A Lesson on Greatness & Cooperation
Notes
Transcript
Opening Illustration
Opening Illustration
For many years Sir Walter Scott was the leading literary figure in the British Empire.
No one could write as well as he.
Then the works of Lord Byron began to appear, and their greatness was immediately evident.
Soon an anonymous critic praised his poems in a London Paper.
He declared that in the presence of these brilliant works of poetic genius, Scott could no longer be considered the leading poet of England.
It was later discovered that the unnamed reviewer had been none other than Sir Walter Scott himself!
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There is a distinction between jealousy and envy.
To envy is to want something which belongs to another person.
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house, his wife or his servant, his ox or donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
In contrast, jealousy is the fear that something which we possess will be taken away by another person.
Although jealousy can apply to our jobs, our possessions, or our reputations, the word more often refers to anxiety which comes when we are afraid that the affections of a loved one might be lost to a rival.
We fear that our mates, or perhaps our children, will be lured away by some other person who, when compared to us, seems to be more attractive, capable and successful.”
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Comparisons are never a good idea when the exercise is focused on self-advancement.
Scott realized that his best offense was a good defense in that regard.
Putting himself in a position of humility to begin with, he opened his heart and his life to receiving the honors that always come to those who prefer being last in line.
Scott recognized that just being a poet was important.
The honor was in the being not the achieving.
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So, please turn your Bibles to the Gospel of Luke.
We will conduct our study in Chapter 9 and focus on verses 46 through 50.
Our message this morning is titled, “A Lesson on Greatness & Cooperation”
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This message today will focus on what it means to be great in the eyes of God...
And we will also explore what it looks like to be united with other fellow believers in Christ.
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So, this morning we will cover three main points:
1) The Argument
2) The First Lesson
And...
3) The Second Lesson
Opening Prayer
Opening Prayer
Before we consider our text, please join me in prayer...
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Heavenly Father...
You are the one true God who created all things...
All things seen...
And all things unseen.
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Thank You for sending Your Son who made a way for ruined sinners...
Thank You for sending Him into our world so that He would die for His sheep...
For without Christ...
We would all suffer eternal Hell.
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Help us never forget that fact...
Help those who do not believe to come to a saving knowledge for Your Son...
And help those who do believe to have their faith strengthened.
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And it is in Jesus’s name we pray all these things...
Amen.
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Let’s turn to our text for today:
Reading of the Text
Reading of the Text
46 An argument arose among them as to which of them was the greatest.
47 But Jesus, knowing the reasoning of their hearts, took a child and put him by his side
48 and said to them, “Whoever receives this child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me. For he who is least among you all is the one who is great.”
49 John answered, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.”
50 But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him, for the one who is not against you is for you.”
So, let’s look at our first point...
1) The Argument
1) The Argument
Verse 46: An argument arose among them as to which of them was the greatest.
So, this passage stands at a vital juncture in Luke’s Gospel and the life of Jesus...
For this passage records the close of the Jesus’ Galilean ministry...
And, beginning in Luke 9:51 and continuing through Luke 19:27, we will witness the record of Jesus’ final journey to Jerusalem.
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Now, this debate is quite ironic in light of the preceding events...
Recall with me what we talked about last week in our study on Luke...
Recall with me when we witnessed how the disciples struggled to cast out a demon as seen in Luke 9:40 which says:
40 And I begged your disciples to cast it out, but they could not.”
Remember, earlier the disciples had been given authority to cast out all demons but due to a lack of prayer and faith they hit a wall until Jesus saved the day.
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Additionally, this this debate is ironic in light of the disciples lack of understanding of Jesus’ words regarding His death and resurrection as found in Luke 9:45 which says:
45 But they did not understand this saying, and it was concealed from them, so that they might not perceive it. And they were afraid to ask him about this saying.
So, this argument is really a symptom of the disciples’ failure to comprehend Jesus’ teaching on His impending suffering for they are quibbling over places of preeminence in God’s Kingdom which they still believe will be an earthly military rule that will over-through the Roman rule in Isreal.
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Consider what it says in Mark 9:33-34:
33 And they came to Capernaum. And when he was in the house he asked them, “What were you discussing on the way?”
34 But they kept silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest.
Do you see that Beloved?
The disciples knew in their hearts that this debate over who was the greatest was not right...
That is why when Jesus asked them what they were discussing they all kept silent.
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So, what exactly do the disciples mean by arguing over which of them was the “greatest?”
Well, the “greatest” in their mind refereed to having the greatest authority...
It refereed to deserving the most preferential treatment...
It has the meaning of being most valuable...
And overall being the most favored by God.
As the Expositor’s Bible Commentary on Luke says:
“The disciples did not understand Jesus’ role as the Suffering Servant and so could not grasp its implications for them as his disciples.
They were still thinking of the Messiah only in terms of triumph, assuming, quite naturally, that their position was important.
The issue was not whether there would be rank in the kingdom but the nature and qualifications of such rank.”
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Each of the disciples, probably based on their past success before they hit their hiccup, started to wonder if they themselves were the greatest of the disciples...
I would not have been surprised if Peter, John, and James who are Jesus’ inner circle made a case that they were greater for they had special experiences with the Lord separate from the other disciples like in the event of the Transfiguration.
I can see Peter, John, or James telling the other nine that if only they were with them then they would not have had trouble casting out that demon from the boy that Jesus ultimately had to cast out.
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In other words...
Each disciple was in a way saying, “I must be the greatest out of this group of Jesus closest followers...
How dare the rest of the group not also acknowledge my greatness.”
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I imagine it sounded a lot like trash talking in sports which has now become very common...
In the past talking like Muhammad Ali was shocking...
But now nearly every athlete does it...
And it seems the disciples were not that much better when they were talking to each other.
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However, Jesus knew the reasoning of their hearts...
He knew what each disciple was thinking....
So, He teaches them a valuable lesson...
And this takes us to our second point.
2) The First Lesson
2) The First Lesson
Verses 47-48: But Jesus, knowing the reasoning of their hearts, took a child and put him by his side and said to them, “Whoever receives this child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me. For he who is least among you all is the one who is great.”
Beloved, please pay attention to what Luke is really saying when he records that Jesus knows “the reasoning of their hearts.”
What Luke is communicating is that Jesus’ knowledge of people’s unspoken motives is actually evidence of Christ’s deity...
As always Luke has a very high Christology and makes this clear to his readers.
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Now look with me at what Mark records in his account of this same event...
Look with me at Mark 9:35 which says:
35 And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.”
So, the way to preeminence in Christ’s kingdom is by sacrifice and self-denial...
Greatness is not found in our ability or who we are...
Greatness is not found in our skill set or our authority on this earth...
True greatness that counts for anything in our eternal life is found in who were are in relationship with...
True greatness comes from Christ...
And Christ calls His followers to follow His model and to be a servant to all...
Christ calls His followers to been seen as the lowest in this world...
For to be last in the world’s eyes is to be held in high regard in God’s eyes!
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So, Jesus presents the disciples with a vivid illustration...
Just look with me at what Matthew 18:1-6 says:
1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
2 And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them
3 and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
4 Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
5 “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me,
6 but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.
To truly understand this passage we can’t look at this with 21st century western eyes...
We need to think like someone in the middle east during the 1st century...
So, keep this key fact in mind...
In mind the Graeco-Roman society of Jesus’ day, children were regarded as insignificant...
By Jesus calling a child to illustrate His point it showed to the disciples the reversal of values in God’s Kingdom.
The Faithlife Study Bible puts it like this:
“A child Illustrates humility and dependence.
For Jesus’ audience, a child represented someone completely reliant on others—perhaps even a burden.
Children were without status in the ancient world and at the mercy of adults.
Very small children consumed resources, required constant attention, and needed to be protected.”
In other words as theologian Walter L. Liefeld says:
“The meaning, then, is that instead of seeking status for ourselves (out of pride as an associate of the Messiah) we Christians should, as Jesus did, identify ourselves with those who have no status at all, welcoming them to join us in the kingdom.
To put it another way, in Matthew 10 one receives a Christian apostle as consciously receiving Christ himself, whereas here in Luke 9 by ministering to a child one ministers, without realizing it, to Christ himself.”
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The lowly status of children in the 1st century was on full display in passages like Matthew 19:13–15 which says:
13 Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people,
14 but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.”
15 And he laid his hands on them and went away.
Here again, we see that children were being viewed as insignificant by society and specifically they are mistreated by the disciples...
And mind you this took place after Jesus taught the disciples to be lowly like children as this event takes place after our passage...
So, this reversal of society norms would take some time for even the disciples to reorient their minds in a godly manner.
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Regarding the term “least” in our passage, it has nothing to do with rank, talent, or importance but refers instead to the one most willing to humble himself in order to serve others
The Pillar New Testament Commentary on Luke says:
“We are mistaken if we imagine that Greek and Jewish societies extolled the virtues of childhood as is generally true in modern Western society.
Societies with high infant mortality rates and high demand for human labor are not sentimental about infants and youth.
Until children could contribute to the labor force, they simply had ‘not arrived.’
They were, quite literally, ‘the least among you.’”
Church, consider this shocking fact...
In Judaism...
Children under twelve could not be taught the Torah...
And on top of that..
To spend any time with them was considered a waste of one’s time!
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Furthermore, consider what the New International Commentary on the New Testament on Luke says:
“‘To welcome’ people would be to extend to them the honor of hospitality, to regard them as guests, but one would only welcome a social equal or one whose honor was above one’s own.
Children, whose place of social residence was defined at the bottom of the ladder of esteem, might be called upon to perform acts of hospitality (e.g., washing the feet of a guest), but normally they would not themselves be the recipients of honorable behavior.
Jesus thus turns the social pyramid upside down, undermining the very conventions that led the disciples to deliberate over relative greatness within the company of disciples and, indeed, that had led the disciples away from any proper understanding of Jesus’ status...
To honor children is to honor Jesus, and to honor Jesus is to honor the one who sent him—that is, God himself ”
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So, the disciples needed to unhitch themselves from the stands and ways of their society and they had to start seeing things from God’s perspective...
They needed to focus on how to be great in God’s eyes and not live for the applause of man.
However, this lesson would take some time for the disciple to understand because yet again we see in the Gospel accounts a play for power and authority...
This time even the mother of two disciples are involved...
Take a look with me at Matthew 20:20-28 which says:
20 Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came up to him with her sons, and kneeling before him she asked him for something.
21 And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Say that these two sons of mine are to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.”
22 Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.”
23 He said to them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”
24 And when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers.
25 But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them.
26 It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,
27 and whoever would be first among you must be your slave,
28 even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
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Jesus made it clear...
We are not to be like Gentile rulers and lord our power and authority over others...
Instead, the one who follows Christ must be a servant leader!
They must be a servant and slave to others...
For that is what Jesus perfectly modeled for us...
Jesus did not come to be served...
Even though no one is more worthy than Him to be served...
Instead, Our Lord and Savior...
The King of Kings and Lord of Lords came to this broken world to serve the ones who rebelled against Him...
The King of Kings and Lord of Lords came to this wicked and twisted world to serve the ones who would crucify Him in a cold-blooded execution of the worst kind...
The King of Kings and Lord of Lords came to this depraved world to give His life as a ransom for His elect!
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Even before His death which He knew was at hand...
Our Lord and Savior served...
Beloved, look with me at John 13:12-20 which says:
12 When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, “Do you understand what I have done to you?
13 You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am.
14 If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.
15 For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you.
16 Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.
17 If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.
18 I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled, ‘He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.’
19 I am telling you this now, before it takes place, that when it does take place you may believe that I am he.
20 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.”
We must learn to ask ourselves...
“How can I wash the feet of my brother or sister in Christ?”
“How can I sever them even if it would bring me humiliation or present me a lowly?”
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“How can I wash the feet of my enemy?”
“How can I show my enemy the love of Christ by serving them?”
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Again, look at this profound truth that is recorded in Mark 10:42–45 which says:
42 And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them.
43 But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,
44 and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all.
45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
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Beloved, we must be humble...
We must not look down at others and think of ourselves as better than others...
We must understand that to exalt oneself is to be humbled by God...
But to humble oneself is to be exalted by God.
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It may be counter intuitive but this is the biblical formula...
And this was the subject of two of Jesus’ key parables that we find recorded in Scripture.
The first parable is found in Luke 14:7–11 which says:
7 Now he told a parable to those who were invited, when he noticed how they chose the places of honor, saying to them,
8 “When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in a place of honor, lest someone more distinguished than you be invited by him,
9 and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this person,’ and then you will begin with shame to take the lowest place.
10 But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table with you.
11 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
The second parable is found in Luke 18:9–14 and says:
9 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt:
10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.
11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.
12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’
13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’
14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
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Furthermore, take a look at these commands by Jesus not to seek certain titles for ones own glory as recorded in Matthew 23:8–12 which says:
8 But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers.
9 And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven.
10 Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ.
11 The greatest among you shall be your servant.
12 Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
How many religions call their religious leaders “father” in direct violation of Jesus’ commands...
We are not to glorify men...
We are to give all the glory to God alone!
As the New American Commentary on Luke says:
“Greatness lies not in receiving preferential treatment from others or in having more authority than others.
On the contrary it involves serving others, especially the outcasts of society as represented by a little child.
Greatness ministers to the poor, crippled, lame, and blind who can never repay.”
In other words, greatness is not inherent in a person or their title, but is established by one’s relationship to Jesus Christ.
Jesus is the great one!
So, Jesus is calling on the disciples to change the way they see people...
He is calling them be kind to the “lowly” and act in a way that ignores status...
And that message is for us too!
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Beloved, meditate on these words of wisdom found in Philippians 2:3–5 which says:
3 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.
4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,
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I pray that this truth permeates your whole entire life...
That before you commit to any act...
Your primary focus is others...
And that focus dictates your actions...
All for the glory of God!
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So, how do the disciples respond to this command of Jesus to be lowly?
Well, John the Beloved, answered Jesus...
And his response leads to another key lesson for us to learn and incorporate into our daily life...
Which takes us to our third and final point.
3) The Second Lesson
3) The Second Lesson
Verses 49-50: John answered, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.” But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him, for the one who is not against you is for you.”
As one of the “inner three,” John the Beloved assumed authority and exercised it by forbidding those outside of the immediate fellowship of disciples to minister in Jesus’ name.
John’s condemnatory attitude was again manifest just a few verses after this in Luke 9:52-54 which says:
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?”
Clearly, it is taking some time for the disciples to really grasp what Jesus is teaching them...
But we are seeing a lot of pride in the disciples...
Especially in one who is part of Jesus’ inner circle.
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Even look at the justification hat John used for stopped this other follower of Jesus...
He said, “because he does not follow with us.”
Did you catch that, Beloved?
As theologian James R. Edwards says:
“We should expect John to say, ‘because he does not follow you.’
It seems rather presumptuous for John, or any of the Twelve at this point in their relationship with Jesus, to pose as model disciples and rebuke someone ‘because he does not follow with us.’”
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Sound familiar?
Many so called “Christian” churches claim to be the “true church” yet the are committing the same sin that the disciples did here...
They condemn others for not being in “their” club and following their man-made rules...
They are more concerned with people following them than people following Jesus!
Mormons...
Jehovah's Witness...
Catholics...
Orthodox...
You name it...
They are claiming an authority to have an exclusive way to God but they do not have that kind of authority!
They are not the way to God!
Jesus is the only way to God, not an organization!
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As Mark 9:39-41 says:
39 But Jesus said, “Do not stop him, for no one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me.
40 For the one who is not against us is for us.
41 For truly, I say to you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ will by no means lose his reward.
So, Jesus is saying that there is no neutrality in the struggle against evil.
Those not against us are for us...
A Baptist, a Presbyterian, and a Wesleyan may have different secondary doctrine...
But it they are united in the Gospel message...
If they are united in faith in the genuine Jesus of the Scriptures alone...
Then they are brothers and sisters in Christ and no one has the right to say otherwise!
So, if someone anathematizes true believes then they prove themselves to be false...
Jesus cares about genuine unity in His message and His person...
And we are to surrender to that truth...
In fact, in Matthew 12:30, we find a test we should apply to ourselves:
30 Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
Again, there is no middle ground and no neutrality.
Christ has given us tests of outward conduct to use for measuring others and ourselves...
If someone passes the tests of a true believer...
Even if there is a disagreement on a secondary issue do not let that be a reason to condemn someone...
They are your fellow brother and sister in Christ...
They are part of the same Body of Christ...
If they are truly and genuinely with Christ then they are with us!
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May we take these two lessons to heart...
May we seek to be humble and cooperate with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ for the glory of God alone!
Closing Illustration
Closing Illustration
So, as this message comes to a close...
I would like you to consider this:
Several years ago there was a girl in an orphanage.
She was unattractive and had mannerisms that were not very attractive either, and so she was disliked and shunned by the other children and was not liked by her teachers.
The head of the institution looked for a reason to send her off to some other place.
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One afternoon the opportunity came.
She was suspected of writing unapproved, illicit notes to someone outside the institution.
One of the little girls had just reported, “I saw her write a note and hide it on a tree near the stone wall.”
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The superintendent hurried to the tree and found the note.
He then passed it silently to his assistant.
The note read, “To whoever finds this, I love you.”
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In essence, someone else also wrote a note and put it on a tree outside a city wall at another place a long time ago.
Of Him, too, it was written:
“He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
He was despised and rejected by men.”
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They sought to get rid of Jesus.
They took Him out to Calvary’s hill where they crucified Him.
They nailed Him to a tree.
But when men get there, they find a note on that tree that reads, “To whoever finds this, I love you.”
Closing Prayer
Closing Prayer
Let’s pray...
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Heavenly Father...
If anyone hearing this message right now does not know You in a saving way...
Open their eyes...
Remove the horse blinders...
Shatter their stone hearts...
And open their minds to understand Your truth!
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I appeal to Your Name’s sake!
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For those hearing this message who already know You...
Teach us to be more humble everyday...
Teach us to be more united with our fellow members of the Body of Christ...
And remind us of what Jesus did on that cross at Calvary.
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Again, I appeal to Your Name’s sake!
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And it is in Jesus’s name we pray all these things...
Amen.
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To God be all the glory.
Amen.
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Please join us for one more song from the Praise Band.
