He Set His Face to Go to Jerusalem

In one paragraph

This sermon covered the final section of Luke's "long introduction" before Jesus turns toward Jerusalem, working through Luke 9:37-50 and drawing on parallel accounts in Matthew and Mark. Pastor Mike traced a series of moments where the disciples misunderstood, argued, or fell short, and set those failures alongside the picture of Jesus who always understood and always acted. The passage ends with...

Read together

1. Psalm 103 read aloud to open worship: 'praise the Lord, my soul, and all my inmost being, praise his holy name'
2. 1 Corinthians 2:9 quoted as a favorite verse: 'no eye has seen and no ear has heard and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him'
3. John 5 quoted in prayer: 'my father is always at work to this very day, and I too am working'
4. Philippians 4 mentioned as the Monday night study topic: 'fix your eyes... truth, honorable, right, pure, lovely'
5. Luke 9:37-50 the main passage of the sermon covering the healing of the demon-possessed boy and the disciples' arguments
6. Luke 9:51 Jesus resolutely setting his face toward Jerusalem, the turning point from volume one to volume two of the gospel
7. Mark 9:14 fills in detail about scribes arguing with the disciples when Jesus came down from the mountain
8. John 3:16 the word monogenes connected to 'only son' used of the father's child brought to Jesus
9. Matthew 18 mentioned as containing didactic teaching Jesus does, including the church discipline principle
10. Isaiah 46 alluded to as background for 'let these words sink into your ears'
11. Numbers 11 alluded to as background for 'let these words sink into your ears'
12. Isaiah 50 read directly as a suffering servant passage applied to Jesus setting his face toward Jerusalem
13. Isaiah 42 named as the first of the suffering servant passages
14. Isaiah 53 named as one of the suffering servant passages fulfilled by Jesus
15. Isaiah 61 named as one of the suffering servant passages the preacher includes in his count
16. Philippians 2 noted as sounding similar to Isaiah 50 on Jesus humbling himself and receiving instruction from God
17. Psalm 51 closing verse quoted: 'restore to me the joy of your salvation, Lord, and grant me a willing spirit to sustain me,' identified as David acknowledging his mistake

Talk about it

1. The father in the story cried out, 'I do believe, but help me with my unbelief.' When have you found yourself in that same tension, trusting God while also struggling with doubt, and what did that look like for you?
2. Pastor Mike pointed out that the disciples were arguing with the scribes while a desperate father and his suffering son were standing right there. Where in your own life have you seen an argument or a point of pride get in the way of actually helping someone who needed it?
3. Jesus told his disciples, 'Let these words sink into your ears,' and then they were afraid to ask him about what he meant. What makes it hard to bring your honest questions and confusion to God, and what would it look like to stop being afraid to do that?
4. The disciples fell into an argument about who among them was the greatest right after Jesus had just warned them about his coming suffering and death. Why do you think our instinct so often pulls toward status and recognition, and how does Jesus' response, placing a child in the middle of them, challenge that instinct?
5. Pastor Mike closed by reading from Isaiah 50 about the suffering servant setting his face like flint, and connected it to Jesus resolutely heading toward Jerusalem. Where in your own life is God calling you to walk toward something difficult rather than away from it, trusting that He will help you?