God’s Kingdom: Salvation and Spiritual Life
1. Purpose of Parables: Call to Respond, Mark 4:1-20
Introduction – the context of Mark 4
I. The purpose of parables – 4:10-12
II. The parable of the soils, 4:1-9, 13-20
III. The challenge of the parables, v.9
2. The Incredible Grace of God, Luke 15:11-32
Introduction – part of a section in Luke centering on the rejection of Jesus by Israel
A. Luke 13-14 – Israel has rejected and needs to repent; Jesus laments over them
B. Luke 15 – Three parables of lost things (lost sheep, lost coin, lost son)
II. The son’s journey into sin and despair, vv.11-16
III. The son’s repentance and return, 15:17-19
IV. His father’s incredible grace and forgiveness, 15:20-24
V. The elder son’s jealous anger, 15:25-32
3. Fools Will Get What They Deserve, Luke 12:13-21; Matt 13:24-30, 36-43
Introduction – The importance of choosing between this world and God
I. The parable of the rich fool, Luke 12:13-21
A. The family dispute over inheritance, 12:13-15
B. The parable of the rich fool, 12:16-20
C. The application – the danger of accumulating earthly but not heavenly riches, 21
II. The parable of the wheat and the weeds, Matt 13:24-30, 36-43
A. The farmer (Jesus) sows good seed (the sons of the kingdom) in his field (the world), 24, 37-38
B. The enemy (the devil) sows bad seed (his followers) in the same field, 25, 38-39
C. The result – The heads of grain at a later stage would appear with leaves, 26-30
D. D. The harvest at the end of the age, 30, 39-43
4. Do not Refuse God’s Invitation, Matt 22:1-14
Introduction – part of debates with Jewish leaders in the temple during the Passion Week
I. The first stage of the wedding banquet, 22:1-7
A. The banquet is prepared, 1-2
B. The invitations are refused, 3-6
II. The second stage of the wedding banquet, 22:8-10
A. The invitations go to anyone on the streets, 8-9
B. The wedding filled with both “bad and good”, 10
III. The inappropriate guest, 22:11-14 The focus shifts to the church
A. The man without wedding clothes, 11-12
B. The punishment – outer darkness, 13
C. Conclusion – many invited but few chosen, 14
5. The Good Shepherd is the Only Gate for the Flock, John 10:1-18
Introduction – This concludes chs.7-9 on the Feast of Tabernacles and prepares for 10:19-39 on Hanukkah; both Jewish feasts looked forward to the coming Messiah
A. John 7-9 showed how Jesus fulfilled the first feast as the source of water (7:37-39) and the light of the world (8:12)
B. 10:19 showed he fulfills the second feast as the Messiah who is Son of God and gives security to his sheep
I. Jesus the shepherd and gate of his flock, 10:1-5
II. First application - Jesus as “the Gate”, 10:6-10
III. Second application – Jesus as the “Good Shepherd”, 10:11-18
6. The Use of All Our Resources for Christ, Luke 16:1-13
Introduction – The result of the parables of Luke 15 regarding the three “lost” things
A. God’s grace has brought us out of our “lost” condition, we deserved nothing
B. Since Christ gave His all for us, we must give our “all” back to Him
I. The parable of the shrewd manager, 16:1-8a
II. Jesus’ interpretation and application, 18:8b-13
A. A shrewd use of worldly wealth, 8b-9
B. Contrast between earthly and heavenly wealth, 10-12
C. Conclusion – we cannot “serve” both God and worldly wealth
7. Forgiveness is Essential to the Christian Life, Matt 18:21-35
Introduction – Matt 18 is the chapter on church discipline
A. In vv.15-18 sin must be challenged and admonished (not judgment but admonition), see Gal 6:1; Heb 3:13
B. In vv. 19-20 Christ promises to be especially present at times of church discipline
C. When the offender repents, the church must forgive them, see 2 Cor 2:5-11
I. The need for forgiveness, 18:21-22 emphasized in 6:12, 14-15 (Lord’s prayer) and 9:2, 6 (Jesus’ authority to forgive)
II. The parable of the unforgiving servant, 18:21-35
A. The king and his slave, 18:23-27
B. The slave and his fellow slave, 18:28-30
C. The king reserses his decision, 18:31-34
D. Conclusion and warning, 18:35
8. We are Responsible to Use All Our Abilities for God, Matt 25:14-30
Introduction – part of the Olivet Discourse on God’s coming wrath
A. Matt 24:1-28 prophecies both the destruction of Jerusalem and the events at the end of history, the Great Tribulation Period
B. Then comes the return of Christ, the gathering of the elect, and judgment
C. The parables that follow – the servant in the household, the ten bridesmaids, the servants with the talents – describe the necessity of being always ready for Christ’s return
D. This parable adds the importance of working for the kingdom
I. Responsibilities given on the basis of ability, 25:14-15
II. The work of each to increase the yield on the money, 25:16-18
III. The settling of accounts with the slaves, 25:19-30
9. The Centrality of Prayer in the Christian Life, Luke 11:1-13
Introduction – part of a section in Luke dealing with relationships
A. Parable of the Good Samaritan (10:25-37) = relationship with others
B. Story of Mary and Martha (10:38-42) = relationship with Christ
C. This passage = relationship with God
I. The model prayer, 11:1-4 (Jesus on another occasion gave a shortened form of that in Matt 6:9-13)
II. The God who answers prayer – parable of the friend at midnight, 11:5-8
III. The promises regarding prayer, 11:9-13 God’s promise to respond (5-8) should cause us to persist in our prayers (found also in Matt 7:7-11)
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