Luke 12:1-12
Meanwhile, when the crowd gathered in thousands, so that they trampled on one another, he began to speak first to his disciples, “Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees, that is, their hypocrisy. Nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known. Therefore whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered behind closed doors will be proclaimed from the housetops. I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that can do nothing more. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him! Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten in God’s sight. But even the hairs of your head are all counted. Do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows. And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before others, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God; but whoever denies me before others will be denied before the angels of God. And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven; but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. When they bring you before the synagogues, the rulers, and the authorities, do not worry about how you are to defend yourselves or what you are to say; for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that very hour what you ought to say.”
The coming chapters in Luke contain a number of collected sayings of Jesus that at times can be hard to understand, both in terms of what they mean on their own and in terms of why they are bundled together here. In both cases, it helps to remember that there are two audiences for these sayings.
The first audience is the disciples. At this point in the story, Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem, and along the way he prepares his disciples for his departure. So here, for instance, he warns them both to be wary of the Pharisees but also not to fear them. In the second half of Luke’s story, the book we call the Acts of the Apostles, the disciples will indeed run afoul of the Pharisees and be brought before the synagogues, rulers, and authorities. And so at this point in the story, Jesus prepares them for those confrontations, promising the presence and protection of the Holy Spirit
The second audience is Luke’s only community. We’ve seen at numerous points in our devotions that the Gospel writers each take some liberties with their stories of Jesus, arranging events and changing details in order to address the particular challenges and questions of their distinct communities. One of the challenges they likely faced was continuing to believe the faith they had been taught when Jesus did not return as quickly as many had at first expected. And so Luke shares these words of Jesus in order that his warnings about confessing his name and his promises about the power of the Holy Spirit might also apply to Luke’s community, for they, too, are Jesus’ disciples.
But perhaps there is a third audience as well. For the story of Jesus Luke wrote ended up being addressed to more than just his immediate congregation. It was preserved, and retold, and copied, and shared down through the ages so that we are reading it even now. For we, also, are disciples, like those who first followed Jesus and those who were part of Luke’s community. And so we might also hear Jesus urging us to keep faith and not be indifferent to the need of others or afraid to share our faith.
Truth be told, many of us have a hard time with that. We are not used to sharing our faith and don’t want to seem pushy or intrusive. But while we will likely not be pulled in front of rulers and authorities, we might have occasion to pray for a friend who is struggling or promise God’s presence to someone in need. When those occasions arise, take courage and keep in mind that Jesus’ promise that the Holy Spirit will teach us what to say holds true for us as well.
Prayer: Dear God, prepare us for those moments when sharing a word of faith or offering a prayer might make all the difference. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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