¹³ That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles^[a] from Jerusalem, ¹⁴ and they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened. ¹⁵ While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. ¹⁶ But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. ¹⁷ And he said to them, “What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk?” And they stood still, looking sad. ¹⁸ Then one of them, named Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” ¹⁹ And he said to them, “What things?” And they said to him, “Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, ²⁰ and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. ²¹ But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened. ²² Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, ²³ and when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. ²⁴ Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see.” ²⁵ And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! ²⁶ Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” ²⁷ And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.

²⁸ So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He acted as if he were going farther, ²⁹ but they urged him strongly, saying, “Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent.” So he went in to stay with them. ³⁰ When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. ³¹ And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight. ³² They said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?” ³³ And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, ³⁴ saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” ³⁵ Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread.

Luke 24:13-35

The Path to Jesus

Those who had believed and followed Jesus were now downcast and returning to life as normal. The Messiah they had hoped Jesus would be is no longer possible and so they begin to travel back to their homes. Two such disciples have the privilege of meeting the risen Jesus, one named Cleopas (the masculine version of Cleopatra meaning ‘glory of the father’) and an unnamed disciple. These two men were likely part of Jesus’ regular followers. Interestingly, church tradition holds that Clopas in John 19:25 was Joseph’s brother (that is Jesus’ adopted father). If Clopas is the same man as Cleopas here, as some argue, then this could be Jesus’ uncle on the road to Emmaus. As fascinating as that may be, it is not likely to be the case.

In this story, these two men are travelling to Emmaus, a short distance of seven miles from Jerusalem which should take about 3 hours to walk. The week’s events would have been a hot topic, likely to be the centre of conversation for the whole of Judea for some time. While they are discussing and trying to make sense of these things, Jesus inserts Himself into the conversation. Interestingly, the text says that ‘their eyes were kept from recognising Him.’ It seems that God had supernaturally blinded the eyes of these men so that Jesus could accomplish some purpose.

Coming close, Jesus starts a conversation and asks the men to describe for Him what had occurred. They stop walking, and the text says they look sad. They had been hit hard by the death of Jesus and were in deep sorrow over the events. There must have been an awkward silence, because Cleopas had to step up and answer Him. Firstly, Cleopas is shocked that this stranger has no idea what has happened, for it was the talk of the whole area. If there was a massive earthquake, unnatural darkness for three hours and the temple curtain torn, all centred around the death of Jesus, you can bet that everyone will be talking about this for weeks. Jesus wants them to describe these things to Him so He can use it as a teaching opportunity. He asks, ‘what things?’

They then tell Him everything that has just happened; that Jesus of Nazareth was a prophet, who performed many miracles and spoke with authority but had been put to death by the chief priests and rulers. They say something that is worth taking note of, ‘we had hoped that He was the one to redeem Israel.’

Now that word, λυτροῦσθαι (lytrousthai) means to release something, most commonly when something is held for ransom. This same word is used in Titus 2:14 and 1 Peter 1:18, both times speaking of how we were ransomed from our former way of life into a life of holiness. We were bought by Jesus’ blood for something greater. Is that what they mean here? They were using a great word to speak of what Jesus had just done for Israel. They accurately recognise that Israel needs to be ransomed and redeemed. But from what? They were meaning the overthrow of the Romans and the establishment of the Kingdom. They were waiting for an earthly kingdom – something that still blinded them. God may have kept them from recognising Jesus, but their own presuppositions and assumptions were fully capable of doing that for them.

They also tell Jesus of how the women went to the tomb and found it empty, likewise the men went and found that the women were telling the truth, except for one thing. The women claimed that an angel spoke to them and told them that Jesus was still alive – as we have already seen the Jews did not believe that an individual resurrection would occur within history. So naturally the men doubted them. They saw the empty tomb, but it could have been anything. The Roman guards could have taken the body elsewhere during the night. The chief priests could have taken the body for safe keeping. Steeped in misogynistic first century beliefs, these men were unlikely to believe the women’s testimony. Especially since the male disciples didn’t see any angels, and neither did they see Jesus.

Did the men think Jesus had risen from the dead? They were entertaining the idea, but they didn’t believe it. How do I know that? They were returning home to Emmaus. If they really thought it was a possibility that Jesus had risen from the dead, they would have returned to Jerusalem and looked for Him.

Jesus is not impressed with their lack of trust because He begins by calling them fools – ouch. Why were they fools? Yes, they may not have believed the women, and yes, they may not have believed Jesus when He predicted His death and resurrection three times, but the reason they were fools is because they didn’t believe the Scriptures. They were slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken in Scripture.

This is a good reminder. The reason they were slow of heart is because they were not willing to change their cultural beliefs regarding how to interpret Scripture. Their culture had dogmatic beliefs on what Scripture said and would rarely, if ever, question the traditional Rabbinical teachings. This is a reminder to filter out our cultural baggage (yes, even church culture) when reading Scripture. The culture may be secular and enforce their morality on the Bible, but we as the church should stick firmly to the word of God. Yet even the church may have views that don’t line up with what the Bible says, in that case we still believe and practice what has been revealed to us in Scripture. Jesus had a high view of Scripture and expected people to change their beliefs to conform to what God had revealed. These men on the road to Emmaus had barely even begun to be shaped and changed by the Word. That was going to change.

Starting with Moses and all the Prophets (He had about three hours and He was going to use it), He interpreted all the Scripture concerning Himself. What a great privilege to sit under Jesus teaching in that moment. He showed them that the Christ had to suffer and rise again, before entering into His glory – the Kingdom of God that was about to be established on earth through the church.

The three hours were likely up, and the city was approaching. Jesus acted as if He was going to continue walking, giving the two men a chance to invite Him in and explore these concepts further. They urge Him to stay, as the sun was going to set soon. He then sat at the table with them, and just as He had done in the Last Supper, He broke the bread and blessed it and gave it to them. It was at that moment that their eyes were opened. Now these two disciples were not present at the Last Supper meal, so why this moment did they recognise Him? God sovereignty chose that moment to open their eyes. God chose the moment to wake them up when the bread was broken and given to them. Jesus had redeemed Israel, not from the Romans, but from their sin. They were the ones who needed the bread. The text says that it was then they recognised Jesus. Almost immediately afterwards He vanished from their sight. His work was done.

These two men were given the privilege of meeting the risen Jesus. The two men must have been shocked that they didn’t recognise Him earlier, for they said their hearts were burning while He opened the Scriptures. All of a sudden, these stubborn men who were slow of heart to believe the Scriptures now believed and were changed men. How do I know that they were changed? They immediately got up and went straight back to Jerusalem. In their unbelief they left the city behind to return to their normal lives. And now, in their belief, they left their normal lives behind to go back to Jerusalem.

It was almost dark when they arrived in Emmaus, and likely the sun had now set as it was after dinner. But their excitement couldn’t be contained. They got back on the road, risking the danger of travelling at night as it was a treacherous road to Jerusalem in the dark as bandits and robbers were common especially during the festivals. They didn’t worry about that. They needed to get back to the Eleven and tell them what they had seen. By the time they got back to the Eleven it would have been late, and yet there was a larger crowd of disciples there. An aura of excitement was in the air. They see Cleopas and the other disciple coming back and they say, ‘the Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!’ They already knew that though, they had just seen Him hours earlier. They tell the rest of the disciples what had happened. The Lord has returned, and He was about to establish His Kingdom.

This is the beginning. This small rag-tag band of men and women equipped with the message that Jesus rose from the dead would turn the world upside down (Acts 17:6). Never doubt your usefulness in the Kingdom of God if you believe in Jesus. There is nothing special about us, but something amazingly special about the message. If these early Christians could change the world for Jesus, so can you.

Use these last two weeks of devotionals as a catalyst to think big. Don’t settle for the normal mundane road to Emmaus but take risks for Jesus – go where the action is. Find the churches that are on mission and join them. Do whatever it takes to be apart of a genuine Gospel work. The disciples travelled back to Jerusalem in danger, in the dead of night so that they could be where the action is. Before they met Jesus there were returning to life as normal in Emmaus, but after encountering the risen Jesus their life would never be the same. If we claim to believe in the risen Jesus, let’s do the same – let’s leave behind our normal life and instead let the road take us to where the action is.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, you have defeated death and given us hope in a world of chaos. You have revealed your truth to us in your Word. Help me to set aside my cultural baggage and believe it wholeheartedly. Use me Lord to share your Gospel message with those around me who don’t know you. Help me to share boldly and clearly the words of life so that those who are under judgment and death can know freedom and life in you. Fill me with your Spirit and equip me for this work. In Jesus Name, Amen.

The post [Bonus] The Path to Jesus – Luke 24:13-35 appeared first on Gospel Church.

But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. ² And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, ³ but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. ⁴ While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. ⁵ And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? ⁶ He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, ⁷ that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” ⁸ And they remembered his words, ⁹ and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. ¹⁰ Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, ¹¹ but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. ¹² But Peter rose and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; and he went home marveling at what had happened..

Luke 24:1-12

The Resurrection of Jesus

The women rested on the Sabbath according to the Law and having prepared some spices and ointments they went to anoint Jesus’ body. They were not expecting to ever see Jesus again in this life. They held Jesus in high respect, and their persistence in caring for Him shows their devotion and love. But their view was too small. They went to the tomb expecting to find a dead teacher – what they would find is a risen Saviour.

Arriving to the tomb, they find the stone rolled away. Immediately they must have thought someone has stolen Jesus’ body, perhaps the work of grave robbers, or even the chief priests. They searched through the tomb, certain that this was the right one – after all they watched Joseph of Arimathea place Jesus’ body there personally. The women were obviously confused and perhaps a little frightened, but nothing would prepare them for what they were about to see.

Two men approached them in dazzling apparel. Immediately fear overtook the women, a common experience for anyone who has ever encountered an angel in the Bible. The angels inform the women that their view of Jesus is too small, their trust in Him too little, their perspective too narrow. They ask, ‘why do you seek the living among the dead?’ They were looking for Jesus in all the wrong places – the grave they saw Him buried in was a good place to look if you wanted to see His dead body. It’s a terrible place to look for a risen King. ‘He is not here, but has risen.’

They call to remembrance everything Jesus has taught them when He was in Galilee, and how He had spoken very plainly to them about rising again from the dead. So, why didn’t they expect Jesus to rise on the third? The Jews were not expecting the Messiah to die, that was far outside their perspective. While they believed in a final resurrection of the dead at the end of time, to think of an individual resurrection of the dead beforehand was well out of the question. Neither of those two were a possibility, so at the very least, the women were expecting Jesus to rise again in the age to come. To think anything different was going to require their worldview to radically shift.

It suddenly clicked to all the women. It was being to make sense. Jesus had to die because the Son of Man had to suffered at the hands of sinful men and be crucified. He also had to rise again from the dead, not in the age to come, but on the third day. It’s hard to convey the shattering impact that this would have on the worldview of a Jewish man or woman. They would have been indoctrinated from a very young age to believe these things, growing up in a culture steeped in Messianic teaching for centuries. It was so deeply embedded in their culture that to question these doctrines was not a possibility. And yet, they changed their worldview. Why? Because Jesus really did rise again from the dead.

They immediately returned to tell the remaining eleven disciples what they had seen. Now, we are understandably hard on the disciples for not believing the women and thinking they were telling idle tales. But hear it from their perspective. They are hearing a tale about a guarded tomb having no guards and being empty – something that surely couldn’t be the case. Even more fanciful, angels had appeared to them and told them that Jesus had risen. It must be crazy, don’t the women know that the resurrection is at the end of the age? The women weren’t enough of a catalyst to shift the disciples worldview in such a large way. They needed to see it for themselves.

Peter decides to do that. He runs down to the tomb and what did he see? It was just as the women had reported. They weren’t lying. The tomb was empty, not only that but the linen cloths were lying in the tomb. There should be a body there, but it’s as if the body has just disappeared. Well… Peter is absolutely perplexed. What had scared the guards away? What could have rolled away the stone from the door? If it was grave robbers, why were the expensive linens left in the tomb? So many questions, with little answers. Could the women really have seen the two angels?

Every one of the Gospel accounts records women being the first to visit the empty tomb and discover that Jesus had risen again from the dead. This was problematic for the early Christians. Firstly, none of the Jews would have believed the testimony of women – why? The Talmud, a Jewish law, states that “Any evidence which a woman [gives] is not valid…” The first century had some shameful views on the reliability of women, something which was exploited by adversaries to the church. Celsus, a second century critic of Christianity, referred to Mary who had seen Jesus first, as a “hysterical female . . . deluded by . . . sorcery.” If you were inventing clever myths, you would never put women as your key witnesses. So why are they here? The only plausible explanation of why they are in this account is because they really were the first to see Him.

If you were a Gospel writer aiming to write a convincing story that would deceive the minds of the ancient world, this was a lesson in how not to achieve that. The only reason they would do so is because the women really were the first to see the tomb and meet the risen Christ. Why would God have it this way if it provided a stumbling block for so many small-minded men? Because God couldn’t care less about human categories. Just as the Resurrection shattered many worldview assumptions the Jews held, so also did it challenge this assumption. God considered their testimony valid and chose them to be His witnesses and messengers and that’s all that matters

There are many more arguments for the historicity of the resurrection – but nevertheless two compelling points to summarize. (1) The only way the worldview could shift so radically for so many Jewish Christians is if Jesus really rose again from the dead, and (2) the only logical reason women would be the first witnesses in the first century, is if they actually did witness these events.

Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James and others went to the tomb expecting to find their beloved teacher dead. They left with news of a risen Saviour. How is our view of Jesus small like this? Do we consider Jesus the dead founder of an ethical religion, or as a living saviour of an eternal kingdom? In what ways might we live as if the former is true, while pretending to believe the latter?

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we praise you for the work you have done in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. How broken, messy, sinful people like us can avoid the death we so richly deserve and participate in the resurrection of Jesus. Thank you that Jesus did not turn His back on us, but endured the cross for the joy. Help us live in that joy. In Jesus Name, Amen.

What now?

I hope you have enjoyed these two weeks of devotions in the lead up to Resurrection Sunday. On this Lord’s Day it has been my great pleasure and joy to explore the Gospel of Luke with you all. Tomorrow I will finish the Gospel of Luke, with an ‘aftermath’ devotion that will help us with how we should live in the here and now. My intention is to continue writing a devotional series for anyone who is interested, sporadically interspersed with blog posts on interesting and controversial topics. If you’ve been reading along this far and were encouraged and blessed, send me an email (cody@gospelchurch.org.au) and I’d love to chat and pray with you. Until then, I hope you had a blessed Easter and have grown in your appreciation and adoration of the Lord Jesus Christ.

God bless,
Cody

The post The Resurrection of Jesus – Luke 24:1-12 appeared first on Gospel Church.

⁴⁴ It was now about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour, ⁴⁵ while the sun’s light failed. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. ⁴⁶ Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” And having said this he breathed his last. ⁴⁷ Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God, saying, “Certainly this man was innocent!” ⁴⁸ And all the crowds that had assembled for this spectacle, when they saw what had taken place, returned home beating their breasts. ⁴⁹ And all his acquaintances and the women who had followed him from Galilee stood at a distance watching these things.

⁵⁰ Now there was a man named Joseph, from the Jewish town of Arimathea. He was a member of the council, a good and righteous man, ⁵¹ who had not consented to their decision and action; and he was looking for the kingdom of God. ⁵² This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. ⁵³ Then he took it down and wrapped it in a linen shroud and laid him in a tomb cut in stone, where no one had ever yet been laid. ⁵⁴ It was the day of Preparation, and the Sabbath was beginning. ⁵⁵ The women who had come with him from Galilee followed and saw the tomb and how his body was laid. ⁵⁶ Then they returned and prepared spices and ointments. On the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment.

Luke 23:44-56

The Burial of Jesus

It was now about noon on the Friday of Jesus’ crucifixion. There were great signs that accompanied Jesus’ death on the Cross. There was a great darkness in the middle of the day for about three hours. There was a great earthquake during which the curtain in the temple was torn in two. When people saw it, they realised that Jesus was no ordinary man. Early Christian defenders would point to the Romans having key reports in their archives of an eclipse and earthquake that occurred during the time of Jesus. Tertullian says this, ‘Those who were not aware that this had been predicted about Christ, no doubt thought it an eclipse. You yourselves have the account of the world-portent still in your archives.’

The church father Origen likewise referred to Phlegon of Tralles, who wrote about an eclipse that was accompanied by an earthquake during the reign of Tiberius. While these original sources have since been lost from the historical record, it can be believed with relative certainty that these events were recorded by non-Christian sources. These events were further testified by a 2011 geological study which indicated that there was a major earthquake in the region of Judea around 30-33AD. Whatever this earthquake was, it was powerful enough to be felt through the Empire.

These events played an important role in convincing the Romans that Jesus was indeed the Messiah. These signs were not localised, or legends that were made up at a later date. These were experienced by real people, some hostile, others neutral, who wrote and recorded these events. The religion of Christianity would not have been able to get off of the ground had the first cohort of Christians not experienced these things. It wouldn’t have been believed had it not be verified by multiple independent sources, many of which we still have. When Christians called pagans to believe in Christ, is was not blind belief, but reasoned and well-argued truth claims.

Let’s get back to the text. Jesus then cried out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!’ It was at that moment, that Jesus gave up His life for His followers.

John 10:17-18, ‘”For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”’

Jesus has the authority to lay it down, and in the same way He has the authority to take it up again. We should always remember that Jesus chose to lay it down. He chose to give up His Spirit to the Father, and in the same way He has the ability to take it up again. It reminds us that Jesus chose to save us, if indeed we trust in His name. He was not forced into it, He did not despise doing it. Jesus does not regret saving you. Hebrews 12:2, ‘[look] to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.’ It was because of the joy before Him that He endured. Like Him, if we look to the joy before us, we can endure anything.

Now this crucifixion wasn’t fun for the crowd anymore. They were laughing it up, mocking Jesus and feeling powerful and secure knowing that they had won and Jesus had lost. He hadn’t performed any miracle to bring Himself down from the Cross and the leaders were satisfied with their work. But then darkness came from noon till 3pm and a great earthquake shook the whole city. Now things were different. No one was laughing anymore. No one was mocking. Fear must have overtook them for the Centurion realised that something big had happened. It says that the Centurion praised God, which is bizarre because the Romans took great joy in mocking and blaspheming the Jewish God. These events had shaken him to his core. Seeing Jesus die in this way had terrified him. He remarks, ‘certainly, this man was innocent!’ Mark 15:39 he also says, ‘truly this man was the son of God!’ Already, people were believing in Jesus, both the thief and now the Centurion.

The rest of the crowd were likely shattered, for Luke tells us that they left beating their breasts. The sun came back, Jesus was hanging dead on the cross and all had appeared to return to normal. What did it all mean? The phrase ‘beating their breasts’ was a sign of sorrow and shame. The crowd seemed to have regretted what they had done. Terror was on everyone. Little did they know, they had just witnessed the lamb of God slain for sins. Anticlimactically, things returned to normal, but don’t be fooled, the world would never be the same again.

Now what was to be done with Jesus’ body? The Romans would likely bring His body down and then throw it in a ditch somewhere. However, there was a man named Joseph of Arimathea who was a member of the Sanhedrin who had just condemned Jesus to death. Joseph hadn’t condemned Jesus however and was not happy with their decision to execute Jesus. He was a good and righteous man who was genuinely seeking God. Because of this, Joseph knew Jesus was from God and couldn’t bear to have His body thrown in a ditch somewhere. In a risky move, Joseph went to Pilate and requested the body of Jesus – something that may jeopardise his position in the council, or even his very life.

Pilate grants him the body of Jesus and he prepares His body for burial. Then they lay Him in a tomb where there weren’t any other bodies. The women who had been watching from a distance had followed Joseph and seen where the tomb was. Knowing this, they went back home to prepare some spices and ointments to put on Jesus’ body after the Sabbath. As soon as the sun set on the Friday it would signify the start of the Sabbath. There Jesus’ body would rest undisturbed, guarded by a large stone which was rolled in front of the entrance. Other Gospel accounts tell us that there were even guards who stood watch outside the tomb. It is there that we shall leave this story, waiting to see what will take place on the first day of next week.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank you for sending your Son to die on our behalf. He didn’t have to do it but chose to go to the Cross to glorify you in saving us. Thank you that by believing in You we can have eternal life. Thank you that you went to your grave so that we could go free. In Jesus Name, Amen.

The post The Burial of Jesus – Luke 23:44-56 appeared first on Gospel Church.

²⁶ And as they led him away, they seized one Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, and laid on him the cross, to carry it behind Jesus. ²⁷ And there followed him a great multitude of the people and of women who were mourning and lamenting for him. ²⁸ But turning to them Jesus said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. ²⁹ For behold, the days are coming when they will say, ‘Blessed are the barren and the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!’ ³⁰ Then they will begin to say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us,’ and to the hills, ‘Cover us.’ ³¹ For if they do these things when the wood is green, what will happen when it is dry?”

³² Two others, who were criminals, were led away to be put to death with him. ³³ And when they came to the place that is called The Skull, there they crucified him, and the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. ³⁴ And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And they cast lots to divide his garments. ³⁵ And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!” ³⁶ The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine ³⁷ and saying, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” ³⁸ There was also an inscription over him, “This is the King of the Jews.”

³⁹ One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” ⁴⁰ But the other rebuked him, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? ⁴¹ And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” ⁴² And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” ⁴³ And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

Luke 23:1-25

The Crucifixion

Barabbas was free and Jesus was condemned. They wasted no time after the sentence was given and marched Jesus off to be crucified. Luke doesn’t mention it, but Jesus had been scourged earlier, a horrific punishment that Romans would inflict on criminals. It was a whip with many lashes, embedded with glass and metal shards and rocks designed to rip the skin off your back. Jesus by this point would have shreds of skin hanging and was expected to carry this large piece of timber all the way up a steep hill.

The Romans enjoyed this spectacle, marching a man up to his own execution and mocking and ridiculing him the whole way. However, Jesus was seriously injured, and would have had serious blood loss. He needed help to get up there.

The guards must have started to get impatient at how slow Jesus was going, so they grab a man from the crowd. Now this man is named in each account. Simon of Cyrene. He was a Jewish man from North Africa in modern-day Libya who had travelled over two thousand kilometres to attend the festival of Passover and Pentecost. This journey would have taken weeks, if not months, and here he is, completely unknowingly, helping the Son of God carry a cross. The Gospel of Mark notes that Simon of Cyrene is the father of Alexander and Rufus, perhaps the same Rufus in Romans 16:13. If this is true, then Simon became a Christian at some point after the resurrection.

Jesus was not entirely alone. The women that followed Jesus had by this point rallied in support and were following Him on His way. They were understandably devastated, waking up to hear that Jesus was to be condemned. They were mourning and lamenting as they watched their Lord being mocked and scorned by the Romans. They knew what was about to happen. Jesus addresses them in their distress, commanding them not to weep for Him, but weep for themselves and their children. They should know that what Jesus is doing is necessary from all He has taught. The reason why they should weep for themselves is puzzling at first. He says, ‘Blessed are the barren and the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!’ What is He referring to? Something He has been talking about a lot recently. He reminds the women of the impending destruction of Jerusalem.

Hundreds of thousands of Jews, men, women and children, were slaughtered from 66 to 70AD in all 985 towns in Israel. Women that had no children were to be considered blessed, because they did not have to witness and endure the deaths of their children. People in those days will want the mountains and caves to fall on them to hide them from the wrath of God’s judgment at the hands of the Romans.

Jesus speaks a common proverb, ‘for if they do these things when the wood is green, what will happen when it is dry?” This basically means, if things are going poorly when the tree is flourishing, how much more will it go badly when its dry and dead? If bad things are happening now, such as Jesus’ crucifixion and the current state of Israel, just wait until the tree has completely died. Things will be much worse then.

Jesus is led away to be crucified alongside two criminals. They walk up the hill, each carrying their cross to Golgotha, a small hill meaning the Skull in Aramaic. There they nailed their arms into the wood, likely between the two wrist bones near the hand. They also nailed both feet to the wood below, some historians think between the Achilles heel tendon. This was a long and excruciating way to die. The weight of your body asphyxiates you, and the only way to breath is to push up with your feet to gasp in short, haggard breaths. Jesus is crucified among the criminals, one on His left and right. To the bystander walking by, Jesus was nothing more than a common thief or murderer.

It is in that moment when Jesus shows His great love and mercy, for He says, ‘Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.’ What amazing grace to show to those who had so viciously beaten, mocked and attacked Him. What amazing love to show to His executioners. Did they care? Not really. They had taken His last possession, His robe, and started to cast lots to see who would get it. People came to watch Him to see what would happen. The chief priests and scribes also came and mocked Him, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!” They all taunt Him to save Himself. They all throw the temptation He faced in the garden at Him. He didn’t have to stay there and die for those taunting Him. But He did. Simply amazing love.

They wrote an inscription, written in three languages so that all could read it, ‘This is the King of the Jews.’ One last parting message to leave. It was the Romans opportunity to mock the Jewish community. There was their king. Pathetic, defeated, hung on a cross. It was a shameful thing for the whole community.

One of the criminals join in on the mocking. He wants to get out of his sentence, he wants Jesus to come down and let them both go. The other thief was different. This interaction is simply astounding. He recognises that God is worthy to fear, and that great reverence is to placed on Jesus. He also recognises that he is a sinner who deserves to be put to death. He also recognises that Jesus really is the Messiah and will return again one day. From this position of knowing his sin, and knowing Jesus’ real identity, he asks for mercy. He asks for Jesus to remember him.

‘Today you will be with me in paradise.’ The thief, by trusting in Jesus, was saved from his sins and granted eternal life. That day he went to be with Christ in glory. The thief on the cross is an example of a believer. A person who recognises that they deserve the death that Jesus died. A person who knows that Jesus was innocent, and they were guilty. A believer who recognises that they need Jesus’ forgiveness and grace. This thief knew precious little about the Gospel, but he knew enough. It doesn’t take gifted theologians to find salvation, but humble, child-like faith in Jesus Christ.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, you have made all things and by your will all things hold together. You fashioned me in my mother’s womb and granted me new life even though I was far from you and did not deserve it. Help me Lord to take this message to those around me. In Jesus Name, amen.

The post The Crucifixion – Luke 23:26-43 appeared first on Gospel Church.

Then the whole company of them arose and brought him before Pilate. ² And they began to accuse him, saying, “We found this man misleading our nation and forbidding us to give tribute to Caesar, and saying that he himself is Christ, a king.” ³ And Pilate asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” And he answered him, “You have said so.” ⁴ Then Pilate said to the chief priests and the crowds, “I find no guilt in this man.” ⁵ But they were urgent, saying, “He stirs up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, from Galilee even to this place.”

⁶ When Pilate heard this, he asked whether the man was a Galilean. ⁷ And when he learned that he belonged to Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent him over to Herod, who was himself in Jerusalem at that time. ⁸ When Herod saw Jesus, he was very glad, for he had long desired to see him, because he had heard about him, and he was hoping to see some sign done by him. ⁹ So he questioned him at some length, but he made no answer. ¹⁰ The chief priests and the scribes stood by, vehemently accusing him. ¹¹ And Herod with his soldiers treated him with contempt and mocked him. Then, arraying him in splendid clothing, he sent him back to Pilate. ¹² And Herod and Pilate became friends with each other that very day, for before this they had been at enmity with each other.

¹³ Pilate then called together the chief priests and the rulers and the people, ¹⁴ and said to them, “You brought me this man as one who was misleading the people. And after examining him before you, behold, I did not find this man guilty of any of your charges against him. ¹⁵ Neither did Herod, for he sent him back to us. Look, nothing deserving death has been done by him. ¹⁶ I will therefore punish and release him.”

¹⁸ But they all cried out together, “Away with this man, and release to us Barabbas”— ¹⁹ a man who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection started in the city and for murder. ²⁰ Pilate addressed them once more, desiring to release Jesus, ²¹ but they kept shouting, “Crucify, crucify him!” ²² A third time he said to them, “Why? What evil has he done? I have found in him no guilt deserving death. I will therefore punish and release him.” ²³ But they were urgent, demanding with loud cries that he should be crucified. And their voices prevailed. ²⁴ So Pilate decided that their demand should be granted. ²⁵ He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, for whom they asked, but he delivered Jesus over to their will.

Luke 23:1-25

The Judgment of Rome

If it was up to the Sanhedrin, Jesus would have been stoned to death there and then. Yet, they had no right to sentence any man to death. They needed the approval of the Roman Governor, a man named Pontius Pilate. This was not going to be easy, as Jesus had not broken any laws. They were going to have to use whatever tactics they could to force Pilate to execute Him.

Pontius Pilate was the Imperial Governor of Judea from 26-36AD, a position that was very tenuous. Pilate had made many errors in his rule over the province, not understanding the customs of the Jews and greatly offending them time and time again. He attempted to set up Emperor worship in the city, which was met with widespread riots in which he barely made it out alive. There were immense pressures on the Roman Governors to maintain order among their constituents, and Pilate understood his position was fragile in Judea. Harsh tactics of subjugation seemed to have little effect on the Jews. In fact, the harsher he was the more resistance he faced. The best tactic to deal with the Jews was to appease them and give them freedom of worship.  

Therefore, the chief priests and scribes decide to manipulate Pilate in the area they knew he was the most sensitive. They claimed that Jesus was an insurrectionist, trying to rally support for His own rule and to become king. As Tiberius Caesar was the Emperor, this was a direct challenge to his rule. They were hoping that Pilate would bite and rid himself of this problem before it got more out of hand. Unfortunately, Pilate was not going to play their games. He questions Jesus, asking if He was the king of the Jews. Jesus, rather than defending Himself, simply answers, ‘you have said so.’

Of course, there was little evidence to suggest their accusations were true. Pilate wants to acquit Jesus and send Him away, but the chief priests and scribes’ pressure him all the more, saying that he stirs up the people (to rebellion) in the entire province, even attempting to rally support in Jerusalem. Pilate hears the word Galilee and breathes a sigh of relief. That is King Herod’s ‘jurisdiction.’ Jesus can be Herod’s problem instead.

Jesus is now sent to King Herod, who was in Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover. Herod was stoked, because he had heard about all of Jesus’ miracles and had wanted to meet Jesus for a long time. Jesus was then brought in to see Herod, who questioned Him continuously, but as with Pilate, Jesus made no substantive answer. The chiefs priests and scribes threw everything they had at Jesus, making all sorts of accusations. After the excitement died down Herod probably grew bored, perhaps angry, and decided to hand Jesus over to his own soldiers to be mistreated further. They dressed Him up in splendid clothing, mocking this peasant carpenter for claiming to be the king of the Jews, and then sent Him back to Pilate.

Apparently, this must have made Pilate laugh, because he made peace with Herod and became friends with him. Previously they were rival powers in Judea, but now their shared disdain for Jesus has made them close buddies. Pilate has made up his mind. He will release Jesus and be done with this whole mess. He gathers the whole crowd and declares Jesus innocent of all crimes and will punish and release Him back into the general population.

The chief priests and scribes had thrown everything at Pilate and he hadn’t budged. They were going have to go back to the drawing board. Instead, they wanted Pilate to release a prisoner to them, as was his custom. They wanted Barabbas, an insurrectionist and murderer. Shockingly, they would rather have a murderer and brigand than have Jesus acquitted of His charges. This is how much they loathed and despised Jesus for standing up to them and plainly declaring truth to them. They would pursue this execution no matter how much dignity and integrity they would have to sacrifice.

Pilate at this stage was stuck between a rock and a hard place. If he released Jesus, he might have a full-fledged riot on his hands. His superiors in Rome would not be happy to hear of more turmoil in Judea. On the other hand, if he condemns Jesus, he is giving the chief priests power to demand execution whenever they please. It would also make him an unjust and opportunist adjudicator. He tries again to release Jesus, but they shout, ‘crucify, crucify Him!’ Again, he asks what evil Jesus has done? His questions go unheard, they cry all the more for crucifixion. Luke says, ‘their voices prevailed.’ Pilate, motivated either by cowardice or self-preservation, or both, grants the demands of the chief priests and their followers. Barabbas was released, and Jesus was sent to die in his stead.

Jesus could have intervened at any moment. He could have spoken up in His own defence. Legions of angels could have come to His aid. He didn’t avail Himself of any of these because He was following the will of the Father. He endured the mockery and scorn, the beatings and accusations knowing that the worst was ahead. He would die on behalf of sinners, the very kind of sinners who were putting Him to death. What amazing love and mercy that Jesus, the creator of all things, would endure this kind of treatment from His own creation. What amazing love that He would purchase their salvation with His own blood and give His life as a ransom for many. For those of us who believe and trust in Jesus this is good news. We know that we didn’t deserve this. We know this is a sheer act of grace. If we are anyone in this scene, we are Barabbas – who was let free while Jesus is condemned and sentenced to face our punishment. It should have been us on that cross, yet Jesus died for us in our place.  

Have we really digested and understood this amazing message? Does it bring us tears and joy, or indifference and coldness? Do we react with thanksgiving that God would do such an amazing thing on our behalf, or entitlement and expectation? May I humbly suggest that if you feel nothing to this message, you may not be a Christian. Ask Jesus to radically change your heart in this, so that you can be blown away by His grace. The joy in knowing Christ is beyond anything that this world offers.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank you for saving me even though I did not deserve it. You had every right to judge me and cast me from you and yet you brought me near in love. Thank you for the finished work of Jesus on cross. In Jesus Name, Amen.

The post The Judgment of Rome – Luke 23:1-25 appeared first on Gospel Church.

⁴⁷ While he was still speaking, there came a crowd, and the man called Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them. He drew near to Jesus to kiss him, ⁴⁸ but Jesus said to him, “Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?” ⁴⁹ And when those who were around him saw what would follow, they said, “Lord, shall we strike with the sword?” ⁵⁰ And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear. ⁵¹ But Jesus said, “No more of this!” And he touched his ear and healed him. ⁵² Then Jesus said to the chief priests and officers of the temple and elders, who had come out against him, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs? ⁵³ When I was with you day after day in the temple, you did not lay hands on me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness.”

⁵⁴ Then they seized him and led him away, bringing him into the high priest’s house, and Peter was following at a distance. ⁵⁵ And when they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat down among them. ⁵⁶ Then a servant girl, seeing him as he sat in the light and looking closely at him, said, “This man also was with him.” ⁵⁷ But he denied it, saying, “Woman, I do not know him.” ⁵⁸ And a little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.” But Peter said, “Man, I am not.” ⁵⁹ And after an interval of about an hour still another insisted, saying, “Certainly this man also was with him, for he too is a Galilean.” ⁶⁰ But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about.” And immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed. ⁶¹ And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the saying of the Lord, how he had said to him, “Before the rooster crows today, you will deny me three times.” ⁶² And he went out and wept bitterly.

⁶³ Now the men who were holding Jesus in custody were mocking him as they beat him. ⁶⁴ They also blindfolded him and kept asking him, “Prophesy! Who is it that struck you?” ⁶⁵ And they said many other things against him, blaspheming him.

⁶⁶ When day came, the assembly of the elders of the people gathered together, both chief priests and scribes. And they led him away to their council, and they said, ⁶⁷ “If you are the Christ, tell us.” But he said to them, “If I tell you, you will not believe, ⁶⁸ and if I ask you, you will not answer. ⁶⁹ But from now on the Son of Man shall be seated at the right hand of the power of God.” ⁷⁰ So they all said, “Are you the Son of God, then?” And he said to them, “You say that I am.” ⁷¹ Then they said, “What further testimony do we need? We have heard it ourselves from his own lips.”

Luke 22:47-71

The Judgment of the Sanhedrin – Luke 22:47-71

The temptation had arrived. Judas Iscariot was leading a crowd of men carrying clubs and swords ready for an armed showdown. Judas, being one of the Twelve, knew exactly where they would be. The chief priests and scribes were expecting Jesus and the disciples to put up some sort of resistance, which is why they sent the extra muscle to bring Jesus in. You could feel the tension in the air, would this turn into a bloodbath?

There was a sign that Judas had given to the crowd to indicate which man they should arrest. He would betray Jesus with a kiss on the cheek, a common gesture you would make to someone you consider an equal. If you were a slave, you would kiss the feet of your master, a subject to a king, you would kiss their hand, but an equal, well you would kiss their cheek. Kissing someone on the cheek is still a very common practice in Mediterranean cultures.

Jesus looks Judas in the eye, bewildered, and asks, ‘Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?’ Is this how you want to do this? Even in the last moment, Jesus would call Judas to repent. Jesus still called Judas reconsider his actions. It wasn’t too late to turn towards forgiveness. Sadly, Judas would never do that. His is a tragic tale of greed and betrayal, culminating in a final act of self-destruction. It would have been better, Jesus says in Mark, that he was never born than to betray the Son of Man.

Yet here he was. Crowd of thugs in tow, ready to arrest Jesus and bring Him before the council of elders – also known as the Sanhedrin. The disciples quickly woke up from the sleepiness and realised that something was about to go down. They ask Jesus, ‘shall we strike with the sword?’ Is it time for armed resistance? Before Jesus gets a chance to calm the situation, Peter lunges forward and cuts off the ear of the high priest’s servant. Now, I can’t imagine Peter intended to cut his ear off. It’s likely that Peter lunged forward intending to hit him in the head. The servant managed to dodge it in just enough time, likely clearing the sword by millimetres, but not enough to save his ear. It came clean off. Peter was proving to Jesus just how dedicated he was. He was going to die in battle for the Lord.

The situation had already turned bloody. Jesus seizes the initiative and stops the conflict before it can escalate and commands His disciples to put down their weapons. Then He takes the ear of the servant and heals Him. All eyes are on Jesus now. What was He going to do? He asks a question, ‘have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs? When I was with you day after day in the temple, you did not lay hands on me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness.’ He speaks to the hypocrisy of the whole situation. The men were cowards, only seizing Jesus when it seemed favourable to them. They were treating Him like a criminal when He was nothing of the sort. This was their hour to act in this grand narrative – but also the hour of action for the dark spiritual powers. After all, Satan was present in Judas, leading the whole entourage.

Jesus allows Himself to be arrested by them. This disciples are incredulous, but it quickly turns to fear. They all scatter trying to avoid being arrested alongside Jesus. To be fair to the disciples, the thugs did try to seize them as well, even ripping the clothes off one of bystanders in Mark 14:51-52. They weren’t too concerned with the Twelve. They had the man they wanted. They brought him to the high priest’s house to await trial in the dead of night, away from the prying eyes of the Romans and the crowds.

They began to gather in the courtyard, kindling a large bonfire to warm the people nearby. Peter, having run away at first, now came back in secret. He wanted to see what was going to happen, so he tried to blend in with the crowd so that no one would arrest him and bring him to trial with Jesus. It wasn’t a great plan. A servant girl recognised him, and in a loud voice began to blow his cover to the thugs around him. ‘This man also was with him,’ she says. Peter must have gone pale, realising that any moment someone might seize him too. In fear and panic, he denies having ever known Jesus. Another person says the same, ‘you also are one of them.’ Peter once again denies having known Jesus – knowing full well what might happen to him if they all find out who he really is. But his accent betrays him. He clearly is Galilean, a point another person brings up. Once again, Peter denies Jesus bringing his total up to three.

The rooster crowed and it suddenly dawned on Peter. Earlier that night Peter had been resolute in dying alongside Jesus in battle. Now facing the real threat of being put to death, he is a coward. Without adrenaline and the glory of battle, Peter was nothing but a coward. In misery, Peter remembers Jesus word to him, and weeps bitterly. All hope is lost.

Jesus stands before the Sanhedrin, something you can read about in Matthew 26:57-68. The Gospel of Luke is written to Gentiles, so less focus is given on the Jewish council. Worth noting however that the whole trial was a sham. This was likely the first and only time that the Sanhedrin had met at night, as there was a strict rule against it: 

“Let a capital offence be tried during the day, but suspend it at night.”

—Mishna, Sanhedrin IV. 1.

Breaking their own rules and customs, they sentence Him to death before the crowd were awake and could intervene. Luke skips this section – choosing to summarise the decision of the council during their meeting the following morning. Jesus is handed over to be mocked and beaten. They blindfold Him and begin to strike Him, asking Him to prophesy who had hit Him. They also blasphemed Him in many ways. These men would not be treating Jesus this way if they knew who He was. This was only the beginning of the ordeal that Jesus would have to endure.

Having already established Jesus’ guilt during the night, they hold a quick meeting in the morning. A feeble attempt to obey their own laws. There they question Him one last time. ‘Are you the Messiah (Christ)?’ Jesus notes that no matter what He says they won’t believe Him. Either He says He isn’t the Messiah, and they will think He is lying (for He would be), or He will say that He is the Messiah, and they won’t believe Him anyway. But Jesus does say something more profound than either. ‘From now on the Son of Man shall be seated at the right hand of the power of God.’ Jesus tells them the truth as plainly and directly as He can. What is that truth? He reveals His divinity.

Now the claim Son of God was not a divine claim, for Adam and Solomon, even angels, are referred to as Sons of God in the Old Testament. According to Daniel 7:13-14, as we have seen earlier, the Son of Man comes on the clouds of heaven to be given authority, power and glory from the Ancient of Days and will be worshipped with the worship only due to God by all nations. The Jews held that the Son of Man must be God Himself, so for Jesus to claim this role, He was claiming divinity. It is blasphemy of the highest order, and in Matthew 26:65, the high priest tears his robe. Jesus is to be put to death for claiming to be the Son of Man. They went into this trial with nothing on Jesus. Absolutely nothing worthy of putting Him to death. But Jesus has just handed them exactly what they needed. Jesus Himself gave them the legal grounds they needed to execute Him.

Like Peter, do we make strong professions of belief in Christ, only to deny Him when it costs us anything? Are we willing to fight for Jesus when it brings us glory, but unwilling when there is no glory to be had?

Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank you for your grace and mercy. Although we are weak like Peter, you are strong and capable of giving us everything we need. Peter didn’t have the Holy Spirit, but we have everything we need to stick firm in you. Help us we pray. In Jesus Name, Amen.

The post The Judgment of the Sanhedrin – Luke 22:47-71 appeared first on Gospel Church.

²⁴ A dispute also arose among them, as to which of them was to be regarded as the greatest. ²⁵ And he said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those in authority over them are called benefactors. ²⁶ But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves. ²⁷ For who is the greater, one who reclines at table or one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at table? But I am among you as the one who serves. ²⁸ “You are those who have stayed with me in my trials, ²⁹ and I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom, ³⁰ that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

³¹ “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, ³² but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” ³³ Peter said to him, “Lord, I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death.” ³⁴ Jesus said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow this day, until you deny three times that you know me.”

³⁵ And he said to them, “When I sent you out with no moneybag or knapsack or sandals, did you lack anything?” They said, “Nothing.” ³⁶ He said to them, “But now let the one who has a moneybag take it, and likewise a knapsack. And let the one who has no sword sell his cloak and buy one. ³⁷ For I tell you that this Scripture must be fulfilled in me: ‘And he was numbered with the transgressors.’ For what is written about me has its fulfillment.” ³⁸ And they said, “Look, Lord, here are two swords.” And he said to them, “It is enough.”

³⁹ And he came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him. ⁴⁰ And when he came to the place, he said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” ⁴¹ And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, ⁴² saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” ⁴³ And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. ⁴⁴ And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. ⁴⁵ And when he rose from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow, ⁴⁶ and he said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation.”

Luke 22:3-23

The Garden

It makes complete sense that after the Lord’s Supper it’s time to have a good argument about who is the greatest… actually no… it makes no sense at all. The disciples were anticipating a great Kingdom to be established, and if positions are up for grabs, why not call dibs early? Did they listen to Jesus at all? It seems they are still transfixed on the glory they will receive when the New Covenant is established. They are still hopelessly in denial and not willing to budge. It almost as if they heard that Jesus’ blood inaugurated the New Covenant but forgot that His blood had to be shed to inaugurate it. Once again, the disciples show themselves to be fools – they very kind of fools that God loves to transform to show His power.

Jesus uses this as a teaching point. Sadly, the last teaching point that they will receive. The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship. They expect service and honour and praise from their subordinates. You only had to look at the late King Herod the Great of Judea. He had 10 wives, multiple children, and ordered the death of every baby boy under the age of 2 in Bethlehem. The man was a paranoid psychopath and expected to be obeyed even in the most inhumane and immoral of decrees. The current Roman Emperor Tiberius routinely had his senators and officials murdered for the most nonsensical reasons, spending most of his time on the island of Capri engaging in all sorts of debauchery and orgies. The Gentile Kings were corrupt, evil, licentious men who even had the nerve to refer to themselves as benefactors. The disciples knew of their excesses.

Jesus contrasts the Gentiles with His Kingdom. He says that His Kingdom is different. The greatest should become the least, and the leader as a servant. Who is greater? The one eating food, or the person waiting on them? Of course, it is the one eating at the table, and yet Jesus says that He is one who serves. If Jesus is the Lord of all and serves, so should the officials and lords in His Kingdom.

The disciples have stayed with Jesus in His trials so far, proving their loyalty (somewhat). They are still woefully underprepared for what it about to happen – to no fault of Jesus. He has told them again and again what they will have to face. But, despite this, the disciples have a privileged position in the Kingdom that is to come. They will sit at the table of the King and be judges of the 12 tribes of Israel. Who would have thought an argument of who is the greatest would result in this? The disciples must feel chuffed with themselves. They still don’t understand what it will take from them to be given this privilege.

Jesus informs Simon Peter that Satan wanted to ‘sift you like wheat.’ Well that would be terrifying to hear. To think that Satan asked for you by name and wanted to sift you – I’m not sure what that means but it doesn’t sound pleasant. Peter is probably a bit concerned after hearing that, but Jesus reassures Him. He has prayed that Peter’s faith would not fail. When you have turned, assumedly from this trial sent by Satan, strengthen your brothers. Jesus is letting Peter know beforehand that he will fail, but he will have a role in strengthening and preparing the disciples for what comes next.

Peter is not happy with this. He declares that no matter what, whether prison or even death, he will never leave Jesus. I’m sure Peter meant this wholeheartedly. The problem was Peter didn’t really know himself. For by morning, before the rooster crows, Peter will have denied Jesus three times. This would have been taken very hard by Peter, and he was even more determined to prove Jesus wrong. Peter was going to do whatever it takes to protect Jesus… we’ll see how he goes with that one.

Jesus reminds the disciples now of Luke 9:1-6, the moment He sent them out to preach the Gospel. He asks them if they lacked anything, which of course they didn’t. They left prepared, with money, a knapsack, shoes – everything they needed to be itinerant evangelists. Well now Jesus is sending them again, this time things will be different. They will no longer be going in peace and comfort as they had before because things were going to get ugly. He says to them, ‘the one who has no sword sell his cloak and buy one.’ Your lives are going to be in danger now as you go out among the wolves as a sheep. Bring protection.

The Scripture was about to be fulfilled. Isaiah 53:12, ‘because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many and makes intercession for the transgressors.’ Jesus was going to die. The Father was going to number Jesus with the transgressors and punish Him as if He was a transgressor like the rest. The disciples were going to have to weather the storm that would result from this.

The disciples inform Jesus that they have two swords among eleven men. Jesus says that will be enough. They weren’t going to be a travelling band of armed evangelists. They only needed enough for self-protection, to deter robbers and other groups from attacking them. Jesus has now prepared His disciples for what is ahead.

He withdraws to the Garden of Gethsemane, on the Mount of Olives to pray. Luke let’s us know that was His custom. This is not good, because Judas now knows where Jesus will be. Surprisingly, this is Jesus’ very intention. Let them come.

He informs His disciples to pray that they will not enter into temptation – namely, that they will stick firm and not abandon Jesus. He then retreats a short distance away from the disciples and prays intensely and loudly enough that the they could hear Him. He asks for the Father to remove the cup from Him. What is the cup? It is the cup of God’s wrath that is poured out for sinners to drink completely. It is God’s divine and perfect wrath against sin which must be satisfied if God is a good judge. Jesus understands that He must drink it and drain it completely, and the prospect of it was terrifying.

Jesus was sweating drops of blood, a condition called Hematidrosis. It is a medical condition which occurs when someone is placed under extreme physical or emotional stress – causing their sweat glands to rupture and ooze out blood. I don’t know about you, but I don’t think I’ve ever come close to that level of stress. Jesus understood what He had to do. He was going to drink the cup of God’s wrath…

Here we find an amazing interaction between Jesus’ humanity and divinity. He asks that the cup may pass from Him, that perhaps there might be some other way. In an act of sheer submission to the Father, under such intense pressure and stress, He submits Himself to the Father’s will. What is the will of the Father? Isaiah 53:10, ‘Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him…’ it was the only way. An angel appears and provides Him with the strength He needs to get through what comes next.

He arises to find His disciples asleep – overcome by grief and sorrow. They should not be sleeping but praying. Their spirit is willing, but their flesh is weak. They are about to enter into intense temptation, and they need all the help from God that they can get. But it’s too late. The moment of temptation has come, and they were about to be put to the test.

How does knowing Jesus’ experience in the garden renew our love and appreciation for what He has done for us? How might this help you in moments of stress and turmoil in your life?

Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank you for your great love towards us. Jesus, you drank the cup of wrath for us so that we would never have to drink it. You did not have to do this, but you submitted yourself to the Father, for His glory and for our good. Thank you. In Jesus Name, Amen.

The post The Garden – Luke 22:24 – 46 appeared first on Gospel Church.

³ Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve. ⁴ He went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers how he might betray him to them. ⁵ And they were glad, and agreed to give him money. ⁶ So he consented and sought an opportunity to betray him to them in the absence of a crowd.

⁷ Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. ⁸ So Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat it.” ⁹ They said to him, “Where will you have us prepare it?” ¹⁰ He said to them, “Behold, when you have entered the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him into the house that he enters ¹¹ and tell the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ ¹² And he will show you a large upper room furnished; prepare it there.” ¹³ And they went and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover.

¹⁴ And when the hour came, he reclined at table, and the apostles with him. ¹⁵ And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. ¹⁶ For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” ¹⁷ And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. ¹⁸ For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” ¹⁹ And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” ²⁰ And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood. ²¹ But behold, the hand of him who betrays me is with me on the table. ²² For the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom he is betrayed!” ²³ And they began to question one another, which of them it could be who was going to do this.

Luke 22:3-23

The Last Meal of Jesus

It’s the chief priest’s lucky day. They were finally going to get their chance to arrest Jesus without having the crowd intervene. So far, Jesus has been withdrawing from Jerusalem every night, slipping out of their grasp. Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve disciples was going to tell them exactly where He was. Judas was already considering a way to betray Jesus, especially since he witnessed (in the other Gospel accounts) Mary pouring expensive ointment on Jesus’ head. Judas remarked that it could have been sold and given to the poor! Although that may sound good, it was later revealed he was stealing from the moneybag. What was most offensive is that Mary was preparing Jesus for burial – something the disciples were still in denial about. Jesus wasn’t really going to die… right?

Judas has come to the realisation that Jesus is not going to be the Messiah he wanted (sadly, many ‘Christians’ are similar). Jesus was predicting His death, something that greatly distressed all the Twelve, and now after yesterdays passage, had just finished letting them know of the fate of Jerusalem. As far as Judas was concerned, this guy would lead them to obscurity and an early grave. It was time to jump ship, but of course, make a few extra coins on the way out. Having made up his mind to betray Jesus, he opened an avenue for Satan to finally bring down the Son of God. Luke says that Satan entered into Judas – a concept known as possession. Judas, without knowing it, had sealed his fate and become a pawn in a much bigger spiritual drama.

Did Judas know he was possessed? It’s unlikely. Now fully under Satan’s control, he goes to the chief priest’s and officials and conspired on the best way to betray Jesus. What’s the reward? An opportunity to part ways with Jesus without going down alongside Him, and, of course, make some extra cash. Thirty pieces of silver, perhaps around $3000 in today’s money, was the agreed upon price. They needed to get Jesus somewhere away from the crowd, something Judas could help them with. He was locked in now. He would betray Jesus that very night. All for a handful of coins.

The Passover had taken over the city of Jerusalem. You can read all about the history of the festival in Exodus 12; the story of Israel sacrificing lambs and putting their blood on the doorposts, so that the angel of death would ‘pass over’ their houses and spared their firstborns. The Egyptians were not as fortunate. The Jewish people celebrated this act of salvation annually. It was a massive festival; historians believe that the city would swell to around three million people as Jews from all over the ancient world would make the pilgrimage to Jerusalem to take part in the temple sacrifices.

The time had now arrived when lambs would be sacrificed for the sins of Israel. Traditionally, a meal would be held that very night. Where were the disciples going to share the Passover meal? Jesus sends Peter and John to a secret place – a place that it seems Jesus has made prior arrangements for. A man carrying a jar will meet them and take them to a large upper room which they are to request from the master of the house. A strange interaction from Jesus to be sure. Why the secrecy?

Jesus knew that He was about to be betrayed, and that this was to be His last meal. He had a few things that He wanted to do before the chief priests could seize Him. What were those things? He was going to radically redefine the Passover, and institute a New Covenant. Judas was not to know where that would be or else he might betray Jesus early. Jesus was going to be betrayed when He was ready for it.

It is there in the upper room, that this well-known event takes place. Jesus starts by telling the disciples how much He longed to eat the Passover with them. He then tells them something shocking. He will not taste eat of it again until the Passover is fulfilled. He takes a cup of wine and passes it around. He reminds the disciples that this too, He will not taste until the Kingdom of God comes.

Jesus takes the unleavened bread, the traditional flat bread that was to be eaten at the Passover and breaks it into chunks to be shared. He then declares the bread to be His body – and He tells the disciples to remember this moment and continue to do it as remembrance of Him. This body that was broken, was given up for them. This was a sad meal, a moment when the disciples realised that Jesus was serious about His death. A moment that likely enraged Judas all the more.

Now the cup was passed around, signifying the blood of the New Covenant which is poured out for His disciples. As the blood of lambs were being poured out for Israel, the true Lamb of God would be sacrificed, His body broken, and blood poured out for the sins of the world. When this occurs the New Covenant will be ratified. Once for all, this sacrifice would cleanse His followers from sin and shield them from the wrath of God, just as God’s wrath had ‘passed over’ them in Egypt. Now there was a way for a completely holy and righteous God to forgive and justify sinners.

But this sacrifice was not for everyone at the table. The hand of one man who ate and enjoyed the meal was about to betray Jesus. This is Judas’ last chance to change course. This was His last moment to reconsider what he was about to do. Jesus informs the disciples that one will betray Him, and woe to that man who would betray the Son of Man! Harsh words that should jolt Judas out of his stupor and make him reassess the situation. Judas sadly, would stick firm in his choice to betray Jesus.

The disciples are shocked. This really speaks to Judas’ cleverness because no one suspected him. It wasn’t like everyone turned to Judas – the classic rebel in the group and said, ‘it’s him isn’t it?’. He was sneaky. He seemed righteous. He seemed dedicated to the cause. No one suspected him. But he was a fraud and a trickster and a charlatan, and would hand over their master into the hands of sinful men.

Many so-called ‘Christians’ can fly under the radar, living in secret lives of sin that no one else knows about. Like Judas, no one suspects them of betraying Jesus. Things that if they were brought to light would bring disrepute and disgrace upon Christ and His church. All too often we see people claiming to be followers of Jesus but are actually frauds and fakes.

How are we with this? Do we eat the body and drink the blood at Communion, pretending to follow Jesus when really we are following the rest of the world? Do we betray Jesus with a kiss, while discounting His amazing acts of salvation in our lives? How can we make sure that we don’t fall into this same trap?

Prayer

Heavenly Father, all too often I find myself enticed by the things of this world. Help me orient my life towards your grace and mercy, knowing that though I fail and struggle, you are faithful and secure. Help me be like Jesus, in Jesus Name, Amen

The post The Last Meal of Jesus – Luke 22:2 – 23 appeared first on Gospel Church.

²⁵ “And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, ²⁶ people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken. ²⁷ And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. ²⁸ Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

²⁹ And he told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. ³⁰ As soon as they come out in leaf, you see for yourselves and know that the summer is already near. ³¹ So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. ³² Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all has taken place. ³³ Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

³⁴ “But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap. ³⁵ For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. ³⁶ But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.” ³⁷ And every day he was teaching in the temple, but at night he went out and lodged on the mount called Olivet. ³⁸ And early in the morning all the people came to him in the temple to hear him.

22 Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread drew near, which is called the Passover. ² And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to put him to death, for they feared the people.

Luke 21:25 – 22:2

Coming on the Clouds

Leading up until this point things have been looking bleak. The old Temple system with its sacrifices and the nation of Israel were set to be destroyed and you wouldn’t blame the crowd for thinking that God was abandoning His promises. Yet, as some would find out, God was fulfilling all the promises to Israel in the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus and inaugurating the kingdom here on earth.

There will be signs in the heavens, most notably when Jesus died – the sun would be darkened, earthquakes, and the moon turned to blood. This earthquake was felt as far away as Italy, and geological studies have concluded that a major seismic event occurred sometimes between 26AD and 36AD. Many historical writers have taken note of the eclipse that occurred. There would be big signs pointing to this enormous event.

There are other signs, ‘the roaring of the seas and waves.’ Now it is my opinion that this is speaking of the turmoil and chaos of the Roman Empire during this time. The Old Testament refers to the Gentile nations using the imagery of the sea – as from the Jewish perspective, the great Gentile nations were across the Mediterranean Sea. The powers of the heaven will be shaken, something I see as referring to the powers in the spiritual realm, namely the dark spiritual forces which have enjoyed sacrifices and rulership through the Pagan cultic practices. The demonic realm had no challenges so far. Because of Jesus, this was about to change.

Acts 2:20 also supports this claim, as the signs in the heaven coincide with the ‘pouring out of the Spirit.’ This is the time for salvation. This is the era of the church, and the powers in the heavens are now shaking in their boots. The ruler of this world has been overthrown. Then they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven. Many see this as the Second Coming, yet Jesus is referring to a passage in Daniel.

¹³ “I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. ¹⁴ And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.  

Daniel 7:13-14

The Son of Man is coming on the clouds and is presented before the Ancient of Days (aka God). Notice that the coming of the Son of Man is not something that is coming to us here on earth, but rather an event in heaven. Jesus is presented before the Father, and will receive rulership, dominion, glory, a kingdom – so that all people would come under His rule. All people will serve Him. Jesus is not speaking of His second coming, but rather the Ascension. Jesus rules and reigns right now, gathering for Himself a kingdom that will not be destroyed – which cannot be said of any worldly kingdom.

Jesus encourages His followers. Stand up straight, hold your head high, rejoice, for redemption is drawing near. The kingdom the Jews have long been waiting for was about to come, it just looked very different to what they were expecting.

To illustrate His point, Jesus tells a parable about a fig tree. Before calendars on phones – or even ones you might stick on the fridge – telling seasons was either done by counting, or by watching plants change. Fig trees would grow vibrant leaves as summer was approaching and was a good indicator that things were going to warm up. In the same way, these events are like the green leaves of a fig tree, they let us know that something is going to happen.

‘This generation will not pass away until all has taken place.’ It was a call to His audience to pay attention, for these things will take place within about 40 years. Those who were listening to Him say these things were going to live through these events. Many of them would tragically lose their lives in the siege of Jerusalem. This phrase from Jesus is a good indicator that we shouldn’t be expecting a future event for us as readers. Although, this will be a future event for His audience. These things were guaranteed to take place, for even the heavens and earth will pass way – but Jesus’ words will not. They are more secure than even our current reality.

Therefore, the audience should be careful. Don’t spend your days getting wasted, enjoying your few days on this earth and giving no care or concern for the things of God. We all have a meeting with Him one day. Many in the city of Jerusalem were not expecting to be besieged and put to the sword. It came upon them suddenly like a trap and they did not heed Jesus’ words. Instead, they should have prayed for an escape like the early Christians did, listening to Jesus and trusting Him so that they could escape the destruction of Jerusalem, and indeed the wrath of God when they stand before the Son of Man.

Jesus taught all these things in the Temple. Gathering huge crowds to Himself every day. However, He was slowly losing support from them, as we will see later. Jesus would withdraw every night from the city, which made life difficult for the chief priests and scribes who wanted to grab hold of Him and kill Him. The last two verse tells us that the Passover was at hand – the lamb was about to be sacrificed for the sins of Israel. Moments before this event, the leaders were plotting how to murder Jesus. They were afraid of the people, so they needed to do it in secret. Little did they know that they were about to get lucky.

Just like the Jewish people, feasting and celebrating while things were deteriorating on a geopolitical level and their nation was in great jeopardy, we too can become to complacent and comfortable with the things of this world. Just like them, our nation is not eternal and will one day come to an end. Just like them we will stand before the Son of Man. Are we ready for that day? Or are we preoccupied with the pleasures and comfort of this world which distract us from our relationship with God?

Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank you that I can rest assured knowing that your kingdom can never be destroyed and will last for eternity. Help me live for you amidst the turmoil of this world and the comfort and ease of my life. One day I will stand before you, a great day of comfort for my soul but a day of danger for those outside Christ. Help me share the good news of Christ. In Jesus Name, Amen.

I understand that some reading this devotion will disagree with my viewpoints on the End Times. I wholeheartedly welcome dialogue on anything I have written.

The post Coming on the Clouds – Luke 21:25 – 22:2 appeared first on Gospel Church.

¹⁰ Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. ¹¹ There will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences. And there will be terrors and great signs from heaven. ¹² But before all this they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors for my name’s sake. ¹³ This will be your opportunity to bear witness. ¹⁴ Settle it therefore in your minds not to meditate beforehand how to answer, ¹⁵ for I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict. ¹⁶ You will be delivered up even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and some of you they will put to death. ¹⁷ You will be hated by all for my name’s sake. ¹⁸ But not a hair of your head will perish. ¹⁹ By your endurance you will gain your lives. ²⁰ “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near. ²¹ Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are inside the city depart, and let not those who are out in the country enter it, ²² for these are days of vengeance, to fulfill all that is written. ²³ Alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! For there will be great distress upon the earth and wrath against this people. ²⁴ They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive among all nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

Luke 21:10-24

What the Future Holds

Jesus launches into perhaps the worst PR strategy possible. If His goal was to win the crowd over to His side He is not doing Himself any favours in this passage. Jesus, however, is dedicated to the truth and He will tell the truth no matter how it affects His relationship with the crowd. By foretelling judgment on Jerusalem, He is subverting the expectations of the crowd and forcing them to reconsider their paradigm of the Messianic Kingdom.

The ancient world was a tumultuous place, and the crowds immediate future was no different. Wars would start soon, kingdom against kingdom, nation against nation, in other words things were going to get bloody. Not only this, but earthquakes and famines and pestilence that would make COVID-19 look like child’s play. Things are looking grim for the early Church. Jesus then goes on to say, before all this, these same Jewish leaders I’m having a showdown with will throw you in prison, kick you out of the synagogues, bring you before Kings. If you were hoping for a nice time with Jesus as He establishes His Kingdom, you are sorely mistaken. There will be great suffering for the cause of Christ. Is the crowd ready for this? Erm… not even slightly.

Those who remain faithful to Jesus won’t be alone. Jesus promises that they will have the opportunity to bear witness to Him. Jesus will make sure that the right words will be given to the disciples so that no one will be able to withstand or contradict them. But don’t be fooled. Some of the people that will put you to death may be your own family. The early Jewish community tried (and failed) to eradicate Christianity before it got off the ground. No matter how much they persecuted the early Christians, they only got stronger and more numerous. No matter how hated they were, people were willingly giving up their prestige, status, safety, comfort for the purpose of following Christ. What could make people do this? Jesus must have vindicated Himself in the eyes of the people – rising again from the dead (but I’m jumping the gun a bit here).

Not a hair will perish, says Jesus. This means that not a hair on our head will fade away and be lost by God. In the physical resurrection of the dead, we will have lost nothing, not even a single hair. This is Jesus’ assurance to His followers. By enduring in the Gospel message of Jesus, they will prove themselves to be His followers and save their lives – even though they may die a horrible, horrible death.

For those of us who are Christians, it’s a reminder to be faithful through the trial and through the storm. The whole world may hate us – indeed, if they hated Jesus they will hate us – yet we have many promises here. We might get taken in front of a Government committee, or brought before a tribunal or media panel, yet we should not worry what to say. The words will come to us.

In some countries in the Middle East, when a man or woman converts from the Muslim religion to Christianity, they take their very lives in their hands. The ones they must fear most is their own family, who may hand them over to be put to death. Following Jesus is a serious business even today. We should never lose sight of that in the comfort and ease of Australia. For one day, we may be called to sacrifice our own lives; how would we cope in that situation?

All of these signs that Jesus is talking about lead up to a certain situation. The destruction of Jerusalem. The city and temple that had been painstakingly rebuilt in the books of Nehemiah and Ezra would now be utterly destroyed. When Jerusalem is surrounded by enemies it is then that the disciples can know that the time has come. Before 70AD, Judea rebelled against Rome, who responded by sending in her armies under the command of General Titus. There was harsh and ferocious fighting all across the countryside until Titus lost all patience and mercy towards the Jews. He surrounded the city of Jerusalem and led a brutal assault. Almost no one in the city survived, hundreds of thousands of Jewish men, women and children were put to the sword. The rest were taken captive. A terrible and tragic event that almost wiped the Jewish people off the face of the map.

Jesus is warning His disciples. When you see this, you need to flee. You need to escape to the mountains and there you will be safe from the Roman armies. The Christians remembered this warning, and just before the Romans could lock the city down, thousands of Christians fled into the mountains and were saved from certain death. Jesus laments pregnant and nursing women having to flee during this time, for obvious reasons. Never a good time having to flee your home in those circumstances. Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles until, Jesus says, the time of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

This is a horrific event in history that Jesus predicts with utmost accuracy. What can we take from it? While this is a one-off prediction, similar events have occurred throughout history and continue to this day. Wars and famine and pestilence and earthquakes cause great devastation to the world and bring misery and heartache to people. It’s a reminder that we are finite, temporal. We all have a rendezvous with death, sometimes earlier than we expect, sometimes later but inevitable. Jesus invites us to consider that this world is passing away, judgment is falling on various places, but His Kingdom will never pass away and His hopes are secure. When we find ourselves in anxiety over the future we must remind ourselves that in Christ our future is secure.

How do we go trusting in Jesus for our future? Are we panic-stricken, as if this world is all that there is? What would it look like to put our trust and hope in Jesus in the midst of panic and turmoil?

Prayer

Heavenly Father, help me to put my trust in you for the future, whatever it holds. Help me rest in the promises of your Word, that you will give me the words to speak if I am called to give an account, and that not one hair on my head will perish. In Jesus Name, Amen.

The post What the Future Holds – Luke 21:10-24 appeared first on Gospel Church.