Old Testament Reading: Isaiah 61 

“The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to grant to those who mourn in Zion— to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he may be glorified. They shall build up the ancient ruins; they shall raise up the former devastations; they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations. Strangers shall stand and tend your flocks; foreigners shall be your plowmen and vinedressers; but you shall be called the priests of the LORD; they shall speak of you as the ministers of our God; you shall eat the wealth of the nations, and in their glory you shall boast. Instead of your shame there shall be a double portion; instead of dishonor they shall rejoice in their lot; therefore in their land they shall possess a double portion; they shall have everlasting joy. For I the LORD love justice; I hate robbery and wrong; I will faithfully give them their recompense, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them. Their offspring shall be known among the nations, and their descendants in the midst of the peoples; all who see them shall acknowledge them, that they are an offspring the LORD has blessed. I will greatly rejoice in the LORD; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. For as the earth brings forth its sprouts, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to sprout up, so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to sprout up before all the nations.” (Isaiah 61, ESV)

New Testament Reading: Luke 4:14-30

“And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and a report about him went out through all the surrounding country. And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.’ And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. And he began to say to them, ‘Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.’ And all spoke well of him and marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth. And they said, ‘Is not this Joseph’s son?’ And he said to them, ‘Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, ‘Physician, heal yourself.’ What we have heard you did at Capernaum, do here in your hometown as well.’ And he said, ‘Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his hometown. But in truth, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heavens were shut up three years and six months, and a great famine came over all the land, and Elijah was sent to none of them but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.’ When they heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath. And they rose up and drove him out of the town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they could throw him down the cliff. But passing through their midst, he went away.” (Luke 4:14–30, ESV)

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Please excuse any typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church but without the benefit of proofreading.

Introduction

Luke wrote what he wrote in his gospel so that we might be sure that Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah who was promised long ago and that we might trust in him for the forgiveness of our sins unto life everlasting (see Luke 1:1-4). And how has Luke presented Jesus to us in his attempt to persuade us about these things? Answer: He has presented Jesus to us at the fulfillment of the Old Testament Scriptures. Jesus fulfilled the Scriptures in his conception, birth, early childhood, baptism, and victory over the Serpent in the wilderness. He fulfilled explicate prophesies. He also fulfilled the types and shadows contained within the Old Testament Scriptures – he is the second and greater Adam, the second a greater Moses, and the true and faithful Israel of God. 

You would do well to notice that Luke continues with this same approach in the passage that is before us today. Here Luke shows us that Jesus is the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah 61. In addition to this, Luke wants us to see that from the beginning, Jesus came to bring salvation, not to the Jews only, but to the Gentiles also. Lastly, Luke shows us that this was the thing that most aggravated the Jews and led to their rejection of Christ.  

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Jesus Is The Anointed One Of Isaiah 61

The first thing that we must see in our passage for today is that Jesus claimed to be the anointed one of whom Isaiah spoke. Messiah means “anointed one”. So then Jesus explicitly claims to be the promised Messiah in the passage that is before us. 

Luke 4:14 says, “And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and a report about him went out through all the surrounding country.” 

So then, after the victory of Jesus over the devil in the wilderness, he went into the region of Galilee. This is the region north of Jerusalem and to the west of the Sea of Galilee.

Our text says that he went there in the power of the Spirit. This is a reference to the Holy Spirit. We are to remember that Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit at his baptism. Luke 3:21 says, when Jesus was baptized and was praying, “the heavens were opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased’” (Luke 3:21–22, ESV). It was the Spirit who led Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted, remember? And it was the Spirit who sustained Jesus so that he would win the victory over the Evil One. Of course, when we speak of Jesus’ anointing with the Spirit, we are to consider him according to his human nature, and not according to his divine nature. The Spirit filled and empowered Jesus as a man to strengthen and uphold him to accomplish his work.

Brothers and sisters,  this is the same Spirit that Christ has poured out on all who have faith in him. If you are in Christ, then you have this Spirit as a seal and as a Helper so that you would have all that you need to walk faithfully. 

Luke does not tell us much about Christ’s ministry in Galilee. He only says that “a report about him went out through all the surrounding country. And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all” (Luke 4:14- 15, ESV).

In Luke 4:16 we are told that Jesus “came to Nazareth [a town in the region of Galilee], where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read” (Luke 4:16, ESV). Notice that it was the custom of Jesus the Messiah to be in the synagogue on the Sabbath day. “Synagogue” means “assembly place”.  Synagogues were meeting houses where the Jews would gather together to hear the Scriptures read and explained, to pray, sing, and fellowship with one another. Does that sound familiar to you? It should, the Jewish synagogues of the first century were the prototypes of our Christian churches. In fact, James refers to the Christian meeting house as a synagogue (συναγωγή) in 2:2 of his epistle. The point is this:  Jesus the Messiah was in “church” – that is to say, in the assembly –  on the Sabbath day. That was his custom. And that should be your custom too, if you are in Christ. Hebrews 10:24-25 says, “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” If you claim to be a Christian and it is your habit to neglect the assembly, that needs to change. Christ was in the synagogue on the Sabbath, and you should be in the Christian synagogue (meeting house) with the people of God on the Lord’s Day Sabbath too, for ​​“whoever says he abides in [Christ] ought to walk in the same way in which he walked” (1 John 2:6, ESV).

Now, though it is true that we should imitate Christ by assembling with God’s people on the Lord’s Day, we cannot imitate what he did in Nazareth on this particular Sabbath day.  We are told that he “he stood up to read. And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.’ And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him” (Luke 4:18–20, ESV). 

So what was it about what Christ did on this day that caused “the eyes of all in the synagogue [to be] fixed on him”? Well, he must have read this passage in such a way so as to indicate that he was the one of whom this passage spoke. In other words, he read this text, not as if it were about someone else, but as if it were about him. He read this text as if these words were his words. And indeed they were. And then he sat down without comment. This was strange, and so the people stared at him. And a bit later “he began to say to them, ‘Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21, ESV). In other words, I am the one of whom Isaiah spoke. I am the Lord’s Anointed. That was his message. And it was a message that only he could proclaim. 

Now, Jesus only read verses 1 and 2 of Isaiah 61. But as I have taught you before, when a verse or two from the Old Testament is quoted in the New Testament, we had better go there and take a look around. The one or two verses that are cited are often times meant to point us to an entire passage or even a broad theme. I’ve told you before that these brief citations are meant to function like hyperlinks on a webpage. We are supposed to click the link, if you will, and then look around.  

We read Isaiah 61 in its entirety at the beginning of this sermon. It is a beautiful passage that reveals the mission of the Messiah. How appropriate that Jesus would refer to this text at the start of his ministry! Here it again: “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound…” (Isaiah 61:1, ESV), Can you see that this is about the mission of the Messiah? This is what the Messiah was sent to do. Isaiah 61:2 continues, saying, “to grant to those who mourn in Zion— to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit…” This is what God has called the Messiah to do for his people. 

At the end of verse 3 of Isaiah 61, the focus shifts from the work of the Messiah to the benefits that come to those who are blessed in the Messiah. It says, “that they [those blessed in the Messiah] may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he may be glorified. They shall build up the ancient ruins; they shall raise up the former devastations; they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations” (Isaiah 61:3–4, ESV).

We cannot take the time to read again all of Isaiah 61 and to comment on each verse. I have taken you beyond verses 1 and 2 (which Jesus quoted) through verse 4 to show you that there is a lot of good news in this passage for those who are blessed by the Messiah. It is not surprising that Luke tells us in 4:22 that “all spoke well of him and marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth. And they said, ‘Is not this Joseph’s son?’” (Luke 4:22, ESV). We should remember that the word “marveled” was used back in Luke 2:33 where it is said that Joseph and Mary “marveled at what was said about [Jesus]” (Luke 2:33, ESV). The same Greek word was also used in 2:18, 1:63, and 1:21 – the people “wondered” or “marveled” over what the shepherds told them, what Zachariah wrote, and why he delayed in the temple. The Lord was doing incredible things in those days when Jesus was born, and the Lord was doing incredible things when Jesus began his ministry as our Messiah, and so they marveled. They “marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth. And they said, ‘Is not this Joseph’s son?’” I take this to be an honest question. They were wondering how it could be that this Jesus, the son of Joseph, as was supposed (Luke 3:23), could possibly be the LORD’s Messiah. The question was an honest one, and the response to Jesus in Nazareth was at first favorable.

But things changed for the worse very quickly. And we would be wise to ask the question, why? Why did the people change their opinion of Jesus? How did they go from speaking well of him to wanting to kill him by throwing him off a cliff? Answer: Jesus did not merely tell them what they wished to hear, but spoke the truth instead. 

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Jesus Came To Bring Salvation, Not To The Jews Only, But To The Gentiles Also 

Specifically, Jesus clarified that he did not come to bring salvation to the Jews only, but to the Gentiles also – indeed, he came to redeem all who are poor in spirit and look unto him for salvation. 

Look with me at Luke 4:23. “And he said to them, ‘Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, ‘Physician, heal yourself.’” This hints at the suffering that Jesus would endure as the Messiah, for only he who suffers needs to be healed. We will learn as we progress through Luke (and through the other Gospels someday) that not many were interested in following a suffering Messiah – a victorious and conquering Messiah, yes! A suffering Messiah, no. But those who will have Christ as Savior must have him as a suffering Savior, and humbly identify with him in his suffering. 

And then Jesus predicted that they would say, “What we have heard you did at Capernaum, do here in your hometown as well” (Luke 4:23, ESV). What did he do in Capernaum? Among other things, he healed people of their physical ailments (see Mark 2:1-12). 

And in verse 24 we read, “And he said, ‘Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his hometown. But in truth, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heavens were shut up three years and six months, and a great famine came over all the land, and Elijah was sent to none of them but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian” (Luke 4:24–27, ESV). 

The story about Elijah and Zarephath that Jesus referred to is found in 1 Kings 17. The story about Elisha and Naaman the Syrian is found in 2 Kings 5. What do these two stories share in common? Well, they are both about the faith of Gentiles in the Old Covenant era and of God showing mercy to them while Israel was unfaithful.  

And what do all three of these sayings of Jesus as recorded in Luke 4:23-27 share in common? Well, they all seem to emphasize the heavenly, eternal, and universal focus of Jesus’ ministry, and this ran counter to the earthly, temporal, and ethnocentric expectations that many within Isarel had for their Messiah. 

You are probably familiar with the idea that many within Isarel expected that when the Messiah appeared he would overthrow the Romans and restore Isarel to the glory that she once had in the days of King David. Can you see how that expectation was earthly (it was about a kingdom on earth), temporal (it was about an earthly kingdom now), and ethnocentric (it was about blessings falling on the Jews, but not the Gentiles)? 

And you are probably also familiar with how many were interested in following Jesus when they thought he would feed them with physical bread and heal them of their physical infirmities. But those same people quickly abandoned him when he began to speak of suffering and sacrifice in this life and the heavenly and eternal focus of his ministry (think of the story of the feeding of the 5,000 in John 6).

And do not forget how enraged some of the Jews became when Jesus made it clear that he came to save, not only Jews but Gentiles also. 

This story about Jesus in the synagogue in Nazareth has a little of all that going on, doesnt it? Jesus hints at future suffering. He suggests that he did not come mainly to heal of physical infirmities. And then he stresses his concern for the Gentiles by mentioning the stories of Elijah and Zarephath and Elisha and Naaman the Syrian. And it was at this point that the people turned on him in a violent way.  

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This Was The Thing That Most Aggravated The Jews And Led To Their Rejection Of Christ  

Luke 4:28-30 says, “When they heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath. And they rose up and drove him out of the town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they could throw him down the cliff. But passing through their midst, he went away” (Luke 4:28–30, ESV).

What was it that so aggravated these people leading them to reject Jesus as the Messiah? In brief, it was this: he suggested that the Jews – yes even the Jews in his hometown – would reject him, while many Gentiles would receive him and be blessed by him, just as Zarephath of Sidon and Naaman the Syrian were in the days of Elijah and Elisha. 

If you have read the New Testament carefully you know that this teaching that Gentiles would be included (or engrafted) into to Abraham was very controversial amongst the Jews. It led (in part) to the crucifixion of Christ. And it led to the persecution of Paul and the other apostles too. 

Take, for example, Acts 13:44-52. The context is Paul and Barnabas’s ministry at Antioch in Pisidia. The text says, “The next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began to contradict what was spoken by Paul, reviling him. And Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, saying, ‘It was necessary that the word of God be spoken first to you. Since you thrust it aside and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles. For so the Lord has commanded us, saying, ‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’ And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed. And the word of the Lord was spreading throughout the whole region. But the Jews incited the devout women of high standing and the leading men of the city, stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their district. But they shook off the dust from their feet against them and went to Iconium. And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 13:44–52, ESV). I cite this text because I think it illustrates the theme that is found throughout the New Testament about the Jews being provoked to jealousy concerning Gentile inclusion through faith in the Messiah. This phenomenon was present at the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry. Even the people in his hometown wished to kill him when he spoke of blessing the Gentiles! This theme continued throughout Jesus’ ministry, and even into the ministry of the Apostles and early church. 

In a sense, it is understandable that the Jews would have a difficult time comprehending and coming to terms with this transition. From the days of Abraham onward, and especially from Moses onward, the Hebrews were set apart from all of the nations as a special and holy people. Special covenants were made with them, the law was given to them, the temple was in their midst, and the promises of God were entrusted to them. Change is difficult (this we all know). And when the Messiah came into the world he brought with him massive changes. He came, not to destroy the law of Moses, but to fulfill it. He was not against the Old Covenant, but he did come to full it and to inaugurate a New Covenant. The kingdom of God would no longer be confined to Israel (in a prototypical way), but came in power and would spread to the ends of the earth after Christ lived, died, and rose again. And the New Covenant people of God would not consist of those who descended from Abraham according to the flesh, but of all who have faith, not only from the Jews but also the Gentiles (see Romans 9-11). These were massive changes. And so we should not be surprised that some struggled to understand these things and to come to terms with them (see Acts 10 & 11).

But in another sense, it is surprising that so many from amongst the Jews were caught off guard by this great transition, for these things were foretold in their own Scriptures. They should have known.

Consider these things:

The Messiah was promised, not first to Abraham, but to Adam and Eve in the curse that was pronounced on the serpent in Genesis 3:15. This means that the Messiah would be the redeemer, not only of the Jews but of the world – that is to say, of all people. By the way, this is what John 3:16 speaks of when it says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16, ESV). Nowhere does this text teach a universal atonement. Nowhere does it say that Christ shed his blood for every single person who has ever lived. That idea is read into the text by the universalists. Here is what it does say: God set his love on the world – the whole fallen planet and every nation within – and not the Jews only. Christ came to provide salvation for people from every tongue tribe and nation. And who will be saved? The text says, “Whoever believes in him [will] not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:16–18, ESV). This text is not about the scope of the atonement, friends. But it is about the scope of God’s love and of Christ’s mission. God’s saving love is not confined to the Jews only but is for all nations. Christ’s mission was to earn salvation for particular people from every tongue tribe and nation. That he came to save particular people, namely, the elect, is clearly stated elsewhere in John’s Gospel (see John 6, John 10:11, John 17). But John 3:16 makes this general point: God’s saving love is for the world, that is to say, all nations, and not for the Jews only. And who from amongst the nations will be saved? All who believe. And who will believe? Those chosen by God in eternity. These in due will hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ and be made alive by the working of the Holy Spirit. This we call effectual calling.  

Back to the point. Luke wants us to see that Jesus is not only the Son of Abraham (the father of the Hebrews), he is the second and greater Adam (the father of humanity). He came, therefore, not as the Messiah of the Jews only, but as the world’s Messiah – he is the “Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29, ESV).

The Messiah was promised, not first to Abraham, but to Adam. That is significant. And even when Abraham and his descendants (the Hebrews) were set apart by God as a special people from all the nations of the earth, it was revealed to him that all the nations of the earth would be blessed through them. “Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 12:1–3, ESV). Do you see what I mean when I say the Jews should not have been surprised about the news that the Messiah came to bring salvation to all nations? The very first word that was spoken by God to Father Abraham revealed this aim. Abraham’s descendants would be set apart for a time so that the nations would be blessed through them. 

And the Psalms and Prophets are filled with references to the nations and of God’s plan to reconcile sinners to himself from all nations through Israel’s Messiah. And note this: The book of Isaiah – the book that Jesus read from in Nazareth –  is especially rich with this theme. 

Isaiah 42:6-7 speaks of the Messiah, saying, “I am the LORD; I have called you in righteousness; I will take you by the hand and keep you; I will give you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness” (Isaiah 42:6–7, ESV).

Isaiah 49:6 is about the Messiah. The LORD speaks to him saying, “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth” (Isaiah 49:6, ESV).

Isaiah 55:5 also speaks of the Messiah saying, “Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know, and a nation that did not know you shall run to you, because of the LORD your God, and of the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you” (Isaiah 55:5, ESV).

You probably are noticing that we are creeping ever closer to the very passage in Isaiah that Jesus read from in the synagogue in Nazareth (Isaiah 61) and afterward sat down, saying, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing”. Isaiah 61 speaks of the nation too. Verse 6 says, “you shall eat the wealth of the nations”. Verses 8 and 9: “I will make an everlasting covenant with them. Their offspring shall be known among the nations, and their descendants in the midst of the peoples; all who see them shall acknowledge them, that they are an offspring the LORD has blessed”. Verse 11: “For as the earth brings forth its sprouts, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to sprout up, so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to sprout up before all the nations”.

This theme of God blessing the nations through Israel and her Messiah runs through to the end of the book of Isaiah and even intensifies. Listen to how the book of Isaiah concludes: “For I know their works and their thoughts [says the Lord], and the time is coming to gather all nations and tongues. And they shall come and shall see my glory, and I will set a sign among them. And from them I will send survivors to the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, who draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, to the coastlands far away, that have not heard my fame or seen my glory. And they shall declare my glory among the nations. And they shall bring all your brothers from all the nations as an offering to the LORD, on horses and in chariots and in litters and on mules and on dromedaries, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, says the LORD, just as the Israelites bring their grain offering in a clean vessel to the house of the LORD. And some of them also I will take for priests and for Levites, says the LORD. ‘For as the new heavens and the new earth that I make shall remain before me, says the LORD, so shall your offspring and your name remain. From new moon to new moon, and from Sabbath to Sabbath, all flesh shall come to worship before me, declares the LORD’” (Isaiah 66:18–23, ESV).

The point is this: The news that the Messiah would come to save people from every tongue tribe and nation was not new news, but old news brought to fulfillment. And yet, when Jesus suggested to those in his hometown that many from within Israel would reject him, while many from amongst the Gentiles would receive him and be blessed in him, they wished to put him to death. Certainly, this anticipated his death on the cross. But the time was not yet: “Passing through their midst, he went away.”

Before we conclude, I think it is important for us to make a couple of connections between this passage and the previous one. In the previous passage, Jesus was tempted by the Devil in the wilderness and he was victorious. The last line in that passage says, “And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time” (Luke 4:13, ESV). This means that the Devil would continue to tempt Jesus throughout his ministry. I think our minds should especially go to the agony that Jesus experienced in Gethsemane and leading up to the cross. There Satan continued to tempt Jesus to deviate from his mission. But here we see that Satan opposed Jesus through the people in his hometown. More than this, I think it is important for us to make the connection between Jesus’ defeat of Satan in the wilderness and his announcement to the Nazareens that he would bring salvation, not to Jews only, but to the Gentiles. If you remember the sermon on the previous passage, Jesus’ mission was to defeat, cast down, and bind Satan, so that he would no longer hold the nations in darkness. He came to bind the strong man so that he might proceed to plunder his house. So then, after Jesus defeated the Devil in the wilderness, he proceeded to announce that he would have people from every nation as his inheritance. And this was what infuriated the Nazereens, for though they were children of Abraham according to the flesh, they were of the Evil One in the heart and mind. Or to quote Jesus himself,  They were of their “father the devil, and [their] will [was] to do [their] father’s desires” (John 8:44, ESV).

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Conclusion

I’ll conclude now by making a few brief suggestions for application. All of them have to do with not making the same mistakes that those in Nazareth made concerning their expectations for the Messiah. 

One, let us be sure to not reduce Jesus down into a Messiah who has come to merely meet our needs on earth. His blessings are spiritual and heavenly. He will bless us physically and on earth too, but those blessings will come to us at the consummation in new heavens and earth. Life in this present evil age will be marked by trials, tribulations, various sufferings, and ultimately death. But Christ will bless his people in and through these tribulations, to bring them safely home into the heavenly new creation inheritance that he has earned for them.   

Two, connected with this, let us be sure to not reduce Jesus down into a Messiah who has come to merely bless us in the here and now. His blessing are eternal. We are blessed in Christ now – this is true. But we are called to patiently endure until we take possession of the fullness of our inheritance in Christ in the life to come. 

Three, let us be sure to not reduce Jesus down into a tribal Messiah but always remember that he came to save all kinds of people – rich and poor, powerful and weak, people from every tongue tribe and nation. And this is why Paul wrote to Timothy, saying, “First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time” (1 Timothy 2:1–6, ESV).

Posted in Sermons Joe Anady
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Discussion Questions For At Home Or In Gospel Community Groups

• What is sin? (You may go to Baptist Catechism 17 for help in answering this)
• Does every sin, no matter how big or small, make us guilty before God and deserving of his judgment?
• Are some sins worse than others, though? Discuss.
• What is meant in the phrase, “by reason of several aggravations” in Baptist Catechism 88? What factors make a sin more aggravating to God in one situation than another?
• If all are sinners, then why do we sometimes say he’s a good guy, or, she’s a good lady, when speaking of others? Are we wrong to talk in this way?
• What should this teaching about sin cause us to do?

Posted in Study Guides Joe Anady
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Questions For Discussion At Home Or In Gospel Community Groups

• Why is it important to view the story of Jesus’ temptation, not primarily as an example for us to follow, but as a record of what Christ accomplished? Try to use the terms “law” and “gospel” to describe the two views. 
• Who from the Old Testament should we compare and contrast Jesus with as we consider the story of his temptation? Hint: There are two answers. Discuss the similarities and differences between Jesus and these. What is the meaning of the comparison?
• Discuss the three temptations one at a time. Did Satan know who Jesus was and what he came to do? What was the devil tempting Jesus to do? How did Jesus respond? 
• What did Jesus accomplish in the wilderness?
• Does Jesus also provide us with an example for how to resist temptation?

Posted in Study Guides Joe Anady
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Baptist Catechism 88

Q. 88. Are all transgressions of the law equally heinous?

A. Some sins in themselves and by reason of several aggravations, are more heinous in the sight of God than others. (Ezekiel 8:13; John 19:11; 1 John 5:16)

Scripture Reading: John 19:1–11

“Then Pilate took Jesus and flogged him. And the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head and arrayed him in a purple robe. They came up to him, saying, ‘Hail, King of the Jews!’ and struck him with their hands. Pilate went out again and said to them, ‘See, I am bringing him out to you that you may know that I find no guilt in him.’ So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, ‘Behold the man!’ When the chief priests and the officers saw him, they cried out, ‘Crucify him, crucify him!’ Pilate said to them, ‘Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no guilt in him.’ The Jews answered him, ‘We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has made himself the Son of God.’ When Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid. He entered his headquarters again and said to Jesus, ‘Where are you from?’ But Jesus gave him no answer. So Pilate said to him, ‘You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have authority to release you and authority to crucify you?’ Jesus answered him, ‘You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above. Therefore he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin.’” (John 19:1–11, ESV)

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Please excuse any typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church but without the benefit of proofreading.

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Have you ever heard it said that all sins are equal in God’s eyes? There is some truth to that statement if by it we mean that all sins, big or small, are in fact sins and make us guilty before God. That is certainly true. And that fact does need to be emphasized for there are many people who think that because they have not committed a big sin — a heinous sin — then they are good with God. That is not true. Sin, we have learned, is any lack of conformity unto or transgression of the law of God (BC 17). And after considering God’s law we have all agreed that we daily violate God’s law in thought, word, or deed (BC 87). We must confess, therefore, that apart from Christ we all stand guilty before God. If that is what people mean when they say that all sins are equal in God’s eyes, then I agree with them. 

But I think you would agree that that phrase can be a little misleading. It can be taken to mean that God does not distinguish between lesser and greater sins at all. That doesn’t sound right does it, for God is perfectly just. And when we consider the civil law that God gave to Old Covenant Israel we see that the punishment fit the crime. Lesser crimes were to receive a lesser punishment, and greater crimes were to receive a  stricter punishment. If we are to uphold justice in this way by distinguishing between lesser and greater evils, then it stands to reason that God, who is perfectly just, does the same. 

The passage that I just read from John 19 speaks to this issue. When Jesus spoke to Pilate concerning his sin he said that the Jews who had falsely accused him, and who were turning the political screws on Pilate to persuade him to crucify Jesus, had “the greater sin”. Both Pilate and the Jews sinned against Jesus by their unjust treatment of him, but the sin of the unbelieving Jews was greater, for they were the ones driving the issue.  

And so this raises another question: if a distinction is to be made between lesser and greater sins, should we expect there to be differing degrees of punishment in hell? The answer is yes, for God is just. The punishment will fit the sin. Jesus also spoke to this when he said that “it will be more bearable on that day [the day of judgment] for Sodom than for that town”, speaking of the town which rejects the testimony of his Apostles  (Luke 10:12, ESV).

So, on the one hand, we must agree that all sin is sin. All lawbreakers stand before God as guilty, therefore. But not all sin is the same. Some sins are more heinous than others.

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Baptist Catechism 88

This is what our catechism teaches. 

Q. 88. Are all transgressions of the law equally heinous?

A. “Some sins in themselves… are more heinous in the sight of God than others.” To give an example, the sin of murder is much worse than the sin of unholy hatred. Both are sins. Neither should be tolerated. But one is much worse than the other given the destruction that it causes. 

Ezekiel 8:13 is listed as a proof text. There we read, “He said also to me, ‘You will see still greater abominations that they commit” (Ezekiel 8:13, ESV). The meaning is clear. What Ezekiel had been shown in this vision regarding the sins of the leaders of Israel was bad, but he was about to see even worse things. And again, Jesus’ words to Pilate that have already been discussed prove the point that  “Some sins in themselves… are more heinous in the sight of God than others.”

Our catechism is also right to say that “some sins in themselves and by reason of several aggravations, are more heinous in the sight of God than others.” I think this little phrase, by reason of several aggravations, acknowledges that other factors come into play when determining the severity of a sin. Some sins are, in and of themselves, more heinous than others. But there are other things to consider too when asking, how aggravating is this sin to God. So, for example, I will ask you, is it more aggravating to God when a four-year-old tells a lie or when a forty-year-old tells a lie? The sin is the same, right? But there is a sense in which a lying 40-year-old is worse than a lying 4-year-old. The 40-year-old should know better! And what is worse, a Christian committing adultery or a Pastor? Same sin, but the one is more aggravating than the other. Remember what James said. “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness” (James 3:1, ESV). And that passage with Jesus and Pilate is helpful again. Both Pilate and the Jews were guilty of injustice, but the sins of the Jews were greater, in part, because they should have known better (they crucified their own Messiah), and because they were the instigators.  I think that is what the phrase, “by reason of several aggravations”, means. It means that other factors may contribute to make a sin more aggravating in the sight of God.

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Conclusion 

So what difference does this teaching make?

One, it does help us to think and speak clearly regarding the justice of God. He does distinguish between lesser and greater sins. At the judgment, the punishment will fit the sin. And we are to follow his example when executing temporal justice on earth today. 

Two, this teaching should make us eager to avoid all sin, but especially to avoid heinous sin. And we do know that lesser sins do lead to greater sins. Don’t lie when you are 4 because you do not want to be lier when you are 40, which is worse. And do not lust in your heart, for we know that the sin of lust does lead to the sin of adultery. Be sober concerning the severity of all sin, and particularly heinous sin, for is so very damaging. 

Three, this teaching does enable us to correctly distinguish between those who are good and those who are evil in the world. In an absolute sense, is anyone good? We say, no. There is none righteous, no not one. But in another sense, are there good people in the world? Are there good governors, good bosses, good friends, and good parents? Yes! And how can we speak in this way? By understanding that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, some, by God’s grace, are good, caring, faithful, and just, relatively speaking.  Though all are sinners, God, in his common grace, does restrain evil in the world and he keeps even those who do not know Christ from committing heinous sins, thanks be to God. 

Q. 88. Are all transgressions of the law equally heinous?

A. Some sins in themselves and by reason of several aggravations, are more heinous in the sight of God than others. (Ezekiel 8:13; John 19:11; 1 John 5:16)

Posted in Sermons Joe Anady
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Old Testament Reading: Deuteronomy 6:1-25

“Now this is the commandment—the statutes and the rules—that the LORD your God commanded me to teach you, that you may do them in the land to which you are going over, to possess it, that you may fear the LORD your God, you and your son and your son’s son, by keeping all his statutes and his commandments, which I command you, all the days of your life, and that your days may be long. Hear therefore, O Israel, and be careful to do them, that it may go well with you, and that you may multiply greatly, as the LORD, the God of your fathers, has promised you, in a land flowing with milk and honey. Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. And when the LORD your God brings you into the land that he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give you—with great and good cities that you did not build, and houses full of all good things that you did not fill, and cisterns that you did not dig, and vineyards and olive trees that you did not plant—and when you eat and are full, then take care lest you forget the LORD, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. It is the LORD your God you shall fear. Him you shall serve and by his name you shall swear. You shall not go after other gods, the gods of the peoples who are around you— for the LORD your God in your midst is a jealous God—lest the anger of the LORD your God be kindled against you, and he destroy you from off the face of the earth. You shall not put the LORD your God to the test, as you tested him at Massah. You shall diligently keep the commandments of the LORD your God, and his testimonies and his statutes, which he has commanded you. And you shall do what is right and good in the sight of the LORD, that it may go well with you, and that you may go in and take possession of the good land that the LORD swore to give to your fathers by thrusting out all your enemies from before you, as the LORD has promised. When your son asks you in time to come, ‘What is the meaning of the testimonies and the statutes and the rules that the LORD our God has commanded you?’ then you shall say to your son, ‘We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt. And the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand. And the LORD showed signs and wonders, great and grievous, against Egypt and against Pharaoh and all his household, before our eyes. And he brought us out from there, that he might bring us in and give us the land that he swore to give to our fathers. And the LORD commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as we are this day. And it will be righteousness for us, if we are careful to do all this commandment before the LORD our God, as he has commanded us.’” (Deuteronomy 6, ESV)

New Testament Reading: Luke 4:1-13

“And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And he ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, he was hungry. The devil said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.’ And Jesus answered him, ‘It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone.’’ And the devil took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, and said to him, ‘To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will. If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.’ And Jesus answered him, ‘It is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.’’ And he took him to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you, to guard you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’ And Jesus answered him, ‘It is said, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’’ And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time.” (Luke 4:1–13, ESV)

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Please excuse any typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church but without the benefit of proofreading.

Introduction

What is the meaning of the story of the temptation of Jesus as found in Luke 4:1-13? What is the point of this passage? If I were to guess I would say that many Christians today view this story about Jesus’ victory over temptation as an example to us. I’m afraid that many interpret this passage as a kind of moralistic story wherein Jesus is set forth as an example to show us how we are to resist temptation when it comes. 

Now, I do not deny that there are wonderful principles found here in this story to be used by the people of God to resist temptation – Like Jesus, we must know God’s word and use it as the sword of the Spirit in our fight against temptation, we must be alert, especially in moments of physical and mental weakness, and we must not take shortcuts in life, but honor God in all situations, even if the path is hard, etc, etc. 

But I am sure, brothers and sisters, that this passage is not meant to function as a mere example to us to help us in our personal fight against sin. No, this story is about Jesus Christ and the victory that he has won for us. Stated differently, Jesus is not to be viewed (primarily) as a moral example, but as our victorious Savior. Luke presents Jesus to us here as the second and greater Adam and the true Isarel of God, who, through his perfect and perpetual obedience, has defeated Satan, dethroned him from his illegitimate throne, bound him, plundered his house, and, having finished his work – having obeyed to the point of death and having been raised from the dead – has ascended to his rightful throne and has sat down, thus securing for himself an eternal kingdom for himself and for all who are united to him by faith. 

Brothers and sisters, this passage is about Jesus and the victory he has won over Satan and his kingdom. The victory was secured at the cross, but note this: it began here when Jesus was tempted in the wilderness by the Devil. He was tempted not once, not twice, but three times, and yet he endured. He did not stumble but remained faithful to God. And so here we see the beginning of the accomplishment of our Salvation from bondage to sin, Satan, and his kingdom of darkness. 

Is Jesus an example to us? Are we to imitate him? In many respects, yes. But please hear me, friends. He is so much more than an example to us. Jesus did not come to merely be our example. He came to accomplish salvation for all given to him by the Father in eternity (see John 17). It is so crucial for you to understand this. If you do not understand this, then I wonder if you understand the gospel through which men and women are saved. There is no good news at all in this statement: Jesus came to live as an example for you. Why? Because we are not capable of imitating Christ perfectly. And more than this, striving to imitate Christ perfectly from this day forward would do nothing at all to remedy the problem of original corruption, past sins, and the fact that will continue to fall short of Christ’s example no matter how sincere our efforts may be. But here is good news: Christ came to live a life of perfect obedience, to die in the place of sinners, so that through faith in him, we might have his righteousness given to us as a gift, and all of our sins washed away. That is what Jesus came to accomplish. And only after we look to him as Savior should we look to him also as an example to us. As John says in 1 John 2:6, “whoever says he abides in [Christ] ought to walk in the same way in which he walked” (1 John 2:6, ESV). You see, first, we must abide in Christ by faith, and then, we must strive to walk as he walked, by God’s grace. 

So the point is this: the passage that is before us today is about the victory that Jesus has won for us by defeating Satan and overturning his works and kingdom of darkness. I have five questions to ask of our text, and once we answer them, I think you will agree with me that this is what the passage is about – the victory that Christ has won for us. 

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When Did This Take Place? Immediately After Jesus’ Baptism And At The Very Start Of His Public Ministry

Firstly, I ask, when did this event take place? Answer: it happened immediately after Jesus’ baptism and at the very beginning of his public ministry. Luke 4:1 says, “And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil.” (Luke 4:1–2, ESV)

The words, “And Jesus…  returned from the Jordan” take us back to Luke 3:1-22 where we are told of the baptism of Jesus by John in the Jordan River. Jesus’ baptism did not signify the washing away of his sins, for he had none. But it did signify that he was the Messiah and the great High Priest of the New Covenant. Jesus’ baptism (at about the age of 30) marked the beginning of his public ministry as the LORD’s Messiah. And what was his first order of business? Immediately, he went out into the wilderness to fast and pray, and slap Satan around a bit, metaphorically speaking. He did this to set the tone for his entire ministry. He did this to make it clear that he came to bind Satan so that he might plunder his house, and eventually crush him under his feet. While it is true that his victory over the Evil One would be accomplished in full at the cross, we must see that it began here in the wilderness immediately after Jesus’ baptism and at the beginning of his earthy ministry. The entirety of Jesus’ ministry is to be viewed, therefore, as an overthrowing of Satan and his kingdom. 

The words ” full of the Holy Spirit” in Luke 4:1 also signal that this story is about Jesus’ first order of business as the Messiah. Messiah means anointed one. And Jesus was indeed anointed with the Holy Spirit at his baptism. Obviously, he was not anointed with the Spirit unto salvation, for Christ did not need to be saved. No, he was anointed as the Messiah, the Savior, and our great Prophet, Priest, and King. Again I say to you, his first order of business as God’s anointed one was to face off with Satan in the wilderness, to demonstrate his superiority, and to establish the fact that Satan’s defeat was near.  

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Where Is This Story Presented In Luke’s Gospel? Immediately After The Tracing Of Jesus’ Genealogy Back To Adam

Secondly, I ask, where is this story presented in Luke’s Gospel? Yes, it is after the story of Jesus’ baptism as recorded in Luke 3:1-22. But do not forget about the genealogy of Jesus which Luke placed after the story of Jesus’ baptism and right before his temptation in the wilderness. 

I made much of this in the sermon I preached on Luke 3:23-38. Luke placed the genealogy of Jesus here in this strange place (instead of at the beginning of his Gospel where you might expect it), and worked backward in history, starting with Jesus and ending with Adam. And he did this so that we would have Adam fresh in our minds as we consider the story of Jesus’ temptation. Why is this important? Well, Jesus is to be compared and contrasted with Adam.   

What do the two share in common? Many things. They are both human. They were both brought into the world by the direct creative activity of God. They were both appointed to function as federal heads or covenantal representatives of others (Adam represented humanity under the Covenant of Works, and Jesus represented all of God’s elect under the New Covenant which is the Covenant of Grace). Both men were called to obey God perfectly and perpetually if they were to obtain the reward promised to them by the Father. And lastly, both men were tested or tempted by Satan!  

Now, how do they differ? In many ways. Adam is a man and Jesus is a man. But Jesus is no mere man but is the eternal Son of God incarnate. He is the God-man. Adam was called to obey God’s moral law and the positive law to not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. But Jesus was called to do more. He was called to obey the moral law, all of the positive laws that were added and imposed upon the children of Abraham in the days of Moses, and he was called to faithfully suffer and die in the place of sinners and to endure God’s wrath for them so as to redeem them. My point is this: Jesus’ burden was much, much heavier than Adam’s. And this is illustrated by the fact that Adam was tempted in that garden paradise that God made in the beginning which was full of fruits and vegetables, water, and every pleasant thing. Everything was good, indeed, very good, in the world that Adam occupied. But Christ was tempted in the desert after having nothing to eat for 40 days. Christ was tempted in a fallen world. And his mission was not only to actively obey God’s law but to passively submit himself to suffering – suffering in the whole of life, and especially the suffering of the cross. All of this he would do for those given to him by the Father in eternity. Christ’s burden was much heavier than Adam’s. And yet Christ, “for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is [therefore now] seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2, ESV). And here we see the greatest difference of all between Adam and Jesus. Adam rebelled against God whereas Christ was perfectly obedient. The first Adam failed but the second Christ succeed. Adam, having been tempted lightly by Satan through his wife while surrounded by the paradise that God had made, quickly sinned. In contrast to this, Jesus was all alone in the desert wilderness, he was faint with hunger, he was assaulted by the Evil One himself, and yet he never wavered. Not here at the beginning of his public ministry. Not ever. 

The point is this: Luke positioned the genealogy of Jesus right before the account of his temptation in the wilderness and concluded the genealogy with Adam so that we might see Jesus as the second and greater Adam, who was “in every respect… tempted as we are, yet without sin…” (Hebrews 4:15, ESV).

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How Did Jesus End Up In The Wilderness? Jesus Was Led There By The Spirit 

Thirdly, I ask, how did Jesus end up in the wilderness? Was he lost? Did Satan lure him there? No! Luke 4:1 says that “Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit… was led by the Spirit in the wilderness” (Luke 4:1, ESV). The Spirit of God led him there. Why? To confront Satan on his home turf, to be tested. And to pass the test.

At this point, I think it would be good for us to make another connection. We have already made the obvious comparison between Jesus and Adam. But I think we must also see Jesus as the true and faithful Israel of God. 

In Hosea 11:1 God says, “When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son” (Hosea 11:1, ESV). This is obviously a reference to the exodus event when God led Israel out of Egyptian bondage. But Matthew quotes this Hosea passage in his gospel and says that it is ultimately about Jesus. Do you remember how Jesus was taken to Egypt after he was born to be sheltered there from  Harod? And then when his parents brought him out of Egypt and back to his hometown of Nazareth, Matthew said,  “This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, ‘Out of Egypt I called my son’” (Matthew 2:15, ESV). So then, Jesus is Israel. Israel was redeemed from Egypt and was made into a nation so that the Messiah would be brought into the world through them. Israel foreshadowed Jesus. And when Jesus came into this world to do the work that God gave him to do, he fulfilled all of the promises, prophesies, types, and shadows that were entrusted to Israel. 

I trust that you will remember this from our study of the book of Exodus. After Isarel was led out of Egypt by Moses, where did they go? They were led by the Spirit of  God in the glory cloud to the Red Sea. And after they were baptized into Moses by passing through the Red Sea (see 1 Corinthians 10:2), they were led by the Spirit of God, where? Out into the wilderness. And why were they led into the wilderness? To be tested there. And how many times were they tested? Well, they were tested continuously, but the book of Exodus highlights three instances. If you remember, they were tested at Marah (Exodus 15:22ff), in the wilderness of Sin (Exodus 16), and again at Rephidim (Exodus 17). Israel was tested, tested, tested. The tests had to do with the lack of water, food, and then water again. And what did Israel do in each instance? They grumbled, grumbled, grumbled against the Lord and put him to the test. And Lord was very displeased with them. 

I hope you can see that Jesus took a very similar path. Having passed through the waters of baptism at the Jordan, he was led by the Spirit out into the wilderness to be tested there. He was tested three times, just as Israel was, but he did not grumble and complain, lose faith, or deviate in the slightest from God’s will for him. No, Jesus was faithful. Adam and Isarel rebelled. But Jesus is the second and better Adam, the true and faithful Israel of God. He is the faithful Son of Abraham, through whom God has brought the blessings of salvation to the nations. 

Both of these stories – the story of Israel’s threefold failure in the wilderness and of Jesus’ threefold victory – are very important. They set the tone for and anticipate how things would go in the future. Old Covenant Israel’s entire existence would be marked by sin and unfaithfulness. But Jesus’ life would be marked by perfect and perpetual obedience. The message is quite clear. Neither Moses nor the covenant would mediate would provide salvation given the sins of the people. But Jesus and the Covenant of Grace that he mediates does provide salvation and the forgiveness of sins, for Christ was victorious.    

How did Jesus end up in the wilderness? He was led there by the Spirit to be tempted and tested by the Evil One, and to win the victory.

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What Happened? Jesus Was Tempted By Satan Three Times And Was Victorious

Fourthly, let us consider what happened.

Luke 4:2 tells us that Jesus was in the wilderness “for forty days”. This corresponds to the 40 years that Israel would wander the wilderness, by the way. And then Luke says, “being tempted by the devil.” I think we are to take this to mean that Jesus was tempted continuously during that. And then we read, “And he ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, he was hungry” (Luke 4:2, ESV). So Jesus was fasting and he was praying, presumably in preparation for all that awaited him, including his crucifixion about three years later.   

In verse 3 we read, “The devil said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread’” (Luke 4:3, ESV). Here we have the first of three particular temptations. 

Who is the devil? He is the chief of the fallen angels. He has many names. Devil means “slanderer”, Satan means “accuser”, and Lucifer means “shining one”. He is the leader of the heavenly hosts that rebelled against God in the heavenly realm in the beginning, and he is also the one who tempted Eve, who then brought the temptation to Adam. Here he is tempting Jesus. 

Notice carefully that the devil knew who Jesus was. “If you are the Son of God”, he said, then “command this stone to become bread.” Satan knew that Jesus was the person of the eternal Son of God who took on flesh. But he tempted him nonetheless. He had no other choice. God brought the fight to him, remember? God the Son intruded into Satan’s domain through the incarnation. He entered his house, if you will, by taking to himself a true human nature – body, and soul. And when the time was right – when it was time for his public ministry to begin – Jesus took the fight to Satan. He went out into the wilderness to face him. And so the devil pushed by in the only way he could. He tempted Jesus to deviate from his course. As he did with Adam long before, so he did with Jesus here. 

“If you are the Son of God…” (he knew that he was) “command this stone to become bread.” So then, just as Israel was tested regarding the lack of food in the wilderness, so too Jesus was tested regarding the lack of food. I suppose we should also notice that Adam’s test had to do with eating too. 

So what was this temptation about? Satan was essentially tempting Jesus to use his divine power to serve the desires of the flesh he had assumed rather than to set his desires to the side and to serve God and those that he came to save. Jesus was hungry. And by the way, that is a human thing, not a divine thing. And so Satan tempted Jesus through his human nature to use his divine power to alleviate his suffering and to serve himself. 

Here is Jesus’ reply: “It is written…” So here we have something incredible going on. The eternal Word of God is about to quote the written Word of God, which he himself inspired. “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone’” (Luke 4:4, ESV). 

This is a citation from Deuteronomy 8:3. I’d like to read that text to you now starting in verse 1 of Deuteronomy 8 and going all the way through verse 10. As I read it, I think you will grow more convinced about the connections we have made between Israel in the wilderness and Jesus in the wilderness. In fact, I would ask you to hear this text, not only as it was given originally to Israel, but as if it were ultimately about Jesus and his work. In Deuteronomy 8:1 Moses speaks to Israel after 40 years of testing in the wilderness, saying, 

“The whole commandment that I command you today you shall be careful to do, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land that the LORD swore to give to your fathers. And you shall remember the whole way that the LORD your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not. And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. Your clothing did not wear out on you and your foot did not swell these forty years. Know then in your heart that, as a man disciplines his son, the LORD your God disciplines you. So you shall keep the commandments of the LORD your God by walking in his ways and by fearing him. For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, flowing out in the valleys and hills, a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey, a land in which you will eat bread without scarcity, in which you will lack nothing, a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper. And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the LORD your God for the good land he has given you” (Deuteronomy 8:1–10, ESV).

I cannot take the time to unpack all of the typology that is found here. If you have been at Emmaus for some time, and if you have been paying attention to the way in which we interpret the Scriptures, then I think you will see it. In brief, what God said to Israel here regarding the land of Cannan was in a greater sense about Jesus and the New Heavens and earth which he would earn through his obedience. The thing to notice is this: Israel learned through many failures in the wilderness that “man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.” Christ learned this (according to his human nature) but without any failures. And so when the devil tempted him to use his divine power to serve the flesh he had assumed by turning a stone into bread to satiate his hunger, he simply replied, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone’” (Luke 4:4, ESV). 

In Luke 4:5 we are told of the second pronounced temptation: ​​“And the devil took [Jesus] up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, and said to him, ‘To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will. If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours” (Luke 4:5–7, ESV). 

Here the devil tempted Jesus to take a shortcut. The devil knew who Jesus was – he was the Son of God incarnate – and he knew what Jesus came to do. He came to accomplish the salvation of those given to him by the Father, to kick Satan off of his illegitimate throne, and to sit down on that throne himself, as the King of kings and Lord of lords, with all authority in heaven and earth being given to him. Satan knew that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of God incarnate, and that this was his mission. 

How did Satan know this? Because it was revealed clearly by God in the Holy Scriptures. For example, Satan was (and is very) much aware of the vision shown to the prophet Daniel concerning the coming Messiah, as recorded in Daniel 7:13ff. There Daniel says, “I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed” (Daniel 7:13–14, ESV). Who is this son of man? He is Jesus, the Son of God incarnate. Satan knew it. He knew that Jesus came to defeat him, to kick him off of his throne, to expel him, to bind him, and to sit down upon that throne that is rightfully his. 

What do I mean when I say that Satan once occupied a throne illegitimately? What throne am I referring to? Well, I’m referring to the throne of this earth. You see, God offered that throne to Adam in the garden. Adam was to rule on earth as a king under God’s authority. He was to expand God’s kingdom. He was to build God’s temple. He was to fill the earth with worshippers of God. And he was to keep, or protect, God’s temple-kingdom from all intruders. When Adam listened to the voice of the Serpent (through the voice of his wife, who was deceived), instead of the voice of God, the devil was permitted to sit down on the throne that was offered to Adam, and he ruled the nations instead.

There are many texts that speak of this and hint at this. Perhaps none is more clear than John 12:31.  There Jesus speaks not long before his death, burial, and resurrection, saying, “Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself” (John 12:31–32, ESV). Who is the “ruler of this world” of whom Christ spoke? The devil. Christ came to cast that usurper out and throw him down from his throne. Jesus also speaks of this aspect of his mission when, in Matthew 12:19, he says, “Or how can someone enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house” (Matthew 12:29, ESV). In other words, Jesus came to bind Satan and to plunder his house. By the way, those who are pre-millennialists would do well to notice that this binding has already taken place. It is not future to us and before some strange and literal 1,000-year reign. No, Christ bound Satan at his first coming and now sits on his eternal throne. He sits on his throne with all authority in heaven and on earth having been given to him. He rules and reigns throughout the church age, or if you prefer, throughout these last days, of which the 1,000 years of Revelation 20 is a symbol (you are not surprised to find numbers in the book of Revelation used in a symbolic way are you?). Christ sat down on the throne of his kingdom when he ascended. He will sit on this throne for all eternity. This is not a future hope only, it is a present reality. And our pre-millennialist brothers and sisters would also do well to notice the way in which Satan is said to be bound in Revelation 20 – not completely –  but “so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while” (Revelation 20:3, ESV).

What does all of this have to do with the second temptation that Satan brought to Jesus? Well, Satan understood that this was Jesus’ mission, he knew that his time was short, and so, in a last-ditch effort, he tempted Jesus to take a shortcut to this throne, and to avoid all the suffering. Hear it again: “The devil took [Jesus] up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, and said to him, ‘To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will. If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours” (Luke 4:5–7, ESV).  

As is often the case with the lies of Satan, there is a mixture of truth and falsehood. Is it true that the authority and glory of the nations had been delivered to Satan for a time? Yes. But is it true that he had the authority to give it to whomever he willed, and that he would give it to Christ if only Christ would worship him? Certainly not. 

And so “Jesus answered him, ‘It is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve’” (Luke 4:8, ESV). This is a citation of Deuteronomy 6:13. Hear it now, along with the surrounding context. Moses spoke to Israel, saying, “And when the LORD your God brings you into the land that he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give you—with great and good cities that you did not build, and houses full of all good things that you did not fill, and cisterns that you did not dig, and vineyards and olive trees that you did not plant—and when you eat and are full, then take care lest you forget the LORD, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. It is the LORD your God you shall fear. Him you shall serve and by his name you shall swear. You shall not go after other gods, the gods of the peoples who are around you— for the LORD your God in your midst is a jealous God—lest the anger of the LORD your God be kindled against you, and he destroy you from off the face of the earth” (Deuteronomy 6:10–15, ESV).

In Luke 4:9-11 we are told of the third pronounced temptation of Jesus. There we read, “And he took him to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, [and now Satan quotes Scripture, saying] for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you, to guard you,’ and “ ‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone’” (Luke 4:9–11, ESV).

You may be wondering, what Scripture text did the devil quote? Well, he quoted Psalm 91:11-12. Now this is fascinating. Psalm 91 is all about Jesus the Messiah. In brief, verses 1-12 talk about how God will preserve and protect the Messiah as the Messiah looks to God for refuge. Verses 11 and 12 are at the heart of the Psalm, and they say, “For he [God] will command his angels concerning you [Messiah] to guard you in all your ways. On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone” (Psalm 91:11–12, ESV). It is interesting that the devil quoted these verses at the midpoint of this Psalm. You see, the devil was tempting Jesus to claim this promise of protection, but to go no further. Listen to the very next verse, verse 13, of Psalm 91. “You will tread on the lion and the adder; the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot” (Psalm 91:13, ESV). That should remind you of Genesis 3:15, brothers and sisters. And as the Psalm goes on there is more talk of the Messiah, not only being protected from harm, but being rescued out of it. Hear the rest of the Psalm: “Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, because he knows my name. When he calls to me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation” (Psalm 91:14–16, ESV). You see, in Psalm 91 God did not only promise to keep the Messiah from trouble, but to rescue him out of it. And it would be through trouble, or perhaps we could say, through suffering, that the Messiah would crush the head of the serpent and see the salvation of God. I think this is what is going on here. Satan was again tempting Jesus to take a shortcut. To skip the suffering. To run to God for refuge from suffering. But a proper interpretation of Psalm 91 reveals that the Messiah would see the salvation of God and defeat the serpent only through suffering – the suffering of the cross leading to death – and being delivered out of it. 

And so “Jesus answered him, ‘It is said, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test’” (Luke 4:12, ESV). This is a citation of Deuteronomy 6:16 which says, “You shall not put the LORD your God to the test, as you tested him at Massah. You shall diligently keep the commandments of the LORD your God, and his testimonies and his statutes, which he has commanded you. And you shall do what is right and good in the sight of the LORD, that it may go well with you, and that you may go in and take possession of the good land that the LORD swore to give to your fathers by thrusting out all your enemies from before you, as the LORD has promised” (Deuteronomy 6:16–19, ESV).

Brothers and sisters, the land promised to Isarel was Cannan, and the enemies were the Canaanites. Do you see, though, that the land promised to the Messiah was not Cannan but the whole earth to be renewed at the consummation? And the enemy to be driven out was the devil himself and all who belong to him. Jesus could not simply run to the Lord for refuge. No, he had to trust the Lord to rescue him from suffering. And it would be through suffering that he would trample the serpent underfoot. 

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Why Did This Happen? So That Jesus Would Perfectly Obey God And Defeat The Devil

The last question that I have is this (and with this, we will close): Why did this happen? Answer: So that Jesus would perfectly obey God and defeat the devil. True, the victory would be won decisively at the cross, but it began here. Christ was not only victorious at the cross and through his suffering, but in the whole of life through his perfect and perpetual obedience to the Father. 

Brothers and sisters, how can I convince you that before you look to Jesus as your example, you must look to him as your victorious Savior and conquering King? 

We are saved from our sins and given eternal life, brothers and sisters, not by imitating Jesus, but by trusting in him. And only after we trust in him, by God’s grace, can we then imitate him, by God’s grace. 

Do you see it? Do you see the difference?

Sometimes I wonder how people can sit in church their whole life, listen to sermon after sermon, and yet not be saved. We know that it happens. The scriptures tell us that there is a mixture in the visible church. There are goats intermixed with sheep, and weeds intermixed with the wheat. But how can this be? I think one reason is this, they have looked to Jesus as a moral example, but not as a victorious Savior. “What would Jesus do?”, they ask. And as good as that question is, it is not the gospel. The gospel is not found in the question, “What would Jesus do?”, but in the question, “What has Jesus done?” The answer is that he live a life of perfect obedience for sinners, he died in the place of sinners, and he rose on the third day for sinners, so that all who believe are clothed in his righteousness, have their sins washed away, and live forevermore with the hope of life everlasting. 

Should you imitate Jesus in his victory over temptation? Yes, you should. But it is far more important that you trust in the work that he accomplished, for he has won the victory over sin, Satan, his dark kingdom, and death itself. To be saved from these things, you must be found in Christ, united to him by faith. 

Posted in Sermons Joe Anady Luke 4:1-13
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Baptist Catechism 87

Q. 87. Is any man able perfectly to keep the commandments of God?

A. No mere man, since the fall, is able in this life, perfectly to keep the commandments of God, but daily break them in thought, word, or deed. (Eccles. 7:20; Gen. 6:5; Gen. 8:21; 1 John 1:8; James 3:8; James 3:2; Rom. 3:23)

Scripture Reading: 1 John 1:5–10

“This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.” (1 John 1:5–10, ESV)

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Please excuse any typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church but without the benefit of proofreading.

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Did you know that we spent 17 weeks considering God’s moral law? 

First, we learned that God’s moral law was written on the heart of man at the time of creation. 

Next, we learned that the Ten Commandments are a summary of God’s moral law.   

After that, we learned that the sum of the Ten Commandments is to “love the Lord our God, with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our strength, and with all our mind; and our neighbor as ourselves.”

And then we proceeded to consider each one of the Ten Commandments, what they require and what they forbid. 

As we progressed through our study it became clear that the first four commandments have to do with our relationship to God. What are the first four commandments?

[SLIDE]

1. You shall have no other gods before me. 
2. You shall not make for yourself a carved image.
3. You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.  
4. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 

The first four commandments have to do with our relationship to God, and the last six have to do with our relationship with our fellow man. What are commandments five through ten?    

[SLIDE]

5. Honor your father and mother. 
6. You shall not murder.
7. You shall not commit adultery.
8. You shall not steal. 
9. You shall not bear false witness.
10. You shall not covet. 

And where are these Ten Commandments found? Two places: Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5.

It is so very important for us to know these Ten Commandments, brothers and sisters. 

Yes, there are some things said in these Ten Commandments that were unique to Old Covenant Israel. 

One, Israel was to rest and worship on the seventh day. We are to honor the Sabbath day on the first day of the week because Christ is risen. The abiding moral law is that one day in seven is to be set apart as holy to the Lord. But the day itself is ceremonial and symbolic. A Sabbath keeping remains for the people of God, but the day has changed.

Two, what is said after the second commandment regarding God “visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments”, has also changed. In Old Covenant Israel physical descent meant a lot. To descend from Abraham physically meant that you were a part of the Old Covenant. Men and women were born into the Old Covenant, therefore. And this Covenant has sanctions attached to it. If the people obeyed God they would be blessed in the land. If they disobeyed God, they would be cursed and vomited out of the land. And because of this, the fathers would sin and their children would pay the price. But it is not so under the New Covenant. No one is born into the New Covenant. To partake of the New Covenant one must be born again and have faith in the Messiah. This generational principle has melted away, therefore. Jeremiah the prophet spoke of this change ahead of time when he spoke of the newness of the New Covenant. In Jeremiah 31:29 we read, “In those days they shall no longer say: ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.’ But everyone shall die for his own iniquity. Each man who eats sour grapes, his teeth shall be set on edge” (Jeremiah 31:29–30, ESV).

Three, related to this, the command to “Honor your father and your mother” is followed by a promise –  “that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you” (Exodus 20:12, ESV). A particular land was given to Old Covenant Israel, and they would be blessed in it if they kept God’s law. Under the New Covenant, no particular land is given to God’s people. We are sojourners, exiles, and strangers on the earth. And so when Paul commands children to honor their parents under the New Covenant, he says, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. ‘Honor your father and mother,’ which is the first commandment with promise: ‘that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth’” (Ephesians 6:1–3, NKJV). Notice, Paul does not say, “that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you”, but rather, “that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth”. The principle of enjoying a blessed life remains but the particular circumstances change with the transition from the Old Covenant to the New.  

So whenever we read the Ten Commandments we should remember that they are indeed a summary of God’s moral law (which does not change), but there are these three things mentioned which were unique to Old Covenant Israel: The seventh-day Sabbath (which corresponded to the Covenant of Works), the principle of national guilt, and the promises of blessing in the land of Cannan. The moral law of God will never change. It is indeed summarily comprehended in the Ten Commandments. But there are some things stated in the Ten Commandments that were unique to Old Covenant Israel. 

God’s law is good. Amen?

But do not forget what Paul wrote to Timothy: “Now we know that the law is good, if one uses it lawfully…” (1 Timothy 1:8, ESV). 

That is a big “if”.  

Whenever we handle God’s law we must remember that it is possible to misuse it. The law is good, but it is easy to misuse. And when it is misused, that which is good becomes bad. 

And how is God’s law misused? It is misused when men and women think that they can stand before God as righteous by the keeping of it. 

This error is so very common. All of the religions of the world with the exception of Orthodox Christianity make this error. They believe that they will stand right before God on the last day because of their good works and obedience.  Many who are non-religious make the same mistake too. They reason like this: If God exists then he will accept me because I am good. But this is a grave mistake. Those who think this way have not understood what God requires of them. They think they are righteous but they are not.  

So common is this error that Paul Apostle calls it the stumbling stone. In Romans 9:30 he says, “What shall we say, then? That Gentiles who did not pursue righteousness have attained it, that is, a righteousness that is by faith; but that Israel who pursued a law that would lead to righteousness did not succeed in reaching that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as if it were based on works. They have stumbled over the stumbling stone…” (Romans 9:30–32, ESV). What is the stumbling stone? It is the false notion that men and women may stand before God right by keeping the law. The scriptures say otherwise. The scriptures teach us (from Genesis 3 onward) that the only way to be right before God is by the grace of God and through faith in the Savior that God has provided.

As we studied the Ten Commandments I tried to remind you of this over and over again. God’s law is good but be very careful not to misuse it! 

God’s law is good because it is used by the LORD to restrain evil in the world today. 

God’s law is good because it functions as a light to the feet of the faithful as they sojourn in this world. It shows us the way that we should go, it makes us wise and is used by the Lord to sanctify us further in Christ Jesus.

And God’s law is good because the Spirit of God uses it to convict us of sin and to cause us to flee to Jesus for refuge from the wrath of God which our sins deserve. God used the law to drive us to Christ initially, and God uses his law to drive us to Christ continuously. 

1 John 1 warns us of the stumbling stone, doesn’t it? “ If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” And John does also exhort us to run to Jesus for refuge, saying, “ If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:8-9, ESV)

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Baptist Catechism 87

Notice that our catechism also guards us against trusting in our own righteousness. Immediately after a long consideration of God’s moral law, our catechism asks, “Is any man able perfectly to keep the commandments of God?” The answer is very helpful. “No mere man, since the fall, is able in this life, perfectly to keep the commandments of God, but daily break them in thought, word, or deed.”

Notice a few things, briefly:

One, notice the word “mere”. “No mere man… is able in this life, perfectly to keep the commandments of God…” Why the word “mere”? It is to leave room for the obvious exception of Jesus Christ. He was a man, and he did perfectly keep the commandments of God. But he was no mere man, was he?

Two, notice the phrase “since the fall.” Why this phrase? It is a matter of precision. Adam before the fall was able to perfectly keep the commandments of God, but he was also able to sin, and this he did. Now the children of Adam are born in sin and with corrupt natures. We sin because we are in Adam. 

Three, notice that the catechism does not say that we are not able to keep the commandments of God at all. That is not true. Those who are in Christ do in fact have the ability to obey God from the heart, for they have been renewed. Corruptions remain though. And so it is true. “No mere man, since the fall, is able in this life, perfectly to keep the commandments of God…” 

Four, notice the phrase “in this life”. With these three little words, we are reminded of the life to come and the fact that in the life to come we will no longer be able to sin if we are in Christ Jesus. Lord Jesus, come quickly!

Fifth, and lastly, notice the phrase “but daily break them in thought, word, or deed.” If we understand what God’s law requires of us and what it forbids then we will confess that not a day passes wherein we do not violate God’s holy law in some way. It may be that we violate it in deed, in word, or in thought. Certainly, all will confess that we daily fail to love God as he deserves, and also our neighbor as yourself. 

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Conclusion 

Aren’t you grateful for Jesus Christ? 

Isn’t God’s grace truly marvelous?

Yes, our appreciation for the love of God in Christ Jesus will grow as we consider the gospel. But the gospel can only be truly understood and appreciated when we see it against the dark backdrop of God’s law and our violation of it in thought, word, and deed. 

Posted in Sermons Joe Anady
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Discussion Questions For At Home Or In Gospel Community Groups

• What is the tenth commandment?
• Covetousness is a heart sin, but it produces many sinful words and deeds. In fact, it leads people to violate commandments 1-9. Discuss. 
• What is the remedy to covetousness?
• Have you kept this law perfectly? What does that make you?
• What doth God require of us, that we may escape His wrath and curse, due to us for sin? (Baptist Catechism 90)

Posted in Study Guides Joe Anady
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Questions For Discussion At Home Or In Gospel Community Groups

• Why did Luke position the genealogy of Jesus after the story of his baptism and before the account of his temptation in the wilderness by Satan? What effect does this have on the narrative of the Gospel of Luke?
• Why did Luke order his genealogy so that it concludes with mention of “Adam, the Son of God”?
• How might we explain the differences between Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus and Luke’s, especially in the section from King David to Jesus? How can we explain the apparent discrepancies, and why do Matthew and Luke take these different approaches?
• Why does Luke take us all the way back to Adam (instead of to Abraham, as in Matthew’s gospel)?
• Why should Luke’s genealogy encourage you? How should it help you to better understand who Jesus is and what he came to accomplish?

Posted in Study Guides Joe Anady
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