Luke 9:52-56 (3)
Notes
Transcript
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-If you have your Bibles...
…please turn to the Book of Luke, and Chapter 9.
Last week, we spent our entire time...
…expounding and considering Verse 51.
And, my thesis to you, was...
…that it marked a major turning point...
…in Jesus’ earthly ministry.
…that it was telling us that, Jesus...
Was setting his sights upon Jerusalem (in an immediate sense)
(In an ultimate sense) upon his Ascension and Session
In Jerusalem he would...
Be rejected by his own people
Be given over to death
Be vindicated by his Resurrection
Provide the ultimate and final proof (in that)
…that He was who he claimed to be.
And, through all of that, he would...
Win the Messianic Victory
Begin to adjudicate the terms of the Old Covenant.
This was the Journey that he had resolved to take in Verse 51.
-But, remember that (we saw last week)...
…that the journey wouldn’t be a straight shot to Jerusalem.
We saw that he was going to...
…work his way down...
…preaching and teaching as he went.
-And, what we have before us in Verses 52-56...
…is what Luke records as...
…the first of those decreed stops along the way.
And, like always...
…there’s a lot for us to learn from it.
-So, let’s jump on in...
We’ll begin reading back in Verse 51...
…in order to be reminded of the context.
This is the inerrant and infallible Word, of the Living God
Verse 51:
Luke 9:51–56 (ESV)
51 When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.
52 And he sent messengers ahead of him, who went and entered a village of the Samaritans, to make preparations for him.
53 But the people did not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem.
54 And when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?”
55 But he turned and rebuked them.
56 And they went on to another village.
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-Verse 52 begins by telling us something...
…that ought to have caught our attention.
Let’s read it again:
Luke 9:52 (ESV)
52 And he sent messengers ahead of him, who went and entered a village of the Samaritans, . . .
What’s the big deal about that?
The issue is the hostility that existed...
…between the 1st Century Jews...
...and their Samaritan neighbors.
Sproul says this:
The Samaritans were those who had intermarried with the pagans during the inter-testamental period, and had corrupted the purity of the Jewish faith.
They were half-breeds both biologically and theologically, and a great hostility emerged between them and the Jews. — R.C. Sproul
-Now, we actually have a lot of biblical insight into this:
2 Kings 17:5–24 (ESV)
5 Then the king of Assyria invaded all the land and came to Samaria, and for three years he besieged it.
6 In the ninth year of Hoshea . . . he carried the Israelites away to Assyria...
7 And this occurred because the people of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God . . . and had feared other gods
8 and walked in the customs of the nations whom the Lord drove out...
2 Kings 17:24 (ESV)
24 And the king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the people of Israel. And they took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities.
2 Kings 17:24–29 (ESV)
25 And at the beginning of their dwelling there, they did not fear the Lord. Therefore the Lord sent lions among them, which killed some of them.
26 So the king of Assyria was told, “The nations that you have carried away and placed in the cities of Samaria do not know the law of the god of the land. Therefore he has sent lions among them, and behold, they are killing them...
27 Then the king of Assyria commanded, “Send there one of the priests whom you carried away from there, and let him go and dwell there and teach them the law of the god of the land.”
28 So one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and lived in Bethel and taught them how they should fear the Lord.
2 Kings 17:32–34 (ESV)
33 So they feared the Lord but also served their own gods, after the manner of the nations from among whom they had been carried away.
34 To this day they do according to the former manner. They do not fear the Lord, and they do not follow the statutes or the rules or the law or the commandment that the Lord commanded...
2 Kings 17:41 (ESV)
41 ...Their children did likewise, and their children’s children—as their fathers did, so they do to this day.
And, as I understand it...
…these are the Samaritans.
And, later on...
…we see their descendants...
…opposing the Rebuilding of Jerusalem and the Temple, in...
Ezra 4:1–6 (ESV)
1 Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the returned exiles were building a temple to the Lord, the God of Israel,
2 they . . . said to them, “Let us build with you, for we worship your God as you do, and we have been sacrificing to him ever since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria who brought us here.”
3 But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of fathers’ houses in Israel said to them, “You have nothing to do with us in building a house to our God; but we alone will build to the Lord, the God of Israel...”
4 Then the people of the land discouraged the people of Judah and made them afraid to build...
This hatred between the Jews and the Samaritans...
…was firmly established in the First Century.
We see evidence of that throughout the NT...
But, probably nowhere as clearly as...
John 4:1–9 (ESV)
3 he left Judea and departed again for Galilee.
4 And he had to pass through Samaria.
5 So he came to a town of Samaria called Sychar...
6 Jacob’s well was there; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well...
7 A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” . . .
9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.)
Look how bad the enmity was:
Josephus wrote this:
“Hatred also arose between the Samaritans and the Jews for the following reason. It was the custom of the Galileans at the time of the festival to pass through the Samaritan territory on their way to the Holy City [Jerusalem].
On one occasion, while they were passing through, certain of the [Samaritan] inhabitants of a village … joined battle with the Galileans and slew a great number of them” — Josephus
-Yet, in our text...
…Jesus sends his messengers...
…straight into Samaritan country...
…and into a Samaritan Village.
For what purpose?
Well, surprisingly...
Luke 9:52 (ESV)
52 ...to make preparations for him.
He “intends” to stay with them for a period of time!
At least overnight.
And, out of...
Love for neighbor...
Love for his ethnic enemies...
…he is considerate of the way...
…that his large entourage...
…would put an economic and logistical strain...
…upon an assumedly small village like theirs.
So, he forewarns their arrival.
-But… his thoughtfulness of them...
…was unrequited (was not returned).
-Look at Verse 53:
Luke 9:53 (ESV)
53 But the people did not receive him...
They refused to extend to him and his companions...
…that common and assumed...
…Middle-Eastern Hospitality.
This was a big deal at that time.
As travellers, you were utterly dependent...
…upon the natives of the land...
…to provide food and lodging when you traveled.
This was a cold and heartless act...
…by these Samaritans.
And, Luke tells us exactly why they did it.
Luke 9:53 (ESV)
53 ...the people did not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem.
Remember, the Samaritans...
Had a competing and counterfeit worship system:
Only accepted the Torah as authoritative
Insisted on Mt. Gerizim (Mount of Blessing) as the true place of worship
Had their own Temple
Consequently, rejected Jerusalem and its Temple system.
And, Remember that this is what...
…the Samaritan woman in John 4...
…had asked Jesus about:
John 4:19–22 (ESV)
20 Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.”
21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father.
22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.
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You see, they recognized the incompatibility...
…of their religions.
And the people in our text recognized, that...
…Jesus and his disciples...
...going up to worship in the Jewish manner...
…was an ipso facto rejection of their worship system...
…and their very way of life.
And so they slammed the door in his face.
-Now, Calvin makes two insightful applications here:
Hence, too, we learn . . . that when men differ among themselves about the doctrines of religion, they readily break out into hatred of each other;
for it was an evidence of very bitter hatred to withhold food from the hungry, and lodging from those who were fatigued — John Calvin
He also wrote this:
Now though Christ might easily have avoided that dislike, he chooses rather to profess himself to be a Jew, than by an indirect denial to procure a lodging — Calvin
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We see in our Lord’s earthy life...
Principle...
Always reigning over pragmatism!
He would rather suffer for the sake of righteousness...
…than to live at ease through compromise!
And remember, that he had predicted...
…greater suffering than this....
....to be awaiting him in Jerusalem.
And, he set his face “like flint” . . .
…to go there in spite of it.
This rejection… was but a foreshadowing...
…of what would soon come.
Soon, he would...
Luke 9:22 (ESV)
22 ...suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed...
-But, his disciples still didn’t comprehend...
…the big picture of what he was going to accomplish.
They still had their minds set...
on the things below
on the notions of earthly victories
on the notions of earthly kingdoms
Look at Verse 54.
Luke 9:54 (ESV)
54 And when his disciples James and John saw it...
Already, we’re like… “oh boy,” aren't we?
Why?
Because these are the ones Jesus called...
Mark 3:17 (ESV)
17 ...Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder...
These are the two that asked Jesus:
Mark 10:37 (ESV)
37 . . . “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.”
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-You want to see something beautiful, though?
This same hot-headed, arrogant young man...
after being circumcised by the Holy Spirit...
after a lifetime of sanctification...
Is the same one who wrote the 4 John’s...
Including passages like...
1 John 4:7 (ESV)
7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.
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Brethren… That right there...
…is the power of God at work!
-But… in our text...
John is still a typical young man...
…who is responding to ministerial advancement...
…in a very typical way:
-Here’s the suggestion of the “Sons of Thunder:”
Luke 9:54 (ESV)
54 . . . they said, “Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?”
They’re ready to show off that newfound spiritual authority, aren’t they?
(This is exactly why...
…we use the designation of “cage stage” . . .
…for young and zealous men!)
-Now, Calvin again, makes a helpful observation:
The country itself had perhaps suggested to them the desire of thundering immediately against the ungodly;
for it was there that Elijah had formerly destroyed, by a fire from heaven, the king’s soldiers who had been sent to apprehend him, (2 Kings 1:10.)
It therefore occurred to them that the Samaritans, who so basely rejected the Son of God, were at that time devoted to a similar destruction. — Calvin
Seems logical, right?
After all, Jesus was about to...
…go up to Jerusalem...
...and Inaugurate the Messianic Kingdom, right?
-Well, Jesus responds to their "zeal without knowledge,” in Verse 55:
Luke 9:55 (ESV)
55 But he turned and rebuked them.
And, notice something here.
He rebukes his disciples...
…but he says nothing to the wicked Samaritan village.
Why?
Revelation 3:19 (ESV)
19 Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.
You needn’t worry if he chastens you, Christian...
You need to worry if he DOES NOT!
He chastens his sons!
He leaves his enemies to follow their hearts and perish!
-Now, why and how...
…were the “Sons of Thunder” . . .
…in error here?
Well, I imagine… the biggest issue was...
Mark 8:33 (ESV)
33 ...For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”
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-But also, Jesus hadn’t come to the earth...
…to destroy and subjugate the gentiles...
He had come to save them...
To bring many of them into the fold!
John 3:17 (ESV)
17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
The judgment at his first coming...
…was going to begin...
…at “the household of God.”
Not with the gentiles.
-Another problem with James’ and John’s response...
…was something very basic:
1 Peter 3:9 (ESV)
9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called...
Luke 6:27–28 (ESV)
27 ...Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,
28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.
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Their hearts, (while zealous)...
…were estranged from the will of God.
-Now, let me point something out to you, here...
…so, it doesn’t cause you to stumble.
Some translations (usually older ones)...
…include a long statement...
…at the end of Verse 55...
…and at the beginning of Verse 56
Most Newer translations omit it altogether.
The NASB includes it...
…but puts it in brackets with a footnote of explanation.
Luke 9:55–56 (NASB95)
55 But He turned and rebuked them, [and said, “You do not know what kind of spirit you are of;
56 for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.”] And they went on to another village.
The footnote says:
Early mss do not contain bracketed portion
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The issue here, is common.
The discovery of older manuscripts in the 19th-20th centuries...
…has shown us that this was probably a scribal addition.
And, here again, it doesn’t affect...
The Bible’s Historicity
Any Christian Doctrine.
-Now, here’s what we know for certain:
Luke 9:56 (ESV)
56 And they went on to another village.
Jesus, may not have called down fire from heaven...
…like he did upon Sodom and Gomorrah...
But, the fact that...
They kept themselves from hearing the word preached...
He passed over them...
He let them follow their heart...
They are now left ichabod...
...Is, in a sense...
...An indirect judgment against them.
Remember what Jesus said in...
John 12:46–48 (ESV)
46 I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.
47 If anyone hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world.
48 The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has a judge; the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day.
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I say it all the time, but...
...Your response to...
The Son of Man...
His Holy Word...
...Will be the determiner of your eternal destiny.
There are no exceptions.
-But, the wonder of wonders for us, is...
That he hasn’t yet passed us over
How often have we spurned his commands?
How often have we rebelled against his authority?
How often have we turned him away...
…and him not left us for another village?
What’s the difference between them and us?
What’s the difference between these Samaritans...
…and the ones who received Jesus in John 4?
Grace… is all I know.
And the Lord’s table...
Is a great reminder that...
…the grace of God has been extended to us.
(Brothers, could you please come up?)
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It reminds us that we AREN’T ichabod.
That he dwells among us… and is with us to the end.
It reminds us that he has...
given of his own body...
to redeem ours...
poured out his own blood...
to save us from the same fate.
And, that he did all of that...
…while we were still his enemies!
-Should the reminder of the Presence in the Lord’s Table...
…cause us to look down upon those...
…who have been thus far passed over?
NO!
It should cause us to magnify his grace toward us...
…in that we have a seat at all!
Let’s Pray.
Matthew records this about the institution of the Supper from the Passover Meal:
26 Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.”
He goes on to tell us...
27 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you,
28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
29 I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”