Luke 3:1-14

Luke  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  34:19
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Introduction

Good morning!
(missed you - vacation - hope you missed me)
When you think of the preaching of John the Baptist, what comes to mind?...
What was his central message?
(Repentance)
Why do you suppose that message is largely absent today?
People will not often tolerate being told
what to do
or
that they are wrong or in sin
We will see in a few minutes that John gathers a good crowd and then calls them a brood of vipers...
I don’t know that you will read about that technique in a book on church growth.
Many of us have become scared to tell people that they have a problem.
(Cancer patient who is willing to take chemo only after understanding they are sick)
(Man will wear a parachute if he understands he will have to jump from the plane)
There is no understanding the gospel without understanding sin and repentance.
==
How do we share that message without sounding “holier than thou”?
We need the following attitude...
I was a viper too.
I had fangs that delivered death in my mouth too.
By God’s grace, I have been forgiven and transformed into a new creature.
Now I have the words of life in my mouth.
Let me share them with you.
==
What we must not do is remove talk of sin and repentance.
That is not telling the cancer patient that they are sick or the passenger on the plane that the plane is going down so as to avoid causing them stress or discomfort.
That is ultimately evil.
We are not sparing them or being kind if we lose this message.
Please read with me the first 14 verses of Luke chapter 3.
Luke 3:1–14 ESV
1 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, 2 during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness. 3 And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 4 As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 5 Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall become straight, and the rough places shall become level ways, 6 and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’ ” 7 He said therefore to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. 9 Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” 10 And the crowds asked him, “What then shall we do?” 11 And he answered them, “Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.” 12 Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?” 13 And he said to them, “Collect no more than you are authorized to do.” 14 Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what shall we do?” And he said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages.”
==
In verse 2 we read that...

The Word of God came.

Let’s snap out of the apathy that grows with familiarity and think about that statement.
The Word of God came.
I know that most of us, probably all of us, would say that we believe the Bible is the Word of God.
I also know that we can often be comfortable operating in logical inconsistency.
But...
Let’s try to mess up your comfort by thinking together for a moment.
If we really believe that the Bible is the Word of God, how can we possibly neglect its reading??
Those of you who neglect the regular reading and study of the Word fall into at least one of these categories.
You don’t really believe that it is the Word of God.
You don’t care what God says.
You think you already know it all.
You do believe it is the Word of God, and you care what he says, but you operate day to day in an irrational and logically inconsistent manner.
I hope most of you who do not regularly read and study your bible fall into category #4.
Let this be your wake up call.
Forget about your various excuses - you know they are all lame.
If you think you have a good excuse to ignore the Word, I encourage you to explain it to God.
As you pray you will see how pitiful your excuse sounds.
==
Allow me to say a word about Bible study.
Bible study does not mean reading a commentary by someone who studied their bible.
It means slowing down long enough to understand what the original author was saying to his original audience.
Then considering how the message being conveyed applies to you.
Then actually applying it to your life.
That is what I try to do every sermon.
Pay attention and you can learn some things about Bible study.
Here is what not to do.
==
I heard a sermon recently...
I am going to use different details to not allow anyone to know what sermon or preacher I am referring to.
Here is a very similar type of outline.
Matthew 27:5 ESV
5 And throwing down the pieces of silver into the temple, he departed, and he went and hanged himself.
Don’t hang around the wrong people.
LEAD you into temptation.
LIE to you.
Cause your LOYALTY to Jesus to waver.
If the speaker is charismatic enough, unfortunately most folks in the audience will think they heard a sermon from the Bible.
That is not Bible study.
That is “I want to give a moral lesson and I figure I should stick a bible verse in to make it sound more like a sermon.”
I beg you to be discerning enough to know the difference!
I need to stop chasing that rabbit and get back to my text.
Let’s learn though, that the BIBLE is what we need.
Please read it.
Please study it.
Please listen to real preaching.
==
Notice with me that the Word of God came in a real setting.
Time
Place
NOT once upon a time.
Luke was a meticulous historian.
His witness is reliable.
==
The Word came to the faithful, not the famous.
Came to John, not Caesar.
Don’t get too hyped up when a famous person says something vaguely Christian.
Because you will be overly disappointed when cancel culture gets to them and they apologize the next day.
I rejoice over anyone who truly comes to faith, but as we saw a couple of weeks ago, God normally uses ordinary folks to do extraordinary things.

The Word of God calls for repentance.

Luke 3:3 ESV
3 And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
What is repentance?
Unconditional Surrender
God on throne - not you
John MacArthur
Repentance is not merely behavior reform. But because true repentance involves a change of heart and purpose, it inevitably results in a change of behavior.
Like faith, repentance has intellectual, emotional, and volitional ramifications. Louis Berkhof describes the intellectual element of repentance as "a change of view, a recognition of sin as involving personal guilt, defilement, and helplessness." The emotional element is "a change of feeling, manifesting itself in sorrow for sin committed against a holy God." The volitional element is "a change of purpose, an inward turning away from sin, and a disposition to seek pardon and cleansing." (Berkhof, Systematic Theology, 486) Each of those three elements is deficient apart from the others. Repentance is a response of the total person; therefore some speak of it as total surrender.
So, to keep it simple, but accurate, let’s go with unconditional surrender because I think we can all understand and remember that.
Have you repented?
Have you unconditionally surrendered?
Forsake assembly? Give sacrificially? Regard others more highly? Love neighbor as self?
Do I do all that perfectly? NO
Difference though between the decisions at the kitchen table and in the moment things.
After genuine repentance - still wrestle with sin because of the old nature.
then WRESTLE - don’t just lie there limply while sin pins you to the mat.
One reason I need the fellowship of other believers in the church is sometimes I need help in that wrestling match - I need to tag somebody to come help me!
==
Repentance is the first thing.
Luke 3:4–6 ESV
4 As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 5 Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall become straight, and the rough places shall become level ways, 6 and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’ ”
Repentance is where salvation begins - at least on your side of the equation.
The Bible tells us that God foreknew, predestined, and called the elect.
But that is his business that we do not get to observe.
Understanding our sin and guilt is the preparatory work for salvation.
That is why Way of the Master is such a great way to share the gospel.
It first shows people the problem (which is their sin and rebellion in light of God’s holiness and justice) and then shows them the solution (the finished work of Jesus that can be applied to them through faith).
It really is that simple.
You do not need a degree in theology in order to witness.
Show people the problem that they may not be aware of - then show them the solution they desperately need.
A gospel without repentance is a different gospel from that of John the Baptist, Jesus, and the apostles.
It produces churches with carnal rather than spiritual people.
Like John prepared the way for Jesus, an understanding of sin and repentance prepares the way for the good news of the gospel.

The Word of God warns us.

Judgment is coming.
Luke 3:7 ESV
7 He said therefore to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?
Luke 3:17 ESV
17 His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
Not only is judgment coming, but you need to flee that judgment.
Isn’t that a compelling reason to tell your neighbor?
They may not know anything is coming or that they need to flee it.
Leaving people in comfortable ignorance is not loving.
(remind them of guy who wants to go to hell with his uncle - felt heartbroken for him)
Should rejection deter the witness? - Jesus said
Luke 10:16 ESV
16 “The one who hears you hears me, and the one who rejects you rejects me, and the one who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”
You are the least of these!

The Word of God produces fruit in the life of a believer.

Repentance is action.
Luke 3:8 ESV
8 Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham.
Luke 3:11–14 ESV
11 And he answered them, “Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.” 12 Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?” 13 And he said to them, “Collect no more than you are authorized to do.” 14 Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what shall we do?” And he said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages.”
v.8 Bear fruit - don’t just talk
v.11 share
v.13 collect no more than
v.14 do not extort money
If your religion does not impact your actions you have a worthless religion.
2 wrong ideas regarding works and salvation
works produce salvation
works have nothing to do with salvation
truth = salvation (which includes repentance) produces good works
If works had no role in the Christian life, Jesus would not have said that we tell folks by their fruits.
Matthew 7:15–20 ESV
15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 16 You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. 18 A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.
Fruit is proof of life.
Luke 3:9 ESV
9 Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”
Why? - Because it is dead!
Examine yourself and see if there are signs of spiritual life.
If not, you do not need to put more energy into faking it, you need life.

What do we do?

I like to ask that question at the end of sermons, and it turns out John’s listeners had the same question.
Luke 3:10 ESV
10 And the crowds asked him, “What then shall we do?”
Luke 3:12 ESV
12 Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?”
Luke 3:14 ESV
14 Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what shall we do?” And he said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages.”
If you are here today and are not saved it is almost certainly because you have not repented.
If you want Jesus as your savior, you must also want Jesus as your master.
Do you?
Would you surrender to him unconditionally?
Or are there areas where you want to remain on the throne?
Of course I do not mean perfect obedience all the time or we would all be disqualified.
But...
Who is the boss?
You or God?
What about with your time?
What about with your money?
What about with your sexual relationships?
We need total, unconditional surrender.
If you have never done that, let me invite you to do so today.
Invitation
Salvation
Membership
Prayer
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