The Way Series, Pt 4
Luke 10:17-24
March 29, 2020
The sermon may be listened to in its entirety by clicking on this link: owensvillefirstchristianchurch.sermon.net
(Abbreviations for Bible translations that may be quoted: ESV = English Standard Version; NLT = New Living Translation; CSB = Christian Standard Bible; GW = God’s Word; Amplified Bible = AMP; KJV = King James Version; New King James Version = NKJV; The Message = MSG; KNT = Kingdom New Testament)
Review of Luke 10:1-16:
• If you give allegiance to Jesus, be prepared to be rejected.
• When the gospel isn’t well-received by people, still love them, move on, and pray for future acceptance.
• Sharing the Good News of Jesus is not limited to a special few, but is for all who make up the church. All Christians have the supreme task of introducing Jesus to people!
• Disciples are to serve God in dependence, resting in his provision.
• The task of making disciples is never to be about what we can get out of it materially/financially.
• Successful mission always occurs in the context of prayer and God’s sovereignty.
• It is a terrible thing to continue to reject God’s invitation to receive and follow Jesus.
Today’s Passage: Luke 10:17-24:
17 The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” 18 And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. 20 Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
21 In that same hour he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. 22 All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”
23 Then turning to the disciples he said privately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! 24 For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it” (ESV).
Disciples of Jesus are to rejoice in our identity as God’s children and citizens of heaven, not in any power to do great things in His name (vv. 19-20).
• Matthew 7:21-23: 21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord!’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the person who does what my Father in heaven wants. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in your name? Didn’t we force out demons and do many miracles by the power and authority of your name?’ 23 Then I will tell them publicly, ‘I’ve never known you. Get away from me, you evil people.’ (GW)
• “Ministry with God is a privilege, and access to God's power is exciting, but the real cause of joy is that we have true and everlasting life before God.”—Darrell L. Bock, Luke, IVPNTC
• Philipplians 3:20: But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. (NLT)
• Colossians 1:12-14: [God the Father] has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light. 13 For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, 14 who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins (NLT)
• 1 John 3:1: Consider this: The Father has given us his love. He loves us so much that we are actually called God’s dear children. And that’s what we are. (GW)
• Titus 3:4-8: 4 But—When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, 5 he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. 6 He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. 7 Because of his grace he made us right in his sight and gave us confidence that we will inherit eternal life.
8 This is a trustworthy saying, and I want you to insist on these teachings so that all who trust in God will devote themselves to doing good. These teachings are good and beneficial for everyone. (NLT)
Prayer Meeting of the Trinity (vv. 21-24)
• One can be too learned to learn the truths of God (v. 21).
• “The sovereign God did not seek out intellectuals (the wise and learned) but the humble…He honors those who rely on him, not on their own faculties.” —Darrell L. Bock, Luke, IVPNTC
• Spiritual self-sufficiency and/or arrogance are barriers to receiving knowledge of and intimacy with God.
• James 4:10: Humble yourselves in the Lord’s presence. Then he will give you a high position. (GW)
• Philippians 2:5-11: 5 Have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.
6 Although he was in the form of God and equal with God,
he did not take advantage of this equality.
7 Instead, he emptied himself by taking on the form of a servant,
by becoming like other humans,
by having a human appearance.
8 He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death,
death on a cross. (NLT)
Luke 10:22, MSG: “The Son can introduce the Father to anyone he wants to.”
To know Jesus, God the Son, is to know God the Father (22).
• John 1:1, 14: In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God…. 14 The Word became human and lived among us. We saw his glory. It was the glory that the Father shares with his only Son, a glory full of kindness and truth. (GW)
• John 14:9: Jesus replied, “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and yet you still don’t know who I am? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father! So why are you asking me to show him to you?
• “Jesus did not so much tell men about God as show them God, because in himself were God’s mind and heart.” –William Barclay, Gospel of Luke, Vol. 1, Daily Bible Study Series
• Matthew 28:18-20: 18 When Jesus came near, he spoke to them. He said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 So wherever you go, make disciples of all nations: Baptize them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach them to do everything I have commanded you.
“And remember that I am always with you until the end of time.” (GW)
• “One often overlooked aspect of the Great Commission is its positive affect on society that comes from preventing social ills. The conversion of one person does three things. It rescues him from who he is; it delivers him from who he might have been; and it makes him something he would not have otherwise been. We understand how this works when the alcoholic or drug addict or thief or murderer is genuinely converted. These kinds of examples could be multiplied without end. It is in this way that the advance of the Gospel can do immeasurable social good, both in alleviating human suffering and avoiding it.” –Dr. Rick Beam, for Johnson University Professor
Jesus is the culmination (completion or fulfillment) of history (vv. 23-24).
• Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet…(Matthew 2:15, 17, 23.)
• V. 24: There are plenty of prophets and kings who would have given their right arm to see what you are seeing but never got so much as a glimpse, to hear what you are hearing but never got so much as a whisper.” MSG
• “The great saints of the Old Testament appreciate the unique blessing that belongs to disciples. So we should never take for granted what others longed to have.” —Darrell L. Bock, Luke, IVPNTC
• Revelation 12:9-11: 9 This great dragon—the ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, the one deceiving the whole world—was thrown down to the earth with all his angels.
10 Then I heard a loud voice shouting across the heavens,
“It has come at last—
salvation and power
and the Kingdom of our God,
and the authority of his Christ.
For the accuser of our brothers and sisters
has been thrown down to earth—
the one who accuses them
before our God day and night.
11 And they have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb
and by their testimony.
And they did not love their lives so much
that they were afraid to die (NLT).
Christians share in Christ’s victory over Satan in 3 ways:
1. And they have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb = By embracing the New Covenant through faith.
2. And they have defeated him by …their testimony.= By sharing the Good News of Christ with others so they might also be saved.
3. And they did not love their lives so much
that they were afraid to die = By remaining faithful to Christ even at the price of martyrdom.