John 11:1-16 tells us that while Jesus was ministering in Perea He received word that His beloved friend Lazarus, the brother of Martha and Mary, was sick and dieing. The emotional appeal was for Him to come quickly back to Bethany in Judea (just two miles from Jerusalem) while there was still time. Notice the intensity of the situation as Thomas, His disciple, knowing the extreme danger, was ready to defend Jesus to the death. Jesus acknowledged the sickness but intentionally delayed His return, not out of fear knowing they were seeking His arrest, rather once again following the timetable that would bring glory to God. During this brief delay Jesus taught the teachings preserved for us in Luke 13-17. Of the three charges the Pharisees tried to convict Jesus of, failure to observe cleanliness rituals, associating with people of low reputation, and working on the Sabbath, the third was the most serious as they could use Scriptural commands against working on that day. Wanting to mount evidence against Jesus a Pharisee invited Him to dinner with the express purpose of finding sin in Him. That was some dinner party! Jesus not only healed the man with dropsy but spent the evening sharing examples and parables that taught the importance of humility and service in the kingdom of God, after noticing the guests jockeying for position at the table. In an effort to show that works of mercy are acceptable and good on the Sabbath He begins with an example of saving a donkey or ox by pulling them from the well. Their laws allowed for an ox to be pulled from a well on the Sabbath but wanted to keep Jesus from rescuing a human being. Jesus goes on to explain that true followers of the Kingdom don't pridefully demand the best for themselves but rather humble themselves seeking the best for others. True hospitality and service is given to those who can not repay you and God will not overlook your service to Him. He ends the evening with The Parable of the Great Supper in which a man gives a great feast and invites many but one by one they give excuses for not coming. The man becomes very angry and invites the poor, maimed, lame, and the blind (those rejected by society). Having still more room at the table invitations go out to those in the highways and hedges (the gentiles). It is a stern warning to those at this Pharisees dinner party that even though they may think they are God's chosen elite they need to exam themselves for they may be excluded from the Kingdom. Next we are told in Luke of great multitudes going with Jesus while He explains the cost of discipleship and His further response to the Pharisees regarding His association with sinners. We will look at those teachings this coming week. This has been quite alot to ponder for today.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Teaching
Luke 14: 1-24
John 11:1-16 tells us that while Jesus was ministering in Perea He received word that His beloved friend Lazarus, the brother of Martha and Mary, was sick and dieing. The emotional appeal was for Him to come quickly back to Bethany in Judea (just two miles from Jerusalem) while there was still time. Notice the intensity of the situation as Thomas, His disciple, knowing the extreme danger, was ready to defend Jesus to the death. Jesus acknowledged the sickness but intentionally delayed His return, not out of fear knowing they were seeking His arrest, rather once again following the timetable that would bring glory to God. During this brief delay Jesus taught the teachings preserved for us in Luke 13-17. Of the three charges the Pharisees tried to convict Jesus of, failure to observe cleanliness rituals, associating with people of low reputation, and working on the Sabbath, the third was the most serious as they could use Scriptural commands against working on that day. Wanting to mount evidence against Jesus a Pharisee invited Him to dinner with the express purpose of finding sin in Him. That was some dinner party! Jesus not only healed the man with dropsy but spent the evening sharing examples and parables that taught the importance of humility and service in the kingdom of God, after noticing the guests jockeying for position at the table. In an effort to show that works of mercy are acceptable and good on the Sabbath He begins with an example of saving a donkey or ox by pulling them from the well. Their laws allowed for an ox to be pulled from a well on the Sabbath but wanted to keep Jesus from rescuing a human being. Jesus goes on to explain that true followers of the Kingdom don't pridefully demand the best for themselves but rather humble themselves seeking the best for others. True hospitality and service is given to those who can not repay you and God will not overlook your service to Him. He ends the evening with The Parable of the Great Supper in which a man gives a great feast and invites many but one by one they give excuses for not coming. The man becomes very angry and invites the poor, maimed, lame, and the blind (those rejected by society). Having still more room at the table invitations go out to those in the highways and hedges (the gentiles). It is a stern warning to those at this Pharisees dinner party that even though they may think they are God's chosen elite they need to exam themselves for they may be excluded from the Kingdom. Next we are told in Luke of great multitudes going with Jesus while He explains the cost of discipleship and His further response to the Pharisees regarding His association with sinners. We will look at those teachings this coming week. This has been quite alot to ponder for today.
John 11:1-16 tells us that while Jesus was ministering in Perea He received word that His beloved friend Lazarus, the brother of Martha and Mary, was sick and dieing. The emotional appeal was for Him to come quickly back to Bethany in Judea (just two miles from Jerusalem) while there was still time. Notice the intensity of the situation as Thomas, His disciple, knowing the extreme danger, was ready to defend Jesus to the death. Jesus acknowledged the sickness but intentionally delayed His return, not out of fear knowing they were seeking His arrest, rather once again following the timetable that would bring glory to God. During this brief delay Jesus taught the teachings preserved for us in Luke 13-17. Of the three charges the Pharisees tried to convict Jesus of, failure to observe cleanliness rituals, associating with people of low reputation, and working on the Sabbath, the third was the most serious as they could use Scriptural commands against working on that day. Wanting to mount evidence against Jesus a Pharisee invited Him to dinner with the express purpose of finding sin in Him. That was some dinner party! Jesus not only healed the man with dropsy but spent the evening sharing examples and parables that taught the importance of humility and service in the kingdom of God, after noticing the guests jockeying for position at the table. In an effort to show that works of mercy are acceptable and good on the Sabbath He begins with an example of saving a donkey or ox by pulling them from the well. Their laws allowed for an ox to be pulled from a well on the Sabbath but wanted to keep Jesus from rescuing a human being. Jesus goes on to explain that true followers of the Kingdom don't pridefully demand the best for themselves but rather humble themselves seeking the best for others. True hospitality and service is given to those who can not repay you and God will not overlook your service to Him. He ends the evening with The Parable of the Great Supper in which a man gives a great feast and invites many but one by one they give excuses for not coming. The man becomes very angry and invites the poor, maimed, lame, and the blind (those rejected by society). Having still more room at the table invitations go out to those in the highways and hedges (the gentiles). It is a stern warning to those at this Pharisees dinner party that even though they may think they are God's chosen elite they need to exam themselves for they may be excluded from the Kingdom. Next we are told in Luke of great multitudes going with Jesus while He explains the cost of discipleship and His further response to the Pharisees regarding His association with sinners. We will look at those teachings this coming week. This has been quite alot to ponder for today.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment