Latest / Topeka Bible Church Audio Archive / August 15, 2021 | Good Question - Does God Really Abandon His Flock to Look for the Lost Sheep?

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August 15, 2021 | Good Question - Does God Really Abandon His Flock to Look for the Lost Sheep? · Topeka Bible Church Audio Archive

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: Good morning.
• 0:02
  SPEAKER_00: Well, uh, for those of you I haven't had a chance to meet just yet, my name is Alex Wolfe, and I am the pastor to young adults, and I have the opportunity of continuing, continuing this incredibly fun series uh that we've been doing this summer entitled Got Question, or Good, sorry, not Got Questions, Good Question.
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_00: Let's talk about it.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: No one I said that.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I chose a bit of an unconventional question uh today to talk about, and so I want to give a little background before I tell you what it is.
• 0:36
  SPEAKER_00: Unless, of course, you've read the email teaser, then you know what it is.
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_00: Um The thing I'm most passionate about in life, uh in the world, is helping people come to a true understanding of Scripture.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_00: Now, some of you who know me probably thought I was going to say soccer there.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_00: Don't worry.
• 0:55
  SPEAKER_00: It's up there.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_00: In fact, this weekend's the opening weekend of the Premier League, and my city or my team, Manchester City, plays today at 10.30, so I don't want to hear any scores from any of you guys all morning.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_00: Just say, okay.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_00: But the thing I'm passionate about is helping people come to a true understanding of Scripture.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_00: And I don't just mean I'm passionate about helping people hear Scripture or even just know what it says.
• 1:21
  SPEAKER_00: Rather, I love helping people truly make sense of it.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_00: And so my question today was chosen for that purpose.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_00: My goal is to make a section of Scripture hopefully come alive to some of you today in a new and an exciting and hopefully more accurate way.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_00: Uh but the hard part of doing that for somebody with my personality, see, I'm a people pleaser, um, is that in order to preach correct interpretation of a passage, I have to first tear down incorrect, out-of-contact understandings of that same passage.
• 1:54
  SPEAKER_00: And for some of you, that's really fun.
• 1:56
  SPEAKER_00: You're like, you know, give it to me, straight preacher, you know, challenge me, let it make me think, right?
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_00: But others, some of you are more pat uh more possessive of your favorite Bible verses, and my fear is that those of you like that will shut off the moment that I challenge what you've always thought.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_00: And really I hate that.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: And so, and so I'm really, really sorry, truly I am, if I ruined your favorite Bible verse for you this morning.
• 2:23
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, but you have to know that my goal is not to ruin anything for you, it's to make it even better.
• 2:29
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, see, I I promise you, if you follow me till the end, truly understanding a passage of Scripture is so much better because it's accompanied with a great confidence.
• 2:40
  SPEAKER_00: And so my goal, again, is not to ruin anything, it's to take a great passage and make it even better by place placing it in its correct uh context so you know exactly why it's there and what it's doing.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_00: So my question this morning is this Does Jesus really leave the 99 for the one lost sheep?
• 3:04
  SPEAKER_00: That's the question.
• 3:05
  SPEAKER_00: Most of you know where this is based from.
• 3:07
  SPEAKER_00: It's based on the common interpretation of the parable of the lost sheep in the beginning of Luke chapter 15.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_00: So if you have your Bibles and you want to begin turning over there, we're gonna cover a lot of scripture today.
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_00: Hopefully, I have enough time.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_00: We'll see.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and uh I that not a lot of it will be on the screen because there's so much of it.
• 3:28
  SPEAKER_00: So it'll be advantageous for you to follow along in your Bibles.
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but we've all heard that this is about Jesus.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_00: We've all pictured something like this, right?
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus carrying this lost sheep, and somehow we're the sheep.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_00: Um and, you know, it's this idea of the great shepherd chasing down the one lost sheep, and the application uh in the is that God loves us so much that he abandons everything else and he chases us down to bring us into his love.
• 3:59
  SPEAKER_00: And that sounds really good.
• 4:00
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, we have whole songs about it, you know, he chases me down, five still I'm five, leaves the 99.
• 4:06
  SPEAKER_00: I won't sing anymore, I'm wrong.
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_00: But had to sing it.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, we have whole theologies and political uh stances built upon it.
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_00: You know, some in the social justice movement um often use this verse to show why it's justified to ignore one people group and focus on a more marginalized or oppressed people group.
• 4:30
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 4:30
  SPEAKER_00: So the verse has essentially taken on a life of its own, so much so that it's read entirely void of any context whatsoever.
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_00: And so I want to take this opportunity uh to read it now.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_00: Here's what it says in Luke 15.
• 4:45
  SPEAKER_00: We'll start in verse 2, we'll read through verse 7.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_00: Uh he says, Both the Pharisees and the scribes began grumbling, saying, This man, or Jesus, receives sinners and eats with them.
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_00: And so he told them this parable, saying, What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture and go after the one which is lost until he finds it.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_00: When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
• 5:12
  SPEAKER_00: And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost.
• 5:20
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus says, I tell you, in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous persons who need no repentance.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_00: Have you ever thought, have you ever sat down to think about this idea and how we apply this passage?
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_00: You know, it says that the shepherd leaves the whole flock, and it says here, uh, it's translated open pasture.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_00: It's often translated open pasture, but the Greek word behind this translation means wilderness.
• 5:54
  SPEAKER_00: The shepherd leaves the 99 sheep in the wilderness, right?
• 5:58
  SPEAKER_00: And as far as we know, um, he chases after this one sheep, and as far as we know, he never returns to the flock, but he goes, he goes off and he celebrates with his friends and his family.
• 6:08
  SPEAKER_00: And my big question is, what good shepherd would do this?
• 6:12
  SPEAKER_00: Who would leave the flock in the wilderness on their own with no protection where they are the most vulnerable?
• 6:19
  SPEAKER_00: You know, but for some reason we really, really love this idea because applied in this way, it makes us, it makes us or me, the central object of Jesus' focus and desire.
• 6:34
  SPEAKER_00: And if there's one thing that I've noticed that we really, really like in modern American theology is some good old-fashioned individualism.
• 6:43
  unknown: Right?
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_00: And I don't say that to be disrespectful, but to point out that we really like to make it about us.
• 6:48
  SPEAKER_00: And we often apply the Bible in that way.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_00: But the thought that baffles me is who is Jesus leaving to come after me?
• 6:58
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 6:58
  SPEAKER_00: Do I do I really believe that Jesus abandons everyone else to come after just me?
• 7:04
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, last I checked, we baptized like 30 something people a few weeks ago.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_00: It seems to me that Jesus was able to go after all of them at the same time.
• 7:14
  SPEAKER_00: And so if Jesus is the good shepherd, and if he is God, he simply doesn't need to leave anybody to come after me.
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_00: It doesn't even make sense, I think, when we really think about it.
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_00: And so I want to suggest that the reason it doesn't make sense is because the shepherd in this parable is not Jesus at all.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_00: I believe the shepherd in this parable is actually the Pharisee.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_00: So, does Jesus really leave the 99 for the one lost sheep?
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_00: My proposition is no, the Pharisee does.
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_00: And this is where I might lose some of you, so please just hear me out.
• 7:51
  SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna spend the rest of this sermon showing you why this is the case, using the surrounding context.
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_00: Then once we've properly placed it in its context, I'll suggest a new application that I believe is much better, more comforting than the individualistic approach that we often take to this verse.
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_00: Uh so here we go.
• 8:10
  SPEAKER_00: We're gonna jump on into my argument.
• 8:12
  SPEAKER_00: First, we're gonna uh we're gonna be looking at three main arguments to sort of support my point.
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_00: We're gonna be looking at the immediate context, that is, what's happening in the passage itself.
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_00: We're gonna look at what comes before it, and then we're gonna look at what comes after it, and we're gonna attempt to place it correctly in there.
• 8:29
  SPEAKER_00: But my first argument comes from the immediate context.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_00: And my first argument is that it is grammatically impossible that this is referring to Jesus.
• 8:38
  SPEAKER_00: And now, I just said grammatically, and some of you just checked out and did not realize we were in grammar class, but it's really quick, I promise.
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_00: Uh let's just read the few verses starting out.
• 8:51
  SPEAKER_00: But the Pharisees and the scribes began to grumble, saying, This man, Jesus, receives sinners and eats with them.
• 8:58
  SPEAKER_00: So he told them, that is the Pharisees and the scribes, this parable.
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_00: He says, What man among y'all, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them?
• 9:10
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 9:11
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know how much you know about grammar.
• 9:14
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know that much, but I do know that if I stood here and I were to say, I love y'all, and I do, by the way, um, there's a lot of people that could be referring to.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_00: I could be referring to Luke over here.
• 9:30
  SPEAKER_00: I could be referring to this whole section of people, you know, I could be referring to the whole room, but there's only one person in this entire room that I can't be referring to, and that's me.
• 9:41
  SPEAKER_00: Because I cannot be in the y'all group because I'm the one speaking.
• 9:45
  SPEAKER_00: And so when Jesus is speaking this, he says, What man among y'all, Pharisees and scribes?
• 9:50
  SPEAKER_00: And so, grammatically speaking, it has to be the Pharisees here that have the hundred sheep.
• 9:56
  SPEAKER_00: Now, we'll we'll continue to back that up, but if we go on, the second argument is the parable of the woman and the lost coin that immediately follows the parable of the lost sheep.
• 10:07
  SPEAKER_00: And so the parable of the lost coin, he says it's the exact same parable as the parable of the lost sheep.
• 10:13
  SPEAKER_00: He says, What woman, if he has ten silver coins, or she has ten silver coins, loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, search carefully until she finds it.
• 10:22
  SPEAKER_00: When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, Rejoice with me.
• 10:26
  SPEAKER_00: I have found the coin which I had lost.
• 10:29
  SPEAKER_00: Now, I don't know about you, but I've not heard a whole lot of sermons where Jesus is a woman and we are the coins.
• 10:37
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 10:39
  SPEAKER_00: We have a good, you know, theology of shepherds and theology of sheep, but we don't necessarily have a theology that makes Jesus a woman and people coins.
• 10:48
  SPEAKER_00: And so, so, but they're the same parable and they have to match.
• 10:50
  SPEAKER_00: And so if this isn't referring to Jesus, then neither is the other one.
• 10:54
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so there's my evidence that this is not, that Jesus is not the shepherd in this passage.
• 11:02
  SPEAKER_00: But the Pharisee is in fact the shepherd in the passage.
• 11:05
  SPEAKER_00: So then the question becomes then what does it mean?
• 11:11
  SPEAKER_00: How does it make any sense that the Pharisee is the shepherd?
• 11:14
  SPEAKER_00: And what does it mean for us that the Pharisee is the shepherd?
• 11:18
  SPEAKER_00: Well, that we have to get from the preceding context.
• 11:22
  SPEAKER_00: We have to get that from what comes before it, because what comes before it snowballs into what's happening in Luke 15.
• 11:30
  SPEAKER_00: And so we're going to look at chapters 13 and 14 primarily, and there's a bunch of parables.
• 11:37
  SPEAKER_00: And I think a lot of people approach parables as these kind of one-off stories, you know, meant to be preaching units in and of themselves.
• 11:44
  SPEAKER_00: But I don't think that's what's happening here.
• 11:46
  SPEAKER_00: I think each of these parables is intended to snowball into the next one.
• 11:50
  SPEAKER_00: And the meaning builds on itself until Jesus eventually is going to apply it in a really big way.
• 11:56
  SPEAKER_00: And so each parable is going to build and build and build, and I'm going to argue that's what's happening in 13 and 14, so we're going to look at them in order.
• 12:03
  SPEAKER_00: But first, a little context.
• 12:06
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus comes in the book of Luke to Israel, and he's telling them to repent.
• 12:12
  SPEAKER_00: And he's doing all these miracles, trying to show that he is the Christ, that he's the Messiah, whom they should put their faith in.
• 12:19
  SPEAKER_00: But he does one miracle in particular where he casts out a demon.
• 12:24
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 12:24
  SPEAKER_00: And the Pharisees look at him and say, You cast that demon out in the name of Satan.
• 12:30
  SPEAKER_00: And this is where Jesus draws the line.
• 12:32
  SPEAKER_00: This is, you know, for lack of a better term, the unforgivable sin.
• 12:35
  SPEAKER_00: And he begins from this point on to speak to them in parables, so they will not understand.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_00: They, like Jim talked about a handful of weeks ago, at that point they lose the opportunity to believe.
• 12:48
  SPEAKER_00: So Jesus is now going to speak to them in parables.
• 12:52
  SPEAKER_00: And so he goes into chapter 13 and he calls on the Pharisees to repent.
• 12:58
  SPEAKER_00: And then we're going to pick up in chapter, or sorry, in chapter 13, verse 10.
• 13:03
  SPEAKER_00: And the first thing that happens here is Jesus kicks this thing off by healing somebody on the Sabbath, God forbid.
• 13:11
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 13:11
  SPEAKER_00: There's a woman who has a spirit, something on her, and Jesus comes and he heals her.
• 13:19
  SPEAKER_00: And the Pharisees get a little bit upset about this, and they say, look, Jesus, you can heal on any day of the week, just not this day.
• 13:29
  SPEAKER_00: You cannot heal on the Sabbath.
• 13:32
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus says in verse 15 of chapter 13, he says, You hypocrites, does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger and lead it away to water it?
• 13:45
  SPEAKER_00: And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abram, whom Satan bound for 18 years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?
• 13:55
  SPEAKER_00: So the idea is that these Pharisees are saying he cannot heal on the Sabbath day, and he says, Well, you lead your ox or donkey to water because you care about them.
• 14:05
  SPEAKER_00: I care about this woman who has been tied up.
• 14:08
  SPEAKER_00: And so I'm going to heal her and lead her out.
• 14:11
  SPEAKER_00: And so the problem is the Pharisees are the leaders of Israel.
• 14:16
  SPEAKER_00: And they, as such, are to represent God's character and to lead God's people and care for them and shepherd them.
• 14:22
  SPEAKER_00: But they won't.
• 14:24
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus is going to have to do it, and when he does it, they don't like it.
• 14:28
  SPEAKER_00: Okay?
• 14:29
  SPEAKER_00: And so this will kind of kick off this sort of conflict that they're about to have.
• 14:35
  SPEAKER_00: And so that goes into verse 22.
• 14:38
  SPEAKER_00: That's the next parable we're going to be looking at.
• 14:40
  SPEAKER_00: And this is the parable of entering through the narrow door.
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_00: So Jesus is walking along, uh, starting in verse 22, and he's journeying to Jerusalem, and somebody comes up to him from, I believe, the Pharisaic party, and they say, Lord, will those who are saved be few?
• 14:59
  SPEAKER_00: In other words, how many people are going to be saved in the end?
• 15:02
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus says, Well, narrow is the door leading to the kingdom.
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, so the house in which he's picturing is a metaphor for this kingdom idea.
• 15:14
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 15:14
  SPEAKER_00: And the door, he's basically saying, the door to get in the kingdom is pretty narrow, and when that door shuts, it's shut.
• 15:22
  SPEAKER_00: There's no getting in once that door is closed.
• 15:25
  SPEAKER_00: The problem is, people are going to come to me, Jesus says, and they're going to be knocking on the door after it's closed, saying, Let us in.
• 15:33
  SPEAKER_00: And he's going to be like, Who are you?
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_00: And why should I let you in to this house?
• 15:40
  SPEAKER_00: And they're going to say, uh, in verse 26, We ate and drank in your presence, Jesus, and you taught in our streets.
• 15:50
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 15:50
  SPEAKER_00: So these are Jewish people who are coming up to Jesus who has shut the door and they're giving bad excuses and bad justifications.
• 15:57
  SPEAKER_00: In other words, they're saying, Jesus, uh, you came to my town.
• 16:02
  SPEAKER_00: See, we're Jews.
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_00: We're inheritors of this problem.
• 16:05
  SPEAKER_00: You came to our town, we hung out, we ate together.
• 16:08
  SPEAKER_00: I thought that meant that I was status with you.
• 16:11
  unknown: Right?
• 16:11
  SPEAKER_00: And so they're quoting all these horrible justifications for Jesus allowing them in.
• 16:15
  SPEAKER_00: And of course, Jesus is like, yeah, I don't know who you are.
• 16:18
  SPEAKER_00: You're not getting in this house.
• 16:20
  SPEAKER_00: And then he ends by saying that people are going to come from all around, north, south, east, and west, and they're going to be eating in the kingdom of God, but these self-righteous Pharisees won't be there because they won't repent.
• 16:33
  SPEAKER_00: And so I want to kind of make this point.
• 16:36
  SPEAKER_00: One's character consists of and is known by the things that it values.
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus from here on is going to contrast the values of the characters to show whether they are worthy to enter the kingdom.
• 16:51
  SPEAKER_00: So Jesus introduces this kingdom picture because he asks, How many are going in the kingdom?
• 16:56
  SPEAKER_00: So we introduce this house idea, and now he's going to say, you guys, he's going to from here on out evaluate the character of the Pharisees to see if their character is enough to open the door for them.
• 17:09
  SPEAKER_00: And he's going to continue on.
• 17:11
  SPEAKER_00: And so right off the bat, we see in this parable alone that the Pharisees' character is self-righteous.
• 17:16
  SPEAKER_00: They think I'm getting into the house because of who I am.
• 17:19
  SPEAKER_00: Because I'm a Jew.
• 17:21
  SPEAKER_00: And we hung out, Jesus.
• 17:24
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 17:25
  SPEAKER_00: But the proper character they should have is to be righteous by faith.
• 17:29
  SPEAKER_00: And so we go on to the next parable.
• 17:33
  SPEAKER_00: And so Jesus, beginning in chapter 14, verse 1, Jesus is invited to a Pharisee's house for a Sabbath dinner.
• 17:42
  SPEAKER_00: And the next three parables are going to take place at this dinner party.
• 17:46
  SPEAKER_00: And so Jesus attends.
• 17:48
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know why they invited him, because last time he was hanging out with Pharisees, he was saying, Woe to you, woe to you, woe to you.
• 17:53
  SPEAKER_00: And they're like, all right, we'll invite him, see what happens.
• 17:56
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 17:57
  SPEAKER_00: And in true Jesus form, Jesus goes to this Pharisee's house, right?
• 18:03
  SPEAKER_00: And he's standing there and he sees a man with dropsy.
• 18:06
  SPEAKER_00: And he looks at the Pharisees and says, Hey Pharisee, is it lawful for me to heal this man on the Sabbath?
• 18:11
  SPEAKER_00: And they're silent.
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_00: And it's an interesting question because these are Pharisees and they are quote unquote masters of the law.
• 18:21
  SPEAKER_00: They should know these things.
• 18:22
  SPEAKER_00: But they are silent.
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_00: And it's interesting because I've read a lot of commentaries that assume that the answer to this question is no, it is not lawful to heal on the Sabbath.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_00: But they say Jesus created the Sabbath, so he can do whatever the heck he wants.
• 18:37
  SPEAKER_00: But I don't think that's what's happening.
• 18:39
  SPEAKER_00: I think, in fact, Jesus is reminding them of the true purpose of the Sabbath.
• 18:43
  SPEAKER_00: Now, if you follow me with Isaiah 58, you don't have to turn there, but I'm going to read it verses 6 and 7 on the screen.
• 18:52
  SPEAKER_00: Isaiah 58 discusses God's intention for his fasts and Sabbath days.
• 19:00
  SPEAKER_00: And they're doing it improperly in Isaiah, and God calls them out on it.
• 19:04
  SPEAKER_00: And in verse 6 and 7 he says this Is this not the fast which I chose?
• 19:10
  SPEAKER_00: To loosen the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, to break every yoke?
• 19:20
  SPEAKER_00: Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into the house?
• 19:25
  SPEAKER_00: When you see the naked to cover him and not to hide yourself from your own flesh, that is, hide yourself from your own brothers in Israel?
• 19:34
  SPEAKER_00: The answer is yes, this is why he created it.
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_00: That the Sabbath wasn't just a day of rest, it was a day of resting from all else so that they could do righteousness.
• 19:44
  SPEAKER_00: That is, resting from all things so that they could care for their brother, the poor, the orphan, the widow, because that's what God cares about.
• 19:52
  SPEAKER_00: It was a day to be like God above all else.
• 19:56
  SPEAKER_00: And the Pharisees should know this, and it's probably why they say nothing, because they're like, this is a trap, and it is.
• 20:02
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus says, which one of you, Pharisees, will have a it says, it says, son or an ox.
• 20:10
  SPEAKER_00: Um the word son here can also be translated as foal or donkey, which is helpful in parenting if you have like some older kids.
• 20:19
  SPEAKER_00: And when you really like them, you can call them son, and when you don't like it, you can call them a donkey.
• 20:23
  SPEAKER_00: It's the same word, doesn't matter.
• 20:25
  SPEAKER_00: Anyway, just thought I'd throw that in there.
• 20:28
  SPEAKER_00: Um but he said, I think it's the idea is donkey, and I'll prove that by showing you what he's quoting.
• 20:35
  SPEAKER_00: But he says, which one of you will have a donkey or an ox fall into a well and will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?
• 20:46
  SPEAKER_00: And the answer is all of them would do this because you know they care about their stuff.
• 20:51
  SPEAKER_00: And he's, I think, referencing Deuteronomy 22.
• 20:55
  SPEAKER_00: Deuteronomy says, this part of the law, you shall not see your countryman's donkey or his ox fallen down on the way, and pay no attention to them.
• 21:04
  SPEAKER_00: You shall certainly help him to raise them up.
• 21:08
  SPEAKER_00: And so the whole idea of this parable is that you're supposed to be on the Sabbath day doing things to help other people.
• 21:15
  SPEAKER_00: So, yes, it is lawful to heal on the Sabbath, but instead, you you have no problem doing things that serve yourself.
• 21:22
  SPEAKER_00: You'll help your own donkey and ox, but you won't help your brother's donkey or ox.
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_00: Because you're doing it wrong.
• 21:29
  SPEAKER_00: And so the point of this parable, right, if we're focusing on the character of the Pharisees and seeing if they have the right character to enter into the door, uh, we found out in this parable that the Pharisees are self serving.
• 21:45
  SPEAKER_00: And they ought to be compassionate towards their brother, but they're not.
• 21:50
  SPEAKER_00: And so Jesus continues on.
• 21:53
  SPEAKER_00: And he just is he's just mean, just going and going and going.
• 21:56
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, he's not gonna stop anytime soon.
• 21:59
  SPEAKER_00: Uh and he He turns now, and he's noticing as he's sitting at this dinner table in the Pharisee's house that people are picking out places of honor at the dinner table.
• 22:11
  SPEAKER_00: And they're fighting, you know, to I'm gonna sit closest to the host or something like this.
• 22:16
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus says in verse 8 of chapter 14, when you are invited by somebody to a wedding feast, and again, this wedding feast is a metaphor for the kingdom of God, the house, the celebration, the wedding feast.
• 22:32
  SPEAKER_00: It's all a metaphor for the kingdom of God.
• 22:34
  SPEAKER_00: And he says, when you're invited to the kingdom, don't sit down in a place of honor, lest someone more distinguished than you be invited by him.
• 22:41
  SPEAKER_00: In other words, when you show up in the kingdom, don't assume that you're somebody and go and try to sit in that somebody spot, lest you're not as good as you think you are, and the master send you down and sit at the kitty table.
• 22:55
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 22:57
  SPEAKER_00: Instead, when you approach the kingdom, assume you're sitting at the kitty table.
• 23:03
  SPEAKER_00: And maybe then the master will come and say, Hey, I actually have this great place for you, and he will take you in front of everybody to this great place of honor.
• 23:12
  SPEAKER_00: And it won't be humiliating for you, it'll be very honoring to you.
• 23:18
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 23:18
  SPEAKER_00: And so the problem is basically he's saying, do not think too highly of yourselves, Pharisee, because when you are rejected, when that door is closed in your face, it's gonna be awkward.
• 23:29
  SPEAKER_00: Rather, be humble and you might just be surprised with the nice spot.
• 23:34
  SPEAKER_00: Don't assume you're worthy of the kingdom, and you might just get in.
• 23:38
  SPEAKER_00: Humble yourselves.
• 23:40
  SPEAKER_00: And so in verse 11, he says this for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.
• 23:48
  SPEAKER_00: Of course, the Pharisee is the one who exalts himself, and he's not gonna be let in.
• 23:53
  SPEAKER_00: But the one who humbles himself and repents and says, I'm not even worthy, will be let in.
• 23:58
  SPEAKER_00: And so he's gonna continue to build on this, but the character system that he's pointing out here is that the Pharisees are extremely arrogant.
• 24:08
  SPEAKER_00: But they ought to be humble.
• 24:11
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 24:11
  SPEAKER_00: And he continues on.
• 24:13
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus is not, again, he's not backing down.
• 24:16
  SPEAKER_00: He's gonna press on, and he turns to the host of the party.
• 24:22
  SPEAKER_00: He's just going straight to the source, right?
• 24:24
  SPEAKER_00: Host of the party, and he says in verse 12, uh basically, don't invite your friends and family.
• 24:32
  SPEAKER_00: He says, When you give a dinner or banquet, don't invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or your rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return, and you be repaid.
• 24:43
  SPEAKER_00: Instead, invite the poor, the sick, the lame, those who cannot repay you, because your payment will be at the resurrection of the righteous.
• 24:53
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 24:53
  SPEAKER_00: Don't just invite, uh don't just invite your family and friends, but invite the sick and the lame.
• 24:59
  SPEAKER_00: Why?
• 25:00
  SPEAKER_00: Because friends and family can repay, the sick and the lame cannot, and so do it for sacrifice because that's what God does for you.
• 25:07
  SPEAKER_00: Remember, these are the leaders of Israel.
• 25:09
  SPEAKER_00: This is what they ought to be doing.
• 25:11
  SPEAKER_00: And so the point is that the Pharisees invite those to the party who seem advantageous to invite, who will return the favor, right?
• 25:20
  SPEAKER_00: Who will be reciprocal because ultimately they care about status and they care about money.
• 25:28
  SPEAKER_00: But the true reward, Jesus says, comes at the resurrection and sacrifice will be rewarded, not self-righteousness and selfish ambition.
• 25:38
  SPEAKER_00: And so the point here is that the Pharisees' character is reciprocal in their relationships, but the proper character of the leader of Israel ought to be sacrificial in their relationships.
• 25:53
  SPEAKER_00: And so, uh, overhearing Jesus say this, some uh joker sitting around the table decides he's going to say something like, Blessed is everyone who eats bread in the kingdom of God.
• 26:05
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus just goes, and just locks in on this guy, and uh he gives him a parable.
• 26:11
  SPEAKER_00: And in this context, it's not a good thing to get a parable.
• 26:14
  SPEAKER_00: All these parables are condemnation for these people.
• 26:17
  SPEAKER_00: And so Jesus locks in on this guy who's like, I'm getting in the kingdom.
• 26:21
  SPEAKER_00: And he's like, we'll see about that.
• 26:22
  SPEAKER_00: And he starts giving this dude a parable.
• 26:25
  SPEAKER_00: And this is the parable of the dinner excuses, I call it.
• 26:29
  SPEAKER_00: And so, uh, beginning in uh verse 16, he said to him, A man once gave a great banquet and invited many.
• 26:39
  SPEAKER_00: That is, he threw the kingdom celebration party and he invited a bunch of people.
• 26:44
  SPEAKER_00: Namely, he invited the leaders of Israel.
• 26:47
  SPEAKER_00: They were to be the first to accept the gospel, but they don't.
• 26:51
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and he sends out his servants to go in, to go tell the invited guests that the dinner is ready.
• 26:58
  SPEAKER_00: It's ready.
• 27:00
  SPEAKER_00: Time to come in.
• 27:01
  SPEAKER_00: But they won't come.
• 27:03
  SPEAKER_00: And the servants come back to Jesus, come back to the host and say, Um, we went out and none of them will come.
• 27:11
  SPEAKER_00: He says, and the the the master gets angry and he says, Find then.
• 27:16
  SPEAKER_00: Go out to, you know, the cripple, go to the streets, find the crippled, the lame, uh, the poor, and tell them to come in.
• 27:22
  SPEAKER_00: And the servants are like, uh, Sir, we've already done this, and there's still room at the dinner table.
• 27:27
  SPEAKER_00: He says, Find then.
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_00: Go to the highways and to the hedges.
• 27:31
  SPEAKER_00: Well, let's interpret.
• 27:33
  SPEAKER_00: The invited dinner guests in this parable are the Pharisees.
• 27:36
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus is the master, of course, and he's sending out his disciples to alert these people that the kingdom is at hand.
• 27:45
  SPEAKER_00: The celebration is ready for you.
• 27:47
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 27:48
  SPEAKER_00: And uh, and the Pharisees make all kinds of excuses.
• 27:54
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 27:54
  SPEAKER_00: One of them says in verse 18, I bought a field, I must go and seed to it.
• 28:02
  SPEAKER_00: The other says, I bought five oak, uh, five yoke of oxen.
• 28:05
  SPEAKER_00: I have to go examine them.
• 28:06
  SPEAKER_00: And the other says, I just married a wife, I can't come.
• 28:11
  SPEAKER_00: In other words, these Pharisees are living their best life now.
• 28:15
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 28:15
  SPEAKER_00: These guys are so excited about what's going on in their own life that they reject this kingdom celebration that was offered to them.
• 28:23
  SPEAKER_00: Uh these are the these are the Joel Osteens of the first century.
• 28:28
  SPEAKER_00: That, you know, I'm living my best life now.
• 28:32
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 28:32
  SPEAKER_00: And so they come back and and they tell Jesus, uh, the Pharisees won't come.
• 28:38
  SPEAKER_00: And he says, fine then, go to the poor, the crippled, the lame.
• 28:41
  SPEAKER_00: And they all accept, they're humble, and they they repent and they get to come into this dinner feast, and there's still room.
• 28:47
  SPEAKER_00: And so Jesus says, go to the Gentiles.
• 28:51
  SPEAKER_00: That's the that's the highways and the hedges of the Roman Empire, right?
• 28:54
  SPEAKER_00: It's the Gentile nations.
• 28:56
  SPEAKER_00: And we know the story of Luke, right?
• 28:59
  SPEAKER_00: God, or Jesus comes saying, repent, the kingdom is at hand, they reject him, and God, or he sends his disciples to the Gentiles in order to make Israel jealous.
• 29:10
  SPEAKER_00: And this is that's what this parable is all about.
• 29:13
  SPEAKER_00: And it's focused on the fact that these Pharisees were so caught up in their own life and their own happenings that they didn't want to come in.
• 29:25
  SPEAKER_00: And so the value system is this the Pharisees' character is they value life now, they're living their best life.
• 29:33
  SPEAKER_00: But the proper character is they ought to value the future life in God's kingdom.
• 29:39
  SPEAKER_00: But they don't, they reject it because they think God's blessing them now.
• 29:44
  SPEAKER_00: And so we continue to build this picture of the Pharisee courtesy of Jesus parables.
• 29:51
  SPEAKER_00: And so he finally leaves this dinner party, and he's on his way, he's walking, and great Jewish crowds are accompanying him, and he turns to them, and in this one parable, summarizes all the parables up to this point that we've read.
• 30:09
  SPEAKER_00: All of the parables will build into why he says what he says right here.
• 30:14
  SPEAKER_00: It's kind of like the big snowball that we're gonna carry on into Luke 15.
• 30:18
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, and so he says this in Luke 14, verse 25.
• 30:24
  SPEAKER_00: He says, if anyone comes to me, this is 26, sorry, if anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.
• 30:38
  SPEAKER_00: Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.
• 30:42
  SPEAKER_00: Have you ever thought about this?
• 30:43
  SPEAKER_00: Why does he say this?
• 30:45
  SPEAKER_00: This has caused a lot of distress for a lot of people.
• 30:48
  SPEAKER_00: But if you understand it in its context, if you read the other parables into this one as is intended to be, it makes perfect sense.
• 30:56
  SPEAKER_00: Remember how he said when you throw a party, don't invite your family and your friends and your rich neighbors, those who can repay you?
• 31:03
  SPEAKER_00: This is what he's saying to the Pharisees.
• 31:06
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 31:06
  SPEAKER_00: Don't hate your friends and family equals don't just focus on those who can repay you.
• 31:12
  unknown: Right?
• 31:13
  SPEAKER_00: They're not gonna get you into the kingdom.
• 31:15
  SPEAKER_00: And then when he says, hate your own life, obviously you don't hate yourself.
• 31:20
  SPEAKER_00: The point is, the previous, uh the previous parable, the Pharisees valued their own life happenings over the kingdom celebration.
• 31:30
  SPEAKER_00: He says, if you don't reject that life, uh if you don't, if you don't, he's it saying to them, don't overvalue life now, value the future kingdom.
• 31:39
  SPEAKER_00: And if anybody does not do these things, they cannot be my disciples.
• 31:44
  SPEAKER_00: And then when he says, pick up the cross and follow me, right?
• 31:47
  SPEAKER_00: He's telling them to sacrifice just as he did before.
• 31:51
  SPEAKER_00: He's continuing the same parables that he's said all along.
• 31:55
  SPEAKER_00: He's just hammering at home in their heads.
• 32:00
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 32:01
  SPEAKER_00: And then he goes on.
• 32:02
  SPEAKER_00: And he gives an illustration of a tower in a battle.
• 32:07
  SPEAKER_00: And it's this illustration where he says, a good contractor, a good builder doesn't set out to build a giant tower without first calculating the cost and figuring out if he has enough to complete it.
• 32:19
  SPEAKER_00: Because if he doesn't complete it, that's embarrassing.
• 32:22
  unknown: Right?
• 32:23
  SPEAKER_00: Same thing with the general.
• 32:24
  SPEAKER_00: He says, what general goes out to battle against a huge army with a small army without first calculating and seeing if he has enough people to even take that army on.
• 32:34
  SPEAKER_00: It's gonna be quite embarrassing when he is utterly destroyed.
• 32:39
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 32:40
  SPEAKER_00: And the point is, make sure that you have enough.
• 32:46
  SPEAKER_00: Consider if you have enough before you try.
• 32:48
  SPEAKER_00: In other words, the meaning is make sure that your family, your friends, your best life now, and your self-righteousness are all enough to get you into the kingdom before you bank on them.
• 33:02
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 33:03
  SPEAKER_00: Lest you get locked out and Jesus says, I don't know you.
• 33:07
  SPEAKER_00: Make sure that your self-righteousness is enough to get you in that door before you bet your life on it.
• 33:14
  SPEAKER_00: That's the point.
• 33:15
  SPEAKER_00: And then he says to them, Your s uh, here we go.
• 33:19
  SPEAKER_00: If you do val I gotta say this, if you do value those things more, make sure it's all enough to get you in the door.
• 33:28
  SPEAKER_00: It's a rhyme.
• 33:29
  SPEAKER_00: I thought it'd be fun.
• 33:31
  SPEAKER_00: Anyways.
• 33:32
  SPEAKER_00: Um points there though.
• 33:34
  SPEAKER_00: Uh but then he goes on to say, uh, you Pharisees have lost your saltiness.
• 33:39
  SPEAKER_00: In other words, Israel was to be salt and light to the world, right?
• 33:42
  SPEAKER_00: They were to take the gospels to the gospel to the nations.
• 33:46
  SPEAKER_00: But they don't.
• 33:48
  SPEAKER_00: Instead, they distort the word of God, they build themselves up in self-righteousness, and therefore they lose their testimony.
• 33:56
  SPEAKER_00: And they're not salty anymore.
• 33:58
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus said, the only thing, there's no good use for not salty salt except for to be thrown out.
• 34:05
  SPEAKER_00: And so Jesus is threatening them with rejection.
• 34:09
  SPEAKER_00: If you don't get it together, if you don't repent, uh you're only good to be thrown out.
• 34:17
  SPEAKER_00: Because you're self-righteous, you're arrogant, you're good for nothing.
• 34:24
  SPEAKER_00: And so this is what we carry into Luke 15.
• 34:27
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 34:28
  SPEAKER_00: This is this is sort of the comparison, right?
• 34:30
  SPEAKER_00: That the Pharisee's character is self-righteous, self-serving, arrogant, reciprocal in its relate in his relationships.
• 34:39
  SPEAKER_00: But the proper character ought to be righteous by faith, not by self-righteousness.
• 34:45
  SPEAKER_00: They ought to be compassionate instead of self-serving, they ought to be humble instead of arrogant, and they ought to sacrifice for people instead of expecting things in return.
• 34:54
  SPEAKER_00: This is what was required of God's, of the people who are to lead God's people.
• 35:00
  SPEAKER_00: And they aren't living up to it.
• 35:04
  SPEAKER_00: And then we see their value system, too.
• 35:07
  SPEAKER_00: See, the Pharisees value their possessions, they value their ox and their donkey.
• 35:12
  SPEAKER_00: But Jesus values people, he values healing those people who are suffering in Israel.
• 35:19
  SPEAKER_00: They value their own life now, and God and Jesus value the future kingdom life.
• 35:26
  SPEAKER_00: And they ought to as well.
• 35:30
  SPEAKER_00: And so this is the snowball that takes us to this question: Does Jesus really leave the 99 for the one lost sheep?
• 35:38
  SPEAKER_00: Of course, my answer is no.
• 35:40
  SPEAKER_00: I believe that the shepherd in this particular narrative, in this particular uh parable, is the Pharisee.
• 35:49
  SPEAKER_00: And here's why.
• 35:51
  SPEAKER_00: Go to me to chapter 15, verse 1.
• 35:54
  SPEAKER_00: He says, Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to him.
• 36:00
  SPEAKER_00: And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, This man receives sinners and eats with them.
• 36:06
  SPEAKER_00: And so Jesus is receiving tax collectors and sinners who are repenting, and he's showing them mercy, and he's welcoming them in, and the Pharisees hate it.
• 36:18
  SPEAKER_00: Why?
• 36:20
  SPEAKER_00: Because they don't care about what God cares about.
• 36:23
  SPEAKER_00: They don't have his character, period.
• 36:27
  SPEAKER_00: And they should, but they don't.
• 36:30
  SPEAKER_00: And so they say, uh, this man eats with sinners, which is ironic because he's been eating with them this whole time.
• 36:38
  SPEAKER_00: And they don't, they're so arrogant that they can't realize that they're the sinners he's going after.
• 36:44
  unknown: Right?
• 36:45
  SPEAKER_00: Uh and so he's eating with them, but see, in their mind, they think, well, we ate and drank with you, Jesus.
• 36:50
  SPEAKER_00: That means we're tight.
• 36:53
  SPEAKER_00: That means nothing.
• 36:55
  SPEAKER_00: But clearly here they think, you know, if you eat and drink with us, we must not be sinners.
• 37:00
  SPEAKER_00: But they're arrogant.
• 37:01
  SPEAKER_00: Uh and so they're mad that Jesus is showing mercy to these quote-unquote sinners.
• 37:06
  SPEAKER_00: And so Jesus turns and he starts telling them this parable as a result of what they had just said.
• 37:11
  SPEAKER_00: He said, What man of you having a hundred sheep, if he lost one of them, does not leave the 99 in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it?
• 37:23
  SPEAKER_00: Point.
• 37:24
  SPEAKER_00: The Pharisee chases the one sheep because he cares about his possessions.
• 37:29
  SPEAKER_00: Period.
• 37:30
  SPEAKER_00: It's the same terminology that he used before.
• 37:33
  SPEAKER_00: What man of you having a donkey or an ox if he fell down?
• 37:36
  SPEAKER_00: He says it here.
• 37:36
  SPEAKER_00: What man of you having a hundred sheep?
• 37:39
  SPEAKER_00: The point is that sometimes in the Bible, uh, sheep are just sheep.
• 37:46
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 37:48
  SPEAKER_00: We see we have this theology of sheep, you know, and shepherds, and we, you know, Jesus is the great shepherd, and we're his sheep, and so we import this whole thing into this text.
• 37:56
  SPEAKER_00: We say, Oh, I'm the sheep, and Jesus chases after me.
• 38:00
  SPEAKER_00: But sometimes sheep are just sheep, and sometimes, you know, fruit in the Bible is just fruit.
• 38:05
  SPEAKER_00: Like grapes and oranges and stuff, right?
• 38:10
  SPEAKER_00: You you don't always have to put, we have to read the context to figure out what's happening.
• 38:16
  SPEAKER_00: And so it's just sheep because uh in the previous chapter it was just oxen donkey, oxen and donkeys.
• 38:24
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 38:24
  SPEAKER_00: So they go after their sheep because that's what they care about.
• 38:29
  SPEAKER_00: And he goes on to say, and when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing, and when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, and he says to them, uh, okay, he puts his thing on his shoulders and he's rejoicing because he has found his lost possession.
• 38:47
  SPEAKER_00: He has left all the other sheep behind after this one because he's so greedy, he can't stand to lose even one bit of value.
• 38:56
  SPEAKER_00: And so he leaves him in the wilderness, he goes after the one, and he's fired up over this one because he found it and he didn't lose any money.
• 39:03
  SPEAKER_00: Hopefully, the wolves didn't get to the other sheep.
• 39:05
  SPEAKER_00: We don't know.
• 39:07
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 39:08
  SPEAKER_00: And then he goes on to say, and when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.
• 39:20
  SPEAKER_00: Doesn't that sound familiar?
• 39:22
  SPEAKER_00: He throws a party for his friends and family.
• 39:24
  SPEAKER_00: Didn't we just read something about not throwing parties for your friends and family, but to those who can't repay you?
• 39:30
  SPEAKER_00: This is the Pharisee through and through.
• 39:32
  SPEAKER_00: He's so greedy, he goes after the one sheep, he finds it, and then he throws a party for his friends and family.
• 39:39
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus is carrying all this same imagery, or Luke, as he's tying them together, is carrying all this same imagery through to this parable.
• 39:48
  SPEAKER_00: And then the contrast.
• 39:51
  SPEAKER_00: He says, just so I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous persons, quote unquote, who need no repentance.
• 40:04
  SPEAKER_00: And so the contrast is this that heaven or God and Jesus rejoice over sinners who repent, not over people who are self-righteous.
• 40:14
  SPEAKER_00: See, the Pharisees view themselves as self-righteous.
• 40:17
  SPEAKER_00: There's no such thing as 99 righteous people who have no need for repentance.
• 40:20
  SPEAKER_00: That's not a thing.
• 40:22
  SPEAKER_00: But the Pharisees believe that's what they are.
• 40:24
  SPEAKER_00: Later on, Luke says, now the Pharisees, believing in themselves that they were righteous, is just evidence enough.
• 40:31
  SPEAKER_00: They think they're righteous in their self, but they're not.
• 40:34
  SPEAKER_00: And Jesus and God, they do not value those who are self-righteous, they value those who repent.
• 40:42
  SPEAKER_00: And so, uh, this is the main point, right?
• 40:46
  SPEAKER_00: That uh what causes the Pharisee to rejoice?
• 40:49
  SPEAKER_00: So the focus is not on the lost sheep, the focus is on what causes somebody to rejoice.
• 40:56
  SPEAKER_00: Returned possessions or returned people?
• 41:01
  SPEAKER_00: Pharisees like their possessions, God likes his people.
• 41:06
  SPEAKER_00: So the point is that the Pharisees don't value what God values, but as the leaders of God's people, they should.
• 41:12
  SPEAKER_00: See, the Pharisees are supposed to be representing God, but Jesus is proving that in fact they are nothing like God.
• 41:20
  SPEAKER_00: They do not value what he values, they do not have his character, they don't have enough to build the tower to heaven, and they will be shut out of the kingdom if they don't humble themselves and repent like these sinners.
• 41:36
  SPEAKER_00: This is the point.
• 41:38
  SPEAKER_00: And the next parable is the same thing.
• 41:41
  SPEAKER_00: See, the woman has ten coins, she loses a coin, and she searches everywhere for it, she finds it, she rejoices, and guess what?
• 41:47
  SPEAKER_00: She throws a party for her friends and family.
• 41:51
  SPEAKER_00: Why?
• 41:52
  SPEAKER_00: Because she cares about her money.
• 41:55
  SPEAKER_00: But God in heaven rejoices over one sinner who repents.
• 42:00
  SPEAKER_00: That's what they care about.
• 42:04
  SPEAKER_00: Does that make sense?
• 42:06
  SPEAKER_00: So he's continuing on through here, and then you know, we have also the argument from the following kind of what comes after it.
• 42:14
  SPEAKER_00: And there's a lot that comes after it, he won't be able to hit it all.
• 42:17
  SPEAKER_00: Uh but the big thing is Jesus kind of, he doesn't even skip a beat and he says, and he said, There was a man who had two sons.
• 42:23
  SPEAKER_00: And he continues on, and he is continuing on with this parable idea, right?
• 42:28
  SPEAKER_00: And so for at least three more chapters, he's still hammering them with this same concept that you're not getting in the kingdom because you don't have the character of God.
• 42:37
  SPEAKER_00: And so I'd like to, you know, just see how Jesus applies this by kind of overviewing the parable of the prodigal son.
• 42:47
  SPEAKER_00: We can't read it all.
• 42:48
  SPEAKER_00: I don't have time, unfortunately, but I'll try to tell the story the best I can.
• 42:53
  SPEAKER_00: Uh so we'll go to the parable of the lost son.
• 42:57
  SPEAKER_00: Verse 11 of chapter 15.
• 42:59
  SPEAKER_00: He said, There was a man who had two sons, and the younger of them said to his father, Give me the share, the portion of my inheritance.
• 43:06
  SPEAKER_00: Uh younger son comes up and says, Dad, you know, I've been thinking, and I really want my inheritance now.
• 43:11
  SPEAKER_00: I don't want to wait for you to die.
• 43:13
  SPEAKER_00: Uh and the father is like, All right.
• 43:16
  SPEAKER_00: And so the text says that he divides his life between the two boys.
• 43:20
  SPEAKER_00: And the younger son takes that wealth and he runs off to a far land.
• 43:26
  SPEAKER_00: And he squanders this wealth, and as a result, a famine comes.
• 43:31
  SPEAKER_00: And see, this whole picture is representing the kingdom and Israel and all this stuff.
• 43:36
  SPEAKER_00: And so the the picture, the younger son is Israel, in a sense, and and he's taken God's inheritance and he's run out and he's squandered it.
• 43:46
  SPEAKER_00: And he's dishonored his father, right?
• 43:49
  SPEAKER_00: And as a result, according to the law, famine comes.
• 43:53
  SPEAKER_00: When Israel does bad things, God brings famine in order to get them to return to him.
• 44:00
  SPEAKER_00: And just like Israel, instead of returning to his father, he goes to a Gentile.
• 44:07
  SPEAKER_00: Israel had this problem all the time, right?
• 44:09
  SPEAKER_00: When famine would come, bad things would come, they'd run to the Gentiles and to the Gentiles' gods, instead of running to Yahweh, who wanted them and who would restore them.
• 44:18
  SPEAKER_00: And so it says that the younger son ran and he joined himself to a Gentile.
• 44:23
  SPEAKER_00: In other words, he entered into a covenant relationship, which for an Israelite is a no-no.
• 44:27
  SPEAKER_00: You don't do that.
• 44:29
  SPEAKER_00: And as a result, God brings more famine on him.
• 44:32
  SPEAKER_00: Not to punish him, but to get him to return to his father.
• 44:35
  SPEAKER_00: And sure enough, even the Gentiles won't give him a portion of their food.
• 44:40
  SPEAKER_00: He's hanging out with the pigs, and he's eating what's left over from what they eat.
• 44:44
  SPEAKER_00: And he says, Surely, how many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger?
• 44:53
  SPEAKER_00: I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before you I am no longer worthy to be called your son.
• 45:04
  SPEAKER_00: Treat me as one of your hired servants.
• 45:07
  SPEAKER_00: So he has this plan to return to his father, and he's rehearsed this whole speech.
• 45:11
  SPEAKER_00: And see, he's representing the sinners who are repenting, and Jesus is receiving them.
• 45:16
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 45:17
  SPEAKER_00: And he's on his way back, and the Father, you know, having been sit he's been sitting on his porch for weeks or months, just waiting for a dot to pop up on the horizon, and just the hopes that maybe, maybe it was his son.
• 45:32
  SPEAKER_00: And he sees a dot coming on the horizon, and he gets up and he sprints to him, just hoping that it's his son.
• 45:38
  SPEAKER_00: And as he gets closer, he can see it is his son.
• 45:41
  SPEAKER_00: And as the distance begins to close, the son begins to give his little speech.
• 45:47
  SPEAKER_00: And he says, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before you I'm no longer worthy to be called your son.
• 45:53
  SPEAKER_00: And he can't even finish his speech.
• 45:55
  SPEAKER_00: He can't even get out.
• 45:56
  SPEAKER_00: Make me as one of your hired servants.
• 45:58
  SPEAKER_00: And the father has already gotten to him, lifted him up, put a robe over him, put the signet ring on his finger, and said, You're part of the family.
• 46:07
  SPEAKER_00: And they're rejoicing.
• 46:09
  SPEAKER_00: See, this is what Jesus does when a sinner repents.
• 46:15
  SPEAKER_00: And he restores him to the family, and he tells the servant, Go kill the fattened calf, for we're going to celebrate.
• 46:20
  SPEAKER_00: For my son was dead, and now he's alive.
• 46:23
  SPEAKER_00: He was lost, and now he's found.
• 46:26
  SPEAKER_00: See, that's what God cares about finding.
• 46:28
  SPEAKER_00: Lost people.
• 46:32
  SPEAKER_00: So the scene turns to the older son, who represents the Pharisee in this story.
• 46:39
  SPEAKER_00: And the older son notices all this commotion, right?
• 46:44
  SPEAKER_00: There's dancing and there's music, and he's like, he gets the servant, he's like, What's going on in there?
• 46:50
  SPEAKER_00: Servant says, Your brother has returned.
• 46:52
  SPEAKER_00: And your father took the fattened calf and killed it, and they're celebrating.
• 46:56
  SPEAKER_00: And the older son turns to his father and says, All these years in anger, he says, All these years I have served you.
• 47:07
  SPEAKER_00: All these, look at all that I've I've worked for you every day of my life.
• 47:13
  SPEAKER_00: Look at all that I've done for you.
• 47:15
  SPEAKER_00: Look at the wealth that I've created for you.
• 47:17
  SPEAKER_00: I'm your older son.
• 47:18
  SPEAKER_00: I'm the one who should inherit this.
• 47:22
  SPEAKER_00: And you never gave me a goat so I could celebrate with my friends.
• 47:26
  SPEAKER_00: Sound familiar?
• 47:28
  SPEAKER_00: See, what the father cares about is returned son.
• 47:31
  SPEAKER_00: What the older son cares about is getting a goat so he can celebrate with his friends.
• 47:37
  SPEAKER_00: So Jesus is telling you all you need to know to apply this to the Pharisee.
• 47:43
  SPEAKER_00: And the Father says, son, I don't care about any of that.
• 47:47
  SPEAKER_00: All that I have is yours.
• 47:50
  SPEAKER_00: You didn't need to do any of those things to get this from me.
• 47:52
  SPEAKER_00: I would have given it to you anyways.
• 47:55
  SPEAKER_00: I don't care what you are or what you've done.
• 47:58
  SPEAKER_00: I just want you to come in the house and celebrate because your brother was lost and now he's found.
• 48:07
  SPEAKER_00: And of course, uh we expect the older son does not care.
• 48:14
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not coming in that Godforsaken house.
• 48:16
  SPEAKER_00: Bunch of losers in there, a bunch of sinners repenting.
• 48:19
  SPEAKER_00: You know.
• 48:21
  SPEAKER_00: And he's arrogant.
• 48:23
  SPEAKER_00: And he doesn't repent.
• 48:25
  SPEAKER_00: And he doesn't, he proves that he's nothing like the Father.
• 48:29
  SPEAKER_00: And so just to wrap it up, you know, the next few parables are just very basic.
• 48:34
  SPEAKER_00: He basically tells a parable of the unrighteous steward.
• 48:38
  SPEAKER_00: That the Pharisees, they did not steward Israel well, so their stewardship is being stripped from them.
• 48:44
  SPEAKER_00: And at the end of that parable, it says, Now the Pharisees were lovers of money.
• 48:48
  SPEAKER_00: You need any more proof?
• 48:49
  SPEAKER_00: He just says it.
• 48:51
  SPEAKER_00: We're listening to all these things, and they were scoffing.
• 48:54
  SPEAKER_00: They still don't understand it's about them.
• 48:55
  SPEAKER_00: They aren't supposed to understand because Jesus speaks them in parables for a reason.
• 49:00
  SPEAKER_00: They scoff at him, and so he gets increasingly specific over the next few parables.
• 49:05
  SPEAKER_00: He goes to the rich man and Lazarus, just in case you were confused.
• 49:09
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 49:10
  SPEAKER_00: And he's gonna focus on the rich man and Lazarus.
• 49:13
  SPEAKER_00: The rich man goes to hell, Lazarus goes to heaven.
• 49:15
  SPEAKER_00: The rich man's self-righteous, Lazarus is humble.
• 49:19
  SPEAKER_00: Doesn't work out so well for the rich man.
• 49:21
  SPEAKER_00: And if they're still not getting it, and they don't, uh, there's a Pharisee and a tax collector.
• 49:28
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus could not get any more specific than this, and they're still not gonna get it.
• 49:32
  SPEAKER_00: Right in chapter 18, verse 9.
• 49:35
  SPEAKER_00: Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee, the other a tax collector.
• 49:39
  SPEAKER_00: Guess what the Pharisee did?
• 49:41
  SPEAKER_00: He walks up and he says, Lord, thank you for making me unique.
• 49:45
  SPEAKER_00: You know?
• 49:46
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not like anybody else, especially this tax collector here.
• 49:49
  SPEAKER_00: I tithe.
• 49:50
  SPEAKER_00: I'm an Israelite.
• 49:52
  SPEAKER_00: I do all these great things for you, just like the older brother said, by the way.
• 49:57
  SPEAKER_00: Look at all these great things I do for you.
• 49:59
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
• 50:00
  SPEAKER_00: And meanwhile, the tax collectors, he won't even come near.
• 50:04
  SPEAKER_00: And he's got his face to the ground.
• 50:06
  SPEAKER_00: He can't even look up to heaven.
• 50:07
  SPEAKER_00: He's on his hands and knees and he's beating his chest, saying, Lord, I'm not even worthy.
• 50:13
  SPEAKER_00: Have mercy on me, a sinner.
• 50:16
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus says, one of those two guys walked away justified, and it wasn't the Pharisee.
• 50:22
  SPEAKER_00: It's the whole point all the way through.
• 50:25
  SPEAKER_00: So the application is simply this.
• 50:29
  SPEAKER_00: What do we want to learn?
• 50:35
  SPEAKER_00: It's not that Jesus chases after you, you know, and leaves everybody else behind.
• 50:40
  SPEAKER_00: That's not the point of this parable.
• 50:42
  SPEAKER_00: The point of this parable is this: don't be like the Pharisee.
• 50:46
  SPEAKER_00: Value what God values.
• 50:49
  SPEAKER_00: Be like God.
• 50:50
  SPEAKER_00: Don't be somebody who accepts the mercy of God and the blessings of God and refuses to give it to others.
• 50:58
  SPEAKER_00: See, we as believers can so easily be tempted back into Phariseeism.
• 51:03
  SPEAKER_00: Say, oh, God gave me mercy, I love that.
• 51:06
  SPEAKER_00: But I don't like when other people get it.
• 51:08
  SPEAKER_00: And I certainly am not going to give it.
• 51:10
  SPEAKER_00: That's what the Pharisees did.
• 51:12
  SPEAKER_00: Pharisees are self-righteous, self-serving, arrogant, reciprocal.
• 51:16
  SPEAKER_00: Don't be like that.
• 51:17
  SPEAKER_00: Be righteous by faith, compassionate, humble, sacrificial.
• 51:21
  SPEAKER_00: My final point is this: don't make it all about you.
• 51:25
  SPEAKER_00: Realize it's about him.
• 51:27
  SPEAKER_00: See, when you read Scripture, the temptation is to read and just put yourself in every verse.
• 51:33
  SPEAKER_00: And when you do that, when you make it more about you, it's less about him.
• 51:40
  SPEAKER_00: And this is here to emphasize the character of God.
• 51:43
  SPEAKER_00: Don't read it to ask, how does it fit me?
• 51:47
  SPEAKER_00: Read it to ask who is God and what's he like?
• 51:50
  SPEAKER_00: And you'll find that he's merciful, he's compassionate, he's slow to anger, he's abounding in loyal love.
• 51:58
  SPEAKER_00: And we get to watch it take place here so we know exactly how it applies to our lives.
• 52:03
  SPEAKER_00: Because, see, he welcomes us back in the same way that he welcomed that younger son.
• 52:09
  SPEAKER_00: He wants you to be in the house with him.
• 52:13
  SPEAKER_00: So be humble.
• 52:15
  SPEAKER_00: Let's pray.
• 52:16
  SPEAKER_00: Father, we thank you for your word.
• 52:20
  SPEAKER_00: Um and my prayer this morning is that even one person comes away from this with a deeper understanding of who you are.
• 52:30
  SPEAKER_00: Lord, we we know that sometimes we don't always understand everything in your word and we get it wrong sometimes.
• 52:36
  SPEAKER_00: But Lord, we ask that you would guide us and lead us to understand it the way you've communicated it so that we can uh know your intention.
• 52:44
  SPEAKER_00: We can know your heart and know how to best represent you in the time that we have.
• 52:50
  SPEAKER_00: Lord, more than uh more than anything, help us to be humble.
• 52:54
  SPEAKER_00: Help us to rely on your mercy and grace and not our own self righteousness.
• 52:59
  SPEAKER_00: Lord, we love you so much and we're so thankful.
• 53:02
  SPEAKER_00: In Jesus' name we pray.
• 53:04
  SPEAKER_00: Amen.
• 53:05
  SPEAKER_00: All right, have a good morning.