THE NEVERTHELESS OF HIS COMMITMENT Luke 13:31-35 KJV
Introduction
• [Illus] – About 2,300 years ago Alexander the Great marched his army from Greece to India. Though the distance was long, his army was unstoppable. The only reason he stopped was that his men became homesick and wanted to return to Greece. That march had long ranging influence. The Greek culture and language became standard for over 3 centuries What Alexander accomplished is impressive especially when you consider that he did it by the age of 33. No wonder they call him Alexander the Great.
• About 330 years after Alexander the Great died another remarkable 33 year old embarked on a march. Like Alexander’s march this one was unstoppable. Of course I’m talking about Jesus and His march to the cross for you and I.
• How would you like to have a life goal of dying for others? That’s not quite the agenda we would like to see accomplished. Yet Jesus is not like us.
• Jesus is The Great Nevertheless. Last Sunday we considered “The Nevertheless of His Caring”. Today I’d like for us to consider “The Nevertheless of His Commitment”.
• Jesus invaded planet earth – against all odds and so many enemies – He marched forward, never faltering, never looking back – He marched all the way to the cross for each of us. In spite of all Satan and sinful people could do to Him, He continued on.
1. Jesus is a fearless lover (31-33)
• “The same day” is a very important statement. What has been happening?
o Verses 1-5
Some told Jesus of rebel rousers who got it from Pilate – they got what was coming to them
Jesus says I agree sin pays its wages, therefore you need to repent
o Verses 6-9 (Jesus’ parable)
3 yrs of no fruit on fig tree – Master gives it one more year
Time is short – you may have few chances left
o Verses 10-16 (Sabbath)
Jesus healed a woman with curvature of back (18 yrs)
Ruler of Synagogue criticized Him
Jesus reminds him that he looses his donkey to feed him and that Jesus did the same thing - He loosed the woman
o Verses 17-21 (parables)
He teaches how the corruptness of Israel will continue through the church age.
o Verses 22-30 (teaches)
Listen to Me again – time is short – enter the KOG now or it may be too late
• “The same day” – What a time for Jesus. He preached His heart out. He tried to encourage. He tried to warn. He found few listening. Yet He still was proceeding forward. He was a fearless lover. Notice how:
a. Jesus was threatened to leave His mission (31)
1) The Pharisees had tried everything to trick Him and now they were trying to scare Him. “Get out!”
2) Why were they trying to get rid of Him? It probably had to do with the fact that Jesus was getting too close to them. To get close to Jesus meant to realize your own imperfections.
3) How about us?
4) The Pharisees told Him to leave town by sundown, or Herod would kill Him.
a) Herod Antipas was a powerful governor who had authority to execute anyone he desired.
b) A few months earlier he had beheaded John the Baptist at the request of his stepdaughter, who was also his niece.
c) Herod had nightmares that Jesus was actually John come back from the dead.
• But notice Jesus response.
b. Jesus laughed at those threats (32-33)
1) Jesus made a joke of Herod. He says, “tell that fox”. He was offering a caricature of Herod as a sneaky, cunning, predatory animal. That is actually pretty funny if you know anything about Herod. He was more animal-like in his passions than human.
2) This response reveals Jesus’ courage. He is a fearless lover. He indicated that He was going to keep on doing what He had been doing and Herod wouldn’t slow Him down.
3) In verse 32 He said He would accomplish His goal. His goal was to redeem sinful mankind – and He knew He would have to die to provide forgiveness. Nothing could cause Him to detour from the destination of the cross.
4) He wasn’t afraid of Herod because He knew He already had a date with a death, and it wouldn’t be at the hands of Herod.
5) Jesus didn’t die some martyr’s death over which He had no control. They didn’t execute Him; He willingly laid His life down.
6) Revelation 13:8 – The cross was not an afterthought of God. It was not “Plan B”, because Adam & Eve sinned. It was not the contingency plan – it was always God’s plan.
7) In a few days Jesus was going to carry a literal cross from Pilate’s fort to a hill outside Jerusalem. But Jesus was already carrying that cross in His mind and heart.
8) At the beginning of His ministry He knew He would die and rise again. He said, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up” (John 2:19). That is why He was a fearless lover.
9) Human nature always wants to “detour from the difficult” instead of staying the course. But there is a cross for all who would follow Jesus, and we must be fearless in carrying it.
10) When I belong to Jesus, I don’t have to fear any fox.
11) Jesus laughed and said, “tell that fox”. On the surface, it seems as if Herod was the old fox who was being laughed at, but on another level, I think Jesus was laughing at the fox of death – the death Herod had the power to inflict. Jesus laughed at death.
12) When you are carrying the cross of Jesus, you have already died to self. You can’t scare a dead man. When you’re carrying the cross, it’s a liberating experience because you don’t have to be afraid of anybody or anything.
13) What are you afraid of today? Death? Health problem or possible surgery? Terrorist attack? When you truly belong to God there is nothing in this life that can rob you of your joy and your promise of eternal life.
14) Some people go through this life whining and complaining and moaning and groaning that life isn’t fair. Hey, this life isn’t fair, but this life isn’t all there is!
15) Turn to the person next to you and say: “This life isn’t fair, but God is good all the time”. Now tell them: “So get over it , and get under the cross.”
16) Start living a life under the cross where you can laugh at the things that ought to scare you. Jesus is a fearless lover and what an example for us.
2. Jesus is a protective lover (34)
• Can you hear the depth of passion and heartache in that cry?
• There are many pictures in the Bible that describe God’s nature and character: He is a rock, the door, a shepherd, the light…and so many others. Have you ever thought of God as a mother hen?
• Halfway down the Mount of Olives overlooking Jerusalem, there is a small chapel built be the Franciscan order called Dominus Flevit, Latin for “The Lord wept.” It’s called the “Chapel of Tears” and the building itself has a teardrop design.
• This is the site where many scholars believe Jesus paused to weep over Jerusalem (Luke 19)
• Inside the chapel is a beautiful mosaic of a hen with her wings outstretched with little chicks underneath.
• Let’s think about this image of God.
a. A hen constantly calls her chicks
1) I’ve been around a chicken yard and heard them clucking, but I thought they were clucking just to hear themselves cluck. No! Each hen has a distinctive cluck and she clucks constantly so her chicks can find her. Her chicks recognize her clucks.
2) Jesus is constantly calling us to Himself as well.
3) Matthew 11:28
4) If we are wise, we will recognize and respond to the call of Jesus.
b. A hen calls them to feed
1) In every chicken yard there is a clearly established “pecking order”. The most dominant chickens get the first chance at food.
2) As you can imagine, little chicks are pretty far down the pecking order.
3) A good mother will find some food and then call her chicks and then allows her chicks to eat before she eats herself.
4) In the same way, Jesus is constantly calling us to Himself and His Word.
5) The Bible is like milk, meat and honey. We are to feed on it every day.
c. A hen shelters them from harm
1) If a chicken hawk flies near the chicken yard, the hen will squawk furiously to call her chicks to settle under her wings.
2) As the hawk swoops down, the hen will face the hawk and spread her wings even wider. Since the hen is too heavy for the hawk to carry, the hawk soon leaves. What courage.
3) [Illus] – One day the chicken coop caught fire. They finally extinguished the fire before too much damage occurred. As they searched through the rubble, they found a dead hen near her nest. The hen’s feathers were scorched from the smoke and . As the burned hen was lifted from the ashes, movement was noticed under the hen. For small chicks scurried out from under her outstretched wings. The hen could have escaped herself, but chose to protect her young.
4) Jesus made a way of sheltering us from eternal judgment – and He died in the process.
5) Psalm 91:4
• Jude 21
• We are to remain in “the Zone of Blessing”
3. Jesus is a rejected lover
• Verse 34 contains 4 of the saddest words in the Universe. Jesus said , “and ye would not”
a. “Ye would not”
1) Jesus loves you so much He died for your sins. There is a heaven and a hell, and if a person lives their entire life rejecting His love, they will spend eternity in hell.
2) But I suspect Jesus will say to each person who goes to hell, “I wanted to protect you and shelter you like a hen protects her chicks…BUT YOU WERE NOT WILLING.”
3) John 1:11
4) How many of us are included in the “ye would not”?
a) Won’t receive Him
b) Won’t obey Him
b. “How often would I”
1) This is the sermon of Jesus in 4 words.
2) He is here again this morning, reaching out to you. “I’m calling you to Myself – calling you to My Word and to My work – calling to you and your response is…?”
3) Will you disappoint Him again?
Conclusion
• Philippians 2:7-8
• The nevertheless of His commitment. How about yours?
• [Illus] – Alfred Noble was a Swedish chemist who invented dynamite and other explosives in the 19 Century. One day he opened his paper and read his own obituary. It said, “Alfred Noble, the inventor of dynamite died yesterday. He devised a way for more people than ever before to be killed in war, and he died a rich man” He was shocked to read those words. Actually, it was Alfred’s older brother who had died and the newspaper made a mistake. But the obituary had a profound effect on Noble. He didn’t want to be remembered as the man who got rich selling explosives. He changed his will to award money each year to people who promote peace. Today when you hear the name Nobel you don’t think of dynamite, you probably think of the Nobel Peace Prizes.
• Nobel later wrote, “Every man ought to have the chance to correct his obituary in midstream and write a new one”
• If you could read your obituary tomorrow, what would you want it to say? A newspaper obituary only runs one day and then it’s forgotten, but your choice regarding Jesus Christ has eternal consequences.
Invitation
