Today´s Sermon

2013.04.07   Jesus teaches in the Temple…. Full of Grace and Truth                 Luke 20: 20- 47 

Last week we Celebrated the Resurrection of our LORD and Savior Jesus Christ….. Praise the LORD…... We studied the Resurrection in Luke chapter 24….  You will remember that after the resurrection….. We saw Jesus overcoming doubt and fear and slowness of heart with the Word of God….. As He taught the disciples on the road to Emmaus…… It was the Word of God that captured their hearts…….. Their fears and doubts faded away in the Light of the Gospel….. Luke 24 v 32   says that their hearts burned within them as He opened the scriptures to them…… They didn´t know who he was….. It was the Word of God that did the work in their hearts…. This is a wonderful reminder that …… Jesus is alive….. and His Word is alive….. It is the Word of God the Holy Spirit uses to transform hearts and lives…..

This morning we will back up and pickup the Gospel of Luke from where we left off a few weeks ago….. Luke 20….

Here we will see Jesus shining the Glorious light of the Gospel on greed and unbelief and hypocrisy …. He will teach from the Word of God about Taxes and the resurrection….. He will show them that He is the Messiah……. He is Lord of all….. even of David….. He will warn of the hypocrisy of the Scribes and Pharisees….. Let´s begin in Luke 20 verse 20

Luke 20: 20- 47     NKJV

20 So they watched Him, and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, that they might seize on His words, in order to deliver Him to the power and the authority of the governor.

21 Then they asked Him, saying, “Teacher, we know that You say and teach rightly, and You do not show personal favoritism, but teach the way of God in truth: 22 Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”

23 But He perceived their craftiness, and said to them, “Why do you test Me?24 Show Me a denarius. Whose image and inscription does it have?”They answered and said, “Caesar’s.”

25 And He said to them, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”

26 But they could not catch Him in His words in the presence of the people. And they marveled at His answer and kept silent.

27 Then some of the Sadducees, who deny that there is a resurrection, came to Him and asked Him, 28 saying: “Teacher, Moses wrote to us that if a man’s brother dies, having a wife, and he dies without children, his brother should take his wife and raise up offspring for his brother. 29 Now there were seven brothers. And the first took a wife, and died without children. 30 And the second[e] took her as wife, and he died childless. 31 Then the third took her, and in like manner the seven also; and they left no children, and died. 32 Last of all the woman died also. 33 Therefore, in the resurrection, whose wife does she become? For all seven had her as wife.”

34 Jesus answered and said to them, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage. 35 But those who are counted worthy to attain that age, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry nor are given in marriage; 36 nor can they die anymore, for they are equal to the angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection. 37 But even Moses showed in the burning bush passage that the dead are raised, when he called the Lord ‘the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ 38 For He is not the God of the dead but of the living, for all live to Him.”

39 Then some of the scribes answered and said, “Teacher, You have spoken well.” 40 But after that they dared not question Him anymore.

41 And He said to them, “How can they say that the Christ is the Son of David? 42 Now David himself said in the Book of Psalms:‘The Lord said to my Lord,“Sit at My right hand,

43 Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.”’

44 Therefore David calls Him ‘Lord’; how is He then his Son?” 45 Then, in the hearing of all the people, He said to His disciples, 46 “Beware of the scribes, who desire to go around in long robes, love greetings in the marketplaces, the best seats in the synagogues, and the best places at feasts, 47 who devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. These will receive greater condemnation.”

After Jesus´ triumphal entry into Jerusalem…….. He spent every day in the temple surrounded by huge crowds of people at Passover time…… The   people   wanted Him to be the Messiah they had  waited for….. They were watching   everything He did and listening to everything He said….. As we pick up our text…..  He is teaching these great crowds…… The crowd is full many kinds of people…. Some are genuine believers….. some are just fans of Jesus……… and some hate him….. they want him dead…..

As usual the religious leaders are there…… The religious leaders want to trap Him…..  The crowd just wants to hear Him teach…..   The people know He's a miracle worker….. they know He raised Lazarus from the dead….. They hope that He is the Messiah….. The leaders have hated Him for a long time…… They have hated Him for years……  And they will get what they want by Friday……  By the time we come to our text this morning….. they are desperate…..   

They want Him dead…… They decide that the Romans are the way to get rid of Jesus….    

 They knew that if Jesus was arrested by the Romans…. the people's hopes in Him would be destroyed…..

They're full of hate and they're full of pride…….  But they are trying not to show it….. But remember All false religious leaders are hypocrites…..    And they are masters of disguise….. They even appear as Angels of light….  Now to our text…. Luke 20 verse 20……

Luke 20: 20- 22             NKJV

20 So they watched Him, and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, that they might seize on His words, in order to deliver Him to the power and the authority of the governor.

21 Then they asked Him, saying, “Teacher, we know that You say and teach rightly, and You do not show personal favoritism, but teach the way of God in truth: 22 Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”

The plan was to get Him arrested by Pilate….. they had to catch Him in some statement that would cause the Romans to want to arrest Him……   so they watched Him and they sent spies masquerading as honest truth seekers…. So  they “pretended to be righteous,”

This is normal  for all false teachers……. Their hearts are black….. They are selfish and greedy……. But they are religious and want the praise of the people…. So they pretend…. Perfect hypocrites…..

Pilate was in town to keep order during the Passover….….. They were going to use Pilate to kill Jesus…… The Pharisees believed that any true Messiah would see Rome as an ungodly and pagan enemy….. The prophets said that the Messiah would take over and set the people free from oppression….. and that's true, the prophets did say all of that……. The next time Jesus comes that's what He will do…… He will establish His eternal Kingdom…… But The prophets also said that first He would come and be a sacrifice for sin……. We studied this during the last few weeks….. The King Messiah is also the Suffering Servant of the LORD…..

But the people were looking only to the coming Messianic Kingdom……

Now the leaders didn't think Jesus was the Messiah…… They want to get Jesus to say anything against Rome…… In their hearing  so that they can get him arrested…… and show him powerless against Rome…. Then the people will turn against Him in a minute…… and It will be over……  the Romans will kill Him…..

They are very smart…… They choose a Hot subject…Taxes! No one wanted to pay taxes to a godless Rome…. So they say….. Hey, Jesus should we pay taxes to Rome?..... It´s a trap…. Let´s look at what he said…. V 23

Luke 20: 23-26  NKJV

23 But He perceived their craftiness, and said to them, “Why do you test Me?24 Show Me a denarius. Whose image and inscription does it have?”They answered and said, “Caesar’s.”

25 And He said to them, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”

26 But they could not catch Him in His words in the presence of the people. And they marveled at His answer and kept silent.

What we have here is a partnership of various groups who normally hate each other….. But they are united in their desire to shut Jesus up….. It was made up of priestly leadership and Pharisees and the Politically connected…. The Herodians…. They could not catch Him in His words and they are speechless…… For the moment they are speechless…. They wanted Him to tell the people not to pay their taxes…. Unfortunately for them….. Jesus said pay Caesar his taxes….. You live in His Land under his protection……  Then Jesus said…. Give to God The things that belong to God… Give him your Your heart and life…. They belong to God……. You see….. The real problem in the lives of the children of Israel was never who ruled them……. The real problem was always their own proud and sinful hearts…..

Well, as we see in the text…. they are speechless for now….. They want to accuse Him before Pilate as a rebel and trouble maker…….. In just a few days they will get their voices back and lie to Pilate…… They will say he told the people not to pay taxes!... They really just want Jesus to Shut up! They are willing to kill Him to stop Him….. Epic fail…… Then  The Sadducees decide to take a theological shot at Him….. Let´s continue in the text at verse27….

Luke 20: 27-33      NKJV

27 Then some of the Sadducees, who deny that there is a resurrection, came to Him and asked Him, 28 saying: “Teacher, Moses wrote to us that if a man’s brother dies, having a wife, and he dies without children, his brother should take his wife and raise up offspring for his brother. 29 Now there were seven brothers. And the first took a wife, and died without children. 30 And the second took her as wife, and he died childless. 31 Then the third took her, and in like manner the seven also; and they left no children, and died. 32 Last of all the woman died also. 33 Therefore, in the resurrection, whose wife does she become? For all seven had her as wife.”

The Sadducees were a small group….. But they were very wealthy and powerful….. Many of the Sanhedrin were Sadducees… They controlled most of the buying and selling in the Temple…. Their power and privilege was connected to Rome and the Temple…..  

Look at verse 27…

The Sadducees denied the resurrection…. The practical application was that this life is all there is….. Go for it! They radically pursued that ancient and popular idea…… They went after their best life now!

The Pharisees and the rabbis all taught the resurrection as entirely Biblical…. The scripture is clear…. nevertheless The Sadducees rejected all of their arguments….. saying Only the Writings of Moses are Legitimate….. The rest of the OT doesn´t count….. They believed that after we die that´s it….. No resurrection and no judgment….. They considered themselves to be literal interpreters of the Pentatuch alone….. They rejected the rest of the scriptures as not binding or useful…. They teased and harassed the Pharisees with crazy questions like the one they asked of Jesus….. They were sure that He would not be able to answer them…… Just like the Pharisees and the Herodians….. They want Him dead…..  The High Priest Caiaphas who is a Sadducee….. becomes a key player in this final successful attempt on Jesus life…… He said……. He has to die……. Or we will all loose everything!...... But of course even these things were a part of God´s plan…… And as Jesus said….. No man takes my life from me…. I lay it down….

Well The Sadducees approach is to discredit Him in front of the people by asking Him a question that nobody had been able to answer…... This is their ultimate question…..  This is their best shot….. verses 28-33….. Whose wife is she? Gotya! Let´see you answer that!..... I´m sure they were high fiving each other and celebrating! This event is recorded in Matthew and Mark as well….. We´ll note a few things from them as we study this morning….

Remember last week we saw Jesus on the road to Emmaus after the resurrection ministering to the 2 disciples……. He took away their doubts and fears by shining the light of scripture on them….. It was the Word of God that Jesus used to encourage and comfort them in their darkest moment….. Their world was destroyed….. They were defeated and disappointed…. Lost…..Then Jesus uses His Word to teach and comfort them….. Just like He by His Holy Spirit uses His Word to teach and comfort us….. and sometimes also to warn us….

Jesus could have ignored these Sadducees….. He knew that He was on the way to the cross…. But because He is by nature a Savior…. Just like His heavenly Father……. And Because He is Come to seek and to save the lost….. He is teaching the truth to these who he knows are going to kill Him……. Jesus is full of grace and truth…. He says….. you are wrong!  I want to take a quick look at Mark 12…. Let´s start at Verse 24….

Mark 12: 24-27     NKJV

24 Jesus answered and said to them, “Are you not therefore mistaken, because you do not know the Scriptures nor the power of God? 25 For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 26 But concerning the dead, that they rise, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the burning bush passage, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? 27 He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living. You are therefore greatly mistaken.”

Jesus says to them…. you are wrong…… You do not know the scriptures or the power of God……. Then He takes them to Moses… remember they only believe Moses…. So Jesus quotes Moses to them….  

You´re mistaken! Here the Greek says….. you have caused yourselves to wander from the truth…….. You don´t understand the Word of God!….. Then Jesus Himself begins to teach them the truth…… He in His unfailing love opens up the scriptures to them…… back to Luke verse 34…..

Luke 20: 34- 40         NKJV

34 Jesus answered and said to them, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage. 35 But those who are counted worthy to attain that age, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry nor are given in marriage; 36 nor can they die anymore, for they are equal to the angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection. 37 But even Moses showed in the burning bush passage that the dead are raised, when he called the Lord ‘the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ 38 For He is not the God of the dead but of the living, for all live to Him.”

39 Then some of the scribes answered and said, “Teacher, You have spoken well.” 40 But after that they dared not question Him anymore.

Scripture is clear…. In the resurrection there is No marriage…. No death…. Look again at v 37, 38….

So Jesus straightens them out….. He says….. hey……. Marriage is not for the resurrection….. verse 37…..

"But that the dead are raised," Jesus is saying  let's get back to the point……   Even Moses showed that the dead are raised….. I´m sure they said…. Nein! Where? In the text about the  the burning bush, Exodus 3."

What? In Exodus 3 Moses showed the truth of resurrection? How did he do that? "Because it was there where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob." Well, what does that mean? Well I think the important thing for you to know is that when in Exodus 3:6 God said, listen to this, here's a quote, "I am the God of Abraham. I am the God of Isaac. I am the God of Jacob."

Jesus makes a careful explaination of verb tenses here….. The LORD GOD  doesn't say, "I was their God." He says, "I am their God. I am and they are......  Alive….

The resurrection……. Jesus is alive…. And as we saw last week……. The Word of God is Alive too…… Here… Jesus used the Living Word….. To show these Sadducees the truth…… They could have repented of their sinful hearts and pride….. They could have cried out to Him for mercy…… But Just Like Pharaoh of old they refused to repent… And hardened their hearts….

We could turn to many scriptures to show this….. In Genesis 26:24...in Genesis 28:13, God calls Himself the God of Abraham and Abraham is dead…... In Exodus chapters 3 and  4…. God calls Himself the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and all three are dead……!

Back to Luke 20…. Look at  Verse 38…

Luke 20: 38        NKJV   Schlachter 2000

38 For He is not the God of the dead but of the living, for all live to Him.

38 Er ist aber nicht ein Gott der Toten, sondern der Lebendigen; denn für ihn leben alle.

Death is not the end….  Do you remember what Jesus said to Martha When Her brother Lazarus died? Turn to John 11….

John 11: 25,26              NKJV  Schlachter 2000

25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. 26 And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?”

25 Jesus spricht zu ihr: Ich bin die Auferstehung und das Leben. Wer an mich glaubt, wird leben, auch wenn er stirbt;

26 und jeder, der lebt und an mich glaubt, wird in Ewigkeit nicht sterben. Glaubst du das?

We will live forever…… and if we belong to The LORD JESUS…..  we will live forever in the  presence of God.

The Sadducees are finished….. He wiped them out by telling them they didn't understand the Scripture or the power of God…... He destroyed their false views of the resurrection……  then He struck the final blow when He proved to them that Moses affirmed the resurrection in His own writings…. God  is the God of the living. Let´s continue verse 39….

Luke 20: 39, 40            NKJV   Schlachter 2000

39 Then some of the scribes answered and said, “Teacher, You have spoken well.” 40 But after that they dared not question Him anymore.

39 Da antworteten etliche der Schriftgelehrten und sprachen: Meister, du hast gut geantwortet!

40 Und sie getrauten sich nicht mehr, ihn etwas zu fragen.

Everyone that heard Him teach were astonished…. Even those who hated Him….. They are speechless… The greek says they didn´t dare ask Him another question….

Jesus built His case on the little points of grammar here……. This book is true all of it….. every word is inspired by God….

We can….. believe it and trust it…..  They don´t dare ask Jesus any more questions……. So it´s his turn now…… He asks them a question…. Let´s look at the last section of our text for today…… Because here Jesus again teaches the Good news about Himself with the Word of God….. It is also alive…. And powerful….

He shows from David in the Psalms that the Son of David…. The Messiah is the Lord Himself….. He is not only a man …. He is not only the son of David…… Then because He is showing himself to be the LORD….. He gives them all a solemn warning…. Luke 20… verse 41…

Luke 20 : 41- 47             NKJV

41 And He said to them, “How can they say that the Christ is the Son of David? 42 Now David himself said in the Book of Psalms:‘The Lord said to my Lord,“Sit at My right hand,

43 Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.”’

44 Therefore David calls Him ‘Lord’; how is He then his Son?”

45 Then, in the hearing of all the people, He said to His disciples, 46 “Beware of the scribes, who desire to go around in long robes, love greetings in the marketplaces, the best seats in the synagogues, and the best places at feasts, 47 who devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. These will receive greater condemnation.

Jesus has again spent the entire day teaching large crowds and being confronted by the religious leaders…… They have done everything they can to publicly discredit Him….. The Pharisees and the Herodians have failed…..The Sadducees have made their attempt…..  All of them have been exposed by the wisdom and the power of His answers….. As we read…..   in Luke 20:40…. They didn't have courage to question Him any longer about anything…… Now it's His turn to ask the questions…..   verse 41….  

Luke 20:41- 44    NKJV  

41 And He said to them, “How can they say that the Christ is the Son of David? 42 Now David himself said in the Book of Psalms:‘ The Lord said to my Lord,“ Sit at My right hand,

43 Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.”’

44 Therefore David calls Him ‘Lord’; how is He then his Son?”

 

Jesus is here once again saying that He and the Father are one….. He is saying that he is God….. in the flesh…… That´s exactly what he said on other occasions…… That´s why He allowed Himself to be worshipped as the King Messiah just a few days ago….

The nature of the Lord Jesus Christ….  has been debated since He came….  it comes down to this, was Jesus God? Is He God? Or is He merely a man? If   Jesus is God….. then  He is in charge…… The Bible is true…… And  Christianity is real…... This is THE critical issue…….

Why is Jesus bringing this up now? At this point that they have totally rejected Him…..  They want Him dead…..   Why is He bringing up this issue of His identity again? And the answer comes from Mark 12:34….. paraphrased… because He knew of some who were not far from the Kingdom….   

For instance Joseph from Arimathea…. He is the one who provides a tomb for the Lord Jesus…... This is all one final evangelistic effort….. All the way up to the end….. Jesus is evangelizing everyone who is willing to listen…..  Even His enemies……. Jesus  is still the compassionate Suffering Servant of the LORD…… come to seek and save the lost….. He is still down to the very last conversation inviting sinners repent and cry out to Him….

Luke 20: 45- 47   NKJV

45 Then, in the hearing of all the people, He said to His disciples, 46 “Beware of the scribes, who desire to go around in long robes, love greetings in the marketplaces, the best seats in the synagogues, and the best places at feasts, 47 who devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. These will receive greater condemnation.”

Jesus has rebuked and shamed them for their corruption and lies…….. But He is just like His heavenly Father…… He has no pleasure in the death of the wicked……. His joy is in the salvation of sinners….. Even now at the end of His earthly ministry….. The Glorious Light of the Gospel is going forth…. And some are repenting and believing….. And some are hardening their hearts….. We have 2 very important applications for us today…..

1…. The Word of God is alive and true….. It still changes hearts…..

2 We need to love the lost and tell them the truth!

It is not enough to get out our Gospel guns and blast away at sinners….. We are all sinners…. Some of us are saved by grace through faith… Eph 2: 8-10…  It is exactly Because Jesus loves all of them in this crowd…. He says….. You watch out…. They are hypocrites and liars….. They are full of pride and greed…. Don´t be like them…. Today for us…. let´s not be like them…… We can´t be pretenders…. We can´t be proud and stubborn…. We need to confess our sins and let Jesus wash our feet so that we can truly love and reach out to the lost…. Truly love and serve each other…  We need grace and truth in what we say and in what we do…. Just like Jesus….  

Remember…. The religious leaders never denied the miracles… How could they….. they knew these people…… Lazarus was right there…. So was the man born blind…… and on we could go….. they were all around them….   They did not want this man to rule over them…. Romans chapter 1…. They just refused to repent and believe the Good News….. They hardened their hearts…. That's the tragedy…. Still Today there are believers, fans and enemies…..

How about you? Are you one of those fans of Jesus? Who one day can cry “Hosanna,” and then a few days later cry crucify Him? Here´s the question Jesus asked in our text today….. What is your response……

Who's son is Jesus Christ? If He is the Son of God, then He is truly the Messiah, the Lord, the only Savior, and the only way by which a sinner through faith alone can escape hell and enter heaven….. Tomorrow is promised to no man…. Today is the Day of Salvation…..