Full Transcript

Welcome to Share the Word. Today, Pastor Paul Nitz covers the Gospel of Matthew chapter 11 and takes you in a direction that promises to be not only thought-provoking, but it’s led to discussions and debates in the past. I know it’s coming, and I’m excited. You know what? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Email me later at tony@sharetheword.org and tell me what you think.

Matthew chapter 11. What if? What have been some of the great what-ifs in history? You know what I mean. Have you ever thought about this? Like, what if in the 1940s Germany had developed the atomic weapons their scientists were feverishly working on had turned their early victories into winning World War II?

Can you imagine how different the world would be now? What if the Soviets did not blink during the Cuban Missile Crisis in the 1960s? What if the Confederacy had won the Civil War in the 1860s? What if the Spanish Armada hadn’t been broken up and largely destroyed by storms when they attempted to invade England in the 16th century? If Spain, rather than England, had become the dominant world power for the next two centuries? So many what-ifs in history.

As I look back, things that would have drastically changed the course of the world had things gone differently, which they well could have. To bring it closer to home, do you ever think about your own personal history and the what-ifs along the road? I do, probably too much. What if I had chosen a career that some people urged me to do rather than the one I pursued? What if I had gone to that other school I was considering rather than the one I ended up attending? What if I had married another person I thought I was in love with rather than who I eventually did?

What if I had taken that job offer in a completely different part of the country, rather than going where I ultimately ended up? Am I the only person that thinks about this? I bet not. At any number of forks in the road, it’s not hard to imagine if we had done this rather than that, things would have been completely different in our lives. In a couple of moments, I’m going to point out a what if that makes anything else I can imagine pale in comparison. But first, let’s set it up by what was going on in the first year of Jesus’ public ministry.

After his baptism by the prophet John the Baptist and those weeks of special preparation alone with his Father in the wilderness, Jesus began his public ministry in the north of Israel, in Galilee, his home district. You remember John the Baptist, right? He was what I think of as the last of the Old Testament prophets, a man God had raised up to call Israel to repentance and with a special mission to prepare the way for the Messiah. For much of the prior year, John had been doing just that, as we’ve seen in the other Gospels, and he had created quite a stir with his ministry in Israel. His call to repentance got a little too personal for Herod Agrippa and his wife, the vassal rulers in Galilee under the Romans. John had called Herod out personally for some of his well-known evils and in particular for marrying his brother’s wife.

Consequently, his angry wife persuaded him to have the prophet arrested and imprisoned. Chapter 11 begins by Jesus sending out his own twelve disciples, Matthew, Peter, John, and the others, as he had been personally training them for a while now. He says he sent us out to teach and preach in our own cities. Jesus himself had, of course, been preaching a message of repentance early on in his ministry. Wherever he went, Repent, for the kingdom of God has come near. Matthew told us that back in chapter 4.

Jesus was going all about Galilee, teaching in synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom. Mark, according to Peter’s recollections, characterized the message in those early days like this: Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is come near. Repent and believe in this gospel.’ I don’t know if you’ve ever thought about this. What exactly did their message at this early stage entail? What was the gospel of the kingdom?

When I hear the word gospel, my mind immediately goes to the message that God loved the world so much that Jesus came out of heaven for a time, became a man like us, only to one day die for our sins and graciously make a way of salvation possible through faith in him. For us, the gospel message is, Repent and believe into Jesus, and God will forgive and accept you and give you eternal life based on his atoning sacrifice. That’s the good news today. That’s the gospel. A few years later, after Jesus died, in fact, yeah, that was the gospel. He had been killed on the cross.

He had died for our sins. He had been resurrected, and he sent his disciples out after that with the Great Commission: Take this gospel to the whole world. That’s the gospel of Romans and Galatians and Ephesians for sure. But to understand gospel that way at that early stage during the early years of Jesus’ public ministry, that would be a stretch. The only extensive sermon we have from Jesus delivered during those days, the Sermon on the Mount, where we spend a lot of time, never mentioned the cross at all, did it? It didn’t mention any of that stuff.

So John the Baptist would probably not have understood the gospel the way we do now, would he? We get an idea of how John was expecting events to unfold from this chapter, and it’s interesting. Listen. Now, while in prison, John heard about the works of Christ. Matthew has no qualms about calling Jesus here the Christ, the Messiah. And John sent word to Jesus by his disciples, asking, Are you the coming one, or should we be looking for somebody else?

Jesus answered them, Go and report to John what you hear and what you see. Those who are blind receive their sight. Those who are lame are walking. Those with leprosy are cleansed. Those who are deaf hear. The dead are raised, for heaven’s sakes.

And the poor have the gospel preached to them. Blessed is any person who does not take offense at me. Blessed is any person who does not take offense at me. Now, that was an interesting thing to say to John the Baptist. As I have been emphasizing, Jesus assured John, yeah, he was the Messiah by having his representatives report back all these supernatural things were happening through him, the supernatural signs the prophets said would happen around the Messiah. But the enigmatic line about, Blessed is anyone who will not take offense at me, may well mean that things are not going to play out as John expected and hoped.

But the promise remained: those who truly believed and trusted in Jesus would be blessed. So. Keeping it real with the context, with where we are in this unfolding story, what exactly do you think the gospel of the kingdom was that John and Jesus and their disciples were proclaiming at this stage? Here’s another clue. In chapter 10, Matthew recalls Jesus’ instructions when he sent out his disciples to preach in their hometowns. This is starting in verse 5.

These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them, saying, Do not go on a road to Gentiles, do not enter a city of Samaritans, but rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Seems to me the message to Israel was, and he specifically says they were not to take it to others, the message to Israel was, Repent, that is, get your hearts right with God, for his kingdom is near. In what sense was that true? Well, to me, the obvious answer is the King, the Messiah, had come and was right then among them. But that brings us to this giant what if.

John the Baptist and everyone else in Israel who heard the term kingdom of God at that time understood it to mean the Messianic era, the promised fulfillment of all the Messianic prophecies in the Old Testament. Remember what they are: that the Messiah, the Son of David, would overthrow the nation’s oppressors and reclaim Israel for Israelites; that he would initiate a golden era of global peace, with Jerusalem as its capital; that all the exiled Jews in the world would return to their land; and that a time of unparalleled and endless blessing from God would then follow. The kingdom of God on earth. So, what if when Jesus and John and their disciples went throughout Israel proclaiming this message, Repent, for the kingdom of God is near. The Messiah is here. Get your hearts and lives ready to accept and follow him.

What if the nation had? What if Herod and his wife had, in fact, repented? What if the Pharisees, seeing the undeniable power of Jesus displayed, had accepted him rather than become his critics and eventually his enemies? What if the priests who ran the temple in Jerusalem and the Sanhedrin members had recognized Jesus was their Messiah, repented of their hypocrisy and greed and pride, accepted and followed him? And all the regular people who heard this message, rather than just follow him around to see miracles or what he might do next, really got right with God, turned their hearts toward truly receiving and following Jesus as Messiah, as their King. What if that’s what happened?

I’ll tell you what got my mind onto this track. In the middle of this chapter 11, Matthew goes on to recall, and I’m quoting now, as the disciples of John were going away, this is after they had gotten Jesus’ answer to John’s question about whether he was really the Messiah, Jesus began speaking to the crowds about John the Baptist. And he said, What did you go out in the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? What did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing?

Those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ palaces. But what did you go out to see? A prophet. Yes, I tell you, and one who is more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it was written, ‘Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare the way before you.’ Truly I say to you, among those born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist.

And if you are willing to accept it, John himself is Elijah who was to come. The one who has ears to hear, let him hear. Wow. By the way, whenever Jesus said that, whoever has ears to hear thing, he was about to say something he considered profound, something really to think about, as we’d say. So what did he say? Jesus said John the Baptist was a very great man, yeah, and a true prophet of God, yeah.

But even more than that, he said, If you accept this, he is the Elijah to come. What did that part mean? I think maybe we talked about this a little before. The it is written quotation here is from the last writer of the Old Testament, the prophet Malachi, who had said that before the Messiah appeared and the kingdom of God dawned, Elijah would come to prepare the way before him. The Jews understood that literally. Did you know that part of the Passover Seder to this day among religious Jews is putting a place setting for Elijah at their table with a cup of wine for him at their table?

It is a way of saying, We’re still looking for, we’re still hoping for Elijah the prophet who will announce the arrival of our Messiah. Anyway, sounds to me that Jesus told those listening him that day that if Israel had accepted John and his message of repentance, he would have been that promised Elijah. And if that was true, then the promised Messiah who had come and the offering of the kingdom of God in their preaching throughout the towns and villages of Israel, Repent, for the kingdom of God is near, that offer to Israel was real. I realize that some theologians have a hard time with that. Theologians, by definition, are trying to figure out God, who He is, what His ways are like. But the Bible tells us, doesn’t it?

I know the Apostle Paul said this, and I’m pretty sure Isaiah said the same thing. His ways are past finding out. I can tell you this. The Apostle Peter certainly understood Jesus was the Christ, the Messiah, and believed His offer of God’s kingdom was real. Even after Jesus had been formally rejected, killed, resurrected, and ascended back to heaven, Peter was preaching boldly in Jerusalem weeks later this, according to Acts chapter 3: Brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance, just as your rulers did. He was being generous, speaking of the rejection of Jesus.

But the things which God previously announced by all of His prophets, that the Christ would suffer, He has fulfilled in this way. In other words, their rejection of Jesus, which is what led to His death on the cross, was in fact the linchpin event in God’s plan to make our salvation possible. But Peter went on, Therefore, repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away. Listen, in order that the times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and He will send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you. Times of refreshing from the Lord is a direct reference to the Messianic era, God’s kingdom on earth. Peter believed that even then, Israel, if they would repent, turn around, accept Jesus as Messiah, maybe they did not, with all their previous signs, get it, but come on, He’s now resurrected from the dead.

After that great sign, if you repent and receive the Messiah now, Peter is saying God may yet send Jesus back and establish His kingdom. Many were convicted at Peter’s message and did repent and did receive Jesus as their Messiah. That’s how the church was born. We saw that at the beginning of Acts. But sadly, for the most part, the Jews did not. Overwhelmingly, Israel rejected Jesus as their Messiah and still does.

I can still hear the echoes of their rulers at Pilate’s judgment hall screaming out, We will not have this man rule over us. Away with him. Crucify him. I’m in no way suggesting that rejection of the Messiah caught God off guard or surprised Jesus. Jesus clearly knew how things would go. Yet that does not mean that the offer to Israel of the kingdom of God was not real.

Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives overlooking Jerusalem, remember, only days before his arrest and crucifixion, sighing with a heart full of emotion. Jesus said, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you’ve killed the prophets and stoned those God has sent to you. How often I wanted to gather your children together the way a hen gathers her chickens under her wings, but you were not willing. Behold, now your house is going to be left to you desolate. Remember his line sent back to John the Baptist during the early heady days of the Galilean ministry: Blessed are those who will not be offended because of me. Most stumbled over the cornerstone, to use Jesus’ own analogy.

They did not recognize their day of visitation, as he put it. Peter wrote about this, all of this, much later in one of his epistles, as he himself no doubt was trying to put together all the what-if puzzle pieces. This is what the Scriptures said, and then he quoted from two Old Testament prophets. Behold, I am laying in Zion a choice stone, a precious cornerstone, and the one who believes in Him will not be disappointed. This precious value, then, Peter concludes, is for you who believe, but for unbelievers, the stone which the builders rejected, this became the chief cornerstone. He meant the cornerstone of the new things God went on to do: the building of His church, the offering of the gospel of grace to the whole world, building out His spiritual kingdom, which is still going on in our day.

Could it have all played out differently? That’s a very tantalizing question, isn’t it? I know some listening to me right now are thinking, But all this is so hypothetical, Paul, because God certainly knew Jesus was going to be rejected. The cross was necessary, a necessary part of His plan of salvation. I agree. But my mind keeps asking, What if?

Because I think it’s apparent that generation had a real choice and made the wrong choice. Jesus didn’t weep over Jerusalem because they could not help rejecting Him. He said, according to Matthew, and I think Matthew must have been there because he alone tells this story, How I wanted to gather you together as my children, but you would not. They heard the proclamation of the gospel of the kingdom. They saw the remarkable supernatural signs. They listened to Jesus teach like no one had ever taught, and yet still, in the final analysis, most of them rejected Him.

And things have not gone well for Israel since. That’s the reality of it. A theologian I read, as I was thinking about all this, put it like this, admittedly struggling to find an analogous illustration: All of this goes beyond our comprehension because our intelligence and capacity for comprehension is finite. The difference is even far greater than the difference that exists between a man and his dog. You can train your dog to fetch the newspaper, maybe even your slippers, but you can’t sit down and read it to him and then discuss the news. Some things are just beyond our comprehension.

I’ve gone into all this today because, for me anyways, it brings up very real questions, big what-if questions. God gives us opportunities, choices. Some of them are huge. At the time, we may not appreciate them that way, but looking back, I assure you, we will. Today, the gospel message is repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. John wrote at the beginning of his gospel, Jesus came to his own, but they did not accept him.

But to as many as do receive him, he gives the right to become God’s children, all those who will believe into his name. What if we reject Christ, God’s Messiah? What if we stumble over Jesus and are offended at the idea we need to repent, believe in him, and follow him? What if, as he said, there are only two roads, two gates, two destinations? That’s the biggest what-if imaginable. Every one of us should think very hard about it if we haven’t decided for Jesus yet.

Remember, he said, the ones who would believe in him will never be disappointed. And if you’ve already accepted Jesus as your Savior and you call him your Lord, there are still many big decisions and small decisions we come up against in life, like those I started with today. Do you seriously seek God’s will in your life choices? Do you pray over them with an open heart? Do you get godly counsel before making big decisions? The what-ifs in life are so important.

You do not want to look back at the end of yours with crushing regrets. He who has ears to hear, let him hear. Another incredible podcast filled with insightful and thought-provoking information. The what-ifs in life can certainly keep you up at night. All of us at Share the Word continue this journey to bring you the New Testament chapter by chapter. But we need your help.

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