THE BASIC TEACHINGS OF JESUS CHRIST.

 

CHRISTIAN LIVING FOR GOD - TODAY AND BEYOND.

 

“The Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost’ ” (Luke 19:10, NKJV).

From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible is a story of God seeking after lost humanity.

Luke illustrates this truth by using three important parables found in the 15^th chapter of Luke:

1. The lost sheep (Luke 15:4–7),
2. The lost coin (vss. 8–10),
3. The lost son (vss. 11–32).

The mission of Jesus is a result of God’s love and grace. “Where sin abounded, grace abounded much more” (Rom. 5:20, NKJV), and through this grace we find ourselves saved.

Let’s look at the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin.

The Parables of the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin (Luke 15:3–10) are the first two in a series of three. The third is the “lost son” or the “prodigal son.” Just as in other cases, Jesus taught these parables in a set of three to emphasize a point.

In these three parables, what was the Pharisees problem with what Jesus was doing?

1. The Pharisees did not complain that Jesus was teaching sinners.
2. The Pharisees thought themselves to be righteous teachers of the law and all others to be wicked.
3. They could not condemn His preaching to “sinners,”
4. They did think it was inconsistent with the dignity of someone so knowledgeable in the Scriptures to “eat with them”, in other words to associate with them.

What is the presupposition behind the statement of the Pharisees, “this man welcomes sinners,”.

• The presupposition is that because of their class status and the knowledge, they were too good to be hanging out with people they thought were beneath them, sinners.

What is the significance of the opening statement in Luke chapter 15?

1. To understand the significance we must consider that the Jewish culture is a shame/honor-driven society that used shame/honor in a way that developed a sort of caste system.
2. Everything that was done in the Jewish culture either brought shame or honor.
3. The primary motivation for what and how things were done was based on seeking honor for oneself and avoiding shame.
4. This was the central and all-consuming preoccupation of all Jewish interaction.

What is the significance of this attitude that they had?

1. The Pharisees thought that if Jesus was actually who He said He was, He would not be associating with these people. 
2. They thought that this verified their claim that Jesus was not the Messiah.
3. Jesus saw this and used these three parables to explain who He was and what His mission on earth was.  Jesus identified Himself as the owner of the lost and was actively engaged in trying to find them.

In the parable of the Lost Sheep what does Jesus do to His listeners?

Jesus invites His listeners to place themselves into the story and does this by asking,

• “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep.”  
  • Why does Jesus use sheep? 
    • Two fold,  it was common knowledge in those days of the value of one sheep in relation to the flock value of the flock as a whole.
    • It would be well known who the owner of that sheep would be.
• In doing this Jesus is appealing to their intuitive reasoning and life experiences as a Jewish people. 
• He was removing Rabbinical, religious reasoning and placing the question in the realm of the common everyday person.

What did the Pharisees refuse to see?

• As the story completes, the Pharisees in their pride refuse to see themselves as the shameful “sinners,” that what Jesus was talking about.  Instead eagerly take the honoring label of being the “righteous” people.
• What did this do?
  • By the implication of their own pride, they place themselves in the position of being the less significant than not only the group of ninety-nine, but also the lost one.

What is Jesus’s response to this attitude in regards to what our mission should be as followers of Jesus Christ.

• He responds that “There will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.”.
• Jesus is pointing out that no matter how lost or damaged a person may be, Jesus holds their salvation in higher regard then that of people who claim salvation and feel they are better than the unsaved.

In these three parables, what was Jesus doing to the attitudes of His listeners?

• Jesus was turning His listeners’ understanding of things upside down.
• The Pharisees saw themselves as being the beloved of God and the “sinners” as refuse.
• Jesus uses the Pharisees’ prejudices against them, while encouraging the sinners with one clear message.

What was that message?

• That message is this:
  • God has a tender, personal concern for all human beings.
  • God has a joyous love for individuals who are lost (in sin) and are found (repent).
  • Jesus makes it clear that the Pharisees, who thought they were close to God, were actually distant and those sinners and tax collectors were the ones God was seeking after.

What conclusion can we draw from this?

• In Luke chapter 18 verse 14 Jesus says, “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

The Parable of the Lost Son.

What we need to do is to identify things that are in common in these three parables.  By doing this we can gain more context to help us understand the significance of the main elements in this story.

There is a progression of value in the three parables.

What are they?

• In the first parable, one sheep is lost in a flock of 100 sheep.
• In the next parable, one silver coin in ten silver coins is lost.
• In the third parable, one Son out of two is lost.

The power of these parables to reach the audience comes from the shame/honor aspect of the Jewish culture.

What are these aspects?

• To lose a sheep as a shepherd would be a very shameful thing for the one tending the flock
• A coin from a piece of bridal jewelry lost in her own house would be even more shameful since it represented that she was betrothed.
• The lost son, was the worst shame of all for any family in the Jewish culture.

What is the significance of this progression?

It is the progression from seeking after only 1 of 100 sheep, then 1 of 10 coins, then 1 of 2 sons.

• This shows the scope of God’s personal concern for all individuals.

Jesus was trying to show a personal familial relationship for all people in society by relating these three parables.   This relationship was that:

• Men and young boys would have related best to the shepherd and the lost sheep.
• All women would be able to related to the losing a bridal coin.
• Everybody present would understand the relationship of a father and son.

Can someone outline the characters in the Parable of the Lost Son?

• The forgiving father is a picture of God. In telling the story, Jesus identifies Himself with God in His loving attitude to the lost.
• The younger son symbolizes the lost, the tax collectors and sinners of that day.
• The elder brother represents the self-righteous the Pharisees and teachers of the law of that day.

What is the major theme of this parable?

• It is not the conversion of the sinner, but rather the restoration of a believer into fellowship with the Father.
• In the first two parables, the owner went out to look for what was lost.  
  • In this story the father waits and watches eagerly for his son's return.
• We see a progression through the three parables from the relationship of one in a hundred, to one in ten, to one in one.

What does this demonstrate?

• God’s love for each individual and His personal attentiveness towards all humanity.

What important message should we take from this story?

• The graciousness of the father overshadows the sinfulness of the son, It is the memory of the father’s, Gods, goodness that brings the prodigal son, the sinner, to repentance.

In these parables there is a lesson for everyone.  What is this lesson?

• It does not matter how far away from the throne of God you are, how debased you are or what your motives are.   Jesus describes how His Father will accept you.
• “…But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.”

But, for everyone, it requires somethings.  What are they?

• Recognition of fallen state - “I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you” (Luke 15:18).
• Confession of our sins - “…I am no longer worthy to be called your son…”.

There is a second message represented by the second son, what is it?

• Even though you claim Jesus Christ as your savior, you still can be “lost”.
• Like the elder son, many make their home in the Christian Church, yet their heart is in a “distant land” because
  • They are angry, constantly complaining instead of looking for solutions to problems.
  • They have an air of self-righteousness because they refuse to recognize that all human beings, no matter where they are in their life, have the same value in the eyes of God.

The line in a song goes, “I once was lost, but now am found, was blind, but now I see.”  This verse as part of that great hymn “Amazing Grace.”

What is the significance of this statement to all of us as Christians today?

• Being lost is the tragedy of all humanity, not just the downtrodden or poor.
• Because “all have sinned” (Rom. 3:23). Being found is a privilege that is equally universal.
• But what do we as Christians need to do?
• We need to grasp this concept in faith and cling to it as we in embrace of the the love of our heavenly Father.

Jesus asked Bartimaeus, “ ‘What do you want Me to do for you?’ ” (Luke 18:41).

The question I have is, “What would you ask Jesus to do for you today?”

Living By Faith.

Proverbs 29:25, “The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe”. The verse says that the confusion and wretchedness we have in the fear of what a person can do to us, is contrasted with the security of the one, who not only "fears" the Lord, so as to avoid offending Him, but trusts in Him as his protector and guide by faith alone.

Man, on his own cannot know what is right or what is wrong.  To understand the truth of what is right and what is wrong, man must first understand and obey God’s Universal laws as found in the Bible.  Jesus Christ gave strict instructions on how man can understand the truth to gain what we need to live in this life and secure eternal life.  Jesus Christ said, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33). 

Trusting God and following His commandments instead of our own wishes, needs to be our first priority.  If we do not learn and follow God’s commandments, we are actually committing idolatry.  A Christian must choose to do what God has told us to do and then have the faith to let whatever happens to us, in the hands of the Lord.

Keeping the Law and having Faith, is living by the commandments of God and Obeying His laws as written in the Bible.  It is not living by the doctrines of man, and trusting in the consequences of your own actions.  The Bible says that if you keep God’s law, you are actually waging war on the wicked. 

The people who keep the law are actually considered wise by God and do not run the risk of shaming their parents.  But, if you turn away from the law and refuse to obey it, and then pray to God, your prayer is as much an abomination to God as any other sin a person could commit.  (Proverbs 28:4, 7, 9).   

The acquisition of wisdom is not done by some intellectual or spiritual exercise.  Wisdom comes from an obedience to a law that comes from outside of our own existence, personal psychology, desires, and culture.  It comes from God’s eternal law as written in the Bible.  You are justified to eternal life by your faith in the eternal law of God which ultimately points to Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.  (Romans 1:16-17).

Seek the Lord in your daily life.  It is the very law of God that identifies sin and if you cannot identify what sin is, you are in danger of committing sin against God and this ultimately leads to an eternal death. (Romans 7:7-13).  What makes the commandments of God, as written in the Bible, different is that they come directly from God and by living by these laws, you are effectively living a life with God.  The law points us to Jesus Christ and by following it we are then justified by faith.  (Galatians 3:24).  By obeying the law we are drawn closer to the Lord and to the salvation He offers us through our faith in Jesus Christ.

People who do not understand and follow God’s law do not understand the fact that they will be judged by the same standards that the people who follow the law are judged.  People who do understand and follow the law, have a complete understanding of what is at stake, eternal life.  There is no such thing as blind faith.  True faith comes from the knowledge of God’s law.

There are strong words for the Rich who feel they are blessed by God.  If you do not abide by the words of the Bible and follow the commandments of God, it says that the love of God is not in your heart.  This person, no matter how rich he is, will perish like all worldly things will perish, he will lose eternal life.  People are warned not to gain their riches at the expense of those who have less than they do. (Proverbs 28:8).  You will be blessed if you give to the poor. (Proverbs 28:27).  Your riches should come to you as a result of hard work and not by chance.  (Proverbs 28:19).

The Bible also has a handbook for the Poor.  Both the poor and the rich who oppress the poor in order to gain their wealth, were created as equals.  God will shine the light of truth equally in both their eyes. (Proverbs 29:13).  God tells us that you are to “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44-45).

Proverbs 28:3 goes on to point out that rain is supposed to be a blessing and be fruitful.  It also says that a driving rain can destroy the crops.  People who are blessed by riches should be careful that they do not become likewise destructive by taking advantage or oppressing those who have less in life.  “Better is the poor that walketh in his uprightness, than he that is perverse in his ways, though he be rich.” (Proverbs 28:6).  God will reward a righteous poor person far more than any physical wealth that can be obtain in this world.

It is more important for any person to have faith, that by understanding and obeying the laws of God, they are far richer than if they would or could obtain all the wealth that this world has to offer.  This world and all its wealth will perish, along with all the unrighteous.  But, the knowledge of God’s law and obedience to it give us eternal life.  It was King Solomon who said that the only real progress a person can make in this life is by understanding and obeying the laws of God as written in the scriptures and, with the help of God, living by them.

Living In A Cashless Society.

Today the trend is to live in and conduct all our personal business without using actual physical cash.  It has been reported that North Americans pay 97% of purchases today without using money.  Instead they use some sort of credit, debit or some other plastic bank card.  This was unprecedented 60 to 80 years ago. 

Technology does not have to be developed to live in a society that is described in Revelation 13:16-18.  The passage is talking about a period of time where a person will have to have some type of electronic identification if they want to "buy or sell", if they want to engage in any type of economic activity. 

It is in this passage that the scriptures talk about man receiving “the mark of the beast”.  The scriptural text describes man receiving some type of mark “in their right hand or in their forehead”.  What the scripture is actually talking is about how people will act during this period of time.  “In the right hand” means what people do, and “in their foreheads” means what people think.

The “mark of the beast“ is associated with the period of time when the Antichrist will come into worldwide power.  It is actually describing who people will swear their entire allegiance to in the end times, starting in last seven years before the return of Jesus Christ.  It is all about how people will think and how they will act as they are living their daily lives. 

If an individual swears their allegiance to the Antichrist and his policies, they will receive  “the mark of the beast”.  These people will receive some type of electronic identification which will allow them to engage in economic activity related to "buying and selling".  These people will be left alone.  Those who do not have this type of electronic identification, if found out and if they refuse to swear their allegiance to the Antichrist, they will be martyred.

“And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.  And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:  And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.  Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.” (Revelation 13:15-18).