The Dying Thief's Prayer - Luke 23:42

Luke 23:42
And he [the penitent thief] said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

This penitent thief’s prayer is the last recorded prayer under the Old Covenant and the first recorded prayer of the New Covenant.  It is altogether fitting that it should be the model of faith and grace.  This prayer contains the elements of true repentance and salvation (adapted from Dr. John MacArthur’s Study Bible note). 

·         He believed the soul lives on after death

·         He believed Christ had the right to rule over a Kingdom of the souls of men

·         He believed Christ would soon enter that Kingdom despite His impending death

·         His request to be remembered was a plea for mercy

·         He understood that he (the thief) had no hope apart from divine grace

·         He understood that dispensing grace lay in Jesus’ power

·         His prayer demonstrates true faith on the part of the dying thief

·         Jesus rewarded that request, and that thief has been in the paradise of God ever since

In this one verse and its context is the complete picture of salvation!  It could not be more simple or profound.  There is no better expression of faith, and faith in Jesus Christ is the only way to the Kingdom.

Where Is Your Faith?

"Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galileee" -
Rembrandt van Rijn

Luke 8:25 But He said to them, “Where is your faith?”
And they were afraid, and marveled, saying to one another, “Who can this be? For He commands even the winds and water, and they obey Him!”

This incident of Jesus and His disciples in the storm is simple in its setting and details, but it is filled with importance.  The disciples were with Jesus in a boat crossing the Galilee at His instruction, and Jesus was asleep in the back of the boat.  A wind storm came up and the waves began to fill the boat with water.  The disciples realized that the situation was critical, awakened Jesus and said, “Master, Master, we are perishing!”  Jesus got up, rebuked the waves and the wind, and said, “Where is your faith?”

 I need to keep in mind the people involved in this event.  In the boat were at least four professional fishermen who had lived and made their livelihood on this body of water.  Most of the other disciples were from that region and would be familiar with the lake and its potential dangers.  These were not men to panic in adversity, nor would they be unskilled in handling a boat in rough weather.  When the Scripture states that they said they were in jeopardy, these men knew what they were talking about and had accurately evaluated the situation.  When they awakened Jesus and said, “We are perishing,” they fully expected the boat to sink.  This was not just an emotional response, but they gave a warning based on what seemed like a hopeless situation.

I believe that the sternness of Jesus’ rebuke for the disciples was not based on their expectation of disaster, but it was His response to the fact that when the disciples said, “we are perishing (sinking),” they included Jesus in the “we.”  The disciples might be excused because, this occurred before the feeding of the 5000 and Jesus’ walking on the water.  However, they had seen Jesus turn water to wine (John 2) and raise the dead (Luke 7), but the disciples had not yet come to accept that Jesus was the Christ, God come in flesh, regardless of all that Jesus had said and done.  Still they should have known that Jesus was the Anointed One and had power to manage every situation for the glory of God.

To the disciples warning of impending disaster, Jesus replied simply, “Where is your faith?”  I have to stop here in the narrative, because I see too many parallels to the weak faith of the church and among Christians today.  These disciples assessed their situation from their own efforts and experience and found it hopeless.  The spiritual problem was that they saw Jesus as only another victim of their hopelessness.  Now let’s pull this kind of situation forward in time to the 21^st Century.  We work hard to handle the situations and difficulties of life, we know our limitations and failures, and we may even accept responsibility for the problems we are in.  We do all we can to fix the situation with self-help studies and church programs and meeting and rebranding and deeper relationships and committees and transparency and whatever the current church fad may be.  The trouble is that we see Jesus as just another victim of our circumstances not the Creator of all things and Master of the “unchangeable.”  Too many of us have not internalize the “theology” we claim nor do we trust the Lord we say we serve.  Our 21^st Century church with all its programs contains no more faith than that old, leaky boat on the 1^st Century Galilee.  We do not have enough faith to see God eternal having a direct hand in our situation, and we do not trust Him for the outcome.

Coram deo

Galations 2:20 - Seeing the Universe by Faith

Galatians 2:20
I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

In its immediate context, this verse is part of a series of very sharp contrasts that Paul uses to show the marked difference between law and grace in salvation and in sanctification.  The contrasts include:

·         Law                                        / Grace

·         Crucifixion and death     / Life and living

·         Flesh                                     / Faith

·         Sin                                          / Justification

There is much that needs to be said about this verse, but everything we say begins with an understanding of faith.  To begin, we must understand that Paul is addressing the fact that we all live in two separate universes – the universe of time and matter, the physical universe; and the universe of eternity, the spiritual universe.  This may sound mystical, but it is not.  The Bible is very clear that we have both a physical and a spiritual existence.  We understand and perceive the physical universe through our senses as part of our flesh.  The flesh, being physical, relates and communicates with the physical reality.  All men are created by God and also exist in a spiritual universe – we admit this by saying we are “spiritual beings.”  That spiritual universe and reality, however, is beyond human perception.  We cannot see or know the spiritual universe through physical senses.  We see and know the spiritual only as God reveals that universe to us. 

When we died with Christ by faith, in faith we became alive in the spiritual reality of this new relationship.  Being made alive in Christ by faith, through that faith our spiritual understanding and ability to see suddenly came alive in Him.  For the redeemed, faith is as much a mode of perception into the spiritual reality as sight is our perception of the physical world.  Faith is the mode of spiritual perception.
That being true – that faith is the spiritual mode of perception – the believer by faith can now “see” spiritual reality as well as the physical and can compare the two very real universes in which he exists.  The spiritual universe which is eternal is also the reality in which we died with Christ on the cross and were made alive by His resurrection.  By the death and resurrection of Jesus, we are now alive by faith in both the spiritual universe which is primary and in the physical universe which is immediate.  It is the primacy of our life with Christ that must govern our priorities and decisions in our immediate, day-to-day physical life.
Coram deo

Great Faith in a Strange Place

Luke 7:1-10

This story of the healing of the centurion’s servant (also Matthew 8:5-13) concludes with Jesus’ declaration that He had not found such great faith even in Israel.  That reality and Jesus’ public recognition is important, but what about this man’s faith was so great?

Three elements of the centurion’s faith stand out from this passage.

1.       His faith recognized Jesus and His authority (v.8).  The Greek word is – ἐξουσία, “exousia” – lit. “power of choice, right.”  This is the same word Jesus used in Matthew 28:18 when He spoke of His own authority, “power” (KJV).  In fact, this Roman soldier had a better grasp of the true nature of Jesus Christ and His divine authority than even Jesus’ own disciples did.

2.       His faith recognized political, social, and cultural realities especially of race and religion, but it also recognized that by working within those situations Jesus could accomplish His will in spite of the limits and problems in society.

3.       This man’s faith responded in obedience to the word of Jesus before he saw the results of Jesus’ work in his situation.

Simply put, Faith responds in obedience to the Word of God because of Jesus’ authority whether or not the results of obedience are obvious or the conclusion is in view.  So should my faith be!

Coram deo

Can This Be True? Luke 6:20-23

Blessed are the poor, the hungry, the weeping, the hated, the excluded, the rejected, the despised, and the slandered.  Can this be true?  Is this a contextual truth or an absolute truth?  If it is true only in context, what context makes this true?  Can it be true for me?

These questions are part of the postmodern denial of absolute truth.

To examine these questions, the issue of context must be first addressed.  The context of the Scripture itself is the first context that applies.  According to the Scripture, these statements are true only for the disciples of Jesus Christ.  Apart from being a disciple of Jesus Christ, these promises do not apply!

We must, however, make the extension of this Scripture to our present day and condition.  To make that extension, let’s examine the “extra-biblical” context which would assert that these words of Jesus Christ are not universally true even in the context of Scripture, or that though they may have been true when Jesus spoke them, they are not reliable in a contemporary church or world.  This is the issue of contextual truth.

The problem resolves to one of FAITH not philosophy or even theology.  The object of faith is a Person, and that Person is the eternal Son of God, Jesus Christ, the Word who became flesh and dwelt among us.  The question of truth is inextricable from the reality of true faith.

So then, we must define faith.  I believe that many of the words that we use in “church” have lost the specificity of their meaning, and faith is foremost of those words.  Let me first define faith in the broader, universal application.

Faith is a body of tenets about life and living that being held and believed govern one’s attitudes and actions.

From that definition which applies to everyone, let me modify the definition to apply specifically to Christians.

Faith is the body of doctrine contained in the Bible that being held and obeyed governs one’s attitudes and actions.

For the Christian, faith is both a body of doctrine from the Bible and it is obedience to that doctrine that is consistently visible in behavior.

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6

This declaration is the point at which all Christian faith stands or falls.  If one believes this statement of Jesus absolutely, his behavior will be characterized by deliberate obedience to all that the Bible says.  If one does not believe that this statement is true, nothing else that is Christian can be effective in his life, and he is excluded from the context in which the Beatitudes of Luke 6:20-23 apply.

coram deo

The Genuine Response to Faith, Luke 5:27-32

"The Call of St. Matthews" Caravaggio

In this account of the call of Levi / Matthew the tax collector, the Scripture makes some notable statements.

1.       When Jesus called him, Levi left everything and followed Jesus (v. 28).  Just as Peter, James, and John left their nets, so Levi left his tax collecting business.

When Jesus calls a person, answering that call results in obvious changes in that person’s life, often in the most significant aspects of that person’s life.

2.       When Levi followed Jesus, he wanted everyone else to know what he had done, and he wanted them to know Jesus as well.  Levi threw a big banquet and invited many of his friends, “tax collectors and others.”  From the standpoint of Jewish society, this must have been an unsavory lot (v. 30).

3.       Jesus was willing, even anxious, to sit with all who would come to listen.  We cannot be class-conscious and be Christ-like.

4.       The call from Jesus is a call to repentance (v. 32).  If you think of yourself as righteous or “not a sinner,” Jesus does not call you to follow Him.

How do I conclude this? 

A deliberate Christian follows Jesus with these realities

1.       His profession and life-style are secondary to Jesus Christ, and leaving financial and professional security behind is often the result.

2.       He makes sure everyone knows of His decision to follow Jesus, and he introduces them to Jesus at the first opportunity.

3.       He is not class-conscious.  Elitism has no place in following Jesus.

4.       Repentance from sin is a life-changing reality.

One final consideration – Jesus’ approach to evangelism does not fit the “Purpose Driven” model.  Jesus sought men who would follow Him knowing that decision would completely change their life-style.  Jesus made no effort to accommodate the culture in order to gain approval and an audience.  Just a thought….

Faith – Real and Visible

Luke 5:20 makes a simple but profound statement regarding faith.  The text reads, “and when He [Jesus] saw their faith….”  This one phrase presents incredible insights into the essence of faith.

1.       It presents the definition of faith.

 Faith is the conviction of truth that governs one’s actions regardless of the cost or consequences. 

2.       Faith’s object is its reality.

The object of one’s faith is what governs the actions that result.  In this case, the object of their faith was Jesus Christ, so in the Christian context, the definition of faith flows from one’s conviction of the truth of God’s Word.

3.       Faith is visible in one’s behavior. 

In other words, what one believes will be displayed in his choices, attitudes, and actions.  Regardless of what that core faith may be, it will be ultimately presented in behaviors.

4.       Crisis situations often display one’s faith most clearly. 

Let me change to first person here for emphasis.  In my experience, I have found that I can fake or affect a behavior to appear to believe something when I do not.  We call that hypocrisy, and I am not alone in that experience.  I make that confession, but I also make that as an accusation.  How we act in a crisis or under stress is the truest revelation of our faith.

5.       One’s faith is always on display, and someone is always watching.

Having said that, I ask the questions:

·         What does my behavior demonstrate of my faith especially at this Christmas season? 

·         How do I react to the pressures of a secularized, commercialized Christmas?

·         What Jesus Christ does my Christmas celebration represent?