Mission 66 (English podcast)
Matthew 11 & 12 Conflict and Confrontation
Let's say somebody's delivered from demon possession, well that wouldn't mean that they're saved. They'd have to take the next logical step and fill that empty hole by asking Jesus into their heart and life. This is Mission 66, your ultimate journey through all 66 books of the Bible brought to you by Bible teacher and pastor Dr. Louis Ciao and partnership with Transworld Radio. I'm Rob Dempsey. Let me remind you to download your free study guide of the Gospels. You'll be able to go deeper into God's Word and follow along with each day's program. It's a great companion resource of the audio teaching of John Matthews and Esther Susullo. To get your free study guide of the Gospels, visit Mission66.org. That's Mission66.org. John Matthews is our teacher and his co-host Esther Susullo is here to kick things off. As we travel through the pages of the Bible, we get to find out where we come from and where we're going. It's good news. And you know friend, many people think that the pathway of Christian discipleship is lined with health, wealth and prosperity. But Jesus Christ makes it very clear that the pathway of discipleship is often paved with potholes and difficulties. Well today our teacher John Matthews will lead us through chapters 11 and 12 of the Gospel of Matthew with our theme conflict and confrontation. Esther, thank you so much. Great to be with you as always and great to be with you our listeners. Listening to us wherever you are today as always a very, very warm welcome to you. Do you know Jesus' words in his earthly ministry really caused a great division between those who readily received his words and those who were viciously opposed to it? And do you know what? It's the same today. So it really should come as no surprise when we experience opposition if we're Christians living the Christian life because this is never easy. But we do know that the Bible promises the rewards and those rewards will be well worth it and some. And here we are in Matthew chapter 11 and we see that after Jesus finished instructing his disciples, he went on to teach and preach in the towns of Galilee. And it says that when John here, who's John the Baptist, heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent words by his disciples and said to Jesus, "Are you the one who is to come, or should we be looking for another?" Now John the Baptist has already announced that Jesus was indeed the Christ, but John had run into opposition. He'd suffered arrest, imprisonment, he'd be mistreated by the authorities, not for doing wrong, but for doing right. And he called out King Herod for his sin and Herod instead of saying, "Okay, I see what you're saying and repenting." He instead had the prophet arrested, he was pretty angry. So John was emotionally drained, suffering in his body and we know, don't we, that that's when doubt starts to creep in and conflicting thoughts confuse. And all of us know what that feels like, don't we? John needed this confirmation. He wanted to be sure that he wasn't suffering this conflict and this confrontation for nothing. And so he asks himself, "Is this man really the Christ?" So Jesus is going to prove here that he is the long-awaited Messiah. Interesting, isn't it how we go through these books and this book of Matthew and he's having to do this over and over again because people need confirmation, reconformation. And he sends John this message, "Go and tell John what you hear and see. The blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear and the dead are raised up and the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is the one who is not offended by me." To Jesus encourages John here, doesn't he, by giving him a report of what he was doing, including healings, raising people from the dead so that John would be assured that he, Jesus, truly is the long-awaited Messiah. And then starting in Matthew 11, this is verse 7, Jesus explains who this John the Baptist really was. And he's speaking to the crowd and he says, "What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? What then did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing?" Jesus then says that John was the one about whom it was written. This is quoting Malachi 3, "I send my messenger and he will prepare the way before me." So Jesus was really saying here that John the Baptist was the last prophet of the old covenant. Jesus goes on to say, "From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence and the violent take it by force, for all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. He who has ears to hear, let him hear." So Jesus confirms that John the Baptist is fulfilling a prophecy, that he was the one preparing the way for the Messiah. And Jesus was the Messiah for whom they had all been waiting. And so Jesus is hinting that there was coming a transition from the old covenant of law to the new covenant called grace, which he would soon initiate by his very own death and resurrection. John, a very interesting statement made in the Word of God in the Bible. The kingdom of heaven was suffering violence. What does that mean? Well, Esther, the context here seems to indicate that there would be persecution. John the Baptist was suffering because violent men came and arrested him, threw him in to a dungeon. Same thing is happening to people all over the world today, isn't it? Only because of their faith in Jesus Christ. But we know that this is not going to last forever. When Jesus returns and he will return and he is returning, what's he going to do? He's going to set up his kingdom and it will be a kingdom of peace and there will be a reckoning. And those who were faithful to Christ in spite of prisons, fire, sword, abuse, well, they'll be richly rewarded and all the people who attacked made it difficult for God's people without repentance will be removed. By that, the Bible says that they'll be taken out and punished forever. So the Bible says to people that Jesus will gladly take you. In fact, Jesus welcomes you home to be with him on his path because that in fact is where you created to be. So there's this repentance that is required and this asking of Jesus to save you. But what a what a prospect he he offers those who do. And then Jesus says about John in verse 18 for John came neither eating nor drinking and they say he has a demon. The son of man came eating and drinking and they say, look at him, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners. Jesus criticizes those who were opposing him and why is that? Because when John the Baptist came, well, people were rejecting him. And now that Jesus has come, people are criticizing him too. In other words, it doesn't really matter what God's people do. There will always be those who will criticize and confront them in this world. This is this division Esther that we've we've talked about before, isn't it? There will be this confrontation. But this kingdom is here. This kingdom is being presented with great strength, power and many miracles. And Jesus here begins to show that not only the religious men, but also the small towns in Galilee had the privilege of seeing and witnessing these great miracles. But still they didn't believe and kept their heart hardened. And so Jesus says in verse 21, "Woe to you, chorazin. Woe to you, Bethsaida. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you." In the same way, Jesus has criticism for Capernaum whose people thought that they didn't need to be saved. But Jesus said that they would not be lifted to the heavens as they expected. But instead, and this is sobering, it's hard to say sometimes, isn't it? But instead, they'd go down to hell. And hell is real, and it is sobering. And Jesus says that if the miracles that he performed in Capernaum had been performed in Sodom, that Sodom would still be standing. In fact, that it would be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than it would be for Capernaum. Jesus' miracles were so powerful and proved to all who he really was, if they were willing to see it. And yet, the people in those cities, the term the Bible uses, is had their hearts hardened. And so what they're doing is bringing judgment on themselves because of their refusal to believe in spite of proof that Jesus was who he said he was, the Messiah, the Son of God. And yet, chapter 11 closes with an encouragement to those of us who do believe God. Jesus prays to God the Father, lifting up his praise and worship by saying this, "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. And then comes the great invitation from Jesus that echoes throughout the centuries and now reaches our ears and hearts at this moment today. Come to me, all who labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. 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. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. My dear listeners, Jesus, the Savior, stands with arms open wide, beckoning us to himself. In the words of a great old hymn, "Come, you sinner, poor and wretched, weak and wounded sick and sore, Jesus ready waits to save you, full of pity, love, and power. He is able. He is able. He is willing, doubt, no more." You see, the great truth is their salvation for our souls, and it's available to us through Jesus Christ, and he invites us to party. And we're so grateful, friend, that you have chosen to join us for Mission 66 on our journey through the Word of God, the Bible, with our teacher John Matthews. Well, I'm your host Esther, and we're so glad to be studying along with you. And right now, we've just finished Matthew, chapter 11. Now, the Gospels, they remind us that Jesus Christ proved that he was God in the flesh, and also claimed that he was the only way to heaven, and that we stand in need of him for the forgiveness of our sins. Wherever the gospel is preached, people either believe it, or they reject it, which we just saw in chapter 11. And now, as we proceed into chapter 12, we'll see this conflict and confrontation unfold even more. And as we go along, it may be that a question may arise, and if so, we'll handle it as it comes up. Now, John, thank you once again for your insights. Yeah, great to be able to look at these words of life, isn't it, Esther, with all of our listeners. And you know here, we've got Jesus with his disciples in chapter 12, and it's the Sabbath. And in the first verse, we read that his disciples are hungry, and so they begin to to pluck these heads of grain to eat. But then the Pharisees look across, and they see this, and they say to him, "Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath." You know, we know by now that the Pharisees were the religious elite of their day, and they thought they were better than the rest of humanity because of their strict obedience to the law of Moses. They thought that they were those who dominated the moral high ground of the day. But in reality, they were sinners, just like the rest of us. And look how Jesus answers them here in verse 3. Jesus says to them, "Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, and those who were with him, how he entered the house of God and ate the bread of the presence, which is not lawful for him to eat, nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests, or have you not read in the law how on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath, and are guiltless? I tell you, something greater than the temple is here." He's citing there, Jesus, an incident back in 1 Samuel 21 where David and his men were running for their lives, they were being chased by King Saul, and they were so hungry when they came to Ahimelech, the priest, and Ahimelech had no bread to give them, except the ceremonial shoe bread, which is called the bread of the presence. So the priest violates the letter of the law, one could say, in order to feed a band of hungry men. And Jesus also reminds them that the temple priests, they do work on the Sabbath because they work in the temple, and then Jesus quotes Hosea the prophet when he says, "And if you had known what this means, I desire mercy and not sacrifice. You would not have condemned the guiltless, for the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath." Jesus is saying the disciples are allowed to pick a few grains of wheat, even if it does violate one of the Pharisees' self-imposed regulations. Then after this, Jesus goes into the synagogue, and there he sees a man who had a shriveled hand. And looking for a reason now to bring charges against Jesus, the Pharisees say to him, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?" Jesus then turns to these religious men and points out their own hypocrisy by saying, "Which one of you who has a sheep, if it falls into a pit, on the Sabbath, will not take hold of it and lift it out of how much more value is a man than a sheep, so it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath?" Jesus then heals this man on the Sabbath and the Pharisees, instead of rejoicing that someone was healed by the power of God they went out, and they plotted now how they might kill Jesus, conflict and confrontation. Nowhere in the Bible is there any specific law that forbids healing on the Sabbath. And so the Pharisees were going beyond even what the Old Testament was teaching, and they were clinging to the rules that they had made up. And Jesus is just aware of their state of heart, aware of their plots. He withdrew from there, and it says the Bible that many followed him as he withdrew, and it says he healed them all, told them not to make him known yet. Really interesting, isn't it? Really? Because Matthew here takes care to remind us of the prophecy back in Isaiah 42, which speaks about the coming Christ and says, "Behold, my servant whom I've chosen, my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased, I will put my spirit upon him, and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles." And this is one of many Old Testament prophecies that were fulfilled concerning Messiah. You know, they all confirmed that Jesus is the promised Messiah. He's the Savior. Yeah, that's right. So do you know the miracles they keep on coming as well? Because in Matthew 12, it's verse 22, it says that Jesus heals a demon-possessed man, a blind man, and someone who's mute, and the people were amazed. And at the sight of this wonderful manifestation of God's power, the Pharisees accuse Jesus of performing the miracles by the power of Beelzebub, the devil. And Jesus is going to prove how this is absurd, because how can Beelzebub, who is Satan, destroy himself? It's not possible. And therefore after much opposition, Jesus's words are unequivocal. This is what he says, "Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven. But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come." And this is what sometimes is referred to Esther as the unforgivable sin. Hmm. Well, this is a sincere question, John. Is it possible to commit the unforgivable sin today? I mean, someone may wonder, "Well, have I said something against the Holy Spirit that I didn't really mean? Have I made that mistake and now cannot be forgiven ever?" Sometimes we can beat ourselves up, can't we, on this? And, you know, Esther, the reality is, I think we can relax, because the fact that we are concerned about it is the best indication that we've not committed this sin. Now, remember the Pharisees were always resisting the Holy Spirit by opposing Jesus. Now, had they had tender hearts, they would have repented at the preaching of Jesus and joined the family of believers. The truth is, any sin that we can repent of is forgivable. Any sin that you can name can be forgiven by God when forgiveness is asked for, all though except one. If the Holy Spirit speaks to you about your need of Christ as your Savior and you keep pushing Him away and you then die having rejected the gospel, rejected this offer of salvation, the love of Christ, then what Jesus is saying here is that then there is no remedy for that. So, ultimately, blaspheming or perhaps rejecting is a word that we can get to grips with a bit more, rejecting the Holy Spirit until you die. That is what Jesus means by the unforgivable sin. Sure. Well, that's some serious business, isn't it? Yeah, it really is. It's a matter of life and death. No, it's more than that, isn't it? Because it's a matter of eternal life and death and where we will spend eternity. So, this is so important. Let's continue then in Matthew 12 because the Pharisees are now demanding this miraculous sign as proof that Jesus was really the Messiah. And so Jesus says very well then, you want to see yet another miracle, another sign after having already seen so many? I tell you that this generation will not have any sign except for the sign of Jonah. For just 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. That was the sign. In other words, as Jonah was buried in the fish, then came back to life when he was spit out onto the shore. Jesus would be buried for three days and then come back to life on the third day. And then Jesus says that the men of Nineveh who repented of their sin and the queen of the south, that's the queen of Sheba, who sought the wisdom of Solomon, will have had better judgment than those who saw and heard Jesus in person and yet rejected him. Now, there was a lot of demonic activity ongoing whilst Jesus was on earth. And part of Jesus' ministry was to cast demons out of people. But he cautions us here in verse 43 by saying, "When the unclean spirit has got out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, but finds none. Then it says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.' And when it comes, it finds the house empathy swept and put in order. Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits, more evil than itself. And they enter and dwell there. And the last state of that person is worse than the first. So also will it be, with this evil generation. Right. So, so in other words, if we're delivered from demonic activity, we have to replace it with true worship of God. Well, the demons, they'll come back with their "big brothers" if you will, and the person will be far worse off than he was before. Yeah. And that's why, Esther, we need to stay well away from the occult and witchcraft. Because it's just such a dangerous road, you know, even though it's pretty popular in certain parts of the world and certain places today. And unfortunately, there's an allure with it, isn't there? The mystique, the unknown. But you step into that and it's no laughing matter. And the sad thing is, many people find that out too late once you open that door. And, you know, if someone is delivered from demon possession, doesn't mean that they're saved. You know, they would have to take the next logical step as anyone would and fill that empty hole in the soul by asking Jesus into their heart and life. And we know that only Jesus can fill that hole in our soul. He's the only cure as well for demon possession. You know, he's the only way, the truth and the life, the only Savior. And so we must cling to him. And Matthew 12 finishes like this. While he, Jesus, was still speaking to the people, his mother and his brothers were standing outside and they were asking to speak to him. But Jesus replied to the man who told him this, "Who is my mother? And who are my brothers?" And stretching out his hand toward his disciples to indicate what he said next, he says, "Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother. Whoever does the will of God, isn't this wonderful, becomes a part of his family. What is the will of God to believe on the one that God has sent the Lord Jesus Christ?" Exactly. And this is why we have a program like Mission 66. It's to help steer you away from evil and to move you towards God's bright kingdom. And that, it's coming. It's coming really soon. Now, John, after all that we've learned here, how do we summarize Matthew 11 and 12? So the Themester was conflict and confrontation. We saw how Jesus' mission of establishing the kingdom of heaven according to Matthew is gladly received by some, but it's causing strong opposition from those who want their own way in life. In fact, the harshest opposition sometimes comes from religious people. And also by those who happily witness his wonderful miracles and yet, for whatever reason, can't or won't open up their hearts to God. Perhaps, I don't know, perhaps you're listening and you might be a bit worried thinking, why is there so much opposition? Why are there those who insist on confrontation? I hate confrontation. Well, my dear listener, nothing worth having comes easily. There will always be opposition if you desire to serve the Lord. It seems to be all part of life's struggles, but we mustn't worry too much about opposition because Jesus has gone before us. He faced it too. And he will uphold us. He will give us the strength. He'll reward to our faithfulness in the midst of conflict and confrontation. If you like, payday is coming. And that's it for us here on Mission 66 today. I'm your host Esther, and I'd love for you to join me and our teacher, John Matthews, next time as we open up Matthew chapter 13 and continue our adventure on Mission 66. Until then, God bless you. As we wrap up today's program, I want to encourage you to take advantage of a valuable resource. You can enhance your understanding of the Gospels by downloading our free study guide. This guide will deepen your experience with God's Word and complement our daily teachings from John Matthews and Esther Sussulu. To access your free study guide of the Gospels, simply visit mission66.org. Pick up this valuable resource and also support the Ministry of Mission 66. Your gift helps sustain this program locally and globally. Mission 66 is a Ministry of Transworld Radio in partnership with Dr. Louise Seow. I'm Rob Dempsey. [BLANK_AUDIO]