Responses to God’s Word

Luke 4 and the Fulfillment of Isaiah 61

Welcome to No Compromise Radio Ministry, my name is Mike Apendroth. My voice has been so much better until today. What's going on? You can write me, Mike, at NoCompromiseRadio .com. I've got a few encouraging emails lately.

Am I supposed to say, give me a bunch of five-star ratings? Give me five stars. What else is happening in my life? Back from the cancer hospital this week, numbers good. I think with a couple exceptions, and they were just minor exceptions.

And then I also got my lipid panel back for the cholesterols, good and bad. And I was high, have been high for a long time, but I haven't really been concerned about that because I had prostate cancer and, you know, COVID pneumonia and all that, so I thought that's the last of my worries.

But now, after meeting with the cardiologist, I guess it's a new issue. So I said, before you put me on a statin, which I wasn't going to take anyway, give me six months to see if I can reduce that and reduce the numbers.

Or in the case that you're on a high, then get that one high. So he said, okay. And so instead of waiting six months, I said to the cancer hospital, could you also include my blood tests for reds and whites and neutrophils and all those kinds of things?

Could you add the lipid panel? Yes. So it came back and everything was perfect in three months. So that was via fiber, fish oil, this flour statin, forestol or something it's called, red rice yeast, and maybe oatmeal once in a while in the morning.

That was it. Went down like, I don't know, 30 points, the one cholesterol number. Now it's like 193, needs to be under 200. So physician, heal yourself. Hey, that's my passage that I want to talk about today on No Compromise Radio Ministry.

Thanks for praying, by the way. I appreciate it. Down to once a month, going to the cancer hospital. There are some side effects, fatigue, lethargy, kind of feel emotional or moody. Almost cried the other day for no reason.

That's a bad thing. Hey, if you're going to cry, you should have a reason to cry. Quit your crying. Today, I'd like to work through Luke chapter four. Why? Because it's a great passage and I have to preach on Sunday.

So you're my guinea pig. You're my guinea pigs. You know, I probably have more than one listener. So if I have two, that's fine. So my guinea pigs. Remember, in Luke four, Jesus has gone into the synagogue at Nazareth, his hometown, as was his custom.

And he, Jesus, opens the scrolls to Isaiah 61 and reads from Isaiah 61. Probably a little Isaiah 58 slipped in there as well. I imagine he read a bigger section than just these few verses. Nonetheless, that's what we have recorded.

And in those days, after some prayers and singing and Shema said, Moses, one of the five books of Moses being read, then the prophet was read. And then when you would read scripture, then you'd stand up.

Preaching back in those days or teaching, you'd sit down. And so Jesus sits down and he begins to preach. And we only have one sentence from his sermon, probably the first sentence. And that sentence is found in verse 21 of chapter four.

And he began to say to them, today, the scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing. Today, in your hearing. I mean, can you imagine how dramatic that must have been? When Jesus rolls up the scroll, gives it back to the attendant, sits down, and everybody was looking at him.

The tense of the verb were fixed on him. The verb tense of that fixed is present tense. They were staring. He had their attention. They were riveted. They were fastened. And you might know, if you would think about the earlier chapters, his fame had gone before him, miracles he was doing, and now they have a great anticipation.

Luke loves to use this word fasten or fix, and it means expectant trust, expectant hope, looking to them for something good. Tell me something good. Tell me something good. So, I need that. I just need to think of a song, and it should be here in my, you know, little box, right?

It's just automatic. It should just be there. See? It's the wrong one. Jesus' first words in his public ministry. I mean, he's talked to Satan in the wilderness. That's true. But here, Jesus' first words, he's reading scripture.

I'm looking back, and I'm trying to see if this was a red-letter Bible. It'd make my life easier. But I don't see any place that Jesus speaks before this in public. The spear of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor. And they were really looking at him with an expectant trust, again, to talk about that word that Luke likes to use.

Luke 19, it says, they could not find anything that they might do, for all the people were hanging on every word Jesus said. John 7, the officers answered, never did a man speak the way this man, Jesus, speaks.

And at the end of the Sermon on the Mount, when Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one having authority, not as their scribes. So he reads the passage, and he sits down, and now the exposition is about to start.

And the question you need to ask yourself is, what would Jesus say? Everyone is attentive. As some writers say, they sense the moment, and Jesus quietly rolls up the scroll. I think it was deliberate.

I don't think it was fast. I don't know for sure, of course. And they're looking at him with fixed attention. This is the same word used when people are gazing at, looking at, fixing their eyes on Moses's face after he comes down from Sinai, and he's got the glowing face.

They're staring at Jesus, not blinking very much. And of course, Luke, as he writes this, he's wanting you to do the same thing. This is not just some abstract thing. No, this is God's breathed word. And Luke is wanting us to be certain about who Jesus is, and he's drawing us in, and he wants you, as it were, to be there with the eyes of Scripture and, of course, with the eyes of faith.

And he wants you to be staring too. He wants you to be wondering as well. Fixed attention. This is the verb that's used in Luke's book entitled Acts. A-C-T-S, not A-X-E. You ask me, I'll tell you.

You look at the ascension of Jesus, and you're just staring. Stephen's vision, it's used there. What will Jesus say? Everyone's eyes. Emphatically in the original language, everyone's eyes are fixed. And he begins to say today, this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.

Everything here in the Gospel of Luke seems to be bookmarked by this fulfilling, fulfilled in your hearing. And earlier, today, a Savior was born to you who is Christ the Lord, right? Here's a fulfillment of what's going on.

And even the word fulfill in Luke 24, 44, everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the Psalms. And the first word Jesus says to begin his message is today.

Today. Everybody's been waiting for the Messiah. Everybody's been hoping for the Messiah. Everybody's been looking at someone, maybe they're the Messiah, and then they fall short and they realize that can't be the Messiah.

Today, in your hearing, real jubilee has come. Remember jubilee in Leviticus chapter 25 about liberty, about no more debts and no more slavery. And every 50 years, everyone's just set free, tied to the day of atonement so that you understand there's a bigger freedom as we say, forgive us our debts.

All those sin debts are gone because Jesus hasn't paid for them yet here in Luke 4, but he's on his way to Calvary and will pay for them as we certainly know. It seems like we only have the first sentence recorded.

He began to say to them, indicating there's much more that was said. And of course, I don't think he was talking about what you can do on the Sabbath or what about tithing or what about fasting. He's talking about the Messiah.

He's expounding Isaiah 61 verses 1 and 2 with a little Isaiah 58 thrown in there. And people want to know, was Jesus an expository preacher? Most people think expository means verse by verse, sequentially.

By the way, that's a great way to teach the Bible. I think it's the best way. It's not the only way. And the tenor of the ministry here is verse by verse teaching. Even if we teach you a topic, we try not to skip all around.

We try to go to a passage that teaches a topic, teach that passage, and then add some more things about that topic. And it turns into a textual slash topical message. But you get to see the context and you say to yourself, I'm exposed to what the author wants me to know.

That's really what it is. If expository preaching is my pastor preaches verse by verse, picks up where he left off, where he left off, I'm fine with you saying that. But technically speaking, I want you to add things like authorial intent, capital A, right?

There's two authors, human and divine, but we're thinking about the divine author, especially sometimes human authors didn't even know what they were writing about. That's a whole new show. That's another show, is it not?

Yes. That's a 1 Peter 1 show. Today, the Lord's favor has come. A fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy is me. Jesus is, of course, doing expository preaching. And of course, with an eye toward the Messiah himself, he's talking about himself.

What does God say? What does God mean? Trying to show you the authorial intent with an eye toward the Lord Jesus. That's what real expository preaching is to me, where you expose people to the meaning of scripture.

Here, Jesus, the Christ drops the atomic bomb. I'm your Messiah predicted by Isaiah. I've come and I am your king. You think he had their attention? I am certain he did. And I want to say, but I'm careful, but my flesh wants to say, come on, Luke, give me just that part of the sermon.

But for whatever reason, that's all we need. That's the thrust of it. Some people think that's just the theme of the sermon. I think it was his first words. But nonetheless, regardless, spiritual jubilee today, within your lifetime, you're going to experience the Messiah because it's today.

It's today. Mark 1 talks about Christ's message, the kingdom's near. Luke is talking about I'm near. I, meaning Jesus. Today, today, today, today. It's a word that's a theological word that doesn't just mean today, like today is in my world, Friday, February 9th.

But today talks about salvation, this very moment. Luke 2, for unto you is born this day or today in the city of David, a savior who is Christ the Lord. And Jesus said to him today, Luke 19, salvation has come to this house since he also is a son of Abraham.

Luke 23, 43 to the thief on the cross. Truly, I say to you, Jesus said, today you will be with me in paradise. Everybody's been waiting. They know God's faithful. You need to wait no longer. What do you think the response to that should be?

What's the response to, let's make it bigger so we can make it very practical today because you like practical things. I know, I know. I see it. I've watched that show for a long time. Maybe it's inappropriate.

God, I know. To make it a little more relevant, practical, we're going to watch their response to Jesus' preaching. What's your response to the words of the Bible preached? I don't mean taken out of context.

I don't mean when you're listening to somebody who's got bad hermeneutics and they're messing up the scripture, but when they're rightly dividing the word and you're sitting there, what is your response?

Well, you say it could be conviction. That's good. It could be joy. That's good. It could be sadness. That's good. So everything in its time, there's a time and place for on one side positive response with joy, the other side negative response with guilt and conviction, conscience pricked.

There's lots of ways to respond. Those are good ways. There are bad ways as well. Being mad, angry, frustrated, accusing the preacher of misogynism, a variety of things you could do. If you don't like a particular passage or a doctrine or something like that, you can just be bugged.

You don't cross your arms literally while the sermon's going on, but figuratively do. And you blast the preacher on the way home or at least blast the message. And then you have for lunch, roast pastor.

By the way, I have roast pastor most every Sundays because I study all week. I pour my heart out on Sundays and it always could be better. There's always a mistake or two that I made. And I'm thinking I could have come across so much better.

I could have smiled more. I could have been more excited. I could have been more enthusiastic. I could have been more serious. I could have been whatever was the appropriate way to deliver it. And that's why Mondays are very difficult for pastors.

We have been told in seminary, and this is something I learned in seminary that I really has stuck with me. Don't quit on Mondays if you're a pastor. Well, why would any pastor want to quit on Monday?

It's a day off. Well, because you realize the gravity of your responsibility on Sunday. How you did not do as well as you could, right? If anybody ever says, I did the best I could, is that really true?

How about this? I wanted to do the best I could. That was my goal. But did I pray enough? Probably no. Did I study enough? I just ran out of time, right? If you give me an extra week, I'd keep studying the same passage, right?

And that's just every pastor and Bible teacher knows that very thing. So, what's the response to the preaching of God's word? Luke 4 .22. Let's see what they did. Let's see if you do what they do. And all spoke well of him and marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth.

And they said, is this not Joseph's son? Luke 4 .22. Now, at first blush, everything seems hunky dory. I don't even know what hunky dory means. It was a David Bowie album. I know that. I think it was a pretty good album too.

I don't know if Eno produced that or not. The crowd was impressed. The crowd seemed like they were praising him. The crowd seems like it could be positive statements, amazement, marveling. But dear congregation, Vianoco Radio, I think it's not very positive.

I don't think it's as positive as we think it might be. I think they're impressed by how he says things, but not by what he says. I think they're impressed by his phraseology and how he can turn words and speak eloquently.

But who's saying those words? They don't believe him. Now, sometimes the word to marvel or amaze is not necessarily positive. Luke 11. Now, Jesus was casting out a demon that was mute. When the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke and the people marveled.

But some of them said he cast out demons by Beelzebub, the prince of demons, while others to test him kept seeking from him a sign from heaven. He speaks well, but we don't agree with what he said. I think that's what's going on.

And even the text, it's very fascinating. All spoke well of him. That's not in the Greek. It's where we get the word to witness. All witnessed of him. They witnessed about him. That's it. They're not saying anything else beside that.

I don't know why. LSB, ESV, NAS talks about speaking well of. All were witnessing to him. And I guess negatively it could be witnessing against or witnessing to. John 7, about the middle of the feast, Jesus went up into the temple and began teaching.

And the Jews are for marveled saying, how is it that this man has learning, but he's never studied? Crowd answered a little bit later. You have a demon who's seeking to kill you. Jesus answered them. I did one work and you all marvel at it.

So just because they're marveling doesn't mean this is all positive. And just because Jesus gives gracious words, the Greek expression, words of grace, could they be gracious words or could they be content of words that are grace, of grace?

I think they're words of grace. And of course, people get mad at grace too, right? There's God saves one and God doesn't save the other. If it was only positive, it turns sour right away. But I think you'll see, oh, they're happy to hear, you know, he's a good speaker.

He'd go over well in Athens, but they don't like what he says because they said, same verse, Luke 4 .22, is not this Joseph's son? Is not this Joseph's son? I mean, we've seen this kid when he was, we've seen this person when they were a kid and a carpenter's boy running around.

He's the Messiah. He's the anointed one. Is this not Joseph's son? And so what do you do if you can't find fault with a sermon? Then you attack the person, right? This is to the man. This is ad hominem.

This one's the Christ? Really? I think you should be asking this question too. Kind of almost, this is almost like Satan's deal right back in the wilderness. You know, are you really God's son? You know, if you're God's son.

And Luke the writer wants you, the reader, to keep asking, who is Jesus? And what does he want with me? Luke showing who Jesus is. And do we believe Jesus? Do we believe that he is the one fulfilling the ultimate jubilee, the ultimate favorable year of the Lord, the ultimate Messiah?

Isaiah 61. So you ask yourself the question, do I believe that? Do I believe that? And the issue here is with this whole section, faith. Do you believe? Either do believe or you don't believe. Do you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead so he'll be saved?

Because with the heart, one believes and is justified. And with the mouth, one confesses and is saved. For the scripture says, everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame. There's no distinction between Jew and Greek for the same Lord is Lord of all.

Bestowing his riches on all who call on him for everyone who calls in the name of the Lord will be saved. How do people respond? The root of all sin is unbelief. And the key here is to believe the words of Jesus.

When he says today, this has been fulfilled in your hearing, in your ears, literally, do you believe that or not? Luther said we cannot do any greater despot to our Lord God than by unbelief. For by it, we make God a devil.

Again, we cannot do him any greater honor than by faith when we regard him as savior. Therefore, we cannot abide a doubting heart like the Turk who doubts or the monk who in despair runs to a monastery and says, oh, how hot as hell.

I will therefore do good works to placate God. But by good works, we do not become a Christian, but remain a heathen. Unbelief is a chief sin and the source of all other sins. So, the right response to this is knowledge, assent, and trust that just shall live by faith, trusting in Jesus.

Do you? Do I? That's the question. The 1689 London Baptist Confession, 2nd London, chapter 14 of Saving Faith, section 2, 14 -2. By this faith, a Christian believes to be true. Whatsoever is revealed in the word for the authority of God himself, and also apprehends an excellency therein above all other writings and all things in the world, as it bears forth the glory of God in his attributes, the excellency of Christ in his nature and offices, and the power and fullness of the Holy Spirit in his workings and operations.

And so is enabled to cast his soul upon the truth consequently believed, and also acts differently upon that which each particular passage thereof contains, yielding obedience to the commands, trembling at the threatenings, and embracing the promises of God for this life and that which is to come.

But the principal acts of saving faith have immediate relation to Christ, accepting and receiving and resting upon him alone for justification, sanctification, and eternal life by virtue of the covenant of grace.

Our response is to keep believing. What's the response when Jesus preaches? Conviction, yes. Comfort, yes. Joy, yes. A sense of need for the Lord, yes. But over all that, through all that, in all that, faith.

I believe it. It's God's word. I believe it. Whether it's hard truth, easy truth, comforting truth, convicting truth. I know that's what you do, because you're a no-compromise radio listener. I wonder what happens if I pulled up the message version.

And so I need message version songs. I guess this is a new one, since I don't have the... Who sings the song? That's not the song I want. These aren't the droids you're looking for. Isn't this Joseph's son, the one we've known since he was a youngster?

Jesus answered, I suppose you're going to quote the proverb. Doctor, go heal yourself. Do here in your hometown what we heard you did in Capernaum. Earlier it says, he rolled up the stroll, handed it back to the assistant, sat down.

Every eye in the place was on him, intent. Then he started in. You've just heard scripture make history. It came true just now in this place. All who were there watching and listening were surprised at how well he spoke.

Plop, plop, fizz, fizz. Oh, what a relief it is. My name is Mike Ebenroth. This is No Compromise Radio Ministry. When you hear a sermon this Sunday, what's going to be your response? We think we know.