Luke 11

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0:00 Good to see you all this morning. Children in the Lord's Prayer. That's good. We're going to talk about it a little bit in Matthew. If you want to look there with me in Matthew chapter 6, Jesus gives it to the disciples. What got me on this a little bit was put this in the email this week. I've been meeting with people. We did that little annual church form at the end of last year for people to fill out this

0:32 little Google survey I sent out. One of the little things people could fill out in that annual church survey was like a multiple choice question with a other blank if I didn't guess. It would be nice if someone from the church asked me how I was doing at and people could check different things. One of them was talking with God, communicating with God. I was thinking about prayer in general. I've been meeting with people talking about prayer. Back to back I had two meetings in the last week.

1:03 With one person we were talking about, this person was thinking a lot about the life to come and what comes next. This person was thinking a lot about the life to come. Then the very next conversation I had with someone they were like, I'm tired of the church thinking about the life to come. I'm trying to figure out what it means to live it out here in the world. I was thinking about talking to God and the life to come and this world. It's funny that we are all in such different places but I was thinking about the uniqueness of that and coming out of the celebration of the resurrection where Jesus was dead and is alive and will never be dead again.

1:41 Thinking about this section in the Lord's Prayer, that one petition where it says, I'm going to teach us to pray, your kingdom come, your will be done. Remember that? Look in Matthew chapter 6 where Jesus says that with me if you don't mind. Matthew chapter 6, Jesus is like, this is right at the end. Matthew puts this section right at the end of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount.

2:13 So he's been teaching like it's a good summary of most of what Jesus is trying to teach, kind of the culmination of all of the new giving of the law. And at the end here in Matthew chapter 6, he starts saying to be aware of hypocrites and practicing prayer and faith in front of people in order to seem holy. And then in verse 5, he's like, tells people when you pray, the praying is not a performance but an opportunity to connect with God.

2:49 So it's about you connecting with God and so he encourages the people listening not to make a show of their prayers but to focus on what they're communicating with God. And then he goes further in that and this is verse 7 and when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them for your father knows what you need before you ask him. This is like really interesting.

3:19 Jesus is encouraging his people. You don't have to say a lot because God knows what you need. And a couple of years ago we talked about this a lot about how in your time, in your communication with God and your relationship to God, you might move through seasons. And you might have a season where you're spending a lot of time in a petitional prayer asking God for specific things, laying certain people in front of God. And then you might have times where you just are sitting in the presence of God.

3:52 And it seems like Jesus is saying both of these things are okay but don't feel like you have to iterate every specific thing in order for God to know what you need. You could just sit in God's presence, God knows what you need before you ask for it. But then he says when you do pray, pray like this and he gives them this example. Our Father in heaven, how would be your name? Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us to stay our daily bread and forgive us our debts or our sins as we forgive those who have as we have forgiven our debtors.

4:32 And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. Some of the later manuscripts of Matthew add the little phrase that we're used to for yours is the kingdom, the power and the glory forever and ever. And the earliest versions don't have that and so it's usually left out of the copies of the scriptures. I don't know that Jesus, I don't know that this was one of the, like I don't think he had this prayer prepared ahead of time. I don't think it was like when he's making his checklist of things that he needs to teach people that he's like okay and make sure you leave them this format of prayer.

5:11 He probably came up with this format of prayer on the spot. Of course what Jesus comes up with on the spot is usually pretty good but I'm saying like it's not the only way that you could pray. But I think that if you prayed the Lord's prayer for the rest of your life it would cover the things that you needed to pray. Right? All the little spaces. And you wonder is this an okay thing for me to be talking to God about? Is this something I should be spending time in conversation with God about?

5:41 Is this a thing that I should bother God with? You might look at the Lord's prayer. Does it fit underneath one of these categories? Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation. Give us today our daily bread. Which is yeah, give us our daily bread for give us our sins. You might look at that. But the one that stuck out to me for us to think about and it's going to take us a couple of weeks to think through it I think. Is this like where he says verse 10, your kingdom come, your will be done?

6:19 Because I was thinking about like why Jesus encourages us to ask for God's kingdom to come here. Or God's reign to come here. Or encourages the disciples at least that he was talking to there that they would pray that God's kingdom would come. So the first maybe in thinking about that is to understand like how Jesus thinks about the kingdom.

6:57 And one of the places that I really like for that is in Luke. So if you're following along in the text flip forward to Luke chapter 10. And Jesus has here also been teaching and has a whole crew of people kind of following him. It's interesting. Well, we'll get to it later. But when you start to read the gospels kind of more closely, it's kind of it's a little surprising. Like I think about Jesus as this itinerant preacher with 12 dudes behind him.

7:31 But like almost any point where you stop and look at trying to assess how many people are with him. Almost at any point there's more people with him than 12. Like it will look forward in a section in Acts and huddled together after the crucifixion and then after the ascension. There's like 120 people huddled together. And that and it's described as just like his core team. Just like that's 10 times 12. That's more. And in this section in Luke he's got more than 12 too.

8:03 Like so in Luke chapter 10 he's been teaching and after this the Lord appointed 72 others and sent them on ahead of him. Two by two into every town and place where he himself was about to go. And he said to them, the harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.

8:34 Verse three go your way behold I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves carry no money bag or knapsack or sandals and greet no one on the road. And whatever house you enter say first first say peace to this house and if a son of peace is there your peace will rest on him. But if not it will return to you. I think that's so fascinating. And then remain in the same house eating and drinking whatever they provide if the for the laborer deserves his wages and do not go from house to house.

9:12 Wherever you enter a town and they receive you eat what is set before you heal the sick and in it heal the sick in it and say to them the kingdom of God has come near you. But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you go into the streets and say even the dust of your town that clings to our feet we wipe off against you. Nevertheless know this that the kingdom of God has come near and I tell you it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than that town.

9:42 Jesus has pulled together 72 sends them in groups of two and then it's like hey guys you're going to go out to the two of you go in groups to don't take anything with you. It's not you're going on a road trip. Just let's assume in this world everything you have will just be given to you. Don't take extra clothes. Don't take extra money. Don't take extra food.

10:12 What kind of world is Jesus living in? Right? What kind of world is Jesus living in? Where everything that they have is provided for them. Everything that is needed is there. There's enough among all the people to provide for everyone who comes in. Jesus is sending these 72 out and he's acting like they are in the kingdom to come. He's acting like they're in it now.

10:44 Like there's nothing to be afraid of. And on top of that it seems like he's saying you guys I don't these 72 remember we've talked about like when he heals blind Bartimaeus on the road outside of Jericho going into the triumphal entry that they name Bartimaeus because Bartimaeus becomes somebody later on in the church. And they name Mary Magdalene and they but in these 72 are the first he sends them out as emissaries of the reign of God and all we get is that there's 72 of them and they go two by two.

11:24 No names. I don't know who these people are. Right? I don't know that Luke knew who they were. Remember Luke wasn't there. Luke came in after the fact he just writes down somebody told him yeah we we know there were 72 because we went out two by two and there were this many pairs of people there were there were 36 pairs and so that's how many we know there were 72. Who were they we can't remember. So there are emissaries of this new like this place where God is providing and then he's like go out and when you walk into a place.

12:05 Announce to the house. Hey peace be upon this house. And when you announce peace upon this house peace will rest on that house. Holy smokes. And if the people are not great your peace will come back and go with you to someplace else. I remember this is funny you guys will appreciate this when I was younger and intern at a church.

12:39 They had this theory it was a pretty large church and they I can't wait I'm gonna say this out loud. They had this theory that they that they needed the sermon topics needed to resonate with like a strong masculinity because then more people would come. If the men came more people would come and they wanted to preach on on the fruit of the spirit. And so they told me we want you to peace preach on peace but you're gonna preach on raging peace.

13:20 Yeah raging peace. I was like okay raging peace. Let me see what I can do. They were in forgiving me challenges that place raging peace. What I ended up with was reminding people I can't remember exactly what I said but the part of it was like remember reminding people that peace wasn't the absence of conflict. But the presence of a justice that made everything okay.

13:52 Right. And I love this idea that he's got these like almost randomly selected emissaries who are operating in the world as if everything's going to be fine. I don't need any extra money or extra food. I mean the extra clothes. I'm just gonna walk through the world as though everything will be taken care of for me. And when I walk into a place peace comes and settles in there. And if they'll if they're one of mine the peace stays if they're not this piece is not the absence of something is the presence of something and it goes away.

14:30 And so he's like go out and bring the kingdom the reign of God out to people. And it comes as though God provides protects cares for you. So don't bring anything extra. And then it comes with this piece that's tangible in a space. Not just as though problems dissolve and don't matter but something larger than the problem arrives.

15:03 And though problems persist there's a piece in the space anyway. So he's like walk into the place you random 72 don't take anything extra with you bring your piece into the spot and then he says heal their sick. Heal the sick in it and say to them the reign of God has come near to you. Okay. I don't know if they've seen him do this a bunch or like they have a sense of how it's going to work.

15:37 I'm like I'm very curious about the first time they tried it. Like the level of confidence that these random 72 have in like yeah bring bring the sick ones here. Sorry. Bring the sick ones here and we'll take care of it because the reign of God is near to you. And where Jesus is in charge there's peace and healing bring them in. Right. So apparently they did that right the king of God's come near to you and then he's like but take off and then the dust and then it won't be good.

16:12 And then he says woe to specific town and then look at verse 17 of chapter 10 of Luke. The 72 returned with joy saying Lord even the demons are subject to us in your name. And he said to them I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. The old I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy and nothing shall hurt you.

16:46 Nevertheless do not rejoice in this that the spirits are subject to you but rejoice that your names are written in heaven. It's true then that at the time especially this like spiritual reality was very apparent. Remember there are stories of Jesus confronting demonic spirits by name or in person and casting them out. So whatever was going on however they understood health and wholeness and spirituality at the time there was like demonic spirits that needed to be dealt with.

17:20 And these 72 realized not only are we got this we're walking around like like dubs among serpents like we're out here without anything extra we're just hoping we're going to be provided for. Not only do we have this like incredible peace thing that we can leave or take away and we see that we can heal people but also the spirits are like it's like Jesus it's like you're in charge. And you sent us out and somehow because you're in charge we carry your authority into the world.

18:00 And then Jesus I think look at verse 21. I think this was like a little test and Jesus can't believe it worked. I mean can't believe might be strong. I think he's very excited that it worked because these are some random 72 we don't even have their names. You know in in that same hour the same hour that he said that I saw this thing work the Satan looks cast down.

18:30 He rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said I thank you father Lord of heaven and earth that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children. Yes father for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my father and no one knows who the son is except the father or the father is except the son and anyone to whom the son chooses to reveal him. Then turn his duties disciples he said blessed are the eyes that see what you see.

19:03 For I tell you that many prophets and kings desire to see what you see and did not see it and to hear what you hear and did not hear it. He's like you guys. Jesus is like hey guys this has been a long time coming something's happening here and it's pretty exciting. He's like I just tested this out I knew I had this authority but I was like let's send these guys out as sheep among the wolves and see if it works. You're coming back and telling me that it works. Everything's changed. Everybody's been waiting for this.

19:33 This is the kingdom of God coming here through you jokers. Right? And so when Jesus tells them to pray that your kingdom would come he's thinking like this. Like that you would have that you would be able to move through the world as though you were cared for. Protect it. You would be able to move through the world with the sense that I don't have to fight every evil on every corner.

20:09 That God goes with me and fights evil on my behalf. I don't have to beg, steal and borrow every inch of provision. God is thinking about my provision as well. I might anticipate that when I move through the world I move through a world in which God is in charge. Lord would your kingdom come here and now. Right? Would your kingdom come here and now. What might I be provided for? Hey would your kingdom come here and now.

20:40 Might I have a peace, a tangible peace that overwhelms or supersedes the kind of like temporary circumstances and troubles and trials of life. Might I have a peace that sits on top of that. Might I find healing and restoration and hope. I think this is what Jesus is talking about.

21:13 It's something that he talks about a lot. Let's look at one more place here in the beginning of Acts. Luke who we were just looking at writes also for us the Acts of the Apostles. It's like a continuation of the story of the gospel. He talks about it right here at the beginning.

21:45 In the first book of Theophilus I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach until the day when he was taken up. After he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the Apostles whom he had chosen. To them he presented himself alive after his suffering by many proofs appearing to them during 40 days and speaking about the kingdom of God. Jesus miraculously and by all accounts unexpectedly raises from the dead.

22:21 He then appears mostly to the Apostles the 11. But like I said if we read further here in the upper room after the ascension Peter stands up and speaks and is like Judas is gone. We need to get somebody from our number who's been with Jesus senses baptism and through all the other things. So they have several to choose from in the room of 120. So they select to and cast lots and get Matthias.

22:53 But I'm like they're in the upper room after the ascension trying to replace Judas talking about who's somebody who's been with us the whole time and they've got several to choose from. So Jesus after his resurrection before his ascension is appearing to this subset of Apostles a whole group of people. Then of course it says that for the 40 days he appeared to as many as 500. Paul tells us later many of whom were still alive. It took a couple decades for them all to die who had visited with the resurrected Jesus.

23:25 But he's spending most of his time with this core group of the Apostles and he's talking to them about the Kingdom of God. He's talking to them about the Kingdom of God. And what's interesting is like what's interesting to me is what comes out of that time of teaching. Like our doctrinal positions are like we'll continue to evolve and expand in order to appropriately address the questions of the day.

24:04 Jesus doesn't in the period before his ascension. After his resurrection and before his ascension it would be nice. If you like got out a chalkboard and was like alright guys here's the core I don't care how many 50 doctrines you need to know. One bullet point and if he wrote him out and what came out of the 40 days of Jesus hanging with the Apostles it would be nice if it was like okay here's the list of teachings get your brain around these.

24:40 But Jesus spends 40 days with the Apostles and it's like it's not concrete. It's just like here's what it means that the Kingdom of God is here now. And what comes out of that those Apostles is not even a lot of writings. Peter writes a couple of letters. John writes a couple of letters. Matthew writes the Gospel. Mark was probably in that crew.

25:11 He was pretty young but he wrote a Gospel. Paul wasn't there. He wrote a majority of the New Testament. Most of our specific doctrines come out of him trying to explain it. But what does come out of that crew like whatever they grasped from the idea that the Kingdom of God is here.

25:44 Aah. Buoys their life in a way that is attractive for millennia. Like I mean it's probably better than the list of doctrines that we could argue about. I'm saying. Like Jesus probably could have written down a list of doctrines and not been as effective as like getting those guys to realize those people, men and women to realize that he was in charge now.

26:20 That they could move through the world as though God was protecting them and providing for them. That there was peace and healing for them as they make their way through the world. Whatever Jesus got to them about the reign of God they went out and in a couple of generations became the dominant way of life in the world. Right? Look for just a little bit.

26:50 So when they had come together then they asked him, Lord will you at this time restore the Kingdom to Israel? And this is the kicker for me that's going to launch us for several weeks here. Because like I just said he's been telling them about the Kingdom of God and whatever he gets to them must encourage them in a way that they are willing to orient their life around it and that when other people see them living they want to live like that.

27:21 And that Kingdom in that way with that one in charge. And yet the last thing they ask him about is like is that is it going to flip here then? Like I understand the Kingdom of God. I remember the 72. I hear what you're saying about all authority and heaven on earth has been given to you now and now you give it to us and we continue to go out just like the 72 did. But like is that going to set up shop so people can tell?

27:52 And so the question is like what's going on here? Why are things not set to right all the way? How do we have the Kingdom and not have the Kingdom? What's going on there?

28:22 The thing for us today is to realize whatever the answer to that question there is provision, peace and healing for us. And I think what we're going to find out is the question is worth asking and looking into why are we still waiting for the Kingdom to come and how is it also here now? Let me pray. Hey Lord, thank you for questions for your refusal to boil down your way into a bullet list for your capacity to reign in ways that we can't understand but can participate in.

29:07 Give us hearts and lives that can participate in your reign today. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.