Getting to Know Jesus Even Better #14

Jesus wraps up His rebuke of the Pharisees concerning their poor stewardship with one last parable:

19 “There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 20 And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, 21 who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man's table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried, 23 and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. 24 And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’ 25 But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’ 27 And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father's house— 28 for I have five brothers—so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’ 29 But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ 30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’”

This is one of the rare glimpses we have into life after death.  The rich man had invested his hope and his life into the things of this world: pleasure, possessions, prestige and power, while ignoring the needs right at his front door.  He had also ignored the call of the prophets and Jesus to repent, and to live out justice and mercy.  That never ends well. Lazarus was the exact opposite: he was satisfied with little and was living in hope of God's promises.  Things ended very well for him.  As the story ends, we see that even after a taste of death, the rich man has not changed: he expects Lazarus to serve him, and he is still only concerned about a small group of relatives. He is unwilling to repent and receive the heart of God. 

Getting to Know Jesus Even Better #13

Wherever Jesus went, it was not long until the Pharisees came around giving Him a hard time. In the first section of Luke 16, Jesus was talking to His disciples about the Unjust Steward, when they chime in:

14 The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things, and they ridiculed him. 15 And he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God. 16 “The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is preached, and everyone forces his way into it. 17 But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void. 18 “Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.

They ridiculed Jesus for trying to give financial advice, about stewardship. Jesus replies with a hard rebuke on how they themselves had been poor stewards. They had so twisted the word of God to allow for their pursuit of money and their own pleasures, that people were having a hard time finding the Kingdom of God. They also were setting a poor example morally, as they were known for finding loopholes in the law to divorce their wives when they wanted another woman.  This made it difficult for the people to see, as well as hear, what the truth was from their religious leaders. They had violated their stewardship from God. May we be much better stewards.

Getting to Know Jesus Even Better #12

After the Parables of the Lost Sheep, Coin, and Son, Luke records in chapter 16:

1 Jesus told his disciples: “There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. 2 So he called him in and asked him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.’
3 “The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I’m not strong enough to dig, and I’m ashamed to beg— 4 I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.’
5 “So he called in each one of his master’s debtors. He asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’
6 “‘Nine hundred gallons of olive oil,’ he replied.
“The manager told him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred and fifty.’
7 “Then he asked the second, ‘And how much do you owe?’
“‘A thousand bushels of wheat,’ he replied.
“He told him, ‘Take your bill and make it eight hundred.’
8 “The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. 9 I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.
10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. 11 So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? 12 And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you property of your own?
13 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”

The prodigal son had wasted his inheritance on pleasure, popularity, and possessions, and lost everything. This shrewd steward was also caught wasting his master's possessions on selfish living. What he had wasted did not even belong to him.  Why is he commended? Because of his consistency and creativity.  As we saw, the three "lost" parables all included a rebuke to the Pharisees, who had been poor stewards of their spiritual trust. They had wasted it on getting power and possessions for themselves. Jesus does not want His followers to be like that. He wants us to serve Him as good stewards, not spending our lives living for the things of this world. He also wants us to handle the things of this world wisely, recognizing that all we have also ultimately belongs to Him.

Getting to Know Jesus Even Better #11

In Luke 15, we have seen Jesus give three pictures of God's joy over lost sinners with the shepherd finding 1 sheep of his 100 who got lost, the woman finding 1 of her 10 coins which was lost, and finally the father who had 1 of his 2 sons who had went astray return home. Everyone was happy - well, almost:

25 “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27 ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ 28 “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29 But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’ 31 “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”

Most of us can understand this brother's feelings: he was faithful; he had worked hard every day; his brother had gotten his part of the inheritance and then shamed the family name; why should he get to get any more to eat and be treated like the hero? We struggle with the idea that just because someone else is given grace and treated well, that does not mean we have lost out. There is more than enough in God's household for us to have more than we need, and for us to be secure in both our relationship and our future with the Father. We do not have to compare; in fact, we should not. If we are confident in our own relationship with God, we should not feel any loss when love is expressed to the lost. Then we understand the heart of God.

Getting to Know Jesus Even Better #10

Yesterday, we came to Luke 15, which begins with two parables on God seeking the Lost, and the great joy He has when they are found. Jesus now gives even a third, greater and more detailed picture in what we know as the parable of the prodigal son:

11And he said, “There was a man who had two sons. 12 And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.’ And he divided his property between them. 13 Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living. 14 And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. 16 And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything. 17 “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father,and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.”’ 20 And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. 23 And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. 24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate

Why is this parable among the most-loved and well-known? Because it hits home. We are the prodigals. In a very real sense we can say God has two sons: Jesus and Man. In Luke 3, when recording the genealogy of Jesus, Luke gets to the end and says "... and Adam, the son of God." Humanity is the prodigal son. Man wanted to be free from God and try things on his ow.  God had been waiting for him to come home.  He will celebrate when he does, when you do. 

Getting to Know Jesus Even Better #9

Today in our study we come to Luke 15: 

Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.
8 “Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? 9 And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ 10 In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

Why are you here - to hear or complain? Repeatedly, for the Pharisees, it was to complain. Jesus' parables here are addressed to them: God had sent Him to seek the Lost and bring them back to safety and security. He does not have to worry about the sheep who are safe in the fold or the coins that are in the cookie jar. He goes all out to find them, and when He does, He rejoices over them; so do those who really care about Him as the Good Shepherd and Great Steward. The complainers don't care about the sheep, the measly coin, and most importantly, God Himself.  Do we care about what God cares about?

Getting to Know Jesus Even Better #8

We come today to the final section in Luke 14

25 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: 26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. 27 And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.
28 “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? 29 For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, 30 saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’
31 “Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? 32 If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. 33 In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.
34 “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? 35 It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out.
“Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”

Jesus, by speaking the truth and performing miracles to confirm His authority to do so, always attracted a crowd, which on numerous occasions became a following. He had ways to make sure they were facing reality about His Kingdom. It involves sacrifices in relationships, material possessions, and in the goals that we choose. Perhaps the hardest thing is being such a servant that we are willing to blend in like salt. Salt definitely has a flavor, but when it is doing its job right, it blends into the background. We need to be willing to take our name off the billboard and let His name be the one in lights.