The Judgment that is Severe

“When he returned, having received the kingdom, he ordered these servants to whom he had given the money to be called to him, that he might know what they had gained by doing business. The first came before him, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made ten minas more.’ And he said to him, ‘Well done, good servant! Because you have been faithful in a very little, you shall have authority over ten cities.’ And the second came, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made five minas.’ And he said to him, ‘And you are to be over five cities.’ Then another came, saying, ‘Lord, here is your mina, which I kept laid away in a handkerchief; for I was afraid of you, because you are a severe man. You take what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.’ He said to him, ‘I will condemn you with your own words, you wicked servant! You knew that I was a severe man, taking what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow? Why then did you not put my money in the bank, and at my coming I might have collected it with interest?’ And he said to those who stood by, ‘Take the mina from him, and give it to the one who has the ten minas.’ And they said to him, ‘Lord, he has ten minas!’ ‘I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. But as for these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slaughter them before me’” (Luke 19:15-27).

At times, this parable reminds me that Jesus Christ wants me to be a part of His kingdom-building business. I’ve been excited that in Heaven, Jesus will recognize and be blessed by the fruit my meager kingdom building work here on earth. I’ve been challenged and convicted that I have not been as fully engaged in the business of the kingdom as I could be. Often I have felt sorry for the third servant that had the gift of gospel truth removed from him because he disobeyed Christ’s command to “Engage in business until I come”. Today, we are exhorted to be urgently engaged in sharing the gospel Christ has gifted to us until He returns by a fresh examination of the judgment that is severe.

Christ’s severe judgment reflects His sincere love for the lost. It’s genuine love that compelled Christ to come near to sinners… “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). It’s agape love that offers underserved grace and mercy to sinners… “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10). It’s the sinner’s response to Christ’s love that makes all the difference between eternal blessing and severe judgment… “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” (John 3:36). Evidence that we are truly born again is a growing awareness and appreciation of the sincere love of Jesus Christ.

Christ’s severe judgment reveals the sympathetic heart of true disciples. Truly transformed hearts cannot resist the same compelling love that moved Christ to give His life for sinners as it moves us to share His gospel with the lost… “For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised” (2 Corinthians 5:14-15). Confirmation that we are truly born again is a sympathetic heart that keeps us fully engaged in kingdom business.

Christ’s severe judgment results in supreme rewards for diligent disciples. True disciples of Jesus Christ have no fear of the severe judgment of God… “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:18). But we look forward to His judgment of our earthly life after we are saved… “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil” (2 Corinthians 5:10). That’s where He will reward those who are faithfully engaged in His kingdom business… “Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven” (Luke 6:23). Diligent disciples don’t live for the temporary praise of men but eagerly and humbly anticipate Christ’s supreme rewards in heaven.

As we grow up into Christ, our engagement in kingdom business grows in the light of…

The Judgment that is Severe.

The Business that Precedes the Kingdom

As they heard these things, he proceeded to tell a parable, because he was near to Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately. He said therefore, “A nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and then return. Calling ten of his servants, he gave them ten minas, and said to them, ‘Engage in business until I come.’ But his citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to reign over us.’” (Luke 19:11-14).

Have you ever considered the word business? I learned to spell it by seeing it in my mind as busi(y) – ness. As I’ve grown up I’ve learned that business often becomes the busyness of life. What consumes my energy, time, thoughts? What keeps me busy? The Holy Spirit has often humbled and convicted me about times when the busyness of my life has left little time for the business of the kingdom. As Jesus drew nearer to Jerusalem the crowd’s anticipation increased as they expected Him to receive a crown and establish His kingdom upon His arrival in the holy city. In their minds the kingdom was just 17 miles and a few days away! But Jesus interrupted His journey to Jerusalem to lead a well-known sinner named Zacchaeus into the kingdom. Then, in the shadow of that brilliant illustration, He used a parable to introduce listening disciples like you and me to the business that precedes the kingdom.

It is the business of Christ to receive the kingdom. Christ would receive the kingdom indeed, but it was to come through suffering, death, and resurrection. Christ was to rule a kingdom where the cost of citizenship was paid by a gracious and merciful King. The kingdom of God is not a kingdom of entitlement, rather it is marked by citizens that imitate and reflect the humility of the King… “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:5-8). Those of us who are truly born again are citizens and ambassadors of an eternal, unworldly kingdom… “Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us... Our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Philippians 3:17, 20). Christ releases His reign over the people and circumstances in the lives of His subjects through our imitation of His humility.

It is the business of Christ to invest in His disciples. Christ would invest in every disciple equally by granting us the gift of His gospel. We notice that unlike the parable of the talents, in this parable each servant received the same gift. It was equivalent to three month’s living wages and I believe the gift represents the truth of the gospel that initiates and sustains the life of every true disciple… “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life” (John 5:24). When we are truly born again the love of Christ overtakes our heart and compels us to share the gospel that transformed our life with others.

It is the business of disciples to invest in Christ’s kingdom. Christ expects us to invest in others by giving them the transforming gift of His gospel. His investment in Zacchaeus was an undeniable portrait of the business that should consume our heart. It’s not about building big churches or ministries, Jesus said He will do that… “I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). It’s about building people by investing in them the seeds of gospel truth. The Holy Spirit inspired Paul to make clear the truth that the harvest of righteousness in a disciple’s life begins with the deposit of the seed of the gospel… “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building” (1 Corinthians 3:6-9). How many gospel seeds might you plant tomorrow?

As we grow up into Christ, we become increasingly engaged in…

The Business that Precedes the Kingdom.

The Seeking that Leads to Salvation

He entered Jericho and was passing through. And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a chief tax collector and was rich. And he was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was small in stature. So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was about to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.” So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully. And when they saw it, they all grumbled, “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.” And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:1-10).

The Spirit inspired Luke to record the next piece of Christ’s journey toward Jerusalem and His appointment with Calvary. Luke notes here that Jesus was passing through Jericho when one particular member of the ever-increasing crowd of followers caught the Master’s attention. It wasn’t Zacchaeus’ reputation, position, or wealth that arrested the heart of the Savior. It was this man’s heart! The Holy Spirit is very sensitive and responsive to the longings of the human heart… “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him—these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God” (1 Corinthians 2:9-10). In His incarnation, Jesus Christ was anointed with the Holy Spirit… “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Luke 4:18-19). Evidence and confirmation that we are truly born again disciples of Jesus Christ is that we are anointed with the same Holy Spirit. Therefore, Jesus wants true disciples to imitate His response to the seeking that leads to salvation.

The seeking heart is concealed to man’s eye. No one in the crowd called attention to the inquisitive little man who… “climbed up into a sycamore tree… because he was seeking to see who Jesus was”. It was the Holy Spirit that revealed the seeking heart of Zacchaeus to Jesus. Jesus reminded the crowd here that He came into the world seeking the lost… “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost”. He was compelled and empowered in His mission by the relentlessly pursuing Spirit of God that is so powerfully portrayed by the inspired hand of David in the Psalms… “Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence?” (Psalm 139:7). Jesus called us to imitate His passion for the lost and He anoints us with the same Holy Spirit power we see operating in today’s scripture… “But 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). Are you expecting the Spirit to reveal the hurting and seeking hearts of the lost to you today?

The seeking heart is compelling to Christ’s heart. He was just passing through Jericho, But the Spirit changed Jesus’ agenda. He invited himself to dinner in the home of a sinner. Evidence of our new birth and growing faith is a calendar and a checkbook that is increasingly conquered by a heart that is controlled by Christ’s love for the lost… “For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised” (2 Corinthians 5:14-15). Is Christ’s love compelling your heart so you can respond to seeking hearts today?

The seeking heart is captured by Christ’s love. The accepting love of Christ changed Zacchaeus’ seeking heart. Truly transformed disciples have a growing ability to love the unlovely with the transforming love of Christ… “We love because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19). Can you see, touch, and love the lost like Jesus would if He was… “passing through” their life through you today?

As we grow up into Christ, we learn to imitate His loving and transforming response to…

The Seeking that Leads to Salvation.

The Blindness that Prevents Understanding

And taking the twelve, he said to them, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished. For he will be delivered over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon. And after flogging him, they will kill him, and on the third day he will rise.” But they understood none of these things. This saying was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what was said (Luke 18:31-34).

I can’t believe I never saw that before! I wish I knew this long ago! As diligent disciples, searching the scriptures and abiding in God’s Word, we enjoy the blessing of discovering new spiritual truth every day. In fact, one of the sure and certain evidences of the new birth is a hunger for more of the precious truth that is hidden like treasure in the Bible. Another confirmation of our new life in Christ is the ongoing revelation of deeper spiritual truth under the care and guidance of the Holy Spirit… “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). Discerning and grasping spiritual truth is an indispensable part of our growing up into Christ as the Spirit of Truth uses our hunger for truth to help us overcome the blindness that prevents understanding.

We sometimes misunderstand spiritual truth because we are blinded by shallow foresight. Christ’s warning only confirmed what the disciples saw as nothing but trouble ahead in Jerusalem. We cannot see the eternal truth of the scriptures if we are living for today. I sometimes amaze myself when in the light of the truth that I will live forever, I am so preoccupied with living for today. When I was born again I received new eyes to see beyond the circumstances and people of today and to discern how He is preparing me for eternity… “For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” (2 Corinthians 4:17). In the light of eternity, I can see how the trials and triumphs of today are refining my faith so that one day it will shine gloriously for Christ… “In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:6-7). Living for Christ and His coming kingdom leads to clearer spiritual vision.

We sometimes do not grasp spiritual truth because we are bound by selfish fixation. Christ’s warning challenged the disciples’ anticipation of the end of persecution and tough times along with the promise of wonderful days of personal blessing just ahead. We cannot grasp the selfless truth of the scriptures if we are living for ourselves. As we become more like Christ we exchange the selfish nature for a new life in Christ, and this new life imitates the sacrificial life of our Savior… “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23). As our faith grows we learn to agree with the spiritual truth affirmed through the pen of the Apostle Paul… “That I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death” (Philippians 3:10). Imitating the selfless life of Christ leads to increasing spiritual wisdom.

We sometimes do not see spiritual truth because we are blocked by stunted faith. Christ’s warning shook the disciples’ hope of His soon coming earthly reign. We cannot discern the unseen truth of the scriptures if we are living purely by natural sight. Maturing disciples do not say seeing is believing. Rather, we say believing is seeing! The Spirit teaches us to live according to what we believe about God instead of according to what our eyes perceive… “for we walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7). As our faith in revealed spiritual truth grows we begin to discern and understand things that had been hidden from us in the past, and that are still unseen by the unbelieving world around us… “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). Growing faith leads to growing spiritual insight.

As we grow up into Christ, we trust God’s grace and the Holy Spirit’s power to overcome…

The Blindness that Prevents Understanding.

The Faith that Opens Our Eyes

As he drew near to Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. And hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what this meant.  They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” And he cried out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” And those who were in front rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” And Jesus stopped and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near, he asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, let me recover my sight.” And Jesus said to him, “Recover your sight; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God. (Luke 18:35-43).

The crowd could not see the truth behind Jesus’ warning about His impending betrayal and crucifixion and resurrection. Although He was on a determined mission to the cross, He paused to respond to the heartfelt cry of a blind beggar. There He granted a physical miracle and taught a powerful spiritual lesson. Christ’s compassionate response to the blind man’s request highlights the faith that opens blind eyes.

Faith in the messiahship of Christ opens our eyes to spiritual perception. The blind man saw Jesus and believed He was the “Son of David”, a title assigned by the prophets to the Messiah… “Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land” (Jeremiah 23:5). Thus, He agreed with God’s identification of Jesus as the Messiah, the ultimate king and sovereign authority over all of life, and therefore the One able to grant his request and meet his need. Real vision is the ability to see everyone and everything just as God sees them. This is how true disciples learn to walk by faith… “For we walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7). As we mature in the faith our eyes become less distracted by the temporary, physical world around us and we become more sensitive and responsive to the true, spiritual world… “For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as 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 4:17-18). Our faith will grow and our eyes will be opened to the truth in every trial and triumph of life as we trust Jesus as the one and only sovereign authority over every inch of our life.

Faith in the mercy of Christ opens our eyes to serving possibilities. The blind man saw and appealed to the mercy of Jesus… “have mercy on me!” The rebuke of “those who were in front” betrayed their blindness as they did not recognize the compassion and mercy of Christ even though they were closer to him. The Holy Spirit inspired Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist to proclaim mercy as a primary reason for the incarnation of the Father in His Son… “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David… to show the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant” (Luke 1:68-72). Our faith will grow and our eyes will be opened as we learn to trust and share the mercy of Jesus Christ with others.

Faith in the mission of Christ opens our eyes to sacred priorities. I wonder what the formerly blind man saw first. The Spirit reveals that he was granted larger, deeper insight into the mission and purpose of Jesus Christ, and he “followed Him”. He now saw the heart and mission of the One who interrupted His journey to touch and heal a blind man and he wanted to be part of that wonderful mission. The results were immediate as “all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God”. As we mature in the faith we begin to see ourselves as God does and He still gets praise and glory as we are transformed from living for self into living for Him… “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10). Our faith will grow and our eyes will be opened as we become more fully engaged in the mission of Jesus Christ.

As we grow up into Christ, believing in His messiahship, mercy, and mission nurtures within us…

The Faith that Opens Our Eyes.

The Faith that is Possible with God

And a ruler asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother.’” And he said, “All these I have kept from my youth.” When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich. Jesus, seeing that he had become sad, said, “How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” But he said, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.” And Peter said, “See, we have left our homes and followed you.” And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life” (Luke 18:18-30).

Jesus’ revelation of the kind of childlike faith that enters the kingdom of God pierced the heart of a wealthy ruler and prompted a penetrating question… “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” God’s grace prompts this question often as God’s Word is preached or taught or demonstrated through the words and actions of true disciples because Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit will be at work in the hearts of others as we are faithful to proclaim His truth in our deceptive world… “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). Here the Spirit pierced and convicted the heart of a rich and powerful man, revealing to him the impotence of his faith in self, wealth, and worldly power. His great sadness exposed the impossibility of sinners believing the truth of the gospel without the grace of God working in their heart first. I pray you are encouraged today to faithfully share the gospel as you eagerly anticipate God’s grace blessing the lost with the gift of the faith that is possible with God.

To inherit eternal life our faith must be freed from fleeting fortune. Jesus said it is impossible for the heart entrapped by earthly treasure to believe the spiritual truth of the gospel… “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle”. Taken literally this means it is impossible for a heart deadened by the pursuit of wealth to grasp spiritual truth. The Spirit inspired the Apostle Paul to affirm this truth… “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). But the gift of faith to believe unto salvation is possible with God… “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8).

To inherit eternal life our faith must be fixed on following our Father. Jesus went on to show that evidence of salvation and true discipleship is a willingness to leave the world behind and press on to follow Him all the way to Heaven. This was an echo of a previous exhortation… “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it” (Luke 9:23-24).

To inherit eternal life our faith must be fortified by forever fulfilment. Jesus’ response to Peter’s boast carries a warning for disciples in every age to be persevering in the faith through the relentless trials and temptations of this temporal journey toward the eternal life that is real life. The Spirit affirms this exhortation through the pen of the Apostle Peter… “Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:10-11).

As we grow up into Christ, we are maturing in the grace and…

The Faith that is Possible with God.

The Faith that Enters the Kingdom

Now they were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them. And when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them to him, saying, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” (Luke 18:15-17).

Jesus noticed the concern among the disciples over the many parents who were bringing their infants to Him for a touch from Heaven. The heart of the One who came to seek and to save the lost was revealed in His rebuke and is echoed in His words elsewhere… “See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 18:10). Having just concluded a revealing discourse about the kind of faith He would be looking for upon His return, Jesus seized this moment and created a living illustration that added depth to that lesson. With an exhortation to… “receive the kingdom of God like a child”, Jesus reveals to truth seekers in every age the key to discovering and living the Christian life in a fallen world and securing eternal life in the kingdom to come is through the faith that enters the kingdom.

The faith that enters the kingdom is confident. The infants were brought to Jesus by their parents. They did not come under their own power because they were not able to. They did not come by choice because they could not choose. They were brought by those who had experienced or expected such a tremendous blessing from an encounter with Jesus Christ that they had confidence that their babies would receive a blessing from the touch of His hand. There is wonderful encouragement here for determined disciples to bring their needs to Jesus through humble and expectant prayer… “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16). As confident faith takes control of our heart we expect God’s kingdom to come as we pray.

The faith that enters the kingdom is contrite. The infants were bought to Jesus for a touch. Their parents were not asking for hours of the Master’s time. They were not seeking a sermon or even hoping for some kind of miracle. They humbly sought a touch from His hand. The infant that received the touch had no conscious expectation at all, but was the recipient of all the possible blessings that a touch from the hand of God might contain. What an encouraging and humbling lesson we discover here about how we should approach Jesus in time of need. Like parents bringing infants for a touch from Jesus we should offer our requests to God from a contrite heart and ask Him to touch and conform them to His perfect will. The Holy Spirit echoes this precious truth through the inspired words of the Apostle Paul… “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but… the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God” (Romans 8:26-27). As contrite faith grows in our heart our prayers are conformed to His kingdom-building and revealing will.

The faith that enters the kingdom is converting. True disciples that hungered to be close to Jesus might have envied the little infants that got close enough to receive a touch from His hand. Jesus’ revelation that the kingdom must be received like a child that receives His touch was meant to move His listeners to echo the question of Nicodemus… “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” (John 3:4). The Spirit inspired the Apostle John to record the answer to this question before it was asked… “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). Converting faith is a gift of God that transforms us and allows us to enter into His kingdom as born again Children of God.

As we grow up into Christ, we live above and beyond this temporal world by growing in…

The Faith that Enters the Kingdom.

The Faith that Christ Still Seeks

He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But 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!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 18:9-14).

Jesus sensed arrogance and self-righteousness in the hearts of some of those who just heard and were eager to answer His profound question… “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” Discernment of the hearts of His followers moved Christ to share another parable targeted directly at… “Some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous”. He seized this teaching moment to rebuke the pride of some of His arrogant followers and to clearly define for humble disciples the kind of faith the “Son of Man” searches for on this earth. Today humble truth seekers are truly blessed to know and exhorted to pursue the faith that Christ still seeks.

Christ seeks the faith that accepts God’s judgment. Jesus commenced this provoking parable with a Pharisee that prayed with his eyes open and focused on the other sinners that surrounded him at God’s altar. It is much easier to profess our righteousness than to confess our sins. There are always others we can compare ourselves with who appear to be worse sinners than we are. Christ seeks and responds to those who approach God with their eyes fixed firmly on His holiness and their hearts determined to press in to an intimate fellowship with Him… “You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13). This kind of whole-hearted pursuit leaves no room for comparison with others, but increases the awareness of our pitiful, sinful condition in the light of God’s perfect holiness. We are left with a desperate surrender to His declaration of our true condition… “We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away” (Isaiah 64:6). Christ still seeks those who believe they are sinners.

Christ seeks the faith that apprehends God’s mercy. Jesus continued this pressing parable with the introduction of a wretched tax collector that … “Would not even lift up his eyes to heaven”. His eyes were not distracted and his heart was so determined that he was consumed by his sin in the presence of God’s holiness. The Pharisee could not see it but along with everyone else in the temple, he definitely heard the compelling confession of this sorrowful sinner… “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” Brought to the end of himself, his determination compelled this tax collector to throw himself on and grab hold of what he believed about the mercy of God… “The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22-23). Christ still seeks those who believe God is merciful.

Christ seeks the faith that adopts Christ’s humility. Jesus concluded this penetrating parable with a stunning two-fold revelation. He declared the confessing tax collector to be justified, and by implication He pronounced the prideful Pharisee condemned in the eyes of God. Then He clearly revealed that it is humility that made all the difference. Jesus would soon demonstrate true humility… “He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:8). The Spirit of truth exhorts us to imitate the humility of the tax collector with an echo of this truth through the pens of James and Peter… “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you” (James 4:10). Christ still seeks those who imitate His humility.

As we grow up into Christ, we become a compelling revelation to a faithless generation of…

The Faith that Christ Still Seeks.

The Prayer that is Persistent

And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man. And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.’” And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge says. And will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” (Luke 18:1-8).

Jesus followed up His discourse about the imminence of His return to initiate the days of the Son of Man on earth, the establishment of God’s millennial Kingdom, with an exhortation about justice and prayer. With a parable, He warned His disciples that true justice was not to be found in an earth-bound “unrighteous judge”.  He also exhorted them to pray like a tenacious “widow… who kept coming”. Do you ever feel like no one listens to or understands you? Where do you go when you have been unjustly hurt or offended? Is your faith nurtured and growing by an increasing awareness of and connection to the presence of Jesus through prayer? Today Jesus helps us to learn and practice the prayer that is persistent.

The prayer that is persistent is established in Faith. “Will not God give justice to His elect?” Persistent prayer resists the world and responds to the persistent goodness and pursuit of God toward His elect. As diligent disciples experience the rejection and wrath of this rebellious and resistant world, we are often tempted to seek justice from people and institutions of the world. But in the search for true justice our faith in the only holy and righteous judge grows stronger… “Mankind will say, ‘Surely there is a reward for the righteous; surely there is a God who judges on earth’” (Psalm 58:11), and we discover, experience, and reflect the perfect and lasting justice of God to a very needy world… “For the LORD loves justice; he will not forsake his saints. They are preserved forever” (Psalm 37:28).

The prayer that is persistent is exercised often. "Always to pray" means living life in His presence… “Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually!” (Psalm 105:4). "Not lose heart" means protecting our heart by withdrawing from life's distractions to devote our heart to Christ in a regular sacred place of meeting… “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life” (Proverbs 4:23). Unceasing prayer is one sure way to keep our hearts in the center of God’s will… “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

The prayer that is persistent is evidence of salvation. Awareness of our desperate need to "cry to Him day and night" is clear confirmation that we are not of this world, that there has been a change in our heart wrought by the grace of God. The Lord does not require our unrelenting cries in order to act in response to our need... “Your Father knows what you need before you ask him” (Matthew 6:8). It is we who need a deep, growing awareness of our desperate reliance upon Him to keep our focus above and beyond the limits of this temporal world... “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). Such Holy Spirit inspired desperation compels us to live and walk differently in the midst of a fallen and corrupt world... “For we walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7). Those who learn to live and walk in maturing and persistent faith will experience the amazing blessing of being an affirmative answer to our precious Savior's compelling question... "will He (I) find faith on the earth?"

As we grow up into Christ, we become a prominent reflection of faith to a faithless world as we pray…

The Prayer that is Persistent.

The Life that is Imminent

On that day, let the one who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away, and likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back. Remember Lot’s wife. Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it. I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left. There will be two women grinding together. One will be taken and the other left.” And they said to him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather” (Luke 17:31-37).

What do you think it will be like when Jesus returns? The Spirit inspired Paul to describe the glorious moment like this… “For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). On a personal level, what do you think your life will be like when He returns? What will He catch you doing at that amazing moment? After He described the imminence of His return Jesus used three illustrations to compel His disciples to be expecting and prepared for that moment every day. With these and many other words, Jesus exhorts disciples in every day of every age to look forward to and to live the life that is imminent.

Determined disciples are preoccupied with heavenly things. Jesus described the position of many disciples as being “on the housetop” or living over and above the control of material things. As the days of His return approach there will be much temptation to gather and cling to worldly possessions as the culture and economy of the rebellious world threaten the prosperity of Christians. As the adversary increases his pressure on us to renounce the faith by threatening to take away our material possessions, Jesus’s exhortation is echoed in the Holy Spirit inspired words of the Apostle John… “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (1 John 2:15). Evidence of maturing faith is an increasing love for God that replaces our love for things of the world and prepares us to run from this world and into His arms upon Christ’s imminent return.

Diligent disciples are persistent in sharing the gospel. Jesus described the position of others as “the one who is in the field”. His carefully chosen words remind us of His exhortation to pray for and be fully engaged in the work of sharing the gospel among the lost people of this world… “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore, pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest” (Luke 10:2). Disciples that seek and seize every opportunity to proclaim His gospel in word and deed are naturally and spiritually sensitive to Christ’s presence in every moment of the day and therefore will be more aware of His approaching, imminent return in glory.

Discerning disciples are prepared to leave at any moment. Jesus described the imminence of His return by saying people will be going about their daily business, sleeping, waking, or working when suddenly… “One will be taken and the other left”. His words remind us that despite the false claims of many in every age… “Concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only” (Matthew 24:36). Although no one knows the exact moment of His return, Jesus would soon exhort His disciples to live differently from the unbelieving world that surrounds us… “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. For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth” (Luke 21:34-35). The Spirit of Truth inspired Peter to echo this instruction… “Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God” (2 Peter 3:11-12). Discerning disciples live not for today but in eager excitement and anticipation of the imminent day of Christ’s glorious return.

As we grow up into Christ, we are set apart from the distractions of the temporal world as we live…

The Life that is Imminent.

The Days that are Imminent

“Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all—so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed” (Luke 17:26-30).

Jesus identified the establishment of God’s kingdom rule on earth here as… “the days of the Son of Man”. He did not reveal the day and the hour of His return to judge sin and establish His millennial rule here on the earth… “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only” (Matthew 24:36). But in today’s text, Jesus described the approach of His return by drawing comparisons to two familiar historical events where God intervened and delivered true believers from impending judgment. He wanted them and us to know that because of the deteriorating condition of fallen mankind His disciples should live as if His return is always imminent (def.: Literally, shooting over; hence, hanging over; impending; threatening; near; appearing as if about to fall on; used of evils; as imminent danger; imminent judgments, evils or death – from Noah Webster’s American Dictionary of the English Language, 1828). Christ used this powerful history lesson to prepare the first disciples, and to exhort diligent disciples in every age to recognize the signs of their times and to live and work every day in the light of the days that are imminent.

Christ’s return is imminent because fallen mankind is always concerned with earthly care. In the very shadow of Noah’s preoccupation with building the ark, people were devoted to “eating and drinking“. Jesus warned disciples to resist the tendency of the heart to worry over temporal needs like food and clothing… “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all” (Matthew 6:31-32). When we make a priority of seeking His kingdom, Christ’s providence in our lives raises the world’s awareness of the imminence of His kingdom… “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).

Christ’s return is imminent because fallen mankind is always captivated with earthly companionship. In the presence of the very real sign of impending judgment, the people of Noah’s day continued to be preoccupied with human relationships… “marrying and being given in marriage”. Earthly relationships are important, but they must not replace the deepest need in the human heart, the need for fellowship with God… “This is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent” (John 17:3). When we make a priority of investing in our intimacy and fellowship with God, Christ’s presence overflows from our hearts, grabs the world’s attention, and increases their sensitivity to the imminence of His kingdom… “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me” (Matthew 10:37).

Christ’s return is imminent because fallen mankind is always consumed with earthly commission. In Lot’s day, right up through the warning of impending judgment by God’s angels, people continued… “buying and selling, planting and building”. They were driven to build and maintain their personal and precious but temporary worldly kingdoms. Jesus cautioned disciples to avoid the worldly treasure trap… “What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26). When we make a priority of pursuing kingdom treasure, our anticipation and excitement for blessings beyond today can redirect the world’s attention toward the imminence of His kingdom… “For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done” (Matthew 16:27).

As we grow up into Christ, living in anticipation of soon His return can make others more aware of…

The Days that are Imminent.