The Bryce Crawford Podcast - Luke Series Chapter 3 (EP 151)

Episode Date: December 3, 2025

In this episode, Bryce breaks down Luke 3.

If you're watching or listening to this right now, this means this is your sign to come to the Bryce Crawford Live Podcast Store in 2026. We're bringing it to Australia, New Zealand and America at the front end of 2026. We're coming to Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney, Australia. We're coming to Auckland, New Zealand, Phoenix, Arizona, New York City, Pennsylvania, Boston, Alabama, Atlanta, Jacksonville, Florida, Charlotte, North Carolina, Sacramento, California, Sacramento, California, and if you're a Mormon and you want to learn about Jesus and not Joseph Smith, we're going to be in Salt Lake City, Utah as well. of them is sold out, but there's some that have low tickets, and we want to make sure you get your seats. Go to Jesus in the street.org slash tour, get your tickets. Come out to the live podcast show because I believe that God is preparing a word specifically for each city we visit. So go to

Jesusandestreet.org slash tour, get your tickets. And we'll see you guys, 26 for the live podcast tour. What's going on guys? Welcome back to another episode of Bryce Starford podcast. I'm Bryson. Today we are breaking down Luke chapter three. I don't know if you guys are listening in, but right now if you're watching, I am actually wearing the crew neck of the gift that I opened up that says Santa's favorite on it. So I'm I'm really looking forward to. Before we break down Luke chapter 3, can I just get my, where's my elf hand, Dylan? Coming, coming, coming. There he is. Dylan.

Okay, we got a special gift today. What's the special gift? You'll never be able to guess. Oh, wow, this is a great gift. Okay, so basically, there's a gift wrapped, but it's in the shape of an oval. Let me open this thing up. Let's see what we got going on. I can like I can barely grip the

the wrapping paper all right let's go wait we got a football you always wanted one of those I mean I have always wanted one of these thank you so much for getting me this football oh not just anyone an ESPN football

bam let's go thank you Dylan I appreciate that take that one to the house for me amen let's go praise Jesus. Just got a football. Thank you, Dylan. I appreciate that.

Now, as always, we got to get in the Word of God today. We're going to be in Luke chapter 3, and we're going to begin to read about John the Baptist, preparing the way in the 15th year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate began governor of Judea and Herodian being Tetrarch of Galilee. His brother Philip, tetrarch of the region of ituria and trichonit. Okay, what is going on here? Trachonitis and Lysanius, tetrarch of Abilene,

during the high priesthood of Anus and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John, the son of Zachariah in the wilderness. And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the word of Isaiah the prophet. Okay, here's some context here. Okay, a lot of people thought that the Messiah that was going to come to take away the sins of the world was going to overthrow the Roman government. But this was different. Jesus had a bigger kingdom in mind, not just the physical kingdom, but a spiritual kingdom that would reign over all. John says, the voice of one crying in the wilderness, prepare the way of the Lord,

make his path straight. Every valley shall be filled in every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall become straight and the roughest places shall become level ways and all flesh shall see the salvation of God. Here's what he's saying. The Messiah is coming.

And those who are everywhere in the lowest of lows, in the valleys, and on the mountains, in the highest of highs, he's coming for you. And then he says, and the crookage shall become straight. Those who are struggling can be made straight through the Lord. And the roughest places, if you're going through a hard time, can find peace through the Lord. And all flesh, not just some, all flesh shall see the salvation of God. He said, therefore, in the crowds that came out to be baptized to him,

you brood of vipers who warned you to flee from the wrath to come bear fruits and keep in with repentance and do not begin to say to yourselves we have Abraham as our father for I tell you God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit

is cut down and thrown into the fire John begins to address the hypocrisy and the religious pride that these Pharisees have. And he says, you brood of vipers. Your faith is more in the things that you do than in the one who created you. Reflect on your own life. Is your faith in God determined

on how good you can handle this thing? Or is your faith determined in how good God is and how good God is and how gracious he is, that should be fueling you to walk this thing out? He says, I ain't checking for mouth breathers. I'm checking for fruit.

The Lord's checking for fruit. Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. Turn from your ways. Stop living this way. And the crowds asked him, what then shall we do? And he answered them, whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none.

And whoever has food is to do like the wise. This verse is referencing Matthew 25, for I was hungry and you gave me food. For I was naked and you clothed me. For I was thirsty and you gave me a drink. What you do to the least of these you do unto him, saying what you would do to anyone you would treat unto Jesus. the way that you would treat the homeless man with bitterness and greed and selfishness is how you would treat Jesus

and how you would treat the richest and the most famous with favoritism is how you would treat Jesus not out of sincerity but because you just want the benefits of Jesus without the king. There's so many people in this world that want the benefits of the kingdom without the king Jesus himself. I want the king Jesus. He's the prize. The blessings ain't the price. Jesus is the prize. The blessings just follows from submission and obedience to him. And then he says tax collectors also came to be baptized. They said, Teacher, what should we do? And they said to them, collect no more than you are authorized to do.

Because the tax collectors at this time, they were greedy thieves. They would add an extra tax, more money than they needed to tax people for the sake of themselves. The soldiers asked him, and what shall we do? And he said to them, do not extort from anyone by threats or by false accusation to be content with your wagers. I mean, don't be bribed. Be just. As the people were in expectation and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John,

whether he might be the Christ. Here's something so important right now. These people, they've never heard a message like this before. And so they're beginning to wonder if John the Baptist is the Christ. This is how he answers them. He says, I baptize you with water. But he who is mightier than I is coming,

the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire. He says, look, I'm not the hope. I just have the hope. You and I are not the hope. Let's not get this thing twisted.

You and I have nothing to be prideful about. We are not the hope. We can't save anyone. How do we know that? we've tried to save ourselves before we submit our life to Jesus. I tried to save myself before I gave my life to Jesus. I tried everything in Bryce's own willpower to break myself free from my bondage, my shame, and my sin, and it led me one and I to take my own life.

I've tried to save myself. You and I, we are not the hope. We just have the hope. And John the Baptist says, I am just here to proclaim about the hope. And he says, I'm not even worthy to touch the strap of his saint. The feet of a human being in this time here was a doubt. dirtiest part of their body. He says, the dirtiest part of Jesus's body, I'm not worthy to touch. I'm not even worthy to touch his feet. Is that crazy? The Lord is so holy that the dirtiest

part of his physical body, he is not worthy to touch. And the funniest part about the same is, is it the highest place you and I are able to reach. It's just his feet. We've gotten everything we need. The woman with the bleeding disease touches the fringe of his garment. She doesn't put all over herself all over him, just touches the fringe of his garment. So with many other exhortations, he preached good news to the people, but Herodic, who had been reproved by him from Herodius, his brother's wife, and for all the evil things that Herod had done added this to them all that he locked John up in prison. Now, when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus had also been baptized, and he was praying in the heavens were opened up, and the Holy Spirit descended

on him and bodily form like a dove, and a voice came from heaven, you are my beloved son. With you, I am well pleased. So two things just happened here. King Herod at the time. arrests John the Baptist. He doesn't kill him, arrests him, throws him in jail for preaching. And then it says when Jesus was baptized, that the Holy Spirit descended on him and bodily formed like a dove,

and a voice came from heaven, you're my beloved son with who I am well-paced. Two things to take from this. First thing. The sign that the Holy Spirit came upon Jesus did something. It was to recognize that he was the Christ, but notice how Jesus doesn't start any of his ministry

without the fueling of the Holy Spirit. It breaks God's heart when he sees you preaching on TikTok or social media, praying for your friends, and pouring yourself out spiritually and doing it out of performance and striving and not out of the strength of the Holy Spirit. It breaks God's heart, watching you

trying to live this Christian walk out of your own strength. And we watch Jesus not do any ministry without the power of the Holy Spirit. And that should be the same in our lives. But secondly, Jesus hears from, from the Father in heaven, this is my beloved son with who I am well pleased. Before Jesus Christ, this is so freeing. I believe that this is so freeing for anyone who struggles with working for God's love. Before Jesus did any sort of ministry, God the Father said, I'm pleased with my son, Jesus.

Before you do any good deeds, any good works, know that the Father is just pleased with you. You are his son or his daughter. And before you ever get you, caught in this in this mumbo jumbo of trying to work your way for god's love just know my brother or sister don't work for his love he's already pleased with you delight in the love of god and let his his pleasing heart for you empower you to go do good things for the lord and then for verse 23 on the 38 we see the lineage of jesus where he came from notice how he goes the lineage of dave we see the lineage of david we see this in Matthew, the beginning of Matthew, but this is important right here that the family tree of Jesus goes all the way back to Adam. Jesus is the new Adam. Do we understand this? Jesus is the new Adam.

Adam got perverted in the garden. Jesus is the new Adam, but his family tree stems all the way back to Adam. This is why he came from the family of Joseph, the root of David, that the Messiah would come from the root of David. He is the new Adam. And so this lineage is proof. that all the prophecies of the Old Testament that the Messiah would come from the lineage of David and would be a restoration of the Garden of Eden that this thing is true. And that's what that lineage is for. My friends, I pray that Luke chapter 3 was an encouragement to you. And we will see you guys tomorrow for Luke chapter 4. Hey, thank you guys so much for watching the Luke series. 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.