Here is the transcript of Bible teacher Zac Poonen’s teaching on Gospel of Luke (Part 1) which is part of the popular series called Through The Bible.
Listen to the audio version here:
TRANSCRIPT:
Introduction to the Gospel of Luke
Okay, let’s turn to God’s Word again. We turn now to the Gospel of Luke. And as I said, in the very first words of these Gospels, I try to understand what the Gospel writer is trying to emphasize. We saw in Matthew, in the very first sentence, he said about Jesus being the Son of Abraham, the Son of David.
Emphasis in Different Gospels
And he was emphasizing to the Jews that He came from that line. In Mark’s Gospel, he said, “I’m talking about Jesus, the Son of God.” And we see those tremendous demonstrations of power in the Gospel of Mark described in great detail. And in Luke, his burden is to give us an accurate record of, as far as possible, of everything right from the time of Jesus’ conception.
I mean, His coming into Mary’s womb and His resurrection all the way and everything that preceded it. Also, and even to some extent, what followed after His resurrection towards the end of Luke’s Gospel. And that’s what he says, “It seemed fitting for me, verse 3, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning to write it in consecutive order, most excellent Theophilus.”
Luke’s Unique Perspective
Now, Luke was the one writer of scripture who was not a Jew. All the others were Jews. All sixty-four books written by Jews except the Gospel of Luke and Acts of the Apostles, which are also written by Luke. Luke was a Gentile, a Greek. And both these books, Luke and the Acts of the Apostles, are written to a man called Theophilus, who was a Greek.
It’s a Greek man writing to a Greek man. He’s not particularly trying to quote scripture like Matthew does to prove “this is fulfilling that scripture, this is fulfilling that scripture.” But he’s trying to demonstrate how Jesus came to earth as a man and how He lived and fulfilled God’s purposes.
The Foretelling of John the Baptist’s Birth
Now, it begins with the foretelling of the birth of John the Baptist. And you read here about Zacharias and Elizabeth, verse 6, “they were both righteous people, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord.” They had no child. And this angel comes to Zacharias and tells him about John the Baptist, saying, “when John the Baptist, your wife will have a child and you must give him the name John, and he will be great in the sight of the Lord, verse 15, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit while in his mother’s womb.”
Emphasis on the Holy Spirit
Now, there is a verse about being filled with the Holy Spirit. You go to the end of the book of Luke, again you read about being filled with the Holy Spirit, they were waiting there to be endued with power. So here you find this emphasis. You know that this baptism in the Holy Spirit is emphasized at the beginning of the first five books of the New Testament. “You shall be baptized in the Holy Spirit.” It’s the beginning of Matthew, it’s the beginning of Mark, it’s the beginning of Luke, you find it in Luke chapter 3 again, and also in John and in Acts of the Apostles.
The first five books in the New Testament begin with an emphasis on being baptized in the Holy Spirit. That teaches us the tremendous importance of the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the New Covenant. And it also shows us that if there is one thing the devil will try to counterfeit, it will be the baptism in the Holy Spirit. And we see plenty of counterfeits today.
Counterfeits of the Holy Spirit
Supposing the devil wants you never to be baptized in the Holy Spirit, what will he do? I know what he would do. If I were in the devil’s place, this is what I would do. I would give you some type of counterfeit emotional experience and convince you that you’re baptized in the Holy Spirit. You will never seek for the baptism in the Holy Spirit forever for the rest of your life. And I’ve got what I wanted. What I wanted was that you should never seek the baptism in the Holy Spirit.
How did I succeed in doing it? By giving you some emotional tickling in your body or emotions and making you convinced that you got it without any power, without any strength to overcome in life or to minister. And I see millions of people like that now, quite satisfied, defeated, lovers of money, living for the world, but they say “we speak in tongues and I got an electric shock down my spine and all these type of stuff.” The devil has convinced them. I say, examine what type of experience you had. Did you get power? Otherwise, it’s worthless.
The Genuine Experience of the Holy Spirit
This is God’s work. It’s not something that you work up. Think of this verse, “In his mother’s womb he’ll be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Do you think he was staring in his mother’s womb waiting to be filled with the Holy Spirit? Did somebody exhort him over there? No. God filled him. It’s the work of God. If we submit to Him, He does it. If God can fill a helpless child in the mother’s womb and fill it with the Holy Spirit, why can’t He fill you and me?
Don’t go for these counterfeits that you see today. Go to the scriptures and don’t be satisfied. You know, in my life it took me ten years to be convinced and I said, “Lord, I will never be satisfied with a counterfeit.
The Holy Spirit’s Role in the Gospel
He was filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb and the result is “He’ll be great in the sight of the Lord.” That’s just in passing. Let me go on. You go on to verse 35 where the angel comes to Mary and tells her about the Holy Spirit too. It’s very interesting. The Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit, see, the angel came to Mary and Mary said, “how can this be? Verse 34, I’m a virgin. How can a virgin have a baby?”
And he said, “the Holy Spirit will come upon you and power.” Notice Holy Spirit and power. Always it’s like that. Jesus said that. “When the Holy Spirit’s come upon you, Acts 1:8, you shall receive power.” Acts 10:38, “God anointed Jesus with the Holy Spirit and with power.” Holy Spirit and power go together. What is the evidence of being filled with the Holy Spirit? Power. That’s what Jesus said.
And here, the Holy Spirit came upon Mary and power came upon her, and that is how Jesus came into her womb. And it’s exactly the same. I remember when God met with me and baptized me in the Holy Spirit. This is the passage the Lord brought to my mind, “that the Spirit of God has come upon you now, just like He came upon Mary to produce Jesus in her, to produce Jesus in your life.”
Personal Reflection on the Holy Spirit’s Work
And that set a guideline for me throughout my life as to what the purpose of the Holy Spirit coming upon me was, to produce Jesus in my life. And just like it took time for that body to grow inside Mary’s womb, it’ll take time in my life for the character of Christ to become more and more manifest in me.
I keep that before you as a guideline. And then the Lord spoke to her through the angel, verse 37, “nothing will be impossible with God or no word that God speaks will be without power.” That’s a lovely promise. Nothing is impossible with God, or another translation of it is, “no word that God speaks will be without power.”
The Power of God’s Word
If God has spoken a word, it has power in it, “let there be light.” It’s not just a word. Light comes. “Let the earth come up out of the waters.” The earth comes up. “Sin shall not have dominion over you,” Romans 6:14. It’ll happen if you believe, no word from God is without power. If you take it as the word of God, if you think it is just Paul’s idea or some preacher’s idea, then of course you will not have power because you don’t believe it’s the word of God.
From the beginning of my Christian life, I have never doubted that this is God’s word. I’ve never tried to analyze to find out whether this is God’s word like a lot of people do and waste their life. I’ve believed it’s God’s word and gone to it and proved in all these years of my life that no word from God is without power.
Choosing to Believe in the Power of Scripture
Now you be careful when you go analyzing scripture and you don’t get any power. Take it as God’s word and you will experience the power of God. Jesus never questioned the Old Testament. He was not bothered what all the critics and theologians said. He believed it and He experienced its power.
Today the devil is leading so many people astray from that, that instead of believing it and experiencing power, they go around with all their cleverness trying to analyze and listen to what this person said and that person said, reading this book and that book and waste their life without the power of God.
Which way do you want to live? You want to live doing all that or you want to believe it, experience God’s power and live a useful life before you leave this earth? I would recommend that course of action to all of you. “No word from God would be without power,” and Mary submitted to that word and said, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord, verse 38, let it be done according to Your word.”
Mary’s Submission and Admiration
I believe that’s how we must submit when God comes and says something to us which we know will bring tremendous reproach upon us. I’m a great admirer of Mary, even though I’m not a Roman Catholic, because I believe she was such a godly woman. God looked all over Palestine to find one young woman, probably eighteen, nineteen years old, who was really godly, and He found one. God didn’t make a mistake.
She knew that the whole village would be spreading stories about her when she becomes pregnant without getting married. And she was willing to suffer that reproach to bring forth the body of Christ from her body. Now apply that to your life. You want to build the body of Christ in your village but you want honor? Forget it. It’ll never happen.
The Cost of Building the Body of Christ
If you’re willing to suffer reproach, then it’ll happen. A lot of people want to build a church and they want honor. And that’s, I’ve seen people who try to do that. Nothing happens. They build a congregation, not the body of Christ. But if you want to build the body of Christ, it is always coupled with reproach, misunderstanding, wagging tongues, gossip. That’s what Mary faced in Nazareth.
But the result, it didn’t make a difference to her. She brought forth the body of Christ. And so it is today, those who serve the Lord when they seek to bring forth the body of Christ in a locality, there’ll be wagging tongues, gossiping, misunderstanding, criticism, jealousy, all types of things. Let it all be there. Ultimately the body of Christ will come forth. It’s always connected with reproach as we see right from the very first thing.
The Significance of Questions and Responses
Now I want you to notice one other thing here. Do you know that Zacharias and Mary asked almost the same question? Zacharias asked the same angel, verse 18, “how can this be? I’m an old man. My wife has advanced in years.” Mary also asked the same question. “How can this be?” Why is it Zacharias was punished with being dumb and Mary was not punished when both of them responded initially in unbelief? Have you ever thought about that?
There was a reason. Because two things. First of all, Zacharias had an example before him of an old man and an old woman who got a child, Abraham and Sarah. So there was no reason for his unbelief if he knew the scriptures. Mary did not have an example before her of any virgin in the history of the human race producing a child. So that’s why she was not struck down.
Different Standards for Different People
Secondly, Zacharias was an old man who had studied the scriptures from childhood. Mary was a young girl, “to whom more is given, more will be required.” Do you know that if you are an older person, God expects much more from you than from some young girl? And if there’s an example ahead of you, and you’ve not followed it, you’re more guilty than if another person does not have an example in front of them. That’s why I say these people under the law, they didn’t have an example.
Today we have an example in Jesus. So there’s some things we can learn from that. Let’s move on to verse 74. When John was born, Zacharias prophesied in saying that the Lord has now come through this son of mine to grant us that we will be delivered from the hand of our enemies and serve Him without fear. Those enemies are our sins which enslaved us. That now Jesus has come, John the Baptist is the forerunner for that, and the Lord is preparing us.
The Holy Spirit in the Gospel of Luke
You know Zacharias was prophesying here because it says here he was filled with the Holy Spirit, verse 67. It’s remarkable how many times the Holy Spirit is mentioned in the very first chapter. Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, verse 41, and Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit. It’s just filled with the Holy Spirit, filled with the Holy Spirit, filled with the Holy Spirit.
Luke enjoyed writing about it because he also wrote Acts of the Apostles about a lot of people who were filled with the Holy Spirit, and it says it didn’t begin in the Acts of the Apostles. It began with John the Baptist, Elizabeth, Zacharias, etc., and the Spirit of God coming upon Mary.
The Holy Spirit in the New Covenant
So the Holy Spirit is the answer and the main factor in New Covenant life. And He delivers us from the hand of our enemies, verse 74, and brings us to the place where we can serve God without fear. In the entire Old Testament history, 1500 years, they served God with fear, the fear that if I don’t obey, I’ll get punished. You read Deuteronomy 28, “I’ll get sickness, I may get madness, I’ll get poverty, I’ll be defeated by my enemies,” and all that fear.
And now was coming a new age where we could serve God without any fear, out of love. Zacharias prophesied that. I want to ask you today, have you entered into the enjoyment of that, of serving God without any fear? That’s why Jesus often said, “fear not, fear not.”
The Birth of Jesus and Those Who Knew
Now we go to chapter 2 and verse 7. “She brought forth her firstborn child and laid Him in a manger, and there were some shepherds staying out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.” Now we see here in these early chapters, in chapter 2 you read about the shepherds, later on verse 25 you read about Simeon, and later on you read in verse 36 about a prophetess called Anna.
Who were the people who knew about the coming of Jesus Christ to that manger in Bethlehem? Four groups of people. First, the shepherds. Second, the wise men from Iran or somewhere there. Third, an old man who was filled with the Holy Spirit again. It says about him in verse 25 that the Holy Spirit was upon him. And fourth, a prophetess who for years and years and years and years was fasting and praying up to the age of 84, verse 37. “She never left the temple but served night and day with fasting and prayer.”
The Remnant Prepared for Christ’s Coming
So there are very different types of people. Shepherds, ordinary people out there but God-fearing people. Wise men belonging to another country not even knowing scripture. Simeon filled with the Holy Spirit and a godly older man and a woman. This is a picture of the remnant whom God had prepared in Israel to be prepared for the coming of His Son.
And it is a picture of the remnant in these days whom God is preparing all over the world for the coming of His Son. His Son is coming again, you know that. And who are the people who did not know about it? Herod, Annas, Caiaphas, the leaders, the religious leaders, they studied the Bible every day and they were at praise and worship meetings but they did not know anything about the coming of the Messiah. And even today there are multitudes of people in Christendom who are not ready for the coming of Jesus.
Being Part of the Remnant
But there is a remnant. It is important that you and I be in that remnant. And it is very interesting that out of these four groups of people, three of them are significant for their activity at night. One, the shepherds were watching their flocks at night. The wise men travelled at night watching the star. Do you know that they could not travel during the day in their long journey?
Why? Because they could not see the star. They had to wait for the night to start their journey again. You cannot see stars during the daytime. I do not know whether you ever thought of that. Their activity was at night.
Third, Anna was fasting at night and praying at night. Those who are part of the remnant are people who seek God in the night seasons. I believe that. When other people are sleeping, they are seeking God and they are the ones to whom God reveals things that He never reveals to other lazy people who just look for a comfortable life and say “I believe the right things and I will be alright.”
Seeking God for Revelation
Okay, you can live like that if you want but if you want to be part of God’s powerful remnant who got understanding of the times in which they live, who got revelation from heaven, be one of those who seek God with fasting, praying, praying to God at night and seeking Him, studying His word, trying to know Him, willing to break with every custom tradition and everything and you will get revelations like Simeon got which other people did not get.
You may be an unknown heathen like these wise men. You may come from a heathen background and God can reveal Christ to you like He revealed to Sadhu Sundar Singh who knew nothing about the Bible and he sought God. He was like one of those wise men from the East who sought God and God revealed to him without any knowledge and you can be like that too. God calls people like that in our country.
The First and Second Coming of Christ
The remnant and a lot of so-called Christians who live their comfortable life and want an easy life are not ready for the coming of Christ. It’s like that in the first coming. It’s going to be like that in the second coming. And we read further something about the way Jesus was born here. You know there was no room in the inn. We know that story and He was born in a manger.
The Birth of Jesus in Bethlehem
Now I believe that this is something that God permitted. Verse 7, chapter 2 says He was born in a cowshed in the little trough where the cows eat. You know they had to come all the way from Nazareth to Bethlehem because they had to register. That’s because God allowed Caesar to pass an order like that all for the sake of His Son being born in Bethlehem.
And so Joseph and Mary, otherwise Jesus would have been in Nazareth. The prophecy said He is to be born in Bethlehem. So God make Caesar in Rome pass an order at the same time that all people must go for their census. Now even in India they take a census but they never say when you take your census you must go to your hometown. To me it’s quite a silly rule. If you’re just counting the people, why do they all have to go to their hometown?
But anyway that is God’s sovereignty making sure that Joseph and Mary arrive in Bethlehem and Jesus will be born there. And she did not deliver on the way. That could not happen because God’s prophecy had to be fulfilled. But by the time they came to Bethlehem there was no room there in the inn.
The Humility of Mary and the Birth of Jesus
And I believe God purposely delayed them so that by the time they came there, all the rooms in the hotel were booked. And I believe that Mary did not complain when she had these difficult circumstances in which to live. Do you ever complain when you have difficult circumstances in which you have to be? I mean, if you found that Mary was complaining and telling Joseph, “I told you we should have started two days earlier, here you landed up here without any room for me to stay, no privacy, and only this cowshed I have to give birth to.”
Can you imagine this murmuring, complaining attitude and the Son of God being born into that type of thing? That’s why God didn’t choose any of the other women in Palestine. They were all the grumbling, complaining types.
Why did He pick on Mary? Because He knew that she was a humble person who would be quite satisfied with whatever God provided for her. If it’s a cowshed, it’s a cowshed. And I don’t believe she was complaining and blaming her husband for being late or not starting earlier, because in God’s sovereign purpose. Do you think it would have been difficult for God to keep a room empty for them by the time they came to Bethlehem? Not at all. He who runs the universe could have easily kept a room for them in Bethlehem without any problem.
He wanted His Son to be born in a cowshed to show this world that all the things that the world considers great are rubbish and garbage in His eyes. Think of the shame of being born in a cowshed. I’ve never in my life met a human being who was born in a cowshed. None of us were born in cowsheds. Even if we were not born in air-conditioned hospitals, we were at least born in a clean room in a home with a certain amount of privacy that our mothers had.
The Servant Nature of Jesus
But Jesus had come to serve humanity. Just understand this principle, because it’s how we are to serve the Lord. “He who comes to serve others must descend below them in order to serve them.” Did you get it? “He who wants to serve others must descend below them in order to serve them.” And that’s why He had to be born in a stable with the cows and the donkeys, because He had come to save all humanity.
What type of servants of God do we see today? Exactly the opposite. We see preachers who want to live above everybody else. You can’t meet them unless you go through a secretary. What type of servant of God is this? Did Jesus have a secretary who fixed appointments for Him? I say, I’m sorry, I don’t agree with that. I say, “God saved me from having secretaries all my life.”
Jesus was below everybody. Do servants have secretaries? Have you ever heard of a servant having a secretary? It’s Maharajas and lords and chairmen and directors who have all that. Jesus was a servant; you never needed. You could go to Him anytime. Nicodemus could come and see Him at night. He came below everybody. I want to say to all of you brothers and sisters, if you want to serve God, make Jesus your example.
Following Jesus’ Example
And don’t ever follow these other examples that you see today. If you want to serve God, come below everybody and remain there. Jesus started there and at the end of His life, where was He? He was at the feet of His disciples washing their feet. He started in a cowshed and He ended at the feet of His disciples. I say, “Lord Jesus, please help me to go that way all my life.”
You pray that prayer. No matter how much God uses you, no matter how anointed you are, say, “Lord Jesus, please keep me at the feet of Your disciples till the end of my life.” I never want to sit on anybody’s head. This is the servant of God whom the Father has shown us as an example to follow. He had to be born in a cowshed.
The Prophecy of Simeon
Okay, we move on to verse 34 onwards. Simeon made a prophecy saying, “This Child is appointed for the fall and the rise of many people in Israel and for a sign to be opposed — and a sword will pierce your own soul — to the end that thoughts of many hearts will be revealed.” He was showing here the type of ministry that Jesus would have. And that’s important for us to see because today the body of Christ, the church, has to have the same type of ministry.
The Church as the Body of Christ
The way Jesus lived on earth is the way today the church is to live. That’s why the church is called the body of Christ. Which was the first body of Christ? This one. He, in His earthly body, lived in a certain way. In simplicity, serving other people, going underneath. Once they tried to make Him a king, he said, “No, I don’t want to be a king.” He was a servant of everybody.
The church, the body of Christ, must be like that today. Elders in a church must be like that today. A servant of everybody. Don’t ever try to be an elder if you want to lord it over people. Forget it. Go and join some secular multinational company and you can lord it over as many people as you like. But when you come to the church of Jesus Christ and you want to be a leader, you have to be a servant. You have to get underneath everybody.
Opposition in Serving Christ
And we see here that Jesus was a sign, verse 34, “to be opposed.” That means if you are building the body of Christ and you are a leader in the body of Christ, you are going to be opposed like Jesus was till the end of your life. Religious people, like Pharisees, will oppose you. This is true.
The Role of Opposition in Revealing Hearts
And through that, as they oppose you, the thoughts, verse 35, of their hearts will be revealed. They will discover what a lot of jealousy there is in them because of Jesus’ ministry. And when God blesses a church, other people will see what a lot of jealousy they will have in their heart because of what God is doing here. This is how Jesus went and this is how the church in the last days, the remnant, will also go.
Jesus’ Knowledge and Understanding at a Young Age
Okay, we move on to verse 47 to 52, about the time when Jesus went into Jerusalem and Joseph and Mary left Him behind. And when they went back, this is the one incident mentioned of what He did when He was twelve years old. It says here He was asking questions, listening to them, to the teachers, verse 46, and asking them questions. And they were amazed at His understanding and His answers, amazed at His explaining what these scriptures meant.
And that teaches us that at the age of twelve, Jesus knew the scriptures so well. And do you know that Jesus didn’t have a Bible at home? There were no Bibles those days. These were scrolls written on parchment and things like that. And it was very expensive to have a copy of the Old Testament. There would be one in the synagogue.
The Importance of Listening and Understanding Scripture
How did Jesus know the scriptures by the age of twelve? They would go to the synagogue and hear. And in the schools in those days, they taught the scriptures. So it was only by listening. And if you went to school and you didn’t pay attention and you went to the meetings in the synagogue, you didn’t pay attention, by the age of twelve you’d know nothing, like most of the others.
But Jesus listened. As a young boy, He listened carefully when you went to the meetings, understood the scriptures so thoroughly, without having a Bible at home, so well that He could ask other people questions.
I tell you, this is one of the most shameful things that I’ve seen among Christians today. They have not only one version, but umpteen versions of the Bible in their house. And they still don’t know the Bible. That’s amazing. Can you imagine the depth of laziness in today’s Christians, and they all want to serve God. And they think just somebody lays hands on their head and they mumble some words, and they say, “oh, now I’m anointed, I’ll go out and serve God.” And what happens? Nothing.
The Need for Diligence in Studying Scripture
You can’t build the body of Christ there if you don’t study the Word. God could not even use His own Son if He didn’t study His Word. Now let me tell you this. Those of you who are too lazy to study the scriptures, I can prophesy to you, God will never use you. I don’t like saying that, but it’s true. And equally I can say to you, those of you who are diligent to study the scriptures, and diligent to be filled with the Spirit, God will mightily use you.
So from your earliest days when you’re converted, get into the Word. Get into the Word. Almost all the Bible knowledge I have today, I studied in the first seven years after I was converted. Get into the Word of God. Get to know God’s mind. Study it, study it, study it, study it, day and night, not just to pass some examinations. Study it, study it, study it, to know God, to know God Himself, to understand God’s ways.
The True Purpose of Knowing Scripture
How diligently people study to pass earthly examinations. How diligently people work in their business to promote their business. If Christians had even five percent of that much diligence to study the Word of God, their lives would have been so effective. And I’m not saying study the Bible in an academic type of way, so that you know the verses where they are. You may not have a good memory, that doesn’t matter.
The important thing is to know God through His Word. There are a lot of people who know the Bible very well who are useless. God is not able to use them. What’s the use of that Bible knowledge? It’s waste. Get to know God through His Word. Get a fire in your hearts through His Word.
Jesus’ Example at Twelve
Jesus is an example at the age of twelve. And the other thing we see in Jesus as an example at the age of twelve is, not only He knew His Word, knew the Word thoroughly, but He had a tremendous burden and passion for the Father’s business. He says in verse forty-nine, “Did you not know that I must be in My Father’s business?”
Now a lot of people who know the Word, they know the Word for their own honor. It’s not for the Father’s business. You know like some places, even in Bangalore this is very common, they have Bible competitions, memory competitions. What they are checking up is whether you know where the semicolons are and whether the commas are and where the full stops are. What a waste of time studying where the commas and semicolons and the full stops in the King James Version are.
It’s all crazy. Only an idiot will waste their time studying all those things. I say that’s all for honor. I say you must know God through His Word and have a passion for the Father’s business. Otherwise your life will be wasted. Your life will be thoroughly wasted. I’ve seen lots of people like that who know the Bible, their life is wasted because they don’t have a passion for the Father’s business.
The Importance of the Holy Spirit and a Passion for God’s Work
The Holy Spirit has not filled them. So you must have a passion. I have got a business to do on earth. I came to earth for a certain business and that’s not just to produce a family and to work somewhere and earn a living. To do my Father’s business before I leave this earth, I have to finish it. I hope you’ll have that passion.
And it doesn’t matter to me whether I live in a hut or a palace. It doesn’t matter whether I sleep on a comfortable bed on the floor. It doesn’t matter whether I get martyred and killed. I have to complete my Father’s business before I leave this earth. Oh, I wish there were more people like that in India like that who, like Jesus at the age of twelve, who knew the Word and who had a passion for His Father’s business.
The Message in Luke 3
What a message there is in those verses. We go on to chapter three. We read about John the Baptist here. It’s a wonderful verse, verse one and two. It’s always a great excitement to me when I read this. Have you read these two verses together, Luke 3 verses one and two? In the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar, he was the greatest man in the world at that time. Pontius Pilate, he was the greatest man in Judea. Herod, he was the greatest man in Galilee. Philip, he was the greatest man in Iturea. Lysanias, he was the greatest man in Abilene. Annas and Caiaphas, they were the greatest people in religious Israel.
The Word of God bypassed all these people and came to one unknown man in the wilderness called John the Baptist. I’m really excited by that. That the Word of God bypasses all these great secular men and also the great religious priests and preachers and everybody and comes to a man who is seeking God alone in the wilderness. “Oh God, give me Your word.”
It’s the same today. The Word of God bypasses all the great people. It will bypass all the great people in Christendom and it can come to you if you’re like John the Baptist, getting alone with God and saying, “Lord, open my eyes that I may understand Your word.”
John the Baptist’s Preparation and Ministry
And he’s not in a hurry. A time comes. When he comes forth, it says in chapter one verse eighty, he was in the deserts, John the Baptist, until the day of his public appearance. One day God said, “OK, John, I’ve taught you enough. Go and preach.” He preached for a very short time. But all Judea came to listen to him because he was a prophet of God. So that’s what we see in chapter three.
And now we move on to verse eight to thirteen, something about John the Baptist’s ministry. Let me mention briefly here. John the Baptist’s ministry was very fiery and very practical. He did not baptize everybody who came to him. Some people came to him and he said, “bring forth fruits fit for repentance. Otherwise, I won’t baptize you. I will not just baptize anybody. Any Tom, Dick and Harry who says I want to be baptized. I want to see whether there’s fruit for repentance. I’m not counting statistics here. I don’t have to report to anybody that I baptized so many people.”
John the Baptist’s Practical Advice
That’s why John was free. He could keep the standard high because he didn’t have to write any reports or statistics. Now, if John the Baptist had to write reports about how many people are baptized, he would have just baptized everybody. But he said, “listen, if you fellows don’t repent, I’m not going to baptize you.”
And I wish we’d hear more of that today. “The axe is laid to the root of the tree and it must be laid to the root of your life if you want repentance and if you want to be baptized.” And then he gave them some practical advice. People came to him and said, “what shall we do?”
And the tax collectors came to him and said, “what shall we do?” And the soldiers came to him, verse 14, and said, “what shall we do?” And to each of them, he gave some down to earth practical advice. “Don’t be like the other people. Don’t be like the other tax collectors. Don’t be like the other soldiers. Be different. Don’t exploit others. If you got extra, give it to other people.”
See, his preaching was not some theory of analyzing some verse or something like that. It was practical. Jesus’ teaching was always practical. The apostles’ teaching was always practical. And may your preaching always be practical. How you can live on this earth. What you should do if you have two coats and another fellow has got only one. And what you should do if you are in the army and other soldiers are exploiting other people. John the Baptist’s preaching was practical.
The Holy Spirit and Jesus’ Baptism
Okay, we go on to verse 21 and 22 about the baptism of Jesus. And it says, how did the Holy Spirit come upon Jesus? It did not happen automatically. That’s what I want you to see here. Again, you see the emphasis on the Holy Spirit.
Have you noticed in Luke, Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit, chapter one, chapter two, chapter three, and now Jesus Himself. Now, if John the Baptist had the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb, what about Jesus? Didn’t He have the Holy Spirit? How did He overcome for thirty years without sinning? How did He live without the Holy Spirit? And yet, we read at the age of thirty, the Holy Spirit came upon Him.
Understanding the Holy Spirit Beyond Theology
Today, a lot of people are arguing about when we are born again, don’t we have the Holy Spirit? What is the second experience you are talking about, the Holy Spirit coming upon you? What is this in Jesus’ case? He was also born of the Spirit. He had the Holy Spirit from birth, and yet we read here, He was anointed with the Holy Spirit.
What I learned from that is, the Holy Spirit is God. You cannot explain Him by all your theology. But you can experience His power if you seek Him. I don’t try to explain God just like a dog cannot explain a man. You know, a dog is below a man, and a dog cannot explain a man. Supposing you find two dogs sitting and analyzing the psychology of a man. You think they are crazy.
But that is what some human beings sit and do. “How does the Holy Spirit work?” I say, I don’t know. But I know He works. And if I seek Him, I know He will fill me. I don’t have to explain it. And that one dog will say, “listen, I don’t know how these human beings work, but my master is very kind to me. He gives me bones every day, and he takes care of me, takes me for a walk, and I am very happy.” He can experience his master’s goodness, but he cannot explain his master’s psychology.
Why not we admit the same thing about God? There are many things about God I cannot explain. And brother, I admit I cannot explain, but I experience His goodness and His love and His power. Because we are much below God compared to a dog being below us. And that is the folly of man when he tries to explain everything. I cannot explain everything. I cannot explain many things in the New Testament.
Understanding and Experiencing the Holy Spirit
But I know what is enough for me to know and experience. And that is enough for all of us. So we see here, Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit when He did something. Verse 21, when He was baptized, He was praying, “Father, fill Me with the Holy Spirit.” And He came out and He was filled with the Holy Spirit. Immediately, the heavens were opened and the Holy Spirit came upon Him. It is by faith. Do you pray? Jesus received the Holy Spirit by prayer. And so will it be with us.
In chapter 3, verses 23 to 38, we have the genealogy of Mary. It says in verse 23, “He was about 30 years of age, being supposedly the son of Joseph, who was,” you know the word ‘son’ there is in italics, meaning it was not in the original Greek, “who was of Eli.” ‘Of Eli’ means he was the son-in-law of Eli. Because Jews did not put the name of women usually in there.
But this is the genealogy of Mary, which is obvious from the fact that Joseph came through David’s son Solomon. We read in Matthew 1, whereas this genealogy is verse 31 through another son of David called Nathan.
The Temptation of Jesus
Okay, this goes all the way to Adam, because Luke is writing to the Gentiles. In chapter 4, we read about the temptation of Jesus. We know that Jesus was tempted, and the Bible says in Hebrews 4:15, “He was tempted exactly like us, but He did not sin.”
Now, there are many people who seek to analyze and ask this question. It has been a great discussion among theologians for 2000 years. Could Jesus have sinned or could He not sin? And there are two views on this. Some people say He could not have sinned, and some people say He was enabled not to sin.
Now, to me this is all in the realm of theological discussion. I’m like that dog. I say, “I don’t have to get into this discussion. I know just this much, that He was tempted like me, and He did not sin.” And in that, He’s an example for me. I don’t have to get into this discussion. I know He was God, and I know that God cannot sin. And if He had sinned, the Trinity would have broken up. So, obviously He could not have sinned.
But at the same time, that’s not for me to discuss. I say, “I understand just this. He was tempted like me.”
Jesus as an Example in Temptation
In my younger days, when I was more foolish, I used to get into a lot of discussions about these things. But I’ve got a little more wisdom now, because I’ve learned to be like that dog and admit that there are a lot of things I don’t know. I might as well leave it. I cannot analyze the psychology of Jesus. I find it difficult to analyze my own psychology. Where can I analyze the psychology of Jesus? I don’t have to.
Scripture says He was tempted. Jesus was, forty days, verse two, He was tempted by the devil. And He resisted the devil. He just didn’t lie down there and sleep. He resisted the devil with the sword of the Spirit, and He said, “it is written.”
Overcoming Temptation Using the Word of God
Again, the devil came and said, “oh, if you quote ‘it is written’, then the devil said, “isn’t it written, verse ten, that He will give His angels charge over you?” And He said, “it is also written that you shall not tempt the Lord your God.” Jesus had a word from scripture every time Satan came, and then the devil left Him. It says, for a certain amount of time, verse thirteen, he came back again later.
So I find the devil comes to me like he came to Jesus. And Jesus drove him away with the word of God, and I can drive him away with the word of God. Jesus is my example. He was tempted like me, and He did not sin.
The Public Ministry of Jesus
In chapter four, we come to the public ministry of Jesus, beginning in Nazareth. And He announces that the Spirit of God, He quotes from Isaiah sixty-one, verse eighteen, “the Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel,” and so on. I want you to notice something here. Again, Holy Spirit. Notice the emphasis on the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit led Him into the wilderness, chapter four, verse one. And chapter four, verse fourteen, after temptation, He returned in the power of the Holy Spirit.
The Necessity of Temptation After Being Filled with the Holy Spirit
He went into the wilderness full of the Holy Spirit. He was tempted. He came out in the power of the Holy Spirit. Temptation is necessary. After you are filled with the Holy Spirit, you need to be tempted, and you return in the power of the Holy Spirit. Temptation was necessary for Jesus. It’s necessary for you and me.
And Jesus overcame where Eve fell. Eve was tempted with food. Jesus was tempted with food. Turn the stones into bread. He said, “no, I will not do what God has not told Me to do.” It was a temptation to use His power for some personal benefit.
Yes, God has anointed You. Use Your power now for personal benefit, and Jesus said no. Do you know how many preachers today are being tempted by the devil like that? “God has anointed you. Use your prophetic gift to make money for yourself. Go and preach in places you can collect a lot of money with your prophetic gift.” Jesus would have said no. “I don’t use my gift for making money. I use my gift for serving people.”
The Temptation to Compromise for Worldly Glory
See, this temptation comes even to us today. “Jump from the temple and claim God’s protection. When you are sick, don’t take any medicine and trust God to heal you.” You will die like so many other people. This is all tempting God. When God has provided medicine, why can’t you use that? If there are steps coming down from the top of the temple, use those steps. Don’t jump down and say, ‘God will protect me.'”
Now, if there are no steps, then you can jump down and ask God to protect you. But when God has provided steps, He expects you to use the steps and not jump down.
Using God-Given Resources Wisely
You know that. Those of you who are living on the top floor and all, what do you do? It’s the same thing with the use of medicine. Now, if I were in some jungle where no medicines are available, I would really trust God to heal me without medicine. Where there are no steps, I would trust God to protect me. But if steps are available, I would recommend that you use them. It’s a safer way of coming down.
And the third temptation was, “I’ll give you all the glory of this world. Whatever you want, I’ll give it to you, but you’ve got to bow down to me.” And the devil says, “do you want a wider opportunity for ministry? Just keep quiet about water baptism. Don’t talk about baptism of the Holy Spirit. Don’t talk about anything that’s offensive. Just please everybody, I will give you wide doors of ministry.” And thank you very much, you say to the devil, “I’ll go.” You bow the knee to the devil to get the honor of this world. Brother, preach the whole counsel of God. Even if you don’t get anything here, that’s my recommendation. God will be with you.
See, we can get a lot of glory in this world if you bow the knee to the devil and compromise somewhere or the other. Having conquered these things, He came in the power of the Holy Spirit and proclaimed the word.
The Purpose of the Holy Spirit’s Anointing
You know, a man who is filled with the Spirit and who has been tempted and who has overcome can now get up in the pulpit and preach. That’s how Jesus preached. If you are not filled with the Spirit and you have not overcome in temptation, what are you going to get up in the pulpit and preach? We see here that Jesus got up in Nazareth and said, “the Spirit of the Lord has anointed Me.”
And the result of the anointing, I want you to notice, is all for other people. Today, a lot of people are seeking the anointing of the Holy Spirit to get something themselves. “I want an experience. I want to speak in tongues. I want an electric shock going down through my body.”
But what did Jesus get the anointing for? Please read verse 18. “To preach the gospel to other people, to proclaim release to other people, to give, proclaim recovery of sight to other people, to set free other people.” What is for Himself here? Nothing.
The Anointing and the Gifts of the Spirit
The fruit of the Spirit is for myself: love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, humility, self-control. But the anointing and the gifts of the Spirit are all, every one of them, for other people. Every gift of the Spirit, healing, if God gives you the gift of healing, it’s for other people. If God gives you the gift of evangelism, it’s for other people. Prophecy, other people. Discernment, to help other people. Wisdom, to give advice to other people. Every gift of the Spirit is for other people, even speaking in tongues.
Seeking the Holy Spirit for the Right Reasons
I remember when I asked the Lord for this gift, I said, “Lord, I want this gift because I want to be fresh. The Bible says he who speaks in a tongue edifies himself.” I want to be fresh because I have to speak so many times a day and I don’t want to be dry. I always want to edify myself. I can edify myself through Bible reading, through prayer, through fellowship, through many ways. But if it says you can also edify through speaking in tongues, I want it. That’s how I got it. And I use it for what? To be fresh, to bless other people. Every gift of the Spirit is for other people. It’s not for self.
And when you seek a gift of the Holy Spirit for yourself, you’re going to build Babylon. Please remember that. Okay, chapter 5, it says about a time when the disciples were pressing in and He got into this lake and He told Simon, verse four, “put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” And Simon said, “Lord, we worked hard all night, but at Your bidding I will.” Sometimes the Lord tells us to do something and we say, “Lord, I tried that so many times, but it didn’t work.” And the Lord says, “okay, do it now because I told you.”
Following God’s Direction for Fruitful Ministry
Sometimes we go to a place without God sending us and we don’t get any fruit naturally. What we learn from this is, wait, let God tell you to go and your boat will be full of fish. Go where God tells you.
Chapter five, verse sixteen, we read in verse fifteen that news about Jesus was spreading further and further and great multitudes came to hear Him and to be healed of their sicknesses. And when you have, supposing that was happening to you, whenever you read something like this, put yourself in that verse. My little recommendation I could give for you for Bible study is, when you read something happening in scripture, put yourself in that place and then you’ll get a good understanding.
Avoiding Pride and Staying Humble
Supposing you were the person who is healing multitudes of sick people and your fame is spreading everywhere, what would you be in danger of? What? Pride. Jesus was tempted like us. You know what He did? Verse sixteen, “He would often slip away into the wilderness to pray.” He preached. He was anointed. People were mightily blessed. And while other people were sitting, gossiping and talking, He would slip away to pray, to get alone with God.
Develop that habit in your life of getting alone with God. It’s good to be with people, but you need to have plenty of times when you’re alone with God. And the more your ministry spreads, the more you need to have time to get alone with God. This was a habit. He would often do it, not just once in a while.
The Humility of Matthew
And we read further in verse twenty-seven to twenty-nine. It’s a very interesting time. I don’t know whether you’ve noticed this. Sometimes you compare scripture with scripture and you see a beautiful thing. It says here about Matthew. It says he went out in verse twenty-seven, Jesus, and met a tax collector called Levi, Matthew. That’s his other name. And He said, “Follow Me.” And he dropped his pen, dropped his job, gave in his resignation and came out immediately.
And verse twenty-nine, it says Matthew, after that, gave a big reception for Him, for Jesus in his house where there were many sinners. Now I don’t have time to show this to you, but if you read the same incident where Matthew writes about himself in Matthew 9:9 and 10. There it says about Jesus calling Matthew, but it says in verse ten, the next verse, that Jesus went to a feast. And Matthew does not say, actually I gave that feast in my house. Such a humble man.
Luke tells us that it was Matthew who gave that feast. But Matthew in chapter 9:10, just says Jesus was at a feast. I see something godly about these examples and these little, little things in scripture that when a man gives a feast, he doesn’t say that he was the one who gave it. Other people report on it. If you do something, let other people report it and not you yourself.
Jesus’ Selection of Disciples and the Example of Judas
We go to chapter six and verse twelve and thirteen. We see how Jesus called His disciples. He prayed all night. Why did He need to pray all night? He was in fellowship with the Father all the time. He prayed all night because He wanted to be clear whom to choose. And I want to point out one thing here. It says about Judas Iscariot, he was not a crook when Jesus chose him. It’s very clear in verse sixteen, “Judas Iscariot became a traitor.” He became a crook. When he was selected, he was as wholehearted, as sincere as Peter, James or John. Jesus would not have chosen a crook. Impossible. He chose a wholehearted, sincere man who became a crook.
Now I believe there are some tremendous lessons here that we can learn and we’ve got some more sessions on the Gospels to study about the life of Jesus.
Let’s pray. Heavenly Father, we thank You for the scripture which opens our eyes to see Your ways, Your principles. Help us to follow them in our daily life, we ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.