Who is This Man?

Sunday's Text

Luke 5:1-11

Sermon Notes For Discussion

Sunday Recap of the week... by Elaine Pierce

Thoughts on Luke 6 thru 10

I hope you are learning a lot as we read through the book of Luke. I know I am. I have been a Christian for many, many years, and yet, I am seeing Jesus through a new lens as we walk through this gospel together.

Jesus was certainly not a typical Jewish leader, was he? He healed the sick, raised the dead, and told his followers that the first would be last. This week, we've read through most of chapters 6-10, and I am struck by how often the crowds and the religious leaders are surprised by Jesus. Take a few examples:

• his followers eat consecrated food on the Sabbath (6:1-6)
• he heals on the Sabbath - that is work! (6:6-11)
• he calls working class men to follow him (he doesn't draw from the ranks of the learned and elite) (6:13-16)
• he heals the Centurion's servant, a gentile (7:1-9)
• he dines with sinners/Pharisees AND he allows a prostitute to lavishly anoint him (8:36-50)
• he allowed women to follow him - and valued their service (8:1-3)
• he feeds 5,000+ people with 5 loaves and 2 fish (9:10-16)
• he tells many parables, including the Good Samaritan, in which a hated Samaritan, despised by the Jews, is the person who shows mercy.

And this, my friends, is the tip of the iceberg. Every paragraph is filled with surprise. As the disciples said to one another when he calmed the raging storm, "Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him." (8:25).

How do you answer that question, Who is this? As we encounter Jesus, we see a man who is filled with the Holy Spirit, and who is not afraid to upset the status quo. We see a man who loves Jews, Romans, and even tax collectors, who were pretty much the bottom feeders of his day. Jesus knew the hearts of his listeners, and he loved them not because of their goodness, but because His Father sent him to bring salvation to all who confessed their sins and followed him.  

Dear reader, what an adventure lies ahead when we trust in Jesus. Yes, these are troubled times. Especially troubling if all we put our trust in 'princes, kings and horses,' as the psalmist says. Let me conclude with the last stanza of the hymn This is My Father's World. Sing or read these words, and allow God to give you peace and rest. And continue to look for fresh encounters with Jesus.

This is my Father's world

O let me ne'er forget

That though the wrong seems oft so strong,

God is the ruler yet.

This is my Father's world

Why should my heart be sad?

The Lord is king; let the heavens ring

God reigns; let the earth be glad!