This was the final morning sermon I preached before the first Covid19 lockdown began in March 2020. Because we were very busy with other things I failed to post it online then. So here it is now.

Of all the parables Jesus told, everybody agrees that this is without doubt the most difficult to understand. The central character is a thief and a liar. Yet in the end he gets away with his crimes completely free. God is a God of justice and righteousness. How can we understand a parable where the hero is actually praised for breaking at least two of the Ten Commandments, stealing and lying? Let’s unwrap this story by reading it in its original setting.

The Master is a rich man who owns lots and lots of land. We know he is very rich and has lots and lots of land from the amounts of rent he is expecting. The debtors are the farmers who rent that land from the landowner year by year. They farm the land and when the harvest comes they pay either a fixed amount or a proportion of the harvest to the landowner.

In the middle between the landowner and the tenants is the manager. He acts as the agent for the landowner. He does the day to day work of arranging the contracts and collecting the rents on behalf of the owner. For that he receives a salary from the landowner and also some gratuities from the tenants. But in this story the manager is the bad guy. In some way which is not really explained he has mismanaged the accounts. There is no hint that the owner or the tenants have ever done anything wrong. It is all on the dishonest manager. He gets caught out and he is going to be sacked.

Jesus told his disciples: ‘There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. 2 So he called him in and asked him, “What is this I hear about you?

The manager daren’t say anything. He has been caught but he has no idea how much his boss actually knows or does not know. So he stays silent.

Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.”

At that point the manager is sacked. He has to turn over the books which say how much each tenant owes to the landowner. He has lost his job, his income, and with it his standing in the community as the manager trusted by the very rich landowner.

3 ‘The manager said to himself, “What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I’m not strong enough to dig, and I’m ashamed to beg—

This is a desperate situation. Sacked for dishonesty, the man would have few options. He could dig, the most menial and physically most demanding of jobs only taken by the poorest. If he didn’t dig he would have to beg which would be even more demeaning. But then in this desperate situation, the dishonest manager comes up with a masterplan!

4 I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.”
5 ‘So he called in each one of his master’s debtors. He asked the first, “How much do you owe my master?”
6 ‘ “Three thousand litres of olive oil,” he replied.
‘The manager told him, “Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it fifteen hundred.”
7 ‘Then he asked the second, “And how much do you owe?”
‘ “Thirty tons of wheat,” he replied.
‘He told him, “Take your bill and make it twenty-four.”

So the dishonest manager calls in the tenants one by one and offers them a quick deal. He knows that this will leave them in his debt. He reduces their bills. Two debtors are mentioned but the implication is that he does the same with all the Master’s tenants. If you do the sums on those bills, that amount of olive oil would represent the yield of nearly 150 trees and the quantity of wheat would come from 100 acres, which all goes to show how rich the rich man must have been! The discount each tenant is offered is worth around 500 denarii, or 500 times the daily wage for a labourer. By cutting their bills, the manager is making lots of friends who might offer him hospitality and maybe even give him a job. He was accused of “wasting the landowner’s possessions” which might imply that the rents he had arranged were too low to begin with. But on top of whatever he had done wrong with the accounts before, he is now lying and at the same time cheating his boss by reducing the rents. Which makes the punchline so unexpected.

8 ‘The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly.

Despite everything he had done wrong, in the end the dishonest manager was not punished. He was praised! This makes no sense! Until we look more closely at why he was praised.

8 ‘The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly.

The landowner didn’t praise the manager for being dishonest. But he did commend him for being shrewd. His cunning plan was truly worthy of Baldrick, the servant in the stories of Blackadder. It was indeed a plan “as cunning as a fox who’s just been appointed Professor of Cunning at Oxford University.” The manager was praised for being shrewd. The same word is more often translated wise, and is always considered to be a good thing. We saw that same word last week in Jesus’s parable of the wise or shrewd or prudent manager of the household in Luke 12:42 who did his job and faithfully took proper care of all the other servants. We heard a few weeks ago about the man who sensibly built his house upon the rock and not on the sand, who is described in Matthew 7:24 as the wise or shrewd man. In Matthew 25:2 Jesus told the parable of the wise and the foolish virgins, with the five who wisely and shrewdly prepared to be ready for the returning bridegroom.

As in all these parables, in the Old Testament as well wisdom or shrewdness or astuteness was often associated with self preservation – in particular, being clever and skillful in order to avoid impending judgment. The dishonest manager was shrewd, or wise, or astute, or as the Message translates it “streetwise” because he took steps to avoid the judgment which was falling on him for his dishonesty. And the landowner, the Master, praised him for that shrewdness.

So here is the first and more obvious reason why the Master praised the dishonest manager. He saw that inescapable judgment was coming, but he didn’t just sit around doing nothing. The manager took action to be prepare for the future. It was not so important that the action he took was dishonest. What was praiseworthy was that he actually did SOMETHING to be ready for the judgment to come. Very much of Jesus’s preaching was warning people to be ready for the day of judgment which was coming. So this parable is encouraging people to prepare for that day of crisis with the same shrewdness and prudence and astuteness and zeal as that manager. Far better to do something, to do almost anything, than to ignore the problem and just do nothing!

We may see difficulties with the hero being a villain. In fact Jesus’s contemporaries would not have seen a problem in such stories. Jesus told a story where the hero is a man who steals his neighbour’s treasure by buying his field and another about a judge described as “unjust” who ends up doing something good. We celebrate Robin Hood who steals from the rich to give to the poor without dwelling too much on the central truth that Robin is a thief. In the face of oncoming judgment, better to do something rather than do nothing.

But there is another less obvious way in which the manager was being shrewd or wise. Let me explain. It all hinges on one fact. At the moment when the manager was changing the bills of all the tenants, they did not know that he had been sacked! He had a narrow window of opportunity after had been fired but before the community heard about it. He has been fired but the community don’t yet know that. So he comes up with his cunning plan.

Remember that the manager’s job was to set up the contracts between landowner and tenants. He had arranged all the rents in the first place. When he comes to reduce the rents, the tenants think he is still acting on behalf of the owner. They don’t know the manager has been sacked – they think everything is above board. Most likely they are given the impression that the manager has negotiated these reductions in rent with the landowner on their behalf. “I talked the old man into it.” So the manager is their hero for arranging these discounts and at the same time, even though it was a lie, the Master is being celebrated as the most generous landowner anybody could have.

So the dishonest manager is lying by giving the impression that he is acting on behalf of the landowner, when he has already been sacked. And in changing the bills he is robbing his boss. But at the same time he is being very shrewd and astute and cunning and streetwise. Because now the landowner is backed into a corner. He could tell everybody that the manager was sacked, and put all the bills back to their original amount. But if he reinstates the bills he goes in one breath from being the country’s most generous and beloved benefactor to being hated as a miserly Scrooge. If he punishes the manager now, the landowner seems to be punishing him for being too generous. Or the landowner can take it on the chin. He is very rich so he can afford to lose a bit of rent in order to keep his new reputation for being amazingly generous. As a bonus the manager gets to keep his job, at least for the present, and he has made lots of friends for that day in the future when he might get the sack which is of course what he deserves.

The cunning masterplan all rests on how generous the landowner will be. In fact the boss has already been amazingly generous. At the point that he sacked the manager the boss could have had him thrown in jail until he paid back what had been stolen. But the landowner was kind enough not to do that and instead he just demanded to see the books. So the landowner was already being incredibly generous. Would he show himself to be even more generous and let the dishonest manager get away with his masterplan? Yes – the Master really was that generous. The dishonest manager gets to keep his job at the same time as the landowner’s reputation for being generous is enhanced in the whole community.

That is why the manager is praised. Not for being dishonest but for coming up with such a shrewd and cunning plan, wisdom and skill devoted to the worthy task of self-preservation in the face of impending doom. The manager had been caught. Be he didn’t sit around and do nothing. Instead he put all his hopes on the generosity of his Master. And he wasn’t disappointed.

The manager was NOT praised for being dishonest. But he was praised for his shrewdness and wisdom in knowing where his salvation would lie, in his master’s generosity. In that sense this parable ties in well with the parable of the Prodigal Son immediately before – the son who got himself in such a mess but had the common sense to throw himself on the mercy of his father.

Judgment day is coming. For most people the light they are looking for at the end of the tunnel really is the headlamp of the oncoming train. So what should we do? It would be foolish just to sit around like a rabbit in the proverbial headlights and wait for the inevitable, not doing anything. Even a dishonest manager could avoid his inevitable doom if he acted astutely. When judgment is imminent and inevitable, the shrewd and wise person takes action and trusts in the incredible generosity and mercy of God.

As we go into our third week of lockdown we are beginning to understand a little better the experiences of the heroes of faith who found themselves in isolation and even in prison. Joseph, Jeremiah and Daniel. The apostles Peter and John and Paul and John in exile on Patmos writing the Book of Revelation. We can glimpse their loneliness and even share a temptation to despair. Most of all I am reminded of John the Baptist imprisoned by Herod and the doubts and questions he wrestled with as he was waiting to be executed. We can learn from John how to cope in these very strange and troubled times.

We all have doubts and questions sometimes! But very few people fall as deep into doubt as John the Baptist did! He was God’s messenger, set apart from his miraculous birth to prepare the way for the Messiah. John the Baptist was the very first person to acknowledge Jesus Christ as the Son of God, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, the one who will baptise with Holy Spirit. John was the one who lived a life of repentance, who drew close to God in fasting and silence and self-denial, who lived by the motto “Christ must become more important, I must become less important.”

But in Luke 7 we find John the Baptist in prison, jailed for denouncing King Herod’s adultery. And in his loneliness facing execution John began to have his doubts. Had he been right? Was Jesus really God born as a human being? Would Jesus really bring forgiveness of sins? Had John’s message been true? Or was it all a big mistake? Had he been wrong all along? John had his doubts! So from his prison cell John sends two of his disciples with a desperate message to Jesus.
Luke 7:19 “Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?”
Are YOU the one? ARE you the one????

We may be facing different crises this evening. Some people may even be facing seemingly hopeless problems – just as grim as John the Baptist in his prison cell. We need to hear and receive for ourselves the same answers Jesus gave to John the Baptist.

Luke 7 18 John’s disciples told him about all these things. Calling two of them, 19 he sent them to the Lord to ask, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?’
20 When the men came to Jesus, they said, ‘John the Baptist sent us to you to ask, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?” ’
21 At that very time Jesus cured many who had diseases, illnesses and evil spirits, and gave sight to many who were blind. 22 So he replied to the messengers, ‘Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor.

Notice that Jesus doesn’t directly answer John the Baptist’s questions. Jesus could have simply answered “yes” and that answer would have been true! “Yes, I am the Messiah, the One who is to come.” “Yes I am indeed the Son of God, the Lamb of God as you told everybody I was.” “Yes John, you were right!”

But Jesus knew how desperate John was, how low John was, how discouraged John was. Jesus knew how deep John had fallen into doubt. So a simple “yes” would not be sufficient. Jesus knew what John needed to hear. We say “actions speak louder than words” and it’s true. Jesus knew that His actions would speak louder into John’s discouragement and doubt. So Jesus pointed to his actions.

22 So he replied to the messengers, ‘Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor.

Jesus didn’t perform these miracles as some kind of show so that they could be an answer for John. His miracles were NOT just to impress the crowds. Nor were they to help him become popular so he could be recognised as King. Jesus was performing all those kinds of miracles anyway continually as part of His ministry. But the miracles would answer John’s questions! YES I am the one! Yes I am the Messiah! All these miracles are powerful proof that Jesus was much more than a man, he was indeed the Son of God, the Saviour of the world, the Lord of all.

Jesus pointed to his miracles and then added, “and the good news is preached to the poor.”

This was Jesus’s mission. This was why God had sent Him: to bring the good news of the Kingdom, the gospel of Salvation, to the world, to the poor and weak and helpless Jesus came to proclaim the Kingdom of God, the rule of God as King to all people and especially to the poor and needy, the outcasts and the sinners. This was what Jesus had come to do!

Jesus brought the good news of the Kingdom. He proclaimed the year of the Lord’s favour – that the time had arrived for God to save his people. And that Good News came in WORDS: his teaching, his sermons and his parables. But the Good News also came in ACTIONS: miracles of healing and deliverance. Jesus’s miracles were concrete expressions of the good news he proclaimed in words.

Miracles were expressions of God’s POWER – the power revealed in Creation and later in the resurrection released into lives spoilt by sin and suffering and pain – God’s power released to put the world right again!

And miracles were expressions of God’s LOVE – love bringing forgiveness for sins, life instead of death, healing for broken-ness.

That’s why the miracles answered John’s questions and doubts. Jesus must be the One. Only the One who is to come, only the Messiah, only God’s Son could preach good news to the poor in words AND in actions, in love AND in power. Only God’s Son could bring the Kingly reign of God into the world.
Jesus’s message to us is the same as his answer to John the Baptist. That same power of God is still at work today – for us! That same love of God is still there today – for us! Jesus is the one!!

The blind receive sight, like blind BARTIMAEUS – your faith has made you well

the lame walk, – like the paralysed man lowered through the roof. Your sins are forgiven – take up your bed and walk,

those who have leprosy are cured – we thought about one of those stories a few weeks ago – ten were healed – only one came back to say thank you. It is so important to be thankful for all God’s blessings to us.

the deaf hear,

and the dead are even raised back to life again, like Lazarus. Remember Jesus’s words.

John 11:25 Jesus said to MARY, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; 26 and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
27 “Yes, Lord,” she told him, “I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world.”
When we see the miracles of Christ, they help us to believe that Jesus is indeed the Messiah and the Son of God.

and the good news is preached to the poor – Jesus brings Good News of God’s salvation to those who are physically materially poor and equally to those who recognise that they are Spiritually poor! Anybody in need.

Jesus’s message to us is the same as his answer to John the Baptist. That same power of God is still at work today – for us! That same love of God is still there today – for us! Jesus is the one!! The one who can help US – we only have to ask!! The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.

Luke 7:23 “Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me.”
“ How happy are those who have no doubts about me!” (GNB)

You might like to listen to Adrian Snell – “Song for John” from his first album Fireflake

PRAY FOR EACH OTHER IN THE SITUATIONS WE FACE

I want to share a secret with you. You may have noticed that throughout the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, although you can see it most clearly in Mark’s Gospel, until the last week of Jesus’s life there was a secret which was revealed to just a few people. It was a secret which has been closely guarded. Until now.
We could call it the Messianic Secret, or the “Son of God” secret. All through the three years of His public ministry, Jesus kept his identity as the Son of God secret as far as possible? When He cast out demons, Jesus commanded them to be silent because they knew who He really was. When he healed people, and even raised Jairus’s daughter from the dead, Jesus always said, “Don’t tell anyone what has happened.” At Caesaria Philippi when Jesus asked his disciples, “Who do men say that I am?” and then asked them, “And who do you say that I am?” Peter gave that marvellous answer, “You are the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the Living God.” And Jesus immediately told them, “Don’t tell anyone.” After the transfiguration, when Peter James and John had seen Jesus in all his glory, the command was the same. Don’t tell anyone.”
You may have been wondering – why all this secret? Why did Jesus want to keep His true identity secret from everybody except his closest disciples?
The first reason was because of the risk of rejection. You remember Jesus’s first sermon at Nazareth. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed me to preach good news to the poor.” The crowd was preparing to throw Jesus off the cliff because they thought he was blaspheming. And at least twice when Jesus taught the people, when He said, “Before Abraham was, I am” and then when He said, “I and the father are one,” at least twice the people picked up stones to stone him for blasphemy. Jesus recognised that as soon as the secret of who He really was came out, very soon afterwards He would be dead.
But then there was a second reason for all the secrecy which was the risk of misunderstanding. The Jews were expecting the Messiah to be a great military leader to set them free from the Roman occupation. After Jesus fed 5000 people with five loaves and two fishes, he had to hide away because all the people wanted to make Him King, by force if necessary. But Jesus did not come as a military king or a political leader. It took three years to prepare the way before Jesus could reveal who He was without everybody misunderstanding. Only at the very end, in the last week of His life, did Jesus let the secret out. And even then He did not do so in public statements and explicit claims but rather in two significant and symbolic actions and one powerful parable.
By the way that He entered into Jerusalem on what we call Palm Sunday, Jesus was making a powerful claim.
Luke 19:35 They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. 36 As he went along, people spread their cloaks on the road. 37 When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:
38 ‘Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!’
‘Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!’
39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, rebuke your disciples!’
40 ‘I tell you,’ he replied, ‘if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.’
But what is so unusual about arriving in Jerusalem on a donkey, you might ask? The thing is, nobody would. Well expecting mothers and very old people might. But not at Passover time. At Passover time however far they had travelled all Jewish pilgrims would enter Jerusalem on foot. Important leaders and Roman soldiers might ride horses. But nobody would enter Jerusalem on a donkey. Nobody but one person. The person the Jews had been waiting for for centuries. Only one person would enter Jerusalem riding a donkey and that person would be the Messiah. That was the prophecy everybody was waiting to be fulfilled!
Zechariah 9 9 Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. 10I will take away the chariots from Ephraim and the war-horses from Jerusalem, and the battle bow will be broken. He will proclaim peace to the nations. His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth.
Matthew’s Gospel quotes Zechariah 9 and makes clear that Jesus arriving in Jerusalem on a donkey at Passover took place to fulfil what was spoken through the prophet (Matthew 21:4).
The Messiah would arrive in Jerusalem at Passover, not on a horse for battle but on a donkey announcing peace. By riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, Jesus was proclaiming that the Kingdom of God had come. And by riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, Jesus was claiming that He Himself was God’s chosen one, the Messiah. God’s chosen King greater than every other ruler and every other king.
The crowds recognised the significance of Jesus’s action.
Luke 19:37 … the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:
38 ‘Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ‘Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!’
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord,” the crowds shouted. This is a quote from Psalm 118 verse 26. Psalm 118 is a Song of praise – a Hallelujah, one of a number of the Psalms which were sung together to make a thanksgiving liturgy which was sung to welcome the procession of the king and the people into the Temple in Jerusalem. Each year the local people would sing Psalm 118 to welcome the Pilgrims who were arriving in Jerusalem to celebrate Passover. Psalm 118 begins like this.
Psalm 118 1 Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. ~
2 Let Israel say: “His love endures forever.”
As the pilgrims approached Jerusalem they would be singing these words.
Psalm 118:19 Open for me the gates of righteousness; I will enter and give thanks to the LORD. This is the gate of the LORD through which the righteous may enter.
I will give you thanks, for you answered me; you have become my salvation.
And finally Psalm 118 contains the very words the crowd sang as Jesus entered Jerusalem.
25 LORD, save us! LORD, grant us success!
26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD.
The Psalm which had been used for generations to welcome pilgrims to Passover had foretold the significance of Jesus’s Triumphal Entry and of his crucifixion. For hundreds of years they had been waiting for the promised King who could come in the name of the Lord. And now Jesus was arriving! He was the one who would bring peace to the earth, as the prophecy in Zechariah had promised.
“He will proclaim peace to the nations. His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth.” (Zechariah 9:10)
In so many places in the Old Testament God promised that the Messiah would bring peace. We often read these words at Christmas.
Isaiah 9:6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and for ever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.
Remember the song of the Christmas angels.
“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.” (Luke 2:14)
And remember this wonderful promise Jesus made to his disciples
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. (John 14:27)
On Palm Sunday the crowds welcomed Jesus coming as Prince of Peace to bring God’s peace to this troubled world. And all of us need to experience God’s peace in these difficult days. May I suggest two keys to receiving God’s peace, at these times more than ever.
The first is simply to put our trust in God.
Isaiah 26:3 You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is fixed on you, because he trusts in you. 4Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD, the LORD, is the Rock eternal.
We put our trust in God who knows the end from the beginning, in God who will never fail us and forsake us, in God who is with us wherever we go.
Then the second way to experience God’s peace in these troubled times is prayer.
Philippians 4:6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Jesus is the Prince of Peace. When he entered Jerusalem at Passover riding on a donkey, the crowds recognised Jesus as God’s promised King, the one who comes in the name of the Lord, the Messiah.
Then the next day Jesus did something else which revealed who He really was.
Luke 19 45 When Jesus entered the temple courts, he began to drive out those who were selling. 46 ‘It is written,’ he said to them, ‘ “My house will be a house of prayer”; but you have made it “a den of robbers”.’
We call this incident “the cleansing of the Temple.” But we miss the point of the story if we think it was about corruption. The moneychangers and those selling sacrificial animals weren’t crooks. They were a normal and official part of the Temple system, especially at Passover time. To understand what is going on here you have to realise just how big the Temple was. The moneychangers and the stalls were in the outermost court, the Court of the Gentiles. Best guess is that this area was as long and as wide as at least four football pitches. There is no way that Jesus threw out all the moneychangers and all the sellers. He could not have turned over all their tables. That would have led to a riot and Jesus would have been arrested immediately. What Jesus did was on a small scale, in one corner of the vast Court of the Gentiles. It was a symbolic demonstration which again fulfilled prophecies of what would happen when the Messiah would come.
Zechariah 6 12 Tell him this is what the LORD Almighty says: ‘Here is the man whose name is the Branch, and he will branch out from his place and build the temple of the LORD. 13 It is he who will build the temple of the LORD, and he will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on his throne. And he will be a priest on his throne. And there will be harmony between the two.’
The Jews had been waiting for centuries for their Messiah to come and rebuild the Temple. To make his claim clearer, Jesus then quoted a prophecy from Isaiah which talks about the Temple becoming a house of prayer for all nations when the Messiah comes.
Isaiah 56 6 And foreigners who bind themselves to the LORD to serve him, to love the name of the LORD, and to worship him, all who keep the Sabbath without desecrating it and who hold fast to my covenant — 7these I will bring to my holy mountain and give them joy in my house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.”
For hundreds of years, this was what the Jews had been waiting for and looking forward to – the time when their Messiah would come to purify the Temple and its worship. The prophet Malachi says even more about that day.
Malachi 3:1 “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the LORD Almighty. 2 But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. 3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness.
Malachi makes clear that it will not just be some human messenger God will send to purify the Temple. God himself will come to do this. So Jesus “cleansing of the temple” had deep spiritual significance. Jesus was not only calling for purification and renewal of Temple worship. Jesus was claiming to be the promised One who would bring that purification and renewal. Indeed Jesus was claiming to be God Himself!
After entering Jerusalem as King and making that demonstration in the Temple, Jesus then told the Parable of the Tenants in the Vineyard. You can read it in Luke 20:9-19.
Most parables make a single point – this makes many. It is an allegory. Jesus tells the parable to make the Jewish leaders realise just exactly who it was they were trying to kill – the Son of God.
Luke 20:9 He went on to tell the people this parable: ‘A man planted a vineyard, rented it to some farmers and went away for a long time.
In the parable the Vineyard owner represents God, and the Vineyard represents the nation of Israel, God’s chosen people. This was a common picture that every Israelite would understand, taken from Isaiah.
Isaiah 5:1 I will sing for the one I love a song about his vineyard: My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside. 2 He dug it up and cleared it of stones and planted it with the choicest vines. He built a watchtower in it and cut out a winepress as well. Then he looked for a crop of good grapes, but it yielded only bad fruit. … The vineyard of the LORD Almighty is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are the garden of his delight.
In Jesus’s parable the tenants put in charge of the vineyard but who failed to pay the rent represent the Leaders of Israel. And the Pharisees and the Sadducees realised that they were represented by the tenants. Luke 20:19 The teachers of the law and the chief priests looked for a way to arrest him immediately, because they knew he had spoken this parable against them.
The Messengers sent by the Owner to the Tenants represent the Old Testament Prophets, the servants of God who had often been rejected and even killed by the Israelites. But then the last person who is sent to the Tenants in the story is not just another servant. It is none other than the Owner’s dear Son.
Luke 20:13 ‘Then the owner of the vineyard said, “What shall I do? I will send my son, whom I love; perhaps they will respect him.”
14 ‘But when the tenants saw him, they talked the matter over. “This is the heir,” they said. “Let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.” 15 So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
That Owner’s Son who the Tenants were planning to kill represents Jesus himself. The Jewish Leaders realised that. The whole crowd would realise that. In this parable Jesus is claiming to be none other than the Messiah, the Son of God, the One who would fulfil the prophecy in Psalm 118 and be the cornerstone of the rebuilding of the nation.
Luke 20:15 …. ‘What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? 16 He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others.’
When the people heard this, they said, ‘God forbid!’
17 Jesus looked directly at them and asked, ‘Then what is the meaning of that which is written:
‘ “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone”?
18 Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.’
If Jesus had been any more explicit he would have been stoned for blasphemy there and then, or else it would have started a revolution.
Jesus entered Jerusalem at Passover not walking but riding on a donkey. He “cleansed” the Temples. And he told the parable of the Tenants in the Vineyard. The cat is out of the bag. The big secret is finally revealed. Jesus is indeed the Son of God, the last messenger sent by the Owner to the Tenants in the Vineyard – even though He knew they would kill Him. Jesus is the Messiah, who brings God’s Kingly Rule. Jesus is indeed the Son of God, God Himself, bringing the salvation the Jews had spent many centuries expecting and hoping and praying for and looking forward to. And Jesus is the Prince of Peace who brings peace into our troubled lives in these turbulent times as we put our trust in him and pray to him.
So we can join the crowds in praising Jesus today. Even if we don’t praise God, the whole of creation will!
39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, rebuke your disciples!’
40 ‘I tell you,’ he replied, ‘if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.’
In the musical Jesus Christ Superstar Tim Rice’s lyrics put it this way.
“Why waste your breath moaning at the crowd?
Nothing can be done to stop the shouting.
If every tongue was still the noise would still continue.
The rocks and stones themselves would start to sing!”
38 ‘Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!’
‘Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!’

A hymn for Palm Sunday

RIDE ON, RIDE ON IN MAJESTY! In lowly pomp ride on to die!
O Christ, Thy triumphs now begin O’er captive death and conquered sin.

Ride on, ride on in majesty! Hark all the tribes ‘hosanna’ cry;
Thine humble beast pursues his road With palms and scattered garments strowed.

Ride on, ride on in majesty! Thy last and fiercest strife is nigh;
The Father on His sapphire throne Expects His own anointed Son.

Ride on, ride on in majesty! In lowly pomp ride on to die!
Bow Thy meek head to mortal pain, Then take, O God, Thy power, and reign!

A little boy was asked by his father to say grace at the table. While the rest of the family waited, the little guy eyed every dish of food his mother had prepared. After the examination, he bowed his head and honestly prayed, “Lord, I don’t like the looks of it, but I thank you for it, and I’ll eat it anyway. Amen.
We’re not very good at saying “Thank you,” are we? We’re like a little boy I heard about. On his return from a birthday party, his mother queried, “Bobby, did you thank the lady for the party?”
“Well, I was going to. But a girl ahead of me said, ‘Thank you,’ and the lady said “Don’t mention it.” So I didn’t.”
We aren’t always very good at saying thank you. We need ways to help us give thanks. We can so often be like those 10 lepers who Jesus healed of leprosy.
Lu 17:15 One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him- and he was a Samaritan. Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Was no-one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?”

10 were healed but only one came back to say thank you! Where are the other nine? Every year on the fourth Thursday in November Americans have their Thanksgiving Day. Ever since the Pilgrim Fathers, America celebrates this as their Harvest Festival. After a drought and bad harvests, tradition has it that Governor Bradford of Massachusetts made this first Thanksgiving Proclamation three years after the Pilgrims settled at Plymouth:
“Inasmuch as the great Father has given us this year an abundant harvest of Indian corn, wheat, peas, beans, squashes, and garden vegetables, and has made the forests to abound with game and the sea with fish and clams, and inasmuch as He has protected us from the ravages of the savages, has spared us from pestilence and disease, has granted us freedom to worship God according to the dictates of our own conscience.
Now I, your magistrate, do proclaim that all ye Pilgrims, with your wives and ye little ones, do gather at ye meeting house, on ye hill, between the hours of 9 and 12 in the day time, on Thursday, November 29th, of the year of our Lord one thousand six hundred and twenty three and the third year since ye Pilgrims landed on ye Pilgrim Rock, there to listen to ye pastor and render thanksgiving to ye Almighty God for all His blessings.”
That is why even today every year Americans make a point of celebrating God’s goodness with a Day of Thanksgiving – and that is probably a very good thing!
Ten were healed. Only one came back. Where were the other nine? The Bible urges us to give thanks continually to God for all His goodness to us.
Psalm 116:12 How can I repay the LORD for all his goodness to me? 13 I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD. 14 I will fulfil my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people.

Psalm 136:1 ¶ Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good. His love endures for ever.
2 Give thanks to the God of gods. His love endures for ever.
3 Give thanks to the Lord of lords: His love endures for ever.
4 to him who alone does great wonders, His love endures for ever.

Ephesians 5:19 Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Psalm 103 1 Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. 2 Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits –
The trouble is that we so easily DO forget all his benefits. We take for granted all the blessings God pours out on us! Hear this solemn warning Moses gave to Israel.
Deuteronomy 8:10 When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the LORD your God for the good land he has given you. 11 Be careful that you do not forget the LORD your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day.
12 Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, 13 and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, 14 then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

Ten were healed. Only one came back. Where were the other nine? What can we do to make sure we don’t take God for granted, but instead receive his gifts with gratitude? Let me remind you of a wonderful old hymn!
When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
Refrain:
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
And you will keep singing as the days go by.
Refrain
When you look at others with their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold;
Count your many blessings. Wealth can never buy
Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.
Refrain
So, amid the conflict whether great or small,
Do not be disheartened, God is over all;
Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.
Refrain
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS! It is so simple really! Name them one by one and SEE what God has done!”

Especially in these anxious times, too often people today would rather sing “Count your troubles”

If there be clear sunshine, think how soon ’til rain;
Should it be midsummer, winter comes again;
Every glorious sunset ends in dark, dark night;
Youth gives way to cheerless age; there’s nothing right.

If you see a promise fits you to a “T”,
Though you hunger for it, cry, “This not for me!”
You must bear your burdens, sink beneath the load,
For your way to Heaven is a dreary road.

Count your many problems, name them one by one;
Think that victory never, never will be won;
Cite your many troubles, count them o’er and o’er,
All your disappointments and vexations soar.”

“When you are discouraged, feel that all is lost;
Say the prize you’re seeking is not worth the cost;
Think about your troubles, count them o’er and o’er;
Every time you count them, there will be one more.

Ten were healed. Only one came back. Where were the other nine? Too often we count our troubles and our sorrows. Instead we should always count our blessings!

1 Thessalonians 5:16 ¶ Be joyful always; 17 pray continually; 18 give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

We can start with THANKSGIVING – for all God’s blessings to us.

Psalm 100:4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name

We should give thanks for God’s blessings given to everyone, and we also should give thanks for God’s blessings to ME individually
Psalm 103 1 Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. 2 Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits – 3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, 4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, 5 who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

We can relive the encounters we have had with God in the past. Remember them. Reflect on them. Use them as a way to enter into God’s presence afresh. We can thank God for food and drink and family and friends. for answered prayers. for the hope of heaven. for the Bible and the fellowship of the church. for His peace and protection. for the wonderful joy He gives us. for His guidance and strengthening.

We give thanks. Then we can move on to PRAISE – for God’s mighty acts of salvation. Looking to what God has done. The Psalms speak of praise 233 times – the rest of the Bible as many times again! Since we are going to spend eternity praising God we may as well start practising now! Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise! (Psalm 48:1)

We should give God our praise and thanksgiving for all he Has done for us

Praise God for the BIRTH of Jesus; for the TEACHING of Jesus; for the MIRACLES of Jesus; for Jesus’s SUFFERING and TRIALS; for Jesus’s DEATH on the CROSS; for Jesus’s glorious RESURRECTION ; for the gift of the HOLY SPIRIT;

Praise God because He is our CREATOR Praise God our LIBERATOR Praise God our LORD Praise God our REDEEMER Praise God the JUDGE Praise God our FATHER! Praise God for His LOVE; for His FAITHFULNESS; for His ALMIGHTY POWER; for His COMPLETE KNOWLEDGE; for His HOLINESS; for His GRACE and FORGIVENESS; for His PRESENCE everywhere. We have SO MUCH to praise and to thank God for!
Ten were healed. Only one came back to say thank you. Where were the other nine?
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
Take some time right now to count your blessings Praise and thank God for all his blessings to you! You don’t need me to tell you to thank God. You don’t need me to tell you WHAT to thank God for! We just need to get on and DO IT! To thank God! And to praise God!

A friend who is an author posted a message on Facebook this week. ”The London Book Fair is cancelled. The end of the world is nigh!” It is true that a number of major events around the world have been cancelled. But most have continued as usual. A quick shout for all the spaniels at Crufts – well done spaniels! It is possible that this summer’s Olympic Games in Tokyo might be postponed. We don’t know how many people in England will catch the dreaded Covid 19 virus, or how ill it might make some of them. We don’t know how badly the economy or the stock market might be hit as this illness spreads. Coronavirus is not a sign of the end of the world – it really isn’t. But it is a reminder that we can never be sure about what is going to happen in the future. We all have our hopes and dreams. We can make all the plans we like. But nothing is certain. Circumstances can change. People get ill or have accidents. Nothing in the future is certain. Except there is just one thing we can be absolutely sure of. Jesus is coming back one day. And that’s a promise.
The Old Testament was full of prophecies concerning Christ’s first coming. And both Testaments are packed full of references to the second coming of Christ. Somebody has counted 1,845 mentions of Christ’s Return in the Old Testament and 318 references in the New Testament – an average of 1 in every 30 verses! 23 of the 27 New Testament books refer to this great event. For every prophecy in the Bible concerning Christ’s incarnation, there are 8 which look forward to his return!
Jesus is coming back. That is the one event in all our futures which we can be 100% certain will happen. There is God’s ultimate rebuke to this post-modern post-Christian world. The world which rebels against objective truth and morality. The politically correct world where the only rule is that there are no rules. The world which says that we can make and choose our own gods, or choose to have no god at all. One day the truth will come to light. One day Christ will return and on that day EVERY eye will see and every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.
Jesus is coming back. There are many Old Testament promises about God’s Messiah and Saviour which were not fulfilled in Jesus’s earthly ministry. They are waiting to be fulfilled. And we have the teaching and promises of Jesus to encourage us.
Several of Jesus’s parables looked forward to a time of harvest, like the Sower and the Different Kinds of Soil we find in Luke 8, pointed forward to a day of judgment. Jesus talked plainly about his return in
Luke 9 26 Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.
There are even more stern warnings of the day of judgment in
Luke 10 13 ‘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. 14 But it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you. 15 And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted to the heavens? No, you will go down to Hades.
In Luke 11 Jesus taught his disciples what we call The Lord’s Prayer. Every time we pray “Your kingdom come” we are looking forward to the Return of Jesus at the end of time.
Again in Luke 11 Jesus points forward to the judgment which will be enacted on his return.
Luke 1129 As the crowds increased, Jesus said, ‘This is a wicked generation. It asks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah. 30 For as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so also will the Son of Man be to this generation. 31 The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the people of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon’s wisdom; and now something greater than Solomon is here. 32 The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and now something greater than Jonah is here.
On Friday we read Jesus’s warning in Luke 13 28 ‘There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out. 29 People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God.
The parable of the Great Banquet looks forward to the celebration at Jesus’s return. Outside Luke’s Gospel we have so many promises Jesus himself made concerning his return, for example in
John 14 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.
The return of Jesus Christ is the one completely certain event in the future of human beings. And in our reading in Luke’s Gospel last Monday we read three short parables which show us how we should be living in the light of the Second Coming.
The parable of the servants ready to serve
LUKE 12 35 ‘Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, 36 like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. 37 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will make them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. 38 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the middle of the night or towards daybreak.
Decades ago when I was a schoolteacher I occasionally had to leave the laboratory momentarily to collect something from the prep room next door. I would always give my students something specific to do to keep them out of mischief while I was out of the room. It was always amusing when I went back into the classroom to see which pupils were doing what they had been told, ready for my return, and which were not. Woe betide the servant who is not awake and doing his job when the Master returns
Jesus is coming back. When we look forward to a holiday we make plans for it. We spend days or weeks making sure we have everything prepared, tickets, accommodation, all the things we need to take with us, working out what we will do when we get there. How much more should we be preparing for the return of Jesus.
‘Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, … 37 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes.
Jesus is coming back. And when he does he will expect us simply to be doing the jobs he has given us to do. Learning from him, loving him more dearly, following him more nearly. Jobs like worshipping and serving. Jobs like loving our neighbours and bearing faithful witness to Jesus as his Ambassadors in this fallen world.
37 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will make them recline at the table and will come and wait on them.
What an unexpected punchline. A master would never serve his servants. It was always their job to serve him. What an amazing reward for faithful service, that the master is prepared to wait on his servants! Jesus is coming back. We all need to be ready.
There’s a simple motto which sums up this challenge. “Live every day as though Jesus died yesterday, rose from the dead today and is coming back tomorrow.”

The parable of the thief in the night
Luke 12 39 But understand this: if the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. 40 You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.’
This parable in itself is particularly striking and memorable. But what makes it even more significant is the number of times it is quoted elsewhere in the New Testament. Not just in Matthew chapter 24 but by other writers as well.
The apostle Paul quotes this saying of Jesus when he wrote to the Thessalonians, in what was probably his first letter, written less than 20 years after Jesus was crucified.
1 Thessalonians 5:1 Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, 2 for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, ‘Peace and safety’, destruction will come on them suddenly, as labour pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.
4 But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief.

A few years later, the leader of the apostles Peter refers to this saying in his second letter.
2 Peter 3 10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare.
Then the apostle John talks about the thief in the night twice in the book of Revelation. The Risen Christ sends this challenging message to the church in Sardis.
Revelation 3 2 Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God. 3 Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; obey it, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.
And the Risen Christ brings this warning in Revelation 16:15 Behold, I come like a thief! Blessed is he who stays awake and keeps his clothes with him, so that he may not go naked and be shamefully exposed.”
So we can have no doubt that Jesus actually told this parable of the thief in the night. And also that it was a saying which was important in every part of the early church.
40 You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.’
The Early Church expected Jesus to return in their lifetime. Every generation since could have expected Jesus to return in their lifetime! And we should be ready. It is only God’s mercy and patience which gives yet more time for human beings to return to their Maker. And we need to be ready – because the Son of Man will come at the hour we least expect Him! How many of us are ready for Jesus to come back today?
Every time I stand up to speak I like to keep in mind one sober thought. This might be the last sermon I ever preach! You may never hear me preach again. Don’t think I am getting morbid here. I am not anticipating gloom and disaster. Quite the reverse. My sobering thoughts are actually exciting and thrilling. This could be my last ever sermon, because before we meet again, or even before I finish speaking this morning, the Lord Jesus Christ could return. The Second Coming could be closer than any of us expect! Jesus is coming back like a thief in the night!
The parable of the servants ready to serve and the parable of the thief in the night are clearly aimed at every Christian. At all times we must all be ready for Jesus’s return. But then Jesus tells a third parable aimed particularly at leaders in the church.
The parable of the manager of the household
41 Peter asked, ‘Lord, are you telling this parable to us, or to everyone?’
42 The Lord answered, ‘Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? 43 It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. 44 Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 45 But suppose the servant says to himself, “My master is taking a long time in coming,” and he then begins to beat the other servants, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk. 46 The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.

Every Christian must be ready for Jesus to return. But here is a solemn warning for leaders in the church. They especially have to honour the responsibilities God has given them. The manager of the household must not exploit or mistreat the other servants. If they do they will face much fiercer judgment.

47 ‘The servant who knows the master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what the master wants will be beaten with many blows. 48 But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

You may have heard the saying, “With great power comes great responsibility” That quote does not come from the Bible. It is known as “the Peter Parker principle” from the Marvel comic books stories of Spiderman. Initially not spoken by any character but just by the narrator, in later flashbacks we discover that it was the favourite punchline of Peter’s Uncle Ben. “With great power comes great responsibility”.
NRSV From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required; and from the one to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded.
God expects more from mature Christians than he does from new Christians. He expects more from strong Christians than he does from struggling Christians. Those in leadership carry greater responsibilities than those who are following.
Jesus is coming back. The day of his return is sooner now than ever before. Billy Graham said this about the Return of Jesus. “Our world is filled with fear, hate, lust, greed, war and utter despair. Surely the Second Coming of Christ is the only hope of replacing these depressing features with trust, love, universal peace and prosperity. FOR THAT DAY the world wittingly or inadvertently waits.”

Jesus Christ is coming back. Good news for some – bad news for others. The one absolutely certain future event! Will we be ready for him?

“He is coming for the ones, Who is ready to meet Him.
He is coming for the ones, Who are ready to greet Him.
He is coming for the ones, Whose lamps are burning bright.
He is coming for the ones, Who are watching and waiting.
He is coming for the ones, Who are separating,
Themselves from the world, And walking in the light.
Moving in the stream of the Spirit’s leading,
Living of the love of the Lord and feeding,
On the Holy Word that can purify the soul.

Running in the race for the crown of glory,
Taking up the cross and telling the story.
Waiting for the One who has saved.
And made them whole.
He is coming for the ones, Who await His appearing.
He is coming for the ones, Who are persevering.
He is coming for these
Is He coming for the you?” (Jimmy and Carol Owens from “Come Together”)

Luke 10 38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. 40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, ‘Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!’
41 ‘Martha, Martha,’ the Lord answered, ‘you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.’

Martha was busying welcoming Jesus. Mary just sat at Jesus’ feet. And rightly so! When friends visit you, they don’t expect you to spend all your time in the kitchen cooking for them. They just want to sit and talk with you and spend time together. The passage tells us that Martha was distracted but Mary was focussed. Martha was worried and troubled. Mary was contented. Martha was serving but Mary was worshipping. Are you a Martha or a Mary? Are you busy, busy, busy? Or are you sitting at Jesus’ feet?

We live in a busy world! We are made to feel guilty if we aren’t constantly “doing something.” People expect us to be busy, even overworked. It’s almost a status symbol – “if we’re busy, we’re important; if we’re not busy, we’re lazy.” That kind of busyness led Martha to tension and frustration. That’s what happens when we are consumed with the wrong tasks or trying to cram too many of the right activities into too little time. Martha had a priceless opportunity to sit at Jesus’ feet. But she couldn’t spare Jesus the time. She wanted to be with Jesus. But she allowed herself to get distracted. Her preoccupation with offering hospitality distracted her from what was more important. Martha became stressed and worried. So she became critical of Mary for not doing her share.
“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing.” Martha just got her priorities wrong.

Notice that Jesus didn’t condemn Martha for doing the things that needed to be done. But he did tell her off for presuming that what Mary was doing was wrong. Jesus says that Mary “had chosen what is better.” Mary and Martha each loved Jesus just as much, but Martha didn’t realise that in her desire to serve Jesus, she was actually neglecting him. She was so busy at doing things FOR Him, that she had no time to spend WITH him. There are so many Marthas in the world. If we spend so much time doing things for Jesus, but never spend time getting to know him, then we are making Martha’s mistake.

In contrast, Mary had her priorities right. She did know that Jesus would need to served, but she got things in the right order. She spent time talking to Jesus showing her love for Him. A.W.Tozer was absolutely right. “God created us to be worshippers first and workers second!!!” “We are called to an everlasting preoccupation with God.”

This story of Martha and Mary gives us all a vital reminder of the importance of prayer and worship – of making time to be with God and sitting at Jesus’s feet! We need to get the balance of our lives right between work and prayer. The ultimate tragedy of a life which is too busy is the tragedy that Martha faced. Offered the opportunity to sit at Jesus’ feet, busy people can’t spare Jesus any time. It is hard because we live in a Martha world. But we all need times to just stop and be quiet and be still, and rest in the presence of the Lord. It is good for ourselves, good for our relationship with others and good for our relationship with God. Mary had her priorities right!

“She has chosen what is better” Mary got it right. She was giving Jesus her sole attention, even if it meant that other things were neglected for a while. Mary wasn’t even going to be put off by Martha’s complaints!

In the New Living Translation, Jesus says, “There is really only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it – and I wont take it away from her.”
Lent reminds us to make opportunities to spend time with Jesus. But it is NOT JUST about spending time with God instead. Every occasion reminds us that God is with us!

So What could I give up for Lent?
Four obvious suggestions
– Fast from a specific food, or from snacking
– Fast from a particular drink
– Fast from a television programme
– Fast from Facebook/Twitter/Instagram
Four more ideas from Pope Francis:-
– Fast from pessimism and be filled gratitude
– Fast from complaining and contemplate simplicity
– Fast from selfishness and practise compassion
– Fast from words and be silent, so you can listen

From the age of around seven I was fascinated by science. I went on to study science and then taught chemistry. I really enjoyed setting things on fire and blowing things up. But since I left teaching at the age of 30, I haven’t really done any serious science at all. Even though I really enjoyed it I gave up science.
At secondary school I was introduced to a strange sport called lacrosse. I played for club and school and university for ten years. But I haven’t played lacrosse for forty years now. I couldn’t fit playing competitive sport at that level into a busy life so with great sadness I gave it up.
At the time I started teaching, computers were just coming into schools. Anybody else remember the Acorn BBC B or the Research Machines 380Z and 480Z? I taught myself how to write computer programs and taught computing at school. Even after I became a minister I kept working with computers for years. I built my own computers from the bits. I still wrote computer programs and advised churches and schools on computing and mended and upgraded computers when they needed it. The books and magazines I took away for holiday reading were about computers and programming. I really enjoyed playing with computers. But now I haven’t written a computer program or taken a computer apart or read a book about computers since before I came to North Springfield. For all practical purposes I have given up doing any serious work with computers.
Most of us will share that kind of experience. For years we have an interest or even do a job which we are passionate about and takes up lots of our time and energy. And then life moves on and we give up that thing and move on to something else. We leave behind the things we have given up.
I became a Christian at the age of sixteen one evening after a church youth group. Which means I have now been a Christian for 47 years. I have not stopped following Jesus since then. I will never give up being a Christian. That is because being a Christian is not something you can just give up. Following Jesus is not some hobby we can just lose interest in and move on to something else. Being a disciple of Jesus is for life. This is what Jesus said.
Luke 9 62 … “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”

We can’t just give up following Jesus. That isn’t an option. In the early days of his ministry crowds and crowds of people were following Jesus. They were drawn by his remarkable teaching and his amazing miracles, healing the sick, driving out demons and even bringing dead people back to life. But as time went on, different people began to fall away. It was as Jesus had explained in his Parable of the Sower and the Different Kinds of Soil which we read in Luke 8.
Luke 8 11 ‘This is the meaning of the parable: the seed is the word of God. 12 Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. 13 Those on the rocky ground are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away. 14 The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. 15 But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.
So it was that some who had begun to follow Jesus were giving up along the way. Some fell away through times of testing. Others were drawn away from Jesus by life’s worries, riches and pleasures. At the same time, more and more people were put off as Jesus challenged them with the true cost of discipleship. Listen to these words which we read just over a week ago from earlier in Luke 9
Luke 9 23 Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. 25 What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self? 26 If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.
Following Jesus is not just a hobby. It is the whole of our lives. And being a disciple of Jesus, is costly.
Luke 9 23 Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.
Deny himself –
Following Jesus will sometimes mean doing what God wants us to do even if that is the opposite of what we would choose to do. It means saying “no” to self and “yes” to God. Deny himself.
Take up his cross daily –
Setting us free from sin and bringing us salvation cost Jesus his life. And being a disciple of Jesus will be costly. Dying on the cross for us was a choice Jesus made. When we are following Jesus we will need to make choices day by day. Will we do what we want, or will we do what God wants us to do. And some of those choices will involve making a sacrifice. They may be painful choices. But as Martin Luther once said, “A religion that gives nothing, costs nothing, and suffers nothing, is worth nothing.” Take up his cross daily – and
Follow me –
Being a Christian is all about following Jesus, being a disciple of Jesus. Learning from him. Doing the things he commands us to. When we feel like it and when we don’t. Trying to become more like Jesus day by day.
“Day by day, may I see you more clearly, love you more dearly and follow you more nearly, Day by day.”
To follow you more nearly. And io love you more dearly. Loving Jesus is a commitment with a beginning but with no end. God never gives up on loving us. We can’t ever give up on loving God. We cannot give up following Jesus.
24 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.
This is why following Jesus is so important. If we are trying to save ourselves we will fail. Only Jesus can save us. The legendary Liverpool football manager Bill Shankly once said “Some people believe football is a matter of life and death. … I can assure you it is much more important than that.” The truth is that it is following Jesus which really is a matter of life and death. In fact following Jesus is even more important than that!
25 What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self?
Some people chase after money and possessions. Others chase after success or popularity or power. When people do that they are destined to lose themselves. They will forfeit their lives. All the money and possessions in the world are worth nothing compared to knowing Jesus and receiving his gift of life in all its fullness. Discipleship means putting Jesus before wealth or possessions. And when we are following Jesus that cannot be private. It has to be public.
26 If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.
You can’t be a secret disciple. Either the secret will kill the discipleship or the discipleship will kill the secret. All these sayings make it clear that following Jesus must be our first priority. Jesus demands, and deserves, our complete loyalty, our absolute commitment.
The cost of discipleship is high. Following Jesus is demanding. Which brings us to the few verses which we read on Wednesday and are our passage for today. The story of 3 “wannabe disciples” who in the end turned away from following Jesus when they realised just how much that discipleship would cost them.
Luke 9 57 As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”
58 Jesus replied, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”
Some people come to Jesus because they think he will guarantee them an easy life. But they are mistaken. During the three years of his public ministry Jesus the Son of Man lived the life of a wanderer. Jesus and his disciples had no house. They just relied on the hospitality of the villages where they stayed. No security. No comforts of home. Following Jesus in those days meant giving up these things. And for some Christians in some countries even today, following Jesus can mean being rejected by society. Losing their jobs. Thrown out of their homes and families. Even thrown into prison, or murdered for being Christians. If we think following Jesus is a guarantee of a comfortable easy life, think again!
A missionary society wrote to David Livingstone and asked, “Have you found a good road to where you are? If so, we want to know how to send other men to join you.” Livingstone wrote back, “If you have men who will come only if they know there is a good road, I don’t want them. I want men who will come if there is no road at all.”
59 He said to another man, “Follow me.”
But the man replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”
60 Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”

This may sound as though Jesus is being unkind and insensitive. Let the dead bury their own dead! Until we realise one important thing. This man’s father was not dead yet. In those days, as in Jewish families today, the burial happens within 24 hours. If you think about it, in a hot country like Israel, that is sensible and obvious. If this man’s father had just died, the man would not have been listening to Jesus. At that moment he would be arranging the funeral or attending the funeral. He would then be at home with the rest of the extended family for the customary week of mourning. A recently bereaved man would not have been with Jesus. The man’s father was not dead. Not even dying.

Saying “Let me go and bury my father first” was a way of putting off following Jesus to some indefinite unknown date in the future. I’ll follow you when my currently very-much-still-alive father has died. I’ll follow you when I get around to it. I’ll follow you tomorrow, the next day, sometime, never. But following Jesus is more urgent than that. When Jesus calls a man or a woman to follow him we need to make up our minds now, not wait for days or weeks or months or years to decide.

61 Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family.”
62 Jesus replied, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”

Our families are important – of course they are! God does not call us to reject our families, or ignore our families. But what Jesus is essentially asking here is, what comes first in our lives? Our families? Or God? Who do we love most? Our families? Or God? When we are disciples of Jesus, Jesus must come first! Following Jesus must be the most important thing in our lives. Denying ourselves. Taking up our cross daily. And following him. Our commitment to following Jesus is not just for a while, but forever. No giving up. No turning back.

The noted theologian Dolly Parton defined perseverance like this. “I never tried quitting and I never quit trying.” And that is what it means to follow Jesus. Being a Christian and being a disciple means we don’t just give up when the going gets hard. That is what Jesus says.
62… “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”

In Luke 6 we read how Jesus chose twelve of his followers to have a special relationship with himself.
Luke 6 12 One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. 13 When morning came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them, whom he also designated apostles: 14 Simon (whom he named Peter), his brother Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, 15 Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Simon who was called the Zealot, 16 Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.
Jesus called these Twelve his “apostles.” That word means somebody who is sent or commissioned. But up until Luke chapter nine the Twelve apostles haven’t really been doing anything different from any of the other followers of Jesus. In Luke 9 everything was going to change.
Up until then, all the followers of Jesus had just been watching him as he went around preaching and healing and driving out demons. From his first sermon in Nazareth Jesus had been fulfilling the prophecy of Isaiah 61.
18 ‘The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.’….
21 (Jesus) began by saying to them, ‘Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.’

So Jesus preached the good news of the year of the Lord’s favour, the good news that the Kingly Rule of God is at hand, the good news that the time has come when God will save his people. And at the same time as declaring that good news in words, Jesus brought the good news in action, freeing the prisoners, making the blind see and setting free those who were oppressed.
Luke 4 ends with the story of Jesus driving a demon out of a man in the synagogue at Capernaum. And we read
Luke 4 36 All the people were amazed and said to each other, ‘What words these are! With authority and power he gives orders to impure spirits and they come out!’ 37 And the news about him spread throughout the surrounding area.
Everybody recognised that Jesus had authority and power to drive out demons and to heal the sick. Now in Luke 9 Jesus delegates that same power and authority to his Twelve apostles.
Luke 9:1 When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, 2 and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal those who were ill.
In just the same way as Jesus was bringing the good news of the kingdom and God’s salvation in words and in actions, so now the Twelve were being sent out to continue and extend that mission.
We saw in Luke 5 how Jesus had called Simon Peter, together with Andrew, James and John following the miracle of an astonishing catch of fish which almost caused the fishing boats to sink.
Luke 5:10 … Then Jesus said to Simon, ‘Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.’ 11 So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.
Now the time had come for all the apostles to start catching men, by proclaiming the good news and setting free all those who were captives of sin. Jesus gave the apostles all the authority and power they would need and then he sent them out to continue his mission of bringing God’s salvation to a lost world.
It is very important to recognise that preaching the good news in words went hand in hand with bringing the good news in actions of miracles of healing and deliverance. The miracles were not just signs to prove that the good news was true. The miracles were concrete physical expressions of that good news. The preaching announced that God would set people free and make the blind to see, and the miracles brought that new reality into the lives of the hearers. Salvation was not just an intellectual belief but a physical and emotional experience.
And it should be the same today. Miracles of healing and deliverance should go hand in hand with preaching the good news in every age. God is King and when the King speaks, things happen! That is the way it was as the apostles obeyed the commission Jesus gave them. 6 So they set out and went from village to village, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere.

As he sent the Twelve on their way, Jesus also gave them instructions on how to conduct themselves.
3 He told them: ‘Take nothing for the journey—no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra shirt. 4 Whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave that town.
Up until that point Jesus and his followers had been welcomed everywhere they went. They had received generous hospitality in every town and Jesus was expecting that this would continue to be the experience of the apostles as they went out in his name and with his message. The apostles would not need a staff to defend themselves or a bag to beg for money. They wouldn’t need lots of cash or a spare shirt. Whatever they needed would be provided and this would keep them trusting in God.
That aspect of their mission was particular to apostles. Luke 9:3 is not giving us rules which apply to every Christian in every place in every age. In fact at the Last Supper Jesus gave the same apostles very different instructions.
Luke 22 35 … Jesus asked them, ‘When I sent you without purse, bag or sandals, did you lack anything?’
‘Nothing,’ they answered. 36 He said to them, ‘But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag

The situation for all Jesus’s followers would be very different after he was crucified, so the rules would change.
But when Jesus sent out the Twelve in their mission In Luke 9 Jesus gave them specific instructions to keep them depending on God to provide for their needs. Rules appropriate for the urgency of their mission which would make sure they weren’t distracted by riches or comfort or security. How sad it is that some celebrity evangelists and preachers today seem to be distracted by popularity, money and comfort. ‘Take nothing for the journey—no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra shirt. This need to depend solely on God and the generous hospitality of the villages they visited was the reason for the other slightly unexpected rule. 4 Whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave that town.
In those days there were all kinds of travelling preachers who would go from village to village. They would accept hospitality in one house but if somebody else offered better accommodation they would move on to that house instead, and then again and again looking for better and better accommodation and more lavish hospitality. Jesus makes it clear that the Twelve were not to do that. They should be satisfied with the first offer they get. They shouldn’t bring the gospel in disrepute by appearing to only be in it for the money or the fancy food or the most comfortable beds. Another important lesson for some celebrity evangelists and preachers!
There are still principles here for all Christians. We should be putting our trust in God and depend on God and not on having lots of money. We should not be chasing luxury or even comfort all the time. Like the Twelve we should be focussed on the urgent and vital mission God has given us to proclaim the good news in words and in actions.
And then Jesus gave the Twelve one more instruction as they continued Jesus’s mission.
5 If people do not welcome you, leave their town and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.’
In those days when Jews visited Gentile towns they would shake the dust off their feet as they left. They believed that even the dust of a non-Jewish town would make them ceremonially unclean. That was the background to Jesus’s words. It was not that the dust on their feet would have any spiritual effect on the Twelve in any way. But it was a symbolic action, even a prophetic action. Shaking the dust off their feet was saying that the town was cut off from God’s salvation because they had rejected God’s messengers. Rejecting the message of the Twelve was just the same as rejecting Jesus himself, and Jesus was the only way of salvation.
That is still true today. Our mission is different from that given to the Twelve. We are not called to go from village to village and town to town. So we won’t often walk away from people, shaking the dust off our feet. We will keep on sharing the love of Jesus with our friends and neighbours in words and actions until they put their trust in Jesus too. But if people reject us they are rejecting Jesus as well. He is the only Saviour!
The Twelve apostles obeyed the commission Jesus gave them, and God blessed their mission.
6 So they set out and went from village to village, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere.

At our morning of prayer David asked an important question. What is the vision of the church? What do we see as our mission? When we read the Gospels some of the things that the apostles did were unique to the Twelve and to that time and place. But most of the time when we read about what Jesus said to the apostles or more generally to the wider circle of his disciples, we read those things as applying to ourselves as well, because we are Jesus’s followers. So the vision of our church is simple. We are aiming to follow Jesus in the ways his first followers did. And we seek to continue with that same mission Jesus gave to the twelve.
When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases,
Jesus has given his church in every age the same power and authority to bring deliverance and healing that he had and that he delegated to the Twelve apostles. That is just as true today as it was in Jesus’s lifetime. In fact, since God poured out his Holy Spirit on the church at Pentecost, we have the power and authority of Jesus even more than the apostles had then in Luke 9. And we share the same message.
2 … he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal those who were ill.
In the same way, God sends us our to share the good news about Jesus, in words and in actions. People need to hear that God loves them as much as ever. Our friends and neighbours and indeed every stranger we meet need to experience that love of God through our words and through our actions. The poor still need to hear the good news, those imprisoned by sin need God to release them, The oppressed need God to set them free. It is still the year of the Lord’s favour. This is the good news God gives us to share.
There is a story about a messenger in a faraway land who was sent by the King to the prison with a message for the Governor. But it was a hot day and the messenger stopped at a taverna along the way for a tequila. He was thirsty so he had another tequila. And another. And another. So it was dusk as the messenger arrived at the prison as the bell was tolling as another prisoner was executed. The messenger delivered his message – it was a letter of pardon, for the prisoner who had just died.
6 So (The Twelve) set out and went from village to village, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere.

46 ‘Why do you call me, “Lord, Lord,” and do not do what I say? 47 As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. 48 They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When the flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. 49 But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.’

The following words are from an old engraving on a cathedral in Labeck, Germany:
YOU CALL ME MASTER
You call Me Master and obey me not,
You call Me Light and see me not,
You call Me way and follow me not
You call Me Life and desire me not,
You call Me wise and acknowledge me not,
You call Me fair and love me not,
You call Me rich and ask me not,
You call Me eternal and seek me not,
You call Me gracious and trust me not,
You call Me noble and serve me not,
You call Me mighty and honor me not,
You call Me just and fear me not,
If I condemn you, blame me not.

NOT just about knowing what Jesus teaches – but actually doing it!
John 14:15 “If you love me, you will keep my commands. …. 21 The one who has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. And the one who loves me will be loved by my Father. I also will love him and will reveal myself to him.”
Luke 8 19 Now Jesus’ mother and brothers came to see him, but they were not able to get near him because of the crowd. 20 Someone told him, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.”
21 He replied, “My mother and brothers are those who hear God’s word and put it into practice.”

DOING AS JESUS COMMANDS
The Sermon on the Plain
17 He went down with them and stood on a level place. A large crowd of his disciples was there and a great number of people from all over Judea, from Jerusalem, and from the coastal region around Tyre and Sidon, 18 who had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases.
Some words which we read this week which are particularly appropriate at this time
1. In this world of social media – not just what we say to people face to face but what we say to them and about them on Facebook or Twitter or Instagram

2. Following Friday 31st January 2020 and UK leaving EU

THURSDAY
27 ‘But to you who are listening I say: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who ill-treat you. 29 If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. 30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you. …. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. (Luke 6:27-31, 36)
Loving enemies,
turning the other cheek, – let insults pass you by
do unto others as you would have them do to you (The Golden Rule)
– Thumper’s Law, If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all

FRIDAY
37 ‘Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 38 Give, and it will be given to you. …
41 ‘Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 42 How can you say to your brother, “Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,” when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. (Luke 6:37-38, 41-42)

‘Do not judge, and you will not be judged – don’t spend your life condemning other people
Forgive, and you will be forgiven. (Be merciful as your heavenly Father is merciful v36)
Sawdust and planks = not finding fault
JESUS COMMANDS US TO LOVE OTHER PEOPLE – build our house on the rock!

At the very beginning of Jesus’s ministry we read this.
14 Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. 15 He was teaching in their synagogues, and everyone praised him.

Before anything else Jesus FIRST became known for his teaching!!! And to begin with his message was popular. But when Jesus preached in his home village of Nazareth the tide turned!
28 All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this. 29 They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him off the cliff.
Three full years before the crowds in Jerusalem shouted “Crucify Him, Crucify Him” we find the people of Nazareth ready to murder Jesus. It was his home town. Everybody there knew Jesus. They loved Him – or they did until that sermon.

So what on earth had Jesus said to make them that angry? There were three separate sayings – all making the same unpopular and unexpected point. All starting with Jesus’s first recorded sermon – his Nazareth Manifesto!

16 He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. 17 The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:

And Jesus reads from Isaiah 61. We all remember what Jesus said. And here is the original text from Isaiah 61
Isaiah 61:1 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the blind, 2 to proclaim the year of the LORD ’s favour

We all know that this is Jesus’s message. Good news for the poor. Binding up the broken hearted, freedom for the captives (especially those trapped by the devil and all his demons) release from darkness for those blinded by sin, the year of the Lord’s favour, the age of blessing which the Israelites had been expecting and waiting for and longing for, for a thousand years!

20 Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, 21 and he began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
What an amazing event. To be there when Jesus said – what you have been waiting for has arrived. The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon ME!
22 All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips.

But then the doubts set in. Then the questions started.
“Isn’t this Joseph’s son?” they asked. How can the Spirit of the Lord be on Jesus? Our neighbour? Our lad from our village? Why was it that Jesus the prophet was not accepted in his own home town? Where did their doubts come from?

We know the message Jesus brought. The problem was, so did the people of Nazareth! And they knew that Jesus had not finished the quotation from Isaiah. Because the verse in Isaiah 61 actually carries on like this.

The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the blind, 2 to proclaim the year of the LORD ’s favour and the day of vengeance of our God,

Surely Jesus had made a mistake. Surely he got the quotation wrong! It was the year of the Lord’s favour for God’s chosen people Israel. But why didn’t he finish that verse? Why had Jesus missed out the bit about the day of vengeance of our God on Israel’s enemies? The promised Messiah was going to bring blessings for Israel. But where was God’s judgment on the Gentiles. That was part of the reason the Messiah was coming – to punish the wicked. Surely you can’t have one without the other. Jesus had got the message wrong!

Of course everybody there was happy at the idea that God’s blessing was coming – God’s reward for the nation of Israel’s faithfulness. What made them angry was Jesus didn’t say. By cutting the verse short, Jesus as good as said that God’s judgment was not coming – or at least not yet.

Those who heard that first sermon were happy at the idea of good news for the poor – as long as it was for them, Israel’s poor, of course. They didn’t like the sound of good news for any old poor – Gentile poor, Samaritan poor!

Binding up the broken hearted – comfort for those who mourn, great for Israel’s broken-hearted. But surely not for those who did not follow God – their destiny should surely be judgment and punishment. They deserved all the sadness they got!

Freedom for the prisoners – if they were Israelites surely yes! But if they were God’s enemies, justly imprisoned for their crimes, why should they get a second chance?

Sight for the blind – wonderful for Israelites. But if Gentiles, those who were not Jews, were blind then surely that was God’s punishment on them for not believing in the one true God! Surely God would leave them in their darkness.

The year of the Lord’s favour was great news. But the people of Nazareth just couldn’t believe that Jesus would miss out the second part of the quotation. They couldn’t believe that the day of the Lord’s favour would not bring the day of vengeance of our God at the same time.

Perhaps secretly we feel the same. There is something deep within us which wants us to see evil punished. See the wicked get their just desserts. Although we all need mercy, although we are all grateful that God shows his mercy to us, something in us wants other people (or some others at least) to face the wrath of God – because they deserve it!

So this is what shocked the people of Nazareth about Jesus’s sermon. The very idea that God might bring mercy and freedom and sight and the year of the Lord’s favour to EVERYBODY – and miss out the judgment of the day of vengeance of our God!

Don’t misunderstand me. I am not saying that judgment will never come. Just that judgment has been postponed. There will still be a day of reckoning and of righting of wrongs and of punishment of the wicked. But in God’s mercy that day has been delayed.

2 Peter 3:8 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance

Judgment day is coming! I am not saying that nobody will be punished in the end. But what Jesus made very clear at Nazareth is that our preconceptions about who will be saved or who will be punished may be very wrong. The gospel was not exclusively for the Israelites. The gospel is not exclusively for “our kind of people.” The good news Jesus proclaimed is not for people who are deserving – by definition it is for people who are undeserving. And if we think we know which people will be blessed in the year of the Lord’s favour and which people will suffer in the day of vengeance of our God, we may well be very much mistaken.

Because that’s the point Jesus goes on to make. He tells two Old Testament stories from the times of the great prophets Elijah and Elisha. Stories about two people blessed by God who you wouldn’t have expected God to bless. Neither of them were Jews. One was a woman. The other was a leper. Jesus reminded the people in Nazareth that even in Elijah and Elisha’s time God’s blessing did not come to the Israelites. But to the Gentiles. The enemies. Those who were in need.

25 I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the land. 26 Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon.

We find that story in 1 Kings 17. God sent Elijah to a woman who herself was starving, down to her last handful of flour and drop of oil. Because she shared the last food she had with Elijah, God worked a miracle which provided for all their needs.

1 Kings 17 14 For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the LORD gives rain on the land.’ ”
15 She went away and did as Elijah had told her. So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family. 16 For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the LORD spoken by Elijah.

Here was a woman God richly blessed. Not because she was an Israelite – but because she was poor and hungry and God cares for all who are poor and hungry. Truly the gospel is good news for the poor – for ALL who are poor. Christian poor and Muslim poor and Hindu poor and atheist poor. God blessed the woman because she obeyed the prophet Elijah’s instructions and in doing so put her trust in God and His promises. And later on her faith was rewarded again when her son died and through Elijah’s prayers God brought that son back to life again!

God cares about all poor and hungry and grieving people – not just Israelites. When we think about the poor we must bear in mind that God’s mercy is wider than we can imagine! Like the Israelites we can have some irrational unbiblical prejudices about who God does and does not love. Some Christians think that the poor in Africa in some way deserve God’s mercy because they were born into their poverty but that people trapped in debt or on benefits on our doorstep somehow deserve their poverty because they have perhaps mismanaged their money. The gospel is good news for the poor – for ALL who are poor! And we who are so rich must never forget that!

In the same way Jesus reminded the people of Nazareth of another Old Testament character who was unexpectedly blessed by God.
27 And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed—only Naaman the Syrian.”
We read in 2 Kings 5 that Naaman was a Syrian in the time of Elisha when they were Israel’s enemies. He was the commander of the army of the king of Aram, but he had leprosy. He came to Elisha and asked for healing. Naaman gives us an example of faith and obedience.
10 Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, “Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed.”
….. 14 So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy.
15 Then Naaman and all his attendants went back to the man of God. He stood before him and said, “Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel.
God cares about ALL sick people – not just Israelites. Not just Christians. God healed Naaman because he was obedient. And God will answer prayers for healing from anybody who asks. Not just the faithful churchgoer. But ANYBODY on whom God chooses to pour his blessings.

18 “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. There are no “poor people” for whom Jesus is NOT Good News? The gospel is good news for EVERYBODY.

He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners. There are no prisoners who God will set free, if they only turn to him? Murderers? Rapists? Paedophiles? The gospel is good news for everybody, whatever our crimes.

Recovery of sight for the blind, None are so blind that God cannot make them see?

To release the oppressed, ALL who are oppressed, in any nation, of any religion or none. The glorious liberty of the children of God is God’s gift to ALL who believe.

to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.” God’s offer of forgiveness and new life is for EVERYONE. The day of vengeance of our God is coming. But until then He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
Is there anyone beyond the pale? NO! Anyone so lost that God cannot find them? NO! Anyone so wicked that God has given up on them? NO! NO! The gospel is good news for EVERYONE!

So we need to seek God’s guidance for him to lead us to the poor and the blind and the captives in North Springfield who He is waiting to save. Jesus calls us to step out boldly to take this good news to everybody we can! And he fills us with the same Holy Spirit who filled Jesus.

The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on US, because the LORD has anointed US to preach good news to the poor. He has sent US to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the blind, to proclaim the year of the LORD ’s favour!