Pivot Point


Luke 13:31-35
31At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” 32And he said to them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course. 33Nevertheless, I must go on my way today and tomorrow and the day following, for it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.’ 34O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! 35Behold, your house is forsaken. And I tell you, you will not see me until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’”

While these 5 verses are a short interlude, they are theologically vital. With that being said, this also means that these 5 verses are pivotal and central to the book of Luke and some would argue, to the Bible as a whole. I’ll bet you didn’t think they were important at all as you read through them. I didn’t.

First of all, let’s deal with this warning to Jesus from the Pharisees. Did they say these words because they were sympathetic to Jesus mission or because they simply wanted Jesus to leave the region and get out of their hair? The commentators are divided on that question, so I will let you decide where you want to land on that one. I think that they were looking to have Jesus move on and cease to be a problem for them. What we find in Jesus response is a fearless commitment to His mission – the salvation of the world through His death in Jerusalem.

But we also find Jesus sharing His derision for Herod who will later ask Jesus to do a “trick” for him during the Passion trials. He remains steadfast in His determination to complete His saving work in Jerusalem. While He knows full well what is coming, His commitment remains firm. Not even the mighty Herod can deter Him from completing His mission. In the same breath, Jesus mourns the lack of repentance and faith that can be found in Jerusalem. The rejection of the Jews is a source of great sorrow to God but not a new occurrence. The Old Testament is filled with stories of those who spoke God’s Word being rejected and even murdered.

In these important words we find that Jesus will not be stopped from shedding His blood for the sins of the world but He is heartbroken over the rejection of this amazing gift. This attitudes lies at the heart of the Gospel and is still alive for us today. For every person who receives Jesus as their Savior, there is rejoicing in Heaven. For every person who rejects the Lord Jesus as their Savior, there is mourning. It is my prayer that for every person who ever reads these words there is rejoicing in Heaven over their faith in Jesus as their Savior.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Excusez-moi

Image
2 Kings 23:31-37 31 Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 32 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done. 33 And Pharaoh Neco put him in bonds at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem, and laid on the land a tribute of a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold. 34 And Pharaoh Neco made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the place of Josiah his father, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. But he took Jehoahaz away, and he came to Egypt and died there. 35 And Jehoiakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh, but he taxed the land to give the money according to the command of Pharaoh. He exacted the silver and the gold of the people of the land, from everyone according to his assessment, to give it to Pharaoh Neco. 36 Jehoiakim was twenty-fiv
Read more

יהוה שָׁמַר--Yahweh Shamar (God Watches)

Image
Psalm 121 1 I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? 2 My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. 3 He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. 4 Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. 5 The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand. 6 The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. 7 The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. 8 The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore. There are numerous passages I cling to when stress takes over my life. I would be hard pressed to declare a favorite, but this psalm would come close. So this morning I listened to Psalm 121 about 20 times as I meditated through the verses. First, I want to point out that the word or idea of shamar appears in every verse expect 6. The NIV uses the word "watch" while the ESV uses "keep". The
Read more

Narrow Door

Image
Luke 13:22-30 22 He went on his way through towns and villages, teaching and journeying toward Jerusalem. 23 And someone said to him, “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” And he said to them , 24 “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. 25 When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’ 26 Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’ 27 But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil!’ 28 In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out. 29 And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at tabl
Read more