Sunday
Morning Bible Study
May
21, 2017
Introduction
Do people see Jesus? Is the gospel
preached? Does it address the person who is: Empty, lonely, guilty, or afraid
to die? Does it speak to the broken
hearted? Does it build up the church? Milk – Meat – Manna Preach for a decision
Is the church loved? Regular: 2900 words Communion: 2500 words Video=75wpm
We are signed up to host the event on Sunday, June 11. We will open the doors at 4:30 for the
“pre-concert”. The actual event starts
at 5:00pm and is over by 7:00pm.
Luke was a doctor and a traveling
companion of the apostle Paul.
He wrote this book while Paul was
in prison.
In writing this book about Jesus,
Luke made use of other older documents like the Gospel of Mark, as well as
extensive eyewitness accounts.
Jesus’ ministry is well under way,
and the people have been amazed not just at the things He’s been teaching, but
the things He’s been doing.
We are now at the end of Jesus’ ministry.
Jesus is hours from being crucified.
Luke has reminded us of what Jesus’ main purpose was in life:
(Luke 19:10 NKJV) for the Son
of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
He would do this by dying for our sins.
We saw Jesus arrive in Jerusalem on the previous Sunday, Palm Sunday, to
the shouts of an adoring crowd, crying “Hosanna”.
We are now on Thursday night, the night of the Last Supper.
After an evening of celebrating the Passover, Jesus has taken His disciples
back to the Garden of Gethsemane.
Judas showed up with a group of Jewish leaders and soldiers.
They took Jesus to the high priest’s house.
Peter followed at a distance and ended up denying that he knew Jesus three
different times before the night would be over.
22:63-65 Jesus is beaten
:63 Now the men who held Jesus mocked Him and beat Him.
:64 And having blindfolded Him, they struck Him on the face and asked Him,
saying, “Prophesy! Who is the one who struck You?”
:63 the men who held Jesus
the men – aner
– with reference to sex of a male; with reference to age, and to
distinguish an adult man from a boy; any male
who held – sunecho
– to hold together; to hold together with constraint, to compress; to hold
completely; to hold fast; of a prisoner
blindfolded – perikalupto
– to cover all around, to cover up, cover over
the face – prosopon
– the face; the front of the human head
asked – eperotao
– to accost one with an enquiry, put a question to, enquiry of, ask,
interrogate; to address one with a request or demand; to ask of or demand of
one
struck – paio
– to strike, smite; to sting (to strike or wound with a sting)
These things take place before Jesus is even put on trial.
mocked – empaizo – to play with, trifle with; to
mock; from paizo, to play like a
child
beat – dero – to flay, skin; to beat, thrash
they struck – tupto – to
strike, beat; with a staff, a whip, the fist, the hand
The practice of blindfolding a person and then hitting them in the face
made the blows hurt more than usual.
If you can see the blow coming, then you can brace for it. If you don’t see it coming, then it hits you
full force.
:65 And many other things they blasphemously spoke against Him.
:65 they blasphemously spoke against Him
blasphemously –
blasphemeo – to speak reproachfully,
to make false and defamatory statements, blaspheme
spoke – lego
– to say, to speak
Even though the religious leaders will eventually charge Jesus Himself of
blasphemy, the irony is that the real blasphemy going on was how Jesus was
being treated.
It is quite ironic that the
religious leaders will eventually charge Jesus with blasphemy
(Matthew 26:65 NKJV) Then the
high priest tore his clothes, saying, “He has spoken blasphemy! What further
need do we have of witnesses? Look, now you have heard His blasphemy!
The religious leaders’ concept of
“blasphemy” was that Jesus dared to call Himself the Messiah. He dared to call Himself divine.
In truth, it’s
only blasphemy if it’s not true.
Yet Luke puts some reality of this
in perspective. The real blasphemy going on was how these people were treating the
King of Kings.
Lesson
Disrespected
It’s ironic that these soldiers don’t even have a clue as to who they are
mistreating.
Sometimes we don’t like the way we’re being treated.
We might feel like someone is not being “fair” with us.
Video: Two Monkeys Were Paid
Unequally
Sometimes when we’re mistreated, we can start thinking we deserve to be
treated with a little more respect.
We might even say to ourselves, “Do they even know who I am?”
As a pastor I find some people treat me better after they find out I’m a
pastor.
Illustration
For unknown reasons, a crowded United Airlines flight was cancelled.
A single agent was rebooking a long line of inconvenienced travelers.
Suddenly an angry passenger pushed his way to the desk. He slapped his ticket
down on the counter and said, “I HAVE to be on this flight and it has to be
first class.” The agent replied, “I’m sorry, sir. I’ll be happy to try to help
you, but I’ve got to help these folks first, and I’m sure we’ll be able to work
something out.”
The passenger was unimpressed. He asked loudly, so that the passengers
behind him could hear, “Do you have any idea who I am?”
Without hesitating, the gate agent smiled and grabbed her public address
microphone. “May I have your attention please?” she began, her voice bellowing
throughout the terminal. “We have a passenger here at the gate WHO DOES NOT
KNOW WHO HE IS. If anyone can help him find his identity, please come to the
gate.”
With the folks behind him in line laughing hysterically, the man glared at
the United agent, gritted his teeth and retreated as the people in the terminal
applauded loudly. Although the flight was cancelled and people were late, they
were no longer angry at United Airlines.
Think about how these soldiers are treating the King of Kings.
(Hebrews 12:1–3
NLT) —1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of
witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us
down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with
endurance the race God has set before us. 2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates
and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross,
disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s
throne. 3 Think of all
the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and
give up.
We’re just beginning to dip into the hostility that Jesus will endure from
sinful people.
They beat Him. They mocked Him.
Yet Jesus knew that there was a purpose to what He was going through.
In the Garden of
Gethsemane He had already wrestled with the unfairness of it all and had
committed Himself to God’s will.
You might feel like quitting when you think you’re not getting the respect
you deserve.
Stop thinking that way.
Put your eyes back on Jesus and follow His example. Keep going.
22:66-71 Sanhedrin Trial
:66 As soon as it was day, the elders of the people, both chief priests and
scribes, came together and led Him into their council, saying,
came together – sunago
– to gather together, to gather; to bring together, assemble, collect
the elders – presbuterion
– body of elders, presbytery, senate, council
the chief priests – archiereus
– chief priest, high priest
scribes – grammateus
– a clerk, scribe, esp.a public servant, secretary, recorder, whose office
and influence differed in different states
In the Bible, a man learned in the
Mosaic law and in the sacred writings, an interpreter, teacher. Scribes
examined the more difficult and subtle questions of the law; added to the
Mosaic law decisions of various kinds thought to elucidate its meaning and
scope, and did this to the detriment of religion. Since the advice of men skilled
in the law was needed in the examination in the causes and the solution of the
difficult questions, they were enrolled in the Sanhedrin; and are mentioned in
connection with the priests and elders of the people.
:66 led Him into their council
council – sunedrion – the Sanhedrin.
The Sanhedrin was the group of 71 men that formed the religious leadership
of the nation.
The Sanhedrin was composed of elders, chief priests, and scribes.
With Luke mentioning all three, it is most likely that a majority of the
Sanhedrin is represented at this meeting early on Friday morning.
:67 “If You are the Christ, tell us.” But He said to them, “If I tell you,
you will by no means believe.
:68 And if I also ask you, you will by no means answer Me or let Me
go.
:67 If You are the Christ, tell us.
Christ – Christos
– “anointed”; the Messiah
“Christ” is the Greek word for the Hebrew term “Messiah”.
They are asking if He is the promised Jewish Savior.
:67 you
will by no means believe
Jesus uses a very strong negative (ou me) here, “You will absolutely not
believe”. He knows where their
hearts are.
by no means – ou
me – there’s that doubly strong negative again
answer – apokrinomai
– to give an answer to a question proposed, to answer
let Me go – apoluo – to set free; to let go,
dismiss, (to detain no longer)
:69 Hereafter the Son of Man will sit on the right hand of the power of
God.”
the power – dunamis
– strength, power, ability
:69 the Son of Man
This is a phrase that simply means a person is human, descended from a man.
(Psalm 8:4 NKJV) What is man that You
are mindful of him, And the
son of man that You visit him?
The prophet Ezekiel uses this title to describe himself some 90 times.
The gospels use this phrase some 84 times, it’s always used to refer to
Jesus, and most of the time Jesus is the one using it to refer to Himself.
From the time of the prophet Daniel, the title went beyond a simple human
to describe the Messiah.
Daniel had a strange vision in his old age where he saw the end of the
antichrist’s empire and the Second Coming of the Messiah.
(Daniel 7:13–14
NKJV) —13 “I was watching in the night visions, And behold, One
like the Son of Man, Coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, And they
brought Him near before Him. 14 Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, That all
peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an
everlasting dominion, Which shall not pass away, And His kingdom the one Which shall not be destroyed.
:69 will sit on the right hand of the power of God
Jesus’ words not only remind us of Daniel’s vision, but also the picture in
Psalm 110, where God asks the Messiah to sit at His right hand.
(Psalm 110:1 NKJV) The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right
hand, Till I make
Your enemies Your footstool.”
The person who sits on the right-hand side of a king is always the person
with the greatest influence in the kingdom.
The Jews understood this to be the Messiah.
In answer to their question, Jesus is very clearly laying claim to being
the Messiah.
Earlier in the week, Jesus had been
challenged by the various religious groups in the Temple. After He silenced all their foolish
questions…
(Luke 20:41–44 NKJV) —41 And He
said to them, “How can they say that the Christ is the Son of David? 42 Now David himself said in the Book of Psalms: ‘The Lord said to
my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, 43
Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.” ’ 44 Therefore
David calls Him ‘Lord’; how is He then his Son?”
Jesus was quoting a famous
Messianic Psalm (Psalm 110), where David shares a conversation he overheard in
heaven where Yahweh is speaking to someone that David calls his “lord”, and how
God tells this person to sit at God’s own right hand.
:70 Then they all said, “Are You then the Son of God?” So He said to them,
“You rightly say that I am.”
:71 And they said, “What further testimony do we need? For we have heard it
ourselves from His own mouth.”
need – chreia
– necessity, need
testimony – marturia
– a testifying
:70 You rightly say that I am
This is how Jesus replied when asked if He was “divine”, the Son of God.
The phrase “you rightly say” is a
Greek idiom that means “yes”. We’ll see it used again (Lk. 23:3).
But here Jesus adds two additional words to the idiom. He says,
I am
Jesus uses two Greek words, ego eimi.
Though these Greek words can be used to express the phrase “I am”, it would
have been simpler to just have used the single word eimi.
When Jesus says, “ego eimi”, He’s
using the words that harken back to how God described Himself to Moses at the
burning bush.
(Exodus 3:14 NKJV) And God said
to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of
Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ”
God’s name “Yahweh” is a form of the verb “to be”, or, “I am”.
Though the passage in Exodus 3:14 was written in Hebrew, when the Jewish
scholars translated the Old Testament into Greek around 200 BC, they translated
the phrase “I AM” with the two Greek words ego
eimi.
The apostle John recorded Jesus using this phrase ego eimi quite a few times in ways that most translations don’t do
justice to. For example:
(John 8:24 NKJV) Therefore I
said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I
am He, you will die in your sins.”
The “He” is in
italics because it’s not in the Greek text.
The translators added it to make it sound smoother.
Jesus will die on the cross to pay for our sins. If you
want forgiveness for your sins, you need to believe that Jesus is God (“the I
AM”).
(John 8:28 NKJV) Then Jesus
said to them, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am
He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me,
I speak these things.
Jesus’ death on the cross will be associated with His
deity. It’s interesting that in our
passage we’re hours away from the cross, and Jesus is calling Himself the I AM.
(John 8:58 NKJV) Jesus said
to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.”
Jesus said this to the Jewish leaders who were debating
with Him. After He said this, they
picked up stones to stone Him because He was claiming to be God.
Just hours earlier in our timeline when Judas showed up in the Garden of
Gethsemane with the soldiers, John recorded Jesus asking them who they were
looking for…
(John
18:5–6 NKJV) —5 They answered Him, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus said
to them, “I am He.” And Judas, who betrayed Him, also stood with
them. 6 Now when He
said to them, “I am He,” they drew back and fell to the ground.
Some people like to say that Jesus never claimed to be God.
The Bible says different.
Lesson
The Nature of Jesus
During the first couple of centuries of the church, various heretics forced
the church to define just who Jesus was.
Some said Jesus was just a man.
Others said Jesus was a ghostly divine spirit.
Some said He was half-man and half-god.
Others said Jesus was a man who became adopted by God.
Going back to the Scriptures, the church has always concluded that the
correct view of Jesus is that He is:
Fully God and fully man.
You see glimpses of this in our passage.
As the “Son of God”, Jesus is powerful and able to help us.
(Jeremiah 32:17
NLT) “O Sovereign Lord!
You made the heavens and earth by your strong hand and powerful arm. Nothing is
too hard for you!
As the “Son of Man”, Jesus understands our weakness and limitations.
(Hebrews 2:18 NLT) Since he
himself has gone through suffering and testing, he is able to help us when we
are being tested.
:71 What further testimony do we
need?
Mark records that when they asked
Jesus if He was the Son of God,
(Mark 14:62–63 NKJV) –62 Jesus
said, “I am. And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the
Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” 63 Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, “What further
need do we have of witnesses?
:67 If I tell you, you will by no means believe
Jesus was reluctant to say too much to these religious leaders because they
already had their minds made up.
(Psalm 25:14 NKJV) The secret
of the Lord is with those
who fear Him, And He will
show them His covenant.
I wonder how much God has to withhold from us because we simply won’t
believe, we are unwilling to trust Him.
Jesus uses a very strong negative (ou me) carrying the idea of “you will absolutely not believe”. He used the same strong negative in saying
they won’t even answer Him (vs. 68).
Lesson
Already decided
The great hope of Judaism is that one day the Messiah will come and deliver
their nation.
The Essene community living in the area of Qumran were preaching that
Messiah was coming.
John the Baptist had been used by God to get the nation ready for Jesus.
These religious leaders SHOULD have been aware of the possibility of the
Messiah coming.
The saddest thing in history is that the very people who should have
welcomed Him, rejected Him.
(John
1:11 NKJV) He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.
The truth
Some people make up their minds about Jesus without doing any homework.
He’s already given them more than enough proof.
He has fulfilled the ancient prophecies.
He was from the lineage of King David. (2Sam. 7:12)
(2 Samuel 7:12 NKJV) “When
your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed
after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.
He was born in Bethlehem (Mic. 5:2)
(Micah 5:2 NKJV) —2 “But
you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting.”
He was preceded by a messenger (Is. 40:3), John the
Baptist.
(Isaiah 40:3 NKJV) —3 The
voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare
the way of the Lord; Make straight in the desert A highway
for our God.
He performed the miracles the Messiah was supposed to
perform. (Is. 35:5)
(Isaiah 35:5–6 NKJV) —5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, And the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. 6 Then the lame shall leap like a deer, And the tongue of the dumb sing. For waters shall burst forth in the wilderness, And streams in the desert.
He even arrived in Jerusalem on the day the prophet Daniel
predicted the Messiah would appear, on Palm Sunday (Dan. 9:25; Luke
19:42).
(Daniel 9:25 NKJV) —25 “Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There
shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times.
I’ve just shared five prophecies, but the Old Testament
has over 300 prophecies concerning the first coming of Jesus Christ.
What are the odds?
Peter Stoner wrote
a book called Science Speaks (Moody
Press, 1963), that applies the science of probability to the prophesies of
Jesus.
First, Stoner
looks at just eight of the prophecies and considers the probability of just
these being fulfilled by one man. (from Evidence
That Demands A Verdict… pg.174-176)
Being born in
Bethlehem (Mic.5:2)
Preceded by a
messenger (Is.40:3)
Entering Jerusalem
on a donkey (Zec 9:9)
Betrayed by a
friend (Ps.41:9)
Sold for 30 pieces
of silver (Zec 11:12)
Money thrown in
the temple, buying a potter's field (Zech 11:13)
Dumb before
accusers (Is.53:7)
Hands and feet
pierced, crucified with thieves (Ps.22:16; Is.53:12)
Stoner concludes
that the odds of any man that might have lived down to the present time
fulfilling all eight of these prophecies are 1 in 1017. That's a one
with seventeen zeroes after it!
To grasp the size
of this number …
“Suppose we take
1017 silver dollars and lay them on the face of Texas. They will
cover all of the state two feet deep. Now mark one of these silver dollars and
stir the whole mass thoroughly, all over the state. Blindfold a man and tell
him that he can travel as far as he wished, but he must pick up one silver
dollar and say that this is the right one. What chance would he have of getting
the right one? Just the same chance that the prophets would have had of writing
these eight prophecies and having them all come true in any one man, from their
day to the present time, providing they wrote them in their own wisdom.”
But keep in mind,
that's with only EIGHT of the prophecies! Don’t forget that there were over 300
prophecies concerning Jesus
What keeps people from accepting the truth about Jesus?
Pride
We know that one of the issues involved with the Jewish leaders was the
jealousy they had towards the crowds that followed Jesus.
Pontius Pilate could see it.
(Matthew
27:18 NKJV) For he knew that they had handed Him over because of envy.
In other words, their pride stood in the way of making a good decision.
Sometimes people just don’t want to admit that they’ve been wrong about
Jesus rather than humbling themselves to recognize who Jesus is.
Sin
Some people don’t want to acknowledge the truth about Jesus because they
don’t want to give up their sin.
(John
3:19–20 NKJV) —19 And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the
world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
20 For everyone
practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds
should be exposed.
Even though some people want to think they aren’t that bad of people, the
Bible says that we are ALL sinners.
(Romans
3:23 NKJV) for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Your sin and my sin are the very reasons Jesus took on human flesh and was
crucified. Remember…
(Luke
19:10 NKJV) for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was
lost.”
He died to pay the penalty for your sin.
If you were honest with yourself, you would have to admit that you might do
anything to get rid of guilt and condemnation.
There’s a part of you that would love to be free from sin.
It starts by admitting your sin and asking Jesus for help.
Ignorance
Some people don’t believe in Jesus because we haven’t done a very good job in
telling them about Jesus.
Sometimes we give people the wrong idea of what it means
to follow Jesus.
Sometimes rather than sharing the gospel, we act like
Vikings who are out to conquer the world.
Video: When Helping Can Hurt –
Viking Missions
(Romans 10:14–15
NKJV) —14 How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And
how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they
hear without a preacher? 15 And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How
beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, Who bring
glad tidings of good things!”
God calls us to share the good news of Jesus’s love,
forgiveness, and salvation with the world.
Some people don’t believe in Jesus because we haven’t told
them about Jesus yet.
Though it is really important to know how to share your faith with someone,
sometimes all you need to do is invite them to something like church or Harvest
America.
What about you?
Where are you at with Jesus?
Do you need to make a choice to believe and follow Him today?
(John
3:16 NKJV) For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that
whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.