From Jail to Joy

Matthew 11:2–10 NIV

When John, who was in prison, heard about the deeds of the Messiah, he sent his disciples to ask him, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?” Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.” As John’s disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swayed by the wind? If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings’ palaces. Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written: “ ‘I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.’

INTRODUCTION

Can you think of a time when you were extremely happy, cloud 9 - finding yourself in a season of complete joy, when all at once, it was as if the bottom fell out of life?

Everything had been right with the world, the family was great, life was going smoothly, all seemed like it was in place, and you couldn’t be happier. (P)

What was it that changed the tides?

Loss of a loved one?

Loss of a job?

Severe financial hurdle?

A serious falling out with a deeply loved family member?

Maybe your own marriage?

Maybe more than one of these things, or, heaven forbid, all of them happened at once? (P)

We talked last week about how our hope, and joy, and peace should not be found in our circumstances, and that is true, but circumstances can sure throw a monkey-wrench into life sometimes, can’t they?

Circumstances can add a burden to life that, unless we figure out how to deal with them, seems like they are going to steal our joy. Sometimes they become a burden we can’t seem to bear. (P)

I know some of you have read Pilgrim’s Progress, by John Bunyan, and have really taken a liking to that story, and perhaps have been inspired by it. And if you are one of those people, then perhaps you remember this moment in that book - and if not, I hope it gives you something to think about this Third Sunday of Advent:

"Up this way, therefore, did burdened Christian run, but not without great difficulty, because of the load on his back. He ran thus till he came to a place somewhat ascending; and upon that place stood a Cross, and a little below, in the bottom, a Sepulchre.

So I saw in my dream, that just as Christian came up with the Cross, his burden loosed from his shoulders, and fell off his back, and began to tumble, and so continued to, till it came to the mouth of the Sepulchre, where it fell in, and I saw it no more.

Then was Christian glad and lightsome, and said with a merry heart, He hath given me rest by his sorrow, and life by His death."

Bunyan concludes, Then Christian gave three leaps for joy, and went on his way singing. (P)

Last week, we spent some time in Matthew, chapter 3, talking about John the Baptist, and we spoke of him as we usually know him and think of him - as an outgoing and courageous man who stopped at nothing to fulfill his role as the prophet who would prepare the way for the coming Messiah.

Perhaps we remember the very first time we heard about John in the first chapter of Luke’s gospel, when Mary, Jesus’ mother, went to visit Elizabeth, who was pregnant with John. We remember that even before birth, John reacted joyfully, knowing that Jesus was nearby.

Verse 44: {CLICK}

Luke 1:44 NIV

As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.

(P)

So what happened to this joyful, zealous man, who had not been afraid to put himself out there for Christ, that we find him here in Matthew 11 so resolute, and even doubtful about everything He had done for the One he was so sure of? What happened that made even him feel like Christian in Pilgrim’s Progress with that unbearable bag of burdens? (P)

Well, it all happened pretty quickly, really.

The first 12 verses of Matthew 3 finds John doing his ministry, the closing verses of Matthew 3 show where Jesus comes into the picture to be baptized by John, after which Jesus retreats to the wilderness for 40 days to be tempted by Satan, early in chapter 4, and by the time we get to Matthew 4:12, after Jesus returns from the wilderness and ready to start His work, He is informed that John has been arrested and thrown into jail.

And as time passed in jail, it was no surprise that this was enough to cause great discouragement for John. (P)

Scott Hoezee, a pastor who has spent time ministering in the prison system, offers an interesting perspective on the profound impact that prison life can have. What he says is similar to what my dad and brother would say from their years of working in prisons. (P)

The solitude and complete change of lifestyle can affect a person’s mental health severely. Hoezee speaks of one prisoner he knew of who had such a change in life after accepting Christ, and became so much of a model prisoner that he earned a special, almost luxurious accommodation, and even in that nice setting, it took him a while to adjust and not be terrified to even sleep at this new setting.

My dad has actually told me of many inmates he worked with who second-guessed freedom so much when they were finally released from jail, they committed another crime just to come back to prison, because they thought that was a better place for them. (P)

Perhaps this better explains how John the Baptist could go from confidently preparing the way of Christ, to now wondering if even his own ministry had been a scam.

Was Jesus really the Messiah?

If so, how had the prophecy from the first verse of Isaiah 61 not been fulfilled for John, who had worked so hard to prepare the way for Jesus, who promised that...? {CLICK}

Isaiah 61:1 NIV

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners.

Why was this not happening for John?

(P)

Perhaps we are better able to understand all of this than we think.

We may not be hemmed in by iron bars or cement walls, but we have all served time in the jail of sin, and: {CLICK}

The jail of sin, like a real prison, and just like what John went through:

Messes with our heads.

Makes us second-guess Jesus.

Hinders our expectations.

(P)

It makes us believe we are nothing.

It makes us believe we are no good.

It makes us believe God could never want us.

It makes us wonder if God is even real, despite the evidence that is all around us.

Sin is the paradox that makes us believe that the Christian life on Earth ought never to have problems, even though we still live in the sin that causes those problems. (P)

And so, like John, in our deepest despair and our longest waits, we need a reminder of what Christ offers us, just as He reminded the disciples of John the Baptist, who could then take the message back to John and help him find his joy once again. (P)

Like us, John needed the: {CLICK}

The Joy of Jesus:

Because that joy:

Allows us to see the work of God.

Jesus told these disciples in Matthew 11 to go back and report to John - not just what Jesus was telling them, but what they were actually seeing themselves - the healing of the sick, the restoring of life to the dead, the return of hearing and vision to those who were deaf and blind, and the message of Christ, that John started, continuing through Christ Himself. (P)

What has God done in your life that you can attest to when you speak to someone?

And of course, speaking to someone, as we’ve talked quite a bit about lately, is the second piece of this.

The Joy of Jesus: {CLICK}

2. Allows us to be witnesses to that work.

In taking all that they had seen and heard back to John, his disciples would bring John the encouragement he so desperately needed and restore his hope.

They would be able to say: Yes, John. When you did that work in the wilderness for Jesus, you got it exactly right. (P)

Who do you know is down on their luck, and could use a reminder of the power and love of Christ, not just because the Bible says so, as important as that is, but because you witnessed that work yourself? (P)

And third, that joy:{CLICK}

3. Allows us to be an example of Christ to others.

As John’s disciples were heading back, but still close enough for them to hear, so they could have one more boost of encouragement, Jesus reminded the crowd of the Malachi 3:1 prophecy. You hear it quoted in verse 10 of today’s Matthew 3 text:

Malachi 3:1 NIV

“I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the Lord Almighty.

{CLICK}

And in fulfilling that prophecy, John the Baptist became a strong, unwavering, humble, and faithful model of what God’s people are to be - the kind of model that inspires others to live the same way. (P)

A 1988 issue of Today in the Word tells of an anonymous third-century man [who] was anticipating death, [and as his final breath drew close] he penned these last words to a friend:

"It's a bad world, an incredibly bad world.

But I have discovered in the midst of it a quiet and holy people who have learned a great secret. They have found a joy that is a thousand times better than any pleasure of our sinful life. They are despised and persecuted, but they care not. They are masters of their souls. They have overcome the world.

These people are the Christians--and I am one of them."

CONCLUSION

So the question for you to consider as our children get ready to come up here and remind you of the joy of Christmas as it unfolded 2,000 years ago is this:

How can the joy of Christ encourage you as you tread through tough terrain?

And how can His work in your life entice you to be a solid witness to others who also need that encouragement? (P)

It wasn’t just about His life. It was what He would accomplish in life, which was ultimately His death. It was a death that wasn’t in vain. It was a death that was for you.

A woman had been diagnosed with severe cardiomyopathy, a rare heart disorder that causes the muscles of the heart to become inflexible. It's generally terminal. The only medical cure is a heart transplant.

For five months, she had become progressively weaker. More and more of her active life had been taken from her as she waited for the possibility of a new heart. At 2:00 on a dark, cold morning, she was awakened and told that the new heart was on its way. By 4:00, the heart was in place, and by 10:00 the next morning, she was out of surgery and in the ICU.

When the one who contributed this story visited with her a couple of days later, they talked about the gift of this new heart. She said, "You know, this was the second time that someone died for me."

For those who will look forward to some time with beloved family this Christmas, you know it’s hard to find more joy than being in the company of those we love.

If that’s true, then take a moment to think of the love of Christ, where He told His disciples on the night before His death: {CLICK}

John 15:13 NIV

Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

If greater love has no one than Christ, then greater joy comes from no one but Christ.

May that be the source of our joy this Christmas.