WHOS IN CHARGE HERE?

(Luke 13:31-33)
November 22, 2015
Read Lu 13:31-33 The first sin of all time is recorded for us in Isa 14:14
where Lucifer, the highest of Gods creation, says, I will ascend above the
heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High. The essence of
every sin since has been the desire for control to be ones own God. In our
fallen human existence, submission, even to God, comes hard. Enlightenment
advances encouraged a man-centered, anti-God mindset typified in 19th
century proclamations like Algernon Swinburnes Hymn to Man: Glory to
Man in the highest! For Man is the Master of Things. Modern geneticist H.
J. Muller assures us, We see the future of man as one of his own making.
Politicians join in. JFK, All mans problems were created by man and can
be solved by man." And Frank Sinatra simplified it to, I Did it My Way.
But is man really the master of his own fate? Can we make our own future?
The answer makes a world of difference an eternity of difference. Who is in
charge here? Secularism answers man is in charge of a chance-drive existence
which is largely meaningless. Jesus answers, God is in charge of a purposeful,
God-glorifying universe with a plan intended for our benefit and His glory that
gives meaning to our personal existence if we choose for Him.
Thats the message we see in these few short verses. Whos in charge here?
God is. And Luke details that by showing us first I. Mans Deluded Attack
followed by II. Gods Divine Authority. What a contrast!
I.

Mans Deluded Attack

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At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, Get away from
here, for Herod wants to kill you. So Pharisees? Looking to protect Jesus?
Well, there are some good Pharisees in the Bible. Nicodemus, Joseph of
Arimathea and others. But for the most part they were an self-righteous,
deluded lot. That is the case here. Notice, At that very hour. That refers us
back to the sermon Jesus has just preached that emphasizes the need to enter
by the narrow way, the extreme contrast between heaven and hell as eternal
destination and the indication that the Pharisees and their lot are headed for
hell unless they repent. That was not calculated to make friends and
influence people. So you can bet these guys were looking to hurt Jesus, not
help. They hope this threat will move Him on to Jerusalem where we already
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know from John 7:1, the Jews were seeking to kill him. They could not
safely object to His message here because of His popularity. But in Jerusalem,
He will be on their territory. The advantage will shift to their side. This is a
grand attempt to manipulate Jesus into their trap. Whos in charge here? The
Pharisees think they are! Theyre in for a rude awakening from that delusion.
So is any person who arrogantly ignores or denies God. God is patient. He
does not always give us what we deserve when we deserve it, or the world
would be empty of human habitation. But that does not mean that He has
lost control. Believe me, Beloved, no one, from the greatest to the least can
move a little finger without the oversight of a God who is working all things
to His purpose. It is the ultimate delusion to think otherwise. Despite
appearances, God is as firmly in control now as He has ever been. Nothing
escapes His notice; nothing is outside His control; and no one is in charge
except God.
The Bible says, Man throws the dice, but God makes the spots come up.
Okay, thats a paraphrase of Prov 16:33 which says, The lot is cast into the
lap, but its every decision is from the LORD. That means, Man throws the
dice, but God makes the spots come up. It doesnt matter who you are, you
cant make a move without Gods expressed permission. Prov 22:1 says, The
kings heart is a stream of water in the hand of the LORD; he turns it wherever
he will. There is no escaping the sovereignty of God. Who is in charge
here? God is. Always has been. Always will be. All things work to His glory.
The illusion of human sovereignty borders on insanity. Like the patient who
told his psychiatrist, Doc, Im a bridge. The doctor said, What in the
world has come over you? The guy answered, So far 10 cars, 3 busses and
a truck. When we claim to be something we are not, we are living in
Fantasyland. And that is true of anyone who believes man is in charge.
They are like the Brits who watched Hitler come to power in 1933 and
immediately begin to rebuild German military power in violation of the Treaty
of Versailles which ended WWI. Churchill raised a warning voice but was
labeled an alarmist. The world turned a blind eye and deaf ear as Hitler retook
the Rhineland, annexed Austria and a part of Czechoslovakia during which
time he could have easily been defeated. PM Chamberlain said he bought
peace in our time which turned out to be very short when Hitler invaded
Poland in Sept 1939 and WWII broke out. The illusion that they could control
the mad-man was over. And very soon, Beloved, the illusion that man can
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control God will be over once and for all. Just as these Pharisees discovered
that Jesus was firmly in charge, so the whole world will see it one day. Mans
deluded attack will come up far short. God is supreme. Look how Jesus
demonstrated Gods authority here. Three ways.
II.

Gods Divine Authority

A. His Omniscience (He Knows Hearts)

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And he said to them, Go and tell that fox, speaking of Herod. Interesting
phrase. Tells us a lot. First, it indicates how bad Herod really was. Its a term
of utter contempt. Fox is feminine. We might translate, Go tell that vixen.
Jesus pronounced woes on the Pharisees, too, but remember those were
expressions of regret and calls for repentance. This is the closest thing to an
indication of absolute hopelessness in the ministry of Christ.
A female fox. Devious. Jesus sees right through the conspiracy hatched by
Herod to get rid of him to his black heart. Herod had already beheaded John.
But he was guilt-ridden and paranoid that Jesus was John raised from the
dead. He wanted Jesus gone. But he didnt want to kill another Jewish
prophet. So, I think he called the Pharisees and said, Look, you guys want
Jesus in Jerusalem. I want him out of my territory. Tell you what. Go tell
him Im out to kill him. Thatll scare him off and we both get what we
want. Natural enemies conspiring against a 3rd. Fox shows Herods
deviousness, and Go tell him, shows the Pharisees came from there. It was
all a big plot a plot that didnt fool Jesus for a minute.
This is Jesus unique ability to see into mens hearts. What man can do that?!
The smartest man in the world is no match for the omniscience of God not
even close. Albert Einstein once gazed at the sky from his sailboat, We know
nothing about it at all. Someone asked, Do you think we shall ever probe
the secret? He replied, Possibly we shall know a little more than we do
now. But the real nature of things that we shall never know, never. Thats
brilliant honesty. As highest of Gods creation, man is still severely limited.
Every answer produces a bucket of new questions. And study of the heart is
the least defined area of scientific inquiry that exists. There are more than
250 different systems of psychology attempts to define how the mind works,
in the US alone. Meantime, God simply looks into the human heart and
knows everything! Its not an even contest, Beloved. Its not intended to be.

A boy was helping his dad put out cookies for Santa one Christmas Eve when
Dad dropped one on the floor. He picked it up, brushed it off and said, No
problem. Santa will never know. The boy looked at Dad and said, So he
knows if Ive been bad or good, but he doesnt know the cookie fell on the
floor?" Good question and it perfectly defines the foolishness of mankind
with our very finite brains trying to take on a God who knows everything.
Whos in charge? Id advise, put your money on the One who is omniscient.
B. Gods Omnipotence (He Fulfills Missions)
Jesus demonstrates here a magnificent disregard for human delusionary
attempts to control His destiny. V. 32: And he said to them, Go and tell that
fox, Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and
the third day I finish my course. Jesus operates on no schedule but His
own! You think I should run from Herod, huh? Let me tell YOU how its
going down. Ive got work to do here today. More tomorrow. Ill finish
about Day 3. Then, and only then, I will be leaving. On my schedule, not
Herods and not yours. After Im done, not when Herod decides Im done!
This is marvelous, Beloved. This is God in charge.
Jesus reference to the third day is probably figurative: Ill be here as long as
it takes to finish my mission no more but no less. And all the kings horses
and all the kings men, and all the forces of hell could not change that by
one second. My schedule is dictated by the Father, not Herod. And that is
exactly what happened, because God is omnipotent, and men are not. Arent
you glad that you serve a God like that? Hes finishes what He starts.
God has every man on an invisible, but short leash. From the lowest to the
highest. God says in Psa 2:2-4, 2) The kings of the earth set themselves, and
the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against his Anointed,
saying, 3) Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.
4) He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision. Earths
mightiest men are pawns in Gods hands. Nebuchadnezzar thought he took
Israel captive in 606 BC because of his own power and might. God had a
different perspective in Jer 27:6, Now I have given all these lands into the
hand of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, my servant, and I have given
him also the beasts of the field to serve him. Twice more in Jer 25:9 and
43:10, Gods calls the mighty Nebuchadnezzar my servant. And if you want
to see how God proved it and brought Neb to faith in God, read Daniel 1-4.
Cyrus the Great thought it was his idea to release Israel 70 years later. Little
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did he know God had prophesied that using Cyrus own name 150 years
before in Isa 44:28 and 45:1! God is always in charge, Beloved. Ominpotent!
C. Gods Sovereignty (He Keeps Promises)
Now, things really get interesting in v. 33: Nevertheless, I must go on my
way today and tomorrow and the day following, for it cannot be that a prophet
should perish away from Jerusalem. So what gives here? If God is
omnipotent, and Jesus isnt going anywhere until He is good and ready, why is
He suddenly talking about perishing? Wouldnt escape from dying be the
ultimate in your face, Herod? Of course it would.
But Jesus ultimate mission is not to defeat Herod. Jesus ultimate mission is
to redeem a fallen race by paying sins penalty thru His substitutionary death.
But that death will not be at Herods hand. And tho the Jews will be guilty and
the Romans will be guilty, it is not they who ultimately send Jesus to His
death. God could have stopped them cold any time He wanted. Pilate tried to
throw his weight around when Jesus refused to answer him. He says in Jn
19:10, You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have authority to
release you and authority to crucify you? 11 Jesus answered him, You would
have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above.
Pilate thought Pilate was in charge. Pilate thought wrong. Jesus says in Mt
26:53, Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once
send me more than twelve legions of angels? Okay. Why not show Pilate and
Herod and everybody else, you cant mess with God. Why not stop it all?
The next verse answers. Mt 26: 54 But how then should the Scriptures be
fulfilled, that it must be so? Here is Gods greatest demonstration of
sovereignty. He keeps promises. He keeps promises. Beginning in Gen 3:15
and throughout the remainder of the OT He promised over and over again,
there will be a final and ultimate sacrifice for sin. The promised lamb is
coming. A prophet, a priest, a king and a sacrifice have all been promised. And
God keeps promises. He fulfills them all in the person of Jesus Christ.
Thats why he says in Lu 13:33, Nevertheless I must go it is
absolutely necessary. Why? Its been prophesied. To do what? To perish.
Why? Because its been prophesied. Why in Jerusalem? Because its been
prophesied in Dan 9 and typified in Abes almost sacrifice of Isaac on the hill
where the temple now resides. Cant you see Gods greatness in all of this,
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Beloved? The puzzle coming together. Every piece fitting in place. Yes, Jesus
will die, but on His terms not Herods.
Jews, Romans, Pharisees, all, using their free will to carry out the plan God
formulated before the beginning of time. No one could have touched a hair on
Jesus head had He and the Father not allowed it for their greater glory and for
our salvation. Isa 53: 10) Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has
put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his
offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his
hand. Who sent Jesus to the cross? The Father, knowing He would resurrect
Him to see his offspring we who believe. And the Son went willingly. Jn
10:17, For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I
may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own
accord. Even at the cross God was fully in charge doing what had to be
done to bring about salvation for all who would believe. He keeps promises.
Why not let Him keep His promise to save you to the uttermost if you come to
Him by faith? Hes done all the work. All thats left is for you to bow in
submission to Him.
Conc John MacArthur was in great health a few years ago when he had
surgery to fix some old football injuries. But without warning, blood clots
formed and went to his lungs causing a life-threatening situation. John says,
I was lying there wondering what the purposes of God in this were. I was
thinking about going to heaven. It was looking pretty good. In fact, when I
recovered, I had just a bit of mild disappointment! What happened was that
a friend sent a specialist doctor who knew what to do to save Johns life. He
was a godless man, but warmed to John as they got acquainted. He warned
John, "Now you cant preach for three months, because if you stand up you
will have more blood clot problems. That is, unless you preach 10 min."
John said, "No, I don't preach 10 min. I can't do that. I can't clear my throat
in 10 minutes. But the doc said, "I'm kind of curious to hear you preach. I
want to come to your church the first time you preach. I'll tell you when you
can. I have not been to church since I was 16. He was about 57 at the time.
Long story short, John let the doc know when he was going to preach. The
guys said, I want to come. Ill be there. John was starting a new series on
Luke. He wasnt sure he would really come, but he says, There he was on
the third row, sitting there, having not been to church since he was 16 years
of age, and I announced that I was beginning a series on Luke. And my first
sermon was Luke, the beloved physician." Wow! The Lord knew.
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That was about 10 years ago. The doc has never missed a Sunday. Within a
month he gave his life to Christ and theyve become dear friends. MacArthur
says, I suggested to the Lord that there might've been a Plan B to
evangelize the guy. It's a little hairy approach. But that's just one
illustration of the providences of God that unfold the endearing
providences of God that unfold in your life. Think youre in charge? Youre
not. Not even close. Youre here this morning because God used your own free
will to get you here. If you came without Him, Hes giving you one more
precious chance to bow your heart to Him in repentance and submission.
Dont let it go. It may not come again. Lets pray.