Luke 9:28b-36 (Sermon for the week of March 5th)

Gospel
Lk 9:28b-36

Jesus took Peter, John, and James
and went up the mountain to pray.
While he was praying his face changed in appearance
and his clothing became dazzling white.
And behold, two men were conversing with him, Moses and Elijah,
who appeared in glory and spoke of his exodus
that he was going to accomplish in Jerusalem.
Peter and his companions had been overcome by sleep,
but becoming fully awake,
they saw his glory and the two men standing with him.
As they were about to part from him, Peter said to Jesus,
“Master, it is good that we are here;
let us make three tents,
one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
But he did not know what he was saying.
While he was still speaking,
a cloud came and cast a shadow over them,
and they became frightened when they entered the cloud.
Then from the cloud came a voice that said,
“This is my chosen Son; listen to him.”
After the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone.
They fell silent and did not at that time
tell anyone what they had seen.

SERMON:
This week we read about the Transfiguration of Jesus. It is an event that mankind has not seen since Moses. We will talk about that in a bit. One must come to answer the question if this event happened or not. If it didn't happen then the Gospels and/or Jesus is a fraud. If it did happen, then indeed Jesus is the Son of God just as the "Voice" said. This event was supernatural. Notice that there are two other people present. Moses and Elijah. Why are these two individuals present? Moses was told that he would enter the Promised Land. However, he never did enter the Promised Land...he was allowed only to see it.
Let's read
Deuteronomy 34:4-5:
4 Then the LORD said to him, "This is the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob when I said, 'I will give it to your descendants.' I have let you see it with your eyes, but you will not cross over into it." 5 And Moses the servant of the LORD died there in Moab, as the LORD had said.

But earlier God PROMISES Moses:
Exodus 6:7-8
7 I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God, who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. 8 And I will bring you to the land I swore with uplifted hand to give to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob. I will give it to you as a possession. I am the LORD.' "

So, what's the deal here? God promises something and then doesn't follow through. Well, the answer is no. God is not a liar and He does what He says! His ways are not always clear to us, but God still does what He promises. Where is the Mt. of Transfiguration? IT IS in the Promised Land! God has indeed led Moses into the Promised Land to stand besides the One who talked to Moses. Jesus is the One who promised Moses, and Jesus follows through!

Now why is Elijah present here? Remember the prophecy:
Malachi 4:4-5
4 "Remember the law of my servant Moses, the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb for all Israel.5 "See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes.

The dreadful day of the Lord is Jesus' crucifixion. (In the future Elijah will also reappear again at the Second Coming.) And the Transfiguration is BEFORE the crucifixion. Indeed the prophecy comes true...Elijah has reappeared! Prophecy has several layers of truth. Elijah has reappeared here, Elijah has not died here, so that means Elijah will appear again. This prophecy has two meanings...

One more statement about Moses and Elijah...Israel are the people of the Law and of the Prophets, and Moses was the great law giver and Elijah was the great prophet.

Why the Transfiguration? The Jews have their own personal and very human expectations of what the Messiah will do. They interpret prophecy in order to justify what they think the Messiah will do FOR THEM. Jesus did not come to save the Jews...they had their chance...many times. Jesus came to be the Messiah for the whole world and not a small population of Jews who frankly have trampled on the Laws of God. The Law did not work for them and it does not work for us. Jesus, the Creator, came here as a once and for all solution for the ongoing dilemma of mankind. This solution was the result of His sacrifice. The Universe cannot give the Creator His life back, and this world owes Jesus His life back. The Apostles realized that they were standing before the Creator and could not understand why Jesus had to die. The Transfiguration gave the "inner circle"; Peter, James, and John a very small glimpse of the glory of God. There were no doubts after this events as to the awesome power of God. Moses received a similar glimpse of God. Let's look at the parallel between The Creator speaking to Moses and Moses with Jesus on the Mt. of Transfiguration:
In verse 29 of this weeks reading it says: "And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white".
Moses encountered God on Mt. Sinai as a "devouring fire on the top of a mountain" (Exodus 24:17) and Moses' face shone brightly "because he had been talking with God". Moses' face shone so brightly that he had to wear a veil to shield people from the glare his face emitted (Exodus 34:25-29). Exodus 24 and Jesus at the Transfiguration have a few parallels: they both occur on a mountain, involve Moses, have God speaking from a cloud, speak of the glory of the Lord, and inspire fear. Also in Exodus 24:13 Joshua is singled out and taken up the mountain with Moses. The name Joshua in Greek is "Jesus"... and we see Jesus and Moses again together at the Transfiguration. Notice that the "glory of God" seen by Moses is different. Moses looked at the backside of God's face and glowed. Moses' face mirrored the glory and the Transfiguration has this glory coming from Jesus Himself. The word "glory" is used in the Bible to speak of various supernatural events--but it is used especially to speak of God's glory--an aura associated with God's appearance that reveals God's majesty to humans. When Moses asked to see God's glory, God replied, "You cannot see my face; for no one can see me and live" (Exodus 33:20). God continued and said "See there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock; and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft in the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by, then I will take away my hand and you shall see my back; but my face shall not be seen" (Exodus 33:21-23). The point is that God's glory is so overwhelming that we cannot deal with it. It would be like touching a high voltage power line...we die. Peter, James, and John were privileged to see Christ's glory on the Mount of Transfiguration...there will be hard events to watch the Lord go through shortly.

Notice that Peter asks if he should build three booths for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. There is a prophetic meaning to this that I think Peter didn't even know. We cover this in another paper we wrote on our website. The booths are connected with Moses. As Moses led the Israelites in the wilderness, God told him to build booths in which people would dwell for seven days (Leviticus 23:33-43). They were to do this "so that your generations may know that I made the people of Israel live in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt; I AM the Lord your God" (Leviticus 23:43). This observance is known as the Feast of the Tabernacles and started as a harvest festival but became to be a remembrance of their wanderings in the wilderness and their escape from slavery in Egypt.

In the reading we also read "and they were terrified as they entered the cloud" (verse 34). The disciples are terrified because they understand the cloud as the presence of God. Only the High Priest is allowed to come into God's presence and he does so only on the Day of Atonement (Hebrews 9:7). To look at God is to die. These disciples do not know if they shall die...whatever the outcome they are unprepared to meet their Maker. They are vulnerable and have been suddenly presented without warning with the presence of God. Who wouldn't be terrified?

The last part of the reading is: "This is my Son, my Chosen: listen to Him" (v.35). Indeed! We must study and come to truly understand all of the Words of Jesus! They have been recorded for us through immense effort by God and are the actual lessons taught by the Creator, our Messiah. If there is any reason to read any work...it is the Bible. We need to reinvest our time into intently studying the Gospels and work hard even if it takes a lifetime to fully understand everything Jesus has presented us through the writings of His disciples. Jesus speaks on several levels and we may often not understand what it means. But faith comes by the word of God, and our faith in strengthened through understanding the Word of God. We do not want to "err for you do not know the Scriptures". Jesus came, Jesus said, and Jesus died...we must know why and what it means to us individually.

God bless!

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Luke 4:1-13 (Sermon for the week of February 25th)

Gospel
Lk 4:1-13

Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days, to be tempted by the devil.He ate nothing during those days, and when they were over he was hungry.

The devil said to him,“If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.”Jesus answered him, “It is written, One does not live on bread alone.”Then he took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a single instant.

The devil said to him,“I shall give to you all this power and glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I may give it to whomever I wish.All this will be yours, if you worship me.”

Jesus said to him in reply,“It is written:You shall worship the Lord, your God,and him alone shall you serve.”Then he led him to Jerusalem, made him stand on the parapet of the temple, and said to him,“If you are the Son of God,throw yourself down from here, for it is written:He will command his angels concerning you, to guard you,and:With their hands they will support you,lest you dash your foot against a stone.”

Jesus said to him in reply,“It also says,You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.”When the devil had finished every temptation, he departed from him for a time.

SERMON:

I think this week's reading is a great opportunity to talk about a few pieces of knowledge which ties directly into the Bible verses this week. It will not be a sermon that will relate the temptation of Jesus to your life, but it will help us understand what really went on this week. I need to touch base on a few Truth's. What is the "Trinity" that Church Leaders speak of? What is the Holy Spirit? The "Trinity" idea had confused me for a time in my life and I want to talk about it before we delve deeper into the reading.

The "Trinity" is: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

The "Father" is called "God". Who is God? I like that the Jews call it YHVH, which means the unknowable and undefinable. Why? Because God the "Father" is everything. God the Father is infinite..."the nothing and the something". Since we are finite, it is impossible to define or name God. So, the Jews leave it UNDEFINED! If God is everything...then what was the first manifestation of the Father?

JOHN 14:7-11
"If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him." 8 Philip said to Him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us." 9 Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, `Show us the Father'? 10 "Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. 11 "Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves."

The Son is the first manifestation of the "Father". This first manifestation who is The Son, came before Angels and came before mankind. This first manifestation is the "Creator"of all other things. The Creator created the angels, Adam and Eve, and this physical Universe. The person talking to Moses IS the Creator. The Creator called Himself
" I AM " I AM is not defined...it just is! Now, the Creator was aware that mankind was in a horrible condition because of sin. This Creator, the Son of "God" or the Son of YHVH, came down here to live in a tent of flesh and allowed Himself to be crucified in order to conquer the catch 22 mankind found itself in due to sin. Jesus is the name of the Son of YHVH, the Son of God, who came here 2,000 some years ago in order to conquer sin for us. This was an act of Love...by the Creator. Jesus called Himself the I AM and the Jews didn't believe it. Thus, the Son of God is the first manifestation or first appearance of the "Father" and the Son is the Creator of ALL. The Son of God was Jesus!

JOHN 1:10
He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.

JOHN 8:58
Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was,
I AM."

JOHN 18:5-6
Jesus said to them, "I am He." And Judas, who betrayed Him, also stood with them. 6 Then -- when He said to them, "I am He," -- they drew back and fell to the ground.

MATTHEW 28:18
Then Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth."

The Holy Spirit is the medium that the Creator "creates" through. If you want to experience the Holy Spirit...hold your finger out in front of you and blow on it. The air that you feel on your finger IS THE HOLY SPIRIT. The Father and the Son work through the medium of the Holy Spirit!

There is an order of priority, if you will, to all of this. The Son does NOT come before the Father. The order is: the FATHER, then SON, then Holy Spirit. The Will of the Father and the Son are in perfect harmony with each other. The Son IS the first form of the Father and the Father IS EVERYTHING.

Hey, I told you this would be a sermon on another level...

So here are two questions.
1)Did Satan ever know who The Creator was?
2)Does Satan know who Jesus is?
Answer: NO to both questions.

So who is Satan? Satan was the name given to an angel named Lucifer. Lucifer was a Cherub. Cherubs are those cute baby angels you reckon to Cupid. They look LIKE BABIES, who are a group of angels that also have the power to carry out whatever command is given. These Cherubs are extremely fierce if they have to be. Lucifer was one of the most adored Cherubs.
The Hierarchy of "Heaven" works like this:
First is the Creator...who is called the I AM...who is the Son of God.

Second are the Angels of the Four Directions, Michael, Gabriel, Ariel, and Raphael.These Four are under the "Throne" of the Creator and carry out the Will of the Son.

Next come the groups of angels called the Seraphim's and the Cherubim.

Next comes mankind.

So, Lucifer was a Cherubim and never met Jesus/the Creator. The "Highest" he ever met were the Angels of the Four Directions, namely Michael! Lucifer fell to this Earth before Adam and Eve and was called "SATAN" by the other angels. Satan/Lucifer was here FIRST. This is HIS WORLD...HIS CURSE. He is a Liar and a deceiver and will prove that mankind is NOT WORTHY for forgiveness! That is his mission...if Satan can't be forgiven then why are these men and women who were created after Satan forgiven??

Now with this info, we can look at the reading. Does Jesus know who Satan is? YES! Jesus is the One who cast Satan down here! Does Satan know who Jesus is? NO! But this "Son of God" and Messiah talk has Satan nervous enough to materialize and meet Jesus for a "talk of temptation". Jesus knows why He is here. He is here to conquer Satan and SIN for those who believe and love the Creator. Jesus answers Satan with Scripture PERFECTLY to throw Satan off. After all, JESUS is the "I AM" that has revealed ALL OF THE SCRIPTURES to mankind.
Jesus knows Scripture better than any manifested being. Why didn't Jesus just throw Satan off the cliff or destroy Satan? Satan fulfills a purpose. It might seem cruel to us...but our will and the Creators will are two different things. If we follow Temptation, we are NOT following the Creator,and thus DO NOT love God. Satan, separates the believers from the non-believers. To those who are on the path of faith, Satan comes to tempt you and allows your own decisions to throw you off the path of faith. He is there to prove that you ARE NOT worthy of Salvation!
Satan can't figure out who this "Jesus" is.

In the reading we read that first, Jesus fasts. Fasting is one way to rely on the Father/Son in faith. Imagine fasting for 40 days. (40 days of fasting has been accomplished many times by people even recently). But, imagine how "tempting" food may be after a 40 day fast. As the scripture says...for 40 days Satan tempted Jesus.

Satan asks Jesus that if He really is the Son of God, the Creator, surely Jesus can turn a stone into bread. Jesus answers Satan with Scripture which could mean to Satan that Jesus could still be the Son of God, or just a human.

Satan then tells Jesus a Truth which we must acknowledge. Satan tells Jesus that HE, SATAN, RULES ALL THE KINGDOMS ON EARTH! And Satan can give these kingdoms to Jesus if he wishes. Remember, this Earth...this piece of rock floating in the Galaxy... happens to be ruled by SATAN and we are temporary"uninvited guests" here. We are the nuisance of Satan who he focuses on in order to prove to the Son of God that Satan is more worthy as a fallen Cherub than these constantly sinning humans. If you want paradise on Earth, riches beyond belief, to become famous...then Satan must grant you this. If you follow the Creator, then the Creator will make sure you have EVERYTHING you need...not more and not less!

Now think about the verse Jesus says: "You are not of this world...""
John 15:19
If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

Now how does Jesus reply to this second temptation of Satan?
With Scripture.
This means that Jesus still could be the Son of God or just a human.

Now the third temptation is to tempt The Creator's Power. If He really is the Creator....Satan said "If you are the Son of God throw yourself off the cliff!" Surely, the Son of God, the Creator, can do this!
How does Jesus answer?
With Scripture.
Which still means that Jesus could be the Son of God or just a human.

How does Satan leave Jesus? CONFUSED! Surely Satan will come again and figure this "Jesus" out. Satan will watch for a while and then make his move (through the temptation of Judas).

I leave you with this thought. If Satan would have ever figured out that he was standing before the Son of God for sure...would he have influence the crucifixion? Satan still wins over man...but did Satan really expect this possible Messiah called "Jesus" to walk through the GATES OF HELL when He was crucified? Did Satan ever realize that through the death of Jesus the following verse would become true and for those who believe...Satan's game would be over?
The verse is:
John 3:16
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life"?

My answer is that Satan had no idea that this was the plan of the Creator, the Son, to save mankind. Satan had no idea what Jesus was doing...but Satan was worried and confused about it!

One warning: For those who try to go up against Satan head to head...you are defeated! Only the Son of God and His angels can defend you against Satan. Don't fall for this "Be like Christ" nonsense! YOU are NOT the Son of God! But as a believer, He shall help you if you ask Him. You are dealing with Lucifer, a fallen angel, but an angel, and through Scripture we can know how to act when faced with temptation but when it comes to power, you have none against Satan.
Only the Lord can protect you...call upon Him immediately.

May the Lord be with us all!

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Luke 6:27-38 (Sermon for the week of February 18th)

Luke 6:27-38 (New King James Version)

Love Your Enemies

27 “But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you. 29 To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either. 30 Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back. 31 And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.

32 “But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back. 35 But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil. 36 Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.

Do Not Judge

37 “Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 38 Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”

SERMON:

Reading Jesus' words this week and allowing these words to soak into your mind is more important than anything I will say. However, I will mention some of the thoughts and insights that I came to as a primer. There are life changing, mood altering, powerful, actions that this weeks reading encompasses. I must admit that I do not fully live the words of Jesus. I am striving to change and do my best. We all must look, learn and change. Why are Jesus' statements in this reading so hard? They are principles of God...the way things really work...and they go against everything we know and how we are told to act. It goes several steps further than anything taught to us by morals. Mankind is taught in ways different from God's. Let's look at an example. The Code of Hammurabi (18Th Century BC) specified, "an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth". This principal existed before the Jews received the 10 Commandments. The Code of Hammurabi is simple justice, but it is not God's justice. Jesus ends this "reciprocity". It is not the way of God but the way of man. Reciprocity is a commonsense, logical way to live one's life. This principal does not seek to inflict injury except in cases where injury is deserved. It is FAIR. The bad person suffers and the good person prospers. Yet, Jesus tells us that reciprocity is not the behavior we should live by. God goes beyond justice and shows mercy and we must do the same. Yes, it is unnatural and goes against our "instincts". But to move beyond seeking justice and instead show mercy is an act of God's Grace and is an instruction to the followers of Jesus Christ. It is the way the Kingdom of God operates, which means it is totally opposite from the ways that the majority of mankind thinks and lives!

Lets look at the reading....
“But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you. 29 To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either. 30 Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back. 31 And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise."

Jesus begins with the Truth..."love your enemies" and then gives concrete examples of what He means. In the first set of examples He says:
1) do good to those who hate you
2) bless those who curse you
3) pray for those who abuse you

These three examples are general in nature: hatred, cursing, and abuse. These can manifest themselves in a myriad of ways.

The next three examples, Jesus gets specific:
1) If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other
2) and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold your shirt
3) give to everyone who begs from you and if anyone takes your good, do not ask for them

These three examples are specific: striking a cheek, taking a coat, taking goods.

Jesus is providing us with an array of examples so that we can think about the thousands of ways these principals of God can be applied. The principal is simple in words, "LOVE YOUR ENEMIES". I do not think that this means that we will always feel great about turning our cheek to get hit again. We are called to action. Faith is an action. We turn our cheek. We turn in faith. We are not happy about it, but we do it out of faith. Why? We are Jesus' disciples and we are not to allow the other person to control us and the situation. We are to seize the principal of God and to use it effectively. This may seem weak, to turn our cheek in the face of hatred and violence...but we see how powerful it is when Jesus is crucified. We are to seize the opportunity by loving...on the cross Jesus did not curse His enemies but prayed for their forgiveness. Love conquers ALL! Look at St. Francis of Assisi and Dr. Martin Luther King...they ended the way of reciprocity and the practiced the way of love shown through the action of carrying on in persecution and oppression by turning the other cheek...it is seizing the opportunity to control the situation through love...and once again love conquers all.

"Do unto others as you would have them do to you"

We know this as the "Golden Rule". This rule is often misstated and is usually found in a negative form. For example, Philo said "What you hate to suffer, do not do to any other". Jesus changes this to a proactive statement. We are to expand and go further with this principal. Not only are we to practice behavior that we would want done to us, but to avoid the behavior we would not like to experience. This is a proactive statement. We act in faith BEFORE we act, not after.

But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back. 35 But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil. 36 Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.


Jesus gives us three examples:
1) If you love those
2) If you do good to those
3) If you lend to those

Jesus instructed us earlier on how to respond to people who treat us badly or take advantage of us. Jesus also instructs us on how to respond to those who treat us well. Jesus wants us to good do at all times. We receive no special rewards for doing good. Doing good works for the sake of good is reciprocity and is not the way of God. Keep in mind that people who are not Christians do good for the sake of good. As followers of Jesus we are to do good whether we receive good OR bad in return. We do not do good and keep track of who has done us wrong and who has treated us well. Jesus is calling for us to stop keeping score and do good---PERIOD! End reciprocity-- end the ways of thinking like mankind and follow the instructions of Our Lord.

"But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for he is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful, just as Your Father is merciful"

Jesus gives us the reason for doing good at all times no matter what the circumstances. We are to do good, to love, and act in mercy because of a fact. The fact is that we are the Children of God. We are His representatives here on Earth. The Lord is our boss and employer. Our job is to follow our job description. Forget the insubordinate co-workers or rude customers. We have a job to do and we do it. We are the heirs to the kingdom of God. We are blessed with the opportunity to enter into the presence and to enjoy the protection, love, and care of the Lord. Our reward is great! We are the King's representatives and must act and do the works as representatives of royalty. If your ears and eyes have been opened to the Truth of Jesus Christ...you have received a gift and a privilege...act like it.

"Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put in your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back"

To judge is to form either a negative or positive opinion. To condemn is to pronounce guilt. We are sometimes quick to pronounce what we think God would pronounce. We are not God. We assume what to be true and pass judgement or condemnation, but God judges... not us. That is His job, not ours. Who becomes a goat or a sheep is the Lord's job and not ours. Our job is to be His sheep and act like sheep. We as Christians can go around and do good, pray intently, and seek Jesus...but then we pass judgement..."Oh, he is a Catholic and full of it...or he is a fundamentalist and thus must be off his rocker". White people can be quick to discount a person of another race as from a lower social class and not on the same "acceptable" social level, and Colored races are quick to call White people racists. These are the circular traps of this world and are not found in the Kingdom of God. We as royal employees of the King are not obeying the King by acting in these manners. It is the poison of mankind. Remember this, "for the measure you give will be the measure you get back". We are granted a good measure for not engaging in this behavior. As followers and representatives of Christ, we must acknowledge the reality of evil and be followers who will stand up for what is right. We must be able to identify what is good and what is evil and the Lord directs us by studying His Word and by faith"ing" in Him. We must make decisions and decisions based in Christ. Living faithfully includes making discerning decisions as representatives of the Kingdom of God.

We are not to allow people to set the agenda...we are not to wait to see what the other person will do before we decide what we will do. Nor are we to be trapped in a vicious cycle someone else starts. We are to seize the opportunity to love. How are we to do that when we act out of our own self will and judge others? To judge is not to love. If you have been harmed...showing mercy is an act of love. Will you do it? What do you lose by not doing it? Are we are not the heirs to the Kingdom of God? If so, what will you lose by showing mercy??

Another example: to judge a person who has or has not done us harm as an unbeliever worthy of hell is to judge and condemn...and a year down the road..the Lord may open their eyes and they will become your brother or sister in Christ.
What will you say then? What would you tell the Lord if He asked you why you acted the way you did?

The fear of God seems to have left Western civilization. Look around. Keep in mind that the fear of God is not one of control or negativity...but one of direction and hope. I have a healthy fear of God that I will somehow fall back into and repeat the unloving acts from my past which directly contributed to my horrible state of being and He will not be there to open my eyes and lead me to change! I fear that! I fear losing His presence in my life that is dear to me.
I fear that I do not have enough faith and I am unworthy. This fear is one big factor that keeps me focused on Him. There is a lot of learning that I still have to do and a lot of change to come.

Progress not perfection, however I seek His guidance as I progress. In a world that judges "Christians" when they themselves are not Christians, it is hard to love sometimes. But love is the Truth. We are sheep when we have reached this level. Loving your enemy will never happen unless you love God. Dr. King reached this level and we need to reach it. We will if we continue to walk the path of faith. We will have to rely on it when the Lord places His Good Works in front of us and we may be targeted by many unloving people and evil that can be staring you straight in the eyes. May we all call upon the Lord to help us be better stewards of His Kingdom and continue to walk at a steady pace on the narrow path. AMEN.

God bless and peace be upon you.


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Luke 6:17-26 (Sermon for the week of February 11th)

Luke 6:17-26 (NKJV)

Jesus Heals a Great Multitude

17 And He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases, 18 as well as those who were tormented with unclean spirits. And they were healed. 19 And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all.

The Beatitudes

20 Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said:

“ Blessed are you poor,
For yours is the kingdom of God.
21 Blessed are you who hunger now,
For you shall be filled.
Blessed are you who weep now,
For you shall laugh.
22 Blessed are you when men hate you,
And when they exclude you,
And revile you, and cast out your name as evil,
For the Son of Man’s sake.
23 Rejoice in that day and leap for joy!
For indeed your reward is great in heaven,
For in like manner their fathers did to the prophets.

Jesus Pronounces Woes

24 “ But woe to you who are rich,
For you have received your consolation.
25 Woe to you who are full,
For you shall hunger.
Woe to you who laugh now,
For you shall mourn and weep.
26 Woe to you^[a] when all^[b] men speak well of you,
For so did their fathers to the false prophets.


SERMON:

This passage from Luke is known as "The Sermon on the Plain" and is parallel to Matthew 5-7 "The Sermon on the Mount". It is known as the Sermon on the Plain because Luke writes in 6:17 "Jesus came down with them and stood on a level place". Luke's version is much shorter than Matthew's with 3 introductory verses and 30 teaching verses compared to Matthew's 4 introductory verses and 107 teaching verses. Luke's version is distinctly different in that Luke includes a different variation of the Beautitudes called "the Woes" (6:24-26).

It is important to note that Luke parallels Matthew chapter 5 and 7, but does not include any comparable material for Matthew chapter 6. It is unlikely that every word written in both book versions of the sermon are exact, however, like the Word of God (which is the Bible), the Gospel always gets to the theme and allows us to arrive to the Truth. These sermons are a collection of Jesus' teachings from a variety of settings and were taught by Jesus Himself. We know that...

Luke places the Sermon on the Plain later in Jesus' ministry because Luke's concern is emphasizing a theme and not chronological order. Luke emphasizes the conflicts; between this earth and heaven, man and God, between His ways and our ways. In Luke, we often see the scribes and Pharisees taking offense at Jesus for violating religious traditions. They defend a traditional view of who God's people are (Godly Jews vs. ungodly Gentiles) and Jesus counters them with the Truth, which is a different way than they see things. Jesus gives them a glimpse into the Kingdom of Heaven which is opposite from the world they adhere to.

It is extremely hard and virtually impossible to follow the Law perfectly, and we can admire these scribes and Pharisees for trying. However it is glaringly obvious that they ignore their own prophets and ignore the very Messiah they claim to be waiting for. The prophets tried to move the Jews from level one to level two...from following the Law to having compassion. If they would have listened to the very prophets that lived among them and didn't kill them, they would have been better prepared for Jesus' arrival. Jesus moves us to level 3, but the Pharisees and scribes are still stuck in legalism and remain in level 1!

One note, before jumping into this weeks reading, keep in mind that verses 12-16 in Luke chapter 6 details Jesus choosing the 12 Apostles. The 12 Apostles correspond to the 12 Tribes of Israel. The 12 Tribes of Israel correspond to the 10 Lost Tribes and the two Tribes that make up the Southern Kingdom who are now the nation of Israel. When the 12 Apostles were chosen, they were chosen on a mountain. Mountains were places to pray and encounter God. This mountain is where Jesus is coming down from which leads us into this weeks reading.

Jesus "came down with them and stood on a level place".

"Them" are the 12 Apostles and "came down" is Jesus coming down from that mountain. Another interesting perspective is that Jesus "comes down" to the level where the ordinary people are. Jesus meets us on a level place to teach and instruct us. When a person meets you on level ground...they are not overpowering or dominant. We learn more when we do not feel dominated or lowly...even though we are by God's awesome power. Jesus comes down to our level to help.

"with a great crowd of disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea, Jerusalem, and the coast of Tyre and Sidon".

Verse 17 is interesting. Jerusalem is the southern province and is located in Judea. Jerusalem is the home of the Temple and the Jewish leaders. It is also the source of the largest opposition to Jesus.

Tyre and Sidon are Gentile cities on the coast of Capernaum. This suggest that Gentiles are present at the sermon.

These four places represent the span of people Jesus ministers to...Jews and Gentiles.

"They has come to hear Him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured".

Believe it or not! Miracles are happening here! Those who had DISEASES were cured! Those who were possessed or surrounded by evil were CURED! Can you or I do this? We can only with the Power of Jesus. We are called as witnesses to do these very acts and it can and does happen through faith. Jesus did these things and these people were cured! Do you know any Rabbi's, Guru's, or teachers today who can do this?

"And all in the crowd were trying to touch (Jesus), for power came out of Him and healed all of them"

Believe it or not! The Power of God, the Power of the Holy Spirit, resides in the Son of God. He came to teach, and not only did He teach, but He healed everyone present! Now that is the awesome and loving Power of God! What is our call? It is to GO, to MAKE DISCIPLES, to BAPTIZE, and to TEACH. We may be blessed with enough FAITH to heal by touch and exorcise demons...if not...we strive to reach that level of faith. In the meantime, those who are of Christ's Church can heal on a more mundane level: we can supply food, clothing, shelter, medicine, and education to those who suffer. There is an endless amount of suffering, but an endless amount of the Power of God also is at our disposal!

Now for the "Woes". Luke words these differently from the Beatitudes in Matthew. Luke clues in on an important Truth. What GOD does and what WE do are two opposites. The Woes gives us this contrast. We can unlock the Power of God by understanding that Jesus ends the reciprocal principal by understanding the circumstance, doing the opposite of what we think, and asking God for help. The Woes also contain the meaning of conflict within our lives as we walk in faith. Most (and I believe if not all) men and women of Faith have had to endure our personal trials. These are meant for us to learn from and gain faith. Think about it...if we had all of the money in the world...would we seek Jesus? Or would you be out having fun? If you knew horrible pain, would you know to recognize, appreciate, and offer supplications to God when WE KNOW that He granted us relief from that pain? All of my trials in life IN THE END have taught me knowledge or has granted me a spiritual experience of God. It didn't seem like it at the time, but looking back...I understand why I had to go through that experience (in almost every case). Let me also point out that Jesus does not tell us that we should sell all that we have and give it all to the poor so that we can attain the Kingdom of Heaven. He does challenge a rich man to do this very thing...however in the Beatitudes, Jesus tells the poor that the Kingdom of Heaven is ALREADY THEIRS! In the Woes, he tells the rich that they have ALREADY RECEIVED their consolation!

Lets look at a few of the Woes:
"Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of heaven"

The poor encompass not only the economically poor but the spiritually poor. They include the disadvantaged, the powerless, the marginalized. When the world is against everything you do, you are poor. When you strive for faith but fail all the time, you are spiritually poor. There is an argument out there that I need to address. Some believe that wealth is the mark of God's approval. Their question is "Doesn't God reward people with prosperity and spiritual blessings?" The answer is: SOMETIMES. Our spirituality is inversely proportional to our wealth. Our need for God usually falls when we are financially secure and grows when we are not. The rich tend to trust their wealth and not God. Perhaps some of the rich have gained their wealth by taking advantage of others. Keep in mind that this is not an absolute that there are wealthy people who live lives of Faith, and poor people who DO NOT live lives of faith. Luke is pointing out the Truth, the Truth is that the Kingdom of God is the reversal of this world. Where you suffer, you shall have relief! What you think is prosperity in this world, is not prosperity in the Kingdom of God! There are far more poor people in this world than "rich". This Beatitudes is a message of Hope to the majority of people in this world.

"Blessed are you who are hungry now for you will be filled"

While Jesus is here, He provides for the hungry. But "hunger" does not mean purely physiological hunger. We can be hungry for faith, understanding, truth, and justice...and can't find it. The Kingdom of Heaven is the opposite, you shall find what you are looking for and no longer hunger!

I think I will end it here with a reprint of the woes...they are Blessings from Our Lord, and if we think about the Kingdom of Heaven being opposite from this world...we can read the Woes and feel the Hope that Our Lord shall provide and does provide!

Blessed are you who weep now,
For you shall laugh.

Blessed are you when men hate you,
And when they exclude you,
And revile you, and cast out your name as evil,
For the Son of Man’s sake.
Rejoice in that day and leap for joy!
For indeed your reward is great in heaven,
For in like manner their fathers did to the prophets.

“ But woe to you who are rich,
For you have received your consolation.

Woe to you who are full,
For you shall hunger.

Woe to you who laugh now,
For you shall mourn and weep.

Woe to you when all men speak well of you,
For so did their fathers to the false prophets.


Woe to our hardships and to our enemies! Rejoice for YOUR Kingdom is at hand!

God Bless you and your families this week.


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Luke 5:1-11 (Sermon for the week of February 4th)

Luke 5:1-11 (NKJV)

1 So it was, as the multitude pressed about Him to hear the word of God, that He stood by the Lake of Gennesaret, 2 and saw two boats standing by the lake; but the fishermen had gone from them and were washing their nets. 3 Then He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little from the land. And He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat. 4 When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon, “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” 5 But Simon answered and said to Him, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at Your word I will let down the net.”

6 And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking. 7 So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. 8 When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” 9 For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish which they had taken; 10 and so also were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men.” 11 So when they had brought their boats to land, they forsook all and followed Him.

SERMON:

Luke's Gospel is unique in several ways from the other Gospels. Luke's account of the calling of the four fisherman is the longest from the other accounts found in the Gospel of Mark, Matthew, and John. Luke opens Jesus' ministry with Jesus' sermon at the Nazareth synagogue. Luke then follows Jesus' ministry by reporting on certain events (that highlight a theme) such as the driving out an "unclean spirit" (4:31-37), the healing of Simon's mother-in-law (4:38-41), and the sermon from the synagogue in Judea (4:42-44). These events do not follow the chronological order of the other three Gospels and it is for a reason. Luke emphasizes points and highlights a theme running throughout Jesus' ministry that the other Gospels do not explain. Luke is highlighting the theme of salvation for Gentiles, and events in Jesus' ministry that were not emphasized enough in the other three Gospels. We can see the importance of the order that Luke places events of Jesus' ministry by beginning with the sermon in the synagogue which then leads up to the crowds hearing of Jesus' works and sermons and flocking to Jesus to "hear the Word of God" in this weeks reading. Luke gives us another insight into that day when the crowds flocked to hear Jesus and the four Apostles were chosen: Peter (Simon), John, James, and Andrew.

As a side note, it is interesting that Andrew is not mentioned once in this Gospel. Also notice that Peter is the highlight here and not James or John. Remember that Luke had the fortunate experience to meet Peter when Luke was with Paul. Luke never grew to know and understand James and John like he did Peter. It is one reason why Peter is highlighted in this Gospel account when the four apostles were chosen. Now we will closely look at the reading...

"1 So it was, as the multitude pressed about Him to hear the word of God, that He stood by the Lake of Gennesaret, 2 and saw two boats standing by the lake; but the fishermen had gone from them and were washing their nets. 3 Then He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little from the land. And He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat."


Lake Gennesaret is a region at the north end of the Sea of Galilee. It is not an actual lake but appears from the shore to be a large cove. Luke calls it a lake but it is still the Sea of Galilee. Notice that the crowds are pressing Jesus to hear the Word of God. This is because of the miracles, works, and sermons that Jesus has done that has spread the word of Him to the locals. Luke uses the phrase "the word of God" and Jesus uses "the kingdom of God". This is a phrase Luke uses in Acts and Luke uses it to refer to the message of the church. The path to the kingdom of God in a sense can be found by hearing the word of God!

It is interesting that there were two boats there...both needed to be involved in the gathering of the fish. Could the boats symbolize the Jews and the Gentiles who will soon be blessed with salvation and eternal life? I think so. Remember that everything surrounding Jesus and His words have a layered meaning. It is a fact that both the Jews and the Gentiles will convert to Christianity when the Good News reaches them that the Messiah has come, conquered the grave, and has provided salvation to those who seek Him by His sacrifice on the cross.

When we read that the fisherman had been out all night and had fished unsuccessfully...we need to understand their physical and mental condition and then relate it to our own experience. Fishing can be an exhausting and frustrating task. Imagine working hard all night in a physically exhausting job only to produce nothing! These fisherman wanted to go home, eat, and get some sleep. They are exhausted, probably irritable, and in no mindset to help someone let alone listen to anyone. To top it off, they just cleaned their nets and boats and are practically minutes away from leaving! Then a "man" comes and wants to get into one of their boats and asks to be pushed out into the water! What does Peter do? He does what Jesus asks without question. We know that Jesus is not just any man or prophet...there was something glorious about Jesus and Peter recognizes it!

Jesus then sits down in the boat. Among the Jews, when you sit you sit to teach. It is comforting to see Jesus coming out of the synagogue and goes directly to the common people. He goes to the Sea of Galilee to teach the common people from all walks of life. The Sea of Galilee becomes the synagogue...a synagogue available to anyone who is interested in seeing this special "prophet" that people are murmuring about.

Keep this thought in the back of your mind as we read on...these fisherman were exhausted but spring to life when the Son of God who is Jesus asked them to do something. They forget how tired and weary they were and come to life to fulfill the works Jesus wanted them to do. Any energy that is needed to complete a work of God will be granted to you no matter how exhausted or stressed out you become. At least most of us aren't called to do His Works after an exhaustive and unproductive night of trawling around the sea in a little boat with a heavy net to drag around!!

"4 When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon, “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” 5 But Simon answered and said to Him, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at Your word I will let down the net.” 6 And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking. And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking. 7 So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. "

This part of the reading is also interesting. Jesus' command has a layered meaning. Notice that Jesus commanded Peter to cast his net into the "deep" water. Peter is a professional fisherman. He knows how to catch fish, where to catch fish, and when to catch fish. What does an exhausted, weary, and disappointed Peter do? He does as he is commanded and without question. What is the meaning behind casting the net into the deep water? For a fisherman, hugging the shoreline and fishing in shallow water is secure and safe. The shallow water is a safety zone. It is familiar, known, and does not offer the prospect of injury because the shore is near...if something happens to the boat, they could always swim to shore. The deep water is away from the comfort zone, dark, and more dangerous. This is where Jesus commands Peter to go...into the unknown, away from the safety zone to fish.

So it is with us. The Lord places us away from our comfort zone to cast our "net" in order to save those who are really lost...those who are living in the deep water. It is less secure and an unknown place we venture to but as we see in this weeks reading, our catch will surpass all expectations. You catch the "fish" and the Lord will clean them!

The rewards are abundant and almost overwhelming with the Lord. However, this does not mean that fulfilling His will in order to find a pot of gold is the reward you shall receive or should expect to receive. Worldly possessions stay with this world and rot with this world. What we think is valuable is vastly different from what God thinks is valuable. If we are weary, tired, beaten down, close to defeat, or attacked in a spiritual or physical way, know that just like Peter if we act in faith by doing what we are told and fulfilling the Will of the Lord, the catch will be miraculous. Peter just wanted to go home after a demoralizing night of fruitless fishing, but he awakened to the call of Jesus, and in turn had the best day of fishing he would ever have in his life!

As we go and do the Lord's fishing, we may have to signal to our partners to help us haul in the catch. The abundance of the Lord's blessing can seem to be almost overwhelming....it could sink two boats...ALMOST sink two boats! When we focus our faith on small works we get small results. When we focus our faith on large works we get large results...actually extra-extra large results! The abundance of the fish in this weeks reading is the same abundance the Lord provided in the Old Testament as the manna in the wilderness (Exodus 16), the widow's meal and oil (1 Kings 17:8-16), and Elisha's feeding a hundred men with 20 loaves of bread (2 Kings 4:42-44). The Lord provided this abundance in the Old Testament and Jesus will provide many miracles of abundance in the New Testament. The Lord still works these miracles today...the miracles of abundance fulfill the needs that we have as humans and demonstrate the awesome power of God. They are there waiting for us to experience them personally right now!!

"When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” 9 For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish which they had taken; 10 and so also were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men.” 11 So when they had brought their boats to land, they forsook all and followed Him."

Peter serves as a role model for us...his faith was unquestioning, quick, and subordinate. However, even a man of faith has a little doubt at times. Peter followed Jesus' instructions but he really didn't know if Jesus was the real deal until he saw the physical evidence before his eyes of the abundant catch of fish. One thought that came to my mind while writing this...it would be fitting if all the atheists were there on that day at the Sea of Galilee. They would have to believe or go home if they were granted the chance to witness the physical proof in this account in Luke, and I know that after the atheists are presented with all types of physical proof from Our Lord...they would still not believe!!

Peter is a man of faith...and a man of faith is humble about his unholiness in the presence of God. Just like Moses and Isaiah, Peter is faced with the fact about how unworthy he is in front of the Lord! So are we...and we should be reminded of that fact again.

Do not be afraid. For the Good News of Salvation has come! Jesus tells us not to be afraid for the Father wants us to be with Him in the Kingdom. We have the awesome power of the Lord to watch our backs. Just as we read Peter humbly falling to his knees before the Lord...we will see Peter preach a sermon where 3,000 people will be baptized in one day. A large catch of fish this day and a large catch of men one day! This experience is available for us to carry on right now.

The world is a unforgiving and uncomfortable place for Christians...in fact this world on the whole despises Christians. It was not a comfortable world for Peter 2000 years ago; Peter experienced opposition, arrest, and crucifixion. As Jesus says in Luke 12:17 "Do not be afraid for you are of more value than many sparrows".

Finally, the disciples left everything and followed Jesus. We can leave everything and do His Works too...but that does not always mean that this "sacrifice" will bring us more faith! What are our true intentions and how well do we really know Jesus? Becoming a disciple is to discover the Truth that the meaning of our life is not based in worldly goals and possessions, but instead the basis of life is living in God alone. If we reach that point, we have indeed left everything in this world to fulfill His Will.

God Bless you and your families this week!!


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Luke 4:21-30 (Sermon for the week of January 28th)

Luke 4:21-30

21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” 22 So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, “Is this not Joseph’s son?”
23 He said to them, “You will surely say this proverb to Me, ‘Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we have heard done in Capernaum,^[a] do also here in Your country.’” 24 Then He said, “Assuredly, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country. 25 But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land; 26 but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath,^[b]in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. 27 And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.”

28 So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, 29 and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff. 30 Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way.

SERMON:

Luke starts the story of Jesus' ministry with the events of Jesus' sermon in the synagogue in order to emphasize the paradigm and irony of His ministry and to emphasize the fact that salvation is available to everyone...not just Jews. Luke does not follow a chronological order, and chooses to arrange the events of Jesus' life in an order that supports one of many themes in Jesus' ministry. First, there are the ironies that take place. For example, Jesus will resurrect in order to conquer death and to prove Himself as the Messiah, and in this weeks reading Jesus escapes death on a smaller scale by miraculously "passing through" the midst of an enraged crowd bent on tossing Him off a cliff. Luke also emphasizes the importance of salvation to Gentiles. On that note let's look at the reading.

"21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” 22 So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth."

Notice that once again, Jesus says: "TODAY". Today is not yesterday and today is not 2,000 years later. Today is NOW. NOW the scripture is fulfilled! Jesus is the One who fulfills the Scripture! It would seem ludicrous that you or I would stand before a crowd and exclaim that we have come to fulfill scripture! What would the crowd think if we did this? They would probably think that we had a screw loose! Jesus states this boldly and with authority and how does the congregation react? They marvel at His words! The scripture has and was fulfilled, and the fulfillment of this "scripture" was completed by Jesus. The waiting is over. The time has come. The Jews have waited and still wait for the Messiah. They have seen God work miracles throughout their history from the parting of the Red Sea to the destruction of the false prophets of Baal. We would expect the Jews to be ready and be able to recognize and accept the Messiah...but we are wrong, they are not ready TODAY. The Jews at the time of Jesus' birth have not seen or heard from any prophet in 400 years...they have grown weary of waiting like a guard who falls asleep at their post. Jesus says, "Today the scripture has been fulfilled" but today the Jews are not ready! The Jews start off by speaking well of Jesus, but soon turn against Him because Jesus does not do or fulfill what they want...they want freedom from THEIR captivity...forget everyone else...they are the chosen ones, not the Gentiles. The reading this week also asks us for a decision...no fence sitting. Did Jesus fulfill the scriptures or not? You have to make a choice, and hopefully this choice is based on actual investigation on your part.

"And they said, “Is this not Joseph’s son?”"

Mankind looks for power and wealth as attributes of royalty and high social status. The Jews expect their king to be born into terms that they have determined as worthy. They expect a king to be born into wealth and power as kings ususally are born into. Jesus as Creator knows this and purposefully "predestines" or creates the circumstances so that He is to be born into poverty and humility. Jesus does not come to fulfill the expectations of men, but to grant all people of this world with Salvation if they choose to accept Him. This verse is sarcastic. Joseph was a humble man from an insignificant town. Joseph was not born into wealth, but Joseph is a descendant of King David! We know that Jesus is the Son of God and not the son of Joseph...Jesus comes to fulfill the will of the Heavenly Father, GOD, not the will of men!

"23 He said to them, “You will surely say this proverb to Me, ‘Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we have heard done in Capernaum,^[a] do also here in Your country.’”"

Luke has not reported yet on what Jesus has done in Capernaum, and Mark has Jesus teaching in Capernaum at the beginning of His ministry. It is obvious that Jesus is living in Capernaum at the time of this event in Nazareth. Jesus' hometown crowd expects Him to do wonderful things in His hometown of Nazareth. Their attitude stems from the belief that Jesus healed the undeserving people of Capernaum...He should heal the deserving people of Nazareth. It is a call for loyalty to the people of Nazareth, the people of Jesus' hometown.

"24 Then He said, “Assuredly, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country."

A prophet is not going to please the people of his hometown, for a prophet is not bound by loyalty. A prophet has to move away from his hometown in order to be heard. The Jews have a long history of rejecting prophets because true prophets speak the truth that ears do not want to hear. Prophets tell of judgement and a call for change among the people and people seldom want to make these changes. What is acceptable to the Lord is oftentimes unacceptable to men. The rejection of Jesus in Nazareth is a foreshadowing of the rejection of Jesus in Jerusalem. Jewish rejection does not discredit who Jesus was in any way. One question: They were not ready for the Messiah then, and are they ready for the Messiah today? Are Christians ready for the Messiah today?

"25 But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land; 26 but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath,^[b]in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. 27 And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.”

This story is from 1 Kings 17 and would be familiar to this crowd. In the midst of a destructive drought, God sent Elijah to Zarephath to ask a poor widow for some water. The widow objected, but Elijah told her that God would replenish any food or water Elijah used. The widow was rewarded exactly as Elijah said she would, but later her son died. Elijah prayed that the son's life would be restored. There is one theme in this story from 1 Kings that would strike this crowd in an almost insulting way...the widow was a Gentile!

The same theme applies for Jesus' reference to Naaman the Syrian. Naaman was a Gentile. The point of these two themes is that the Jewish people cannot consider their relationship with God as an exclusive relationship. Jesus reinforces this point by beginning His ministry in Capernaum...a place heavily populated by Gentiles. The Nazareth crowd soon rejects Jesus because Jesus shoots down their expectations on what a Messiah, {if Jesus is the Messiah and Jews question this}, will do for them. Jesus shoots these expectations down with works and speeches like in this weeks reading because the Jews cannot expect exclusive "rights" to the Messiah just because they are Jewish.

"28 So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, 29 and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff. 30 Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way."

The scripture the Jews think of pertaining to Jesus' speech is Isaiah 61:1...the Messiah will bring good news to the oppressed Jews. Isaiah 61:2 speaks of "the day of vengeance of our God" which Jesus purposefully omits from the reading. The Jews expect the Messiah to deliver them from oppression and to punish their oppressors. Instead, Jesus reminds them of a time when God cursed the Jews and instead God showed mercy to a Gentile, Naaman the Syrian. Jesus' message is not want the Jews want to hear and become angry. Isn't this true today? If a person where to speak the Truth, would we like it? Or would we get angry? These people got so angry that they wanted to kill Jesus by throwing Him off a cliff! Why? Because they expect the Messiah to fulfill THEIR expectations and THEIR will...thinking like selfish, sinful, prideful humans. Leviticus 24:14 required the stoning of a FALSE prophet...usually they would take a person and throw them off a cliff into a lower place and then people would stand above them and stone them to death. This is what they wanted to do to Jesus.

Question: What was Jesus' charge? Speaking the Truth! Speaking words that they didn't want to hear because the Jews believed that they were Chosen and were deserving of redemption...they alone. Jesus came to grant salvation, He came to deliver the oppressed, and HE DOES! He grants this to the whole world and not a select group. What the Scriptures speak of are God's Words...not open to our selfish interpretation and the expectations of men. Our job is to find the Truth in God's words...not place our will on God. The Jews disobeyed God's orders many, many, times and were fully aware of their actions and the consequences. This time the rest of the world has a chance at salvation. Notice that Jesus slips through the crowd and is not thrown off the cliff. How did He do that? A miracle! Could you escape a riot by "slipping through the crowd" when that crowd is rioting because of you? How about a crowd that is bent on stoning you or throwing you off a cliff? How could you "slip" through them unseen and unnoticed? I know I couldn't except by the Power of the Lord! The wait is over and Salvation is here for us TODAY! Our salvation was granted when the Messiah was here in a tent of flesh with the name Jesus, 2000 some years ago and that is something we can feel rojoice in NOW.

God Bless you and your families this week!

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Luke 1:1-14;4:14-21 (Sermon for the week of January 21st)

(Saint Luke)

Gospel
Lk 1:1-4; 4:14-21

Since many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the events
that have been fulfilled among us,
just as those who were eyewitnesses from the beginning
and ministers of the word have handed them down to us,
I too have decided,
after investigating everything accurately anew,
to write it down in an orderly sequence for you,
most excellent Theophilus,
so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings
you have received.

Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit,
and news of him spread throughout the whole region.
He taught in their synagogues and was praised by all.

He came to Nazareth, where he had grown up,
and went according to his custom
into the synagogue on the sabbath day.
He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah.
He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.
Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down,
and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him.
He said to them,
“Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”

SERMON:

This week's reading grants me the opportunity to reflect on Luke...who he was and why he started his Gospel the way he did.

Luke was not one of the 12 Apostles, but heard the account of Jesus from a few of the actual 12 Apostles and was the personal companion to Paul. Paul wrote 2/3 of what is now in our New Testament. Luke provides certain insight that no other book of the New Testament has. Luke's inspiration and information for his Gospel and Acts came from his close association with Paul and his companions as he explains in his introduction to the Gospel. He re-arranges certain events in order to place emphasis that he felt the other Gospels told in a different sense. That is what makes the Gospels unique. They are the same story told by different witnesses. Matthew and John are eyewitness testimony written down but compiled together at a later time. Luke writes these accounts down himself, intact, and together but highlights events that are briefly touched on in the other Gospels. Luke's unique perspective on Jesus can be seen in the six miracles and eighteen parables not found in the other gospels. Luke's is the gospel of the poor and of social justice. He is the one who tells the story of Lazarus and the Rich Man who ignored him.

For people who doubt that the writings of the New Testament have some how been corrupted by the Roman Catholic Church or some other "group" with a hidden agenda...how could anyone doubt the cohesion and power that comes from reading the Gospels? Surely, man cannot create a spiritual experience that comes from closely studying the Scriptures?! Since men wrote the words, they fulfilled the Will of God. As Jesus says:
"Amen, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away." (Mark 13:30-31)

Luke is a historian...and a physician. Most importantly, Luke was a witness to the testimony of the Apostles...and a witness to the life of Paul...who was the last "chosen Apostle" of Jesus Christ. Remember that Paul conversed with the Lord AFTER the ascension. As we read in one source, "Luke had a great knowledge of the Septuagint and of things Jewish, which he acquired either as a Jewish proselyte (St. Jerome) or after he became a Christian, through his close association with the Apostles and disciples.It is worthy of note that, in the three places where he is mentioned in the Epistles (Colossians 4:14; Philemon 24; 2 Timothy 4:11) he is named with Mark (cf. Colossians 4:10), the other Evangelist who was not an Apostle (Plummer), and it is clear from his Gospel that he was well acquainted with the Gospel according to Mark; and in the Acts he knows all the details of Peter's delivery--what happened at the house of Mark's mother, and the name of the girl who ran to the outer door when Peter knocked. He must have frequently met Peter, and may have assisted him to draw up his First Epistle in Greek, which affords many reminiscences of Luke's style. "

Now with this in mind we have a new insight into the beginning of this weeks reading. Let's re-read it again...

"Since many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the events
that have been fulfilled among us,
just as those who were eyewitnesses from the beginning
and ministers of the word have handed them down to us,
I too have decided,
after investigating everything accurately anew,
to write it down in an orderly sequence for you,
most excellent Theophilus,
so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings
you have received."

Now let's break the rest of the reading down...

"Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit,
and news of him spread throughout the whole region.
He taught in their synagogues and was praised by all."

"Jesus returned to Galilee"
Again, Galilee is significant because of it's insignificance. Jesus was not born in the center of Jewish life which was Jerusalem...He was born in an insignificant town, and grew up in Galilee, and insignificant town. Many Gentiles lived in Galilee and Luke will write that the women who observe Jesus' crucifixion are from Galilee. Jesus is accepted in an insignificant town that has a large Gentile population, and not accepted in Jerusalem...which has a dominate Jewish population.

"in the power of the Spirit"
Luke emphasizes that Jesus and His ministry are not of man but of the Spirit. Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit descended on Jesus during His baptism. The Holy Spirit is with Jesus every step of the way. Jesus is born into flesh but is of the Holy Spirit. Two in one fleshly body...all works and words of Jesus are of the Spirit.

"and news of Him spread throughout the whole region"
There is a reason why news is spreading. It is because the Messiah has been born and is proving who He is!

"He taught in their synagogues and was praised by all"
Jewish worship takes place in the Temples and teaching, prayers, and readings take place in the synagogues. We do not know what Jesus taught them...only if I was there to hear it!

"He came to Nazareth, where He had grown up"
Jesus was born in Bethlehem but grew up in Nazareth. Matthew tells us that as a young adult Jesus moves to Capernaum (Matt 4:13)

"and went according to his custom into the synagogue on the Sabbath day"

Who's custom? HIS CUSTOM! Who is the one who gave the Jews the Sabbath? It was Jesus who was the voice who spoke to them before he came to live in a tent of flesh. It is His command and His Sabbath. He observes what He has commanded.

"He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah."

Synagogue worship would have followed a format. A reading from the Torah followed by an explanation, then a reading from the prophets followed by an explanation. The president of the synagogue invites someone to comment on the scriptures. The question people will wait to answer is if the selected commenter will know what they are talking about. People would wait to see if someone would jump up and correct them when they were off course. When Jesus speaks...it is with an authority that no one wants to challenge...I wonder why!

"He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,"

Jesus read Isaiah 61:1-2 but omits 61:2b which speaks of the "day of vengeance of our God". His commentary focuses this time on salvation and He choose not to mention the Judgement. This is emphasizing a two stage action...salvation now, judgement later.

"because he has anointed me"
Jesus was anointed at his baptism by the Spirit when the Spirit descended upon Him. He was not anointed with oil, but with the Holy Spirit. A King of Kings...the Messiah. Jesus is the successor to King David.

"to bring glad tidings to the poor"

Who are the "poor" in this verse? The economically or the spiritually poor? Answer is both. All people who are economically or spiritually impoverished have the ability to receive Grace. Jesus' ministry is centered around the poor, the captive, blind, oppressed, and possessed. He is here to help, and will help, and does help...if one is open to receiving His Grace. These glad tidings are the miracles of Grace that are available to those who believe in Him. Everyone, be it Jew, Gentile, or heathen (and this means everyone in the world) can receive His Grace...period.

"He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives"

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus' first miracle is the cleansing of a man possessed, yes I said possessed, by a demon. Jesus can and does release those who's hearts believe from the worst kind of pain and dark despair. Being possessed by a demon is the worst despair you could be in. The power to release demons comes from the Creator...and that Creator is Jesus! Do you know of anyone else that can claim to do this? Have you ever been in the presence of a demon?

"and recovery of sight to the blind,"

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus will restore sight of blind people and will tell the egotistical and prideful to invite the poor, crippled, and blind to their dinner tables. This verse is also talking about those who are spiritually blind, (ex. atheists). This is the meaning of this verse...Jesus restores sight to those who are spiritually blind and Luke will emphasize this in Acts 26:18...(all you atheists open your heart and ears now!) "To open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by FAITH in me".

Continuing on with this week's reading...
"to let the oppressed go free"

There is nothing like freedom. To be oppressed is horrible. Freedom is truly appreciated by those who were oppressed at one time and then set free. Freedom is often taken for granted by those who were never oppressed. Most of us, as Christians, realized at some point in our faith the reality of the spiritual oppression we had. The Good News of Salvation through faith in Christ is one climatic point we reach...the feeling of being truly free! Free from the clutches of death! Free from the guilt of sin! Free to fulfill the Good Works we have come to realize are set for us to do. We still sin and we are aware of our shortcomings by repentance in order to realign ourselves by the direction and guidance of the One who set us free...Jesus the Christ.

"and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord."

What does this verse mean? THE MESSIAH IS HERE! CHRIST HAS COME! THE PROPHECIES WILL AND HAVE BEEN FULFILLED! REJOICE IN THE PROCLAMATION OF THE YEAR THAT OUR LORD WAS BORN!!!

"Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down,"
In the synagogue, you stand to read the scriptures and you sit to teach.

"and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him."
What a sight this must have been to see the Messiah physically in front of you! Surely, we do not have this opportunity...but I know I would be looking intently!

"He said to them,
“Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”

Today is not yesterday and today is not someday. It is now...present time. Notice Jesus never uses the words yesterday or someday. Jesus proclaims the Truth..the wait is over...THAT day has come...the prophecies are and were fulfilled...salvation is here. We are tools of His hands today...we have predestined opportunities to fulfill by bringing the Good News to the poor, helping the oppressed, helping those inflicted with disease and deformities, exorcising demons, and helping the "blind" recover their spiritual (or physical) sight through Him. These things are being fulfilled today as they were in the past...as His Sheep...the tools we need to help are at our disposal backed by the Real and Awesome power of the Lord.

Poverty, captivity, and blindness have two meanings...one physical and one spiritual. It is troublesome to have an empty wallet but it is worse to have an empty soul. Physical captivity is really bad, but being captive to drugs or alcohol is worse. Not being able to see is horrible, but being lost spiritually is REALLY horrible! Helen Keller was blind from infancy, but her words and actions demonstrated a clear spiritual sight...

"Once I knew only darkness and stillness...my life was without past or future...but a little word from the fingers of another fell into my hand that clutched at emptiness, and my heart leaped to the rapture of living. Faith is the strength by which a shattered world shall emerge into the light." (Helen Keller)

God Bless you and your families this week.

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