Thursday, March 5,
2015, 6:00 a.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “To Be Like Him.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Luke 20:9-19 (NASB).
Response to
Persecution
One day Jesus was in the Temple teaching the people and
preaching the gospel of our salvation. The chief priests, scribes and elders
began to question his authority. Jesus then answered their question with
another question – one that they were in a quandary as to how to answer – so
they responded that they did not know the answer. Jesus then told them that he
would not answer their question. And, then he began to tell the people this
parable about the vineyard, the vine-growers, the servants, and the Son. [See
vv. 1-8]
Jesus exercised much wisdom and discernment in answering his
persecutors. When we come up against persecution for preaching the gospel and
for teaching the truths of scripture, we will need much wisdom and discernment
of the Spirit in knowing how to answer our persecutors, as well. But Jesus said
we should not be afraid, for he will give us the words to say. We just have to
listen to his voice speaking to us, and to say what he gives us to say.
Jesus’ most fierce opponents were not the people of this
sinful world, though. His strongest opposition came from those within the
temple of God, i.e. from those who professed to know God and to be his
servants. Not only that, but they were the leaders and teachers in the temple
who came against him the toughest. And, that may be true for us today, as well,
at least here in America, because so much of the church today has gone the way
of the world in order to please the world, which is why so many of today’s
church leaders are opposed to the gospel as taught by the apostles, because it
is judgmental and offensive to them. They prefer messages which tickle itching
ears and that are pleasing to the flesh of humans. So, they will also reject
and turn away those who hold to the truths of scripture and who teach the
unadulterated word of God.
The Parable
And
He began to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard and rented
it out to vine-growers, and went on a journey for a long time. At the harvest
time he sent a slave to the vine-growers, so that they would give him some of
the produce of the vineyard; but the vine-growers beat him and sent him away
empty-handed. And he proceeded to send another slave; and they beat him also
and treated him shamefully and sent him away empty-handed. And he proceeded to
send a third; and this one also they wounded and cast out. The owner of the
vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my beloved son; perhaps they will
respect him.’ But when the vine-growers saw him, they reasoned with one
another, saying, ‘This is the heir; let us kill him so that the inheritance
will be ours.’ So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What,
then, will the owner of the vineyard do to them? He will come and destroy these
vine-growers and will give the vineyard to others.”
In terms of Jesus’ day, the vineyard was God’s people, the
Jewish nation. The vine-growers were the leaders of the people, i.e. the
priests, scribes, and elders, et al. They were put in charge of caring for
God’s people. The slaves/servants were the prophets, including John the
Baptist. And, the son was Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ was accusing these leaders and their
predecessors of having persecuted and murdered some of the prophets, and of
also killing the Son, though that was yet to take place. Yet, they were already
plotting against Jesus, and they hated him, so in God’s eyes they had already
committed murder in their hearts. He was also charging them with having not
produced anything in the way of spiritual fruit for their labor, as well as he
accused them of jealousy against the Son and of trying to steal the inheritance
for themselves. So, God judged the Jewish nation, and they are no longer his
chosen people. He sent his gospel out to the Gentiles so they could be saved.
Now the people of God are those who believe in the Son, Jesus Christ, whether
Jew or Gentile by birth.
I do believe, though, that this also has an application to
the church today. The church is now the vineyard, and pastors, elders and
teachers of the Word are the vine-growers, as well as all the church as a whole
has been given the responsibility for the nurturing and spiritual growth of the
church, for we all form one body, and we each have a part. The slaves/servants
are those who have been gifted and called of the Lord to see the spiritual
condition of the church and to call the church to repent of her sinful ways,
i.e. of her spiritual adultery, and to call her to turn back to following her
Lord with wholehearted devotion. I don’t know how many people have been called
to this ministry, and I don’t know how many have been faced with persecution
and rejection from the church and from church leaders as a result of the
servants’ obedience to their Lord, but I do know this exists. Yet, on a larger
scale, I believe that all who are truly the Lord’s servants in sharing the
gospel of our salvation will be persecuted, and even from within the worldly
church.
I also believe that scripture teaches that one day God will
judge his adulterous and idolatrous church (See Rev. 2-3), before Jesus
returns, in order to purify his bride and to make her ready to meet her
husband, Jesus Christ. I believe that at this time the church will be revived,
and the gospel will go forth unlike any other time in recent history and that
many people from all over the world will flock to Jesus Christ and will be
saved. In this judgment God will remove from his church these leaders who have
led his people astray and who have rejected his servants who brought to them
the unadulterated word of God.
The Chief Cornerstone
When
they heard it, they said, “May it never be!” But Jesus looked at them and said,
“What then is this that is written:
‘The
stone which the builders rejected,
This
became the chief corner stone’?
Everyone
who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it
will scatter him like dust.”
Jesus Christ was rejected by the Jewish nation, as whole,
and he was rejected by their leadership. He is the stone the builders rejected.
He is also being rejected by many church leaders and church members today who
are rejecting his gospel in favor of a gospel of human-origin, and who are
following the teachings of humans, instead. Yet, he is the chief cornerstone of
God’s building, his church. He is our foundation and our support, and he is
main component of our Christian faith and practice for he is the one who gave
his life for us so we could be set free from sin and so we could have eternal
life with God. And, he is the one who lives within us, his followers, and who
leads, guides and directs us into all truth.
Falling on him, I believe, involves us willingly dying with
Christ to our old lives of living for sin and self, thus becoming broken and
contrite in spirit before him. Our selfish wills now are broken, and Christ has
now become our lives. We now walk in the Spirit and not according to the flesh,
to gratify our sinful desires. Our desire is now for Jesus, to please him in
all that we do and say. Yet, if we do not humble ourselves before God, and we
do not repent of our sins, and we do not choose to follow our Lord Jesus Christ
in surrender and obedience to him and to his will for our lives, but we choose
to go our own selfish ways, then we will be judged by God. So, we have a
choice. We can choose to die with Christ to our old lives of sin and then walk
daily in his righteousness and holiness, all in the power of the Spirit within
us, or we can choose to reject him and to go our own way. One choice brings us spiritual
life. The other brings spiritual death. I pray we all choose life.
To
Be Like Him / An Original Work
March 16, 2014 / Based off Scripture
Crucified you are with Jesus.
To be like Him, oh, you’ll be,
Because He died at Calv’ry,
So from sin you’d be free.
Oh, what joy He brings into your life,
Giving life with Him endlessly.
Oh, what plans He has for your life.
Share the gospel faithfully.
Show the people He loves them.
Now His witness you’ll be.
Tell the world of sin about Jesus,
How He died for them on a tree.
Purifying hearts, He saves them,
Who believe on Christ, God’s Son.
Turning now from their idols,
New lives they have begun.
Jesus saves from sin; we’re forgiven.
Over sin, the vict’ry He won!
When He comes again to take us
To be with Him evermore,
There will be no more crying.
Gladness will be in store.
Heavens joys will now overtake us:
We’ll be with our Lord evermore.
No comments:
Post a Comment