[0:00] Well, good evening, or good morning, or it depends whether you had Maraschlop. Welcome back, and yeah, looking forward to breaking.
[0:20] I'm being honest. Yeah, it seems like three months has been a fair stretch to keep preparing, but it's been good. It's been very good for me to prepare for this, and I trust you guys are being blessed as well.
[0:38] And so it's well worth it, but yeah, and then when you teach a course two and three and four times, then you get it down pat better and are able to put emphasis on the right places as well.
[0:57] So we're on a learning journey together, for sure. All right. All right. I just wanted to put a thought out.
[1:14] For those that have children here, and I'll just leave it in your hands, you might consider passing a hat around and getting Abe and Anna maybe a little appreciation.
[1:32] this three months of big commitment for what they did. Maybe buy them a supper out or something.
[1:43] Just a thought. I'm not here to dictate, but yeah. Yeah, I'll let somebody else take charge of that. But I really appreciated the commitment they had shown there.
[1:58] So, good. Let's pray. Lord Jesus, we again are grateful for your presence, again for your provisions, again that we can be here, another beautiful spring day.
[2:20] And Father, again, what a privilege it is to continue to be in your word, to have the word of God not only reside in our hearts, but guiding us, giving us the picture as we go through life, as we face life, the world, and all things that go around.
[2:46] It's by your word, which is truth, that we are guided. What a privilege. We thank you. And again tonight, we want to again acknowledge you and just ask that you would guide our hearts as we study together.
[3:01] In Jesus' name, Amen. All right. So we've covered a lot of ground already from the birth of Christ or conception to birth, to childhood, to the beginning of his ministry, and then his Galilean ministry, which was the majority of it, it seems like.
[3:35] And now we're in the Judean ministry. Starting last class already, we were in Judea. And today continues. And so the rest, he kind of finishes off in the south region.
[3:51] And when we come back in the fall, we'll be almost right away at the Passion Week at Palm Sunday and the days that follow.
[4:01] And so we'll be, we'll be really focusing there because otherwise we'd think we'd be almost done at the last week already, Passion Week.
[4:12] But there's a lot of events and writings in the Gospels regarding that week and a lot of parables and so on. So, yeah. So I'm looking forward to that.
[4:24] But we'll make our way today starting in the Gospel of John, chapter 9, and it's page 18.
[4:40] Is it not? I think I'm out here. Here. Here. Here. Here. Yeah.
[4:54] Page 14. And E. Conflict over the healing of a blind man. It's a longer story, the healing of the blind man, but it's, you've got to love this story, this event that happened.
[5:15] It's quite self-explanatory as Jesus heals a blind man and then has dialogue with not only the blind man, but his parents and the Pharisees repeatedly.
[5:29] And so let's read through it and just glean a few thoughts. We won't focus on it too, too much. So chapter 9 and 1 to 41.
[5:42] It's the entire chapter. So we'll start with Mr. Kevin here. You are in trouble.
[5:56] So just take as long a portion as you would like. Yeah. As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth, and his disciples asked him, Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?
[6:10] Jesus answered, it was neither that this man sinned nor his parents, but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him. We must work the works of him who sent me as long as it is day.
[6:24] Night is coming when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world. When he had said this, he spat on the ground and made clay of the spittle and applied the clay to his eyes and said to him, Go wash in the pool of Siloam, which is translated to scent.
[6:40] So he went away and washed and came back seeing. Therefore, the neighbors and those who were previously saw him as a beggar were saying, Is not this the one who used to sit and beg?
[6:52] Others were saying, This is he. Still others were saying, No, but he is like him. He kept saying, I am the one. So they were saying to him, How then were your eyes opened? He answered, The man who is called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, Go to Siloam and wash.
[7:09] So I went away and washed and I received sight. They said to him, Where is he? He said, I do not know. They brought to the Pharisees the man who was formerly blind. Now it was the Sabbath on the day when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes.
[7:24] When the Pharisees also were asking him again how he received his sight and he said to them, He applied clay to my eyes and I washed and I see. Therefore, some of the Pharisees were saying, This man is not from God because he does not keep the Sabbath.
[7:40] But others were saying, How can a man who is a sinner perform such signs? And there was a division among them. So they said to the blind man again, What do you say about him since he opened your eyes?
[7:51] And he said, He is a prophet. The Jews then did not believe it of him that he had been blind and had received sight until they called the parents of the very one who had received his sight and questioned them saying, Is this your son who you say was born blind?
[8:07] Then how does he now see? His parents answered them and said, We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. But how he now sees we do not know. Or who opened his eyes we do not know.
[8:20] Ask him. He is of age. He will speak for himself. His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews. For the Jews had already agreed that if anyone confesses him to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue.
[8:33] For this reason, his parents said, He is of age. Ask him. So a second time they called the man who had been blind and said to him, Give glory to God.
[8:45] We know that this man is a sinner. Then he answered, Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see. So they said to him, What did he do to you?
[8:57] How did he open your eyes? He answered them, I told you already and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? You do not want to become his disciples too, do you? They reviled him and said, You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses.
[9:11] We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he is from. The man answered and said to them, Well, here is an amazing thing, that you do not know where he is from, and yet he opened my eyes.
[9:24] We know that God does not hear sinners, but if anyone is God-fearing and does his will, he hears him. Since the beginning of time, it has never been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind.
[9:35] If this man were not from God, he could do nothing. They answered him, You were born entirely in sins, and are you teaching us? So they put him out. Jesus heard that they had put him out, and finding him, he said, Do you believe in the Son of Man?
[9:55] He answered, Who is he, Lord, that I may believe in him? Jesus said to him, You have both seen him, and he is the one who is talking with you. And he said, Lord, I believe.
[10:07] And he worshipped him, and Jesus said, For judgment I came into this world, so that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind.
[10:17] Those of the Pharisees who were with him heard these things and said to him, We are not blind too, are we? Jesus said to them, If you were blind, you would have no sin. But since you say we see, your sin remains.
[10:33] Okay, thank you. All right. Where does this story take place? Anybody catch that, or is there an indication?
[10:53] Where are they at? Well, that's where he sends the guy to wash, right? Yeah, so they have to be in the city, in Jerusalem.
[11:06] Right? That he would send them to that pool. And, yeah. So, good. Yeah, that's the indicator. They're still, they're still in Jerusalem, and continuing to teach after the Feast of Tabernacles.
[11:26] So, we're not sure if it's days or a few weeks after, but nonetheless. And, yeah. And, yeah. And, yeah. And, yeah. And, yeah.
[11:36] Remember that the last stories, events that took place in Jerusalem, at the Feast of Tabernacles, he identified himself as the living waters.
[11:49] And as the priests poured the pitcher, they, Jesus stood up and declared, come unto me. I have the living waters. And in the next story, I am, I am the light of the world.
[12:03] And as they dispute and argue over who he is, the chapter 8 ended with the discussion that he had seen Abraham and then Jesus says, I am, meaning I am God, the self-existing one, the everlasting one.
[12:29] And so now, following that, we have this story. And so, the blind man there that Jesus encounters and the disciples asking him, so now, likely the 12 who are in training school here, they're asking him, who has sinned?
[12:53] Now, where would such a thought come from? Who has sinned? The parents or the guy that he was born blind? So, how many sins has the guy done before he was born?
[13:08] Zero, right? So, where does such a question come from? Perhaps?
[13:20] Generations of teaching? Yeah. Yeah. Teaching from the Pharisees. Not accurate biblical teaching, but their own teaching.
[13:34] And so, saying that, you know, these kind of events are due to sin in someone's life. And so, Jesus corrects the disciples.
[13:45] They're, they're, we can almost say, worldview on this. how they look at these kind of things. And so, he says, neither was born, born, or was, has sinned, but rather, God allowed this man to be born blind so the glory of God could be revealed.
[14:08] And, sorry? God has a plan, yeah. And, and so, even today, we, we wonder sometimes why, why are, why are, some children born with, with, disabilities, or, or sometimes Down syndrome, or whatever, but it's for the glory of God.
[14:31] And, and so, as parents, we cannot, cannot immediately think, well, this God is disciplining me to give me a child that, because it's the child itself that has to live with this, right?
[14:46] Yeah. So, that's, that opened the stage as he, as he healed him, and put clay, anointed the clay, and, and put it on his eyes, and sent him to wash.
[14:59] And, and as he washed, he was, his sight was restored. And then that led to much discussion again. So, who is this guy?
[15:11] Over, and over, and over again, they're arguing. They're seeing, the evidence, and refusal to believe, they continue to argue.
[15:22] Could this be the Messiah? But no, this is why not. They're coming up with, with one reason after another, why they won't believe. And, and it's no different today.
[15:37] mankind finds reasons why I will not surrender to God. Okay. And so, out of that, the, the Pharisees, of course, see the effect that healing has on the crowds, and so on.
[15:57] And, and so they, the discussions that are happening, is this man from God? Is he not? And so they, the Pharisees, in verse 16, make a statement, this man is not from God, because he does not keep the Sabbath.
[16:14] And again, Jesus heals on the Sabbath. How can, others said, how can, how can a man who is a sinner do such signs? And there was a division among them.
[16:26] So why, why did Jesus heal on the Sabbath? Why did he choose? Well, number one, he was probably in their synagogue teaching, where he encountered, but it's probably more than that.
[16:45] Probably because he was going to be the Lord over the Sabbath. Lord over the Sabbath. Okay. Yeah. Any other thoughts? I think it was necessary that their way of thinking be changed.
[16:59] They thought in a certain way, and their views start breaking down, to change their worldview or to challenge, challenge their worldview, right? Yeah.
[17:10] And so, yeah. Yeah. Legalism, yeah. So I think to stretch their, their thinking.
[17:23] Absolutely. Let's give these guys a book. Good evening. I have a spare book here, so, yeah. Okay.
[17:41] We're on page 14. E is what we're going through. Okay. And so, so there's much division. The Pharisees put forth the cause he can't be from God because he did it on the Sabbath.
[17:57] And, and then they go to the blind man. So what do you say about him? And, and so they want an account from him. And, and that, that of course leads to, to much more discussion.
[18:16] And, the blind man says, well, he must be a prophet because he opened my eyes. That's, that's his understanding to this point, right? And, and so, then they go to the parents.
[18:32] Is this your son? And the parents say, well, we know this is our son. We know he was born blind, but we don't know by what means he has been made to see. And there, there we see again the fear of man.
[18:48] As they fear getting put out of the synagogue. Out of the fellowship. And so, they, they say, well, he is of age. Go ask him if you need more details.
[19:00] We don't know. And some of it was probably accurate. They didn't maybe know. But, maybe a little bit tiptoeing on making a clear stand on, on where they stood.
[19:14] And, and so, of that, they go back to, to, the, the healed man, and, and, and said, in verse 24, and they say to him, give God the glory.
[19:29] We know this man as a sinner. And so, I, I love the, the, the response of this, this young, or not young man maybe, but blind man that has been made to see.
[19:41] he is, he is almost innocent, naive, in that he just gives answers from the heart. Straightforward. No wishy-washy, tiptoeing, political.
[19:52] He shoots straight. And, and so he answers them, says, whether he's a sinner or not, I don't know. But one thing I know, I was blind and now I see.
[20:03] everybody has a testimony. Right? Shooting straight from the heart. I know what's happened here.
[20:16] And that much I can share, even if I don't know the scripture as well. It's a start. And so he, what he does know, he, he just tells them straight out. And, well, what did he do to you?
[20:30] How did he open your eyes? And then, I told you already. Do you want to hear it again? And then, and then a provoking question. Do you also want to become his disciples?
[20:41] And that, the temperature gauge went through the roof. And for the Pharisees, right? As that, so they, the Pharisees looked down on everybody that's not part of their group because they're unlearned and not qualified to interpret scripture or, or their own laws.
[21:03] and so, to them, this guy is a sinner. We are the elite. This guy is a sinner. He will and cannot tell us what to do.
[21:14] And, so they revile him and, and just, just put him down. Verse 29, we know that God spoke to Moses.
[21:26] As for this fellow, we do not know where he is from. And then, the fellow answers, why this is marvelous.
[21:40] One marvelous thing that you do not know where he is from, yet he has opened my eyes. We know that God does not hear sinners, but anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, he hears him.
[21:55] And so, for him, it's clear that this guy could do nothing without God. And it's a marvelous thing what's happened here.
[22:07] And so, give God the credit, give God the glory. So as, with his level of understanding, he is turning upwards towards God.
[22:18] And so, long and short of it is, they cast him out. They cast him out and say, there's no room for you in our circles, in the synagogue.
[22:31] Do you think the Jews would have seen themselves as sinners? That was a pretty good statement. God, here's not the sinners, but the righteous. What do you think, Martin?
[22:44] To me, I think there was a religious Pharisee who was one. Okay, you're talking the Pharisees or the common people?
[22:58] The Pharisees. Because the Pharisees did not think of themselves as sinners. No, they, yeah, they, they, they were right with God in their minds.
[23:11] They were God's representatives here. Yeah, but I thought you were asking about the common people. Yeah. No, they, they repeatedly refer to others as sinners, but we aren't.
[23:26] Yeah. Okay, so at the, the end of the story, Jesus finds this man again and asks him now more directly that he's been healed physically.
[23:39] Do you believe in the Son of God? In verse 35. And he says, who is he, Lord, that I may believe? Tell me more so that I can believe.
[23:51] There's hunger. And, and Jesus says, you have both seen him and it is he who is talking with you. So he clearly identifies himself to this man.
[24:01] I am the Christ, the Son of God. And then he said, Lord, I believe and he worshipped. So we have another child of God right there.
[24:19] Okay, and then the, the close of it, verse 40, some of the Pharisees who were with him heard these words and said to him, are we blind also? Maybe I should back up to 39.
[24:31] For judgment I have come into this world that those who do not see may see and that those who see may be made blind. And, and so then the Pharisees question, questioning him, are we also blind?
[24:48] Jesus said to him, if you were blind you would have no sin but now you say we see therefore your sin remains. If you acknowledge that you were spiritually blind you needed help then I would make you see.
[25:04] But now you say you can see and you're shutting the kingdom out. It's in reverse, right? And so your sin remains.
[25:17] You're remaining blind because, because you think you can see. You're deceived. Okay, so that's, that's John chapter 9.
[25:33] Any questions or thoughts there? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
[25:47] you do not even know where he is from yet he has a look in my eyes because they would have thought they would be the first of something directly from God and have you it's a marvelous thing yeah yeah yeah yeah so yeah as the twelve that are intentionally being taken through this so none of these events that are recorded are unintentional Jesus deliberately has these encounters he likely has many more that's not recorded but these are written for our purpose as well but what would you think is the benefit to the twelve to witness this and what's the benefit to us then what go ahead whatever state we're in come to Jesus we don't have to be okay okay what else okay okay okay he tries to make us think that's why he brings these questions in front of him and then he makes us think and when you think all of a sudden it dawns on the word something maybe strikes a bit yeah yeah so in their in their upbringing the twelve as common fishermen tax collector
[27:39] Jewish people what's their relationship with the Pharisees with the leadership in their minds yeah and what is Jesus demonstrating here do not be afraid stand on the word of God don't let them walk over you with their false teaching you do not need to be afraid of them so it's a lesson that and I just I just know even today when we grow up with with those kind of those kind of settings where we're taught to revere or not to question authority and then and then when we know when we realize that I know the truth and they're teaching different well
[28:50] I can't go against that right it's so deeply ingrained so he's teaching he's preparing the twelve when I'm in heaven you're going to be you're going to be planting the churches you're going to be need to stick with the word of God regardless of what the Pharisees say or do overcome fear yeah yeah yeah right yeah all right let's turn to chapter 10 the shepherd and we have
[29:57] John 10 1 to 21 early early I say unto you he that entereth not in by the door into the shepherd fold but climbeth in some other way the same as a thief and a robber but he that entereth in by the door is a shepherd of the sheep to him the potter openeth and the sheep hear his voice and he calleth his own sheep by name and leadeth them in and out and when he putteth forth his own sheep he goeth before them and the sheep follow him for they know his voice and a stranger will they not follow but will flee from him for they know not the voice of a stranger this parable spoke Jesus unto them but they understood not what things what things they were done which he spake unto them then said Jesus unto them again verily verily I say unto you
[31:00] I am the door of the sheep all that ever came before me are thieves and robbers but the sheep did not hear them I am the door by me if any man enter in he shall be saved and shall go in and out and find pasture and the thief cometh not but to steal and to kill and to destroy I come that you may have life and that you may have it more abundantly I am the good shepherd the shepherd giveth his life for his sheep but he that is an hireling and not the shepherd who's owned the sheep or not seeth the wolf coming and leaveth the sheep and fleeth and the wolf catcheth them and scattereth the sheep the hireling fleeth because he is an hireling and careth not for the sheep I am the good shepherd and know my sheep and I am known of them of mine as the father knoweth me even so know I the father and I lay down my life for the sheep and know the sheep I have which are not of this fold them also I must bring and they shall hear my voice and there shall be one fold and one shepherd therefore doth my father love me because I lay down my life that I might take it again no man taketh it from me but I lay it down of myself
[32:18] I have power to lay it down and I have power to take it again this commandment have I received of my father there was a division therefore again among the Jews for these things and many of them said he hath a devil and is mad why hear ye him others said these are not the words of him that hath a devil can a devil open the eyes of the blind okay thank you so Jesus presenting himself as the shepherd of the sheep using analogies that they could very well understand in that day because sheep in Israel was one of the main livestock so they were all familiar with this now the the analogy leads to the spiritual realm where the shepherds spiritually over Israel would be the leadership which would be basically the Pharisees and
[33:19] I want us to turn to Jeremiah 23 and I thought it would be good to make a connection here before we go through John 10 Jeremiah 23 1 to 6 woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture saith the Lord therefore thus saith the Lord God of Israel against the pastors that feed my people ye have scattered my flock and driven them away and have not visited them behold I will visit upon you the evil of your doings saith the Lord and I will gather the remnants of my flock out of the countries whether I have driven them and I will bring them again to their upholds and they shall be fruitful and increase and I will set upon shepherds over them which shall feed them and they shall fear no more nor may nor may nor be dismayed neither shall they be lacking saith the Lord behold the days come saith the Lord that I will raise unto David a righteous branch and a king shall reign and prosper and shall execute judgments and justice in the earth in his days
[35:00] Judah shall be saved and Israel shall dwell safely this is his name whereby he shall be called the Lord our righteousness okay there's a passage on from Jeremiah's day just before the Babylonian captivity where where a message of woe to the shepherds of Israel who are not doing their job as spiritual leaders and a parallel passage we won't turn there but you can write it down if you want Ezekiel 34 1-16 is a longer passage saying the same thing just more detail Ezekiel 34 1-16 and but just briefly you know woe to the shepherds and then the accusations who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pastor I am against the shepherds you have scattered my flock you have driven them away you have not attended to them behold
[36:11] I will attend to the evil of your doings and so prophecy regarding the situation then and then he moves on in verse 3 but I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries where I have driven them and bring them back to their folds and they shall be fruitful and increase we're jumping 2500 years ahead to today as God is bringing his flock back and then verse 5 and 6 the days are coming I will raise to David a branch of righteousness Jesus Christ the shepherd so John 10 is a picture of the millennial kingdom coming where Jesus will be the shepherd over the sheep so spiritually he is our shepherd today in the church age in this kingdom but in the millennial kingdom a physical one he will be a physical shepherd as king over them and so we're we're seeing already the start of the fulfillment of that as God has promised that he will bring righteousness as Israel is failing the leaders are not not living up to what
[37:41] I've called them to and but my my chosen one he will he will show the way now Jesus speaks to that in John 10 and so let's let's take a few moments and go through this passage so verses one through six I've titled so some subtitles here the true shepherd and so in light of the old testament the false shepherds or the shepherds that are not that are scattering the flock they're they're not true in nature Jesus now counters that I am the true shepherd I meet all the qualifications and I do not enter the sheep full by any other way but through the door not like a thief and a robber I come in openly and honestly all signs are point to me being the true shepherd there's nothing hidden is what he is saying here all the evidence is there from what from my life the last two or three years behind me and I am the true shepherd okay and verse three to him the true shepherd the door keeper opens and the sheep hear his voice and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out the door keeper here is often suggested as
[39:20] John the Baptist playing the role of the door keeper preparing for the entry of Jesus letting him in John being kind of the prophet that authorized or authenticated Jesus as being the true one in that sense he is the door keeper here and allowed Israel to see this is the coming one this is the lamb of God John identified him positively this is the one whose sandal strap I'm not loose to worthy to loosen and so on so Jesus the true shepherd and and then the picture of fellowship he brings out his sheep he goes before them he leads them they hear his voice calls them by name intimacy yeah and if any of you have had sheep maybe you can make application here do the sheep hear your voice and they do they don't like strangers yeah amen to that yeah and and so and you and you and you lead them you don't chase them when you chase them then you're the fool the sheep are made to look wiser than you okay and verses 7 through 11 he's the good shepherd so we have the true shepherd and now the good shepherd 7 through 11 most assuredly
[41:15] I say to you I am the door of the sheep all whoever came before me are thieves and robbers but the sheep did not hear them I am the door if anyone enters by me he will be saved will go in and out and find pastor and then the thief does not come to except to steal and to kill and destroy I have come that they may have life that they may have it more abundantly I am the good shepherd the good shepherd gives his life for the sheep so I am genuine I care I give my life for the sheep and whereas under the spiritual leadership of Israel the sheep were scattered they didn't know their voices they didn't follow they were lost so we have that picture of him the good shepherd of course Old Testament what psalm comes to mind Psalm 23 and the
[42:19] Lord is my shepherd right and so it fits in beautifully also as prophetic the Lord is my shepherd okay moving on verses 12 to 16 he is the only shepherd so not only the true shepherd and the good shepherd but he is the only shepherd so here he speaks about hirelings a hireling is he who does who is not the shepherd but one who does not own the sheep sees the wolf or danger coming leaves the sheep and flees and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them the the hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep I am the good shepherd and I know my sheep and I am known by my own and as the father knows me even so I know the father and I lay down my life for the sheep and other this fold them also
[43:27] I must bring and they will hear my voice and there will be one flock and one shepherd so Jesus is the only way the only shepherd that is true and whom the sheep will listen or that he can actually take care of the sheep and offer them security and of course spiritually salvation whereas the Pharisees as in false shepherds or hirelings as the term used here they did not own the sheep and they didn't care for the sheep there's no invested interest and so that's the comparison here so Jesus is our good shepherd today but he is the only shepherd now I've heard these verses used to say that it's wrong to pay pastors because now you have hirelings and they don't care for the sheep and they won't stick with them they'll just flee they're just there for the money of course it's an abuse of scripture but that's that's not what he was saying at all here but rather exposing those that took the position of leadership but weren't leading any thoughts there taking advantage of anyone and anything to get their own way under the pretense of religion verse 16 is a favorite he's speaking to
[45:44] Jews and other sheep I have which are not of this fold who are they they're us and them them also I must bring and and then notice they will hear my voice and there will be one flock one flock one shepherd Jew and Gentile together in the church age and in eternity very beautiful and then the last two verses 17 18 I gave the title the obedient shepherd the obedient shepherd therefore my father father loves me because I lay down my life that I may take it again no one takes it from me but I lay it down of myself I have power to lay it down and have power to take it up again this command
[46:45] I have received from from my father and and so Jesus willing to give his life that's the purpose why he came and it also to me indicates I have power to lay it down and we know on the cross he breathed his last father into your hands I commit my spirit and he breathed his last Jesus decided when the end would be right and he had also predicted on the third morning I will rise I have power within me I am God that is it's it's it's worthy of worship yeah it's worthy of worship so that's the account there and of course this again leads to further divisions and arguments and discussions among the
[48:00] Jews just yeah wishy washy back and forth refusal to believe all right so that's that's as far as we're going in John tonight so we're going back in Luke for the rest of the evening so we'll notice that especially later in the books Luke focuses on certain things and has a number of stories parables that the others don't and then John has teaching that the others don't so that's why we're focusing on more one book at a time now Luke 10 1 to 24 after these things the Lord appointed other seventy also and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place whither he himself would come therefore he said said he unto them the harvest truly is great but the laborers are few pray ye therefore the
[49:09] Lord of the harvest that he would send forth laborers into his harvest go your ways behold I send you forth as lambs among wolves carry neither purse nor scrip nor shoes and salute no man by the way and into whatsoever house he enter first say peace be to this house and if the son of peace be there your peace shall rest upon it if not it shall turn to you again and in the same house remain eating and drinking such things as they give for the laborer is worthy of his hire go not from house to house and into whatsoever city you enter and they receive you eat such things as are set before you and heal the sick that are therein and say unto them the kingdom of God is nigh unto you and into whatsoever city you enter and they receive you not go your ways out into the streets of the same and say even the very dust of your city which cleaveth on us we do wipe off against you not withstanding be sure of this that the kingdom of
[50:14] God is come nigh unto you but I say unto you that it shall be more tolerable in the day of Sodom than for that city woe unto thee for if the mighty works that had been done in Tyre and Sidon which have been done in you they had a and thou Capernaum which art exalted to heaven shall be thrust down to hell he that heareth you heareth me and he that despiseth you despiseth me and he that despiseth me despiseth him that sent me and the seventy returned again with joy saying Lord even the devils are subject unto us through thy name and he said unto them I beheld satan as lightning fall from heaven behold I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy and nothing shall by any means hurt you not withstanding in this rejoice not that the spirits are subject unto you but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven in that hour
[51:20] Jesus rejoiced in spirit and said I thank thee O Father Lord of heaven and earth that thou seemed good in thy sight all things were delivered to me of my father and no man knoweth who the son is but the father and who the father is but the son and he to whom the son will reveal him and he turned him and he turned him unto his disciples and said privately blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see for I tell you that many prophets and kings have desired to see these things which ye see and have not seen them and to hear those things which ye hear and have not heard them okay thank you all right so now we have a a southern Israel tour so back in Galilee he sent out the twelve right with very similar conditions two by two and sent them to to go and visit the places that he would visit to preach the gospel to rely on the
[52:31] Lord as they went and not to take a bunch of extras along but to rely on the hospitality of the places they visited and so on but here he chooses to send 70 and the King James New King James has 70 some other manuscripts have 72 and from the older manuscripts are 72 but so in your notes witness of the 72 I personally agree more with the 70 but whatever so why 70 versus the 12 any thoughts why would he choose 70 so he's preparing for Jesus' ministry in the south
[53:33] Judea and and Perea which we will cover in the fall when we get back but any thoughts on why 70 yeah no why 70 why not 68 70 weeks of years okay I was thinking possibly Moses appointed 70 leaders in the wilderness the leaders of Israel and in his day Jesus' day how many Sanhedrin were there 70 yeah so there was a can you imagine a board of 70 to govern the spiritual affairs of
[54:33] Israel Sanhedrin is what called and mostly made up of Pharisees and Sadducees and so is this is this intentional do you think that he chose 70 and sent them out to minister yeah it's food for thought eh yeah because nothing is done unintentionally here it's deliberate and so I think there's something to this and so yeah Exodus 24 speaks about the 70 leaders that Moses appoints and the 70 number of Sanhedrin we don't get out of scripture but out of other books but we know there were 70 and Nicodemus was one of them right as well okay so so very similar to the 12 but I want to focus a little bit on the end as they come back and
[55:40] Jesus again pronounces woes on those cities that don't hear that refuse to believe just like he did in Galilee but verse 17 then the 70 returned with joy saying Lord even the demons are subject to us in your name wow so these 70 they're not the 12 they went out and they were able to cast out evil spirits in the name of Jesus he had empowered them and they're they're glorying in that wow and what is the answer they get from Jesus verse 18 I saw
[56:42] Satan fall from heaven like lightning what's he saying yeah he is defeated he is he is he is elevating the confidence of his disciples that in my name you have more power than Satan I witnessed him falling and of course we know that the demons all recognized him and were fearful right and so but here I think for the disciples sakes he mentions this I saw Satan fall like lightning okay verse 20 do not rejoice in this that the spirits are subject to you that you can cast out demons but rather rejoice in what yeah in eternal life rejoice in salvation that's where our strength our joy our everything is that that we can in the name of
[58:08] Christ work against evil demons and so on is is not the main thing the main thing is salvation in Jesus Christ our relationship with him that's where we need to dwell on if you're dwelling on on fighting the devil you're going to be on the floor pretty quick what's that yeah yeah if we make that our goal we will not stand and yet when the Lord brings about situations where we need to and then in his name he does give us the strength but when we go seek for it we will fall flat every time and we're warned against that so Satan is subject to the believer he's defeated before
[59:12] God and then skipping ahead to the last two verses 23 24 blessed are the eyes which see the things that you see for I tell you many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see and have not seen it and to hear what you hear and have not heard it so it was prophesied that it was coming was coming and now it's here and it's arrived and so he's saying you are a privileged people to witness the Lord Jesus Christ and then to find the forgiveness of sins and to actually have your name book written in the book of heaven the book of life and and so yeah all those years waiting waiting waiting and at their
[60:15] Passover they would they would put out an extra plate and chair just in case the Messiah would come as part of their rituals but now he's here and most aren't recognizing him rejoice in that and so out of that we wait for his second coming we wait and we wait but the day is coming all of a sudden he'll be here well we'll be there and it's coming it's just as sure and it's it's it's worthy for us to to not lose hope all right let's move on verses 25 to 37 and behold a certain lawyer stood up and tempted him saying master what shall
[61:21] I do to inherit eternal life he said unto them what is written in the law how readest thou and he answered said thou shalt love the lord thy god with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy strength and with all thy mind and thy neighbor as thyself and he said unto them unto him thou hast answered right this do and thou shalt live but he willing to justify himself said unto Jesus and who is my neighbor and Jesus answered and said a certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell among thieves which stripped him of all his raiment and wounded him and departed leaving him half dead and by chance there came down a certain priest that way and when he saw him he passed by on the other side and likewise a Levite when he was at the place came and looked on him and passed by on the other side but a certain
[62:27] Samaritan as he journeyed came where he was and when he saw him he had compassion on him and went on him and bound up his wounds pouring in oil and wine and set him on his own beast and brought him to an inn and took care of him and on the morrow when he departed he took out two pence and gave them to the host and said unto him take care of him and whatever you spend more than I when I come I will repay you which now these three thinkest thou was neighbor unto him that fell among the thieves and he said he that shewed mercy on him then said Jesus unto him go and do thou likewise thank you Frank so we have a long parable to illustrate what the teaching here is as we have a lawyer testing
[63:33] Jesus what and notice his wording what shall I do to inherit eternal life and so huh a bit curious well it goes a little deeper than that so our mind of a lawyer is probably not the same as this guy a lawyer in their day was an expert in the law so he was learned in the Jewish law so he was probably the most well learned and but his question is not out of curiosity but what must I do he wants to earn it how good must I be yeah perfect and and so and Jesus says well what is written in the law and he quotes it correctly love the
[64:39] Lord your God and love your neighbors yourself and in that all the Ten Commandments are wrapped up right and and so and he says you have answered rightly do this and you will live you got her made just live that out which is yeah but there's something there's something not quite right in his heart and he feels his conscience isn't quite clear and so he has to he has to justify himself further and says and who is my neighbor yeah and so the last half of the commandments is loving your neighbor right do not steal do not murder do not covet do not you know it's loving your neighbor and and so now well they had their own teachings about who was their neighbor and so
[65:46] Jesus then tells the parable of the man traveling down to Jericho from Jerusalem literally downhill to Jericho and he falls among thieves and is left laying and wounded leaving him half dead and as the story goes we have a priest that comes and a Levite that comes and a Samaritan travelers down that same road and the priest passes by and the Levite passes by and the Samaritan helps the guy and takes money out of his pocket and pays and so on yeah what was wrong with the priest and the Levite actually what's the difference between the two yeah why the distinction because not all Levites were priests right yeah so that's it's a little side thing but out of the tribe of Levi the descendants of Aaron the Aaronic priesthood so they were designated out of Aaron's line to be priests the rest were to work in the temple in the different capacities all the
[67:18] Levites but within the Levite group one group was chosen to be priests that's why the distinction even here they were both associated with the work of the temple and both of these religious fellows do not have compassion they walk on and the Samaritan of course who is looked down upon as a dog by the Jews he has it in his heart and so showing this man who is my neighbor who does the Lord bring into your life right who is our neighbor today it's exactly that who does the Lord bring into your life he can be far away he can be next door but if you encounter him and you can do something and that's that's what's required so you know interesting the lawyer said what must
[68:30] I do seeking to please God in the physical my focus is on self I don't have time for this guy when I when I focus on God in the faith or I trust God in faith then all of a sudden I'm filled with compassion for this guy and so the lesson for this lawyer was pretty deep because he did not have in his heart the compassion for such and Jesus showed that he knew he knew the answer of a Samaritan woman yeah yeah and so here he says go and do likewise yeah and yet out of our own works we cannot do it cannot please God okay so further illustrating yeah the disciples are getting a good school here one after another verses 38 to 42 now it happened as they went that he entered a certain village and a certain woman named
[69:47] Martha welcomed him into her house and she said and she had a sister called Mary who also sat at Jesus feet and heard his word but Martha was distracted with much serving and she approached him and said Lord do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone therefore tell her to help me and Jesus answered and said to her Martha Martha you are worried and troubled about many things but one thing is needed and Mary has chosen that good part which will not be taken away from her okay so Jesus stops in at his friend's house Martha and Mary and Lazarus Lazarus I don't think is mentioned here but their home we get in other stories was in
[70:49] Bethany so on the map from Jerusalem Bethany is about there so it's about two two and a half miles from the old city and that's where their home was so that's that's less than an hour for him to go for night and so we know he had stopped in there more often but here as as he is entering their home and Jesus as a guest Mary Mary plops herself at his feet symbolizing I am your disciple I'm here to listen I'm here to learn Martha who may have been the owner of the house that we're not told but she seems to be kind of in charge she's busy preparing a seven course meal of course we're not told seven course in scripture but he says
[72:01] Martha Martha you're worried about many things and maybe he's saying one course would have been enough but the point is that Mary recognized what she needed and Martha was busy doing and as Martha complains to Jesus she's irritated by Mary you lazy sister come and help me at least we have a guest in the house and that's it's not all that's not to be too hard on Martha we do that too right we have guests and we serve them and so but she's a little bit irritated and she goes to the Lord and says tell her to come help me at least and let's get this done and Martha or Jesus gently rebukes her Martha Martha Mary has chosen the good part which cannot be taken away from her the words of eternal life and out of this parable or out of this story or this account we we see that that the lesson is to be occupied with
[73:30] Christ is more important than to be occupied for Christ did you catch that to be occupied with Christ in other words to be in fellowship to feed relationship with Christ is more important than serving him how many of us have tried serving in order to improve our relationship are some of you shy we've probably all been there does it work doesn't the sooner we learn that the better service comes out of relationship not the other way and
[74:32] Jesus is more concerned that we grow in him he will already lead us to service but to desire service without the relationship strong the motives there can be very wrong and actually selfish yeah yeah but this those are non-believers right but in this case I think many well-meaning Christians are focusing on I want to do do do instead of sitting at his feet and to do do do and not have your daily devotions means you will run dry very soon okay to occupy with him instead of occupied for him both are necessary but the first needs to be first
[76:11] I think the principle works with people among others as well I made a big mistake when I was serving there when certain things that I was doing were starting to be wrong and I thought I'm just going to keep on serving and others were saying you need to build relationships there's something going wrong here and I thought I'm just going to keep on serving and doing the best I can and you'll see it eventually but it isn't real eventually I didn't have the heart of a lot of people I should have and I regret it but in fact now I should have built relationships hindsight is 20-20 yeah it is yeah so my personal interpretation or view on this is the churches that drive many programs are keeping their people from sitting at the feet of Jesus okay it is it can be damaging to their growth if we have too many programs where people are doing doing doing we need to take time in our daily life with Christ and to allow time for that all right that could lead to preaching here all right so we have oh we only have 10 minutes left okay
[78:07] Luke chapter 11 as he was praying in a certain place when he when he sees that one of his disciples said to him Lord teach us to pray as John also taught his disciples so he said to them when you when you pray say our Father Father in heaven hallowed be your name your kingdom come your will be done on earth as it is in heaven give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our sins for we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us and do not lead us into temptation but deliver us from the evil one a friend comes at midnight and and he said to them which of you shall have a friend and go to him at midnight and say to him friend lend me three loaves for a friend of mine has come to me in his journey and I have nothing to set before him and he will answer from within and say do not do not trouble me the door is now shut and my children are with me in bed
[79:18] I cannot rise and give you give to you I say to you though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs and I say unto you ask and it shall be given you seek and ye shall find knock and it shall be opened unto you for everyone that asketh receiveth and he that seeketh findeth and to him that knocketh it shall be opened if a son shall ask of bread of any of you that is a father will he give him a stone or if he ask a fish will he for a fish give him a serpent or if he shall ask an egg will he offer him a scorpion if ye then being evil know how to give good gifts unto your children how much more shall your heavenly father give the holy spirit to them that ask him okay thank you so the disciples ask
[80:20] Jesus teach us to pray similar to the sermon on the mount in Galilee and but what prompts they're asking here in verse 1 they saw him praying and why why would that cause them to ask okay John taught his disciples I believe Jesus prayed very different than they had been taught to pray by the Pharisees and the Pharisees taught like Daniel the Old Testament who morning noon and evening went to his window and prayed prayed towards Jerusalem that is the ritual and so they taught a repetitious prayer that you say three times a day that's the
[81:31] Pharisees teaching and here they're witnessing Jesus praying totally different praying to his father and they say teach us to pray John is doing that too and so we have we have Jesus then giving the model for prayer example of how to pray but not the model prayer as in this is the one that you keep praying but it's an example of how to pray and but it's very and then the prayer is just like in Matthew chapter 6 I want to focus on on two principles in in verse 5 onward where Jesus now teaches that that are some important principles regarding prayer the persistence in prayer and the first illustration in verses 5 through 8 which of you shall have a friend and go to him at midnight and and say friend lend me three loaves so there's a man going to his friend the neighbor and saying
[82:52] I need to borrow three loaves at midnight why because a friend another friend has come to my house for lodging and I have nothing to give him now this is in the physical what is Jesus teaching here go ask he is teaching that that we are to intercede for others he went to his neighbor on behalf of the man who came to his door so in prayer we are to intercede for others to pray that's one aspect of prayer to ask on behalf of others to bring them before God and this man went to his neighbor so we have a physical story but it was illustrating the spiritual in regard to prayer and and of course the guys in bed at midnight especially in Israel he's probably been sleeping for a few hours and he doesn't want to rise and give bread and and because of persistence to be left alone he rises gives him the three and by the way the request was to lend lend me three loaves
[84:16] I'll bring it back and so but because of persistence the guy finally gives up I'll rise I'll give you three then let me sleep and but the so the teaching is that that we are to be persistent in our prayers to not give up and also we are to intercede on behalf of others and interceding on others behalf is very important to not always pray for our own needs but to be concerned about others bring them before the Lord the the verses 9 I say to you ask and it will be given to you seek and you will find knock and it will be opened for everyone who seeks or asks receives and he who seeks finds to him who knocks it will be opened and so if you are consistent in prayer God will respond he will answer we are not to give up and then the father delights in answering and giving us what we need and the examples there of a human father of course not not giving bad things to his son just like the father loves to give good gifts to us and and the it ends with the example how much more will the heavenly father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him and so ultimately the gift of life the father delights to give more than anything to give eternal life the gift of the Spirit and yet we take this broader in all our requests as believers that already have life the father is interested in giving when we ask in his will so it's a lesson on persistence for the disciples and to change their prayer life from this repetitious stuff a couple times a day to talking personally with the father and again challenging culture challenging their world view on a relationship with the father and and for a lot of us we have faced the same battles when it comes to prayer at least I have huh yeah was very similar to to the Jews alright
[86:57] I want to we have a few minutes I want to push on and go a little over time to close here tonight K the conflict over the the healing of the dumb man we're not going to read that it's it's the same story as in Matthew 12 which which after Jesus heals this this dumb mute demon possessed man they give Satan the credit and and so on and they they accuse him of being demon possessed Jesus they ask for a sign and he says the only sign that we're given is Jonah so it's the same very similar account to that so I'm going to skip over that but let's read the next one just to end this section so Luke 11 37 to 54 and as he spoke a certain Pharisee asked him to dine with him so he went in and sat down to eat when the Pharisees saw it he made marveled he when the Pharisees saw it he marveled that he had not first washed his wash before dinner then the Lord said to him now you Pharisees make out make the outside of the cup and the dish clean but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness foolish ones did not he who made the outside make the inside also but rather give alms of such things as you have then indeed all things are clean all things are clean to you but woe to you
[88:48] Pharisees for you tithe mint and root and all manner of herbs and pass by justice and the love of God these things you ought to have done without leaving the others undone woe to you Pharisees for you have loved you have loved the best seat in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplace woe to you scribes and Pharisees hypocrites for you are all you are like you are like graves which are not seen and the men who walk over them are not aware of them then one of the lawyers answered and said to him teacher by saying these things you reproach us also and he said woe to you also lawyers for you have load men with burdens hard to bear and your own selves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers woe to you for building tombs of the prophets and the fathers killed them in fact you bear witness that you prove the deeds of your fathers so they indeed kill them for you and you build them their tombs therefore the wisdom of god is also said i send them prophets and apostles and some of them will kill and persecute and the blood of all the prophets which are was shed from the foundation of the world may be may be required of this generation from the blood of abel to the blood of saccharide to the parish
[90:48] Pharisees between the altar and the temple yes i say to you it shall be required of this generation woe to you lawyers for you have taken away the key of knowledge you do you did not entertain yourselves and those who were entering in you hindered and he said these things to them the scribes and pharisees began to assail him vehemently and to cross examine him about many things lying in wait for him and seeking to catch him and something he might say that they might accuse him okay thank you how would you like to have a supper guest like that i kind of suspect he wasn't and so here jesus invited by a pharisee to dine with him we find later there's others there too but jesus sits down on the couch as they had in their day leaning back by the table he's ready for the meal and he hadn't gone to wash his hands and now was that intentional jesus did jesus believe in cleanliness i'm sure he did but he was making a point again as they they thought it unclean and blasphemous to eat with unwashed hands and so very concerned about that and so this guy marvels that he had not washed and jesus he must have said something because jesus answers you pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness foolish one did not he who make the outside make the inside also and so he rebukes their outward washings without taking care of the inward the heart and the the setting leads us to believe the pharisee had invited him not necessarily to entertain him but but maybe for his own gain or to test him and jesus is very very direct and bold in fact in our study so far this is the most direct he has been by far we have six woes i quickly want to run through and then we'll close with that verse 41 but rather give alms of such things as you have and then all things are clean to you woe to you pharisees for you tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs and pass by judgment and the love of god these things you have done without leaving you should have done without leaving other things undone so the first woe is regarding tithing they were tithing mint and rue herbs things out of their little garden instead of tithing truly as a tenth of everything and so again their tithing was a show it wasn't reality a tenth and so he's saying that's this displays your heart you're
[94:49] looking for ways to look good and yet not have to do the work okay that's the first woe pharisees second one verse 43 regarding their pride woe to you pharisees for you love the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces honor position and status pride woe to you pharisees the third one regarding their hypocrisy woe to you scribes and pharisees hypocrites for you are like graves which are not seen and men who walk over them are unaware of them so how are they like graves which are not seen hey dead yeah so in the physical realm they would whitewash tombs or graves that people would not would walk over them or not not because the old testament taught if you touched a grave you were unclean for the day and so they would whitewash them so if you stepped on or touched you were good to go because it was made to look pretty and you didn't recognize it as a grave that was a practice and here he is saying you hypocrites you are like graves which are whitewashed from the outside and inside you are full of dead man's bones there is no spiritual life there is filth that is what he is saying here hypocrisy and so they were like whitewashed tombs full of defilement on the inside and ultimately their defilement their doctrine was poisoning everyone that is the ultimate application here okay fourthly turns to the lawyers then one of the lawyers so there must have been more in the house says to
[97:13] Jesus by saying these things you reproach us also and Jesus turns on him woe to you lawyers for you load men with burdens hard to bear and you yourselves do not touch them the burdens with one of your little fingers and so speaking to the lawyers regarding their hypocrisy the fourth woe the burdens of the law that they laid on them but not only the law the buffers the man-made traditional laws that buffered God's laws and you have burdened the people to death that they can't possibly keep it and you yourselves don't lift the little finger and says woe to you lawyers and then the fifth one woe approving the murder of the prophets woe to you for you build the tombs of the prophets and your fathers killed them in fact you bear witness that you approve the deeds of your fathers for they indeed killed them and you built their tombs and it goes on therefore the wisdom of God has also said
[98:31] I will send them prophets and apostles and some of them they will kill and persecute that the blood of all the prophets which were shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation from the blood of Abel Cain and Abel to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the temple yes I say to you it shall be required of this generation so they are taking part in in the prophets and the reference to Zechariah is very likely to 2nd Chronicles 24 verse 21 where we have a record of Zechariah perishing in the court and between the inner temple and the courtyard and so and everybody in between okay and then the last woe the sixth one woe to your lawyers for you have taken the key of knowledge you did not enter in yourself and those who were entering in you hindered and so that last one the key of knowledge you have taken for yourself and not used it they have the answer to life the word of
[99:54] God and they're not entering in and they're preventing everybody else from going in with their poisonous teaching and he says woe to you very stiff and as he finishes this the scribes and the Pharisees began to assail him vehemently so just lashing out at him just verbally digging into Christ just really let him have it and to cross examine him lying in wait for him seeking to catch him in something that he might say that they could accuse him just try to catch him off balance for one second that they can use that against him yeah this hurt it's it's it's all coming to a head and and as we're approaching
[101:00] Passover so all right we'll we'll stop with that thank you for your patience and I'll have to thank Mary downstairs so Lord willing we're going to break off for the summer months and we'll announce it in the fall to resume so so Dede for your sake we've been going for three months and and we had planned to now break off for the summer and so you have a taste and so but Lord willing we'll continue and hopefully we can continue the children's services as well and it's going to take again somebody giving some sacrifice for that so yeah any thoughts questions about about next
[102:02] Wednesday start praying if the Lord moves me I'll be here yeah yeah thank you Martin any any most of them couldn't read anyway yeah and probably their Sabbath synagogue reading and teaching their main source yeah and then a more heavier reliance on oral relating the word of God in the home like from memory or maybe not off by heart scriptures but the stories telling them to their children just like we do today yeah so
[103:12] I think when there's a lack of literature then memory is better and there's more emphasis put on on keeping the truth going right yeah but yeah yeah but that's yeah that's a good good we are we are so blessed yeah yeah yeah that's a good observation yeah yeah so good thank you for being part of this god bless you let's go have some coffee