Luke 12

What did I learn about Jesus?

Jesus was not afraid of a “hell, fire and brimstone” sermon (verses 1-10).
Jesus also addresses our desire for more things and our worry (and they seem to go hand-in-hand—note the “therefore” in verse 22)—powerful messages for today (verses 13-34).

What did I learn about disciple-making?

Our confidence in defending the faith comes directly from the Holy Spirit (verse 11-12).
Being a disciple of Jesus makes you an inheritor of the KINGDOM (verse 32).

Extended thoughts and observations from elders:

(From Steve Maxwell, on “Do Not Worry”)

v22 Jesus instructs his disciples to not worry; it sounds so simple, but it is easier said than done. This verse begins with “therefore,” so before reading on I looked back at what Jesus had just been teaching. In this chapter and preceding chapters Jesus has been teaching the people to fear God not man, to place our hope and security in him not earthly structures, to treasure him rather than our things, and to be generous toward God rather than focused on accumulating more and more. All this points to viewing life with an eternal perspective. Jesus is saying that if we can truly have this eternal perspective, we are able to move past worrying about our lives.

This is saying that the secret to not worrying is more than simply trying to make the intellectual decision to not worry – you cannot will yourself not to worry. Like everything else we have been reading in the gospels, this is about the heart. Freedom from worry springs from a heart tuned to an eternal perspective.

(From Bart Brynestad)

I really like the little instructions from Jesus in this chapter;

“Be on your guard”.
“Do not be afraid”.
“Do not worry”.
“Watch out!”
“Seek his Kingdom”.
“You must also be ready”.
“Be dressed for service and keep your lamps burning”.

May I take these to heart.