3 Pentecost - Sunday C
posted
1 Kings 17:17-24 – Widow's Son Raised from Death
Psalm 30 – Restoration from Death
Galatians 1:11-24 – Paul's Apostleship
Luke 7:11-17 – Widow's Son Raised from Death
1 Kings:
Elijah had boarded with a widow of Zarephath (in Phoenicia) during a
drought (1 Kings 17:1-10a). During his stay, the widow's son became ill
and stopped breathing. The widow accused Elijah of bringing this
calamity upon her because of her sin. Elijah took the son upstairs to
his room and accused God of bringing calamity upon the widow with whom
Elijah was staying. Then Elijah stretched himself upon the son three
times and prayed that the Lord would cause the son's soul to return to
him, and the son revived. Elijah took the child down to his mother and
assured her that the child was living. The widow replied that now she
was certain that Elijah was a man of God and that the Word of God which
he spoke was true.
Psalm 30:
The psalmist (David, the shepherd-king of Israel) praised God for
healing. The Lord had not allowed the psalmist's enemies triumph over
him. He had cried to the Lord for healing, and the Lord had brought him
up out of the land of the dead, and restored him to life from among
those in the grave.
Let all those who are consecrated to the Lord's service praise him and
give thanks to his holy name. “For his anger is but for a moment, and
his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy
comes with the morning” (Psalm 30:5).
When he was prosperous, the psalmist thought he was secure in himself,
but it was by the Lord's favor that he had become established and
strong; when the Lord took away his favor, then the psalmist was
dismayed.
Then the psalmist cried to the Lord and pleaded. He asked what would be
gained by his own death; then he would no longer be able to praise the
Lord and and testify to his faithfulness. He asked the Lord to be
gracious and help him.
Then the psalmist declared: “Thou hast turned for me my mourning into
dancing; thou hast loosed my sackcloth (garb of ritual mourning) and
girded me with gladness, that my soul may praise thee and not be
silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to thee for ever” (Psalm
30:11-12).
Galatians:
Paul (Saul of Tarsus) was not preaching a Gospel devised by mankind. He
hadn't received it from humans nor had he been taught by them; he
received it directly by revelation from [the risen and ascended] Jesus
Christ. The Galatians had heard of Paul's former life in Judaism; how
he had persecuted the Church in an attempt to destroy it. Paul was
advanced in Judaism far beyond his peers because of his zeal for Jewish
tradition. But God had designated Paul before his birth to be the one
to preach Christ to the Gentiles, and in his timing, God revealed
Christ to Paul. Paul didn't go to Jerusalem to confer with the apostles
designated by Jesus during Jesus' physical ministry. Instead, Paul went
straight away to Arabia, and then returned to Damascus.
Only after three years [of preaching the Gospel] Paul went to Jerusalem
and spent fifteen days with Cephas (Peter; not enough time to be
taught). The only other disciple he saw was James, the Lord's brother.
(Paul testifies that this is the truth.) After that, he went into [the
Roman province of] Syria and Cilicia. Paul was still not recognized by
sight in the churches of Judea; they had only heard of Paul as
preaching the Christian faith he once persecuted and tried to destroy.
So they glorified God because of Paul's conversion.
Luke:
Jesus went with his disciples to the city of Nain (on the southern
border of the Roman province of Galilee), and a great crowd followed
him. As he approached the gate he encountered a funeral procession of
an only son of a widow. A large number of her fellow residents
accompanied her. The Lord [Jesus] had compassion on her and told her
not to weep. He approached the bier and touched it, and the bearers
stopped still. Jesus commanded the son to arise and he did so, and
began talking. Everyone who witnessed this was terrified, and all
glorified God. They acknowledged Jesus as a great prophet, and that God
had visited his people. This news spread throughout the entire country
of Judea and the surrounding region.
Commentary:
God has always intended, from the beginning of Creation, to establish
an eternal kingdom of his people who willingly choose to trust and obey
him. This lifetime is our one and only opportunity to seek, find, and
come to know and have fellowship with God, our Father, our Creator
(Acts 17:26-27), and our only opportunity to be spiritually “reborn”
(John 3:3, 5-8) to eternal life.
We are all born physically alive into this world, but spiritually
“unborn.” This lifetime is our only opportunity to be spiritually
“born-again.” Finding and having fellowship with God and spiritual
rebirth are only possible through faith (obedient trust) in Jesus
Christ (John 14:6), by the “baptism” of the indwelling Holy Spirit
which only Jesus gives (John 1:31-34), only to his disciples who trust
and obey Jesus (John 14:15-17). The baptism of the Holy Spirit is a
personally discernible ongoing daily event; it is impossible to be
“born-again” and “hardly know it” (Acts 19:2). The Holy Spirit is the
seal and guarantee that one is in Christ and has eternal life (2
Corinthians 1:22; Ephesians 1:13-14; Romans 8:9b, 11, 15-16).
God has been progressively revealing his plan for Creation in the Bible
through his dealings with Israel. Elijah was deliberately intended by
God to be a forerunner and illustration of Christ.
Jesus Christ has been designed into Creation from the very beginning
(John 1:1-5, 14). God has designed this world to allow for sin
(disobedience of God's Word). We have all sinned and fall short of
God's righteousness (Romans 3:23; 1 John 1:8-10). The penalty for sin
is eternal death (Romans 6:23). God loves us and doesn't want anyone to
perish eternally (Romans 5:8; John 3:16-17). Jesus is God's one and
only provision for forgiveness of our sin, and salvation from eternal
death (Acts 4:12; see God's Plan of Salvation, sidebar, right).
David was deliberately intended by God to be the forerunner and
illustration of the Christ. Jesus is the “Good Shepherd” (John 10:11),
the “Son of David” (Matthew 1:1; 21:9; 22:42), and God's
“anointed” (Messiah and Christ each mean “anointed” in Hebrew and
Greek, respectively) eternal savior and king.
Our spiritual enemies are sin, death and Satan. Only Jesus can deliver
us from our spiritual enemies. I personally testify that when I was
beset by my spiritual enemies, I cried to the Lord and he delivered me;
he healed me spiritually and delivered me from spiritual death to
eternal life.
I had trusted in my own ability, and I thought that my success was my
own achievement, not realizing that it was only by God's favor. When he
withdrew his favor, I suffered. That was a great blessing, because I
came to know that I needed God's favor. I was able to repent and turn
to the Lord in faith (obedient trust). The Lord heard my prayer and my
supplication. He was gracious to me and helped me. He literally turned
my mourning in dancing and girded me with gladness.
Paul was deliberately intended by God to be the forerunner and
illustration of a “modern, post-resurrection, “born-again” disciple
(student) and apostle (messenger; of the Gospel) of Jesus Christ, as
all of us can be. Paul was God's choice to replace Judas Iscariot,
Jesus' betrayer (not Matthias: Acts 1:15-26).
I claim to be the fulfillment of the promise of God through Paul. The
Gospel that I preach is by revelation from the risen and ascended Jesus
Christ, who confronted me with my sin on the road of life and converted
me. My Gospel is not devised or taught me by mankind but by revelation
by the risen and ascended Jesus. I haven't conferred with leaders of
the Church, nor been validated by them. The Bible is my validation:
read it!
Jesus is the fulfillment of the promise foretold in Elijah (Luke 7:16).
Jesus is the only one who can restore us from physical death to eternal
life.
The widow of Nain believed that Elijah was a man of God, but her faith
became certainty as she trusted in him (compare John 6:68-69).
Is Jesus your Lord? Are you Jesus' disciple? Are you trusting and
obeying Jesus? Have you received the indwelling Holy Spirit since you
first truly believed (Acts 19:2)? Are you making disciples of Jesus
Christ and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commands (Matthew
28:18-20)? Do you know with certainty where you will spend eternity (1
John 5:11-13; Ephesians 1:13-14)?
3 Pentecost - Monday C
posted
Psalm 32 – Thanksgiving for Healing
(This psalm is attributed to David, the great human shepherd-king of Israel)
The psalmist testifies that the those whose sin is forgiven and
forgotten are blessed. Those who the Lord does not judge as sinful and
deceitful are blessed.
The psalmist testifies that he was afflicted with suffering and wasted
away when he did not acknowledge his sinfulness. God's hand was heavily
upon him, causing him to groan day and night; his strength was
died up [like dew] by the summer heat.
Then he acknowledged his sin and did not conceal his iniquity. He
decided to confess his sin to the Lord, and the Lord forgave him of
guilt for his sin.
So let all who are godly (who emulate God's nature) pray to the Lord.
In times of troubles, when assailed as in a flood, they shall not be
swept away. The Lord is a hiding place and refuge for us. He preserves
us from trouble and surrounds us with deliverance.
Let me instruct and teach you in the right way; I will keep my eye on you and offer you my counsel.
Don't be like a mule or a horse which doesn't understand; which must be restrained by bit and bridle, or it will not cooperate.
Many are the pangs of the wicked; but those who trust in the Lord are
surrounded by his steadfast love. Let the righteous (those who do what
is good, right and true, according to God's Word), and those who are
upright in their innermost selves, rejoice and be glad; let them shout
for joy [in the Lord].
Commentary:
David was deliberately intended by God to prefigure and illustrate the
Messiah (Christ), God's “anointed” eternal Savior and King, Jesus
Christ. I concur with my namesake's testimony; it has been my own
personal experience. The Lord is willing and abundantly able to forgive
and forget our sins [disobedience of God's Word in the Bible and in
Jesus Christ, who is the fulfillment, embodiment, and illustration of
God's Word lived in human flesh in this world (John 1:14)].
We have all sinned and fall short of God's standard of righteousness
(Romans 3:23; 1 John 1:8-10) and the penalty for sin is [eternal] death
(Romans 6:23). If we deny our sin we will only go from bad to worse.
Only when we recognize and confess our sin can we be spiritually healed
and restored to eternal life and fellowship with God our Creator
(Acts 17:26-27). Jesus is God's one and only provision for our
forgiveness and eternal salvation (Acts 4:12), and our only way to know
divine eternal truth and have fellowship with God our Father (John
14:6; see God's Plan of Salvation, sidebar, right).
The Lord Jesus Christ is the only refuge that is eternally secure. In
times of trouble we can call to him and he will protect, preserve and
deliver us. I testify that this has been my personal experience.
Let me [or any truly “born-again” (John 3:3, 5-8) disciple (student)
and apostle (messenger; of the Gospel)] teach new believers. New
believers are to be “discipled” by born-again disciples within the
[true] Church (the modern equivalent of “Jerusalem,” the City of God:
Luke 24:49; Acts 1:4-5, 8 ), until they have been born-again [the
Apostle Paul is the Biblical example (Acts 9:10-18)] before going into
the world with the Gospel (Acts 9:20).
Is Jesus your Lord? Are you Jesus' disciple? Are you trusting and
obeying Jesus? Have you received the indwelling Holy Spirit since you
first truly believed (Acts 19:2)? Are you making disciples of Jesus
Christ and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commands (Matthew
28:18-20)? Do you know with certainty where you will spend eternity (1
John 5:11-13; Ephesians 1:13-14)?
3 Pentecost - Tuesday C
posted
2 Samuel 11:26-12:10, 13-15 – Speaking Truth to Power
Background:
King David had committed adultery with Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah the
Hittite, who became pregnant (2 Samuel 11:1-5). Then to avoid public
censure, David had Uriah killed in battle (2 Samuel 11:14-21).
Text Paraphrase:
When Bathsheba heard that her husband was dead she mourned for him, and
when the period of mourning was finished, David had her brought to him
and she became his wife and delivered the son conceived in adultery.
But what David had done displeased the Lord.
So the Lord sent Nathan the prophet to David, and Nathan told David the
parable of a ewe (female) lamb. There was a rich man who had many
flocks and herds, and a poor man who had only a single ewe. The ewe was
regarded as a member of the poor man's family; she ate and slept with
the poor man. The rich man had a guest visiting, and was unwilling to
take one of his own lambs to prepare for dinner for his guest, so he
took the poor man's lamb. When David heard this he became angry with
the obvious injustice, and he told Nathan that the man who had done so
deserved to die, and should restore 4 lambs to the poor man for the
rich man's deed and his lack of pity.
Then Nathan told David that David was that rich man. Nathan declared
the Word of the Lord that God had anointed David to be King of Israel.
God had delivered him out of the hand of King Saul (David's
predecessor) and had given David Saul's house and Saul's wives, (as was
the custom of the time; 2 Samuel 16:21-22; 1 Kings 2:17-25). God had
given David the house of Israel and the house of Judah; and if all that
were not enough God would have doubled that. Why then had David
despised God's Word and done what was evil in God's judgment? David had
taken Uriah's wife and had caused Uriah's death by the sword of the
Ammonites. So God declared that David's house would never be free of
strife, because David had disregarded God and had taken Bathsheba as
his wife.
Then David confessed to Nathan that he had sinned against the Lord, and
Nathan pronounced David's absolution: God had forgiven David's sin and
David would not die for it, but that the son born of adultery would
die, because by that deed of adultery, David had utterly scorned the
Lord. Then Nathan returned to his house. And the Lord struck the child
of David's adultery and it became sick.
Commentary:
Speaking truth to power is a risky business. The king could have had Nathan killed on the spot.
Moreover, our human nature makes us think that whatever we do is
alright. What we would recognize as obvious injustice in the behavior
of others is not easy for us to recognize and acknowledge in ourselves.
No matter how much we have, we always seem to want more. Material
possessions and worldly accomplishments can never truly satisfy.
Our eternal salvation depends upon God's forgiveness, and that
forgiveness is only through faith (obedient trust) in Jesus Christ. The
body and blood of Jesus shed on the cross is the only sacrifice
acceptable to God for our forgiveness and salvation. God has appointed
Jesus to be the judge and the standard of judgment by which all
will be judged.
We have all sinned and fall short of God's righteousness (Romans 3:23;
1 John 1:8-10), and the penalty for sin (disobedience of God's Word, in
the Bible and in Jesus Christ, the “living Word;” John 1:14) is
[eternal] death (Romans 6:23). Jesus is God's only provision for our
forgiveness and salvation (Acts 4:12; see God's Plan of Salvation,
sidebar, right).
Unless we recognize and acknowledge our sinfulness, we cannot receive
God's forgiveness. But too often in society and even in the Church
today people are unwilling to hear talk about sin, death, and hell.
People were no different in Israel in the time of Jesus' physical
ministry. Jesus spoke truth to the people in Nazareth, Jesus' hometown,
and they thought his teachings were so offensive that they tried to
throw him off a cliff (Luke 4:16-30). As a result Jesus moved to
Capernaum. The people lost the benefit of the teaching and healing only
Jesus can provide (Matthew 13:54-58).
Paul told Timothy that the time would come when people would not
endure sound teaching but would get for themselves teachers who would
“tickle their ears” with teachings to their liking (2 Timothy 4:3-4),
settling for myths rather than truth. That time has come!
Jesus is Truth (John 14:6)! Unless we are willing to hear unpleasant
truths about ourselves, we cut ourselves off from the source of truth
and the Spirit of truth, the Holy Spirit, which only Jesus gives (John
1:31-34), only to his disciples who trust and obey Jesus (John
14:15-17).
Like David, we all deserve to die eternally, but God loves us and
doesn't want us to perish eternally (Romans 5:8; John 3:16-17) and he
will forgive our sin and give us eternal life. But our sins may cause
earthly consequences that cannot be undone and we may have to live with
those consequences.
I didn't repent and come to saving faith in Jesus until midlife. Up to
then, I had done a lot of things which seemed right to me at the time,
but of which I'm now ashamed. How much better it would have been for me
to have come to be spiritually “born-again” (John 3:3, 5-8) earlier in
my life, so that I wouldn't have so many shameful regrets, and would
have had more time to do the one thing in life which has eternal value:
proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Is Jesus your Lord? Are you Jesus' disciple? Are you trusting and
obeying Jesus? Have you received the indwelling Holy Spirit since you
first truly believed (Acts 19:2)? Are you making disciples of Jesus
Christ and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commands (Matthew
28:18-20)? Do you know with certainty where you will spend eternity (1
John 5:11-13; Ephesians 1:13-14)?
3 Pentecost - Wednesday C
posted
Galatians 2:11-21 – Justified by Faith
When Cephas (the Aramaic equivalent for “Peter;” the head of the
Church) came from Jerusalem to Antioch (in central Asia Minor; present
day Turkey) Paul rebuked him because Peter was guilty (of insincerity).
Before certain men came from James (from the Church headquarters in
Jerusalem; the leader of the question of Gentile converts: Acts
15:13-29: 21:18-24), Peter had been eating with the Gentiles (not
according to Jewish dietary laws), but when the men arrived he withdrew
from table fellowship with Gentiles, for fear of the “circumcision
party” (Judaizers; a Christian faction who insisted that Gentile
Christians must be circumcised and keep the Law of Moses). The other
Jews followed Peter's example and also acted insincerely. But Paul
rebuked Peter in front of the entire group, when he saw that Peter was
not being honest about the Gospel truth. Paul told him that if Peter,
who was born a Jew, lived like a Gentile (not under the Law of Moses)
how could he compel Gentiles to live like Jews? “We ourselves, who are
Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners, yet who know that a [person] is
not justified (reckoned righteous) by works (keeping) of the law but
through faith in Jesus Christ, even we have have believed in Christ
Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ, and not by works of
the law, because by works of the law will no flesh be justified”
(Galatians 2:15-16). If in trying to be justified by faith in Christ,
we are guilty of breaking the Law of Moses, does that make Christ an
agent of sin? Certainly not! But we become transgressors if we rebuild
the things which have been torn down (the restrictions of the Law).
Paul had died to the Law so that he could live to serve God. He (and
we) have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer we who live, but
Christ who lives within us; we now live in the flesh by faith in God's
Son, who loved us and sacrificed himself for us. Let us not nullify the
grace (unmerited favor; free gift) of God, for then Christ will have
died for no reason, if justification were by keeping the Law.
Commentary:
Judaizers were present in the first-century Church and they are present
today. We can't earn our way into heaven by doing certain “good deeds.”
Salvation from eternal condemnation is a free gift to be received by
faith (obedient trust; Ephesians 2:8-10). Saving faith is acting upon
what we profess in Jesus Christ according to the Bible.
Insincerity is contagious. If Church leaders practice insincerity so
will their parishioners (Galatians 2:13). I have personally witnessed
this phenomenon. Note that Jesus is truth (John 14:6; 15-17) and that
we cannot have fellowship with Jesus unless we are committed to truth.
If we believe (trust and obey) Jesus we are freed from the restrictions
of the Law so that we live according to the guidance and empowerment of
the “baptism” of the indwelling Holy Spirit (Romans 8:1-13), which only
Jesus gives (John 1:31-34), only to his disciples who trust and obey
Jesus (John 14:15-17). The Law was intended to restrain us by fear of
punishment until the coming of the Holy Spirit. By the Holy Spirit we
are enabled to fulfill the Law from love rather than from fear.
Is Jesus your Lord? Are you Jesus' disciple? Are you trusting and
obeying Jesus? Have you received the indwelling Holy Spirit since you
first truly believed (Acts 19:2)? Are you making disciples of Jesus
Christ and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commands (Matthew
28:18-20)? Do you know with certainty where you will spend eternity (1
John 5:11-13; Ephesians 1:13-14)?
3 Pentecost - Thursday C
posted
Luke 7:36-50 – Anointing at Bethany
Background:
According to Matthew (Mt 26:6-13), Mark (Mark 14:3-9) and John (John
12:1-8), this incident took place in Bethany during the week before
Jesus' crucifixion, at the home of Simon the Leper, a Pharisee or at
the home of Lazarus. John's account reports that the woman was Mary of
Bethany. There's no evidence to identify the woman as Mary Magdalene.
Text Paraphrase:
A Pharisee asked Jesus to have dinner with him, and as Jesus sat at
table a woman of the city, a sinner, heard where Jesus was and came
with an alabaster flask of ointment. From behind him at his feet, she
wept and began washing Jesus' feet with her tears and drying them with
her hair. Then she kissed his feet and anointed them with ointment. The
Pharisee thought to himself that if Jesus were a prophet he would have
known the sort of woman who was touching him, because she was a sinner.
Jesus knew Simon's thoughts and began to tell him a parable (a
fictional story of a common earthly experience to teach spiritual
truth). Jesus said that a creditor had two debtors; one owed fifty
denarii and the other five hundred. When neither could pay he forgave
them both. Which debtor would love the creditor more? The Pharisee said
that the one who had been forgiven more would be more grateful, and
Jesus affirmed his judgment. Then Jesus told him to look at the woman.
Simon hadn't given Jesus water to wash his feet, hadn't greeted him
with at kiss, or anointed Jesus' head with olive oil, as was the custom
of honoring a guest. But the woman had washed Jesus' feet with her
tears, dried them with her hair, and anointed them with ointment. Her
love expressed in these gestures indicates that she knows she has been
forgiven much; but he who feels little need for forgiveness love
little. Then Jesus told the woman that her sins were forgiven, and the
guests at the table began to question among them selves who Jesus was,
who presumes to forgive sin. Jesus told the woman to go in peace; her
faith had saved her (from eternal condemnation).
Commentary:
Simon didn't feel that he needed forgiveness; he believed that he had
“earned salvation” by keeping the Law of Moses; by doing “good deeds.”
He didn't consider himself a sinner. There are people like that in the
world and even in the nominal Church today. They think that they don't
need forgiveness because they don't rob and murder. They think they can
earn salvation by keeping the Jewish dietary and sabbath laws.
The truth is that we have all sinned and fall short of God's
righteousness, exemplified in Jesus Christ (Romans 3:23; 1 John
1:8-10), and the penalty for sin (disobedience of God's Word, in the
Bible and in Jesus Christ, the “living Word:” John 1:14). is [eternal]
death. God loves us and doesn't want any to perish eternally, but for
all to live eternally in God's Kingdom restored to paradise in heaven
(Romans 5:8; John 3:16-17). Jesus Christ is God's one and only
provision for our forgiveness and salvation (Acts 4:12), which he
designed into Creation from the very beginning (John 1:1-5, 14; see
God's Plan of Salvation, sidebar, right).
The spiritual truth is that by attempting to earn salvation by doing
good works (Galatians 2:16), one loses the benefit of Christ's
sacrifice on the cross (Galatians 5:2-4).
Is Jesus your Lord? Are you Jesus' disciple? Are you trusting and
obeying Jesus? Have you received the indwelling Holy Spirit since you
first truly believed (Acts 19:2)? Are you making disciples of Jesus
Christ and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commands (Matthew
28:18-20)? Do you know with certainty where you will spend eternity (1
John 5:11-13; Ephesians 1:13-14)?
3 Pentecost - Friday C
posted
1 Peter 5:6-11 – Exhortations
Let us humble ourselves under God's mighty hand, so that in due time he
will exalt us. Let us cast all our worries on him, for he cares about
us. Our enemy, Satan, prowls around like a roaring lion looking for
prey to devour, so let us be sober and watchful. Knowing that suffering
will be required of all Christians, let us keep firm in faith, and
resist him. After we have suffered a little while, God who is
completely gracious toward us (freely giving us his undeserved favor)
will personally restore, establish and strengthen us. May he reign
eternally over all things. So be it.
Commentary:
If we understand who God is and our proper relationship to God we will
humble ourselves to him. The problem is that mankind wants to be “like
God” (Genesis 3:5 RSV). That was one of the temptations that led to the
fall of mankind in the Garden of Eden.
God is God alone; he will tolerate no other. But he is forbearing
toward us. He gives us time to learn by trial and error that he alone
is God and there is help in no other god. If we want to be our own
“god” he will let us try, but sooner or later we will run out of
resources.
Anything we worship as much or more than God is idolatry. Some modern
idols are success, fame, money, power, home, family, and pleasure.
There are many things in this world we can worry about. If we try to
establish our own security through accumulating wealth, material
possessions, burglar alarms, panic rooms, gated communities, and so
forth, we will discover that security always takes just a little more
than we have. On the other hand if we trust in the Lord for our
security we don't have to worry. Whatever happens, we and our loved
ones are safe in the Lord. The Lord can bring us through whatever
troubles we encounter.
We need to remember that our real enemy is Satan. He looks for an
opportune moments to tempt us, so we have to be on guard. We need to be
sober in the figurative sense of being serious, and we need to remember
that our judgment and inhibitions are lowered when we drink alcohol. We
need to persevere in faith and resist temptation. We need to be in
daily fellowship with the Lord through devotional Bible reading,
mediation and prayer, so that we have the spiritual resources to
recognize traps set for us by Satan, and to resist temptation.
All Christians are going to have to endure suffering for the Gospel.
The World hates Jesus, and his disciples cannot expect better
treatment. God uses suffering to teach us that he is able and faithful
to bring us through, and to develop our perseverance.
Is Jesus your Lord? Are you Jesus' disciple? Are you trusting and
obeying Jesus? Have you received the indwelling Holy Spirit since you
first truly believed (Acts 19:2)? Are you making disciples of Jesus
Christ and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commands (Matthew
28:18-20)? Do you know with certainty where you will spend eternity (1
John 5:11-13; Ephesians 1:13-14)?
3 Pentecost - Saturday C
posted
Luke 15:1-10 – Parables about the Lost
Tax collectors and sinners were coming to Jesus to hear his teaching,
and the Pharisees and scribes criticized Jesus among themselves that
Jesus was welcoming sinners and eating with them.
Knowing their criticism, Jesus told them a parable about a lost sheep.
If a man had a hundred sheep and one got lost, wouldn't the man leave
the other ninety-nine in the wilderness and seek the one lost sheep
until he found it. And when he found the lost sheep he brought it back,
rejoicing, carrying it on his shoulders. When he got home, he called
his friends and neighbors together to celebrate that the lost sheep had
been found. Likewise, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner
who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who need no
repentance.
Similarly, if a woman has ten silver coins and loses one, won't
she light a lamp and sweep her house, searching diligently for it until
she finds it? And when she finds it she will invite her friends and
neighbors to celebrate with her, for having found the lost coin. So
also there will be great rejoicing in heaven over one repentant sinner.
Commentary:
Tax collectors were Jewish collaborators with the occupying Roman
government, and were detested by their fellow Jews. Pharisees were a
strict legalistic party of Jewish leaders, and scribes were teachers of
the Law of Moses on which the Old Covenant was based.
Scribes and Pharisees considered themselves righteous by keeping the
Law of Moses, but they only kept certain parts of the Law (Luke
11:42-52). They thought they didn't need to repent, and that they
were justified in criticizing the perfect sinless Son of God (Hebrews
4:15). They didn't rejoice that “sinners” were coming to Jesus and
repenting and being saved.
We are all lost sheep. We have all sinned and fall short of God's
standard of righteousness (Romans 3:23; 1 John 1:8-10). The penalty for
sin (disobedience of God's Word) is [eternal] death (Romans 6:23). God
loves us and doesn't want anyone to perish eternally (Romans 5:8; John
3:16-17). Jesus is God's one and only provision for our forgiveness and
salvation (Acts 4:12; John 14:6; see God's Plan of Salvation, sidebar,
right). In order to be saved we must acknowledge our sin, repent, and
turn to faith (obedient trust) in Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.
Jesus personally seeks us in our “lostness” and he will lovingly carry
us back to his “flock” if we allow him. I personally testify that when
I was “lost” I considered myself “good.” Then in the wilderness of
spiritual lostness, I experienced spiritual danger. I realized I wasn't
so “good” after all. Jesus found me where I was, and was patient with
me until I was willing to trust him to carry me back.
It isn't those who call Jesus their Lord who are saved (Matthew
7:21-27) but those who become obedient to God's Word (Luke 6:46),
revealed in the Bible and in Jesus Christ, the “living Word,” God's
Word fulfilled, embodied, and exemplified (John 1:14).
Calling ourselves Christians doesn't make it so. A Christian is a
disciple who is “born-again” (John 3:3, 5-8) by the “baptism” of the
indwelling Holy Spirit which only Jesus gives (John 1:31-34), only to
his disciples who trust and obey Jesus (John 14:15-17). The “baptism”
of the indwelling Holy Spirit is a personally discernible ongoing daily
event (Acts 19:2). The Holy Spirit is the seal and guarantee that one
is in Christ and has eternal life (2 Corinthians 1:22; Ephesians
1:13-14; Romans 8:9b, 11, 15-16).
Is Jesus your Lord? Are you Jesus' disciple? Are you trusting and
obeying Jesus? Have you received the indwelling Holy Spirit since you
first truly believed (Acts 19:2)? Are you making disciples of Jesus
Christ and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commands (Matthew
28:18-20)? Do you know with certainty where you will spend eternity (1
John 5:11-13; Ephesians 1:13-14)?