Luke 4:22-30 — The worshippers in the synagogue at Nazareth were so enraged by Jesus’ sermon that they tried to kill Him. Just moments before they’d been amazed by His gracious words. So what happened and what does this fascinating episode in Jesus’ life have to teach us? How do we respond when God’s Word…
Luke 4:14-21 — In the opening months of His public ministry Jesus was admired everywhere He went in Galilee. One Sabbath day He attended the synagogue in His hometown of Nazareth. He read the Scriptures and delivered a sermon that was unlike any His audience had heard before. As we consider the text that Jesus…
Luke 4:9-13 — When our ability or intelligence is called into question we are tempted to respond with pride and anger. Pride is a powerful emotion and it is what Satan aimed to produce in the heart of Jesus in the third temptation. Satan wanted Jesus to prove that He was the Son of God…
Luke 4:5-8 — While He was fasting in the wilderness, Satan came to Jesus a second time and offered Him authority over all the kingdoms of the world. The price was worship. The nations would be given to Jesus if He would fall down and worship Satan, but were these kingdoms Satan’s to give? And…
Luke 4:1-4 — The temptation of Jesus in the wilderness is yet another captivating story in the narrative of His life. In this sermon we consider the first temptation in which Satan urged Jesus to turn stones into bread. When Jesus resisted Satan’s suggestion He did what Adam failed to do and He did so in…
Luke 3:23-38 — In this text Luke gives us a long and detailed genealogy of Jesus. He traces Jesus’ ancestry right back to Adam and in so doing he establishes Jesus’ connection to significant figures in the Old Testament and to the promises that God made to them. It matters a great deal that Jesus…
Luke 3:21-22 — The baptism of Jesus was an event filled with symbolism and significance. It marked the beginning of Jesus’ earthly ministry and His presentation to Israel as their Messiah. It also signified His willingness to do God’s will and bear the people’s sin. The Father expressed His pleasure at His Son’s obedience and therein…
Luke 3:15-20 — There is no missing the boldness of John the Baptist. He preached God’s message without fear to all classes of society and in the end it cost him his life. What was the source of John’s courage? Why could he speak so confidently? Like John, we are called to bear witness to…
Luke 3:10-14 — “Bring forth fruits worthy of repentance.” So said John the Baptist to the crowds who came to hear him preach. In response, the people asked how they might do this. They wanted to know what these “fruits” looked like. John’s answer dealt with two serious spiritual problems and it revealed what it really…
Luke 3:4-9 — “When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, “Repent”, he willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.” This was the first of Martin Luther’s famous 95 Theses that he posted to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg. Repentance was the message that the John the Baptist preached, for…