Worldbreaker
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· 17 viewsThe Holy Spirit came to help us recognize the kingdom Christ was bringing about through his work on the cross, and the Spirit enables us to be the Church God is calling us to be.
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Worldbreaker
Worldbreaker
Underlying Theme:
How you understand the world affects how you live within it.
What is at stake?
Our Worship
Our Witness in the World
The Trajectory of the Gospel of Luke
The Trajectory of the Gospel of Luke
Emphasis is that what was promised at the beginning of Luke has been fulfilled, yet not as anyone expected.[1]
[1] N. T. Wright, The Resurrection of the Son of God (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2003), 650–51.
Luke strongly establishes Christ as the Messiah in the opening chapters of Luke.
Then Simeon blessed them and told His mother Mary: “Indeed, this child is destined to cause the fall and rise of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be opposed — and a sword will pierce your own soul—that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”
There was also a prophetess, Anna, a daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was well along in years, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and was a widow for 84 years. She did not leave the temple complex, serving God night and day with fasting and prayers. At that very moment, she came up and began to thank God and to speak about Him to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.
Luke 2:36-38
From the very beginning of his gospel, Luke is pointing towards the significance of the Cross.
The Emmaus Road
The Emmaus Road
Now that same day two of them were on their way to a village called Emmaus, which was about seven miles from Jerusalem. Together they were discussing everything that had taken place. And while they were discussing and arguing, Jesus Himself came near and began to walk along with them. But they were prevented from recognizing Him. Then He asked them, “What is this dispute that you’re having with each other as you are walking?” And they stopped walking and looked discouraged.
The sense of the Greek word for ‘recognize’ (v. 16) is “to discern something clearly and distinctly, or as true and valid; often with a personal acquaintance that necessitates a reaction.”
The one named Cleopas answered Him, “Are You the only visitor in Jerusalem who doesn’t know the things that happened there in these days?”
Was Jesus really clueless?
Nope, he was setting them up—he wanted them to walk through their understand of Christ and the Messiah.
“What things?” He asked them.
So they said to Him, “The things concerning Jesus the Nazarene, who was a Prophet powerful in action and speech before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and leaders handed Him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified Him. But we were hoping that He was the One who was about to redeem Israel. Besides all this, it’s the third day since these things happened.
It is interesting that they were traveling on the 3rd day. It harkens back to the beginning of the book:
When they did not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for Him. After three days, they found Him in the temple complex sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.
Luke 2:
After three days, they found Him in the temple complex sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.
His parents had discovered him missing and it took them 3 days to find him. What was his response?
“Why were you searching for Me?” He asked them. “Didn’t you know that I had to be in My Father’s house?” But they did not understand what He said to them.
:
A three day gap, an ‘encounter’ with Jesus, the no one understood what Jesus was doing. It didn’t make sense to them.
Moreover, some women from our group astounded us. They arrived early at the tomb, and when they didn’t find His body, they came and reported that they had seen a vision of angels who said He was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they didn’t see Him.”
Luke 24:22-
These disciples on the Emmaus road had not accepted the testimony of the women or other believers that had been to the tomb.
He said to them, “How unwise and slow you are to believe in your hearts all that the prophets have spoken! Didn’t the Messiah have to suffer these things and enter into His glory?”
Luke 24:25-26
He is specifically charging them with not believing the Scriptures, with rejecting what the prophets wrote.
“There was a rich man who would dress in purple and fine linen, feasting lavishly every day. But a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, was left at his gate. He longed to be filled with what fell from the rich man’s table, but instead the dogs would come and lick his sores. One day the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried.
Luke 16:19-22
Luke 16:23-26
And being in torment in Hades, he looked up and saw Abraham a long way off, with Lazarus at his side. ‘Father Abraham!’ he called out, ‘Have mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this flame!’
“ ‘Son,’ Abraham said, ‘remember that during your life you received your good things, just as Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here, while you are in agony. Besides all this, a great chasm has been fixed between us and you, so that those who want to pass over from here to you cannot; neither can those from there cross over to us.’
“ ‘Father,’ he said, ‘then I beg you to send him to my father’s house— because I have five brothers—to warn them, so they won’t also come to this place of torment.’
“But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.’
“ ‘No, father Abraham,’ he said. ‘But if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’
“But he told him, ‘If they don’t listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not be persuaded if someone rises from the dead.’ ”
Luke 16:27-31
He said to them, “How unwise and slow you are to believe in your hearts all that the prophets have spoken! Didn’t the Messiah have to suffer these things and enter into His glory?” Then beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He interpreted for them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.
This was Christ helping them to read and interpret the scriptures—the revelation of God—as they should.
“When Luke says that Jesus interpreted to them all the things about himself, throughout the Bible, he doesn’t mean that Jesus collected a few, or even a few dozen, isolated texts, verses chosen at random. He means that the whole story, from Genesis to Chronicles (the last book of the Hebrew Bible; the prophets came earlier), pointed forwards to a fulfilment which could only be found when God’s anointed took Israel’s suffering, and hence the world’s suffering, on to himself, died under its weight, and rose again as the beginning of God’s new creation, God’s new people. This is what had to happen; and now it just had.” (N.T. Wright) [2]
[2] N. T. Wright, Luke for Everyone (London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2004), 294–95.
They came near the village where they were going, and He gave the impression that He was going farther. But they urged Him: “Stay with us, because it’s almost evening, and now the day is almost over.” So He went in to stay with them.
Luke 24:
Narrative tension—they still did not recognize Christ. What would it take for them to recognize Christ?
Luke 24:30-
It was as He reclined at the table with them that He took the bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him, but He disappeared from their sight. So they said to each other, “Weren’t our hearts ablaze within us while He was talking with us on the road and explaining the Scriptures to us?”
The Lord’s Supper is Significant!
The participation in the body and the blood, the partaking of the fellowship of the meal draws us back to the cross and helps us to see Christ and the Cross in its purest form. It reminds us who Christ is and what he accomplished, but it also reminds us who we are in relation to Christ (and God).
The participation in the body and the blood, the partaking of the fellowship of the meal draws us back to the cross and helps us to see Christ and the Cross in its purest form. It reminds us who Christ is and what he accomplished, but it also reminds us who we are in relation to Christ (and God).
Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him, but He disappeared from their sight.
Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him, but He disappeared from their sight.
Luke
Luke 24:31
This parallels another passage all the way back at the very beginning of the Bible.
Then the woman saw that the tree was good for food and delightful to look at, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate it; she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.
This is a cosmic reversal of the spiritual blindness our sinful world is cursed with.
Luke 24:31
Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him, but He disappeared from their sight.
So far, then, as it was necessary to assure them of his resurrection, he made himself visible to them; but by the sudden departure, he taught them that they must seek him elsewhere than in the world, because the completion of the new life was his ascension to heaven.
That very hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem. They found the Eleven and those with them gathered together, who said, “The Lord has certainly been raised, and has appeared to Simon!” Then they began to describe what had happened on the road and how He was made known to them in the breaking of the bread.
Christ Risen and Ascended
Christ Risen and Ascended
And as they were saying these things, He Himself stood among them. He said to them, “Peace to you!” But they were startled and terrified and thought they were seeing a ghost. “Why are you troubled?” He asked them. “And why do doubts arise in your hearts? Look at My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself! Touch Me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you can see I have.” Having said this, He showed them His hands and feet.
But while they still were amazed and unbelieving because of their joy, He asked them, “Do you have anything here to eat?” So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish, and He took it and ate in their presence.
Then He told them, “These are My words that I spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything written about Me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”
Luke 24:41-44
Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. He also said to them, “This is what is written: The Messiah would suffer and rise from the dead the third day, and repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And look, I am sending you what My Father promised. As for you, stay in the city until you are empowered from on high.”
Christ is sending someone who will fulfill God’s promise and this fulfillment will empower them.
Then He led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up His hands He blessed them. And while He was blessing them, He left them and was carried up into heaven. After worshiping Him, they returned to Jerusalem with great joy. And they were continually in the temple complex praising God.
The book finishes with a kind of “To be continued....” type of feel.
Luke uses the promise of the Holy Spirit to bridge the gospel of Luke and the book of Acts together.
The Ascension
The Ascension
While He was together with them, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for the Father’s promise. “This,” He said, “is what you heard from Me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
So when they had come together, they asked Him, “Lord, are You restoring the kingdom to Israel at this time?”
"Jesus, faced with the disciples' question, 'Lord, is it at this time that you will restore the kingdom to Israel?' gives an answer which many have taken as a 'no', but which Luke almost certainly intends as a 'yes'. They will not know about particular times, but this is how the kingdom will come: by their Spirit-driven witness to him in Jerusalem, Judaea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth."
After He had said this, He was taken up as they were watching, and a cloud took Him out of their sight. While He was going, they were gazing into heaven, and suddenly two men in white clothes stood by them. They said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up into heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come in the same way that you have seen Him going into heaven.”
The disciples go and wait
The disciples go and wait
Pentecost
Pentecost
I wrote the first narrative, Theophilus, about all that Jesus began to do and teach until the day He was taken up, after He had given orders through the Holy Spirit to the apostles He had chosen. After He had suffered, He also presented Himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them during 40 days and speaking about the kingdom of God.
While He was together with them, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for the Father’s promise. “This,” He said, “is what you heard from Me;
There were Jews living in Jerusalem, devout men from every nation under heaven. When this sound occurred, a crowd came together and was confused because each one heard them speaking in his own language.
The Unthinkable was Happening!
The Unthinkable was Happening!
Summarize
The people couldn’t believe what they were hearing, even to the point of thinking the disciples/believers were drunk
o What was happening did not fit into their understanding of the world, of what could or should happen à it was a miracle!
What was happening did not fit into their understanding of the world, of what could or should happen—it was a miracle!
But Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice, and proclaimed to them: “Men of Judah and all you residents of Jerusalem, let me explain this to you and pay attention to my words. For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it’s only nine in the morning. On the contrary, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:
Acts 2:14-16
And it will be in the last days, says God,
that I will pour out My Spirit on all humanity;
then your sons and your daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions,
and your old men will dream dreams.
I will even pour out My Spirit
on My male and female slaves in those days,
and they will prophesy.
Acts 2:17-18
Peter is quoting from .
Joel 2:28-
After this
I will pour out My Spirit on all humanity;
then your sons and your daughters will prophesy,
your old men will have dreams,
and your young men will see visions.
I will even pour out My Spirit
on the male and female slaves in those days.
I will display wonders
in the heavens and on the earth:
blood, fire, and columns of smoke.
The sun will be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood
before the great and awe-inspiring Day of the Lord comes.
Then everyone who calls
on the name of Yahweh will be saved,
for there will be an escape
for those on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem,
as the Lord promised,
among the survivors the Lord calls.
This passage points towards the coming of the Spirit and it is a sign of the coming of the Day of the Lord.
God is moving on the behalf of his people, gathering them to himself, but he is also judging the world.
“Through Joel, God promised to extend the gift of prophecy to all His people, young and old, male and female. Thus the gift of tongues is understood to be a specific form of prophecy, the speaking of God’s mysteries in special revelation.”
(R. C. Sproul) [3]
“Thus, Peter argues in that the Spirit’s outpouring fulfills the promise pointing to the last days and to the Messiah’s mediation of salvation from God’s side.”
(Darrell Bock) [4]
I will display wonders in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below:
blood and fire and a cloud of smoke.
The sun will be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood
before the great and remarkable Day of the Lord comes.
Then everyone who calls
on the name of the Lord will be saved.
Peter continues the theme of jdugment (the Spirit has come), but he is calling people to repent
“Men of Israel, listen to these words: This Jesus the Nazarene was a man pointed out to you by God with miracles, wonders, and signs that God did among you through Him, just as you yourselves know. Though He was delivered up according to God’s determined plan and foreknowledge, you used lawless people to nail Him to a cross and kill Him. God raised Him up, ending the pains of death, because it was not possible for Him to be held by it.
Peter lays out the Gospel
For David says of Him:
I saw the Lord ever before me;
because He is at my right hand,
I will not be shaken.
Therefore my heart was glad,
and my tongue rejoiced.
Moreover, my flesh will rest in hope,
because You will not leave me in Hades
or allow Your Holy One to see decay.
You have revealed the paths of life to me;
You will fill me with gladness
in Your presence.
Peter connects Christ with the Promised One.
“Brothers, I can confidently speak to you about the patriarch David: He is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Since he was a prophet, he knew that God had sworn an oath to him to seat one of his descendants on his throne. Seeing this in advance, he spoke concerning the resurrection of the Messiah:
He was not left in Hades,
and His flesh did not experience decay.
Acts 2:
David, though a prophet, died; yet he looked forward to Christ.
“God has resurrected this Jesus. We are all witnesses of this. Therefore, since He has been exalted to the right hand of God and has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit, He has poured out what you both see and hear. For it was not David who ascended into the heavens, but he himself says:
The Lord declared to my Lord,
‘Sit at My right hand
until I make Your enemies Your footstool.’
“Therefore let all the house of Israel know with certainty that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah!”
Acts 2:32-
Specifically note v. 33—The gift of the Holy Spirit is seen as the fulfillment of a promise, both of Christ’s identity as Messiah (the gift was promised and fulfilled), but also of Christ’s presence in Heaven.
When they heard this, they came under deep conviction and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles: “Brothers, what must we do?”
The people do not know how to respond
The Spirit had used Peter to confront their world, the way they understood things, their perception of what was most important, and they didn’t know what to do.
o This is where we often find ourselves at the end of a sermon or service: what do we do? Or, what can we do?
This is where we often find ourselves at the end of a sermon or service: what do we do? Or, what can we do?
Acts 2:38-40
“Repent,” Peter said to them, “and be baptized, each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children, and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call.” And with many other words he testified and strongly urged them, saying, “Be saved from this corrupt generation!”
Ask Jesus into your heart? No: repent of your sins in the name of Christ for the forgiveness of your sins and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit [boldface verse 38]
This is a salvation for everyone, far and near
o This is a salvation for everyone, far and near
And be saved from this corrupt generation – something needed as much today as it was then
o And be saved from this corrupt generation – something needed as much today as it was then
o Today we might say that we are saved from our corrupt culture and society.
Today we might say that we are saved from our corrupt culture and society.
So those who accepted his message were baptized, and that day about 3,000 people were added to them. And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to the prayers.
They dedicated themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to the prayers.
Note how these marks of this early (infant) church ar ethe same things we strive to do here in our church today.
The Church in Action
The Church in Action
Acts 2:45
They sold their possessions and property and distributed the proceeds to all, as anyone had a need.
Amazing generosity!
This is why we pray every week with our offering that God would shape our hearts to be generous
Note that this statement (and another like it in ) do not really depict a communal type of living, but a Spirit-led generosity.[5]
oNote that this statement (and another like it in ) do not really depict a communal type of living, but a Spirit-led generosity.[1]
They were astonished at His teaching because His message had authority. In the synagogue there was a man with an unclean demonic spirit who cried out with a loud voice, “Leave us alone! What do You have to do with us, Jesus—Nazarene? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!”
But Jesus rebuked him and said, “Be quiet and come out of him!”
And throwing him down before them, the demon came out of him without hurting him at all. Amazement came over them all, and they kept saying to one another, “What is this message? For He commands the unclean spirits with authority and power, and they come out!” And news about Him began to go out to every place in the vicinity.
Now the large group of those who believed were of one heart and mind, and no one said that any of his possessions was his own, but instead they held everything in common. And the apostles were giving testimony with great power to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was on all of them. For there was not a needy person among them, because all those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the proceeds of the things that were sold, and laid them at the apostles’ feet. This was then distributed for each person’s basic needs.
Joseph, a Levite and a Cypriot by birth, the one the apostles called Barnabas, which is translated Son of Encouragement, sold a field he owned, brought the money, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
Note the story of Ananias and Sapphira in —they were free to do with their property and the proceeds from its sale as they desired, the sin was in the lie they told ().
Wasn’t it yours while you possessed it? And after it was sold, wasn’t it at your disposal? Why is it that you planned this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God!”
They gave as they were able or as the Spirit led them, but they did not give everything, for how could they have supported their families or even generated more wealth to be used for the kingdom?
This is does not depict a communal type of living, but a Spirit-led generosity.
Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple complex, and broke bread from house to house. They ate their food with a joyful and humble attitude, praising God and having favor with all the people. And every day the Lord added to them those who were being saved.
Acts
Note that they were living out the four things Luke just highlighted.
Also note that little statement in 47 about the church “having favor with all the people”—this phrase is slightly problematic, but an analysis of the text and other similar materials of the age, the emphasis is upon the favor flowing outward from the church to the people of the city/area.[6]
The emphasis in the text (v. 47) is upon the favor flowing outward from the church to the people of the city.
They loved their neighbors well.
Closing points (in Acts):
The encompassing focus of Acts is on God’s mission to save.[7]
§ When God saves people, He adds them to His people in the church.[6]
When God saves people, He adds them to His people in the church.[8]
The practice of hospitality and the shared meal is at the relational center of exemplary church life.
Final Points
It is through the power and work of the Spirit that we are able to overcome the sinful blindness of the world concerning God’s action in saving the world.
The same Spirit that enables us to perceive and overcome the lies of our age also enables us to live as the Church in a way that testifies to Christ’s work on the cross.
The Spirit transforms both our hearts and the way we live in the world, enabling and empowering us to be God’s people in a broken world which desperately needs the saving work of Christ.
What is at stake?
The Spirit Transforms:
Our Worship
Our Worship
Our Witness in the World
Our Witness in the World
[1] N. T. Wright, The Resurrection of the Son of God (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2003), 650–51.
[2] N. T. Wright, Luke for Everyone (London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2004), 294–95.
[3] R. C. Sproul, The Reformation Study Bible: English Standard Version (2015 Edition) (Reformation Trust, 2015), 1914.
[4] Bock, A Theology of Luke and Acts, 216–17.
[5] Andy Chambers, Exemplary Life: A Theology of Church Life in Acts (Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2012), 96–97.
[6] Andy Chambers, Exemplary Life: A Theology of Church Life in Acts (Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2012), 80.
[7] Ibid., 81.
[8] Ibid., 83.
