Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Prayer Meeting Lesson Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/pm/pm20100203.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
Luke: Jesus, The Son Of Man For All Mankind
Part LXIII: Christ's Identity As God's Savior By His Teaching On Entering God's Kingdom
(Luke 18:15-27)
  1. Introduction
    1. If Jesus is a perfectly righteous God's Savior of the world, then His view on how one gains eternal life should reflect the grace of God, His unmerited favor, versus any dependence on human merit or works.
    2. Notably, Luke 18:18-22 seems to some to teach that Jesus believed that salvation came by keeping the Law, that it was by human works and merit just opposite belief in God's grace, in His unmerited favor.
    3. However, the context of Luke 18:15-27 shows otherwise, that Jesus is a perfectly righteous God's true Savior of the world, and it gives wonderful application regarding the teaching of the rest of Scripture:
  2. Christ's Identity As God's Savior By His Teaching On Entering God's Kingdom, Luke 18:15-27.
    1. Jesus taught that entrance into the Kingdom of God came apart from human merit, for everyone who enters it must do so like a little, helpless infant who is completely dependent upon others, Luke 18:15-17:
      1. When people brought their children to Jesus in Luke 18:15 so He could bless them, they were not just little children like the Greek New Testament term, pais can at times suggest, but they were infants, the Greek word there being brephos, U. B. S. Greek N. T., 1966, p. 286; Arndt & Gingrich, A Greek-Eng. Lex. of the N. T., 1967, p. 609, 146-147. [ Brephos is used in Luke 1:41, 44 of the unborn John!]
      2. Thus, when Jesus' disciples rebuked these parents for bothering Jesus with their effort, and Jesus countered, telling the disciples to allow these children to approach Him, that of such were the Kingdom of God in Luke 18:16, He taught that people entered God's Kingdom through no human work or merit on their own just as infants or unborn infants are helpless to produce meritorious works for salvation!
      3. Indeed, Jesus claimed that unless one became like such a helpless infant, he could by no means ('ou me = "the most decisive way of negativing something in the future", Ibid., Arndt & Ging., p. 519) enter into the Kingdom of God, Luke 18:17; Ibid., U. B. S. Greek New Testament.
    2. Jesus taught that entrance into the Kingdom of God came apart from human merit since it is impossible for anyone to enter that Kingdom by way of meritoriously keeping the Mosaic Law, Luke 18:18-27:
      1. Soon after Jesus' Luke 18:15-17 comments, the incident in Luke 18:18-27 occurred, a fact we know from Luke's testimony in Luke 1:3 to record the events of Christ' life in consecutive order.
      2. Accordingly, when a certain ruler asked Jesus what he should do to inherit eternal life, addressing Jesus as "Good Master," in keeping with His focus on God's GRACE in the Luke 18:15-17 incident that had occurred immediately before this , Jesus asked the man why he had addressed Him as "good," for no one is truly "good" except God, Luke 18:19. Jesus thus revealed that the MAN did NOT REALIZE he was SINFUL, that he was DESTITUTE of the righteousness needed for salvation!
      3. Accordingly, to expose this truth to the ruler, Jesus did what the Apostle Paul claimed the Law did -- He used it to expose this man's sin to himself, NOT to SAVE him, Luke 18:20-27 with Rom. 3:20:
        1. Jesus directed this "self-righteous" ruler to the Ten Commandments, revealing that he failed to heed the "Thou shalt not covet" command in his attachment to his riches, Luke 18:20-21, 22-23.
        2. This is exactly what Paul taught in Romans 3:20 -- that the Law could not save, but only expose sin!
        3. Thus, in line with His Luke 18:15-17 teaching on the helplessness of man to save himself much like infants who are helpless, Jesus concluded it was easier for a camel to go through a sewing needle's eye (belones, "not a small door in a city gate" as some suggest this means, Bible Know. Com., N. T., p. 251) than for a rich man who coveted his wealth to enter into God's Kingdom, Luke 18:24-25.
        4. Jesus' listeners then asked, "Who then can be saved?", to which He answered, "The things which are impossible with men are possible with God," Lk. 18:26-27. This is a clear statement by Jesus that self-help salvation is impossible with men, though salvation is possible with God!
Lesson: Both Jesus and the Apostle Paul clearly taught that it is IMPOSSIBLE for one to justify himself before God, for everyone must realize his HELPLESSNESS in the matter just like an INFANT is HELPLESS, and THROW himself upon God's MERCY to be SAVED by GRACE through FAITH.

Application: May we BELIEVE in Christ to be saved, and TEACH justification by FAITH ALONE!