["Pomp and Circumstance"]
Song number 196.
196. Let's sing it out on the first.
I will sing the wondrous story
Of the Christ who died for me
How He left His home in glory
For the cross of Calvary
Yes, I'll sing the wondrous story
Of the Christ who died for me
Singing heard the saints in glory
Gathered by the crystal sea
196 on the second.
I was lost when Jesus found me
Found the sheep that went astray
Through His loving arms around me
Trew me back into His way
Yes, I'll sing the wondrous story
Of the Christ who died for me
Singing heard the saints in glory
Gathered by the crystal sea
I was bruised when Jesus healed me
Fate was I from many a foe
Sight was God and peace possessed me
But He freed me from them all
Yes, I'll sing the wondrous story
Of the Christ who died for me
Singing heard the saints in glory
Gathered by the crystal sea
Days of darkness still appear
Flowers pass, I often shred
But the Savior still is with me
By His hand I'm safely bled
Yes, I'll sing the wondrous story
Of the Christ who died for me
Singing heard the saints in glory
Gathered by the crystal sea
Singing out all the last
He will keep me till the river rolls
Its waters up my feet
Then He'll bear me safely over
For the love of Christ shall be
Yes, I'll sing the wondrous story
Of the Christ who died for me
Singing heard the saints in glory
Gathered by the crystal sea
Amen, welcome to the Sunday evening service.
Let's go ahead and open up with a word of prayer.
Heavenly Father, we thank you for this time
that we can meet together, Lord,
and give you some good preaching from your word.
Lord, I pray that you would be with us during this service, Lord, and bless it.
In Jesus' name we pray, amen.
All right, so now it's time for favorites.
We're selected, we'll sing one stanza from a song that you pick.
We'll start with Brother Allen, go ahead.
Two forty-four.
Two hundred and forty-four.
Two four four.
Two hundred forty-four on the first.
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost, but now I am found
Was blind, but now I see
Let's see, Jamie, go ahead.
Song number sixty-five.
Song sixty-five.
Let's sing it out on the first.
I've a home prepared for the saints of my just
Over in the glory land
I want to be my Savior's son
Just over in the glory land
I'll join the happy angel band
Just over in the glory land
And live the mighty most trusted
Best lover in the glory land
Let's see, Miss Alex, go ahead.
Three hundred and seventy-four.
Three seven four, send the light.
Three hundred seventy-four on the first.
There's a cold front ringing over restless flames
Send the light, send the light
There are souls to rest, there are souls to sleep
Send the light, send the light
Send the light, blessing us for that pretty child
From shore to shore
Send the light, blessing us for that pretty child
For that pretty child forevermore
Miss Diane, go ahead.
Song fifty-six.
Five six.
When we all get to heaven, song fifty-six.
On the first.
Sing the wondrous love of Jesus
Sing his mercy and his grace
In the nations bright and bright soon
He'll be there for us to praise
When we all get to heaven
What a day our rejoicing now will be
When we all see Jesus
We'll sing and shout the victory
And brother Edgar, go ahead.
Song number three.
Jesus paid it all, song number three.
On the first.
I hear the Saviour say
Thy strength in me is small
Child of weakness watch and pray
I will be thine almighty
Jesus paid it all
All to him I am
Sin had left the princess sway
He haunts in my astral
And on this tomorrow?
Can we do four forty-nine?
Uh, no. Almost.
Four forty-nine.
Song four four nine.
Dwelling in Beulah land four hundred and forty-nine.
On the first.
Far away the noise of strike the blow
My ear is funny
Then I know the sins of earth
He's fed on every hand
Down in here where the kings of earth
Will gain to me are crying
Not a beat shall prove me
From Beulah land
I'm living on the mountain
Underneath the cloudless sky
Praise God I'm drinking
At the fountain
That never shall undry
Or else I'm beastly
From the manna
From the fountain
Full supply
For thine own family
In Beulah land
And uh, Miss Jazzy go ahead.
Two hundred and sixteen.
This will be the last one this evening.
Two one six.
Two hundred and sixteen. Let's sing it out on the first.
Off the ground was I at the light
In the gold light of sin I gave hope
When Jesus the White Shepherd found me
And now I am on my way home
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days, all the days of my life
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days, all the days of my life
And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
Forever and I shall peace
At the tables with me
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days, all the days of my life
Amen. Good singing.
Amen. We welcome you to Verity Baptist Church tonight.
We're glad you're with us.
Let's go and take our bulletins.
We'll look at some announcements real quickly.
If you do not have a bulletin, raise your hand.
Then one of our ushers can get one for you.
The verse this week, Hebrews 6-10,
For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labor of love,
which you have showed toward his name,
in that ye have ministered to the saints and do minister.
That's a good verse there.
We like that.
If you open up your bullets and you'll see our service time,
Sunday morning service, 10 30 a.m.
We had a wonderful service this morning.
We're glad you're back out tonight for the evening service.
And of course, we invite you to be with us on Wednesday night
for the Wednesday night Bible study.
And we have a special service this Wednesday.
We'll talk about it here in a minute.
If you look at our sowing times,
our main sowing times on Saturday morning at 10 a.m.,
then we have additional sowing times throughout the week.
On Wednesdays at 11, there's the address for you.
And then normally on Thursdays at 2 p.m.,
but this week there is no Thursday sowing time
because of Thanksgiving.
So make sure you make a note of that.
And then Sunday sowing at 2 p.m.
And of course, we are a family integrated church.
Children and infants are always welcome in the service.
We don't separate children from their parents for any reason.
We do have mother-baby rooms and daddy rooms available for your convenience.
So if you have a child that's been distracting during the service,
or if you need some privacy, we encourage you to use those rooms.
If you need to be baptized, please let us know.
We'd love to baptize you.
You can let us know through your communication card.
On the back of the card is the place for you to check off.
Or if you've already talked to somebody,
then you can just meet one of our staff guys on the other side of that door
after the preaching while we're singing the last song,
and we'll get you connected for baptism there.
If you look at the announcements and upcoming events,
of course, we're starting a series called Celebrating Christ.
And on Wednesday evenings, we're going to the book of 2 Corinthians.
This morning we had our worker appreciation Sunday.
And, again, we just want to say thank you to all of the volunteers
to help do all the things we do around here.
And I won't take the time to go through the roster and read all the names,
but you can see those there.
And then, of course, this Wednesday, November 24th, is our annual Pie Social.
And we encourage you to be with us after the Wednesday evening Bible study
and the fellowship hall.
We're going to have pie and coffee and a time of fellowship.
So if you can bake a pie or bring a pie, bake or buy,
but bring a pie to share, and we'll have a good time with that.
And then, of course, the Turkey Bowl is the next day, Thursday, November 25th.
You guys can sign up in the fellowship hall, excuse me, in the foyer.
There's a sign-up sheet for you to do that, 7 a.m.,
and then the address is there for you.
And then you're all invited to a wedding for Andrew Davidson and Esther Kim
on Monday, December 6th at 6 p.m.
And it'll be here at the church building.
It is a potluck, so if you can bring a dish to share, that would be great.
And there is a sign-up sheet in the foyer for you to sign up for the potluck
for the wedding as well, so please make sure you go by there and do that.
Ladies' Christmas party, all the ladies are invited to a Christmas dinner party
on Friday, December 17th at 6 p.m.
You can sign up on your communication card.
Children's choir, they started practicing today.
They're going to be singing for our Christmas service.
And then upcoming cleaning crew, you can check your name there.
Homeschool group, they've got PE class on Thursday, December 2nd.
And there's other things there for you to look at.
Please don't forget to turn your cell phones off, replace them on silent,
if you can figure that out.
If you look at the back of the bulletin, birthdays and anniversaries,
for the month of November, tomorrow is my wife's birthday,
Joanne Jimenez, on November 22nd.
And then also November 24th is Ms. Tina Kolak's birthday.
On November 24th, we're also remembering Titus Vincent.
And November 26th is Lexi Beale's birthday.
November 26th is also Brother Joshua and Ms. Edith's anniversary.
And Rusty Santo's birthday is on November 27th.
Praise Report, Money Matters, all those things are there for you to look at.
I think that's it for all of the announcements.
So let's take our song books and we'll go to page number 356.
Page number 356, tomorrow is my wife's birthday, so we'll sing her favorite song.
Page 356, I Must Tell Jesus, as we prepare to receive the offering tonight.
I must tell Jesus all of my trials. Sing it out on the first.
I must tell Jesus all of my trials.
I cannot bear these burdens alone.
When I'm distressing, my name will help me.
He never wants to get to his own.
I must tell Jesus. I must tell Jesus.
I cannot bear my burdens alone.
I must tell Jesus. I must tell Jesus.
Jesus can help me. Jesus my own.
356, sing it out on the second.
I must tell Jesus all of my troubles.
He is a kind, compassionate friend.
If I but ask him, he will deliver.
Make up my troubles quickly and then.
I must tell Jesus. I must tell Jesus.
I cannot bear my burdens alone.
I must tell Jesus. I must tell Jesus.
Jesus can help me. Jesus alone.
Tempted and tried, I need our great Savior.
I must tell Jesus. I must tell Jesus.
I must tell Jesus. He only cares and sorrows what shame.
I must tell Jesus. I must tell Jesus.
I cannot bear my burdens alone.
I must tell Jesus. I must tell Jesus.
Jesus can help me. Jesus alone.
Good, sing it out on the last.
Oh, how the world too evil alerts me.
Oh, how my heart is tempted to say.
I must tell Jesus and he will help me.
Over the world, a country to be.
I must tell Jesus. I must tell Jesus.
I cannot bear my burdens alone.
I must tell Jesus. I must tell Jesus.
Jesus can help me. Jesus alone.
Amen. Good singing. We'll have the guys come up and help us with the offering at this time.
And let's go ahead and bow our heads and have a word of prayer.
Heavenly Father, Lord, we do thank you for allowing us to gather together on a Sunday night.
Lord, we pray that you bless the gift and the giver.
We ask that you would meet with us as we open up your word as we study the Bible together.
In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
Thank you.
Let's open our hearts to Luke chapter one.
Luke chapter number one. If you need a Bible, put your hand up and I'm not describing your Bible.
Luke chapter number one. If you need a Bible, keep your hand up and I'll come by.
Luke chapter number one. We'll read the entire chapter as our custom.
Luke one beginning verse number one.
For as much as many have taken a hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us,
even as they deliver them unto us which from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word,
it seemed good to me also, having had a perfect understanding of all things from the very first,
to write unto thee in order most excellent Theopolis,
that thou mightest know the certainty of those things wherein thou hast been instructed.
There was in the days of Herod and the king of Judea a certain priest named Zacharias,
of the course of Abiab, and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron and her name was Elizabeth.
And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.
And they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.
And it came to pass that while he executed the priest's office before God in the order of his course,
according to the custom of the priest's office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord.
And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense.
And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense.
And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.
But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias, for thy prayer is heard,
and thy wife Elizabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.
And thou shalt have joy and gladness, and many shall rejoice at his birth,
for he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink,
and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb.
And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God.
And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,
and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make great a people prepared for the Lord.
And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this?
For I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years.
And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God,
and I am sent to speak unto thee, and to show these glad tidings.
And behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed,
because thou believeth not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season.
And the people waited for Zacharias, and marveled that he tarried so long in the temple.
And when he came out, he could not speak unto them, and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple,
for he beckoned unto them, and remained speechless.
And it came to pass, that as soon as the days of his administration were accomplished, he departed to his own house.
And after those days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and in herself five months, saying,
Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein he looked on me, to take away my reproach among men.
And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,
to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary.
And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee, blessed art thou among women.
And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.
And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found favour with God.
And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus.
He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest, and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David.
And he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?
And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the highest shall overshadow thee.
Therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.
And behold, thy cousin Elizabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren.
For with God nothing shall be impossible.
And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it unto me according to thy word.
And the angel departed from her.
And Mary rose in those days, and went to the hill country with haste, into a city of Judah, and entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elizabeth.
And it came to pass, that when Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost.
And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.
And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
For lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.
And blessed is she that believed, for there shall be a performance of those things which are told her from the Lord.
And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior.
For he hath regarded the lowest state of his handmaiden, for behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
For he that is mighty hath done to me great things, and holy is his name.
And his mercies on them that fear him from generation to generation.
He hath shewed strength with his arm, he hath scattered the proud of the imaginations of their hearts.
He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree.
He hath filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he hath sent away empty.
He hath hope in his servants Israel, in remembrance of his mercy.
As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed forever.
And Mary abode with her about three months, and returned to her own house.
Now Elizabeth's full time came, that she should be delivered, and she brought forth his son.
And her neighbors and her cousins heard how the Lord had showed great mercy upon her, and they rejoiced with her.
And it came to pass, that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they called him Zacharias, at the name of his father.
And his mother answered and said, Not so, but he shall be called John.
And they said unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name.
And they made signs to his father how he would have him called.
And he asked for a writing table, and wrote, saying, His name is John.
And they marveled all.
And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spake and praised God.
And fear came on all that dwelt round about them.
And all these sayings were noises that brought about all the hill of the country of Judea.
And all they that heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, What manner of child shall this be?
And the hand of the Lord was with him.
And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied, saying, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he hath visited and redeemed his people.
And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David,
as he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began,
that we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us,
to perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant,
the oath which he served to our father Abraham,
that it were granted to us that we, being delivered out of the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before him all the days of our life.
And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the highest,
for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the remission of their sins,
through the tender mercy of our God,
or by the day spring from on high, hath visited us,
to give light to them that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet unto the way of peace.
And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his showing unto Israel.
Let's pray.
Heavenly Father, thank you for this evening. God, I thank you for our Church Lord,
and for the beginning of this new series, Lord, I just pray that you be with every sermon of this series, God,
as he pleased me with our hearts, Lord, prepare us, God,
as he pleased me with our passage to strengthen him, and fill him with his spirit.
We love you. In Jesus' name, pray. Amen.
Amen.
Alright, we're there in Luke, chapter number one.
And of course, we are starting a brand new study of the Bible tonight,
and we're going to be looking at this book of Luke.
And first of all, let me say this, thank you guys for, if I would have known that they were going to do the
I Must Know Jesus as the Offering, I wouldn't have of saying it, but thank you.
It's very kind of you guys to play that.
So tonight, we're starting this, we're starting a series,
and just to maybe help you understand kind of my reasoning,
when you read the first couple of chapters of the book of Luke,
you have the most thorough of the documentation of the story of Christ, of the birth of Christ,
and of the events that took place around the birth of Christ.
And when you look at Luke, chapter one, beginning at verse number five,
and you go through Luke, chapter two, and these are big chapters, as we just saw in Luke one,
you have the Christmas story, and we're going to begin starting Sunday morning into the Christmas story,
and we're going to spend both Sunday morning and Sunday night, starting next week,
looking at these different events that took place leading up to the Christmas story,
and looking at the birth of Christ on our Christmas service.
We're going to do that Sunday morning, Sunday night for the next several weeks.
The reason I'm preaching out of Luke tonight is because the first four verses in the book of Luke
have nothing to do with the Christmas story,
but they're an introduction that Luke gave us to the gospel according to Luke.
So tonight, we're going to look at those four verses, the first four verses of the book of Luke,
and we're really starting a verse-by-verse Bible study,
so I want to encourage you to take notes, just like you would on a Wednesday night.
On the back of the course of the week, there's a place for you to write down some things,
but we're looking at the first four verses because they have nothing to do with the Christmas story.
There's just an introduction to the gospel according to Luke,
and then starting next Sunday morning, we'll start in verse 5,
and we'll jump into all of the events leading up to the birth of Christ,
and it'll take us right up through Christmas.
So why don't you notice there in the first four verses of the gospel according to Luke,
Luke chapter 1 and verse 1, the Bible says this,
It seemed good to me also, having a perfect understanding of all things from the very first,
to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus,
that thou mightest know the certainty of those things wherein thou hast been instructed.
I want you to notice that the first four verses there,
the first four verses of the gospel,
that the first four verses there serve as the introduction to the book,
and then in verse 5, we get into the narrative.
He says, There was in the days of Herod the king of Judea a certain priest named Zacharias,
and he goes into the Christmas story and the events leading into the Christmas story,
but tonight I want to preach a sermon entitled The Certainty of Those Things,
and it really is an introduction to the gospel of the book of Luke,
and I want you to be interested in the book of Luke
because we're not only going to spend Christmas studying the book of Luke,
we're going to spend the next several weeks starting Sunday morning through the week of Christmas
looking at these stories, the angelic birth announcement of John the Baptist,
the angelic birth announcement of the Lord Jesus Christ,
the meeting between Elizabeth and Mary, the birth of John,
and of course the birth of Christ and then the presentation of Christ.
We're going to spend the next several weeks looking at those stories in detail
as we enter into this Christmas season, and we're calling the series Celebrating Christ,
but I want you to know that we're going to do something a little different in 2020,
and as soon as we end chapter 2 of Luke chapter 2 with the Christmas season,
we're going to enter the new year in Luke chapter number 3 with a series entitled Journeying with Jesus,
and we're going to go through the book of Luke in 2022,
and the book of Luke is a very long book, as you can notice,
and it's a very detailed book. We're going to talk about that,
and we're going to spend 2022 journeying with Jesus through the book of Luke,
and that's not something that I would normally do for any other Bible character
where we would spend maybe a whole year studying the life of any one Bible character.
I've done things like that for a short time on Sunday nights.
We're going to do it on Sunday morning and Sunday night in 2022
because I figure if there's any one character that we should come to church to learn about
and get acquainted with, it should be the Lord Jesus Christ.
He is the foundation of our faith. He is the gem of the entire Bible.
The Old Testament looks forward to Christ.
After the Gospels, the New Testament looks back to Christ.
So I'm excited about 2022. It's going to be the year of Jesus,
and we're going to learn more about Jesus than maybe we've ever learned
in the 11 years of ministry we've had here at Verity Baptist Church.
So I want you to get excited about the book of Luke,
and tonight that's my goal, to give you an introduction to this gospel
and give you six thoughts in regards to the gospel according to Luke,
and I would encourage you to write these down.
So let me give you six thoughts. We'll move to these as quickly as we can.
Number one, I'd like you to notice the significance of the person of Jesus Christ.
Luke begins this book of the Bible, and he highlights for us
the significance of the person of Christ, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Notice what he says in verse 1. He says,
Notice these words.
I want you to notice that Luke begins this letter by saying,
I'm going to do, Luke would say, I'm going to do something that many have taken in hand to do,
to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us.
What is he talking about? He's talking about the fact that he is going to write a book,
write a letter, write a treatise regarding the life of the Lord Jesus Christ,
and he says, Luke says, I'm not the only one.
He says, in fact, there are many that have taken in hand the job or the responsibility
of writing down the life and writing down and documenting the stories of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Now, what is Luke talking about?
Obviously, he's talking about himself writing the Gospel according to Luke,
but he's also talking about the book of Matthew,
the fact that Matthew the publican took the time to write down the story and the event of the Lord Jesus Christ.
He's also talking about the book of Mark, the Gospel according to Mark,
and how Mark obviously sat down and wrote down the events of the life of Christ.
He's also talking about the Gospel according to John
and how the Apostle John sat down and wrote down the events of the life of Christ.
And these are, of course, all divine Scripture, the Gospels of the New Testament
divinely given by the Holy Spirit through Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
But that's not it. There's been countless books.
There's been countless articles.
I mean, we're told of historians, one notably named Josephus,
who was a Jewish historian who was not a believer and did not write any sacred Scriptures.
He just simply wrote down history, but he wrote about the Lord Jesus Christ.
And since the life of Christ, there have been countless books,
there have been countless articles, there have been documentaries,
there have been movies, there have been more sermons than could be counted
about the life of the Lord Jesus Christ.
And you say, why would we highlight that or why are you bringing that to our attention?
I'm bringing that to your attention to help you understand
the significance of the person of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Here we have the Lord Jesus Christ who lived over 2,000 years ago,
and Luke reminds us that there are many that have taken in hand to set forth,
many who have taken in hand the responsibility of writing down the story and the life of Jesus Christ.
And if you don't understand the significance of what that means, let me ask you this question.
What would you have to do for somebody, anybody, to take the time to write down your life story?
I mean, what sort of impact, what sort of influence would you have to have
for one person to decide, I need to write this down, I need to document this for the generations,
I need to document this for human history.
And of course, we know of historical figures that have made impacts
and their lives have been written down, like George Washington, like Napoleon, like Alexander the Great.
We understand that, but none of those people have had their lives documented like the Lord Jesus Christ.
Why? Because the Book of Luke is one of many proves to the significance of the person of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ, without a doubt, was the most influential historical figure of all time.
I mean, it's not even a question.
If you consider who is the most influential person that has ever lived on planet Earth,
that has influenced thousands and millions of people through the generations,
the answer is, it's resounding me, it is the person of the Lord Jesus Christ and the significance of his life.
So why would we take the time to study, verse by verse, chapter by chapter,
a treatise written by a man named Luke who thought and felt that it was needful,
like many others, to write down the story of Jesus Christ?
Why should we learn it? Why should we study it?
Well, obviously, if you're saved tonight, he's your Savior.
If you're a follower of Christ, he's your Lord.
If you're a disciple of Christ, you are following Christ, you should know Christ,
and it speaks to the significance of the person of Jesus Christ.
I want you to notice, we see the significance of Christ.
I want you to notice, secondly, not only in these four verses do we see the significance of the person of Christ.
I'd like you to notice, secondly, and if you're writing down notes, you can jot this down,
we see the spreading of the message of Christ.
Notice there, in Luke chapter 1 and verse 1, notice what he says at the end of the verse there.
He says, For as much as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things,
notice what he says there in verse 1, he says, Which are most surely believed among us.
I want you to notice that Luke says, I'm not just writing down history here,
I'm not just writing down a historical figure, although he is writing down a historical figure,
and he does document history for us.
Luke says, I want you to know that this is not just secular, it's not just reasoning.
He says, I believe this. He says, Which are most surely believed among us.
I want you to notice, he says, We believe this.
He says, What I'm about to write down is something that we believe.
And then I want you to notice the spreading of the message of Christ.
I mean, have you ever thought about the fact?
Think about who is alive today that you and I talk about that lived 2,000 years ago.
Now I understand that there are historical figures that have been written down
and they've been around for thousands of years.
Many of them, we talk about them because they're in the Bible.
But there are major historical figures that have been around for thousands of years.
But let me ask you this, how many people gather together today to remember Alexander the Great?
To remember the great General Hannibal?
To remember some pharaoh of Egypt?
The Lord Jesus Christ lived 2,000 years ago.
And again, it proves the significance of who Christ is.
I want you to understand the reason that you and I stand today as Christians,
who are praying under the name of Christ, who are believers of Christ,
who are getting ready to go into a season to remember and to celebrate the first advent,
the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Why?
It's because this Gospel, this message of Jesus has been passed down through the generations.
And by the way, it is our responsibility to make sure it continues to be passed down.
You say, well, how does that happen? Well, notice that Luke documents it for us.
He says, there's in verse 1, he says,
he says, these are the things which are most surely believed among us, notice verse 2,
even as they delivered them unto us.
So how does the Gospel get spread? How does the message of the Lord Jesus Christ get spread?
Here's how it goes. We believe and then we deliver.
He said, these are the things that we believe.
You say, well, how did you start believing them, Luke?
He said, as they delivered them unto us.
There was others who believed and they delivered them unto us.
And Luke says, I believe and now I will deliver it unto you.
Keep your place there in Luke chapter 1, that's our text for tonight.
But go with me if you would to the book of 1 Corinthians, 1 Corinthians chapter 15.
You're there in Luke, you have the book of John, Acts, Romans, 1 Corinthians, Luke,
John, Acts, Romans, 1 Corinthians chapter 15.
And do me a favor when you get to 1 Corinthians 15, put a ribbon or a bookmark or something there
because we're going to leave it and we're going to come back to it.
1 Corinthians chapter 15, verse number 1.
You say, how does the message of salvation, how does the message of Jesus, how does it get spread?
Here's how it's spread. We believe and then we deliver.
We believe it, it was given to us by those who believe.
By the way, that's the only way the message of Jesus gets spread.
It doesn't get spread by any, you cannot get somebody saved if you're not saved.
Those that believe are the ones who have been given the stewardship of the manifold grace of God
whose responsibility it is to then deliver it.
Luke said, the things which are most surely believed among us, even as they delivered them unto us.
Notice how Paul said it in 1 Corinthians 15, in verse 1.
He says, moreover brethren, notice what he says, he says, I declare unto you the gospel.
He says, I'm going to deliver. Remember what Luke said as they delivered them unto us?
He said, I'm going to deliver something unto you, I'm going to declare it unto you.
He said, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you.
Notice, Paul, how did you get it? Which also ye have received and wherein ye stand.
He says, I'm going to declare it, you have received it.
What happens when you received it? Verse 2, by which also ye are saved.
By the way, you are saved by the gospel of Christ, period.
You say, what's the gospel of Christ? He's about to divide it for us, but I can tell you this is not your good works.
He says, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless, notice these words,
unless ye have believed in vain.
See, how does the message of Christ get spread? Here's how it's spread.
We believe and we deliver it.
How did I get saved? Someone who believed delivered the gospel unto me.
I have people that I've gotten saved, got saved. I believed and I delivered it unto them.
He says, notice verse 3, he says, for I delivered unto you, first of all, all that which I also received.
Do you see the pattern? He says, I received something, now I'm going to deliver that same message.
He says, for I delivered unto you, first of all, that which I also received.
What did you deliver, Paul? Notice how that, number one, Christ died for our sins,
according to the scriptures, and number two, that he was buried, and number three,
that he rose again the third day, according to the scriptures.
He said, what is my responsibility? Here's my responsibility and your responsibility
that somebody took the time to preach the gospel to us,
the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the atoning work of Christ,
that I could be saved and my sins could be forgiven because of what Christ did on the cross.
I received that. I believed that. Now I should declare it to others.
This is why the Bible says that God has given to us the ministry of reconciliation.
This is why the Bible says that if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost.
So we see from Luke, not only the significance of the person of Christ,
he says, for as much as many have taken in hand to set forth an order,
a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us,
we see the significance of Christ, but we also see the spreading of the message of Christ.
How is it spread? It is spread by those who believe.
We receive it when we believe it, and then we proclaim it, and we deliver it to others.
He replaced that in 1 Corinthians 15. Go back to Luke if you would.
Let me give you a third thought we see in these introductory verses.
Not only do we see the significance of the person of Christ,
and we see the spreading of the message of Christ,
I want you to notice, thirdly, Luke tells us about the spectators of the testimony of Christ.
You say, the spectators? What do you mean? Look at verse 2.
Even as they delivered them unto us, notice these words,
which from the beginning, notice this, were eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word of God.
I want you to notice that with Luke, and throughout the New Testament,
there is an emphasis on the eyewitnesses, the eyewitnesses who witnessed,
who testified, and who declared about the birth, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
I want you to understand something. Go back to 1 Corinthians 15, and please understand something.
Coming to God requires faith. Coming to God requires faith, no doubt about it.
The Bible says, but without faith, it is impossible to please Him.
For He that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is the rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.
So please understand me. If you're going to come to God, if you're going to come to Christ,
if you're going to get saved, that requires faith, no doubt about it.
And nothing will ever change that we must come to Christ, we must come to God in faith.
However, with that said, the Bible emphasizes the fact that the resurrection of Christ,
the birth, the life, the death, the burial, and the resurrection of Christ,
were historical events that were eyewitnessed by many.
1 Corinthians 15, look at verse 5. And again, I want you to notice that this is emphasized in the New Testament.
Luke talked about the fact that this was given unto him.
By the way, Luke was not one of the original apostles, one of the twelve apostles.
Luke says those that were eyewitnesses of those things, they gave this message to us,
they gave this gospel to us, and now I received it and now I'm documenting it, is what Luke would say.
Paul told us earlier here that he declared the gospel, that they had received the gospel.
Notice there in verse 5, 1 Corinthians 15 and verse 5, notice what the Bible says.
And that he, referring to Jesus, this is specifically referring to the resurrection of Christ,
1 Corinthians 15 is known as the resurrection chapter.
It's all about the resurrection of Christ and also about the resurrection of believers at the rapture.
And here he's referring to the fact that Jesus resurrected and it was documented by eyewitnesses.
1 Corinthians 15, verse 5. And that he, notice, was seen of Cephas.
That's Simon Peter, the apostle Peter. Then of the twelve. Notice Paul is documenting for us.
Jesus and his resurrection, he was seen of Cephas, he was seen of Peter, then of the twelve,
the twelve referring to the twelve apostles. There's more than just twelve apostles, the Bible tells us,
but there's the original or the main twelve, the group known as the twelve.
And Paul here tells us that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve, notice verse 6.
And after that he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once. Notice what he says.
Of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are falling asleep.
At the time of the writing of the book of 1 Corinthians, Paul says,
Jesus was seen of Cephas after his death and a resurrection in his resurrection.
He was seen of Cephas, then he was seen of the twelve, he says, then he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once.
And he says, at the time of the writing, he says, and the greater part remain unto this present.
He said, most of them are still around. He said, but some are falling asleep, some of them had died.
Because obviously the book of 1 Corinthians was being written decades after the resurrection of Christ.
Look at verse 7. After that, he was seen of James. James is the half brother of Jesus,
also the one who wrote the book of James and the James that we see in the book of Acts,
acting as the pastor of the church in Jerusalem. By the way, James, when we find James and his brothers in the Gospels,
the half brothers of Jesus, they did not believe. They were unbelievers.
But when they watched their brother die and then they talked to him three days later after his resurrection, they believed.
So he was seen of James, then of all the apostles. Notice in verse 5 he was seen of the twelve.
Now he's seen of all the apostles because the Bible tells us there's about seventy apostles.
Verse 8, and last of all, Paul says, he was seen of me also.
Of course we know that Paul saw Jesus on the road to Damascus.
He says, as one born out of due season, he says, for I am the lease of the apostles
and am not me to be called an apostle because I persecuted the church of God.
And I just want you to notice that the Bible emphasizes this idea.
Luke emphasizes that he's getting this account from the eyewitnesses.
Paul says that he was seen of Cephas and of the twelve and of five hundred brethren at once,
of whom the greater part remained unto this present. He was seen of James and of all the apostles.
And he says, last of all, Paul says, he was seen of me.
Go to 1 John, if you would, 1 John chapter 1.
If you start at the end of the New Testament, the book of Revelation, and go backwards,
you have the book of Jude, then 3 John, 2 John, 1 John, 1 John chapter 1.
Look at verse 1.
1 John chapter 1 and verse 1, notice what the Bible says.
This is John the apostle, the same John who wrote the gospel according to John.
He says, that which was from the beginning, which we have heard.
Notice what he says, which we have heard.
Then he says this, which we have seen with our eyes.
John says, I was an eyewitness.
He says, I'm going to talk to you about the Lord Jesus Christ,
but I'm going to talk to you about that which was from the beginning.
Who was from the beginning? That's Jesus.
In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God, the Word was God, also written by John.
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard.
Notice, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon,
which are hands of handle of the Word of life.
John says, Jesus, who is the Word, I touched him.
I saw him. I looked upon him. I knew him.
He says, he was from the beginning, but we have seen with our eyes,
which we have looked upon in our hands of handle of the Word of life.
See, the Bible emphasizes this idea of the eyewitness account
of the story and the life of Christ.
Go to 2 Peter, if you would, 2 Peter chapter 1.
You're there in 1 John, just go backwards one book into the book of 2 Peter.
2 Peter chapter 1.
2 Peter chapter 1, look at verse 6.
Notice what Peter said.
Remember, Peter was also an eyewitness.
Notice what Peter said, 2 Peter chapter 1 verse 16.
He says, for we have not, Peter says,
for we have not followed cunningly devised fables.
Do you understand what he just said?
The word cunning or cunningly means clever and or deceitful.
The word devised means carefully brought out plans.
The word fables means a story.
Peter says, we have not followed cunningly devised fables.
He says, we have not followed carefully, cleverly, deceitfully thought about stories.
He says, for we have not followed cunningly devised fables,
when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
He says, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty.
Peter says, we haven't followed cunningly devised fables.
He says, I was an eyewitness. I saw it.
Peter says, I saw Jesus. I spent years with Jesus.
Then I saw Him be put upon a cross and killed upon a cross.
And I saw Him die upon that cross.
And I saw Him take the body down and put it in the grave.
Peter says, I saw it. In fact, I saw it and it was so vivid and it was so true to me.
He said that I quit. I quit on God.
Jesus told me to quit fishing and to follow Him and to follow Him and become a fisher of men.
But when I saw Him die, He said, I went back to fishing.
Then three days later, Peter would say, I had breakfast with Jesus on the beach.
He said, we didn't follow cunningly devised fables.
He said, we are eyewitnesses.
John said, I was an eyewitness. He said, I saw it.
He said, I saw Him. I looked upon Him. I held Him with my hands.
Luke said, I spoke to the eyewitnesses.
This is a theme throughout the New Testament.
Now please, don't misunderstand what I'm telling you.
Yes, we need faith. Yes, we come to God in faith.
Yes, without faith, it is impossible to please Him.
For He that cometh to God must believe that He is and that He is the rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.
We must come to God in faith. But please understand, we do not come to God in blind faith.
We must come to God in faith. That's true.
But I'm thankful that my faith is not in a cunningly devised fable.
I'm thankful that my faith is not like the faith of the Mormon Church
that teaches about a Jesus who came to the Americas
and had a ministry among the Indians of North America and the Americas.
That is a cunningly devised fable.
No eyewitness documentation. Only a false prophet hundreds of years later says,
well, this is what happened.
No historical fact. Nothing to document it.
Believe what you want about Jesus Christ, but nobody can deny
that He was a historical figure who impacted this world.
And I'm thankful. I'm thankful that though I come to Christ in faith,
though I believe in Jesus Christ, that my faith is not in a cunningly devised fable.
My faith is not in a myth. My faith is not in a story.
My faith is not in a legend. No, our Savior is a historical.
The accounts of His death, burial, and resurrection were documented by eyewitnesses.
The book of Luke tells us, and Luke tells us himself in the first four verses of his book,
he speaks to us of the significance of the person of Christ when he says
that many have taken in hand to set forth an order or declaration of those things.
He tells us of the spreading of the message of Christ
when he tells us that he most surely believed and now he has delivered them unto us.
Then he tells us about the spectators of the life of Christ.
He says, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word.
And I'd like you to notice, fourthly tonight,
just as I gave you an introduction to the book of Luke,
because we're going to spend the next many weeks studying the book of Luke.
I want you to be familiar with it. I want you to understand it.
We see the significance of Christ. We see the spreading of the message of Christ.
We see the spectators of the testimony of Christ.
I want you to notice, fourthly, we see the scribe of the gospel of Christ.
You say, what's a scribe? It's an author.
Let me introduce you to the author of the gospel according to Luke.
Now, of course, we know that it's the Holy Spirit.
The Bible teaches us that holy men of God speak as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
But I want you to understand this writer, Luke. Notice verse 3.
He says, it seemed good unto me. This is Luke.
He said, because many have taken in hand to write down the story of Jesus
because it was delivered to me by eyewitnesses.
He says, because of those things, it seemed good to me, Luke would say.
It seemed good to me also, having had perfect.
When we talk about the word perfect this morning, it means complete understanding.
He says, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first,
he says, to write unto thee in order most excellent Theophilus.
We learn about the scribe of the gospel according to Luke, and it is Luke himself.
The author, Luke. You may not know a lot about Luke, but I want to give you some thoughts.
Keep your place there in Luke chapter 1, and go with me if you would to the book of Colossians.
Colossians chapter 4. We were there this morning,
but I want you to know it's a different part of Colossians chapter 4.
If you kept your place in 1 Corinthians, you're going to go past 2 Corinthians, past Galatians,
Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians.
1 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians.
Let me just help you understand the scribe, Luke.
Because the person of Luke tells us a lot about the gospel of Luke.
The first thing I want you to notice is that Luke, and we don't know this for sure,
because again, he lived 2,000 years ago, plus, and we don't know a lot about Luke,
but the Bible seems to indicate that Luke was a Gentile.
If that's true, then he was the only Gentile to write a portion of the New Testament.
Now you say, well, why does the Bible seem to indicate that Luke was a Gentile,
or somebody believed that he was a Gentile?
And again, we don't know for sure, and I'm not going to argue with anybody about it,
but Colossians chapter 4 seems to kind of indicate that Luke was probably a Gentile.
We'll talk about this more in a little bit, but Luke accompanied the apostle Paul
during his missionary journeys.
Now I want you to notice what Paul writes in Colossians chapter 4 and verse 10.
He says, Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, saluteth you.
So Paul is writing about the people that are with him,
and he mentions this man Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, saluteth you.
Then he says, and Marcus, this would be John Mark, who wrote the gospel according to Mark.
He says, and Marcus, sister's son to Barnabas, touching whom ye receive commandments,
if he come unto you, receive him.
He's talking about the people that are with him.
He says, Aristarchus is saluting you.
Marcus, if he makes it to you, make sure you receive him.
Verse 11, he says, and Jesus, this is not the Lord Jesus Christ,
this is somebody by the name of Jesus,
just a different person that also had the name Jesus,
and don't get confused with that.
There's lots of Mexican people named Jesus, and they're not the Lord Jesus Christ.
This guy, and Jesus, notice, to avoid confusion, he says, which is called justice.
But I want you to notice this phrase.
He says, who are of the circumcision.
Now, what does that mean, to be of the circumcision?
It means they were Jews.
Now, I want you to notice, in Colossians 4, 10, and 11,
he gives us a list of these three men.
He says, Articus, Marcus, and Jesus, which is called justice,
he says, they say hi to you, if they come to you, they're with me, they're my friends, they're my buddies,
and then he says, these guys, who are of the circumcision.
So what he's telling the church at Colossae is that these three guys,
Articus, Marcus, and Justice, are Jews.
They are they who are of the circumcision.
He says, these only are my fellow workers unto the kingdom of God,
which have been a comfort unto me.
Then in verse 12, he starts talking about a different group.
He says, Epaphras.
Now notice, he just told us that these other guys were of the circumcision, right?
Articus, Justice, Marcus are of the circumcision.
Then he says, Epaphras, who is one of you.
He's talking to the church at Colossae.
This is a Greek area.
And he says, Epaphras, but he's not of the circumcision, he's one of you.
He's not of the circumcision, he's from Colossae.
He says, a servant of Christ saluted you, always laboring fervently in prayers,
that ye may stand perfect and complete in the will of God.
Do you understand how he's talking about these three guys?
He says, they're of the circumcision.
Then he says, also Epaphras, he's not of the circumcision, he is one of you.
And then he brings up verse 13,
and I bear him record that he hath great zeal for you,
and them that are in Laodicea, talking about a Gentile location,
and them in Hierapolis, talking about a Gentile location.
Then notice the context in which he brings up Luke.
He says, Luke, the beloved physician, and Demas greet you.
So, Paul seems to indicate that he had six guys with them,
three of them were of the circumcision, they were Jews,
and then three of them were not Jews.
They were probably Greeks.
Apophis, Luke, and Demas.
Now you say, why are you making a big deal about this?
And again, I want to be clear that we don't know this for sure,
I'm not saying this to you dogmatically,
it's just that the Bible seems to indicate that Luke may have been a Gentile.
Some people believe, and I would tend to agree,
unless I saw some other evidence that Luke was a Gentile,
and probably a Greek.
Because of distinction, the distinction in which his name is given
to the church at Colossae, not one of the circumcision, but one of you.
Now here's what's interesting.
If Luke was a Gentile, that would make sense.
Because the Gospel of Luke, as we travel through the Gospel of Luke,
beginning over this Christmas season with the story and the birth of Christ,
and then going into the life of the Lord Jesus Christ,
the Book of Luke is a book that emphasizes the humanity of Christ.
See, we have four different Gospels, you may or may not know this,
the different Gospels emphasize different things.
And based on the emphasis, we believe that they were written
to maybe different groups of people.
Now of course, all Scripture is given by inspiration of God,
and it's profitable, all of it is good for everyone,
but there are different emphasis in the Gospels.
Maybe as we enter the time of nine chapters a day in the month of January,
and you read through the Gospels, maybe you can kind of look for this.
For example, the book of Matthew is written by Matthew,
but it emphasizes Jesus as the King.
And specifically Jesus as the King of the Jews.
So most people agree that the book of Matthew, though it is written for everyone,
has an emphasis, it was really written towards a Jewish audience,
and it emphasizes Jesus as King.
That's why throughout the book of Matthew you have all those quotes about the Old Testament.
Matthew constantly says, as it is written, as it is written, as it is written,
and highlights the fulfilling of prophecy by the Lord Jesus Christ,
highlights the fact that Jesus is the King of the Jews.
The book of Matthew gives us a genealogy that goes back through King David,
showing us that Jesus was the rightful heir to the throne, the King of the Jews,
and goes back through to Abraham,
showing us his lineage as a Hebrew, and of course, once we get past the captivity, as a Jew.
So Matthew writes, it seems like, to a Jewish audience,
and emphasizes Jesus as the King of the Jews, as opposed to the book of Mark.
The book of Mark, if you read the book of Mark, it emphasizes Jesus as a suffering servant.
It emphasizes Jesus in his service, as he ministered unto others.
Because Jesus is pictured through the book of Mark as a servant,
you'll notice that it's a fast-paced book.
If you read the book of Mark, you'll see these words come up over and over, straight way, straight way,
and the book of Mark is written in a very fast-paced way.
It just kind of shows Jesus doing this and doing this and doing that.
It's a short book, 16 chapters, but it's fast.
I mean, one chapter covers a lot of information.
We're not given a lot of detailed information,
but we're given a lot of information on the action and the work of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Because it pictures Christ as the suffering servant, the suffering servant that Isaiah prophesied about.
People seem to believe that the book of Mark was maybe geared towards a Roman audience.
And of course, the Romans would emphasize and understand this idea of service.
Then we have the book of Luke, which seems to be written to a Greek audience.
And the Bible seems to indicate that Luke himself was a Greek.
And it emphasized the humanity of Christ.
Jesus as the son of man.
History tells us that the Greeks had teachings about man at his height and how man could be great.
And the Greeks kind of believed in a spiritual form of evolution that man could become this superman
and this superhuman being.
And Greek comes in and says, I don't know about your superhuman being,
but let me tell you about the man, Christ Jesus.
He emphasizes the humanity.
What we'll see in the Gospel of Luke is that there's an emphasis on the humanity of the Lord Jesus Christ.
That's why the book of Luke gives us something that none of the other Gospels really go into in detail.
The birth of Christ. The childhood of Christ.
It gives us a lineage for Christ that goes past David, goes past Abraham, all the way to Adam.
Why? To emphasize the humanity of Christ.
Then we have the book of John, which was written to the world.
For God to love the world.
And it emphasizes Jesus as the son of God.
As deity.
So we have Matthew that emphasizes Jesus as the king of the Jews and as the king in general.
We have Mark that emphasizes Jesus as the suffering servant.
We have Luke that emphasizes Jesus as the son of man.
And we have John that emphasizes Jesus as the son of God.
So it's interesting if Luke was in fact a Gentile
because the Gospel that he wrote emphasizes the humanity of Christ.
History tells us, and we don't know that this is true,
but history tells us that Luke was probably from Antioch, Syria.
Which is interesting because that's where Paul was sent out of on his missionary journeys.
Luke joined Paul on his missionary journey.
And most of the book of Acts, which was also written by Luke, we'll talk about that in a minute,
surrounds the event of Antioch, Syria.
In contrast to Mark and Matthew, Luke's Gospel is clearly written to a more Gentile audience.
Luke again emphasizes the humanity of Christ.
I want you to notice something else about our scribe here, Luke.
Look down at Colossians 4 and verse 14.
I want you to notice how Paul refers to him. He says,
Luke, the beloved physician. Do you see that?
Paul refers to Luke as a physician because Luke was a physician.
Luke was a doctor. Luke was a medical doctor.
What's interesting is that Luke, as a medical doctor,
you'll find in his writings is very descriptive.
He uses detailed medical terminology when he describes the miracles of Christ,
when he describes the death of Christ.
He gives us this medical view into the miracles and the death of Christ.
Why? Emphasizing the humanity of Christ.
We're told, I don't know if this is true, but we're told that Luke uses more medical terms
in his writings than Hippocrates, the father of medicine, used in all of his writings.
Luke, as a medical doctor, probably traveled,
and again, I hope I'm being clear about the things that are just my opinion.
This is my opinion, but I believe that other than the fact that it was the ordain of God,
I think that on a practical sense, Luke probably traveled with the apostle Paul
because Luke was a medical doctor, a physician, and Paul, of course, dealt with illness.
You don't have to turn here. I'll just read this for you.
2 Corinthians 12, 7 says this,
And lest I should be exalted above measure, this is Paul speaking,
he says, through the abundance of the revelations that it was given unto me a thorn in the flesh,
the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.
Paul tells us that he had a thorn in the flesh. We don't know what it was.
I believe it has something to do with his eyes.
In the book of Galatians, he talks to us about how the Galatians loved him so much
that they would have plucked out their own eyes and given it unto him.
But the Bible seems to indicate that Paul had some sort of a physical medical ailment
that he struggled with, that he dealt with,
and so it would make sense that Luke, the beloved physician,
would travel with him throughout the missionary journeys, probably to be at help with him.
I want you to notice that Luke, the Bible documents for us that Luke travelled as a missionary with Paul.
We saw it there in Colossians chapter 4 verse 14
where Paul is writing to the book of Colossians to the church at Colossae
and he's talking about the people that are travelling with him.
He says, Luke, the beloved physician, and Demas greet you.
At that time, Luke and Demas were with him.
Go to 2 Timothy, if you would, 2 Timothy chapter 4.
The T-books, they're all clustered together.
1 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy Titus, 2 Timothy chapter 4.
I don't know if any of this is of interest to you, but I love just kind of studying and digging into the Word of God.
I know some of you just need me to teach you to say thank you and you're welcome, I get that.
But, you know, I hope you love the Bible.
2 Timothy 4 and verse 11, notice what Paul says.
Paul says, only Luke is with me here at the end of his life.
He says, only Luke is with me, take Mark and bring him with thee for he is a prophet for me, for the ministry here.
Paul is writing to Timothy and he's at the end of his journey at the end of his life
and he's telling Timothy, only Luke is with me.
He says, take Mark and bring him with thee.
So I want you to notice that Luke was a medical doctor that traveled with the Apostle Paul on his missionary journeys.
Here's an interesting fact for you.
For the first half of the book of Acts, Luke, who wrote the book of Acts, I'll show that to you in a minute,
describes the activities of the protagonist using third person terminology.
For example, the first half of the book of Acts, Luke is writing about the events of the book of Acts
and he says things like, he, they.
And then in chapter 16, he starts using the first personal plural pronouns such as we, our, us.
So the first part of Acts, he's saying, you know, he did that, they did that.
Then you get to about chapter 16 and he starts saying, we went there, we did this, you know,
our this, us this.
So the obvious conclusion, since we see in Colossians 4 that Paul says, Luke, the beloved physician and demons greet you,
we see Paul write from Rome in 2 Timothy, only Luke is with me.
The obvious conclusion to draw is that Luke had joined Paul during these phases of his missionary journey.
You say, why are you telling us this?
First of all, I just think it's interesting.
But secondly, I want you to know about the scribe who gave us the gospel according to Luke.
Go back to Luke chapter 1.
Luke chapter 1.
You can see how detailed the book of Luke is.
I'm only preaching to you from the first four verses.
It's going to be a long year.
But hey, I'm all for adjourning with Christ.
If there's one person I want to learn about Sunday morning, Sunday night, any night, it's Jesus.
I want you to notice that Luke, in these introductory verses, tells us about the significance of the person of Christ.
He tells us of the spreading of the message of Christ.
He tells us of the spectators of the testimony of Christ.
We learn about the scribe, Luke, of the gospel of Christ.
Like you notice, fifthly tonight, we see the story of the life of Christ.
Notice what he says there in verse 3.
He says,
It seemed good to me also, having had perfect, remember the word means complete, understanding of all things, from the very first, to write unto thee,
notice these words,
in order most excellent Theophilus.
Luke writes, he tells us his gospel in order.
Now what that means is up for debate.
I've heard different people debate as to what Luke means by in order.
And I've heard people that I trust and I think know a lot about the Bible.
So I'll be honest with you, I'm not 100% on what he means by in order.
Most people seem to believe, and this is kind of what I lean towards,
that Luke is telling us that he is the most chronological of all the gospels.
That he gives us the life of Christ in the most accurate chronology.
Because many of the ancient documents that, from the Bible and just ancient documents in general, are not necessarily written in chronological order.
It is a Western kind of idea to start a book at the beginning and kind of go to the end.
But sometimes you don't get those stories.
Even in our own Bible, there are 1 Samuel and 1 Kings, you get stories that are out of chronology.
The book of Judges, you get stories that are out of chronology.
But here, Luke seems to indicate that he gives us his gospel in order.
And most people seem to believe that it's given to us in a chronological order.
And that Luke is the most chronological of the gospels.
That's what most people seem to believe.
Other people seem to believe that when Luke tells us he gives us to us in order,
it means that he gives us to us in order of categories.
And an example of that would be, for example, Luke chapter 15.
Where we have 3 parables all in a row, but they all have a theme of something being lost.
We have the lost sheep, we have the lost coin, and we have the prodigal son who was lost.
So some people say, no, when Luke says it's an order, it means that it's an order of categories.
And I'll be honest with you, the jury is out.
I don't have a definitive thought on that, but I do plan to keep my eye open on that as I study and preach through the book of Luke.
And maybe by the end of the book, I'll have a better understanding of that.
Whichever is true, I will say this, that Luke does give us a good order in the sense of the description.
Luke is definitely, without a doubt, the most descriptive of the gospels.
I mean, Luke gives us something that the other gospels don't give us.
It gives us the fullest description of the birth of Christ.
When you think of the birth of Christ, there's mentions in the book of Matthew,
but when people read the Christmas story, they go to Luke chapter 2.
Luke chapter 1, Luke chapter 2.
It gives us the fullest description of the birth of Christ.
The gospel according to Luke, we'll see it in a few weeks,
is the only gospel that references the childhood of Jesus Christ.
No other gospel speaks to us about Jesus as a child, but Luke gives us the childhood of Christ.
And again, because he's emphasizing the humanity of Christ, we see him at his birth, we see him growing up.
The book of Luke has 18 parables that are not included in other gospels.
Two-thirds of all of Jesus' parables are found in the book of Luke.
And many of the most famous parables, including the Prodigal Son and the Good Samaritan, only found in the book of Luke.
There are six miracles not included in other gospels that are included in the book of Luke.
Luke is a book of worship.
We'll learn about this as we study the Christmas story and the events leading up to the Christmas story.
There are very many songs that are given to us during the events of the Christmas story
that are not given to us in other gospels.
Often the Bible documents songs of worship.
Remember in the Old Testament when the children of Israel crossed the Red Sea?
Miriam gave a song of worship.
We're given a song of worship that Moses gave in the book of Deuteronomy.
In the book of Judges, we have the song of worship that's given by Deborah the prophetess.
Throughout the Bible, David has given us many songs of worship.
Not just in the book of Psalms, but also in other writings.
So the Bible often has these songs of worship.
And Luke is the only of the gospel that gives us the songs of worship that are related to the Christmas story.
After the angel appears to Mary and tells her that she is with child of the Lord Jesus Christ,
Mary has a song of worship and praise.
We'll delve into it in our study.
It is known as the Magnificent of Mary.
There's Zacharias who's told about the prophecy of the coming forerunner for Jesus Christ.
Zacharias the father of John the Baptist.
And Zacharias has a song that is documented for us in the book of Luke known as the Benedictus.
The words of the angels, probably some of the most famous words in regards to the Christmas story.
The words of the angels in Bethlehem known as the Christmas anthem are only documented in the gospel according to Luke.
When the angels appeared and they said glory to God in the highest, peace and good will toward men.
Only documented in the gospel of Luke.
It's the most descriptive of the gospels.
The resurrection story of the road to Emmaus only found in the gospel of Luke.
41 parts or 50% of the book of Luke is not found in any other gospel.
You say, why do we need to know this? Here's why you need to know this.
Because if you want to learn about Jesus, Luke is a book to do it in.
1,151 verses make up the gospel according to Luke.
568 of those verses are found only in the gospel of Luke.
Not only does Luke give us the greatest description of the life of Christ.
Luke's volume is one of the greatest volumes in his writing.
You're there in Luke chapter 1. Go with me if you would to the book of Acts.
Acts chapter 1. I've been talking to you about the introduction, the first four verses of the gospel according to Luke.
But let me show you quickly the introduction to the book of Acts.
Because the book of Acts was written by the same author to the same person.
The book of Luke was written to a man named Theophilus.
The book of Acts was written by Luke to a man named Theophilus as well.
Acts chapter 1 verse 1. Notice what he says. He says the former treaties.
The word treaties means a document or a historical account.
And he's referring to the gospel according to Luke.
Luke is writing the book of Acts and he says,
The former treaties, the gospel according to Luke, have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach.
Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen.
To whom also he showed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs.
Notice the emphasis on the eyewitnesses being seen of them forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.
I want you to notice that Luke not only wrote the gospel according to Luke, but that Luke also wrote the book of Acts.
Now, there's no question that Paul wrote most of the New Testament.
And he wrote most of the books of the New Testament.
But something that's interesting is that Luke wrote nearly 38,000 words of the New Testament in two books.
The gospel according to Luke and the Acts of the apostles.
Making him the author of about 27% of the New Testament and the second biggest contributor to the New Testament.
If the apostle Paul wrote the book of Hebrews, which I believe he did.
If Paul for some crazy reason did not write the book of Hebrews, then Luke actually wrote more of the New Testament than the apostle Paul did.
But I don't believe that's true.
So it's interesting, the description of the physician Luke, the volume of the physician Luke, we learn in deep detail of the story of the life of Christ.
But I'd like you to notice lastly, go back to Luke chapter 1 if you would, not only does the gospel of Luke teach us about the significance of the person of Jesus Christ,
not only does it teach us about the spreading of the message of Christ, not only does it teach us about the spectators of the testimony of Christ,
and the scribe of the gospel of Christ, and the story of the life of Christ.
Why don't you notice lastly, and this is probably the main point,
it teaches us about the surety of the belief of Christ.
Why don't you notice the purpose of the gospel according to Luke, according to Luke himself, why did he write it?
Look at verse 3.
It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things, from the very first to write unto thee an order of most excellent Theophilus,
notice that thou mightest know the certainty of those things wherein thou has been instructed.
Now we don't know a lot about this man Theophilus, but we know this, that Luke wrote the gospel according of Luke to Theophilus.
He wrote the book of Acts to Theophilus.
Some people believe that maybe Theophilus was the one who commissioned Luke and probably financed his work to be able to write these accounts and do these things.
For whatever reason, Luke, in the introduction, makes sure to reference this man Theophilus.
But one thing we know is that Theophilus seems that he was saved.
Because he says there in verse 4, that thou mightest know the certainty of those things wherein thou has been instructed.
Luke is telling Theophilus, you already believe in Jesus, you've already been instructed about Jesus, but I want to give you more detail.
I want to tell you about the eyewitness account.
He says that thou mightest know the certainty of those things.
Luke wrote the gospel of Luke and the book of Acts to a man named Theophilus in order to make sure that Theophilus understood the certainty of those things.
That we do not believe cunningly devised fables.
That our faith is not in a myth and in a legend.
He says there were eyewitnesses. It is documented.
I have perfect understanding of it.
I wrote it down in order for you that ye might know the certainty of those things.
Go back to Acts real quickly, I just showed it to you, but I want you to notice it again.
Acts chapter 1, in verse 3, he says, to whom also he, Luke says about Jesus, showed himself alive after his passion.
Notice this, by many infallible proofs.
He says there is a lot of evidence and it is infallible.
Infallible proofs being seen of them forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.
He said what is the purpose of the gospel according to Luke? It is to show the certainty of those things.
But let me say this as well, go back to Luke, we're almost done.
We're going to look at Luke and John and we're going to finish up, alright?
Go to Luke chapter 3, just real quickly.
I want you to understand something about the gospel according to Luke.
Because remember it's the most descriptive and the greatest volume.
It gives us a lot of detail.
It talks a lot about the humanity of Christ and it has a purpose to show the certainty of those things.
And it is a historical account of the gospel.
I want you to notice as we study through and as we journey with Jesus through the book of Luke, that Luke goes out of his way.
I mean he bends over backwards to make sure that people understand that the life of Christ is a historically documented event.
Let me just give you one example, Luke chapter 3 verse 1.
Notice the detail that the physician Luke goes into.
Luke chapter 3 verse 1, he says,
Now in the fifteenth year, this is him going into the story of Jesus,
Now in the fifteenth year of the reign Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea,
and Herod being Tatriarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip, Tatriarch of Etruria,
and of the region of Traconitis and Licinius, the Tatriarch of Ibelin.
He's talking about all the people that are ruling at this time.
It would be like me saying, in 2021 when Joe Biden was president and Gavin Newsom was the governor of California,
and whoever was the governor of Oregon, I don't know where the governor of Oregon is,
and whoever was the governor of Nevada, this is what he's doing.
Notice verse 3,
Annas and Caiaphas being the high priests, the word of God came unto John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness.
And I want you to notice that Luke doesn't, he doesn't write like this.
A long time ago in a country far, far away. That's not how he writes.
He doesn't write once upon a time.
No, he's writing as a historian.
Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea,
and Herod being Tatriarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip, Tatriarch of Etruria,
and of the region of Traconitis, and Licinius, the Tatriarch of Ibelin,
Annas and Caiaphas being the high priests, the word of God came unto John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness.
It's like he's saying, this is a historical fact, check me on it, I double dog dare you.
He's giving us the certainty of those things.
That these things happened.
They were testified by eyewitnesses.
And I want you to know, I want you to understand, other gospels have other purposes.
Go to John, just real quickly, we're almost done.
John chapter 20.
Remember I told you the emphasis of the different gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John.
Emphasize Jesus as king, emphasize Jesus as the suffering servant, emphasize Jesus as the son of man,
emphasize Jesus as the son of God.
Not only do they have different emphasis, but they have different purposes.
You say, what is the purpose of the gospel according to Luke?
It is to help us know the certainty of those things.
That our faith is in Jesus Christ who was seen of eyewitnesses with many infallible proofs.
It is a historical account.
Other gospels have different emphasis.
Notice the emphasis of the gospel of John.
Just for example, John chapter 20 verse 30.
Notice what the book of John says about itself.
And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples which are not written in this book,
talking about the gospel of John, but these are written.
He says, the things that I wrote in the gospel according to John are written.
Why did you write them, John?
That ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God, and that believing ye might have life through his name.
The book of John tells us that the purpose of the book of John is that ye might believe.
It emphasizes the deity of Christ, the son of God.
That's why you have the famous John 3 16.
For God shall love the world that he gave his only begotten son.
That's why in the book of John you have the seven great I AM statements.
I AM the resurrection. I AM the door. I AM the bread of life. Why?
Because Jesus is the great I AM.
The deity of the Lord Jesus Christ is emphasized in the gospel according of John.
And why was John written?
That ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God, and that believing ye might have life through his name.
But why was Luke written?
It was written that thou mightest know the certainty of those things.
Wherein thou has been instructed.
I want you to notice that this book teaches us of the surety of our beliefs.
It tells us about the significance of the person of Christ.
Go back to Luke chapter 1.
It tells us about the spreading of the message of Christ.
It tells us about the spectators of the testimony of Christ.
It tells us of the scribes of the gospel of Christ.
It tells us of the story of the life of Christ.
It tells us of the surety of the belief in Christ.
Say, Pastor, why are you preaching this sermon on a Sunday night?
I don't know, because I'm hoping you'll get excited about Jesus.
Because I'm hoping you'll get excited about learning about Jesus, studying about Jesus, diving deep into the life of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Starting next Sunday morning, we've gone through the first four verses of the gospel according to Luke.
We will not go four verses at a time going forward, I promise.
But we're not going to go one chapter a week either.
We're going to go through the stories, delve into them, dig into them.
Starting next Sunday morning, we're going to begin to study the story of the birth of Christ and the events leading up to his birth.
The week of Christmas, we will deal on Christmas morning with the birth of Christ.
That evening, we'll deal with the presentation of Christ.
The next week, we'll deal with the childhood of Christ.
And as we enter into the new year, we will transition from calling it, the series calling it Celebrating Christ,
and we'll begin to call it Journey with Jesus.
We'll go into Luke chapter 3 and begin to journey with Jesus on Sunday mornings and Sunday nights,
preaching through the book of Luke, learning about our Savior.
2022 is going to be the year of Jesus.
Now, let me just say this, not scare you off.
We're going to take a lot of breaks.
And what I mean by that is we're going to take, I'm going to preach starting next week,
Sunday morning, Sunday night through the book of Luke.
But at times, we will take breaks and there'll be times during next year that I'll preach a different series on Sunday mornings for a while.
We'll continue to deal with Luke on Sunday nights as I deal with a topical series on Sunday morning.
There will be other times during the year that I will preach through the book of Luke on Sunday mornings
and we'll do another topical series on Sunday night.
So don't be afraid. We're going to deal with other things and have other things.
But we're going to emphasize the Lord Jesus Christ and I'm going to preach the book of Luke because it's a long book.
It has a lot of information.
Again, I wouldn't do this for any other book, maybe the book of Revelation because it's just a super interesting book.
I wouldn't do this for any other book or any other character, but Jesus is the purpose of our lives.
I'll tell you that I have an ulterior motive and it is this.
My goal is to preach through the entire Bible, verse by verse, chapter by chapter.
Many of you know that already.
Our church has been around for 11 years and in the last 11 years,
I have preached through verse by verse, chapter by chapter, through the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1, 2 Samuel,
Nehemiah, Esther, Job, Isaiah, Ezekiel, Hosea, Joel, Jonah, Matthew, we're going to do Luke, John, Acts, Romans, 1 Corinthians,
we're doing 2 Corinthians, Ephesians, Philippians, James, Jude.
My goal is by the time that we celebrate our 20-year anniversary, I will have preached through the entire Bible.
And part of that is going to require us going through the book of Luke, so I'm excited about it.
I hope you'll be excited about it.
You say, Pastor, what are we going to do when we get to our 20-year anniversary and you preach through the entire Bible, verse by verse, what are we going to do?
We're going to do it again.
Maybe God will give me 40 years of ministry and we'll preach through it twice, I don't know.
But I hope you'll get excited about celebrating Christ and about journeying with Jesus.
2022 is going to be a great year, the year of Jesus.
And I hope that this sermon was a good introduction for you to help you understand the gospel according to Luke,
understand the author, the physician, Luke, and as we study and learn about the life of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Let's bow our heads and have a word of prayer.
Heavenly Father, thank you, Lord, for your word.
Thank you for these gospels that you've given us.
Lord, I pray you'd help us to get excited.
I know it's hard in the day and age we live in to get people to be excited about studying the Bible,
but I thank you for this church and for the fact that they really love the Word of God.
Lord, I pray you'd help us, help us to study the life of Christ, help us to love Christ and to follow Christ.
In the matchless name of Christ, we pray. Amen.
We're now, Brother Matt, come up and lead us in a final song.
Let me just give you some ending notes.
Let me say this real quick, too, just to give you a heads up.
At our church, what we normally do is right before the sermon, we always read an entire chapter.
We've always done that, and I want to continue to do that.
However, starting next week, I'm going to do something that I've never done before.
I'm going to preach through the same book Sunday morning and Sunday night at times.
The book of Luke, you may have noticed, has super long chapters, 72 verses, 84 verses.
What we're going to do is because we're going to be in Luke Sunday morning and Sunday night,
I want you to know that we're not going to read the full chapter every time.
What we'll do is the first time we enter that chapter, we'll read the entire chapter like we did tonight.
We read all of Luke chapter 1.
Starting next week, we'll only read the passage that we're going to deal with in that sermon,
and the next time we'll read the passage that we're going to deal with in that sermon.
Then when we get into Luke chapter 2, we'll read the whole chapter the first time.
I'll probably preach several sermons out of Luke chapter 2, so the second time we'll only read that passage.
Just know that because we're not going to spend 20 minutes reading the same chapter twice and all that.
Just be aware of that.
Those of you that help us with the Bible reading, I want you to be aware of that,
and hopefully that will help you out, too.
Anyway, some ending notes. Don't forget we have the Turkey Bowl sign-up sheet in the foyer.
Make sure you sign up for the Turkey Bowl if you want to play and you haven't done that yet.
Also, Brother Andrew and Miss Esther's wedding.
They have a potluck. It's a potluck for the wedding, and they've got sign-up sheets in the foyer,
so please make sure you go by there.
This Wednesday, Pie Social.
I want to encourage you to be here and bring a pie, bake a pie, buy a pie, bring a pie to share.
We'll have a great time.
I'm excited about this Wednesday night sermon.
I won't give you a lot of details about it, but I'll just say this.
We're going to talk about the mansions in heaven, and it might not be what you think.
Anyway, just come back for that or come back for pie.
We encourage you to be here on Wednesday night.
Then, of course, Sunday morning celebrating Christ.
We're going to begin to delve into the life of Christ.
I want to encourage you to be here and invite a friend.
Bring someone with you as we begin to learn about the Lord Jesus Christ
and begin to delve into the Gospel according to Luke.
If there's anything we can do for you, please let us know.
We'll have Brother Matt come up and lead us in a final song.
Turn to song 322.
Song 322.
322.
Sing it out on the first.
Living for Jesus,
the life that is true.
Striving to please Him
in all that I do.
Wielding allegiance
when ordered and free.
This is a pathway
of blessing for me.
Oh, Jesus, Lord and Savior,
I give myself to Thee.
For Thou, with Thy excellent
didst give myself for me.
I hold no other master.
Thy blood shall be thine throne.
Thy life I give henceforth to give.
O Christ, Lord, be alone.
Living for Jesus,
who I hear Thy praise.
Pray, O Calvary,
my sin and disgrace.
Such love constrains me
to concern this job.
For love is within
and within my own.
Oh, Jesus, Lord and Savior,
I give myself to Thee.
For Thou, with Thy excellent
didst give myself for me.
I hold no other master.
Thy blood shall be thine throne.
Thy life I give henceforth to give.
O Christ, Lord, be alone.
Living for Jesus
wherever I am.
To be least to me
in His holy name
will lead to suffer
affliction and loss.
Dealing Israel,
the part of my cross.
Oh, Jesus, Lord and Savior,
I give myself to Thee.
For Thou, with Thy excellent
didst give myself for me.
I hold no other master.
My heart shall be thine throne.
My life I give henceforth to give.
O Christ, Lord, be alone.
Living for Jesus
through her little isle.
Thy dearest treasure
that I love is fine.
Seeking the lost ones,
lead thy to me deep.
Relate the weary
to five breaths to give.
Oh, Jesus, Lord and Savior,
I give myself to Thee.
For Thou, with Thy excellent
didst give myself for me.
I hold no other master.
My heart shall be thine throne.
My life I give henceforth to give.
O Christ, Lord, be alone.
Amen. Good singing.
Brother Johnny, was it cold in prayer for us?
Heavenly Father God, thank you for this church,
thank you for our salvation,
thank you for the message,
thank you for the book,
and also for the life and service of our lives,
and through the statements of the Lord
as we get back to church on one day.
In Jesus' name, amen. Amen.