Expository Thoughts on the Gospel of Luke J.C. Ryle Luke 13:31-35 “Let us learn from these verses — how entirely our times are in God’s hands. Our Lord Jesus Christ teaches us this lesson by His reply to those who bade Him to depart, because Herod would kill Him. He said, ‘I cast out devils, and I do cures today and tomorrow.’ His time was not yet…
Call To Worship June 17 2018
Expository Thoughts on the Gospel of Luke J.C. Ryle Luke 13:22-30 “We see in these verses — a remarkable question asked. We are told that a certain man said to Jesus, ‘Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?’ We do not know who this enquirer was. He may have been a self-righteous Jew, trained to believe that there was no hope for the Gentile,…
Call To Worship June 10 2018
Expository Thoughts on the Gospel of Luke J.C. Ryle Luke 13:18-21 “The parable of the leaven — is intended to show the progress of the Gospel in the heart of a believer. The first beginnings of the work of grace in a sinner are generally exceedingly small. It is like the mixture of leaven with a lump of dough. A single sentence of a sermon, or a…
Call To Worship June 3 2018
Expository Thoughts on the Gospel of Luke, J.C. Ryle – Luke 13:10-17 “We see in these verses — a striking example of diligence in the use of means of grace. We are told of a ‘woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed down, and could not straiten up.’ We do not know who this woman was. Our Lord’s saying that she was…
Call to Worship May 27 2018
Expository Thoughts on the Gospel of Luke J.C. Ryle Luke 13:6-9 “We learn first from this passage — that where God gives spiritual privileges, He expects proportionate returns. Our Lord teaches this lesson, by comparing the Jewish Church of His day to a ‘fig tree planted in a vineyard.’ This was exactly the position of Israel in the world. They were separated from other nations by the…
Call To Worship May 20 2018
Expository Thoughts on the Gospel of Luke, J.C. Ryle – Luke 13:1-5 “Let us observe, for one thing, in these verses — how much more ready people are to talk of the deaths of others, than their own deaths. The death of the Galileans, mentioned here, was probably a common subject of conversation in Jerusalem and all Judea. We can well believe that all the circumstances and…
Call to Worship May 13 2018
Expository Thoughts on the Gospel of Luke, J.C. Ryle Luke 12:49-59 “We learn, for another thing, from these verses — how useless it is to expect universal peace and harmony from the preaching of the Gospel. The disciples, like most Jews of their day, were probably expecting the Messiah’s kingdom immediately to appear. They thought the time was at hand when the wolf would lie down with…
Call to Worship May 6 2018
Expository Thoughts on the Gospel of Luke, J.C. Ryle – Luke 12:32-48 “We learn, secondly, from these verses — the dreadful danger of those who neglect the duties of their calling. Of such our Lord declares, that they shall be “cut in pieces, and their portion appointed with the unbelievers.” These words no doubt apply especially to the ministers and teachers of the Gospel. Yet we must…
Call to Worship May 6 2018
Expository Thoughts on the Gospel of Luke J.C. Ryle Luke 12:13-34 “Let us mark, lastly, in these verses — how important it is to be rich towards God. This is true wisdom. This is true providing for time to come. This is genuine prudence. The wise man is he who does not think only of fleeting earthly treasure — but of eternal treasure in Heaven. When can…
Call To Worship April 15 2018
Expository Thoughts on the Gospel of Luke J.C. Ryle Luke 11:37-54 “Let us notice, secondly, in this passage — the foolishness which accompanies hypocrisy in religion. We are told that the Pharisee with whom our Lord dined, marveled that our Lord “had not first washed before dinner.” He thought, like most of his order — that there was something unholy in not doing it, and that the…