Luke 19:41 - 48

  Luke 19:41 - 48

It is hard not to notice that Luke places the lament of Jesus over the destruction of Jerusalem next to the cleansing of the Temple. In the time between the weeping over the destruction and the turning over of the table of the money changers Jesus, no doubt, had conversations, answered and/or asked questions and interacted with the crowds. But Luke records nothing till Jesus cleanses the temple.

The Jewish people, under the leadership of the religious leaders, we're on a collision course with Rome. That in and of itself was not a problem. But they were doing so outside of the will of God. Remember the God plus one is a majority and the “one” is not essentially needed. Within 40 years the Jews would find the city brutalized and ruined. The Siege of Jerusalem by the Romans is horrible to read. What makes it so especially terrible is that it was completely avoidable.

How could they have avoided the run and destruction? By following the message of the Savior, the gospel, the way of peace, by becoming Disciples of Christ. God's plan of redemption by the atoning death of His only begotten Son would have been accomplished even if Jesus were not rejected by the Jewish leadership. Had the Jewish people followed Christ they could have avoided their own ruin. History would be dramatically different but it would still accomplish the will of God the redemption by the sacrifice of Christ.

There's some correlation, some link between the misdirected religious life of the people which caused the rejection of Christ and the destruction of Jerusalem. The misguided focus of the religious leaders and, as a result of their leadership, those they lead astray resulted in the ruin of the people.

This principle applies at every level individually, congregationally, and even nationally. When we fail to recognize and follow the Prince of Peace we ought not be surprised to find we are headed forward to conflict and our own destruction. In some way my current walk profoundly impacts a long-term distant future that I will never see with God.  Every moment must be submitted to the Prince of Peace.

“Lord in these confusing times help me follow the Prince of Peace. AMEN”

Luke 19:28 - 40

 Luke 19: 28 - 40 

Jesus comes to Jerusalem as the great king of peace in what is called the triumphal entry.  It is full of symbolic gestures and actions. The cries of the people, the makeshift carpet for the ass to walk over, the ass itself all have meaning. But one phrase in the story doesn't seem to fit, one line seems, in the bigger picture, to be out of place. 

Beast of burden were kept by people living near Jerusalem. The animals were used to carry the baggage and sometimes the pilgrims the last couple of miles into the city. The presence of the animal and its availability is not that surprising. Some have seen the acquisition of the animal as a pre-arranged plan, others as the moving of the Spirit. But notice one line in this story, “The Lord has need of it”. That line is paradoxical if not oxymoronic. Allow a paraphrase here: “The Creator and master of the universe, God himself needs to borrow your donkey”. God doesn't need anything. The self-existing One who's being is complete in Himself doesn't need anything. The One who spoke the vastness of the universe into existence doesn't need a young burro. But there it is, “the Lord has need of it”. In the marvel and condescension (in the best sense of the word) of the Incarnation, the God of creation has a need that can only be filled by a little donkey. 

God doesn't need you or me. His will is going to be accomplished because of Whom He is. But in another wonder of the limitations He places on Himself He invites us to partner with Him in his scheme of redemption. Does God need us? Not at all.  Did Jesus need a donkey? Yes. But if not that donkey another one would have done. The Lord has chosen to work in and through His disciples so He in one sense needs disciples, us, you and me. But if not through us there is somewhere, someone else or even an ass that will carry the gospel. So why not surrender ourselves and be His instrument?

“Lord, use me as you see fit. AMEN”

Luke 19:11-27

 Luke 19:11-27

This is the last event before the triumphal entry. There was already a movement that expected Jesus to begin his earthly Kingdom when He arrived in Jerusalem. There was a common belief that the Messiah would establish His kingdom at Passover. Jesus’ disciples had that wish or dream.  Jesus dispels that fantasy while making two points.  This parable was taken from the news of the day.  Archelous would fail in his attempt to gain the title king from the Romans. But Jesus would succeed in becoming King. Archelous would leave and go to the Romans and return without the title he wanted. Jesus would leave and when He returned He would come back as king to render judgment on both His servants and His opponents.

Here is the point for our time. Jesus will return! He will return as king confirmed in that position by God.   He will pass judgment on His servants for what they have done with His resources. And He will pass judgment on those who were unwilling to submit to His reign.  In this short parable we have a fairly complete picture of waiting and the end times.

Let us focus our attention on the unfaithful servant.  Is Jesus teaching salvation by works?  Not at all!  Rather Jesus is teaching that our stewardship of life and all that He gives us is an indication of our loyalty to Him.  The servant who held the money may have been hoping that the delegation opposing the king would be successful.  Should that happen he would find that he was a mina richer.  (A mina represents about 3 months wages).  The problem was this servant didn’t like or trust the new king even if he was part of the kings’ people.  

What we do with the resources and the life the Lord gives us says a lot more about my faith than any statement of doctrine, beliefs, or rituals.  Faithfulness is rewarded always, disloyalty no matter how carefully concealed is always discovered. 

“Lord, help me live every day, using what You have given to me, preparing for Your return. AMEN”

Luke 19: 1-10

 Luke 19: 1-10

When does God have to do something? We have two stories of people who get Jesus's attention as he passes through Jericho. The first was the blind man and now Zacchaeus. This Zacchaeus was a chief toll collector. Jericho was perhaps the most beautiful city in the region.  It was possibly the wealthiest as well. It was the access to Jerusalem for pilgrims and the river crossing of the Jordan. Jericho had a forest of palm trees and balsam trees, the land was fertile and the city as a whole was wealthy. It was considered the jewel of this region. Zacchaeus, a Greek name derived from the Hebrew word that means “pure”, was working for the Romans. We picture him sitting at a tollbooth, he didn't. He was the chief tax collector. The people at the toll booths worked for him. He may have been the richest man in Jericho and apart from the Roman rulers and the priest he could have been the richest man in Israel. Tax collectors had a well earned reputation for corruption and evil. This guy was a bad guy.

Jesus said “I must stay at your house”. Let that sink in. The God of all creation and the absolutely Holy One said, “I MUST stay at your house”.  God HAD to do something. This likely wasn't a pastoral call, a quick visit with a cup of coffee or a light meal. Most likely Jesus was going over for the night. He is accepting hospitality with all the associated cultural bonds of loyalty and friendship.  He was accepting this from a really bad man. Compelled by Zacchaeus’ spiritual hunger and need, God ‘had to  respond’ and go with him. What does God have to do? Compelled by his own nature God has to respond to those who would hear Him.

As modern-day disciples we tend to have a list, never written, never spoken, of people we would not associate with and with whom we certainly would not initiate the relationship. You don't get the idea that Jesus went to that house to preach Hellfire and repentance sermons at Zacchaeus. You don't get the idea that Jesus had to hammer this guy for his evil.  His presence and obvious love for the man was all that was needed to start the process.

Would I be willing to spend the night or weekend with a gangster, a pimp, a porn producer, a homosexual activist, etc? What does God have to do? He is compelled by love to seek and save that which was lost. If I am to be a disciple I must do the same.

“Lord, give me the heart and the opportunity to love really bad people, people like Zaccheaus , people like me. AMEN