O, Jerusalem!

 Luke 13:28-13:35

Last week we looked at the verses of Luke 13 immediately before verse 28, and it ended with Jesus’ image of a door to a house or courtyard as a picture of what is required for salvation. We talked about how the door was the only way in, how it was insufficient just to know about the door – you had to actually enter in, how the door was narrow, how once you have entered the door you are in once for all, and how the door will shut, and once it is shut, it will not be open again. Kristin mentioned a good point to me after the service – that a narrow door is one in which you have to go single file. You certainly can’t get in your fancy car, roll up the tinted windows, and have your driver drive you through the door! You alone have to do it. And as we talked about last week, the way we enter the door is through faith in Jesus Christ.

Repent or Perish

Luke 12:57 - 13:27

The title of my message this week is “Repent or Perish.” This is not a particularly pleasant title. Now when I create message titles, I simply try to find a few words that summarizes the gist of the entire passage; this week, “Repent or Perish” seemed to fit our verses from Luke 12 and 13 quite well. But I don’t normally give any thought to the fact that the message title will also be put on the sign outside. Gail called me about the title this week and asked if she could also put the verses in, which she did. She also jokingly suggested an alternative title: “Turn or Burn.”

One of the things I find really interesting about our passage this week is that what first looks like a series of independent little stories and events actually flows together into one grand sweeping theme. Hopefully you will see this as we go through these verses today. Now, last week, we made it as far as Luke 12:56. I want to go back a bit, to verse 54, because even the beginning of today’s passage flows from this previous passage.

Watchfulness

Luke 12:35-56 

Last week we heard part of a lengthy teaching Jesus was giving to a particular crowd recorded in the middle of Luke 12. There was an emphasis on two things, greed and worry. We also looked at some verses from Haggai 1 that looked as if it were written solely for us today. In this passage, God’s people were condemned for focusing on building their own fine houses while they left God’s house in ruins. I gave a challenging list of four Biblical purposes for money, derived from some materials by Mark Darling, a pastor in one of our sister churches:

1. Your money is to support you as God’s missionary and God’s servant to meet your needs.
2. Your money is for you to support God’s work on Earth, and in particular, the local church.
3. Your money is for you to win others and influence them for Christ.
4. Your money is to help God’s people in need.

Rich and Richer

Luke 12:13-34 

If you have been receiving emails from the church this week, you have been hearing about the crisis in Mongolia. Western media has hardly mentioned this at all, but Mongolia had national elections last week, and there were accusations of unfair practices at the ballot boxes. The accusations rose into a full scale riot. The party headquarters of one of the two major political parties was burned as was a cultural antiquities building that contained priceless artifacts. Several people were killed and hundreds were injured.

But there was something else going on that I found far more serious. Tom Terry is a Christian, an American living in Mongolia, who has been doing something I find really awesome for Christ. He has created a private, non-government TV news network that broadcasts throughout Mongolia called Eagle TV. Eagle TV provides unbiased news of Mongolia to Mongolians as well as producing a large number of Christian shows, mostly focused on teaching Mongolians the Bible. It is beginning to have a huge impact in Mongolia.

Do Not Fear

Luke 12:1-12, Psalm 145 

In a little while, we will remember the Lord through the bread and the cup and after this have a sharing time, where we all gather in a circle and anyone can share what the Lord has been showing and teaching them. First though, I would like to briefly say a few things about our passage for this week from Luke, chapter 12, verses 1 through 12. I then will have us read through Psalm 145 in preparation for remembering the Lord through the bread and the cup. Here is how Luke 12 begins:

Meanwhile, when a crowd of many thousands had gathered, so that they were trampling on one another, Jesus began to speak first to His disciples, saying: "Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the roofs. – Luke 12:1-3

Hypocrisy

Luke 11:33-54 

I have titled today’s passage “Hypocrisy,” because that is a major theme of the verses we will investigate today. What is hypocrisy? A simple definition gives a hypocrite as a person who pretends to be better than he really is.

Even fairly young children learn pretty quickly how to be hypocrites. They love to point out when their siblings have done something wrong, and they love to ask questions like, “Why does he do it, Mommy? I would never do that!” But although children learn quickly how to be hypocrites, learning how to cover up for the hypocrisy of someone else is a talent that takes much longer to master. I think the following anonymous little story illustrates this quite well.

"One day when they had guests for dinner, Mother asked 4-year old Johnny to give thanks for the food. “But I don’t know what to say!” the boy complained. “Oh, just say what you hear me say,” his mother replied. Obediently the boy bowed his head and mumbled, “Oh, Lord, why did I invite these people over?”

Hear and Obey

Luke 11:14-32

Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute. When the demon left, the man who had been mute spoke, and the crowd was amazed. But some of them said, "By Beelzebub, the prince of demons, he is driving out demons." Others tested him by asking for a sign from heaven. – Luke 11:14-16

We have been going through the Gospel of Luke, line by line, chapter by chapter, and we have seen a lot of miracles. I think it is easy, over time, to become somewhat numb to reality of these events. For example, in this passage, it is really easy to skip over the miracle and move on into the discussion that follows without really appreciating what has just taken place. Let’s look at this miracle more closely.

We have a man who was mute, unable to speak. Based on this passage, we can say that this man had been mute for a very long time and was simply known as a mute man. Perhaps nobody in that crowd who knew this man could remember a time when this man could speak.

Why Pray?

Luke 11:1-13

Today, as we look at thirteen verses from the Book of Luke on prayer, I want to start with a somewhat provocative quotation:

“Anything worth doing is worth doing poorly.” – G. K. Chesterton

What do you think of it? On one hand, I totally agree with it – in many areas of life, it is better to do something poorly than to not do it at all. This is especially true for things we need to practice to become better at, such as playing the violin. In the history of the world, I think it is safe to say that everybody, even the world’s greatest violin virtuosi, started playing the violin by playing it poorly. And about 95% of us who worked at it for a while ended up playing better, but still rather poorly. The violin is a tough instrument to master.

Love Who?

Luke 10:21-42 

Verses 21 through 24 of Luke 10 are some of my favorite verses in the Bible. Let’s get right to it!

At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure. – Luke 10:21

Why is this one of my favorite passages? Because it says that Jesus is filled with joy at the thought of how simple, regular people come to faith. Although some people might conclude from the fact that I am a university professor that I might be wise and learned, when it comes to faith, I am a simple, regular person. I came to faith because simple, regular people prayed for me and shared Jesus’ love with me. To come to faith in Christ I had to renounce my own wisdom and wisdom of this world and admit that I didn’t have it all together. I had to admit that I was a pathetic sinner, addicted to sin. I had to admit my total need for and dependence on Jesus to save me. And even these truths were not things I came up with on my own – they were revealed by God to me. And Jesus is full of joy because He has seen the Father do this for me. Jesus is full of joy – overflowing with joy – because He has seen the Father do this for you! Doesn’t that make you feel good?

How To Rejoice

Luke 10:1-20

Welcome! In a few minutes we will take the bread and the cup to help us remember that the Lord Jesus died for us, taking the punishment that we deserve for our sins, and doing this so that we could spend an eternity not separated from God but with Him, enjoying Him, worshiping Him forever. When I say that Jesus died for us, I don’t mean “us” in an abstract sense, as in people in general, but I mean each particular one of us. I mean me, and I mean you.

Communion, remembering Jesus with the bread and the cup, was not a church practice that became a tradition over time, like having a church meeting on Sunday mornings, but was something Jesus Himself instituted with His disciples. He did not specify a frequency, but because we are a forgetful people, and because we are a fickle people, it makes sense that we should do it often. There are indications in the Bible that the early disciples did it quite often.