We are engaged in a series in which we are speaking of why we find the Lord Jesus irresistible as a Savior and a Lord. We find that we are forced to believe that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the Living God because of his miraculous birth, his incredible life, his victorious death, his powerful resurrection, his astounding ascension, his triumphant session, his heavenly intercession, his sovereignty over all, his glorious return, his final judgment on all at the end of history, and his eternal kingdom. We have arrived at the second point which deals with his incredible life.
The Lord Jesus Christ lived as no other man had lived before him and certainly no one has lived like him since that time. God gave us four gospels, four biographies of the Lord Jesus Christ, with each of the gospel writers answering a different question. Matthew answers the question, "What did Jesus teach?" So of course it has more of the words of Jesus than the other gospel accounts. As a matter of fact, Matthew is the passage of full mention when it comes to the words of Christ. If you want to study the Lord’s Prayer, as you look at the Matthean account, it is larger than the one found in the Lukan account. Or if you want to study the Sermon on the Mount you will find that Matthew gives you more. If you want to look at the Mount Olivet discourse, you will find again that Matthew gives you the passages of full mention in which he relates to us all that Jesus taught. Mark on the other hand is virtually devoid of the sermons and words of Christ because he is answering the question "What did Jesus do?". Thus you have snappy action in Mark. The key word in the gospel of Mark is the one translated "straightway" or "immediately", which shows how Jesus would heal someone and then immediately raise someone from the dead and then immediately deal with another situation. You have fast moving action in the gospel of Mark as he seeks to answer the question, "What did Jesus do?" Luke answers the question, "Who followed Jesus?" Luke, being Greek, gives us biographical sketches of individuals not mentioned by Matthew, Mark, or John. He also gives us fuller details concerning the lives of those who are mentioned by the other gospel writers.
In terms of where we are at this particular time, we have already looked at Matthew’s point that the Lord Jesus Christ was incredible in what he said. We’ve looked at the beauty, the majesty, the wisdom, the wit, and the graciousness of the Lord Jesus Christ in terms of his words. We have also looked at the emphasis in Mark’s gospel that Jesus was incredible in terms of what he did, how he lived. We examined his sinlessness since he did not have any ulterior motives, particularly he was not out for power so he did not make himself a king. As a matter of fact, when the people came and tried by force to make him a king, he refused. Neither was he out for great wealth. When he said, "The Son of Man does not have a place to lay his head", he meant it! He did not build some Maharishi Jesus college. Neither did he build a theme park and call it Jesus Land. He had no wealth. He was not after people’s money. Neither was he after sex and the power that he could have over women or over men.
As you look at the life of the Lord Jesus Christ in terms of his sinlessness you have to say you are confronted with someone who is as pure as fresh snow. Just as Jesus said in his day "Which of you can convict me of evil?", even so we say today, "Which of you can convict the Lord Jesus Christ of trying to grab power, sex, money, fame?" No, the Son of God was sinless and was not involved in any of those activities. We have looked at his compassion, his miracles, his honesty, his normality. My children have really gotten a kick out of that, the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ was a normal Joe. He didn’t wear orange robes. He didn’t come with some weird hairstyle. He didn’t come with five-pierced ears and a ponytail saying, "Follow me". Instead, the Lord Jesus Christ came as a normal human being eating and drinking and laughing. He joked. I guarantee you that as the apostles went along with the Lord Jesus they had alot of laughs. He who could refer to Herod as "that old fox". He who had the wit and could turn questions around and question the questioner. They had a good time being with Jesus. He was man of very man.
Now we come to the third section which emphasizes from Luke’s gospel that the Lord Jesus Christ was incredible in terms of who followed him. This is of course, the glory of Luke’s gospel. Of the four gospel accounts Luke is the only one who tells us that he decided, since he was a professional man - a medical man, to take interviews and to do some research in order to lay out his gospel material.
Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile an account of the things accomplished among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word have handed them down to us, it seemed fitting for me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in consecutive order, most excellent Theophilus; so that you might know the exact truth about the things you have been taught. (Luke 1:1-4, NASB)
At the very beginning he speaks of the life and work of Jesus Christ as something that fulfilled the Old Testament scriptures. Luke is saying that people have been putting down on paper either from their own eyewitness account or from someone else who was there on the spot what Jesus said and what Jesus did. This, of course, is only natural. Now think for a moment. The liberal theologians say that the gospel accounts had to be written in the 2nd century. They claim that there had to be a hundred years or more in order for the myths and legends to grow up. There were various liberal theologians, one very famous one talked about faith and he said that the New Testament was the product of the sermons of the Christian community, that some anonymous preacher would get up and say, "I want to speak to you people about faith today. What is faith? Well I just thought of a good illustration. Let’s just pretend for a moment that Jesus was in a boat. There was a storm raging. Everybody was afraid. Before it was all over Jesus said "Peace. Be still." The storms were calmed. He even walked on the water. These are the things I’m thinking faith is all about. Not that these things ever really happened. They are just sermon illustrations that I just sort of plucked out of the air."
The liberals believe that our problem nearly 2,000 years later is that we are reading these scriptures as if these things were written by eyewitnesses who were actually there who saw Jesus and Peter walking on the water. If you had been there as a follower of Jesus and you were capable of reading and writing, wouldn’t you be putting things down all the time? Some of you take notes during the sermon material. Don't you think as Jesus preached, people were writing things down? Even the Jews were trained in this. This is why we have the Mishnah and the Talmud. They would write down the sermons of the rabbis very carefully. As they followed Jesus they wrote things down. It was automatic. You didn’t have to wait 50 years, 100 years before Peter or someone else would say "I’m going to try to remember what Jesus said." They weren’t stupid. They wrote it down. That’s why particularly in cave seven of the Dead Sea Scrolls, as is pointed out by Dr. William White, we have a piece of the gospel of Luke that must be dated at least AD 57. If it was already in production so it found its way into an Essene library, it was in writing long before that. So it’s only natural that the disciples of Jesus who loved him, who hung on his every word, would write it down. That’s what you would do. That’s what I would do.
Luke is saying there were different accounts that have been written up from eyewitnesses. They were there. They were servants of the word. Since Luke himself had carefully investigated everything it seemed good for him to write an orderly account for Theophilus. Theophilus here meant "lover of God". It was a literary term perhaps to refer to all of you who love God. This book is dedicated to you so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught. Luke is saying they were eyewitnesses. We’re talking about certainty. We’re talking about evidences. We’re talking about looking at things logically and orderly. Here a medically trained mind goes into the subject of the gospel accounts and what does Luke emphasize? These little biographical sketches of the people who came to Jesus. The other gospel writers were interested in other things. Luke is interested in this. If you took a pair of scissors and cut out of Luke all his biographical discussions, you wouldn’t have anything left. You wouldn’t have any more left of Luke than if you took the words of Jesus out of Matthew or the works of Jesus out of Mark. You wouldn’t have anything left.
Thus it is Luke who provides us with an in-depth discussion of Mary and her amazement and her worries and her ponderings. No one else gives us the material that he lays out concerning the birth of Jesus. Like the fact that Mary was greatly troubled. How did he know? Because he went and sat down and talked to Mary. He asked her what it was like when that angel came and said she was going to be pregnant and she wasn’t even married. She said "Boy, I was really troubled." He said, "Let me write that down." He asked her about so many things like how Joseph reacted when she told him she was pregnant and that it was going to be a virgin birth. He asked her, "When Joseph didn’t believe you then how did you feel?" She said, "Oh my. I was really troubled." He got all these insights into Mary’s heart. She would explain all her feelings, what she felt, what was going on. He does this again and again with the people who followed Jesus. There is a universal appeal in the gospel of Luke that’s missing from the other gospel accounts. It is Luke who mentions all the different races and ranks of mankind as coming to Jesus. So when you pull open the gospel of Luke you will find things like rich people believed in Jesus, poor people came to believe in Jesus, sick people, well people, good people, bad people, popular people, unpopular people, males and females, old and young, Jews and Gentiles, sinners and righteous. When you look at all the different kinds of people that came to Jesus, you will find yourself in the list somewhere. It is Luke who supplies us with all kinds of little details. For example, it is Luke who likes to point out in more than one instance that their were poor people and rich people who came to Jesus for salvation. For example in Luke 19 vs. 1 Luke begins to tell us the story of Zaccheus.
And He entered and was passing through Jericho. And behold, there was a man called by the name of Zaccheus; and he was a chief tax-gatherer, and he was rich. And he was trying to see who Jesus was, and he was unable because of the crowd, for he was small in stature. And he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree in order to see Him, for He was about to pass through that way. And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and said to him, "Zaccheus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house." And he hurried and came down, and received Him gladly. And when they saw it, they all began to grumble, saying, "He has gone to be the guest of a man who is a sinner." And Zaccheus stopped and said to the Lord, "Behold, Lord, half of my possessions I will give to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will give back four times as much." And Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because he, too, is a son of Abraham. "For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost." (Luke 19:1-10, NASB)
Now for just a little bit of a Spurgeonic digression, he only passed through once. Once. Zaccheus grabbed his opportunity. He put himself in the way of Christ. If Zaccheus would not have done what he had done, he would have never been saved. This dude was rich. How did he get so rich? He would set the tax bill higher than the Roman government demanded and he would keep the difference. There was always a little bit extra on the bill. This made Zaccheus a wealthy man. He wanted to see who Jesus was but being a short man he could not because of the crowds. So he ran ahead and climbed a Sycamore tree to see him since Jesus was "coming that way". Oh I love that. Parents, never forget when your kids ask "Why are we going to church Mommy?" "So that we’re in the way of Christ as he comes through. Where two or three are gathered in His name, there Christ is. He’s coming through the assembly. He’s in the midst of the candlesticks. I’m putting you in the way of Christ."
Zaccheus didn’t have any glorious motives. He was just curious. He wanted to see. Imagine how surprised Zaccheus must have felt. He must have wondered how Jesus knew his name. Jesus told him, "I must stay at your house today." He didn’t say "May I stay at your house please." The crowd muttered after Jesus said this. They could not understand why Jesus would go to be a guest in the house of a "sinner". But Zaccheus stood up and said to the Lord, "Lord, here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor." Then the crowd began to sing, "For he’s a jolly good fellow...". Can people change that quick? Oh, yes. The same group that was shouting hosanna to the Highest and blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord a few days later was shouting "Crucify him!" You see how Luke gets into the nitty gritty and says, "You know about this little guy Zaccheus. He was a little short guy, very unpopular. People didn’t like him but he had alot of money. He came to the crowd and even with the fear he could strike into them by saying "IRS", even with all of his money, he’s trying to find a way to see what’s happening. Finally he gets over to a tree and shinnies up. Jesus comes along and says, "Zaccheus, you come right down now."
Luke includes so many little details about Zaccheus. He said this wealthy man who had money knew that money was not enough. He that would be rich will fall into divers temptations which many have found themselves shipwrecked. My dear friend, don't think that money’s going to answer everything. Now I’m just like you. I hope Ed McMahon calls me and I did win that $10 million dollars. We’ll have a nice little church building. We’ll spend on a Bach organ, that’s for sure. But you know, money is not going to answer everything. Money, as Proverbs says, "has wings and it flies away." Easy come, easy go. The older you get and the older your kids get, the more it goes, and goes, and goes. Luke says, "Look, this rich man came to Jesus. Jesus sought him out and salvation came to him. He became a son of Abraham in faith for the Son of Man came to seek rich people." You might think that’s all Jesus wanted was some rich dude. No, he didn’t ask for the money. Zaccheus did not say, "I hereby give to Jesus one half of my possessions." Did he say that? No, he gave it to the poor. Jesus would not have accepted it. Now look in Luke 18 to see the same kind of account where Jesus deals with a poor man just prior to Zaccheus.
And it came about that as He was approaching Jericho, a certain blind man was sitting by the road, begging. Now hearing a multitude going by, he began to inquire what this might be. And they told him that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by. And he called out, saying, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" And those who led the way were sternly telling him to be quiet; but he kept crying out all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" And Jesus stopped and commanded that he be brought to Him; and when he had come near, He questioned him, "What do you want Me to do for you?" And he said, "Lord, I want to regain my sight!" And Jesus said to him, "Receive your sight; your faith has made you well." And immediately he regained his sight, and began following Him, glorifying God; and when all the people saw it, they gave praise to God. (Luke 18:35-43, NASB)
We’re going from a poor man to a rich man. From a beggar to a rich dude. Here’s this beggar. He has nothing. There weren’t any government agencies for the blind. He was outside by the roadside begging. When he heard the crowd going by he asked what was happening. They said, "This guy from Nazareth named Jesus is passing by here." He only came this way once. He seized the opportunity. He cried out, "Jesus, son of David, have mercy on me!" Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to shut up. But he shouted all the more. You see how Luke is giving you all these details? They couldn’t shut this guy up. They said, "Shut up you old goat!" He wouldn’t stop. He shouted and shouted, "Son of David, son of David, Jesus, have mercy on me!" Jesus stopped and he ordered that the man be brought to him. Isn’t that wonderful? He didn’t make the blind man come over on his own without help. Jesus says, "With all this racket what do you want me to do for you?" "Lord, I want to see." Jesus said, "Receive your sight. Your faith has healed you." Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it they also praised God.
Here’s a poor man who came to Jesus. He didn’t have any money. Was there anything this poor, blind beggar had to offer the matchless Son of God? Could he work hard for the Master and sell flowers at the local mall like the Moonies and the Krishnas? No. Could he do some kind of farm work in Kingdom Farms Incorporated? No. He came to Jesus as he was and since the Son of Man came to seek and to save those who were lost, he sought this beggar. This man not only received his physical sight but his spiritual sight. That’s why he followed Jesus and rejoiced and praised God. When all the people saw it they praised God. Do you see how Luke tells you all these little stories of people? They are like pearls put on a necklace. Luke strings these precious pearls on the necklace so we can see what attracted people to Jesus. Jesus could deal with rich people. He could deal with poor people. He could deal with Jew and he could deal with Gentile. Remember when he was brought to the temple as a wee baby, it was prophesied at that time in Luke 2.
And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to carry out for Him the custom of the Law, then he took Him into his arms, and blessed God, and said, "Now Lord, Thou dost let Thy bond-servant depart In peace, according to Thy word; For my eyes have seen Thy salvation, Which Thou hast prepared in the presence of all peoples, A light of revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Thy people Israel." And His father and mother were amazed at the things which were being said about Him. (Luke 2:25-33, NASB)
This is one of those little biographical sketches that the other gospel writers don’t have about Simeon. That precious man of God, waiting for the consolation of Israel. The Holy Spirit was upon him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die until he had seen the Lord’s Christ. Wouldn’t you have loved to have been Simeon? You knew something nobody else knew. You knew you were not going to die until you had seen the Messiah with your own eyes. It was a secret that you had from the Lord, his Holy Spirit. You knew it. Maybe you told your wife, a few other people. Some of your relatives said, "Well, you know about Simeon. He’s been down at the temple too long. Religion gets you nuts a little bit." But he knew. He said, "I’m not going to die until I see the Messiah." He got older and older. He became infirm but Simeon held on to the Lord’s promise.
Then one day these parents bring in this baby. Simeon looked and the Holy Spirit said, "That’s him." Simeon said, "Can I hold that baby?" Mary and Joseph said, "Why?" "Can I please hold this child?" He took the baby in his arms and praised God saying, "Sovereign Lord, as you have promised you can now dismiss your servant in peace, for mine eyes have now seen the salvation which you have prepared in the sight of all people. A light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel." As Mary was telling Luke about this he asked, "How did you and Joseph respond?" "Well, Joseph and I just were amazed and marveled at what was said about this baby Jesus."
Then Simeon blessed them and he turned to Mary. She said to Luke, "Do you know what he told me?" Luke said, "What?" "He told me that this baby is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be spoken against so that the thoughts of many hearts would be revealed. "You know what else he told me?" "What?" "That a sword would pierce my own heart. That sobered me." Luke got all these little details from Mary about what happened and how she felt. This was Simeon saying, "Look, this messiah comes from Jewish stock. But he is for all people. He’s for the Gentile as well as the Jew." Thank God he’s for the Gentile too or you would be out worshipping some tree stump this morning. Or worshipping some crocodile you would be feeding your kids to. God in his mercy enlightened Simeon to proclaim that this savior was the savior of all peoples, races, and ranks, not just for the Jew but also for the Gentile. This is Luke’s special message. Right at the beginning Christ is the universal savior, all races and ranks. He even gives us the story of one Gentile who, in terms of his faith, was better off than even most Jews.
When He had completed all His discourse in the hearing of the people, He went to Capernaum. And a certain centurion's slave, who was highly regarded by him, was sick and about to die. And when he heard about Jesus, he sent some Jewish elders asking Him to come and save the life of his slave. And when they had come to Jesus, they earnestly entreated Him, saying, "He is worthy for You to grant this to him; for he loves our nation, and it was he who built us our synagogue. " Now Jesus started on His way with them; and when He was already not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to Him, "Lord, do not trouble Yourself further, for I am not worthy for You to come under my roof; for this reason I did not even consider myself worthy to come to You, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed. "For I, too, am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, 'Go!' and he goes; and to another, 'Come!' and he comes; and to my slave, 'Do this!' and he does it." Now when Jesus heard this, He marveled at him, and turned and said to the multitude that was following Him, "I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such great faith." And when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave in good health. (Luke 7:1-10, NASB)
Christ is the Lord of Gentiles as well as Jews, rich as well as poor. Luke is a great one for the ladies. For example in the Gospels we find Christ calling his apostles and disciples. He went to men like John and Peter and James. He would say, "Come. Leave your fishing equipment. I will make you fishers of men." They left everything and followed him. So we know that men followed Christ. But Luke is a good one about the ladies. He mentions more women by name than any other gospel writer. He elevates Christian womanhood. That’s why in Luke 10 verse 38 "Now as they were traveling along, He entered a certain village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home."
Do you see the beauty of that? These guys are tired. They say, "Lord, our feet are tired. We’ve been preaching and walking all over. Couldn’t you invent something like a car to help us get going here?" They came into this place and needed somewhere to stay. There was no Hyatt Regency, no Day’s Inn. What were they going to do? This dear woman and her sister Mary and their brother Lazarus, oh how they loved to have Jesus in their home. They were just given to hospitality. She said, "Look, all of you are tired. Are you hungry? Would you like some home-cooked meals? Are you tired of eating just tacos along the way, this fast food? Why don't you come over to my house. I’ve got enough room. We’ll put you in a nice bed. You can take a bath. I’ll cook you up some good victuals. My sister and I will do some wonderful cooking. We’ll entertain you and then we’ll sit down and have good times together." Then Jesus said, "No, we can’t do that. I’m on my way to be the savior. I’m not normal so I would never accept an invitation into a home to eat and relax. I must always be suffering. I’ll sleep out under the tree stump..." Of course he didn’t say that. He said, "Yes. Great!" The apostles said "That’s wonderful!"
They get in the house and Mary says, "Oh, praise God. I’ve just got so many questions to ask you." Sweet Mary, her mind is up in the clouds thinking all these things. She’s listening, writing down. Martha is trying to catch every word but she’s running back checking the pots, making sure nothing is burning. She’s busy making one of those real Jewish meals. She’s cooking and trying to listen and setting the table and finally she says, "I can’t take it anymore!" She rushes in there ringing her hands saying, "Lord, don’t you care? My sister has left me to do the work all by myself. You had better tell her to get off her fanny and come in and help." "Martha, Martha." He didn’t rebuke her. He was sweet to her. You read Luke’s gospel to see how he dealt with women. He said, "Oh Martha. Dear sweet Martha. You are so worried and upset about a stupid meal and about the table setting. Mary has chosen wisely. We can eat. Bring out some cold cuts, sliced tongue is fine. The fellowship, the talking, the friendship, the conversation, that’s what’s important, not the meal."
You know sometimes we forget that. We get so wound up making sure that the glasses don't have any spots and you’ve got to get the plates out and your daughter puts the fork on the wrong side of the plate and the whole evening is ruined. Those of you who like to bake bread have had it flop on you before. I asked my mother-in-law what to do when you have bread that flops. She wisely answered, "Just give it a foreign name. Call it Greek bread or Mediterranean bread. Call it something and they’ll eat it anyway." And it’s true. Hospitality does not necessarily mean a heavily laden table of homemade delights. Hospitality means that you come in and share what you’ve got but it’s the fellowship, the conversation, the wit, what’s being talked about that brings happiness. Look at these dear sweet women, Martha and Mary, his friends for life. I’m not like some Mormon who says he married them. There is no indication here that he married them. He was a friend of women. He’s the Lord of women as well as men.
He’s also the savior who came for the sick. "And it came about that while He was in one of the cities, behold, there was a man full of leprosy; and when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and implored Him, saying, "Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean." And He stretched out His hand, and touched him, saying, "I am willing; be cleansed." And immediately the leprosy left him." (Luke 5:12-13, NASB) I wish I could see something like that. You know you have these crazy Pentecostals running around saying that they can shorten legs and arms and ears pop out. From what I’ve read this is completely fraud. You have the guy with one eye and an empty socket. He would put a patch over his good eye and supposedly use the empty socket to read the Bible. Well, any magician can do that. There are various types of tricks you can use to rip people off. But here, this man was immediately cleansed of leprosy. We’re not talking about psycho-somatic types of illnesses here. Some of you were with me when I did that conference and said that anyone can be a faith healer. I could look out to this side of the room and say that someone there has back problems. Someone on the other side of the room has blood pressure problems. Someone has neck problems. What are the chances of this? These types of statements are not miraculous. You can find people like that. But when someone has leprosy that’s not psycho-somatic. The leprosy is on him, it covered him. You can see it. This leper comes up and Jesus heals him. Jesus came to seek and to save those who were sick, who were tired, and who needed help. He also came to well people. For example when he went to Martha’s and Mary’s place, everyone was healthy there. He’s the Lord of well people and sick people, rich people and poor people, Jews, Gentiles, male and female. Luke also tells us that Jesus came for those who were popular.
And as Jesus returned, the multitude welcomed Him, for they had all been waiting for Him. And behold, there came a man named Jairus, and he was an official of the synagogue; and he fell at Jesus' feet, and began to entreat Him to come to his house; for he had an only daughter, about twelve years old, and she was dying. (Luke 8:40-42, NASB)
He was popular. He was made one of the elders, one of the rulers of the synagogue. The centurion was popular. He helped them build the local synagogue. The elders came and plead earnestly for him. He was popular. Jesus Christ has come to save popular people. Don't be afraid of it. If God has given you the gift of likability that’s wonderful. There are some people you meet that you like the first time you meet them. But you know Jesus also came for those who are unpopular.
And after that He went out, and noticed a tax-gatherer named Levi, sitting in the tax office, and He said to him, "Follow Me." And he left everything behind, and rose and began to follow Him. (Luke 5:27-28, NASB)
Two words about this as an aside. First, when Jesus went up to people be they fishermen, tax collectors, or whatever they were, and he said, "Follow me", he was not speaking to people who were total sinners who had never heard anything about him, who didn’t consider themselves believers. If someone walked up to you in your place of business and said, "Follow me", you would say, "Why? Who are you?" You would want to know who they were, where they came from, by what authority they were speaking, what they wanted, where they were going, how you were going to get there, and who’s paying for it. And how soon you would get back. Some people are a little silly. They think Jesus walked around to total strangers and said, "You, over there by the garbage can, follow me!" You’ve got to think about the situation. People weren’t doing that. These were people who knew about Jesus. They were believers already. This was a call to Christian service, an itinerant ministry.
Secondly, do you notice that it says he left everything? The cults love this verse. What does that mean? Does it mean he gave everything to Jesus? The cults use this to teach their people to give all their earthly possessions to the cult leaders. That’s not what it means. When it says that he left everything it means that he left whatever he was doing right then. It doesn’t mean that he gave up his money. How do I know? Verse 29 says "Levi gave a big reception for Him in his house; and there was a great crowd of tax-gatherers and other people who were reclining at the table with them." If he had given up all of his wealth and possessions how could he have a big house and enough money to cater a big party? Evidently whatever the expression meant did not mean that he gave up the deed to his house and gave away all his money because he still had it, honey, and he used it for the Lord. It meant he gave it up perhaps in the sense that he recognized now a stewardship of everything that he has and he used it for the glory of God. So he wanted Jesus and his disciples to come stay in his house. He got them in there and told them he wanted to throw a party. Levi had alot of friends who weren’t very popular. So he sends out the invitations, get a caterer involved, has wine and food. Here come the tax collectors. Give them free food and they’ll be there, just like Baptists. Some other people came and they were eating with them. Then the tongue-clickers, the Pharisees and teachers of the law who belonged to their sect, just complained. "Why do you eat and drink with tax-collectors and sinners? That is just not right. It is the wrong kind of people. It’s going to ruin his reputation. If you’re going to be with the right kind of people you have to be with the popular people, not the unpopular ones. You’ve got to go with the flow."
Jesus said, "It is not the healthy man who needs a doctor, but the sick." That’s a good verse to use with those faith nuts who don’t believe in taking their kids to the doctor. "I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance." Here the Lord says, "I’m for the unpopular people as well as the popular people." I remember when I was in college in the 60’s, various campus groups forgot this message. In their literature it actually told them to look around the campus, find the popular kids and go after them with the gospel. But some fat, buck-toothed, cross-eyed, pimpled kid, don't bother with him. Lord, have mercy, may he remain a Catholic. You want your campus group to have beautiful people. There was that insidious idea that the gospel was for people who were cool and hip and popular and with it. As for the rest of the people, well, God have mercy on them. They’re to be saved but kept out of sight as much as possible. I remember one guy complained, saying, "These Christian girls look like a kennel club here." Of course I reminded him that he didn’t look like Mr. Universe by any means. But he was complaining because he just wanted to see beautiful girls sitting in the Bible study.
As you read Luke, he tells us that Jesus was the Lord of unpopular people as well as popular. He wants them sick and well, male and female, Jew and Gentile, rich and poor, red and yellow, black and white. They are all precious in his sight. You know Jesus loved old people. Kids, you’ve got to listen to this. He’s the Lord and Savior of old people. I couldn’t help but think again of a little special biography that Luke gives. Remember that dear sweet woman in Luke 2:36. Oh, I love her. I never met her but I will one day. There was this prophetess, Anna. She was very old. She had lived with her husband only seven years after their marriage. Then he died. She was a widow until she was 84. Every time the doors of the church were open, she was there. She never left the temple. She’s there day and night, worshipping, praying, fasting. Thank god for Anna, what a woman of God. Coming up to them at that very moment. She came up to Joseph and Mary. The Holy Spirit had talked to her too. She said, "I thank God and praise God. Please let me hold that baby." They already had Simeon take the child. Now this woman rushes up. She spoke about the child to everyone who would listen to her. Everyone who was looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem. This was an 84 year old woman with trembling hands taking that baby in her arms. She already fell in love with Jesus. He was her Lord even though he was only an infant. He came for the elderly. He also came for the young.
And they were bringing even their babies to Him so that He might touch them, but when the disciples saw it, they began rebuking them. But Jesus called for them, saying, "Permit the children to come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. "Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it at all." (Luke 18:15-17, NASB)
People were bringing their babies to Jesus. I tell you, I do that by faith. When those babies come out of the womb, lift them up to Jesus. If you’re a parent you’re going to do that. If I knew Jesus was at the Hyatt Regency today, I would not be here today. I would be over there with my kids. How many of you parents say, "I want Jesus to bless my children." They came up to him just as natural as can be. Why? Because he was a normal human being! He loved kids. He had the reputation that he was gentle with children. He loved them. He would touch them and bless them and hold them and kiss them and hug them. He was not one of these rough, macho, baby-hating men. You see them on television. They never get married, never have kids, 64 years old and still running around. He loved kids. When the disciples saw this they told them to get away. But Jesus called the children. He said, "Let these children come. Don’t hinder them for the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the Kingdom of God like a little child (not childish faith but childlike faith) will never enter it."
He loved children, didn’t he? Jesus loves children. He loves babies. He loves little children who will come to Jesus. There he switches from talking about babies to children who could come under their own power. He said, "Let these children come." There is a little girl with curly hair and he says, "Let that girl come." She comes running. He puts her on his lap, kisses her, pats her on the head, and says, "Father, bless her." Don't you think she grew up remembering this? Don't you think she had some stories to tell her grandchildren about the day Jesus came to town. You see, he is for the old people, the young people. He’s for the good people and the bad people.
It’s really a shame, you know, that Christians try to out do each other in terms of how wicked they were before Christ came. I remember in Bible college how people were almost tempted to make up stories. "I was a Mafia hit man." Then everybody would say, "Praise God!" If you gave a testimony that you were raised in a Christian home and never got into anything evil, you almost felt like apologizing for being righteous. I remember one professor who said to me, "Who is the sinner in heaven who has the greatest story of grace, the greatest testimony of grace? Is it someone who is a murderer, a thief, a child molester, what is it? It’s the one who gets up and says, "God by his grace kept me and preserved me from all those iniquities, from the lusts and evils of youth, from being a blasphemer. God’s grace kept me." It takes more grace to keep someone than it does to forgive someone. Good people can be saved. Also, bad people can be saved. That is, what the world would consider bad.
And they sailed to the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. And when He had come out onto the land, He was met by a certain man from the city who was possessed with demons; and who had not put on any clothing for a long time, and was not living in a house, but in the tombs. And seeing Jesus, he cried out and fell before Him, and said in a loud voice, "What do I have to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me." For He had been commanding the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For it had seized him many times; and he was bound with chains and shackles and kept under guard; and [yet] he would burst his fetters and be driven by the demon into the desert. And Jesus asked him, "What is your name?" And he said, "Legion"; for many demons had entered him. And they were entreating Him not to command them to depart into the abyss. Now there was a herd of many swine feeding there on the mountain; and the demons entreated Him to permit them to enter the swine. And He gave them permission. And the demons came out from the man and entered the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake, and were drowned. And when the herdsmen saw what had happened, they ran away and reported it in the city and [out] in the country. And the people went out to see what had happened; and they came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting down at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind; and they became frightened. And those who had seen it reported to them how the man who was demon-possessed had been made well. And all the people of the country of the Gerasenes and the surrounding district asked Him to depart from them; for they were gripped with great fear; and He got into a boat, and returned. But the man from whom the demons had gone out was begging Him that he might accompany Him; but He sent him away, saying, "Return to your house and describe what great things God has done for you." And he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him. (Luke 8:26-39, NASB)
This was someone who was really freaked out. His hair was matted. He stank. He was foul, dirty. Mark tells us how he could break chains. No one could control him. He was totally out of control. He was the last person in town you would want to meet on a dark night. He was a dangerous lunatic. Who is the first one to meet Jesus when he steps out of the boat? When he saw Jesus he screamed, fell at his feet, and shouted at the top of his voice, "What do you want to do with me, Jesus Son of the Most High God? I beg you, don’t torment me." Why were they screaming? Because Jesus had already, before he got to the shore, been commanding the evil spirits to come out of the man. These spirits would seize him and even if he was chained he would break them. He was driven by the demons into solitary places. Jesus goes on to deliver this man of the demons. What’s amazing to me is that when the people showed up they found the man sitting at Jesus feet, now dressed, and in his right mind. The local people were not happy about this. They told Jesus to get out of town. This man who had been crazy, a bad man, violent, begged to go with Jesus. Jesus said, "No, you’ve been away from your wife and children how many years is it? Do you know how long your wife and kids have been without Daddy home? I want you to go home. You tell them what God has done." This man went home and he told them all that Jesus had done for him. Jesus knew this man needed to go home. Jesus in his mercy saved the bad man as well as the good man.
Now if I were Luke I would have added a few other stories. I would have talked about Jesus saving fat people and thin people. There are fat people, thin people, short people, tall people. Jesus came for them. Jesus came for ugly people. He came for beautiful people. He came for people who are bald. He came for people who are hairy. Jesus came for bold people. He came for shy people. He came for loud people and for quiet people. Oh how I used to struggle with that because I’m naturally an extrovert. I like to laugh. I like to tell stories. I got to Bible college and the man they elevated, he was the dean, he was the Christian personality. Shuffled his feet. If you asked him anything he would say quietly, "Well, I don't know. I’m not sure." Anyone who was bold and loud was viewed as sinful and carnal. The only way that Jesus wanted you was to be shy and quiet. Then I moved on and got out of that nut house and went to other places where if you weren’t bold and loud then you were unspiritual. It depends from church to church. You’ve got to get it in your mind to be what you are. God loves you as you are. Jesus died for you as you are. If you’re shy and quiet, fine. If you are bold and loud, fine. Jesus loves you if you’re athletic or non-athletic. Just because you’re not out hiking the Grand Canyon this week and you can’t ski and jump out of airplanes does not mean that you are unspiritual.
Jesus loves people who have high IQs and low IQs. You find them in the gospels. Some people are 20 watt, some 40 watt, some 60 watt, some 100 watts. God loves you the way you are. Jesus came for people educated and uneducated. In some Reformed circles if you don't have a high IQ and you’re not educated you’re just the dregs of the earth. No, Jesus came for all kinds of people. Dr. Luke was very educated. The way he wrote makes it obvious that he was well educated. Then you look at old Peter. He would mix up plural subjects with singular verbs. He would have "we ‘uns" and "we is going to town". You find it in the Greek. That’s proof that Peter wrote it. He was an uneducated fisherman. Jesus loves people even when they were smart, shrewd people. Thank God he loved them even if they were stupid and dumb. It was the famous Dr. Johnson who said, "God must love poor people because he sure made alot of them." But I could say the same for this, "God must love stupid people because he sure made alot of them."
What did you learn? You learned exactly what Dr. Luke wanted you to learn. That Jesus Christ proved irresistible to all races and ranks of mankind. Up and outs. Down and outs. From the guttermost to the uttermost. Jesus came to receive sinners. Fat ones, thin ones, short ones, tall ones. Thank God he didn’t come just for the well and the wealthy. Do you realize how cruel that prosperity teaching is then, That you must have health and wealth and prosperity? No, my friend, that’s not what Luke wanted us to know. Who followed Jesus? He starts right out with little biographies. People from every walk of life followed Jesus. What does that mean? You’ve got to follow Jesus too. Teenagers, when are you going to make up your mind to follow the Lord? He’s for teenagers. Don’t think that you will serve God when you are old. You may never make it. You’ve got to serve Christ now. You ask Jesus to be your Savior and Lord and then follow him all the days of your life.
Dear saints, those of you who have passed from wrath unto grace, keep this in mind so you don't have inferiority complexes about the opportunities you have to serve God. Instead of whining about what you can’t do or where you can’t go, you should say, "Jesus loves me as I am and he gives me gifts to minister to people." Thank God if the only thing you can do is bake cakes. Then you’re going to bake cakes for Jesus. Serve the Lord like Martha did. She was a good cook. She knew she could make a really good meal for Jesus. She used it for the Lord. That’s fine. Use your computer for the Lord. Use your home. Use whatever God has given you and don’t have an inferiority complex. Jesus loves you as you are. He takes you and makes you his servant. He gives you a ministry to the church and to the world that you can touch lives for the better.