Jesus Explains The Gospel

MMG-14    NR6-44

010401AM

We come now to the close of our survey of Luke. In these past weeks since Christmas we have seen that Jesus shares the Good News of salvation 23 times, each unique and yet each with the same basic elements.

In fact, Luke ends with a summary of the Gospel in chapter 24. Why don’t we do something unique, let’s back up through the book this morning and see this wonderful message from Jesus. Turn to Luke 24:47. What is the summary of Christ’s teaching?

First the Gospel is a gospel of the forgiven.

But God’s Word changes us from the inside out, no matter how bad we are. God’s grace reaches to the most sinful, the most defiled. Remember the “Amazing Grace” that saved a wretch like John Newton?

In his early teens, John Newton[1] ran away from England and joined the crew of a slave ship. Some years later he himself was given to the black wife of a white slave trader in Africa. He was cruelly mistreated and lived on leftovers from the woman’s meals and on wild yams he dug from the ground at night. After escaping, he lived with a group of natives for a while and eventually managed to become a sea captain himself, living the most ungodly and profligate life imaginable. But after his miraculous conversion in 1748, he returned to England and became a selfless and tireless minister of the gospel in London. He left for posterity many hymns that are still among the most popular in the world. By far the best-known and best-loved of those is “Amazing Grace.” He became the pastor of a church in England, and to this day the churchyard carries an epitaph that Newton himself wrote

John Newton, clerk, once an infidel and libertine, a servant of slaves in Africa, was, by the rich mercy of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, preserved, restored, pardoned, and appointed to preach the faith he had long labored to destroy.

How does God do that? He explains it in a word picture in Psalm 32:1-2 by using three different Hebrew words for Forgiveness:

• LIFTED OFF: Forgiven means literally to have our sin lifted off. As Pilgrim it rolls off and into Christ’s tomb. Look at #493  “My sin oh the bliss .  . .”
• COVERED OVER: Covered speaks of the strong imagery in the events of the day of atonement. On that day the High priest took the blood of an animal and sprinkled it onto the mercy seat. Above the mercy seat was the presence of God portrayed by the outstretched arms of the cherubim. Beneath the lid of the ark was the tablets portraying God’s divine law. In essence, the blood stood between a holy God and the sinners who broke His law, averting His wrath. So our sins are covered away by the blood of Jesus shed for us!
• NEVER COUNTED: Not counted against us speaks of God when He forgives He forgets. Psalm 103 “as far as the East is…”

Now the second element is REPENTANCE. This is the hard part that God never hides.

• Have you ever gone to the supermarket
• Found what you wanted
• And then were frustrated finding the price

A generation ago everything was stamped with the blue inked price and it was and instant awareness of cost.  Today with bar codes, scanners, shelf tags, advertised specials, point of purchase rebates, coupons, mail-in rebates, and often, unhelpful clerks, you can be sure only as you pay.

That’s not what Christ preached.

• He preached a costly Gospel.
• He proclaimed an expensive discipleship.

And, there were no hidden price tags or gimmicks.  In fact, He cost more than He gained.

• Rich, young ruler (Lk. 18, Mark 10, Mt. 19)
• John 6

And it wasn’t just Christ!   The apostles declared the same message!

Christ said the task was disciple making.  Christ regenerates.  We teach. That was the pure unadulterated first century Gospel.  This costly Gospel is even captioned in a novel portraying the period.

Listen to a passage in the novel Quo Vadis.

Vinicius, the young Roman, has fallen in love with a girl who is a Christian.  Because he is not a Christian she will have nothing to do with him.  He follows her to the secret night gathering of the little group of Christians, and there, unknown to anyone, he listens to the service.  He hears Peter preach, and, as he listens, something happens to him.

He felt that if he wished to follow that teaching, he would have to place on a burning pile all his thoughts, habits and character, his whole nature up to that moment, burn them into ashes and then fill himself with a life altogether different, and an entirely new soul.

That is repentance. But what if a man has no other desire than to be left alone? The change is not necessarily from robbery, theft, murder, adultery and glaring sins. The change may be from a life that is completely selfish, instinctively demanding, totally inconsiderate, the change from a self-centered to a God-centered life—and a changed like that hurts.

Costly discipleship awaits true Christians.

Please turn with me to our text, Luke 18:19-27 as we see the man who was unwilling to pay the price Christ asked!

Contrast the rich young ruler with John Newton

 

1. There is only one Gospel of eternal salvation Luke 1:6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. ETERNAL SALVATION

2. Salvation is light, life, and peace   Luke 1:47-79  v. 47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.   1:52 He has put down the mighty from their thrones, And exalted the lowly. v. 53 He has filled the hungry with good things, And the rich He has sent away empty. v. 68 “Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited and redeemed His people, v. 69 And has raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of His servant David, v. 72 To perform the mercy promised to our fathers And to remember His holy covenant, v. 77 to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins,  v. 78 because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven.  SINNERS, SAVED AND FORGIVEN BY GOD’S MERCY

3. Salvation is a person  Luke 2:30  For my eyes have seen Your salvation  SALVATION IS A PERSON

4. Jesus preached – bear fruit or be cast into the fire  Luke 3:8  Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. FRUIT SHOWING REPENTANCE Luke 3:9And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” FRUIT OR FIRE 3:17 His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.”

5. Salvation is hearing Christ’s voice and following him  Luke 5:20 When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”  SINS FORGIVEN BY FAITH  5:27 After these things He went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, “Follow Me.” HEARING VOICE AND FOLLOWING JESUS  5:32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”  BY REPENTING SINNERS

6. Believers are engaged to Christ regenerated and indwelt Luke 5:34Jesus answered, “Can you make the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them?  ENGAGED TO CHRIST 5:38  No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. WITH NEW WINE INSIDE NEW BOTTLES

7. Benuine believers are Christlike, goodhearted, and Lord obeying Luke 6:35-47 v. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. LOVING SONS OF MOST HIGH  v. 40 A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher. CHRISTLIKE  6:43 “No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit.  BEARING GOOD FRUIT  6:45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.  6:47 Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like: LORD OBEYING from cathedral in Lubeck, Germany: You call me Master, and obey me not; You call me Light, and see me not; You call me the Way, and walk me not; You call me the Life, and live me not; You call me wise, and follow me not; You call me Fair, and love me not; You call me Rich, and ask me not; You call me Eternal and seek me not. If I condemn thee, blame me not!

8. Jesus calls us to agree with god about our sin  Luke 7:29-30 And when all the people heard Him, even the tax collectors justified (homologeo said same thing as God does) God, having been baptized with the baptism of John. 30 But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the will of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him. 7:48 Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” FORGIVEN SINNERS   7:50 Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” BELIEVING AND PEACEFUL

9. Jesus taught a gospel of enduring fruit bearing Luke 8:1 After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, RECIPENTS OF THE GOOD NEWS Luke 8:8  Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown.” When he said this, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”  HEARTS WITH GOOD SOIL – SEED WHICH GREW – LIVES THAT WERE FRUITFUL 8:13Those on the rock are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away.  ROOTED TRUTH 8:14-15 The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. UNCHOKED RIGHTEOUSNESS 15 But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.  GOOD – HEAR – RETAIN – BEAR FRUIT

10. Salvation is desiring Jesus   Luke 9:23 Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. SALVATION EQUALS FOLLOWING CHRIST

11. True believers have been registered in heaven by God Luke 10:20-22Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.” 21 In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said,  “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. 22 All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.” Check Hebrews 12:22-24.

12. The evidence of Christ’s children is they seek: Luke 11:2-4 So He said to them,  “When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven (God as father), Hallowed be Your name (worshiping Him). Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. (submissive to Him) v. 3  Give us day by day our daily bread. 4  And forgive us our sins, (depending on Him)  For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us (loving others). And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one (seeking holiness).

13. Jesus called for INSIDE OUTEDNESS Luke 11:28,34,39 But He said, “More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” 11:34  The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness. 11:39 Then the Lord said to him,  “Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness. INSIDE OUT LIVING. This is shown by Paul in 1 Corinthians 3:13 each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is.  And then in 1 Corinthians 4:5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one’s praise will come from God.

14. You can be assured of heaven if you are: Christ CONFESSING, GOD WEALTHY, KINGDOM SEEKING, AND HEAVENLY HEARTED  Luke 12:8,21, 31, 34, 37-38 “Also I say to you, whoever confesses Me before men, him the Son of Man also will confess before the angels of God. 12:21 “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”  RICH TOWARD GOD  12:31 But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you. 12:34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.  HEAVENWARD HEARTS 12:37-38 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watchingwhen he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. 38 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night.  WATCHING The unsaved, the lost, the worldlings to the very end of time are exactly opposite this. Remember the sky is falling down literally in the Tribulation and the lost cling to their stuff! Revelation 9:20-21 But the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, that they should not worship demons, and idols of gold, silver, brass, stone, and wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk. 21 And they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts. Or in modern English: The remaining men and women who weren’t killed by these weapons went on their merry way—didn’t change their way of life, didn’t quit worshiping demons, didn’t quit centering their lives around lumps of gold and silver and brass, hunks of stone and wood that couldn’t see or hear or move. There wasn’t a sign of a change of heart. They plunged right on in their murderous, occult, promiscuous, and thieving ways.[2]

15. Jesus describes those heading to heaven as: sin repenting, fruit bearing, gate entering, god knowing, and righteousness doing Luke 13:5-6 I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.” 6 Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree, planted in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it, but did not find any. REPENTANT and FRUITFUL  13:24-27 “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. 25 Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Sir, open the door for us.’ “But he will answer, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’ 26 “Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’ 27 “But he will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!’  WALKING NARROW ROAD – KNOWING GOD – DOING RIGHTEOUSNESS. Note the contrast of the two ways first God’s Way in James 3:17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. Then the way of destruction in 2 Timothy 3:1-5  But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! Listen to a paraphrase: Don’t be naive. There are difficult times ahead. As the end approaches, people are going to be self-absorbed, money-hungry, self-promoting, stuck-up, profane, contemptuous of parents, crude, coarse, dog-eat-dog, unbending, slanderers, impulsively wild, savage, cynical, treacherous, ruthless, bloated windbags, addicted to lust, and allergic to God. They’ll make a show of religion, but behind the scenes they’re animals. Stay clear of these people.[3]

16. Salvation is when we impossibly come to Christ Luke 14:26-27, 33 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple. 27 And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.  33 In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.  COMES TO CHRIST – LOVES CHRIST – IDENTIFIES WITH CHRIST – FOLLOWS CHRIST– GIVES UP ALL TO CHRIST.

17. Genuine Christians are sin repenting Luke 15:7 I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.  15:10 In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” REPENTING SINNERS

18. Jesus said that three evidences of salvation are: light living, god serving, and word receiving Luke 16:8 “The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. PEOPLE OF LIGHT Luke 16:13 “No servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.” DEVOTED TO ONLY ONE MASTER        16:31 “He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”  RECEPTIVE TO GOD’S WORD

19. A true believer realizes they are mercy needing Luke 18:13  “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ SEEKING GOD’S MERCY

20. A true believer realizes they are helplessly coming Luke 18:17 I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” HELPLESS CHILDLIKE RECEPTION

21. A true believer is lost-knowing and god-obeying Luke 18:19-27  “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. 22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”  27 Jesus replied, “What is impossible with men is possible with God.”  KNOWING YOU ARE LOST-KNOWING GOD IS BOSS

22. A true believer realizes they are found by Christ  Luke 19:10  For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.” FOUND BY CHRIST

23. A true believer is repentant and forgiven Luke 24:47 and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. REPENTANT AND FORGIVEN

TAGS: 010401AM

We come now to the close of our survey of Luke. In these past weeks since Christmas we have seen that Jesus shares the Good News of salvation 23 times, each unique and yet each with the same basic elements.

In fact, Luke ends with a summary of the Gospel in chapter 24. Why don’t we do something unique, let’s back up through the book this morning and see this wonderful message from Jesus. Turn to Luke 24:47. What is the summary of Christ’s teaching?

First the Gospel is a gospel of the forgiven.

But God’s Word changes us from the inside out, no matter how bad we are. God’s grace reaches to the most sinful, the most defiled. Remember the “Amazing Grace” that saved a wretch like John Newton?

In his early teens, John Newton[1] ran away from England and joined the crew of a slave ship. Some years later he himself was given to the black wife of a white slave trader in Africa. He was cruelly mistreated and lived on leftovers from the woman’s meals and on wild yams he dug from the ground at night. After escaping, he lived with a group of natives for a while and eventually managed to become a sea captain himself, living the most ungodly and profligate life imaginable. But after his miraculous conversion in 1748, he returned to England and became a selfless and tireless minister of the gospel in London. He left for posterity many hymns that are still among the most popular in the world. By far the best-known and best-loved of those is “Amazing Grace.” He became the pastor of a church in England, and to this day the churchyard carries an epitaph that Newton himself wrote

John Newton, clerk, once an infidel and libertine, a servant of slaves in Africa, was, by the rich mercy of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, preserved, restored, pardoned, and appointed to preach the faith he had long labored to destroy.

How does God do that? He explains it in a word picture in Psalm 32:1-2 by using three different Hebrew words for Forgiveness:

• LIFTED OFF: Forgiven means literally to have our sin lifted off. As Pilgrim it rolls off and into Christ’s tomb. Look at #493  “My sin oh the bliss .  . .”
• COVERED OVER: Covered speaks of the strong imagery in the events of the day of atonement. On that day the High priest took the blood of an animal and sprinkled it onto the mercy seat. Above the mercy seat was the presence of God portrayed by the outstretched arms of the cherubim. Beneath the lid of the ark was the tablets portraying God’s divine law. In essence, the blood stood between a holy God and the sinners who broke His law, averting His wrath. So our sins are covered away by the blood of Jesus shed for us!
• NEVER COUNTED: Not counted against us speaks of God when He forgives He forgets. Psalm 103 “as far as the East is…”

Now the second element is REPENTANCE. This is the hard part that God never hides.

• Have you ever gone to the supermarket
• Found what you wanted
• And then were frustrated finding the price

A generation ago everything was stamped with the blue inked price and it was and instant awareness of cost.  Today with bar codes, scanners, shelf tags, advertised specials, point of purchase rebates, coupons, mail-in rebates, and often, unhelpful clerks, you can be sure only as you pay.

That’s not what Christ preached.

• He preached a costly Gospel.
• He proclaimed an expensive discipleship.

And, there were no hidden price tags or gimmicks.  In fact, He cost more than He gained.

• Rich, young ruler (Lk. 18, Mark 10, Mt. 19)
• John 6

And it wasn’t just Christ!   The apostles declared the same message!

Christ said the task was disciple making.  Christ regenerates.  We teach. That was the pure unadulterated first century Gospel.  This costly Gospel is even captioned in a novel portraying the period.

Listen to a passage in the novel Quo Vadis.

Vinicius, the young Roman, has fallen in love with a girl who is a Christian.  Because he is not a Christian she will have nothing to do with him.  He follows her to the secret night gathering of the little group of Christians, and there, unknown to anyone, he listens to the service.  He hears Peter preach, and, as he listens, something happens to him.

He felt that if he wished to follow that teaching, he would have to place on a burning pile all his thoughts, habits and character, his whole nature up to that moment, burn them into ashes and then fill himself with a life altogether different, and an entirely new soul.

That is repentance. But what if a man has no other desire than to be left alone? The change is not necessarily from robbery, theft, murder, adultery and glaring sins. The change may be from a life that is completely selfish, instinctively demanding, totally inconsiderate, the change from a self-centered to a God-centered life—and a changed like that hurts.

Costly discipleship awaits true Christians.

Please turn with me to our text, Luke 18:19-27 as we see the man who was unwilling to pay the price Christ asked!

Contrast the rich young ruler with John Newton

 

1. There is only one Gospel of eternal salvation Luke 1:6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. ETERNAL SALVATION

2. Salvation is light, life, and peace   Luke 1:47-79  v. 47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.   1:52 He has put down the mighty from their thrones, And exalted the lowly. v. 53 He has filled the hungry with good things, And the rich He has sent away empty. v. 68 “Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited and redeemed His people, v. 69 And has raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of His servant David, v. 72 To perform the mercy promised to our fathers And to remember His holy covenant, v. 77 to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins,  v. 78 because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven.  SINNERS, SAVED AND FORGIVEN BY GOD’S MERCY

3. Salvation is a person  Luke 2:30  For my eyes have seen Your salvation  SALVATION IS A PERSON

4. Jesus preached – bear fruit or be cast into the fire  Luke 3:8  Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. FRUIT SHOWING REPENTANCE Luke 3:9 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” FRUIT OR FIRE 3:17 His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.”

5. Salvation is hearing Christ’s voice and following him  Luke 5:20 When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”  SINS FORGIVEN BY FAITH  5:27 After these things He went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, “Follow Me.” HEARING VOICE AND FOLLOWING JESUS  5:32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”  BY REPENTING SINNERS

6. Believers are engaged to Christ regenerated and indwelt Luke 5:34Jesus answered, “Can you make the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them?  ENGAGED TO CHRIST 5:38  No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. WITH NEW WINE INSIDE NEW BOTTLES

7. Benuine believers are Christlike, goodhearted, and Lord obeying Luke 6:35-47 v. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. LOVING SONS OF MOST HIGH  v. 40 A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher. CHRISTLIKE  6:43 “No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit.  BEARING GOOD FRUIT  6:45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.  6:47 Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like: LORD OBEYING from cathedral in Lubeck, Germany: You call me Master, and obey me not; You call me Light, and see me not; You call me the Way, and walk me not; You call me the Life, and live me not; You call me wise, and follow me not; You call me Fair, and love me not; You call me Rich, and ask me not; You call me Eternal and seek me not. If I condemn thee, blame me not!

8. Jesus calls us to agree with god about our sin  Luke 7:29-30 And when all the people heard Him, even the tax collectors justified (homologeosaid same thing as God does) God, having been baptized with the baptism of John. 30 But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the will of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him. 7:48 Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” FORGIVEN SINNERS   7:50 Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” BELIEVING AND PEACEFUL

9. Jesus taught a gospel of enduring fruit bearing Luke 8:1 After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, RECIPENTS OF THE GOOD NEWS Luke 8:8  Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown.” When he said this, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”  HEARTS WITH GOOD SOIL – SEED WHICH GREW – LIVES THAT WERE FRUITFUL 8:13Those on the rock are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away.  ROOTED TRUTH 8:14-15 The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. UNCHOKED RIGHTEOUSNESS 15 But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.  GOOD – HEAR – RETAIN – BEAR FRUIT

10. Salvation is desiring Jesus   Luke 9:23 Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. SALVATION EQUALS FOLLOWING CHRIST

11. True believers have been registered in heaven by God Luke 10:20-22Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.” 21 In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said,  “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. 22 All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.” Check Hebrews 12:22-24.

12. The evidence of Christ’s children is they seek: Luke 11:2-4 So He said to them,  “When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven (God as father), Hallowed be Your name (worshiping Him). Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. (submissive to Him) v. 3  Give us day by day our daily bread. 4  And forgive us our sins, (depending on Him)  For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us (loving others). And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one (seeking holiness).

13. Jesus called for INSIDE OUTEDNESS Luke 11:28,34,39 But He said, “More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” 11:34  The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness. 11:39 Then the Lord said to him,  “Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness. INSIDE OUT LIVING. This is shown by Paul in 1 Corinthians 3:13 each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is.  And then in 1 Corinthians 4:5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one’s praise will come from God.

14. You can be assured of heaven if you are: Christ CONFESSING, GOD WEALTHY, KINGDOM SEEKING, AND HEAVENLY HEARTED  Luke 12:8,21, 31, 34, 37-38 “Also I say to you, whoever confesses Me before men, him the Son of Man also will confess before the angels of God. 12:21“This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”  RICH TOWARD GOD  12:31 But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you. 12:34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.  HEAVENWARD HEARTS 12:37-38 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watchingwhen he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. 38 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night.  WATCHING The unsaved, the lost, the worldlings to the very end of time are exactly opposite this. Remember the sky is falling down literally in the Tribulation and the lost cling to their stuff! Revelation 9:20-21 But the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, that they should not worship demons, and idols of gold, silver, brass, stone, and wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk. 21 And they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts. Or in modern English: The remaining men and women who weren’t killed by these weapons went on their merry way—didn’t change their way of life, didn’t quit worshiping demons, didn’t quit centering their lives around lumps of gold and silver and brass, hunks of stone and wood that couldn’t see or hear or move. There wasn’t a sign of a change of heart. They plunged right on in their murderous, occult, promiscuous, and thieving ways.[2]

15. Jesus describes those heading to heaven as: sin repenting, fruit bearing, gate entering, god knowing, and righteousness doing Luke 13:5-6 I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.” 6 Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree, planted in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it, but did not find any. REPENTANT and FRUITFUL  13:24-27 “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. 25 Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Sir, open the door for us.’ “But he will answer, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’ 26 “Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’ 27 “But he will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!’  WALKING NARROW ROAD – KNOWING GOD – DOING RIGHTEOUSNESS. Note the contrast of the two ways first God’s Way in James 3:17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. Then the way of destruction in 2 Timothy 3:1-5  But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! Listen to a paraphrase: Don’t be naive. There are difficult times ahead. As the end approaches, people are going to be self-absorbed, money-hungry, self-promoting, stuck-up, profane, contemptuous of parents, crude, coarse, dog-eat-dog, unbending, slanderers, impulsively wild, savage, cynical, treacherous, ruthless, bloated windbags, addicted to lust, and allergic to God. They’ll make a show of religion, but behind the scenes they’re animals. Stay clear of these people.[3]

16. Salvation is when we impossibly come to Christ Luke 14:26-27, 33 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple. 27 And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow mecannot be my disciple.  33 In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.  COMES TO CHRIST – LOVES CHRIST – IDENTIFIES WITH CHRIST – FOLLOWS CHRIST– GIVES UP ALL TO CHRIST.

17. Genuine Christians are sin repenting Luke 15:7 I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.  15:10 In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” REPENTING SINNERS

18. Jesus said that three evidences of salvation are: light living, god serving, and word receiving Luke 16:8 “The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. PEOPLE OF LIGHT Luke 16:13 “No servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.” DEVOTED TO ONLY ONE MASTER        16:31 “He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”  RECEPTIVE TO GOD’S WORD

19. A true believer realizes they are mercy needing Luke 18:13  “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ SEEKING GOD’S MERCY

20. A true believer realizes they are helplessly coming Luke 18:17 I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” HELPLESS CHILDLIKE RECEPTION

21. A true believer is lost-knowing and god-obeying Luke 18:19-27  “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. 22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”  27 Jesus replied, “What is impossible with men is possible with God.”  KNOWING YOU ARE LOST-KNOWING GOD IS BOSS

22. A true believer realizes they are found by Christ  Luke 19:10  For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.” FOUND BY CHRIST

23. A true believer is repentant and forgiven Luke 24:47 and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. REPENTANT AND FORGIVEN

 

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[1]  Out of the Depths: An Autobiography [Chicago, Moody, n.d.], p. 151, as quoted in MacArthur, John F., The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, (Chicago: Moody Press) 1983.

[2]Peterson, Eugene H., The Message, (Colorado Springs: NavPress Publishing Group) 1997.

[3]Peterson, Eugene H., The Message, (Colorado Springs: NavPress Publishing Group) 1997.