Good News of Great Joy | December 19 — “Salvation, Stewardship, & the King’s Coming”

Luke 19 reveals Jesus as the Savior who seeks the lost, the King who rewards faithfulness, and the Judge who brings both peace and judgment. As we prepare for Advent, let us reflect on these truths:

1. Salvation is for All: Just as Jesus sought Zacchaeus, He seeks and saves us regardless of our past. Let this be a season to rejoice in His grace and extend it to others.
2. Faithful Stewardship: The parable of the ten minas reminds us to use the resources God has entrusted to us for His glory. How can you invest your time, talents, and treasures in His kingdom during this Advent season?
3. Recognizing Jesus: Jerusalem missed the peace Jesus offered – they missed Him. This Advent, let us open our hearts to recognize Christ’s presence and His work in our lives.
4. A House of Prayer: Jesus’ cleansing of the temple calls us to prioritize worship and prayer. Let this season be marked by drawing closer to God in reverence and devotion.

As we prepare for Christmas, may we, like Zacchaeus, respond to Christ’s call with repentance, faith, and joyful obedience. Let us celebrate the King who brings salvation and peace to all who believe.

"Kept Through the Trial: Jesus's Letter to the Church at Philadelphia" (The KING is Coming) – Refresh & Restore | A JustKeithHarris.com Podcast

📖 Revelation 3:7–13We’re back!After a few months off, The King is Coming returns in 2026 with one of the most encouraging letters in Revelation — Jesus’s message to the faithful church in Philadelphia. In a world filled with opposition and weakness, Jesus opens a door no one can shut.In this episode, Keith Harris and Jamie Harrison explore:✔️ Jesus’s identity as the Holy One, the True One — God Himself✔️ What the “key of David” means and how Jesus alone opens and shuts✔️ The debated phrase “I will keep you from the hour of trial” — and how to read it biblically✔️ Why “little power” doesn’t disqualify faithfulness✔️ How being kept through the trial glorifies Christ’s strength in us✔️ What it means to be a pillar in God’s presence foreverThis church had no rebuke — only encouragement. And Jesus’s call still stands today: “Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.” (Revelation 3:11, ESV)🔗 Missed earlier episodes in the series? You can click here to catch up and listen from the beginning.✍️ If you’d like to see a written version of this podcast, complete with footnotes and cross-references, you can find it here.

1. "Kept Through the Trial: Jesus's Letter to the Church at Philadelphia" (The KING is Coming) 35:40
2. Christ Has Come: The Promised King & His Gift of Love" (Advent 2025) 22:22
3. Christ Has Come: The Promised King & His Gift of Peace (Advent 2025) 26:00
4. Christ Has Come: The Promised King & His Gift of PEACE (Advent 2025) 22:47
5. Christ Has Come: The Promised King & His Gift of HOPE (Advent 2025) 24:58

Jesus and Zaccheus (19:1-10)^[1]

He entered Jericho and was passing through. ² And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a chief tax collector and was rich. ³ And he was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was small in stature. ⁴ So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was about to pass that way. ⁵ And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.” ⁶ So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully. ⁷ And when they saw it, they all grumbled, “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.” ⁸ And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” ⁹ And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. ¹⁰ For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

The Parable of the Ten Minas (19:11-27)^[2]

¹¹ As they heard these things, he proceeded to tell a parable, because he was near to Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately. ¹² He said therefore, “A nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and then return. ¹³ Calling ten of his servants, he gave them ten minas, and said to them, ‘Engage in business until I come.’ ¹⁴ But his citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to reign over us.’ ¹⁵ When he returned, having received the kingdom, he ordered these servants to whom he had given the money to be called to him, that he might know what they had gained by doing business. ¹⁶ The first came before him, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made ten minas more.’ ¹⁷ And he said to him, ‘Well done, good servant! Because you have been faithful in a very little, you shall have authority over ten cities.’ ¹⁸ And the second came, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made five minas.’ ¹⁹ And he said to him, ‘And you are to be over five cities.’ ²⁰ Then another came, saying, ‘Lord, here is your mina, which I kept laid away in a handkerchief; ²¹ for I was afraid of you, because you are a severe man. You take what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.’ ²² He said to him, ‘I will condemn you with your own words, you wicked servant! You knew that I was a severe man, taking what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow? ²³ Why then did you not put my money in the bank, and at my coming I might have collected it with interest?’ ²⁴ And he said to those who stood by, ‘Take the mina from him, and give it to the one who has the ten minas.’ ²⁵ And they said to him, ‘Lord, he has ten minas!’ ²⁶ ‘I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. ²⁷ But as for these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slaughter them before me.’ ”

The Triumphal Entry (19:28-40)^[3]

²⁸ And when he had said these things, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. ²⁹ When he drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount that is called Olivet, he sent two of the disciples, ³⁰ saying, “Go into the village in front of you, where on entering you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever yet sat. Untie it and bring it here. ³¹ If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say this: ‘The Lord has need of it.’ ” ³² So those who were sent went away and found it just as he had told them. ³³ And as they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?” ³⁴ And they said, “The Lord has need of it.” ³⁵ And they brought it to Jesus, and throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. ³⁶ And as he rode along, they spread their cloaks on the road. ³⁷ As he was drawing near—already on the way down the Mount of Olives—the whole multitude of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, ³⁸ saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” ³⁹ And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” ⁴⁰ He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”

Jesus Weeps Over Jerusalem (19:41-44)^[4]

⁴¹ And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, ⁴² saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. ⁴³ For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side ⁴⁴ and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”

Jesus Cleanses the Temple (19:45-48)^[5]

⁴⁵ And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold, ⁴⁶ saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.”

⁴⁷ And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people were seeking to destroy him, ⁴⁸ but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were hanging on his words.

[1] As Jesus passed through Jericho, Zacchaeus, a chief tax collector known for his wealth and sinfulness, climbed a sycamore tree to see Him. Jesus called Zacchaeus down, announcing His intent to stay at his house, which shocked the crowd. Moved by Jesus’s grace, Zacchaeus repented, promising to give half his wealth to the poor and repay anyone he defrauded fourfold. Jesus declared that salvation had come to Zacchaeus’ house, emphasizing that He came to seek and save the lost (v. 10).

[2] Jesus told this parable to address the crowd’s mistaken belief that the Kingdom of God would appear immediately. A nobleman went to a distant country to receive a kingdom, entrusting ten servants with ten minas each. Upon his return, he rewarded the servants who had been faithful stewards of his money and punished the one who did nothing with it. The nobleman also judged his enemies who had rejected his rule. The parable highlights the importance of faithful stewardship and readiness for Christ’s return.

[3] Jesus approached Jerusalem, finally reaching the time He had “set His face” toward in Luke 9:51, riding on a colt as prophesied (Zechariah 9:9). As He entered the city, crowds praised God joyfully, proclaiming Him as the King who comes in the name of the Lord (as Jesus prophesied in Luke 13:35). Some Pharisees demanded that Jesus rebuke His disciples, but He declared that if they remained silent, even the stones would cry out.

[4] As Jesus drew near Jerusalem, He wept over the city, lamenting that it did not recognize the way to peace. He foretold its destruction, when enemies would encircle it and leave no stone unturned, as judgment for failing to recognize their visitation from God.

[5] Entering the temple, Jesus drove out merchants, declaring that it should be a house of prayer, not a den of robbers. This act incited the chief priests, scribes, and leaders to plot His death, but they were unable to act because the people hung on His teaching.