Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Prayer Meeting Lesson Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/pm/pm19980422.htm

LUKE: GOSPEL OF CERTIFYING THE CHRISTIAN FAITH
Part XXXIII: Certifying The Way Of The Cross Before The Crown For Messiah And His Followers
(Luke 9:18-36)
  1. Introduction
    1. If Christianity is true, and the believer belongs to God's Kingdom, why does he often face a cross in life?
    2. Similarly, if Jesus was the Messiah, then why His cross instead of the arrival of His earthly Kingdom?
    3. In writing to Theophilus to show the credibility of the Christian faith (Luke 1:4), Luke recorded the conditions under which reference to the cross of Christ first came up, and showed by the introduction of th at challenging theme just how the Christian faith is credible in spite of the cross. In doing so, Luke also provides a lesson to Theophilus who knows that he will suffer greatly if he adopts the Christian faith:
  2. Certifying The Way Of The Cross Before The Crown For Messiah And His Followers, Lk. 9:18-36.
    1. Luke wrote His gospel to prove to a Greek, Theophilus, the credibility of the Christian faith, Luke 1:4.
    2. Theophilus probably needed encouragement to believe in Christ as such a faith would be a very costly step:
      1. Luke addresses his reader by the lofty title, "O most excellent Theophilus" in Luke 1:3 of his first work.
      2. However, this embellished title is omitted in Luke's second work to Theophilus, cf. Acts 1:1.
      3. This may mean Theophilus believed Luke's Gospel and was demoted for his faith, Z.P.E.B., v. 5, p. 721.
      4. Thus, a reason to pay such a demeaning cost for becoming a Christian would need to be addressed by Luke in his Gospel for Theophilus to be willing to make such a costly step of faith for Christ.
    3. Accordingly, Luke exposed Christ's anticipation that the Way of the Cross precedes the Crown both for Himself and His Kingdom subjects, and gave strong evidences certifying His claim, Luke 9:18-36:
      1. While at Caesarea Philippi, separated from the crowds in the far northeastern segment of Palestine at the rocky Golan Heights, Jesus asked His disciples who the people felt He was, 9:18; Mtt. 16:13.
      2. They responded that people knew He was a godly miracle-worker of some sort, Luke 9:19.
      3. When Jesus asked who they, His disciples felt He was, Peter answered He was God's Messiah, 9:20.
      4. Jesus then charged the twelve not to make this fact known to the crowds at that time, for the plan of God was for Jesus not to be believed as the Messiah so that He could go to the cross, Luke 9:21-22. Thus, the distant location of this event and its revelation of Jesus as the Messiah was intended to show how Christ wanted His identity HIDDEN from the masses until AFTER the cross!
      5. Then, following up this revelation of His cross before the crown, Jesus predicted that all who were His disciples would have to follow their King in making their personal paths through their own crosses to enter His Kingdom as well, Luke 9:23-26:
        1. Jesus predicted that those who followed Him would have to experience a daily cross, Luke 9:23.
        2. Thus, Jesus set the principle of losing life and all this life has to offer as the means and necessary first step toward enjoying the blessings of His coming Kingdom, Luke 9:24-25.
        3. As such, those who followed Christ needed to anticipate a cost for naming the name of Christ, 9:26.
      6. Lest the disciples think such a cost to be excessive as there might not follow a kingdom as Jesus might not be Messiah, Christ told of the verifying revelation of His Kingdom to some of those present, 9:27.
      7. That prediction came true with the revelation of His Messianic glory about a week later, Luke 9:28-29.
      8. At that transfiguration, the mighty Old Testament prophets of Moses and Elijah appeared, speaking of the necessity of Christ's cross to be accomplished at Jerusalem, Luke 9:30-31.
      9. Then, to top off the revelation, the Father's own voice came from heaven, declaring that Jesus was His beloved Son, and that His claims about a cross before the crown were to be heard as truth, Lk. 9:32-35.
Lesson: (1) The experience of Christ, patterning the Christian's experience, involves the way of the unsavory cross before a crown. (2) Lest we shy from accepting this concept due to the cost involved, recall this way was CERTIFIED by (a) Christ's clear prediction when He first openly asserted His Messiahship in the notable absence of the faithless throngs at Caesarea Philippi. (b) Recall also that it was taught by Him as a pattern for believers' lives at the time and (c) vindicated by ((a)) His transfiguration, ((b)) the testimony of two very credible Old Testament witnesses, Moses and Elijah and ((c)) the overwhelming witness of God the Father Himself. It is a FACT we must ACCEPT!