LIFE OF CHRIST
A Harmony of the Gospels

LESSON  EIGHTEEN

Strive to enter

agonizesthe

agonize, compete, strive

Signifying to "contend"  as for the mastery.
Originally it was to contend for a prize in the public games;  and thus conveying a sense of struggle.
The word is kin to the "agony" of the garden (Luke 22:44),  and certainly teaches that one must put forth more personal effort than merely casually  "accept"  salvation.

Many will seek ... will not be able

Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob

This portion corresponds to Matthew 8:11,12.
It is the closest communion with the most eminent followers of God. But if we desire to inherit the promises, we must be followers of  them who through faith and patience enjoy them.

We must imitate:

According to the Jewish idea,  one of the main elements of the happiness of the Messianic kingdom was the privilege of  participating in splendid festive entertainments along with the Patriarchs of the nation.

They shall come from the East ... West ... North ... South

That is,  the Gentiles,  in every part of the world,  shall receive the Gospel of the grace of God,  when the Jews shall have rejected it,  and will have the privileges of the Chosen Ones in the Kingdom.

Depart from here

He was on His way to Jerusalem (v. 22),  probably from Perea,  and thus away from the jurisdiction of Herod.

Herod wants to kill you

Lactantius says that this Herod was the person who chiefly instigated the Jewish rulers to put Jesus to death -
fearing lest he should be expelled from the kingdom,  if Jesus should be permitted to set up His Kingdom.
Haunted by guilty fears,  probably,  Herod wanted to get rid of Him,  and seems,  from the Lord's answer,  to have sent these Pharisees,  under the pretence of a friendly hint,  to persuade Him that the sooner He got beyond Herod's jurisdiction the better it would be for His own safety.  Jesus saw through both of them,  and sends the cunning ruler a message couched in dignified and befitting irony.

Tell that fox

Describing his cunning and cowardice - that crafty,  cruel enemy of God's innocent servants.
Jesus knew his heart,  and saw that he covered his desire for the destruction of  Jesus under the pretence of zeal
for the law and welfare of  the Jewish people.  A symbol among the Jews appears to have been the emblem of  a wicked ruler,  who united cunning with cruelty,  and was always plotting how he might aggrandize himself  (increase his power)  by spoiling the people.  The ultimate dream of  Herod Antipas was to attain the power and rule that his father,  Herod the Great,  had.  Jesus of Nazareth was another stepping stone in that direction,  and Jesus saw through his whole scheme.

I shall be perfected

Literally,  "I am being perfected,"  or  "completed."
Here He speaks of a future day,  "the third day,"  with a present accomplishment.
Another veiled reference to His death, and on the third day, His resurrection.

A prophet ... perish outside of Jerusalem

"... for it will never do for a prophet to be destroyed away from Jerusalem"  (Amplified New Testament).
An awful severity of  satire upon  "the bloody city,"  of  which He says in verse  34 "... Jerusalem, who kills the prophets, and stones them that are sent"

He could paraphrase it:  "He seeks to kill me,  does he?  Ah!  I must be out of Herod' s jurisdiction for that.  Go tell him that I neither fly from him nor fear him,  but Jerusalem is the prophet's slaughter-house and I must go there."

Note:  The two times He speaks about the progression of 3 days (Vs. 32,33).

To eat bread on the Sabbath

Some would wonder why there should be an invitation or dinner given on the Sabbath day.
The Jews purchased and prepared the best dishes they could procure for the Sabbath day,  in order to do it honor.

Lightfoot give an example of this custom from the rabbins:  "Rabba Bar Rabh Houna went to the house of  Rabba Bar Rabh Nachman.  He set before him three measures of rich cake;  to whom he said;  'How did you know of my coming?'  The other answered,  'Is there any thing more valuable to us than the Sabbath?'  The Gloss is:  'We do by no means prefer thee before the Sabbath;  we got these things ready in honor of the Sabbath,  not knowing any thing of thy coming."'

They watched him

There were maliciously watching,  which is the frequent meaning of the word,  and as this context plainly shows. The conduct of  this Pharisee was most detestable. Professing friendship and affection,  he invited the Lord to his table,  merely that he might have a more favorable opportunity of  watching His conduct,  that he might accuse Him.

Dropsy

A disease of the body causing swelling due to excess water.
The face of  the patient is often very much bloated.

They chose the best places

The Jews at this period had adopted the system of  "triclinia"  from the Greeks and Romans,  and the  "chief seat"
was the middle seat in the central  "triclinium,"  or couch on which the honored guest was reclining.
The closer one was to this coveted spot,  the more honored he was.

Give place to this man ... or ... go up higher

A reproduction of  Proverbs 25 :6,7

The host did not hesitate to regulate the position of  his guests after they had settled it for themselves.  He gave
the highest in rank the chief place,  sending the men up or down as circumstances required.

Morier was at an entertainment in Persia where the governor of  Kashan entered and took the lowest place.  The host,  on discovering him,  pointed with his hand to an upper seat,  which the governor took,  the other guests making way for him.

Began to make excuses

There were three excuses given which correspond to the tares in the Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13:22; Luke 8:14):

The master of the house, being angry

The custom was that messengers were sent to invite the guests to a feast;  when not only relatives,  but also all persons of the same division of  caste in the neighborhood,  were invited.  A refusal to attend was considered as a great affront and insult.
It is probably to just such a custom that He here refers.

3 FOOLISH MISTAKES (OR EXCUSES):

Let us again examine our PRIORITIES and MOTIVES
All 3 of these are good and important in their place, but they must not become more important than the Lord!

Excerpts from Farrar:

Hate

An idiom of  preference.
From the Greek verb "miseo,"  which means to hate, detest, or abhor - however,  it is also used in the sense of

It is in this second sense that the word is here used, which is clarified in Matthew 10:37.

We see this same idiomatic expression used in Romans 9:13

The Hebrew idiom also appears in Genesis 29:30,31

The lesson here emphasizes the necessity of determining:

It is inevitable that we must all eventually choose between the two.
He cannot be my disciple - not only not allowed,  but it is not in the realm of possibility to follow Christ unless we love Him first and foremost.

3 Things Necessary To Be A Disciple Of Christ

His Cross

All must bear the cross,  but not necessarily all the same cross: each one  HIS OWN cross.
"Whoever does not persevere and carry his own cross and come after Me, cannot be My disciple."
(Amplified New Testament)

To build a tower

Probably this means no more than a dwelling house,  on the top of which according to the Asiatic manner,  battlements were built:

Build a tower ... Make war

In these two parables,  two things are taught,  which come together into one great lesson:

He that will be a true disciple of  Jesus Christ shall require no less than the mighty power of God to support him. Though the contest for salvation be,  on our part,  an awfully unequal one,  the human will,  in the exercise of that "faith which overcomes the world" (1 John 5:4),  and nerved by power from above, which  "out of weakness makes it strong (Hebrews 11 :34; 1 Peter 1 :5),  becomes heretical and will come off   "more than conqueror."

But without  ABSOLUTE  SURRENDER  OF  SELF  the contest is hopeless.

Receives sinners

Receives them in a tender manner;  treats them with kindness;  does not drive them from his presence.
(from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)

'Welcomes sinners,'  into his company
(from the UBS Handbook Series. Copyright (c) 1961-1997, by United Bible Societies) (Biblesoft)

This was the very purpose for which Jesus came:

Luke 19:10
For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost."

A hundred sheep

Parables similar to this are frequent among the Jewish writers. The Lost Sheep is an emblem of  a heedless,  thoughtless sinner:  one who follows the corrupt dictates of his own heart,  without ever reflecting upon his conduct,  or considering what will be the issue of his unholy course of life.

It is interesting that throughout the Scriptures we are referred to as sheep:

This is the second time Jesus referred to lost sheep.

Silver coins

A "drachme," equal to a roman "denarius," about 17 cents, or a day's wage.
All ten would total about  $1.70.

In these two parables of  the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin, we see:

Parables of this type afford many useful allegories to preachers of  the Gospel,  by which they may edify their hearers.  But let us not loose sight of the main reason of  this portion - the murmurings of the Pharisees and scribes because Jesus received publicans and sinners, and even ate with them.
Jesus answered the murmurings of  these hypocritical self-styled judges with these two parables,  the basic meaning of which is:  "You turn from these lost ones with disdain,  and because I do not the same,  you murmur
at it:  but a very different feeling is cherished in heaven.  There,  the recovery of even one such outcast is watched with interest and hailed with joy;  nor are they left to come home of themselves or perish;  for 10!   Even now the great Shepherd is going after His lost sheep,  and the Owner is making the diligent search for the lost property;  and He is finding it,  and bringing it back with joy,  and all heaven is full of  this joy."

The portion of goods

According to the Jewish law of inheritance,  if there were but two sons,  the elder would receive two portions,  the younger the third of all movable property.
A man might,  during his lifetime,  dispose of all his property by gift as he chose.  If the share of  the younger child was to be diminished by gift or taken away,  a person presumably near death must make the disposition.
No one in good health could diminish,  except by gift,  the legal portion of a younger son.
The younger son thus was entitled by law to his share,  though he had no right to claim it during his father's lifetime (Clark mentions the custom in the East where the son could demand his inheritance from the father,  and his father could not refuse.  However,  this appears to be in India,  and there is no evidence that the Romans or the Jews ever observed this custom).
The request must be regarded as asking a favor on the part of the Son,  and on the part of the father,  of  granting that favor as a gift.

This is MAN,  impatient of Divine control,  desiring to be independent of God,  seeking to be his own master;  that "sin of sins,  in which all subsequent sins are included as in their germ,  for they are but the unfolding of this one." (Trench)

Thus  "God,  when His service no longer appears a perfect freedom,  and man promises himself something for better elsewhere,  allows him to make the trial:  and he shall discover,  if need be by saddest proof,  that to depart from Him is not to throw off  the yoke,  but to exchange a light yoke for a heavy one,  and one gracious Master for a thousand imperious tyrants and lords." (Trench)

To feed swine

This was considered one of the most degrading employments,  not only by Jews,  but by other nations as well. Among the Egyptians,  for example,  the swineherds were completely cut off from society. They could not worship the gods,  or marry even the lowest of the people.

Pods

Translated "husks" in the KJV.
The pods of the carob tree,  and means  "little horns,"  because of their shape.
The tree is about 30 feet high,  with a crown of like spread,  which matures fruit in 30 years,  and has glossy evergreen leaves and leathery leguminous pods.  The fleshy pods are from 6 to 10 inches long,  and one inch broad,  with pea-like seeds embedded in a sweet pulp.  It was a staple cattle food throughout the Mediterranean basin,  and the poor eat the pods.  Called  "St. John's Bread"  from a belief that carob pods rather than insects were the locusts which John the Baptist ate. 
Edersheim  quotes a Jewish saying,  " When Israel is reduced to the carob-tree, and they become repentant."

He came to himself

A striking expression,  putting the state of  rebellion against God as a kind of madness.
It is a wonderful stroke of art,

Little by little Satan will blind our understanding unless we remain surrendered.

The best robe

That chief garment that was laid by,  to be used only on birthdays or festival times.

The Robe represents  DIVINE  ROYALTY  AND  PURITY

A ring

Giving a ring was in ancient times a mark of honor and dignity.
A royal proclamation was not in effect without the stamp of the King's ring.
When Pharaoh gave Joseph the ring (Genesis 41:41,42),  he gave Joseph the power and authority of  Pharaoh himself.

The Ring represents  DIVINE  POWER  AND  AUTHORITY

Shoes

Slaves went barefoot.
Those who were captive had their shoes taken off, and when they were restored to liberty their shoes were restored.
Also, the very poor did not have shoes.

The Shoes represent  DIVINE  LIBERTY  AND  ABUNDANCE

The fatted calf

In ancient times the animals provided for public feasts were first sacrificed to God.
The blood of the beast being poured out before God,  by way of atonement for sin,  the flesh was considered as consecrated,  and the guests were considered as feeding on Divine food.

The Calf represents  DIVINE  RECONCILIATION  AND  ATONEMENT

Without Christ, we all fall into one of these three categories:

Compare the Prodigal Son with the man in the parable of the Good Samaritan

Compare the Elder Brother and the Pharisees

It may also be remarked,  that those who were since called Jews and Gentiles,  were at first one family,  and children of the same father:  that the descendants of Ham and Japheth,  from whom the principal part of the Gentile world was formed,  had fallen off from the true religion.
And now Jesus shows that the Gentiles,  being received into the favor of God,  are made,  with them,  fellow heirs of the kingdom of heaven.

Steward

THIS PARABLE WAS SPOKEN TO THE DISCIPLES

The steward had general charge of the business of the house,  and especial care of the heir.
The office is a very ancient one. Abraham had a steward, Eliezer (Genesis 15:2).
The steward was generally an old faithful slave,  though sometimes free men were so employed.
The honorable position of  the steward is seen in the fact that he was considered to be ruler over the household.
He assigned to the members of  the household their several duties,  and paid to each his or her wages.
He was the paymaster.
He kept the household stores under lock and seal,  giving out what was required;  and for this purpose received a signet ring from his master.

Wasting his goods

Literally "was wasting;"  not merely a past offence,  but something going on at the time.  He was not only being profuse and profligate,  but he was accused of embezzling his master's substance.

Cannot dig ... ashamed to beg

He could not submit to become a common day laborer,  which was both a severe and base employment,  and he was ashamed to beg.  As these were the only honest ways left to him,  he found he must continue the system of dishonesty in order to provide for his idleness and luxury.  It seems strange that he is ashamed to beg,  but not ashamed to embezzle.

They may receive me

That is,  the debtors and tenants,  who paid their debts and rents,  not in money,  but in  "kind;"  such as wheat,  oil,  and other produce of their lands.

A hundred measures of oil

Measures in this verse is "batous" - "baths."
The bath was a Hebrew measure,  but the amount is uncertain,  since,  according to Edersheim,  there were three kinds of measurement in use in Palestine:

His debt was approximately about  7 1/2  to 9  gallons of oil,  and the steward reduced it in half.

A hundred measures of wheat

Measures here is "korous" -"cors."
The cor was 10 baths;  the dry and fluid measures being the same.
His debt was approximately  75  to 90  gallons of wheat,  and 1/5 to 60-72 gallons,  or 80 cors reduced it.

Commended the unjust steward

The master of the steward merely acknowledged that the steward had made quite a plan to provide for himself.
There was nothing the master could do about it,  for the debtors would stand by the steward because it was to their benefit.  The master could not prove that the new contracts were not the old ones.
This account of  an Asiatic custom from Capt. Hadley' s Hindostan Dialogues:

Shrewd - the KJV translates it "wise", and "wisely"
However, it is not necessarily wise in a good and acceptable sense,  as if the unjust steward had done the right thing, but "shrewd," or "sagacious."

Make friends ... by unrighteousness mammon

This was possibly a parenthetical expression aside to Judas Iscariot.
Jesus was not suggesting that they go out and embezzle.
This is contrary to Vs. 10-13,  and all other Scriptures that teach that riches gained unjustly must be restored to the rightful owners.
To insinuate that riches gained by unjust means are sanctioned by Jesus, or that they gain one a passport to heaven if they are sanctified to God,  is a perversion of the words of Jesus.

The Syriac Peshitta has:
"And I also say to you, Use this earthly wealth, however acquired, to make friends so that
When it is gone, they will receive you and you will have everlasting habitation."

The point of this remark is the  NECESSITY  OF  PREPARATION  FOR  THE  FUTURE.
Jesus qualified this by His explanation in verses 10-13.
He emphasizes faithfulness and honesty ... the importance of being trustworthy,  and the rewards involved in such.
He also emphasizes the impossibility of  "serving"  (being a slave to)  riches and possessions,  while at the same time claiming to be a servant of God.  As the love of one is the  "root of all evil,"  and the love of the other is the root of all good,  He says it is absolutely impossible to love both,  and the one you love is the one you serve.

The story of two beggars  -  One in this life  -  One in the next life

There was

This account has been referred to parable,  and,  indeed,  Jesus used it in a parabolic sense,  in order to illustrate a spiritual truth.  However,  we must not forget that Jesus said,  "There was a certain rich man. ..."
Although we refer to it as a  "parable,"  the facts of the illustration stand as fact  - not as merely a hypothetical case conjured up to make a point.  The men were real,  and the situation was literal!

Was clothed

This verb is in the "imperfect" tense - "was being clothed."
It denotes his Habitual Attire - it was a way of life - always living in abundance.

Purple

Originally the purple fish from which the color was obtained,  and thence applied to the color itself.
Several kinds of these were found in the Mediterranean.
The color was contained in a vein about the neck.

Under the term  "purple"  the ancients included three distinct colors:

Alexander is said by Plutarch to have found in the royal palace at Susa garments that preserved their freshness
of  color though they had been laid up for nearly two hundred years;  and Mr. St. John relates that a small pot of the dye was discovered at Pompeii that had preserved the tone and richness attributed to the Tyrian purple.

This fixedness of color is alluded to in Isaiah 1:18 - " ...though your sins were as scarlet. ..."

Fine linen

From the Greek word "byssus."
Yellowish flax,  and the linen made from it.
Herodotus says it was used for enveloping mummies,  a statement confirmed by microscopic examinations.  He also speaks of it as a bandage for a wound.
Some of the Egyptian linen was so fine that it was called  "woven air."
Sir Gardner Wilkinson says that some in his possession was,  to the touch,  comparable to silk,  and not inferior in texture to the finest cambric.  It was often as transparent as lawn,  a fact illustrated by the painted sculptures,  where the entire form is often made distinctly visible through the outer garment.
This material was enormously costly.

Fared sumptuously

Also in a continuous tense - "...habitually ... reveled and feasted and made merry in splendor every day."
(Amplified New Testament)

Was laid

From "ebebleto," "was thrown" - he was cast carelessly down by his bearers and left there.
" ...there was (carelessly) dropped down and left a certain utterly destitute man (reduced to begging alms) and covered with (ulcerated) sores." (Amplified)

Desiring to be fed

"Eagerly"  and not receiving what he desired.
The same thing is implied in the story of the prodigal,  where the same word is used,  "...he would gladly have filled his stomach,"  but the pods did not satisfy his hunger.

As the rich man lived in continual luxury and satisfaction,
Lazarus lived in continual pain,  misery,  want,  and hunger.

With the crumbs

Some suppose that by these  "crumbs"  are meant the pieces of bread where with it was customary at table to
wipe the fingers,  an act rendered necessary by the practice of conveying the food to the mouth by means of the hand  (in other words,  the bread served the purpose of a napkin).
When the fingers were thus wiped,  the fragments of bread that had been used for this purpose were thrown to the ground,  where the dogs were allowed to get them.

We see by this the connection with the closing part of the text:  "...the dogs came and licked his sores."
With the dogs he had his food,  and the compassionate beasts not only permitted him to partake of their food,  but also nursed him in his sickness.

Abraham's bosom

A Rabbinical phrase,  equivalent to being with Abraham in Paradise.
"To the Israelite Abraham seems the personal center and meeting-point of Paradise."  (Goebel)

A Comparison:

Matthew 16:26
For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?      (NKJV)

Luke 9:25
For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost?      (NKJV)

Philippians 3:7-11
But what things were gain to me,  these I have counted loss for Christ.  Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of  Christ Jesus my Lord,  for whom I have suffered the loss of all things,  and count them as rubbish,  that I may gain Christ  and be found in Him,  not having my own righteousness,  which is from the law,  but that which is through faith in Christ,  the righteousness which is from God by faith;  that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection,  and the fellowship of His sufferings,  being conformed to His death,  if,  by any means,  I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.      (NKJV)