All right, well we are continuing on with the story of Jesus as told by Luke.
I know I start that way almost every Sunday.
Some of you are probably tired of hearing that.
It's a long series, but there's so much in here in the Word of God, and it's worth our attention.
So if you have a Bible with you, you can open it up to Luke chapter 9, is where we are in the story.
And we've covered much.
We've gone all the way from before the birth of Jesus, all the way up to this moment when Jesus is in the midst of Jesus.
And we've heard all kinds of wonderful things, and we've got a few more things to hear this morning.
So we're going to pick up the story here in verse 51.
Just as a reminder, last Sunday we heard about a variety of things.
We heard Jesus tell His disciples for the second time that He would soon be handed over.
We heard about how the disciples had been arguing about which of them was the greatest.
We heard about how Jesus used a little child as an example of what makes for greatness in the kingdom of God.
And then we heard about an unnamed guy casting out demons in Jesus' name.
Let's pick up the story here in Luke chapter 9, verse 51.
As the time approached for Jesus to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.
Now these words might be surprising at first.
Is Luke already talking about Jesus' final trip to Jerusalem here in chapter 9?
It kind of sounds like that, doesn't it?
And the answer is yes, but maybe not how we would expect it.
This is the beginning of a new section in Luke's gospel.
It's been called the travel narrative, or the Jerusalem journey, as one commentator put it.
This section is 10 chapters long.
And if we read it carefully and we watch for some of those place names,
those little mentions of where they're going,
and if we compare with John's gospel,
we see that this Jerusalem journey is not Jesus' final trip into the city of Jerusalem.
At least, maybe not the way that we usually think of trip.
For one, Jesus does not travel in a straight line or take the most direct route.
He seems to be visiting towns all over the place.
It has more of the feel of a meandering ministry tour through the region,
which eventually ends up in Jerusalem.
Second, if we compare closely with John,
we actually see that Jesus enters Jerusalem itself, the city,
at least once, if not twice, during this period,
leading up to the Passover when he's crucified.
And so it's probably best to understand this moment in Luke
as Jesus completing the Galilean phase of his ministry.
He has been ministering up in the north in Galilee,
and now he's beginning the Judean phase down in the south where Jerusalem is.
The scholars, of course, will point out the Hebrew idiom,
he set his face towards Jerusalem.
That that means, it's a figure of speech,
that means he has a strong determination to go there
in order to complete a task.
Jesus has this strong determination,
but his goal is not to get there as quickly as possible.
It's just really a shift in his focus towards that city
and the people of that region,
where things are going to culminate in him being taken up to heaven
after his crucifixion and resurrection.
One other thing to mention about these next ten chapters
is that we will hear from Luke a little bit less
about the miracles that Jesus was doing,
and we'll hear a little bit more about the teaching of Jesus
and the conversations that he had with people.
And so, we're looking forward to that.
By one estimate, about one-third of the content in this next section
is only found in Luke's gospel,
not even mentioned by the other three.
So, with that all on the table, let's carry on.
Jesus sort of closes this chapter on the ministry in the north,
in Galilee,
and now his attention and focus shift to Jerusalem
and the Jews living in the south.
Verse 52,
And he sent messengers on ahead
who went into a Samaritan village
to get things ready for them.
So, there's a little map.
It's probably hard to see from where you're sitting,
but there's Galilee up in the north.
There's Judea and Jerusalem down in the south.
And this area in here is Samaria.
He's got to either go through Samaria
or, as often happened in those days,
go around Samaria.
As we'll read about in a second,
there's a massive rift between the Samaritans
and the Jews at this time.
So, he sent messengers on ahead
who went into a Samaritan village
to get things ready for him,
but the people there
did not welcome Jesus
because he was heading for Jerusalem.
So, there's this conflict going on
between the Samaritans and the Jews.
In the words of another guy,
a New Testament scholar,
the Samaritans were a mixed race
of Israelite and non-Israelite blood.
They were despised by many pure-blooded Israelites
because they believed that the Samaritans
compromised the faith.
The Samaritans worshipped at Mount Gerizim
rather than at Mount Zion,
and they recognized only the first five books
of the Old Testament.
Even though it took three days
to pass through the region,
many Jews preferred to lengthen their journey
and go around it.
So, if you know the story of
the woman at the well
in John's Gospel,
you can really feel the tension there
and the differences between the Jews
and the Samaritans.
Things are quite frosty
and even hostile between them.
And yet, even though the Jews
despised the Samaritans,
Jesus did not.
The good news of God's love
and His kingdom
was not only for the Jews,
but for all people.
Even those hated Samaritans.
In John's Gospel,
we see a wonderful response of faith
by the Samaritans in the town of Sychar.
It says,
there are many in that town
believed in Jesus.
But here,
as Jesus is coming towards this town,
Jesus is not welcomed.
And the reason is because
He's headed for Jerusalem.
So there was that big difference
of where God should be worshipped.
And so probably that came right to the forefront
as Jesus was on the way through.
Maybe even for one of the annual festivals
at this time.
I want you to imagine
for just a quick moment
that you were one of the messengers
that Jesus had sent
into this Samaritan town.
Go ahead into the town.
See if you can find some lodging
for us for the night.
You're looking for a place
for Jesus
and for the rest of the 12 disciples
to spend the night.
Imagine explaining to them
as they ask you,
where are you headed?
Well, we're headed to Jerusalem.
And all of a sudden
the expression on their faces
just says it all.
No.
You can't stay in our town.
If you're headed for Jerusalem,
then you're not welcome here.
Well, when the disciples
James and John saw this,
they asked,
Lord, do you want us
to call fire down from heaven
to destroy them?
But Jesus turned
and rebuked them.
Then he and his disciples
went to another village.
So James and John,
two of Jesus' disciples,
are really upset by this.
And I'm not really sure here.
It's possible
that they themselves
were the messengers
that were sent by Jesus
and the ones
who were initially rejected.
It says when they saw this.
And I'm trying to put myself
into their mindset.
We don't know
all the details
of what the day
has been like
for James and John
leading up to this moment.
perhaps they're exhausted
from an entire day
of traveling on foot.
Maybe this is the nearest town
that they can reach
before it gets dark.
And who knows
how hungry they are.
Who knows exactly
what the Samaritan said to them
when they asked.
Did it turn into
a verbal fight
and insults?
All we know
is this question
that they asked Jesus.
and we can tell
by the question
that they are fuming.
They are mad.
Lord,
do you want us
to call fire down
from heaven
to destroy them?
That sounds a little extreme,
doesn't it?
Pretty vindictive.
And yet,
as I said,
we don't know
what all they experienced
leading up to this question
being asked.
you know,
it's kind of ironic.
We've been talking about
just recently here
in Luke chapter 9,
there was that demon-possessed boy
and they lacked faith
to drive the demon out.
They lacked faith
about what they could do
in Jesus' name.
Well,
here it almost seems
the opposite.
It seems like
their confidence
is restored
about the authority
that Jesus has given them
to do miracles
in his name.
They ask,
do you want us
to call down
fire
from heaven
and destroy them?
So they've,
in this moment,
it seems,
got the faith
that Elijah had
when he prayed
and God sent fire down
on the altar.
They seem to believe
that if they call on God,
he will do this
to this town
just like he did
long ago
in the days of Sodom
and Gomorrah.
So they have faith,
it seems,
and yet Jesus
rebukes them.
And I would have loved
to have been there
to hear what Jesus
said to them
in this moment.
All we have,
though,
is this word,
these words,
but Jesus turned
and rebuked them.
Now,
before we write
James and John off
as completely crazy
or just wicked,
let's stop
and think about this
for a moment.
Why would they have
suggested this
to Jesus
in the first place?
Was it just
their tempers
getting the best
of them
after being
humiliated?
Was it just
deeply wounded
pride
as they walked
away from this
town?
Or were there
things Jesus
had said
which might have
even got them
thinking in this
direction?
What did Jesus
tell them to do
the first time
that he sent
them out
when a town
did not welcome
them?
Just back up
earlier in the
chapter in verse
five,
Jesus had
given them
instructions
if people
do not
welcome you
leave their
town
and shake
the dust
off your
feet
as a testimony
against them.
And as we'll
hear in the
next chapter
Jesus is about
to send them
out again
this time
with some
others
and give them
very similar
instructions
and these are
some of the
instructions that
we read in
that next
chapter
chapter 10
verse 10
he'll say
when you enter
a town
and are not
welcomed
go into
its streets
and say
even the
dust of your
town
we wipe
from our
feet
as a warning
to you
yet be sure
of this
the kingdom
of God
has come
near
I tell you
it will be
more bearable
on that day
for Sodom
than for that
town
woe to you
Chorazin
woe to you
Bethsaida
for if the
miracles that
were performed
in you had
been performed
in Tyre
and Sidon
they would
have repented
long ago
sitting in
sackcloth
and ashes
but it will
be more
bearable
for Tyre
and Sidon
at the
judgment
than for you
and you
Capernaum
will you be
lifted to the
heavens
no
you will
go down
to Hades
so that's
what Jesus
is about
to say
before sending
them out
again
and possibly
he said
similar things
to them
before
and so
maybe
this is
part of
what led
the disciples
to ask
such an
outrageous
question
as this
do you
want us
to call
fire down
from heaven
to destroy
them
but even
with these
serious warnings
for towns
that would
reject him
Jesus
was not
being vindictive
or vengeful
these are
statements
about justice
about
what the
people
in these
towns
truly
deserve
and how
one day
God will
give them
what they
deserve
but
this is
not
that day
is what
Jesus is
saying
to James
and John
he rebuked
James and
John
for asking
a question
like this
I
try to
imagine
how Jesus
would have
phrased it
to them
maybe something
like this
have I not
told you
love your
enemies
and do
good
to those
who hate
you
bless
those who
curse
you
pray for
those who
mistreat
you
Jesus said
that to
them just
back in
chapter 6
yes there
will be
serious
consequences
for their
actions
and their
rejection
of you
is a
rejection
of me
but
James
John
has it
been
given
to you
to
execute
judgment
to
punish
them
for
their
sins
again
look back
at what
Jesus
said
in
chapter
6
in
his
sermon
to
the
crowd
verse
35
he said
but love
your
enemies
and do
good
to
them
then
your
reward
will be
great
and you
will be
children
of the
most
high
because
he is
kind
to the
ungrateful
and wicked
be
merciful
just
as your
father
is
merciful
I'm
reminded
here of
what it
says right
after
John
3
16
one of
those
most
famous
verses
precious
verses
for
God
so
loved
the
world
that
he
gave
his
one
and
only
son
that
whoever
believes
in
him
should
not
perish
shall
not
perish
but
have
eternal
life
for
God
did
not
send
his
son
into
the
world
to
condemn
the
world
but
to
save
the
world
through
him
Jesus
didn't
come
the
first
time
to
execute
judgment
to
bring
everything
to
its
right
end
he
came
to
save
people
and
so
James
and
John
though
they
may
understand
the
seriousness
of
rejecting
Jesus
in
this
moment
with
this
question
they
needed
to
be
reminded
about
mercy
what
about
you
ever
get
angry
because
of
how
someone
has
treated
you
or
because
of
how
someone
has
treated
someone
you
love
do
you
ever
find
yourself
wishing
that
God
would
just
give
someone
else
what
they
deserve
already
we
can be
deeply
hurt
by
others
and
our
pride
can
be
deeply
wounded
but
we
are
to
love
our
enemies
and
leave
the
judgment
part
to
God
we
should
also
remember
that
if
we've
done
anything
good
in
our
lives
it
hasn't
been
of
ourselves
it's
only
been
because
of
God
working
in
us
to
do
those
things
we'll
hear
about
this
soon
from
Jesus
himself
in
chapter
13
but
all
of
us
deserve
the
shocking
and
tragic
death
that
some
have
suffered
we
are
all
guilty
we
have
all
sinned
every
one
of
us
falls
short
of
God's
glory
!
and
just
like
for
the
disciples
Jesus
has
asked
us
to
show
others
the
mercy
that
we
have
been
shown
well
let's
carry
on a
few
more
verses
here
we'll
just
finish
up
the
chapter
here
Luke
9
verse
57
as they
were
walking
along
the
road
a man
said
to
Jesus
I
will
follow
you
wherever
you
go
Jesus
replied
foxes
have
dens
and birds
have
nests
but the
son of
man
has no
place
to lay
his
head
he
said
to
another
man
follow
me
but
he
replied
Lord
first
let me
go
and
bury
my
father
Jesus
said
to
him
let
the
dead
bury
their
own
dead
but
you
go
and
proclaim
the
kingdom
of
God
still
another
said
I
will
follow
you
Lord
but
first
let
me
go
back
and
say
goodbye
to
my
family
Jesus
replied
no
one
who
puts
a
hand
to
the
plow
and
looks
back
is
fit
for
service
in
the
kingdom
of
God
so
as
they're
walking
along
the
road
this
topic
of
following
Jesus
comes
up
of
being
one
of
his
disciples
and
this
man
this
first
man
says
to
Jesus
I
will
follow
you
wherever
you
go
and
Jesus
with
his
next
words
seems
to
challenge
that
commitment
will
you
really
follow
me
wherever
I
go
are
you
willing
to
spend
some
nights
outside
sleeping
in
the
cold
on
the
bare
ground
that's
probably
one of
the
realities
of
Jesus
ministry
and
for
his
disciples
too
not
that
they
spend
every
night
outside
but
they're
traveling
all over
the
place
and
as
we
just
heard
not
everyone
has
been
welcoming
they
probably
had
many
nights
outside
in
the
cold
in
the
elements
they're
certainly
not
going
home
and
sleeping
on
their
comfortable
beds
at the
end
of
every
day
and
getting
a
warm
home
cooked
meal
following
Jesus
cost
them
those
things
it
was
physically
and
tangibly
one
or the
other
but
as often
happens
with
Jesus
there's
more
in
his
words
than
just
the
physical
and
the
tangible
foxes
have
dens
and
birds
have
nests
but
the
son
of
man
has
no
place
to
lay
his
head
this
is
proverbial
language
it's
the
language
of
principle
what
is
Jesus
saying
by
this
following
him
requires
something
of
us
it
requires
that
we
be
willing
to
let
go
of
the
comfortable
life
this
is
just
part
of
what
it
means
to
follow
Jesus
he
does
not
lead
us
into
the
comfortable
life
where
is
Jesus
headed
now
he's
headed
to
Jerusalem
which
is
the
headquarters
of
those
who
oppose
him
the
fiercest
he's
on
his
way
to
suffering
to
the
cross
to
death
foxes
have
dens
and
birds
have
nests
but
the
son
of
man
has
no
place
to
lay
his
head
it's
as
though
Jesus
is
saying
to
him
are
you
willing
to
abandon
the
comforts
of
this
world
in
order
to
follow
me
what
would
your
answer
be
if
Jesus
were
asking
this
to
you
how
have
you
been
answering
this
question
of
late
well
then
there's
the
second
man
Jesus
speaks
to
this
guy
first
and
says
follow
me
and
he
replies
with
Lord
first
let
me
go
and
bury
my
father
and
Jesus
says
to
him
let
the
dead
bury
their
own
dead
but
you
go
and
proclaim
the
kingdom
of
God
now
a
surface
level
reading
of
this
might
give
us
the
impression
that
Jesus
lacks
compassion
and
that
he's
really
strict
this
guy
just
wants
to
bury
his
dad
and
so
we
might
assume
that
his
dad
just
passed
away
the
funeral
should
be
a
matter
of
a
week
or
so
and
then
this
man
should
be
free
to
follow
Jesus
after
right
but
is
Jesus
that
heartless
that
he
would
not
allow
one
of
his
followers
to
go
to
the
funeral
of
his
dad
well
Jesus
has
already
demonstrated
time and
time again
that he
is more
compassionate
than
anyone
and so
it's
likely
that he
is
challenging
this
man's
willingness
to
follow
him
we
know
from
other
accounts
that
Jesus
knew
exactly
what
was
going
on
in
people's
hearts
even
as
he
spoke
to
them
and
for
this
man
this
was
likely
an
excuse
that
he
was
making
some
suggest
that
probably
his
father
had
not
even
died
but
was
older
and
so
it
was
likely
a
matter
of
well
Jesus
I
would
like
to
follow
you
but
my
dad
is
older
and
we
don't
know
how
long
we
have
left
with
him
but
once
he
passes
I'll
be
more
in
a
position
to
follow
you
there's
kind
of
an
indefinite
time
period
maybe
later
now
certainly
the man's
father
is
important
in fact
it's
even
one
of
the
ten
commandments
honor
your
father
and
mother
but
even
more
important
than
family
is
the
call
of
Christ
to
follow
him
our
relationship
with
God
and
our
obedience
to
his
son
should
take
the
highest
priority
in
our
lives
think
about
this
man
has
an
invitation
from
the
very
son
of
God
to
follow
and
it
seems
he's
making
an
excuse
and
brushing
it
off
trying
to
say
a
good
excuse
something
that
should
be
acceptable
surely
Jesus
I'm
to
honor
my
father
in
these
last
days
of
his
life
and
see
that
he
has
a
proper
burial
and
that
his
wishes
are
carried
out
so
I'll
have
to
decline
I
can't
follow
you
Jesus
response
is
very
strange
to
us
anyway
he
says
let
the
dead
bury
their
own
dead
but
you
go
and
proclaim
the
kingdom
of
God
now
this
is
a
difficult
statement
to
understand
what
does
this
mean
there's
two
different
ideas
about
what
it
means
I'll
just
give
you
both
of
them
because
to
be
honest
I'm
not
really
sure
first
obviously
we can't
take this
literally
because
it's
impossible
for
dead
people
to
bury
dead
people
and
so
it's
obviously
a
figure
of
speech
one
idea
is
that
Jesus
is
saying
let
those
who
are
spiritually
dead
bury
the
dead
but
you
go
and
proclaim
the
kingdom
of
God
in
other
words
let
those
who
don't
believe
in
the
gospel
of
the
kingdom
or
care
about
following
me
let
them
bury
him
they
can
look
after
that
but
you
come
and
follow
me
so
that's
one
idea
the
other
idea
is
that
Jesus
words
are
purely
rhetorical
like
let
the
dead
bury
themselves
but
you
go
and
proclaim
the
kingdom
of
God
in
other
words
that's
the
sort
of
thing
that
can
look
after
itself
somebody
will
bury
your
father
don't
let
that
keep
you
from
doing
what
you
need
to
do
it
might
be
similar
to
what
Jesus
said
in
the
sermon
on
the
mount
when
he
said
don't
worry
about
tomorrow
for
tomorrow
will
worry
about
itself
of
course
tomorrow
can't
really
worry
about
itself
but
it's
a
rhetorical
statement
the
dead
can't
bury
themselves
but
you're
making
excuses
man
when
will
it
be
time
when
will
you
be
ready
to
follow
me
follow
me
proclaim
the
kingdom
of
God
with
me
now
today
and
then
finally
there's
this
third
man
here
he
says
I will
follow
you
Lord
but
first
let me
go
back
and
say
goodbye
to
my
family
and
Jesus
replies
no
one
who
puts
a
hand
to
the
plow
and
looks
back
is
fit
for
service
in
the
kingdom
of
God
this
is
probably
really
similar
to
the
man
who
wanted
to
bury
his
father
you
know
it's
not
that
Jesus
is
so
heartless
that
he
requires
us
to
leave
our
family
without
ever
saying
goodbye
more
likely
Jesus
sees
in
this
man's
heart
an
excuse
and
even
a
deeply
divided
heart
and
if
you
go
and
say
goodbye
to
your
family
will
you
really
come
back
after
that
and
follow
me
or
will
you
just
decide
to
stay
there
with
them
for
this
man
in
this
time
following
Jesus
I mean
Jesus
is traveling
all over
the place
it will
require
that he
be away
from his
family
a lot
and so
this
man
must
choose
between
being
with
them
and
following
Jesus
is
basically
saying
here
that
there
is
more
important
kingdom
work
to do
in the
service
of God
right
now
and if
that
reality
has not
overwhelmingly
captured
your
heart
then
you're
not
fit
for
service
in the
kingdom
of God
the
metaphor
here
is of
a
person
plowing
a
field
and
of
course
this
is
well
before
the
days
of
tractors
and
GPS
so
you
had
to
keep
your
gaze
your
focus
straight
ahead
of
you
to
plow
a
straight
line
and
if
you're
constantly
looking
back
over
your
shoulder
then
you're
veering
all over
the
place
up
and
down
the
field
the
owner
of
the
field
would
not
appreciate
that
too
much
he
wants
his
plowman
constantly
focused
making
straight
lines
not
looking
back
over
his
shoulder
at
something
totally
unrelated
to
the
work
in the
same
way
Jesus
desires
his
followers
to be
focused
deeply
on
the
work
that
he
has
given
them
to
do
not
distracted
and
doing
a
poor
job
because
their
hearts
are
preoccupied
with
other
things
God
has
given
us
work
to
do
in
his
kingdom
is
that
your
main
focus
to
serve
God
to
do
his
will
putting
all
these
three
together
we see
that
many
are
invited
to
follow
Jesus
to
be
his
disciples
and
many
even
express
an
interest
or
make
some
sort
of
commitment
but
few
really
count
the
cost
few
are
willing
to
put
Jesus
as
number
one
in
their
lives
and
to
let
everything
else
look
after
itself
I
remember
a time
in my
own
life
where
I
came
to
a
sort
of
crossroads
as
a
young
man
I
remember
hearing
all
the
time
that
I
needed
to
put
Jesus
first
in
my
life
and
everything
else
second
but
I
struggled
so
deeply
with
that
there
were
things
in
my
life
that
I
loved
more
than
Jesus
there
were
things
that
I
felt
were
more
important
than
following
Jesus
and
so
I
tried
for
a
period
of
time
to
give
Jesus
51%
of
my
life
and
my
heart
while
giving
49%
to
things
I
loved
most
that
way
he
was
still
first
in
my
life
and
I
was
a
good
Christian
and
everything
else
was
second
but
it
tore
me
apart
I
could
hardly
live
that
way
I
felt
like
I
was
chasing
a
mirage
like
I
was
trying
to
live
two
different
lives
I
was
truly
like
the
plow
man
trying
to
go
straight
in
the
field
while
looking
back
over
my
shoulder
constantly
zigzagging
back
and
forth
able
to
do
neither
very
well
and
I
became
miserable
and
depressed
but
then
finally
Jesus
call
to
follow
him
broke
through
to
the
heart
of
my
heart
and
I
saw
that
Jesus
isn't
looking
only
to
have
51%
of
my
life
he's
not
interested
in
just
being
number
one
out
of
ten
in
my
life
he's
looking
to
have
a hundred
percent
of
my
life
and
to
be
one
out
of
one
the
one
and
the
only
in
my
life
let
the
rest
fall
into
place
around
that
or be
left
behind
!
is
just
getting
stronger
and
yet
the
joy
I
have
in
the
service
of
my
King
is
just
getting
stronger
this
world
offers
so much
to us
but
none
of that
is worth
more
than
following
Jesus
like
this
as
Jesus
said to
the
crowd
earlier
in
this
very
chapter
what
good
is it
for
someone
to gain
the
whole
world
yet
lose
or
forfeit
their
very
self
there
is
kingdom
work
to do
in
the
service
of
God
in
the
service
of
Christ
are
you
willing
to
leave
everything
to
follow
Jesus
and
to
do
this
work
in
service
of
him
as
you
think
over
the
ways
that
Jesus
talked
with
these
three
people
what
about
you
which
of
these
three
do
you
identify
with
the
most
do
you
hear
Jesus
calling
to
you
saying
follow
me
are
you
like
the
man
who
has
said
yes
I
will
but
first
let
me
are
you
like
the
man
who
said
I
will
follow
you
wherever
you
go
but
then
Jesus
called
him
on
it
what
excuses
have
you
been
making
about
why
you
can't
follow
Jesus
with
everything
what
do
you
think
Jesus
would
say
to
you
about
your
particular
excuses
let
the
words
of
Jesus
come
and
flood
into
your
heart
let
him
speak
to
you
yield
to
his
words
let's
pray
let