Ordinary, Radical Christianity: Loving Our Enemies

Luke 6:27–36

Sermon Notes

  1. Love; don’t retaliate, vv. 27–31
  2. Love; don’t return the favor, vv. 30–35.
  3. Love, and remember your Father’s love, vv. 35–36.

Reflection questions

  1. Whose name comes to mind when you hear these words: “Love your enemies”? Whose face do you picture? What do you think Christ wants you to do about that?
  2. Is your life significantly different than that of a sinner, a non–Christian? See Luke 6:32–34. Also see Matthew 6:31–34. How is Luke 6:31 (The Golden Rule) harder than the following: Don’t do anything to someone else that you wouldn’t want them to do to you?
  3. Have you forgotten that you were once an enemy of God? Read Romans 5:6–10; Luke 6:35– 36; Ephesians 4:32. How can the knowledge that you were once an enemy of God motivate you to love others who are difficult for you to love?

Are you sure you want your best life NOW, not later?

Luke 6:20–26

Sermon Notes

  1. Jesus Promises Your Best Life Later, vv. 20–23
  2. Do You Really Want Your Best Life Now (not later)? vv. 24–26
  3. There Are Still Only 2 Choices, vv. 20–26

Reflection questions

  1. Is laughter always bad? Is mourning always good? Why can mourning be a good thing? Consider Ecclesiastes 7:2–4.
  2. Are wealth and riches always bad? What is the danger of wealth? How can wealth blind us to deeper needs than money and daily bread? See 1 Tim. 6:17–20; Revelation 3:14–22 (especially vv.17–18)
  3. Read Psalm 1 – What are the two ways that the Psalmist lays out? What are the primary differences in these two ways during the here and now? The primary differences in their future destiny?

A Third Time

John 21:15–25

Sermon Notes

  1. The Message of Resurrection and Restoration, vv. 15–17
  2. The Message of Remaining Sin, vv. 18–22
  3. The Reliable Message, vv. 23–25

Discussion Questions

  1. Does God save us by giving us a second chance, or does He save us by grace? What’s the difference? Consider Eph 2:8–9
  2. After God saves someone, would you expect them to notice more sin or less sin in their life? Consider Romans 7:15–25.
  3. Does Biblical faith mean believing in spite of the evidence or believing because of the evidence? Consider Luke 1:1–4

Confidence in Our Weakness

Luke 6:12–19

Sermon Notes

  1. Jesus doesn’t call the great, he calls the ordinary (v.12–16)
  2. And not based on their qualifications, but on his calling (v.12–19)
  3. It’s not our ability that makes us useful to him but instead our dependency (v.17–19)

Discussion questions

  1. Do you fear that your weaknesses are too great and that the get in the way of being best used by God?
  2. In what ways does current church culture in America give special attention to the “great”?
  3. How could an emphasis on “the greatest of these” in the church steal glory from God?
  4. Have you ever felt disqualified to serve God?
  5. How does this self-disqualification run in contradiction to God calling all of us to serve him (Romans 12, Eph. 4, 1 Cor. 12)?
  6. How could self-confidence keep us away from being dependent on God?
  7. If your prayer life was a measurement of your reliance on God, would you say you were more God-dependent or more self-sufficient?
  8. Explain to someone how your weakness could actually be an asset to God?
  9. How might a tendency to boast in our weakness affect our witness to not-yet- Christians?

The Lord of the Sabbath

Luke 6:1–11

Sermon Notes

  1. What necessities are lawful on the Sabbath? vv. 1–5
  2. What Lord can restore and purify Sabbath laws? v.5
  3. What mercies are lawful on the Sabbath? vv. 6–10
  4. What will we do with this Lord of the Sabbath? v. 11

Reflection questions

  1. Isn’t it a good thing that we aren’t like the Pharisees? See what God says about that idea in Luke 18:9–14 and 1 Cor. 10:12.
  2. Read Luke 14:1–6. Why does Jesus mention the son and the ox? Read Matthew 12:11–12, as well. Is Jesus upset at what the Pharisees regularly did on the Sabbath (saving an ox, a sheep, a son)? Or is He encouraging them to let others do the same? See Matthew 12:7; what did Jesus want them to do more of?
  3. Read Isaiah 58:1–8, 13–14 (esp. v.3). What does Jesus want to teach us about fasting and the Sabbath in this passage? Also see Romans 13:8–10.

What do fasting, patches, and wineskins have to do with Jesus?

Luke 5:33–39

Sermon Notes

3 Lessons from Jesus

  1. The old is gone, the new has come, and it’s time to party, vv. 33–35
  2. The old is incompatible with the new, vv. 36–38
  3. If you like the old, you may never even consider the new, v. 39

Reflection questions

  1. If you fast, how should you fast? How should you pray? See Matthew 6:1–8, 16–18.
  2. Read Philippians 3:2–10. How would Paul have described the old way and the new way? Which one did he prefer (cf. Luke 5:39)? Name some good things you do which you might mistakenly think make you less needy of God’s grace.
  3. Why should we be grateful that Christ is our Bridegroom? Is that image only supposed to bring positive and happy memories to our minds? What kind of Bride are the people of God? (Consider Hosea 1:2 and Revelation 19:6–9a.)

Who Needs a Doctor?

Luke 5:27–32

Sermon Notes

  1. The One Who Follows Jesus, vv. 27–28
  2. The Ones Who Feast with Jesus, v. 29
  3. The Ones Who Frown at Jesus, v.30
  4. The Ones Who Need a Physician Like Jesus, vv. 31–32

Reflection questions

  1. Compare vv.30–32 to Luke 18:9–14. What attitude does Jesus condemn in both stories? Should we be on the lookout for this attitude in our own hearts? (See 1 Cor. 10:12) Should we only have a negative view of ourselves; is this glorifying to God? Consider I Cor. 15:9–10a.
  2. Read vv. 28–29. What attitude did Levi have towards his wealth? What else does the Bible say about our relationship to our money in this life? See 1 Tim. 6:17–19.
  3. How would you react if your son had wasted your money, lived a wild life and then came home, penniless, and asked for your help? Would you grumble (Lk 5:30) or throw a party? Read Luke 15:1–2, 11–32 and ask how you think Jesus would want us to react?

Blasphemy or Bare Facts?

Luke 5:12–26

Sermon Notes

  1. A great compassion and a crowd avoidance, vv. 12–16
  2. A great crowd and a great controversy, vv. 17–21
  3. A convincing proof and a consuming awe, vv. 22–27

Reflection questions:

  1. Would your instinct have been the same as Jesus in vv. 14–16? Would you have withdrawn from the crowds who wanted more of what you had to offer (in Jesus’s case it was the ability to heal) in order to restore yourself through prayer and meditation? Do our actions sometimes indicate that we think we don’t need regular prayer?
  2. Compare the determination of the friends (and the paralytic) to see Jesus (see vv. 18–20) with the story of Matthew 13:44–46? What does the determination of these friends (as well as the men who sell all that they have) tell us about what we should seek in this life? (Also see Matthew 6:32–33)
  3. What is this passage trying to show us when Jesus chose to touch the leper? Some other passages to consider: Ps 22:24; Isaiah 52:13–53:12 (especially 52:14; 53:2–3, 5, 7, 10); Leviticus 13:45–46; Hebrews 13:11–13.