Luke 19:11-27

Discussion Questions

• How well are you presently balancing the paradox of “fearing without being afraid” of God? Do you need to pay more attention to one of these?
• What might this parable teach regarding how the church should approach stewardship and mission during this “already but not yet” time?
• What can you do to share the treasure of the gospel this week, and avoid keeping it “wrapped up in your pocket”?

Transcript

We study through books of the Bible here at The Village Chapel. We have extra copies. If you didn’t bring one and would like one to follow along, raise your hand up real high. Somebody will drop one off at your row, your aisle. It’s always helpful to follow along in the text, and I encourage you to do that. We want to also say hello, shout out to some of the folks that joined us online over the last week or so, folks from Pleasant Garden, North Carolina, which would certainly include Alison and Bob Schuster, our faithful online hosts. Everybody say, “We love you, Alison.” Yeah, that’s right. She serves so faithfully. We just have to send our love her way. We have folks from Denver and Colorado Springs, Colorado, folks from Orlando and Fort Lauderdale, Florida; St. John, Indiana, and it goes on and on Shepherdstown, West Virginia, I believe, also somebody there.

Today, Luke, Chapter 19, verses 11 through 27, we’re going to take a look at the theme “Fruitful in His Kingdom.” That’s something we usually say at the benediction here at The Village Chapel. And I love this passage. It’s a little tricky. So, we’re going to sit up straight, read it together, and look into it as deeply as we can. It’s going to answer some of the questions like: What kind of king is this Jesus? What does He expect of us while we await His return? I just read about that a little bit, didn’t we? Luke 19, Jesus will offer a provocative parable here to his followers about a nobleman and 10 of his servants, a group of belligerent citizens who reject and resist his rule. And for those with ears to hear and eyes to see, it’s a story about the treasures of the Gospel being entrusted to those who can follow Jesus, who have chosen to follow Jesus, and who claim to be his servants. Join me, I think, as we take a look here, to explore what it means to be faithful servants in the in-between time, the season between the first advent of Jesus, the first appearing, and His second coming.

We’ll rediscover what it means to live with gospel courage today, kingdom, purpose, and a heart that longs to hear, “Well done, my good and faithful servant.” Let me pray for us, and then we’ll read this text together: God, grant us a mind to know You, a heart to seek You, wisdom to find You, conduct that is pleasing to You. Lord, grant us faithful perseverance in waiting for You, and a hope of finally embracing You. As we study Your word today, Lord, give us a clearer vision of your truth, a greater faith in Your power, and a more confident assurance of Your love for us. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen, and amen.

“Fruitful in His Kingdom,” Luke 19, 11 through 27: “And while they were listening to these things…” Oh, what’s that a reference to? What things? Remember last week, Pastor Matt led us through the story of Jesus being in Jericho. He’s on the way to Jerusalem, as we know. He’s been zigzagging his way around the country. He’s in Jericho. He ends up with a guy named Zacchaeus at his house. And while they were listening to all of these things, verse 11 tells us, He went on to tell a parable because – and here’s the reason why Luke is so good at this – telling us why He’s telling this parable, it’s because He was near Jerusalem, about 17 miles between Jericho and Jerusalem. That’s a pretty sharp incline as you go up that road. I’ve traveled at least six times, actually 12 times probably. And it’s steep. I mean, it’s winding. It’s one of those kind of roads. But it’s still close. It’s not that far.

Jesus was nearing Jerusalem. And they supposed that the kingdom of God was going to appear immediately. And so, verse one is just kind of chock-full with the who, what, when, where, why, why, and the how. All of that about what we’re about to read. And reading what we’re about to read, some of you guys that read through it, you’re going to go at the end. You’re going to go, wow, that’s a weird parable. But unlike at verse 11, he sets us up. He tells us how to interpret this parable, doesn’t he? In light of the who, what, when, where, why, how, all that stuff, he gave us in verse 11. So, here’s Jesus speaking this parable, teaching this parable. “A certain nobleman [verse 12] went to a distant country to receive a kingdom for himself and then return. And he called 10 of his servants and gave them 10 minas.” Minas, some of you will say it that way. It depends on whether you’re from the Northern Mediterranean or the Southern Mediterranean. I think the actual pronunciation is mna. I don’t think you really put much of a vowel in between the m and the n.

But anyway, this nobleman goes to a distant country. He’s going to receive a kingdom for himself. He’s going to return. He calls 10 of his servants. He gives them each mna, which is about three months’ wages, basically in their day and time. It’s a measure, a monetary unit, if you will, and a weight or a measure of precious metals of some kind. And this guy says to these 10 servants, “Do business with this until I come back.” How many servants were there? 10. How many minas were there? 10. So, each one likely is getting one of these minas each. Verse 14: “But his citizens…” okay, so you got servants. Now you got citizens. “But his citizens hated him.” Hated who? Hated the nobleman. The citizens hated the nobleman. They hated him. And verse 14: “…sent a delegation after him saying, we do not want this man to reign over us. And it came about that when he returned, the nobleman, after receiving the kingdom,” in other words, he got what he went for, “…he ordered that these slaves [or servants] to whom he had given the money, be called to him in order that he might know what business they had done.”

Now he had this entourage that came after him. He goes off at his ferry. It should be vaguely familiar to the Jews on the ground in that time. 30 years prior to this time, Archelaus, one of the sons of Herod the Great, Archelaus wanted to become his dad’s successor. Herod the Great died in 4 BC. Most of us remember this. Jesus is more likely born around somewhere between 5 and 6 BC. Herod the Great dies. His kingdom gets distributed between several of his sons from many of his different marriages. And Archelaus is one. But he has to go to Rome, and he wants to go there because he would rather not be just a tetrarch. He’d rather be a king. He didn’t want to be sort of in charge of a part or a portion of the kingdom of his dad. He wanted it all. And so Archelaus goes to Rome and comes back denied. He just becomes a tetrarch. All of that would be fresh in their minds as Jesus tells this story. It’s kind of interesting. I don’t know what He intended in doing that, but I think it’s at least fascinating to think about. This particular parable says though that this particular noble man goes away and actually receives the kingdom and then comes back. Even though that delegation followed him over there in verse 14 and said, “We don’t want him. We’re out. We’re done. We don’t want this person to be our king.”

When he returned after receiving the kingdom, he called his servants to who he had given the money that he might see what kind of business they had done. The first one appeared, verse 16 saying, “Master, your mina has made 10 minas more.” Awesome, that’s pretty good. And he said to him, “Well done, good servant, because you have been faithful in a very little thing. Be an authority over 10 cities.” That’s a massive increase. It’s not just 10 minas, it’s 10 cities. Okay, so you’re like the mayor of Nashville. Now you’re the mayor of Atlanta too, and you’re also the mayor of Charlotte, and you’re also the mayor of Washington, D.C., and you’re the mayor of Philadelphia, and you’re the mayor of New York. And then just go on and name 10 cities. And that’s what this guy gets. It’s just way over the top amazing, isn’t it? How excited he must have been. So, the first one, that’s what happens with him. The second one, verse 18, comes and says, “Your mina, master, has made five minas.” And he said to him also, “You are to be over five cities.” That’s awesome too.

And another came saying, “Master, behold your mina, which I put away and kept in my handkerchief.” And he reaches into his little pocket, and he folds it out, and he starts to unfold the hanky, as old and used and worn out as that hanky was, and he unfolds it, and there’s the mina. And this servant thinks he’s done pretty good, doesn’t he? Because he didn’t lose anything, and he brought it and returned it to the master, and he even gives the reason, verse 21, “I was afraid of you because you’re an exacting man; you take up what you did not lay down, and reap what you did not sow.” Interesting. So, his view of the master is what froze him out, locked him up in fear. Felt like maybe the best thing to do because his understanding of the master, or I’d say maybe his misunderstanding of the master, is that he would be an exacting man, that he would not be gracious, that he wouldn’t be generous, that he wouldn’t run the risk. He didn’t want to become involved because it was too risky in his view.

So, the response from the nobleman is verse 22: “By your own words, I will judge you, you worthless slave.” In other words, by the way that you have looked at me, the way you believe about me, I’m going to use that as the standard and measure for you right here. You worthless slave, you didn’t do what I told you to do with the mina. Did you know that I’m an exacting man taking up what I did not lay down or reaping what I did not sow? In other words, if that’s the way you see me, if that’s the way you think about me, then why did you not put the money in the bank? And having come, I would have collected it with interest, at least that, instead of just wrapping up in your old handkerchief. “He said to the bystanders, [the noblemen] ‘Take the mina away from him and give it to the one who has the 10 minas.’” In other words, the other man’s still a servant, but he has done nothing whatsoever. He’s indifferent to those around him, he’s indifferent to what he might have done for the furtherance of his master’s kingdom, and he just didn’t do anything. Was he lazy? I don’t know. Was he indifferent? I don’t know.

All we’re told is he’s afraid out of his own sort of concept or definition of who the master is. So, the bystanders are there, and they say to the master, “Master, you want us to give it to that already has 10 minas?” “I tell you,” the master says, “that to everyone who has shall more be given, but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away.” And then verse 27 is interesting. “But these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them…” Remember them from verse 14? The citizens, not the servants, the citizens, they didn’t want me to reign over them at all. “Bring them here and slay them in my presence.” This is a parable, but it teaches a heavenly point. It’s an earthly story with a heavenly point. All right, so let me start. I know there’s some questions. I have some. I still have some even after I’ve marinated on it all week, but I’m really confident about some of these things that we’re going to go through today. First of all, look up on the screen and here we see the who, what, when, where, why and how – and all that sort of thing. Who? It’s Jesus. The other who’s are the they. Suppose that the kingdom of God was going to appear immediately.

So, who? Jesus and this crowd of people that are anticipating the kingdom is going to appear. Why? Well, because this parable’s told, because they had it in their heads that they understood what the nature of the kingdom was going to be and what the timing of the kingdom would be. And in both cases, I think they got it wrong. And so, Jesus wants to correct their erroneous thinking about the kingdom and its timing. And so, He tells this kind of parable for that reason. The nobleman reminds us of how God has entrusted each of us with resources to use for His kingdom purposes. So, unlike the parable in Matthew 25 of the talents, where three different people get three different gifts or resources to, they’re entrusted with those. This is completely different than that. All 10 of these servants get the exact same thing. One mina each. And they’re all told to do the exact same thing with it. To use it until the return of the nobleman. I like the way Stott says, “The fact that every Christian has a gift and therefore a responsibility, that no Christian is passed by and left without endowment, is fundamental to the New Testament doctrine of the church.” I think that is right. On a spiritual level, what might these minas represent? What is it that each and every follower, all 10 which might represent all of us as well, okay? What is it that we all have as we await the return of Christ and the fulfillment of his kingdom?

G. Campbell Morgan says, “Surely it is our witness to Christ, which has been committed to each and every one of us who belong to Him. It’s our business to live out the gospel in word and in deed before a watching world that’s hungry and desperate for it.” Not a single one of us who have been chosen to follow Jesus, who has not been given this opportunity to be a witness for the gospel and for the glory of Christ. So, this parable implicitly asked this question, “How you doing with your witness that’s been entrusted to you?” That’s a great question for us to ask along the way. This is both a privilege and a responsibility that has been entrusted to each of us as servants of Jesus Christ, not just citizens of this world, but servants of Jesus Christ. In the parable, there is that classification of people, the citizens, but they hated the nobleman. They work against the purposes of the nobleman. They said they don’t want the nobleman to be their king. And I don’t think that’s you if you’re sitting here today. I don’t think that’s you if you’ve dialed in and you’re curious about Jesus. I think you’re at least open to, interested in, the idea of serving Christ in some way.

Secondly, I think the hateful citizens, the ones we just talked about, remind us that there are those who reject and resist Christ being the rightful king. We don’t want this man to reign over us. We’re not interested in that. And it reflects the human heart’s addiction to autonomy and resistance to the rule of God in our lives. And you might even be able to think of somebody yourself. And I hope it’s not you sitting here today, but you might be able to think of somebody you know that just is not interested whatsoever in God being God in their life. Sadly, I can think of people I know that that’s the disposition of their heart right now. Just not interested. And it might be church hurt. It might be some Christian that, you know, blundered or foolishly said something or did something to them or whatever. I get that that happens along the way. But still, their response to God here, these citizens, their response is belligerent anti-rule, not interested whatsoever. Don’t want God to be God.

I like Dallas Willard’s book, Renovation of the Heart. He says, “The ultimately lost person is the person who cannot want God. Who cannot want God to be God… The reason they do not find God is that they do not want Him or, at least, do not want Him to be God. Wanting God to be God is very different from wanting God to help me.” And we all get in those moments where sort of foxhole faith starts to kick in. God help me because something’s going wrong in my life. I understand. That’s probably a universal experience for a lot of people. Even people who are atheists sometimes will find themselves crying out to the God they don’t believe in because they need some help in a given moment. But there are those who have set their hearts against God and against God being God. The question is for all of us as we hear a parable like this is: Am I a servant or am I a citizen? I hope and pray today that you are a servant. Thirdly, the two servants, the ones that do a pretty good job and one gets 10 cities, one gets five cities, they remind us that God delights when his servants are faithful, creative, and effective in their efforts for His kingdom.

We gotta make some comment about the overwhelming disproportionate reward these guys receive. It’s just, it exemplifies the grace of God. That has actually been shown to me, to you, to each and every one of us who are believers, who have trusted Christ, whom God has set His love on. He’s chosen and called us to Himself, and we now know, and we’re learning more and more each and every day, just how mind-blowingly amazing His grace is to us. It’s way out of proportion. And that’s kind of different, so kind of proportionality, that strange proportionality that’s on display in this parable with these two that receive so much. And yeah, okay, one turned something like a 900% profit, the other one something like a 400% profit, whatever. That’s awesome, that’s amazing. But guess who’s still a servant? Napkin dude. He’s still a servant. He’s not a citizen. How amazing is God’s grace?

So, whether you’re here today, and you feel like, oh, I’ve been doing pretty good. I’ve been witnessing. Matter of fact, I’ve got about 43 notches on the outside of my leather Bible here because of all the people that have come to Christ based on my sharing, the four laws, or whatever it is you might, whatever method of evangelism you might employ, whatever it is. Or maybe you think it’s about serving. And you think, oh, I’ve earned this, God’s in my debt, because good grief, look at how I’ve taken care of the poor. Or I’ve taken care of small animals, or young children, or old people, or whatever it might be. And you think somehow or another, that has put God in your debt so that when He comes back home, He ought to be going, “Well done, atta boy, atta girl, whatever you might be thinking it is. Now I like it that we have here the one that, okay, turned it into 10 minas. The second one that turned it into five. And we got the one that kept it in the tank, didn’t do anything with it. Still a servant. We are members of the world and of the church, and we must labor and do good to many. And therefore, we have greater work to do on Earth than merely securing our own salvation.

I think a lot of folks in our day and time think this way; that Christianity is really about me dodging hell. Me, that it’s really just about sin management as Dallas Willard would put it. It’s about so much more than that. It’s about more than that for you, but it’s also about more than that through you, to others, and to the watching world, and to the church that you’re a part of, you see. And that’s what I think this parable is so good at. Richard Baxter goes on to say, “…We are entrusted with our master’s talents for His service, to do our best in our places to propagate His truth and grace, to edify His church, honor His cause, and promote the salvation of as many souls as we can.” I think that’s so true. Fourth, the third servant reminds us, we need not be afraid of Christ. I mean, the reason the guy kept it in his hanky and put it in his pocket was because he had a misunderstanding about his nobleman, his master. He thought he was a strong, exacting man who was going to be harsh on him, all this sort of thing.

And out of fear, and listen, what you believe about God is the most important thing about you. And some of us have grown up in churches that preach to us that God is the troll under the bridge waiting for you to try to cross so He can smack you or waiting to see you having some fun of some kind so He can squash you. And your whole idea of who God is is this sort of negative thing like that. And that’s why I think this third servant, this story is kept in here for us is because that’s not who He is. He doesn’t want you to think of Him that way. As a matter of fact, Jesus, when He reveals Himself over and over and over again to His servants, His disciples, it’s in saying things like, “I’m gentle and lowly. “Come unto me all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” That’s the Jesus that we are invited to believe in. And this servant, I think, just reminds me over and over again. He didn’t, I mean, he knew his master, but he didn’t really know him. And that’s one of the reasons I’m so glad we study through Books of the Bible here at The Village Chapel.

This is how we get to know God. This is how we get to know what God thinks, what God likes, what delights God’s heart. But also, what grieves God’s heart. What God wants His people to do as they seek to delight Him and serve and love others in this world as well. This guy in this parable that just hid it in his napkin, he’s a little bit more like the older brother in the parable of the prodigal son, isn’t he? He’s just, he just can’t believe that the grace that’s been shown to his younger brother could possibly be real. So, it kind of shuts down. Not like the way Tozer said, “The greatness of God rouses fear within us, but His goodness encourages us not to be afraid of Him.” To fear and not be afraid, it’s the paradox of faith. And my friends, the Christian faith overflows with paradox. And that’s one of the reasons I love it because I think real life overflows with paradox.

So, are there some things we can figure out that are true, we can stand on and believe on? Sure, the Christian faith is this beautiful tapestry of verities and mysteries. It’s both, it’s not either or. And so being inside of the Christian faith, if you are a servant, not just a citizen, you understand how amazing it is, how mind-blowing it is. And at the same time, how there’s some things you can stand on, some creeds, some doctrine, some substance that is filled with drama, that’s true, it is. I mean, good grief, God, holy, almighty, God wants us to call Him “Father.” We sinners though we are, He loves us so much. He came to rescue us, to change us, to transform us, to turn us inside out and then to send us back out into the world, not to keep this treasure we have in our pockets wrapped in a hanky, but to go out into the world. And just so, the beautiful treasures the Lord has trusted into our care and keeping, to go and become His witnesses.

Five, Jesus is the ultimate, faithful servant-King who has secured the kingdom for us through His loving and costly self-sacrifice. Unlike Archelaus who went off to Rome hoping to seek, hoping to get that title, he loved titles. He wanted to be king, not just tetrarch, but he didn’t get it. And Archelaus, frankly, was an evil man, he was a wicked man. Most of the folks in the Herodian dynasty were, and he’s one of them. But he comes back rejected rebuffed by the world system that he had sort of was living in and he didn’t get it. Jesus, on the other hand, will lay down His life on the cross, rise up from the grave again and then send back on high, go off to the country and He will receive the kingdom, the imprimatur of Heaven, because He rose from the dead. And as He ascended on high, He sats down at the right hand of the Father. You see, He’s receiving the kingdom that belongs to Him, that’s properly His. And now all we’re waiting for is for Him to come back. When’s He coming back? Haven’t got a clue. I’m not on the planning committee; I’m on the welcoming committee. And I’m really excited for Him to come back because the world has gone nuts. And it gets nuttier every day. Not of a death wish, I have a life wish, an eternal life wish for the Lord.

Jesus was here on His way to the cross. This will be followed by the resurrection, the ascension, and then this promise of His return that we talk about a lot here at The Village Chapel because guess what? A couple of hundred times in the New Testament, it’s referenced and even this parable is giving us yet one more time to think about the fact that He’s coming back again someday. And while we’re occupying, while we’re waiting for Him to come back, He doesn’t want us to stick the treasure of the Gospel in a hanky and throw it in our little pockets. He wants us to do something with it. How are you doing with that? How are we doing with that? I think it is a good question. Some today don’t want Jesus to be their king, it’s true. But I’m not responsible for the outcome. I’m just responsible to be faithful in the process. And some of you would tell me, “I don’t know what to say. I didn’t go to seminary. I don’t know all those big words like that end with ology. I’m not sure.” Hey, that’s not what matters here. What matters here is that you have a testimony. If you’ve come to faith in Christ, you’ve trusted Him and He has forgiven you of your sins, you’ve begun to see the change that He can make in the transformation in your life. And the Lord is doing that.

You have a story to tell that no one can refute. Now, and those who know you best might be able to see it most if you’ll just take the hanky out of your pocket and just leave it open and let the treasure, the beauty of the Gospel be visible and audible in your own world. That doesn’t mean you’re going to be able to, it doesn’t mean everybody that you share the Gospel with is going to receive Christ, is going to become a Christian, start to become Village Chapel people, that doesn’t mean that at all. Just be faithful servants. You belong to Him. Every desire of your heart now is leaning in His direction so that you might please Him, glorify Him, delight Him. And because you love the people around you, even the people you work with, even the weird family members that you have, you love those people, you want them to see the beauty and the treasure that is the Gospel, God in the end will give to all of those folks. As we look at the end, toward the end of the parable, especially verse 27, God in the end gives to each one of us exactly what we want or don’t want from Him. What could be more fair than that? There are those that would say, “That’s not fair. How come God is letting that happen?” Well, because those people, as we saw in verse 14, don’t want God. And so, God will give them what they want, life without God, on into eternity. That’s sad. I don’t like that for them, but I can’t decide for them. I can just be faithful and share the Gospel with them.

And it’s good news, you see, because as we even read a little bit earlier, it’s a great comfort to know that the judge, our judge, is none other than our Savior. How many of you have ever been to court? Raise your hand. Let’s let this all evolve. Okay, there’s a bunch of us, that’s right. Now, I may have told the story before, but when I was a kid, I got a reckless driving ticket. It was pretty bad, but I did. And I went to court, and the judge was there and heard me tell my story. Of course, I’m as a teenager, I’m sitting there bawling my eyes out. I didn’t mean it, I didn’t mean it, I didn’t mean it. Yeah, I did, actually. I meant it in the moment. I did mean it. But in the moment when you’re caught, you want to say you didn’t mean it. And you want to show remorse and all that sort of thing. But to say I was a fool, would be understanding what I did. And I got six months, lost my license for six months, and I had to pay $100 fine, which nowadays is like no big deal, but back in 19…, let’s see, what was that then, 1969, 100 bucks was a lot of money when you worked at McDonald’s flippin’ burgers and you got paid $1.32 an hour. That was a lot of jack, that was a lot of money, okay? So, my mom lovingly allowed me to pay it instead of paying it for me. And she’s such a sweetie. As you know, I’ve had a great relationship with her over the years. And she’s gone home to be with the Lord now. But in that particular moment, that was a good lesson for me. It really was a great lesson.

But it makes it all the more vivid for me when I remember back in youth group times when people would get up and give a youth talk and they’d talk about how we’re really guilty sinners. We are, we really have broken God’s laws. And we’ve broken ourselves against God’s laws. And the beautiful thing about the Gospel is you stand in front of the court, and it’s as if the judge literally gets up, pulls out his wallet and pays the fine for you. That’s the great news of the Gospel. It’s that God has done everything necessary for me to be reconciled to Him. He paid the price for my sins, for your sin as well. Do you understand that? Do you see how remarkable that is? Do you see how that’s like, you know, you invested, you got 10 minas back, but you got 10 cities as well. And that’s just a landslide of exceptional gifting. It’s just amazing grace, what has come your way and has come my way. I hope you understand that as well. Jesus did that for you. Jesus did that for me. I got just a couple of minutes, so I’m going to read you these verses that sum it up from Philippians Chapter two, verses eight through 11. “And being found in appearance as a man, [meaning Jesus] He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” Okay, so here’s the High King of Heaven, the Son of God, condescending to become one of us and to die on top of that on a cross for my sins. “Therefore also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow and those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God, the Father.”

You see what happened? Jesus has gone back and now His name is now going to be magnified and glorified. When He returns, every knee will bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. He is the king that I want. He is the king, I think, that you should want. And so, I ask all the time, who wouldn’t want that? And as He presents Himself here, I think the same thing is true. Let’s encourage each other today to trust the Lord, the rewarder of those who seek Him and serve Him. Whether you’re greatly successful or not successful, trust the outcome to Him, continue to turn to Him. Don’t hide the light He’s given you in your pocket. Take it out and share it. Trust Jesus as your only hope in life and in death. And then let’s unfold all the napkins and get busy. Edward Mote was a 19th century English pastor and a hymn writer. His parents ran a bar, a little pub, and they often left Edward to his own devices playing in the street. Speaking of his childhood years once, he said, “So ignorant was I that I did not know there was a God.” Finally, in his teenage years at 18, when he heard the Gospel. He was trained as a cabinet maker then and worked in London for 37 years as a cabinet maker.

And in his fifties, he entered the ministry after hearing the Gospel at Rehoboth Baptist Church in Horsham, West Sussex. And he was a pastor there for 26 years. He was loved by his congregation in Horsham. They offered him the chapel building as a gift, and Mote replied, “I don’t want the chapel.” He said, “I only want the pulpit, and when I cease to preach Christ, then turn me out of that.” Really cool. In addition to being preacher of the Gospel, as I said, he wrote some hymns, about a hundred of them. One of which many of you know, we’re about to sing it, it begins like this: “My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but holy lean on Jesus’ name.” It’s true that our God is an awesome God. It’s true that He one day will judge the living and the dead. But He’s good. And if you’ll turn to Him, you can trust Him. He loves you that much.

Let’s pray: Lord, thank You for this text, all that it offers and reminds us of. And I realize in the moment those folks were all thinking, You’re going downtown to Jerusalem to turn it all over and become a socioeconomic, political messiah. And as hard as we’ve tried in our own day and time to make You that as well, You are not that. And You’re not safe, but You’re always good. And we can trust You. And the more that we trust You, the more we find You to be our rock and our salvation. Oh, King of hearts, move in our hearts this day, we pray. In Jesus’ name, amen and amen.

Songs, Readings & Prayer

Songs

“King Forevermore (God The Uncreated One)“ by Aaron Keyes and Pete James
“Revive Us Again“ by John Jenkins Husband and William Paton MacKay
“He Is Making All Things Right“ by Ben Shive, Bryan Fowler, Skye Peterson
“On Christ The Solid Rock“ by William Batchelder Bradbury, Edward Mote,
All songs are used by Permission. CCLI License #2003690

Call To Worship: How Lovely is Your Dwelling Place

LEADER: How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts!
PEOPLE: Our souls long, yes faint for the courts of the Lord; Our hearts and flesh sing for joy To the living God.

LEADER: Who is like you, O Lord, Majestic in holiness, Awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?
PEOPLE: It is good to be near God; Make the Lord God our refuge And tell of all his works.

LEADER: Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, Who alone does wondrous things.
ALL: Blessed be his glorious name forever; May the whole earth be filled with his Glory! Amen and Amen!
Source: Excerpts from Psalm 84, 72, 73, and Ezekiel 15

Classic Prayer: Clement of Rome, 35-99 AD

Ruler and Lord of all, Father and God, You are the cause and the power. You are the helper; we are the ones who need your help. You are the physician, the savior, and the wall around us. You are the life, the hope, the refuge, the joy, the expectation, and our rest. You are all things to us. We need you in order to be eternally saved. We need you to preserve and protect. You can do all things, for you are the ruler of rulers, the Lord of lords, the governor of kings. For your glory is forever. In you we offer our praise forever to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Confession of Faith: The Apostles’ Creed, “He Will Come Again to Judge the Living and the Dead”

LEADER: How should you understand Jesus’ future judgment?
PEOPLE: All people, whether living or dead, will be judged by Jesus Christ. The unrepentant should fear God’s judgment, for “the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness.” But if I am in Christ, I need not fear God’s judgment, for my Judge is my Savior, Jesus Christ, who loves me, died for my sins, and intercedes for me.

LEADER: What does Scripture mean when it tells you to fear God?
PEOPLE: It means that I should live mindful of His presence, walking in humility as His creature, resisting sin, obeying His commandments, and reverencing Him for His holiness, majesty, and power.

Source: ACNA, Q. 79-81

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