Word@Work Luke278 - Luke 18:31-34
Published: Tue, 01/25/11
Word@Work from BeaconLight
A MESSAGE FOR ACTION
Luke 18:31-34 Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, "We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. He will be turned over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him, spit on him, flog him and kill him. On the third day he will rise again." The disciples did not understand any of this. Its meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about. (NIV)
The disciples could not believe that their Master would be killed. Everything was in His favour and, apart from the religious power-holders, everybody seemed to love Jesus. So before the final journey to meet His death in Jerusalem, the Lord gave them a briefing, explaining exactly what would happen. The details were so graphic and surely (we might have thought) unmistakable. Jesus would be unjustly tried by the Gentile ruler Pontius Pilate and cruelly crucified by Gentile soldiers, yet He would rise on the third day. But the disciples had no idea what He was talking about.
At a human level, they could not bring their understanding into line with Jesus' prediction of the future. They simply could not see what it meant. True, they were anticipating a Messianic coup against the Roman authorities, but there was another reason for their dull minds - God had not allowed them to understand the message. So why was it given? It was a way of preparing them for Pentecost when the Holy Spirit would allow them to see how the ministry, death and resurrection perfectly fulfilled Christ's words and why His ministry had to happen that way. On that day, and not before, they would get the message. But when they did, it was action time! Their job was then to proclaim the message with bold conviction ... and many were saved - it was the beginning of the church.
God does not speak to us to inflate our minds with interesting information. He speaks so that people will take action. For the disciples, there was no action to take until Jesus had fulfilled His commission - so there was no need for them to understand. Their only task was to observe what happened so that they could be credible witnesses to others later. Until the Holy Spirit filled them at Pentecost, they had no explanation of what they had seen, and therefore no message to pass on to others. But their observation role was far from pointless: the apostles would be able to refute the untrue stories about Jesus, because they had seen His miracles and wonderful signs for themselves (2 Peter 1:16-18). That is why Jesus commanded them to be His witnesses (Acts 1:8) to prove that what happened to Him was just what He planned. What a reassurance to us too - our faith is not built on imaginary stories but on the truth of what Jesus said and did. Like the disciples, when we know that for ourselves, we then have a message to tell to others.
Prayer: Gracious Lord. Thank You for Your Word which, when understood, is intended to move us to action. I repent of the times when I have known what You were saying but refused to do what it said. Thank You that I can be certain of the gospel because of the eyewitness accounts of the apostles who heard Your message and passed it on, and so we can read the Bible with confidence and share it with others. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
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The disciples could not believe that their Master would be killed. Everything was in His favour and, apart from the religious power-holders, everybody seemed to love Jesus. So before the final journey to meet His death in Jerusalem, the Lord gave them a briefing, explaining exactly what would happen. The details were so graphic and surely (we might have thought) unmistakable. Jesus would be unjustly tried by the Gentile ruler Pontius Pilate and cruelly crucified by Gentile soldiers, yet He would rise on the third day. But the disciples had no idea what He was talking about.
At a human level, they could not bring their understanding into line with Jesus' prediction of the future. They simply could not see what it meant. True, they were anticipating a Messianic coup against the Roman authorities, but there was another reason for their dull minds - God had not allowed them to understand the message. So why was it given? It was a way of preparing them for Pentecost when the Holy Spirit would allow them to see how the ministry, death and resurrection perfectly fulfilled Christ's words and why His ministry had to happen that way. On that day, and not before, they would get the message. But when they did, it was action time! Their job was then to proclaim the message with bold conviction ... and many were saved - it was the beginning of the church.
God does not speak to us to inflate our minds with interesting information. He speaks so that people will take action. For the disciples, there was no action to take until Jesus had fulfilled His commission - so there was no need for them to understand. Their only task was to observe what happened so that they could be credible witnesses to others later. Until the Holy Spirit filled them at Pentecost, they had no explanation of what they had seen, and therefore no message to pass on to others. But their observation role was far from pointless: the apostles would be able to refute the untrue stories about Jesus, because they had seen His miracles and wonderful signs for themselves (2 Peter 1:16-18). That is why Jesus commanded them to be His witnesses (Acts 1:8) to prove that what happened to Him was just what He planned. What a reassurance to us too - our faith is not built on imaginary stories but on the truth of what Jesus said and did. Like the disciples, when we know that for ourselves, we then have a message to tell to others.
Prayer: Gracious Lord. Thank You for Your Word which, when understood, is intended to move us to action. I repent of the times when I have known what You were saying but refused to do what it said. Thank You that I can be certain of the gospel because of the eyewitness accounts of the apostles who heard Your message and passed it on, and so we can read the Bible with confidence and share it with others. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
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