Week 42

Reading

Day 1: John 8:21-59, Luke 10:1-11:13

Day 2: Luke 11:14-12:34

Day 3: Luke 12:35-13:21, John 9:1-41

Day 4: John 10:1-42, Luke 13:22-14:24

Day 5: Luke 14:25-17:10, John 11:1-37

Day 6: John 11:38-57, Luke 17:11-18:8

Day 7: Luke 18:9-14, Mark 10:1-12, Matthew 19:1-12, Mark 10:13-16, Matthew 19:13-15, Luke 18:15-17, Mark 10:17-31, Matthew 19:16-30, Luke 18:18-30

Preview

Hard Questions

1. (John 10:16) Who are the “other sheep … which are not of this fold”? Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses have held some interesting interpretations of this text, but the simplest and best is that Jesus is referring to Gentiles. Several times the Old Testament referred to Israel as the flock and its leaders as the shepherds, and it pointed to the Good Shepherd who would come to care for the flock faithfully. Jesus’ disciples would have understood the first flock to be from Israel, and the second flock to be from everyone that isn’t Israel, because that was how they separated the world.
2. (Luke 14:2) What’s dropsy? “Edema. This describes an abnormal accumulation of serous fluid in the body’s connective tissue or in a serous cavity and is a symptom. The accumulation causes swelling.” J. I. Packer and M. C. Tenney, Illustrated Manners and Customs of the Bible.
3. (Luke 16:1-17) The shrewd steward, making friends with unrighteous mammon? Jesus is advocating wise use of wealth, not storing it up as one’s security nor worshipping it, and learning from those who know how to use it well, even if they are not God’s people. MacArthur makes a couple of notes about this parable: (1) “The master commended the unjust steward. Outwitted, he applauded the man’s cunning. His admiration for the evil steward’s criminal genius shows that he, too, was a wicked man. It is the natural tendency of fallen hearts to admire a villain’s craftiness. Note that all the characters in this parable are unjust, unscrupulous, and corrupt,” and (2) “The unjust steward used his master’s money to buy earthly friends; believers are to use their Master’s money in a way that will accrue friends for eternity—by investing in the kingdom gospel that brings sinners to salvation, so that when they arrive in heaven (“an everlasting home”), those sinners will be there to welcome them. Christ did not commend the man’s dishonesty; He pointedly called him “unjust” (v. 8). He only used him as an illustration to show that even the most wicked sons of this world are shrewd enough to provide for themselves against coming evil. Believers ought to be more shrewd, because they are concerned with eternal matters, not just earthly ones” (1311-1312).

Review