Keep sharing good news without ads.
Sermon for Lord's Day August 8,2022 Luke 17:20-21
That just as he is Christ's, so also are we. Stand with us this morning and turn to Luke chapter 17. We will be picking up right where we left off three weeks ago now. Again, I want to say publicly and before the entire congregation, what a blessing it is to be back in the Lord's house with you.
What a privilege it is, the assembly of the saints. Luke chapter 17, verse 20 and 21 is what we're going to read in your hearing this morning. This is the word of the living God. Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, the kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, look, here it is, or there, for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.
Thus far as the reading of God's holy word, heavenly fathers, we come before your throne. It is with a grateful heart.
That we approach unto you,.
Knowing that this privilege that we have, even to pray, is of the blood-bought privilege that you have paid for by shedding your blood for the remission of our sins, and for that, we are grateful. Lord, we would ask you to help us in our time in the word this morning.
Help us above all else to see you better, that we may love you all the more. For it's in Jesus' name we pray.
Amen.
Largely, our time together in the word today will be a period and a time of review, kind of doing a review of what we have read thus far in Luke's gospel. If you've been with us throughout the years, you know that we began Luke's gospel, a verse-by-verse exposition of Luke's gospel back in November of 2019.
And here we are in chapter 17, verse 20, in 2022. Our aim and our goal is not to rush through the text of the word of God as we teach and preach the word of God to you, but to take our time so that we are each and every one well aware of what the word of God says, so that we rightly divide the word of God.
So by way of just a quick review, we have seen in Luke's gospel how that one event on top of another testifies to the glory and to the majesty of Almighty God. There is one aim and there is one goal when we go to the word of God, and that is to see and to know the person, the character, the nature, and the work of God Almighty.
We see his preeminence. We see his providential intervention in the affairs of men. We see the powerful, omnipotent, holy one condescending to become a flesh and a blood man. Now, it is no secret that it is a great mystery, likely never to be fully understood by us, how that God became a man and yet remained fully God.
Now, in theological terminology, this mystery is called the hypostatic union. Nevertheless, nevertheless, remember this, that God in Christ became a man to suffer in our place the wrath of God. Were he not truly man, his life nor his death would have been an acceptable sacrifice.
And were he not truly God, he could never have borne the wrath of God in our place. So throughout Luke's gospel, we see biblical doctrines throughout, from Luke one to where we are till the end of Luke, throughout the whole of scripture.
We see the biblical doctrine of God's sovereignty, that God is so sovereign over all the earth. We see the biblical doctrine of God's providence, how God works in and through his creation. We have seen the biblical doctrines of grace.
We see the radical depravity of man. We see God's unconditional election unto salvation of men, women, boys, and girls for his own glory. We see the definite atonement, Sir said it in his words this morning, that Christ's blood was not wasted, but it was shed intentionally for the remission of sins.
We see in the scriptures here in Luke's gospel, the effectual call of God. We see in Luke's gospel, the biblical doctrine of the perseverance of the saints. By the way, if you're here today and you're saved, you are saved and you are kept by the power of God.
Ain't that good news?
Amongst other biblical doctrines in Luke's gospel, we have seen and we do see the doctrine of heaven and the doctrine of hell, the biblical doctrine of angels, the biblical doctrine of the inerrancy and fallibility, sufficiency and authority of the scripture itself.
When we go to the word of God, when you turn to the pages of the New Testament, what you will find is a reinforcement of what God has spoken in the Old Testament. The Old Testament testifies to the truth and the veracity of the old to the new and the new to the old.
So today, we wish simply to review and to refresh our minds as to what Jesus has previously said, particularly by looking back at what Luke reports to us in chapter 13. So if you wanna mark a place with your finger or mark a spot there for Luke 13,.
We'll be going back there.
To look at about four verses there. And particularly, particularly, what we must be very, very careful of as we go throughout the text of scripture, that we do not read into the text of scripture our ideas or our thoughts, but that when we look at the word of God, we read what the word of God has said and we take it as such the very words of God.
So as we look back today, really one of the key doctrine that we'll be focusing on today to make clarification for as we move further is the doctrine or the study of last things. Now, it's a big E word.
It's the word eschatology. If you wanna know how to spell it, if you wanna write it down in your notes, E-S-C-H-A-T-O-L-O-G-Y.
Bear with me.
I had to do some mental tricks there in my mind to make sure I had that spelled right.
But as we look at this,.
Many times the reason that our focus really, we want to bear down on this as part of our review to where we've been today is because many times, many gospel texts and many of the revelation texts that are many times assumed to be second coming passages are not all speaking about the literal second advent of Christ, but rather are about his coming in judgment in that generation.
So we want to be clear. And our challenge today, our challenge is to be able to make the distinction between the biblical reality of Jesus literally returning to take his church home, which is going to happen according to the scriptures, and not or, or not either, but and.
Both the literal reality of Christ coming to take his church home and the biblical reality of the Lord's coming in judgment on this generation as we're reading here in Luke. For Christ spoke that very plainly.
So my desire, and I know some of you are probably thinking this, by the way, I've not forgotten, we're having a church dinner at the end of the service, right, there's gonna be hamburgers, grilled hot dogs, there's all kinds of food gonna be prepared.
By the way, we want everybody to stay and eat because there is a bunch of hamburgers and hot dogs that are gonna have to be cooked. But I realized this, and I realized the normal response would be, let's just hurry up and get through this.
But as they say, you know, just move right along. By the way, has anybody figured out who they are yet? You know what they say, right? They say this and they say that. But I must yield today, I must yield to the importance of teaching the context of our passage before we can actually move through it.
So we will be looking at a variety of texts to help us gain a proper perspective in order that we might rightly divide the remainder of Luke's gospel account as we continue through it, as well as have a balance and a biblical understanding of what are many times misunderstood and misrepresented passages of scripture.
It's very easy. It's very easy for pastors and teachers to preach a particular eschatological view, end times view.
And with that being said,.
My goal is not to do it the easy way today, but to do it the hard way, as they say, and to do our dead level best, our dead level best to stay true to the text as it is written and not to deviate from biblical context in order that I might put a spin towards any particular eschatological view.
So by the way, everybody knows this, I hope. If not, you'll know that now, eschatology is a secondary issue. It's not a reason for us to get mad and break fellowship with each other. It's not a reason for us to cut somebody's tires because we don't like their eschatological view, okay?
But it is very important that we have a right understanding. It is very important. Kim Rydelbarger, in his book, A Case for Amillennialism, wrote this, actually. This is a wonderful statement concerning John Calvin's eschatological view.
Rydelbarger said, take, for example, the millennial question. Amillennial, premillennial, or postmillennial? Louis Burckhoff admits that amillennialism may be the historical position of the church since the days of the apostles, but the term itself was not used until early in the 20th century.
Rydelbarger says, if we were to ask Calvin about his millennial views, he would probably say millenarianism, in any form, is a view of the fanatics. Since amillenarians are technically postmillennial, meaning Christ returns after the thousand years of Revelation 20, Rydelbarger said, I think Calvin would simply affirm that he was a nonmillenarian and argue something like an optimistic amillennial view, especially given his confidence in the spread of the gospel.
So John Gill, in his commentary on these passages here, in Matthew's gospel as well, John Gill made this statement. All the people rejoiced, why? For the glorious works of Christ, for the glorious things that were done by him, for the doctrines that he taught and the miracles that he wrought, and his wise and close reasonings at this time to the shame and confusion of all that opposed him, Gill said, for his audience consisted of different sorts, and what he said and what he did had different effects upon them.
Some were filled with joy and others with wrath, malice and envy. And this is true, Gill said, with respect to spiritual and eternal things. Glorious things have been done by Christ in eternity by becoming the surety of his people, by entering into covenant with his father on their account, and by taking the care and the charge of their persons and of all grace, of all blessings, and all promises for them.
And in time, by assuming their nature, we're speaking about Christ here, it's what he's saying,.
Fulfilling the law,.
Bringing in an everlasting righteousness, making peace and reconciliation by procuring pardon and finishing the work of redemption and salvation, and now in heaven by entering as the forerunner for them, appearing in the presence of God on their account, presenting their prayers and making intercession for them, and these are glorious things.
Gill goes on to say, they make for the glory of all the divine perfections. They issue in the glory of Christ himself, and in consequence of them, the saints enjoy eternal glory and happiness. These are the things of the greatest importance.
These are wonderful and amazing, and for which saints and angels will glorify God both here and hereafter. And these occasion joy, and these occasion gladness in the Lord's people right now, for not carnal and not profane persons or hypocrites or formal professors or Pharisees and self-righteous persons rejoice at the things that we read in the scriptures, but such as are the Lord's own people, who are openly his, who have passed under a work of the Spirit of God, who have seen their need of these things and are sensible of the value of them.
Those who know Christ, who love him, and who believe in him. These are very important. This is why learning the doctrines that the scriptures teach are so very important for us, Christian men, Christian women.
Now, the very first point that we wish to make here and to establish is that the kingdom of God has come. The kingdom of God has come. Jesus, here in our text, being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, and we'll look at the Pharisees' view and the nation of Israel's view, really, as a whole.
The very first point we wish to establish, the kingdom of God has come and, remember I said this earlier, and that as Christian people, we await the second advent of Christ. We await the second coming of Christ.
The scriptures teach us clearly throughout the epistles that the trumpet will sound, that the Lord shall descend, that the dead in Christ will be raised and caught up together with the Lord in the air, and then those of us who are alive and remain will be caught up with him together.
And so, Paul said, shall we ever be with the Lord? So we're not looking at conflicting ideas as some in the world might say that these ideas conflict, but they run side by side, parallel together. There's a great hope that we have in looking forward to the coming of Jesus Christ.
There's a great hope. We can, as Christian, man, woman, boy, and girl, Christian to you, I say this today, we can have absolute assurance that Christ will come again. You may ask, how in the world can we have absolute assurance because his word has said it to be so?
And everything that Christ has said would come forth, come to pass, has come to pass, and so we can be certain the things that haven't come to pass will come to pass.
Why?
For this one reason, because God is faithful. God is righteous. God is true. And God is just.
R .C. Sproul, concerning these passages here in chapter 17 and in chapter 11 and in chapter 10 as well of Luke's gospel, R .C. Sproul said this, the whole Old Testament called attention not to a kingdom that would simply appear in people's hearts, but to a kingdom that would break through into this world, a kingdom that would be ruled by God's anointed Messiah.
And for this reason, during his earthly ministry, Jesus made such comments as, if I cast out demons by the finger of God, you can be sure that the kingdom of God has come upon you. The king of heaven was there.
Now, how could the kingdom of God, Sproul asked, become upon them? Well, the kingdom of God was near unto them because the king of the kingdom was there. It's important that we make this distinction. When Jesus came, when Jesus came incarnate, born of the virgin, his kingdom was inaugurated.
When he went, ascended to the father, ascended for his coronation, we are still yet awaiting the consummation.
Of the kingdom of God,.
The finalization of the kingdom of God, for when he comes back, he takes the church home, right? And then the new heavens and the new earth come. We, I think it is a challenge and it breaks my heart today.
And since we made that distinction just a few minutes ago, it is a challenge for us to want to lean eschatologically one way and then to hear some of the things that this one side will say concerning the new heavens and the new earth as though we are living in the new heavens and the new earth for we are not church.
We are not living in the new heavens and the new earth. We are still in a world that is full of sin. We are still in a world where death comes upon men and women daily and on a regular basis, but thanks be unto God, this world is not our home.
For we seek a city whose builder and whose maker is God almighty. Three things here. The kingdom of God is not, the kingdom of God is not a political kingdom. The kingdom of God is not a political kingdom.
Number two, the kingdom of God is not a kingdom like the kingdoms of men that take by brute strength and by amassing great military force. The kingdom of God does not come by political reign and rule.
The kingdom of God does not come by the rule of amassing armies and just overtaking of the world as we know it. For this third thing, the kingdom of God is not a worldly kingdom. How do we know this? Jesus said, my kingdom is not of this world.
For if it were of this world, then would my servants have fought. That's what Jesus said. So to state it simply, Jesus Christ is the king of heaven. Jesus Christ is the king of earth. Jesus Christ is the king of kings and Jesus Christ is the Lord of lords.
He wasn't democratically voted in.
And he will not be democratically,.
He cannot be democratically voted out. My friends, when we consider in context of the text of scripture, when we consider the Pharisees and the scribes and the people of Israel of this day, they were missing the forest for the trees.
For the Jewish people were looking for a physical and a political kingdom that was to come and to do away with the Roman empire because the Roman empire was their problem. But my friends today know this, the United States government is not your biggest problem.
Russia is not your biggest problem. Ukraine is not your biggest problem. China is not your biggest problem. Your biggest problem and my biggest problem is sin. And there is no way that our sin can be overcome outside of anything other than by the shed blood of Jesus Christ.
And it's when Christ comes and he sets up rule and he sets up reign in the hearts of men by doing his sovereign work of grace in our hearts, by regenerating us, by making us new creatures in Christ Jesus.
What did Jesus say here? The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed. That word observed there in the text is used one time in the Greek New Testament. I'm not gonna try to mess it up and pronounce the Greek word here, but it's used one time in the Greek New Testament in this form and it means it's defined like this.
That word comes not with observation, it means attentive watching. It's used in the manner in which the kingdom of God or the operation of the spiritual kingdom in the hearts of men does not come in such a manner that can be watched with the eyes.
Now this is proven out throughout the text of scripture, but particularly if you turn over to John chapter three. John chapter three, beginning in verse one. These are the words of the living God. Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.
This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, rabbi, we know you're a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him. Jesus answered, truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
Nicodemus said to him, how can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born? Jesus answered, truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of the water and of the spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.
For Jesus said, that which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is spirit. And then Jesus said, do not marvel that I say unto you, you must be born again. And then Jesus said, the wind blows where it wishes, and you hear it sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes.
So is everyone, so it is with everyone who is born of the spirit of God. You see the continuity between Jesus' words throughout the text of scripture. So Jesus said, it does not come with observation.
It's not something that you can see happening with your eyes. Matthew Henry said, they asked when the kingdom of God should come, for they were forming a notion of it as a temporal kingdom, right, a physical political kingdom, which should advance the Jewish nation above the nations of the earth.
For it has not an external show, Matthew Henry said, as other kingdoms have, and the advancements and revolutions of which are taken notice of by the nations of the earth and feel the newspapers. Brothers and sisters, let me encourage you this today.
You will hear a lot of what is called newspaper eisegesis. A lot of people will take current events and they'll read it into the events that are taking place in the gospels here as though they are the signs of the ends of the age, but the signs of the end of the age that Jesus is talking about in context is the coming destruction on Jerusalem in AD 70.
The larger picture, however, is his second coming, the day that he comes to call us home in Luke chapter four, verse 42. Luke chapter four, verse 42 and verse 43. Jesus, the scripture says, and when it was day he departed and went into a desolate place and the people sought him and came to him and would have kept him from leaving them, but he said to them, I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to other towns as well for I was sent for this purpose.
That word kingdom that he uses is the same word kingdom here in our text in verse 20 and verse 21 as well. Kingdom, it is the word basileia in the Greek and what it refers to is the territory. The territory or the rule subject to the rule of that king.
It is referencing the royal power of Jesus as the triumphant Messiah. It is referencing kingship. It's referencing his rule over all creation. We hear the term used kingdom of God and we hear the term used kingdom of heaven.
Something very important here is for us to make a distinction, a very clear distinction. In Vine's expository dictionary, they gave a very plain and straightforward distinction here concerning the two terms, kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven.
While then the sphere of the kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven are at times identical, yet the one term cannot always be used indiscriminately. The hillbilly term for indiscriminately is willy-nilly.
Right, everybody knows what you say when you say willy-nilly, right? It cannot be used willy-nilly or indiscriminately one for another for there is a difference. For example, in Matthew's gospel, 32 times, 32 times the term kingdom of heaven is used.
It's always using speaking of heaven in antithesis to the earth. And the phrase is limited to the kingdom in its earthly aspect for the time being. For example, the kingdom of heaven was literally on the earth in the person of Jesus Christ, literally in on the earth.
In the term, the kingdom of God, in its larger use in a broader aspect, God is always referred to in antithesis to man or to the world. And so the term signifies the entire sphere of God's sovereignty.
So when we use the term kingdom of God, it's a reference to God's sphere of sovereignty.
Over heaven and earth.
And when you read the term kingdom of heaven, it's largely used in reference to the time when Jesus was there here on the earth, he, the king of heaven, was on the earth, therefore, the kingdom of heaven was here.
Now, they go on to say this, the fundamental principle of the kingdom is declared in the words of the Lord, spoken in the midst of the company of the Pharisees. What did Jesus say? The kingdom of God is in your midst.
That's in our text right here. The kingdom of God is in your midst. That is, as Vine's expository dictionary lays this out, that is where the king is, the kingdom is. Thus, at the present time, and so far as this earth is concerned, where the king is and where his rule is acknowledged is first in the heart of the believer.
That's very, very important. The Pharisees and the scribes were looking contextually, they were looking for the kingdom to come in great power. Instead, the man of sorrows, acquainted with grief, the triumphant Messiah, born into this world.
As a babe of a virgin, lived a sinless life,.
Had a group of 12 men.
He died in what seemed like a shameful way, which truly, according to the world, he is. But my friend, it is the message and it is the power of the cross of Jesus Christ that will save men and women today.
To the Jews, it is foolishness. To the Greeks, it is a stumbling block. But hallelujah to us who are being saved. It is the power of God unto salvation. Lastly, let's turn back to Luke 13. Luke 13, verses 18 through 21.
Luke 13, verses 18 through 21. The word of God states this. He said, therefore, what is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? It is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden, and it grew and it became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.
And again, he said, to what shall I compare the kingdom of God? It is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour until it was all leavened. This is all key in us understanding as we move forward, having a right perception of the kingdom of God.
Now, the kingdom of God is compared to two things, right, in that text, a mustard seed, and then compared to leaven in the dough. The assumption here is for us to recognize that the scribes and the Pharisees and the Romans thought they were going to extinguish, extinguish the power of the gospel.
They were going to extinguish the power and the glory of the gospel light by killing Jesus Christ. They thought by silencing the voice of Christ, that they would silence the word and the power of God.
So they thought that if they embarrassed and they killed Jesus, that they would in effect put an end to this kingdom that Jesus was proclaiming. But brothers and sisters, again, let me point us back to the word.
In our very own call to worship each and every week, we have it that we are a part of a living unshakable kingdom, a kingdom that was bought and paid for, and that is established and continues by the power of God.
So the parable of the mustard seed is intended to show the progress of the gospel in the world. My friends, the progress of the gospel in the world continues just so that you're aware of this. If you're sitting here today and you have been born again by the grace of God, you are a living testimony to the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
You are a living memorial if you would have it, that the gospel continues to do its work in the world in which we live. And what do we pray for? We pray for our lost people, that the power of God would so come upon them, that they would be regenerated,.
That they would be born again,.
Because in future generations, as time continues to go on, as we move toward the second coming of Christ, my friend, the gospel will continue to do its work.
Here in the text, in 13 there, we have the words of Christ that demonstrate that the gospel is glorious and that the gospel will continue to live throughout the ages.
There's an old song.
It says something to this effect, kings and kingdoms will all pass away, my friend.
They will all pass away.
But we're reminded by the writer of Hebrews, let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken. And thus, or because of this, let us offer to God acceptable worship with reverence and with awe, for our God is a consuming fire.
In closing, Matthew Henry states this, it will be quite another thing from what you expect and will operate and gain its point in quite another manner. You will expect it will appear great and will arrive at its perfection all of a sudden, speaking of the kingdom.
But you are mistaken, Matthew Henry said, it is like a grain of mustard seed. It's a little thing. It takes up but little room, makes but a little figure and promises but a little. Yet when it is sown in soil proper to receive it, it waxes into a great tree.
Many perhaps, Matthew Henry goes on, many perhaps were prejudiced against the gospel and they were loath to come in to the obedience of it because of its beginning being so small. They were ready to say of Christ, can this man save us?
And of his gospel, is this likely ever to come to anything? Now, Christ would remove this prejudice by assuring them that though its beginning was small, its latter end should greatly increase so that many should come, should come upon the wing, should come to fly like a cloud, to lodge in the branches of it with more safety and more satisfaction than in the branches of Nebuchadnezzar's tree as referred to in Daniel.
He said this, Jesus said, you will expect it, or Henry said, you will expect it to make its way by external means, by subduing nations and vanquishing armies, though it shall work like leaven, silently and insensibly and without any force.
Or without violence.
A little leaven, Christ said, leaveneth the whole lump. So the doctrine of Christ will strangely diffuse its relish into the world of mankind. In this, it triumphs that the savor of the knowledge of it is unaccountably made manifest in every place beyond what one could have expected.
But you must give it time. Wait for the issue of the preaching of the gospel to the world and you will find it does wonders and it alters the property of the souls of men. And so we see this leaven is a picture of the growth of the gospel in the world as well.
John Gill states this, it is like leaven, which is small in quantity, but is of a swelling, spreading quality. And it fitly expresses the small beginnings of the gospel ministry. And it's increased also the state and case of gospel churches and the nature of the grace of God.
For he goes on and he says, it's hidden three measures of meal among a few of God's people at first, both among Jews and among Gentiles until the whole was leavened. Until all the elect of God are gathered in and evangelized by brothers and sisters, the gospel will never lose its power.
As long as this world stands, because God is on the throne and he is the king of heaven and he is the king of earth, the gospel will still accomplish its saving work. So as we return back here to Luke 17, 20 and 21, Jesus was asked by the Pharisees, when would the kingdom of God come?
And he answers them plainly, the kingdom of God does not come with observance, nor will they say, look here or look there, there it is for the kingdom of God is in your midst. Brothers and sisters, the king has come.
Brothers and sisters, the king is coming. We know not when, but we do have now the great task and the great responsibility and the great privilege of proclaiming to whoever will hear it that Christ the Lord is savior, that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, that he was buried and that according to the scriptures, he arose on the third day, that he ascended to the father where he ever lives to make intercession for us.
Stand with us if you would. There's an old song written in about 1892. Chris is gonna work on learning the organ for this song. And so hopefully in a couple of weeks, we'll be singing this song. But the name of the song is called Rejoice, you pure in heart.
And this hymn states this. Yes, onward, onward still with hymn and chant and song through gate and porch and column dial the hallowed pathways throng with all the angel choirs, with all the saints of earth, pour out the strains of joy and bliss, true rapture, noblest mirth.
Your clear hosannas raise and hallelujahs loud whilst answering echoes upward flow like wreaths of incense cloud. Then on ye pure in heart, rejoice and give thanks and sing. Your glorious banner wave on high, the cross of Christ your king.
Praise him who reigns on high, the Lord who we adore, the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, one God forever more. Thanks be unto the living God.
Praise God from.