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Trusting The Immutable God
Psalms 71
May 17, 2020

Tonight we come to the 71st Psalm,
Which is generally recognized as a song one’s old age.
Since the Psalmist references being old and gray.

• And certainly we see great faith here
• And a great example of the goal of every senior saint,
• And even the goal of those who are younger as we all move rapidly toward old age.

What it really is, though at its core
Is a song that celebrates the immutability of God.

You’ve likely heard that term before,
But if you don’t immediately recognize it,
It means that GOD IS UNCHANGING

Now of course that DOESN’T MEAN that God never moves or that He doesn’t respond to our lives or behavior. He’s not static in that sense.

WHAT IT MEANS IS THAT
His person and His power and His promises never change.

Malachi 3:6 “For I, the LORD, do not change; therefore you, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed.”

1 Samuel 15:29 “Also the Glory of Israel will not lie or change His mind; for He is not a man that He should change His mind.”

Psalms 33:11 “The counsel of the LORD stands forever, The plans of His heart from generation to generation.”

Psalms 102:26-27 “Even they will perish, but You endure; And all of them will wear out like a garment; Like clothing You will change them and they will be changed. “But You are the same, And Your years will not come to an end.”

The New Testament also teaches this immutability:

James 1:17 “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.”

Romans 11:29 “for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.”

Perhaps though the most telling passage is when
God reveals Himself to Moses simply as “I Am”.
(Not, “I Was” or “I Will Be”)

And even in the New Testament we know this to be true of Jesus as well.

Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

Jesus of course echoes that reality when He says:
• “I am the Bread of Life”
• “I am the Light of the World”
• “I am the door of the sheep”
• “I am the Good Shepherd”
• “I am the Resurrection and the Life”
• “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life”
• “I am the True Vine”

That is NOT who He was.
That is NOT who He will be.
That is who He is; always, never changing.

This is perhaps the most comforting reality we have about God.
• He is not wishy washy
• He is not fickle
• He doesn’t change His mind
• He doesn’t age or lose His power

He is the same…always.
And that gives us great confidence in the faith.
We know who God is.
We know what God desires.
We know what God will do.

If God were ever evolving or changing we wouldn’t know what to expect.
• The stories of the Old Testament would be an interesting read,
• But ultimately of no value because God might not be like that anymore.

But He is.
• The same God that met Adam in the garden is the same God that meets us today.
• The same God that spoke this world into existence is the same God who will destroy it with a word.

We even sing:
“Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father. There is no shadow of turning with Thee. Thou changest not, Thy compassions they fail not. As Thou hast been, Thou forever wilt be.”

God’s immutability is a great attribute of God.

Now the doctrine of God’s immutability is certainly a doctrine we can LEARN THEOLOGICALLY.
• That is, we can read a paper about it.
• We can study texts about it.
• We can learn it and explain it and defend.
• We can learn that truth theologically from a sermon.

BUT, we LEARN IT EXPERIENTIALLY from life.
• As we live, we experience the immutability and faithfulness of God.

As we move from infancy to elderly
Our life builds a framework of experience
Whereby we can see that God has in fact, never changed.

And this experience is the wisdom behind Psalms 71.

Here we have an old man giving praise
Because God has proven Himself
To be the same every single day of his life.

SOME OBSERVATIONS ABOUT THE PSALM (for context)

1) HE IS OLD
• (9a) “do not cast me off in the time of old age”
• (18a) “And even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me,”

2) HE IS AFFLICTED
• (4) “Rescue me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the grasp of the wrongdoer and the ruthless man,”
• (10-11) “For my enemies have spoken against me; And those who watch for my life have consulted together, saying, “God has forsaken him; pursue and seize him, for there is no one to deliver.”
• (13) “Let those who are adversaries of my soul be ashamed and consumed”
• (20b) “bring me up from the depths of the earth”

3) HE IS CONVINCED OF GOD’S FAITHFULNESS
• (5-6) “For You are my hope; O Lord GOD, You are my confidence from my youth. By You I have been sustained from my birth; You are He who took me from my mother’s womb; My praise is continually of You.”
• (7b) “You are my strong refuge”
• (17) “O God, You have taught me from my youth, And I still declare Your wondrous deeds.”
• (20) “You who have shown me many troubles and distresses will revive me again, and will bring me up again from the depths of the earth.”

4) HE WANTS HIS FAITHFUL GOD TO DELIVER HIM
• (2) “deliver me and rescue me; incline Your ear to me and save me”
• (4) “Rescue me, O my God”
• (9) “Do not cast me off…Do not forsake me”
• (12) “O God, do not be far from me; O my God, hasten to my help!”
• (18) “O God, do not forsake me”
• (21) “May You increase my greatness and turn to comfort me”

BUT EVEN IN HIS CRY FOR DELIVERANCE HIS SONG OF PRAISE CONTINUALLY OVERCOMES HIS CRY
• In verse 4 he is crying for deliverance, but by the time you get to verse 6 “My praise is continually of You”
• (8) “My mouth is filled with Your praise”
• In verses 12-13 he’s praying for God to stop his enemies, but by when you get to verses 14-16 it all turns to praise.
• In verse 18 he’s asking God not to forsake him, but by 19 he’s praise God’s great righteousness.
• Even the Psalm itself closes with 3 verses of solid praise (22-23)

It actually can cause you to be a little confused when reading the Psalm.
• Is he in despair over his affliction or is he rejoicing in his victory?
• Is he begging God to come near or is he praising God for all He’s done?

At times you can’t tell what his primary attitude is.
Is Psalms 71 a cry for deliverance or is it a song of praise?
Both are occurring.

What you ultimately get here is this:
• An older man who is certainly in affliction and who is certainly concerned about it.
• He is taking this present trouble before God and asking for help.
• And at the same time as he goes, he is 100% confident in who his God is and in what He will do
• So he can’t help breaking out in praise.

It is a song written by a senior saint
Who hasn’t just been taught that God never changes,
But who knows He never does.

The Apostle John wrote an interesting passage:
1 John 2:12-14 “I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for His name’s sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father. I have written to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.”

I still remember hearing John MacArthur preach on this text
Many years ago and being amazed at it.

John speaks of “little children” who he says “your sins have been forgiven” and later “because you know the Father”
• And MacArthur would talk about new Christians who don’t really know anything at first. They know they are forgiven and they know they love God but that’s really about it.
• They have no theology and they have no experience.
• They just have a desire to run into the arms of this Father who they love.

John also speaks of “young men”, and describes them as “you have overcome the evil one” and again “you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.”
• These are those who have now grown in the faith.
• They have studied the word, they have developed their theology, they fight battles, they wage war.
• They are soldiers for truth and full of enthusiasm and excitement.

And John also refers to “fathers” and about them says, “you know Him who has been from the beginning” and again “you know Him who was from the beginning.”
• And MacArthur spoke of that old seasoned Christian, who has more than just a love for God and more than just a complete theology.
• He has the experience of having walked with God for many years and he knows God.
• He doesn’t just know about Him, He knows God.

And I remember thinking, “That is certainly what I want!”
I want to know God.

Well, that is the perspective of Psalms 71.
It is written from an old man who is in trouble, but he knows God.
• He knows who God has been.
• He knows who God is.
• He knows who God will be.

And that is why even his distress sounds more like praise than distress.
He is supremely confident in who God is and what God will do.

It is a song of praise that rests upon the immutability of God.

So let’s work our way through this Psalm this evening
And listen to a song written by one who trusts an immutable God.

It is a man who knows God
And therefore sings about what he expects God to do.

5 stanzas here.
#1 HE EXPECTS DELIVERANCE FROM THE WICKED
Psalms 71:1-6

Now an interesting note to this Psalm is that,
Like the last one (70), it begins with a repeat.

The first 3 verses of this Psalm are clearly a quoting of the first 3 verses of Psalms 31.

Psalms 31:1-3 “In You, O LORD, I have taken refuge; Let me never be ashamed; In Your righteousness deliver me. Incline Your ear to me, rescue me quickly; Be to me a rock of strength, A stronghold to save me. For You are my rock and my fortress; For Your name’s sake You will lead me and guide me.”

Obviously David penned that Psalm when he was younger
And during a time of great distress.

As a young man, he faced adversity and he cried out to God for deliverance.

When we studied that Psalm we noted that
As David cried out for deliverance
He did so by standing on the truth of who God is.

David made the request there, “Be to me a rock of strength”
• And then moment later David said, “For You are my rock and my fortress”
• In verse 4 of that Psalm David would say, “For You are my strength”

So, we noted that David prayed for God to be his rock and his strength
Because God had revealed Himself to David as a rock and as strength.

So in Psalms 31 David was standing on his theology,
And we talked about how important that is.

Well David here many years later David is still singing that song.
• He still believes that doctrine.
• He is still acting upon it.

And he is still crying out to God.
(4) “Rescue me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, Out of the grasp of the wrongdoer and ruthless man,”

He is still in many ways that same man who knows the truth about God
And who therefore cries out to God.

BUT it is in verse 5 that this Psalm moves beyond Psalms 31.

For David now, as an old man,
No longer only leans on his theology,
David also leans on his experience.

(5-6) “For You are my hope; O Lord GOD, You are my confidence from my youth. By You I have been sustained from my birth; You are He who took me from my mother’s womb; My praise is continually of You.”

Theology is certainly there, but so is experience.

He is now taking inventory of all the way back to the womb
And he comes up with this conclusion.
• “You are my confidence from my youth”
• “You…have sustained [me] from my birth”

• I know You!
• I know who You are!
• I know who You have always been and therefore who You will be.

And that is why the DREADFUL MOMENT
So easily transitions from a cry of desperation to a SONG OF PRAISE.

“My praise is continually of You”

• Is afflicted? Yes
• Does he want God to deliver? Yes
• But he is praising because experience has taught him that God will.

God DOES NOT forever give His children over to the grasp of the wicked.
God DOES NOT forever allow His children to be seized by the ruthless.

There is affliction, but based upon the track record of God
There is also great hope and reason to praise.

Consider Paul in the New Testament.
2 Corinthians 2:14 “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place.”

2 Corinthians 4:7-10 “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.”

How can you have such hope in the midst of such hardship?

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 “Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

Even in Paul’s final letter, he wrote:
2 Timothy 4:16-18 “At my first defense no one supported me, but all deserted me; may it not be counted against them. But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that through me the proclamation might be fully accomplished, and that all the Gentiles might hear; and I was rescued out of the lion’s mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed, and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.”

It certainly doesn’t mean we will never be afflicted or ensnared or pursued or persecuted, BUT WE WON’T BE FOREVER.

God does not leave his children there.

In Psalms 31 David knew that theologically, in Psalms 71 he knows it experientially.
• His life and his experiences have taught him that God delivers and so now he expects it.

HE EXPECTS DELIVERANCE FROM THE WICKED.
That is what it means to trust an immutable God.

#2 HE EXPECTS DEVOTION IN WEAKNESS
Psalms 71:7-11

In verses 7-8 David recounts
What has been HIS REPUTATION for most of his life.

(7) “I have become a marvel to many”

That word “marvel” in the Hebrew is MOPHETH (mo-faith)

And it speaks of “a wonder or sign or miracle or display of power”
It was the word used of God’s display of power through the plagues of Egypt.

David says that all his life he was a “display of God’s power to man”
He was “a model of strength.”

And we can hear the masses singing,
“Saul has slain his thousands and David his ten-thousands.”

And David says the reason he was such a demonstration of power is “For You are my strong refuge.”

David’s strength was because of God’s strength
And people knew not to mess with him.

And David praises God for that.
(8) “My mouth is filled with Your praise And with Your glory all day long.”

But now, David is old and he no longer intimidates his enemies.
(9-11) “Do not cast me off in the time of old age; Do not forsake me when my strength fails. For my enemies have spoken against me; And those who watch for my life have consulted together, Saying, “God has forsaken him; Pursue and seize him, for there is no one to deliver.”

You can see how they no longer fear the appearance of David.
• When he was young they didn’t want to mess with the giant-slayer,
• But now he is old and feeble and they are not afraid.

But David knows what they do not.
His strength and power was never about his arm,
It was always about his God.

He was strong because his God was strong
And even though David’s flesh is now weak,
He still counts on God to help him with power.

Paul also spoke of this reality.
2 Corinthians 12:7-10 “Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me — to keep me from exalting myself! Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me. And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.”

Those are statements of men who know more than theology.
• They knew God.
• They knew their power was from God

And just because they were physically weak
Was NO REASON that God’s power couldn’t still show up in their lives.

That is the expectation of a man who knows God.
HE EXPECTS DEVOTION IN WEAKNESS.

#3 HE EXPECTS DEFENSE IN INJUSTICE
Psalms 71:12-16

This stanza begins with yet another imprecatory prayer.
(Are you surprised that there are so many of them?)

As we have said so many times before,
We would have to blot out a great portion of Scripture
If it was our objective to overlook the imprecatory Psalms.

Here is another.
• He again asks God to vindicate and avenge him.
• He again expects God to come to his defense and extract vengeance on his behalf.

(12-13) “O God, do not be far from me; O my God, hasten to my help! Let those who are adversaries of my soul be ashamed and consumed; Let them be covered with reproach and dishonor, who seek to injure me.”

David has no problem being like that persistent widow.

But if you’ll notice, while David prays for justice,
He doesn’t seem to fret it.
He lays this injustice at the feet of God and he moves on to praise.

(14-16) “But as for me, I will hope continually, And will praise You yet more and more. My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness And of Your salvation all day long; For I do not know the sum of them. I will come with the mighty deeds of the Lord GOD; I will make mention of Your righteousness, Yours alone.”

That is a great statement of faith.
• You handle their threats,
• I’ll focus on praising you.

That is definitely a man who has learned to “never take his own revenge but to leave room for the wrath of the Lord”.

He’s just not worried about it.
He knows God, and he knows that God will take care of it.

And again, we see this confidence in Paul in the New Testament.
Romans 8:35-39 “Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, “FOR YOUR SAKE WE ARE BEING PUT TO DEATH ALL DAY LONG; WE WERE CONSIDERED AS SHEEP TO BE SLAUGHTERED.” But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

He just wasn’t worried about it.

2 Timothy 1:12 “For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.”

• He just wasn’t worried about suffering and injustice and things like that.
• He had entrusted justice to God and he knew God well enough to know that God would take care of it.

Because he knew God, he expected defense in injustice.

#4 HE EXPECTS DECLARATION AFTER TROUBLE
Psalms 71:17-21

By “declaration” here I mean to say that
He expects to have a testimony to share when this is all over.

He knows that trials serve many purposes in the life of believers,
And one of those purposes is that
We might share testimony to strengthen others.

And David has had this opportunity in life more times than we can count.
• Many times has he gathered the people around to tell them about how God delivered from the lion or the bear or the giant or the king or the Philistines.

And he expects, since God is faithful, that he will do it again.

(17-18) “O God, You have taught me from my youth, And I still declare Your wondrous deeds. And even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me, Until I declare Your strength to this generation, Your power to all who are to come.”

He is again crying out for deliverance,
And he expects it so that he can share with the next generation
Just how great God is.

I CAN’T STRESS ENOUGH HOW IMPORTANT THIS IS
Titus 2:1-5 “But as for you, speak the things which are fitting for sound doctrine. Older men are to be temperate, dignified, sensible, sound in faith, in love, in perseverance. Older women likewise are to be reverent in their behavior, not malicious gossips nor enslaved to much wine, teaching what is good, so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored.”

Our sinful culture has inflicted a great injustice on the aged.
• Our culture sees them as slow
• They are mocked as dumb because they don’t grasp modern technology
• They are seen as old-fashioned and a hindrance to progress
• They are often seen as out of touch with modern things

That is just a satanic deception.

The Bible says just the opposite.
• The Bible speaks of the old (if they are Godly in their old age of course) as a great treasure and resource to the world.
• They have years and years of testimony and experience to share with the younger generation.

It is always my objective
To throw our children and youth with our senior adults as often as I can.
• Aside from preaching the word of God to them, there is not a greater gift I can give our youth than the experience and knowledge of God that resides in our senior adults.
• Young people need to learn from the old and the old need to be willing to instruct the young.
• It would be a tragedy if you racked up 70+ years of experience in walking with God and never shared that with the next generation.

David understands that.
He knows his victories are not just for him personally,
But are also for the corporate good of the congregation.

And so he expects to have the opportunity to boast about this victory.

AND IN FACT, even though he has yet to be delivered, HE ALREADY STARTS.

(19-21) “For Your righteousness, O God, reaches to the heavens, You who have done great things; O God, who is like You? You who have shown me many troubles and distresses Will revive me again, And will bring me up again from the depths of the earth. May You increase my greatness And turn to comfort me.”

As David starts trying to recount the greatness of God, he realizes that ultimately it is A STORY TOO LOFTY TO TELL.
• God’s righteousness “reaches to the heavens” it is beyond measure.
• All David can say is “O God, who is like You?”

And he recounts all the times God has delivered him in the past.
And not just him, but the entire nation.
• Some translate the “me” of verse 20 as “us” speaking of the entire nation.

David knows that God has led him through many troubles and distresses
And has at the same time rescued him from them all.

He knows God will rescue him this time as well
And he will declare that to the next generation.

We sing, “Through many dangers, toils, and snares I have already come. His grace has kept me safe thus far and grace will lead me home.”

2 Timothy 3:10-11 “Now you followed my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, perseverance, persecutions, and sufferings, such as happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium and at Lystra; what persecutions I endured, and out of them all the Lord rescued me!”

2 Timothy 4:6-8 “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.”

It is simply one who has walked with God
And who knows God never changes.
AND SO HE EXPECTS DECLARATION AFTER TROUBLE.

#5 HE EXPECTS DELIGHT IN VICTORY
Psalms 71:22-24

The song ends in pure praise.
And we notice the future tense of the verbs.

“I will…” (several times in these 3 verses)

This is what is coming.
He is certain of the victory.

The days are dark, but he is not concerned.
WHY? He knows God.

God has never changed.
Psalms 37:25 “I have been young and now I am old, Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken Or his descendants begging bread.”

David knows how this ends.
• It will end with him holding a harp
• It will end with him contemplating God’s truth
• It will end with him singing God’s praises
• It will end with him shouting for joy
• It will end with his soul rejoicing in redemption
• It will end with his tongue never stopping to talk about God’s righteousness
• It will end with his enemies ashamed and humiliated.

He knows God.
He knows who He is.
And so he knows how this ends.

It is more than a man with strong theology.
It is a man with experience.

His entire life God has proven himself faithful.
God has never changed and so David is able to confidently rest upon Him.

1 Corinthians 15:50-58 “Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality. But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, “DEATH IS SWALLOWED UP in victory. “O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.”

That’s the confidence of a man who knows who God is.
• He doesn’t just know theology, but through life he has come to know God
• And his faith now rests upon God’s unchanging nature.

For us then this Psalm is both A HOPE AND A GOAL.
• We rejoice that God is unchanging.
• We rejoice in the truths that this Psalm presents.

But at the same time this Psalm reveals the goal of the Christian life
• That by the time we come to the end of our journey here,
• That we might also be able to say, we have come to know God.

That there is a deep theological and experiential testimony
To be shared
Because we have both learned and proved who God is.

Let that be your goal as well.
To know and trust and prove the faithfulness of God.

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Comprehending The Cross
Luke 18:31-34
May 17, 2020

Our Text this morning marks quite a moment in the life of our Lord.

For we read in verse 31, “Then He took the twelve aside and said to them, “Behold we are going up to Jerusalem”

To you and I this might seem like an insignificant statement
Until you realize that this is the final trip
Jesus will ever take to Jerusalem.

He has been many times before
And it seems that every time He goes He finds Himself in danger.

In October
• He went up for the “Feast of Booths” as was recorded in John 7
• Where He announced Himself to be both the fountain of living water and the Light of the World.

But by the time the feast was over we read:
John 8:59 “Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple.”

In December
• He returned to Jerusalem for the “Feast of Dedication” (Hanukah) John 10
• Where He gave the sermon about being the Good Shephard and declared that He and the Father are one.

And during that feast we read:
John 10:31 “The Jews picked up stones again to stone Him.”

And when we get to John 11
• Jesus receives word that Lazarus is sick and 4 days later when He determines to go to Him, the disciples strongly caution Him.

John 11:8 “The disciples said to Him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone You, and are You going there again?”

• Of course He went anyway and raised Lazarus from the dead which did not help His popularity with the religious elite.

John 11:53 “So from that day on they planned together to kill Him.”

The point is that even on a typical day
Going to Jerusalem was a dangerous venture for Jesus.
Certainly the disciples knew it.

They must have wondered
If Jesus would attempt to return again in APRIL to attend the Passover.

John 11:55-57 “Now the Passover of the Jews was near, and many went up to Jerusalem out of the country before the Passover to purify themselves. So they were seeking for Jesus, and were saying to one another as they stood in the temple, “What do you think; that He will not come to the feast at all?” Now the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that if anyone knew where He was, he was to report it, so that they might seize Him.”

No doubt the disciples themselves likely wondered
If traveling to Jerusalem was the best idea.

And yet Jesus gave this announcement.
“Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem”
That must have been an anxious announcement for the disciples to hear.

What they did not realize was that this trip would not turn out like the rest.
This would be the final time Jesus would go.
• For on this trip He would not escape their murderous plot.
• On this trip He would be arrested.
• On this trip He would be mistreated.
• On this trip He would be tried and condemned.
• On this trip He would be crucified.

And that is what Jesus is about to tell them.
And incidentally, this is the 3rd time
He is going to make this direct announcement.

In Caesarea Philippi He revealed to the disciples that He was the Messiah.
Luke 9:21-22 “But He warned them and instructed them not to tell this to anyone, saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed and be raised up on the third day.”

Then later, after the transfiguration:
Luke 9:44 “Let these words sink into your ears; for the Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men.”

Today He will tell them again,
And they still won’t get it.

Despite having been with Jesus now for 3 years
And having heard Him preach countless messages,
They still didn’t understand the necessity of the cross.

Our goal this morning is to make sure that we do understand it.

3 points
#1 A SOVEREIGN PLAN
Luke 18:31

This statement that we read here in Luke’s gospel is also quoted in Matthew and Mark, but only Luke records the second half of this verse.

Only Luke includes the phrase: “and all things which are written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished.”

• Only Luke includes the statement that what is about to occur is all part of a much bigger and much older plan.

And if you are familiar with Luke’s writing, you know that
LUKE LOVES TO INCLUDE THESE TYPES OF REFERENCES.

Luke loves it when he gets the opportunity to remind His readers that the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus was part of God’s eternal plan.

Later, in the upper room, Luke records these words from Jesus:
Luke 22:22 “For indeed, the Son of Man is going as it has been determined; but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed!”

Take for example after Jesus rises from the dead.
• Only Luke includes the story of the men on the road to Emmaus.
• You remember they are struggling with the fact that Jesus was killed.
• They aren’t sure what to do with it.
• Jesus appears (though they do not recognize Him)
• And He reproaches them.

Luke 24:25-26 “And He said to them, “O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! “Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?”

You get the idea that this was the very reason Luke included this story,
If for no other reason than to remind that all that happened to Jesus
Was part of the sovereign and eternal plan of God.

Even later in Luke’s gospel, when Jesus appears to the disciples, only Luke includes this statement:
Luke 24:44-47 “Now He said to them, “These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and He said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.”

Luke loves the reminder that the death of Jesus was all part of the plan.

You also know that Luke wrote the book of Acts,
Where he continues preserving these types of reminders.

When Luke recorded Peter’s sermon at Pentecost:
Acts 2:23 “this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death.”

When Luke recorded Peter’s sermon in Jerusalem:
Acts 3:17-18 “And now, brethren, I know that you acted in ignorance, just as your rulers did also. “But the things which God announced beforehand by the mouth of all the prophets, that His Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled.”

When Luke recorded the prayer of the church:
Acts 4:27-28 “For truly in this city there were gathered together against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined to occur.”

You get the point.
Luke is fascinated with the fact that the rejection and suffering and death and resurrection of Jesus was NOT a result of chance or bad luck.

The suffering and death of Christ
Was part of the eternal and sovereign plan of God.

This event was determined long before any of it came to pass.
• The man who would betray Jesus
• The men who would arrest Jesus
• The men who would beat Jesus
• The men who would mock Jesus
• The men who would accuse Jesus
• The men who would try Jesus
• The men who would crucify Jesus

Weren’t even born when God determined that it would happen.
This event was not the result of the sinfulness of men (though they were happy to participate), this event was the eternal plan of God.

FROM THE BEGINNING GOD DETERMINED THIS.

“things which are written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished.”

We certainly don’t have time to read them all,
But I think it only fitting to read two of them this morning.

TURN TO: PSALMS 22

TURN TO: ISAIAH 53

There are in fact many others that we could read
As there are more suffering servant passages,
But those two give us quite the story just by themselves.

THE SUFFERING OF JESUS WAS ALWAYS THE PLAN.

And beyond such specific prophecies like those…
The Old Testament is also filled with PROPHECIES OF TYPE
Which spell out the coming death of Christ.

• No sooner do Adam and Eve sin than does God clothe them in animal skins which was a picture of a blood sacrifice for atonement.
• When we get to Abraham we remember the story of Abraham being told to sacrifice his son:
Genesis 22:10-14 “Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” He said, “Do not stretch out your hand against the lad, and do nothing to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.” Then Abraham raised his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him a ram caught in the thicket by his horns; and Abraham went and took the ram and offered him up for a burnt offering in the place of his son. Abraham called the name of that place The LORD Will Provide, as it is said to this day, “In the mount of the LORD it will be provided.”

And there we learned not only the necessity of a sacrifice,
But even better that God would be the One who would provide it.

• We could go on and talk about the Passover Lamb whose blood caused God’s wrath to pass-over His people.

• We could talk about the scapegoat or the sacrificed goat on the Day of Atonement.

• Or we could talk about every other single animal that had to die either as a sin offering or thank offering or freewill offering or any other type of offering to God.

Every sacrifice merely pictured a coming atonement
Since we know that in and of themselves
NONE OF THOSE ANIMALS WERE ACCEPTABLE TO GOD.

Hebrews 10:4 “For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.”

At best every one of those bulls or goats or doves
Was just a foreshadow of a sacrifice to come.

The point is that God had determined this from the beginning.
It was always the plan.

Luke certainly loved that reality, BUT SO DO YOU AND I.

WHY?
Because it so perfectly demonstrates for us
THE SOVEREIGN GRACE OF OUR GOD.

Here we have a God who created us, and even after the fall of Adam, and our entire race was conceived in iniquity, God continued to create us.

• He created us knowing that we were fallen.
• He created us knowing that we would rebel.
• He created us knowing that we were sinful and would need atonement.

He also knew that nothing we could do and nothing we could offer would ever be able to satisfy His holy requirement.

• In short, God knew from the beginning that if He made us, He would also have to atone for us.

And He knew from the beginning what that atonement would cost.
• It would cost Him His only begotten Son.

It’s not like God just rocked along, twiddling His thumbs
Hoping things would turn around,
And as a last-ditch effort, having been backed into a corner,
God finally succumbed to having to give Christ.

No, giving Christ was the plan was from the beginning.
IT WAS NOTHING SHORT OF THE SOVEREIGN GRACE OF GOD.

• He chose us knowing He would have to redeem us.
• He chose us knowing the cost.
• And He graciously proclaimed that He would pay it.

• The prophets announced it.
• Jesus Himself proclaimed.
John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”
• And now, on this day Jesus was headed was headed to Jerusalem to fulfill it.

He was going to cash the check that God had written.

What a gracious God we serve.
Who would know what we are, and yet purposed to redeem us anyway.

A Sovereign Plan
#2 A SUBMISSIVE SERVANT
Luke 18:32-33

In case there was any confusion as to what Jesus meant
When He said all the prophets promised was about to be accomplished,
HERE HE SPELLED IT OUT.

• He wasn’t going to Jerusalem to be crowned King.
• He was going to Jerusalem to be crucified.
• AND HE KNEW IT

But despite knowing it, HE WENT ANYWAY.
Hebrews 12:2 “fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

In full compliance He went to fulfill all that God had promised.

AND WE SEE SPELLED OUT FOR US WHAT THAT WAS.

1) “For He will be handed over to the Gentiles”

What does this mean except that He will be rejected by the Jews?

John 1:10-11 “He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.”

Psalm 22 and Zechariah 13 both specifically indicate that
The death He would die must be by having His hands and feet pierced.

Psalms 22:16 “For dogs have surrounded me; A band of evildoers has encompassed me; They pierced my hands and my feet.”

If that is the case then we know the Jews aren’t going to kill Him.
• If the Jews had killed Him it would not have been through crucifixion.
• The Jewish method was stoning, which we already saw threatened several times.

Crucifixion was a Roman tactic.
Crucifixion was a Gentile form of death penalty.

Beyond that, Jews were not permitted to kill anyone
Since they were under Roman rule.

He had to be totally rejected so that He would be killed.
This is why He came.

John 12:27 “Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour.”

He became human and He lived on earth so that He could die.
Hebrews 2:14-15 “Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.”

And if death was going to occur,
He had to be rejected by the Jews and handed over to the Gentiles.

We also understand He had to be rejected because
He was TAKING THE PLACE OF SINNERS and sinners were rejected.

• Do we not read in the Law that sinners must be stoned?
• Do we not read in the Law that sinners must be sent away?
• Do we not read that the evil must be purged from among you?

Just as the scapegoat had to be sent away and rejected for bearing sin,
SO DID JESUS.

This had to happen.

We also see:
2) “and will be mocked and mistreated and spit upon,”

Certainly the prophets spoke of this as well.
Isaiah 50:6 “I gave My back to those who strike Me, And My cheeks to those who pluck out the beard; I did not cover My face from humiliation and spitting.”

Psalms 22:6-7 “But I am a worm and not a man, A reproach of men and despised by the people. All who see me sneer at me; They separate with the lip, they wag the head,”

BUT WHY?
• Why not just let Him die in honor?
• Why not just let Him die a hero’s death?

Because He didn’t come to take the place of heroes.
He came to take the place of sinners.

And part of taking the place of sinners is that there is shame involved.
For we know that sinners aren’t just rejected,
We know they are also shamed.

Are we not told in the New Testament than when a brother or sister continues in sin that ultimately we are to treat them as a Gentile or a tax collector?

There is shame involved in sin.
Galatians 3:13 “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us — for it is written, “CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE”

If He was taking the place of sinners then He had to suffer like sinners.
• He had to be rejected.
• He had to be shamed.

Isaiah 53:4 “Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted.”

He had to be “handed over to the Gentiles, and…be mocked and mistreated and spit upon,”

3) (33) “and after they have scourged Him, they will kill Him;”

WHY DEATH?
Because the wages of sin is death.

Genesis 2:16-17 “The LORD God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.”

Ezekiel 18:20 “The person who sins will die…”

And it was not enough simply to bleed a little.
It was not enough simply to suffer a little.

Our sentence was a death sentence
So His sentence had to be a death sentence.

If He was going to stand in our place, then He had to be treated as we deserved.
• He had to be rejected…
• He had to suffer…
• He had to die…

And this is where Jesus was headed.

And before we get to the final reality that would occur in Jerusalem
Can we just stop here a moment and ponder
THE STEADFAST LOVE OF JESUS.

I’m always blown away by the statement in John 13:1
John 13:1 “Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.”

• He loved them to the max.
• He loved them to the uttermost.

The youth have been studying the book of John.
• It is there in the upper room where Jesus lowers Himself to the point of a
servant to wash the feet of those who would betray and deny Him.
• It is there in the upper room where Jesus offers Himself to Judas and tells
Him, “what you do, do quickly”

He knew what was coming.
It would be torment so severe that we read statements like:

John 12:27 “Now My soul has become troubled…

John 13:21 “When Jesus had said this, He became troubled in spirit, and testified and said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, that one of you will betray Me.”

Or the infamous:
Luke 22:44 “And being in agony He was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground.”

And even now, He’s the only One in the group who knows what is coming And yet it is He who makes the statement “we are going up to Jerusalem”

Can we contemplate the steadfast love of Jesus?
• Can we see how committed He was to our cause?
• Can we see His devotion to bear our reproach, our shame, our sin, and our
condemnation?

There is no greater love than the love He willingly showed on our behalf.

The sovereign God of the universe
Graciously determined to sacrifice His Son to redeem us,
And His submissive Son lovingly embraced that plan.

If we were to be saved, it had to happen.

But it didn’t end in death.
4) “and the third day He will rise again.”

Of course you know this also had to happen.
If it didn’t, then we have no assurance that His death was effective.
• We know He was sinless…
• We know He was accepted by God…
• We know death was conquered…
• Because Jesus rose from the dead.

Romans 4:25 “He who was delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification.”

This also had to happen.
• But before He could rise, He had to die.
• Before He could die, He had to suffer.
• Before He could suffer, He had to be rejected.
• Before He could be rejected, He had to go to Jerusalem.

And in His great love and submission that’s exactly what He did.

Our salvation was determined by a sovereign God
And purchased through a loving Savior.

That is the truth about the cross.
• He didn’t die for His sin, He died for our sin.
• He didn’t die as a hero, but as a sinner because He was dying in our place.
• He was bearing our sin and our shame.
• He was suffering our rejection.
• He was enduring the wrath of God on our behalf.

And if we were to be saved, it had to happen.
This is what it means to comprehend the cross.

And yet we come to one final point.

A Sovereign Plan, A Submissive Servant
#3 SIMPLE-MINDED DISCIPLES
Luke 18:34

And Luke doesn’t mention it once, but three times in that verse.
• “the disciples understood none…”
• “this statement was hidden form them”
• “they did not comprehend”

The statement repeated 3 times leaves no doubt that
They did not have a clue why Jesus would say such a thing.

Now Luke does not include what they talked about next,
But Matthew and Mark do and it solidifies how little of a clue they had.

Matthew 20:20-21 “Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to Jesus with her sons, bowing down and making a request of Him. And He said to her, “What do you wish?” She said to Him, “Command that in Your kingdom these two sons of mine may sit one on Your right and one on Your left.”

Mark 10:35-37 “James and John, the two sons of Zebedee, came up to Jesus, saying, “Teacher, we want You to do for us whatever we ask of You.” And He said to them, “What do you want Me to do for you?” They said to Him, “Grant that we may sit, one on Your right and one on Your left, in Your glory.”

That definitely qualifies as being clueless.

Here Jesus just revealed
• The sovereign plan of God to save sinners through the sacrifice of His Son,
• And His loving submission to that plan.

And the first response of the disciples
Is to jockey for position in the kingdom?

CLUELESS

BUT THERE IS A BIGGER ISSUE HERE
Than just disciples that don’t pay attention.

• Why is it that they did not comprehend that God had ordained for
Jesus to die?
• Why is it that they did not comprehend the necessity of Christ’s
death?

Well there are two reasons.
(and these hold true for all men)

There were two things that they could not have understood,
For if they had understood them
Then the cross would have made perfect sense.

1) THEY DID NOT UNDERSTAND THE DEGREE OF THEIR OWN SIN AND THE DEGREE OF GOD’S WRATH UPON IT.

When Jesus speaks of the necessity of His own death they don’t get it,
But it’s only because they don’t understand
Just how much danger they are in before God.

In fact, James and John seem to think they’re the best two in the group.
(Their mother certainly thinks that)

• They were obviously clueless to how sinful they were before God.
• They were obviously clueless to how God hated their sin.
• They were obviously clueless to the death sentence they were under.

• Do they not understand that they are hell-bound?
• Do they not understand that God’s wrath abides on them?
• Do they not understand that judgment is their lot?

If they think they can go to heaven without the death of Jesus,
They obviously don’t understand the degree of their own sin.

2) THEY DO NOT UNDERSTAND THE INEFFECTIVENESS OF THE LAW OR THEIR WORKS TO OBEY IT.

Perhaps this is why they don’t understand the degree of their sin.

They put far too much confidence both in their flesh
(ability to live righteous)
And far too much confidence in the goats and bulls they have offered.

Why else would they assume they have the right
To sit on the right and on the left in the kingdom?

They obviously have way overestimated
The value of the goats and bulls they have sacrificed.

• For if they had understood how ineffective those sacrifices were…
• If they had understood how sinful they actually were before God…
• Then the need for the cross would have been far more apparent to them.

If they think they can go to heaven without the death of Jesus,
They obviously think way too much of their ability to fulfill God’s Law.

They obviously had failed to rightly assess
The danger of their own situation.

Isaiah 53:1-4 “Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, And like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him. He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted.”

Isaiah said the reason people don’t get it
Is because they can’t see their own sinfulness.

John would later echo that reality.
John 12:37-38 “But though He had performed so many signs before them, yet they were not believing in Him. This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet which he spoke: “LORD, WHO HAS BELIEVED OUR REPORT? AND TO WHOM HAS THE ARM OF THE LORD BEEN REVEALED?”

People just don’t see how badly they need a savior
And so the cross makes no sense to them.

And this is interesting regarding the disciples.
• Especially since just last week we made the point about their desperation and how they had left everything to follow Jesus because they were so desperate for eternal life.

But now we are seeing more of the picture.
• They sought life through Jesus because He was the only One who could give it.
• What they had yet failed to understand is that without Jesus they not only would not have a kingdom, but they would actually have eternal judgment.

They didn’t just need Jesus to usher them into the kingdom.
They needed Jesus to rescue them from eternal hell.

Because they had yet to see that, they had yet to understand the cross.

IN ORDER TO FULLY COMPREHEND THE CROSS
You must understand that it is the only way for you to be saved.

You must understand that all of His rejection and suffering and death
Is because that is what you deserve and were destined to receive.

SOMEONE HAD TO PAY FOR OUR SIN…CHRIST DID.

That is comprehending the cross.

And this morning we come to a time to commemorate that.
• We come to the Table of the Lord where we partake of this juice and this cracker which symbolize His body and His blood.

And we partake as if to say,
“What You did, You did for me, Your suffering was my fault.”

And we partake in trust knowing that
Through His suffering we are forgiven and we are saved.

We are going to have a time of preparation, and then we will partake of the Table of the Lord.

Download Here:

Entering The Kingdom
Luke 18:18-30
May 10, 2020

This morning we come across another famous story.
It is included in all 3 of the synoptic gospels.
• Matthew 19:20 calls him a “young man”
• Luke 18:18 calls him “a ruler”
• And all three accounts tell us he was “extremely rich”

So, because we’re really good at naming people,
We like to call him “The Rich Young Ruler”

Most likely he was a synagogue ruler
Which would also add to his mystique
Since that would speak volumes to his moral standing.

• He was a model citizen.
• He was a fine example of obedience and virtue.

He must’ve also been quite the example of financial success,
And of LEGITIMATE financial success as well.

By his own account he will conclude that he has kept commands like
Not stealing, not bearing false witness, and
Honoring his father and his mother all his life.

That means that unlike so many others his wealth did not come from
Theft, or bribes, or from extorting parents (like the prodigal son had done)

• His wealth was legitimately gained.
• His high position was legitimately earned.
• And the fact that he had obtained both at a young age speaks volumes about his diligence and focus.

This guy was the cream of the crop.

And yet, in all 3 synoptic gospels
He is held up to us as the GREATEST OF TRAGEDIES.

Because this man, despite all of his worldly success,
Failed to obtain eternal life.
What greater failure can a man commit than that?

Matthew 16:26 “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”

How much is it worth to not go to hell?
Can we really call a man successful if he obtains every treasure this earth can offer, but fails to obtain eternal life?
Is that really success?

That is what makes this man’s life such a tragedy.
He had it all, except for salvation.

THIS MORNING we approach the day
That he continues to regret more than any other.

• This morning we look at the day where he chose his money over Jesus.
• This morning we look at the day when he would not deny himself.
• This morning we look at the day when he chose to keep his life and lose
eternity.

And that is where this story fits in the greater narrative of Luke.

If you’ve been with us the past few weeks
You know that Jesus has been talking a great deal about the KINGDOM.

IT BEGAN back in 17:20 when the Pharisees sort of mockingly asked where this “so-called” kingdom was.

Jesus announced that it “is in your midst”
• It is a spiritual kingdom.
• It is entered by all those who confess Jesus as their Lord and King.
• It is for all those who have submitted to Christ.
• It is a kingdom of salvation and spiritual life.
• It is here.

Jesus also then began to speak of the COMING PHYSICAL KINGDOM.
• First there would be a death (Christ’s death)
• Then there would be a departure (Christ’s ascension)
• Then there would be a time of deception (where we live now)
• And then finally Christ would return and there would be destruction.

When He comes to set up His physical earthly kingdom
It will be a time in which Christ will judge His enemies.
He will trample those who rejected Him under His feet.

JESUS HIMSELF COMPARED HIS COMING
To the days of Noah and the days of Sodom and Gomorrah
When people were living unaware and suddenly judgment fell upon them.

And when the disciples asked WHERE this judgment would occur,
Jesus answered and said:
Luke 17:37 “And answering they said to Him, “Where, Lord?” And He said to them, “Where the body is, there also the vultures will be gathered.”

That is to say, the coming of the Lord will be EASY TO SPOT
By all the dead bodies and by all the happy buzzards.

And because the Lord’s coming will be such a time of judgment,
The Lord gave a serious warning.

Luke 17:31-33 “On that day, the one who is on the housetop and whose goods are in the house must not go down to take them out; and likewise the one who is in the field must not turn back. “Remember Lot’s wife. “Whoever seeks to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.”

It was the serious and sober warning.
If you are going to gain life in the kingdom,
Then you must forsake life in this world.
It is the call to DENY SELF.

And from there we entered CHAPTER 18 where Luke has provided us with 3 EXAMPLES of the type of people who enter the kingdom.

• We saw a persistent widow who walked in faith and waited patiently for justice.
• We saw a humble tax collector who cried out for mercy.
• We saw totally dependent children who had no power of their own.

AND EACH OF THESE PROVED TO BE AN EXAMPLE
OF WHAT TYPE OF PERSON ENTERS THE KINGDOM.

Regarding that persistent widow, Jesus asked:
Luke 18:8 “I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?”

Regarding that humble tax collector, Jesus said:
Luke 18:14 “I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Regarding those powerless children, Jesus declared:
Luke 18:16-17 “But Jesus called for them, saying, “Permit the children to come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. “Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.”

So you see that we have been discussing
The type of people who enter the kingdom.

This story of the Rich Young Ruler is now the 4th in that list.

Like the Pharisee in the second story,
• This young man also becomes for us a negative example of one who might have expected to enter the kingdom, but will not.

The positive example in this story
• Is of the self-sacrificing disciples who left everything to follow Jesus.
• They are the 4th example of those who enter the kingdom and gain eternal life.

So with that understanding, let’s look at our story this morning.
3 main points
#1 THE APPROACH
Luke 18:18-21

We read right off the bat an important QUESTION
That really SETS THE PARAMETERS for the story.

That is to say, we know what this conversation is primarily about.
It is A SALVATION QUESTION
“A ruler questioned Him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”

It is a question about salvation.
This young ruler has a burden; he has a problem.
He does not know if he has eternal life and he wants it.

And we have to say that he certainly come to the right person to ask.

John 6:27 “Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on Him the Father, God, has set His seal.”

Jesus is certainly the right person to ask about this.

We might also note that this is the 2nd time in Luke’s gospel that an important figure has approached Jesus with this same question.

You may remember in that story about the Good Samaritan:
Luke 10:25 “And a lawyer stood up and put Him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”

IT IS THE SAME SETTING HERE.
This young man who has led others in the synagogue
Has now approached Jesus wanting to know how to obtain eternal life.

I know some have taken issue with the way he asked the question.
• Some have said that the fact that he asked, “what shall I do..?” indicates that he has “works-based” expectations.

But I don’t think he’s purposely being heretical,
I just think he’s asking the question the only way he knows how.

Incidentally, remember Pentecost?
Acts 2:37 “Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?”

Rather, this is just a young man, who in sincerity
(we know that because of the grief he’ll have in a moment when he doesn’t receive it)
Is coming to the right place
To ask the most important question he’ll ever ask.

How can I be saved?

But to that question Jesus does give him A SOBERING REMINDER
(19) “And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone.”

Now some occults have used this verse to say that
Jesus there denied His deity in this statement.
That is NOT what is happening.

Rather, Jesus is confronting this young man’s
NONCHALANT use of the word “good”.

According to Jesus, he throws that word around far too liberally.

In Matthew’s gospel the conversation is recorded a little differently.
Matthew 19:16-17 “And someone came to Him and said, “Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may obtain eternal life?” And He said to him, “Why are you asking Me about what is good? There is only One who is good…”

Perhaps that helps you understand Jesus’ point.
• It’s that this young man uses that word “good” far too easily without really
understanding the weight of it.

WE SEE THAT TODAY as well, as many people are more than willing to classify themselves as “a good person”.

When the reality is that “good” is a classification
That can only be applied to God.
Only God is actually good.

HUMANITY IS NOT.
Romans 3:10-12 “as it is written, “THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NOT EVEN ONE; THERE IS NONE WHO UNDERSTANDS, THERE IS NONE WHO SEEKS FOR GOD; ALL HAVE TURNED ASIDE, TOGETHER THEY HAVE BECOME USELESS; THERE IS NONE WHO DOES GOOD, THERE IS NOT EVEN ONE.”

• “Good” was the word God used to describe creation before the Fall.
• After sin entered the world the word was never again truly appropriate.

AND JESUS CLARIFIES THAT HERE.

And that is just like Jesus to insist on a proper basis for a conversation.
We remember the conversation He had with Nicodemus:
John 3:1-3 “Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews; this man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

• Jesus picked up on the fact that Nicodemus was interested in a teacher who
could perhaps help him “tweak” his life to be more acceptable to God.
• Jesus corrected the premise of the conversation right off the bat.
• “Tweaking” will never be enough.
• Nicodemus we need to scrap the whole thing and start over.

Jesus is doing the same thing here with this young man.
HE IS DEFINING THE TERMS.
“Good” is not an appropriate term to throw around so liberally.

THAT IS A SOBERING REMINDER.

But that wasn’t really the question.
The question had to do with eternal life.

So, from there Jesus gives A SIMPLE ANSWER
(20) “You know the commandments, ‘DO NOT COMMIT ADULTERY, DO NOT MURDER, DO NOT STEAL, DO NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS, HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER.'”

As John MacArthur pointed out at Camp REGEN a couple of years ago when preaching this passage.
• Every evangelism professor in every seminary in the world would have failed Jesus for this answer.
• This young man wanted to know how to have eternal life and Jesus told him to keep the commandments.
• To those of us who know we are saved by grace and not works this comes to us as the absolute wrong answer.

But Jesus said it, and you can’t really fail Jesus in evangelism.

THAT’S BECAUSE IT’S NOT THE WRONG ANSWER.
IT’S THE RIGHT ANSWER!

WHY?
Jesus simply quoted the Law of God to this young man.
• If you want to please God and gain eternal life then the simple answer is that you must be righteous,
• And the Law is where God systematically laid out His righteous requirements.

Deuteronomy 30:15-20 “See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, and death and adversity; in that I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in His ways and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His judgments, that you may live and multiply, and that the LORD your God may bless you in the land where you are entering to possess it. “But if your heart turns away and you will not obey, but are drawn away and worship other gods and serve them, I declare to you today that you shall surely perish. You will not prolong your days in the land where you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess it. “I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants, by loving the LORD your God, by obeying His voice, and by holding fast to Him; for this is your life and the length of your days, that you may live in the land which the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them.”

It was pretty clear.
• If you will obey all of God’s commands then you will get life.
• If you don’t obey all of God’s commands then you get death.

And this doesn’t change in the New Testament.

Listen to Jesus:
John 5:24-29 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life. “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. “For just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man. “Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment.”

People who do good deeds get a resurrection of life.
He just said it; good people go to heaven.

Paul would say the same:
Romans 2:3-11 “But do you suppose this, O man, when you pass judgment on those who practice such things and do the same yourself, that you will escape the judgment of God? Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and tolerance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance? But because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who WILL RENDER TO EACH PERSON ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS: to those who by perseverance in doing good seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life; but to those who are selfishly ambitious and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, wrath and indignation. There will be tribulation and distress for every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek, but glory and honor and peace to everyone who does good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For there is no partiality with God.”

Paul said it too.
If you do good you get eternal life.

THAT IS TRUE.
NOW WHAT’S THE PROBLEM WITH THAT SCENARIO?
(No men are good, which we saw in Romans 3 earlier)

But this young man doesn’t know that.
Remember, he’s still liberally applying the word good to stuff.

So Jesus says, if you want eternal life
Then be good according to God’s Law.
Keep these commandments.

IT WAS A SIMPLE ANSWER.

And then we begin to see the problem.
This man gives A SELF-RIGHTEOUS RESPONSE
(21) “And he said, “All these things I have kept from my youth.”

There he is throwing that loose interpretation of “good” around again.
• He just said, “Check, I have done that. I am good.”

Obviously he has failed to rightly apply the Law.
We are all familiar with the infamous “You have heard, but I say…” sermons.

Matthew 5:21-22 “You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.’ “But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘You good-for-nothing,’ shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.”

Matthew 5:27-28 “You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY’; but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”

Obviously this young man has failed to rightly apply the Law to his heart,
But the point is that when he measures himself by the Law,
He thinks that he is good.

Now where have we seen that before?
Luke 18:9 “And He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt:”

• That’s right!
• Though this young man doesn’t seem to be quite so arrogant, in reality he
thinks of himself just like that Pharisee did.

Remember that Pharisee?
Luke 18:11-12 “The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. ‘I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’”

How is that answer much different from this young man’s answer here?
IT ISN’T.

This man is another example of one who wrongly evaluated his life.
• Instead of humility he has pride.
• Instead of dependence he is self-reliant
• Instead of faith he’s got works

You see that don’t you.
And that’s his approach to Jesus.
A young man, who has a distorted view of goodness and who lacks discernment in evaluating himself, has approached Jesus wanting eternal life.

The Approach
#2 THE ASSESSMENT
Luke 18:22-25

Notice the statement: “When Jesus heard this…”

Jesus immediately detected a flaw
In this young man’s theology and thought process.

This man thought himself to be complete.
Jesus is going to point out that he in fact has A DEFICIENCY

“When Jesus heard this, He said to him, “One thing you still lack; sell all your possess and distribute it to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

Now, we need to process that verse for a second.
• Because Jesus said the man lacked “one thing”
• And then listed 3 things he needed to do.
• “sell” – “distribute” – “follow”

So which of those 3 is the “one thing” he lacked?

The answer is none of them.
Jesus didn’t say there is one thing you must do,
He said there is one thing you lack.

The one thing this young man lacked was DESPERATION

What do you mean?

1) This man wants eternal life and we know the answer to that question.
We’ve heard Jesus give it too many times.

Matthew 16:24 “Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.”

If you want life then you have to “follow” Jesus.
That is simple.

2) Now, in order to follow Jesus, you must count the cost.

3) And the reality is that following Jesus will cost you everything.

That is why He said you must “deny” yourself.
You can’t keep this life and follow Jesus.

If you follow Him:
• There are relationships you will lose
• There are possessions you will leave
• There are jobs you can’t have
• There is a reputation you must forfeit

All types of cost is involved in following Jesus.

Now, for this man the cost was going to be his possessions.
WHY?

Well, you can’t very well haul all your furniture, and rugs, and livestock, and bags of money with you when you travel with Jesus. THAT’S NOT EVEN PRACTICAL.

And Jesus certainly didn’t want the money.

So, since you need to get rid of it (because you can’t bring it)
And since the poor need it, well, just sell it all and give it to the poor
And then you’ll be free to follow Me.

IT REALLY IS THAT SIMPLE.
Just get rid of those things that hinder.

Hebrews 12:1-2 “Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

That is Following Jesus 101

And certainly know that Jesus will compensate you for all you’ve lost.
• If this young man would do that he would be rewarded in the kingdom.
• Jesus promised him “treasure in heaven”.

But you can’t drag a dinette set with you while you walk all over Galilee
So sell it, give away the money, and “follow Me”.

That is the answer to the question about how to gain eternal life.
Let go of your life and run to Jesus.

And it is worth remembering WHY this is salvation.
• Because only Jesus did fulfill the Law of God.
• Only Jesus is good and righteous.
• Only Jesus will satisfy God’s wrath on sin on the cross.
• And so, only Jesus can grant sinners eternal life.

Acts 4:12 “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”

So if you want eternal life then you have to run to Jesus.
• You have to follow Jesus.
• And if you’re going to follow Jesus, then you have to lose this world.

The problem is that this man didn’t have what it takes to follow Jesus.
HE WAS DEFICIENT IN THIS AREA.

And we see that because of HIS DESPAIR
(23) “But when he had heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich.”

Both Matthew and Mark reveal that he “went away grieving.”

• He wanted Jesus, but not bad enough.
• He saw value in Jesus, but he wasn’t desperate enough for Jesus to let go of this world to follow Him.
• He saw salvation in Jesus, but he wasn’t humble enough to embrace the loss it would require.

The one thing he lacked was the desperation or humility
To let go of everything and latch on to Christ.

Matthew 5:3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Paul said:
Philippians 3:7-8 “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,”

This young man didn’t have that.
He lacked the necessary humility.
• The widow had it, but he didn’t.
• The tax collector had it, but he didn’t.
• Those children had it, but he didn’t.

For him the cost of Jesus was not worth the value.

And to that Jesus revealed HIS DILEMMA
(24-25) “And Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God! “For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

And I would remind you that “rich” there applies to more than just money.
Earlier we saw a Pharisee who had too rich a reputation to follow Christ.

It is people who have amassed too much value in anything in this life.
• Some won’t leave their money…
• Some won’t leave their relationships…
• Some won’t leave their position…
• Some won’t leave their inheritance…
• Some won’t leave their status or reputation…

And so Jesus says:
“it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

If you’re trying to figure out how to make that work you are missing the point.
IT’S IMPOSSIBLE.

IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR PEOPLE
WHO WILL NOT LEAVE THEIR LIFE TO BE SAVED.

The Approach, The Assessment
#3 THE ANNOUNCEMENT
Luke 18:26-30

You see here THE OBVIOUS ANXIETY of the disciples.
(26) “They who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?”

They picked up on the problem.
If pushing a camel through the eye of a needle is easier,
Then is it even possible at all?

And the immediate answer is NO.
But Jesus gives them AN ENCOURAGING ANSWER
(27) “But He said, “The things that are impossible with people are possible with God.”

Now that DOESN’T MEANT that a rich man who won’t leave his riches can’t be saved, but God can save him anyway.

What it does mean is this.
• No one can save themselves by their own efforts or works or riches.
• No one can.
• From a human perspective salvation is impossible.
• There is none good
• You’d have better luck pushing a camel through a needle

But, God can save sinners who cannot save themselves.
Ephesians 2:8-9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

Sinners cannot save themselves by their works,
But God can save them by His grace.

He does so by imputing their sin to Christ
Who pays their debt on the cross
And then by imputing Christ’s righteousness to them
So that they are acceptable.

AND THAT IS AN ENCOURAGING ANSWER.
• God can do the impossible.
• God can save sinners.
• God can do it through Christ,
• And that is what makes following Christ essential, even if it costs you everything.

NOW, THE STORY COULD HAVE ENDED HERE.
We could tie it up with a reminder of God’s grace
And His ability to save sinners through Christ, BUT IT DOESN’T.

Because Luke doesn’t just give negative examples in this chapter,
He also gives positive ones.

• We already saw a persistent widow
• We already saw a humble tax collector
• We already saw dependent children

NOW WE SEE DESPERATE FOLLOWERS

Notice here that we now see A NEW APPROACH
We saw the rich young ruler’s approach, but look at the disciples approach.
(28) “Peter said, “Behold, we have left our own homes and followed You.”

Do you see the difference?
• The cost didn’t matter to them.
• They found Jesus
• They found salvation
• They were desperate.

We remember as the crowds abandoned Jesus in John 6:
John 6:66-69 “As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore. So Jesus said to the twelve, “You do not want to go away also, do you?” Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. “We have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.”

Peter was desperate.
• He was desperate for eternal life and he couldn’t get that anywhere but Jesus.
• And so whatever the cost, Peter would pay it.

Do you see how different he is from the rich young ruler?
He wouldn’t part with his riches, but Peter would part with everything.

How desperate are you for eternal life?
How badly do you want to escape the judgment of hell?

Matthew 16:25-26 “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”

Peter said, “I’ll give everything. I have given everything.”

And since Peter had a different approach, you’ll also see that Jesus had A DIFFERENT ASSESSMENT
(29-30) “And He said to them, “Truly I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not receive many times as much at this time and in the age to come, eternal life.”

Didn’t Jesus promise to compensate the rich young ruler?
Yes, but the ruler didn’t trust Him.

Jesus also promised to compensate those who left everything for Him.

And by the way, He even included PRESENT compensation.
• Jesus said, “many times as much at this time”

Who in here who has lost anything for Jesus, can say that Jesus is cheating them, even now?

• No one can.
• Jesus is worth it.
• Certainly worth it for eternal life, but He’s even worth it in this life.

If you follow Him now so that you may enter His kingdom.
He will grant you eternal life
And He promises to compensate all that you lose.

These disciples did that.
They are the 4th positive example.

So do you want to know who will enter the kingdom?
Do you want to know who will be spared
When the Lord returns and dishes out judgment on the wicked?

It is those who left everything that they might latch on to Jesus.
• It is those who were had persistent faith like the widow.
• It is those who had genuine humility like the tax collector.
• It is those who were totally dependent like those children.
• It is those who were absolutely desperate like the disciples.

Those are the people who are saved because those are the people who want Jesus more than anything else.

And that is our encouragement this morning.
• Do you see that Jesus is your only hope of salvation?
• How badly do you want Him?
• Will you surrender this life to gain Him?

The Rich Young Ruler would not.
• And on this day, he made a decision that Jesus wasn’t worth as much as his riches.
• I can confidently say, he has regretted that day ever since and even more so after he died.

DON’T BE LIKE HIM.
If the Lord convicts your heart
And bids you to leave it behind and follow Him,
DO IT.

• Come in faith
• Come in humility
• Come in dependence
• Come in desperation

Luke 17:32-33 “Remember Lot’s wife. “Whoever seeks to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.”