Tag: Matthew

Red Letter Year: 4/11

Matthew 12:15-37

15 But Jesus knew what they were planning. So he left that area, and many people followed him. He healed all the sick among them, 16 but he warned them not to reveal who he was.

17 This fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah concerning him: 18 “Look at my Servant, whom I have chosen. He is my Beloved, who pleases me. I will put my Spirit upon him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations. 19 He will not fight or shout or raise his voice in public. 20 He will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle. Finally he will cause justice to be victorious. 21 And his name will be the hope of all the world.”

22 Then a demon-possessed man, who was blind and couldn’t speak, was brought to Jesus. He healed the man so that he could both speak and see.23 The crowd was amazed and asked, “Could it be that Jesus is the Son of David, the Messiah?” 24 But when the Pharisees heard about the miracle, they said, “No wonder he can cast out demons. He gets his power from Satan, the prince of demons.”

25 Jesus knew their thoughts and replied, “Any kingdom divided by civil war is doomed. A town or family splintered by feuding will fall apart. 26 And if Satan is casting out Satan, he is divided and fighting against himself. His own kingdom will not survive. 27 And if I am empowered by Satan, what about your own exorcists? They cast out demons, too, so they will condemn you for what you have said. 28 But if I am casting out demons by the Spirit of God, then the Kingdom of God has arrived among you. 29 For who is powerful enough to enter the house of a strong man like Satan and plunder his goods? Only someone even stronger—someone who could tie him up and then plunder his house.

30 Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working with me is actually working against me. 31 So I tell you, every sin and blasphemy can be forgiven—except blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, which will never be forgiven. 32 Anyone who speaks against the Son of Man can be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven, either in this world or in the world to come.

33 A tree is identified by its fruit. If a tree is good, its fruit will be good. If a tree is bad, its fruit will be bad. 34 You brood of snakes! How could evil men like you speak what is good and right? For whatever is in your heart determines what you say. 35 A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. 36 And I tell you this, you must give an account on judgment day for every idle word you speak. 37 The words you say will either acquit you or condemn you.”

Comments

The Isaiah quote in today’s reading is very important. It stands as a mid-Gospel summary of everything Matthew has covered so far. Notice the secrecy theme that was so important in Mark reappears here, both in the Isaiah quote and in Jesus warning to his followers. This looks nearly opposite from our present culture’s obsession with self-promotion. Many churches give a lot of attention to branding, packaging, hyping, and creating a cult of personality around the senior pastor. Some churches (especially successful multi-sites) are very good at this and offer training, advice, and materials to help other churches follow suit. But that is not the approach Jesus took. It might be that the way we approach things like this don’t matter, as long as we’re focused on a good result. Or it might be that the way we go about things determines the result we will get, our good intentions notwithstanding.

That last part of today’s passage speaks to this question of approach and results. The results tell you the validity of the approach taken. This might seem to confirm the legitimacy of churches and ministries that attract lots of people, but crowds alone do not tell the tale. The fruit Jesus refers to here is not Sunday morning attendance. The fruit here is the very same fruit Jesus displayed: casting out demons, healing people, promoting justice and holiness. These are the marks of the kingdom of God. They don’t always package well or lend themselves to quick turnarounds for another church service, but they are the fruit of revival and revival beats successful marketing any day.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Red Letter Year: 4/10

Matthew 12:1-14

At about that time Jesus was walking through some grain fields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry, so they began breaking off some heads of grain and eating them. 2 But some Pharisees saw them do it and protested, “Look, your disciples are breaking the law by harvesting grain on the Sabbath.”

3 Jesus said to them, “Haven’t you read in the Scriptures what David did when he and his companions were hungry? 4 He went into the house of God, and he and his companions broke the law by eating the sacred loaves of bread that only the priests are allowed to eat. 5 And haven’t you read in the law of Moses that the priests on duty in the Temple may work on the Sabbath? 6 I tell you, there is one here who is even greater than the Temple! 7 But you would not have condemned my innocent disciples if you knew the meaning of this Scripture: ‘I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.’ 8 For the Son of Man is Lord, even over the Sabbath!”

9 Then Jesus went over to their synagogue, 10 where he noticed a man with a deformed hand. The Pharisees asked Jesus, “Does the law permit a person to work by healing on the Sabbath?” (They were hoping he would say yes, so they could bring charges against him.)

11 And he answered, “If you had a sheep that fell into a well on the Sabbath, wouldn’t you work to pull it out? Of course you would. 12 And how much more valuable is a person than a sheep! Yes, the law permits a person to do good on the Sabbath.”

13 Then he said to the man, “Hold out your hand.” So the man held out his hand, and it was restored, just like the other one! 14 Then the Pharisees called a meeting to plot how to kill Jesus.

Comments

Matthew gives us two stories of Jesus breaking the Sabbath and discussing that with Pharisees (the religious leaders who were most offended by such action). It is interesting that in both instances the Pharisees cite the Law as forbidding what Jesus is doing, but only in the first instance does Jesus join them in biblical discussion. In the second story, Jesus appeals to compassion and common decency (or perhaps common sense). In both cases, the Pharisees have a strong(er) biblical argument. The Law was considered more primary than the history of prophets that Jesus mentions and we can see what a big deal this was to them because they immediately begin scheming about how to destroy Jesus. 

They do this because Jesus clearly sets himself above the Law as one with authority over it. The Sabbath is for our benefit, it is good for us to rest from work, recover, and heal. Munching on grain and healing a man’s hand are quite in keeping with the principle that Jesus has extracted from the Sabbath regulation, but he is clearly using a different method of interpretation from that of the Pharisees. He begins with the principles of love, goodness, compassion, trust, and hope and reads the Bible so that it accentuates or at least does not hinder the practice of these principles. This moves Jesus quite far from a literal reading of the Bible. For literalists, the Pharisees clearly have the superior reading, which helps explain why so many Christians go back to slavishly practicing things Jesus set us free from. We read the Bible like Pharisees more often than we read the Bible like Jesus. Which is a shame, since Jesus’ way leads to people being fed and healed. We should try reading the Bible compassionately more often. Good and powerful things would probably happen.

 

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.