Witnesses, Witnesses, Witnesses
Luke 9:1-17 – November 21, 2021
REVIEW – In chapter 4 in a synagogue in Capernaum Jesus cast a demon out of a man, then in chapter 5 He healed a leper and then a paralytic man. Then after picking His Twelve disciples in chapter 6, He gave His Sermon on the Plain. Then in chapter 7, He healed the servant of the Centurion, at the town of Nain He brought a widow’s son back to life. In chapter 8, He calmed the wind and the waves, cast out the demons possessing the Gerasame man, healed a woman who had bled for 12 years, and raised a 12-year-old girl from the dead.
Luke 9:1-2. 1 When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, 2 and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.
Luke 9:3-5. Go out trusting in the Lord for all of your needs while doing the work of the Lord. Trust. Just go. This is a faith building exercise for the twelve. Take no money, take no food, you will be taken care of along the way. How? Trust and see.
What about you? How is your faith?
Back to the twelve disciples. What about them? They were with Jesus every day, every single day. Their tanks were full, in fact they were super charged. They were ready.
Luke 9:6. If we skip down to verse 10 we find they reported to Jesus what they had done. In chapter ten we will find when they were sent out a second time and returned excited saying Luke 10:17, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.” Jesus reply in verse Luke 10:20, However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
Luke 9:7-9. An odd insertion by Luke at this point. But it is to prepare us for the meeting when Jesus does meet Herod who basically wants Jesus to perform for him to do something to impress him.
Luke 9:10-11. From the other gospels we learn they were headed for some R&R, but Jesus felt compassion for those who had gathered to meet them – really meet Him.
Luke 9:12. They came to Him, all twelve, in John 6 Jesus speaks with Phillip who says it will take a half years wages to provide bread alone for these people.
Luke 9:13a. 13a He replied, “You give them something to eat.”
Jesus has challenged them, preparing them once again. Wonder what they did at this point. We are not told, but somehow in the next verse they discover they have some food, but it is clearly not enough.
Luke 9:13b-14a. In Matthew 14 it is 5,000 men plus women and children. In John 6 it is about 5,000.
What has happened here? The disciples can only think of a ‘natural’ solution, a solution that leaves God out of the equation. Before we think poorly of them, we need to ask ourselves how often we do the very same thing.
Luke 9:14b-15. In Mark 6 it is groups of 50 and 100. How many is 5,000 let’s take a look at a slide with 4,950 people represented by 4,950 dots.
Luke 9:16. 16 Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks (or he blessed) and broke them. Then he gave them to the disciples to distribute to the people.
I really like this verse for today as Thursday is Thanksgiving Day.
Luke 9:17. 17 They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve baskets full of broken pieces that were left over.
Question – where did the 12 baskets come from?
END.