Well, I want us to look at Luke 30 verses 10-17.
And I suppose the question that I've been asking myself this week,
! What is the biggest barrier in my Christian life?
! What's the biggest barrier to my growth?
What's the biggest barrier to my witness?
In speaking to people that I love?
Speaking to people who are my friends,
some people who are in my family.
What's the biggest barrier I have to kind of living the gospel out before them
and speaking to them about the gospel?
Many people think it's an issue of confidence.
Confidence in knowing the message.
I don't think that.
I expect most of you here today, not all of you, but most of you,
have been Christians long enough that you can simply explain
the good news of the Lord Jesus in your own words.
You can do that.
You can say what he's done.
You can say that he died for me.
And for most of us, that is not the issue.
We can explain it.
I have found the biggest barrier in my Christian life is my character.
It's my character.
But what has happened to us as Christians?
God has called us, hasn't he, to be his children.
He's called us to be in Christ.
He's called us to declare his praises to the world around us.
To show his unconditional, unchangeable, faithful love to the people I live amongst.
And yet so often I find in my life, I don't know about yours,
it is littered with examples of how I fail to do that.
Sometimes it's the moment of madness, isn't it?
Losing my rag.
And blowing your top.
And you do it in front of people.
In front of family or friends or work colleagues that you've been praying for.
And it's pretty embarrassing.
But often it's not a moment of madness.
Most of the time it's not, is it?
But I don't know about you, but I look at my non-Christian friends
and I often find that they are more loyal,
they are more generous,
and they seem more loving.
And the main problem with my Christian life,
and I suppose if you want to call it my evangelism,
is my self-centred life.
Now I think as we look at this section in Luke's Gospel,
particularly as we go through chapter 13 over the next few weeks,
we're going to see the Lord Jesus,
who is wonderfully loving,
and wonderfully other-person-centred,
longing to bring people into his kingdom.
And yet we're also going to see a dark side.
We're going to see the religious hypocrites.
And too often, as you read Luke 13,
I find myself siding with them,
and not with the Lord Jesus.
Now the context of where we are,
is we are in the longest section of Luke.
And it started in chapter 9, verse 51.
Can you see that?
He sets off, resolutely,
he set his face to go to Jerusalem.
And it goes right away through to chapter 19,
that's the section, the journey section.
He's setting off, resolutely,
to the place where he knows he's going to die.
And it seems like suicidal madness.
But we know, don't we, those of us who know Luke's Gospel,
actually that is the heart of his mission.
And the context of this journey,
the context of him setting off to Jerusalem,
he teaches his disciples what his kingdom,
what it's going to be like to live under the reign of King Jesus.
What it's going to be like to follow him down through the ages.
It's a kingdom where people are accepted,
as they accept Jesus as King.
As people say that Jesus Christ is Lord,
they come under his lordship,
they take on his yoke.
As they humbly repent of living for themselves,
and they accept the forgiveness
that Jesus unconditionally offers,
they come into the kingdom.
But it's also a kingdom
that we've not yet fully experienced yet.
Jesus is teaching us
that there's going to be a perfection
of the kingdom
when he returns.
The now and the not yet.
We live in the now.
We've just sung a bit, haven't we?
Today is the Lord's day.
It is the Sabbath rest.
It is a picture of the rest of God
in Genesis 1.
It is a picture of the freedom,
the rest that the people of Israel enjoyed in Exodus.
It is a picture of the rest that we know in Christ.
But we're not perfectly at rest, are we?
We look forward, Hebrews 4,
to the rest of God in eternity.
We're not there yet.
The kingdom has come.
It is here.
It is among us.
And yet it is still to come.
When he comes,
he will come to judge the world.
Look at verse 49 of chapter 12.
He is the fire starter.
And Jesus' teaching brings him into contact,
conflict with the Jewish rulers of his day,
the Bible experts,
which is who the Pharisees were.
They were the experts in the scriptures.
The synagogue rulers,
the pastors of the day,
the elders.
And you see with them,
they don't see the need
of an attitude of humble repentance.
Because they think
they are already
on the right side of God.
And as we go through this section,
this chapter in the next few weeks,
we're going to see
that it's very easy for you and I
to be self-righteous like them.
Rather than humble like the Lord Jesus.
So I want to do those two things this morning.
I want to draw that contrast.
First of all,
I want us to see Jesus
the compassionate freedom giver.
Jesus the compassionate freedom giver.
That's what Jesus is doing.
Giving freedom.
Look at verse 10.
Of Luke 13.
Now he was teaching
in one of the synagogues
on the Sabbath day.
And behold,
there was a woman
who had had a disabling spirit
for 18 years.
She was bent over
and could not
straighten herself.
The Sabbath was the day,
of course,
when people gathered to hear
the Bible,
the scriptures,
taught
and discussed them
in the synagogue.
And this woman
had been coming week by week
and she was doubled up
in pain.
We can think of people like that,
can't we?
We can think of people
maybe in our family
or on our street.
They struggle to stand up
and they struggle to sit down
and their back bows,
they're hunched over
and their shoulders
are permanently hunched.
And it's painful
getting up in the morning.
It's painful getting dressed.
It's painful to get down
the stairs.
It's painful to get
the breakfast.
It's painful to sit down
on a seat.
And that is with
modern medicine,
isn't it?
That is with old people
popping loads of pills.
That's with modern medicine.
I cannot imagine
the agonies
of this woman's life.
It was John Chapman
that used to say,
growing old is the pits.
And it is,
isn't it?
When you're really old
and when you're struggling
with health
and when there's pain,
here's the agony
of this woman's life.
But she's at the synagogue.
And Luke tells us
it is a spirit,
a disabling spirit
that is afflicting her.
It's not a normal ailment.
Look at verse 12.
When Jesus saw her,
he called her over
and said to her,
woman,
you are free
from your disability.
It's so simple, isn't it?
Jesus sees her suffering.
She doesn't come to him
for healing.
In grace,
the Lord Jesus,
he takes the initiative.
In tenderness and love,
he calls her over.
There's no great struggle,
is there?
There's no all-night praying,
prayer meeting.
There is no prolonged appeal.
Begging the Lord,
twisting the Lord's back
behind his arm
for healing.
His arm behind his back
for healing.
It is just the unstoppable
power of Jesus Christ,
isn't it?
He simply declares her free.
Sat free from the daily struggle
against spiritual bondage.
Look at verse 13.
He laid his hands on her
and immediately
she was made straight.
And she glorified God.
You bet she did.
Imagine the relief.
The joy from being bent
double with pain.
Pain filled
to standing upright,
upright,
pain free
in a touch.
You see,
Jesus is the compassionate
freedom giver.
He is the one who sees
the brokenness and the pain.
He sees the suffering of people
and he acts to save them.
In Luke's gospel,
Jesus is most commonly
called the saviour.
But it's a word that can
equally be translated
as the healer.
So while King Jesus
is on earth,
he shows that
his kingdom
is going to be one
in which all the products
of sin
are destroyed.
Sickness,
suffering,
and eventually
death.
King Jesus
can set us free
from the war.
And he will
one day
fully
and finally
when he returns.
Then we will enjoy
fully the benefits
of being his people.
But at the heart
of the freedom
King Jesus'
offering
is the freedom
from the punishment
that our sin deserves.
Freedom from
the enslavement
to the devil
as those who
follow the devil's lies.
That life
lived in rebellion,
that is the best life,
isn't it?
That's the great devil's lie.
That life
lived in rebellion
from God
is one of true
fulfilment.
And that is the lie
that we see time
and again and again.
Our non-Christian
friends and family
following
a life
where they believe
that being in rebellion
against God
is the one of
true fulfilment.
That's what I think.
And that is the true
slavery
that this woman's
physical suffering
points you to.
For slavery
to sin.
Now because some of you
are thinking it,
let me just say
the Bible does not
directly link
sickness to sin,
does it?
If you've got a cold
this morning like I have,
it's not because you
gossiped about your
neighbour last week.
The Bible does say
that sickness
and suffering
are in the world
because of sin.
We learnt that
last week,
didn't we?
You see that
in verses 1-9.
That suffering
is part of God's
curse
on a rebellious world.
It is not his laser
beam on certain people,
but suffering is
as a result of sin.
But it's a curse
that Jesus deals with.
A curse that will
finally be removed
when Jesus judges
the world.
And to prove that
in Luke's Gospel,
as Jesus
strides the earth,
he shows his
total authority
to restore people
to health completely.
Jesus is the
compassionate
freedom giver.
He says towards
the end of the
section,
just come to
Luke chapter 19
verse 10.
Luke 19
verse 12.
For the Son of Man
came to seek
and save
the lost.
That's what Jesus
continues to do
by his Spirit.
as the Gospel
is preached
Sunday by Sunday
and during the week.
He has come to
seek and to
save the lost.
In compassion,
Jesus is setting
people free.
He's setting people
from the lies
of Satan
and the punishment
that their sin
deserves.
And finally,
one day,
we will all be free
from all the
products of sin
in our lives.
And that is what
Jesus is doing.
He's doing it in
London,
now in this city.
He's doing it in
Ealing.
He's doing it in
Sussex,
in Surrey,
in Swansea,
in Brighton,
in Birmingham,
in Beverly.
He's setting
people free.
Because of his
compassion.
And the question
is, are we on
board with his
mission?
Do we rejoice
as he does that?
Because as we
look at this
passage,
the one who
should have been
most overjoyed
in what Jesus
has done for
this poor woman,
is far from
happy,
is he?
In fact,
he's angered
by her freedom.
So let me give
you three reasons
why the synagogue
ruler reacts
like that.
So let's
secondly look at
the synagogue
ruler.
Here's the
first thing we
need to ask
ourselves as a
result of the
synagogue ruler.
Do you love
being right more
than you love
the lost?
Do you love
being right more
than you love
the lost?
It's such a
great picture,
isn't it?
Verse 13.
And he
laid his
hands on
her and
immediately
she was
made
straight.
Imagine it.
And she
glorified God.
Verse 14.
But the ruler
of the synagogue
indignant.
It's a very
strong word,
isn't it?
It's an angry
snorting horse.
That's what the
word is used for.
This man is
angry with Jesus.
He's not a
little bit
perturbed.
This man is
totally hacked
off.
Not that he's
got the
courage to
face up to
Jesus.
Do you see
what he
says?
It says,
it doesn't
bring it out
that clearly
in the ESV,
but the ruler
of the synagogue
indignant with
Jesus that
Jesus has
healed on the
Sabbath said
to the people.
He said it
very loudly to
the people around
him.
Have you ever
used that
technique?
You know
what it's
like when
Noah and I
are in the
supermarket and
people say,
somebody says,
in a very loud
voice of the
king,
don't they?
It is dreadful
the way parents
let their
children behave
in shops like
this,
isn't it?
In our
day that
never happens.
They don't
say it to
you.
They say it
very loudly
to other
people.
Well,
look what
this man
does.
He says
it to the
people,
isn't it?
He says,
there are
six days in
which work
ought to be
done.
Come on
those days
and be
healed,
and not on
the Sabbath
day.
But this
woman,
she didn't
come for
healing,
did she?
She just
came to
the synagogue
as usual.
It was a
usual Saturday
thing.
And Jesus
seeing her
need,
his heart
goes out
to her,
and he
frees her
from her
agony.
Where is
the compassion
of this
bloke?
He's the
synagogue
ruler after all.
He is the
pastor.
He is one
of the
elders.
That's what
it's like.
He must
have seen
her suffering
for the
last 18
years.
He must
have seen
her struggle
to live
day by
day.
He's seen
how loyally
she's
come to
the
synagogue
each
week.
This
man must
have
known
her
well.
The
synagogue
ruler,
the
synagogue
is like
the local
Bible
study
centre.
This
is like
her
house
group
leader.
But the
problem
is that
he's got
his head
so far
shoved
up his
own
Bible
study,
he's
totally
lost
sight of
the
Bible,
hasn't
he?
What is
the purpose
of the
Bible?
To bring
people into
a
relationship
with
God?
He's
lost
sight of
the
Sabbath.
What is
the
Sabbath
meant
to
represent?
What is
the
Sabbath
meant
to
represent?
It is
meant
to
represent
a
day
of
freedom.
It was
the day
that they
were to
remember
that God
rested in
Genesis 1.
And it was
the day
that was
to remind
them that
freedom
had been
given to
them as
the people.
That God
had freed
them from
Egypt.
And God
had freed
them to
live in
the
promised
land.
It was
the day
that they
were to
remember
perfect
freedom
is still
to come.
When all
those
were to
do
on the
Sabbath
than to
free
someone
from
bondage
to
Satan
and
physical
suffering.
It is
a
totally
Sabbath
activity.
But this
cynical
ruler is
so obsessed
with his
own way
of doing
things,
so obsessed
with his
spin,
his take
on God's
law,
that when a
woman he
administered
to for as
long as
some of
you have
been
alive,
is
wonderfully
released
from her
suffering,
he's
furious.
And it's
actually easy
to love
being right
more than
we love
the lost.
Don't get
me wrong,
I think
there is
a right
and I
think there
is a
wrong way
to follow
the Lord
Jesus.
I believe
in doctrine,
I believe
that for a
number of
years we
didn't teach
doctrine enough
in this
church.
It's one
of the
joys of
adult Sunday
school.
It's why
I want
you all
to go to
adult Sunday
school if
you possibly
can on a
Sunday
morning because
of teaching
doctrine.
We need
to weigh
everything we
do against
the Bible.
There are
right and
wrong things
we need to
teach and
we need to
avoid.
We need to
know when
it's the
wrong way to
follow the
Lord Jesus.
We do
honour to
God by
spirit-empowered
obedience.
I believe in
duty in the
Christian life.
We can
sniff a
bit of
heresy a
mile off
can't
we?
But when
that means
that we
cannot
rejoice in
people being
set free
we've got a
serious problem.
Especially
when like
the synagogue
ruler it's
our own
little spin
our own
little extra
law the
thing we've
added to
God's word
and we're
particularly
worried about
that.
One of my
problems is I
just love
being right.
When I
think of some
of the churches
in this
city I
really
struggle
with them.
I really
struggle with
them.
Some of the
churches in
Ealing actually.
I don't
think they're
right.
I think
there are
certain
biblical
things I've
got massive
issues with
them.
I profoundly
disagree with
them.
I have to
say there's
a card
carrying
Westminster
Confession
Three
Forms of
Unity
Loving
Man.
But I've
got to
say this.
Many of
these churches
introduce people
to Jesus.
And God
is using
them to set
people free.
They're not
perfect.
But neither
am I.
And here I
think there are
areas where
they are
really seriously
mistaken.
But my
emotional
reaction
sometimes
is as if
I'd rather
that they
didn't see
people come
to Jesus.
When that
is the
case,
that is
loving
being right
more than
loving the
lost.
Christ.
It happens
when we
get irritated
by God
for working
outside our
carefully run
programme.
It happens
when God
uses another
church to
save people.
When he
doesn't use
my ministry
that I'm
involved with.
it happens
when other
things in
church life
that I'm
not involved
with are
going really
well.
And the
things that
I'm involved
with are
not going
really well.
And if
truth be
told, I'm
pretty angry
about it.
I find it
hard this
week.
I'm doing
four weeks
at the
Morgate
Talks.
They do
question and
answer after
it.
There is
a very
annoying
atheist
who sits
right in
the front
row.
Closes
his eyes
during my
talks.
And there
was question
and answer.
And he
asked a
very, very
good question
that I
couldn't
really
answer.
I
wanted to
be
right.
And I
wanted him
to be
shown to
be wrong.
And I
think that's
one of the
dangers,
isn't it?
The danger
of so
wanting to
be right
that we're
not
compassionate
about the
lost.
And don't
think we're
free of
it.
We don't
pity them
like Jesus.
But it's
not just
self-righteousness
in this
guy.
It's
self-interest
as well.
Here's the
second question.
Do you
love
convenience
more than
you love
the lost?
Do you
love
convenience
more than
you love
the lost?
Because this
man's
religion was
actually
centred around
himself.
Look at
verse 15.
Then the
Lord
answered,
you hypocrites,
does not
each of you
on the
Sabbath
and tie
his ox
or his
donkey
from the
manger
and lead
it away
to water
it?
The word
hypocrisy
comes from
the Greek
theatre.
They didn't
have great
actors in
those days
like Sandra
Bullock
and John
Thorne
or any
of those
kind of
people.
They were
terrible
actors.
They had
a mask
that they
put over
their face.
That was
what they
did in
the Greek
theatre.
It was
an act.
And when
they were
on stage
they wore
it.
And they
wore a mask
to show
what mood
they were
in.
And to
be hypocrite
was to
have a
mask
in front
of you.
It is
to behave
one way
outwardly
but inwardly
to have
another set
of attitudes.
And do you
know what
the problem
is?
The problem
is we
just can't
keep up
the full
performance
can we?
All the
time.
So the
synagogue
ruler is
very keen
on rigid
Sabbath
keeping
as long
as it
doesn't
affect him.
He's
very keen
on rigid
Sabbath
keeping
as long
as he
can keep
his
animal
healthy.
That is
the way
that he's
rewritten
the rules.
His
ox
or his
donkey
was
better
treated
on the
Sabbath
than the
crippled
woman
in his
congregation.
His
religion
is just
a matter
of personal
convenience.
He's got
two sets
of rules
one set
that applies
to him
and another
set that
applies to
everyone else.
He cares
more for the
convenience
of his
life
than for
the
plight
of this
crippled
woman.
It's
the opposite
of compassion
isn't it?
It's the
opposite
of the
Lord
Jesus.
Whatever
is easiest
for us
orders our
lives.
We live in
that sort of
culture don't
we?
It's a
self-indulgent
culture.
It's one that
seeks our own
pleasure above
all else.
It starts in
sixth form doesn't
it?
You know
when sixth form
is a great
time of life
but you begin
to be released
from some of the
rules of school
your school
might start
to experiment
with drink
and drugs
and sex
and then you
get to student
days and it
really kicks
in living for
pleasure.
But then you
go into the
workplace and
you're told
you've got to
think about
yourself.
You've got to
keep moving up
the career ladder
keep earning
the money so
you can enjoy
it and then
you retire and
retirement is
all about a
life of leisure.
And it's a
huge temptation
for all of us
that we opt
for our own
comfort.
And putting
ourselves out
for others.
I've had lots
of students
prepared this
week so I
made the
fitness thing
I'm googling
comfort and
convenience.
I was hoping
to find some
clever illustrations.
What is odd
when you google
comfort,
convenience and
sacrifice the
three of them
together.
There are a
worrying number
of sites for
weddings and
shoes for
weddings particularly.
There's even a
site about buying
a bed for your
dog.
It's no help
at all on the
illustration and
there it is
isn't it?
Those are the
things we worry
about.
So what really
matters is not
having the right
shoes for the
wedding.
Or we're more
interested that our
dog has got back
pain than our
neighbours have
salvation.
We get more
excited about our
favourite TV programme
than we do about
the Lord's Day.
Or I'm more
worried that what I'm
having for my tea
than I am with my
sister as a
Christian.
I mostly engage
with my own
convenience.
I order my
day for my
own convenience.
Or do I
order it for the
lost people around
me?
That God in
his sovereignty
has brought
around you.
The people who
you might be the
only Christian that
they know.
You see if you
love them you'll
spend time loving
them.
Putting emotional
energy into them.
The synagogue
ruler is more
interested in his
livestock than he
is by this crippled
woman.
It's all about
his convenience.
And the reason
we need to spend
our lives for the
sake of others is
that they desperately
need to be set
free.
Here's the last
thing.
Do we see lost
people as they
are?
Do we see how
lost people are?
Look at verse
16.
And ought not
this woman, a
daughter of
Abraham, who
was Satan
bound for 18
years, be
loosed from
this bond on
the Sabbath
day?
In other
ways Jesus
says, listen
if you're
willing to
feed your
dog on
a Sunday
shouldn't
this woman
be given
her freedom
on a
Sunday?
Freedom from
Satan?
Because that
is the state
of all people
without the
Lord Jesus
isn't it?
They are
followers of
the devil.
He is
the prince of
the air.
He has them
in his power.
They live
life for his
lies.
They don't
even know
it.
They don't
even know
that God
cares.
they live
lives for
that lie
that God
doesn't
care even
if he
exists.
They live
life for
that lie
that Jesus
doesn't
matter and
the world
is a much
better place
if we run
it for
ourselves.
And those
are the
lives that
the world
lives for
and it's
slavery.
The problem
is, isn't
it, is that
bondage to
Satan is
not always so
clearly
distressing.
we can
clearly see
this woman's
needs, can't
we, even
reading about
it.
If this
woman walked
in here this
morning we
would all
look over,
sigh, and
think, oh
poor dad.
If we were
near her we'd
get up, we'd
help her into
her seat.
We'd have
leapt up and
we'd have
helped her
because her
physical needs
were visible
on the outside
but you
cannot see
most people's
spiritual needs.
Your friends,
family,
neighbours,
work colleagues,
they don't
come in,
together with
creaking chains.
It would be
easy if our
non-Christian
friends came
swathed in
chains.
The devil is
far, far more
subtle, isn't
he?
He enslaves
people very
often in the
things that
they want.
And often
they seem to
have better
lives than
us.
They seem
more successful,
more popular,
more happy,
more secure.
They seemingly
seem to enjoy
more freedom
but they're
enslaved to
see.
The devil
often uses
very good
things to
grab people
into his
grip.
With Eve
it was
fruit.
Fruit is
good for
you, so
I'm told.
And Eve
saw that the
fruit was
good for
food and
it was
pleasing for
the eye and
it was
desirable for
gaining wisdom
and she
took some
and she
ate it.
you see
we will
never
truly
rejoice
in the
freedom of
Jesus
until we
see the
lostness of
the lost.
And Luke
emphasizes that
you see
Jesus says
bound,
bound for
18 long
years.
Life in the
world without
Jesus can
never be what
God wanted
it to be.
Life in
eternity without
Christ is a
punishment more
awful than
words can
describe.
Philip
Jensen says
you can
photograph
terrible
suffering but
you cannot
photograph a
person in
hell.
I wonder
whether we
could.
Or if we
could see the
anguish in
our friends
eyes on the
day of
judgment.
If only we
could accept
the warnings
of the
Bible that
slavery to
sin and
Satan is
worse than
being bent
double in
agony every
day of
your life.
You see
to have true
compassion is
to see how
lost people
are.
How bound
they are
without
Christ.
I don't
want to
guilt trip
you this
morning.
I really
don't.
Preaching
Revelation on
Sunday nights
has done me
the world
of good in
seeing the
final judgment
and how it
must motivate
us.
But as I
come to this
passage my
prayer for
myself and
for us as a
church family
is that by
God's spirit
I might love
people more
than I love
my own
convenience.
that I
might long
for their
freedom more
than I
long to
be right.
And I
might be a
little bit
more like
the Lord
Jesus because
Jesus didn't
put his
righteousness
first did
he.
Jesus
actually
suffered
silently
the injustice
and he took
my unrighteousness
upon himself
and he didn't
live for his
convenience and
he didn't live
for his
comfort and
he gave up
the perfection
of heaven
to walk on
this squalid
earth.
And he
then experienced
what it was
to be lost
for us.
And maybe
as I spend
a bit more
time thinking
on the
compassion
and the
love of
the Lord
Jesus
I would
find myself
a little bit
more like
him and a
little bit
less like
those nitpicking
religious leaders.
And I'd
probably be
rejoicing at
all the
glorious things
that God
is doing.
Let's pray.