John 11
THE PLOT TO KILL JESUS
45 Therefore, many of the Jews who came to Mary and saw what he did believed in him.
 -
46 But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.
47 So the chief priests (Sadducees – didn’t even believe in resurrection) and the Pharisees convened the Sanhedrin and were saying, “What are we going to do since this man is doing many signs?
 - This is like the Republicans and Democrats plotting together!
 - They recognized Jesus’ miracles.
 - John 14:10 – Jesus says God did all the miracles.
 - 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words I speak to you I do not speak on my own. The Father who lives in me does his works.[1]
48 If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.”
 - They have fear that they will lose titles, position, income and control.
49 One of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all! 50 You’re not considering that it is to your advantage that one man should die for the people rather than the whole nation perish.”
  -Bob says, “God likes to scheme the schemer.”
 - Prophecy spoken here and he didn’t even know it.
 - Can you see both sides of that statement?
51 He did not say this on his own, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation, 52 and not for the nation only, but also to unite the scattered children of God. 53 So from that day on they plotted to kill him.
 - The stage had been set for the greatest drama in history, during which man would do his worst and God would give His best.[2]
 - The leaders wanted to kill Jesus after the Passover but now it was determined that it was to happen ASAP.
 - It is going to happen at the exact hour that God and Jesus had already determined. RIGHT AT THE PASSOVER SACRIFICE HOUR… on the hour!
54 Jesus therefore no longer walked openly (publicly) among the Jews but departed from there to the countryside near the wilderness, to a town called Ephraim, and he stayed there with the disciples.[3]
 
Luke 17
TEN MEN HEALED
11 While traveling to Jerusalem, he passed between Samaria and Galilee.

• Possibly meeting with his disciples for the last time and gathering some to travel with Jesus back to Jerusalem.
• Samaritans were half-breed Jews (with Gentiles) after Northern Kingdom was taken into captivity by the Syrians.

12 As he entered a village, ten men with leprosy met him. They stood at a distance 13 and raised their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”
14 When he saw them, he told them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.”

• Where were the priests? In Jerusalem
• The scheme was turned on the schemer.

And while they were going, they were cleansed.

• Jesus sent ten cleansed lepers to Jerusalem to remind the Sanhedrin one more time that Jesus was the Messiah.
• Leviticus 13 required that the priest do an 8 day investigation on how this healing occurred, was it complete and then a ceremonial cleansing.
• Caiaphas was the priest in charge.
• The same man who condemned Jesus to death had a big pill to swallow for 8 days!

15 But one of them, seeing that he was healed, returned and, with a loud voice, gave glory to God. 16 He fell facedown at his feet, thanking him. And he was a Samaritan.

• The Samaritan’s nine friends were declared clean by the priest, but he was declared saved by the Son of God!
• While it is wonderful to experience the miracle of physical healing, it is even more wonderful to experience the miracle of eternal salvation.[4]

17 Then Jesus said, “Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? 18 Didn’t any return to give glory to God except this foreigner?” 19 And he told him, “Get up and go on your way. Your faith has saved you.”

• How were these 10 healed?
• It was their faith. They simply believed.
  
  

THE COMING OF THE KINGDOM
20 Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming with something observable; 21 no one will say, ‘See here!’ or ‘There!’ For you see, the kingdom of God is in your midst.”

• The mystery form of the kingdom is established now because they have rejected the Messianic Kingdom for now.
• The Messianic Kingdom will be established in the end.

22 Then he told the disciples: “The days are coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you won’t see it. 23 They will say to you, ‘See there!’ or ‘See here!’ Don’t follow or run after them. 24 For as the lightning flashes from horizon to horizon and lights up the sky, so the Son of Man will be in his day.

• The 2nd Coming of Jesus.

25 But first it is necessary that he suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.

• The present generation of Jews have rejected the Messiah.
• Verses 26-33 are in reference to the 7-year tribulation before the 2nd Coming of Jesus.

26 “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the days of the Son of Man: 27 People went on eating, drinking, marrying and giving in marriage until the day Noah boarded the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. 28 It will be the same as it was in the days of Lot: People went on eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building. 29 But on the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all. 30 It will be like that on the day the Son of Man is revealed.

• 2nd Coming of Jesus
• Revelation 19
• Campaign of Armageddon

31 On that day, a man on the housetop, whose belongings are in the house, must not come down to get them. Likewise the man who is in the field must not turn back. 32 Remember Lot’s wife! 33 Whoever tries to make his life secure will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.
 
34 I tell you, on that night two will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other will be left. 35 Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and the other left.”

• Not talking about the rapture but the 2nd coming.
• This is in relation to the final judgment.

37 “Where, Lord?” they asked him.
He said to them, “Where the corpse (body) is, there also the vultures will be gathered.” [5]

• At the end of the Tribulation, the remnant of Jews that remain will be believers (Hosea 5:15; Zechariah 12:10; Romans 11:26-27) and will take refuge from the Antichrist in the city of Petra (Bozrah) located in Edom (Isaiah 34:1-7; 63:1-6), which is modern-day southern Jordan.
• The Antichrist, who will be in pursuit of this remnant, will be destroyed at Christ’s 2nd Coming (2 Thessalonians 2:8-10).

The “corpse/body” is the remnant of Jews that will remain while “the vultures” will be the Antichrist and his armies. [6]

[1] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Jn 14:10). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[2] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 338). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[3] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Jn 11:1–54). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[4] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 245). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[5] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Lk 17:11–37). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[6] The Gospels from a Jewish Perspective (2002). Warren, Bob, Hardin, KY: www.LifeontheHill.org.

• Jesus was doing public miracles… water to wine… healing people, etc
• Matthew 8, Mark 1 & Luke 5 – Jesus heals a Jewish leper – Messianic Miracle #1
• Jesus continues to heal publicly… lame man in John 5, man with withered hand in Matthew 12 and many by the Sea of Galilee in the same chapter, etc.
• Same chapter, a deaf mute who is demon possessed is brought to Jesus and He heals the man. – Messianic Miracle #2
• The Jewish Nation as a whole condemns Jesus and accuses Jesus of healing under the power of the devil.
• They just blasphemed the Spirit of God to His face.
• At this point, they became cursed as to never see/hear the Gospel and it would lead to a generational death in 70 AD.
• They asked to see more miracles.
• Jesus said you will see one more miracle… the miracle of Jonah… resurrection.

 
John 11
LAZARUS DIES AT BETHANY
1 Now a man was sick, Lazarus from Bethany (not the same Lazarus in Luke 16), the village of Mary and her sister Martha.

• Bethany is 2 miles east of Jerusalem
• Bethany is under the jurisdiction of the Sanhedrin

2 Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair, and it was her brother Lazarus who was sick. 3 So the sisters sent a message to him: “Lord, the one you love is sick.”
4 When Jesus heard it, he said, “This sickness will not end in death but is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” 5 Now Jesus loved Martha, her sister, and Lazarus. 6 So when he heard that he was sick, he stayed two more days in the place where he was. 7 Then after that, he said to the disciples, “Let’s go to Judea again.”

•  Day 1—The messenger comes to Jesus (Lazarus dies).
• Day 2— The messenger returns to Bethany.
• Day 3— Jesus waits another day, then departs.
• Day 4— Jesus arrives in Bethany.[1]

8 “Rabbi,” the disciples told him, “just now the Jews tried to stone you, and you’re going there again?”

• The disciples were reminding Jesus that the Sanhedrin had jurisdiction of Bethany and they wanted Him dead.

9 “Aren’t there twelve hours in a day?” Jesus answered. “If anyone walks during the day, he doesn’t stumble, because he sees the light of this world. 10 But if anyone walks during the night, he does stumble, because the light is not in him.”
11 He said this, and then he told them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I’m on my way to wake him up.”
12 Then the disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will get well.”
13 Jesus, however, was speaking about his death, but they thought he was speaking about natural sleep. 14 So Jesus then told them plainly, “Lazarus has died. 15 I’m glad for you that I wasn’t there so that you may believe. But let’s go to him.”
16 Then Thomas (called “Twin”) said to his fellow disciples, “Let’s go too so that we may die with him.”
 
THE RESURRECTION AND THE LIFE
17 When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. 18 Bethany was near Jerusalem (less than two miles away). 19 Many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them about their brother. 20 As soon as Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him, but Mary remained seated in the house.
21 Then Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother wouldn’t have died.
 - Martha believed Jesus had the authority to prevent death.
 - Martha didn’t know that Jesus had authority over death.
22 Yet even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.”
23 “Your brother will rise again,” Jesus told her.
24 Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.”

• Old Testament saints died and went to Abraham’s Bosom/Paradise. (Before Pentecost)
• New Testament saints died and the Spirit/Soul is absent from the body and present with the Lord (After Pentecost).
• Jesus is the only man with a resurrected body at this point.
• New Testament saints get our resurrected bodies at the “Rapture”
• Old Testament saints get their resurrected bodies at the end of the tribulation.
• 1 Corinthians 15:20-26 - 20 But as it is, Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead also comes through a man. 22 For just as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.
• But each in his own order: Christ, the firstfruits; afterward, at his coming, those who belong to Christ. 24 Then comes the end, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, when he abolishes all rule and all authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he puts all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be abolished is death.[2]

25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me, even if he dies, will live. 26 Everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
27 “Yes, Lord,” she told him, “I believe you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who comes into the world.”
 
JESUS SHARES THE SORROW OF DEATH
28 Having said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, saying in private, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.”
29 As soon as Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him. 30 Jesus had not yet come into the village but was still in the place where Martha had met him. 31 The Jews who were with her in the house consoling her saw that Mary got up quickly and went out. They followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to cry there.
32 As soon as Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and told him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died!”
33 When Jesus saw her crying, and the Jews who had come with her crying, he was deeply moved in his spirit and troubled. 34 “Where have you put him?” he asked.
“Lord,” they told him, “come and see.”
35 Jesus wept.

• Why did Jesus weep?
• He knew Lazarus was going to be resurrected.
• What if He wept because He is able to sympathize with Mary and Martha? He came in human flesh and is able to experience thoughts (both good and bad) and emotions just as we experience them every day.
• We have a Messiah/Savior that can sympathize with us.
• What if He was weeping because He knew that He was about to perform one more public miracle and His people (the Jews) would still not believe that He is the Messiah?
• After all… this was the purpose of this miracle.

36 So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” 37 But some of them said, “Couldn’t he who opened the blind man’s eyes also have kept this man from dying?”

• They mention one of the Messianic Miracles yet they still don’t believe Jesus is the Messiah.
• Only 7 signs (miracles) recorded in Gospel of John
• 1) Changing water into wine at the wedding at Cana (Jn 2:1-11);
• 2) Healing the royal official’s son (Jn 4:46-54);
• 3) Healing the paralyzed man at the pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem (Jn 5:1-15);
• 4) Feeding the 5,000 (Jn 6:5-14);
• 5) Walking on water (Jn 6:16-21);
• 6) Healing the man born blind (Jn 9:1-7); and
• 7) Raising Lazarus from the dead (Jn 11:1-45).

38 Then Jesus, deeply moved (angered) again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. 39 “Remove the stone,” Jesus said.
Martha, the dead man’s sister, told him, “Lord, there is already a stench because he has been dead four days.”

• The Jews believed the Spirit hovered 3 days and then went to Sheol/Hades on the 4th day.
• Probably why Jesus waited for the 4th day.
• A true resurrection.

40 Jesus said to her, “Didn’t I tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?”
41 So they removed the stone. Then Jesus raised his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you heard me. 42 I know that you always hear me, but because of the crowd standing here I said this, so that they may believe you sent me.”
 - The first public miracle since Jesus was blasphemed by the Jews.
43 After he said this, he shouted with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” 44 The dead man came out bound hand and foot with linen strips and with his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unwrap him and let him go.”

[1] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 334). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[2] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (1 Co 15:20–26). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.

Luke 16

• We just finished the parable of the Rich Man and the unrighteous steward.
• The Pharisees were bad stewards of the Mosaic Law.
  ​
  

KINGDOM VALUES
14 The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and scoffing at him. 15 And he told them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the sight of others, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly admired by people is revolting in God’s sight.

• 1 Chronicles 17:16 - 16 Then King David went in, sat in the Lord’s presence, and said,
• Who am I, Lord God, and what is my house that you have brought me this far? 17 This was a little thing to you, God, for you have spoken about your servant’s house in the distant future. You regard me as a man of distinction, Lord God. 18 What more can David say to you for honoring your servant? You know your servant.[1]
• God is not interested in your checkbook or all your worldly possessions because He already knows your heart.
• Those “things” may indicate where your heart is for the rest of the world… but God truly knows your heart.
• You go into my office (or closet) and you’d think that I worship the game of baseball.
• But everything in my office has a name and a memory attached to it.
• I didn’t just buy it… it was time spent with people.
• I enjoy baseball… but I love Jesus.

16 “The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then, the good news of the kingdom of God has been proclaimed, and everyone is urgently invited to enter it.
 - The mystery form of the kingdom.

• The Jews have already rejected the Messianic kingdom.
• The had already rejected the Mosaic Law.
• The written law has more authority than the oral law.
• The oral law is a reinterpretation of the written law.

17 But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one stroke of a letter in the law to drop out (fail).

• You can’t add or take away from the Mosaic Law.
• It was fulfilled through Jesus completely.

18 “Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery, and everyone who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.

• Most Jewish debate on divorce centered on what the expression “something indecent” in Deut 24:1 meant.
• Hillel (oral law) interpreted this broadly and permitted divorce in such cases as a wife burning supper or if a husband found another woman more attractive.
• Shammi (Mosaic Law) interpreted this more narrowly and permitted divorce only in the case of sexual unchastity on the wife’s part.[2]
• Through the centuries the church has struggled with the meaning of Jesus’ sayings on divorce.[3]
• Deeper teaching on divorce in a few weeks when we cover Matthew 19:1-12.
  
  

THE RICH MAN AND LAZARUS

• This is never referred to as a parable.
• It is Jesus explanation of how wealth is not the determining factor for who enters heaven.

19 “There was a rich man who would dress in purple and fine linen, feasting lavishly every day. 20 But a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, was lying at his gate. 21 He longed to be filled with what fell from the rich man’s table, but instead the dogs would come and lick his sores. 22 One day the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 And being in torment in Hades, he looked up and saw Abraham a long way off, with Lazarus at his side.

• Hades (Greek) / Sheol (Hebrew)
• The underworld where the spirit/soul went after death.
• Waiting place for redeemed and unredeemed.
• Two sides: 1) Abraham’s Bosom, Paradise – redeemed/saved side of Hades 2) Hell – unredeemed/lost side of Hades.
• At the cross: the redeemed side resurrected with Jesus and the unredeemed stayed in Hell.
• Today, the redeemed go straight to heaven.
• 2 Corinthians 5:8 - In fact, we are confident, and we would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord.[4]
• The unredeemed stay in Hell and wait for judgment where one day they will be cast in the Lake of Fire.

24 ‘Father Abraham!’ he called out, ‘Have mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this flame!’
25 “‘Son,’ Abraham said, ‘remember that during your life you received your good things, just as Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here, while you are in agony. 26 Besides all this, a great chasm has been fixed between us and you, so that those who want to pass over from here to you cannot; neither can those from there cross over to us.’
27 “‘Father,’ he said, ‘then I beg you to send him to my father’s house--28 because I have five brothers—to warn them, so they won’t also come to this place of torment.’
29 “But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.’
30 “‘No, father Abraham,’ he said. ‘But if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’

• Lazarus is resurrected in John 11 and the Pharisees did not repent.

31 “But he told him, ‘If they don’t listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not be persuaded if someone rises from the dead.’”

WARNINGS FROM JESUS
Luke 17
1 He said to his disciples, “Offenses will certainly come, but woe to the one through whom they come!
 - The Pharisees taught incorrect theology.
2 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea than for him to cause one of these little ones to stumble. 3 Be on your guard. If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. 4 And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and comes back to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.”

• We are quick to pass judgment on whether or not a person is repentant.
• I can’t talk about one public specific situation in this room because of differing opinions.
• No matter what my theology, beliefs or statements made I will be in opposition of someone’s theology, beliefs or statements.
  
  

FAITH AND DUTY
5 The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”
6 “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed,” the Lord said, “you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.

• Having vision takes great faith.
• It is living on the edge.

7 “Which one of you having a servant tending sheep or plowing will say to him when he comes in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? 8 Instead, will he not tell him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat, get ready, and serve me while I eat and drink; later you can eat and drink’? 9 Does he thank that servant because he did what was commanded? 10 In the same way, when you have done all that you were commanded, you should say, ‘We are worthless servants; we’ve only done our duty.’”[5]

• Open your eyes to the things bigger than you can imagine. Then trust the Father (have faith).

[1] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (1 Ch 17:16–18). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[2] Stein, R. H. (1992). Luke (Vol. 24, p. 419). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[3] Stein, R. H. (1992). Luke (Vol. 24, p. 420). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
[4] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (2 Co 5:8). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
[5] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Lk 16:1–17:10). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.

Luke 16
THE PARABLE OF THE DISHONEST MANAGER
1 Now he said to the disciples: “There was a rich man who received an accusation that his manager was squandering his possessions.
 - Accusations and allegations are pretty much guilty as spoken in today’s society.
2 So he called the manager in and asked, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you can no longer be my manager.’
 - Give me a reason for my decision to already fire you.

• Turn in your books/ledgers and let me see what you have done… or not done.
• Jesus & Luke expected their audiences to assume the charges were correct.
• The Pharisees have been managers of the Law and have manipulated it so extremely that it is not even possible to live up to. They added oral laws.

3 “Then the manager said to himself, ‘What will I do since my master is taking the management away from me? I’m not strong enough to dig; I’m ashamed to beg.

• Lack of strength and abundance of pride.

4 I know what I’ll do so that when I’m removed from management, people will welcome me into their homes.’

• Jesus is communicating the steward’s thoughts.

5 “So he summoned each one of his master’s debtors. ‘How much do you owe my master?’ he asked the first one.
6 “‘A hundred measures of olive oil,’ he said.
“‘Take your invoice,’ he told him, ‘sit down quickly, and write fifty.’

• Were these his profits?
• Was he aging the books?
• Was he just ripping off the rich man for his own benefit?

7 “Next he asked another, ‘How much do you owe?’
“‘A hundred measures of wheat,’ he said.
“‘Take your invoice,’ he told him, ‘and write eighty.’
8 “The master praised the unrighteous manager because he had acted shrewdly.
 - As soon as Jesus refers to him as “unrighteous”, we know that he is referring to a non-believer of Jesus (unredeemed).
 - The behavior of the unrighteous is always described as wicked/evil.
 - He is considered shrewd because he was able to prepare himself for what lies ahead.
For the children of this age are more shrewd than the children of light in dealing with their own people.
 - The unrighteous are wiser in dealing with the unrighteous than the righteous people are in dealing with other righteous people.
9 And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of worldly wealth so that when it fails, they may welcome you into eternal dwellings.

• Use the earthly currency (neutral, but the love of money makes it evil) to bring favor to those who are righteous or even to gather the righteous.
• It will still be based upon taking what God has given you and be a good steward by knowing the Spirit, trusting the Spirit and obeying the Spirit.

10 Whoever is faithful in very little is also faithful in much, and whoever is unrighteous in very little is also unrighteous in much.

• Money is neutral… what you do with it is either good or evil.

11 So if you have not been faithful with worldly wealth, who will trust you with what is genuine?

• If you prove yourself to be unwise in the financial world, or with your possessions or with your family and friends or even with your time, who is going to listen to you about spiritual matters?
• I’m transparent with my things because it develops trust with others… even when I fail.

12 And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to someone else, who will give you what is your own? 13 No servant can serve two masters, since either he will hate one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” [1]
This last line was in reference to the Pharisees who have tried to be the leaders and teachers of faith for the Jewish people and have taught the amount of money owned will determine God’s favor and the benefit of your eternal life.

[1] Christian Standard Bible. (2017). (Lk 16:1-13). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.