Text: Luke 3:21—4:13 | Listen to Message More Than A Model Christians are often quick to assume that the temptation of Christ – like everything else in the Bible – is all about us: “Jesus overcame temptation in order to show you how to overcome the temptations in your life.” Not so fast. It’s fair to say that, in Luke 4, Jesus fought temptation with the Word of God, in the power of the Spirit of God, leaning on his confidence in the will of God. Jesus’ actions were always exemplary, so – yes – wise people will try to walk...
Text: Luke 3:1-22 | Listen to Message Phony Repentance In Part I, we saw that real repentance requires a reorientation of mind and a renovation of actions. Changed thoughts produce changed fruits. But so often we substitute some cheap alternative for actual change. For example… Punishment avoidance: Children and adults alike often protest how sorry and penitent they are … the moment they know they’ve just been caught. So long as they think they’ve gotten away with their sin, they don’t feel an ounce of remorse; but once the instant they know they’re in trouble, they rush to avoid any and...
Text: Luke 3:1-22 | Listen to Message Repentance Bears Fruit When caught red-handed in sin, anyone can say, “I’m sorry.” Anyone can feel guilty and even remorseful. Anyone can promise to change. But many – perhaps even most – will not actually repent. The New Testament uses a compound word for repentance that literally means “to change your mind.” True repentance is the complete reorientation of your thoughts, attitudes, and desires, which ultimately drive your behaviors. So how do you know if you’ve done that? And how do you know if you really meant it? John the Baptist answers in Luke...
Text: Luke 2:41-52 | Listen to Message Is Jesus Confusing To You? If something confounds you, it amazes and astonishes you, but it also puzzles and perplexes you. It leaves you awestruck, bewildered and confused, all at the same time. This is the effect Jesus has on people. Picture this scene. Jesus is 12 years old and he’s gone up to Jerusalem with his family for the Passover. After a week, his parents return home to Nazareth with a caravan of family and friends. Unbeknownst to them, Jesus hangs back in Jerusalem. When his absence is discovered, his parents race...
Text: Luke 2:22-40 | Listen to Message Salvation Is A Person In some form or another, every religion claims to offer some kind of salvation. Maybe it’s eternal life. Maybe it’s heaven. Maybe it’s reincarnation. Maybe it’s higher consciousness. Maybe it’s your best life now. But every religion claims, “I can save you from this, to this.” How you get that salvation is another question altogether. And there’s no question virtually every religion offers its version of salvation as a reward for good behavior: Obey these rules. Be a nice person. Walk this path. Go to these religious services. Read...
Text: Luke 2:1-21 | Listen to Message Why Was Jesus’ Birth So Ordinary? He is the eternal Son of God. His hands stretched out the heavens at the beginning of time. His voice called forth life out of nothing. And now the King of heaven and earth is coming to reign on David’s throne and to rescue his people. This is the moment – and the Messiah – the world has waited for! We expect the King to be born in Jerusalem, or perhaps Rome. We expect throngs of people to be waiting in the streets – waiting to get their...
Text: Luke 1:57-80 | Listen to Message What’s The Point of Salvation? Many professing Christians live as if the only point of salvation is to punch their ticket to heaven. They’ve prayed a prayer, they’ve asked for forgiveness, they’ve maybe even joined a church, but they go right on living as if Jesus has nothing to say about how they live here and now. Their faith is little more than fire insurance. Do you think that way? Do you default to acting as if salvation has something to say about your future, but not your present? Or maybe you don’t...
Text: John 17:20-26 | Listen to Message His Love In Us A recent tweet summarized the Lord of the Rings movie trilogy as “nine hours of men fighting over jewelry.” That’s a crude (and inaccurate) oversimplication. But it’s not tragic. It’s tragic when we oversimplify irreducibly complex matters of eternal significance. Take the Cross as an example. A myopic view of the Cross reduces the most significant act of love, grace, and justice in history to the palatable, personal blessings that we enjoy in its wake – blessings like happiness, forgiveness, and heaven. But the Cross speaks to much...
Text: Luke 1:39-56 | Listen to Message Grace For The Humble And The Hungry If Jesus were like other kings, he’d favor people with connections, positions, and money – and who knew how to leverage their assets to get stuff done. If Jesus were like other kings, he’d feed the grand delusion that the proud, the powerful, and the prosperous are actually in control of their lives – and that any problem can be fixed by simply manipulating the right resources. If Jesus were like other kings, he’d side with the “haves” against the “have nots” and perpetuate the lie...
Text: Luke 1:26-38 | Listen to Message Nothing? Really? Nothing? Buried in the story of the annunciation of Jesus’ birth to Mary is this little phrase, “For nothing will be impossible with God” (Luke 1:37). And here’s where our minds go with that: “Nothing is impossible? Seriously? NOTHING? So God can make a square circle? And God can help me win the Powerball Lottery? And mom’s cancer is going to go into remission? And I’m going to get that promotion? And our little Christian school is going to pull the biggest upset in state history, all because we claimed this promise...