Luke 18:23-27

Click here for the Luke 18:23-27 PODCAST

23 When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. 24 Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! 25 Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” 26 Those who heard this asked, “Who then can be saved?” 27 Jesus replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.” ~ Luke 18:23-27

The events of today's text happens in response to the question of the rich young ruler in Luke 18:18: "What do I do to inherit eternal life?" Here is a man who believed in God. The Lord Jesus doesn't say one thing to this man about faith. He doesn't tell him to believe. He doesn't tell him what to believe. He doesn't give him facts to believe. The rich young ruler's issue was discovered within his heart. Salvation begins in the heart.

No matter what we may believe, no one enters the kingdom of God unless we confess our sinfulness and submit our eternity to the person of the Jesus Christ as our Savior. Salvation is not just about what we believe concerning God and His work. In addition, it is about what we believe concerning our own hearts. It is about coming to the end of ourselves and it is about recognizing that we have not and will not achieve anything to merit God's favor.

In John 17:3 we read, "Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent." “Eternal life” is God's life. For mankind, eternal life is having a personal relationship with God through His Son, the Lord Jesus. We can not have a personal relationship with God but through the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus. This is justification and it precedes sanctification.

The practical result of having a personal relationship with God is being given His definition of all things. This is sanctification, not to be confused with justification which is being made right and acceptable before God. Justification renders a personal relationship with God wherein we have the possibility of growing in a deepening knowledge of God and His ways. It is out of this relationship with God that we learn to view time through the lens of His word and eternity.

In v.23 we read, "When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy." When the rich young ruler heard the words of the Lord Jesus, "Give all you have to the poor and come and follow me", he was sad because he was used to being defined by His wealth.

The Lord Jesus was not saying that everyone must give up all their wealth in order to be saved. It is not possessing riches that keeps people out of heaven. It is not even being possessed by riches and trusting them that makes salvation difficult for the wealthy. It is our willingness to allow God the experience of driving His flag into our existence that makes the difference. The one thing this young man lacked was the Lord Jesus. 

In v.24-25 we read, "24 Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! 25 Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God."

It is impossible for rich people who trust in their wealth to be saved. The Jews had been conditioned for thousands of years that wealth was a sign of God's favor. They assumed that their acceptance before God was based on certain conditions, like wealth. But God's grace is the opposite of their assumptions. His grace is unconditional acceptance given to an undeserving people by an unobligated giver.

Some say this needle of which the Lord Jesus spoke in v.25, was a reference to the Needle Gate, a low and narrow after-hours entrance found in the wall surrounding Jerusalem. It was purposely small for security reasons, and a camel could only go through it by stripping off any saddles or packs and crawling through on its knees. 

Others say, "No, no, the Lord Jesus is referring to a survival needle and an actual camel ring through it." Whichever is correct, the point is it is an impossibility. And to add to that was the fact these Jews believed that riches were a mark of God’s blessing in their life. So they ask, “Who then can be saved?” 

The world is full of people who are caught up in religion because they are aware of the huge hole in the human soul.  And, most can't figure out what's missing. This is the cry of the unsatisfied, the unfulfilled heart. The answer is to get to the place where we cry to God out of our lack. But, this man's life-long habit of appearing to have it all together fought against him.

In v.27 we read, "Jesus replied, “What is impossible with man is possible with God." Only God can bridge the chasm that man created, separating us from God. And, He did this by sending His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, who took our sin head on and defeated it. As a result, the foundation of Christianity is God’s faithfulness, not ours. 

Christianity is Good News, not good advice, good technique, or good behavior. We experience His eternal life, not ours. We, in no way, contribute to the life the Lord Jesus died to give us. And, His life, eternal life is unaffected by death.

Luke 18:18-22

Click here for the Luke 18:18-22 PODCAST

18 A ruler questioned Him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 19 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone. 20 You know the commandments, ‘Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother.’” 21 And he said, “All these things I have kept from my youth.” 22 When Jesus heard this, He said to him, “One thing you still lack; sell all that you possess and distribute it to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” Luke 18:18-22

A young man who was moral, religious and devout asked of the Lord Jesus a question. In addition, this young man was a leader, he was prosperous, he was respected and he was influential. He was also the ruler of a synagogue. But one thing he lacked: he had never come to the end of himself and trusted in the God of the Bible for his salvation.

In v.18 we read, "A ruler questioned Him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" This ruler of a synagogue came to the Lord Jesus with this question. Even though it was good that he came to the Lord Jesus with this question, the premise of the question is wrong because no human can be or do enough good to inherit eternal life.

This man had everything one could want, but he was not at peace. He had money, power, status, morality, and leadership.  Yet, he was not satisfied. This only goes to prove nothing in this world will ever truly satisfy us, for God created us with a God-shaped vacuum that only He can fill.

Now, according to Mark, this ruler of the synagogue ran to the Lord Jesus. He had a strong and passionate desire in his heart to get this issue settled and he came to believe that the Lord Jesus could possibly help him. And when He arrived, according to Mark, he fell on his knees. 

Not long after his conversation with the Lord Jesus, this man went away having never received eternal life. He may be the only man in the Gospels who came to the feet of the Lord Jesus and went away in worse condition than before he came. He went his own way in great sorrow.

His problem was his dishonesty. In spite of the fact that he came to the right person, and received the right answer to his question, he rendered the wrong response. Like all religious people, he was superficial. The religious must be superficial because we all know no one can be perfect in his actions. And, if we are trying to earn our desires through our goodness, we must never let anyone see our badness.

In v.18 he referenced the Lord Jesus as “Good Teacher," a description the Jews only used of God. This explains why the Lord Jesus, in v.19, asked the young man, "Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone?" 

The subsequent behavior of the ruler proved that he did not believe the Lord Jesus was God. If he really thought he was in the presence of Almighty God, why did he argue politely about the law, brag about his character, and then refuse to obey His words? Surely he knew that God sees the heart and knows all things!

In v.20 we read, "You know the commandments, ‘Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother.’” The ruler had a superficial view of his own sin. No doubt he sincerely tried to keep the law; in fact, this may have been what brought him to the feet of the Lord Jesus in the first place. The Lord Jesus did not quote the law to him as a means of salvation, because obedience to the law does not save us. He held the law before the young man as a mirror to reveal his sins.

In v.21, the ruler said, "All these things I have kept from my youth." Since he thought he had kept the law his whole life from his youth, he still knew he did not have eternal life. There was doubt in his mind and this is why he came to the Lord Jesus in the first place.

According to Matthew 19:17 the Lord Jesus also said, “If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments." The Lord Jesus was speaking to him in his own language. All this ruler ever knew was good works. All he had ever known was self-produced achievement, self-made morality and spirituality. 

In v.22 we read, "When Jesus heard this, He said to him, “One thing you still lack; sell all that you possess and distribute it to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me."

This young man failed to understand that by the law we learn of our sinfulness. He looked into the mirror of God's word and did not see the sin in his own life. He saw the law as a means to feel good about himself. He failed to understand the principle that if we break the law in one point, we've broken it all.  

He also failed to see that the law cannot save us. He tried to establish his own righteousness, failing to understand the true righteousness of God as revealed in the law. 

In order to inherit eternal life, we must confess our sin and we must realize that we can not earn God's acceptance by our obedience to the law. The Lord Jesus didn't argue with this man. Rather, He informed him that salvation is reserved for those who face their sin and their inability to measure up and come in total abandonment and submission to Him. 

The emphasis of the Bible is on the work of the Redeemer, not on the work of the redeemed, especially when it comes to our salvation. William Hordern once said, "It is never our repentance that causes God's forgiveness; rather, it is God's forgiveness that causes our repentance."

Luke 18:15-17

Click here for the Luke 18:15-17 PODCAST

15 And they were bringing even their babies to Him so that He would touch them, but when the disciples saw it, they began rebuking them. 16 But Jesus called for them, saying, “Permit the children to come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. 17 Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.” Luke 18:15-17

Luke placed this short section about childlike faith here to follow up on the message of the previous parable. Self-righteousness is no savior for any man and the Lord Jesus constantly pointed this out in His teaching. He pictured mankind as debtors and too bankrupt to pay what we owe. Yet, most are completely deceived regarding the prerequisite for salvation.

The Lord Jesus desires of us child-like faith. The only way to enter God’s kingdom is to become like a child and be born again. If the proud Pharisee had become like a child, he too would have gone home justified.

This is why we read in v.15, "And they were bringing even their babies to Him so that He would touch them."  Mothers desired to expose their children to the Lord Jesus. Of all the word-pictures presented to us in the four Gospels this is the most precious. Although their culture did not value children, the Lord Jesus did. And, this shows how far the religious community had drifted from the Word of God.

In the second half of v.15 we read, "But when the disciples saw it, they began rebuking them." Even the disciples had been duped by an improper handling of the Word of God. and, that improper handling of God's word had trickled down into the Jewish culture.

In v.16 we read, "But Jesus called for them, saying, 'Permit the children to come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these."'  God's love for little children is confirmed throughout all of the Scriptures. And, His kingdom is made up of those who have child-like qualities. In fact, in the previous parable of the Pharisee and the Tax-collector, the Pharisee lacked such qualities. 

The Kingdom belongs to the lowly, the humble and the failures. Like children, those who enter God's kingdom cannot achieve anything that would cause God to respond favorably to them. This is why the Lord makes it clear that the kingdom belongs to the lowly, the humble and the failures. The kingdom belongs to those who have no merit, no achievement, no moral, no spiritual and no religious achievement, those who cannot on their own do anything to earn salvation. And none are a better illustration of this than children who have achieved nothing.

Now, this does not mean they are not sinful. No, children are sinful and have fallen out of a personal relationship with God. The Lord Jesus was not attributing to children any innate goodness. Rather, he highlights certain qualities possessed by little children that are essential for entering God’s kingdom. 

In Mark 10:15 we read, "Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it at all." Little children provide the best illustration of how we are saved. We are saved by God's sovereign grace invading our lives when we have concluded that we are helpless on our own. And like a little child who is trusting, unpretentious, dependent, and helpless, we come into the kingdom.

Having said all of this, we must remember: God’s promises are never forfeited by the weakness of our faith. And, as a result, the grace of God gives us the freedom to face the tormenting realities of life and eternity. The cross of the Lord Jesus is always and forever there to repeat over and over to our forgetful and unbelieving hearts that God meets our guiltiness with His grace, our shame with His salvation, and our regret with His redemption.

Luke 18:9-14

Click here for the Luke 18:9-14 PODCAST

9 And He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt: 10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’ 13 But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.” ~ Luke 18:9-14

Today's text begins with another parable of the Lord Jesus spoken for the benefit of the religious. Most people when asked, "Why should God let you into His heaven?" respond with: "I'm a good person. My goodness out weighs my badness." The religious think good people go to heaven and bad people go to Hell. Morality wins the favor of God, so they think. 

In this story, we have the Pharisee, who was the epitome of the religious guy earning God's favor through his moral choices. He is as good as it gets. He is the poster child for religion. The problem is he can not be good enough to merit God's acceptance. The problem with self-made men is they tend to worship their creator.

The self-confessed sinner, on the other hand, is as bad as it gets. He is the most despised of all outcasts, and yet, he is the one of whom the Lord Jesus said, "this man went to his house justified.” That idea to a Jew in the Judaism of that day would have been met with outrage, and it was.

Now remember, the subject of the Lord Jesus' teaching to that point had been the kingdom of God. The Lord Jesus taught: “The kingdom of God is within you.” His point is that His presence is what makes the sinner holy and acceptable before God. But, religion teaches that we can be good enough somehow by our morality to be made right before God.

To be "justified" is to be treated as righteous. It means to be declared guiltless, forgiven, and cleared of all charges. And, that it is necessary for someone to enter into God's kingdom. We have to be forgiven, we have to be declared not guilty.  Religion says we can achieve it on our own, and Scripture says we absolutely cannot. 

In v.10-12 we read, "10 Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get."

Five times in v.11-12 the Pharisee refers to himself, a clear indication of whom he worshiped. He asked God for absolutely nothing because in his eyes, he needed nothing from God. He affirmed his own righteousness. In fact, he highlighted his fasting and giving. Even though he had a corrupt heart and wicked thoughts and wicked intentions, he thought he was good before God.

In v.13, we read, "But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner." 

In the Middle East, one of the ways that people prayed was to put their hands over their chest and put their eyes down. This was a posture of humility, crossing the hands, bowing the eyes. But this man goes beyond that. He places his hands on his chest, his eyes down, he begins to turn his hands into fists and pound his chest rapidly and repeatedly. This was a gesture that was used to express the most extreme sorrow and anguish. There's only one other place in the Bible where this happens: it was at the cross of Christ when He died.

Tax-collectors were the most hated people in Israel. They were the most defiled. They were, in the eyes of the people, the farthest from God. And it wasn't just their profession that bothered people, it's how they carried it out. They were corrupt. And so this is the worst sinner the Lord Jesus can portray in this brief story.

The Tax-collector stood a considerable distance away because he knew he didn't deserve to be in the presence of God or even the presence of those who were righteous. He knew he was a sinner and he had no right to be near God.

"He was unwilling to lift up his eyes to God." Contrary to the Pharisee, who was happy to stand with arms up, open-faced, looking to God, assuming and manifesting that he would certainly be acceptable before God, this man was overwhelmed with his guilt and shame. He knew he was unworthy. He felt the weight of his sin and he was broken. 

The difference between these two was the honesty of the Tax-collector. Notice his words in v.13, "Be merciful to me."  The Greek verb used here is hilaskomai, which means to propitiate or to make satisfactory. This man who had made some really bad decisions was brutally honest about his condition. He asked God to be propitious to him. That is to say, "God, please apply your atonement to me." 

He understood the scripture which read, "the wages of sin is death," and "the soul that sins it shall die." He was saying, "I am a wretched sinner. I am unworthy to stand near you. I am unworthy to look up toward you. I am in profound agony and anguish over my wretchedness. I need atonement for my sinfulness." 

The self-righteous pride of the religious prevented him to experience the embrace of the all loving God of the Bible, because his self-righteous pride had separated him from God. Atonement was worthless to this self-righteous religious man.

The difference? The broken-hearted Tax-collector experienced the all loving embrace of the God of the Bible because he acknowledged his deep need and embraced the atonement of God. He pleaded with God to apply to him His atonement. He knew he could not bridge this mighty gap. He knew only God could remedy his problem.

As a result, he was instantaneously made perfect before God for the righteousness of God was credited to him. This is what happens when we confess our sin to God and receive the free gift of salvation from God through the death of His Son.

Luke 18:1-8

Click here for the Luke 18:1-8 PODCAST

1 Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart, 2 saying, “In a certain city there was a judge who did not fear God and did not respect man. 3 There was a widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, ‘Give me legal protection from my opponent.’ 4 For a while he was unwilling; but afterward he said to himself, ‘Even though I do not fear God nor respect man, 5 yet because this widow bothers me, I will give her legal protection, otherwise by continually coming she will wear me out.’” 6 And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge *said; 7 now, will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry to Him day and night, and will He delay long over them? 8 I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?” ~ Luke 18:1-8

So, today we transition into Luke 18 where the Lord Jesus turns our attention toward prayer, one of the disciplines that strengthens our faith in Him. To accomplish this goal, the Lord Jesus tells a story of a poor widow who persistently badgers an uncaring judge to hear her case. Incidentally, Luke mentions widows more than do all the other gospel writers combined. 

Having just taught on the particulars surrounding His Second Coming, the Lord Jesus accentuates the person who persistently seeks Him. Prayer is a clear sign of our personal relationship and fellowship with the Lord Jesus.

Before we dive into today's text, I must highlight the difference between our relationship with the Lord and our fellowship with Him. One is a matter of birth, while the other is a matter of choice. Our relationship with God is based upon the performance of the Lord Jesus and our faith in His performance on our behalf. 

Our fellowship, on the other hand, with God is based upon our choices to interact with Him on a daily basis. I find it very instructive that it is the pressures of this life that force us to consider the most important questions and drives us to His heart. In this parable we learn that if we pray, we will be strengthened in our faith by the person we seek. 

In this parable the Lord Jesus is not comparing God to an unjust judge. The parable should be read in the context of His earlier comment: "If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"

So, if even the most unjust of judges concedes to the ceaseless petitions of a defenseless widow, how much more will God answer us when we persistently pray?

In v.2 of today's text, the phrase “did not respect” means "to be put to shame." This judge had no shame, and this was not a rare thing in that day. The Middle Eastern culture was a shame-honor culture. They did what brought them honor at all cost, and they avoided all things that brought them shame.   

In v.3 we read, "There was a widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, ‘Give me legal protection from my opponent." Someone had defrauded this lady and she was destitute. In their culture women did not have the right to appear before the judge. This lady in the story represents the destitute, the powerless, the helpless, the deprived, the lowly, the unloved, and the desperate.

In v.4 we read, "For a while he was unwilling." This man "was unwilling," in fact, he admits this at the end of v.4 "afterward he said to himself, ‘Even though I do not fear God nor respect man."  He was first to admit he had no noble motive whatsoever.  

In v.5 we read, "yet because this widow bothers me, I will give her legal protection, otherwise by continually coming she will wear me out." This judge was literally saying, "She causes me trouble, she is irritating me.” Every day she was there and every day she was pleading her case. And, her persistence changed the mind of this unjust judge who did not fear God. 

The phrase at the end of v.5, "wear me out," was a boxing term and it means "to strike someone with a full blow in the eye." This lady was beating this judge up repeatedly with her petitions. This powerful judge was defeated by this poor widow through her persistence. 

In v.6-7 we read, "6 And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge *said; 7 now, will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry to Him day and night, and will He delay long over them?"

If a judge who is like that will do what is right for someone for whom he has no concern, how much more will God do what is right for those who have been bought through the death of His Son on the cross? 

Like this helpless widow, we are at the mercy of the judge. But this judge is not like the God of the Bible. He is as unlike God as you can get. The God of the Bible is always compassionate, merciful, gracious, tender-hearted, and kind. And He will do what He says He will do for His own. Of course, if we haven't believed in the finished work of the Lord Jesus on the cross, we do not have access to His loving heart.

And the key here is discovered in v.7 which reads, "Who cry to Him day and night." During the Tribulation, things will be so bad that those who believe in the Lord Jesus will find the conditions on earth to be so bad that their persistence in prayer will be natural. Our trials are truly more of a gift than we know for they drive us to converse with God.

In v.8 we read, "I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?" God will bring about speedy, quick, and sudden justice. And, believers will keep praying because persistent prayer will be his joy and will keep him from losing heart.

The closing thought in v.8, "However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?" is the focus. Genuine Christianity never loses its trust in Christ. But, it is easy to be distracted.  

In Matthew 24:9-14 we read, "9 “Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name. 10 At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another. 11 Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many. 12 Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved. 14 This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come." The awful environment during the Tribulation will produce a persistently prayerful people. 

We are all diamonds in the rough. A diamond is nothing more than a clump of carbon that refuses to give in to pressure. Diamonds are the hardest known natural material on earth. What makes the diamond so strong is the intense heat and pressure causes carbon to crystalize over the course of thousands of years. Formed deep within the earth, diamonds are brought to the earth’s surface by violent pressure and change. Interestingly, the very same thing that makes the diamond so strong is the very thing that makes it so beautiful.

As with diamonds, so it is with you and me. Life’s sudden upheavals bring us to the most valuable relationship we will ever have. The incredible pressure we face during our hardships and fiery trials drive us to the Lord Jesus Himself. As time continues, this hidden treasure within us begins to emerge. A diamond’s resilient nature makes it stable, pure, and strong. But this doesn’t happen overnight. 

God uses the intensity of crisis and the force of adversity to rid us of self. When He finally emerges from the very darkest, crushing, breaking experiences in our lives, we appear to be the strongest and the brightest we’ve ever been. But, the reality is He is the treasure within.

Luke 17:31-37

Click here for the Luke 17:31-37 PODCAST

31 On that day no one who is on the housetop, with possessions inside, should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything. 32 Remember Lot’s wife! 33 Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it. 34 I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. 35 Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and the other left.” 36 Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other will be left.”37 “Where, Lord?” they asked. He replied, “Where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather.” Luke 17:31-37

Several times in the Gospels the Lord Jesus speaks of His Second Coming. In our text for today, He focuses on the nature of His next physical coming to the earth. And, it will be the most horrific event the world has ever seen. The Jews didn't understand, they assumed that the Messiah would come and set up His kingdom, and, for them, it would be a time of joy and blessing. But, due to their rejection of the Lord Jesus during His first coming, they will be in no position to be prepared to face His judgement at His Second Coming.

The Second Coming will affect the whole world and when He returns He will come in judgment, then He will establish His kingdom on earth. Believers of every age can take comfort from today's verses, but these words apply in a special way to Israel at the end of the age. 

Now, according to 1 Corinthians 15:52, when the Lord Jesus comes for His church and takes us to heaven in the Rapture, it will happen “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye.” Nobody taking part in the Rapture need worry about being on a housetop or in a field and wanting to get something out of the house! 

However, when the Second Coming happens, according to Matthew 24:30-31, the Lord will physically return to the earth. His coming will first be preceded by a “sign” in heaven, and some will try to hurry home to rescue something. The admonition in v.32 to “Remember Lot’s wife” is very instructive. 

Genesis 19 chronicles the events of that day. While they were fleeing Sodom, Lot's wife looked back and became a pillar of salt. Before all of this happened, when the angels instructed Lot and his family to flee Sodom they warned them not to look back. It was only after Lot, his wife, and two daughters had escaped and had reached the small city of Zoar that the Lord rained down fire and brimstone on Sodom. Such a wonder would have been hard to ignore.

But, it was not the curious gaze of one witnessing that miraculous destruction that turned Lot’s wife into a pillar of salt. It was the longing desire in her heart that caused her backward look. A coveting of what she had left behind is what ended her life. She looked back because she wanted to go back. She left behind material wealth and comfort. Sodom looked a lot nicer than the way in front of her. She looked back to the world instead of forward to God’s plan for her life. This is a reminder when the Lord Jesus comes on that day, His coming will reveal whether the people's hearts are with Him or not. 

There is a good reason why we cannot see into our future. God wants us to walk by faith and depend upon Him, learning to walk closer to the edge of life with Him. Additionally, if He were to reveal His plans for our future, it would overwhelm us! We must live in the moment, as we encounter a life of watching Him work in and through us for the sake of the lost.

If we look to our past with longing, resentment will probably build within our hearts. Bitterness is an ugly root difficult to extract. If our spiritual gaze were frozen at this very moment, where would it be fixed? Each day is a gift and within this gift, there are many choices. Will you decide to live a forward moving life or one that wallows in sorrow over the sin-saturated existence that was once your past? You may call the past your glory days but the truth is you have yet to live them. Your glory days are waiting for you in your eternal home.

By the way, in Matthew 24:15, a parallel passage to today's text, we read, "When you see the abomination of desolation spoken of through Daniel the prophet." Daniel prophesied an event in which the Antichrist will go into the temple in Jerusalem which will be rebuilt and desecrate it and at that moment break a peace covenant that he made with the Jews. This is one of the preliminary judgments to the final judgment three and a half years later at the return of Christ. 

The verb "taken" in v.34–36 does not mean “taken to heaven” but “taken away in judgment” as is spelled out in Matthew 24:36–41. The person “left” is the one who enters into His kingdom because they believed. Noah and his family were “left” to enjoy a new beginning, while the whole population of the earth was “taken” in the flood. Lot and his daughters were “left” while the people in Sodom and Gomorrah were “taken” when the fire and brimstone destroyed the cities.

In v.37 we read, "Where, Lord?” they asked. He replied, “Where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather." The last battle is described in Revelation 19:17–21. It describes the image of vultures gorging themselves on the flesh of man and beasts. When the Lord Jesus returns to judge His enemies, there will be a separation of the saved and the lost. Those who are saved will be left to enter His kingdom, while those who are lost will be taken away in judgment.

Nothing is said in today's text about the Millennial Kingdom because there won't be any Millennial Kingdom for people who don't come to faith in the Lord Jesus. The Jews thought they were going to be in the kingdom just because they were born Jewish. But, as the scriptures clearly point out, all must make a judgement about the Lord Jesus and His claim of being "The way, the truth and the life." And, we who believe must be ardent in these last days in helping the lost see the reality of the end and that there is only one way into God's eternal kingdom.

Luke 17:25-30

Click here for the Luke 17:25-30 PODCAST

25 But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. 26 “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all. 28 “It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. 29 But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all. 30 “It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed. ~ Luke 17:25-30

Our text begins with the necessity of the cross of the Lord Jesus. "He must suffer many things." This is referring  particularly to His death on Calvary's tree. And, our text is establishing the Lord Jesus will not come again until He takes sin and death head on and whips them. 

In addition, notice in v.25, "But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation." The Lord Jesus cannot return until Israel's rejection of Him ends. Paramount in all of time and eternity is and will be the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. Viewing all things through the lens of His cross is the answer. His cross makes sense of all things.

In Zechariah 12:10 we read, "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son."  

When Israel recognizes the pierced Lord Jesus, they will grieve and repent and return to the Lord. And, out of their broken condition they will cry out to Him and the penalty for their sins will be a thing of the past for those who believe. 

In Romans 9-11, the Apostle Paul tells us that all Israel will be saved. This is the purpose of the the seventieth seven of Daniel 9:24-27, also known as the Tribulation. As the judgment of God is being measured out on the world during that time, at the same time Israel will be convicted and will turn back to the Lord. 

Before all of this happens, the rapture of the church comes first. And then, according to Revelation 7, the Lord will purify a people (Israel) for Himself and a 144,000 will proclaim the gospel to the ends of the earth, warning all of the greater judgment to come, calling them to return to the Lord for His salvation. When this happens, Christ will then return and set up His kingdom on the earth.

In Luke 17:26 we read, "Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man." And, then in v.28 we read, "It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building." This is referring to the Second Coming of Christ. 

Here, the Lord Jesus used two Old Testament events to illustrating the certainty and the suddenness of His coming: the flood in Genesis 6-8 and the destruction of Sodom and Gommorah in Genesis 19. In both examples, the people of the world were caught unprepared as they engaged in their everyday lives. Noah witnessed to his generation in the years preceding the flood, but his preaching did not convert them. Noah and his wife, his three sons, and their wives were saved from destruction because they entered the ark. 

Both Noah and Lot lived in days of moral decline. During “the days of Noah,” population growth was significant, lawlessness was on the increase, and the earth was given over to violence. In Lot’s day, the unnatural lusts of men were so abhorrent to God that He completely destroyed their cities. Only Lot, two of his daughters, and his wife were saved from God's judgment.

That's the way it will be in the days when the Son of Man comes. It didn't get better before the judgment fell in Noah and Lot's days and it won't get better before the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus happens.

Evil will be rampant. In fact, we seeing it increasing now. According to Revelation 9, and Hell will release a force of demons that have been kept captive for a while. And, according to 2 Thessalonians 2:6-7, the Spirit of God who up until this time had restrained evil in the world, will be removed. So it will be like the day of Noah and like the day of Lot.

In v.29 we read, "But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all." It will come fast, and it will be inescapable. The results will be devastating.

Before the Flood, Noah was taken into safety in the Ark. Before the fire and brimstone, Lot and his daughters are taken to safety on a mountain. And before the unfolding of judgment during the Tribulation, God will rescue His own. And the ark of safety is the rapture of the church, the gathering together of His own, and then the judgment begins to be poured out.  And even those that are converted during the time of the Tribulation, the 70th 7, they will be rescued from God's judgment. Noah and his family are caught away. Then comes the judgment. Lot and his daughters are caught away. Then comes the judgment. In the future, the redeemed and the beloved of the Lord will be caught away in the Rapture.

In v.30 we read, "It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed." All on the earth will see Him at the Second Coming. Only those raptured up will see Him when He comes for us at the Rapture which could happen any day now. Are you ready? In Romans 10:9-10 we read, "9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved."

I recently had a conversation with a man whom I had shared the Gospel with just a year before. A year ago he told me he believed in the Gospel. Well, recently I asked him if he were to stand before God and God were to ask him, "Why should I let you into my heaven?" The man cited his good behavior for reason the Lord should let him into heaven. 

This is the wrong answer, my friends. The only adequate answer is that the Lord Jesus went to the cross to absorb in His body the punishment for our sin which separated us from God. And, on the authority of God's word, when we believe that the Lord Jesus died for us, was buried and was raised from the grave for the forgiveness of our sin, we shall be saved. I trust this is what you have embraced, my friend.

Luke 17:23-24

Click here for the Luke 17:23-24 PODCAST

23 People will tell you, ‘There he is!’ or ‘Here he is!’ Do not go running off after them. 24 For the Son of Man in his day will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. ~ Luke 17:23-24

Our text today begins with "People will tell you, ‘There he is!’ or ‘Here he is!’ Do not go running off after them." For the believer in Christ, our internal relationship with the Lord coupled with His abiding word keeps us from being deceived. Of course, we must be diligent to abide in His word or we will miss the equipment needed to discern what is true and what is false.

When the Lord Jesus comes next, He will not come to the earth. This one reason I believe in the Rapture of the Church. In 1 Thessalonians 4 we are told "we will go to meet the Lord in the air." And, at His Second Coming, which is different than the Rapture, His feet will touch down on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem.

In Zechariah 14:4 we read, "On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south.” The Lord Jesus will stand on the Mount of Olives, and it will be split in its middle from east to west by a large valley so that half the mountain will move toward the north, the other half toward the south. 

In Revelation 19:11 we read, "I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war." On the white horse the one sitting on it is called Faithful and True. In righteousness He judges and wages war.  He comes, first of all, in judgment.  And it tells us in Revelation 19:14, "The armies which are in heaven clothed in fine linen, white and clean." Those who went to heaven in the Rapture are those who come back to earth with Him. 

In Matthew 24:29 we read, "Immediately after the distress of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken." The sky will collapse. It will become dark.  And then, "the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky." He will light up the sky.  "And all the tribes of the earth will mourn and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory."  He's coming with great glory. Very different from the first time when He came in humility, born in that humble stable in Bethlehem.

In Zechariah 12:10 we read, “I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and of supplication so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced and they will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only son and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn."  

It will be at this moment, the people of Israel will recognize what they did to their Messiah. They will recognize they pierced their God and they will mourn. 

Then in Zechariah 13:1 we read, "“On that day a fountain will be opened to the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and impurity." At the Second Coming, salvation will come to Israel. And, Israel will recognize their Messiah. They will confess their sin of rejection, and they will embrace the true gospel. 

Then in Zechariah 14:9 we read, "The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and his name the only name."  This is when the Lord Jesus will establish His Millennial Kingdom. The Lord Jesus will come  with His saints, but not until there is judgment. And none of this happens until Israel has come to embrace the Lord Jesus Christ. At this point, this corrupt world will be judged when the Lord comes back and the paradise lost will be the paradise regained.

In 2 Peter 3:3-4 we read, "3 Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. 4 They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” Driven by their lusts and ignorance, the world will mock the Second Coming of Christ. And their argument is: everything is always the same, nothing ever changes. Sadness will enter their reality when it happens. Like those who lived in the days of Noah, they will be on the wrong side of history.

Finally, in Revelation 1:7 we read, "Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him: and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen." His work has and always will be done from the inside out. Those who allow the brokenness of heart to be the means to inviting Him in will spend eternity with gratitude in our hearts thanking Him for His wonderful grace.

Luke 17:22

Click here for the Luke 17:22 PODCAST

Then he said to his disciples, “The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. ~ Luke 17:22

Those who have a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus long for His return. We are not just waiting, we are looking and anticipating every day. We live in expectation everyday. We anticipate of His physical return and presence. We live looking forward to a realm without sin. This is the effect of His spiritual kingdom come to our hearts.

Today's text begins with, "The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man." God's kingdom is only for those who have experienced His spiritual kingdom. At the end of the seven year tribulation, the Lord Jesus will return to earth with all the Old Testament Saints and those who were raptured to Him before the Tribulation. At that time He will set up His reign on earth for a thousand years. This time is known as the Millennium described in Revelation 20.

There will be people born during His millennial kingdom. And, even though the world will be dominated by righteousness and peace and blessing and joy, there will still be those who will not believe. They will, at the end of that 1,000 years, be led by Satan who will be released from being bound for that 1,000 years. He will lead a final rebellion against the Lord Jesus who will prevail over Satan and those who oppose Him. The universe will melt with fervent heat and then the Lord will create a new heaven and the new earth.

But the kingdom to come will only be for those who are in His spiritual kingdom. In our text the Lord Jesus describes the nature of that kingdom which is here and is yet to come. Here is a description of the nature of His kingdom which is to win the human heart from the inside out.

Now, a brief overview of the book of the Revelation reveals the presence of the church in Revelation 1-3. Then, in Revelation 4-5, the church is in heaven gathered around the throne. How did the church get in heaven? The Rapture which is different than the Second Coming. In Revelation 6 the scene shifts back to earth and all hell breaks out on earth in a series of judgments. Seven seals are broken and out of them come seven judgments. Out of the seventh seal, toward the end of the seven-year period comes seven trumpet blasts, further judgments, which are more intense. Out of the seventh trumpet comes seven bowl judgments. Out of these bowls, judgement is dumped out onto the earth in rapid fire til the very end.

Revelation 6-19 describes the judgment of God being poured out onto the earth. And then in Revelation 19:11, the Lord appears in the heavens, and then in Revelation 20, He comes to earth and sets up His Kingdom. His millennial kingdom lasts for 1,000 years after which He puts down the rebellion by Satan and those born in the kingdom who rejected the Lord Jesus. God will destroy the whole universe and creates the new heaven and the new earth.

There's a weariness in this world and the longer we live in it, the more we long for His coming. But, as the Lord Jesus says in v.22, "you will not see it," it's delayed. The delay is in concert with His will and it creates anticipation in the hearts of believers. This is the inner working nature of His kingdom. Whether we are waiting for the Rapture or the Second Coming, we long for His appearing. This is revealing.

I find it quite instructive that God is always the one initiating relationship with man. In Acts 17:26-27 we read, "From one man God made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and He determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us." 

Then in John 3:17 we read, "God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him." God has always been intent upon giving man a chance to respond to His initiation to relate, be it Adam, Abraham, Jacob or you and me, His heart seeks us out.

The essence of our relationship with God must come from the heart. Our faith is not meant to be built on our works or our understanding, but rather on God’s relentless pursuit of us. We have relationship with our Creator not because we sought him out, but because He is always pursuing us. Any elements of Christian spirituality at work in our lives are the result of His constant grace drawing us deeper and deeper into the abundant life the Lord Jesus died to give us. Faith built on anything else but God’s pursuit is faith built on our own strength which will always produce an unsure and consistently failing foundation.

God is after our hearts right now. He daily knocks on the door of our hearts. This is the nature of His kingdom, and will be the nature of His kingdom for eternity. More important to Him than anything we can do for Him is His desire to show us how much His heart is for us. This type of love and intimacy has a profound effect on our hearts. We find ourselves responding to His pursuit of us by giving to Him our hearts. Sadly, there will those who will never see His heart for them and they will reject Him and they will spend eternity separated from Him.

Luke 17:20-21

Click here for the Luke 17:20-21 PODCAST

20 Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, 21 nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst.” ~ Luke 17:20-21

The kingdom of God is the theme in the remainder of Luke 17. In the first coming of the Lord Jesus, He came to establish His internal, spiritual kingdom. At His Second Coming, He will consummate His internal work in His millennial kingdom which will come after the seven years of tribulation yet to come. After that this universe will be destroyed and He will create a new heaven and earth in which eternally and for the first time since the Fall both kingdoms are merged into one.

God is sovereign over the physical and the spiritual realms. When He created this world, He made mankind unique, He made us both material and spiritual. Everything He created is under His sovereign control, yet, the kingdom of this world is in a state of rebellion. 

As a result, this world has been infected by sin and has been stunted from seeing the spiritual realm. In addition, this universe, which is also fallen, is winding down. The second law of thermodynamics, the law of entropy, has been unleashed by man's rebellion. And, as a result, all of creation is in the process of disintegrating. It is headed toward a disastrous conclusion where the universe will melt with fervent heat.

Due to mankind's rebellion, doubt has been assigned to the sovereignty of God. Yet, He has been known to allow it to appear that His sovereignty should be questioned, as before. Remember the cross? It appeared the enemy won and then it became clear on the third day, God is still sovereign.

The teaching of the Lord Jesus in Luke 17 is about a kingdom that exists within a kingdom. God is King universally by creation and He is King personally by revelation. He is King universally through what we could call natural revelation. He is King personally through special revelation, the revelation of Scripture, aided by the Holy Spirit.

Now, the Lord Jesus came into this world not to establish a universal kingdom, He already had established that. He has controlled over the sea, death and disease. No, He came into this world, our world, in order to establish his Kingdom in our hearts. The kingdom of God begins in the believing heart of those who come to the end of themselves. 

In v.20 we read, "Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed."  

This word translated “observed” means “to observe the future by signs.” It includes the idea of spying, and even scientific investigation. The Lord Jesus points out the kingdom of God would not come with great “outward show” so that people could predict its arrival and plot its progress.

The Pharisees’ question was tragic, for the Lord Jesus had been ministering among them for some three years, and these men were still in spiritual darkness. They did not want to understand who Jesus was or what He was seeking to accomplish. Their views of the kingdom were political, not spiritual; Jewish, not universal. 

In v.21 we read, “the kingdom of God is in your midst.” The kingdom of God comes when it is welcomed into our hearts! The Greek preposition used in this word can mean “within,” “among,” or “in the midst of.”  We are not to look for the kingdom "out there," it is discovered within our broken hearts.

I've discovered the enemy tries to distract us from what is most essential by tempting us to think God is not aware of us, nor is He involved in our lives in a specific way. It is essential for God to be involved in our lives for His kingdom to come to and in us. 

With that said, we must have a healthy divine imagination when it comes to our fellowship with God. Some say we are arrogant to think God speaks to us. But to this I say, didn't He promise to speak to us? Didn't He promise to sup with us and lead us? We must have faith to believe that He is involved deeply in our lives and that He is leading us as we follow Him.

The sooner we yield to His sovereign will, the better off we will be. It is foolish of us to think that we can run our lives better than He can. God's kingdom is only experienced through a cross-centered approach to life. We must be wise to embrace a theology which is very counterintuitive to even most in the Church. It is a theology which informs us that God is ever-present in our lives, including in our weaknesses. The key is to die to self daily and to yield to the leadership of the Holy Spirit in our lives. And, when we do this we discover God’s tool to set us free is the cross of Christ.

The cross of Christ will not only lead us to death to self, but is leads us to be transparent about our own suffering for the sake of others. We live in a broken world. And, we are a broken people living in a world with other broken people, and we must have God's intervention in our lives in order to make it. 

The Lord Jesus came to tell us the Christian life is not so much our movement toward Him as it is His movement toward us. We will never outgrow our need for God’s daily distribution of His grace into our lives. And, the distribution of His grace comes through the most unusual and unexpected means.