Image: "Gazing At The Sight", 2020, Sunflower Farm Scene, Lisbon, Md
Luke 13:2–3 And Jesus answered and said to them, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things? 3 I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.
Luke 13:15–16 The Lord then answered him and said, “Hypocrite! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it? 16 So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound—think of it—for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?”
Luke 13:23–24 Then one said to Him, “Lord, are there few who are saved?” And He said to them, 24 “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able.
Luke 13:34 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing!
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That little "bug" (not sure what it is) seemed to be just pondering the view. From his close-up perspective that brilliant sunflower must have appeared to fill the sky. As we peer at Jesus as He travels to Jerusalem, we might pause and let His spectacle fill our minds also. There are a lot of things going on in this chapter and each little segment is important, but, perhaps, the overall impact is even greater.
Jesus, as one famous theologian has postulated, is pictured as the perfect Pilgrim, journeying to Jerusalem to offer up the Passover sacrifice. If we think of Him as embodying and fulfilling Israel itself, then Jesus is essentially presenting Himself as prophet, priest, and king of Israel. He has come to complete the work of God in choosing Israel out of all the nations of the earth, as well as performing her role as God's servant. The weight of all history, to that time, was resting on His shoulders and we can see in His dealings with people in this chapter that he was totally focused on that task.
Note carefully how He was conscious of world events and unhesitating in His reply to them. Galilee was a hotbed of insurrectionary zeal and Pontius Pilate, the Roman Governor, had recently killed some Galileans who must have been accused of treasonous conduct. He evidently killed them in Jerusalem where they had come to offer sacrifices. Jesus is aware of this as well as of the tower falling at the pool of Siloam. When questioned about the Galileans Jesus' answer skillfully avoided putting himself in the middle of that controversy. He didn't condemn either Pilate or the Galileans. He simply pointed out that these Galileans, perhaps like the men who would be crucified on either side of Himself, were no worse sinners than others. He then turned the teaching on its head and essentially said that the fate of the Galileans and the 18 who died at Siloam, was a direct consequence of sin... the same sin that infects us all. If we do not repent, we will all "likewise" perish. This is very much in line and continuous with the OT prophets. Here was the greater Amos heralding imminent judgment.
Jesus heals a woman on the Sabbath. The blind hypocrites could only think of this wonderful act of mercy in legalistic terms. "You broke the Sabbath!" they cried, in effect. Again, Jesus' mastery of the situation shows as He humiliates the hypocrites before the whole multitude. "You loose your donkey from the stable and water it on the Sabbath! Isn't it obvious that this woman should be set free from the bondage of her infirmities?" You can almost hear the air whooshing out of their sails! Luke simply says "His adversaries were put to shame." Yea, and Amen!
Jesus spoke a few beloved parables about the Kingdom of God and then He answers another "tough" question. "Lord, are there few who are saved?" Jesus takes this question head-on. Few pastors or theologians today would be so clear and emphatic. Most of us would "hedge" a bit because the truth can be very unpopular. Jesus looks them in the eye and says: "Yes... relatively few will enter through the narrow gate which leads to eternal life. He amplifies the answer by saying the "many... will seek to enter and will not be able!" This statement ought to stop us in our tracks. There are "many" who long for eternal life in the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, but they will not be "able" or "allowed" to enter. There are the multitudes in this world who make no bones about their rejection of Jesus as the Christ of God. Their judgment is just and without question. On the whole, these folks are easy to recognize.
But what about the specific group Jesus here mentions. They "seek to enter" but they can't. Who are these? I think these are those "nominal" Christians who often play the spiritual games associated with Christianity and content themselves with thinking of this as righteousness. But, on point, for them, it is just a game. Their Christian "faith" is invisible outside of the church. Like the hypocrites who surrounded Jesus, they trust in some externals while missing the point that eternal life is open only through the narrow gate of Jesus Himself. Eternal life in Jesus' Kingdom is granted to those who, through the Holy Spirit, see Jesus as, metaphorically, the bug in the picture sees the flower. Jesus fills their entire vision. He is the first and the last, the beginning and the end. He is life itself and apart from Him, there is nothing but darkness. This transformed way of thinking and beholding is obtained by relatively few.
Jesus said they will come from the east, west, north, and south and sit down in the Kingdom of God. Speaking very pointedly to those who trusted in their special Jewish relation to God, He said that there are many "last" who will be first and the "first" who will be last.
Truly He is One to fill our entire vision and worthy to be adored.
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