Allen Jackson - A Dimensional Life - Part 2
It makes me smile when I see all these kids that fill our stage or all these babies that we dedicate, I step across and I see all the children when they're here throughout the week, or whenever it may be, to know that God has plans for those young lives. We're not just random clumps of cell colliding with eternity, that there is an Almighty God, a Creator in heaven and earth, that he's the Creator of our spirit. We may contribute DNA, but God is the one that gives us a spirit. It's that spirit that makes us the image bearers of Almighty God. It's a principle introduced to us in the opening chapters of Genesis. But Luke is telling us something.
In fact, Luke opens his narrative in this Gospel with seven instances, it's kind of the introduction to this much broader remarkable story he's gonna tell us. He introduces it with seven instances of people who choose to believe. In fact, in all seven cases, they really believe the unbelievable. They step beyond what would be logic or ordinary or just kind of a small step beyond what was comfortable. They really believe the unbelievable. Zechariah and Elizabeth did when it was too late biologically for them to have kids. Maybe they didn't believe it with great enthusiasm, maybe Zechariah didn't, but they accepted the assignment. Mary and Joseph, they believed what was unbelievable, inexplicable. They had to live it out. They couldn't explain it to their friends. But it didn't stop there. When they take Jesus to be circumcised when he's eight days old, which is the custom according to the Mosaic law.
Same chapter, chapter 2, it's verse 25, "There was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, he was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him". Now, Luke is gonna give you this perspective repeatedly: the presence of the Holy Spirit and the power of God. For Luke, they go together. Jesus will return from his baptism at the Jordan River in the power of the Spirit after the Holy Spirit has descended upon him. And he introduces us to this character that we haven't heard of before, Simeon, except he says the Holy Spirit was upon him and, "It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he wouldn't die before he'd seen the Messiah," wow. "And moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts".
Are we prepared to lead lives that are engaged enough with the purposes of God, listening to God, aware enough what God has said he would do, that it might actually dictate the behavior of our lives? Moved by the Spirit, he went to the temple. And he has enough discernment, there's lots of children being presented that day. Jesus wouldn't have been the only one there. "Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. And when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God". Listen to what he says, "Sovereign Lord, as you've promised, now dismiss your servant in peace". "I'm done. You kept your promise to me". "My eyes have seen your salvation". It's a baby. I've been a pastor for a bit. I've been called on lots of baby calls. I've seen lots of babies. I've looked at lots of baby pictures.
Now I've looked at lots of baby pictures of grandparents. The most brilliant child that has ever drawn a breath. Don't doubt it. Simon has the ability in the midst of many children to say, "This is the one". "A light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel. The child's father and mother," Mary and Joe, "marveled at what was said about him. Simeon blessed him and said to Mary: 'This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.'" Wait a minute. I prayed for lots of babies. I've never prayed a prayer like that. "This baby is gonna be a pain for your whole life. This child is going to bring tremendous division".
Did you hear what he said? First of all he said, "God, I know you keep your promises". It's a very important affirmation for Joseph and Mary. They've been through a lot, a lot of trauma, a lot of drama, and now they're just trying to keep their commitments to obey the Mosaic law, and Simeon steps up and says, "This is the child I've been waiting for. Don't you know that", I can see the glances between Mary and Joseph. "Maybe we're not crazy". But then Luke gives us a great deal of insight into the presentation of the Gospel that we're about to look at over these next few sessions. He says Jesus is gonna be a point of great division.
See, we have a false gospel that says Jesus is only about love. Jesus is one big group hug. That's the predominant message in so many places where I listen. And when Simeon acknowledges the child, he said, "This child is destined to bring division. There'll be many voices against him. The content of people's hearts will be revealed". You see, there is a God and we have a choice to make, folks. Not a singular choice but a choice that we make on a daily basis about our relationship with Almighty God. Luke's not done. Same chapter, very next verse. "There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter," of somebody of the tribe or somewhere, "and she was very old," she wasn't just along in years or old, she was very old, and Luke doesn't want us to miss it so he's gonna give us the details.
"She lived with her husband for seven years after her marriage, and then she was a widow until she was eighty-four". Well, the season when life expectancy is probably in the mid-40s, 84 is old. "She never left the temple but she worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem". Anna recognizes Jesus. Again, can you see Mary and Joseph? There's almost a sigh. "This is God". He's not finished with us. There were some present in the temple who were looking forward to the redemption of Israel. That's what Luke says about her. There were some who were looking forward to the redemption of Israel. What is implied, if not stated directly, is not everyone was looking forward to the redemption of Israel.
In fact, many, or most, were distracted or disinterested. They may have been in the temple, they may have been there presenting children, they may have been there taking pictures of someone who was presenting children, I don't know. But it was a relatively small percentage of people who were paying attention to what God is doing. I wanna be one of those people. I want you to be one of those people. We've lived with too much presumption. Luke immediately takes us into a part of the narrative. He's gonna introduce us to Jesus as a boy at the temple. It's the only one of the Gospels that gives us any insight, any understanding into Jesus's after his birth until he's 30 years of age.
Luke gives us a little intermediary snapshot. Jesus is 12 years old. It's time for his bar mitzvah, when a Jewish boy is recognized of coming to the age of accountability, where he'll be held accountable for his decisions, it's his entry into adulthood. Prior to that, if the child misbehaves, the parents are punished. Well, that would change our world. Jesus is 12 years old when Luke introduces us to this bit of an adventure. Mary and Joseph, it means by now they're 12 years into this story, 12 years into this supernatural conception, what Simeon had to say, what Anna had to say. Those were the last real windows of insight we've had.
So they're parenting their way through this rather supernatural thing. They have other children by now. And it's very clear from what Luke tells us that Mary and Joseph are still learning. It's the only Gospel that gives us any perspective on Jesus prior to 30. I didn't put it in your notes, but in Luke's narrative Mary refers to Joseph as Jesus's father. Begs the question whether or not she and Jesus have had a conversation about all this yet. Luke 2, verse 49, when they headed back home after the holiday, they left Jesus, or Jesus didn't travel with them.
So after several days, they find him in the temple talking to the priest who were amazed at his understanding. And when when Mary finds Jesus, he says, "Why were you searching for me? Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house"? And the answer is no, she did not know that. Apparently, he did not come with instructions. We can tell from her data searches that, on multiple occasions, she searched the consequences of the virgin birth, but there just wasn't as much information as she would have liked. Did you ever feel like that when you follow the Lord? Well, I would say yes, but more information would be helpful. Actually, what's most helpful is obedience and a willingness to believe.
"'Why were you searching? Didn't you know, I had to be in my Father's house?' But they did not understand what he was saying to them. And he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But his mother treasured all these things in her heart. And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men". I think it's safe to say that Luke's given us a little window that suggests there perhaps was some challenge in parenting. If you'll allow me, in the plainest of language, they lost Jesus. I mean, you may have tried to lose your kids from time to time, but can you imagine being entrusted with the care of the Messiah and you lost him at the mall? I mean, that's pretty much what happened. "I thought Jesus was with you". "I thought he was with you". "Well, maybe he's hanging out with his friends. Let's call his friends".
They haven't seen him. None of the parents of your friends know. Well, we must be back in Jerusalem and we're a couple of days out. We better hurry. I'm thinking there could have been just a wee bit of anxiety. No, this isn't just, like, fictitious, folks. They could not find Jesus. I mean, you've lost a piece of jewelry or your car keys or your phone or your sunglasses and you get pretty agitated, and your glasses were in your head all along. They have lost the assignment of eternity. But it's very clear from what Luke tells us that although they're fulfilling the assignment God has given them, they're doing it without fully understanding all that was unfolding. That helps me, because to be completely honest with you, it's not like I look at every day and go, I understand fully what's happening.
I have absolute clarity on what it means to be a Christ follower in this season. It's not that simple for me. I get my Bible out and I say, "Look, I'm gonna read this Gospel of Luke until I get a little bit of clarity because the world right now is confusing to me". And it does say in spite of Mary and Joseph and what they did not understand that Jesus grew in wisdom and strength. They must have been getting the diet about right. He's getting stronger in wisdom and in the favor with God and men. Not accidental that Luke tells us that Jesus is growing in favor with people because before we're done with his story, they're gonna crucify him. So something has to happen between Luke chapter 2 and Luke chapter 23 and 24 that would cause the people that favor him to want to nail him to a tree. I'm curious how Luke is gonna tell that story.
Luke also asked us to believe that God's plan is in place before it's visible in any way. God actually does know the ending at the beginning. He knows the names of children and knows the plans for their lives, doesn't violate our free will. Luke is a story about people and what they're willing to believe. I love this because you and I are the 21st century edition of this. The book of Acts has no conclusion because it's not over. We're the 21st century edition of the book of Acts. We're still a people in relationship and covenant with God, struggling to believe, to live this out. And one of the reasons we're in this fine mess that we're in is we've become so convinced that the only thing we really need God for is to get a ticket to heaven that we don't believe we need him engaged in the daily routine of our lives for our security, for our well being.
We've been idolatrous enough. We thought either we could do that, and we put ourselves on the throne, or we've trusted the government to do that. They're the arbiters of justice. No human government has ever been the arbiter of justice, at least not beyond their willingness to yield to the authority of Almighty God. And then Luke reminds us there are people who will believe. And what I love about his presentation, we'll get deeper into this, they're ordinary people. They're shepherds, they're old people, they're men and they're women, they're young people, they're kids, they're teenagers. Teenagers being given the most improbable announcements and they go, "We'll do that". They're old people that have been waiting for decades and they say, "Now I have finished my race. I have seen what God promised".
They're men and they're women, they're poor, they're all over the spectrum, ordinary people who will believe God. I wanna be one of those people, folks. I'm determined. I'm gonna find a way to yield more completely. I wanna believe that God is moving in the earth and that he would allow us to participate with him. I'm not content sitting in church or preparing sermons or doing religious things. I wanna participate with God. There is a God. And then Luke reminds us that sometimes patience and perseverance are required. Zechariah and Elizabeth, Simeon and Anna, all of them, they had to endure more than a bit, more than a day. Zechariah and Elizabeth, they've already grieved what was not. They've been through it with their friends, celebrating all those things they wanted to celebrate and they didn't get to.
That chapter is closed, that book is on the shelf, it's dusty, and God steps in and you don't hear any grumbling or complaining. God's timing, I've told you on many occasions, God's timing is the one thing that's often the most difficult. I don't understand. When I need deliverance, I want it yesterday. I mean, I will accept today, but I really wanted it yesterday. And God has asked me sometimes to walk things out and to live things out and I'm like, no, I don't want to. Chapter 3 of Luke starts with John the Baptist. You know why it's more significant than just meeting a character as an adult. We're stepping forward 18 more years. We meet Jesus at the temple, he's 12. When we meet John the Baptist, it's time for Jesus's public ministry.
We're 18 years further into the narrative. It's about to break loose. We'll pick John up in the next session. I want us to close with Communion. I think when you came in, you received those elements. If you're at home, you probably didn't get handed elements when the service started, but you can go grab a saltine cracker and a glass of water. You don't have to have a handy-dandy church kit. Isn't that good? Communion is not just some tradition that Christians put in place to fill time in public worship services. Jesus put this in place. We'll see it when we get a little later into Luke. It's a tangible, physical reminder.
If you didn't get the elements when you came in, if you're on campus, there's ushers in every room. If you raise a hand, they'll bring one to you. But Jesus put this in place to give us a tangible reminder of what he accomplished for us on the cross. That makes me smile. He cared that we wouldn't lose sight of it, lose touch with it, that it wouldn't become unimportant, that it wouldn't become theoretical. You know, one of the reasons we have to remember 9/11, and one of the reasons we have to remember October the 7 is if we don't remember, we're doomed to continue just to repeat them. And we're told that every time we take the bread and the cup to remember what Jesus has done for us. "As often as you eat this," he said, "do this in remembrance of me".
When he gave the disciples that word the first time, he hadn't been to the cross yet. It was gonna have an entirely different meaning to them within just a few hours. By Sunday afternoon when Jesus stepped into the room with them and said, "Here, come check out the nail prints in my hands and the wound that was in my side," those words he spoke in that upper room mean something completely different to them. It becomes a centerpiece for what they're gonna teach the believers all around the Mediterranean, Jew and Gentile.
So now we're a couple of millennia later, we're gathering in the midst of a world in turmoil, a world teetering on global conflict. But I believe the difference is the people of God, and we're coming to the Communion table not with arrogance and some imperious attitude to go, "Well, my God decisions are all so fully made, it really is not relevant to me, but I'll play along," but to recognize that we're the conduit, we're the ones through whom God is moving in this unique point. And there's ample evidence to suggest we've been a bit distracted. So we're gonna come to the cross tonight and in humility say, "Lord, be merciful to us. Forgive me. Give me listening ears and eyes to see".
We can leave this place tonight clean in the sight of the Lord, prepared for whatever he has for us. Whatever the assignment of tomorrow is, we'll engage it in the name of the Lord. All right, I gave you a minute to get your cracker and your glass of water. Again, preachers didn't dream this up. Jesus gave it to us. He said, "This bread is my body, broken for you. As often as you eat this, you do this in remembrance of me". Let's receive together. Then he took a cup, he said, "This cup is the New Covenant, sealed with my own blood. As often as you drink it, you proclaim my death until you see me again". Let's receive together. Will you stand with me for that prayer?
Father, thank you. Thank you for your Word and the truth and the life that it brings to us. I thank you for your great love for us, that you sent your Son, that whoever believes in him might have life. And as we have received the bread and the cup tonight, Lord, we do it as an expression of faith, acknowledging Jesus as Lord of our lives. But we ask for your mercy and your forgiveness in those places where we have been stubborn in our unbelief, where we've been determined in our selfishness, where we've said no to you and given license to ourselves. Father, we come tonight in humility to acknowledge our sin, to repent, to choose a new direction, a new attitude, a new set of behaviors, a new pathway. We ask you to forgive us. And as we do that, Father, we forgive anyone who has mistreated us. We canceled the debt. We tear up the marker, we set them free. We entrust them to you. I thank you for that great freedom we have, that through the blood of Jesus we have been made righteous, that through the blood of Jesus we have been justified, that through the blood of Jesus we have been sanctified, that Satan has no claims against us, no power over us because of the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. And as we have received the cup and the bread this night, we receive that life, and I thank you for your mercy, for your power, for your direction, for your engagement with us. In Jesus's name, amen.