Luke 9:28-36 Disciples on the mountain

Luke 9:28-36 The transfiguration on the mount. Parallel passages in Matthew 17:1-9 and Mark 9:1-9. [Matthew and Mark record a subsequent conversation with the disciples about Elijah and John the Baptist that Luke does not record, which we will not address here.] Moses and Elijah appeared and were talking with Jesus, who was white and gleaming. They talked about Jesus' departure that He was about to accomplish in Jerusalem. Peter, James, and John were observing but had been overcome with sleep, but they woke up and saw Jesus in His glory. Their reaction? Let''s build tabernacles for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. Then a cloud overshadowed them and the voice of God saying, "This is My Son, My Chosen One; listen to Him!"

         There are inevitably inexplicable aspects when the eternal comes in contact with the temporal. The gleaming appearance of Jesus may account for the tradition of the idea that angels appear with halos, that there is an aura surrounding their appearance, often characterized as a halo. Perhaps it is the eyes of the soul being opened to the power & purity of God, as for example can be found in visions in the Old Testament of the throne of God. There are various visualizations (Isaiah 6:1-5,  Ezekiel 1:4-28, 43:1-5, Daniel 7:9-10) but in all cases the frailty of human flesh is overcome, and the metaphors strain human comprehension.

         The appearance of Moses and Elijah to talk to Jesus possibly represents the epitome of the Law and the Prophets. Both spoke of the coming of Christ, and of His death for the redemption of mankind. In the Law, this is found in the symbolism of the Passover and in the prophets, Isaiah 53. Perhaps their appearance can be found partly in the Old Testament record that Moses was buried by God and no one knows the location (Deut 3:5-6) (possibly in heaven?) and that Elijah was carried bodily into heaven by a chariot of fire and therefore never died (2 Kings 2:11). Each of them had left the earth in an unique way ordained by God. Perhaps they were encouraging Jesus for the trials to come of the eternal plan of God and His role in it. In a sense it seems odd that the Son of God would need encouragement from mere mortals who have died and been glorified. Perhaps we don't fully understand this because we lack the eternal perspective.

         The reaction of Peter, James, and John is a typical human response. This is so wonderful, let's set up a permanent camp here.  Although, to be fair, they suggested a tabernacle, reaching back to the symbolism of the tabernacle in the wilderness that the Ark of the Covenant resided in during the Israelites' sojourn in the desert, and in the Promised Land until the temple was built in Jerusalem. In this view, perhaps they were wanting to enshrine Moses, Jesus, and Elijah in an Old Testament paradigm. But Jesus made it clear that that was not His reason for coming to the earth. Or perhaps they thought that it was time for fulfillment of the feast of tabernacles, and that this was the beginning of God establishing His kingdom in power on the earth. But that was not yet.

         Finally we have the cloud and the voice coming from heaven, repeating essentially the same statement that was heard at Jesus' baptism.(Luke 3:22)  Perhaps Jesus needed this encouragement to hear His Father's voice, to give Him strength in the flesh, to face the coming trials.

         Why did Peter, James, and John have trouble staying awake? Perhaps it is because the flesh has great difficulty dealing with the presence of the eternal and spiritual. How often do we struggle with sleep when we are at prayer. And we see that Peter, James, and John also had the same problem in the garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:45-46). This is not an excuse, but we are bordering on the spiritual realities that underlie the concept of the dark night of the soul. Our human bodies, and souls, corrupted as they are by sin, have great difficulty coping with the presence of the reality of God. God wraps Himself in darkness at times as an act of mercy so that our mortal selves will not be destroyed by exposure to His glory. (Ex 33:18-23) And coming this close, perhaps the disciple were induced to sleep lest their souls be overwhelmed by God's revelation of His presence.

Luke 9:18-27 Jesus & Peter and the cost of discipleship

Luke 9:18-27 Jesus asks the disciples who He is and Peter says He is the Christ. Parallel passages in Matthew 16:13-20 and Mark 8:27-33.  The reporting on the first part is very consistent. Jesus first asks the disciples who the multitude thinks He is, and then He asks them who they think He is, evoking Peter's response 'Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God.' (Matt 16:16). But the discussion after this apparently went in a number of directions, with two different reports in different gospels.

         Matthew records the part of the conversation where Jesus blessed Peter because he had just received a revelation from the Father in heaven, and that He is going to build His church on the rock and thee gates of hell will not overpower it; and furthermore He will give Peter the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and authority to bind and to loose both on earth and in heaven. There might be some question about what Jesus was referring back to when He said He would build His church upon this rock. Some believe He was referring to Peter, to whom He had given the name petros, the Greek word for stone. Some believe He was referring to the act of confessing Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God, the foundational belief for conversion and salvation. Another possibility is that He was referring to the act of hearing the Father's voice and declaring it, which is the basis for doing His will.

         Mark and Luke record that Jesus then began to talk about His upcoming suffering and death. Peter then rebuked Him, and Jesus then rebuked Peter and Satan, for setting his mind on man's interests rather than God's. He followed this up with a warning to the disciples that whoever wants to follow Jesus must take up his own cross, and that whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it, what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Jesus now, He will be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of the Father.

         Why would these two different aspects of the consequences of Peter's declaration be reported independently? Eschewing discussion of the intended audience for each of the gospels, we have a fundamentally different take on what it means to confess Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God. Matthew records the authority that comes through Christ, while Mark & Luke record the cost of following Him. Most likely both were part of the conversation that ensued after Peter's declaration. We don't know the order, but that is unimportant. What we must not miss is that Jesus was showing them the very nature of God in His own life - that He was God and that He was going to die to pay the price for the sin of the world. And that in a similar vein, the church was going to have authority in His name to bind and loose, the very keys to the kingdom of heaven, but that the cost of this authority will be that each believer must carry his own cross. By implication that cross is to give up the world and if necessary our physical lives but at the very least our soul-life (ownership of the priorities of our lives, finding our satisfaction in the things of this life rather than His kingdom), or else Jesus will be ashamed of us at the second coming.

Luke 9:1-17 Spurning the important to care for the more important

Luke 9:1-11 Jesus sends out the twelve to proclaim the kingdom of God. First He gave them power, then He gave them instructions. It seems odd that before the day of Pentecost He gave them power, but they went and apparently did great miracles because Herod heard about it. Jesus sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal. The instructions must have been somewhat daunting - they were to take nothing with them - no food, no money, no change of clothes. Instead they were to look for hospitality and if they found none, leave the city and take care not to let its dust contaminate you. The disciples nonetheless went, preached the gospel, and performed miracles.

         Herod's reaction was that He had gotten rid of John the Baptist so who is Jesus? Perhaps John the Baptist had come back from the dead, or maybe it was Elijah, whose miracles were legendary in scripture. Eventually Herod would meet Jesus (Luke 23:7-11), but Jesus was not interested in meeting Herod at this time. In our day, it is counted an honor to be invited to meet the president. Obviously, Herod was a tyrant and ultimately participated in Jesus' death, but should we ask ourselves the question, how much does it impact the ministry of God if we get cozy with the powers of the world, even if they are benevolent?

         After the disciples reported in, Jesus tried to take them on a retreat, but the crowds followed. Jesus welcomed the crowds, continuing to preach and heal. It seems paradoxical that we often feel powerless because we do not spend enough time with The Lord privately, but Jesus never passed up an opportunity to minister to the needy, even when He was tired or needed time alone with the Father. We saw this earlier in Luke 4:38-44. Somehow the effort to minister when we feel drained is blessed. Often, if we have other commitments and a ministry opportunity presents itself, it is amazing to see God's had at work in the circumstances when we take the time to minister, so that the latter appointment or commitment is amply taken care of if we are late.

Luke 9:12-17 Jesus feeds five thousand with five loaves of bread and two fish.  The disciples are naturally concerned that everyone is getting hungry, and did not yet understand that God can provide for His ministry. When Jesus told the disciples to give them something to eat, it is hard to tell if He was joking with them or testing them. But the outcome was straightforward. He blessed the food looking to heaven, and then just kept giving to the disciples to distribute. It must have taken quite a while to distribute enough to feed five thousand men, plus women and children in the crowd.

         What should we take away from this story? In our day food is plentiful and comparatively inexpensive. Any large meetings that are held in stadiums or convention centers have ample restaurants, so this need would not arise, at least in the West. But the underlying theme of this seems to be that God will supernaturally supply needs that arise in the pursuit of the ministry of the gospel, if it is impossible by natural means to supply them. So in this sense, affluence limits God's ability to show Himself, because in so many different ways, we don't really need. What we do need is Him, and the question is whether our hunger for Him is strong enough that we would allow our circumstances to get to the point where we would need supernatural provision?

Luke 8:40-56 Life & health from death & disease

Luke 8:40-42, 49-56 Jesus raises Jairus' daughter from the dead. Parallel passages in Matt 9 and Mark 5. In this story, which is told in two parts. At the beginning, the daughter is reported as being ill and dying. While Jesus is on the way, He is distracted by another need, discussed below. By the time this matter had been completed, word comes to Jairus that it is too late, his daughter had died.

         Is there a lesson in this? Sometimes, when the work of the ministry thrusts itself into our life with such obvious priority that it cannot be ignored, something else is postponed or put on the back burner, even though it is possibly just as important. The tyranny of the urgent over the important. (Possibly we might think preventing death would be a higher priority than healing a hemorrhage.) But God is sovereign and Jesus was able to deal with this as well. In fact, it is possible that this gave Him an opportunity to display greater glory by raising Jairus' daughter from the dead. And a very similar thing happened in the case of Lazarus, when word reached Jesus that he was sick. He waited two days longer before going to see him. (John 11:6) When he got there he finds that Lazarus has been in the tomb four days. So even if He had set off immediately for Judea, Lazarus would have been in the tomb two days already by the time Jesus got there. Minor point. It seems in that case like Jesus deliberately procrastinated. In this case, ministry to the woman took front stage. But Jesus was able to overcome even death.

Luke 8:43-48 A woman with a hemorrhage for 12 years is healed by touching the fringe of Jesus' garment. Parallel passages in Matt 9:20-22, Mark 5:25-34. Perhaps John the Baptist's references to Malachi (Matt 3:10-12, Luke 3:17) inspired this woman to believe that Malachi 4:2 was also being fulfilled. Certainly there had been enough healings by Jesus to raise that possibility. Her belief that she only needed to touch His garment, not even actually have Him say anything or touch her Himself, in order to be healed, was not previously recorded. Later on we will see that people had so much faith in the apostles' ministry of healing that they would lay down so that Peter's shadow would fall on them when he walked by (Acts 5:15), or people would take handkerchiefs from Paul to sick people and they would be healed or demons would be cast out (Acts 19:11-12). There seems to be a complex spiritual interaction between the anointing of the Holy Spirit upon a ministry and the faith of those who come to that person for healing or deliverance. Both are required, not necessarily words or actions, but the condition of the heart and soul that seems to be the key ingredient. And God is sovereign, so no simple formula can be given. Another key ingredient is clearly that glory and honor belong to Jesus as a result of the miracle. But Jesus said in this case, woman, your faith has saved you. The other elements were implicit.

Luke 8:26-39 Demonic schizophrenia and the discernment of spirits

Luke 8:26-39 The Gerasene demoniac. This story is paralleled in Matt 8:28-34 and Mark 5:1-20. There are many puzzling aspects to this story. To me Luke 8:29 tops the list. Jesus had been commanding the unclean spirit to come out, and it was not immediately cast out, but pleaded to not be tormented. Why did the demon not obey immediately? Instead we see a conversation in which they, that is the legion of demons, appear to be negotiating terms of exile. Why did Jesus entertain this conversation? Why did He permit them to go into the herd of pigs? (Luke 8:32-33)

         There was at least one element of fact in the demons' argument. They knew that in the end they would lose the war, but evidently not yet. Actually we don't have explicit revelation in the Scripture of what will happen to the demons in the end, only what will happen to Satan, their king. It appears that the demons, represented by locusts, come up out of the abyss during the great tribulation (Rev 9:1-4). But we don't know when they were sent there. Rev 9:11 tells us that their king, whose name is destroyer, also comes up out of the abyss. Rev 11:7 & 17:8 also mention the beast that comes up out of the abyss - presumably, but not necessarily the same as the king of the demons. And in Rev 20:3 we see that Satan is bound in the abyss for a thousand years. This is before he is released to deceive the nations at the end of the millennial reign of Christ, after which time he is thrown into the lake of fire.

         So the demons evidently know about what will happen at the end, even if we don't. But is it possible that they are sent into the abyss before the end times, and then released as described in Rev 9? If that is the case, it suggests that the church, through its authority in the name of Jesus, sends billions and billions of demons into the abyss during the church age, which are then released during the great tribulation after the church has been raptured. That would mean it would have been perfectly legitimate for Jesus to send this legion of demons into the abyss at that time, but for some reason He did not.

         In any event, it is clear that Jesus ultimately had authority over the demons, and that He did send them out of the man and into the pigs. The demons then sent the pigs down a cliff into the sea where the pigs drowned. No idea what happened to the demons after that. But the man was restored to his right mind, and Jesus sent him home to testify about his deliverance. The important feature of this story is not the demons, but the greatness of Jesus, who has authority over the demons and uses it to deliver people from their power.

         A modern psychiatric perspective would suggest that the symptoms exhibited by the man could be diagnosed as schizophrenia. This is a mental condition that has both physiological and behavioral causes. Yet Jesus did not address any of these. Of course, He could have said, 'Be healed!', but He instead chose to cast out demons. And when the demons had left, the man was in his right mind. This suggests that we need to practice discernment in any situation like this - where people are acting abnormally. There are multiple possible causes. I was once told that we cannot cast out the flesh, it must dealt with through mortification. (Romans 8:13) So we must seek wisdom from the Holy Spirit in each circumstance, to be able to distinguish spirit from flesh. There are typical characteristics of the operation of the enemy, as documented (for example) by Ignatius of Loyola in the 14 principles for the discernment of spirits. There are also typical characteristics of the flesh. (Gal 5:19-21) Ultimately, we need God to show us what it is we are facing and tell us what we should do. Even Jesus said that He only did what He saw the Father doing. (John 5:19)

Luke 8:16-25 Light, family, and faith

Luke 8:16-18 Parable of the Lamp. Luke 8:16 parallels Matt 5:15-16. Jesus first makes the point that nothing stays secret forever. Eventually everything will come to light, either in this life or at the final judgment. Watergate should be an adequate modern parable for this truth. But even if someone manages to bury things for their entire life, it will come to light at the final judgment. But Jesus is the Light of the world! (John 8:12) We should put Jesus on a lampstand - in this case, our lives.

         Luke 8:18 is a peculiar verse. How are we to understand this seeming inversion of fairness? In the context of light and revelation, it seems that Jesus is telling us that the one who has received true revelation from God (light) in the sense of the earlier passages about doing what He says - that person is going to receive more, because he has a good heart. But the one who thinks he has a spiritual revelation, but has not received God's truth (John 14:6, 18:37-38) and has rejected Christ, not only will not receive light, but will ultimately discover that the spiritual revelation he thought he had was wrong.

Luke 8:19-21 Jesus' mother & brothers come to Him. In view of the high regard with which Mary, the mother of Jesus, is held, His treatment of her in this passage seems paradoxical. We know that she knew He was the Son of God, because the angel had told her so (Luke 1:35). There is no implication that she now doubted this, yet He said that true kinship is established based on hearing and doing the will of God. Mary had called herself the love-slave of The Lord before Jesus' birth. What more did He expect? Perhaps this was only a symbolic statement to re-emphasize to all present the relational nature of God, that would naturally result in doing what He says.

Luke 8:22-25 Jesus calms the storm at sea. The disciples were naturally afraid when waves began to swamp the boat. Jesus was asleep! Do we ever see things happening in our lives that terrify us, and Jesus seems to not answer prayers? When Jesus says, 'Where is your faith?' He is metaphorically asking us the same question. When that problem arises, and we pray but He seems to be far away or asleep or unresponsive, do we become terrified? And is that natural reaction what God wants in the circumstances? Perhaps we need to adopt the mindset that Paul had during the Euraquilo, when everyone else on the boat thought they were lost but he encouraged them in faith. (Acts 27:14-44). At least he offers us a different model for response to the storms of life.

Luke 8:1-15 The spiritual transaction that produces fruit

Luke 8:1-3 Jesus' traveling companions described. It must have been quite a crowd. There were the twelve that Jesus had called as apostles (Luke 6:12-16), plus several women of whom three are named. Considering the treatment of John the Baptist by Herod (Luke 9:9), it seems striking that the wife of Herod's steward would travel with Jesus. There must have been some degree of strain in her life, because of her husband's job and her decision to follow Jesus and evidently contribute to the support of His ministry. Mary Magdalene is mentioned in other passages, but here we have the revelation that seven demons had gone out of her. We have no other information on Susanna. Perhaps she was named for the heroine of the 13th chapter of Daniel in the Septuagint, the godly woman who was blackmailed by some Jewish elders but refused to go along and was ultimately vindicated by Daniel's intervention. An odd collection of people, but perhaps this is what church is like. A bunch of disparate people who have nothing in common except for their devotion to Christ.

Luke 8:4-15 The parable of the sower and the seed. Here we have the first of Jesus' teaching parables. (Considering the parable told to Simon the Pharisee as simply making a point.) In this parable Jesus cites Isaiah 6:9 in Luke 8:10 as an explanation for teaching in parables. In context, Isaiah has just received his commission, after having a vision of the throne of God with the cherubim crying, "Holy, Holy, Holy", Isaiah's own recognition of his uncleanness of speech and purification by one of God's seraphim. The essence of Isaiah's commission is that most people will ignore his words and ultimately reap the consequences of their choices. But there will remain a remnant, compared to the stump of a tree that has fallen, that will remain. And so Jesus will tell parables to the great multitude (Luke 8:4) but only explain it to His disciples (Luke 8:9-10).

         The point of the parable is straightforward. The word of God goes forth, proclaimed as good news. Most will not receive it (hearkening back to Isaiah's commission), for a variety of reasons. The devil steals it from their heart (not their mind!); some fall into temptation because the word of God does not take root in their heart; some are so pre-occupied with worldly concerns that the word is choked out of their life; but a few receive the word into their heart and hold it fast, and it grows up to bear fruit.

         The emphasis of this parable seems to be that it is not circumstances, nor is it the mental condition of understanding God's word, that is the critical factor in the outcome. It is the condition and response of the heart to God's word. Jesus describes these conditions as having an honest (kalos) and good (agathos) heart, and a heart that holds the word fast (katechousin). Without getting into the difference between heart and spirit, it appears that there is a spiritual dimension to each human life, to which God speaks His word. This spiritual dimension is affected by choices and decisions that are made by the person, that result in his or her heart being responsive and receptive to God's word, or it is not. We can explain the theology of salvation and the love of God, but mere mental understanding of these things does not produce fruit. There is a spiritual transaction that Jesus is describing, in which a person's spirit comes into relationship with God's word, and ultimately with God's Spirit, that produces the fruit of salvation.

Luke 7:36-50 The alabaster vial of love

Luke 7:36-50 The woman with the alabaster vial washes Jesus' feet with her tears. Jesus explains to Simon the Pharisee via the parable of two debtors why she is accepted and her sins are forgiven. In the first part of this section, Jesus is dining at a Pharisee's house, when an immoral woman from the city brought an alabaster vial and anointed and kissed His feet and wiped them with her hair. Probably everyone in the room knew what kind of life she lived. The Pharisee passed judgment in his mind - that Jesus wasn't much of a prophet because He didn't know about this woman.

         Jesus turned the tables, beginning with the parable of the moneylender and two deadbeat debtors. Both were unable to repay. In the days before legal bankruptcy, failure to repay most likely meant debtors' prison. If the moneylender forgave the debts, they would avoid prison and would obviously be grateful. So using this analogy, Jesus points to Simon's self-righteousness. The immoral woman was grateful for forgiveness, release from the guilt and judgment of God which Jesus granted. We don't have the backstory here, but there must have been one because she was already grateful. Jesus confirmed that her sins were forgiven (7:48,50). Simon, on the other hand, although he had invited Jesus to dinner, had no passion in his thanksgiving to God. He thought he had been forgiven little, so he saw no need to thank God for forgiveness, or at least Jesus. We don't know exactly what he thought of Jesus. But Jesus' response to him was based on his lack of love. The woman loved much and was forgiven. Simon loved little (a little?) and Jesus said nothing to him about his sins being forgiven. And those who were with Him said to themselves, "Who is this who forgives sins?" His approach to forgiveness was completely contrary to the requirements of the Law of Moses.

         And so we have the conflict between justification by works and justification by faith. Jesus makes it clear in this context that love is a key element. Justification by works is essentially a juridical approach to salvation, and therefore logical and devoid of emotion. Simon the Pharisee wanted to discuss theology. Justification by faith is at its heart a relational approach to salvation. It's not faith in the abstract - believing a doctrine. It is trust in a person - that person being Christ Himself. And the result of being saved from the consequences and power of sin by trusting Jesus to deliver us is that we develop a love-relationship with Him. That is what the woman had, and Simon the Pharisee lacked. We love Him because He first loved us. (I John 4:19).

Luke 7:18-35 Wisdom is vindicated by all her children

Luke 7:18-35 Jesus responds to John the Baptist's disciples and compares John's ministry to His own. In the first six verses (7:18-23), we have the question that John sent by way of his disciples to Jesus. We might think this an odd question to come from John, since earlier he was the one who pointed to Jesus and declared Him to be the Son of God. (John 1:29-34) However, John was now in jail awaiting execution. Perhaps any of us, under dire circumstances, might be vulnerable to doubt. John asked for reassurance. Jesus offered him the witness of fulfilled Scripture. In Luke 7:22, Jesus referred to Isaiah 35:5-6. This whole chapter of Isaiah speaks of when the desert will bloom and all flesh will see the glory of God. Later in that chapter of Isaiah the prophet foresees the redeemed of The Lord returning to Zion with joy, everlasting joy. So Jesus offered John that the works of power that He performed were the sign that this prophecy was in the process of being fulfilled, in other words, that He was indeed the promised Messiah. Jesus closes with a new beatitude: Blessed is the person who does not stumble over Him. Perhaps by this He means that as Messiah He does not fulfill anyone's preconceived notions of what the Messiah would look like or do. But the blessing of receiving Him as Messiah would be upon anyone who does not judge Him by their own expectations, but recognizes Him according to the prophetic promise of Scripture.

         In the next section (Luke 7:24-28), Jesus talks about John to the multitudes. He specifically quotes Malachi 3:1 as being fulfilled by John. Was John what they expected to see or what God promised? His answer, by reference to the prophecy, is that John the Baptist was what God had promised. Malachi was a prophet, but John was more than a prophet, he was the messenger preparing the way for the advent of The Lord, and was therefore greater than any of the other prophets. And then this curious note ... that the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than John.  In Matthew 13:16-17 Jesus makes a similar comment, that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what His listeners saw, and they were blessed because they saw Him and heard Him. Thus he explicitly pointed out the transcendence of the new covenant, of His presence over the Old Testament revelation that involved the Temple worship and the occasional ministry of prophets. And so John was the ultimate consummation of Old Testament revelation and ministry, and he had specifically identified Jesus as the Messiah.

         In the final section in this passage about John the Baptist (Luke 7:29-35), Luke informs us that the people had been baptized with John's baptism for repentance and acknowledged God's justice, but that the Pharisees and lawyers rejected God's purpose for themselves, having not been baptized. So Jesus expounded on the folly of this generation, specifically of the Pharisees and the lawyers. God offered them two different options. John had been ascetic, and they rejected his call to repentance. Jesus partied as a normal person, eating and drinking, and hanging out with the common  people, and they rejected Him. The Pharisees were looking for a messenger from God like them - bound up in books and rules and theology. Jesus said, "Wisdom is vindicated by all her children." That is, John the Baptist and Jesus offered a call to follow God, but both of them called people to change their lives based on obedience to God. The Pharisees believed their lives were perfectly fine as they understood the law of Moses, and believed they followed it. Jesus did not suggest that this assessment was born of wisdom.

Luke 7:1-17 Gentile miracles

Luke 7:1-10 Jesus heals a Centurion's servant. The parallel passage in Matt 8:5-13 says that the Centurion himself came, but Luke records that he sent first Jewish elders, and then some friends. This centurion is identified to Jesus as being worthy of His ministry because he had built a synagogue for the Jews and loved the Jewish nation. However, Jesus was impressed by the message that the Centurion sent, recorded in verses 7-8. The Centurion understood authority and obedience because he was a soldier. He recognized that Jesus had this same kind of authority in the Spiritual realm, and that his servant would be healed by the simple command of Jesus, at His word. Jesus marveled at this because He had not found a single Jew with this much faith in Him. We might ask how many Christians have this much faith in Him? When we pray and there is not a healing, do we try to bargain with God, earn a favorable response, or doubt His love?

         The fact that this was a Roman Centurion re-underscores Jesus' ministry to both Jews and Gentiles. This was a Gentile with faith in the God of the Jews. Jesus not only healed his servant, He paid him a very high compliment - that he had more faith than anyone in Israel. This faith was not an intellectual knowledge that a soldier obeys orders. It was faith that Jesus was who He said He was, the Son of God, in other words, that He has ultimate authority in the spiritual realm.

Luke 7:11-17 Jesus raises the dead son of the widow of Nain. As He enters a city accompanied by a large crowd, He meets a funeral procession, also a sizable crowd. The dead man is apparently a young man, the only son of his mother who is a widow. There is no record that she or anyone else asked Him, He simply responded out of the compassion He felt for her. So He walked up to the coffin and told the young man to arise, and he did.

         There are several recorded cases in which Jesus raised a person from the dead. This is the first such case that Luke records. It hearkens back to the incident in which Elijah raised a widow's son (I Kings 17:17-4), although in Elijah's case, the widow petitioned Elijah to do something, and Elijah's method of prayer was a bit more involved. When people saw this miracle (quite a large crowd, both those traveling with Jesus and those in the funeral procession), they must have made this connection because they said a great prophet had arisen, and this report spread in Judea and all of the surrounding district of Galilee.

         Perhaps the parallel to Elijah was strong in peoples' memory but when Jesus was crucified, this was unlike Elijah's departure, since he was carried into heaven in a chariot of fire. (2 Kings 2:11). They believed that God could raise the dead, but in no recorded instance did a person himself arise from the dead. So even though they saw Jesus raise the dead, when He died no one initially believed that He would rise from the dead. Who would be around to pray for Him?

Luke 6:46-49 How firm a foundation

Luke 6:46-49 Jesus teaches on foundations and building. This section parallels Matt 7:21 and 24-27. Jesus is talking about taking His teachings seriously, that is, seriously enough to actually do what He says to do. These are indeed challenging verses, since He uses a metaphor (Luke 6:49) that implies total destruction for the house that is built without a foundation. I have seen videos of houses that were built on a bluff overlooking a lake, and then a dam burst or a torrential flood washed away the ground underneath the house. Eventually the whole house tips and falls into the floodwaters and is washed away with no trace left of where it originally stood. And so Jesus warns us to build a house with such a solid foundation that when the floodwaters come, the foundation will stand firm. And that foundation is hearing His words and acting on them.

          Whether the metaphorical flood that Jesus is talking about is trials and tribulations in this life, or the judgment in the life to come, Jesus isn't exactly specific. The nature of the things he tells people to do, such as seeking God's kingdom and valuing what God values, loving our enemies, being merciful and generous and foregoing judgment and criticism of others, bearing the fruit of the Holy Spirit -- these are all things that will work to bring God's favor. And in the day of calamity, it is God's grace that will bring us through, if we are to get through it, whether that day is a disaster in this life, or the day of judgment in the next. But these are not commands that we can obey and earn God's favor. Even then Jesus knew that it would take the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit. That it would be fruit of the Holy Spirit, not works of the flesh, not obedience in the flesh, that would bring about this kind of lifestyle

Luke 6:36-45 Fruit inspection

Luke 6:36-45 Jesus expounds on mercy, generosity, and fruit. There are parallel passages to part of this in the Sermon on the Mount, notably Luke 7:37 matches Matt  7:1-2; Luke 6:41-42 matches Matt 7:3-5; and Luke 6:43-44 parallels Matt 7:16. Do not judge and you will not be judged; do not look at the speck in your brother's eye but focus on the log or beam that is in your own eye; trees are known by their fruit, as will your life be known. There is a curious disparity between Luke 6:38 and Matt 7:7. Luke records Jesus as saying, "Give, and it will be given to you." Matthew records Jesus as saying' "Ask and it will be given to you." But then in Luke 11:9 we find Jesus quoted as saying, " Ask and it will be given to you." So what do we make of this?

         I think the most important thing is that we should not be so focused on what will be given to us. Whether it is worldly or physical blessings, or spiritual blessings that we would like to receive, if it is about us, then we are missing the point. It should be about Jesus. Asking means specifically asking Him, in other words, being dependent on Him, being in relationship with Him. Giving, done properly, is about seeking to improve the lot of another, whether physically or just putting a smile on their face. If we can rise above self-centeredness, then He can take care of our needs, and even our desires. But it is about Him. And similarly for the others. If we forego judging others, it should be because Jesus has the authority to judge and to forgive, and if we want to experience that same grace, we better let Him make the call. And so with seeking to help our brother with a speck that we see in his eye. Let it alone! This is about us. We need Jesus' help to remove the log in our own eye, and so we should not think ourselves capable of helping our brother remove a speck from his eye. That is Jesus' work. If our brother asks us for help in some matter, of course we should be ready to assist. But always with the view in mind that we have the beam in our own eye and must never allow ourselves any satisfaction in seeing another's faults. (Galatians 6:1)

         The fruit that Jesus talks about must be considered in the perspective of what Jesus intends by the metaphor. Fruit is food, generally thought to be nutritious, usually enjoyable to eat if it has a good natural flavor. Trees bear fruit naturally. It is part of the process of reproduction - trees generate seeds that must survive when they reach the ground and so the design puts appropriate food immediately at hand for the seeds when they germinate. But God also designed fruit so that humans can partake of this food because trees produce so much fruit that only a very small fraction of the seeds need germinate to maintain and propagate the species. So the fruit that we must produce similarly feed others. People will know that the Holy Spirit indwells us, that we have Jesus in our heart, only if the fruit that we produce is spiritual nourishment for them.

         It is possible, I suppose, that we could have Jesus in our heart and the Holy Spirit indwelling, and produce fruit that is spiritually inedible or not spiritually nourishing. In that case, the question suggested by Jesus is, what is really inside? It should not be the case that believers should go around inspecting each other's fruit, but that unbelievers won't really take the gospel seriously unless the fruit they see bespeaks a changed life with a supernatural, divine internal quality. This could take the form of mercy or generosity (Jesus' examples) or many other forms discussed elsewhere in the New Testament. (Gal. 5:22-23).

Luke 6:27-35 Edible fruit or indigestion

Luke 6:27-35 Jesus preaches on love, focusing on love of enemies. This closely parallels Matthew 5:38-48. Love takes on several practical duties, it is not just a feeling or an abstract decision.

•   Do good to those who hate you

•   Bless those who curse you

•   Let those who strike you do so without retaliation

•   Give to those who ask of you

•   Lend without expecting repayment

I think it is safe to say that this lifestyle is unnatural, and furthermore very few actually practice it. When Peter wanted to take up the sword to defend Jesus and cut off the ear of the servant of the High Priest, Jesus healed the servant and rebuked Peter. This story is recorded in all four gospels although only John 18:10-11 records that Peter was the one who did it. There is a curious difference in which part of Jesus' response to that incident the different writers chose to record. John records Jesus' words, "The cup the Father has given Me, shall I not drink it?" Matthew 26:51-52 records Jesus' words "All who take up the sword will perish by the sword." Luke simply records that Jesus said, "Stop! No more of this."

         The question of turning the other cheek has been debated for centuries. Should the good give way to those who practice evil, based on these words of Jesus, and thus allow evil to triumph? What would have the world been like if the Western Nations had allowed Hitler to rule Europe unopposed and murder the Jewish people without opposition? And why would Paul have said that the government takes up the sword on God's behalf? (Romans 13:4)

         A full exploration of this question would take much time. I think it is safe to say that Jesus was speaking to individuals who were under the domination of the Roman Empire, and that in this context He was not speaking to Caesar or Pilate. He was speaking to individuals about the decisions and actions in their own individual lives. He was calling for a life of self-sacrifice. Giving to others when it hurt. Allowing God the leeway to intervene and change the hearts and lives of others, rather than having them harden their hearts as a result of opposition. We can infer in Paul's testimony that Stephen's forgiveness of those who murdered him (Acts 7:60) was a goad that led to his conversion since he mentioned it several times (Acts 22:4, I Cor 15:9, Gal 1:23). It would be inconsistent with other passages to believe that Jesus meant on a larger scale that we should turn the other cheek. Certainly not in the case where evil is being done to others and we have some ability to resist it.

Luke 6:36-45 Jesus expounds on mercy, generosity, and fruit. There are parallel passages to part of this in the Sermon on the Mount, notably Luke 7:37 matches Matt  7:1-2; Luke 6:41-42 matches Matt 7:3-5; and Luke 6:43-44 parallels Matt 7:16. Do not judge and you will not be judged; do not look at the speck in your brother's eye but focus on the log or beam that is in your own eye; trees are known by their fruit, as will your life be known. There is a curious disparity between Luke 6:38 and Matt 7:7. Luke records Jesus as saying, "Give, and it will be given to you." Matthew records Jesus as saying' "Ask and it will be given to you." But then in Luke 11:9 we find Jesus quoted as saying, " Ask and it will be given to you." So what do we make of this?

         I think the most important thing is that we should not be so focused on what will be given to us. Whether it is worldly or physical blessings, or spiritual blessings that we would like to receive, if it is about us, then we are missing the point. It should be about Jesus. Asking means specifically asking Him, in other words, being dependent on Him, being in relationship with Him. Giving, done properly, is about seeking to improve the lot of another, whether physically or just putting a smile on their face. If we can rise above self-centeredness, then He can take care of our needs, and even our desires. But it is about Him. And similarly for the others. If we forego judging others, it should be because Jesus has the authority to judge and to forgive, and if we want to experience that same grace, we better let Him make the call. And so with seeking to help our brother with a speck that we see in his eye. Let it alone! This is about us. We need Jesus' help to remove the log in our own eye, and so we should not think ourselves capable of helping our brother remove a speck from his eye. That is Jesus' work. If our brother asks us for help in some matter, of course we should be ready to assist. But always with the view in mind that we have the beam in our own eye and must never allow ourselves any satisfaction in seeing another's faults. (Galatians 6:1)

         The fruit that Jesus talks about must be considered in the perspective of what Jesus intends by the metaphor. Fruit is food, generally thought to be nutritious, usually enjoyable to eat if it has a good natural flavor. Trees bear fruit naturally. It is part of the process of reproduction - trees generate seeds that must survive when they reach the ground and so the design puts appropriate food immediately at hand for the seeds when they germinate. But God also designed fruit so that humans can partake of this food because trees produce so much fruit that only a very small fraction of the seeds need germinate to maintain and propagate the species. So the fruit that we must produce similarly feed others. People will know that the Holy Spirit indwells us, that we have Jesus in our heart, only if the fruit that we produce is spiritual nourishment for them.

         It is possible, I suppose, that we could have Jesus in our heart and the Holy Spirit indwelling, and produce fruit that is spiritually inedible or not spiritually nourishing. In that case, the question suggested by Jesus is, what is really inside? It should not be the case that believers should go around inspecting each other's fruit, but that unbelievers won't really take the gospel seriously unless the fruit they see bespeaks a changed life with a supernatural, divine internal quality. This could take the form of mercy or generosity (Jesus' examples) or many other forms discussed elsewhere in the New Testament. (Gal. 5:22-23).

Luke 6:27-35 An unnatural lifestyle

Luke 6:27-35 Jesus preaches on love, focusing on love of enemies. This closely parallels Matthew 5:38-48. Love takes on several practical duties, it is not just a feeling or an abstract decision.

•   Do good to those who hate you

•   Bless those who curse you

•   Let those who strike you do so without retaliation

•   Give to those who ask of you

•   Lend without expecting repayment

I think it is safe to say that this lifestyle is unnatural, and furthermore very few actually practice it. When Peter wanted to take up the sword to defend Jesus and cut off the ear of the servant of the High Priest, Jesus healed the servant and rebuked Peter. This story is recorded in all four gospels although only John 18:10-11 records that Peter was the one who did it. There is a curious difference in which part of Jesus' response to that incident the different writers chose to record. John records Jesus' words, "The cup the Father has given Me, shall I not drink it?" Matthew 26:51-52 records Jesus' words "All who take up the sword will perish by the sword." Luke simply records that Jesus said, "Stop! No more of this."

         The question of turning the other cheek has been debated for centuries. Should the good give way to those who practice evil, based on these words of Jesus, and thus allow evil to triumph? What would have the world been like if the Western Nations had allowed Hitler to rule Europe unopposed and murder the Jewish people without opposition? And why would Paul have said that the government takes up the sword on God's behalf? (Romans 13:4)

          A full exploration of this question would take much time. I think it is safe to say that Jesus was speaking to individuals who were under the domination of the Roman Empire, and that in this context He was not speaking to Caesar or Pilate. He was speaking to individuals about the decisions and actions in their own individual lives. He was calling for a life of self-sacrifice. Giving to others when it hurt. Allowing God the leeway to intervene and change the hearts and lives of others, rather than having them harden their hearts as a result of opposition. We can infer in Paul's testimony that Stephen's forgiveness of those who murdered him (Acts 7:60) was a goad that led to his conversion since he mentioned it several times (Acts 22:4, I Cor 15:9, Gal 1:23). It would be inconsistent with other passages to believe that Jesus meant on a larger scale that we should turn the other cheek. Certainly not in the case where evil is being done to others and we have some ability to resist it

Luke 6:17-26 Inverted values

Luke 6:17-19 A great multitude came to hear Jesus teach and be healed.  A great throng of people came, many were healed and unclean spirits were being cast out, and the power coming from Him was such that all the multitude was trying to touch Him. In Luke 8:43-48 we see a single case of this - a woman who had had a hemorrhage for years touched His garment in faith and was instantly healed. But there is something about the anointing of the Holy Spirit that was recognized by people who wanted to be healed.

         I have to wonder if everyone in the crowd who wanted to touch Jesus to be healed recognized that He was the Son of God, the Messiah. And whether there are degrees of faith that make a difference in whether they were healed. Devout Jews familiar with the passage of Malachi 4:2 may well have associated Jesus with the Sun of Righteousness. But perhaps some in the crowd simply saw a supernatural power at work, without necessarily any reference to God, or perhaps seeing Jesus only as a prophet like Elijah or Elisha. Were they healed as well, simply because they came to Jesus with the hope or expectation of being healed by Him?

Luke 6:20-26 Jesus teaches beatitudes and some woes. This passage parallels the beatitudes given in the Sermon on the Mount, although in this case Jesus had descended and stood in a broad place, not on a mountain. Doubtless Jesus gave a similar message many times, because technology for CD's and internet videos hadn't yet been invented, so He had to repeat His message to people in different areas.

         There are differences between this passage and the beatitudes recorded in Matthew 5:3-11. Five that are recorded in Matthew are not given here, but Luke adds four woes, which Matthew did not record in the Sermon on the Mount. Rather, Matthew recorded woes specifically against the scribes and Pharisees (Matt 23:13-36), the religious people of His time.

Matthew		Luke
5:3 Poor in Spirit	Theirs is the kingdom of heaven	6:20 Poor	Yours is the kingdom of God
5:4 Those who mourn	Shall be comforted	6:21 Weep now	Shall laugh
5:5 Gentle	Inherit the earth
5:6 Hunger & thirst for righteousness	Be satisfied	6:21 Hunger now	Be satisfied
5:7 Merciful	Receive mercy
5:8 Pure in heart	See God
5:9 Peacemakers	Called sons of God
5:10 Persecuted for righteousness' sake	The kingdom of heaven is theirs
5:11-12 Insulted, persecuted, falsely accused on account of Jesus	Great reward in heaven	6:22-23 Men hate you, ostracize you, insult you, spurn your name for the sake of Jesus	Be glad & leap for joy, for great reward in heaven
		6:24 Rich	You are receiving your comfort in full now
		6:25 Well fed now	You shall be hungry
		6:25 Laugh now	You shall mourn & weep
		6:26 Men speak well of you	Men used to treat the false prophets like this

         There are differences between Matthew & Luke. In recording the first beatitude, Matthew says the poor in spirit are blessed while Luke says the poor are blessed. And the first two woes recorded by Luke seem to reinforce this - the rich will eventually be hungry because they have their reward now. In a parallel vein, Matthews record is that those who hunger and thirst for righteousness shall be satisfied, while Luke says those who hunger now shall be satisfied. It is not clear from these differences if in the passage recorded in Luke, the spiritual application was implicit, or if Matthew recorded the implicit spiritual application explicitly, or if Jesus actually spoke differently to different crowds.

         What is clear from both passages are two common themes. Firstly, the inversion between the way things are now, in the present world, and the way things will be in the Kingdom of God. Roles will be reversed when God's kingdom is established. Secondly, a parallel theme, is a simple warning about the world's evaluation. The world values things that are worthless in the kingdom of God, and God values things that the world disdains, to the point that the world persecutes those who hold to and espouse the things of God. And this should raise in our own mind the question of whether we have bought into the world system. Do the things we value and the things we do align with God's values, or the world's? Whose values are upside down?