A Glimpse Into the Heart of Jesus
Jesus has a desperate need to communicate with us and experience two-way communion, which brings him joy and fulfillment.
David Wilkerson explores the profound relationship between Jesus and His followers, emphasizing that while we find joy in serving the Lord, we often overlook His desire to minister to us in return. He highlights the importance of allowing Jesus to share in our lives and communicate with us, as seen in the story of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. Wilkerson suggests that Jesus experiences joy and fulfillment when He engages in personal communion with us, revealing His longing for connection. The sermon encourages believers to recognize that their relationship with Christ is reciprocal, where both serve and are served. Ultimately, it calls for a deeper understanding of Jesus' heart and His need for intimate fellowship with His people.
Text
"But which of you, having a servant plowing or feeding cattle, will say to him...when he is come from the field, Go and sit down to meat? And will not rather say to him, Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself, and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink?" (Luke 17:7-8).
We have no trouble at all identifying with the servant in his duty to the master. No trouble in putting on our apron and serving up the Lord a full table of praises--a good feast of worship. We love to feed our Lord! It is our greatest joy, our supreme fulfillment--to minister unto the Lord.
But we have difficulty with the last part--the Lord's part. "And afterward, you shall eat!" That is too much for us to comprehend. We do not know how to sit down after we have served him--to allow him the same joy we experienced in serving him! We rob our Lord of the joy of ministering to us.
We think our Lord gets enough pleasure from what we do for him, but there is so much more. He responds to our faith and rejoices when we repent. He talks to the Father about us and delights in our childlike trust. But I am convinced that his greatest need is to have one-to-one communication with those he left here on earth. No angel in heaven can meet that need. Jesus wants to talk with those on the battlefield.
Where did I get such a notion that Christ is lonely and has a desperate need to speak? It's all there in the account of Christ appearing to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. Jesus had just been resurrected and that very same day two disciples were walking from Jerusalem to Emmaus. They were grieved about their departed Lord but when he drew near, they did not recognize him. He wanted to talk; he had so much to say to them.
"And it came to pass, that while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near and went with them...and beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself" (Luke 24:15, 27).
There could have been no finer experience for those disciples and they went away saying, "...Did not our hearts burn within us, while he talked with us?" We think of the joy of the disciples but what about the joy of Jesus? I see a resurrected Lord, tears streaming down his glorified cheeks, his heart filled with joy. He was fulfilled, his need had been met, and I see him overjoyed. He had ministered and in his glorified form, he had experienced his first two-way communion. He had poured out his heart but his lonely heart had been touched and his need had been met.
Sermon Outline
- I. The Servant's Duty to the Master
- A. Serving the Lord with a willing heart
- B. Feeding the Lord a full table of praises
- C. Ministering unto the Lord with joy
- II. The Lord's Need for One-to-One Communication
- A. Christ's desperate need to speak with those on earth
- B. The account of Christ appearing to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus
- C. Jesus' joy in expounding the Scriptures to the disciples
- III. The Joy of Jesus
- A. A resurrected Lord with a heart filled with joy
- B. Tears streaming down his glorified cheeks
- C. His need met through two-way communion with the disciples
Key Quotes
“We rob our Lord of the joy of ministering to us.” — David Wilkerson
“Jesus wants to talk with those on the battlefield.” — David Wilkerson
“Did not our hearts burn within us, while he talked with us?” — David Wilkerson
Application Points
- We should allow Jesus to minister to us and experience the joy of two-way communion.
- We should prioritize one-to-one communication with Jesus and not just focus on serving him.
- We should recognize Jesus' need for communication and respond with faith and repentance.