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Get your tickets, and we'll see you guys in 2026 for the live podcast tour. What's going on, guys? Welcome back to another episode of the Bryce Crawford Podcast. I'm Bryson. Today we are in Luke chapter 18. But before we get into the episode, as always, we need Elf Dillon to come back in and give us some Christmas. Merry Christmas, Bryce. You know what? Happy holidays and Merry Christmas. Happy holidays. Here, open a big one. Oh, thank you so much. I appreciate you. What do you think's in there? A laptop stand? A laptop stand so you can do all your work. But it looks like glasses. Well, I know you've been talking about you need glasses. Oh, well. A laptop stand, it's two and one. Oh, two and one. Thank you. You know, that was very thoughtful of you. Thank you, Elf Dillon. I appreciate that. Merry Christmas, Bryce. You know, thank you so much for giving this to me. I appreciate that. Well, as always, we're going to get into the Word of God today. We're going to be in Luke chapter 18, starting off in verse one. We see another parable and he told him a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. This parable is about prayer. Now, before we dive into it, I just want to preface. Luke is all about the historical narrative of Jesus. Luke wrote the gospel of Luke for the sake of historical order, historical records, et cetera. He said, in a certain city, there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected him, meaning this judge was ungodly. And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him saying, give me justice against my adversary for a while. He refused. But after he said to himself, though I neither fear God nor respect man yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming. He's saying, look, I don't really care about God. I don't really do this. The only reason I'm listening to this woman asking for justice because she will not stop being persistent. And the Lord said, hear what the unrighteous judge says and will not God give justice to his elect who cry to him day and night. Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth? What is Jesus saying in this passage? Don't lose heart in your prayers. What have you been praying for so long that you feel like God has an answer? God is telling you in this moment, don't lose heart in your prayers. But what about that family member or that friend that got the cancer diagnosis or got laid off from their job or struggling financially or is going through a breakup or is going to don't lose heart in your prayers? James five tells us that the fervent prayer of the righteous person conquers much. God, here's your prayers. Every tear you've cried, every prayer you've sown, every letter you've written to God, he has read, he has heard, he is collected and his heart goes out to you. Don't lose heart in your prayers. God sees you, he loves you and he's answering and sometimes it's a no and that's for protection. And sometimes it's a yes and that's because that's for protection and trust. And you know what? God is listening and he hears you, but God is always on time. Don't lose heart in your prayers. Verse nine, he also told this parable to someone, to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and treated others with a content. Isn't it interesting how there's often times some background context of these verses? Like a lot of times we like to cherry pick a verse and say, what does this mean? But if we just read a few verses for and a few verses afterwards, we understand. Here we go. Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. OK. Really, both of these people are sinners in God's eyes. One is self-righteous sinner and one is your good old fashioned sinner. Hey, the tax collector, the Pharisee standing by himself prayed, prayed this, God, I thank you that I'm not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers or even like this tax collector. Imagine how passive aggressive this prayers are. Both sitting next to each other, you learn down and verbally the Pharisee is like, I'm glad I'm not like this guy. I fast twice a week. I give ties of all that I get. But the tax collector standing far off would not even lift up his eyes to heaven. But beat his breast saying, God, be merciful to me. Center. I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humble, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted. See, the Pharisee was relying on his own power. The Pharisee was relying on his things. The Pharisee was relying on his works rather than the work of Jesus. Whereas the tax collector, which the tax collector who would manipulate his own people for the sake of his own monetary gain was so aware of his heart conviction that he was beating on his own heart. God, I'm a sinner. Couldn't even look to heaven because he felt so unworthy out of humility. That man in humility and sincerity will be justified rather than the one who's trying to exalt himself. Because here's the reality. You can either humble yourself before God and your sin or your sin will humble you. And in this moment, the Pharisee, the Pharisee was humbled by his sin. And the tax collector humbled himself before God. Verse 15. Now, they were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them. And when the disciples saw it, they rebuked him. But Jesus called to them. Now, isn't it interesting? It seems to me that the kids loved Jesus. The kids seemed to have loved Jesus. And it says to him, Jesus called to them, saying, let the children come to me and do not hinder them to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like this child shall not enter it. What is it about a child that receives the kingdom of God? They're innocents. They're lack of needing to be convinced or lack of doubt. You tell a child the truth. You tell a child that Santa is real and they grab onto that truth. You don't have to convince them. They know for a fact that Santa is coming down on Christmas Eve for the milk and cookies to deliver gifts underneath the Christmas tree, and they don't doubt it for a second in the same way. We must cling to the truth of the word of God, just like a child. We need to receive his blessing. Without trying to work for it. Receive his blessing willingly. Verse 18. And a ruler asked him, good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life? Now look, we're about to hear this parable of the rich young ruler. And I love the story. Okay. Because the rich young ruler is asking this question, not in sincerity, but to flaunt that he is a worker of the law. Well, listen, good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life? What should I do to inherit eternal life? And Jesus said to him, why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments. Do not commit adultery. Do not murder. Do not steal. Do not bear false witness. Honor your father or mother. And he said, all of these I've kept from my youth. This is what he's saying. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Tell me something I don't know. When Jesus heard this, he said to him, okay, one thing you still lack, just so all that you have and distribute it to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven and come to follow me. When he heard these things, he became very sad or he was extremely rich. Jesus made that statement by saying, love me more than you love your money. Here's another inference. Maybe you're not the rich young ruler in a sense of monetary game, but maybe you're rich in something else and a relationship and things and status. Jesus saying, hey, why don't you love me more than you love your boyfriend or girlfriend? Why don't you love me more than you love social media? Why don't you love me more than you love food? Why don't you love me more than you love that addiction over there? Why don't you love me more than you love this Saturday or the other? Jesus is challenging what sits on the rear of your heart. It says that the rich man became very sad. And Jesus saw that he had become said, said, how difficult is it for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of heaven for it's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person into the kingdom of heaven. Those who heard it said, then who can be saved? No, it's interesting. Jesus doesn't say it's impossible for people to enter the kingdom of heaven who have wealth. He says it's difficult because it can be a challenge to not allow money to sit on the throne of your heart. You know, it's so interesting. As I mentioned in a previous episode, I had a co-worker when I was 18 years old who didn't believe in God who would pray and ask God for money. And God never gave him money and he blamed that God was a real good. God never gave him money. But here's the reality. He was a bad money handler. He was laid on his bills. He would blow his money on drugs and alcohol and scratch off tickets. He would ask me all the time to split tips at lunchtime. Not at the end of the day. He said he wanted to split tips at lunchtime and I could keep whatever was left after lunch because he needed to go get a scratch off ticket so bad. And then I also know people who are very wealthy and have a lot of money who live open-handedly honest lives with money. So who has the money problem? Is it the person I know that has a higher number in their bank account? Or is it the person that I know that was worshiping money who had spoiled it on his bad money handler? Obviously my co-worker had a bigger issue with money than the people that I know that live open-handedly honest lives at love God. So it's not necessarily the number in your bank account that makes it simple. It's is it sitting on the throne of your heart? But that Jesus says this, what is impossible with man is possible with God. He's saying what seems impossible for you to give up in your own strength is possible to surrender to me through the spirit of God. Meaning if you and your willpower are struggling to let go of money as an example of an idol on your heart or something else as an idol, of course, it's going to be hard in your own willpower. I mean, the times that I try to fix things in my own willpower, I end up blowing my life up 10 times more. I end up sinning more. I end up screwing up more. But when the spirit of God gives me strength to just live open-handed with it, it's easier, there's more peace, stress free off your shoulders. And Peter said, see, we have left our homes and followed you. And he said to them, truly, truly, I say to you, there is one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not receive many times more in this time and in the age to come, eternal life. That was the interesting at the very beginning of the passage, the rich man called Jesus a good teacher. This statement, good teacher implied that he was one without sin. Verse 31, Jesus says, and taking the twelve, he said to them, see, we are going up to Jerusalem and everything that is written about the Son of man, the Son of man was a title about the Messiah in the Old Testament of prophecy by the prophets will be accomplished for he will be delivered over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon. And after flogging him, they will kill him and on the third day he will rise. But they understood none of these things. This saying was hidden from them. They did not grasp what he said. He's foretelling his death and resurrection again. We're about to close out Luke 18 here with a miracle as he drew near to Jericho. A blind man was sitting by the roadside begging and hearing a crowd going by. He inquired what this meant. They told him Jesus of Nazareth is passing by and he cried out Jesus, son of David. Son of David have mercy on me. Imagine the faith this blind man had. He never saw any miracles Jesus done. He had only heard with his ears. What does the Bible say? Hearing comes by faith. Faith comes by hearing. Sorry, faith comes by hearing and hearing what the word of God and Jesus is the word that became flesh and dwelt among them. So he has heard by faith the things that God has done. Have mercy on me and those who were in front rebuked him telling him to be silent. But he kept crying out all the more. Son of David have mercy on me and Jesus stopped and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near he asked him, what do you want me to do for you? And he said, Lord let me recover my sight. And Jesus said to him, recover your sight, your faith has made you well. And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him glorifying God and all the people when they saw it gave him praise to God. You know, I'm so encouraged by the miracles of Jesus because here's the reality. There is no scientific doctors medical diagnosis that can be given that is too big for God. God is bigger than your cancer diagnosis. God is bigger than your sickness. God is bigger than your disease. God is bigger than your paralysis. God is bigger than your hearing deficit. God is bigger than your blindness. God is Lord over all and all of these medical issues bow. The name of Jesus. Guys, I pray that Luke 8 team was an encouragement to you and I'll see you guys tomorrow for Luke chapter 19. I pray that this thing is a blessing to you and the ultimate heart is so that you go and read this word daily. You don't rely on the podcast. You rely on the word of God and the Holy Spirit. Thank you guys so much for watching. If you like the episodes, subscribe, follow us on social media and we'll see you guys in the next episode.
