Luke Series Chapter 17 (EP 165)

Summary

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The Bryce Crawford Podcast

Episode 165: Luke Series Chapter 17
Host: Bryce Crawford
Date: December 17, 2025

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Bryce Crawford continues his Christian "Luke Series," focusing on a detailed reading and discussion of Luke Chapter 17. The conversation centers on Jesus’ teachings about sin, temptation, forgiveness, faith, humility, gratitude, the nature of God's kingdom, and the coming judgment. Bryce dives into the text, offering practical applications and urgent exhortations to listeners regarding living faithfully in anticipation of Christ's return.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Temptation and Sin

• Jesus' Warning About Temptation (03:13 – 06:00)
  • Temptation is inevitable; sin is not.
  • "Temptation will always occur in this lifetime ... When we're with God, our eyes are straightforward when we're being tempted. Our eyes are down here when we bind to sin." (Bryce Crawford, 03:35)
  • Jesus’ metaphor about a millstone underscores the seriousness of leading others into sin.
  • Sin is destructive: "Sin will blow your freaking life up. Sin will kill you, destroy you, and does not care about you."

2. Forgiveness and Rebuke

• Call to Correct and Forgive Others (06:01 – 07:15)
  • "Rebuking is correcting someone. Forgiveness is canceling the debt someone owes you." (Bryce Crawford, 06:50)
  • Christians are challenged to forgive repeatedly, as Christ instructs to forgive "seven times in a day."
  • True forgiveness is an ongoing, active choice.

3. Faith Like a Mustard Seed

• The Power of Small Faith (07:16 – 08:00)
  • Faith’s effectiveness is not in its size, but in its sincerity.
  • "If you had faith like a grain of a mustard seed, you could uproot an entire tree. If you had that much faith, you could move an entire mountain."
  • Faith is defined as “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things unseen.”

4. Humility in Service

• Parable of the Unworthy Servants (08:01 – 09:17)
  • Good works do not make a Christian worthy of salvation.
  • "We are unworthy servants. We have only done what was our duty." (Bryce Crawford quoting Jesus, 08:40)
  • Salvation is by grace; works are the natural outcome, not meritorious.

5. Gratitude for God’s Miracles

• Jesus Cleanses Ten Lepers; Only One Returns Grateful (09:18 – 10:42)
  • Only one leper, a Samaritan, returns to thank Jesus after healing.
  • "How many times do we approach God saying, God, if you just do this thing in my life, then I’ll fully follow you?" (Bryce Crawford, 10:13)
  • A warning against ingratitude: Don’t forget God’s works, big or small.

6. The Nature of God's Kingdom

• Kingdom Within and Among Us (10:43 – 12:09)
  • Jesus claims, "the kingdom of God is in the midst of you."
  • The Messiah’s reign is spiritual and transformative, not simply political or external.
  • Jesus brings a "new heaven and a new earth."

7. Urgency & The Coming Judgment

• Warning to Stay Ready (12:10 – 14:57)
  • Life went on as usual in Noah’s and Lot’s days until sudden judgment – a parallel to Christ’s return.
  • “We don’t have time. You’re either all in now or you’re all out.” (Bryce Crawford, 13:56)
  • Believers are to keep their eyes on eternity and not look back on worldly things.
  • "Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it." (14:28)
  • He emphasizes the ripeness of the world for judgment—citing modern issues such as abortion, prevailing sexual ethics, and religious pluralism.
  • "Judgment is ripe and it is coming. Vengeance is the Lord’s and He will deal with it." (Bryce Crawford, 15:00)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Temptation vs. Sin:
  “Temptation is unavoidable. But then he says, woe to the one who temptation comes through … he’s using that metaphorically to show the weight, gravity, and destruction of sin and temptation in one's life.”
  (Bryce Crawford, 03:35–05:00)

• On Forgiveness:
  “Your forgiveness towards them cancels the debt that they owe you.”
  (Bryce Crawford, 06:50)

• On Faith:
  “If you just had that much faith, you could uproot an entire tree … Faith, definitionally, according to Scripture, is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things unseen.”
  (Bryce Crawford, 07:42–07:55)

• On Humility and Works:
  “Our good works would maybe buy us maybe six days in heaven … Even after all of the good things we’ve done, we must still recognize in humility ... that we are unworthy, but it is him who makes us worthy.”
  (Bryce Crawford, 08:45–09:10)

• On Gratitude:
  “How many times do we approach God saying, God, if you just do this thing in my life, then I’ll fully follow you … Then God moves in our life and we completely forget about God.”
  (Bryce Crawford, 10:13–10:32)

• On the Kingdom:
  “I am the kingdom. I am bringing the kingdom. I am the king. My kingdom is here. My kingdom is now.”
  (Bryce Crawford paraphrasing Jesus, 11:08)

• On the Return of Christ & Readiness:
  “We say this, I’m saying this to you right now ... He’s going to bring judgment on the earth with a sword in his mouth. And people are going to look at me like I’m crazy. They’re going to say, Yeah, whatever man … We don’t have time.”
  (Bryce Crawford, 13:30–13:58)

• On the World’s State:
  “Right now we are ripe for judgment. We’re allowing Islam to spread false doctrine, to spread false ideology … Judgment is ripe and it is coming. Vengeance is the Lord’s and he will deal with it.”
  (Bryce Crawford, 15:00–15:13)

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Important Segment Timestamps

• Reading & Teaching on Temptation and Sin: 03:13–06:00
• Exhortation on Forgiveness: 06:01–07:15
• Discussion of Faith & Mustard Seed: 07:16–08:00
• Parable of the Unworthy Servants: 08:01–09:17
• Ten Lepers and Gratitude: 09:18–10:42
• The Kingdom of God: 10:43–12:09
• Christ’s Return and Urgency: 12:10–14:57
• Contemporary Application and Warning: 14:30–15:13

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Tone & Final Thoughts

Bryce Crawford’s tone is urgent, passionate, and direct, blending biblical exposition with cultural application and personal admonition. He implores listeners not just to consume the podcast but to daily engage with the Bible themselves:
“...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.” (Bryce Crawford, 15:13)

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Summary Takeaway

This episode is a potent blend of biblical teaching and contemporary warning, calling believers to vigilance, humility, faith, gratitude, and urgent readiness for Christ’s return. Bryce makes it clear: the kingdom is now, the choices are immediate, and God’s mercy is available—but judgment is coming, and every listener must respond.

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Transcript

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[Elf (Tall Elf)]

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[Bryce Carver]

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[Drew Ski]

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[Elf (Tall Elf)]

He's talking to you britches.

[Bryce Carver]

I'm not.

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[Bryce Carver]

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[Bryce Carver]

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, Los Angeles, California. And if you're a Mormon and you want to learn about Jesus and not Joseph Smith, we're going to be at Salt, la, Utah as well. A lot of them have sold out, but there's some that have low tickets and we want to make sure you get your seat. So go to jesusonthestreet.org 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 jesusonthestreet.org tour, get your tickets, and we'll see you guys in 2026 for the live podcast tour. What's going on, guys? Welcome back to another episode of the Bryce Carver podcast. I'm Bryce, and today we are reading Luke chapter 17. But before we get into it, as always, can we get elf Dylan in the room really quick? Where is he? Where is he? Dylan.

[Elf Dylan]

Hey, how's it going?

[Bryce Carver]

Good to see you, man. Good to see you.

[Elf Dylan]

What did you wish for for Christmas?

[Bryce Carver]

I wish for you and some gifts underneath the Christmas tree. All right, well, here, let's go with this one then. Okay.

[Elf Dylan]

Merry Christmas.

[Bryce Carver]

Thank you so much. I'm excited to see what you have for me. Do you know what this one is?

[Elf Dylan]

No.

[Bryce Carver]

No? Okay. It's a dinosaur highlighter.

[Elf Dylan]

There you go, dude.

[Bryce Carver]

Thank you so much. I appreciate that. So how did you not remember that this was the thing that you got me?

[Elf Dylan]

I mean, I got 24 of them and I also didn't wrap them.

[Bryce Carver]

Oh, that's right. That's right. Another elf did. Right?

[Elf Dylan]

Another elf Raptor.

[Bryce Carver]

Well, you know what? Thank you so much for this dino highlighter. I appreciate it. Oh, it's a squishy.

[Elf Dylan]

There you go.

[Bryce Carver]

Merry Christmas. Thank you so much, elf Dylan. I appreciate you. That was super kind. Thank you for taking care of my trash. And as always, we're going to be in the word of God today. We are going to be in Luke chapter 17 as we open our Bibles. And he said to his disciples, temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come. It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin. Now, here's what Jesus is saying. Every time you look at temptation versus sin talked about in the Bible, it's different. Sin is always talked about as an if. If you sin, if you sin, if you sin, temptation is unavoidable. Temptation will always occur in this lifetime. Our eyes are here when we're with God. Our eyes are straightforward when we're being tempted. And our eyes are down here when we bind to sin. We look down at ourselves. We're glancing at ourselves. Pride, sin, shame, guilt. Looking down at our nakedness and shame. Temptation is unavoidable. But then he says, woe to the one who temptation comes through. Jesus says, that the person that brings temptation into someone's life, one of his little children, it would be better for them to tie weights around their neck and jump in the ocean to kill themselves than it would be to lead one of his children into sin. And why does he say that? He's using that metaphorically? To show the weight, gravity, and destruction of sin and temptation in one's life. Because sin will blow your freaking life up. Sin will kill you, destroy you, and does not care about you. And he's making a bold statement. Steer away from it. And then in verse three, he says, pay attention to yourselves. If your brother sins, rebuke him. And if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times in the day and turns to you seven times saying, I repent, you must forgive him. Rebuking is correcting someone. Forgiveness is canceling the debt someone owes you. If someone sins against you, they have a debt towards you. Your forgiveness towards them cancels the debt that they owe you. Verse 5. The apostle said to the Lord, increase our faith. And the Lord said, if you had faith like a grain of a mustard seed, you could say to the small bear tree, be uprooted and planted in the sea, and it would obey you. You know how big a mustard seed is? It's so tiny you can't even see it. In between my fingers, it is so small. And Jesus said, if you just had that much faith, you could uproot an entire tree. If you had that much faith, you could move an entire mountain. Faith, definitionally, according to Scripture, is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things unseen. How much more will you see God move in your life if you just have the faith, a mustard seed. And that faith comes from a place of honesty and sincerity. Verse 7. Will any one of you who has a servant plowing or keeping sheep, say to him, when he has come in from the field, come at once and recline at the table. Will he not rather say to him, prepare supper for me and dress properly and serve me while I eat and drink, and afterwards you will eat and drink. Does he thank the servant because he did what was commanded? So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, we are unworthy servants. We have only done what was our duty. You know, sometimes we think that our good things, our works, the byproduct of our faith, is justification for us to get into heaven, is justification that we deserve something is justification that we are worthy. But no, no, no, we are unworthy. Our good works would maybe buy us Maybe six days in heaven. And even after all of the good things we've done, we must still recognize in humility and in submission to the lordship of Jesus Christ that we are incomparable and uncomparable to him and his glory. We are unworthy, but it is him who makes us worthy. Jesus cleanses 10 lepers, starting in verse 11 on the way to Jerusalem. He was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. And as he entered the village, he was met by 10 lepers who stood at a distance and lifted up their voices, saying, jesus, master, have mercy on us. When he saw them, he said to them, go and show yourselves to the priest. Because the priests would know who the lepers were. Because they were outcasts, they weren't allowed to be around people, and if they touch people, they would be deemed unclean. And a lot of these lepers had staffs with bells on them so that people could hear them coming into the city, that they would know to steer away from the lepers. And as they went, they were cleansed. Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. And he fell on his face at Jesus feet, giving thanks. Now he was a Samaritan. Then Jesus answered, were not 10 cleansed? Where are the 9? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner? And he said to him, arise and go your way. Your faith has made you well. So he says, After 10 lepers got cleansed, only one turn around and give him. Gave him gratitude and worship. There was a lack of gratitude in our hearts. How many times do we approach God saying, God, if you just do this thing in my life, then I'll fully follow you. God, if you just do this thing in my life, I'll really love you. God, if you just do this thing for me, I'll really appreciate you. Then God moves in our life and we completely forget about God. We reject him, kick him to the curb, and we go on living our life as if God didn't just move in our life. We have a lack of gratitude towards the power and majesty of God in our life. May we never forget, from the, from the micro to the macro, the many things God does in our life. Never forget. I don't want to be someone that loses gratitude for what God does in my life. And then in verse 20, being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, the kingdom of God is not coming in the ways that can be observed, nor will they say, look Here it is. Or therefore, behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you. Jesus made a bold statement. I, I am the kingdom. I am bringing the kingdom. I am the king. My kingdom is here. My kingdom is now. See, many people thought that the Messiah would come and the Messiah wouldn't be born in a manger. Many people thought that the Messiah to come would be one born of a royal family with riches and physical wealth and physical status to display, who would literally overthrow the Roman government as a government. But no, Jesus's agenda for the kingdom of heaven was far greater than just a physical governmental reign. It was literally bringing in a new heaven and a new earth, restoring the world, the new garden, not going back to the garden, making the new garden, restoring it. He says, the king is here. The kingdom of God is in the midst of you. And he said to his disciples, the days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man. And you will not see it. They will say to you, look there or look here. Do not go out or follow them. For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to another, so will the Son of Man be in his day. But first he must suffer many things and be rejected from this generation. So he says there's going to be a day when people are longing for Christ's return. Did you know that Christ return is a glorious thing and a beautiful thing and something that we can look forward to as believers. We don't have to be afraid, we look forward to it. There's going to be a day when you guys talking to the disciples will long for me to return. And that's exactly what's going on in the book of Acts. They've been, we've always been in the end times, the apostles been in the end times. The end times are described in which the period of time that we wait for Jesus to return a second time. And this verse, but first must suffer. But first he talking about Jesus must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. Just as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the days of the Son of man. That's interesting. The first time Jesus came, he came in humility and submission to the will of God, humility and flesh in the world. But the second time he's going to come, Jesus is going to return. The next time we see Jesus in the physical body, he's going to return in power and glory with a sword coming from his mouth, bringing judgment on the earth, ending sin, defeating suffering. Once and for all, verse 27. They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage until the day when Noah entered the ark and the flood came and destroyed them all. Likewise. And just as it was in the days of Lot, they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. But on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur, rain from heaven destroyed them all. Here's the thing. We have become so passive and we treat sin and put so much hope into morals. And oh, I'm gonna sin today because he's not coming back tomorrow. Oh, well, he's not gonna come back tomorrow. So I can do whatever I want. Oh, I can treat this person with passivity and I'll be forgiven later. I'll be doing this. He said, they did this in the days of Noah. They did this in the days of Lot when both these dudes were warning people. I mean, Noah was actively warning people by building a massive ark, and people laughed at him and mocked him. You're an idiot. What are you doing? There's gonna be a flood, man. Like, God's gonna, God's gonna bring judgment on the earth. Yeah, whatever, bro. I'll keep doing you. You live your truth and I'll live my truth. Right, because that's what we say in today's society. You become a Jesus freak and someone, someone looks at you like you're crazy. Jesus is gonna return. Jesus is coming. We say this, I'm saying this to you right now, J. He's going to bring judgment on the earth with a sword in his mouth. And people are going to look at me like I'm crazy. They're going to say, yeah, whatever, man. I, I, I know tomorrow is going to come. So you live your truth, Bryce, and I'll live my truth. You keep doing this. No, we don't have time. Because this is the same, same excuses people made in the days of Noah, in the days of Lot. And then fire and suffer, rain down on Sodom and Gomorrah. The flood rained down on the earth, judging people where they were at. So will it be verse 30, on the day when the Son of Man is revealed. It will be too late when Jesus returns in power and glory and might with judgment for you to say, oh, now I'm going to put my faith and trust in Jesus. No, no, no. The time is now. You're either all in now or you're all out. And God will judge you where you stand on that day. Let the one who is on the housetop with his goods in the house not come down and take them away. And likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back. Remember Lot's wife. Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it. Jesus is saying, don't look back on a perishing, sinful, wicked world that is going to receive judgment, but keep your eyes on me, keep your eyes on heaven. Keep your eyes gazed towards the feet of the Father. Don't look back, not worth it. Keep your gaze up. That's what he's saying. Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it. But whoever loses his life will, for my sake, will keep it. Don't fear the one who can kill the body, fear the one who can kill the body and the soul. Verse 34 Till close I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed, one will be taken in the other left. There will be two women grinding together, one will be taken in the other left. And they said to him, where Lord? And he said to them, where? The corpse is, there the vultures will gather. In other words, when the judgment of the Lord is ripe, it will come. And let me tell you something. Right now we're living in a day and age when abortion is okay, homosexuality is okay, transgenderism is okay. And let me tell you something, when the judgment is ripe, it will come. And right now we are ripe for judgment. Our world is ripe for judgment. We're allowing Islam to spread false doctrine, to spread false ideology to spread. And we act like that is success. Let me tell you something. Judgment is ripe and it is coming. Vengeance is the Lord's and He will deal with it. Guys, I pray Luke 17 was an encouragement to you and we will see you guys tomorrow For Luke Chapter 18 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.

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[Mrs. Claus]

What do you think makes the perfect snack?

[Drew Ski]

Hmm, it's gotta be when I'm really craving it and it's convenient.

[Mrs. Claus]

Could you be more specific?

[Drew Ski]

When it's cravenient? Okay, like a freshly baked cookie made with real butter, available right down the street at am, pm Or a savory breakfast sandwich I can grab in just a second at am pm.

[Mrs. Claus]

I'm seeing a pattern here.

[Drew Ski]

Well yeah, we're talking about what I.

[Mrs. Claus]

Crave, which is anything from am, pm.

[Drew Ski]

What more could you want? Stop by AMPM where the snacks and drinks are perfectly craveable and convenient. That's cravenience ampm. Too much good stuff.