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The Gospel of Luke Chapter Seventeen
Commentary by Timothy H. Burdick
Have you ever wondered if you could
escape a certain problem? Well, Jesus tells us in the first
part of Verse One of Chapter 17, that trials are just a part
of life. Second He gives a warning to the person who brings
unnecessary troubles into the path of others.
He said to his disciples: “It is
inevitable that stumbling blocks come, but woe to him
through whom they come!” We all need to take a careful look
at what Jesus is saying here. For many people think that
once they have accepted Christ, their problems will just
disappear. But it is just not so. For those who have never
understood Christ doesn’t promise us an easy life, these
same people may in fact fall away when troubles do come.
Some people have presented a
sugar-coated “gospel.” But Christ was forthright about how
his disciples should prepare for the troubles that they
would encounter. To see this look back with me at Luke
14:28-30, “For which one of you, when he wants to build a
tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see
if he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid
a foundation and is not able to finish, all who observe it
begin to ridicule him, saying, 'This man began to build and
was not able to finish.'”
We need to take the words of Jesus
seriously. Like the man in the parable who was going to
build but didn’t count the cost (Matthew 7:24-27); have we
counted the cost of our walk with Christ? When pressures
come, will we be able to cross the finish line, to complete
what we have started?
Thinking about the warning that
Jesus gives to troublemakers in Luke 17:1-2, I would ask you
to stop and ask yourself – does this apply to you? One
example of how you might sow destruction without knowing it,
is by being a bearer of gossip, or as it might be called,
“slander.” Proverbs 16:27-28 says, “A worthless man digs up
evil, while his words are like scorching fire. A perverse
man spreads strife, and a slanderer separates intimate
friends.”
Think about other ways you might
hurt someone just by using your tongue alone. James says
this in James 3:5-6 - “So also the tongue is a small part of
the body, and yet it boasts of great things. See how great a
forest is set aflame by such a small fire! And the tongue is
a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among
our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets
on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell.”
Jesus has warned us not to put a
stumbling block in the path of another person deliberately.
In Verse Two of Luke 17, He tells us the consequences of
that kind of behavior: “It would be better for him if a
millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into
the sea, than that he would cause one of these little ones
to stumble.”
What is more horrible than not being
able to come up for air when you are under water? Imagine
what it would be like to have a forty-pound millstone hung
around your neck, and then you are being thrown into the
ocean. That is how deadly our actions can be both to
ourselves, and to other people. Jesus is telling us in Luke
17:2 to stop rationalizing these actions away, for they are
not small in the sight of God.
I think that Luke 17:3 can be broken
up into four parts, but before we break it down, let’s read
verses 3 and 4 in their entirety:” Be on your guard! If your
brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.
And if he sins against you seven times a day, and returns to
you seven times, saying, 'I repent,' forgive him.”
The first two words that jump out at
us from these verses, are “repent” and “forgive.” While we
hear a lot about the need of these two qualities in life and
relationships, humanity actually knows very little about
they are. Neither repentance nor forgiveness has anything to
do with our emotions. These are simply acts of obedience to
God that He expects us to follow. So, let’s take a minute to
look at each one.
Repentance is much more than saying
I’m sorry. Additionally, it is a turning to God from my sin.
In order to truly repent therefore, I must take full
responsibility for my actions. Further more I must learn
God’s Word, the Bible, for His Word shows me what is right
and wrong in the first place, keeping me from sin. Please
read Psalm 119 verse 11 in this context. “Thy Word I have
treasured in my heart, that I might not sin against Thee.”
Many times we may think and say, “I
don’t feel like forgiving.” As I said above though, feelings
have nothing to do with the primary act of forgiveness.
While the feelings of forgiveness may (and should) follow,
they do not dictate to our actions. Forgiveness is obeying
God even when we don’t feel like it. Cross reference Luke
17:3-4 with Matthew 18:21 - “Then Peter came and said to
Him, ‘Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I
forgive him? Up to seven times?’” Remember the response of
Jesus for it is very important. Read on with me in Matthew
18:22 - “Jesus said to him, ‘I do not say to you, up to
seven times, but up to seventy times seven.’” Jesus was
basically saying that your forgiveness of others should
extend infinitely.
Nowhere does the Bible talk about
forgiveness without true repentance proceeding from it. So,
while it can be very hard to forgive, we are also to be wise
and not just feel like we have to pardon anyone who gives us
a lame excuse for their actions. After all, someone who is
not honest may say they’re sorry, all the while continuing
to harm others.
I haven’t yet finished with Verse 3
of Luke 17. Jesus started out this verse by telling His
disciples to be careful, to “be on your guard.” The idea of
being careful not only applies to this matter of
forgiveness, but it also has to do with the principal of
self-examination, as I believe that it applies to our
overall Christian lives. While this principle is found
throughout the Scriptures, let me give you a couple of
examples showing what I mean. In the context of the Lord’s
Supper, the Apostle Paul said this in 1 Corinthians 11:28 -
”but let a man examine himself” and THEN he would be in a
condition to “eat of the bread and drink of the cup.” About
this matter of being careful when it comes to our witness,
John the beloved apostle, said in 1 John 2:6, “He that says
he abides in Him, ought himself also to walk just as He
walked.” Use the context of these two verses (1 Corinthians
11:28 and 1 John 2:6) as a guide for further self-study on
this matter.
Lastly in Luke 17:3, there is the
matter of rebuking someone. Too many Christians believe that
they are to always remain silent in the face of wrong, but
Jesus says something different. If our brother or sister has
done wrong toward us, we are to lovingly rebuke that person.
One example of this can be found in Matthew 18:15 - “And if
your brother sins, go and reprove him in private; if he
listens to you, you have won your brother.”
But I believe that the Bible goes
further than just self-vindication. If I am my brother’s
keeper, it is my responsibility to speak out for those who
cannot speak out for themselves. Please look at Proverbs
31:9, “Open your mouth, judge righteously, and plead the
cause of the poor and needy.” I believe the Bible teaches
that when someone else is hurt, I am hurt as well, and
should help them as though I am helping myself.
As a person who is blind, I believe
that part of my responsibility as a Christian, is to speak
out against social injustice. It bothers me when people see
the Bible as an end in itself, and not a means of living a
more productive life. James says much the same thing in
James 1-22 - “But be doers of the Word, and not hearers
only, deceiving yourselves.”
In Luke 17:5-6, Luke records Jesus’
words when He spoke about faith - “The apostles said to the
Lord, 'Increase our faith!' And the Lord said, 'If you had
faith like a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry
tree, 'Be uprooted and be planted in the sea;' and it would
obey you.”
I find the first part of this
passage almost humorous. Can’t you see the apostles clinging
to Jesus like little children? They were saying to Jesus
that the command to forgive would be too hard for them -
they needed a lot of help! And so do we.
I believe that aside from any humor
that we might derive from this passage, there is a lesson
that we seldom look at. In order to see what I mean, look
with me at Matthew 18:3. While Matthew records the disciples
as having one thing on their minds (namely who would be the
greatest in the kingdom), the response of Jesus sets forth a
principal for us all. “Truly I say to you, unless you are
converted, and become like children, you shall not enter the
kingdom of heaven.” Many times, we feel that we have to be
to sophisticated in our faith. But instead, Jesus wants His
followers to have a childlike dependence upon Him. One of my
favorite verses is John 15:4 “Abide in Me, and I in you. As
the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in
the vine; so neither can ye, except ye abide in Me.”
Another lesson that we can learn
from verse five is that we need to be like the apostles,
going to the Lord when we need an increase in our faith. It
seems that we go everywhere else when we have questions. But
note - the place to find what we need is at the feet of
Jesus.
Additionally, we need to remember
that faith is a gift. In first Corinthians12:9, we see faith
listed among the gifts of the Holy Spirit - “to another
faith, in the same Spirit; and to another gifts of healings,
in the one Spirit.” Faith is not something that we have to
emotionally work for. As in our salvation, our works are of
no consequence, because our faith is a gift from God.
Continuing, Jesus tells us in Luke
17:6, that we only need faith as small as a mustard seed in
order to be acceptable to God. The mustard seed was the
smallest plant known to the Jews at that time, yet it could
grow into a great herb. It seems to me that the quantity of
our faith is not the issue here, but the quality of our
faith. It disturbs me when I hear faith being talked about
as a commodity that we can engineer at will, and it should
trouble you also.
It is interesting to me that later
when He faced the cross, Jesus prayed for His followers.
John 17:9 says, “I ask on their behalf; I do not ask on
behalf of the world, but of those whom Thou hast given Me;
for they are Thine:” Whatever situation you are going
through, it is heartening to know that Jesus also is praying
for each one of us who has lived in the centuries since the
days of the apostles. We can see this in John 17:20 “Neither
for these only do I pray, but for them also that believe on
Me through their word.”
In Luke 17:7-10, Jesus spoke about
servanthood. Please look at these verses with me.
“Which of you, having a slave
plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come
in from the field, 'Come immediately and sit down to eat'?
But will he not say to him, 'Prepare something for me to
eat, and properly clothe yourself and serve me while I eat
and drink; and afterward you may eat and drink'? He does not
thank the slave because he did the things which were
commanded, does he? So you too, when you do all the things
which are commanded you, say, 'We are unworthy slaves; we
have done only that which we ought to have done.'”
A servant is seldom recognized, for
he or she is usually in the background. Jesus is using this
illustration to bring this point home. As Christians, our
lives should be characterized by obedience to God and His
word. When we have done what He says we should expect no
fanfare. He has done the work in and through us. We are
servants of God, and there is no merit within us. Our Lord
is the One who deserves the praise.
Now look with me at Luke 17:11-19.
"While He was on the way to Jerusalem, He was passing
between Samaria and Galilee. As He entered a village, ten
leprous men who stood at a distance met Him; and they raised
their voices, saying, ‘Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!’
When He saw them, He said to them, 'Go and show yourselves
to the priests.’ And as they were going, they were cleansed.
Now one of them, when he saw that he had been healed, turned
back, glorifying God with a loud voice, and he fell on his
face at His feet, giving thanks to Him. And he was a
Samaritan. Then Jesus answered and said, ‘Were there not ten
cleansed? But the nine--where are they? Was no one found who
returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?’ And
He said to him, ‘Stand up and go; your faith has made you
well.’"
I find the account of the ten lepers
to be one of the most intriguing sections in the entire
Bible. In order to explain to you what I mean, I would like
to delve a little into the background of leprosy, which is
still a hated and dreaded disease. It would eat away and
disfigure people, who became the outcasts of society. Can
you imagine what loneliness they felt, being estranged from
family and friends? To give you an idea of the humiliation
they experienced, look with me at Exodus 13:45 - “and the
leper in whom the plague is, his clothes shall be rent, and
the hair of his head shall go loose, and he shall cover his
upper lip, and shall cry, ‘unclean, unclean.’”
This story starts out with Jesus
traveling to Jerusalem. If you will notice, the text says He
was traveling along the border between the country where the
Jews lived and the country where the Samaritans lived. This
is important because these two groups of people hated each
other with a vengeance. This was because the Samaritans were
partially of pagan ancestry, and the two groups had
difficulties in the past. Look with me at what John has to
say about these two groups of people, and how they dealt
with each other. John 4:9 says, “The Samaritan woman
therefore said to Him, how is it that You, being a Jew, ask
me for a drink, since I am a Samaritan woman? (for Jews have
no dealings with Samaritans.”). The Mishna (a book of
written traditions about the law of Moses) states, “He that
eats the bread of the Samaritans is like to one that eats
the flesh of swine.” Swine was an unclean animal and an
abomination to the Jews. In order to see this look with me
at Deuteronomy 14:8 - “And the swine, because he parts the
hoof but chews not the cud, he is unclean to you: of their
flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall not
touch.”
Since all this was how the two
groups felt about each other, it is all the more remarkable,
that one of those who Jesus spoke words of healing to was a
Samaritan. In exercising this healing, He told the ten
lepers to show themselves to the priest in obedience to
Leviticus13:17, “And the priest shall look upon him; and,
behold, if the plague be turned into white, then the priest
shall pronounce him ’clean` that has the plague: he is
clean.”
What is even more remarkable though,
in the context of Luke 17:15, is that the Samaritan leper
was the one who turned and gave thanks to God. Since Jesus
told us that only the “foreigner” came back, we can be sure
that all of the other lepers were Jewish.
Showing that it was a foreigner was
the one who gave thanks would have enraged the Jewish
leaders. To see a similar reaction, look with me at Luke
4:27-28 - “And there were many lepers in the time of Elisha
the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman
the Syrian (a non-Jew.) And they (the Jews) were all filled
with wrath in the synagogue, as they heard these things.”
The Bible has much to say about
thanksgiving. Whatever we are going through, we should learn
to develop an attitude of thanksgiving, like the formerly
leprous Samaritan in this story. The apostle Paul says about
this in Colossians 4:2 - “Devote yourselves to prayer,
keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving.“
Please read Luke 17:20-21 with me:
“Now having been questioned by the Pharisees as to when the
kingdom of God was coming, He answered them and said, "The
kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor
will they say, 'Look, here it is!' or, 'There it is!' For
behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst.” Another
translation says that the kingdom of God is “among you.”
We see Jesus here being asked by the
Pharisees: What signs will precede the coming of the kingdom
of God? These religious leaders thought that the Kingdom
would be a physical entity, one that would overthrow the
tyrannical Roman Empire. But responding to their question,
Jesus tells them that the Kingdom of God was among them
right at that moment.
Now in Luke 17:22-36, Jesus turns
His attention to His disciples.
Verse 22 says, “And He said to the
disciples, 'The days will come when you will long to see one
of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it.’”
Have you ever wished that you could live when Jesus did? I
guess we all would like to have been one of His disciples.
Jesus here tells His followers that this longing to be with
Him physically would be in the hearts of future disciples.
Returning to Luke 17, read verse 23,
“They will say to you, 'Look there! Look here!' Do not go
away, and do not run after them.” It is easy to get
sidetracked and follow other voices. But here Jesus tells us
not to do this. Compare this passage, with John 10:5 - “And
a stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from
him because they do not know the voice of strangers.” In
those days and right now in the present, Jesus was and is
shielding His followers from danger.
Now Luke goes on in Verse 24 - “For
just like the lightning, when it flashes out of one part of
the sky, shines to the other part of the sky, so will the
Son of Man be in His day.” This is speaking of the glory
that will be revealed when Jesus comes. There will be no one
who misses Him, for all eyes shall see Him.
While Luke 17:25 is
self-explanatory, I would ask you to meditate on it. For all
of us take the sufferings of Christ too lightly. “But first
must He suffer many things and be rejected of this
generation.” He paid the highest possible price on the
cross, in rescuing you and me from sin.
How do you react when you are
suffering or rejected? The Bible tells us that we are
privileged to enter into Christ’s sufferings. “but to the
degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on
rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you
may rejoice with exultation” (1 Peter 4:13).
The next 4 verses in Luke 17 talk
about the wicked lifestyle that will precede Christ’s return
to this earth. ““And just as it happened in the days of
Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: they
were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying, they
were being given in marriage, until the day that Noah
entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.”
To find out more about this time read Genesis 6:5, “And the
Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth,
and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only
evil continually.”
Look at what it says in Luke 17:27 –
“It was the same as happened in the days of Lot in later
centuries: they were eating, they were drinking, they were
buying, they were selling, they were planting, they were
building; but on the day that Lot went out from Sodom it
rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them
all.” In other words, they went on with their lives, but
they only sought fulfillment in worldly pleasure rather than
finding the joy that is in God. Verse 28 says, “Likewise
even as it came to pass in the day’s of Lot; they ate, they
drank they bought, they sold, they planted they built. Cross
reference this with Genesis chapter 19 Verse 24, “Then the
Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah, brimstone and fire
from the Lord out of heaven.”
Jesus tells us that the time of Noah
and lot will parallel the time of his coming. Luke 17:30
says, “It will be just the same on the day that the Son of
Man is revealed.” Have you become a child of God by asking
Him into your heart by faith? If not, it’s important that
you do place your faith in Him.
Before we look at the remaining
verses in Luke 17, I would like us to really think about
what the coming of Christ means. For we are not merely to
have our eyes on signs - we are to have our focus on Christ.
As the world’s candle grows dimmer and dimmer, ours should
become brighter. Please look at 2 Peter 3:11-12 - “Since all
these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of
people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,
looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God,
because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning,
and the elements will melt with intense heat!“
Starting in Luke 17:31, Jesus gives
some warnings. “On that day, the one who is on the housetop
and whose goods are in the house must not go down to take
them out; and likewise the one who is in the field must not
turn back.” In Israel, the housetop was and often still is
used like a patio. So Jesus is simply telling His followers
to keep their focus on Him. Cross reference this with Luke
9:62 - Jesus replied, “No one who puts his hand to the plow
and looks back is fit for service in the Kingdom of God.”
To see what Jesus is helping us to
understand, let’s read Luke 17:32 - “Remember Lot’s wife.”
Now to get the full meaning, we must cross reference this
verse with Genesis 19:26 “But his wife looked back from
behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.”
Luke 17:33 amplifies the preceding
verse, Luke 17:32 - “whosoever shall seek to gain his life
shall lose it: but whosoever shall lose his life shall
preserve it.” Look at Matthew 16:25 where Jesus says almost
the same thing: “For whosoever would save his life shall
lose it: and whosoever shall lose his life for my sake shall
find it.” The important difference that I see here though,
is that Matthew records the words “for My sake.” We can lose
our lives in a lot of good causes, but Jesus says that if we
merge our identity with His, we will actually find who and
what we really are.
While some have a different
interpretation, which to be fair we will look at, Luke
17:34-36 is to me a clear reference to the “rapture” (the
catching away) of the church. “I say unto you, in that night
there shall be two men in one bed; the one shall be taken,
and the other shall be left. There will be two women
grinding at the same place; one will be taken, and the other
will be left. Two men will be in the field; one will be
taken, and the other will be left.
Now in order to look at the two
views which I spoke about above, we must also read verse 37
- “And answering they said to Him, ‘Where, Lord?’ And He
said to them, ‘Where the body is, there also will the
vultures be gathered.” Some have translated the word for
“vultures” in this passage as “eagles.” As I understand it,
“eagles” may actually be correct. In translating the text in
this way, the people who see this as “vultures,” see the
words of Jesus as a statement of judgment. Eagles do prey on
other animals, but not humans. Therefore if this is
translated “eagles,” the idea of judgment doesn’t make sense
in this context. The translation that I like is that where
the Body of Christ is, His children are gathered together.
The Bible says that like the eagle, we who have trusted in
Christ are overcomers. To see this please read 1 John 5:5,
“And who is he that overcometh the world, but he that
believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?
The word “gospel” means “good news.”
The Christian gospel is all about victory. If you feel
defeated, you can take heart because Christ is our
conqueror.
If I can be of any help, please
contact me atmynvm@cox.net.
Thank you for reading this, and please join me next time.
Friday Study Ministries
The First Church On The Net
www.FridayStudy.org
www.FirstChurchOnTheNet.org
"While
we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8)
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