The King Rises

Matthew 28:1-20
 

Good Morning!  He is risen!  Indeed, He is risen!
 
Every day in Christ is a good day, but during Easter time the days seem a bit brighter, a bit sweeter, hope seems stronger.  Not only are we are reminded that Jesus has overcome death, we celebrate His resurrection.  The King has risen.
 
You know these events well.  Leading up to Matthew 28, Jesus has lived a life set apart to God.  He has walked in sinless perfection.  He resisted temptation and did not submit to Satan’s trickery.  He had a public ministry lasting just three years.  During that time, many came to Him for a wide range of reasons.  Jesus performed many signs and wonders far beyond what anyone else had done in the Old Testament.  Many followed Him, but many did not stay with Him during his earthly ministry.
 
We see a microcosm of that even within the last week of Jesus’ life on earth.
 
At just the right time, Jesus came to Jerusalem and the crowds joined together again crying out, “Hosanna to the Son of David!”  Matthew 21:9
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” Matthew 21:9, Mark 11:9, John 12:13
“Hosanna in the highest heaven!”  Matthew 21:9, Mark 11:10
“Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!”  Mark 11:10
“Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” Luke 19:38
“Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” Luke 19:38
“Blessed is the king of Israel!” John 12:13
 
Not even a week later, Jesus is arrested and abandoned by his disciples.  He is unjustly condemned, struck, spat upon, scourged with whips, mocked, forced to wear a crown of thorns, and ultimately crucified.  Only one of the twelve disciples was clearly at the cross.  The ones who did not abandon Him were the women:  Mary the mother of Jesus, Mary’s sister, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, Mary the wife of Clopas, Salome, the mother of the sons of Zebedee, and many others.
 
Jesus gives up his spirit and dies upon the cross.  Ever looking at appearances, the Jewish leaders ask that those crucified have their legs broken so that they would die sooner, before Passover.  Even though the soldiers saw that Jesus died, they pierce His side with a spear to be sure.  Yes, it is certain, Jesus is dead.
 
Joseph of Arimathea goes to Pilate and asks for the body.  Pilate agrees, and with his permission, Joseph comes and takes the body of Jesus away from the cross.  It seems to magnify the tragedy that Joseph is joined by Nicodemus.  Nicodemus brings nearly one hundred pounds of burial spices and perfumes, likely those perfumes and spices meant for his own burial.  Joseph seemingly gives up his own newly prepared tomb for Jesus.  I say that it magnifies the tragedy because it is especially heartbreaking when the old bury the young.  It ought not be, and yet here these old men from the Jewish council are burying Jesus, a man of 33 years, in the prime of life.
 
Matthew 27 concludes with the posting of a guard at the tomb on the Sabbath day, the day following Jesus’ death.  The disciples did not anticipate that Jesus would rise from the dead in spite of the fact that Jesus explicitly told the disciples that he would rise.  He had told them so on multiple occasions.  The chief priests and Pharisees did understand that Jesus had proclaimed his coming resurrection.  Unfortunately, their response to Jesus’ message was not belief, but rather to seek to prevent a conspiracy.
 
Let us rejoice that no guard could prevent Jesus rising. 
 
Let’s pray before we go into today’s passage in Matthew 28.

Jesus the Fallen King

 Matthew 27:32-66
 

Last week Carl went over the many times the Jewish leaders broke their own laws in order to have Jesus put to death by the Romans. Today we will continue in our series in Matthew titled Jesus, King of Kings. Picking up where Carl left off in Matthew chapter 27 verse 32, we read:
 
As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross. They came to a place called Golgotha (which means The Place of the Skull). – Matthew 27:32-33
 
This event is recorded in the Gospel of John as:
 
Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). Here they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle. – John 19:17-18
 
The event is recorded in Luke as follows:
 
As they led him away, they seized Simon from Cyrene, who was on his way in from the country, and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus. – Luke 23:26
 
And finally, the event is Mark is recorded as:
 
A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross. – Mark 15:21

Are You the King

Matthew 27:1-31

Welcome! It feels great to be able to stand up here and deliver a message here in our building. But at the same time, I am even more thankful for all of you, whether you are on Zoom or in person, that you have remained faithful to God and have continued to fellowship as a part of this body despite all of the challenges, inconveniences, and trials that this past year has brought. It has been roughly a full year since the pandemic affected us here in South Carolina to the point that we began to meet online. Many things have changed in our lives and in our society, but God never changes. Politicians, employers, and even those close to us personally may disappoint, fail, and even betray us, but God remains faithful, and His promises are sure.

 
We are rapidly approaching the end of the Book of Matthew, and we will finish on Easter Sunday, two weeks from now. Because Easter is almost upon us, I want to recommend a video/podcast that I feel did an exceptionally good job discussing the evidence for the resurrection of Christ. I will include a link in the message transcript (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8nksgZerZE) but you can also easily find it by searching in YouTube or your favorite podcast app for “Mike Winger” and clicking on the recent title, dated March 17, “Teen Atheist Becomes Christian Because of this Evidence.” The format is a discussion between Pastor Mike Winger and what I think is a high-school student in Belgium named Mario who became a Christian after studying the Bible along with apologetic materials from Mike and others. He wrote a paper for school in which he defended the resurrection, and the discussion deals with how to help you answer common objections to the historicity of the resurrection and gives many categories of evidence for it. Beyond this, the faith of Mario and the gentle spirit and practical advice of Mike Winger are just super encouraging. I do not make recommendations like this often, but in this case, I feel confident that if you listen to it you will come away strengthened in your faith.

Doubters and Deniers

 Matthew 26:31-75
 

On July 19, 64AD, the city of Rome caught fire, and the fires burned for 3 days and nights. As soon as they’d get the fire put out in one place, it would spread to another only to reignite where they has just been fighting the fire. Rumors swirled about how the fire started. Many blamed the deranged Emperor Nero. He liked to build things to bring more honor to himself; many thought he started the fires to get rid of buildings he didn’t like so that he could rebuild them. In an effort to save his own life, Nero blamed the Christians. They were already distrusted within the city of Rome and therefore became an easy scapegoat. The citizens of Rome did not understand Christianity and many of their practices. For example, they thought the Lord’s Supper was cannibalistic. Even the holy kiss was misunderstood as a public sign of other gross practices they assumed were part of Christianity. As a result, persecution came easily. This time however, they got very “creative,” shall we say, with their physical persecution. Nero himself helped with the persecution. Along with having Paul beheaded, Nero would roll Christians in pitch and use them as torches around his garden. He would sew them into animal skins and turn hunting dogs loose on them. Crucifixion, racking, hanging all became more and more common forms of persecution. Shortly after this started, Peter wrote his first epistle, encouraging the believers to stand firm in their faith in the face of the trials. Where did he learn this bold confidence? Wasn’t he the one that swore to a measly servant girl that he wasn’t a follower of Jesus?
 
Let’s pray and find out.

Anointed and Betrayed

Matthew 26:1-30
 

Last time in our study of Matthew we wrapped up the Olivet Discourse with the last parable that Jesus told during his life on earth, the story about the separation of the sheep and the goats, a description of the last judgment. The sheep are welcomed into the kingdom, and the goats are sent away to eternal punishment. People have had questions about the meaning of this story probably ever since it was told, since on its surface it appears to indicate that each person’s eternal destiny is solely dependent on what good deeds they do during their lifetime. However, we have so much other New Testament teaching that confirms that salvation is not through good works, but only by grace, through faith, a gift from God that we receive without deserving it. So we can understand that the good deeds mentioned in the parable – feeding the hungry and being kind to strangers, prisoners, and the poor – are practical actions that spring from true faith and gratefulness to God. In the story they are described as being done unconsciously, a reflection of a sheep’s real identity, not in an effort to earn the favor of the King.
 
You may recall back in chapter 10 where Jesus was talking about salvation and rewards in a similar way, at the end of his second discourse:
 
 Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it. Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. Whoever welcomes a prophet as a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and whoever welcomes a righteous person as a righteous person will receive a righteous person’s reward. And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones who is my disciple, truly I tell you, that person will certainly not lose their reward. – Matthew 10:39-42
 
Finding one’s life in this context implies determining one’s own destiny, being in control and striving for personal benefit. That approach, which rejects God, will end in eternal death. In contrast, losing one’s life – probably not literally, but in submission to God – will result in eternal life with him. Welcoming a disciple of Jesus is the same as welcoming him and his Father, who sent him. Good deeds, even something as simple as giving a cup of refreshing water, will be rewarded, but notice the element of faith here. Welcoming a prophet as a prophet and a righteous person as a righteous person requires acknowledging the source of their truth and righteousness, namely God himself. The reward then is fellowship with the true God, through a revelation of who he is and what he has done for each of us.

Sitting on HIs Glorious Throne

 Matthew 25:31-46
 

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. – Matthew 25:31
 
Why is Jesus talking about this issue? I think it stems from the question back in Matthew 24:3 in which the disciples asked, “what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” So, it seems as if Jesus is still answering their question. To my knowledge Jesus is only going to return once. Once he is here, he will reign for a thousand years.
 
The first time that Jesus came, he came as a lamb to be slaughtered. He was born in a barn with no glory. He was born to two parents who were simple. They did not have much and they did not look like much. As a young man he worked as a carpenter. He probably had to deal with customer service issues. Like me, in my business, he probably did not just have one boss, he had many bosses to please. I bet there was messiness involved. Before he started his travelling missionary work, he was baptized by a man who wore clothes made out of camel hair, and he ate locusts...with a touch of honey. He gathered 12 men who were ordinary and unschooled as it says in Acts 4:13. That does not sound too much like a glorious entourage for a king. He was not like charismatic evangelists of our time, waiting for people to come to him at his event. In Luke 19:10 Jesus said that he was going be the one to do the seeking. In Matthew 20, some of his disciples were jockeying for a better position in the group. He corrected their mindset by saying, “just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:28) Later, Judas betrayed Jesus to be arrested by the Romans. Instead of demonstrating his glory, power and authority, he said, “Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? But how then would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen in this way?” (Matthew 26:53-54). None of these things seem to portray a king who has glory. Well, where I come from, we had a saying. “You ain't seen nothin’ yet.”

Journeys to the Kingdom

 Matthew 25:1-30

Good morning! Today we continue our series in Matthew, looking at the first part of Chapter 25. I have entitled the message “Journeys to the Kingdom,” but perhaps a better title might be “Journeys Illustrating the Kingdom,” as our passage today focuses on two parables that each involve journeys. But before we look at our passage, I think it is helpful to recall the context, which we have explored over the past two weeks in Matthew 24.
 
These two chapters, Matthew 24 and Matthew 25, are known as the Olivet Discourse, because Jesus told them to His disciples while sitting at the Mount of Olives. Jesus begins by telling them that a time will come when the Temple will be destroyed. His disciples ask Him when this will be, and what will be the signs of His coming and of the end of the age.
 
Jesus gives them signs, but also warns them that before He comes, deceivers will come who claim to be Him, and they should be careful not to fall for them. He also tells them that as for the day and hour of when these things will happen, nobody knows except God the Father. He warns them to keep watch, because His coming will be sudden and not when people expect Him. He ends Chapter 24 by warning that some will be like servants put in charge of a master’s household who, thinking they have plenty of time, chooses to live evilly and wildly. This person, Jesus says, will be caught in the midst of his disobedience and “assigned a place with hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Keeping Watch

 
Matthew 24:36-51
 

Are you keeping watch for the end of the age? What does this even mean? As John pointed out last Sunday, the disciples were wondering this, as they asked Jesus in verse 2 of Matthew 24, “What will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” They knew that Jesus would be bringing in his kingdom in a more complete way. They suspected that the world as they knew it would change dramatically. Would that happen now or at some point in the future? How would they know what to expect? Jesus had just given them the shocking news that their beloved and honored temple would be destroyed; maybe he would explain the complete picture of what was to happen.
 
Jesus does give them a vivid warning that it will be a tough time, but that he will return to “gather his elect.” All the peoples of the earth would “see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory.” When the temple was completely destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. no doubt many Christians wondered if Jesus would return right then. This surely was one of the signs of his coming, the “abomination that causes desolation” prophesied by Daniel more than 600 years earlier.
 
But John also pointed out in his message last week that Biblical prophecy is usually fulfilled in multiple ways, in the near term and also in the end times. We have to be very careful with definitive interpretations that associate prophetic elements with current events, in an attempt to predict the end of the world. But people have been trying to do this ever since Jesus returned to heaven. Many times entire communities have stopped their normal activities and just waited, convinced that Jesus was about to return at any moment. Is that what it means to “keep watch”? We will see from today’s passage that the answer is no. We pick up Jesus’ discourse again in the middle of Matthew 24:

Mourning When the King Returns

 Matthew 24:1-35
 

Good morning! As we move into chapter 24 in the book of Matthew, let’s look back and get a glimpse of where we are in Jesus’ life on earth.
 
It is now the middle of the Passion Week, only days from Jesus’ crucifixion and death. Jesus has been in Jerusalem during the day and staying a few miles to the east in Bethany each night.
 
On Sunday, the first day, of the Passion Week, Jesus was ushered into the city riding on a donkey’s colt as the people laid cloaks and palm branches before him all the while shouting “Hosanna in the highest! Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord!”
 
Then, Jesus entered the temple courts and cleared the corrupt money changers and those buying and selling there. This week, I happened to read the account of these events in Mark’s gospel. There it says that Jesus also prevented anyone from carrying merchandise through the temple courts. It seems in addition to the money changers and buyers and sellers, other people were using the temple courts not as a place of worship but a short cut carrying whatever goods they needed to transport directly through the temple courts. The focus of many people in the temple courts was not on God but on themselves.
 
Each subsequent day, Jesus was in the temple courts teaching and being questioned. The events of the Passion Week are jam packed. It is still only Monday or Tuesday as we reach Matthew 24. The questions to trap Him, the parables He told, the repeated astonishment of the crowds, the seven woes, all these events happened in the course of one or at most two days.

Woe to You Hypocrites

 Matthew 23:1-39
 

Today we continue our series in Matthew titled Jesus King of Kings. As John, Tim and Carl have stated Jesus is in the last week before His Crucifixion. Last week Carl explained the difference of the Herodians and the Pharisees and the Sadducees.
 
As I prepared for today’s message I wondered “What the difference between the teachers of the law, the scribes, and the Rabbi’s were and how they and Synagogues and the Sanhedrin originated?”. So, today’s message is going to touch on the answer to this question. Before we get into that let us pray and ask the Lord to open our hearts to what He wants us to learn and apply from His word in these passages from Matthew chapter 23.

Traps

 Matthew 22:15-46
 

Welcome! Today we continue our series into the book of Matthew, now looking at the last week before the crucifixion. There is a lot to talk about in today’s passage, but I think it helps to understand the context with a quick review of some things we have looked at in the last two weeks.
 
Recall that Jesus has been teaching the crowds, who by and large love Him (even hailing Him as the Messiah as He rode into Jerusalem). He has also been opposing the religious leadership, even cleansing the temple of their excessive-money-making exchanges. He has also embarrassed them in public debate, pointed out their hypocrisy, and generally won decisively against them in the “court of public opinion” which was really an honor-shame contest. The religious leadership resents Jesus, hates Him, is jealous of Him, and fear for their future if He continues to grow in popularity.

Disobedience and Its Consequences

 Matthew 21:28-22:14

 

We continue our study today in the middle of Matthew 21. As John mentioned last week, we are now into the last week of Jesus’ life, leading up to the climax of his death and resurrection. He is in Jerusalem, and the tension between him and the religious authorities is growing. He had been speaking out against their false teaching and hypocrisy all along, and since chapter 12 they have been plotting how to kill him. But now, with his arrival at their center of power and influence, the confrontation has become even more intense – and intentional. Back in chapter 16 Jesus had explained to his disciples that “he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.” He had to do it; it was his purpose for coming to earth, the only way to bring salvation.

Receiving the King

Matthew 21:1-27
 

As Jonathan pointed out last week, while we are still several chapters from the end of the book of Matthew, the time span from today’s passage until Matthew 28 is only a week. These are clearly critical moments of Jesus’ life on earth.
 
Last week, in Matthew 20:17, we saw that Jesus began his journey from Galilee to Jerusalem. In Matthew 20:29, we see that Jesus and his disciples passed through the city of Jericho on the Jordan River. The journey from Galilee to Jerusalem was 85-90 miles and took four to five days by way of the Jordan. Jericho to Jerusalem was the last leg of the trip, roughly 18 miles.
 
Here now at the beginning of Matthew 21, Jesus and the disciples are approaching Bethphage on the Mount of Olives. They have made the big ascent that Jonathan mentioned last week from Jericho to the immediate vicinity of Jerusalem. Even today, Google Maps predicts the journey from Bethphage to the Temple Mount is about a mile and a half and would take just over 30 minutes to accomplish. That route has to take into account modern roads and things so it potentially is a bit longer that it might have been in Jesus’ day. It’s an up and over, down and through kind of journey.  Leaving Bethphage, you go up over the Mount of Olives, then down and through the Kidron Valley, and then back up into Jerusalem which is on a similar elevation as Bethphage.
 
I enjoy looking at maps in general. I especially like to look at maps of places in the Bible because it helps the reality of the Scriptures to penetrate in a little bit different way. I can begin to feel what is happening a bit more. Hopefully, it is a help to some of you, as well.
 
Let’s pray and jump into today’s passage.

Conversations with the King

 Matthew 20:17-34
 

As we continue on in Matthew 20, we are very near the end of Jesus’ life.  Matthew’s narrative will slow down drastically over the next several chapters as we get closer to Jesus’ death.  Matthew devoted the first 20 chapters to Jesus’ first 33 years, but it will take him the last 8 chapters to cover the final week.  (Of course, we know that Matthew did not actually write in chapter and verse.  Those were added around the middle of the 16^th century.)  Matthew devotes over one quarter of his gospel to the final week of Jesus’s life to show the importance of it.  In Matthew 19:1, Jesus left Galilee, crossed to the East side of the Jordan River, and was ministering in the area of Perea.  Perea was an area just north of the Dead Sea but on the Eastern side of the Jordan River, the side opposite of Jerusalem.  When we pick up in 20:17, Jesus is leaving Perea and headed for Jerusalem. 

First and Last in the Kingdom

Matthew 19:16-20:16
 

Now a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is do to get eternal life?”
only One who is good. If you want to enter life, obey the commandments.”
“Which ones?” the man inquired. Jesus replied, “‘Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’” – Matthew 19:16-19

Family Matters

 Matthew 19:1-15

Welcome! Today we continue our series into the book of Matthew. Today we are looking at Matthew Chapter 19, beginning with verse 1.
 
When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went into the region of Judea to the other side of the Jordan. Large crowds followed him, and he healed them there. Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?” – Matthew 19:1-3

When Others Sin

 Matthew 18:15-35

 

Today we continue our study of Matthew in the middle of chapter 18. Our series title highlights Jesus as the King of Kings, and much of this book is devoted to describing and demonstrating the unusual nature of his kingdom. As John mentioned last Sunday, this chapter begins the fourth discourse, a sizable chunk of Jesus’ teaching about the kingdom, in contrast to the stories about what he did as he traveled around with his disciples and lived out kingdom realities by ministering to the needs of people.
 
This discourse is sometimes referred to as the Discourse on the Church, since Jesus addresses the ways in which his followers should relate to each other. The word “church” appears for the second time in Matthew, after 16:18 where Jesus tells Peter that “on this rock I will build my church.” The Greek word is ekklesia, and these are the only two places in any of the gospels that this word appears, though it appears over 100 times elsewhere in the New Testament.
 
Ekklesia originally referred to a political assembly in the Greek system of democracy. It literally means “the called-out ones,” a civil body of elected members. The disciples at this stage would probably have had a vague understanding that Jesus was referring to some sort of body that he would be the head of, extending beyond them to encompass all of his faithful followers. The ekklesia would be the universal church that Jesus would establish and lead. This word would also come to refer to a local congregation of believers.

Children and the Kingdom

Matthew 17:14-18:14

 

Of course, we are continuing on in our series on the book of Matthew titled “Jesus, King of Kings.” Today’s message spans Matthew 17:14 through 18:14. Before we go into the passage, I just want to remind you briefly about the passage which preceded this one.
 
The first half of Matthew 17 tells the account of the transfiguration. Jesus climbed up a high mountain together with Peter, James, and John, but not any of the other disciples. Once they reached the top, Jesus was transfigured or transformed before their eyes. His face shone like the sun. His clothes became as a bright white light. Then, Moses and Elijah appeared and began talking with Jesus. Peter not knowing what else to do said some funny things. God spoke audibly declaring loud and clear, “This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased.” Peter, James and John immediately fell face down on the ground. Jesus came and touched them. When they looked up from the ground, the moment had passed. They saw only Jesus.
 
As they returned down the mountain, Jesus told them not to tell anyone what they had seen until He had been raised from the dead. They talked on for a bit, approaching a large group of people waiting on them. Perhaps even with Peter, James and John still seeing spots.
 
Let’s pray, and then we will pick up the action in Matthew 17:14.

Messiah

Matthew 16:13-17:13
 

As we pick back up in Matthew 16, Jesus ministry is beginning to wind down.  Most Bible historians and those who study the time line of the Bible believe that the point we are at in Matthew’s gospel would have been only about 6 months prior to Jesus’s death.  He has been teaching and training the disciples, but He is about to give them one more exam.  This exam would show them that they still do not really have it all figured out yet.  They do not yet have the whole story down. 

Kingdom Illustration: Bread

 Matthew 15:21-16:12

Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession.”  Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.”  He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.”  The woman came and knelt before him. “Lord, help me!” she said.  He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs.”  “Yes, Lord,” she said, “but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”  Then Jesus answered, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour. – Matthew 15:21-28
 
The Canaanite woman came to Jesus asking for mercy.  There is nothing wrong in coming to Jesus with requests.  Matter of fact, in James 4:6 we are told, “let your requests be made known to God.”  But the context of those requests must be done in thanksgiving.  She must have known that Jesus had some kind of great authority and power.  You typically do not beg for mercy from someone that is weaker than you or has less authority than you.  I think that this was one of the things that constituted her “great faith”.  She was in a desperate situation, a situation that she did not have any control over.  Have you ever been in a situation like that?  Can you imagine what it would be like to enter their home?  It would have been chaos.  It probably felt like a hopeless warzone.  And it would have been hopeless without Jesus.