Gadfly's Muse

Matthew 18 & 19: Keeping The Commandments To Love

Image: "Leaves From The Same Tree", 2020, Severna Park, Md

Matthew 18:3  “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 18:10–11 “Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven. 11 For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.

Matthew 18:14 Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.

Matthew 18:15  “Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother.

Matthew 18:35  “So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.”

Matthew 19:29–30  And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My name’s sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life. 30 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.

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In these chapters, we hear Jesus teaching us about the radical nature of life in His Kingdom.  Even after two thousand years of Christian influence and social impact, it is still somewhat difficult to believe Jesus meant what he said.  Imagine how those first hearers, including the disciples, must have been affected.

Take for example Jesus' teaching on divorce.  He does not absolutely prohibit it but He stated that it does not happen apart from sin by at least one of the parties.  He lays it out that in the case of blatant, spouse-rejecting, adultery, a person could divorce his/her spouse, but that's it.  The disciples, on hearing this, react with astonishment.  "If that is the case, if a man really wants to avoid sin, then it would be best for him not to marry!" They said.  Jesus' response did not soften the teaching one bit.  If a person can live a celibate life (using the metaphor of a eunuch), then that might be best.  If not, then know what it means to enter into the marriage covenant!

Today, the newspaper reported that a 35-year-old actress just married for the third time.  Think of that.  How could such a cavalier attitude toward marriage vows ever represent the Kingdom of Christ?  Jesus, in these chapters, is talking about the call to love, a love that forgives (18:35), and forgives not once or twice but 70x70 times... essentially this is a constant focus in such love.

The love that Jesus is illustrating here is also present in his teachings about "little ones." (18:3) He says that we must take great care not to lead them astray because they are precious to God.  I do not believe he is referring only to children.  He includes here those of relatively simple, naive, understanding -  people who are brothers and sisters in Christ but who can easily be abused or taken advantage of.   The call to love is most pressing on those of greater gifts or understanding or power and it charges them to become more like those with "simple" faith.  This is more difficult than it might first appear.

Jesus' exhortation to radical love is well illustrated by the incident with the "rich, young, ruler." (19:16ff)  Here Jesus makes it plain.  The Kingdom of God calls us to love God and each other more than "houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands!"  He further cautions that if this is not the case then the inheritance of eternal life is in serious doubt.  The disciples were again astonished.  "Is it possible that anyone will be saved?" they asked with great incredulity? (19:25)  Jesus again did not compromise or lessen His teaching.  He said, pointedly, that with men this is impossible.  Apart from the saving work of the Holy Spirit changing a person's heart such that this surpassing love is born, then no person can be saved. 

How many Christians today even live and act as if Jesus didn't really mean this?

What we must embrace in these teachings is that this must not be considered a "heavy burden."  Jesus has already told us that His "yoke is easy and (His) burden is light."  This radical love that we are to show forth in our lives, as a gift of God, is, in fact, its own reward.    A love that forgives over and over again is a love that fills our lives with fruit that overflows in good things.  A marriage that perseveres in forgiveness, especially when both parties seriously and consciously pursue it, is a marriage that takes on the character of fine wine, aged to perfection, and a delight to the spouses and also to those who learn from it.

But there is no getting around this love's strange-sounding reality.  We moderns are skeptical that it is even possible and even more skeptical that it will not bring more pain than joy.  That is where faith leading to obedience is tested and that is where the challenge is presented in every age.

We Christians need to listen to our Christ!  He means what He said!  We must embrace His teachings and pursue joy in holiness by seeking to conform, more and more, to His example as well as His commands.

 

 

 

Matthew 16 & 17: Wondrously Strange Teachings...

Image: Phlox, 2020, Severna Park, Md

Matthew 16:17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.

Matthew 16:25 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.

Matthew 17:20–21 So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. 21 However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.”

Matthew 17:25 He said, “Yes.” And when he had come into the house, Jesus anticipated him, saying, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth take customs or taxes, from their sons or from strangers?”

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These two chapters "brim over" with astonishing insights, puzzling enigmas, and solemn realism.  Jesus is preparing His disciples and future generations for confronting the blunt, historical, truths of His death and resurrection.  Essentially He is saying: "Look, take all these things I am saying and the things you are seeing (the transfiguration) and lock them away in your brains.  Use them as a grid against which you may understand Who I am and what I have come to do."  It is absolutely the case that apart from these teachings even more people throughout history would have never penetrated through to a saving knowledge of Jesus and a right understanding of the "New Creation" He established.

 In brief, consider these things: 

Matthew 16:3 ...’ Hypocrites! You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times. Jesus makes clear that something is happening.  As it is important for a mariner to know that dangerous storms are approaching, so it was important for the people of God to know that Jesus was turning their world upside down.  It is important for us to know that this is exactly what He did.  Jesus came to put human history on a whole new track and all of those, even today, who do not recognize this are deceiving themselves that there is no danger to them, even as a mariner who ignored the weather indicators would find himself in deep peril.

Matthew 16:18 ... and on this rock, I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.  Here, though confusing at the time, we see Jesus' purpose in all things made clear.  Everything that He did, even His incarnation, was unto the end of establishing a New People of God - His Church.  This new social order, nation, priesthood, was to become His living, breathing Presence in the world.  That new Creation would be founded on that very rock where Jesus was standing (which was located before a geographical fixture that many superstitiously believed to the be "gates of Hell").  This was the place where Peter confessed Jesus as the Son of the Living God.  Peter was the first member of the new Church if we measure it by public confession, but he would not be the last.  All of Satan's kingdom itself would feel the hammer blows of Jesus' Church hammering away at its walls and gates, as they looted his "house" and brought many converts out of his chains.

Matthew 16:28 Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.”

This extraordinarily difficult statement is best understood in light of the above.  It yet remained for the disciples and Jesus' immediate followers to see "His Kingdom" really "coming" in the world.  If we take "His Kingdom" as His visible Church, which I think is fully warranted, then it would be several decades before the disciples would see the Church stretching across the Roman Empire.  Some would be martyred in the process and thus not see the Holy Spirit's power truly changing the ancient world... but some would.  Jesus came "in His kingdom" when His Great Commission was undertaken and implemented.  Never again would the world be the same.  Jesus' Kingdom in the lives, testimony, and work of His Church meant that history would never follow the same old tired routine.  The Eternal Kingdom had come to earth and its King was directing its progress.

Space only allows for a few comments about Matthew 17:5 ...; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!”

To get the full impact of this we need to place it in context with Peter's confession above.  "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God!"  Peter's confession is now triply confirmed.  It was first confirmed by Jesus Himself in His commendation of Peter's statement.  Secondly, Jesus told Him that it was God Himself, through the Holy Spirit, who "revealed this to him."  Now, God Himself speaks from a cloud: "This is My Beloved Son."  Thus, in context, we have the entire Trinity testifying to the truth of Peter's confession.

Here is the crux of what Jesus is seeking to fix in the minds of His first hearers and us in our turn.  Jesus' death, resurrection, and ascension to the right hand of God the Father are all acts of the Son of God Himself.  We must not ever allow ourselves, or the world, in general, to view Jesus' life and death (as even the most irreligious skeptics acknowledge to be historical) to be passed off as "what happens when a religious zealot steps out of line."  Jesus was no mere human shaman.  He was the living Son of God... and His death was no defeat, it was victory, and we can only understand that when we take His teachings during His life to heart.

Matthew 14 &15: Behold, This Is Your God!

Image:  "Tip Of View", 2020, Rocky Gap State Park, Md.

Matthew 14:21 Now those who had eaten were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Matthew 14:31–33  And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33 Then those who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God.”

Matthew 14:35–36  And when the men of that place recognized Him, they sent out into all that surrounding region, brought to Him all who were sick, 36 ...And as many as touched it were made perfectly well.

Matthew 15:10–11  When He had called the multitude to Himself, He said to them, “Hear and understand: 11 Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.”

Matthew 15:28  Then Jesus answered and said to her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.

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In chapter 13 we saw Jesus teaching in parables which unenlightened minds found impossibly difficult to understand. In chapters 14 & 15 we see Jesus teaching through "mighty works" which, just as the parables, were hard for many to understand also.  Consider Jesus' solemn charges against the Pharisees and their insistence on religious rituals:  "... their heart is far from Me, and in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men!"  Jesus' miracles, like His proverbs, were directed toward the hardened hearts of God's covenant people.  They stood as powerful indictments testifying that "even though He did these things, yet, still, you would not bow to Him." 

Can you imagine a greater sin?  Well, there is one.  Jesus' greatest, "mighty work" was His atoning death on the cross as validated by His rising from the dead.  These are factual, historical events, corroborated by many witnesses.  Yet... still... there are people who deny Him and deny His works.  What a pity.

Look at the things He did.  Look at each work with an eye toward its OT roots.  There are the two miraculous feedings, one for 5,000 and one for 4,000.  Does this not remind us of God's provision of manna for the Israelites or His sending birds to feed Elijah?  He came to Peter and the other disciples walking on the water, proving the He was Lord of all so-called "natural laws!"  Did not the OT prophet command an ax head to float?  He healed the sick, restored the lame, and raised the dead.  Compare these things with the ministries of Elijah and Elisha.  The witness of His works was such that: Matthew 15:31  ... the multitude marveled when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed made whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel.

In His interaction with the Canaanite woman, (15:21ff) Jesus goes out of His way to highlight the difference in her covenant standing with God.  She was a Gentile and as Paul says, was a stranger to the covenants and promises of God.  Jesus acts out a parable with her... drawing out the encounter... bringing her and the on-looking crowd to grasp the deep truth that God's mercy is not only the property of ethnic Israel.  It is sufficient for the whole world.  When the woman humbly confesses that she, like a little dog, is quite content to eat from the overflow of God's grace on Israel, Jesus makes His point.

It is not the religiosity of the Pharisees that gains favor with God (15:1ff).  Rather it is "faith", like that of this poor Canaanite woman, which receives His blessing.  Those whose hearts are desperate, who see Jesus as their only hope and His mercy as the only basis for an appeal, will find God's affirming welcome.  Jesus commends her in a somewhat similar fashion to His commendation of the Roman Centurion:  "O woman, great is your faith!"  How incredible and self-confrontational these words must have been to Jesus' own disciples.  They had to recognize that, as far as we know, He had never said such things about them!  Little did they know, then, how they would have to demonstrate the same faith as she did on this occasion.

What lies at the heart of these chapters is Jesus' solid warrant for His claim to be the "Son of Man" which was shorthand for the long-expected Messiah. True enough, a great prophet might have been the vehicle through whom God did similar works as was the case in the OT.  But Jesus does not pray for things to happen... He never once presents Himself as an "instrument" through which God's healing Spirit worked.  All of Jesus' works were done on His own "authority."  This is most clearly evident in the two feedings and also when He walked on water.

Jesus was demonstrating, beyond a reasonable doubt, that He was God with all the same powers and wisdom that God the Father possessed.

When we read these chapters we ought to do so with the same heart as that Canaanite woman.  We should experience deep humility and wonder.  This Man... is our God!

Matthew 13: Puzzling Parables....

Image: Fall View, 2020, Sideling Hill Rest Stop, Md.

Matthew 13:10–11  And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?”
11 He answered and said to them, “Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.

Matthew 13:16–17  But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; 17 for assuredly, I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

Matthew 13:34–35  All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them, 35 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: “I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world.”

Matthew 13:43  Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

Matthew 13:57–58  So they were offended at Him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house.” 58 Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

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It is not often that we are forced to recognize just how "limited" human beings are as fallen sinful creatures prior to being "born again."  The Bible does not hedge on this limitation, in fact, it clearly establishes it.  Paul teaches us in 1 Corinthians 2:14 - But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.  "Natural man", that is, fallen mankind still bound to earthly reality and without the indwelling Holy Spirit, cannot "know" the "things" of God.  Jesus quotes Psalm 78:2 in verse 35 and says that some spiritual truths were kept secret from man "from the foundation of the world", that is throughout all history.  God speaks also of the "secret things of God" in Deut. 29:29 even as He tells us that those "secret things" that have been revealed belong to "us and to our children", that is to His covenant people and to them alone.

We need to take this to heart.  In a previous chapter (7:6), Jesus told the disciples  “Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces."  Our Lord has commanded us to guard the holiness of the treasures entrusted to us.  We, of course, are called to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the factual reality of His incarnation, life, atoning death, resurrection, and ascending.  We are told to "make disciples" in all the world and this requires us to reach out to people who are, as far as we know, still in their sinful, fallen condition.  But the Great Commission teaches us that "teaching them to obey" Jesus comes after baptism.  The great mysteries of the Christian faith are reserved for those who have been duly impressed with their holiness.

This again, must not be confused with "secret teachings" such as are found in some fraternal orders.  Christians publish large books and sell them in the public market and there are few, if any at all, Christian doctrines that are not accessible to any and all who might want to read them.

But we must not expect the acquiescence of any soul to those doctrines apart from the Holy Spirit.  This makes it, in one sense, foolish to try to argue doctrine with a non-believer.  It will be foolishness to him/her.

Look at Jesus' teachings in this chapter.  Even the disciples were numb to the meaning of the parables until Jesus explained them.   What we must see is the "intentionality" of this fact.  When Adam sinned, he did in fact "die" spiritually on that day.  This does not mean that he was reduced to mindlessness or that he did not still possess some rational faculties.  What it means is that he, for his transgression, forfeited his privilege of access to the spiritual world and the ability to intuit spiritual truths.  Every man or woman, born by the natural process, comes into this world under that same handicap.

Thus, Jesus' hearers could not fathom the significance of his metaphors.  His disciples were in a somewhat better position since the Holy Spirit was already working in them.  They would not be granted the fullness of understanding until after Pentecost, but they had some.

What we must absorb here is the high privilege we have in reading and "hearing" these teachings.  We can understand them sufficiently to be confident in what they mean.  We can even approach the "mysteries" of the incarnation, the Lord's Presence in Holy Communion, the dual nature of the Christ, the eternal blessing of the saints, etc. etc.  There is still much that we cannot really comprehend but we are in a different category from those who know not Jesus.  

We ought to be amazed at the mercy we have received and we ought to gladly pursue even greater understanding through study and mediation knowing that it is to these ends that we have received this grace.

Matthew 12: One Who Is Greater Is Here!

Image: "Near And Far", 2020, Severna Park, Md

Matthew 12:6–8  Yet I say to you that in this place there is One greater than the temple. 7 But if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless. 8 For the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

Matthew 12:12  Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep? Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.”

Matthew 12:20–21 A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not quench, Till He sends forth justice to victory; 21 And in His name Gentiles will trust.”

Matthew 12:28–29 But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29 Or how can one enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.

Matthew 12:40–41 For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.

Matthew 12:49–50  And He stretched out His hand toward His disciples and said, “Here are My mother and My brothers! 50 For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother.”

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In chapter 12 we see the spiritual warfare directed at Jesus intensified to blazing heat.  Surprisingly, it also shows us just how God uses such opposition to teach us deep truths about Himself and His Kingdom.

Note the first teaching on the Sabbath: (vs. 11-8) Jesus not only penetrates to the heart of how God wants us to observe the Sabbath but also how we are to understand Jesus Himself in relation to it.  Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath!  It is difficult for modern Americans, steeped in individualistic notions of freedom as we are, to grasp just how radical this statement really was... and is.  Jesus as Lord of the Sabbath Alone has the right to govern it.  He mandates how it is to be used and, most importantly for His day, how it was not to be used.  It is a blessing to mankind in which "mercy" is far more important than "rituals."  He did not abolish rituals, far from it.  He instituted new rituals like the Lord Supper where the one true sacrifice for sin is not only remembered but partaken of in a spiritual form.  He is Lord of the Sabbath, He can and did do that.  But the observance of rituals does not constitute the entirety of the Sabbath's purpose.  It is "mercy" both in contemplation and practice that is at the heart of the day's significance.

Imagine what might result if the modern Church of Jesus Christ took one day, the Christian Sabbath, and seriously undertook to practice and pursue "mercy!"  Sure enough, some might accuse us of violating the Sabbath by doing "work", but Jesus would not see it that way and who knows how He might transform our communities through the corporate witness of God-fearing Christians going about "doing good" in a systematic and wide-ranging manner.  

Following Jesus' teachings on the Sabbath, we also see Him revealing that "casting out demons by the Spirit of God" absolutely demonstrates that the "kingdom of God has come upon you." (vs. 28)  Think about that!  Jesus and His Kingdom are all about fighting against Satan and having victory over Him.  Again, this is not a sit-back and let God do His "thing" passivity.  Jesus actively cast out that demon.  He was demonstrating that life in His Kingdom meant taking up spiritual arms, empowered by the Holy Spirit, and tearing down spiritual fortresses where evil dominates.  Jesus makes it very clear:  We are either with Him or against Him in this fight.  There is no neutral ground.  To live in the Kingdom is to actively seek to "gather" to Christ in His continuing crusade (vs. 30).  If we are not participating in this work then we are actually working against Him and His purposes, we are "scattering abroad."  This requires a wholesale re-evaluation of what it means to serve Jesus for many of us.

Jesus then, in various passages, moves on to judgment.  His message is designed to be like a knife slicing through a loaf of bread.  The bread represents the surrounding culture and the "knife" divides those who will stand in judgment from those who will not.  Jesus' astonishing claim to His first hearers was that He was greater than Jonah and yet Jonah had better results from His preaching than was happening then.  For this, He said, the people of Nineveh would rise up in judgment on those hard-hearted sinners who were rejecting Him as not only God's greatest Prophet but God Himself in the flesh.

Lastly, Jesus gives us a super blessed revelation about how we, as believers, are related to Him. (vs. 46ff)  In another statement that would have aroused great opposition among the traditional Jewish leaders, He plainly stated that His disciples were in a more intimate relationship with Him than His own mother and brothers.  This does not mean that Jesus did not honor His mother as His mother.  It only meant that His eternal family was made up of all those who are joined to Him by faith.  Certainly, I believe, His mother came to believe in Him as her Lord and Savior and so she was, and is now, part of His family.  But, importantly, it means that we who believe stand on the same level as she.  What an amazing thought!

There are so many things to ponder.  Thank God that our Christ has come and taught us so much!

 

Matthew 10 & 11: A Serious Calling...

Image: "Severn River View", 2020, From Jonas Green Park, Annapolis, Md

Matthew 10:1  And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease.

Matthew 10:7–8  And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ 8 Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.

Matthew 10:16  “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves.

Matthew 10:34 “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword.

Matthew 11:5–6  The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them. 6 And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me.”

Matthew 11:29–30  Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

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For those who have heard preaching promising "God has a wonderful plan for your life" or that "faith brings earthly prosperity", Mat. 10 & 11 must sound pretty strange.  Now that is not to say that God's plan for your life won't be "wonderful!"  It's just that it will very likely be "wonderful" in spiritual things more than what most Americans would expect or desire.  And God will certainly "prosper" our faith but it will be discovered in "fruit of good works" and very few unexpected large checks in the mail.  

Jesus' call to service is indeed a yoke, though He promises that it will be "easy" and His burden "light".  When we embark on our journey in faith we will face many hurdles and obstacles that may be very difficult to address, but what we discover is that Jesus Himself sustains and encourages us through them.  This is how He makes our yoke easy... He never gives us more than we can handle and then He goes before us and opens up the path for us to follow.

But notice how He calls us to ministry.  He "gave" the disciples all kinds of "power."  I don't know about you but having that kind of power is pretty scary to me.  Imagine what it would be like to have the Holy Spirit working so powerfully through you that demons were cast out (meaning: they really exist), diseases are healed and people are converted.  Since the days of Jesus the gift of direct healing, spoken authority to heal vested in ordinary Christians, is not present but that doesn't mean that miracles of healing no longer happen.  In 30 years of ministry, I have seen the power of prayer bring about results that greatly surprise the medical professionals.  I have seen horribly broken relationships healed, outrageous sins forgiven, and lives transformed.  Not that I can take credit for any of it.  It was not my authority that brought about these things.  I just kind of "showed up" and the Spirit did the rest.  The point is, our service to Jesus is to be such that these things happen.  We should expect them.  But we have to put ourselves "out there" for it to do so.

This is what I mean by it being a "serious calling."  It brings us into contact with a range of human situations that threaten all our comfort levels.  People to whom we speak God's word may, and have, reacted in anger that verged on physical expression.  Speaking the truth can so affect individuals that they break off relations and remain distant or unfriendly for years.  Sometimes this happens with family members.  Jesus said that He did not come to bring "peace but a sword." (10:34)  He came to shine a light into people's comfortable darkness and make them see things that they would rather not view.  It is not always sweetness and light.

But when it is sweetness and light, it is sublime.  Nothing so fills a servant's heart with joy as having the absolute, undeserved privilege of being used by the Holy Spirit.  No human embrace is so tender as that given in response to healing service that touches a person's soul.  Tears of joy are not uncommon and they are precious to God and to His servants.  

Ministry is not only, nor even mainly, public proclamation.  The major work of Christian ministry is virtually invisible to the majority of people.  It is "giving a cup of cold water" to someone in need. (10:42)  Christian compassion is the hallmark of Christian service and it is always the "point of the spear" for the works of God.  Ordinary, simple Christians carry the bulk of the load.  Full-time pastors and ministers are necessary but they are not the ones most often "in the trenches."  We are all called to speak up and speak out.  We are to "confess Christ" by our lives and our testimony, gladly pointing to Him and calling others to do so also.  We must not be "ashamed" of the Gospel and treat it as something "private."  Jesus links His own intercession before God on our behalf to the work of the Holy Spirit moving us to confess Him before men. (10:32)

Thus we must embrace the truth that our Christian calling is serious business indeed.  It is joyful and sad and scary and fulfilling and... In other words, it is a calling to a full range of human experience and expression.  It is to live "life" as it is designed to be lived, fully in contact with both the spiritual and physical universe we inhabit.

That's what makes it "fun!"

Matthew 8 & 9: The Godly Love of Diversity

Image: "Foggy Morning Diversity", 2020, Northern Pa.  

Matthew 8:2–3  And behold, a leper came and worshiped Him, saying, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.” 3 Then Jesus put out His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” Immediately his leprosy was cleansed.

Matthew 8:10 When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, “Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!

Matthew 8:17 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: “He Himself took our infirmities And bore our sicknesses.”

Matthew 8:34  And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus. And when they saw Him, they begged Him to depart from their region.

Matthew 9:6  But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins”—then He said to the paralytic, “Arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.”

Matthew 9:34 But the Pharisees said, “He casts out demons by the ruler of the demons.”

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The beautifully crafted literary style of Matthew is certainly obvious in these chapters.  Jesus performs 10 miracles or "mighty works."  How can someone ignore the careful similitude to God's mighty works in bringing His people out of Egypt?  Furthermore, we must carefully note the nature of these "works."  There is a leper healed, a Gentile centurion's "servant" restored, Peter's mother-in-law cured of the fever, large numbers of sick and demon-possessed relieved,  a tempest stilled, demons cast out of two gentile men, a paralytic's sins forgiven, a girl raised from the dead, a woman's flow of blood stopped, and two people cured of blindness and dumbness.  Matthew explicitly relates Jesus' works to the OT Messianic hope in 8:17 (cf. Isa. 53:4). 

The point that Matthew drives home is that the Messiah has come with healing in His wings and this healing is not for Israel alone but for the whole world.  God, in Jesus of Nazareth, is instituting the New Kingdom of God, a New People of God, and all of those infirmities that once made a person unclean (leprosy, blindness, demon-possession) pose no barrier now for gaining full membership in His Covenant People.

Matthew is so intentional in this.  The Gentile centurion is commended for having a faith greater than anyone in Israel.  The Gergesenes were offered the Gospel and rejected Him.  Hated tax-collectors are welcomed into fellowship and, most importantly, by His own authority, Jesus pronounces sins forgiven.  He declares that He did not "come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance." (9:13)  This was all sinners, from every tribe and nation.  The great healing and cleansing of defects is clearly accomplished through the instrument or vehicle of faith (9:29).

This section closes out with Jesus setting the evangelistic vision for His disciples and for His Church after them.  "The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few.  Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest."

Through multiple devices, Matthew establishes, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Jesus' life and ministry must be: (1) understood in terms of continuity, extension, and fulfillment of the OT canon. (2) That Jesus' mighty works are "signs" that establish His credentials.  Jesus is not just a more modern "prophet."  He performed His works by direct command and authority.  He did what only God could do.  He demonstrated that He was Lord over the entire human race and over their entire human condition.  No individual was beyond His reach.  No-one, no matter what their earthly disposition or bodily character, was, by those features, sentenced to life and death as unclean and unworthy of fellowship with God's people.

Here is the beautiful diversity and scope of Christ's Church held out to us as an inspiring vision.  No one... not a single person... no matter how deformed in body or soul, is automatically excluded and without hope.  The offer of hope and healing is to go forth like a soothing ballad, promising to all who hear that life and fruitfulness is possible for them.  "All" that is required is that they recognize the significance of Jesus' mighty works:  He, and He alone, is God in the flesh and He and He alone is to be "glorified" for having such "power" inherent in His Person. (9:8)

Now, that "all" is quite a lot.  It requires the prior work of the Holy Spirit in a person before they can truly glorify Christ in this manner.  But Matthew's point is not ultimately focused on the response of faith.  Rather his focus is on the inclusivity of those who have received the gift.  There are to be no second-class citizens in Jesus' Kingdom.  Each and every tribe and nation is to furnish its bounty such that there will be rich and variegated colors presented to God for His joy and blessing.

We Christians should be known throughout the entire world for our "godly love of diversity."  For this is the Love of God outpoured on all who know our Christ.

Matthew 5-7: But I Say To You!!!

Image: "Fully Revealed", 2020, Camellia Flower, Severna Park, Md

Matthew 5:11–12  “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Matthew 5:16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:39 But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.

Matthew 6:21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Matthew 7:12  Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.

Matthew 7:22–23  Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

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A two-year reading schedule through the entire Bible is a hard taskmaster.  It is difficult to approach the Sermon on the Mount at a high-level, "big picture" perspective and not do a more detailed study of its individual components.  To do so would probably take 2 years on that alone.  This brilliant teaching shines out into our universe like a star-burst in a dark sky.  It is simply magnificent in its simplicity and sublime in its radical message.  Only God could speak this way...  and He did!

For first and foremost, it is Jesus Himself Who is the subject and revelation in these chapters.  "He went up on a mountain..." (5:1)  It is commonly accepted that this was a conscious move.  He deliberately cast Himself as the "New Moses", the prophesied "Law-giver", Who would come and lead His people back into righteousness and favor with their God.  And this indeed is Who He was... the "prophet greater than Moses."

He was greater than Moses not because He brought a better law!  Jesus did not replace Moses' law, He fulfilled it! (5:17)  Jesus revealed what Moses' law of righteousness really entailed.  It called men to a righteousness that exceeds "the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees", a righteousness that was not primarily external conformity but rather that which flowed from a transformed heart, a heart that hungered and thirsted for it. (5:6)

Jesus is thus presenting Himself as the One who, on His own authority (differing from Moses), was able to declare the nature of that righteousness that God required of His people as well as the blessings which would attend it.  He also, to the astonishment of His hearers, declared that those who dismissed His teachings would stand before HIM on that great "day" of reckoning and give an account of their deeds. (7:22-23) 

We need to go back in time, in our spirits, and hear these words as those gathered there heard them.  "Who does this man think He is???"  "Who is He to declare to us that we are 'the salt of the earth... the light of the world..'?" (5:13-15)  "He is not just speaking for God... He is speaking as God!"  There are some of us who would have thrilled at these thoughts, as there were then.  There are some of us, even today, whose hearts shrink from such implicit corollaries.  Now, as then, we don't want a Man who has such intimate knowledge of us.

He knows our hearts.  He knows that we struggle with the lusts of the heart... and,though they are hidden from the general world about us, He doesn't hesitate to say that these, apart from any action on them, are worthy of damnation. (5:21ff)  And all the time He is stripping us of our outward sanctity, He is making it clear, that He is speaking with His own authority, an authority greater than any earthly teacher.

"You have heard it said... BUT I say to you!!!"

These words effectively summarize the whole sermon.  Our God has come and made the righteousness of the Kingdom of God absolutely crystal clear.  We have no excuse.  We have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, no matter what degree of external righteousness we might have gained.  But He also proclaims, on His own authority, that the condition of "blessedness" is available.  But how differently it is manifested.  It is found in the meek, the poor, the abused, the suffering, and the humble in heart.  It is found when we forgive others for no other reason than that it glorifies God to do so. 

Only God could have delivered this sermon.  Its all-comprehending scope covers the full range of human endeavor and reshapes it into a portrait of God's Kingdom. Dwelling in that Kingdom means rejoicing in the lifestyle that is here proclaimed.  At the center of this Kingdom is the Lord and King, Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ of God who fully embodied every aspect, every jot, and tittle, of what is here detailed.

He did it perfectly and therefore He was fitted to be a suitable sacrifice for our imperfect records.  There is so much here to ponder, seek to absorb, and grow in.  

May God give us hearts that long to read these words over and over again... to absorb them into our soul... and to have them bear fruit in earnest desire to embody them before the eyes of the world... as God has purposed them to be done.

Matthew 4: Rock Solid

Image: "Out of Solid Rock", 2020, Sideling Hill Cut, I-68/40, Maryland

Matthew 4:1–2 (NKJV)  Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry.

Matthew 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Matthew 4:19–20 Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” 20 They immediately left their nets and followed Him.

Matthew 4:25  Great multitudes followed Him—from Galilee, and from Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.

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Sideling Hill "Cut" is one of the more interesting highway gaps I've traveled throughout the years.  There is a nice little rest stop there with interesting exhibits and several easily accessed, viewing platforms at various elevations.  The central feature is the curious geologic strata in the cut.  The layers of rock form a "cup" that one encounters as "downward" slopes when you enter the cut (from either side) and which then become "upward" slopes as you pass the midpoint.  It's worth noticing.

For today's meditation though it is the sheer massive impressiveness of the Sideling Hill itself that recommends itself.  It is actually a sharp ridgeline in the Allegheny Mountains that runs for many miles on a roughly North/South line.  The foliage is beautiful but underneath that pretty covering, there is solid-rock of near impregnable and erosion proof strength.  There's a metaphor there for our Christ I think.

In Chapter 4 we see Jesus being "tested", "approved", and "embraced."  

Satan gave it his best shot.  His temptations covered the entire gamut of human weakness.  He pointed Jesus toward a way He could allay His physical hunger.  Fasting for 40 days is no trivial thing.  Jesus was weak, hungry, and thirsty.  Satan said all He had to do was use His "magical" powers to turn rocks into food.  Jesus overcame the desires of His flesh.  His Divine powers were not there for His personal comfort.

Satan next tempted Jesus to "prove" His Divinity.  All He had to do was put Himself in intentional danger and God would rescue Him and thus prove His beloved status.  Jesus, though weakened, saw this as a test of faith and renounced it as such.

Lastly, Satan tempted Jesus with absolute worldly power and riches. Our Christ, our solid Rock, said "NO!" and thus prevailed over Satan in every particular.

This story should not be passed over lightly at all.  Every one of us, fallen and fallible Christians that we are, ought to pay careful attention to its teaching.  Jesus is indeed our solid rock and Satan's power could not surpass Him.  What this means for us is that Jesus did this for US!

We are all too aware that we never truly gain victory over Satan.  Through inattentiveness, willful decision, or ignorance, we sin and fall short of the perfection that our God deserves in His servants.  This would lead to despair if we did not have our Christ to fall back on.  You see, it is not necessary for us, in this life, to achieve sinless perfection, successfully resisting every Satanic onslaught.  Jesus did that for us.  He, as our Covenant Head, has fought the giant, like His ancient forebear David, and His victory thus became the victory for all His People, the New Israel, the elect of God.

Now, this does not, by any measure, mean that we are relieved of the struggle.  It means that our struggle is vindicated.  The pursuit of holiness in life and practice becomes our desire and we know that our earnest efforts to advance in it are pleasing to our God and bears witness to our credentials as His true servants.

In the remaining section of this chapter, we see Jesus embarking on His full ministry.  He calls His first disciples, starts actively preaching in Galilee where the crowds are a cross-section of Jews and Gentiles.  We are told that His fame spread throughout all Syria!  The pagan countries were excited to hear what was happening.  People flocked to Him from Decapolis (Greek culture) as well as regions beyond the Jordan.

From the very beginning, our Lord preached the call for all mankind to "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"  "Repent" - lay down your earthly weapons and ways, turn away from all those alluring ideas that Satan has used to deceive the masses - stop thinking as the world thinks - and embrace the true reality of the Kingdom of Heaven / God.  Focus on heavenly things and make them your priority as you pursue the very real work of God in His created universe.

The "Kingdom of Heaven" is identical with Jesus Himself.  He embodies it for it is the sphere of His rule.  It goes wherever He goes and encompasses all who come to Him, recognizing Him as its King.

The call to "repent" was not limited to John the Baptist.  It was proclaimed by the King Himself as the doorway through which any person must pass to enter His Kingdom.  It begins with recognizing the King for just what He is - our solid Rock to Whom we must flee and in Whom we stand.

 

 

 

Matthew 3: To Fulfill All Righteousness...

Image:  "Beauty Unfurled", 2020, Severna Park, MD

Matthew 3:1–2  In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”

Matthew 3:11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

Matthew 3:13–15  Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. 14 And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?”
15 But Jesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed Him.

Matthew 3:16–17  When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. 17 And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

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I imagine it was a gloriously bright day when Jesus first presented Himself to the world and to His Father as ready to commence His ministry.  John the Baptist, as "the voice crying in the wilderness", had prepared the way.  

Think about that phrase for a moment.  A "wilderness" in Palestine was not a dark forest with towering trees.  It was a barren, sterile, blisteringly arid stretch of land.  It was terribly dangerous.  There were still a few hungry lions around and various two-legged beasts of perhaps greater ferocity.  This was a land of fear, loneliness, and despair.  "A voice crying" emphasizes the desperate isolation of the speaker.  It would be a wavering, haunting appeal directed toward the multitude of darkened faces and hidden eyes that bided their time in the prospect of easy prey.

John the Baptist had been that voice and through the Holy Spirit, he had made a difference.  As we see in verse 5 multitudes flocked to hear him and his startling message.  Even the Pharisees and Sadducees came.  True, some came to satisfy their curiosity and perhaps to sit in judgment.  But they came and they were greeted with stark, plainly spoken truth.  "Brood of vipers" they were called.  Here we do not see a quivering jellyfish preacher who quails at the thought of possibly offending someone who might bring a few coins for the plate.  They heard a prophet, a man moved by the Holy Spirit, who was more concerned with their souls and the impending judgment on his country, than he was with earthly comforts or rewards.

He spoke of their desperate need for true repentance, a repentance that bore good fruits and abounded in a new seeking after God.  He spoke with urgency, declaring that the threshing of God's fields was imminent and coming with implacable resolve.  "Every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire!"  Here is the dread choice that confronts every sinner who refuses to bow and acknowledge Israel's true God.  That same dread choice remains today facing all who refuse to acknowledge the Son Whom John proclaimed himself unworthy to even carry His sandals.

That One did come on that beautiful day.  John looked up and through the Holy Spirit, he again recognized the Christ.  In his mother's womb, he had jumped and kicked with joy when the pregnant Mary came into the room.  I cannot imagine what sense of flooding awe must have rushed over him.  Nor can we really appreciate the astonished reaction he experienced when Jesus said that He wanted John to baptize Him.  "ME!"  You want ME to baptize YOU?"  John was not just showing false humility here.  He knew that the act of performing baptism was a recognition of the authority of the one administering the sacrament.  He knew that he was not superior to this Jesus in any manner.  He knew that being presumptuous with God was a very dangerous undertaking.  He had every right to be apprehensive.

Jesus spoke with cool assurance.  He did not butter up John nor argue against his proper concern.  He said: "Permit it to be so NOW!"  In other words, "on this occasion, My Father and I, desire this - not to honor you or to admit any subordination to you - but to achieve a higher goal - a goal that is tied up in what you represent and not in your person as such."

Jesus told him that he was to administer baptism in order "to fulfill all righteousness!"  That was the key.  It was not about John... it was about what he represented.

John the Baptist was the last of the OT prophets.  His story is told in the NT, of course, but only as a transition.  He embodied Elijah and all the other great seers who had for thousands of years foretold this event.  His baptism of Jesus was in essence, God vindicating and fulfilling all of their faithful services in the past.  God was righteous... He kept His word that He had voiced through those hard-pressed servants. 

And then, when it was done, as the curtains fell on the OT dispensation, a brilliant spotlight shone from heaven and illuminated the Star, the Central Figure in all history.  God spoke, with great passion, and said: "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."

The drama of human progress through the ages entered into an entirely new act.  Henceforth things were different.  God had become MAN!  God had entered into that drama and participated immediately in its development.  Nothing would ever be the same again.  Nothing could be the same again.

This is the Son of God and on Him, the Divine Favor rests in brilliant perfection.  To Him must all honor and glory and praise be given, both now and forever, AMEN.