Family Bible Church weekly message

* If you would die today do know where you are going? * If God would ask you, "Why should I let you into My heaven?" What would you answer? * Are you trusting in your good deeds? Do you believe that you will get into heaven because you attend church? * What about a robber, or a thief? Are they excluded based upon their badness? * Jesus had an interesting and eternal encounter with the thief hanging on the cross next to Him. This encounter has great relevance for us today.

* Last week, we considered Jesus' call of His Primary Messengers and began to consider the communication of His Primary Message. We considered that the overall theme of Jesus' teaching was for people to change the way they thought - from being worldly-focused to kingdom-focused; and from being self-focused to being other-focused. As we will see, the Kingdom mindset is unlike the mindset of the world * Lord willing, the message today and then two weeks from now will cover some of the exhortations, applications and implications of this primary message. * Today, we will be considering Contrasts, Commands, and Conclusions that Jesus presents based upon the Theme of this Primary Message. That theme is revealed throughout these verses. - THE THEME OF JESUS' MESSAGE ... If you do to others just as you would have them do to you, then your reward will be great and you will be sons of the Most High. For with the same measure you use, it will be measured back to you!

* Up to this point in our study of Luke's Gospel, we have seen the proclamation of the coming of the Messiah and His forerunner. We have then seen the birth and ministry of the Messiah's forerunner - John the Immerser (the Baptist), the proclamation of Jesus inaugurating His Messianic ministry, the authority and power of Jesus displayed through a variety of healings and of demons being cast out. Last week, we saw Jesus begin to ramp up His Messianic ministry by providing corrective instruction regarding the observance of the Sabbath. During this time, Jesus began to call individuals to follow Him. Some did and some did not. We read of some of those who did. * Today, we see Jesus take the next step in His Messianic ministry - choosing His primary Ambassadors and giving them their primary Message. * If you were to choose twelve men to represent you, or your business, or your ministry ... how would you go about choosing them? Would they send in resumés? Would you have multiple interviews? What criteria

* As Chuck reminded us last week, Luke wrote this gospel account that we are studying in order "that you may know the certainty of those things in which you were instructed." * We have seen, that it was Jesus' custom to go to the Synagogue on the Sabbath. It was on the Sabbath that Jesus gave His Messianic proclamation in the Synagogue in Nazareth. It was also on the Sabbath that we saw His ministry begin in the town of Capernaum. There, in the Synagogue, the people were amazed at His teaching and He cast the unclean Spirit out of a man. Afterwards, Jesus went to Simon's house and healed Simon's mother-in-law. * Today, we are going to see Jesus - the Lord of the Sabbath - begin to deal with the misunderstandings that the people have regarding the Law of the Sabbath. These interactions are going to bring Him into direct confrontation with the Pharisees and teachers of the Law. * Similarly, this topic can be quite controversial amongst believers, and theologians, in the church today. Is the discussion of

Though we have taken a few detours along the way, we have spent the bulk of the past 5 months examining Luke's gospel account, with our plan this morning being to finish up chapter 5. This means that at our current pace, we will be in Luke, not only for the remainder of 2024, but most likely a good portion of 2025 as well. * And while for some, this might be considered a "slow" pace, for me it is a reminder of the depth and beauty of God's Word, and also the fact that the Bible is so full of truth that it merits and deserves our careful attention to its every detail. But then, as many of you have no doubt experienced over the years, we will have but "scratched the surface" even after we eventually come to the end of Luke 24. * Now, as Pastor Bob has reminded us frequently over the past 5 months, Luke's desire was to present an orderly account of the ministry of Jesus the Christ, so that those that heard about it could be assured of its veracity, in order that they could have confidence to share its testimon

Last week, we saw Jesus' interaction with, and call of, Simon Peter. Even though Simon had seen Jesus perform many healings, it was the manifestation of a major catch of fish to get his attention. As a result, Simon confessed his sinfulness, willingly left his business, and followed Jesus. * From this point, Jesus begins to travel throughout the regions of Galilee and Judea, and uses Simon's house as his "house of operations" while back in Capernaum - His adopted city. * Today, we begin to follow Jesus on these journeys. Immediately, we are introduced to one of Luke's favorite words when it comes to describing Jesus' travels: egeneto - translated in the NKJV as "Now it happened ... " or "Now it came to pass ..." Egeneto is used 208 times in the New Testament; 129 of those times are by Luke! (Luke - 75; Acts - 54) The next closest of usages is Mark, John and Revelation with 18 each! Egeneto is the aorist indicative of ginomai, which means "cause to be" or "to become." When Jesus came to the earth,

* Jesus had just announced in Nazareth, his hometown, that He was the Messiah. But, the people there rejected Him. * Hence, Jesus transitions His base of operations to another location - Capernaum. * As we saw in His time in Nazareth, it was His custom to go to the Synagogue on Sabbath, and to teach. That is where we find Him, as we consider the beginning of His ministry in Capernaum. * In Luke's presentation of Jesus' Messianic ministry, he is going to reveal one of it's most important aspects immediately ... His authority. In this short passage that we are going to consider today, we see the reaction of those in Capernaum as they witness the authority of Jesus in a variety of manners.

* Jesus had just announced in Nazareth, his hometown, that He was the Messiah. But, the people there rejected Him. * Hence, Jesus transitions His base of operations to another location - Capernaum. * As we saw in His time in Nazareth, it was His custom to go to the Synagogue on Sabbath, and to teach. That is where we find Him, as we consider the beginning of His ministry in Capernaum. * In Luke's presentation of Jesus' Messianic ministry, he is going to reveal one of it's most important aspects immediately ... His authority. In this short passage that we are going to consider today, we see the reaction of those in Capernaum as they witness the authority of Jesus in a variety of manners.

* Our teaching time this morning was split into two parts, with our foundation being the symbolism behind one aspect of the Passover Seder meal that Jesus celebrated with His disciples on the eve of His crucifixion, namely the 3rd and 4th cups of wine. Jesus drank that 3rd cup with His disciples then, but refrained from drinking the 4th cup, promising to do it in the future with all who have followed Him through the ages as Savior and Redeemer. The drinking of that 4th cup to also be done during a very special meal, namely the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. * So, two cups and two suppers, both hosted by King Jesus, the lamb of God that has taken away the sins of the world.

* Up unto this point in our study of the Gospel according to Luke, we have been considering the Preparation of Christ's Ministry. We have considered birth and ministry of the Forerunner of the Messiah, and we have considered the birth, immersion, genealogy, and temptation of the Messiah. * Today, we come to the point where Jesus publicly declares His Messianic Role to those with whom He had grown up.

* In our study of the Gospel account of Luke, we have considered Luke's description of the miraculous nature of both John's and Jesus' conception and birth, and the significance of John's ministry to the authentication of the Messianic claim of Jesus. * Today, in our study of the Gospel account of Luke, we will be considering the final section of Luke's foundation of Jesus' Messianic ministry - His Baptism, Genealogy, and Temptation.

* We have been studying the Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Luke. * In the first message, we discussed Luke's purpose in writing this Gospel account - "That you may know the certainty of those things in which you were instructed." * We then considered "Where" Luke chose to begin this account ... at the angelic proclamation to Zacharias regarding the birth of John. Luke believed that it was critical for the believer to understand the miraculous nature of John's birth and ministry. Indeed, later when Jesus was questioned by the Scribes regarding His authority, He would point them back to the ministry and testimony of John. * Today, we consider the Preparatory Ministry of John as the Forerunner of the Messiah.

* Four weeks ago, in our last message from the book of Luke, we saw the prophetic announcements of Simeon and Anna regarding he redemptive work of Christ. These announcements occurred 40 days after the birth of Jesus while Joseph and Mary were going to the Temple to present an offering for her purification according Levitical Law. * Today's passage carries us up to when Jesus was twelve years old. * As we consider the passage today, the major question that I am forced to ask myself is: "Where would I be found if others were looking for me?" * Today, we consider the importance, and priority, of the Word of God in our lives. * This message was presented on March 31, 2024 by Bob Corbin.

* As we approach our spring week of Prayer and Fasting, I felt compelled of the Lord to spend two weeks focusing on the importance of prayer in the life of the saints. Though prayer is one of the most critical aspects of the life of the believer and the church, it seems to take the least priority in the lives of many believers and churches. * Last week, we focused upon The Posture of Prayer. Though we are adopted by God and afforded the privilege of calling Him: "Abba," yet, He is still the Holy God who is the Creator, Sustainer, and Judge of the Universe - and of all mankind. Hence, though I may boldly enter into His presence because of the blood of Jesus, I must always remember: He is the Potter and I am the clay. There must be an attitude (or posture) of humbleness, and not arrogance or pride as I come before His throne. In the Scriptures, this attitude is conjoined with a physical posture of kneeling before Him. In fact, this posture is embedded into the Hebrew word (shakhah) and Greek word (prosku

* Our spring week of Prayer and Fasting is Monday-Friday, March 25-29. * Prayer is one of the most critical aspects of the life of the believer and, hence, the life of the church. Yet, it seems to take the least priority in the lives of many believers and churches. * This week, I was burdened by the Lord to teach two messages regarding the important impact of prayer. Hence, Lord willing, over the next two weeks we will be considering The Posture of Prayer and The Warfare of Prayer. * By definition, "Prayer" is "A reverent petition made to God, a god, or another object of worship. ... An act of communion with God, a god, or another object of worship." Communion is defined as: "The act or an instance of sharing, as of thoughts or feelings. Religious or spiritual fellowship." * The Bible is filled with many "balances" for our Christian walk (e.g. predestination v. free will; the perseverance of the saints v. the preservation of the saints). My definition of prayer reflects another of those balances; prayer

* Dan Nave is the Executive Director of Southeast Church Extension whose mission is to help struggling churches get healthy and healthy churches reproduce. Dan provided an expositor message from a prayer of the Apostle Paul for the church of Ephesus. * Paul shared an emphatic prayer on behalf of the church of Ephesus. He prayed that Christ would be able to be at home in their lives and that they would be able to comprehend the incomprehensible: the love of Christ! He closes his prayer with a doxology of praise to the God who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we could ask or think! * This message was presented on March 10, 2024 by Dan Nave.

* Last week, we considered the third Angelic Announcement, recorded in the book of Luke, regarding the Messianic nature of He who was born: Jesus of Nazareth! God was doing a work, through ordinary people, that marveled all of those who witnessed the rippling effects of these proclamations. The message was magnified through those who were at birth and naming of John, and those who heard the testimony of the shepherds. * Today, we transition to the next phase of God's proclamation of Jesus' Messianic claim - the prophetic announcements of Simeon and Anna. These occur during the process of Joseph and Mary fulfilling the Law regarding Jesus' birth. Leviticus 12:2-6 gives us the details of the Law regarding a woman giving birth to a son. The child was to be circumcised on the eighth day and then the woman was to present an offering for her purification on the 40th day. Hence, our passage today is 40 days after the birth of Jesus. * This message was presented on March 3, 2024 by Bob Corbin.

* This is the seventh message in our series on the book of Luke. Up until this point, we have been considering what many would consider preliminary information, but that which Luke determined to be integral to the redemptive purpose of Christ. The ministry of John - preparing the way of YHWH - was one of the chief validations of the Messianic claim of Jesus of the Nazareth (cf. Matthew 21:23-27) * Last week, we considered the numerous prophecies declaring how Christ would come - born of a virgin; born of the lineage of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, and David; born in Bethlehem; taken to Egypt; and raised in Nazareth. We considered how He would be preceded by a forerunner and that He would proclaim liberty to captives and heal the blind. We considered as well how it was prophesied that He would be crucified - that His hands and feet would be pierced, that His side would be pierced and that His bones would not be broken. We saw that it was prophesied that He would be betrayed by a friend and that it would

* We have spent the first five weeks of our study of Luke's account of the life and ministry of Jesus the Christ, examining the preliminary events leading up to His life and ministry! We have seen how God sent Gabriel to both Zacharias and Mary declaring that God was going to bless them and use them in fulfilling His redemptive plan. * Last week, we considered the birth and naming of John. In that message, we considered the importance of John's miraculous birth as a sign, and testimony, to validate Jesus' as the coming Messiah. * However, apart from John's miraculous birth, there were many prophecies which would be fulfilled in the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus which substantially validate His claim as the Messiah. * Today, as we begin to consider chapter 2 of Luke's account, it begins with the phrase, "And it came to pass in those days ..." From the world's perspective things just seem to happen. However, from a theocentric understanding, we understand that God is, and has been, orchestr

* In Luke chapter 1 we have seen that Zacharias and Mary each were visited by the angel Gabriel with the message that God was going to bless them and use them in fulfilling His redemptive plan. Zacharias responded with doubt and wanted a sign to validate the message. Gabriel told him that he because he doubted, he would be mute until John was born. Mary, on the hand, received the message with fear and submitted willingly to God's desire in her life. * Two weeks ago we began to consider the events surrounding the birth of John by considering The Visit of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth. Another miracle occurred when the two women with miraculous pregnancies met! The approximately sixth month old "fetus" in Elizabeth's womb leapt for joy at presence of the less-than-a-month old fetus in Mary's womb! Elizabeth additionally recognized Mary as "The mother of my Lord!" As a result, Mary praised the mighty, holy and merciful God for scattering the proud, filling the hungry, and remembering His mercy (khesed) t