A
STUDY OF THE BOOK OF LUKE
Jesus
is Coming No Doubt About it
Luke
17 SCC 6/26/16
While
He was on the way to Jerusalem, He was passing between Samaria and Galilee
v 11.
DISCIPLES MUST ASSUME FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR THEIR
SPIRITUAL WALK
This is done in at least four ways:
Don’t participate in leading a believer astray 1-2
First, even though
it is inevitable that new believers (one of these little ones) will sin (stumble) be sure you are not the cause
of it. It’s possible that temptation to defect spiritually can even come from
within God’s household. The warning is tat whoever leads one into sin is
subject to God’s wrath v 2. A harsh death would be better for this one than
what he or she will receive from God. The seriousness of teaching other
disciples and guiding them properly is implied in this warning.
Rebuke a sinning believer; quick to forgive when he
repents 3-4
If
your brother (a believer who is part of your circle of
influence, your network) sins, rebuke
him; and if he repents, forgive him no matter how many times he does it and
even if it’s against you. So you have a responsibility to rebuke a sinner in
your network and a responsibility to forgive one who repents. You become the
sinning brother, if you don’t rebuke him and forgive him. The emphasis here is
on the one who does some evil against you, and asks for forgiveness. Be sure
you always forgive such a one because that’s what you want God to do for you forgive us our debts as we forgive our
debtors.
Pursue
the development of faith 5-6
The apostles ask, Increase our faith. A little bit of genuine faith can accomplish a
great deal. Mustard seed faith can
uproot and replant a mulberry tree. But
it’s not just having faith in God to do what you ask, it’s placing your faith
in what God is doing. You can uproot a mulberry tree and plant it in the sea. Nor
can you move a mountain. Moses would not be able to either. But he could part
the Red Sea. Why? Because that’s what God was doing. Moses would not be able to
part the Nile River. But he could bring about frogs covering the land of Egypt.
Why? Because that’s what God was doing. If you had faith like a
mustard seed, you could do
anything that God is doing.
NB:
Increasing faith is the result of faith that leans in the direction of Gods
priorities. Things like a righteous life, making disciples, preparing believers
for heaven, increasing the eternal net worth of Christ followers, going beyond
Jesus’ commands, spiritual maturity, are consistent with what God is doing.
Applying faith into these priorities allows one’s faith to bear fruit that
moves mulberry trees and mountains. Demonstrable and powerful outcomes which
are the direct result of faith applied to and leaning in the direction of what
it is God is doing. Our struggle comes from applying faith to what it is we are
doing and assuming that is what God is doing or misunderstanding what he is
doing. God has not promised to heal us today yet many believe so and are
disappointed otherwise. Faith leaning toward healing is not faith applied to
what Go dis doing today. Using the excuse that one just does not have enough
faith then is disingenuous and misinformed.
Determine to go beyond what is just expected 7-10
First,
we are seen as God’s slaves not His employee’s v 7. We are not working for Him,
doing a ministry for Him, after which our time is our own. The slave must serve
his master before taking care of himself v 8. He is not thanked for doing his
duty v 9. Second, serving God
includes keeping His commands, but it is not defined by those commands. It is
defined by keeping all His desires. If we define our relationship with God as
keeping His commands, we are unworthy
slaves [that is we are unworthy of heavenly rewards, because] we have done only that which we ought to
have done. The point is that the slave is considered unworthy because he
did what he was supposed to do and no more.
PT:
We will not increase our faith by only doing the things God commands us to do.
Jesus’ response to the disciples’ request to increase their faith was to do
more than keep the commandments. If we just do what we are commanded, we should
consider ourselves unworthy slaves. We
must please the heart of God not just obey the commandments of God. That is
done by going beyond a commands intent by applying the heart behind it. David
was a find after God’s own heart. He went beyond the commands of God and
discerned the heart behind it without violating those commands. He simply
pleased God (2 Cor 5:9-10).
ANYONE
WHO APPROACHES GOD FOR MERCY WILL RECEIVE IT
Verse
11-14: Jesus responded to the lepers request for mercy
(unmerited favor). So come to God as one
who needs mercy, not one who deserves something. Had a friend in college
who always prayed for God’s grace and mercy to be shown to him. This is a godly
desire and one we should pursue in our spiritual walk. We want God’s grace
Verse
15-19: Jesus commended the Samaritan foreigner who gave glory
to God. Apparently faith that gives glory to God is better than faith that just
obeys God and anybody can benefit. Verse 19 your
faith has made you well was true of all of the 10 lepers. But Jesus pointed
out the faith of the one who also returned and glorified God. So take time to Give glory to God.
PT: We should encourage people who go beyond
what they have been told to do and take time to give glory to God. In this
passage Jesus commanded them to go and show themselves to the priests, yet He
commends the one who returned to give glory to God. In other words, one comes
to the conclusion that what God has said or done is true. Gradually, Jesus
healing ministry convinced the apostles that what Jesus was saying was true and
that motivated them to believe what Jesus said. In the case of the leper, he
gave glory to God.
JESUS
KINGDOM WILL APPEAR QUICKLY WHEN HE RETURNS
Here we have a discourse similar to “The
Olivet Discourse” in Matthew 24-25 but this discourse was given months earlier
as they were entering the Samaritan hill country moving toward Jerusalem.
Verse
20-21: Jesus told the Pharisees the kingdom of God is in your midst, referring to Himself v 20. They
refused to see what Jesus had clearly demonstrated already—that He is
inaugurating God’s kingdom. But there is also more to be expected v 21. The
point is the Kingdom of God is not coming gradually. We will not see it
gradually take over the world. Just the opposite. The Antichrist’s kingdom will
gradually take over the world and the coming of Christ will destroy it and set
up the Kingdom of God suddenly. The second coming will be sudden, unexpected,
and public, not gradual, predictable, or private.
Verse 22-25:
We long to see Jesus and there are many cults and crazy people who will say Look there! Look here! But we are to
understand that the second coming will be a globally verifiable event, not a
personal private or cultic event. He said not to believe
anyone with extra-biblical claims about His second coming because just like the lightning, when it flashes out
of one part of the sky, shines to the other part of the sky, so will the Son of
Man be in His day v 24. The Second Coming will be, like all of God’s miracles,
an objectively verifiable event. Beforehand, He told the disciples He
must suffer many things and be rejected referring to His death on the
cross. by this generation v 25.
Verse
26-30: He said that on earth it will be like the
days of Noah and Lot when people increased their immorality and were unaware of
what was coming v 26-29. This does not only mean that the coming of Christ will
be sudden but it will also be at a time of extreme evil on the earth, as in the
days of Noah before that flood (Gen 6:5-6) and the time of the immorality of
the Sodom at the time of Lot (Gen 18:20).
The only time in history the world
has ever been more immoral than it is today is in the days of Noah just before
the flood v 30.
Verse
31-37: He gives two (two people in bed, and two women
grinding) and a third (the two men in the field verse 36) examples where one will be taken and the other will be
left. In the Matthew “Olivet Discourse” is seems that the one taken is the
unbeliever, the one left is left to go into the Millennial Kingdom, but here it
is not clear which is the believer. Whether the believer is the one taken or
left this describes the separation at the
Second Coming where one goes into the Kingdom the other to judgment. The
statement Whoever seeks to keep his life
will lose it v 34, seems to refer
to those who seek to keep their life by joining into the antichrists
tribulation economy. The one who loses
his life is martyred during the tribulation and he will preserve it because he will be in the Millennial Kingdom with
Christ.
This
is not the Rapture of 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18:
1. The second coming action is down, from
heaven to earth, the rapture action is up from earth.
2. In the second coming Jesus comes in a
cloud, in the rapture we go to a cloud.
3. The second coming is about unbelievers;
the rapture is about the church.
4. The Second Coming is about the wrath of
God; the rapture is about the grace of God.
5. The Second Coming is a time of terror; the
rapture is a time of comfort.
6. The Second Coming is followed by the
Millennial Kingdom for Israel on earth; the rapture is not.
7. The Second Coming is about judgment for
unbelievers; the rapture is about rewards for believers.
8. The Second Coming is not an imminent event
but many signs; the rapture is a sudden imminent event.
Verse
37: The question is appropriate. When Jesus returns he will
return somewhere. The image of vultures shows that judgment occurs where death
reigns. For those unprepared that day will be one of judgment not bliss. All
will see the judgments horrific finality. It will too late for them. While this
return is longed for v 22, it will permanently condemn many.
1. Jesus is quite insistent that we not cause
new believers to sin. So what would those stumbling blocks be today? Keeping
silent about cohabitation, lying, “casual blasphemy”, cheating, overlooking
disastrous theology like universalism. If we are going to be Christ’s disciples,
then we can not cause them to stumble. Some of these stumbling blocks are
timeless and global but some are local and unique to each area. So it is
important to know the stumbling block in your area and help believers discern
them.
2. The signs we are not to follow are those made up by man, which are not in the word
of God, that predict a coming of Christ. The second coming of Christ will be
sudden, unexpected, and public, not gradual, predictable, or private.
3. Christlike leadership spells
out the details of the future given in the Bible. Christlike leaders should
spell out details of future events as Jesus did but by using revelation already
given in the Bible.