True Wisdom

Introduction

Who was John?

Jesus turns to the crowd that follows him, most of whom presumably were baptized by John, and asks them why they went out into the desert. Did they simply go to see the desert vegetation, the tumbleweeds and the desert grass? The obvious answer to this questions is “no”, no one goes out into the wilderness and the desert just to observe the desert grass. There was a reason so many of them were drawn into the wilderness of the Jordan. So what was it? What was so important that they would leave their homes and voluntarily go into the wilderness?

So its obvious they went out to see someone, someone important. Perhaps a royal crier. Perhaps a king, a great philosopher of men, or a powerful teacher. Such men in the world tend to accumulate wealth and therefore would be dressed in fine or soft clothing. This soft clothing contrasts the clothing John the Baptist wore, which was the rough attire of camels hair. Jesus assures them that if they went to see some royal emissary or king or even a great and popular teacher of men they would have found them elsewhere, not in the middle of the desert. Jesus’ questions are meant to point out the obvious answer. The men who in the OT dwelt in the wilderness were prophets, and this is the only substantial or logical reason why so many crowds would gather in the wilderness. It is no wonder that Jesus points to the likeness of John to Elijah the prophet who came before him, often hiding in the wilderness away from the places of popular gatherings.

John Calvin expands on what exactly Jesus is getting at with these questions,

Commentary on a Harmony of the Evangelists Matthew, Mark, and Luke Matthew 11:7–15; Luke 7:24–28, 16:16

“Your journey would have been an act of foolish and ridiculous levity, if you had not a fixed object in view. But it was neither worldly splendour nor any sort of amusement that you were in quest of: your design was, to hear the voice of God from the mouth of the Prophet. If therefore you would reap advantage from your undertaking, it is necessary that what he spoke should remain fixed in your memory.”

Why in the wilderness? Why should this point to John being a prophet, and why is the ministry of a prophet associated with the wilderness? It shows the difficulty and unpopularity that comes with the truth. The truth must be sought out, as it does not come to us passively on a silver platter. If you would know the Scriptures truly, you must know them well. You must leave the popular interpretations of what Scripture says behind and go into the wilderness just as Israel was led into the wilderness to hear from God. You won’t find truth commonly in a church with a rock band performance, or with lights and an ultra-charismatic speaker who says things that make you feel good and fit with modern sensibilities. To hear the truth of God, you must leave this world behind as Israel left Egypt and go into the wilderness to receive the Word of God from the mountain in the wilderness as Israel did. The picture of Israelites going into the wilderness to hear from God paints a picture of how God reveals himself, not in popular and attractive ways, but in the solid truth of what is given in Scripture when received with a humble heart that truly seeks for God.

The question may be asked of you. What did you come here this morning to see? We are not in the wilderness, and I am not some great prophet like John, but what was it you came here for? To sit in our ultra-comfy pews and listen to a message that tickles your ears and makes you feel good about yourself? I assure you that you are in the wrong place. Did you go to hear a well-spoken message from a well-spoken speaker that makes you feel comfortable and at ease? Again, I have neither the gift nor the ministry for such well-spoken and comfortable messages. So why are you hear? Is it to hear the Word of God? It is to hear the Gospel of the Kingdom? Is it to be pointed to the Christ who saves us from our own guilt and shame caused by our own sin? Yes, that is what I seek to preach and that, I hope, is why you came. If that is why you are here, make sure you do not miss the application to your life, for if you leave this service unchanged you are like the double-minded mentioned by James,

James 1:21–25 ESV

Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.

I know most of you greatly value expositional preaching from the pulpit, otherwise you would have chosen to attend a church with better music, a better speaker, and a more entertaining message. If that is the case, do not let your efforts be in vain, but discern how it is the preached word is to be applied to you so that in the end your soul will be saved unto God, who gives salvation to those who truly seek him by seeking the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.

So who was this person whom the people came to see. A prophet? The answer may seem like a contradiction to John 1:21

John 1:21 ESV

And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.”

John and Jesus are not contradicting each other. This is clear because both cite Scriptures describing the same ministry. Jesus cites Malachi 3:1

Malachi 3:1 ESV

“Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts.

John cites Isaiah 40:3

Isaiah 40:3 ESV

A voice cries: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

John’s ministry is incredibly unique. Calvin points out that, unlike other prophets, John came proclaiming that the Kingdom of God had come near. Every other prophet in the history of the prophetic office had preached of the Kingdom of Heaven as something far off, usually with disaster happening first. John is a prophet, but not like those other prophets which is why John denies being one of the prophets. He’s not a prophet in the same way they were. He also denies being Elijah, which seems problematic since in our text Jesus tells us that, if we are willing to accept it, John is Elijah who is to come. This is a reference to Mal 4:5

Malachi 4:5 ESV

“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes.

There are two possabilities here. One is that John is denying that he is physically and literally Elijah, and is pointing out the misunderstanding that the Jews might have had about a true, resurrected Elijah coming. Luke 1:17 says:

Luke 1:17 ESV

and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”

Another is simply that John didn’t know he was fulfilling this prophecy, which is likely. John knew in part what is role was, but perhaps did not glimpse the whole picture. Either of these options is possible. Jesus would later repeat this statement about John in Matthew 17:12

Matthew 17:12 ESV

But I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but did to him whatever they pleased. So also the Son of Man will certainly suffer at their hands.”

Verse 11 - Among those born of women, that is to say among all who have lived up to that point, there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Up to Christ, John is the most important figure, more important than Abraham or Moses or David, because only he would announce the Messiah’s coming. The others played important roles, but John was the final OT act from which the Messiah would be announced. For the first time in history, the declaration was not for some distant day, but for today.

And yet, those who are the least in the Kingdom of Heaven are greater than him. This is a mystery which is only understood when we consider the advent of the New Covenant. John was the last Old Testament prophet, and Jesus tells us the greatest. Now a new covenant has come in the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven. What Jesus is saying here is about the nature of those in the Kingdom, and thus reveals the glorious nature of this Kingdom. What Jesus is saying is that in this New Covenant, even the least person in the Kingdom will be greater than John. So much greater is the New Covenant from the Old that the greatest figure in the Old Covenant is less than the least in the New Covenant. Christian have something that Moses, Elijah, and even John the Baptist did not have in their time. We have full access to the Throne of God.

Jesus and John are Tied

Why is Jesus talking so much about John? After all, if the least in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than he, why dwell on his ministry now that Jesus has come? It’s because John’s role being legitimate is crucial to Christ’s claims being legitimate. John, whether he knew it or not, held the role of Elijah who was to come and prepare the way of the Lord’s coming to his people. The is an intrinsic connection to John and Jesus. John represents all that the OT was saying about Jesus, and Jesus has come and established his Kingdom in the hearts of people.

In verse 12 Jesus gives us a very interesting statement that deserves an entire sermon to itself. Jesus is distinguishing two time periods from verse 12-14. There is the time of the Prophets and the Law who prophesied until John. Interestingly, the law as well as the prophets prophecied, showing that the purpose of the law was always to orientate the people of God to a future event.

The second time period is from John the Baptist until the time of Jesus’ ministry. The first time period was a time of prophecy, the second time period is a time of violence. How is it a time of violence? Jesus never picked up a sword, and the only time one of his disciples would take up a sword he would be rebuked. What is the meaning of this simple phrase? It is extremely difficult to understand, partly because we aren’t sure whether the Greek verb is a middle voice with an active sense or whether it is passive. What that means is that this verse can either be taken negatively or positively.

It could mean that the Kingdom of Heaven is suffering persecution. This is the negative sense. It fits with the larger context, as the next few chapters will focus on opposition to the Kingdom of God, but it doesn’t seem to fit the immediate sense, which focuses on the Kingdom’s coming after the proclamation of John the Baptist.

The positive and active sense is that the Kingdom of Heaven is itself coming with violence and that violent, or eager, people take it with all their might. This position agrees with most of church history including Ireneaus the early church Father.

It is clear to me that the violent take it by force refers positively to the Kingdom being given to those who earnestly seek it. It reminds us of what Paul said in 1 Cor 9:24-27

1 Corinthians 9:24–27 ESV

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.

It is clear that the passive will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven. The lazy will not enter, the sleeping will not enter, the dull-minded and stone-hearted will not enter. No one stumbles into the Kingdom, it must be taken by force. Not that we seek to conquer the Kingdom of Heaven, rather we seek to conquer ourselves, rid ourselves of all worldliness and unbelief, and strive to control ourselves so that we may stay on the straight and narrow road that leads to life.

It is most likely that the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence would be better translated the Kingdom of Heaven comes with violence, but the ESV’s translation is possible, referring to the persecution it has endured, starting with John the Baptist. But what I believe Jesus is pointing us to is that since John’s ministry the Kingdom of Heaven has come with great force and power, displayed in the signs, miracles, and preaching of Jesus. It has come, not with physical force, but with true spiritual power that changes lives.

Verse 15 tells us “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” This is a general call to the elect; those whom God has opened their ears that they may hear and take seriously what Jesus is saying. He says this specifically about John being the figurative Elijah who was to come before the revealing of the Christ. To believe that John occupies this role is a signal to the elect that Christ has indeed come and been identified by this voice in the wilderness.

The question for you is, do you have ears to hear? Is the coming of Christ of interest to you? The fulfillment of these prophecies should make it plain that Jesus is the Christ, even down the coming of John the Baptist. Now the Kingdom of Heaven has come, and you have the chance to enter it, albeit with the forcefulness of someone desperate to know God. Have your ears been opened? You should be in great fear if not.

Psalm 40:6 ESV

In sacrifice and offering you have not delighted, but you have given me an open ear. Burnt offering and sin offering you have not required.

The Hebrew literally says “you have drilled open my ears”. In our sinful nature, our ears are blocked. We can hear the words and even understand what they say intellectually, but this speaks of the ears of our hearts. Have your ears been opened? Pray earnestly, if not, that God would give you ears open to his words concerning the coming of the Christ, the Saviour of the world.

How Did the Jews Respond to John?

So what was the response to John’s preaching?

Verse 16 addresses the current generation, and the same can be said for our generation. We will see why.

The point of verses 16-19 is that the Kingdom has not come in ways people expected. While this generation plays the flute, we do not dance. While this generation sings a song of mourning, we do not mourn. We who are in the Kingdom don’t go along with the world’s expectations. This is shown in how John came with a very restricted diet and they claimed he had a demon. The Christ came eating and drinking and they called him a glutton and drunkard. The point being that these men, though fulfilling OT prophecy, did so without conforming to the way the world around them expected. They didn’t expect the precurser to Christ to be such a nomadic bushman. Likewise, they didn’t expect the Christ to be entertained in the homes of sinners and tax collectors. The world plays the tune, but they did not respond.

In the same way, we who are in Christ do not dance to the worlds music, or mourn at the worlds dirges. Christians are not so much counter-cultural as they are Christ-cultured. We dance to the tune of Scripture, and weep when appropriate according to God’s Word. The world expects us to dance to pride and perverse sexual expression, but we reject that tune. They expect us to mourn at the things that trouble them, but we mourn in repentance at our own sin. Although the Gospel is for people from all cultures everywhere, the Gospel is above culture and politics and societal expectations. The world is offended at this, as are many who call themselves Christians while they respond to the world’s tunes. Don’t be surprised that the way you are called to act as a Christian is very different from the way the world expects you to act. You are called to love, but that love will look different than what the world expects. You are called to deny self, but the world wants you to embrace self. You are called to have victory over your passions and lusts, but the world would have you celebrate them and indulge in any fantasy you imagine. While many cherry pick the teachings of Jesus to make them fit with their own morality, we embrace the message of the Gospel and devote our lives to the teachings of Christ in their entirety.

The Need for True Wisdom

How do we answer for this? Jesus says at the end of verse 19, “Yet wisdom is justified by her children (deeds)”. When we are challenged by the way we act, our proof is in the pudding. Wisdom is founded on the fear of the LORD and is justified by its outcome.