Lucas 4
John Phillips · Citado em PreceptAustin
Lucas 4
Phillips - Satan's seduction was for Jesus to "act in independence of the Holy Spirit Who had led Him into the wilderness, and in independence of the Father Who had permitted Him to be deprived of bodily sustenance. Satan was suggesting that Jesus use the resources of His sonship to violate the responsibility of His Sonship. The responsibility was never to act in independence of His Father. (Incidentally, a prolonged fast has to be broken gradually, and initially with liquids; solid food can kill.)(ED: WE DISCOVERED THAT IN FEEDING THE STARVING JEWS IN HEINOUS GERMAN CONCENTRATION CAMPS!) (See Exploring the Gospel of Matthew) THOUGHT - There is a tragic irony in those words "If You are the Son of God," for here this address marks the beginning of Jesus' public ministry while the same words mark the end in Mt 27:40 as He hangs on the Cross and the mockers hurl insults like "You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” Tell this stone to become bread (Mt 4:3+) - Tell is is a command in the aorist imperative. It is literally "Say to" (lego - same verb used in Mt 4:3 and there translated "command.") This is amazing arrogance! The devil (a being created being) is issuing a command to Christ, the Creator of the Universe! The devil was not tempting Jesus to self-indulgence, for it is not a sin to eat when hungry. He was tempting Jesus to distrust the providential care of His Father and to use His own divine powers to serve Himself. He wanted Jesus to do His will, not the will of the Father. But Jesus consistently lived in perfect harmony with His Father's will. In John's Gospel when the disciples told Him to eat He explained “My food is to do the will of Him Who sent Me and to accomplish His work." (Jn 4:34). This is in fact what He did for in Jn 17:4 Jesus declared "I glorified You (FATHER) on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do." Satan's desire was to break that perfect harmony between God the Father and Jesus incarnate as a Man and derail the plan of redemption which demanded a sinless Lamb. THOUGHT - This discussion begs the question. Am I seeking to do the will of my Father on earth as it is done in Heaven. Perhaps I pray it in Mt 6:10+, but do I truly seek to do it in the power of His Spirit and for His glory? Do I even know the work my Father has foreordained that I should accomplish this work (see Eph 2:10+)? Will I be able to say like Paul "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith?" (2Ti 4:7+) Will I hear "Well done good servant?" (Lk 19:17+) James says "you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away" (Jas 4:14+). Therefore TODAY is the DAY to address these questions. Not TOMORROW, for the vapor may have vanished!
Lucas 4
Phillips - Satan was using his powers of persuasion on Christ, just as he does when he tries to trap us. We need to remember that he can persuade, but he cannot push. He creates the temptation; we create the transgression. (Exploring Matthew) Kent
Lucas 4
Phillips writes that Satan "was careful to leave something out: "to keep thee in all thy ways." And he omitted Psalm 91:13, which speaks of the Lord treading on the lion and adder and trampling the young lion and the dragon under His feet. Naturally Satan did not even want to think about that verse! Thus in handling Scripture, Satan used a convenient translation, paraphrased it to serve his own purpose, eagerly accepted an addition, deliberately left something out, and ignored the context. The Lord knew His Bible better than to be taken in by Satan's garbled version of a great and much-loved Messianic Psalm." (See Exploring the Gospel of Matthew) Phillips makes an interesting statement that Satan omits Ps 91:13 "You will tread upon the lion and cobra, The young lion and the serpent you will trample down." This passage actually goes on to promise God’s ultimate victory over Satan! Here is Spurgeon's interpretation "The strongest foe in power, and the most mysterious in cunning, shall be conquered by the man of God. Not only from stones in the way, but from serpents also, shall we be safe. To men who dwell in God the most evil forces become harmless, they wear a charmed life, and defy the deadliest ills. Their feet come into contact with the worst of foes, even Satan himself nibbles at their heel, but in Christ Jesus they have the assured hope of bruising Satan under their feet shortly. The people of God are the real "George and the dragon, "the true lion kings and serpent tamers. Their dominion over the powers of darkness makes them cry, "Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy word." Henry
Lucas 4
Phillips adds that "During this period, the Lord performed His first signs and miracles and gave some of His earliest teaching. He traveled, too, between Galilee and Judea. The miracles were performed mostly in Galilee, and the teaching was given primarily in Judea. This period has been called "the year of obscurity," and we would know little or nothing about it if not for the gospel of John. (Exploring the Gospel of Mark: An Expository Commentary) William Barclay on Galilee (Galilee - See Fausset's Bible Dictionary. See map of Jesus' Ministry in Galilee. (Hebrew: הגליל, transliteration HaGalil) is a region in northern Israel. The term Galilee traditionally refers to the mountainous part and divided into Upper Galilee (Hebrew: גליל עליון Galil Elyon) and Lower Galilee (Hebrew: גליל תחתון Galil Tahton). (Wikipedia)) Let us note where Jesus went. He went into Galilee. When Jesus went into Galilee to begin his mission and his ministry, he knew what he was doing. Galilee was the most northerly district of Palestine. It stretched from the Litany River in the north to the Plain of Esdraelon in the south. On the west it did not reach the sea coast of the Mediterranean, because the coastal strip was in the possession of the Phoenicians. On the north-east it was bounded by Syria, and its eastern limit was the waters of the Sea of Galilee. Galilee was not large; it was only fifty miles from north to south, and twenty-five miles from east to west. But, small as it was, Galilee was densely populated. It was by far the most fertile region of Palestine; its fertility was indeed phenomenal and proverbial. There was a saying that it was easier to raise a legion of olives in Galilee than it was to bring up one child in Judea. Josephus, who was at one time governor of the province, says, “It is throughout rich in soil and pasturage, producing every variety of tree, and inviting by its productiveness even those who have the least inclination for agriculture; it is everywhere tilled; no part is allowed to lie idle, and everywhere it is productive.” The result of this was that for its size Galilee had an enormous population. Josephus tells us that in it there were two hundred and four villages, none with a population of fewer than fifteen thousand people. So, then, Jesus began his mission in that part of Palestine where there were most people to hear him; he began his work in an area teeming with men to whom the gospel proclamation might be made. But not only was Galilee a populous district; its people were people of a certain kind. Of all parts of Palestine Galilee was most open to new ideas. Josephus says of the Galileans, “They were ever fond of innovations, and by nature disposed to changes, and delighted in seditions.” They were ever ready to follow a leader and to begin an insurrection They were notoriously quick in temper and given to quarreling. Yet withal they were the most chivalrous of men. “the Galileans,” said Josephus, “have never been destitute of courage.” “Cowardice was never a characteristic of the Galileans.” “They were ever more anxious for honor than for gain.” The inborn characteristics of the Galileans were such as to make them most fertile ground for a new gospel to be preached to them. This openness to new ideas was due to certain facts. (i) The name Galilee comes from the Hebrew word galil which means a circle. The full name of the area was Galilee of the Gentiles. Plummer wishes to take that to mean “heathenish Galilee.” But the phrase came from the fact that Galilee was literally surrounded by Gentiles. On the west, the Phoenicians were its neighbors. To the north and the east, there were the Syrians. And even to the south, there lay the territory of the Samaritans. Galilee was in fact the one part of Palestine that was inevitably in touch with non-Jewish influences and ideas. Galilee was bound to be open to new ideas in a way that no other part of Palestine was. (ii) The great roads of the world passed through Galilee, as we saw when we were thinking of the town of Nazareth. The Way of the Sea led from Damascus through Galilee right down to Egypt and to Africa. The Road to the East led through Galilee away out to the frontiers. The traffic of the world passed through Galilee. Away in the south Judea is tucked into a corner, isolated and secluded. As it has been well said, “Judea is on the way to nowhere: Galilee is on the way to everywhere.” Judea could erect a fence and keep all foreign influence and all new ideas out; Galilee could never do that. Into Galilee the new ideas were bound to come. (iii) Galilee’s geographical position had affected its history. Again and again it had been invaded and conquered, and the tides of the foreigners had often flowed over it and had sometimes engulfed it. Originally it had been assigned to the tribes of Asher, Naphtali and Zebulun when the Israelites first came into the land (Joshua 9) but these tribes had never been completely successful in expelling the native Canaanite inhabitants, and from the beginning the population of Galilee was mixed. More than once foreign invasions from the north and east had swept down on it from Syria, and in the eighth century B.C. the Assyrians had engulfed it completely, the greater part of its population had been taken away into exile, and strangers had been settled in the land. Inevitably this brought a very large injection of foreign blood into Galilee. From the eighth until the second century B.C. it had been largely in Gentile hands. When the Jews returned from exile under Nehemiah and Ezra, many of the Galileans came south to live in Jerusalem. In 164 B.C. Simon Maccabaeus chased the Syrians north from Galilee back to their own territory; and on his way back he took with him to Jerusalem the remnants of the Galileans who were left. The most amazing thing of all is that in 104 B.C. Aristobulus reconquered Galilee for the Jewish nation, and proceeded forcibly to circumcise the inhabitants of Galilee, and thus to make them Jews whether they liked it or not. History had compelled Galilee to open its doors to new strains of blood and to new ideas and to new influences. The natural characteristics of the Galileans, and the preparation of history had made Galilee the one place in all Palestine where a new teacher with a new message had any real chance of being heard, and it was there that Jesus began his mission and first announced his message. (Daily Study Bible - Matthew 4) But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. ACTS 1:8 The early church owned no buildings, had no big budgets (Acts 3:6), and was made up primarily of common people who had no influential friends “at the top.” And yet, those early believers fulfilled Christ’s commission and successfully carried the gospel to their world. Believers today have means of transportation and communication that would astound Peter and Paul, yet we are falling behind. In fact, church growth in the United States is mainly from people transferring their membership from one church to another and not because brand-new believers are looking for church homes. We are commanded to be witnesses through both the way we live and the words we speak. Witnesses are people who tell others what they know about Jesus and what he has done for them (4:20). They lovingly share the good news of salvation. Actually, all believers are witnesses, either good ones or bad ones. Unfortunately, some are more like prosecuting attorneys or judges and do very little witnessing. The Greek word for “witness” gives us the English word martyr, and many of the Lord’s faithful witnesses have sealed their witness with their blood. We cannot witness effectively without divine power. Jesus commanded his disciples to stay in Jerusalem until they were empowered by the Spirit (Luke 24:46–49), for only then would they be equipped to communicate the gospel. You would think that the believers who met in the upper room (Acts 1:12–14) had everything they needed to evangelize Jerusalem. After all, they had known Jesus personally. The apostles had lived with Jesus and been taught by him. They had seen his miracles and even done miracles themselves. But they were still not ready to witness until they had the power of the Spirit, for it is the Spirit’s ministry to equip us for service. Our assets are liabilities apart from the ministry of the Spirit. In his upper room discourse (John 13–16), Jesus taught the disciples about the ministry of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit would help them know and do God’s will (14:15–17) and would teach them the Scriptures and help them recall what they had learned (Jn 14:25–26; 16:13–15). He would give them power to witness (15:2–27) and would bring conviction to those who heard (16:7–11). This would result in Jesus being glorified (v. 14). The book of Acts records all of these ministries of the Spirit as demonstrated in the life of the early church. Do we see them in the churches today? Because we have trusted Jesus Christ and received salvation, we have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us (Rom. 8:9), but does the Holy Spirit have us? When evangelist D. L. Moody was ministering in Great Britain, a critical minister asked, “Does Mr. Moody have a monopoly on the Holy Spirit?” A friend replied, “No, but the Holy Spirit has a monopoly on D. L. Moody.” To be filled with the Spirit means to be controlled by the Spirit and willingly used by him to honor the Lord. I once heard A. W. Tozer say, “If God were to take the Holy Spirit out of this world, most of what the churches are doing would go right on and nobody would know the difference.” Do we know the difference? When the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. And you also will bear witness. John 15:26–27 The higher spiritual life Jesus returns to Galilee in the power of the Spirit. This is full of interest in every way. 1. As bringing up the question of Christ’s Divinity. Can One who is Divine receive augmented powers? Especially can He from another co-equal Spirit? To this inquiry it may be replied that Christ’s life on earth was the Divine circumscribed. The power of the Spirit that rested upon Christ brought forth no new elements, but it brought out the Divine element previously existing. 2. Interesting as a study of the life of Christ, it becomes even more so in its connection with ourselves--with the whole sphere and operation and possibilities of the human mind. A like experience will be traced in the apostles’ lives. At the time of His death they were very little advanced, except in personal affection for Him, beyond Nicodemus, or other devout and spiritually-minded Jews. He had told them to stay in Jerusalem until some great change should come upon them. And He declared what that change should be--power from on high; the power of the Holy Ghost. And then came the Pentecostal experience. 3. We find traces in the early Church to show that there were those who received this special power over and above mere ordinary endowments. 4. In every age there have been those to whom these disclosures have been made, pre-eminently the case with John Wesley, who laboured years, as he regarded it, in bondage, and at last came out in the power of the Spirit. 5. Lastly, many now living are distinctly conscious that this same impulse, this same clothing of extraordinary power remains on earth. Men’s faculties are telescopic. Used in their lower state they are, as it were, undrawn cut. They are capable of being brought to a condition in which they will be a hundred times more than in their ordinary condition. The consciousness of this transcends all other evidences of the Divine life. APPLICATION: Many of you are longing for the renewal of life. Here is the instrument of your power. This is what you need; this is what we all need--that higher life which comes by the Spirit of God. (H. W. Beecher) Luke 4:15 And He began teaching in their synagogues and was praised by all. CSB He was teaching in their synagogues, being acclaimed by everyone. ESV And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. GWN He taught in the synagogues, and everyone praised him. KJV And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all. NET He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by all. NLT He taught regularly in their synagogues and was praised by everyone. Wuest And He himself was teaching in their synagogues, being extolled by all. he (KJV): Lu 4:16 13:10 Mt 4:23 9:35 13:54 Mk 1:39 being (KJV): Isa 55:5 Mt 9:8 Mk 1:27,45 Luke 4:14-15 From the Wilderness to Galilee: Jesus' Judean Ministry - John