THE GOSPEL (3)
[p. 384] THE GOSPEL (3)
Luke 4:14 - 22, Luke 4:42 - 44; Luke 5:1
JTJr It is suggested that we might see at this time the place the Spirit has in relation to the gospel. In chapter 3:22 it says that the Holy Spirit descended in a bodily form as a dove upon the Lord; in chapter 4:1 it says, “Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan, and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness”; Luke 4:1 then, in verse 14, we read, “And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit”; and finally, the Lord refers to the scripture which says, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me”. I thought we might get help in regard to the gospel, to see the place the Spirit has in it, as seen in the Lord’s own service.
AR Does verse 14 suggest inward power, whereas verse 18 would be more the external evidence of the Spirit? — “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me”.
JTJr Jesus returned from the wilderness in the power of the Spirit; that would refer to what is inward, and I would connect it with the whole of His movements. Then it says that He taught in their synagogues. The Lord was a divine Person here in manhood and the Spirit is seen immediately in relation to His service. The first reference to His public service is connected with the Spirit.
AR Would “being glorified of all” suggest that He was recognized as a divine Person?
JTJr The effect of His ministry is seen on the people.
WWM Luke 4:1 says, “Jesus ... was led by the Spirit in the wilderness”, showing the great place the Spirit has.
JTJr The Spirit is thus to be taken account of objectively; He is seen leading [p. 385] the Lord.
ABP Would you say that in verses 14 and 15 the Lord is using the Spirit, speaking reverently?
JTJr It would be right to say that; it seems to mark all His movements. He returned in the power of the Spirit.
ANW Would we consider the matter of the teaching in contra-distinction to the preaching? The anointing seems to be in view of the preaching, whereas it says, in verse 15, “He taught in their synagogues”.
JTJr Yes, without saying what He taught. The teaching and the preaching go along together.
CAM Do you think that Jesus returning in the power of the Holy Spirit would show that the enemy had gained no point of vantage during those times of testing?
JTJr I would think that. The fact that He returned “in the power of the Spirit” shows that there was no change in Him.
CAM That would be perfect manhood.
VCL Is this what Paul spoke of to the Corinthians when he referred to “demonstration of the Spirit and of power”? (1 Corinthians 2:4) The whole matter would be marked by the Spirit’s stamp of approval from start to finish.
JTJr The “demonstration of the Spirit and of power” would refer to the anointing. The Lord read from the scripture in Isaiah: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach”. While the uniqueness of the Lord’s Person and His Personality in Manhood must always be kept in mind, yet He was here as marked by doing things by the Spirit; all things were being done by a dependent Man.
AMacd Peter refers to Him: “Jesus who was of Nazareth: how God anointed him with the Holy Spirit and with power; who went through all quarters doing good, and healing all that were under the [p. 386] power of the devil, because God was with him”, (Acts 10:38).
JTJr Yes; that is a good connection as to the anointing and power. So if we have part in the preaching we should take account of how the Spirit would help us.
LW Peter says, in relation to the glad tidings, “To you they ministered those things, which have now been announced to you by those who have declared to you the glad tidings by the Holy Spirit, sent from heaven”, (1 Peter 1:12).
JTJr It is the Spirit coming in after the Lord’s ascension. That, of course, is not alluded to in Luke 4, but it is all connected because the preaching was to await the incoming of the Spirit; the disciples were to tarry in Jerusalem for the Spirit. So when Peter spoke on the day of Pentecost he alluded to the Spirit first. He spoke about the Spirit because it was the evidence of the Spirit’s activity that caused the enquiry. And so Peter spoke about the Spirit before he went on to speak about Christ and the resurrection.
Ques Would the Spirit enter into the matter when we preach?
JTJr I think we should give Him place and make full room for Him. It is a question how much room we make for the Spirit when we preach.
ANW Allusion has been made to the word that the gospel was preached by the Spirit sent from heaven. Would that not involve making room for Him in our service?
JTJr It would; and perhaps we should be more cognizant of it as we seek to serve.
SW Would the preaching of the word in the power of the anointing dignify the preaching?
JTJr I think the enquiry is important because of the measure of activity there is, whether it be in preaching or in other ministry. We should take account [p. 387] of the Spirit as the Lord did. Of course, we could not do it in the full sense in which He did, but we should do it in some sense. The anointing should come into the ministry.
FNW Do we learn that from the fact that the Spirit has such a place with the Lord as He moves into His public service, having completed a life of thirty years delightful to the Father?
JTJr It is a question of the public testimony. It is in a Man, but it is in the power of the Spirit. The Lord could have done things of Himself, but I think He is seen as Man representing God, therefore it is a question of using the Spirit.
FNW So that the life of Jesus in service helps us as to how we should serve.
JTJr Yes; that is, the objective side is presented first; He is led by the Spirit in the wilderness.
ABP The epistle to the Hebrews seems to suggest that the preaching is to be all one piece: “having had its commencement in being spoken of by the Lord, has been confirmed to us by those who have heard”, Hebrews 2:3. And the part the Spirit has in it is also referred to there as “distributions of the Holy Spirit”.
RT Is there something of significance in the 14th verse being introduced just after the temptations? It says, “And the devil, having completed every temptation ... Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit” Luke 3:14. Nothing had occurred in the temptations to disturb the Spirit’s relations in Him.
JTJr I would think that. As we have remarked, the contact with the devil had no effect on Him, whereas with us it may be different and an effect may be left on us from which we cannot free ourselves immediately.
JHH Does it not suggest that the Lord was a perfectly dependent Man? He defeated Satan in the temptations as a dependent Man.
JTJr [p. 388] I think that is right; we noted at our last meeting that the Lord was praying at His baptism. That is the dependent Man. This is seen throughout Luke’s gospel more so than in the other gospels. He is seen praying often in Luke. And it is the dependent Man in chapter 3:21 where the economy is in mind. We have the voice from heaven, which we know was the Father’s voice; then there is the Son, and also the Spirit. The economy is in mind; so that we have the testimony opening up; the Son and the Spirit are now seen in relation to the position in testimony here.
DP Did the rulers of the synagogue have some sense of the authority in the Lord Jesus that would set aside the legal system and bring in a new feature?
JTJr Well, He could not be hid. It is stated previously that He was glorified of all; He could not be hid. When He stood up in the synagogue every eye was upon Him. They all took account, in some way, of the Person that was there. Never had there been a time like it before. There had been, in a typical sense, when the ark was brought to Jerusalem, but now it is the true Ark, the Person Himself comes into the synagogue — the place where God should be acknowledged. What a sight for heaven when Jesus was in the synagogue in relation to the people!
Ques Does that which was inaugurated here in relation to the preaching set a pattern for us in that the gospel is expressed in the Person? The words of grace came out of His mouth and the power was in the Spirit. By extension that should be carried down to the present day.
JTJr The pattern or model is a good thing to have in mind. We learn from the Lord how to preach. The expressions are noteworthy: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach”, and then “sent me to preach”, and “to [p. 389] preach the acceptable year of the Lord” Luke 3:18,19. Then, later in the chapter, it is to preach the kingdom of God, meaning that He was making a point of preaching. How right it is, therefore, for us to see how the Lord moved in relation to the preaching.
AR There is skill in the way He uses Scripture. He finishes His reading at “the acceptable year of the Lord”. He did not read on to “the day of vengeance”.
JTJr Yes; grace has been alluded to; it was not judgment.
Ques Is there also something for us to learn in the place the Lord gives the Scriptures, both in the temptations and in His own preaching?
JTJr I think so; it is helpful to know how to meet the enemy by the use of the Scriptures, and we seek to do that; but then the Scriptures come into the testimony: “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your ears”.
LW So that the Lord sets out the pattern in the way He proceeds; He comes in the power of the Spirit; He reads; and then He speaks.
JTJr And a present bearing of the Scriptures is given by the Lord in His preaching. That, too, should come home to us — “Today ...”
ABP Each answer to Satan met the temptation perfectly. Skill in the selection of Scripture is seen.
ANW Philip took up the same scripture the eunuch was reading and made it a word to the man himself.
JTJr So that the importance of the Scriptures in what we say is to be noted. We use the Scriptures in our preaching, but the point would be, how are we led to the scriptures that we use in the preaching.
SCM In Acts 8:29 it says, “The Spirit said to Philip ...” showing how prominently the Spirit was with him in [p. 390] his preaching.
JTJr Yes; Philip was able to speak from the same scripture. He knew the Scriptures. It is important that we should know the Scriptures if we engage in the service.
VCL Is there a danger that the customary rule of preaching three Lord’s days may hinder the Spirit?
JTJr Well, if a brother is not able to preach three times you would not expect him to go on, but the point of the three times, as practised in these parts, is taken from Acts 17:2: “And according to Paul’s custom he went in among them, and on three sabbaths reasoned with them from the scriptures”. Preaching successively three Lord’s days seems to have been approved of the Lord as a right thing. It gives opportunity in the preaching to open up what the Lord may give.
VCL I was thinking that the freedom of the Spirit in the one who is preaching should be emphasized, so that he should not simply fill out a service in a formal way.
JTJr The preacher is not just filling out an hour; there should be something definite which the Lord has laid upon him which will open up as he speaks. The Spirit’s place in the preaching, and in all ministry, should be in our thoughts, for He will give the lead as to what is to be said and will help us in speaking.
FNW Do you think that if the Scriptures have their bearing on us through the week we will be more likely to get the word for the moment?
JTJr I think so; as we read the Scriptures privately the Lord gives something. I think that ministry comes through prayer and reading of the Scriptures; the Lord gives us something that way.
FNW While the Lord’s manhood was unique, yet He accepted the application of the Scriptures to Himself as seen in this chapter.
JTJr [p. 391] He is referred to in Luke in that way: “Jesus advanced in wisdom and stature” (Luke 2:52). Real manhood is in mind. The Lord is the pattern for the testimony that came out at Pentecost through the apostles. The men whom the Lord raised up were like Himself in the sense that they preached in the power of the Spirit. And we should have that before us in our service.
JHH The Lord found the scripture that was suitable. That also would be a principle in the preaching.
JTJr Yes; “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your ears”. It was the right scripture for the moment.
ATD The right scripture for the moment would confirm the Spirit’s work in the hearts of those who hear.
JTJr We are to take account of the conditions that exist. The Spirit of God works in the preacher and in the hearers, too. What the Lord read was enough.
AR So that those who are responsible for the gospel being carried on in a locality should be preachers, should they not?
JTJr They should be. The question is whether we really know how to preach. Do we bring the Spirit into our thoughts in regard to the preaching? We should be concise; the Lord read but two verses.
ANW And He broke off in the middle of a sentence.
JTJr What He read was enough.
SCM Should we not be conscious of being sent? The passage reads, “He has sent me to preach” . And the Spirit was sent from heaven.
JTJr Being sent to preach is a needed requirement. The Lord is looking for those whom He can send. Isaiah said, “Here am I; send me”, Isaiah 6:[p. 392] 8.
SW In preaching we may be pursuing a subject with the help of the Spirit, but while doing so the Spirit may give us a specific, but different, word.
JTJr Quite so; and something concise. We should not be too lengthy. The Lord was very brief in what He said in the synagogue. If the Lord gives something while one is preaching it is well to follow it through, particularly if it is felt that the Lord is helping. We may take up too many scriptures.
JHH Romans 10:15 says, “And how shall they preach unless they have been sent”. And then the apostle brings in a scripture to support what he is saying, “According as it is written. How beautiful the feet of them that announce glad tidings” Romans 10:15.
JTJr Those that preach should know that they have been sent.
ABP As the Lord speaks and the state of unbelief shows itself in those in the synagogue He brings in additional texts referring to what happened in the days of Elias and Elisha to bear upon their state.
JTJr There is always the principle of bringing in other scriptures to confirm or bear upon a matter.
ABP The more frequently scriptures are introduced to support the word, the more power there is in it.
AP Is it necessary to read many scriptures at the preaching? Some read a number of passages.
JTJr We get help as we proceed, I think. We learn from the Lord what to do. Younger brethren may feel the need of more scriptures to fill out what is in their minds, but the Lord helps as we proceed.
GVD May we draw from this scripture that public reading of the Scriptures is proper preceding the preaching of the gospel? Jesus stood up to read. It was the word of God.
JTJr The Lord standing up would suggest the dignity that marks the public testimony. When He [p. 393] had finished reading He sat down. We do not do that when we preach, but here it is the Lord setting out the great matter of the gospel and He is the subject of it; so that He sits down and all eyes are upon Him.
Ques We may be too casual because of the simplicity of the gospel. Do not the Scriptures show that teaching enters into the service of the glad tidings?
JTJr Yes; and the Spirit of God is here to lead, and if we drew upon Him more we would realise that what is being preached is right.
LW Is it right to pray for a sense of the anointing?
JTJr I think so; one would have liberty to ask for that. As we feel the need of the Spirit’s support we should be free to ask for Him to come in, and we may be sure that He will do so in some way.
AR The psalmist says, “I shall be anointed with fresh oil”, Psalm 92:10. That would be a fresh sense of the anointing.
WWM Would the Lord, by stopping the reading where He did, indicate that He was not going to preach judgment?
JTJr Quite so.
AR In considering the gospel in these readings, are we to be bathed in the grace of the dispensation? It says that the people wondered at the words of grace that were coming out of the Lord’s mouth.
JTJr Yes; and that we might be helped in the preaching, for I feel that we need help in it. The Lord would help us to speak in power if we are dependent. Perhaps we are not feeling sufficiently the urgency of the commission. The Lord is looking for those that He can commission.
ANW The preaching should be a definite message and pronouncement. There should be no [p. 394] uncertainty.
OH Must a brother start to preach in his own locality?
JTJr I see nothing in that. There should be evidence that he can preach. One said about David that he was “skilled in speech”, (1 Samuel 16:18). Someone will say. That brother can preach. We want to know the brothers that can preach. It is a question of being sent.
CAM Paul says, in Romans 1:9, “God is my witness, whom I serve in my spirit in the glad tidings of his Son”. Would serving in our spirits enable us to make a good start in the preaching?
JTJr Quite so.
ANW Philip was not officially appointed as an evangelist, but he went and preached and thereby proved that he was one.
JTJr Yes; and later he was called the evangelist.
LW Luke 5:1 says, “The crowd pressed on him to hear the word of God”. Is there liberty to go beyond the thought of salvation in the preaching of the word of God?
JTJr The word of God is all-inclusive, of course. If it is time for the basic gospel the word of God will cover that. It is also a question of what the Lord sees that the saints need at any time.
AR The gospel brings in the glory: “the radiancy of the glad tidings of the glory of the Christ”, (2 Corinthians 4:4).
JTJr Yes; and it takes us into God’s rest, “Let us therefore use diligence to enter into that rest, that no one may fall after the same example of not hearkening to the word”, (Hebrews 4:11).
VCL Would the Holy Spirit be, more free to bring persons into our meeting rooms if this expanded view of the gospel were more before us?
JTJr That may be so, but we are in hard territory here. Persons come in occasionally, of course,
[p. 395] but the territory is hard. But we must go on in spite of that.
WWM The class of persons to whom the word is sent is mentioned here; “the poor” and the “captives” and the “blind” and the “crushed”. The preaching is to let them know God’s attitude toward them.
JTJr Quite so; so that you take account of the conditions which exist and you are enabled, by the Spirit, to preach what is needed.
Rem The Lord preached in Nazareth, “where he was brought up”. He would know the state there.
JTJr Quite so; and they should have known Him. The preaching is not judgment; it is grace. It is a question of being ready to meet the conditions. If there is opposition it is to be met with grace.
VCL In Acts 14:9 it says that a certain man “heard Paul speaking, who, fixing his eyes on him, and seeing that he had faith to be healed ...”. Is it possible that the preacher may have a sense that God is working in someone in the room? Should we look for that?
JTJr We should be able to take account, in some sense, of what is going on in persons. The lame man must have made some expression, or have been intently occupied with Paul so that Paul could discern his state.
WWM It also says, in that chapter, that they “so spake that a great multitude of both Jews and Greeks believed” (Acts 14:1).
JTJr That is a great credit to the preaching. There are some brothers like that who so speak that they get converts; and we should look for conversions.
EAL It says, in Luke 4:15 that “he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all”. Is it normal that if the preaching is right all will [p. 396] be affected?
JTJr Well, that must be guarded, for there was no defect in the preaching in the synagogue at Nazareth, and unbelief seems to have marked the hearers. But normally, if Christ is being presented in power, it will affect persons. There is a good deal in the reference to the man that had faith to be healed. He had faith. The preaching is on the principle of faith, to faith, according to Romans 1. A great deal depends on the brethren, too, if they are helping the preacher by listening to what he is saying and supporting it.
Ques Does not prayer before the preaching help, too?
JTJr I am sure that it does; so that household prayer for the gospel, as we have it, brings the families into the exercise and helps the preacher. He feels the sense of support as he stands up.
ABP Do the conditions referred to in the Scripture which the Lord read, suggest that the persons are the subjects of the operation of the Spirit in new birth? Is it supposed that they have a desire for healing and for blessing?
JTJr Do you mean that these conditions allude to the work of the Spirit?
ABP No; rather that the awareness of the condition would be the work of the Spirit, so that they might say, like the blind man, “Lord, that I may see” (Luke 18:41).
JTJr Quite so.
EAL In Luke 7:22 the Lord says to John’s disciples, “Go, bring back word to John of what ye have seen and heard: that blind see, lame walk, lepers are cleansed, deaf hear, dead are raised, poor are evangelized”.
JTJr The whole matter is set out there, both the effects of the work of the Lord in miracles and in the preaching. And so it says, in Mark 16:20, “The Lord working with them, and confirming the [p. 397] word by the signs following upon it”. The signs follow the preaching.
Ques Romans 1:4 speaks of the Lord Jesus being “marked out Son of God in power, according to the Spirit of holiness”. How does the thought of holiness apply to us?
JTJr I think that alludes to the way Jesus did things. The Spirit of holiness was there, and that would fit into this gospel because it brings in “the holy thing”. We can hardly enter rightly into the service without holiness.
SCM Should we not also feel the need for the service? what need there is in the audience? In verse 43 He says, “I must needs announce the glad tidings”. And in John 4:4, it says, “He must needs pass through Samaria”. It is as though the need that was there required it.
JTJr There is so much that we need to learn as to the preaching! As we follow the Lord’s movements here we see how He brings in the Scriptures, and then it says, “the eyes of all ... were fixed upon him”. That is the attractiveness of the preacher. But also, there was power, and authority. Then it says that “they wondered at the words of grace”. Well, that is the outstanding matter; words of grace were coming out of His mouth. That, of course, is unique, but it is a pattern, nevertheless. Grace is the predominant feature; we need to acquire ability to speak words of grace.
FNW Are we to take account of the words? The brother who preaches may not be an able speaker, but if the words he uses are right and there is evidence of the Spirit’s help, we should be sympathetic.
JTJr Words would follow one after another; our words should be selected words.
Ques Is there something for us to learn from verses 42 and 43? The Lord was not governed by [p. 398] the request of the crowds in His service, but by the sense that He was sent and had other places in view.
JTJr Yes. He was not governed by the crowds. The commission should govern us — what the Lord would indicate. There is the scripture: “Pass over ... and help us” (Acts 16:9), but the vision was to Paul. It was what the Lord was indicating to him.
Rem The Lord sets a great example for us. We may become discouraged because results are small; yet as He went from city to city there came a time when He had to upbraid them because of unbelief. So we should continue.
JTJr The thing is to have a sense in our souls that the Lord is helping us despite the apparent lack of results, and to be “a sweet odour of Christ to God”, 2 Corinthians 2:15.
ANW In that connection, it says, in verse 30, “But he, passing through the midst of them, went his way” Luke 4:30. He went on His way still, right to the end.
EEH Will you say a word about the sovereignty of God as seen in this passage? It says, “There were many widows in Israel in the days of Elias, ... and to none of them was Elias sent but to Sarepta of Sidonia, to a woman that was a widow. And there were many lepers in Israel ... and none of them was cleansed but Naaman the Syrian”, Luke 4:25 - 27. Must we not learn that in the preaching, with all the stress we may put on the word, the results depend upon the sovereignty of God?
JTJr Christ is the great Subject of the gospel and it is a matter of what He becomes to persons. Here the Lord refers to the sovereignty of God. The Jews were in mind in the Lord’s preaching but they did not want Him. They refused to accept who He was, as witnessed to in the scripture He read: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me”. They said, “Is this not the son of Joseph?”. It is then that He speaks of God’s sovereignty. They really [p. 399] did not want Him, and as has been remarked, they would have killed Him.
CAM Does not this show how Luke’s gospel supports Paul’s ministry? On account of Christ’s rejection by the most privileged, the gospel takes on a wider scope; that is, the nations are in mind.
JTJr Quite so; Paul says, “Lo, we turn to the nations”, (Acts 13:46).
Rem The Lord said, “Of a truth I say to you, There were many widows”, and so on. The gospel combines grace and truth, does it not? And the Lord is said to be “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). It was the truth here that brought out the enmity of those who did not believe.
JTJr There are many lepers and many widows today, but who is it that wants Christ? Those who want Him will get Him; He will find a place in their hearts.
LW There must be faith in those who hear, but what about faith in the preachers?
JTJr Paul says of the glad tidings, “Righteousness of God is revealed therein, on the principle of faith, to faith”, (Romans 1:17). If the preacher has not faith, then he should not try to preach. We have to start right and have faith — and that brings God in.
LW So that it is “the word of faith, which we preach”, (Romans 10:8).
EAL The Spirit would help the preacher to see something he had never seen before in the scripture from which he speaks.
JTJr The great thing is to make way for divine Persons in view of the testimony.
AR So that the gospel involves a system - the kingdom of God.
JTJr The Lord refers to that in verse 43: “I must needs announce the glad tidings of the kingdom [p. 400] of God to the other cities also”. He had been doing it.
AR Should persons who are converted be brought into the sphere of the kingdom of God immediately?
JTJr It is a great system of things where the power of God is and where we have the sense of divine support, and a convert should rightly feel the power there is in the kingdom of God.
WWM Should right feelings mark us in service? We see and feel the need and we want to be a help to others.
JTJr Yes; the kingdom of God meets that need. It is seen here in Christ; that is Luke’s side — the kingdom of God. God comes in to meet whatever need is here. There is power in the kingdom to meet every felt need.
ABP Is the power of the Spirit seen in the kingdom of God in a peculiar way?
JTJr I am sure it is; it is a question of what is here in the Spirit.
ANW In chapter 5:1 the word of God is brought in. Is that a more comprehensive thought than the glad tidings? “The crowd pressed on him to hear the word of God”.
JTJr Yes; it is involved in the preaching. The word of God embraces much. We have come to see that; it includes all these things about which we have been speaking. It is the word of God. We have the whole of Scripture from which to draw.
GVD Though the Lord was not governed by the crowd in chapter 4:43, as has been said, yet He was constrained by the crowd in chapter 5:1 when it was a question of the word of God.
JTJr Quite so; there is something in that: “The crowd pressed on him to hear the word of God”. If we are in the attitude of pressing to hear the word of God the Lord will bring [p. 401] in something.
SW Would preaching in the power of the Spirit be authoritative?
JTJr There would be evidence of authority with the word. I think that gift involves that. If you have gift you have authority, and it will be respected. Gift involves that something has been received from Christ — from an ascended Christ.
FNW “If anyone speak — as oracles of God”, (1 Peter 4:11).
ABP What is the force of the expression, “The acceptable year of the Lord”?
JTJr I think that it refers to the time of these glad tidings. It is a time in which man can be set free from all that he labours under.
CAM Would it be like the year of release in Deuteronomy 15?
JTJr Yes; it is the time of release; everyone may be released through the gospel. It is the acceptable year of the Lord.
ABP Would it refer, specifically, to the time of the Lord’s testimony, but now carried through in the present dispensation?
JTJr I would think that; it goes on as long as the Spirit is here; it is the acceptable year of the Lord.
Ques Does Paul’s word to Timothy link on with this? “Faithful is the word, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”, 1 Timothy 1:15.
JTJr Yes. Paul confirms the thought in that scripture.
WWM The day of the vengeance of our God will not come in until the acceptable year is over.
JTJr Quite so; there is the present matter of God’s government, of course, but that is not the same as the day of vengeance. This is the time of the preaching, the time of sonship, the acceptable year of [p. 402] the Lord.
LW What is the difference between preaching and teaching? The Lord speaks of announcing the glad tidings, but it also says that He sat down and taught the crowds.
JTJr There is much that we have to learn, and the Lord is teaching us all the time. We need to be taught the gospel, for instance. We need not only to be delivered by it, but to be taught. Romans is largely the teaching of the gospel. It says that they “obeyed from the heart the form of teaching”, (Romans 6:17).
VCL There is no thought in relation to the preaching that each brother is to be given his turn to preach, is there? It is to be carried on on the principle of gift, is it not?
JTJr We should detect if a brother has received something; some evidence of a commission; of having something, as it was said of David. I think there will be some evidence if a brother has something from the Lord. “A man’s gift maketh room for him”, (Proverbs 18:16).
CAM The crowning thought of release is probably seen in Leviticus 25:9, “Then shalt thou cause the loud sound of the trumpet to go forth in the seventh month”. That was a great proclamation of release connected with the year of jubilee.
JTJr Quite so; so here, I suppose, the release of which you speak was carried on to Pentecost. They did not accept it in Luke 4, and they later put Jesus to death, but the whole matter was carried on to Pentecost, when forgiveness was extended on the basis of repentance. It was not vengeance, but forgiveness that was offered.
Ques Should there be a warning in the gospel for those who refuse? Paul tells us that “there is revealed wrath of God from heaven upon all impiety, and unrighteousness of men holding the truth in unrighteousness”, (Romans [p. 403] 1:18).
JTJr It is right to bring that in. It is not part of the gospel, exactly, but it is right to refer to it, like the preaching of Jonah at Nineveh, “Yet forty days and Nineveh shall be overthrown” (Jonah 3:4). His preaching was very effective.