Matthew Series, Week 43 - “I Got No Strings On Me”

 What’s the movie that gave you your very first fright or stuck with you as a scary moment, as a kid? I know some people say things like Babi where his mom is killed, or Snow White when you first see the face of the wicked queen in her disguise. For me, it was Disney’s Pinocchio. Most of its fine, but that scenes of the boys on Pleasure Island turning into donkey’s messed me up as a kid. I’d skip it every time I’d watch it.

And do you know the song, “I’ve Got No Strings”? Disney sure made that song creepy in the movie Avengers: Age of Ultron. The opening verse goes, 

“I've got no strings

To hold me down

To make me fret

Or make me frown

I had strings

But now I'm free

There are no strings on me”

It’s a fun song, when Pinocchio is singing and having fun, but it’s sure creepy when a talking murderous robot recites it. But the whole idea of Pinocchio is about this wooden puppet coming to life, but it’s not real life. Sure he doesn’t have strings, but he’s still wooden, he’s not truly living. Now it all works out in the end, but it’s because he’s not fully alive, that he is taken advantage of and used for what others can get out of him, before casting him aside. Pinocchio may not have strings that were visible, but people, like the fox and the puppet master, still pulled on the invisible ones that connected to the puppet’s desire. 

And it’s this idea of these invisible stings that brings us back to our Matthew series where we’ll be finishing off chapter 26 in the book of Matthew. And as we open up to Matthew 26, verse 36, let’s see where we are from last week. 

Since we began this final leg of Matthew’s writing on Jesus’ life, we have seen that the topic has focused on Jesus’ authority and how his disciples are to live under that authority. But what we saw from last week, is that we can easily fall into the trap of thinking, “I’m good.” That I have it all together, that I either do not need Jesus’ authority in my life, or that I have enough of it to where I can do the rest on my own. This is the trouble with a lot of people who call themselves Christians. They might have prayed a prayer at a camp, or been baptized by the church, or grew up in a Christian home, or they attend church service, but that’s about the scope of their faith. They think being in a Christian home, or attending Christian things, or praying specific words, gets just enough of Jesus’ in their lives to where they’ll get to heaven, and because they do these things, they can do whatever they like in their own strength. 

But Jesus didn’t say anything more important than two the words, “follow me.” In those two words we get everything he said, and everything he said points back to “follow me.” Not follow a pastor, not follow ministries, not even follow yourself, Jesus says, “follow me.” Following him means we accept him as Savior. Following him means we seek his will. Following him means we live life in his strength, connected to him, and not ourselves. 

When we don’t follow him, then we fall into the trap, thinking we are strong enough on our own. That a little Jesus is enough. When, in fact, we need him fully in us, leading us, and covering us. 

Because if we think we can do it without him, or just a pinch of Jesus in our lives, we’ll be just like the disciples we’ll read about today. So let’s open to Matthew 26, starting in verse 36.

36 Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” 37 He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. 38 Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

39 Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”

40 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. 41 “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

42 He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”

43 When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. 44 So he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing.

45 Then he returned to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour has come, and the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners. 46 Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”

47 While he was still speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, arrived. With him was a large crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests and the elders of the people. 48 Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with them: “The one I kiss is the man; arrest him.” 49 Going at once to Jesus, Judas said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” and kissed him.

50 Jesus replied, “Do what you came for, friend.”

Then the men stepped forward, seized Jesus and arrested him. 51 With that, one of Jesus’ companions reached for his sword, drew it out and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.

52 “Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him, “for all who draw the sword will die by the sword. 53 Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? 54 But how then would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen in this way?”

55 In that hour Jesus said to the crowd, “Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come out with swords and clubs to capture me? Every day I sat in the temple courts teaching, and you did not arrest me. 56 But this has all taken place that the writings of the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples deserted him and fled.

57 Those who had arrested Jesus took him to Caiaphas the high priest, where the teachers of the law and the elders had assembled. 58 But Peter followed him at a distance, right up to the courtyard of the high priest. He entered and sat down with the guards to see the outcome.

59 The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death. 60 But they did not find any, though many false witnesses came forward.

Finally two came forward 61 and declared, “This fellow said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and rebuild it in three days.’”

62 Then the high priest stood up and said to Jesus, “Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?” 63 But Jesus remained silent.

The high priest said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.”

64 “You have said so,” Jesus replied. “But I say to all of you: From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

65 Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, “He has spoken blasphemy! Why do we need any more witnesses? Look, now you have heard the blasphemy. 66 What do you think?”

“He is worthy of death,” they answered.

67 Then they spit in his face and struck him with their fists. Others slapped him 68 and said, “Prophesy to us, Messiah. Who hit you?”

69 Now Peter was sitting out in the courtyard, and a servant girl came to him. “You also were with Jesus of Galilee,” she said.

70 But he denied it before them all. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said.

71 Then he went out to the gateway, where another servant girl saw him and said to the people there, “This fellow was with Jesus of Nazareth.”

72 He denied it again, with an oath: “I don’t know the man!”

73 After a little while, those standing there went up to Peter and said, “Surely you are one of them; your accent gives you away.”

74 Then he began to call down curses, and he swore to them, “I don’t know the man!”

Immediately a rooster crowed. 75 Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken: “Before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly.

These four moments leading up to Jesus being turned over to the Romans for execution should be a wake up call to all of us who profess Jesus. That we would look at what our brothers in the faith encountered and failed at, so that we may succeed. Let’s look at each of these moments to see how they build upon each other, and how these moments connect to the overarching story Matthew, led by the Holy Spirit, is trying to tell us.

Coming out of last week, we saw Jesus’ final supper with his disciples. There, Jesus told them that there was a betrayer among them. They all denied it. Even going so far as to say that they would go with Jesus to death. Right after there resolve is proclaimed, it is tested. 

Jesus goes to the garden of Gethsemane, translated it means “oil press.” A fitting place for the resolve of Jesus and the disciples to be tested, to be pressed, like oil from the olive. There Jesus prayers three times, about removing the coming anguish, yet reconciling himself to the will of the Father. A parallel could be made to the three temptations of Jesus at the beginning of Matthew in chapter 4. At the olive press Jesus is again brought to a point where we could reject his Messianic work for an easier path. But just as he taught his disciples in chapter 6, it’s not our will, but our Father’s, who we should be seeking. 

This should also give us encouragement; feeling desperation, feeling like we can’t go on, feeling like we want to give up is not a sin. Being honest with God about how we feel and how we do not desire to go through something isn’t wrong. Yet, Jesus gives us the example to follow. In our hurt, our sorrow, when our strength and resolve is low, we must echo Jesus’ words, “Yet not as I will, but as you will.”

Through this though, we see the resolve of the disciples. They cannot even keep their eyes open. They have lacked in their prayers, their connecting with God. They have chosen to rest to gain their own strength, rather than pray and seek God’s.

And so we have two groups emerge from this time in the “oil press.” Jesus’ resolve is steadfast in the will of the Father, while the disciples’ resolve has already been shown to be lacking. So when Judas arrives with the guards, Jesus embraces the coming work of the cross, while one of his disciples, in his own strength, cuts off the ear of a guard. Jesus rebukes this disciple, because it’s not the path that has been laid out.

Jesus speaks of his authority to all the people, that he could bring down the angels. This is what the devil wanted back in chapter 4. Satan wanted Jesus to use his authority to make himself the king, thereby condemning humanity in their sin. But Jesus’ resolve to be the sacrificial lamb that makes payment for sin, is steadfast. It’s in this moment that we see what true power is. The ability to do whatever you want, but strength to do what is need for others. In this one moment, Jesus’ authority, his power, and his love shine out, and he comments himself to the fate of the cross.

But the disciples don’t. They fall away; running as fast as they can to not meet the same fate as Jesus. Their resolve faltered, because they didn’t do what Jesus had been telling them for the last several years, to follow him. They were to draw strength from him. To let his resolve be theirs. Yet they didn’t. All their talk about staying by him, all the way to death, was just bluster. And as they ran, Jesus was taken away to the first of his trials.

It’s here that we are brought from the garden to the whole council of the religious leadership. Jesus had spoke to many of these people, answering their questions and silencing their traps. Witness after witness are brought before Jesus, to either misinterpret what he said, or to flat out lie about it. All fail at convicting Jesus of the crimes by which the religious leaders sought to catch him in. 

That’s when Caiaphas the high priest asks his own question, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.”

Jesus’ answer goes beyond what Caiaphas asked. To Caiaphas, he must have been thinking of the many Messianic interpretations that the different sects of Judaism believed. But Jesus doesn’t give Caiaphas one of these interpretations, but rather his own, invoking no rabbi, or sect, but the word of God. Jesus refers from Daniel 7, “‘You have said so,’ Jesus replied. ‘But I say to all of you: From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.’”

We cannot miss the importance of this quote. Listen to Daniel as he speaks of his vision, a vision that Jesus says, is about him. “13 In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed (7:13-14).”

This son of man that Daniel speaks of, is worshiped by the nations. The son of man that Daniel sees, is given an everlasting dominion and kingdom that will forever endure. This son of man in the vision rides on the clouds as Yahweh himself does. And this Jesus before Caiaphas says that is him. Before the high priest and the religious council, Jesus is claiming the deity of God himself.

Therefore it makes sense then that Caiaphas tears his robes, and calls Jesus’ words blasphemy. He doesn’t believe Jesus, but we the reader should. We have seen Jesus throughout Matthew. We have seen his connection to the Old Testament. We have heard angels proclaim his arrival to the shepherds. We have seen nations come to bow and worship him. We have seen the words that override the rabbinical teachings. We have seen the miracles and forgiveness of sins that only come by God. We know what Caiaphas and the others reject; that Jesus is the God come down to be the sacrifice and payment for sin. He is our lamb, given to humanity by God, so that humanity would have a way out of eternal death and back to God’s eternal life.

And it is based on Jesus’ claim of deity that he is convicted, sentence to be taken away and given over to the Roman’s for execution. So many people think that Jesus was executed for spreading love, or just bucking the religious people of his day. No, he was convicted on his claim that he was God.

It’s here that we are briefly take away from Jesus and brought to Peter’s denial. Peter denies that he knows Jesus three times, even taking an oath to the fact. In this moment, Jesus’ words both show his authority and the fact that he is alone. Peter continually represents the whole of the twelve disciples, his rejection, represents all of their rejections. Judas was the most outwardly in his betrayal, but all the disciples fell in some way to that same path.

But there is hope, as we saw last week. Jesus spoke to his disciples, knowing they would all fall way, to meet him in Galilee. But before that meeting, the cross awaits.

This brings us full circle. Too often we are like the disciples. So sure of ourselves that we will be strong, yet fall away. Or we are like Caiaphas and the other religious leaders, so sure of our understanding of God, that God cannot do what we deem wrong. Yet, Jesus is his own. His authority is greater, his power more vast, his love deeper. And he is calling his disciples to live under that authority.

Since chapter 21 about eight weeks ago, we have been seeing one thing, we must submit and live under the authority of Jesus. That means we are his and not our own. Paul expressed it like this Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

When I accepted Jesus as my Savior, Jeremiah the rebel, Jeremiah the doubter, Jeremiah the strong man, Jeremiah the pitcher, the son of his dad, died…Jesus now lives in this life. It is Jesus who now resides and to whom I am rightfully owned. My old self tries to return, tries to take back what was stripped from it, but as I submit to Jesus’ authority, as the Holy Spirit beats back that flesh, I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.

The thoughts that I am strong enough, though they come again and again to my mind, must be taken captive before Christ. Because I am not. Outside of Jesus I am death walking. I am a puppet of my sin dancing until it is done with me and I lie lifeless in eternity. But glory to God because of Jesus, my strings to sin have been severed and Christ has filled me with his Spirit, and now I’m a real boy. 

My brothers and sisters, we must not fain loyalty to Christ, getting by on our religious duties, on our family heritage, what something we said once, but rather we must follow Jesus. Accepting his word, accepting his correction, accepting all that he has for us. We must reject the temptation that says, “I” and embrace Jesus who says, “Me”. It’s in his strength that we are strong, his love that we can love, on his path that we may walk. Our God came to us to bring us back to himself, let us therefore go with him.

My challenge for you this week, is to ask God, what strings of temptation are holding onto me. What is saying to you, do this and you will be strong? Trust this and you will be happy? Or follow here and you will get what you want? Take those strings to God and let the Holy Spirit cut them. Be the real person, the resurrected being that Christ died for. Submit to his authority, and let everything else fall where it may. 

Let us be Christians in the fullest sense of the word, Christ-like, because we follow and rely on him. Amen.

Matthew Series, Week 42 - “Rightful Alpha”

 The idea of the Alpha has become popular in men’s circles. Alpha referring to animal packs, where one of the packs members takes a leadership role. Through various ways, men seem to be less manly and so have seemingly lost their identity. There are pictures that show a well dressed man in from the first half of the 1900s with his fedora hat, suit and trench coat, put right next to a guy from 2019 dressed in skin tight shorts, woman’s shoes and a bright colored shirt. The Alph male movement seeks to reestablish a more rugged man; the type of man that tamed the west. This type of male would be best represented in a scene in the move Secondhand Lions, where Robert Duvall’s character, an old eccentric man is harassed by some young men. Duvall plays Hub, and he’s had enough. Hub grabs this young man and says this, “I'm Hub McCann. I've fought in two world wars, and countless smaller ones on three continents. I've led thousands of men into battle with everything from horses and swords to artillery and tanks. I've seen the headwaters of the Nile and tribes of natives no white men had ever seen before. I've won and lost a dozen fortunes, killed many men, and loved only one woman with a passion a flea like you could never begin to understand. That's who I am.” 

This is what the Alpha movement is about, trying to get men back to being men. But, as in all things, it can be taken too far. I have seen a lot of men who want to be Alpha men and they think that means sleeping with tons of women. Treating people with disrespect. Getting your own way. But the reality is, if we are trying to be the Alpha, that means we are a part of a pack. And the Alpha of a pack looks out for the interest of the group. The Alpha of a pack goes to war for their group, plays with the cubs, keeps everyone together. The downfall of the Alpha movement is not their basic intentions but that they are missing once key piece.

Men were never to be the Alpha, and that’s what brings us back into our Matthew series, where we find ourselves in the final leg of the Gospel, in chapter 26, verse 1. And as we enter into this final part of Matthew’s Gospel, 26:1, let's look at the five sections that we have covered so far. 

The first of these themes dealt with who Jesus was. He was the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy about God descending to earth to take on human form, so that he could rectify the problem of sin. Therefore we should listen to him.

The second section dealt with the idea of his word and how his disciples are to build their lives upon it. If Jesus is God come down, then we better open our ears and actually listen to what he says.

This is quickly followed by a section dealing with, who can be a disciple of Jesus. The answer being, anyone who puts their trust into Jesus and follows his word to build their life.

That section was then followed by a look at the type of faith a disciple was to have. A disciple was to have a faith that is learning to fully trust and actively following Jesus.

Finally, we are in the final section where we are looking at Jesus’ authority. In this we have seen how we must be satisfied with it, acting upon it, and trusting it for all that we will face. This is what it means to have a fully trusting and actively following faith.

It’s still in the topic of Jesus’ authority and our response to it that we pick up chapter 26 starting in verse 1. Let’s read together. 

1 When Jesus had finished saying all these things, he said to his disciples, 2 “As you know, the Passover is two days away—and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.”

3 Then the chief priests and the elders of the people assembled in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, 4 and they schemed to arrest Jesus secretly and kill him. 5 “But not during the festival,” they said, “or there may be a riot among the people.”

6 While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of Simon the Leper, 7 a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, which she poured on his head as he was reclining at the table.

8 When the disciples saw this, they were indignant. “Why this waste?” they asked. 9 “This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor.”

10 Aware of this, Jesus said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. 11 The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. 12 When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. 13 Truly I tell you, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.”

14 Then one of the Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests 15 and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty pieces of silver. 16 From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over.

17 On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Where do you want us to make preparations for you to eat the Passover?”

18 He replied, “Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, ‘The Teacher says: My appointed time is near. I am going to celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your house.’” 19 So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and prepared the Passover.

20 When evening came, Jesus was reclining at the table with the Twelve. 21 And while they were eating, he said, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me.”

22 They were very sad and began to say to him one after the other, “Surely you don’t mean me, Lord?”

23 Jesus replied, “The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with me will betray me. 24 The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born.”

25 Then Judas, the one who would betray him, said, “Surely you don’t mean me, Rabbi?”

Jesus answered, “You have said so.”

26 While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.”

27 Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. 28 This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”

30 When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

31 Then Jesus told them, “This very night you will all fall away on account of me, for it is written: “‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’

32 But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.”

33 Peter replied, “Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will.”

34 “Truly I tell you,” Jesus answered, “this very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.”

35 But Peter declared, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.” And all the other disciples said the same.

This is a long section, and can be looked at by cutting it into five parts. But the purpose of these summer series is to look how these individual parts connect together.

We must remember that these events follow the emphasis that we have seen on Jesus’ authority. At this point the disciples should be trusting Jesus. They’ve seen the miracles, they’ve seen Jesus silence his opposition, they have heard the teachings of Jesus to deny themselves and embrace him, loving God and loving people greater than themselves. In all of this, time and time again they have heard Jesus speak of his death on the cross and his resurrection. What comes now is the rubber to the road. Will the disciples trust Jesus? Following him the way he intends them to, or will they not? 

The verses we just read are Jesus’ last teachings to his disciples this side of the cross. What follows in the verses afterwards show the strength of the trust of the disciples. But Jesus already knows that strength, he already knows how they will respond, yet here we see him continue to prepare them, not just for the coming hardship, but for what follows. Let’s look how each of these sections flows into the greater theme of Jesus’ authority and how we as his disciples are to trust him.

Chapter 26 starts out with three important details: It’s the Passover meal, which is a celebration of God’s work during the Exodus, where the Angel of Death passed over the houses of those who trusted in God by painting lamb’s blood on the doorposts. The second detail, is that again, Jesus speaks of his crucifixion. This connects the two events together. Jesus is purposeful in the when and where of his crucifixion, because he is the new lamb that people must trust in, so that the wrath of God against sin will passover them once again. The final detail is that the religious leaders were set on killing Jesus, but wanted to wait until after the Passover celebration, yet, as we’ll see, God’s purposes for the two being connected override man’s plans.

This leads us into the anointing of Jesus. In this moment, where a woman comes to Jesus to pour out expensive perfumes on him, would be a situation in which Jesus’ disciples could act out Jesus’ words, and in a sense they kind of do. In response to this woman’s gift, the disciples say that the woman should have sold the expensive perfume and given the money to the poor. Which would seem like the right thing to do. And Jesus’ response that the poor will always be there, seems like a weird and selfish thing to say. Yet if we think so, like the disciples, we’ve missed the point. The woman’s gift, does several things, it anoints Jesus, as he says, for his death; something the disciples keep denying was going to happen. The gift, is an offering brought to Jesus from a heart that desires to serve him; a position of worship each one of us should hold. It wasn’t right for the disciples to deny or chastise this woman for her heartfelt desire to serve the Jesus, and it wouldn’t be our right to deny others the gifts and offerings they bring to Jesus.

The woman’s gift and Jesus’ response to the disciples, seems to be the final straw in Judas’ story, because it’s here that we learn that he makes a deal to betray Jesus. This is important, because it shows where Judas’ heart is, and later on his duplicity in eating with Jesus. A smaller detail is the fact that Judas’ payment is the fulfillment of prophecy from Zechariah 11:12-13, but also  gives us an insight into Judas’ view of Jesus as nothing better than slave; because thirty pieces of silver was the covenantal price of buying a slave.

From here we move to the Passover meal, or Jesus’ last supper. We get three parts concerning this meal. First, Jesus’ command to prepare the meal is answered by his disciples. Secondly, Jesus’ speaks of a betrayal that will happen and which Judas questions. Thirdly the institution of communion with the eating of the bread and the drinking from the cup. What’s interesting is we see the whole of the redemption story in Jesus’ last supper. Like Jesus’ telling his disciples to prepare the meal, God commands the universe to be created. Like the betrayal of Judas, Adam betrayed the authority of God and caused the fall of humanity. God broke the body and spilt the blood of an animal as a stop gap measure to cover humanity’s sin and nakedness. It is the breaking of Jesus’ body and spilling of his blood that brings about the full covering of humanity and the full forgiveness of sin.

Finally we move away from the meal to the Mount of Olives, where Jesus is straightforward with the disciples. All of them will fall away. It wasn’t just Judas that would leave Jesus’ side, but everyone of the disciples will leave him that night. But there’s hope. The cross is not the end, Jesus speak of his resurrection and calls the disciples to meet him once again Galilee where this whole thing started. Jesus calls them sheep, that when the shepherd is struck the sheep will scatter, but they are still his sheep, and they are still called back to the fold. Peter denies that he will be like the others. No, he will be there even to death; to which the other disciples proclaimed the same.

These moments in time are linked together because they show the foolishness of the disciples. At the end they spoke about how they would stand by Jesus’ side, but they weren’t ready for what was to come. Though Jesus had spoken to them time and time again about his crucifixion, they had denied him at every step. Yet the woman accepted Jesus’ fate. She anointed Jesus for the work that he would do ahead and the disciples chastised her for it. They were not prepared, they were still so full of themselves.

And this is the trap that stands before each of us. I know what’s best, I am prepared, I can fight any battle, I am the alpha. But we don’t know what’s best, we are not prepare. There’s a military saying, “no plan survives the first contact of war (attributed to Carl von Clausewitz);” even with the best of information our plans will most likely fail. No, we cannot fight every battle, a force hell bent on the destruction of an individual will eventually succeed. It took almost ten years for the US military to track down and kill Osama bin Laden. He hid for a decade, but US military eventually found and executed him. And no we are not the alpha, there’s always a bigger fish in the pond, a stronger strongman to overthrow. 

When we think we have it all laid out, that we are the best there is, it’s then that we fall the hardest. The disciples thought they had it, but they didn’t. The moment they chastised the woman, is the moment they sealed their fate. In that one moment the proved that their resolve to follow Jesus was not sustainable. The reason why, is because they would not submit and follow Jesus’ authority in their lives. 

Because it’s Jesus who knows what’s best, it’s Jesus’ plans that are fulfilled. It’s Jesus that overcomes all battles, and it’s Jesus that is the true Alpha because he is the beginning of all things. 

The trap that we must be aware of, that stands in front of all of us at all times, is the trap of that says I can do this a part from Jesus. But the reality is, as Jesus has said in the Gospel of John, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing (15:5).” Jesus didn’t say we can do some things, or most things, he said we can do nothing. 

This is why Paul wrote this in Philippians 4, “11 I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength (11-13).” 

As Jesus’ disciples we must realize that Jesus is right. What he says and does is right. That means if he says I can’t do it, I can’t. If he says trust me, I have to. If he says it’s my way, I follow.  

We must live under Jesus’ authority, because it’s exactly where we are supposed to be and if we think we can do it on our own, we’ll quickly learn we can’t and it’s that defeat that we come face to face with our own foolishness, just like the disciples did, but that’s next week.

For now, I want to challenge you to seek after God and ask him, am I planning outside of his authority? Am I thinking I know what’s best outside of his will? Do I think I’m strong enough for any battle? So I think I’m the Alpha? Seek God to uncover any areas that you are holding onto for your own authority. Ask that the Holy Spirit to both reveal those areas and deal with them.

Let us be a people who seek God’s authority over our lives, that when the battles come, we are strengthened, by his word and his Spirit and not by our own strength. Amen.

Matthew Series, Week 41 - “RightSide Sheep”

  So I stumbled upon this quote from a football coach this week. I can’t remember the guys name or his exact phrasing, but it went something like this, “You don’t fail until you blame someone else for your failing.” It stood out to me because a lot of the problems I see come down to blaming others. I didn’t know much about anything as a kid, still really don’t, but what I did know was that Satan was bad. And so, when I was asked why I did something bad, I would say, Satan made me do it. Deflection of consequence is always the go to for most people. Kids learn that deflection early on, and we carry it with us into adulthood, where we learn to blame everything so that people will give us sympathy. 

That’s one of the reasons we’re having the problems in our society today, we deflect responsibility for our own actions on the people around us. It’s my parents fault, it’s my teachers fault, it’s my friends, my spouse, my kids, the government, the media. Believe me there is blame to go around, but our deflection of our own role in life leads others to deflect. But there will come a day when we will not be able to deflect anymore.

And that day is what brings us back to our series in the Gospel of Matthew, where we’ll be finishing off chapter 24. And as we open together to Matthew chapter 25, verse 31, let’s recap the last several weeks. 

For the last seven weeks we have been looking at the final section to Matthew’s Gospel. There are five total sections, each one wrapped around a sermon by Jesus. In this fifth and final section of Matthew, Jesus’ authority is the focus. In the first four weeks we looked how a disciple must live under Jesus’ authority. Living under that authority means we are satisfied with what God gives us, we are seeking God’s will, we are acting upon his will, and we are not confining God’s will or work to our own. It’s living under God’s authority where humanity was created to be. It’s the created order that brings us all the things that we desire, but try to find apart from God. 

When we don’t live under God’s authority we enter into sin. Woes, or consequences of sin, then follow, and we have no one else to blame but ourselves for what happens. Yet, this is why Jesus comes to us. Instead of God leaving us in our sin, and left in our woes, God the Son descends to us as Jesus and takes the punishment of our sin, the ultimate woe of eternal death, onto himself. If we then accept his work through the cross and trust in the resurrection, we then become his disciples under his authority, with no woe ahead of us.

But there is a day when Jesus’ salvation call will come to an end, and that day is his return. So for his disciples, he gives them an insight into that day. Jesus gives a handful of future signs to let his disciples know what to expect as precursors to when his coming will be. These signs are to prepare us for that day.

And when that day comes, Jesus’ disciples must be watchful and actively doing Jesus’ Gospel work. Being wise as we look for Jesus’ return and faithful in the job he has given us, will show us as true disciples. And at the Master’s return, he will bring us into his eternal kingdom.

Yet, there is always the other side. What happens if we are not followers of Christ, or if we are lost in our sin? That is what Jesus’ final thought concerning his return is all about. Let’s read together starting in verse 31 of Matthew chapter 25.

31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

45 “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

For a lot of people this section of the Scriptures is, to use a modern word, triggering. In one of the clearest passages Jesus refers to hell as both a reality and as an eternal destination. For our modern society, this is horrible, and for a lot of people is a reason why some either do not come to Jesus as Savior, or leave the faith.

I am part of an Alliance online theological forum. A lady posted a situation she encountered, where she met an ex-pastor who left the faith because of hell. He could not reconcile the idea of hell, with a loving God. This is a common issue that I’ve witnessed, and I believe it’s because we as individuals tend to not believe God  about how horrific sin is. We deflect, believing my sin isn’t that bad, at least not bad enough to warrant hell.

So to understand the concept of hell, we must understand the gruesomeness of sin itself.  In Genesis 3, the result of humanity’s sin does not effect humanity alone. We read, “So the Lord God said to the serpent, ‘Because you have done this, Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.’ 16 To the woman he said, ‘I will make your pains in childbearing very severe; with painful labor you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.’ 17 To Adam he said, ‘Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, “You must not eat from it,” Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. 18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return (v.14-19).’”

The results of Adam and Eve’s sin sends ripples throughout the entirety of creation. It effects our relationships with God, our relationships with other spiritual beings, our relationships with each other, and our relationship with our environment. Every aspect of the creation has been distorted and brought low because of that act of sin.

We have been talking about living under the authority of Jesus, because that authority was put aside by the first humans. Jesus is calling us back to the authority that we were created to live under from the beginning. Yet humanity is living outside of God’s authority; we are living in the perpetual woe that resulted from that first sin. Every hurricane that destroys our town, every rape, every war, every murder, every broken home, every evil thing that plagues humanity came from that first sin. And if we’re honest with ourselves, we will see that our own sin adds to that original and brings about more woes on to us. Every lie we tell breaks relationship. Every mean word, hateful thought, physical hit, adds to the woe of the world that results from sin. 

This is why Paul writes in Romans 8:22, “22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.” And why do Christians talk about the return of Jesus? Because, as Paul continues writing in the next verse, “23 Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies.” Those that recognize the devastation that comes as a result of sin, understand the need of a Savior and will not only look for him, but will live under his authority now, telling others about their need. 

This is why this passage of Scripture here in Matthew 25 is so important, it is dealing, not with issues like don’t smoke or don’t cuss, but of the eternal impact that sin has for each of our lives.

This is why Jesus tells us that he will sit on a glorious throne. The throne is a seat of judgement, it’s his authority fully seen. As he is speaking, Jesus is on the precipice of dying on the behalf of humanity, but at his second coming he will be it’s final judge. That’s why this scene is so heartbreaking; it is due to humanity’s sin that permeates every part of it’s relationships with the rest of creation that not only did it’s Creator have to die for it, but that there will still be those who reject the Creator and will have to go away into a horrific place.

And so Jesus describes the separating of two groups. On the one hand you have the sheep. This is the common description of God’s people throughout the Scriptures. From the David’s famous Psalm 23 to Jesus’ own words throughout Matthew, the people of God are the sheep to his Good Shepherd.

On the other had are the goats. These two groups parallel the wheat and weeds from Mathew 13, where Jesus described both growing together and being separated at the end. 

The sheep will go to Jesus’ right side, a place of honor, while the goats will go to Jesus’ left a place of dishonor. 

Here we get an insight into the two groups. Both were given opportunities to put Jesus’ words into action. The sheep or righteous will put Jesus’ words into action. They will have the work of the Holy Spirit in their lives producing right actions. They will treat others as if they were Jesus. The feeding, the visiting, the comforting to the least of these sees people of all stripes as opportunities not just to help people, but to serve the Master.

The goats, on the other hand, are unrighteous because they do not put the words of Jesus into action. They do not feed, clothe, visit, comfort, because they are their own masters, who seek their own will. 

And this is what it comes down to, those who put Jesus’ words into action are those who have their trust counted as righteousness. They trust that Jesus is correct, that we are sinners incapable of fixing ourselves to be righteous and good enough for God. They trust that he came to live the perfect life they could not, and then take their punishment on the cross. They trust that Jesus rose from the dead, because his sacrifice was acceptable to pay for our sins. They trust that the Holy Spirit has been given to indwell them to bring about Jesus’ righteousness in their own lives, by transforming us into the image of Jesus himself. And they trust that Jesus is coming again.

The goats, trust none of this, thinking that they can achieve righteousness on their own, and in so doing, miss everything that Jesus has said.

And the kicker is this. The destination of the goats, of those that are unrighteous because of their own sin and their lack of acceptance of Jesus, was never intended for humanity. In verse 41 Jesus says, “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” The eternal destination for those who stay in their sin, who do not seek after God, who reject the salvation that is found in Jesus alone, was never intended for humanity in the first place. It was intended for those who saw the authority of God in it’s fullness and rejected it. Yet, it has become the place for all sin to reside in punishment. It is the place where all those that choose to live under their own authority apart from God, will be given what they have chosen. 

It’s a heartbreaking moment in time that Jesus will have to execute. Remember, just a few chapters back in chapter 23 of Matthew, Jesus spoke about the woes that follow those who live outside of his authority, to which he ended the woes with this, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing (v. 37).”

Peter who listened to all of this recognizes God’s heart for humanity when he writes in his second letter about the return of Jesus in these words, “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).”

God deeply loves his creation and desires it to come back under his authority where they were first created to thrive. But the reality is this: at the end, there will be the sheep and the goats. Those that submit to the authority of Jesus and those who don’t. It isn’t a comfortable reality, but it is what will be. This is why it’s so important for us who call ourselves Jesus’ disciples to share the life giving message of the Gospel. It is why it is so important that we be putting Jesus’ words into practice. It’s why it’s so important that we not just say we are Christians, but we seek the work of the Holy Spirit in us, that we may truly be Christ-like. 

This part of the Scriptures ends with these words in chapter 26, “When Jesus had finished saying all these things, he said to his disciples, 2 ‘As you know, the Passover is two days away—and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.’

Jesus saw his death just ahead; a death that was needed for you and me, yet he walked straight towards it, that his sheep would someday be separated into his eternal life. The question that we are left with is, will it be you?

My challenge this week is this: If you are unsure, now’s the time to be sure. Each of us can agree that we are sinners, all we need to do is take just the ten commandments and ask the question have I broken anyone of these. If we are honest, will quickly see, we’ve broken not just one or two, but all of them. That’s all it takes to be separated onto the Judge’s left side. But the Judge also provided a way to be on his right side. He himself left his throne in heaven to descend to us. He lived the perfect life we couldn’t, then died in our place. Now all we must do is trust him in all that he says. And a part of that trusting is putting it into practice. Then, we can be assured that we have salvation, that we will be his sheep, because he will give us his Spirit to transform us into his image. The image we were created to bear, but didn’t. 

If you have already put your trust into Jesus as your Savior, then I want to invite you to look at the people around you, not just as sinners, but as people who need Jesus. Treat the people around you as Jesus himself. Taking care of their needs, giving comfort to them, as if you were doing it for your Savior himself. Show this world what it means to be a Christian, and just as our Savior laid his life down for others, let us do the same.

Let us be a those who the world can see live under the authority of Jesus. Who look like our Savior and on that day when Jesus judges, there will be no doubt in anyone’s mind that we walk on Jesus’ right side of righteousness, because we are his sheep. Amen.