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15th May 2005 CHILDLIKE OR CHILDISH? Pastor Linton Smith
This morning.. Alison and I have been in
Kids Alive.. answering questions.. 20 of them.. such as..
What persuaded you to go for Port Adelaide? What do you do
all day? What is Christianity? Why don’t we have a Pope?
What does the new church look like? What is it like
preaching in front of everyone? Today.. Luke 7:18-35..
and here, too, questions are being asked.. John the Baptist
asks a question.. Jesus asks questions.. As we work our way
through these questions and the answers that are given..
we are confronted with the truth about Jesus and John the
Baptist, and given a glimpse of a huge privilege and a
challenge to respond.
First of all we are confronted with the
truth about Jesus.. JESUS IS THE ONE.
John the Baptist was in prison on the
other side of the
In Luke 7:20-23
we read..
When the men
came to Jesus, they said, “John the Baptist sent us to you
to ask, ‘Are you the one who was to come, or should we
expect someone else?’” At that very time Jesus cured many
who had diseases, sicknesses and evil spirits, and gave
sight to many who were blind. So he replied to the
messengers, “Go back and report to John what you have seen
and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who
have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised,
and the good news is preached to the poor. Blessed is the
man who does not fall away on account of me.”
John had baptized Jesus.. had been sure Jesus was the One. But now he seems to be having doubts? Perhaps it is the isolation of the prison. Perhaps things are not moving quite as fast as he thought they would. Perhaps he had expected Jesus to have shown His hand by now.. and turned the world upside down.. set him free from prison. Whatever the reason..
John asked his question and
the answer was clear.
Even as
the two sent by John were asking.. Jesus cured many of
disease.. sickness.. evil spirits.. blindness.. and said, Go
and tell John what you have seen and heard! The blind
receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are
cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news
is preached to the poor.
The evidence spoke for itself. Jesus is
the Messiah. He is the One.
John did the right thing.. he asked the
question.. He sets a good example for all of us.. do not
deny your doubts.. face them.. ask your questions..
And Jesus did not reject him because he
asked questions.. He said,
Blessed is the man who does not fall away
on account of me.
What
a gentle rebuke this is.
John, I know what you are going through.. I want you to come
through it. That is how He relates to us.. when we have
doubts.. He gently rebukes.. and encourages..
Next we are confronted with the truth
about John..
JOHN WAS MORE THAN A PROPHET.
In Luke 7:24-28
we read..
After John’s
messengers left, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about
John: “What did you go out into the desert to see? A reed
swayed by the wind? If not, what did you go out to see? A
man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear expensive
clothes and indulge in luxury are in palaces. But
what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and
more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is
written: ”‘I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will
prepare your way before you.’ I tell you, among those born
of women there is no one greater than John..”
Jesus spoke to the crowd.
Had they heard what John’s disciples were asking.. were they
beginning to think that John was wavering? Possibly. In any
case.. Jesus stands by John.. defends him.
He asks..
when you went out to John at the
No, what you went out to see
was a prophet.. and more than a prophet.. you went out to
see the predicted forerunner to the
Then Jesus drives home His
point,
Among those born of women
there is no one greater than John.
There is no one more privileged. He is
God’s chosen forerunner.. sent to announce the Kingdom of
heaven.. He is more than a prophet!
Jesus goes on then.. to speak of an even
higher privilege..
IT IS A HUGE PRIVILEGE TO BE PART OF THE
Jesus says.. Luke
7:28..
I tell
you, among those born of women there is no one greater than
John; yet the one who is least in the
John was highly privileged.. believers
are more highly privileged..
Jesus was
underling
what a huge privilege it is to be part of the
We are familiar
with privileges..
RAC.. Credit card.. shops.. health fund.. offer us
privileges.. 10% off this.. 20% off this.. Cannot keep up
with them.. oh.. could have saved money on that.. slipped my
mind..
And sometimes the
privileges of being part of the
There are very many.. here are just a
few..
Rom 5:1..
peace with God. Rom 5:5.. God gives His Spirit to
us.
Rom 7:6..
we serve in the new way of the Spirit. Rom 8:30..
destined to be glorified.. to be raised.. made just like
Jesus!
Huge privileges.. offered to all.. but
enjoyed only by some.. by those who believe.. who trust in
Jesus..
Jesus then goes on to give us a warning.. BE CAREFUL HOW YOU RESPOND!
Luke writes..
Luke 7:29-35..
(All the people,
even the tax collectors, when they heard Jesus’ words,
acknowledged that God’s way was right, because they had been
baptized by John. But the Pharisees and experts in the law
rejected God’s purpose for themselves, because they had not
been baptized by John.) “To what, then, can I compare the
people of this generation? What are they like? They are like
children sitting in the marketplace and calling out to each
other: ”‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;
we sang a dirge, and you did not cry.’ For John the Baptist
came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say,
‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking,
and you say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of
tax collectors and “sinners.”’ But wisdom is
proved right by all her children.”
All the people..
common
people.. even tax collectors.. agreed with Jesus.. but
not the Pharisees and experts in the Law. Jesus says of
them..
They are like children sitting in the
market place and calling out to each other: ‘We played the
flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and
you did not cry.’
These people were like that! They
rejected John who came neither eating or drinking.. and
Jesus who came doing both..
They were childish.
Their
pride got in the way. Who are these fellows.. we are not
going to follow them. Their love of position and power
got in the way. We are not going to let these fellows
tell us what to do.
Some
people in
A challenge here..
How many
times do I reject a good idea.. because.. not in my
interest.. does not flatter my ego, strengthen my position,
add to my power? Jesus
comments on these people and then says..
But wisdom is proved right by her
children.
He refers to the people who do
believe.. the wise..
the
people who enter the
These people are not childish.. but
childlike.
People were also bringing babies to Jesus
to have him touch them. When the disciples saw this, they
rebuked them. But what did Jesus do? He called the children
to Him.. and said.. in
Luke 18:17..
Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder
them, for the
Childlike
people..
people who are like infants.. who are helpless.. who trust
implicitly.. who receive gifts readily.. enter the kingdom.
When we come to
Jesus like that..
in helplessness.. with trust.. receive Him.. we discover the
greatest privilege there is.. to be part of the
When we humble ourselves.. and come to
Jesus as a little child would.. we are truly blessed! © Pastor Linton Smith 15th May 2005
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