This is part of a year-long series. Find out more about this series by reading the introductory post here.

Luke 16:31 The Rich Man and Lazarus

““But he told him, ‘If they don’t listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not be persuaded if someone rises from the dead.’””

Moses and the Prophets convict our spirit, but seeing someone rise from the dead does not.  We will play off the testimony of someone back from the dead as a hoax unless a spiritual conviction goes along with it.  If God’s words of life spoken through Moses and the Prophets convict us, then the miraculous works will strengthen that conviction.  The works do no bring life; they bring merit to the words, which bring life.  Our spirit longs for life, and that life is given to us through words that we hear instead of works that we see.

Luke 23:35–37 Religious Leaders Scoff

“The people stood watching, and even the leaders kept scoffing: “He saved others; let Him save Himself if this is God’s Messiah, the Chosen One!” The soldiers also mocked Him. They came offering Him sour wine and said, “If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself!””

The people saying this, which included the religious leaders, had no fear in any way that Jesus was the Messiah.  The thoughts of possibly killing the Messiah did not inflict any guilt, shame, or fear.  If He was the Messiah, they hated Him for it.

Luke 23:47 The Awareness of a Centurion

“When the centurion saw what happened, he began to glorify God, saying, “This man really was righteous!””

The Roman Centurion believed Jesus was a righteous man based on the signs that happened at His death.  While He was alive, Jesus said that Tyre and Sidon would have repented if they witnessed the signs that Christ was doing in Judea (Luke 10:13).  The Jews’ hearts were so hardened that a Roman Centurion, who had previously assisted in the crucifixion of Jesus, recognized His righteousness before they did.