Luke
Chapter
10
Luke
10:1-16
1
After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and
two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.
2 Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is
great, but the labourers are few: pray ye
therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers
into his harvest.
3 Go your ways: behold, I send you
forth as lambs among wolves.
4 Carry neither purse, nor scrip, nor
shoes: and salute no man by the way.
5 And into whatsoever house ye enter,
first say, Peace be to this house.
6 And if the son of peace be there,
your peace shall rest upon it: if not, it shall turn to you again.
7 And in the same house remain,
eating and drinking such things as they give: for the labourer
is worthy of his hire. Go not from house to house.
8 And into whatsoever city ye enter,
and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you:
9 And heal the sick that are therein,
and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.
10 But into whatsoever city ye enter,
and they receive you not, go your ways out into the streets of the same, and
say,
11 Even the very dust of your city,
which cleaveth on us, we do wipe off against you:
notwithstanding be ye sure of this, that the kingdom of God is come nigh unto
you.
12 But I say unto you, that it shall
be more tolerable in that day for Sodom, than for that city.
13 Woe unto thee, Chorazin!
woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for
if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon,
which have been done in you, they had a great while ago repented, sitting in
sackcloth and ashes.
14 But it shall be more tolerable for
Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than for you.
15 And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted
to heaven, shalt be thrust down to hell.
16 He that heareth
you heareth me; and he that despiseth
you despiseth me; and he that despiseth
me despiseth him that sent me.
Following Jesus’ rebuke of the Apostles in Chapter
9, He appointed seventy followers to go
out in pairs to every city and place where He would go.
Jesus
told them, “The harvest truly is great, but the
laborers are few! Therefore, pray that the Lord of the harvest would
send more forth laborers into the field to gather the harvest.”
The
Church is now the laborers in His field, the earth! God chooses who may and who
may not represent Christ Jesus!
Those
seventy were sent to gather the harvest, and not to grow the fruit of the
harvest! Many have already planted the harvest! Now is the time to harvest what
has been plant!
Jesus
also told them, “I send you out as lambs among wolves!”
That is still true! Many wolves are now attempting to feed off the lambs, the
Church!
Christ
Jesus admonished them, “Do not take a money bag, or money! Do not take extra shoes!”
Also
in verse 4 Jesus told them, “As you travel, do not greet (Gr. aspazomai-ἀσπάζομαι) others!” That may seem
strange, but they were not spiritually mature enough to determine enemies from
friends! Many today who are enemies of Christ are allowed to be greeted as
leaders in some Churches!
Christ
told them, “Whatever
house you all enter, first say, ‘Peace to this
house!’ And, if the Son of peace shall be there,
your peace shall rest upon it! If not, it shall return to you again.
“Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they
give you, because the laborer is worth his salary. Do not go from house to
house!
“No matter which city you go into if they receive you eat
whatever they set before you!
“Heal their sick, and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near you.’
“But, if the city refuses to welcome you, publically proclaim,
‘We wipe the dust off our shoes to show that
this city is cursed, but understand that the kingdom of God has come near you!
But I say tell you that the fate of Sodom is better
than for this city.’”
Jesus
further said, “Grief awaits you Chorazin
and Bethsaida! Because, if these powerful works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they would have
repented, long ago and would be mourning in sackcloth and ashes!
“However, it shall be more tolerable for Tyre
and Sidon at the judgment, than for you.
“And you, Capernaum, which are exalted to heaven, shall be
thrust down to hades.
Then
Jesus told His followers, “He that hears you hears Me! And, he that despises you despises Me! And, he that despises Me
despises Him Who sent Me!”
That
statement is still true today! Those who reject Christ’s spokesmen and women
are actually rejecting the Lord and the Father who sent Him!
Then
truth is that all who despise (Gr. atheteō-ἀθετέω) Christ also hate God the Father! Unfortunately at this time that includes most
Jews!
Jews
who reject Christ Jesus as the Messiah have also rejected God the Father even
though they may claim to be “the chosen!”
Out
of their own mouths has come their punishment for that rejection!
Matt
27:22-25
22 Pilate saith
unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus which is
called Christ? They all say unto him, Let him
be crucified.
23 And
the governor said, Why, what evil hath he done? But
they cried out the more, saying, Let him be crucified.
24 When
Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was
made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying,
I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye
to it.
25 Then
answered all the people, and said, His blood
be on us, and on our children.
Those who spoke those words spoke
their own destruction!
Luke
10:17-24
17 And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even
the devils are subject unto us through thy name.
18 And he said unto them, I beheld
Satan as lightning fall from heaven.
19 Behold, I give unto you power to
tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and
nothing shall by any means hurt you.
20 Notwithstanding in this rejoice
not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your
names are written in heaven.
21 In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou
hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto
babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight.
22 All things are delivered to me of
my Father: and no man knoweth who the Son is, but the
Father; and who the Father is, but the Son, and he to whom the Son will
reveal him.
23 And he turned him unto his disciples, and said
privately, Blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see:
24 For I tell you, that many prophets
and kings have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them;
and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.
The
seventy returned joyfully declaring, “Lord, even the devils obey us through Your name.”
When
they returned Jesus told them, “I beheld Satan as
lightning fall from heaven.”
Jesus
further told them, “Behold, I give you power (Gr.
dunamis-δύναμις) to tread on serpents and scorpions,
and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
Christ
gave the Apostles extraordinary power!
This is not limited authority! It is power!
Satan
operates under “authority,” but those who have the indwelling of the Holy
Spirit have an intrinsic power!
When
Christ said that “nothing shall by any means hurt you,” He was not speaking of
physical pain!
Then
Christ Jesus told them, “Do not rejoice, because the spirits are subject to you! Instead rejoice,
because your names are written in heaven.”
Exercising
spiritual power is not a sign of Christianity! Living in the fruit of the
Spirit is a demonstration of Christ within us!
Matt 7:20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
Gal
5:22-23
22 But the fruit
of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
23 Meekness,
temperance: against such there is no law.
The Bible explains that at this time Jesus
rejoiced in spirit and spoke to the Father saying, “I
thank You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You
have hidden these things from the wise and prudent, and have revealed them to
babes! Because, it seemed good in You sight!”
I must point out that being a “babe”
(Gr. nēpios-νήπιος/i.e. immature) in Christ and being weak in the spirit are separate
issues! A person who is immature in Christ relies on the Spirit to guide
him/her. A person who is weak in the spirit demands his/her own way when the
Spirit is leading in another direction!
Then
Jesus told His followers, “All things are delivered to Me of My Father: and no one knows who the Son is except the
Father, Or Who the Father is except the Son, and those to whom the Son reveals
Him!”
Christ
Jesus within us reveals the reality of God the Father!
If
God the Father and God the Son have not been revealed to you, and yet you
attend Church, you are not a Christian!
You are a Pretender!
At that Christ to his disciples, and privately said, “Blessed are the eyes which see the things that you all
see!
“Many prophets and kings have desired to see
those things which you see, and have not seen them! And, they have desired to hear those things, which you all
hear and yet they have not heard them!”
As
you read the Bible, you will see this phrase, “Let him whom has ears hear”. That
may seem strange! The vast majority of people have physical ears! Having
physical ears is not the issue! Only when we have been given the ability to
hear what the Spirit is saying can we truly be led by the Holy Spirit! Most of
those on this earth have not heard what the Spirit is saying!
Luke
10:25-37
25 And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him,
saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
26 He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou?
27 And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God
with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as
thyself.
28 And he said unto him, Thou hast
answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.
29 But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?
30 And Jesus answering said, A
certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves,
which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed,
leaving him half dead.
31 And by chance there came down a
certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
32 And likewise a Levite, when he was
at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.
33 But a certain Samaritan, as he
journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,
34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil
and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took
care of him.
35 And on the morrow when he
departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said
unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest
more, when I come again, I will repay thee.
36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto
him that fell among the thieves?
37 And he said, He that shewed
mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou
likewise.
As
Jesus spoke to His followers, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted Him by
asking, “Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Notice that the
lawyer was there to tempt Christ! His
question was bogus!
As
I said earlier, Jesus lived and taught during the age of the law, so Jesus
responded, “What is written in the Law (the
Torah)? Do you understand the Law?”
To
go beyond the letter of the law would have been an exercise in futility with
that lawyer!
The lawyer recited part of the abbreviated common law, indicating that he knew
the Law, “You shall love the Lord you God with all your heart, and with all
your soul, and with all you strength, and with all your mind, and you and
neighbor as yourself.”
The
lawyer knew the words, but he did not know the Word!
Jesus
responded to the lawyer’s attempted temptation by saying, “You have answered correctly! Do that and you shall live!”
But,
the lawyer was attempting self-justification and so he continued by asking,
“So, who is my neighbor?” Again, the lawyer’s response was calculated! It was a
standard debate question among those who have great education, but no
understanding!
Jesus responded with a parable, “A certain man
traveled from Jerusalem to Jericho, and along the way, he was accosted by
thieves who stole all he had and wounded him,
leaving him half dead.
“A priest came by but just walked passed him not stopping to
help!
“A Levite also walked by that beaten and battered man!
“But a Samaritan, as he traveled along that road,
came to where the wounded man lay the Samaritan saw
him, and had compassion on him!
“The Samaritan bound his wounds,
pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own donkey, and took him to an inn,
and cared for him.
The
next day, “When the Samaritan left, he paid the
innkeeper two pence, and told him, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more
you spend more, when I return, I will repay you.’
When
Christ found us beaten and robbed by Satan, He took pity on us, caring for us
and paying the full and complete price for our healing, salvation!
The
lawyer had no concept of what Jesus’ response was because it was a parable and
Jesus taught in parables to hide the truth!
Then
Christ asked the lawyer, “Which of the three do you
think acted like a neighbor to the man who was attacked by the thieves?”
The
lawyer answered, “The one who showed mercy! That was a stock answer!
The
lawyer may have known that to answer otherwise would indicate his total lack of
understanding!
Then
Jesus told him, “Go, and do likewise.”
The
two who passed by the wounded man knew the Torah, by in their arrogance failed
to act!
The
Samaritan may not have known the Torah, but he did what was taught in the
Torah! Many of today’s orthodox Jews would just pass by!
Mental
ascension of the word is not equivalent to actually doing the word!
Luke
10:38-42
38 Now
it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a
certain woman named Martha received him into her house.
39 And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus'
feet, and heard his word.
40 But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to
him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve
alone? bid her therefore that she help me.
41 And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many
things:
42 But one thing is needful: and Mary
hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.
As
Jesus and the Apostles traveled, they came to a certain village! There they found Martha and she took them in!
Martha’s
sister, Mary, which sat at Jesus' feet, and heard His word. He taught them!
They
were Lazarus’ sisters! Lazarus is the
one Jesus raised from death! You will find that story
in John, chapter 11!
At
this point, Martha was “cumbered,” burdened by the fact that she served while
her sister listened!
As
she became more flustered, she finally said, “Lord, don’t you care that my
sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her that she should help me!”
Jesus
replied, “Martha, Martha, you are ‘careful’ (Gr. merimnaō-μεριμνάω), anxious, worried by many things!
“However, there is one thing you
need!
Anxiety
is produced by fear! And, the Bible warns us many times to “fear not!”
Jesus
further explained, “Mary has chosen what is good! She has chosen that which shall not be taken
from her!”
Have
you chosen to thrive in the Word, or exist in the world?