WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.540 All right, so I've got to start by asking you 00:00:01.540 --> 00:00:05.780 a question. Have you ever been excited to receive 00:00:05.780 --> 00:00:09.439 something only to discover that it was nothing 00:00:09.439 --> 00:00:14.839 like what you expected? Maybe it was a gift. 00:00:15.259 --> 00:00:17.859 Maybe it was something that you had been really 00:00:17.859 --> 00:00:22.660 excited for. For me, this was college. So I was 00:00:22.660 --> 00:00:25.559 really excited to get to college. I had like 00:00:25.559 --> 00:00:28.379 gone through high school thinking about how cool 00:00:28.379 --> 00:00:31.170 college would be. and how awesome it would be 00:00:31.170 --> 00:00:33.530 to be on my own, to be in a new place. I had 00:00:33.530 --> 00:00:35.750 lived in the same place my whole life, to make 00:00:35.750 --> 00:00:38.969 new friends, to study new things. And I was super 00:00:38.969 --> 00:00:41.750 excited about college, especially the social 00:00:41.750 --> 00:00:44.350 aspect of college. I like to have fun. I like 00:00:44.350 --> 00:00:46.710 to have a good time. I like making friends. And 00:00:46.710 --> 00:00:48.950 so I was really excited about college. And then 00:00:48.950 --> 00:00:52.469 I got to college, and I realized that the coasting 00:00:52.469 --> 00:00:54.490 that I did through middle school and high school 00:00:54.490 --> 00:00:58.210 does not work in college. Okay, so let me give 00:00:58.210 --> 00:01:00.990 you some background. When I was really little, 00:01:01.109 --> 00:01:03.750 I wanted to be a marine biologist. So I took 00:01:03.750 --> 00:01:06.049 school very seriously, like elementary school, 00:01:06.409 --> 00:01:08.709 early middle school, took it very seriously. 00:01:08.769 --> 00:01:11.590 But also, young Donovan had behavior problems, 00:01:11.709 --> 00:01:14.150 so he got in a lot of trouble. And so after getting 00:01:14.150 --> 00:01:16.629 kicked out of my first three advanced classes 00:01:16.629 --> 00:01:19.239 in middle school, I decided, you know... it's 00:01:19.239 --> 00:01:21.060 a lot easier to just be in the regular classes 00:01:21.060 --> 00:01:23.840 and just do what the regular students do. So 00:01:23.840 --> 00:01:25.579 I just did that, and I coasted through middle 00:01:25.579 --> 00:01:28.099 school. I had kind of figured out, I don't think 00:01:28.099 --> 00:01:29.719 I want to be a marine biologist. I just want 00:01:29.719 --> 00:01:31.260 to be in the military. I want to be in the Navy. 00:01:31.340 --> 00:01:33.060 I thought being a Navy SEAL would be the coolest 00:01:33.060 --> 00:01:35.340 thing in the world. So I was like, you don't 00:01:35.340 --> 00:01:37.280 have to go to college to be in the Navy. You 00:01:37.280 --> 00:01:39.480 don't even have to be that smart. So for anybody 00:01:39.480 --> 00:01:41.939 that was in the Navy, I'm sorry. For all the 00:01:41.939 --> 00:01:45.500 Marines in the room, you love that joke. But 00:01:45.500 --> 00:01:47.790 so... So I thought, okay, I'm just going to be 00:01:47.790 --> 00:01:49.810 in the Navy. I don't really need college. It's 00:01:49.810 --> 00:01:52.500 not going to be that important. And so I just 00:01:52.500 --> 00:01:54.439 kind of coasted through high school. Around like 00:01:54.439 --> 00:01:56.540 my junior year of high school, sophomore year, 00:01:56.620 --> 00:01:58.260 I decided I'm going to be a minister. I felt 00:01:58.260 --> 00:02:00.420 called to ministry. So then again, I thought, 00:02:00.540 --> 00:02:02.819 okay, Bible college, how hard can it be? You 00:02:02.819 --> 00:02:04.939 know, it's a small school. It can't really be 00:02:04.939 --> 00:02:06.700 that difficult. You're just studying the Bible, 00:02:06.780 --> 00:02:08.539 right? Because the Bible is so easy to understand. 00:02:09.060 --> 00:02:14.439 And so I get to Faulkner and I like sleep in 00:02:14.439 --> 00:02:17.520 and I miss some classes. I play games on my iPad 00:02:17.520 --> 00:02:21.150 during class. I never do any assignments. First, 00:02:21.189 --> 00:02:23.349 like, you know, you check your transcript at 00:02:23.349 --> 00:02:26.050 the end of the first semester and you realize 00:02:26.050 --> 00:02:29.129 that you failed, like, every class. And you're 00:02:29.129 --> 00:02:32.210 like, okay, this is not at all what I expected. 00:02:33.030 --> 00:02:34.930 This isn't as easy as I thought it was going 00:02:34.930 --> 00:02:37.370 to be. This isn't as cool as I thought it was 00:02:37.370 --> 00:02:39.030 going to be. Now, I had a lot of fun. College 00:02:39.030 --> 00:02:40.969 was very fun. I made a lot of good friends. I 00:02:40.969 --> 00:02:43.610 met my wife. Like, it was a great time. But the 00:02:43.610 --> 00:02:48.080 actual, like, college part was not so fun. It 00:02:48.080 --> 00:02:50.360 wasn't at all what I expected and it was unlike 00:02:50.360 --> 00:02:53.120 everything that I thought I was going to get 00:02:53.120 --> 00:02:56.479 out of this great experience. And maybe you've 00:02:56.479 --> 00:02:58.280 had something like that. Maybe you bought a car 00:02:58.280 --> 00:03:00.560 and you were so excited to get that car and then 00:03:00.560 --> 00:03:03.000 you got it and you realized it was way too complicated. 00:03:03.520 --> 00:03:07.719 Like, I want a motorcycle so bad. Eliza won't 00:03:07.719 --> 00:03:09.419 let me have one, so any of my motorcycle people, 00:03:09.539 --> 00:03:12.219 talk to my wife, okay? I want a motorcycle so 00:03:12.219 --> 00:03:14.659 bad. But here's the thing. I don't know the first 00:03:14.659 --> 00:03:16.620 thing about motorcycles. I don't know how to 00:03:16.620 --> 00:03:18.800 ride one. And from what I understand, a lot of 00:03:18.800 --> 00:03:21.060 them are manual. I don't know the first thing 00:03:21.060 --> 00:03:23.460 about driving anything manual. I mean, I've had 00:03:23.460 --> 00:03:25.979 an automatic transmission my entire life in a 00:03:25.979 --> 00:03:28.120 car, so you just crank it up and you start driving. 00:03:28.139 --> 00:03:29.500 You don't have to do anything. You don't even 00:03:29.500 --> 00:03:31.460 have to think. You can just text. That's a joke. 00:03:32.139 --> 00:03:35.750 Don't do that. But yeah, like, so I want a motorcycle, 00:03:35.870 --> 00:03:37.889 but I just know I would get one and immediately 00:03:37.889 --> 00:03:41.370 be like, what do I do with this? What do I do 00:03:41.370 --> 00:03:43.409 with this? How do I work this thing? And it would 00:03:43.409 --> 00:03:46.169 be unlike what I expect, because you expect to 00:03:46.169 --> 00:03:48.729 just get on it and ride and feel the wind in 00:03:48.729 --> 00:03:51.030 your face. And then you're driving and you get 00:03:51.030 --> 00:03:53.189 bugs in your face. And it's like, I did not want 00:03:53.189 --> 00:03:58.039 this. We sometimes set ourselves up wanting something, 00:03:58.159 --> 00:04:00.300 envisioning something, thinking that something 00:04:00.300 --> 00:04:03.360 is going to be exactly how we dreamed it to be. 00:04:03.539 --> 00:04:06.560 And then when we get it, we realize it is not 00:04:06.560 --> 00:04:11.020 at all what we were expecting. You see, I share 00:04:11.020 --> 00:04:14.300 that to hopefully help us. Paint the picture 00:04:14.300 --> 00:04:16.600 of what the ancient Israelites, the ancient Jews, 00:04:16.819 --> 00:04:19.500 were experiencing when the promised Savior, when 00:04:19.500 --> 00:04:22.279 the Messiah, when Jesus Christ finally showed 00:04:22.279 --> 00:04:24.579 up. They had been waiting on him for centuries, 00:04:24.819 --> 00:04:27.360 thousands of years actually. He finally shows 00:04:27.360 --> 00:04:30.120 up to fulfill this rescue mission that God had 00:04:30.120 --> 00:04:32.779 started from the beginning. But when Jesus gets 00:04:32.779 --> 00:04:35.560 there and he begins his ministry in Luke chapter 00:04:35.560 --> 00:04:39.540 4, the Jews quickly realize that this guy, this 00:04:39.540 --> 00:04:42.740 Messiah, is not at all what we were expecting. 00:04:43.839 --> 00:04:46.519 We've been waiting on him. We've been anticipating 00:04:46.519 --> 00:04:49.220 his arrival. We've been dreaming and envisioning 00:04:49.220 --> 00:04:51.300 what the kingdom will look like when it comes, 00:04:51.399 --> 00:04:53.860 what the Savior will be like when he comes, and 00:04:53.860 --> 00:04:56.519 we realize that he's not what we thought he'd 00:04:56.519 --> 00:04:59.319 be. I love the song we just sang, Make Me a Servant, 00:04:59.339 --> 00:05:02.300 Make Me Like You. They weren't expecting a servant. 00:05:02.779 --> 00:05:05.000 They were expecting a king that would come in 00:05:05.000 --> 00:05:09.639 a chariot with just flames and all the theatrics, 00:05:09.680 --> 00:05:11.800 and they thought Jesus would come, he would take 00:05:11.800 --> 00:05:14.600 over, and he would make his rule and reign known 00:05:14.600 --> 00:05:17.720 to the world. And when he came, he was not that. 00:05:17.800 --> 00:05:21.439 He was a servant, and they were very surprised. 00:05:23.079 --> 00:05:25.819 And not only was it unlikely, not only was it 00:05:25.819 --> 00:05:28.740 unexpected, I would go as far as to say it was 00:05:28.740 --> 00:05:31.480 pretty uncomfortable for them. It was pretty 00:05:31.480 --> 00:05:34.860 uncomfortable for the Jews to see who they thought 00:05:34.860 --> 00:05:37.720 was going to be this powerful, mighty warrior 00:05:37.720 --> 00:05:41.980 of a king come and be this unlikely servant to 00:05:41.980 --> 00:05:46.180 the least of these. And so we'll walk through 00:05:46.180 --> 00:05:49.500 these. unlikely, unexpected ways. And there's 00:05:49.500 --> 00:05:51.759 three key areas that I want us to see in the 00:05:51.759 --> 00:05:54.560 way of Jesus that we're challenging for everybody 00:05:54.560 --> 00:05:56.920 to grapple with. And I kind of characterize them 00:05:56.920 --> 00:06:00.060 as unlikely teachings, unlikely healings, and 00:06:00.060 --> 00:06:02.439 unlikely dealings, okay? And so we're going to 00:06:02.439 --> 00:06:05.220 start with the unlikely teachings. So Jesus comes 00:06:05.220 --> 00:06:07.420 on the scene and he starts teaching people. That's 00:06:07.420 --> 00:06:09.879 kind of how he made his name known. He goes into 00:06:09.879 --> 00:06:12.079 the synagogues and he's going around all the 00:06:12.079 --> 00:06:14.600 areas and he's teaching. And he actually grows, 00:06:14.740 --> 00:06:18.410 it says in Luke 4, he grows. in favor he kind 00:06:18.410 --> 00:06:21.230 of grows in glory with the people around they 00:06:21.230 --> 00:06:23.490 they really liked what he was saying they thought 00:06:23.490 --> 00:06:27.910 he was great but what we'll see throughout this 00:06:27.910 --> 00:06:31.649 series is that in these special things that Jesus 00:06:31.649 --> 00:06:35.050 was teaching there was a lot of it that was unlike 00:06:35.050 --> 00:06:38.339 what they were expecting There was a lot of it 00:06:38.339 --> 00:06:41.180 that was kind of hard for them to grasp, that 00:06:41.180 --> 00:06:42.819 was hard for them to wrap their minds around. 00:06:42.920 --> 00:06:45.839 Here specifically in Luke 4, verses 14 through 00:06:45.839 --> 00:06:48.519 30, Jesus begins teaching. And then in verses 00:06:48.519 --> 00:06:52.579 14 through 15, this is what we read. Well, actually, 00:06:52.620 --> 00:06:54.160 we're not going to read it on the screen, but 00:06:54.160 --> 00:06:57.240 it just kind of shows us that Jesus was teaching 00:06:57.240 --> 00:07:00.060 all throughout Galilee. He's teaching throughout 00:07:00.060 --> 00:07:02.259 this whole surrounding area. And he's not just 00:07:02.259 --> 00:07:04.480 teaching, he's being praised. And everything 00:07:04.480 --> 00:07:07.629 is good until he goes to his hometown. He goes 00:07:07.629 --> 00:07:09.670 back home to Nazareth. He starts teaching in 00:07:09.670 --> 00:07:11.970 the synagogue there. And we're not going to read 00:07:11.970 --> 00:07:15.209 it for the sake of time. But in verses 16 through 00:07:15.209 --> 00:07:18.170 30, we see Jesus get himself into a little trouble. 00:07:18.800 --> 00:07:22.240 And if you're not familiar with Christianity, 00:07:22.540 --> 00:07:24.779 you're probably thinking, how does the guy, the 00:07:24.779 --> 00:07:26.720 Christ that this is all based on, how does he 00:07:26.720 --> 00:07:28.300 get into trouble? Well, that's kind of our whole 00:07:28.300 --> 00:07:31.579 story. And so he gets himself into some trouble. 00:07:31.839 --> 00:07:34.540 As I said, he's being glorified for his teachings 00:07:34.540 --> 00:07:37.180 in these other places. But here in his hometown 00:07:37.180 --> 00:07:40.899 of Nazareth, he does something bold. He actually 00:07:40.899 --> 00:07:42.740 reads the following, which is on the screen, 00:07:42.800 --> 00:07:45.899 from the scroll of Isaiah, which is an Old Testament 00:07:45.899 --> 00:07:48.819 book, which is prophecy that points to... Jesus, 00:07:48.860 --> 00:07:52.480 the Savior of Israel. And so one thing I want 00:07:52.480 --> 00:07:54.920 us to do as we read this morning, if it's underlined, 00:07:54.939 --> 00:07:57.420 I want you to read with me. Can we do that? Because 00:07:57.420 --> 00:07:59.980 I think there's going to be a lot just of stuff 00:07:59.980 --> 00:08:01.600 here, and I want to make sure you're staying 00:08:01.600 --> 00:08:03.899 awake. Also, when you say things out loud, you 00:08:03.899 --> 00:08:06.439 internalize them, okay? So if it's underlined, 00:08:06.500 --> 00:08:08.980 read it with me, all right? The Spirit of the 00:08:08.980 --> 00:08:12.339 Lord is upon me. because he has anointed me to 00:08:12.339 --> 00:08:15.899 proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me 00:08:15.899 --> 00:08:19.120 to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering 00:08:19.120 --> 00:08:22.939 of sight to the blind, to set liberty to those 00:08:22.939 --> 00:08:25.839 who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the 00:08:25.839 --> 00:08:29.000 Lord's favor. Now, Jesus reading this prophecy 00:08:29.000 --> 00:08:31.480 isn't the problem. They had probably read this 00:08:31.480 --> 00:08:33.879 prophecy a bunch of times in their existence. 00:08:34.139 --> 00:08:36.440 They had read this. They knew this. So reading 00:08:36.440 --> 00:08:40.110 it was not the problem. The problem is when Jesus 00:08:40.110 --> 00:08:44.169 claims that the prophecy is about him and that 00:08:44.169 --> 00:08:48.289 he is the fulfillment of it. They weren't ready 00:08:48.289 --> 00:08:50.490 for that. You see, what they were thinking is, 00:08:50.610 --> 00:08:53.409 oh, Jesus is just this really smart and really 00:08:53.409 --> 00:08:58.230 talented rabbi. But now when he claims that he's 00:08:58.230 --> 00:09:00.830 more than just a rabbi, he's more than just a 00:09:00.830 --> 00:09:04.789 teacher, he is the Messiah. Well, now they've 00:09:04.789 --> 00:09:07.789 got a problem with Jesus. Because it's a pretty 00:09:07.789 --> 00:09:12.750 bold, it's a pretty, well, let's just say, we'll 00:09:12.750 --> 00:09:15.570 leave it at bold. It's a pretty bold thing to 00:09:15.570 --> 00:09:18.230 claim to be the son of God, the savior of the 00:09:18.230 --> 00:09:21.950 universe. And so Jesus claims this. He claims 00:09:21.950 --> 00:09:25.990 that he's more than just a teacher, that he's 00:09:25.990 --> 00:09:29.750 gonna do everything he can to not just save Israel. 00:09:30.279 --> 00:09:33.080 but he's going to save everybody. In other words, 00:09:33.139 --> 00:09:36.059 he has grander plans than just being the miracle 00:09:36.059 --> 00:09:39.240 worker for his hometown. He has grander plans 00:09:39.240 --> 00:09:41.500 than just being the teacher for those that are 00:09:41.500 --> 00:09:44.940 like him. And so what Jesus is there to do is 00:09:44.940 --> 00:09:48.059 what God has always desired to do. God has always 00:09:48.059 --> 00:09:51.659 desired to rescue everyone. Every person that 00:09:51.659 --> 00:09:54.659 numbered the earth, God wanted to rescue, even 00:09:54.659 --> 00:09:59.700 the Gentile, even the enemy. even the outsider, 00:10:00.019 --> 00:10:04.460 even the refugee, God desired to save all of 00:10:04.460 --> 00:10:08.759 them. And that was pretty uncomfortable for the 00:10:08.759 --> 00:10:11.940 Jews because they had decided, they had agreed, 00:10:12.259 --> 00:10:15.360 they had just kind of understood that they were 00:10:15.360 --> 00:10:17.919 God's people, that they were the people that 00:10:17.919 --> 00:10:19.899 God wanted to save, that they were the people 00:10:19.899 --> 00:10:22.399 that God loved. It was hard for them to understand 00:10:22.399 --> 00:10:25.850 that God loved everyone. That God loved the person 00:10:25.850 --> 00:10:27.730 that didn't look like them. That God loved the 00:10:27.730 --> 00:10:29.750 person that didn't speak like them or act like 00:10:29.750 --> 00:10:32.210 them or live like them. And so when they hear 00:10:32.210 --> 00:10:35.509 this, this is when Jesus gets himself in trouble. 00:10:38.590 --> 00:10:44.250 You see, God wants them to understand, even when 00:10:44.250 --> 00:10:47.470 it was unlike what they had expected, that he 00:10:47.470 --> 00:10:54.340 is the God of and for all people. And I want 00:10:54.340 --> 00:10:57.340 to ask you, are there times where we struggle 00:10:57.340 --> 00:11:00.899 to understand that God is the God of and for 00:11:00.899 --> 00:11:04.679 all people? That God's not just the God of the 00:11:04.679 --> 00:11:06.779 Blairsville Church of Christ. God is not just 00:11:06.779 --> 00:11:09.740 the God of the Church of Christ. God's not just 00:11:09.740 --> 00:11:13.000 the God of Christianity. God is the God of all 00:11:13.000 --> 00:11:15.000 people. Now, whether all people want to worship 00:11:15.000 --> 00:11:17.460 him and make him Lord is a different conversation. 00:11:17.759 --> 00:11:20.820 But believe this, he is a God that desires and 00:11:20.820 --> 00:11:25.370 loves all people. And so Jesus in this moment 00:11:25.370 --> 00:11:27.850 is declaring that God's grace is going to reach 00:11:27.850 --> 00:11:31.169 beyond Israel's comfort zone. It's going to reach 00:11:31.169 --> 00:11:34.649 beyond what they were expecting. And this leads 00:11:34.649 --> 00:11:36.929 them to trying to kill them. They actually try 00:11:36.929 --> 00:11:41.549 to throw him off a cliff because he exposed their 00:11:41.549 --> 00:11:45.809 assumption. He exposed the assumption that God's 00:11:45.809 --> 00:11:49.809 power, that God's grace was exclusive to them. 00:11:51.470 --> 00:11:55.980 I've said this before. God's kingdom is a very 00:11:55.980 --> 00:11:59.960 inclusive kingdom. Now it takes some stuff to 00:11:59.960 --> 00:12:03.200 get in. Now luckily Jesus paid the price of admission. 00:12:03.379 --> 00:12:05.279 It's just up to us if we'll accept the invitation. 00:12:05.720 --> 00:12:09.620 But it is an inclusive kingdom in the sense that 00:12:09.620 --> 00:12:14.500 everybody is invited. Everybody is welcome. But 00:12:14.500 --> 00:12:17.840 this unlikely teaching confronts pride. This 00:12:17.840 --> 00:12:20.720 unlikely teaching announces this expanded territory 00:12:20.720 --> 00:12:24.320 of grace. And so that's kind of uncomfortable. 00:12:25.299 --> 00:12:27.580 It's hard for them to wrestle with, so hard that 00:12:27.580 --> 00:12:30.179 they try to kill him, this guy that they loved. 00:12:30.419 --> 00:12:33.440 And if you know the story, and I challenge you 00:12:33.440 --> 00:12:35.820 to go read Luke 4. We don't have the time to 00:12:35.820 --> 00:12:38.740 read it all, but it talks about how they say, 00:12:38.779 --> 00:12:42.720 is this not Joseph's son? And what they're saying 00:12:42.720 --> 00:12:46.500 is, is this not the kid that we watched get his 00:12:46.500 --> 00:12:48.240 diaper changed in the back of the synagogue? 00:12:49.120 --> 00:12:51.799 Is this not the kid that we saw snot nose in 00:12:51.799 --> 00:12:54.740 the wintertime? Is this not the kid that we saw 00:12:54.740 --> 00:12:56.700 get spankings because he wouldn't stop talking 00:12:56.700 --> 00:12:58.820 during the reading of Scripture? Now, I don't 00:12:58.820 --> 00:13:01.179 know that Mary actually spanked Jesus, but that's 00:13:01.179 --> 00:13:04.340 just me editorializing. But they're saying, is 00:13:04.340 --> 00:13:07.820 this not the kid we watched grow up? Yeah, I'm 00:13:07.820 --> 00:13:10.559 going to share this story because I still think 00:13:10.559 --> 00:13:13.909 it's funny. The first... When Eliza and I first 00:13:13.909 --> 00:13:16.809 got married, we moved back to my hometown for 00:13:16.809 --> 00:13:18.529 me to be the youth minister at my home church. 00:13:18.710 --> 00:13:21.529 That was my dream. My dream and desire was to 00:13:21.529 --> 00:13:23.769 be the youth minister at my home church forever. 00:13:24.009 --> 00:13:26.929 That's what I wanted to do. And so we did that. 00:13:26.970 --> 00:13:28.830 We moved down there. I was a youth minister there. 00:13:29.350 --> 00:13:32.490 And I remember I preached a lesson. I don't even 00:13:32.490 --> 00:13:34.990 remember what it was about. But you got to remember. 00:13:35.129 --> 00:13:36.649 So, well, you didn't know. I didn't tell you 00:13:36.649 --> 00:13:38.789 the year. It was 2020. And if you know anything 00:13:38.789 --> 00:13:43.450 about 2020, COVID, and... election year. And 00:13:43.450 --> 00:13:46.870 I said something about how we need to stop making 00:13:46.870 --> 00:13:50.730 politics our God and how we need to stop dividing 00:13:50.730 --> 00:13:54.370 the church over earthly systems. I said that, 00:13:54.429 --> 00:13:57.470 and I have no regrets about saying that. Well, 00:13:57.490 --> 00:14:00.049 I get a message from a lady. I said that in a 00:14:00.049 --> 00:14:02.690 sermon, by the way. I get a message from a lady 00:14:02.690 --> 00:14:06.070 from the church, and she was not very happy about 00:14:06.070 --> 00:14:12.519 what I said. And in her message, She says, this 00:14:12.519 --> 00:14:17.220 church helped and watched you grow up. Why do 00:14:17.220 --> 00:14:19.279 you think you can say these types of things to 00:14:19.279 --> 00:14:26.279 us? Yeah, I think Jesus got that when he preached 00:14:26.279 --> 00:14:28.340 in his hometown. And I want you to know, nobody 00:14:28.340 --> 00:14:31.100 has ever said something like that to me since 00:14:31.100 --> 00:14:34.340 then in any other church. It was just in my hometown. 00:14:35.279 --> 00:14:37.360 There's something to be said about trying to 00:14:37.360 --> 00:14:40.240 bring truth to the people that are closest to 00:14:40.240 --> 00:14:42.960 you, right? Maybe you've tried to evangelize 00:14:42.960 --> 00:14:45.299 or to disciple someone in your family, especially 00:14:45.299 --> 00:14:48.500 somebody older than you. And for them to accept 00:14:48.500 --> 00:14:51.259 that maybe you know something that they don't 00:14:51.259 --> 00:14:54.200 is kind of hard. Or maybe it's not even a knowledge 00:14:54.200 --> 00:14:56.940 thing. It's just an understanding thing. And 00:14:56.940 --> 00:15:00.039 so Jesus here, he says something that really 00:15:00.039 --> 00:15:04.259 upsets the people that watched him grow up. And 00:15:04.259 --> 00:15:07.509 he... almost dies because of it. But it wasn't 00:15:07.509 --> 00:15:09.690 his time to die, so he keeps going. And when 00:15:09.690 --> 00:15:12.289 he keeps going, he starts healing people. We 00:15:12.289 --> 00:15:15.389 see this in Luke 4, 31 through 41. We also see 00:15:15.389 --> 00:15:18.809 it in chapter 5, verses 12 through 26. So there's 00:15:18.809 --> 00:15:20.769 a lot there. We're not going to go through that 00:15:20.769 --> 00:15:22.669 verse by verse. Again, I challenge you to read 00:15:22.669 --> 00:15:25.789 it. But what Jesus does in his healings is he 00:15:25.789 --> 00:15:30.009 shows his power over the spiritual and the physical. 00:15:30.490 --> 00:15:33.070 He starts healing people. He casts a demon out 00:15:33.070 --> 00:15:35.269 of a man with just a word. He cures sickness, 00:15:35.470 --> 00:15:39.889 disease, paralysis with just his touch. His power 00:15:39.889 --> 00:15:43.330 in this display, in his healings is undeniable 00:15:43.330 --> 00:15:46.909 because of these actions. But what also can't 00:15:46.909 --> 00:15:51.129 be ignored is who he's healing, of who he's dealing 00:15:51.129 --> 00:15:55.490 with. You see Jesus touch and hug and heal a 00:15:55.490 --> 00:15:57.269 man with leprosy. And now if you know anything 00:15:57.269 --> 00:16:01.299 about leprosy, Leprosy would not only be this 00:16:01.299 --> 00:16:04.059 very highly contagious thing, but it was also 00:16:04.059 --> 00:16:06.740 something that would make you unclean. And as 00:16:06.740 --> 00:16:09.480 a Jew, there's nothing worse than being unclean. 00:16:09.500 --> 00:16:12.860 Well, Jesus doesn't care. He hugs the man with 00:16:12.860 --> 00:16:15.320 leprosy. To give you an idea of how bad leprosy 00:16:15.320 --> 00:16:17.899 is, they would actually take people with leprosy 00:16:17.899 --> 00:16:21.039 and put them outside of the city walls to keep 00:16:21.039 --> 00:16:23.879 them away from everybody else because they didn't 00:16:23.879 --> 00:16:26.970 want you even near. people, much less touching 00:16:26.970 --> 00:16:29.549 them. And so when this great rabbi, this great 00:16:29.549 --> 00:16:32.590 teacher, this Messiah who is supposed to be obeying 00:16:32.590 --> 00:16:35.389 Mosaic law, when he comes and hugs the leper, 00:16:35.529 --> 00:16:39.029 that's problematic for them. That's an issue 00:16:39.029 --> 00:16:42.769 for them. He then heals a paralyzed man with 00:16:42.769 --> 00:16:45.250 just a word, which by the way, I want us to talk 00:16:45.250 --> 00:16:47.769 about how awesome it is that the paralyzed man's 00:16:47.769 --> 00:16:50.710 friends bring him before Jesus and lay him at 00:16:50.710 --> 00:16:54.100 his feet. You need some friends like that. We 00:16:54.100 --> 00:16:56.419 need some friends that will bring us in our broken 00:16:56.419 --> 00:17:00.100 state before the feet of Jesus for healing. But 00:17:00.100 --> 00:17:03.100 so this paralyzed man, his friends bring them 00:17:03.100 --> 00:17:05.880 to the feet of Jesus and they ask Jesus to heal 00:17:05.880 --> 00:17:08.339 him. And Jesus doesn't have to do the Mr. Miyagi, 00:17:08.380 --> 00:17:10.180 rub your hands together, put them on him. He 00:17:10.180 --> 00:17:12.859 doesn't have to say any, you know, magical words. 00:17:13.019 --> 00:17:14.339 He doesn't have to do anything. He didn't give 00:17:14.339 --> 00:17:17.559 him anything. He just says, get up and walk. 00:17:18.519 --> 00:17:21.579 And he gets up and he walks and he goes out of 00:17:21.579 --> 00:17:26.500 there. But the point there is that Jesus touching 00:17:26.500 --> 00:17:31.079 the untouchable and forgiving the sins of those 00:17:31.079 --> 00:17:34.660 who are very undeserving of sin or undeserving 00:17:34.660 --> 00:17:38.500 of forgiveness. There's something special there. 00:17:38.599 --> 00:17:42.599 Forgiving the sins of and healing society's worse 00:17:42.599 --> 00:17:46.769 so that they also can experience new life. You 00:17:46.769 --> 00:17:48.829 think about the leper that again, they would 00:17:48.829 --> 00:17:51.529 put them on the outside of the city walls. Imagine 00:17:51.529 --> 00:17:54.490 if you were so ostracized from your city that 00:17:54.490 --> 00:17:58.410 they decided to kick you out. Imagine if you 00:17:58.410 --> 00:18:02.789 are so broken down that you've got to be carried 00:18:02.789 --> 00:18:05.549 around, that you need people to bring you to 00:18:05.549 --> 00:18:07.529 get healing because you can't bring yourself. 00:18:08.029 --> 00:18:12.920 Imagine being that lowly. And the Son of God, 00:18:13.140 --> 00:18:16.299 the Savior of the universe, decides to take time 00:18:16.299 --> 00:18:19.460 to put his hands on you, to speak to you, to 00:18:19.460 --> 00:18:22.099 say your sins are forgiven, get up and walk, 00:18:22.299 --> 00:18:25.400 to say, I love you, I want you to be healed, 00:18:25.539 --> 00:18:27.559 I want you to experience life like everybody 00:18:27.559 --> 00:18:31.460 else gets to experience life. That Savior takes 00:18:31.460 --> 00:18:37.099 the time to touch your life, even when society 00:18:37.099 --> 00:18:41.950 considers you worthless. Even when society considers 00:18:41.950 --> 00:18:48.950 you too broken, too unclean to mess with. That's 00:18:48.950 --> 00:18:53.670 who Jesus was. It's who Jesus is. It is the way 00:18:53.670 --> 00:18:59.369 that Jesus lived. So you can imagine, even for 00:18:59.369 --> 00:19:03.190 Jesus' followers, that's got to be pretty uncomfortable 00:19:03.190 --> 00:19:05.210 because they've got to stay in close quarters 00:19:05.210 --> 00:19:07.650 with this guy and now he's just touched a leper. 00:19:08.589 --> 00:19:10.829 And now he's just claimed that he can forgive 00:19:10.829 --> 00:19:14.190 sins. This is some pretty powerful stuff that 00:19:14.190 --> 00:19:16.609 he's doing, but for them, it's uncomfortable. 00:19:18.130 --> 00:19:20.789 And if that wasn't enough to help you see why 00:19:20.789 --> 00:19:23.910 Jesus' way was so different, I want us to look 00:19:23.910 --> 00:19:25.609 at who he worked with. And this is what I call 00:19:25.609 --> 00:19:30.410 his unlikely dealings. Jesus is having these 00:19:30.410 --> 00:19:33.609 relationships, these work -like relationships 00:19:33.609 --> 00:19:38.819 with people. In Luke 5, verses 1 -11, we see 00:19:38.819 --> 00:19:42.799 Jesus call a few fishermen to be his disciples, 00:19:43.059 --> 00:19:47.180 to be his followers. He doesn't call scholars. 00:19:47.240 --> 00:19:49.759 He doesn't call priests. He doesn't call businessmen. 00:19:49.859 --> 00:19:54.920 He calls fishermen. He calls blue -collar guys, 00:19:55.319 --> 00:19:59.539 maybe some guys we can relate to, right? He doesn't 00:19:59.539 --> 00:20:03.569 call the Bible scholar. He doesn't call the rabbis. 00:20:03.710 --> 00:20:06.210 He doesn't call the religious elites. He doesn't 00:20:06.210 --> 00:20:09.869 call the wealthy. He calls fishermen. And I love 00:20:09.869 --> 00:20:11.470 the way, if you haven't watched The Chosen, I 00:20:11.470 --> 00:20:13.869 really want you to. I love the way The Chosen 00:20:13.869 --> 00:20:18.329 portrays this because it shows Peter and his 00:20:18.329 --> 00:20:21.890 friends and family, they're all in debt. Like 00:20:21.890 --> 00:20:24.410 they're struggling to get out from under the 00:20:24.410 --> 00:20:28.410 debt that they have in Rome. And also it's a 00:20:28.410 --> 00:20:31.500 tax debt. So that's, hold on to that. for the 00:20:31.500 --> 00:20:34.019 next person that Jesus calls. But the way the 00:20:34.019 --> 00:20:36.200 chosen portrays it is they're really struggling 00:20:36.200 --> 00:20:38.200 to just make ends meet. And so they're trying 00:20:38.200 --> 00:20:40.579 to catch fish, but they're not doing really well 00:20:40.579 --> 00:20:43.319 at catching fish. And so Jesus comes on the scene, 00:20:43.460 --> 00:20:45.599 he helps them catch fish, and he tells them, 00:20:45.660 --> 00:20:48.559 hey, if you'll follow me, I'm gonna do something 00:20:48.559 --> 00:20:50.539 far greater in your life than make you a good 00:20:50.539 --> 00:20:52.880 fisherman. In fact, so he calls these ordinary, 00:20:53.039 --> 00:20:55.400 unassuming men to follow him. And then in verse 00:20:55.400 --> 00:20:58.119 eight, Simon, also known as Peter, one of these 00:20:58.119 --> 00:21:01.220 fishermen, he declares himself sick. Sinful and 00:21:01.220 --> 00:21:03.279 unworthy. And this is what he says. We've got 00:21:03.279 --> 00:21:05.119 some underlying words here, so read with me. 00:21:05.339 --> 00:21:09.599 Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord. 00:21:11.559 --> 00:21:14.339 He says, I'm not worthy to be in your presence. 00:21:15.000 --> 00:21:19.380 I'm not worthy to be near you. You are great. 00:21:19.500 --> 00:21:22.700 You're so great that me and all of my sin is 00:21:22.700 --> 00:21:27.799 undeserving of your fellowship. But Jesus responds 00:21:27.799 --> 00:21:30.859 in an incredible way, like he always does in 00:21:30.859 --> 00:21:32.759 verse 10, and we've got more underlying again. 00:21:32.839 --> 00:21:36.500 So do not be afraid. From now on, you will be 00:21:36.500 --> 00:21:42.299 catching men. So Jesus tells him, I'm not just 00:21:42.299 --> 00:21:46.720 asking you to follow me. I'm enlisting you into 00:21:46.720 --> 00:21:49.730 the mission that I'm on. And so this is why I 00:21:49.730 --> 00:21:52.089 call it dealings because Jesus is bringing him 00:21:52.089 --> 00:21:54.430 into this business that he's about. He's saying, 00:21:54.509 --> 00:21:57.089 I need you to do more than just follow behind 00:21:57.089 --> 00:22:00.650 me. I need you to work alongside me. And so if 00:22:00.650 --> 00:22:02.569 you're Peter and if you're the people watching 00:22:02.569 --> 00:22:05.089 this, you're thinking there is no way that this 00:22:05.089 --> 00:22:08.569 son of God, this Messiah would want me to be 00:22:08.569 --> 00:22:10.769 a part of his mission. Do you ever feel that 00:22:10.769 --> 00:22:13.569 way? Do you ever feel so unworthy? Do you ever 00:22:13.569 --> 00:22:16.349 feel so sinful, so broken, so lost that there 00:22:16.349 --> 00:22:20.140 is no way that God would want to use you. I feel 00:22:20.140 --> 00:22:22.640 that way just about every day. In fact, every 00:22:22.640 --> 00:22:24.640 Sunday morning before I get up here, I think 00:22:24.640 --> 00:22:27.519 there is no way that God has allowed me, has 00:22:27.519 --> 00:22:29.579 blessed me to be able to share his word with 00:22:29.579 --> 00:22:32.200 people that know more than I do, that have probably 00:22:32.200 --> 00:22:34.599 lived way better lives than I have. There's no 00:22:34.599 --> 00:22:37.720 way. But then I have to remember that Jesus loves 00:22:37.720 --> 00:22:41.579 to work in the no way. Jesus loves to work with 00:22:41.579 --> 00:22:43.519 the mess. You've probably heard this before. 00:22:43.680 --> 00:22:45.920 He wants to use your mess as a message and your 00:22:45.920 --> 00:22:48.640 test as a testimony. And you see that in scripture. 00:22:48.900 --> 00:22:55.319 Jesus loves to use the unlikely. He invites them 00:22:55.319 --> 00:22:59.220 to work with him to catch and rescue all men. 00:22:59.319 --> 00:23:02.099 But that's really not even close to as crazy 00:23:02.099 --> 00:23:06.450 as this. process goes. Jesus is going to recruit 00:23:06.450 --> 00:23:09.430 somebody else that is way, way, way, way, way 00:23:09.430 --> 00:23:15.910 worse than Simon. In verses 27 through 32, we 00:23:15.910 --> 00:23:19.089 see Jesus meet this guy named Levi. You may know 00:23:19.089 --> 00:23:22.730 him as Matthew. And the thing that makes Jesus 00:23:22.730 --> 00:23:29.009 calling Levi crazy is Levi was looked at as scum 00:23:29.009 --> 00:23:31.779 of the earth. By the people closest to him. Well, 00:23:31.859 --> 00:23:34.079 let me rephrase that. He didn't have people close 00:23:34.079 --> 00:23:37.559 to him because he was scum of the earth. Levi 00:23:37.559 --> 00:23:42.400 was viewed as the worst of society because he 00:23:42.400 --> 00:23:47.019 was a tax collector. And I know how much we all 00:23:47.019 --> 00:23:51.119 love the IRS. If you work for the IRS, I'm sorry. 00:23:51.869 --> 00:23:54.609 We don't love the IRS because nobody likes to 00:23:54.609 --> 00:23:58.390 pay taxes. But the thing that is like at least 00:23:58.390 --> 00:24:01.289 helpful for us with paying the IRS is at least 00:24:01.289 --> 00:24:03.930 like some of that money goes to help us, right? 00:24:04.109 --> 00:24:07.109 Like it does a little bit of good for us, you 00:24:07.109 --> 00:24:10.009 know, good roads and things like that. For the 00:24:10.009 --> 00:24:14.529 Jews, paying Rome taxes did no good for them. 00:24:15.400 --> 00:24:18.880 All it did was increase Rome's power, which increased 00:24:18.880 --> 00:24:21.640 the oppression that the Jews were under. And 00:24:21.640 --> 00:24:25.299 so when Jesus calls Levi, a tax collector, who 00:24:25.299 --> 00:24:28.380 was Jewish, by the way, so the Jews hated him 00:24:28.380 --> 00:24:30.799 because he was doing Rome's work, but he was 00:24:30.799 --> 00:24:34.000 supposed to be one of them. So Jesus calls Levi, 00:24:34.099 --> 00:24:37.940 and Levi accepts the call. So now Jesus has shown 00:24:37.940 --> 00:24:41.339 everybody that he doesn't mind interacting with 00:24:41.339 --> 00:24:43.890 the filthy. He doesn't mind interacting with 00:24:43.890 --> 00:24:46.130 the lowly, with the scum of the earth. He doesn't 00:24:46.130 --> 00:24:48.410 mind associating with the disease. He doesn't 00:24:48.410 --> 00:24:50.730 mind working and living with sinners, working 00:24:50.730 --> 00:24:53.329 with tax collectors. He has no problem with this. 00:24:54.430 --> 00:24:58.910 And all of this makes the Jews angry. All of 00:24:58.910 --> 00:25:02.670 it makes them mad, especially the religious elites. 00:25:03.349 --> 00:25:07.109 And they say as much in Luke 5, verse 30, when 00:25:07.109 --> 00:25:10.549 they say, why do you eat and drink with tax collectors 00:25:10.549 --> 00:25:15.359 and sinners? First of all, I know they don't 00:25:15.359 --> 00:25:17.420 believe that he's the Messiah, because remember 00:25:17.420 --> 00:25:19.559 they tried to kill him and everything. I know 00:25:19.559 --> 00:25:22.420 they don't believe that he's the Messiah. But 00:25:22.420 --> 00:25:26.420 could you imagine questioning God? Oh wait, we 00:25:26.420 --> 00:25:30.680 do that all the time. We question who God would 00:25:30.680 --> 00:25:34.200 use. We question who God would call into his 00:25:34.200 --> 00:25:36.920 kingdom. We question who God would call into 00:25:36.920 --> 00:25:42.130 his ministry. The religious elites question Jesus 00:25:42.130 --> 00:25:44.789 on why he hangs out with who he hangs out with, 00:25:44.849 --> 00:25:47.769 why he does what he does, why he is willing to 00:25:47.769 --> 00:25:51.089 fellowship and work with tax collectors, the 00:25:51.089 --> 00:25:54.369 worst of the worst, and sinners, not as bad as 00:25:54.369 --> 00:25:56.910 the tax collectors. So they're confused why Jesus 00:25:56.910 --> 00:25:59.410 would do this. And I love the way Jesus responds 00:25:59.410 --> 00:26:05.000 in Luke chapter 5, verses 31 through 32. Because 00:26:05.000 --> 00:26:06.960 right here, Jesus is going to let every single 00:26:06.960 --> 00:26:10.359 person listening know exactly what he's all about. 00:26:10.599 --> 00:26:12.980 He's putting it all out there. He's making it 00:26:12.980 --> 00:26:17.599 very, very clear to them. Those who are well 00:26:17.599 --> 00:26:21.220 have no need of a physician, but those who are 00:26:21.220 --> 00:26:24.460 sick, I have not come to call the righteous, 00:26:24.500 --> 00:26:28.779 but sinners to repentance. You see, Jesus essentially 00:26:28.779 --> 00:26:32.950 said, I didn't come to hang out. and rub elbows 00:26:32.950 --> 00:26:34.869 with the people who think they've got it all 00:26:34.869 --> 00:26:37.109 together. I didn't come to hang out with the 00:26:37.109 --> 00:26:40.690 people who feel like they deserve my grace. I 00:26:40.690 --> 00:26:43.230 didn't come to hang out with and live life with 00:26:43.230 --> 00:26:45.650 and fellowship and save the people who think 00:26:45.650 --> 00:26:49.690 that they are deserving. I came for the broken. 00:26:50.470 --> 00:26:55.190 I came for the sick. I came for the sinner. I 00:26:55.190 --> 00:26:58.369 came for the outcast. I came for the one that 00:26:58.369 --> 00:27:02.049 nobody wants to touch. that nobody wants to associate 00:27:02.049 --> 00:27:04.210 with, that nobody wants to help, that nobody 00:27:04.210 --> 00:27:08.970 wants to deal with. I came for those who know 00:27:08.970 --> 00:27:14.509 they need healing. And here's the truth. We all 00:27:14.509 --> 00:27:18.369 need healing. Every single one of us needs the 00:27:18.369 --> 00:27:20.950 healing that Jesus provides, that only Jesus 00:27:20.950 --> 00:27:24.390 provides. Every single one of us needs to feel 00:27:24.390 --> 00:27:28.150 the touch of Jesus on our lives. We all need 00:27:28.150 --> 00:27:31.519 to hear the words, Get up. Your sins are forgiven. 00:27:31.779 --> 00:27:34.460 We all need to hear the words. Don't worry about 00:27:34.460 --> 00:27:37.019 the sins of your past. I'm bringing you into 00:27:37.019 --> 00:27:39.380 something so much greater than what you have 00:27:39.380 --> 00:27:42.460 been a part of before. We all need to know that 00:27:42.460 --> 00:27:45.220 no matter how far off we are, no matter how broken 00:27:45.220 --> 00:27:48.000 we are, we need the grace of Jesus. And we are 00:27:48.000 --> 00:27:50.339 not good enough. We're not healthy enough. We 00:27:50.339 --> 00:27:52.980 are not mighty enough. We are not powerful enough. 00:27:53.019 --> 00:27:56.980 We are not good enough to deserve. but because 00:27:56.980 --> 00:28:00.339 Jesus is who he is, the unexpected, the unlikely, 00:28:00.539 --> 00:28:03.819 the uncomfortable servant that he is, we can 00:28:03.819 --> 00:28:06.200 all be a part of his family. We can all be a 00:28:06.200 --> 00:28:08.859 part of his mission because there is nobody too 00:28:08.859 --> 00:28:15.099 far for Jesus' grace to touch. So Jesus offers 00:28:15.099 --> 00:28:18.990 healing. and relationship to everyone, not just 00:28:18.990 --> 00:28:22.130 the Jew, not just the religious elites, not just 00:28:22.130 --> 00:28:24.849 the ones who look like or sound like or feel 00:28:24.849 --> 00:28:29.970 like they deserve this grace. He brings it, he 00:28:29.970 --> 00:28:34.869 gives it to those who society looks at as undeserving. 00:28:35.809 --> 00:28:39.049 And that's who Jesus was. That's who he is. That's 00:28:39.049 --> 00:28:40.849 the nature of Jesus. But you know what's really 00:28:40.849 --> 00:28:43.150 fascinating is that none of this should have 00:28:43.150 --> 00:28:46.240 surprised them. None of it should have surprised 00:28:46.240 --> 00:28:48.380 him. So remember, I said, Jesus read from Isaiah 00:28:48.380 --> 00:28:51.500 prophecy about him. And we talked last week about 00:28:51.500 --> 00:28:54.160 how there were dozens and actually hundreds of 00:28:54.160 --> 00:28:56.779 prophecies about the coming Messiah. Would you 00:28:56.779 --> 00:28:59.759 know, in all of those, it tells us exactly what 00:28:59.759 --> 00:29:01.799 Jesus was going to be like. And then when he 00:29:01.799 --> 00:29:03.960 gets here, he actually lives it out. And he's 00:29:03.960 --> 00:29:06.619 exactly like what the prophecy said. None of 00:29:06.619 --> 00:29:08.839 this should have surprised them. Isaiah told 00:29:08.839 --> 00:29:11.259 them, the prophets told them, scripture told 00:29:11.259 --> 00:29:13.319 them, and they were people that knew their scripture. 00:29:13.960 --> 00:29:16.019 They knew the word way better than any of us 00:29:16.019 --> 00:29:19.099 could. They knew scripture, so they should have 00:29:19.099 --> 00:29:22.900 known who Jesus was going to be. But when Jesus 00:29:22.900 --> 00:29:25.140 shows up, he lives out the heart of God in front 00:29:25.140 --> 00:29:30.619 of them, they're offended. They're shocked. Why 00:29:30.619 --> 00:29:34.160 in the world would this offend them? And as I 00:29:34.160 --> 00:29:37.420 was studying, I thought, why does it offend us? 00:29:38.500 --> 00:29:41.880 Why does it offend us when we see Jesus being 00:29:41.880 --> 00:29:47.750 who Jesus is? and who He said He would be. And 00:29:47.750 --> 00:29:51.009 the truth is, it offends them, and I think it 00:29:51.009 --> 00:29:54.670 offends us, because they didn't just want a Savior. 00:29:55.369 --> 00:29:59.309 They wanted a Savior on their own terms. They 00:29:59.309 --> 00:30:01.690 wanted a God that looked like what they thought 00:30:01.690 --> 00:30:04.210 God should look like. They wanted a Jesus that 00:30:04.210 --> 00:30:06.650 acted like they thought Jesus should act like. 00:30:06.769 --> 00:30:10.099 They wanted a Messiah for their... people. They 00:30:10.099 --> 00:30:13.160 wanted power without having to change. They wanted 00:30:13.160 --> 00:30:16.079 healing without having to be humble. They wanted 00:30:16.079 --> 00:30:19.420 to be blessed without having to surrender. Again, 00:30:19.519 --> 00:30:22.059 they were thinking Jesus was going to come in 00:30:22.059 --> 00:30:25.160 riding in a chariot with flames and arrows and 00:30:25.160 --> 00:30:28.220 ready to go to war for the Jews. But what they 00:30:28.220 --> 00:30:31.460 got was a meek Savior who said, I'm going to 00:30:31.460 --> 00:30:35.640 save everybody, not just the Jews. Because think 00:30:35.640 --> 00:30:38.839 about it this way. If Jesus had come in, let's 00:30:38.839 --> 00:30:40.700 use modern examples because chariot's kind of 00:30:40.700 --> 00:30:45.359 lame. If Jesus had come in in a tank, ready to 00:30:45.359 --> 00:30:50.059 just wreck shop and war, let's say he annihilates 00:30:50.059 --> 00:30:53.640 everybody but the Jews. Does he save anybody 00:30:53.640 --> 00:30:58.460 but the Jews? No, he destroyed them. Did Jesus 00:30:58.460 --> 00:31:01.769 come to destroy or did he come to save? John 00:31:01.769 --> 00:31:04.710 3 .16, the Son of Man came to save everyone, 00:31:04.890 --> 00:31:07.230 to give everyone everlasting life. And so if 00:31:07.230 --> 00:31:09.869 we believe that everyone peace, if we believe 00:31:09.869 --> 00:31:12.690 that God desires to save all people, then we've 00:31:12.690 --> 00:31:14.950 got to get it out of our heads that God desires 00:31:14.950 --> 00:31:17.869 to save some people, that God desires to save 00:31:17.869 --> 00:31:20.930 certain people. The truth is that the invitation 00:31:20.930 --> 00:31:24.089 is for everyone, even those we don't expect. 00:31:24.170 --> 00:31:27.470 And God works in ways that are not like what 00:31:27.470 --> 00:31:34.069 we think He should do. God works in so great 00:31:34.069 --> 00:31:38.529 of a way that we can't understand it. And so 00:31:38.529 --> 00:31:41.150 when Jesus doesn't fit the mold that they had 00:31:41.150 --> 00:31:44.730 built, they try to throw him off a cliff. They 00:31:44.730 --> 00:31:47.890 tried to kill him for being exactly who God said 00:31:47.890 --> 00:31:51.150 he would be. And as we know, if you are familiar 00:31:51.150 --> 00:31:53.309 with the gospel story, if you're familiar with 00:31:53.309 --> 00:31:57.009 the Bible, you know that Jesus did end up dying 00:31:57.009 --> 00:32:02.690 because he was who God said he would be. And 00:32:02.690 --> 00:32:05.769 we can't judge them because we do the same thing. 00:32:06.710 --> 00:32:10.009 We love the idea of Jesus until his teaching 00:32:10.009 --> 00:32:15.049 confronts our pride. We love the idea of Jesus. 00:32:15.789 --> 00:32:18.609 until His grace extends to people we don't think 00:32:18.609 --> 00:32:21.750 deserve it. We love the idea of Jesus until he 00:32:21.750 --> 00:32:24.710 asks us to follow him, even if it makes us uncomfortable, 00:32:25.029 --> 00:32:27.730 even if it requires us to sacrifice, even if 00:32:27.730 --> 00:32:30.029 it requires us to let go of some of our other 00:32:30.029 --> 00:32:33.789 loyalties and be solely devoted to him. We love 00:32:33.789 --> 00:32:38.329 the idea of Jesus until he disrupts our preconceived 00:32:38.329 --> 00:32:41.470 notions of what life in Christ is supposed to 00:32:41.470 --> 00:32:44.589 be like. We love the idea of Jesus until Jesus 00:32:44.589 --> 00:32:48.670 is not what we think of. And so the unlikely 00:32:48.670 --> 00:32:52.349 way of Jesus is this. He teaches in ways that 00:32:52.349 --> 00:32:56.670 confront our assumptions. He heals in ways that 00:32:56.670 --> 00:33:00.589 restore the outcast, that restore the sinner. 00:33:00.809 --> 00:33:03.829 He calls people we would never put on the team. 00:33:03.910 --> 00:33:06.970 I think about, you know, when I was little in 00:33:06.970 --> 00:33:10.759 PE, I actually... you're not going to believe 00:33:10.759 --> 00:33:14.039 this, never was last pick in PE, unless we're 00:33:14.039 --> 00:33:15.759 playing basketball. I'm really bad at basketball, 00:33:15.900 --> 00:33:18.019 and everyone knew that, so I was last pick in 00:33:18.019 --> 00:33:19.640 basketball. But if we were playing football, 00:33:19.920 --> 00:33:21.980 if we were playing dodgeball, I was always kind 00:33:21.980 --> 00:33:24.799 of at the top of the line, right? But there was 00:33:24.799 --> 00:33:26.980 always the kid that was the last pick, and maybe 00:33:26.980 --> 00:33:28.819 you've been there, and that's okay. You're probably 00:33:28.819 --> 00:33:31.480 way smarter than me. The other day, I thought 00:33:31.480 --> 00:33:35.200 7 plus 10 was 20, so it's okay that you weren't 00:33:35.200 --> 00:33:39.450 the first pick. You got other gifts. In PE, you 00:33:39.450 --> 00:33:40.990 would have, you know, you'd pick your teams, 00:33:41.069 --> 00:33:43.430 and there was always the one who was last pick. 00:33:44.470 --> 00:33:46.490 I like to think Jesus would have picked that 00:33:46.490 --> 00:33:50.609 kid first. So if you weren't the first pick in 00:33:50.609 --> 00:33:53.309 dodgeball, just know you'd have been on Jesus' 00:33:53.490 --> 00:33:55.809 team, and he would have been glad to have you. 00:33:57.170 --> 00:34:02.549 You see, what this is all really about is grace, 00:34:02.670 --> 00:34:07.700 the unlikely way of Jesus. is a way of unexpected 00:34:07.700 --> 00:34:13.800 grace, undeserved grace. It's a grace that crosses 00:34:13.800 --> 00:34:16.739 boundaries, a grace that touches the untouchable, 00:34:16.800 --> 00:34:19.139 that calls the unqualified, that forgives the 00:34:19.139 --> 00:34:21.760 unforgivable, that heals the unhealable, that 00:34:21.760 --> 00:34:24.300 gives inclusion to the outsider, that reaches 00:34:24.300 --> 00:34:27.539 people like me, that reaches people like you. 00:34:27.699 --> 00:34:32.280 That's the way of Jesus. And sadly, that seems 00:34:32.280 --> 00:34:35.519 to be problematic for some of us today. Because 00:34:35.519 --> 00:34:37.760 we don't get to reshape Jesus into something 00:34:37.760 --> 00:34:40.300 comfortable, even though we do that sometimes. 00:34:40.460 --> 00:34:44.639 We don't get to. We shouldn't do that. We don't 00:34:44.639 --> 00:34:47.280 get to reduce Jesus to a hometown miracle worker. 00:34:47.440 --> 00:34:49.699 We don't get to limit his grace and who gets 00:34:49.699 --> 00:34:52.199 to have it. We don't get to edit his mission 00:34:52.199 --> 00:34:55.000 to a way that fits my desires and that fits my 00:34:55.000 --> 00:34:58.380 schedule, fits my comfortability. We either reject 00:34:58.380 --> 00:35:00.940 the way or we follow the way. You either get 00:35:00.940 --> 00:35:04.579 on board or you stay off of the journey. Which 00:35:04.579 --> 00:35:07.989 one is it? And so when Jesus calls people like 00:35:07.989 --> 00:35:10.949 Peter, he calls people like Levi. What he's trying 00:35:10.949 --> 00:35:13.690 to illustrate to everybody around is you can 00:35:13.690 --> 00:35:16.730 follow me regardless of where you are. You just 00:35:16.730 --> 00:35:21.530 have to follow. You just have to accept. You 00:35:21.530 --> 00:35:24.289 don't get to reshape this. And you'll see throughout 00:35:24.289 --> 00:35:27.510 the gospels, the apostles definitely tried to 00:35:27.510 --> 00:35:30.510 reshape the mission, but especially Peter. So 00:35:30.510 --> 00:35:32.429 it's really funny that he's like one of the first 00:35:32.429 --> 00:35:36.179 call. You don't get to reshape it. You either 00:35:36.179 --> 00:35:39.840 follow or you don't. And here's a really cool 00:35:39.840 --> 00:35:43.039 truth. The same grace that offended the proud 00:35:43.039 --> 00:35:46.900 people in Nazareth is the same grace that saves 00:35:46.900 --> 00:35:50.460 sinners today. It's the same grace. It's the 00:35:50.460 --> 00:35:53.500 same God. The same Jesus who said, I've come 00:35:53.500 --> 00:35:56.440 to call sinners to repentance. He is still calling. 00:35:56.559 --> 00:35:58.940 He's still healing. He's still forgiving. He 00:35:58.940 --> 00:36:02.139 is still inviting. And maybe that is the most 00:36:02.139 --> 00:36:04.360 unlikely thing of it all, that he would invite 00:36:04.360 --> 00:36:08.260 us. Not because we've gotten it all right spiritually. 00:36:08.860 --> 00:36:11.739 Not because we've done all the assignments and 00:36:11.739 --> 00:36:13.599 we've checked all the boxes and we've made sure 00:36:13.599 --> 00:36:15.639 to do everything right. Not because we've shown 00:36:15.639 --> 00:36:18.860 up perfectly, but because we are sick, we are 00:36:18.860 --> 00:36:23.840 unqualified people who he loves. And so here's 00:36:23.840 --> 00:36:27.719 the question I want to leave us with today. The 00:36:27.719 --> 00:36:31.920 grace has been extended. We've been invited. 00:36:32.820 --> 00:36:36.699 The invitation is in all of our mailboxes. The 00:36:36.699 --> 00:36:39.119 question for us, though, is are we willing to 00:36:39.119 --> 00:36:43.500 follow the unlikely way? If we're going to say, 00:36:43.539 --> 00:36:46.579 I follow Jesus, if I'm going to say I'm a Christian, 00:36:46.820 --> 00:36:48.739 if I'm going to say I'm a disciple of Christ, 00:36:48.800 --> 00:36:52.039 a follower of Christ, am I willing to actually 00:36:52.039 --> 00:36:55.679 follow? Am I willing to receive a savior who 00:36:55.679 --> 00:36:58.860 doesn't fit my expectations? Am I willing to 00:36:58.860 --> 00:37:01.460 extend the same grace that Jesus extended to 00:37:01.460 --> 00:37:04.900 me to other people that I don't feel like are 00:37:04.900 --> 00:37:09.980 deserving? Maybe today you're like Simon and 00:37:09.980 --> 00:37:13.059 you're saying things in your head to Jesus like, 00:37:13.139 --> 00:37:15.500 depart from me, Lord. I'm a sinful man or I'm 00:37:15.500 --> 00:37:18.239 a sinful woman. Jesus's response to you is the 00:37:18.239 --> 00:37:24.380 same. Don't be afraid. You can follow me. Maybe 00:37:24.380 --> 00:37:26.840 you feel like Levi, unqualified, disqualified, 00:37:26.940 --> 00:37:33.199 judged, labeled, scum of the earth. And to all 00:37:33.199 --> 00:37:36.420 of us, wherever we are, Jesus is still saying, 00:37:36.760 --> 00:37:41.019 follow me. Maybe you've been standing in the 00:37:41.019 --> 00:37:43.539 crowd, you've been watching, but you've been 00:37:43.539 --> 00:37:45.619 comfortable with the religion that you know. 00:37:45.699 --> 00:37:47.679 You've been comfortable with just sitting in 00:37:47.679 --> 00:37:49.980 the seat and not actually following our teacher. 00:37:51.469 --> 00:37:53.789 Maybe you've even been resistant to repenting 00:37:53.789 --> 00:37:57.309 of the sins that you've been holding on to. Jesus 00:37:57.309 --> 00:38:01.829 is inviting you into something deeper than just 00:38:01.829 --> 00:38:06.269 sitting idly by and being a pew potato. He is 00:38:06.269 --> 00:38:12.170 inviting you to be a disciple, a follower, a 00:38:12.170 --> 00:38:16.829 student. So here's the invitation today. The 00:38:16.829 --> 00:38:19.849 unlikely way of Jesus begins with repentance. 00:38:20.849 --> 00:38:23.030 admitting that we have done wrong and turning 00:38:23.030 --> 00:38:27.610 away from it, and trusting our teacher, trusting 00:38:27.610 --> 00:38:31.210 the one who has called us out of our sin. It 00:38:31.210 --> 00:38:34.289 begins with admitting, I need a doctor. I need 00:38:34.289 --> 00:38:36.369 somebody who can heal me in a way that nobody 00:38:36.369 --> 00:38:39.480 else can. It continues with following wherever 00:38:39.480 --> 00:38:42.260 Jesus takes you, and it grows as we become the 00:38:42.260 --> 00:38:44.860 kind of people who carry that same unlikely, 00:38:45.099 --> 00:38:48.159 uncomfortable grace into the world. And so today, 00:38:48.280 --> 00:38:51.039 if you've never trusted Jesus, this is your chance. 00:38:51.179 --> 00:38:53.480 If you've kept him at a distance, this is your 00:38:53.480 --> 00:38:56.460 chance. If you have tried to shape him into something 00:38:56.460 --> 00:38:59.440 safer, something more convenient to your schedule 00:38:59.440 --> 00:39:02.579 or your lifestyle, this is your chance to surrender 00:39:02.579 --> 00:39:06.880 it all, to lay your pride down, to lay your release. 00:39:06.920 --> 00:39:11.559 to lay your comfortability down and ask Jesus 00:39:11.559 --> 00:39:15.059 and ask the church to help you simply follow 00:39:15.059 --> 00:39:19.000 this unlikely way because it is uncomfortable. 00:39:19.320 --> 00:39:22.719 It may be uncomfortable, but it is the only way 00:39:22.719 --> 00:39:27.480 that leads to life. Let's say that again. It 00:39:27.480 --> 00:39:31.639 is the only way that leads to life. And church, 00:39:31.780 --> 00:39:35.800 I need to say this. And I say this with as much 00:39:35.800 --> 00:39:41.079 grace as I can. The church, not just this church, 00:39:41.139 --> 00:39:45.360 the church in general for far too long has been 00:39:45.360 --> 00:39:50.030 sitting and watching Jesus. We have been cheering 00:39:50.030 --> 00:39:53.590 Jesus on from the stands, saying, yes, he can 00:39:53.590 --> 00:39:56.710 save. Yes, he does save. Yes, he does transform. 00:39:56.969 --> 00:39:59.909 And we have been talking about Jesus the same 00:39:59.909 --> 00:40:02.730 way I talk about LSU football when I have never 00:40:02.730 --> 00:40:05.289 put on a uniform for LSU and played a single 00:40:05.289 --> 00:40:08.150 snap. But I will cheer them on. I will tout about 00:40:08.150 --> 00:40:10.489 how great they are, except this season. I will 00:40:10.489 --> 00:40:12.789 tell you how awesome they are, and I will watch. 00:40:13.769 --> 00:40:17.650 But I'll never get on the field. Jesus is asking 00:40:17.650 --> 00:40:20.070 us to step out of the stands and get on the field. 00:40:20.329 --> 00:40:22.510 And I think for far too long, the church has 00:40:22.510 --> 00:40:25.869 been sitting idly by, cheering Jesus on, but 00:40:25.869 --> 00:40:28.409 not actually working alongside Jesus. And the 00:40:28.409 --> 00:40:31.909 unlikely way of Jesus is a way that works. It 00:40:31.909 --> 00:40:35.969 is a way that goes. It is a way that leaves everything 00:40:35.969 --> 00:40:40.369 that is comfortable and goes to what is uncomfortable, 00:40:40.570 --> 00:40:44.530 that leaves our boundaries and goes where grace 00:40:44.530 --> 00:40:48.190 goes. And what Jesus shows us in Luke chapter 00:40:48.190 --> 00:40:50.389 four, chapter five, and really all throughout 00:40:50.389 --> 00:40:54.389 his ministry is that his grace goes to everyone. 00:40:55.949 --> 00:41:01.010 And so church, are we willing to go to everyone? 00:41:01.949 --> 00:41:04.670 I shared this on Wednesday night and this has 00:41:04.670 --> 00:41:06.250 nothing to do with the lesson, although it kind 00:41:06.250 --> 00:41:11.230 of does, maybe. I know of a church that used 00:41:11.230 --> 00:41:13.670 to be, we'll just say over a thousand people. 00:41:14.440 --> 00:41:17.099 It was the biggest church in town, was like the 00:41:17.099 --> 00:41:19.679 church in town, had the greatest ministries, 00:41:19.679 --> 00:41:24.199 greatest programs. But over time, and let's just 00:41:24.199 --> 00:41:28.559 call it like 25 years, they have now dropped 00:41:28.559 --> 00:41:33.059 down to less than 400 people. How does that happen? 00:41:34.300 --> 00:41:38.159 You know how it happens? It happens from people 00:41:38.159 --> 00:41:42.719 saying we're disciples, but actually just sitting 00:41:42.719 --> 00:41:48.559 in a pew. watching Jesus, consuming Jesus, but 00:41:48.559 --> 00:41:54.400 not actually being Jesus. And the reason it's 00:41:54.400 --> 00:41:56.440 so easy to fall into that temptation, and all 00:41:56.440 --> 00:41:58.199 of our churches have, that's why the church is 00:41:58.199 --> 00:42:01.199 not in incline, it is in decline. The reason 00:42:01.199 --> 00:42:05.099 that is so easy to do is because it's comfortable. 00:42:05.760 --> 00:42:08.059 It's comfortable to sit in these chairs. It actually 00:42:08.059 --> 00:42:09.420 is really comfortable to sit in these chairs. 00:42:09.960 --> 00:42:12.400 It's comfortable to sing a few songs for an hour 00:42:12.400 --> 00:42:14.800 on Sunday. It's comfortable to listen to somebody 00:42:14.800 --> 00:42:17.860 talk because usually the guy talking is not challenging 00:42:17.860 --> 00:42:21.300 us to do anything. It's comfortable to just sit 00:42:21.300 --> 00:42:26.219 and watch Jesus while not actually being Jesus. 00:42:27.239 --> 00:42:30.059 But what Jesus has been calling people to do 00:42:30.059 --> 00:42:35.320 from the beginning is to be uncomfortable. Maybe 00:42:35.320 --> 00:42:37.480 you've heard it said that comfort will be the 00:42:37.480 --> 00:42:41.800 thing that will make a king fall. And so my prayer. 00:42:42.329 --> 00:42:44.809 for our church, for our congregation, and for 00:42:44.809 --> 00:42:49.530 the church globally is to be a people that get 00:42:49.530 --> 00:42:53.989 in the weeds, that go to war with Jesus, not 00:42:53.989 --> 00:42:56.610 just consume him. There's an entire community 00:42:56.610 --> 00:43:00.210 out there that needs to know Jesus wants them 00:43:00.210 --> 00:43:03.389 to be a part of his family too. Jesus wants them 00:43:03.389 --> 00:43:05.849 to be a part of his kingdom too. He wants them 00:43:05.849 --> 00:43:09.699 to be on mission too. And to invite them to be 00:43:09.699 --> 00:43:11.960 a part of it, just like Jesus did with the tax 00:43:11.960 --> 00:43:14.460 collector, just like Jesus did with the leper, 00:43:14.519 --> 00:43:16.940 just like Jesus did with the lowly fishermen. 00:43:17.980 --> 00:43:22.360 Jesus is calling us to get out of these seats 00:43:22.360 --> 00:43:25.480 and go to work. It's a shame we've got an invitation 00:43:25.480 --> 00:43:29.000 song and a Bible class after this, because I'm 00:43:29.000 --> 00:43:30.780 tempted to just say, hey, let's go knock on some 00:43:30.780 --> 00:43:34.510 doors and tell people about Jesus. Let's go sit 00:43:34.510 --> 00:43:36.750 in the restaurant and tell a waitress about Jesus. 00:43:36.969 --> 00:43:39.309 When is the last time you told somebody, hey, 00:43:39.429 --> 00:43:41.269 I don't know what you've got going on in your 00:43:41.269 --> 00:43:43.590 life, but Jesus wants you to be on mission with 00:43:43.590 --> 00:43:48.250 him. Jesus wants to save your life. It is the 00:43:48.250 --> 00:43:51.289 only way that leads to life. It may be uncomfortable. 00:43:52.230 --> 00:43:54.690 It may not be as cool as sitting in a chair, 00:43:54.949 --> 00:43:58.610 listening to some songs and talking, but it is 00:43:58.610 --> 00:44:02.400 the only way that leads to life. I heard it in 00:44:02.400 --> 00:44:03.920 the podcast last night. I promise I'm going to 00:44:03.920 --> 00:44:08.320 be quiet. He said, it's not necessarily saying 00:44:08.320 --> 00:44:11.559 you're not saved, that you just sit in the pew. 00:44:13.039 --> 00:44:17.659 But you're not being like Jesus. And he had to 00:44:17.659 --> 00:44:19.280 clarify that he's saying that with a lot of grace. 00:44:19.340 --> 00:44:21.019 And I need to clarify, I'm saying this with a 00:44:21.019 --> 00:44:22.539 lot of grace because I'm guilty of this too. 00:44:23.539 --> 00:44:26.699 Some of us are content with just being saved. 00:44:28.099 --> 00:44:32.269 But we are not disciples. We were called to be 00:44:32.269 --> 00:44:38.369 disciples, not to be saved. So this week, will 00:44:38.369 --> 00:44:41.409 you follow the uncomfortable way? Will you follow 00:44:41.409 --> 00:44:45.530 the unlikely way and go to the unexpected, the 00:44:45.530 --> 00:44:48.489 unlikely person, even when it's not convenient, 00:44:48.630 --> 00:44:51.929 and say, I want to talk to you about Jesus Christ. 00:44:52.710 --> 00:44:55.690 I want to talk to you about the only way that 00:44:55.690 --> 00:44:59.460 leads to life. That's the challenge for you today, 00:44:59.539 --> 00:45:01.159 and I just completely messed up my invitation. 00:45:01.300 --> 00:45:04.420 I don't care. If you need prayer, if you need 00:45:04.420 --> 00:45:07.360 Jesus to redeem your life, if you need the church 00:45:07.360 --> 00:45:10.420 to help hold you accountable to being a disciple, 00:45:10.619 --> 00:45:13.400 not just a Christian, and as I like to say, not 00:45:13.400 --> 00:45:16.880 just a pew potato, but a disciple of Christ, 00:45:17.159 --> 00:45:19.860 if you need prayers of the church because you've 00:45:19.860 --> 00:45:22.599 been struggling with life, whatever you need 00:45:22.599 --> 00:45:25.739 this morning, I'm inviting you. We are inviting 00:45:25.739 --> 00:45:27.980 you to come. And as we read earlier in Acts 4, 00:45:28.119 --> 00:45:30.440 to allow us to pray for you in a way that shakes 00:45:30.440 --> 00:45:34.239 this room and shakes this community. Whatever 00:45:34.239 --> 00:45:36.539 it is you need, please come as we stand and as 00:45:36.539 --> 00:45:36.880 we sing.