Southern Christian University

Matthew, Mark, Luke, & John

Class Session 14

James A. Turner

We will begin with John chapter fourteen and verse twenty‑one. Please remember that these chapters thirteen through sixteen consist of the long discourse that Jesus gave his apostles after he had kept that last supper with them. And then chapter seventeen is a long prayer that he prayed after he had given them this long discourse. So please turn to John 14:21. "He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: And he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself unto him. Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, what is come to pass that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world? And Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: And my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him." So any person that keeps God's word, Jesus said, I and my Father will come unto him and make our abode with him. "He that loveth me keepeth not my words: And the words which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's who sent me. These things have I spoken unto you, while yet abiding with you."

Now, here is a very significant reference, and I hope you will highlight it in your Bible. John 14:26, "But the Comforter, even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance, all that I said unto you." Now, Jesus had not taught them all things. But notice that the Holy Spirit would teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said unto you. Well, that would surely be a lot to bring to their remembrance what the Lord had already spoken to them, but the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Godhead, was going to do more than that. It was going to teach them all things. In other words, the Holy Spirit would guide the apostles and those who they had laid their hands on and gave a gift of prophecy, it was going to guide them into all truth. "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give you: Not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither be fearful. Ye heard how I said unto you, I go away, and I will come unto you. If ye loved me, ye would have rejoiced, because I go unto the Father: For the Father is greater than I. And now I told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye may believe." And the apostles did not completely understand what Jesus told them about his being put to death on the cross until after it had taken place and after his resurrection from the dead. "I will no more speak much with you: For the prince of this world cometh, and he hath nothing in me. But that the world may know that I love the Father; and as the Father gave me commandment, even so I do. Arise, and let us go hence."

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter fifteen is his instruction about the true vine. I am the vine and ye are the branches. Now, some have tried to use this passage to get out of it branch/churches. But note that a church is not mentioned in any way, and Jesus is talking to his twelve apostles on this occasion. And, of course, this passage is speaking to us today, and the emphasis is on the individual that abides in Christ. "I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman." Just like the husbandman prunes and keeps the vineyard free of briars, grass, and all hindering plants from it being a good vineyard, God fits in that category. And Jesus is the true vine in his Father's vineyard. "I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman." And, of course, as we have studied from Matthew 20:1-15, the church is the vineyard that Christians are to work in. "Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: And every branch that beareth fruit, he cleanseth it, that it may bear more fruit. Already ye are clean because of the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; so neither can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches. He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same beareth much fruit." Now, notice that statement, he that abideth in me and I in him. Jesus is not speaking of churches but individuals. "He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same beareth much fruit: For apart from me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered, and they gather them and cast them into fire, and they are burned. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatsoever ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; and so shall ye be my disciples."

Verse eight there ought to speak to each one of us as Christians that just as surely as we abide in Christ in the vine, then we can bear much fruit for the Lord. By abiding in Christ and bearing fruit, then we glorify our heavenly Father. "Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit, and so shall ye be my disciples. Even as the Father hath loved me, I also have loved you: Abide ye in my love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love." So much emphasis is on abiding in Christ and keeping his commandments. And just as surely as we keep his commandments, we abide in him and we glorify God by bearing much fruit in the name of Christ. "These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full." God and Christ want us to be a happy people. Paul said, “rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice.” Jesus is speaking to his twelve apostles in that last discourse, and he says I have spoken these things that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.

John 15:12, "This is my commandment, That ye love one another, even as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do the things which I command you. No longer do I call you servants; for the servant knoweth not what his Lord doeth: But I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard from my Father I have made known unto you. Ye did not choose me, but I chose you, and appointed you, that ye should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should abide: That whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. These things I command, that ye may love one another. If the world hated you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love its own: But because ye are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you." And that still holds true today, that the world as a whole is ready to hate a lot of those that are faithful Christians. "Remember the word that I said unto you, a servant is not greater than his Lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they kept my words, they will keep yours also." So Jesus is saying people are going to receive you just like they received me. Those that persecuted me, those kind of people will persecute you. And those kind of people that receive my word, they will receive your word.

John 15:21, "But all these things will they do unto you for my name's sake, because they know not him that sent me. If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: But now they have no excuse for their sin. He that hateth me hateth my Father also. If I had not done among them the works which none other did, they had not had sin: But now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father." You remember going back to chapter eight, how that he emphasized those facts, if you don't believe me because of my word, believe me for my works' sake. No man had done all the works that Jesus did during his personal ministry. His works had testified and confirmed that the heavenly Father had sent him. "But this cometh to pass, that the word may be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without a cause. But when the Comforter." The Comforter is used interchangeably back in verse twenty‑six with the Holy Spirit, and so we can read Comforter or the Holy Spirit. "Whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth." It is used interchangeably in this verse too. "Which proceedeth from the Father, he shall bear witness of me: And ye also bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning.

Chapter Sixteen

These things have I spoken unto you, that ye should not be caused to stumble." Now, notice Jesus is warning them that they are going to be put out of the Jewish synagogues and that the hour would come when those who killed the apostles would think that they were offering service unto God. It is hard to imagine such a thing, but evidently it came to pass. And the apostles according to tradition, I believe all of them were put to death, maybe with the exception of the apostle John. "They shall put you out of the synagogues: Yea, the hour cometh, that whosoever killeth ye shall think that he already offering service unto God. And these things will they do, because they have not known the Father, nor me. But these things have I spoken unto you, that when their hour is come." Now, what would be the meaning of that statement? When their hour is come? When their hour is come to kill them, I believe would be the meaning of it. Do you remember how Jesus spoke on so many different occasions, my hour has not come. His hour had not come, and he was talking about his death upon the cross. And so verse four must mean that for the apostles. "But these things have I spoken unto you, that when their hour is come." When they are ready to put you to death. "Ye may remember how that I told you." And so Jesus is telling the apostles, I am telling you these things so that you won't be cause to stumble. So that you will be armed as Peter speaks of it in I Peter chapter four when he says, “For as much as Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same mind.” And so here Jesus is giving specific instruction that the day is coming when they will kill you, and those that will kill you will think that they are offering service unto God. "And these things I said not unto you from the beginning, because I was with you. But now I go unto him that sent me. And none of you asketh me, Whither goest thou? But because I have spoken these things unto you sorrow hath filled your hearts. Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: For if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I go, I will send him unto you. And he." Now notice what the Comforter or the Holy Spirit is going to do. Jesus says it is expedient that I go away. If I do not go away, the Comforter or the Holy Spirit will not come. But if I go away, he will come. And here is what he will do, beginning with verse eight.

John 16:8, "And when he is come, will convict the world in respect of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because they believe not on me; of righteousness, because I go to the Father, and ye behold me no more; of judgment, because the prince of this world hath been judged." Well, Jesus has not yet suffered upon the cross, but he is going to enter into the strong man's house when he is put in the grave. But on that third day, he is going to be raised victorious over death in the grave. And that is what he is talking about. The prince of the world, this world hath been judged. And do you remember going back to John 12:31, "Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out. And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto myself." John 16:12, "I have yet many things to say unto you, ye cannot bear them now." I guess all of us have been in such a situation that we reasoned that this is all my little mind can take, that we could not bear to hear and bear to understand or to profit by it anymore. And that was true here of the apostles, that Jesus had taught them many things, but there is still much that they needed to be taught. But the Lord is not going to open their minds and pour it in. It will have to come to you through the medium of the Holy Spirit at later days. "Howbeit when he." Now, you need to highlight at least verse thirteen. "Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he shall guide you into all the truth: For he shall not speak from himself; but whatsoever things he shall hear, these shall he speak: And he shall declare unto you the things that are to come." And you would do well to put verse fourteen with that. "He shall glorify me: For he shall take of mine, and declare it unto you." Some people still think that if they have a read letter New Testament with the words of Jesus set apart in red that they can profit more from the reading of that, because they think that is more authoritative than the other instruction, and when they get to a passage like I Corinthians chapter seven where Paul speaks of what the Lord gave and then what he is giving, some are ready to discount there what Paul has to say. But remember that what any of the apostles said, according to this reading, it is just as authoritative as anything that Jesus gave during his personal ministry. Let us read it again, verses thirteen and fourteen. "Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he shall guide you into all the truth."

Now, remember that all the truth did not come at once. Those apostles would not have known what to do with it if it had. But as problems developed among the brethren in those churches, then epistles went forth from the apostles, giving them instruction whereby they could solve those problems in the church. And when churches today have like problems, all we have to do is turn to those epistles where like problems are discussed, and we can find how we are to solve those problems of today. "So when the Spirit of truth is come, he shall guide you into all truth." Of course, that means the giving of the New Testament. "For he shall not speak from himself; but what things soever he shall hear, these shall he speak: And he shall declare unto you the things that are to come. He shall glorify me: For he shall take of mine, and shall declare it unto you." What the Holy Spirit gave the apostles, that is the word of Christ just like all that Jesus taught during his personal ministry. "All things whatsoever the Father hath are mine: Therefore said I, that he taketh of mine, and shall declare it unto you. A little while, and ye behold me no more: And again, a little while, and ye shall see me. Some of his disciples therefore said one to another, What is this that he saith unto us, A little while, and ye behold me not: And again, a little while, and ye shall see me: Because I go to the Father?" You see the apostles do not begin to have full understanding of what Jesus was talking about. "They said therefore, What is this that he saith, A little while? We know not what he saith. Jesus perceived that they were desirous to ask him, and he said unto them, do ye inquire among yourselves concerning this that I said, A little while, and ye behold me not: And again, a little while, and ye shall see me? Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice." Now, notice that statement, when they put Christ to death, the world would rejoice. "But the world shall rejoice. Ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy." And, of course, turned into joy by his resurrection from the dead. "A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: But when she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish for the joy that a man is born into the world." Jesus is surely good at using examples. The woman forgets about that part of delivery when that child is born and rejoices that a man or that a woman has been born into the world.

John 16:22, "And ye therefore now have sorrow: But I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no one taketh away from you. And in that day ye shall ask me no questions. Verily, verily, I say unto you, If ye shall ask anything of the Father he will give it you in my name." So that is one of the rules that we are to follow in praying to God, we are to ask for things in the name of Christ. Our prayers are to be directed unto our heavenly Father, but they are to be given in the name of Christ. . "Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: Ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be made full. These things have I spoken unto you in dark sayings: The hour cometh when I shall no more speak unto you in dark sayings, but shall tell you plainly of the Father. In that day ye shall ask in my name: And I say not unto you, that I will pray the Father for you: For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came forth from the Father. I came out from the Father, and am come unto the world: Again, I leave the world and go unto the Father. His disciples say, Lo, now speakest thou plainly, and speakest no dark sayings. Now know ye that thou knowest all things, and needest not that any man should ask thee: By this we believe that thou camest forth from God. Jesus answered them, Do ye now believe? Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone." And remember that he told them that just after he had instituted the Lord's Supper, “it is written smite the shepherd and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered.” And so here, again, in this long discourse, he reminds his apostles that they are going to turn away from him. "So behold the hour cometh, yea, is come, that ye shall be scattered." And that was true of all of them. "Every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me. These things have I spoken unto you, that in me ye may have peace. In the world ye have tribulation: But be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." I hope that you remember that Jesus said that to his apostles on several occasions, “it is I, be of good cheer.” And here in this last discourse, he ends it with this statement. In this world, you have tribulation. You are going to have trouble as long as you are in this world. "But be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter seventeen, all of it consists of the prayer that Jesus prayed just shortly before he was betrayed by Judas Iscariot. Think how that people still refer to the occasion when Jesus was teaching his apostles how to pray and giving them a model prayer. Many still speak of it as the Lord's prayer. Well, the Lord prayed often and he did not have just one prayer, and if we were going to refer to just one as his prayer John seventeen would be a good one, wouldn't it? "These things spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, he said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that the Son may glorify thee." And so Jesus first prays in behalf of himself. Then he prays in behalf of his apostles, and then thirdly he prays in behalf of those who would believe on him through the teaching and preaching of the gospel. So he asked the Father to give him the same glory that he had before he came to earth. "Lifting up his eyes to heaven he said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son." The hour is come for him to die. "And glorify thy Son, that thy Son may glorify thee: Even as thou gavest him authority over all flesh, and to all whom thou hast given him, he should give eternal life." And so let us keep in mind that God wants every child of God to receive eternal life at the end of the way, that absolutely there is conditional security in Christ. Remember we read from John 6:37, “he that cometh to me, I shall in no wise cast out.” And he stated there that it was his heavenly Father's will that he would not lose a single one. "And this is life eternal that they should know thee, the only true God, and him whom thou did sent, even me to do. And now, Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was." And this reminds me of the words of Paul in II Corinthians chapter eight when he says that “you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, how that he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might become rich.” So Paul was reminding them about how Christ left the riches and the glories of heaven and came to earth, that we through him might become rich, and that being rich has reference to our obeying Christ and being citizens of that heavenly kingdom. A person just cannot be any richer than to be a child of the King. Remember that good song entitled, The Child Of The King. And in the eighth chapter of the book of Romans, he says that, “his Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God, and if children, then heirs of God and joint‑heirs with Christ.” So a person cannot be any richer than just to be a faithful child of God.

John 17:6, "I manifested thy name unto men whom thou gavest me out of the world: Thine they are, and thou gavest them to me; and they have kept thy word. Now they know that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are from thee. For the words which thou gavest me; I have given unto them and they received them and they knew of the truth that I came forth from thee, and they believed that thou didst send me. I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for those whom thou hast given me; for they are thine and all things that are mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them. And I am no more in the world, and these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep them in thine name, which thou hast given me, that they maybe one, even as we are While I was with them, I kept them in thy name: Which thou hast given me, and I guarded them, and not one of them perished, but the be fulfilled. But now I come to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy made full in themselves." So the Lord wants his joy to be made full in us today. "I have given them thy word; and the world hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world."

It looks like that some of our churches in recent years are trying to do some to appeal to worldly minded people. We need to remember that Jesus said, that the world hates the true disciples of the Lord, because they are not of the world, and we are not to be out trying to please the world. Our primary goal is to please the Lord. This does not mean that we are to try to make enemies. When Jesus sent forth the apostles under the limited commission he said, “Behold I sand you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves; be ye therefore wise as serpents; but harmless as doves.” We are in the world, and the Lord wants us to stay in the world. Ten righteous people in Sodom and Gomorrah, would have saved those cities and the area around them from destruction. "I pray not that thou shouldest take them from the world, but thou shouldest keep them from the evil one." And, of course, that is the old devil Satan. "So I pray not that thou shouldest take them from the world." Sometimes there are brethren who reason “If we could just move over here to ourselves and get away from the world, then we could really be the kind of people that God wants us to be.” No, that is not the case. The Lord says they are in the world, and I do not want them taken out of the world, but I just want you to keep them from the devil. I do not want to lose any of them, “keep them from the evil one”. "They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth, thy word is truth." And in order for us to stay holy and sanctified before the Lord, we need to be reading and finding out what God's truth is and then walking in the way of the truth. And thus we are set apart and sanctified by his truth. Brethren who are suffering from spiritual malnutrition have much more trouble in keeping themselves from the devil consistent and sincere Bible study and prayer will aid in that sanctifying process. "Sanctify them in the truth, thy word is truth. As thou didst send me into the world, even so I have sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth."

John 17:20, Now, notice that he prays for those who would believe on him through the teaching of the apostles. "Neither for these only do I pray, but for them also that believe on me through their word." That includes all of the New Testament, what the Lord gave during his personal ministry and then what they gave in the rest of the New Testament. "That they may all be one; even as thou Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us. That the world may believe that thou didst send me." Jesus knew that one of the largest deterrents to the progress of the gospel would be by division among those who claim to be his followers. Jesus is praying for those who would believe on him through the teaching of the word by the apostles. Jesus prayed for unity on the part of believers. Would it not be wonderful if people could get away from denominational doctrine and denominational names and just be members of the church that we read about in the Bible? We do not read of a single denominational church in the word of God, and Jesus told Peter, “upon this rock, I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” The Lord has not built all these denominational churches that we have in our land and that are in other lands. I wish and pray that all could come to that understanding and sincerely turn away from denominationalism and just try to become members of the Lord's church and do as the Lord has instructed us to do. Think how powerful that would be. Instead of one religious group, you might say, warring against another religious group, all would be united in teaching the same doctrine, and worshiping God in the same way according to the instruction that he has given. That would surely be a powerful message to all sincere people. One of the worst sources of unbelief and a real deterrent to true Christianity unity is that spirit of “Join a church of your choice, and there are Christians in all denominations. In Ephesians 4:1-7 Paul exhorted the brethren to give diligence to keep “the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace”, and then he lists those unities: “There is one body” and the church is the spiritual body of Christ (Ephesians 1:22-23; Colossians 1:18; I Corinthians 12:13) “and one Spirit even as also ye were called in one hope of your calling one Lord, one Faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all, and in all.” Would it not be over all as logical, but wrong to affirm that there are many Holy Spirits, and many Christs and many Gods and heavenly Fathers as it is to affirm that Jesus has built many churches with different names and different doctrines?

The nearest thing to denominationalism in all of the New Testament is recorded in chapter one of I Corinthians. The brethren were divided into groups or parties. The individuals in one party were saying :I am of Paul” and those of another “I of Apollos” and those of another and “I of Cepas” and Paul shamed them for their divisive party spirit. They were divided in their preferences to those who had taught them. Paul admonished them “ through the name (authority) of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing and that there be no divisions among you; but that you be perfected together in the same mind and in the same judgment.” (I Corinthians 1:10). He also asked, “Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you, or were you baptized into the names of Paul (1:13)?

Verse seventeen of this passage has been used to try to prove that baptism is not essential to salvation. The first part of the verse reads, For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel:” and then they make their various quibbles as though Paul was not interested in baptizing believers, and in the process of their quibbling they have Paul contradicting himself in Galatians 3:26-27 and Romans 6:3-7, 6:17-18, and also in this passage. In verse fourteen he states that “He was glad that he did not baptize many of the Corinthians, but he tells why, in verse fifteen, “lest any man should say that ye were baptized into my name .” He is rebuking them again.

Instead of this being a passage as some want to make it a passage to discount the importance of baptism, it is to the contrary, that teaches that one does not have the right to wear the name of Christ unless he/she has been baptized into Christ. In verse thirteen he reasons that you do not have the right to wear my name because I was not crucified for you and you were not baptizes into my name which shows that in order for any person to have the right to wear the name of Christ that two things are essential, Christ must be crucified for you, and you must be baptized in the name of Christ. Notice the reading, “Is Christ divided? (no) was Paul crucified for you? (no) or were ye baptized into the name of Paul?” (no)

Do you see how Paul is condemning their wanting to call themselves after Paul and the other preachers, but his questions are also saying, “ Christ was crucified for you, and you were baptized into the name of Christ. Do you see the harmony of this passage with Paul’s teaching in Galatians 3:26 and Romans 6:3-7, 6:17-18? When scriptures are correctly interpreted they are always in harmony with all other references. In I Corinthians 14:33 Paul affirms that, “God is not a God of confusion but of peace.” If this passage is contrary to, as some want to make it, Mark 16:16, Acts 2:38, 8:36-40, 9:18, 10:47-48, 16:30-34, 18:8, 22:16; Romans 6:3-7, 6:17-18; Galatians 3:26-27; I Peter 3:21 then God is absolutely a God of confusion, but Paul affirms that, “ God is not a God of confusion.” Who are you going to believe, the plain teaching of the Bible or what some preacher tells you that is contrary to the plain teaching of the word of God? This is a serious question that each person needs to give a sincere answer to! We need to keep in mind Romans 3:4 which reads, “God forbid: yes, let God be found true, but every man a liar ; as it is written, that thou mightest be justified in thy works, and mightest prevail when thou comest into judgment.”

The meaning is that any person who teaches contrary to what God has said is lying. Some fit in the categry of being liars because they have not studied enough, but they are still responsible for wrong teaching. Others are willful false teachers who are in an accursed condition (Galatians 1:6-9; II Corinthians 11:13-15). We can stop some false teaching on the part of those who are sincere, but wrong in their teaching, that what they are teaching is contrary to other scriptures. Willful false teachers need to be branded as false teachers (Romans 3:4, 16:17-19; Galatians 1:6-9,2:4-5, 3:1, 5:8-9)

"And the glory which thou hast given me I have given unto them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be perfected into one; that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and lovest them, as thou lovest me. Father, I desire that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me." Now, notice the Lord Jesus wants his disciples to be with him, where I am. Very soo after his death and resurrection Jesus ascend back to his Father, and he wants them to be in heaven with him.

John 17:24, "Father, I desire that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: For thou lovest me before the foundation of the world. O righteous Father, the world knew thee not: But I knew thee, and these knew that thou did sent me. And I made known unto them thy name, and will make it known." He will make it known through his word given to the apostles by the Holy Spirit (John 14:26, 16:7-14; I Corinthians 2:10-13; II Corinthians 3:4-6). "That the love wherewith thou lovest me may be in them, and I in them." And I believe we have already read the rest of the gospel of John.

So we are now ready to turn to the book of Luke and read some of the parables that are peculiar to Luke's gospel. If I remember correctly we have already read and discussed the parables in Matthew. First let us read that little short parable that Jesus gave Simon the Pharisee from seven beginning with verse thirty‑six. One of the Pharisees desired Jesus to eat with him. When Jesus sat down to eat a sinful woman came in, and standing behind him, her tears fell on his feet and she began to wet his feet with her tears and wipe them with the hair of her head and anointed his feet with anointment. Luke 7:39, "Now when the Pharisee that had bidden him saw it, he spake within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have perceived who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth him. That she is a sinner." So he is reasoning why we are not supposed to have anything to do with sinners. If he is a prophet like people are claiming that he is, he would not have anything to do with her. And there are still some that have that holier than thou attitude and reason I am not going to have anything to do with that sinner. But that is absolutely the wrong spirit, and Jesus received the publicans and the sinners. "And Jesus answered and said unto him, Simon." Now this is not the supper that was served at Simon's house for Jesus during the last week of his ministry. He was spoken of as Simon the leper.

Luke 7:40, "And Jesus answering, said unto him, Simon, I have somewhat to say to thee. And he said, Teacher, say on. And Jesus said a certain lender had two debtors: The one owed him five hundred shillings, and the other fifty." According to this short parable, the sinful woman is represented by the five hundred shillings and Simon the Pharisee is represented by the fifty shillings. So the woman, according to the reading, has been ten times more sinful than Simon. But notice that neither one of them could pay their debt, and the burden of sin is an unpayable debt. Salvation is a gift of God. Romans 6:23, the wages of sin is death. But the free gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord.” "When they had not wherewith to pay, he forgave them both." "Which of them therefore will love him most? And Simon answered and said, he I suppose, to whom he forgave the most. And he said unto him, Thou hast rightly judged. And turning to the woman, he said unto Simon, seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet." Well, it was common courtesy of that day that the host was to supply water and further it was in order for them to wash the feet of those coming to his house. But Simon had not even giving them any water to wash his feet. He not even showed common courtesy to Jesus. "But she hath wetteth my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. Thou gavest me no kiss: But she since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet." So Simon had not even been a good friendly host. He had not greeted him according to the greeting custom of the day. "My head with oil thou didst not anoint: But she hath anointed my feet with ointment. Wherewith I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: But to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little. And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven. And they that sat at meat with him began to say within themselves, Who is this that forgiveth sins also? And he said to the woman, Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace." (A brief was recess taken.) We are ready to begin.

What lesson should we learn from this short parable that Jesus gave to Simon the Pharisee? When Simon answered that the one that had been forgiven the most would appreciate it more, Jesus said you have rightly judged. And then he went ahead to show how this woman had been so sorry for her sins, but Simon had not even shown Jesus common courtesy. What lesson are we to get from it? I believe the lesson is this, that those who never did become or go the way of, say, strong drink or drugs or any kind of criminal activity and no sexual immorality are inclined, to have this spirit that this Pharisee Simon had. After all, why my debt is not very big. The lesson that we need to learn is, as Jesus taught in that short parable in Luke seventeen, after we have done all that is bidden us to do, we are still unprofitable servants. And as given in the reading, sin is an unpayable debt that Simon like the woman had to be forgiven of. All of us need to keep in mind Romans 3:23, “For all haved sinned and come short of the glory of God,” and keep before us that we are to be humble before God and not have any proud holier than thou attitudes and that sin is an unpayable debt. If you have your sheet on the parables, you might want to turn to that second sheet where we have listed the parables in the gospel of Luke. And remember that when you want to study the parables, you need to turn especially to Matthew and Luke's gospels. Mark records only a very few that are peculiar to his book. And some would say there is not a parable in the gospel of John, but some would count John ten and John fifteen that we have read as parables.

Let us turn next to the parable of the good Samaritan as recorded in Luke ten, beginning with verse twenty‑five. And remember this parable was given in response to the lawyer's question as to who is my neighbor? He wanted to justify himself by asking that question. And notice that Jesus turned things around to the question who is a good neighbor, as given in verse thirty‑six. "And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and made trial of him saying." And a lawyer of that day was one that had been copying the law and was supposed to know the law of God well. So it is one of them that makes trial of Jesus. He is not asking wanting to learn, but he is trying to justify himself. "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? And he said unto him, what is written in the law, how readest thou? And he answered and said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself." Notice now that this lawyer does have a lot of good understanding. He knew as Jesus had taught that those are the two most important commandments, as Jesus said, the whole law and the prophets hang on these two. "And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: This do, and thou shalt live." You will stay in a saved condition if you abide by these two major commandments. "But he desiring to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbor?" In substance he is saying I do not know how to obey this commandment, because I do not know who my neighbor is.

And Jesus turns it around to what are the characteristics of a good neighbor. "Jesus made answer and said, A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers." I have read that there were robbers in that area and they would be ready to harm those who went through the area. "And he fell among robbers, who both stripped him, and beat him, and departed, leaving him half dead." So they robbed him, and in the process of robbing him, they beat him, and they departed, as Jesus said, leaving him half dead. "And by chance a priest was going down that way: And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side." I guess that priest reasoned, why I don't have any time to bother with that man, and he passed by on the other side. "And in like manner a Levite, also when he came to the place, and saw him, passed by on the other side." Neither the priest or the Levite wanted to get near the suffering man. And sometimes Christian people can reason that they are just so busy and do not have time to help those who are in tragic circumstances. "But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: And when he saw him, he was moved compassion." Now, the Jews hated the Samaritans. Some of the Samarians may have ended up being somewhat of a mixed breed. They had built a rival temple, and there was a lot of hatred on the part of the Jews toward the Samaritans and Samaritans toward the Jews. But this Samaritan has compassion for all human beings. "And as he journeyed, he came where he was: And when he saw him, he was moved with compassion. And came to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring on them oil and wine." Those were two of the major home remedies of that day. "And set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him." So he stayed with him that day. "And on the morrow he took two shillings, and gave them to the host, and said, Take care of him, and whatsoever thou spendest more, I when I come back again, I will repay thee. Which of those three, thinkest thou, proved neighbor unto him that fell among robbers?" Do you see how wisely Jesus just turns that around. And if you want to know what the command means, you just learn to be a good neighbor. "And he has him to answer the question, Which of these thinkest thou prove neighbor unto him that fell among the robbers? And he said, He that showed mercy on him. Then Jesus said unto him, Go, and do thou likewise." And so it is a wonderful short parable that we are to be good neighbors to all that are in need of our help. And in this day in time, of course, we know that we need to be careful. But there are times when it might be better if we even endanger ourselves a little when we think that somebody is really in trouble and needs our help. Surely it would be a shame if we should do like the priest and the Levite and pass by on the other side when a person really needs our help. And we are to be a compassionate people as this good Samaritan was here.

Next let us turn to Luke chapter eleven about the short parable about the friend at midnight. Jesus gave this short parable, because one of his disciples had asked him to teach us to pray. We begin reading with 11:1, "And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, that when he ceased one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, even as John also taught his disciples. And he said unto them." And here Jesus, again, is giving a model prayer. "When ye pray, say, Father, Hallowed be thy name, Thy kingdom come. Give us day by day our daily bread. And forgive us of our sins; for we ourselves also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And bring us not into temptation.”

“And he said unto them, Which of you have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine is come to me from a journey, and I have nothing to set before him? And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: The door is now shut, and my children are with me in the bed; I cannot rise and give thee." So at first the man is not ready to rise up and give him any bread. The door is shut, and we have gone to bed for the night, and my children are with me in the bed. A lot of the families of that day, lay down in their outer garment that they wore, on the floor, and with some the floor was the ground. And you can imagine a man getting up, why if I get up I will step on my children. "I cannot rise and give thee. I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth." He sees the emergency of the situation that the man is in, and so he does rise up and give him what he needs so that he will have food for those that have come to his house. They are on a journey and they have come to his house, and he doesn't have anything to feed them.

What is the primary lesson from this short parable? The primary lesson is that we are to be persistent in asking for the things that we believe that we need as shown by the following verses. Verse nine, "I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you." You see the idea of becoming more persistent and more persistent, ask, seek and knock. "For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. And which of you that is a father, shall his son ask a loaf, and will he give him a stone? Or a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: Now how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?" And so Jesus is telling us, be persistent in your prayers. The Lord is a gracious giver, but he wants you to be persistent.

And while we are reading this one, let us turn to Luke eighteen where we have another similar parable that teaches essentially the same way. Luke eighteen, beginning with verse one. "And he spake a parable unto them to the end, that they ought always to pray, and not to faint." In other words, again, to be persistent and do not give up. Call upon the Lord to do what you think he needs to do for you. "Saying, There was in a city a judge, who feared not God, and regarded not man: And there was a widow in that city; and she came often to him, saying, Avenge me of my adversary." And you see, she did not give up. She continued to go to that unjust judge and say you are supposed to avenge me of my adversary. "And he went not for a while: But afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man; yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest she wear me out by her conditional coming." And sometimes that may be the way to collect a debt is by that conditional coming. "And the Lord said, Hear what the unrighteous judge saith. And shall not God avenge his elect, that cry to him day and night." And so, again, pray to the Lord frequently, and be persistent in your prayers. "Cry to him day and night, and yet he is longsuffering. Over them, I say unto you, that he will avenge them speedily." Now, God is not like that wicked judge that will just avenge her because he did not want continual coming. God will speedily avenge his children, but he does want us to pray and not to faint or give up. He wants us to pray day and night as stated here. "I say unto you, that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?" So when Christ comes in that second advent, will he find faith on the earth? Will he find men calling upon him in that sincere manner that he is instructed us to do?

Let us turn back now to chapter twelve, to the parable concerning the rich farmer. Luke chapter twelve, beginning with verse thirteen, a man wanted Jesus to divide the inheritance. "One out of the multitude, said unto him, Teacher, bid my brother, divide the inheritance with me." He must have been a younger brother. The oldest brother, according to the law, got a larger portion of the inheritance. It maybe that it was not time to divide the inheritance or maybe it was time, and the elder brother had not divided it. "Teacher, bid my brother divide the inheritance with me. But he said unto him, Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you? And he said unto them." This gives Jesus the opportunity to teach a great lesson, to tell us to take heed and keep ourselves from covetousness. "And he said unto them. Take heed, and keep yourselves from all covetousness: For a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of things which he possesseth." That is surely something that we need to keep before us. people who really do not have much can still have a very covetous spirit. And on the other hand, a man can be a rich man and not have a covetous spirit. You remember that was one of the great qualities of Job. when God allowed Satan to take everything from him in one day, including his seven sons and his three daughters, Job arose and worshiped and said, “Naked came I out of my mother's womb and naked shall I return thither. The Lord gave, and then the Lord hath taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.” So Job was not a covetous man. If he had been a covetous man, like some are, he may have turned away from the Lord because he had lost all his material possessions. "For a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth." Think of the rich in the world today that are experiencing bad health and they would give everything they have just to have good health again, maybe just to be able to eat a hamburger again.

Luke 12:16, "And he spake the parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully." Now, this farmer did not get his riches dishonestly. The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully. "And he reasoned with himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have not where to bestow my fruits?" The harvest is so great that all of my barns will not hold all of my fruit, and what am I going to do about it? Well, here is his selfish conclusion. "And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there I will bestow all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry." This farmer is covetous. He does not think about the widow women and orphans that did not have anyone to take care of them. He may not have needed any more barns if he had just gotten busy and supplied their needs, but he wants to keep everything for himself. And he is just thinking as though he is just going to continue to live on. "Soul, thou hast much good’s laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou foolish one, this night is thy soul required of thee." So just as soon as he got it all stored up in all of those new barns, the Lord said, “thou foolish one, this night thy soul shall be required of thee.” We all know that when the soul leaves the body, that they do not take his material possessions to the cemetery. So this covetous farmer is dying in a bankrupt condition because he has been so covetous. "And the thing which thou hast prepared, who shall they be? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."

So the primary lesson from this short parable is that we are not to be selfish and just be laying up for ourselves. Jesus said, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt and where thieves break through and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt and where thieves do not break through and steal, for where a man's treasure is there will his heart be also.” I believe that is the primary reason why the Lord wants us to be liberal in giving to the church and giving to the needs of others. If we are investing in the kingdom of God, then we will have our hearts, and our minds on the right things, which will enlarge the kingdom of the Lord. If our mind is but on material things and getting one new thing after another that we want to enjoy, then our mind is going to be wrapped up in those worldly things as this man was wrapped up. He just thought he would be able to be idle and eat and drink and be merry for many years. But God said, “Thou foolish one, this night thy soul shall be required of thee.” And, again, we are instructed as Christians to be prepared at all times. We do not know when that night is coming! A wonderful lesson is taught in that short parable. Covetousness is defined in Ephesians 5:5 and Colossians 3:5-6 as idolatry. Recent events have showed that we are living in an idolatrous society and we are to guard against it. After Christians have been taught properly, and we all have responsibility in studying and learning for ourselves (II Timothy 2:15; II Peter 3:18), and still give only two to four per-cent of their income, is that not covetousness? Covetousness in the church today a great hindrance to the preaching of the gospel. Several years ago I heard brother V.P Black say, “If God was still striking men dead for lying about their giving, like he did (Ananias and Sapphria (Acts 5:1-5), that in some churches there would not be enough men left to serve at the Lord’s table!”

I believe the next one is in chapter fourteen. Let us begin reading with verse one of chapter fourteen. "And it came to pass, when he went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees on the sabbath to eat bread, they were watching him." Jesus healed a man of dropsy on this occasion. . And picking up with verse seven, "And he spake a parable unto those that were bidden, when he marked how they chose out of the chief seats; saying unto them, When thou art bidden of any man to a marriage feast, sit not down in the chief seat; lest haply a more honorable man than thou be bidden of him; and he that bade thee and him shall come and say to thee, Give this man place, and then thou shalt begin with shame to take the lowest place. But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest place, that when he hath bidden thee cometh, he may say to thee, Friend, go up higher: Then thou shalt have glory in the presence of all that sit at meat with thee: For every one that exalteth himself shall be humbled and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted."

Luke 14:12, Now here is the parable. "And he said unto him also that had bidden him, when thou makest a dinner or supper, call not thy friends, nor their brethren, nor thy kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbors, lest haply they also bid thee and recompense be made them." There are quite a number in the church today who seem to think that hospitality consists primarily of what is stated there in verse twelve. But notice that Jesus said that that is not true hospitality. "But when thou makest a feast, bid the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind." Those who really need a good meal and cannot recompense thee for it. "And thou shalt be blessed; because they have not wherewith to recompense thee: For thou shalt be recompensed in the resurrection of the just." And those who invite people that are really in need and not expecting them to recompense them, they are again laying up for themselves treasures in heaven, as Jesus spoke of it.

And then the parable of the great supper that the man gave. Luke 14:15, "And when one of them that sat at meat with him heard these things, he said unto him, Blessed is he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God." And eternal salvation is spoken of as a great supper. Matthew 8:11, Jesus said, “Many shall come from the east and from the west and shall sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of God. That includes men of all countries and all races and all nationalities of people that are going to sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Revelation 7:9). "Blessed is he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God." In that eternal kingdom. "But he said unto him, A certain man made a great supper, and he bade many." And this parable is similar to the parable given in Matthew chapter twenty‑two about the king giving a feast, a wedding feast for his son. But it is a different parable here by Luke. "A certain man made a great supper, and he bade many. And he sent forth his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready. And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a field, and I must needs go out and see it." Well, in the first place a man would not be very wise to buy a field, especially if it did not cost anything much unless he had already looked at that field to see what kind of field it was. But if he had already bought it, that could wait. The field was still his, and it would not pick up and move away. But it is an excuse. "I must needs go out and see it. I pray thee have me excused. And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them." And, again, a wise buyer, would know what kind of oxen he was buying before he would buy them. But he had bought them and so the proving them could surely wait. "I pray thee have me excused. And another said, I married a wife, and therefore I cannot come." I guess of the three excuses, we might count that last one the best excuse, but it is still an excuse. I married a wife and therefore I cannot come. Most women would enjoy a good feast, a good supper, and it said a certain man made a great supper. There are not many women would want to miss a thing like that. So it also is an excuse. "And the servant came, and told his Lord these things. Then the master of the house being angry said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the blind and the lame. And the servant said, Lord, what thou didst command is done, and yet there is room. And the Lord said unto the servant, Go out in the highways and hedges, and constrain them to come in, that my house may be filled. For I say unto you, That none of those men that were bidden shall taste of my supper." Don’t you think verse twenty‑four would be referring especially of the Jewish people and especially when you compare this parable with the one in Matthew chapter twenty‑two, the marriage of the feast for the king's son? It is very plain in that parable that those that were bidden and counted the invitation lightly were the Jewish people. As a whole the Jews rejected Christ, and so the Gentiles would be brought in. I guess all of us are ready to come with excuses. Remember those excuses will not avail. The Lord expects us to do what we can do. Those who continue to make excuses instead of working for the Lord will not be at the marriage supper of the lamb of God (Revelation 19:9).

Chapter Fifteen,

There are three parables in chapter fifteen. There are two very short parables and then the longer parable about the prodigal son. And notice that Jesus gave these parables because the Pharisees and the scribes were murmuring because Jesus was receiving sinners and eating with them. And, again, those self‑righteous men, they thought that it was just terribly wrong if a man associated with publicans and sinners, but they were hearing Jesus. "Now all the publicans and sinners were drawing near unto him to hear him. And both the Pharisees and the scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them." Jesus gives the three parables to show how God and the angels in heaven rejoice when sinners are saved. Think how Christ’s teaching should have humbled all of those proud Pharisees and it did humbly a few of them, and that is still true today. There are still a lot of proud and holier than thou people in many societies today. And so Jesus is giving all three of these parables to these Pharisees and scribes to teach them that there is rejoicing in heaven over one sinner that repent. "And he spake unto them this parable saying, What man of you, having a hundred sheep, and having lost one of them doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it? And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulder, rejoicing. And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbors, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost. I say unto you, that even so there shall be joy in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine righteous persons, who need no repentance." I can remember when verse seven gave me trouble because I was thinking wrong. I was thinking as though that God did not have proper regard for those that were not in a lost condition, but that is not the point. God is always glad when his people remain faithful, but the point is that one was lost, and God does not want a single child to be lost. So their joy in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine righteous persons who need no repentance. When a member of a family gets seriously ill, or in a bad accident and they recover, do we not rejoice more over their recover that we do over the other members who have continue to eat three good meals each day. You see, if a man is in a lost condition, he is lost! But these others are in a saved condition, but the Lord of course does not want them to be lost. So when one sinner repents, there is joy in heaven over one sinner that repenteth more than over ninety and nine righteous persons who need no repentance. The sheep was probably lost, because of carelessness, it got away from the rest of the flock and from the shepherd and got lost.

Luke 15:8, "Or what woman, having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one, doth not light a lamp, and sweep the house, and seek diligently till she find it? And when she hath found it, she calleth together friend and neighbors, saying, Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which had been lost. Even so, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth." And surely we ought to be glad when sinners repent today. There is always rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth. And that shows that the angels are looking out for the welfare of all of God's people. And that is in harmony with Hebrews 1:14, where the writer says, “Are they not ministering spirits sent forth to do service for the sake of them that shall receive salvation. So those heavenly angels are interested in the welfare of every child of God, and there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.

Luke 15:11, The next is a lost son. "And he said a certain man had two sons, and the younger of them said to his father, Father give me the portion of thy substance that falleth to me." The younger son has the spirit of that man who wanted Jesus to divide the inheritance. Father give me the portion that falleth to me. Do you see that this young man's heart is away from his father's house before he leaves his father's house. The father in this parable, of course, represents God. The house of the father would represent the church, would it not, because it is God's house (II Timothy 3:14-15)?. So we are going to have a child of God leaving his father's house, leaving the church. God does not want any of his children to leave his house, but notice that God does not force any person to stay in a saved condition. It is not God's will that Jesus should lose one disciple (John 6:39-40). But God does not force a child of God to stay at home, to stay in his house, the church. "And he divided unto them his living." And so that would be to the younger son and to the elder brother. "And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, there he wasted his substance with riotous living." You know the far country calls so many in our society today. There are thousands of people every year who pick up and leave their families and they just want to get out there, so that they will be separated from everybody who will try to keep them in the right way. The younger son goes into the far country and wasted his substance with riotous living. Everything a person does in that far country of worldliness is wasted. Everything one does in riotous living is wasted. Think of thousands who are wasting not only their money but their physical bodies and their souls in strong drink, drugs, and wrong sex. Think of the millions who die each year of gay communities because of unnatural and perverted sex, and how they and many thousands of supporters want to call it just another life style. It is surely not a God given life style (Genesis 2:18-24; Matthew 19:1-9; I Corinthians 7:1-7; Hebrews 13:4). It is an abomination to God, Genesis 18:19-24, 18:32-33; 19:1-29; Leviticus 20:13; Judges 19:14-29:28; Romans 1:24-27; I Thessalonians 4:3-8; Jude 7). These references are not all of the references that condemn such, and there are those who want, in fact the state of California is requiring, it be taught and encouraged as another life style in their public schools. There are a number of liberals in leadership in the Democratic Party who are ready to champion the cause of the gay community including Al Gore. How many more millions will die before America wakes up?

You know that he had a lot of sunshine friends. His elder brother accused him of wasting his father’s substance with harlots, verse thirty. If that be the case, he had a lot of lady friends as long as he had plenty of money. Surely he must have had those sunshine friends as long as he had plenty to spend. But when that spending power gave out, his friends had gone. "And there arose a mighty famine in that country and he began to be in wont." He did not even have anything to eat. And he joined himself to a citizen to get something to eat. "And he went and joined himself to one of the citizens of the country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine." He reaches that point of despair in the field feeding swine. Swine were unclean, under the law. He was a Jew and he could not have had a more degraded thing to do, than to be sent to the fields to feed the swine. But the swine field or the swine pen is nothing new. It is always been around, and anyone who wants to go into the far country can go into the far country and end up in the swine pen if they want to! "And no man gave unto him. But when he came to himself, he said how many hired servants of my Father's house have bread enough and to spare, and I perish here with hunger." Any child of God who goes back into the world is beside himself/herself. Why would anyone want to leave the Father's house and go back into the world? And thus it says, when he came to himself. So a man is beside himself as long as he has that spirit of wanting to be in the far country, but he came to himself, but what a sad thing it is that most of those who leave the church stay in a lost condition in the far country, the world. So it is a wonderful thing that he came to himself. Most of the people who leave the church today do not repent and return to the Father's house as this prodigal son did. "But when he came to himself he said, how many hired servants of my Father's house have bread enough and to spare., and I perish here with hunger." He makes a wonderful decision with the right spirit. "I will arise and go to my father and will say unto my father, I have sinned against heaven and in thy sight. I am no more worthy to be called thy son: Make me as one of thy hired servants." That good and humble thinking is real and it shows genuine repentance on the part of this prodigal son. I am not worthy. I have sinned. I am not worthy to be called thy son, just make me as one of thy hired servants! "And he arose, and came to his father."

The father did not force him to stay at home, but notice that the father has been concerned about him. He has wanted him to return, and he sees him coming afar off, and he is moved with compassion and ran to meet him. Let us not forget that we serve a loving and compassionate God. "But while he was yet afar off, his father saw him, and was moved with compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him. And the son said unto him, Father." Notice he does not change his spirit from verse eighteen. He sees that the father has received him gladly, but the son still has that humble spirit. I am not worthy to be called thy son. "And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, I am no more worthy to be called thy son. But the father said to his servants, Bring forth quickly the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet." Do you think he came home barefooted? So put the best on him. Bring quickly the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet, and bring the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and make merry, for this my son was dead. Dead how? Spiritually dead. And anytime a child of God leaves the father's house, the church, and goes the way of the world, then his sins separate him from God. He was lost but now he is found! He had returned to his Father's house, and so he was found, in a saved condition again. "And they began to be merry. Now his elder son was in the field: And as he came and drew nigh to the house, he heard music and dancing. And he called to him one of the servants."

Look at the bad spirit of this elder brother. "And he called to him one of the servants, and inquired what these things might be. And he said unto him, Thy brother is come; and thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he had received him safe and sound. But he was angry, and would not go in: And his father came out, and entreated him. But he answered and said to his father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee, and I neither transgressed a commandment of thine: Yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends. But when this thy son came, who hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou killest for him a fatted calf. And he said unto him, Son, thou art ever with me, and all that is mine is thine. But it was meet to make merry, and be glad: For this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found." And I see that our time is up. (A brief recess was taken.)

It is time for us to begin with this last period of this Class Session. And I believe we are going to be able to briefly give the meaning of the parables here in the gospel of Luke and this will conclude our last Class Session for this course. But I would like to call attention to this parable before we go to the one about the unrighteous steward in the next chapter. Notice the bad attitude of this elder brother. He was not at all happy. He called the servants and wanted to know what was taking place, and when he learned, it made him mad. Verse twenty‑eight says, "But he was angry, and would not go in." But notice that good spirit of his father. His father came out and entreated him. But notice what he has to say. "Lo, these many years do I serve thee, and have neither transgressed a commandment of thine." You know that is a lie. Even if it was just an earthly father that would not be true, What adult never did disobey a father's command. But he has that self‑righteous spirit like the Pharisees had. "And yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends." Going back, the father divided unto them his living, verse twelve. And, of course, he had received a greater inheritance than that younger son. But still he is not satisfied, because that fatted calf has been killed and there is rejoicing. "But when this thy son came." He is not my brother! And how foolish it is that you are doing this. "This thy son came, who hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou killeth for him the fatted calf." And it is very probable the prodigal son had devoured that inheritance with harlots. Harlots were surely in that far country and thousands are in the far country today. "And he said unto him, Son thou art ever with me, and all that is mine is thine." He had divided to them his living. "But it was meet to make merry, and be glad: For this thy brother was dead." He was lost in sin. "And is alive again; and was lost, and is found." It looks like to me unless the father made a real impression on this elder brother that the parable closes with the elder brother being in a lost condition. And do you suppose that that may have been one reason why that younger son wanted to leave home? I think surely it is possible that you could have a man in the church with such a bad spirit toward a brother that it might have some influence on causing him to leave the church. Of course, it should not, but it might. But, anyway, God is a compassionate God. He does not want a single child to leave his house, the church. But if they do and they are willing to repent, he is compassionate and ready to receive them again. But as I stated, it is such a sad thing that most of those who become indifferent about attending the services of the church and get wrapped up in the way of the world, as Jesus said as recorded by Luke, “the cares and the riches of this world and the pleasures of this life choke out the word so that they become untruthful.”

Now, we are ready to read the parable of the unrighteous steward. And the trust of this parable is that we are to take the unrighteous mammon and do good with the unrighteous mammon. And by so doing, we will be serving the Lord well. But if we are like the covetous farmer and try to use everything for ourselves, then we are covetous and end up like that farmer did. "And he said unto the disciples." So this parable is given to the disciples, but there are Pharisees that are listening. "And he said unto the disciples, There was a certain rich man, who had a steward." A steward is one in charge of another's possessions. And we need to remember that we are but stewards of everything, of our time and our abilities, our energy of our money and everything. We do not really possess anything, for “the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof,” and we are but stewards of what God has given us, and our stewardship will not last very long. But we are going to have to give an account of our stewardship. "And the same was accused unto him that he was wasting his goods." So this steward was a dishonest steward. He was wasting his master’s goods. All of us need to ask ourselves, “What am I doing with my master’s goods. Everything belongs to God and he is just letting us use it for a little time, and that little time is not a New York minute in comparison to eternity.

The rich man tells him that I am going to put you out. You will no longer be my steward because you are dishonest. "And he called him and said unto him, What is this that I hear of thee? Render the account of thy stewardship; for thou can be no longer a steward." I am taking away your job. I am going to get me another steward. Well, notice what this dishonest and wicked steward decided he would do. "And the steward said within himself, What shall I do? Seeing that my Lord taketh away my stewardship from me. I have not strength to dig; to beg I am ashamed." He was probably too lazy to dig. But, anyway, he reasoned what am I going to do that I may have something when I am put out of my stewardship. "I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, that they may receive me into their houses. And calling to him each one of his Lord's debtors he said to the first, How much owest thou unto my Lord? And he said, a hundred measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy bond, and sit down quickly, and write fifty." So he discounted his debt in half from a hundred measures of oil to fifty measures of oil. "Then said he to another, And how much owest thou? And he said, a hundred measures of wheat. And he saith unto him, Take thy bond, and write fourscore. And his Lord commended the unrighteous steward, because he hath done wisely." Done wisely from the standpoint of this world in that he is looking out for the future. So by discounting the rich man's servant's debts, they will receive him into their houses and take care of him after he is put out of his stewardship. And now the Lord does not say that the man has done right, but he is commending him for looking out for the things of this life.

And then notice the instruction, verse eight, the latter part is very important. "And the Lord commended the unrighteous steward, because he had done wisely: For the sons of this world are for their own generation wiser than the sons of light." What is the meaning of the latter part of verse eight? The sons of this world. Who are the sons of this world? Those that are living for the here and the now. Seven times in the book of Revelation, those of the world are referred to as, “they that dwell upon the earth.” (Revelation 3:10, 6:10, 8:13, 13:8 13:14,17:1-2, 17:6). And when you read all seven of those references together it is very plain that the statement is talking about the unrighteous, those that are living for the here and the now. And that is what this passage is speaking of, “for the sons of this world are for their own generation.” And what does that mean? That would be for this life, which is very short. And from that standpoint, if it just depended on this generation or this life, they would be wiser than the sons of life. Why? They look out for the future, and they try to invest so that they will have something for their old age. But so many times members of the kingdom of God are not investing in the kingdom of God like they ought to be. "I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends by means of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when it shall fail, they may receive you into the eternal tabernacles." First notice that Jesus speaks of money as the mammon of unrighteousness. And you need to keep that statement in mind. If I see directly, and I believe I do, that would parallel the statement of the apostle Peter to elders of the church when he said that they were to take heed to the flock and not for filthy lucre's sake but of a ready mind. And in Titus one, which gives the qualification of elders, an elder is not to go after filthy lucre. But in the parallel in I Timothy three, he is not to be a lover of money. So the scriptures speak of money as the mammon of unrighteousness or filthy lucre, filthy money because so many people use money and have a great desire for money in the wrong way. And it is the mammon of unrighteousness in I Timothy chapter six that the “love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.” There is not any kind of evil that somebody will not do for money, and it is spoken of as a mammon of unrighteousness or filthy lucre, filthy money, because so much of it goes for those wrong motives and wrong things.

Luke 16:9, “And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends, by means of the mammon of unrighteousness that when it shall fail, they may receive ye into the eternal tabernacles." What is the meaning of verse nine? It would be the same thing as Paul is talking about in his letter to Timothy when he told Timothy to tell those rich brethren in the church at Ephesus that they put not their “trust in uncertain riches but in the living God who giveth us richly all things to enjoy, that they do good, ready to distribute, willing to communicate, laying up for themselves a good foundation against the time to come.” It would be the same thing that Jesus is talking about in the Sermon on the Mount when he says, lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven. When we take our material resources and do the work of the church and help the needy, then we are laying up for ourselves treasures in heaven. And as stated here, make good use of that mammon of unrighteousness, that when it shall fail, they may receive you into the eternal tabernacles. And in that sense that when we help them, that is counted by God as an investment in heaven. Remember Matthew 25:40, “In as ye did it unto the least of these my disciples, ye did unto me.” Now notice. "He that is faithful in a very little, is faithful also in much. And he that is unrighteous in very little is unrighteousous also in much." Sometimes there are those that excuse themselves on the basis that I do not make but this small income each week or each month or I am just on Social Security or I have got just this little pension to live on. Well, the Lord expects a man to be faithful in the very little. And sometimes, some will reason if I was like this brother over here, making sixty‑five thousand dollars a year, I would be a good giver too, if I made that much. Well, the Lord says, if you are not being a good giver already, you would not be. He says he that is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much, and he that is unrighteous in the very little is unrighteous also in much. So what are you doing with the mammon of unrighteousness? Are you very careful how you use it? Are you learning how to live in such a way that you do not have to fare sumptuously every day? Do you live in a very conservative way, so that you will have more to invest in the kingdom of God? Now, those are important questions, and I hope you will work in such a way that you can say, “Yes, I am not going to spend everything on myself. I am going to be liberal whether it be little or much.” And remember the Lord has promised, “he that soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.” If a man is very liberal in his giving to the Lord, then the Lord will see to it that that man has more. Many have put the Lord to the test to prove that, and found that God keeps his promises (Malachi 3:7-12; Luke 6:38; II Corinthians 8:24; 9:-11). And do you remember in the days of Malachi when they were reasoning that we are not going to bring the full tithe into the store house. We will not have enough. And the Lord said to the prophet Malachi, will a man rob God? But ye say wherein do we rob thee? He says in tithes and offerings. And he challenged them by saying, bring in the full tithe that there may be bread in my house. And prove me herewith, and see if I will not open unto you the windows of heaven, and pour ye out a blessing that ye will not be able to receive it. And remember the Lord can and he hath promised to pour out blessings to those who give cheerfully and liberally, giving with that good and right spirit as stated in II Corinthians nine. God loveth a cheerful giver. And he is going to bless those cheerful givers.

Luke 16:11, "If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?" And that would be those true riches are in God, and the ultimate would be heaven at last. So how are you going to have true riches at the end of the way, if you don't use the unrighteous mammon in the right way. "Therefore." Referring to what had been said. If a man is faithful in very little, he is faithful in much. If he is unrighteous in very little, he is unrighteous in much. "Therefore if ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another's." And, again, everything belongs to God. We're just stewards. "Who will give you that which is your own? No man can serve two masters: For either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon." There are many that want to go the way of being religious and go the way of the world at the same time. They want to have all the worldly things and are not concerned about the needs of the others. They just want to spend everything on themselves. But the Lord says that no man can straddle the fence. You cannot serve God and mammon. And we have to make a choice. Please let that choice be the right choice. "And the Pharisees, who were lovers among money, heard all these things: And they scoffed at him." And there are still those that scoff. When a preacher preaches a good sermon on giving, sometimes in the church, there will be a few who will make fun of the preacher who preaches good Bible lessons on how that we are to learn to give cheerfully and liberally to do the Lord's will.

There is another parable in Luke chapter sixteen. Well, I am not sure it is a parable. It is spoken of as a certain man, and a beggar named Lazarus. So the story of the Rich Man and Lazarus, Luke sixteen beginning with verse nineteen. "Now there was a certain rich man, and he was clothed in purple and fine linen." Those were the most expensive garments of that day. The die for purple was obtained from shellfish, and it was a very tedious and expensive process. And those who were clothed in purple, only the rich and those in high authority could wear such garments. But notice it is not just occasionally that he is clothed in purple and has a feast occasionally, but he is clothed in purple and fine linen faring sumptuously every day. So every day is a great day. Feast in every day. And it is all right for any of us to enjoy a feast occasionally, but none of us need to feast every day. "And a certain beggar named Lazarus was laid at his gate, full of sores. And desiring to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man's table: Yea, even the dogs came and licked his sores." So the canine family showed poor Lazarus more compassion than the rich man did. The rich man did not see to it that the sores of Lazarus were properly cared for. He probably did not mind them carrying the crumbs from his table to Lazarus, but he did not put forth any special effort whatever to be interested and to help Lazarus. And see Lazarus was in such condition that he could not even go to the gate of the rich man, he had to be carried. And a certain beggar named Lazarus was laid at his gate. "Full of sores, hoping to be fed with crumbs from the rich man's table." The dogs showed him some compassion. They came and licked his sores. "And it came to pass, that the beggar died." And we are made to wonder, at least I am, from that statement if Lazarus even had a funeral. It does not say anything about him having a funeral. "And it came to pass, that the beggar died." But he had something far, far better. "And was carried away by the angels into Abraham's bosom: And the rich man also died, and was buried." You know that the multitudes turned out for that rich man's funeral and all the praise they gave him. All you have to do is just listen to the way the news media ia ready to praise some men today. They can really praise those who have gained in great wealth and great prominence in doing the wrong thing. They can really praise them when they pass on. You know that there was a lot of pomp and ceremony at that rich man's funeral, but the rich man couldn't enjoy it. His soul had left his body, and he was being tormented while they were having his funeral. "And the rich man also died and was buried: And in Hades." That is that unseen world where people go between this life and the second advent of Christ. "And in Hades he lifted up his eyes being in torments." He is in that bad place in Hades. He is where the devil and his angels are. "And in Hades, he lifted up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom." This is one of the passages that teaches that there will be no second chance after death. And there are many like passages in both the Old Testament and the New which teach that when the soul leaves the body of a man, his destiny is already sealed. "And seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried, and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am anguish in this flame. But Abraham said, Son remember." Notice that this indicates that the rich man was supposed to have been a child of God. Remember according to the Old Testament religion when a child was born to a Jewish family, he would automatically be a part of the commonwealth of Israel. And so he speaks of Abraham as his father. And Abraham speaks of him as his son. So he was supposed to have been a child of God, but he was everything but a faithful child of God. "And he cried and said, Father, Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am in anguish in this flame. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receiveth thy good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things: But now here he is comforted, and thou art in anguish." So things were certainly reversed when the soul left the body for these two individuals. The rich man had fared sumptuously every day, and every day was a cruel day as we count it for poor Lazarus. But now things are reversed. Now, here he is comforted and thou art in anguish. "And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed." And verse twenty‑six shows that there is no second chance after death. "There is a great gulf fixed: That they that would pass from hence to you may not be able; and that none may crossover from thence to us. Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him back to my father's house." The rich man becomes evangelistic too late. And he did not want his brothers to end up in this place of torment. He does not want his brothers to end up in the same place that he has ended up. You know there are some that reason my parents died with this religion, and if they have gone to the wrong place, I am still going to hold onto this religion, the religion of my parents. But if they have gone to the wrong place, they do not want you to go to the wrong place as taught in this. And this rich man tormented in the flame does not want his brothers to come to that terrible place.

Luke 16:27, "And he said, I pray thee therefore father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house: For I have five brethren." They must have been living somewhat on the order that he had lived, because he knew that they were in a lost condition, but he did not want them to come there. "For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. But Abraham said, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: But if one go to them from the dead, they will repent." Notice Abraham's answer. He said unto him, "If they will not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, one rise from the dead." And that still holds. Every person that will not hear what the Lord is saying, even if people should return from the dead and come back and warn them, they still would be disobedient.

Luke 17:7, Next the short parable of the servant, and how that we are unprofitable servants. And this short parable is given because the apostles had said to the Lord increase our faith. And picking up with verse seven, Jesus gives a short parable to first increase the apostles faith and now to increase our faith. "But who is there of you, having a servant plowing or keeping sheep, that will say unto him, when he is come in from the field, Come straightway and sit down to meat? And will not rather say unto him, Make ready wherewith I may sup." In other words, prepare my meal and let me eat first. "Gird thyself, and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink? Doth he thank the servant because he did the things that were commanded." That is what the servant was supposed to do. "Even so ye also when ye have done all the things that are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: We have done that which was our duty to do." And as I have already mentioned, we need to keep this before us. In the first place, most of us are not so good to keep all the commandments. But if we did, if we are absolutely doing everything that the Lord has instructed us to do, we are still unprofitable servants, and the debt of sin is still an unpayable debt. And we just need to every day to have that real spirit of recognition that we at best are unprofitable servants. We are unprofitable servants. We have done only that which it was our duty to do. The next parable we have not read. We read the parable of the widow woman and the unjust judge.

Luke 18:9, But now the parable of the Pharisee and the publican. Notice Jesus spake this parable because of that self‑righteous attitude of the Pharisees. "And he spake also this parable unto certain who trusted in themselves, that they were righteous, and set all others at nought." There are still quite a few of those fellows around, that they just look at others and reason how much better am I than that person. And so the Pharisee stands in the temple and prays to the Lord, look at me as to what a great person I am. "Two men went up into the temple to pray. And one a Pharisee and the other a publican." And remember how the Jewish people despised those publicans or those tax collectors. "The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself." When a man has a holy and self‑righteous spirit, that is what he is doing when he prays, he is praying thus with himself. God is not going to hear the prayer of such a selfish unrighteous man. "The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as the rest of men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I get." And so he just feels like he is so righteous and so acceptable before the Lord, and he is saying in his prayers, Lord, look what a great servant you have. But he is everything but a servant of the Lord. "But the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote his breast, saying, God be thou merciful to me a sinner." So notice the spirit of the publican. He is ashamed of his condition. He would not so much as lift up his eyes unto heaven, but smote his breast saying, God be thou merciful to me a sinner. And surely we ought to learn from verse thirteen that a prayer does not have to be very long for it to avail with God, because the prayer of the publican availed. “God be thou merciful to me, a sinner.” I do not believe it could get much shorter than that. "I say unto you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: For every one that exalteth himself shall be humbled; but he that humbleth himself shall be exalted."

Luke 19:11ff, We are ready to go to the Parable Of The Pounds as recorded in Luke nineteen beginning with verse eleven. And notice that this parable is given to people that are expecting the kingdom to be immediate, and, of course, expecting an immediate earthly kingdom. But picking up with 19:11, "And as they heard these things, he added and spake a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was immediately to appear." There are a number of references which shows that they are expecting the kingdom of God to be an earthly kingdom and for Christ to take them out from under the authority of the Roman government. "He said therefore even the disciples were expecting that. He said therefore a nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return." And who is that nobleman that is going into a far country? And a nobleman would be a king, right, or the son of the king? It is referring to Christ. He is going into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom. And do you remember the words as recorded in the seventh chapter of the book of Daniel, how that he saw one ascend to the Ancient of days, to receive a kingdom. That occurred when Christ ascended back to God. Reading from Daniel chapter seven verses thirteen and fourteen, "And I saw in the night visions and, behold, there came with the clouds of heaven, one like unto the Son of man." And did not I give you a sheet of quotations in Matthew's gospel, where thirty times in that just one gospel book that Christ refers to himself as the Son of man. And so Daniel sees in night visions, going into the clouds of heaven, one liken unto the Son of man. And he came even to the Ancient of days. Of course, that would be God. "And they brought him near before him. And there was given unto him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all the people, nations, and languages should serve him: His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed." Think of verse fourteen and compare it with Ephesians 1:19 and the verses that follow. So Christ has received that kingdom. And he has that dominion and glory, and he is over all peoples and nations and tongues, and his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, which shall not pass away. And his kingdom is that which shall not be destroyed. You see how the nobleman is Christ, he is going to go away to receive a kingdom and to return. "And he called ten servants of his and gave them ten pounds and said unto them, trade ye herewith till I come." Now, this parable is very similar to the parable of the talents. But it is a different parable. "But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not that this man reign over us." And that represents again the Jewish people. The leaders of the Jewish people hated Christ and put him to death. We are not going to have this man reign over us. "And it came to pass, when he was come back again, having received the kingdom, that he commanded these servants unto whom he had given the money, to be called to him that he might know what they had gained by trading. And the first came before him saying, Lord, thy pound hath made ten pounds more. And he said unto him, Well done, thou good servant: Because thou was found faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities. And the second came, saying, Lord, thy pound hath made five pounds. And he said likewise to him, Be thou also over five cities. And another came, saying, Lord, behold, here is thy pound, which I kept laid up in a napkin." And, again, like the parable of the talents, he didn't use what the Lord gave him. "For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man. I takest up that which thou layest not down, and reapest where thou didst not sow. He saith unto him, Out of thine own mouths will I judge thee, thou wicked servant." So he judged like the one‑talent man in Matthew twenty‑five. "Thou knewest that I am an austere man, taking up which I had laid not down, and reaping that which I did not sow. Wherefore." Because I am such a hard judge. You said I am, why didn't you at least put my money to the bank. "Then wherefore gavest not thou my money into the bank, and I at my coming should have received it with interest? And he said unto them that stood by, Take away from him the pound, and give it to him that hath the ten pounds. And they said Lord, he hath ten pounds. I say unto you, That unto every one that hath shall be given: But from him that hath not, even that which he hath shall be taken away from him." And that principle, that whatever the Lord has given us, if we use it well, it will be increased. If we do not use it, then we will lose what we have. And the same principle is taught in that parable of the talents in Matthew twenty‑five. "But these mine enemies, that would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me." And when he had thus spoken, he went on before, going up to Jerusalem. So that concludes our study for this Class Session. This is the last Class Session for this course. I surely do hope that you have enjoyed and profited from our study of the Gospels. And I would like to remind you that we have pretty well read and discussed at least briefly all four of the gospel books. Thank you for your good attention.