This sermon is from the Rev. Charles G. Dennison sermon archive, part of the “Misc. Luke sermons” series, and was preached at Grace Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Sewickley, PA, during a worship service on Sunday, October 18, 1987.

We are in Luke chapter 4. It would be wonderful to read the whole chapter, but I’m not going to do that. I think that you know the story of the temptation of Christ at the beginning of this chapter well enough, so I’m going to begin with verse 14 and read on from that verse to the first verse of the next chapter.

And Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through all the surrounding districts. And he began teaching in their synagogues and was praised by all. And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he entered the synagogue on the Sabbath and stood up to read. And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him, and he opened the book and found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are downtrodden, to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.” And he closed the book and gave it back to the attendant and sat down, and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed upon him.

And he began to say to them, “…today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” and all were speaking well of him, and wondering at the gracious words which were proceeding out of his mouth. And they were saying, Is this not Joseph’s son? And he said to them, No doubt he will quote this proverb to me, Position, heal thyself. Whatever we heard was done at Capernaum, due here in your hometown as well.

And he said, Truly, I say to you, no prophet is welcome in his hometown, but I say to you in truth, There were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the sky was shut up for three years and six months, when a great famine came over all the land. And yet Elijah was sent to none of them, but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian. And all the synagogue was filled with rage as they heard these things.

And they rose up and cast him out of the city and led him to the brow of the hill on which their city had been built, in order to throw him down the cliff. But passing through their midst, he went his way. And he came down to Capernaum, the city of Galilee, and he was teaching them on Sabbath days. And they were continually amazed at his teaching, for his message, his word, was with authority.

And there was a man in the synagogue possessed by the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, What do we have to do with you, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God. And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Be quiet and come out of him.

And when the demon had thrown him down in their midst, he went out of him without doing him any harm. And amazement came upon them all, and they began discussing with one another and saying, What is this word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out. And the report about him was getting into every locality in the surrounding district. And he arose and left the synagogue and entered Simon’s house. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever, and they made requests of him on her behalf. and standing over her, he rebuked the fever and it left her, and immediately she arose and began to wait to serve them. And while the sun was setting, all who had any sick or various diseases brought them to and laying hands on every one of them, he was healing them. And demons also were going out of many, crying out and saying, You are the son of God, and rebuking them, he would not allow them to speak because they knew him to be the Christ. And when they came, he departed and went in a lonely place.

And the multitudes were searching for him and came to him and tried to keep him from going away from them. And he said to them, I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, for I was sent for this purpose. And he kept on preaching in the synagogues of Judea. Now it came about that while the multitude was pressing around him and listening to the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret. Lord, in this day, your church has gathered and you have been present. Your people have come in faith, knowing that you are there, that you are present indeed to bless faith directed towards you.

Encourage us in our faith and with that confidence that our God is present to bless and strengthen us, Lord. in that conviction. After all, we are your children, called by your name. You have owned us, and we, by your grace, have owned you. Now, Lord, encourage us through your word to the praise of your glory. For Jesus’ sake, amen.

Through the passage like this, Luke chapter 4, it is very easy for us to be sidetracked by the many things that we encounter here. I think that you have a feel for what I am saying. Take, for instance, the opening of the chapter, the first thirteen verses. These verses are familiar to us, they recount for us the story of Jesus’ encounter with the devil and Satan’s temptation of our Lord. Invariably, when we deal with this passage, What happens to us is that we are not so much concerned about the struggle between Christ and Satan, but what the passage can teach us about the nature of temptation. And therefore, because of that, we easily slide past the original and foremost intent of the text to something however important, is not the main consideration.

Also, as we move through this fourth chapter, we next encounter Jesus’ preaching activity, his teaching ministry, specifically as it unfolds in his hometown. Note verse 16, he’s returned to Nazareth, where he grew up. And our interests here are basically the response of those who should have been closest to him, should have known him best. We are interested in the responses of these people from his hometown.

Next, in verses thirty-three through thirty-six, we are faced with Jesus’ encounter with the demon-possessed man in the synagogue in Capernaum. And our interest here is in Jesus’ power, or even more particularly, the phenomenon of demon possession. how that may well relate to circumstances that the Church faces today.

And once more, as important as that matter may be, we are led by it past the main consideration of the text. The interests here throughout this chapter are not temptation generally considered, nor the response of hometown folks to profits in their midst, nor to the phenomenon of demon possession. And as you go through to the conclusion of the chapter, neither is the interest here simply Jesus in his relationship to sickness and disease. as that is spoken of in verses 38 and following. You can see that all of the things that have been mentioned here are seemingly important. In fact, they can be made to be so important that they reach out and grab us and grab for our attention, asserting themselves as the most important thing, the most important consideration in this chapter.

Yes, temptation, my temptation, the temptations that come to me, those that you know and experience, and how we might gain strength from the word and even from the experience of Jesus in that regard. what it means to be an outcast, to speak the truth and then be held accountable for it, for speaking the truth, to be the odd man out in your own community. The phenomenon of the devil’s work in the world, the question of whether or not there is still demon possession in the world presently.

The whole matter of Jesus, the gospel’s relationship to illness. We all have experienced illness, disease. Our families, if not we ourselves, having contracted diseases, sometimes tragic diseases, debilitating Well, with all of these things, again, as you move through the fourth chapter of Luke, as I say, it’s very easy for us to be sidetracked.

But this chapter really has a single focus. It is a focus that is found in Jesus. himself. In Jesus himself, and the significance of the word in relationship to him. First of all, with regard to Jesus, this chapter is consistent with what Luke has been developing thus far in his So far, he has been interested in presenting to you, Jesus, that unique figure. Yes, one who is experiencing common things. Things in common with the rest of humanity. But yet, in the midst of all of that, he is an utterly unique individual. So unique that he is solitary. He stands alone. I think that you can grasp this understanding, then, the opening of the Gospel of Luke, its progression through Jesus’ baptism by John into the temptation. Yes, we see things here that are in common, experienced commonly by us all. We are all born.

There is this unique birth, this one who is born as no one else, and he even is contrasted with one like John the Baptist. We think of the uniqueness of the birth of John the Baptist, but Jesus, his birth, is so extraordinary that it is set off over against the birth of John the Baptist. is virgin-born, joined then to humanity in common in that all are born yet unique, unique, utterly unique, this one virgin-born. The great heroes of the Old Testament, their births, we first recited We think about the birth of Isaac and the miracle involved. We think about the birth of Samuel and the miracle involved, and others. But in the midst of this common experience of birth, there is that birth that is utterly unique, the birth of Christ. Not just another Old Testament hero, not just another Old Testament figure, heroic in stature, but one utterly unique. Notice also what is said about Jesus in the twenty-first verse of the third chapter. this dealing with the baptism of Jesus by John. Notice the way in which Luke puts the case.

Now, it came about that when all the people were baptized, that Jesus also was baptized. You see how he puts it It came about when all the people were baptized, as if the entire ministry of John is complete. Everybody else has been baptized. Then, after everybody else had been baptized, Jesus comes and he is baptized. Baptism is a common experience, truly, but Jesus baptized in a way in which it sets him off, distinguishes him, in which his uniqueness comes to expression.

We think of the temptation, too. Yes, temptation is the common experience of humanity and all of God’s children, but the address of Satan to this one is, if you are the son of God, the uniqueness, then, of the temptation as it pertains to Christ. And I might say, you see, the uniqueness of that temptation is brought out as you go down through those temptations and you realize the objective of Satan is to get Christ to forego the cross, that which was his unique, distinct calling as the Son of God. I think the point is made clearly.

Jesus, then, at the center of things for Luke, as that unique and solitary figure, that one who virtually stands alone, so long does he stand at this point in Luke’s gospel that the disciples as a group. Now, I know that Simon is mentioned in verse thirty eight and his mother-in-law brought into the picture in chapter four, but the disciples as a group are not introduced to us until the fifth chapter. So these first four chapters have been for the purpose of setting Fourth, Christ as that solitary, unique figure, that one distinguished by God, different from all others. But Jesus in his uniqueness now, as we read into the fourth chapter. It’s considered from a particular point of view. For it isn’t simply his person that concerns Luke now.

It is his person in relationship to the word, and once more we will see as we move through the fourth chapter. that there are the common experiences of God’s people with the Word, but yet, while Jesus is dealing with the Word, he is set out uniquely as that one to whom the Word belongs, that one in whose power is the Word, that one whose Word is nothing less than the Word of God.

You see how Jesus responds to Satan. First of all, he answers the devil, the temptations that are thrown at him by Satan, with the word, with scripture. That word, which is called later on by Paul in Ephesians 6, 17, the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God. And you note what Jesus is doing.

It is Jesus that seemingly has total recall and makes no mistakes about the He has an infallibility about him in terms of the circumstances that he faces, and he not only infallibly interprets the circumstance, he infallibly applies the scriptures, the appropriate scriptures, to the case, to the situation at hand. that one who has this intimate relationship to the word.

We would hope that we would all respond to temptation from the word of God. But we, in our sin, fail oftentimes to remember the word, oftentimes to apply the word properly, oftentimes failing to cite the proper scripture in the appropriate situation. But Jesus never failed. And our hope for meeting temptation, for facing that temptation with the Word of God, is found in the infallibility of the Christ to whom the Word belongs.

Now, this Christ, this Son of God, this One called Jesus, is also that One who appears in such a unique way, and setting in his hometown of Nazareth, in the synagogue. He then, quoting prophecy, and once more, going beyond anything that we might well imagine out of that beginning account of his encounter with Satan, going far beyond that, actually taking those scriptures from the Old Testament, not simply applying them to the situation, but applying them to himself. He is saying that the expectation of the prophet was really an expectation that centered in him. Why, there is a day coming when one will arise who says, the spirit of the Lord is upon me. He has anointed me. He has sent me. He has sent me to set free the captives. He has sent me to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.

And then down in verse 21 of that fourth chapter, Jesus says boldly, today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing. Why, there are many who are tempted, and there are many who preach, but none have dealt with temptation like this, and none have preached as this one. And so it is that preaching and teaching gain a predominance in this chapter. The teaching is mentioned in verse fifteen, verse thirty-one, verse thirty-two. The preaching is referred to in verse forty-three and forty-four.

And with what authority does it come? It is a unique authority. You note verse thirty-two. The response of those in Capernaum. They were continually in a teaching for his word was with authority. You remember how that sentiment is filled out in Matthew’s Gospel at the end of Matthew seven, where it says that the multitude were amazed at his teaching because he taught as one having authority, not as one of the scribes and Pharisees. the unique authority that sets him off over against all others who are teaching and preaching. You’ll note verse thirty-six.

After he has healed the demon-possessed man, the amazement comes upon all. They began to discuss with one another, saying, What is this word or this message? With what authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out. the uniqueness of the authority of this one, vaguely perceived by those who heard, yet he is utterly unique. What of his power over disease and demons?

A special word is used with regard to his healing ministry here in verses 35 and 39 and 41. That special word is rebuke. He rebukes the disease, he rebukes the demons. Others might pray, others might beseech, others might intercede, but this one rebukes.

Jesus, then, and the Word, his relationship to it, yes, in his experience He is touching us in that we, too, are related to the word and have contact with it. But yet in his relationship to that word, he is utterly unique, and there is a unique authority and a unique ability with regard to it.

But as I said, There’s something even more amazing here about his relationship to the word. You know, the beginning of the fifth chapter. That’s why I read that first verse of the fifth chapter. Now it came about that while the multitude was prepping around him and listening to the word of God. Now you could say that that reference to the Word of God there has in mind the fact that Jesus is quoting Scripture or preaching upon it, or that preaching in some way is equal to the Word of God. Or you can conclude from that that what is intended is to equate the Word of Jesus with the Word of God, and that is exactly what I believe is intended by the writer of this gospel. And there’s a reason why I think that that is why.

I think that is what Luke intended. Note the fourth chapter, the fourth verse. This is the account of the first temptation. Jesus said here, in answer to Satan, it is written, man shall not live on bread alone. Now, you might think that that is a bit strange. In fact, that quote of Jesus at that point is incomplete.

You know how the rest of that scripture which he is quoting, Deuteronomy 8.3, continues. It doesn’t simply say, man shall not live on bread alone.

It goes on to say, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. But Luke, in recounting the story of this temptation, omits those words at this point. Now, if you go back to Matthew chapter four, verse four, you note that Matthew does not make that omission. There you read, But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. There the complete quotation appears, but not so in Luke. Not in Luke 4 verse 4.

Now you might think that you’re losing something. that something has been left out, and sadly so, until you get down to the twenty second verse of this chapter. For here you read, and all were speaking well of him and wondering at the gracious words, and if you have a new American standard you can read in the margin, how the Greek is to be translated literally at this point. all were speaking well of him and wondering at the gracious words that were proceeding out of his mouth. There’s the rest of the quote. You see what was done.

He is deliberately left off the end of Deuteronomy eight three in the fourth verse of the fourth chapter, so that he can allude to it in the twenty second But here he applies it to the word of Jesus. Equating the word of Jesus with the word of God, and that is why I am contending that when you get to the first verse of the fifth chapter and Luke says that the people were listening to the word of God when they were listening to the preaching of Jesus, he means nothing less than that.

They are listening to the word of God. The word of Jesus is. the Word of God. There are many preachers. The Church has a plethora of preachers. But when he is preaching, is it as so many have sadly concluded an equation with the Word of God, as if that one who stands before you declares to you infallibly the will of God. No, you see, preaching is a witness. It is a witness to the Word of God. It is a witness to that one who speaks and preaches and teaches the Word of God. It is a witness to Jesus Christ, who is the veritable Word of God Himself.

Why would it be that Luke would wait until the fifth chapter to introduce the disciples to you? What possible purpose could he have? He doesn’t want the church to make any mistake. You see, the foundation stone is Christ. It’s not Peter, it’s not any other apostle, it’s Christ. It’s not their word, it’s His word.

And that is what’s so utterly important. Before any other issue or matter is considered, that must be set in ground. The uniqueness, the utter uniqueness of the Son of God, Jesus, and His Word, and you must live by it. Oh, you see, if Israel in the Old Testament was told that they must live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God, the New Testament Church now is told, you must live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth. of Jesus. That is what has authority. That is what has power. That is what brings healing. That is what brings comfort, direction, clarity, That’s what brings life. The word of Jesus. Are you tempted? Do you struggle over modern day prophets? Are you questioning sickness, disease, distress?

The church in any age finds her help in Jesus and his word. Amen. Our Father, may we not forget the cornerstone. Oh, there may be things that come along, experiences in our lives, things that become even patterns for our lives, that push, shove aside the true consideration. It may well be the temptations that assault us It may well be that prophets’ claims may well be disease, may be distressing circumstances that appear almost demonic in our midst. But O Lord, in the midst of it all, may we be drawn to Jesus and to that one who has the authority over the Word, that one whose authority is expressed in the word, that one whose word is the word of God. May we live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of Jesus Christ. Here, the foundation of our existence, the foundation of the life of the Church, the foundation of every believer, those who call upon him.

The sermon text provided above is derived from the sermon audio recording making use of generative tools. It has not been manually edited. While transcription tools have a high degree of accuracy, the output may include generative textual, punctuation, and/or formatting errors.