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Luke 9:51-62
If you were going on a path and you knew it was dangerous, would you go there? What about the Lord Jesus? What did he do? “Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem,”(Luke 9:51). Here, we see very clearly the Lord Jesus does something very remarkable. He could have stayed in Galilee, but now He sets his face towards Jerusalem. He is God. He knows the pain and the agony ahead. At the Mount of Olives He prayed was there any other way. He chose to walk on the Calvary Road, knowing what was going to happen – the events, the pain. Jesus sets His face towards Jerusalem.
700 years before, the prophet Isaiah said the same,
“I gave My back to those who struck Me,
And My cheeks to those who plucked out the beard;
I did not hide My face from shame and spitting.
7 “For the Lord God will help Me;
Therefore I will not be disgraced;
Therefore I have set My face like a flint,
And I know that I will not be ashamed.
8 He is near who justifies Me;
Who will contend with Me?
Let us stand together.
Who is My adversary?
Let him come near Me.”
(Isaiah 50:6-8)
A flint is a very hard rock. Jesus is not just going to Jerusalem, He sets His face like a flint. He is determined to achieve the task His Father has given Him, whatever the cost. There are hints in this passage in Isaiah what trials are ahead. He will be treated in a terrible, terrible way but His Father will vindicate Him. We see the perfect One will be mocked, made fun of. He will be struck. He will be shamed. He will be spat at. His beard will be plucked out. Yet he had to set His face like a flint.
What would make Jesus do this, to so selflessly give up himself? “Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2). Why? For the joy set before him. When people like you and me become Christians, there’s joy! There is joy in heaven, a celebration. Why should anyone celebrate me? He forgives, He cleanses. It is truly wonderful!
What was Jesus thinking about as He went to the cross? Himself? No, He was thinking about you and thinking about me. He set his face for all, for the joy set before Him. He simply wanted to serve His Father and to rescue me.
What happened to the disciples? As you go through the chapter you will see a lot of interesting things just in this chapter alone. We see the feeding of the 5,000, “When the day began to wear away, the twelve came and said to Him, “Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding towns and country, and lodge and get provisions; for we are in a deserted place here.” 13 But He said to them, “You give them something to eat.” (Luke 9:12-13). Before this, there were miracles after miracles. The disciples had seen all these miracles. Now they say, ‘Our situation is impossible.’ Yet Jesus feeds everyone. The disciples didn’t get Jesus could meet their needs.
It is easy to point at the disciples, but when we do we have three fingers pointing back at us. We can say, ‘My situation is too bad.’ But you know, He is a great and wonderful saviour. The disciples hadn’t put their trust in Him.
In Luke 9:28-32 three disciples saw the most glorious things – two glorious Old Testament Saints with Jesus, yet Peter and those with him were heavy in sleep. Fast asleep, unconscious at what God was doing! Sometimes, we are like that.
We also see the disciples were afraid to show their ignorance, to ask. “And they were all amazed at the majesty of God. But while everyone marvelled at all the things which Jesus did, He said to His disciples, 44 “Let these words sink down into your ears, for the Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men.” 45 But they did not understand this saying, and it was hidden from them so that they did not perceive it; and they were afraid to ask Him about this saying.” (Luke 9:43-45). The disciples were with Jesus, close to Him, yet they are afraid. We can point the finger at them, but we are the same. Fear can make us not seek Jesus and ask about our problems. We can pretend it’s wrong to admit our weaknesses. The church should be the safest place in the world where we can admit we don’t know what to do. Fear can stop us. But the great thing is we can pray to God to give us courage. God dwells with the humble and contrite heart.
“Then a dispute arose among them as to which of them would be greatest. 47 And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a little child and set him by Him, 48 and said to them, “Whoever receives this little child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me. For he who is least among you all will be great.” (Luke 9:46-48). The Lord Jesus did not give up on his disciples. I would have. What a crew! Jesus never ever gave up on them. Luke wrote the book of Acts, which shows God works through weak people. Yes, Jesus succeeded. He never gave up on them. Jesus won’t give up on you, despite your weaknesses and failures.
What a wonderful truth – the Lord Jesus Christ takes people like you and me, turns us around and helps us to walk on the Calvary Road. Have you set your mind on the Calvary Road, to bring glory to Him? We can’t do it ourselves. The Holy Spirit is able to do what you and I can’t do. He strengthens us. The spirit of God brings glory to the Lord Jesus as He walks the Calvary Road. God is at work. He wants you and I to follow on that Calvary Road. Sometimes, we may think it is too much.
There is a story about a magic penny where a choice has to be made – whether to accept 1 million pounds and walk away or have a magic penny which will double in value for 31 days then it must be given back. If you take the magic penny, after 20 days you may think you haven’t got anywhere with your magic penny, the amounts increase in such small steps. Yet, after 31 days you will have 10 million pounds!
If you are on the Calvary Road, there are small steps. You read the Bible, pray, help folk, live for others. There are lots of small steps. It can be a struggle but in the end all the small steps lead to so much more because we’re going on His journey, with Him helping us on our way. We have Jesus with us every step of the way. He is with us. He is helping us. At times, we will think it is so hard, but amazing things will happen. God will show you His goodness and His kindness. You will see a little glimpse of heaven.
Which road are you walking on – your way or His way? He has loved us, given Himself for us for the joy set before him, so you and I could be forgiven and join him on the Calvary Road.
Penuel Baptist Chapel, Roch 