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When you think about it, Jesus and His followers had almost no political power or influence. The ruling elites of the world had no interest or even knowledge of Him. What hope would they have had to see the kingdom of Jesus change the world?
One reason might have been the marvelous works that Jesus did. They represented a power far above that of the world, a power over all sickness, all evil, all demons, and all diseases. This would have given them hope.
But what about people who only read about Jesus’ marvelous works? People can read about the power of Jesus in the past and see that these things are marvelous works worthy of admiration. But, we might ask, does that have anything to do with today? Is there power available today for provision, for justice, for healing, for restoration, for deliverance? That’s what the first readers of the book of Luke might have asked, and that’s what we might ask as well.
And that’s what this passage is all about. Jesus was telling His disciples in these stories that they would experience His power not only on the day of the miracle but also in the future. This account can also give us hope that the power of Jesus is present now and will continue to be present in the future to heal, to deliver, and to save. We will consider this by looking at the following sections:
The Coming Provision (Luke 9:10–17)
The Coming Trial (Luke 9:18–27)
The Coming Glory (Luke 9:28–36)
The Coming Victory (Luke 9:37–43)
The Coming Provision (Luke 9:10–17)
Jesus had just sent the disciples out to preach and teach. He was preparing them for their future role. When they returned, they told Jesus all that they had done. To review what they had done and give them some rest, Jesus took them to a quiet area near a town called Bethsaida.
The plan for rest was quickly short-circuited. The crowds followed Jesus. Even though He had other things on His agenda, we read, “He welcomed them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who needed healing” (Luke 9:11). Even though Jesus had other things on His mind, He gave a face of welcome to the people God brought on His way. Luke points out that Jesus often had an agenda of rest and retreat, but the Father had an agenda of outreach. Jesus trusted the Father’s leading and was willing to trust that the Father would provide what He needed for Him to do the work.
Then, the Twelve disciples got nervous. They realized that it was getting late, and the people needed to eat and needed lodging. Jesus responded with a surprising statement, “You give them something to eat.” Why would Jesus say this? Sometimes Jesus does not immediately relieve our crises when we go to Him. Instead, He sometimes aggravates them. Why? To cause us to look to our real resource in Him.
The disciples responded, “We have only five loaves of bread and two fish—unless we go and buy food for all this crowd” (Luke 9:13). They were really unsure of what to do. The text tells us that there were about 5,000 people there!
Then, Jesus told them to have them sit in groups of about 50. “Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke them. Then he gave them to the disciples to distribute to the people” (Luke 9:16). The food just kept coming. The text tells us that everyone ate and was satisfied! It was an astonishing thing. Jesus again showed His wondrous power and did another of His marvelous works. This time, He simply created something out of nothing to provide for the people!
In addition, Jesus did not forget about His servants. He took care of them, too, as they did they work, and as He had promised. There were twelve baskets of food left over for them. God takes care of His servants who do His work.
This passage must have affected them greatly because it is one of the only accounts that is in all four Gospels. It is powerful. What it taught them was that God was going to supply all they needed. Jesus Himself was the bread of life that would give them life. The Apostle Paul understood this and told the Philippian Christians, “And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:19).
How often do we look at what we have and forget that Jesus can provide for us by making something out of nothing!
One person who really believed that Jesus would provide was George Müller, a German evangelist in England in the 19th century. He started an orphanage with the goal of simply relying on God to provide. Over and over again, God answered his prayers in astonishing ways. You can read about it in his journal. People would simply bring gifts or supplies or food at the last minute. Müller believed in the Jesus who multiplied the loaves and the fishes and was still in the business of doing so. We can trust Jesus to provide for our future, especially as we go out to serve the kingdom.
The Coming Trial (Luke 9:18–27)
The next event is a conversation in private. Jesus was praying. Luke notes often that the marvelous works of Jesus happened in conjunction with prayer. He began the discussion by asking them who the crowds thought that Jesus was. They said that they thought He was John the Baptist, who had died and was presumed to be resurrected, or Elijah. Then, he asked, “Who do you say that I am?” Peter speaks for the group. He said that Jesus was the Messiah.
Then, Jesus told them what this meant. He was going to have to suffer. He was going to have to die. Then, after three days, something amazing would happen. He would rise from the dead.
In addition, Jesus told them that the disciples would have to face something similar. “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it” (Luke 9:23–24). By taking up their cross, Jesus was telling them that they should prepare to die. They would follow the pattern of Jesus. This was the way the kingdom would come.
In the future, they might be tempted to give up in light of the suffering they would face. He warns them against that in two ways. “What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self?” (Luke 9:25). What good does it do us in the end if we gain so much but lose our souls? Nothing.
Second, He warns them that they will one day see Him in power. If they are ashamed of Jesus on earth, they will have to face the consequences of that when they appear before Him, “Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels” (Luke 9:26). Courage, then, for in a short time, they will see Him in His glory!
And that is what He tells them, “Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:27). They would see His resurrection, His ascension, the spreading of His kingdom, and His power exercised on those who opposed Him like Herod and the Jewish leaders. But for Peter, James, and John, they would get a glimpse of it eight days later.
The Coming Glory (Luke 9:28–36)
Eight days later, Peter, James, and John went up on a mountain. Why? You should know by now! To pray! As He was praying, something marvelous happened, “the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning” (Luke 9:29). All of a sudden, the veil was pulled back, and the future was revealed, Jesus in power and glory, shining like a flash of lightning!
Moses and Elijah appeared and spoke to Him. Jesus had come to fulfill the law and the prophets. He was the promised Messiah. And what did they talk about? Jesus’ exodus. Our text says, His departure, which is a proper translation, but the Greek word is exodos. What Jesus was going to do was to lead a new exodus, out of the kingdom of the tyrant Satan with its bondage to sin and death and into the glorious resurrection life of the kingdom of God. That’s what they were talking about!
Peter and his companions woke up, and Peter said, “Let’s build three tents.” Lest we look for some great spiritual meaning in this, Luke adds with a bit of humor, “He did not know what he was saying” (Luke 9:33). Then, a cloud appeared, the shekinah glory, the cloud that appeared again and again in the Old Testament, and a voice came from it, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.” This was the testimony for Jesus and for the disciples that this was indeed God’s promised Messiah, the true Son of God. Listen to Him! The Father says.
Peter never forgot that day. In his second letter, he tells the scattered Christians, “For we did not follow cleverly devised stories when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. He received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased'” (2 Peter 1:16–17). And what can we conclude from this? We have everything we need: “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3). His glorious life shows us that He will do more and more marvelous works until His final work of making a completely renewed heaven and earth.
And that’s what Jesus is doing in our day. He continues to raise people up all over the world to build His kingdom, to restore people in their relationship to God and to one another and to bring life and healing for all who believe. In our day, we are seeing it more and more. In spite of the menace of communist China, the church is growing in China under its government’s tyrannical rule. All over the Muslim world, people are coming to know about Jesus not only as a prophet but as a Savior. This is the power of the Jesus revealed on the Mount of transfiguration that is available now and will be available in the future!
The Coming Victory (Luke 9:37–43)
When the disciples came down from the mountain, there was a man who had a child who had a demon. The man begged Jesus to help him. He described the situation to Jesus: “A spirit seizes him and he suddenly screams; it throws him into convulsions so that he foams at the mouth. It scarcely ever leaves him and is destroying him” (Luke 9:39). He then adds, “I begged your disciples to drive it out, but they could not” (Luke 9:40).
Jesus responded, “You unbelieving and perverse generation, how long shall I stay with you and put up with you? Bring your son here” (Luke 9:41). Jesus then rebuked the spirit and gave the son back to his father. All were amazed at the greatness of God.
Now, I want to point out something here. Even though Jesus rebuked His disciples, there was hope. First, there was hope in that Jesus does cast out the demon. He was going to cast out the illegitimate ruler of the world, Satan, and his reign of death and destruction and bring in a reign of abundant life.
Second, his rebuke itself has an element of hope. What keeps them from casting out the demon? Their lack of faith. So, what can cast out the evil in this world? Faith. John says, “This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God” (1 John 5:4–5).
So, let’s be very clear about this. The marvelous works of Jesus are not just works of the past, they are available in the present. They are available to all who will trust in the power of Jesus to do exceedingly abundantly above all we could ask or think. That is the hope for now and for the future. Amen.
Benediction: May the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. May the eyes of your heart be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. Amen.