Father God, I love You and thank You and hope this touches someone’s heart today in Jesus Precious Name Amen.
Definition of copyright: the exclusive legal right, given to an originator or an assignee to print, publish, perform, film, or record literary, artistic, or musical material, and to authorize others to do the same.
Wow! When I think of this, no one could ever steal God’s copyright. I know with my voice not being the best it could be. I sang “Does Anybody Hear Her” by Casting Crowns on a live video and Facebook stopped it from playing, because It was not my copyright. That’s fine. I love my songwriters, musicians and Casting Crowns is one of my favorites. I can name them all if I took the time. I remember singing in the choir. We had one elderly man who sang opera at the church I grew up in. First Baptist Church. Haverhill, Massachusetts. I loved his singing and always tried to copy him. He would smile. I would tell him I loved his singing. Good memories. Let me say let God keep blessing our musicians. They are the ones that keep us praising God in the good times and the bad. Amen.
But doesn’t God stop us in a way that we can not continue down a bad road. God says turn back to me. Get back on my right road.
Lets read Luke 4:14-30: And you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
“The Parable of the Great Banquet”
When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, “Blessed is the one who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.” Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’ “Another said, ‘I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.’ “Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’ “The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’ “‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’ “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full. I tell you, not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’”
“The Cost of Being a Disciple”
Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, even their own life, such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’
Lets look into Luke 4:14 -30 we will grip on God’s copyright:
Luke 4 In Verses17-19: Jesus reads from Isaiah which speaks about the arrival of the Messiah (Isaiah 61:1-2 it reads: The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn) and stops before reading the portion about judgment of God. Which means that the main purpose of Jesus’ first coming is to bring good news, care for the poor, liberation of the captives (John 8:36, So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. ) (Matthew 11:30: For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” ), life (John 10:10: The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
( 2 Timothy 1:10: But it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. ), healing (1 Peter 2:24; “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” ) ( Luke 6:18; who had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. Those troubled by impure spirits were cured,), deliverance (Matthew 12:22-23; “Jesus and Beelzebul” Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see. All the people were astonished and said, “Could this be the Son of David?” )
(Luke 18:35; “A Blind Beggar Receives His Sight” As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. )( Matthew 8:16;When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to Jesus, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. ) and forgiveness of sin (John 20:23; If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.” )(1 John 1:7-9; But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. )(1 John 2:12; I am writing to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name. )( Colossians 1:14; In whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Second part of Isaiah’s prophecy speaks of the Messiah bringing righteous vengeance of God. but it will happen only at the second coming of Jesus (Revelation 19:11-16; The Heavenly Warrior Defeats the Beast I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter. He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: Copyright ©”king of kings and lord of lords”. )
Luke 4 Verse 21-22 : Jesus implied that He is the one about whom Isaiah spoke and the prophecy has fulfilled. The people around reacted with a combination of amazement and doubt, sometimes even his own family (John 7:3-5; Jesus’ brothers said to him, “Leave Galilee and go to Judea, so that your disciples there may see the works you do. No one who wants to become a public figure acts in secret. Since you are doing these things, show yourself to the world.” For even his own brothers did not believe in him. )(Mark 3:21; When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.” ).
People often looked at the background of Jesus and resisted to believe that Jesus could really be the Messiah (John 1:46; Philip told Nathanael about Jesus who Moses’ wrote about: “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked. )(John6:42; They said, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I came down from heaven’?” )(John 7:52; They replied, “Are you from Galilee, too? Look into it, and you will find that a prophet does not come out of Galilee. ”Over the course of this chapter, Jesus provokes rumor, discussion, and eventually argument among the people. The division caused by Jesus’ words will even extend to the religious leaders themselves. Nicodemus, the same man who spoke with Jesus in chapter 3, will make an appeal for due process. In response, his peers ridicule him and reject his suggestion. This makes chapter 7 a crucial passage for understanding the Pharisees, in particular. Their example is a warning about how arrogance, ignorance, and tradition can cause spiritual blindness.).
Luke 4 Verse 23-24: Jews demanded Jesus to show more miracles, signs and to prove himself (John 6:30; So they asked him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? ) (Mark 8:11; The Pharisees came and began to question Jesus. To test him, they asked him for a sign from heaven.)( Luke 11:16: Others tested him by asking for a sign from heaven. ). They ignored miracles that were seen in front of them and demanded more, which is stubbornness (Romans 1:18-20; “God’s Wrath Against Sinful Humanity” The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. )
( John 5:39-40; You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life. ) and Jesus declined such demands (Matthew 16:4; A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Jesus then left them and went away. ). As per the Jewish leaders, the Messiah’s arrival would be mysterious (John 7:27; But we know where this man is from; when the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from.” ) and Jesus is merely the son of Mary and Joseph (Matthew 13:55; “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? ).
Luke 4 Verse 25-26: Jesus points out that Israel has not always listened to God’s messengers and were stubborn. So God had sent those messengers to the gentiles and made miracles happen. Prophet Elijah during a severe drought was sent outside of Israel to perform miracles (1 Kings 17:14–16; For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the land.’” She went away and did as Elijah had told her. So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family. For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the Lord spoken by Elijah. )(1 Kings 17: 22–24; The Lord heard Elijah’s cry, and the boy’s life returned to him, and he lived. Elijah picked up the child and carried him down from the room into the house. He gave him to his mother and said, “Look, your son is alive!” Then the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the Lord from your mouth is the truth.” ).
The second example was Elisha and Naaman. Naaman was a gentile, commander of the Syrian army, who had attacked Israel. Despite this, Naaman became the first person healed of leprosy. Rather than bringing a healing to an Israelite, God bestowed it on a gentile (2 Kings 5:1–14; “Naaman Healed of Leprosy” Now Naaman was commander of the army of the king of Aram. He was a great man in the sight of his master and highly regarded, because through him the Lord had given victory to Aram. He was a valiant soldier, but he had leprosy. Now bands of raiders from Aram had gone out and had taken captive a young girl from Israel, and she served Naaman’s wife. She said to her mistress, “If only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.” Naaman went to his master and told him what the girl from Israel had said. “By all means, go,” the king of Aram replied. “I will send a letter to the king of Israel.” So Naaman left, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold and ten sets of clothing. The letter that he took to the king of Israel read: “With this letter I am sending my servant Naaman to you so that you may cure him of his leprosy.” As soon as the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his robes and said, “Am I God? Can I kill and bring back to life? Why does this fellow send someone to me to be cured of his leprosy? See how he is trying to pick a quarrel with me!” When Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his robes, he sent him this message: “Why have you torn your robes? Have the man come to me and he will know that there is a prophet in Israel.” So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha’s house. Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, “Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed.” But Naaman went away angry and said, “I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy. Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Couldn’t I wash in them and be cleansed?” So he turned and went off in a rage. Naaman’s servants went to him and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, ‘Wash and be cleansed’!” So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy. ). Jesus made these examples to defend the people’s demand that He should perform more miracles and signs for them.
Luke 4 Verse 27-28: At that time Israel was rudely oppressed by the Roman Empire (gentiles), so any hint that says God could love gentiles was met with resistance and violence (Acts 22:21–22; “Then the Lord said to me, ‘Go; I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’ ”
“Paul the Roman Citizen” in 22:
The crowd listened to Paul until he said this. Then they raised their voices and shouted, “Rid the earth of him! He’s not fit to live!” ) by the Jews. When Jesus said God would show favor to gentiles with His truth, the people of Nazareth becomes swift and violent and were enraged.
Luke 4 Verse 29-30: The people attempted to kill Jesus many times before the crucifixion (John 8:59; At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds.) ( John 10:39; Again they tried to seize him, but he escaped their grasp. ), but they never succeeded. Only when the determined time had come Jesus allowed Himself to be taken (Matthew 26:45-47; Then he returned to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour has come, and the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners. Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”
“Jesus Arrested”
While he was still speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, arrived. With him was a large crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests and the elders of the people.)
{Lets Pray}
Father God, I stand for You and I believe You are awesome. I thank you and praise You for this glorious freedom of grace that You so freely give. I thank You and praise You that I can have constant communication with You. I thank You and praise You for saving me. You love me so much that You sent the Lord Jesus to be my Savior. Who was wounded and and suffered on my account; to die a cruel horrifying death on my behalf and The Lord Jesus rose again the third day, so that by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus. I have been redeemed from the pit; healed of my wounds; set free from slavery to sin; given a new life in the Lord Jesus and found my rest in Him. I believe I will I live My life in humble dependence upon You day by day. May I never forget Who You are, both in Your Majesty as my Lord and in Your compassion as My Brother. Take pity on those who are dead in their sins and draw many into eternal fellowship with Yourself, through faith in You Lord Jesus. So they can all meet in the sky together all and all. I thank You for making us Your copyright. I love You, thank You, praise You and give You all the honor and glory in Jesus Precious Name Amen.
{Power Verse}
The Word became flesh and made his home among us. We have seen his glory, glory like that of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. John 1:14
"Only Life Changes" 