Matthew 24:15-22

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15 Therefore when you see the "abomination of desolation," spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (whoever reads, let him understand), 16 then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17 Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. 18 And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. 19 But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! 20 And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath. 21 For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. 22 And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened. ~ Matthew 24:15-22

Today, we continue our study of Matthew 24. This chapter is divided into three parts. While Matthew 24:1-14 describes the first 3 1/2 years of the Tribulation, Matthew 24:15-31 describes the last 3 1/2 years of the Tribulation. Matthew 24 corresponds with Revelation 6-19 which describes the Tribulation in detail. The first half of the Tribulation is described in Revelation 6-9 while the middle of the Tribulation is described in Revelation 10-14. Then, the last half of the Tribulation is described in Revelation 15-19. Today's passage is predicated upon the prophecy given in Daniel 9:24-27 which we must understand if we are to make sense of today's passage. 

In Daniel 9:24-27 we read, "24 Seventy 'sevens' are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place. 25 Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven 'sevens,' and sixty-two 'sevens.' It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. 26 After the sixty-two 'sevens,' the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. 27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one 'seven.' In the middle of the 'seven' he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him."

This prophecy in Daniel 9:24-27 is specifically about the nation of Israel. In it there are decreed 70 sevens which covers a 490 year period of time. When we multiply 70 x 7 we have 490, which is speaking of a prophecy which describes a 490 year period of time, specifically for the nation of Israel. As we read in Daniel 9:25-27, this prophecy is divided into three segments: 7 sevens = 49 years, 62 sevens = 434 years, and 1 seven  = 7 years. When we add the totals, we have 490 years.

The first two segments (the 7 sevens and the 62 sevens) of time have already been fulfilled. Most theologians refer to this 70th seven as the "Tribulation," although it is never described as such in the New Testament. The Lord Jesus does refer to the second half of this seven year period as "a time of great tribulation." In Jeremiah 30:7 it is referred to as "a time of Jacob's trouble." Of course, Jacob was Israel as an unbeliever and Israel is Jacob as a believer. So, the design of the Tribulation is to bring Israel to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

According to Daniel 9:25 and Nehemiah 2:1-8 in 444 BC King Artaxerxes issued a decree to Nehemiah to restore and rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. The building of the temple was completed in 395 BC. The 7 sevens or 49 years define the period of time that it took to complete the temple. The 62 sevens was the period of time between the completion of the temple in Jerusalem and the coming of the Messiah into Jerusalem on the donkey. It took 434 years or 62 sevens for this prophecy to be fulfilled. When we add the 7 sevens and the 62 sevens we have 483 years. And, then to complete Daniel's prophecy we have the final seven which describes the seven year tribulation.

According to Daniel 9:26, after the 62 sevens the Messiah will be cut off which took place on March 30, 33 AD. And then, the prince is one who will destroy the city and the sanctuary (this occurred in A.D. 70 under the leadership of Titus). According to Daniel 9:27 the one seven is a 7 year period of time (this is a time of great tribulation on earth as described by the Lord Jesus in Matthew 24.)

According to Daniel 9:26-27, the ruler or the prince will make a covenant with the many including Israel for one seven. This prince will be the anti-christ who is mentioned in Daniel 11:21. In the middle of this seven the anti-christ will discontinue sacrifice and worship at the temple in Jerusalem. Then, he will break his covenant with Israel. This 70th seven or the tribulation period is also described in Revelation 6-16.

According to today's passage, when the Abomination of Desolation happens, at the middle of the Tribulation, there will be three results: First, there will be immediate trouble to those believers who are in Jerusalem and the surrounding area. Second, there will be an outbreak of a world-wide time of unprecedented trouble. It will be a time of great economic difficulty. That will be the time that the people will be required to take the mark of the beast in order to eat. The people will know at that time that by taking the mark they will be giving allegiance to the anti-christ. The third result, there will be a time of incredible religious deceit.

In the middle of the Tribulation, the abomination of desolation will take place. Obviously the temple will be rebuilt since it was destroyed in 70 AD. We don't know what abomination the antichrist will perform at the temples that will cause the temple to be desolate. It will be something so gross and contemptible before God that it will make the temple unclean and the people will not go there.

As mentioned, the final seven of Daniel's prophecy is yet to be fulfilled. The world could enter that period at any moment. Before that event takes place, the rapture of the church must happen. During the Tribulation, it will be most difficult to believe in the Lord Jesus, partly due to the fact that with the rapture of the church, the influence of the Holy Spirit in this world will be much different than it is today. With that said, you can avoid the Tribulation simply by trusting in the finished work of the Lord Jesus on the cross for the forgiveness of your sin. If you have not done this, I encourage you to talk with God right now, tell Him that you know that you are a sinner in need of His salvation and ask Him to come into your life right now.

Matthew 24:9-14

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9 Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. 10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come. ~ Matthew 24:9-14

Today, we continue our study of Matthew 24 where the Lord Jesus is in the process of answering questions from His disciples regarding the end times. It was Wednesday evening during the Lord Jesus' last week on earth. He sat down with His disciples on the western slope of the Mount of Olives and He told them that He would return in the future to establish His kingdom. At that time He told His disciples about their immediate circumstances as well as His Second Coming. His was in response to their question: "Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?"

In our last study of this passage the Lord Jesus described events which He referred to as: "These are the beginning of sorrows or birth pains." Five times in the Old Testament this saying was employed to speak of God's judgement upon man's sin. It speaks of it as the birth pains of a woman, as God intervening in history in a very judicial and direct manner. It is a key phrase, because although we have always had wars, earthquakes, famines, that phrase "birth pains" is quite descriptive. There are normal birth pains that happen, like wars and rumors of wars and famines and earthquakes. But, as when a woman is having a baby, when the contractions become more frequent and more intense, then we know the birth of the judgment of God upon unbelieving man will be much closer. 

In v.9 of today's passage we read, "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake."

From the very first century these words were fulfilled. The book of Acts tells us how the apostles, and the early Christians, were often beaten in the synagogues and dragged before governors and kings, as was predicted here by the Lord Jesus. This promise of persecution has been pertinent to believers of all times. It was definitely applicable to first century believers who endured unbelievable treatment from non-believers. It will be most applicable for those who choose to believe in the Lord Jesus after the Rapture of the Church has taken place.

In v.10 of today's passage we read, "And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another."

Hatred toward Christians abounded during the first century. In like manner, for those living during the Tribulation, hatred will be the cause of family members betraying other family members. In fact, during that time of the Tribulation, the most hated group will increasingly be those who claim the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. This makes sense since the will of Satan will be unfettered in this world at that time.

In v.11-12 of today's passage we read, "11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold."

Those who redefine things from good to bad will have the corner on what people will wrongly believe to be the truth. The key here is that the love of many will now increasingly grow cold. Lust will replace love as the virtue. The lack of love in any context results in atrophy in a variety of ways. The word "lawlessness" means they violate God’s definition of things. Here, we are given a description of man going crazy on sin. Sin will be so abundant that it will draw people who are moving toward the truth right back out of it.

In v.13-14 of today's passage we read, "13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come."

Superficial faith collapses under persecution. Authentic, God-given faith will endure, because the Holy Spirit will provide strength and grace to endure in the faith. "The end" here is talking about the end of a person's life. As followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, we are called to be faithful to death. This is not what saves us but our ability to do such due to the presence of God in our lives is a sign that we have been saved. Interestingly the word "witness" here is where we get our English word "martyr." The genuineness of our faith in the Lord Jesus is primarily a product of the presence of God in our lives. Anything is holy because God is there. God and only God makes us holy, righteous and acceptable before Him.

While Matthew 24:1-14 describes the first 31/2 years of the Tribulation, Matthew 24:15-31 describes the last 3 1/2 years of the Tribulation. Revelation 6-19 describes the Tribulation in detail and follows the outline of Matthew 24. The first half of the Tribulation is described in Revelation 6-9 while the middle of the Tribulation is described in Revelation 10-14. Then, the last half of the Tribulation is described in Revelation 15-19. All of this reveals the Lord knows all that will happen beforehand. Thus, we can trust Him with everything, especially our future and our lives. 

Matthew 24:3-8

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3 Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?" 4 And Jesus answered and said to them: "Take heed that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. 6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.'" ~ Matthew 24:3-8

Today, we return to our study of Matthew 24 where the Lord Jesus and His disciples have departed from the temple in Jerusalem. His day of teaching in the Temple area was over. This was the last Wednesday of His earthly life. From this point  on He interacted only with His disciples who were gathered around Him on the Mount of Olives. 

In v.3 of today's passage we read, "Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, 'Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?'"

After the Lord Jesus had pointed out the hypocrisy of the first century religious leaders of Israel, He informed His disciples that the Temple had been turned into that which it was not meant to be. It was in that context that He told the disciples that the Temple would be destroyed. This then prompted the disciples to ask the Lord a question about the End Times. To their credit they went to the Lord with their question. Our questions often reveal our humility and God always shows favor toward the humble. Questions elicit genuine dialogue which is what prayer is. Oswald Chambers once said, "Prayer is not only asking, but an attitude of mind which produces the atmosphere in which asking is perfectly natural."

Although we often find our questions as something that is disconcerting, they are good because they deepen our relationships with others. When we go to the Lord with our questions, we discover the meaning of prayer. We all have moments when life seems so overwhelming and we wonder if God really is involved in our lives. The questions mount up and they potentially are useful to the growth of our faith in the Lord. True faith comes from grappling with these questions, earnestly going to God with them, expecting responses from Him. That expectation leads to actively looking for Him in life. When we come to the Scriptures, we come looking for Him through our  questions.

In v.4-5 of today's passage we read, "4 And Jesus answered and said to them: 'Take heed that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.'" 

The law of motion says, "Every action has an equal and opposite reaction." That same law in the spiritual realm means "Every divine action brings an opposite satanic reaction." Since there is truth, there will be deception. This means we must be so attentive to the Word of God that the deceptive powers of the enemy, which are increasingly great, will not distract us from the Lord Himself. 

The only sure way to keep from being deceived in this world is to know the Scriptures and to obey what God has told us. The disciples had long been taught wrongly to value the wrong thing, in this case the temple. You see, the value of the temple was who was inside it, the Lord Himself. He is to be our first love. He is to be our first God before all others. So, today, we do well to lay down our lives before Him, and, in so doing we do well to value nothing more than we do Him for that which we value the most will define us the most.

In addition, the disciples expected the Lord Jesus to set up His eternal kingdom, then and there. But, their theology needed an adjustment. The Lord Jesus knew the disciples would soon be in the position to be easily deceived. When we have insufficient theology, we can easily be deceived. This is why we must be in His Word and of His Word, daily. We must be careful to learn it from Him as our teacher. We must read His word while listening to His voice as we study it. Oh, we don't hear His voice with our ears but with our hearts. And, what He teaches us must frame up our understanding of all that is going on in our lives and in this world.

In v.6-7 of today's passage we read, "6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places."

Like the religious leaders of first century Israel, the disciples did not understand the difference between the Lord's first coming and His second coming. They also didn't understand the difference between the Rapture and His Second Coming. I find in most instructive that out of the forty-six Old Testament prophets, ten of them spoke of matters related to His first coming. Thirty-six of them spoke of matters related to His Second Coming. One out of every twenty-five verses in the New Testament relates to Christ's return. For every time Christ mentions His first coming, He mentions His second coming eight times. That is, every time the New Testament mentions His first coming, it mentions His second coming eight times. The Lord Jesus referred to His Second Coming twenty times and there are over fifty times in the New Testament we are warned that He is coming.

From the beginning of time there have been counterfeit messiahs. In addition, there have been national and international upheavals, and religious persecution. But these things will increase and intensify as the time of the Lord Jesus’ Second Coming draws near. There will be religious delusion, and even God’s people will be in danger of being deceived. Satan is a counterfeiter who for centuries has led people astray by deceiving their minds and their blinding hearts. Israel was often seduced into sin by false prophets, and the church has had its share of false teachers.

Having said all of this, today, we wait for the Rapture. In John 14:1-3 we read, "Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me. In My Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so I would have told you and I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive it in myself that where I am there you may be also."

There is no judgment connected to this prophecy in John 14. It is simply a time when the Lord Jesus comes to get His people and take us up to heaven to be in the place that He's prepared in the Father's house for us. This is not the Lord coming back to set up a kingdom on earth. This is an event in which He comes for His redeemed people, Jew and Gentile, all who are a part of the church gathered from all the nations. It could happen today.  

In v.8 of today's passage we read, "All these are the beginning of sorrows."

That word "sorrows" is translated "birth pains" in other translations. Throughout today's passage, the Lord Jesus was careful to say the end is not coming immediately. He said, "All these are the beginning of birth pains." Birth pains are an increasing sequence of contractions that finally become intense, fiercely intense and result in the big event, the birth of the child. The contractions, or the birth pains, start out light and they increase till they reach a point of excruciation before the big event. The Lord Jesus uses this common event on earth to describe the nature of the end.

As I have mentioned before, the Rapture of the Church will happen before the Tribulation happens. I believe we are on the brink of the Rapture. It could happen today. For those who will not be a part of the Rapture, they will have opportunities to become believers during the Tribulation, but it will be most difficult to be a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ during that seven year period. 

This is why I urge you to make sure you have entered into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, right now. Simply pray this prayer: "Lord Jesus, I confess I am a sinner, and I ask for your forgiveness. I believe you died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite you to come into my heart and life right now. I want to trust and follow you as my Lord and Savior." If you prayed that prayer tell someone of your decision to be a follower of Jesus Christ, today. And, by the way, welcome to the family of God.

Matthew 24:1-2

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1 Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. 2 And Jesus said to them, "Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down." ~ Matthew 24:1-2

Today, we transition into Matthew 24. In this narrative, it is now Wednesday evening. This is the last week of the Lord Jesus' life on earth before His crucifixion. All day long He has been in the temple courts teaching the Gospel. As He taught, there was no question in the minds of His followers that He knew the Jewish religious system was corrupt. He had just finished a lengthy sermon against the religious leaders of Israel in which He pronounced repeated judgment and damnation upon their heads for using their religion to take advantage of the people. 

In today's passage we read, "1 Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. 2 And Jesus said to them, 'Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.'"

As they exited the Temple His disciples were in awe of the massive building. It was then that one of the disciples spoke of how big and beautiful was the temple. The temple complex was one-fifth of the total landmass of the city of ancient Jerusalem. It covered thirty-six acres. It took eighty thousand laborers over eighty years to build it. The pinnacle of the temple or the southeast corner down to the Kidron Valley was 158 feet tall. It was one of the great wonders of the ancient world. To the Jews it was the most important place in the world because it was the place where they had known the presence of God but that changed when God came to dwell among them.  

We sometimes hear believers in the Lord Jesus wrongfully refer to the building where the church meets as "God's House." Nowhere in the Bible do we find this. In fact, we are told over and over in the New Testament that the church is the people and God dwells within each believer. In 1 Corinthians 3:16 we read, "Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?" This means that the people whom God calls "the church" is the dwelling place of God. We are in error when we refer to the church as a building. The church is the dwelling place of God.

I find it most interesting to discover that the Lord Jesus Himself never entered the temple, He only went into the outer court. According to the Law of Moses, only selected priests were allowed into the temple sanctuary. And only the High Priest, once a year on the Day of Atonement, could go into the Holy of Holies in the inner sanctuary of the temple. But according to the book of Hebrews the Temple on earth was a picture of the real Temple in heaven where God resides. In Hebrews 9:12 we read, "He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption." The Lord Jesus has taken those who believe in Him into the very presence of God through the shedding of His own blood. He accomplished this with His own sinless blood, not the blood of any animal. And, He entered once into the Holy of Holies to wipe our sin slate clean before God in heaven. And, He did this once and for eternity, never to be repeated again.

In response to the disciples statement about the temple, the Lord Jesus gave His prediction of the destruction of the temple which happened in 70 AD. The Jews believed that the existence of the temple in Jerusalem was the evidence of God's blessing upon the nation. But, the Lord Jesus said these stones, as great as they were, will be cast down, and the temple would be destroyed. These words from the Lord Jesus drew forth the poor theology of the disciples. They didn't understand what religion had done to God's original purpose of the temple.

Like the religious leaders of Israel, the disciples were wrongly focused on the establishment of the physical, earthly kingdom of God. It was Mike Yaconelli, the late president of Youth Specialties who once said, "Spirituality is a mixed-up, topsy-turvy, helter-skelter godliness that turns our lives into an upside-down toboggan ride of unexpected turns, surprise bumps and bone shattering crashes ... a life ruined by a Jesus who loves us right into his arms."  The Lord Jesus came to make possible the internal establishment of His unseen kingdom in our hearts. Before that could become a reality, He had to deal a death blow, once and for all, to mankind's greatest enemy, sin and its companion death. Once we have believed on the Lord Jesus as our Savior, we are indwelled by His Spirit. 

The indwelling Holy Spirit makes this intimate personal relationship with God possible for you and me right now. As we learn to hear Him and obey Him from our hearts, we will grow in our intimacy with Him. The gospel teaches us that the most important things that will happen in our lives today will be realized through the most unwanted things and unwanted moments that come at us. As we learn to value those unwanted things and moments, we will be enabled by the Lord to know Him experientially as the One who came to rescue us from our greatest enemy. We did all we could do to damn ourselves but He loved us enough to come and seek us even while we were His enemies. Now, that's a story to be enamored with, that's the story of all stories. I'm honored to be defined by such a story and I trust you are, too!

Finally, I close this blog and podcast out with the words of Mike Yaconelli one again who said, "Spirituality is a mixed-up, topsy-turvy, helter-skelter godliness that turns our lives into an upside-down toboggan ride of unexpected turns, surprise bumps and bone shattering crashes ... a life ruined by a Jesus who loves us right into his arms."

Matthew 23:37-39

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"37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! 38 See! Your house is left to you desolate; 39 for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!'" ~ Matthew 23:37-39

Today, we complete our study of Matthew 23 where the Lord Jesus has been given the religious leaders of first century Israel a verbal shakedown. This was the final sermon of the Lord Jesus against the false religious leaders of Israel who had led the nation to this point of rejection. Today's passage reveals the broken heart of the Lord Jesus over Israel's rejection of God's salvation. This prayer of the Lord Jesus was motivated by a broken heart due to the cyclical unfaithfulness of Israel. The Lord Jesus referenced Jerusalem as if it was an individual. In so doing, the Lord Jesus personalized His message and highlighted the intimate relationship God desires to have with His people.

In v.37 of today's passage we read, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!" 

Today's passage begins with the Lord Jesus' characterization of the city of Jerusalem, not as the city of peace, but a city of violence. The words, "How often I wanted to gather your children together" reminds us of the patience of God, especially in light of the fact that they are followed up with: "but you were not willing." God came to this earth in the form of a man, fully God and fully man, in order to rescue sinful man from his inevitable demise and man insulted God with his hardened heart.

The people of Jerusalem and of Israel were not willing to open their hearts to the heart of God. Hardheartedness began when the devil resisted the loving heart of God and the devil has become quite adept at convincing man that God is at fault. America is not much different than Israel of the days of the Lord Jesus. Our founding fathers wanted one nation under God with the constitution written to ensure our freedom of worship, not freedom from worship. However, in modern times, politicians have found ways to eliminate God from everyday life in America. As a result, the American people have been gradually pulled away from the loving embrace of God.

The Lord Jesus used the analogy of a hen that gathers her baby chickens under her wings. Through it, He pointed our attention to His heart of tenderness and His desire for intimacy with us. The God of the Bible and of all of creation desires to grant us security with Him only if we are willing. Our choice to place ourselves under the authority of the Lord Jesus by turning to Him with a willing heart is a must if we are to be saved by Him for eternity. Many in Israel when the Lord Jesus walked this earth as well as many today in American chose to resist the grace of God. What followed Israel will be the same fate that many Americans will experience in the end.

In v.38-39 of today's passage we read, "38 See! Your house is left to you desolate; 39 for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!'"

God has always initiated a personal relationship with people. Those like Abraham, the father of the nation of Israel, enter into a personal relationship with Him by faith. Even though there were many who were weak in the faith throughout the Old Testament and there were those who exercised no faith in God, there has always been a small amount of people in Israel who had a heart to seek God. But, as a whole Israel, due to their rejection of their long-promised Messiah were left to themselves in today's passage. They were left to their unwillingness to be real with God. Our lack of honesty and humility will always be the reason we lack a meaningful walk with the Lord.

The house of Israel had been so desecrated that it was deserted by God. The Lord Jesus came to reunite sinful man to God but by and large sinful man has rejected God's gracious offer. God rejected Israel because Israel rejected Him. In fact, for 2,000 years, Israel has largely lived its life without God. This is so due to the fact that God has removed His protective hand from Israel. He has preserved them as a people but they have refused Him as their Messiah. And, this condition will not change until Israel embraces the words, "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!," which is the cry used to identify the Messiah. 

In  Zechariah 12:9-10 we read, "9 It shall be in that day that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.10 And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn."

At the end of the time that Jeremiah refers to as a time of Jacob's trouble, the Lord Jesus will physically return to Jerusalem. It is called a time of Jacob's trouble because the nation will largely not believe in the God of the Bible. Throughout the Scriptures, we learn that Israel is Jacob as a believer and Jacob is Israel as an unbeliever. At the beginning of the Tribulation, unbelieving Israel will give their allegiance to the anti-christ thinking he is their Messiah. When the Lord Jesus returns at the end of the Tribulation, the people will mourn because they will realize they had rejected their Messiah. At that moment, the eyes of the Jewish nation will look again at the One whom they pierced. At that decisive point, they will recognize Him by His pierced hands and feet. His pain that they caused will arrest their hearts to the point of bowing before Him as their long-awaited Messiah. At that moment God will yet again give them grace to cry out to Him for His mercy and Hs grace.

Matthew 23:31-36

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31 Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers’ guilt. 33 Serpents, brood of vipers! How can you escape the condemnation of hell? 34 Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city, 35 that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 36 Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation. ~ Matthew 23:31-36

Today, we continue our study of Matthew 23 where the Lord Jesus has just pronounced 7 judgements on the religious leaders of Israel. In today's study we will consider why the religious leaders of first century Israel were so numb to their long-promised Messiah. It was Wednesday, just two days before His crucifixion. The mounting hostility toward the Lord Jesus was growing, thanks to the religious leaders of Israel. They hated Him because they had been convinced that He was an imposter of their long-awaited Messiah. Since He intimidated them, they wanted to eliminate Him. 

In v.31-33 of today's passage we read, "31 Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers’ guilt. 33 Serpents, brood of vipers! How can you escape the condemnation of hell?"

Since their rejection of the Lord Jesus was now complete, the Lord Jesus continued to reveal His perfect understanding of the nature of the religious leaders of Israel. He identified them as sons of murderers and a brood of vipers. Sadly, these self-righteous, legalistic, haters of the truth thirsted not for holiness but for the blood of the righteous. Due to the fact that their sins had not been atoned for, the religious leaders were guaranteed an eternity in hell.

"Gehenna" is the word that was here translated "hell." Gehenna was the burning trash dump just outside the city of Jerusalem. In the teachings of the Lord Jesus, Gehenna had become an illustration for eternal hell. These religious leaders were so distracted from the truth that they missed Him when He came. They were so determined to remain in their unbelief of the Lord Jesus as their Savior that they did not realize they were destined for hell. And, even though the Lord Jesus offered them so many opportunities to believe in Him, they resisted His wooings til the end. 

God is a God of love and wrath. In fact, this is why God sends His messengers, to offer His free gift of forgiveness and to warn of His judgment to come. The message of the Gospel is a message that is meant to lead us to salvation. In most cases, sadly, it is a message when rejected leads to judgment. And, the more we hear the Gospel, the more it comes to us as a message of grace. On the other hand, the more we reject it, the more it piles upon us as a message leading us to judgment. 

I have always struggled with the wrath of God. My finite mind has a hard time harmonizing the love and the wrath of God. T.F. Torrance, a 20th century Scottish theologian, once said, "God loves us that God's wrath was poured out against sin, destroying and overcoming it in Christ's death... God's wrath is purposeful. It is a wrath included in God's love for us. God's wrath, in this sense, is the wrath of love in a similar way that a loving parent might react quite fiercely against an attacker who seeks to harm his children. God's love is for us, and therefore, God's wrath is also a wrath for us and not against us."

In v.34-35 of today's passage we read, "34 Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city, 35 that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar."

The faithfulness of God pursued these first century religious leaders of Israel through the prophets, the wise men and other faithful experts in the Law of Moses, but they resisted the truth. As a result, their condemnation was sure and imminent. These first century religious leaders of Israel had greater guilt than anyone that ever lived before them due to the amount of truth they were given by God. Their accumulative guilt surpassed that of any generation before them.

One generation duplicates the sins of past generations upon the next. At some point the religious leaders of Israel rejected the revelation of God. This is what religion does to us. Most believe religion is a good thing but it is not because it always places the most emphasis on fallen man as he tries to earn God's favor through his so-called good behavior. So, for the religious, God's judgment accumulates. They could have stopped it had they embraced poverty of spirit, had they been honest with the truth, had they been broken before God due to their sin. This is why we read, "on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar." From A to Z, from the beginning of the Old Testament, the first murder of a righteous man, to the shedding of Berechiah's son's blood. The people stoned Zechariah, around 800 B.C. because he spoke against their idolatry. The king didn’t like it, so he told the people to stone him to death at the temple altar.

In v.36 of today's passage we read, "Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation."

The first century religious leaders of Israel accumulated God's wrath because they followed in the sins of their fathers. They  never learned the valuable lessons of their fathers' sin. They rejected the full revelation of God and embraced the darkest lie. They had been fully exposed to the gospel, yet, they rejected the long-promised Messiah. It was their love for the darkness that damned them in the end. Unbelief in the God of the Bible is in essence a run away affair which leaves the run away languishing and in serious pain. Sadly, the first century religious leaders of Israel never got to the place where they understood that genuine faith begins by admitting we will never have our act completely together apart from the magical embrace of the God who loves us still.

Matthew 23:23-30

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23 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone. 24 Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! 25 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also. 27 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. 28 Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. 29 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, 30 and say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.’ ~ Matthew 23:23-30

Today, we return to our study of Matthew 23 where the Lord Jesus is in the middle of pronouncing seven "woes" on the religious leaders of Israel. While the Beatitudes aid us at making us more sensitive to the Lord, the "woes" describe the hardening of our hearts toward Him. Having considered the first three "woes," today we consider the last four. In these "woes", the Lord Jesus pronounced His final judgment on the religious leaders of Israel who had rejected Him and led the people in an eventual equal rejection.

In v.23-24 of today's passage we read, "23 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone. 24 Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!"

The religious leaders of Israel proved they were false once they wrapped themselves up in the inconsequential minutia of religion. One of the great marks of a real leader is that he never allows himself to get wrapped up in minutia. The religious leaders of Israel had no capacity to deal with the real issues which always comes back to the condition of the human heart. In this "woe" the Lord Jesus isolated justice, mercy, and faith which is also isolated in Micah 6:8 which reads, "He has shown you, oh, man, what is good and what the Lord requires of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God." 

The problem was the religious leaders of first century Israel were unmerciful, brutal, unforgiving, unkind, and lacking in generosity. Instead of walking by faith, they walked by sight. They lived by their own efforts. And so, the Lord told them they were real good at measuring kitchen seeds used to flavor food but that they missed the whole point of what is really important, namely the essentials in meaningful community. 

By the way, the word "tithe" is mentioned six times in the New Testament, three times in the gospels. Each time it is mentioned it is used to condemn the abuse of it by the religious leaders of Israel. Three times in the book of Hebrews it simply reaches back and describes its historical reality in the history of Israel. At no time is it ever mentioned in the New Testament as binding to the church. God's goal in our giving is that we give from the heart having been moved by His Spirit.

The word "strain" in v.24 means to filter. According to Leviticus 11:42, the smallest unclean animal was a gnat. According to Leviticus 11:4, the largest was a camel. When these so-called leaders drank wine, they "strained" at gnats because they were attracted to the wine which they would drink. In other words, the religious were good at straining out a gnat while at the same time figuratively swallowing a camel. This made them value the wrong things. This is what we do when we do not know what relating to God means, we make it about stupid stuff that does not matter. False leaders miss the priorities of God and they substitute them with insignificant non-essentials. Therefore, the religious leaders were condemned for not engaging God and their fellow man with their hearts. If they had engaged their hearts, everything would have been different.

In v.25-26 of today's passage we read, "25 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also."

The "dish" mentioned here was a plate used to serve delicacies. The religious cleaned the outside but neglected the inside. This meant they were real good at looking good on the outside but their hearts were nasty. They were like us, corrupt within. The difference between them and the poor in spirit is that the poor in spirit admit to the corruption within. These blind so-called leaders of their own so-called righteousness were greedy thieves who plundered the souls of the innocent. This is what happens when we feed the flesh which in essence is the self that the enemy tries to get us to worship. He doesn't try to get us to worship him directly, he just wants us to worship him indirectly by worshipping ourselves.

In v.27-28 of today's passage we read, "27 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. 28 Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness."

These religious leaders were masters at deception. This makes sense since their father was the master deceiver. It was he who tricked Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden so long ago. These first century spiritual leaders of the Jews appeared clean outwardly but they were dead inside. As a result, they contaminated the people with the disease of self-deception. The term "whitewashed tombs" came from an annual and unusual custom in Israel. It was right after the spring rains which always came to cleanse the land. At that time of the year the Jews whitewashed their limestone tombs where their dead had been buried. They washed the tombs because they feared the people might inadvertently touch a tomb and thus become defiled. The problem was, their attention to potential danger never allowed them to recognize the real danger, the defiled human heart. In tandem with the Word of God, it is only the grace of God that can diagnose and fix the human heart.

In v.29-30 of today's passage we read, "29 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, 30 and say, 'If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.'"

Here with the seventh "woe" the Lord Jesus pinpointed the problem of the religious leaders of Israel. He placed the spotlight on their pretentiousness which is what caused them to think they were so much better than everyone else. There is nothing God hates worse than pride. The religious leaders of Israel were really good at honoring the heroes of the past with memorials and monuments. In addition, the Lord Jesus substantiated the fact that they would have killed the prophets as their fathers did. Their behavior proved to be an ugly pretense to their spiritual pride.

After sin entered the world, the truth could not but crush sinful unrepentant man. The woes that God pronounced on the religious leaders of Israel were a natural response to their inner wickedness which manifested itself through their poor treatment of others. The problem the religious leaders of Israel had was they had not been broken thus they could not see their utter wickedness. As much as they were apparently in the Word, they should have been broken, given the design of the Word on the heart of sinful man. 

The answer to deflecting God's woes is His grace. It was His grace that enabled the Lord Jesus to defeat for us sin and death. The grace of God is not a compensation for our good behavior, rather, it is the benevolent response of God toward the undeserving. The grace of God is an undeserved embrace from the Perfect One for those who have repeatedly fallen short of perfection. God's greatest response to the brokenness of man was put on fullest display at the cross of Christ. In the Chinese language the word for righteousness is a combination of two characters, the figure of a lamb and that of a person. In the character, the lamb is seen on top of the submissive person. Whenever God looks down at the believer in Christ He sees the Lamb of God covering him.

Matthew 23:13-22

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13 But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in. 14 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation. 15 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves. 16 Woe to you, blind guides, who say, "Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it." 17 Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold? 18 And, "Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it." 19 Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift? 20 Therefore he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things on it. 21 He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it. 22 And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it. ~ Matthew 23:13-22

Today, we return to our study of Matthew 23 where the Lord Jesus is in the middle of identifying the religious leaders of Israel for who they were. With several mountains of evidence from the Old Testament and from the 3 1/2 year of the earthly ministry of the Lord Jesus the religious leaders of Israel rejected God. Sadly, they were ushered to the door of heaven but they slammed it closed and their eternity was sealed. In this chapter the Lord Jesus pronounces seven "woes" on the religious leaders of Israel. While the Beatitudes describe the process whereby we are made increasingly sensitive to the Lord, the woes in this chapter describe the hardening of our hearts toward Him. The Bible is full of "woes." Throughout the Bible God’s "woes" introduce His anger toward the people who choose idolatry.

The Lord Jesus, God incarnate, spoke harsh words here in today's passage regarding the religious leaders of Israel. Sometimes harsh is called for in order to hopefully snap people out of their spiritual lethargy. Through His harsh words, the Lord Jesus slammed the Jewish religious leaders because they were doomed for eternal hell. He went from addressing those who had yet to repent as hypocrites, to blind guides, and then to fools. There is always a progression either toward the Lord or as in this case away from the Lord. As we give ourselves to the truth, the more we will be guided by and to the truth.

Of the seven "woes" in this chapter, the first in v.13 condemns the work of the religious leaders of Israel. They were supposed to guide the people to worship the God of the Bible. But they actually pointed them in the direction of the evil one. Through the second "woe" the Lord Jesus highlighted the religious leaders false religious pretense that led them to take advantage of the common folk. Through the third "woe" the Lord Jesus highlighted the fact that their influence on the common folk was doubly damning.

This chapter exists because the religious leaders of first-century Israel had moved so far from God’s intention that the Lord Jesus considered them cursed. Many today are turned away from the Lord because what they see out of those who say they know Him. Christianity today is a far cry from what it is really supposed to be about. Even those who have entered into a personal relationship with God through the Lord Jesus can go off the rails by majoring on the minors and minoring on the majors.

The Lord Jesus came to this earth in order to grant to us a personal relationship with God through His sacrifice on the cross. Those who do not get this make it into something God never intended it to be, that is religion. Through every believer in the Lord Jesus the world desperately needs to see this authentic relationship whereby we are honest about who we really are and in that context how the grace of God spurs us on in our pursuit of Him. What we so desperately need is to experience an authentic faith that organically overflows into a life of devotion to God. 

This is precisely what the Lord Jesus came to this earth to bring. He came to give us a new heart and a new spirit that would transform us from the inside out and show the world what Christianity is truly about. The offense of the gospel is that we all need to be remade. The promise and the hope of the gospel is that God will bring to pass this very thing. On the cross, the Lord Jesus was undone, transformed into a broken and mangled reflection of human life, so that we who are broken and mangled could enter into a personal relationship with the God of grace. 

Most people are afraid to be fully given to God's grace. At the very heart of our survival and triumph as believers is that we are totally being defined by God's grace. In our attempt to grow in the faith, our goal must be the Lord Jesus. Our goal must be the sincere search of a desperate heart that recognizes the cross of the Lord Jesus must define him. We must approach God through prayer and His word with the idea that we will be defined by Him. God’s grace extends beyond our salvation, beyond an escape from death, and heaven is not the only thing we have been freely given by our gracious God. When we limit His grace to the free gift of eternal life, we miss what it is all about. We miss a personal relationship wherein we have been totally accepted by God. 

It was Mike Yaconelli who once said, "The critical issue today is dullness. We have lost our astonishment. The Good News is no longer good news, it is okay news. Christianity is no longer life changing, it is life enhancing. Jesus doesn’t change people into wild-eyed radicals anymore, He changes them into “nice people”… What happened to the kind of Christians who were filled with passion and gratitude, and who every day were unable to get over the grace of God."

The freedom that is ours through the cross must define us as having been accepted in the Beloved of God. Religion leads those not drenched in God's grace to unsuccessfully try to bribe God for His blessings. The religious person doesn't understand that only the Lord Jesus could earn for us God's blessing and in Him we have every blessing imaginable. With this understanding we are free to live life from the starting block of His total and unconditional love. When we come to this understanding of Christianity, we will be authentically Christ-like and godly. It is this disposition that enables us to love God and others authentically.

Matthew 23:1-12

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1 Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, 2 saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. 3 Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do. 4 For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. 5 But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments. 6 They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, 7 greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, ‘Rabbi, Rabbi.’ 8 But you, do not be called ‘Rabbi’; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren. 9 Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. 10 And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ. 11 But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. ~ Matthew 23:1-12

Today, we transition into Matthew 23. In this, His final message to the multitudes, the Lord Jesus unleashed His fiercest warnings regarding the religious leaders of Israel. He was hardest on them because they distorted the image of the God of the Bible. The problem with religion is it is purely external. In order for the religious to live out their religion, they have to accentuate the externals, including endless rituals, rules, and regulations. Of course, these rituals, rules and regulations many think are a means to earn the favor of God. But, we all know, we can't earn God's favor. Religion is not the answer because it is man reaching to God. The problem with that is we can't reach far enough to merit God's favor.

In v.1-2 of today's passage we read, "1 Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, 2 saying: 'The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat.'"

Religious folks do not have a light problem, they have a sight problem. They fail to see that faith in the God of the Bible is a heart thing. Without the involvement of our hearts in a personal relationship with God, we are not known by Him. Religion that places the emphasis on the fallen human measuring up is blinding. Religious folks remain blinded by their sin as they resist the grace of God. This is what makes them think they can measure up to God's standard. They have a very low view of God. Of course, this is exactly why the Lord Jesus came to this earth in the first place, to lay down His life for us. The scribes and the Pharisees defined themselves as the separated ones. Since they saw themselves as such, they were self-righteous, proud, and they abused people for personal gain.

In v.3-4 of today's passage we read, "3 Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do. 4 For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers."

The scribes and the Pharisees taught strictly the Law of Moses to the people but they themselves were not perfect in obeying God. Although the religious leaders believed they were doing enough of the right things to make them right with God, their hearts were far from Him. All of their symbolic rituals did not address their real issue which was the sinful condition of their hearts. They missed the ultimate goal of the Law of Moses which is to reveal to us our utter sinfulness and helplessness and also to point us to the grace of God through our Savior. As a result, the religious leaders of Israel were not concerned about the wickedness of their own hearts. Since they themselves did not interact with God from the heart, these religious leaders lacked a heart for the people. This is why they laid heavy religious loads on the people.

In v.5-7 of today's passage we read, "5 But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments. 6 They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, 7 greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.'"

Religious people are driven by their performance. They follow their rules and rituals in order to be praised by others. The Lord Jesus understood their rules and rituals inside and out. He knew that the Pharisees were more interested in the money, prestige and power than owning up to their inability to measure up to the truth. This made them hypocrites who robbed the average folks of their money. Like all of us, the Pharisees didn't love the Lord their God with all their heart, soul, mind and strength. The difference between them and the true believer is that the true believer is honest about his inability to love perfectly. When we come to the place that we love God from our hearts, we are positioned to love others as ourselves. The religious leaders of Israel were so preoccupied with being admired and revered, they missed the One whom they had studied all their lives when He came. 

In v.8-10 of today's passage we read, "8 But you, do not be called ‘Rabbi’; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren. 9 Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. 10 And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ."

The word "leadership" appears nowhere in the New Testament and the word "leader" is only found just under 10 times after Malachi. When the subject of power and leadership appear in the Bible the emphasis is on servanthood. This is why the Lord told His disciples not to be called "Rabbi" or "Teacher." Otherwise they would be following themselves. We do well to follow God as our leader because that which we follow is that which defines us most.

We are all servants, even those who are leaders. We come to know if we are acting as servants when someone treats us as such. As servants, we will always reflect our master. Before we came to know the heart of God for us we viewed servanthood as something that was required and forced. Once we entered into God's family, we began to see servanthood differently. The revelation of the heart of God to us is what drives us further into a heart that serves others.

In v.11-12 of today's passage we read, "11 But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

Contrary to what most believe, greatness in the Kingdom of God is found through the embrace of servanthood. God equates leadership with serving others. Humility is essential at making one a servant and the best type of leaders are those who are servants. It is through the disposition of humility that a leader accesses from God real authority. To those who desire to be leaders, God says, "Push yourself down and I’ll lift you up." The secret is discovered in a quote found in the book entitled Radical Grace, written by Richard Rohr who wrote, "Humility and human come from the Latin word, humus which means dirt. A human being is someone taken out of the dirt. A humble person is one who recognizes that and even rejoices in it!"

Matthew 22:41-46

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41 While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, 42 saying, “What do you think about the Christ? Whose Son is He?” They said to Him, “The Son of David.” 43 He said to them, “How then does David in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying: 44 ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool?”’ 45 If David then calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his Son?” 46 And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore. ~ Matthew 22:41-46

Today, we return to our study of Matthew 22 where the Lord Jesus and His disciples are in Jerusalem at the Temple court. With it still being Wednesday, the Lord Jesus was repeatedly confronted by the antagonistic religious leaders of Israel. Their questions were attempts to trap Him in His words, but one after another He answered their questions accurately. After their questions had run out, the Lord Jesus took the opportunity to ask them a question of His own. And while He could have used this chance to shame or embarrass them, instead He asked a question that pointed them to the truth. Their questions came from wicked hearts with wicked intentions, but His’ offered them the chance to see God's will more clearly. 

In v.41-42 of today's passage we read, "41 While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, 42 saying, 'What do you think about the Christ? Whose Son is He?' They said to Him, 'The Son of David.'"

The answer to the question the Lord Jesus posed to the religious leaders is found in several places in the Old Testament. It was not as if God had withheld the answers from these so-called leaders. All of the promises in the Old Testament regarding the Messiah are grounded in the Abrahamic Covenant and expanded in the Davidic Covenant. Since the Jews assumed that the Messiah would use political power to set up a political kingdom here on earth, they rejected the Lord Jesus as the obvious Promised One. Although they should have, they did not see that the Messiah had to first be the Lamb of God who came to procure the forgiveness of sin of both Jews and Gentiles before He could set up His kingdom on this earth. Arrogantly, the religious leaders saw their Messiah as the Savior of the Jews only. 

In v.44-45 of today's passage we read, "44 The Lord said to my Lord, 'Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool?' 45 If David then calls Him 'Lord,' how is He his Son?"

Here, the Lord Jesus quotes Psalm 110:1 and then He added a question pointing these devious men back to the truth. This was the final invitation the Lord Jesus gave to the religious leaders of Israel to believe in Him as their Messiah. It was one more moment in which these people could have ceased their open rejection of God's promised Messiah. David, according to Psalm 110:1, called his son his Lord. Graciously, the Lord Jesus revealed to the religious leaders that the Messiah was more than a physical descendant of David, that He is God Himself. In fact, He could not be their Messiah without being God because only the perfection of God can overcome sin and death.

Our understanding of the identity of the Lord Jesus is the most important thing in all of life. A careful study of the Scriptures reveals Him as the sinless Lamb of God who came to pay the penalty which our sin had created. The Bible is very clear that the Lord takes no pleasure in the condemnation of the wicked. This is why the Son agreed before the foundation of this world to be our Messiah. Sadly, the Jewish religious leaders didn't repent of their will in the presence of the incarnate God. They were entertained by His teachings and His miracles but they missed Him and they ended up in hell. How sad are those words. They were so resolute in the darkness of their own sin that they couldn’t see the light when He was shining right in front of them.

According to Matthew 1 and Luke 3, the Lord Jesus came through the genealogical line of King David. Both His parents were from the Davidic line. He, therefore, is the Son of David. If He were not the Son of David, those who desired to discredit Him would have used the genealogical records to discredit Him. To be David’s Son and David’s Lord, the Lord Jesus had to be the eternal God who came as the God-man. This was too much for the Jewish religious leaders to take in. This made them change their interpretation of Psalm 110, saying it refers to Abraham and not the Messiah. As my dad would say, "They were so narrow-minded they could see through a keyhole with both eyes." 

In v.46 of today's passage we read, "And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore."

Essential to any relationship is the back and forth exchange of information. Essential for the deepening of our walk with the Lord are the questions that creep up on us on a day by day basis. Most often we are annoyed by those questions because they come at us through unwanted moments. Yet, those questions serve our relationship with God. We do well to see them as our friends because they are a means toward intimacy with God.

We deny the veracity of the Bible when we will fail to believe in the Lord Jesus as the long-promised Messiah. The Jewish religious leaders rejected the Word of God, thus, they rejected their own Messiah and had Him crucified. They led the nation into ruin because they would not humble themselves enough to confess their sins and to trust in the Lord Jesus as the Son of David. These men were "experts" in the study of God, yet they chose not to be defined by Him. Their religion was a matter of external observance, not internal transformation. They never comprehended the fact that the Lord Jesus came to this earth to give those who believe forgiveness of sin and personal relationship with God.

Matthew 22:34-40

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34 But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. 35 Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, 36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?” 37 Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” ~ Matthew 22:34-40

Today, we continue our study of Matthew 22 where the Lord Jesus is still responding to another question from the Jewish religious leaders. Although their question was not for discovery of the truth, the Lord Jesus yet again answered it. In doing so, the Lord Jesus gave the religious leaders another opportunity to be defined by the truth. Sadly, these men were deceived to the point of not being able to discover the truth. Much of life is made up of the pursuit of the answers to our questions. And, although often frustrating, our questions are some of our greatest friends because they push us to pursue the Lord of the truth.

In v.34-36 of today's passage we read, "34 But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. 35 Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, 36 'Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?'"

In this chapter, the religious leaders of Israel asked of the Lord Jesus three questions. The first, in v.15–22, was a political question: "Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?" The second, in v.23–33, was a religious question about the doctrine of the resurrection. The third, in v. 34–40, was a moral question about which commandment of the 613 in the Old Testament was the most important. These three questions were not tools that would aid them in discovering the truth, no, they were tools that they hoped would aid them at destroying the ministry of the One who referred to Himself as "the Way, the Truth and the Life."

In v.37-40 of today's passage we read, "37 Jesus said to him, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.'"

In response to their question, the Lord Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6 which begins with a command to love God. Loving God begins in our hearts, that is the giving our hearts to the Lord. Learning to do this consistently is impossible, especially when we lack an understanding of God's culture. Like the religious leaders of Israel, just when we think we understand what God has said in a particular passage, we realize we don't. Giving our hearts to God involves our choice to worship Him. Worship is ascribing to Him worth and there are varying degrees to our worship of God. We love God when we choose to believe His word and we allow Him to define us. We are being defined by the Lord when we obey Him.

No sinful human can merit God's favor through good behavior or performance. The divide between us and God that our sin created is just too great for us to span by our goodness. Since God is perfect, perfection is required of us. No sinful human has ever perfectly measured up to the truth. It is rather arrogant for us to think we can somehow measure up to His perfection. The only One who can do this is God Himself. No human, this side of the Fall, has ever loved God with his whole being. This is why the Lord Jesus came to be the Lamb of God who would take away the penalty of our sin and put us into a personal relationship with God.

We discover truth through observation. We see things, we feel things, we hear things, and we read things about God. We experience God for ourselves. Truth arrives first in our minds. This is why the Lord Jesus said that we are to love the Lord our God with all our minds. Next, the truth impacts our emotions, or our souls, as it is listed here. Truth comes to our minds and then it moves to our emotions, and we begin to feel moved by the truth that our minds understand. Next, comes our will or our heart. 

The word "heart" is used in several ways in the Scriptures. Sometimes it refers to the will, sometimes the emotions, but here it describes our will. We choose with our hearts or our wills. Once our will or heart is moved, then we love God with as much of our strength that we can but it will never be enough to merit His favor. God commands us to love Him with everything we have even though He knows we can't. He has to command us to love Him with everything because that is the way He is. He is holy and He does nothing half way. Could you imagine God commanding us to love Him partly?

In Mark 12:33 we read of an interesting response from the Pharisee who had asked the Lord Jesus the question about the greatest command. He said, "One must love God with all his heart, all his mind, and all his strength. And one must love his neighbor as he loves himself. These commands are more important than all the animals and sacrifices we offer to God."

Despite the fact that he had good theology, the response of the Pharisee revealed he thought more of himself and his ability to love God than he should have. Due to our sinfulness, we lack the ability to be holy good and that is what is required for our acceptance before God. The Pharisee had a low view of God and His Word. When we have a low view of God and His law, we will be given to legalism. When we have a high view of God's law, we will crave God's grace. The two greatest commands require perfection. When we think we can measure up to God's standard, we see no need for God's grace in our lives. 

Our passage for today ends with: "These commands are more important than all the animals and sacrifices we offer to God." The Pharisee didn't realize that standing before him was the very One of whom all of the Old Testament sacrifices pointed. In fact, the Lord Jesus was the Only One who could love God with all of His heart, mind and strength. Even though we have been born again, we fall short of the task of loving God with everything we have. Christ’s sacrifice was perfect, complete and sufficient to measure up to God's standard on our behalf. His perfect sacrifice overcame our sin. The Old Testament sacrifices were insufficient because they had to be repeated over and over again and the blood of the innocent animals only covered sin temporarily. The sacrifice of the Lord Jesus was a one time event which was and is sufficient for all who believe on the Lord Jesus. His sacrifice met all of God's perfect requirements earning forgiveness for all who believe. And, it is only His sacrifice that captures our heart for the Lord and enables us to love people.

Matthew 22:23-33

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23 The same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Him and asked Him, 24 saying: “Teacher, Moses said that if a man dies, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife and raise up offspring for his brother. 25 Now there were with us seven brothers. The first died after he had married, and having no offspring, left his wife to his brother. 26 Likewise the second also, and the third, even to the seventh. 27 Last of all the woman died also. 28 Therefore, in the resurrection, whose wife of the seven will she be? For they all had her.” 29 Jesus answered and said to them, “You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God. 30 For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels of God in heaven. 31 But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, saying, 32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.” 33 And when the multitudes heard this, they were astonished at His teaching. ~ Matthew 22:23-33

Today's passage takes place on the final Wednesday of the earthly life of the Lord Jesus. Then He was crucified on that Friday. This was a busy day for Him as He taught in the temple all day sparing with the Jewish religious community trying to trip Him up with their questions. Toward the end of that Wednesday, a certain element of the Jewish religious leaders, the Sadducees, came to the Lord Jesus with a hypothetical question. They accepted only the first five books of Moses as the word of God. In addition, they did not believe in angels, spirits, or the resurrection of the dead. When the Romans came in and destroyed Jerusalem in A.D. 70, the Sadducees ceased to exist.

In v.23-28 of today's passage we read, "23 The same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Him and asked Him, 24 saying: 'Teacher, Moses said that if a man dies, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife and raise up offspring for his brother. 25 Now there were with us seven brothers. The first died after he had married, and having no offspring, left his wife to his brother. 26 Likewise the second also, and the third, even to the seventh. 27 Last of all the woman died also. 28 Therefore, in the resurrection, whose wife of the seven will she be? For they all had her.'"

The Sadducees tried to trip up the Lord Jesus in order to shatter His popularity among the people. Interestingly, the religious leaders of Israel continually tried to do this, all the while they really weren't interested in the truth. Ironically, their questions and the Lord Jesus' answers provide for us today great truths that we want and need to know. These truths pull back the curtain for us to see little bit more of the culture of God. They also give us a glimpse of heaven about which we aren't given a whole lot of information in the Scriptures.

The Sadducees asked this question in order to show how ridiculous they thought was the idea of the resurrection. That was when they presented a scenario to the Lord Jesus based on Deuteronomy 25 which called for a man to marry his brother’s wife in the event of his brother’s death. With this argument, they referred to a law in the book of Moses called the law of levirate marriage which was given by God in order to protect the widow, her land and the name of the family. And so a brother or a kinsman, a relative, could marry that lady, and then the family name would be preserved, and the inheritance would be passed on from generation to generation for that woman. 

Trying to minimize the Lord Jesus, the Sadducees asked who would be the husband of the woman in heaven, especially since she had married so many times. Of course, they weren't on a journey to discover the truth, they were just trying to cause the people to no longer follow the Lord Jesus, especially since they benefitted the most from the sacrificial system at the temple. And, the Lord Jesus was a threat to that commerce based on what He had done in the temple a day earlier.

In v.29-30 of today's passage we read, "29 Jesus answered and said to them, 'You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God. 30 For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels of God in heaven.'"

In His answer the Lord Jesus made it clear that in heaven there will be no marriage. Notice the Lord Jesus did not say that in heaven we will be angels, but that we will be like the angels. We will be like the angels in that we will not cohabitate and reproduce. In addition, we will not die. So, there will be no need for reproduction in heaven. The Lord Jesus was quick to say marriage is a thing of this temporal world. 

At this point the Lord Jesus directed the Sadducees attention to Exodus 3:6 in order to establish His point. This is important because He knew the Sadducees only accepted the first five books of the Bible as the word of God. It seems Exodus 3:6 doesn’t argue for the resurrection of the dead. But, when we consider that God made an everlasting covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob after they had died, it takes on a different meaning. Since God made an everlasting covenant with them, he will raise them from the dead so that they may see the fulfillment of His promises.

We will not die, and in this sense we are equal to angels. When we believed in the Lord Jesus, we received His life, eternal life. When we received His life we became the sons and daughters of the resurrection. There is a great principle being given here which I have found to be an encouragement down through the years, especially when it seemed that all hope was lost. The principle comes in the form of a quote which is: "God’s most striking victories come out of graves of apparent defeat."

In v.31-32 of today's passage we read, "31 But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, saying, 32 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.'"

The Sadducees understood neither the Scriptures, which teach the resurrection of the dead, nor did they know the power of God, who can and will raise the dead to life. This was their problem, they were not accustomed to being defined by the God of the Bible. In 1 Corinthians 15 the Apostle Paul established this very important point: if we do not have the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, we do not have hope. I find it striking that group after group tried to trip the Lord Jesus up, yet He spoke the truth to them and in so doing He held out hope to each group. His has always been self-giving love which is a product of such hope. The Lord Jesus is the same with us. He knows the quickest way to our hearts is through our wounds. And, it is these wounds which create our skepticism or they can assist our ability to seek Him with our hearts. We are to some degree hard-hearted like these religious leaders, at times. And, yet, He keeps offering us hope. And, He rarely blesses us with only us in mind.

Hope must be garnered by us through the thicks and thins of life. We must admit that we, at times, struggle seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. This honest struggle is necessary for us to be develop an authentic walk with the Lord and to be found anchored to His hope. Amid all of the negativity that we will face out in the world today, let's be poised to hold out this hope which is based on the truth of the resurrection from the dead for all those, who like us, are struggling, too. Like him or not, Napoleon brilliantly once said, "Leaders are dealers in hope."

In v.33 of today's passage we read, "And when the multitudes heard this, they were astonished at His teaching."

The people were amazed at the teaching they received from the Lord Jesus. Unlike the religious leaders of Israel, they weren't turned off by His teaching resulting in them leaving Him. Without the resurrection of the Lord Jesus from the dead, we are all without hope. Our eternity with God is not a mere continuation of the life we know right now. In heaven, we will maintain our identities and know each other, but there will be no more sin and death. In heaven there will be no more tears, pain, sickness and lack. Then, we will live in a new earth without the interference of the evil one and his cohorts. We will astonishingly enjoy hearts and minds free from doubt and bodies free from disease.