Read Luke
19:1-48
Introduction:
In the nineteenth chapter of Luke we find Jesus passing through Jericho and
finding a little man by the name of Zaccheus, who was so interested in seeing
Jesus that he ran ahead of the crowd and climbed into a tree. (Lk. 19:1-10).
Perhaps to his surprise, Jesus told him to come down and He would go to his
house. This man was “The chief among the publicans” that is (tax collectors).
Therefore, he wasn’t one who was esteemed very highly by the Jews. When Jesus
went to
his house, the people “murmured, saying, That he was gone to be guest with a
man that is a sinner.” (V. 7) Jesus announced that salvation had come to his
house that day. In that setting, Jesus announced the mission of the Son of man:
To seek and save the lost (V. 10).
1. Because people were looking for
the kingdom of God to appear immediately, He give some instruction, using a
parable. by way of an illustration about a man going into a far country (Lk.
19:11-27),
2. On His way to Jerusalem, He came
to Bethphage and Bethany and at the mount of Olives He sent
“two of his
disciples” into a “village” to find a “colt” for Him to ride into the city (Lk.
19:28-40). They find the colt, and He rides into Jerusalem on the colt,
fulfilling a prophecy that had been spoken hundreds of years earlier (Ps.
118:26; Zech. 9:9). Yet, the people who celebrated so fervently, failed to
grasp what was about to happen.
3. As Jesus approached the city of
Jerusalem, He “wept over it” (v. 41-42), revealing the sad state it was in. The
people there had been given such great opportunities, yet they were about to
demand that the Son of God be crucified! He pointed to their future, which was
to be seen as a terrible suffering, shameful, destruction (Vs. 43-44).
4. Jesus enters the temple (vs.
45-48) and began to “cast out them that sold therein, and them that bought;
saying unto them, It is written, My house is the house of prayer: but ye Have
made it a den of thieves.” (Cf. Isa.
56:7). He taught “daily in the temple” but was not appreciated.
Rather “the
chief priest and the scribes and the chief of the people sought to destroy
him.” How sad it is that people, who are religious, become angry when the truth is taught.
Often they react by trying to do away with the messenger because they don’t
like to hear the truth! That has been the case
from Cain until today. Let each of us be mindful that, if we do not
like the truth, it is us that needs to be changed rather than the message. It
is so sad that when men become more interested in material things and social
pleasures, than they are in spiritual matters, that they misuse and turn the Lord’s
church into a place of merchandise, often failing to conduct themselves
honestly in such endeavors!
QUESTIONS:
1. What place did Jesus enter and
pass through and who wanted to “see Jesus” (Lk. 19:1-3)?
2. Profession, possession and
stature of Zaccheus (LK.19:2-5)?
3. What did Zaccheus tell Jesus he
would do (v. 8)?
4. Why did Jesus speak a “parable”
and give some of the details involved in vs. 10-23?
5. What two lesson do YOU SEE in vs.
14, 26-27?
6. From mount of Olives, what did
Jesus send Two disciples to do (Vs. 28-35)?
7. As He rode the colt, what did His
disciples and the Pharisees say and do. What was His response (Lk. 19:34-40)?
8. What did Jesus do and why, as He
can “near” the city (Vs. 41-44)?
9. When He “went into the temple” what did he begin to do
(V. 45)?
10. What did He say about the proper
use of the Lord’s house” and reaction did He receive? (Vs. 46-48)
