Luke 20 Pretend shepherds versus the real One

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1 One day as Jesus was teaching the people in the temple courts and proclaiming the good news, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, together with the elders, came up to him. 2 “Tell us by what authority you are doing these things,” they said. “Who gave you this authority?”

Great question. If a cop comes up to you they need to show you their badge, that tells you by what authority they are acting as a cop. Teachers also have to be certified. We go through a lot of different tests. We get fingerprinted and there are a number of required professional developments that we must have. We even do the same thing with people who teach the Bible, they go to seminary and get a degree. Apparently the Chief priests had discovered a major weakness in Jesus, He hadn’t been certified to teach the people the Bible.

3 He replied, “I will also ask you a question.

Great response, need to learn this little trick.

Tell me: 4 John’s baptism—was it from heaven, or of human origin?”

Oh snap! The chief priests certification was from man. The thing that made them so proud, walking around in flowing robes, being greeted with respect in the marketplaces and having the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. That certification came from man. But when Jesus was baptized John 1:32 And John bore witness, saying, I beheld the Spirit descending as a dove from heaven, and it abode upon him. 33 And I knew him not; but he who sent me to baptise with water, *he* said to me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending and abiding on him, he it is who baptises with [the] Holy Spirit 34 And I have seen and borne witness that this is the Son of God. Jesus’ certification to preach took place at that Baptism. Was it from heaven or from man? Luke 3:21 And it came to pass, all the people having been baptised, and Jesus having been baptised and praying, that the heaven was opened, 22 and the Holy Spirit descended in a bodily form as a dove upon him; and a voice came out of heaven, *Thou* art my beloved Son, in thee I have found my delight. It is a great question, you should ask this of everyone that wants to represent God. If someone wants to tell you that they are speaking the words of God to you, then by all means find out by what authority they are making this claim.

5 They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Why didn’t you believe him?’ 6 But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ all the people will stone us, because they are persuaded that John was a prophet.” 7 So they answered, “We don’t know where it was from.”

How slimy. This is the perfect illustration of the difference between someone who is really seeking and someone who absolutely refuses to hear God’s word. They weren’t asking the question because they wanted to learn something. This is what is known as a “gotcha question”. It probably works on many people, but when you do this to Jesus you are the one that is exposed.

8 Jesus said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”

This is some Black belt level stuff right here. Learn from Jesus. Imitate Him.

 

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Do you realize that this is the question we are asking today? By what authority is the Senate impeaching a citizen? There authority is from the US Constitution and there is nothing in the US constitution that gives them this authority.

Then, on top of this the trading platforms shut down trading on Gamestop today. By what authority did they do this? Apparently the Whitehouse urged them to do this even though there is no law that would give them this authority.

They attacked Jesus on this point, His authority came from God, it came from God testifying that this is His son, it came from the testimony of Him rising from the dead. But now, at the end of the age as you have done it will be done to you, with what judgement you judge you shall be judged.

By what authority is the Senate doing these things? By what authority is the Whitehouse doing these things?

 

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9 He went on to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard, rented it to some farmers and went away for a long time. 10 At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants so they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 11 He sent another servant, but that one also they beat and treated shamefully and sent away empty-handed. 12 He sent still a third, and they wounded him and threw him out. 13 “Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my son, whom I love; perhaps they will respect him.’ 14 “But when the tenants saw him, they talked the matter over. ‘This is the heir,’ they said. ‘Let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 15 So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.

Upton Sinclair said it well, he said it is very hard for a man to understand if his job requires that he not understand. Why are these Chief Priests and teachers of the law so obstinate? Why is it that they absolutely refuse to believe that Jesus is Lord? It is because the same law that they have used to condemn everyone else condemns them as well. They have a debt that they can’t pay, so murder and pretending not to hear seems like the best option.

“What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? 16 He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others.”

This is precisely what did happen. They crucified Jesus and God came to Jerusalem with the armies of the Romans in 70AD and destroyed the temple. They then gave Israel to others and until 1948 that vineyard was given to others. Even to this day Jerusalem has not formerly been given back to Israel. A few countries like the US, the UAE, Bahrain and a few others recognize that, but we are still waiting to see the UN ratify this.

When the people heard this, they said, “God forbid!”

Wow, I just love the Bible. To me this second portion is much harder to understand than the first portion. In the first portion John had already baptized Jesus, all of that happened in just the last few years. But this portion is a prophecy of what has not yet happened. Jesus hasn’t been crucified yet, the Roman General Titus hadn’t come yet. But they knew exactly what He was talking about the second time and yet had so much difficulty understanding what He was saying in the first portion. This is why being envious and rebellious of Jesus and wanting to be Lord yourself is the unpardonable sin. Once you take that road you have no way to hear, to understand, or to receive the Lord’s redemption.

17 Jesus looked directly at them and asked, “Then what is the meaning of that which is written: “‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone’? 18 Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.”

The cornerstone is the most important stone for setting the foundation. It sets the lines for the walls. All the other stones are following the lines set by the cornerstone. This chapter is a great illustration that Jesus is the cornerstone, we are all following the lines He set. For a builder to reject a stone that then becomes the cornerstone indicates that this builder is completely incompetent. When they crucified Him they fell on Him. As a result they were broken in pieces. When God sent Titus to Jerusalem to destroy it He fell on others and crushed them. Reject Jesus at your peril. Ignore Jesus at your peril. You have been warned, not just with this word but also with the example of Israel.

 

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19 The teachers of the law and the chief priests looked for a way to arrest him immediately, because they knew he had spoken this parable against them. But they were afraid of the people. 20 Keeping a close watch on him, they sent spies, who pretended to be sincere. They hoped to catch Jesus in something he said, so that they might hand him over to the power and authority of the governor.

We are not ignorant of Satan’s devices, that is of course if you read the Bible and the fellowship of the apostles.

21 So the spies questioned him: “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach what is right, and that you do not show partiality but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth.

Beware of those that lay it on thick like this.

22 Is it right for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”

This is a “wedge issue”. A question designed to divide. Think about today with the Black Lives Movement. There are those that are crying to defund the police, there are others that think that would be catastrophic. Biden has been going in a direction that is going to really split the country. He cancelled 51,000 jobs when he stopped the pipeline, cancelled 5,000 jobs when he cancelled the wall, and the "pause" on fracking could cancel another 70,000 jobs. Most economists feel that for the energy producers, every job of theirs you cut will ripple through the economy cutting another 10-20 jobs. There are many states who support 30-40% of their budget with revenue from oil and gas. Holding back on the stimulus payments will be the death knell to many small businesses. So this question is going to rise, can they pay taxes, should they pay taxes? That question is treasonous. It is like poison. It justifies the FBI, IRS, and whatever use of force is necessary.

23 He saw through their duplicity and said to them, 24 “Show me a denarius. Whose image and inscription are on it?” “Caesar’s,” they replied. 25 He said to them, “Then give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”

Man has been made in the image of God. We should have God’s laws inscribed on our heart. This is what the Lord will be looking for when He returns. Everyone in the whole debate to defund or not defund has missed the boat. There has not been a righteous, just and trustworthy government for the last two thousand years. Both sides of this debate are condemned. If you see the injustice of our government that is great, that should turn you to realize we need the Lord Jesus to return and set up His kingdom. Everything we have tried to do has failed. The Pharisees were permitted to teach the Bible from the Romans. They permitted them to teach because they encouraged the people to pay taxes to the Romans. They got their authority because of this, their authority was from man, not God. What should the believers be saying and doing when they see this? Give yourself fully to God.

26 They were unable to trap him in what he had said there in public. And astonished by his answer, they became silent.

Once again, learn from Jesus. He isn’t crying about the “lame stream media” or their “gotcha questions”. Their gotcha questions prove that He is ready to rule. If you don’t have authority over the “lame stream media” how can we trust you to have real authority?

 

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27 Some of the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection,came to Jesus with a question. 28 “Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. 29 Now there were seven brothers. The first one married a woman and died childless. 30 The second 31 and then the third married her, and in the same way the seven died, leaving no children. 32 Finally, the woman died too. 33 Now then, at the resurrection whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?” 34 Jesus replied, “The people of this age marry and are given in marriage. 35 But those who are considered worthy of taking part in the age to come and in the resurrection from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage, 36 and they can no longer die; for they are like the angels. They are God’s children,since they are children of the resurrection. 37 But in the account of the burning bush, even Moses showed that the dead rise, for he calls the Lord ‘the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ 38 He is not the God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive.”

If you don’t believe in the resurrection of the dead then you don’t have any authority to teach the law of Moses. You can’t claim that these laws were given by God and that you are sitting in Moses seat. By what authority did Moses do these things? He was sent by God at the burning bush. If you deny the resurrection of the dead you are denying the authority of Moses and therefore the authority you have from sitting in Moses' seat.

39 Some of the teachers of the law responded, “Well said, teacher!” 40 And no one dared to ask him any more questions. 41 Then Jesus said to them, “Why is it said that the Messiah is the son of David? 42 David himself declares in the Book of Psalms: “‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand 43 until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’ 44 David calls him ‘Lord.’ How then can he be his son?”

Jesus has already silenced the gotcha questions of the lame stream media, this isn’t for them, it is for the teachers who say “well said”. Many people are willing to admit that Jesus was a great teacher, a great prophet, who has had a profound impact on human society. But do you see He isn’t simply a great man, He is the Son of God?

 

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45 While all the people were listening, Jesus said to his disciples, 46 “Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets.47 They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely.”

Jesus has already demolished the authority by which they speak. But what really exposes them is that they devour widows’ houses. You could never rally the entire country to go fight in Vietnam or Iraq without the chief priests and teachers of the law standing with these rulers. You couldn’t get away with the mortgage crisis and saying the banks are too big to fail without the assistance of the chief priests and teachers of the law. Our rulers have been devouring widow’s houses. It is not unrealistic to think the people don’t understand what happened, but the shepherds are supposed to protect the sheep from the wolves. Are the prayers real or just for show? If you are a pretend shepherd you will be punished severely.