The Benevolence that is Blessed

He said also to the man who had invited him, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just” (Luke 14:12-14).

Jesus chose his words carefully here. He did not intend for His disciples to never have a meal with friends, family, or neighbors. The word Jesus used for “dinner” is ariston in the Greek and it means the best meal. The word Jesus used for “banquet” is deipnon in the Greek and it means the chief meal or feast. Jesus was teaching that when His disciples plan a feast or celebration to honor a special person or to mark a special occasion or achievement, they should invite those who cannot pay their own way or offer any kind of recompense. He wanted His disciples to have sweet, wonderful dinners and banquets together that would reflect the beauty and diversity of the great wedding banquet we anticipate in eternity… “And the angel said to me, ‘Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’ And he said to me, ‘These are the true words of God.’” (Revelation 19:9). Whenever true disciples gather together, our chief, honored guest is Jesus Christ Himself… “For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them” (Matthew 18:20). Inviting the neediest people we know to celebrate Christ with us is a revelation of the benevolence that is blessed.

Christ inviting benevolence begins with inherited relationships. Jesus wants us to be sensitive to the needs in the lives of everyone we encounter, beginning with the relationships He has provided for us. Family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, and others that we see and interact with on a regular basis present wonderful opportunities for us to notice changes in attitude and behavior that may be caused by a hidden change or trial that has disrupted a life. If we see these intimate relationships as God- created we should pray regularly and be sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s leading to respond to opportunities to speak a word of encouragement or to step up to meet a special need in a Christ-reflecting way… “By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth” (1 John 3:16-18).

Christ inviting benevolence creates new improbable relationships. Diligent disciples are compelled by the truth that as born again believers the Spirit of Christ resides in us to empower us to be His witnesses to the whole world around us… “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8). This means that everyone we meet, no matter where and however briefly, is an opportunity for Christ reflecting ministry that restores them to Him and connects them to us… “Remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ” (Ephesians 2:12-13).

Christ inviting benevolence results in imperishable relationships. Jesus promised that generous disciples will be repaid at the resurrection. Whatever reward we receive at that time will be eternal and everlasting, far surpassing any repayment we might receive today… “Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Luke 12:33-34).

As we grow up into Christ, our charity reveals our hearts are approaching heaven as we grow in…

The Benevolence that is Blessed.

The Testimony of Humility

 Now he told a parable to those who were invited, when he noticed how they chose the places of honor, saying to them, “When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in a place of honor, lest someone more distinguished than you be invited by him and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this person,’ and then you will begin with shame to take the lowest place. But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table with you. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 14: 7-11).

Humility is not easy or natural. Since the beginning, pride has led us to exalt ourselves and has made us vulnerable to the temptations of our adversary the devil… “The serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:4-5). Humility is evidence of the new birth and a maturing faith that marks true disciples as set apart from the pride and selfishness of the rest of the world. Today we examine a parable of Jesus that exhorts us to imitate His humility, and I know that diligent disciples will experience His grace as we ask Him to establish and grow within us the testimony of Humility.

Humility reveals the command of Christ. Jesus’ parable centered on the position of the guest in light of the preeminence of the host. He exhorted His disciples to follow the example of the guest that would choose the lowest place, thereby making room for the host to place the guest where he thought best. Maturing disciples are growing in their understanding and trust in the sovereignty of Christ over everything, and we are learning to hear and obey His command regarding our position in every circumstance and relationship… “He (Christ) is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent” (Colossians 1:18). When we put on humility we make room for the blessings of the command of Christ in our lives.

Humility reproduces the compassion of Christ. The proud guest in Jesus’ parable was focused on getting the best seat for himself. In taking the lowest seat, the humble guest left many better seats for others. Jesus often exhorted His disciples even more directly to put others first… “The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted” (Matthew 23:11-12). He was a living example of this indispensable trait of true disciples… “The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28). When we put on humility we put others first and they see the compassion of Christ.

Humility reflects the character of Christ. Jesus could have inserted Himself as the guest into this parable. If anyone at this Sabbath dinner “at the house of a ruler of the Pharisees” (Luke 14:1) deserved the highest seat of honor, it was the Son of God. This parable is prophetic in light of Christ’s divine mission… “Being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:8-11). The Holy Spirit exhorts true disciples in every age to glorify God by reflecting the humility of Christ to a proud world… “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:3-5). When we put on humility we fulfill our call to reflect the humble character of Christ to others.

As we grow up into Christ, His grace works within our hearts to cultivate…

The Testimony of Humility.

The Holy Work of the Sabbath

One Sabbath, when he went to dine at the house of a ruler of the Pharisees, they were watching him carefully. And behold, there was a man before him who had dropsy. And Jesus responded to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?” But they remained silent. Then he took him and healed him and sent him away. And he said to them, “Which of you, having a son or an ox that has fallen into a well on a Sabbath day, will not immediately pull him out?” And they could not reply to these things (Luke 14:1-6).

The Sabbath was a time to rest in the Lord by withdrawing from the busy activity of the world, gathering together with God’s people, and worshipping the Lord. From God’s introduction of this special day, the Sabbath was to mark His people Israel as a special people… “Above all you shall keep my Sabbaths, for this is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I, the LORD, sanctify you” (Exodus 31:13). Christ followers are to keep the Sabbath too because it is one of the blessings we inherit because we are grafted into Israel… “But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree” (Romans 11:17). We keep the first day of the week as a Sabbath because it reflect our rest in the finished work of Christ in the resurrection and is a sign that we are God’s born again children… “So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his” (Hebrews 4:9-10).

Over the years the Pharisees had developed a large list of things that were to be avoided on the Sabbath. They created and enforced Sabbath laws that were so concise and complicated that they even counted steps that were allowed on this holy day. This was never God’s true intention. Jesus revealed the truth of God regarding the Sabbath and showed His disciples what He wanted the Lord’s Day to look like in the days to come. In today’s text, “the Lord of the Sabbath” (Luke 6:5) provides an example for true disciples and the local church in every age of the holy work of the Sabbath.

On the Sabbath diligent disciples should connect with people. On this Sabbath Jesus dined with Pharisees. Our Lord’s Day worship and fellowship should connect us with God and with each other to encourage and mature our faith… “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near” (Hebrews 10:23-25). But our Sabbath gathering should also reflect the seeking and inviting heart of Jesus for the lost… “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10). The effective disciple making local church helps people connect on the Sabbath.

On the Sabbath diligent disciples should care for the needy. Jesus’ agenda for this Sabbath dinner was interrupted by the presentation of a man with dropsy. Without hesitation Jesus used this needy man to create and present a lesson to His hosts and then He healed him. Our Lord’s Day gathering should remind us that our needs are Christ’s opportunities to reveal His glory… “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it” (John 11:4). The culture shaping local church cares for the needy on the Sabbath.

On the Sabbath diligent disciples should compel the lost. Jesus confronted the Pharisees and compelled them to consider a deeper understanding of God’s purpose for the Sabbath. His argument was theological and he used a personal illustration to challenge the hearts of these curious men who were “were watching him carefully”. His message was so compelling these professional interpreters of the law “could not reply to these things”. Our Lord’s Day gathering should be infused with a compelling proclamation of the gospel… “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation” (Mark 16:15). The gospel proclaiming local church compels the lost to consider Christ on the Sabbath.

As we grow up into Christ, our faith is perfected in a local church that is fully engaged in…

The Holy Work of the Sabbath.

The City that is Blessed

At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” And he said to them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course. Nevertheless, I must go on my way today and tomorrow and the day following, for it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.’ O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! Behold, your house is forsaken. And I tell you, you will not see me until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ” (Luke 13:31-35).

What is your destination today? Is it a great day at work? Is it a good grade on a test or paper? Are you settling into a new job or a new neighborhood? Maybe you just hope to get through another day. Let’s face it, we do not know the final destination of any road we embark upon each day. For sure we have a plan, but as disciples of Christ we are promised that our precious Lord has a more premium plan than we might ever imagine… “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11). As maturing disciples we are learning to give Him more control over the steps and direction of our daily walk… “The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps” (Proverbs 16:9). Jesus was undeterred as He journeyed toward the earthly city of Jerusalem and He taught His disciples by example how to resist the world’s course, to fix our hearts on the Lord’s goal, and to follow His leading toward our glorious destiny in the heavenly Jerusalem as He persevered in His own journey toward the city that is blessed.

Jerusalem is the city of distinction for Christ’s devotees. Jesus’ example of uncompromising commitment to finish the journey to Jerusalem reminds us that as His followers, we are not of the world, nor are we to be conquered or controlled by anything of the world… “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:2). In resisting the urging of the Pharisees and rejecting the threats of Herod, Jesus showed us how resist and reject the influence of our culture as we faithfully pursue the only good, acceptable, and perfect will that is of God.

Jerusalem is the city of determination for Christ’s deputies. Jesus showed us that our journey toward heaven is not only personal. Along the way He wants us to reflect His example that true discipleship touches lives and impacts the world around us with His grace and mercy… “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8). As we journey through this suffering world toward our eternal rest, Jesus fills our path with people and circumstances that need the power of His grace and mercy to flow through us into their lives, that they might be compelled to join us in our journey.

Jerusalem is the city of destiny for Christ’s disciples. Jesus’ journey toward the historic city of Jerusalem and to a fixed appointment with the cross was part of His journey toward a heavenly Jerusalem that was inexorably connected to this earthly city… “But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel” (Hebrews 12:22-24). This is the everlasting city that should be the final destination of every true disciple because it is the capital of eternity and the tabernacle of God forever… “I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.  And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God’” (Revelation 21:2-3).

As we grow up into Christ, we seek to share His grace and mercy as we draw ever closer to…

The City that is Blessed.

The Door that is Narrow

He went on his way through towns and villages, teaching and journeying toward Jerusalem. And someone said to him, “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” And he said to them, “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’ Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’ But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil!’ In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out. And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God. And behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last” (Luke 13:22-30).

In a time when Jews believed that only the most wicked and evil among them would not be allowed into heaven, someone in the crowd wanted to know if Jesus was going to change that. The question reveals the heart of a follower that was incited by the possibility that Jesus was truly the Christ, the Son of God, with authority over the living and the dead… “For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living” (Romans 14:9). Jesus’ reply is precious and filled with encouraging truth about the door that is narrow.

Faith in Jesus Christ is the narrow door. Jesus did not give a direct answer to the question “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” Instead He revealed a much more important truth about heaven. Certainly the question how many will be saved is much less important than the question how can anyone be saved? Jesus seized this opportunity to echo the wonderful truth that He is the only way to heaven… “’In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going.’ Thomas said to him, ‘Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me’” (John 14:2-6). In another place Jesus even more clearly identified Himself as the door to salvation… “I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture” (John 10:9). Jesus also taught that faith in Him was the key to unlocking and entering the doorway to salvation… “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26).

Many will strive but not be saved. Jesus told the inquisitor that many who strive to be saved will not be saved. It’s clear that He was referring to those who seek salvation through their own effort. Salvation by works is an abomination to God because it denies and rejects the sovereignty and grace of His Son, Jesus Christ… “There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). The Holy Spirit affirms this truth about God’s grace in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians… “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Many will be saved without striving. Jesus revealed two truths about those who will enter into salvation by grace through faith in Him. First, they will be many, as they come from the four corners of the earth. Second, they will be from the Jews, who were the first, and the Gentiles, the last to hear the gospel. This truth is confirmed in the Revelation Christ shared with John… “They sang a new song, saying, ‘Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth’” (Revelation 5:9-10).

As we grow up into Christ, we are ever more thankful for the grace that gives us faith to open…

The Door that is Narrow.

The Divine Purpose of the Sabbath

Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. And behold, there was a woman who had had a disabling spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your disability.” And he laid his hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she glorified God. But the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, said to the people, “There are six days in which work ought to be done. Come on those days and be healed, and not on the Sabbath day.” Then the Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger and lead it away to water it? And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?” As he said these things, all his adversaries were put to shame, and all the people rejoiced at all the glorious things that were done by him (Luke 13:10-17).

The Sabbath was made for disciples. Evidence that we are born again is an increasing desire to worship and glorify God. True disciples yearn for the Sabbath because we eagerly seek and enjoy fellowshipping with each other, worshipping the Lord together, and giving God the glory He deserves from His Church. Like this disabled woman, we should expect God to deal with anything that hinders us from fully entering into the divine purpose of His Sabbath because He has commanded us to keep it… “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8) and to enter fully into the blessings of it… “Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience” (Hebrews 4:11). When God works through the preaching, fellowship, and serving of true disciples to grant revelation, healing, deliverance, or any other miracle on His Sabbath, He is reaffirming and confirming the word of His Son… “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27-28). When we obey His commandment to honor His day of rest, God loves to reveal the divine purpose of the Sabbath.

The Sabbath was made for worship. We notice that Jesus was “in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath”. You’ve heard me tell you often that the life of discipleship in its simplest terms is becoming more like Christ. Our Teacher, the Holy Spirit affirms this truth through the pen of the Apostle Paul… “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1). Jesus forever connected the Sabbath with the Lord’s Day through His resurrection on the first day of the week and the earliest disciples made it their day of worship and rest… “On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight” (Acts 20:7). Jesus shows us with His presence and teaching in the synagogue on the Sabbath that we should be gathered together in the Lord’s house on the Lord’s Day to hear the Lord’s Word.

The Sabbath was made for glory. Just as everything else, the Sabbath exists for the glory of God… “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever” (Romans 11:36). There are few things that glorify God more clearly and effectively than His Church gathered together, seeking, worshipping, and serving Him on His special day… “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen” (1 Peter 4:10-11). Maturing disciples have learned that the habit of resting in the Lord on the Lord’s Day encourages the habit of trusting and resting in the Lord every day… “So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his” (Hebrews 4:9-10). The resting in Christ life of a true disciple is shaped and maintained by the spiritual discipline of careful and regular observance of a Sabbath on the Lord’s Day.

As we grow up into Christ, we become more like Him as we discover and experience…

The Divine Purpose of the Sabbath.

The Persistence of God's Fruit Bearing Grace

And he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. And he said to the vinedresser, ‘Look, for three years now I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground?’ And he answered him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure. Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down’” (Luke 13:6-9).

The life of Christian discipleship s all about bearing fruit that glorifies God. Earlier in this gospel, the Spirit inspired Luke to record Jesus’ exhortations to His disciples to bear fruit that pleases and glorifies God. With the Teacher’s help we’ve examined the teaching and the heart that bear fruit. Today we discover more truth about bearing fruit. Today Jesus tells a parable that shows that bearing spiritual fruit is the result of God’s persistent work in the believer’s heart. Scripture often describes the children of Israel like a tree planted by God to bring Him glory… “They may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he may be glorified” (Isaiah 61:3). The Spirit inspired Paul to teach that like branches grafted into a well cultivated olive tree, born again disciples are part of the children of Israel through faith in Christ… “You, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree” (Romans 11:17). Therefore, the lesson of this parable about a fruit-bearing tree is for true disciples. Jesus wants us to bear fruit that glorifies God… “By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples” (John 15:8). Jesus encouraged His disciples with this parable about the persistence of God’s fruit bearing grace.

God is persistent in His planting of fruit bearing disciples. The parable says that it was the owner’s good pleasure and choice to plant a fig tree in the middle of his vineyard. Now a vineyard is a plantation of grapevines, especially one producing grapes for winemaking. It was unusual for someone to plant a fig tree in a vineyard because this kind of tree required lots of nutrients from the ground and would steal those nutrients from the grapevines. This owner must have really liked figs, but when the tree did not bear fruit he was forced to remove it from the vineyard so his grapes could thrive again. What a beautiful picture of God planting His born again children in the midst of a rebellious world, so we might brighten the darkness around us…”That you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world” (Philippians 2:15). As we bear fruit that glorifies God we light up our world… “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).

God is persistent in His pursuit of fruit bearing disciples. With the words “For three years now I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree” Jesus identifies the owner of the vineyard as God who traveled from heaven to earth and spent three years seeking out true disciples… “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10). With the words of the vinedresser Jesus included the nurturing work of the Holy Spirit in helping disciples to bear fruit … “Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure” The Spirit is relentless in exhorting us to grow up into fruit bearing disciples of Christ… “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23).

God is persistent in His pruning of fruit bearing disciples. Jesus spoke about the indispensable work of pruning elsewhere in His teaching… “Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit” (John 15:2). Note that it is the fruit bearing branch that gets the most pruning. Fruit bearing disciples experience the most difficult, faith perfecting trials in this life… “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing” (James 1:2-4).

As we grow up into Christ, we increasingly bear fruit that glorifies God because of…

The Persistence of God’s Fruit Bearing Grace.

The Indispensability of Repentance

“There were some present at that very time who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And he answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish” (Luke 13:1-5).

John Wesley wrote that repentance is true self-knowledge, in that it shows us, even before we have come to faith, just how corrupt and sinful we are. “Know that corruption of thy inmost nature, whereby thou are very far gone from original righteousness,” Wesley wrote. “Know that thou are corrupted in every power, in every faculty of the soul, that thou art totally corrupted in every one of these, all the foundations being out of course.” When we are confronted by the consequences of sin and the true condition of our soul we gain a heightened appreciation of the indispensability of repentance.

Jesus is patient about repentance. The Spirit inspired Luke to remember and record for us a parable that revealed Jesus as the patient vinedresser… “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. And he said to the vinedresser, ‘Look, for three years now I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground?’ And he answered him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure.  Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’” (Luke 13:6-9). Christ came into our world to prompt us to confession and repentance that we might be born again and begin to bear fruit worthy of that repentance. That God sent His Son is a revelation of His patience.

Jesus is persistent toward repentance. When the Pharisees ordered Him to leave Jerusalem, Jesus answered with a clear declaration of His persistence toward the repentance of Jerusalem and its citizens… “Nevertheless, I must go on my way today and tomorrow and the day following, for it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!” (Luke 13:33-34). Christ would not leave our world until He was lifted up as a call to repentance and forgiveness on Calvary’s cross. That He was undeterred by any earthly opposition is a revelation of Christ’s persistence.

Jesus is the pattern for repentance. The life of Christian discipleship in its simplest form is becoming more like Christ… “A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher” (Luke 6:40). Acknowledging that it’s not easy, Jesus still commands us to imitate His patience and persistence toward others as we prompt them toward repentance and forgiveness… “Pay attention to yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him, and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him” (Luke 17:3-4). The pattern for overcoming sin through genuine repentance is revealed through genuine disciples as we stay close to Christ and draw others closer to Him!

The place of repentance in God’s salvation plan is revealed in the great prayer of a humble tax collector… “The tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’” (Luke 18:13). We are saved when God gives us the grace to…

Confess: Agree with the truth that we are infected by sin

Repent: Adjust our attitude and thinking about sin

Believe: Affirm that our sin nature has been buried with Christ and we are raised to a new life in Him!

As we grow up into Christ, our walk with Him should increasingly reveal to a lost and fallen world…

The Indispensability of Repentance.

The Judgment that Belongs to Us

“And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right? As you go with your accuser before the magistrate, make an effort to settle with him on the way, lest he drag you to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer put you in prison. I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the very last penny” (Luke 12:57-59).

Over and over again God’s Word tells us that true disciples have been born again into a whole new life… “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17). Our baptism is a picture of the end of our old life and the beginning of our new life in Christ… “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4). Evidence of the new birth is the grace of God working in us to empower us to live a raised life, a life that is raised above and beyond the corrupt and imperfect ways of the world… “Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds.  They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart” (Ephesians 4:17-18). The raised life increasingly reflects the life of our Teacher, Jesus Christ to the dark and needy world around us… “A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher” (Luke 6:40). In today’s discourse, Jesus teaches that broken relationships, damaged even to the point of litigation, are opportunities for true disciples to show the difference that walking with Christ makes. Evidence of maturing discipleship is rejecting the imperfect judgment of the world and trusting the judgment that belongs to us.

Because we have confronted and confessed our sin we know the weight of guilt. The cause of brokenness in relationships is sin. Unconfessed sin infects the heart with guilt… “For your name’s sake, O LORD, pardon my guilt, for it is great” (Psalm 25:11). True disciples agree with the Holy Spirit inspired declaration of David that unresolved offenses lead to the kind of guilt that inhibits our fellowship with God and with each other… “Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me” (Psalm 51:11). The world’s judgment deals with the circumstances of the offense while the judgment that belongs to us deals with the hearts of the offenders and seeks the restoration of relationships as well as the pursuit of justice.

Because Christ lives in us we know the wealth of forgiveness. True disciples never forget the debt that God has forgiven us in Christ… “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). Being ever mindful of the great forgiveness Christ has granted to us should compel us to seize every opportunity to share that kind of forgiveness with others… “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors” (Matthew 6:12). Jesus taught that freely given forgiveness is confirming evidence that we’ve truly experienced His forgiveness… “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (Matthew 6:14-15). The world’s judgment is concerned with recompense and retribution while the judgment that belongs to us is an opportunity to show others the depth of forgiveness we have in Christ.

We know the wisdom of the one true Judge. No earthly judge can ever uncover all the details of a case. Each litigant presents the facts with a personal bias… “The one who states his case first seems right, until the other comes and examines him” (Proverbs 18:17). Only God knows every detail and the motivation of the hearts involved in every case… “The Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God” (1 Corinthians 2:10). Only God can give perfect justice in every case… “Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God” (1 Corinthians 2:12). The judgment of the world in imperfect but the judgment that belongs to us reveals and delivers the wisdom of God.

As we grow up into Christ, we learn to resolve conflicts and preserve relationships by relying upon…

The Judgment that Belongs to Us.

The Discernment that Empowers Us

 He also said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you say at once, ‘A shower is coming.’ And so it happens. And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, ‘There will be scorching heat,’ and it happens. You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky, but why do you not know how to interpret the present time?” (Luke 12:54-56).

A brief review of the present discourse reveals that Jesus taught His disciples to live every day expecting Him to show up. He exhorted them to let go of earthly treasure and to pursue heavenly treasure. He urged them to put on the armor of God, to be filled with the Holy Spirit, and to be compelled by His love to serve and witness to others. He taught them that being baptized with Him would cause division between true and counterfeit disciples. Today Jesus rebuked the spiritual insensitivity of the crowd and He declared that His true disciples will be able to “interpret the present time.” Here Jesus exhorts all true disciples to exercise the discernment that empowers us.

We are embraced by the spirit of discernment when we are born again. When we receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior we are born again as God’s children… “To all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:12-13). Because we are His children, God has placed the Spirit of His Son into our hearts… “Because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying” ‘Abba! Father!’” (Galatians 4:6). The Spirit moved John the Baptist to declare that true believers are baptized or immersed in God’s Holy Spirit… “I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit” (Mark 1:8). The Holy Spirit wants to embrace our hearts and give us the ability to understand and interpret the truth of God… “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14). True born again disciples are embraced by the Spirit that wants us to discern and interpret our times to each other and to the world around us.

We are enlightened by the spirit of discernment when we seek God’s truth. The Holy Spirit loves to reveal the truth of God to truth seekers… “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come” (John 16:13). Notice that the Spirit of Truth interprets what God has spoken, thus He reveals the truth of God’s Word as we diligently study the Bible. He also declares the things that are to come. He reveals what God is accomplishing in us as He makes us more like His Son… “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” (2 Corinthians 4:16-17). He gives us the ability to see beyond transient trials and to discern and interpret the eternal work of God in every circumstance… “We look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18). Diligent disciples are enlightened by the truth that is revealed to them by the spirit of discernment.

We are employed by the spirit of discernment when we put our faith into action. Understanding and interpreting the times in the light of God’s truth is impotent unless we put the revelation He gives us to work in the world around us. The fact is, those true disciples with the spirit of discernment are constantly faced with a choice. We must decide if we believe what we see in the natural world or if we believe the truth God that reveals to us… “We walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7)). When we put our faith into action the power of God’s truth is released and made visible in and through us… “If you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you” (Matthew 17:20). Productive disciples are employed in the Lord’s work when we respond in faith to what is revealed by the spirit of discernment.

As we grow up into Christ, we become more engaged and successful in His work as we grow in…

The Discernment that Empowers Us.

The Baptism that Separates Us

 “I came to cast fire on the earth, and would that it were already kindled! I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until it is accomplished! Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law” (Luke 12:49-53).

Wait a minute! I thought Christ came… “to give peace on earth”. Didn’t the angels proclaimed this truth at His birth… “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” (Luke 2:14). If we search for truth here, the Spirit shows us that Jesus does indeed bring peace to some. His peace is for “those with whom He is pleased”. The Holy Spirit confirmed this truth through the pen of the Apostle Paul… “For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross” (Colossians 1:19-20). He also affirms what Jesus taught here in today’s text. His peace is made available to Christ’s disciples through His baptism in blood on the cross. What’s more, true disciples are divided from the rest of this world by being baptized with Christ in the baptism that separates us.

Our baptism associates us with Christ. At the beginning of His ministry Jesus was baptized. It was not for purification. It was to fulfill righteousness on our behalf… “Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?’  But Jesus answered him, ‘Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.’ Then he consented” (Matthew 3:13-15). It was also to give us a commandment and an example to follow… “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). Our baptism is a testimony that we are disciples of Jesus Christ because it is a clear sign that we are becoming more like Him… “A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher” (Luke 6:40). Our baptism is the step of obedience that associates us with our Lord Jesus Christ.

Our baptism attaches us to Christ. The Spirit moved Paul to teach that when we are baptized with Christ we die with Him… “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?” (Romans 6:3). Our old selfish, sinful nature was put to death through faith in Jesus Christ and confirmed in our baptism. Looking to the crucifixion of Christ gives us the faith to be crucified with Him that we might also be raised to new life with Him… “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4). Being joined by faith to Christ through the testimony of our baptism empowers us to say with the Apostle Paul… “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). Our baptism sets us free from the sin nature and attaches us in the spirit to our Savior Jesus Christ.

Our baptism alienates us from the world. Those true disciples that have died with Christ and are now living a new life of faith in Christ are no longer consumed and conquered by the things of the world… “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth” (Colossians 3:1-2). We no longer live just for today but we live for the soon coming day when Jesus shall return and we shall be gathered together to be with Him in glory… “When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory” (Colossians 3:4). Our baptism stirs resentment and rejection in the rebellious and often alienates us from the unbelieving world around us.

As we grow up into Christ, we enjoy new life in Him since we died and we are raised with Him in…

The Baptism that Separates Us.