We all are tempted by something. Jesus was tempted, yet without sin. He tells us more about His kingdom. The temptation for us is to build our own.
Luke 17: Temptations to Sin
1 And he said to his disciples, "Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come!
2 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin.
3 Pay attention to yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him,
4 and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, saying, 'I repent,' you must forgive him."
Increase Our Faith
5 The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!"
6 And the Lord said, "If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you.
Unworthy Servants
7 "Will any one of you who has a servant ploughing or keeping sheep say to him when he has come in from the field, 'Come at once and recline at table'?
8 Will he not rather say to him, 'Prepare supper for me, and dress properly, and serve me while I eat and drink, and afterward you will eat and drink'?
9 Does he thank the servant because he did what was commanded?
10 So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.'"
Jesus Cleanses Ten Lepers
11 On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee.
12 And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance
13 and lifted up their voices, saying, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us."
14 When he saw them he said to them, "Go and show yourselves to the priests." And as they went they were cleansed.
15 Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice;
16 and he fell on his face at Jesus' feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan.
17 Then Jesus answered, "Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine?
18 Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?"
19 And he said to him, "Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well."
The Coming of the Kingdom
20 Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, "The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed,
21 nor will they say, 'Look, here it is!' or 'There!' for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you."
22 And he said to the disciples, "The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it.
23 And they will say to you, 'Look, there!' or 'Look, here!' Do not go out or follow them.
24 For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day.
25 But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.
26 Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man.
27 They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.
28 Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot---they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building,
29 but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulphur rained from heaven and destroyed them all---
30 so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed.
31 On that day, let the one who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away, and likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back.
32 Remember Lot's wife.
33 Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it.
34 I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left.
35 There will be two women grinding together. One will be taken and the other left."
36
37 And they said to him, "Where, Lord?" He said to them, "Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather."
Things to think about…
1. Jesus says that even faith as small as a mustard seed can move a mulberry tree into the sea, Luke 17:4-6, and that like unworthy servants we have just done our duty when we serve the Lord faithfully, Luke 17:7-10. All servants of Christ have faith, but do they even have a mustard seed. I wonder if I have moved any mountains. Certainly not literally. May we be servants enough to at least hear the Master’s voice and then follow Him.
2. Jesus then makes this illustration more pertinent with the healing of the 10 lepers. Only 1 returned, a Samaritan, to give praise to Jesus. The other lepers were likely to be Jews, even though the text does not explicitly say so. We must beware of becoming too familiar with Christ, that we begin to presume upon His grace. We are after all only saved by grace and ultimately all ‘unworthy servants’. We should be as Paul says to the Philippians, to ‘rejoice always’. Is your heart full of thanks and praise for what He has done in your life? I.E the saving of your soul!
3. What will it be like when Jesus comes back to judge the earth? Apart from the prophetic things that we read about in books like Daniel, Ezekiel and Revelation, etc, there will also be a lot of normal stuff going on – I.E marrying, eating drinking, buying and selling – people doing life, Luke 17:28. Yet one will be taken and the other left. Some see this as being a rapture type phenomenon before the great tribulation period as described in Revelation. I believe this to be the case. In the Day of Christ there will be a separation that will endure for eternity, where a great chasm is fixed as we saw in Luke 15 with Rich man and Lazarus.
4. In Luke 17:19-31 Jesus is asked 2 questions; when will the kingdom come and where will the kingdom be? Jesus said the kingdom is in their midst – I.E Right now, in those who are saved and are being saved so that no-one would be able to point and say ‘now is the kingdom’ established. We could actually say it is with us corporately every Sunday when we gather in that context. The second question of ‘Where’: Jesus says it will be discerned just like you know that there is something dead because the vultures (or eagles) are flying above it. We will know this season is upon us when we see certain events happening and we will know that the earth’s redemption is near. What signs (I.E vultures) do you think will appear at this period of time in history? Jesus says wars and rumours of wars and an increase in earthquake activity. We are certainly seeing wars at the moment.
5. We remember our Saviour’s sacrifice on the cross on Good Friday. Jesus in Luke 17:33 says “whoever loses his life will keep it”. Praise the Lord that our Lord made the way for life eternal and verified it through His resurrection. As we live for Christ, Jesus had just told the disciples to take up our cross daily, Luke 9:23.
Vision Point for cell groups – Cell groups on break over the school holidays
CBC’s Vision :- To be a growing biblical church community, significantly influencing our city and beyond, through intentional outreach, fulfilling our mission.
Sunday’s sermon “Your faith is embarrassing” – reading Luke 7:33-50
1. Jesus had just raised a young man from the dead, confirming again His authority over life and death, he then explains the difference between His ministry and John the Baptist’s ministry. John’s ministry was of repentance in the wilderness, Jesus’ ministry was of salvation in the towns and cities. Jesus was called a friend of tax collectors and sinners. This is the background of when Jesus was invited by Simon the Pharisee for lunch when this woman enters the scene. Compare Simon and the woman who anointed Jesus. What are the key differences?
2. This woman is worshipping Jesus, we would say with reckless abandon. Have you ever done the same?
3. Jesus tells her that she is saved and to go in peace. Jesus told people their sins were forgiven and that they would ultimately be with Him in His kingdom. Do you recall the other situations? Do you have this assurance of your salvation and that Jesus will say to you “well done good and faithful servant”?
4. Pray for each other and current events locally and around the world.
Prayer Points
1. Pray about your support to the floods in Qld and also to the Polish Baptist Church in Chelm efforts to support Ukrainian refugees. This is the church we will be supporting. You will need google chrome to translate https://baptysci-chelm.pl/kontakt .
2. Pray for the flood clean-up and all those affected a second and third time round.
3. Families as they return to CBC after illness, etc.
4. Ukraine to repel Russia and peace to come. Pray for Mariupol other cities in the Ukraine.
5. Christ to be seen through us in our community.
6. Pray for other building projects – café roof, the repair of the house roof.
7. Growth, conversions, joy in the Word and Spirit to remain and increase.
Praise Points
1. CBC has raised over $2000 for Ukrainian refugees and $1000 in flood donations. I have been messaging Chelm Baptist Church and they are very appreciative of our support.
2. 900 people inside Mariupol theatre in Ukraine are believed to have survived. It is believed hundreds 300 women and children died.
3. The world is responding overwhelmingly to the war in Ukraine. It has united the west and others against Putin’s evil.
4. God’s word affecting people for Christ
5. Joy, peace and grace we see at CBC. Thankyou Lord
6. Flood cleanup is restoring communities around Ipswich and Brisbane.
Announcements
1. Donation funds been set up to assist a Polish Baptist Church with Ukrainian refugees. Please label your donation – Ukraine appeal. The same will be the case for those who have gone through the floods in Qld. Label Flood appeal. This is the church we will be supporting. You will need google chrome to translate https://baptysci-chelm.pl/kontakt .
2. A new cell group has started at the church for residents around Karalee. Wed 7pm at church.
3. Kidz@Church every Sunday
4. Church bank details bsb:- 704 913 and Acc number:- 4000 4388 1
5. Tune in again this week on our youtube page. Subscribe to the CBC channel Chuwar Baptist YouTube channel.
Catechism question for April...
Q. 2. Where is Christ now? A. In heaven, interceding for sinners and sitting at the right hand of God the Father.
