Small Things in Luke 13

 I taught Luke 13 today. Here is the outline, very brief...

I couldn't help thinking of the phrase in Zechariah 4:10:  For who has despised the day of small things?

Mustard seed. Birds.  A pinch of leaven. A woman with a spinal deformity. A barren fig tree.  A hen and chicks. 

Small things are only so in size. 

Outline:

Luke 13: Balance of grace and response, Jews and Gentiles 

 

When we read the gospels of Luke, Matthew, and Mark, there is an overriding theme of “to the Jew first, and also to the Gentiles.” The Jews are given the gospel first, but they are not all receptive. Jesus also came for the non-Jews, and many Jews rejected that idea strongly. They had overlooked the Old Testament teachings that salvation was for everyone and the Jews were the examples to the world, had the truth, and would produce the Messiah.  

 

Keep that in mind during this chapter’s lesson, where Jesus gives several examples of grace, deals with misconceptions about God’s dealings with people, and reminds humans they must respond to God’s offer of grace. 

 

The word “saved.” It means to be rescued from something, and to rescue for a purpose. If I save money, it’s for a purpose. It’s not just for  

 

Verses 1-5: Jesus confronts a wrong idea about “bad things happening” as judgment and the human tendency to say “look at those people, they deserve it.” 

 

Verses 6-9: God gives second chances; don’t put your limits on His grace (He will judge). 

The fig tree sometimes represents Israel in the gospels. Whether that is the case here, unclear. Same with parable of birds later. 

 

Verses 10-17: Confrontation over healing on the Sabbath. Led to more anger from adversaries. Are there times we shouldn’t do kind acts for other people? 

 

Verses 18-21: God’s grace and kingdom affects everything. Examples: Yeast, mustard seed. 

 

Verses 22-30: These are four sections teaching about the hesed, the unmatched grace of God. But, is it possible to take the grace of God too far? Yes; at some point He calls people to account for what they do with the gospel and person of Jesus Christ. Our lives on earth are finite. And this message makes listeners angry. It made the Pharisees angry because Jesus says they will be displaced by Gentiles (north, east, south, west).  

 

Verses 31-33. A threat? Or a warning? Jesus lets them know He is not afraid, and He prophesies His death and resurrection.  

 

Verses 34-35: God will not forget about Jews and Jerusalem; in the end times they will be given the opportunity to repent and come to Christ. There is a doctrine that says the church is Israel, that we have replaced them. That is not taught in the Bible.  

  

Take aways:  Humans must respond to the continual offers of grace. God makes our response possible, but we have to respond. He respects our choice and leaves us to it. His holiness cannot tolerate the sin of rejection and disbelief.