Prepare for the Coming Kingdom (Luke 17:20-37)

Ellen and I have been married for 10 years.  They have been the best ten years of my life.  My wife is intelligent, caring, funny and compassionate.  Ever since I met her she has always been these things, but I did not always see it.  I remember walking with a friend in Arlington, VA and talking about life.  I was struggling with how I felt people were being disrespectful towards me with sarcasm and criticism and the thought came into my head, “Ellen has never ever treated me like that.”  The Lord was trying to show me something, but I was not ready to see it.  I was single and looking to date someone, but I did not want to date anyone who was not a realistic choice for marriage. 

Ellen did not fit my initial criteria of a wife. As a Christian, I was expecting to meet someone at church or in a Bible study and Ellen was outside of those boxes.  I just could not see what was right in front of me. I realized that I wanted to pursue a relationship with Ellen when I was on a date with someone else.  I was sitting across from someone who, on paper, was everything I thought I needed; a strong Christian woman, biblically wise, and active in evangelism and discipleship.  While I was sitting at the restaurant, I realized that I did not want to be there. On the way the home I stopped by to bring some ice cream to my friend, Ellen, because she was feeling sick. As I sat on the couch and talked with her that night, my eyes were opened that I was in love with her.  Until that moment, I could not see her true beauty and grace.  She was right in front of me, but I could not see her…that is until God opened my eyes. 

Maybe that is you this morning.  Maybe God has been telling you something, but you have refused to listen.  Jesus has continued to try and reveal himself to the Pharisees.  They were staring right at Him, but they could not see who He was.  He was the One promised to them long ago, but they were blinded because they were looking for something else.  Jesus did not fit their criteria for the Messiah so they missed what was right in front of them.  Jesus tried to help the Pharisees by encouraging them to see the Christ of the kingdom. 

See the Christ of the Kingdom          

            Questions are very revealing.  If you pay attention, you can help understand where people are coming from.  The Pharisees reveal their lack of understanding of who Jesus was and His purposes by asking questions about the timing of the kingdom of God. Jesus replies with shifting the focus of their questions.   Luke 17:20,

Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”

The Pharisees were looking for signs of the coming of the kingdom. Jesus tells them not to be looking for signs, but to be looking to Him. 

            The kingdom of God is already in their midst in the person of Jesus Christ. There are some translations, including the King James Version, that translate that last phrase, “the kingdom of God is within you.”  This has confused many people to believe that the kingdom of God is in everyone’s hearts, but this would be a very poor reading of the text.  Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees who did not honor Jesus as Lord in their hearts, but rejected Him. All throughout Scripture men are said to enter the kingdom rather than the kingdom to enter men.  The point of the passage is not that we have God within us, but that God has come to us in the person of Jesus Christ.  This is what Jesus means when he says, “the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”  He has come to inaugurate His kingdom. 

            The Pharisees were the kind of people that would have made charts and graphs coordinating human events to anticipate when the kingdom of God would come.  They wanted to be able to assert with confidence that the end was near.  Jesus said that this is a wasted effort.  The kingdom of God is not observable through signs. I was talking with a friend this week who received an email from a local church declaring that the end of the world is about 6 weeks away. This church believes that it can pinpoint the exact end of the world by looking at things happening in the Middle East and various biblical prophecies. It is nonsense. They have taken their eyes off of Jesus Christ and are speaking authoritatively about something that we cannot speak authoritatively about.  It sounds good and it may draw a crowd, but it is mere conjuncture.  It is not wrong to think about how biblical prophecies are coming to pass during our days, but we should focus our energy on Jesus and His sure word, rather than the meager guesses of men.

            Jesus changes His audience in verse 22 from the Pharisees to His disciples.  Jesus told the Pharisees to look to Him and now he warns his disciples to not follow those who claim to be the “Messiah” or to those following false messiahs. Verses 22-25,

And he said to the disciples, “The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. And they will say to you, ‘Look, there!’ or ‘Look, here!’ Do not go out or follow them. For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. (Luke 17:22-25)

There will be no need to study the signs or wonder if the Son of Man has come for there will be no doubt. Jesus gives a very clear picture of how evident his return will be with an illustration from nature. We probably have all been outside enjoying the cool breeze of a summer afternoon when lightning strikes and fills the skies. In that moment, everyone knows the storm has come. So it will be at the return of Christ; on that day everyone will know. 

            The Day of the Lord cannot be avoided.  All of history is moving towards that day when God will judge humanity for their rebellion and sin.  As the prophet Joel says, “For the day of the LORD is great and very awesome; who can endure it?” Who can stand in the face of God’s judgment?  It cannot be avoided; the Son of Man will come, which is why the two words that begin verse 25 are so important, “But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.” The same Son of Man who is going to come in judgment will first come to be judged.  The only one who can stand on the Day of the Lord is the one who,

walks blamelessly and does what is right and speaks truth in his heart; who does not slander with his tongue and does no evil to his neighbor, nor takes up a reproach against his friend; He who does these things shall never be moved (Psalm 15:2-3;5).

Jesus walked blamelessly and only did what was right, yet was crucified to take the blame for all the wrongs of anyone who would turn and put their faith in Him.  And after he died, Jesus was raised from the dead and seated at the right hand of the Majesty on High.

            Friend, do you realize how powerful those two words are, “but first?” You and I will be judged by the Son of Man, but first, he came to suffer for us.  Friend, do you know for certainty that you will endure the day of the Lord?  Jesus came for you first with grace, before he comes in judgment.  Jesus is standing right in front of you, will you see him?  Will you see the Christ of the kingdom?

Seek the Coming of the Kingdom

            There is hope for every single person, but one day that hope will run out. Jesus reminds his disciples of the importance of seeking his kingdom today. The calling of Christ is an urgent call.  Verse 26-30,

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

Jesus gives two examples of Day of Judgment; the days of Noah and the days of Lot. In both cases, Jesus is highlighting three things.  First, Jesus wants us to see how the destruction will be total by ending of each example with, “destroyed them all.” Second, He wants us to see that God’s grace is extended to those who trust in Him.  The Scripture refers to both Noah and Lot as righteous (Gen 6; 2 Peter 3:7).  Salvation and judgment always happen together. Some are judged and others are saved.  Lastly, Jesus wants us to see how sudden all this will happen. 

            The point of this entire section of Scripture is for us to wake up and seek the coming kingdom. Notice the description of the people who are destroyed: eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, marrying and bring given in marriage.  Everyone who was judged was not ready.  They were living life and enjoying themselves, thinking that they had more time, and then the end came.  Friend, are you enjoying God’s world, but rejecting Him as King over your life?  Are you so busy with living that you are neglecting true life?  Seriously, take a moment to ask yourselves, are you living for eternity or are you focused on just living? 

            Jesus says in Matthew 6:33 “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”  We must seek his kingdom first.  In preparing this point, I have tried to add caveats to lessen the force of this admonition, but the Lord wouldn’t let me.  This is serious.  Will you be like Noah who prepared for the Day of Judgment, or will you be like everyone around him who ignored the future by holding fast on to their present life? Hear Jesus’ words,

On that day, let the one who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away, and likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back. Remember Lot's wife. Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it. I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left. There will be two women grinding together. One will be taken and the other left (Luke 17:31-36).”

Did you hear that warning, “Remember Lot’s wife?”  She was fleeing the destruction, but she looked back and was turned to a pillar of salt.  Remember how she did not continue to the end.  Remember how she did not trust God’s word. Remember. Some of the greatest battles we face can be overcome if we simply remember. We remember God’s promise of judgment and we remember God’s promise of salvation through Christ. Remembering gives us the focus to press on. 

            Do you see how hard it can be if we try to add caveats to our lives?  Listen again to Jesus’ words, “Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it.”  Have you lost your life for Jesus Christ?  Does your life look different than your neighbor who doesn’t know Jesus?  What difference has Christ made in your life? 

William Tyndale was one who did not try to preserve his own life, but lost it for Christ’s sake.  He wanted to translate the Bible into English, but the government refused him so he fled England in 1524. He would live as a fugitive for 12 years, giving up his family, his friends, his country.  He wanted the common man to read of the coming judgment of the Jesus Christ in his own language and to read how Jesus Christ came first to suffer and die in our place. Tyndale did not count his life worth more than the kingdom of God.  In early October of 1536, a 42 year old William Tyndale was strangled by his executioner; then burned at the stake. He lost his life for Christ’s sake, therefore God saved his life as He did Lot and Noah through the hope of our Savior. 

Tyndale may be an extreme example, but do you get the point?  Jesus wants everything. He wants to govern every facet of life: building and planting, marrying and being given in marriage by the kingdom of God. Seek the coming kingdom of God and be willing to lose your life for his sake that you may truly find it.

Safeguard the Communion of the Kingdom

            In verse 37, the disciples ask where the judgment is going to happen.  And Jesus replies, “He

said to them, “Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.” Jesus offers a vivid picture of the coming judgment: death is going to come on everyone who ignores the kingdom of God. They will be left circled by the vultures who will pick apart their flesh. We should heed this warning so practically how do we do that?  We safeguard the communion of the kingdom.  We live as citizens of the kingdom of God as we live out our relationships in the fellowship of the church.  There is no better way to ensure that we will not die in judgment if we are willing to die now for one another.  We must lose our lives for Christ’s sake, and we do that by wrapping our lives up together with God’s people.

            The Lord has set up systems in our lives to safeguard our relationship with Him. In calling us to live in community with one another, the Lord is putting us in a place where we can lose our lives for others. Acts 4:32-33,

Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all.

One of the greatest characteristics of the earlier church is that, “no one said that any of the things belonged to him was his own,” but everything that they had (possessions, gifts, time, energy, etc.) was used for each other. We are called to live in this level of communion. What has the Lord given you that you can give to others? About a month ago two ladies contacted me with a need they saw in our church nursery. They asked me if it would be alright if they took one of their days off to deep clean and beautify the nursery. This is what was said, “Pastor, I feel this would be a great way for me to contribute to the church! I’m good at cleaning and organizing things so I saw this as a perfect opportunity.” Someone loves the church enough to give time and energy to serve the church with the gifts and talents that the Lord has given them.

What has the Lord given you that you can give to others? If this is our heart, we will be protecting the communion of the church. Living in communion forces us to die to ourselves; to die to our preferences, our agendas, and our ways of doing things. It may sound hard, but it is God’s way of protecting us from the coming judgment.  The calling of Christ is a call to die and there is no better way to consistently live our calling out than within the local church.  We are going to recommit ourselves to this calling to die once again by identifying our lives with the life of Jesus Christ.  1 Peter 2:21-24,

For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. (1 Peter 2:21-24)

Jesus lived for others. His body was broken with our sin on the cross so that we might die to sinful selfishness and to live humbly in righteousness. The Lord’s Supper is our way to recommit our lives to God and to each other by remembering the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  We know that the Son of Man will come again in glory, but first he suffered for us to bring us to God. Therefore in partaking in communion, we are proclaiming the only way to endure on the Day of Judgment is to trust in the One who endured judgment in our lives. 

            The Lord’s Supper is an invitation open to believers who have repented of their sins and trust in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.  This is an invitation, but should never be entered into lightly for God’s Word states,

Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. (1 Corinthians 11:27-29)

As we prepare the table, take a few moments to ready your hearts to receive communion.

           

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Will There Be Justice? (A Study of the Prophet Amos)

            On August 9^th, 2014 Michael Brown, an unarmed African-American teenager, was shot and killed by Police Officer Darren Wilson.  Crowds have gathered in Ferguson, MO for protests and answers.  The crowds continue to shout, “No justice, No Peace!! No Justice, No Peace!!” The conversation birthed from this incident has spread from water coolers to living rooms, break rooms to dinner tables about what is true justice. Was the killing justified? Was Michael Brown innocent?  Regardless of how people may differ in how they answer those questions, it clear that both sides are pleading for justice.  In his famous Letter from the Birmingham Jail, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” Dr. King was a voice for justice for a people who had no justice.  The Civil Rights movement was a quest for justice. We all want to know, will there be justice? Will wrongs be put right?

            We all have an innate sense of justice.  We desire to live in a society where justice rules.  Unfortunately as much as we desire justice “out there” in society, we do not often want that same justice to be demonstrated against us.  When people protest and beg for justice and the heavy hand of the law against the oppressors, those same people often beg and plead for mercy when it comes to their own injustice. Jesus shares this parable in Matthew 18:23-29,

“Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’

The servant wanted mercy and patience from this master while he wanted justice from the one who owed him his debt.  This is human nature.  We demand justice when we are wronged by others and mercy when we wrong others.  And yet the question remains, “Will there be justice?”

            We hope to answer this question in the book of Amos.  Amos was a shepherd and fruit farmer that was called to be a prophet to Israel in the 8^th century B.C. The biographical information was given in Amos 1:1,

The words of Amos, who was among the shepherds of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earthquake.

And in Amos 7:14-15,

Then Amos answered and said to Amaziah, “I was no prophet, nor a prophet's son, but I was a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore figs. But the LORD took me from following the flock, and the LORD said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’

Amos was a blue collar servant.  He was not called because of his heritage, but by the Lord’s mercy. In this way Amos is like us who as Paul writes, “For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth” (1 Cor.1:26). Amos is the every-man prophet.  Amos prophesies that the Lord will bring justice. 

There Will Be Justice on the Rival Nations

            Amos starts his prophecy against the nations with a common refrain, “For three transgressions of (fill in the nation) and for four, I will not revoke punishment, because…”  Amos says because of the multiple sins of the nations I will bring justice.  He is not referring to only 3 or 4 particular sins, but to multiple sins that each nation is consistently guilty of committing.  The nations have mistreated Israel and therefore they deserve to be punished.  God sees what they were doing and He will avenge His people.  The Lord will avenge His people like a mighty lion.  Amos 1:2, “And he said: “The Lord roars from Zion and utters his voice from Jerusalem.”  It is hard for our cultural blinders to understand the power of this imagery.  A Lion roars to show his power and his ferocity.  We may have watched a lion roar on the television, internet climb or at the zoo, but we probably have not heard a lion’s roar in the open field of the African plains. Imagine standing, frozen under a tree in the plains of African with a lion running at you at 40 miles per hour having him stop 5 feet from you before he bellows out his ferocious roar.  The Lord will execute His Justice with this type of ferocious anger. 

            As the Israelites heard this prophesy that God was going to roar and execute His powerful justice on the nations, they would have felt vindicated from their oppressors.  They have been crying out again and again, “No Justice, No Peace!! No Justice, No Peace!!” before finally justice was pronounced.  They demanded justice against the wrongs of their enemies and they were ecstatic to get what they demanded…until that judgment was rendered upon them.

There will be Justice on God’s Nation

Amos turns from the nations towards God’s people to pronounce God’s justice upon His own people. God shows no partiality.  Listen to God’s judgment against His people:

Thus says the LORD: “For three transgressions of Judah, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because they have rejected the law of the LORD, and have not kept his statutes, but their lies have led them astray, those after which their fathers walked. So I will send a fire upon Judah, and it shall devour the strongholds of Jerusalem.” Thus says the LORD: “For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because they sell the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of sandals— those who trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth and turn aside the way of the afflicted; a man and his father go in to the same girl, so that my holy name is profaned; (Amos 2:4-7 ESV)

God shows no partiality.  He will judge the nations for their injustice and He will judge His own people for their injustice. The Lord will not all forgive the guilty, but,

He will render to each one according to his works: to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek, but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. For God shows no partiality (Romans 2:6-11).

This is when God’s justice starts to feel uncomfortable.  We are fine with God bringing justice “out there” against the oppressors but we want mercy and grace extended towards us.  How did it come to this? How did God’s people become like the nations?  They harden their hearts to warnings and rebukes. 

            It can be very hard to hear about God’s justice.  It is powerful and it is total.  No one is going to stand against the Lord.  Amos 2:14-16,

Flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not retain his strength, nor shall the mighty save his life; he who handles the bow shall not stand, and he who is swift of foot shall not save himself, nor shall he who rides the horse save his life; and he who is stout of heart among the mighty shall flee away naked in that day,” declares the LORD.

No one will be able to stand against the Lord, but that does not mean that God has not shown His people mercy.  Mercy and grace always come before judgment. God gives warning and rebuke and corrections as signposts to repent to turn back to the Lord.  Amos 4:6-11, the Lord announces to the people how He send various calamities and trials to the people so they would be warned of their waywardness, but sadly, we hear the refrain, “yet you did not return to me.”  All those trials and difficulties were to serve the people so that they would repent and turn.  Joel used the swarming locusts to remind the people of a greater day of suffering that awaits them if they do not turn.  Justice does not come without warning, but it will definitely come. 

There will be Justice for God’s Name

            God’s people represent God’s Name.  Throughout the prophets, there is pronouncement of woe on God’s people because their conduct profanes His name. Due to their gross sin and mistreatment of the poor, God says, “my holy name is profaned.” His name is desecrated.  The Lord will bring justice for His name, Amos 9:5-6,

The Lord GOD of hosts, he who touches the earth and it melts, and all who dwell in it mourn, and all of it rises like the Nile, and sinks again, like the Nile of Egypt; who builds his upper chambers in the heavens and founds his vault upon the earth; who calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out upon the surface of the earth— the LORD is his name.

And Amos 4:13,

For behold, he who forms the mountains and creates the wind, and declares to man what is his thought, who makes the morning darkness, and treads on the heights of the earth— the LORD, the God of hosts, is his name!

The Lord will act according to His Name. And how does the Lord refer to Himself,

The LORD descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD. The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation” (Exodus 34:5-7).

The Lord’s anger has been slowly building.  He has to punish the guilty, yet He will forgive iniquity and transgression.  He does this on the basis of His promises.  He says that if we turn and seek Him we will live.  Amos 5:14-15,

Seek good, and not evil, that you may live; and so the LORD, the God of hosts, will be with you, as you have said. Hate evil, and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the LORD, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.

And who is the remnant of Joseph, but those who are under the promise of Joseph’s forefather Abraham and God’s great promise to bless every nation through him. 

The Lord promises that the punishment of Israel will not be final, but only to ultimately serve as a blessing to the whole world. We know that the Israelites' disobedience opened the way for the Gentiles to be grafted into the kingdom through the Vine, Jesus Christ. In Acts, following Paul and Barnabas’ testimony of the Gentiles being saved, James stood up and said,

“Brothers, listen to me. Simeon has related how God first visited the Gentiles, to take from them a people for his name. And with this the words of the prophets agree, just as it is written, (Quoting Amos 9:12-13) “‘After this I will return, and I will rebuild the tent of David that has fallen; I will rebuild its ruins, and I will restore it, that the remnant of mankind may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who are called by my name, says the Lord, who makes these things known from of old.’

James saw what Amos prophesied.  There was coming a day when God will bless every nation through the promised line of David through the Lord Jesus Christ. 

            Jesus came to answer the question, “Will there be justice?” The answer is yes.  The Lord will

forgive the iniquity and the transgression of the people, but by no means clear the guilty.  The guilty must be punished, or someone has to be punished in their place.  This was why Jesus came.  He came to bring justice to God by paying the penalty for sin and death.  He died to satisfy God’s justice against sin. He forgives us by placing our sin upon His Son.  Jesus has given justice to everyone who will seek Him.  God promises to restore us if we turn and trust in Him, but if we spurn His warnings and do not return to the Lord, He will roar from Zion in His wrath. 

            There will be justice.  It will be God’s merciful justice given to the sinner through the shed blood of Jesus Christ or it will be God’s powerful justice given to the sinner when He roars from Zion.  We all want justice and we all will get justice, but the question is which kind of justice will we receive? 

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The Free Gift of Faith

But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior. (Titus 3:4-6 ESV)

Beloved,

My grandmother loves to send gifts to my children and my children love to receive gifts from their “Gi-Gi Bev.”  Their Gi-Gi sends them toys, trinkets and pajamas that fill my kids with joy.  Joy feels their faces as they see the package on the doorsteps because they know that gifts await them.  They did nothing to earn the gifts, but they get to enjoy their benefits.  Their joy is magnified because the gifts were freely given as an expression of love from someone who cares for them.

Similarly, faith is a gift freely given as an expression of love from God who infinitely cares for us. We receive faith as a gift from God.  God richly pours out on us the Holy Spirit through Jesus Christ our Savior. We do nothing to inherit the gift, but we get to enjoy the benefits.  God saves us not according to our works done in righteousness, but according to his own mercy. Through our freely given faith, we are saved, sustained, and completed by God. Philippians 1:6, “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”  The One who begins our journey of faith is the One who completes our journey of faith. 

The gift of faith should cause great joy in our hearts because they are a demonstration of God’s immense love for us.  Listen to the descriptive language that Paul uses to describe this reality to Titus, “the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared,” and “pour out on us richly.” Our faith is a demonstration of the rich gift of our good, loving, and kind God. 

Salvation is all about God. And as such, we should be filled with confidence. The same God who lovingly and graciously rescued us from our sin is the same God who will carry us to Himself.  1 Thessalonians 5:24, “He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.”  He who calls us is faithful.  Beloved, let us not trust in ourselves, but in our faithful God who freely calls us and gives us the free gift of faith.

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The Gratitude of Faith (Luke 17:11-19)

            Kent Brantly was trained as a medical doctor at Indiana University’s School of Medicine.  He has a lovely wife and two beautiful children.  Although Kent Brantly is deeply loved by his family, until yesterday he was not able to touch them. Kent Brantly contracted the Ebola virus while he was serving in West Africa.  Ebola is a deadly disease with no cure.  He went to Liberia to serve at a hospital with his wife and two children.  When the Ebola virus broke out, Dr. Brantly stayed and he did not stay alone.  His wife and his two children also stayed to serve and help fight the disease.  This deadly virus has claimed over 1,200 lives in West Africa this year.  While the family flew back for a wedding, Dr. Brantly started experiencing a high fever and it was quickly confirmed that he had contracted the Ebola virus.

            Dr. Brantly was put into isolation and plans were made to bring him back to the United States for better care. When news of his return to the States became public, there was a media firestorm.  TV personalities start weighing in on the audacity of the government to allow someone with Ebola into the United States. Donald Trump said, “Ebola patient will be brought to the U.S. in a few days — now I know for sure that our leaders are incompetent. KEEP THEM OUT OF HERE!” TV Antagonist, Ann Coulter questioned the good Dr. Brantly ever did in the “disease-ridden cesspool” of Africa. CDC Director Tom Frieden told the Associated Press that he had received nasty emails and 100s of phone calls from people saying, “How dare you bring people into our country with Ebola?”  The emotional firestorm and intense backlash may be surprising to some, but it would not have been surprising to those with leprosy in the first century.  They were isolated from human contact and shunned by family and friends.  The isolation and the backlash facing Dr. Kent Brantly, is only a sliver of the isolation and emotional anguish of a 1^st century leper. 

            Jesus invites us into the mind and heart of a leper.  Without empathizing with the emotional and spiritual pain of 1^st century lepers, it will be impossible for us to fully understand the message that Jesus wants us to grasp from this passage.  So before we begin, imagine yourself devoid of human contact, unable to shake a hand of a friend, to caress the cheeks of your children or able to gather to worship with God’s people; a complete outcast in total isolation. Once you can imagine yourself there, we can grasp the emotion of this text.

The Plea

            Luke opens this story with a reminder of the future destination of the Lord Jesus.  He is on his way to Jerusalem and he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. This may seem like small additions to the story, but they should fill our minds with the destination of Jesus.  He is heading towards Jerusalem, where he will be brutally beaten and hung on the cross. Jesus may have been walking towards his own suffering, but his heart was still with those who were currently suffering.  All of Jesus’ life was under the shadow of the cross.  Beloved, we too should live under the shadow of the cross.  The way of the Christ is the way of the cross.

            It is important to note that Jesus was walking through Samaria and Galilee.  He was walking through two opposing people.  The Samaritans and the Jews did not get along. Samaritans were derided as half-breeds, unfit for the kingdom of God.  Like clanging symbols, the original audience would have heard the contrast between Samaria and Galilee.  So with the backdrop of the cross and racial tension, Luke continues in verse 12,

And he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance and lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.”

These lepers were living in community together.  We know from the rest of the story that these lepers were comprised of both Samaritans and Jews.  Leprosy had no prejudice. Leprosy caused both Jew and Samaritans to be cut off from their people and isolated on the outskirts of town. They were unclean and separated from the people of God.  Jews and Samaritans lived together shunned from their people. 

            They cannot get close to Jesus, so they lifted up their voices from the distance and pleaded with Jesus to have mercy on them.  Remember we must feel their isolation in order to understand the passion and emotion that came with this plea. There was nothing they could do, but beg for mercy.  It shouldn’t be difficult for us to empathize with these lepers, because we have all been there…separated from God, unable to do anything, but beg for mercy.  We all have been lepers, classified as unclean, cut off from the God without hope.  Sin has no prejudice.  All sin separates us from God and labels us unclean, unfit for the kingdom of God.  Ezekiel 39:23-24,

And the nations shall know that the house of Israel went into captivity for their iniquity, because they dealt so treacherously with me that I hid my face from them and gave them into the hand of their adversaries, and they all fell by the sword. I dealt with them according to their uncleanness and their transgressions, and hid my face from them.

God will deal with our uncleanness of our sin and hide His face from us. This is not a safe place to be, having God hide His face from us because of our uncleanness. The only proper response is to call out for mercy.

The Purge

            The lepers call out for mercy and the Lord Jesus answered their plea.  Verse 14,

When he saw them he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went they were cleansed.

Notice the first 4 words, “When he saw them.” Beloved, these words are so very important to us.  The world, our flesh and the evil one does not want you see those who are hurting.  The world wants you to focus on and live for yourself.  The people of God have to take their eyes off of themselves and focus on those who are suffering around us.  Jesus cannot speak to their need, unless he first sees them.  And after seeing them, Jesus gives them instructions to go and show themselves to the priests. 

            The ten lepers obeyed the words of Jesus and the Scripture says, “As they went they were cleansed.”  They experienced God’s blessing and they were purged of their uncleanness.  Would it be wrong to say that all ten had a degree of faith in Jesus? They all lifted up their voice to Jesus calling Him, Master, and asking Him to heal them.  And all ten of them turned and obeyed Jesus’ voice.  They all had some faith, but did they have saving faith.  What was their motivation for coming to Jesus?  Did they come to receive Him as Lord, or did they come to receive His blessings? 

            One of my greatest fears for us is that we come to God more for the blessings of His hand rather than the blessing of His Presence.  The saddest place for God’s people to be is to have the illusion that we are doing well because we are experiencing earthly prosperity.  Health could be deceiving, it was for these lepers.  Moses pleaded with God in Exodus 33:15-16,

If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here. For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Is it not in your going with us, so that we are distinct, I and your people, from every other people on the face of the earth?”

Moses knew that the distinctiveness of the people of God rested not in their prosperity, but in the presence of God.  Moses then said, “Please show me your glory.”  Is this our prayer?  Do we pray only for our health or do we beg for God to show us His glory? Do we pray that God would only help us pay our bills or do we plead with God to show us His glory?

            How do you know if you are like these lepers who have some faith, but maybe not saving faith? Don Whitney offers 10 questions to help us diagnose our spiritual health and I’d encourage you to ask them of yourself:

Do you thirst for God? Are you governed increasingly by God’s Word? Are you more loving? Are you more sensitive to God’s presence? Do you have a growing concern for the spiritual and temporal needs of others? Do you delight in the bride of Christ? Are the spiritual disciplines increasingly more important to you? Do you still grieve over sin? Are you quicker to forgive?[1]      

Do not be deceived in thinking that if God improves your earthly life, He has changed your eternal destiny.  God wants you to care more about His Presence than His provision.

The Praise

Verse 15-16a,

Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks.

This is the proper response to God’s mercy.  When this leper realized He was healed, he turned back, praising God with a loud voice.  He lifted his voice for mercy and now he lifts his voice praising God.  And he turns and falls on his face in worship giving Him thanks.  This is the response of saving faith.  Jesus is worthy of this kind of praise. 

            I was speaking with a pastor this week who recently returned from a mission trip to New York City. He met an Iranian couple who came to faith in Jesus Christ.  They have applied for US citizenship, but there seems to be some problems with the paperwork so they may be deported back to Iran.  They looked at my pastor friend and said, “You know what will happen if we go back to Iran. We will be killed for our faith in Jesus.”  Yet they did not say it with a tone of resignation, but with one filled with joy. They rejoiced in so far as they get to share in the suffering of Christ.  They have been cleansed of their sin and redeemed with the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ so they are rejoicing.  They are facing death for their faith and yet they have joy.  Do we have that kind of joy? Are we praising God for cleansing us by his blood? There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Emmanuel's veins; and sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains. Beloved, rejoice for in Christ you lose all your guilty stains. 

            If you are bitter or angry this morning, then you have forgotten the gospel.  You have forgotten that you have been cleansed from your sins and forgiven through the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.  Do not forget what the Lord has saved you from.  Rejoice. I say again, Rejoice. You are redeemed and He has risen and is coming again!!

            Luke closes this story by highlighting the breath of God’s glorious salvation for those who are far off.  Verse 16,

And he fell on his face at Jesus' feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan. Then Jesus answered, “Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” And he said to him, “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.”

God looks at this foreigner and says your faith has made you well.  This is powerful, because in those words Jesus is extending salvation to all people.  For whosoever puts their faith in Christ will be saved. For anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.  Salvation is extended to all and it is extended in the same way: through the one mediator between God and all men, Jesus Christ, who gave himself as a ransom for all people.

            These words of Jesus should give us hope even in the light of the racial tensions that have exploded in Ferguson, MO this past week.  Our country has a very unique history of race relations, yet in the gospel there is no color, but the crimson flow of the blood of Christ.  For through the blood of Jesus Christ, he takes diverse people and makes them one in Christ.  Ephesians 2:14-21,

For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

God has brought us all together under one household. We are no longer two people, but one people. We are no longer strangers and aliens, but we are fellow citizens with all the saints of God through the cross of Jesus Christ. This blood-bought unity should inform our conversation of the complex issues of race in the 21^st century and should give us hope in Christ to conquer our differences. 

            The world may be full of hatred and strife, but God’s people are called to stand as one, unified body.  Jesus Christ commanded us to regularly practice the Communion as a way to keep this unity.  We will be celebrating the Lord’s Supper next week so make sure that if you have any disunity towards anyone in this fellowship that you address it before we come together next week to the Table.  The Lord also has established leaders in the church to preserve this unity.  In Acts 6, there was an issue of disunity in the church with certain widows being neglected in the daily distribution of food.  And in response to disunity, God established the office of deacon to set aside certain men to help maintain unity in the body of Christ.  Today, we are going to set aside Joel McMahan formally as a deacon. We are setting him apart as one who will strive to maintain unity in the Spirit.

            Joel, in being ordained as a deacon, you are committing yourself to labor for the spiritual health and unity of the Park Baptist Church. This church has seen your character and your spiritual wisdom. And we are confident that you will be one who will work to bring unity to our body. The best way you can bring this spiritual unity is to protect the ministry of the Word of God. You are being tasked alongside the other deacons to ensure the pure Word of God is preached to this people so that through the hearing of God’s Word, they may become wise unto salvation entering God’s eternal rest through faith in Christ Jesus our Lord.  As a deacon, you are called to be an example to the church of service and faith.  And remember the promise held out in 1 Tim 3:13, “For those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.” I pray that as you serve you will continue to build your good standing for yourself and your family as well as gain great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus. 

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[1] Whitney, Don. 10 Questions to Diagnose Your Spiritual Health. Colorado Springs. NavPress. 2001.

Whom will the Lord Save? (A Study of the Prophet Joel)

History is a great teacher. 18th Century Irish statesman, Edmund Burke, said,

“Those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it.” 

History is instructive. King Solomon reminds us of this truth in the first chapter of Ecclesiastes,

What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun. Is there a thing of which it is said, “See, this is new”? It has been already in the ages before us. (Ecc. 1:9-10)

There is nothing new under the sun so looking back into history can help us understand our present reality.  The problem with learning from history is not history itself, but the pride that befalls in the present.  Our challenge is that we have to be willing to listen to the voices of the past.  And those unwilling to listen are those filled with pride and arrogance. Proverbs 16:18, “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.”  We must humble ourselves to listen to the voices of the past for if we don’t, we will fall. 

            Yet there is another important aspect of learning from history, there must be those with wisdom who help us understand the past and apply it to the present.  I am a firm believer that if the younger generation was willing to listen and the older generation was willing to share, there would be much more wisdom displayed in our present age.  The older need the younger and the younger need the older.  In 2008, America went into a mini-depression.  It may not have felt like something small to those who lost their jobs and homes, but compared to the Great Depression of 1929 our last recession was indeed small.  Modern-day Americans have no idea the sacrifices made by parents for their children.  I was sitting with one of our members recently and she told me how her mother would often go to bed without eating supper because she would give her portion to her children.  By 1933 almost 20% of the population was unemployed and half of the country’s banks closed. Food was in short supply and people often went to bed hungry.  The 3-4 years during the height of the Great Depression were some of the most difficult years that our country has ever faced.  It was a national problem leaving no one unscathed.

            The book of Joel starts with Israel facing its own “Great Depression.”  The exact date of the book of Joel is hard to date because it is without any biographical information. All we have is the first verse, “The word of the Lord that came to Joel, the son of Pethuel.”  We do not know when this great distress happened, but we know that God spoke through His prophets in the midst of it.  The Lord used the events of Joel’s day as a foreshadowing of a greater day that was to come.

The Shadow of the Future

            The prophecy starts with a plea to share the events of the day with the future generation so that they would be instructed about a future day. Verses 2-3,

Hear this, you elders; give ear, all inhabitants of the land! Has such a thing happened in your days, or in the days of your fathers? Tell your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children to another generation.

Things were so bad that no one could remember a worse time.  The Lord felt that it was important for the older generation to pass this on to the younger generation.  What was so bad?  A swarm of locusts came in to destroy the land.  Listen how bad things had gotten in the land.  Verse 4-12,

What the cutting locust left, the swarming locust has eaten. What the swarming locust left, the hopping locust has eaten, and what the hopping locust left, the destroying locust has eaten. Awake, you drunkards, and weep, and wail, all you drinkers of wine, because of the sweet wine, for it is cut off from your mouth. For a nation has come up against my land, powerful and beyond number; its teeth are lions' teeth, and it has the fangs of a lioness. It has laid waste my vine and splintered my fig tree; it has stripped off their bark and thrown it down; their branches are made white. Lament like a virgin wearing sackcloth for the bridegroom of her youth. The grain offering and the drink offering are cut off from the house of the LORD. The priests mourn, the ministers of the LORD. The fields are destroyed, the ground mourns, because the grain is destroyed, the wine dries up, the oil languishes. Be ashamed, O tillers of the soil; wail, O vinedressers, for the wheat and the barley, because the harvest of the field has perished. The vine dries up; the fig tree languishes. Pomegranate, palm, and apple, all the trees of the field are dried up, and gladness dries up from the children of man.

This was a national tragedy where every man, woman and child were affected.  If you did not live through the Great Depression, it is hard to understand this level of tragedy. There have been national things that have happened in our country where everyone stopped and took notice like Pearl Harbor or September 11^th, but nothing as long and as devastating as the Great Depression.

We have it so good now that we have lost the knowledge of how hard things were in the past. It is imperative that we never forget how hard things were in the past.  We need to place ourselves in the shoes of those who came before us. And not only them, but we also must place ourselves in the shoes of our brothers and sisters who are currently suffering in the Middle East.  Empathy paves the way to understanding.  The Lord speaks to Joel and reminds them that this horrible day that they are experiencing is nothing compared to the future day when the Lord will execute His justice on the earth.  The Day of the Lord is the theme that weaves together the entire book of Joel.  The Day of the Lord will be far worse than the destruction of the locusts. As the locusts have come to destroy the land so will the army of the Lord come and destroy all that is in their path.  The army will be so vast that it will look like a swarm of locusts. 

The current tragedy serves as a reminder of a greater tragedy for everyone who does not call upon the name of the Lord.  As the Day of the Lord approaches, people must repent.  Joel 1:13-15,

Put on sackcloth and lament, O priests; wail, O ministers of the altar. Go in, pass the night in sackcloth, O ministers of my God! Because grain offering and drink offering are withheld from the house of your God. Consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly. Gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land to the house of the LORD your God, and cry out to the LORD. Alas for the day! For the day of the LORD is near, and as destruction from the Almighty it comes.

All of history is moving toward that Day when the Lord will come and destroy the earth.  The day of the Lord is near and destruction from the Almighty is coming.  Joel 2:11,

The Lord utters his voice before his army, for his camp is exceedingly great; he who executes his word is powerful.  For the day of the Lord is great and very awesome; who can endure it?

There is the eternal question placed in the mouth of Joel by the Lord.  “Who can endure the great and very awesome Day of the Lord?” “Who will be saved?”

            The goal of the West is comfort.  We want to make things efficient and quick.  We have air conditioning and the world placed at our disposable on the smart phones in our pocket.  We are so privileged and our great privilege blinds us from the future reality of suffering.  It is hard for us to believe in suffering, because we have never truly experienced it. Do you ever think about Hell?  Judgment? Wrath?  Agony?  As much as we want, we cannot erase Hell. Tragedy in this world reminds us of the Terrible Day of the Lord that is coming, but there is hope. 

The Savior of the Future

            I love the grace of the Lord.  He lays out the dreadful day that is approaching and he asks, “who can endure it?” and then he answers the question.  Verse 2:12-17,

Return to the Lord “Yet even now,” declares the LORD, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.” Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster. Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the LORD your God? Blow the trumpet in Zion; consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly; gather the people. Consecrate the congregation; assemble the elders; gather the children, even nursing infants. Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride her chamber. Between the vestibule and the altar let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep and say, “Spare your people, O LORD, and make not your heritage a reproach, a byword among the nations. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’

The Lord promises forgiveness and mercy for those who turn to Him in repentance.  Even after all our sinful neglect and willful disobedience God calls out to us, “Return to the Lord your God.”  Why should we return? We return on the basis of HIS character.  “He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster.” Our trust is never in ourselves, but always in the character of our God.

            Joel shows how the Lord granted His promise to bless His people in 2:17-27.  The reason why the Lord turns to bless the people is found in verse 27,

You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the Lord your God and there is none else. And my people shall never again be put to shame.

The greatest blessing of the Lord is the Lord Himself.  He blesses His people so that they will know that HE is in their midst.  Hear the personal language used, “I am the Lord your God” and “my people.” The Lord is taking personal responsibility for His people.  And we know He ultimately shows this by becoming one of His people, being clothed in humility as a man.  God shows us that He is always in our midst by coming to be in our midst.  We never have to doubt this promise again, because it is realized in the person and work of Jesus Christ.

Our God can be known personally through His Son and through the Spirit He places in our hearts.  Romans 5:5 states that we have hope that, “does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”  The Holy Spirit confirms God’s presence in our lives and this is promised in the book of Joel 2:28-29,

And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. Even on the male and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit.

This was quoted during Peter’s sermon after Pentecost confirming this prophecy that God will dwell with His people.  The Lord promised us His presence and it was confirmed with the giving of the Holy Spirit.  And because Jesus Christ came, lived, died, and rose again; the Spirit is promised to us.  We can receive His presence, when we call on Him to help us.  Joel 2:32,

And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the LORD has said, and among the survivors shall be those whom the LORD calls.

Who can endure the great and awesome Day of the Lord? The one who calls on His name. Notice that the promise of salvation is not just to the nation of Israel, but to everyone who calls on the name of the Lord.  And those who will be saved on the last day and those who shall escape will be those whom the Lord calls. God calls us and we in turn call upon His name. 

The Sovereign of the Future

            The only hope for anyone to stand before the Lord will be to have Jesus Christ standing in front of them as their mediator.  There is one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus who gave himself as a ransom which is the testimony given at the proper time.  The Lord will call all the nations on that Day. Joel 3:9-12 begins as a call to battle, but ends very clearly as the battle being already over. Joel 3:9-12,

Proclaim this among the nations: Consecrate for war; stir up the mighty men. Let all the men of war draw near; let them come up. Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruning hooks into spears; let the weak say, “I am a warrior.” Hasten and come, all you surrounding nations, and gather yourselves there. Bring down your warriors, O LORD. Let the nations stir themselves up and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; for there I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations.

There is only one who is in control of the final outcome.  The Father told the Son to sit at His right hand until He puts all His enemies under His feet.  Jesus is victorious and one day His victory will be consummated.  And on that Day, who will the Lord save, only those who call upon the name of the Lord. Roman s 10:9-13,

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Romans 10:9-13 ESV)

The Day is coming…will you be saved? Have you called upon the name of the Lord?  Hear the promise, “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Amen.

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[1] Title taken from the Mark Dever’s Promises Made: The Message of the Old Testament Eternal Questions Series.

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