Luke
Chapter
20
Luke
20:1-8
1 And
it came to pass, that on one of
those days, as he taught the people in the temple, and preached the gospel, the
chief priests and the scribes came upon him
with the elders,
2 And spake unto him, saying, Tell us,
by what authority doest thou these things? or who is
he that gave thee this authority?
3 And he answered and said unto them, I will also ask you one thing; and answer me:
4 The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or of men?
5 And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say, Why then believed
ye him not?
6 But and if we say, Of men; all the
people will stone us: for they be persuaded that John was a prophet.
7 And they answered, that they could not tell whence it was.
8 And Jesus said unto them, Neither tell I you by
what authority I do these things.
One day as Jesus taught in the Temple and preached
the gospel, but still most rejected what He taught! The Jewish leadership,
including both the Chief Priests, Scribes, and elders, came to Him and asked, “Who authorized You to teach all
that?”
The
fact is that among the Jewish leadership, state accepted authority was needed
to teach Judaism! Today, we have returned to that same concept! Many ask the
question, “Who is your ‘covering’”
The
fact is that if any Preacher’s “covering” is just human that Preachers is
preaching falsely! But, if the Preacher’s “covering” is the Holy Spirit, he has
no need for a Government approved license to preach!
Jesus
responded by saying, “I will ask you, was the baptism of John from heaven, or from
men?”
They
discussed the proper answer saying, “If we shall say it was from heaven, He
will then ask, ‘Why didn’t you believe him?’
“But
and if we say that it was of men, the people will stone us, because they
believe that John was a prophet.”
So,
they responded to Jesus’ challenge by saying, “We don’t know and cannot tell
you!”
At
that Jesus said, “Then, neither will I tell you by what
authority I do these things!”
The
deep thinkers of that day attempted to match wits with Christ only to find that
they failed in each and every attempt to discredit the Messiah!
Luke
20:9-26
9 Then began he to speak to the people this parable; A certain man planted a vineyard, and let it forth to husbandmen,
and went into a far country for a long time.
10 And at the season he sent a
servant to the husbandmen, that they should give him of the fruit of the
vineyard: but the husbandmen beat him, and sent him away empty.
11 And again he sent another servant:
and they beat him also, and entreated him
shamefully, and sent him away
empty.
12 And again he sent a third: and
they wounded him also, and cast him
out.
13 Then said the lord of the
vineyard, What shall I do? I will send my beloved son:
it may be they will reverence him
when they see him.
14 But when the husbandmen saw him,
they reasoned among themselves, saying, This is the
heir: come, let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours.
15 So they cast him out of the
vineyard, and killed him. What
therefore shall the lord of the vineyard do unto them?
16 He shall come and destroy these
husbandmen, and shall give the vineyard to others. And when they heard it, they said, God forbid.
17 And he beheld them, and said, What is this then that
is written, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head
of the corner?
18 Whosoever shall fall upon that
stone shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.
Then
Jesus told the crowd another parable!
“A certain man planted a vineyard,
and leasted (Gr. ekdidōmi-ἐκδίδωμι) it to sharecroppers. Then he left
and traveled to another country, where he stayed for a long time.
“When the growing season came to an end he sent a servant to
the sharecroppers, to collect the fruit of the vineyard. However, the
sharecroppers beat that servant, and sent him away empty-handed.
“So, the landowner sent another servant. And, they also beat
him, treated him without respect,
and sent him away empty-handed.
“And again, he sent a third servant, and they also wounded
him, and threw him out.
“Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my beloved Son! They will treat
Him with respect when they see him!
“However, when the sharecroppers saw him, they decided among
themselves, ‘This is the heir! We will murder
him, so that the inheritance may be ours!’
“So, they threw him out of the vineyard, and murdered him!
“What shall the owner of the vineyard do unto them?
“He shall go personally to the vineyard and destroy those
sharecroppers, and give the vineyard to others!”
And,
when they heard it, inn horror
they said, “God forbid!”
In
the parable, God was the vineyard owner, Israel represented the sharecroppers! The
actions of the sharecroppers reflected the very way Israel treated God’s
prophets and would treat His Son, Christ Jesus.
From
a human standpoint, Israel murdered Christ! From a spiritual standpoint, Christ
offered Himself as a sacrifice for our sins!
1 John 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
1 John
4:10 Herein is love, not that we loved
God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
Heb 10:10 By the which will we are
sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
Never lose sight of the fact that
the Jewish leadership was motivated by fear and hatred, while Christ Jesus was
motivated by love!
Then
Jesus looked at the Jewish leaders, and said, “Isn’t it
written, ‘The stone which the builders rejected
has become the head of the corner?
“Whoever falls upon that stone shall be broken, but on
whomever that stone falls will be ground into powder!”
Notice
that the spiritual sharecroppers, the Jewish leadership, understood that Jesus’
parable was a personal rebuke to them and they reacted according to selfish
personal interests!
It
is fascinating to me that the evil leaders of Israel had “ears to hear,” but
refused Christ’s righteousness while the down-trodden sheep (people) of Israel
did not understand!
Jesus
came to seek and to save the lost sheep of the house of Israel!
Matt 15:24 But he answered and said, I am not
sent but unto the lost sheep of the
house of Israel.
Jesus’ primary goal was to take the
gospel to Israel! Paul was appointed to take the Gospel to Gentiles!
Why couldn’t the Priests and other
Jewish leaders, with the exception of Joseph of Arimathaea and perhaps
Nicodemus believe that Jesus was the Messiah?
The spiritual fact is that at that
point in time they had not
been called, chosen, and anointed to trust in Christ Jesus! Their personal will
had no effect on salvation!
Romans
9:16 So then it
is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy.
(NKJV)
Luke 20:19-26
19 And the chief priests and the
scribes the same hour sought to lay hands on him; and they feared the people:
for they perceived that he had spoken this parable against them.
20 And they watched him,
and sent forth spies, which should feign themselves just men,
that they might take hold of his words, that so they might deliver him
unto the power and authority of the governor.
21 And they asked him, saying, Master, we know that thou sayest and teachest rightly,
neither acceptest thou the person of any, but teachest
the way of God truly:
22 Is it lawful for us to give tribute unto Caesar, or no?
23 But he perceived their craftiness, and said unto them, Why
tempt ye me?
24 Shew me a penny. Whose image and superscription hath it? They answered
and said, Caesar's.
25 And he said unto them, Render
therefore unto Caesar the things which be Caesar's, and unto God the things
which be God's.
26 And they could not take hold of his words before the
people: and they marvelled at his answer, and held
their peace.
It
was then that the chief priests and the scribes sought to arrest and murder
Jesus, because they were afraid of average Jews! They knew that Jesus’ parable
was a rebuke to them! Their position in life was more important to them than the
Life Everlasting that Christ was willing to give them!
They,
the Jewish leadership, watched Jesus
closely, and even sent spies, who would pretend to be just in order to
trap Christ Jesus so that they may arrest Him.
Some
of the spies asked Him, “Master, we know that you say and teach correct
theology, and do not condone any teaching except God’s truth! However, is
lawful for us to give tribute unto Caesar?”
Jesus
saw through their deceptions, and asked them, “Why do
you tempt Me?
“Show Me a penny. Whose image and superscription hath it?”
They
responded, “Caesar's.”
At
that Christ told them, “Give to Caesar the things which
are Caesar's, and give to God the things which are God's!”
That
teaching has NOTHING to do
with tithing! The tithe had to be paid by Jewish owners of farms in the Temple!
Gentiles could not pay the tithe!
They
could not trap the Son of God! In fact even the spies were amazed at His answer
and kept quiet!
Luke
20:27-38
27 Then
came to him certain of the
Sadducees, which deny that there is any resurrection; and they asked him,
28 Saying, Master, Moses wrote unto us, If any man's brother
die, having a wife, and he die without children, that his brother should take
his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother.
29 There were therefore seven brethren: and the first took a
wife, and died without children.
30 And the second took her to wife, and he died childless.
31 And the third took her; and in like manner the seven also:
and they left no children, and died.
32 Last of all the woman died also.
33 Therefore in the resurrection whose wife of them is she? for seven had her to wife.
34 And Jesus answering said unto them, The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage:
35 But they which shall be accounted
worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry,
nor are given in marriage:
36 Neither can they die any more: for
they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children
of the resurrection.
37 Now that the dead are raised, even
Moses shewed at the bush, when he calleth
the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.
38 For he is not a God of the dead,
but of the living: for all live unto him.
Once,
while Jesus was teaching, Sadducees came to speak to Him! (As you know
Sadducees deny the resurrection!) They asked him, “Master, Moses wrote that “If
any man's brother dies having a wife, and he dies without children that his
brother should take that man’s wife as his own and have children with her in
the name of his brother.
“So,
what if there were seven brothers, and the first brother married and died
without any children.
“And
so, the second brother married her, and he died also childless.
Then
the third brother married her; and in like manner each of the seven brothers
married her and died without producing children!
“Finally
the woman died.
“So,
in the resurrection whose wife would she be? After all, each of the seven had
taken her as a wife!”
As
you read this you must first understand that the Sadducees had asked the question
did not believe in a resurrection, so the question was bogus!
But,
Jesus knowing their thoughts concerning the resurrection answered them
politely, “The children of this world marry, and are
given in marriage!
“However, those who shall be accounted worthy of the
resurrection neither marry, nor are given in marriage!
“They cannot die anymore, because they are like the angels and
are the children of God, being sons of the resurrection!
“Concerning the resurrection, Moses foretold it explicitly
when he told us that the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is not a God of
the dead! Instead, His is the God of the living! And to Him all live!”
First,
we should understand that last statement!
Romans
11:36 For of
him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be
glory forever. Amen.
The Sadducees did not believe in the
resurrection and so they had a vested interest in rejecting Jesus resurrection!
In
the resurrection, the gathering of the saints, agape love will fully consume all
appointed to life in Christ Jesus!
There
shall be no marriage except the marriage of the Lamb!
True
Christians are now being formed into the body of Christ! Pretenders will not be
found in the gathering of the saints! The destiny of pretenders is the Lake of
Fire!
Romans
12:4-5
4 For
as we have many members in one body, and all members have
not the same office:
5 So
we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every
one members one of another
Col 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the
dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
This supposed trap set by Sadducees,
was turned around to show them the error under which they lived! And yet there
are many pretenders who attend various Churches and also believe that what you
have in this life is all you get! They are as spiritually ignorant as those who
were part of the Sadducees!
Luke 20:39-47
39 Then certain of the scribes
answering said, Master, thou hast well said.
40 And after that they durst not ask him any question at all.
41 And he said unto them, How say they that
Christ is David's son?
42 And David himself saith in the book of Psalms, The LORD said unto my Lord,
Sit thou on my right hand,
43 Till I make thine enemies thy
footstool.
44 David therefore calleth him Lord, how is he then his son?
45 Then in the audience of all the people he said unto his
disciples,
46 Beware of the scribes, which
desire to walk in long robes, and love greetings in the markets, and the
highest seats in the synagogues, and the chief rooms at feasts;
47 Which devour widows' houses, and
for a shew make long prayers: the same shall receive
greater damnation.
Then
certain of the Pharisaic scribes jumped onto the conversation, “Master, You have
spoken the truth!”
After
that those who sought to discredit Jesus did not dare ask anymore questions!
Jesus
continued teaching by asking, “How can it be that
Christ is David's son?”
Then,
He expounded on His theme, “According to one of David’s Psalms, ‘The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand,
until I make Your enemies Your
footstool!’
“Therefore David referred to the Messiah as Lord! So, how can
He be is David’s son?”
Then,
in full view of all there, Jesus told His disciples, “Beware
of the scribes, which desire to walk in long robes, and love greetings in the
markets, and the highest seats in the synagogues, and the chief rooms at
feasts!
“They devour widows' houses, and say long prayers as a show!
They shall receive great condemnation (Gr. krima-κρίμα)!”
Many
do not live as if there is no judgment in the ages to come! The fact is that Jesus
is now and always has been Lord!