Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

Worthless Video

Tension

I don’t know about you, but in my life I often need to have and example before I can truly understand something.

Someone shares with me a new idea or a new concept and one of the most helpful questions that I have found to ask is “Give me an example of what you mean”.

I could tell you that it is”Worthless to only have an appearance of a Christian”, but to give you an example of what that looks like is a much better way of communicating the truth.

The young man and his “Jesus Fish” just about ran over a woman who could have used some help.

His “Jesus” tshirt and bracelet didn’t seem to make much of a difference.

This is what we could call a contrasting example.

Basically this is an example of what NOT to do.

And please don’t misunderstand the point here.

It is not that it is necessarily wrong to have a Jesus fish, tshirt or WWJD bracelet.

It is only wrong if it is false advertising.

It is only wrong if you claim his name, when you claim to be one of his followers but don’t do the kind of things that he would do.

The video set up this contrasting example pretty vividly, but its important to remember that it is just one example.

There are many ways to “only have the appearance of a Christian” and the example helps us to look at ourselves and see where something similar might be popping up.

A contrasting example.

Another way to answer “Give me an example” is to offer a comparison.

This would be an example of the right way of doing something in a given situation.

What does it look like to live like Jesus in our world and the world around us.

Of course the best example to follow in how to live like Jesus is to follow…well…Jesus.

That is why he came down to earth in the way that he did.

He became a man to offer us the perfect example of what it looks like to be human as God intended when he created us.

So we study his life and his decisions in order to learn from him, but the Bible says that we also are to be examples to each other.

Paul told his young protege Timothy in

That is quite a list isn’t it, how are we doing in being an example in these areas?

In how we talk, how we act, how love others.... Our very lives are to examples of what it looks like to serve Jesus by becoming like him.

When Jesus was still here on earth in the flesh, he often used examples to help teach his disciples the truths that they needed to know and we continue to benefit from his teachings today.

These past several weeks we have been on a journey with Jesus to accomplish his mission in Jerusalem.

He has his face set on Jerusalem, and he knows what awaits him there.

So on the way there he is especially vigilant in teaching his disciples about what the Kingdom of God looks like so that when they no longer have Jesus present and in front of them, they will still have his teachings in such a way that they can continue to grow in the knowledge and nurturing of the Kingdom of God.

Sometimes we all need examples to truly understand something, and in our text today Jesus offers us both contrasting and comparative examples on prayer, repentance and allegiance in the Kingdom of God.

If you haven’t opened your Bibles already, you can open them up to Luke chapter 18,( p 877) in the Bible in the chairs.

I’ll pray and we will learn from Jesus’ examples together.

Truth

The first example that Jesus gives us is a contrasting one, and it is really a response to the last thing that we read in chapter 17, more than an introduction to chapter 18.

Either way, Jesus is giving us

An Example of Persistence

Luke 18”

18 And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. 2 He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man. 3 And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’

4 For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.’

” 6 And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge says.

7 And will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night?

zWill he delay long over them?

8 I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily.

Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

The first thing to remember when seeking to understand this example is that it is a parable.

So hopefully by now you have a good working understanding of what a parable is.

A Parable is a new idea that is laid alongside a common experience to increase clarity and understanding.

So Jesus wants us to better understand one thing by laying it alongside something else.

What is it that he wants us to understand?

Well this Luke tells us right at the beginning doesn’t he?

Specifically this is a follow up to what Jesus had just been teaching, we find it in our Bibles at the beginning of chapter 18, but it easily could have been included at the end of chapter 17.

Jesus was talking about the coming day of Judgement when the full Kingdom of God will be realized.

Until that day comes what are we to be doing?

We are to be persistently in prayer for that day of justice.

Another thing that we should notice is that this parable is a contrasting one.

More specifically this is a follow up to what just happened in chapter 17, when Jesus was talking about the coming Kingdom.

We should be continuing in watchful and anticipating prayer for that time of justice to come.

That is the context that has lead to this parable.

The second thing to note is that this parable is a contrasting one.

One of the easiest ways to misunderstand this parable is to think that Jesus is relating the unrighteous judge here to God the father in a comparative way.

As if God is somehow like the Judge, just as we are to be like the widow.

Going at it from this direction might bring us to believe that if we really want something, then all we have to do is pester God over and over again until he gives us what we want just so that we will stop “bothering” him.

That is not the point at all.

Pestering God to do what we want will get us no where that we want to be.

What parent among us would ever give in to the demands of our child just because he or she keeps bothering us with requests...ok maybe we are poor example of this...because in moments of weakness we might have given to this, but as a principle we all know better.

And as God is the perfect parent, our perfect Father we know that He never would do such a thing.

The key to understanding this is found in looking at what it was that the widow was asking for.

She wasn’t looking for money or extravagance.

She wasn’t looking for charity or benevolence.

What did she want?

Justice!

She wasn’t looking for money or extravagance.

She wasn’t looking for charity or benevolence.

What did she want?

Justice!

She wasn’t looking for charity or benevolance

To paint the picture for us we have to look at the Justice system in Jesus’ day.

While there were

What did she want?

Justice!

She wanted what was right to be done.

She wanted what God always wants: Justice.

Jesus chose the character of a widow as a representative of those who are needy, helpless, poor and oppressed.

Those who had no ability to help themselves except to call on their rights according to the Law.

The Old Testament is riddled with God’s commands to care for widows like this woman (, , , , ,’ ) and yet here Jesus is using it as an example of a common experience that people could relate to.

Something that they had probably seen happen or experienced.

One of the marks of the New Testament Church is a resurgence in caring for widows and orphans as God had always commanded his people to do.

Reports of this are found in (; ; ) And the Christian Church today, some 2,000 years later, has the same command.

To work for justice for those who are being treated unjustly.

In a few weeks, on Sunday Sept 23rd, we are going to spend the day looking at the issue of Justice, especially as it pertains to modern day slavery around the world.

Many of us are unaware of this, but right now in our world there are statistically more slaves then there has ever been.

It just looks different then it did in the past.

They are being hidden in horrible places, forced to do unspeakable things all while their governments do very little to bring them justice.

Much of the World has ignored their cries for justice, because they “neither fear God nor respect men”, just like the judge in this story.

So who will stand up for them?

Who will champion their cause as they cry out for freedom?

Is that not the role of the Christian Church?

What has made the difference in many of these cases is when people have taken what is hidden and brought it out into the light for all to see.