Bible Text: Luke 9:18-22 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | Above are the
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July 9, 2023
“Who Do You Say Jesus Is?”
Luke 9:18-22

Our last time in the Book of Luke (9:12-17), we studied the supernatural feeding of some 5,000 men (plus 10-15,000 women and children).  Jesus, using one boy’s lunch (five loaves of bread and two dried fish), after having the people sit down (cf. Luke 9:14) in groups of 50 men (along with their wives and children).

Jesus then began to break the bread and fish to be distributed to the groups by the Twelve.  We are told that the people broke off some bread and fish for themselves, passing the bread and fish to the next person, but it never ran out.

In fact, when everyone had eaten until they were full and could eat no more, the Twelve collected the leftovers, amounting to twelve baskets full of fish and bread (cf. Luke 9:17).  This event, the feeding of the 5,000 men (mostly Jews), and the resurrection narrative, are the only miracles recorded in all four gospels (cf. Matthew 14:13–21; Mark 6:31–44; Luke 9:12–17; John 6:1–14).

Read Luke 9:18-22…  The incident that is recorded here by Luke actually takes place near Caesarea Philippi (cf. Matthew 16:13; Mark 8:27), a mostly Gentile territory.  Jesus goes there to withdraw from the Jewish Religious leaders (Matthew 16:1) and the crowds, in order to instruct His apostles, who have been with Him now over two years.

Both Matthew and Mark place this event after the feeding of the 4,000 men (mostly Gentiles, cf. Matthew 15:32-38; Mark 8:1-9); and in fact, are the only two gospel writers to record the feeding of the 4,000 men.

By this time in the biblical narrative of Jesus’ ministry, many have witnessed His power over demons, diseases, death, and nature itself; and so, the crowds who have followed Jesus to see His miracles, and the Twelve who have been with Him from the beginning, have all drawn different conclusions about who they think or believe Jesus to be.

We are told in Luke 9:18 that Jesus is praying alone (to the Father), although the disciples (the Twelve) are there with Him.  Jesus then asks them, “Who do the people say that I am?”  The “people” refers to the crowds of people who followed Him everywhere to see what He was going to do, and to hear what He said.

Luke 4:31-36, “And He came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and He was teaching them on the Sabbath; and they were amazed at His teaching, for His message was with authority. 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. And amazement came upon them all, and they began talking with one another saying, ‘What is this message? For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits and they come out.’”

When we were studying Luke 9:7-9, a few weeks ago, we read how Herod wasn’t sure of who Jesus was, lets take a look at that again.

Read Luke 9:7-9…  Herod had heard reports, and he was very distraught about all that was going on throughout the region, that repentance was being preached, people were being healed, and demons were being cast out, and that some were saying it was John the Baptizer who had risen from the dead; or Elijah or another great prophet who had power like the prophets in Israel’s past. Herod kept trying to see who was performing these supernatural signs and miracles.

Back to Luke 9:18-19…  Jesus asks who the people say He is, and the Twelve answer Him saying, “John the Baptist, and others say Elijah; but others, that one of the prophets of old has risen again.”

Let us think back through what the writers of the Gospels have already told us concerning who Jesus is:

When the angel Gabriel came to Joseph in a dream (Matthew 1:20-21) he said to him, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

When the angel Gabriel came to Mary (Luke 1:32-33) he spoke to her concerning the One to be conceived in her womb, “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end. ”

At Jesus’ birth the angel told the shepherds (Luke 2:10-11), “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

There is the testimony of Simeon (Luke 2:25-35), “And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to carry out for Him the custom of the Law, then he took Him into his arms, and blessed God, and said, ‘Now Lord, You are releasing Your bond-servant to depart in peace, According to Your word; For my eyes have seen Your salvation, Which You have prepared in the presence of all peoples, A Light of revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel.’ And His father and mother were amazed at the things which were being said about Him. And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary His mother, ‘Behold, this Child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and for a sign to be opposed— and a sword will pierce even your own soul—to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.’”

There is the testimony of Anna declaring Jesus to be the Messiah who had been foretold by the Old Testament prophets (Luke 2:36-38), “And there was a prophetess, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years and had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple, serving night and day with fastings and prayers. At that very moment she came up and began giving thanks to God, and continued to speak of Him to all those who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.”

John the Baptizer was the forerunner of Christ, the Messiah, and John’s father, Zacharias, when filled with the Holy Spirit, prophesied concerning John (Luke 1:76-80), “‘And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; For you will go on before the Lord to prepare His ways; To give to His people the knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, with which the Sunrise from on high will visit us, to shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.’ And the child continued to grow and to become strong in spirit, and he lived in the deserts until the day of his public appearance to Israel.”

     When John came to the Jordan River calling people to repent and baptizing them as they confessed they were sinners in need of God’s forgiveness, the Religious Leaders came to ask him who he was to do this.

John 1:19-23, “This is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent to him priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, ‘Who are you?’ And he confessed and did not deny, but confessed, ‘I am not the Christ. They asked him, ‘What then? Are you Elijah?’ And he said, ‘I am not.’ ‘Are you the Prophet?’ And he answered, ‘No.’ Then they said to him, ‘Who are you, so that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?” He said, “I am a voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as Isaiah the prophet said.” 29-34, “The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and *said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is He on behalf of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.

I did not recognize Him, but so that He might be manifested to Israel, I came baptizing in water.’ John testified saying, ‘I have seen the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and He remained upon Him. I did not recognize Him, but He who sent me to baptize in water said to me, ‘He upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining upon Him, this is the One who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.’ I myself have seen, and have testified that this is the Son of God.”

When Jesus was 12 years old and his family went up to Jerusalem for Passover, he went to the Temple to sit with the religious leaders; and his family began their journey home thinking Jesus was with other family members in their caravan, but then discovered He wasn’t with them, and so they returned to search for Him.

Luke 2:46-52, “Then, after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard Him were amazed at His understanding and His answers. When they saw Him, they were astonished; and His mother said to Him, ‘Son, why have You treated us this way? Behold, Your father and I have been anxiously looking for You.’ And He said to them, ‘Why is it that you were looking for Me? Did you not know that I had to be in My Father’s house?’ But they did not understand the statement which He had made to them. And He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and He continued in subjection to them; and His mother treasured all these things in her heart. And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.”

At Jesus’ baptism, when He was 30 years old, God the Father declared (Luke 3:22), “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”  And when Jesus took Peter, James, and John up on a mountain and showed them some of His glory, they were enveloped in a cloud, and God the Father spoke from the cloud (Luke 9:35) saying, “This is My Son, My Chosen One; listen to Him!”

After Jesus rose from the grave on that first Sunday, He came to the Disciples who were hiding in a room in Jerusalem (Thomas was not there).  But the next Sunday Thomas was present when the Lord came to them (John 20:26-28), “After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.” Then He said to Thomas, ‘Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.’ Thomas answered and said to Him, ‘My Lord and my God!’”

Even the demons spoke out concerning who Jesus was (Luke 4:34), “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!” (Luke 4:41), “Demons also were coming out of many, shouting, “You are the Son of God!”

Read again Luke 9:18-20…  Jesus had asked the Twelve who the crowds said He was, and they answered, “John the Baptist, and others say Elijah; but others, that one of the prophets of old has risen again.”  Then Jesus asked the Twelve, “But who do you say that I am?”  Peter answered, “The Christ [Messiah, Chosen One] of God.”

In Matthew’s account of the discourse, after Peter’s response in Luke 9:20, Jesus says to Peter (Matthew 16:17), “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona [son of Jonah], because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.”

Clearly, God’s Spirit revealed this to Peter, as human reasoning alone cannot comprehend the thougts of God.

1Corinthians 2:14-15, “A natural man [unbeliever]does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. But he who is spiritual [born-again by God’s Spirit] appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one [according to human wisdom].”

Matthew 11:27, “All things have been handed over to Me by My Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father; nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.”

Read again Luke 9:21-22…  This is interesting, the Twelve have just, through Peter their spokesman, told Jesus they believe Him to be the Messiah, the Son of God, the Anointed One.  Now Jesus tells them not to tell anyone?  Why wouldn’t Jesus want them to spread the news that He is the Savior who was to come?

The Jews were waiting for the Messiah to come, believing that He would immediately free them from Roman oppression and usher in a kingdom of prosperity and long life; but that is not what He had come to do (Luke 9:22; pp. Matthew 16:20-22; Mark 8:30-33), “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed and be raised up on the third day.”

That was not what the people anticipated, although God had foretold through the prophets, e.g., Moses, Jeremiah, Daniel, Zephaniah, Zechariah, Micah, (cf. Isaiah 7:14; 9:6; 52:13-53:12). Messiah would be God in the flesh, to take our punishment, for all our sins. and He would be put to death, but He wouldn’t stay dead, in fact, He would rise from the grave alive.

Some say Jesus was just a good man, a good teacher, one of the many incarnations of God, a powerful prophet, a priest, even a miracle worker.

The question today is, who do you say He is?

The undeniable truth of God is that Jesus came to die for our sins, being delivered over to death by the very plan of God; He was then buried, and on the third day He rose from the dead, just like He had said that He would, demonstrating victory over sin, death, and judgement; providing forgiveness for sin and eternal life to everyone who will believe in Him.

It is this Jesus, the Jesus of the Bible, whose birth, life, death, burial, resurrection, post-resurrection appearances, and ascension back into heaven to be with the Father are all recorded in God’s Word.

It is He who said (John 14:6), “I am the only Way to God, the only Truth from God, and the only Life with God, and no one comes to the Father but through Me.”

Make sure it is Jesus Christ you believe in: God’s Son, Lord and Savior, who was crucified, resurrected, and is coming again, to take all those who believe in Him to be with Him in heaven forever!

 
Pastor Mike
>’(((><
 

Bible Text: 1Corinthians 11:17-26 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Above are the
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July 2, 2023
“Communion: The Highpoint of Worship ”
1Corinthians 11:17-26
The Lord Jesus Christ instituted two ordinances for us to follow: Water Baptism and Communion.  At the beginning of His ministry, Jesus came to John the Baptist and was baptized, setting an example for us to follow.

In baptism, Jesus identified with all who believe in Him, for He came to save us.  Those who have been saved from sin’s condemnation through Christ, publicly identify with and declare their belief in Jesus Christ as God the Son.

At the close of His ministry, Jesus turned the Passover meal into the Last Supper, or Communion (a believers’s identification with Christ as Lord and Savior), we are told to do this in remembrance of Him.

Passover celebrated Israel’s freedom from the bondage of slavery in Egypt under the Old Covenant, made for Israel; the Lord’s Supper celebrates our freedom from the curse and penalty of sin under the New Covenant, made for the Church.

Church [ekklesia] means the community or body of genuine believers worshipping God, it never means a building or meeting place in the NT.

See Acts 2:42…  At the birth of the Church believers came together for:

Apostle’s teaching [God’s Word revealed to us]

2Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is [God-breathed] and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.”

2Peter 1:20-21, “Know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.”

Fellowship [koinonia = participatory sharing of lives]. Ephesians 4:1-3, “I implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” 32, “Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.”

     Breaking of bread (Lord’s Supper, his declares the spiritual and eternal oneness we have in Christ].

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.”

Prayer [Communicating with God through His Spirit].

1Timothy 2:1-2, “First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.” 1Thessalonians 5:16-18, “Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

See Acts 2:42-47…  It was the practice of those first Christians to have a meal together on Sunday, a potluck fellowship that closed with Communion, celebrating Christ’s death on the cross as payment for all our sins, now and forever, and the unity we have in Him.

1Peter 2:9, “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.”

1Corinthians 12:12-13, “For 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.”  18, “But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired.” 20, “But now there are many members, but one body.” 27, “Now you are Christ’s body, and individually members of it.”

See 1Corinthians 11:20-22…  The Passover meal was celebrated once a year; the Lord’s Supper is to be celebrated often, to remember what God has done to save us from the penalty of sin and unify us as one body, one family, one nation of people who belong to God.

And yet, the church in Corinth had evidently turned the potluck meals into something unholy, and it was becoming much to common for this so-called “love meal” to be more reminiscent of a pagan gathering, where everybody was in it for themselves, causing quarreling and hurt feelings, dishonoring to the Lord. It would seem that the wealthy among the people brought their favorite expensive foods; but they would consume them before the less fortunate arrived, for they were unwilling to share, if it meant they had to eat the less flavorful and more common food of those who were poor.

The impoverished believers would come to the meal expecting to share in some of the delicacies brought by the wealthy, only to find that the food and drink had already been consumed; this created division in the church, instead of the unity that God desires.

The focus here (1Corinthians 11:20) is on the the Lord’s Supper, which was being dishonored by the indulgent and selfish behavior of those who perverted the holy sacrament of Communion by being unwilling to share with one another.

Paul says (1Corinthians 11:21) they were coming together for the meal before Communion, but not thinking about the needs of others, eating and drinking indulgently until some were not able to get any food or drink, while others were taking in excess, even to the point of drunkenness.

This is supposed to be about unity, sharing with one another, so Paul rebukes them (1Corinthians 11:22) saying, don’t you have houses to eat and drink in?  Do you despise the church of God? Are you purposely shaming those who have nothing?

Communion is a special occasion for the church any selfish indulgence or lack of brotherly love is out of place.

See 1Corinthians 11:23-26…  This is not Paul’s opinion or original creation, this is the word of the God, recapping the night Jesus was betrayed and then arrested.  Notice that Jesus gave thanks, broke the bread and said (verse 24), “This is My body, which is for you, do this in remembrance of Me.”

The body represents the whole person of Christ, everything about Him, the prophecies foretelling His coming, His immaculate conception, the announcement of His birth in Bethlehem to the shepherds, His name and incarnation, His sinless life, His ministry, His sacrificial death and sovereign resurrection: the plan, purpose and provision of forgiveness and eternal life from God.

Hebrews 10:10, “We have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” 12, “He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God.” 14, “For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.” 17-18, “‘And their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.’ Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin.”

Paul goes on to tell us (1Corinthians 11:25), that after the meal, Jesus gave thanks, saying this is the new covenant made effectual through His own shed blood.

That we are to do this in remembrance of Him. This is a command for us to follow, just as being baptized is also commanded by the Lord that we should obey.

Neither of these ordinances (water baptism or the Lord’s Supper) will save us, but they identify us as believers and followers of Christ, as those who have trusted in the sovereign work of Jesus

See again 1Corinthians 11:26…  Clearly this is talking about when Christ returns, for He has already come, was crucified for our sins, buried, then on the third day He rose from the grave and showed Himself to His followers over a 40 day period, after which He ascended back into heaven before the 11 Apostles.

Celebrating the Lord’s Supper causes us to remember His great sacrifice, while proclaiming His sovereign authority over sin, death, and judgement; thus making eternally effectual both, the forgiveness for our sins, and eternal life with God.

Whenever we eat the bread and drink the cup, we proclaim the Lord’s death, resurrection, and His return to take us to be with Him forever..

John 14:1-3, “Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.”

The angel of the Lord said to John (Revelation 1:8), “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty,” (17-18), “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore.”

When John was given this final Revelation from God, the the Canon of Scripture was made complete.

Note: Canon is from the Greek word kanōn (lit. ‘rod’), it was used to mean ‘rule’ or ‘standard,’ here it refers to the Bible (the 66 Books of Holy Scripture), through which God sovereignly speaks to our faith, belief, and practice.

1Corinthians 1:18, “The word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”

1Corinthians 2:4-5, “My message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.”

1Corinthians 15:1-5, “Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.”

In a moment we will pass out the elements for the Lord’s Supper/Communion: the bread symbolizes the body of Jesus which was put to death for our sins; the juice symbolizes His shed blood that covering our sins.

If you are a believer and follower of Jesus Christ (crucified, resurrected, coming again), please prepare your heart before the Lord, considering your relationship with God, God’s Word, and God’s people.

If you are unsure of your salvation through Jesus Christ, please, settle that with God right here, right now.

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,” only Jesus Christ.

Don’t wait any longer!  Have your life forever changed by repenting of your sins and believing in Jesus Christ.

Admit to God that you are a sinner (we all are).

Romans 3:23 says we have all sinned and we are unacceptable to God. God only sees two groups of people on the earth: forgiven sinners, and unforgiven sinners.

Repent of your sins, ask God to forgive you (He turns no one away).

Acts 2:21, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord [for the forgiveness of sin] will be saved.”

Believe in Jesus Christ as Lord & Savior. He died for your sins, was buried, and He rose from the grave to proclaim victory over sin, death, and judgement.

Romans 6:23 says the penalty for sin is death, but we are justified, made acceptable to God through Jesus Christ and granted eternal life with Him.

2Corinthians 5:21, “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.” Romans 8:1, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

1John 5:11-13, “And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. 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.”

 
Pastor Mike
>’(((><
 

Bible Text: Luke 9:10-17 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | Above are the
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June 25, 2023
“The Compassion of God in Christ”
Luke 9:10-17

Throughout the ministry of Jesus, the compassion, kindness, and all-sufficiency of God for humanity was made clear, as Jesus proclaimed the gospel of God from one end of Galilee to the other, an area that is twenty-five miles wide by fifty miles long, as He proclaimed the message of salvation, the forgiveness of sins, and eternal life.

But it is a small group really, who have repented and believed.  Prior to today’s passage, in Luke 9:1-9, Jesus sent out the twelve to preach the message of the kingdom, and had given them power over demons and diseases. In this way, He multiplied Himself by twelve in order to bring God’s message throughout Galilee for the last time, before He goes to the cross.

See Luke 9:10-17 …

Luke 9:10a says, “the apostles returned,” from their first mission of preaching and healing and casting out demons.  They were no doubt very tired after weeks of ministry, so they returned to Capernaum, where there was a very large crowd.  They give an account to Jesus of all they had done.

Luke 9:10b says, “Taking them with Him, He withdrew by Himself to a city called Bethsaida.”  Mark 6:31 “Jesus said to them, ‘Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest a while.’ (For there were many people coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.)”

Luke tells us He took them to a city called Bethsaida, on the northeast shore of the lake.  Most likely they got into a boat in order to remove themselves from the crowd of people, who it appears followed along the shoreline to see where Jesus and the twelve would go.

John’s Gospel tells us (John 6:1-2), “Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. A large crowd followed Him, because they saw the signs which He was performing on those who were sick.”

Luke 9:11a says, the crowds followed them to Bethsaida, which was about eight miles by shoreline, maybe four miles or less by boat. No doubt, the boat ride gave Jesus and the twelve a reprieve from the crowd.

Mark’s Gospel tells us ( Mark 6:34 ), “When Jesus went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and He felt compassion for them because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and He began to teach them many things.”

John 6:3 tells us, “Then Jesus went up on the mountain, and there He sat down with His disciples.

Luke 9:11b says, Jesus welcomes the large crowd and begins speaking to them about the kingdom of God.  The other writers tell us He saw them like sheep without a shepherd, lost and unprotected.  He began giving them the wonderful message of forgiveness for sin and eternal life through belief in Him.

Luke 9:11c says, “He was curing those who had need of healing.”  Human suffering caused pain to the Lord, He knows we need spiritual rest, and He wants to provide that rest for each of us.  In Matthew 14:14 it says, “When He went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them and healed their sick.”

God is not only be concerned about physical rest and physical healing, but He is more concerned about spiritual rest and spiritual healing.  Jesus shows that He has the power to do all that.  He can bring the kingdom of God, He can heal the people physically, and more importantly, spiritually.

The actual miracle of this passage begins to take place in Luke 9:12.  The twelve recognize that the day is nearing its end, and they urge Jesus to send the people away to surrounding villages to find food and lodging, because the palace where they are is desolate.  Jesus responds to the twelve (Luke 9:13a), “You give them something to eat.”

The twelve had just come back from their mission of several weeks, casting out demons, healing sick people, preaching the gospel.  Jesus  basically says, “Why don’t you feed them?  You provide their food.” So what happened? They said (Luke 9:13b), “We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless perhaps we go and buy food for all these people.”

Clearly, someone had already anticipated the problem and had gone through the crowd to find out if people had brought their own food.  John’s Gospel gives us some more (John 6:5-9), It says that Jesus said to Philip, “’Where are we going to buy bread that these may eat?’ This He was saying to test him, for He Himself knew what He was intending to do. Philip answered Him, ‘Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, for everyone to receive a little.’ One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him, ‘There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many people?’”

Jesus was testing Philip who basically said, “We went through the crowd and we checked, all we found was five loaves and two fish.”

Wow, lets go back to Luke 9:14a, “(There were about five thousand men.) And He said to His disciples, ‘Have them sit down to eat in groups of about fifty each.’”  John 6:10 tells us, “Jesus said, ‘Have the people sit down.’ Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand.”    Matthew 14:21 tells us, “There were about five thousand men who ate, besides women and children.”  So when you add the women and at least two children per family, you’ve got perhaps twenty thousand people.  And by the way, the lunch they found was in the hands of a child, proving there were children, and no doubt, their mothers.

So there’s a massive crowd of people needing to be fed and in Luke 9:14b-15 we read, “Jesus said to His disciples, ‘Have them sit down to eat in groups of about fifty each.’ They did so, and had them all sit down.”  So there were groups of fifty men and their families, perhaps aisles in-between groups so they could be served, and everybody was ready to eat.

See Luke 9:16, “Jesus took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed them, and broke them, and kept giving [the fish and bread] to the disciples to set before the people. And they all ate and were satisfied; and the broken pieces which they had left over were picked up, twelve baskets full.”

Wow! Jesus kept multiplying the food from the boy’s lunch.  Jesus is the One by whom all things were made and without whom nothing was made that has been made.  What Jesus did here is similar to what happens when He heals someone, i.e., when a person was blind, Jesus gave them new eyes, when they were paralyzed He gave them new legs, etc., etc.

But this time it was more visible than anything else because it just kept coming out of His hands; the fish and bread was never fully consumed, it never ran out; in fact (Luke 9:17), “And they all ate and were satisfied; and the broken pieces which they had left over were picked up, twelve baskets full.

Jesus gave to His disciples food that was continually multiplying, to be set before the multitude. They went down the aisles, serving dried fish and barley bread to the people.  Let’s say there were 100 groups of fifty men and their families; they all ate until they were full, all of 20,000 of them.

This was a staggering miracle, bread and fish created already prepared for eating without any of the process.  And everybody had all they wanted till they couldn’t eat anymore.  When the twelve collected all that wasn’t eaten, there were exactly twelve baskets full; for the Lord in His grace had provided for these guys just what they needed.

The Lord creates exactly what it takes to feed every single person, then have twelve baskets left over to feed His apostles.  Jesus demonstrated His deity in an unmistakable way, for nobody could do this but God.  He is the Messiah, the Son of God.  He is the Lord and Savior. The crowd that had experienced this, but they failed to worship the Lord; they left without even a thank you!

John gives us the postscript on this event (John 6), the next day the multitude realized that Jesus and HIs disciples had gone away in a boat. So they came to Capernaum seeking Jesus, and they finally found Him and basically were looking for more free food.  In John 6:26-29, Jesus says, “‘Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on Him the Father, God, has set His seal.’ 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.’”

John 16:8-9, Jesus said to them, “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.”

In our lesson from Luke 9:10-17 today, you will want to remember that in the chronology of Jesus’ ministry, He is about 12-18 months from going to the cross.  This is His last time He will be in the area of Galilee prior to His death and resurrection.  He has been pouring out His love and compassion upon the residents of Galilee, urging them to believe in and receive Him Lord and Savior; and yet, as we read today, even after the supernatural feeding of the 5,000 men, and most likely, another 15,000 women and children; the people left unimpressed by the Son of God who had come to save them.

There is no record that any of those who were there that day actually got saved.  What a deep grievous time that must have been for our Lord, who had such compassion for the people of Galilee: healing their diseases, casting out demons, raising the dead back to life, proclaiming the message of forgiveness for sins and eternal life with God, only to be rejected.

John 6:36-40, “But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. 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.”

What about you?

Do you believe Jesus Christ to be God’s Son, Lord and Savior: crucified, resurrected, and coming again?

If so, praise the Lord!  But if you are not sure, please, earnestly consider in your heart what God’s Word clearly says.

Romans 10:9-10, “if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.” 13, “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord [for the forgiveness of their sins] will be saved.”

1John 5:11-13, “And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. 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.”

 
Pastor Mike
>’(((><

Bible Text: Luke 9:10 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | Above are the
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June 18, 2023 – (full sermon notes)
“Judas Loved Money More Than He Loved Jesus”
Luke 9:10

The last time we were together we studied Luke 9:1-9, where Jesus sends out of the Twelve, after giving them authority over demons and diseases, in order for them to bring healing to the people while proclaiming the kingdom of God.

Judas Iscariot was one of the Twelve who was sent out, and even though we know from the Gospel narratives that he was not a true believer and follower of Jesus Christ, he would have been able to cast out demons and heal diseases.

Two questions come to mind:               Did Jesus know that Judas was an unbeliever and that he would betray Him? And if so, why would Jesus choose Judas as one of the original Twelve Disciples?

I believe the answer might be found in a prophecy which speaks of Christ’s betrayal (Psalm 41:9), “Even My close friend in whom I trusted, who ate My bread, has lifted up his heel against Me.” (turn against, become an enemy)

How do we know Psalm 41:9 is speaking of Jesus and His betrayer Judas?

Let us look to the Scriptures for God’s answers.

Please turn to Matthew 26:14-25…

       Please turn to John 13:1-30…

In Luke 6:12-15, we are told of the time when Jesus chose twelve men from among all of His followers, who would be named as apostles.

In Luke 9:1-9, Jesus gives the Twelve Apostles power and authority to cast out demons and heal the sick.  Judas was one of the Twelve and they were all sent out with power and authority from God.  But did Judas cast out demons?

Luke’s narrative doesn’t specifically tell us what Judas or any of the other Twelve did when they went out, only that (Luke 9:10), “When the apostles returned, they gave an account to Him of all that they had done. Taking them with Him, He withdrew by Himself to a city called Bethsaida.”

According to the Scriptures (Matthew 10:1; Mark 6:7; Luke 9:1), Jesus gave authority to all of the Twelve, including Judas, and they went out under the power of the Holy Spirit, performing signs and wonders, while preaching the gospel.

But, if Judas wasn’t a true believer how could he do these supernatural things like casting out demons and healing people of diseases?  Did the Holy Spirit come upon people who were not believers?

Scripture does record an incident when the Spirit of God came upon an unbeliever who was then empowered for a specific purpose. In Numbers 24:2 we are told that Balaam, “lifted up his eyes and saw Israel camping tribe by tribe; and the Spirit of God came upon him.”  He was enabled to prophesy by the Spirit of God, even though he was a false prophet, as the Scriptures indicate.
 
2Peter 2:1, “False prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves.” 15, “forsaking the right way, they have gone astray, having followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness.” [cf. Jude 1-13, Revelation 2:1-14).

But, can an unbeliever cast out demons and perfume miracles?

Please turn to Matthew 7:15-23…  Jesus chose Judas, knowing he would betray Him.  And as we read earlier in John 13:18, Jesus says to His apostles, “I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled.” And then He quotes David in Psalm 41:9: “He who ate My bread has lifted his heel against Me.”

Peter, on the day of Pentecost, affirmed Judas’s betrayal as fulfilling Scripture.                         See Acts 1:6-26… Every detail had been foretold concerning the Messiah’s betrayal, death, burial, and resurrection.

1Corinthians 15:3-5, “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.”

All these events were fulfilled, just as the Scriptures said they would be, because (2Timothy 3:16) “All Scripture is inspired by God” [lit. God-breathed, i.e., from God Himself].  And that is why Scripture speaks without error concerning the past, the present, the future, the seen and the unseen world, because only God is Omniscient, which literally means all-knowing, and the Bible was written by God through 40 men, over 1500 years, on three continents in three languages.

2Peter 1:20-21, “Know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.”

John 6:64 says, “Jesus knew from the beginning who it was who would betray Him.”  Jesus chose Judas knowing what he was going to do; in fact, Jesus exposed how the most detestable and heinous act of treachery in the history of the world, the betrayal and subsequent murder of God’s Son, was clearly the sovereign plan of God to save us.

Even the most horrible sins in the world can be used by God for His divine purposes to save those who will but believe in Him (See Acts 2:21-24, 36-38).  Jesus sovereignly chose a man who was destined for hell and damnation, including him among the Twelve, and giving him power over unclean spirits and diseases.

Listen! Religious associations, rituals, ceremonies and even miracle-working power are not necessarily evidence of genuine salvation.

Judas walked alongside Jesus for three years, and he was one of only twelve men, out of all of Israel, who was personally selected to hear, see, touch, and experience God’s Son up close and personal; yet, Judas died in his sins, apart from the saving grace that comes through faith in Christ, to all those who believe in Him.

In John 5:39-40, Jesus was talking to some Scribes who thought that just by having scrolls of the Old Testament prophets could somehow save them, to which Jesus said, “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.”

Judas is an example of those referenced in Matthew 7:22-23, “Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’”

What a vivid illustration demonstrating the hard truth that just knowing what is in the Bible won’t save you; for you must spiritually hear, believe, and obey what God’s Word says concerning Jesus Christ, in order to be saved.

No wonder Peter proclaimed (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” [only that of Jesus Christ: crucified, resurrected, coming again].

Romans 10:9-10, “if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.” 13, “for “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Jesus said He kept all of the Twelve from apostasy [rejecting or turning away from Him] except Judas (John 17:12), “and not one of them perished but the son of perdition [hell, damnation, condemnation], so that the Scripture would be fulfilled.”  In John 13:18, Jesus says, I know the ones I have chosen but it is that the Scripture may be fulfilled,” And then he quotes Psalm 41:9, ‘He who eats My bread has lifted up his heel against Me.’”

Thirty pieces of silver is all it took for Judas to sellout the Son of God who loved him and had come to save him.  Judas traded eternity with God for an eternity in hell, because he loved money more than he loved Jesus.

Judas said in Matthew 27:4, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” Judas acknowledged that Jesus was innocent; but Judas never repented of his sins, nor did he believe in Jesus as his Savior; and so, he remained guilty for his own sins.

Jesus said (John 8:24), “Therefore you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He [God the Son, the Savior], you will die in your sins.”

See Romans 3:23; 6:23; 5:8; 8:1.

Let us all be very clear that it is Jesus Christ who saves us, we can do nothing to obtain righteousness, and therefore we must believe in Him as Savior and confess Him as Lord, if we are to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

Please turn to Matthew 13:44…  Palestine had been a battleground for hundreds of years, families buried their valuables so their enemies couldn’t take or destroy them. There were no banks or depositories and so, the practice of hiding valuables in a storage box or jar, buried in the ground, was common.

Sometimes the owners of the valuables were killed or perhaps deported to another land, and their valuables would be all but lost or forgotten, until someone came across the hiding place, perhaps a tenant farmer working the field, or someone just passing through the area.

The man in this parable finds a treasure, he then goes and sells everything he has in order to purchase the field, so that he can have the treasure it contains.

Notice, the man doesn’t steal the treasure, but instead he buys the field it is in, using all of his resources to obtain it.  He gives up everything in order to have the treasure that has been hidden until now, like the kingdom of heaven.

When lost, lonely, confused and spiritually ill people come upon God’s loving gift of forgiveness and eternal life in Jesus, they will either value it above everything else in the world or they will continue to reject it .

Matthew 13:45-46…  This merchant was a wholesale buyer and reseller of merchandise, specifically this merchant bought and sold pearls (the diamonds of the ancient world, great wealth in a small package, that could be carried in a pocket inside your clothing, transported unnoticed, or easily hidden).

This man is searching for the most valuable pearl and when he finds it, he is willing to sell everything he has in order to obtain it.

Jesus Christ, God’s Son, gave His life for us, so we might eventually and eternally live in heaven with Him; but during our time on earth we are to live for Him by His power and provision, through the riches of His Grace.
 
Ephesians 2:6-7, “God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”

Matthew 6:24, “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” 31-33, “Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’  Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; but your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

Salvation through Jesus Christ and eternal life with God, is the most valuable thing in the universe, now and forever!  And so, our attitude about such things should be like Pauls (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.”   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.”

 
    And to that, all God’s children can confidently say, Amen!
Pastor Mike
>’(((><
 

Bible Text: Luke 9:1-9 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | Above are the
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June 4, 2023
“Jesus Sends Out the Twelve”
Luke 9:1-9

Read Luke 9:1-2…  It is important to be aware of the chronology of this next event in the life and ministry of Jesus.  Jesus is about 18 months away from being put to death on the cross in Jerusalem; and so, about half of His ministry is already over.  Up to this point, Jesus has been the only one preaching the gospel, teaching God’s Word, performing miracles of healing the sick, lame, blind, diseased, demon possessed, and even raising the dead, among the people of Israel.

Luke leaves out an important event that occurred between the time that Jesus’ healed a woman with an issue bleeding for 12 years, raised a 12 year old dead girl back to life (cf. Luke 8:41-55), and before He sent out the Twelve in Luke 9.

Mark’s Gospel fills in the gap by telling us that Jesus went to His own hometown (Nazareth) right after the events we studied last week.

See Mark 6:1-6…  Jesus took the apostles to His own hometown of Nazareth.  And on a Sabbath Day, Jesus went into the synagogue, which was His normal practice, and He began to teach.

Although the listeners were astonished and amazed at Jesus’ teaching, they question His authority and right to assume the position of teacher.  This is the synagogue Jesus would have attended growing up in Nazareth, where He was known as the son of Joseph, the carpenter.

The people acknowledge Jesus as one of their own, but He is no one special to them (cf. Mark 6:3), for He is simply a local boy trained as a carpenter, whose mother is Mary, whose brothers and sisters they knew.

The people of Nazareth refer to Jesus as the son of Mary, although, in Jewish culture, a man was normally called the son of his father even if the father was dead, unless the father was unknown to the people.

It may be that they are referencing the rumors that had gone around at the time of Jesus’ birth, about the illegitimacy of Mary’s conception, which was apart from any sexual relationship with Joseph.

The people of Nazareth failed to honor Jesus because of their own familiarity with Him, as just a kid from their village who had grown up and returned.

Instead of acknowledging His teachings and the miracles He had performed throughout the region, they rejected Jesus as Messiah; in fact it says, “they took offense at Him,” for He was not recognized by the local religious leaders as having any authority.

Jesus is fully aware of the people’s unwillingness to believe that He had come from God; and so, He states an old proverb (cf. Mark 6:4), that a prophet is without honor in His own town and in His own family.  This proverb is similar to one that we use today that says, “familiarity breeds contempt.”

Interestingly enough, Jesus had received a similar response from His town folks about a year before, the first time He went back to His hometown (cf. Luke 4:16-17), right after being baptized by John and ushered into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit, where He spent 40 days being tempted by the devil.

Jesus then went to Nazareth (cf. Luke 4:18-19) where He entered the synagogue on a Sabbath and stood up to read from the scroll of Isaiah 61:1-2, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed, to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”

When Jesus finished reading (cf. Luke 4:20) He gave the book back to the attendant and sat down, everyone’s eyes were upon Him.  He then said (Luke 4:21), “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”  Jesus was claiming to be the One this passage was speaking about, the Anointed One from God, the Messiah!

The residents in Nazareth had known Jesus as a boy, and as a young man who had grown up in an ordinary family, learning the trade of carpentry.  Now He comes teaching with authority in their own synagogue?

Although it appears that the people were amazed at His words, they seem to question His authority, (Luke 4:22), “‘Isn’t this Joseph’s son?’ they asked.”

The people were filled with rage at the audacity of Jesus to say they were spiritually poor, spiritually captive, spiritually blind, spiritually oppressed, that they needed to be healed, and that He had come to save them.

Luke 4:28-29 tells us they drove Him out of the synagogue, out of town, and up to the top of a hill where they intended to kill Him by throwing Him off; but (Luke 4:30), He miraculously walked right through the midst of them and escaped.

So, in our reading today in Luke 9, it is about a year after that first visit to Nazareth, as recorded in Luke 4, when the people would not acknowledge Him as their Messiah, in fact they were enraged by His insolence.

Mark 6:6 says that Jesus was “amazed” [completely astonished] at the people’s lack of faith [unbelief].  It is not that Jesus was caught off guard; but Jesus was extremely taken back by their response to Him.

According to the biblical record, very few from His own hometown believed in Him, and so, He left there and (verse 6) “went around teaching from village to village,” throughout other parts of Galilee where the people were more receptive.

Earlier today I mentioned how, in the chronology of Jesus’ ministry, He is about half way through the three plus years He had been given to proclaim the message of God’s Kingdom here on earth..

Up to this time Jesus was the only one who was teaching and preaching and healing; but time is getting short as He will soon be leaving the area of Galilee and be heading toward Jerusalem in Judea, where He will be put to death on a cross, placed in a tomb, and on the third day after His death He would rise from the grave and appear to hundreds of His followers over a 40 day period, after which He would ascend back into heaven to be with the Father.

According to Isaiah 61:1-2, Jesus came “to preach the gospel to the poor, to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed, to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”

See Luke 9:1-3…  Jesus is going to commission the Twelve, who had already been named apostles, but they had not yet been sent out (cf. Luke 8:12-16).  It is now time for the Lord to multiply Himself by 12, by giving these men the power to heal, cast out demons, and “to proclaim the kingdom of God.”

In Matthew’s narrative of this event, he lists the Twelve (Matthew 10:2-4), “Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; and James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot, the one who betrayed Him.

The apostles had been living with Jesus for over a year, it was now time for them to apply what they had heard, witnessed, learned and received from their Master and Teacher, Jesus Christ!  These men would now have to trust the Lord like never before, to protect them, feed them, clothe them, and guide them.

Read Luke 9:4-5…  Jesus tells them to seek out a house where they will be accepted and to stay there until they are ready to leave that town or village.  He then tells them that if any house or town will not receive them, they are to shake the dust off their feet as a “testimony against” those who rejected them and their message.

The disciples were sent out to bring God’s message of reconciliation and healing to the lost, lonely, and hurting of society.  For someone to reject them or their message, was the same as rejecting God.

The Jews had a practice, when returning to Israel from a Gentile country: they would shake the dust from their feet and sandals, so as not to bring pagan soil into Israel.  By this same gesture, the apostles were saying that any house or village that rejected them was unacceptable to and alienated from God.

Read Luke 9:6…  The disciples were instructed to call people to repent of sin and believe in Jesus to save them, just as John the Baptizer had done (cf. Matthew 3:1-2, 5-6, 11; Mark 1:4-5, 7-11; John 1:19-23, 28-29, 34).

As the apostles called people to repentance, they were also casting out demons and healing the sick, just as Jesus had done throughout the region. They were exhibiting the authority He had given them in order to demonstrate, with power, the kingdom message they brought, that salvation has been provided through Christ alone; this must be heard, understood, believed, and obeyed before salvation can be received.

Read Luke 9:7-9…  Herod had heard reports, and he was very distraught about all that was going on throughout the region, that repentance was being preached, people were being healed, and demons were being cast out, and that some were saying it was John the Baptizer who had risen from the dead; or Elijah or another great prophet who had power like the prophets in Israel’s past.

Herod felt guilty for having had John beheaded at the demand of Herodias, his vengeful wife.  She hated John for confronting Herod about his immoral, unlawful and adulterous marriage to her. And so, the thought that John had come back to life totally unhinged Herod, who must of been thinking, what if it was John and he was seeking revenge?

If you don’t know the story, you can read it in Mark 6:14-28.

We aren’t told any specifics about the apostles’ ministry, but it appears that reports had come to Herod about what was going on; and although he was not sure if it was John the Baptizer back from the dead, according to Luke 9:9, Herod kept trying to see who it was that was doing these supernatural healings and casting out of demons; although he isn’t sure who it actually is.

Listen, John the Baptizer is dead, Jesus is in heaven with the Father, the Apostles are all dead; but those of us who believe in and follow Jesus Christ (crucified, resurrected, and coming again) are to continue what they started.

2Corinthians 5:17-21,

“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, 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.”

 
Pastor Mike
>’(((><
 

Bible Text: Luke 8:40-56 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | Above are the
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May 28, 2023
“Jesus Responds to Saving Faith”
Luke 8:40-56

        Please turn to Luke 8:40-56, and follow along as I read through it.

See Luke 8:40…  Unlike the inhabitants of Gerasa, on the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee, the people of Capernaum on the north western shore had been waitng for Jesus to return.

Mark 5:21 tells us there was a large crowd of people, no doubt, there were many who were hoping to be healed of their diseases, illnesses and infirmities.  Jesus was popular in Capernaum and He loved to be with the common people, to teach them God’s Word and to show them God’s compassion.

        See Luke 8:41…  A man named Jairus, a ruler in the local synagogue, falls at Jesus’ feet, pleading with Him to come to his house, as his one and only daughter, who is 12 years of age, is dying.  Mark’s narrative tells us (5:23) that Jairus said to Jesus, “My little daughter is at the point of death; please come and lay Your hands on her, so that she will get well and live.”

        See Luke 42-44…  As they begin to leave for Jairus’s house, a woman, who has suffered from an incurable bleeding affliction for 12 years, comes and touches Jesus’ outer clothing; and according to (Mark 5:28) “saying to herself, ‘If I can just touch His clothing, I’ll be healed.’”

Amazing faith, this woman believed she could be cured by simply touching Jesus’ clothing [lit. the fringe of His outer garment].  Note: A tassel fringe with a blue cord was a reminder to obey God’s commandments (Numbers 15:38), “Speak to the sons of Israel, and tell them that they shall make for themselves tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and that they shall put on the tassel of each corner a cord of blue.”

Upon touching one of the tassels, the woman with the issue of blood was healed immediately (Luke 8:44) and her bleeding stopped.

Mark 5:26 tells us more about her condition, “she had endured much at the hands of many physicians, and had spent all that she had and was not helped at all, but rather had grown worse.”  This poor woman had suffered greatly at the hands of many so-called doctors, they had taken all her money, but instead of getting better she had actually gotten worse.

        See Luke 8:45-48…  Jesus realized that power had gone out from Him, He turns around to the crowd and asks, “Who is the one who touched Me?”  Mark 5:30 records Jesus saying, “Who touched my garments?”

Peter answers, stating the obvious, saying that all these people are crowding in around the Lord, it could have been anybody.  To which Jesus says, “Someone did touch Me, for I was aware that power had gone out of Me.”

Jesus looks around, waits, and the woman comes to Him, falls at his feet, and tells Him what she has done; and at this point Jesus tells her she is healed and she can go in peace.  The Greek (Luke 8:48; Matthew 9:22; Mark 5:34) literally says, “your faith has “saved” you. “Go in peace?”

        See Luke 8:49-50…   We are told that while Jesus was speaking to the woman, some men came from Jarius’ house to tell him that it is too late, his daughter has died, and he should no longer bother the Teacher [Jesus]; but Jesus says to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid any longer; only believe and she will be made well [lit. saved].”

        See Luke 8:51…  Jesus only allowed Peter, James, John, and the girl’s parents, to go with Him into see Jarius’ daughter.

Matthew 9:23 tells us that Jesus entered Jairus’ home amidst a bunch of commotion, as musicians and mourners were making much noise. .

See Luke 8:52-53…  Jesus silences the crowd saying, “the girl is not dead, but is only sleeping.”  The people laugh at Jesus [lit. laugh in His face] with repeated outbursts about the girl not being dead.  Jesus sends them away and only the girl’s parents and Jesus’ 3 disciples go in to her.

        See Luke 8:54-55…   Jesus takes the girl by the hand and says, “Child arise!”  Mark 5:41, “Taking the child by the hand, He said to her, “Little girl, I say to you, get up!”..Immediately, the girl gets up (Mark 5:42) and walks around the room, and those who are there marvel at this!

Luke 8:56…  Jesus gives strict orders for them not to tell anyone about what has happened.  Not that it was going to be kept quiet, I mean, the musicians, mourners, other family members, and friends, they were definitely going to find out and when they did, they would most likely spread the word about this miracle.

In fact, Matthew tells us (9:26), that after Jesus raises the girl back to life, “news of this spread throughout the region.”

Jesus already had a reputation for His supernatural power: healing diseases, casting out demons, feeding multitudes with a few scraps of bread and fish, calming the winds and the sea, and now, raising the dead!

Jesus’ main purpose was not to heal diseases and feed hungry people, but whenever the crowds found Him, He had compassion on them.

Jesus came to bring the Good News of Salvation, to heal sick hearts, souls, and minds, to cast out fear and unbelief. Mark 1:38, “Let us go… so I can preach… that is why I have come.” Romans 1:16, ”The good news is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.”

When Jesus came, there was extensive disease, poverty and hunger among the people; He was forever reaching out to care for and love them.

According to Mark 5:43 Jesus said to Jarius’ family, “give the girl something to eat.”  Jesus had just brought this girl back to life, and she needed sustenance to regain her strength.

The Scriptures are full of examples of Jesus showing compassion to hurting people, no matter what nation, tribe, culture, or level of society they came from.

In today’s narrative, Jesus showed compassion to an outcast woman who had suffered for 12 years with an incurable disease; He then showed compassion to a synagogue official whose 12 year old daughter had become sick and died.

In both cases, there was a need that couldn’t be fulfilled by anyone else.  The truth is, it is our greatest need that brings us to God our Savior, Jesus Christ the Lord, so that by believing in Him we have forgiveness for all our sins and we are eternally saved from any condemnation

Romans 3:10-12, “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God.  All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one”

Romans 3:22-24, “The righteousness of God [comes] through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus.”

Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 5:8, “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

Romans 8:1-2, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.”

Jesus said (Luke 5:31-32) “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.  I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Whether we admit it or not, we all have a fatal disease, it is called sin, it separates us from a relationship with God and puts us at enmity with Him; and best the only cure for this fatal disease is Jesus Christ!

Jesus came to save those who are lost and separated from life with God because of sin, spiritually dead, having been taken captive by the darkness.

2Corinthians 4:4, “The god of this world [Satan] 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. 6, “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.”

In John 10:30 Jesus said, “I and the Father are One,” (John 14:7), “If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him.”

See John 1:1-5, 9, 14, 18…

John 14:19-21, “After a little while the world will no longer see Me, but you will see Me; because I live, you will live also. In that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him.” 23, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our [home] with him.”

Revelation 3:20, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.”

In Jesus Christ we have the Light of God, and Life with God. 

John 8:12, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of 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.”

John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except by Me” (cf. Acts 2:21; 4:12).

Mark 1:14-15, “Now after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe [trust, have faith] in the gospel.’”

 
What is the Gospel?
 

1Corinthians 15:1-4, “Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.”

God loves us so much He sent His Son to take our punishment for sin by dying on the cross; so that anyone/everyone who repents of sin and believes in Jesus Christ as Savior receives forgiveness and eternal life.

        God responds to faith that believes (1John 5:5), “Jesus is the Son of God,” He alone can save us. 11-13, “God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. 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.”

Do you know for sure that you have received forgiveness for your sins and that you have eternal life from God?  If you are not sure, you can clear that up with God right now, right here.

2Corinthians 6:2, “For [God] says, ‘At the acceptable time I listened to you, and on the day of salvation I helped you.’ Behold, now is ‘the acceptable time,’ behold, now is ‘the day of salvation.’”

 
Pastor Mike Hale
 

Bible Text: Luke 8:26-39 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | Above are the
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May 21, 2023
“Demoniac Turned Missionary”
Luke 8:26-39

        Read Luke 8:26-39…  We left off last week with Jesus calming a storm; then rebuking the disciples for their lack of faith.  After this occurred, Jesus and His disciples continued across the lake to an area known as Gerasenes, named for the small town of Gerasa nearby, just off the shore to the east of the Sea of Galilee.

As soon as Jesus steps out of the boat (Luke 8:27) a man possessed by demons, who has come from the tombs, is there to meet Him.  In Luke 8:29 we are told that this man has an “unclean spirit”.  Note: Unclean refers to a demonic spirit that can attack a person spiritually, mentally, and physically, even indwelling an unbeliever; it can also promote false religions, false worship, and false doctrines, resulting in immorality, insanity, masochism, and all kinds of godlessness.

This demon-possessed man was frightful: living out in the tombs, the place of the dead, these tombs were cut out of the hillsides and cliffs just outside the city.  This man is insane, naked, possessed by demons. No one was able to keep him bound, no matter what was used to restrain him, for he continually broke the ropes and chains used to bind his feet and hands.

This man was in constant torment (Mark 5:5), “Constantly, night and day, he was screaming among the tombs and in the mountains, and gashing himself with stones” [he cut himself with sharp jagged rocks, probably made of flint].

Running up to Jesus (Luke 8:28) he bowed down, shouting with a loud voice, “What business do we have with each other, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg [implore] You, do not torment [torture] me.”

The demons know who Jesus is, in fact, Mark records an earlier encounter that Jesus had with demons (Mark. 1:16-24), “As [Jesus] was going along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, ‘Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.’ Immediately they left their nets and followed Him. Going on a little farther, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who were also in the boat mending the nets. Immediately He called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went away to follow Him. They went into Capernaum; and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and began to teach. They were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. Just then there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, saying, ‘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!’”

Note: The Holy One of God, the ”Most High God” is an ancient title used to identify the One, True, and Living God of Israel – distinguishing Him from all false gods.

The demons recognized Jesus’ authority to do with them as He pleases, for they are fallen angels who joined Satan’s rebellion long ago.

At one time, Satan was a highly ranked angel in God’s throne room, but he rebelled against God, wanting the glory that God was receiving to be given to him also.  He was cast out of heaven (Isaiah 14:12-17; Ezekiel 28:11-19; Luke 10:18) and 1/3 of the heavenly hosts [angels] rebelled and were cast out with him (Revelation 12:4).  These angels are called demons.

The demons in Luke 8 ask Jesus not to torture them, in Matthew 8:29 they ask Jesus, “Have You come here to torment us before the time?”  They know there is an appointed time at which God will judge and send them to their eternal place of punishment in the Lake of Fire (Matthew 25:41), “the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels.”

Jesus asks the man (Luke 8:30), “What is your name?”  The demon responds out of the man’s mouth saying, “Legion, for we are many.”  [A Legion is a Roman military unit consisting of 6000 men.]

The demons beg Jesus (Luke 8:31) not to send them into the abyss [bottomless pit, Revelation 9:1-2; Satan is locked up there for 1000 years, Revelation 20:1-3]. The demons implore Jesus to let them go into the large herd of pigs feeding on the mountain [Mark 5:13 tells us there were about 2,000 swine]. Note: To an orthodox Jew, pigs are the most unclean of animals, unacceptable to be used as food. The owners of this herd of swine were either Gentiles or unorthodox Jews who didn’t follow the law.

Luke tells us (Luke 8:32-33) that Jesus gave the demons permission to enter the pigs and the herd ran down the steep bank into the lake and drowned.

In Matthew 8:31-32, we read, “The demons began to entreat [Jesus], saying, ‘If You are going to cast us out, send us into the herd of swine. And He said to them, Go! [Begone!] And they came out of the man and went into the swine, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea,” and drowned.

The men who were tending the herd (Luke 8:34), watched the pigs drown in the lake, then they ran into town and told the people all that had happened.  The people came out to see Jesus, and they found the demoniac (Luke 8:35) sitting at the feet of Jesus, totally calm, fully dressed, and in his right mind.

What a contrast to the way this man had been behaving, i.e., screaming out from the tombs, gashing himself with sharp rocks and running around naked.  Luke records that the people, when they saw the demoniac clothed, calmed and in his right mind, they became afraid!

At this point (Luke 8:36) the eyewitnesses [Jesus’ disciples and herdsman], tell the people about how the demons had gone out from the man and entered the pigs on Jesus’ command, then the large herd ran into the lake and drowned.

The people (Luke 8:37) in the region of Gerasenes, urge Jesus to leave, to go away from them!  Those people were in the presence of God’s Son, Savior and Lord, but they don’t ask Him to save them, instead they plead with Him to leave.

        Read Luke 5:1-11…  Notice, Simon Peter falls down at Jesus’ feet saying, “Go away from me Lord, for I am a sinful man!”  Peter realizes that this miraculous catch of fish was not a coincidence; only God could do such a thing, which meant that he was in the very presence of God, Immanuel [God with us].

This was overwhelming to Peter, and no doubt to James and John as well; for this is the largest catch of fish anyone had ever seen, and it takes place in broad daylight, when the common practice on the Sea of Galilee was to fish at night.

Simon in the presence of God in Jesus, is very aware of his own sinfulness.  God in Christ is holy and righteous, to be in His presence is to be made aware of one’s sinfulness, to either seek forgiveness or to reject God’s offer of salvation.

Romans 3:10-12, “There is none righteous, not even one; there is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God; all have turned aside, together they have become useless; there is none who does good, there is not even one.” Romans 3:23-24, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus.”   

God loves us so much, even though we deserve death (Romans 6:23a), “For the wages of sin is death.”  God grants us forgiveness and eternal life (Romans 6:23b), “For the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”                                Only Jesus can set us free from sin’s penalty, because He alone was able to take upon Himself our punishment for sin (Romans 5:8), “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

No wonder in John 14:6 Jesus says, “I am the [only] way [to God], the [only] truth [of God], and the [only] life [from God]; [and therefore] no one comes to the Father [no one is made acceptable to God, no one goes to heaven] but through Me”

Jesus offered Himself as full payment for all sins, for all people, for all time

(Hebrews 10:12, 14, 16-18), “He [Jesus], having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God,” “For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.” “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: ‘I will put My laws upon their heart, and on their mind I will write them,’ He then says, ‘And their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.’ Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin.”

Romans 8:1-2, “Therefore there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.”

Back to Luke 8:38-39…  The people in the country of the Gerasenes were witnesses of Christ’s supernatural power that commanded the demons out of the man and into the pigs, also saving the demoniac’s soul and restoring his mind; but, instead of praising Jesus, the people implore Him to go away!  Luke says, “they were gripped with great fear,” and they begged Him to leave.

Jesus is rejected by them, He gets into the boat and goes back to Capernaum, and as far as we know from the biblical record, He never returned to the region of the Gerasenes.  But notice that the man who was healed implores Jesus to let him come along in the boat, he wants to be with Jesus.

The demoniac had been healed and delivered from his sin, and he wants to go with the Savior.  This man, previously possessed by a legion of demons, may be the only saved person in the whole region; Jesus tells the man to go home and to tell his family [to show them] all that God has done for him.  The man obeys and goes home, proclaiming the good news of God’s love, mercy, and power (Luke 8:39), “throughout the whole city” telling them all that “Jesus had done for him.”

The man who had been released from a Legion of demons has gone back to his people to testify to God’s mercy and grace.  God is forever extending His love to anyone who will believe in Him.

This story teaches us about the sovereign power of God, but also about the gracious, relentless, and unconditional love of God.  Even though the majority of the people in the country of the Gerasenes rejected God, God came to save one man, the demoniac, to release him from the penalty and curse of sin.

God went to great lengths to show His mercy to one lost tormented man living out in the tombs, in the region of the Gerasenes.  It is this same God, the One and Only True God, who desires that everyone come to a knowledge of the truth, confessing Jesus Christ as Lord, believing in and receiving Him as Savior.

God wants to save people, not condemn them.

1Timothy 2:3-4, “This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

2Peter 3:9, “The Lord is… …patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.”

Romans 10:9-10, “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.”

Romans 10:13, “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Romans 10:17, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.”

        The healed demoniac was told to go back to his family as a witness of the salvation he had received from God.  He wasn’t discipled, neither did he sign-up for an evangelism course; instead, Jesus told him to go and tell others what God had done for him through Jesus Christ..

Near the end of Jesus’ time on earth, before ascending back into heaven, most likely on a mountain in Galilee, the resurrected Christ told a very large crowd of followers (Matthew 28:18-20), “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Do you understand what Jesus is saying?  Our purpose is simply to tell others about God’s Son, Jesus Christ, Lord and Savior.  Why do we do that?  So that they might know the truth and be set free from sin’s penalty, forever, as a child of God.

The demoniac was healed spiritually, eternally; he was then commissioned to go tell others what God had done for him.  Guess what, every genuine believer and follower of Christ, every Christian, is commissioned to do the very same thing.

2Corinthians 5:20-21,

“Therefore, 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 [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 [being indwelled by God the holy Spirit.

 
Pastor Mike
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Bible Text: Luke 8:22-25 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Above are the
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May 14, 2023
“Jesus Calms the Storm”
Luke 8:22-25

Read Luke 8:22-25…  After a long day of teaching, Jesus and His disciples get into a boat, no doubt a fishing boat, probably belonging to Peter, James, or John.

Mark also recorded that on the evening of the day when Jesus taught the parable of the sower and the seed (Mark 4:35-36), “On that day, when evening came, [Jesus] said [His disciples], ‘Let us go over to the other side.’ Leaving the crowd, they took Him along with them in the boat, just as He was; and other boats were with Him.”

There was an earlier narrative recorded in Luke 5 that suggests that even after these fishermen became followers of Jesus, they still had their fishing vessels.

See Luke 5:1-11…

Notice that Luke 8:22 records “on one of those days,” Jesus said to His disciples,  “Let’s go to the other side of the lake.”  Luke didn’t always follow a strict timeline or chronological sequence, he often arranged his narratives according to themes, topics, or subject matter.

The events in Luke’s Gospel are also recorded in Matthew 8:23-27 and

Mark 4:35-41; in all three accounts Jesus had been explaining parables to His disciples, and it had been a long day of preaching, teaching, and healing; Jesus needed to get away from the large crowds for some rest, so in the boat they go.

The lake they are traveling on is the Sea of Galilee, also known as Sea of Tiberias, Lake of Gennesaret, and Lake Kinneret.  The western side of the lake had large cities, but the eastern side was much less populated; and so, it was most likely that they were headed to the eastern shore.

In Luke 8:23, we are told that, as they were sailing, a fierce wind [lit. furious squall] came up, tossing the boat about, as waves came over the sides of the boat, to the point where the boat was taking on water and was in danger of capsizing.

Note: *Wind is common to the Sea of Galilee which is about 13 miles long and 8 miles wide and sits at about 700 ft. below sea level [the lowest freshwater lake on the earth].  Mt. Hermon, at 9200 ft., is to the north, and in between is a narrow gorge that funnels winds to the lake causing extreme conditions and sudden storms.

Note: The boat was probably a small fishing type very common to fisherman like Peter, James, and John.  Archaeologists have recovered several fishing boats (from the time of Christ), in the area of the Sea of Galilee, with an average size of 30’ long, 8’ wide, 4’ deep.

Most of the disciples were experienced fisherman who had spent many years sailing under harsh conditions on the lake, but in this event, they are afraid and fearful for their lives.

According to Luke 8:24, Jesus was exhausted from His long day(s) of ministry, and even though the fierce storm was tossing and nearly swamping the boat, He is sound asleep on a cushion [Mark 4:38], at the back of the boat.

In a panic, the disciples wake Jesus up exclaiming, “Lord, save us! Or we’re going to die!”  Jesus gets up, rebukes the wind and the sea, saying, “Quiet! Be still!”  And guess what?  The wind dies downwind the sea is completely calmed.

Jesus is God incarnate, the Creator of all, who fed thousands with one boy’s lunch, who cast out demons, healed every kind of disease, raised the dead, and now, He displays His power and authority over nature itself.

This same Jesus spoke the universe into existence (Genesis 1:1-5) “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light. God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning [Day 1].”

The Biblical narrative records Day’s 2-6, when God spoke into existence land, vegetation, sea animals, birds, land animals, insects, and humans to rule over everything that has life, after which it says (Genesis 2:2-3), “Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts. By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made..”

John 1:1-3, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.” John 1:14, “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

John 10:30, “I and the Father are one.”

John 14:7, “If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him.”

Hebrews 1:1-2, “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.”

Colossians 1:16-17, “For by Him [Jesus] 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. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”

Back to Luke 8:25…  This storm is clearly a means of challenging the faith of Christ’s disciples.  After rebuking the wind and the waves, causing them to become calm, Jesus said to His disciples, “Where is your faith?”

In Matthew 8:26, Jesus said to them, “Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?”

The men in the boat were fearful [terrified, very much afraid], for these guys were finally coming to terms with all the miraculous healings, powerful teachings, and now the supernatural authority over nature itself, to where they were asking each other, “Who is this in the boat with us, ”that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”

     Jesus questions His disciples, “Why are you so afraid?, i.e., “Don’t you have faith in Me to care for you, even after everything you have witnessed Me doing, and all that you have heard from Me?”

Read Matthew 6:25-34…  Three times in that passage Jesus commands us not to worry.  Granted, that is so easy to say, but not so easy to do!

As Paul writes (Philippians 4:5b-6), “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.” Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.”

Paul’s total trust in his present circumstances and his future circumstances was completely entrusted to Jesus Christ, his Lord and Savior.

Just like those first disciples, you and I must personally and heartfully consider, “Who is this Jesus?”  The disciples, that day on the Sea of Galilee, were suddenly confronted with the realization that this Jesus, in their boat, was God Almighty!  God Incarnate!  The very One and Only begotten of the Father who is the Creator, Sustainer, Judge over all, and the Resurrection and the Life

(John 11:23-26), “Jesus said to [Martha], “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”

Moments later, at the tomb where Lazarus had laid dead for four days, Jesus calls out for Lazarus to come out of the grave.  All who were there witnessed Lazarus coming out alive!

The One in the boat who has calmed the wind and the sea was (John 3:16-19), “The only begotten Son [of God], [and] whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”

Jesus reassures these men that they can place their total faith and belief in Him, now and forever.  Have you done that?  Confessed your sins and and believed in Jesus Christ [God’s Son, Lord and Savior]?

Ask yourself today: do you have the assurance e that God has saved you, and that He will provide for you, and protect you, during the raging storms that will come upon you in this life; but He will also bring you to be with Him in heave forever.

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.”

Acts 4:12, “And 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.”
Romans 8:1-2, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.”

Romans 10:13, “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord [for the forgiveness of sins] will be saved.”

2Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”

Jeremiah 29:11-13, “For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.”

Proverbs 3:5-6,

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”

Proverbs 3:23-24,

“Then you will go on your way in safety, and your foot will not stumble; when you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.”

Jesus is the only Savior, He is the only Way to heaven, and He turns no one away who comes to Him in faith seeking forgiveness; but you must admit you are a sinner, confessing your sinfulness to Him, believing in Jesus Christ: crucified, resurrected, and coming again to take you to be with Him in heaven.

At the moment of genuine belief in God’s Son, as Savior and Lord, you are granted eternal life, and you become a child of God, now and forever.

Psalm 100:5,

“For the LORD is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations.”

 
And all God’s children said, 
Amen!
 
 
Pastor Mike
>’(((><
 

Bible Text: Luke 8:16-18 | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: book study of Luke | Above are the
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May 7, 2023
“Hear and Understand, Believe and Obey”
Luke 8:16-18

Six weeks ago, March 26, was the last time we were in Luke chapter 8, after which we spent several Sunday’s studying the events of Passion Week, followed by an extended study on the post-resurrection appearances of Christ.

As we open our Bibles today, let’s begin with a brief overview of Luke 8:4-15. As you may recall, this is a parable about a sower who sows seed on four different types of soil; but the seed is only able to grow and produce fruit in one of the soils.

After Jesus had told the parable of the sower (Luke 8:4-8), He called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”  His disciples didn’t understand so they

(9-10), “began questioning Him as to what this parable meant. And He said, ‘To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is in parables, so that seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.’”

Then Jesus (Luke 8:11-15) explained the parable to His disciples; revealing to them the spiritual truth it contained.  He is not just talking about a sower casting seed onto different types/conditions of soil, the seed is the gospel of Christ and the soil is the human heart, but only one of the heart conditions receives the seed, begins to grow, and produces fruit, i.e., only one of the hearts hears, understands, believes, and obeys the Word of God concerning Salvation.

Mark 1:14-15, “Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’”  17, Come, and follow Me.”  So, what exactly is the gospel?

1Corinthians 15:1-4, “Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.”

1Peter 1:3-5, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” 23, “For you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God.”

Romans 10:9, “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Romans 15:13, “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Do you see?  At the moment of genuine belief in the death [payment for your sins] and resurrection [demonstration of eternal life] of Jesus Christ you are born-again by God’s Spirit, and you will indeed bear fruit, [do the things that please God], for you have been born of God’s Spirit, becoming a child of God, a believer and follower of Christ, a first person witness to the Salvation of God in Christ.

When you hear and understand, you either believe and obey the message of Christ, at which time all your sins are forgiven (past, present, future), or you continue to reject the message of Christ, remaining dead in your sins.
Read Luke 8:16…  In the Bible, light is often used as a metaphor for the spiritual truth and spiritual life that comes from God, referring to all things that reveal and exemplify God; whereas darkness usually refers to those things that are void of God’s person, presence, pleasure, and power.

So light is a synonym for all things God, and darkness is a synonym for all things void of God, i.e., anything that is offensive toward or displeases God.

John 8:12, “Jesus spoke to them saying, ‘I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”

1Peter 2:9-10, “But 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.” 

Matthew provides a parallel passage to Luke 8:16 (Matthew 5:14-16), “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

     God’s Church is illustrated as a lighted city on a hill; while true believers are said to be the individual lamps in each of the homes of the lighted city on the hill.                                                                                           Believing in Christ brings you into God’s Kingdom where you receive eternal life from God, in fact, the very Light [or revelation] of God, in order that you will expose unbelievers to the marvelous revelation of God in the Person of Jesus Christ.

2Corinthians 4:6, “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.”

Our purpose as Christians, is to let God’s Light show through us, so that those who are living in darkness might be exposed to God’s love and forgiveness.

Read Luke 8:17-18…  The Spirit of God exposes everything, i.e., nothing is hidden from God (Hebrews 4:12-13), “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him [to whom we must give account].”

God knows all things, even what is in our hearts.  God’s forgiveness and eternal life is granted to all who hear the message of Christ, understand it, believe it, and demonstrate obedience to it; for we have come out of the darkness of unbelief, into God’s marvelous Light, by believing in God’s Son.

See Ephesians 5:8-13…  All of us, at one time, were guilty of sin, separated from the light [revelation of God] and the life [eternal life with God], we were living in darkness; but now we are children of light, seeking to do that which pleases God.  We are not to participate in the fruitless deeds of darkness; but instead we are to expose them for all to see; for everything exposed by the light is made known.

See Ephesians 5:14-17…  The truth of God’s Holy Word, through the work of God’s Spirit, exposes all sin, so that those who are spiritually dead can be made alive through repentance of sin and belief in the Savior.

Unbelievers are spiritually dead [asleep] living in sin’s darkness, unaware of their lost condition and the judgment of God’s Wrath to come.  God wants them to wake up and receive God’s forgiveness for sin and eternal life, through His Son.

Paul offers an invitation in verse 14, to all who are not children of God, so that they might come to the light of Christ and be saved, “Awake, sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”

Then Paul continues in verses 15-17 saying, “be careful how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,” “making the most of your time,” “do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.”  What is God’s will, what does He desire?
1Timothy 2:3-4, “God our Savior, …desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

In John 14:6, Jesus declares that He is the only way to God, and the only truth from God, and the only life with God; and that no one comes to the Father but through Him, God the Son [i.e., no one is made right with God, no one is forgiven their sins, no one goes to heaven] apart from believing in Christ’s sacrificial death as full payment for our sins, and His sovereign resurrection from the dead as demonstration that He is the resurrection and the life.

1John 1: 5-7, “This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.”

God’s Word, from beginning to end, demonstrates God’s plan to separate light from darkness, forever (cf. Genesis 1:1-4; Revelation 21:23-24; 22:3-5).

Speaking to those who believe in Him, Jesus said (Matthew 5:14) “You are the light of the world.”  16, ”Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

Has anyone come up to you lately and asked you what the iight is that is shining through you?  Probably not!  But if you are a Christian (a believer and follower of Jesus Christ), you will desire for the light of God to be seen in and through your life, so that, when an unbeliever asks you why you are different from the rest of the world, you can tell them it is all because of God’s Son.

John 3:16-19, “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. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.” 36, “He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, for the wrath of God abides [remains] on him.”

He who has ears, let him hear!

Jesus Christ, God the Son, took our punishment for sin upon Himself, dying in our place on the cross, according to the Scriptures, He was then placed in a tomb, but on the third day, He rose from the grave alive, according to the Scriptures, demonstrating His authority over sin, death and judgement.

But that is not all, He promised that He is coming back to take all those who believe in Him, to be with Him in heaven forever, where there will no longer be any darkness; and there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain, or death, for all those things have passed away and will never return.

Now to God our Father, to God the Son, our Savior Jesus Christ, and to God the Holy Spirit, be the glory forever and ever, Amen!

 
Pastor Mike
>’(((><

Bible Text: various verses | Speaker: Pastor Mike Hale | Above are the
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April 23, 2023
“Resurrection Appearances of Jesus Part Two”

Last week we studied some of the post resurrection appearances of Jesus: in the Garden near the tomb, on the road to Emmaus, in the upper room (10 Disciples present), and a week later in the upper room (11 Disciples present).  All of these events took place on a Sunday.

     Please turn to John 21:1-14…  The disciples had previously been told by Jesus (Matthew 28:10) to, “Go and take word to My brethren to leave for Galilee, and there they will see Me.” 16, “The eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated.”  Did you notice, it says the eleven disciples went to meet Jesus at a specified mountain in Galilee.

Back to John 21:2…  There are seven apostles in this story, “Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two others of [Jesus’] disciples were together.  It is very likely that the two unnamed disciples are Philip and Andrew, for they were often listed with Peter, James, and John (cf. Matthew 10:2-3, Mark 3:18; Luke 6:14). .

Peter said to the other six (John 21:3), “I’m going fishing,” and they said, “We will also come with you.”  They got into a boat (perhaps belonging to Peter, or maybe John), and they fished all night and caught nothing.

It would appear that Peter and some of the others who had been fishermen when Jesus called them, were now going back to their former occupation.

John 21:4-5 tells us they hadn’t caught anything and Jesus standing on the shore, unrecognized by them, tells them to try the right side of the boat; they obey, and their net becomes filled with of fish.

John says to Peter, “It is the Lord.”  Peter jumps into the lake, but he others remain in the boat, but when they finally reached the beach and got out of the boat, they could see there was a small fire with some fish and bread cooking.  At this point Jesus tells them to bring some of fish they have caught, but the net of fish is still in the water, offshore.  On hearing the Lord’s command, Peter grabs ahold of the net and pulls it up on the land, full of fish, 153 large fish.  John (a fisherman by profession) is amazed (John 21:11) that such a huge catch of large fish has not torn the net.

Jesus invites the men to come and have breakfast with Him (John 21:12-13), and although they are still not absolutely sure it is Him, they don’t ask any questions, for in their hearts they must know it is Jesus.

It appears that they drew close to where Jesus was cooking, although they didn’t take anything to eat; at least, not until the Lord took some of the bread and the fish and gave it to them.  The resurrected Lord is still providing for these guys.

John  tells us (verse 14), this is the third time Jesus has revealed Himself to His disciples since He rose from the grave (see John 20:19-20, 26-29).

     The next appearance of Jesus seems to take place on the mountain in Galilee, possibly the same place where He had given the Sermon on the Mount.

Please turn to 1Corinthians 15:6, “He appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.”

Jesus had told His followers to go to Galilee and there they would see Him, as most of them were Galileans.  This may be the mountain on which Jesus gave the Great Commission (Matthew 28). No more is known of this appearance.

See 1Corinthians 15:7a…  It is likely that the James mentioned here is the Lord’s half-brother, who did not come to saving faith until he saw the risen Lord; although we don’t know where Jesus appeared to him, James later become a prominent leader in the Jerusalem church, and the author of book of James.  There are four James mentioned in the New Testament (cf. Mark 3:16-19; Luke 6:12-16), James the brother of John (sons of Zebedee), James the son of Alphaeus, James the father of Judas (not Iscariot), and James the half-brother of Jesus.  There is no more information about the appearance in 1Corinthians 15:7a given in the Scriptures.

See 1Corinthians 15:7b…  I believe the statement, “then to all the apostles,” mostly applies to what occurred in John 20:26-29.  If you’ll remember, it was on the second Lord’s Day after Jesus rose from the grave, when Jesus appeared to all eleven of the disciples who were hiding in a house with the doors/windows secured.

But there is also a possibility that “all the apostles” could be related to what is recorded in Acts 1:1-13, where all eleven of them are mentioned by name.

See 1Corinthians 15:8-9…  All the others to whom the Lord had appeared, had seen Him while He was alive and after He had risen from the grave, during the 40 days before He ascended back into heaven; but the Lord didn’t appear to Paul until several years later, after He had already returned to heaven.

Paul says, “and last of all He (Jesus) appeared to me also, as to one untimely [abnormally] born.  For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.”

No wonder Paul felt like one abnormally born, the other apostles had walked

with and lived with Jesus for three years, being taught by Him; whereas Paul had not only rejected Him as the Messiah, he had persecuted His followers.

And yet Jesus appeared to Saul on the road to Damascus, several years after He had ascended into heaven (cf. Acts 9:1-9; 22:6-11; 26:1-18).

Did Saul actually see and hear the Lord?  See 1Corinthians 9:1, Acts 9:1-7.

Note: The Greek word phone [fo-nay] translated voice, means audible sound or speech.  The most common use in the Bible is for the voice of God, humans, angels, or any audible sound in general (cf. John 3:8; Revelation 1:10-15).

Jesus provided demonstrable proof and convincing evidence through His appearing to a great number of people, recorded in the Scriptures, as Luke writes, (Acts 1:3), “After His suffering [His death by crucifixion], He showed Himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that He was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God.”

Then there is the testimony of the church, millions of changed lives throughout history (cf. John 1:12-13; 3:1-8).  Most importantly, there is the personal indwelling of the God’s Spirit, confirming your spiritual birth into God’s family [the church, the body of Christ], and the assurance of eternal life with God, while at the same time (on this side of heaven), there is the continuing process of growing in your knowledge of and relationship with God, ,while being conformed to the character and nature of Christ, in obedience to the Word of God, to glory of God the Father.

The continuing testimony of those who belong to the Lord is the witness of Christ in this present and future generations.

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.

1John 1:1-3, “What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life— and the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us— what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ.”

John was a first-hand witness to what Jesus said and did, including His death and resurrection.  John was not only an Apostle, but he was one of Christ’s most intimate followers, along with Peter and James.

John focuses on the historic reality of Jesus Christ (the God-man); while the false teachers of that time claimed belief in Christ, yet denied that He was both God and man.  John desires that all Christians form and hold to a proper view of Christ’s humanity and divinity.

Notice how John states that he (and the other Apostles) have heard, have seen, and have touched Christ.  John emphasizes how he personally looked upon and touched Jesus during His earthly ministry before and after His resurrection.

John writes via his own personal testimony, that God did come in the flesh and He did provide forgiveness and eternal life.  John declares that those who have genuine fellowship with the Father through Christ, will know, believe and teach what is recorded here.

This letter was written about 50-60 years after Christ’s death, resurrection and ascension; and yet, John has a vivid recollection of all that Jesus did, said, and was.  How is that possible (cf. John 14:15-17), “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.” (25-26), “These things I have spoken to you while abiding with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.”.

In 1John 1:1-3, John reemphasizes his own personal experiences and eyewitness accounts of Jesus’ life on earth.  This first-person testimony is very important, especially in light of all the false teachers in those days (as well as today) who arrogantly and falsely proclaim about the Christ they have never seen, heard, touched, ,or known.

You and I, as God’s people, are to testify to others about the personal and growing relationship we have with Jesus Christ, as we prayerfully communicate with God, reading, studying and applying His Word to our life, learning to trust Him for what we need and thanking Him for all that He provides.

Everyone who genuinely seeks forgiveness for their sins has eternal life and fellowship with God the Father through Christ the Son, who is the Word of God.

John 1:1-4, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.” 14, “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” 18, “No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.”

John 5:26-27, “For just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man.” 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 11:25-26, Jesus said to [Martha], “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die.”

John 14:6, “I am the [only] way [to God], the [only] truth [from God], the [only] life [with God]; [and] no one comes to the Father [is made righteous, goes to heaven, is granted forgiveness and eternal life] but through Me.”

1John 5:11-12, “And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.”

    God’s people are to be witnesses, just as was John and the other apostles were witnesses; we must be ready and willing to share the message of Christ with anyone and everyone who will listen.

God’s people are messengers; Christ is the Message.  Jesus Christ is the Bread of Life and the Living Water, and everyone who believes in Him will be saved (2Corinthians 5:18-21), “Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation,  namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, 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.”

 
Jesus Christ: Crucified, Resurrected, Coming Again!
 
 
Pastor Mike
>’(((><