[00:00:03] Speaker A: Welcome to the Erickson Covenant Podcast. We are so glad that you've joined us today.
We confess that we don't have all the answers, but as a community, we seek to find and follow Jesus and to discover daily the life he has always wanted for us.
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[00:00:38] Speaker B: Welcome back to our masterclass in the Gospel of Luke.
The Gospel of Luke, of course, is one of four narratives given to us about the life, the teachings, the death and the resurrection of Jesus the Messiah. And we've been studying this gospel through the lens of the apprentice, and we've been doing it for years.
As apprentices of Jesus, we watch and we learn from Jesus himself. We're slowly learning the trade of our master Jesus, so that we become, to put it this way, competent Kingdom practitioners, trusting Jesus with our lives, obeying his teaching, loving our neighbors, applying what he has said to all of our lives, and proclaiming the good news of who Jesus is and what he has done to save us all and to reconcile the world back to His Father.
Being apprentices of Jesus means that we've been studying the Gospel of Luke. More like it's a training manual for activation as opposed to a textbook for some exam that should make you breathe a sigh of relief for a moment until it drops and you realize what that actually means.
You have to put it into practice.
You have to come on a Sunday morning ready to move with what you hear, because we want to be activated as apprentices, as disciples. Now, we're now in the last few chapters, we're getting near the end of the Gospel of Luke. And in this final section, we're going to see Jesus finish the mission that his Father gave to him. And as we watch him do that, we're going to learn something about what it means for us to finish, to complete, to follow through on the mission that Jesus has given to us.
But I need to give some recap, don't I? Because it's been a long time. Where have we been so far? Well, taking you all the way back to 2022.
Joke. I'm not going to take you back to 22. How about just back to Easter of this year, Easter of 2026. That's where we left off, the Gospel of Luke. And we had just completed a juicy section in Luke chapters nine through 19, and it featured Jesus taking a big long walk to Jerusalem in 9:51. We read these words as the time approached for him. That's Jesus to be taken up into heaven, which means crucified, the died, buried, rise again, ascend to the Father, all that's wrapped up. Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.
And in Luke's gospel, this represents a significant marker in how he writes his narrative, because it's at that point Jesus turns and begins to head toward Jerusalem. And then for 10 chapters, we have him walking toward Jerusalem and he's filled with this focused determination, knowing that when he gets there, he's going to be rejected, he's going to be crucified. He tells his disciples three times that this is going to happen.
And so he starts his march.
And those 10 chapters, they're meaty, they're juicy, they're dripping off the elbows, you know, chock full of kingdom teaching, miraculous healings, personal engagements, lots of conflict and judgment, warnings of what's going to happen if God's people reject Jesus, their Messiah. It is a master class in following Jesus. And if you're, you know, eager for some more, it's all on YouTube, it's all on Apple podcasts, it's all on Spotify. You can go back and you can go through it all, but it was easy to get lost in chapter 10 and forget that all that while Jesus was walking through Jerusalem. So Luke wants us to see that. And he ends this big walk with a really, a really big event. It's capped off with the famous triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. When he rides in on a donkey, he's hailed as Israel's long awaited Messiah king. As the crowds are waving branches and shouting Hosanna and the religious leaders are spitting rocks. And we celebrated that on Palm Sunday back at the end of March when Chase, I mean Jesus, rode in on Sunday morning on a donkey that Abby Pryor made for us when she was an intern here.
I think we still have that donkey somewhere.
Well, just before his triumphal ride was done, Jesus wept over Jerusalem and he foretold it's coming destruction at the hands of Rome, something that happened just a generation later in AD 70. And then hopping off his donkey in front of this huge, sprawling temple complex, what's the first thing that Jesus did upon arriving in Jerusalem? Let's pick up at the end of chapter 19 of Luke. And this sets the stage for today's passage. Luke 19:45. When Jesus entered the temple courts, he began to drive out those who were selling.
It is Written, he said to them. And then he pulls two quotes, one from Isaiah, one from Jeremiah. It is written, he said to them, my house will be a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of robbers.
Every day he was teaching at the temple, but the chief priests, the teachers of the law, and the leaders among the people were trying to kill him.
Yet they could not find any way to do it because all the people hung his words.
So as we launch now into Luke chapter 20, we need to have all of this ringing in our ears. If you can bring it with you as we go forward. Jesus is acting now as the one who has the authority at the temple. And the guys who've been running the show, the chief priests, the teachers of the law, those guys, the leaders among the people, they are livid at his audacity, and they are trying to figure out how they can knock him off. And so these leaders start sending their cronies to trip Jesus up. They want him to say something so incriminating and so blasphemous that they can, ah, gotcha. Discredit him and destroy him. That's the setting of what happens in the next number of weeks as we look at Luke. Not next week, that's CR Sunday, but as we go forward, looking in. Luke is the setting because all of the conflicts that roll out, set up and lead to Jesus. Betrayal, arrest, mock trial, crucifixion, and of course, resurrection. It all sets it up well. With this mounting tension in mind, let's walk through Luke chapter 20, verses 1 through 19. And then we'll step back and ask how this opening conflict, this opening parable, helps us understand how we're to finish the mission Jesus has given to us. So I encourage you to pull out one of these paper Bibles.
You familiar with these anymore?
I'm actually gonna make an appeal to you that you try.
Try a paper Bible this year when you come to church.
Now, I know I encourage you to read the YouVersion digital app, all that. I get it. Great. But bring a paper Bible. There are some in the seats today. Bring a paper Bible. Because we've been encouraging our kids, we're encouraging our Bible base camp. Kids, bring your physical Bible. Start marking it up, start writing in it. Bring it like you're ready to study it so that you can be activated. So bring your paper Bible for today.
There's some under the seats.
You know, feel free to look at a neighbor's. Lean in and let's. Let's dive into this. So we're starting with chapter 20. And let's begin to read. Here's how. Remember, all this is in the background. One day, as Jesus was teaching the people in the temple courts and proclaiming the good news, the chief priests and teachers of the law, together with the elders, came up to him.
Tell us by what authority you are doing these things. They said, who gave you this authority?
Now, tell me, is this a genuine question from an honest seeker?
Not at all.
The same lineup of men, we were just told they're trying to kill him.
And so this is very clearly a trick question, a devious inquiry that is designed to trap Jesus into saying something so overt, the Son of God, Israel's Messiah, whatever, that they then can accuse him of blasphemy and pounce on him.
Now, take note. This question about authority is directly connected to what Jesus has been doing. I mean, the guy rode in like a king, he pronounced doom on Jerusalem, he received praise from the crowds. He's driving the sacrificial animals out of the temple, for crying out loud, and then proceeds to then stick around and teach people a good news of the kingdom. All the while, they look on and doing this without any permission or any regard for the big boys at the temple, the ones who thought they were the ones in charge. So this is the equivalent of, who do you think you are?
This young upstart rabbi acting as though he's in charge. He's got the run of the place, the authority to say and do this and do that. And they completely and utterly reject his claim to authority, his teaching as well. Tell us by what authority you're doing these things. Who gave you the authority? That's not an innocent question.
It's designed to trap him. But actually, the answer is quite simple, isn't it?
I mean, the answer is, my father gave me this authority. I'm doing these things under his authority. And what's interesting is, of course, Jesus, in other gospel passages, like Gospel of John, for example, that's exactly what he says to them when asked. He'll tell them, I'm doing this because my father told me to do it. Everything you see me doing, I do it because the Father tells me.
But here, on this occasion, knowing their deceitfulness, knowing what they're up to, knowing that it's coming down to the crunch, he won't give them what they want.
So he turns the tables and traps them instead. Let's keep reading, he says, I will also ask a question. Tell me, John's baptism, was it from heaven or of human origin? Now, Jesus is referring to a man named John the Baptist here. And he was highly regarded as a prophet. And he had prepared the way for Jesus by announcing that the Messiah was coming and calling the people to repent. And he was a big deal. And. And lots of people, thousands of people, came and were baptized by John in the Jordan river as a sign of their repentance, as a sign that their hearts were ready for who God was going to send. And John himself pointed Jesus out to the crowds. So that's who they're referring to. Jesus asked them, you tell me who John was connected to. How does he put it? Was it from heaven or of human origin? Well, they discussed it among themselves, verse 5, and said, if we say from heaven, he'll ask, why didn't you believe him?
Great question.
But if we say of human origin, all the people will stone us because they're persuaded that John was a prophet.
So they answered, we don't know where it was from.
Jesus said, neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.
Jesus knows that these leaders rejected John the Baptist, a man who was so clearly a prophet, a man that was so obvious that he was from God, and yet a prophet who was of lesser status than Jesus himself, pointing to Jesus as the one who was greater than him. And Jesus knew if they had refused to recognize or accept John the Baptist was from God when a whole lot less was at stake. It indicates their hard hearts. It reveals that there's no way they're going to ever recognize or accept that Jesus was from God either. Jesus is so smart, and they get stuck in their own sticky trap, and you think that might be the end. Ha. Gotcha. You know, silence. But Jesus is not done with them on that day. Not at all. And this is where he goes. Knowing their hard hearts, knowing how they're rejecting God's authority, knowing how blind they are. Jesus tells a story, a parable, and it's designed to expose them for who they really are. You know, there's times when Jesus tells parables that are hard to understand, and you're sitting in the script scratching your head, wondering, what did that mean? This is not one of those times, friends. This is such an overt parable against them that they're, well, even more determined to kill them when they're done. This is how it goes.
Where are we? He went on to tell the people this parable. A man planted a vineyard and rented it to some farmers and went away for a long time. At harvest time, he sent a servant to the tenants so they would Give him some of the fruit to the vineyard. But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty handed. He sent another servant, but that one also. They beat and treated shamefully and sent away empty handed.
He sent still a third, and they wounded him and threw him out.
Then the owner of the vineyard said, what shall I do?
I will send my son whom I love.
Perhaps they will respect him.
But when the tenants saw him, they talked the matter over. This is the heir, they said, let's kill him and the inheritance will be ours.
So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them?
He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others.
When the people heard this, they said, God forbid.
Jesus looked directly at them and asked then what is the meaning of that which is written?
The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. And when Jesus quotes that, he's actually quoting, it's very interesting. He's quoting from the Same Psalm, Psalm 118, the same Psalm that people were quoting when Jesus rode into Jerusalem waving their palm branches. He was shouting hosanna. It's from the same.
Jesus then draws a whole bunch of scriptures together. He reaches all over the place to announce how disastrous it will be for these who are rejecting him. That corner stone, he says, not only the stone, the bill is rejected has become the cornerstone. He said, everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces and anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.
The teachers of the law and the chief priests looked for a way to arrest him immediately because they knew he had spoken this parable against them.
But they were afraid of the people. That's a theme through there, right? They were afraid of the people.
Jesus uses this parable to expose these leaders for the God rejecting prophet, killing Messiah, murdering people that they are, and they know it.
And so then they move forward to prove Jesus own story by continuing to plot against him. It's very, very transparent. Jesus is the Son in the parable. They are the wicked tenants, and they will act out the story by then proceeding to kill the heir and tear down their own house on top of their heads. Well, that was a lot, I know, but let's make this really practical for us.
How can we, as apprentices of Jesus, holding his training manual in our hands, how can we respond to this conflict stor and this parable that Jesus told us? Jesus himself is just steps away from the cross, steps away from completing his mission.
So let's listen and watch closely and pick up on how we are to complete the mission he's given to us, I think in at least three ways are highlighted here. So three. Let's look at them.
First, we are to finish his mission with utter confidence in the Good News and teachings of Jesus.
Notice how in the midst of everything that was happening, in all the conflict, all the stress, all the crowds, all the opposition, Jesus continued to do the main thing, teaching people and proclaiming the Good News.
He never lost sight of what mattered, even though there was a lot going on.
And as a result, Jesus was not thrown off by his detractors or dissuaded by his dissidents. He knew what he'd been sent to do. He knew why he was here in Jerusalem. He trusted his Father with his life, with his death, and with his resurrection. And by watching and learning from Jesus and being filled with the Holy Spirit he has given to us, we can step up with that same confidence and teach others what Jesus taught and proclaim in our lives and in our relationships and His Good News. We can, like Jesus, operate under his authority, confident in the same message, confident in his teaching.
And so, like Jesus, we don't need to be thrown around or confused by those who question Jesus authority or question his teaching, especially those who do it in disingenuous or deceitful ways.
Nor do we need to be thrown back on our heels as though we've got to defend ourselves by appealing to some other reason or some are of authority for who we are and the gospel Jesus has given to us. He is the one under whose authority we operate as witnesses that have been chosen and trained by Jesus and anointed by the Holy Spirit. We have been sent to proclaim the good news of Jesus as people filled with the Spirit and operating under his authority. This is where Luke goes as he moves us into the story of Acts. And we'll look at that right toward the end. But in the story of Acts, we see the Holy Spirit comes on the early church, and then we see just the explosion of witnesses that happens as they go out to continue to do exactly what Jesus is doing here.
Practically speaking, though, this means that we can teach what Jesus taught and proclaim Jesus as Lord and not feel threatened by questions, even insincere ones.
The life, the teaching, the death, the resurrection of Jesus. It holds up under scrutiny.
It really does.
The trustworthiness and the historicity of the Bible is so solid and the manuscript evidence is so overwhelming, outstripping by the tens of thousands every other ancient document out there. You can stand firm even when people throw their Measly darts. You don't need to be upset, you don't need to be hesitant, you don't need to be quailed, quelled, whatever.
You know what I mean?
In fact, following the example of Jesus here, we can remain calm.
We can learn to ask good questions in return, questions that will help sincere people explore what it is that they actually think and believe and examine who Jesus is and the evidence for who he is and what Jesus did and how solid his teaching is.
At other times, asking good questions in a calm demeanor can do what Jesus did. Here. It can actually expose malicious and disingenuous questioners, even if they are masquerading as sincere.
But in order to really do this, hear me carefully. In order to really do this, you need to know the teaching of Jesus.
You need to understand the good news.
So let me ask you, what is your. Just in your own mind, where would you say you're at in terms of like, proficiency with understanding the teaching of Jesus, understanding the Gospel of Jesus?
How would you kind of rate yourself just internally? This is not a judgment thing, it's not a guilt thing. This is just an honest assessment, like, where am I at? Am I kind of like a 2? Like, I've read the gospel a couple of times, or maybe I'm a one, haven't read it at all, or am I like an 8? Like, I've got a really good handle on what Jesus teaches. If somebody says, Jesus taught this and I think, no, he didn't, I can tell you he didn't because I know what he said. Where are you at in terms of proficiency?
Do you know what Jesus says?
Do you know what Jesus did?
Are you able to articulate the good news?
Are you able to weather difficult questions that come about your Christian faith? Kind of like what Jesus did here in this mission? And this is a little plug for our connect groups. This fall, a variety of our connect groups will be diving straight into the Bible so that you can learn more of what the Bible says. The connect group that Wanda and I are going to be leading will be directly about weathering some of these difficult questions that you might get asked. But any one of the connect groups will serve you in helping you understand more the teachings of Jesus. Because here's the truth. The more you understand, the more you know about how solid the Bible is, how historically accurate it is, what the claims and teachings of Jesus is, the more confidence that you will have.
And that directly affects how you are able to complete or finish the mission that Jesus has given us. One of the things that I see happening is that people, even Christians themselves, don't actually know how historically solid or how magnificently reliable, how incredibly sane the Scriptures are, how good and right the teachings of Jesus are, how lovely and true Jesus himself is the Son of God. But without knowing that, you stay immature in your faith, like babies in your faith, and you maintain only a surface level understanding of the Bible. And as a result, it's very easy to get thrown around by devious questions or deceitful things that you see, whether it's on TikTok or Instagram or some podcast you've been listening to.
It's because, the truth be told, without really having a good understanding of the Christian faith, you don't have the chops to stand up with confidence and finish the mission because you haven't taken the time or done the work to actually let the teachings of Jesus transform your heart and your mind.
Friends, you have very good reasons to be confident in the Scriptures, very good reasons to be confident in the Bible. But you need to know what those reasons are.
It's hard to be confident in something you're unsure of.
So I appeal to you, make it your mission to really understand this stuff so that you can stand up with confidence. And let me just give a side note. If you're here today and you're pretty new to the Christian faith or you have never explored it, please just do it. You'll love it. Try it out. Take a gospel, read it through.
Check out guys like Wesley Huffman or John Lennox. Try them out on YouTube, listen to what they have to say. Be informed at least. At the very least, you'll understand better what the rest of these crazies are doing on Sunday mornings.
But you'll have more confidence in understanding, oh, this is why people believe this stuff. And you might even find you start believing it too. Who knows? But this is why we meet here on Sunday mornings. This is why I'm encouraging you to bring a paper Bible with you so you can start reading it, start ingesting it. And this is why we encourage you to gather in connect groups and read your Bible daily. Let the Holy Spirit teach you. Through His Word, Jesus shows us how to finish his mission. And we can do so. Utterly confident in his teachings and in the Gospel. So that's the first one. Second.
What we see in this is that we are to finish his mission with deep trust in his good timing, however slow or long.
This surfaces in the parable that Jesus told. It surfaces actually in a number of parables that Jesus tells Here, though, we see the tenants, the tenants forever referred to as the wicked tenants. They forget whose land they're farming and who's got the right and the authority to expect a return on his investment. When you first read it, you think, come on, people, you're farming the guy's land. How is it that you forgot the guy's going to be coming looking for fruit, right? It's like all the people coming from Saskatchewan every year about this time looking for fruit here in Creston.
Am I wrong?
If you own the land here and somebody's been taken care of before and you show up and you get shot at, we've got a problem.
Well, in the original context, Jesus was telling this parable to expose how the religious leaders had forgotten who they were. They were stewards of God's land. They were stewards of the kingdom. They were not owners, but they were acting like it.
And they rejected God's authority and they were rejecting all the prophets that God had sent. And then they would kill his son in the end.
What's more, Jesus parable links up with many other things he's been saying and will say about the coming destruction of Jerusalem. But here, for us today, long time after the fact, hearing this parable from the lips of our master, we can take this parable, flip it over and read it in reverse. As trained apprentices of Jesus who know who we are in Christ and know whose life this really is, all that we have is from the Lord, and we're stewards of his investment. That's how we look at our lives. That's how we look at our stuff. That's how we look at our time. That's how we look at our businesses and our homes and our cars and our bank accounts, literally the days we have.
That's how we see it. And we know that we've been entrusted with his mission and gifted by the Holy Spirit to build up the church and to proclaim the kingdom of God in the world. We know all that.
And we know that in the end, each one of us, without exception, will have to give account to the Father for how we've stewarded all the stuff he's given to us.
But in the middle of the messiness of life, when things seem to drag on and we get distracted and the worries and the cares and the pleasures of this world start to make us think that perhaps, just perhaps, my comfort is a little more important than Jesus concerns.
And we wonder if or when God's really going to follow through on all this, all these promises to redeem the world and destroy evil and restore all of creation. And in that delay which we explored last week.
In that delay, faithful apprentices trust in God's good leadership and God's good timing. However slow or long they remember, they keep coming back to the truth. This is why we gather. It helps us remember, one day out of seven, remember what world we're living in, whose world. This is why we're orienting ourselves around the Kingdom of God. Because it is so easy to get distracted.
But what we know and we're reminded of. And here this morning, you can say, amen to this. We are not like the wicked tenants in this parable who forget who we are and forget whose we are.
We stay faithful because Jesus is faithful. We keep serving because Jesus kept serving. We keep proclaiming the good news to the world because Jesus kept proclaiming the good news to the world. And we look for the day that we know is coming, when either Jesus will return in glory or we will die and be with him until he returns and we're resurrected. And for some of us, those days are not long off. You know it.
You all laugh when I say that.
I have buried so many people.
I don't know. Is this funny? I don't mean this to be funny.
I've been preaching here for 15 years. And I'm telling you, when I started preaching here, there was a whole lot of people sitting where you are that I have put in the ground.
So if you think you're an exception to that, you aren't.
And someday, I hope one of the younger ones here, Wyatt, you'll be presiding over my funeral when I'm here in this coffin, okay? Because we're all going to either die and go to be with him or not, or he's going to come in glory. It's one or the other. But that day is coming.
And we live each day ready to account for the commission that he's given to us.
By the way, my skull did come, just so you know. I should have had a picture for it. I ordered a skull for a sermon I did back on July 26th. It didn't arrive till Monday, but as I've been staring at it now, it just reminded me. Number your days, buddy.
Momentum Mori. Okay, wow. That was not my notes.
Let me ask you.
Let me ask you, though.
Where are you struggling with God's timing in your life?
Like, where are you tempted to shirk your duty to forget who you are or whose you are?
Because one of the powers of this gospel story of the Scriptures is that we look to Jesus. We look at how faithful he was to his Father. We look at how he followed through even here as he heads to the cross. And it helps us by the Holy Spirit to trust the Father as well, just like Jesus did. We entrust ourselves to the Father, we entrust ourselves to his good timing in our lives. And if you do need help with that, go back to our ancient prayer series. This summer, July 26th, we did one on numbering your days. That's the skull one. But even the most recent one about prayers for when all seems lost a couple weeks ago. Those are all helping us grow our trust. When the timing, when there's delay, when things are rough, but we trust his timing, God will come through.
Third, we're to finish his mission by boldly proclaiming Jesus saving power as king of the world in the face of the opposing but losing powers.
I want you to notice how the parable ends by pointing to Jesus, the chief cornerstone. Now, this is not language we use a lot today. This is an ancient architectural image where the chief cornerstone is set in place first. And that thing is measured and it's precise and they know exactly this is it. And then everything else in the building is measured according to that cornerstone. It's off or it's plumb. It's right or it's wrong. All depend on how it measures up to that chief corner stone.
Well, that cornerstone rock image was developed all through the scriptures. And this Messiah stone was not only depicted as the foundation stone around which the kingdom of God would be built, but also just to keep us, you know, confused a bit. Also confused. Also depicted as a rolling stone that comes down and crushes all the other kingdoms as its everlasting kingdom is set up. Daniel7, other stuff like that. Well, this idea of a stone gets picked up in the New Testament number of places. But the apostle Peter himself picks it up when he says this. He says, as you come to him. I think this is in First Peter somewhere. I don't know if I have the reference here. Is it up there?
Did I put it up there?
Oh, 1 Peter 2 sorry, it's in 1st Peter 2. He says this as you come to him, the living stone, referring to Jesus, rejected by humans, but chosen by God and precious to him. You also like living stones.
Jesus is a rock and you rock, baby. You know, that's what he's saying.
You're being built into a spiritual house, the architectural image. And then Peter goes on to quote the prophet Isaiah when he says, see, I lay a stone In Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone. And listen to this. The one who trusts in him will never be put to shame. He's quoting from Isaiah.
Peter goes on now, to you who believe this stone is precious, but to those who do not believe now he quotes the same quote Jesus quoted. The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. And then he quotes something else. A stone that causes people to stumble and a rock that makes them fall. See how he's making the same point Jesus made here in Luke chapter 20. This is Peter, who was standing right there when Jesus taught this.
Peter goes on, they stumbled because they disobeyed the message, which is also what they were destined for. But you, he says, are a chosen people, a royal priesthood. This is the living stones. He already called them living stones. And now again drawing from Exodus, he likes to pull lots of stuff in. You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful.
This is what it means to be living stones, what it means to be part of the rock. We're chosen people that we may declare the praises of him who called us out of darkness and into his wonderful light. That's what it means to be apprentices of Jesus, who finished the mission by proclaiming Jesus to the very end. Jesus, the chief cornerstone around which everything rises or on which everything falls, including not only our own faith, but the future of the world. Now what's so interesting as we come to a close is how we see this lived out in the life of Jesus own followers. I already quoted from Peter in the letter that he wrote later.
But early on, after Jesus had risen again from the dead, spent some time with them, then ascended to the right hand of the Father, and then sent his Holy Spirit on the early church. And that's a big hullabaloo. Thousands of people have come to follow Jesus, receive the Holy Spirit. Well, the early church, they go out and they continue to do exactly what Jesus has been doing. They're teaching the people, they're proclaiming the good news, they're healing people. And in those early days before Jerusalem did fall in 80, 70, they did it actually at the temple. They were in and around, meeting to pray, teaching people, doing exactly what Jesus did here. Pretty, pretty gutsy actually when you think about it. I mean, they killed Jesus for doing it, but then they just show up and keep doing it. Yeah, well, listen to this story from Acts chapter four.
It's just a small little snippet of How God was starting to work through the early church and do in them exactly what we saw in Jesus. And the reason why I want you to pick up the story is because we're seeing it play out just like it's going to play out in our lives. So this is in Acts, chapter four.
Peter and John had healed the guy. And then this is the rollout from that. The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people.
They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people, proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead.
So they seized Peter and John because it was evening. They put him in jail until the next day. But many who heard the message believed. So a number of men who believed grew to be about 5,000. I love it. Well, the next day, the rulers. Listen to the lineup, folks. The rulers, the elders and the teachers of the law, met in Jerusalem.
These are the same dudes that were fighting Jesus back here in Luke 20 and the same ones that killed Jesus.
So they met in Jerusalem. Annas, the high priest was there. Caiaphas, John, Alexander. Again, all. We're going to hear all those names again in Luke, because they preside over Jesus, mock trial and crucifixion.
Well, they had Peter and John brought before them, and they began to question them and listen to what they say. By what power or what name did you do this? It's the same question, by whose authority?
How are you operating this way? How are you guys so confident? How are you guys proclaiming the good news of Jesus? Why are you keeping on doing this? We thought we killed your Messiah. You know, listen to how they answer. Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit said to them, and I love this.
He does not evade the question.
Filled with the Holy Spirit, he said, rulers and elders of the people, if we're being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who is lame and are being asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel. It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth whom you crucified, but whom God raised from the dead. That this man stands before you healed. Jesus is. And then here it is. Jesus is the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.
Salvation is found in no one else.
For there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.
Wow.
Jesus understood the mission, didn't he?
Peter understood the mission that Jesus gave to him, and he set out to fulfill that mission. By continuing to proclaim Jesus boldly, Jesus the chief cornerstone, and to do it right in the face of those who opposed him. And they got the strap for it. And eventually most of his followers, almost all were died, killed early for it as well.
Well, why did Peter do this?
Because he knew that Jesus was the only hope of the world, the only hope for his people, the only name given under heaven by which everyone and anyone must be saved. There's no other way to life.
There's no other option for eternity, no other philosophy or ideology or worldview or religion that answers our deepest questions, that solves our world's problems, that forgives our deepest sins, that brings true freedom to us and invites us into the life that God has always designed for us. To live a life of freedom for eternity with him, starting now.
And as trained apprentices of Jesus, we do the same. We're going to keep proclaiming Jesus King of the world, King of our lives, knowing that it is only in him that we have any hope at all.
So, my friends, Jesus is finishing his mission. We're going to follow through and watch him do it and see it unfold over the next few months. He did it for us. He did it for you. He did it for our salvation and for the salvation of the world. And you're invited, as we continue in this masterclass this fall, to follow him through Luke, to learn from him, to take his teachings in deep and let the Holy Spirit fill you and train you so that you can complete the mission he's given to you. Whether you have a few years left or still many decades, you can follow through and finish the mission.
So I hope you're ready to come along and learn, be trained, be trained by him and released by him, confident in his good news, confident in his timing, and confident that he really is the King now and forever.
[00:40:34] Speaker A: Thanks for listening in today.
We hope you feel encouraged and challenged.
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