Radical Stories in Luke

He Who Has Ears to Hear

The parable of the rich man and Lazarus is arguably one of the most familiar stories Jesus told (Luke 16:19-31).  And, like every other parable Jesus told, it, too, has a powerful punch line.  After a first reading of this story, most people tend to get lost in speculating about the description of paradise and hell.  While the reality of reward and loss are imbedded in the story, the center of the story is about hearing the gospel.  Whether you take it as a hypothetical story about what the afterlife will be like for those who accept and reject the gospel, or an actually story that occurred on the “other side” of this life, one thing is clear:  the rich man wanted someone to go back to his family and tell them to seriously consider the gospel message.  He said, “I have five brothers and I don’t want them to end up like me.”  Abraham‘s response is interesting.  He understands the rich man’s concern, but he rejects the idea that a “resurrected persuader” would be any more effective than what they already have at their disposal, namely, the Word of God.  “If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone rises from the dead” (Luke 16:31).  Hmmm?

Have you ever wished God would go miracle crazy for about a 30 day stretch?  We might envision God doing such things as restoring sight to the blind, healing diseases of every kind and doing scheduled broadcasts of resurrections at a few cemeteries.  Can you imagine the news coverage?  As tantalizing as it sounds, the truth is, Abraham is probably right.  We would commercialize it.  Sensationalize it.  Media moguls would want an exclusive with the people who “got raised.”  We would riddle them with questions about everything from portholes to who they saw to when their book will be published.  But, in the process of hearing and seeing what God had done we would most likely not witness mass conversions in the days that followed.  Abraham said, “If they want God – really want Him – then they can turn to His word.” 

Jesus decried his generation as a wicked generation because they were “sign hungry” (Matthew 12:29).  Give us “one more” and we’ll seriously consider your message!  As Jesus hung from the cross certain ones said, “Come down from the cross that we may see and believe.”   Just give us one more!  Not much has changed.  And, that’s why we need to read this parable every so often.  It underscores two important truths:  one about human nature and the other about the power and completeness of the Word of God.

The rich man got it “after the fact”.  He never accepted the reality and inevitability of death.  Did he ever think about ultimate things?  He lived like a god until he met the living God.  He understood too late.  I’ve often wondered how many times he was in conversations or overhead conversations or had exposure of some kind to “a word about the Lord”? 

We need the punch line of this parable.  It cuts through the noise, distractions and seductions that blind and deafen us to the call of God through the gospel.  It reminds us that we are not the masters of the universe.  But, we are the masters of our destiny as we pay attention to what God has done in Jesus Christ unto our blessing.  He preached it.  He wrote it down for us.  And, perhaps he has put someone into our life who has been trying to lay the blessed news of salvation into our ears.  If we love ourselves then we will listen to God’s wisdom in Jesus Christ.  And, as to whether God might go on another miracle crusade, the magnificent truth before us every day is that we encounter the most incredible supernatural moment a person can experience in this life every time the good news about Jesus Christ lands at our feet.  For it is through the gospel that the living God himself shoulder taps us and says “this is the greatest miracle the world has ever seen.  What do you think about it?”   

Father, give us ears to hear with.  Nothing else matters until we can hear as we should hear.  Give us the calmness of spirit, the serenity of heart and the humility to see our utter need of your grace and mercy in your Son, Jesus Christ.  Thank you for this indescribable gift.  Amen.

Randy Daugherty

Stephenville, Texas

Radical Stories in Luke

Appreciate the Father’s Compassion

The Parable of the Lost Son – Luke 15:11-32

When he (the younger son) came to his senses, he said,

 “How many of my father’s hired men have food to spare, and here I am

 starving to death!  I will set out and go back to my father…”

His father saw him and was filled with compassion for him.

Luke 15:17, 18, 20

Family relationships can be highly emotional and overreactions, unfortunately, are often common behavior.  At the heart of most conflict is a self-centered attitude.  Pride influences selective memory.  short-sighted greed undermines long-term plans.  Jealousy causes us to place conditions on love.  Daily expectations can become so commonplace that we no longer know the meaning of gratitude.  We must ask ourselves, “Do I have an attitude of entitlement or appreciation?”

In the parable, Jesus tells us about two sons.  The younger son claimed his share of the estate and decided to live it up.  Jesus doesn’t provide a detailed account of how the money was spent, but we can assume “wild living” in Jesus’ day is similar to “wild living” in 2011.  The older brother went so far as to conclude that the money was squandered with prostitutes (v.30).  The older sibling is angry and frustrated, refusing to participate in the festivities.  The younger brother felt entitled to claim his inheritance early, spending it unwisely.  The older brother felt entitled to be paid his share of the estate, implying mistreatment (v.29, “All these years I’ve been slaving for you”).  Both brothers felt deserving of the gifts their father promised.  What happened to their humility?  Why had they developed a “me first” attitude?

The younger son didn’t realize the Father’s love was unconditional.  The son, once he had come to his senses, devised a plan to rejoin the household at a “demoted” position (v.19, “Make me like one of your hired men”).  However, the Father demonstrated mercy instead of justice.  Maybe it wasn’t until after the music and dancing had begun that the younger son fully appreciated the Father’s compassion.

The older son didn’t realize the Father’s love was unconditional.  The son, upon the return of his younger brother, decided to express his worthiness by reviewing his years of service.  In spite of his son’s self righteous attitude, the Father responded with mercy and generosity (v.31, “My son, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours”).  I would hope the older son would eventually appreciate the return of his lost brother and the welcoming embrace of a compassionate Father.

Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father, we regret that we sometimes take for granted your generous blessings and merciful love.  Your gifts are generous.  We should be grateful.  If we have chosen “wild living” away from your presence, please help us know without doubt that You want us to repent and return home.  Please help us share your joy and celebration when a sinner turns to your loving embrace.  We pray in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Amen.

Carl Smith

Stephenville, Texas

Radical Stories in Luke

RSVP and Come to the Table

You are invited. We all are of course, but have you sent in your RSVP?

There’s a banquet being prepared, and a great feast is being planned.

In Luke 14:16-26, Jesus was at the home of a Pharisee when he told a parable about a man who prepared a great feast. When the time came for the feast, he sent his servant out to tell his guests, but some chose not to attend. They had excuses.
The problem with that is that in those times, after being invited to a banquet, people accepted or declined the invitation in plenty of time for the host to prepare the meal. The host would then prepare a meal and let his guests know when the time game to come to the feast.

These three men gave lame excuses to the servant. The first two apparently had money. The first bought land and needed to see it – though who buys land sight unseen? Poor excuse. The second had purchased five oxen and need to work them out (enough to work a large portion of land) – yet who buys oxen without having tested them first? And I am not sure about you, but I knew way in advance to when my wedding was, and I would have declined an invitation to something that would have coincided. However, the third man did not. These guys had responded to the invitation favorably the first time, but then changed their minds.

Excuses. Excuses. Excuses.

So the master told his servant to get the people who were poor and crippled in the streets. These are the same people Jesus told his host – the Pharisee – to welcome in verse 13. They were people who could not repay the man for his generosity.

But that wasn’t enough people, so the master sent his servant out again to compel the people to come from the country and enjoy the banquet. They were not people who necessarily deserved to be at the banquet – but they were invited anyway.

Then Jesus closes the parable by saying that none of the men who were invited but did not come “will taste of my banquet.” (14:24). The man is hurt by the rejection. In those times, to skip a banquet after you had already affirmed your presence was a slap in the face to the host.

Does this parable hit home to you?

Often, we come up with lame excuses to tell the Master as to why we are not attending to our service to Him. We, too, tell him we will be there or do that, but then we “need” to spend time tending to our land or our purchases or our schedule. We are “too busy” I guess. Excuses. Slap. Slap. Slap.

And yet, just like the master in the story, God is hurt by our rejection just the same.

God shows grace and mercy just like the master in the story. When those who were “supposed” to be a part of the banquet turned away, he invited the ones that were not supposed to be there – the blind, the poor, the sick, the lame. He welcomed the unclean, the commoners, the downtrodden. God welcomes US.

We don’t deserve to be there, but He invites us anyway.

And if we don’t take advantage of our invitation, we will be rejected just like the three who offered excuses. We will not taste of His banquet.

Second Peter says, “Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat.” (2 Peter 3:11-12)

How do we know we are in the midst of God? How do we know we are sitting at the banquet table? Jesus says in Luke 14:25-26:

“Now large crowds were going along with Him; and He turned and said to them, ‘If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.’”

I hope and pray I live my life in a way that keeps me in the great banquet hall so that when the time does come, God finds me inside.

I’m reminded of a song:

“All things are ready, come to the feast! Come for the table now is spread.
Ye famishing, ye weary, come and thou shalt be richly fed.
Hear the invitation, come whosoever will
Praise God for full salvation, Come, whosoever will.”

Verse Three of that song is also appropriate for our discussion:

“All things are ready, come to the feast! Come, while He waits to welcome thee;
Delay not while this day is thine, tomorrow may never be.”

You are invited. We all are of course. The invitation was sealed one Friday, and the guestbook was opened three days later. Hear the invitation and come.


Father God, help me to walk in your way daily. Help me to love you more than anything else. Help me to discard of my excuses instead of my life with You.  May I remain at your table and not fall away so when the banquet begins, I am inside with You tasting your bountiful feast. Thank you for your blessings, and for your willingness to love me - a commoner. Through your Son who sealed the invitation I pray, Amen.

Joey Roberts
Stephenville, Texas

Radical Stories in Luke

Don’t Talk to Strangers!

Praise God for His “Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth” better known as the BIBLE!  He provided such a perfect guide for how we are to live our daily lives.  Jesus shared many principles of daily living through the use of parables. Parables are intended to teach us a lesson.  Often they represent an everyday situation that we have the opportunity to choose to serve or to obey our Heavenly Father.  The story of the Good Samaritan offers a lesson that relates to every single person – no matter where you are in your Christian journey.  Every single day we are given opportunities to engage with others.

Here is the parable for you to read….. Luke 10:25-37

On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked,

   ²⁶ “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”

   ²⁷ He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.”

   ²⁸ “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”

   ²⁹ But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

  ³⁰ In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. ³¹ A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. ³² So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. ³³ But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. ³⁴ He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. ³⁵ The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

   ³⁶ “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”

  ³⁷ The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”

   Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

Ask yourself who you consider to be your neighbor?  My guess is your response is similar to mine and would be a specific name or description of the people inhabiting the space nearest your home!  I personally, do not cognitively consider others I do not know as a ‘neighbor’.  Perhaps they could be acquaintances, but there is a category of “stranger / unknown” that many people fall into.  Consequently, I treat these people differently than people I am familiar with.    I am not sure if it is easier to help people you know or people you don’t know?    

I ask myself “how many times have I seen someone hurting and just kept walking?”  How many times have I had the opportunity to ask “I want to help – is there something I can do for you”?  How many times have I actually asked that question BUT didn’t sincerely mean it?  I am guilty in so many ways of passing up opportunities to help others whether in a physical way or an emotional way. I am guilty of this with people I am well acquainted with AND with strangers.  Sometimes, I tell myself “it’s not my business.  Stay out of it.”   At other times, I am more compelled to help because I don’t know the person or the details surrounding their situation.

In the parable above, Jesus describes how two men (who were supposed to be godly and should have been more likely to help) went out of their way to ignore a man who was obviously in need of help.  This man was beaten and left for dead and the men CHOSE to not show mercy and love to someone in need.  Yet, a Samaritan man was compelled to help.  Not only did he bandage his wounds and care for him, but he put the injured man on his own animal and took him to town.  He then made himself financially responsible for the hurt man as he left him in the care of someone else.  This demonstrates tremendous compassion and respect for human life!  Jesus demonstrates in this simple story that mercy shown to others is a way that we live out our faith.  We put Jesus’ love into action by our service to others.

Every encounter may not be a physical or financial need.  It may be emotional or mental.  The fundamental lesson is – TALK to strangers! Engage with others! They may need us!  More importantly, they may need Jesus!  So the next time you are faced with the opportunity to help others, take it!  Don’t allow yourself to second guess your actions or the outcome.  Trust that the God you have faith in is using you as an instrument of His love and peace!

Father, forgive me for squandering so many opportunities to share your love and mercy with others.  Please help me to recognize these and have courage to act on them.  Thank you for sending Jesus to live as an example and to share these parables with us.  Thank you for always being merciful.  In Jesus’ name, amen.

Michelle Tittor

Grapevine TX

Theme: Radical Stories in Luke

Luke 14:12-14   

     

Jesus said to the man who had invited him, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers  or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid.  But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”

The Lord encourages us to use our gifts and live our lives in ways that serve others.  To some, God has given the gift of hospitality.  In today’s text, a certain Pharisee is hosting a banquet.  Jesus uses the opportunity to teach a lesson.

The Lord doesn’t want us to use our gifts to impress others.  The Pharisee used the event to boost his stature among a group of important and influential people.  Reciprocal invitations are expected.  Instead, Jesus speaks of humility and a concern for others, no matter their status.  Look to serve those outside your normal, comfortable circle of friends and family… the poor and the handicapped.  He wants us to reach out to the same people he reached out to when he was serving on the earth.  Furthermore, he wants us to do so with genuine love in our hearts.

Jesus practiced what he preached and he asks us to do the same.  I encourage us to think about this next time we have a dinner party. God blessed us with talents so we can serve those who are normally rejected.  Let’s remember them!  It will likely take us out of our comfort zone and bless us at the same time.

Prayer

Father God we ask you to give us your eyes and your loving heart as we reach out to others.  Help us see those that you want us to reach. Open our eyes wide and our hearts, so that we are compelled to invite them into our homes. Touch them through us as we surrender to your will.

In Jesus name, Amen

Terry Smith             

Radical Stories In Luke

Luke 8:1-8

Jesus told the story of this stubborn woman and a corrupt judge to encourage his followers to persevere in prayer while awaiting the coming of the Kingdom of God. Unlike other parables, Jesus tells us in the first line of this one what the lesson is, “Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.”

In ancient times, widows had a hard time. They had no legal rights to their husband’s estate and were often reduced to begging. A widow with a grown son was usually taken care of, but those with small children or no children were on their own. We don’t know exactly the grievance of this widow, but she had no one to speak for her and she was completely powerless.  She was at the mercy of a judge who admittedly didn’t fear God or care about people. This powerful man had no regard for what we know to be the two greatest commandments: loving God and loving your neighbor. Perhaps because she had no money to pay him off, the judge would not hear her or help her. Apparently the woman had a good case against her adversary, so she went to the judge repeatedly, maybe daily, asking for justice.  

Remember the Energizer Bunny? “He keeps going & going & going. . . .” Well, this woman was like the Energizer Bunny; the judge wouldn’t hear her case, so bothered him until he finally heard her case and gave her justice.  She kept coming back, making a nuisance of herself before him because she KNEW he could answer her petition. The point is that, if the judge, who cared nothing for the widow or for justice, finally responded to her cry merely to be rid of her aggravating requests, then will not God, who loves us and gave His Son for us, answer our prayers when we are in need?

This is how Jesus wants us to pray. It is not a matter of wearing God out with our prayers. It is not because God doesn’t know our needs or remember his promises. It is not because He didn’t hear us the first time. By praying persistently, we are proving that our faith is genuine. If every prayer we prayed was answered immediately, how much faith would we need? But if we have to pray for months, years, or even decades before our prayers are answered, it shows our faith is strong. If the unjust judge is worn down by persistence, how can we doubt that the Just Judge will respond to faithful prayer?

In my own experience, when something is heavy on my heart or when I am in despair, this is when my relationship with God is especially important. I can either pray fervently to Him, or I can become depressed. Prayer allows my mind to focus on God, and helps me to know Him better; it takes my focus off of myself. I want to be persistently in relationship with Him, even when I can’t always see Him acting. The more I tell Him how I feel, constantly asking for His help, the closer I am to Him. To “pray always” is what keeps me from losing heart.
We are told to continually pray because that is how we stay in relationship with God.  It keeps us showing up day after day like the widow, trusting that God sees and hears us, so that when He does act we will be there, expecting His answer. Imagine the tragedy if one day the widow had given up; she decided she couldn’t stand another day of crying out and asking for justice, and that was the day the judge ruled.  I wonder how much of God’s love, forgiveness, healing, and intercession we have missed because we didn’t keep praying –  because we just quit too soon. To “pray always” is what insures we are present and faithful so that “when the Son of Man comes he will find faith on earth.”

Almighty God, you have promised to hear the petitions of those who ask in your Son’s name.  I pray that you will grant those things that we have faithfully asked according to your will, and that we may receive your blessings to meet our needs, and to bring glory to you; through Jesus Christ. Amen

Lynn Anne Hughes

Stephenville, Texas