Luke 19:41-48 - The Heart of Christ
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Introduction:
It seems that many people struggle to see God as relational. They see Him as this far off Being that is impersonal. Yet, Jesus Christ provided us a tangible view of God up close and personal.
Paul, in writing Colossians, tells us in Colossians 1:15 that:
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
If you want to see God, look at Christ. He goes on to inform us in Colossians 2:9 that:
For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily,
Christ is not only truly man, but He is also truly God. Christ is the fullness of God, and Christ is God.
Today we are going to come to two different passages that show us the heart of Christ - namely the heart of God. We see His compassion and His passion. We see three things that He cares deeply about - specifically people, holiness, and the truth.
Join me as we get into today’s Scripture…
Read Full Scripture:
And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it,
saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes.
For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side
and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”
And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold,
saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.”
And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people were seeking to destroy him,
but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were hanging on his words.
Prayer
Today we will see three manifestations of Christ’s heart. The first is…
I. Christ is Compassionate Even to the Troubled Transgressor (41-44)
I. Christ is Compassionate Even to the Troubled Transgressor (41-44)
And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it,
There are only two clearly recorded times in the Scriptures that we are told that Jesus weeps. We see Jesus weep after the death of His friend, Lazarus (John 11:35). And now we see Him weep over Jerusalem. Although our English translations see these two actions of Jesus as the same, the Greek actually uses a different word for weep here. In the case of Lazarus, Jesus shed tears in a more quiet and personal way. However, this word used for wept means to lament or wail. These are not quiet tears. He is lamenting with a loud and deep groaning.
This is an interesting transition that we see in the Scriptures. When we last saw Jesus, He was entering into Jerusalem and there was a great celebration. We saw the triumphal entry in the preceeding verses. And now, as Jesus draws near to the city, He completely changes gears and begins to weep and mourn and groan.
I can imagine the people’s astonishment as this King mounted on the foal of a donkey approaches Jerusalem and begins to mourn for the city.
He sounds a lot like the prophet we discussed last week. Jeremiah was known as the weeping prophet. He continued to lament the sins of His people, and yet they refused to turn from their sins and be forgiven. Listen to one of his episodes of weeping:
Oh that my head were waters, and my eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!
But what is Christ mourning about anyway? He goes on to let us know.
saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes.
We now see even deeper into the intensity of Christ’s compassion. His repetition of ‘you’ here shows His broken heart for the people of Israel.
He then says that the things that make for peace have been hidden from the eyes of those in Jerusalem.
Why is this so? It is because of the hardness of their hearts. They refuse to see the Messiah as He truly is. He knows that the people are not truly embracing Him as Savior. They want Him to rule and reign immediately. He knows that they will turn on Him shortly. Because of the hardness of their hearts, God has sovereignly handed them over to their evil ways.
Some of these voices that have been shouting ‘hosanna’ shall be shouting ‘crucify Him’ in a matter of days (Luke 23:21).
The people are seeking peace from Rome through a physical deliverer in Christ. Yet, they are not seeking the true peace that they need - peace between themselves and God. They are enemies of God. They have refused to respond to the salvational message of Christ. There is only One Way that they may have peace with God and that is through believing in Jesus Christ alone.
Because they have rejected the true and lasting peace of God through Jesus Christ, they will also not experience peace on earth either. Listen to the pronouncement of judgment upon Jerusalem…
For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”
Ironically, the city whose name ends with the word ‘salem’ - which means peace - will have no peace. Only a few decades later, namely in AD 70, Jerusalem would be completely destroyed by Rome. The Jews rebelled against the Messiah and had Him executed. And then in AD 66, the Jews rebelled against Rome which led to a 4-year long attack and eventual destruction of Jerusalem.
The city proved to be a difficult city to take because of its location upon a hill and the difficult terrain surrounding it. However, after a multi-year siege upon the city, Titus finished the job in AD 70.
Jesus gives a detailed and accurate description of Titus’s victory in His prophecy:
Jesus gives incredibly strong imagery here. He states that:
1. The city will be barricaded and surrounded.
This speaks of the Roman army who dug huge trenches and used the excess soil to build barricades to block incoming aerial attacks from weapons such as arrows. The soldiers surrounded the city so that no one could go in or come out.
2. The city will be torn down to the ground.
Rome would eventually break through the walls and begin tearing down the city.
3. Most of the people of Jerusalem will be killed.
The city of Jerusalem is referred to as a mother and its citizens as children within her. Jesus prophesies that the city and her children will be destroyed.
According to the historian Josephus, over 1,000,000 people died and 97,000 were taken captive during Rome’s seige of Jerusalem.
4. The destruction will be complete.
Jesus says that no stone would be upon another - meaning that the destruction of Jerusalem would be thorough and complete.
In the midst of a celebration, Jesus has brought a sobering reality of what is going to occur. Things are not going to fare well for Jerusalem in the coming years. And Christ shows His compassion for the people of this city who are going to be destroyed. He sees past their musings and celebration. He sees their heart. He knows that the people are not going to submit to Him after knowing that His road to Jerusalem leads to a cross instead of a crown.
Their judgment is sure because as Jesus states in verse 44, they did not know the time of their visitation.
Luke 19:44 (ESV)
and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”
In other words they did not recognize the Messiah or respond in repentance and faith. They didn’t recognize their Savior when He visited them.
My friends, have you recognized the time of your visitation? Don’t miss it today. If you have not placed your faith and trust in Jesus Christ and repented of your sins, you can guarantee that your fate will be much like Jerusalem’s fate was. You will face judgment. This judgment is far worse than physical death, however. Jesus tells us many times throughout the Scriptures that to reject Him leads to eternal torment in Hell.
But that doesn’t have to be the outcome. Jesus has compassion even for the troubled transgressor - meaning even for the worst of sinners. Listen to His cry for this group of people that would end up crucifying Him! He longs for them to repent and be saved!
Although the judgment of God is sure for those who reject Him, it is not what He desires for man. He desires for you to repent and be saved. Listen to these verses:
For the Lord will rise up as on Mount Perazim; as in the Valley of Gibeon he will be roused; to do his deed—strange is his deed! and to work his work—alien is his work!
Judgment is called his strange deed or strange work. It is not what He desires, but it is what He must do because He is fully just as well as merciful and loving.
John 3:16 clearly articulates the love of God for the entire world. And God’s heart for all of humanity is seen clearly in 1 Timothy 2:4:
who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
God desires to see all saved. Although we know that not everyone will be saved, they will have only themselves to blame for not responding to His visitation to them. You might not have seen Christ in the flesh, but His Holy Spirit is here and draws people to Himself through the preached Gospel. Your rejection of Him will condemn you for eternity. If you are not in Christ, respond to His loving compassion and be saved.
Repent of your sins, believe in Christ including His death and resurrection, and submit to His Lordship. His compassionate arms are open wide to receive you into His everlasting family.
So far we have seen a glimpse into the heart of Christ by seeing His love for transgressors - meaning sinners. Next we see that…
Scripture References: John 11:35, Jeremiah 9:1, Luke 23:21, Isaiah 28:21, John 3:16, 1 Timothy 2:4
II. Christ is Passionate About the Troubled Temple (45-46)
II. Christ is Passionate About the Troubled Temple (45-46)
Before getting into our next few verses, let’s look over at the Gospel of Mark to understand a little bit more about what happened after Jesus entered Jerusalem.
Mark lets us know that this account in the Temple takes place the following day after the Triumphal Entry (Mark 11:11-15). So we are now likely on Monday of Passion Week - the final week of Christ’s life on earth that led to the cross. We also see in Mark’s account that Jesus looked around in the Temple the day of the Triumphal Entry, but because it was late, He went out to Bethany with the Twelve for the night.
Bethany was a common place that Jesus stayed. He usually stayed with His friends Lazarus, Mary, and Martha. This was a place of retreat for Him. It was a safe place where He could rest and enjoy good company.
Luke also doesn’t mention what happens on Jesus’s way back to the Temple on Monday. Listen to this interesting exchange with a fig tree:
On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it.
Jesus’s curse came to fruition as we see in Mark 11:20. The next time they went by the fig tree it had withered away to its roots. This fig tree represented the people of Jerusalem. They appeared as if they were healthy, but there was no fruit. They were filled with hypocrisy. This fig tree was not expected to have large fruit upon it since it was not fully in season. However, because the leaves had already formed, there should have been small figs developing that were edible. Yet, Jesus finds this fig tree completely barren. Like the fig tree, the city of Jerusalem was without any fruit or any beginnings of fruit. And like the fig tree, Jerusalem would also be destroyed.
Whereas we saw a soft heart of compassion for the lost in the account of Jesus weeping over Jerusalem, we have now seen His attention turn toward judgment. And this judgment continues as He returns to the temple.
He has had all night to consider the terrible things that He saw in the temple after His entry into Jerusalem.
And now His passionate zeal toward the holiness of the temple comes front and center.
And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold, saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.”
This is the second time that Jesus has cleansed the temple. He started off His ministry cleansing the temple in John 2:13-22, and now He cleanses it again at the end of His ministry.
He begins to drive out those who sold. Why would He do this? The overarching reason is that He cared about the holiness of the temple and the holiness of God. The temple was being profaned and His zeal for holiness was on full display. However, there are a few detailed reasons for His action here.
Jesus cleansed the temple because:
1. The merchants were dishonestly taking advantage of those who came to worship and sacrifice.
There were money changers under the direction of the high priest, Ananias, who charged exorbitant fees to change foreign currency into image-less Judean coins that were required for the Temple tax (Exodus 30:11-14).
There was also quite a commercial abuse of unblemished sacrificial animal purchases as required by Law Leviticus 1:3.
This explains why Jesus quoted Jeremiah 7:11:
Has this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, I myself have seen it, declares the Lord.
Instead of being a holy place, it had become a parlor for extortion.
2. The Gentiles Were Being Excluded Instead of Evangelized
Most people miss one of the key reasons the Temple had a court of the Gentiles. It is in this court that Jesus tosses over the tables - an act which really seems to put a damper on the passive Jesus preached by some today. Being meek, mild, gentle, and humble does not mean that Jesus was not also strong and courageous.
Jesus not only quotes Jeremiah in His statement in verse 46, but He also quotes Isaiah 56:7 which states:
Isaiah 56:7 (ESV)
these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.”
Isaiah is speaking of all peoples in this section - meaning all the nations. But this isn’t the only time we see this concept.
Listen to Solomon discuss one of the reasons for the temple in 1 Kings 8:41-43:
“Likewise, when a foreigner, who is not of your people Israel, comes from a far country for your name’s sake (for they shall hear of your great name and your mighty hand, and of your outstretched arm), when he comes and prays toward this house, hear in heaven your dwelling place and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to you, in order that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your people Israel, and that they may know that this house that I have built is called by your name.
Solomon clearly shows that one of the reasons for the Temple is that foreigners, or Gentiles, might know God’s name and fear Him!
In other words, the Temple stood as a testimony to the world of the holiness and goodness of God.
And here were these money changers and merchants, under the direction of the religious leaders, taking advantage of the Gentiles and doing their best to exclude them.
We see Christ’s passion for the holiness of God and His Temple. God was being blasphemed by the religious leaders and those working under them in the Temple.
As we see the zeal and passion of Christ in this encounter, it is important for us to consider our own lives.
How are we representing God to the lost?
How do we represent Christ to those in our workplace? How about those who might be unbelievers even in our home?
The Bible teaches that the New Covenant has changed things significantly. As we have already discussed, the physical Temple was destroyed in AD 70. However, the Scriptures teach us that believers are now the Temple of God.
Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
Those who have repented of their sins and placed their trust in the Savior are indwelled by the Holy Spirit. God dwells within His sons and daughters.
And like the old Temple, this new temple has a purpose. The purpose of this new temple - namely us as believers - is to be holy - which means set apart (1 Peter 1:16) - and to evangelize the world (Matthew 28:18-20)!
I challenge you to spend some time today considering how well your temple of the Holy Spirit represents the Lord.
Ask Christ to cleanse your life. Ask Him to remove the stains of sin from your heart. Ask Him to proverbially flip the tables in your life that are abominations to Him and that defame His name.
May each of us fulfill the purpose that God has for us. May we preach the Gospel to a lost world and live our lives in holiness to reflect the goodness and glory of God.
We can only live our lives for the glory of God if we understand that…
Scripture References: Mark 11:11-15, Mark 11:20, John 2:13-22, Exodus 30:11-14, Leviticus 1:3, Jeremiah 7:11, Isaiah 56:7, 1 Kings 8:41-43, 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, 1 Peter 1:16, Matthew 28:18-20
III. Christ is Passionate About Transforming Truth (47-48)
III. Christ is Passionate About Transforming Truth (47-48)
And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people were seeking to destroy him, but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were hanging on his words.
Right after cleansing the Temple, Jesus starts teaching the truth of God.
Theologian Matthew Henry said:
“It is not enough that the corruptions of a church be purged out, but the preaching of the gospel must be encouraged.”
Matthew Henry
Removing falsehood is incredibly important. We need to weed out false teachings. However, if we do not preach the truth of the Gospel, then we have accomplished nothing. Lies will fill the void that was made.
Jesus teaches this same concept in Matthew 12:43-45. He speaks of a demon leaving a person that is not subsequently filled with the Holy Spirit. The demon returns later with seven other evil spirits and the person ends up worse than they were in the beginning.
This is why the podcast that I have done is called Apologetics and the Gospel. I pray that it is helpful in addressing lies that our culture believes. But those lies must be replaced by the truth of the Gospel and the truth of God’s Word. If not, people will just fall for the next false teaching from our world and be no better off.
Jesus was passionate about transforming truth. He preached from Sunday until Tuesday evening. During this time, the Temple was holy and set apart. God, Himself, was ruling and teaching in the Temple.
We are told that the people were hanging on His Words. But not all the people were.
We are told that the chief priests, scribes, and principle men (likely referring to the elders - see Luke 9:22) were seeking to destroy Him.
These religious leaders would be successful at turning the people against Jesus in a matter of days. Though we are left with a beautiful scene of Jesus teaching in the Temple at the end of this passage, we know that He will receive a cross before a crown.
Though the people seem to esteem Him now, Isaiah 53:3 reminds us:
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Why was He despised? He was despised because of the truth.
He taught the truth of God to the people. And for that He suffered.
Brothers and sisters, today, we will likely suffer in one way or another when we stand for and teach the truth of God’s Word. People might respect us for a while, but when that truth requires a cost - may it be a change of lifestyle, a call to sacrificially give, or something else - those who are not Christ’s will seek to persecute you.
But listen to Christ speaking of persecution:
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
To be persecuted and hated because of Christ is considered a blessing.
May we stand for the truth, no matter the cost. Because when we stand for the truth, we know that we are standing with Christ - Who is the Way, the Truth and the Life (John 14:6).
Scripture References: Matthew 12:43-45, Luke 9:22, Isaiah 53:3, Matthew 5:10-12, John 14:6
Conclusion:
As we come to a close, I pray that today has been a great opportunity for you to grow in your understanding of Christ. We have been given a glimpse into the heart of Christ. He is compassionate to transgressors or sinners. He is passionate about the Temple - namely holiness. And He is passionate about the transforming truth - meaning the Word of God.
May we live to honor and glorify the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
As this New Year begins, make it your priority to know Christ on a deeper level. Identify with Christ through evangelizing the lost, living a life holy and set apart, and spending time regularly learning and living out the truth of His Word.
