Old Testament Reading: Isaiah 45:14–25

“Thus says the LORD: ‘The wealth of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush, and the Sabeans, men of stature, shall come over to you and be yours; they shall follow you; they shall come over in chains and bow down to you. They will plead with you, saying: ‘Surely God is in you, and there is no other, no god besides him.’ Truly, you are a God who hides himself, O God of Israel, the Savior. All of them are put to shame and confounded; the makers of idols go in confusion together. But Israel is saved by the LORD with everlasting salvation; you shall not be put to shame or confounded to all eternity. For thus says the LORD, who created the heavens (he is God!), who formed the earth and made it (he established it; he did not create it empty, he formed it to be inhabited!): ‘I am the LORD, and there is no other. I did not speak in secret, in a land of darkness; I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, ‘Seek me in vain.’ I the LORD speak the truth; I declare what is right. Assemble yourselves and come; draw near together, you survivors of the nations! They have no knowledge who carry about their wooden idols, and keep on praying to a god that cannot save. Declare and present your case; let them take counsel together! Who told this long ago? Who declared it of old? Was it not I, the LORD? And there is no other god besides me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none besides me. Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other. By myself I have sworn; from my mouth has gone out in righteousness a word that shall not return: ‘To me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear allegiance.’ Only in the LORD, it shall be said of me, are righteousness and strength; to him shall come and be ashamed all who were incensed against him. In the LORD all the offspring of Israel shall be justified and shall glory.’” (Isaiah 45:14–25)

New Testament Reading: Luke 17:20-37

“Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, ‘The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.’ And he said to the disciples, ‘The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. And they will say to you, ‘Look, there!’ or ‘Look, here!’ Do not go out or follow them. For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all— so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed. On that day, let the one who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away, and likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back. Remember Lot’s wife. Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it. I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left. There will be two women grinding together. One will be taken and the other left.’ And they said to him, ‘Where, Lord?’ He said to them, ‘Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.’” (Luke 17:20–37)

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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

Last Sunday was the final Sunday of the year 2024. I think it was fitting that we arrived at Luke 17:11-19 last Sunday. That text is about gratitude or thankfulness. It was good to be exhorted by that passage of Holy Scripture to be grateful to God and Christ for the cleansing of our sins and the salvation that Christ has worked for us. The Christian life is to be characterized by gratitude and thankfulness. And the one who is united to Christ by faith has every good reason to be thankful. Not only has God blessed us with good things to enjoy in this life, but in Christ, we are blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places (Ephesians 1:3). Indeed, “According to [God the Father’s] great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for [us], who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this [we] rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, [we] have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Chris” (1 Peter 1:3–7). The story about the Samaritan man who was cleansed by Jesus of his leprosy returning to Jesus to fall on his face to give him thanks and to give God praise (see Luke 17:16) is a marvelous picture of the Christian life. Sinners who have been cleansed by Christ and saved from their miserable condition ought to fall at Jesus’ feet to give him thanks and praise. This we should do daily in prayer. And this we should do Lord’s Day by Lord’s Day as we assemble in Jesus’ name to worship the Triune God and the Christ he has sent. 

But dear friends, I trust you know that the Christian life involves far more than private prayer and corporate worship. It is in private prayer and corporate worship that our gratitude is expressed in a most pronounced way. However, Christians are not called to remain bowed at the feet of Jesus in private prayer forever. And neither is corporate worship to be unending. No, Christians must rise up from private prayer and go on their way.  Corporate worship must have a beginning and an end. And do not forget that the Lord’s Day is but one in seven. The Lord’s Day Sabbath is a holy day. It is a day to rest from common work and recreation and to devote oneself to the pubic and private worship of God. But six common days flow out of the one holy day. Brothers and sisters, Christ is to be thanked and God is to be praised on the common days too! Christ is to be honored as King on Monday through Saturday as much as he is honored as King on Sunday. Our activities and our focus are different, but our purpose does not change. We are to live for the glory, honor, and praise of God and Christ each and every day of our existence. Notice that the previous passage concluded with Jesus commanding the leper he healed who had returned to him to give him thanks and praise to rise and to go his way assuring him that his faith had made him well (Luke 17:19). Clearly, Christ expected this man to go on walking by faith and to continue to express his gratitude for the grace of God shown to him by living a life in obedience to Christ as King. 

On the last Sunday of 2024, I encouraged you to live a life of gratitude and thankfulness before God and Christ. Here on this first Sunday of 2025, I wish to exhort you to express your gratitude and thankfulness to God and Christ, not only in private prayer or in corporate worship but in every moment of every day. More than this, I wish to exhort you to express your gratitude to God and Christ, not in word only, but in thought, word, and deed. Stated differently, our gratitude to Christ is not merely to be expressed by falling at the feet of Jesus for a moment, but also in our rising and going on our way. Indeed, those who are truly aware of their natural guilt and the marvelous grace shown to them in Christ Jesus will express their gratitude by honoring Christ as King, not occasionally but always and not in word only but in thought, word, and deed.  

It is interesting that Luke, after telling the story of the Samaritan leper who was cleansed by Christ falling on his face at the feet of Jesus to give him thanks and to give God praise, inserts a story regarding the coming of the kingdom of God. The leper who cleansed bowed at Jesus’ feet to honor him as King, and now Luke directs our attention to the arrival of God’s Kingdom.

As you know, Jesus claimed to be the Lord’s Messiah who was promised from ancient times. Those who knew the Scriptures expected that when the Messiah arrived he would bring with him God’s Kingdom, that is, the everlasting kingdom that God promised to David in the covenant he made with him, saying in 2 Samuel 7:12-13, “When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.” It is no surprise, therefore, that with all of this talk about Jesus being the Messiah (the son of David), there was also a lot of talk about the arrival of God’s kingdom, for the two things go together (the Messiah would bring with him the God’s eternal kingdom). This story about the cleansed leper falling at Jesus’ feet to honor him as King provides a wonderful opportunity to consider the arrival of God’s eternal kingdom, and that is where Luke takes us in his gospel.

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When Will The Kingdom Of God Come?

In Luke 17:20 we are told that some Pharisees asked Jesus “when the kingdom of God would come.” Notice, this is a question about timing. When will the kingdom of God come? That is the question. The answer that Jesus provides is very interesting. He does not simply say now, nor does he simply say later. His answer indicates that the Kingdom of God was already present in the days of his earthly ministry and that it was also, in some respects, still to come. The Scriptures are consistent on this theme. When Christ was born into the world and when he began his earthly ministry the kingdom of God, which is also called the kingdom of heaven, was said to be at hand (see Luke 1:33, 4:43; Matthew 3:2, 4:7). At the same time, the Scriptures indicate that the kingdom of God is not yet here in fullness (see Matthew 26:29). Theologians will sometimes use the phrase, “already but not yet” to describe this situation. The kingdom of God is already here but not yet in fullness. If you have been listening to my preaching and teaching for any amount of time you have probably heard me say that the kingdom of God has been inaugurated (begun) but we await its consummation (completion). This is what Christ describes in the text that is open before us today. 

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The Kingdom Of God Arrived With Christ The King

Look with me at verses 20-21. “Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, ‘The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you’” (Luke 17:20–21).

So, what was the answer Jesus gave to the question, when will the kingdom of God come? In brief, he said, it is here now! It is right in front of your faces! It is in the midst of you! 

This would have been very puzzling to the Pharisees, many of whom were expecting the kingdom of God to look like kingdoms of this world, for they did not see anything like an earthly kingdom in their midst. What do the kingdoms of this world look like? They are led by dignified kings who rule with military power, who have great wealth, who dwell in palaces, with servants all around. The Pharisees did not see anything like this when they looked out upon Jesus and his disciples. And so, before he could answer their question about the timing of the arrival of the kingdom of God, he first had to teach them about its nature. He spoke to them, saying, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’” In other words, Christ warned the Pharisees not to expect the kingdom of God to look like the kingdoms of this world when it comes. If they expected the kingdom of God to be ushered in by a Messiah who would conquer and rule with the sword, who would overthrow Rome militarily, and take up residence in a great palace within the walled city of Jerusalem, etc.. then they would surely miss the arrival of the kingdom of God and its King. 

“The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed”, Christ said. It is a kingdom of a different kind. Or to borrow language from the gospel of John, it is a kingdom “not of this world.” It is in John 18:36 that we hear Christ say, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world” (John 18:36).

What then did Christ mean when he spoke to the Pharisees, saying, “For behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you”? 

One, by these words he clearly answered their question about the timing of the arrival of the kingdom of God. The Pharisees asked, when will the kingdom of God come? Jesus answered, it is already here!

Two, by these words Christ claimed to be the King of God’s everlasting kingdom. His disciples considered him to be the Messiah, the son promised to Abraham (see Genesis 12:1-3; 17:6; 18:18; Galatians 3:14), and the son promised King David (see 2  Samuel 7:12-13). When Christ said, “For behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you”, he was claiming to be the King of God’s kingdom who was promised long ago. When will the kingdom of God come? It’s as if Christ said, you’re looking at the King! And with the King comes the kingdom!  

Three, when Christ spoke to the Pharisees, saying, “For behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you”, he meant that his disciples, who were standing all around him, were the citizens of God’s everlasting kingdom. Who are the citizens of God’s eternal kingdom? They are those who have faith in Christ and honor him as King! 

The question of the Pharisees was, when will the kingdom of God come? If I were to paraphrase Jesus’ answer I would say this: The kingdom of God is here. It’s right in front of you and in the midst of you. You’d see it if you knew what to look for! You can’t see it because you expect it to look like the kingdoms of this world. But God’s kingdom – the kingdom of the Messiah – is not of this world. It is heavenly and spiritual. It is without palaces and borders. It does not advance by military might. Instead, it has arrived in a humble and lowly estate, and hardly anyone notices. It advances through the preaching of the gospel of the kingdom of Christ and by the working of the Spirit. Citizenship in this kingdom does not come by way of birth but new birth. It is all who place their faith in Christ the King and confess him to be Lord who are made partakers of this kingdom that will have no end.

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The Kingdom Of God Will Be Consummated When Christ Returns

When will the kingdom of God come? It arrived at the time of Christ’s first coming. But what Christ said next indicated that his kingdom would not immediately be consummated and that times of great difficulty would soon arise. 

Look with me at verse 22. There we read, “And he said to the disciples…” Notice that this teaching was directed towards his disciples and not the Pharisees. “And he said to the disciples, ‘The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it’” (Luke 17:22). 

As you probably know, the title “Son of Man” is a title for the Messiah. It comes from Daniel 7. Jesus would often refer to himself as the “Son of Man” indicating that he was the fulfillment of the prophecies of Daniel 7. And when Christ spoke to his disciples saying, “The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man”, he meant that in the future his disciples would long to be in his presence bodily and on earth. For the disciples who walked with Jesus in the days of his earthly ministry, this meant that they would look back upon the days of his earthly ministry with fondness and that they would long for his bodily return. For the disciples of Christ, like you and me, who did not witness his life, death, and resurrection, this means that we will long for his bodily return. Again I say, to “desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man” is to desire to be in the presence of Christ bodily and on earth. When Christ says, you will desire to see these days “and you will not see it” he hints at the days of tribulation that would soon come upon his disciples. 

As you may know, the early Christians were viciously persecuted by the Jews after Christ’s death, burial, resurrection, and ascension to the Father’s right hand. And as you may know, the Jewish nation was judged by God in the year 70 AD when the Romans besieged Jerusalem and leveled the temple in Jerusalem leaving only the foundation stones. The Christians living in Jerusalem also suffered greatly in those days. And as you may know, Christ warned that the entire time between his first coming and his second coming would be marked by trials and tribulations, famines and earthquakes, wars and rumors of wars (see Matthew 24:6; Mark 13:7). In addition to this, we are warned “that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power” (2 Timothy 3:1–5). 

It is no wonder that Christ spoke to his disciples saying, ‘The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it’” (Luke 17:22). Indeed, ever since the ascension of Jesus into heaven, Christians have been crying out saying, “Maranatha”, which means, “Our Lord, come!” 

In verses 23 and 24, Christ warns his disciples lest they be fooled by false teachers who claim that Christ has returned when, in fact, he has not. There we read, “And they will say to you, ‘Look, there!’ or ‘Look, here!’ Do not go out or follow them. For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day” (Luke 17:23–24). It’s as if Christ says, pay no attention to those who claim that I have returned for you will not need anyone to tell you. You’ll know. It will be obvious to all. 

So then, the first and second coming of Christ and the inauguration and consummation of Christ’s kingdom could not be more different in their appearance.    

When Christ first came to inaugurate his kingdom, the kingdom of God did not come in ways that could be observed. Christ the King and his kingdom were barely perceivable. The kings and kingdoms of this earth hardly took notice. But when Christ returns to consummate the kingdom of God, everyone will notice. He will not again enter into this world as a babe born to impoverished parents. He will not grow up in obscurity. He will not suffer at the hands of sinners or lay down his life to make atonement for sin. No, when Christ returns he will come “not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him” (Hebrews 9:28) and to judge the living and dead (see 2 Timothy 4:1; 1 Peter 4:5). He will not return in weakness or obscurity but in power and glory. As Revelation 1:7 says, “Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen” (Revelation 1:7).

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In Between The Inauguration And Consummation Of Christ’s Kingdom
Christ Must Suffer Many Things

I trust you can see that two answers were given by Christ to the question, when will the kingdom of God come? On the one hand, Christ taught that the kingdom of God was present at his first coming. Jesus is the King of God’s eternal kingdom. And with the King comes the kingdom. On the other hand, the kingdom of Christ will not be consummated until he returns. The question then becomes, what will life in this inaugurated kingdom of Christ be like until he returns to judge and save those who are eagerly waiting for him? The answer is found in verse 25: “But first [Christ] must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation” (Luke 17:25).

Clearly, this refers to the suffering Christ would soon endure on the cross and the rejection he would experience by the generation of his day. So the order is this. First, the Son of Man came into the world in a humble and lowly estate to suffer and die at the hands of sinners to make atonement for sin, to accomplish salvation, and to inaugurate God’s eternal kingdom. Only after this would Christ return in power and glory to save those who wait for him, to judge those who remain in their sin, and to bring the kingdom he inaugurated at his first coming to completion.   

Now I ask you, dear brothers and sisters. Where in this progression do you and I now live? We live in between the first and second comings of Christ. We live in the inaugurated kingdom of Christ while we await its consummation. We live in the last days. And in these last days the body of Christ, that is to say, the church is to expect suffering and rejection at the hands of every generation as the kingdom of Christ steadily advances in the world. 

What Christ says in verses 26 through 37 confirms this interpretation, but I have decided to leave those verses for next Sunday so that we might consider them carefully. 

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Conclusion

I’d like to conclude this sermon by offering some suggestions for application based upon the words of Christ, “the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”

The first point of application is about mindset. Are you mindful that the inaugurated kingdom of God is in the midst of us? Stated differently, as you think about the Christian faith in general and your personal faith in Christ in particular, do you think of it in the context of God’s kingdom?  If the answer is no, then it is time to change your thinking. Christ came to establish an eternal kingdom. Christ is the King of that kingdom. Those who are united to him by faith are its citizens. They are those who have Christ as Lord and King! This kingdom has laws. This kingdom has ethics. This kingdom has a culture. This kingdom has an aim or objective – the salvation and sanctification of God’s elect from every tongue, tribe, and nation,  the glory of Christ the King, and the glory of the Triune God. When Christ spoke to the Pharisees, saying, “the kingdom of God is in the midst of you”, he answered their question about the timing of its arrival – it is here now, Christ said! But Christ also instructed his disciples to think of the work he was doing in kingdom terms and to see the kingdom that was in their midst. Worldly men cannot see the kingdom because they are spiritually blind. But by God’s grace, through the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit and by the preaching of the word, we can see God’s kingdom (see John 3:3). With eyes of faith, we see Christ as King. With eyes of faith, we see that it is those who turn from their sins to place their faith in Christ who are its citizens. With eyes of faith, we see that this kingdom of Christ is inaugurated now and will one day be consummated, when Christ the King returns to judge and to make all things new.       

Secondly, once we learn to think about Christ and our faith in him in kingdom terms and grow in our ability to see Christ’s kingdom as a present reality that awaits future consummation, we must learn to live together according to the laws of this kingdom as revealed in the Holy Scriptures. Where does this eternal kingdom of God, which is invisible now, show itself in the world? It is manifest in local churches. When you look out upon a local church like this one, do you see the kingdom of God? Not in its fullness! There are many other citizens in Christ’s kingdom than these. And where is Christ the King? He is hidden from our sight as he sits enthroned at the right hand of God the Father in heaven. But the kingdom of Christ is made visible here in the local church and in every local church that assembles on the Lord’s Day in Jesus’ name throughout the world. Though we do not see him in the flesh, Christ is the King of his kingdom. He is Lord and King of his churches. He orders his churches and he governs his churches by his word and Sprirt. We have been thinking a lot about the order and government of Christ’s church with the help of chapter 26 of our confession in the second portion of our liturgy, and so I will not say more. The point I am here making is that we must be concerned to obey Christ the King and the laws of his kingdom corporately. If we wish to honor Christ the Kind and further his Kindom, we must be concerned to see his churches properly ordered and governed according to his word.     

Thirdly, we must not only see Christ and honor him as our corporate King, but as our personal King too. What is the confession we make at the beginning of the Christian life except, Christ is Lord or King? Brothers and sisters, if Christ is our Lord and King, he is to be honored as such all the days of our lives. He is to be honored as King on the holy day – the Lord’s Day – and on the common days too. He is to be honored as King at home, at work, at school, in the community, and in the church. He is to be honored as King in our thoughts, words, and deeds. We are to honor him as King not because we fear him, but out of gratitude for what he has done for us and the great salvation he has accomplished on our behalf. What a great King we have in Christ Jesus. As King he has convinces us, subdues us, draws, upholds, and delivers us, and we trust that he will also preserve us to bring us safely into his heavenly kingdom. May Christ be thanked, and may God be praised. 

Second London Confession 26.10

The work of pastors being constantly to attend the service of Christ, in his churches, in the ministry of the word and prayer, with watching for their souls, as they that must give an account to Him; it is incumbent on the churches to whom they minister, not only to give them all due respect, but also to communicate to them of all their good things according to their ability, so as they may have a comfortable supply, without being themselves entangled in secular affairs; and may also be capable of exercising hospitality towards others; and this is required by the law of nature, and by the express order of our Lord Jesus, who hath ordained that they that preach the Gospel should live of the Gospel. (Acts 6:4; Hebrews 13:17; 1 Timothy 5:17, 18; Galatians 6:6, 7; 2 Timothy 2:4; 1 Timothy 3:2; 1 Corinthians 9:6-14)

Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 9:1–14

“Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are not you my workmanship in the Lord? If to others I am not an apostle, at least I am to you, for you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord. This is my defense to those who would examine me. Do we not have the right to eat and drink? Do we not have the right to take along a believing wife, as do the other apostles and the brothers of the Lord and Cephas? Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no right to refrain from working for a living? Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard without eating any of its fruit? Or who tends a flock without getting some of the milk? Do I say these things on human authority? Does not the Law say the same? For it is written in the Law of Moses, ‘You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain.’ Is it for oxen that God is concerned? Does he not certainly speak for our sake? It was written for our sake, because the plowman should plow in hope and the thresher thresh in hope of sharing in the crop. If we have sown spiritual things among you, is it too much if we reap material things from you? If others share this rightful claim on you, do not we even more? Nevertheless, we have not made use of this right, but we endure anything rather than put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ. Do you not know that those who are employed in the temple service get their food from the temple, and those who serve at the altar share in the sacrificial offerings? In the same way, the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel.” (1 Corinthians 9:1–14)

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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.

Second London Confession 26.10

How does the Lord Jesus Christ, the head of the church, govern his churches? In Second London Confession (2LCF) 26.8 we confess that he governs his churches through officers, especially elders. And in 2LCF 26.9 we confess that officers are to be chosen by the members of the church and appointed (or ordained) by the elders of the church if there be any constituted therein. 2LCF 26.10 is about the honor that the members of the church owe to their pastors or elders.

Dr. James Renihan has noted that 

“The tenth paragraph is unusual in that it is apparently not based on any previous document and is thus unique to this Confession. At the same time, it should be recognized that it is simply a pastiche [imitation] of Scripture texts knit together to make an important point. As a result, the teaching is not novel but rather reflects the churches understanding of these texts of Scripture.” (Renihan, Baptist Symbolics Volume 2, 503)

The phrase, “The work of pastors being constantly to attend the service of Christ, in his churches, in the ministry of the word and prayer”, imitates Acts 6:4 where Peter, the Apostles and elder says, “But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word” (Acts 6:4). 

The phrase “ with watching for their souls, as they that must give an account to Him”, echos Hebrews 13:17, which says, “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you” (Hebrews 13:17).

The phrase, “it is incumbent on the churches to whom they minister, not only to give them all due respect”, is to remind us of 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13, which says, “We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work” (1 Thessalonians 5:12–13).

The phrase, “but also to communicate to them of all their good things according to their ability so as they may have a comfortable supply” brings to mind Galatians 6:6, which says, “Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches” (Galatians 6:6).

The phrase, “without being themselves entangled in secular affairs” is meant to remind us of 2 Timothy 2:4 which speaks of ministers, saying, “No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him” (2 Timothy 2:4).

When our confession says that ministers are to be supported to the degree that they “may also be capable of exercising hospitality towards others”, it is to remind us that showing hospitality is one of the qualifications that must be met to hold the office of elder or overseer – “given to hospitality”, says 1 Timothy 3:2.

When our confession says, “and this is required by the law of nature”, it is to remind us of the natural law arguments that Paul makes in 1 Corinthians 9:7: “Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard without eating any of its fruit? Or who tends a flock without getting some of the milk?” (1 Corinthians 9:7). 

Finally, the words “and by the express order of our Lord Jesus, who hath ordained that they that preach the Gospel should live of the Gospel” remind us of those places in the Holy Scriptures that explicitly teach that ministers must be supported financially. In 1 Corinthians 9:14, Paul the Apostle is very direct. There he says, “In the same way, the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel” (1 Corinthians 9:14). It is likely that Paul has Matthew 10:10 in mind, wherein Christ instructed his disciples saying, take “no bag for your journey, or two tunics or sandals or a staff, for the laborer deserves his food” (Matthew 10:10).

I think you would agree that this is a very powerful way to confess the truth that pastors must be supported financially. It is a powerful presentation of this truth because it is so deeply rooted in Scripture. 

One question we should ask is, why did the Particular Baptists believe it was necessary to add this statement to their confession when writing in the year 1677? Stated differently, why is no such statement found in the Westminster Confession of Faith (1646) or the Savoy Declaration or Platform of Polity (1658)? Dr James Renihan explains,    

“The issue was important in several ways. After the enforcement of the Act of Uniformity in August 1662, ejected ministers no longer received support from the tithe system of the Church of England. In many cases, this meant immediate poverty. As (illegal) congregations were gathered under numerous non-conformists, it was necessary to examine the Scriptures in order to implement a new system of pastoral provision. The baptistic congregationalists by and large did not face this problem, for the majority of them had not been part of the national church system. Two versions of 1LCF, 1644 and 1646, included an article asserting the necessity of congregational support for pastors.“

You and I are accustomed to the idea that local churches must support their ministers, but this was not the way that ministers were supported in the church of England. In those days when church and state were tightly linked and intertwined, ministers would be supported by the state church. Just as church and state were intertwined, so too were taxes and tithes. But our Particular Baptist forefathers were separatists and non-conformists. They did not benefit from the tithe system of the church of England. The members of these churches confessed that ministerial support was the responsibility of each local congregation. 2LCF 26.10 is written in such a way to make it very clear that this is precisely what the Scriptures teach.

2LCF 26.8 states the responsibility of pastors or elders. Elders are “appointed by Christ” and are
“to be chosen and set apart by the church (so called and gathered), for the peculiar administration of ordinances, and execution of power or duty, which [Chrtist] [e]ntrusts them with, or calls them to…”  2LCF 26.10 begins with a statement concerning the responsibility that pastors have to the members:  “The work of pastors being constantly to attend the service of Christ, in his churches, in the ministry of the word and prayer, with watching for their souls, as they that must give an account to Him…” But 2LCF26.10 concludes with a statement concerning the responsibility that members have to their pastors. 

What do the members of a particular church owe to their pastors? One word can sum it up: honor. Christians must show honor to their pastors and elders.

And the Scriptures teach that honor is to be shown to pastors in two ways. 

One, church members are to show honor to their pastors in the form of respect. 1 Thessalonians 5:12 has already been cited. There Paul speaks of pastors, elders, or overseers when he says, “We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work” (1 Thessalonians 5:12–13).

Two, church members are to show honor to their pastors in the form of financial compensation. In 1 Corinthians 9:14 Paul says, “In the same way, the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel” (1 Corinthians 9:14). 

It is in 1 Timothy 5:17-19 that Paul mentions these two forms of honor and places them side by side, saying, “Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, ‘You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,’ and, “The laborer deserves his wages.’ Do not admit a charge against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses” (1 Timothy 5:17–19). What is this double honor that Paul speaks of? Is it a double dose of honor in the form of respect? Is it a double dose of honor in the form of financial compensation? No, when Paul speaks of showing double honor to elders who rule well, and especially to those who labor (do the hard work of) preaching and teaching, he means that two kinds of honor are to be given – honor in the form of respect, and honor in the form of compensation. 

The context makes the meaning very clear. Paul shows that the first kind of honor he has in mind is honor in the form of compensation, when he says in verse 18, “For the Scripture says, ‘You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,’ and, ‘The laborer deserves his wages.’” And you can see that the second kind of honor is honor in the form of respect when, in verse 19 he says, “Do not admit a charge against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses.” Pastors will make enemies as they faithfully preach and teach the word and govern the church. Accusations against them are not to be received unless confirmed by two or three witnesses. 

Our confession clearly takes the view that double honor means honor in the form of respect and honor in the form of financial compensation when it says, “it is incumbent on the churches to whom they minister, not only to give them all due respect, but also to communicate to them of all their good things according to their ability…”

The phrase, “to communicate to them of all their good things according to their ability…” means that churches must share the good things of this life with their ministers according to the ability of the church members. If the church members are very poor, they will not be able to share very much. If the church members are well-supplied, their pastor should be well-supplied too. In brief, church members must be generous with their ministers to be sure they have what they need to live as they devote themselves to the work of the ministry. 

Our confession goes on to say three things about the level of compensation that should be given to ministers, ideally. 

One, our confession says that ministers should “have a comfortable supply.“ This means that, if possible, they should be freed from having to worry about how they will pay their bills or put food on the table. It would be very difficult for ministers to minister to the needs of others when their own needs are not met.

Two, our confession says that ministers should have a comfortable supply “without being themselves entangled in secular affairs…” This means that ministers should not have to do secular work on the side to make ends meet, and thus be distracted from the work of the ministry. Some might respond to this by saying, but Paul and Barnabus worked while they ministered! Yes, they did! But this is not the ideal set forth in Scripture for pastors ministering within settled and well-established churches. Those engaged in missions (church planting efforts) like Paul and Barnabus may need to work on the side while laboring to establish a church. Those ministering to poor congregations or in congregations that are not yet fully established might also need to work on the side. But as I have said, this is not the ideal. The ideal set forth in Scripture is that “those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel” (1 Corinthians 9:14). Do not forget, it was Paul the tentmaker who penned these words.  

Three, our confession says pastors should be supported to the degree that they are “capable of exercising hospitality towards others…” This means they should not be scraping by. The Scriptures teach that pastors must lead by example in showing hospitality (1 Timothy 3:2). Ideally, they should be compensated well enough so that they can manage the affairs of their household (1 Timothy 3:4) and have something to share (food and lodging) with those in need. 

Given the way that our modern economy works, one additional concern should be retirement. Ministers should be compensated to the degree that they will be able to retire from full-time ministry when the time comes for that transition to be made. 

One final question should be asked. Must all elders be financially compensated? I do not believe that is what the Scriptures or our confession teaches. 2LCF 26.10 seems to be about the financial support of those pastors who are devoted to what we would call full-time ministry. And 1 Timothy 5:17 does distinguish between elders who rule well and those who labor in preaching and teaching. It is the latter who are especially to be considered worthy of receiving double honor. 

Conclusion

The topic of giving has come up a lot lately. Brothers and sisters, one of the most fundamental responsibilities you have as a church member is to earn money by doing good and honest work and to give a portion of that money to God through the church so that your pastor or pastors are well-supplied and may devote themselves fully and without distraction to the hard and important work of the ministry.  

Indeed, we confess that “The work of pastors being constantly to attend the service of Christ, in his churches, in the ministry of the word and prayer, with watching for their souls, as they that must give an account to Him; it is incumbent on the churches to whom they minister, not only to give them all due respect, but also to communicate to them of all their good things according to their ability, so as they may have a comfortable supply, without being themselves entangled in secular affairs; and may also be capable of exercising hospitality towards others; and this is required by the law of nature, and by the express order of our Lord Jesus, who hath ordained that they that preach the Gospel should live of the Gospel.” (Acts 6:4; Hebrews 13:17; 1 Timothy 5:17, 18; Galatians 6:6, 7; 2 Timothy 2:4; 1 Timothy 3:2; 1 Corinthians 9:6-14)

Sermon
What Is Exalted Among Men Is An Abomination In The Sight Of God
Luke 16:14-18
Pastor Joe Anady

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Old Testament Reading: 1 Chronicles 28:1–10

“David assembled at Jerusalem all the officials of Israel, the officials of the tribes, the officers of the divisions that served the king, the commanders of thousands, the commanders of hundreds, the stewards of all the property and livestock of the king and his sons, together with the palace officials, the mighty men and all the seasoned warriors. Then King David rose to his feet and said: ‘Hear me, my brothers and my people. I had it in my heart to build a house of rest for the ark of the covenant of the LORD and for the footstool of our God, and I made preparations for building. But God said to me, ‘You may not build a house for my name, for you are a man of war and have shed blood.’ Yet the LORD God of Israel chose me from all my father’s house to be king over Israel forever. For he chose Judah as leader, and in the house of Judah my father’s house, and among my father’s sons he took pleasure in me to make me king over all Israel. And of all my sons (for the LORD has given me many sons) he has chosen Solomon my son to sit on the throne of the kingdom of the LORD over Israel. He said to me, ‘It is Solomon your son who shall build my house and my courts, for I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be his father. I will establish his kingdom forever if he continues strong in keeping my commandments and my rules, as he is today.’ Now therefore in the sight of all Israel, the assembly of the LORD, and in the hearing of our God, observe and seek out all the commandments of the LORD your God, that you may possess this good land and leave it for an inheritance to your children after you forever. And you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father and serve him with a whole heart and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever. Be careful now, for the LORD has chosen you to build a house for the sanctuary; be strong and do it.’” (1 Chronicles 28:1–10)

New Testament Reading: Luke 16:14-18

“The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things, and they ridiculed him. And he said to them, ‘You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God. The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is preached, and everyone forces his way into it. But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void. Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.’” (Luke 16:14–18)

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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

Just as ministers must learn to preach and always be about the work of improving their preaching, so too, Christians must learn to listen to sermons and they should always be trying to improve their listening skills. One of the most basic skills to be developed is the ability to focus the mind. As you know, it is easy to be distracted by things internal and things external. Learning to focus is probably the most fundamental skill to be developed by those who wish to listen well to sermons. Perhaps a second skill is the ability to reflect upon the Word of God read and preached so that application can be made to your personal life and circumstances. I could go on and on and present you with a long list of skills to be developed as you strive to better listen to sermons, but that is not the point of this sermon. There is, however, one other skill that I wanted to bring to your attention. I’ll admit, if I were to make a list of sermon-listening skills and place them in their order of importance, I doubt this one would make it into the top five. It might not even make the top ten. But it is a very good skill to develop nonetheless. As you listen to sermons, dear brothers and sisters, do not only listen to what the minister says but also pay attention to how the minister handles the text of Scripture or the theme under consideration. Pay attention, in other words, to the minister’s methods of interpretation. 

The Holy Scriptures are God’s Word. The Scriptures must be interpreted. Ministers are called to rightly handle the word of truth (see 2 Timothy 2:15). Those who listen to sermons should pay attention to how the minister is handling the word of truth. Churchmen and women should pay attention to the methods of interpretation used by the minister. There are two obvious benefits, one is positive and the other is negative. One, when churchmen and women sit under faithful preaching and discern the minister’s methods of interpretation, they will learn how to better read and interpret the Scriptures themselves through the example of their pastor. Two, as churchmen and women grow in their ability to rightly handle the word of truth, they will also grow in their ability to detect erroneous interpretations when they encounter them. 

I know this might seem like a strange introduction to the text we are considering today. I’ve begun the sermon like this because I’m aware of how easy it would be to misinterpret the passage that is open before us if sound methods of interpretation are neglected. I’m confident that most (if not all) Christians know that if a text of Scripture is to be properly interpreted we must understand the meaning of the words used in sentences. We must also understand how the words are used in the sentence, and how the sentences are brought together to form paragraphs. These are the most basic principles of interpretation. But we must not forget about the context in which these words, sentences, and paragraphs are found. More than this, we cannot forget that the ultimate context of any one passage of Holy Scripture is every other passage of Holy Scripture, and that Scripture must be interpreted in the light of Scripture. Furthermore, we must not forget that doctrinal conclusions are to be drawn from the pages of Holy Scripture, and those doctrines, if true, will always agree. 

The last two principles of interpretation that I have mentioned are very important, but they are often neglected. The interpretive principle that the ultimate context of any one passage of Holy Scripture is every other passage of Holy Scripture, that Scripture is to be interpreted in the light of Scripture, and that less clear passages of Scripture should be interpreted by comparing them with passages on the same theme that are more clear, goes by the name, the analogy of Scripture. The other interpretive principle is similar. It is called the analogy of faith. The idea here is that doctrines are to be drawn from the Holy Scriptures. And doctrines should be drawn principally from those texts of Scripture that clearly teach about that topic, whatever the topic may be. Less clear passages must be interpreted in light of the system of doctrine drawn from the Scriptures as a whole.

Well, that’s probably enough talk about hermeneutics (principles of interpretation). Let me now draw your attention to two statements in our text for today that are prone to misinterpretation if divorced from their immediate or Biblical context. In Luke 16:17 Christ says, “But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void” (Luke 16:17). Does this mean that all of the laws of the Old Testament are still in force today? And in Luke 16:18 Christ says, “Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery” (Luke 16:18). Does this mean that marriage after divorce is strictly forbidden and that all such marriages are adulterous. Both of these verses, if interpreted without due consideration being given to the context or to the clear teaching of Holy Scripture found elsewhere on these themes, will likely be misunderstood. 

The Setting

Luke 16:14 sets the stage. There we read, “The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things, and they ridiculed [Jesus].” What did the Pharisees hear? They heard the parable that Jesus told his disciples as recorded in Luke 16:1-13. I’ll say just enough to remind you of that parable. It is called the parable of the dishonest manager. It is a story about a household manager who was accused of being corrupt. The master of the house decided that the accusations were true so he informed the manager that he would soon be removed from his position and demanded to see the books. What did the dishonest manager do? He began to think about his future. He used the little time he had and the wealth he had access to, to make friends with his master’s debtors in hopes that when he was expelled from his house and his management, they would receive him into their homes. The dishonest manager acted shrewdly and the master of the house commended him for it. 

What is the point of the parable? By telling this parable, Jesus was suggesting that both the tax collectors and the scribes and Pharisees were, in their own way, dishonest managers. Their management was about to be taken from them and they were being called to account. Think of it. If the tax collectors were to follow after Jesus they would have to stop using their position of power to take advantage of people (see Luke 3:13). And likewise,  if the Pharisees were to follow Jesus, they would lose their positions of power within Jewish society (see Philippians 3:7). Their managerial positions would be taken away by Christ, and so he exhorted them both to plan for their futures. Instead of using their money and positions of power to make friends and store up treasures here on earth, Christ commanded them to make friends and store up treasures in eternity. This was the original meaning of the parable that Christ told.   

Verse 14

In verse 14 Luke tells us, that when the Pharisees heard these things, they ridiculed Jesus. Why? Luke says it was because they were lovers of money. When it is said that someone is a lover of money it does not merely mean that they enjoy having enough money to pay the bills and some to save and to give. And it does not mean that they enjoy the good things in this life that money can buy – food, clothing, shelter, etc, and give thanks to God for it. A person who is a lover of money loves it supremely. They live for it and for the pleasures it brings. It is no wonder that the Pharisees ridiculed Jesus after hearing his teaching about the right and holy use of money. Christ commanded his followers to use money to make friends and to store up treasures, not on earth, but in heaven and in eternity! These Pharisees lived to make friends and to store up treasures on earth.  

As we seek to properly interpret the rest of this passage we must not forget that it begins with this remark: “The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things, and they ridiculed him” (Luke 16:14). And we should also look at the context and see that teaching about money is all around. The prodigal son squandered his father’s possessions, remember? The household manager was unjust because he mismanaged his master’s wealth. And in the following passage, we will encounter another parable – the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus. Everything that Christ says to the Pharisees in the text is set in the context of teachings regarding wealth and possessions. 

Verse 15

In verse 15 Christ spoke to the Pharisees, saying, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts.” As you probably know, the Pharisees loved to appear righteous and holy before men, but inwardly they were filled with wickedness and corruption. In another place, Christ called them whitewashed tombs – clean and pretty on the outside, but inside filled with death and corruption.  And earlier in Luke’s gospel, we heard Christ speak to the Pharisees, saying, “Now you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness” (Luke 11:39–40). Here Christ confronts them for justifying themselves before men, and then he condemns them, saying, but God knows your hearts.” How foolish men and women are to care so deeply about the way in which other human beings view them and to care so little about how God views them. We might be able to fool men for a time, but God sees our hearts. This is the truth that the Psalmist reflects on when he says, “O LORD, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it altogether” (Psalm 139:1–4). Evidently, these Pharisees had forgotten about God’s omniscience, or perhaps they knew that God was omniscient but were too foolish to care. They were consumed with a love for money, possessions, and prestige within society.

When Christ says, “For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God” (Luke 16:15), he means, the things that worldly men and women value, God detests. What is it that worldly men and women value? They value money, power, prestige, and pleasure. The world will applaud those who excel in obtaining these things, through whatever means necessary. But the love of these worldly pleasures and the sinful means used to obtain them, are an abomination to God. 

If you were to take a moment to reflect upon the culture in which we live, you would find plenty of illustrations. Think of the corrupt businessman who prospers financially by cheating others. Think of the politician who obtains power through deceit. Think of the entertainer who has obtained fame and wealth through a life of sin and rebellion. Think even of the clergyman who has climbed the ladder of worldly success but only through compromise. The world will applaud people like this for their “success“, but Christ reminds us that what is exalted among men is an abomination to God. Dear Christian, I ask you, do you applaud worldly people and their ways? Do you look at worldly people and admire their success? When you think of those who have prospered in the world through sin and corruption, do you covet what they have obtained? As followers of Christ, we must not be found standing with the world exulting and applauding worldly men and women and their ways. Instead, we ought to abhor what God abhors. Think carefully, dear brothers and sisters, about who you applaud. Think carefully, young men and women, about who you admire in the world. Think carefully about the media you consume. As followers of Jesus Christ, we must not be found standing with the world, exulting, approving, and applauding sinful and corrupt men and women and their ways. “For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God” (Luke 16:15), Christ says. 

As it is in our culture, so it was in the culture in which Christ lives. Worldly men and women approved of behaviors that would bring power, wealth, and pleasure that were an abomination to God. And evidently, these abhorrent behaviors had even crept into the world of the Pharisees. Though they loved to appear religiously devout and righteous before men, they were corrupted by sin and in need of a Savior. And what was at the root of their corruption? What was poisoning their hearts and their way of life? They were lovers of money. The love of money, dear friends, is a root of all kinds of evil. Again I say, this does not mean that we must avoid money. This does not mean that we must not try to make money and use it wisely. The Scriptures call us to work, to provide for ourselves and those under our care, to save, to make wise investments, and to use money to store up treasures in eternity. The previous parable was all about that! But the Christians must be very careful lest the love of money consume the heart.   

Paul the Apostle famously warned the younger minister, Timothy, about this very thing. “But godliness with contentment is great gain,” he said, “for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs” (1 Timothy 6:6–10). Dear Christians – dear young ones – beware of the love of money. As you handle money do not allow a love for money to take root within your heart. It will consume you, lead you astray, and end in destruction.

As we move on, do not forget that the Pharisees were said to be lovers of money and that money talk is all around us in this section of Luke’s gospel.

 Verse 16

In verse 16, Christ continues to confront the worldly Pharisees. Verse 15: “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.” Verse 16: “The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is preached, and everyone forces his way into it.”

By these words, Jesus reminded the Pharisees that a great change was taking place in those days. The time of the law and the prophets – that is to say, The Old Testament, or better yet, the Old Mosaic Covenant – was coming to an end. It began in the days of Moses, and the arrival of John the Baptist marked the beginning of the end of that era. 

What, you might ask, does this have to do with the context? A lot! The Pharisees, it must be remembered were leaders within Old Covenant Israel. They were shepherds, or to use the language from the previous parable, managers within the house of Old Covenant Israel. But that era and that arrangement was quickly coming to an end. The Pharisees were having their management taken away from them, therefore. And as dishonest, corrupt, worldly managers, they would need to make wise decisions concerning their future. In brief, they would need to align with Jesus the Messiah to become partakers of the blessings of the New Covenant that Christ would soon institute.

When Christ said, “The Law and the Prophets were until John”, it was a reminder that the Old Covenant era was closing, for the Messiah that was promised to Israel had come. Jesus is the Messiah and John the Baptist was the forerunner. When Christ said, “since then the good news of the kingdom of God is preached”, he was referring to his earthly ministry and to the ministry of his disciples. Jesus the Messiah brought with him the everlasting kingdom of God. John the Baptist preached, repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand (see Matthew 3:2), and so did Jesus and his disciples (Luke 4:43). The kingdom of God prefigured on earth under the Old Mosaic Covenant, but it did not arrive with power until Christ began his earthly ministry having been anointed as the King of God’s everlasting Kingdom. The question is, who will enter into it?

When Christ said, “and everyone forces his way into it”, it was an apt description of what was going on at this point in Jesus’ earthly ministry. Large crowds of people were flocking to Jesus. They were curious and very excited about the announcement that the kingdom of God was at hand and that Jesus was the King of this kingdom. Do not forget that the word about the miracles he performed had spread! And so the crowds came and they pressed in upon Jesus. This was the setting in which these words of Christ were spoken (see Luke 14:25 and 15:1). Some of these would prove to be true disciples of his. Many would not (see John 2:24). 

Verse 17

What is required to be a true disciple of Jesus? I trust you know the answer. Two words should come immediately to mind: faith and repentance. They are like twin sisters or the two sides of a single coin. They are always found together. To be true follower of Jesus (and to enter into his kingdom) a person must have faith in him. They must believe that he is the Messiah, the King of God’s everlasting Kingdom, the savior God has provided, and they must trust in him. And true faith will also involve repentance, repentance being a turning away from sin.  As I have said, true faith and repentance are always found together. 

Christ was constantly calling people to believe in him – to believe that he is the Christ, the Messiah, and the savior God has provided. And here Christ is found calling the Pharisees (and all in the crowd who were overhearing this teaching) to repentance. How so? By pressing them with God’s law. Verse 17: “But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void”, Christ says. 

This is one of those statements that, if ripped from its context and interpreted in isolation from the rest of the Scriptures, is bound to be misinterpreted. Does Christ mean that the entirety of the Old Mosaic law code will brought into the New Covenant era and used to govern life in the inaugurated kingdom of God? Again I say, if we read this one Bible verse without considering its immediate and whole Bible context, it can seem to say that. “But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void”, Christ says. 

But consider these things:

One, elsewhere the New Testament clearly teaches that laws from the Old Mosaic Covenant are no longer binding under the New Covenant. Take, for example, the laws regarding circumcision. They are no longer binding (see 1 Corinthians 7:19). The dietary restrictions of Old are also removed (see Acts 10:13). And Christ himself said that worship would no longer be centralized around the temple in Jerusalem (see John 4:21).  So, the analogy of Scripture shows us that we cannot interpret Christ’s words to mean that entirety of the law of Moses will be brought into the New Covenant unchanged. 

Two, when we interpret the passage according to the analogy of faith, that is to say, in light of the system of doctrine that arises from Scripture, we will also be protected against misinterpretation. For example, when we remember that the law of Moses was not given to humanity at the bigging of time but to a particular people, living in a particular place, for a particular time, and for a particular purpose, it will help us to rightly interpret this text, 

Three, though it is possible to take Christ’s words, “But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void”, to mean that the entire law of Moses – the moral, civil, and ceremonial – aspects of it will never be changed, the analogy of Scripture and the analogy of faith forbid this interpretation and drive us back to the text to ask, are there other valid interpretations. In other words, could Christ have meant something a little different? And the answer is, yes.

When Christ said that it would be easier “for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void”, he meant it. To become void is to  “fall down” and therefore cease to exist. Are the ceremonial laws of the Old Covenant – the laws about circumcision, ceremonial washings, and worship at the temple, ect – still binding under the New Covenant? No. They have been taken away. But this does not mean that they have fallen down or become void. To the contrary, they have been fulfilled by Christ and thus taken away. And the same can be said about the civil laws of the Old Covenant. Those laws governed Israel as a nation. These too are no longer binding, not because they have fallen down or become void, but because they have been fulfilled by Christ, the true Israel of God. He lived in obedience to them. They served their purpose. But something greater his here, namely Christ and his eternal kingdom, and so the civil laws are no longer binding. Further more, these laws – the civil and ceremonial laws of the Old Covenant – have not become void because we still have them and make use of them, though we be not under them now that the New Covenant has come. We may learn a great deal about morality from the civil laws of the Old Covenant through the principle of general equity. We may learn a great deal about Christ and his work as we see him prefigured in the ceremonial laws of Old. We may also learn a great deal about our purification in Christ and holy living. The civil and ceremonial laws of the Old Covenant have not become void, but they have been fulfilled by Christ and have, in this way, been taken away. 

Why then did Christ speak to the Pharisees, saying, “But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void”? He spoke this to them to show them their sin and to urge them to repentance and faith. They were like whitewashed tombs and dirty cups, remember, clean on the outside but filthy within? They justified themselves before while hiding sin in their hearts. The root of much of their evil was the love of money. Christ pressed them with the law of Moses, saying, “But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void” to urge them to take a careful and serious look at the law so that they might see their sin and their need for Christ the Redeemer. 

He pressed them with the law of Moses and urged them to wake up to the fact that they were worldly. They were lovers of money. And they had begun to live according to the way of the world, forgetting that “what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God” (Luke 16:15), and that God can see their hearts. 

Verse 18

What, in particular, did Christ point to? What example did he give to draw the Pharisee’s attention to their love of money, power, and pleasure and how they had been corrupted by the world and the ways of the world? In verse 18 Christ got real specific: “Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.”

Here is another statement that is prone to misinterpretation if separated from its context and interpreted in isolation from the rest of what the Scriptures say on the issue of divorce and remarriage. Does this statement require us to believe that remarriage after divorce is always to be regarded as adulterous? If this were the only thing the Scriptures said about the issue, I suppose we would have to come to that conclusion. But again I say, the interpretive principle of the analogy of Scripture and the analogy of faith will help us. 

When we consider all that the Scriptures have to say on this topic, we will see that in the beginning God’s design for marriage is that a husband and wife be joined together in the covenant of marriage for life (see Genesis 2:24). This remains the ideal (see Matthew 19:3-6). Divorce was permitted under Moses due to the hardness of men’s hearts (see Matthew 19:8). Divorce was regulated under Moses. It was regulated especially to protect women. A man could not simply send his wife away. He had to give her a certificate of divorce. This certificate proved that the marriage had been dissolved and would allow a woman to remarry. What are the valid grounds for divorce? That was a hotly debated topic in Jesus’ day. Deuteronomy 24 mentions divorce on the grounds of a husband finding some indecency in his wife. Christ says that sexual immorality is grounds for divorce (Matthew 19:9). Paul mentions abandonment as grounds for divorce (1 Corinthians 7:15). And when all is considered, it appears that divorce, when valid, freed a person to marry again, the marriage relationship having been dissolved by the divorce, the certificate of divorce being proof of its dissolution (see 1 Corinthians 7:15). 

More could be said. This is not a sermon on the topic of divorce and remarriage so I do not feel the need to be completely thorough. The point that I am making is that when use the analogy of Scripture and the analogy of faith  – that is, when we compare Scripture with Scripture, and allow the more clear to help us interpret the less clear – it keeps from interpreting what Christ says here in Luke 16: 18 as if it were a general or universal truth about divorce and remarriage, for Scripture cannot contradict Scripture. If Jesus meant that every remarriage after a divorce was adulterous, then Scripture would contradict Scripture (see Deuteronomy 24; Matthew 19:9; 1 Corinthians 7:15). We are forced by the analogy of Scripture and faith to go back to Luke 16:18 and to ask, is it possible for this statement from Christ to be interpreted in a slightly different way so that it is in harmony with the rest of the Scriptures? Indeed, it is. And interpreting the verse in a slightly different way will not require us to do violence to the verse. On the contrary, we will find that a slightly different interpretation fits the context much better.   

Should we interpret the words of Christ, “Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery”, to be a universal principle, one that is always true, without exception? We cannot. Is it possible, then, that Christ was addressing a more specific problem within society? Yes, it is possible, and there is very good reason to believe that this was the case. 

The Pharisees were lovers of money, remember. They justified themselves before men. But Christ reminded them that God knows their hearts, and that  “what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.” After this, Christ reminded the Pharisees of God’s law and held it up as the standard for their behavior. This remark about divorce and remarriage must be interpreted in light of these things.

You should know that in Jesus’ day, there were some who believed that a man could divorce his wife for any reason whatsoever. You should also know that men have, in the history of the world, in Jesus’ day, and even to in the present day, divorced their wives (and wives their husbands) for their own pleasure and to improve their status within society, etc. In fact, we have an example of this in Luke. It should be fresh on our minds because John the Baptist was mentioned. He was beheaded, in part, because he was critical of  Herod for taking his brother’s wife (see Luke 3:19). When Christ spoke to the Pharisees and said, “Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery” (Luke 16:18), he did not establish a universal principle that was without exception. No, he was confronting the Pharisees for their wickedness. They had been influenced by the culture. They had either begun to approve of this practice or had themselves begun to live according to these customs. 

Men would divorce their wives for no good reason at all and marry another. The divorced wives would also be married by other men. And here Christ says, that’s no different than adultery! That’s adultery certified and sanctioned by the customs of men! And why is it adultery? Because these no-fault, capricious divorces were not valid divorces according to God’s law. The marriages were not dissolved in God’s eyes, therefore. Here is but one example of a case where “what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God”. And the Pharisees, who loved to justify themselves before men, were guilty of participating in or approving of this abominable practice. They could fool men, but God could see their hearts. And I’m sure this practice of the Pharisees, or the approval of this practice by them, had very much to do with their love of money. It is not difficult to imagine how the Pharisees could benefit financially and otherwise either by participating in this practice (by marrying up) or by approving of this practice amongst those of power, wealth, and prestige (i.e. Harrod). 

This, I think, is the proper interpretation of Jesus’ words regarding divorce and remarriage. He was not here presenting a universal truth without exceptions. Instead, he was addressing a very particular and abominable practice within society, a practice that had corrupted, in one way or another, even the Pharisees. The Pharisees were sinners (they were unfaithful household managers). Like everyone else, they needed a Savior. Christ called them to faith through the preaching of the gospel and repentance through the preaching of God’s law.  If they wished to enter the kingdom of the Messiah they would have to turn from their sins and trust in Jesus as Lord and Savior.  

Application

How should this sermon be applied by us? I have five very brief suggestions. 

One, let us all grow in our ability to rightly interpret Scripture. I hope you have learned something about interpretation today and will put these principles into practice in the future. 

Two, we must beware of the love of money. It is a root of all kinds of evil, as 1 Timothy 6:10 says.

 Three, let us be aware of allowing the world and the ways of the world to influence us. We are called to live in the world but not be of it. May the Lord help us to discern the abominable practices of the world which the Lord hates and to have nothing to do with them.

Four, the primary way we will grow in our ability to discern good from evil is through the knowledge of God’s law. May the Holy Spirit help us to know and obey God’s law.   

Five, one of the primary ways the followers of Jesus Christ will be distinguished from the world is by their conduct in marriage and family life. Do not be surprised when the world ruins marriage and the family with corruption and sin. The Christian must be resolved to approach marriage and family life in obedience to God’s design and order as revealed in Holy Scripture.