Luke 16:16-18

“The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since that time, the good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing their way into it. It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the least stroke of a pen to drop out of the Law.

 “Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery, and the man who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.”


The NIV titles this section "additional teachings". It almost seems a hodgepodge of ideas that do not flow with the rest of the passage. But since that isn't Jesus' style, let's take a closer look. Why are these verses sandwiched between the story of proper use of money and the parable of the rich man and Lazarus? Taken all together, Jesus is pointing the finger at the false religion of the Pharisees and pointing out the dangers within the system.

Again and again Jesus points out that a person's outward religiosity is no indication that the person is part of the kingdom of God. He called the most religious people in the land "whitewashed tombs" - clean on the outside but inside filled with rotting decay.

The Law and the Prophets are what Christians today call the Old Testament. Until the coming of John the Baptist, these scriptures proclaimed the truths of God and revealed man's inability to live up to a  perfect holy standard. The arrival of John and Jesus marked the beginning of a new era. The "sinners and tax collectors" had been held at arms length from God by these Pharisees. Now they were forcing their way in droves through the open door of the gospel.

Jesus came to fulfill the Law, not destroy it. Not even a mark the size of a period or dash will be removed from the Law until heaven and earth pass away. Some of the sacrificial laws and cultural laws are not followed by Christians, but the meaning of the law as taught by Jesus certainly is. Although he interacted with and offered grace to those considered sinners by society, he set the standard for righteousness even beyond the law in teachings such as the Sermon on the Mount. "You think you're righteous because you haven't murdered? If you've hated anyone it is the same thing. You think you're sinless because you haven't committed adultery? If you've lusted you are equally guilty under the Law." He lived a sinless life and imputes that righteousness to all who believe.

Verse 18 seems totally out of flow, almost like a random thought. But he was calling out the Pharisees who had married divorced women or been divorced themselves. They would never have sex outside the bonds of marriage, but in the eyes of the Law divorce and remarriage was equivalent to adultery. They wanted to pick and choose which sins were allowed and which were grievous.

Don't we all. Some sins - sexual sins, divorce, murder, rape, child abuse - are seen by many Christians as worse than others - gossip, white lies, mildly lustful feelings, jealousy, overindulgence. We like to justify ourselves by pointing the finger at others. We condemn Gosnell and the Tsarnaev brothers to hell but give ourselves a free pass. Of course some sins have greater repercussions on earth. Of course our human laws should punish some sins greatly and ignore others. But in the eyes of a holy God, sin is sin. "For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it" (Js 2:10).

So now turn from your conscience and its feeling to Christ who is not able to deceive; my heart and Satan, however, who will drive me to sin are liars... You should not believe your conscience and your feelings more than the word which the Lord who receives sinners preaches to you... Therefore you are able to fight with your conscience by saying: You lie; Christ speaks the truth and you do not. - Martin Luther

Luke 16:13-15

 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”

The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of others, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.


After concluding his parable of the Shrewd Manager, a commentary about how Jesus' followers should use worldly riches to further God's kingdom, Jesus makes it clear that you cannot serve both God and money. We all know people who are obsessed with money. We shake our heads at lottery winners and movie stars who blow through their savings and wind up with nothing. Although money in and of itself is not evil, the love of and obsession with money takes our focus away from God, his will for our lives, and his provision for our daily needs. When you love money, you never have enough. When you love God, you find all you ever needed.

The Pharisees found this statement ridiculous. They loved money. Who wouldn't. Riches in this culture meant God was pleased with you. Destitution was a sign of God's displeasure. Likely your sins or the sins of your father cost you worldly comfort.

Someone was right, and someone was wrong. Jesus' teaching contradicted the traditions and teachings of the Pharisees. They rejected everything he said, unwilling to allow any conviction into their own hearts. They had no interest in using their money to bring people into the kingdom of God. Their defenses went up with every story from Jesus' mouth. They purported to be the true worshippers of God, the true leaders of the true faith. They had convinced themselves and the nation that they held the keys to God. They prided themselves on worship, praying public prayers of thanksgiving that they weren't like the poor sinners surrounding them.

They built their foundation on the shifting sands of public opinion, hypocritical acts of goodness, and worldly comforts and praise. They checked off their list of religious behaviors while devouring widows' houses. Every false religion focuses on specific good deeds and outward behaviors. Jesus was proclaiming God's kingdom as inward change, spiritual wealth, and God's glory through changed lives. He taught humility rather than deeds done by men. He taught giving so that your left hand would not even know what your right was doing rather than trumpet blasts and public proclamations of generosity.

People will notice public deeds and attention grabbing generosity, but God searches the heart for true motivation. He desires mercy rather than sacrifice and knowledge of God more than burnt offerings (Hos. 6:6).

"How can you say, 'We are wise, for we have the law of the LORD,' when actually the lying pen of the scribes has handled it falsely? The wise will be put to shame; they will be dismayed and snared. They have rejected the word of the LORD, so what wisdom do they really have?" Jeremiah 8:9

Luke 14:15-24

When one of them who were reclining at the table with Him heard this, he said to Him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!”

Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’

But they all alike began to make excuses. The first one said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of land and I need to go out and look at it; please consider me excused.’ Another one said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to try them out; please consider me excused.’  Another one said, ‘I have married a wife, and for that reason I cannot come.’

“The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’

And the servant said, ‘Master, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’

“Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full. For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste of my dinner.’”


Jesus was attending Sabbath dinner at the house of a prominent Pharisee. He has blasted them for being unwilling to heal on the Sabbath when they would work to save a valuable ox or a beloved child. He has condemned them for seeking the place of honor at the table and only doing good to those who can repay the kindness. He concludes in verse 14 that those who are truly humble will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous. Most responded with silence, but one man clearly missed the point. He certainly thinks the previous parables were not about him and includes himself as one of the humble when saying that those who eat at the heavenly banquet will be blessed. He was proud to think himself as not too proud to enter the kingdom of heaven.

Jesus follows this statement by telling an absurd story. A wealthy man invites people to a banquet. In these days without calendars and watches, a party planner sent out a pre-invitation. Then when the preparations were ready he would send another invitation. When the man in the parable sends his notice that the party is ready, it is impossible to imagine that anyone would not come. A really nice party could last for days of feasting and fun. In a world where daily life was repetitive and could feel mundane, such a celebration would not be missed.

But when the second invitation is received, all those invited make ridiculous excuses for not coming. The first needs to go check out the dirt in a field he has bought. The second, a clearly wealthy man, wants to see how at his five yoke of new oxen perform. The third has a wife who won't let him come. In this society the man was certainly the head of the house, so this is clearly an excuse. What wife wouldn't want to hit the party of the year?

The servant brings the shocking news back to the master. After all the preparation for an amazing feast, no one is coming! Beyond rudeness and breaching the social mores of the society, a refusal of this nature indicated that you wanted no friendship with the person throwing the feast. This group represents the Jewish leaders and the nation rejecting Jesus. They were pre-invited by the words of the Old Testament and were now the Messiah was telling them the banquet was ready. The master sends out his servant to invite the crippled blind and lame from the streets. This is the notably the same groups Jesus said should be invited to every banquet. This group would be confused at the invitation, knowing that they could not repay the feast. These attendees represent those in the Jewish nation who believed in and followed Jesus - those who mourned over their wretched spiritual state rather than believing they were entitled to salvation because of their Abrahamic ancestry and adherence to legalistic rules and traditions.

But there is still room at the banquet. The servant is sent out again to convince those in the countryside and byways to come to the banquet. This represents those outside the Jewish faith - the Gentiles. The master's house is now filled with a surprising guest list, and none of those originally invited taste so much as a slice of juicy lamb.

The Pharisees were self-sacrificing. They fasted, gave tithes to the temple, and followed minute laws added through the centuries to avoid even coming near sin. In Matthew 23 Jesus compares the weight of this burden as a cumbersome one, impossible to lift. The whole reason behind this was for personal glory on earth as well as the promise of eternal reward. They would not only be in heaven, but they would have the best seat at the table. This is why in Mathew 20 the mother of James and John requests that they sit at the right and left hand of Jesus in his kingdom. Your work on earth would be rewarded.

People today like religion to be comforting. As long as you do your best and believe something with all your heart, you're good. But Jesus always spoke to shatter false religious hope. He didn't tell his listeners, "Don't worry, we all worship the same God. You're good." No, Jesus said, "No one comes unto the Father except through me." He was tough.

We like to pat ourselves on the back as well. Yesterday the Barna Research Group released a survey examining whether modern day Christians are more like Jesus or more like the Pharisees. (Read an article about it here.) 51% of respondents chose beliefs and actions consistent with the Pharisees. 14% exhibit beliefs and actions consistent with Jesus. In the middle were Christians who show a mix of Pharisaical beliefs and Jesus' teaching. Evangelical Christians were more likely to have the actions of Jesus, but often had the actions of Jesus without the beliefs. Perhaps this is why Christians are branded as hypocritical. Even when practice the right behavior, we may have the wrong motives. Practicing Catholics were more likely to have Christ-like beliefs but Pharisaical actions. Women were more likely to be "Christ-like" than men, maybe because we tend to be more nurturing.

Authentic faith, in word and deed, is much more difficult than finding  and following "religion". Only the transforming power of walking with God, through the forgiveness of Jesus, with the guidance of the Holy Spirit can change us into the image of Christ. No amount of "effort" on our part will amount to anything.

Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.” - 1 Corinthians 1:26-31

Luke 14:7-14

When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable: “When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in a place of honor, lest someone more distinguished than you be invited by him. If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

He said also to the man who had invited him, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”


Jesus' opponents are seething. They can make no reply after he confronts their hypocrisy. Having asked if it is lawful to heal on the Sabbath, he healed a man despite their added rules. They know that of course they love their son and would pull him from a well on the Sabbath; their ox is worth money and would be pulled out as well. But when it comes to another person's illness rather than your own needs or comfort, the law conveniently becomes more rigid.

Nevertheless, the Sabbath dinner goes on. The dinner party moves toward the table in uncomfortable silence. Jesus is a people watcher, and he is not finished blasting their religious notions with his observations. In the center of the room is a long U-shaped table. The host will seat himself at the head of the table. The most honored guests will sit on either side of him, then in order of importance the guests will seat themselves down either side.

Jesus sees them posturing for the best possible seat. Perhaps some of them were even asked to move up and down in the rank, humiliating some and puffing others up with pride. Have you ever accidentally sat down at the wedding banquet table reserved for the bridal party of family and had to move? Embarrassing! Just from a practical standpoint it is better to be asked to move up to a better seat than to be bumped down a level.

Let's be honest - we all want the best seat at a banquet. In high school you wanted to sit with your friends, or even longed for the "cool table". There was always concern over who has your lunch period. At church dinners we sit with our friends and enjoy the fellowship. With a big group going out to eat, it is tough to sit at the end with the little kids and hear the adult laughter but miss the joke.  It may be awkward to go sit and with someone who is alone or whom you find annoying. But we are called to seek humility and consider others better than ourselves. This does not mean we should never enjoy the fellowship of close friends and family. Instead it means we should long for the glory of God and the furtherance of his kingdom rather than the praise of man or our own comfort.

The Pharisee hosting the event is now thinking, "Man, Jesus is really laying into my guests. This is getting uncomfortable for them." Jesus turns to him and says "Oh, yeah, you too. It's pretty easy to invite over the other Pharisees and teachers of the law. They will in turn invite you over to repay your kindness as well as telling everyone what a great feast you threw. Big deal. If you really want to be righteous invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. Invite the ones who cannot pay you back or bring you glory in the community." The Greek does not indicate that you should never invite your friends, but that you should not only invite your friends. You could rephrase his statement, "It is not so much trouble for you to invite your friends, brothers, and rich neighbors."

We always travel at holidays, but if we ever stay home I really want to invite a student from the local college who can't go home for Thanksgiving or Christmas. But even this would not be that difficult on my part. Imagine inviting over someone poor or homeless, someone without access to personal hygiene or proper attire for a party you held. Imagine inviting the disabled, guests whose needs make them more difficult to host. Considering the belief of Jesus' day that disabilities and disease were caused by sinfulness, imagine inviting prostitutes and drug dealers to your Sunday luncheon. Jesus asks a lot of people!

But this not another rule or religious construction. When making a dinner list it isn't necessary to write "Poor? Check. Crippled? Check. Lame? Check. Blind? Check." Jesus seeks a change of the heart. He desires followers who are humble and contrite who realize they are no better than those so easily excluded from society. But yes, we really must be willing to share our meals, our time, and our material blessings with those considered "less fortunate" or "less desirable" by our society today.

Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you. James 4:10

Luke 14:1-6

A literal cow in a literal well
possibly not the Sabbath

One Sabbath, when Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee, he was being carefully watched. There in front of him was a man suffering from abnormal swelling of his body. Jesus asked the Pharisees and experts in the law, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?” But they remained silent. So taking hold of the man, he healed him and sent him on his way.

Then he asked them, “If one of you has a child or an ox that falls into a well on the Sabbath day, will you not immediately pull it out?” And they could make no reply to this.


After a morning of synagogue worship, one of the prominent Pharisees invites Jesus to dinner. This is interesting, because if the Pharisees thought Jesus was from Satan, this would make Jesus ultimately unclean - thereby defiling the Pharisee's house. Even more suspicious is the placement of a man with dropsy right in front of Jesus. Dropsy is what we call today edema - swelling of bodily tissues. It can indicate failure of the liver, kidney, or heart as the body is unable to detoxify and more fluid correctly from the body. In this time period, illness was seen as judgment for sin, and dropsy was believed to be the result of sexual sin. I doubt this man was invited over because he was a close family friend. No, the Pharisees invite the "unclean" Jesus and the "unclean" man in order to set Jesus up.

They keep fighting with Jesus over the Sabbath. Jesus goes around straightening backs, healing the blind, restoring withered hands, allowing his disciples to pick heads of grain on the Sabbath... the list goes on and on, and everything Jesus did is not even recorded. This is proof enough for the Pharisees. "He broke the Sabbath again! See, he is NOT from God!"

Jesus asks the Pharisees and law experts if it is lawful to heal on the Sabbath. Actually this is a trick question. Nowhere in the Old Testament was healing on the Sabbath prohibited. But in order to avoid breaking one of the Old Testament laws, over time the Pharisees had added additional laws to each law to ensure they did not sin. One of their added rules was that you could only be cured on the Sabbath if you would definitely die otherwise. If this was not the case, you should wait until the next day for treatment.

When no one answers Jesus, he grabs the man and heals him. Instantly the swelling disappears, skin tightens, organs begin functioning, and his joints freely move as he rushes home to show his family. You would think people would respond with, "WOW!!" Instead they glare and seethe at Jesus' behavior and lack of cultural sensitivity.

Calling attention to their hypocrisy, Jesus asks them, "If your animal or child fell into a well on the Sabbath, would you not pull it out? I doubt you would say, 'Sorry Joshua Jr., you'll have to try to tread water until tomorrow. Try to stay warm.'" They cannot reply. Of course they would deal with that situation. They used their man-made lists and regulations to pick and choose what was work and what was not. They walked closely along the lines drawn by their leaders rather than following Micah 6:8, "He has shown you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."

In the presence of the light of the world, most of the religious people chose to walk in darkness. It was a darkness of their own choosing, bound tightly by their religion and cultural upbringing. The chains of their religion kept them from reaching the kingdom of God. Many today bind themselves with the same chains. They keep certain rules or try to be "good people" believing that if one's good deeds outweigh the bad, heaven is waiting. One common thought is that it does not matter what you believe, as long as you believe it passionately. But Jesus taught, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." There are many paths, but most lead to destruction. No matter how well you run a race, if you are on the wrong trail you will not win the prize.

Even those of us who are truly Christians must guard ourselves from religiosity. There are some tenets that we must all believe: "There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all" (Eph. 4:4-6). But often much of what we consider Christianity is likely just part of our culture and upbringing. Guard yourself against placing tradition on the same level as God's Word.

On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" "What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?" The man answered, "'You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.' And, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'""You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live."  Luke 10:25-28

Luke 13:31-35

At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.”

He replied, “Go tell that fox, ‘I will keep on driving out demons and healing people today and tomorrow, and on the third day I will finish my course.’ In any case, I must press on today and tomorrow and the next day—for surely no prophet can die outside Jerusalem!

“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing. Behold, your house is forsaken. And I tell you, you will not see me until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’


This is not Herod the Great, the king who rebuilt the Jewish temple, built the port city of Caeserea Maritima, and massacred infants at the time of Jesus' birth. This is Herod Antipas, one of his sons. Herod Antipas was one of three sons of Herod who split Herod the Great's kingdom when he died. He was largely hated by the Jewish people whom he ruled. He built his capital city in Tiberius on a Jewish cemetery. He placed idols and images of Caesar in the city. He is also the ruler who ordered the beheading of John the Baptist at the request of his wife after being enticed by a dance from her daughter at a party (Matthew 14).

Some Pharisees came to warn Jesus that Herod wanted him dead. Maybe these Pharisees actually liked Jesus - we know a few of them followed him. Perhaps they just wanted Jesus out of their region. We do not know their motivation or the motivation of Herod. Perhaps he was threatened by Jesus because his superstitious nature associated Jesus with John - even suspecting him to be John the Baptist resurrected. Maybe he saw Jesus as some sort of threat to stability in his region, and instability could lead to repercussions from Rome.

Whatever instigates this warning, Jesus sends a message to "that fox". It is unusual for Jesus to call someone a name. What would be symbolized by a fox? We think of a fox as sneaky and wily. They are quick with their in and out destruction of your chicken coops or vineyards. This is definitely not a compliment.

Jesus' death was not three days away, he is speaking in the fashion of the time to mean that the events of his death would happen at the appointed time, when his course or work was complete. No human, no matter what earthly power they wielded, could deter the divine timetable. Jesus had set his face to Jerusalem, the place where so many prophets of God had been killed that it was a tongue in cheek sign of authenticity to be killed as a prophet in the holy city.

Thinking of Jerusalem, Jesus mourns for their disbelief and disobedience. Jerusalem here signifies the entire Jewish nation, not just the city dwellers. As a hen gathers her chicks when a hungry hawk circles overhead or lightened threatens in the sky, God desired to gather his people under his protection. But most rebelliously went their own way, sure that they knew a better way to defeat the hawk, certain that a storm was not even coming.

"Your house is forsaken." As in the Old Testament when the Shekinah glory of God left the temple and it was destroyed by the Babylonians, God would leave his unbelieving people. It reminds me of a parent saying to a young adult wayward child, "You want to be on your own, fine. But you will no longer enjoy our provision while you destroy your life." But a remnant would be saved when they believed in Jesus, saying "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord." Many Messianic Jews are saved, and many more will be transformed at the second coming.

Like the unbelieving at the time of Jesus, we face consequences when we ignore God's will for our lives. We are not promised to be materially blessed if we seek him with all our hearts, but we are promised to be spiritually cursed if we reject him with all our hearts. Many times he uses drastic measures to get our attention and draw us back to him, but other times we slowly drag our sins and misconceptions down the broad road leading to destruction. Let us seek his will for our lives with all our hearts!

Trust in the Lord with all your heart
And do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He will make your paths straight.

Proverbs 3:5-6

Luke 12:1-12

Under these circumstances, when so many thousands of the people had gathered together that they were trampling one another, he began to say to his disciples first, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. Therefore whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops.

“I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him! Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God. Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.

“And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God, but the one who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God. And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not be anxious about how you should defend yourself or what you should say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”

 

So what were the circumstances? Jesus has just pronounced six "woes" against the Pharisees and lawyers at a luncheon, and they are seeking to kill him. Thousands of people are trampling on each other to get close. It's the UFC of the day, and with no loudspeakers or video screens everyone wants to get close enough to experience the action.

First Jesus speaks to his disciples, probably more than just the 12. Some were true followers. some were not. As leaven works its way through a loaf of bread, transforming the properties of the dough, so the brand of religious hypocrisy practiced by the Pharisees would work its way through a person's spiritual life. Our own hypocrisy may begin as a small thing, driven by an attempt to keep up what we perceive are other's perceptions of us or even in an attempt to truly "do good". We begin to worry about our external actions so that others will judge us well. Before we know it the hypocrisy has worked its way so thoroughly into our lives that there is no way we can work it out on our own.

Sins done in secret will eventually come to life - shouted on the rooftops. We see evidence of this in modern times. When people are caught in extremely sinful behavior such as child abuse, it may take decades to come out. There are many sins that will not be "shouted from the rooftops", but all sins will be laid bare at the judgment. No one escapes exposure for eternity. Only the blood of Christ completely blots out sins.

Jesus warns his listeners not to fear the judgment of mortal men. The worst they can do is kill you. That seems very extreme! Most of us would rather not be killed. But we should far more fear the judgment of God, for nothing escapes His knowledge. He knows how many hairs are on your head, not even having to recount as the strays detach themselves into your brush each morning.

Sparrows were so inexpensive that you could buy two for a copper coin (a sixteenth of an average day's wage), or five for two coins. Sometimes we feel like that 5th sparrow, thrown in for free and worth little or nothing. But the flip side of God knowing you well enough to be able to rightly judge your behavior is that he cares enough to offer a plan of forgiveness through Christ and a way to truly change your behavior through the Holy Spirit. You are of great value to him! Those who have engaged the Triune God - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - will be acknowledged by Christ and forgiven for any transgressions. (It is not enough to believe in "god".)

Why would Jesus say that some people could not be forgiven? Is not God merciful and willing to forgive all sin? Yes, but if a person consistently closes his heart to God and his ears to his voice, he comes to a point where he can no longer recognize God even when God is making himself known.

As believers, we are not to be anxious about our conversations with others. If we use our own words, they might be eloquent, but they will ultimately be ineffective in communicating spiritual truths. The Spirit's words spoken through us will pierce and transform hearts. This does not mean that even if we are close to God we will win every argument. In fact, many times in the tense world in which we must communicate that the best thing is to walk away and lose an argument. When we are in close communion with the spirit we will know when and where to hold our tongue and what words to speak at other times. But in either case we will be able to say as Paul said to the Sanhedrin in Acts 23:1, "My brothers, I have fulfilled my duty to God in all good conscience to this day."

This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful. But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. For I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not thereby acquitted. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each one will receive his commendation from God.

- 1 Corinthians 4:1-5

Luke 11:45-54

One of the lawyers said to Him in reply, “Teacher, when You say this, You insult us too.” But He said, “Woe to you lawyers as well! For you weigh men down with burdens hard to bear, while you yourselves will not even touch the burdens with one of your fingers. Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets, and it was your fathers who killed them. So you are witnesses and approve the deeds of your fathers; because it was they who killed them, and you build their tombs. For this reason also the wisdom of God said, ‘I will send to them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and some they will persecute, so that the blood of all the prophets, shed since the foundation of the world, may be charged against this generation, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the house of God; yes, I tell you, it shall be charged against this generation.’  Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge; you yourselves did not enter, and those who were entering in, you hindered.”

When He left there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to be very hostile and to question Him closely on many subjects, plotting against Him to catch Him in something He might say.


He is not used to being spoken to in such a manner, so the lawyer automatically corrects Jesus. "Jesus, you are insulting us lawyers, too." And Jesus replies, "Okay, woe to you lawyers, too!" he gave three curses to the Pharisees; now he gives three curses to the lawyers. So much for the idea that Christianity should be a religion of tolerance.

In Jesus' day, a lawyer would have a somewhat similar function to our lawyers. They traveled with the Pharisees or Sadducees, understanding and following all the rules of their particular sect. They would know and memorize the Jewish scriptures as well as the multitudes of laws that had been added on to "clarify" and maintain the purity of the laws given by God. Over the course of 400 years, they had crafted the rituals, routines, and procedures of their religion and culture. It was a labyrinth of behaviors imposed upon the people as if it was the true will of God, rules so complex that you needed a lawyer for interpretation. They weighed men down with a religious burden so heavy that none could lift it. And since the system was based on ritual rather than relationship with God, they gave the people not even a finger to lift the burden. For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin (Rom. 3:20).

I was playing the book of  Leviticus on my iPod yesterday. As I listened to all the laws about sacrifice, uncleanness, and so forth, I couldn't help but think, "No wonder they were so obsessed with following the Law. There were so many specific Laws of which to keep track." And the punishments for breaking the laws were severe, culminating in the idea that you would be unforgiven of sins if you did or did not do certain things. Just like we need lawyers today when we try to struggle through "legalese", the Jewish people needed lawyers to clarify their laws. They were the biblical scholars and theologians of the day.

Jesus accuses the lawyers of building and decorating the tombs of the prophets, whom their ancestors killed. They wanted to show that they were more pious and righteous than their ancestors. But they ignored the teaching of the prophets - teaching that God desires mercy, not sacrifice (Hosea 6:6), that doing what is right is more important than sacrifice (Prov. 21:3), that God has no pleasure in the blood of bulls and goats (Is. 1:11), that the important thing is to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with the Lord (Micah 6:8). And they would plot to kill the one of whom the prophets spoke, Jesus himself.

For you have taken away the key of knowledge; you yourselves did not enter, and those who were entering in, you hindered. Could anything worse be said of a religious leader? The world has always been full of religious liars - intentional or otherwise. As the apostle John wrote, "We know that we are children of God, and the whole world lies in the lap of the evil one." Throughout history people have allowed themselves to be rocked to sleep by false teaching, lulled into a false sense of security through rituals and misplaced faith.

Can you imagine the tension in the room? The Pharisees must have been outraged. No one talked to them that way. People graciously greeted them in the marketplace. People literally accepted their word as law. As soon as he leaves, the leaders begin to plot a way to trap Jesus in his words so they can put an end to this.

There lies in this passage a warning to beware of religions created by the world as well as rituals within Christianity. Any religion or denomination that places works above grace is false. Nothing we do is important in earning our forgiveness, not baptism, communion, or words spoken. Faith and God's grace is what it takes. And "good deeds" do nothing to earn us favor in the eyes of God. It is unmerited. Our good works will flow from a heart of thanksgiving as the Holy Spirit conforms us into the image of God.

We must also beware the danger of hindering others from entering the kingdom. We keep silent when we should share the gospel. People look at us and see a life no different from other religious or irreligious people. We allow slavery, neglect orphans and widows, disregard the poor, allow abortion, ignore sin, and go about our lives ignoring the transforming power of Christ. Let us instead brightly shine a light on the path to heaven. Let us point people to the keys for the kingdom!

The principle he is putting before us is that outward conformity to either cultural norms or Biblical commands is not what God is after. He wants our hearts. And when he has our hearts, broken and humbled over our sin, believing and resting in his promises, he has the whole person. Only then does the outward behavior have value, because it flows from an inward change. The “inside of the cup” can only be cleaned and made right by the grace of God. - Jennifer Thorn