TODO: Chapters Luke 3a: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 3: 1 - 20 ~ Bible Study (Eng/Arabic - عربي) Outline of the Chapter 00:00-00:54 1-6: St John the Baptist Prepares the Way 7-20: St John the Baptist Preaches to the People 21-22: St John the Baptist Baptizes the Lord Jesus Christ 23-28: Genealogy of the Lord Jesus Christ St John the Baptist Prepares the Way 00:55-22:35 1 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and the region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, 2 while Annas and Caiaphas were high priests, the word of God came to John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness.  3  And he went into all the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins,  Historical Context Characteristic of St Luke's writing He is giving the historical context of the ministry of St John the Baptist He did the same in Chapter 2 when he spoke about the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ He mentions the names of the rulers of any regions that are affected directly or indirectly by the events he narrates He mentions five political leaders and two religious leaders Tiberius Caesar Succeeded Augustus Caesar in 14AD This means John the Baptist's ministry started approximately 29 AD. Pontius Pilate Entered office in 26AD and was the Roman Commander of Judea, Samaria and Idumea He was in office from 26AD-36AD Herod and Philip Herod Antipas, the son of Herod the Great (the one who killed the innocent children of Bethlehem) Philip, the son of Herod the Great Herod Antipas is the one who beheaded St John the Baptist Pontius Pilate sent the Lord Jesus Christ to Herod Antipas when he knew that He was from Galilee (because Herod was tetrarch of Galilee) Tetrarch means ruler over 1/4 of a country Lysanias Tetrarch of Abilene Annas and Caiaphas Annas and his son-in-law Joseph Caiaphas These are the two high priests that Jesus was tried before in the Crucifixion trials In the Wilderness St John was brought up and lived in the wilderness (Luke 1:80) He lived a solitary life and did not learn his doctrine from men: but His ministry, mission, baptism, etc. he learned all from heaven. The reputation of John the Baptist preceded the divine calling He was the son of a very well-known family The marvelous circumstances around his birth He was long looked upon by the people as set apart for a great work His ultimate calling is to be the Forerunner of the Messiah Baptism of Repentance There was nothing strange about baptism - purification through water was normal. What was strange was that the Jews submitted to baptism... it was a common ritual for Gentiles who wanted to become Jews! For a Jew to submit to baptism was like saying "I am as bad as a heathen Gentile who worships idols." So baptism by John was a true mark of humble repentance, and a radical rededication to the Lord The message of St John was a call to repentance What is repentance? Some people think it's about "feeling" sorry about your sin Repentance is an action word, not just a feeling It is a change of mind and change or purpose ⲙⲉⲧⲁⲛⲟⲓⲁ ⲙⲉⲧⲁ = change ⲛⲟⲓⲁ = mind All the region around the Jordan This is not a small area... the district alluded to here is 150 miles long The Jordan is convenient for baptism 4  as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, saying: “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the   Lord ; Make His paths straight. 5  Every valley shall be filled And every mountain and hill brought low; The crooked places shall be made straight And the rough ways smooth; 6  And   all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’ ”  Forerunner Isaiah 40:3-5 John's Ministry is to proclaim repentance and baptism in preparation for the Messiah This prophecy was fulfilled in the person of St John the Baptist The same prophecy is quoted in all four gospels, but only St Luke records the whole thing Forerunner: The one running before Christ to prepare the way for Him John is the voice of Christ before Christ came Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight The imagery here is like an unpaved road. It has bumps and ditches, ups and downs... how do you make the road straight? Valleys (i.e. ditches) shall be filled Mountains and hills (i.e. bumps) are brought law Crooked places shall be made straight Rough ways made smooth Who are these? Who are the valleys? The humble people that God will lift up Who are the mountains and hills? The prideful that God will bring them low Who are the crooked? Those who are sneaky like serpents, whose hearts God will change Who are the rough? Those who are harsh in their attitude, God will smoothen their heart So every person will be ready for the coming of the Messiah The image here is very simple, and is very well-understood in the East and especially in those days When great kings are coming, they usually have people coming before them (i.e. pioneers) to pave the roads for them If the roads are good, no pioneers or forerunners are needed... Jesus the Messiah and the King is coming very soon (Jesus starts His ministry six months after John the Baptist) and a forerunner is needed because the state of the Jews at the time was corrupt above measure, confusion like a wilderness John the Baptist is awakening the sleeping conscience of the people At least, the crowds who followed Jesus St John the Baptist Preaches to the People 22:36-53:08 7  Then he said to the multitudes that came out to be baptized by him, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?  8  Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as  our  father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.  9  And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” 10  So the people asked him, saying, “What shall we do then?” 11  He answered and said to them, “He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise.” 12  Then tax collectors also came to be baptized, and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?” 13  And he said to them, “Collect no more than what is appointed for you.” 14  Likewise the soldiers asked him, saying, “And what shall we do?” So he said to them, “Do not intimidate anyone or accuse falsely, and be content with your wages.” 15  Now as the people were in expectation, and all reasoned in their hearts about John, whether he was the Christ  or  not,  16  John answered, saying to all, “I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.  17  His winnowing fan  is  in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.” 18  And with many other exhortations he preached to the people.  19  But Herod the tetrarch, being rebuked by him concerning Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, and for all the evils which Herod had done,  20  also added this, above all, that he shut John up in prison. Brood of vipers! John the Baptist was not interested in quantity, but in quality He didn't want to preach a soft message or an easy message or to satisfy "itching ears" He compares them to the worst of all serpents Vipers harm the people and are fatal... so he is saying to them that their behavior is harming others. He is referring to their hypocrisy, which turned religion itself into an evil Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? The Jews had been taught by prophecy that the Advent of their Deliverer should be preceded by a time of anguish, which they call "the woes of the Messiah" “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He  is  like a refiner’s fire And like launderers’ soap." (Malachi 3:2) These kinds of prophecies' primary fulfillment happened at the Destruction of Jerusalem,  Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance True Repentance always bears fruit - the fruit of the spirit (Galatians 5:22) We have Abraham as our father The Jews were prideful, considering themselves greater than any other nations The Jews believed that none of them would be lost because they were the children of Abraham St John the Baptist is teaching here - don't trust in being a member of the church or in having the title of servant, or in attending lots of Sunday School... God wants your repentance and your heart. No matter what titles you have or how often you go to church, repentance is what is needed. Who are the children of Abraham? Those who live like Abraham Who have the faith and works of Abraham The Jews did not behave like children of Abraham God can create from these stones, children for Abraham Stones signifies the Gentiles who had a stony heart Now the ax is laid to the root of the trees Any tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire The patience of God is very near to come to an end (with respect to the Jews) The judgment of God is at hand What shall we do then? The words of St John touched the hearts of the people who replied: "What shall we do then?" After every sermon, Bible Study, lesson, ask yourself this question: "What shall I do?" John told them to bring forth fruits appropriate to repentance and lead a life that shows their repentance is genuine This question is asked by several groups and answered differently, but the common denominator is mercy People: Sharing, be merciful, don't be selfish for it is the root of all evil! Practical teaching: If you have two tunics and your brother has none, give him one If you have more food, give some to your brother Tax Collectors: Romans wanted to collect taxes from the people. They would hold an auction for the tax-collectors. The person who bids the most is given permission to go and collect taxes from the people. They were hated by all the people because they were violent, took money by any means, and supported by the government. St John did not see tax-collecting as evil in itself, so he did not tell them to leave the occupation... but to be honest in their jobs. Collect no more than what is appointed to you. Soldiers: They were probably Jews who were paid by the Romans to serve as soldiers in Jewish places. The temptation of the soldier is to terrify the poor by violence and authority, or to undermine the rich by acting as informants or false accusations. St John, again does not ask them to abandon their jobs, but gives them three instructions: Restraint: Do not intimidate anyone Truthfulness: Do not accuse falsely Contentment: Be content with your wages Is this the Messiah? John's call to repentance was through water purification He warned the people of divine judgment These reminded the people of prophecies about the Messiah (Ezekiel 36:25-28, Malachi 3:2-5) The widespread extraordinary success of his preaching is partially explained by this idea that many wondered whether he was the Messiah The Pharisees even sent a delegation to see if he is the Messiah (John 1:19-27) St John wanted to invalidate this growing conviction that he is the Messiah He told the people plainly that Another far greater than he was coming He compared the baptism by water with the baptism by Fire and Holy Spirit He humbled himself in saying that he was not worthy to loose His sandal strap (considered to be the most humiliating task that a master could not even ask his servant to do) He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and Fire This is fulfilled at Pentecost Fulfills the prophecies of the characteristics of the Messiah in Ezekiel 36:25-28 and Malachi 3:2-5 as Purifying and Refining Winnowing Fan At the threshing floor after a harvest of wheat, they would need to separate the good wheat from the uneatable chaff They would use a winnowing fan which was like a big fork and it would help separate the wheat grains from the chaff The wheat was thrown into the air with the winnowing fork as a breeze blew away the chaff, so the good wheat grains fell to the ground. Then the chaff was burned with fire. This was well-known imagery in those days It is the image of the final judgment and the separation of the righteous from the wicked, with the wicked going into the everlasting fire Job 21:17-18; Isaiah 41:16; Jeremiah 15:7; Wisdom 5:14, 23; Matthew 3:12, Matthew 13:30, 40, 42, 50; Luke 3:17; John 15:6 Many other exhortations and preaching to the people The Person and Office of the Messiah The Nature of the Kingdom of God The Gospel Faith in God The Gospel Imprisonment of John Luke is not pausing to giving us the story of the death of John the Baptist, but giving us an idea of the wickedness of Herod Antipas - the adultery with his brother's wife, the rebuke of St John, the imprisonment of John.  Later on, Herod would behead John the Baptist Luke 3b: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 3: 21 - 38 ~ Bible Study (Eng/Arabic - عربي) Baptism of Christ 00:00-11:13 21  When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened.  22  And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, “You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased.” Shortest account in the Synoptics of the baptism of Christ St Luke mentions two things that are not mentioned in the other gospels: Christ was praying Christ waited until all the people were baptized, and then He was baptized When people came to be baptized by John, they came confessing their sins... but Jesus did not have sins to confess. He is God. He prayed, keeping up communion with His Father in heaven. So the Father in Heaven testified about the Son "This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased" Theophany means "Manifestation of God" We call the Feast of the Baptism of Christ the Theophany because God, the Trinity, was manifested By baptizing the Lord Jesus Christ, John the Baptist revealed to the people that Jesus is the Messiah "He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’" (John 1:33) Messiah "Anointed One" - "Christ" - "Al Masee7" Here, the Lord is Anointed as King, High Priest, Prophet At the baptism, according to St Matthew, Christ said: “Permit  it to be so  now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Righteousness of the Law is by keeping all the requirements of the Law... and no one could do that. Jesus came and took our humanity, and in our humanity, He fulfilled all the righteousness and requirements of the Law. When I abide in Him, in Him I also fulfill all the righteousness of the Law My prayer in itself is weak... but when I am in Him, abiding in Him, one with Him, then when I pray, I pray "in Jesus" so I will have access to God the Father ("no one can come to the Father except through Me") When I fast, my fasting in itself is nothing... but when Jesus fasting, in Him when I fast, my fast fulfills the righteousness of the Law That's why all the Old Testament fathers went to Hades... if their own righteousness was able to save them, they wouldn't have gone to Hades. But the fact that they went to Hades and waited until Christ was crucified and died and went to Hades to restore them, shows that none of us can fulfill the righteousness of the Law except through Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ accepted His mission as the "suffering servant" by allowing Himself to be counted among the sinners! He stood among the sinners who came to be baptized by John the Baptist He was counted among the sinners on the Cross, and crucified between two thieves By accepting the baptism of John, it is in anticipation of another baptism - the baptism of Blood on the altar of Cross for the remission of our sins. Thus, we who believe in Him and accept Him as our Lord and Savior, need to be joined to His baptism of death "We are buried with Him in Baptism" (Colossians 2:12) If we die with Him, we will rise with Him Baptism is essential for our salvation so that we can participate in His Resurrection and His glory. Genealogy of Christ 11:14-24:40 23  Now Jesus Himself began  His ministry at  about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed)  the  son of Joseph,  the son  of Heli,  24  the son  of Matthat,  the son  of Levi,  the son  of Melchi,  the son  of Janna,  the son  of Joseph,  25  the son  of Mattathiah,  the son  of Amos,  the son  of Nahum,  the son  of Esli,  the son  of Naggai,  26  the son  of Maath,  the son  of Mattathiah,  the son  of Semei,  the son  of Joseph,  the son  of Judah,  27  the son  of Joannas,  the son  of Rhesa,  the son  of Zerubbabel,  the son  of Shealtiel,  the son  of Neri,  28  the son  of Melchi,  the son  of Addi,  the son  of Cosam,  the son  of Elmodam,  the son  of Er,  29  the son  of Jose,  the son  of Eliezer,  the son  of Jorim,  the son  of Matthat,  the son  of Levi,  30  the son  of Simeon,  the son  of Judah,  the son  of Joseph,  the son  of Jonan,  the son  of Eliakim,  31  the son  of Melea,  the son  of Menan,  the son  of Mattathah,  the son  of Nathan,  the son  of David,  32  the son  of Jesse,  the son  of Obed,  the son  of Boaz,  the son  of Salmon,  the son  of Nahshon,  33  the son  of Amminadab,  the son  of Ram,  the son  of Hezron,  the son  of Perez,  the son  of Judah,  34  the son  of Jacob,  the son  of Isaac,  the son  of Abraham,  the son  of Terah,  the son  of Nahor,  35  the son  of Serug,  the son  of Reu,  the son  of Peleg,  the son  of Eber,  the son  of Shelah,  36  the son  of Cainan,  the son  of Arphaxad,  the son  of Shem,  the son  of Noah,  the son  of Lamech,  37  the son  of Methuselah,  the son  of Enoch,  the son  of Jared,  the son  of Mahalalel,  the son  of Cainan,  38  the son  of Enosh,  the son  of Seth,  the son  of Adam,  the son  of God. 30 Years of age This is when the Levites and Priests would begin their service At that age, it was lawful for the Scribes to teach In general, 30 years was looked upon as the time of life when manhood has reached its full development As was supposed the son of Joseph People thought that Jesus is the son of Joseph, but he was not the biological son of Joseph St Luke makes it clear that Joseph has no physical or biological connection whatsoever with Jesus. He is not His biological father, but rather, Jesus was born in a miraculous way from the Virgin Mary Son of Heli Matthew 1:15 has Joseph's father as "Jacob" St Luke is giving the Biological Genealogy through St Mary Heli = Heliachim = Joachim This can be read as Jesus as was supposed the son of Joseph, Jesus was the son of Mary the daughter of Heli Differences in the Genealogies Matthew is descending, Luke is ascending Matthew's genealogy is representing a movement through three periods of time... the first period is the period of the patriarchs (head-father - arch + patri) the second period is the period of the kings the last period is a period of regular people Matthew's intention was not to give a strict record, but rather to give a historical progression... first by highlighting the family origin, then the rise to power through David's throne, and eventually the decline from royalty of the kings to the humble birth of the Promised Messiah from a regular human Matthew starts from Abraham, Luke starts from Adam Matthew's list shows that Christ is the Son of Abraham (In your seed all the nations will be blessed) and the Son of David (Messiah);  Luke's list shows that Christ is the Son of Adam and Eve - the woman who would crush the head of the serpent Matthew lists according to Joseph, Luke lists according to Heliachim the father of St Mary Matthew includes five noteworthy women Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bethsheba, St Mary St Jerome suggested that four of these women were included because they were sinners, foreshadowing Jesus as the Savior of sinful humans Others thought they were included because these four women were Gentiles, showing that Christ did not just come for His own people, Israel, but for everyone in the world. Matthew's is at the start, Luke's is after the Baptism of Christ St Ambrosius says that Luke wished to show that God is the Father of us all by means of Baptism. That in baptism, we are adopted and become children of God. Christ was both the son of Adam (according to the flesh) and the Son of God (before all ages) and in the fullness of time took flesh and became a son of Adam. Because He is son of Adam and Son of God, He is the only one that can be mediator between us and the Father. St Athanasius says: "God became the Son of Man in order to make man the son of God" Luke 4a: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 4: 1 - 22 ~ Bible Study Outline of the Chapter 00:00-02:28 1-13: Temptation of the Lord 14-15: The Lord Starts His Ministry in Galilee 16-30: The Lord preaches in Nazareth 31-37: The Lord casts out unclean spirits 38-39: Healing of St Peter's Mother in Law 40-41: Many are healed after the Sabbath Sunset 42-44: The Lord continues His ministry and teaching in Galilee Temptation of the Lord 02:29-43:03 1 Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,  2  being tempted for forty days by the devil. And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry. The Lord was anointed by the Spirit in baptism, when the Spirit descended upon Him like a dove Messiah means "the anointed one" and He was anointed, Chrismated, Consecrated - to be our High Priest, King of kings and the Prophet. After His consecration, He went to the wilderness where Satan tempted Him for forty days Following this tradition, a new priest spends forty days fasting in the monastery after his ordination Wilderness Most likely the wilderness of Judea near the Jordan Some scholars say that He went to the desert of Horeb or Sinai where the Israelites were tried for forty years and Moses/Elijah fasted forty days The Lord began His ministry immediately after His baptism - not by going to Jerusalem to preach, but by retiring to the wilderness We need to prepare ourselves for any ministry by spending some time with God Before I teach in Sunday School or do visitations, I need personal time with God In Egypt, all the servants would meet half an hour before the beginning of Sunday School to pray and prepare themselves before Sunday School started. Before going to visitations, the servants going to visitations would meet at the church and pray together before going to visitations. This is important because it means I am relying on God for the work of ministry, not relying on myself. The Lord prepared Himself for ministry by fasting, prayer, meditation and resisting temptation This is why His journey to the wilderness is said to be "driven by the Spirit" (Mark 1) or "led by the Spirit" (Luke 4, Matthew 4) Order of Temptations Matthew: Three Temptations Mentioned Bread Pinnacle of the Temple (Throw Yourself down) High Mountain (Kingdoms of the world) After the 40 Days Luke: Three Temptations Mentioned Bread High Mountain (Kingdoms of the world) Pinnacle of the Temple (Throw Yourself down) After the 40 Days Mark: Brief mention without details During the 40 Days Fasting 40 Days Moses fasted 40 days twice (Deuteronomy 9:9-25, 10:10) Elijah fasted 40 days (1 Kings 19) Humanity of the Lord The Lord was hungry after 40 days - a sign of His Humanity "For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted." (Hebrews 2:18) Through our unity with the Lord Jesus Christ, we can get support from the Holy Spirit in His name in times of trouble, suffering, temptation Contrast with the Temptation of Adam and Eve Three Temptations "Good for food" - "Turn this stone into bread" - The Lust of the flesh "Pleasant to the eyes" - "All these kingdoms I will give to you" - The Lust of the eyes "You will be like God" - "Throw yourself and the angels will catch you" - The Pride of life "Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that  is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever." (1 John 2:15-17) 3  And the devil said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” 4  But Jesus answered him, saying,  “It is written,   ‘Man shall not live by bread alone,   but by every word of God.’   ” If You are the Son of God This question was very important for Satan, to know whether Jesus is the Son of God or not Satan continues to ask this question throughout the gospels (see Luke 4:40 when Satan cries out "You are the Christ, the Son of God" and the Lord rebukes them Satan was not sure until the Lord died on the Cross and when he came to capture His soul as he did with all human beings, the Lord bound him and Satan realized that Jesus is, indeed, the incarnated Son of God Temptation of Food Adam, the son of God (Luke 3:38), is tempted with food Israel, whom God called His firstborn, is tempted in the wilderness with the desire to eat meat - the temptation of food. Christ, the second Adam (1 Cor 15:21-22), is tempted by food also Satan was expecting that the second Adam, Jesus, would do the same as the first Adam Am I tempted by food? Many times when fasting, Satan makes us feel that we have a headache, we are drowsy, we need some food, we just need a drink of water... and many times we take the easy way and break our fast Respond with Scripture Christ responded by quoting Scripture: "Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God" (Deuteronomy 8:3) Christ is showing the devil His faith in the Scripture Christ is showing the devil that He has faith in God and not in food Christ is laying down the Old Testament Scripture as authoritative and the route to Himself We should respond to temptation with Scripture... but to do that, we must know the Scripture Rejection of Evil Spirits Christ did not yield to the temptation even though He was hungry. Do not accept anything from Satan Even when Satan said to Christ "You are the Christ, the Son of God", the Lord rebukes him and doesn't accept it from him "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God" (1 John 4:1) Not every thought that comes to your mind is from God. Examine and test it and if it's from Satan, reject it completely. Miracles were done for the confirming of faith The Lord did miracles for the approval of His doctrine, so until He began preaching, He did not do miracles "But that you may know that the Son of man has power on earth to forgive sins, Arise, take up your bed, and go to your house." (Matthew 9:6) The devil had no faith to be confirmed, so there is no reason for the Lord to do a miracle here He would not do miracles for Himself or for His own supply He would rather turn water into wine for the credit and convenience of His mother and His friends, than stones into bread for His own needs He would rather be rebuked by Satan with being weak and not able to do it, than to be persuaded by Satan to do so He chose not to save Himself from the Cross, in order to save all of us 5 Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.  6  And the devil said to Him, “All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for  this  has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.  7  Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.” 8  And Jesus answered and said to him, “Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written,   ‘You shall worship the  Lord  your God, and Him only you shall serve.’   ” St Matthew lists this as the third temptation, but St Luke as the second Perhaps St Luke saw the third temptation, about pride, as stronger and more intense than the temporal ambition St Luke is using the order that happened with Adam and Eve Satan is a liar He never had authority over the kingdoms of the world Genesis 1:26 - God has given authority over the world to man, and not to angels or fallen angels Job 1 - Why would he have to ask to attack Job? He could not even enter the swine without permission from the Lord Jesus Christ Satan demands from all of us to worship him, and he dared to demand it of the Lord Jesus Christ An angel would never allow someone to worship them Revelation 19:10 - St John fell at the feet of an angel and the angel said "See that you do not do that" and directed him to worship God only Fallen angels seek to be worshipped by men, but also wants the Son of God, Himself, who is worshipped by all the heavenly hosts, to worship him This is why Satan fell from his rank as archangel - because he assumed deity and sought the divine to worship him. And Satan grows worse and worse in this sin. The Lord's Assertiveness The Lord rejected without any rage and with all assertiveness! There is no compromise. There is no discussion. Such a temptation should not be reasoned with He responds again with Scripture (Deuteronomy 6:13) 9  Then he brought Him to Jerusalem, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here.  10  For it is written: ‘He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you,’ 11  and, ‘In   their   hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’  ” 12  And Jesus answered and said to him,  “It has been said,   ‘You shall not tempt the  Lord  your God.’   ” St Matthew lists this as the second temptation, but St Luke as the third Satan deceives by quoting the Scripture Satan is challenging Him now - do you trust God? Do you trust those words of Scripture? Show me if You really trust God. Through the deceit of Satan, the very means we use to repel one temptation may be used by him as the groundwork for another The devil can place us in temptation, but can never make us sin. St Augustine: "The devil's part is to suggest, it is ours not to consent." The Lord's Response Deuteronomy 6:16 - You shall not tempt the Lord your God Psalm 90 is talking about the Lord's protection when something happens to us... not when we intentionally do something to harm ourselves... this is testing the Lord! 13  Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time. The Lord defeated Satan, that we too may defeat Satan "opportune time" probably refers to the time of His passion, when he entered the heart of Judas "Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that  is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever." (1 John 2:15-17) Galilean Ministry 43:04-1:02:09 14  Then Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.  15  And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. Jesus came from His time of testing stronger than ever in the power of the Spirit In Luke 4:1, Jesus is already filled with the Spirit, but He continued to walk in the power of the Spirit after the Temptation Why did Jesus start His ministry in Galilee and not in Jerusalem The region of Galilee was highly populated - two international trade routes passed through Galilee. People were coming from everywhere through Galilee. Synagogue The Temple is in Jerusalem but there were synagogues everywhere Synagogue was a place for public worship, for praying and reading Scripture. The Temple was needed for offering sacrifices. The Lord gained a great reputation in a very short time He was admired and praised publicly by everyone Slander and rejection started when He went to His specific city in Nazareth 16  So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.  17  And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: 18  “The   Spirit of the  Lord   is  upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to  the  poor; He has sent Me   to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to  the  captives And recovery of sight to  the  blind, To   set at liberty those who are oppressed; 19  To proclaim the acceptable year of the  Lord .” 20  Then He closed the book, and gave  it  back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him.  21  And He began to say to them,  “Today this Scripture is   fulfilled in your hearing.”   22  So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, “Is this not Joseph’s son?” It was His custom to go to the synagogue on Saturday and to keep the Sabbath law. Until this time, He would go to the Synagogue and read, but did not yet preach. Because He had not started His ministry yet. But now He is starting so He will read and then preach Isaiah Reading Isaiah 61:1-2 Isaiah 42:7 Everybody understood these verses to be referring to the Messiah Messiah means "anointed one"   Anointed for what? To preach the good news to the poor: in spirit To heal the brokenhearted: of their sin To proclaim liberty to the captives: those who are in Hades, who will be set free and taken to the Paradise of Joy To give recovery of sight to the blind: those who were sitting in darkness and the shadow of death To set at liberty those who are oppressed: who are captives of sin To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord Can also be translated the "Year of acceptance" of the Lord  The year of Jubilee (Leviticus 25) was celebrated every fifty years by the Jews (after seven sets of Sabbatical years). All captives were released, and all debt was released Prophetically, the acceptable year of the Lord is the year that the Messiah comes because all those in captivity of Satan will be released The Lord read this passage from the Septuagint Greek Translation There is a reference for the Holy Trinity in this passage: The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me Spirit = Holy Spirit Lord = God the Father Me = God the Son Preaching He was absent from Nazareth for some time, but now returned with a new power and some fame in Galilee If someone comes to the synagogue and was known to be competent, they would ask him to explain the passage from the Law or the Prophets Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing I am He I am the Messiah Surprise and admiration gave birth to a spirit of disbelief They admired His preaching but... to say that He is the Messiah was too much for them... They knew Him from their village as the son of Joseph the Carpenter and they saw Him growing... so they could not believe that He is the Messiah. Would the Messiah really come from Nazareth? And Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" (John 1:46) Would the Messiah come from such a poor family?   Luke 4b: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 4: 23 - 44 ~ Bible Study Galilean Ministry 00:00 23  He said to them,  “You will surely say this proverb to Me, ‘Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we have heard done in   Capernaum,   do also here in   Your country.’ ”   24  Then He said,  “Assuredly, I say to you, no   prophet is accepted in his own country.   25  But I tell you truly,   many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land;   26  but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath,  in the region  of Sidon, to a woman  who was  a widow.   27  And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.” 28  So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath,  29  and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff.  30  Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way. 31  Then He went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and was teaching them on the Sabbaths.  32  And they were astonished at His teaching, for His word was with authority. Christ is telling the people of Nazareth what is in their hearts In their hearts, they despised Him because of the poverty of His parents In their hearts, they challenged Him with miracles - this is Your hometown, perform miracles here! Usually a physician would cure himself, his friends, his family, his neighborhood before going and curing strangers They challenge Him to work miracles as He did in Capernaum The Lord responds with the reason He did not do miracles among them He responds with a proverb very well known to them: No prophet is accepted in his own country He is also speaking prophetically by saying "country" and not just "town" because Israel, the chosen people of the OT, would not accept Him (He came unto His own and His own did not receive Him) When the Israelites reject Him, the innumerable Gentiles will accept Him He gives two well-known OT Examples to support this Elijah and the Widow: Elijah did not go to any widows in Israel, but to a Gentile widow in Sidon Elisha and Naaman: Elisha did not cure the lepers in Israel, but to a Gentile man - Naaman, the Syrian Prophetically, both of these show that the Jews will reject Him and the Gentiles will accept Him They are filled with wrath How dare He tell them that the Messiah will go to the Gentiles instead of the chosen people of Israel The Lord wants to teach them that the mercies of God - even in the Old Testament - were not limited to Israel only The people in Nazareth felt entitled to miracles The Lord does miracles based on His economy and His will Sometimes we ask "why did God cure this person but not me?" or "but not my grandma?" but we cannot question God because it is according to His will and His economy Any miracle He did was for a spiritual goal The incarnation of Christ is beyond the limitations of human relationships and territories God has no partiality between nations He sent Elijah to do good for a Sidonian He sent Elisha to do good for a Syrian And in that same time, He did not do anything for the ungrateful and disbelieving people of Israel They intended to throw Him off a cliff to kill Him because He hinted that the grace of God would be offered to the Gentiles, and they probably judged Him as a false prophet because He refused to perform any miracle in front of them He did a miracle by passing through the midst of them and this is the only miracle they would ever see St Cyril of Alexandria said: "Christ passing through the midst of them and went His way was not because He was afraid of suffering but because His hour was not yet come." - there is still work that He has to do before He dies on the Cross What happened in Nazareth is a foreshadowing of the whole future of His ministry At first, the Jews would gladly receive His healings, His miracles, His teachings But by the end, they will turn on Him until they crucify Him on the Cross Went down to Capernaum Nazareth was a city on a hill, so he went down to Capernaum which is a city on the Sea of Galilee He kept His custom of preaching every Sabbath in the synagogue The people were astonished at His teaching Astonishment is one thing, and believing is another Astonishment is not enough for one to believe Miracles in Capernaum 21:22   33  Now in the synagogue there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon. And he cried out with a loud voice,  34  saying, “Let  us  alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” 35  But Jesus rebuked him, saying,  Be quiet, and come out of him!”  And when the demon had thrown him in  their  midst, it came out of him and did not hurt him.  36  Then they were all amazed and spoke among themselves, saying, “What a word this  is!  For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out.”  37  And the report about Him went out into every place in the surrounding region. St Luke first gives the general idea (verse 32) and then gives us a particular account of one Sabbath As soon as the devil saw Jesus, he became scared of His power... the demon expected that he would be dispossessed Just the presence of God caused pain to the demons - like how a wounded eye cannot bear the light The devil gave a correct testimony that the Lord is the Holy One of God (and this is not the only time) - but the intention of the devil is not to reveal the truth... but that if the Lord agreed with the demons, then He might appear to the people to be in union with evil spirits. So this was a lie from the devil to tell the people that Jesus is in union with evil spirits. The Lord rebukes him and casts him out For this reason, we see that neither Christ nor His apostles take any notice of these testimonies of the demons It happens with the Lord several times in the Gospels It happened with St Paul in Acts 16 when a girl with the spirit of divination followed St Paul and St Luke saying "these are servants of the Most High God who proclaim to us the way of salvation" and she kept saying it for many days until St Paul rebuked the spirit It was necessary for the Lord to assert His absolute power over evil spirits and show that He had nothing to do with them (especially since later in His ministry He would be accused of casting out demons by Beelzebub) The time was not yet arrived when Christ was to be publicly proclaimed as the Son of God - but rather, this great truth was to be gradually unfolded with the people being persuaded of that truth by the preaching and miracles of the Lord. News of His word and His works spread throughout - not only in Capernaum, but throughout the region around Galilee (including Syria Matthew 4:24) 38  Now He arose from the synagogue and entered Simon’s house. But Simon’s wife’s mother was sick with a high fever, and they made request of Him concerning her.  39  So He stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. And immediately she arose and served them. St John Chrysostom said it seems that He went to Simon's house to eat after preaching in the Synagogue which is why Simon's mother in law arose to serve them immediately Different sign of healing Sometimes the Lord heals by a word Sometimes by a touch Sometimes by both a word and touch The Miracle is not just the cure of an incurable disease (high fever) 40  When the sun was setting, all those who had any that were sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and He laid His hands on every one of them and healed them.  41  And demons also came out of many, crying out and saying, “You are the Christ, the Son of God!” And He, rebuking  them,  did not allow them to speak, for they knew that He was the Christ. Why when the sun was setting? It was the Sabbath! The people were not permitted by the Pharisees to bring their sick for healing on the Sabbath. But when the sun sets, the next day has started so they brought their people to be healed. The Lord laid His hands on those who were sick Every one of them The act of healing is not limited by privilege or sickness or anything. He was able to cure all, and no kind of disease was too hard for Him to heal or subdue The active power of the Holy Spirit is demonstrated here because the Lord offered physical healing AND spiritual healing. He purified both body and soul. Healing and exorcism of demons come together Again, He rebukes the demons despite that their testimony is true Jesus Preaches in Galilee 42  Now when it was day, He departed and went into a deserted place. And the crowd sought Him and came to Him, and tried to keep Him from leaving them;  43  but He said to them,  “I must   preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent.”   44  And He was preaching in the synagogues of Galilee. Early in the morning, He went to have some time in solitude with the Father The people wanted Him to stay in Capernaum and abide with them Most likely this was not out of their belief in Him, but so that He can do miracles and heal and they can benefit from the miracles Miracles and healing were not His primary work, but they were symbolic and secondary work to prove His goodness and demonstrate His authority to preach the Gospel that He is the Messiah The Lord's mission was very clear to Him and He set boundaries Some people try to manipulate the servants and clergy, but the Lord was able to say no - I have a mission from the Father and I came here for that purpose. Luke 5a: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 5: 1 - 26 ~ Bible Study Outline of the Chapter 00:00 1-11: Jesus calls Galilean fishermen to be His disciples 12-16: Jesus cleanses the leper 17-26: Jesus forgives and heals a paralytic 27-32: Jesus calls a tax collector 33-39 Jesus is questioned about fasting Jesus Calls Galilean Fishermen to be Disciples   1 So it was, as the multitude pressed about Him to hear the word of God, that He stood by the Lake of Gennesaret,  2  and saw two boats standing by the lake; but the fishermen had gone from them and were washing  their  nets.  3  Then He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little from the land. And He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat. By now the Lord Jesus has some fame and wherever he goes he attracts listeners Whether in synagogue, marketplace, houses, etc. Crowds attract St Luke only one who calls it Sea of Gennesaret. Same as Lake of Tiberias or Sea of Galilee. Gennesaret on one side, Tiberias on another. Book of Numbers we read about Lake of Chinnereth (Numbers 34:11) John calls it Sea of Tiberias John 6:1 Galilean fishermen would fish at night and return to shore at sunrise to unload catch and restore their nets. The Lord asked Simon for use of his boat as a platform from which to address the large crowd. He had already healed his Mother In Law, so there is some relation between them and some familiarity He couldn't conveniently speak to them on the land because they crowded around them so He went in boat and pulled back. According to Mark 1:16-20, Simon and Andrew were fishermen and partners with Zebedee and his sons James and John Sat down to teach is a symbol of His authority 4  When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon,  “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” 5  But Simon answered and said to Him, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at Your word I will let down the net.”  6  And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking.  7  So they signaled to  their  partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink.  8  When Simon Peter saw  it,  he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” 9  For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish which they had taken;  10  and so also  were  James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon,  “Do not be afraid.   From now on you will catch men.”   11  So when they had brought their boats to land, they  [ a ] forsook all and followed Him. The Lord, knowing they had caught nothing, asked them to go to the deep and drop their net. Their failure to catch fish the night before was God's Providence - He allowed them a temporary failure so that they could gave permanent and eternal success and see God's hand the next day. If anyone else had given them that advice to lower their nets, they would have considered it offensive to their self respect - they are experienced! According to their experience, there is no reason to cast their nets again. But Peter because of his faith, trusts in the word of the Lord. He already saw the Lord heal his MIL so he knows he's not speaking with a regular man or an eloquent teacher but that this Man has some divine power They knew - fishing should be at shallow waters not in the deep - fishing is better at night not during the day "according to Your word I will cast down the net" St Ambrose says that Simon Peter's struggle all night long but without fruit is as one who preaches in human wisdom and philosophy. The people of God should preach in the power of the Spirit not in human wisdom and philosophy The amount of fish was a miracle in itself - Had to call another boat - two boats started sinking - filled both boats - net started to break If we all readily obey the Lord we'll be blessed in the same manner. St Cyril: their nets were filled with fish miraculously. This is to give them confidence that their preaching will not be in vain when casting their nets on the unbelievers and the lost. But notice how Simon Peter and the others stood in fear and asked for help. There were many who helped the apostles in their missionary work. In ministry we need to work as a team not as individuals Peter at ye beginning of the day heard the teaching of Christ and it pierced his heart. The conviction of sin started in his heart with the teaching, and after seeing the miracle he fell at the knees of Christ. He saw the power of Christ and worshipped Him in amazement and gratitude. This is the reaction of Isaiah in Isaiah 6:1-10 Depart from me is an expression of humility. He felt unworthy to have Christ in his boat. He is a Holy Being. He recognized the vast difference between his human condition as a sinner and the Holy One of God Do not be afraid - repeated several times in scripture (Isaiah 6, Daniel 10, several during ministry of Christ, before ascension) From now on - end of old life and beginning of new life as an apostle and messenger of Christ. And he took the new name of Peter. The Lord compares the catch of fish with the catch of souls that Simon Peter will win (first sermon after Pentecost wins 3000 souls). This night of unproductive human work will be replaced by fruitful work of proclaiming the Gospel under Jesus' authority Fisher of men is prophetic symbol for proclaiming the good news of salvation to everyone in the world Andrew (named in Matthew 4:18), Simon, James and John left all to follow Christ. This is the beginning of Jesus community of believers The fishermen made the same choice that Jesus asks each one of us to make - to leave everything in our earthly life behind and follow Him Jesus Cleanses the Leper   12  And it happened when He was in a certain city, that behold, a man who was full of leprosy saw Jesus; and he fell on  his  face and implored Him, saying, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.” 13  Then He put out  His  hand and touched him, saying,  “I am willing; be cleansed.”  Immediately the leprosy left him.  14  And He charged him to tell no one,  “But go and show yourself to the priest, and make an offering for your cleansing, as a testimony to them,   just as Moses commanded.” 15  However, the report went around concerning Him all the more; and great multitudes came together to hear, and to be healed by Him of their infirmities.  16  So He Himself  often  withdrew into the wilderness and prayed. St Luke was a physician so he is accurate in describing medical conditions. Full of leprosy means it had covered his body The man makes a statement of faith This is memorable because it's the first recorded instance of Jesus contact with leprosy which was very contagious and lethal If you are willing - he is not demanding but saying "I have faith that you can, but I leave it to your will" Leviticus 13:46, Numbers 5:2 - touching leprosy makes you unclean medically and ceremonially. Touching the leper is a clear violation of the letter of the law, but bit the spirit of the law. Ambrose - Jesus because He is the Lord of the law, does not obey the Law but makes the law. Why did He touch the leper? - it's not just a physical illness but also psychological and spiritual. By touching him, He tells him "you are accepted. You are love" - He is not infected by the leprosy symbolizing how He took our humanity yet remaining undefiled (resembles us in everything except for sin alone) - The Lord was not polluted by the touch but the leper was cleansed Why did He tell him not to tell anyone 1 - Matthew 12:15-50 the Lord didn't want His ministry to be accompanied by excitement and trouble from the religious leader. His house did not yet come. He wants to build up the kingdom of God. 2 - He came not merely to be a Great Physician and Wonder Worker but to save our souls by His revelation, His example, His death 3 - So that the man is readmitted to the community according to the Law of Moses. This requires a priest to pronounce him ritually clean 4 - it is evident that His word was neglected since the report spread. Maybe a feeling of gratitude... But now His work of teaching is hindered as many came to be healed. St Luke stresses Jesus life of prayer and many parables about prayer Jesus Forgives and Heals the Paralytic   17  Now it happened on a certain day, as He was teaching, that there were Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting by, who had come out of every town of Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was  present  to heal them.  18  Then behold, men brought on a bed a man who was paralyzed, whom they sought to bring in and lay before Him.  19  And when they could not find how they might bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the housetop and let him down with  his  bed through the tiling into the midst before Jesus. 20  When He saw their faith, He said to him,  “Man, your sins are forgiven you.” 21  And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, “Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” 22  But when Jesus perceived their thoughts, He answered and said to them,  “Why are you reasoning in your hearts?   23  Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise up and walk’?   24  But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins” —He said to the man who was paralyzed,  “I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.” 25  Immediately he rose up before them, took up what he had been lying on, and departed to his own house, glorifying God.  26  And they were all amazed, and they glorified God and were filled with fear, saying, “We have seen strange things today!” The Lord is still preaching around Galilee People came from Galilee, Judea and Jerusalem The fame of a New Teacher had spread He is sitting in a house teaching but this time it's a different group of people. Not common fishermen or anything from Galilee... But pharisees and scribes and teachers of the law. - Some came out of curiosity. - Some for higher motives to hear for themselves the teachings of this new teacher. We can't say yet that any came for a malicious reason or jealously like at the end of His ministry. The house is packed and no one can come in Not easy to carry a man up to the roof - When He saw their faith - can faith be seen? Work is seen. St James said "show me your faith by your works" The paralytic was so weak by his disease, but his friends had great determination. This persistence implied faith in the power of the Lord Jesus Christ to heal. Faith in the man and faith in his friends. The Lord, seeing the faith of both, spoke these substantial words: "Your sins are forgiven" - First use of the word faith in Gospel of Luke - Maybe the Lord read this man's heart and that he was more distressed by his sins than his body - Maybe the man got this illness because of his sin and the Lord has to heal the spiritual before the physical - He addressed the greatest problem the man has which is sin. Sin is the fountain of all sickness. Forgiveness of sin is the only foundation from which physical recovery can be built - He forgives sins, and the healing of the sickness is undisputable proof that He has power to heal sins - The friends show active intercession to God - My faith can make a difference in someone else's life Who can forgive sins but God alone? The answer to this question is yes! Jesus is, indeed, God. This is a revelation that God became man to heal us not just from physical illness, but to heal humanity from sin and corruption They accuse Him of speaking blasphemies blasphemy: Abusive or condescending language directed to God or claiming that a person is God Blasphemy was punishable by death (Lev 24:16) - this was even the charge by which the Lord was condemned in His trial before His crucifixion Who are the Pharisees and Scribes? - Pharisee means "separated one" because they separated themselves from anything they thought unholy or unclean and that everyone was separated from the love of God but themselves. They practiced a very strict and literal interpretation of the Law of Moses. - Scribes were teachers who transcribed the scriptures and many were Pharisees This incident is the beginning of their hostility to the Lord Jesus Christ and His ministry In this passage, there is no doubt that Jesus is revealing Himself as God The prophecy in Luke 2:34 by Simeon is already being fulfilled - "This Child is destined for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign which will be spoken against that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed" - Thoughts of many hearts may be revealed The Pharisees are in a dilemma here because either: - Jesus is blaspheming by forgiving sins - Jesus is actually God They chose the former. No man can forgive sins, and no man can heal paralysis... even today, it's one of the diseases that is very difficult to be completely cured. So it's a logical assumption that if He has the power to heal paralysis, then He must have authority to forgive sins. Which is easier? Two ways to understand this question: - It is harder to heal a man than to forgive sins because forgiveness is invisible and no one could verify in that moment that this man is forgiven before God. Anyone can say it... how can we know? OR - To heal the sickness of this man did not cost anything... just a few words from the mouth of the Lord. But to be able to forgive his sins, cost a lot... to empty Himself, to take the form of man, to obey unto the death of the cross, to suffer and shed His blood. "You were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's" (1 Cor 6:20) If he was healed, and his sins not forgiven... then it means nothing in the end. But if he's not healed and his sins are forgiven, he inherits the kingdom of God. But because of their doubt, He verifies for them that He has authority to forgive sins on earth. Jesus was willing to put Himself to the test in a way that is immediately visible He corrects their understanding that He has power to do both heal and forgive sins This is the first time the Lord used the title "Son of Man" about Himself - Expresses both humanity and divinity - These religious leaders knew Daniel 7:13 that says the Messiah will be called Son of Man - Messianic title - If he used the word King or Christ, it will sound to the Romans like an earthly king Imagine the tension in this scene: - Scribes/Pharisees tense because they are challenged by Him - Paralytic is tense wondering if he'll be healed or not - Crowd is tense to see what happens When he hears this word, he immediately rose up. He carried the bed which had carried him. The bed which was proof of his sickness, became proof of his cure when he carried it. Jesus' power to heal and authority over sin is immediately vindicated and everyone glorified God. The Scribes and Pharisees don't reach the same conclusion Luke 5b: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 5: 27 - 39 ~ Bible Study (English & Arabic - عربي) Jesus calls a Tax Collector 00:00 27  After these things He went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax office. And He said to him,  “Follow Me.”   28  So he left all, rose up, and followed Him. Levi traditionally is identified as St Matthew Matthew means "Gift of God" Matthew was a gift to God to the Christian faith He wrote his gospel to the Jews and what helped him write it was: his scholarly knowledge of the Old Testament his intimate understanding of the Pharisees and Sadducees his ability to penetrate the falsehood of the religious hierarchy of that era He was a tax-collector, who were known for their greed, violence and wickedness Jesus called him to be one of His followers and even one of the Twelve (inner circle). This reveals the purpose of the ministry of the Lord Jesus who came to redeem all men "I did not come to call righteous, but sinners to repentance" The Lord did not choose based on outward appearance - or He would have chosen the Pharisees, Scribes and Religious Leaders God is looking at the heart Many people are sinners from the outside, but they are waiting for a touch of grace that will convert their life completely. Matthew was a sinner but once the grace of God touched him, he converted completely. When God called Peter, James, Andrew, John they immediately left everything and followed Him. In the same way, Levi (Matthew) left all and followed Him. This was not an easy decision - it needs determination, self-denial, full trust and confidence and God 29  Then Levi gave Him a great feast in his own house. And there were a great number of tax collectors and others who sat down with them.  30 And their scribes and the Pharisees complained against His disciples, saying, “Why do You eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” 31  Jesus answered and said to them,  “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.   32  I have not come to call  the  righteous, but sinners, to repentance.” St Matthew's Sincerity The integrity and sincerity of St Matthew is evidenced by the great feast in honor of the Lord Jesus Christ Maybe his friends, the tax collectors and sinners, were moved by the kindness and friendship of this New Teacher - they heard about Him and how He called a tax collector (who was looked down upon and shunned by the religious leaders of Israel) to be one of His followers. They assembled in the house of St Matthew to see this kind, friendly, compassionate New Teacher Maybe Matthew, being touched by the Lord's compassion and kindness, made a great effort to gather as many as he could to his house to introduce them to the new Master so that maybe their life would be changed too This is one of the best ways in Christian service... if you are really touched by the Love of God, talk to others about God. Invite them to be in His presence. Invite them to taste and see how sweet it is to be with the Lord. He demonstrated publicly his new way of life... I am not a greedy tax collector anymore, but I am a disciple of Christ There is always someone negative to attack the works done for the glory of God The Pharisees and Scribes were offended that Jesus, who pretended to be a good Teacher, a Prophet, lowered Himself to go and have company with such men: sinners, publicans, tax-collectors For them, the tax-collectors were considered dishonest men who abused their authority The same happened when the Lord said to Zacchaeus "I will go and stay in your house" They disrespectfully said to the disciples: "Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?" Although they directed their words to the disciples, not the Lord, their intention is clearly directed at the Lord Himself The Lord takes up the case and vindicates His disciples and Himself Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick This is one of the sayings of the Lord which sank very deep in the hearts of the hearers Those who  believe they are in good health, stand as if they don't need assistance of any physician Scribes and Pharisees, in their own opinion, believe they are free from the disease of sin... you are righteous and blameless according to the Law of Moses... so you don't feel that you need Me. I am the Physician who came to cure the maladies of the souls and bodies of men Nowadays many people believe they do not need God and deny the existence of God or say "I don't know whether He exists or doesn't exist" (agnostic) as if this knowledge is unimportant to them... or they don't need the Church. They believe they are righteous. They are like the scribes and Pharisees - judging everybody and making themselves to be righteous. Those who are sick with sin and desire healing, He is there for them. He came to cure and save them.  That's why He conversed with the sinners... That's why on the Cross, when He heard the thief praying and talking to Him, He assured him of his salvation His ministry as Physician was among the sinners not among the righteous The Lord did not dispute here that their form of righteousness is false... because even if He told them that, they would not heed Him. People who are prideful don't listen to any advice or correction... they are wise in their own eyes. This righteousness is dangerous righteousness because it produces a man who is very proud and fails to see their need for God Those who considered themselves sinners were healed... but those who didn't, did not go for healing because of their pride and arrogance. In the definition of a difficult personality, it's not the people who have problems but those who don't realize or acknowledge that they have a problem Addicts who recognize they have a problem are not difficult to deal with, but an addict who is in denial is So who are the more difficult people to deal with? Not the tax collectors... but the Pharisees. The Lord came to seek those who are lost He came for both the elder son and the prodigal son, but unfortunately the elder son did not benefit from Him Those who believe they are in the sheepfold did not benefit from His ministry, but those who realized they were the lost sheep In this story, St Matthew includes one more detail But go and learn what  this  means:   ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ (Matthew 9:13) Reference to Hosea 6:6 You can offer as many sacrifices as you want but if you don't have a merciful heart, none of your sacrifices will be accepted. When the Lord answered them wisely as to why He is sitting among the tax-collectors and publicans, and they could not answer Him, they try to look at something else from a spiritual perspective to condemn the Lord The Lord is Questioned About Fasting 23:30 33  Then they said to Him, “Why do the disciples of John fast often and make prayers, and likewise those of the Pharisees, but Yours eat and drink?” 34  And He said to them,  “Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast while the   bridegroom is with them?   35  But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them; then they will fast in those days.” 36  Then He spoke a parable to them:  “No one puts a piece from a new garment on an old one; otherwise the new makes a tear, and also the piece that was  taken  out of the new does not match the old.   37  And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine will burst the wineskins and be spilled, and the wineskins will be ruined.   38  But new wine must be put into new wineskins, and both are preserved.   39  And no one, having drunk old  wine, immediately desires new; for he says, ‘The old is   better.’ ” Other Gospel Accounts "The disciples of John and of the Pharisees were fasting. Then they came and said to Him..." (Mark 2:18) "Then the disciples of John came to Him, saying, 'Why do we and the Pharisees fast often, but Your disciples do not fast?'" (Matthew 9:14) Why would the disciples of John ask this? Perhaps how the Lord conducted His life surprised and disturbed the followers of St John the Baptist (because St John was ascetic) Presence at feastings Association with publicans Choice of a tax-collector to be disciple Their intention is to discredit him Everyone respects John and recognizes him as a great prophet... and his disciples fast. So why don't Yours? Fasting is an e xpression of humility before God in m ourning, repentance and spiritual glorification As if they are telling Him: "You are calling people to repentance, but why aren't you teaching them to fast?" They want to start a conflict between Jesus and John the Baptist... John the Baptist is admired, so if they succeed in this, they would discredit the Lord Jesus Christ The Lord gives them four illustrations: Feasting and Fasting New Patch on Old Garment New Wine in Old Wineskins Drink New Wine After Drinking Old Wine Feasting and Fasting He starts with an analogy that they are familiar with... Jewish marriage ceremony John the Baptist testified that Christ is "the Bridegroom" (John 3:29) and that the coming of the Bridegroom is the fulfillment of joy ("Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled") The Lord does not reject or deny the concept of fasting, but is telling them that this present time is not the time of fasting. But when the time comes that He is taken away, it will be the appropriate time to fast. After the Ascension of the Lord, the disciples were fasting... and many times in the Book of Acts St John Chrysostom said: "He is again establishing His argument by illustration from common life and what He says is like this: 'The disciples have not yet become strong. They have not yet been renewed by the Spirit. And on persons in that state, one ought not to lay any burden of injunction.'" The Lord intends to teach His disciples step by step "But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them" - earliest hint at His death and Resurrection and Ascension New and Old (2 and 3) The point is that we cannot fit His New Covenant into old forms New Patch on Old Garment: Disfigures the New Garment by having to cut from it, and damages the old garment because th e new piece will shrink and pull the old worn out garment into pieces. And they won't match! New Wine in Old Skins: Skins of animals were sewn together to make bags for wine. The strength of newly fermented wine causes wineskins to expand. New wineskins have the ability to expand... but if new wine is put into old wineskins that have already expanded, the new wine will cause them to burst and spill all the wine The incompatibility of the Old Covenant given to Moses, and the New Covenant given by Christ The Lord did not destroy the Old, but fulfilled it on our behalf and gave us His righteousness as a gift. The Old is Better Someone who is used to the Old will not give it up quickly The Lord is identifying a problem with those who believe they are satisfied with the old wine like the Scribes and Pharisees. They are satisfied with the righteousness of the Law Many of John's disciples and the Pharisee's disciples would prefer old ways of righteousness to the new methods of approaching the Kingdom of Heaven Jesus would not have put His disciples on strict and austere discipleship lest they are tempted and leave Him... When God took Israel out of Egypt, He did not bring them by the way of the Philistines lest they see war and return to Egypt Christ wanted to train up His followers gradually to the discipline of the New Covenant because no man having drunk old wine will immediately desire new wine. He will say the old is better because he's used to it. Those who refused to embrace the message of the Lord Jesus and His establishment of the Kingdom of Heaven, and closed their minds and hearts to His mission, will miss the best that God can offer them The New Covenant promised in Jeremiah 31 These illustrations stress the unwillingness of the Lord to make the ceremonial fasts of the Old Testament a large feature of His New Kingdom. That's why He did not fast the old fasts of the Old Covenant... He wanted to establish new wineskins: the disciples who would be able to receive the new teaching     Luke 6a: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 6: 1 - 26 ~ Bible Study (English & Arabic - عربي) Introduction 00:00 St Luke is carefully presenting the Lord's authority in interpreting the Law. There was a dispute about one of the 10 Commandments - Sabbath and how to interpret it He's also drawing our attention to the growing opposition of the Religious leaders and the Lord In Luke 4:31-37, the Lord healed a person on the Sabbath but without opposition. After the news spread to Judea, some Scribes and Pharisees came to Galilee to see In this chapter, the Lord heals on the Sabbath but this time the opposition of the Pharisees intensifies. They conspire to present formal charges by the end of these encounters Outline of the Chapter 03:49 1-5: Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath 6-11: Healing on the Sabbath 12-16: Appointing the 12 Apostles 17-19: Jesus heals great multitude 20-23: Beatitudes 24-26: Woes 27-36: Love your enemies 37-42: Judge Not 43-45: Tree is known by its fruit 46-49: Build on the Rock Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath 04:55 1 Now it happened on the second Sabbath after the first that He went through the grainfields. And His disciples plucked the heads of grain and ate  them,  rubbing  them  in  their  hands.  2  And some of the Pharisees said to them, “Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?” 3  But Jesus answering them said,  “Have you not even read this,   what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him:   4  how he went into the house of God, took and ate the showbread, and also gave some to those with him,   which is not lawful for any but the priests to eat?”   5  And He said to them,  “The Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath.” In these five verses, we see the response to the Pharisees and Scribes' criticism of His disciples. The Lord asserts His claim of authority over the Sabbath Second Sabbath after the First St Luke is a Historian and he is collecting all of the data in a very precise way What is it? Some scholars say that this probably means it was the Sabbath after one of the three major Feasts: Passover, Unleavened Bread, Pentecost Some say it was the second Sabbath in the new year (Nisan) Is it considered stealing to pluck the heads of grain and eat them? No! "When you come into your neighbor’s standing grain, you may pluck the heads with your hand, but you shall not use a sickle on your neighbor’s standing grain." (Deuteronomy 23:25) What bothered the Pharisees? That it's on the Sabbath The Pharisees had come up with lists of interpretations of what is okay and not okay on the Sabbath When the disciples did this simple act, they became guilty of reaping, threshing, winnowing, and preparing food... all of which are violations of the Sabbath according to the Pharisees The Lord's Response 1 Samuel 21: David and his men came to the city of the priests, and they were hungry, and it was the Sabbath... He ate what was only allowed to the priests to eat He did it on the Sabbath The Lord challenges them: "Have you not read?" as if challenging their knowledge of the Law The Law was not meant to be so rigid as they make it "The Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath" - He is claiming Divine Authority to determine what is a Sabbath violation and what is not In the Gospel of St Matthew 12, the Lord adds: " 5   Or have you not read in the   law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple   profane the Sabbath, and are blameless?   6  Yet I say to you that in this place there is   One  greater than the temple.   7  But if you had known what  this  means,   ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless.   8  For the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.” He is referring to Himself and His mission as "greater than the temple" He is not removing the Sabbath, but rather redefining the prohibitions Healing on the Sabbath 14:28 6  Now it happened on another Sabbath, also, that He entered the synagogue and taught. And a man was there whose right hand was withered.  7  So the scribes and Pharisees watched Him closely, whether He would heal on the Sabbath, that they might find an accusation against Him.  8  But He knew their thoughts, and said to the man who had the withered hand,  “Arise and stand here.”  And he arose and stood.  9  Then Jesus said to them,  “I will ask you one thing:   Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy?”   10  And when He had looked around at them all, He said to the man,  “Stretch out your hand.”  And he did so, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.  11  But they were filled with rage, and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus. Another Sabbath: not certain when St Luke (and all of the evangelist) inserts this scene here because it completes the teaching of the Lord on the ceremonial law that we saw in the story prior The Pharisees admitted that Jesus had the power of God to work miracles when they "watched Him closely" - yet they sought to "find an accusation against Him" The controversy surrounding Sabbath healing increases The man did not even ask to be healed, but the Lord invited him and asked the Pharisees a question to challenge them Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil? The Lord intends to do good on the Sabbath by healing the man The Pharisees intend to do evil on the Sabbath by lying in wait to try and accuse Him The Pharisees are the ones violating the Sabbath They cannot say that it is lawful to do evil... and if they said it is lawful to do good then they'd be giving Him permission St Mark adds in Chapter 2: But they kept silent.  5  And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man,  “Stretch out your hand.”  And he stretched  it  out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.  6  Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him. He looks at them with indignation! St Matthew adds in Chapter 12: 11  Then He said to them,  “What man is there among you who has one sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not lay hold of it and lift  it  out?   12  Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep? Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.” When the Lord gives a commandment, He gives power to do it When the Lord told this man to "stretch out your hand" he could have said "My hand is withered and I can't stretch it... why should I even try" - but he tried This applies to spiritual commandments: Love your enemy Pray for those who persecute you Sometimes we say "I can't do it" - but just try! The Twelve Apostles 21:47 12  Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.  13  And when it was day, He called His disciples to  Himself;  and from them He chose twelve whom He also named apostles:  14  Simon, whom He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; James and John; Philip and Bartholomew;  15  Matthew and Thomas; James the  son  of Alphaeus, and Simon called the Zealot;  16  Judas  the son  of James, and Judas Iscariot who also became a traitor. St Luke says "in those days" because he is shifting the subject away from the Sabbath discussions St Luke stresses throughout his gospel that the Lord would go and pray He would have his readers NEVER lose sight of the PERFECT Humanity of Christ In response to what is happening in all this political and religious controversy, and in preparation for choosing and appointing His twelve disciples, He went to pray all night to the Father This is one of the most important parts in His ministry Disciples are followers - and from them, He chose twelve who were called apostles (i.e. "ambassadors") Through them, and their preaching, the whole world would know the Gospel Truth and be led to salvation Jesus is God, but did not simply use His infinite knowledge to choose disciples... but rather, He emptied Himself and then prayed all night as God-Man, seeking the will of His Father and relying on the power of the Holy Spirit like us. Why Twelve? This is the foundation of the new Chosen People... and Israel, the Chosen People of the Old Testament had twelve tribes Why Judas? Jesus chose Judas knowing how he would turn out to be a traitor This was not a surprise for Him: “Did I not choose you, the twelve,   and one of you is a devil?” (John 6:70) Jesus Heals a Great Multitude 27:30 17  And He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases,  18  as well as those who were tormented with unclean spirits. And they were healed.  19  And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed  them  all. Level Place In verse 12 they went up the mountain, and He taught His disciples... but now they are coming down to a level ground to teach the disciples and all the crowds The teaching that He gives to them is very similar to the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-6-7 In Matthew 5-6-7 it is a sermon "on the mount", but here it takes place "on a level place" Some say these are two separate sermons... one from the mountain and another one from a level place Scholars have three theories about the relationship between the two accounts: Both gospels are giving a different account of the same sermon (Luke summarizes, but Matthew details) The gospels reflect two different homilies spoken at different times during the ministry of Christ These two homilies were delivered in close succession - when the Lord was on the mountain, He told the disciples the long sermon and when He descended to the plains, He gave the shorter one to the multitude The area around the Sea of Galilee, which includes the traditional Mount of Beatitudes, is like a mountain when looking from the Sea of Galilee... but it is like a level place when one stands on or above it People came from great distances to be healed and delivered from demonic spirits by the Lord Jesus Christ Judea and Jerusalem: Israel Tyre and Sidon: Gentiles The Beatitudes 33:30 20  Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said: “Blessed  are you  poor, For yours is the kingdom of God. 21  Blessed  are you  who hunger now, For you shall be   filled. Blessed  are you  who weep now, For you shall   laugh. 22  Blessed are you when men hate you, And when they   exclude you, And revile  you,  and cast out your name as evil, For the Son of Man’s sake. 23  Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward  is  great in heaven, For   in like manner their fathers did to the prophets. Blessed are you poor Poverty in Spirit Recognizing that I don't have any spiritual resources or assets - my righteousness is 0 This cannot be artificially obtained by self-hatred... that's not what the Lord means As the Holy Spirit works in our heart and we respond to Him, we obtain the poverty in Spirit. A candle in a dark room will seem to light up the whole room, but once the sun shines, the candle will not provide 0 light Acknowledging that my righteousness away from God is like the light of a candle... but the righteousness of Christ is the light of the Sun "But on this one will I look: On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and who trembles at My word." (Isaiah 66:2) Poverty in Spirit is an absolute prerequisite for receiving the Kingdom of God. As long as we keep illusions about our own righteousness and our own spiritual resources, we will never receive from God what we absolutely need. The blessing to the poor is first because it puts the other blessings in perspective... no one can love their enemies without relying on God's power Blessed are you who hunger now Those who hunger and thirst in a spiritual sense - who hunger and thirst for righteousness. When I discover my spiritual poverty, I will hunger and thirst for righteousness As the body has a natural appetite in hunger and thirst for food and drink, so the soul has a natural appetite for righteousness As the body depends on its nourishment for strength on earth, so the soul depends on righteousness for heaven Blessed are you who weep now "No blessing from heaven is attached to the world's sorrow" - St Augustine Weeping for our sins and sins of others "It befits you to weep over the world but to rejoice in the Lord. Be sorrowful for repentance and rejoice for grace." - St Ambrose "Godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death." (2 Cor 7:10) Blessed are you when men hate you... When I discover my poverty, and I am hungry for the righteousness of Christ, I will be sorrowful in a Godly way... sorrowful for my condition because this sorrow produces repentance leading to fulfillment and receiving the righteousness of Christ When I attain the righteousness of Christ, Satan will start to attack me and make people hate me and persecute me Hate you, exclude you, revile you, cast out your name as evil It did not take long for this to come true The followers of Jesus were called Nazarene or Christians... and these names carried reproach with them in the early centuries. "Do they not blaspheme that noble name by which you are called?" (James 2:7) "For we have found this man a plague, a creator of dissension among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes." (Acts 24:5) They were excommunicated from the Synagogue (i.e. excluded) Why rejoice? The persecuted one will receive a greater reward in heaven By being persecuted and hated and excluded, you are in good company: the Prophets! Prophets who were persecuted: Elijah mourned the general massacre of his brothers the prophets during Ahab and Jezebel's reign, saying: "the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword." (1 Kings 19:10) Urijah was brought to Jehoiakim the king and was killed with the sword (Jeremiah 26:23) Jeremiah was cast into a pit (Jeremiah 38) Amos was accused and banished and beaten to death Etc. Until today, the followers of Christ are persecuted The Woes 45:50 24  “But   woe to you   who are rich, For   you have received your consolation. 25  Woe to you who are full, For you shall hunger. Woe to you who laugh now, For you shall mourn and   weep. 26  Woe   to you when all men speak well of you, For so did their fathers to the false prophets. Woe The tone of the Lord is of pity... expression of regret and compassion, rather than denunciation The woes here balance the beatitudes and are their direct opposites The Lord is turning upside down their perception of the Kingdom of God Woe to you who are rich Opposite of Blessed are you who are poor St Luke, as a physician of the soul and not just of the body, is recording for us all the warnings against the temptations that wealth and richness bring with it This is a clear example The story of the rich man and Lazarus is also in the Gospel of St Luke The love of money is the root of all evil Rich is those who TRUST in riches... who have riches and instead of serving God with it, serve their own lusts Woe to you who are full Opposite of Blessed are you who hunger Those who used their wealth for their own indulgence and found themselves full Woe to you who laugh now Opposite of Blessed are you who weep The Lord is not against laughing, but this is understood as those who are sinfully merry, and have no true cause of spiritual joy Woe to you when all men speak well of you The true prophets were persecuted, but the false prophets were praised by men Woe to those who make it their great and only care to gain the grace and applause of men, who value themselves upon that more than upon the favor of God and His acceptance Luke 6b: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 6: 27 - 49 ~ Bible Study Love Your Enemies 01:20 27  “But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,   28  bless those who curse you, and   pray for those who spitefully use you.   I say to you who hear These commandments are given to all of us - all who hear and pay attention to what is said; all who are actively listening to the word and teaching of the Lord; all who diligently hearken to Christ; who feel that what the Lord is saying is worth their time Love your enemies This is a radically new teaching In the Old Testament it was said "love your neighbor and hate your enemy" - we never heard before the Lord Jesus Christ that anyone said "love your enemies" It is a very simple command to understand, but very difficult to obey - unless you receive grace from the Holy Spirit Love is not emotion (warm fuzzy feeling) We don't control our emotions If we wait for our emotions or feelings, we may never love them I need to make the  decision that I will love my enemy and do good for them - He is speaking about acts of love. "If your enemy is hungry, feed him; If he is thirsty, give him a drink" (Romans 12:20) When God sees me doing this, then this love will be processed by the Holy Spirit from the mind and will and intellect to the heart and emotions Enemies? The Lord recognizes that we will have enemies... but enemies are those who hate us, not those who we hate. We respond to them in love, trusting that God will protect our cause. Many times we are concerned lest when we show love, people will take advantage of us... but if we trust in God, He will protect our cause How to love enemies: Do good to those who hate you Bless those who curse you We must speak well of those who speak ill of us Pray for those who spitefully use you 29  To him who strikes you on the  one  cheek, offer the other also.   And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold  your  tunic either.   30  Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask  them  back.   31  And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise. If someone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also We are peacemakers. We must accept certain evils committed against us... not out of weakness, but by our free will It is easy to repay evil with evil We choose to repay evil with good because we are peacemakers Practical Ways of Love When struck on the cheek, resist and bear it; if we respond in like manner, then we become like him "who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously" (1 Peter 2:23) Accept Certain Evils Against Us Does not mean to accept the evil of sin or bad actions or false doctrine - those that we oppose The evil man is a victim of Satan, and we need to bear their weakness, praying for him There was a man who was demon possessed and they took him to see an elder hermit that God had graced with the power to cast out demons. The demon caused the man to slap the hermit... the hermit turned the other cheek and the demon immediately left the man. The demon cried out "I must leave - I cannot stay any longer. The commandment of Christ is casting me out." Nothing puts down the pride of the devil as humility and obedience to the commandment of God. In Egypt, one of the Sheikhs was making fun of Christianity and the Bible all over the media and insulting and slandering us for many many years. He got very sick and was taken to a hospital in London. HH Pope Shenouda III sent him a delegation of bishops to check on him in the hospital. He could not believe that after all he did to Christians, they are asking about him... this practical love changed him completely. And when he got back to Egypt he went straight from the airport to the Cathedral to thank HH Pope Shenouda. From that moment until he died, he never again spoke against Christianity. This is the power of love and forgiveness. If someone takes your cloak, give him your tunic too Giving willingly and out of love By doing this, you don't disturb the calm of your own spirit with arguments, disputes, and debates Give to everyone who asks of you, and do not ask them back Whether Jew or Gentile, friend or enemy, believer or unbeliever, good or bad, worthy or unworthy, deserving or not Give from your alms - food or money Give freely, readily, cheerfully, according to your ability, abundantly, and as the necessity of the object requires "It is more blessed to give than to receive" (Acts 20:35) Treat others as you want to be treated The Golden Rule Put yourself in his place and ask yourself how would I want to be treated? Reciprocity This sums up all moral and ethical requirements of men who live in society as citizens of the Kingdom of God Christianity demands a standard that surpasses what is normally expected We have the grace of the Holy Spirit - so we are expected to behave in a behavior which surpasses the normal The Lord urges us to pursue a lifestyle that demonstrates God's mercy to everyone If we are grounded in God's love, trusting fully in the Holy Spirit, it will be easy for us to live in this way 32  “But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them.   33  And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same.   34  And if you lend  to those  from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back.   35  But   love your enemies,   do good, and   lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and   you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.   36  Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful. What credit is that to you? The Lord wants us to imitate Him Anyone in the world can return love for love, good for good, lend and expect back - and even sinners do the same. This is the ordinary rule for man. Some people are even worse sinners and return evil for good - these are less than normal. So what about returning good for evil? This is divine. When we give, it's not with "strings attached" When I help someone, I'm not helping him because he will help me back. I help him expecting nothing in return The Lord calls for works that demonstrate love and good deeds Three Commandments: Love your enemies Do good Lend hoping for nothing in return These are not simply recommendations or suggestions... these are commandments. Blessings of earthly substance and also in heaven Be merciful just as your Father also is merciful Pardons others without being asked Does not permit repeated returns of ingratitude to discourage him from doing good Easily forgets any injury Sometimes when someone hurts me, I can't forget it for years... because I am not merciful or compassionate. Do Not Judge 26:35 37  “Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned.   Forgive, and you will be forgiven.   38  Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your   bosom. For   with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.” Judge Not, Condemn Not, Forgive Jesus warns us against passing judgment upon others because when we do so, we will be judged in a similar manner and with the same measure This verse is very popular among people who don't know the Bible well... When HGBY came to America, he heard "don't judge" and "it's not fair" frequently from the younger generation... as if God wants us to be blind without discernment... as if Christ, when He said don't judge, He's commanding a universal acceptance of any lifestyle or teaching... The Lord Jesus Christ told us "you by their fruits you will know them" - so He wants us to make assessments... to discern between good and evil, between a Godly lifestyle and an evil lifestyle Discerning between good and evil is a sign of maturity (Hebrews 5:12-14) "Evil company corrupts good habits" (1 Cor 15:33) - how will I know if company is evil? If I tell someone "don't follow him he's bad company" or "he's a false teacher" and someone replies "don't judge" - this is a misinterpretation and misuse of this verse Christians are called to unconditional love, but not unconditional approval We can love people who do things that we don't approve, but we should not imitate, follow or accompany them for "there is no fellowship between light and darkness." (2 Cor 6:13) Judgment is when you say "this person is a bad person" - Condemnation is when you say "this person deserves to go to the Lake of Fire" - as if you are God and deciding who goes to heaven and who doesn't Rather than judging or condemning, forgive Generosity Measure of grain so pressed and shaken that it could hold no more and has started to run over With the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you It is a powerful motivation for us - if we want more from the Love of God and forgiveness and goodness, then give more to the others and you will receive Disciples of Christ are known as givers rather than judges We cannot out-give God - once you give, He will return to you more than you gave 39  And He spoke a parable to them:  “Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into the ditch?   40  A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher.   41  And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the plank in your own eye?   42  Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me remove the speck that  is  in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the plank that  is  in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck that is in your brother’s eye. "Can the blind lead the blind?" This was a general proverb to signify that a man cannot teach what he is lacking If I am lacking forgiveness, I cannot teach forgiveness A man who is not illuminated from above, is incapable of judging spiritual things and wholly unfit to be a guide to others Is it possible that a person who is covered with a thick darkness of hatred, unforgiveness, greediness, dare to judge the state of others? If I am blind, I cannot lead a blind person. The Scribes and Pharisees were blind... can they lead blind people in the right way? A disciple is not above his teacher, but will be like his teacher If I have the mind of Christ, I will be like Him - holy, harmless, undefiled, above sin We can imitate Him, but never be above Him, but I can become like Him Those who put themselves under the direction of Christ will be like Him By judging others, it is as if we are saying we are  above our Master ... our Master refrained from judging others The followers of Christ cannot expect better treatment in the world than our Master ... our Master was mistreated, so we cannot expect better treatment than Him We should not aim for worldly magnificence or fame, because our Master did not have that Live a life of labor and self-denial as our Master did Speck/Plank The Lord used an exaggerated image to make His message easier to understand and more memorable. We can have a speck in our eye, but not a plank... having a speck is highly irritating and causes the eye to turn red. So imagine a plank! Those who are led by the standards and common opinions of the world, are blind, with a plank in their eyes Many people now spend most of their time on Social Media - and the opinions that are on social media brainwash them... and become their Bible. And they are "following" certain "leaders" on Social Media.  Following the multitude in evil is ignorance Following the blind way that leads to destruction We need to let our light shine, but without judging The Lord is not saying it's wrong to help our brother with the speck in his eye... but before trying to do that, remove the plank from your own eye. A Tree is Known by Its Fruit 45:00 43  “For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit.   44  For   every tree is known by its own fruit. For  men  do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush.   45  A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out   of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks. In the Sermon on the Mount, the Lord used this parable to discern between true and false prophets In the Old Testament, there were true prophets (e.g. Elijah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel) and false prophets In the time of Christ, there were true and false teachers In the end of times, there will be true and false teachers How can we recognize the true Child of God who is a guide to others? We can assess by the quality of his deeds: the fruits His compassion, mercy, charitable deeds to the poor, forgiving heart, etc. A tree is known as good or bad by its fruits and a man is known to be good or bad by his words and deeds If the fruit is good, you may conclude that the tree is good You can never know what the heart looks like, but from the fruit you can tell to a major extent "For the foolish person will speak foolishness" (Isaiah 32:6) "Wickedness proceeds from the wicked." (1 Samuel 24:13) The fruit is the inevitable result of who we are... the heart is the essence of a person for good or evil. Build on the Rock 50:00 46  “But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?   47  Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like:   48  He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock.   49  But he who heard and did nothing is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation, against which the stream beat vehemently; and immediately it   fell. And the ruin of that house was great.” If we call Him "Lord" then He is our Master and we should be obedient and compliant with His words Those who go to church, fulfill some religious duties, but sin against God and man as anyone else in the world. It's not enough to confess my relationship to Him as "Christian" or "His Servant" - but I have to consciously obey Him We are deceiving and cheating ourselves Three Steps Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them: Come Come in submission and surrendering Listen Hear Him because we are His disciples Obey Because we are obedient Build on the Rock The two houses look exactly the same, but the foundation which is under the house is different - and it's the only thing that prevents the storm from destroying the house If you come and hear but don't do, then you are building your house on the sand. If you are coming and hearing and doing, then your house is on the rock. The wise man "dug deep" in toil and labor, as we fight the good fight to lay the good foundation Assessing the strength of your foundation How do you deal with adversity? How do you deal with hardship? It is good for our foundation to be tested now, rather than after we die and it's too late The ruin of that house was great Why is it great? It's just one person... Every single person is so important to the Lord - the salvation of each individual causes the Lord's rejoicing and the ruin of just one causes sorrow The Lord ends His sermon with these words to remind us not just to hear but to do, because if we don't take care of our foundation, then the ruin of that house will be great. And if I am a hypocrite, or inconsistent, or I am not doing... then that ruin will be my ruin.   Luke 7a: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 7: 1 - 28 ~ Bible Study (English & Arabic - عربي) Outline 00:00 1-10: Jesus Heals a Centurion's Servant 11-17: Jesus Raises the Son of the Widow of Nain 18-35: John the Baptist Sends Messengers to Jesus 36-50: A Sinful Woman Forgiven Jesus Heals a Centurion's Servant 00:56 1 Now when He concluded all His sayings in the hearing of the people, He entered Capernaum.  2  And a certain centurion’s servant, who was dear to him, was sick and ready to die.  3  So when he heard about Jesus, he sent elders of the Jews to Him, pleading with Him to come and heal his servant.  4  And when they came to Jesus, they begged Him earnestly, saying that the one for whom He should do this was deserving,  5  “for he loves our nation, and has built us a synagogue.” 6  Then Jesus went with them. And when He was already not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to Him, saying to Him, “Lord, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof.  7  Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You. But say the word, and my servant will be healed.  8  For I also am a man placed under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does  it. ” 9  When Jesus heard these things, He marveled at him, and turned around and said to the crowd that followed Him,  “I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!”   10  And those who were sent, returning to the house, found the servant well who had been sick.   When He concluded all His sayings - the sayings of Chapter 6 The Centurion A Centurion is a Roman Officer who commanded 100 men (prefix cent-) Roman soldiers were stationed all over Israel including Galilee, Samaria and Judea in order to maintain order This Centurion appears to be a devout, humble man despite being a Gentile Roman Soldier As a Roman soldier, he is an instrument in the hand of the Roman Government to oppress Jews As a Gentile, he would not be able to enter beyond the Court of Gentiles in the Temple, but he could attend Sabbath services in the synagogue. He financed the building of a synagogue in Capernaum - showing his love for the Jews Under Roman Law, a master has the right to kill his servant and it was expected to do so if the servant became ill or injured to the point that he cannot work... but this Centurion was a godly man who, when his servant was sick, he heard about Christ and sent the elders of the Jews to Him Why did he send elders and friends instead of going himself? The Lord had become very famous as a Jewish teacher... so the Centurion, perceiving himself as unworthy and unfit to go ask a favor from a great Teacher like the Lord Jesus Christ, sent elders of the Jews and his friends, instead The elders of the Jews went and told the Lord that this man, despite being a Gentile and a soldier, is worthy - "for he loves our nation, and has built us a synagogue" Even later, he sends his friends to the Lord to explain why he did not come himself These conversations in the Gospel of St Matthew are said to be done by the Centurion, himself - but St Matthew was simply summarizing those parts of the story. "He the Centurion was feeling unworthy, but he showed himself worthy of Christ entering - not within his roof, but within heart." - St Augustine The Centurion understood authority and chain of command The Lord marvels at him and at the Israelites The Jews asked to  touch the Lord Jesus Christ to be healed This man believed that even without a touch, just at the spoken word of the Lord, his servant would be healed The Lord marvels at the man's faith, but also at the unbelief of Israel The servant is healed The Lord answered the Centurion's unselfish request and proved that He has the authority that the Centurion trusted Him to have - without seeing him, touching him, speaking to him... He spoke and the sick was cured. Jesus Raises the Son of the Widow of Nain 15:12 11  Now it happened, the day after,  that  He went into a city called Nain; and many of His disciples went with Him, and a large crowd.  12  And when He came near the gate of the city, behold, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother; and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the city was with her.  13  When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said to her,  “Do not weep.”   14  Then He came and touched the open coffin, and those who carried  him  stood still. And He said,  “Young man, I say to you,   arise.”   15  So he who was dead sat up and began to speak. And He presented him to his mother. 16  Then fear came upon all, and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has risen up among us”; and, “God has visited His people.”  17  And this report about Him went throughout all Judea and all the surrounding region. This story is only mentioned in the Gospel of St Luke Nain is a city near Tabor in Galilee A dead man was being carried out of the city They used to not bury inside the city All funerals are tragedies... but this one is a special loss At that time, women did not work... Since she's a widow, her son is now taking care of her and now her son is dead. So there is noone to support her. Losing a son or daughter is one of the most difficult tragedies... more so than losing a parent or other relative A large crowd followed in order to give sympathy The Lord had compassion on her In this instance, as in so many others, the miracle of the Lord is not from a distinct purpose to give Himself credentials - but came from His own compassion on human suffering. When He saw the widow crying and weeping, He showed divine compassion for the human suffering Touching the Coffin According to the Jewish Law, a coffin is impure and if you touched it you became ritually impure.  The Lord touched the open coffin and those who carried it stood still. They marveled that Jesus, who was known as a teacher, would touch the coffin which most Rabbis would call impure He presented him to his mother to make it clear "I raised you to take care of your mother" Jesus showed here the greatness of His power, but also the truth of His mission - so the people gave thanks to God and glorified Him This report went to all Judea and the surrounding region The Lord's Authority over Death The Daughter of Jairus The Son of the Widow of Nain Lazarus "As the Lord had mercy on the body, He also has mercy on our souls. These three miracles are illustrations of Christ's divine power and love in raising our souls that are dead in trespasses and sin. Whether the soul be dead but not yet carried out like the Daughter of Jairus; or dead and carried out but not buried like the son of the widow; or dead, carried out and buried like Lazarus. He who raised Himself on the third day can raise all of us from the death of sin. Therefore, let no one despair." - St Augustine John the Baptist Sends Messengers to Jesus 25:18 18  Then the disciples of John reported to him concerning all these things. We have three passages about the relationship between the Lord Jesus to St John 18-23 24-30 31-35 We can conclude some facts about the disciples of John: The disciples of John were present when the Lord performed these miracles and they heard His teachings Although John was imprisoned, his disciples were allowed free access to him St Luke likely heard this account from one of the disciples of St John 19  And John, calling two of his disciples to  him,  sent  them  to Jesus, saying, “Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?” 20 When the men had come to Him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to You, saying, ‘Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?’ ”  21  And that very hour He cured many of infirmities, afflictions, and evil spirits; and to many blind He gave sight. 22  Jesus answered and said to them,  “Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard: that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed ,  the  deaf   hear,  the  dead are raised,   the  poor have the gospel preached to them.   23  And blessed is  he  who is not   offended because of Me.” We have seen before that John knew clearly that the Lord is the Messiah... so why is he sending these disciples? Nowadays some say it's because John doubted that Jesus is the Messiah since he was in prison and hadn't been delivered... This is not in line with his character or what the Lord says about him. The Fathers of the Church teach us that he sent his disciples to remove all doubt from their heart, and not for his own personal satisfaction. In response to those disciples, in that very hour, Jesus cured many and then answered them to "Go and tell John the things that you have seen and heard" In the Gospel of St Matthew, St Matthew says the Lord simply sent a verbal message. But St Luke gives more detail that the Lord did miracles in their presence first. That very hour: "He knew what John's design was in sending to Him. He knew that in this very moment, those two disciples would come. He put it into his heart to send at that very time when He, Himself, was working many miracles which were the true answer to the question." - St Cyril of Alexandria The poor have the gospel preached to them The poor in spirit, and those who do not trust in the riches of the world Those who are gratified by temporal things are too satisfied or too busy to pay attention to the word of God Blessed is he who is not offended because of Me Obviously this message is not for St John the Baptist, because he is not offended by Him Some people had a preconceived idea about Jesus - as a man, or as less than any prophet (e.g. people in Nazareth, Pharisees, those who perceived the Lord as a temporal deliverer of Israel) Those who do not take offense at Jesus for what they think He should be, but who recognize His true identity as the Son of God, and accepted His miracles as signs of His authority, and believe in His mission to announce the Kingdom - These are the children of God; the citizens of the Kingdom of God. 24  When the messengers of John had departed, He began to speak to the multitudes concerning John:  “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind?   25  But what did you go out to see? A man clothed in soft garments? Indeed those who are gorgeously appareled and live in luxury are in kings’ courts.   26  But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.   27  This is  he  of whom it is written: ‘Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, Who will prepare Your way before You.’ 28  For I say to you, among those born of women there is   not a   greater prophet than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.” Why did the Lord wait until the two disciples departed before praising John? Why not praise him in their presence? The Lord refrained from praising John in their presence lest He be accused of flattery or hypocrisy He praises John as a man of God John did not live for his own comfort or the approval of others John is steadfast, not shaken easily like a reed, but firm in his message of repentance He was not like a reed swayed by the wind of secular society - people say this, so he follows them. He was stable. He lived a disciplined life not a life of luxury. He wore coarse camel hair for his garment He praises John as a prophet John was a prophet - everyone knew that. John came after hundreds of years without a prophet - so many people came to hear him and be baptized by him. The Lord says he was much more than a prophet because he came to prepare the way of the Lord Jesus Christ - the Forerunner. He saw the Messiah and baptized Him! So he was greater than any other prophet before him. He praises John as one prophesied about The Lord quotes from Malachi Malachi 3:1 - "Behold, I send My messenger, And he will prepare the way before Me." Centuries ago, the mission of John the Baptist was foretold and described by the prophet Malachi He praises John as the greatest among those born of women This verse confuses many scholars How is the least in the kingdom of God greater than John? John is the greatest of the Old Covenant Prophets But John the Baptist did not see the coming of the Kingdom. He saw the Kingdom coming but did not see how the Kingdom of God was fulfilled through the Crucifixion and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Through opening the gates of Paradise and transferring the righteous from Hades to Paradise. John the Baptist, himself, went to Hades when he died. The humblest child of the New Kingdom is superior to the greatest prophet of the Old Testament. Why? Now we can be united with Christ through the Eucharist When we die, we don't go to Hades, but to Paradise. The Holy Spirit was not yet given because Jesus was not yet glorified, but now you are the temple of God and the Holy Spirit abides in you. Among those born of women, there is no greater than John the Baptist - but the members of the Church of Christ, who are born of water and spirit, are greater than John the Baptist St John Chrysostom and St Augustine and some other fathers had difficulty in accepting this explanation They suggest that "the least in the Kingdom of God" refers to the Lord Jesus Christ because He was younger than John the Baptist by six months and so "less" refers to Himself but in age. That the Lord would say this because some people esteemed John the Baptist as greater than Him Luke 7b: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 7: 29 - 50 ~ Bible Study (English & Arabic - عربي) John the Baptist Sends Messengers to Jesus 00:00 29  And when all the people heard  Him, even the tax collectors justified God, having been baptized with the baptism of John.  30  But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the will of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him. Justified God Publicly declared and confessed the goodness and justice of God. They approved of what God had done and blessed His name for sending among them such a great prophet like John the Baptist. They received the word of God and listened to the preaching of John the Baptist and were baptized by him Those who believe and obey the message that God sends, we declare the righteousness and justice of God. Those who had repented and received the ministry of St John the Baptist found it easy to accept the message of salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ. But those who did not, would accuse and condemn God. The will of God was that all who heard John's teaching would repent and then accept the message of salvation The Pharisees and lawyers did not believe the testimony of John the Baptist, and thus rejected the will of God and the economy of God relating to their salvation. That's why they were not saved. 31 And the Lord said,  “To what then shall I liken the men of this generation, and what are they like?   32  They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, saying: ‘We played the flute for you, And you did not dance; We mourned to you, And you did not weep.’ 33  For   John the Baptist came   neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’   34  The Son of Man has come   eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’   35  But wisdom is justified by all her children.” The Lord uses an image to explain the leaders of Israel's conduct They have been exceptionally blessed with two great divine messages: One by John the Baptist, the servant of God One by the Lord Jesus Christ, the Messiah and Incarnated Son of God He chose an everyday scene from the people's life that they had witnessed often: Children played simple games in the open air (e.g. a marketplace) The resentment of a group of children who refused to take part in or approve of any game So there are a group of children and when they see the children playing a happy game like a wedding - they refuse to participate. (The flute) So the children play a different game like a funeral - and they still refuse to participate. (The mourning) You resent every act The children that played the flute and were happy represent the disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ The children that played the mourning and grieving part represent John the Baptist and his disciples who preached the doctrine of repentance The children who refused to join both groups are the Scribes and Pharisees who were not pleased with either one They condemned John the Baptist for his asceticism and said "He has a demon." They condemned the Lord Jesus Christ for His tenderness and said "He is a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners" This doesn't mean that the Lord would get drunk... it was a false accusation just as John the Baptist did not have a demon. "Friend of tax collectors and sinners" - in their mind they meant that He participated in their sins. This is also a false accusation. In reality, He was truly their friend in that He loved them and did not despise or push them away. Rather, He wanted them to change and abandon the sinful life and consecrate themselves to the Godly life. He wanted to rescue them from the guilt, shame, power and penalty of their sins. Wisdom is justified by all her children The wise man is proved to be wise by his wise actions The wise person is the one that accepted God's will by: Repenting at the hand of John the Baptist Rejoicing at the message of the Lord Jesus Christ In our contemporary time, those who are opposing the teachings of the Scripture are not children of the wisdom of God. They are like the contentious children of Israel that the Lord said to them "You are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, saying: 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we mourned to you, and you did not weep.' Let us study and examine ourselves: Are we the children of wisdom or not? Are we attending to the commandment of God? Are we attending to the Mysteries of the Church? Are we following the glad tidings of the Gospel of Salvation? Or are we like the Scribes and Pharisees rejecting the will of God toward ourselves? A Sinful Woman Forgiven 17:03 The story of the sinful woman who went to the house of Simon the Pharisee is about repentance and the relationship between forgiveness and love, so we pray it every day as the gospel of the Midnight Hour 36  Then one of the Pharisees asked Him to eat with him. And He went to the Pharisee’s house, and sat down to eat.  37  And behold, a woman in the city who was a sinner, when she knew that  Jesus  sat at the table in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil,  38  and stood at His feet behind  Him  weeping; and she began to wash His feet with her tears, and wiped  them  with the hair of her head; and she kissed His feet and anointed  them  with the fragrant oil.  39  Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw  this,  he spoke to himself, saying, “This Man, if He were a prophet, would know who and what manner of woman  this is  who is touching Him, for she is a sinner.” 40  And Jesus answered and said to him,  “Simon, I have something to say to you.” So he said, “Teacher, say it.” 41  “There was a certain creditor who had two debtors. One owed five hundred   denarii, and the other fifty.   42  And when they had nothing with which to repay, he freely forgave them both. Tell Me, therefore, which of them will love him more?” 43  Simon answered and said, “I suppose the  one  whom he forgave more.” And He said to him,  “You have rightly judged.”   44  Then He turned to the woman and said to Simon,  “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no   water for My feet, but she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped  them  with the hair of her head.   45  You gave Me no   kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in.   46  You did not anoint My head with oil, but this woman has anointed My feet with fragrant oil.   47  Therefore I say to you, her sins, which  are  many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven,  the same  loves little.” 48  Then He said to her,  “Your sins are forgiven.” 49  And those who sat at the table with Him began to say to themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?” 50  Then He said to the woman,  “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.” The invitation of the Pharisee seems to show the relationship between the Lord Jesus Christ and the religious leaders of Israel. Although He knew they were against His ministry, He did not waste any opportunity to bring someone to salvation He accepted the invitation Maybe this Pharisee heard about His teaching and acknowledged Him as a Prophet and invited Him to know Him more. The Lord did not seek such feasts but did not refuse them because He saw opportunity to speak to people about the Gospel of Salvation He sat down to eat The word there is actually "he laid down" which was the typical way of eating in the East The woman who was a sinner The "who was a sinner" usually denotes sins of chastity Who is she? Opinion 1: Mary Magdalene There is no evidence in Scripture or the Early Tradition of the Church to tell us that this woman was Mary Magdalene Origen the Scholar rejects that opinion Ambrose, Jerome, Augustine were doubtful The first one to say this was probably Gregory the Great - Roman Catholic Patriarch Opinion 2: Mary the sister of Lazarus There is no evidence in Scripture or the Early Tradition of the Church to tell us that this woman was Mary the sister of Lazarus We know that Mary anointed the feet of the Lord with oil in a separate instance just before Palm Sunday (John 11) In reality, we don't know who she is The preaching of the Lord moved her heart towards repentance Costly Fragrant Perfume She had costly fragrant perfume with her - most likely she used it in her ungodly life to seduce men Proverbs 7:6-27 about the Crafty Harlot "I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, ales, and cinnamon." (Proverbs 7:17) She is taking the tools of her harlotry and breaking them at the feet of the Lord The Lord is smelling the perfume of repentance and telling her that this perfume of repentance is better than all spices (Song of Solomon 4:10) How did she express her love to the Lord She stood at his feet from behind Him She felt unworthy to confront Him The guests used to recline at their meals on the left side, with their feet extending from the table She wept "Give me, O Lord, many fountains of tears, as You gave, in the past, to the sinful woman." "Godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation" (2 Cor 7:10) She washed His feet It was customary in those days for the host to wash the feet of the guests, but Simon the Pharisee did not She kissed His feet This is a symbol of love and affection She poured the perfume on His feet Customarily, the host should pour oil on the guest's head She dried His feet with her hair At that time, leaving hair flowing was considered immodest We can imagine how awkward this scene was, and how the people watched her in silence and condemned her Simon the Pharisee's Intentions He invited the Lord but was very cold to Him - He did not do any of the customary things. When the woman does all of this, he feels relief because it gives him an excuse if someone asks "well why didn't you do these things" He says to himself " This Man, if He were a prophet, would know who and what manner of woman  this is  who is touching Him, for she is a sinner.” This Man - reflects the arrogance of the Pharisee If He were a prophet He thought that He was a prophet, but now He doesn't think so If He were a prophet, He would see the heart of this woman and would avoid her! Jesus' Response to Simon Christ wants to show Simon that not only is He a Prophet, but He is God, Himself.  Maybe in the world she is known as a sinner and a harlot... but in heaven she is known as a repentant woman Sometimes we judge people as sinners and hold it over their head... but before God, they are repentant If you compare Judas, the disciple, and Demas the thief... which one is in Paradise and which one is not? "He, Jesus, heard the Pharisees thinking. The emphasis is on these words: 'you have been thinking evil of Me... I have something to say to you.' Christ being all-knowledgeable knew not only the character of this woman - although this was not a big deal since she was known by all people - but knew also the secret thoughts and reasoning of Simon the Pharisee and answers them, showing that He is not only a prophet, but more than a prophet because He is the incarnate Son of God." - St Augustine Christ gives an illustration from everyday life (lending and borrowing) In both cases, the debtors could never hope to pay their creditor - 50 or 500 - they had nothing to repay. But the creditor forgave both regardless of their merits. Both are debtors and equally broke - which one will love the creditor more? He to whom he forgave more The answer was too easy so Simon was perplexed and maybe uncomfortable to answer But the Lord praised him and commended him "You have rightly judged." The creditor is God and the two debtors are Simon and the sinful woman. Both are sinners (debtors) and have nothing with which to repay their debt... but the Lord will come and die on the cross for both of them and forgive both of them because of His love for them. Which one will love Him more? The Lord makes a comparison between the woman and Simon He turned to the woman (since she's behind Him) and looked at Simon The Pharisee who did not even observe basic courtesy To greet each guest with a kiss To offer them a basin to wash their feet To anoint their head with oil (especially an honored guest) The Lord asked him - Do you see this woman? Do you see her love? Do you see her repentance? Do you see her devotion? That's what I see but you are blind and cannot see... You gave Me no water for My feet but she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head You gave Me no kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss my feet since the time I came in You did not anoint My head with oil, but this woman has anointed my feet with fragrant oil. Why? Because she realized that her sins are many. And because she was forgiven more, she loved more. But you think that your sins are not many - there is nothing to be forgiven of you... so your love is so little. To whom little is forgiven, the same loves little. Jesus' response to the woman Your sins are forgiven Her sins, though many (she's the 500 debtor in the illustration), and though public, are forgiven She loved Him BECAUSE of the forgiveness. He did not give her forgiveness because she loved Him. He "freely" forgave her (like the illustration) When you believe that the Lord forgave you, you will love Him more. The more you realize your own sins and see what the Lord forgives you for, the more you will love the Lord. Your faith has saved you He intended to confirm her faith by pointing to it when He told her "Your faith has saved you" to show that her faith is the grounds for her spiritual deliverance The woman came in complete humility, but He did not want her to stay in this house where she's being condemned by these people - so He raised her up, acknowledging her faith and her love, forgave her sins and sent her in peace. She showed to God greater gratitude in her love than the self-righteous Pharisee. Her repentance made her more open to God's mercy than the Pharisee who withheld the customary practices which he should offer to his Guest. Luke 8a: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 8: 1 - 25 ~ Bible Study (English & Arabic - عربي) Outline 00:00 1-3: Some Women Minister to the Lord Jesus Christ 4-8: Parable of the Sower 9-10: Purpose of Parables 11-15: Explanation of the Parable of the Sower 16-18: Parable of the Revealed Light 19-21: Who are Jesus' Relatives? 22-25: Wind and Wave Obey the Lord Jesus Christ 26-39: Jesus Restores a Demon-Possesed man 40-56: A Girl Restored to Life and woman healed Some Women Minister to the Lord Jesus Christ 02:07 1 Now it came to pass, afterward, that He went through every city and village, preaching and bringing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God. And the twelve  were  with Him,  2  and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities—Mary called Magdalene, out of whom had come seven demons,  3  and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many others who provided for Him from their substance. Ch 8 is a Turning Point in the Lord Jesus' Ministry Before Ch 8, the Lord's base was in Capernaum. But now, He is journeying with His disciples from place to place Before Ch 8, His teaching was very direct - He did not use parables. But now, He will use parables. Preaching and Bringing the Glad Tidings of the Kingdom of God John the Baptist preached preparation for the Kingdom of God is coming Christ preached the Kingdom, Itself Women's Ministry Three women by name and many others Women's rights were very limited in the 1st Century - both religious and civil rights St Luke, in several places, notices the love and devotion of women to our Lord Jesus Christ This new position of women is because of the teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ The Lord taught that women are fellow heirs with men in the Kingdom of God In the Kingdom of God, there is no male or female... all are equal Christianity preached equality between men and women in Christ Provided for Him from their substance See the humble condition of the Lord - He appeared as a needy person He accepted their support out of His humility Mary Magdalene Mary (Miriam) was a common name among Hebrew Women... This Mary was from Magdala, a small town near Tiberias Some believe Mary Magdalene is the sinner woman in Chapter 7, but the Fathers of the Church don't agree Origen rejects the notion St Augustine, St Ambrose, St Jerome are doubtful Joanna She must have been a person of great wealth and high rank because of the position of her husband We will read about her again among the faithful women at the Resurrection (Luke 24:10) Some suggest that Chuza is the Nobleman of Capernaum whose dying son was healed by Christ (John 4:46-54) Susanna and many other women The Parable of the Sower 10:07 4  And when a great multitude had gathered, and they had come to Him from every city, He spoke by a parable:  5  “A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it.   6  Some fell on rock; and as soon as it sprang up, it withered away because it lacked moisture.   7  And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it.   8  But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded   [ e ] a crop a hundredfold.”  When He had said these things He cried,  “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”   Luke 8b: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 8: 26 - 56 ~ Bible Study Jesus Restores a Demon Possessed Man 00:00 26  Then they sailed to the country of the Gadarenes, which is opposite Galilee.  27  And when He stepped out on the land, there met Him a certain man from the city who had demons for a long time. And he wore no clothes, nor did he live in a house but in the tombs.  28  When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and with a loud voice said, “What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me!”  29  For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For it had often seized him, and he was kept under guard, bound with chains and shackles; and he broke the bonds and was driven by the demon into the wilderness. 30  Jesus asked him, saying,  “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion,” because many demons had entered him.  31  And they begged Him that He would not command them to go out into the abyss. 32  Now a herd of many swine was feeding there on the mountain. So they begged Him that He would permit them to enter them. And He permitted them.  33  Then the demons went out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the lake and drowned. 34  When those who fed  them  saw what had happened, they fled and told  it  in the city and in the country.  35  Then they went out to see what had happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid.  36  They also who had seen  it  told them by what means he who had been demon-possessed was healed.  37  Then the whole multitude of the surrounding region of the Gadarenes asked Him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear. And He got into the boat and returned. 38  Now the man from whom the demons had departed begged Him that he might be with Him. But Jesus sent him away, saying,  39  “Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you.”  And he went his way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him. Gadarenes is on the Eastern side of the Sea of Galilee It was mostly occupied by Gentiles, though some Jews did reside in it Most detailed description of a demon possessed man in the Bible Classic profile of a man possessed with demons Jesus did not directly seek out to reach this man, but the man was drawn to Jesus St Luke portrays the character of the Savior as a Friend who works continuously for the sake of one or two people The Lord came all the way to this city, healed this man, and went back Although this man and others like him, were rejected and not esteemed by the community, the Lord came for them Demon Possession This demon would try and seize him (give him seizures) and give him great power to break through bonds and chains The sight of the Lord Jesus was enough to make the demon tremble "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?" - Leave me alone! "I beg You, do not torment me!" - This statement is so ironic because the man was constantly tormented by the demons, yet the demons ask the Lord not to torment them. Despite their power, the Lord has more power because He is God "What is your name?" Instead of the man answering his human name, the demons spoke by his mouth and said "Legion" The man's condition was so miserable that he could not even say his own name... the demons have complete control over him A Legion is 6,000 soldiers so this man was likely possessed by 6,000 demons. The Abyss The deep place of torment of the demons (Revelation 9) Swine When the demons cannot destroy the person, they will destroy his goods. If they can't hurt the people in their bodies, they will hurt them in their goods and possessions. Why would the Lord Jesus allow them to possess the swine? The swine were kept in a Jewish property which is a violation of the Jewish Law (because pigs are unclean animals) The whole country AND the surrounding region They feared Him maybe because they thought He would discipline them for breaking the law by keeping the swine and thought "what other judgments and punishments might we suffer" They didn't mind having the demon-possessed man among them, but they minded having the Lord Jesus in their presence The Lord told the man to go and tell them what great things GOD has done for you and the man went and told all the things JESUS had done for him... there is no contradiction because Jesus is God. Why did the Lord not allow this grateful man to be one of His disciples Perhaps through his testimony, some of the hard-hearted Gadarenes will believe and be won to God This is the man's ministry The value of one soul to the Lord He traveled to this city ONLY for this person - He didn't do anything on the other side of the Sea of Galilee except to heal this one person With Jesus, no one is beyond hope. If this man, who had thousands of demons, could be healed, then ANYONE can change A Girl Restored and a Woman Healed 20:10 40  So it was, when Jesus returned, that the multitude welcomed Him, for they were all waiting for Him.  41  And behold, there came a man named Jairus, and he was a ruler of the synagogue. And he fell down at Jesus’ feet and begged Him to come to his house,  42  for he had an only daughter about twelve years of age, and she was dying. But as He went, the multitudes thronged Him. Jesus returns to the Jewish towns on the other side (i.e. in Galilee) and the multitude welcomed Him and were waiting for Him Contrast this with the Gadarenes and surrounding region where all the people asked Him to leave In all three of the Synoptic Gospels, the story of the raising of the daughter of Jairus is interrupted by the bleeding woman Jairus is sincere in his request to the Lord (fell down at His feet and begged Him) This shows that the enthusiasm for the Lord was not just the poor people - Jairus is rich It was not just the non-religious people - Jairus is a ruler of the synagogue Despite his humility and his status as ruler of the synagogue, his faith is weaker than the Centurion Jairus asked the Lord to come to his house to heal his daughter; The Centurion believed that the Lord was able to heal his servant with a word from afar off The Centurion thought he was not worthy that the Lord enter his house; Jairus asked the Lord to enter his house While the Lord was on the way to Jairus' house, there was an interruption 43  Now a woman, having a flow of blood for twelve years, who had spent all her livelihood on physicians and could not be healed by any,  44  came from behind and touched the border of His garment. And immediately her flow of blood stopped. 45  And Jesus said,  “Who touched Me?” When all denied it, Peter and those with him said, “Master, the multitudes throng and press You, and You say,  ‘Who touched Me?’  ” 46  But Jesus said,  “Somebody touched Me, for I perceived   power going out from Me.”   47  Now when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling; and falling down before Him, she declared to Him in the presence of all the people the reason she had touched Him and how she was healed immediately. 48  And He said to her,  “Daughter, be of good cheer;   your faith has made you well.   Go in peace.” The woman has been bleeding for 12 years... the same age as Jairus' daughter. From the same time Jairus' daughter was born, this woman has been bleeding. St Luke, as a physician, refers to the physicians here respectfully. But in Matthew and Mark, they document that she was "tormented by physicians" Besides her physical illness, her bleeding made her ceremonially and socially unclean - this is a burden to live under for 12 years. Anything on which she sat or lay became unclean. Anyone who touched her became unclean. Her bed and her garments are unclean. She could not attend Synagogue or participate in Temple worship. Her condition was embarrassing. She should not even be among the crowd because anyone who touched her would become unclean. She would be condemned even for touching Jesus. So she wanted to be healed secretly. She believed in the healing power of the Lord Jesus Christ - even the border of His garment. She touched the tassel of His garment Who touched Me? For I perceived power going out from Me This question didn't make any sense to the disciples... St Luke just told us that the multitude thronged Him There were people all around who made some contact with Him But the Lord said no! Someone - just one - touched Me intentionally with the touch of faith Who touched Me? In every meeting - Bible Study, Liturgy, Youth Meeting, Sunday School - I imagine the Lord asks this question: "Who touched Me?" And we might say like the disciples... many people attended! How can You ask "who touched Me?" And the Lord will say "I know many came and attended and had casual contact with Me, but I am asking about those who connected with Me and touched Me with faith, and received power from Me to be healed from their sins" Many of us come to all of these church services with no purpose - we are part of the crowd. But the voluntary living contact of faith is like an electric current that draws power from the Lord Jesus Christ. The woman realized she was not hidden The Lord called her forward, and this may have embarrassed her... but that was not His purpose He did so that she would know that she is healed So she doesn't wonder if the bleeding will return So she knows that it was her faith that made her well. Just the mere touch like anyone else in the multitude wasn't enough. So that the people may know that she is healed and she is clean This is an illness that no one can see People may not believe her if she goes and says out of nowhere that the bleeding has stopped - after 12 years of physicians. To contrast her faith with that of Jairus and to encourage Jairus in his faith To bless her He called her daughter Jesus never called any other person in the Scripture by the name "daughter" To heal her psychologically The woman's suffering was not only physical, but also psychological She felt rejected, not having human touch for 12 years Wholistic Approach of the Lord Physicians should deal with a person as body, spirit, soul; not just body Counselors should deal with a person as body, spirit, soul; not just soul Clergy and spiritual leaders should deal with a person as body, spirit, soul; not just spirit. The Lord healed her body, then encouraged her calling her daughter and granting her His peace (Soul), and telling her "your faith has made you well" (Spirit) 49  While He was still speaking, someone came from the ruler of the synagogue’s  house, saying to him, “Your daughter is dead. Do not trouble the Teacher.” Jairus must have been frustrated during all of this... every minute counts! When he heard these words, maybe he started to blame the Lord Jesus Christ... "I told You my daughter is dying... why didn't you come with me quickly? Why worry that someone touched You? Why have this long conversation with this woman?" God sometimes seems slow to the sufferer, but God is never slow This interruption was another test of faith for Jairus Imagine how Jairus' heart must have sank when he heard that his daughter had died. 50  But when Jesus heard  it,  He answered him, saying,  “Do not be afraid;   only believe, and she will be made well.”   51  When He came into the house, He permitted no one to go in except Peter, James, and John, and the father and mother of the girl.  52  Now all wept and mourned for her; but He said,  “Do not weep; she is not dead,   but sleeping.”   53  And they ridiculed Him, knowing that she was dead. 54  But He put them all outside, took her by the hand and called, saying,  “Little girl,   arise.”   55  Then her spirit returned, and she arose immediately. And He commanded that she be given  something  to eat.  56  And her parents were astonished, but He charged them to tell no one what had happened. The Lord gave Jairus two commands Do not be afraid Fear and faith don't go together "Why are you afraid, O ye of little faith" To put away fear is a decision Believe Don't try to believe while you are still afraid... it won't work. Put away the fear and the faith will come. This is the first time in the Gospel of Luke that we see Peter, James and John singled out to accompany the Lord They will also accompany Him at the Transfiguration (Luke 9) and at the garden of Gethsemane Dead or Sleeping Anyone would know the difference between dead and asleep They ridiculed Him, knowing that she was dead He put out those who ridiculed Him Likely they were "professional mourners" who were hired to add to the atmosphere of mourning at a death or funeral These people were not interested in faith, so he drove them out so that they would not discourage the faith of the others The Lord speaks to her as if she is alive because He is God He shows compassion and commands that they feed her, to satisfy her needs Tell no one what had happened People were so excited - a huge multitude was waiting for Him. The Lord did not need extra attraction or attention. The crowds were increasing. This excitement was temporary. He wanted the excitement to clear and be replaced with real and genuine faith The Lord did not fail Jairus as He did not fail the bleeding woman He needed to stretch Jairus' faith. With this experience, definitely the faith of Jairus grew The work of the Lord is different, and yet the same Jairus had a 12 year old daughter and her life was about to be ended; the woman was bleeding for 12 years in agony that seemed hopeless to heal Jairus was an important man; ruler of the synagogue. This woman was nobody. We don't even know her name. Jairus was wealthy; this woman was poor, having spent all her money on physicians Jairus came publicly; this woman came secretly Jairus thought Jesus had to do a lot - come to the house, etc. This woman thought all she needed is to touch the border of the garment of the Lord. Jesus responded to the woman immediately, but responded to Jairus after a delay Jairus' daughter was healed secretly, but the woman was healed publicly. Luke 9a: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 9: 1 - 27 ~ Bible Study Introduction 01:10 In the first 8 chapters, the period of instruction of the disciples is now completed Now it is time to send them on their mission for two things: To proclaim the gospel To heal the illnesses in the people It is like after Pre-servants, you when they have completed their instruction, are sent to be Sunday School Servants Outline 02:15 1-6: Sending out the Twelve 7-9: Herod Seeks to See the Lord Jesus Christ 10-17: Feeding the Five Thousand (Gospel of the 9th Hour) 18-20: St Peter Confesses Jesus as the Messiah] 21-22: The Lord Jesus Predicts His Death and Resurrection 23-27: Take Up the Cross and Follow Me 28-36: The Transfiguration on Mt Tabor 37-42: A Boy is Healed 43-45: Jesus again Predicts His Death 46-48: Jesus answers "Who is the Greatest" 49-50: The Disciples and Serving Others 51-56: A Samaritan Village Rejects the Savior 57-62: The Cost of Discipleship Sending Out the Twelve 04:15 1 Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases.  2  He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. 3  And He said to them,  “Take nothing for the journey, neither staffs nor bag nor bread nor money; and do not have two tunics apiece. 4  “Whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart.   5  And whoever will not receive you, when you go out of that city,   shake off the very dust from your feet as a testimony against them.” 6  So they departed and went through the towns, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere. The Lord sent the disciples who are now able to give to the people what they have received This missionary journey is recorded in Matthew 9 and Mark 6 St Matthew gives the reason and the detail of how the Lord prayed all night before sending them 36 But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were  [ j ] weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.  37  Then He said to His disciples,  “The harvest truly  is  plentiful, but the laborers  are  few.   38  Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” He gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases Power to work miracles (e.g. cure diseases) Authority by which the whole demonic system was to be subjected to them The same principle is true today: when God calls someone, He equips them with the gifts that they need for ministry God does not call the equipped, but He equips the called. St Luke mentions both demons and diseases because the treatment of the two was not the same Demons were to be cast out Diseases to be healed The main mission was to preach the kingdom of God Sometimes in our churches when we want to do missionary work, we feed the homeless, go to orphanages, visit the sick, etc. This is not missionary work... it's charitable work. But missionary work is that while we do these charitable deeds, we preach the Kingdom of God The purpose of the authority over illness and demons is to CONFIRM their mission that they are sent by God He did not send them only to present a message, but to do good to them with supernatural power To heal the spiritual illness as well as the physical illness The Wholistic Approach - dealing with the person as a whole The Lord will address their: Material Needs Social Relations Take nothing for the journey He tells them to go as they are The disciples were engaged in very holy work, so they could not give the impression that they have any other motive God offered them the power and the authority and granted them the power of preaching and the power of healing before asking them to give up anything He is asking them to rely on God and trust Him to take care of them When they travel light, they are dependent on God If the preacher, himself, does not trust God, how will he tell the people to trust God? Stay in the same house the whole time you are in a city Don't be distracted in moving from place to place We see this applied in Acts 16 when Paul and Silas stayed at the house of Lydia the whole time they were in Philippi Shake off the Dust Their duty is to persuade the people with the message of the Gospel, but if the people of that city do not accept them, they should shake off the dust from their feet There was a Jewish tradition that when they walked through a city of Gentiles, they would shake off the dust from their feet - a gesture that means "we don't want to take anything from this city of unbelievers" This instruction means that any city that does not accept the message of the Gospel is as a city of unbelievers Herod Seeks to See the Lord Jesus 17:21 7  Now Herod the tetrarch heard of all that was done by Him; and he was perplexed, because it was said by some that John had risen from the dead,  8  and by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the old prophets had risen again.  9  Herod said, “John I have beheaded, but who is this of whom I hear such things?” So he sought to see Him. After Herod the Great (who ordered the slaughtering of the children of Bethlehem) died, Israel was divided into four areas Herod Antipas (mentioned here) was the son of Herod the Great, and was ruler over Galilee Herod Antipas is also the one who beheaded St John the Baptist Herod was not interested in the Lord Jesus in any sincere spiritual way, but interested in Him as a "celebrity" He observed the popular thinking about who Jesus was (some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah or one of the prophets - v19) We will see later that Herod simply wants to see Him so he can see a miracle John the Baptist's Beheading is in Matthew 14 Who did people think Jesus was? Some thought that Jesus was St John because they both preached a message of repentance Some thought that Jesus was a famous miracle worker like Elijah as promised in Malachi 4:5-6 Some thought that Jesus was a prophet as Moses promised in Deuteronomy 18:15-19 Herod was perplexed All of these rumors about Jesus left Herod confused He had a guilty conscience over the murder of John the Baptist A guilty conscience brings confusion and perplexity because God is not the author of confusion St Luke notes this to emphasize and warn us about the increasing danger surrounding the work of the Lord Jesus St Luke records more than one reference to Herod Chapter 9: Herod wants to see Jesus... maybe because of his guilty conscience or maybe he wanted to kill the Lord as he killed John Chapter 13: People went to the Lord and said "Herod wants to kill you" and the Lord replied “Go, tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third  day   I shall be   [ j ] perfected.’" Chapter 23: The Lord Jesus faces Herod on the morning of His crucifixion. Herod was glad because he wanted Him to do a miracle. The Lord did not answer him. Herod mocked Him, and accused Him and arrayed Him in a purple robe Feeding the Five Thousand 25:18 10  And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done. Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida.  11  But when the multitudes knew  it,  they followed Him; and He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing.  12  When the day began to wear away, the twelve came and said to Him, “Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding towns and country, and lodge and get provisions; for we are in a deserted place here.” 13  But He said to them,  “You give them something to eat.” And they said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless we go and buy food for all these people.”  14  For there were about five thousand men. Then He said to His disciples,  “Make them sit down in groups of fifty.”   15  And they did so, and made them all sit down. 16  Then He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke them, and gave  them  to the disciples to set before the multitude.  17  So they all ate and were  [ a ] filled, and twelve baskets of the leftover fragments were taken up by them. This is the Gospel of the 9th Hour of the Agpeya Disciples vs Apostles In verse 1, St Luke calls them "Disciples" but in verse 10 "Apostles" Before the mission, they were disciples - pupils, students, learners After the mission, they are called apostles - "those sent with authority and a message" (e.g. after pre-servants they are called 'servants') The spirit of discipleship is important regardless of rank or order or service (i.e. deacon, servant, priest, bishop, pope) They gave a report of the responsibility they were entrusted with "They told Him all that they had done" As we have Servants reporting to the Coordinator, reporting to the clergy, reporting to the bishop, reporting to the Synod The Lord took them into a private place The Lord took special care of those who served Him Bethsaida is the city of Andrew, Peter, John and James - close to the Lake of Gennesaret (Sea of Galilee) That they might retire and be alone to get some rest and refreshment after their ministry, to have some private time with the Lord, to receive words of comfort and blessing, etc. The Lord served the crowd that followed Him He received them Without anger Without making them feel guilty Without rebuke He spoke to them about the Kingdom of God Spiritual Food He healed those who had need of healing Did good for them Send the multitude away The disciples were simply considering the crowd (with women and children) and concerned that the people would get tired To their surprise, the Lord answered them "you give them something to eat" The Lord told them that it is not His will to dismiss the multitude - it was the Lord's will that the disciples supply their food The Lord is challenging their faith and their compassion Make them sit down in groups of fifty The Lord does the work in an organized way The number that we have is accurate (5000) since they sat in groups of 50 They all ate and were filled The Lord Jesus took the little that they had and gave thanks to God for it Sometimes when we have little, we don't see a reason to thank God If we had a banquet and only five loaves and two fish, who would thank God? In order to be successful, there is a human element and a divine element Human element: What you need to do - What you CAN do Divine element: What God will do - What you CANNOT do God will never do our part, or else He's encouraging and enabling laziness Human: Offer 5 loaves and 2 fish Divine: Feed the multitude Human: Move the stone of a tomb Divine: Raise Lazarus Human: Cast the net Divine: Catch many fish In service, do what you can and God will complete our deficiency and God will do what we cannot Display of His authority over creation He insisted on doing this miracle through the hands of His disciples Collecting the leftovers God is not for wasting resources or food The Purpose The miracle was a reminder of what God provided in the Old Testament The miracle was practically to feed the people there The miracle was a show of His Divinity and His authority over Creation The miracle was an indication that He is the Bread of Life Eucharist/Bread of Life John 6 - St John connects this miracle with the Lord's teaching on the Eucharist As Moses liberated the people from slavery in Egypt, Jesus is the new Moses who came to liberate us As David started the Kingdom of Israel, Jesus is the new David who came to re-establish the Spiritual Kingdom of Israel The Lord promises in John 6 that He will give His Body and Blood for the salvation of man This miracle foreshadows the giving of the Eucharist by the Lord to all of us St Peter Confesses the Lord Jesus as the Messiah 42:38 18  And it happened, as He was alone praying,  that  His disciples joined Him, and He asked them, saying,  “Who do the crowds say that I am?” 19  So they answered and said, “John the Baptist, but some  say  Elijah; and others  say  that one of the old prophets has risen again.” 20  He said to them,  “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered and said, “The Christ of God.” 21  And He strictly warned and commanded them to tell this to no one,  22  saying,  “The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.” Many things happened after the Miracle of the 5000 (in Matthew and Mark), but St Luke ignores them and switches the time and place of the story Jesus walking on the water Many healings The healing of the Syrophoenician woman Feeding of the 4000 Rebuke of the Pharisee sand Sadducees who were seeking a sign Who do men say that I am? Jesus was not ignorant of what people were saying, but He asked this to introduce a more important follow-up question: "Who do YOU say that I am" Those who thought He was John did not know Jesus well John and Elijah were courageous and standing up to rulers (Herod, Ahab) The people hoped that the Messiah would be a political Messiah The people saw from the Lord that He stood up to the Pharisees Who do you say that I am? Peter's answer showed that he knew not from human being, but from God "Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 16:17) Most people did not know that He is the Christ "He came to His own but His own did not receive Him" "He was the light that shines in darkness but the darkness did not comprehend Him" Tell this to no one The crowd could not understand that Jesus was the Messiah and the Messiah had to suffer The disciples should learn this first - that the Messiah must suffer His work was not yet finished - He had to finish His work before the Crucifixion Their faith was still very weak and their knowledge very partial Jesus predicts His Death and Resurrection From now on, He will teach clearly about what they should expect: Death and Resurrection He is preparing their mind for the climax which is the Crucifixion and Resurrection Before this moment, He is fulfilling the prophecies of Isaiah concerning the Messiah: Healing the sick, casting out demons, giving hope to the oppressed and broken-hearted From now on, until the end, He is fulfilling the other side of the prophecies of Isaiah about the Suffering Servant who will die for the sake of His people The Son of Man MUST suffer, MUST be killed, MUST be raised Take Up the Cross and Follow Me 52:27 23  Then He said to  them  all,  “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.   24  For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.   25  For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost?   26  For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be   ashamed when He comes in His  own  glory, and  in His  Father’s, and of the holy angels.   27  But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the kingdom of God.” Three requirements Deny himself Take up his cross daily Follow Him A true disciple of Christ should be willing to deny his selfish desires daily To die to himself To be ready to accept unto himself the same as the Lord In the Roman law, if someone was condemned to crucifixion, he had to carry his own cross up to the hill The cross is an instrument of torture, death and humiliation Anyone who takes up their cross doesn't come back... it's a one way journey The Promise from Christ is that if you take up your cross and follow Him, you will live eternally Whoever loses his life for the sake of Christ will live eternally in His heavenly kingdom; but whoever is concerned for his life, will lose his eternity You will never live until you walk to your death with Christ... and only then will you have life You cannot gain resurrection and life without dying first This is a strong and sure promise of life after death Gaining the whole world, which is temporal, may lose everything in eternity Who is ashamed of Christ and His words? Some out of fear of the Cross Some out of social pressure Some out of intellectual or cultural pride Not taste death until they see the kingdom of God The Crucifixion, Resurrection and Pentecost which some standing there would see Jesus Reigns on the Cross - those who live to see these events, live to see the kingdom of God St Ambrose: "Thus, if we wish not to fear death, let us stand where Christ is so that He may say of us, too, 'there are some standing here that shall not taste death.' It is not enough to stand unless the standing is where Christ is... for only those who can stand with Christ, will not taste death. It is therein lawful through the quality of the very word to ponder that those who are seen to have deserved the fellowship with Christ will not have, even, the perception of death." If you stand with Christ in His Crucifixion and Sufferings, then you will be with Him in His glory               Luke 10: Fr Daoud Lamei Fr Daoud Lamei · 37- إنجيل لوقا أصحاح 10 جزء 2 Fr Daoud Lamei · 38- إنجيل لوقا أصحاح 10 جزء 3 The Good Samaritan 41:50 25  And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26  He said to him,  “What is written in the law? What is your reading  of it? ” 27  So he answered and said, “  ‘You shall love the   Lord   your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’  and  ‘your neighbor as yourself.’  ” 28  And He said to him,  “You have answered rightly; do this and   you will live.” 29  But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30  Then Jesus answered and said:  “A certain  man  went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among   thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded  him,  and departed, leaving  him  half dead.   31  Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him,   he passed by on the other side.   32  Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side.   33  But a certain   Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had   compassion.   34  So he went to  him  and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.   35  On the next day,   when he departed, he took out two   denarii, gave  them  to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.’   36  So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?” 37  And he said, “He who showed mercy on him.” Then Jesus said to him,  “Go and do likewise.” Who is the Lawyer? The Lawyer is a scholar and teacher of the Law They were some of the very stringent people who lived and preached according to the letter of the law "Stood up and tested Him" He had bad intentions What shall I do to inherit eternal life? This is the most important question one should ask The rich man also asked this question The Pharisees had different answers for this... different schools of thought. This lawyer wants to know which school of thought the Lord Jesus is subscribed to and will teach. In this way, he can go and say "this teacher follows rabbi x" What is written in the law? What is your reading of it? What is YOUR reading of it If it's just "what is written" then he will just say what he has memorized... but the Lord wants to know what he understands HOW are you reading it? Are you reading it with a humble spirit? Are you reading with open ears to hear the Lord speak to you? Are you reading it with a prideful spirit? Are you reading to find mistakes? The man doesn't answer the question but answers "what is written in the law" The Ten Commandments He responds with what we find in Deuteronomy 6 and in Leviticus Love the Lord your God (first tablet with four commandments) Love your neighbor as yourself (second tablet with six commandments) Do this and you will live Despite the fact that he is testing Him, He tells him that he has answered correctly and he will have eternal life if he does it. This is all that's needed to inherit eternal life This doesn't get rid of or even discount Baptism, Confirmation, Repentance and Eucharist of course But in the course of daily life: Love God, and love your neighbor as yourself Do this and you will live The man knew the law but didn't do it Love the Lord your God with ALL your heart, ALL your soul, ALL your strength, ALL your mind We all love God... but who of us has reached the word "ALL" With ALL my heart The lawyer's heart was full of pride and testing and legalism With ALL my strength Tiring for the Lord day and night With ALL my mind Having the Lord on my mind in every thought Love your neighbor AS YOURSELF We all love our neighbors... but who of us has reached the word "AS YOURSELF" The Lord is helping him to see that even though he knows the Law, he is not doing it. We attend Bible Study and read and study and focus on the sermons and lessons and we can answer all the questions. Even if we go to heaven and the Lord asks us a question, we'll be able to answer... but are we practicing? Are we doing? Or are we just learning? We memorize verses, but do we do them? The Lord will ask us "Did you practice what you preach? Did you practice what you learned?" He wanted to be justified He didn't want to go and obey the commandment He didn't want to do more work He wanted to be justified that he was already doing the commandments There are some who want to know the truth and do it... but some who just want to feel or know that they are right Some come to a sermon and want to hear what they need to do or how they can grow Some others want to hear all the things they are doing right and be justified Sermon about giving, and he doesn't give, he won't listen to the sermon or he won't go Sermon about anger or reconciliation, and he's angry at someone, then he tunes out the sermon The Lawyer had two good qualities He is asking about eternal life - this is something that pleases God He has studied the Scriptures and has the Law memorized He's not perfect as he intends to test the Lord, but he has good qualities Who is my neighbor? Again, he wants to test the Lord Different Pharisees had different teachings for your neighbor... For some it was immediate family. For some it was family and friends. For some it was those who lived near you. For some it was your tribe or city. The most that any Pharisee would preach is that your neighbor is your fellow Jew. The Good Samaritan This story is only in the Gospel of Luke Literal Interpretation A Jewish man is going from Jerusalem to Jericho and he is robbed and attacked and left for dead.  A priest walks by and sees him and does nothing, continues to walk by A Levite walks by and sees him and does nothing, continues to walk by (Levite is like a deacon) A Samaritan walks by and sees him and mends his wounds and clothes him and takes him to an inn on his own dime and even offered to pay as much as was needed for him. The Samaritans were hated by the Jews The Jews did not consider Samaritans to be Jewish. They were enemies. They cursed each other. And even sometimes if you wanted to curse someone you would call them a Samaritan. "Then the Jews answered and said to Him, 'Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?'" (John 8:48) Who was his neighbor? The Samaritan who wasn't from his religion, or his nation, or his language, or his family, and whose family hates his family. If the Jew had been awake he would have cursed the Samaritan. Moral Interpretation We are called to love all people - and not a superficial love, but a love of servitude and effort The Good Samaritan The Samaritan had other things to do... he wasn't aimlessly walking This would cost him a lot He would have to walk since the Jew would be on his animal He would pay at the inn He would promise the owner of the inn that he would pay any additional expenses He used his own oil and wine The Samaritan would lose time and money and effort Sometimes we go as far as to "feel bad" for someone like the priest or Levite... but not further "dang that sucks" "I'm sorry to hear that" "That's so sad" Someone else may offer love and companionship and help him get up... but to take him to a hotel? To pay for him? Not so... Someone else may have red tape around their love... If he's from my nation or my religion I'll help him as long as it doesn't affect me I'll help him and love him but I can't pay for him The Lord is asking us for a full and complete love for all people Allegorical Interpretation The injured Jew is Adam who was going from Jerusalem (paradise) to Jericho (the world) Jerusalem means "city of peace" which was the city of the King - the city of God Going from Jerusalem means getting further from God What happens when we get further from God? We become easy targets for the devil! The robbers are devils Stripped him Most robbers would wound first, and then would strip him to steal his clothes and items... but these robbers stripped him first. Since the day of our baptism, we have a vestment of righteousness clothing us. The Devil wants to remove it from us and strip us of it. To make you naked of the righteousness of baptism and Myron... and from there, they can wound you as they like Adam, when he fell, was naked... but the Fathers say that he was clothed in grace and in righteousness. But when he sinned, he felt naked because his garment of righteousness was removed. Wounded him Sins and vices Left him for dead Someone who is far from the Lord - we don't know if he's dead or alive... The Priest is the Law The Law that would judge that "this person is dying" but could not save God had sent the Law for the people to follow it and adjust themselves... but instead it became a judge for them because no one could do it. The Levite is the Prophets The Prophets who came to preach to the people to "get up!" but could not help them get up The Samaritan is the Lord Jesus Christ Christ who took our place on the Cross and in wounds and sufferings. We sinned and He took our place. When God looks at us in the midst of sin and in the sufferings of this life, He doesn't say "they deserve it" but He has compassion He went to him = He came from heaven to earth Bandaged his wounds = As the True Physician Oil comforts and Wine purifies Sometimes God sends us oil: Someone to comfort us Sometimes God sends us wine: Something that will hurt, but will be good for us Sometimes God will send us both The animal usually symbolizes flesh - putting him on his animal symbolizes that He gave us His flesh in the Eucharist. He took what is ours and gave us what is His. The Inn is the Church The Innkeeper is the Shepherds of the Church - the Bishops and Priests The Two Denarii are the Old and New Testament; or they are the two commandments: Love of God and the Love of Man   The Samaritan promises to return as the Savior's Second Coming I will repay you - this is the promise to those who are serving others Go and do likewise Let us be transformed from the legalism of the lawyer to the spirit of love of the Good Samaritan Mary and Martha Worship and Serve 31:15 38  Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house.  39  And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word.  40  But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.” 41  And Jesus answered and said to her,  “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things.   42  But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”   Luke 10: Fr Stephen De Young Mary and Martha Still on the journey to Jerusalem Gospel of John tells us that this is in Bethany We see the pattern of preaching - entering the home of the first person who meets them in the village Bethany means "House of the poor" - it was a poor village Sitting at Jesus' feet This means "to be His disciple" e.g. St Paul "sat at the feet of Gamaliel" "Also" in addition to the disciples One thing is needed He's not saying "you should be more like Mary" or "you're the bad sister" Martha's hospitality is a good thing It is good what you're doing, but you're missing one piece of the puzzle and your sister has it: discipleship Role of Women In those days, women were not treated equally to men in society In Greek and Roman society, they were not even considered to be equal to men - they were lesser beings than men. In some views, they were just humans who failed to become men in the womb. They weren't responsible for anything. They were just a tool to use to have sons. In Jewish society, they had a low view of women, but they at least believed women to be made by God, and there were some provisions for them in the Law. Still, their father or husband was responsible for them. In Christianity, we see that women are completely equal with men. And that means they are just as responsible for knowing and following the commandments and for being disciples of Christ - this is the point that St Luke tries to make by including this story in his gospel It's a very important point in the eyes of the original audience of the Gospels The elevation of the status of women in Christianity The giving of an equal responsibility to women in Christianity Luke 11: Fr Daoud Lamei Fr Daoud Lamei · 39- إنجيل لوقا أصحاح 11 جزء 1 The Lord's Prayer 00:00 1 Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased,  that  one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.” 2  So He said to them,  “When you pray, say: Our   Father   in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as  it is  in heaven. 3  Give us day by day our daily bread. 4  And   forgive us our sins, For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one.” Mary and Martha In the last chapter, the Lord visited the house of Mary and Martha and He venerated Mary for "choosing the good part" and told Martha that "one thing is needed" The good part is the live with the Lord through prayer, bible, fasting This chapter starts with prayer He was praying St Luke's gospel has as one of its themes, prayer Why would Jesus pray? Isn't He God? He doesn't need prayer.. He took flesh and was incarnate and His humanity is 100% He is showing us the complete humanity - just as we have physical needs like eating and drinking and sleeping, we also have spiritual needs like prayer Teach us to pray Prayer wasn't foreign to them - the Jews had prayers They saw something different in how He prayed, and asked Him to teach them to pray It is a good request for us to make of the Lord - teach us to pray, give us focus in prayer, give us the spirit of prayer, give us time to pray, give us words in prayer The disciples lived a life of discipleship - they saw Him praying and wanted to do/be like Him Discipleship is the foundation of all Christianity... instead of telling someone to pray, let them see you pray... then they will ask you "how do you pray?" instead of telling someone to love, let them see you love... then they will ask "how do you love?" First live, then ask When you pray Not "if you pray" - because we WILL pray A LOT The Lord's Prayer This prayer is going to be the curriculum or template for all future prayers It's a prayer that is pleasing to God A prayer given to us directly by the Lord Our Father It's a new thing for the Jews In the Old Testament, the idea of God as Father is present: "The Lord has spoken: 'I have nourished and brought up children, And they have rebelled against Me;" (Isaiah 1:2) "A son honors his father, And a servant his master. If then I am the Father, Where is My honor?" (Malachi 1:6) But the Jews never called God "Father" - but rather "Great God" - "Almighty" - etc. Christian worship is not based on being afraid of God, but on love for God A servant doesn't talk to his master unless he needs something... but a son goes and speaks with his father even if he doesn't need anything. In prayer, you are speaking to your Father, not a stranger Scared? Tell Him! Need something? Tell Him! Worried? Tell Him! I don't need to know everything about my dad to know that he loves me or to talk to him Even if you don't know anything in Theology or the Bible or Hymns or anything... God is still Your Father! You can still say this prayer! You can still speak to Him. He can still speak to you. Our Father in heaven The Lord came to earth so that we could go to heaven Every time we say "Our Father in heaven" we remind ourselves that we are not from here nor will we be here long... it raises us to a heavenly state. Even if praying alone, we still say it in plural: "Our Father in heaven" no one says "My Father in heaven" - the Lord didn't teach it to us this way. He taught it to us in the plural as a Church, even if we are praying alone Hallowed be Your name Half of the prayer is "Your" to God - "Hallowed be Your name" - "Your kingdom come" - "Your will be done" The other half is "Us" - "Give us this day..." - "Forgive us..." - "As we forgive..." - "Lead us not into temptation..." - "Deliver us..." Hallowed be Your name is a prayer for the whole world to know the holiness of His name - "I wish that everyone would know You" It's a prayer for myself, who carry His name on myself - "Christian", but I don't hallow it. It's a prayer to ask God to make me holy so that I can carry His name. Your Kingdom Come The Kingdom of God is within you The Kingdom of God is in the Church The Kingdom of God is in eternal life and fellowship with God Your will be done 29:00 We added "In Christ Jesus our Lord" Some say "well how can you add to the Lord's prayer?!" - but of course it's not a wrong thing to add The Lord told us to ask anything in His name (John 14 and John 16) A Friend Comes at Midnight 47:20 5  And He said to them,  “Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves;   6  for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him’;   7  and he will answer from within and say, ‘Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you’?   8  I say to you,   though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs. s Keep Asking, Seeking, Knocking 54:59 9  “So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.  10  For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.  11  If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if  he asks  for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish?  12  Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?  13  If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will  your  heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”   Luke 11: Fr Stephen De Young https://www.ancientfaith.com/podcasts/wholecounsel/luke_chapter_11   The Lord's Prayer Jesus is praying The Lord's Prayer is roughly the same in St Matthew and St Luke's gospels, but it's framed differently Teach us to pray Prayer in those days was not as casual as it is for us... for us we can go pray and just say extemporaneous prayers and just shut our door and speak to God In the pagan societies, prayer usually meant reciting incantations and doing magic and calling on these demon gods to try and get what you want. If someone wanted a good yield in his crops, he would find the "god of crops" and offer sacrifices and prayers to it hoping that his crops give a good yield In the Jewish societies, they had some set prayers and set sacrifices outlined in the law... but many times we see in the Old Testament that the Lord rejects them because they are coming and saying these prayers, thinking they are justified - despite being completely wicked In the first century, leaders of Jews would tell them when to pray and what to say and when to say what - St John the Forerunner did this (Luke 11:1) and there are other indications of teachers who did this... usually it would be certain psalms and certain times in the day This carried into Christianity as we see in our Agpeyas The disciples are asking for the structure - if prayer isn't about magically getting God to do what you want, then what is it and how do we do it? Prayer isn't about changing God, it's about changing us Draw close to God in prayer and the prayers change us Prayers of repentance are for us to change, not for God to be happy instead of sad. We seek healing & cleansing Prayers of thanksgiving are for us to give us a grateful heart and fight our tendency to greed, selfishness and pride Sometimes we pray for someone sick to get better and he doesn't get better so we say "Prayer doesn't work" - but that is because we are assuming the purpose of prayer is to get God to heal this person... magic! There is a prayer in 2 Chronicles called "The Prayer of Jabez" - a few years ago, some protestants started to advertise it as "If you say this prayer five times a day then God will give you money" or "then God will bless you" - that's magic! That's paganism! That's not Christianity! That's not what prayer is! It suggests that God ought to do what man wants instead of man seeking God's will Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name The Lord is introducing the concept of "Father" to describe God - and it's not our earthly father (our dad) but our Heavenly Father This is the opposite of what the Gentiles and Pagans would think... no one wanted to be Zeus' friend or have Zeus as father... they wanted to appease the gods to stay away from them and leave them alone St Paul will talk a lot about "adoption" and how we have been adopted as "sons of God" as explaining HOW God is our Father and HOW we became His sons When we pray, we are developing a relationship with Him - it's not just asking Him to do things or asking Him not to smite us... it's akin to a healthy relationship of children with their father Even though He's our Father, it doesn't mean we'll be informal with Him like "our dad" but He is Holy and He is God who created the universe and the angels and us Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven Your kingdom come - in those days people thought that meant the Messiah would overthrow the Roman and restore the kingdom to Israel "Your kingdom come" really means "Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" They thought "Your kingdom come" meant "come into existence because it doesn't exist now" - but Christ says "come to earth as it is in heaven" God is already ruling over His Creation... in heaven; in the unseen place. We are praying that that kingdom will come to exist on earth in the same way... where God's will is done throughout the world. Give us day by day our daily bread We're asking God to care for our needs St Luke will continue to expand on this Worrying about what we have and what we need God knows what you need before you ask... Is it that if you don't ask, God won't provide your daily meals? So why ask? Prayer is for US If I am praying for God to give me food and clothing and my daily needs... then I'm not going to be worrying about them myself And if God gives me all of the things I need... I'm not going to take credit for them myself It is to change ourselves to know that the things I have come from God and the things I need tomorrow will come from God Forgive us our sins, For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us St Matthew talks about "trespasses" whereas St Luke talks about "debts" St Luke tends to take things about wealth more literally "Blessed are the poor" in St Luke; "Blessed are the poor in spirit" in St Matthew We are asking God for forgiveness of our sins and trespasses against Him, but if we do that we only have the right to ask for as much forgiveness as we are showing to others...  If the only forgiveness I'm going to get from God is the amount I give to other people... I might be in trouble By asking in this way, I'm not trying to get God to do something "to forgive me" but it's for me to learn how to forgive others It calls us to step back and begin by forgiving others... then I can ask God for forgiveness It also points out that all sin has two dimensions Any sin you commit doesn't affect just you... it affects the people around you, the people you sin against, the people who know that you've done it and what example you set, disappointment, loss of trust, etc. If there's a problem between me and someone else, that relationship must be mended first before I can ask forgiveness from God... sometimes we say "well I confessed... God forgave me so you should forgive me" Forgiveness is not "getting off the hook" - we have hurt, harmed, corrupted ourselves and other people... that has to be remedied both in us and in other people Zacchaeus - "Salvation has come to his house" wasn't as soon as Jesus entered, but as soon as Zacchaeus made things right for what he's done (by returning four fold and half of his goods) And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. God tempts no one (James 1:13) God is not tempting someone to sin Temptation can be trial, test, etc. We know that God is in control of the future and knows what will happen If tomorrow I'm tried or tested or tempted, I'm probably going to give in to them (if I'm being honest about my own weakness and sinfulness).  We aren't asking God to take away the temptation, but we are confessing our own weakness. And if I manage to avoid those sins tomorrow it's not because of me, but it's because God protected me. https://www.ancientfaith.com/podcasts/wholecounsel/luke_chapter_11_continued Friend at Midnight Even if this guy isn't a great friend, even if this guy has done this before - you'd give it to him just to get rid of him! Jesus is talking about prayer Some say this story means that "God will give you whatever you ask for!" No! The context of the story is persistence in prayer Even if someone doesn't really care about you, if you're persistent, he will give you what you're looking for If that's true, then how much more will God - who loves and cares for you - give you? Persistence in Prayer is important - God is almost saying that you won't get what you want the first time, but must be persistent It's not about saying the right words or saying them the right amount of times to get God to do it for you In the process of prayer, sometimes we realize that the thing we thought we needed... isn't what's needed Or we realize that we can get along fine without it Sometimes we just need time to grow through prayer It's not that God will eventually give you what you want, but that God will give you what you need and the process and persistence in prayer will open your eyes to what it is you actually need and that God has been providing it for you the whole time "If you, then, being evil, know how to give good gifts..." He's talking to the disciples... why call them evil? These are the disciples who argued about who was greater These are the disciples who wanted fire from heaven on the Samaritan village These are the disciples who saw someone casting out demons in His name and told them to stop Lest the disciples adopt the attitude of the Pharisees - that they are better or more good or more special than anyone else, He reminds them that they are sinners too In reality, we are all sinners and we are all evil and it is a message for all of us "How much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!" Not "how much more will He give good gifts" but "give the Holy Spirit" The Fruit of the Spirit is what God will give us: Love, Joy, Peace, Longsuffering, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, Self-Control A House Divided Cannot Stand Three groups are present here... The first group accuses Him of casting out Satan by Beelzebub The chief idol in the Old Testament was Baal and another name for him was Baalzebub (2 Kings 1:2-3) They believed that the pagan gods were real, but they were demons... they are not to be called gods or made equal to God. The second group sought a sign They recognized that there was something different about this Man... maybe he's a prophet or something They are unsure and on the fence "And Elijah came to all the people, and said, “How long will you falter between two opinions? If the  Lord   is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” But the people answered him not a word." (1 Kings 18:21) The third group is the disciples The Lord addresses the first group first Their logic is faulty... if He's part of Satan's kingdom, then He's not going to cast out demons He's going to send them out to possess... So that doesn't make sense At the same time, it is only God who can cast out demons... people who performed exorcisms before always did it in the name of God, or prayed that God would cast out the demon. Christ didn't need to do either of those. So He must be God "If I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you" No one can take a strong man's stuff unless he's stronger than him! Satan is the strong man and his palace and his goods are the world The stronger man is the Lord Jesus who overcomes him and takes from him all that he has This is referring to the casting out of the demon... Satan has taken possession of this man and no one can take him back except He who is stronger than Satan... which is God Then he starts to address the second group He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters The second group is not with Him, they're on the fence... but if they're on the fence, they are not with Him. And if they're not with Him, then they're against Him. There is no lukewarm As Christians, you're either in or out. Some people try to call themselves Christians without doing the works of Christians Some want to be religious but not Spiritual It's like Elijah said... if the Lord is God, follow Him! And if not, then go watch football. But if the Lord really is God, and He rose from the dead and He's the Way the Truth and the Life, then we have work to do. We have to examine our hearts. We have to be transformed. We have to change and live a life of repentance. We have to be serious and intentional about our eternal life. Nothing is served by simply going to church or calling yourself Christian or any of the other things... if we aren't serious about it An unclean spirit returns You can't stay neutral... if you stay neutral, the devil will return with seven other demons and take possession Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it! Continuing the thought from before... it's not enough to hear the word of God, but we must keep it. Seeking a Sign Jonah went to Nineveh (modern day Mosul where ISIS is... Capital of the Assyrian Empire which is one of the most bloody Empires in the history of the world... made the Nazis look like toddlers) and said to them "in three days God will destroy this city"... that's it. Conversely, the Lord came preaching repentance and doing miracles The queen of the South - which is everything from Ethiopia to Saudi Arabia and Yemen came all the way to Solomon in Israel to hear him speak and after that praised the Lord God (1 Kings 10) They didn't even have to go to the Lord, He came to them  If the Lord is comparing Himself to Jonah, then who are the Israelites? The people of Nineveh If the Lord is comparing Himself to Solomon, then who are the Israelites? The Gentile Queen of the South This Gentile queen will rise up and judge and condemn the Israelites These Ninevites will rise up and judge and condemn the Israelites Because the big difference between Israel and Nineveh? Nineveh repented. And indeed, a greater than Jonah and Solomon is here. Who is greater than the Prophet of God, and the King Anointed by God? God Himself The Lamp of the Body Your sense bring things in... what you look at, what you listen to... it is brought into your body If you are looking at light, it will bring light into your body If you are looking at darkness, it will bring darkness into your body Hear the word of God and do it... You don't light a lamp and put it in the closet You light the lamp and give it a place to illuminate The Lord is giving them the light when He speaks to them Woe to the Pharisees and Lawyers The Inside and Outside of the Cup You're so worried about how things look... washing your hands. But if you took a bowl, washed the outside of it and left it dirty on the inside and put your food in it to eat... you're eating filth! You're so concerned about being outwardly clean, but you're not worried about what's going on in your heart and soul (because you think no one knows) Do you think God cares about the outside and doesn't care about the inside? The Laws in the Old Testament were a means to the end... God wanted to make a point about being clean on the inside by giving them laws for cleanliness In Hosea, the people were offering the sacrifices and God told them to stop! He said "I desire mercy and not sacrifice" The ritual had purpose and meaning and they weren't paying attention to it St Paul discusses this with regards to the Eucharist... if you're showing up to eat and you don't know what you're eating or what you're doing, then don't do it! Some of you have even died. By doing it without discerning it, you are worse off than if you hadn't done it. If you're full of greed and lust, then it doesn't matter how many times you wash your hands Woe Cursed Opposite of Blessing Tithing of Mint and Rue and Herbs Herbs are the smallest thing... it's very picky. It's not 10% of your income but it's like the smallest thing. You're so picky about these small rules, but you're not worried about justice and love of God. Which is more important? You should tithe! But you also need to be just and love God Best Seats and Greetings They always wanna be right up front... not so you can hear better, but so everyone sees you You love when people come and greet you in the marketplace as a holy man Graves Unseen You are dead inside and no one realizes it Jesus was just invited to this Pharisee's house and the Pharisee hasn't said anything (just thoughts)! And Jesus is tearing him up Lawyer says "hey I'm technically a Pharisee too!" Jesus doesn't say "oh my bad..." You load men with burdens You come to people and tell them all the rules of the law... can't do this, can't do that... but do you try to help them? To help them live Godly lives? You build the tombs of the prophets In this time they were building big tombs for the prophets that had already died Building the tombs doesn't show that you're pious, it shows that you're just like them From the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah (some say from A-Z) Who is Zechariah? Some Fathers say it's the father of John the Baptist and he was killed between the altar and the high place (holy of holies) at the time of Herod's massacre Taken away the key of knowledge They spend all their lives studying the Law and don't understand it and not only that, but from the way they teach it they make sure no one else understands it either Like someone who has a key and throws it away. So neither he nor the people can enter the door Christ was harsh with them because He was speaking the truth and rebuking them. Some people when we say or do something harsh, for the sake of the truth, they say "why can't you be like Jesus He was so gentle and so quiet and... Luke 12: Fr Stephen De Young Woe to the Pharisees and Lawyers Beware of Hypocrisy of the Pharisees Outside of the house, a huge multitude had gathered waiting for Him to come out The Lord says to His disciples: Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees which is hypocrisy Leaven is considered unclean - had to be removed from the house during Passover Leaven expands/spreads - if you let a little in, it will fill everything The leaven of the Pharisees - their sin that spreads - is hypocrisy Hypocrisy is in the heart - the Pharisees have the outside clean and everybody fooled about how holy they are, but their inside is dirty and God is not fooled. The time will come when everything will be revealed Fear of God Do not be afraid of anyone - but have the fear of God Do not be afraid of what others think - consider what God will think Do not be afraid someone will kill you - but be afraid that after you die, you perish Sparrows Sparrows aren't worth much... 2 measly copper coins can get you five sparrows. Yet not one is forgotten by God Importance in the eyes of the world is very different from importance in the eyes of God Every hair on our head is numbered We are of more value than many sparrows It doesn't mean that nothing bad will happen to you... faith is not believing that God won't let something bad happen to you... bad things will happen to you, but faith is knowing that you are in God's hand Confess Christ Before Men Why would someone not confess Christ? They would be killed! This is the 1st Century This is the flip side of don't fear men, fear God. The person who doesn't fear men doesn't have to fear God If you're more afraid of men than you are of God, then you'll have cause to fear God Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit The people who said He casts out demons by Beelzebub are saying that the Spirit of God in the Lord Jesus (i.e. the Holy Spirit) is a demon Why would it be unforgiveable? If you reject God and say that He is evil, or that He is Satan, then how can He forgive you? It is to reject forgiveness If you hate God, how can God welcome you into His presence for all eternity? You wouldn't want to be there... If you reject forgiveness, then you won't be forgiveness What about speaking a word against the Son of Man? The disciples are all about to do that... one will betray, one will publicly deny, many will just run away and hide... THAT can be forgiven them But to reject God's forgiveness cannot be forgiven He has been speaking about the Day of Judgment Everything that is hidden will be revealed Fear the One who can kill and has power to cast into hell I will confess you before God Etc. Don't be afraid of what the synagogues and magistrates and authorities will do to you, or even what you will say to them. The Holy Spirit will speak for you Parable of the Rich Fool Christ is saying all of these good things, and the whole time, what has this guy been thinking about? Money, his no-good brother, his inheritance The Lord's point is to question "why is this your concern? I'm talking to you about the Kingdom of God but you are concerned with the worldly things.... with possessions" At the day of Judgment, God is not going to care who got the inheritance or who had the most money The Rich Fool From the perspective of the world, the guy is smart and he is wise But from God's perspective, He is a fool If all of our focus is earthly, and we don't care about heavenly, then we are fools Don't Worry Don't worry about life, food, body, clothing... If you live your whole life without eating well, being poor, not having nice clothes, but you're focused on the things that are heavenly, then you will be better off than even the richest man in the world who ends up in hell God feeds the ravens... who feeds you? God! You don't feed yourself... you are fed not because of how hard you work or how smart you are. It's not you. God feeds you. God gave you the smarts and the energy and the job and He put the food on your table. Not you. If it's not you, why worry? Who can make himself taller by worrying? Grass is in the field and tomorrow is in the oven... but our souls are eternal. How much more does God care for us? Seek the kingdom of God By hearing the word of God and doing it Luke 12c: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 12: 35 - 59 ~ Bible Study The Faithful Servant and the Evil Servant 00:00 35  “Let your waist be girded and   your  lamps burning;   36  and you yourselves be like men who wait for their master, when he will return from the wedding, that when he comes and knocks they may open to him immediately.   37  Blessed  are  those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself and have them sit down  to eat,  and will come and serve them.   38  And if he should come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find  them  so, blessed are those servants.   39  But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would   have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into.   40  Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” 41  Then Peter said to Him, “Lord, do You speak this parable  only  to us, or to all  people? ” 42  And the Lord said,  “Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom  his  master will make ruler over his household, to give  them their  portion of food   in due season?   43  Blessed  is  that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes.   44  Truly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all that he has.   45  But if that servant says in his heart, ‘My master is delaying his coming,’ and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and be drunk,   46  the master of that servant will come on a   day when he is not looking for  him,  and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in two and appoint  him  his portion with the unbelievers.   47  And   that servant who   knew his master’s will, and did not prepare  himself  or do according to his will, shall be beaten with many  stripes.   48  But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more. The Lord is still addressing the disciples and continuing to talk about greediness and covetousness and the love of money As followers of Christ, we treat the accumulation of wealth and earthly goods with indifference because  no man knows when the end of those things will come . Let your loins be girded and Let your lamps be burning Since we don't know when we will leave this world, our hearts should be focused on something else. Be like servants waiting for their master - let your loins be girded Men and women wore long flowing robe. When they worked or walked or ran, it was necessary to tie up the flowing robe with a belt around their waste or it would obstruct their work or walking or running. Girding loins means to be ready, be active, be diligent. Be ready for the coming of the Lord! Lamps burning (Psalm 119:105 - Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path). If my waste is girded but the road is dark, I cannot run... I will stumble. I need a lamp to enlighten my way. Girded waste is the inner willingness to serve the Lord and inner readiness for the coming of the Lord. The burning lamp is the external service - the outwardly service that will shine before men (let your light shine before men that they may see your good works) or the Word of God enlightening my way. St Augustine: "What does it mean to be dressed and ready for action? To control our passions and be chaste. Lighting our lamps is to light them brightly with good deeds and righteous work (let your light shine before men) The master will gird Himself and make them sit down to eat and serve them. I'm sure the disciples remembered these words on covenant Thursday If he shall come in the second or third watch The Jews had three watches: 6-10pm, 10pm-2am, 2am-6am The Romans had four watches: 6-9pm, 9-12am, 12-3am, 3-6am This is what we follow in our Coptic Tradition 6pm Compile (12th hour) 9pm Veil 12am 1st Watch 3am 2nd Watch 6am 3rd Watch 7am 1st Hour 9am 3rd Hour 12pm 6th hour 3pm 9th hour 5pm 11th hour 6pm 12th hour (Compline) We read this gospel at the 3rd watch to remind ourselves to be ready - even at the 3rd watch 2nd and 3rd watch are the weary hours of the night when it is difficult to watch and be ready Church Fathers said: 1st Watch: Childhood and Infancy 2nd Watch: Youth 3rd Watch: Adulthood 4th Watch: Seniorhood Watching is more important in the 2nd and 3rd watch when one is busy with work, studying, marriage, kids, etc. Children don't have accountability and we don't expect them to watch! A thief never announces his coming The coming of the Lord will be at an unexpected hour The way to be ready for a thief is to live in constant readiness The way to be ready for the Lord is to live in constant readiness The Lord is coming Some will be faithful and ready Some will be unprepared and unaware... the people of the world What of the delay in His coming? An opportunity for repentance A test for the loyalty of the faithful Peter asks if this parable is for the disciples or for all The disciples are stewards of the Church and have a great responsibility in serving the Master The multitude are stewards too! Each one for his own body and his soul, to preserve it and take care that he receives salvation The parable is for every faithful and wise steward Faithfulness and Wisdom An owner of a business who wants to hire a manager will look for someone who is faithful and wise. Wise to make good decisions and make a profit. Faithful means he won't steal that profit. Faithful and wise stewards of God will use our talents to make a profit and render that profit to the Lord. (i.e. to give glory to God) Their portion of food in due season Right food Right amount Right time Cut in two The person who harms the glory of Christ, or dares to scorn the flock of Christ is no different from an unbeliever who does not love God and does not know God To be entrusted to tend the flock of the Lord needs love in the heart At ordination, when he enters into the altar, the Bishop tells him "enter into the joy of your Master" as if to say "you were faithful over little now you are entrusted with more" Degrees and Grades of Punishment... Degrees and Grades of Glory He who is called to a service, God gives the ability to carry out this service... so there is no excuse tolerated in the end. In heaven, there are different levels of glory and in hell, different levels of punishment Christ Brings Division 39:06 49  “I came to send fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!   50  But   I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I am till it is   accomplished!   51  Do  you  suppose that I came to give peace on earth? I tell you, not at all,   but rather division.   52  For from now on five in one house will be divided: three against two, and two against three.   53  Father will be divided against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.” Fire Fire in the Old Testament Purification Discernment Judgment Presence of God Holy Spirit The Fire here is either the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost Or the refining and purifying fire that the Lord will light in His Death and Resurrection that will transform the New Covenant people of God "By this the Lord wanted to present to us a disciple full of blaze and fire ready to endure every risk" Baptism The Baptism of pain, suffering, death - the passion of the Lord He knew that it must be gone through to bring about the result which He left heaven and became Man for These words express the distress and trouble that Christ was in because His humanity is perfect... he experienced everything as a perfect Human... Agony, pain, death "By His baptism, He means His death in the flesh. By being constrained because of it, He means that He was saddened and troubled until it was accomplished." - St Cyril of Alexandria Division not Peace The Lord is giving a warning that His gospel will not bring unification to the people, but it will be a source of conflict and division - even within families. This may be the price that one must pay to be a faithful and wise steward of Christ House of Five 2 are the Jews and Gentiles; 3 are Christians who believe in the Holy Trinity Father against son : the devil who set himself as father to the nonbelievers. When Satan finds his son renouncing him and accepting Christ, to be son of the heavenly Father, then Satan will rise against his children who will leave him Mother against daughter : the Jewish synagogue who attacked the Jewish Christians (like the man-born blind who was cast out) Mother-in-law against daughter-in-law : the Jewish synagogue who attached the Gentile Church who accepted being united with the Bridegroom The early church (i.e. the Jewish and Gentile Christians... the daughter and daughter-in-law) rejected the literal deeds of the Old Covenant (Ambrose) 5 is the five senses 2 are the hearing and the vision... if you isolate these two and make them totally sanctified, you see and hear what is pure and holy, then it will resist the wrongful physical pleasure which comes through taste, touch, smell The 2 are against the 3 Discern the Time 51:00 54  Then He also said to the multitudes, “Whenever you see a cloud rising out of the west, immediately you say, ‘A shower is coming’; and so it is.  55  And when  you see  the south wind blow, you say, ‘There will be hot weather’; and there is.  56  Hypocrites! You can discern the face of the sky and of the earth, but how  is it  you do not discern this time? The Lord now turns His attention to the crowds and rebukes them for not discerning the time This time is the time of the revelation of the Messiah... humanity waited 5000 years for Him and now He's in your midst and you cannot discern Him You know the signs in the sky and can predict the weather, but you don't know the signs written in the Scriptures? You should have recognized the signs and realized that judgment is near Make Peace with Your Adversary 52:59 57  “Yes, and why, even of yourselves, do you not judge what is right?  58  When you go with your adversary to the magistrate, make every effort along the way to settle with him, lest he drag you to the judge, the judge deliver you to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison.  59  I tell you, you shall not depart from there till you have paid the very last mite.” It's not that they didn't know what was right... but they did not act on their knowledge of what is right. They were passing unrighteous judgment on the preacher of repentance They accused John the Baptist of having a demon Accusing the Lord Jesus that He is a drunkard They heard the truth but did not act on it If you wait until you stand before the throne of God, the Judge, it will be too late for you There is urgency to get right with God now Readiness Watchfulness Anticipation of the Return of Christ St Augustine says that your adversary is the Word of God When you sin, the word of God tells you not to do that If you like to get drunk, it says to you "do not do that" If you like to commit adultery, it says to you "do not do that" If you like to go to clubs, it says to you "do not do that" In whatever sins you wish to follow your own will, it says to you "Do not do that"  It is the enemy of your will until it becomes the assurance of your salvation. Oh, what an honest and helpful enemy! Luke 13a: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 13: 1 - 21 ~ Bible Study Outline 00:00 1-5: Repent or Perish 6-9: The Parable of the Barren Fig Tree 10-17: A Spirit of Infirmity 18-19: The Parable of the Mustard Seed 20-21: The Parable of the Leaven 22-33: The Narrow Way 34-35: Jesus Laments over Jerusalem Repent or Perish 1:12 1 There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2  And Jesus answered and said to them,  “Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all  other  Galileans, because they suffered such things?   3  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.   4  Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all  other  men who dwelt in Jerusalem?   5  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.” Who were these Galileans? According to St Cyril, these were followers of Judas the Galilean, who is mentioned in Acts 5:37 Acts 5 is when the high priest and council came together to imprison the apostles and Gamaliel stood up and reminded them of many who rose up before the apostles and perished... if this is from God, let them be lest you stand against God. If it is from men, then it will come to nothing. One example he gives is "Judas of Galilee rose up in the days of the census, and drew away many people after him. He also perished, and all who obeyed him were dispersed." (Acts 5:37) Judas the Galilean taught that no one should be called "master" or "lord" and they refused to call Caesar, Roman Emperor, "Lord" So Pilate was enraged, sent a band of soldiers, and punished them by slaying them when they came up for Passover... so as they were coming to offer the Passover Lambs, he killed them and mixed their blood with the blood of the Passover Lambs. Why did they tell Him about this? They wanted the Lord to condemn Pilate as cruel and vicious, so they could report Him to Pilate and get rid of Him Or maybe He would approve what Pilate did and this would be a good opportunity to criticize Him and bring Him in contempt with the people Or to know His thoughts about those who were slain... were they wicked or not? Would He pass judgment on them or not? Would He consider their death as the right punishment or not? The Lord knew their tricks... He neither approved nor condemned Pilate. He acknowledged their sins, but without condemning them but rather by saying they are not considered greater sinners just because they were taken like that The Lord answered the indirect question indirectly He turned the question of "why did this happen" to be "what does this mean to me" Why did God allow this person to die in this way? Why did God allow this pandemic? This isn't the right question! But rather... What does this mean to me? What does this mean to me? Unless you repent, you will perish I can die at any moment... so I need to be ready. The Lord Spoke about Two Things An evil done by a ruler A natural disaster Why do bad things happen to good people? We usually think that people are either good or bad, and God will allow good things to good people and bad things to bad people... and we always ask "why do bad things happen to good people" The Lord answers that question... They were not more guilty than others. All of us are sinners and guilty. Unless we repent, we will perish. When you see such tragedies, it will be an opportunity for you to examine yourself, continually change yourself, respond with humble repentance for my own sins. In the Greek, two words are used for "repent" In verse 5 - once you stop a sin you don't go back to it In verse 3 - a continuing repentance or a life of repentance The Parable of the Barren Fig Tree 14:46 6  He also spoke this parable:  “A certain  man  had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none.   7  Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, ‘Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down; why does it   use up the ground?’   8  But he answered and said to him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize  it.   9  And if it bears fruit,  well.  But if not, after that you can   cut it down.’ ” The point of this parable is to show the long-suffering of God for the sake of our repentance God wants us to bear fruit in our life The fruit shows what kind of a person you are The fig tree was fruitless The fig tree symbolizes Israel... God's chosen people who considered themselves the elect, but bore no fruits 3 Years Some say it represents the three major eras in Jewish history: Patriarchs, Judges, Kings... God was longsuffering with them for all those periods and waited on them the entire OT Some say it represents the Law and the Prophets, with the third year being the Messiah Some say it represents the three years of Ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ The Certain Man represents God the Father; the keeper of the vineyard represents God the Son Dig around and fertilize it represents the sacraments - Baptism, Confirmation, Repentance and Eucharist A Spirit of Infirmity 23:30 10  Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath.  11  And behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise  herself  up.  12  But when Jesus saw her, He called  her  to  Him  and said to her,  “Woman, you are loosed from your   infirmity.”   13  And He laid  His  hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God. This story is only mentioned in the Gospel of St Luke St John Chrysostom says that Christ was teaching in the synagogues peacefully (i.e. He was not against the Law, but came to fulfill the Law)... He was still permitted to teach in the synagogues The woman She used to go every Sabbath to the Synagogue She had faith, which is a prerequisite for healing She didn't come with any expectation or request, but rather she came to the synagogue to be taught... spiritual benefit. And the Lord did not just give her the teaching, but also healed her. (" But   seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." (Matthew 6:33) Power of God The woman did not have any strength to be healed, she was possessed by a demon who had control over her and her will The Lord will manifest His power and break the bondage and give deliverance from Satan's hand, but it requires the desire, first, of the sinner to repent Even if you doesn't have the strength or the will to repent, if you have the desire to repent, the Lord will give strength 14  But the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath; and he said to the crowd, “There are six days on which men ought to work; therefore come and be healed on them, and not on the Sabbath day.” 15  The Lord then answered him and said,  “Hypocrite!   Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead  it  away to water it?   16  So ought not this woman,   being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound—think of it—for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?”   17  And when He said these things, all His adversaries were put to shame; and all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him. He was afraid to confront the Lord Jesus Christ, so he looked at the assembly instead. He tried to rebuke the Lord indirectly The Lord did not respond to him in gentleness and confronted him because he rebuked the assembly... the woman did not even come to be healed! The Lord gives many reasons to show mercy on this woman and heal her Woman is made in the image of God Daughter of Abraham Woman of faith Afflicted and bound by Satan... every day is a good day to oppose Satan! She was afflicted for 18 years... long enough to suffer greatly The Lord wanted to heal the people and give them a healthy relationship with God The healing of the woman was a proof that the Kingdom of God is here and upon us The Parable of the Mustard Seed 18  Then He said,  “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it?   19  It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and put in his garden; and it grew and became a   large tree, and the birds of the air nested in its branches.” These parables are about how the Kingdom of God will expand to the rest of the whole world Just like a small mustard seed grew into a large tree, so also the Kingdom of God will grow and expand to include the whole world (from all nations and all countries) in the Church The Kingdom of God started as Jesus and a few followers... and it seems unlikely and improbable that it would spread across the whole world The Parable of the Leaven 20  And again He said,  “To what shall I liken the kingdom of God?   21  It is like   leaven, which a woman took and hid in three   measures   of meal till it was all leavened.” A little bit of leaven can cause an amount of dough to expand in size... in the same way. The teaching of the Gospel of Salvation causes the Kingdom to expand and become much greater in size Three measures of meal: Number three is a symbol of completeness St Cyril of Alexandria: Body, Soul and Spirit The believers  St Ambrose: The leaven is the Lord Christ, the woman is the Church, and we are the flour Christ leavens us by giving us His qualities. He took our human nature, but by the power of His divinity He works in us - not to change our appearance, but our inward nature. Others say the Law, Prophets, Gospel Christ was hidden in the Law and Prophets and manifested in the Gospel   Luke 13b: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 13: 22 - 35 ~ Bible Study The Narrow Way 0:30 22  And He went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem.  23  Then one said to Him, “Lord, are there few who are saved?” And He said to them,  24  “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for   many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able.   25  When once the Master of the house has risen up and   shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying,   ‘Lord, Lord, open for us,’ and He will answer and say to you,   ‘I do not know you, where you are from,’   26  then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.’   27  But He will say, ‘I tell you I do not know you, where you are from.   Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.’   28  There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth,   when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves thrust out.   29  They will come from the east and the west, from the north and the south, and sit down in the kingdom of God.   30  And indeed there are last who will be first, and there are first who will be last.” Journeying toward Jerusalem "Lord, are there few who are saved?" This question is a concern for many people and everyone asks "who will enter the Kingdom and who will not?" and "Is it only the Orthodox?" Many people wonder about the Salvation of others The Narrow Gate From the beginning of God's relationship with man, through the gift of free will, man has always had the choice between two paths (two gates, two doors) To go the way of obedience to God, or to go their own way Deuteronomy 30:15-20 If you choose to obey the Lord, you will live. But if you choose your own desires, that is the way to death. Christianity before it was called that was called "The Way" Strive The gate is narrow and the way is different Strive means "agonize" Fight the good fight Win the race Narrow = you can't bring with you anything that's unnecessary In old monasteries, the door of a cell was narrow in height and width Forsake love of money, love of pride, love of pleasure, self-centeredness, hypocrisy You cannot enter if you are carrying those things with you Shut the Door = Differentiate between: Those who pretend to be godly Those who were religious church-goers Those who know Christ and do His will Those who were seeking to enter, and those who were striving to enter Discipline yourself The door is open right now - this is the time to repent and accept the Lord's invitation to enter. The time will come when it will be too late. Eating and drinking, hearing His teachings - none of that will help you if you don't strive So if they "depart from Him" where do they go? A place of weeping and gnashing of teeth Hell, The Lake of Fire And you will see others entering the Kingdom of God The surprise on Judgment Day If you lived in the time of Christ, you would say Judas will enter the Kingdom and the thief crucified with Christ, would not There are last who will be first, and there are first who will be last Those who we consider first in the Church who will be last; those who we don't consider, or we think of as last, who will be accepted first Israel was the first nation that believed in God... God said "Israel is my firstborn" - but was rejected. And the Gentiles, who were last, became first In the Kingdom of Heaven you will find people from all parts of the earth From every nation, people, tribe, and tongue Without number What is Heaven Like? A place of rest ("sit down in the kingdom of God") A place of company ("Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and all the prophets") A place with people from all over the earth A certain place ("They will come") Many people nowadays try to say "heaven and hell are not a place, it's a condition or state of mind" It's a place. Not a physical place, but a place nonetheless 31  On that very day some Pharisees came, saying to Him, “Get out and depart from here, for Herod wants to kill You.” 32  And He said to them,  “Go, tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third  day   I shall be   perfected.’   33  Nevertheless I must journey today, tomorrow, and the  day  following; for it cannot be that a prophet should perish outside of Jerusalem. Seems weird that the Pharisees would be concerned about Christ's well-being Maybe they made up a threat to get Him to leave They may have been offended by His words about the salvation of the Gentiles Jesus' response is bold Calling Herod "fox" because He knew the cruelty of his heart and his love for shedding blood His response is that "I have a mission to do and I will continue to do it regardless of the threat of the danger" With "today, tomorrow and the third day", He indicates that His mission will be over soon and points to His Resurrection (the perfection of His ministry) Jesus Laments over Jerusalem 34  “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen  gathers  her brood under  her  wings, but you were not willing!  35  See! Your house is left to you desolate; and assuredly, I say to you, you shall not see Me until  the time  comes when you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the  Lord !’ ” O Jerusalem, Jerusalem When the Lord repeats a name twice it indicates great emotion The Lord has longed for Jerusalem's repentance and restoration to communion with God - but they rejected Him When He sent the Twelve, He told them "don't go to the Gentiles" but "go to the lost sheep of Israel" He came unto His own and His own did not receive Him He wanted them to know His love - like a hen, He is willing to gather them under His wings He predicted the destruction of Jerusalem "Your house is left to you desolate" - The Temple will no longer be the dwelling place of God He used to call it "My house" (in the OT) But now He is calling it "Your house" In 70 AD, the Temple was destroyed by the Romans - and from then until now, they attempted to rebuild it many many times. And every single one failed. The Lord told them "Your house is left to you desolate" You shall not see Me until the time comes when you say "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord" From the Early Church, the Eucharist is considered the Coming of Christ That's why when Abouna does the Eucharistic Procession, we say "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Emmanuel our God is now in our midst" "Behold Emmanuel our God is with us today on this table" "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!" Psalm 118:26 They used to chant this psalm in the Temple during the Passover The same verse was quoted on Hosanna Sunday by the people when He entered Jerusalem Luke 14: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 14: 1 - 24 ~ Bible Study Introduction 00:00 In Chapters 12 and 13, we saw that the Lord was using references to food and meals in His teachings and parables. This trend started after the banquet of Pharisees that He was invited to attend in the Pharisee's house (Chapter 12) In Chapter 14, the Lord will continue this trend after another meal in the home of a leading Pharisee ("one of the rulers") He concludes the trend with the Parable of the Great Feast in Chapter 14 References to food and meals in the teaching of Christ remind us with the Heavenly Food - the bread and wine that become the Body and Blood of Christ in the Eucharist; the food we are called to humbly eat at the altar; the Lord's banquet. Outline 02:30 1-6: A Man Healed on the Sabbath 7-14: Take the Lowly Place 15-24: The Parable of the Great Supper 25-33: Leaving All to Follow Christ 34-35: Tasteless Salt is Worthless A Man Healed on the Sabbath 03:18 1 Now it happened, as He went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees to eat bread on the Sabbath, that they watched Him closely.  2  And behold, there was a certain man before Him who had dropsy.  3  And Jesus, answering, spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying,  “Is it lawful to heal on the   Sabbath?” 4  But they kept silent. And He took  him  and healed him, and let him go.  5  Then He answered them, saying,  “Which of you, having a   donkey or an ox that has fallen into a pit, will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?”   6  And they could not answer Him regarding these things. The Lord and the Pharisees Despite all the disputes with the Pharisees, the Lord didn't give up on them He continued to associate with them - not to be like them, or to join them, but that He may win them Sabbath Meals This is a normal thing... but what's not normal is that "they watched Him closely" Dropsy Dropsy is a sickness when fluids gather throughout the body and cause swelling Why would a man with Dropsy be invited to the Pharisee's house? Because this whole meal was arranged in order to test the Lord and see what He would do on the Sabbath They were trying to provoke Him that they may accuse Him This miracle is remarkable because Dropsy affects the man's appearance... so when he is healed, it is immediately visible and obvious to everyone present An Opportunity to Teach the Pharisees The Lord could have rejected their invitation, knowing their intention "Jesus, answering..." - there was no question, but His answer is to their intentions Two Questions Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath? Which of you, having a donkey or an ox that has fallen into a put, will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day? They could not answer If it's allowed to save animals on the Sabbath, how much more right is it to heal people created in the image of God If they say to let the donkey or ox die, they are heartless and wicked If they say to save the donkey or ox, then they prove they are hypocrites Take the Lowly Place 12:30 7  So He told a parable to those who were invited, when He noted how they chose the best places, saying to them:  8  “When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him;   9  and he who invited you and him come and say to you, ‘Give place to this man,’ and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place.   10  But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, go up higher.’ Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you.   11  For whoever exalts himself will be   humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” 12  Then He also said to him who invited Him,  “When you give a dinner or a supper, do not ask your friends, your brothers, your relatives, nor rich neighbors, lest they also invite you back, and you be repaid.   13  But when you give a feast, invite   the  poor,  the   maimed,  the  lame,  the  blind.   14  And you will be   blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just.” Seating Arrangement Formal banquets like this adopted Greek Symposium traditions where they would sit around a table and each person's seating was based on their status (closer to the head of the table, higher status) The Lord noticed that people were assuming for themselves the best places and spoke to them a parable Parable This teaching doesn't sound like a parable, but sounds like regular advice... Why did St Luke call it a parable? Parables have a spiritual message through a real-life situation known to all A wedding feast was the most important social occasions in Jewish life (and until now) Etiquette Teaching Not the main point The Lord reminds the Pharisees of the shame that comes with self-exaltation Spiritual Message When we allow others (especially God) to raise us, then we don't have the danger of being put down in shame Take the lowest part so that you don't desire the honor that belongs to you If you take the lowest place and are elevated, you will have honor It's not just table etiquette, but it is a way of life "In lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself." (Philippians 2:3) For whoever exalts himself will be   humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. Some might take the place of lowliness in order that other people would notice how humble they are... this is dangerous. I am acting humble to be praised by others... this is an outwardly humbleness with pride and arrogance inside. A monk came to St Antony the Great and insisted on sitting at the feet of St Antony. St Antony asked him several times to sit next to him, but he refused. He begged St Antony to give him a word of advice. This monk was known to not sit in his cell but to wander from one place to another. St Antony gave him advice: "It's better for the monk to be in his cell and not to move from one place to another because a monk is like a fish - when you take it outside the water, it dies. A monk outside his cell dies spiritually." The monk became very angry and defensive and St Antony asked him "where is your humility? You sat at my feet, refused to sit next to me, and when I gave you advice, you got angry? This humility was fake." The monk hid behind his fake humility a prideful soul. Advice to the Host The Lord noticed that all the guests are from the upper class, and the banquet was luxurious and costly How to store up for yourself a treasure in heaven If you associate or deal with people on the basis of what they could do for you, this is a self-centered living. The Lord demonstrated an others-centered living. Self-centered: seeking an earthly reward Others-centered: no earthly reward Parable of the Great Supper 26:33 15  Now when one of those who sat at the table with Him heard these things, he said to Him, “Blessed  is  he who shall eat bread in the kingdom of God!” These words are not spoken mockingly. This individual was speaking sincerely and genuinely and greatly admired the Lord Jesus Christ Although he said this genuinely, it also reflects his prideful spirit - we know this based on the below parable the Lord uses to respond. He is saying "Blessed is he who shall eat bread" is also saying "I am looking forward to eating that bread because I am a righteous Pharisee" 16  Then He said to him,  “A certain man gave a great supper and invited many,   17  and   sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, ‘Come, for all things are now ready.’   18  But they all with one  accord  began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it. I ask you to have me excused.’   19  And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them. I ask you to have me excused.’   20  Still another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’   21  So that servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house, being angry, said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here  the  poor and  the   maimed and  the  lame and  the  blind.’   22  And the servant said, ‘Master, it is done as you commanded, and still there is room.’   23  Then the master said to the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel  them  to come in, that my house may be filled.   24  For I say to you   that none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper.’ ” The host of the banquet is God His home is the Heavenly Kingdom The banquet is the Banquet of the Righteous at the end of time The servants are God's prophets and apostles and servants The first invitation is to Israel (the Jews) They were busy... too busy for God First excuse: Love of money Second excuse: Worries of the World Third excuse: Personal Relationships This group is represented by the Pharisees, Scribes, Sadducees . The ones who rejected the message of St John the Baptist We pretend that the affairs of the world are so pressing that we cannot find time to attend to our souls The second invitation is to the outcasts of Israel (publicans, sinners, tax-collectors, harlots, etc.) The third invitation is to the Gentiles His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 14: 25 - 35 ~ Bible Study Leaving All to Follow Christ 02:08 25  Now great multitudes went with Him. And He turned and said to them,  26  “If anyone comes to Me   and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters,   yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.   27  And   whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.   Great multitudes These people are following Him to Jerusalem This group of people includes disciples and friends, as well as enemies, and some following out of curiosity Any leader would be happy if he found people following him... and he would think "how can I keep them?" Some leaders might even compromise some principles in order to keep the followers... but when the Lord saw the great multitudes, He turned and told them the requirements of discipleship Requirements of Discipleship Come to Me Not only to hear His preaching, but to come and follow the Lord as a true believer with a sincere desire to be a disciple of Him; to be DISCIPLINED by His teaching and His example Hate This word troubles someone... how could the Lord (who is Love) use the word hate? He doesn't mean hatred (opposite of love) but is using an exaggeration to stress the total commitment required of His followers St Demiana is a real-life example from the Church History of this Commandment when she told her father "I would have rather heard that you died for the name of Christ than that you denied Christ and saved your earthly life." Because of this message, her father, Mark, went and confessed his faith and was martyred. No earthly affection should ever come into competition with our love for God This word also relates back to when the Lord said that He did not come to bring peace but a sword, and will turn parents against children and children against parents, etc. Bear Your Cross Some assume that if you are a Christian, your life will be void of hardships... this is not true. We will be hated, persecuted, walk the difficult path - but when compared with eternal glory, it is nothing. That's why Christians carried their cross joyfully... their eyes were fixed on the glory to come. Carry "Your Cross" - there is a cross suited to each individual This is before the Crucifixion; they knew the Cross as a torture device for death and humiliation. If someone took up his cross, he never came back; it was a one-way journey 28  For   which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has  enough  to finish  it —   29  lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see  it  begin to mock him,   30  saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish’?   31  Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand?   32  Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace.   33  So likewise, whoever of you   does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple. Calculate the Cost before making the decision of following the Lord Two Examples: Building a Tower Going to Battle These require: Good planning Good decision making Building a Tower Built high up to see an enemy when he is coming Built strong so that it could not be taken The building of a tower is the building up of the Christian Life in the Heart and the Life Reminds us of the "wise man who built his house on the rock" - our life needs to be built on a solid Foundation It is a serious thing to be a disciple HH Pope Shenouda used to say "the only difference between us and the saints is seriousness... they took the spiritual life seriously" Warfare Christian life is warfare Spiritual warfare - fighting against principalities and powers... evil spirits. (Ephesians 6:12) The Disciple Must Calculate the Cost Anything in his old life that is a hindrance to traveling the narrow path or entering the narrow door He must separate himself from those things or people who will not help him advance in faith and spiritual maturity Release attachment of material possessions Many who were following Jesus in these last weeks of His ministry were not truly sincere. The Lord gives them an uncompromising picture of what ought to be the life of His real followers Tasteless Salt is Worthless 35:11 34  “Salt  is  good; but if the salt has lost its flavor, how shall it be seasoned?   35  It is neither fit for the land nor for the   dunghill,  but  men throw it out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” In the Sermon on the Mount, the Lord told us "You are the salt of the earth" If we are Christians by name, but we don't meet the requirements of discipleship, then we become like salt that has lots its flavor Salt is only useful... if it has flavor! We cannot fulfill the purpose for which we were intended The salt is not even good for the dunghill which is used as fertilizer He who has ears to hear, let him hear Take My Teaching seriously           Luke 15: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 15: 1 - 10 ~ Bible Study Introduction 00:00 The Lord Jesus Christ gives three parables concerning God's patience and mercy in calling sinners to salvation The Lord uses common examples of daily life as usual in His parables In each of these three parables, the Lord answers the criticism of the Pharisees and the religious leaders of Israel who used to accuse Him of associating with sinners and tax collectors St Ambrose wrote: "By the parables of the sleep that stray and was found, the coin which was lost and was found, and the son who was dead and came to life, we may cure our wounds being encouraged by a threefold remedy: a threefold cord will not be broken. Who are the father, the shepherd and the woman? They are God the Father, Christ and the Church. Christ carries you on His body, He who took your sins on Himself. The Church seeks, and the Father receives. The shepherd carries. The mother searches. The father clothes. First mercy comes, then intercession, and third reconciliation. Each complements the other. The Savior rescues, the church intercedes, and the Creator reconciles." (Exposition on the Gospel of Luke) Outline 4:17 1-7 The Parable of the Lost Sheep 8-10 The Parable of the Lost Coin 11-32 The Parable of the Lost Son The Parable of the Lost Sheep 4:38 1 Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him.  2  And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, “This Man receives sinners and eats with them.”  3  So He spoke this parable to them, saying: In Chapter 14, the Lord found many multitudes following Him and He gave them the requirements of discipleship Now we see that the tax-collectors and sinners heard these words and drew near to Him The Pharisees and Scribes thought themselves righteous, interpreted the law, were of high status, and were the rulers of the people. They considered mingling with tax-collectors and sinners would make them ritually unclean, and not fit for worshipping God. They separated themselves from these unclean sinners who were not fit to enter the Temple or offer a sacrifice The Pharisees and Scribes are the first group of invitees in Luke 14. The tax-collectors and sinners are the second group of invitees in Luke 14. This is not the first complaint by the Pharisees In Chapter 5, the Lord answered with the parable of the Pharisee and the tax-collector 4  “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?   5  And when he has found  it,  he lays  it  on his shoulders, rejoicing.   6  And when he comes home, he calls together  his  friends and neighbors, saying to them,   ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep   which was lost!’   7  I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents   than over ninety-nine   just persons who   need no repentance. God cares about all the sheep in His flock. When one becomes lost, God makes every effort to bring this person back to the flock. And when the one is restored, God rejoices in his restoration. It's not strange that the shepherd would seek the lost sheep... but it's strange that he would leave 99% of his flock... so either the safety of the 99 is assumed, or there is already joy for them. The point of the Parable is not the neglect of the 99%... but the rejoicing over the 1%. This is a responsibility on the shoulders of the clergy and Sunday School servants... if the servant and clergy do not take action, the sheep will remain lost God not only receives those who return to Him, but He actively seeks those who are lost The Lost Sheep can represent the whole human race that was lost, and the 99 are the angels, and God descended and was incarnate and died on the Cross to save us. The Shepherd yearns for rejoicing with his fellows The 99 just persons who need no repentance... these are the Pharisees who BELIEVE they need no repentance. God's call to repentance is for EVERY single person. Everyone needs repentance because all fall short of the glory of God "And when he comes home" refers to the Ascension and "his friends and neighbors" are the angels who rejoiced over the salvation that the Lord performed on the earth  The Parable of the Lost Coin 25:23 8  “Or what woman, having ten silver   coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds  it?   9  And when she has found  it,  she calls  her  friends and neighbors together, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I lost!’   10  Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” The Parable of the Lost Sheep reveals the love of the Shepherd - He gave up Himself, came down to earth, in search of the lost person and in love, He embraced him and carried him on His shoulders, and brought him back to the heavenly The Parable of the Lost Coin, the Lord offers a picture of what the Church should be like The Church has the same qualities toward the fallen ones and searches for them lovingly and is tender with them and rejoices in their coming back Silver Coin The coin is what it is (i.e. has its value) because it has on it the King's image Man is precious because he, too, has the Image of the Great King Intellect Free Will Immortality The sheep that was lost strayed away from the sheepfold, but the coin was lost in the house... the Lord implies that there is a possibility that a soul, precious in the sight of God, may be lost even within the society of the believers (or the Church) How did the woman search The woman brought light Swept and cleaned the house Searched carefully until she found the coin How does the Church search Bring the light: The word of God; the Truth "The word of God is a lamp to my feet" Sweep and clean any wrong teachings in the church, mishandling of the commandment of God, wrong interpretations of the Scripture, etc. These things can make people lost INSIDE the church "If we, or angels from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed" (Galatians 1:8) St Paul heard about false teachings in Galatia and was firm in "cleaning" and sweeping the church Why did the Ecumenical Councils gather against Arius, Nestorius, Macedonius? To clean the Church so that the Lost Coin may be found Find those who are lost His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 15: 11 - 32 ~ Bible Study The Parable of the Lost Son 00:00 11  Then He said:  “A certain man had two sons.   12  And the younger of them said to  his  father, ‘Father, give me the portion of goods that falls  to me. ’ So he divided to them   his  livelihood.   The Lord starts the parable by setting the contrast between the two sons The younger son left the house because he thought he wanted the absolute freedom to live as he wants The older son, the heir, dutifully served the father and stayed at home The younger son asked for the portion of goods motivated by foolishness and greed The Lord used the example of a father and two sons, not a master and two servants The Father clearly illustrates the love of God His love allowed the rebellion of the younger son Because He loves us, God respects and allows the freedom of our human will The father knows that the son is making a foolish and greedy request, and yet allows him to make it 13  And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with   prodigal living.   14  But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want.   15  Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.   16  And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the   pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him  anything. Far Country is the state of the Gentile world Worshipping idols and wandering far from God The younger son symbolizes the Gentiles, the older son symbolizes the Nation of Israel The younger son was completely to blame for his foolishness We cannot blame the father... definitely, the father advised him, but the son's free will is what brought on the prodigal living Famine We cannot blame the severe famine... but he was affected by it Sometimes God allows us to go through difficult times so that we might return to our house The Famine is a famine of hearing the word of God “Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord God , “That I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine of bread, Nor a thirst for water, But of hearing the words of the  Lord ." Citizen of that country is Satan Satan sends him to feed swine (unclean animals) Driven by hunger and need, the son accepted work that was unacceptable and offensive to any Jew After he was an honored son in his house, now he is feeding swine and even desires to feed his mouth with the pods of the swine This misery drove him to repent and return to his father's house 17  “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!   18  I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father,   I have sinned against heaven and before you,   19  and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.” ’ Nothing the world gives us can give satisfaction to our souls In his clear thinking, he did not blame his father, his friends or his brother or anybody... but he recognized that it was his own bad choices and decisions. He didn't focus on the misery, but on the right solution The solution is in the father "When he came to himself" - these years in the far country he was not himself. The true and real self is the repentant. The false self is the old man with afflictions and lusts. The true self is the one who recognizes God as our Father. "How many of my father's hired servants have bread enough and to spare" - what a testimony to the nature of the home When he lived there, he did not recognize the nature of the home When he was out with all his money, he did not recognize the nature of the home While he was living in the house, his heart was apart from the house His mind and his heart were in lustful pleasures The father's house never came to his mind as a house of love - it was a house of bondage and misery Many of us perceive the Church as a house of bondage... rules, rules... why all these rules? Don't do this and don't do that But when we go to the far country and suffer from hunger and thirst, we recognize that the Father's house is the house of love Realizing the beauty of the house is the firstfruits of repentance He took full responsibility and confessed his actions to his father without giving any excuses. He knew that he is not worthy to be a son, so he pleads with the father to treat him as a servant The first impulse of the repentant heart is to take the lowest place - like the parable of the tax-collector and Pharisee He didn't say it out of humbleness, but because he saw himself in the meanest way "I am not worthy... the hired servants are better than me" He thought it would be an honor to him to be the lowest person in that house To be a doorkeeper in that house is better than to continue in this hungry and starving condition " I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God Than dwell in the tents of wickedness." (Psalm 84:10) 20  “And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him.  21  And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’  22  “But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring out the best robe and put  it  on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on  his  feet.  23  And bring the fatted calf here and kill  it,  and let us eat and be merry;  24  for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ And they began to be merry. He did not just feel sorry or think about repentance, but he actually did it. He got up and went Many people who went to the far country never left the far country Not because the Father is not welcoming them, but because they had no desire to return to the father's house The father ran God does not oblige anyone to return, He respects our free will But when He sees us coming from afar, He will run for us The son started to recite his prepared speech, but the father did not even allow him to finish it "Don't even finish that sentence - YOU ARE MY SON The four things are not necessities - but they are more than that Best Robe The garments of praise and of righteousness The new life and immortality that we receive when we return to God The wedding garment of the righteousness of Christ Ring on his hand The seal upon the right hand The seal of the Holy Spirit that we receive in the Confirmation Sandals on his feet The preparation and readiness When we are eager to go out, we put on our shoes Fatted calf The Eucharist St John Chrysostom: "The father did not address his son when he returned, but rather he addressed the servants. The repentant son came to the father pleading, but the father spoke to his servants to show the merciful peace of the father through the servants" Who are the servants? The priests, the ministering souls who perform the baptism and pray the Eucharist, in order to vest the returning soul with the garment of righteousness In the vow of commitment, at the ordination of a priest, he says "I will receive the repentant when he returns" When a repentant returns to the church, we should not close the doors of the church in front of him, but to receive him joyfully When a repentant returns, he receives communion to abide in Christ All of this explains the joy at the return 25  “Now his older son was in the field. And as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing.   26  So he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant.   27  And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and because he has received him safe and sound, your father has killed the fatted calf.’ 28  “But he was angry and would not go in. Therefore his father came out and pleaded with him.   29  So he answered and said to  his  father, ‘Lo, these many years I have been serving you; I never transgressed your commandment at any time; and yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might make merry with my friends.   30  But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.’ 31  “And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours.   32  It was right that we should make merry and be glad,   for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.’ ” The older son never lived a prodigal life - he was always working hard in the field Joy and happiness In those days, music and dancing was customary to express joy and happiness We should all rejoice at the return of any prodigal son Some people wish that the parable had ended at verse 27 with the rejoicing The children of God have two types One who lives afar off (like the younger son) Some people who are self-righteous and still living inside the house We should not forget that self-righteousness is as sinful as no righteousness The Pharisees need repentance, and so do the publicans and tax-collectors The older son thought that he was not wicked like his brother... but the self-righteousness is worse because it's easier to deceive It's easier to repent from a sin, than to repent from self-righteousness God offered salvation to both on the Cross - the Pharisees and the Sinners The older son drew near to the house but did not enter People who go to the church, attend liturgies, etc. but never have a personal connection with the Lord "I have been serving you" In the Greek "I have been your slave" He regarded the yoke of service not as freedom but as bondage He did not call his father "Father" He was obedient, submissive, conforming to the rules... but all of this by fear. Obedience of slaves not obedience of children. "I never transgressed your commandment at any time" Self-righteousness The language of the Pharisees "And yet you never gave me a young goat" Blaming his father "This son of yours" Did not acknowledge him as his brother Great contempt Joy vs Anger Joy comes from forgiveness "to whom little is forgiven the same loves little" Because of self-righteousness, no forgiveness, thus, no joy The Father's Response The Father showed empathy, even though he did not nothing wrong He reminds him that his brother is "his brother" This is the message of the parable: "Yes, it is right to rejoice over a sinner who has repented" The Fate of the Older Son The Parable ends before telling us if the older son entered the house But we know from the Book of Acts that many of the Jews rejected the Economy of God for the restoration of the Gentiles into the family of God                 Luke 16: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 16: 1 - 18 ~ Bible Study Introduction 00:00 In Luke 15, the Lord showed clearly the love of God through three parables - the Lost Sheep, the Lost Coin, the Lost Son This awesome love has to be met (from our side) with love and wisdom God created us in His own image He gave us a perfect free will We should, by our own free will, accept this fellowship with God and use our wisdom and intellect to understand that one day we will give an account of our stewardship In this chapter, the Lord offers a parable and a real story that urge us to accept His fellowship by our free will The parable is the Unjust Steward The story is Lazarus and the rich man Teachings about: Use and abuse of money and wealth Accountability and judgment in the last day The Parable and story are separated by four verses in which the Lord condemns the Pharisees for their love of money and gives a quick teaching about the Law Outline 3:17 1-13 The Parable of the Unjust Steward 14-18 The Teaching of the Lord about the Law, the Prophets and the Kingdom 19-31 The Story of the Rich Man and Lazarus The Parable of the Unjust Steward 3:47 1 He also said to His disciples:  “There was a certain rich man who had a steward, and an accusation was brought to him that this man was   wasting his goods.   2  So he called him and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an   account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be steward.’ 3  “Then the steward said within himself, ‘What shall I do? For my master is taking the stewardship away from me. I cannot dig; I am ashamed to beg.   4  I have resolved what to do, that when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.’ 5  “So he called every one of his master’s debtors to  him,  and said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’   6  And he said, ‘A hundred   measures of oil.’ So he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’   7  Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ So he said, ‘A hundred   measures of wheat.’ And he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’   8  So the master commended the unjust steward because he had dealt shrewdly. For the sons of this world are more shrewd in their generation than   the sons of light. 9  “And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by unrighteous mammon, that when you fail, they may receive you into an everlasting home.  10  He who  is  faithful in  what is  least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in  what is  least is unjust also in much.  11  Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true  riches?   12  And if you have not been faithful in what is another man’s, who will give you what is your own? 13  “No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” The unjust steward represents the Scribes and Pharisees Why did the Lord address the disciples instead of the Scribes and Pharisees? Because the disciples are stewards and they should know at the beginning of their ministry that they will give an account of their stewardship We will all give an account of everything in our life to God: Our service Our time Our talents Our body Our children   The Law, the Prophets, and the Kingdom   14  Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, also heard all these things, and they derided Him.  15  And He said to them,  “You are those who   justify yourselves   before men, but   God knows your hearts. For   what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God. 16  “The law and the prophets  were  until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it.   17  And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one   tittle of the law to fail. 18  “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced from  her  husband commits adultery.   His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 16: 19 - 31 ~ Bible Study The Rich Man and Lazarus 0:00 19  “There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and   fared sumptuously every day.   20  But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate,   21  desiring to be fed with   the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.   22  So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to   Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried.   23  And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 24  “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and   cool my tongue; for I   am tormented in this flame.’   25  But Abraham said, ‘Son,   remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented.   26  And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.’ 27  “Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house,   28  for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’   29  Abraham said to him,   ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’   30  And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’   31  But he said to him,   ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets,   neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’ ”   Luke 17: HG Bishop Youssef His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 17: 1 - 19 ~ Bible Study (English & Arabic - عربي) Introduction 00:00 The events from Luke 14-17 are connected with each other In Luke 14, we read about the Lord having dinner at the home of a wealthy Pharisee and healed a man on the Sabbath. He told the Pharisee and the people attending about humility and the mercies of God Then He left the dinner and continued to teach the crowds who followed him - huge multitude. He told them about the Principles of Discipleship, How to use Material Wealth without being a lover of money, rejection of the secular world, obedience to the law, and that these are necessary for discipleship. The teaching went from Luke 14-16. Now He turns to the disciples and addresses them "Then He said to the disciples" Outline 02:07 1-2: Jesus Warns of Offenses 3-4: Forgiveness 5-10: Faith and Duty 11-19: Ten Lepers Cleansed 20-37: The Coming of the Kingdom Jesus Warns of Offenses 02:34 1   Then He said to the disciples,  “It is impossible that no   offenses should come, but   woe  to him  through whom they do come!   2  It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should   offend one of these little ones. Chapter 16 ended with Lazarus and the Rich Man. The Lord taught the disciples that eternity is real. There is real life after death! No one will come from the Paradise to warn us... so we need to be careful. When the rich man asked Abraham to send Lazarus to warn the people, Abraham refused and said "they have the Law and the Prophets. This is enough for them. If they don't follow the Law and Prophets, then even if one rose from the dead, they will not believe." How we live, and how we reflect the image of Christ to others will count and determine our eternal salvation Since the fall of Adam and Eve, this world became corrupted. Because of the corruption of the world, it is impossible that no offenses should come. If you are expecting a world without offenses, that is not realistic. This shows the corre Forgiveness 3  Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.  4  And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.”   Faith and Duty 5  And the apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” 6  So the Lord said,  “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.   7  And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’?   8  But will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself   and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink’?   9  Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded   him? I think not.   10  So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are   unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’ ”   Ten Lepers Cleansed 11  Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee.  12  Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off.  13  And they lifted up  their  voices and said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” 14  So when He saw  them,  He said to them,  “Go, show yourselves to the priests.”  And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed. 15  And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God,  16  and fell down on  his  face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan. 17  So Jesus answered and said,  “Were there not ten cleansed? But where  are  the nine?   18  Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?”   19  And He said to him,  “Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well.”       His Grace Bishop Youssef ~ عظات نيافة الانبا يوسف · LUKE 17: 20 - 37 ~ Bible Study The Coming of the Kingdom 20  Now when He was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He answered them and said,  “The kingdom of God does not come with observation;   21  nor will they say,   ‘See here!’ or ‘See there!’ For indeed,   the kingdom of God is   within you.” 22  Then He said to the disciples,  “The days will come when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see  it.   23  And they will say to you,   ‘Look here!’ or ‘Look there!’ Do not go after  them  or follow  them.   24  For as the lightning that flashes out of one  part  under heaven shines to the other  part  under heaven, so also the Son of Man will be in His day.   25  But first He must suffer many things and be   rejected by this generation.   26  And as it   was in the   days of   Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man:   27  They ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the   day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and   destroyed them all.   28  Likewise as it was also in the days of Lot: They ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built;   29  but on   the day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed  them  all.   30  Even so will it be in the day when the Son of Man   is revealed. 31  “In that day, he   who is on the housetop, and his   goods  are  in the house, let him not come down to take them away. And likewise the one who is in the field, let him not turn back.   32  Remember Lot’s wife.   33  Whoever seeks to save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.   34  I tell you, in that night there will be two   men  in one bed: the one will be taken and the other will be left.   35  Two  women  will be grinding together: the one will be taken and the other left.   36  Two  men  will be in the field: the one will be taken and the other left.” 37  And they answered and said to Him, “Where, Lord?” So He said to them,  “Wherever the body is, there the eagles will be gathered together.”