The Certainty Of Christianity - [Luke 1:1-4]

Do you know for certain that future glory awaits you to be with the Lord Jesus in heaven, a resurrected body?

Are you sure that the guilt of your sin is paid in full? Are you certain that you have a joyful relationship with the triune

God? Can you say, absent from the body, present with the

Lord? Can you say, to live as Christ and to die is a gain?

Can you with Paul say confidently, the Son of God loved me and gave himself for me?

Can you declare with Job, I know that my Redeemer lives, and echo the words of David, can you say, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil for you are with me. Today I want to talk about certainty.

If you have a Bible, turn to the Gospel of Jesus according to Luke, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John in the

New Testament. We're going to look at the book of Luke, and I have some good news for you today. Even though you will die, even though I will die, we can have confidence and certainty that when we die, we're going to go to heaven.

And I want you to have that certainty. I want you to have what we call the assurance of salvation, sure that we get to go to heaven.

That we can say with Paul in Romans chapter 8, there's no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

I want you to be able to sing that song, it is well with my soul, and sing this, my sin, oh the bliss of this glorious thought, my sin not in part, but the whole, is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more.

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, oh my soul. It is important for you to know for certain that when you die, you're going to go to heaven.

It's appointed for man once to die, and then judgment, and so we want to make sure that we understand this truth.

Today, if you're a Christian, we're going to look at the Gospel of Luke, and you're going to say, oh, that's the Savior that loved me and bought me with his redeeming love.

I trust him. Lord, I want to trust him more, and if you're an unbeliever here today, you're not born again.

I want you to see in the Gospel of Luke. There's no one like Jesus, no one talked like he did, no one acted like he did, no one could do the things that he did, and in fact he's verified his claims of deity by doing many things.

Luke chapter 1 verses 1 and following is where we are, and it's a perfect Resurrection Sunday kind of introduction, because Luke is written as an apologist, as someone who says, let me give you reasons why you actually should believe if you don't believe, and reasons why to believe and keep on believing if you do believe, and he's like an investigative reporter.

He's a physician, and he looks at the data, and he says, I want to make a proper analysis of this data, because death is real, sin is real, hell is real, is

Jesus real? Chapter 1 of Luke, verse 1 says, as much as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, he's talking about Jesus's life, including his death and resurrection, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the ministers of the word have delivered them to us.

It seemed good to me also, Luke says, having followed all things closely, like a doctor would, like a historian would, for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent

Theophilus, that was his name, God lover, that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught, so that you might know for sure, that you might have assurance that when you die, you know where you're going to go.

J .C. Ryle, a preacher back in England, said, a man may lose his soul two ways, he may lose his soul by living and dying without any religion at all, beast -like, prayerless, godless, graceless, faithless, this is a sure way to hell, or secondly,

Ryle said, he may lose his soul by taking some useless kind of religion, he may live and die contenting himself with a false

Christianity, resting on a baseless hope, practically knowing nothing about Jesus.

So this morning, I want to show you in the gospel of Luke, who Jesus is, and we're going to take a look at who

Jesus is in the gospel of Luke, so that you know for certain, that he is telling the truth.

As a matter of fact, we've talked about it in the past, have we not, in verse 4 of Luke 1, that you may have certainty, remember what that word certainty looks like in the

Greek, we get our English word asphalt, and so some of you know about asphalt, and it's not squishy, it's not, at least when it dries, it's not quicksandy, it is firm, it is stable, it is secure, and that's exactly what the writer wants, what

Luke wants, that your faith would be like firm asphalt. So this morning, we're going to look at the gospel of Luke, and it is a great book.

I don't know why it is, you probably have the same experience that I do, but whatever book I'm studying, or I'm preaching through, that's my favorite book of the

Bible. I have 66 books to choose from, when I was in Hebrews, that's the go -to book, and now in Luke, we're only first starting into Luke, and I'm already thinking, this by far is my favorite book in all the

Bible. Luke is so great, because it talks about who Jesus is in an orderly account.

From the beginning, we'll look at Jesus's virgin birth, all the way to the end, to the ascension of Jesus, and it tells you everything that you need to know about Jesus, so that you can have certainty.

I want everyone here, here's my purpose once again, everyone here to realize that although they're sinful, and although they deserve not heaven, they don't deserve heaven,

I don't deserve heaven, but there's one who saves sinners, one who seeks and saves the lost, and his name is

Jesus. We're not pluralists, thinking there are many ways to heaven, just pick your poison.

No, Jesus said, I'm the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father but through me. This is an exclusive claim, and can you imagine what kind of credentials would you have to have to say that you are in fact

God on the earth, and only through you, God on earth, is heaven attained, and forgiveness accomplished.

But we will see in the life of Jesus, that in fact, these truth claims are built on fact, and Jesus can back it up.

If you'd like an outline this morning, it's going to be pretty simple. We're going to look at seven snapshots of Jesus in the

Gospel of Luke, so that you might know with certainty, that when you die, you're going to go to heaven.

I know I'm preaching to many who are Christians, this is a good reminder, we have trials, we have questions, there are false teachers out there, and sometimes we might waver, or doubt, or wonder, so it's good to bolster with asphalt

Christians, but it's also good if you're not a believer here today, because I want to show you the claims of Christ, so that you know about the object of our faith, the

Lord Jesus. Seven snapshots of Jesus from Luke, that should give you certainty about Jesus.

And of course it will culminate in something called, the resurrection. That's where we're going, but I want to just slowly go there.

First snapshot, surveying the life of Jesus. You can be certain that you'll go to heaven, and Jesus is who he said he is, because Jesus is powerful.

Go to Luke chapter 7 please, because he's powerful. And for the sake of preaching today,

I thought we'll have a little alliteration. I'll start with peace. Powerful is the first one, chapter 7.

Now I could take you to Luke 8, where Jesus can, with his great power, still the sea.

What kind of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him? I could take you to where he heals people, but I want to take you to the ultimate demonstration of Jesus' power, and that is, he can raise people from the dead.

Yes, he's powerful over demons, but ultimately, look at this snapshot of the

Lord Jesus, verse 11 of chapter 7. And this, by the way, was written in light of having certainty for all those who would read it.

Soon afterward, he went to a town called Nain. It's kind of by Nazareth, by the way. And his disciples and a great crowd went with him, as he drew near to the gate of the town.

Behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow.

So no husband to provide, no son to provide. And a considerable crowd from the town was with her.

Now, we'll notice that the Lord was not asked by this lady for help. He, by his own initiative, helps her.

And the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said to her, do not weep. Then he came up and touched the beer,

B -I -E -R. That's kind of the plank that you would put the dead body on. They weren't in a coffin or a casket, they're on a plank.

And so he goes up and he touches the plank. And the beer stood still.

And he said to the dead body, of course, young man, I say to you, arise.

And this is fascinating, we just take it for granted. The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.

Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, saying, a great prophet has arisen among us.

God has visited his people. This report about him spread throughout the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country.

Instead of a man walking up to touch where a dead body was, and becoming ceremonially unclean, and would have to wash and do kinds of other things,

Jesus, the God -man, touches, says, not defiled at all, brings him up from the dead.

When I go to funerals, and I would be with my, or wakes, and I would be with my little children, I'd always say, let's just make sure we're kind and compassionate to the people that are grieving.

You don't have to say anything. You could say, I love you, I'm sorry. But let's just go up and give them a hug.

And when we pass, there's gonna be a dead body in a box called a casket. And when you walk by that dead body,

I want you to think of a few things. Here's one. One day you'll be in that box. So make sure you believe.

But more than that, who can walk up to that dead body in that box, and say, wake up.

Be raised. Every one of those dead cells and atoms, completely rejuvenated.

Jesus is God, and he has the power over death. We're gonna need that, because we can't resurrect ourselves.

Can you imagine you're dead, and you're trying to resurrect yourself when you're dead? How hard would that be? Well, it'd be pretty hard because you're dead.

We're gonna need someone who has the power of the resurrection. Power over death. Jesus said in John, I'm the resurrection of the life.

Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live. And everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.

Do you believe this? I want you to know, if you're a Christian, you have a savior who's powerful over death.

And if you're not a Christian, I want you to realize, you need a savior who's powerful over death.

Second snapshot, found in Luke 7 as well. You can be certain that Jesus is who he says he is because he's powerful to the extent he's powerful over death.

And not only that, he pardons sinners. You can be certain that Jesus is who he says he is because he can pardon sinners.

Who is Jesus? In this chapter, verse 49, we're asked that question, and here's part of the answer. Who is

Jesus? As we look at this second snapshot, seeing the survey of Jesus' life culminating with the resurrection.

Verse 36, one of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him. Oh, this is going to be good.

I can already tell what's going to happen, can't you? And he went into the Pharisees' house, these strict religion people, not just by the book, but adding things to the book, and reclined at table.

And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, of course we say sinner because we all realize we're sinful, but this is a special category of sinner.

She's disgusted, she's hated. She's the worst of the worst. And she learned that he was reclining at table in the

Pharisees' house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment and standing behind him, his feet,

I mean here's the sinner, she began weeping and to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head, kissed his feet, anointed them with oil.

You can hear the Pharisee grumble to himself. If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who's touching him for she's a sinner.

And Jesus answered, or answering said to him, he didn't even say it out loud but Jesus knows his thoughts,

Simon I have something to say to you and he answered, I think reluctantly, say it teacher.

Verse 41, a certain money lender had two debtors. One owed 500 denarii, that's about a year and a half's worth of wages.

So whatever you have to work for for a year and a half. And the other 50, two months wages.

So 20 months wages, two months wages. Two people owe debt. Two people owe debts. Listen to what Jesus says.

Verse 42, when they could not pay, he canceled the debt of both. 20 months worth, two months worth.

Now which of them will love him more? He's stuck.

Simon knows what to say but I don't think he wants to say it. The one I suppose for whom he canceled the larger debt.

And he said to him, you have judged rightly. Then turning toward the woman, he said to Simon, do you see this woman?

I entered your house, you gave no water for my feet, which would have been the proper custom in those days.

She's wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You gave me no kiss but from the time

I came in, she's not ceased to kiss my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil but she has anointed my feet with ointment.

Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven for she loved much.

But he who is forgiven little, loves little. And Jesus said to her, only

God can say this and have it happen. Your sins are forgiven.

Then those who are at table with him began to say among themselves, who is this that even forgives sins?

Your faith has saved you, go in peace. The Bible teaches that God is holy.

The Bible teaches that God is just. The Bible teaches that God created every one of us and we're to live and obey

Him. The Bible says, we sin though and we've fallen short of the glory of God. Every one of us has sinned.

And we need a Savior because there's going to be no sin in Heaven. And so, who's going to forgive you of your sins?

We see the Gospel of Luke and Jesus comes on the scene and He not only has power over death, power over demons, power over creation,

He can forgive sins. And I'm telling you, friends, you need to have your sins forgiven. Wouldn't you like to be forgiven?

It's only through Jesus. There's a song that reads this way, Not the labors of my hands can fulfill thy laws demands.

Could my zeal no respite know? Could my tears forever flow? All for sin could not atone.

Thou must save and thou alone. Snapshot number three.

Turn your Bibles to Luke chapter 10. Snapshot three.

What we're looking at is working our way through the Gospel of Luke, highlighting a few things about the

Lord Jesus to make sure you're certain that you know who He is, that He's powerful, that He pardons and that He is, in fact, who

He says He is so that you can have certainty that when you lay down that day to die that you're going to be in heaven.

Jesus is a prophet. He's powerful, He pardons and He's the prophet.

Moses talked about a prophet that would come and now we see the prophet of God revealing not just good news although Jesus does, but the law.

Here's what happens. We have a word called law and the law shows us what God requires and God requires that we love

Him with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and love our neighbor as ourself and if we do that all the time, God would let us into heaven.

But because of Adam's sin and our own sin, we're not able to do that. We need a Savior. But in the kindness of God, God the

Son is going to show this person their need of a Savior. That's why we tell people about the law.

That's why we tell people what God's standards are so people say I don't meet those standards I'm going to need one to meet those standards for me.

Prophets don't just tell prophecy and say things about the future. Prophets reveal to us who

God is. That's what a prophet does. God is holy. God is infinite. God is from Himself.

God is immutable. God is love. And how do we know about God? Well, we can't just look at trees and figure it out or look at the sun and figure it out.

Well, you could say that He's powerful looking at the sun but that's about it. So we need somebody to tell us the truth.

I've been in many situations before where somebody's got cancer and it doesn't look good for them.

I've even got asked a question in the last month. So -and -so in the family is dying of cancer.

The other family members don't want to tell grandpa or grandma or auntie that they have cancer. Is that a loving thing to do?

You need somebody to tell them the truth. Kindly, yes, but tell the truth. Here, Jesus, the prophet, tells the truth and the truth is you need a savior.

Yes, He powerfully can resurrect people. He can forgive sins but we have to realize we're sinful and here now in Luke chapter 10

Jesus is going to preach the law like a good prophet would. And, of course, we come to the parable of the

Good Samaritan and we think it's supposed to be about being nice to other people and if people aren't like you and you're just not diversified enough you're to be kind to them.

That's not what really this is about. What is it about? It's about Jesus, the prophet, trying to tell these people, this man and all of us we need a savior.

This is the standard for heaven and the prophet tells us that. The prophet would tell us good news later but right now he's showing the law.

It's like a mirror. And, behold, a lawyer stood up to put into the test Luke 10, 25.

This is a bad thing that's going to happen and I would tell the man don't do that. Don't do that. This is a test question.

Testing the creator of the universe, Jesus. Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?

Jesus said to him, like a good prophet who reveals the law what's written in the law?

How do you read it? I mean, you're a lawyer right? This is not our kind of lawyer but this is the person who's dedicated to studying the law of God and so he says to the person dedicated to studying of law okay, how do you read it?

He answered matter of fact he has the right answer you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart with all your soul with all your strength and with all your mind and on your neighbor as yourself.

Is that the right answer? That's the right answer. You want to get to heaven just perfectly obey

God why would God ever judge anyone if they always obeyed? That's right.

What did Jesus say? The perfect prophet the one that Moses said was a better prophet than he was said you've answered correctly do this love

God love neighbor and you will live. For you who think

I'm gonna just hope that my good deeds outweigh my bad deeds I hope that my baptism my circumcision my religiosity will get me in there

I want you to know if you want to get to heaven the standard can't be met by you nor me because why would even

Jesus come if we could get to heaven by ourselves wouldn't God just say just keep trying harder and you'll make it just keep being better and keep being good make your good outweigh the bad pay your taxes to some degree be nice to your neighbor loan him some farm tools every once in a while you're in where did that come from?

I just I harken back to Nebraska working on the farm if you'd like to get to heaven on your own perfectly obey

God now if we look at our past all we have to do is look at our past and say looked at a woman with lust lied deceived hated cheated those are things we did that's true but how about the things that we should have done perfectly love

God perfectly love neighbor as much as we love ourselves to love God with heart, soul mind and strength who has ever done that for even a day so Jesus the prophet is trying to say you need a savior when you're not sick you rarely go to the doctor unless it's the once a year checkup kind of thing but mainly people go to the doctor when they're sick and Jesus is trying to say you're sick but it's not an illness it's a sin sickness it's the

SIN virus it's going to kill you so Jesus is trying to show this is the law you're going to need to have those sins forgiven and of course what did the man do?

verse 29 he tried to justify himself who's my neighbor they try to do that with Jesus a lot try to get him like off into something else and then

Jesus gives the parable of the good Samaritan that probably most everyone here knows about and it says at the very end verse 36 which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers the two that just went around and gave a wide berth are the ones that actually helped verse 37 he said the one who showed him mercy and Jesus said to him you go and do likewise he should be saying to himself but I can't do that I need a savior

Jesus the prophet preaches the law and the law teaches that you better perfectly obey

God I don't know if you know this or not but the

Bible teaches in Galatians 3 curse it is everyone who does not abide by all the things written in the book of the law and to do them did you know the

Bible teaches this it's not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God but the doers of the law will be justified and that should show us that we fall short the law shows us of our sin snapshot number four

I want you to be certain of who Jesus is because that's the purpose of Luke and if you're a Christian to have a kind of a rebar bolstering of your faith and if you're not a

Christian to see the claims of Christ and to think one day I'll die and the only way I can have certainty is to trust in the

Lord Jesus is powerful he pardons sinners he is the prophet and he loves prodigals he loves sinners we've seen the law and now we're gonna see how

Jesus loves sinners he loves his enemies and there's no one like it and of course with this passage in Luke 15 it just preaches itself you just read it out loud and think first of all nobody teaches like Jesus second of all what manner of love is this?

now parables are nice stories to teach spiritual truths and you can see why he gave this parable in Luke chapter 15 verse 1 there's an occasion or a purpose for Jesus saying what he says

Luke chapter 15 now the tax collectors and sinners again not just general word for sinners but just the worst of the worst kind of sinners they're all drawing near to hear him can you imagine that?

the sinners want to come hear Jesus speak because they know who he is and the

Pharisees these religious leaders think of the most religious person in the world that's what these people were like and scribes they wrote down copies of the

Bible what they do they see people who are made in God's image and likeness who are sinners who are on their way to hell unless they're forgiven flocking to Jesus the one who's come to seek and save the lost the one who's come to ransom them and to reconcile them to God to save them to say in fact you're forgiven and what do they do?

what do they say? the Pharisees and the scribes they should've been saying yes celebration if you prayed for somebody for a long time they finally become a

Christian how do you respond? they got saved I can't believe that they finally repented and believed here they grumbled this man they don't even say his name it's kind of like when your children disobey and you say to your wife your children are disobeying theoretically this man receives sinners and of course the custom back in those days if you're gonna eat with someone it talks about fellowship and birds of a feather he receives sinners and eats with them they should be celebrating religious people should be happy when other people say

I believe in God not the opposite and so Jesus gives some parables he gives three when you find something that's lost the response is celebration and so he has coins and other things that he talks about early on but here we see in verse 11 the parable of the prodigal son or maybe sons and I'm just gonna read this because it just unfolds who

God is in all his glorious forgiveness and grace 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's coming to me

I'm not gonna wait till you die I want it right now he divided his property between them not many days later the younger son gathered all that he had and took a journey into a far country and there he squandered his property in reckless living wasted it all when he had spent everything a severe famine arose in the country he began to be in need so he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country who of all things sent him into his fields to feed pigs he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate and no one gave him anything if I could just have some of those pods that would fall and I could eat some of the carob pods probably they were feeding him just dry carob pods can you imagine that for your resurrection

Sunday lunch that you're gonna go to now dried carob pods I think they serve well as toothpicks maybe that's about it if I could just have some carob pods he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate and no one gave him anything sin has consequences but when he came to himself what great language when he came to himself when the light went on we talk about when

God makes you alive and you see for the first time he came to his senses he came to himself how many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread

I mean servants have enough bread how much of a son would have I will say to him he's rehearsing it father

I've sinned against heaven God and before you I'm no longer worthy to be called your son he realizes the law he realizes he falls short treat me as one of your hired servants and he arose and came to his father and while he was still a long way off his father saw him and felt compassion seems to me the father is looking for him to come back by the way fathers don't run for lots of reasons it was bad custom back in those days to run you let the son approach you and also for reason number two it's the same reason

I don't run I just kind of shuffle old people don't run but more so you're not going to run to this disobedient son he needs to come back

I repent please forgive me the father's love is like what it's like nothing on earth it's kind of like the love that receives tax collectors and sinners he was a long way off his father saw him and felt compassion and ran and embraced him and kissed him he actually receives sinners like his son and eats with him the son said to him father

I've sinned against heaven before you I'm no longer worthy to be called your son but the father said to his son let me interrupt you son bring quickly the best robe to the servants he said put it on him put a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet bring the fattened calf and kill it and let us eat and what celebrate because God receives sinners and eats with them so that should be a celebration for this my son was dead he's alive again he's lost found and they began to do the right thing that the

Pharisees and scribes didn't do celebration now his older son was in the field who's the older son the

Pharisees the Pharisees were in the field the older son's in the field came and drew near the house heard the music and dancing and what do you think the response should be when the lost son has come home when sinners now eat with Jesus and he receives them and forgives them it should be a great celebration my brother's come back repentantly he hears the music he hears the dancing

I don't know how you hear dancing but it must have been loud dancing he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant your brother's come home and your father has killed the fattened calf because he's received him back safe and sound and so the son began to celebrate this great father of mine receives sinners and eats with them just like he receives my son back but oh no he was angry and refused to go in his father came out and entreated him look at the loving kindness and the patience of the father even toward them the

Pharisees but he answered his father look these many years I've served you I never disobeyed your command you've never given me a young goat that I might celebrate with my friends when this son of yours came devoured property prostitutes you killed the fattened calf for him and he said to him son you're with me always all that's mine is yours it was fitting here it is again to celebrate and to be glad for this brother was dead and is alive he was lost and is found what an affectionate appeal by the father one writer says

I want you to know that not only God has standards to get into his kingdom but also that God loves sinners that's a pretty amazing thought

God demonstrates his own love toward us that while we were still sinners Christ died for us this is an amazing truth dear friends that Jesus Christ loves sinners he actually receives tax collectors and sinners number five

I know what you're doing you're dividing the time that I have for the sermon into seven so we're gonna keep going number five you can be certain about Jesus because of what he preached because of what he preached here's another parable chapter 18 of Luke oh maybe this should be the main message for Easter Sunday resurrection

Sunday to be reminded of God's saving sovereign grace and how we can't save ourselves and that we ought not to trust in ourselves and now we see the

Lord Jesus on earth preaching he also told this parable

Luke 18 verse 9 everything in Luke trying to drive home the point you can trust

Jesus he's faithful and true to forgive sinners he also told in this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and treated others with contempt

I mean if we're Christians today we probably see our old lives we trusted in ourselves we trusted in religion we trusted in our parents we trusted in the church we trusted in church membership trusting in ourselves that's the besetting sin basically of the world trusting in self instead of trusting in the

Lord so now he's going to give an example and you know the passage but every time I read it I'm still devastated by it because I not only see

God's sovereign forgiving grace but I also see me and trying to justify my own self two men went up to the temple to pray okay so far so good one a

Pharisee the other a tax collector Pharisees were these teachers of the law but showed no grace just only legalism and tax collectors

I'm trying to think of what a tax collector would be it'd be bad enough if I just said these people work for the

IRS and you think oh that's awful some people I know said that they've signed their checks to the

IRS on April 15th to the Infernal Revenue Service I don't suggest that just pay the man tax collectors what if it gets so bad in America that they're going to want your social security number as you walk out to try to inhibit what you buy and sell if you're a member of this church and so there are

IRS agents out there saying give me your information because we're going to fine you that'd be bad enough but what if it was somebody who used to be a member of this church who did it what would you think of them a member of the church somebody who used to be a deacon now they stand out there and persecute us that's what a tax collector was like a tax collector was a

Jewish person hired by Rome to gouge the Jewish citizens so tax collectors were not looked upon very well and you've got the most religious person and you've got the tax collector you've got the pinnacle of holiness and you've got the pinnacle of despised despicable betrayers

I mean maybe we could say it like this you've got an illustration with Jesus with a

Sunday school teacher and a transgender activist you've got a pastor and a terrorist you've got an elder and a drug dealer you've got a prostitute and a policeman you have a rabbi and a

Hamas leader you have you and a slave trader what does

Jesus say verse 11 the Pharisee standing by himself prayed thus God I thank you

I'm not like other men probably looked over at the tax collector extortioners unjust adulterers or even like this tax collector

I fast twice a week I give tithes of all that I get I mean who says that but we've all thought that Tolstoy said this this awoken me to conviction that I'm a remarkable man

I have not yet met a single man who is morally as good as I I do not remember an instance in my life when

I was not attracted to what is good and ready to sacrifice anything to it I want to swallow hard for that but the tax collector standing far off would not even lift up his eyes to heaven but beat his breast saying

God be merciful to me the sinner I'm not comparing myself to anyone else

I'm the sinner and God I need your mercy I'm burdened with sin and would you please be merciful let your anger be removed snapshot number six you can be certain about Jesus because even

Pilate there's my P even Pilate saw that Jesus was innocent we're going to need

Jesus to live a perfect life because if he didn't then he's going to have to pay for his own sins and he can't pay for our sins so you're going to need a perfect God man a perfect God man a man who lives under the law who's born of a woman and we're going to need the perfect Jesus and isn't it amazing that even

Pilate said Jesus was spotless and without sin you see it in chapter 23 verse 3 well let's even back up to chapter 23 verse 1 then the whole company of them

Luke 23 arose and brought him before Pilate so you can see what

Luke is doing Luke is talking to eyewitnesses Pilate was a real person Pilate was a prefect a prefect in real history in real time and they began to accuse him saying we found this man misleading our nation wait a second

I thought he was blaspheming well blaspheming just won't do and you can't get killed for blaspheming by the

Roman government so let's change our accusations he's misleading the nation for bidding us to give tribute to Caesar saying that he himself is

Christ the king Pilate said are you the king of the Jews? you say then

Pilate said to the chief priest in the crowds I find no guilt in this man and this was not

Pilate's first rodeo do you see it in verse 14? same thing behold

I did not find this man guilty of any of your charges against him the scriptures are going out of their way to tell you that Jesus is the spotless lamb the blameless lamb verse 15 neither did

Herod and then back in verse 22 a third time he said to them why?

what evil has he done? I have found in him no guilt deserving death and will therefore punish and release him but how do we really know that Jesus was sinless?

how do we really know that he perfectly obeyed God? how do we really know that when the law said love

God and love neighbor he did both perfectly and never slipped one time? how do we know that we have a savior who doesn't have to die for his own sins so we can die for our sins?

what's the exclamation point? what's the affirmation? what's the stamp of approval? that what

Pilate says is what in fact God the Father says it's one thing for Pilate to say he's not guilty but Pilate can't examine the whole life of Jesus he can't know every little thought of Jesus so what in the world could validate

Jesus' perfect life so he could be a representative for us? and the answer is

Happy Easter Luke 24 for our seventh snapshot

Jesus is powerful that drives certainty he pardons sinners he's a prophet he loves prodigals the way he preached

Pilate even affirms it and now you can be certain of Jesus because of his what should we pick for resurrection?

it starts with a P pardon me? how about promises? he keeps his promises and you go where did you get that?

it's right in the text let's find out Luke chapter 24 the resurrection passage that is going to show the vindication of Jesus by the

Father raising him from the dead but on the first day of the week that's Sunday you want to know why we celebrate the

Lord's Day? there are many reasons because it was the resurrection day at early dawn they went to the tomb taking the spices they had prepared they found the stone rolled away from the tomb but when they had when they went in they did not find the body of the

Lord Jesus well he's risen that's why and while they were perplexed about this they noticed behold two men stood by them in dazzling apparel they were frightened that's what happens when you see an angel they bowed their faces to the ground the men said to them why do you seek the living among the dead?

he's not here but he's risen remember how he told you while he was still in Galilee he promised he said this that the

Son of Man must be delivered in the hands of sinful men and be crucified on the third day be crucified and on the third day rise

Jesus said that Luke chapter 9 Son of Man must suffer be killed and on the third day be raised

Luke chapter 18 after flogging him they will kill him Jesus said and on the third day he will rise it's right there in verse 7 promise kept and be crucified and on the third day rise and they remembered his words verse 8 and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven

Judas is out of the picture now and all the rest and that was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles but these words seemed to them an idle tale and they did not believe them but Peter rose ran to the tomb stooping looking in he saw the linen claws by themselves and went home marveling at what had happened did you know dear friends when it comes to resurrection

Sunday there's lots to be reminded of Jesus has the power over death that's true but it tells us that Jesus's life was sacrificially accepted by the father the same father that said this is my beloved son in whom

I'm well pleased at his baptism says it now indirectly at his resurrection if Jesus isn't raised from the dead we're all to be what among beyond all men were to be most what pitied but since Jesus has been raised from the dead it affirms what he did when

Jesus said as S. Louis Johnson said many times when Jesus said it is finished on the cross the resurrection was the father's amen to it is finished that's why the

Bible says in 1st Timothy chapter 3 that the spirit of God the Holy Spirit he vindicated Jesus by raising him from the dead you know who else raised

Jesus from the dead not just the father and not just the spirit but Jesus said in John chapter 10 I lay down my life and I pick it up on my own accord no one takes my life except by my permission so we have the triune

God the father raises his son the son raises his son he's powerful over death and the spirit raises his son so everyone should say yes, that's in fact true who is risen from the dead that means you can trust

Jesus following the French Revolution a lot of people left

Christianity and there was a man who thought you know what I'm gonna start a religion that's better than Christianity his name was not

L. Ron Hubbard that was later he couldn't get people to follow him how do

I get people to follow well you can probably go to Venice Beach in California and dress like Moses and have a staff in about two days you'll have 500 followers but not back in those days he went to a diplomat

Charles Tererand I'd like advice for having people follow me and my new religion answer to ensure success for your new religion all you need to do is to have yourself crucified and then rise from the dead on the third day that's right that's all you have to do 1

Corinthians 15 the most important truth in all the Bible he died for our sins and he was buried and on the third day raised in accordance with the scripture and the way that language is set up by Paul yes, the resurrection is in the past but it has long term effects even till today

Westminster Catechism asked this question how was Christ exalted in his resurrection?

he was exalted in his resurrection in not having seen corruption and death having the very same body in which he suffered rose again from the dead the third day by his own power whereby he declared himself to be the son of God to have satisfied divine justice to have vanquished death and him who had the power of it

Satan and to be the Lord of the living and the dead all by what he did as a public person the head of the church for their justification quickening in grace support against enemies and to assure them of their resurrection from the dead on the last day how can you know for certain that when you die and you will die you're going to go to heaven did you know there's an entire book of the

Bible written so that you might know and it's called the gospel of Luke and today we just put our feet in seven little spots to just say that's in fact true about Jesus my life's difficult as a

Christian but I trust you though you slay me yet I will trust in you I have nowhere else to go

I was laying there in the hospital not that long ago and thinking these are my last days if they are my last days what do

I do and I thought I know I'm a sinner I know

God's holy I know evolution's a lie what's going to happen when

I die and I remember saying to myself if Jesus is lying then

I'm going to hell I have no other hope what kind of wisdom could put together such a way where a sinner could be seen perfect in God's eyes answer because Jesus is the

God man he's a man who totally obeys in my place he's my representative as Adam was for bad

Jesus was for good and then also every one of my sins that I've ever committed and will commit

Jesus said paid in full I'm all in with Jesus he's my only hope and if Jesus didn't do what he said he did then

I'm off to hell and while you don't think maybe that is so comforting it was comforting because then

I began to rehearse again who is Jesus he's powerful he pardons sins he's a great prophet and it's punctuated by the resurrection if you're a

Christian here today no matter what you're going through you have a Savior who's faithful and you can keep trusting him and if you're not a

Christian today you've heard the claims of Christ Jesus isn't just a vacuous word you've seen what he's done you've seen the claims of Christ and what will you do on that day that great day so why don't you call for mercy today

Lord be merciful to me a sinner let's pray Father thank you that you have been so faithful and it's been the

Holy Spirit who's helped us to say about Jesus he's not just a Savior he's my

Savior he's not just a prophet but he's my prophet I pray that for all those that are here today they would be convicted by the resurrection of the

Lord Jesus as the ultimate validation of his preaching of his power and of his work and Father I pray that you would impress upon them how difficult it is to live under the burden of sin but how wonderful the

Lord Jesus is who says to sinners like them come unto me all who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest would you give them rest for their souls in Jesus name