Luke 7:40-43

The people that Jesus spent most of His time on earth with were societies rejected. If He directed most of His life and ministry to them….shouldn’t we, who have been forgiven so much, also do the same?

underclass |ˈəndərˌklas|

noun

the lowest social stratum in a country or community, consisting of the poor and unemployed.

What would Jesus do?

The Underclass

Nearly every society and every city in biblical times had a large underclass. Tending to congregate in the cities, the underclass included the poor, the sick, the disabled, the lepers, the blind, the insane, the demon-possessed, widows, orphans, and refugees. Lacking resources to provide for even their basic needs, many turned to begging, stealing, menial labor, slavery, or prostitution. Few cultures made provision for these desperate, destitute wanderers, and so they remained largely powerless to change their condition. Yet it was to the underclass that Jesus intentionally directed much of His life and ministry.

Jesus’ reply indicates that He knew the reputation of the woman, but was more interested in what the woman could become through the grace of God. Jesus’ point is that the amount of love showered on the Savior will be in direct proportion with one’s sense of the gravity of the sins that the Savior has forgiven. The woman knew she had been forgiven much, and as a result she would love much.

Luke 7:40-43

⁴⁰ And Jesus answered and said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.”

So he said, “Teacher, say it.”

⁴¹ “There was a certain creditor who had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. ⁴² And when they had nothing with which to repay, he freely forgave them both. Tell Me, therefore, which of them will love him more?

⁴³ Simon answered and said, “I suppose the one whom he forgave more.”

Amos 8:4-6

God does not tolerate injustice and He is partial to no man. To warrant God’s approval we need to take care of those who cannot care for themselves making a way for them to succeed by making sure our laws provide a safe haven in their time of need.

Fail means essentially “to have no means of survival.” 

The rich and powerful of Amos’s day were making slaves of Israel’s poor, the people they had dispossessed of their lands.

What does God require of us?

Micah 6:8 Be fair to everyone, forgive quickly and be humble knowing ALL things belong to God… we are just caretakers of the blessing  we have received.

fair ¹ |fe(ə)r|

adjective

1 in accordance with the rules or standards; legitimate

adverb

1 without cheating or trying to achieve unjust advantage

Amos 8:4-6

⁴ Hear this, you who swallow up the needy,

And make the poor of the land fail,

⁵ Saying:

“When will the New Moon be past,

That we may sell grain?

And the Sabbath,

That we may trade wheat?

Making the ephah small and the shekel large,

Falsifying the scales by deceit,

⁶ That we may buy the poor for silver,

And the needy for a pair of sandals—

Even sell the bad wheat?”

⁶So you, by the help of your God, return; Observe mercy and justice, And wait on your God continually. 

Hosea 12:6

¹⁷Learn to do good; Seek justice, Rebuke the oppressor; Defend the fatherless, Plead for the widow. 

Isaiah 1:17

Nahum 3:18-19

Everything, every thing, is under God’s control. Fear Him who has the power of life and death in His hands. He will lift up the humble and bring down the prideful because He alone is the Creator and giver of life and it is His right.

Every nation and people that had suffered under the abusive power of Nineveh would shout and clap upon hearing of the city’s destruction. There would be no mourning for Nineveh.

Assyria was a dominant power in the Near East for a large portion of the Bible, and the lands of the Bible were within the reach of its empire. Assyria’s affairs with biblical characters are recorded in 2 Kgs 15–23, where it is overthrown and Babylonia becomes the dominant Near Eastern power. In the Prophets, Assyria (land and inhabitants) is referred to in a variety of ways: as an object of judgment but also an instrument of judgment, as an example of pride and its consequences, and even an object of God’s affection. Assyria is also frequently spoken of in the context of exile and return, as the northern kingdom of Israel was destroyed by Assyria and taken into exile. 

Jesus warned the people of his own day, This is a wicked generation. It asks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah (Lk 11:29).

Jesus was harkening back to the historical paradox that when Israel would not repent, he frequently used the pagan nations around them to humble and purify them. Since Israel would not repent, God sent Jonah to strengthen the Assyrians and God eventually used Assyria to prune Israel, and execute justice for its failure to repent.

And thus for the people of Jesus time, if they would not repent, and come to believe, they, in their foolishness like Hoshea of old, would wage war, this time against the Romans, and suffer a horrible blow. That in fact happened in 70 AD when the Temple was destroyed and 1.2 million Jews died in the war.

It is a mysterious providence but it is also written to warn us. If we do not repent, we cannot be strong, and our enemies will surely overwhelm us. And what will our Assyria, our Rome be? It could be radical Islam, it could be our debt crisis, it could be our demographic winter. But by failing to repent, by our injustice, our refusal to keep commitments, our rising unbelief and ingratitude, by our sacrificing our children on the “altars” of our lust and our burning incense to the “gods” of this age, we are calling a just punishment and grave consequences that cannot forever wait. 

~ Archdiocese of Washington

Nahum 3:18-19

¹⁸ Your shepherds slumber, O king of Assyria;

Your nobles rest in the dust.

Your people are scattered on the mountains,

And no one gathers them.

¹⁹ Your injury has no healing,

Your wound is severe.

All who hear news of you

Will clap their hands over you,

For upon whom has not your wickedness passed continually¹⁶Fear and dread will fall on them; By the greatness of Your arm They will be as still as a stone, Till Your people pass over, O Lord, Till the people pass over Whom You have purchased. 

Exodus 15:16

⁶At Your rebuke, O God of Jacob, Both the chariot and horse were cast into a dead sleep. 

Psalm 76:6

³Indeed Assyria was a cedar in Lebanon, With fine branches that shaded the forest, And of high stature; And its top was among the thick boughs. 

Ezekiel 31:3

¹⁸ Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, As I have punished the king of Assyria. 

Jeremiah 50:18

⁹For her wounds are incurable. For it has come to Judah; It has come to the gate of My people— To Jerusalem. 

Micah 1:9

¹⁵This is the rejoicing city That dwelt securely, That said in her heart, “I am it, and there is none besides me.” How has she become a desolation, A place for beasts to lie down! Everyone who passes by her Shall hiss and shake his fist. 

Zephaniah 2:15

Ezekiel 35:1-4

All prophesy will be fulfilled and can be used for teaching. God alone has the right to judge and His judgement is true and without hypocrisy…if we live in violence we will die in violence.

Ezekiel 35:1-4

35 Moreover the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ² “Son of man, set your face against Mount Seir and prophesy against it, ³ and say to it, ‘Thus says the Lord God:

“Behold, O Mount Seir, I am against you;

I will stretch out My hand against you,

And make you most desolate;

⁴ I shall lay your cities waste,

And you shall be desolate.

Then you shall know that I am the Lord.

Deut 2:4-6

“Give the people these orders: ‘You are about to pass through the territory of your brothers the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. They will be afraid of you, but be very careful. Do not provoke them to war, for I will not give you any of their land, not even enough to put your foot on. I have given Esau the hill country of Seir as his own.  You are to pay them in silver for the food you eat and the water you drink.’” .

Seir bordered the Promised Land on the South East and was also called Edom. Lot’s sons Moab and Ammon (after whom the capitol of Jordan is named) were given the land north of Edom and East of the Jordan. Together these three land grants make up the land currently occupied by Jordan.

In 1921 the British partitioned the land they had been given control of following WW1 ( the British mandate) into Israel as a Jewish homeland and trans-Jordan (later Jordan) as a homeland for the “Palestinians”.  Jordan gained its independence in 1946, two years before Israel was declared an independent nation.

The area referred to as Mt. Seir in the Bible is called the Shara range today.  It’s in southern Jordan where the city of Petra is located.  In Biblical times this was the land of Edom.  In Ezekiel 35 Mt. Seir is used as a euphemism for Edom.  At the time of the Babylonian conquest the people of Edom sought to benefit from Israel’s troubles, first by helping the Babylonian army find and capture the fleeing Israelites and then by plotting to take the promised land for themselves in Israel’s absence. The Lord had Ezekiel tell the people of Edom their own land would be made desolate because of this.

Some try to apply this prophecy to the current Palestinians, but I believe it was fulfilled by a formerly nomadic people called the Nabateans who entered the area in the mid 4th century BC and completely overran the people of Edom, leaving no  survivors.  The Nabateans became a powerful force in the region, controlling desert trade routes between Egypt, Mesopotamia and the Eastern Mediterranean for about 450 years.  Today’s Bedouins may be all that’s left of the Nabateans

⁸ So Esau dwelt in ⁱMount Seir. Esau is Edom. 

Genesis 36:8

⁵ Do not meddle with them, for I will not give you any of their land, no, not so much as one footstep, because I have given Mount Seir to Esau as a possession. 

Deuteronomy 2:5

¹⁵“For the day of the Lord upon all the nations is near; As you have done, it shall be done to you; Your reprisal shall return upon your own head. 

Obadiah 15

Matthew 25:14-21

God gives all of us talents so that they can be multiplied, honed and shared with others. We multiply our talents by using them. It is up to us to use those gifts for the benefit of others… In faith knowing that He is a rewarder of those who believe in Him and place their trust in Him alone.

 The parable of the talents illustrates the faithfulness required of God’s servants. The fact that the master traveled to a far country indicates that there would be ample time to test the faithfulness of the servants.

talent |ˈtalənt|

noun

1 natural aptitude or skill

• people possessing talent

2 a former weight and unit of currency, used especially by the ancient Romans and Greeks.

Matthew 25:14-21

¹⁴ “For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. ¹⁵ And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey. ¹⁶ Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents. ¹⁷ And likewise he who had received two gained two more also. ¹⁸ But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord’s money. ¹⁹ After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.

²⁰ “So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, ‘Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.’ ²¹ His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.

 Enter into the joy of your lord.’

⁶ Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; 

Romans 12:6

⁷ But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: 

1 Corinthians 12:7

¹¹ And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 

Ephesians 4:11

¹⁰ He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much. 

Luke 16:10

⁷ I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 

2 Timothy 4:7

¹²If we endure, We shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. 

2 Timothy 2:12

⁸ whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 

1 Peter 1:8

⁷ He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. 

Revelation 21:7

Daniel 9:24-25

By the precious blood of….. The Messiah | the Conquerer of Sin and Death | Redeemer Kinsman | Lord God Almighty | Prince of Peace | Lord of Reconciliation…..Jesus Christ our King we are saved.

One commonly held interpretation maintains that the sixty-two weeks can be added to the seven weeks of v. 25, resulting in a total of 69 weeks, or 483 years. If these years are added to the date of the decree of Artaxerxes in Neh. 2, 445 b.c., with an adjustment to allow for the use of a 360-day year, the end of the 69 weeks coincides with the date of the crucifixion of Jesus.

Daniel 9:24-25

²⁴ “Seventy weeks are determined

For your people and for your holy city,

To finish the transgression,

To make an end of sins,

To make reconciliation for iniquity,

To bring in everlasting righteousness,

To seal up vision and prophecy,

And to anoint the Most Holy.

²⁵ “Know therefore and understand,

That from the going forth of the command

To restore and build Jerusalem

Until Messiah the Prince,

There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks;

The street shall be built again, and the wall,

Even in troublesome times.

¹⁰Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand. 

Isaiah 53:10

⁴³ To Him all the prophets witness that, through His name, whoever believes in Him will receive remission of sins.” 

Acts 10:43

¹⁰ 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. 

Romans 5:10

¹² Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. 

Hebrews 9:12

⁶ Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people—

Revelation 14:6

Trust in God alone and spread the Good News of the salvation He gives in Jesus Christ believing that His love is available to all….ask and it will be given, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be open.

Seek the Lord while He can be found…the time is now!

seek |sēk|

verb (past and past participle sought |sôt| ) [ with obj. ]

attempt to find (something)

• attempt or desire to obtain or achieve (something)• ask for (something) from someone
• (seek someone/something out) search for and find someone or something

Because we know that the Lord is good, we can endure the tribulations of life. There is nothing better for the people of God in any age than to live in obedience to Him and in anticipation of His coming deliverance. 

Nahum 1:7

⁷ The Lord is good,

A stronghold in the day of trouble;

And He knows those who trust in Him.

Nahum 1:15

¹⁵ Behold, on the mountains

The feet of him who brings good tidings,

Who proclaims peace!

⁸Good and upright is the Lord; Therefore He teaches sinners in the way. 

Psalm 25:8

⁴⁰And the Lord shall help them and deliver them; He shall deliver them from the wicked, And save them, Because they trust in Him. 

Psalm 37:40

⁵For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations. 

Psalm 100:5

²⁵The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, To the soul who seeks Him. 

Lamentations 3:25

¹⁹ Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.” 

2 Timothy 2:19

⁷How beautiful upon the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who proclaims peace, Who brings glad tidings of good things, Who proclaims salvation, Who says to Zion, ⁱ“Your God reigns!” 

Isaiah 52:7

¹⁵ And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, Who bring glad tidings of good things!” 

Romans 10:15

1 Corinthians 5:6-8

Leave the past in the past and live in the newness and grace of our Lord Jesus Christ who gave up His life in place of yours!

 We live not in our righteousness but in His… not in the traditions and hypocrisy of men but in the fullness of the Holy Spirit who leads us away from the sins of the world and into God’s truth.

leaven |ˈlevən|

noun

1 a substance, typically yeast, that is added to dough to make it ferment and rise.

2 a pervasive influence that modifies something or transforms it. 

verb [ with obj. ]

1 (usu. as adj. leavened) cause (dough or bread) to ferment and rise by adding leaven: leavened breads are forbidden during Passover.

2 permeate and modify or transform (something).

As Israel was to remove all leaven from the celebration of the Passover, so the Corinthians were not to contaminate their relationship with Christ with any malice or wickedness.

1 Corinthians 5:6-8

⁶ Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? ⁷ Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. ⁸ Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

⁶ Then Jesus said to them, “Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.” 

Matthew 16:6

¹² Then they understood that He did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and Sadducees. 

Matthew 16:12

⁹ A little leaven leavens the whole lump. 

Galatians 5:9

¹⁴ Now it was the Preparation Day of the Passover, and about the sixth hour. And he said to the Jews, “Behold your King!” 

John 19:14

Ezekiel 22:17-22

We are refined in the furnace of affliction until God sees the image of His Son in us. Always keeping in mind that He corrects those He loves He will remove the impurities in our life giving us a new heart. 

In refining the Silver Smith cannot remove His eyes on the silver. If the silver was left even a little too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.

These verses are primarily about God’s chastisement of His sinful people through the burning of Jerusalem by the Babylonians. Yet the verses also point to the fiery ordeals and trials that force all of us into a more perfect relationship with our Lord.

dross |drôs, dräs|

noun

something regarded as worthless; rubbish: there are bargains if you have the patience to sift through the dross.

• foreign matter, dregs, or mineral waste, in particular scum formed on the surface of molten metal.

Dross

Dross is a mass of solid impurities

Dross product is not entirely waste material; aluminium dross, for example, can be recycled and is used in secondary steelmaking for slag deoxidation.^[2]

Ezekiel 22:17-22

¹⁷ The word of the Lord came to me, saying, ¹⁸ “Son of man, the house of Israel has become dross to Me; they are all bronze, tin, iron, and lead, in the midst of a furnace; they have become dross from silver. ¹⁹ Therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Because you have all become dross, therefore behold, I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. ²⁰ As men gather silver, bronze, iron, lead, and tin into the midst of a furnace, to blow fire on it, to melt it; so I will gather you in My anger and in My fury, and I will leave you there and melt you. ²¹ Yes, I will gather you and blow on you with the fire of My wrath, and you shall be melted in its midst. ²² As silver is melted in the midst of a furnace, so shall you be melted in its midst; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have poured out My fury on you.’ ”

¹⁰ Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. 

Isaiah 48:10

³The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold, But the Lord tests the hearts. 

Proverbs 17:3

²⁵ I will turn My hand against you, And thoroughly purge away your dross, And take away all your alloy. 

Isaiah 1:25

⁷ Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts: “Behold, I will refine them and try them; For how shall I deal with the daughter of My people? 

Jeremiah 9:7

Mark 3:13-19

Jesus calls and we come.

It isn’t about our righteousness it is about His. It has a lot to do with humility knowing that we are sinners who cannot save ourselves and He alone can save us. We can deem ourselves unworthy, which we are, and deny His power to change us into instruments of His mercy and grace | Or we can accept His calling into our lives and be His hands and feet, to a world marked for self destruction, by building up the Body of Christ, His Church. We choose life or death. When He calls listen.

These twelve were Jesus’ apostles—a chosen group sent out to fulfill a particular mission. Christ gave power or authority to these twelve apostles. The apostle Paul called this authority “the signs of an apostle”. Christ and the apostles authenticated their ministry through signs, miracles, and wonders.

Mark 3:13-19

¹³ And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted. And they came to Him. ¹⁴ Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, ¹⁵ and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons: ¹⁶ Simon, to whom He gave the name Peter; ¹⁷ James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, to whom He gave the name Boanerges, that is, “Sons of Thunder”; ¹⁸ Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Cananite; ¹⁹ and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him. And they went into a house.

10 And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease. 

Matthew 10:1

9 Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. 

Luke 9:1

¹⁸ And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. 

Matthew 16:18

⁴² And he brought him to Jesus. Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, “You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas” (which is translated, A Stone). 

John 1:42