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"11 And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 13 Then Jesus said to the centurion, 'Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you.' And his servant was healed that same hour." ~ Matthew 8:11-13
Today, we continue our study of Matthew 8 where the Apostle Matthew has recorded the first of ten miracles, the healing of the Leper. In our last study we began a study of the second miracle in this chapter where a Roman Centurion soldier sent a message to the Lord Jesus requesting the healing of one of his servants.
In v.11-12 of today's passage we read, "11 And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
Here, the Lord Jesus pulled the curtain back a bit and gave a scene in heaven for His Jewish audience. To them He portrayed many sitting down with the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. According to Isaiah, they will enjoy a feast. Here, the Lord described His coming millennial kingdom. During that 1000 year reign which will take place after the Tribulation, all of His promises that He made to Abraham and Isaac and Jacob will come to pass.
But, these words of the Lord Jesus that day shocked His disciples. The Jews, including the disciples of the Lord Jesus, believed that before the kingdom came, all the Gentiles would be destroyed. They didn't believe that the Gentiles would be in heaven with them at the end of time. But, the Scriptures clearly reveal all who trust in the Lord Jesus as our Savior will be in heaven. It was in John 8 the Lord Jesus said to the religious leaders of Israel,
"'I know you’re Abraham’s seed; but you seek to kill Me. You’re trying to kill Me, because My Word has no place in you, and I speak that which I have seen with My Father, and you do that which you’ve seen with your father.' They answered and said to Him, 'Abraham is our father,' and Jesus said to them, 'If you were Abraham’s children, you would do the works of Abraham. But you seek to kill Me.' – and then He said – 'You are of your father, the devil.'"
That day the words of the Lord Jesus shocked His disciples because He clearly told them that many Jewish people would not be in heaven with the patriarchs. To their amazement, the Lord Jesus made it clear that physical genealogy factors not in anyone entering heaven. In fact, He said, "But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness." In the original language in the Greek there are two definite articles one before weeping and one before gnashing. It literally reads,"There will be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth." The definite articles are put there for the sake of emphasis to emphasize the horror hell will be. The eternal punishment of Hell will yield weeping and gnashing of teeth. The phrase, "weeping and gnashing of teeth" occurs six times in Matthew’s gospel. It describes the sorrow, the pain, the agony, the despair that those who will go there will experience.
We do not like to talk about Hell but the Lord Jesus taught on it more than any other subject. The Lord Jesus was saying that on that day there will those who believe they will be on their way to heaven but they will be sent to Hell. This is why they will weep and why they will gnash their teeth. For eternity, there will be no one to blame but their stubbornness to not believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
In Matthew 7:22-23 the Lord Jesus said, "On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness." The word "knew" is key to understand here. This form of know indicates the presence of a personal relationship and this is key to enter into heaven.
In v.13 of today's passage we read, "Then Jesus said to the centurion, 'Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you.' And his servant was healed that same hour."
The Lord Jesus brought attention to the faith of the Centurion. He did not even mention the faith of the servant of the Centurion whom He had healed. All of the Jews present there that day, including the disciples, were shocked that the Lord Jesus healed the Gentile servant. They were shocked because they saw themselves as deserving of God's grace and not the Gentiles. No fallen human has ever earned the favor of God. This is why God makes it about faith. Our faith in God comes from Him, it does not come from us. Our faith is a product of God's faithfulness. The more we recognize His faithfulness, the more we are positioned to exercise our faith in Him. For this reason our faith in God is the integral ingredient in our relationship with Him. God has revealed enough of Himself for us to be able to trust Him.
The Lord requires us to exercise our faith in Him. He longs for us to know Him deeply. To know Him deeply requires quite a bit of seeking and knocking. Israel knew that God was faithful but that was not enough for them. They missed the Lord Jesus as their Messiah because their knowledge of God did not translate into a heart relationship with Him. They missed the Lord because their hearts were not engaged with Him. They missed the Lord because they could not believe that He was God incarnate. The faith of the unworthy Centurion was honored that day because it came at the end of a rope that said, "You are doomed unless God does something about this." Biblical faith will always have as its object the Lord Jesus Christ and that we earnestly seek Him for ourselves. And, biblical faith that earnestly seeks will always receive great blessing from the Lord.
