Daily Devotions
Luke
Luke 12:4-12 "WHOEVER CONFESSES ME BEFORE MEN..." Luke 12:8"
Day 160 – Luke 12
Text: Luke 12:4-12
“WHOEVER CONFESSES ME BEFORE MEN…” Luke 12:8
It took great courage to become Disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ. It meant being identified with Him. It meant confessing faith in Jesus as the Saviour.
There were multitudes who had not made up their mind concerning Jesus. They followed Him, but they needed to confess Him as Saviour. As long as they vacillated, they showed that they did not have full faith in Him.
To encourage their hearts, Jesus urged them to consider the significance of having faith in Him.
“Also I say to you, whoever confesses Me before men,
him the Son of Man also will confess
before the angels of God.”
Luke 12:8
It must have been a struggle for many to openly confess their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. On top of everything else, they had to overcome their fears. If they confessed Jesus as the eschatological Son of Man, they would have to face the fact that the Pharisees and the Scribes would oppose them. They would have to face the fact that they would be made to suffer!
The consolation Jesus offered was that if they openly confessed Jesus, He in turn would openly confess them as His “friends” and His Disciples before the heavenly assembly of the “angels of God”.
Their decision to confess faith in Christ had eternal consequences. Jesus would own them as His Disciples before God and His holy angels! Surely that should bolster their courage.
Fear is something that each individual must face and overcome on his own! He must decide how he wants to fight his fears. He can give in to his fears, and remain cowardly, or he can somehow find the courage to stand up for his faith in Jesus. This battle with fear is something that he must fight and win.
“HE WHO DENIES ME BEFORE MEN…” Luke 12:9
Jesus had to tell His hearers that there was another side that He must bring to their attention. They could not sit on the fence forever. They would have to decide one way or the other.
Were the hearers prepared to deny Him, since they did not confess Him as their Saviour? They must understand the significance and the consequences of their action.
“But he who denies Me before men
will be denied before the angels of God.”
Luke 12:9
To deny Jesus is not just a convenient way of escaping uncomfortable questions from people who opposed. To deny Jesus had eternal consequences. When people denied Jesus, it meant that they had rejected Him. To deny Him had severe consequences that must be carefully thought over.
Fear has terrible consequences. It can cause people to deny Jesus. That decision has severe consequences! To be denied before the angels of God was a terrible consequence that must be thought through carefully!
Surely unwholesome fear must be fought if it led to such severe consequences! Why should we be overcome by fear, when we have courage as a wonderful alternative?
PREPARATION FOR TRIBULATION
The matter of fear versus courage must be thoroughly understood. Jesus saw in His mind’s eye that the future would see them go through tribulation! To prepare His hearers for the tribulation ahead, He described the future graphically,
“Now when they bring you to the synagogues
and magistrates and authorities,
do not worry about how or what you should answer,
or what you should say…”
Luke 12:11
Jesus was not making it any easier for his hearers to decide to confess their faith in Him. He told them that when they do confess faith in Him, they must be prepared to be brought to trial. Three sets of scenarios were pictured.
1. They could be brought up to the leaders of the synagogues. This would be the lowest religious court of law. The council that led the synagogue would probably admonish the believers to deny Jesus in favour of their traditions.
2. They could also be brought before the local magistrates. In this case, there might be trumped-up charges made against the believers. The Disciples must be mentally prepared for people who would resort to every means possible to persecute them.
3. The persecution could take on an even more sinister tone. The believers could be brought up to the “authorities”. These could well be the Roman court of law, in which case, the death penalty could be asked for.
Jesus Himself had experienced rejection from the local synagogues. One day, He would be brought before the Sanhedrin Council (much higher than the local magistrate), and then be accused before the Roman Governor. He was of course fully mentally prepared.
FULLY PREPARED FOR THE WORST OF BATTLES
Faith in Jesus was no simple matter! For some reason, confessing Jesus as Saviour brought in reactions that seemed totally unwarranted. Fear would be the strong ally of the enemy.
The best way to fight fear is to remember what Jesus taught.