Month: March 2015

In 1969, John Fogerty went to a rerun of a 1941 movie called “The Devil and Daniel Webster”. Part way through the movie he was mesmerized by a scene of an approaching hurricane and the powerful imagery stuck in his mind long after the movie was over. A song started to form in his head, and Fogerty went home over the next few days and wrote “Bad Moon Rising”, a song that became a top single of 1969. “Creedence Clearwater Revival” popularized it with their recording that year, but it has been recorded by at least 20 artists since then. Rolling Stone Magazine ranked the song #364 on its “500 Greatest Songs of All Time” list – if you are willing to take their word for it.

The idea of the song was “there is a storm was on the way” – a devastating one at that. Interestingly enough, that was the general theme of Jesus’ last major sermon in Matthew’s Gospel before He gathered with His men for Passover the night before His betrayal. We saw in the last lesson that it was a time of intense pressure – and Jesus’ disputes with the Judean aristocracy were coming to an agonizing crescendo. This lesson moves us from Matthew 23 and the warnings to the disciples about Pharisees, to His great “apocalyptic (end times) sermon” in Matthew 24. In that sermon Jesus warned that Jewish people in the Tribulation would face a temptation of deception – but there was a way to stop it.

The specific message of Jesus was to Jews for a time in their future, but the principles of the warning extend to all of us. Jesus taught…

Key Principle: The inoculation for deception is knowledge of the truth. Poorly trained disciples are poorly prepared disciples. We need to know truth in order to immunize ourselves from the prevalent lies around them or they will fall into deception.

If one looks carefully, the Bible leaves no uncertainty about the future of the world. With people of our day groping and grasping at everything from Nostradamus to an old Mayan calendar, we may ask: What does the future look like according to the Bible?

A key element of the answer appears to be that even some followers of Christ will become confused because they didn’t have “truth filters” installed in their discipleship. Timothy was warned by the Apostle Paul that in the last days, truth would be routinely assaulted.

In the context of the passage under our consideration (Matthew 24), the believers are Jewish, and the timing is the future Great Tribulation – and that needs to be clear. At the same time, the issue of deception is exactly the same as in our day.

Step back for a moment and look at the setting of the Matthew 24 teaching:

First, remember three important context setting truths:

1. First, there are FOUR GOSPEL TRACTS of Jesus that today we call “Gospels”. They aren’t a “Life of Jesus” – they are selections from the Life of Jesus that each make a specific point to a different audience.

2. Second, you may recall there are at least FIVE MAJOR SERMONS in Matthew: the “sermon on the mount” (Matthew 5-7), the “sermon of the true witness” (Matthew 10), the sermon on “the parable of success” in Matthew 13), the sermon of “disciples getting along” (Matthew 18) and finally the twin sermon “Pharisee woes” (Matthew 23) followed by this great “apocalyptic sermon” (Matthew 24-25) called the “Olivet Discourse”.

3. Third, the Olivet Discourse is a response to questions in Mt. 24:3.

Matthew 24:3 As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what [will be] the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?

The text recorded Jesus’ instructions for these Jewish followers of the days ahead for the chosen people. Strictly speaking, the purpose of this message was to outline for followers of Jesus who were Jewish, the way God would recall the program of the Jewish nation and bring about the promise of the restoration of the nation as repeatedly promised in the writings of the Hebrew prophets. The focus was to offer Jewish believers encouragement to keep their eyes open for the return of Messiah when the Tribulation was dragging on around them.

Go back to the hillside and think about the message Jesus gave.

Departing from the Temple, the disciples remarked about the size and beauty of the impressive Temple. The words must have been loaded with some corporate pride, for Jesus turned and replied that they should shed this high minded view – for the Temple would not stand long! Immediately the disciples began to ask questions about the events that were to come. Jesus sat down and replied with a series of parables and teachings.

Matthew 24:4 And Jesus answered and said to them, “See to it that no one misleads you. 5 “For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will mislead many. 6 “You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for [those things] must take place, but [that] is not yet the end. 7 “For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes. 8 “But all these things are [merely] the beginning of birth pangs.

Did you notice the things Jesus told them would happen “at the beginning of the end” times? First, there would be a powerful attempt at DECEPTION – where people would become misled. Second, there would be heavy doses of information that led to FEAR. Third there would be DREAD OVER constant ethnic strife (the term “nation” is “ethnos”), international strife (kingdoms) and natural disasters.

The beginning is about the EROSION of truth,
the rise of FEAR through constant “rumored communication”
and the RISING SENSE of intractable conflicts and natural disasters.

In other words, if I lived in a time when people didn’t seem to really understand truth, where false words swirled across my screen posing as truth, and I felt more and more like things were getting out of control – I would start to be concerned that the hour is late… but then Jesus got even MORE POINTED.

Matthew 24:9 “Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name. 10 “At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another. 11 “Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many. 12 “Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold. 13 “But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved. 14 “This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.

Other signs of the coming of the Messiah to His people are these: Israel would be increasingly hated among the nations (what we would call “the rise of antisemitism”), and the Jewish people would be divided against one another – some betraying others and hating each other (the cohesiveness that bound them would fade). Sadly, a reason for the hatred by the nations seems to be the persistent “they killed Jesus” lie, so Jesus warned the hatred would come “because of My name.”

Lying prophets (some in lab coats with degrees from prestigious pagan institutions) will tug on the hearts of the people – pulling them away from the truth their fathers gave them in the Word. Instead of a firm commitment to the Scriptures, they will increasingly buy into the latest social theories of the world – but that won’t get them fully accepted – it will only divide them more. As the fabric of the society is shredded by waves of wild social theories, people will lose their bonds one to another. The law of God cast off, they will find themselves believing one lie after another, and sinking deeper into delusion. Yet, in the background, the Gospel will not die – it will keep coming back, popping up in one place after another. They will punch it downward – but like a “whack-a-mole” game, it will pop up again and again.

Watch closely as we can even see the LIES that people will follow in the text:

#1: Finding Rescue Elsewhere

Matthew 24:4 4 And Jesus answered and said to them, “See to it that no one misleads you. 5 “For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will mislead many.

Jesus warned that people would signal rescue from sin and its effects can come from somewhere else – and many will believe that.

Some people will believe it comes from “church”, even if the church changes what it believes with every strong popular wind.

Minister Who Denies God’s Existence: I Don’t Appreciate Being Told I’m Not a Christian (March 23, 2015) By: Heather Clark:

“A Presbyterian USA minister in Oregon who says that he doesn’t believe in God—and doesn’t require his members to believe either—remarked in a recent article that he is offended by those who assert that he is not a Christian. “Someone quipped that my congregation is BYOG: Bring Your Own God. I use that and invite people to ‘bring their own God’—or none at all,” wrote John Shuck of Beaverton’s Southminster Presbyterian Church in a guest post for Patheos last week. “While the symbol ‘God’ is part of our cultural tradition, you can take it or leave it or redefine it to your liking.” Shuck first came out as an unbeliever in 2011, generating controversy as to how one could serve as a minister and not believe in the Bible. “The concept of ‘God’ is a product of myth-making and ‘God’ is no longer credible as a personal, supernatural being,” he wrote in a blog post on his site “Shuck and Jive.” “Jesus may have been historical, but most of the stories about Him in the Bible and elsewhere are legends.” Shuck reiterated his unbelief in his article “I’m a Presbyterian Minister Who Doesn’t Believe in God” on Tuesday, as he asserted that “[b]elief-less Christianity is thriving.” “We all have been trained to think that Christianity is about believing things,” he wrote. “Its symbols and artifacts (God, Bible, Jesus, Heaven, etc) must be accepted in a certain way. And when times change and these beliefs are no longer credible, the choices we are left with are either rejection or fundamentalism.” But Shuck says that although he rejects the Bible as being literal, and denies the existence of Heaven and Hell, he takes offense when people tell him that he’s not a Christian.”

When a deluded preacher lectures that a flawed Bible shares an unknowable God but is offended when you won’t call him a “Christian” – you have left reality. You are now in the “twilight zone” – for the light grows dim and the darkness draws near. Beneath this dribble and distraction is the LIE that one can find rescue elsewhere – that Jesus was an unnecessary appendage to a story of salvation and sin from an abstract mythology of the Bronze Age, much later assembled by a power hungry church to keep the masses at bay. In all of that jumble, the truth is lost. Jesus changes lives – just as He promised to do. His word is truth, whether that truth offends modern sensitivities or not.

Do not be deceived: God cannot be found in people, places and values that do not reflect His Holy Word. Many will use “God words” and people who are unfamiliar with the context and meaning of the Word of God will be drawn into their lie.

Watch for the Symptoms: Even organizations and ministries that have historically held to the Word of God will increasingly begin to see the Bible as much less definite and specific about what it truly says. Things that were once clear will begin to be eroded as “not very clear”. While secular culture will increasingly use scientific studies that skew data for their own purposes, religious groups with so-called “Biblical studies” will be increasingly confused by the mystifying complexity involved in the teaching of the Word.

Some educators are keenly aware of the deconstruction of literature now taught in universities across the country. The disconnection of the text from the author and the attempt to establish the primary link to the hearer is quickly undermining any singular meaning in every great text of literature. Students are taught routinely to disregard the discovery of the author’s intent in favor of their own response and feelings to the writing. Primary meaning is no longer discovered by conjecture about the author’s mind – that isn’t relevant. The issue is the reader and how they feel about the information. Postmodern thinkers have been trained thoroughly in this – and it is having a devastating effect on Bible study in the modern church.

Dear ones, there is but one “immunization”: Know the Author of the Scriptures personally, and then learn His Word well. Know it in its context. Know every book – together they contain the irreducible minimum of God’s equipping package.

#2 Growing Fearful and Distracted

Jesus continued to identify the pressure points of coming deception:

Matthew 24:6 “You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for [those things] must take place, but [that] is not yet the end. 7 “For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes. 8 “But all these things are [merely] the beginning of birth pangs..”

Note again the words of Jesus are NOT that there are more WARS necessarily – but more information sources of RUMORS. The emphasis was not on the killing in the sentence – but rather on the TRANSMISSION OF INFORMATION. The COMMAND of Jesus did not regard a believer’s attempts to MAKE PEACE ON EARTH, but rather FIND PEACE in the waves of fearmongering.

The caution of Jesus was this: Don’t be drawn into FEAR and DISTRACTION from reaching men because of the relentless waves of rumor that evil is overtaking us. Beneath the fear there is a lie: When man has lost control – God has lost control – and it is time to panic. People will come to believe the future is in the hands of men, and that they are victims of a system too large to control.

Watch for these symptoms: Increasingly the church will be drawn into political action in place of evangelism, protest in the place of prayer and humanitarian help instead of Gospel commitment. Waves of social Gospel will offset carefully considered theology and true commitment to Biblical searching. Outrage born out of fear will flood the house of praise.

Don’t let it happen. There is an Immunization: Recognize that God’s Word makes clear His sovereignty over all things. God has the control, but desires to collaborate on the ministry. It is the reason Jesus came from the womb of a woman. We must recognize that we do not vote to change the outcome of God’s plan – we vote to be responsible and godly citizens. We share the Gospel without the ability to change a heart – but we do so in faithfulness to the Savior and out of love for the lost. We serve people without the ability to work within them. We pray and we engage, but we don’t panic. God is still in control, and we live reflecting that truth.

#3: Feeling Like Losers

Jesus wasn’t nearly done with the marks of the end time. He continued:

Matthew 24:9 “Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name. 10 “At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another. 11 “Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many.”

My best understanding of this passage is that Jesus is speaking to the men, not simply as believers (Christians) but as Jews. I believe that because of several specific references that He made in the message as it is recorded for us. First, the end times in the minds of the Disciples seemed stuck on “What will happen to the Jewish people” mode, as is clear later (after the resurrection) in Acts 1:

Acts 1:6 “So when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, “Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; 8but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

Note carefully that AFTER the Olivet Discourse, AFTER the Cross, AFTER the Resurrection – the Disciples of Jesus were asking: Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel? Like students of the prophet Daniel, Isaiah and Ezekiel – the Jewish followers of Jesus were interested in how the future affected Israel. Give them a break – the church was an unseen entity – a “mystery” to the prophets of old.

Step back from the interpretation of the words and look for a moment to the application of the principles behind them.

A rising tide of hatred for people God is work within will characterize the end. This will be true in the tribulation of the Jewish people (and signs of it are already very present), but it will also be true of followers of Jesus before they are rescued by the Savior. We aren’t going to be POPULAR if we are committed to following Christ. We have been saying it for years, but it seems like a surprise to so many still.

Behind the need to be popular is a profound lie: “God is only winning when believers are gaining ground that we can observe” (the statistical lie). Some have come to believe that God desires them to be healthy, wealthy and wise – and their preaching has weakened the church and polluted the message. If the Gospel came with a primary purpose to elevate believer’s economics and prosperity, God would owe an apology to many martyrs of the church throughout our history!

Other believers gauge God’s “success” by their “ministry’s success” (read bigger numbers this month than last) – and that is wrong. Ask the former missionaries to China after the expulsion. God is weaving together a plan that will meet His objective – to show Himself in all His glory to the cosmos at the end. Our affliction is not proof that God is on the ropes. Our disfavor among the lost is not a symbol that God will not be victorious.

Watch carefully for the symptoms: Increasingly, Christians will move from being those who know the Book and the God of the Book – those who bring an ANSWER to the problems of men. Believers will increasingly be viewed as the PROBLEM. We will not be able to follow the lack of logic used in hate-filled arguments that gang up on us while calling us the bigoted and intolerant ones. We will make a simple statement of our faith like “Jesus saves” and it will be pounced upon as “un-American, homophobic, hateful and intolerant.” No one will seem to notice that all the “hate filled posts with filthy language” will be written by those who attacked us. Get used to it, and grow thicker skin. Jesus isn’t losing.

We need a simple immunization: We need to learn to trust in God’s plan. Look carefully at the past and watch God’s pattern as revealed in His Word. Faith is seeing it through God’s eyes. “The mind of a man plans his way but the Lord directs his steps.” “The Most High rules in the Kingdom of men…” James argued that observing carefully the prophets of old and learning from the likes of Job would help in persecution. Learning to focus on the benefits of faithfulness and the eventual exposure of God’s character help a believer make it through dark times.

#4: Mourning the Loss

As a middle-aged Pastor, I have had the opportunity to observe something that I think is in view in the passage, at least in application of its principles. Jesus said:

Matthew 24:12 “Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold. 13 “But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved. 14 “This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.”

As before, I believe Jesus is speaking to the Jewish followers in the context of the Tribulation period – and I don’t want to skip that fact. At the same time, look at the underlying principle here. Imagine you were a progressive Israeli businessman who brought to market some incredible products that helped mankind, and you increasingly saw your markets closed by boycotts and hatred that had nothing to do with you or your product – or even what you voted for at your poll station. During that tribulation of those days, some Jews will no doubt be feeling robbed of something they once had – and the result will be MOURNING inside.

Now step back and look at the church. Some young people may see older people as “embittered” by some of their reactions to the waves of immorality and vitriol that we are seeing grow day by day. The young may not understand the “sense of mourning” of the older believers as they watch our nation slide and a way of life walk off into the sunset of the non-nonsensical and conscience seared.

Here is the truth: The notion of morality will increasingly conflict with the new definition of freedom that includes only unbridled choices. As the family deteriorates, and the natural bonds fall, those who argue for the way it was before the introduction of the modern social experimentation will be swept aside as backward thinking and “regressionists”. Attacks against believers will rise, and some will fall away from the practice of the faith because of the poor teaching that left them to conclude that “all things work together for comfort and prosperity”. Though Jesus referred to those “who endured to the end” in the context of the Tribulation Period – it is nevertheless true that we should expect that shouldering on during times of persecution will never be easy.

Older believers are MOURNING the loss of a time when you could say “I support life and think that killing a child is wrong!” without the hateful thought police coming to attack.

This week brought this news of the normal bonds breaking between people:

In an article by Robert Darcy: Murder charges won’t be filed against the woman accused of attacking a pregnant woman and cutting her baby out of her stomach, officials said Thursday. Boulder County, Colorado, prosecutor Stanley Garnett said late Thursday night that murder charges would not be filed against 34-year-old Dynel Lane. Officials did not disclose what charges they would be pursuing against the 34-year-old. Lane is accused of luring 26-year-old Michelle Wilkins to her home with a Craigslist ad, then brutally attacking her before cutting out the baby she was carrying from her stomach. She was arrested after driving to the hospital with the dead baby and claiming she had a miscarriage. A 911 call released provided a disturbing account of Wilkins desperately calling authorities for help after the attack. “Please,” the 26-year-old woman can be heard saying on the chilling call. “She cut me in my stomach,” the victim, 7-months pregnant, added. “I’m afraid … please come. I’m bleeding out.” Wilkins is expected to make a recovery following the attack. The baby did not survive. Read the beginning again: “Murder charges won’t be filed.” Don’t let anyone tell you that our laws that allow people to kill the unborn won’t affect the other laws of our culture. They have.

Take courage, dear ones. We are not the first believers to have suffered an assault on truth. Blaise Pascal (1623-1662) was a French mathematician, physicist, inventor, writer and Christian philosopher who wrote: “Truth is so obscure in these times, and falsehood so established, that, unless we love the truth, we cannot know it.” Take courage, you faith family has been here before.

Jesus told the disciples that the Gospel and its spread would keep happening in the terror of the Tribulation Period. Will it not keep happening in America today? Do you not see that as families fall apart and America keeps redefining things to feel successful that some will know it isn’t true?

• Don’t you think that some will see through an “economic recovery” that continues to borrow money every day to meet the demands of an entitlement society?

• Don’t you believe that some won’t figure out that if a “marriage” means “anything people want it to” that is means nothing at all?

• Don’t you recognize that with each social experiment of freedom, more people will face yet more complicated scenarios for which a moral “right or wrong” won’t even seem to apply?

I am an optimist. I think there will always be some that will know they are being duped by charlatans. You have heard the immunization over and over again – the Word of God. In order to process it, we must teach followers of Jesus:

• To read it.
• To process information correctly.
• To challenge even widely held assumptions.
• To articulate their Biblical world view in rhetorically recognized arguments.

The inoculation for deception is knowledge of the truth.

This is why we need solid teachers and trainers. Poorly trained disciples are poorly prepared disciples. They need to know how to immunize themselves from the prevalent lies around them.

Lies abound – but TRUTH STANDS SURE. Don’t forget the news won’t tell you the truth about our world:

• Many a godly young man or woman train right now to defend our country. Make any policy they want – these believers will man their posts with a Bible in their pack and Jesus in their heart.

• Many a godly young woman will refuse to allow a young man to put her in a compromising situation because they know their body is not their own – they will remain pure and committed to Jesus Christ.

• Many a godly couple will remain strong in their marriage, and overcome every obstacle because they know that Jesus called them to be together – and that is how they will live.

• Many a godly businessman or businesswoman will give sacrificially today for the cause of Christ and the mission to reach the world. They will work all the harder to give all the more. They don’t need to be harangued or manipulated – their heart is to GIVE!

• In the halls of power and the courts of justice, men and women of faith will quietly uphold God’s truth – in spite of those who are better known that will not. They will judge fairly and Biblically. They will love God and serve their fellow man in public service.

God has millions on His side too. Don’t forget that. This isn’t over yet, and when it is- Jesus wins!

A number of years ago a friend of mine clipped an article and sent it to me. I kept it because it really spoke to me, and maybe it will to you as well…Sam loved to fish so much he often skipped school to go down to the pond and dangle a hook. One morning the sheriff was out looking for a missing vehicle and observed the youth fishing, but the boy didn’t look right. He had been fishing for some time, and when the sheriff came upon him he was sweating profusely and his words were slurred. You see, he showed up at the pond without bait, and dug near a stump to get his worms. They were big and juicy. He put one on the hook and noticed a slight sting on his hand, but tossed in his line. Eight fish later, he thought he found the “mother lode” with his new bait. Unfortunately, he didn’t know they were actually baby pygmy rattlers, and with each one placed on the hook, more venom was entering his system. The first one numbed him, the next few added to the killer dose. Sam never made it to the hospital, but died in the back of a sheriff’s cruiser, with eight fish in his cooler. He died of the venom that he could not detect because he had slowly been numbed.

Have you ever stopped to consider that you could be becoming numb to God while thinking you are serving Him well? You and I can be slowly dying – losing our spiritual vitality – while filling the cooler with more spiritual fish. Today I don’t want to speak primarily of those who don’t know God – but of those of us who DO, but may be in the process of becoming hardened in the heart – even as we are ministering for God. One of the great dangers of serving for a long time is learning to do the work with a heart that is not full of the Savior at all. If you have been walking with Jesus and serving Jesus for years, you may be suffering from numbness and a venom that hardens our heart over time may be creeping in.

Key Principle: Mature believers are pipelines. We must deliberately allow the flow of our relationship with God to pass through our lives and into other lives – bringing them joy and attachment to Him!

If you have known the Lord for a long time, you have no doubt passed through “numbed times”. Sometimes people act like God moved into a dark shadow, but God’s Word is clear – He doesn’t do that. If He seems distant, most often the problem is with US. These are often times when we aren’t growing, and we aren’t surrendered, but we are probably still serving God in a ministry area – because we don’t say anything about it. This can be a terrible problem – because others expect that you are on the inside what you seem to be on the outside – and that may not be the case at all. When we are numb, we can be easily open to rationalizing our sin and moving toward one of the common error “extremes” of our day to explain it away. I often see two such extremes. The first is that of LICENSE, the second is that of COLDNESS.

• In LICENSE, we see an extreme form of GRACE – one that costs me nothing to follow Christ, and affords me every opportunity to be self-indulgent while hiding behind theological smugness and Christian platitudes. This is mere selfishness in religious clothing, and is a temptation whenever we weary of the simple surrender required to properly serve the Lord Who saved us. It invites me to redraw the lines that define servant-hood, and serve myself instead of my rightful Master.

• In COLDNESS, I allow a simple juxtaposition of serving the MASTER with serving the CAUSES of the Master. It is a subtle change at first, but the small “course correction” ends in vastly different destination over the long haul. When I allow my heart to follow the STANDARDS and not the SAVIOR my first steps seem pure. Slowly, it is the attitude of my heart that shows something is wrong. By the time others can observe it, it is far too late to slow the damage to myself and others. This second trouble was addressed by Jesus in Matthew 23, after Jesus encountered the hardened men and their attitudes in the Jerusalem Temple.

I think we all have to admit it – with long term religious life comes the temptation to follow the “comfort food” of legalistic rigidity rather than the more tender and nuanced response of following closely to the Savior – holding His hand and living to please Him – choice by choice.

Someone shared with me a few years ago these good words from Richard J. Foster: “…Rigidity is the most certain sign that the disciplines have spoiled. The disciplined person is the person who can live appropriately in life.”

In essence, this was the problem with the Pharisees at the time of Jesus. They lost track of the PERSON of God whom they served and replaced Him with the CAUSES of God they served… and that made all the difference. Jesus warned the exchange can be observed within by examining four attitudes or hungers that are WARNING SIGNS OF NUMBNESS.

Four attitudes that Numb Spiritual Vitality (23:2-7):

1. Authoritarianism: “Do as I say not as I do”: A Pharisee may even be a person with accomplishment and authority, but they often leave a bad personal example (Matthew 23:2-3).

Matthew 23:1 Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, 2 saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses; 3 therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them.

The attitude of authoritarianism opposes the attitude of equipping. The former is interested in maintaining a distinction, while the latter is interested in reproduction by example. When I remove myself from the standards that I teach, I am suffering the first strike of the snake. Authoritarian belief is setting myself ABOVE the Master’s call because of the past choices to follow, or because I feel I have followed long enough to distinguish myself. In the end, it lacks hunger to please the Master, and replaces it with an unreal and awkward view of self. My journey ceases to “live and breathe to please Him”, but changes to becoming recognized as an authority for what I have already done in that journey – while (at the same time) being divorced from expectations by which I once lived. People don’t just follow words, they follow example. A life un-surrendered will promote a pattern of following the CAUSE with great vigor. In servant-hood I must relinquish my right to be ABOVE the standard, and joy in following the Master both in word and deed.

When I am unwilling to be deeply examined by the Savior, to be inspected by the standard that I preach – I am not walking with Him but rather FOR Him – and that isn’t what I was called to do.

2. Exclusivity: Do as I say but do it yourself!: A Pharisee may set high standards, but they show little desire to help others in their call and journey (23:4).

Matthew 23:4 “They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger.

The attitude of exclusivity empowers the one laying the burden on the other by showing the attainments of self-strength evident in the Pharisee. It is like the accomplished weight lifter placing a laden barbell on the rack of the novice to make the point that his accomplishments should be revered. The STANDARDS have become more important than the follower – the CAUSE more important than the DEVELOPMENT of the next generation of those who will serve. The path of following Christ becomes the focus, as opposed to the point of following Him – to be WITH HIM in the walk.

When I am unwilling to be HELPFUL to those who hunger to walk with my Savior, I am preaching a BINDING rather than pulling others to WALK beside Jesus with me. My tenderness must be developed BOTH to the Savior’s voice and to the voice of the weak one who will need my help to join us on the walk.

I have sought to understand why many I know who have followed Christ have become so unhelpful in the journey. I stumbled, by God’s grace, on a story that helped me:

There once was an ant that felt imposed upon, overburdened, and overworked. You see, he was instructed to carry a piece of straw across an expanse of concrete. The straw was so long and heavy that he staggered beneath its weight and felt he would not survive. Finally, as the stress of his burden began to overwhelm him and he began to wonder if life itself was worth it, the ant was brought to a halt by a large crack in his path. There was no way of getting across that deep divide, and it was evident that to go around it would be his final undoing. He stood there discouraged. Then suddenly a thought struck him. Carefully laying the straw across the crack in the concrete, he walked over it and safely reached the other side. His heavy load had become a helpful bridge. The burden was also a blessing. [Illustrations for Biblical Preaching compiled by Michael P. Green]

I think when one is trying to struggle with the load of following; it is hard to be sensitized to the needs of others around them. Could it be that surrender is SO HARD in my flesh that many a leader of our faith is still learning to carry their straw, and hasn’t learned to see how the burden was intended to be a blessing. It is worth considering carefully as I continually look at the state of my own spiritual sensitivity, and the encroaching numbness that easily sets in.

3. Affirmation Hunger: Watch me as I do what I do: A Pharisee may have an excellent reputation for “being on the red carpet”, but they seek recognition (23:5).

Matthew 23:5 “But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments.

One of the hungers that can easily grow within (that I must constantly monitor) is that of the desire to be recognized and affirmed. It doesn’t go away, and even after long dormancy can come roaring to the surface like a submarine that has been in the deep.

When we receive a reward in this life, we rob the reward we will receive from the Savior later. Jesus said it in an earlier sermon: Matthew 6:5 “When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. 6 “But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.”

When we get the reward now, we lose the hunger to keep following for the reward later. We can easily stop following the call of our Master to walk daily with Him, and easily fall into the immediate rewards of the affirmation of men. They may not be as GOOD as hearing “Well done, good and faithful servant!”.. but they are easier to attain. Our sight is too low when our heart is tuned to the affirmation of other servants and followers. We must constantly recognize the voice of the Savior and retune our heart to hunger for His approval alone.

4. Entitlement: Give me what I think I deserve (Don’t you know who I am): They may be seen at the most important events, but they want the perks of power (23:6,7).

Matthew 23:6 “They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, 7 and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men.

The word “respectful” in the greetings tips off the attitude of entitlement – I CAN COME TO THE PLACE WHERE I believe I DESERVE a certain response from people when they see me. This is hunger for affirmation allowed to flourish within while others feed it from without – the “prima donna factory” of faith.

When I become authoritarian and slip from under the standards of my own preaching, when I become insensitive to modeling truth and just start preaching it, when I hunger to be recognized, and when I think I am not getting my share of the pie… There is but ONE solution: Change my HUNGER… Jesus wanted His followers to seek to EXALT HIM, not to be EXALTED (23:8-12).

Real servants keep their eye on their Master’s desires, even seeking to anticipate his next want, but learn to grow even more numb to their own yearnings. He said:

Matthew 23: 8 “But do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. 9 “Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. 10 “Do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ. 11 “But the greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 “Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.

Dave Navarro wrote an article entitled: “The Five People Who Secretly Control Your Life.” In it, he says, we may not realize is how many people influence our life, feeding us ideas and in many cases secretly controlling our life by influencing how we make our most important, life-guiding choices. They are “secret” by virtue of the fact that we usually don’t know they are so influential. Who are they? They are our heroes, our nemesis, our parents, our spouse, and our image of who we should be. When we refine our understanding of servanthood, we will recognize that Jesus’ desires should be the one that defines all the others.

Eight attitudes to Guard Against (23:13-32):

The numbness symptoms identified, Jesus quickly drew a line around some attitudes that lay beneath a troubled heart…

1. Legalism: Jesus wants people to have a relationship with God. By trying to control people for power’s sake – you push them from a walk with God. (23:13).

Matthew 23:13 “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the kingdom of heaven from people; for you do not enter in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.

The essence of legalism is trusting in the religious activity rather than trusting in God. It is putting our confidence in a practice rather than in a Person. And without fail this will lead us to love the practice more than the Person. Jack Deer, Surprised by the Power of the Spirit, p. 151

2. Religious Manipulation: Jesus wants servants who have broken hearts for broken people. By using your religious words you take advantage of the poor and unsuspecting (23:14).

Matthew 23:14 [“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive greater condemnation.]

Two monks went on a pilgrimage and came to the ford of a river. There they saw a girl dressed in all her finery, obviously not knowing what to do since the river was high and she didn’t want to spoil her clothes. Without much discussion, one of the monks took her on his back, carried her across, and put her down on dry ground on the other side. The monks then continued on their way. But the other monk started complaining, “Surely it isn’t right to touch a woman. It’s against the commandment to have close contact with women. How could you go against your rules as a monk?” The monk who carried the girl walked along silently, but finally he remarked, “I set her down by the river and hour ago. Why are you still carrying her?” Today in the Word, December 19, 1994

3. Self-focus: Jesus wants mentors and disciple makers that tie people to a living relationship. By drawing others to yourself you put them in relationship to rules – not God (23:15).

Matthew 23:15 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.

“What must I forsake?” a young man asked. “Colored clothes for one thing. Get rid of everything in your wardrobe that is not white. Stop sleeping on a soft pillow. Sell your musical instruments and don’t eat any more white bread. You cannot, if you are sincere about obeying Christ, take warm baths or shave your beard. To shave is to lie against him who created us, to attempt to improve on his work.” Quaint, isn’t it—this example of extra-biblical scruples? And perhaps amusing. The list has constantly shifted over the 1,800 years since this one was actually recorded. Living Proof by Jim Peterson, NavPress, 1989, pp. 106

4. Lawlessness: Jesus wants leaders to follow after His consistent principles. In preaching legalism with intricate loopholes, you make up your own rules – and they aren’t even logical! (23:16-22).

Matthew 23:16 “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple is obligated.’ 17 “You fools and blind men! Which is more important, the gold or the temple that sanctified the gold? 18 “And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing, but whoever swears by the offering on it, he is obligated.’ 19 “You blind men, which is more important, the offering, or the altar that sanctifies the offering? 20 “Therefore, whoever swears by the altar, swears both by the altar and by everything on it. 21 “And whoever swears by the temple, swears both by the temple and by Him who dwells within it. 22 “And whoever swears by heaven, swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it.

A pastor found the roads blocked one Sunday morning and was forced to skate on the river to get to church, which he did. When he arrived the elders of the church were horrified that their preacher had skated on the Lord’s Day. After the service they held a meeting where the pastor explained that it was either skate to church or not go at all. Finally one elder asked, “Did you enjoy it?” When the preacher answered, “No,” the board decided it was all right! Today in the Word, MBI, December, 1989, p. 12.

5. Poor Prioritization: Jesus wants leaders that know His priorities. You don’t know how to put first things first. (23:23-24).

Matthew 23:23 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. 24 “You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!

During the early days of the Salvation Army, William Booth and his associates were bitterly attacked in the press by religious leaders and government leaders alike. Whenever his son, Bramwell, showed Booth a newspaper attack, the General would reply, “Bramwell, fifty years hence it will matter very little indeed how these people treated us; it will matter a great deal how we dealt with the work of God.” The Wycliffe Handbook of Preaching & Preachers, W. Wiersbe, p. 185

6. Externalization: Jesus wants his people to know the difference between compliance and obedience. You think that by changing behaviors you have reached hearts (23:25-26).

Matthew 23:25 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. 26 “You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.

Peter T. Forsythe was right when he said: “The first duty of every soul is to find not its freedom but its Master”.

7. Hypocrisy: Jesus wants life to flow from Him through us to the world. You live in an external show with no living relationship and obedience within (23:27-28).

Matthew 23:27 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. 28 “So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

Consider the healthy view…Hudson Taylor was scheduled to speak at a Large Presbyterian church in Melbourne, Australia. The moderator of the service introduced the missionary in eloquent and glowing terms. He told the large congregation all that Taylor had accomplished in China, and then presented him as “our illustrious guest.” Taylor stood quietly for a moment, and then opened his message by saying, “Dear friends, I am the little servant of an illustrious Master.” Wycliffe Handbook of Preaching and Preachers, W. Wiersbe, p. 243.

8. Religious arrogance: Jesus wants people who humbly admit their flaws and reflect on their blessings. You believe you are better than those who came before you, and you will not repeat their mistakes (23:29-32).

Matthew 23:29 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, 30 and say, ‘If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 “So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32 “Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers. 33 “You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell?

William Carey is considered the father of modern missions. The man who spent his early years as a cobbler became one of the greatest linguists the church has ever known. It’s reported that Carey translated parts of the Bible into as many as 24 Indian languages. When he first went to India, some regarded him with dislike and contempt. At a dinner party a distinguished guest, hoping to humiliate Carey, said in a loud voice, “I suppose, Mr. Carey, you once worked as a shoemaker.” Carey responded humbly, “No, your lordship, not as a shoemaker, only a cobbler.” Carey didn’t claim to make shoes, only to mend them. Today in the Word, September 21, 1995, p. 28.

Mature believers are pipelines. We must deliberately allow the flow of our relationship with God to pass through our lives and into another’s life – bringing them joy and attachment to Him!

Beloved, it is easy to get numb, and takes effort to remain a flowing source of God’s work. The best way to keep the flow steady is to consciously allow life to flow in, and share it with JOY – not DUTY.

Here is a video overview of the first of the four evangelist records, the Gospel according to Matthew:

Have you ever OBSERVED a truly DISRESPECTFUL CHILD? Have you ever stood in a supermarket and watched a parent being TOLD by a child how things were going to be? If you have, you may identify with this story of “reverence reversed”… I recently clipped an article about a rapper some of you may know named Kanye West. He is (at the time of this writing) a 37 year old recording artist and entrepreneur, and has more recently forayed into becoming a fashion designer. Beginning his professional life as a producer and working on projects with rapper Jay-Z, he has worked with a number of famed acts, including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and Janet Jackson. West grew up in middle-class Chicago and reportedly began rapping in the third grade, eventually moving into the city’s hip hop scene in his late teens. He released his debut album in 2004 and continued to vary styles a bit through his sixth album, “Yeezus” in 2013, selling more than 21 million albums and 66 million digital downloads, and winning a total of 21 Grammy Awards.

Since I don’t listen to rap music (is anyone surprised?), the article about West caught my attention because of its title: “Reverence Reversed” –the place from which I took the title of this lesson. The author was unknown to me, and the publication “Pulse” was not one I frequent, but I found the article riveting. The writer (Ryan Arrendell) claimed that he could spot a change in West’s “faith expressions” that led him to conclude he went from “reverencing Jesus” to “mocking Jesus” in a matter of a few years in the industry.

In an early album West sang: “Jesus Walks” where he “talks candidly about his struggle of trying to get the song to appeal to music executives before he was signed to a major label. [with] the lines: “So here go my single, dog, radio needs this. They say you can rap about anything except for Jesus. That means guns, sex, lies, video tapes. But if I talk about God my record won’t get played, huh?” He traced releases from West in 2007, 2010 and 2014 – and showed a trend in his lyrics – each song moved closer to exalting West and moving away from revering Jesus. In the latest album, “Yeezus” openly pokes fun at the Savior on a number of tracks of the album.

The most interesting part of the writer’s conclusion for me was this: the more Kanye West moved from reverence and respect of Jesus, the more HE focused on HIMSELF. That is a worthy observation – but it is not unique to West – we all face that. Here is the truth:

Key Principle: People who don’t revere the Savior cannot even long maintain a respect for Him – for His claims are too striking to ignore.

God didn’t abandon our society, but we have worked hard to demean Him, and remove any impact His Word may have on our culture as it moves forward. It is not an accident – it is an agenda – and every believer is feeling the squeeze. We are worship and reverence removed from modern American culture. Many believers are surprised that Jesus is now the stuff of continual comic amusement on the web, and seldom the object of even a basic modicum of respect as an historically important figure – let alone claims of divinity.

In the sixties, “church going” was seen as a good practice by the general populace. TV shows reflected it as a training ground for healthy attitudes, proper respect and decency – now it is frequently referenced in public communication as the spawning ground which produces “bigots” and “ignorance”. In the seventies and eighties, having a “born again” experience was great on the politician’s resume – but now that it no longer serves to attract a broader electorate – such references are all but gone. So afraid that those who disagree will pounce, any belief that doesn’t model the current trend is kept to one’s self and considered “private”. In the nineties, a “Biblical view” in cultural issues was re-branded a “traditional view” – but that didn’t give it any acceptance, and it has largely become seen as a “bigoted and backward” view. If you look carefully at the media – Jesus has been on a popularity slide for decades in America.

By now, we should have come to understand that Jesus’ claims are so direct, so clear – that it is ludicrous to attempt to accommodate Him in a pagan system. Jesus won’t be boxed in to a feckless, dashboard “bobble-headed” Savior. He demands far too much. People who want to run their own lives may want a Savior to rescue them, but they don’t want a Lord to direct them – and Jesus’ message demands surrender to Him. It seems many Americans are boldly outgrowing their “felt need” for God – and they are admitting to the desire to be their own directors. Sadly, even many who have “claimed an experience with Christ” are following suit. The Word offers them salvation, but no behavior boundary or life direction.

What people do NOT seem to recognize, at least yet, is that when reverence of Christ is sown in our culture, respect for others is harvested. When people understood there is a God in Heaven Who sent His Son for them – there was a healthy respect for a good God above. Conversely, (at least historically speaking) as reverence for the Savior is thought more and more to be worthless – respect for authority, property and even life diminishes rapidly in our western society.

I want to show you that this isn’t a new problem – man has disrespected God since the mutiny in the Garden of Eden. Jesus faced it head on in His own people – and oddly, He made clear His response was not to attempt to soften His message to gain popularity. A Sovereign Lord with ultimate power doesn’t wait to get elected by His Creation. Yet, in some minds there is a notion we can get “respect” back for Jesus. We can demand it in the public square. We can claim it is uncivil to mock our faith and our Savior. Here is the truth: people who don’t revere Jesus don’t care what we think about Him. They never did. Let me show you how it played out when He was standing in front of them.

The stories found in Matthew 21 begin with the “Triumphal Entry” of Jesus into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. I mention that fact, because the fanfare of that day – people shouting, palms flying and Jesus coming into Jerusalem on a donkey – is the backdrop of several teachings that are essential to understand if we want to recognize Who the Gospel writer claimed Jesus is, and why Jesus came. The narrative moves swiftly, with Jesus coming into the city, and our eyes are pulled toward a number of people who were engaged in the spectacle of that moment:

• First, (predictably) His coming stirred up the crowd: Matthew 21:10 “When He had entered Jerusalem, all the city was stirred, saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth in Galilee.”

• Next He abruptly drew the attention of the religious leadership: Matthew 21:12 And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves. 13 And He said to them, “It is written, MY HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED A HOUSE OF PRAYER; but you are making it a ROBBERS’ DEN.”

• In short order, He attracted the needy: Matthew 21:14 And [the] blind and [the] lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them.

• Fourth, He drew annoyed questions from the Sanhedrin: Matthew 21:15 But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that He had done, and the children who were shouting in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they became indignant 16 and said to Him, “Do You hear what these [children] are saying?” And Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read, OUT OF THE MOUTH OF INFANTS AND NURSING BABIES YOU HAVE PREPARED PRAISE FOR YOURSELF’?”

The record is crisp and pointed – not long and detailed. Matthew 21:17 shared that He responded quickly and left promptly. Matthew records: “And He left them and went out of the city to Bethany, and spent the night there.” By the time Jesus walked back over the Mount of Olives to Bethany, He left Jerusalem in a stir. Consider what that night was like for:

• The crowds that came from Galilee. They had seen the Master feed thousands, answer criticisms concerning Sabbath, and stand up to demons and angry religious leaders. “He is just what the Temple leadership needs!” They thought.

• For the priests and Levitical servants, the mess in the Temple left by Jesus’ tantrum at the money changer’s station was cleaned up, but they were (no doubt) frustrated that one man was able to disrupt the flow of their work after the Temple was so carefully cleaned and prepared.

• For a blind man, who perhaps was sitting on a hillside watching his first sunset with tears in his eyes! For a lame man who may well have been dancing in his home with his wife and children, healed of his malady earlier in the day!

• For some Sanhedrin members who were seething. Jesus disrespected them and His unwelcome smirk played over and over in their angry hearts…“Who did He think He was, anyway?” They probably thought.

The story of the return of Jesus to the Temple for the next day’s celebrations was marked by a brief pause on the Mount of Olives. Jesus saw a fig tree that gave Him an opportunity to teach a lesson – and Jesus never missed such an opportunity! He knew they needed to be prepared to understand His actions as the day unfolded. Jesus was going to walk into the Temple and would come directly under the line of fire of some angry men with power behind them. He was going to answer with the toughest words of any exchange in the Gospels to the Temple leaders. The disciples weren’t ready to observe that conflict – so Jesus stopped by a tree and got them ready. Matthew reminds:

Matthew 21:18 Now in the morning, when He was returning to the city, He became hungry. 19 Seeing a lone fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it except leaves only; and He said to it, “No longer shall there ever be [any] fruit from you.” And at once the fig tree withered. 20 Seeing [this], the disciples were amazed and asked, “How did the fig tree wither [all] at once?” 21 And Jesus answered and said to them, “Truly I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ it will happen. 22 “And all things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”

Jesus saw a fig tree that was either picked clean by midwives, who used the un-ripened green fruit in their craft, or it was a sick tree (the ficus buds leaves and fruit at the same time at that elevation in Jerusalem). Jeremiah 24 used the imagery of rotten figs for the wayward King Zedekiah of Judah. This tree didn’t have BAD figs – it had NO figs. What could it mean? Jesus was about to enter a Temple that had all of the leaves of religion but none of the fruits of faith. He knew that even His disciples lacked in the “faith” department. They didn’t see things through God’s Word, and God’s way of explaining life. The world was so strong to them, and the flesh so real – it was hard for them to see the spiritual world. They lacked the angelic expose that Ezekiel had (Ezekiel 8-11) to peer into the world through God’s eyes – but they had God’s Son standing before them. He cursed the tree, and some were shocked that it withered. He explained that if they would see things through what He calls true – they would become truly powerful and effective. They were impressed by the Temple, by the rulers of it, and by the pomp of the setting. What they didn’t see was that it was largely fruitless and would wither in a generation.

Jesus kept walking, and returned to the Temple. The leaders demanded an explanation of His authority to act as One in charge when THEY were in charge of the Temple (21:23-27).

Matthew 21:23 When He entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to Him while He was teaching, and said, “By what authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this authority?” 24 Jesus said to them, “I will also ask you one thing, which if you tell Me, I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. 25 “The baptism of John was from what [source], from heaven or from men?” And they [began] reasoning among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ 26 “But if we say, ‘From men,’ we fear the people; for they all regard John as a prophet.” 27 And answering Jesus, they said, “We do not know.” He also said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.

Ironically, Jesus exposed that their “authority” was more about maintaining popularity than leading anyone. They challenged His authority – so He tested theirs. They were perplexed about how to take a stand – because they didn’t want to lost popularity. Jesus told them he would answer them if they could not take a public stand on John the Baptizer as a true prophet. Why ask for truth one will not take a public stand on truth?

With that exchange in mind, watch as He offered two linked illustrations, and as they began to seek a way to get back at Him in response (Mt. 21:46)…

A Parable of Disrespect

The first parable (Mt. 21:28-32) was of two sons, one that rebelled and repented, another that gave lip service and yet quietly rebelled.

Matthew 21:28 “But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, Son, go work today in the vineyard.’ 29 “And he answered, ‘I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went. 30 “The man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered, ‘I [will], sir; but he did not go. 31 “Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you that the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you. 32 “For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeing [this], did not even feel remorse afterward so as to believe him.

Notice that Jesus equated the first son with harlots that heard John and then repented (having begun in rebellion). He equated the second son with THEM – the Temple leaders who, after hearing about repentance, they quietly did NOTHING! (21:28-32). The illustration was not directed against the whole nation of Jews (because the prostitutes and tax collectors were also part of the nation), but rather against those hard-hearted leaders that refused to take a stand on John and his call to repent in preparation for the King’s arrival. THEY were the cause of the problem. They still couldn’t decide and take a stand even after the death of John, Jesus’ cousin. Soon they would try to maneuver between the will of the crowds and their inner desire to silence Jesus Himself!

A Second (Even More Blunt) Shot

Following up with a second parable (Mt. 21:33-46) Jesus told of a vintner that built a vineyard and left it with a tenant farmer. Here, the Savior pulled from the “play book” of Isaiah 5 – where God complained about leaving His “well-designed vineyard” in the hands of Judah’s corrupt leaders…Jesus said:

Matthew 21:33 “Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who PLANTED A VINEYARD AND PUT A WALL AROUND IT AND DUG A WINE PRESS IN IT, AND BUILT A TOWER, and rented it out to vine-growers and went on a journey. 34 “When the harvest time approached, he sent his slaves to the vine-growers to receive his produce. 35 “The vine-growers took his slaves and beat one, and killed another, and stoned a third. 36 “Again he sent another group of slaves larger than the first; and they did the same thing to them. 37 “But afterward he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’

By now, you recognize the story that Jesus was sharing. You are able to see God’s claim that He built His people like a vineyard (Isaiah 5) and left them in the hands of leaders who killed His special servants, the prophets, as He sent them to warn them. Now the Son was sent…Jesus continued:

Matthew 21:38 “But when the vine-growers saw the son, they said among themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.’ 39 “They took him, and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. 40 “Therefore when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vine-growers?” 41 They said to Him, “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end, and will rent out the vineyard to other vine-growers who will pay him the proceeds at the [proper] seasons.” 42 Jesus said to them, “Did you never read in the Scriptures, THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED, THIS BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER [stone]; THIS CAME ABOUT FROM THE LORD, AND IT IS MARVELOUS IN OUR EYES’? 43 “Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people, producing the fruit of it. 44 “And he who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it will scatter him like dust.” 45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables, they understood that He was speaking about them. 46 When they sought to seize Him, they feared the people, because they considered Him to be a prophet.

When the time came to collect the fruit, the tenants killed every servant the owner sent, and eventually even the son of the vintner! This prophecy concerning His own death was remarkable! At the same time, the text need not reflect the idea that Jesus was taking the opportunity of God working with the Jewish people and handing it to the church (as has often been charged by commentators). Indeed the second illustration, like the first, says that Jesus offered the leaders the opportunity to repent, but they passed. The failure of the Sanhedrin would remove God’s offer from them – but not from Israel. Paul knew it had not yet been re-offered and in that day Israel would be redeemed (Romans 11:26).

As a result of this leadership’s hard-hearted rejection, the opportunity would be left to another group of leaders, another time in the nation of Israel, and this group of men would not experience the blessing of those later Jewish leaders who WOULD accept Jesus. It is clear in the text that the Pharisees thought Jesus spoke of THEM (21:45), not the Jewish nation. The term “ethnos” is translated elsewhere “a people” and does not always signify a “nation” as such. In this context, it is most likely the LEADERSHIP representing the people.

Clearly they were not going to get the blessing of the Kingdom, yet the disciples that stood by still thought it was coming to Israel as promised. Later in the same Gospel, Jesus promised a day would come when they would believe (Mt. 23:39). The disciples questioned Jesus about it (23 and 24), and He made clear that it was for a future generation of Jews – not their current leaders (Mt. 24:34). To these Jewish disciples, the words were a bittersweet mix, they were saved and heaven bound, yet their nation would continue to await the blessing that could have been immediate with leaders that would stand with Jesus. Literally, the rejection of the leadership to stand with Jesus pitted the believers against these leaders, creating a terrible tension (Mt. 21:44).

The fact is that disrespect, irreverent rebellion – these are the attitudes that bring death… and we are seeing MORE AND MORE encouragement in our society to oppose reverence, and disregard respect. Al Mohler wrote an article about “Parents obey your children” in 2009, that reflected a reversal of authority. In the article, he refers to a literary critic:

“Parents, who have been drinking deeply from the wells of contemporary secular parenting advice, have largely become passive facilitators in the lives of their children. As Zalewski argues, today’s young parents “learn that there are many things they must never do to their willful young child: spank, scold, bestow frequent praise, criticize, plead, withhold affection, take away toys, ‘model’ angry emotions, intimidate, bargain, nag.” In other words, “nearly all forms of discipline appear morally suspect.” Modern “experts” like Alfie Kohn now go so far as to argue that rewarding children for good behavior is virtually as injurious to the child as punishing children for negative behavior. Arguing against what he calls “conditional parenting,” Kohn … asserted: Conditional parenting isn’t limited to old-school authoritarians. Some people who wouldn’t dream of spanking choose instead to discipline their young children by forcibly isolating them, a tactic we prefer to call “time out.” Conversely, “positive reinforcement” teaches children that they are loved, and lovable, only when they do whatever we decide is a “good job.” Today’s parents, advised by the likes of Alfie Kohn, are themselves the children and grandchildren of a generation raised by parents who abandoned traditional parenting for the advice of Dr. Benjamin Spock. The war against parental authority gained momentum throughout the 20th century. Now, today’s children are often virtually undisciplined — their parents having abandoned the central role of disciplinarian due to distraction, ideological intimidation, cultural pressure, or sheer confusion. Parents, Obey Your Children? Albert Mohler Wednesday • October 14, 2009

Let me be clear: disrespect kills a society! When children do not understand authority, they don’t understand reverence of the Holy One. They vote on God, and mute any word that doesn’t square with what they THINK He should want from them! Jesus stood before such a generation – and so do we.

A Third (The Most Blunt Edition) Parable

He offered a third parable (mashal) specifically to the chief priests and Pharisees that were rejecting His kingdom (Mt. 22:1-14) – and this is even clearer.

Matthew 22:1 Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying, 2 “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. 3 “And he sent out his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast, and they were unwilling to come. 4 “Again he sent out other slaves saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited, “Behold, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and my fattened livestock are [all] butchered and everything is ready; come to the wedding feast.”‘ 5 “But they paid no attention and went their way, one to his own farm, another to his business, 6 and the rest seized his slaves and mistreated them and killed them. 7 “But the king was enraged, and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderers and set their city on fire. 8 “Then he said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9 Go therefore to the main highways, and as many as you find [there], invite to the wedding feast.’ 10 “Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered together all they found, both evil and good; and the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests. 11 “But when the king came in to look over the dinner guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes, 12 and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes?’ And the man was speechless. 13 “Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ 14 “For many are called, but few [are] chosen.”

He openly exclaimed in the parable, “My Kingdom was being actively rejected by these leaders!” Note that one man came in without proper dress for the occasion (a symbol of contempt for the host in that day) and the king singled him out (22:11-12). The king commanded that he be bound and cast out of the feast hungry for the insulting behavior (22:13). Jesus then closed the illustration with a popular ancient proverb, “Many are called, but few are chosen.”

What was He saying? He was making the point to those who were rejecting Him that there was NO WAY for them to attain the blessing of fellowship with His Father except by honoring Him with proper respect. They were like the man without the wedding garb – they wanted “in” without respecting Jesus, and that simply couldn’t happen.

The proverbial statement is used three times in the Apocryphal book (an apocalyptic book) of 4 Esdras (also called Latin Ezra), and is used in a very wide context. In this case, the Gospel writer chose the words “called” (Greek: klay-tos, probably best translated “invited” in this passage) in place of the Hebrew or Aramaic term Jesus originally employed (it is hard to believe two Jews in the Temple would be speaking Koine Greek to each other!). For the word “chosen” the writer, under Divine direction of the Spirit chose the term “eklayktos” (akin to the word later used to denote “church” in the New Testament). This word simply means selected, but in this context probably is best translated in its general sense, “having been found of a quality that was desired.” In other words, Jesus is saying:

“Many have been invited, but only a few of those who have been invited have met the criteria of proper respect for the King to be fully accepted.”

Here is the truth: People who don’t revere the Savior cannot even long maintain a respect for Him – for His claims are too striking to ignore.

We must recognize WHO Jesus is or face the consequences. By not revering Him, we cut the limb behind us upon which our lives are perched. Disrespect kills the body, but not recognizing Jesus offers eternal death!

I cannot help but think of the HMS Bounty when I think of disrespect, death and mutiny…

The Bounty set sail from Spithead in Portsmouth, England on 23 December 1787 on a mission to gather breadfruit trees from Polynesia and transport them to the British West Indies. After ten months and 27 thousand miles of sailing, the Bounty arrived in Mataivai Bay, Tahiti (where it remained until 4 April 1789. During their long stay in Tahiti, many of the men became involved with local women and some married. When it was time to leave this island paradise, they had a difficult time parting and the men quickly mutinied their captain and stranded him at sea. Captain Bligh and eighteen loyal crew members were set adrift in a longboat and eventually arrived in Indonesia after an incredible open boat voyage of several thousand miles. The mutineers returned to Tahiti for their women, and after months at sea to hide, they chose Pitcairn Island. In short order, the community fell into turmoil. Fueled by homemade alcohol, disputes over women eventually resulted in the violent deaths of all but two of the men – Adams and Young. Six years later Young died of asthma; Adams was left with eleven women and 23 children. Finally, Adams turned to the Bounty Bible, which led him to repentance and a new outlook on life. Using the Bible, he educated the children, built a school and organized the community into a Christian way of life. Later Lex wrote, “I had been working like a mole for years, and suddenly it was as if the doors were flung wide open, and I saw the light, and I met God in Jesus Christ. And the burden of my sin rolled away, and I found new life in Christ.” In 1808 Pitcairn was re-discovered by the American ship Topaz. …Surprised by their find and impressed by the character of the residents, they chose to leave this community, founded by mutineers, alone and allow Adams to remain with his people. Adams died on 6 March 1829 at age 63. – Adapted from http://www.onlinepitcairn.com/history.htm).