Don’t Miss The Kingdom Series

"Don’t Miss the Kingdom"

Luke 13:18-35

A sermon for 10/9/22

Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost

Pastor John Bright

Luke 13 22 And He went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem. 23 Then one said to Him, “Lord, are there few who are saved?” And He said to them, 24 “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able. 25 When once the Master of the house has risen up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open for us,’ and He will answer and say to you, ‘I do not know you, where you are from,’ 26 then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.’ 27 But He will say, ‘I tell you I do not know you, where you are from. Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.’ 28 There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves thrust out. 29 They will come from the east and the west, from the north and the south, and sit down in the kingdom of God. 30 And indeed there are last who will be first, and there are first who will be last.”

Pause right there. Those words I just read; they were “Breathed by God”! God wants you to hear His Word right now! So, what is your response? Do you want to transformed by that Word or do you want to be informed about the words? You must choose.

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As we get to this point in Luke, Jesus is giving warning after warning that the time is coming when it will be too late to be a part of the Kingdom of God. What’s that? Well, first it is God’s – not ours. Secondly, it’s far larger than we can ever understand. Here’s a little teaching - “Broadly speaking, the kingdom of God is the rule of an eternal, sovereign God over all the universe. Several passages of Scripture show that God is the undeniable Monarch of all creation: “The LORD has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all” (Psalm 103:19). And, as King Nebuchadnezzar declared, “His kingdom is an eternal kingdom” (Daniel 4:3). Every authority that exists has been established by God (Romans 13:1). So, in one sense, the kingdom of God incorporates everything that is.”

“More narrowly, the kingdom of God is a spiritual rule over the hearts and lives of those who willingly submit to God’s authority. Those who defy God’s authority and refuse to submit to Him are not part of the kingdom of God; in contrast, those who acknowledge the lordship of Christ and gladly surrender to God’s rule in their hearts are part of the kingdom of God. In this sense, the kingdom of God is spiritual—Jesus said His kingdom was not of this world (John 18:36), and He preached that repentance is necessary to be a part of the kingdom of God (Matthew 4:17). That the kingdom of God can be equated with the sphere of salvation is evident in John 3:5–7, where Jesus says the kingdom of God must be entered into by being born again. See also 1 Corinthians 6:9.” https://www.gotquestions.org/kingdom-of-God.html

The Parables, v.18-21

Luke 13 18 Then He said, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? 19 It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and put in his garden; and it grew and became a large tree, and the birds of the air nested in its branches.”

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

There is an old saying in the Church – “Do not despise the day of small beginnings.” It is based on the beginning of Zechariah 4:10. It’s a reminder that many things start off small and grow to be larger than you could imagine. Look at the apple seed. You can count the number of seeds in an apple but you have no idea how many apples are in that seed. The apple tree can live for well over 25 years producing apples season after season and it all comes from one seed.

Here, we see Jesus comparing the Kingdom of God with a “small beginning” – a mustard seed and some yeast. Both of these parables point to slow and steady growth that spreads and spreads. We find similar parables in Matthew 13 and Mark 4. Jesus describes yeast being added to about 50 pounds of flour. That’s a lot of flour! God is working to increase HIS KINGDOM from generation to generation.