Luke 17:1-5   Jesus taught His disciples some important lessons that are included here as He heads towards Jerusalem. 

The first lesson is about "stumbling blocks".  This is also translated as "offences."  It can mean a trap or a snare.. or something that draws a person into error or sin. Jesus warns that these snares will come, but the one through whom it comes is the one who will be judged.  "It would be better if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should cause one of these little ones to stumble." 

Then the Lord tells His disciples to "Be on your guard!"  The lesson is about looking our for your brother. If they sin, rebuke him.. if they repent.. forgive him and keep on forgiving him as much as necessary .. 

In reply to these 2 lessons, the disciples ask the Lord ,  "Increase our faith". 

Shepherd, help us to have ears to hear what You are teaching us today. 

I don't want to be a stumbling block to anyone and I don't want anyone to cause me to stumble.. do you?  The judgement of God is terrifying... as the Word reminds us.. "Our God is a consuming fire! The truth is that we have all stumbled or been offended.. or have been drawn into sin by someone during our life time. Someone has sinned against us.. and he or she has to make a decision how to deal with that guilt.. either they repent and we forgive them.  Or they don't repent and face the judgment of the Lord. 

If I am the one who has offended someone or caused them to sin, then it is up to me to repent and seek forgiveness  or face the judgement of the Lord. Let me be the one who repents Lord God!

Oh how we need faith too!  Help us Lord Jesus to humble ourselves and seek Your grace.. forgive us our sins and trespasses and help us to forgive those who have sinned against us.  May we not cause anyone to stumble and may we not stumble our own selves.  We need You Lord Jesus! Fill us with Your wisdom and love and lead us is Your ways. Increase our faith and help us to trust and obey in every situation.  You are our help and our salvation O God! Thank You. amen. 

Luke 16  The next parable that Jesus teaches His disciples is about the rich man with the "unrighteous steward". This steward was accused of "squandering"  the possessions of the rich boss.  The boss called in the steward and asked for an accounting before being let go from his position. The steward quickly made a plan for his own future. He called in those who were in debt to the master and forgave some of what they owed. His hope was that they would help him out after he lost his job.  The master "praised the unrighteous steward because he had acted shrewdly".  

Was Jesus using this example to glorify the wisdom or shrewdness of the servant?  No.. He clarified His point to this disciples.. " And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by means of the mammon of unrighteousness that when it fails, they may receive you into eternal dwellings."  And it will fail.  Worldly "mammon" .. riches, treasures, money.. have a usefulness.. but it is nothing in the light of eternity. Jesus illustrates this truth with the story of the rich man and Lazarus. When they both died it is the poor man, Lazarus who suffered in this life.. who rests in paradise at the side of Abraham.  It is the man who had more treasures than he ever needed who suffered greatly in the fire of Hades. 

Jesus taught that we cannot serve two masters.  We cannot pursue and serve riches and serve God at the same time. If God is not first.. we are not His.  The Pharisees "who were lovers of money".. scoffed.  Jesus  warned them once again that God knew their hearts. They justified themselves but that did not mean that they were justified before God.  They manipulated even the Law that they claimed to love and obey.. to justify their own sinfulness.  They called divorce a good thing.. but Jesus called it adultery.  They were ignorant of the Truth of God's Word. 

The rich man considered himself blessed.. until he found himself in Hades. What do we need to learn from this?  Are we being wise and faithful with what God has given to us?  Jesus said, " he who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very  little thing is unrighteous also in much."  Are we faithful to use what belongs to God for His glory?  Not just worldly goods, but spiritual treasures too?  Jesus will address this again in the parable of the talents. It is something He really wants us to hear! 

Lord, open our ears and eyes to see Your wonderful works and to know Your will in all things. Fill us, Spirit of God, that we might be faithful in the little and in the great.. in all that You have provided.. for we want to glorify You in every good work. Come, Lord Jesus, and cleanse our hearts from all unfaithfulness ... we surrender all to you..  as we pray in Your Name..  uniting our hearts with Yours. Amen. 

 Luke 15   Jesus is criticized by the Pharisees and scribes because the tax-gatherers and  sinners came to Him and He received them.  This is the context of three parables:  the lost sheep; the lost coin; and the lost son. 

The lost sheep:  The man had 100 sheep and 1 was lost. This shepherd loved all his sheep, so he left the 99 in a safe place and went himself to find the one that was lost.  When he found it, he carried it home, rejoicing.  He even called his friends and neighbors together to celebrate with him. 

The lost coin:  The woman only had 10 silver coins. When she lost one she lit a lamp, swept the house and searched carefully until she found it.  Again, she rejoiced and celebrated with her friends and neighbors. 

Both of these parables end with  a similar statement from Jesus, "I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents." 

The lost son:  This final parable is a bit more complicated.  The younger son of a "certain man" asked his father to give him his inheritance and let him go away.  In the Jewish law, the older son would get the majority of the inheritance.. so 2/3s and the younger would get 1/3. So the young man takes 1/3 of all his father has and basically throws it away on "loose living".  We know the story.. a famine comes to the land where he is, he takes a job feeding pigs; and he is starving to death.  He finally wakes up enough to remember his father's house and that even the servants in his father's house had food to eat. So, he humbles himself and heads home, willing to be a slave .. He knew he deserved nothing.  But.. when the father saw him coming he was overjoyed!  He "embraced him and kissed him".  He had a feast prepared to rejoice over his son who had been lost, but was now found. 

Then.. the older son came home from work.  He was not happy to see the younger son restored to his father. Even though the father loved him too.. even though he had stayed and worked for the father and would receive all that was the father's.. he had no love for the brother who had come home.  

This is the picture of the Pharisees and scribes. They had no love for "tax-gatherers and sinners".  They had no compassion, no mercy, no patience, and no joy that the lost were now found.  They wouldn't come to the party where there was rejoicing over those now back where they should have been the whole time - in the Father's Home.. in the Kingdom of God. 

Father in heaven, we have all been lost at some point in our lives, for we have all sinned and come short of Your glory.  Yet, You have made a way for us to return to You.. we belong to You.. and You came looking for us and have carried us home. Thank You Good Shepherd!  You sent the Light of the World to sweep through the whole earth to find those of us who were lost and You found us!  Thank You Lord! You rejoiced when we recognized the depths of our sin and hopelessness.. when You reminded us that we were made by You and belong to You and we returned to You... with repentance and humility.  Jesus, You came to save the lost and we praise Your holy name.  Thank You for the wonderful work of salvation through Christ Jesus our Lord, in whose name we pray.   Father, we ask now in the mighty name of Jesus that You would send workers into Your harvest field.. to bring the lost sheep back to the Shepherd.  We pray that Your Light would shine through every believer so that the lost will be found and that heaven would rejoice. Father, speak to the hearts of the prodigal sons and daughters who have left their homes and squandered their lives.. and bring them back home. We give thanks and praise to You Father, for You hear our heart's prayers and the prayers of Jesus at Your right Hand even now. Amen. 

 Luke 14:25-35     As Jesus left the Pharisee's home and once again headed towards Jerusalem, He spoke to the multitude that was following Him.  

This is a hard message.. it is perhaps the hardest test of discipleship that must be considered if one will be a true follower of Christ. If we do not do this.. how would we be able to face the persecution that is to come? How can we be ready to die for our Savior? How can we be counted as His disciple?

"If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple."  We try to soften this statement by explaining that Jesus just means we must love Him more than anyone else or more than ourselves.  But.. He doesn't give us that option. He is calling His followers to become disciples.. to learn from Him the most vital lesson of all.  If we want to be a true disciple of Jesus Christ we must count the cost.. 

Jesus gives three examples of counting the cost:

Verse 27 "Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple."  His listeners knew what carrying a cross meant.  A cross was carried by someone guilty of a crime.  They were the basest, the lowest, the worst of the worse.  Jesus had just taught about being humble.. there is nothing more humbling than baring your sin and guilt and shame to the world.  Jesus would bear a cross for the sins of the whole world.. but He only asks His disciples to bear their own cross for His sake. This is the cost of discipleship.. 

Verses 28-30 talk about a man wanting to build a tower. Would that man not stop first and see how much it would cost and if he had enough money to build it?  He would not want to start the project without being ready to finish it. That would be foolish and he would face "ridicule".  Likewise, to be a true disciple of Jesus we need to be ready to persevere to the end.  Do we have the resources to do that?  Only if we have Jesus as our Master to strengthen us and complete us by His own power and grace. This is the cost of discipleship.. 

Verses 31-32 talk about a king who wants to go to war.  Before he even starts out he will consider the strength of his army and the strength of the enemy's army.  If he is outnumbered he will sent out ambassadors to "ask for terms of peace."  In other words, that king must not let his pride lead him into a war he cannot win, but must humble himself before the one more powerful. This is the cost of discipleship.. 

Jesus concludes this message with "So therefore, no one of you can be my disciple who does not give up all his own possessions."  

We are absolutely unable to save ourselves and we need Jesus. We come to Him only by admitting our sin and guilt, humbling ourselves before Him, trusting on His provision to complete His work in our lives, submitting to His rule and reign over us, and giving Him our whole selves.  Complete surrender of our lives, our possessions, our families, our work, and our futures. 

Only then are we "good" salt.. otherwise we are without flavor, without worth, and without life. 

Father in heaven, we have no hope without Jesus Christ. He is the King, the Master, the Savior and we surrender our whole lives to follow Him. We cannot do anything on our own, Lord. He is first in all things according to Your will and word.  Teach us, Lord, what we need to hear. Open our ears and our eyes to Your Truth.  Fill us Spirit of God with understanding we pray, in the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

 Luke 14:12-24  As Jesus continued to sit at the table with the leading Pharisees... He had spoken about being humble and not exalting oneself.. and then He said this, "When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or your rich neighbors, lest they invite you in return, and repayment come to you. But, when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, since they do not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."  

Jesus goes on to tell a story about a man who planned a big dinner.  He sent out the invitations and when the time came he also sent his servant to gather those invited. However.. every one of them made excuses as to why they couldn't come and this made the man angry.  He then sent his slave out to gather others to fill his banquet hall.. at first he brought "the poor and crippled and blind and lame".. and then he went even further and invited any who he could find on the highways and along the hedges.  The house was filled, but those he had first invited were all excluded from the dinner. 

Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees.. those who were filled with pride.. those same ones who had tried to get the best seats just moments before.. those who wanted to be honored and exalted.. those who would invite the "right" people to their dinners.  And the one.. who had invited Jesus.  What was his motive?  What was he trying to prove?  Was the invitation for the purpose of receiving something in return? Then  he needed to change his thinking... let his motive be to help the helpless and to feed the hungry. This is where the blessing will be found.. in humble service to others in need. 

The parable of the dinner had a deeper meaning.. God Himself had invited the people of Israel to come to His table.. but they made excuses.  Because they did not come, rejecting the One who came to gather them.. He opened His Kingdom to those who had no way to "repay" Him.. the poor.. the crippled.. the blind.. and the lame.. the lost.. the hiding.. the wandering.. He invited us. 

Father in heaven, we praise Your holy name.. thanking You for calling us into Your Kingdom and to Your table. We are poor and needy.. and we have no means to repay You for the grace and love that You have lavished on us through the sacrifice of Your Beloved Son.  We come before You with grateful hearts and surrender all of ourselves to Your service.  May we always extend the invitation to those who need to hear about Jesus Christ.. those who are poor and crippled, blind or lame.. those on the highways and in the hedges. Give us ears to hear and to do Your Word we pray, in Jesus' name. Amen.

 Luke 14:7-24  Jesus shares two parables with the "invited guests" at the Pharisees home.  He had already dealt with their hypocrisy as they tested him with the poor man who had dropsy.  They were watching and listening. 

The first parable came about as Jesus watched the guests "picking out the places of honor at the table."  He tells them to not take the place of honor, "lest someone more distinguished than you may have been invited.. "  It would be embarrassing to be asked to move to a lower place.  How much better to be asked to" move up higher".  The point of this parable is in verse 11, "For everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled, and he who humbles himself shall be exalted." 

Proverbs 29:23 "A man's pride will bring him low, But a humble spirit will obtain honor."  James 4:10 "Humble yourself in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you."  This is a Truth that is found in both Old Testament and New.  It is a Truth that Jesus teaches throughout His ministry.  It is a Truth that turns natural inclinations upside down in a world that prides itself with being greater, smarter, richer, or better than the next guy.  It is a Truth that we must not ignore. 

What does it mean to be humble?  The Greek word used here means to abase or bring low.. to have a lower rank.. to be modest.. to bring down pride.   To be humble is to not elevate or lift up yourself, but to allow God to lift you up Himself.. and this He promises to do.   To humble yourself is to have this "attitude which was also in Christ Jesus who, although He existed in the form of God did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped... He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death.." ( Philippians 2:5-8)  "Therefore also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name." (v9) 

Father, You alone are great and Highly exalted!  We join with the psalmist in praise, "Great is the Lord and highly to be praised; and His greatness is unsearchable." ( Psalm 145)   We will extol You, our God, O King; and we will bless Your name forever and ever.  Lord God, You are gracious and merciful. You are good to all.  You are righteous in all Your ways.  You provide for us and keep us. You open Your hands and satisfy us. You are near to us when we call on You.  Because of Who You are we bow before You and proclaim Your praise and our thanks. We humble ourselves before You because we are lower than the low, yet You have shown us grace. You have raised us up and called us Your Children in Jesus Christ the Lord.  How can we thank You enough ? Praise the Name of the Lord in Whom we live and move and have our being. Amen! 

 Luke 13:32-35; 14:1-6   The Pharisees try to persuade Jesus to turn back.. to stay out of Jerusalem.. by claiming that Herod was looking to kill Him.  But... Jesus would  not turn back.  He had to get to Jerusalem and He would continue doing the things that His Father has ordained for Him until the last. 

Jesus knew that Jerusalem would be the place of His death.  He knew that He would enter its gates where they would proclaim "Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord!"  And He knew that they would then reject Him even while He longed for their salvation.  He knew it all and He would not turn back. 

Jesus said that He would continue to "cast out demons and  perform cures" until He reached His goal.  He still had works to do and lessons to teach. He was still giving His listeners a chance to make the right choice so that they might be saved.  

His next stop was at the home of one of the leaders of the Pharisees.  As they were all watching Him closely, Jesus was introduced to a man with dropsy.  This man must have been one of the invited ones or perhaps a relative?  How else would he have entered the home of the Pharisee?  So, Jesus asks the question that they wanted to catch Him on... 'Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?" 

They had already condemned Him for doing this before.. so why do this again? They held their breathes waiting and watching.. and " they kept silent.. "   Jesus took the man and healed him.  "And He said to them, 'Which one of you shall have a son or an ox fall into a well and will not immediately pull him out on a Sabbath day?' "  None could answer Him, because they knew He was right. 

Father, thank You for showing us the kindness and compassion of the Lord Jesus.  He knew the day was coming when He would suffer and die for the sins of all mankind and He knew that many would miss the truth.  He gave opportunities for them.. over and over and over.. to see You.. to hear Your Words.. and they "would not".  So many today are just the same.. they focus on their own ideals and plans and they miss the Truth. They miss Jesus Christ who alone is the way of salvation. Let the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ fill us and overflow from our hearts that we might be moved with such great compassion for the lost.. that we might use every opportunity to lead others to Him. Let Your Kingdom come! Amen.