Day 53 – Friday, March 14, 2025

One Year Journey Through the New Testament

Luke 9

Welcome to our journey through the New Testament!

Twelve are Sent to Preach

Matt. 10:1-14; 14:1-14; Mark 6:7-16, 30-34

1 Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases. ² He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. ³ And He said to them, “Take nothing for the journey, neither staffs nor bag nor bread nor money; and do not have two tunics apiece.

⁴ “Whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. ⁵ And whoever will not receive you, when you go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet as a testimony against them.”

⁶ So they departed and went through the towns, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.

⁷ Now Herod the tetrarch heard of all that was done by Him; and he was perplexed, because it was said by some that John had risen from the dead, ⁸ and by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the old prophets had risen again. ⁹ Herod said, “John I have beheaded, but who is this of whom I hear such things?” So he sought to see Him.

¹⁰ And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done. Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida. ¹¹ But when the multitudes knew it, they followed Him; and He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing. 

(Luke 9:1–11, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• This story is told in two separate stories in Matthew and Mark.
• The first part is telling of the disciples being sent out to do ministry in the name of the Lord. The second is the backstory for what actually occurs in this passage with Herod fearing that John has risen from the dead.
• Jesus called his twelve disciples together and gave them power over demons and sickness. He sent them out to preach. He told them to pack lightly and trust those who receive them to provide for their needs.
• Herod became perplexed and fearful upon hearing of all the things Jesus did. He told His circle that He thought John the Baptist had basically come back to haunt him.
• The disciples came back to tell Jesus what had happened on their crusades. Jesus called them aside to a deserted place near Bethsaida, and the crowds followed them.
• Jesus ministered to them and healed those in need.

Five Thousand are Fed

Matt. 14:15-21; Mark 6:35-44; John 6:1-14

¹² When the day began to wear away, the twelve came and said to Him, “Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding towns and country, and lodge and get provisions; for we are in a deserted place here.”

¹³ But He said to them, “You give them something to eat.”

And they said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless we go and buy food for all these people.” ¹⁴ For there were about five thousand men.

Then He said to His disciples, “Make them sit down in groups of fifty.” ¹⁵ And they did so, and made them all sit down.

¹⁶ Then He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the multitude. ¹⁷ So they all ate and were filled, and twelve baskets of the leftover fragments were taken up by them. 

(Luke 9:12–17, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• As the day grew late, the disciples encouraged Jesus to send the multitude away. This story is paralleled in all of the other gospels.
• Jesus told them to feed the crowd. They came up with five loaves of bread and two fish.
• Jesus had the crowd to be seated, and he blessed and broke the fish and bread, and they all ate and were satisfied, and fragments were left over and gathered in to twelve baskets.
• This is one of the most recorded events in Jesus’ ministry.

Peter’s Confession of Faith

Matt. 16:13-21; Mark 8:27-31

¹⁸ And it happened, as He was alone praying, that His disciples joined Him, and He asked them, saying, “Who do the crowds say that I am?”

¹⁹ So they answered and said, “John the Baptist, but some say Elijah; and others say that one of the old prophets has risen again.”

²⁰ He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”

Peter answered and said, “The Christ of God.”

²¹ And He strictly warned and commanded them to tell this to no one, ²² saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.” 

(Luke 9:18–22, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• After the miraculous feeding of five thousand, Jesus went out alone to pray. Soon His disciples joined Him.
• Jesus asked them who the crowds thought He was. They gave Him some typical answers.
• Then He asked them who they thought He was. Peter, in a moment of brilliance, said that He was, “The Christ of God.”
• He then warned them not to tell anyone of His identity, and told them that He would suffer and be rejected and killed, and then raise up on the third day.

True Cost of Discipleship

Matt. 16:24-27; Mark 8:34-38

²³ Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. ²⁴ For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. ²⁵ For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost? ²⁶ For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father’s, and of the holy angels.

²⁷ But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the kingdom of God.” 

(Luke 9:23–27, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• He then announced the difficulty and true cost of discipleship.
• Those who would follow Christ must be willing to deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Him.
• Jesus further states that only those who are willing to lose their lives for Christ’s sake would save their lives.
• Nothing is more precious than one’s relationship with Christ, and we must declare our allegiance to the one true God.

The Transfiguration

Matt. 16:28-17:9; Mark 9:1-9; 2 Pet. 1:17,18

²⁸ Now it came to pass, about eight days after these sayings, that He took Peter, John, and James and went up on the mountain to pray. ²⁹ As He prayed, the appearance of His face was altered, and His robe became white and glistening. ³⁰ And behold, two men talked with Him, who were Moses and Elijah, ³¹ who appeared in glory and spoke of His decease which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. ³² But Peter and those with him were heavy with sleep; and when they were fully awake, they saw His glory and the two men who stood with Him. ³³ Then it happened, as they were parting from Him, that Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”—not knowing what he said.

³⁴ While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were fearful as they entered the cloud. ³⁵ And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!” ³⁶ When the voice had ceased, Jesus was found alone. But they kept quiet, and told no one in those days any of the things they had seen. 

(Luke 9:27–36, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• Eight days after the announcement of Peter, the Lord took His inner circle (Peter, James, and John) up on a mountain to pray.
• As Jesus prayed, His appearance changed, and He became white and glistening. Moses and Elijah were talking with Him about His upcoming death.
• The disciples had gone to sleep, according to Luke, but woke up at the sight of this amazing transformation!
• Peter suggested that they build three tabernacles or tents, one for Jesus and one for each of His heavenly guests.
• A cloud then descended on them, and declared Jesus to be the Son of God and worthy of their attention. After the voice went silent, Jesus was again in His normal form, and was alone with the three disciples.

Demoniac Son is Healed

Matt. 17:14-18; Mark 9:14-27

³⁷ Now it happened on the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, that a great multitude met Him. ³⁸ Suddenly a man from the multitude cried out, saying, “Teacher, I implore You, look on my son, for he is my only child. ³⁹ And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out; it convulses him so that he foams at the mouth; and it departs from him with great difficulty, bruising him. ⁴⁰ So I implored Your disciples to cast it out, but they could not.”

⁴¹ Then Jesus answered and said, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here.” ⁴² And as he was still coming, the demon threw him down and convulsed him. Then Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the child, and gave him back to his father. 

(Luke 9:37–42, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• On the next day, after they had come down from the mountain, a multitude met Him and a man asked that Jesus look at His son and deliver Him from the spirit that plagued him.
• This spirit caused convulsions, and the young man often ended up bruised or injured. He had asked Jesus’ disciples to cast it out, but they could not.
• Jesus called for the boy and scolded the lack of faith of His disciples. The young boy fell down, convulsing, and Jesus rebuked the young man, healed him, and gave Him back to His father.

Christ Prophesies His Coming Death

Matt. 17:22, 23; Mark 9:30-32

⁴³ And they were all amazed at the majesty of God.

But while everyone marveled at all the things which Jesus did, He said to His disciples, ⁴⁴ “Let these words sink down into your ears, for the Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men.” ⁴⁵ But they did not understand this saying, and it was hidden from them so that they did not perceive it; and they were afraid to ask Him about this saying. 

(Luke 9:43–45, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• Everyone was amazed at Jesus majestic acts.
• Jesus told His disciples that they should be ready for His betrayal.
• They were concerned, but fearful of asking what He meant.

True Greatness

Matt. 18:1-5; Mark 9:33-40

⁴⁶ Then a dispute arose among them as to which of them would be greatest. ⁴⁷ And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a little child and set him by Him, ⁴⁸ and said to them, “Whoever receives this little child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me. For he who is least among you all will be great.”

⁴⁹ Now John answered and said, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow with us.”

⁵⁰ But Jesus said to him, “Do not forbid him, for he who is not against us is on our side.” 

(Luke 9:46–50, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• There was a debate over who was the greatest among the disciples.
• Jesus knew what they were up to and showed them the nature of true greatness.
• He said that one must be willing to receive a little child in His name if they wanted to be great.
• John told Jesus that someone was casting out demons in His name and they told Him to stop. Jesus told them to leave the man alone. He could not be against Christ if He did His work and will.

Samaria Rejects Christ

⁵¹ Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem, ⁵² and sent messengers before His face. And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him. ⁵³ But they did not receive Him, because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem. ⁵⁴ And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?”

⁵⁵ But He turned and rebuked them, and said, “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of. ⁵⁶ For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them.” And they went to another village. 

(Luke 9:51–56, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• When Jesus knew that His time was coming to finish His ministry and be crucified, He set His course toward Jerusalem. Along the way, He sent messengers into Samaria to prepare for Him.
• However, the Samaritans rejected Jesus. James and John asked if they should call down fire out of heaven to destroy the city, like Elijah did.
• Jesus told them that He did not come to destroy life, but to save lives. Then they went to another village.

True Cost of Discipleship

Matt. 8:18-22

⁵⁷ Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, “Lord, I will follow You wherever You go.”

⁵⁸ And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”

⁵⁹ Then He said to another, “Follow Me.”

But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.”

⁶⁰ Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God.”

⁶¹ And another also said, “Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house.”

⁶² But Jesus said to him, “No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” 

(Luke 9:57–62, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• In this final passage in Chapter 9, Jesus revisits the cost of discipleship discussion.
• This is only paralleled in Matthew 8.
• Someone told Jesus that they would follow Him anywhere. He told them that He had no home, and no place to even call His own bed.
• Another said the same, and only asked to go bury His father. Jesus told him to let the dead bury their own dead.
• One more wanted to follow Jesus, but He said that he had people at home he wanted to tell goodbye. Jesus said that he should not put his hand to the plow and then look back.
• These messages point out the need to forsake all and follow Jesus. Nothing on earth is worth missing the call of God or the move of God. When Jesus calls, answer and go!

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All Scriptures from New King James Version unless otherwise noted.

Join us this afternoon at 5:00 pm for a discussion of this chapter live online. Live@5 with Dr. Greg Sloop can be found on Facebook on the Dr. Greg Sloop page or on the Kannapolis Church of God Facebook page or Youtube page. Another blog will be posted each weekday at 6:00 a.m.