Facing Opposition

God, in Jesus our Savior, and through the Spirit. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.

Now, we have a lengthy portion of Luke 11 that we're going to think about together,

so we're going to break it up into two sections, and Steve Willis is going to come and read for us

now from verse 14 to verse 28. Thanks, Steve.

Luke 11, verses 14 to 28.

Luke 11:14–28

Jesus was driving out a demon that was mute. When the demon left, the man who had been mute spoke,

and the crowd was amazed. But some of them said, by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, he is driving

out demons. Others tested him by asking for a sign from heaven. Jesus knew their thoughts and said to

them, any kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and a house divided against itself will

fall. If Satan is divided against himself, how can his kingdom stand? I say this because you claim that

I drive out demons by Beelzebul. Now, if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your followers

drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. But if I drive out demons by the finger of God,

then the kingdom of God has come upon you. When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house,

his possessions are safe. But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armor

in which the man trusted and divides up his plunder. Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever

does not gather with me scatters. When an impure spirit comes out of a person, it goes through arid

places, seeking rest, and does not find it. Then it says, I will return to the house I left. When it

arrives, it finds the house swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes seven other spirits,

more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that person

is worse than the first. As Jesus was saying these things, a woman in the crowd called out,

blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you. He replied, blessed rather are those who hear

the word of God and obey it. This is God's word.

Thank you, Steve. And we'll pick up our reading there in a few moments. But before that,

we're going to sing a portion of Psalm 31. We're going to sing together from verse 19 to verse 24.

And again, we'll stand together so that we can sing this section.

Your goodness, Lord, is very great, prepared for those who fear your name.

To show your goodness openly, to all who your protection claim.

your presence hides and shelters them from those who plot to take their life.

And in your tent you keep them safe from each other.

evil times that stir up strife.

The Lord be praised because he showed the wonder of his love to me.

When in a city I was trapped, surrounded by the enemy.

In my alarm I rashly said that I was hidden from your eyes.

But when I call to you for help in grace, you listened to my cries.

O love the Lord, O you his saints.

The faithful will be kept by God.

But he will give the proud.

There do be strong.

Take heart, hope in the Lord.

So we're going to continue reading in Luke chapter 11 in our church Bibles.

Luke 11 · chapter mention

It's page 1043.

In case anyone's looking for a Bible and you were caught out because we used to have them

at the front door.

Now they're in the back corner.

So if you need a copy, you can go and grab one there.

and we're going to read from verse 29 to the end of the chapter. Let's again hear God's word.

When Jesus had finished speaking, sorry verse 29, as the crowds increased, Jesus said,

this is a wicked generation. It asks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.

For as Jonah was assigned to the Ninevites, so also will the Son of Man be to this generation.

The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the people of this generation and condemn them.

For she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon's wisdom, and now something greater than Solomon is here.

The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it,

for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now something greater than Jonah is here.

No one lights a lamp and puts it in a place where it will be hidden or under a bowl.

Instead, they put it on its stand, so that those who come in may see the light.

Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are healthy, your whole body also is full of light.

But when they are unhealthy, your body also is full of darkness.

See to it then that the light within you is not darkness.

Therefore, if your whole body is full of light and no part of it dark,

it will be just as full of light as when a lamp shines its light on you.

When Jesus had finished speaking, a Pharisee invited him to eat with him.

So he went in and reclined at the table.

But the Pharisee was surprised when he noticed that Jesus did not first wash before the meal.

Then the Lord said to him,

Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish,

but inside you are full of greed and wickedness, you foolish people.

Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also?

But now, as for what is inside you, be generous to the poor, and everything will be clean for you.

Woe to you, Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue, and all other kinds of garden herbs,

but you neglect justice and the love of God.

You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone.

Woe to you, Pharisees, because you love the most important seats in the synagogues

and respectful greetings in the marketplaces.

Woe to you, because you are like unmarked graves,

which people walk over without knowing it.

One of the experts in the law answered him,

Teacher, when you say these things, you insult us also.

Jesus replied, and you experts in the law,

Woe to you,

because you load people down with burdens they can hardly carry,

and you yourselves will not lift one finger to help them.

Woe to you, because you build tombs for the prophets,

and it was your ancestors who killed them.

So you testify that you approve of what your ancestors did.

They killed the prophets, and you build their tombs.

Because of this, God in his wisdom said,

I will send them prophets and apostles,

some of whom they will kill and others they will persecute.

Therefore this generation will be held responsible for the blood of all the prophets

that's been shed since the beginning of the world,

from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah,

who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary.

Yes, I tell you,

this generation will be held responsible for it all.

Woe to you experts in the law,

because you have taken away the key to knowledge.

You yourselves have not entered,

and you have hindered those who were entering.

When Jesus went outside,

the Pharisees and the teachers of the law

began to oppose him fiercely,

and to besiege him with questions,

waiting to catch him

in something he might say.

This is God's word.

So this evening we come to this point in the journey of Jesus,

where he is facing different types of opposition.

And as we begin,

it's important for us to recognize

that opposition is a reality for Christians.

Even within our own church,

the different countries and the families that we represent,

opposition comes in very different ways.

In certain places,

it's just simply that views are unwelcomed.

For other people,

their experience is that coming to faith

means their family won't accept them.

Some people live in countries

where Christians and churches

come under intense surveillance from the state.

Others live in places

where churches and the Christian community

can be targeted at particular times

to score political points.

For some of us,

to be a Christian will be to be excluded

from certain groups

or certain opportunities.

To follow Jesus

is to share in his experience

is to know opposition.

This journey that Jesus is taking

is a journey to Jerusalem.

It's a journey towards the cross.

Indeed, we could use the language of verse 49

and recognize Jesus stands in that line

of God's messengers

who will be persecuted and killed.

And as Jesus would say to his disciples,

if they hated me,

they will hate you also.

So our purpose this evening

is to consider

what did the opposition look like

in this section of Luke's gospel

on this journey?

To listen in as Jesus responds

and to let this confrontation

examine us as well.

Especially as we recognize

that it is nothing more important

than our own response to Jesus.

So let's look first of all

at verses 14 to 28

where we see the first sign of opposition

as the people misrepresent Jesus.

So to just follow what's going on,

we read in verse 14

that Jesus has driven out a demon.

That he has done something incredibly good

and powerful and merciful.

But the accusation comes,

yeah, Jesus does that

because Jesus is on the devil's side.

How does Jesus respond?

If Satan is divided against himself,

how can his kingdom stand?

He challenges their logic.

Of course he is not a part

of the kingdom of darkness.

We know this.

If a political party begins infighting,

then that group will be weakened

and collapse or a sports team

that begins to turn on one another.

Jesus also says to them,

listen, your followers

are doing the same thing

and you don't call them

part of the kingdom of darkness.

Rather, positively,

what does Jesus say?

Verse 20,

if I drive out demons

by the finger of God,

then the kingdom of God

has come upon you.

That's a wonderful image.

Just the finger of God

is sufficient to drive out this demon.

And it represents, again,

the breaking in of God's kingdom.

Verses 21 and 22,

there is another reality here

as Jesus pits himself

against the devil,

acknowledging, yes,

the devil is a strong man,

but Jesus is the stronger man.

And he is on a rescue mission.

His work on the cross

will be the climax

of that rescue mission.

His resurrection

will be that victory accomplished.

Spiritual hostages set free,

transferred from the kingdom of darkness

to the kingdom of God.

He faces misrepresentation,

but that's how he responds,

by pointing to the reality

of who he is

and the kingdom that he's bringing.

And now Jesus will bring

his own challenge

to his opponents.

In verse 23,

notice what he says,

whoever is not with me

is against me,

and whoever does not gather with me

scatters.

He asks them the question,

whose side are you on?

There is the fighting imagery

in a battle.

You're either for or against.

There's no neutral position here.

When it comes to the work of farming,

you're either helping in the harvest

or you're hindering.

Jesus is saying,

when it comes to me,

there is no neutral position.

And then towards the end of the section,

and especially in verse 28,

we can hear him asking the question,

how is our hearing spiritually?

So he talks about this situation.

Suppose a person is cleansed from a demon.

So the demon is driven out,

but there's no replacement going on.

Not replaced with God and his word,

not replaced with faith.

Jesus will say,

well, the final condition of that person

is actually going to end up being worse.

And then he responds to someone in the crowd

crying out,

blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you.

What a blessing to be in Jesus' biological family.

And Jesus says,

here's what's better,

hearing and obeying

as Jesus brings the word of God,

because it's a word that brings life.

It's a word that saves.

So as we think about Jesus being misrepresented,

and as he challenges his listeners,

it's important for us to ask ourselves the question,

how is my hearing?

In 2019,

in Australia,

the Peaks Observatory Radio Telescope,

that big thing up there,

the listeners got really excited.

So they spent all their time

listening to signals from around the galaxy.

They got really excited

because they were pretty sure

they picked up signs

coming from another planet.

They thought extraterrestrial life

was trying to communicate.

And it went public.

Really exciting news.

And then a few days later,

there was the rather embarrassed retraction.

Actually,

it was just the case

that some signals got crossed,

the signal got mixed up.

They heard the message wrong.

Jesus came

as God's promised king,

bringing the good news

of spiritual rescue,

transferring people

from death to life,

calling people into relationship

with God through faith in him.

All of this profoundly good news,

but as we see here,

Jesus and his message

misrepresented.

And it's a truth

throughout Christian history

that the Christian faith

and the Christian message

has often been misrepresented,

that people have got mixed up

for a variety of reasons.

So in the first century,

even as the church

was growing rapidly

through the Roman Empire,

you will discover as well

that there was a real hatred

and hostility

towards the Christian faith,

in part,

because it was mixed up

and misrepresented.

So they heard Christians said,

Jesus is Lord,

not Caesar is Lord.

So they presumed then,

Christians would be

the worst of citizens.

They're bad news.

We need to get rid of them.

They heard about the Lord's Supper,

about the bread and the wine

representing the body

and the blood,

and they got mixed up

and they thought,

Christians are cannibals.

They're bad news.

Stay away from them.

All through church history,

this kind of thing,

21st century,

Christianity still gets misrepresented,

the Christian church,

and its message still gets

treated as bad news,

doesn't it?

Any exclusive truth claim

is bad.

It's intolerant.

Religion is the problem

in society.

Christians are the narrow-minded,

bigoted ones

who are bad news

in our day and age.

We hear it in different ways,

don't we?

So in the reality

of spiritual opposition,

where Jesus and his church

and his message

are likely to be misrepresented

and opposed,

will we first of all,

as Jesus says,

will we hear and obey

the gospel word?

Do we recognize

and do we trust

that Jesus came from God

as God

to save lost and dying people?

And if we do,

will we have the courage then

to follow Jesus as king?

Even when that comes with a cost.

Even if the people around us

choose to misrepresent Jesus

and misrepresent us.

The question always remains,

where do we stand?

Do we take our stand with Jesus

or are we against Jesus?

So we need to be careful

about how our hearing is,

especially in the context

of spiritual opposition,

that we would learn

to be dependent on him

and on his word,

that we might stand our ground.

Let's look now

at the second set of opposition

that we find against Jesus,

verse 29 to 36,

the crowd increases

and Jesus acknowledges

and recognizes

a fresh challenge.

As the crowds increased,

Jesus said,

this is a wicked generation.

It asks for a sign,

but none will be given it

except the sign of Jonah.

Second up opposition,

rejecting evidence for Jesus.

Maybe you've had this experience

of being in a foreign country

and finding yourself

at various points

feeling lost.

Perhaps the signs,

road signs or airport signs,

are only in an international language

and not in English,

and it can be thoroughly confusing.

There are some people in Jesus' day

who never seem satisfied

with the signs that Jesus gave them.

We already heard it in verse 16.

Others tested Jesus

by asking for a sign from heaven,

demanding more signs,

demanding more evidence

that Jesus is

who he says he is.

By now,

in Luke's gospel,

what have we come to discover?

Well, we have just seen him

drive out a demon.

We have seen and heard of him

healing many, many sick people

with various kinds of diseases.

We've seen his power over nature

as he has stopped a storm.

We have seen his power over sickness

and even over death.

We have seen him feed a huge crowd

with one small boy's lunchbox.

The problem is not a lack of evidence.

The problem is spiritual blindness

and hard-heartedness.

They could not and would not read the signs.

And there is that refusal

to trust and believe.

So what does Jesus say to them?

Verse 29,

you're asking for a sign.

None will be given

except the sign of Jonah.

So Jesus is going to take them back

to the Old Testament.

And it's really interesting.

Jesus points them back

to the Old Testament

and says,

look, it points forward to me.

If we want to know

how to read the Old Testament

like Jesus,

that's one important thing

for us to learn.

As we read the Old Testament,

we're looking to see

how it is fulfilled

in Jesus.

But he gives them

what he calls

the sign of Jonah.

Jonah.

What does he mean by that?

Who was Jonah?

Well, Jonah, of course,

was that Old Testament prophet

sent on his mission.

A mission to declare

the judgment of God

on Nineveh.

But to declare that judgment

implicitly was

to open up

a window for mercy.

Jonah was reluctant.

He tried to run from God.

God sent a storm.

Jonah was thrown overboard,

swallowed by a fish.

Okay, but here's the sign

of Jonah, I think,

that just as,

and Jesus would say this

in Matthew's Gospel,

just as Jonah spent

three days and nights

in the belly of the fish,

so Jesus would spend

those three days and nights

in the heart of the earth.

And just as Jonah,

as it were,

came back from death

to life

to preach a message

that demands response,

the response

of repentance

and faith.

So Jesus would die

and rise

and calls us all

to repent

and to believe.

That's the sign

that he's going to give

to them.

In his dying and rising,

he's going to show

he's the greater

than Jonah.

But he doesn't just

stop there

as he gives

Old Testament lessons,

does he?

He also talks

in verse 31

about the Queen

of the South,

perhaps more familiarly

known to us

as the Queen

of Sheba.

And it says

there in verse 31,

she'll rise

at the judgment

with the people

of this generation

and condemn them

for she came

from the ends

of the earth

to listen to

Solomon's wisdom.

And one greater

than Solomon

is here.

So there was

this queen

who traveled

hundreds and

hundreds of miles,

such was the fame

of Solomon,

God's king

with God's wisdom.

And Jesus says,

she was wise,

you're unwise,

you're going to be

condemned because

Jesus is a greater

king than Solomon.

Jesus has greater

wisdom than Solomon.

Paul talks about

Jesus,

the wisdom of God,

our righteousness,

our holiness,

our redemption.

Jesus is all

the wisdom we need,

but his generation

were rejecting him.

So she becomes

a sign that

will lead them

to judgment

and condemnation.

And then even

the men of Nineveh,

verse 32,

will stand up

at the judgment

with this generation

and condemn it

for they repented

at the preaching

of Jonah

and now something

greater than Jonah

is here.

Nineveh was a

really evil city.

But when they heard

that message,

40 days in Nineveh

will be destroyed,

there was repentance

from the greatest

to the least

and God showed

mercy.

Jesus,

a greater preacher,

bringing eternal life,

bringing grace

from God

as God himself

comes to them

and they reject him

and they demand

more evidence.

They say no.

And then Jesus

uses this imagery

in verses 33

and 36

by way of

challenging

the opponents.

Asking the question,

how is

your spiritual

eyesight?

Look at verse 34,

your eye

is the lamp

of your body.

When your eyes

are healthy,

your whole body

also is full of light,

but when they're unhealthy,

your body

also is full

of darkness.

See to it then

that the light

within you

is not darkness.

Jesus has come

providing the light

of God

and it is being

rejected

in favor

of darkness.

And so Jesus

says to them,

how you see

Jesus,

how we see

Jesus,

how we respond

to him

is a sign

of whether we

have God's

light or not.

Do we respond

to the light

or do we remain

in spiritual

darkness

and blindness?

darkness.

Jesus is saying

our view of Jesus

determines

our spiritual

condition.

How is my

eyesight today?

Have you ever

taken an eye

test?

You know the letters

are there on the chart,

they're right in front

of you,

but you can't

make them out.

I guess every glass

is wearer

has had that

experience.

You know,

when it gets fuzzy

it's a sign

that our eyesight

is not great,

that we need

fresh lenses.

If you've ever

tried to live

with fuzzy vision

it can be

uncomfortable

sometimes.

I'm not a huge

fan of wearing

glasses,

so I often walk

past people

in the street

who I know

but I don't

realize that I

know them.

That's uncomfortable.

They can also

be dangerous

if you don't

know where

you are going.

And so it's

important for us

to ask

spiritually,

do I

see

Jesus

clearly?

maybe especially

when we think

about the

people around

us who

maybe bring

challenges

and are

looking to

know,

you know,

I want more

evidence,

I want more

proof,

and they have

challenge after

challenge.

Jesus reminds

us that there's

the reality of

spiritual blindness.

And so one of

the things that we

absolutely need to

be doing

is to be

praying,

and that God

would allow

the light of

the Lord Jesus

to shine in

that person's

heart and

life.

It just as

Jesus invited

his opponents

to read

their Bibles

in order to

see Jesus

clearly,

perhaps one of

the best things

that we can do

with our friends

or our family

members who

have questions

is to take

them to God's

Word,

to invite them

to read a

Gospel,

to discover

who Jesus

really is,

because often

the version of

Christianity or

the Jesus that

people are

rejecting is

not the same

as what's

found in

God's

Word.

It's important

that we

know and

see that

Jesus is

more than,

you know,

Jesus talks

about I am

greater than.

He's not just

a good man,

he's not just

a wise man,

he's not just

a role model,

he is greater

than anyone,

anything,

he is the

king we need,

he's the

prophet we need,

he's the

wisdom we need,

and he's the

king, the

prophet, the

wisdom that

the people

around us

need also.

So especially

as we recognize

as Jesus

speaks to us

that the

judgment we

pass on

Jesus now

affects the

judgment Jesus

passes on us

when he returns,

how important

it is

for us to

pray and

to seek

and to

share

who Jesus

truly is,

what he came

to do

with people

who are

struggling

and wondering

about the

evidence.

The third

opposition

that we see

from verse 37

to the end

of the chapter

is the

opposition of

those who

choose man-made

religion over

Jesus.

there are

particular

opponents in

view here

in verse 37,

it's the

Pharisees,

in verse 45,

it's the

experts in

the law.

These two

groups of

religious leaders

who of all

people should

be hearing

with faith.

They should

be reading

the signs

and recognizing

who Jesus

is, and

they should

in turn

then be

pointing people

to trust

in Jesus

as God's

promised

king and

savior.

But their

problem

is that they're

choosing their

own superficial

man-made

religion

that's based

on works

rather than

God's salvation

that comes

through grace,

that comes

through trusting

in Jesus.

And so as

Jesus confronts

this opposition

we discover

that their

hearts are

unchanged,

their hearts

are unclean,

but they feel

really good about

themselves because

of the externals.

Jesus

is

meal time,

verse 37.

A Pharisee

has invited

Jesus to

eat with

him.

And notice

the Pharisee's

surprise.

Jesus

doesn't wash

according to

the rules

that we've

set.

He doesn't

conform to

our standards

of what it

means to be

clean.

Jesus says

to him,

you don't

conform to

God's

standard of

cleanness.

You Pharisees

clean the

outside of the

cup and dish,

but inside

you're full of

greed and

wickedness.

Jesus wants

to confront

the religious

leaders,

relying on

a man-made

religion.

It's what's

on the

inside that

counts.

How is

your heart?

Rather than

being concerned

simply to

look good

at playing

at religion.

It becomes

clear,

Jesus hates

that,

God hates

that,

he wants

sincerity,

we see it

in the

Old Testament,

and we see

it here as

well.

And as if

that wasn't

enough,

Jesus then

proceeds to

pronounce

these six

woes,

these judgments

are pronounced.

So look at

verse 42,

there is woe

on these

Pharisees for

their hypocrisy.

So they're

brilliant at

tithing their

herbs,

you know,

they've got

their garden

herbs all

tithed neatly,

but they don't

love their

neighbor in

practice justice,

and they're

neglecting the

love of God.

And they think

that they're

doing well.

He confronts

their pride

in verse 43,

their love

to be seen

before other

people,

rather than

being humble

before their

God.

He confronts

their uncleanness

in verse 44,

you're like

unmarked

graves.

They are

unclean,

and people

are stumbling

upon them

in their

teaching,

and because of

their influence,

they're making

others unclean

too,

they're dragging

others into

the same mess

as them with

their bad

teaching.

Verse 45,

one of the

experts in the

law said,

teacher,

when you say

these things,

you insult

us also,

and Jesus

has some

woes for

them also.

Verse 46,

because of

their legalism,

piling on,

heaping on,

a crushing

burden of

man-made

religion,

not helping

by cutting

through all

that,

and showing

Jesus is

Lord and

the one

they need

to trust.

He challenges

them for

their hypocrisy.

Their

ancestors killed

God's messengers,

the prophets.

they build

tombs,

thinking they're

doing this

great religious

thing.

Jesus says,

you're basically

saying that

what your

forefathers did,

you approve

of.

He will say

to them,

you stand

in line

of those

who kill

God's prophets.

And of course,

as the story

goes on,

we know that

they will do

the same

to Jesus.

And then we

get to

verse 52,

that last

woe.

Woe to

you,

because you've

taken away

the key

to knowledge.

You yourselves

have not

entered,

and you have

hindered those

who were

entering.

What a

dreadful

situation.

They've

locked and

barricaded

the door

to know

God

through faith

in Jesus.

They've

thrown away

the key.

They're

turning people

back from

trusting in

Jesus,

the way,

the truth,

and the

life,

because they're

persuaded that

their way

is the way

to God.

And so

Jesus,

it challenges

this man-made

religion by

pointing to

the importance

of the heart.

Remember God's

word that came

to Samuel,

the prophet,

in the Old

Testament.

Man looks at

the outward

appearance,

but God

looks at

the heart.

But we have

this somber

reminder

that Jesus

can be

opposed and

resisted

even by

those claiming

to be

religious,

even by

those who

are in

a position

of religious

leadership.

Jesus

denounces

them because

of how far

short they

come of

God's word

and God's

way of

salvation.

Jesus

says only

heart change

will do.

But a

religion based

on work

will aim

to change

some habits,

serving to

keep Jesus

at arm's

length.

Jesus

would humble

us by

showing us

our sin,

by showing

that we

cannot keep

God's law,

we cannot be

holy by

ourselves,

but man-made

religion,

tick these

boxes,

encourages

pride in

our own

ability.

It ignores

God's

perfect

holiness,

and it

ignores

human

sinfulness.

The question

to ask

ourselves is

how is

my heart?

That image

that Jesus

had in

verse 39,

you Pharisees

clean the

outside of

the cup

and dish,

but inside

you are

full of

greed and

wickedness.

Have you

ever had

this start

to the

day?

You're

getting ready

for school

or you're

getting ready

for work

and you

get the

fresh bowl

out of the

cupboard or

out of the

dishwasher,

you pour

your cereal,

you add

the milk,

you get ready

to tuck in,

you take

your first

spoonful and

you get that

disgusting taste

because you

realize your

milk is

off.

Not just

me.

The glass

or the

plate can

be clean

but inside

it's

disgusting.

And Jesus

wants us to

understand how

foolish it

is to

try and

merely clean

up our

act,

to try

harder to

do better

when our

heart is

still a

dark mess

of sin.

What we

need is

not more

man-made

religion.

What we

need is

to trust

and ascend

from heaven

redeemer.

Jesus

came to

establish the

new covenant,

to establish

us in

relationship

with God

by his

death on

the cross.

And in

that new

covenant,

as it's

spoken of

in the

Old Testament,

there is a

spiritual

heart transplant

that takes

place.

Ezekiel says

that God

will change

our heart

of stone

and give

us a

heart of

flesh.

So we

need God's

grace to

change us

from the

inside out.

And so we

must never

settle for

man-made

religion.

So as we

follow Jesus

on this

journey,

and as we've

seen him

face opposition

of various

kinds,

we're reminded

opposition is

real.

people are

we willing

to face

it for

Jesus'

sake.

Jesus

will

suffer it

for us,

walking this

road to

suffer,

to die,

to save

his people.

His life is

one in which

opposition,

persecution,

suffering,

and ultimately

death were

never far

away.

The result

of his

mission,

the result

of his

sacrifices,

that we

receive the

gift of

new life,

an entry

into God's

kingdom,

and the

guarantee

of final

victory and

glory.

At the

same time,

we identify

with Jesus,

being ready

to suffer.

For some

Christians

today,

they will

pay the

ultimate

price for

following

Jesus,

but we

know that

every follower

will know

some

opposition,

so will

we walk

that road

day by

day?

And how

do we

do?

Or doesn't

it begin

by trusting

in Jesus

and remembering

Jesus,

the one who

walked this

road before

us,

the one who

walked this

road for

us,

and the one

who promises

that he

walks that

road of

opposition,

suffering,

and suffering

with us.

And so we

can trust

him today

and every

day.

Let's pray

together.

together.