From the Cradle to the Cross in Five Days

In one paragraph

Pastor Mark preached through five scenes in the Gospel of Luke, each built around the word "today," tracing a single unbroken thread from the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem all the way to a conversation on a cross outside Jerusalem. He argued that Jesus is not a distant historical figure but one who is actively at work right now, in the same way he was at work on each of those five days. The age of...

Read together

1. Luke 2:8-20 Day one, the cradle: shepherds, the angel's announcement of a savior born this day in the city of David, the heavenly host, and the shepherds returning glorifying God
2. Luke 4:16-30 Day two: Jesus reads from Isaiah in the Nazareth synagogue, claims the scripture fulfilled in their hearing, crowd tries to throw him off the cliff
3. Isaiah 61:1-2 The passage Jesus read in the synagogue, quoted both as Jesus read it in Luke 4 and then directly from Isaiah
4. Luke 5:17-26 Day three: paralyzed man lowered through the roof by friends, Jesus forgives his sins and heals him, crowd glorifies God saying they have seen extraordinary things today
5. Luke 19:1-10 Day four: Zacchaeus climbs the sycamore tree, Jesus invites himself to his house, salvation comes to his house today, son of man came to seek and save the lost
6. Luke 23:32-43 Day five: crucifixion, Jesus says father forgive them, one criminal rebukes the other and asks Jesus to remember him, Jesus promises paradise today

Talk about it

1. Pastor Tim walked through five uses of the word 'today' in Luke, each one emphatic. What do you think it means that Luke kept returning to that word? What does the urgency of 'today' suggest about how Jesus worked?
2. In Nazareth, the crowd went from wondering at Jesus' gracious words to a murderous rage when he pointed out that God's favor extended beyond their own people. Have you ever seen a similar reaction, in yourself or others, when the gospel turns out to be bigger or more inclusive than expected?
3. When the paralyzed man was lowered through the roof, Tim noted that Jesus saw the faith of the friends who carried him, not just the man himself. What does that say about praying and advocating for someone who cannot or will not come to Jesus on their own?
4. Zacchaeus only wanted a glimpse of Jesus and ended up with Jesus at his table. Tim pointed out that it was the religious people who were scowling while the outsider was the one who responded. Where do you see that pattern showing up in the five stories from the sermon?
5. The criminal on the cross arrived in paradise with no theological credentials, no baptism, no church history, just 'Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.' Tim said we are still in the age of grace. What does that mean for how we talk to people around us about Jesus?