Chapter # 9 Paragraph # 5 Study # 5
February 28, 2010
Lincolnton, NC
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Thesis: The "glorious conversation" was focused upon the accomplishment of the ultimate "deliverance" by Jesus in "Egypt".
Introduction: I have made the claim that
Luke 9:28-36 is consumed by "Kingdom" realities because Jesus had said that certain of His disciples would "see" the Kingdom of God while they were yet living within the boundaries of the kingdom of darkness. Under that conviction, I have argued that each of the details of Luke's record reveal the Kingdom of God in such a way that "eyes" could see it.
Thus, in our study last time we focused upon the appearance of Moses and Elijah as the initial "types" of Kingdom reality. Moses was the original, human law-giver so that God's Kingdom could be established upon the earth in a visible form and Elijah was the original, human testament to the need for a "greater than Moses" if God's Kingdom was going to be actually established in a visible form. Moses illustrated the principles of the Kingdom and Elijah illustrated the complete impotency of Israel's application of those principles in daily life.
This morning we are going to consider at least some of the issues of 9:31 so that we may gain a clearer understanding of the Kingdom of God. To do that, we are going to focus upon what I will call "the glorious conversation".
- I. The Substance of "The Glorious Conversation".
- A. Its focus: the Exodus.
- 1. Luke recorded that this "glorious conversation" concerned "His departure which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem."
- a. The focus was upon what our translators call "His departure".
- b. The chief characterization of that "departure" was "that which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem".
- 2. Luke's record, however, is "loaded" in a way that our translators do not reveal.
- a. To begin, "Jerusalem" was seen by all as the central, geographical place where "kingdom" issues had their root and power (a "sight" established by the prophecy of Isaiah 2).
- b. But, this comprehensive agreement was completely oblivious to a central fact of history at the time of Jesus' coming activity: Jerusalem had been completely subverted.
- 1) In Revelation 11:8 we read that the city where Jesus was crucified was "spiritually" called "Sodom" and "Egypt".
- a) The word translated "spiritually" is only used in Revelation 11:8 and 1 Corinthians 2:14 and it means "the way God as Spirit understands a matter".
- b) That "Jerusalem" had become "Egypt" in God's eyes is crucial because Paul said in Galatians 4:24-26 that the present "Jerusalem" was the equivalent of "the place of bondage".
- c) In the original state of bondage, God produced a "deliverance" which was known forever afterwards as the "exodus" forced by the events surrounding "Passover".
- 2) The key issue of God's perspective of "freedom" is what a person believes and the key belief of "freedom" from God's perspective is the doctrine of "deliverance by Jesus" (Galatians 4:5 and 5:1 and following).
- 3) That the "way of deliverance" in the "Jerusalem" of Jesus' day had been subverted from "faith in the promise of God" to "faith in the obedience of man" indicates the reason for its being called "Egypt" in Revelation 11:8.
- c. And then, the word Luke chose to use for what the translators call "His departure" is "exodus" and it is used only three times in the New Testament (our current text, Hebrews 11:22, and 2 Peter 1:15) and all three of them refer to an "exodus" that is tied to the concept of moving out of bondage into the Kingdom of God.
- d. And, ultimately, the "glorious conversation" was about what Jesus was going to "fulfill" (a word used 90 times in the New Testament and is translated by the translators of the Authorized Version 77 times with the words "fill, fulfill, or full").
- 1) Matthew uses this word consistently in the formula "the Scriptures were fulfilled".
- 2) Luke uses this word regularly to refer to things happening because there were prophecies that had to be "fulfilled".
- 3) Throughout the record of Jesus' activities, it is recorded again and again that He came to "fulfill" the "Passover Lamb" type of meaning so that the people of God could escape bondage and enter into the freedom of Life Eternal.
- e. Thus, in summary, Luke's words are focused upon the content of the "glorious conversation" as a doctrinal discussion about how Jesus was going to bring about a "spiritual" exodus from a "spiritual" Egypt by being a "spiritual" Passover Lamb so that the people who believe in Him could become partakers of the Kingdom of God.
- B. Its characterization: carried on by visibly "glorious" men.
- 1. There can be little doubt that Luke presented these "visibly glorious men" as reinforcement of the impact of the "visibly glorious Jesus": He is the Lord's Christ.
- 2. But, the point of Luke's presentation is the establishment of the content of faith.
- a. The content of faith is that Jesus is the Lord's Christ.
- b. But true "belief" in this content is a wholesale alteration of the activities of "life".
- 1) Beneath the issue of "faith" lie two realities.
- a) The reality that "faith" cannot occur without "justification" (evidence).
- i. This is not a simple matter as 2 Corinthians 11:14 compared with 1 Timothy 2:14 reveals and Deuteronomy 13:1-3 compared with Deuteronomy 18:21-22 shows.
- ii. But it is a resolvable matter as the entire record of Luke reveals.
- b) The reality that "faith" will not occur as long as there is a serious practice of "foot-dragging" (the evidence is in but the willingness to accept it is hindered by lust and fear): Mark 8:17.
- 2) There is no solution to unbelief except the willingness to have one's life completely stood on its head by the "Truth".