Text: “As the time approached for Him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem” (Luke 9:51).
>To resolve is to decide firmly on a course of action. To be resolute is to be unyielding and determined. Jesus was resolute in His course towards Jerusalem, knowing full well what death awaited Him there.
>Fulfillment of a prophecy written 800 years earlier “Because the Sovereign LORD helps me, I will not be disgraced. Therefore, have I set my face like flint, and I know I will not be put to shame” (Isaiah 50:6). Setting my face like flint refers to flint as a hard rock and expresses the inflexibility of unwavering determination.
The Main Idea: “I did it out of love, I did it completely, and I want you to fully enjoy it.”
I. The Bread, His body, His love
>The bread represents the ultimate demonstration of God’s love for us.
>God so loved the world that He gave His only Son. (John 3:16)
>“…who loved me and gave Himself up (or “delivered Himself up for me” (NASB) Galatians 2:20…
>Isaiah 50:6 – “I offered my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard; I did not hide my face from mocking and spitting.”
II. The Cup, His blood, His payment
>The cup represents the blood of Christ and the full and complete payment for our sins.
>“It is finished” Jesus said while dying on the cross.
>Colossians 2:10 – You have been made complete. Not perfect in behavior but complete in status.
>Hebrews 10:18 There is no longer any offering for sin. There is nothing you can do to atone for your sins, even if you wanted to.
>Philippians 3:20 You cannot do anything to become more of a citizen of Heaven.
III. The Results, Christ’s Riches
>He’s called us out of darkness and into His marvelous light, to a life we didn’t even know existed and to a relationship with Himself that we didn’t even think was possible.
>He lifts the fog of religion and reveals Himself to us.
>Table settings are nice, but they are not the meal. The things that make life more enjoyable are table settings, but Jesus is the meal.
>A Life of Adventure. His promise to us is not a predictable life but an abundant one, consisting of an inseparable union with Him through all conditions. We don’t always know or understand what will enter our lives, why it is there or for how long it will stay.
>Our faith quest is to know His character, to trust His heart, and respect His ways, though we can never fully understand them.
>“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand” (Isaiah 41:10).
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