Today’s passage: Luke 12:22-34

Helpful thoughts:

• Jesus spoke this to his disciples in contrast to the foolish man who desired and kept everything for himself.
• Anxiety, as defined in this passage, is not something that happens to us.  It’s something we bring on ourselves, and Jesus has commanded us not to do it.
• The causes of anxiety are a combination of:
  • Misplaced valuations – What is most important? (Or, Who is most important?)
  • Misplaced trust – Who is responsible and able to provide?
    • If you think about it, anxiety is a worship issue.

Questions to consider:

1. How do our values and trust get misplaced and confused?  How much does the world value the things Jesus used to illustrate this still today (Our bodies, clothing, food, health, etc.)?
2. What things give you the greatest anxieties?  Could you be seeing those things like the man who wanted to keep his things safe in his own storehouses (“Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”)?
3. What has Jesus asked you to do in this passage?  What does seeking first the kingdom of God look like?  How long will the rewards last?

Today’s passage: Luke 12:13-21

Helpful thoughts:

• This man just interrupted Jesus’ teaching to demand money from his brother.  Evidently, Jesus’ teaching wasn’t meeting his personal felt need.
  • The man called Jesus “teacher” which would make sense in that rabbis often arbitrated among family issues such as this.  However, the man should have had a relationship with a Rabbi and a synagogue to go to for such issues.
• Jesus did not come to allocate possessions.  Jesus came to bring life to man and bring man to God.
• There are rich and poor people in this world who are “rich” toward God.  There are rich and poor people in this world who are “poor” toward God. (Verse 21)

Questions to consider:

1. What does a passage like this do to the ideas of the “prosperity gospel”, “church shopping”, and even “seeker oriented ministry”?  What does it really mean to be rich toward God?
2. When a person comes to hear the Word of God (Bible reading, church services, etc.), should they come ready to hear whatever God has to say or should they come with a shopping list?  What did this man in verse 13 come to Jesus with?
3. How many times did the rich man use the words, “I” and “my” in verses 17-19?  In what situations are you prone to start using many personal pronouns?  What items might be on your shopping list?

Today’s passage: Luke 12:1-12

Helpful thoughts:

• In an environment where people were being physically trampled, the greatest danger was still false teaching and what it produces.
• There are four specific commands communicated in this passage:
  • Beware the leaven of the Pharisees (Watch out for false teachers). Verse 1
  • Do not fear those who can kill the body…fear not.  Verses 4 & 7
  • Fear God (Him who…has authority to cast into hell).  Verse 5
  • Do not be anxious about how you would defend yourself or what you should say.  Verse 11
• The Holy Spirit exalts Jesus Christ (John 15:26).  To blaspheme the Holy Spirit is to reject Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.  If you go to your grave having rejected Him you have also blasphemed the Holy Spirit, and you will not be forgiven.

Questions to consider:

1. In a room where ten hostile people hate Christ and His followers and only one loves Christ and loves his neighbor as himself, who has the upper hand?  Why?  Who is with the Christian and actively involved in times of persecution?
2. How could we apply this passage today in our current culture?  What part does faith in God’s presence and promises play when we are faced with choosing to share Christ with a friend and risk their disapproval?
3. What would be easier, affirming your faith in Christ before a firing squad or sharing the Gospel with friends who might stop calling you?  (This isn’t a gotcha question…  The answer might be more complicated than we think.)  Ultimately, why is it only right to be willing and obedient to do both?

Today’s passage: Luke 11:37-54

Helpful thoughts:

• As was always the case, the astonishment of the Pharisees(s) toward Jesus had nothing to do with any breaking of the actual OT law.  Jesus had simply not followed their own extra-biblical rules.
• The Jews were considered “unclean” when they walked over the grave of a corpse.  In verse 44, He is telling the Pharisees that they are corrupting the people of Israel, rendering everyone they influence “unclean”.
• After these pointed and passionate rebukes from the Son of God, the Lawyers (“Experts” in the law) only felt insulted, and the Scribes and Pharisees were driven to find fault in Jesus!  Their anger and blind rejection of Jesus’ rebuke didn’t make it wrong (Or a failure) for Jesus to speak up.

Questions to consider:

1. What motivated the “cleanliness” of the outside of the cup for the Pharisees?  Why did they do what they did?  Given the motivation they had, what did their efforts result in for themselves and for others who were taught by them? (Note: Jesus termed their motivations as “greed” and “wickedness/malice”.)
2. Who would be the “Pharisees”, “scribes” and “lawyers” of our day? (Hint: It’s not atheistic college professors!)  What does God think of pastors, Bible teachers, etc. who teach false doctrine and manipulate people (Whether they realize it or not) for their own personal gain?  How would Jesus speak to them?  (The Pharisees, scribes and lawyers were dead in their sins and therefore blind.  They didn’t believe they were doing wrong.  Many false teachers will not believe they are a false teacher!)
3. I am not sure I have seen the “What Would Jesus Do?” bracelet applied to passages like this one… However, a better question for us is, “What Would Jesus Command Me to Do?”.  How would 2 John 9-10 and 2 Peter 3:17-18 help us to answer that important question?

Today’s passage: Luke 11:27-36

Helpful thoughts:

• Signs are just signs.  The greater power is in the message, the truth presented.  Love the Word of God!
  • Jonah being vomited onto land by a big fish isn’t the best part of the narrative.  Jonah speaking the command of the Lord to pagan Gentiles is the amazing part!
  • Solomon’s wealth and fame are not the best part of his life story.  A powerful woman coming from a foreign land to hear about God is the best part!
• Christ, the light of the world, was speaking right in front of this crowd, but their spiritual “eyes” wouldn’t let the light in.  Therefore what they thought was light in them, was actually darkness.
  • It is possible to believe yourself to be full of light, and to instead be full of darkness.
  • When the light is truly in you, you will shine.

Questions to consider:

1. Why did Mary live a blessed life?  Why is she in Heaven today?
2. If a person considers themselves more spiritual because they claim to see and believe God is doing signs, miracles and wonders today because of their great faith yet they don’t rightly divide the Word of God, and they are even unrepentant, what is happening there?  Who is orchestrating that kind of “spirituality”?  Should we be impressed or cautious and concerned?  Is that person gathering or scattering (Verse 23)?
3. How does the light of Christ get into us (Through our “lamps”)?  What needs to happen in us to make the Word of God become delightful and appealing?

Today’s passage: Luke 11:14-26

Helpful thoughts:

• Seeing miracles does not bring repentance and conversion out of the hearts of man (Luke 16:31).
• Jesus is stronger than the devil and all demons (Verse 22).  He will not lose.
• If we are not gathering with Jesus, we are scattering.  There is no middle ground.  There is no neutral position.
  • The man in verses 24-26 serves as the illustration for the truth in verse 23.
  • This man “cleaned himself up” but in a moralistic self-righteous way.  This only invited more demonic activity.
    • Jesus is declaring this man better off having acted demonically than to be outwardly righteous without Christ!
    • He was obviously scattering in the first place.  Now he might think he is gathering, but instead is doing far scattering than he was ever before.

Questions to consider:

1. What was Jesus’ posture towards these people in this conversation?  Was the love of God being communicated passively with an appeal to their felt needs or were they being warned that the Kingdom of God had come upon them?
2. What should be most exciting for us to see at church, a new family that looks cleaned up and shares our same interests and hobbies who do not know Christ, or a person from an entirely different background with different interests who comes to know and love Christ?  How should the answer to this question also inform the way we “do” church, how we view people, and how we present ourselves to the mission field around us?
3. Is it possible for a church (And church goers) to be scatterers?  How would you be able to identify a pastor, church, ministry that is scattering instead of gathering?