Category: Salvation

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Remember and Pay Attention to You

In Luke 17, Jesus provides some indicators about how things will be as His time to return draws near. With this in mind, the Savior starts with a significant instruction to His disciples: “Pay attention to yourselves!” (Luke 17:3).

The chapter begins with Christ saying that you can expect offenses and temptations. There are little ones about; these are new and immature believers, those trying to get on their feet. These ones are vulnerable. Those who cause them to stumble will not get away with what they do.

The Lord has His ways of dealing with those who do harm. He will be far more severe and complete than anything we might cobble together along the lines of human rationale in regard to retribution. His ways are much different than ours, so much higher is He, above all powers and kingdoms. 

“It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews 10:31). Aren’t we all in His hands? 

It is so interesting to me that we attempt to fashion our own brands of vengeance. It reveals how little we know about God and the depth and breadth of His power, knowledge, and mercy. 

Yes, mercy. God weighs things according to His ultimate aim to draw all men unto Him. Anyone who falls into the hands of the Lord will feel the weight of His judgment, a weight that will take him to the bottom and even beneath it. 

Penetrating Work

We can see the nature of God and His penetrating work upon hearts in the story of Joseph that we can read in Genesis, chapters 37-50. In envy, the brothers plotted to do away with Joseph. At first, murder was on their minds, but they stopped short of killing him and instead chose to sell their brother into slavery. 

Years later, these very brothers, seeking to find food during a severe famine, bowed low before Joseph who had been raised up as a ruler in Egypt, a great and powerful empire at the time. The exchange between the distraught brothers shows just how the memory of their actions against Joseph had affected them.

Their hearts were tormented and had been for some time. What they had done to Joseph they did mean for evil. God, however, redeemed it for good to save them alive and to make way for their future as the fathers of the chosen nation anointed to witness to the world of the true Lord of all Creation. 

Woe to those by whom offenses come — not because of what human justice can manufacture, but because of what the Lord can and does do. This is not to diminish the effects that wrongdoing has on people. Still, we have to reckon on His Word as it declares: “Do not be deceived; God is not mocked; whatsoever a man sows that he shall also reap” (Galatians 6:7).

“Pay attention to yourselves!” That’s our business, Jesus taught. 

Reasonable Service

I am really more than I can handle on my own. I need to lose my life in order to really gain it. I must give it to God and then, by His Spirit, all things are worked together. 

Psalm 119:109 says that our souls are continually in our hands. Who I am and what I am to become is all related to how I walk with Him. 

Later in Luke 17, Jesus spoke of servants simply doing what is required of them as employees. The boss doesn’t serve them, they serve the boss and then they are permitted to do their own things. 

What it is that God requires is to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God, according to Micah 6:8. Do what you’re supposed to do. This is reasonable service, Jesus illustrated with His sentences. 

Seek first the Kingdom. Love God and your neighbor. Forgive, as He has forgiven you. Jesus said if someone wrongs you the same way seven times in a day and seeks forgiveness, you are to forgive. Proceed with humility in the understanding of just how prone to failure you are in your own right. 

The Seed of Faith

The disciples were stunned. They said that this would require something of a major faith boost. 

Jesus replied that they were all wrong about the nature of faith. Faith, He said, is something of quality rather than quantity. Just a tiny seed of true faith can root out any obstacle that gets between us and God.

Real faith is about the object it is set upon. We look to Jesus and He authors and completes our faith (see Hebrews 12:2). He is the source of our faith and by Him we are enabled to be just and merciful and forgiving. 

The next passages in Luke 17 point out just how casual and familiar we can be with the Lord. 

A group of 10 lepers called to the Savior: “Mercy, Lord, have mercy.” They wanted to be made clean and disease-free. He shouted back a simple instruction: “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” As they went, they were cleansed (Luke 17:17-18). 

Only one, however, among the healed rendered the Healer any honor. This one, a Samaritan at that, glorified God as he came and fell on his face before Jesus.

The Lord wondered aloud “Where are the nine?” Concern must have come over Him for the days to come. Who will reveal thanksgiving and honor unto God? 

The Flood and the Fire

Jesus next explained the character of the end days. The world will be wasted and wasting away. The atmosphere will be as it was in the days of Noah and Lot. 

Noah found grace and got an assignment from God. For more than 100 years, he fashioned an ark, a large vessel of wood to carry one family and a host of creatures through the Flood of judgment. His work and his witness of righteousness went ignored. People did as they did, practicing and imagining all manner of evil as they ate and drank and married. 

And then the rain began to fall. 

In Sodom, Lot lived a vexed and twisted existence. His faith was small, though real. He possessed enough discernment to recognize angels who came to the city. The people around Lot went about their business as usual. The arrival of the newcomers stirred the evil passions in them. A crowd rushed to Lot, seeking to abuse the messengers sheltered in his home. 

And then fire and brimstone fell from the sky. 

Lot and his daughters escaped to safety. His wife? She turned back toward Sodom and became a pillar of salt. She was so attached to the life she had in Sodom that she couldn’t bear to leave it behind. 

“Remember Lot’s wife.” This was Jesus’ word of warning. Perhaps He was addressing Judas in a way. By appearances, some can seem close to God. But when judgment arrives all hearts are revealed. 

The Son of God was right there. He represented the Kingdom of God come among them. Few chose Him. They failed to see the reality of His redemption. He suffered and was rejected by that generation. 

He offered His Body on the Cross. The religious and political leaders of the time – the vultures – circled around Jesus and put Him to death. He gave His life to that dark moment. (See Luke 17:37.)

Now He asks us to seek Him and surrender our lives to the purposes of the Kingdom. It’s not something everyone will choose to do, and the return of Christ will reveal this clearly. 

This one and that one and that one will be taken into the Lord’s reign, others will be left out. Why? Because they held fast to the life in the world that will face its judgment. 

What about us? What choices will we make? 

In Jesus, we have a forever life, an eternal life, a fulfilled life. Let us choose to see that life every morning and every evening. Put trust in Christ and His Truth and He shall bless and keep you.

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The Light of Forgiveness

A woman was caught in the “very act” of adultery and brought to Jesus. She was thrown at His feet right there in the Temple, in the house of mercy.

A number in the mob there had started to gather stones to throw at her. Tragically, as we read through the pages of human history, there are accounts that indicate a strange and evil curiosity tied to public demonstrations of judgment, especially ones that involve execution. Crowds gathered for these bizarre spectacles, and if we read the passage from John 8 carefully, Jesus tells us why.

What had been a regular morning of ministry for the Christ was roughly interrupted. He had come early to the Temple from the Mount of Olives, which was one of His usual places of prayer.

A crowd soon gathered around Him, and so He sat and taught.

It was then that the scribes and Pharisees showed up with their catch. Using this woman, these religious leaders had an object lesson that they used to confront Jesus. They trumpeted the Law of Moses:  “Such women are commanded to be stoned, but what do You say about it?” (see John 8:5).

There was an ulterior motive at work here. Should Jesus sanction this stoning, He would have set Himself as an enemy of the Roman imperial authorities who governed the region. The Jewish community in Judea and its environs were permitted some measure of self-management through the Sanhedrin, a council of leaders who advised the governors.

Capital punishment was not part of this council’s purview. Only Rome could administer this brand of justice. This reality served to set the stage for the Crucifixion of Christ by the decree of Pontius Pilate, who governed Jerusalem.

Scribbling in the Dust

“What do You say about it?”

They pressed Jesus as He lowered Himself and stuck His finger in the dirt before them. “He wrote on the ground,” reported John, the Apostle who penned this gospel.

Here we have the only recorded incident of Jesus doing some writing. What He put down there in the dirt, we do not know. Many have made their speculations, so I will reveal mine for you.

To me, it would be just like Jesus to challenge these religious ones on their own terms. These men formed a gaggle of self-proclaimed defenders of Moses and his writings. So I think the Lord could have made reference to Leviticus 20:10:  “If a man commits adultery with the wife of his neighbor, both the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.”

Perhaps, Jesus was more succinct with His jots and scribbles. Could it be that He just posed the obvious question:  “Where’s the guy?” The very act of adultery does require both adulterer and adulteress, and the Law required both to be put to death.

At last, Jesus stood. This marks a change in the dynamic of the confrontation. He was about to make a declaration of truth from a position of authority. The command with which Jesus spoke astonished those who heard Him. His message came straight from the Father – He made this clear about Himself and His words in the latter portion of John 8 (see verses 18-38).

His declaration was this:  “…He who is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone at her” (John 8:7).

Those words cut straight to the core of everyone present. Listen to the stones as they fall to the ground. See the accusers walk away – one by one, oldest to youngest – as these words jabbed conviction into their consciences. At least these consciences were still a bit tender to truth. By the time Jesus was turned over to Pilate on His way to the Cross, these very ones were too hardened to do the right thing.

This mob had been drawn to the scene because of a thirst for vengeance. The real reason for these feelings came from the deficit motivation lurking in their own selves. Their hearts hurt, wounded and scarred by the fallout of their own failures. They were pained by guilt. They did not know what to do with the hurt, except to come and watch someone else take punishment.

No Condemnation

Jesus returned to His writing in the dirt and soon He and the accused woman were left alone. None remained to accuse her. All had come see their own sinfulness in the presence of the Son. Again, He stood to make another statement of authority, a pronouncement of forgiveness and release and responsibility.

 “… Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more” (John 8:10-11).

No condemnation! Paul would write of this great truth in his letter to the Romans. His master treatise on the unrighteousness that lingers in all human beings and its answer in the work of the Person of Christ expands on what we read in John 8. None can excuse himself, wrote Paul. All fall short of the glory of God. Everyone needs a Savior; each of us requires a Redeemer who will announce:  “Neither do I condemn you.”

This passage in John has been analyzed and some view it as something added to John’s gospel at a later point in church history. The character and style of the writing is clearly John’s with the attention to detail and the focus on conversation. Some claim these words are from God but that they are out of place in this context.

Me? I agree with the late Warren W. Wiersbe, onetime Moody Church pastor and host of the Back to the Bible radio show. He says in The Bible Exposition commentary:  “The story fits right here.” And Dr. Wiersbe says this encounter sets up what comes next in the chapter.

“Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world. Whoever follows Me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12).

The accused woman was deep in the darkness of sin. Her desperate condition came before Jesus. She stood accused. She was guilty. She had violated the Law that the Lord had communicated through Moses.

Jesus, however, flipped the script on the accusers. He turned on His Light. The Light shined into the accusers. Each of them had to face the record of sin written upon his own dirtied heart. They could have stayed with Him and with her, the one caught in the very act, because now their very acts — their very sinful thoughts even — had been exposed to them as they had exposed this woman.

The Savior went on to describe the power of His Light. It shines the Way to forgiveness and release. Abide in the Word, He told them and “you will know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free” (John 8:31-32).

The Son came for them all; for all stand accused before our Holy God. He longed to see every one of them receive His love and be free for “if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:37).

The Son, the Truth, Freedom. All can be ours. Thank you, Jesus.

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Faith That Saves

Two tables. Two hosts. Two salvations.

The episodes I want to examine are both found in the gospel of Luke. The first one is toward the end of Luke 7 and involves a Pharisee named Simon who asked Jesus to come to dinner at his home.

The word on the street was that Jesus was very comfortable to share a meal with tax collectors and sinners. This activity brought questions and scoffs and mockery.

Jesus had an answer for such slanders and accusations: “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners” (Mark 2:17). This habit of His was part of His healing mission, He said.

How would things go for Jesus at the table of “healthy” man?

Casual Reception

I am sure the Pharisee’s invitation carried an ulterior motive. It was calculated, a setup of sorts. Simon knew the talk of Jesus. Some were calling Him a prophet. His words were words that projected authority; His talk left hearers astonished with its clarity and penetration. His miracle works of healing and deliverance created a remarkable stir, an expectation was growing that perhaps the Messiah had really come.

Yes, Simon indeed had heard of His sermons and His works. His invitation offered him an opportunity for this “healthy” one to gauge the carpenter’s Son from Nazareth at close range.

And so Jesus showed up. However, His reception at the home was of a perfunctory sort. His was a somewhat chilly and borderline dishonorable welcome when judged by the cultural standards of the day and region.

The Son was not met with a kiss of greeting; He was given no water with which to clean His dusty feet; nor was the courtesy of fragrant oil for His sun-parched brow extended to Him. Still, Jesus entered and took His place of recline with the others there and was prepared to enjoy the meal that was to come.

An Uninvited Visitor

The scene at the Pharisee’s home soon was interrupted by one of the “sick” ones. A “woman of the city,” one well known as the village harlot, came in and she reached the Feet of Jesus. She began kissing those Feet and weeping upon them. She let her hair hang down – a somewhat immodest act when done in public — and with her hair she began to wipe those Feet. She lavished one more thing upon those sacred Feet as she broke a box of costly perfume and poured it out.

Likely this final act represented that there had been a real transformation in her life. This perfume was among the important tools of her trade in the sex market in which she trafficked. Here, she abandoned this valuable essence and sought to put aside her sordid livelihood. She was giving herself to the Lord.

Another from among the publicans and sinners had become a friend of Jesus. She crashed the dinner party and turned the event into a salvation celebration. For that’s what this became in the Savior’s heart anyway.

Hearts Revealed

Simon the Pharisee was too incredulous and too filled with scorn even to speak. Instead, thoughts of contempt percolated within him: “This Man cannot be from God for no holy Teacher would allow Himself to be part of something like this,” he thought.

Jesus heard those thoughts as if they were spoken out loud. He delivered a parable on big debtors and small debtors and drove home the point that those forgiven much are those who love much.

Forgiveness? Did Simon even realize how much he needed it? He did at least “judge rightly” in noting that those who are shown greater mercy respond with greater love.

Jesus then brought things to head with these words to her: “’Your sins are forgiven.’ Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, ‘Who is this, who even forgives sins?’ And he said to the woman, ‘Your faith has saved you; go in peace’” (Luke 7:49-50).

A Man Up a Tree

The other episode we want to look at is in Luke 19. It happens in the town of Jericho. There, a tax collector named Zacchaeus was stuck in the midst of a crowd awaiting the Lord’s arrival. Being a short man, Zacchaeus got himself up into a tree to catch a glimpse of Jesus as He walked into town.

This time Jesus took matters into His hands, setting up His own lunch date with the notorious publican. “Zacchaeus, get out of that tree. I must eat at your table today,” announced the Savior.

The atmosphere was soon thick with consternation. Those in the throng muttered aloud about Jesus’ choice of company. The man was a cheat and a crook and all of Jericho knew it.

By the time Jesus reached his table, Zacchaeus was changed. Born again, the tax collector committed himself to new way of living. “And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, ‘Behold, Lord, the half of my goods give to the poor. And if I have jdefrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost’” (Luke 19:8-10).

More Than Friends

This is one of the clear presentations from Jesus on the matter of saving faith. Abraham believed and was made a friend of God. By faith, righteousness was counted to him. Lost and desperate Zacchaeus was called out of the tree and shown the way to new life in Jesus.

The Son came to seek and to save – us, all of us. Revelation 3speaks of the Lamb of God knocking on our doors, bidding us to open up to Him. If we let Him in, He will sit down at our table and sup with us (see Revelation 3:20).

It’s a great bargain, a great exchange – He gives us His life for ours. All we have to offer Him is our faith, and that’s enough for Him.

Just open the door. Believe God, believe Him more than ever. He forgives and restores and cleanses. Friends of God are made this way.

He sees as more than friends really. He sees us as One with Him. He sees each of us as He sees Himself, as the Son of the Most High.