His. A little while later we now see Him traveling with aconsiderable crowd following Him.THE BLIND BEGGAR (18:35-37)A blind beggar is wondering what is happening when Jesus and His crowd come by:“ As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging.When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. They toldhim, "Jesus of Nazareth is passing by" (vv. 35-37).Blindness and diseases of the eye were common maladies in the ancient world. Probablythe most common eye disease in Palestine and Egypt was purulent ophthalmia, a highlyinfectious inflammation of the conjunctivae, propagated largely by flies that could land on asleeping infant's eyes at night and cause an infection. When severe, this could cause the cornea tobecome opaque. Of course, other eye diseases could cause blindness, as well.Those who lose one of their senses often develop other sense much more keenly. But ittakes no special acuity for Bartimaeus to realize that the number of people on the road crowdinginto the city is much large than usual. A pushing, shoving crowd competes to stay up withsomeone who attracts their attention. The blind man cries out to whoever can hear him, "What isgoing on?" And one of the bystanders says, "Jesus of Nazareth is passing by."Why should Jesus be concerned with a person who depends on others' kindness for hissurvival?Blind Bartimaeus cries for mercy:A CRY FOR MERCY (18:38-39)“ He called out, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Those who led theway rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, ‘Sonof David, have mercy on me!’" (vv. 38-39)

Bartimaeus’ cry was loud and persistent and insistent. He keeps on shouting. Eventhough the crowd continues to tell him to stop crying out, he won’t be stopped.200Some people are intimidated and subdued by their own handicaps. It's possible to almostgive up. But not Blind Bartimaeus. His faith in Jesus’ ability to heal kept him shouting.To call someone "Son of David" as a title is equivalent to calling someone, "Messiah,"for it signifies to the Jews a person who is the promised descendent of David who will sit uponthe throne of Israel (2 Sa 7:11-16; 1 Ch 17:9-14; 22:1-19; 2 Ch 6:5-17; 13:5; 21:7; Psalm 89:19-37; Isa16:5; 22:20-25; Jer 23:5; 33:15-26; Lk 1:32-33). If you don't count the phrase that appearsin Jesus' genealogy (3:31), this is the first time in Luke that the term "Son of David" is used.These words are also shouted by the crowds during the triumphal entry that follows Jesus'healing of Bartimaeus (identified only by Mark—10:46 of the Synoptic Gospel writers) by only afew days. "The crowds that went ahead of Him and those that followed shouted,'Hosanna to the Son of David!"Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!Hosanna in the highest!'" (Mt 21:9; see also 21:15).During most of His ministry, Jesus doesn't encourage others to refer to Him as theMessiah, because the political implications of this title would soon prevent him from being ableto minister effectively (Mt 16:16, 20). But now his hour is come. His face is set towardsJerusalem where he will be crucified, in large part for his unwillingness to renounce the title of"Christ" and "king of the Jews" (23:2-3, 35; Mk 14:61-62).When Bartimaeus asks the "Son of David" for mercy, he is expecting that the Son ofDavid, the Messiah, will grant his request.JESUS QUESTIONS THE BEGGAR (18:40-42)After he cries out for mercy, Jesus rather strangely asks the beggar what he wants:“ Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When He came near, Jesusasked him, ‘ What do you want me to do for you?’ ‘Lord, I want to see,’ he replied.Jesus said to him, ‘Receive your sight; your faith has healed you’" (vv. 40-42)

201The blind beggar is crystal clear about what he wants: to regain his sight.The only other place in the New Testament where Jesus asks such a question is at thePool of Bethesda. Here Jesus asks the paralyzed man, "Do you want to get well?" (Jn 5:6). Theman's answer seems to indicate that he does.But why does Jesus ask the obvious?When I first read this story I thought Jesus' question was silly. After all, isn't it obviousthat a person who was blind and reduced to begging, wants to be healed? Yet Jesus asked himthe obvious question,"Do you want to get well?"Is it possible that some sick people do not want to be healed? Might it be an appropriatequestion for us with regard to our spiritual, physical, and psychological conditions? Does Christask of us,"Do you want to get well? Do you really want to be healed?"Most of us know what is wrong with us. We know what needs to be done in our lives.In most of my pastoral counseling, I have found that those who come to me have alreadypretty well diagnosed the problem. Many of them already know the solution. They come lookingfor a less threatening diagnosis, an easy remedy.We have physical, spiritual and emotional problems, of which we are fully aware, but wedo not do anything about them. Some of us are part of a sick marriage. We know there is aproblem in the relationship. We know that our relationship as husband and wife is not what itought to be. Some of us live in sick families where relationships between parents and childrenare not what they ought to be. On the job we know there are relational problems with people withwhom we spend hours every day, a sickness in some of those relationships, yet we do nothing tochange our attitude and pattern of behavior. We do nothing to face the problem, let alone solve it.We cling to the security of the known—even when it is sick.

202There are reasons why we do not turn loose of our illness. Look back at the man who hadbeen blind. For him, as for us, sickness can become a way of life. All of us have known peoplewho have illnesses, sometimes physical illnesses, who have learned to manipulate and use thoseillnesses to satisfy some psychological need or maintain a hold on another person. Many parentshold on to children long after they should have set them free. The parents control their life with aconstant threat that "If you are not here continually to take care of me, to watch over me, or ifyou do not build your whole life around me, then you will be contributing to my illness and evendeath."Some children learn that the only way they can get their parent's attention is by beingsick. If they simply develop a little temperature or have a bit of a sore throat, then the parent whodoes not have time to talk with them or time to deal with them in ordinary circumstances willfind time if it's nothing more than to put them in the car and drive with them to the doctor'soffice. We learn to use our illnesses, whether they be physical, psychological or spiritual tomanipulate other people and attempt to control our circumstances. Illness then may be ahiding place from responsibility.Do you realize that in Jerusalem in Jesus' day this sick man had as good a way of earninga living as was to be found? As long as he lay each day on this mat, people would pass by, pityhim, and throw a few coins his way. No one expected much of him. He was thus able to live offhis illness.Avoidance of ResponsibilityIt is not uncommon to resist healing in order to avoid responsibility. After all healingwould mean an assumption of responsibility for our lives. For this man to be healed would meanthat no longer would people look at him as an invalid, no longer would they have pity on himand expect nothing of him. They would demand that he assume a normal role in his society. Hewould be expected to go to work and earn his own bread. He would be expected to care forothers rather than be cared for. So it is with us. There is always some threat, some change calledfor on our part when we accept healing.A while back I read a newspaper account of a bizarre parole board meeting. A 70 year oldman who had spent most of his life in prison was offered a parole. In tears, he rejected the offer,explaining that he had lived so long in prison that he would not know how to live in freedom inthe outside world. He did not want responsibility for his life.

203Is it possible that a person can be a prisoner of a lifestyle that is self-destructive? Arethere those who are so religiously institutionalized (like the Pharisees of Jesus' day) that theyreject the liberation of the grace of God? Are there not those who prefer the security ofignorance, daily routine, things as they are, unexamined values, and theology we prefer these tothe challenge of change and choice?"Do you want to be free?"Self-IndulgenceIllness may be self-indulgence. A while back I read about trapping monkeys in India.One technique is to drill a hole in a coconut and place rice in it. A monkey will come along andstick a paw into the coconut, grab a fistful of rice, and then be unable to pull its paw back fromthe coconut. He is trapped by his greed. All he would have to do is turn loose of the rice. Thenhis hand would be free so he could draw it out of the coconut.The problem is that he places greater value on the rice that he is holding than he does onhis freedom. Some of us place greater value on our weaknesses, our dependencies, our sins thanwe do on knowing God. We place greater value on our immorality, our materialistic way of life,our status and success, than we do upon the freedom that would be possible for us if we wouldturn loose of a certain way of life, a certain illness that binds us.The problem is that we want it both ways. We want to be forgiven of our sin. We want tobe cleansed. We want to be made whole again. But we are unwilling, like the monkey, to turnloose of those things that have brought us into this condition of weakness. Our choices leave usphysically, emotionally/ psychologically, and spiritually paralyzed. We are left in a state ofdarkness and lostness."Do you want to get well? Really?"Jesus asked this blind beggar.It is so easy to get so preoccupied with excuses for our problems that we have no energyleft to solve them. Christ calls for action. When we are set free from sin—free from those thingsthat make us less than we ought to be—we have placed upon us the responsibility to respond tothe gift of God. Freedom is freedom to act to follow Jesus. It is a call for us to take responsibilityto do that which God has called us to do—to be His servants in the church and in the world. It isa life away from self-centeredness to God-centeredness, from self-orientation to living for others.Paul put it:

204"And He [Christ] died for all, that those who live should no longer live forthemselves but for Him who died for them and was raised again" (2 Co 5:15).THE BEGGAR’S RESPONSE: PRAISE (18:43)The blind beggar received his sight and praised God along with the crowd:“ Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. Whenall the people saw it, they also praised God” (v. 43).Bartimaeus and the crowd saw the finger of God in what was done and they gave Himthat praise which was due to his name. The Pharisees either did not see or would notacknowledge this. The common people are often better judges of the work of God than thedoctors themselves. They are simpler and thus are not puffed up with the pride of learning. Thismakes them less liable to be warped by prejudice or self-interest.Jesus performed more miracle of this kind than of any other (Mt 9:27-31;12:22; 21:14;8:22-25; Mk 8:22-26;10:46-52; Lk 7:21; 18:35; Jn 9:1-7; Acts 3:1-10). Giving sight to the blindwas predicted as a Messianic activity (Isa 28:18; 35:5; 42:7; Lk 4:18). Thus these miracles werefurther evidence that Jesus was the Messiah (Jn 20:31).APPLICATION: JESUS’ OFFERHave you been healed by Jesus? If not, do you want to be healed? Really? Not justphysical healing, but more important, spiritual healing.God offers healing physically, emotionally/psychologically, and spiritually. Accept Hisfree gifts. They are yours for the taking.Do you want to get well? Are you willing to give up those things that cause you to beless than what God calls you to be. Turn loose of the rice in the coconut! Do you want to behealed? God is the Healer—physically, emotionally and spiritually.Even before you knew God's name, before you were born, before you were a thought inyour parent's mind, God loved you. God became man and died on the cross for you. Godprovided for your freedom long before you were even born. His invitation goes out to you thismorning.Do you want to be healed?

205CHAPTER 30

206ZACCHAEUS, THE CROOKLuke 19:1-10Jesus encountered Zacchaeus on his way through Jericho, a city known for its balsamgroves, a prosperous city being an important trade-route from Jerusalem to the East.“Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. A man was there by thename of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy” (vv. 1-2).This story illustrates the fact that there is hope for everyone, even the rich, even richcrooks, and that following Jesus is costly.This story is in marked contrast to that of the rich young ruler whose riches kept himfrom experiencing eternal life (18:18-30). His love of money kept him out of God’s kingdom.The story of Zacchaeus is as follows:“He wanted to see who Jesus was, but being a short man he could not, becauseof the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see Him,since Jesus was coming that way.When Jesus reached the spot, He looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus,come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.’ So he came downat once and welcomed him gladly.All the people saw this and began to mutter, ‘He has gone to be the guestof a 'sinner.'But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, ‘Look, Lord! Here and now Igive half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out ofanything, I will pay back four times the amount."Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, because this man,too, is a son of Abraham. ‘ For the Son of Man came to seek and to save whatwas lost’" (vv. 3-10).

207Zacchaeus was a tax collector, in fact he was a “chief” tax collector (19:2). This is aposition referred to only here in the Bible, and it probably designated one to be in charge of adistrict, with other tax collectors under him. The region was prosperous at this time, so it is nowonder that Zacchaeus had grown rich (3:12; Mk 2:14-15).HUMILITY (19:3)Zacchaeus wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short he couldn’t see Himbecause of the crowd (v. 3). He was resourceful, after all, he had not become chief tax collectorfor nothing, so he ran ahead and climbed up a sycamore-fig tree to be able to see Jesus, sinceJesus was coming that way. The sycamore-fig tree was easy to climb and often planted by theroadside. It was a sturdy tree from 30 to 40 feet high, with a short trunk and spreading branches,capable of holding a grown man. In fact, Amos, the Old Testament prophet, used to work as ashepherd and took care of sycamore-fig trees (Am 7:14).Zacchaeus did not let his dignity get in the way of seeing Jesus. He climbed up thetree. He was desperate to see this Teacher from Nazareth.The shortness of his stature was amply compensated by his agility and invention (v. 4).Had he been as tall as most of the people in the crowd, he might have been equally unnoticedwith the rest. His getting into the tree made him conspicuous. Had he not been so short he maynot have done so. Our imperfections may become subservient to the grace of God. As thePassover was taking place, the road was probably crowded with people going to Jerusalem; butthe fame of the cure of the blind man was probably the cause of the concourse at this time.JESUS’ DIVINE MISSION (19:5)When Jesus reached the spot where Zacchaeus was sitting, He said, “Zacchaeus, comedown immediately. I must stay at your house today” (v. 5). Jesus’ statement seems to implydivine necessity. Jesus sought Zacchaeus. He saw His visit to Zacchaeus as part of His divinemission.Zacchaeus responded immediately with joy by coming down from the tree andwelcoming Jesus into his home.

208THE DISAPPROVAL OF THE CROWD (19:7)The crowd disapproved. All the people who saw this began to “mutter, “He has gone tobe the guest of a sinner” (v. 7). They condemned Zacchaeus out of hand as a sinner and criticizedJesus for being the guest of such a man.To finance their great world empire, the Romans levied heavy taxes on all nations undertheir control. The Jews opposed these taxes because they supported a secular government and itspagan gods, but they were still forced to pay. Tax collectors were among the most unpopularpeople in Israel. Jews by birth, they chose to work for Rome and were considered traitors.Besides, it was common knowledge that tax collectors were making themselves rich by gougingtheir fellow Jews.No wonder the people muttered when Jesus went home with the “sinner” Zacchaeus. It isnot unlikely that this person was a Jew by birth (v. 9), but because he had engaged in a businessconsidered infamous, in the eyes of the Jews, he was considered as a mere sinner or heathen (v.7). But despite the fact that Zacchaeus was both a cheater and a turncoat, Jesus loved him; andin response, the little tax collector was converted.RESTITUTION (19:8)Once at the house, Zacchaeus says to Jesus, “Lord, Lord! Here and now I give half of mypossessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back fourtimes the amount” (v. 8). A fourfold restitution to any he had defrauded. This is almost theextreme repayment required under the law in case of theft (Ex 22:1; 2 Sa 12:4-6; Pr 6:30-31).SALVATION (19:9-10)Then Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too,is a son of Abraham” (v. 9). Jesus assured Zacchaeus, the crook, that he was a true Jew–notonly of the lineage of Abraham but one who also walks “in the footsteps” of Abraham’s faith.Paul explained to the Christians in Rome:“And he [Abraham] is also the father of the circumcision who not only arecircumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our fatherAbraham had before he was circumcised” (Ro 4:12).

209Circumcision was, among other things, the outward sign of the righteousness that Godhad credited to Abraham for his faith. But Abraham is not only the father of the Jews, thosecircumcised who believe, he is also the father of the Gentiles, the uncircumcised who believe,because Abraham believed and was justified before the rite of circumcision was instituted. Thismeans that there is only one way of justification—the way of faith. Jesus recognized the taxcollector as such, though Jewish society excluded him.Then Jesus makes the statement, which has become a key verse in Luke’s Gospel:“For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost” (v. 10).Son of Man is a Messianic title (Da 7:13) used only by Jesus in the four Gospels, byStephen (Ac 7:56) and in John’s vision (Rev 1:13).The phrase “to seek and to save” is an important summary of Jesus’ purpose in coming toearth—to bring salvation, meaning eternal life (18:18) and the kingdom of God (18:25).In the Parable of the Lost Son, Luke uses similar terminology in referring to the prodigalson. He says of him that he “was dead and is alive” (15:24), that is, “perished and saved”(19:10; Mt 10:6; 18:10-14).APPLICATIONWhile salvation is free, following Jesus is not.To become a disciple of Jesus, Zacchaeus had to give up everything. His restitutionwas proof of his sincerity. His life had been built around money. His goals, his purposes, hisvery identity as a person were built on the importance to Him of wealth and material success. Butsuddenly Jesus comes into his life and everything changes. He gave away half of all he had to thepoor, and repaid four times over any he had swindled. The core of his personality, the values thathad given him direction in life, had suddenly shifted. Shockingly, people became more importantthan money. Honesty became more important than gain.Zacchaeus become a different person, a new person.This is what discipleship will cost us.

210What are our values? What is our life built around? What is our identity? To the extentthat what is important to us is not important to God, to just that extent discipleship will cost us.We need to give up what is important to us for what is important for Him.For Zacchaeus, his decision meant rejection of the old values on which his life had beenbased and commitment to the values of Jesus. Zacchaeus expressed those values by his behavior.He gave away the wealth he had once lived for.Intellectual assent or agreement with what the Bible says is not enough. To be a disciplewe must step beyond mere agreement to definite action. After all, it is our actions which expressour true values. What we do is what we believe. How we spend our time, money and talents tellus a lot more about ourselves than what we accept as intellectually true. Agreement with truth isonly the first step in conversion and discipleship. It is commitment that counts!

211We just had a wedding yesterday. What if John just said, “I really like Pamela, I think theworld of her, there is no one I would rather be with, I would like for her to be my wife some daywithout ever saying, ‘Will you marry me?’” No amount of words will ever unite this coupleunless they commit to a wedding and a marriage. That is the proof of the pudding.In every society, there are tax collectors. Not tax collectors who collect taxes, but peoplewho are neglected or despised for various reasons. Every society has certain groups of peoplewho are considered “untouchable” because of their political views, their immoral behavior ortheir lifestyle. We should not give in to social pressure to avoid these people. Jesus lovesthem, and we need to reach out to them in compassion and share His Good News.

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213WISE AND FOOLISH STEWARDSThe Parable of the Ten MinasLuke 19:11-27Jerusalem is finally in sight, and because the people in general thought the kingdom ofGod would appear immediately, Jesus tells them another parable:“ While they were listening to this, He went on to tell them a parable, because Hewas near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God wasgoing to appear at once” (v. 11).Jericho is not a great distance from Jerusalem, only about nineteen miles, and as Jesusnears the city, the disciples and others expected Jesus to take control of Israel, and to be thepolitical savior of the nation.Matthew has a parable (the Parable of the Talents—Mt 25:14-30) which has strikingsimilarities, but the differences are so clear that there is no possibility that the two are records ofthe same parable. In the parable of the Talents, for instance, each steward receives a differentnumber of talents (5,2 and 1) whereas in this parable all receive the same amount. In the Parableof the Talents each shows the same fidelity by doubling what he received; in this parable eachreceives the same and render a different return. In each parable, therefore, the intended lesson isdifferent.THE PURPOSE (19:11).Passover was coming soon; according to Josephus, more than two million pilgrims wouldpour into Jerusalem shortly, and the air would be heavy with the sense that something big mighthappen. George Macdonald has a pretty rhyme about their confused expectations:“They were all looking for a King,To slay their foes and lift them high.He came a little baby thing,That made a woman cry.”Perhaps the generality of his followers thought that, on his arrival at Jerusalem, he wouldproclaim himself king.

214THE DISTRIBUTION OF MINAS (19:12-13)“ He said: ‘A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointedking and then to return” (v. 12).In the following parable there are two distinct morals intended; let it be viewed in thesetwo points of light.1. The behavior of the citizens to the nobleman2. The behavior of his own servants to himBy the behavior of the citizens, and their punishment (vv. 14,27) we are taught that theJews, who were the people of Christ, would reject Him, and try to prevent His reigning overthem in his spiritual kingdom, and would for that crime be severely punished by the destructionof their state. The disciples, who are His servants; and who made a good improvement of thefavors granted them by the Gospel, should be rewarded in proportion to the improvement madeunder the means of grace. This latter moral is all that is intended by Matthew (Mt 25:14) asspoken by Christ after His triumphant entry into Jerusalem; though Luke has here placed thatevent after the parable.The meaning of the different parts of this parable appears to be as follows.The Lord Jesus, who was shortly to be crucified by the Jews. He “went into a farcountry,” that is, ascended to the right hand of the Divine Majesty.The phrase “to receive a kingdom” refers to taking possession of the mediatorialkingdom, the right to which, as Messiah, Jesus had acquired by His sufferings (Php 2:8-9; Heb1:3,8-9). Here is an allusion to the custom of those days, when they who had kingdoms orgovernments given unto them went to Rome to receive that dignity from the emperors. TheJewish historian Josephus confirms this interpretation as he points out that Herod went to Rometo receive the sanction and authority of the Roman emperor. Here Herod divided his territoriesafter his death among his family and before its bequests became valid, they had to be confirmedby the Roman Emperor. Herod’s son Archelaus went to Rome for confirmation his post and wasin fact followed by an embassy of protesting Jews. In the event, Augustus sided with Archelaus.1He returned to judge and punish the rebellious Jews:

215“ So He called ten of His servants and gave them ten minas. 'Put this money towork,' he said, 'until I come back'” (v. 13).A mina was three months wages for a common laborer.Some gifts are distributed differently by God, according to His own pleasure; others areuniversally given to believers such as the Gospel, which is given to each Christian in equalmeasure.It isn't that each servant received ten minas, but that ten were distributed to the groupas a whole, one to each of the ten servants.While the master was away, receiving his kingdom, the servants were expected to dobusiness—to use the resources that the master gave, and to use them to the utmost.THE REBELLION OF THE CITIZENS (19:14)The reaction of the citizens was one of rebellion:"But his subjects hated Him and sent a delegation after Him to say, 'We don'twant this man to be our king'” (v. 14).These are the citizens of the nobleman, who lived in the area he ruled. These are not theservants who received the minas.In this sense, every person is a citizen of God's earth. We are all under His ultimate ruleand have to answer to Him.These citizens hated Him, and they made it clear to the nobleman that they refusedto have this man to reign over us. In Jesus' parable, the nobleman did nothing to deserve thisrejection; it was only because the citizens have heart full of hate.They would not submit to Jesus’ government and, a short time after this, they preferredeven a murderer to Him. No wonder that those who murdered the Lord of glory should prefer amurderer, one of their own kind of people, to the Redeemer of their souls.They despised Him for His humble birth, His crucifixion to the world and for the holinessof His doctrine. Neither self-denial nor holiness suits the dispositions of the carnal mind.

216HE WAS MADE KING (19:15)Jesus was made king:"He was made king, however, and returned home. Then He sent for the servants towhom He had given the money, in order to find out what they had gained with it.”(v. 15)When He came to punish the disobedient Jews; and when He shall come to judge theworld (see the Parable of the Talents—Mt 25:14).ACCOUNTABILITY (19:16-25)Then the citizens came to give an account of their investment:"The first one came and said, 'Sir, your mina has earned ten more'” (v. 16).The principal difference between this parable and that of the talents above referred to is,that the mina given to each seems to point out the gift of the Gospel, which is the same to all whohear it; but the talents distributed in different proportions, according to each man's ability, seemto intimate that God has given different capacities and advantages to men, by which this one giftof the Gospel may be differently improved.Jesus then responds:"'Well done, my good servant!' His master replied. 'Because you have been trustworthyin a very small matter, take charge of ten cities'” (v. 17).This is to be understood as referring to the new kingdom which the nobleman had justreceived. His former trustiest and most faithful servants he now represents as being madegovernors, under him, over a number of cities, according to the capacity he found in each; whichcapacity was known by the improvement of the minas."The second came and said, 'Sir, your mina has earned five more.' His masteranswered, 'You take charge of five cities.'” (vv. 18-19)."Then another servant came and said, 'Sir, here is your mina; I have kept it laidaway in a piece of cloth. I was afraid of you, because you are a hard man.You take out what you did not put in and reap what you did not sow' His masterreplied, 'I will judge you by your own words, you wicked servant! You knew,

217did you, that I am a hard man, taking out what I did not put in, and reapingwhat I did not sow? Why then didn't you put my money on deposit, so thatwhen I came back, I could have collected it with interest?'” (vv. 20-23).The first servant did business with his master's mina, and had ten more to show for it.This was an impressive 1000% increase.The first servant received praise because he demonstrated faithful handling of themaster's resources. He was given authority over ten cities in the kingdom his master justreceived. And the reward for faithful service is not rest, but more service!The second servant brought another good report. He did business with his master's minaand had five more to show for it—a 500% increase. He is also rewarded, though not with thewords "Well done, good servant." The number of cities he is given authority over is in proportionto his faithfulness in doing business with his master's resources.The third servant did not have a good report. He did not obey the master's command to dobusiness until He came back:"Then He said to those standing by, 'Take his mina away from him and give itto the one who has ten minas.’ ‘Sir,' they said, 'he already has ten!'’ (vv. 24-25)Taking the mina and burying it underground is not doing business!It is probably an observation that some person made while our Lord was delivering theparable, with a design to correct him in the distribution as if he had said, "Why give the mina tothat person? He has got ten already; give it to one of those who has fewer."Instead of rewarding the third servant, the master rebukes him because the great authorityand power of the master should have inspired the servant to greater diligence, not todisobedience and laziness.The third servant had all taken from him. Although he remained his master's servant andcontinued to live in his house, he was left with nothing because he proved that he was unable tomanage his master's things. And so he was given nothing to manage.Severe Punishment (19:26-27)The punishment for those who rebel is severe:

218"He replied, 'I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but as forthe one who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away. But thoseenemies of Mine who did not want me to be king over them—bring them hereand kill them in front of Me” (vv. 26-27).Although this is probably a reference to the awful destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 itpoints to the final destruction of all who are found in open rebellion against Christ.APPLICATIONWe are all warned about the consequences of rebellion against the Lord.Either we let Him reign over us or we will spend eternity apart from Him ineverlasting torment.If we are already His servant, are we doing the business He told us to do?1Josephus, Antiquities I, xiv. c. xiv.NOTE

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