Luke 10:17-21; “Eternal Victory”

It’s easy to get discouraged when we look around at the world, but today’s lesson will encourage us to look at what Jesus says and allow that to speak into our hearts.

Everything Jesus did was focused on God the Father’s divine purpose, God’s will.

Jesus in the last months of His life ministry is training His disciples to share the Good News throughout Israel and throughout the world. Jesus sends out 72 commissioning them by twos in towns in the area. As these groups begin to come back from their mission trips, they returned with joy at how people had listened and expressed excitement in people being delivered even from demons.

Jesus replies to them, “I saw satan fall” meaning satan’s days are numbered because not even the powers of hell can stand up in the power of Jesus. This is still true today. We are in spiritual warfare, cultural war with struggles of darkness against the forces of God. This battle can be discouraging to believers, but Jesus is still saying to us today, “I saw satan fall!” Jesus’ word and in the Holy Spirit, there is power to defeat the enemy! Jesus is still in control! There is power in His name – do not despair, do not give up. He is good, He is God and he is powerful and He will bring about everything He has promised that will happen! He is going to win the victory! Jesus knew that 2000 years ago and He knows that today. He IS the Victor!

Jesus Christ conquers!

Jesus Christ is victorious!

It is very easy to become preoccupied with the tragedies of life and miss out on the incredible things that God is doing. Today he is moving around the world in remarkable ways – Here in the western world we have lost sight of that as our western culture moves further and further away from its biblical foundations and roots.

But at the same time western culture has been moving away from God – the rest of the world has been coming to Him.

Pastor shares statistics and information from the book, “To The Ends Of The Earth: Pentecostalism and the Transformation of World Christianity” by Alan Heaton Anderson, Oxford Press.

In 1950: 80% of the world’s Christians lived in Europe and North America.

In 2005: the majority of Christians lived in Asia, Africa and Latin America.

In Africa:

1900 – 9 million believers in Jesus

1950 – 60 million believers in Jesus

2005 – 393 million believers in Jesus

God is doing remarkable things! This is the greatest revival of the human race!

Jesus said, “This gospel of the kingdom will be preached throughout the nations as a testimony and then the end will come.” The very thing Jesus predicted and that scriptures declare – is coming true in our day and our time!

What was seemingly impossible 2000 years ago in Jesus being shared around the world, is a living reality today! We are seeing scripture come to fulfillment in our lifetimes.

God keeps His word and even in the darkest times He shows Himself to be God – to be good – to long for His people to return to Him. He desires to bless us and fill us with His Holy Spirit. He longs to call the Western church to the very reality that the church around the world is seeing today! That reality is that God is near, can be trusted, that His Holy Spirit is at work and can be relied upon and that He is the God that does mighty things! NOTHING HAS CHANGED! HE IS STILL THE SAME! He gives life transforming power anchored in Jesus’ death and resurrection.

Jesus ends today’s text with, “Rejoice that your names are written in heaven!!” When we come to repentance we recognize our need for a Savior, that in our own strength we can’t come to God, it’s only through receiving Jesus as our Savior.

We do not need to be filled with despair. God says if we know Jesus we do not have to fear for the future. We can live with joy and peace, hope and assurance in knowing God will keep every promise, He will bring all to fulfillment. We have our names written in heaven!

Jesus went on to say, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things form the wise and learned and revealed them to little children.” What does Jesus mean by this?

In western culture we are taught that the most important thing is personal knowledge, wisdom and education; but Jesus says real wisdom comes in becoming a child and recognizing that we don’t bring anything at all to this heavenly party. God gives everything and like a child I need to be totally dependent upon Him.

By human wisdom no one will ever draw near to God and by human intelligence no one will ever come to know the Lord Jesus Christ.

“Lord, raise up workers for the harvest! We ask that what you are doing elsewhere, You do here! Bring Awakening. Bring revival!”

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St. Luke’s Account is part three of our Two Year Study of the Gospels. The Gospel of Luke takes a look at the life of Jesus, beginning with the well-known Christmas stories. Luke, a non-Jew, offers a unique perspective into the story of Jesus’ life.

This study is great for large group. small group or home group Bible study.

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This teaching is from Matthew 24:6-28.

Today’s class continues with Jesus’ discussion with His disciples on the last days. In verse 6 He tells of wars and rumors of wars with the encouragement to not be alarmed, to not live in fear, because even in the most uncertain of times believers know that God is in control.  Jesus goes on to mention famines and earthquakes with nation against nation and calls this the beginnings of birth pains.

Jesus uses the analogy of a woman giving birth and the birth pains to represent the coming of the last days. Birth pains start slowly – far apart and then grow closer as she gets closer to delivering the baby – stronger and closer.   Meaning these last days events (wars, famines, earthquakes) will become more and more frequent and more severe.

Pastor shares statistics pointing to the evidence of these last days birth pains ramping up.  

Verses 9-11 point to even more attacks and persecution of believers and again these are likened to birth pains – becoming more frequent. Pastor shares stats showing the evidence of Christian martyrdom ramping up.

Verses 12-14 – Jesus shares that there will be an increase of wickedness and that love for God will grow cold. Jesus encourages us to stand firm to the end and not to buy into the narrative of the culture.  Jesus goes on to say that the gospel message would be preached as a testimony to all nations and then the end will come.

With the current technology over the last 100 years, people have come to know of Jesus by the 100s of millions.

We don’t know the day – but we are called to be awake and prepared.

As we read on, Jesus’ focus switches to the “abomination that causes desolation” – Jesus refers to Daniels’ prophecy in Daniel 9:26-27.  In Daniel’s vision he saw the day the Messiah would come, that He would be cut off – killed – and shortly after that the city of Jerusalem and the temple would be destroyed.

This all came to fruition approximately 40 years after Jesus spoke of Daniel’s vision from centuries earlier from the Messiah’s birth, to His death and 40 years later the temple and the city of Jerusalem being destroyed in 70AD.

Jesus warns them of what’s coming so they will be prepared.  “When you see the signs get out of the city of Jerusalem,” He said.  Many were saved because they took this warning seriously.

Many Bible scholars and Pastor as well, see The Great Tribulation is the suffering of God’s people until the return of Jesus, not just the temple’s destruction, but a time through to the end of time.

In Matthew 24:21 Jesus refers to the great tribulation, saying, “For then” meaning from that point on, there will be great tribulation, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now – and never to be equaled again.  What is Jesus saying? What does the New Testament tell us of the great tribulation? 

Many Bible scholars look at the great tribulation not simply as one narrow slice of tribulation at the end of time or one narrow slice of time of the temple’s destruction but basically the suffering of God’s people until the return of Jesus. 

Jesus says in verses 22-25 that these days would be cut short for the sake of believers and to not fall for false Christs or other religious schemes and ideas but instead to get into His word and search out His truth and to not be deceived.  He is sharing this with us so we are prepared.

In today’s closing verses, 26-28, Jesus says we will all know when He returns! There will be no doubt when He returns!! 

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Heavenly Father, we thank You that our citizenship is in heaven through our Lord Jesus Christ.  We also praise You for the privilege of being an American citizen, as well. We pray for divine wisdom that our choices would be shaped by Your truth and by Your values. In this time of cultural collapse, Lord, may we choose those values which are timeless and true over those which are trendy and treacherous. Give wisdom to Your people, call the hearts of all back to the Living God that together we may sing Your praises until the return of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we will praise You forever. Amen.

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Oh Lord, our God, our hope is in You and in You alone and so we pray with confidence the words of “America, the Beautiful,” Stanza 2:
O beautiful for pilgrim feet 
Whose stern impassioned stress 
A thoroughfare for freedom beat 
Across the wilderness! 
America! America!
God mend thine every flaw, 
Confirm thy soul in self-control, 
Thy liberty in law!
Lord, that is the prayer of our heart for our native land. We pray for a mighty move of God in our day, we pray for revival across this nation, we pray for hearts returning to You, and we ask this in the strong name of Jesus, our Savior. Amen.

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Scripture: Acts 20:32-38

Pastor continues with the story of Paul’s talk with the leadership of the church in a gathering in the town of Miletus – it is Paul’s farewell speech to this group of believers. Paul finishes his time with these friends and leaders with them all in prayer together. There are tears as the leaders are grieved at knowing they will not see Paul again. Paul knew he had complete his work here and in the surrounding cities and areas. The chapter closes with them walking him to the ship to leave.

But let’s focus on one of the words from Paul’s speech as it draws to an end. He talks about our inheritance in Christ. 

What does inheritance mean in the Bible?  
The biblical definition of inheritance is speaking of what God gives to us through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 1:13-14 tells us that when we believed in Christ, Christ identified us as His own by giving us the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is the guarantee that Jesus will give us the inheritance He promised and that He has purchased us to be His own people. 

1 Peter 1:3-4 tells us of an inheritance that comes to us through the death and resurrection of Christ and is an inheritance that can never perish or fade away.

Jesus’ death and resurrection is the heart of our inheritance. BUT there’s more!

The Essential Fundamentals of the Faith:
    1.    Deity – Jesus is true man and true God
    2.    Death – Jesus, the Lamb of God, through His death, paid for our sins on the cross
    3.    Resurrection – Jesus’ resurrection assures we too shall rise. The resurrection is God’s declaration that the sacrifice of Jesus is accepted.
    4.    Return – Jesus is alive forever more and is coming back. His second coming- He’s coming back for us.

These fundamentals are pointed to in the Old Testament, and are fulfilled in the New Testament.

Jesus’ return is the heart of Paul’s teaching and Christ’s return is what assures us of our inheritance.

Are you doubting the Resurrection of Christ? Dr. Gary R. Habermas is a scholar of the resurrection of Christ and has written several books. Here are two we suggest for those wanting to read about the evidence of Jesus resurrection:

“On the Resurrection: Evidences”
And
“On the Resurrection: Refutations”

Anthony Flew, a renown atheist debated Gary Habermas. Several years later Antony rejected atheism because the evidence for God is convincing.

The evidence for the existence of God and for the resurrection of Jesus is powerful and convincing. Many people have never examined the evidence but instead they have just bought into what they’ve been told by the world rather than the things they could have discovered.

What does it mean for us that Jesus is alive?  What is our destiny? It is NOT as a spirit in heaven. The Bible teaches the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.

Pastor sites these verses for what the New Testament says about the: 
Deceased Believers
Luke 23:43 – in paradise
Philippians 1:23 – with Christ, better by far
1 Thessalonians 3:13-14 – asleep

BUT on our destiny we read in 
1 Thessalonians 4:16-17
1 Corinthians 15:22-26, 51-52
Titus 2:13-14
John 5:28-29 that:

    1.    Jesus will come down from heaven with a trumpet call and a loud voice of the archangel
    2.    The dead will rise
    3.    We will be with the Lord forever
    4.    A new heaven and a new earth
    5.    Death will be destroyed
    6.    We will all be changed in the twinkling of an eye – imperishable!

Our destiny is to be raised to life forever with God with transformed glorified bodies in a new heaven and a new earth – ALL things new.

May the truth that we too shall rise anchor us in our faith in God and give us strength in opposition, joy in the face of loss and assurance in the face of death.

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Almighty God, we believe Your word that with You nothing is impossible and that You desire all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. And so we boldly pray for a massive move of God in our land. We pray for millions of hearts reopened to Jesus’ call to repent and believe the Gospel, the Good News. We pray, Lord, that we may see the days when people will listen to You and hear Your voice and will return to You. We pray this with confidence in Your word, in Your Holy Spirit and in the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, in who’s name we pray. Hear us, Oh Lord, bring life to our land. Amen.

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Psalm 46:1 says, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.”  Lord, in trouble times we come before You on behalf of the nations and our nation. We pray, Lord, for a mighty move of the Holy Spirit in our land, we pray that You would be honored and adored in Your church and throughout the nation, we pray that hearts would be returning to You that a mighty move of the Spirit of the Living God would restore families, marriages, communities, cities, and states.  Be still, You tell us, and know that I am God. Lord, may you be exalted in the nation. Amen.

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Oh Lord our God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, You told Your ancient people, Israel, I am the God who heals you. We pray healing over our land in these trouble days, Lord. We pray a restoration of honor and integrity in our nation’s institutions, a respect for the rule of law in our society. Restore love and devotion in our families, faithfulness in our marriages, proper education in our institutions of higher learning. Above all, we pray that You would rekindle faith and trust in You, the Living God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, to whom belongs all praise and adoration now and forever. Amen.

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Luke 9:51-56; “Fire From Heaven”

Our study today starts with a verse stating that Jesus “resolutely set out for Jerusalem.” Jesus was, without any hesitation, heading to Jerusalem, into the very city in which He knew He would suffer, be crucified and die. Knowing full well what was ahead – He resolutely – without hesitation – headed to Jerusalem. No shrinking back! Jesus was relentless in accomplishing what the Father desires.

What does the Father desire? He desires that ALL come to know Him, His love, mercy, forgiveness and life transforming power. God’s desire is that ALL people repent and come to a knowledge of Jesus our Savior.

And so to follow through on God’s heart, Jesus is relentless in pursuing the Father’s will and relentless in His pursuit of each one of us.

As we explore the next verses we read that the people in Samaria did not welcome Jesus because He was headed for Jerusalem, and they didn’t like where He was going nor did they like the people in that city. Doesn’t this make you wonder how many people have missed out on all Jesus has to offer because they are offended at something He has said, or done or something that the Bible declares.

REJECTION: Jesus was rejected over and over again, by:
1. Israel’s leaders
2. His own family
3. Samaritans

How do we feel when we are rejected? Bitter? Angry? A desire to get even? Retaliate? The Samaritan’s rejection of Jesus elicited this response from Jesus’ disciples, James and John: “Lord, do You want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?”

This is not what Jesus wanted and He rebuked them but there would be a day God would send fire from heaven and that was at Pentecost, 50 days after Jesus’ ascension, when the Holy Spirit was poured out. On that day people in Samaria were filled with the Holy Spirit and drawn to the knowledge of Jesus the Messiah. Transformed. Changed forever! Gaining life, forgiveness, hope, peace, and joy. That is precisely what Jesus is still doing and desires to do today, to draw us to Himself, transform us from within and to give us joy and hope because He set His face toward Jerusalem and He went there for each one of US!

Jesus rebuked James and John that day, but in the days to come He would also transform them. This is all taking place about 6 months before Jesus’ death and resurrection and about 8 months before the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus is determined to accomplish all the Father desires and He is still determined to do that today in each of our lives. His desire is to fill us with His Holy Spirit, to know Him and to show His incredible love in the way we treat others.

Jesus is working to change the world one person at a time, beginning with you and me!

There also is a lesson in not growing weary – maybe we are looking around and wondering how much longer the Lord will put up with all the garbage going on in the world.

But then we see the testimony of Jesus’ life and how much our Savior gave of himself to accomplish our salvation. When we see this we too are changed. We realize our attitudes change as well.

What God calls us to do through the life and ministry and resurrection of Jesus, is to pray for a different kind of Fire. Holy Fire. The fire of the Holy Spirit!

To forgive as we are forgiven in Christ.
To love as we are loved in Christ.
To serve as Christ has served us.

God’s heart is that people return to Him.

God’s heart is for Revival!
Awakening!

What we see in Jesus is the Father heart!

Check out our website – everything we offer is FREE!! https://
www.awakeusnow.com

Watch the video from our website! https://www.awakeusnow.com/2-year-study-of-the-gospels-upper

Watch the video from our YouTube Channel!! https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTaaqrC3dMOzMkhPyiNWwlJRpV6Bwpu01

St. Luke’s Account is part three of our Two Year Study of the Gospels. The Gospel of Luke takes a look at the life of Jesus, beginning with the well-known Christmas stories. Luke, a non Jew, offers a unique perspective into the story of Jesus’ life. This study is great for large group. small group or home group Bible study.

Check out this episode!

We pray Psalm 85:4, “Restore us again, God our Savior.” Lord, in these rebellious times we pray for a mighty move of Your Holy Spirit. Open eyes blinded by the deception of the enemy, revive hearts hardened by the deceitfulness of sin, change minds corrupted by lies and half truths, restore wayward souls to the joy of the Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior and Deliver, restore us again, God our Savior.  We pray this over our nation. We pray this over the body of Christ. We pray this over our nation’s leaders and those in positions of authority and we pray this in Your strong name. Amen.

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