GCI Equipper

What it Means to be Lost

For the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost.

Editor’s Note: For years I struggled with the word “lost” when referring to people who don’t know Jesus. It seemed such an ominous term – almost permanent, as if there was no hope for those who are “lost.” Yet the term is used in the Bible. Jeremiah and Ezekiel refer to people who have become lost (Jeremiah 50:6, Ezekiel 34:16). The psalmist referred to himself as a lost sheep (Psalm 119:176). Luke tells us, “The Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). Reading these passages, I see the term “lost” referring to those whom the Lord is seeking. So what does “lost” mean? What does it have to do with our 2022 theme Compelled by Love? Allow me to share something sent to me by my coach and friend, retired pastor Glen Weber. He shares a good illustration, which clarifies what it means to be lost.

Compelled by Love – Who are the Lost?

By Glen Weber, Central Region Support Team and Certified Coach

While in high school I purchased a class ring for my graduation in 1969. Soon afterwards, I was accepted to Ambassador College in England. Because of the distance, most of my belongings never left my home in Wyoming. During my college years and beyond, my parents moved three times, and my things moved with them. Somewhere along the way, my high school memorabilia and other minor possessions were misplaced. As far as I knew, my class ring was lost. Forty-five years later, when we moved my aging mother out of her home, I “found” my class ring. It wasn’t lost, I just didn’t know where it was. When I found it, a truth came to me that helped me understand the biblical concept of being lost. No item can be considered “lost” which has not first been possessed by the owner. Let me repeat that, and when I do, think of those we refer to as “lost” in our lives.

No item can be considered lost which has not first been possessed by the owner.

As soon as I saw the ring, I knew it was mine! It makes me think of Jesus who knows all of humanity belongs to him. As we focus on our theme Compelled by Love, we are drawn to Jesus’ love and desire for the “lost” in humanity. It begs us to ask some questions: Who are the lost? Who are the lost sheep? Who are those Jesus came to seek and to save?

Jesus gave three parables about lost things in Luke 15. The Pharisees and teachers of the law are murmuring and challenging Jesus because he spends time with sinners. Jesus begins his response by telling the story of a shepherd who has one hundred sheep. One of those sheep wanders off and gets lost. Jesus says that a good shepherd would leave the ninety-nine and go find the lost sheep and come back rejoicing when it is found!

He then offers a second parable of a woman who has ten coins and loses one. She furiously and meticulously cleans her house until she finds that lost coin. She then rejoices that the lost coin has been found.

Finally, Jesus brings it to the point of the sinners with whom he is sharing time and meals. He explains the parable of the lost son. We all know the story of the son who demands his inheritance from his father, leaves to a far country (going to some Gentile country) and blows all his resources. To those in the community, the son is now as good as dead in his actions – but note the father’s heart. The father keeps waiting for him to return. When the son returns home and begins to ask if he can take on the role of a servant, the father interrupts him, throws a huge party, restores the son to full sonship in the family and celebrates that his lost (dead) son has returned.

In all three parables, that which was considered lost had always been possessed by the owner – even after it was lost. The shepherd still owned the lost lamb; the woman still owned the lost coin; the father still considered the lost son as his son. The lamb, the coin and the son could only be considered lost if they were not already the possession of the owner.

Who are the “lost” of humanity? When our love avenues make efforts to engage with the “lost” how should we view them? How should we relate to them? As those who already belong to the Father.

In Matthew 10, Jesus tells his disciples about the lost.

These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.” (Matthew 10:5-8)

Sadly, many believers have read this passage believing Jesus was referring to the sheep of Israel being lost among the other nations. Yet, we know from numerous passages in the Gospels, that Jesus sent his disciples out to the many Jewish villages where the people of Israel lived. They weren’t lost among the nations; they were lost from their owner – God. God is sending his shepherds out to find the lost sheep. Notice in verse 7 that they are to tell the lost about the kingdom of heaven being near, healing the sick, raising the dead, cleansing lepers, driving out demons, and freely giving them the love of God. They have belonged to God all along but need to be reminded of that truth. Later, of course, we read that in Christ there is no Gentile or Jew, so lostness refers to all who belong to the Father through Jesus assuming all humanity unto himself. This is the message Paul was telling the believers in Corinth:

All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. (2 Corinthians 5:18-19)

Paul challenges the reader – us – to go find those people who are lost and invite them to reconcile their heart to the God who loves them – telling them the kingdom of God has come near. Earlier he said we do this because Christ’s love compels us (verse 14). This is why our theme for the Love Avenue this year is Compelled by Love.

Because we are “compelled by love” we are reaching out to our neighbors (the one-square mile around our church hall) and engaging the lost to help them find their way home! We want to help them know who they are by helping them know who Christ is. He is, the One who reconciles them to the Father.

May the Holy Spirit help us find our lost brothers and sisters who don’t know they are lost! May we be compelled by love to engage the people in the neighborhood around our church. I encourage you to participate, support, pray for, or serve your congregation’s Love Avenue initiatives in any way you can – even if you are also a team member of the Hope or Faith avenues. If you live a distance away, reach out to the lost in your neighborhood. Won’t it be exciting to have some of those lost people – who will now be found – participating in your Hope and Faith Avenue activities?

Prayer: Father, there is no human being who is not loved by you. They are lost, but they are still your child. May we be the shepherd out looking for lost lambs. May we joyfully love them and bring them home to be with the ninety-nine and with the Great Shepherd. Amen

Thanks Glen, for helping us see the need to engage and love those who already belong to Jesus.

 

Rick Shallenberger

Bearing Fruit with Jesus

Jesus came to share in our place, and he invites us to place share in our church neighborhood.

By Sam Butler, Pastor, Grand Rapids, Michigan

As believers, we are called to participate in the ongoing mission of Jesus Christ. Jesus is actively involved in mission, and he invites us to participate – as congregations and as individuals – in the mission he is already involved in. Our participation is outlined in Jesus’ teaching about the vine and the branches:

I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:5)

There are two ideas in this passage that are critical to understanding the concept of mission. The first is that we need to remain in Christ; we are not able to accomplish anything apart from him. The second is that when we are in relationship with him, fruit will naturally develop. Notice he does not ask us to produce fruit on our own, but tells us when we are in him, the resulting relationship will bear fruit.

What does it mean to “remain in Christ?” It starts with answering the “Who?” question. Who is Jesus? Once we come to believe that Jesus is who he claims to be – Lord, Savior, brother, friend, redeemer, reconciler – we then answer the 2nd question, “Who am I in Jesus?” I am the one he saved; I am the brother or sister; I am the friend; I am the one he redeemed. I hold on to this truth – remain in him – by being in constant relationship with him.

To remain in Christ is to be in relationship with him. It’s a personal relationship that will look different for everyone. The result of this personal relationship is the fruit that we bear in and with him. Remaining in Christ and bearing much fruit are intricately and intimately tied together. To tie this in with mission, we can say successful mission for our congregations and fellowship groups only happens when we are in relationship with Jesus. What does this look like as we focus on the Love Avenue? What does bearing fruit with Jesus look like in your church neighborhood or community? To answer this question, let’s flesh out a term we’ve heard GCI President Greg Williams and others use, which will help us understand mission. That term is place sharing.

Place sharing is how God shared his love with us by sending us his Son. Jesus came to share in our place – to live in and among humanity. But he didn’t just come to share life with us, he went a step further and became one of us. God became flesh – this is called incarnation. The Christmas celebration is the beginning, the starting point of incarnation, which has never ended. The Son of God is still human – though now in a glorified state. Incarnation is how God chose to place share. It is how we better understand his desire to continually share his love with us.

We need to understand this: in order for humanity to achieve our ultimate goal of being with God for eternity, God, compelled by love, sent the Word to dwell with us (place share). In so doing, he forgives us and reconciles us to bring us into relationship with Father, Son, and Spirit. Jesus came to share our place. To live with, in, and through us. He shares in our joys and our sorrows. He shares in our trials and our celebrations. He shares in our laughter and our tears. He joined us in our place so he could share life with us. He did not require us to be like him, to come where he is, to join in what he is doing before he shared in our lives. He came to us, right where we are, and entered into our place to share our experiences right alongside us. His love for us compelled him to place share with us.

Now, through the Spirit, Jesus invites us to place share with him to others by place sharing with our neighbors right where they are. In our relationship with Jesus, he calls us to participate in his ministry of calling those he loves, forgave, and died for into relationship with him – these are the people right around where your congregation or fellowship group meets. Jesus, through the Spirit, continues to be present in our world, but now invites us to be part of that presence. He has invited us to participate in that place sharing. As we remain in him, we share in what he is doing in this place.

Jesus gave us a commission to participate in what he is doing (Matthew 28:18-20), and he reminds us we are never working alone. He wants us to interact with our communities where he is already at work and build loving relationships with those neighbors he is already reaching. He wants us to place share with those he loves – to enter into their world and walk alongside them.

From a missional perspective, it is important for us to know that Jesus is already in the community. He already has a relationship with those we are reaching out to, and the community already belongs to him, although they may not know it yet. Jesus invites us to join him there and participate with him in his kingdom work. In order to place share, it is important to identify a community where needs align with the church’s gifts, experiences, and resources. More will be said about this in future articles.

Once we identify the community, we take the necessary steps to get to know it by noticing the ebbs and flows of the life of the community and the people who inhabit the area. We begin the process of building relationships. Only then can we understand our roles there. We allow the community and the people to inform us; we allow the community to get to know us as we in turn get to know them. We begin to see the community through Jesus’ eyes by learning, and as we become involved, we are able to interact in an appropriate way for the sake of the gospel. We do not begin with the goal of changing the community or sharing Jesus in the traditional sense; we begin by joining people right where they are, loving and serving them there. It is in this setting that the Spirit works and God’s Kingdom work thrives. This is place sharing.

Ministry Action Plans (MAPs)

“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” – Benjamin Franklin

Equipper Team: Part of a pastor’s job description is to put together an annual Ministry Action Plan (MAP) for the congregation. A leader of a healthy church will ask the Avenue Champions to also put together MAPs for their area of responsibility. Not every MAP will look the same. While many of our pastors will follow the template we offer on our GCI resource page, which focuses on all three Avenues. An Avenue Champion may develop his or her MAP on a different format.

Following is a MAP Ceeja Malmkar, Love Avenue Champion for GC Surrey Hills, put together based on the Provision, Plan, Promise tool. We felt it worth sharing with you.

2022 Ministry Action Plan for GC Surrey Hills Love Avenue

 

Prepared By: Ceeja Malmkar, Love Avenue Champion Surrey Hills, Oklahoma, USA 

 

Ministry

The GC Surrey Hills Love Avenue is in the ministry of loving others. We are compelled by the love of Christ, and our heart is to join our neighbors in making an everlasting impact in our neighborhood. We do this the way Jesus did: through authentic and intentional relationship, inclusivity of church and community members, and displaying Jesus’ love by meeting our neighbors where they are within the rhythms of the community.

Action

The GC Surrey Hills Love Avenue will put our love into action through a series of neighborhood events, outreaches, and service projects. Each planned outreach will be put through the filter of the following questions:

  • Does this outreach provide opportunities for church members to volunteer and serve?
  • Does this outreach provide the opportunity for neighbors, community organizations, and others outside the church walls to join and serve?
  • Does this outreach meet our target community where they are? Does it fall into the existing rhythms of the neighborhood/community?
  • Is this outreach inclusive for children? Are we loving them well?
  • How can we tie this outreach back to the life of the church?
  • How can we inspire our neighbors and church members to participate?
  • What kind of budget does this outreach need, and how do we invite others into financially participating?

Plan

This year I am going to try something new. I’m going to follow the Provision, Plan, Promise tool while planning our 2022 calendar. The idea is that we create a system and schedule of planning so that we don’t get overwhelmed and run short on time. The premise is to look ahead on our calendars and use the “provisional, plan, and promise” in preparing for important events on our calendar, all 4-5 months in advance.

Example: “Christmas in July” is an awesome kick-off to thinking about our Christmas events. It seems that every year after the fall festivals and trunk or treats, the holiday season begins, and many of us run out of time in our planning. Following the three P’s, Christmas planning would look like this:

  • July—Provisional Meeting: This is a time for the team to dream out loud, come up with ideas, and brainstorm. This gives 30 days to get different opinions and filter your ideas to come up with a plan.
  • August—Provision becomes Plan: This is the time for the team to put their plan on paper. They begin to discuss details and find the “gotchas” that could come up. This is a time to solidify dates and details, and to talk about advertising and promotion, etc. The team will have 30 days to tweak the plan and all the details.
  • September—Plan becomes a Promise: This is the time where you set your plan in motion: work out all details, determine volunteer needs, assign projects and teams, create sign ups, etc. You should prepare all your graphics and promotions during these 30 days.

By following this type of calendar, we will be able to have an organized, well-thought-out plan for the year. This plan will give us 8-12 weeks before Christmas to prepare, create, and execute all the details laid out in the plan.

2022 GC Surrey Hills Love Avenue Meeting Calendar

Month Celebration Provisional Planning Promise
January Celebrate Christmas event Brainstorming for Holy Week Final details for February outreach
February Celebrations & Prayer Requests Brainstorming for Camp Surrey Detailing Holy Week Events
March Celebrations February Outreach Detailing Camp Surrey Final Details for Holy Week
April Holy Week Work Party Brainstorming for Back-to-School Event Final Details for Camp Surrey
May Camp Surrey Work Party Detailing Back-to-School Event
June Celebrations & Prayer Requests Brainstorming for Trunk or Treat Final Details for Back-to-School event
July Back-to-School Work Party Brainstorming for Christmas Detailing Trunk or Treat
August Celebrations & Prayer Requests Detailing Christmas Final Details for Trunk or Treat
September Celebrations & Prayer Requests Planning Details for Christmas
October Trunk or Treat Work Party Brainstorming for Neighborhood Service Project
November Celebrations & Christmas Work Party Detailing Neighborhood Service Project Final Details for Christmas
December Christmas Party Final Details for Neighborhood Service Project

 

The Parable of the Cruise Line

Do Healthy Church initiatives even apply to small congregations and fellowship groups?

By Tim Sitterley, US Regional Director West, and Dan Rogers, Pastor, Las Vegas, NV

Over the years I’ve learned that it is way too easy, when presenting new concepts and ideas, to talk all around the real questions. It’s also easy to presume everyone understands what you are trying to get across, and any resistance simply stems from a lack of understanding. Unfortunately, when you take this approach, you occasionally fail to see that your listeners fully understand WHAT you are presenting, they just don’t see HOW it is relevant to them.

This became the case in a recent regional townhall Zoom discussion on the denomination’s healthy church initiatives. In the middle of the conversation a pastor presented this statement. “After listening to all this, I don’t see why I’m even here?”

He went on to point out how small his congregation was, that they were mostly elderly members, and that he was feeling discouraged by all the expectations that the denomination seemed to have placed on him and his congregation. He couldn’t see how concepts like team-based/pastor led and avenue champions, nor the recently released job description had any relevance to the six to ten members who showed up each week.

Before I could come up with what might have been a suitable answer, Dan Rogers (retired US Church Administration Director and now lead pastor in our Las Vegas congregation) stepped in with an analogy between a cruise ship and a small fishing boat. The comparisons of intent vs application that he presented resonated with not only the discouraged pastor, but with the entire group. So I asked Dan to flesh out his story, and I present it to you.

The Parable of the Cruise Line

There was a cruise ship line that had huge cruise ships that carried many hundreds of passengers along with large crews and staffs on each ship. The cruise line also operated some much smaller boats that were for day cruises and sightseeing excursions.

The cruise line decided it would be wise to publish regulations and guidelines for the safe and effective operation of its fleet. With the help of planning, safety, and efficiency experts, along with a team of attorneys knowledgeable in maritime law, the cruise line produced a 500-page manual of requirements and instructions for its fleet. 

The manual was distributed to all the captains of the cruise line’s vessels. The captains were instructed to inform their crew and staff of the regulations and guidelines and see that they were implemented on their ships.

One of the ships owned and operated by the cruise line was a small vessel that was used for day cruises and sightseeing excursions. The vessel, the S.S. Minnow operated with a captain, a crew of one, and carried up to five passengers.

When the captain of the Minnow received the manual and read through it, his first thought was, “This is ridiculous! The heads of the cruise line don’t know us and don’t understand us. We can’t possibly implement all these things laid out in this manual. These guidelines just don’t fit our situation.” The captain felt very discouraged. “Maybe I should just give up,” he thought. “Maybe I should just resign from the cruise line and go off on my own.”

Then it occurred to him. In addition to legal requirements that applied to all sea-going vessels, the manual did offer some great principles and ideas for safe and effective operation that the Minnow might be able to use. While not all (or even many of) the instructions could be implemented exactly as stated, still there were some valuable ideas and guidance offered. He thought to himself, “I think we could adapt these principles and ideas into our context and make the Minnow a safer and more effective ship.” 

The captain began to think about some of the guidelines that were given in the manual and how they might apply in his and the Minnow’s context:

Further training required? Well, we all need ongoing training, even me and my “little buddy” crewman. We want to give our customers the best experience possible, so we constantly need to improve in our jobs. And even though we have lots of experience, there are always new things to learn.

Mandatory safety requirements for all ships? We do care about our customers’ safety so we all should be wearing life vests, even the captain and crew. My little buddy and some passengers may not like that, but it is a requirement that is wise and necessary for their own safety.

A script of required announcements is to be made by all captains prior to beginning each cruise. I like making up my own announcements. But following the set of standard announcements for all ships is unifying for the fleet. It also makes sure each ship covers the necessary safety regulations for each cruise. I can always add my own comments to the announcements as I feel they are appropriate and needed for my ship. I can see that covering those necessary safety regulations each trip as the cruise line dictates is very important. We certainly don’t want to end up shipwrecked on some uncharted desert isle!

As far as the instruction to have teams and team leaders for different jobs, it’s just me and my little buddy as the crew so we are going to have to do double duty on some things, assist each other in various areas, and maybe we could even get some of the passengers to volunteer to help out. They might even enjoy that.

What about the requirement to have complementary meal food service on each cruise?  We can’t offer a dining room, a chef, a kitchen, or a buffet but, it is a great idea to offer a free picnic lunch to our passengers. All we need is a picnic basket with some sandwiches and beverages since we are just out to sea for a three-hour cruise.

The captain concluded:

I think I get the point. Why are we here? What is our mission? No matter the size of the ship, the size of its crew, or the number of passengers on board, the idea is that all our customers and our crew have a safe and enjoyable time at sea. As captain, what I first need to do is make sure all legal requirements are followed. Then I need to apply in my context the principles, not necessarily all of the exact details, given in the instructions. When I successfully do that, the cruise line’s purpose and mission will be accomplished. We will have a safe and happy crew and safe and happy customers, and that’s what we all want.

Upon this realization, the captain exclaimed, “We can do this!”

(And so he did, and they all lived happily ever after.)

The End.

I believe that Dan’s story put congregational size into the proper perspective. Mike Rasmussen made the statement publicly that he believes a congregation of a pastor and three active members could implement a team-based/pastor-led structure, and could appoint faith, hope and love avenue champions. I know many eyes glazed over at that comment, but as Dan points out, the healthy church initiatives apply to the fellowship group of four just as clearly as they apply to a congregation of forty. It’s the implementation that will naturally look different.

And to the pastor or fellowship group facilitator out there who may be asking the same question “Why am I even here?”, I hope and pray that Dan’s little parable will give them clarity of what we are asking of them, and the clear understanding and acceptance that…no matter how small…they can do this!

Church Hack: Missional Living

In relationship with our Triune God and in community with one other, we engage in our neighborhoods shining the light and sharing the love of Christ. It is not our own goodness that shapes our motivations and behavior, but we are compelled by the love of Christ and empowered by the Spirit to live differently – interested in the lives and experiences of others and joyfully engaging with our neighbors. In his BELLS model, Michael Frost shares a framework that helps us develop missional habits in our everyday lives.

Embracing Diversity

In the United States, February is designated as Black History Month. It is a time to remember the experiences and celebrate the contributions of Black people in America. The month-long observance was pioneered by Carter G. Woodson, who instituted Negro History Week in 1926. Educators at Kent State University are credited with first observing a month-long celebration in 1969, and other educational institutions adopted the practice in subsequent years. President Ford recognized Black History Month in 1976, stating the all Americans should “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of Black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.”

For many, acknowledging and celebrating Black History Month is routine.  However, we should not forget why the observance exists — some histories and stories are “too-often neglected.” Human beings have a bad habit of separating ourselves into social groups, centering ourselves and our own stories, and overlooking and silencing those we consider the “other.” One way to describe this phenomenon is bias, and bias is not unique to one group of people. We all have biases, to some extent, and act on them without even consciously thinking about it. Black History Month is one example of an attempt to bring focus on stories that are too-often neglected; however, it is neither the only example, nor is it the only one that is needed. There are many stories that need to be heard.

When thinking about the children and youth you serve, is there space for all of their stories to be heard? Are your young people free to culturally express themselves? Does your congregation celebrate diversity by sharing stories that are too-often neglected? In the book of Revelation, the apostle John shares a vision of heaven:

After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” (Revelation 7:9-10)

This image of heaven gives us a clue that ethnicity and culture have some sort of eternal value. Our ethnic and cultural differences reflect God’s beauty and creativity. At the same time, those saints from different backgrounds are united in their worship of God. Diversity in unity is part of God’s design for humanity. Our cultural differences should be celebrated, and our unity in Christ should be celebrated even more.

If you do not have experience cultivating diversity, here are some tips:

  1. Come to terms with your own bias. We all have biases and comfort zones which have caused us to value some stories more than others. Part of following Christ involves striving to rid ourselves of these biases (Leviticus 19:15; 1 Timothy 5:21; James 3:16-18; 1 John 2:9-11). One helpful resource is Project Implicit, a website that has several implicit bias tests you can take for free. Visit:https:// implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/takeatest.html
  2. Get educated about those different from you. We all have to work to decenter our own story. A great way to do this is to listen to the stories of others. If you are new to this journey, here are a few books that can help you get started: One Blood by John M. Perkins, Be the Bridge by Latasha Morrison, and The Third Option by Miles McPherson.
  3. Cultivate cross-cultural relationships. Form intentional relationships with people of different backgrounds. Allow yourself to be shaped by different cultures, and open yourself to new perspectives.
  4. Talk to your youth. After doing some internal work, ask your young people if they feel free to express who they are culturally. Inquire to see if they feel like they are hearing stories from people who are culturally different. Discuss with them ways to create an environment that embraces diversity and celebrates our unity in Christ. You will likely want to involve parents in these conversations.
  5. Develop a rhythm of celebrating diversity as an act of worship. God made humanity diverse, and sharing our stories is a way to celebrate God’s greatness. We all need to hear stories of people from different backgrounds, even if those cultures are not represented in our group. Learning about different cultures and people groups humanizes us and better equips us to love like Jesus, who loved without partiality.

I pray your children and youth learn to see Christ in others, no matter their skin tone, hair texture, eye shape, or language spoken. May we all learn to worship God for the beauty of diversity.

Dishon Mills, Generations Ministry Coordinator, US

Gospel Reverb – The Temptation of Jesus w/ Gary Deddo

The Temptation of Jesus w/ Gary Deddo

Video unavailable (video not checked).

Listen in as host, Anthony Mullins and Gary Deddo, GCS professor and retired GCS President, unpack these lectionary passages:

March 6 – 1st Sunday of Lent
Luke 4:1-13 “The Temptation of Jesus”
21:09

March 13 – 2nd Sunday of Lent
Luke 13:31-35 “Listen”
36:35                                       

March 20 – 3rd Sunday of Lent
Luke 13:1-9 “Repent or Perish”
46:29                    

March 27 – 4th Sunday of Lent
Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32 “Sinners Coming Near”
58:25

If you get a chance to rate and review the show, that helps a lot. And invite your fellow preachers and Bible lovers to join us!

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Program Transcript


The Temptation of Jesus with Gary Deddo

Welcome to the Gospel Reverb podcast. Gospel Reverb is an audio gathering for preachers, teachers, and Bible thrill seekers. Each month, our host, Anthony Mullins, will interview a new guest to gain insights and preaching nuggets mined from select passages of scripture, and that month’s Revised Common Lectionary.

The podcast’s passion is to proclaim and boast in Jesus Christ, the one who reveals the heart of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And now onto the episode.

Anthony:  Hello friends, and welcome to the latest episode of Gospel Reverb. Gospel Reverb is a podcast devoted to bringing you insights from scripture, found in the Revised Common Lectionary, and sharing commentary from a Christ-centered and Trinitarian view.

I’m your host Anthony Mullins, and it is my joy and delight to welcome this month’s guests, Dr. Gary Deddo. Gary is the former president of Grace Communion Seminary because of his recent retirement. Congratulations, my friend! And he has a PhD from the University of Aberdeen. He worked for twenty years in campus ministry with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship and later as senior editor with InterVarsity Press. Gary continues to teach courses in theology for Grace Communion Seminary. And I recently completed his course on the Christology of TF Torrance, which was definitely enlightening and hard work, but it was really, really good work. Gary, thank you for joining us today and welcome to the podcast.

And for those who may not know you in our listening audience, would you mind telling us a little bit about yourself and your family, and what’s going on in your neck of the woods?

Gary: Anthony, thanks for that introduction. I came to GCI twelve years ago through Joe Tkach, who was then the President, and he invited me to start speaking and then I began teaching for the seminary.

So, it’s been a short journey with GCI compared to so many others, but it’s been a joy and a privilege. And yes, I have recently retired from being the president, but will continue to serve by teaching for the seminary, also helping out on the GCI side on a project-by-project design.

The GCI headquarters actually jumped over me. I’ve been living in the Midwest here outside of Chicago the whole time, but we started out in Glendora and then the headquarters jumped (from Glendora, California) over me all the way to Charlotte, North Carolina. And I stayed here.

I have three grown children. And all three are now married. The last one, just this last summer. We now have six grandchildren, four with my oldest daughter and two with my son, who’s in the middle. We do a bit of traveling to see the grandkids or they travel here. But it’s been great to see them online too. We do a lot of that back and forth to stay in touch.

What’s ahead for me is working part-time for GCI and continuing to teach.  But other than that, I’m open and looking for the Lord’s leading as to how to use my time now in my retirement.

Anthony: Well, as a fellow grandpa to another grandpa, this is a great season of life and congratulations on your grandchildren.

Gary, as you reflect on your experience and instructing students in theology, I’m curious as we get started, what would you say is the primary, most important theological instructions that you’ve given to your students and could give to our listening audience?

Gary: Well, anybody who knows me, won’t be surprised at my answer because you probably heard it about thirty-five times, if not more. And that is, the whole of scripture is meant to answer and ask one question.

And that is, who is God? That’s the primary and central question of life, not just theological.  Scripture is meant to answer who is God. And then out of that, we come to see who we are in relationship to God. And of course, the primary answer to that question is Jesus Christ himself. He is God’s answer that tells us who God is and how God is related to us, and we are related to God. So, all of scripture ought to be understood with that question and the Bible’s answer to that question: of course, Jesus.  It’s not a theologian’s point of view that makes that the central question – Jesus himself makes himself the central question all throughout the New Testament.  And in the center of the Gospel of Mark, he asked the very pointed question at the center of his ministry, who do others say that I am? And then he turns to the disciples and says, who do you say that I am? All turns on that question and the answer that Jesus Christ himself is God’s, as it were, final answer to that.

In meeting with students years ago, I would often have seekers ask the question after reading the New Testament and they would ask me, “Gary, I don’t really get this. It seems to me that as we’re reading these passages in the New Testament, Jesus ends up talking an awful lot about himself.”

And I’d have to answer, “Exactly. That’s right.” And of course, the rest of the New Testament is a witness to him. So, it’s not this kind of “the who question and the who answer” is not just something fancy and made up by somebody.  It is the question all the way through all of scripture. That’s the first thing.

And the second thing is – as we discover who the God revealed in Jesus Christ is – would be that God is not a creature. God is not a created being. And therefore, this God who’s revealed himself in scripture cannot be understood in human terms.

We can’t project our image of how human things work, especially this fallen world, and project it on God. In other words, we can’t understand God in terms of ourselves as we are apart from God. And this is a common mistake. God is the incomparable one. And John McKenna, who used to teach before he passed away for GCS and GCI, always said, “This is the great I am. He can only be compared to himself.”

In knowing God, then we see in God’s own terms. God defines himself by himself and in himself and in person, in the person of Christ. And on that basis, then we understand who God is, and then see ourselves as reflections of that. But a mistake is to think that God is somewhat just like us, but bigger.

No, God is not a creature. So, any kinds of answers or questions that try to comprehend God in terms of human terms, they make a mistake and an error. Avoiding that would be the second thing, I’d have to say, the second biggest lesson to be learned and to be remembered all the time, studying scripture, preaching, teaching, and even as it were, counseling ourselves, thinking ourselves.

Anthony: I appreciated what you said about the whole of scripture is asking the question, who is this God. And that really does change the dynamic of the way that we read even the Old Testament, as Jesus Christ being the hermeneutic.

And that leads me to my next question about scripture and the way we think about God. You know, this podcast seeks to be Christocentric, Christ-centered, and Trinitarian in its perspective for preachers and teachers and Bible students who make up the majority of our listening audience. It’s a big question, but what does it really mean to be Christ-centered and Trinitarian in preaching and teaching?

Gary: Yes. Well, you’ve already touched on it, but God himself came in person to tell us and show us who he really is. So, the prophets came first, and they told us about who God is, and God prepared the way through those prophets. But finally, God himself came himself, in person, in flesh and blood, in time and space to tell us and show us who he is himself.

The easiest way to say that is, in Jesus Christ we have the self-revelation of God. God himself explaining himself in terms of himself by himself to us. So, we’re not projecting ourselves on God. God has made himself known in Jesus Christ personally, directly in our time and in our space and in ways in which, by the Holy Spirit, we can begin to grasp the nature, and the character, the purpose of God from beginning of time to the end of time.

This is God’s only self-revelation. The image that I give here is:  if the Old Testament prophets, as it were, painted portraits, paintings of God. Right? And then we have these portraits, let’s say in a museum with portraits of God and you go in there and you find the portrait of Amos and you find the portrait of Jeremiah and you find the portrait of Moses (the [first] five books of the Old Testament.)

And you find these paintings. Then you’re in the room and you’re trying to think out, you look at this painting, and you look at that painting, and you look at the other painting.  And then you say, “Okay. I’m getting an idea of who God is by looking at this painting, that painting, this book of the Old Testament, that book of the Old Testament.”

And yeah, you’d have some clues. Absolutely. God sent those prophets who are faithful. You’d have some clues putting them together. But one of the clues is look and wait for God to do something unique, to make himself clear, to make himself known. Well, Jesus then is the one who walks into the room.

He walks into the room himself in time and space and flesh and blood. And now if you’re in the room and he’s in the room with you, you’re in a different situation, aren’t you? So, you can say two things at that point. You can look at all the portraits and then look at this Jesus who’s in the room with you now and say, “You know, Jesus given all of what I thought about these portraits, you really need to change your face.”

Or you could conclude – you look at him, you behold him in person in time and space and flesh and blood, even with human words and human actions, as a whole – and then you can realize, “Oh my goodness! Now I see a bit reflected in each of these portraits and some of what I thought was wrong. And some of what I thought was right and closer, but even now I need to gaze on your face so that I might even appreciate more and more what was reflected in each of these independent portraits, because you’re the whole thing.  You’re the real thing in person.”

And that’s exactly the crisis that Jesus brought about when he showed up in the room.  Are they going to interpret Jesus in terms of their preunderstandings of him, even on the basis of the Old Testament prophets, if they got that right, even half right?

Or will they let Jesus himself, as he is in the wholeness of his person, all that he said, all that he did, all that he promised – will they let that then guide all their understanding of all of scripture, including what his apostles [taught], the ones he appointed as his personal authoritative spokespersons, his representatives, the apostles?  Will we understand all of scripture then in terms of who Jesus Christ is and revealed himself to be as we find him in scripture?

That’s what we mean by Christ-centered and the word you use, the more technical word, which is proper, is he is the interpretive key, the hermeneutic.

Another example I use is if the whole of scripture is a who-done-it mystery novel, and when you read the novel the first time like that (and probably many of you have) you read through the whole thing.  If it’s a good novel, there are all kinds of clues along the way. And you’re trying to pick them up and you’re trying to figure ahead of the reveal at the end, who did it. Then you finally find out who did it,having read the whole thing.

Now, what happens if you go back and read that mystery novel once again? You know who did it, but what happens is when you go through it the second time, or the third time or the fourth time, you realize, “Oh, that was the clue!  That’s what was there. That’s why the author put that in there. That’s what it’s about,” because you see how it points ahead.

And so, it creates a hermeneutical circle that’s proper, not improper, where you interpret everything around the center because we know who-done-it. And now we read all scripture, not as if we didn’t [know.] We don’t become a hypothetical unbeliever when we read the scripture again, to see if we can prove it all over again on the basis of a few verses.

No, we know who did it. That again is being Christ-centered, the interpretive key of the entire story. So that’s the Christ-centered part.

There is also the Trinitarian part. I guess I can say a little bit about that. Oh, I can see if I can say just a little bit about it.

Anthony:  Go for it!

Gary:  When we meet Jesus in person, what we find, he then gives us the final and definitive understanding of the Father. He directs us to the Father, to the heart of the Father who remains invisible. The Father is not incarnate. Only the Son is incarnate, but the Son knows the Father from all eternity. He gives the final interpretation, the final understanding of the Father.

He comes with insider knowledge, being a member from eternity, who is now incarnate as well. He has insider knowledge and sorts it all out for us, being the perfect image of the Father. So, he then takes us to the Father, the one in time and space and flesh and blood in person. He takes us to the Father, but more than that, he also takes us and sends us the Holy Spirit.

He introduces us and gives us the normative understanding, that cannot be surpassed, as to who the Holy Spirit is. And in a matter of fact, he makes clear then that God is actually the Trinity. God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And we’ve come to define that as three persons in the one being – not three beings, not one person – but three persons in the one being of God, in a way that we can’t understand because God’s not a creature.  It’s not like us in any way, but the only reason we know God is for sure – God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – is because Jesus himself tells us.

That’s how we know; he tells us. And he shows us in his actions, the nature and character of God, so to follow Jesus is to become Trinitarian. Otherwise, if you deny what he says about his relationship to the Father and who the Father is, when we deny his relationship to the Holy Spirit and who the Holy Spirit is, we are not following Jesus.

He takes us to the Father and he sends us the Holy Spirit, and he describes to us then what we cannot know in any other way, except we are told by someone who knows.  He is the one who knows the Father and knows the Holy Spirit from all eternity and has come in our time and space then to finally sort that all out, and tell us, “So then go into all the world and baptize them in the name, the one name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” [Matthew 28:19]

To be a follower of Jesus necessarily means being Trinitarian in that way. Otherwise, we’re not following him and what he has told us, we’re not believing in all of what he’s told us and all of who he is.

These words, Trinitarian and Christocentric, or Christ-centered are not prescriptive. They’re descriptive. You say, okay, so who are we? Well, descriptively, we ended up being those who believe God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, one being in three persons. And we interpret all of who God is, what God is doing, and all of scripture in terms of who is revealed, who God is revealed to be, in Jesus Christ.

These are descriptive; they’re after the fact.  We say, yes, we’re Trinitarian. We’re Christ-centered. That’s who we are descriptively, but ultimately, we’re the ones who worship God through the Son and in the Holy Spirit, according to scripture.  That’s who we are.

Well, maybe that’s enough.

Anthony: Well, it’s a lot to consider. And what I hear you saying, Gary, is let’s continue to look to the unique Son of God, the one who reveals who Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is, Jesus Christ, the living Word.

And let’s go find him in the written word now, shall we?  Let’s go look at the Bible passages for this month.

We’re going to unpack four different texts. They start in Luke 4:1 – 13, “The temptation of Jesus,” for the first Sunday of Lent. That’s March the 6th. Then Luke 13:31 – 35, “Listen,” for the second Sunday of Lent, March 13th. Luke 13:1-9, “Repent or perish,” third Sunday of Lent on March the 20th. And then finally, Luke chapter 15:1-3 and 11b – 32, “Sinners coming near,” on the fourth Sunday of Lent March 27.

Let me read the first pericope, which is Luke 4:1 – 13. It comes from the NRSV. It is the Revised Common Lectionary passage for March the 6th.

Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished.  The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.”  Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’”

Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world.  And the devil said to him, “To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please.  If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” 

 Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’”

Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying 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 protect you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’”

 Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”  When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.

Gary, if you were preaching this passage, what would have your time and attention and focus?

Gary: Well, you can guess from this, we’re going to first learn something about who Jesus is. The context is important here; this comes after Jesus is baptized. And he is baptized uniquely now with the Holy Spirit so that people watching and witnessing, see that this is the one filled with the Holy Spirit of God, one in human form, who has the Holy Spirit now for us, as he is filled with the Holy Spirit at this point in a new way. We have to say, Jesus had the Holy Spirit, as it were, from all eternity, but now he has the Holy Spirit in a unique way for us and for his public ministry. So, his public ministry starts here, but what’s the first thing that happens then in his public ministry?

It shows us that his primary work is to deal with the very source of evil in our created world. This is the real battle. This is the real center. This is the real task. It is to overcome evil and its primary effect, which is death, destruction. This is where the real battle goes on. And of course, we see this throughout his ministry, that he’s dealing with the demonic.  And I think sometimes we don’t really pay much attention to that, but this is the central battle, remembering that context.

And of course, he’s not doing it for himself. Everything he does in his incarnate life is for us and our salvation. He does nothing for himself; it’s for us. And he does it in our flesh, in our place, and on our behalf.

So, this is what he’s doing in dealing with the tempter himself. So I’d have to say that’s where we need to start, is to realize the context and what this shows us about who Jesus is, why he came, and where the real battle is.

Anthony: That’s good. And as we focus on Jesus, I want to ask you, what is he ultimately being tempted to do or not to do?

And what does it have to teach us?

Gary: Right. Well, if you look at the temptations and put them all together, instead of separating them up right away, we see that the evil one is attempting to break his trust and worship relationship with the Father in the Spirit. Right? This is what he’s trying to do is to break that relationship, to destroy it, to ruin it.

And how does he do it? The evil one tempts him to disbelieve in his Father and in the Holy Spirit, working in him, to distrust. And how does he do that? By lying about the situation. He is a liar and a deceiver and attempting to deceive and lie to Jesus in order to break that trust relationship that he has with the Father in the Holy Spirit.  That’s his main point of destruction.

It’s not just pain or suffering or things like that. It is actually to destroy the relationship between Jesus and God. And he knows that this is the central battle himself. He knows who his enemy is. And so, he attempts to destroy that. Furthermore, notice the nature of the deceptions here, “If you are,” and then he [the tempter] says, “then you’ll do this or that or the other, if you are the Son of God.”

Now there is a little point of truth there. Is Jesus the Son of God? Yes, he is. Does Jesus already know that? Yes, he does. But see the if? “If, if, if you are then you’ll do this,” in other words, don’t you have to do something or other to prove it, to demonstrate it? You see, rather than Jesus is resting in it, it needs no proof. It needs no demonstration.

It is brute real fact, reality. The trust relationship is there. It is freely given. It doesn’t need to be proved. It doesn’t need to be demonstrated. It is the rock bottom truth. But each one tempts him to say, “Yeah, there is a truth there, but you have to prove it, don’t you?  At least prove it to yourself,” which of course is impossible.

And if Jesus were to go ahead and do that, of course that means, “Yeah, rather than trusting in the love of the Father and the presence of the Spirit, I need additional proof.” Well, that shows unbelief, that shows distrust:  I need something else to confirm it that would be as great or greater than the actual love and relationship that he actually has.

And see here the tempter says, “Now here’s the criteria I want you to use. Here’s how you set up this test.” So what could happen that would shift Jesus’ trust over to this criterion and get him to be at least a hypothetical unbeliever for a while?  Saying, “Okay, let’s say I’m not the Son of God now what’s that test, Satan. What’s that test? Oh, there’s a criterion. My ability to turn a stone into bread. Okay. Yeah. If I pass that test, if I pass that test, then I can go back and trust in that relationship with the Father.”

But if it doesn’t happen, so do you see the subtlety here? And of course, this is the same – Satan has no other “MO,” mode of operation – it’s always the same towards us, all those who belong to Christ.  It’s the same thing to get us to test and to prove, to become hypothetical unbelievers, and then act out of that to see if we can get back to where we are. Well, Jesus would have absolutely none of that. He would not be tested, especially under the criteria that the devil gives him.

It is a reality that he trusts in fully and completely, so that we too might join him in that trust and confidence. He’s doing this for us. He’s winning the battle for us, not for himself.  But for us, he is defeating the evil one, beginning to defeat the evil one right here, right there, right at the beginning and that follows right through his whole ministry, leading up to the cross.

So Jesus was not fooled at all. And he knows that test actually is the test that leads to unbelief and to a disconnect from God. What we see going on is really how evil works.

Anthony: Yeah, it seems to me as I was listening to you, it just reminds me of how everything truly hinges on the love relationship between Father and Son in the communion of the Holy Spirit. And thanks be to God that Jesus rested in who he was!

As I look at this passage, Gary, it looks like the Holy Spirit intentionally led Jesus into the wilderness. And we know this was a unique leading for a specific purpose, but I’m just curious, do you think the Spirit sometimes leads us into the wilderness? And if so, what instruction and encouragement can we take from this passage?

Gary: Well, one thing I’d have to say is we’re always in the wilderness. This is why it is a wilderness experience.

Jesus knows that and prays that in John 17, “Father, I don’t pray that you take them out of the world, but that you sanctify them in the world.” That process of sanctification, sharing in Christ’s sanctification by the same Holy Spirit that he had for us and then sent to us upon his Ascension, is to enable us to go through this wilderness experience.

What the rest of the New Testament calls, the present dark age or the evil generation, this is where we are all the time. But now we too have that same Spirit as a down payment. We don’t have it in fullness even, but we do have it as a down payment or as an inheritance, or there is a ceiling that’s yet to be opened.

We, being joined to Jesus as we trust in the Holy Spirit and it illuminates the word for us so that we become those who believe, we are in the wilderness for the sake to serve this risen Jesus, to be witnesses to him in this present darkness, in this evil age. And we have the same provision then of sharing in Jesus’ ongoing ministry in this wilderness time.

So yes, there’s always the potential to be tempted in one of these ways.  We can talk about the three different ways shown here.  But yes, we’re always open to the potential to being distrusting, to have something or someone, something come into our view or in our lives where we say, “Well, maybe I can’t trust God.  Maybe I should put him on test.”

Or maybe God is putting me on test. That’s the other thing, the evil one wants us to think that God has put us on test. And so, we have to prove it and prove it to ourselves. And all by whatever our obedience, or even by our degree of how much faith we have, and try to measure it quantitatively, something like that.

And so yes, we are still in the wilderness, but with the provision of God’s word, with his full revelation in Jesus Christ, according to his word and with the Holy Spirit, actually working in our lives.  And along the way, the Lord can indeed provide us with other fellow travelers who realize we’re in the same battle, we’re in the same wilderness with them in which there will be temptations.

But these are preparations. As Jesus in the wilderness here, is a preparation for his entire ministry, right? Just like Israel was prepared in the wilderness as well. There’s a parallel here to Israel’s experience and Jesus’ experience, capping that off. Now yes, we are in the wilderness subject to temptation, but there is provision for us.

So even though we’re tempted, and we’re not guilty when we’re tempted, but we are to use the provision God gives us to resist that temptation, to remember the word of God and put our trust in him, as trust in his faithfulness and faith and his faithfulness to preserve us. And if we fall, to renew us and restore us, to go back as often as we need to, because (well, we’ll get to that later) he’ll receive us back every time we come back to him. He has made full provision for us in this wilderness.

Anthony: Hallelujah, praise God that as we walk through the wilderness, we have the gift of grace, of our Lord’s presence with us. And we can see in him, even here, the overcoming of the evil one, and we know that full defeat happens in his death, resurrection, and ascension. Hallelujah, praise God!

Our next pericope is Luke 13:31 – 35. It comes from the NRSV. It is the Revised Common Lectionary passage for March 13th. Gary, would you read it for us please?

Gary: Yes, it’d be happy to.

At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.”  

He said to them, “Go and tell that fox for me, ‘Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work.  Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.’ Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! See, your house is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’”

Anthony: Gary, what stands out to you from this passage?

Gary: Well, it’s a little bit complicated; again, the context is important. We have these, Pharisees coming to them. And I think it’s another kind of test where Jesus turns the table.  But again, we’re primarily to learn about him, who he is, and what he’s up to.

In order to do that, in order to receive his word, you have to let him turn the tables and set the terms. The Pharisees tried to set the terms of the discussion, but Jesus has none of that. He is Lord. He will not have them lorded over them because they are not lords. And so, he turns the whole thing around on them to get them to question, to ask the question who is this, then of him, rather than them questioning him and trying to get on his good side.

Anthony: Taking this text at face value, it seems like the Pharisees are actually trying to protect Jesus instead of the normal course of action. Based on what you just said, I’m curious, what’s really going on here?

Gary: Well, we don’t really know exactly. All right. So when you have Pharisees coming, we know that some Pharisees in the end, ended up believing, not a small number, but certainly not a huge number of them but it might be a mixed multitude.

Some may have been more, “Well, let’s help Jesus out.”  And others, as you know, “Let’s see if we can get on his good side and appear as if we’re on his side, but we’re not really.” So, we don’t know, but Jesus doesn’t even bother to figure that out exactly. And we don’t need to either.

And so, where they start, “Get away from here for Herod wants to kill you.” And of course, Herod was viewed as the opposition to the Pharisees. Herod was more aligned with the Sadducees. So many of them, some of them who came to him may have had a secondary agenda, a hidden agenda. They’re trying to get him on their side against Herod. We don’t really know.

But Jesus – notice, as usual, he doesn’t answer their question because it’s not the right question. See, Jesus was always saying, “Here’s the right question. You’re asking the wrong question. I’m here to tell you what the right question is.  I’m here to be the right question. I’m the one you need to be asking about here and not protecting.”

Jesus doesn’t need their protection. Right? So notice they come to him and recommend what he does: get away from here. And Jesus said to them, “Go and tell that Fox for me.”  You see who’s in charge here.

So Jesus then directs them:  go and tell that Fox for me.  He doesn’t even use the strongest language, but he tips his hand that trusting that Herod would be the wrong thing to do. Yeah, that’s right. But see, it’s a small thing for Jesus. You think he knows that?  He doesn’t need to be told.

Now notice next, he starts talking about himself. “Listen here. Listen to me. Don’t tell me, listen to me. Are you going to?” Now some of the Pharisees may have, and some of them probably didn’t.

“Listen, I am casting out demons. So, what does that tell you about me and performing cures today and tomorrow? Not just one-offs here and there. I am the one who brings healing. Who does that come from? What does that tell you about my relationship with the God that you claim to know? That should tell you something. Does it?”

You see what he’s telling them, raises the question. It forces them to deal with (well, not forces them) it invites them strongly. It confronts them with the question: who am I?

And then it seems to me, this third phrase here is a bit of a parable. “And on the third day, I finished my work.” Right. And they’re going to ask, “The third day of what? When is that going to happen?”

I think he sets that out there for those who are really honest seekers of the Pharisees. They will wonder about that, maybe some of them, maybe Nicodemus, will come to him and ask him more about that third day thing. But of course, on the actual third day after he’s crucified, maybe some of them, he planted a seed in their hearts and in their minds, “On that third day, I finished my work.”  And they may reflect and be given another opportunity by the Holy Spirit to see who Jesus is and put their trust in him as the Son of God, who is the Savior of the world. That’s who he is, who he’s related to, and why he’s come.

Well, he does go on here. I think that’s what’s happening between him and the Pharisees. He’s making himself the issue, turning the tables on them, and exercising his authority in this parabolic way to get them to ask the right question and to pay attention to him.

Anthony: Well, hopefully I asked the right question here about the Pharisees.

We read about our Lord Jesus’ heart for Jerusalem. What can we take away from that?

Gary: Right. So, verse 34, he goes on and now, we hear his thoughts out loud, right?  This, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, in that repeated way, shows this kind of longing and agony, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it. See, he’s already anticipating what’s happening. (Sorry. This is Luke 13.)

So, this is on in his ministry compared to the first pericope we read, which is at the beginning. He knows what’s happening here and how people are responding, especially the leadership, and so, he’s aware of that.  But then he tells us more, not only that he’s aware of the danger that is before him, but yes, he tells us of his heart.

I desire to gather your children together. That is those who belong to Jerusalem. And of course, and its temple, those who worship the God who is worshiped in Jerusalem and his very presence is represented there in the holy of Holies, in the temple. Oh, how often I have desired to gather your children together (and here a very touching metaphor) as a hen gathers her brood under her wings. And then the agony, and you were not willing (verse 34b.)

We see right into the heart of Jesus, and therefore into the heart of the Father and the heart of the Spirit, desiring to gather and yet seeing the resistance to him. We see right into his heart, but they are rejecting, they are resisting God’s grace in person. In person! And of course, others of Jesus’ parables say the same thing, right?

When the owner of the field comes and not the servants and the slaves, and they kill the Son, not the servants. So many of them point in the same direction as this. But yes, this shows us the heart of the Father, the heart of the Son, the heart of the Spirit.

Anthony: Yeah. And as we look at the heart of the triune God, we like what we see so very much.

Okay. Let’s transition to our next text, which is Luke13:1 – 9, which comes from the NRSV. It is the Revised Common Lectionary passage for March the 20th.

At that very time there were some present who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.  He asked them, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans?  No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as they did.  Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them—do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others living in Jerusalem?  No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did.”

Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and found none.  So he said to the gardener, ‘See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?’  He replied, ‘Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it.  If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’”

 

All right, Gary, unless you repent, you will all perish. There seems to be much to unpack here theologically. What should preachers preach?

Gary: Well, again reading any section in context, and of course, ultimately the context is the whole book of Luke, for instance, here and also the entire gospels and then the New Testament really.  So, the context here is we see people posing a question to Jesus.

But they don’t know and they are concerned about who this Jesus is, and they may very well also have an ultimate alternative motive, a hidden motive, or be entertaining unrecognized and false beliefs or assumptions. They’re going to come and tell Jesus something:  the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with sacrifices.

The Galileans may be actually a zealot type group that’s started a riot or an insurrection and then how Pilate to dealt with them. All right, but you see Jesus again, doesn’t answer their question directly. He asks them. See, he’s trying to get them to deal with him and who God really is.

So, he has to stop them. And that’s why he asked them a question: “Do you think that these Galileans suffered in this way because they were worse sinners than the all the other Galileans? No, I tell you.” (verse 2-3b)

You see, they’re talking about other people. “What about those people? Jesus. What about those people? What about those people? Aren’t they worse?”

And of course, how they’re thinking is some deserve worse treatment than others. “Don’t they? How are you going to answer that?”

It’s at least their assumption, if not some kind of ulterior motive going on here and maybe in the group, some present, had both, but Jesus is not interested in it.

He’s not going to make a judgment. He’s got the more fundamental concern, and you see, they’re not thinking about their own repentance. They’re avoiding that question. “Did they get what they deserve?” That’s what they’re talking about.

Jesus is saying, “The issue is you guys. Are you willing to repent? Whether you think you’re a worse sinner or not, that’s the issue.  Unless you, yourselves repent and recognize your total need for the total grace of God, completely undeservable. So, are you asking me this question to avoid your needing to repent and receive God’s forgiveness?”

A lot of the game at the time was what God wants you to do primarily is to avoid the need to receive his forgiveness. So, if you were a perfect person, you would have absolutely no need to repent or to receive forgiveness.

That’s what they think the game is.  That isn’t the game! The game is to be in right relationship and to receive forgiveness whenever you need it, because it’s there for you, not to see how minimally you can do it. And so that you can say you’re more righteous than another. “I don’t need to repent as much as somebody else.”

It’s not a comparison game. And I think that’s the game they’re playing, and they want to see where Jesus lines up in the comparison game of who needs to repent and who doesn’t need to repent, who needs more or who needs less.

And he’s giving them a warning: If you’re attempting to avoid the need of repentance, you are in real danger. This is a warning. You will perish just as they did. In other words, yeah, they should perish; someone should perish. He’s saying, be concerned about yourselves first because God calls all to repent, all to receive his forgiveness. Whether you’re a worst offender or a less worse offender, it doesn’t make any difference.

We all need the grace of God, total grace for total forgiveness. That’s what we need. And he does give them: this is a warning. It’s not what he wants. Right? Here, what I’m always interested in is why so often our first reaction is to hear a warning as if it’s a prediction and something God wants.

Whereas, even in a human situation, which is not perfect by any means, but when we warn somebody strongly, is that because we don’t care about them, and we want them to experience the negative consequence we’re warning them about?  Or is it because we want them to avoid it?

So, the strength of Jesus’ warnings are exactly proportional to his love for them.  Exactly proportional. They’re just as strong in both directions.  Someone who won’t warn another doesn’t care; he would just say nothing. So, this is a strict warning about what is apparently a real possibility if they refuse to repent and they say, “Well, I’m not going to repent. They have to. They certainly have to repent more than me. They’re worse sinners than I am. Why should I have to repent? Look, they’re not even repenting.”

You see all that comparison game hiding behind. If they would somehow manage to do that into eternity, and because the whole point is their pride wants to avoid ever having to repent and playing the comparison game in order to avoid it, they will come to hate forgiveness and to avoid it and therefore to avoid God and to repudiate and to hate his charity, to hate his compassion, to hate his goodness, to want nothing to do with it because it’s so beneath you and beneath me.  That’s the real danger here that Jesus is giving them a very strong warning.

Yes. You’re concerned about the medicine others will taste. What about the medicine you might taste? That’s the issue here. So again, Jesus turns the tables exactly like he did before and saying, look, it’s about you and God and me. That’s the issue here.

Anthony: So what’s going on with the fig tree?  Is it just a bad fruit tree or is there more than meets the eye?

Gary: Yeah, I think he’s moving on a little bit here, following again, a parable, even like the other ones. I think there is a parable at the end of three days, the third day.  Here we have another parable, more extensive. The idea here is, why not cut the tree down now because it’s not bearing fruit.

And the comeback is the gardener says, “No, we can wait because there’s other things that could be done dig around it, put manure on it. And if it bears fruit next year, well and good. But if not, then yes, you can cut it down.”

The point here is, well, why do I need to repent now, Jesus?  Maybe I’ll think about that later.

You know, aren’t you going to answer this question about the Galileans?  Didn’t they deserve it more than others? And Jesus is saying just because there’s a delay in the final judgment – even though as a fig tree, the leaders, especially the leaders of the Jews, are not bearing fruit here – doesn’t mean there won’t be a final day and an end point when God’s judgment does come.  And if your hearts are hardened and you’ll never turn away, you won’t receive, if you won’t receive his forgiveness. So don’t presume upon this time now. Yes, God is patient. God is giving you time to repent.

Don’t take advantage of that. Don’t play God. That is a very dangerous thing to do. Your hearts may become so hardened that you will never turn.  Today is the day of salvation. I think what Jesus is trying to do is get them to not put off, but to deal with him today, even though yes, God is patient.

But to put God to the test, and say well, I’ll try to get away with it as long as I can. That’s a dangerous game. And so yes, there is a delay. There is a delay in Christ’s return. But we are not to take advantage of God’s kindness, right? And there are other places in the New Testament that talk like this, to not take advantage of it and think we can play God.

I think he’s cutting off that variable, that escape route. I think he senses there was some in the crowd that want to escape the need to repent, to receive the total grace that God has to provide us and that we need.

Anthony: Our fourth and final passage for this month comes from Luke 15: 1 – 3, and 11b-32 from the NRSV.

It is the Revised Common Lectionary passage for March the 27th. Gary, would you do us the honors of reading it, please?

Gary:

Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

So, he told them this parable:

“There was a man who had two sons.  The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.’ So, he divided his property between them.  A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and traveled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living.  

When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout that country, and he began to be in need.  So, he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs.  He would gladly have filled himself with[b] the pods that the pigs were eating; and no one gave him anything.  But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger!  I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.”’  

So, he set off and went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him.  Then the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly, bring out a robe—the best one—and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.  And get the fatted calf and kill it and let us eat and celebrate; for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!’ And they began to celebrate.

“Now his elder son was in the field; and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing.  He called one of the slaves and asked what was going on.  He replied, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has got him back safe and sound.’  Then he became angry and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him.  But he answered his father, ‘Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends.  But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!’  Then the father said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.  But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.’”

Anthony: That’s a good one. All that is mine is yours. Tax collectors, sinners coming near to Jesus. Gary, what does this reveal about God in the person and work of Jesus Christ?

Gary: Yes. Well, again, this tells us actually much more about Jesus than anybody else. But it is in parabolic form. And of course, the context is the parable of the lost.  The lost sheep, the lost coin. And now we have the lost sons.  Actually, this parable is often called the parable of the prodigal son. I really call it the parable of the lost sons. That illuminates a little bit more of the story, it seems to me.

But in this, yes, Jesus is the one who welcomes anybody.  We never see him turn anyone away. And often those who respond to him are those who are unexpected, especially in the eyes of the Jewish religious leaders of the day, whether they were Sadducees or the Pharisees and including the scribes as well, because of their understanding of who God is and how they were to relate to God and how God was to relate to them in general.

So, it was surprising.  And Jesus did attract a lot of people who were unexpected. And here, tax collectors were those Jewish persons who were working for the Romans and really were, to one degree or another, traders.  They were bribed and used by the Romans to collect the tax.  Also, here is the idea of sinners, is really the Jewish leaders’ notion of who was a sinner and who wasn’t. So, it’s a technical word here, the sinners, those unexpected.

So yes, Jesus welcomes all.  Of course, welcoming children was another aspect. He welcomed all, but sometimes what is forgotten is many of those, he welcomed, rejected him.  They didn’t stay with him.  Just because they were tax collectors and sinners, didn’t itself mean that they stayed with him. I was recalling as I was reading this over again, the ten lepers that came to Jesus, only one – and he healed all ten – only one returned to give thanks to God. The others walked away.  It’s astounding and it’s grievous and it’s sad.

Yes, Jesus welcomed and even healed, but that didn’t necessarily mean that everyone he welcomed stayed with him. In other words, they didn’t receive what he had to give, and so they walked away. They left him even if they were tax collectors and sinners.

There were some Pharisees, as we know, and possibly some Sadducees, who did in the end become believers in Jesus, Nicodemus being probably the one that we know the best of all those. Jesus does indeed welcome all, that they might know the Father through him and come to receive the Spirit at the end of his ministry.

He does, and he welcomes.  He’s not a respecter of persons. He does not show partiality in who he receives, but some show partiality towards him, nevertheless. “Those who he would gather, but they would not.”

Anthony: This is a favorite parable of many, and there’s quite a bit to unpack. And I just want to give you a chance to rift, Gary, just to share whatever you’d like with our listening audience from this particular pericope.

Gary: Yes. I’ve actually given several sermons just on this one parable. There is a lot to unpack, especially to pay attention to the whole and how all the parts fit and how the other two parables lead up to it, much less Jesus’ ministry.  But as a highlight, he’s questioning the leaders of the Jewish people who object to those listening to Jesus and his message about God and God’s relationship to those who are lost. But his parable also is a word of help to all, whether leaders or potential followers, who see who God is and what it means to be in right relationship with him, who see in Jesus, the true nature of God’s heart, mind, character, purpose, will, and ways.

So, as I said before, the religious leaders were often thinking the main game is to avoid absolutely as much as possible, any need to repent.  In other words, to establish your own righteousness on the basis of following God’s laws. And if those don’t work, create laws around those laws and laws around those laws and laws around those laws.

So you can’t even get near the central law to violate it. And then God will be happy with you. You avoided the need to receive repentance. Of course, that whole pattern of avoiding too is disobedience, is distrust in who God is, the God who has a welcoming and forgiving heart. So, it seems to me here that what we see is the nature and character of Jesus and therefore of the Father.  And he’s giving all a chance to repent and believe in God through him, that is, to come to know God’s true nature, God’s true character and what it means to be in right relationship, which means to receive God’s love and God’s forgiveness, God’s renewal, God’s restoration, and finally God’s transformation to eternal life. I think that’s really what’s going on here. And so yes, the father represents God the Father and the sons represent two different approaches to who they think the Father is.

But I think here what Jesus demonstrates is neither the younger Son nor the older son know the Father’s heart, neither of them in right relationship, not just the younger, but the older. That’s the mistake that’s made. Of course, the people coming to Jesus are represented by the younger son coming back to the father.

Of course, the elder Son represents the Pharisees and Sadducees who are angry at these sinners and tax collectors, surely who are far more sinful than they are, that they shouldn’t be welcomed back like this. They shouldn’t be. So, they’re envious. They’re jealous and they’re protecting their own self-righteousness and the way they think about their relationship with God.

In the end, the parable questions, really everybody, because it presents the true picture of the nature of God’s character and renewal, but it does call for repentance, coming back to the Father.

And I think a third thing that’s missed is, I think, in terms of this parable and what it tells us about Jesus, it seems to me, is that Jesus is the true elder Son here.  And if these Pharisees and Sadducees and others were true, elder sons, what would they have done? They would have gone out and gone after the younger rebellious son to bring them back to the father. But not only do they not go out, they said they don’t deserve our going out to get them. We deserve the Father’s favor, not those lost and all.

Jesus as the true elder Son then is the one who goes out, finds the lost son, brings him back to the Father so that they can be reconciled. So that’s the ministry of Jesus, ultimately that is represented here in this parable.

Another interesting thing here is that the elder son – it’s interesting – he says he’s done everything his father has told him to do. What’s his view of the relationship that he has with his father?  Again, it’s kind of earning God’s favor, earning God’s love.  But it’s interesting; when is the first time he might be willing to admit he disobeyed?  When he’s invited to come into the banquet, he refuses. My way of characterizing is the younger son was inwardly rebellious and outwardly rebellious, both, but he began to turn around. And if you say how?  I would say is it has to be by the ministry of the Holy Spirit. That’s how, but that’s not a part of this story exactly. But it raises the question. The younger son came back by the drawing of the Holy Spirit, but then he doesn’t fully realize the love of the Father until he comes back. But he starts out with an inward rebellion and an outward rebellion, but he does repent.

And when he enters in, rather than keeping with his story, “I don’t deserve it. I don’t deserve it,” and keep punishing himself. “I don’t deserve it. I don’t deserve it. I’m not going in. No, no, no!” He fully repents. How does he repent?  By receiving his father’s forgiveness. By receiving it, that’s an even greater humility than just saying I sinned against you and sinned against heaven. He has truly his heart inwardly, and now outwardly he goes into and wears the clothing that his Father gives him that shows his true belonging.  So, he changes inwardly and outwardly.

Now what about the elder son? Outwardly, it looks like he’d been conforming, but really he was inwardly rebellious, just as rebellious as the son who left.  Inwardly, he was not willing to risk freely receiving the love of the father as it really was. He was attempting to earn what the father has freely given.

I don’t know if you’ve ever had this happen. Have you ever tried to give a gift to someone freely, just spontaneously or maybe planned, but you just wanted to give it to give it and then it’s rejected? “No. Well, let me pay you for it. Well, I’ll have to do something for you.”

I don’t know how to, how do you receive that?  Or maybe you’ve done it. I’ve done it.  It’s a rejection of it because you don’t want to be beholden to them, because you don’t want to be that close, because you don’t want to be a receiver. You want to be independent in control of your own life in control of the terms of the relationship.  You want to be in charge.

And there’s nothing like a legal relationship that does that. If you… then I. If I… then you.  We want to protect our pride and our independence, legal relationships with God and with others, if we can manage it.  Legal relationships so that the mediator becomes the law between us. And this is the inward rebellion that God, by his mercy and grace has to overcome by his word and his Spirit in us, because we will be like one of these, both outwardly rebellious and inwardly rebellious or outwardly looking like we’re conforming, but inwardly rejecting and rebelling. This is the hardness of the human heart that God, by his Spirit needs to overcome. And that the evil one wants to play on in our lives so that we have at least a modicum of distrust of God, keeping our distance and not freely receiving all that he has to give us.

And so finally though, it does come out, right? The elder son becomes outwardly rebellious. Outwardly, he refuses to go into the banquet. He refuses to hear, “Son, you’ve misunderstood me all along all. That was mine is yours all those years because you belong to me, because you’re my son.”

And the truth comes out, and I think this parable then exposes everybody’s need, whether you’ve been inwardly and outwardly rebellious or not, of course we’ve all been some of both I’m sure.  Well, if I know myself anyway.  So, this is very powerful, but also confronting. And I think some of us – sometimes I’ve asked people, how do you think of yourself or how do other people regard you?  As a goody-goody? So, you’re like the elder son?  Or you’re the outwardly rebellious one?

I think we tend to categorize ourselves and others in these two things, but Jesus shows, we both need the love of the Father that is brought to us by he himself, even in telling this parable.  He’s being the true elder Son by telling this.

Anthony: You know, as I’ve thought about this passage through the years, Gary, I can’t help as I try to think Christologically about it, that this scripture should always lead us to praise, right? If it doesn’t, we’re doing it wrong. If theology doesn’t lead us to worship, we’re doing it wrong. But as I’ve tried to think about this, Christologically, I’m grateful that Jesus, the True Son, is the one who came into the far country into the wilderness, as we were reading in an earlier passage, to rescue us, to do it on our behalf and in our place. And thanks be to God that he welcomes us, at every turn he’s willing to receive us back as we respond to the prompting of the Holy Spirit. This is good news.

And I just want to thank you for being a part of this conversation today. It was rich and there’s so much for our pastors and teachers to chew on because of what you said. And I’m just thankful that your theological mind and heart leads to an exegesis that points out the living Word in the written word.

Thank you, brother, for being a part of this conversation. And as is our typical way of ending here on Gospel Reverb, I’m going to ask that you pray over those who are listening, that they would continue to, as you said over and over, to repent, to have their mind radically changed and reoriented to God.

And I thank you for what you said as well – one other point of emphasis I wanted to mention – what you said about the warning passages, which there are many in the New Testament, that that’s always done out of love.  God in Jesus Christ never acts out of character. He can only act out of his character, which is love.

And even a warning is an act of love that draws us into right relationship with him. Thank you, brother. Would you pray over our listening audience as we close up shop here today?

Gary: Yes. Thank you. Anthony, it has been a privilege to be with you. Let me pray.

Gracious God, Father, son, and Holy Spirit, how grateful we are that we have your word and that even by your Spirit, you can give us ears to hear and hearts willing to receive.

Even though we have to die to our pride, we come alive in you. And so by your word and by your Spirit, which will be at work upon all those who hear this at a later time, because you’re the living God who continues to speak by your word. Would you use these words? Not for my sake, for GCI’s sake, but for the sake of your glory and your goodness that each one who hears this might hear your word, might hear you speaking in them, that they might hear of your true nature, your true character.

Then they might be drawn to you and be willing to die, to pride, die to self-satisfaction, leave behind the hope of any kind of self-righteousness because that’s never what you wanted or intended, but to give us yourself as a gift and all that we have in you, all that you accomplished for us, overcoming the evil one himself, and all the temptations that come to us from the world, and that the evil one plays on and the weakness of our fallen flesh.

And so Lord, we entrust your word and these words that we’ve exchanged in this recording, that you would use it for your glory to bring many to you, to strengthen and encourage all who listened to it. Draw them closer to you into a deeper trust and confidence in your holy love shown to us so powerfully in Jesus Christ that we might worship you, Father through the Son and in the Holy Spirit.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit we pray. Amen.

Thank you for being a guest of Gospel Reverb. If you like what you heard, give us a high rating and review us on iTunes, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcast content. Share this episode with a friend. It really does help us get the word out as we are just getting started. Join us next month for a new show and insights from the RCL.  Until then, peace be with you!

The Missional Church w/ Heber Ticas

The Missional Church w/ Heber Ticas

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In this episode, Cara Garrity interviews Heber Ticas. Heber is the GCI Superintendent of Latin America, a member of the GCI Board of Directors, and a champion of church planting and multiplication. Together they discuss what it means to be a missional church.

“I think about the gospel in two ways: gospel proclamation and gospel demonstration. Gospel proclamation is when we talk about Jesus, or we say, ‘Jesus loves you. He wants you, he desires you, he pursues you, he’s calling you to be in relationship and community with him.’ But gospel demonstration is more about being present in people’s lives. Sometimes, it is just about serving. Sometimes, it is just about being there and helping and doing with people. And what happens when we just have that posture of being there with people, being present and helping with whatever it may be, people will ask questions so that gospel proclamation will take place.”
– Heber Ticas, GCI Superintendent of Latin America

 

Main Ideas:

  • What is mission and why does it matter? (1:42)
  • How do we get started developing missional rhythms in our church neighborhood? (4:01)
  • Can you talk to us a bit about the distinction between missional and missionary? (20:45)
  • What do you believe are some signs that healthy missional rhythms are being developed? (38:45)
  • Stories are great teachers. Can you share a story with us that you believe demonstrates what it can look like to develop missional rhythms? (47:06)

Resources:

Love Avenue Video – This video overviews the Love Avenue (witness) which includes: mapping your neighborhood, missional events, and making friends/disciples. Preview the video and review the PowerPoint, along with the other resources to build out and equip your Love Avenue team.

Follow us on Spotify, Google Podcast, and Apple Podcasts.

Program Transcript


The Missional Church with Heber Ticas

Welcome to the GC Podcast, a podcast to help you develop into the healthiest ministry leader you can be by sharing practical ministry experience. Here are your hosts, Cara Garrity and Sarah Rossi.

Cara: Hello friends, and welcome to another episode of GC Podcast. Sarah it’s now the beginning of February, which means it’s time for my favorite holiday here in the US.  Can you guess what it is?

Sarah: Valentine’s Day?

Cara:  No! It’s Groundhog’s Day.

Sarah:  Oh, well, jokes on me.

Cara:  It sure is. I love Groundhog’s Day.  For those of us who aren’t familiar with Groundhog’s Day, do you want to explain this silly little holiday for our listeners?

Sarah: Sure. So not sure when this event started, this holiday, but essentially the legend goes that if the Groundhog sees its shadow – oh, can I remember which way it is? – if it sees its shadow, that means spring is coming. Right? Right, Cara?

Cara: I think so.

Sarah: And if it does not see its shadow and it hides – hides back or something like that – then winter will continue. So, the legend goes. Clearly, it’s not super memorable if I can’t even get the right way, but there’s some great movies that’ve come out of it.

So happy Groundhog’s Day.

Cara: Yes. Happy Groundhog’s Day. I don’t remember all the details either.  But I just love this idea that we have a day all about groundhogs and that we entrust the prediction of the weather to a Groundhog called Punxsutawney Phil – or however you say his name – and groundhogs’ whether or not he sees his shadow.

But you are right; we do also celebrate Valentine’s Day here, at least in the US. And that’s also a day where, in one form or the other, some folks, in some shape or form, sometimes think about the celebration of love, for better for worse. We are focusing on the ministry of the love avenue this year, Sarah. And so, I’m curious, what do you connect with in the ministry of the Love Avenue?

Sarah: I think I most connect with the emphasis on understanding the unique context of each church and neighborhood and engaging with your neighborhood based on that context. And it does require a lot more work than providing just some generic plan to all churches in the world. But I think looking at the context really brings a lot more fruitful result.

And while it can be helpful to look to what other churches have done, you really need to adapt to the strengths of your church and your community’s specific situation. So that’s what I really connect with most with the Love Avenue.

Cara: Amen, and what I love about what you said, Sarah, is that makes it real and human. It’s not cookie cutter, it’s not copy and paste. But it’s organic, and it’s about what is happening here in this community, not something that is generic. So, I appreciate that. I appreciate that aspect of the Love Avenue as well.

I’m also curious.  As a young leader, what do you hope for in the ministry of the Love Avenue?

Sarah: I actually hope that the Love Avenue, not only focuses on the needs of communities, but also looks to the strengths that these communities already have. Many times, it’s really easy for us as individuals or as churches, to just focus on what a community lacks and to see the church as a solution, to that lack.

However, both from my professional and personal experiences, I believe it’s really vital to recognize the strengths that a community already has and to elevate those strengths so that individuals are empowered to be a part of their community and to vocalize their needs and to provide solutions to those needs.

For example, instead of churches focusing on all of the things they think that young people lack from their lives, why not instead focus on all of young people’s strengths, including perhaps the different ways that we see and engage with the world.

Cara: Thank you for sharing that. And I think that connects with our interview with Heber Ticas for today and what he shares about mission:  this idea that we join God in what he’s already doing in the world, that our church doesn’t go into a community and bring God where he is not already.  But there’s something beautiful already at work, in the lives, in the communities of people when a church connects and shows up.

Let’s go ahead and listen to our interview today with Heber Ticas, as he shares with us about mission.


Hello friends and welcome to the latest episode of GC Podcast. This podcast is devoted to exploring best ministry practices in the context of Grace Communion, International churches. I’m your host, Cara Garrity.

And today I am blessed to interview Heber Ticas. Heber Ticas is the GCI Superintendent of Latin America, newly appointed to the GCI board of directors. And he’s a champion of church planting and multiplication. Heber, thank you so much for joining us.  Today, we’ll be exploring what it means to be a missional church, but before we get started, I’d love for you to share with us:  What is one way you’ve been experiencing the joy of Jesus lately?

Heber: Hi Cara, I hope you’re well.  I hope everybody at the home office is doing well. And thank you for that introduction, but you forgot to say that I am a pastor at heart.

Just kidding. No, the joy of Jesus is always in our hearts, Cara. I thank the Lord for everything that he does in our lives. I thank him for the opportunity that he’s given me to serve his church as a board member as well. And that was a joyful occasion, having been appointed to that.

I enjoy Jesus of late, through the miracle of life, through my grandson.  I have a grandson – my first grandson – he’s four months old, and it’s a such a joy and such a blessing to spend time with him.

Cara: Amen. Thanks for sharing. And we’ve got a lot of ground to cover today, so why don’t we jump on in!  Let’s go ahead and get started here. I’d love for you to share with us what is mission and why does it matter?

Heber: Wow. Right off the bat here and you’re coming up with strong questions! Like you mentioned in the introduction, I am passionate for the mission of God and I’m passionate for multiplication. And when we talk about mission, we have got to go back to the heart of the Father. I believe that God is a missionary God, and therefore, mission flows from God, from the Father to humanity.

He is a sending God.  Mission tends to flow from the love of the Father, and the Son, and the Spirit. So, if we look at scripture, if we look at the narrative of scripture in the Old Testament, we’re going to find that the God is consistently sending, that he’s consistently sending men and women to participate in his mission.

First and foremost, he is the one who has a mission and we get to participate in it. If we go back and we can see God, if you recall, sending Noah to build an arc and sending Abraham to leave Ur to go into the land of Canaan.  He sent Moses, he sent kings, he sent prophets.

And eventually he sent his Son, Jesus. And it says that, “God, so loved the world that he sent his only begotten Son.” So, we can see the flow of mission from the Father because he loves us. And then Jesus, he sends the church. He says, “Just as the Father has sent me, therefore I sent you.”  That’s a beautiful passage on the Great Commission out of the book of John 20:21.

And of course, we have the Great Commission. So, if we were to bring it down to a nutshell:  mission is our participation in Jesus’ mission to the world. We get to participate with him with what he’s doing in people’s lives. So that’s how I see mission. It flows from the Father, Son, and Spirit through the Church by the Spirit.  We participate in the part of the Spirit.

Cara: Amen. I love that. Thinking that about it’s flowing from God through Jesus, through the church. So, what does that look like? How do we get started participating in and developing these missional rhythms in our church neighborhood?

Heber: When I think about mission, I think of it in two ways, or when I think about missional rhythms, per se, I think of it in two ways. I think about the individual mission or rhythms that we have, because we’ve been all called to be on mission with Jesus.  And we can think of mission or rhythms in our neighborhoods from the perspective of a corporate body, corporate expression.

So, we have our own individual missional rhythms. We’re all missionaries with Jesus. We’re all on mission with Jesus. As a matter of fact, I would even say that mission is our identity. That it’s Jesus’ identity to be on mission. So that’s our identity as well.

Then we say, how do we get started? You have daily rhythms. We go to different places, like a place of work. We have a home, we have a neighborhood, an individual neighborhood, all those places that we tend to be at consistently, or those third spaces, like a coffee shop, like a neighborhood store, the different places that we go with consistency – we’re on mission right there because Jesus is on mission everywhere. So that’s from an individual perspective.

Now, if we’re talking about missional rhythms in our neighborhood from a corporate perspective, how do we get started? When we think about the gospel, I think about the gospel in two ways:  I think about gospel proclamation and gospel demonstration.

Gospel proclamation is when we talk about Jesus or we say, “Oh, Jesus loves you. He wants you. He desires. He pursues you. He’s calling you to be in relationship and community with him.” Gospel proclamation.  But gospel demonstration is more about being present in people’s lives. Sometimes, it’s just about serving.

Sometimes, it’s just about being there and helping and doing with people. And what happens is when we have that posture of just being with people and being present and helping with whatever it may be, people will ask questions so that gospel proclamation will take place. From a church perspective, a church can get started with their own mission or rhythms in any neighborhood by finding what is the need of this neighborhood where my congregation is at, and what are the giftings that we have within our church body that we can go and participate with Jesus.

Another good question would be, what is Jesus doing? How can we discern what the Lord is doing and how can we jump in and participate? And how do we participate? Through gospel demonstration. Is that making sense, Cara?

Cara: Yes. And I love how you phrase that question:  What is Jesus doing? Because I think in developing this missional rhythm, that’s so key. Jesus is already there in our neighborhood, right? We’re not bringing anything. We’re not bringing Jesus into the neighborhood. He’s already there, and we are going to participate.

And that connects with what you already said:  mission is already flowing from the heart of the Father. It’s not something we do apart from the him.

Heber: Let me give you more of a tangible example. The pandemic’s been rough, right? It’s been rough on everybody! In my own congregation, we’ve had a difficult time, picking up the rhythms, the missional rhythms that we had from a corporate perspective, from a body perspective as a church. And because while not everyone is back in our church, we’ve been having in-person services now for a good eight months, well about six, seven months maybe – but not everybody’s back.

We’ve got about sixty percent of the church.  And one of the good missional rhythms that we’ve had throughout the years in our church is that we have a service that we call the “blessing of children” service. Now Cara, for ten, twelve years, we’ve had this rhythm.

Where our congregation is, about two blocks from where we’re at, there’s a Chuck E Cheese. You remember going to Chuck E Cheese, Cara? You loved it, huh? And our children’s ministry would do two things to participate in our community. We would go to the Chuck E Cheese and we’d go right up in that plaza. We’ll be right up in front of that plaza and our kids would go and would just engage other kids there.  That’s one way that we would participate in our neighborhood.

Another part of our rhythms is two blocks from our church there’s also a park, and there’s a soccer league there for kids. Our kids would get involved there.  And our children’s ministry would bring a table, and we would bring waters and Gatorades, just to demonstrate the gospel, just as a good, tangible way of being involved. And then, we would invite them into the life of the church, for children to be blessed. So, we’ve had that for a long time, and it’s been a really good rhythm that we do twice a year.

We do it in April, and we do it the Sunday before Halloween. And this year – we actually just did it this past Sunday – and I was really surprised. I thought we would have about twenty kids, maybe twenty-five kids in my mind hopefully, because we’ve been having about fifteen kids at church. And before the pandemic, we usually had about thirty kids at church.

I was really surprised that we had about forty-five kids come to church. Even though we were not out in the community this time, what happened was – because the church understands that this is part of our rhythms – they invited in friends and neighbors.  And they participated individually in the mission of God, as we participated corporately as a church, because through the years we’ve had some missional rhythms going.

Is that making sense?

Cara: Yes, I think that’s a beautiful example of that dynamic, what you’re saying of those personal missional rhythms and that corporate missional rhythm of participation.

Heber: The church is opening up the spaces.  As a church, we have to create the spaces.  And we open them up so the church can participate both individually and corporately.

Cara: Yes. And now you’re talking about creating these spaces and inviting back, connecting mission back to the local church. Can you talk to us a little bit about this connection of mission back to the local church?  What that looks like without falling into that bait-and-switch kind of pattern?

And maybe with that, can you explain the bait-and-switch pattern?  And then how do we connect back to the local church without falling into that pattern?

Heber: That’s a great question. First and foremost, we’ve got to understand what is our calling? Our calling is participation.  That’s first and foremost.

And Jesus’ mission has not ceased in the world.   It’s by the power of the Spirit that we’re participating in that mission. But the calling to the church as participation is not just to proclaim Christ, but it’s to make disciples. So, I believe that disciples, discipleship, or this participation in making disciples occurs best as we share life with people.

As we build relationships with people, as we join their lives’ journey and they join our journey as well. If we’re going to participate holistically in mission, we have got to invite back, or we have got to connect back to the corporate life where relationships occur. We’re participating in mission in our neighborhoods, in our communities.

And you mentioned, we just don’t want this bait-and-switch. So, is it about filling up all the pews or all the chairs in our church or is it about making disciples? It’s not about just filling up the pews and the chairs, and it’s not about offering something just so you can come to our church.  It’s so much more than that.

Although the expression of it being the church is a key part, it’s all about participating with Jesus in what he’s doing in people’s lives. Inviting back into the life of the church is this corporate expression of being the body. We’re participating missionally in our community, just as an example.

And we’re building relationships because that’s what it’s all about.  Because I firmly believe that the best space for disciple-making has got to be when we get in life-on-life scenarios and situations where we’re living life with people. But in order for that to occur, we have got to earn a space. We got to build a relationship, right?

And it’s got be a no-strings-attached relationship. And that’s the way it occurs. So, as we invite them back into the life of the church, then what happens is that the non-believer, the seeker, the sojourner, however we want to call it, comes in and observes the expression of worshiping our God, but also tends to observe that expression of being in community as a church body.

And then it gets invited in, into smaller gatherings and that’s where disciple-making happens. To conclude this thought it’s really about being on mission with Jesus. Inviting back into the community of the corporate body. And as we do that, then disciple-making can occur.

Cara: Yes. And what I hear in that is the term that you use “no strings attached,” that these relationships are real, that I’m not trying to connect with people just to get them to come to church.

And then that other piece that I heard is the motivation, right? Are you actually being motivated by the mission that’s flowing from the heart of the Father or by, as you said, the number of people who are in seats or in pews?  And so that motivation lying behind – is this bait-and-switch or is this living out of calling to be making disciples and creating space within the disciple-making community of the church?  That’s good.

Heber: No. You caught this.  If I can give you a tangible example, I’ve been participating in the journey of the life of this man for probably about eight, nine years. He doesn’t come to our church often.  He’ll come from time to time, and he’s got a drinking problem.

I recall one day, Cara, he calls me and says, “Pastor, you have said that I can call you any time that I needed you.” I did say that at some point and we tend to say things, right? We’re going to call him “G;” his first name starts with “G.”

He used to come to one of the small groups that I was leading, and he’s just struggling with a drinking problem. And I said, “You know what? You can call me anytime that you need help. You just call me. And if I see your number, I’m going to answer.  I promise you; I’m going to drop things and I’m gonna answer.”

One day, Cara, he calls me.  It was a Sunday afternoon. It was a day after church and we had gone someplace else with my wife. We hadn’t really had lunch, and we wanted to go eat something.  And he calls me, and I look at my phone and, “oh my God, it says G.” And I always remember that I told him he can call me, that I would answer.

And I answered and he was drunk. He said, “Pastor, I need you to come to my house. I need you to stop by. I really need you to see something.”  So, I’m like, man, what do I do? I have my wife with me in the car, I got my son and we’re hungry. We weren’t too far from his place, so I told my wife, “I’m going to drop you guys off right here at this place.  (It was at a restaurant.)  And just give me an hour and just let me go see what’s going on here.”

So, I went and all he wanted, Cara, was for me to see him drunk. And he said, “I don’t want to be like this. This is not who I want to be. And I want you to see me in this way.” And I prayed for him. I was there about forty minutes or so, and then I left, but that stuck with me.

This happened about three, four, or five years ago.  “G” has never been able to get connected to our church. He still has a drinking problem. He still calls me from time to time, and it’s been like seven years. And sometimes, I say to myself, “I’ve done enough. I’ve done enough with ‘G’.”  And then I asked myself, “So am I the one who’s doing it or is it Jesus who’s doing it?”

So, this journey, it’s a long journey sometimes. And “G” doesn’t have to come to my church for me to be on mission with him and for me to continue to be part of his journey. That’s what the bait-and-switch looks like. If we get to that point where we can love people, wherever they’re at, whatever time they are in their lives, then I think that we’ve understood what Jesus is all about and what Jesus is calling us to do.

Cara: Yes, that’s good. I think it’s the “both and” too Heber. Because I hear what you say too, of the calling of disciple-making.  We hold that kind of life experience of what you just said, that bait-and-switch is not okay.  Like, this person has never come to my church, so I just give up.

And we also hold that inviting somebody to come participate in community is not necessarily a bait-and-switch.  There are ways in which and expressions in which that can be just the participation in the calling of the church. I think that it is a discernment as you participate in Christ.  I think those examples are helpful to our listening audience because it’s not clean-cut and clear.

Heber: No. And thank you for saying, because I’ve also heard in some circles that, some people will take it to the extreme that: okay, we can’t invite someone to church because this looks like a bait-and-switch.

And no, it’s not about that either. When we invite someone in, we invited them in to participate in our expressions of how we worship God and how we live in community with each other. There’s nothing wrong with that as well.

Cara: I think, motivation.  Are we participating in what Christ is doing?  As you said, is this me doing this? Is this about me? Or is this about what Jesus is doing in our midst?

Heber: Yeah. What’s our motivation? That is the key.

Cara: Okay. That’s good. Moving on a little bit.  Thank you for sharing those tangible examples. I think that can help us in this discernment process.

Can you talk to us a little bit about this distinction between missional and missionary?

Heber: I’m glad you asked that question. Yeah, I would love to talk about this. When we talk about missional, we talk about rhythms, right? That we all have rhythms in individual fashion and a congregation needs to pick up missional rhythms to participate.

And a church opens up spaces where the body as a whole participates in a neighborhood.  But yet, you create spaces as well, where the members can participate individually and invite in connect back to the life of the church and to experience the expression of being the church. So that’s missional. Okay. We’re living the mission of God with Jesus by the Spirit. Okay, that’s missional.

Now missionary.  To me, I define it in this fashion:  missionary becomes a different space where things are different, where things are quite different, where the rhythms are totally different, or the rhythms of life are totally different than my personal rhythms.

It becomes a missionary space because I need to bridge over into that space. I need to cross over into a place where I’m not comfortable, where things are different, where people are different, where the expressions of life are completely different than my expressions of life and the way we live life in my community, in those around me. In that sense, it becomes missionary.

I’m going to give you a good tangible example of what it looks like from my perspective.  I had a situation some years back, probably about ten years ago, in my church where this family got connected to our church and was invited in by someone from our church.

And she came into our Wednesday night.  And Wednesday nights, we had a Bible study; we had youth service; and we had different things during that season of our church. And she came in with need. She was asking for prayer. She was asking for prayer for her son who was in juvenile hall. He had been arrested for stealing cars with some friends, and the kid was seventeen.  I think he was seventeen or eighteen at that time. And we were praying with her, and she got connected to our church.  Maybe two to three months later, her son had a court date, and he was released.  He was released from prison, and he was shown some grace by a judge.

That same day- it was a Wednesday that he had the court appointment – that same day, she came to church with her son. She brought pizza, she brought different things, and it was a celebratory tone. She was grateful because she felt that her son was given a second opportunity.

Now that’s her younger son, her older son was in prison. And I think he’s still in prison for gangbanging and for attempted murder or something to that effect.  Herself, at some point in her life, she was also involved in that gang life.

And when this kid came to our church, he got connected to our church. He was in our church for about eight months or so. And one day, he told me that he wanted me to visit him, that he wanted to talk to me.  And he opened up his heart, Cara, and he says, “Pastor, I don’t want to live this life,” because he had grown around the gang.

Most of his friends were part of this neighborhood gang and his brother was part of that life and sister was part of that life. And he said out loud, “I don’t want to be part of this life anymore.”

And I started working with him a little bit, but it turned out, Cara, that maybe a couple of months after that conversation, he went to a house with someone, a friend from that gang. Because that friend was a tattoo artist, and he wanted to see how she does a tattoo and he was considering getting a tattoo. And when he approached that house, he was gunned down!  Man, that was one of the difficult times in ministry for me.  It kind of hit me to the core of my being. And I ended up doing his funeral. I ended up getting to know some families that were connected to that family.

One family in particularly got connected to our church, as well with her son. Her son’s name was Abdullah.  Cara, a year later, this kid, Abdullah, was also gunned down! Man, I’m like, “This is hard! This is difficult!” And now I’m doing two funerals. I’m doing different services, memorial services for this kid and for the other kid that got gunned down.  And one day – well, to go back a little bit – so, I’m doing this kid’s funeral, and I’m there at the funeral home about 3:00pm. From 4-5:00, it was going to be for the family. And then from 5-9:00, we’re going to have service and people can come from the community.

But when I go inside the funeral home, one of the ushers takes me into the office and he introduces me to another usher.  Turned out that this other usher, he was a police officer. It was an undercover police officer. He said, “This is a gang shooting, and we’re here for the safety of everyone here and to gather some intelligence.”

I’m like, “My goodness!  What am I getting into?”

Now the same thing happened with the second murder that I also did the funeral service.  I got home, after I did that service, and I started Googling this gang.  I found out that it was one of the most notorious gangs here in the city. And I say, “My gosh!  I don’t know how to minister to these people!”

This is a missionary situation for me. I’ve never been involved in gang life. So, to connect to the psyche and the thinking, what goes on, in that life, it’s totally different. I need to bridge myself over into that psyche. I need to earn that space in order to be, in order to participate with Jesus.

Now God is at work there. No doubt about that. And I would even say that the Lord used me in many ways with some of those families.  But to me, it got to the point that I was too deep in and I said, “No, I need to step back. This is not part of my rhythms, and this is not part of my gifting.”

Does that make sense? I think that’s a missionary situation for me.

Cara: It does. And can you share why you believe this distinction between missional and missionary is important for local churches to consider as they build out their rhythms?

Heber: Yeah. Those are great follow-up questions because it’s easy to get involved with things that we want to get involved from afar, per se.  For example, there are a lot of parachurch ministries that would do ministry to people without homes.

They would do ministry even with people in the gang life and they’re parachurch ministries. For a church to participate in missionary type of environments, it means that the church needs to live life there because again, our missional movement has got to do with disciple-making.

If disciple-making occurs life-on-life, it’s about building relationships, building community, and being part of this journey. That means that we have got to be willing to embed ourselves in that space and in that community. See?  So, I needed, Cara, to embed myself in that community of those families who have kids involved in gang life, or even, multiple people involved in gang life.

And it couldn’t be just me. I needed to bring some other people along with me in order to be effective in my ministry participation or missional participation within that environment. Think about this. As a corporate body, as a church, you know how we’ve been called to live in that space? Are we gifted, to live in those spaces that our missionary?

So that’s why it’s really important for preachers to consider our missional rhythms. Are they missional or are they missionary nature?

Cara: Yeah, that’s good. Thank you for sharing that. Shifting gears just a little bit.  It is connected, but sometimes, an important part of learning new rhythms is unlearning old for rhythms.

In your view, what are some of those sacred cows or old habits that you think can present barriers to building missional rhythms in our lives and in our neighborhoods?

Heber: Sacred cows? You like that word.

Cara: I know it’s a little dangerous, right? Dangerous territory for you.

Heber: There is this saying, that some people are gifted for evangelism. I’ve heard that.  People have told me, “Brother, you’re an evangelist.  Brother, you have the gift of evangelism.”  There’s this thinking within the church that only certain people have the gift to be on mission with Jesus.  Okay. That’s for those folks.

And there’s something that I call, we got to “move” a congregation in order to get to these missional rhythms that we’ve talked about us as a church body. It doesn’t happen overnight. We have got to intentionally move a congregation into dabbling with these rhythms, right?

It’s got to start with mission mentality. We have got to change the mindset that missional living is not just for a group of gifted people within the church body.  The missional living is our identity, that Jesus has sent us all. Right? He has sent the church.  That the church is a sent organism, that we are a sent people.

So that’s shifting the mentality. I say those sacred cows starts with breaking down those barriers that only a few within the church body are gifted to participate in mission. No, we are all being called to participate in mission. In shifting this mentality, there’s some that I called, this outward mentality or there’s inward mentality.

Churches tend to become inward in nature. It becomes good. It becomes fun. Isn’t it fun when you go to church and you hug your brothers and sisters?  And you haven’t seen him for a week, and it’s a safe place, right? It’s a safe space. But getting out and participating on mission, then that space is no longer safe sometimes.

You have to change, shift the mentality. You got to shift the DNA of the congregation in order to participate in mission. I think there’s a very good Biblical example of this. You remember when Paul came to Athens?  And Paul in Athens, he said that his heart was broken for the city.

It was broken for all the idolatry that he saw in the city. The book of Acts tells us that he went to the synagogue. He worshiped with fellow Jews in the synagogue, but at the same time, he moved to the marketplace. So, he lived in the synagogue, but moved over to the marketplace. And he started building relationship with people there in the marketplace.

He built a relationship with folks there and started proclaiming the gospel. And then he was invited into the council, to the council of thinkers, the Areopagus there in Mars Hills. So now he went to the third space that he was invited in. So, we can see how Paul moves from the synagogue, to the marketplace, to a special place where you can only be there by invitation.  And he lives out missionally in there.

So, moving the congregation, from the safe place of the church, of the four walls, because for some reason, when we look at Jesus, did he live inside the synagogue or did he live outside of the synagogue? He lived outside, right? He didn’t live inside.

So, we have this inward movement in the church that everything is inward towards us. The most sacred thing that we need to break down is probably this sense of community that we have within the body that becomes a closed group. And we need to move outward, and be inclusive in living outside of the four walls of our congregation.

That’s more of a general thing. We can talk about some detailed things that tend to be sacred in a congregation that need to be broken down as well. But it really starts with mentality, with this mindset of who we are as a body and what we’ve been called to be as a church body.

Cara: That’s a good word. I have heard the same that there are those who are gifted for evangelism and those that are not. I think that word is hopefully gonna liberate folks to think differently about mission and how God has called and formed us to participate in his mission. And that as a foundation for shifting mindset to think outwardly,

Heber: I can give you another example of this or how this participation happens and how this mission or mentality gets permeated within the church body.

I mentioned this “blessing of children’s” services that we have. And again, we’ve been doing those things for twelve years almost. And it’s a really good rhythm for us as a church body. But, even the children, they have relationships.  Kindergarten kids, first grade, or second grade, they have relationships at school.

It never fails, Cara.  Every “blessing of children’s” service that we have, there’s always multiple kids who bring their friends to the expression of being the church for that service. It just happened this past weekend that I had the same service.

A kid, his name is Jayden, he comes up to me.  The first thing he comes out to me and runs up to me, says “Pastor, I want to introduce you to my friend, Daniel. He lives in the apartments right next to my apartment, where we live.  We’re friends.”

Cara: That’s incredible.

Heber: The point that I’m trying to make is about this whole sacred cow thing. The one thing that really needs to shift, in the life of a body, is really the mentality of who we are. We’re a sent people.  God has sent us. We are privileged people to be the Lord’s hands, the Lord’s feet, and participate with him.

And I tell you one thing, a lot of people are scared. I don’t know where that comes from. I’ve never experienced that. They’re scared about being on mission with Jesus.  But Cara, we can talk all day long here about the joy. And I know you’ve experienced that joy because we’ve had some deeper conversations about this, the joy of participating with God.

Cara: Yes. It’s awesome. Yes. I love that. Speaking of that joy, I think, this next question I have for you speaks to that in some way. As we build out, participating in Jesus’ mission through these rhythms, what do you believe are some signs that healthy missional rhythms are being developed within the life of the church?

Heber: From the corporate perspective, from a church body perspective, from a historical perspective, we never want to make it about the numbers on Sunday morning.  Or at least we say that, but the reality is the numbers do tell a story. Okay, one of those signs?  I would want to measure the amount of people that are getting connected to our Sunday gatherings.

And I would also want to measure the amount of people that are connecting to our connection groups. I see that as signs of rhythms that are happening.  That our people, our church members, and folks within our church are willing to participate with others, I want to measure that.  And then I’ll also want to measure:  are they willing to invite them to the Hope Avenue, to our church, to that expression of being the church?  Are they inviting them into some type of a gathering? I see those as signs.

Again, although I want to make this clear!  It’s not about numbers, is not about just counting how many people are coming to church or how many new people are coming to church.  But it is also a sign that our church members are willing to invite others into this expression of being the church. And they’re excited about participating in that expression. And they’re excited about bringing their friends and their family. So, I think that we can measure it in that way.

There’s also other signs that we can measure.  We can measure the excitement in our congregations about missional living.  What is the posture in people’s face? How do they look when we talk about getting out in our community?

I remember when I was inviting – in the early stages of going through renewal in our church and having the group of folks that I have in my congregation – I was inviting them to, “Hey, let’s get out in the community and let’s get out and meet people,” and just being a little afraid of that. But when you start seeing excitement for doing that, we start seeing that those barriers are starting to come down, I think that you’re starting to catch some rhythms.  But it’s not overnight. This does not happen overnight, Cara. And I want to make that clear.

I talked about missional mentality, building a DNA in a congregation.  Church plants or new expressions, fresh expressions of being the church, they tend to have a lot more success in missional living. I wonder why it’s that? Why is it that a church has a hard time moving into their community? And it tends to be because we get comfortable. We tend to get comfortable in the church.

Like in an expression of the church, who tends to be our friends? Our friends tend to be those who come to church.  Who do we invite to our birthday parties or Christmas party? We tend to invite our friends from church.

Because churches tend to take on a particular DNA. That inward mentality tends to take hold. So, when you start to see excitement in the life of a congregation of moving out into the community, that means that they’re starting to feel that joy of participation. So that’s a good sign.

That’s the first rhythm that you’ve been moving to the missional mentality, moving from theory. And you’ve had some missional movements into the community, that you’ve taken your people out and you’ve started to build some relationships in the community.  Or maybe you’re serving in the community, and you start inviting back a little bit into the life of the church.  Okay. Those are some signs that:  Hey, this is shifting!

I think that there’s four things that need to happen. Missional mentality needs to be developed in the congregation.  Missional development is developing people for mission, for people to understand that we’re sent organism, to inviting them into participate just a little bit out in mission.

Then you have missional movements where you move the whole congregation out to experience what it is to participate with Jesus. When you can discern, when you can pray with others. And then, you start picking up some missional rhythms. It starts with excitement. I think you do measure it when people are inviting back or connecting back into the life of the church, whether it be at a connection group, whether it be at your Sunday gathering, whether it be at a church event, or whatever that expression may be.

I think that’s when we start seeing that the rhythms are starting to pick up.

Cara: Thank you for sharing those four pieces, because one thing that I noted is missional rhythms, you listed last, right? So, they’re even sounds like some of these foundational pieces that come before for rhythms are beginning to fully develop.

And you’ve mentioned that missional mentality is important in the development of participation. These are the things that prepare for these rhythms, that become developed over time personally and corporately. Because wouldn’t that be sad if we developed missional rhythms where people were sad or grumpy to be in the community, right?  Because we hadn’t developed the missional mentality first.

Heber: Yeah. You know what, Cara?  Then what’s going to happen is that you’re going to have one frustrated church! If you start with missional rhythms, you’re going to have one frustrated congregation because you have not done that infrastructure.

We have got to develop mentality first.  Then, you have missional development, and then you have a missional movement.  And then, you slowly move out to be on the mission. And then you start seeing those missional rhythms. And guess what? A lot of times, you’ve got to change up the things that you do before you catch some good missional rhythms.  I can tell you the many things that we’ve done in our church that have flopped, or that don’t really build relationships, that look too much like a bait-and-switch that I had to put the brakes to it, and say, “Okay what are we doing here?”

So, it takes time to catch rhythms. When I consult with congregations, one of the first things that we want to talk about is our target communities, right? Are we gifted to be in this community? What are the needs of this community? A congregation may be in a posture of renewal, going through a renewal process in the life of the church.  That’s a three-to-five-year proposition, easy. And going through that process, a congregation may find that they need to replant themselves, that they’re in the wrong community, that they’re in the wrong area. So, they need to realize their congregation someplace else. They need to discern where the Lord is calling them.

Even before you can catch a missional rhythm, you may be in a situation that you need to replant your church.  It takes time!

Cara: That’s good. Stories are great teachers, as we have heard today.  Heber, are there any other stories that you would like to share with us that you believe demonstrate what this process can look like? Like you said, it takes time to develop from missional mentality to missional rhythms.

Any story that you’d like to share that you believe demonstrates what it can look like to grow from missional mentality to missional rhythms?

Heber: Wow. You saved the best for last, right? The most difficult one.  Through the years, I’ve been working with different congregations.  Here in the US, I worked with church revitalization and church multiplication.  And most recently, as you mentioned, I am the superintendent for Latin America. So, I’ve been working with our churches in Latin America, and it’s been a joy!  And it’s also been an experience to kind of learn and see churches try to move from that missional mentality into missional rhythms.

I can think of a few stories from congregations, but one that really comes to mind, that is vivid in my mind right now is our church in Mexico City. I’ve been working with that congregation.  Even before I was a superintendent, I’ve been working with that church.

And I did an event in that church maybe four years ago. I did an Outside the Walls event. And Outside the Walls event is just really helping the congregation to get into the community and engage the community and really have a presence in the community.  That’s the big idea behind an Outside the Walls event.

And but the church really didn’t quite get what they were doing at that time, although they had success in doing it. But now, I have seen that church pick up rhythms, really good rhythms. They’ve really gone from a church of about thirty-five, forty to a church of about eighty to a hundred people.

It’s been a really beautiful sight to see. And I tell you this because I’ve been doing some equipping on a team-based, pastor-led and the three ministry Avenues, and this congregation has really embraced the three ministry Avenues and has organized their congregation around the Avenues with intentionality.

So, I am seeing this church catch some really good rhythms, even though we’ve gone through the pandemic, they haven’t lost their rhythms. And now they’ve been back at in-person meetings and consistently being in their community.

We had our call with them not too long ago.  And I said, “what does you map look like? What are you guys doing within the pandemic that you think is helpful?”

And their Love Avenue leader said, “One of the things that we’re doing right now, that I think is really bearing some fruit is we opened up.” Because the schools were closed in Mexico City as well, and they had online learning. He said, “A lot of kids in our community around church don’t have internet access. So, we boosted our internet access at church and we opened up our facilities so they can come and do their homework here and have internet access here.”

I said, “Wow, that’s a really neat thing that you guys are doing!”

I’ve seen this church be frustrated. I’ve seen this pastor grow. I’ve seen the church grow a little bit. I see their teams now excited and their infrastructures and their foundations be solid. So, this congregation is a really good story and a neat story to be able to see how the Lord has been moving throughout the years in the life of a pastor, in the life of leaders, in the life of the church.

And then how the pastor has been able to draw others and invite others and recruit others to go on mission with because he saw himself in a replant type of a scenario, even though they were still meeting at the same place where they were meeting before. So maybe that story helps out a little bit of how a church catches rhythm.  But we’re talking here about a seven-year process, six-to-seven-year process.

Cara: Yes. Thank you for sharing that. I hope that’s encouraging for our listeners, that it doesn’t happen overnight, that it is a process. And that change and growth and transformation is possible even with those frustrations, as you mentioned.

Thank you for sharing that. And so finally, I have one more question for you. Is there anything that we haven’t touched on, that I haven’t asked you that you would like to share with our listeners today about mission?

Heber: We’ve talked a lot about mission and I would just want to say that multiplication happens in different stages. Like you mentioned, I’m passionate about church multiplication. I believe in church multiplication. I think that the Lord wants to do something with us in GCI, and we’re going to see church multiplication happen, with more efficiency and a lot more often in our church.

But I think that multiplication needs to take place first and foremost, at the basic level of disciples.  We need to multiply disciples. We need to multiply leaders in our churches. We need to multiply ministry workers. We need to multiply ministries, and eventually we need to multiply churches. The one question that you didn’t ask me was, being on mission, living on mission, being the mission of church, it’s seen at its peak when we’re multiplying churches.  I’m praying for that.

Cara: Amen. I’m right there with you.

Heber: Thank you, Cara.

Cara: Thank you. This has been an incredible conversation about mission. I think that it gives a lot for our listeners to chew on, pray through, and discuss with hopefully their local leadership teams.

I’ve got a little bit of fun for us as we start to close out our episode today.  I have some fun and silly questions that I’d love to just shoot out at you. If you are up for it.

Heber:  Fun and silly, huh?  I don’t know if I trust you, Cara Garrity!

Cara:  I’m so trustworthy. So, let’s do it. All right.

What’s your preference?  A day of adventure or a day at home?

Heber:  A day at home.

Cara:  Heber, hit us with your best joke.

Heber: Oh, come on. You got me there.  My best joke. My goodness. You got me there. I can’t even think of one right now.

Cara: All right. We’ll let you slide on that one.  Which color M&M tastes the best?

Heber: By far, the yellow one.  That’s an easy one.

Cara: If you could write a book that was guaranteed to be a bestseller, what would you write about?

Heber: The joy of pastoral ministry.

Cara: Amen. Heber, what’s the worst job you’ve ever had?  Now be careful!

Heber: Working with Cara?  No, just kidding.

You know what? Oh, my goodness. The worst job that I’ve ever had? I haven’t had too many jobs in my life. I’ve been blessed, but I did have a job when I was sixteen, a part-time job where I helped this man cleaning theaters overnight. That was brutal. In the summer, overnight, in the San Fernando Valley in southern California, we drove around three in the morning, four in the morning, from theater to theater, small theaters, cleaning those theaters. Oh my gosh.

Cara: That sounds rough.

Heber:  But I did get some free popcorn out of that one.

Cara:  Okay. Okay. All right.

Books or movies?

Heber: Books.

Cara: Okay. And finally, if you could go to Mars, would you and why or why not?

Heber: Hell, yeah! I would go to Mars! Why would I go to Mars?  It’s outer space for crying out loud. It’s exciting. You mentioned a day of adventure or a day at home. I do like adventure, but lately – I just turned fifty a year ago. I’ll be honest. I just turned fifty-one this year – and I’m liking home a bit more because I do so many things outside, but the opportunity to go to Mars?  Come on, Cara, let’s go!

Cara: Ah, that’s an adventure you couldn’t turn down.

Okay. Thanks for having a little bit of fun with us on the podcast today, and thank you for taking the time to join us. As is our practice with the GC Podcasts, we like to end our show with a word of prayer. Would you be willing to pray for our churches, our pastors, and our ministry leaders in GCI today?

Heber: Amen.  Let’s pray.

Heavenly Father, Son, and Spirit. It’s such a joy, Lord, to talk about your mission and to talk about how we get to participate in your mission. Father God, you are a sending God.  For God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten Son.  Lord, and thank you so very much, Jesus, for living our life and for inviting us into your life, into the life of the Father, Son, and Spirit. And I just want to thank you for this opportunity that you’ve given us today with Cara to talk about your mission, Jesus.  And Father, I want to pray for all of our congregations within GCI. Those that may be feeling that living out on mission and moving into missional rhythms is something that is quite difficult. That it’s quite hard. Lord, I pray that you give us that sense of knowing that it is your mission and that there is joy in participating in your mission.

I want to lift up those pastors, Lord, that have a desire to move their congregations, to flip DNA in their churches, to value mission with more intentionality.  I want to pray a blessing on them, Father God. I want to ask you, Lord, to lift them up, Father, that they would know that you are for them and that you are with them.

Lord, I also want to pray for those pastors that feel that their congregations no longer have the capacity and the ability to do this. May they be at peace with where they are in their lives.

But Lord, first I want to give you thanks, Lord, for the GCI family as a whole, internationally, Lord, for what you want to do with us.  May you give us discernment Lord for what you are doing in our communities. And Lord, may we participate with you.  Be with us. Be with us as we continue on our journey of missional living. In your name we pray, and we thank you. Amen.

Cara: Amen.


Cara: One thing that always stands out to me when he talks about mission is the stories he tells, because he doesn’t just understand mission intellectually from books or academia. He lives mission out. What resonates with you from what he said, Sarah?

Sarah: I really appreciated how Heber emphasize the need for us to break down our four walls of a congregation and to move outwards toward inclusion. And he mentioned that shifting a congregation’s mindset to one of missional mentality does not happen overnight.  And I think that’s really important to note.

I think it’s easy for me at least to expect the church to be more inclusive immediately.  But I’ve come to learn that, many times, it takes more time and effort than I would think. And that’s totally okay. We want churches to be places where people’s hearts have the freedom to be transformed to that of missional living and being more inclusive and kinder to their neighbors.

However, I do want to clarify that if I think a church is still in that transition period of developing a missional mindset, it will not be a safe place for someone who may be different than everyone else. I won’t recommend that church for that new person at that time.  Maybe in a few years after developing their missional mindset, I would recommend that church.  But an individual’s safety and experiences and inclusion are a top priority for me.

I think that really connects to what Heber said. Where a few years after you plant your church, you may realize that you were in the wrong place or targeting the wrong community and may need to readjust and replant your church. Not every church is right for every person and community. And it is from an attitude of humility that we can recognize that.

So, give yourself and your church time and grace to develop a missional mentality. But also make sure to have connections and resources (including virtual, especially in this day and age) at hand for the community, that aren’t your church’s resources during that transition time. I think churches recognizing they aren’t the right community for everyone and being able to point people to other places, is an aspect of missional living that tangibly demonstrates your love for people.

It’s one kingdom. So, let’s start acting like it.

Cara: Thank you, Sarah, for sharing that. And I think that also connects with what he said, that it can be meaningful for a church to distinguish between missional and missionary. Not every church is well equipped to serve every community or every person. There’s wisdom in that.  And amen, it is one kingdom. I love that.

We do have a lot of resources in GCI that are available as we learn and grow in ministry participation together. One of those resources is Grace Communion Seminary.

Sarah:  Grace Communion Seminary now offers a seven-course diploma of Christian ministry with a focus on discipleship, worship, or witness designed for GCI Avenue champions.  Visit www.gcs.edu for more information.

Cara: Friends, we really appreciate you listening to the GC Podcast. If you like what you heard, give us a rating where you listened to the podcast. It really helps us get the word out and to invite others to join the conversation. Until next time, keep living and sharing the gospel.

We want to thank you for listening to this episode of the GC Podcast.  We hope you have found value in it to become a healthier leader. We would love to hear from you. If you have a suggestion on a topic, or if there is someone who you think we should interview, email us at info@gci.org. Remember, healthy churches start with healthy leaders; invest in yourself and your leaders.

Sermon for March 6, 2022 – 1st Sunday of Easter Preparation

Speaking Of Life 4015 | The Truth, the Whole Truth, and Nothing but the Truth

From social media to the articles that we read, it’s easy to be confused with what’s true. Amidst the lies that we face every day, let us stand firm in the never-changing truth of God’s love for us that is personified in Jesus.

Program Transcript


Speaking Of Life 4015 | The Truth, the Whole Truth, and Nothing but the Truth
Greg Williams

Have you ever been deceived with the truth?

It’s much harder to fall for an outright lie, but if a little truth is mixed in—a fact here and a fact there—great deceptions can occur. Perhaps that is the reason taking an oath in court requires you to “tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.” It just takes a kernel of deceit planted in a bed of truth to produce a crop of lies.

This has been the devil’s favorite tactic since the Garden of Eden. There he planted a seed of doubt in the ears of the first two humans to deceive them into believing God was not for them.

And he is still up to his old tricks today. So, we shouldn’t be surprised when we hear half-truths and distorted truths that tempt us to believe complete lies.

But, we should always remember that the devil’s cunning attacks were exposed and exhausted on the battlefield when he came face to face with Jesus. Jesus did not fall for the devil’s half-baked truths aimed at creating doubt and confusion. The devil took three swings at Jesus in the desert using his tactics of deceit but in the end, he struck out and was sent away defeated.

One of those nasty temptations was aimed to get Jesus to avoid the cross by doing things the world’s way rather than following the will of his Father. The devil mixed in a little truth by quoting Psalm 91 in his attempt to deceive Jesus. It reads:

For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.
Psalm 91:11-12 (NRSV)

Using this scripture out of context, the devil tried to tempt Jesus to avoid suffering and death rather than to obey his Father. Ironically, the very next verse of this passage prophetically speaks of what will be accomplished by Jesus going to the cross. The devil shrewdly left out verse 13 which says:

You will tread on the lion and the adder, the young lion and the serpent you will trample under foot.
Psalm 91:13 (NRSV)

The devil must have forgotten that Jesus knew his scriptures. In addition, Jesus knew his Father. The devil couldn’t place a seed of doubt in that eternal truth. We need to remember this as we face the devil’s schemes in our own lives.

We can trust that Jesus holds us up in his victory, that he secured in his suffering and death on the cross. It was there that the devil and his lies were trampled underfoot. You and I can walk in the freedom of trusting the Father’s Word in Jesus, who is the Truth, the whole Truth, and nothing but the Truth.

I’m Greg Williams, Speaking of Life.

Psalm 91:1-2, 9-16 • Deuteronomy 26:1-11 • Romans 10:8b-13 • Luke 4:1-13

This week’s theme is the response of faith. The call to worship Psalm is a response of meditation on God’s faithful care for those who put their trust in him. The Old Testament reading in Deuteronomy presents the instructions for celebrating the festival of first fruits which includes a confession of faith. Luke’s account of Jesus’ temptations stresses Jesus’ response of faith in the Father and a confession of that faith. The epistolary text in Romans records the fitting response of faith and confession to God’s justification and salvation.

When Jesus Says “NO!”

Luke 4:1-13 (NRSV)

Saying “no” can be hard. Even the slightest request by another is hard to say no to because we hate to disappoint. Or we may fear our “no” will create conflict or tension in our relationship. Sometimes, this hesitancy to say “no” gets us saying “yes” to things that may overextend us or obligate us to something that is not fitting. Been there?

The next time someone asks you to do something you need to say “no” to, but you are tempted to say “yes,” here’s something that may help: remember, that in every “no” there is a corresponding “yes.” For example, saying “no” to an invitation to hang out with friends after work may be because you are saying “yes” to spending time with you family. Or perhaps a “no” to help a loved one out of a jam is a “yes” to help them face the consequences of poor choices. And a “no” to that desperate plea for a donation to a charitable cause, could be your “yes” to providing for your own family. This may be helpful, but we also admit, every “no” doesn’t always have a well-meaning “yes” as the motive. Still, it introduces a question I would like to begin our message with. And that is, what is the “yes” behind Jesus’ “no?”

This will be a good question to consider as we go through the story of Jesus being tempted by the devil in the wilderness. In this one story, we hear Jesus say “no” three times as a significant part of the Gospel. This account appears in all three synoptic Gospels. It will also be a good question to consider as we begin the Season of Easter Preparation (commonly referred to as Lent) today. Easter Preparation is a season that carries a theme of repentance and confession. In other words, it’s a season of saying “no” with a corresponding “yes.” As we come to know the Lord, who he is and what he has done for us, we learn to repent, or say “no” to all that is not fitting in our relationship with him, ourselves, and one another. This repentance is also a confession, or a “yes” to all the Lord reveals to us. We come to agree, or confess, who he is and his word to us, while turning from all that is not fitting to who he is, and his word spoken to us.

So, with that in mind, let’s get into the story as Luke tells it.

Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished. (Luke4:1-2 NRSV)

First, we see that Jesus is returning from the Jordan. For context, Luke has led up to this story with Jesus’ baptism as well as the inclusion of Jesus’ genealogy. Both of these set the stage for the temptations the devil is about to assault Jesus with in the wilderness. In Jesus’ baptism the Father claims Jesus as his own Son. And the genealogy is constructed to work backward to Adam with the conclusion that Jesus is a “son of God.” With the combination of these two elements Luke has established Jesus’ identity as the Son of God. It is at this point in Luke’s gospel that the devil will try to tempt Jesus to doubt this very thing.

We should take note that this story about Jesus is also a story we are wrapped up in. Jesus didn’t face the devil for his own sake, he faced and defeated him for us. Luke tells us that Jesus was “led by the Spirit in the wilderness.” So, the devil is not running the show here. Facing the devil in the wilderness is part of Jesus’ ministry initiated by the Spirit. Jesus is facing our temptations, and he is doing it as the one who has assumed our human nature. Jesus has given us a victory that we can participate in by the Spirit. Without Jesus and his Spirit, we would never even put up a fight against the devil and his schemes.

It is noteworthy that the devil launches his attack right after Jesus’ baptism. Jesus has just heard the voice of his Father claiming him as his own Son. The first thing the devil wants to do is get Jesus to doubt this voice. This is the same temptation the devil put to Adam and Eve in the Garden. It worked the first time, but it will not work against Jesus. Jesus is undoing Adam’s failure in the Garden by refacing the devil on the devil’s own turf, the wilderness. This time, it will not be Adam who is banished. The devil will be the one “departing.”

As Christians, we should be mindful of the devil’s tactics. Note, I did not say fearful; I said mindful. If you are a new believer recently baptized, expect the devil to tempt you to doubt God’s word to you. For those who have been following the Lord for many years, the devil still rushes to challenge any word the Lord speaks to you. We must not assume that the devil is idle and doesn’t care whether we trust the Lord or not. No, the devil aims all his tactics and cunning at the one who is hearing and receiving God’s word to them. The sooner he can get us to doubt God’s word, the better in his diabolical eyes. We should not be naïve and think that in our walk with God we will never find ourselves in the wilderness or without temptation. If it happened to our Lord, we can expect it will happen to us. But Jesus has paved the way. He has already—in our stead—gained victory over the devil and his temptations. This means we are not on our own when we find ourselves in the wilderness facing intense temptation. And, we know in the end, the devil will flee.

As Jesus is led into the desert to face the devil, we are told that he fasted for forty days. This has Old Testament references that remind us of Israel and Moses wandering for 40 years in the desert. This detail can also give us the impression that Jesus faced the devil running on empty. “He was famished.” But far from facing the greatest enemy of humanity on empty, the passage tells us that he faced him “full of the Holy Spirit.” Like David facing Goliath, Jesus fights for humanity with the armor that fits him best. We can see in this that we too are made for more than just food and water. We are made to live in the communion of the Spirit. In this fullness the devil is no match for the Spirit who is always reminding us that we are children of the Father.

The devil has three temptations for Jesus, each aimed at creating doubt of Jesus’ identity as “the Son of God.” The devil wants Jesus to believe that the Father cannot be trusted and therefore Jesus needs to take matters into his own hands. In each of these temptations we will take note of what Jesus says “no” to and what he is saying “yes” to.

First temptation: No to Self-reliance/Yes to Faith

The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.” Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’” (Luke 4:3-4 NRSV)

The devil’s aim is revealed in his first words to Jesus, “If you are the Son of God…” He doesn’t attempt to tell a direct lie that Jesus is not the Son of God, rather he tries to plant a seed of doubt. He wants Jesus to question whether God’s words to him are true or not. We can expect such subtlety from the devil in our own temptations. Don’t expect to hear the devil tell you straight up that the Father doesn’t love you. Rather, he will wait till you are in a wilderness experience. Maybe you are lacking and feeling famished. The devil will then ask you, “If God really loves you, would he lead you to such a place as this?” The devil would love to turn your circumstances into opportunities to doubt God’s word to you. He would love to get us to focus on ourselves and our situation to the exclusion of what God is telling us. Then we are tempted to act from a center in ourselves rather than remaining centered on Jesus.

Notice how the first temptation is a very unnatural one. “Turn stone into bread.” The devil tells Jesus to take care of his own needs using supernatural power. Instead of relying on the Father for provision, Jesus is being tempted to act by using self-reliance. Jesus says no to this temptation. In Jesus “no” to self-reliance he is saying “yes” to faith. Jesus knows what humans are created for. We were created to rely on and trust in the Father. Jesus does not succumb to the temptation to take matters into his own hands and to feed himself on his terms. That would be unnatural as we are created to receive all things from the Father on his terms and in his good time. Jesus trusts the Father will provide, and he waits for the Father’s timing.

Jesus’ answer to the devil reveals he sees beyond the immediate temptation. “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’” He acknowledges his need for bread but not at the expense of a much deeper need and sustenance—his need to rely on the Father. Also, notice how Jesus resist these temptations. The devil is trying to get Jesus to doubt the Father’s word to him, so, what does Jesus do? He reminds himself by telling the devil what God’s word says. In our temptations, we too must remain firmly rooted in God’s written word which reminds us of what the Father has spoken to us in the Living Word by the Spirit. Scripture is an essential gift the believer must receive daily. It’s often recommended to start the day with a devotional, or in the Psalms. The best start of the day is to turn your ears to the trustworthy word found in the scriptures. You will find Jesus there with his victory for you.

Second temptation: No to Self-glory/Yes to Hope

Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And the devil said to him, “To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please. If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’” (Luke 4:5-8 NRSV)

The second temptation is for Jesus to seek his own glory by worshiping the devil. Jesus is being tempted again to trust in some other means rather than trusting the Father. This particular temptation for glory is a glory of the world and its ways. The devil is tempting Jesus to rely on the “glory” and “authority” of the “kingdoms of the world.” From the vantage point that Jesus could view all the kingdoms of the world, he would have most prominently been seeing the Roman Empire. The Roman Empire can serve as a pretty good depiction of the type of glory the devil was tempting Jesus with. It is a self-proclaimed and self-actualized glory. And it doesn’t matter who you must step on to get it. But this is not the glory of the Father. Satan is trying to tempt Jesus to gain his own glory in the same way the world operates. Cunning, manipulation, lies, and even murder pave the path to glory for those who worship the devil and his ways.

Jesus says “no” to this temptation because he is saying “yes” to hope in his Father’s glory. He knows the only one truly worthy of worship, and he knows his Father’s glory outshines anything this world can produce. He also knows the fullness of the Father’s glory is yet to come. Out of trust in his Father, he does not attempt a power grab for the moment; he can wait in hope, knowing the Father will glorify him at the right time and in the right way. This will be an actual share in the Father’s own glory. No counterfeits! Also, this will be a glory that will never fade and a glory that needs not trample others underfoot. The glory the devil tempts Jesus with is a paltry and dim glory compared to the splendor of the Father.

Anytime the devil is tempting us to grab something for ourselves on our terms and on our timetable, we can be assured that what he is offering is a far cry from what the Father freely gives. The devil’s temptations are never for something better than what God is giving. It will always be a temptation to settle, to choose the less over the best. The devil has nothing to offer but a glory that fades like the grass. We too, can expect the devil to present us with such self-glorifying temptations. Instead of living in hope of the Father’s purposes for us, we may be tempted to glorify ourselves in such a way that does not glorify the Father. This is a glory destined to fade.

Jesus shows us that the glory we are created for is not one we claim for ourselves. True glory is found in worshiping and serving only “the Lord your God.” So, we live in hope of the sure promises of a glorious Father. Even if saying “no” to the present temptation doesn’t look so glorious in the eyes of an onlooking world, it will be, in the end, the only glory worth having. And we are assured that hope does not disappoint.

Third temptation: No to Self-preservation/Yes to Love

Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying 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 protect you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’” Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” (Luke 4:9-12 NRSV)

For the third temptation the devil decides to try his hand at using scripture. He sees that Jesus has countered the first two temptations with scripture so perhaps he thinks, he can use his best defense against him. So, the devil takes Jesus to the pinnacle of the temple and dares him to jump off. Quoting Psalm 91:11-12 out of context, he is telling Jesus that he can display his identity by having angels show up to protect him. In essence, he is tempting Jesus to avoid the cross. Instead of going to the cross, Jesus is being tempted to avoid suffering and establish himself in the same way the worldly powers do. Worse, the devil wants Jesus to use God as a means to his own ends. The devil is telling Jesus that he can use God as a tool to gain his own success and acceptance in the world.

This temptation begins like the first one by saying, “If you are the Son of God…” The devil will concede Jesus’ identity as the Son of God if Jesus uses that relationship for his own purposes. The devil’s proposition is for Jesus to use his sonship with the Father to produce a spectacular display of power and invincibility. The devil is claiming that the world will flock to Jesus if he plays by their rules, and also, he will not need to go through the suffering that will be involved in following God’s will. Luke’s use of the Temple to set the scene of this temptation is a sure reference to the final assault of the devil in Jerusalem that will lead to Jesus’ crucifixion and death on the cross.

Jesus not only knows his identity as the Son of God, but he also knows the love of his Father. If the Father’s will involves suffering, it is not due to a lack of God’s love. Jesus and the believers, who were the first recipients of Luke’s Gospel, know that God’s love may entail a divine rescue that comes through suffering and death and not always before or from it. So, Jesus is not tempted by self-preservation. Even his own health and life, he willingly places in the Father’s hands, knowing the Father’s love will prevail even if suffering is involved. In this way, Jesus’ “no” to the temptation of self-preservation is his “yes” to God’s love.

Both the devil and Jesus are using scripture throughout this battle. Although both know the scriptures it is only Jesus who knows the heart and character of the Author. Jesus knows he is the beloved son of the Father. He shuts down the devil by quoting “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.” If we try to test God’s love, we make ourselves out to be the standard by which the Father is measured. We cannot take our “standards” of love and put the Father to a test to see if he measures up. It is the Father who is love. Just as Jesus went to the cross, trusting the Father, we come to know what love really is as we go through trials and temptations and trust him. As Jesus says “no” to the devil and “yes” to the Father, he becomes our “no” to temptation and our “yes” to faith, hope, and love.

The temptations from the devil conclude in defeat.

When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time. (Luke 4:13 NRSV)

The devil’s departure is a depiction of his defeat. His return “until an opportune time” is a reference to the final battle that will resume at the cross. This story is but the beginning of the devil’s defeat that will be fully accomplished in Jesus’ crucifixion and death. Let’s conclude where the devil left off. Since the devil cited verses 11-12 of Psalm 91, let’s look at those verses and pay attention to see what he did not quote—the very next verse.

For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.
On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.
You will tread on the lion and the adder, the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot. (Psalm 91:11-13 NRSV)

You see this? God’s word always gets the last word. You can see why the devil wouldn’t want to include the part of Psalm 91 that spoke of his own demise. But Jesus knew his scriptures, and he knew his Father. As we face the temptations the devil throws our way, may we too, hold to God’s word to us in the written and Living Word and receive Jesus’ “no” to the devil so we can receive his “yes” to the Father’s gift of Faith, Hope, and Love.

The Temptation of Jesus w/ Gary Deddo W1

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The Temptation of Jesus w/ Gary Deddo
March 6 – 1st Sunday of Lent
Luke 4:1-13 “The Temptation of Jesus”

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Program Transcript


The Temptation of Jesus w/ Gary Deddo W1

Anthony:  Let me read the first pericope, which is Luke 4:1 – 13. It comes from the NRSV. It is the Revised Common Lectionary passage for March the 6th.

Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished.  The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.”  Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’”

Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world.  And the devil said to him, “To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please.  If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” 

 Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’”

Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying 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 protect you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’”

 Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”  When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.

Gary, if you were preaching this passage, what would have your time and attention and focus?

Gary: Well, you can guess from this, we’re going to first learn something about who Jesus is. The context is important here; this comes after Jesus is baptized. And he is baptized uniquely now with the Holy Spirit so that people watching and witnessing, see that this is the one filled with the Holy Spirit of God, one in human form, who has the Holy Spirit now for us, as he is filled with the Holy Spirit at this point in a new way. We have to say, Jesus had the Holy Spirit, as it were, from all eternity, but now he has the Holy Spirit in a unique way for us and for his public ministry. So, his public ministry starts here, but what’s the first thing that happens then in his public ministry?

It shows us that his primary work is to deal with the very source of evil in our created world. This is the real battle. This is the real center. This is the real task. It is to overcome evil and its primary effect, which is death, destruction. This is where the real battle goes on. And of course, we see this throughout his ministry, that he’s dealing with the demonic.  And I think sometimes we don’t really pay much attention to that, but this is the central battle, remembering that context.

And of course, he’s not doing it for himself. Everything he does in his incarnate life is for us and our salvation. He does nothing for himself; it’s for us. And he does it in our flesh, in our place, and on our behalf.

So, this is what he’s doing in dealing with the tempter himself. So I’d have to say that’s where we need to start, is to realize the context and what this shows us about who Jesus is, why he came, and where the real battle is.

Anthony: That’s good. And as we focus on Jesus, I want to ask you, what is he ultimately being tempted to do or not to do?

And what does it have to teach us?

Gary: Right. Well, if you look at the temptations and put them all together, instead of separating them up right away, we see that the evil one is attempting to break his trust and worship relationship with the Father in the Spirit. Right? This is what he’s trying to do is to break that relationship, to destroy it, to ruin it.

And how does he do it? The evil one tempts him to disbelieve in his Father and in the Holy Spirit, working in him, to distrust. And how does he do that? By lying about the situation. He is a liar and a deceiver and attempting to deceive and lie to Jesus in order to break that trust relationship that he has with the Father in the Holy Spirit.  That’s his main point of destruction.

It’s not just pain or suffering or things like that. It is actually to destroy the relationship between Jesus and God. And he knows that this is the central battle himself. He knows who his enemy is. And so, he attempts to destroy that. Furthermore, notice the nature of the deceptions here, “If you are,” and then he [the tempter] says, “then you’ll do this or that or the other, if you are the Son of God.”

Now there is a little point of truth there. Is Jesus the Son of God? Yes, he is. Does Jesus already know that? Yes, he does. But see the if? “If, if, if you are then you’ll do this,” in other words, don’t you have to do something or other to prove it, to demonstrate it? You see, rather than Jesus is resting in it, it needs no proof. It needs no demonstration.

It is brute real fact, reality. The trust relationship is there. It is freely given. It doesn’t need to be proved. It doesn’t need to be demonstrated. It is the rock bottom truth. But each one tempts him to say, “Yeah, there is a truth there, but you have to prove it, don’t you?  At least prove it to yourself,” which of course is impossible.

And if Jesus were to go ahead and do that, of course that means, “Yeah, rather than trusting in the love of the Father and the presence of the Spirit, I need additional proof.” Well, that shows unbelief, that shows distrust:  I need something else to confirm it that would be as great or greater than the actual love and relationship that he actually has.

And see here the tempter says, “Now here’s the criteria I want you to use. Here’s how you set up this test.” So what could happen that would shift Jesus’ trust over to this criterion and get him to be at least a hypothetical unbeliever for a while?  Saying, “Okay, let’s say I’m not the Son of God now what’s that test, Satan. What’s that test? Oh, there’s a criterion. My ability to turn a stone into bread. Okay. Yeah. If I pass that test, if I pass that test, then I can go back and trust in that relationship with the Father.”

But if it doesn’t happen, so do you see the subtlety here? And of course, this is the same – Satan has no other “MO,” mode of operation – it’s always the same towards us, all those who belong to Christ.  It’s the same thing to get us to test and to prove, to become hypothetical unbelievers, and then act out of that to see if we can get back to where we are. Well, Jesus would have absolutely none of that. He would not be tested, especially under the criteria that the devil gives him.

It is a reality that he trusts in fully and completely, so that we too might join him in that trust and confidence. He’s doing this for us. He’s winning the battle for us, not for himself.  But for us, he is defeating the evil one, beginning to defeat the evil one right here, right there, right at the beginning and that follows right through his whole ministry, leading up to the cross.

So Jesus was not fooled at all. And he knows that test actually is the test that leads to unbelief and to a disconnect from God. What we see going on is really how evil works.

Anthony: Yeah, it seems to me as I was listening to you, it just reminds me of how everything truly hinges on the love relationship between Father and Son in the communion of the Holy Spirit. And thanks be to God that Jesus rested in who he was!

As I look at this passage, Gary, it looks like the Holy Spirit intentionally led Jesus into the wilderness. And we know this was a unique leading for a specific purpose, but I’m just curious, do you think the Spirit sometimes leads us into the wilderness? And if so, what instruction and encouragement can we take from this passage?

Gary: Well, one thing I’d have to say is we’re always in the wilderness. This is why it is a wilderness experience.

Jesus knows that and prays that in John 17, “Father, I don’t pray that you take them out of the world, but that you sanctify them in the world.” That process of sanctification, sharing in Christ’s sanctification by the same Holy Spirit that he had for us and then sent to us upon his Ascension, is to enable us to go through this wilderness experience.

What the rest of the New Testament calls, the present dark age or the evil generation, this is where we are all the time. But now we too have that same Spirit as a down payment. We don’t have it in fullness even, but we do have it as a down payment or as an inheritance, or there is a ceiling that’s yet to be opened.

We, being joined to Jesus as we trust in the Holy Spirit [who] illuminates the word for us so that we become those who believe, we are in the wilderness for the sake to serve this risen Jesus, to be witnesses to him in this present darkness, in this evil age. And we have the same provision then of sharing in Jesus’ ongoing ministry in this wilderness time.

So yes, there’s always the potential to be tempted in one of these ways.  We can talk about the three different ways shown here.  But yes, we’re always open to the potential to being distrusting, to have something or someone, something come into our view or in our lives where we say, “Well, maybe I can’t trust God.  Maybe I should put him on test.”

Or maybe God is putting me on test. That’s the other thing, the evil one wants us to think that God has put us on test. And so, we have to prove it and prove it to ourselves. And all by whatever our obedience, or even by our degree of how much faith we have, and try to measure it quantitatively, something like that.

And so yes, we are still in the wilderness, but with the provision of God’s word, with his full revelation in Jesus Christ, according to his word and with the Holy Spirit, actually working in our lives.  And along the way, the Lord can indeed provide us with other fellow travelers who realize we’re in the same battle, we’re in the same wilderness with them in which there will be temptations.

But these are preparations. As Jesus in the wilderness here, is a preparation for his entire ministry, right? Just like Israel was prepared in the wilderness as well. There’s a parallel here to Israel’s experience and Jesus’ experience, capping that off. Now yes, we are in the wilderness subject to temptation, but there is provision for us.

So even though we’re tempted, and we’re not guilty when we’re tempted, but we are to use the provision God gives us to resist that temptation, to remember the word of God and put our trust in him, as trust in his faithfulness and faith and his faithfulness to preserve us. And if we fall, to renew us and restore us, to go back as often as we need to, because (well, we’ll get to that later) he’ll receive us back every time we come back to him. He has made full provision for us in this wilderness.

Anthony: Hallelujah, praise God that as we walk through the wilderness, we have the gift of grace, of our Lord’s presence with us. And we can see in him, even here, the overcoming of the evil one, and we know that full defeat happens in his death, resurrection, and ascension. Hallelujah, praise God!


Small Group Discussion Questions

From Speaking of Life

  • Can you think of any examples of a lie that had some truth mixed in? Can you think of how the devil uses this tactic?
  • What comfort and encouragement comes from knowing Jesus defeated the devil’s deceptions? What does that mean for believers when they face temptations and deceptions from the devil?

From the Sermon

  • Can you identity with the difficulty of saying “no?” Can you think of examples when you said “no” to something because you were saying “yes” to something else?
  • The sermon noted that Luke recorded the devil’s temptations right after Jesus’ baptism, where he heard the Father claim him as his own Son. In addition, Luke includes the genealogy of Jesus that ends with Jesus being the “Son of God.” Can you see how the devil’s temptations were aimed more at getting Jesus to doubt the truth of his identity with the Father than it was about anything else? What do you think the devil is using to tempt us to doubt in the various temptations we may face?
  • Luke records that Jesus was “famished” when he faced the devil’s temptations but also that he was “full of the Holy Spirit.” What significance do you see from these two details in the story?
  • The sermon presents Jesus’ “no” to the devil’s first temptation of turning stone to bread as a “no” to self-reliance and a “yes” to faith, or trust and reliance on God. Can you think of times when we are tempted to rely on ourselves rather than trust in the Father’s faithful provision?
  • The sermon presents Jesus’ “no” to the devil’s second temptation to the glory and authority of the world’s kingdoms as a “no” to self-glory and a “yes” to hope. Can you think of times when we are tempted to pursue our own glory on our own authority rather than waiting in hope for God’s glory by his authority?
  • The sermon presents Jesus’ “no” to the devil’s third temptation to avoid the cross as a “no” to self-preservation and a “yes” to love. Discuss ways that our attempts of self-preservation may be an avoidance of sacrificial love.
  • Discuss how the devil and Jesus use the scriptures. How does this inform how we should approach the Bible?
  • How does knowing Jesus’ victory over the devil’s temptations empower us to overcome ours?
  • How does the devil’s defeat enable us to live in faith, hope, and love?

Sermon for March 13, 2022 — 2nd Sunday of Easter Preparation

Speaking Of Life 4016 | The Integrity of God’s Covenant

Have you ever broken a promise? Or maybe the other way around, has anyone broken their promises with you? It’s easy to lose our faith and trust in someone who will always be fallible. Just as God blessed Abraham, God’s promises of faithfulness, mercy, and love will always be available to us, in every circumstance.

Program Transcript


Speaking Of Life 4016 | The Integrity of God’s Covenant
Michelle Fleming

A research study published in the Journal of Business Ethics in 2000 found that promise-keeping was not a high priority in the American workplace. In fact, only 30 percent of the 700 study participants kept their word in business, and if they were faced with legal action, even then only 57 percent would keep their word. News like this can be discouraging, but let me share the story of one CEO who kept his promise to his employees.     

Josh James, the co-founder and former CEO of the web analytics company Omniture, was faced with a tough choice in December of 2000 when he had to lay off 48 employees—without severance—to save the company. James told the laid-off employees that if he ever found a way to pay them the severance they should have had, he would do it. Almost five years later, James was able to send those employees the severance money they were due. He demonstrated integrity in business, and as a result, some of those former employees came back to work for him when he started another company.

Integrity matters. Our God is a God of integrity, though, admittedly, we don’t always act like we believe it. A good example is Abram, who later was renamed, Abraham. He struggled to believe God’s promise to provide Abram with descendants. Note his conversation with God in Genesis 15.

Some time later, the Lord spoke to Abram in a vision and said to him,
 “Do not be afraid, Abram, for I will protect you,
and your reward will be great.”

But Abram replied, “O Sovereign Lord, what good are all your blessings when I don’t even have a son? Since you’ve given me no children, Eliezer of Damascus, a servant in my household, will inherit all my wealth. You have given me no descendants of my own, so one of my servants will be my heir.”

Genesis 15:1-3 (NLT)

Notice that Abram is already trying to take control of the problem and come up with a solution.

He’s doubting that God is going to keep his promise. Does God get angry with Abram when he doubts? Let’s see what happened next.

[Look Down]

Then the Lord said to him, “No, your servant will not be your heir, for you will have a son of your own who will be your heir.” Then the Lord took Abram outside and said to him, “Look up into the sky and count the stars if you can. That’s how many descendants you will have!”
Genesis 15:4-5 (NRSV)

God reminds Abram of the original promise made. He doesn’t give Abram a list of things to do to help the process along. In fact, God shows Abram through a sacred ritual, that the promise coming true would have nothing to do with Abram’s efforts at all. God’s promise was a covenant he made that depends on God alone – proving his integrity.

And later, Abram had a son with his wife Sarah. God’s word is true.

The example of Josh James keeping his promise to his laid-off employees, even though he wasn’t legally obligated, illustrates the integrity of character we find in the story of Abram’s interaction and covenant with God. We can count on God to patiently remind us of his promises when we get discouraged and start thinking we need to do something to make those promises happen.

May you rest in the knowledge that the Father, Son, and Spirit will always keep their promises.

I’m Michelle Fleming, Speaking of Life.

For reference:

https://www.jstor.org/stable/25074390

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0hE6e2-cV4

Psalm 27:1-14 · Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18 · Philippians 3:17-4:1 · Luke 13:31-35

The theme for this week is God’s promises in his timing through relationship. As we move into the second Sunday of Easter Preparation (commonly referred to as Lent), we’re learning that we must not only trust in what God has promised us, but we also have to learn to trust in God’s timing and the way God emphasizes relationship. Psalm 27 encourages us to “Wait for the Lord,” especially when we encounter difficulties. Genesis 15 shows that Abram expressed his frustration with God’s delay in fulfilling the promise of an heir, coming up with the “plan B” of his servant Eliezer of Damascus. When God doesn’t operate according to our timetable, we’re quick to try to help things along, rather than drawing closer in our relationships with God and others. Paul refers to this tendency to try to control outcomes as setting our minds on “earthly things” in Philippians 3, and he encourages us to “stand firm” in the promises God has made. Our sermon text, Luke 13, gives us an inside look at the heart of God who wants to return us to right relationship with the Father, Son, and Spirit by restoring us to our best, most loving, and compassionate selves and with each other.

Returning Us to Ourselves

Luke 13:31-35 (NRSV)

Father Greg Boyle is a Jesuit priest who works with gang members in Los Angeles. He’s done this for more than 30 years, and during that time, he founded Homeboy Industries where former gang members can find support, from job training to therapy and from tattoo removal to anger management classes. He’s also an author, with two New York Times bestsellers that chronicle his experiences in working with gang members and creating an environment where they find their transformation. For most who join gangs, they are running away from something: trauma, abuse in the home, mental illness. According to Father Greg, gangs speak the language of “a lethal absence of hope,” and he’s convinced that to reach gang members, “you infuse hope to kids for whom hope is foreign” (Kate Bowler).

Father Greg was interviewed by Krista Tippett on the On Being podcast, and he told this story about one former gang member who works for him:

“I have a homie named Louie, who’s just turned 18, and he’s kind of a difficult kid. He’s exasperating, and he’s whiny. And he works for me, although ‘work’ may be too strong a verb. But homies lately have asked me for blessings…they always ask me on the street or in my office, and they never say, ‘Father, may I have your blessing?’ They always say, ‘Hey, G, give me a bless, yeah?’

So this kid, Louie, I’m talking to him, and he’s complaining about something. And finally, at the end of it, he says, ‘Hey, G, give me a bless, yeah?’ I said, ‘Sure.’ So he comes around to my side of the desk, and he knows the drill, and he bows his head, and I put my hands on his shoulder.

Well, his birthday had been two days before, so it gave me an opportunity to say something to him. And I said, ‘You know, Louie, I’m proud to know you, and my life is richer because you came into it. When you were born, the world became a better place. And I’m proud to call you my son, even though’ — and I don’t know why I decided to add this part — ‘at times, you can really be a huge pain in the [butt].’

And [Louie] looks up, and he smiles. And he says, ‘The feeling’s mutual.’ And suddenly, kinship, so quickly…Maybe I return him to himself. But there is no doubt that he’s returned me to myself.”

Homeboy Industries doesn’t offer a 12-step program. It’s not about “inserting a message into their ears.” Instead, Father Greg says and believes:

 “In the end it’s always relational. So, if you can engage people and connect to them and …return them to themselves, …they can start to believe the truth of who they are, that they’re exactly what God had in mind…It’s really about holding a mirror up and telling them the truth and assuring them that the truth is really all good” (NPR).

Jesus is all about relationships, like Father Greg Boyle, especially with those the culture had deemed of little value. We can know and understand the Father’s heart toward all humanity by observing Jesus’s actions and words. Remember that Jesus said to Philip in John 14:9 (NRSV), “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father?’” God is about “kin-dom” or relationship as much as he is about “kingdom,” and our sermon text reveals that. Let’s read today’s text.

Read Luke 13:31-35, NRSV.

What can we notice about this passage?

Setting the context: Beginning in Luke 9:51, Jesus starts to head toward Jerusalem, knowing that he faces his own death there. Yet this knowledge did not keep him from continuing to reach out in relationship with people. Let’s go through the text:

At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” (Luke 13:31 NRSV)

It’s interesting to note that in Luke’s writings (i.e., the books of Luke and Acts), Pharisees were not always enemies of Jesus. Consider these examples:

  • Joseph of Arimathea, a secret disciple who provided a tomb and assisted with Jesus’s burial.
  • Gamaliel, a Pharisee who talked the council into not killing the apostles in the book of Acts, but instead, waiting to see if their actions were from God or if they resulted in nothing.
  • Jesus dined at the homes of Pharisees (Luke 7:36, 11:37, and 14:1).
  • Pharisees were represented as early believers (Acts 15:5).
  • Paul was a Pharisee, even after his conversion (Acts 23:6).

In this case, we don’t know if the Pharisees were simply trying to get Jesus to leave their area or if they were genuinely concerned for his safety. As for the Herod referred to in v. 31, it is assumed to be the same Herod who had beheaded John the Baptist. Though the verse says, “Herod wants to kill you,” Cambridge Bible Commentary points out that Herod most likely wanted to see Jesus perform a miracle. However, Herod had not “wanted” to behead John, and he still did it, reluctantly, so his whims were prone to change.

He said to them, “Go and tell that fox for me, ‘Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work.’” (Luke 13:32 NRSV)

Jesus calls Herod “a fox,” which in rabbinical literature, is often used to convey contempt. Jesus goes on to focus on his ministry and how he is creating relationships with people through healing and deliverance. Jesus was “returning people to themselves,” their best selves created by God, through his ministry of healing and deliverance, and it is important to note that his crucifixion was not the end or completion of his ministry. Jesus points this out by saying, “And on the third day I finish my work.” The resurrection perfected and finished Jesus’s inclusion of all humanity into the loving relationship with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem. (Luke 13:33 NRSV)

By Jesus saying, “Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day,” he is implying that he is in charge of his destiny, not Herod or anybody else. Jesus intends to fulfill his ministry enroute to Jerusalem. He knows that Jerusalem has a reputation of killing its prophets, but the crucifixion will not end Jesus’s ministry. His resurrection on the third day completes it.

 Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! (Luke 13:34 NRSV)

This verse conveys the depth of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit’s love for humanity as Jesus uses the metaphor of Jerusalem. Human beings often see themselves as separate, disconnected, especially from those who are weak, sick, and oppressed. The metaphor of Jerusalem talks about our very human tendency to kill or remove that which shows us the truth of our human frailty and need. Yet Jesus does not respond to this tendency with anger but with the compassion of a mother hen (a simile). We can envision a mother hen spreading her wings to gather all her chicks, not just the strong ones, under her loving care. If we are parents, we can understand the desire to protect and help our children, even when they may strike back or refuse our help.

Referring to his work with gang members, Father Greg Boyle says that if we assume God is compassionate lovingkindness, all we’re asked to do is to participate with God in the world. He asks an important question: “So how can we seek a compassion that can stand in awe at what people have to carry, rather than stand in judgment at how they carry it?” Here’s the answer he suggests:

“So you’re trying to imitate the kind of God you believe in. You want to move away from whatever is tiny-spirited and judgmental, …[and] you want to be as spacious as you can be…And love is all there is, and love is all you are…You want people to recognize the truth of who they are, that they’re exactly what God had in mind when God made them. [Child psychologist] Alice Miller…talked about [how] we’re all called to be enlightened witnesses: people who, through kindness and tenderness and focused attention of love, return people to themselves. And in the process, you’re returned to yourself.” (On Being)

Jesus longed to hold a mirror up to Jerusalem to show her who she really was, beloved by God, and then return her to that original vision. Unfortunately, Jerusalem and humanity in general long to fight against real or perceived enemies and forego compassion. As a result, we fail to live lives of peace, joy, and love.

Jesus wants to return us to ourselves, but we have to want it, too. Father Greg says that Homeboy Industries doesn’t “exist for those who need help. We are only around for those who want help” (Kate Bowler). To embrace our fullest, most loving, and compassionate selves, we have to want it.

See, your house is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.” (Luke 13:35 NRSV)

This verse outlines the consequences of not living in God’s kin-dom, in relationship with God the Father, Son, and Spirit. “Your house is left to you” could refer to Jerusalem’s fall to Babylonia in 587 B.C. or prophetically to Vespasian’s siege on Jerusalem in 68 A.D. This is not the only verse that talks about the consequences Jerusalem’s refusal to return to God. Jesus weeps over Jerusalem in Luke 19:41-44.

The reference “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord” is from Psalm 118:26, and while it might refer to Jesus’s triumphal entry on Palm Sunday, it could also refer to his Second Coming.

Application:

  • Recognize that God longs to return us to ourselves. This means that God seeks to heal us of hurt and trauma that are uniquely part of our human experience and restore us to the confidence that we are worthy of love and belonging.
  • Realize that the way God returns us to ourselves is often by having us show compassion and create relationships outside our typical comfort zone. We are restored by “imitating the kind of God [we] believe in,” according to Father Greg. We stop judging the means people use to carry their hurts, and instead, we stand in awe that they are able to carry their hurts and still live.
  • Know God’s heart toward you by studying Jesus’s treatment of people, especially those who were marginalized by culture. By seeing Jesus’s tender care of the children, his healing and care for women, and his respectful interactions with Gentiles, we can know that God is for us. And we are motivated to show that same spacious care in the world.

Compassion is an indicator of health for any church or community. Jesus’s example of compassion not only shows God’s heart toward humanity, but it reveals a love that seeks relationship. It’s a love that returns a person to themselves, and in loving that way, we too are returned to our best and truest selves.

For Reference:

https://onbeing.org/programs/greg-boyle-the-calling-of-delight-gangs-service-and-kinship/
https://katebowler.com/podcasts/greg-boyle-the-case-for-hope/
https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112916726
https://www.workingpreacher.org/commentaries/revised-common-lectionary/second-sunday-in-lent-3/commentary-on-luke-1331-35-3
https://sermonwriter.com/biblical-commentary-old/luke-1331-35/
https://biblehub.com/commentaries/luke/13-31.htm

 

The Temptation of Jesus w/ Gary Deddo W2

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The Temptation of Jesus w/ Gary Deddo
March 13 – 2nd Sunday of Lent
Luke 13:31-35 “Listen”

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Program Transcript


The Temptation of Jesus w/ Gary Deddo W2

Anthony:  Our next pericope is Luke 13:31 – 35. It comes from the NRSV. It is the Revised Common Lectionary passage for March 13th. Gary, would you read it for us please?

Gary: Yes, it’d be happy to.

At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.”  

He said to them, “Go and tell that fox for me, ‘Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work.  Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.’ Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! See, your house is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’”

Anthony: Gary, what stands out to you from this passage?

Gary: Well, it’s a little bit complicated; again, the context is important. We have these, Pharisees coming to them. And I think it’s another kind of test where Jesus turns the table.  But again, we’re primarily to learn about him, who he is, and what he’s up to.

In order to do that, in order to receive his word, you have to let him turn the tables and set the terms. The Pharisees tried to set the terms of the discussion, but Jesus has none of that. He is Lord. He will not have them lorded over them because they are not lords. And so, he turns the whole thing around on them to get them to question, to ask the question who is this, then of him, rather than them questioning him and trying to get on his good side.

Anthony: Taking this text at face value, it seems like the Pharisees are actually trying to protect Jesus instead of the normal course of action. Based on what you just said, I’m curious, what’s really going on here?

Gary: Well, we don’t really know exactly. All right. So when you have Pharisees coming, we know that some Pharisees in the end, ended up believing, not a small number, but certainly not a huge number of them but it might be a mixed multitude.

Some may have been more, “Well, let’s help Jesus out.”  And others, as you know, “Let’s see if we can get on his good side and appear as if we’re on his side, but we’re not really.” So, we don’t know, but Jesus doesn’t even bother to figure that out exactly. And we don’t need to either.

And so, where they start, “Get away from here for Herod wants to kill you.” And of course, Herod was viewed as the opposition to the Pharisees. Herod was more aligned with the Sadducees. So many of them, some of them who came to him may have had a secondary agenda, a hidden agenda. They’re trying to get him on their side against Herod. We don’t really know.

But Jesus – notice, as usual, he doesn’t answer their question because it’s not the right question. See, Jesus was always saying, “Here’s the right question. You’re asking the wrong question. I’m here to tell you what the right question is.  I’m here to be the right question. I’m the one you need to be asking about here and not protecting.”

Jesus doesn’t need their protection. Right? So notice they come to him and recommend what he does: get away from here. And Jesus said to them, “Go and tell that Fox for me.”  You see who’s in charge here.

So Jesus then directs them:  go and tell that Fox for me.  He doesn’t even use the strongest language, but he tips his hand that trusting that Herod would be the wrong thing to do. Yeah, that’s right. But see, it’s a small thing for Jesus. You think he knows that?  He doesn’t need to be told.

Now notice next, he starts talking about himself. “Listen here. Listen to me. Don’t tell me, listen to me. Are you going to?” Now some of the Pharisees may have, and some of them probably didn’t.

“Listen, I am casting out demons. So, what does that tell you about me and performing cures today and tomorrow? Not just one-offs here and there. I am the one who brings healing. Who does that come from? What does that tell you about my relationship with the God that you claim to know? That should tell you something. Does it?”

You see what he’s telling them, raises the question. It forces them to deal with (well, not forces them) it invites them strongly. It confronts them with the question: who am I?

And then it seems to me, this third phrase here is a bit of a parable. “And on the third day, I finished my work.” Right. And they’re going to ask, “The third day of what? When is that going to happen?”

I think he sets that out there for those who are really honest seekers of the Pharisees. They will wonder about that, maybe some of them, maybe Nicodemus, will come to him and ask him more about that third day thing. But of course, on the actual third day after he’s crucified, maybe some of them, he planted a seed in their hearts and in their minds, “On that third day, I finished my work.”  And they may reflect and be given another opportunity by the Holy Spirit to see who Jesus is and put their trust in him as the Son of God, who is the Savior of the world. That’s who he is, who he’s related to, and why he’s come.

Well, he does go on here. I think that’s what’s happening between him and the Pharisees. He’s making himself the issue, turning the tables on them, and exercising his authority in this parabolic way to get them to ask the right question and to pay attention to him.

Anthony: Well, hopefully I asked the right question here about the Pharisees.

We read about our Lord Jesus’ heart for Jerusalem. What can we take away from that?

Gary: Right. So, verse 34, he goes on and now, we hear his thoughts out loud, right?  This, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, in that repeated way, shows this kind of longing and agony, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it. See, he’s already anticipating what’s happening. (Sorry. This is Luke 13.)

So, this is on in his ministry compared to the first pericope we read, which is at the beginning. He knows what’s happening here and how people are responding, especially the leadership, and so, he’s aware of that.  But then he tells us more, not only that he’s aware of the danger that is before him, but yes, he tells us of his heart.

I desire to gather your children together. That is those who belong to Jerusalem. And of course, and its temple, those who worship the God who is worshiped in Jerusalem and his very presence is represented there in the holy of Holies, in the temple. Oh, how often I have desired to gather your children together (and here a very touching metaphor) as a hen gathers her brood under her wings. And then the agony, and you were not willing (verse 34b.)

We see right into the heart of Jesus, and therefore into the heart of the Father and the heart of the Spirit, desiring to gather and yet seeing the resistance to him. We see right into his heart, but they are rejecting, they are resisting God’s grace in person. In person! And of course, others of Jesus’ parables say the same thing, right?

When the owner of the field comes and not the servants and the slaves, and they kill the Son, not the servants. So many of them point in the same direction as this. But yes, this shows us the heart of the Father, the heart of the Son, the heart of the Spirit.

Anthony: Yeah. And as we look at the heart of the triune God, we like what we see so very much.


Small Group Discussion Questions

From Speaking of Life

  • Abram grew frustrated, waiting for God to fulfill his promise of an heir. Have you ever grown frustrated waiting on God? If so, what did you do, and how did the situation resolve?
  • God comforted Abram by reminding him of God’s nature through the sacred ritual of the animal sacrifices. How can we be reminded of God’s character and promise-keeping nature through Christian community rituals, such as the Eucharist (i.e., Communion), or personal rituals, like the disciplines of prayer, Bible study, and meditation?

From the Sermon

  • Returning people to themselves is the idea that our worst behaviors and thoughts happen when we feel disconnected from each other and from God, and that returning us to our God-made selves promotes healing, love, and peace. Can you share an experience where sharing or experiencing God’s love restored you to your better self, connected you with God and others?
  • Father Greg Boyle suggests that we need to cultivate awe at the hurts and trauma people carry rather than judge the way they carry them. How can changing our thoughts from judgment to compassion for others also help us deal more compassionately with our own hurts/trauma?

Sermon for March 20, 2022 – 3rd Sunday of Easter Preparation

Speaking Of Life 4017 | Praying for Deliverance

In a fractured world, it is easy to feel powerless in situations that are out of our control. Even when everything is shattered and broken, let us remember that we can always talk to our Father who surrounds us with his love and assurance of hope to keep us whole.

Program Transcript


Speaking Of Life 4017 | Praying for Deliverance
Greg Williams

Does the world seem broken beyond repair? It seems every generation at one point or another feels this way. In smaller ways, we also have times of brokenness in our personal lives when we realize there is little we can do to make things right. Whether looking at the world at large or dealing with a personal crisis, we often come to a place where we feel powerless. Maybe you feel that way today!

Consider this! If a small child is playing with a toy that becomes broken beyond their ability to fix, what do you think most children would naturally do? I think most would not hesitate to take the toy to a parent to fix. I’ve had numerous broken toys brought to me to fix and I’m sure most parents and grandparents have logged many hours fixing broken toys for children.

Today is a good day to remember that we have a heavenly Father who is able and willing to receive and repair all the brokenness in our lives. Feeling powerless can remind us of our need to approach our Father in prayer, bringing him all that is broken in us and in our world. Not only is he more than able to deliver and save us from all brokenness, but he has already done so in Jesus Christ. This means when we pray, we are not asking the Father to intervene in something he is unaware of. We are also not twisting his arm to do something he is not willing to do. We are participating in the Father’s sure deliverance from evil and brokenness. Like the child who brings a broken toy to a parent to fix, the most powerful and effective thing we can do in the face of worldwide brokenness is to bring it to our heavenly Father in prayer.

David concludes with a powerful reminder of the Father’s heart, which is turned towards his children who seek him in prayer:

“The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them;
    he delivers them from all their troubles.
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted
    and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

The righteous person may have many troubles,
    but the Lord delivers him from them all;
he protects all his bones,
    not one of them will be broken.

Evil will slay the wicked;
    the foes of the righteous will be condemned.
The Lord will rescue his servants;
    no one who takes refuge in him will be condemned.”

Psalm 34:17-22

For our own sakes and for the sake of our world, the Lord invites us into his prayer to the Father as the most powerful way to participate in Jesus’ deliverance and restoration of all brokenness. It’s never too late to start praying for deliverance from our brokenness.

I’m Greg Williams, Speaking of Life.

Psalm 63:1-8 • Isaiah 55:1-9 • 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 • Luke 13:1-9

This week’s theme is repentance. The call to worship Psalm provides a fitting response of praise and worship from those who have turned to the Lord for their salvation. The Old Testament reading from Isaiah calls sinners to forsake evil and turn to the Lord who is abundant in mercy. The Gospel reading from Luke presents a parable from Jesus that gets to the root of repentance. The epistolary text comes from 1 Corinthians where the Apostle Paul, drawing from Israel’s experience in the wilderness, instructs believers to repent of the idolatry of self-reliance with the reminder of God’s faithfulness.

Repent or Perish

Luke 13:1-9 (NRSV)

Tragedy. Disaster. Undeserved suffering. These are the things which raise challenging questions regardless of one’s beliefs. Perhaps as a Christian, we may think these questions present no challenge to the Christian faith. But as Christopher J. H. Wright has expressed, believing in a God who is both all-powerful and all good presents “a problem at every level”[1] when it comes to suffering without explanation. Yet, we will seek explanations in the wake of the numerous accounts of tragic undeserved suffering.

Let’s take two events just two years ago from our upcoming Easter celebration. First, on Easter, April 21, 2019, there was a coordinated terrorist attack that included the bombing of three Christian churches and three luxury hotels in Sri Lanka, claiming the lives of 207 people while injuring another 450 at time of reporting.[2] Finding some form of causality and explanation in the wake of this irrational act of murder never amounted to any satisfying answer. There was blame, there was commentary, but there was never an answer that accounted for the loss of innocent worshipers on that Easter Sunday. In stories of such violence, it may be easy to dismiss any culpability on God’s part. After all, it was a terrorist who sent suicide bombers to church—not God!

But, just to push the tension, let’s visit another account of tragedy, only not at the hands of terrorist, but at the hands of Mother Nature. Less than a month before the bombings in Sri Lanka, reports went out that a series of tornadoes had touched down near the Alabama/Georgia state line destroying several homes and claiming the lives of 23 people.[3] Unlike the terrorist, the target of the tornado was indiscriminate. You may remember this event yourself, especially if you lived in the areas affected or had loved ones who did. Perhaps you heard some of the incredible stories of those that were spared from the twister’s destruction. Some people have told stories of how their lives were spared even though they lost everything else. These stories are often retold as a witness of God’s miraculous protection. We may respond after hearing such stories with a quip statement like, “Looks like God was looking after you!”

But what about the 23 people who lost their lives. Did God lose sight of them? Or worse, did he love them less? And it is here we meet the challenge of claiming that God is both all-powerful and all-loving. If that is true, the argument goes, then these tragic events are left as markers that claim otherwise. While many may offer insightful explanations to give reasonable answers to this seeming incompatibility, we still live in the tension between who we think God is in himself and what we experience in his creation. In this tension, there exists a much deeper threat to our lives than any terrorist or tornado can throw our way. It’s the threat of letting our experience form our thinking about who God is, rather than learning about him from his own word of self-revelation spoken to us in Jesus Christ. We will look at Jesus’ parable in Luke to hear what he says about God’s character, considering the inexplicable suffering we face in our world.

Before we go further it will be good to consider how Jesus used parables in his teaching. I would like to borrow an illustration from Robert Farrar Capon who wrote a thought-provoking book on Jesus’ parables. Picture a block of wood. If I were a science teacher trying to teach students about the atom, I could say this block of wood is made up of atoms. Then I could illustrate an atom by way of the solar system. Just as the planets are circling the sun, electrons whirl around the nucleus of an atom. With that comparison the students can now see the inner workings of atoms that once remained invisible in the block of wood. This is typically how a teacher would use illustrations. What was once confusing to the mind is now made plain and simple.

However, that is not what Jesus did with his parables. He would take the same block of wood and solar system comparison to utterly challenge the way students once thought about the apparently solid piece of matter held before them. Like the solar system, this block of wood is composed mostly of vast empty space. So, your thoughts about what is solid turns out to be mostly full of holes.

The way Jesus used parables wasn’t to explain things in simple terms. He was aiming to reveal how peoples’ understanding of God fell short of who he is. Ultimately, Jesus used parables as a tool to lead people to repent of wrongful ways of thinking about God. We will look at one of those parables in Luke 13:1-9 intended to do just that. Jesus begins with a choice to either repent or perish.

At that very time there were some present who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. He asked them, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as they did. Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them—do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others living in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did.” (Luke 13:1-5 NRSV)

Now before we go further, let’s clear up a point here. Jesus is not telling us that unless we change the way we think about God, we will perish, because we are all going to perish. Rather, Jesus is talking eschatologically. If you continue your wrong way of thinking about God, and believe the common, though mistaken, assumption that tragic events or evil happens as a result of sin and guilt, you will be left with a false view of God. This false view will cause you to avoid pursuing a relationship with him. You will feel left out, and unable to enjoy being with the real God.

Keep in mind that repenting means primarily to change how one thinks about something. Actions, of course, will follow the way we think. Jesus knows that if we carry this wrong-headed thinking about the Father in our hearts, the suffering and tragedy we all experience will be a weight too heavy to bear, and may turn us to blaming God, rather than worshipping him. C.S. Lewis seemed cognizant of this threat in his observations of his own grief upon the loss of his wife:

Not that I am (I think) in much danger of ceasing to believe in God. The real danger is of coming to believe such dreadful things about Him. The conclusion I dread is not “So there’s no God after all,” but “So this is what God’s really like. Deceive yourself no longer.”[4]

That is what is truly at stake in how we think about tragic and senseless acts of violence by the hands of men or nature. We are tempted to let the experience of the event tell us who God is in his inner being. Our pain can drive our thoughts to counter Jesus’ revelation of his Father of love. What is important in knowing God is who he reveals himself to be, not what we project onto him by our experiences. Jesus will now follow up with a parable that serves to reveal to these distraught hearers God’s character that is consistent with God’s interaction with Israel throughout their history.

Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and found none. So he said to the gardener, ‘See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?’ He replied, ‘Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it. If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’” (Luke 13:6-9 NRSV)

In Jesus’ Parable of the Fig Tree, we are better served to hear Jesus challenge our thoughts about suffering rather than hear a word of affirmation to what we typically tell ourselves. After all, he is telling this parable to help his disciples think differently about who God is and how he deals with our sin and guilt. Remember the block of wood illustration. Here are a few ways we will look at the parable:

First, the owner of the vineyard in the parable will be a stand-in for the erroneous viewpoint that people typically hold about God. It may be helpful to see the “owner” as a mythological god ruling in our heads. Second, the vinedresser serves as a Christ figure who helps us see how God actually deals with humanity. Third, all humanity, including you and I today, will be represented by the fig tree.

As with all fruit trees, under the law of Moses, fig trees were protected from being cut down. They were precious and meant for the enjoyment of the owner. Note that in this parable, the fig tree was planted in a vineyard not an orchard. The Father did not “plant” us in his garden to market us or to produce fruit for his livelihood. We were created for his pleasure and enjoyment, not for some utilitarian end. There is more to this detail of the vineyard or garden that can be explored. Perhaps Jesus means to invoke the recollection of Adam and Eve in a Garden where they chose to listen to the lie that God was holding back from them, not having their best interest in mind. Adam and Eve chose to listen to the lie about a mythological god rather than the God who walked with them in the Garden. With this setting within the parable Jesus has found a backdoor where we may revisit the choice of who we listen to. Do we give more weight to experiences that feel like God is absent or do we trust in the one who has promised to never leave or forsake us?

Let’s take note of some historical details that Jesus includes that we modern readers may miss. For the Jews these details would serve to remind Jesus’ disciples of God’s presence with Israel throughout her history. In Leviticus 19:23-24, we see that it was forbidden to take fruit from fruit trees for the first three years. In the fourth year the fruit would “be holy, an offering of praise to the Lord.” For the Jews hearing this parable, the act of the owner wanting to cut down the fig tree because he couldn’t find fruit on it for three years would have run counter to what the law stated. If we see God looking to cut us down when we don’t produce, we hold an image of God in our minds that contradicts his own revelation to us. The “owner” in the parable is not acting like God had acted with Israel in their experience or with their law.

The vinedresser at this point speaks to the “man”—the mythological god we have created—and echoes what the law would have said to do: “Leave it alone for one more year.” This phrase “leave it alone” comes from the Greek aphes, carrying the meaning of forgive. It’s the same word Jesus utters from the cross in Luke 23:34, “Father, forgive (aphes) them….” The vinedresser takes upon himself the fruit bearing of the fig tree by digging around it and fertilizing it with dung. It would be a smelly job of blood, sweat and tears but he gets to the root of the problem.

This parable in the hands of Jesus challenges any concept we might hold of a God whose patience runs out on us and looks to destroy us like some short-tempered mad man. Rather, he comes to us in Jesus and operates through grace; through aphes. Through the crucifixion, digging into the dirt and dung of death, Jesus has rooted out the unfruitfulness of our human nature. We are called to repent of any wrong-headed notions that it is up to us to produce fruit in the fear of an axe-crazed owner bent on our destruction. We abide in the fruitfulness of our Savior who works only through aphes.

The parable ends with the vinedresser saying to the “man,” “If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then you can cut it down.” The vinedresser trusts in what he is doing to the tree. He knows the tree will bear fruit, and he knows the man will not need to cut it down. We can trust in Jesus working through grace for our fruitfulness, or we can perish in our wrong-headed belief in a mythological god. The mythological god will cut us down every time, but the real God never will. Notice the fruitfulness of the fig tree is bound up in Christ’s work in the tree. He does not magically make fruit appear on the tree but rather he takes up the role of the true gardener who remains in faithful relationship with the tree. In this way we can see that we participate in our own fruitfulness by Christ presence with us, working by his Spirit in our lives. In this way Jesus brings in the incredible dignity that comes from being in real relationship with him. Our relationship and response to him in our actions and decisions are gifted with incredible significance. Our prayers and what we say and do in our lives adds up and counts for something. We are not just wasting time in our relationship with Jesus in the here and now.

Jesus’ words in response to senseless violence and unexpected tragedy serve to build our faith in the God who is faithful to his people. We may never have satisfying answers to the challenge of suffering this side of heaven. But we do have God’s Word to us in Jesus Christ. His Word is that God is good even when our experience is bad. No matter what our thoughts may be telling us! This can lead us to face our sufferings with hope rather than fearful questioning of God’s character. As we come to see more and more who the Father is in Jesus Christ, we will be less inclined to demand an explanation from him of “Why do bad things happen to good people?” Instead, we can pray as Jesus taught us, “Deliver us from the evil one,” trusting that God aims to remove all evil and suffering to bring us into his everlasting Kingdom. This is the greatest ministry believers can engage in for the sake of the world. Pray to the one who has, is, and will do something about evil and suffering. Like the Speaking of Life video brought out, if a child has a broken gift he cannot fix, the most powerful and effective thing he can do is to bring it to his Father who can. This is a position of hope and not despair. May we join the cloud of witnesses seen in the biblical story and those faithful believers who came before us by turning to the One who is for us when everything in life seems to be against us.

[1] Christopher J. H. Wright. The God I Don’t Understand: Reflections on Tough Questions of faith. (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2008), 27.
[2] Louis Casiano, Stephen Sorace, Lucia I. Suarez Sang. Easter Sunday explosions at multiple churches and hotels rock Sri Lanka, death toll rises past 200. Fox News, accessed July 30, 2019, https://www.foxnews.com/world/easter-sunday-explosions-at-multiple-churches-and-hotels-rock-sri-lanka-death-tolls-rises
[3] Frank Miles. At least 23 dead, many injured, in apparent large tornado in Alabama, officials say; fatalities could rise. Fox News, accessed July 30, 2019, https://www.foxnews.com/weather/more-than-10-dead-many-injured-in-apparent-large-tornado-in-alabama-officials-say
[4] C.S. Lewis. A Grief Observed. (New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers, 1961), 6-7.

The Temptation of Jesus w/ Gary Deddo W3

Video unavailable (video not checked).

The Temptation of Jesus w/ Gary Deddo
March 20 – 3rd Sunday of Lent
Luke 13:1-9 “Repent or Perish”

CLICK HERE to listen to the whole podcast.

If you get a chance to rate and review the show, that helps a lot. And invite your fellow preachers and Bible lovers to join us!

Follow us on Spotify, Google Podcast, and Apple Podcasts.

Program Transcript


The Temptation of Jesus with Gary Deddo

Anthony:  Okay. Let’s transition to our next text, which is Luke13:1 – 9, which comes from the NRSV. It is the Revised Common Lectionary passage for March the 20th.

At that very time there were some present who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.  He asked them, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans?  No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as they did.  Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them—do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others living in Jerusalem?  No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did.”

Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and found none.  So he said to the gardener, ‘See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?’  He replied, ‘Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it.  If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’”

All right, Gary, unless you repent, you will all perish. There seems to be much to unpack here theologically. What should preachers preach?

Gary: Well, again reading any section in context, and of course, ultimately the context is the whole book of Luke, for instance, here and also the entire gospels and then the New Testament really.  So, the context here is we see people posing a question to Jesus.

But they don’t know and they are concerned about who this Jesus is, and they may very well also have an ultimate alternative motive, a hidden motive, or be entertaining unrecognized and false beliefs or assumptions. They’re going to come and tell Jesus something:  the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with sacrifices.

The Galileans may be actually a zealot type group that’s started a riot or an insurrection and then how Pilate to dealt with them. All right, but you see Jesus again, doesn’t answer their question directly. He asks them. See, he’s trying to get them to deal with him and who God really is.

So, he has to stop them. And that’s why he asked them a question: “Do you think that these Galileans suffered in this way because they were worse sinners than the all the other Galileans? No, I tell you.” (verse 2-3b)

You see, they’re talking about other people. “What about those people? Jesus. What about those people? What about those people? Aren’t they worse?”

And of course, how they’re thinking is some deserve worse treatment than others. “Don’t they? How are you going to answer that?”

It’s at least their assumption, if not some kind of ulterior motive going on here and maybe in the group, some present, had both, but Jesus is not interested in it.

He’s not going to make a judgment. He’s got the more fundamental concern, and you see, they’re not thinking about their own repentance. They’re avoiding that question. “Did they get what they deserve?” That’s what they’re talking about.

Jesus is saying, “The issue is you guys. Are you willing to repent? Whether you think you’re a worse sinner or not, that’s the issue.  Unless you, yourselves repent and recognize your total need for the total grace of God, completely undeservable. So, are you asking me this question to avoid your needing to repent and receive God’s forgiveness?”

A lot of the game at the time was what God wants you to do primarily is to avoid the need to receive his forgiveness. So, if you were a perfect person, you would have absolutely no need to repent or to receive forgiveness.

That’s what they think the game is.  That isn’t the game! The game is to be in right relationship and to receive forgiveness whenever you need it, because it’s there for you, not to see how minimally you can do it. And so that you can say you’re more righteous than another. “I don’t need to repent as much as somebody else.”

It’s not a comparison game. And I think that’s the game they’re playing, and they want to see where Jesus lines up in the comparison game of who needs to repent and who doesn’t need to repent, who needs more or who needs less.

And he’s giving them a warning: If you’re attempting to avoid the need of repentance, you are in real danger. This is a warning. You will perish just as they did. In other words, yeah, they should perish; someone should perish. He’s saying, be concerned about yourselves first because God calls all to repent, all to receive his forgiveness. Whether you’re a worst offender or a less worse offender, it doesn’t make any difference.

We all need the grace of God, total grace for total forgiveness. That’s what we need. And he does give them: this is a warning. It’s not what he wants. Right? Here, what I’m always interested in is why so often our first reaction is to hear a warning as if it’s a prediction and something God wants.

Whereas, even in a human situation, which is not perfect by any means, but when we warn somebody strongly, is that because we don’t care about them, and we want them to experience the negative consequence we’re warning them about?  Or is it because we want them to avoid it?

So, the strength of Jesus’ warnings are exactly proportional to his love for them.  Exactly proportional. They’re just as strong in both directions.  Someone who won’t warn another doesn’t care; he would just say nothing. So, this is a strict warning about what is apparently a real possibility if they refuse to repent and they say, “Well, I’m not going to repent. They have to. They certainly have to repent more than me. They’re worse sinners than I am. Why should I have to repent? Look, they’re not even repenting.”

You see all that comparison game hiding behind. If they would somehow manage to do that into eternity, and because the whole point is their pride wants to avoid ever having to repent and playing the comparison game in order to avoid it, they will come to hate forgiveness and to avoid it and therefore to avoid God and to repudiate and to hate his charity, to hate his compassion, to hate his goodness, to want nothing to do with it because it’s so beneath you and beneath me.  That’s the real danger here that Jesus is giving them a very strong warning.

Yes. You’re concerned about the medicine others will taste. What about the medicine you might taste? That’s the issue here. So again, Jesus turns the tables exactly like he did before and saying, look, it’s about you and God and me. That’s the issue here.

Anthony: So what’s going on with the fig tree?  Is it just a bad fruit tree or is there more than meets the eye?

Gary: Yeah, I think he’s moving on a little bit here, following again, a parable, even like the other ones. I think there is a parable at the end of three days, the third day.  Here we have another parable, more extensive. The idea here is, why not cut the tree down now because it’s not bearing fruit.

And the comeback is the gardener says, “No, we can wait because there’s other things that could be done dig around it, put manure on it. And if it bears fruit next year, well and good. But if not, then yes, you can cut it down.”

The point here is, well, why do I need to repent now, Jesus?  Maybe I’ll think about that later.

You know, aren’t you going to answer this question about the Galileans?  Didn’t they deserve it more than others? And Jesus is saying just because there’s a delay in the final judgment – even though as a fig tree, the leaders, especially the leaders of the Jews, are not bearing fruit here – doesn’t mean there won’t be a final day and an end point when God’s judgment does come.  And if your hearts are hardened and you’ll never turn away, you won’t receive, if you won’t receive his forgiveness. So don’t presume upon this time now. Yes, God is patient. God is giving you time to repent.

Don’t take advantage of that. Don’t play God. That is a very dangerous thing to do. Your hearts may become so hardened that you will never turn.  Today is the day of salvation. I think what Jesus is trying to do is get them to not put off, but to deal with him today, even though yes, God is patient.

But to put God to the test, and say well, I’ll try to get away with it as long as I can. That’s a dangerous game. And so yes, there is a delay. There is a delay in Christ’s return. But we are not to take advantage of God’s kindness, right? And there are other places in the New Testament that talk like this, to not take advantage of it and think we can play God.

I think he’s cutting off that variable, that escape route. I think he senses there was some in the crowd that want to escape the need to repent, to receive the total grace that God has to provide us and that we need.


Small Group Discussion Questions

From Speaking of Life

  • Can you think of things in your life, or things going on in the world that seem broken beyond repair? Do these things give you a feeling of helplessness?
  • Was the analogy of a child bringing a broken toy to his dad helpful in how you thought about prayer?
  • What brokenness in the world can we pray about today?

From the Sermon

  • What events of evil and suffering do you see in the world today that may tempt us to think God is not good or that he is not for us?
  • Did the illustration of the block of wood used to teach about atoms help you better understand how Jesus used parables? Do you think this will help you in reading of Jesus’ other parables?
  • The sermon stated that we can be tempted to let the experience of evil and suffering tell us who God is. How does this inform the importance of knowing Jesus’ revelation of the Father to us during our times of trial and tribulation?
  • Can you think of times where your faith was challenged by a tragic event? Can you think of times where God’s word, either from the Bible, a sermon, or a friend, helped restore your faith in the Father?
  • Did the understanding of the Old Testament laws concerning fig trees help you understand the Parable of the Fig Tree differently than before?
  • Discuss why it is important to repent of faulty ideas about God that do not conform to Jesus’ revelation of the Father! How is not knowing who God is a worse tragedy than perishing from a violent or natural disaster?
  • The sermon concluded by offering prayer as the greatest ministry the church has to offer for the sake of the world. What did you think of this statement? Does it encourage you to respond to the evil and suffering in the world by praying for God’s deliverance?

Sermon for March 27, 2022 – 4th Sunday of Easter Preparation

Speaking Of Life 4018 | Labels

Labels make the grocery experience so much better by giving us an idea of what’s inside a product. For us humans, it might be difficult for us to express to the world who we are inside. It’s easy to get labeled by people for how we look, say, or what we even wear. Society might fail to understand us but Jesus fully accepts and loves us for who we are beyond our flaws and mistakes.

Program Transcript


Speaking Of Life 4018 | Labels
Jeff Broadnax

Have you ever gone into a pantry and found a can of food without a label on it? The only way for you to figure out what’s inside is by opening the can. After opening the unlabeled item, what is the likelihood that the reality would actually meet your expectations? Probably, pretty slim.

This is why labels are so important at a grocery store. They can give us a glimpse of what to expect on the inside. Oftentimes, the label will even include a picture of the product inside to add that extra level of confidence that what you are getting is what was being advertised.

Labels are vital to a grocery store’s business, but when it comes to human beings, labels can be incorrect and downright damaging. Have you ever heard someone remark, “He’s the forgetful one,” She’s the slow learner,” or “He’s the problem child.”?

Sometimes we can be quick to label someone without having much knowledge of who they really are. Maybe we just saw the color of their skin, or their political bumper sticker, or something else that triggered a judgmental reaction.

Several years ago, I remember reading how our brains are wired to make those kinds of snap judgments as a means of self-protection and decision-making. I don’t remember the source, but I found it fascinating. It may be true, but what I do know is those snap judgments raise a huge red flag for interpersonal relationships – especially if we don’t monitor our biases.

In the Apostle Paul’s second letter to the Corinthian church, he addressed a similar situation that was taking place among them and gave us a different perspective.

So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
2 Corinthians 5: 16-
17

The church in Corinth may have been a diverse congregation but accepting and receiving one another as equals were in short supply. They were still employing a worldly point of view by placing discriminatory labels on each other. And because of this, you had people that were separating themselves into their own groups according to their own biases, be it their race, wealth, statuses, or culture. Their judgmentalism was not only disrupting their fellowship, but it was also a bad witness to those outside the church.

What the church in Corinth failed to recognize is that through Christ we receive our true identity, and all other labels, whether to race, social status, or political ideology,  pale in comparison. We haven’t had something merely added to us or even just an upgrade to a 2.0 version of ourselves. Our true identity, in Christ, brings us into wholeness and is the fullness of who we are. It is not merely a picture but the substance of who we are. We are the blessed, free, and highly favored children of God. It is the truth of who we are, something we never have to question. And that is how we are to see each other.

What label will you choose to wear? Will you consign yourself to what the world has to say about you, or will you agree with the only assessment about you that reveals the whole truth about who you are? The label of being a new creation in Christ Jesus and accepted by The Father. That’s a label that cannot fall off.

I’m Jeff Broadnax, Speaking of Life.

Psalm 32:1-11 • Joshua 5:9-12 • 2 Corinthians 5:16-21 • Luke 15:1-3, 11-32

The theme for this week is God’s great act of removing our sins and the shame that sin brings. God has done all the work necessary to reconcile the world to himself. In our call to worship Psalm, the psalmist asserts the relief felt by those whose transgression is forgiven and whose sin is covered. In the book of Joshua, God removes the disgrace of the Israelites captivity and takes them out of that situation. In 2 Corinthians, Paul proclaims that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not counting people’s sins against them. And in Luke, Jesus tells a parable of a father who forgives his prodigal son and goes above and beyond to restore him to full sonship.

The Heart of the Father

Luke 15:20b-24

Think of a time when you did something as a child that you knew you would get into trouble for. And because of your actions, you hid or stayed away. Maybe you broke your mom’s favorite vase or neglected to do something that your dad told to you do. Sometimes those experiences get carried over into our relationship with God. Sometimes we stay away from God because we think that we are not worthy, or that we have done something that disqualifies us from his love. We even think that God’s response to us will be according to the level of how much we think we need to grovel to get back in his good graces.

 

We are going to be looking at a story today of a son who has hit rock bottom and is highly fearful of returning to his father. Although we know this story as The Parable of the Prodigal Son, the story is more about the heart of the father. We will be looking at three facets of the father’s heart: his compassion, confession, and celebration.

Compassion

Then Jesus said, “There was a man who had two sons. The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.’ So he divided his property between them. A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and traveled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living. When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout that country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. He would gladly have filled himself with the pods that the pigs were eating; and no one gave him anything. But when he came to himself he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger! I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.”’ So he set off and went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. (Luke 15:11-20 NRSV)

In this first section, we are going to consider the compassion of the father. To add context to this, you have a son who has previously asked for his share of the inheritance. The father has granted it to him, and the son heads off to go live it up and party hearty. That is, until the money runs out and the fun is over. He then finds employment doing the most degrading job a Jew could imagine and that is to feed the pigs, which were better fed than he was, and that’s not saying much. Having reached the end of his rope, he decides to come home but feels great shame and unworthiness at the same time. Having run out of options he feels that maybe his father would accept him back as a servant on his property.

One thing that we need to understand is that a son who asked for his share of the inheritance was essentially saying to his father, “I wish you were dead.” This would have been unthinkable, and it would have scandalized their family in front of the whole village. In fact, a father was expected to shun a child that asked for such an outrageous request. For all intents and purposes, that son was now considered dead.

In the event of the son’s return, it was likely that the people of this town saw him coming. Knowing the disgrace and shame he has caused his father, it is likely he would have been treated harshly upon his return.

But then we see the father in the story. The father sees the son from far off. Perhaps he is seeing a commotion. Perhaps the father has been keeping an eye out for him this whole time. We don’t know. What we do know is, he takes off running, most likely with robes lifted past his knees—a shameful way for a man to expose himself. Suddenly, the son is no longer the focal point, and it’s the very scandal of their father’s running and exposure of skin that hides the shame of the prodigal. The father would rather bare the shame than to see it upon his son.

The Father likely knew what kind of condition his prodigal son would have been in, and he responded with compassion. Similarly, God saw humanity distancing itself from him. He saw our lostness, our guilt and shame and had compassion on us. Romans 5:8 says that,  “while we were still sinners Christ died for us.” Echoing this, Ephesians 2:13 says, “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.” He took our shame and nailed it to the cross.

Confession

Then the son said to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.”  But the father said to his slaves, “Quickly, bring out a robe—the best one—and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.” (Luke 15:21-22 NRSV)

In this section we are going to look at the confession of the father. No, I did not say that incorrectly. Did you notice in verse 22 that it indicates that it wasn’t the son’s attempt at confession that moved the heart of the father. In fact, he interrupts the son’s bumbling attempt at confessing. The son presupposes his disqualification as son, but the father throws him a party instead.

We see that the father even kisses his son. According to their customs, a kiss would have signified a death to the past as well as approval. Both of which the prodigal son received.

The father has his best robe placed on the son as well as his signet ring and a pair of shoes. In other words, his past identity as a barefooted slave was now past him, and the father confesses that his son is now worthy of honor (the robe), authority (the ring), and freedom (shoes).

Today as God’s children we wear the robe of righteousness that is ours in Christ. We have been sealed with the Holy Spirit which acts as our engagement ring to assure us that we will receive everything promised to us. And we are told by the Apostle Paul as well that, “It is for freedom that we have been set free.” The Heavenly Father confesses about us being included in Christ? Do we know our place in him? Have we truly looked into all that is ours by being placed in Christ?

Celebration

And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and us found! And they began to celebrate. (Luke 15:23-24 NRSV)

In the last two verses we are looking at the celebration of the father. Now, if the party were supposed to just include his immediate family, then a goat would have sufficed quite nicely. But instead, we see the father instructing them to kill the fattened calf. This would have fed the entire village. As Jesus pointed out to the pharisees earlier in this chapter, “there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous people who have no need of repentance.” (Luke 15:7)

There was an old story that many have heard, there are even songs related to the story. A son had left his village as a disgrace. He had brought shame and dishonor to his family. He went to live in a big city and to get away from the situation that he had caused in his village. After a while he began to miss his family but was unsure as to whether he would be welcomed home or not. He wrote to his father to let him know that he was taking the train back home to his village. He told his father that if he is still welcome to come home, then the father should place a yellow flag at the train station near their village. The son indicated that if he did not see the yellow flag then he would stay on the train and keep going.

When the train came near to the village, the son was extremely nervous. He was afraid to even look out the window as he feared the worst. But when they got within a mile of the train station, he peered out the window and saw something that he couldn’t even imagine. Lining the street were dozens of yellow flags leading to the train station. There were flags on fences, flags in trees, flags on people’s rooftops and a grand assortment of yellow flags at the station itself.

The father was so overjoyed to have his son back that he made his joy unmistakable. Think of how the father felt as he went around to all of his neighbors to get permission to plant flags on their properties, their trees, fences, and on their roofs. This shows a father who is only thinking of how much he wants the son to know that he is forgiven and then to celebrate the reunion.

Just as the prodigal son being brought back to life was the cause of the father’s celebration, in the same way our Heavenly Father rejoices over humanity being placed in the Son of God. The heart of the Father is to see us truly live as who we are: honored, favored, and free children of God.

Let’s sum this up. First, the father was moved by compassion for the son. Rather than having his son bear shame and guilt, the father covers it up and places it on himself. Likewise, Jesus, who is one with the Father, goes to the cross in our place and takes our shame and guilt upon himself, fulfilling the Father’s compassion for us

Second, despite the prodigal son’s attempt at confession, it is the confession of the father welcoming this son fully back into the family that gets the attention. Though we are instructed to confess our sins, it is not an attempt to get into God’s good graces. We are already in because of Christ, who has confessed that he will draw all people to himself. We are blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ.

And lastly, the father celebrated the son’s return in grand fashion. And in Christ, the heart of the Father was pleased to welcome us into his great fellowship between Father, Son and Spirit where the celebration will continue without end.

The Temptation of Jesus w/ Gary Deddo W4

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The Temptation of Jesus w/ Gary Deddo
March 27 – 4th Sunday of Lent
Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32 “Sinners Coming Near”

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Program Transcript


The Temptation of Jesus with Gary Deddo

Anthony:  Our fourth and final passage for this month comes from Luke 15: 1 – 3, and 11b-32 from the NRSV.

It is the Revised Common Lectionary passage for March the 27th. Gary, would you do us the honors of reading it, please?

Gary:  Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

So, he told them this parable:

“There was a man who had two sons.  The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.’ So, he divided his property between them.  A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and traveled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living.  

When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout that country, and he began to be in need.  So, he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs.  He would gladly have filled himself with[b] the pods that the pigs were eating; and no one gave him anything.  But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger!  I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.”’  

So, he set off and went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him.  Then the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly, bring out a robe—the best one—and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.  And get the fatted calf and kill it and let us eat and celebrate; for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!’ And they began to celebrate.

“Now his elder son was in the field; and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing.  He called one of the slaves and asked what was going on.  He replied, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has got him back safe and sound.’  Then he became angry and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him.  But he answered his father, ‘Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends.  But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!’  Then the father said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.  But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.’”

 

Anthony: That’s a good one. All that is mine is yours. Tax collectors, sinners coming near to Jesus. Gary, what does this reveal about God in the person and work of Jesus Christ?

Gary: Yes. Well, again, this tells us actually much more about Jesus than anybody else. But it is in parabolic form. And of course, the context is the parable of the lost.  The lost sheep, the lost coin. And now we have the lost sons.  Actually, this parable is often called the parable of the prodigal son. I really call it the parable of the lost sons. That illuminates a little bit more of the story, it seems to me.

But in this, yes, Jesus is the one who welcomes anybody.  We never see him turn anyone away. And often those who respond to him are those who are unexpected, especially in the eyes of the Jewish religious leaders of the day, whether they were Sadducees or the Pharisees and including the scribes as well, because of their understanding of who God is and how they were to relate to God and how God was to relate to them in general.

So, it was surprising.  And Jesus did attract a lot of people who were unexpected. And here, tax collectors were those Jewish persons who were working for the Romans and really were, to one degree or another, traders.  They were bribed and used by the Romans to collect the tax.  Also, here is the idea of sinners, is really the Jewish leaders’ notion of who was a sinner and who wasn’t. So, it’s a technical word here, the sinners, those unexpected.

So yes, Jesus welcomes all.  Of course, welcoming children was another aspect. He welcomed all, but sometimes what is forgotten is many of those, he welcomed, rejected him.  They didn’t stay with him.  Just because they were tax collectors and sinners, didn’t itself mean that they stayed with him. I was recalling as I was reading this over again, the ten lepers that came to Jesus, only one – and he healed all ten – only one returned to give thanks to God. The others walked away.  It’s astounding and it’s grievous and it’s sad.

Yes, Jesus welcomed and even healed, but that didn’t necessarily mean that everyone he welcomed stayed with him. In other words, they didn’t receive what he had to give, and so they walked away. They left him even if they were tax collectors and sinners.

There were some Pharisees, as we know, and possibly some Sadducees, who did in the end become believers in Jesus, Nicodemus being probably the one that we know the best of all those. Jesus does indeed welcome all, that they might know the Father through him and come to receive the Spirit at the end of his ministry.

He does, and he welcomes.  He’s not a respecter of persons. He does not show partiality in who he receives, but some show partiality towards him, nevertheless. “Those who he would gather, but they would not.”

Anthony: This is a favorite parable of many, and there’s quite a bit to unpack. And I just want to give you a chance to rift, Gary, just to share whatever you’d like with our listening audience from this particular pericope.

Gary: Yes. I’ve actually given several sermons just on this one parable. There is a lot to unpack, especially to pay attention to the whole and how all the parts fit and how the other two parables lead up to it, much less Jesus’ ministry.  But as a highlight, he’s questioning the leaders of the Jewish people who object to those listening to Jesus and his message about God and God’s relationship to those who are lost. But his parable also is a word of help to all, whether leaders or potential followers, who see who God is and what it means to be in right relationship with him, who see in Jesus, the true nature of God’s heart, mind, character, purpose, will, and ways.

So, as I said before, the religious leaders were often thinking the main game is to avoid absolutely as much as possible, any need to repent.  In other words, to establish your own righteousness on the basis of following God’s laws. And if those don’t work, create laws around those laws and laws around those laws and laws around those laws.

So you can’t even get near the central law to violate it. And then God will be happy with you. You avoided the need to receive repentance. Of course, that whole pattern of avoiding too is disobedience, is distrust in who God is, the God who has a welcoming and forgiving heart. So, it seems to me here that what we see is the nature and character of Jesus and therefore of the Father.  And he’s giving all a chance to repent and believe in God through him, that is, to come to know God’s true nature, God’s true character and what it means to be in right relationship, which means to receive God’s love and God’s forgiveness, God’s renewal, God’s restoration, and finally God’s transformation to eternal life. I think that’s really what’s going on here. And so yes, the father represents God the Father and the sons represent two different approaches to who they think the Father is.

But I think here what Jesus demonstrates is neither the younger Son nor the older son know the Father’s heart, neither of them in right relationship, not just the younger, but the older. That’s the mistake that’s made. Of course, the people coming to Jesus are represented by the younger son coming back to the father.

Of course, the elder Son represents the Pharisees and Sadducees who are angry at these sinners and tax collectors, surely who are far more sinful than they are, that they shouldn’t be welcomed back like this. They shouldn’t be. So, they’re envious. They’re jealous and they’re protecting their own self-righteousness and the way they think about their relationship with God.

In the end, the parable questions, really everybody, because it presents the true picture of the nature of God’s character and renewal, but it does call for repentance, coming back to the Father.

And I think a third thing that’s missed is, I think, in terms of this parable and what it tells us about Jesus, it seems to me, is that Jesus is the true elder Son here.  And if these Pharisees and Sadducees and others were true, elder sons, what would they have done? They would have gone out and gone after the younger rebellious son to bring them back to the father. But not only do they not go out, they said they don’t deserve our going out to get them. We deserve the Father’s favor, not those lost and all.

Jesus as the true elder Son then is the one who goes out, finds the lost son, brings him back to the Father so that they can be reconciled. So that’s the ministry of Jesus, ultimately that is represented here in this parable.

Another interesting thing here is that the elder son – it’s interesting – he says he’s done everything his father has told him to do. What’s his view of the relationship that he has with his father?  Again, it’s kind of earning God’s favor, earning God’s love.  But it’s interesting; when is the first time he might be willing to admit he disobeyed?  When he’s invited to come into the banquet, he refuses. My way of characterizing is the younger son was inwardly rebellious and outwardly rebellious, both, but he began to turn around. And if you say how?  I would say is it has to be by the ministry of the Holy Spirit. That’s how, but that’s not a part of this story exactly. But it raises the question. The younger son came back by the drawing of the Holy Spirit, but then he doesn’t fully realize the love of the Father until he comes back. But he starts out with an inward rebellion and an outward rebellion, but he does repent.

And when he enters in, rather than keeping with his story, “I don’t deserve it. I don’t deserve it,” and keep punishing himself. “I don’t deserve it. I don’t deserve it. I’m not going in. No, no, no!” He fully repents. How does he repent?  By receiving his father’s forgiveness. By receiving it, that’s an even greater humility than just saying I sinned against you and sinned against heaven. He has truly his heart inwardly, and now outwardly he goes into and wears the clothing that his Father gives him that shows his true belonging.  So, he changes inwardly and outwardly.

Now what about the elder son? Outwardly, it looks like he’d been conforming, but really he was inwardly rebellious, just as rebellious as the son who left.  Inwardly, he was not willing to risk freely receiving the love of the father as it really was. He was attempting to earn what the father has freely given.

I don’t know if you’ve ever had this happen. Have you ever tried to give a gift to someone freely, just spontaneously or maybe planned, but you just wanted to give it to give it and then it’s rejected? “No. Well, let me pay you for it. Well, I’ll have to do something for you.”

I don’t know how to, how do you receive that?  Or maybe you’ve done it. I’ve done it.  It’s a rejection of it because you don’t want to be beholden to them, because you don’t want to be that close, because you don’t want to be a receiver. You want to be independent in control of your own life in control of the terms of the relationship.  You want to be in charge.

And there’s nothing like a legal relationship that does that. If you… then I. If I… then you.  We want to protect our pride and our independence, legal relationships with God and with others, if we can manage it.  Legal relationships so that the mediator becomes the law between us. And this is the inward rebellion that God, by his mercy and grace has to overcome by his word and his Spirit in us, because we will be like one of these, both outwardly rebellious and inwardly rebellious or outwardly looking like we’re conforming, but inwardly rejecting and rebelling. This is the hardness of the human heart that God, by his Spirit needs to overcome. And that the evil one wants to play on in our lives so that we have at least a modicum of distrust of God, keeping our distance and not freely receiving all that he has to give us.

And so finally though, it does come out, right? The elder son becomes outwardly rebellious. Outwardly, he refuses to go into the banquet. He refuses to hear, “Son, you’ve misunderstood me all along all. That was mine is yours all those years because you belong to me, because you’re my son.”

And the truth comes out, and I think this parable then exposes everybody’s need, whether you’ve been inwardly and outwardly rebellious or not, of course we’ve all been some of both I’m sure.  Well, if I know myself anyway.  So, this is very powerful, but also confronting. And I think some of us – sometimes I’ve asked people, how do you think of yourself or how do other people regard you?  As a goody-goody? So, you’re like the elder son?  Or you’re the outwardly rebellious one?

I think we tend to categorize ourselves and others in these two things, but Jesus shows, we both need the love of the Father that is brought to us by he himself, even in telling this parable.  He’s being the true elder Son by telling this.

Anthony: You know, as I’ve thought about this passage through the years, Gary, I can’t help as I try to think Christologically about it, that this scripture should always lead us to praise, right? If it doesn’t, we’re doing it wrong. If theology doesn’t lead us to worship, we’re doing it wrong. But as I’ve tried to think about this, Christologically, I’m grateful that Jesus, the True Son, is the one who came into the far country into the wilderness, as we were reading in an earlier passage, to rescue us, to do it on our behalf and in our place. And thanks be to God that he welcomes us, at every turn he’s willing to receive us back as we respond to the prompting of the Holy Spirit. This is good news.

And I just want to thank you for being a part of this conversation today. It was rich and there’s so much for our pastors and teachers to chew on because of what you said. And I’m just thankful that your theological mind and heart leads to an exegesis that points out the living Word in the written word.

Thank you, brother, for being a part of this conversation. And as is our typical way of ending here on Gospel Reverb, I’m going to ask that you pray over those who are listening, that they would continue to, as you said over and over, to repent, to have their mind radically changed and reoriented to God.

And I thank you for what you said as well – one other point of emphasis I wanted to mention – what you said about the warning passages, which there are many in the New Testament, that that’s always done out of love.  God in Jesus Christ never acts out of character. He can only act out of his character, which is love.  And even a warning is an act of love that draws us into right relationship with him. Thank you, brother.

Would you pray over our listening audience as we close up shop here today?

Gary: Yes. Thank you. Anthony, it has been a privilege to be with you. Let me pray.

Gracious God, Father, son, and Holy Spirit, how grateful we are that we have your word and that even by your Spirit, you can give us ears to hear and hearts willing to receive.

Even though we have to die to our pride, we come alive in you. And so by your word and by your Spirit, which will be at work upon all those who hear this at a later time, because you’re the living God who continues to speak by your word. Would you use these words? Not for my sake, for GCI’s sake, but for the sake of your glory and your goodness that each one who hears this might hear your word, might hear you speaking in them, that they might hear of your true nature, your true character.

Then they might be drawn to you and be willing to die, to pride, die to self-satisfaction, leave behind the hope of any kind of self-righteousness because that’s never what you wanted or intended, but to give us yourself as a gift and all that we have in you, all that you accomplished for us, overcoming the evil one himself, and all the temptations that come to us from the world, and that the evil one plays on and the weakness of our fallen flesh.

And so Lord, we entrust your word and these words that we’ve exchanged in this recording, that you would use it for your glory to bring many to you, to strengthen and encourage all who listened to it. Draw them closer to you into a deeper trust and confidence in your holy love shown to us so powerfully in Jesus Christ that we might worship you, Father through the Son and in the Holy Spirit.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit we pray. Amen.


Small Group Discussion Questions

  • Think of a time when you did something foolish. What was it that brought you around to confess what you did?
  • Name a time when you witnessed God’s extravagant love towards either you or someone else.
  • Considering Jesus’ description of the Father’s heart, do we sometimes still feel unworthy to approach God? If so, why?
  • How might our lives be different if we were convinced that we wear the robe of righteousness at all times?
  • How does it make you feel to see others being rejoiced over when you think that your own efforts have gone unrecognized?