LUKE LESSON 31
We will begin this lesson with Luke 11:37 "And as he spake, a
certain Pharisee besought him to dine with him: and he went in, and
sat down to meat." Luke 11:38 "And when the Pharisee saw [it], he
marvelled that he had not first washed before dinner."
This Pharisee was perhaps one who had been dispatched to watch
Jesus to see if He might find something that he could accuse Him of.
It appears however, that Jesus has impressed the Pharisee enough that
he took Jesus home with him. These Pharisees went through meaningless
washings before they ate as a formality. The Pharisees and other
people of the synagogue are caught up in ritualistic washings and
other senseless formalities. They had no idea at all what any of it
meant. They just did what was expected of them and went on. They never
even tried to understand why.
Luke 11:39 "And the Lord said unto him, Now do ye Pharisees make
clean the outside of the cup and the platter; but your inward part is
full of ravening and wickedness." Luke 11:40 "[Ye] fools, did not he
that made that which is without make that which is within also?"
Jesus, in these two verses, is telling this Pharisee that he had
taken all kinds of care to make himself, his home, his table, and the
things on the table look perfect from the outside, but he had not
done anything to cleanse himself from within. He tells the Pharisee
that God, who made him, cares more for the soul within a man than He
does all of this formality of washing the outside. Jesus tells the
Pharisee that he looks pretty good outside, but is filled with
wickedness. The sad thing is this Pharisee thinks he is alright with
God because of all these rituals he does. He is lost because his heart
is evil.
Luke 11:41 "But rather give alms of such things as ye have; and,
behold, all things are clean unto you." Luke 11:42 "But woe unto you,
Pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass
over judgment and the love of God: these ought ye to have done, and
not to leave the other undone."
These Pharisees had become so ridiculous about carrying out the
tiniest thing about the law they were giving 1/10 of this almost
worthless garden stuff. All the time, they were filled with hate and
greed. God wanted their love and obedience, and not just trying to
stick to a bunch of rules. God wanted their heart just like He wants
our heart. Helping our neighbors and trying to live right before God
is the best sacrifice we can make for Him.
Luke 11:43 "Woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye love the uppermost
seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets."
Jesus tells this Pharisee that they are too caught up in
appearances. They want everyone to think they are bigshots. God loves
those who are humble, not the ones who pretend to be the high and
mighty.
Luke 11:44 "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for
ye are as graves which appear not, and the men that walk over [them]
are not aware [of them]."
These scribes and Pharisees want to be thought of as important
people in the church. Jesus called them hypocrites because their
religion is just an outward show. There is no love in their heart.
Jesus is saying they are dead and nobody cares. No one would really
miss them, because they never helped anyone but themselves.
Luke 11:45 "Then answered one of the lawyers, and said unto him,
Master, thus saying thou reproachest us also."
This lawyer (teacher of the law) is saying, don't you know you
are talking about us. He falsely calls Jesus, Master. People obey
their Master. This lawyer has no intention of obeying Jesus.
Luke 11:46 "And he said, Woe unto you also, [ye] lawyers! for ye
lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye yourselves touch
not the burdens with one of your fingers."
The ordinances these learned scholars put on their people were
many and so great that they really become a great burden upon the
people. The lawyers themselves did not keep all of the ordinances. One
of the things touched on here, as well, is that these lawyers never
did any physical labor and the common people did. Jesus speaks a woe
on them, as a whole, not an individual lawyer who might become a
follower of Jesus.
Luke 11:47 "Woe unto you! for ye build the sepulchres of the
prophets, and your fathers killed them." Luke 11:48 "Truly ye bear
witness that ye allow the deeds of your fathers: for they indeed
killed them, and ye build their sepulchres."
I believe Jesus is saying to them, that they nor their father
recognized a prophet until after he was dead. Their fathers did not
accept the message the prophets of old brought to them, and these
lawyers do not accept the greatest prophet who ever lived, Jesus. He
says, You say you are different because you have built these fancy
sepulchres for them; but if you are really different from your
fathers, why don't you believe Me (Jesus).
Luke 11:49 "Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send
them prophets and apostles, and [some] of them they shall slay and
persecute:"
We see from this that Jesus tells them they kill the prophets and
apostles, and we know that is true. Many were killed.
Luke 11:50 "That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed
from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation;"
Luke 11:51 "From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which
perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It
shall be required of this generation."
Jesus is speaking prophetically here of His crucifixion. He.
also, is looking to them stoning Stephen to death, to Peter's death,
the persecution of those who followed Jesus, and then on to the fall
of Jerusalem in less than 40 years. This generation Jesus spoke of is
truly the one who physically crucified Jesus, but really all
generations from the foundation of the world until now are really
guilty, because it was our sin that crucified Jesus.
Luke 11:52 "Woe unto you, lawyers! for ye have taken away the key
of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were
entering in ye hindered."
Worse than not accepting Jesus yourself is when you keep someone
else from receiving Jesus as their Savior. This last woe that Jesus
speaks on the lawyers here is because they taught people a lie and
kept them from receiving Jesus.
Luke 11:53 "And as he said these things unto them, the scribes
and the Pharisees began to urge [him] vehemently, and to provoke him
to speak of many things:" Luke 11:54 "Laying wait for him, and
seeking to catch something out of his mouth, that they might accuse
him."
This whole meeting was to trap Him into saying something that
they could accuse Him of. They really tried to stir Him up so He would
get careless and say something they could use to frame Him. They did
not know that they were speaking to and trying to trap the Word of
God, the Messiah, the Christ, the Savior, Jesus Christ the Lord.
Luke 31 Questions
1. Who invited Jesus to have dinner with him?
2. What did the man marvel at?
3. Why did the Pharisees go through all these formalities?
4. The Lord said the Pharisees made the out side of the cup clean,
but the inside was full of what?
5. What did Jesus call them in verse 10?
6. With God what is more important than washing the hands?
7. In verse 41, what would make the Pharisees clean unto God?
8. What does the Pharisee tithe in verse 42?
9. What two things had he overlooked?
10. What seats in the synagogues did these Pharisees like?
11. What is the Pharisee too caught up in?
12. Why did Jesus call them hypocrites?
13. Why would no one miss them if they died?
14. Why is it false for this lawyer to call Jesus, Master?
15. In verse 46, Jesus spoke a woe on the lawyers. Why?
16. Jesus said these lawyers built sepulchers to prophets that who had
killed?
17. Why did Jesus say these lawyers were different than their fathers?
18. The wisdom of God said I will send them ________ and ______.
19. What will they do to them?
20. Of what generation was the blood of the prophets required?
21. Where did Zechariah perish?
22. Who really crucified Jesus?
23. Why did Jesus speak a woe on the lawyers in verse 52?
24. What is worse than not accepting Jesus for yourself?
25. What was this whole meeting held for?
26. They did not know they were speaking to _______.
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