Luke 13:6-9 Bearing Fruit

Luke 13:6-9 Parable of the fruitless fig tree. Parallel passages in Matthew 21:18-19, and Mark 11:12-14 & 20-21. This parable is rather puzzling in that Luke did not record that Jesus offered any explanation of it. The next section seems to be a different scene, so we can only connect this to the previous passage. In this context, it would appear that Jesus is using the fig tree (often a symbol for Israel, but perhaps a symbol for any individual person) to make the point that the owner of the vineyard tries to get it to bear fruit, and waits patiently for it to bear fruit. But His patience is not unlimited. At some point, he says to cut it down. And so perhaps there is a hint here relating to the previous passage the those on whom calamity has seemingly fallen without provocation may in fact fall in this category. God tried to get fruit from them. He tilled the soil and put out fertilizer in an effort to get fruit. But when that all failed, and the fig tree was determined to be irrevocably barren, it will be cut down. In Matthew and Mark, an actual event in Jesus' life, He looked for fruit from the tree but found none, and so cursed it. Immediately, the next day, it was found to be withered and dead.  Not so many opportunities here, but this event occurred on the eve of the Passion week, and Jesus was approaching the climax of His life.

          The issue here is not a judgment of condemnation, but of liquidating a bad investment. Of course we do not know (at least in this passage) how God feels about this, but if we are investing in a mutual fund that year after year fails to show a return, we would not stick with it out of loyalty ... eventually we would shift our investment to a fund that does actually yield a return.

          We might wonder what He considers fruit, and perhaps that is a valid question. Jesus often alluded to producing fruit, but the actual content of what that fruit might look like is eclectic. In Luke 3:8 He refers to the fruit of repentance, which presumably means changing one's mind and one's behavior to turn from something to something else (e.g. from sin to righteous living). In John 4:36, the context suggests that the fruit is the lives and souls of people who are led from sin to turn to God. In John 15, it appears that Jesus is referring to fruit as the love of God for the brethren and for the lost. In Romans 7, Paul implies that fruit is serving God in the Spirit, and not under the Law. I Cor 15 refers to firstfruits of those raised from the dead, Jesus being the foremost. Galatians 5:22-23 lists the attributes of the fruit of the Spirit. Ephesians 5:9 identifies fruit with goodness, righteousness, and truth, and Phil 1:11, Hebrews 12:11, and James 3:18 the fruit of righteousness. Colossians 1:10 identifies fruit with good work and knowledge of God. Hebrews 13:15 the fruit of the lips - giving thanks to His name.  The common element in all these descriptions of fruit is that they are not things that can be produced by human effort. To bear fruit, we must allow the Holy Spirit to work in our lives and to work out His will and His life in our life. We have to make a decision, and that decision is to obey God and let Him have His way. But it is the Holy Spirit who produces the fruit. Just as the fig tree, which does not produce figs by trying, or exerting itself, or even disciplining itself. It simply allows the sun and the rain and the nutrients of the soil to work with its natural design to produce figs.

Luke 13:1-5 Human suffering

Jesus deals with two kinds of suffering: First, that inflicted by the hand of man; second, that which results from unforeseen calamities. One might argue that if the tower fell because of defective design or construction, that was the hand of man, but it seems likely Jesus' focus was on whether the men who were killed were somehow deserving of what happened. This directly addresses the commonly held belief that God either causes or allows suffering to come to those who have sinned, as a means in this life of bringing justice. This is epitomized in human lore as "Though the mills of God grind slowly, they grind exceedingly small; Though with patience stands He waiting, with exactness He grinds them all" attributed to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, although he was quoting an ancient poet. Its antiquity is confirmed by Plutarch, who criticized the concept. We see this thought also expressed in Deuteronomy 27, Job 4, and even Acts 28:4.

          Jesus tackles this head-on. He specifically says, "... do you suppose that those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them were worse culprits than all the men who live in Jerusalem? I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” It is not that the men were innocent. The point He is making is that all are equally guilty before God, and if God truly meted out punishment in this way, all would perish. (Rom 3:23, 6:23) It is therefore the grace of God that we do not all experience the same kinds of disaster. He does not directly address why the grace of God did not protect these people. He is simply rejecting the concept that we can determine the state of a person's character by the consequences of what happens to him or her. We cannot, because there is too great a multiplicity of causes in the world.

          There seem to be two ways in which disaster comes upon us. One is that as a result of natural cause and effect, the results of certain actions lead to disaster. If we drive while drunk, or ride as a passenger in a car whose driver is drunk, there is a much higher likelihood of being involved in a serious accident than if we do not. If we commit armed robbery, there is a very high likelihood of being injured or killed by police. If we have sex with many partners, there is a much higher likelihood of being infected by some very serious sexually transmitted disease. This is cause and effect. Nothing supernatural about it. The second source of disaster is the fallen state of nature and the world, which results in essentially (seemingly) random calamities. People who build shoddy buildings do not usually have a specific victim in mind, but someone will eventually be affected. Tornadoes do not judge the moral character of the people in their path; they are indiscriminate destroyers.  We might think that there is a causal relationship in the spiritual realms that connects our moral or immoral actions to what happens to us. And to some extent there is. (See, for example, Matthew 18:10.) But in this passage Jesus puts the shoe on the other foot. It is God whose grace protects us from these calamities. We do not and cannot know why His grace sometimes does not protect us, as in the two examples He cites in Luke 13:1-4. There are some mysteries in the spiritual realm. But we are all equally vulnerable in light of our sin and God's standards.

Luke 12:54-59 Be on the alert to settle out of court

Luke 12:54-59 Jesus talks about discerning the times, and warns of the consequences of failing to seek reconciliation with God. Verses 54-56 parallel Matt 16:2-3 in the sense that Jesus used the normal process of looking at specific aspects of the weather to make a forecast as a metaphor for a spiritual truth. In both cases, He was simply saying that if you can do the one, you should be able to also look at spiritual signs and discern the times. This continues the theme of this passage that we need to be on the alert and look for His kingdom coming.

        

Luke 12:57-59 parallels Matt 5:25-26. In the natural world, we look at the concept of a plea bargain (for criminal cases) or an out-of-court settlement (for civil cases) as an option to avoid putting our case before an impartial judge. In legal matters, this is a means by which to avoid the risk of a third party's opinion because, when we negotiate directly with the adversary, we have some measure of control. In this context, it seems that Jesus is recommending that we come directly to God to work out our salvation - the terms of which of course are very favorable - and become part of His kingdom while we have the opportunity, rather than waiting until the final judgment, when the consequences of our actions will be administered with perfect justice. We don't want justice, we need mercy and grace! Wake up and smell the coffee! Now is the day of grace, not the final judgment. At that point it will be too late, and we know from other passages what the outcome will be if we do not receive His grace. (Rev 20:12-15)

         There is another sense in which we need to be on the alert, and that is to watch for the signs of His kingdom in our life and in the world around us. This is a sense that can be learned through training, or so the saints and witnesses through the ages tell us. We are oft oblivious to the wonderful things that God does in our lives; He does them because He loves and cares for us; we are oblivious because we are worldly-minded and pre-occupied with the affairs of this life. At any given instant during the day, if we pause to consider what in that circumstance might be from God, we would be amazed at how pervasive and persistent His presence is. In the person who is polite in traffic and lets us merge in; in the co-worker who helps us  or unknowingly gives us encouragement in some challenge on the job; in the disaster that could have happened but didn't. The possibilities are multitude - we need to train ourselves to stop and recognize them. This is part of what Jesus is telling His followers.

Luke 12:41-53 Faithful slaves and a divided house

Luke 12:41-48 The parable of the faithful and unfaithful slaves. This continues the same theme, closing with Jesus' words: "From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more." There is of course a natural principle relating to stewardship of earthly goods, but Jesus' meaning seems clear. In verse 41 Peter had asked if this parable (12:35-40) was for everyone else or if it was for the disciples as well. Jesus seems clearly to be saying that the disciples are the ones to whom much has been entrusted, and this means He will be asking all the more from them. (see also Luke 10:23-24).

         When we receive spiritual blessings from God, whether it is gifts of the Spirit, or revelation of truth, or a sense of His presence with us, it seems that this passage says that some commensurate spiritual output will be required. It is not at all clear what this might be, but often it would be in the form of tangible action - for example sharing this blessing with those around us or those whose spiritual formation we have some cognizance over. But it could just as easily be showing mercy to the poor (in earthly terms) or the poor in spirit (those who are in spiritual desolation or caught in some sin). The important thing from this story is that we who are blessed by Jesus are not to be spiritually slothful (acedia), or worse yet abuse a position of authority and trust when we think we can get away with it. The responsibility of a position of trust is to carry out His will, which means dealing with those around us from a heart of love, showing compassion, nurturing and encouraging them in faith and in relationship to Christ. Although Jesus does not invoke the concept of poetic justice here, we should seriously consider the thought of what it would be like if God treats us the same way we treat others over whom we have authority.

Luke 12:49-53 Jesus talks about division that faith in Him will bring. This is a rather puzzling passage, in view of what is recorded in Luke 11:17. Here, Jesus says "... for from now on five members in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three."  In Luke 11:17 He said, "a house divided against itself falls." If that principle was true in explaining why He could not be using Beelzebub to cast out demons, then why would it not also apply to households that are divided because some choose to follow Him and some refuse? I can find no easy answer to this question. Perhaps He was just reflecting on the difficulty that would ensue from following Him, and that in fact the household might collapse on account of some members being devoted to Him and others not. Perhaps this cost of following Him is a prelude to the next passage, the cost of not following Him.

Luke 12:35-40 Be ready ....

Luke 12:35-40 Jesus talks about watching for The Lord to come. In this section Jesus uses the parable of the master returning from the wedding feast and the slaves being watchful. His point is captured in verse 40:  "You too, be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect.” The wedding feast is used as a metaphor several places in the gospels, and the analogy of the relationship between Christ and believers as a man and his wife runs through the entire Bible. Quite likely this is one of those universally experienced, common yet memorable events, that have been universal in human experience. In this case, Jesus is using it as a warning about always being in readiness for His return.

         Other gospel parables that use the wedding as a metaphor include Matthew 22:1-14 (a King who throws a wedding celebration for His Son, and is very particular about the guest list); Matthew 25:1-13 (the virgins awaiting the groom some of whom fell asleep and ran out of oil); Luke 14:7-11 (taking a low place at the wedding banquet); and John 2:1-11 (not a story but a metaphor drawn from a real wedding that Jesus attended). Each has a unique lesson, although the story of the virgins in Matthew 25 has the same general theme.

         Warnings about watching for Jesus' coming are often taken as eschatological, but that might not always have been His intention. Every one of us will die someday, unless we are Enoch or Elijah, and we can't count on a lengthy illness and dying in bed. We could be killed in a car wreck with no warning, or have a heart attack with no prior symptoms. It happens every day. So Jesus advises His listeners to pay attention and watch for His coming vigilantly, because if we do happen to die suddenly, we want Him to come for us. We don't want that event to catch us in some condition in which we are ashamed, so as to not be ready to go with Him, or be with Him, or see Him face-to-Face.

Luke 12:13-34 Rich man, poor man

Luke 12:13-21 Parable of the rich man who decides to build new barns. This is a straightforward story to illuminate His admonition in Luke 12:15: “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has abundance does his life consist of his possessions.”

Luke 12:22-34 Jesus talks about worrying about daily provision possessions, and trusting God. This continues the same thought - warnings here about worrying about daily provision. Parallel passages: Luke 12:22-31 and Matt 6:25-34. Luke 12:34 and Matt 6:21. At the opposite end of the spectrum from those who have abundance and might mistake possessions for life, are those who are struggling to get enough to eat from day to day, just to get by. The danger here is worry and lack of faith, and Jesus uses the examples of the ravens and the lilies. The Father makes provision for them, and in the case of the lilies, Jesus says that even Solomon in all his wealth was not clothed like the lilies. The admonition is to seek God's kingdom first and foremost, and He will take care of the necessities of daily life.

         It has on occasion been my experience in talking to the homeless to understand how intimate their daily contact with Christ is. For whatever reason they are homeless, those who know and walk with Christ have a daily experience of seeing Him take care of them, provide for them. There are comparatively few homeless today, perhaps, compared to the beggars of Jesus' day (in terms of the percentage of people who are actually homeless) and the causes are probably substantially different, but the faithfulness of The Lord remains constant.

Luke 12:1-12 Acting and Blasphemy

Luke 12:1-12 Jesus speaks to His disciples. The crowds were building. So much that they were stepping on each other. In this section Jesus gives some seemingly eclectic comments, that build on His earlier discussion in Luke 11:33-36. He is elaborating on the inner person and the importance of being open to the Holy Spirit interiorly.

         First He warns against the leaven (yeast) of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. In our day, hypocrisy has come to mean saying one thing and then living differently, not to the same standard that one espouses. In Jesus' day, the word referred to acting. Those who put on a play were actors, just as in our day. So from Jesus' words, he said that the Pharisees were acting, but that this acting was yeast. Elsewhere, yeast is a type of sin. During the Passover, Orthodox Jews would (and still do) make bread without yeast (Exodus 12:15-20), to symbolize the life of Christ without sin. Yeast is that which puffs up. In Matthew 16:6-12, Jesus explains that the leaven is the teaching of the Pharisees. Their teaching puffed them up. In Paul's passage warning the Corinthians about allowing a brazen adulterer to continue to fellowship with them, he uses this analogy to make a slightly different point. (I Cor 5:6-8). A little bit of yeast makes the whole loaf rise. A little bit of sin that is tolerated affects the whole congregation. It didn't take much of the Pharisees' teaching and acting for them to get puffed up to think they were something in God's kingdom. So Jesus warned His followers not to think that by acting a certain way, they were now something in God's kingdom; they should always remain humble.

         The next passage is related (Luke 12:2-3) in talking about the secret things becoming known. Earlier (Luke 11:33-36) He advised them to allow the light of God's revelation to illuminate their whole being. Here He warns them that the secret things that they thought they could hide would eventually come to light. The Watergate scandal might be a modern example of this on a national scale, but actually it will happen in each person's life. There are the innumerable scandals where politicians or preachers or other prominent figures are revealed to be engaging in secret sin. In the case of actors, it does not seem to impact their career much, but for those whose career depends on people trusting and believing what they say, it can be career ending. Solomon had actually warned about this (Eccl. 10:20), but in Jesus' case, He was simply continuing the warning about the Pharisees' acting righteous in public but harboring secret sins.

         In the next section, Jesus talks about the judgment of God, the final outcome of our souls. (Luke 12:4-10). It is not just that our careers may be ruined when our secret sins are outed. At the final judgment, anyone who confesses Christ before others will be owned by Him, but anyone who denies Him before others will be disowned by Him. We should not fear people who can kill us, that is our body, but the One who will ultimately decide whether we are to be with Him or cast into hell for eternity.

         Luke 12:10 is a difficult verse. After saying that whoever refuses to confess Him before men He will disown before God, Jesus then says whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man (Himself) it will be forgiven, but whoever blasphemes the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. He then goes on (Luke 12:11-12) to explain the role of the Holy Spirit in giving people what to say when they are brought to trial on account of confessing His name.  I think that the only way to interpret verse 10 in is the context of what went before and what comes after. Specifically, Jesus is talking about being persecuted and actually put on trial for His sake. In that circumstance, under torture or other duress, He will forgive those who say something wrong about Him. But the Holy Spirit will be present with any Christian in those circumstances, giving them words to speak. If these words are rejected - if this direct connection to God at the moment of trial is deliberately broken - then God has no other means of grace by which to save a person. Perhaps it is implicit that under trial the presence of the Holy Spirit will be much more powerful than at other times so that His leading will be unmistakable and the power to walk out His provision will be amply present. He has made provision and we need to receive it.

         In Mark 3:28-30 Jesus makes a similar comment about blaspheming the Holy Spirit, but in that context, it was because they said Jesus had an unclean spirit, and that He cast out demons by Beelzebub, the prince of the demons. But the underlying concept is the same - that if we reject all the means of grace that God has provided, then He cannot do anything else. In Mark 13:11 Jesus commented about the Holy Spirit giving words to speak when we are brought before men, but this was in the context of talking about the end times, that family members would turn on one another, resulting in people being put on trial for their faith. 

Luke 11:37-54 Woe to you...

Luke 11:37-44 Jesus pronounces woes upon the Pharisees. Parallel passage Matthew 23:13-36. This follows directly from the previous section, in that their woes are interior sins. They are full of robbery and wickedness. They have no charity in their hearts. They tithe on the smallest of increase in accordance with the law of Moses, but have no regard for justice or the love of God. They love the honor of sitting in front and being greeted respectfully in public, but the people who honor them don't know that inside they are dead to God.

Luke 11:45-52 Jesus pronounces woes upon lawyers. Very similar to the Pharisees, except that lawyers have a different role in the structure of Jewish culture at that time, relating to legal proceedings. They weigh men down with burdens rather than touching them (the burdens) themselves. They are responsible for the persecution (via prosecution) of the prophets that God had sent to bring revelation to His people. This was not a new behavior - Jesus cited prophets of previous generations, such as Zechariah (Hebrews 11:32-38 mentions that there were others). His final condemnation is that they did not enter into the knowledge and revelation that they had, and that they had prevented anyone else from doing so either.

         The natural tendency of people to turn faith into religion seems universal. In our day, this is manifested in the explosion of denominations that turn upon extremely small (it seems to me) points of doctrine. And this is not unique to the 21st century or even the 20th century. The split of denominations began shortly after the reformation, but has proliferated over the years, exponentially it seems. The unifying commonality of core Christian beliefs identified by C.S. Lewis and others seems to have been overtaken by a human desire for doctrinal purity, which seems closely allied to a spirit of pride and self-importance. Most denominations, and all cults, are driven by the unshakeable belief that only they have the truth, that is, the true understanding of God's revelation. And this results in legalism and judgmentalism. Treating people badly, and turning on the very people that God sends to them to appeal to them for the core values of the gospel - love, mercy, and grace. In the end, despite the best efforts of theologians and evangelists, the kingdom of God will be built on love, mercy, and grace. It is possible to find people in virtually every church that are Pharisaical. This is not generally thought to be a compliment.

         The question is - if Jesus were to walk into our churches today, would He be welcomed for what He says, or kicked out for heresy and blasphemy? Or persecuted? It wasn't that the Pharisees and lawyers didn't pay attention to the law and the prophets. It was just that they thought they had the authoritative interpretation of how to apply these revelations to the modern world. This should be a warning to us. Whatever we may think that we know either about our understanding of the Bible or of what God has shown us, we should approach in fear and trembling that we only have a small (very small) piece of the overall truth, and should approach such issues with fear and trembling.

Luke 11:53-54 The scribes and Pharisees begin to plot to catch Jesus in something He might say.  Obviously, Jesus was not going to subscribe to the Pharisees' fan club. But because He was popular with the common people, they couldn't move against Him directly. So they were looking for some way to discredit Him with the common people, so that they could end His influence. It does not indicate at this point that they intended to get Him killed, but they clearly wanted to catch Him saying something that the common people would not accept, and thus eliminate His influence over them. This is rather different from having a shepherd's heart for the people, wanting to protect them from pernicious or misleading influences. Because, it appears, they were not primarily concerned with shepherding the flock, but with maintaining their own positions and influence. A common human failing. But ... think about the consequences! The Pharisees are the ones who had Jesus crucified.

Luke 11:33-36 Lighting the soul

Luke 11:33-36 Jesus talks about light and darkness in the soul. Parallel passages in Matt 5:15-16, Mark 4:21-22. Perhaps this passage is an introduction to the section that follows, as Jesus was saying that the Pharisees had turned light into darkness. Jesus' primary point is that the purpose of light is to enable people to see clearly. Seeing can be inhibited when the light is hidden, or when the eye has a problem. In Jesus' day, lacking modern optometry and ophthalmology, peoples' sight would have been much more commonly impaired. Things that we routinely mitigate with eyeglasses, for example, or various treatments for glaucoma, cataracts, etc, would have seriously affected people's vision. So Jesus was using this as a metaphor.

         We might wonder what light is a metaphor for. The law was God's initial revelation to the Jews, and certain the section that follows talks about the Pharisees' and lawyers' misuse of the law. The section that preceded it talked about the preaching of Jonah and the wisdom of Solomon. The common thread is the revelation of God. He gave Moses the law as a blessing to the children of Israel. He gave Solomon wisdom greater than anyone who preceded him, and probably greater than anyone who followed him, apart from Christ Himself. Jonah preached repentance to the people of Nineveh, and with the power of God, they repented. He implores His listeners to allow God's self-revelation to fully illumine their lives, to allow no dark spot to remain hidden or shielded from the illumination of God's revelation. (Luke 11:36)

         Right! All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. (Romans 3:23) Who among us does not have areas in our life that we want to shield from God's sight, His judgment, His correction? It may be something that we did in the past that we do not want to own responsibility for, or want to avoid consequences of; it may be a secret vice that we do not want to let go; it may even be an ability or a strength in our life that we draw self-image and pride from, and do not want to lose. But what Jesus is telling us is that it all needs to come into the light, to be fully illuminated by God's revelation. And He provides the way: Forgiveness for our sins through His blood on the cross; Deliverance from the sins and strongholds that control our life now; A new identity in Christ through which we derive our worth not from our own strengths or accomplishments, but through allowing God to use us in His ways so that His glory is revealed through us.

Luke 11:27-32 Messiah has come!

Luke 11:27-28 Jesus contrasts the blessedness of observing God's word to the blessing of motherhood. A mother's view is always based on pride in her children, and in this case with Jesus demonstrating with power that He was the Messiah, it would be natural for a Jewish woman, who had also born children, to state that the mother of the Messiah was truly blessed. What bragging rights! But as in the case in Luke 8:19-21, Jesus makes it clear that doing what God says is the true source of blessedness. We cannot choose our parents, and at some point we can't decide what our children are going to do, but we can decide what we are going to do. Specifically to hear God's voice spoken to our heart, and obey, or not.

Luke 11:29-32 Jesus contrasts Old Testament revelation to His presence. His first example is Jonah - that the Ninevites repented at the preaching of Jonah (Jonah 3:5-10), but Jonah was merely a prophet. The Queen of the South (no doubt, the Queen of Sheba) came from the ends of the earth to hear Solomon's wisdom (I Kings 10:1-10, 2 Chronicles 9:1-9), but Jesus was revealing God's wisdom that was greater than Solomon's. She tested Solomon with difficult questions, and observed how his household was organized and run. Jesus said that both the men of Nineveh and the Queen of Sheba would, in the final judgment, rise up to condemn the generation that had Jesus physically in their presence but did not listen to Him and repent.

         In our day, we have the full story in the gospels of all Jesus did, and the Holy Spirit has been poured out to speak directly to every person's heart. We have no less responsibility to listen to Jesus and repent than those who were standing beside Him when He was on earth.

Luke 11:1-26 Deliver us from evil

Luke 11:1-4 Jesus teaches the Lord's Prayer. Parallel passage in Matt 6:9-13. Luke's version of the Lord's Prayer omits a couple of clauses. One relates to God's will being done on earth. (Matt 6:10) Another asks for deliverance from the evil one. (Matt 6:13) Matthew followed his version with a focus on forgiving others as the key to being forgiven by God. Luke follows his version with a focus on persistence in prayer.

Luke 11:5-13 Jesus expounds on the importance of persistence in prayer, and the love of God. Matthew 7:7-11 parallels Luke 11:9-13. Luke starts off with the example of a friend who has a late night visitor and asks his friend for food, and who will give him food even though it is inconvenient, because of his persistence. And so God, who is perfect, gives only good gifts to His children; and He also responds because of our persistence. We can pray for spiritual reasons - because God is worthy of our worship, because we want to draw close to Him, because we want to learn from Him  - but Jesus says there is nothing wrong with praying to God for immediate practical needs. In fact, Jesus encourages us to do so persistently and with expectation of answers.

Luke 11:14-26 Jesus confronts the Pharisees and teaches about demons and possession. The story starts with Jesus performing an exorcism. The Pharisees respond by saying Jesus cast the demon out because He was in league with Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons. In Matthew 12:22-24 and Mark 3, when the Pharisees make this accusation, Jesus responds with a warning about blaspheming the Holy Spirit. Luke does not record this, but the later passage in this chapter (11:45-52) pronounces detailed woes on the Pharisees. But first, in this passage, Jesus offers a logical explanation of the realities of spiritual authority.

         Jesus' first point is that a divided kingdom will fall. The second point is that if He is using Satan's authority then the sons of the Pharisees are similarly indicted. They should not miss the logical conclusion of this - if it is therefore the finger of God that is His power, then the kingdom of God is in their presence. His next point is that whoever is stronger wins the fight. And we are left to infer that since the demon left, it had to be God, because God is stronger than the devil.

         Jesus ends with a warning. When demons are cast out, they pass through a wilderness seeking a place to rest. If they do not find one, then they return from whence they were cast out and see if they can re-enter. If that place is not guarded by the strong man, then the demon can go back inside and also invites its friends (fiends?) to join it. So the warning is - if a demon is cast out, it is essential to fill the space it vacated with the Holy Spirit. We are spiritual beings, we do not have a choice in this matter. In every man there is a God-shaped spiritual space, made for God to reside. If we do not allow and invite Him to fill it, then a spiritual being that is not good will occupy it.

         How do demons get inside and establish strongholds in the first place? There are really only hints in the Bible. In I Samuel 16 we see that King Saul was terrorized by an evil spirit. It is clear from Saul's behavior and his interaction with Samuel that although he started out humble, and at one time was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied (I Samuel 10:9-13), he later became so self-centered that The Lord rejected him from being king (I Samuel 15:12,22-23). There is evidence that he later turned to Baal-worship, since one of his sons, who briefly reigned after his death, was named Ishbaal, meaning man of Baal. (2 Samuel 2:8-10). So the hint is that the worship of Baal may have been connected with the evil spirit that afflicted Saul.

         Other cases of demonic possession - Mark 7 records a woman with a demon possessed daughter, and Mark 9, Matthew 17, and Luke 9 all record a man with a demon possessed son. It seems so tremendously unfair that a child would be allowed by God to be controlled by a demon. But of course, we do not know the ages of these children, whether they were older and past the age of accountability, and had done something to allow the evil spirits in. Or possibly their parents had done something that opened the door to demonic activity in their children's lives. Or perhaps a family member or friend of the family did something to the child to enable Satan to establish a stronghold in their soul. These things could have ranged from Satan-worship (Baal standing in for Satan in Saul's case, referred to as Beelzebul by the Pharisees), to witchcraft, fortune-telling, child abuse, drug or alcohol abuse, or simply making a Faustian deal with the devil.

         The bottom line is that regardless of the sin that was chosen by whatever individual, and the consequent vulnerability to having a demonic stronghold established in our life, God is sovereign and Jesus has authority over that being or stronghold. 

Luke 10:38-42 Worship & works - measuring up

Luke 10:38-42 Jesus visits Mary and Martha. Lazarus is not mentioned in this story, although he surfaces elsewhere as the brother of Mary and Martha. (John 11:1) This story focuses on Martha's work ethic and Mary's love of Jesus. A parable for the church. There are people, and in fact whole denominations, based on the Martha approach to serving Jesus. Get the work done. And there are others - people and denominations, that focus exclusively on listening to Jesus and worshiping Him. And each thinks that the others' religion is weak and inadequate. Jesus takes sides in the conflict, with the worshippers. He did not scold Martha for working, but gently reproved her for worrying. Jesus' response to Martha's criticism of Mary's religion (worship of Jesus at His feet instead of helping with the work) implies that God will take care of the work if the one important thing is taken care of - sitting at His feet and listening to Him.

         How far can we carry this metaphor? Other passages make it clear that we cannot work for or earn our salvation because Jesus has already done all the work necessary for us to be saved. Even though Paul said to work out our salvation with fear and trembling (Phil 2:12), it seems likely that from the context he meant that we have to figure it out, or work it into our lives, not that we have to work for it to earn it, since in the very next work he said it is God who is at work within you. (Phil 2:13) What is the connection between saving faith and relationship with Christ, and how does that compare to the connection between saving faith and righteous deed? Paul states unequivocally that by faith we are saved through grace and that not of ourselves (Eph 2:8-9). The righteous deeds of the saints follow after (Rev 14:13). The works that come after salvation adorn the saints because they are works of God that are brought about through the saints allowing themselves to be instruments of God's will and work.

         How do we put work in perspective? For many of us, it is a challenge to maintain a balance. Either we devote ourselves fully to our career and our job and become workaholics, married to our job, or we focus on our family or our church and give work low priority. Balancing these is hard because both tend to try to pull us into thinking life is exclusively about them. God gave Adam a job (Gen 2:15), but expected him to keep it in perspective relative to his walking with Him in the cool of the day. (Gen 3:8-9) We can't say whether Martha had her priorities adequately balanced. What we can say is that Jesus said that she was not in a position to judge Mary's priorities. Each person has his or her own relationship with Christ. It is important not to try to evaluate other peoples' priorities, except when appropriate. Protestants think Catholics are too focused on the sacraments. Catholics think Protestants are too focused on Bible teaching. But Jesus calls us and deals with us as individuals.

         The whole topic of judging and correcting others is not simple. For example, Jesus said, "Judge not that ye be not judged." (Matt 7:1) But Paul reproved the Corinthians for allowing a known adulterer to continue to participate in church. (I Cor 5:1-13) And Jesus gave detailed directions for dealing with a brother who sins. (Matt 18:15-17) In another passage Paul told the Galatians that if anyone was caught in a trespass, those who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness, looking to themselves lest they also be tempted. (Gal 6:1) How do we decide what our reaction should be to another person whose behavior we believe does not measure up to Biblical standards? The answer seems to lie in the other's reaction to their own behavior. Brazen rebellion against God's standards should not be winked at. But for the brother or sister who has fallen into sin, every effort must be made to restore them. In fact, even Paul's command to excommunicate the sinning brother was for the purpose of saving his spirit (I Cor 5:5)

Luke 10:25-37 Good Sam

Luke 10:25-29 A lawyers asked Jesus what he needs to do to inherit eternal life. Parallel passages in Matt 22:35, Mark12:28, but then go on to other topics. Luke records a different part of the response. Matthew, Mark, and Luke record Jesus' question to the lawyer - you know the answer, what does the Law of Moses say? Insightfully, the lawyer did not respond with the ten commandments, but responded with the great commandments, loving God with all your heart, and loving your neighbor as yourself (Deut 6:5 and Lev 19:18), Jesus responded to Him with Deut 4:1 - do this and you will live - the answer to the lawyer's initial question. Luke is the only one who recorded the follow-up question from the lawyer - who is my neighbor? And Jesus responded with the parable of the Good Samaritan.

         With all of the run-ins Jesus had with scribes, Pharisees, and lawyers, it seems odd that this lawyer actually responded to Jesus with insight. Perhaps He had been following Jesus' teachings and recognized that Jesus was saying something new - that the love of God transcended the law. Perhaps after working as a lawyer, he realized that the law could not save or bring eternal life, but only condemnation and death. In any event, Jesus thought highly enough of him that He gave one of the great teaching parables that even those who do not believe in Christ still know and recognize as a great teaching.

Luke 10:30-37 Jesus tells the parable of the Good Samaritan. So much has been written on this that there is little I could say that would give insight. Perhaps it was just one more episode in Jesus' exposition on the inadequacy of the legalistic religion of the priests and Levites. In modern times, besides the innumerable hospitals named 'Good Sam', the conviction of people that they need to stop to help stranded motorists or hitchhikers is probably a result of this teaching.

         Why does this parable touch us so profoundly? Perhaps it is because deep down, we feel that this is how God should be, and this is how people who reverence God should act (like the Samaritan, not the priest or the Levite). We connect because this is how God made us. And that should tell us something about the teachings of Christ.   

Luke 10:17-24 Jesus rejoices

Luke 10:17-24 Jesus responds to the results of the ministry of the seventy. The first observation is a perception He had of the results in the spiritual kingdom of their ministry. He was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning. It is hard to tell exactly what He was referring to here. The actual casting of Satan out of heaven is recorded later (Rev 12:7-9), but even the timing of that is difficult to discern. In some eternal sense, it may be outside of time, or it may be that Satan was cast from eternity into the space-time continuum, whenever that happened. Or perhaps Jesus was speaking metaphorically, that He foresaw that through the church's ministry Satan would be defeated. Nevertheless, He cautioned His followers not to rejoice in their power over demons, even though it was a cause for Him to rejoice, but to rejoice that their names are recorded in heaven.

         Jesus then went on to rejoice in the Holy Spirit. He rejoiced that God's plan was working, that the simple and the naive were able to triumph over the evil, and that He was in the midst of fulfilling and implementing God's plan. Then He tried to explain to His disciples how blessed they were at this moment, because the entire Old Testament pointed to and led up to this moment, and longed to see His day, and they were the ones who were there to witness it. This is very similar to a passage told in the context of parables that Jesus explained privately to His disciples. (Matt 13:16-17)

         One aspect of the innumerable Old Testament prophecies concerning Jesus' coming was the mystery surrounding how this would be possible. The messianic aspect of prophecy was to some extent understandable - the Christ would be a great deliverer like Moses or perhaps like the Maccabees. But how could God live among them and talk to them without destroying them, as was the warning to Moses? (Exodus 33:20) That God could somehow take on flesh was possible through the miracle of the incarnation, which although prophesied, had no Old Testament foreshadowing. And what would God be like when He was in the flesh? Their concept of the presence of God was conditioned by the experience of Moses in the Tabernacle in the wilderness, in which a column of smoke by day and a pillar of fire by night indicated God's presence. And there was a complete revelation of truth and life through the words of Jesus. The disciples were truly blessed beyond all Old Testament prophets.

Luke 10:1-16 Twelve become seventy - woe to those who won't listen

Luke 10:1-16 The beginning of chapter 9 records the sending out of the twelve. Here we have seventy others that Jesus sends out. The instructions are very similar, but more is added. When they enter a house, say first 'Peace be to this house (10:5) and if a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him, if not, it will return to you (10:6). The seventy had not yet received the baptism in the Holy Spirit, so peace is not a euphemism for the Holy Spirit, it seems to be more of a place-holder. To the extent that the Holy Spirit could be with a person but not in them prior to Calvary, Jesus was saying they should share His presence with His followers with those whose houses they enter. And if the man of the house receives that presence, it will rest on him. If not, it will return to them. Presumably this means they will recognize it.

         Jesus then goes on to pronounce woes on the cities that will not receive the gospel. It is intriguing that in this case it is cities corporately, and not individuals, that are going to experience consequences of rejecting the kingdom of God. He singles out Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum. We don't really know what happened there, because Jesus says this before the seventy go out. But the implication is that rejection of Jesus is rejection of God, and rejection of God will bring disaster. Perhaps we can see this as divine judgment, but Jesus refers to Tyre and Sidon as examples of cities that did experience disaster. Curiously, He did not cite Sodom, which is a city that God directly judged for their sin. I am not sure about Sidon, but Tyre's downfall was pronounced in Ezekiel 26 & 28. It was destroyed by the armies of Alexander the Great in 332 BC. This was subsequent to Nebuchadnezzar's attack on it in 573 BC when he destroyed the city on the mainland but the inhabitants established themselves on an island fortress where they continued to live. After 332 BC, although people later came and built a city they called Tyre, it was no longer the dominant seaport of the eastern Mediterranean. Interestingly Hiram of Tyre had worked with David (2 Sam 5:11) and Solomon (I Kings 5:1, 9:11-12) on various projects, but by the time of Nebuchadnezzar, Tyre had rejected cooperation in favor of competition. They became so successful that they mistook themselves for God (Ezekiel 28:1).  Sadly, this judgment appears to have been not so much God's direct judgment, as happened to Sodom, but with the removal of God's blessing, the world came and swept them away.

         The downfall of Sidon was also prophesied (Ezekiel 28:20-24). Recall that Ahab's wife Jezebel was the daughter of Ethbaal the Sidonian king. (I Kings 16:31) Sidon was conquered numerous times over the centuries preceding Christ, with the most notable conquest being by Artaxerxes in 351 BC. In 333 BC, Alexander the Great conquered it, but evidence suggests that they surrendered and welcomed Alexander, even though their culture was fundamentally changed to be Hellenistic. It survived all these conquests as a city and in fact continues to this day. It is however a poor backwater, no longer one of the preeminent port cities of that region.

         And so Jesus is telling the seventy that the ones who listens to them will receive Him and His Father. And the ones who will not listen to them are also rejecting Him and His Father. And the end result will be worse than what happened to Tyre and Sidon.

Luke 9:57-62 The cost of discipleship

Luke 9:57-62 Parallel passage in Matthew 8:19-22. In this section, we have three specific responses of Jesus to people who said they wanted to follow Him. First, He pointed out that He did not have a home on earth. Second, He said that proclaiming the kingdom of God is more important than tending to family matters such as burying one's father. Third, He said that anyone who looks back to his family, even to say goodbye, after he has put his hand to the plow, is not fit for the kingdom of God. This is a hard passage.

         The reference to not having a house was foreshadowed in Jeremiah 35:7-9 when the Rechabites vowed to live in tents all of their lives. Similarly, the statement about saying goodbye to one's family refers back to I Kings 19:19-21 in which Elijah called Elisha to follow him. Elisha wanted to kiss his parents goodbye and Elijah said he would have nothing to do with him. So Elisha sacrificed the oxen he was plowing with and immediately went to follow Elijah. The statement about burying one's father seems contrary to Old Testament precedent, which set high value on filial piety and respect.

         The point of all this is that Jesus was saying that while family duties may be important, obeying the Father is more important. This may require having no fixed dwelling, perhaps even sleeping in tents. However, the Rechabites lived in tents because their father had commanded them - it wasn't even a direct command of God. If they would do that, we should be prepared to do so in order to serve The Lord in the way He commands, if that is what He commands. The spiritually dead can bury their dead, without hope perhaps, but the important thing is to proclaim that in the kingdom of God, there is eternal life. It is verse 62 that is the most challenging. The reference to Elisha suggests again that God's kingdom has such a high priority that saying goodbye to parents suggests that we really are stalling or that we value them over God. Not that parenthood is unimportant, but that for adults, there comes a time to cut the cord. If we value an inheritance we may get from our parents when they die, we have an unhealthy value on the things of the world. Since Elisha was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen, we can infer his family was wealthy. Elijah offered him the hope for his soul - to let go of his family inheritance, probably very hard to do by worldly values, and embrace the kingdom of God.

         Worldly values are very deceptive and hard to keep from overtaking us. Wealth in itself is neither good nor bad, but when our hearts are captured by it, they are no longer in tune with God's kingdom. This is the bottom line on what Jesus is saying.

Luke 9:49-56 Grace outside our own little circle - discerning spirits

Luke 9:49-56 The disciples need to learn the true nature of God - His desire to save and to offer grace to those who reject Him. Two incidents occur that Jesus uses to show the disciples aspects of His kingdom. In Luke 9:49-50 (paralleled in Mark 9:38-40) the disciples' response to someone who is outside the twelve but is nonetheless casting out demons in Jesus' name is to try to hinder him. Jesus' response is recorded by Luke as 'Don't hinder him because whoever is not against you is for you.' Mark records this plus and additional comment that no one who performs a miracle in His name is able afterwards to speak evil of Him.

         Speculation about who this person was or how he was able to exercise authority in Jesus' name is pointless because we have no other information. But for us the question is how we react to the actions of others who are not in our crowd but are doing things in Jesus' name. We might call them cults or perhaps say their ministry is unhealthy because that person is focusing too much attention on himself, or perhaps he is working outside of the church altogether and operating as a lone wolf ... there are many different things we might disapprove of in others' ministries. But Jesus response seems to be if that person is not against you, and is ministering in His name, then do not hinder him. We may not be privy to everything that God is doing through all sorts of different people.

         The second incident occurs when Jesus tries to go through Samaria on His way to Jerusalem. En route, he sends messengers ahead to a village, but they would not receive Him because He had set His face towards Jerusalem. The disciples wanted to call fire down from heaven as Elijah had done (2 Kings 1:10-12), but Jesus rebuked His disciples because the Son of Man (Him) did not come to destroy but to save. He also warned them that they did not know what spirit they were speaking from. The heart of God was what the disciples were missing. Even though Jesus had displayed to them what His heart looked like in action, they were not yet getting it. They had not yet learned to discern spiritual sources, although their reaction may have been purely from the flesh, but Jesus didn't think so. When we encounter opposition, our reaction needs to follow Jesus' advice in Luke 6:27 & 35.

Luke 9:43-48 Like little children

Luke 9:43-45 Jesus tells His disciples that He is going to be delivered into the hands of men. This passage is paralleled in Matt 17:22-23 and Mark 9:30-32. In a sense, this is just revisiting the earlier discussion in Luke 9:21-22. Luke notes that at this time the disciples did not understand what He said, it was concealed from them, and they were afraid to ask Him about it. Perhaps this was just denial - how could such a good man, demonstrating the power of God, be arrested and executed by human authorities?

Luke 9:46-48 Jesus explains that the least is the greatest. Parallel passage in Matt 18:11-5. An object lesson in humility that even the disciples could understand. Jesus stood a child in front of them, no doubt put His arm around the child, and told them that whoever received a child in His name received Him, and thereby the One who sent Him. So that the one who is greatest is the most humble, and the one who thinks he is the greatest is the least of all, in God's eyes. Matthew adds that this is what the kingdom of heaven is like.

         What is it about children that God approves of? Little children tend to be selfish and self-centered. Well-raised children curb these tendencies through self-discipline, but that is making them more like adults. Most likely there are two aspects that shape this metaphor. Firstly, we tend to overlook the faults in children because we recognize that they haven't had time to learn right from wrong, or learn to be good, or whatever. We give them grace, yet at the same time we attempt to teach and disciple children (at least our own children) to behave in ways that we think are proper. And so God deals with us. Secondly there is the aspect that children tend to receive whatever is given to them as gift, and unless they are incredibly spoiled, are grateful for it. To a child, the entire world is a magical place, filled with wonderful things, and they are often surprised by what they receive from it.

         But the aspect of humility that the disciples really needed to learn (which will surface again in Luke 22:4) was that in God's kingdom, greatness is inextricably bound up with service. In the world, the great are served by those who are oppressed by them, or those who are cozying up to them, or those who are in league with them. But without exception, the great are served. Not so in God's kingdom. Everyone from Brother Lawrence to Jesus Christ who has stature in God's kingdom is noted for the service they perform for others. 

Luke 9:37-42 Fasting and Newt's eyes

Luke 9:37-42 Jesus casts a demon out of a child who is having a grand mal seizure. Parallel passages in Matthew 17:14-21 and Mark 9:14-29. We would today say the child has epilepsy or possibly is autistic, both of which have physical causes. Are we to interpret the need for exorcism as a superstitious misunderstanding? And yet, when Jesus rebuked the demon, it left, and the child was healed. We can only accept, in faith, that not all seizures of this type have physical roots and in this case the cause was spiritual. How the demon came to control this child we do not have any information. We are told that the disciples tried unsuccessfully to cast it out and when Jesus rebuked it, it first threw the boy on the ground in a convulsive fit before it left.

         The part that Matthew & Mark add, but is not included in Luke, is the discussion between Jesus and the disciples about why they were unsuccessful in trying to cast it out. Jesus explained to them that this kind of demon would only come out with prayer and fasting. There is a note in some translations that some early manuscripts omit Matt 17:21 and that the words 'and fasting' are not found in all early version of Mark 9:29. What does this tell us?

         I think the point here is that in dealing with unclean spirits, the role of fasting is hotly contested. At this point in the disciples' spiritual development, they were not continuously anointed with the Holy Spirit and power so even though Jesus had given them authority over unclean spirits earlier (Luke 9:1), they weren't always able to exercise it. This limitation in part had to do with the quality of their spiritual relationship with God the Holy Spirit. He was at that time with them but not in them. (John 14:17) But even more, their hearts were not necessarily continuously attuned to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. This is where the role of fasting most likely comes in. Fasting is not some magic practice like an incantation or a witch's concoction of newt's eyes that gives a person a special power like in a Harry Potter book. Fasting is a discipline whose primary purpose is to enable the individual believer's heart and soul to focus on and tune to the whispering of the Holy Spirit. Jesus told them that He only did what He saw the Father doing (John 5:19), and the Holy Spirit is the means by which both Jesus and we discern what the Father is doing.

         The bottom line on this is that casting out demons is not simply some words said according to a pattern shown in the Bible, claiming the authority of Christ. It requires the one exercising that authority to be fully attuned to the Holy Spirit and become, in effect, an instrument through which the Holy Spirit flows. It involves surrendering autonomy because it is God who is doing the work. Perhaps the best analogy would be like a court clerk who is delivering an eviction notice to a tenant. The clerk who delivers the notice doesn't actually force the tenant to leave, but tells him to leave with the understanding that the police will be along on a given date to enforce it physically if he doesn't leave. And so for the clerk's words to have effect (in most cases they are printed in a document) it must be the precise language that the judge has approve so there can be no quibbling later about authority.