Part 13

35 Let your loins be girded about, and your lamps burning; 36 and be ye yourselves like unto men looking for their lord, when he shall return from the marriage feast; that, when he cometh and knocketh, they may straightway open unto him. 37 Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them sit down to meat, and shall come and serve them. 38 And if he shall come in the second watch, and if in the third, and find _them_ so, blessed are those _servants_. 39 But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what hour the thief was coming, he would have watched, and not have left his house to be broken through. 40 Be ye also ready: for in an hour that ye think not the Son of man cometh.

41 And Peter said, Lord, speakest thou this parable unto us, or even unto all? 42 And the Lord said, Who then is the faithful and wise steward, whom his lord shall set over his household, to give them their portion of food in due season? 43 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. 44 Of a truth I say unto you, that he will set him over all that he hath. 45 But if that servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to beat the menservants and the maidservants, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken; 46 the lord of that servant shall come in a day when he expecteth not, and in an hour when he knoweth not, and shall cut him asunder, and appoint his portion with the unfaithful. 47 And that servant, who knew his lord’s will, and made not ready, nor did according to his will, shall be beaten with many _stripes_; 48 but he that knew not, and did things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few _stripes_. And to whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required: and to whom they commit much, of him will they ask the more.

Our Lord had been warning his disciples against allowing their minds to be absorbed in the selfish acquisition of wealth, and against being anxious about needed food and clothing; they were to be supremely concerned about his Kingdom which would appear in glory at the time of his return. As to the events preceding this return, as to its circumstances and results, he taught them more definitely just before his death; here he simply enjoined upon them the attitude of watchfulness, implying that if his coming was occupying their thoughts they would be kept at once from worldliness and from worry, and would be diligent in serving him.

He illustrated this attitude of heart and mind by two parables, the parable of the Returning Lord and the parable of the Thief. In the former, the master has been attending a marriage, his servants are awake and clothed, the house is lighted, and all are ready to receive him. So delighted is he on his arrival to find them faithful that he is ready to give any expression to his joy; he even is willing to cause them to sit down and to partake of the banquet they have prepared for him.

The second parable illustrates the truth that as the time when a thief will come is unknown, therefore the only way to act is to be ready at all times for his approach; therefore, our Saviour added, “Be ye also ready: for in an hour that ye think not the Son of man cometh.”

The Master here as elsewhere indicated that his return was to be delayed; his absence was to be like a long night; much must transpire, much be done before he would reappear, but his followers must ever be prepared for his return. This did not mean that they were to be nervously expectant nor were they to be saying that the day of his coming was just at hand; rather they were to be at their places of duty, faithfully performing their tasks, and absorbed in the work which the Master had given them to do.

This attitude of watchfulness, and of interest in the return of Christ, should particularly characterize teachers and leaders. This is the force of the question which Peter now asked. He inquired whether all believers would share equally in the blessings of the Lord’s return; would not those, like the apostles, who had been most prominent in his service receive from him a greater reward? Jesus replied that larger privileges imply greater temptations and greater responsibilities. If a Christian minister has been faithful in feeding his people with spiritual food, he will be rewarded with even higher opportunities for service; but if the long delay of his Lord’s return shall make him forgetful and unmindful of its reality, if he shall use his high position selfishly or shall use his power unkindly, then when the Master appears he will be punished with the utmost severity.

The chief advantage of a religious leader lies in his opportunity for knowing more fully the teachings of Christ; his superior knowledge, therefore, will be the ground of his more terrible punishment in case of unfaithfulness; the principle is abiding and applies in every sphere. “To whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required.”

Thus Christ taught that in the future there will be degrees and gradations both of punishments and rewards.

13. The Divisive Influence of Christ. Ch. 12:49-59

49 I came to cast fire upon the earth; and what do I desire, if it is already kindled? 50 But I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how am I straitened till it be accomplished! 51 Think ye that I come to give peace in the earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division: 52 for there shall be from henceforth five in one house divided, three against two, and two against three. 53 They shall be divided, father against son, and son against father; mother against daughter, and daughter against her mother; mother in law against her daughter in law, and daughter in law against her mother in law.

54 And he said to the multitudes also, When ye see a cloud rising in the west, straightway ye say, There cometh a shower; and so it cometh to pass. 55 And when _ye see_ a south wind blowing, ye say, There will be a scorching heat; and it cometh to pass. 56 Ye hypocrites, ye know how to interpret the face of the earth and the heaven; but how is it that ye know not how to interpret this time? 57 And why even of yourselves judge ye not what is right? 58 For as thou art going with thine adversary before the magistrate, on the way give diligence to be quit of him; lest haply he drag thee unto the judge, and the judge shall deliver thee to the officer, and the officer shall cast thee into prison. 59 I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou have paid the very last mite.

Jesus had been warning the crowds against the peril of selfish enjoyment and urging his followers to watch and to labor for his return and his Kingdom; but he did not want them to be deceived and to suppose that this Kingdom could be established without conflict and delay. The present age was to be one of strife and division, and the Master himself was to be their innocent cause. Some day he would return to bring justice and holiness and righteousness to complete victory, and then he would be indeed the Prince of peace.

Now, however, his coming into the world had cast upon the earth the burning brand of division and strife. This was so inevitable that Jesus had no regret that the fire was already kindled; but it would not burst into a conflagration until Jesus had been crucified, and he felt a pathetic impatience to have that dreadful experience accomplished. As Jesus emerged from that baptism of fire he would be the torch which would set the world ablaze with conflict and separation. This division would occur even in a home circle of five: father and mother would be divided against son and daughter and daughter-in-law.

Thus Christ, and specifically his cross, is now dividing the world. Happy are those who interpret his message and understand his mission and turn to him in repentance and faith!

The multitudes, however, were still unbelieving, and Jesus rebuked their stupid ignorance. He declared that they could so interpret the signs of weather as to predict correctly rain or drought, but they could not see in his words and works the proofs that he was the Christ, the Saviour of the world. However, he warned them to repent before it was too late. They would have wisdom enough to agree with an adversary while on the way to a courtroom before sentence had been pronounced, much more should they see that it was the part of wisdom to seek peace with God before the day of mercy and grace had passed.

14. A Call to Repentance. Ch. 13:1-9

1 Now there were some present at that very season who told him of the Galilæans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2 And he answered and said unto them, Think ye that these Galilæans were sinners above all the Galilæans, because they have suffered these things? 3 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all in like manner perish. 4 Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and killed them, think ye that they were offenders above all the men that dwell in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

6 And he spake this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came seeking fruit thereon, and found none. 7 And he said unto the vinedresser, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why doth it also cumber the ground? 8 And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it: 9 and if it bear fruit thenceforth, _well_; but if not, thou shalt cut it down.

At the very time when Jesus was urging upon his hearers their need of repentance, a report was made of a cruel slaughter of Galilæans at the hand of Pilate. It was expected that Jesus would declare the poor sufferers to have merited their fate, and that he would fall into the common fallacy of supposing that exceptional suffering is a proof of exceptional guilt on the part of men. Jesus, however, replied that temporary exemption from suffering is a mark of special grace on the part of God. All impenitent men are certain to suffer, and deserve to suffer; if judgment has not fallen the delay should be regarded as a merciful opportunity to repent.

Jesus enforced the same truth by referring to a recent calamity in which eighteen men had been crushed by the fall of a tower. Their fate was not to be regarded as a sign of their special sinfulness, but as a warning to others that they would likewise suffer unless they repented of their sins.

The Master had in mind the entire Jewish nation and he further enforced his call to repentance by the parable of the Fruitless Fig Tree. This was a true type of Israel, but also a symbol of every impenitent soul. God mercifully preserves and blesses and spares, but the day of mercy will end. The nation, as the individual, which produces no fruit of penitence and of righteousness is certain to be cut down. While the opportunity is given, repentance must be shown. “Now is the acceptable time; ... now is a day of salvation.”

15. A Cure on the Sabbath. Ch. 13:10-21

10 And he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath day. 11 And behold, a woman that had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years: and she was bowed together, and could in no wise lift herself up. 12 And when Jesus saw her, he called her, and said to her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity. 13 And he laid his hands upon her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God. 14 And the ruler of the synagogue, being moved with indignation because Jesus had healed on the sabbath, answered and said to the multitude, There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore, come and be healed, and not on the day of the sabbath. 15 But the Lord answered him, and said, Ye hypocrites, doth not each one of you on the sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering? 16 And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan had bound, lo, _these_ eighteen years, to have been loosed from this bond on the day of the sabbath? 17 And as he said these things, all his adversaries were put to shame: and all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by him.

18 He said therefore, Unto what is the kingdom of God like? and whereunto shall I liken it? 19 It is like unto a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and cast into his own garden; and it grew, and became a tree; and the birds of the heaven lodged in the branches thereof.

20 And again he said, Where unto shall I liken the kingdom of God? 21 It is like unto leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till it was all leavened.

A true follower of Christ will worship in public on the Sabbath Day, for this was the custom of our Lord. On one of these days he found occasion to reveal his sympathy and power by releasing a poor woman who for eighteen years had been bound by “a spirit of infirmity,” just as on such occasions his word to-day brings deliverance to souls bound by the power of sin.

It was his sympathy which prompted this act and further led him to relieve the consciences of his hearers from the burden of traditions placed upon them by false interpretations of the Law. When the ruler of the synagogue criticized Jesus, by addressing those whom the woman represented, on the ground that such healing broke the law of Sabbath rest, his hypocrisy and that of his sympathizers was unmasked by the reply that where self-interest prompted, they interpreted the Law so liberally as to allow them on the Sabbath to loose their cattle which had been bound but a few hours, while they refused to allow Jesus to relieve a daughter of Abraham whom Satan had bound for years. They were pretending to be zealous for the Law while denying its essential principle of love. Their real breach of the Law was shown both by their lack of sympathy for the woman and their hatred of Christ. Their interpretation of the Law was shown to be absurd, for it prevented an act of mercy which, on the Sabbath, was not only allowable but necessary. Jesus never intimated that he would abolish the Sabbath; he only designed to restore to it the true spirit of worship and love and liberty and joy.

In view of this gracious work of power the multitude rejoiced; and Jesus spoke the parables of the Mustard Seed and the Leaven, the former to indicate that his power yet was to extend over all the earth and the latter that it was to transform all human life. Some readers interpret the former parable as indicating the unsubstantial forms that Christianity at times assumes, and the latter the false doctrine which at times permeates the Church. Whichever interpretation one accepts, it is hardly wise to base upon it any theories as to the order of events related to the coming and Kingdom of Christ. All will agree that small beginnings and invisible forces are not to be despised or distrusted by the followers of the Christ who some day will deliver the whole suffering creation “from the bondage of corruption into the liberty of the glory of the children of God.”

B. The Second Stages. Chs. 13:22 to 17:10

1. The Narrow Door. Ch. 13:22-30

22 And he went on his way through cities and villages, teaching, and journeying on unto Jerusalem. 23 And one said unto him, Lord, are they few that are saved? And he said unto them, 24 Strive to enter in by the narrow door: for many, I say unto you, shall seek to enter in, and shall not be able. 25 When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, open to us; and he shall answer and say to you, I know you not whence ye are; 26 then shall ye begin to say, We did eat and drink in thy presence, and thou didst teach in our streets; 27 and he shall say, I tell you, I know not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity. 28 There shall be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and yourselves cast forth without. 29 And they shall come from the east and west, and from the north and south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God. 30 And behold, there are last who shall be first, and there are first who shall be last.

This is the first in a new series of incidents on the last journeys of Jesus toward Jerusalem. He realized the seriousness of the situation. He knew that he was offering his salvation to the people for the last time, and therefore he was making an effort to reach every possible city and village with his message.

Some one among his hearers asked him the question, “Lord, are they few that are saved?” He did not reply directly but his answer implied that many Jews who expected to be saved would be lost and many Gentiles whom the Jews expected to be lost would be saved. Jesus likened the blessings of his Kingdom to a banquet served in a palace. The door into this palace is narrow, and many who are invited refuse to pass in thereby; after a time this door is shut, and then those who before have refused to enter, intreat the Master of the house to reopen it, but in vain; they are forever excluded, and are overwhelmed with remorse and chagrin. The narrow door is that of repentance and faith in Christ; the opportunity for entrance is present but not endless; those who reject Christ will be excluded from his Kingdom; among these will be many whose folly will be specially apparent. In the parable they are represented as pleading for entrance, and on the very ground which condemned them. They are pictured as saying that they had known Christ well; they had eaten in his presence and he had taught in their streets. Why, then, had they not accepted him? These privileges only increase their guilt; and the Lord refused to recognize them as his own. Thus did Jesus describe the exclusion from his Kingdom of many Jews; and he added the equally surprising statement of the reception of Gentiles: “They shall come from the east and west, and from the north and south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God.”

Thus Jesus gave a very practical turn to the question which had been asked in mere curiosity. It is not important to know exactly how many will be saved; it is for each who hears the gospel to place himself in that number, now and at any cost. It is not enough that one lives in a Christian land, and in a religious home, and possesses knowledge of saving truth; each must repent and accept Christ for himself. The sad truth is that many who, like the Jews, have the largest religious opportunities are the furthest from salvation: “There are last who shall be first, and there are first who shall be last.”

2. The Message to Herod and the Lament Over Jerusalem. Ch. 13:31-35

31 In that very hour there came certain Pharisees, saying to him, Get thee out, and go hence: for Herod would fain kill thee. 32 And he said unto them, Go and say to that fox, Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures to-day and to-morrow, and the third _day_ I am perfected. 33 Nevertheless I must go on my way to-day and to-morrow and the _day_ following: for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem. 34 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, that killeth the prophets, and stoneth them that are sent unto her! how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen _gathereth_ her own brood under her wings, and ye would not! 35 Behold, your house is left unto you _desolate_: and I say unto you, Ye shall not see me, until ye shall say, Blessed _is_ he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

A report reached Jesus that Herod was threatening his life. This report was brought by the Pharisees who hoped that it would terrify the followers of Jesus and induce him to flee to Jerusalem where he would fall into the hands of the Jewish rulers.

Instead, Jesus sent to the king a message of defiance and irony; it has no note of insolence, but reveals the courage and indignation of a true man. “Go and say to that fox”—Jesus thus addressed Herod because he saw the craftiness of the king. Herod did not wish the disrepute of killing another prophet so soon after the death of John, but he wished his realm to be rid of one whom he regarded as a dangerous leader; so he did not arrest Jesus but tried to put him to flight. The Pharisees were asked to bear this message to the king because Jesus saw that they were one with the king in the malicious cunning of their report.

“Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures to-day and to-morrow and the third day I am perfected.” Thus Jesus declared that his time and task were divinely allotted; no king could shorten the time till the task was done. When his work was complete, then in his death and resurrection the glory and grace and power of Jesus would be made perfect. “Nevertheless I must go on my way.” Jesus was to leave Galilee and Perea, the realm of Herod, not because he feared the king, but in fulfillment of his task which would take him to Jerusalem. The explicit reference to Jerusalem was made in a tone of solemn irony, “For it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem;” that city had a monopoly in murdering prophets; it would be quite improper for Jesus to be killed in any other place.