to live is christ! amen! what does that look like  v2 (720p): Good evening church. If you've got your Bibles, open them up to Philippians chapter one. I'm always encouraged when I come on Sunday night and people hear that I'm speaking and I've I've done it a few times and every time I get great encouragement from you all. And I want to say that I very much appreciate that. I don't know if that encouragement will play out tonight, but I always get like, hey, we're only gonna be about fifteen minutes, right? You know? Am I gonna be able to catch the second half? I don't know. We'll see. But tonight we're gonna look at a An idea that the elders, your shepherds, at the beginning of the year ask us to focus on a f a thought to think about throughout the year and moving forward. And if you're in our Sunday morning class, we're going through the life of Jesus to kind of help us stay on track with this, to live as Christ. To live as Christ. Amen. But what does that look like? So we're gonna look at that tonight. In Philippians chapter one, verse twenty-seven, it says, Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind, striving side by side for the faith of the gospel. Paul's encouraging the full the church of Philippi to be one and to live in unison, and that is certainly living as Christ. If you've got your Bibles and you've turned there, we're gonna be in Luke chapter ten and eleven tonight. So if you want to turn over there, that's where our text will be coming from tonight. And so I wanted to to talk about this because I've ha I've had people ask me that actual question, you know, so what does that look like? What what does it mean to live as Christ? And if you remember, at the beginning of the year we asked you guys to give us a word that you thought when you hear the the phrase to live as Christ, what does that mean to you? And we made a a word Mirage or collage of of all the words that that the that the church here at Walnut Street used in that process. and it's great because words are wonderful. but it still doesn't really give us a picture. What does it look like to live as Christ? Well, I mean you think you automatically the first thing that might come to your mind is, well, I just need to live like Jesus. Well, yes, absolutely that's correct. But again, what does that look like in my life? I know how Jesus lived, and I I'm not Jesus, I'm not perfect, so I can't I can't be like him. But you can. And that's what he's asked of us. And so tonight we're going to look at it. And and Luke chapter 10 and 11 paints a beautiful picture for us that we can see, we can understand, and we can apply to our lives. You know, following Jesus is more than believing the right things. It's it's allowing Christ to shape how we go, how we love, how we listen, how we pray, and certainly how we live. And there is a difference between knowing Jesus and following Jesus. A big difference. It is possible to know the stories, it's possible to know the verses, it's possible to attend worship, participate in Bible study, in Bible class, serve on committees, give generously, and become familiar with the language of faith or the culture of the church. And still have to ask ourselves, am I actually becoming the kind of person Jesus is calling me to be? And as I said, Luke Luke's chapter 10, 11 gives us this remarkable picture of discipleship, of what it means to live as Christ, to how do I be like Christ that He paints these pi this picture for us? He's traveling towards Jerusalem. Luke tells us in 9 51, in Luke 951, Luke tells us that Jesus set his face to Jerusalem. And that's important as we move into Luke 10 and 11. It's important because this is the end. Jesus has set his face toward Jerusalem. What is waiting for him in Jerusalem? The cruel cross, his death, the end of his ministry. And so what he tells his disciples and those who are with him. In these two chapters is very important. And he goes on and continues. If you continue to read from Luke ten all the way through seventeen, eighteen, you'll see how Jesus is teaching his disciples and those who are following him. He's teaching them to live as he lives. Because he's not going to be there for very much longer. These teachings are not random. They're pointed. He emphasizes them. And he's preparing them to live, he's preparing his disciples to live without him, but to continue his work. That's interesting. First century Jewish life was deeply influenced by religious traditions and social divisions, expectations concerning the Messiah, and careful interpretations of the law. Jews and Samaritans had Generations of hostility between them, and rabbis were normally surrounded by male disciples. Pharisees were known for careful attention to religious traditions and observances. And in that world, Jesus is teaching something very, very radical. He continually moves people from religious appearance to spiritual reality, from what is happening on the outside to what God is doing to the heart. And as we move through Luke 10 and 11, five pictures will emerge, and Jesus is going to show us that disciples is someone who goes, someone who loves, someone who listens, someone who prays, and someone who lives authentically. Those five pictures give us our five questions today and this evening. And we're going to go right into them. Number one, first question is Will I go when Jesus sends me? It's a question we all need to ask. Because He sent us. He has sent you. Are you going? But will you go when Jesus sends you? In Luke chapter 10, verses 1 through 20, Jesus tells us that. In verse in verse one he says, After this the Lord appointed seventy two others, and sent them out ahead of him, two by two, in every town and place where he himself was about to go. Now that's interesting. One, because some manuscripts say 72, some say 70. We're not going to haggle over two people tonight, okay? So I might say 72, and I might say 70. but it's you get the idea. The message is unchanged. Jesus sends his followers. And notice where he sends them. He goes, he's sending them to places where he himself is intending to go. What are they supposed to do? They're supposed to prepare the way. They their responsibility is to do just that, to have people ready to accept Jesus, to be eager to see him and to listen to him. And so that's their responsibility. And I want to tell you that that mission hasn't changed as of today. We are still to go and prepare the way. We are to prepare people for Jesus, for engagement with the Messiah. Our purpose is not ultimately to convince people how wonderful we are as a congregation or as a person. Our purpose is to help people encounter Jesus. Luke says in verse 10 or verse 2 in chapter 10 The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. The problem isn't absent of harvest. It's not absent hearts willing to listen or understand or learn about Jesus. The problem is there's a short of people who go. There are people around us who are hurting. There are people searching for meaning in their life. People carrying burdens that no one else knows about. People who have become disappointed with religion but still desperately want Jesus and want to know Jesus Christ. The harvest is still plentiful. And Jesus still asks, Will you go? Notice that also Jesus sends disciples two by two to Great point that Luke makes here. You might think, that's interesting, yeah, big deal. That is such a encouragement to me. And it should be to you that he sends them two by two, because what this tells me is that Christian ministry was never intended to be an individual performance. It's not all about me. I don't have to carry that load. You can help me. He sent them two by two. And Jesus also prepares them for something else. Not everyone will receive them. Terazan, Basetia, Capernaum had all witnessed remarkable signs and works of Jesus, yet many remained unrepentant. That teaches us a very important principle, brothers and sisters and friends, tonight. We are responsible for faithfulness. We are not responsible for controlling other another person's response to the word. And sometimes I think we allow that to creep in and maybe keep us from doing the things that we want to do or should do. We have an attitude that maybe I don't know enough. maybe they won't listen to me. Maybe I I don't really know the word well enough. What if I say something wrong? That's not the attitude. And again, that's why he has sent them two by two, so that they were paired, so that they had encouragement beside them, that they had help with them. And I think you would all agree that it's two is better than one. Some people will listen and some will not. Some will welcome the message and some will reject it. Rejection does not automatically mean that the disciple is a failure. And I think in our minds. As Christians, and I know over the years I've felt that way, if I if I'm studying with someone and they choose not to believe what I have shown them. Again, not what I've said, but please don't believe what I say. Read your Bible. But if they don't accept the Bible, then I somehow have failed them. Not everybody will accept the word. We have to understand that. Something interesting happens something interesting happens though when the disciples returned. In Luke seven Luke ten verse seventeen, the seventy-two returned and they were rejoicing, and they told the Lord that even the demons are subject to us in your name. Imagine their excitement. Imagine your excitement when you if you've studied with someone and some that light bulb goes off in in in someone's mind and they they s somehow get it. You know, that's an exciting time. It's not exciting for me, I mean it is exciting for me, but it's great for them because now they understand. And they were rejoicing that the demons even obeyed them, and so in their excitement they had seen God work through them, and Jesus directs redirects their joy. He's like, Hey, that's great, but in Luke ten twenty, he reminds them Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven. Again, a very important principle, brothers and sisters of friend. Jesus is teaching them to not build your identity around what you accomplish for God. Rather, build your identity around the fact that you belong to God. That is something that is important. That your names are written in the book. That is important. It doesn't matter how many people you study with, how many people listened to you, how many people didn't. What it matters is you went. You did what you were supposed to do because you're a child of God and God has asked you to go and you did. That's what Jesus is telling them. And that is something the church still needs to hear today. We get caught up in things about, you know, yeah, I baptized thirty people this year. That's a wonderful thing, but I'm sorry you didn't do a thing. You might have helped and that's awesome because that's what you're supposed to do. But God is the one that changes lives. It's the word of God that changes people's lives. You know, that is you know, we see ministries grow and shrink, we we see, you know, careers rise and fall, we see recognition come and go, and our abilities change. Yeah, there are people that are they're teaching Bible classes now that when they were younger they probably felt like they couldn't do that, but they do it now. Abilities change over time as we mature and as we learn and as we understand. And there will be seasons when we accomplish much for the Lord, and there will be seasons when we feel as though we've accomplished very little, and we start to question whether or not are w are we worthy. It's a terrible thing to to think about. But it is it happens. It's it's human life. But the foundation of our joy should never change. We belong to Christ. So the first mark of the disciple, the first idea to what does it look like to live as Christ, is go when Jesus sends you. But remember that your identity is not in your success, your identity is in your Savior. Here's a couple questions for you. Where has Jesus placed me? That I can prepare the way for someone else to encounter him. Maybe it's your workplace. Maybe it's in your neighborhood. Maybe it's in your family. Maybe it's something someone that's sitting beside you every week. The harvest is still plentiful. The question is whether the laborers will go. Question two for tonight is Will I love the person Jesus puts in my path? This one steps on my toes quite a bit. Luke chapter ten verses twenty five through thirty-seven, you know the story. Immediately after the mission of the seventy or seventy-two, Luke gives us one of Jesus' best known parables, ones that we all know. A lawyer, an expert in the Mosaic Law, asked Jesus, Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? Luke chapter ten and verse twenty five. And Jesus turns him like to towards Scripture, which is what he mostly does when he's teaching people. And the man correctly surmises the law. Love God completely and love your neighbor as yourself. But then Luke tells us something about his motivation. In verse 29, he says, after Jesus says, You are right, and he said he was desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, And who is my neighbor? There's the problem. And it steps on my toes because in times that's been my problem. He wasn't merely seeking information from Jesus about who his neighbor is. He was looking for a boundary. How far does my responsibility go? Who counts? And perhaps just as importantly, who doesn't count? I don't know if you've asked yourself those questions, but sometimes I will say they've been in my mind. And Jesus responds to that with a story. Again, the story we all know: a man traveling from Jerusalem towards Jericho. Interesting point to give this even a little bit more life. The road from Jerusalem to Jericho descended about 3,000 feet. It was rugged. It was very, very desolate. A traveler could easily be isolated and vulnerable. and the people who Jesus is telling this parable to would absolutely know this road. And in Jesus' story, robbers attack the man, they strip him, they beat him, they leave him half dead. Then a priest comes and he sees him, and he passes by. Then the Levite comes, and he sees him, and he passes by. These are religious men, these are people who are supposed to know the law. And how to live, and how God expects them to live. They know how to worship, they know religious practice, but knowledge that never becomes compassion is incomplete, brothers and sisters and friends. Being a disciple means we have compassion. And then Jesus introduces us to the hero. And I want you to remember, Jesus is talking to mainly Jews. And this Unassuming hero, a Samaritan. Jews don't like Samaritans. Samaritans don't like Jews. And so you can only imagine their thought when Jesus says, and a Samaritan pass by. This would have been shocking. Jews and Samaritans had longstanding religious and ethnic hostility toward one another. And Jesus deliberately chooses. The person the audience would least expect. And Luke 1033 says, But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. So again, the priest came, the Levite came, they both saw, they both passed by. Now here comes the Samaritan. He sees, and what? He has compassion. He sees him. He approaches him. He treats his wounds. He places us on a he places him on his animal and he takes him to an inn. He pays for his care, he promises to return. His compassion cost him something. Time. Money. Convenience. Comfort. He put the man on his animal and he had to walk. That is biblical mercy, brothers and sisters and friends. And Jesus is telling them, Who is my neighbor? The lawyer had asked, Who is my neighbor? And Jesus had responded to him, and he changes the question a little. He essentially asked, Who was the neighbor? Not who is my neighbor, but in this story, hey lawyer, who was the neighbor? And again, the lawyer, being smart and understanding, said that the Samaritan was the neighbor. And Jesus concluded with, You go and do likewise. I think Jesus answered his question without having to tell him anything. And the question is uncomfortable for us: Who is lying beside our road? Who is on your road that's laying on the side and you keep passing by? Who do I keep passing by? Sometimes the person God calls us to love will be inconvenient. Sometimes they will be different from us. Sometimes they will disagree with us. Sometimes they cannot repay us. And sometimes helping them will interrupt something we consider important. The priest had somewhere to go. He was on his way. The Levite had somewhere to go. He was on his way. The Samaritan probably did too, don't you think? But compassion was willing to be interrupted. We live in a culture that makes it easy to see suffering from a distance. We can scroll past tragedy. We can hear about a need without even becoming involved. Jesus calls his followers to something deeper. Christians Christian love crosses the road. A Christian's love crosses the road. I thought about telling a joke like why the Christian crossed the road, but I'll I'll I won't do that tonight. But a Christian who loves crosses the road. He doesn't pass on the other side. He doesn't keep going. He shows compassion for those who are in need. Jesus tells us love the person in your path, even when it's can inconvenient and it costs you something. And I was I'd be willing to bet that he he probably meant to say that it's going to cost you something. That is what a disciple looks like. That is what to live as Christ is, is to see someone who needs and actually have compassion and deal with it. And not pass by. And not think, we'll let somebody else deal with that. Deal with it because that is what Christians do. Number three, will I sit at Jesus' feet before I become too busy serving him? I want to read that again. Will I sit at Jesus' feet before I become too busy serving him? It's an important question. One that Jesus answers with another story. So now we we move from a dangerous road to a quiet home. Luke chapter 10, verse 38 through 42. Martha welcomes Jesus. And we should be careful here, and I want to make kind of make a point here. Jesus does not criticize Martha for because she serves. Okay? Service is good, hospitality is good. as Christians, we should serve, we should be hospitable, work is good, right? there's not a problem there. But the problem comes in chapter in verse 40 of Luke chapter 10. But Martha was distracted with much serving, and that word distracted is important. Meanwhile, Mary is sitting At Jesus' feet, listening to his teaching. And that's interesting. Because in the first century world, sitting at a rabbi's feet described the posture of a disciple. And most of those were young men. And here we have Mary sitting at Jesus' feet. In a place of a learner. But Martha was frustrated. And as we go through the story, you can kind of see her progression. Service becomes distraction. Distraction becomes frustration. Frustration becomes comparison. And comparison becomes criticism. I don't know about you, but sometimes I I you know I I've gone through that cycle in my in my time. Finally she says, Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Interesting question for Jesus. And Jesus began He rebuked her very softly, I will say. Because Martha began serving began by serving, and now she's questioning whether Jesus cares. Her service for Jesus has begun interfering with her enjoyment of Jesus. And Jesus says to her, Martha, Martha. You are anxious and troubled about many things. Just a nice, subtle, soft rebuke. Your priorities are not right. I don't care if you serve me or not. And then he tells her, one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion. Luke chapter 10, verse 42. This passage speaks powerfully to our culture. Because most of us understand being busy. Right? We have work, we have family, we have we have church, we have appointments, responsibilities. I got a cell phone, you you know? I get emails, I get messages all the time on those things. I have schedule, I have deadlines. But here's the danger of those. Not those in and of them themselves are not are not bad things. But the danger is danger in them. And the things that distract us are not always bad things. Sometimes good things crowd out the best things. We become so busy doing good for Jesus or what we think is good for Jesus that we have very little time simply to be with Jesus. We can prepare Bible lessons and Forget to let Scripture talk to us or speak to us. We can sing worship songs without actually listening to the words that we're singing. We can serve everyone around us while our souls become spiritually exhausted, like Martha. Mary reminds us that discipleship begins at the feet of Jesus. Before we go, we need to listen. Before we speak his word to someone else, we need to we need his work to speak to us. Before our hands become busy with service, our hearts need to be quiet before Jesus. So ask yourself: Has my service for Jesus begun to crowd out my time with Jesus? Are we so busy trying to do good for Jesus that we're not spending time with him? We need to spend time. There is a time to stand and serve. Absolutely. But there must also be time to sit and listen. And the mark of someone who lives as Christ takes time to listen to the master. Question four. Will I depend on God through prayer? Now I just got off a summer class teaching about prayer, and I could park here and we could spend thirty minutes, but we're not going to. But Luke chapter eleven, beginning eleven, verses one through thirteen, Jesus begins by praying. And I love the fact that if you study Jesus for very long, you'll know that he does one thing quite a bit. He prays a lot. I would venture to say all the time. We read passages about Jesus praying in the garden. We read him praying here and praying in the temple, praying all night. He prays, he prays, he prays. And his disciples who have been with him for these three years saw him pray all the time. They heard him teach. They they witnessed his miracles. They watched him heal people the sick people. Yet Scripture never once records them saying to him, Lord, teach us to perform miracles. Or Lord teach us to preach. Instead, in Luke eleven, verse one, they say, Lord, teach us to pray. They apparently recognize that something about Jesus' public ministry flowed from his private ministry. Communion with the Father. Jesus gives them a pattern for prayer w for prayer. He begins with Father. Prayer begins with relationship. Hallowed be your name. Prayer begins with God's glory before our desires. Your kingdom come. Prayer seeks God's purposes rather than seeking our own and asking God to endorse our needs. Give us each day our daily bread. Prayer acknowledges we depend on God. Forgive us our sins. Prayer requires humility. Lead us not into temptation. Prayer recognizes the need for spiritual protection. Notice how different that is from treating prayer like a spiritual shopping list. And I don't know about you, but every now and then it it's kinda sometimes when I pray I feel like I'm just asking for stuff. Instead of focusing on my relationship, focusing on the God's glory and his purpose and my dependence upon him and the fact that I need him and that I need to be humble before him because I'm not a perfect person and I need him in my life. And I need that protection so that I won't fall away. But that is what prayer does for us. Prayer begins prioritizing our hearts towards God, not the other way around. Jesus then tells a story about someone who receives an unexpected guest at night and they they needed bread. Hospitality carried enormous an enormous importance in those days. The host goes and asks a friend for help. Jesus' point Jesus' point in this story was not that God is an irritated neighbor. And I think sometimes we we we read that and think, I don't want to bother God with anything, you know, of my own personal thing. He's too busy for me. And that's not true. and he's not this he's not an irritated neighbor that needs to be worn down or you know con convinced to listen to me. The argument actually goes from lesser to greater. Even a reluctant human being will respond, as the neighbor did eventually. How much more can you trust your Heavenly Father? Scriptures tell us over and over: He cares for you, He cares for you, He cares for you. Cast all your cares on Him. Why? Because He cares for you. He's always there. You're running your life, you're going, you're going, you're going. And all of a sudden you think, God's not with me until you stop and look and he's standing in front of you. Why? Because that's where he's at. He's always ready for you. And prayer reminds us of that. Then come familiar words from Luke 11 and verse 19: Ask and it will be given to you. Seek and you will find. Knock and it will be opened to you. Doesn't mean you're going to get everything that you want. Understand what Jesus is teaching them. Ask him. That's what he wants. He wants to hear from his children. That's why prayer is so beautiful and great and awesome and powerful. Because I get to speak to God, not at God or through someone else to God. I get to speak to God. He hears me. He hears you. Ask. Seek. Brothers and sisters, friend, that's what we are to do. That's what sitting at his feet is we are seeking him. How do I live a better life? How do I live as Christ? Seek him. And knock. And the door will be open. When you ask, you bring it to God. When you seek, you pursue God and His will. When you knock, you're being continually faithful. Because I'm gonna continue to go to that door every chance I get. Because it encourages me, it helps me, and it should help you as well in your walk. Prayer is not trying to convince God or an uncaring God, let's say, to become become concerned about us. No, no, no. Prayer is learning to depend upon a Father who already cares and who already is standing in front of you, even when you think he's not. And notice the climax in verse 13. Jesus says, The Father will give you the Holy Spirit to those who ask. The greatest gift is not simply something from God. The greatest gift is from God Himself, and is God Himself, being present with His people. There is a connection between this point and the first one that we discussed. Jesus said, The harvest is plentiful and sends his followers into it. But he never intended them for to accomplish this mission through human strength alone. We go, but we pray because we cannot do God's work without God's power. And we need God in our life. We need his guidance. Perhaps one reason we become exhausted is that we attempt through activity what we can own what only can be accomplished through dependence upon God. Prayer says, God, I cannot do this without you. Prayer moves us from self-sufficient self-sufficiency, say that twice, to dependence. So the fourth mark of a discipleship is this it's prayer. To live as Christ, we pray. We pray to God, not as a last resort, but as the acknowledgement that everything depends on Him. Everything in my life depends on Him. Everything in your life depends on Him. Period. There's no debate on that, brothers and sisters and friends. Period. We need God, and everything in our life depends on Him. And we may choose to go a different path, that's true, and many do. And it's a sad path. But the path that we have chosen means that we depend upon God, and it is always God. So number five, will my private heart match my public faith? Here's another one that kind of steps on my toes. I don't know about you. Will my private heart match my public faith? In Luke chapter 11, verses 37 through 54, Jesus gives us the final picture, the most challenging, perhaps, of the four or five pictures that we're discussing. a Pharisee invites Jesus to dinner. And Luke 11, 38 starts out by telling us that the Pharisee was astonished that Jesus did not perform the expected washing of before the meal. And again, you remember there to the traditions and ceremonies were sacred to these folks, especially to a Pharisee who's steeped in tradition. And they're astonished. And this was not simply a hygiene issue, okay? I mean, many of us think, yeah, wash your hands before dinner, right? Your mother taught you that. I hope I hope you do that, all right? You should do that. Okay? That's not what we're talking about here. But they were surprised that he didn't do it. And I know Jesus does things sometimes and you think, Wow, why'd he do that? Well he's getting ready to tell us why. It was not simple hygiene. It involved tradition surrounding ceremonial pu ceremon ceremon ceremonial purity. Jesus uses the moment to address something much deeper in their minds and in their hearts. And in Luke 11, verse 39, now you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. Strong words from Jesus. And it's a sobering picture. Clean on the outside, corrupt on the inside. They had become skilled at looking religious and talking religious and doing the things religious. But yet on the inside, they were empty. And Jesus was interested in what was happening in the heart. Not just on the outside. Luke eleven forty two says, But woe to you Pharisees, for you tithe mint and roux and every herb and neglect justice and the love of God. I'm going to pull over and park here for just one second, because this is of a great passage, and a passage I want us to really understand. I've had many an argument over this passage in my time. People say, See, it's not about what you do, it's about your heart. Jesus tells us right here in Luke 11, 42, that that's the case. If you think that you have not read this verse, so I'm going to read it again. For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God. Think about how meticulous it must have been to count out mint and rue and herb for a tithe. And they were to tithe. And you can believe, brothers and sisters and friends, that these Pharisees tithed. And they patted themselves on the back for it. But Jesus said, you neglect justice and the love of God. Jesus did not say that's not important. On the contrary, they were carefully calculating even small herbs. Jesus doesn't condemn their faithfulness in that or in their giving. He condemns the contradiction. I do all this great stuff, so see how great I am. But yet on the inside there is no love. And what does the Bible tell us? Without love you cannot please God. And that's what Jesus is teaching them. And so many people say, see, it doesn't matter what we do, it matters about our hearts. Brothers and sisters and friends, it matters both ways. We must do what we're told, and we must have it in our hearts to do it. Because we want to do it, because God said, Do it. Not because we have to. Because we want to, because we understand what God has done for us. Our dependence upon God understands. We know what He's done. And I'm going to live as Christ. And if I'm going to live as Christ, I'm going to do, and I'm going to love. And that is what that passage is about. They could measure herbs carefully with while overlooking justice and love. They had learned to major in the minors, if you will, while neglecting heart, kindness, and mercy. And I think sometimes we fall into that trap. I know I do. We don't we don't show kindness, we don't show mercy, we don't show grace. Why? We were shown those things. So why is it hard for us to show those things to other people? People that we don't know, people that we don't understand, people that we disagree with, whether it be politics, whether it be religion, no matter what, kindness, grace, love should be c should come easy for us because it's been shown to us. Through Jesus and His and God our Father. He confronts the religious experts who place heavy burdens on other people. And perhaps one of the strongest statements comes in verse 52. Woe to you, lawyers, for you have taken away the key of knowledge. Think about what he's saying there. He didn't say, You've taken away their ability to learn. But in a way, that's exactly what he's saying. You're telling them, just do this, do what I tell you, not learn why you do it. You've taken away that key, that understanding. The very people who should have helped others know God have become obstacles to knowing him. And here's the danger for every generation, for us right now at Walnut Street. We can become very good at looking faithful while actually becoming at looking faithful while actually becoming unfaithful or not being faithful. We can know what to say. We can know when to stand, we can know when to sit. We can know the songs and we can know the scriptures, and we can know our our church culture, and still allow our hearts to drift far from God. And the reason that they drift far from God is because your heart's not in it. You know it, but you don't want to do it. And believe me, brothers and sisters and friends, it happens all the time. I know you've seen it, I've seen it. It may have happened in your life, it's happened in mine. You start drifting, you start making it easy when you stop caring it about it inside, and you just go through the motions, all of a sudden you find yourself miles and miles from shore. Thinking, how did I get here? And that's the danger that Jesus is telling these Pharisees. Jesus isn't interested merely in polishing the outside of the cup or the outside of the dish. He wants the inside clean too. And he wants it to reflect the outside. The Pharisees' response is also revealing. It's very revealing if you think about their response here. Instead of allowing Jesus' words to bring repentance or to bring a change in their life, Luke tells us that they became hostile towards Jesus and began trying to trap him with his words. Truth has an interesting effect, doesn't it? Truth softens a humble heart, but it can harden a defensive one. When Scripture confronts something in us, our first response should not be, Who else needs to hear this? Our first reson f our first response should be, Lord, what are you showing me? So I ask that you ask yourselves these questions. Does my private life match my profession? Is the person my family sees the same person my church family sees? Does my faith make me more compassionate, more generous, more forgiving, more humble, more like Jesus? Because Christianity is not prayer primarily looking the part. It's about becoming like Christ. The phrase, to live is Christ, is not about not looking, not just looking the part. It's about becoming Jesus to those people we come in contact with. He's gone. He's left this world. He's left us in charge. He's left us a mission. And we are to take it to the world. Some people are gonna listen, some are not. It shouldn't matter to you. You still go, you still love, you still carry on. To live as Christ. What does that look like? Jesus just painted us five pictures of what it looks like to live as He lived. Five pictures of a disciple. Luke ten and eleven have taken us on quite a journey. We've traveled with the seventy. We've stood beside a wounded man on the road to Jericho. We've entered Martha's home and sat beside Mary at Jesus' feet. We've listened as the disciples said, Lord, teach us to pray. And we have sat at a Pharisee's table while Jesus exposed the danger of an outward religion without inward transformation. And all through all of these scenes, Jesus has been answering our question. What does it look like? A disciple is willing to go. A disciple is willing to love. A disciple takes time to listen. A disciple learns to pray. A disciple seeks to live authentically. But I want you to notice there's a balance. Go. But don't become so busy working for Jesus that you stop sitting at his feet. Serve. But do not become so religiously occupied that you walk past the wounded person on your road. Pray, because you cannot accomplish God's mission in your own strength. Know Scripture, yes, but never allow knowledge to replace mercy, justice, and the love of God. Ever. Practice your faith, but make sure the inside matches the out. Because ultimately Luke chapter 10 and 11 move us beyond simply asking, What am I doing? But it leads us to ask, Who am I becoming? And brothers and sisters and friends, I hope that answer for you is Jesus. Because that's what he's showing us this evening. And that may be a question we need to take home today. Not simply how many things did I accomplish and how many church services did I attend or how many church, you know. Activities I attended, how much scripture do I know? How many people know that I'm a Christian? But am I becoming more like Jesus in my life? Do I need to go? That's a simple question, yes. Is there someone God is asking me to reach? Yes. I don't know who that is for you. I don't know who it is for me. But if I go, I guarantee you I'll find him. Do I need to listen? Yes. Have I become so busy doing good things that I've neglected sitting at Jesus' feet? Sometimes, I think. Yeah. Do I need to pray? Yes, yes, yes. Am I depending upon God or merely depending upon myself? Depends on the day. And finally, do I need to become more authentic? Yes. Is there an area where the outside of the cup looks clean, but Jesus is asking to change something on the inside? Yes. Maybe one of those five questions is especi especially uncomfortable today. And if it is, I I won't tell you. I won't I'm not gonna lie, I'm glad. Because I asked myself those things and there's some things that are uncomfortable to me. I want to live as Christ, don't you? Don't run from it. Because conviction is not merely God pointing out what is wrong. It's an invitation for Him to change what needs to be changed. Jesus is still calling disciples. He's still saying, Go. He still says, Show mercy. He still says, sit at my feet. He still says ask, seek, knock. And he's still calling us to a faith that is genuine from the inside out. The question is not simply whether we call ourselves followers of Jesus. The question is, are we following him? In Luke twenty eight eleven, verse twenty eight, blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it. Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it. May we not simply be people who hear his word, may we be people who live it. And may the evidence that we have been that we have been with Jesus and have been we have seen with Jesus help us to go, and help us in the way that we go, and help us in the way that we love, and help us in the way that we listen and the way that we pray. And the way that we live. I hope this lesson's helped you. I know it helped me. If you have any need this evening, maybe you're not a maybe you're not a disciple yet. Maybe you're not a follower of Jesus yet. If tonight's that night, hallelujah. We'd love to help you put on Christ in baptism tonight. We'd love to do that. Maybe you're a disciple and you haven't been living your life the way you know you need to be. Maybe the outside looks good, but the inside needs help. We all understand that. We'd love to help you. We'd love to pray with you. Whatever your need might be this evening, won't you come now as we stand and as we sing?