Day #306

Sermon - Audio
Luke 18:15-19:49 - Reading
Luke 18:15-19:49 - Audio

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Luke 18:15-19

Luke 18

v. 15-17 – Luke probably placed the story of Jesus and the children here to point further to the need for humility in the kingdom.

v. 23 – The ruler was very sad because he was extremely rich; he loved riches more than God, showing that he had kept neither the first commandment nor the tenth, for riches were his god and he desired them more than God.

v. 42 – Faith was the means by which the gift was received, not the power that produced it. “Has healed you” might be translated “has saved you”, which would fit in with his following Jesus and praising God.

Luke 19

v. 1-10 - Jesus’ encounter with Zacchaeus is an example of the kingdom of God bringing salvation to the outcasts. It also provides a lesson on the proper kingdom use of money and possessions.

v. 8 – The Greek verb for “will pay back” is actually in the present tense; Zacchaeus saw himself as having already started. The law required the amount paid back plus a fifth. Zacchaeus was refunding the amount required for theft involving the slaughter of an animal. He was going far beyond what the law demanded.

v. 11 – The key to the meaning of this parable is given at the beginning. Jesus gave the parable in response to those who supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately. This was probably a concern especially because he was near to Jerusalem, where expectations of a political messiah may have been extra high. The parable will show that the kingdom will not be seen in its fullness until Christ returns; it begins in a small way and grows gradually until then.

v. 13 – A mina was worth 100 drachma and a drachma was equal to a typical day’s wage. So they received a 1000 days pay.

v. 30 – That no one had ridden the colt meant that it had no secular use and was thus fit for sacred purposes.

v. 37 – This entry into Jerusalem fulfilled the prophecy and made a public claim to Messiahship. But it was a claim to a distinctive kind of Messiahship, since the donkey was the animal of a man of peace (a conquering king would have ridden a warhorse). The people seem to have recognized the kingship but not the emphasis on peace.