8th Jun 26 | 14:45
Studies by Book
Luke 23 06-17 THE LORD WATCHES 14 Luke 23 16-17 Stand up, stand up for Jesus
📖 Luke 23:6-17
Sun28Nov2021 – Stand up, stand up for Jesus - Luke 23:06-17 - THE LORD WATCHES (14) - Bible reading: Romans 8:34-39
The Lord Jesus is our advocate before God, the Judge. What Jesus has done for us and continues to do for us, is far beyond our understanding. We fall before Jesus in worship.
Our prayer to the Lord is that we would draw closer to Him, for we are prone to go away from God.
We are still attracted to the charms of the world. We pay lip service to the matters of eternity but our decisions and choices in life, reveal our prioritization for the temporal things of life.
Luke 23:16-17 I will therefore chastise Him and release Him” (17) (for it was necessary for him to release one to them at the feast).
Pilate, the Governor, was desperately trying to release Jesus. He was looking to see if there would be even one person from the crowd, who would speak up on behalf of Jesus, but sadly, there was none.
Matthew 27:22 Pilate said to them, "What then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?" They all said to him, "Let Him be crucified!"
We are in a world, where several things are happening that are against the character of God.
This is God’s world. We are His legal heirs with rights, responsibility and authority. We can’t just live for our own safety, security and survival. If we do not speak up against injustice, we are saying that we do not care for our Father’s world.
Psalm 89:11 The heavens are Yours, the earth also is Yours; The world and all its fullness, You have founded them.
Matthew 6:10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
Besides Job, we see other examples in the Bible of how people spoke up and were courageous.
The example of Jonathan
I Samuel 19:4 Thus Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul his father, and said to him, "Let not the king sin against his servant, against David, because he has not sinned against you, and because his works have been very good toward you.
Jonathan was taking a great risk by speaking on behalf of David to King Saul, his father.
Ahikam
Jeremiah 26:24 Nevertheless the hand of Ahikam the son of Shaphan was with Jeremiah, so that they should not give him into the hand of the people to put him to death.
People were angry against Prophet Jeremiah and were wanting to put him to death but Ahikam took a stand for Jeremiah. Ahikam was able to protect Jeremiah’s life.
Ebed-Melech the Ethiopian
Jeremiah 38:7-10 Now Ebed-Melech the Ethiopian, one of the eunuchs, who was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon. When the king was sitting at the Gate of Benjamin, (8) Ebed-Melech went out of the king's house and spoke to the king, saying: (9) “My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon, and he is likely to die from hunger in the place where he is. For there is no more bread in the city." (10) Then the king commanded Ebed-Melech the Ethiopian, saying, "Take from here thirty men with you, and lift Jeremiah the prophet out of the dungeon before he dies."
Here was a foreigner, who could have washed his hands over Jeremiah. Yet, we see that Ebed-Melech the Ethiopian was instrumental to save the life of Jeremiah.
These are the kind of people that the Lord wants each of us to be, in our context. We need wisdom and discernment but we must also be willing to pay the cost, to be those who will speak and act on behalf of those, who cannot speak for themselves.
Jesus is our advocate before God
I Timothy 2:3-6 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, (4) who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. (5) For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, (6) who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time,
Jesus is our mediator. Man is judged by God the Judge, who says that we deserve His wrath but our Mediator, Jesus, pleads our case.
Hebrews 7:24-25 But He, because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood. (25) Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.
Jesus is also able to save us from our sin, on an everyday basis.
Hebrews 9:24 For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us;
Jesus has gone to the heavenly realms. He is there on our behalf, preparing for us.
I John 2:1 My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.
Jesus is our righteous advocate
Romans 8:34 Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us .
Jesus is our advocate/intercessor/mediator/who stands on our behalf before God. But on that terrible day of His trial, there was no one person to plead His case.
Humanity has thus established its utter failure. We are truly in need of His grace.
May we come before Jesus in brokenness and acknowledge how unworthy we are before Him. Let us surrender to Him and accept His grace to save us.
It is from this place of brokenness that we can stand up, in His enablement, and bring the kingdom rule of God here on earth. OUR LORD IS WATCHING.
Thought to ponder
He is searching for those whose hearts are committed towards Him.
Community Feedback
Reviews for Luke 23 06-17 THE LORD WATCHES 14 Luke 23 16-17 Stand up, stand up for Jesus
☆☆☆☆☆
0 reviews
Leave a Review
No reviews yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.