THE PREACHING OF JESUS
Scripture Luke 6:39-49 NIV Orig. July 4, 1985
Passage: 39 He also told them this parable: “Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into a pit? 40 The student is not above the teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like their teacher. 41 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 42 How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. 43 “No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. 44 Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. 45 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. 46 “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? 47 As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. 48 They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. 49 But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”
Purpose: Continuing a Wednesday night series from Luke emphasizing the preaching of Jesus
Keywords: Luke, Christ, Preaching
Timeline/Series: Luke
Introduction
From the preaching of Jesus we have an example of preaching in the mold of Hebrew preaching in that day. It not only helps us to understand the context of preaching in the way that He experienced it, but it also shows the variances that He added to for others to follow.
Our text contains eleven verses. There are at least six distinct ideas contained therein. The themes are: Following those who don’t know where they are going; relationship of teacher and pupil; reality therapy; a tree and its fruit; good and evil persons; and building a house.
Herein is the essence of Hebrew preaching. The Jews had a word for it: charaz, meaning “stringing beads.” The preacher, in order to maintain interest, was taught to hurry from topic to topic. The Book of Proverbs is a fairly good example of such preaching.
Here, we have an example of using this kind of contemporary communication. But He was not limited to this. We find Him broadening the base of preaching by using it to convey specific truth through teaching. He controlled the manner of His preaching as surely as He did the message.
Rule #1—We can Share Effectively Only What We have Come to Grasp Sufficiently. V39 “Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into the ditch?” The blind person is totally helpless with anything he has not experienced. The blind person is helpless. It is remarkable what some have achieved within their limitations. There are golf tournaments for the blind. A blind woman named Vera painted her house in New Orleans. To try to take another where we have not been is a risk. There are compensations for sighted persons, such as maps, aids.
There is room for consideration of both literal and metaphorical blindness. The Greek word tuphlos refers to either kind of blindness. Its use here seems to suggest a literal blindness (physical).
There are variances of blindness. Some don’t see; some won’t see; some can’t see. Helen Kellen spoke at Southern Seminary and said, “The worst thing is to have eyes and not be able to see.” V40 “A disciple is not above his, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher. Perfect/perfected—katertismenos in the Greek—suggests mending torn or broken nets. In Matthew 4:21, “He saw James and John, . . . mending their nets.” Galatians 6:1 “Brethren, if a man is overtaken in a trespass (fault), you who are spiritual restore such a one in the spirit of meekness.”
There are compensations for blindness whether literal or otherwise. If literal, there is a cane, guide dog, surgery, miracle; if none of these work, there is always the arm of a friend. It is so for metaphorical blindness, but the helper must first be able to see.
The Golden Rules of Teaching
- A teacher is a hinge on which one’s future swings.
- We teach more by our walk than by our talk.
- Sometimes, an ounce of Christian living before a pupil is worth a ton of talk.
- It is not what the pupils remember that constitutes knowledge, but what they cannot forget.
Rule #2—Misshapen Attitudes Affect Us both as Teachers and Learners. V41 “And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the plank in your own eye?” There is another consideration of “don’t, won’t, can’t.” What these two have in common: Both have been rendered incapable of sight; both have seemingly correctible conditions. Now, a look at the ways they differ: a speck v. a plank or sawdust v. a saw log; accident v. carelessness; knowledge v. ignorance; beyond control v. self-control.
Dr. Criswell told about preaching in an Oklahoma revival. Members came, but a wife and husband went to sleep. When the power suddenly failed, the husband woke up in the dark. “Dr. Criswell,” he shouted, “Stop preaching and pray for me! I’ve gone stark blind!”
Don’t work to change others until you’ve made room for change in your own life. A psychiatrist is an M.D. who goes through psychoanalysis himself. As Edward Wallis Hoch wrote, “There is so much bad in the best of us, and so much good in the worst of us, that it hardly behooves any of us to talk about the rest of us.”
Rule #3—Good and Evil are Alike Products of Human Personality. V 45 “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of the heart brings forth evil.” Obedience to the highest good we know is the final test. Matthew 7:21, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven; but he who does the will of my Father in heaven.” Psalm 1:2 “His delight is in the law of the Lord.”
The tree is known by what it produces. I have two plums in my yard. One is surrounded by little plums from last year’s fallen plums. The other I race the birds to them. My tomato plants are not producing. In the same way, the human heart produces what it is. Does God see the maliciously evil differently from the ignorantly evil? The evil done in the name of religion? The hostages! [1979-81]
Rule #4—What is in the Human Heart is Given Expression with What We Say. V45 “Out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” What does one say under pressure? What does one habitually say? What do we say when no one hears?
Rule #5—They Are Happy Who do not Exchange Future Advantage for Present Pleasure. V48 “He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock.” The house builder is a useful illustration. He built his house during the dry season in the river bed. When the rains came it was more difficult and more expensive.
We often have a choice between immediate convenience and long-term good. Many people have trouble choosing what can’t be seen, such as the essence of spiritual decision. Let us rebuke carelessness of spirit, as the University President whose goal was to raise a Christian family. Let us require steadfastness; 1 Timothy 6:19, “Storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.” Let us restore hope. Storms do come.
***THE REMAINDER OF THIS SERMON HAS BEEN LOST***
JESUS FOLLOWERS
#002 JESUS FOLLOWERS
Scripture Luke 5:27-39 Orig. 7/14/63
- Rewr. 4/10/85
Passage: 27 After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. “Follow me,” Jesus said to him, 28 and Levi got up, left everything and followed him. 29 Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them. 30 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” 31 Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” 33 They said to him, “John’s disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking.” 34 Jesus answered, “Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? 35 But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; in those days they will fast.” 36 He told them this parable: “No one tears a piece out of a new garment to patch an old one. Otherwise, they will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old. 37 And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. 38 No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. 39 And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for they say, ‘The old is better.’”
Purpose: Continuing a study from Luke, calling attention to some who early came to be followers of Jesus
Keywords: Bible Study
Timeline/Series: Luke
Introduction
The first part of our study has to do with the call of a tax-collector to be a Christ-follower. The scripture makes clear that they were a hated breed, and the reason is clear. The Romans didn’t have an IRS. There were no computers to foul up, and there were no refunds to grant.
They assessed a certain district the amount of taxes that were to be paid, and then sold the collecting rights to the highest bidder. The officials didn’t care how much or how little money has actually collected, just so long as they got their assessed gross.
It is easy to see how such a program could be abused, and how thieves with strong-armed tactics would tend to become the tax-collectors; and how they could become hated by the people.
U.S.A. Today did a piece this week on numbers of assaults on IRS agents. It’s up 50% in the last five years. The article centered around a citizen’s going after some agents with his unregistered AR-15 rifle as they were about to seize his Cherokee in lieu of payment.
The point is that tax people still are not all that popular, especially this time of the year. We all know that it has to be done, and that our system, while not perfect, is the best available. Yet tax people are not popular folks.
I. The Selection of Matthew. V27 “After these things He went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, ‘Follow me.’”
At this point there were only four who were followers of Jesus—Simon, Andrew, James, and John (Matthew 4 and Luke 5). Jesus already envisioned calling more. But He must teach even these four. A lesson they need to learn is based on human worth and repentance. These were simple men, and thus were easily teachable. Both Mark and Matthew include the disciples at the feast.
Jesus’ method was to reach out to people who needed Him. It had nothing to do with “who” they were, or “what” they had. It had to do with “how” the perceived themselves in relation to God. There are down-and-outers and up-and-outers, but chances are the ones walking alone are more open to spiritual profferings.
A major purpose here is to communicate the need for repentance. Remember, his link with John in Matthew 3:1: “John, preaching, saying ‘Repent ye, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.’” Matthew 4:17: Jesus said “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.”
At the feast Jesus will have occasion to illustrate repentance. Levi the publican becomes Matthew. Many publicans are at the feast to hear Jesus. They need repentance. Many religious leaders are contemptuously looking on. They need repentance also.
There is a terrible danger in the lives of many contemporary religious folk, that their religion becomes a shield against repentance.
II. Secondly, A Question to Jesus About Why His Followers Are Different. V33 “Why do the disciples of John fast, likewise those of the Pharisees, but Yours eat and drink?” We need to try to get to the real question. Why don’t your followers fast? Why don’t your people commiserate rather than celebrate?
Don’t disdain fasting. I don’t know but one other thing that would more for the pastor and people of Transylvania Baptist Church—That’s prayer.
The time comes when Christians ought to fast. Isaiah 58:6 “Is not this the fast that I have chosen? To loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke.”
“Yoke” is used to gain advantage. Orthodox Jews like orthodox religionists of today believed that religion was supposed to make one appear uncomfortable. They endured the Sabbath. We take it in two hour units. They fasted on Monday and Thursday (6a.m. to 6p.m.). They put ash on their faces to show their fasting.
Anytime we are in such stricture of soul that our time with God is not interrupted for nourishment, whether by design or by forgetfulness, it is fasting.
Jesus uses the occasion of the question to share three parables:
(1) The true spirit life is like a wedding feast. V34: “Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast while the bridegroom is with them?” We are not compelled to do what we wish not to do. We are not denied things because they are pleasurable. We are simply promised that living life in faith based on the Word of God is what brings true happiness.
(2) The true spirit life is like a piece of new cloth. V36 “No one puts a piece from a new garment on an old one. It will tear, and they do not match.” The Greek word for “tear,” pronounced “sxisma,” is our word for “schism.” The first three usages are about religious division. There is a present struggle in the Convention. Jesus is not demeaning of the Old Testament but, rather, the way they looked at it. They could not repair it by attaching some new ideology over an old error. Jesus was certainly not certifying that the new is better than the old. He wanted to get to the heart of truth and build thereon.
(3) The true spirit life is like fermenting juice. The life situation is that these were not bottles but goatskins. The Greek word pronounced “bota” is our word for “boot.” Old skins are weak, cracked. Fermentation will penetrate. What Jesus is teaching is that people who know will not choose the new wine over old. The value is in the aging, the changing. The good comes from the new in the process of change. Work through a new thought for it to become truth. Leave room for repentance to be contained in your vessel of speculation until it ferments into truth.
Closing
George Whitefield, 1700’s, said in one of his sermons, “You see, brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, what great blessings are treasured up for you in Jesus Christ and what you are entitled to by believing on His name. Take heed, therefore, that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith you are called. Think often how highly you are favored; and remember, you have not chosen Christ, He has chosen you.” (Whitefield’s Sermon Outlines, Eerdman’s Publishing 1956, p.122)
A WORD OF PROMISE (Second Word from the Cross)
#069 A WORD OF PROMISE (Second Word from the Cross)
Scripture Luke 23:39-43, NIV Orig. Date 3/18/62 (3/80)
Rewr. Dates 3/12/87
Passage: 39 One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!”
40 But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? 41 We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”
42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.[a]”
43 Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Purpose: The second of a seven part series with an emphasis on the meaning of the crucifixion.
Keywords: Christ, Redeemer Easter Cross God, Word of
Timeline/Series: Words from the Cross
Introduction
It is interesting that the antagonism faced by Jesus was the antagonism of the religious. Oh, there was some of the other kind, but Jesus had been friend to sinners. He was on the cross now to die for sinners. He has taken His place between two thieves.
The religious leaders had been careful to create an atmosphere of suspicion relative to Jesus, and many of the people were afraid to look with openness at what He was doing.
Mark 15:31 “the chief priests . . .said . . . with the scribes ‘he saved others; himself he cannot save.’”
Luke 23:35 “. . .the rulers also scoffed at him.”
Matthew 27:41 “. . . the chief priests mocking him.”
Of these two men with whom Jesus is dying, one “railed” v39 blasphémeó —"to speak evil of.” The other “rebuked” v40 epitimaó—charged.
It was not by accident that Jesus came to die between these two. Two nameless souls, they, who were suddenly thrust into the gaze of eternity. All of Jesus life He had been the friend of sinners. He would not be separated from them in death.
Who they were, no one knows. Bandits perhaps, like those in Jesus’ story of the Samaritan. It has been put forth that they were associates of Barabbas. Insurrectionists, like him. He was the one released by Pilate (Matthew 27:15). The insurrectionist movement was begun to oppose Roman domination but it had degenerated into a habitat for thieves and criminals.
In this context, one suddenly faced up to himself, and then his accomplice. This man between them was also dying. But He was doing so courageously. There was even something regal about His bearing. He prayed for the soldiers “Father, forgive them.” For His antagonists among the leaders and on-lookers, “Father, forgive them.” He suddenly perceived Jesus to be, not an enemy, but a friend. It is that awakening that has brought untold millions to the awakening of faith over the centuries. He no longer saw a cross, but a throne; not thorns about His brow, but a crown; the blood he saw no longer meant death, but life.
I. In This Context, We Must Note First a Promise Defied. V39 “And one of these criminals blasphemed him saying, ‘Are you not the Christ? Save yourself, and us.”
This man seems almost to believe. We know that Jesus could have done so. Could relieve them of this dying sting. But this man! Can he believe this of Jesus? Like so many, his first thought is of his fleshly body, not his eternal soul.
His anger at being here confuses the promise.
Anger is not of itself a bad thing.
James 1:19 “be slow to anger.”
Ephesians 4:26 “Be angry and sin not.”
Matthew 5:22 “Whoever is angry without cause.”
Anger, and the anguish it espouses, can be a good thing for the believer. Emily Brontë wrote in Remembrance—“Once drinking of that divinest anguish, how could I seek the empty world again?” Anguish, you see, can be an ally leading to honesty, and faith, and Christ. And not that only, it is the truest friend of repentance.
But this man’s anger and anguish turn to arrogance. He stands ready to sacrifice everything to his own self-interest. Proverbs 26:12, “Seest thou a man wise in his own conceit? There is more hope of a fool than of him.”
Anguish, born of arrogance, will find no relief. Not unlike Oscar Wilde in his poem Ballad of Reading Gaol,
“The vilest deeds like poison weeds bloom well in prison air;
It is only what is good in man that wastes and withers there:
Pale anguish—anguish—keeps the heavy gate, the warder of despair.”
I Peter 5:5 “. . . All of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud and giveth grace to the humble.”
II. Notice Now a Promise Subscribed. V40 “But the other answered . . . 42 Jesus, Lord, remember me when Thou comest into Thy kingdom.”
Some who had approached Jesus, and some at the cross now, insisted on some sign of power. Just a sign, Jesus, and we will believe: Many in the world today, some in this room today.
But Jesus had spoken all that there is to say. “The only sign that you will be given is that of Jonas”: a sign of death, a sign of submergence and submission, a sign of dependence and selflessness. And too many of us, like too many of them, will have none of it.
“Give us something to help us remember Golgotha.” Give us proof or forget it. Write out a check for the bottom line.
Here was one man who needed no further sign. I remind you, it was not death that converted him. It was life, Jesus’ life. He saw through new eyes. In fact, he saw through no eyes at all, but through his heart. John 6:40, “This is the will of him that sent me, that everyone that seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life.” John 4:42 (Samaritans) “We have heard him ourselves and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.”
He, here and forever, makes himself accountable to Christ. Have we done so? You and I? “Well, no,” you say, “But I am not a thief.” When you keep for yourself, what belongs to another, you are a thief. This has nothing to do with possessions. It has to do with us. We belong to another. But we selfishly, greedily withhold what He desires the most: ourselves, our friendship, or time and presence and growth.
III. There Is a Final Element to the Promise. It Is a Promise Supplied. V43 “And He said unto him, Truly I say to you that today you will be with me in paradise.” It was a promise of compassion. Without hesitation the promise is made for Jesus recognizes faith. He opens Himself to the hurting offender. The one who sincerely seeks will always find. He will find all that he wants and more.
But it is essential to see Himself as He is. If we would know Jesus, we would, as well, know our sin, our need. In that comprehension of self, Jesus stands the more revealed. Matthew 11:28 “Come unto me, all ye that labour, and I will give you rest.”
As it was a promise of compassion, it was also a promise of comprehension. Jesus meant every word that He spoke. It was a promise of God’s blessing. He didn’t have much of that left. For us, it is a promise of life purpose.
It was a promise of forgiveness. Story of adoptive parents who used an old, tattered, dirty pair of shoes to remind the child from what he came as discipline. Our heavenly Father does not bring out the tattered memories of the past, but promises that through Jesus “our iniquities He will remember no more.” (Jeremiah 31:34).
It was a promise of death-watch. Jesus has already told them to weep not for Him. He will next “commend” His spirit. He has spoken to the thief urging upon him this new life.
It was finally, then, a promise of salvation. Heaven is a place. It is immediately accessible. It is presided over by Christ. It is a place for sinners.
Conclusion
Thus, Jesus herein sets His final seal of satisfaction on what He had given His life to fulfill and declare: “This day thou shalt be with me.” It is not fantasy, but reality.
As declared by James S. Stewart, “The Life and Teaching of Jesus” (p. 170), “. . . that in a single moment from the dust heaps and cinder heaps of life any ruined, hopeless soul, bound in affliction and iron, may pass straight to the perfect release of forgiveness, and wear the white robes of a saint.”
A WORD OF PRAYER (First Word from the Cross)
#068 A WORD OF PRAYER (First Word from the Cross)
Scripture Luke 23:33-34 NIV Orig. 3/11/62 (2/80)
Rewr. March 4, 1987
Passage: 33 When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him there, along with the criminals—one on his right, the other on his left. 34 Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”[a] And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.
Purpose: Beginning a series on the words of Christ from the cross, and therein to speak to my people about the prayer of Jesus, and his role as intercessor.
Keywords: Christ Mediator Easter Prayer
Timeline/Series: Words from the Cross
Introduction
There is no better place to begin a study of Jesus’ intercessory prayer on the cross than to examine other places where we find Jesus engaging in prayer. Clearly, his prayer-life and his spiritual purpose are tied strongly together.
Go, in your mind’s eye, and take a position where you can view Jesus at prayer. Go first to the Jordan and watch His baptism. Luke 3:21f “As Jesus was baptized and prayed, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit came in the bodily form of a dove.” God crowns Christ’s surrender in death with the dove which is the symbol of peace.
Then in the wilderness view him praying and fasting. In Matthew 4:1f the devil sought to tempt Jesus to find a less painful way, and less effective, to work at the objective of God. It was through prayer and fasting that Jesus achieved.
Observe occasions when Jesus was beset by weariness. He sought a place of prayer. Mark 1:32f “And at even . . . they brought unto him all that were diseased, . . . and all the city was gathered at the door. . . . And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.” We have different ideas today about “resorting,” but for Jesus it meant “to pray.” When Jesus ministered to the needs around Him, He gave of his spiritual vitality and strength. It could only be reclaimed in communion with God the Father.
On the occasion when the apostles were called, Luke 6:12f, “ . . . he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God. And when it was day . . . he chose twelve.” How much of this dependence and helplessness on the part of Jesus must we see revealed before we reckon with our own dependence?”
So, now at Calvary, the crowning achievement of Jesus’ life, and again, we find Him at prayer.
I. The Word of Prayer Speaks First of Priority. V34 “Father, forgive them.” This crisis hour requires strong intervention. Pain seems to bring out the best in people who are the more oriented to it. We who seldom experience it are more taken with self-pity. Too easily accepting sin likewise creates a fantasy of rationalization.
There is a correlation between suffering and sin. It is not always the sinner who suffers. The sufferer is not necessarily the one who has sinned. Behind it all is grace, pointing us through the crisis to forgiveness and peace. Here is Jesus, suffering unto death. His suffering is sin-related, but it is not His crime being exorcised on the cross. He chooses to submit to the will of God that we, you and I, might know His strong intervention in our behalf.
Such suffering, related to the will of God, has eternal consequence. Philippians 3:10 “That I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His suffering, being made conformable to His death.”
The priority of the moment is that this historical event must express the ultimate will of God. We betray ourselves doctrinally by over-zealous denominationalism. Christ died for our sin is priority. Satan tricks us morally with issues: equality; sexuality; drugs. Being morally right delivers not from sin.
Thus, in prayer on the cross, Jesus teaches us this tremendously important lesson of priority: His determination to do the will of God. Luke 22:42 “Not my will, but Thine.” John 1:13 “Born, not of blood, or of the will of the flesh, nor . . . man, but of God.” Jesus sought for all to know that the Father was to be trusted.
Paul admonished Ephesians (6:4) fathers, and Christians in general, that they were to be related to their children in trust.
The means of forgiveness is set forth. We must know of “the more excellent way.” We must know that it is attainable: by whom, through whom. We must know the cross is the means.
II. The Word of Prayer Speaks Next of Persistence. V34 “Father, forgive them.” Here is a beautiful illustration of the expressiveness of the Greek language. The English translates, “Then said Jesus.” The Greek, however, contains intense repetition. “He kept on saying, over and over, ‘Father, forgive them.’” As He completes this death-dealing passage through Jerusalem: “Father, forgive them.” His hands and feet are nailed: “Father, forgive them.” The Cross is roughly seated, “Father, forgive them.” Of the jeering crowd, “Father, forgive them.” Of the gambling soldiers, “Father, forgive them.” And the disciples would never be able to forget this scene at Calvary.
Such persistence is typified by His fellowship with the Father. Jesus was content to do the will of God. In Deuteronomy 3:25f, Moses sought to go over the Jordan—God said to Moses, “Speak no more unto me of this matter” (wroth). In Jeremiah 20:7, Jeremiah’s dreams of awakening were quashed. “I have been made a laughing stock all day long.”
Jesus encourages us to this same fellowship with the Father. Samson is an Old Testament example. Judges 16:28 “Give me strength only this once, O God, and let me at one stroke be avenged on the Philistines for my eyes.” A New Testament example is Stephen: “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” Acts 7:60.
We must also note here for whom Jesus prayed: those believers with breaking heart who accompanied Him here; but as well, the soldiers, the temple police, gloating Sadducee, and grimacing Pharisee; Roman and Jew alike; and for us today, South African of Cape Town or Soweto, Lebanese, of whatever extraction. God seeks our forgiveness and Christ arranged it. The them is us, and we must pursue it.
III. The Word of Prayer Speaks Lastly of Performance. “Father, forgive them. We are guilty beyond measure.” Our guilt is multiplied. We are guilty of sin as charged. Matthew 15:18 “Those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.”
We are made twice guilty when we pay only lip service to the Christ of the cross. I Peter 4:13 “Rejoice inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that when His glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.”
The real performance of our lives revolves around the cross of Jesus. Do you understand why He went to the cross? Do you understand it was with your sin (not sins) in mind? Can you grasp that unless you allow His death to cover your sin, nothing else ever will?
Marvelous grace of our loving Lord, Grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt,
Yonder on Calvary’s mount outpoured, There where the blood of the Lamb is spilt.
Dark is the stain that we cannot hide, What can avail to wash it away?
Look! There is flowing a crimson tide; Whiter than snow you may be today.
Grace Greater than Our Sin, #164
The prayer of Jesus performed one thing more. It eased the agony through which He was going. It was not the agony of raw nerves, untended wounds, or insult, or indifferent masses, then and now. It was the agony of separation from the Father.
Sweet hour of prayer, sweet hour of prayer, That calls me from a world of care,
And bids me at my Father’s throne, Make all my wants and wishes known.
In seasons of distress and grief, My soul has often found relief,
And oft escaped the tempter’s snare, By thy return, sweet hour of prayer.
Sweet Hour of Prayer
Lest we forget, nothing shows His consciousness of His Sonship like this prayer: God’s will first, and dealing with man’s sin effectively.
What remains is obedience on our part.
***THE REMAINDER OF THIS SERMON HAS BEEN LOST***