18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
15 The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.18 And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him,20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
Even when we run from God, he doesn't turn his back on us. If you're running from your problems, be encouraged by Billy Graham's 1984 message from Anchorage, Alaska.
The story of the prodigal son (the story of the loving father)
[16] “To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: [17] “ ‘We played the pipe for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.' [18] For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.' [19] The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.' But wisdom is proved right by her deeds.” [20] Then Jesus began to denounce the towns in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. [21] “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. [22] But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. [23] And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted to the heavens? No, you will go down to Hades. For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. [24] But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.” [25] At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. [26] Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do. [27] “All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. [28] “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. [29] Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. [30] For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Talk
Roof Raising Rhetoric
Matthew 11:16-30 Introduction
Title = Straight, strong and convincing talk - but mine is 3 R's!
There is a tendency by us and others to have Jesus fit our understanding and preconceived ideas of who he is and what he is like and that doesn't really work well. When we look and listen, we must hold in our thinking the he is the eternal son of God, Lord, creator, saviour and king of eternity - and of course a friend we are on first name terms with - Jesus!
1. Reflection on society - vv 16-19 [16] “To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: [17] “ ‘We played the pipe for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.' [18] For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.' [19] The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.' But wisdom is proved right by her deeds.”
In this case the critics of the message of the Kingdom first spoken of by John The Baptist and now being taught more fully and comprehensively by Jesus. He says they are like children in a playground and setting up a 'loose, loose, can't get it right and please' scenario. The music is bright, you won't dance. The tune is sombre and you won't mourn. - no winning.
John the Baptist had a frugal lifestyle and he was deemed as demonic; Jesus goes and joins in feasts and banquets and is called a glutton and drunkard. - no winning / no pleasing some, at least.
Has anything changed?
If and when people are against the good news of Jesus and the kingdom there is nothing you can say and do that will get you / us anywhere.
They'll knock the church / Christians / the bible etc with anything that's disparaging and usually far from the truth. Fault finding rather than truth seeking! I am sure you have come across it and in the next section we see it from another angle altogether.
2. Rough on the locals - vv 20-24 [20] Then Jesus began to denounce the towns in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. [21] “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. [22] But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. [23] And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted to the heavens? No, you will go down to Hades. For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. [24] But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.
I note that this section is not included in the cycle of readings, only what comes before and after - the compilers don't want you thinking about tough words from Jesus on a Sunday morning - well, we are going to!
Jesus said it and it is important on 2 counts:
• Jesus calls people to repent and follow him and that those who reject are under condemnation - Romans 8:1 states the reverse Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, And the passage goes on to say how we are being changed as we live in the sovereignty of God and the Holy Spirit who adopts us a his children.
• It is good for us to remember when people don't want to hear or know about Jesus that he was rejected too and actually by some of those who were the closest to him. He lived in Capernaum for a time and had healed people - they had known the power, presence and love of God but even then didn't want to know! We looked at Jesus prayer in John 17 a few weeks ago, I go back to v 14: I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. And a little earlier the same evening there in the upper room on the night before the cross John 15:19: If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. I also recall that the three parables of Luke 15 - lost coin / sheep / son were told because his critics (Pharisees and teachers of the law) accused him of eating with eating with tax collectors and sinners!
Jesus can speak a little bit 'rough and tough' - so let's get away from 'gentle Jesus meek and mild' because he isn't in the way we often use those words!
Back to these verses and what he says about the places where he has been ministering and that his words are uncomfortable, we can also remember that love and justice are two sides of the coin which reflects the image of God.
Finally on this section: when it came to the cross Jesus bore in his body, once and for all, our sin so we can be called to repentance and faith, receive purification from sin and be deemed righteous and therefore able to enter the presence of God now and in eternity.
3. Revelation to his followers - vv 25-26 [25] At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. [26] Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do. It follows on and brings us to something that I think we'll be looking at next week from another angle and of course the phrase 'little children' are those who humble themselves, whatever their background, and listen to and receive Jesus.
The Pharisees and teachers of the law thought they knew it all and that only they got it 'really right' - Jesus begs to differ and is on and continuing on his disciple training course. We saw last week in Acts 4:13 that when Peter and John were cross examined after the healing of the lame man by these self-same critics and opponents of Jesus When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. Jesus did a good job and do you know what? He still does!
4. Reality of the Father and the Son- v 27 [27] “All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. Again, it follows on and these words are a bold declaration but fully in accord with the message of Jesus in the Gospels. I go back again to the upper room and to another passage we looked at a while back, John 14:6: [6] Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. [7] If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.” No wonder so many people wriggle and squirm and will throw out anything to discredit all things Christian because once you start to acknowledge statements like this to be true, well, atheism, agnosticism, cynicism start to collapse and fall apart.
5. Refreshment for life and service - vv 28-30 [28] “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. [29] Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. [30] For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
I haven't said this for a bit but now seems a good time to do so as it is all through this passage and that is that so much, if not all, of what Jesus says centres on him and the Father through him! Come to me . . . And I will . . . . 7 occurrences of I / me / my in just 3 verses!
Next, I wonder how these verses are seen. Is Jesus saying - when everything is bad and falling apart come to me and I give you some rest? I certainly think that is all part of it but not all of it.
The 'more' is that this is a general invitation to all in all circumstances and like all that Jesus says it is about our starting and ongoing relationship with him. He seems to be saying with me you'll be in a better state all round and we'll keep tweaking it when it goes out of shape!
Observe the following: • The world and life without Jesus is wearying and we get loaded with a lot of unnecessary baggage - burdens. • At the heart Jesus says learn from me, take on who I am and what I give for life, caring and service in the Kingdom then we receive not just rest, but rest and refreshment so we can continue. • Then there is the phrase by which I suggest we get misled - I am gentle and humble in heart. The word for gentle is that which was used for an animal that had been tamed and with reference to humble, Jesus humbles himself - see Philippians 2:5-11.
In his book 'Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe' C S Lewis casts Jesus as the lion called Aslan. When asked by Lucy if he is safe she gets the answer, “Safe?” said Mr. Beaver; “don’t you hear what Mrs. Beaver tells you? Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.” Jesus is the King and he is all loving but as we saw earlier not to be trifled with.
• Then we have the other part about Jesus' yoke and his burden. If you have your bible look at v 30 - easy and light - now that sounds good, we can just chill. No! • Remember what a yoke is. It is used to carry whatever and go round you neck and shoulders. Jesus the carpenter says it is well fitting. It won’t rub and cause sores and blisters it's carved and moulded to fit. Light means well balanced. Not 5kg and 10kg but 7.5kg on each side!
Boats, planes, ships and lots of other things have to be well balanced or they sink, crash or wear out. Even car wheels are balanced to maximize tyre wear!
• Jesus 'burden' is that of the good news about him and the Kingdom with focal point at the cross and resurrection. Then, with all our other cares / anxieties / burdens whatever, we listen to Peter's encouragement: 1 Peter 5:6-7 [6] Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.
[7] Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Then, in response to the invitation from Jesus we follow and keep on following him: your kingdom come, your will be done . . . . Conclusion No messing with Jesus. He's the best friend we can have and so much more. Many have been using this time of lockdown, and now by many of us more reserved freedom, as a time to get closer to Jesus and understand a bit better all we are when we are in him and our prayer is that we continue in that. Trusting, following, receiving at the gracious and loving hand of our Heavenly Father. Refreshed and renewed to continue from where we are to wherever we end up through it all. He sustains - bread / water / vine / light / good shepherd etc. And we shall conclude our time this morning reflecting on John 15:1-17 - below
Having given detailed and foundational teaching on the Holy Spirit last Sunday which I felt compelled to do, I don't have the same feeling this week about the Holy Trinity. For those of us who follow, however gently, the Church's Year, today is Trinity Sunday.
God, as Trinity is a core and creedal belief: One God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit, totally biblical and demonstrable as such. What we shall do as we look at the passage which has been laid on my heart to preach from, Ephesians 1, is observe what is present in so many scriptures God working as one - Father, Son & Holy Spirit.
1. Unflinching and Unquestioned Inclusion - verses 13-14
[13] And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, [14] who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession-to the praise of his glory.
I am aware I have come into a passage mid flow of what Paul is saying and so, being very concise, the first part establishes how the first, and Jewish believers, came to be incorporated into Christ as part of God's eternal plan.
So, who is the 'you' of verse 13a?
The Christians at Ephesus and the significance in the emphasis of 'you also' is that they were not Jews but Gentiles. When they believed the gospel of Jesus, they became a part of the household of faith without any distinction from the Jewish believers. By extension the 'you' of verse 13a is all Christians from all walks and strata of life down through the ages - us right now! One tier Christianity! Unpack that in your thoughts!!!
Then verses 13b-14, paralleling a point we looked at last week:
Sealed with the Holy Spirit - God's mark of ownership Guaranteeing the inheritance of redemption
Jews and Gentiles (latter is you and me as none Jews) completely on the same footing. No 2nd class or 2nd rate Christians.As I said, one tier Christianity - but too often 'them and us'. Some on pedestals, others not really welcome or side-lined because . . ..
2. Dedicated and Dynamic Prayer - verses 15-23
Last week I highlighted a point on prayers which said we don't always need words just that deep seeking of the mind and will of God. Here, Paul is absolutely specific in his prayer for these Gentile Christians which, please note, is surrounded by thanksgiving for their generous love, for their faith in the Lord Jesus and love for God's people. We also saw, two weeks ago, how Jesus prayed very specifically in the upper room in John 17.
Side note - the Christian faith isn't just about me and God but me, God and other believers!
So, his prayer coming from this thankfulness
For God to acts in us as Father, Son & Holy Spirit - verses 15-17
[15] For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God's people, [16] I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. [17] I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.
All three persons are mentioned and so active in the purpose of Paul's prayer which is that we may know Him (God) better because we are given wisdom and revelation. That in turn should arise from some bible knowledge and relationship with God.
Side note - these folks had no new testament! It was in the process of being written and so after what they heard of the Old Testament, the rest would be the accounts being shared about the life and events of Jesus.
For us to open eyed to appreciate our inheritance - verses 18-19a
[18] I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, [19] and his incomparably great power for us who believe
What he is saying is that our hope is based on our inheritance which flows from the victory of the cross with the price of sin paid -forgiveness comes through saying sorry and changing (repentance); death being defeated through resurrection and that brings in life which is eternal!
Check - this is what Jesus has inherited and He is the first to rise and be in the heavenly realm!
In the same breath Paul brings in us knowing the incomparably great power for us as believers. No brevity in his words but that was because he knew all this for himself!
And when Paul gets rolling, he just rocks on and so the final part of what we are looking at which follows on from power:
For us to be constantly aware of the power and authority we are under - verses 19b-23 and I have to read it again:
That power is the same as the mighty strength [20] he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, [21] far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. [22] And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, [23] which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
We have access now to the same power that raised Jesus from death and into eternity That raising placed Jesus in sovereignty over any and every other kind of authority and power - human or demonic - for all time and the result is: everything is subject to him, under his feet, and he rules it all including the church, he is the head over it, which means we / it is his body that serves him and not ourselves.
We have a phrase to the effect: power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely!
This power, the power of the cross, resurrection and exultation of Jesus: respects, liberates and brings hope and life itself because it was born out of complete servitude and humility by submitting to the corrupting power of sin and death at our hands! (see Philippians 2:5-11). It is the power of victory arising from apparent weakness and defeat!
Conclusion
Finally,
This morning we have explored, broadly, two matters:
That all who are called, who have responded through repentance to that call, and are now In Christ, stand before God as co-heirs. Hopefully we also stand before each other's as equals.
That the Holy Spirit power which lives in us, individually and corporately, also assures that with Jesus reigning over all with complete and utter victory, we are safe.
Yes, life is good, yes life can be tough and at times very, very tough and terrible as well as wonderful things happen to God's children. He suffers with those who suffer and rejoices in the good. We rest assured in joys and struggles that nothing can rob us of what we have or snatch us out of the Father's hand. Jesus, the shepherd king speaking, John 10:28-30
[28] I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. [29] My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father's hand. [30] I and the Father are one."
Now, finally, finally!
I came up with the heading for this talk 'Mind-blowing Realities' and what Paul say is: mind-blowing and stretching at one and the same time. Realities because God is who he is, Father, Son & HOLY SPIRIT - beyond comprehension; but, at the same time He has brought victory out of seeming defeat which results in our security now and for ever. Why? Because through faith / trust in Jesus we have all that Jesus has.
God the Father loves us; Jesus the Son has won salvation and God the Holy Spirit imparts it to you and I freely, but, with the paradoxical cost of our lives as servants of the living God.
With the Good Shepherd passage ringing in our ears we may also be scratching our heads thinking 'that's a bit fishy, or rather woolly, as it doesn't sound quite right with our usual understanding of sheep. A shepherd may think something else but often we consider sheep to be rather silly creatures and that doesn't quite match the picture in John 10.
Remember - the sheep in the passage are middle eastern and somewhat different to those we are more familiar with and I speak as a Brit!
Back then - no enclosed fields, completely different breeds and unlike ours they are not driven but led and will wander along behind the shepherd and only now and again, wander off! I remember being on a beach in N Africa and a shepherd with his flock all happily wandering along.
Sheep were often named and at night they might well be in a small enclosure and again, sometimes, the shepherd would sleep across the entrance so he was effectively the gate as well as the shepherd!
2. The Shepherd and the Leaders
There are 62 references to shepherd and 60 to shepherds in the Bible and the majority of them are to do with the Lord or the leaders of the people!
Leaders in terms of: the king and his associates from Saul onwards, and also, the Priests in the Old Testament and, them and the Pharisees and other religious leaders in New Testament times.
The very first reference to shepherd is in relation to God in Genesis 48.
Biblically Shepherd is a huge and significant picture and this morning we have read two important OT passages on this theme:
Psalm 23 - The Lord's my shepherd
Ezekiel 34 where God castigates the leaders for gross dereliction of duty and care for the people & there is a parallel passages in Jeremiah
But in Ezekiel 34 we hear that The Lord will, once again, one day, take the role of the shepherd of His people.
3. The Shepherd and Jesus
When Jesus stands there with the Pharisees listening along with the rest of the crowd, and declares in John 10:11 that he is The Good Shepherd, he isn't picking up a quaint and familiar notion about shepherds and sheep, although he is doing that, he is drawing on a then 2000 year old theme involving God and his people.
He is declaring that this is who he is, the Good Shepherd, the rightful leader of the people of God and, the Lord himself.
Every time he says 'I am' it is emphatic: I, I am . . .
Let's consider briefly the following ideas from the passage in John 10:
- I am the gate - the only way into the fold and as such am also guardian of my flock
- The rest are false and charlatans, thieves and robbers - they are up to no good
- I know my sheep, they know me, I know there names, they hear me and follow my voice - it is a relationship
- They will not follow a stranger but run away - to be in Christ and be indwelt by the Holy Spirit is the best place to be - flee anything else
- I have come so you can have life to the full, actually, overflowing - this is what the shepherd and guardian of our lives wants for us, life that overflows with good things.
- Jesus, the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep and it becomes more powerful a few verses later on in John 10:18 where he says of his life:
No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up againHis death is sacrificed for us and taken up, again, for us!
4. The Shepherd and us
Before the final and direct considerations I want to raise a link to something key in scripture, and not least the teaching of Jesus' which we have been considering, the Kingdom of God and the Kingship of Jesus. It lies under and alongside much we have thought about his morning and has bubbled up. Reflect on the lines of: the Shepherd King and the sheep that form the flock and the Kingdom.
Going more directly to this morning's theme, consider:
- How we, you and I relate to the Shepherd? Do we drop our levels of independence to depend more on him?
- How He provides for our every need - this governs our view and outlook on life and our lives
- How we stay true to him in all we are and do
- Staying away from that which damages our relationship with him and cause us to stray
- How we share in the role of shepherding and growing the flock: care / invitation / encouragement
My bible reading notes brought a new explanation to the passage in Matthew 8:23-27.
1- I just thought it was a normal storm, it wasn't because: 'the language used indicates that the lake was being stirred into a frenzy, threatening to overwhelm them totally'
2 - I learnt a new cultural element, 'to the Jews, the sea represented primeval forces of chaos, the home of monsters, and it was only the saving power of God that could bring calm.'
3 - A new idea is offered, Jesus told his disciples off. How could they lose their faith in Him, after all He has done (many healings and he'd just resurrected a widow's son in Nain)? Jesus could not have died in a storm in the middle of his messianic work. However it takes discipline to ban fear in my life and I don't think that I have managed to get it right. I know that Jesus says 'Do not worry'... when I hear bad news or reports, I tend to worry first and then I'll give my worries to Jesus, on the foot of his cross. A prayer for this time of turmoil
Father God, You are Love.
We know through your Word that you are in charge and we put our trust in you.
We thank you for Jesus, our Saviour who walked on the earth to let us know about your awesome plan of redemption for us, your creatures.
Father, Jesus obeyed you and died an awful death on the cross for us even though He was sinless.
Father, we repent of our sins and we declare that the body and blood of Jesus made a sacrifice that satisfied God once and for all. Thank you that our sins are forgiven and blotted out forever. Keep us on the right path, guided by the voice of the Holy Spirit.
Lord, help us in this time of turmoil! Save the lost sheep and the rebellious ones. We call on You, our King and we ask you to heal all those who are ill or wounded, and heal our Land and the nations.
Give wisdom to all the leaders of the countries and open the eyes of their hearts that they may hear your voice and see your Glory.
Everybody wanna be like you theyWant power and praise like you butSee there is no god like our GodThere's no one like youWho gave their life like you andWho paid our price like you seeThere's only one god that's our GodThere's no one like you.Who can touch like youOr heal us like you doWe stumble and we strayTil' you always get us throughWho makes all things newAnd comes to our rescueDeath, hell, and the graveThey could not conquerYou became just like meTo unlock and set freeThis prisoner that was deeply wounded and redeemedThe me I could not seeEverybody wanna be like you theyWant power and praise like you butSee there is no god like our GodThere's no one like youWho gave their life like you andWho payed our price like you seeThere's only one god that's our GodThere's no one like you.Some may worship thingsBut what joy do they bring?They try and hide the stainsBut can they set us freeSee where would we beWithout CalvaryA king upon a treeSo the whole world can seeYou became just like meTo unlock and set freeThis prisoner that was deeply wounded and redeemedThe me I could not seeEverybody wanna be like you theyWant power and praise like you butSee there is no god like our GodThere's no one like youWho gave their life like you andWho payed our price like you seeThere's only one god that's our GodThere's no one like you.Healer, father, saviourCounsellor, friend, providerWas, is and foreverThat's why I just wanna be where you areI'll travel life with you no matter how far[x2]...Became just like meTo unlock and set freeThis prisoner that was deeply wounded and redeemedThe me I could not seeEverybody wanna be like you theyWant power and praise like you butSee there is no god like our GodThere's no one like YouWho gave their life You andWho paid our price like you seeThere's only one god that's our GodThere's no one like you.There's no one like you, there's no one like you, there's no god like our GodThere's no one like you. [8x]
