Whom do you fear? Throughout its history, the church has always been faced with pressure to live out of a fear of man and this world rather than the fear of God. There is always the temptation to give into this world’s demands and live for the praise of man rather than God, proving that […]
The Scriptures are abundantly clear that God is not merely concerned with our outward appearance, which man can see, but with the inward condition of our heart (1 Sam 15:22; 16:7; Hos. 6:6). While there are certainly good works that accompany true saving faith (Eph. 2:10), we are often tempted to substitute religious activity for […]
The Bible repeatedly affirms that there is no neutrality when it comes to God and his kingdom. In Luke 11:23 we read: “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters” (see also Matt. 6:24; Rom. 6:16; James 4:4). In the healing of the mute man and the […]
Here in Luke’s narrative, once again, we find Jesus in prayer. But this time, something prompts a disciple to ask: “Lord, teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1). Prayer is one of the most vital spiritual disciplines, but it is also one of the most neglected. By failing to be devoted to prayer, we show that […]
The parable of the Good Samaritan and Jesus’ visit to the home of Mary and Martha are related in a couple of significant ways. First, here we find both the command to show mercy to our neighbors and do good works (Luke 10:37), but also the preliminary and gracious invitation to find rest in the […]
The successful mission of the seventy-two signified that Satan’s kingdom was beginning to collapse (Luke 10:17-18). The captives and the oppressed were finding liberty, the poor were hearing the good news of the kingdom, the blind were receiving their sight—and it was all pointing ahead to the cross where Jesus Christ would decisively crush the […]
“No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62). Following Jesus is a full-time occupation, and the demands of the kingdom supersede all earthly loyalties. To be a disciple of Jesus involves being sent out as laborers into the harvest—proclaiming the good news of […]
“When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem” (Luke 9:51). Jesus has just clearly announced his departure—the exodus that he came to accomplish. He is going to be delivered into the hands of men, suffer, die, and rise again. This was the fixed path of the promised Messiah; he […]
Throughout Luke, we’ve seen glimpses of Jesus’ divinity in his supernatural authority over sickness, demons, nature, and even death; he’s was not just a prophet or a good teacher but Immanuel, God with us. But in the event of his transfiguration, his humanity was peeled back enough for his divine glory to physically shine. As […]
