Bible Text: Luke 11:14-23 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | Above is the link to YouTube or audio recordings.

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May 5, 2024
“With Him or Against Him? ”
     

     Read Luke 11:14-16…  Jesus casts out a demon, and those who continue to oppose Him use this as an opportunity to challenge His authority for doing miracles.

During the Lord’s ministry it was fairly common for demons to indwell people.

Luke 4:33-35, “In the synagogue there was a man possessed by the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, ‘Let us alone! What business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!’ But Jesus rebuked him, saying, ‘Be quiet and come out of him!’ And when the demon had thrown him down in the midst of the people, he came out of him without doing him any harm.” 41, “Demons also were coming out of many, shouting, ‘You are the Son of God!’ But rebuking them, He would not allow them to speak, because they knew Him to be the Christ.”

Luke 9:37-39, “On the next day, when they came down from the mountain, a large crowd met Him. And a man from the crowd shouted, saying, ‘Teacher, I beg You to look at my son, for he is my only boy, and a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly screams, and it throws him into a convulsion with foaming at the mouth.” 41-42, “‘Bring your son here.’ While he was still approaching, the demon slammed [the boy] to the ground and threw him into a convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed the boy and gave him back to his father.”

When Jesus sent out the Twelve (Luke 9:1), “He gave them power and authority over all demons and to heal diseases,” and the seventy, completing their mission (Luke 10:17), “returned with joy, saying, ‘Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.’”

In Luke 11:14 a demon made a man mute, but after being cast out, the man spoke and people who witnessed it we’re amazed (Mark 1:27), “They were all amazed, [and] debated among themselves, saying, ‘What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him.’”

See Luke 11:15, although the crowds were amazed, some alleged that Jesus was doing this by the power of Beelzebub, the ruler of demons!

Matthew 9:32-34, “A mute, demon-possessed man was brought to [Jesus]. After the demon was cast out, the mute man spoke; and the crowds were amazed, and were saying, ‘Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.’ But the Pharisees were saying, ‘He casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons [Beelzebub].’”

It was impossible for these enemies of God, the religious rulers of Israel, to deny that Jesus was doing miracles, for many witnessed them; so instead, they alleged that Jesus was doing this by the power of the Satan.  Beelzebub means “lord of flies,” and was a Jewish name for the ruler of demons, Satan himself.

So in Luke 11:15 some in the crowd are attributing Jesus’ power and ministry to Satan, others (verse 16) are asking for another sign, a miracle that will attest to Him genuinely being the Son of God.  Jesus doesn’t offer another sign, for He has already given conclusive evidence that He is the Messiah, Immanuel; He has healed every kind of disease, illness, blindness, the mute, the deaf, even raising the dead.  Jesus won’t offer more signs to the enemies of the gospel, for they have hardened their hearts toward Him (see John 10:22-42).

     Read Luke 11:17-19…  Jesus’ authority and the origin of His power has been challenged; Jesus, being omniscient, knew their thoughts (Luke 5:22), “Jesus, aware of their reasonings, answered and said to them, ‘Why are you reasoning in your hearts?’” Luke 6:8, “He knew what they were thinking.”

Jesus’ states in Luke 11 that if a kingdom or family fights against itself [is divided] it won’t succeed.

Look at Luke 11:18, “If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul.”

How ridiculous to say that Satan empowers Jesus to cast out demons.  Why in the world would Satan do that, even if he could, which he can’t, because he is only a creation of God, not God himself; but Jesus is God, and therefore omnipotent, and even though the demons know He is God, they are shaking in fear of what is yet to come, when they are sent to the deepest hell.

James 2:19 says, “You believe that [there is only one] God. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder.”  Why do they shudder?  I’m glad you asked (Matthew 25:41), “Then He will say, ‘Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels.”

Satan and his minions often disguise themselves as workers of righteousness, as Paul writes (2Corinthians 11:14-15), “Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds.”

1John 3:7-8, “Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous; the one who practices sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil.”

What is the greatest work of the devil?

2Corinthians 4:3-6, “Even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, ‘Light shall shine out of darkness,’ is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.”

Satan wants to keep people from hearing and believing the message of Salvation through Christ.  Satan “has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ.”

1John 1:9-10, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us.”

For a person to die in a state of being guilty for sin, apart from the saving grace of God (which is made effectual by believing in God’s Son, Jesus Christ), is to die and be condemned to an eternal hell with Satan and all his demons. Yikes!

Look at Luke 11:19 again, “And if I by Beelzebul cast out demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? So they will be your judges.”  Wow!  The word “sons” here, is no doubt referring to the rabbis, scribes, Pharisees, and Chief Priests of Judaism, who appeared, so it was thought, to be casting out demons.

See Acts 19:11-17…  God was performing mighty works through Paul in Ephesus: handkerchiefs [headbands] and aprons used by Paul in his tent making labors were taken to the sick who were then healed, and to the demon possessed, forcing the evil spirits to leave them.  These miracles were given to convince the people in Ephesus that Paul was sent from God, so that they would listen to and believe his message about Christ, and be saved.

There were some so-called Jewish exorcists who weren’t having any luck casting out demons by their own or maybe their father Sheva’s name, or their list of other incantations, so they thought they would try out, “in the name of the Lord Jesus, whom Paul preaches, come out!”  But the evil spirit in the man said, “I know Jesus and I know Paul, but who in the heck are you guys.”

The demon only submitted to the authority of Jesus and those like Paul, who had been granted this authority; but the sons of Sceva, didn’t belong to God, therefore they had no authority to cast out demons.  The demoniac jumped on all seven of these guys, beat them up, tore their clothes off and sent them running out of the house, naked and wounded.

Read Luke 11:20…  Jesus says that He cast out demons by the finger of God, and that He is from the kingdom of God, in fact, He is God!  This is awesome!

The phrase used by Jesus, “the finger of God,” goes back to the time when Israel was captive in Egypt and God, sent Moses and Aaron to do miracles, in order to force Pharaoh to free the Hebrews. The Egyptian magicians were able to do several of the same miracles, but when Moses struck the dust and it became gnats covering the land, Pharaoh’s magicians couldn’t duplicate it said to Pharaoh (Exodus 8:19), “This is the finger of God,” i.e., this is by their God’s power.  Also, when Moses was on the Mount Sinai (Exodus 31:18), God “gave Moses the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone (10 Commandments), written by the finger of God.”

Jesus is the Messiah, sent from heaven by God, to save us; He should be worshipped, not ridiculed; but those who reject Him and His authority, commit the severest form of blasphemy, remaining dead in their sins and separated from life with God.

John 8:44-47, “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me. Which one of you convicts Me of sin? If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me? He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God.”

Read Luke 11:21-22…  Jesus presents an analogy affirming that He is from God, and He has come to do God’s Will.  Satan is referenced here as a [Lit. the] “strong man,” who is “fully armed,” and is guarding “his own house”

Satan is not going to allow anyone who is less powerful than he (like the son’s of Sceva), to break into his house (or enter his kingdom) and take any of his possessions (the souls of those who are possessed by his demons).

But someone stronger (God’s Son) overpowered Satan, defeating all his armor, and has taken back that which belongs to God (a believing soul will not be lost).

John 13:2, “During supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him,” 18, “I know the ones I have chosen; but it is that the Scripture may be fulfilled, ‘He who eats My bread has lifted up his heel against Me,’” [Psalm 41:9, “Even my close friend in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted up his heel against Me.’”

John 13:22-27, “When Jesus had said this, He became troubled in spirit, and testified and said, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, that one of you will betray Me.’ The disciples began looking at one another, at a loss to know of which one He was speaking. There was reclining on Jesus’ chest one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved. So Simon Peter gestured to him, and said to him, ‘Tell us who it is of whom He is speaking.’ He, leaning back thus on Jesus’ chest, said, ‘Lord, who is it?’ Jesus then answered, “The one for whom I shall dip the morsel and give it to him.” So when He had dipped the morsel, He took and gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. After the morsel, Satan then entered into him. Therefore Jesus said to him, ‘What you do, do quickly.’” 30, “So after receiving the morsel [Judas] went out immediately; and it was night.”

John 17:12, “While I was with them, I was keeping them in Your name which You have given Me; and I guarded them and not one of them perished but the son of perdition, so that the Scripture would be fulfilled.”

John 18:1-3, “ When Jesus had spoken these words, He went forth with His disciples over the ravine of the Kidron, where there was a garden, in which He entered with His disciples. Now Judas also, who was betraying Him, knew the place, for Jesus had often met there with His disciples. Judas then, having received the Roman cohort and officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, came there with lanterns and torches and weapons.” 7-9, “Jesus said to them, ‘Whom do you seek?’ And they said, ‘Jesus the Nazarene.’ He answered, ‘I am He; so if you seek Me, let these go their way,’ to fulfill the word which He spoke, ‘Of those whom You have given Me I lost not one.’”

Jesus came healing the sick and rescuing souls from the kingdom of darkness (Colossians 1:13-14), “For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins,” (Acts 2:21), “And it shall be that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord [for the forgiveness of sin] will be saved,” (Acts 4:12), “there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”

1John 3:8, “The devil has sinned from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil.”

Hebrews 2:14, “Through death He [Jesus Christ] rendered powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil.”

Read Luke 11:23…  You either believe in Christ, or you reject Him; you either serve the cause of Christ, or you hinder it; you either share the message of Christ, or you suppress it.  The reality is no one is neutral when it comes to Jesus Christ.

And just so we are clear, I’m speaking of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Lord and Savior, Crucified, Resurrected, and Coming Back to take all those who believe in Him, to be with Him, in heaven, forever.

Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord for the forgiveness of sin will be saved.  Just in case you missed it, His name is Jesus [God’s Salvation] and He turns no one away!  He is the only way to God, and the only truth from God, and the only life with God; there is absolutely no other way to be saved and to go to heaven.

Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

 
Pastor Mike Hale
>’(((><
 

Bible Text: Luke 11:11-13 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | Above are the links to YouTube and audio recordings.

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April 28, 2024
“Snakes, Scorpions or SPIRIT?”
    

Read Luke 11:11-13….  Fathers are to care for their children. If your son is asking for food, would you give him something that could hurt him?  Of course not!

Jesus said something similar (Matthew 7:9), “What man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf [of bread], will give him a stone?”  That’s the principle Jesus is teaching in Luke 11, that a man takes care of his children, i.e., when his children come to him with needs, he seeks to provide for them.

This is clearly not about snakes verses fish, or scorpions verses eggs.  So what is Jesus getting at?  Look again at verse 13, “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?”

Jesus has been teaching His followers, in Luke 11, that they can pray at any time, anywhere, no matter how simple or complicated their needs might be.  We are taught (cf. Luke 11:1-4) how to pray in accordance with what is pleasing to God; and (Luke 11:5-10) that we should be persistent in bringing our needs to God the Father, for He desires to provide for us what we require.

In Luke 11:11-13, Jesus teaches us that even sinful humanity, i.e., earthly fathers, give their children what they need; and so how much more will God the Father, who is not evil but in fact is holy, provide perfectly and completely for His children, all true believers and followers of Jesus Christ.

If you are a Christian, a born-again son or daughter of Almighty God, who is holy and righteous, you have been justified through the death and resurrection of God’s Son (Romans 3:10-12, 23-24; 5:8; 6:23; 8:1; 10:9-10, 13).

2Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.” 21, “He [God the Father] made Him [God the Son] who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

When a Christian prays to God, asking for his or her needs to be met, Luke 11:13 says God gives them the Holy Spirit.  This is very interesting, because in a parallel passage (Matthew 7:11), we read, “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!”

The most awesome gift God can give us and magnify in us, is the Holy Spirit, also called the Comforter, the Helper, the Teacher, the Spirit of Truth, the Spirit of Wisdom, the Spirit of Power, the Spirit of God, and the Spirit of Christ.

When you go to God in prayer He reminds you that He has provided you with the Holy Spirit, the Giver and the Source of all of God’s Gifts!

God’s children are indwelled by and filled with the Spirit of God, through Whom, we have received, “The fruit of the [Holy] Spirit” (Galatians 5:22-23), “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”

When you become a child of God, you are given everything you need, i.e., God places in you the source of every good thing, as Paul says (1Corinthians 6:19-20) “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.”

At spiritual birth, God puts His Spirit in us, the Giver and Source of all good things. The Holy Spirit, God the Spirit, is the third member of the God-Head, and He marks us as God’s possession (Ephesians 1:13-14), “In [Christ], you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.”

God fills us with His Spirit, then He places us in the Body of Christ, His Church (1Corinthians 12:12-14), “Even as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. For the body is not one member, but many.” 18, “But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired,” 20, “There are many members, but one body,” 27, “You are Christ’s body, and individually members of it.”

Ephesians 4:4-6, “There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.”

Ephesians 3:20-21, “Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.”

“According to the power that works within us” (Ephesians 3:20), is speaking of the Holy Spirit (Romans 1:1), “Christ Jesus,” 4, “was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness.”

Let’s talk about the The Trinity, the Triunity of God, for a moment.  God’s Word is very clear that there is but one living and true God (see Deuteronomy 6:4; Isaiah 45:5-7; 1Corinthians 8:4), eternally existing in three Persons: Father, Son, Holy Spirit.  Each Person is equally deserving of honor and worship, for each Member of the God-Head is eternal, and equal in essence, power, and glory.

No wonder Paul ends the Book of 2Corinthians with this verse (13:14), “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God [the Father], and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.”

The Divine Title of God is applied to the three persons of the Godhead: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (see Exodus 20:2; John 20:28; Acts 5:3-4).

The Doctrine of the Triunity of God is comprehensively taught in Scripture (see Matthew 3:16-17; 28:19; Romans 8:9; 1Corinthians 12:3-6; 2Corinthians 13:14; Ephesians 4:4-6; 1Peter 1:2; Jude 1:20-21).

Each Person of the Trinity is described as: Eternal (Romans 16:26; Revelation 22:13; Hebrews 9:14); Holy (Revelation 4:8; 15:4; Acts 3:14; 1John 2:20).

Omnipresent (Jeremiah 23:24; Ephesians 1:23; Psalms 139:7); Omnipotent (Genesis 17:1; Revelation 1:8; Romans 15:19; Jeremiah 32:17; Hebrews 1:3; Luke 1:35); Omniscient (Acts 15:18; John 21:17; 1Corinthians 2:10-11).        Each Person of the Trinity is described as: Creator (Genesis 1:1; Colossians 1:16; Job 26:14; 33:4; Psalms 148:5; John 1:3); Sanctifier (Jude 1:1; Hebrews 2:11; 1Peter 1:2); Source of eternal life (Romans 6:23; John 10:28; Galatians 6:8); Teacher (Isaiah 48:17; 54:13; Luke 21:15; John 14:26; Galatians 1:12; 1John 2:20).

Salvation is the work of each Person of the Trinity (see 2Thessalonians 2:13-14; Titus 3:4-6; 1Peter 1:2), and Baptism is administered in the name of each Person of the Trinity (see Matthew 28:19).

God puts His Spirit in us to empower, equip, and encourage us, to do the works of God (Ephesians 2:10), “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”

Two months ago we studied the teaching of Jesus in Luke 11:1-4, where we are taught how to pray, who to pray to, and what to pray for?  Last week we studied the teaching of Jesus in Luke 11:5-8, where Jesus gives us a parable about coming to God in prayer for what we need, and being persistent in our prayers to God, as Paul writes (1Thessalonians 5:17), “pray without ceasing!”

In Luke 11:9-10, Jesus reiterates a very important truth about prayer, “So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it will be opened.”

God wants intimate relationship with His children, we can talk with Him anytime, anywhere, and we can ask Him for anything that aligns with His will, anything that is pleasing to Him, and He will provide it.

We are told to pray to the Father, through (or in the name of) the Son, by the power of the Holy Spirit; for all three are active participants in the prayers of Christians.

    Jesus said (Matthew 6:9), “Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.’”

    Jesus said (John 16:23), “Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you.”

    Stephen, while being stoned to death (Acts 7:59) prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!” 60, “Then falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them!’ Having said this, he [died].”

    Paul says (Ephesians 5:20) we are to be “always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father,” (1Thessalonians 5:16-18), “Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

Romans 8:26, “We do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.”

Jude 21, “Praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God.”

Prayer is, at its very core, worship. We praise God for Who He is: Creator, Sustainer, Lord, Savior, Judge over all.  When we offer up prayers of thanksgiving, we are worshiping His goodness, mercy, and faithfulness to us, for God is Love.

Worship gives glory to God, and He (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) is the only One who deserves worship, for He alone is to be praised, He alone is to receive glory.

Revelation 4:11, “Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created.”

Revelation 5:12-13, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing. To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.”

Revelation 7:12, “Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever. Amen.”

We are to pray to the Father, through (or in the name of) the Son, Jesus Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit.  To pray in someone’s name means to pray for what they would want, to pray for what would please them.

We are to pray all the time, everywhere, for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven, thankful for God’s provision of our daily needs, for God’s Spirit to guide us into all truth and to strengthen us, so we will live in a manner that honors God, as we reach out with the Message of Salvation to the lost, while edifying and encouraging our brothers and sisters in Christ, as we serve together in the Church, the Body of Christ, the Family of God.

2Corinthians 13:14, “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God [the

Father], and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.”

 
Pastor Mike Hale
>’(((><

Bible Text: Luke 11:5-13 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | Above is the link to YouTube and audio recordings.

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April 21, 2024
“God Loves to Hear and Answer Our Prayers”
     Luke 11:5-13
 

It has been two months since I taught from Luke, therefore we need a short refresher from where I left off.

Please turn to Luke 11:1-4.  This is a shortened version of what Jesus taught several years earlier, at the beginning of His ministry.  He teaches us how to pray (Matthew 6:9-13), “Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’]”

Jesus teaches His followers to focus on God as Father, Creator, Sustainer, Savior and Judge over all.  Prayer is between God the Father and His children, for although God is the Creator of all He is the Father only of those who are born-again by God’s Spirit, in response to believing in God’s Son for salvation.

      God’s children (Christians) are to pray for God’s kingdom to come. How does God’s kingdom come?  Every time a person repents of their sin and believes in Jesus Christ, the kingdom of God expands; and so we pray for people to be saved, we tell them about Jesus Christ.

God desires intimate relationship with His children through His Word, His Spirit, and through prayerful and unceasing communion with Him.

God is a loving Father who provides for us not weekly or monthly, but “daily,” for He wants to hear from us every day.

As Christians, we have received God’s unconditional love and forgiveness for all our sin through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross; therefore we ought to love others and forgive them for any offenses they have committed against us.

We are told to pray for God’s wisdom and strength so that, wherever we go, whatever we do, we will not give in and do that which is sinful.  We need God’s help to avoid the influence of world, the devil, and our own flesh, and so we confess our need for God’s protection and deliverance from sin.

We must recognize and acknowledge that God has granted us everything we need for life on earth and life in heaven, we are given everything we need to know Him, love Him, serve Him, trust Him, and proclaim Him to those who will listen.

2Timothy 3:16-17, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof [rebuke], for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”

Romans 12:2, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

2Peter 1:3-4, “His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.”

We are to pray to God joyfully, continually, and thankfully (1Thessalonians 5:16-18), “Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

Please turn to Luke 11:5–13…  So, in Luke 11:1-4 Jesus teaches us who to pray to, how to pray, and what to pray for; in today’s text (Luke 11:5-13), Jesus teaches us how much the Father loves to hear from us and to answer our prayers.

      What starts out as a parable about persistent prayer, ends up being a rather confusing story about fathers who thankfully give their children fish rather than snakes, and eggs rather than scorpions, or is there something else more important?

Prayer is the means by which God’s infinite wisdom, unconditional love, sovereign power, and eternal purpose are brought together to accomplish His will.  And so, we are to pray to (Matthew 6:9-13), “Our Father who is in heaven,” our Father who is Holy and Loving and Faithful and desiring to save sinners like you and me, and to bring us to heaven to be with Him for eternity; for that is what He wants (cf. 1Timothy 2:3-4), “God our Savior, desires all men [women and children, all of humanity] to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth.” Jesus says (John 14:6), “[He is] the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through [Him].”

We are to read God’s Word and talk to Him through prayer, we are His children and He cares for us.  We are to pray for our daily provisions, and be thankful for the forgiveness that comes through Jesus Christ the Lord.

We are to be forgiving people, not holding offenses against others, but instead forgiving them when they sin against us, because we have been forgiven all our sins (past, present, future) through the once for all, for all time, sacrificial death and sovereign resurrection of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, who is both Judge and Savior.

Read Luke 11:5-8…  God wants us to come to Him with our needs, He is a loving Father who provides for His children (Hebrews 4:16), “Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

Jesus taught His disciples how to pray in Luke 11:1-4, and now He tells them a story, in verses 5-8, about one neighbor going to another neighbor to borrow some bread for an unexpected traveler who has arrived in the middle of the night.

These neighbors are friends, and it was not uncommon for neighbors to borrow from one another, as most likely they didn’t have markets or convenience or hardware stores near by, so when they needed something immediately that they didn’t have, they would ask a neighbor, with the intentions of returning it when they were finished using it, or if it was food like in Jesus’ story they would pay back the three loaves the next time they baked bread.

Jesus now makes it personal saying, “Suppose one of you has a neighbor and goes to him at midnight to borrow bread,” because a friend of yours has arrived in the middle of the night after making a long journey; he is hungry, but you have nothing to give him, so you go to your neighbor’s house to try and get some food.

Perhaps you call to your neighbor from outside his door, asking if you can barrow three loaves of bread [flatbread, like large thick tortillas].

Normally a family would make enough bread for the day (keeping flour, oil and salt on hand).  We aren’t told why your neighbor would have extra loaves of bread, but it is clear from the rest of the story that he does have extra loaves and he finally gives you what you are asking for, even though it is inconvenient. Your neighbor and his children, and no doubt his wife, were in bed, probably asleep for hours, because it is midnight.

The houses in Israel were normally one large room, with a small cooking and kitchen area, and an open area where a large mat would be placed as a bed, and commonly the children slept with their parents.

So in this parable, you go to your neighbor and begin calling to him from outside his door, “hey John, its Mike, sorry to wake you, but I need some bread for a friend who has arrived unexpectedly, I know it is very late, but he is hungry, and even if I could get to a store, it would be closed.  Can you help me out?”

John says he is not getting up, that door is already shut and the kids are asleep.  The doors were made out of wood and metal and were heavy, and commonly were secured to the wall structure using large iron rings and rods.

John tells me to go away, quit bothering him, but I persist because my visitor hasn’t eaton for many hours, is hungry, and I have nothing to give him.  I remain persistent in asking John for help until he finally gets up, opens the door, and gives you bread.

As a side note: most Hebrews didn’t keep much food on hand, as they didn’t have fridges or other means of keeping foods from spoiling.

Also, it is important to understand that hospitality was expected among the Jewish people, for it was a big part of their social duty and cultural practice, but also part of their religious duty (Luke 10:27), “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.”  Be a Good neighbor!

Read Luke 11:9-10…. Clearly this parable is teaching us about prayer, about being resolute and persistent in our prayer life.  We are to ask, seek, and knock!

If you are a Believer and Follower of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, then God is your Father and you can pray to Him, anytime, anyplace, in any situation. God wants you to talk with Him all the time, and you do that through prayer.

God never sleeps, you don’t have to worry about waking Him up from a nap to hear your prayers (Psalm 121:1-4), “I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From where shall my help come? My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep.”

Why does Jesus say we must ask, seek, find, because (Luke 11:10), “everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it will be opened.”  God wants us to come to Him continually and with expectation.

Can you pray for anything and expect to receive it?  No!  We read in James 4:2-3, “You do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives.”

Can you pray in Christ’s Name, according to God’s Will and expect to receive it? Yes!  We read earlier, in Matthew 6:9-13, that we are to pray according to God’s Holy Name, and for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven.

John 14:12-14, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.”
 
John 15:7, “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” 16, “You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you.”

To pray in Christ’s name, is to pray as God Himself would pray, for things that God is pleased to provide for His children.

Read Luke 11:11-13…. For the most part, fathers care for their children. Some of the disciples Jesus is talking to are fathers, so Jesus says, “suppose one of your sons is hungry and he asks you for a fish. Would you give him a snake instead of a fish?  Your son is asking for food, would you give him something that could kill him, like a poisonous snake?  Of course not!

Jesus then says, “If your son asks for an egg, would you give him a scorpion?” What a strange question, of course you wouldn’t do that to your child!

But you know, your going to have to come back next week in order to find out why Jesus posed these weird analogies about snakes and scorpions, and what, if anything, they have to do with prayer!

 
Pastor Mike Hale
>’(((><

Bible Text: Luke 11:1-4 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | Above is the link to YouTube.
(audio recording will be provided Sunday afternoon)

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February 25, 2024
“Jesus Teaches Us How to Pray”
    

      Read Luke 11:1-4…  Notice (verse 1), Jesus just finishing praying, and one of His disciples asks Him to teach them to pray, not just any old way, but “as John (John the Baptizer) also taught his disciples.”

John the Baptizer, was, according to Luke 3:4, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness, make ready the way of the Lord, make His paths straight” (pp. Matthew 3:3; Mark 1:3), all of which are quoted from Isaiah 40:3.

Jesus’ older cousin John was a prophet; in fact, he was the last prophet of the OT, and the first prophet of the NT,  John had a following of disciples, who evidently prayed to God the way you should pray to God; not like the Pharisees, who prayed with many words and in a showy fashion, so as to elevate themselves.

Luke 18:11-14, “The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

John’s followers had been to taught to pray more reverently and fervently, along the line of what we read in the Psalms.

Psalm 5:1-7, “Give ear to my words, O Lord, consider my groaning. Heed the sound of my cry for help, my King and my God, for to You I pray. In the morning, O Lord, You will hear my voice; in the morning I will order my prayer to You and eagerly watch. For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; no evil dwells with You. The boastful shall not stand before Your eyes; You hate all who do iniquity. You destroy those who speak falsehood; the Lord abhors the man of bloodshed and deceit. But as for me, by Your abundant lovingkindness I will enter Your house, at Your holy temple I will bow in reverence for You.”

Psalm 116:1-2, “I love the Lord, because He hears my voice and my supplications. Because He has inclined His ear to me, therefore I shall call upon Him as long as I live.”

Psalm 145:18, “The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth.”

Back to Luke 11:1…  This is not the first time the Lord has given instruction on how those who believe in Him ought to pray.  And remember, the present chronology here in Luke is near the last 6 months of Jesus’ life before going to the cross.  However, toward the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, during the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), where Jesus taught His followers how to pray.

Matthew 6:5-8, “When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.”

Prayer that honors God should focus on who God is and on the relationship God has with those who have placed their faith and trust in Jesus Christ, as Savior and Lord.

The Lord’s Prayer should not be recited in mechanical repetition, but with thanksgiving, and in alignment with the expressed will of God.

John 16:23, “Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you.”

Ephesians 6:18, “With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit.”

Philippians 4:4-7, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Colossians 4:2, “Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving.”

1Thessalonians 5:16-18, “Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

Nowhere in the NT is a prayer repeated or used in a repetitious or ritualistic manner.  God knows what we need, we don’t have to try and convince or coerce God, for He knows our needs and provides for us..

Back to Luke 11….  Luke’s narrative is much shorter than Matthew’s narrative, concerning the Lord’s teaching on how we are to pray.  Notice again, Luke 11:2, “And He said to them, “When you pray, say: ‘Father, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come.”       This prayer is between two persons, God the Father and one of God’s children, one who has been born-again by the Spirit of God in response to genuine faith in God’s Son.

You will not find any prayer in the Old Testament that addresses God as Father; in fact, the Jews never called God their Father.

Once Jesus healed a man on the Sabbath (John 5), and the religious leaders began to persecute Jesus, to which Jesus responded (verse 17), “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.” And John records (verse 18), “For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.”

John 10:30-33, Jesus said, “‘I and the Father are one.’ The Jews picked up stones again to stone Him. Jesus [said], ‘I showed you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you stoning Me?’ The Jews answered Him, ‘For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy; and because You, being a man, make Yourself out to be God.’”

In the New Testament, God is called Father over 60 times in the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke), and in John’s Gospel God is referred to as Father over 100 times.

The Greek word for father is pater, but the religious leaders of the Jews spoke Aramaic, using the word abba, a very intimate and endearing term of family love that is still used in Hebrew families today.  And so, in Christ’s instruction here in Luke 11:2, Jesus addresses God as Father, as should we.

God is the Creator of all but only the Father of His children through spiritual birth (See 1Corinthians 12:12-13; Galatians 3:26-29; Romans 4:3,13).

John 1:12-13, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”

     We become children of God though faith in God’s Son to save us, and we are to then pray Luke 11:2a, for God’s kingdom to come.  How does God’s kingdom come?  One saved soul at a time, for every time a person repents of their sin and trusts in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, the kingdom of God is expanded.

     In Matthew 6:10, Jesus tells us to pray to the Father, “Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”  There is no sin in heaven, it is God’s perfect and sinless domain; although, here on earth, God is allowing sin and Satan to exist, but sin and Satan will end exactly when God has determined, according to HIs sovereign will.

2Peter 3:3-7, “Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, and saying, ‘Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.’ For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water. But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.”

2Peter 3:11-13, “Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.”

     God wants everyone to repent, believe and be saved, and to spend eternity with Him in heaven (1Timothy 2:3-4), “God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

We have everything we need to help advance God’s kingdom by sharing the message of Christ with everyone who will listen.

God is a loving Father who desires to provide for his children (Matthew 7:7-8), “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” 11, “how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!”

God desires intimate relationship with His children through His Word, His Spirit, and through prayerful communion with Him.  And so, God encourages us to come to Him in prayer and to (1Thessalonians 5:17) “pray without ceasing.”

We are pray for God to (Luke 11:3), “Give us each day our daily bread.”  Not our weekly bread or monthly bread, but our “daily” provision, and so, we are to petition God to supply our needs through Jesus Christ as we come to Him daily.

God our Father is Holy and deserving to be worshipped; we express our worship of Him by sharing the message of forgiveness for sins and eternal life through Jesus Christ; and so, as we do that, we help to advance His kingdom here on earth, as it is in heaven.

In Luke 11:4a we are told to pray for God to forgive our sins (1John 1:9), “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness,” (Romans 10:13), “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved,” 17, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.”

As Christians, we have received God’s love and forgiveness through Jesus’s sacrifice on the cross, when He paid our sin debt to God in full, when He cried out, “Tetelesti!” Meaning it is finished or completed, full payment has been rendered and accepted by God the Father for our sin; and therefore we ought to love others and forgive them for any offenses they have committed against us.

Sin is our greatest enemy, therefore, we confess our sinfulness to God, and He forgives us completely, for all our sins (Hebrews 10:17), “And their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”

     In Luke 11:4b, we are told to pray for God to “lead us not into temptation.”  What does that mean?  I believe we should pray for God to protect us from trials that could turn into temptations, knowing that God tempts no man, but He does allow us to be tested.

James 1:13-14, “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust.”

1Corinthians 10:13, “No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.”

We are to pray for God to place a guard over and around our eyes, ears, mouth, feet, and hands — so that, wherever we go, whatever we do, we will not give in and do that which is sinful.  We need God’s help to avoid the influence of world, the devil, and our own flesh, and so we confess our need for God’s protection and deliverance from sin.

We must recognize and acknowledge that God has granted us everything we need for life on earth and life in heaven, everything we need to know Him, love Him, serve Him, and declare Him to everyone who will listen.

2Timothy 3:16-17, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”

Romans 12:2, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

2Peter 1:3-4, “His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.”

God loves us and allows us to experience His love now and forever; and so, we pray to Him continually, always giving praise, glory, and honor, to His Name, His Kingdom, and His Will, thanking Him for the forgiveness and eternal life we have received.  “For His is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever, Amen!”

 
Pastor Mike Hale
>’(((><

Bible Text: Luke 10:38-42 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | Sunday Service on YouTube
(audio recording will be provided Sunday afternoon)

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February 18, 2024
“Christians Have One Priority”
Luke 10:38-42
    

In Luke 10:25-28, Jesus is asked by a lawyer, “What shall I do to inherit eternal life.”  Jesus confirmed that as a recipient of eternal life you would “Love the Lord your God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.”

The lawyer asked Jesus to define “who” his neighbor is, i.e., who specifically does he need to love as himself, in order to receive eternal life.  Jesus then tells him the Parable of the Good Samaritan, the main point of which is, it doesn’t matter who our neighbor is, but instead what is required of us is to be a good neighbor by showing mercy to anyone who is need.

Eternal life is exemplified in the life of those who have been born-again by God’s Spirit, for God’s children will be gracious and loving to all people, without partiality, but especially to those who are in need of mercy, like the man in Jesus’ parable.

Today we are going to look at an event that took place in Bethany, at the house of Martha and Mary, where Jesus will teach us what our main priority is, i.e., what is the most important thing for God’s children to seek and to do?

Our world is very complex, and at times chaotic and confusing.  We live in a society that is becoming more fractured and frantic day by day, people are more disconnected from one another then ever before; while, at the same time, people are much more connected to phones, computers, and other electronic devices.

Life in today’s culture has become more fragmented, as people find themselves involved in a wide variety of activities, pursuits, and responsibilities.  People are struggling to prioritize the many facets of their lives, as they sort out which things are more important then other things.

When we talk about something being a priority, we are usually speaking of what we consider to be most important to us.  The word “priority” is a form of the word prior which means ahead of, or preceding; something that comes before, i.e., the essential thing, that which is preeminent to everything else.

I imagine you could ask a dozen people on the street what their main priority is, and you would get a variety of answers.  But as a Christian, what should your priority be?  What is above all else, the most important thing in your life?  Your wife? Your husband? Your kids?  Your family? Your church?  Your job?

David tells us (Psalm 27:4), “One thing I have asked from the Lord, that I shall seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord and to meditate in His temple.”  David desires to behold the beauty of Lord and to be in His presence forever!

Paul tells us (Philippians 3:8-11), “I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.”

Wow!  Paul’s single priority is to know Christ Jesus as Lord and experience the power of His resurrection and eternal life.

Micah 6:8, “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”

Look at Luke 10:38-42…  This story appears nowhere else in Scripture, and yet it is a marvelous story that encourages us to take inventory of what our priorities are, as witnesses of Christ.

Why does Luke put this story in his narrative, where as, nobody else does?  This section of Scripture begins the last six months off Jesus’ life on earth.  Starting here, all the way to the triumphal entry into Jerusalem, Jesus is on the road traveling through Judea, going from town to town and village to village proclaiming that He is the Messiah and that the Good News of the Gospel has come to them through God’s Son, the kingdom of heaven has come to earth.

Previously, Jesus sent the seventy disciples in teams of two, to prepare every town and village for His arrival.  Some would believe His message and most would not.  From Luke 10:38 through chapter Luke 19:28, the focus of Jesus’ was His teaching, not miracles, in order to teach His apostles and disciples, preparing them to take the message of salvation to the ends of the earth.

As we work through the rest of Luke’s Gospel in the coming months, we will study the Lord’s teachings about demons, prayer, forgiveness, divine judgement, persecution and suffering, the Holy Spirit, stewardship, unity, humility, pride, and the kingdom of God; we will study about HIs death, resurrection, appearances to His followers, and His ascension back into heaven.

From Luke 11:1-24:53, Jesus pours out His heart through His teaching, then pours out His life, as He becomes the once for all sacrifice for all sin, for all time.  Jesus’ teaching is urgent, powerful, and life changing, for all those who will hear, understand, believe in and receive Him as Lord and Savior.

It is interesting that in the study we did last week, we read the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37), that told us about four men who were going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and that is where the Samaritan took the man who had been beaten and robbed and left for dead.

In today’s text, we are going to learn about Mary, who is commended for sitting at the feet of Jesus; while her sister Martha, doesn’t take the opportunity to sit as Jesus’ feet and hear the Word of God being spoken in her home.

God speaks through His Word, God’s Son is the very Word of God

(see John 1:1-5, 14, 18; 10:27-30; 14:6-7; 15:15).

The most important thing in the world is divine truth; and sadly, there are many Christians who don’t understand just how important it is.  My blessing as a pastor-teacher is to tell you what Jesus said and what He meant by what He said, and how it applies to us, today, and for as long as we shall have life on this planet.

Hearing the revealed Word of God precedes every other spiritual duty that we have as Christians, for everything we do is motivated by, informed by, and defined by Scripture.  God’s Word is the what, why, where, when, and how of God, by which we are to live our lives for Him, and to tell others about Him.

Back to Luke 10:38…. The name of the village is Bethany, and although it is not mentioned here, we know from John 11:1, that this is where Mary, Martha, and their brother Lazarus lived.

The name Martha means “mistress,” not in the way we might think today, but as a feminine form of “master of the house,” as she is most likely the oldest of the two and probably without a husband, since he is not named.

We are told that Jesus came to the house and was welcomed in by Martha, and so He is now either standing or sitting and Mary is sitting at His feet [lit., alongside, as close as she could get to Jesus].  Mary is captivated by Jesus, transfixed on every word He says.  The Lord God was in her house, telling her of the things of God, nothing was more important to her then to hear what God was revealing to her.  She was hungry for the truth, there was no greater priority in her life at this moment.

Now Martha (verse 40) was, “distracted with all her preparations   .”  She was missing what was important, the Word of God was being proclaimed by the Son of God; but Martha was all caught up in her serving duties, and she was missing an opportunity to, like Mary, listen to the marvelous teachings from Jesus Christ.

Martha, getting agitated, came up to Jesus and basically said, “Don’t you see that I have all this cooking and cleaning and bed arranging to do, and Mary is just sitting here doing nothing!”  “Tell her to help me!.”

The Lord answers Martha (verses 41-42) saying, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”

What does that mean?  Jesus gives a sympathetic rebuke saying, “Martha, Martha,” if you have ever responded to a person in a situation with a repeat of their name, while probably shaking your head slowly, it kind of softens the blow of what needs to be said, as Jesus responds to Martha, who has missed what is really important.

Jesus is empathetic in His response to Martha, who Jesus says is, “worried [unjustifiably concerned] and bothered [troubled] about many things.”  But the reality is that only one thing is necessary, i.e., there is only one priority here, and it is not cleaning, cooking and making beds, it is beholding the Son of God who is speaking the Word of God, revealing Himself to those who will but listen.

Jesus tells Martha He won’t take what is important away from Mary, the truth is, Martha needs to stop fussing and sit at Jesus feet like Mary, who has chosen the right priority, Christ the Lord!

Our lives can fill up with busyness; and we can get frustrated over stuff that just doesn’t matter in eternity: politics, the environment, health, wealth, power, even hospitality like Martha; we may wrongly commit ourselves to earthly things; when in reality we should commit ourselves to heavenly things, like Mary, worshipping Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Lord and Savior.

Ephesians 2:8-10, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”

Philippians 4:8-9, “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”

Philippians 4:12-13, “I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.”

Philippians 4:19-20, “And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Now to our God and Father be the glory forever and ever. Amen.”

As Christians, our greatest priority is to know, love, and serve God there and now, with whatever time we have remaining.  We are to do this by encouraging our brothers and sisters in in the Lord, as we share the message of salvation through Jesus Christ with all those who will listen; while trusting God to take care of us, now and forever.  And all of God’s children said, Amen!

 
Pastor Mike Hale
>’(((><

Bible Text: Luke 10:30-37 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | Sunday Service YouTube Live stream
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February 11, 2024
“God’s Children Should be Merciful”
    

Recap from Luke 10:25-29…

Of all the questions to be asked, this is the most important to hear and understand, because every human soul lives forever; for although our bodies die, our souls live on for eternity, either in heaven or in hell.

What does God require of you in order to inherit eternal life?

Luke 10:27, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.”

In Matthew 22:37-40 Jesus said, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”

     In Mark 12:30-31 Jesus answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

So, if you want to inherit eternal life, all you have to do is love God totally, with your whole being (heart, soul, mind and strength, and love your neighbor just as you love yourself, with your whole being (heart, soul, mind, and strength).

Notice (Luke 10:28), Jesus affirms the man’s response, saying to him “You have answered correctly; do this and you will live.”  It would seem from the man’s next question that he is not confident he has qualified to inherit eternal life (Luke 10:29), “But wishing to justify himself, he said to Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbor?’”  In other words, the man is asking, exactly who do I have to love in this way, as myself, who specifically is my neighbor?

What a great question!  Let’s turn to our text and learn the answer.

     Read Luke 10:30-37…  By showing our love for God and for other people (defined here as our neighbor), we show that we have received forgiveness for our sins and that we have eternal life from God.

Jesus explains to this lawyer the true meaning of loving your neighbor, and just who your neighbor is, by telling him a parable (Note: a parable is not a story about real people, it is a made up story meant to convey a moral or spiritual truth).

Ultra-orthodox Jews, e.g., Pharisees, Lawyers, Scribes, Priests and Levites, consider themselves righteous because they are descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and therefore sons of God; members of the Nation of Israel which was established through the twelve sons of Jacob (cf. Genesis 25:19-26), whose name means, “heal catcher; one who supplants, usurps, replaces]; but God changed Jacob’s name to Israel (“one who struggles with God,” Genesis 32:28, “for you have striven [struggled] with God and with men and have prevailed.”)

Let’s go back to the lawyer’s question in Luke 10:29, “who, exactly, is my neighbor,” i.e., “who do I have to love as myself?”

Jesus now uses a parable to express how all those who have received eternal life, those genuinely born of God’s Spirit, will obey the greatest and foremost commandment: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind, and you shall love your neighbor as yourself. ”

Look at Luke 10:30-32…  A man was going down the road from Jerusalem (2500 ft above sea level) to Jericho (900 ft below sea level).  Most likely this man is a Jew, as most of those who would be going from Jerusalem to Jericho would be of the nation of Israel, unless otherwise stated.

This road was very steep and treacherous, and there were caves and rock outcroppings that provided hiding places for robbers.  Evidently, this man was attacked by robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and left him half dead.

Along comes a priest (a Jew), a “servant of God” who carried out sacrifices and offerings at the Temple.  You would expect a priest to help this man who is in need; for a priest should be of the highest virtue, morally and spiritually, and yet, he passes by on the other side of the road, offering no aide to the man.

Jesus then introduces another traveler who was going down the road, a Levite (also a Jew), another servant of God who assisted the priests in their work at the temple.  Surely the Levite would help someone in need; but he doesn’t, he too passes by on the other side of the road, unwilling to help this man.

By failing to help the man, who is clearly in need of mercy, both the priest and the Levite fail to express God’s love to the man (a fellow Jew), who is a neighbor by God’s reconning, yet they fail to express love, let alone compassion, to the man.

Look at Luke 10:33-35…  Jesus introduces a third traveler, a Samaritan who is on a journey [a long trip].  Going down the road he comes upon the man who has been robbed and beaten.  But now we find a totally different response to the man in need of help, and instead of passing by on the other side of the road, he goes to the man and takes care of him.  He bandages the man’s wounds, pouring oil and wine on the abrasions and bruises to sooth and disinfect them.

This is amazing, because the Jews had been at enmity with the Samaritans for over 700 years, referring to them as dogs and half-breeds; and yet, this Samaritan tends the man’s wounds (most likely a Jewish man), and then puts the injured man on his own donkey or mule and takes him to an inn, where he takes care of him through the night and (verse 35), “the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper and said, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I return I will repay you.’”

Wow! What an example of Godly love; the Samaritan didn’t just tend to the man’s immediate needs, but offered to pay whatever was necessary for the man to receive good care until he returned from completing his journey.

     Look at Luke 10:36-37…  Jesus now gets to the foremost truth of this parable; answering the original question of the lawyer (verse 29), “Who is my neighbor?”  Jesus answers the question with a parable about a man who is beaten, robbed, and left half dead along the road.  Jesus tells how three different men come upon this man, at different times, and how each one of them responds to him.

Jesus then asks the lawyer (verse 36), “Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the robbers’ hands?” The lawyer replied (verse 37a), “The one who showed mercy toward him.” To which Jesus said to him (verse 37b), “Go and do the same.”

Wow!  The sovereign priority truth of this parable is a summation of all of the Law and the writings of the Prophets, i.e., the foremost greatest commandment of God, that fulfills all the requirements of God in order to have eternal life, is to be merciful to those who are in need, no matter who they are, whether they are a one time acquaintance or a life-long friend, whether they are an ally or an enemy, whether they are someone who is good to us or someone who persecutes us — all those who have been born-again by God are God’s children, and they will seek to act accordingly, in love, in all situations, for this sums up the requirements of God. Luke 10:27, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind (cf. Deuteronomy 6:5); and [you shall love] “your neighbor as yourself” (cf. Leviticus 19:18). 

Jesus said (Matthew 22:40), “On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets,” (Mark 12:31), “There is no other commandment greater than these.”  James 2:8 records, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” as “the royal law” [lit. The Law of the King], this is the greatest and foremost teaching, fulfilling all of “the Law and the writings of the Prophets,” summed up by Jesus who is the “King of kings and Lord of lord’s” (cf. .1Timothy 6:15).

The problem is that no one, by human effort or capacity, can receive or give God’s love [Gk, agapao]; although, a person may give or receive brotherly or friendship love [Gk. philia], or even familial love [Gk. storge]; but in order to love God or to love another person on God’s behalf, with God’s love, you must be born-again by God’s Spirit.

See 1John 4:7-15…   God is Love.  A person cannot exhibit God’s love [Gk, agapao] if they have not been born-again spiritually, as a child of God.

Deoxyribonucleic acid (or DNA) is the organic chemical that contains genetic information and instructions for the development of every cell in your body.  DNA is the key part of human reproduction in which genetic heredity (all that makes you human) is passed on from parent to child.

In similar fashion, only God’s children, those born-again by the Spirit of God, can legitimately imitate, let alone demonstrate, God the Father’s unconditional, sacrificial, divine (agapao) love.

All true Christians have received God’s Love, God’s DNA (Agapao love); we have inherited, through spiritual birth, the very presence of God (2Peter 1:3-4), “His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature.”

We have received God’s unconditional and eternal love through Jesus Christ, made effectual by God the Holy Spirit (cf. 2Corinthians 5:17), “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come,” 21, “He [God the Father] made Him [God the Son] who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

1Corinthians 13:4-8a, “Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.”

     Genuine belief in Jesus Christ will be exemplified in and through the manner in which we love others, i.e., without partiality or favoritism, just as God mercifully loves us (Ephesians 5:1-2), “Be imitators of God, as [dearly] loved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.”

In Luke 10:25 Jesus was asked the question, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?”  He answered by telling a parable, about a man who needed to receive mercy, and the responses of three different men who came upon him separately, in his time of great need, and only one of them showed mercy by helping him.

It is not a question of who we must love in order to inherit eternal life; but that we should be gracious, merciful, and loving to all people, without partiality, and especially to those who are in need of mercy, like the man in Jesus’ parable.

Jesus said Matthew 5:7, “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.”  Luke 6:31, “Treat others the same way you want them to treat you.” 36, “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”

All Christians, genuine believers and followers of Jesus Christ, should be merciful toward others, just as God is merciful toward all those who call upon Him for the forgiveness of their sins and eternal life.

John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”

Romans 10:13, “for ‘Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.’” 17, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.”

John 20:31, “These have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have [eternal] life in His name.”

And all of God’s children said, Amen!  If you are here today, or listening at home, or if you read or listen to this at a later time, and you are not sure of your salvation — please, contact me, so that I may help you know, in your heart, that you have forgiveness for your sins and eternal life.

 
Pastor Mike Hale
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Bible Text: Luke 10:25-28 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | (No YouTube Live stream of our service, broken equipment)

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January 7th, 2024
“How to Know You Have Eternal Life”
Luke 10:25-28
    

Read Luke 10:25-28….

Of all the questions that could ever be asked and answered, none is more important than this one, because every human soul is immortal.  Every human being ever born lives forever.  Our bodies die but our souls go on eternally; you will spend eternity in one of two places, heaven or hell.

You will be forever conscious that you are in heaven or hell.  Jesus now expresses that reality to a man who comes to ask how he can be sure he will be with God in heaven.

The timeframe here is important, for Jesus has already gone through Galilee with the message of the gospel.  He is now in His final months and is going through Judea’s villages and towns, where He is proclaiming the wonderful message of forgiveness for sin and eternal life, calling people to be true disciples of His.

In less than a year, Jesus will be executed on a cross, buried, rise from the dead on the 3rd day, show Himself to many of His followers over forty days, then He will ascend back into heaven, from where He will send the Holy Spirit, and the church age will begin.

Think about those who have pledged to follow Jesus so far, we know of the twelve (of which one would betray Him), then there are the seventy who He sent out and have just returned.

We know that after His resurrection He appears in Galilee to a group of 500 believers.  And yet, when the Holy Spirit comes to those who are gathered in the upper room in Jerusalem, after His ascension, their number is only 120.  After three years of Jesus demonstrating God’s divine love and power and healing, there is but a small remnant of those who have experienced God’s redeeming power

In Matthew 7:13-14 Jesus said, “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.”

Jesus is that narrow gate, he is the only way to God, for salvation cannot be acquired through ancestry, rituals, law keeping, or good works (John 14:6), “I am the [only] way, and the [only] truth, and the [only] life [from God]; no one comes to the Father [goes to heaven] but through Me.”

In Luke 10 we find a one-on-one encounter between Jesus and a lawyer [scribe] who asks, “What do I need to do to inherit eternal life?  Jesus will explain and expose what is necessary, according to God, for a person to have eternal life.

The phrase “eternal life” is used over 40 times in the New Testament.  In fact, it appears in every gospel.  But the encounter with this man is not a parallel to any other event.  This encounter is unique, and the main point here is for people to realize that they are going to live forever, either with God, or apart from God, and if you want to be in God’s kingdom for eternity you must have eternal life.

Let’s look at what some of the Scriptures say about eternal life:

John 3:14-16, “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life.

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”

John 5:24, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.” 39-40, “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me; and you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life.”

John 6:28-29, “Therefore they said to Him, “What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?” Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.” 40, “For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds [looks upon, observes] the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”

John 17:3, “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.”

1John 5:11, “And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.” 13, “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.” 20, “And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.”

The lawyer, in Luke 10, clearly has a recognition of eternal life, if he didn’t he wouldn’t ask how to have it.  He knows there is eternal life, not in the biological sense, eternally living in the body we have now [Greek, bio], but he is asking in the spiritual and eternal sense [Greek, Zoe] to live in a state of eternal blessing.

God promises an eternal kingdom of blessing, a place of joy, peace, and love where hope is realized and fulfilled beyond any human comprehension.

The question wouldn’t have been asked if the man didn’t believe in eternal life.  He wouldn’t need to know how to inherit it, if he didn’t believe that it existed.

God our Creator has put the longing for, and reality of, eternity in our hearts.  Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, “There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven— A time to give birth and a time to die; A time to plant and a time to uproot what is planted. A time to kill and a time to heal; A time to tear down and a time to build up. A time to weep and a time to laugh; A time to mourn and a time to dance. A time to throw stones and a time to gather stones; A time to embrace and a time to shun embracing. A time to search and a time to give up as lost; A time to keep and a time to throw away. A time to tear apart and a time to sew together; A time to be silent and a time to speak. A time to love and a time to hate; A time for war and a time for peace.“ 11, “He has made everything appropriate in its time. [God] has  .” 14, “I know that everything God does will remain forever; there is nothing to add to it and there is nothing to take from it, for God has so worked that men should fear [revere with awe] Him.”

The subject of eternity is taught in both Old and New Testaments, in fact, Daniel writes that, after the time of the Lord’s return and judgement, man will either experience eternal rejoicing or eternal mourning, (Daniel 12:1-2), “There will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time your people [those with eternal life], everyone who is found written in the book [Lamb’s Book of Life], will be rescued. Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life [in heaven with God], but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt [condemnation in hell].”

God established an eternal kingdom, where all those who belong to Him will live and enjoy all of its pleasures and joys, in God’s glorious presence (Revelation 21:1-8), “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” And He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And He *said, “Write, for these words are faithful and true.” Then He said to me, “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost. He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son. But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars [all who reject God], their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”

So who can overcome sin, death, and judgement?

1John 5:4-5, “For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?”

We have talked about the reward of eternal life, it is granted, inherited, to all those who belong to God through belief in God’s Son, Jesus Christ.  But we really haven’t answered the lawyer’s question to Jesus of how he can have eternal life.

Let’s look again at Luke 10:26…  Jesus said to him.”What is written in the law? How does it read to you?”  In other words, what is written in the law concerning what God requires for someone to inherit eternal life?

The man is a lawyer, an expert in the Law of God, and he knows that Jesus is referring to the first five books of the Old Testament, called the Pentateuch, which was written by God through Moses.  These Books are summarized in the Ten Commandments, and further summarized in the Shema [meaning “hear and obey,”from Deuteronomy 6:4-5].  This portion of Scripture was to be recited by all Jews two times every day.

The lawyer responds to Jesus in the first part of Luke 10:27, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind,” and the additional clause, “and your neighbor as yourself,” is quoted from Leviticus 19:18.

When Jesus was asked this very same question in Mark 12:28 (by a scribe), Jesus responded (Mark 12:30-31), ”’You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.’”

The word used for love in the above passage is agapaō; it’s not phileō, brotherly love; it’s not eros, sensual love; it’s not storgē, family love.  Agapaō is sacrificial, willful, devoted, perfect, godly love, and is used repeatedly in (1Corinthians 13:4-8), “Love is patient, love is kind not jealous; love does not brag, is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.”

In other words, if you want to inherit eternal life on your own merit, all you have to do is love God perfectly, without any sin, without any failure, and you are to love others as you love yourself.  But the reality is no one can do that, no one is perfect, no one is without sin, no one can earn or merit eternal life, for it is unattainable and can only be received as a gift from God to all those who believe in God’s Son for salvation. (See Romans 3:10-12, 23-24; 6:23; 5:8; 8:1; 10:9-10, 13).

Although Jesus affirms the man’s response (Luke 10:28), “You have answered correctly; do this and you will live.”  It would seem from the man’s next question that he clearly is not confident that he has inherited eternal life (Luke 10:29), “But wishing to justify himself, he said to Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbor?’”

The next time we are together, on February 11, I will do a little recap on today’s lesson and then I will make a diligent effort to comprehensively answer the lawyer’s question to Jesus in Luke 10:29, “Who is my neighbor?” by providing an exegesis of the parable of the Good Samaritan given by Jesus in Luke 10:30-37. 

     The parable of the Good Samaritan is a simple, and yet, a very complex illustration of how a person’s life gives evidence that he or she has received eternal life from God.  I hope to see you on February 11.

 
Pastor Mike Hale
>’(((><

Bible Text: Luke 10:1-16 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | Above is the
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November 5th, 2023
“Seventy Sent Out: Part One”

Luke 10:1-16
 

Last week, in Luke 9:57-62, we studied about three “tentative” disciples of Christ, who said they would follow Him, but it appears that none of them did.

Today we’ll begin our study about 70 true believers of Christ, who were sent out ahead of Jesus, in pairs, to prepare the towns and villages for His coming.

Read Luke 10:1…  Unlike the three men in last week’s text, who didn’t count the cost of following Christ, those in today’s reading were true disciples, willing to trust God alone for their needs, as they take the gospel message to the lost.

Jesus’ concentrated ministry in Galilee is over and He is now heading toward Jerusalem, where He will be put to death, buried, rise from the grave, appear to His followers, and then ascend back into heaven to be with the Father.

Jesus has appointed [cf. Acts 1:24, “chosen,” personally selected] these seventy messengers to prepare the way ahead of Him and the Twelve, much like John the Baptizer, at the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry (John 1:23), “I am a voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as Isaiah (40:3) the prophet said.”

Luke 10 is the only account of Jesus sending a specific 70 (or 72) disciples out. The discrepancy in number is because approximately half of the ancient scrolls used in translation record 70, the others 72. Scholars do not agree on whether the number should be 70 or 72, but it is interesting that the number 70 (not 72) is repeated other places in Scripture [70 elders: Exodus 24:1, 9; Numbers 11:16; 70 years: Jeremiah 25:12; 29:10; 2Chronicles 36:21].

Numbers 11:16, “The Lord therefore said to Moses, ‘Gather for Me seventy men from the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and their officers and bring them to the tent of meeting, and let them take their stand there with you.”

Seventy men take their stand with Moses (70+1= 71 men).  In the theocracy of Israel, the Sanhedrin was the supreme ruling court of ancient Israel, it was made up of 70 men and the high priest (71 men).  Coincidence, I don’t think so.

So, was 70 (or 72) who were sent out to preach the gospel and heal the sick, it is most likely 70, and the number 72 was an error made by an early scribe, whose subsequent copies contained the number 72.

In today’s text, Jesus selected and sent out seventy men, in pairs.  But why did He send them out in pairs?  I’m glad you asked.  Jesus had done this before (Mark 6:7), “He summoned the twelve and began to send them out in pairs, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits.”

Solomon speaks to the wisdom of “two being better than one” (Ecclesiastes 4:9-11), “Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up. Furthermore, if two lie down together they keep warm, but how can one be warm alone?”

But there is yet another reason, more important (Deuteronomy 19:15), “On the evidence of two or three witnesses a matter shall be confirmed.”

The 70 men (Luke 10, in pairs) are going into villages to give testimony about Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Lord and Savior; therefore it is important that their testimony conforms to the requirements of the Law, as written in the Prophets.

Read Luke 10:2b…  Here we find another phrase that needs some explanation in order to fully understand its meaning, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.”  That phrase is often interpreted as if it means there are many who are coming to Christ, and so few going out to find them.  That however, is not the teaching here, as can be seen by comparing other texts; but first, consider the deep compassion Jesus had for the lost and unbelieving.

Matthew 9:13, “But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire compassion, and not sacrifice,’ for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” 36-37, “Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.’”

Luke 13:34, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, just as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not have it!”

Luke 19:41, “When [Jesus] approached [unbelieving Jerusalem], He saw the city and wept over it.”

Jesus had compassion on humanity, for He knows the fate of all who reject Him (John 16:8-9), “When He [Holy Spirit] comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me,” (Matthew 7:19-21), “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter,” (John 6:40), “For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day,” (Matthew 25:41), “Then He [Jesus] will also say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels,” (Revelation 20:10), “the lake of fire and brimstone… and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.”

Think about that phrase again, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.”  Is there a bounty of people in the US coming to Christ? Are people flocking to Jesus as their Shepherd-Savior?  I don’t think so, in fact, most of humanity continues to reject salvation through Christ.

The Bible is clear that those who reject God’s Son will receive God’s divine judgement for their sin, and they will spend eternity in hell.  The only ones who get a pass on eternal condemnation, are those who believe in and receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior (Romans 3:10-12, 23-24; 5:8; 6:23; 8:1; 10:9-10, 13, 17).

When Jesus says (Luke 10:2b), “The harvest is plentiful,” He is talking about the people who will be taken away in judgement, unless they come to Christ by faith.

Joel 3:12-13, “I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations. Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, tread, for the wine press is full; the vats overflow, for their wickedness is great.”

Matthew 13:24-30, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went away. But when the wheat sprouted and bore grain, then the tares became evident also. The slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’ And he said to them, ‘An enemy has done this!’ The slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?’ But he said, ‘No; for while you are gathering up the tares, you may uproot the wheat with them. Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, ‘First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn.’” 36-43, “Then He left the crowds and went into the house. And His disciples came to Him and said, ‘Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field.’ And He said, ‘The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man, and the field is the world; and as for the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom; and the tares are the sons of the evil one; and the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is the end of the age; and the reapers are angels. So just as the tares are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.’”

See Matthew 24:36-39…  The people at the time of Noah paid no attention to Noah’s warning; they just went about each day like the day before, as if nothing different was going to happen – then judgement came, the flood (v. 39), “took them all away” (cf. Genesis 6:11-13, 17; 7:1).

See Matthew 24:40-41…  The man and the woman who are taken, are taken in judgment; the man and the woman who are left, belong to God.

We should be living everyday for Christ, who has granted us forgiveness and eternal life.  At any moment He could return, and what should He find us doing at His return?  We ought to be proclaiming salvation through Christ, while also warning unbelievers about God’s coming judgement.who We are to be living in a manner that expresses our trust in and obedience to Jesus Christ, as we seek to warn unbelievers about God’s coming judgment.

Revelation 14:14-19, “Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and sitting on the cloud was one like a son of man, having a golden crown on His head and a sharp sickle in His hand. And another angel came out of the temple, crying out with a loud voice to Him who sat on the cloud, ‘Put in your sickle and reap, for the hour to reap has come, because the harvest of the earth is ripe.’ Then He who sat on the cloud swung His sickle over the earth, and the earth was reaped. And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, and he also had a sharp sickle. Then another angel, the one who has power over fire, came out from the altar; and he called with a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, saying, ‘Put in your sharp sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, because her grapes are ripe.’ So the angel swung his sickle to the earth and gathered the clusters from the vine of the earth, and threw them into the great wine press of the wrath of God.”

Clearly, the harvesting in Matthew 13, Matthew 24, and Revelation 14, is the taking away of the ungodly, those who reject Christ, i.e., there will always be plenty who are in need of being saved, but as our text today declares (cf. Luke 10:2), it would seem that only a few are going out to proclaim to them the message of salvation through Jesus!

     See again Luke 10:2c, “Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.  Because of the impending judgement coming upon unbelievers, we are to pray [beseech = implore, petition, plead with the Lord] for more Christians to be about the ministry of seeking to save the lost.  We are to have compassion for those who have not yet come to Christ for salvation; our concern should be for the unsaved.

As we await the time when all true believers will be caught up to meet Christ in the air, we are to be reaching out to the world with the message of Jesus Christ (2Corinthians 5:20-21), “We are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

May we each live out and proclaim the life-saving and life-giving Gospel of Christ, to every person who will listen, for whatever time we may have left.  We must urgently, boldly and yet humbly, with compassion, share the Good News, that Jesus Christ died for our sins, was buried, then rose from the grave to demonstrate eternal life, before ascending back into haven from where He had come; and He will return to take all those who believe in Him, to live together in heaven, where there will be no more mourning or crying or pain or death, but only perfect peace and harmony, for all of eternity.

 
And all God’s people said, Amen!
 

 
Pastor Mike Hale
 

Bible Text: Luke 9:57-62 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | Above are the
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October 29th, 2023
“The Cost of Following Jesus”
Luke 9:57-62
     See Mark 1:14-15….  After John the Baptizer was put into prison by Herod, Jesus went into Galilee proclaiming that the kingdom of heaven had indeed come to earth.  The Son of God had come from the Father in heaven in order to proclaim the good news of salvation, calling people to repent of their sin and believe in God’s Son for salvation.

See Mark 1:16-17…. Jesus then told Simon and his brother Andrew (fishermen) to follow Him and He would make them become fishers of men; they would become the first of Twelve Disciples who would spend three years with Jesus, watching, listening, learning, and then taking the message of forgiveness and eternal life to the Jews first and then to everybody else.

See Luke 9:57-58….  The title “Son of Man” was first used in Daniel 7:13, where Daniel has a vision,“One like a Son of Man was coming [in the clouds],” (cf. Revelation 1:7), “Behold, He [Jesus Christ] is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.”

See Matthew 8:19-20, “Then a scribe came and said to Him, ‘Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go.’ Jesus said to him, ‘The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.’  This is a parallel passage of the same event, and so, we know that the man in Luke 9:57, who is a tentative “disciple” or “follower” of Christ, is a scribe, a teacher of the law who came to Jesus, calling Him Teacher, declaring that he would follow Jesus wherever He went.

Scribes and Pharisees were authorities on Jewish law and typically were highly educated and prideful of their position; they were normally teachers, not followers or students of “other” teachers.  So, for this guy to call Jesus “Teacher” was a big deal; but Jesus gives him a reality check saying to him, “foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”

The phrase Son of Man is used more times in the New Testament than the phrase Son of God.  Jesus loved the title Son of Man, for it spoke of His relationship with humankind, which He had created.  Jesus is God, the Creator, Sustainer, and Judge over all.

John 1:3, “All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.”

Colossians 1:15-16, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him.”
 
Hebrews 1:1-3b, “God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.”

Revelation 4:11, “Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created.”.  And even though the “Son of Man” has divine authority and power to heal and to perform miracles, He doesn’t have the simple comforts that most people and many animals have; He has no house, no place of safety or comfort, not even a tent to call home; but then, He was born in a stable and laid in an animal feeding trough for His bed as newborn baby.

Interestingly, the scribe who said he would follow Jesus anywhere seems to disappear and nothing more is heard about him.  This scribe may have been impressed by Jesus’ miracles or His teachings, or he may just be identifying with Jesus for some personal benefit, some imposed recognition; but he clearly has not counted the cost of associating with, let alone following Christ, which may include religious excommunication, suffering, sacrifice, even death.

See Luke 9:59-60…. Jesus says to another tentative disciple, “follow Me,” but the man asks if he can first go and “bury” his father; not at all implying that his father had died, I mean, why would the man be there conversing with Jesus if his dad had died?  Much more likely this man is speaking of his obligation to assist his father in business or in working their land, etc., until such a time as his father dies and the inheritance is distributed among the heirs, i.e., ”Lord, first let me go fulfill my obligations to my father until he dies, then with my inheritance, I will come back and follow you.”

Like the first tentative disciple, in verse 57, the teacher of the law who disappeared, it would seem that this second guy also wants others to think he is ready to follow Jesus, but more likely he just wants some imposed recognition for having an association with Jesus, when actually he has other priorities in his life that override any real commitment.

Jesus’ response to this man is “Follow Me! Let the dead take care of themselves; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God.”  Jesus knows this man’s heart, he was not ready to commit himself to Jesus as Lord.  This man’s spirit was not regenerated, for he had rejected the gospel of the kingdom of God, and therefore he could not tell anyone else about it either.

Remember in Mark 1:15, Jesus declared that the kingdom of heaven (which is holy, where no sin can exist) had come near to [sinful] mankind in and through God’s Son, Who is Perfect; therefore mankind needs to repent of their sin and believe the good news that Jesus came to save us, and He is the only Way to God, the only Life with God, and the only Truth of God.

See Luke 9:61-62….  Jesus has an encounter with another “tentative disciple,” who says, “I will follow You, Lord, but first, let me go home and say good bye to my family and friends.”  Jesus knows this man’s heart, he is not ready to commit to the Lord, he is still looking for fulfillment from the things of the world.  So Jesus says, “No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”

Jesus is talking about a farmer using a plow to make straight rows for planting, keeping his eyes on a distant object, never looking back to where he came from.

Jesus’ message is “follow Me” and don’t look back. There is an old story about a farmer’s son who wanted to plow his father’s field. The father eventually agreed to let him try one day and told his son to look straight ahead at a far away object while he was plowing. This would result in straight rows. His son said he understood, so the father left. After awhile the father came back to see how his son was doing, only to find that the rows were uneven and crooked, for son had continually been looking back at a cow in the field, that was distracting him.

True followers of Jesus must constantly, continually, fix their eyes on Him (Hebrews 12:2), “fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

This may surprise you, but Jesus said (Matthew 10:34-38), “Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man’s enemies will be the members of his household. He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.”

If you’re going to follow Christ, you must count the cost and be willing to give up everything else if necessary.

Luke 14:25, “Multitudes were coming along. Jesus turned and said, ‘If anyone comes to Me and doesn’t hate his own father, mother, wife, children, brother, sisters, yea and hate his own life, he can’t be My disciple.'”

It doesn’t mean that you hate the people in your family, it simply means that your love for the kingdom of God [salvation in Christ] is your deepest desire.

Again Luke 9:62, “No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back is fit for the kingdom of God,” i.e., ”You can’t plow a furrow looking backwards.”  You can’t follow Jesus looking if you are back at the things of the world: comforts, possessions, relationships.

The issue here is salvation, coming into the kingdom of God.  Jesus is simply saying, “if you’re holding back anything, you can’t come in.”  The Lord may not take away your comforts, possessions, or relationships, but the value of belonging to Christ is so great that if He asked, you would gladly give it all up for Him.

It is not some superficial interest in Jesus, or a matter of just saying, “I will follow.”  It is a matter of self-denial, a willingness to give up everything because the value of Christ is so overwhelming.  When a sinner has reached that level of desperation by the prompting of the Holy Spirit, he will take up his cross and follow Jesus is not worthy of Him, Jesus said (Luke 9:24), “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it.”

We are told Luke 9:57-62 how these men responded to Jesus’ command to follow Him, they turned away, remaining in unbelief, separated from life with God.

When the Holy Spirit comes to convict us of sin we must respond or remain unsaved (John 16:8-9), “And when He [The Holy Spirit] comes, He will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me.”

True believers must follow Jesus (1John 2:6), “The one who says he [lives] in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked,” following Christ.

The world hated and killed Jesus. His Disciples were martyred because they believed in and followed Him.  Obedient Christians today will be in conflict with the worldly beliefs and behaviors all around them.  Living as a Christian is tough!  In 2Timothy 3:12 Paul writes, “Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”

Christianity is not for wimps!  We must count the cost to follow Jesus.  There are many who make a “profession” of faith and even show up for Sunday Morning Services, but when they are instructed about holy living and realize they are going to be held accountable to the Word God for how they live, they leave the fellowship of believers.

Serving God must include knowing and doing that which pleases God, just as it must also include knowing and not doing that which displeases God (Romans 12:9), “Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good.”  “Good” is whatever pleases God.  How do we know what pleases God?  It is in the Bible, and the Holy Spirit encourages us, enables us, to obey the Word of God (Romans 12:2), “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

You must love God and hate the world (all that opposes God), or you’ll hate God and love the world, there is no third option.

Unbelievers are devoted to serving self; God’s people are to serve God by knowing, living out, and proclaiming God’s Word (as revealed in the 66 Books of the Bible).

The Bible is all about Jesus, so that we might personally and eternally know Him, the One who healed the multitudes of every illness and disease, taught with divine wisdom and authority, and commanded the wind and the waves and they obeyed Him.  This is God’s Son, who is both Lord and Savior, for He was crucified, resurrected, and is coming again, to take all those who believe in Him, to be with Him forever, in heaven.

Jesus is Lord and Judge over all and Savior to those who call on Him by faith (Joel 2:32; Acts 2:21; Romans 10:13), “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord [Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of sin], will be saved,” becoming a brother or sister to all those who believe in Jesus Christ for salvation.

The question you must answer is this: Have you asked Jesus Christ to forgive your sins and are you willing to follow Him?  If you have not done this, I pray you will do it right here, right now, and that you will tell me or someone else that you have committed yourself to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior for (1Peter 2:9-10), “You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; for you once were not a people, but now you are the people of God; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”

Ephesians 2:8-10, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”

Don’t delay, follow Jesus today!  If you aren’t clear about this, please talk to me, let me hello you understand how much God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life, now and forever, in Jesus Christ the Lord.

 
Pastor Mike
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Bible Text: Luke 9:46-50 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | Above are the
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October 15th, 2023 – (AM outline)
“The True Mark of Greatness”
Luke 9:46-50
Read Luke 9:46-50… 

This section of scripture begins the end of Jesus’ ministry in the area of Galilee.

Turn to Genesis 1:31; 3:5; 2:16-17; 3:17-19…

Turn to Isaiah 14:13-14; Ezekiel 28:11-15, 17…

Turn to Revelation 12:9; 20:1-3, 7-10…

Pride is the prime characteristic of the unbelieving, and throughout history it has been applauded as a virtue in the godless world that rejects the existence and holiness of God.  Pride is the soil in which all other sins sprout, damning those who are characterized by what is rebellion against God, who alone is worthy off worship.

Of all the human authors in the New Testament, Paul had reason to brag (Philippians 3:3-6), “Although I myself might have confidence even in the flesh, if anyone else has a mind to put confidence in the flesh, I far more: circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless.”

Paul after meeting Christ, renounced all human virtues (Philippians 3:7-11), “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.”

Turn to Romans 7:18-25…

       Turn to 2Corinthians 12:9-10…

Godly humility (Matthew 5:5), “Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth,” (Luke 14:11), “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted,” (1Peter 5:6), “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time.”

Pride belongs to the unbelieving (Proverbs 11:2), “When pride comes, then comes dishonor, but with the humble is wisdom,” (16:18), “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before stumbling,” (29:30), “A man’s pride will bring him low, but a humble spirit will obtain honor,” (Philippians 2:3-4), “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.”

       Read Luke 9:46…  See again Luke 9:22-23, 44.  Jesus is telling them about His suffering on their behalf, and they want to know who is will be the greatest among them.  They really don’t get it, they are hearing but not understanding.

Read Luke 9:47-48…  All the disciples were thinking about their own self-importance and individual glorification.

Jesus teaches them the error of their thinking. In Judaism, children under the age of 12 couldn’t be taught the Torah, so spending time with them was considered a waste.

In Mark 9:36, Jesus picks up a child in His arms, in Matthew 18:3-4 saying, “Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”

There is no spiritual ranking of greatness in heaven. In Luke 9:48a, Jesus says we are equals in the kingdom of heaven (Luke 48b), “for the one who is least among all of you, this is the one who is great.”

Humility is the greatest characteristic of true and genuine salvation.

Matthew 23:11-12, Jesus said, “But the greatest among you shall be your servant.     Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.” James 4:10, “Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.”

John 13:33-35, Jesus said, “Little children, I am with you a little while longer… A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

1John 2:1, “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.” 12, “I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for His name’s sake.” 15-17, “Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.”

       Read Luke 9:49-50…  John, seems to be having second thoughts about a previous encounter with someone was casting out demons in Christ’s name.  The apostles tried to prevent him from doing so, because he wasn’t one of them.

Jesus again teaches the priority of humility and the danger of pride, Jesus said “Do not hinder him; for he who is not against you is for you.”

Godly humility promotes unity among those who belong to God’s Son, no matter what denomination or group they they represent; whereas, godless pride promotes disunity among those who reject Jesus Christ.

Proverbs 16:5, “Everyone who is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord; assuredly, he will not be unpunished.”

James 4:6, “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

1John 3:18, “Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.” 23-24, “This is His commandment, that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He commanded us. The one who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. We know by this that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.

Ephesians 1:13-14, “In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.”

Ephesians 2:10, “For we are His [God’s] workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”

 
Pastor Mike
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