Welcome And Study Focus

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You're listening to Heat the Word with our pastor and teacher Ken Davis. Pastor Ken is the senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Southwest Metro in Burleson, Texas. Please join us as we study the Gospel of Luke verse by verse.

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When we turn our hearts and our lives over to Jesus Christ, and we begin to live for righteousness instead of for sin, and we begin to grow in holiness instead of debauchery, then we have a reward for our labors instead of death, eternal life. You see, we earn death, but eternal life is a gift of God. It's a blessing that we could never have achieved in our own. And so as we live in him, let us live for him. Recognizing that the life that we have is not from ourselves, but it's from the one who gave his life.

Promise Of Eternal Life

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The Gospel of Luke is the third account in the Gospels of the life and teachings of our Savior, Jesus Christ. As believers, there are few studies that will benefit us more spiritually than studying the life and teachings of the Master. There is a reward coming that is beyond description, but there is a first step in receiving this reward. That first step is accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Upon accepting God's free gift provided in his Son, eternal life awaits you, an eternity to spend with your Father in heaven. Don't forget to stay with us after today's message to hear more information about He the Word, specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching.

Turning To Luke 24

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But for now, please open your Bibles to the Gospel of Luke, chapter 24, as we join Pastor Ken.

Disciples’ Initial Disbelief As Evidence

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This initial disbelief of the majority of the disciples is an incredible piece of evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The fact that those who had the most reason to believe that Jesus was raised did not believe that very fact is a testimony to the reality of what had happened. You see, had they plotted and schemed together to make it seem as though Jesus had risen from the dead, then they would have been quick to acknowledge the fact that he was raised. And yet they denied it. They rejected that truth. They didn't believe it. They thought that these women were just crazy, that they were just, you know, wishful thinking. And yet each one of these men who initially did not believe would ultimately give his life, with the exception of John, for the gospel of Jesus Christ. Many of the early believers, both the apostles and the others that believed with them in those early days, many of them, most of them, it would seem, died a martyr's death.

Catalog Of Early Martyrs

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Fox's book of martyrs gives us a breakdown on some of those, and let me just share some of them with you. First, James the Great. Now, Stephen, of course, was the first martyr of the church, but James was the first of the apostles to die. He was beheaded at the order of Herod Agrippa. Philip, who was born in Bethadia in Galilee, was the first one to be called by the name disciple, and he labored diligently in Upper Asia and suffered martyrdom at Halopolis in Phrygia, and he was scourged, thrown into prison, and afterwards crucified around A.D. 54. Matthew, the tax collector, ministered in Parthia and Ethiopia, and it was in Ethiopia that he would die a martyr's death, as he was slain with a halibird in the city of Nadaba around A.D. 60. James, the brother of Jesus, at the age of 94, was beaten and stoned by the Jews and finally had his brains dashed out with a fuller's club. Matthew, as you may remember in the early chapters of Acts, was the one that was chosen to replace Judas. He had been with them from the beginning and had seen the works that Jesus had done. He was stoned to death at Jerusalem and then beheaded, in addition to being stoned. Andrew was taken and crucified on a cross, the two ends of which were fixed transversely in the ground. Mark, who was not one of the apostles but was the writer of the gospel that bears his name, was dragged to pieces by the people of Alexandria. Peter, of course, we understand by tradition, was crucified upside down. Paul was beheaded. Jude was crucified at Edassa. Bartholomew was beaten and crucified. Thomas was thrust through with a spear. Luke hanged on an olive tree by the Greeks. Simon the zealot preached the gospel in Marshinia, Africa, and even into Britain. And he was crucified in Britain. And then John, though he did not die a martyr's death, was uh banished to the island of Patmos, prior to which they had tried to boil him in oil, but he just wouldn't die.

Meeting The Risen Christ Changes Everything

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And so we see these men who at first didn't believe, dying, giving their lives for something that they did believe. Something happened in between those two times, and that is they met the risen Christ. They saw Jesus face to face, and they were henceforth filled with the Holy Spirit, and they were changed. You see, if Jesus was not raised from the dead, these men would have known it. So if Jesus was not raised from the dead, then each of these men died for a lie. Now people will die for lies, but only if they believed the lies. What man or woman would die for something that they knew to be a lie? None. Not unless they stood to gain somehow by

If No Resurrection, Faith Is Empty

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it. And what did these men stand to gain? They died for something that they knew to be the truth. They died for the risen Savior. And they died with the hope of the resurrection in themselves. Paul summarizes this well in 1 Corinthians 15. Turn with me there, if you will. Starting in verse 1, he says, Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel, which I preached to you, which also you received, and in which you stand, by which also you were saved, if you hold fast that word which I preach to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures. So Paul encapsulizes in these few verses the true message, the central message of the gospel for us. Simply put,

Eyewitnesses And Legal Weight

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that Christ died for our sins, that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures, and that he was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that, he was seen by over 500 brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. What Paul is saying here is listen, the gospel that I declared to you is not something that I'm asking you to just take my word for. But there are men alive today who saw the risen Christ, and I'm one of them, Paul says. Paul had seen him on the road to Damascus. Peter had seen him, the apostles had seen him, and over 500 believers in that day had seen him. And he said, many of them are still alive today. If you were to enter into a court of law today with the agreed testimony of 500 witnesses, the thing to which they testified would be established as fact, wouldn't it? It would be believed, it would not be disputed. And we have the written record of this testimony, and yet people today choose to call this a fable. They choose not to believe in the resurrection of Jesus. Verse 7.

Paul’s Humility And Grace

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After that he was seen by James, then by all the apostles, then last of all he was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time. For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain, but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. Therefore, whether it was I or they, so we preach, and so you believed.

Resurrection As Gospel Center

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Now if Christ is preached that he has been raised from the dead, how does some among you say there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen. And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty, and your faith is also empty. Yes, and we are found false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ, whom he did not raise up, if in fact the dead do not rise. For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen. And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile, you are still in your sins. Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are all men most pitiable. Paul is saying, listen to me. And because of that fact, because Christ is risen, then we know that there is a resurrection also for us. And we know that our sins are forgiven. He said, if Christ isn't raised, and if there is no resurrection, then what forgiveness is there for sin? Paul makes the point that the resurrection is the central point of the gospel. So often we focus on the crucifixion and on the death and on the suffering of Christ, and well we should. But we should also remember that the resurrection is life to us, that we will be raised with Christ, that we have life in him, and that should be an incredible source of comfort and peace and joy to

Saved By Confession And Belief

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us. Because it was because of that fact that the disciples and the early believers were able to face so bravely the fate that awaited them, because they knew that this life was not all there was, but that they knew there was life after death because they had seen the one who conquered death alive. Now, Paul makes a point here in verse 11. Therefore, whether it was I or they, so we preach, and so you believe. You see, Romans tells us that the word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart. That is the word of faith which we preach, that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture says, Whoever believes on him will not be put to shame, for there is no distinction between Jews and Greeks, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon him. For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. Doesn't say may be saved, doesn't say might be saved, doesn't say could be saved, but it says shall be saved. I love the fact here that

Justified By Faith, Peace With God

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Paul is talking about a confession with our mouth that must be first preceded by a belief in our heart. You see, I can say Jesus is Lord all day long, but if I don't truly believe that God raised him from the dead, then my confession is worthless. And I love the fact that Paul points out that that belief in our hearts, if it truly is belief, results in something. Something happens in our lives as a result of that belief. That belief is not simply a mental ascent, it is a true and a firm belief that has results in our hearts. What did Paul say our belief was unto? He said it right there that with the heart one believes unto righteousness. Unto righteousness. Let's look at Romans chapter six to get a little better explanation of what Paul may have meant by that. Actually, let's go ahead and back up to Romans chapter five. We'll start. Let's start in verse one. Romans builds on itself in such a way that it's always hard to find just exactly where you want to start because every time you pick a place to start, it makes you want to go back to an earlier chapter and start there. Verse 1, therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand and rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Paul points out very clearly here that salvation is by grace through faith. It's not by works, as he talks about in Ephesians. He's saying that we've been justified by faith, and it's through that faith that we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand and rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.

Love Poured Out, Christ Died For Us

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And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulations or tribulation produces perseverance, and perseverance character, and character hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die, yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more than, having now been justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

His Life Gives Us Life

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For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of his son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. I see here the fact that it is his life that gives us life. It's the resurrection of Jesus that gives life to our mortal bodies. And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.

Shall We Continue In Sin

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Let's go ahead to verse one of chapter six. What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? You know, we've received the reconciliation. We've been forgiven because of what Christ did for us. Even when we were sinners, Christ died for us. So given that fact, looking at all of that, should we say, hey, great, I'm forgiven. I can go out and do whatever I want to do now because Jesus paid the price. I might as well get his money's worth. Should we have that attitude? No. Paul says, What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not. How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?

Baptized Into Death And New Life

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Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore we were buried with him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of his death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of his resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin. Now, if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over him. For the death that he died, he died to sin once and for all, but the life that he lives, he lives to God. Likewise, you also reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Dead To Sin, Alive To God

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Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body that you should obey it in its lusts, and do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God, for sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under the law, but under grace. As Christians, we recognize the fact that when Jesus hung on the cross, he paid the price for our sins. That God took the sin of all the world and placed it upon Jesus there.

Instruments Of Righteousness Under Grace

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That as God poured out his wrath upon that day, he was punishing that sin in his own son. That Jesus through his death received the punishment that was due to you and I. Now, because he died, and in identification, we die with him, we are no longer subject to sin. Give you an example. Let's say that I committed a murder, and I was arrested and I was brought before the judge. And the judge

Illustration: You Can’t Execute A Corpse

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said, Yep, you're guilty. I sentence you to death by electrocution in the electric chair. So they take me away, they put me out on death row, and the night before I'm to be executed, I get so panicked that I have a heart attack and die. The next morning, when they come in and they find my dead body in that cell, are they going to say, well, he was sentenced to death by electrocution. Let's get that corpse in there, hook him up to the chair, and throw those vaults through him. Are they going to execute me having already died? No, they're not, are they? Because I've already died. You can't kill a man twice. Not in that sense, anyway. So, in that we have died with Christ, we are no longer under the penalty of death or of judgment for sin. But by the same token, God raised Christ from the dead. And because we are identified with him, in that in his resurrection, we also have new.

Slaves Of Sin Or Slaves Of Righteousness

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Life, we live not to ourselves and not to sin, but we live unto Christ. That old man is dead and gone, and we have a new life in Jesus Christ that we are to live according to his perfect love. So when we live, we need to recognize the fact that it is no longer we who are living, but it's Christ who is living in us. And if Christ is living in us, then the life that we live should be lived to glorify Him. We shouldn't go through life looking at our appetites and our pleasures and saying, How can I please myself? But rather we should go through life looking to see how can I please my God? Paul continues to speak of it in Romans as he says in verse 15. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? Certainly not. Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves

Wages Of Sin And Gift Of God

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slaves to obey, you are that one's slave whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death or of obedience leading to righteousness? But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered, and having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves of righteousness for holiness. For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. What fruit did you have then in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now, having been set free from sin and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness and the end everlasting life. For the wages of sin is death. But the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Live To Please God

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You see, before we came to Christ, we worked hard at unrighteousness. We worked hard at sinning. We would sin and then we would go out and we would find new ways to sin, wouldn't we? And it seemed like we were getting better at it all the time. And Paul asks the question, what profit was that to you? What were you accomplishing by that? Kind of like the person who complains about all of the things that are going wrong in their lives as they try to lead that life according to their own plans and their own desires, and you kind of just want to look at them and say, hey, how's that working for you? You know? Are you pleased with the results that you're getting? Because if you keep living according to your own desires and your own lusts, you're going to keep getting the same results. One definition of insanity is to do the same thing and expect different results.

All Things Work Together For Good

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If you do the same thing you've always done, you're going to get the same results you've always gotten. But when we turn our hearts and our lives over to Jesus Christ and we begin to live for righteousness instead of for sin, and we begin to grow in holiness instead of debauchery, then we have a reward for our labors. Instead of death, eternal life. You see, we earn death. But eternal life is a gift of God. It's a blessing that we could never have achieved on our own. And so as we live in Him, let us live for Him. Recognizing that the life that we have is not from ourselves. But it's from the one who gave His life for us.

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Do you ever feel like the circumstances you're going through are more than you can bear? That God is in some way punishing you? Well, consider the words of Paul, and we know that all things work together for the good. To those who love God, to those who are called according to his purpose. So we learn from this verse that all things, not some, but all things work together if we love God and are called according to his purpose. Just something to think about from your friends here at Heed the Word.

Ministry Info And Free Resources

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Heed the Word is the daily Bible teaching ministry of Ken Davis, Senior Pastor of Calvary Chapel in Burleson, Texas. There's a great deal more that Pastor Ken has to share with us from the Gospel of Luke, so please join us again. Maybe you'd like to add today's message to your study library. Our online media is always available and free of charge. CD copies are also available upon request for free, but supplies are limited, so order today. To order a CD, simply log on to HeedTheWord.org and select the order a message option. There you'll find a convenient order form to fill out. The only information you need to remember is today's date. This ensures we get you the right teaching. So log on to heedtheword.org and place your order today.

Service Invitation And Closing

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Or better yet, join us this Sunday for worship at 10 30 a.m. Directions are available on our website. That's heedtheword.org. Well, we've run out of time today, but tune in next time as Pastor Ken will continue teaching verse by verse through the Gospel of Luke. That's next time on Heed the Word.