Week 21: "Traveling Grief"

Video Notes:  This video clip was filmed at Tel Dan at the far northern end of Israel. It has a long and tragic history.

·        In the OT, the tribe of Dan left its God-given inheritance which included Joppa (and what is now modern day Tel Aviv) on the Mediterranean Coast (Judges 18:29-31). They considered the Philistines too strong to drive out.

·       Trusting God would have showed great courage and faith, but they bailed on God and invented their own religion with some stolen idols and a priest who was thoroughly snared by ambition.

·       They killed the isolated and unsuspecting citizens of Laish and rebuilt the city for themselves.

·        “The sin of Jeroboam”: After the death of Solomon, Jeroboam became king of the northern 10 tribes of Israel. He turned his back on God’s offer and set up golden calf idols in the south at Bethel and in the north right here at Dan.

·       We must not make up our own religion. It is crucial that we trust and obey God as he has revealed himself, not as we would fashion him to be.

·       The Northern Kingdom of Israel repeatedly refused to listen to God’s prophetic call to repentance and eventually was destroyed by the Assyrian Empire. The Israelites that were not killed were deported and other captives, pagans from many lands were planted into the land in their place. This was a common practice in the ancient world. The people imported by the Assyrians mixed some Jewish beliefs with the pagan beliefs and it was this group of people that became known as the Samaritans. Later, after the southern kingdom of Judah (who had been conquered and taken into captivity in Babylon for 70years) returned and began to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, the Samaritans were their bitter enemies led by Sanballat (Nehemiah 4).

·       Dan is left out of the lists of the tribes of Israel in the Book of Revelation most likely because of their pervasive connection with idolatry.

Text: This week we’re covering Luke 9:37-62 which contains a number of small sections aimed at preparing the disciples for the journey of spiritually mature service: the deliverance of a demonized boy, a second reminder that Jesus’ own death was approaching, Jesus settled an argument and dealt with the disciples’ restriction of ministry in the name of Jesus, a mini-rejection in a Samaritan village on the way to a larger rejection in Jerusalem, and finally a perplexing series of dialogues around the commitment necessary to following Jesus. 

Other passages to read: There are parallel passages to these pericopes in the other gospels:

·         Deliverance of a demonized boy: Matthew 17:14-20; Mark 9:14-29

·         Jesus’ approaching death: Matthew 17:21-23; Mark 9:30-32

·         Jesus settled an argument: Matthew 18:1-6; Mark 9:33-37

·         Anyone not against us is for us: Mark 9:38-41

·         Fire from Heaven: 2 Kings 1

·         Dialogues around the commitment necessary to follow Jesus: Matthew 8:18-22.

Pastor Randy’s Sermon Notes: "Thoughts Along the Way"

1.       What Greatness looks like (v. 46-48)

“An argument started among the disciples as to which of them would be the greatest. 47 Jesus, knowing their thoughts, took a little child and had him stand beside him. 48 Then he said to them, "Whoever welcomes this little child in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. For he who is least among you all — he is the greatest." 

2.  Love your enemies (v.51-55)

As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem. 52 And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; 53 but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem. 54 When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, "Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?"  55 But Jesus turned and rebuked them, 56 and they went to another village.

• James 4:1-3 “What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from your desires that battle within you? 2 You want something but don't get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God. 3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.”
• John 3:17-18 “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

3.  Give it your all (v. 57-62)

As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go." 58 Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head." 59 He said to another man, "Follow me." But the man replied, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father." 60 Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God." 61 Still another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family." 62 Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”

Points to ponder: In your study this week, you might want to think about one of these questions:

·         If Jesus had given the disciples power to cast out demons in v.1, then why were they unable to deliver this boy in v. 40? Are there any clues in the parallel passages as to why Jesus was so blunt in his assessment of the generation?

·         What would help them to understand Jesus words in v. 44? In what way were they concealed?

·         How could someone be casting out demons in Jesus’ name in v. 49 when the disciples had just failed to do the same?

·         Why did James and John get so angry over the Samaritans’ failure to show hospitality?

·         Jesus’ answers in v. 60-62 may seem harsh outside of their cultural context. You may want to take time to investigate this issue further. Is there any political statement included here?

Questions to ask ourselves: The following questions are intended to help us move towards greater application of what we learn about Jesus…

·         Are we willing to admit our doubts (Mark 9:24) and choose to trust Jesus to meet our most impossible needs?

·         Is there something that Jesus has been trying to teach us (over and over) that we seem unable to learn? Is there something we are afraid to ask Jesus? Ask it anyway! Take time to ask the Holy Spirit to cause it to “sink into your ears” that you might finally perceive it and act on it in obedience.

·         Honestly, in the last few arguments you have had, wasn’t it, deep down, about this very question in v. 46, “Who is the greatest?” The Journaling blog this week focuses on this issue.

·         Do we have to be in control for ministry to be right and good? How can we begin to put Jesus statement in v. 50 into practice this week?

·         How do we respond when people oppose the work of Christ or speak disrespectfully of him? Do we react like James and John whom Jesus called “sons of thunder” (Mark 3:15)?

·         People outside the church often see us as “against them”. How can we live and love like Jesus this week? Are we really committed to following him or just talking a good game?

Quotes & Commentary:

We are using “Traveling Grief,” as a metaphor for the daily struggles we face every day, which often serve to reveal our own false trusts and wrong priorities that need to be brought to light and dealt with if we are disciples of Christ. It is in this sense that all things work together for good…in order to conform us into the image of Christ (Romans 8:28-29). Sometimes it takes considerable heat, pressure, and some sanding!

“Luke’s other great book, the Acts of the Apostles, also includes a long travel sequence (the journeys of St Paul, eventually arriving in Rome). Travelling in obedience to God’s call is one of Luke’s central pictures for what it means to be a Christian. Following Jesus is what it is all about.” (N.T. Wright, Luke for Everyone, WJK, 117.)

As we launch into this section journeying from Ch. 9 to Ch. 19 we find these lessons stated at the beginning have weight throughout. Discipleship is…

• Not about our power, but about our belief in his delivering power.
• Not about our plan, but about his divine purpose.
• Not about our ambition, but about his humble example.
• Not about our control, but about his name changing lives.
• Not about our judgment, but about his mission of mercy and grace.
• Not about our priorities, but about his invitation to follow now.

In regards to v. 51-56 where Jesus was not received by the Samaritan village,

“All James and John can think of is they are now in the place of Elijah in the Old Testament. If they meet opposition they want to call down fire from heaven (2 Kings 1:10-12). But that is not what Jesus’ journey is like. It’s not a triumphant march, sweeping all resistance aside. It is the progress of the gospel of the kingdom, and we know from Luke 4 that means the message of love—of a grace so strong, so wide-ranging, and so surprising, that many will find it shocking.” (N.T. Wright, Luke for Everyone, WJK, 118.)

Previously on Ponderables:

• When Jesus asked who the crowd thought he was, how could the crowd have come to those conclusions?
• John the Baptist: it is possible because Jesus preached the good news of the Kingdom of God as well as the coming judgment. Yet Jesus’ methodology was very different from John’s and John is not recorded as performing any miracles. Since John and Jesus were on the scene at the same time it would be ludicrous to think Jesus was John. Perhaps they simply thought he was in the spirit of John.
• Elijah: In Luke’s gospel many of Jesus’ miracles are seen to be similar to those of Elijah and performed in similar locations.
• Jeremiah: perhaps because of his weeping over Jerusalem and his awareness of the sin of the people and the coming judgment.
• One of the other prophets: perhaps because he taught with authority or because he lived out the Word of God. He did nothing the he didn’t see the Father doing and said nothing that he didn’t hear the Father saying. He certainly was completely prophetic but not merely prophetic.

• Does Jesus deny the title of “Christ” or “Son of God” (in the Matthew’s longer account)? No. Which leads to the question, "What are the ramifications of this?"
• What did it mean to be the Christ? The common understanding was that the Christ, the Messiah, was the chosen Deliverer who would rid Israel of the oppression of the gentiles, namely the dreaded Romans, and establish an enduring kingdom
• How did Jesus’ understanding differ from that of the disciples and the common cultural view? He came as the Suffering Servant, who would die for their sins so that they might be liberated spiritually not just politically.
• Could Jesus have been any clearer about what would happen to him? Not really. He repeated himself several times but it was such a radical shift from what they were expecting they just didn’t get it until after Jesus rose from the dead. It really makes me wonder whether there is something that Jesus might be trying to tell me today that I just keep failing to grasp. That’s why we really need the Holy Spirit to remind us of all Jesus has said.
• What does it mean to take up your cross daily? It means we live in light of who we are in Christ. It means dying to everything that we once considered being our primary family, home, and identity. Disciples daily remind themselves that they are pilgrims whose home is in Christ…not in anything the world has to offer. All the glossy “junk-mail” the world sends is addressed to the old person who has died to the world and has been raised in Christ.
• What did Jesus mean in verse 27, that “some standing here will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God”? “Taste of death surely means ‘die’, but it is not clear what the coming of the kingdom of God means in this context. Some maintain that Jesus was referring to the parousia [Jesus’ Second Coming] and that he was mistaken. But this does not fit the language used…Plummer notes seven possible interpretations of the words: the transfiguration, the resurrection and ascension, Pentecost, the spread of Christianity, the internal development of the gospel, the destruction of Jerusalem, and the second advent. He holds that the reference to some standing here means special privilege as opposed to people in general. This rules out  all of the seven except the transfiguration and the destruction of Jerusalem, of which Plummer prefers the latter." [most commentators opt for the Transfiguration] (Leon Morris, Luke, Revised Edition, Tyndale New Testament Commentaries, IVP, 187.)

Week 20: "Who do you say I am?"

Video is usually posted early Sunday afternoon.

Text: This week we’re covering Luke 9:18-36 which contains Peter’s confession of Jesus as “the Christ, the Son of the Living God”, Jesus prediction of his coming death, a lesson on the cost of discipleship, as well as an episode called the Transfiguration.

Other passages to read: There are parallel passages to these pericopes in the other gospels:

·         Peter’s Confession of Christ: Matthew 16:13-20; Mark 8:27-30

·         Jesus Predicting his own death: Matthew 16:21-23; Mark 8:31-33

·         Take up your Cross: Matthew 16:24-28; Mark 8:34- 9:1

·         The Transfiguration: Matthew 17:1-13; Mark 9:2-13

Points to ponder: In your study this week, you might want to think about one of these questions:

• When Jesus asked who the crowd thought he was, how could the crowd have come to those conclusions? John? Elijah? Jeremiah? One of the other prophets?
• Does Jesus deny the title of “Christ” or “Son of God” (in the Matthew’s longer account)?
• What did it mean to be the Christ?
• How did Jesus’ understanding differ from that of the disciples and the common cultural view?
• Could Jesus have been any clearer about what would happen to him?
• What does it mean to take up your cross daily?
• What did Jesus mean in verse 27, that “some standing here will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God”?

Questions to ask ourselves: The following questions are intended to help us move towards greater application of what we learn about Jesus…

• What is the confession of our family regarding Jesus? Our co-workers? Our neighbors?
• What is our confession about Jesus? Who do we say that He is? What do our words reveal?
• Do our actions (attitudes, behaviors, lifestyle choices) say about who we really think Jesus is?
• Have we ever been like Peter and said stuff without really knowing what  we were saying?
• Peter, James, and John learned an important lesson direct from God that day on the mountain what was it? 

Pastor Randy’s Sermon Notes: "Disciples: Believing, Following, Revealing"

1.    Believing: Seeing and Confessing (9:18-22) 

2.    Following: Denying and Dying (9:23-27)

3.    Revealing:  Listening and Trusting (Luke 9:18-36)

2 Corinthians 3:18 And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

We are reflectors of that glory in two ways:

            A) When we worship Jesus.
            B) When we listen to his words and live.

2 Peter 1:19-21 “And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

1 John 3:1-3 “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.”

Word Studies: There are several words in this passage whose meanings we may have never stopped to consider.

• Christ = (Strongs #5547 Χριστός, Christos) The Greek word translating the Hebrew word “Messiah” which mean “Anointed One.” What was Jesus anointed to do?
• Son of Man = Jesus’ favorite term to use to refer to himself. Indicates not only his humanity but alludes to a passage in Daniel 7:13-14.  Also was favorite term of Ezekiel’s.
• Transfigured = (Strongs #3339 μεταμορφόω, metamorphoō) While Luke did not use this actual word, it is used in the parallel accounts (Matt. 17:2; Mark 9:2). Warren Wiersbe writes, “The word means ‘a change in appearance that comes from within,’ and it gives us the English word metamorphosis.”

Quotes & Commentary:

In this familiar passage, we have two important events which occurred eight days apart—Peter’s confession, and the Transfiguration. Hopefully as you read this chapter you can see why these events are connected. Are there common words and actions? Is there a developing theme that unites the following sections of the text? Yes and yes!

·         Peter’s Confession of Christ (v.18-20)

“Jesus’ first question and the answers he receives are reminiscent of the earlier report about Herod’s concern over Jesus’ identity in 9:7-9.This suggests the thematic nature of Herod’s question, but also prepares for the conspicuous and important contrast between vv 7-9 and 18-20: Herod is aware of public opinion, rejects it, but remains perplexed, unseeing, while the disciples are aware of public opinion, reject it, and go on to respond (accurately!) to the question of Jesus’ status.” (Leon Morris, The Gospel of Luke, Eerdmans, 369.)

Jesus makes it very clear that they were to speak no more of his being the Messiah at that time, for if they had done so it most likely would have sparked a revolution against Rome and that was not the ordained purpose of God that Jesus was following. Jesus, after warning his followers strongly about this began to clarify what it really meant to be the Messiah and what it really meant to be a follower of the Messiah.

“Luke’s presentation of the inseparability of Christology and discipleship reaches its acme in the tightly woven sequence of this narrative unit. In the moments following Jesus’ acclamation by Peter as the Messiah of God, Jesus moves immediately from his clarification of the nature of messiahship to his interpretation of the nature of discipleship.” (Leon Morris, The Gospel of Luke, Eerdmans, 366.)

·         Jesus Predicting his own death (v. 21-22)

“Now that the crucial question has been answered, Jesus must undeceive his followers. For them, the Messiah is the victorious conqueror of the Romans who will set up his earthly kingdom. Never could any of them have believed that the Messiah had in fact come to die for them and for the Romans as well. So before the echo of Peter’s answer has died away, Jesus tells them that being the messiah means he must “suffer many things…be killed, and be raised the third day.” (Michael Card, Luke: The Gospel of Amazement, IVP, 124.)

·         Take up your Cross (v. 23-27)

“Jesus was known as a prophet, and when people asked what he was up to they went for models to prophets old and new, from Elijah to John the Baptist…But Jesus was more than that. Prophet he certainly was; but he was not simply pointing to God’s kingdom some way off in the future, he was causing it to appear before people’s eyes, and was setting into motion the events through which it would become firmly established.” (N.T. Wright, Luke for Everyone, 111.)

 “As dreadful as his destiny as Son of Man might be, those who choose to follow him may expect nothing other than the opposition that will become his trademark by the end of the narrative. This is not because Jesus is a masochist who embraces suffering, but because he is unreservedly committed to the purpose of God—a purpose that resists, and is resisted by, the habits and patterns and powers of the larger world. As the Son of Man fulfills God’s design, he will encounter hostility and experience great suffering; can those who follow him along the path of God’s purpose expect less?” (Leon Morris, The Gospel of Luke, Eerdmans, 371-372.)

“The world is being turned upside down, and anyone who wants to come through and be present when God’s kingdom appears will have to be prepared to be turned upside down and inside out with it…Jesus didn’t come with the message that if we followed him we would have an easy life, with everything happening exactly as we would like it. Just the reverse. To save your life you have to lose it…Jesus’ swift movement, from asking who they think he is to summoning them to follow him even to the death, shows clearly enough that we cannot separate thinking from action in the Christian faith…There are no half measures in the kingdom of God.” (N.T. Wright, Luke for Everyone, 111-112.

·         The Transfiguration (v. 28-36)

“The purpose of the Transfiguration was to strengthen the heart of Jesus as he was praying long about his approaching death and to give these chosen three disciples a glimpse of his glory for the hour of darkness coming. On one on earth understood the heart of Jesus and so Moses and Elijah came. The poor disciples utterly failed to grasp the significance of it all.” (A. T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, Vol, 2 Luke, Baker, 131.)

“Though his work is built on and shaped by theirs [Moses and Elijah], their interpreting and legitimating presence is no longer needed. God himself has unveiled and sanctioned Jesus’ status and mission. The journey that must be fulfilled in his. The voice the apostles are to heed is his. Indeed, as Luke will make clear, even these OT figures are now interpreted by Jesus, for his role as divine spokesperson has been endorsed by God himself. That is, it is not so much that the time of the law and prophets has passed as it is that Jesus has been designated as their authorized interpreter.” (Leon Morris, The Gospel of Luke, Eerdmans, 384.)

Previously on Ponderables:

• How does Jesus’ sending of the apostles out to minister in power effect our lives and how we minister? We also have been given authority in the name of Jesus and power in the Holy Spirit to fulfill our calling.
• Is Jesus still able to work miracles in the lives of those that put their trust in him? Yes he is. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8)
• Leading up to Luke 9:11 (also Mark 6:34; Matt.14:14), what stresses and pressures had Jesus and his disciples experienced that would cause them to go on a “retreat” and that makes Jesus’ response all the more amazing? In chapter 8 they had endured a sudden storm on the lake, encountered a terrifying demoniac and the whole herd of pigs event and were squeezed by the crowd. Them in 9:1-11 they had been sent on a mission for the first time on their own, healing, preaching and casting out demons. It had been a wildly successful time but one that surely produced fatigue. In addition, it was likely at this time that the news about John the Baptist’s murder reached them. It had been a period of extreme emotional ups and downs.
• How would we respond in similar circumstances? You would have to answer this for yourself, but as an introvert I would certainly be really ready for some quiet time away from people for a bit.
• What is the relationship between “brokenness” and “usefulness” in this miraculous narrative? Before it is useful it is blessed and broken. I think it is the same with us today. We are not useful for the kingdom until we are humble before the Lord.
• What did your reading of the parallel accounts of the feeding of the 5,000 add to your understanding of this miracle? Don’t let its familiarity short-change you…read it closely! Lots of unique details that smacks of authentic eyewitness testimony.

Week 19 "On the Road with Jesus"

This week we’re off our regular series with a guest speaker A.J. Swoboda who will be speaking out of the Road to Emmaus narrative found in Luke 24:13-35. This week it would be good to take time to review past posts you haven’t had a chance to read or consider yet. We will be back next week with full content and a new video from Israel with Pastor Randy! You may also want to read the journaling blog which will feature new posts this week despite being out of sequence. You can find the Luke Journal blog here: http://b4lukejournal.blogspot.com/ .

While not a full teaching, here are a few questions to consider from Luke 24:13-35. 

Points to ponder: In your study this week, you might want to think about one of these questions:

• What was it that kept the two disciples from recognizing Jesus?
• Jesus taught them (v. 27) “beginning with Moses (the Pentateuch) and all the prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.” Can you think of ten places in the Old Testament that speak of Jesus?
• How was he revealed to the disciples in Emmaus? 

Questions to ask ourselves: The following questions are intended to help us move towards greater application of what we learn about Jesus…

• When things get tough are we the kind to stay or get away?
• What emotions dominate our conversations on an average week?
• Have we surrendered out disappointed hopes and faded dreams to Jesus? If we haven’t done so, it makes it very hard for us to rejoice in and participate with his greater plan.
• Am I a person who is willing to listen to biblical teaching?
• Am I a hospitable and generous person to those I meet and spend time with?
• Are we quick to share what Jesus is doing in our lives (despite our failures) as a means of encouraging our fellow Christians?

Next week we will be considering Luke 9:18-36 if you want to read ahead! See you then!

So far this week we have had readers from: the United States, Russia, Australia, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Egypt, Japan, Philippines, Singapore, and Slovakia!