Well, I invite you to turn this morning, if you're a visitor. We're working through expositionally the Gospel of Matthew, and today we are in Matthew chapter 12. Matthew chapter 12, we are looking at verses 15 through 23 of Matthew chapter 12. You'll remember last time we considered that Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath, how the Pharisees attacked him on his eating of bread, eating of grain with his disciples. We spent some time in that particular passage, but now Matthew does something somewhat surprising. That's what we're looking at today, right after these two accounts on the Sabbath and the issue of the Sabbath.
So, beginning at verse 15 of Matthew chapter 12, we read this: "Jesus, was aware Jesus aware of this, withdrew from there, and many followed him, and he healed them all and ordered them not to make him known. This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: behold my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my spirit upon him, and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles. He will not quarrel or cry aloud, nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not quench, until he brings justice to victory. And in his name, the Gentiles will hope. Then a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute was brought to him, and he healed him so that the man spoke and saw. And all the people were amazed and said, could this be the son of David?
There will end the reading of God's word.
I thought about today taking a much larger section, as I've been doing in Matthew. I wondered what I would do with this particular little section here. I wondered if I should have put it into the other sermon and how to break it up. But as I studied it, I realized that Matthew is doing something very crucial to the entire book in this little section that we are considering this morning. He is taking what we know as from Isaiah, the servant the suffering servant passages from the book of Isaiah. And what Matthew is doing for us in the middle of this Gospel is identifying Jesus as the Messiah in a unique way, in a surprising way. Matthew wants to do that for us today. He wanted to do that in israel was to identify the Messiah. How? How would people know? How would they see? At least for all generations that would read this later would say, "Now we see this was the Messiah." How would people know? This is really important. In some ways, I believe it's the center of the book. For as this is the most Jewish of the Gospels, he is presenting Jesus as the true King and the Messiah. That's sort of the great theme of the book.
Not only does Matthew take the Old Testament scriptures to identify him, but he does it in such a way today as to offset Christ from every other hero that Israel would expect. And we let that set in for a minute every other hero that is than Israel would expect. In other words, he deliberately describes Jesus, the Christ, the Messiah, with those qualities that would actually make him offensive to us.
Well, I guess that depends. That depends. That has to be qualified. When Jesus said in the previous section, "Blessed is he who is not offended because of me," that's still running through this. Why would people be offended by him? Herein is the test. Matthew has offset Jesus in a surprising way today as the Messiah. He has offset him from all other delivers throughout all of history. And that in and of itself showcases God's wisdom contrary to the wisdom of this present world in all of its delivers. It tests us as to whether we have received Christ and his kingdom as he is revealed to us in the scriptures.
That's my greatest concern for Christians at the moment, that we are so caught up right now in search of political heroes to relieve our burdens. And yet in the middle of all of this, I have been preaching a certain passage: "Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy laden. I will give you rest. My yoke is easy, and my burden is light. And you will find rest for your souls." Well, Matthew today is showcasing this. He wants to identify and press us as to whether we've received the Messiah. How would you know? That's the question. How would you know that Jesus is the Messiah? In no way that you would immediately expect. What kind of warrior would you think? What kind of warrior are we looking for?
Matthew reveals to the identity of Jesus Christ as a long-awaited messiah the greater than david and as the servant of the Lord prophesied in Isaiah. That's what's happening here in this Gospel today. And you see that in the revelation of his humility, his message, and his claim. And that's what we're looking at in this glorious little section today, that is immensely encouraging for us.
Let's begin with his humility. You might say at the heart of this comes in verse 23 in the text today, with a question that is posed by the multitudes. And these are large numbers of people following Jesus Christ. They are following him as he's doing his healings, and they ask the question in verse 23: "Could this be the son of David?" In Israel, that meant, "Is this the Messiah? Is this the greater son that would was promised to david who would sit on his throne forever? Is that him?" That's a remarkable question in the midst of all of this that Matthew is pressing us with.
And Jesus has already invited the comparison. He did it last week. Remember in what we considered on the issue of the Sabbath? The Pharisees had come to him and were furious because they were eating grain on the Sabbath and rubbing grain together. And Jesus invited the comparison right then and there: "Have you not read what David did when he was hungry and those who were with him?" So you see the comparison here. Jesus has raised it, and the people are asking, "Is this him? Is this the son of David?"
You remember the account. Saul was going after David and all of his what you call band of brothers. They were on the run. they David was exiled from his kingdom. There was a brutal effort, if you will, by Israel's leaders to kill David, to destroy David. And so they had to eat bread to live. Jonathan said, "My father, David, seeks to destroy you." Jesus wasn't just drawing this comparison out of nowhere. It's as if Jesus said in the last section, "Do you guys realize the greater than David has come, and the reason we're out in the grain fields is because you've driven us out here? I should be in my kingdom. You've sought to destroy me." That's how the section ended, didn't it? The Pharisees then went out and plotted against him how they might destroy him. Same scene now. In fulfillment, dave the greater than David is on the run, if you will, though he's not everything's planned. And so in fulfillment, that's what we have in this passage the greater than david and at the end of our text that: people are struck with that "Is this him? Is this the son of David?"
So here we are. That's the theme. That's the issue. Now you'll notice that's bracketed in verse 15: "When Jesus knew it, he withdrew from there, and great multitudes followed him, and he healed them all." And the end of that comparison ends as he healed the man there who was demon-possessed. When they asked the question, "Is it the son of David?" So there's something that's happening at the center of this, what you might call pericope, what you might say is bracketed. Something big is happening to identify him. This is going to lead in the next, next week to the issue of blasphemy against the spirit, where the Pharisees will commit that in attacking him as doing the works of Satan. You'll remember that's next week. But Matthew, for a minute, wants us to stop and identify Jesus. Let's do that, if you will. He's not merely a descendant from David. Oh, he's much more than that. That's what leads Matthew here to his remarkable revelation of him.
What do you think if I asked the question today: "Would identify Jesus as the Messiah, the greater than David?" How would we know? How would we know?
Right, we get to the heart of something that he's been saying. After he healed them all, you'll notice here in verse 15: notice what is said. "He ordered them not to make him known." Now we've come across this before. It's been a little confusing as to the reason for this. Why? We've always tried to answer that, but he gives us a direct answer here. "I don't want you making me known." And Matthew says that was done so that it might be fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah.
Now, why does he keep saying this: "Don't make me known"? Because he's about to prove what it means that he now listen is gentle and lowly in heart, humble. Here's the reason he's saying this: He's not after fame or fortune. He's not after, listen, this is really a very interesting providence that I landed on this this week. He's not after winning the kingdom by popular vote. He's not after a display of outward glory. He made himself of no reputation. And what that means is: when he says, "Don't tell anyone, I don't want any attention from this. What's being shown to us? What I'm about to do is to contrast your Messiah, your King, your political hero, and radically offset him from everything you just experienced this last week. That's going to test you. Matthew wants Christ to stand out in a way that we would never expect him to stand out, so that we would know the prophecy is fulfilled.
What prophecy? What are we talking about? And herein lies the test. You can only come to him when you know what he has set out to accomplish as your Messiah. That's a crucial point. You will only come to him when you know what he has set out to accomplish.
And at this point, Matthew did not want it known, or Jesus didn't, that it might be fulfilled what was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah. And the first thing that's emphasized here is fascinating to study from the prophecy of Isaiah 42. And it's focused on his humility. Notice this. Notice the quote here from Isaiah 42:1: "Behold, my servant whom I have chosen." This is taken from the very first of the servant prophecies of the book of Isaiah, beginning at Isaiah chapter 42:1. And what that's describing is the breaking in, the glorious description of God's kingdom coming in history with the Messiah. When would it come? What would it look like? Everyone look to this: "Behold, my servant whom I have chosen to redeem Israel and the coastlands of the Gentiles." That's what Isaiah says. The powerful kingdom of God is described in Isaiah 42, but it's described by a suffering servant, a war a warring suffering servant no doubt but notice the "Behold." is interesting. It's it's an interesting word here, even back in the Hebrew in Isaiah. It's a fascinating word that was used. It was a device to say, "Really want you to pay attention right now. If any of you are sleeping, that was a bad moment for you. I really want you to pay attention. Listen up. Consider my servant whom I have chosen." That's the greatest election in history. Here's my servant, whom I, my elect one, the chosen one. What a moment! This is the one my soul is well pleased in.
Now, this is crucial. Where was that set of Christ? Where was this identified? Well, it was identified at his baptism. He was identified. As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment, heaven was opened. Can you imagine? This is just unbelievable to think about. And he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove upon him, alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love. In Him, I'm well pleased."
What do we have here? The Father is speaking here, and He's introducing His Son, the Messiah who has come to the earth. The Father has introduced and declared His Son. The Father has. And then the Spirit falls. Our triune God. All of that happened at His baptism.
And now Matthew begins to showcase him as much greater than the son of David, as the greater son of David if you will. And what would you expect of him? Why are the religious leaders wanting to kill him? Well, Matthew grabs Isaiah 42 at this moment, and it's as if he says, "You should have been able to identify him by now. I put my spirit on him so that he would declare justice to the Gentiles."
Come back to that in a second. It means he would declare truth. He would tell people what is right. He would come with a goal that people would repent of their sins and be saved. That's what the justice he's talking about The justice of God being satisfied so that people would escape the wrath of God. But Matthew gives us a glimpse into this, saying that his arrival is intended for the Gentiles.
But when I say this captures something about Jesus that I want us to think about for a minute. Notice verse 19: "He will not, you've read this a million times, have you thought about it? "He will he will not quarrel nor cry out nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets." Huh? I mean, you got to stop and ponder that. You could read right over it. "He will not make a wrangling. He will not be out fighting and disputing. He will not engage in strife meaning his kingdom will not be won that way. Sure, he will tell truth. There will be there will be fights over truth. There's no doubt. That's not what it's saying here. What it's saying here is his whole approach. He will not engage in strife. He is not the one who has made himself great by strife. He is not one who's come and fought that way to bring in the kingdom.
Oh, he's no weakling. Before I make sure it's clear here he's going to bind the strong man, but how? Not the way you think. We live in this masculinity crisis today. Everyone wants a loud, obnoxious tough guy. I like it, well, maybe, what we've all been used to and heard from all of our leaders this past year is all of them crying out in the streets, quarreling to bring in their kingdom, making a name for themselves. We're so used to it now, we don't even think anything of it. Speaking of constant greatness, speaking of accomplishment after accomplishment. "I will, I will, I will, I will." I'm not making a political statement here. I'm just making the obvious now on it, right? I get it. Those are earthly kings. "I will fix this." Really? You have that kind of sovereignty?
Proud leaders parading themselves in the street is all we know because we all want relief. This is what the Pharisees wanted from the Messiah. They wanted relief from Roman oppression, the godlessness of the Romans. Matthew says, "Let me identify your Messiah. Oh, he'll bring forth justice, but let me introduce him as he was prophesied so you can see him as offset from all this and know he's the Messiah. He will not be outfound quarreling."
It's describing the boasting that happens among fools. That's what he's describing. It's taken from Ecclesiastes 9:17: "The quiet words of the wise are more to be heeded than the shouts of a ruler of fools." Riotous, pompous words that all just gets attraction and causes a stir, and people get worked up over. Beloved, here is your Messiah. Meet him. "I am gentle, and I am meek. I'm humble. I'm not coming to draw all this attention to myself."
You almost see in contrast to this what an antichrist would look like. Where all the hearts of the people would be given to loud, pompous boasting.
How does Matthew say he brings in the kingdom? So beautiful: "A bruised reed, he will not break. A smoldering wick, he will not quench." Ah, there's his purpose. Matthew's capturing who he has come for. Who his mission is for. Remember, the Pharisees were criticizing him because he's sitting and eating and drinking with tax collectors and sinners. And they said, "A glutton and a drunkard." The Pharisees were saying, "Is it not lawful? Is it not lawful? Is it not lawful?" And he's caring for people.
We definitely want relief from earthly burden. I'm thankful for any relief from earthly burden in this life God gives us in our short time under the sun. Aren't you? Of course. I want righteousness to prevail in the land. But many people are more excited today for somebody who will bring us lower bread prices or stop bad political policy, who can unburden us from earthly cares. Well, we might be unburdened by oppressive political situations in this life. Praise God for that. But where is our happiness?
Look at your Messiah. Look at your King, your warrior. A reed is a weak enough bruised reed is a damaged one. A smoldering wick is one where the light's about out. Jesus just says, "I've come for the weak and the helpless to save them from their sins." That was the very beginning of Matthew. That's why I've come. And what Matthew wants to show you is that he's entirely offset from everything else that we would expect.
I've not been able to get these words out of my head since I preached a few weeks ago. I can't get them out. I've been rising almost every day thinking about them. "Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest for your souls." The impression of that is: "Don't look to anyone else. It's me. I give rest. I unburden you. You're exhausted, aren't you? You're at your limits at times, aren't you? You're troubled by sin that no other ruler in this life can deal with. You're burdened by life. You're burdened by death."
We're reminded the other night at our meeting with our council at the end of somebody who recently died who attended this congregation. Died. I didn't know them, but as a reminder all of us: we don't know the day nor the hour. It could happen to any of us. At times we feel like giving up. At times we wonder if we're even loved by God. Inwardly we're struggling with failure all the time, dealing with emptiness, loneliness, depression, alienation. Matthew has said, "I've come for you." says, jesus "I'm not out making myself great in that way. Overwhelmed in compassion for you. Remember, he saw the multitudes of people, and what did he see in the multitudes of people? He saw them as sheep without a shepherd." And the whole point of Matthew has been: he's willing to impart help to us, real help that actually helps. But what's our heart caught up in? He's willing to give strength to you who are burdened. He saves tax collectors and sinners. As one pastor said, he comforts mourners. He cheers up the fearful. He reassures doubters. He feeds the famished. He gives forgiveness of sins to those who come to him. He leads us in justice to victory.
He says, "He always leads us in triumph." "But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ." And that's what he's doing. And isn't it a marvel? And he says, "I'm not just doing this for Israel. I'm doing it for you. You're all Gentiles. You can come up and prove to me you're full-blooded Jewish. Great. But we're Gentiles."
We have a whole forecasting of the mission of the Church throughout this age right here. "I'm going to give this to you. I'm going to bring forth justice to you. I'm going to deliver you."
Right after quoting this, Matthew says: "One was brought to him who was demon possessed and blind and mute, and he healed him so that he spoke and saw. And the people said, could this be the son of david And it's a good question.
Matthew has taken us further. He is indeed the son of David, according to being born according to the flesh. But Matthew has explained to him: he is also the suffering servant of Isaiah.
Notice Isaiah 42. What is quoted here is verses 1 through 4. But let me just read a little bit further into Isaiah. He's about to bind the strong man. How does the warrior King bring in the kingdom? How does Psalm 110 come to fulfillment? Here's what God the Lord says: the Creator of the heavens, who stretches them out, who spreads out the earth with all that springs from it, who gives breath to its people and life to those who walk on it. I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness. I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles. to open the eyes that are blind to free captives from prison, to release those from the dungeon who sit in darkness. I am the Lord. That is my name. See? I will not yield my glory to another or my praise to idols. See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare. Well, that's what we're all into Something new, right? A new day. Here it is. Behold, they spring into being, I announce them to you." Sing to the Lord a new, song. His praise from the ends of the earth. I, the Lord, that's my name. I am the Lord. See, the suffering servant that Matthew has presented is: the creator of heaven and earth. the one through whom everything was made, who came to us. And the Lord brought in the kingdom of God in a way that nobody, they should have understood, but expected. The servant of Isaiah 42 is the same servant of Isaiah 53. How did the kingdom come? He bore our sorrows. yet we considered him punished stricken by god stricken by him and afflicted he was pierced for our transgressions he was crushed for our iniquities the punishment that brought us peace was upon him and by his wounds we are healed we all like sheep have gone astray each one of us has turned to our own way and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all that's how the kingdom came in strength through the cross. You never choose it. But it had to be done to save you. And Jesus says, blessed is he who's not offended because of me. You understand it. That's where we end today. Those who don't want this kind of Messiah will be offended, and that's what we
See, in the Gospels. They hate him for what he's doing. Because he's not bringing in the kingdom the way they want it in. but those who are weary And heavy laden those who are bruised reeds those who are smoldering wicks he'll never despise what a savior what a savior you can be sure today i close with this you can be sure today that if you've come to him and you believed in him the only name given by which men may be saved he will abundantly forgive all your sins that should be The greatest news to us ever he is a merciful he's a sympathetic high priest king what a king we have who always leads us in triumph no matter the circumstances of this life amen let's pray gracious lord thank you for your word to us thank you for the deliverance that you've announced through your suffering servant thank you in this life that you give leaders and that you give those oh lord who bring temporary relief or even in the burdens of this life and "Yet oh lord above it all are the sovereign decisions of the lord and we come to you today for you will share your glory with no other you are the lord you came to rescue us meek lowly in heart and as a warrior king who will one day come to judge the living and the dead may we be believing and may we come and hear these words how wonderful they are come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden and i will give you rest for your souls. Thank you, O Lord, for such words to us. In Jesus' name, amen.