THE GOSPEL OF
CHRIST
SPREADING THE SOUL-SAVING MESSAGE OF JESUs
(Chapters 19-24)
Introduction by narrator accompanied by a cappella singing:
THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST. Spreading the soul-saving message of Jesus. And now, Timothy Sparks and Ben Bailey.
Ben Bailey:
“For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Lk. 19:10). I’m Ben Bailey.
Timothy Sparks:
And I’m Timothy Sparks. Welcome to our study of the Book of Luke. This broadcast is being brought to you by individuals and congregations of the churches of Christ. We hope you will visit the churches of Christ in your area, and let them know how much you appreciate their support of this broadcast. If you have a Bible question or a spiritual concern, they would be happy to help you with it. If you would like a Bible study, they also would be glad to assist you with that. We, too, would like to be of service. Visit us on our website at www.thegospelofchrist.com, where we have streaming audio and video lessons of our broadcasts. You may download these and use them to assist you in your study of God’s Word. We also are making available CDs of these broadcasts, as well as VHS and DVDs. We will be glad to send any of these to you completely free of charge.
In Luke 19, we learn about a man named Zacchaeus,
and we receive an important message about the topic of salvation.
Ben Bailey:
Zacchaeus wanted to
see Christ. But he was a man of short stature, and so he climbed up into a tree in order to be able to see Jesus
over the heads of those in the crowd. He drew the Lord’s attention—so
much so that Christ even ended up going to Zacchaeus’ house to eat with him. Why did Jesus do that? It was because He came to
seek and save that which was lost.
Zacchaeus had the mindset that, whatever it took, he was going to see
the Savior. He wanted to find out exactly Who Jesus was. We need more people
today with the same attitude that Zacchaeus
had. It doesn’t matter how rich or poor you may be. It doesn’t matter if you are handsome or
beautiful—or if you’re not! God wants you to come in faith to His Son in order to establish a
personal relationship with Christ. Zacchaeus provides a good example of a person
who was willing to do whatever it took—even if it meant climbing a
tree—to get to the Lord.
Timothy Sparks:
Zacchaeus really wanted to do what was right. He even said
that if he had acted inappropriately toward anyone, he would repay them four times what he owed them. This is an example of genuine repentance. Biblical
repentance includes not just a change of mind, but
also a change in our actions. Zacchaeus was willing to pay the price for following Jesus. In Luke 19:9-10, Jesus said, “Today
salvation has come to this house, because …the
Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Jesus came to save
sinners. Paul put it this way: “This is a faithful saying and worthy of all
acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” (1
Tim. 1:15). The thrust of the entire New Testament is the salvation of
people’s souls. From the Great Commission given by the Lord in Matthew
28:19-20, we learn that we are to be people who are constantly concerned about
the lost.
Ben Bailey:
Our whole purpose is to glorify God. We can do that by being a Christian, by living the Christian life, and by telling others about the message of Jesus Christ. We must have the mindset that we are going to reach out to the lost in order to try to help them. If you are not a child of God, we are deeply concerned about your soul. We want you to go to Heaven. We want you to know what the Lord’s terms are for you to go to Heaven. In Acts 2, the people who had killed Christ heard Peter’s sermon, realized what they had done, and asked, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” Peter told them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins” (vs. 38). One must believe in Jesus as the Son of God, confess Him to be that Son, repent of past sins, and be baptized for the forgiveness of sins. If you are lost, we want you to know that God loves you, and that you can find the way to salvation. In Luke 19, Jesus deals with the kingdom, and even with people who are in opposition to the kingdom.
Timothy Sparks:
Jesus was concerned about the salvation of souls. As a result, He taught daily in the temple. The chief priests, scribes, and the leaders of the people wanted to kill Him. As they sent about trying to do that, they attempted to catch Him in erroneous or contradictory statements, as we see in Luke 20:20. They wanted to destroy Him. If you ever happen to find yourself the victim of a fault finder, keep in mind that fault finders are rarely good fact finders. Why? They are looking for faults, not facts. Jesus was faultless. He was without sin. Yet they are still going to put Him to death. Jesus is spending His time teaching people publicly. As we enter into chapter 20, the chief priests, scribes, and the leaders of the people are going to continue to try to destroy Jesus, yet Christ does not let that deter Him from His mission—the salvation of people’s souls. In Luke 20, the chief priests, scribes, and leaders of the people are going to question Christ’s authority to do what He is doing.
Ben Bailey:
These Jewish leaders said, “Tell us by what authority you do these things.” Jesus knows the hearts of men. He doesn’t immediately answer their question. Instead, He asks them a question concerning the baptism of John the Immerser: “John’s baptism, was it from Heaven, or from men?” The Jewish leaders reasoned within themselves, “If we say that John’s baptism is from God, then He will ask why we did not obey it. But if we say that it is from men, then we may have to fear the people, because everyone thinks of John as a great prophet.” These Jewish leaders were diplomats who were used to making everyone happy. Jesus had now put them in a situation where their answer couldn’t make anyone happy. They therefore refused to answer Jesus’ question. Jesus then said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.” There are only two places from which we can derive authority—from God or man. But God is the only One Who had authority in religious matters. In Matthew 28:18, Jesus said, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.” Jesus rebuked the Pharisees because they taught as doctrine the commandments of men (Mt. 15:7-9). In religion, what man says doesn’t count; only God’s authority matters. In Colossians 3:17, Paul wrote: “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” Our authority in religion must come from God, and we must have Bible authority for all that we do. We must learn to ask the question, “What do the Scriptures say?” (Rom. 4:3). We must be people who are concerned with doing only what the Bible says. If we stick with the Bible and do what it says, it is impossible for us to go wrong. We go astray when we bring man’s ideas into religion, and when we think that man has authority in this area. If you come across a man in religion today who claims to be “the authority,” the spokesman from God, or the head of the church, that person is not telling the truth, and is not being faithful to God or His Word. Jesus is still the Head of church (Eph. 1:22-23). We learn here an important lesson about the hearts of these false teachers, as well as a basic principle about authority.
Timothy Sparks:
Everything we do in word or deed must be done in the name of the Lord Jesus (Col. 3:17). Luke 20 teaches us an important lesson—that the ultimate foundation of authority lies with God, not man. In this same chapter, Jesus is asked a question about marriage.
“Teacher, Moses wrote to us that if a man's brother dies, having a wife, and he dies without children, his brother should take his wife and raise up offspring for his brother. Now there were seven brothers. And the first took a wife, and died without children. And the second took her as wife, and he died childless. Then the third took her, and in like manner the seven also; and they left no children, and died. Last of all the woman died also. Therefore, in the resurrection, whose wife does she become? For all seven had her as wife” (vss. 28-31).
Jesus answered them by saying, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage. But those who are counted worthy to attain that age, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry nor are given in marriage; nor can they die anymore, for they are equal to the angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection” (vss. 32-36). Then, in verses 37 and 38, Jesus went on to discuss the resurrection.
“But even Moses showed in the burning bush passage
that the dead are raised, when he called the Lord ‘the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ For
He is not the God of the dead but of the living, for all live to Him.”
Notice that God did not say, “I was the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” Rather, He said “I am
the Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” When He said that,
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had already died. If God is not the
God of the dead, but the God of the living, what, then, does it imply when God says, “I am the God of Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob.” It
implies that those men were still living in some fashion. Thus, their souls had
not ceased to exist—which provided
ample proof that there was a resurrection. Jesus, being a Man of the Scriptures, said
to the Sadducees, “You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God”
(Mt. 22:29). God is able to make alive again. Jesus, of course, is the first fruits of the dead. Because He was resurrected, we,
too, have hope of a resurrection (1 Cor.
15). Passages such as Luke 20 give us hope, and help us to understand that
there is something far more glorious yet to come than our earthly existence.
Ben Bailey:
In the first few verses of Luke 21, Jesus focuses on a widow who seemed to understand that this life is not about money. Jesus was at the temple, watching people as they donated to the temple treasury. After seeing the poor widow put in a mere two mites, Jesus said, “This poor widow has put in more than all; for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had” (vss. 3-4). This woman gave all she had! The others around her gave merely a small portion of what they possessed. Why did the widow act as she did? She realized that there is something more important than what we possess in this life. Giving to God—and giving ourselves, especially—ought to be more important than anything we possess. Luke 6:38 teaches us, “Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.” So when we think about giving, we need to remember the widow and give until it hurts. There may be times when, in order to promote the Gospel and save people’s souls, we need to give out of our poverty. The text of 1 Corinthians 16:1-2 teaches us that we are to give regularly to the church on the first day of the week. The widow provides a marvelous example of how we ought to give.
Timothy Sparks:
In Luke 21 (and in the parallel passage in Matthew 24), Jesus discussed certain
things that pertained
specifically to the people to whom He was speaking (i.e., their generation). Jesus
remarked, “Assuredly, I say to you that this generation will by no means pass
away till all these things take place” (Lk. 21:32). In this context, Jesus was
speaking of the destruction of
Then, Jesus makes a transition as He begins to discuss what will happen at His Second Coming. He said, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away” (Lk. 21:33). When Jesus returns, people will not be expecting it. They will be eating, drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, etc.—just as the people were in the days of Noah before they were destroyed in the global flood. Jesus’ message to the people of His day, and to us today, is that we must be ready for His return. Paul put it like this: “For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. For when they say, ‘Peace and safety!’ then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape” (1 Thess. 5:17). Just as a thief arrives without warning, and just as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman without warning, so the return of Christ will come without warning.
Ben Bailey:
Sadly, some people come to Luke 21, see the apocalyptic language that is
employed there, and attempt to force the text to apply to our day and age. Yet Jesus plainly
stated, “Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass
away till all things take place” (Lk. 21:32). The destruction that Jesus foretold
(of
Timothy Sparks:
When Jesus used the phrase “this generation,” it indicated that He was
talking about something that was going to take place then—not now. Christ
was talking to the people in front of Him, not to people thousands of years
removed from Him. He was discussing the destruction of
Ben Bailey:
Since a generation represents a single life cycle, we obviously shouldn’t be looking for those same signs today. In the verses following Luke 21:32, Christ the turns His attention to His Second Coming. The signs that Jesus gave prior to verse 32 were things that occurred in the lifetime of those people (“this generation”). Today, we are looking for the coming of the Lord. We don’t know when it will happen, but we must always be ready. Mark 13:35 teaches, “Watch therefore, for you do not know when the master of the house is coming—in the evening, at midnight, at the crowing of the rooster, or in the morning.” We do not know when Christ will return, so we must always be ready. Jesus may come “soon,” or He may not. If God told us that in 2020, at 10:00 a.m., Jesus would return, what would many people do? They would wait until the day before, or the hour before, or the minute before, to try to get ready. We need to get ready while we have time. This is the intent of the statement, “Watch!” (vs. 37). We must always be ready.
In Luke 22, Jesus celebrates the Feast of the Passover (commanded in Exodus 12), but takes it a step farther and institutes the Lord’s Supper.
Timothy Sparks:
The Passover, of course, has a rich history. In Exodus 12, the
Israelites were commanded to put the blood of the lamp over their
doorposts. God had told the Israelites that the angel of death was going to pass through the
“Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, ‘Take this and divide
it among yourselves; for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until
the
The blood of which Christ spoke was His own blood. When the apostles ate the unleavened and bread and drank the fruit of the vine, they were to remember the sacrifice of Christ on behalf of their sins. The apostles may not have understood everything at that moment in time, but we today certainly do. We know that the unleavened bread and the fruit of the vine represent the body and blood of Christ, and serve as a constant reminder to us of His sacrifice on our behalf.
Ben Bailey:
Luke 22 shows us the institution of the Lord’s Supper, and Acts 20:7 shows us that we are to partake of the Lord’s Supper on the first day of the week. Luke 22 also shows us that Simon Peter is about to undergo some difficulties. Christ said to him, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren” (vss. 31-32). There is an encouragement here for Simon, but also for us. The very fact that Jesus knows what we are going to face—that He cared for Simon and that He cares for us—ought to help each one of us. Satan desires to sift every one of us like wheat, so that we will be lost! But Jesus knows our temptations and trials. Hebrews 4:15 tells us that Jesus “was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.” We must look to Jesus in difficult times, as Hebrews 2:17-18 admonishes us to do. Jesus prayed for Simon. And He is concerned for us, too. Satan is active. He is a powerful adversary. Peter described Satan like this: “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Pet. 5:8). This is why we must “cast all [our] cares upon Him, for He cares for [us]” (1 Pet. 5:7).
Timothy Sparks:
Peter, of course, stated emphatically that he would not deny Christ—even
if everyone else did. However, Peter did deny Christ—three times! Yet John 21 shows us that
the Lord gave Peter an opportunity to be restored. In this context, Jesus is in
the
Ben Bailey:
Jesus was a Man of sacrifice, and was willing to “go the
extra mile” for us. We see in Luke 22 that Judas betrays Christ, and the people
with him have come with swords and spears to seize Christ, just as they would a thief or a
murderer. Jesus goes willingly. They bind His hands, and put Him on
trial. They asked Him many questions, but He answered only one of them. When they asked Him if He was the
Son of God, He answered, “You say rightly that I am” (Lk. 22:70). When they heard
that, they accused Jesus of blasphemy. In Luke 23, we see how that Jesus suffered greatly for
each and every one of us. In this chapter, we see Jesus death, burial, and even His
resurrection. Jesus didn’t suffer for anything He had done. Peter wrote that he “bore our sins in
His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for
righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed” (1 Pet. 2:24). The people spat
on Him, beat Him, and said evil things to Him. Jesus endured all of that pain
and suffering for you and for me. He died. He was buried. But He rose from the grave. That is the
hope of Christianity—that Jesus Christ lives forever. If we are willing
to die with Christ and be buried with Him in baptism (
Have you obeyed the Gospel? Are you a child of God? Today, if you are
not a Christian, you can come to the Lord, believing in Him with
all your heart, genuinely repenting of your sins as you change your
mind, change your life, and conform your will to God’s. Upon your belief and repentance, you then can confess
that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. You can be immersed into
Christ for the remission of your sins, that you might arise from the watery
grave of immersion to walk in newness of life (Acts 2:38;
We hope you will visit us on our website at www.thegospelofchrist.com. If you would like a video or audio of this broadcast, or any of our other broadcasts, e-mail or call us and we will be happy to send you those items free of charge. Please continue to study with us as we endeavor to uncover more of “the unsearchable riches of Christ.”
Narrator accompanied by a cappella singing:
THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST is brought to you by loving, caring members of the church of Christ. The McLish Avenue church of Christ in Ardmore, Oklahoma, oversees this evangelistic effort. For a free CD or DVD of today’s broadcast, please write to:
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We encourage you to attend the
1. Luke 19 relates the somewhat unusual story of a diminutive fellow who did something unusual in order to see Christ. What was the man? What did he do? And what is the lesson for us today?
2. What is the whole duty of man? Incorporate into your answer Ecclesiastes 12:13.
3. When the scribes and Pharisees asked Jesus by what authority He did the things He did, He answered them with a question. What was that question, and why couldn’t the scribes and Pharisees answer it?
4. In Colossians 3:17, Paul wrote, “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” What was his point?
5. Will people be married in Heaven? Support your answer with Scripture.
6. In Luke 20:32-38, Jesus engaged in a discussion with the Sadducees about the resurrection. Christ based His entire argument on the tense of a verb. Explain His argument, and how the verb tense factored into it.
7. In Luke 21:3-4, Jesus addressed the contribution of the temple treasury of a poor widow. Christ complimented her, although she gave a mere pittance. Why did the Lord honor this woman?
8. Luke 21 discusses two important events. What are they?
9. What key verse in Luke 21 indicates that one of the two important events of which Jesus spoke was going to occur around the time that Christ lived?
10. In the Old Testament Feast account of the Passover (Exodus 12), the blood of a lamb was spread over the doors of the Israelites. It has been said that the lamb in the Old Testament is a “type” of another lamb in the New Testament. What (or Who) is that lamb in the New Testament?
11. How often are Christians today to partake of the Lord’s Supper? Support your answer with Scripture.
12. What did Jesus mean by His comment in John 8:29?—“I always do those things that please Him.”
13. In the Old Testament, the Israelites had a high priest. Do Christians have a high priest? Support your answer with Scripture.
14. We know from Luke 22:31-32 that Christ prayed for Peter. What message is contained within that passage for Christians today?
15. Peter denied the Lord three times, but in John 21, Christ gave him an opportunity to return to a useful place in the kingdom. What is the point of this story for us?
THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST,