By just looking at the title of this study it seems that we are going to be talking about our joy in relation to God’s mercy on us as sinners. In some sense this will be what where we will land before the end of this study. To know God’s mercy we must also know the wrath and judgment that comes from God towards sin and sinners. I know this is not a topic that most will want to engage in but this must be a reality as we look at how great God’s mercy and grace really is.
As we know in our text that Jesus has began His journey towards Jerusalem where He will pay the price for the penalty of our sin. I believe that most people understand how immoral they are but they do not understand God’s stance against that immorality and sinfulness. Most people look at God as a heavenly Santa Clause or a genie in a bottle that will grant wishes as we command or give to us good things even when we don’t deserve it. The truth is God does give to sinners grace and mercy in which we do not deserve but this is not the case for every person that is alive.
As we move into this text we must remember in our last study that Jesus had just sent out the 70 disciples to go before Him into the surrounding cities. Jesus gave them strict orders to bring peace to those in the city, preaching and healing the sick. They were to proclaim the message that He and John the Baptist had been proclaiming and that is the message of the Kingdom of God being here or near to them.
Jesus also gave the 70 disciples orders to speak words of condemnation against and show a sign of rejection by wiping the dust off of their feet before all that reject this message. Jesus did not say, well you just need to love on them and tolerate their blasphemy and rejection of the message from God. Jesus did not say that it was okay to continue in the area where they would continue to reject this message, no He said in Luke 10:10-12 But in whatever city you enter and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say, 11 ‘Even the dust of your city which clings to our feet we wipe off against you; yet know this, that the kingdom of God is at hand.’ 12 I say to you, it will be more tolerable in that day for Sodom than for that city.
This sets up for us the idea that God does not always continue to push on those that continually reject His message of the Messiah. I know for many people that have been taught a form of an all loving God that would never reject anyone that this will be tough to stomach but we must understand that God’s wrath against sin is as much an attribute of God as His love. This leads us to move into our first point for this study.
1.REJECTING Jesus brings about God’s judgement.
Look with me at Luke 10:13-16 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles had been performed in Tyre and Sidon which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. 14 But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the judgment than for you. 15 And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades! 16 “The one who listens to you listens to Me, and the one who rejects you rejects Me. And he who rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me.”
The words that Jesus speaks here are continued from what Jesus had been telling the 70 that He was sending out to preach and to heal. These seventy were extensions to the work that He had been doing and also what the 12 had been doing as well. They did not go into a town and decide to go against what Jesus said but followed these very detailed instructions from our Lord. This fact will be even clearer as we complete this study in this passage of Scripture.
These 70 disciples were not told to befriend the world by accepting their rejection of the message of the Kingdom of God but rather to speak words of judgement and condemnation. Jesus mentioned Sodom in Luke 10:12 and now we see in these verses for this point that Jesus mentions Chorazin, Bethsaida, Tyre, Sidon and Capernaum. It is Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum that are condemned for their unbelief and rejection of the message of the Kingdom of God here. In fact Jesus speaks of Sodom, Tyre and Sidon as those that would have been repentant if they had seen the miracles and display of power that Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum had seen.
Notice that Jesus speaks Woe’s against these cities which are words of condemnation. Jesus does not speak of having such a love for these people that He will still forgive their unbelief and rejection. He tells the 70 disciples to speak these words of condemnation towards them.
I think we also need to grab a hold of another principle that we see in this passage concerning condemnation. Jesus says in Luke 10:14 But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the judgment than for you.
This clearly shows to us that people that have more revelation will receive a greater condemnation. Tyre and Sidon will not be left off of the hook but will only be judged by the knowledge that they had. The people of Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum had seen firsthand the work of God in Jesus but still rejected this message.
I want to make clear as well that the mention of these cities does not mean that no one from there was ever given eternal life. This simply shows that the mass of those in these cities rejected and refused to follow God’s plan for salvation.
This simply shows to us that Jesus will reject those that reject Him. There will not be a mass salvation for those that are condemned to Hell for eternity, there will not be a paying for sins that removes you from some false idea of purgatory. The people that are condemned for rejection will receive what is due to them. Jesus says in Luke 10:15 And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades!
You may think that you will escape somehow the condemnation of Hell but to the contrary, you will be brought down to Hades Jesus says. There will be no reward but only judgement and condemnation. Jesus then says to the 70 in Luke 10:16 “The one who listens to you listens to Me, and the one who rejects you rejects Me. And he who rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me.”
Many times I have had people reject the message of the Gospel of our Lord. Many times I have reached out to family concerning their status for eternity. Those that profess to be Christian and live in a totally different way have got irate with me for questioning their true status as a follower of Jesus. I am never condemning but only want people to see the truth and yet they reject the very words I speak.
The words I speak are straight from the Bible and yet they make excuses of why they continue to live in the way they do. This saddens me but I must remember these words that Jesus speaks here. If they reject the message of the Gospel then they are rejecting Jesus and not me. The sad part is that I wish there was more to it but the fact is if people reject the message of the Gospel then they are rejecting Jesus and will receive condemnation.
Don’t worry we are going to get into the Good news in this study but we have to realize that God is loving, compassionate and merciful because of His hate for sin. This leads us to look at our next point that brings a better message.
2.REPENTANCE is for recipients of God’s mercy.
Look with me at Luke 10:17-19 Now the seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.” 18 And He said to them, “I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning. 19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you.
Now you may be thinking how is this passage of Scripture related to repentance? Really it isn’t directly speaking of repentance but there is in this passage a clear understanding that nothing that the 70 did on their journey made them recipients of salvation. They did not earn their spot in heaven because of what they did but what they did was clearly what authority Jesus gave to them. It is this that I want to focus on here.
It isn’t really important to speak about what all they did on this journey because they only performed as God gave them the ability to. The idea of those that rejected Jesus are worthy of wrath points us to the fact that Luke 10:13 speaks of repentance. So the contrast of rejection is repentance and repentance only comes to those that have been given the mercy and grace to receive it. The people of Sodom, Tyre and Sidon did not repent, those of Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum did not repent because they rejected Jesus. But these 70 that God used for this specific time in history had become recipients of heaven because of the mercy and grace of God. They did not experience God’s wrath even though they deserved it just as much as the others did and just as much as we do.
The seventy return from their mission with a sense of joy. Their joy stemmed from the fact that even the demons are subject to us in Your(Jesus’) name. They were amazed at what they saw. They had been with Jesus and seen the power that He had but now they had been given this power to. Now we can not just say that what they are speaking of here is in relation to some physical power only. I believe they were able to preach the message that they were sent with without demonic forces interfering as well. They may have been able to cast out demons at times but they were also able to preach the message of Jesus without hinderance.
So these seventy are excited and joyful because of how God used them in this time. Jesus then says in Luke 10:18-19 “I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning. 19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you.
I believe that what we see here is simply Jesus reminding them of why they had this power in the first place. It was not on their own authority, it was not because they earned it, or even sought for it. They were given the authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you because of the fact that they were recipients of God’s great mercy and grace. As we will see in our next point that really ties together with this point, that these 70 were in fact true followers of Jesus and those that have been granted eternal life.
If they were given eternal life then they are also those that have repented from their own way of living and have began to live for Jesus. Jesus chose the 12 that had Judas the betrayer but not a one of these 70 were false converts. They were indeed those that did not fall into the category of condemnation as those of Tyre, Sidon, Sodom, Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum but were truly a part of God’s kingdom. This leads us to briefly look at our last point.
We have looked at those that are REJECTING Jesus brings about God’s judgement and also REPENTANCE is for recipients of God’s mercy, and now we look at….
3.REJOICING because of eternal life.
Look with at Luke 10:20 Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.
*I want to point out that Jesus directs the thoughts of the seventy away from the miraculous and towards the work of God that sets a person in the direction of eternal life. Jesus does not dismiss the fact that the seventy have been given this supernatural power for this moment and for God’s glory but He does turn their thinking around to be thankful for the work that God has already done in giving to them eternal life. Jesus says Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.”
This shows us something very important that many people want to defend in the charismatic movement. People in that movement would say that the sign that God is working in a church service is seen in healings, speaking in tongues, the power to bind Satan and many more false claims but Jesus tells the seventy here to not rejoice in those things. The reason is that these things are only temporary and will not always be a part of their own lives. When Jesus used people in this way and even those that were used in the book of Acts, this was only a temporary move of God for those specific times. So Jesus turns them to think away from the temporary to the eternal by saying, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.*
Clearly we do not think that God doesn’t work in miraculous ways because He does but this is not and has never been the true work that God desires for all people. He desires to take a dead sinner and bring him or her to life for eternity. This brings us to ask if we have actually been a part of this miraculous work of God?
Has God took you from darkness to light, from living in sin to living for Him?
Are you rejoicing in some supposed work of God in a church service that gave you a good feeling or are you rejoicing because God saved you from sin and is transforming you daily?
My prayer for all that reads this is that they would recognize their sin, repent of their sin and live for God. That you would open your Bible daily to study, learn and grow. I pray that your rejoicing is in the fact that God has saved you and that your names are recorded in heaven.
Disciple's Direction 