“Luke / Acts Week 25 – June 17-21”

Monday, June 17, 2024

Monday – Luke 20:27-40 The Sadducees Ask About the Resurrection
1. New opponents, the Sadducees (Jewish aristocracy and the Pharisee’s archrivals), now take on Jesus. In your own words, summarize their question and its underlying premise.
2. According to Jesus, the Sadducees don’t know the scriptures or the power of God (cf. Mat 22:29) – ironic since they were the teachers of the Law. Outline Jesus’ two-part answer to their hypothetical question.
3. List a few popular ideas the world holds about what happens after death. In what ways does Jesus challenge those assumptions? How does the hope of resurrection impact you in this life before death?

Tuesday – Luke 20:41-47 Whose Son is the Christ
1. After the two failed traps the religious leaders, Jesus has His own trick question from Psa 110 for the scribal experts of the Law (vv. 39-40). How is it possible that the Messiah is both David’s descendant and David’s Lord (cf. 2 Sam 7:8-17; Luk 1:26-38; Rom 1:3-4)?
2. Switching from questioning the scribes, Jesus addresses His disciples. What sins of the scribes does Jesus denounce? Why do you think these sins were so serious?
3. Identify any warnings for you presently in Jesus’ cautions about the attitudes and practices of teachers of God’s word.

Wednesday – Luke 21:1-4 The Widow’s Offering
1. On the heels of Jesus denouncing the scribes, He commends a poor widow. How does His praise of the widow serve as a critique of the scribes?
2. Furthermore, what do you think motivates the widow to “give out of her poverty” and the rich to only give out of their “abundance”?
3. What implications does this example have for your giving – financial or otherwise – to the Lord’s work?

Thursday – Luke 21:5-36 Jesus Foretells the Destruction of the Temple
1. As Jesus sets and admires the poor widow in the temple, His disciples are marveling over the beauty of the temple itself. Summarize Jesus’ foretelling of the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple.
2. In your own words, list as many lessons as you can find that Jesus wants His disciples to learn from His teaching on the destruction of the temple.
3. While these words are fulfilled with the Roman’s destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., do you think any of the counsel and encouragement Jesus gives here is relevant today? If so, what? If not, why not?

Friday – Luke 21:37-22:6 The Plot to Kill Jesus/Judas to Betray Jesus
1. Unable to discredit Jesus, the religious authorities determine to kill Him but not publicly. Why do you think they feared the people (cf. 19:47-48; 20:19)?
2. The chief priests find help from an unlikely source – Judas called Iscariot, one of the twelve. While Luke nor any other gospel writer explicitly tells how Satan enters Judas, the incident in Jhn 12:1-8 may give us a clue. In what ways might the love of money contribute to Judas’ agreement to betray Jesus? How is Judas’ experience an illustration of the truth in 1 Tim 6:9-10?
3. Judas was called by Jesus (Luk 6:12-16), heard His teaching, and even proclaimed the coming kingdom with the power to perform miracles (Luk 9:1-6), and yet he agreed to betray Jesus. In what ways is his account a warning for followers of Jesus in general? For you specifically?

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