Matthew #18

Unmatched

Northside Christian Church SLIDES are highlighted in GREEN

Gospel of Matthew #18

5/17/26

Matt 11: Unmatched

Good morning, my name is Jamey, and I’m the lead pastor here at Northside… Man, it's always good to see you and to be with you guys… It’s such a life-giving thing to me.

We are in week 18 of our series on the Gospel of Matthew:

Last week we talked about the danger hidden in the assumptions and expectations we create of God… of who and how we think he should be… and even of how the life of one who follows Him should go…

And how when those assumptions and expectations don’t line up with what we experience… it can lead to things like… distance and doubt… and even wondering if God is still Good.

As Jesus addresses this list of man-made expectations… all of it is pointing to this incredibly powerful invitation…

“Come to me” - know me…

Stop settling for man-made ideas of who Jesus is and what He should be like, but go right to the source… Know Him personally. Know His heart. Learn from Him:

The Greek word used for this idea of “knowing” (Ginosko) speaks of deep, experiential knowledge; not just knowing about Jesus, but truly knowing Him.

It's the kind of knowing that anchored people like:

Paul—through beatings, shipwrecks, and prison.

Peter—after being crushed by his own failure.

Thomas—while wrestling with doubt.

Esther—who could say, “If I must die, I must die.”

Horatio Spafford—writing It Is Well With My Soul while sailing over the place where his family drowned.

ADD MORE

They weren’t anchored by comfort or circumstances.

They were anchored by knowing Jesus.

Not knowledge about…

But a personally surrendered knowledge of…

You cannot ever settle…

for thoughts about Jesus. Even the demons have them.

Your pastor's knowledge of God

You parents

Small Group leaders

Cultural definitions

Jesus’ invitation is deeper than that. It's better than that.

To this personal hunger to know the reality of Him… for who He really is… and what He is really like… with open hands, realizing that some of our assumptions and expectations that we have of Him… could be off.

Jesus, I want to know you, not some watered-down version of you.

We don’t invent who God is, we surrender to it.

Matthew 11 exposes it… that even sincere people had built up assumptions about who Jesus should be…

But Jesus wouldn’t stay in the box they created for Him.

They wanted Him predictable.

Comfortable.

Controllable.

Easy to explain.

But Jesus kept doing and saying things that forced people to rethink everything.

It still happens today… We love the idea of Jesus…

until He challenges us.

until He confronts us.

until He asks for surrender.

until He refuses to stay in the lane we created for Him.

One question I wrestled with this week was:

Are you afraid to know the real Jesus?

I was surprised by my gut response to that question… I’m genuinely wrestling with it.

My smallness

His Majesty

Knowing what that might really mean for my life…

There is this desire to hold back… to come ½ hearted;

I want to know you Jesus… Kinda

Jesus calls you into something deeper.

This is so cool…

Watch this..

There is this incredible transition from Matthew 11… throughout Matthew 12.

When it comes to our self-made/man-made assumptions

Even in the face of growing opposition…

Jesus is greater.

Jesus highlights things people clung to for identity, security, hope, and control—… and confronts them and the counterintuitive nature they’d developed… with the reality of who He is.

There were things that were hard to hear…

These are identity statements from Jesus…

Helping us to see that

He is greater than…

Greater than the assumptions we put on Him

Greater than our religious systems.

Greater than appearances.

Greater than self-righteousness.

Greater than politics.

Greater than your failures.

Greater than the things we hope in

Greater than what you're currently chasing.

This theology…

The reality of Jesus is greater than who we often make Him out to be.

Not a statement of outcomes

A statement of identity and presence

Jesus is greater than religion

The chapter opens with a fight over the Sabbath.

Matthew 12:1–2 (NLT)

Matthew 12:1–2 NLT

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

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

In our culture, that feels a little ridiculous:

The Sabbath was deeply important to the Jewish people:

God modelled it at creation:

Later, in Deuteronomy, the Sabbath also reminded Israel that God rescued them from slavery in Egypt. So the Sabbath became a weekly reminder:

God created us.

God redeemed us.

We belong to Him.

Breaking Sabbath laws was treated seriously in the Old Testament because it symbolised rebellion against God’s covenant.

It reminded Israel that God rescued them from slavery in Egypt. So the Sabbath became a weekly reminder:

God created us.

God redeemed us.

We belong to Him.

God’s people were meant to be different

The surrounding nations did not live this way. Sabbath rest demonstrated trust:

trust that God would provide,

trust that productivity was not ultimate,

trust that they belonged to God.

By Jesus day, the religious leaders sort of ran off with it… and lost God’s heart in it.

They developed countless man-made expectations regarding the Sabbath… and maybe it started with good intentions, but eventually… it became a tool for judgement.

Sabbath rules were everything. identity. Control. Security. Their system.

To break the sabbath was no little thing.

When the leaders see them picking grain, they lose their minds…

Jesus pointed to scripture…

When King David and His army broke the law by eating food only priests were allowed to eat (4)

How priests were allowed to work on the Sabbath (5)

Jesus did not treat the Sabbath lightly. But He taught that mercy, restoration, and human need were always central to God’s intention.

Jesus keeps pushing against their system because He wants them to see something:

God did not create people to serve religious systems. But things like the Sabbath were instituted/commanded by the Creator FOR His creation for its good.

And honestly, people still do this today.

We still reduce Christianity down to:

behavior

appearances

political alignment

church attendance

saying the right things

Meanwhile, our hearts can be cold, angry, prideful, anxious, bitter, or empty.

That’s why Jesus quotes Hosea:

“I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.” (Matthew 12:7, NLT)

Matthew 12:7 NLT

But you would not have condemned my innocent disciples if you knew the meaning of this Scripture: ‘I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.’

Knowing the reality of Jesus and His heart… matters.

Then He says:

“The Son of Man is Lord, even over the Sabbath!” (Matthew 12:8, NLT)

Matthew 12:8 NLT

For the Son of Man is Lord, even over the Sabbath!”

When Jesus says, He is Lord, even over the Sabbath…

It wasn’t just corrective, it was authoritative.

This is a big thing…

One of the deepest issues in The Gospel of Matthew chapter 12 is that the religious leaders had slowly elevated the Sabbath above the God who created it.

When He says He is “Lord of the Sabbath,” He is exposing that they cared more about protecting their system than recognising the Son of God standing in front of them.

Jesus is saying…

He’s greater than empty religion.

God cares more about our hearts than our ability to perform.

Rest is still important, but rest is ultimately found in Christ

Following Jesus means surrendering every area of life to His authority, even our schedules, traditions, and expectations.

One of the scariest forms of idolatry is when religious things replace Jesus Himself.

Sometimes in American Christian Culture… I’m curious if, at times, we put our kids in that place… It’s good and godly to love our kids… but… they end up running the family

Jesus was saying…“Your system doesn’t rule Me. I rule it.”

Jesus is greater than religion.

And that makes religious people uncomfortable.

Because religion likes control.

Jesus calls for surrender.

There’s a difference.

He is Greater than.. “Religion”

To this same idea, Mark’s Gospel adds this.

Mark 2:27 (NLT)

Mark 2:27 NLT

Then Jesus said to them, “The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath.

27 Then Jesus said to them, “The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath.

IN Jesus, I personally don’t believe the Sabbath today is a rigid requirement.

HOWEVER… I do think that Jesus is pointing at something you need to hear.

This idea… a day of rest, reflection and connection… Is a rhythm that we see God Model at creation… we see it echoed in creation… and… I think it's part of the rhythm in which you are created… a rhythm that you are designed for.

“Every Good Endeavour” God intends for us to work hard for 6 of the days a week… and then, take a day to be filled… to rest, connect, and reflect on and with God.

Jesus is greater than what’s broken in you

Then Jesus heals the man with the shrivelled hand. (9-15)

This crazy and telling moment because the religious leaders completely miss the miracle.

A man’s life is restored… And all they can see is that it happened on the wrong day.

How does that happen?

Isn’t it amazing how easy it is to stare at rules/traditions/…. while missing people?

The man probably learned to hide it… to avoid attention…

We tend to do that with brokenness…

We hide things.

addictions

shame

anxiety

marriage struggles

insecurity

depression

fear

We become experts at presenting the polished version of ourselves.

But Jesus sees what everybody else misses.

And He’s not repelled by brokenness.

He moves toward it. He steps into it. He yokes Himself with it.

One of the most beautiful commands in the chapter is when Jesus tells the man:

“Hold out your hand.” (Matthew 12:13, NLT)

Matthew 12:13 NLT

Then he said to the man, “Hold out your hand.” So the man held out his hand, and it was restored, just like the other one!

The very thing the man likely wanted hidden… Jesus asks him to bring into the open.

And maybe that’s where some of us are today.

Exhausted from hiding. Exhausted from pretending. Exhausted from acting like we’re okay.

And Jesus is saying: “Bring that to Me.”

Because

Jesus is greater than what’s broken in you.

And here’s what I love about Jesus: He knows… He sees…

God has a heart for those who are broken, hurting, lost, and alone… last week we heard that… the invitation to come… was aimed there.

Jesus is greater than your assumptions

Matthew 12:22–23 (NLT)

Matthew 12:22–23 NLT

Then a demon-possessed man, who was blind and couldn’t speak, was brought to Jesus. He healed the man so that he could both speak and see. The crowd was amazed and asked, “Could it be that Jesus is the Son of David, the Messiah?”

22 Then a demon-possessed man, who was blind and couldn’t speak, was brought to Jesus. He healed the man so that he could both speak and see. 23 The crowd was amazed and asked, “Could it be that Jesus is the Son of David, the Messiah?”

The crowd starts asking: “Could this be the Son of David?” “Could Jesus actually be who He claims to be?”

But the religious leaders couldn’t accept it.

Not because there isn’t evidence.

But because Jesus doesn’t fit the version of Messiah they wanted.

Jesus posed a real threat to the influence and power they enjoyed

We want a Jesus who:

Who gives, but never takes away

Maybe even that makes our name great

never confronts us

never calls us to repentance

exists to make life easier

helps us achieve our goals

But the real Jesus doesn’t fit neatly into our preferences. He doesn’t bow to our preferences…

The real Jesus confronts pride. Challenges idols. Calls out sin. Demands surrender.

And some people would rather redefine Jesus than follow Him.

Not because He is an Ogar… but because He’s a good Father… He knows where sin leads.

The religious leaders look at the work of God and say: “That must be evil.”

Isaiah 5:20: (NLT)

Isaiah 5:20 NLT

What sorrow for those who say that evil is good and good is evil, that dark is light and light is dark, that bitter is sweet and sweet is bitter.

Isaiah 5:20 NLT

What sorrow for those who say that evil is good and good is evil, that dark is light and light is dark, that bitter is sweet and sweet is bitter.

“What sorrow for those who say that evil is good and good is evil, that dark is light and light is dark, that bitter is sweet and sweet is bitter.”

Romans 1:21 (NLT)

Romans 1:21 NLT

Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused.

21 Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused.

Romans 1:25 (NLT):

Romans 1:25 NLT

They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen.

“They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself…”

Romans 1:29–32 (NLT)

Romans 1:29–32 NLT

Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip. They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and they disobey their parents. They refuse to understand, break their promises, are heartless, and have no mercy. They know God’s justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die, yet they do them anyway. Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too.

29 Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip. 30 They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and they disobey their parents. 31 They refuse to understand, break their promises, are heartless, and have no mercy. 32 They know God’s justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die, yet they do them anyway. Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too.

It goes on to talk about broken views of identity and sexuality… and I know churches have largely gone silent about this stuff… but we can’t.

We see this in scripture… We see it in the world… and… I think it creeps into Christian lives in subtle ways…

We praise business in Christian culture while rest, prayer, and dependence on God can quietly be viewed as weakness or laziness

We elevate our kids over our spouse and call it good parenting

We donate to Goodwill and call it tithing

We claim Jesus in the closet… or on Sunday… but…

That’s how hard hearts work.

When people don’t want surrender, they start inventing explanations.

I think one other thing we can pull from this is…

Jesus is greater than the demons I face

…

Addiction, sin, selfishness, habitual lying, lust, porn, greed,

Jesus is greater than self-improvement

Then Jesus says something deeply relevant for our culture.

He talks about an unclean spirit leaving a person, then returning to find the house “empty.”

And Jesus says the condition becomes worse than before.

Here’s the point:

You can clean up your life externally while remaining empty internally.

And that is the world we live in.

People are desperately trying to improve themselves - Optimise themselves.

Fix themselves.

More discipline.

Better habits.

More productivity.

Less stress.

Better image.

Better brand.

And hear me:

None of those things are bad.

But moral cleanup without surrender will never heal the soul.

Because the issue is deeper than habits. The issue is the heart.

You can remove unhealthy behavior and still be spiritually empty.

You can look successful and still be lost.

You can look put together and still be falling apart inside.

Jesus did not come to make you slightly improved.

He came to make you new.

That’s why Christianity is not primarily self-help. It’s surrender.

Rearranging the room while the foundation cracks

It’s like rearranging furniture in a house with a cracked foundation.

You can repaint the walls. Buy nicer furniture. Organize the garage. Light candles. Put down new flooring.

Everything may look better temporarily.

But if the foundation underneath is collapsing, eventually the cracks will show again.

That’s part of what Jesus is exposing in Matthew 12.

The religious leaders were obsessed with managing appearances while ignoring the condition underneath.

And Jesus keeps saying: “You’re treating symptoms while the heart is dying.”

Jesus is greater than biological family, background, or labels

Then the chapter closes in a surprising way.

Jesus is told His mother and brothers are outside asking for Him.

And Jesus says:

“Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother!” (Matthew 12:50, NLT)

This would have shocked people.

Because family identity meant everything… its part of what set them apart.

But Jesus is saying something revolutionary:

Your deepest identity is not found in:

your past

your upbringing

your family history

your failures

your labels

Your deepest identity is found in whether or not you belong to Him.

And this is good news.

Because some people come from amazing families. Others come from painful stories.

Some people had parents who modeled Jesus beautifully. Others carry deep wounds.

And Jesus says: “There is a new family available.”

A spiritual family.

Built not on perfection… but in seeking Him and walking together in Him.

Conclusion: What do you do with Jesus?

So here’s the real tension of Matthew 12.

Jesus keeps showing people who He is.

And people keep responding in completely different ways.

Some are amazed. Some are offended. Some grow harder. Some surrender.

And honestly, those are still the responses today.

Because Jesus refuses to stay manageable.

He’s greater than religion. Greater than brokenness. Greater than self-help. Greater than appearances and preferences Greater than the categories we try to force Him into.

And the question is:

What will you do with Him?

Will you keep trying to manage symptoms of brokenness that come with sin and rebellion?

Will you keep polishing the outside while ignoring the inside?

Will you keep trying to control Jesus instead of surrendering to Him?

Or will you finally trust Him with the deeper issue?

Because Jesus isn’t calling you toward cosmetic improvement, but real transformation.

Not just cleaned-up behavior… but a surrendered heart.

And the wonderful news of the Gospel is this:

The same Jesus who confronted hypocrisy… also welcomed broken people.

The same Jesus who challenged religious pride… also healed wounded hearts.

The same Jesus who exposed darkness… also offered forgiveness and new life.

So maybe today, instead of hiding the broken places… You hold them out to Jesus.

And instead of asking Him to fit into your life…you surrender your life to Him.

A big part of surrendering our lives to Jesus is found in Baptism: It is a public response to our desire to surrender to and follow Jesus. It’s saying Jesus, I choose you… I want to make you the Lord of my life. I want the fullness and freedom that is found in you… to learn from you… to be yoked with you… I want you to be the centre of my life… my marriage, my singleness, my parenting, my coming and going…

Baptism is a huge and important step you cannot skip.

As soon as I’m done… while church is still happening… I will be back by the prayer banner… and if baptism is something you’re interested in…even if it's just to learn more about it… will you come talk to me?

Or… you can scan this now… and I will get back to you this week. I’d really encourage you to respond now.

Because Jesus is greater.

And He’s still transforming lives today.

Church, there is good news you need to hear with new ears…

Jesus is greater… and I hope your heart leaps at that news.

He is greater than all of that - the sin, the doubt, the past, the pain, disappointment, hurt, the lies… and I understand it doesn’t always feel that way… but it's also good to acknowledge one assumption we likely all have is… we have made Him too small in our eyes.

IT’s by a mile the best news you’ll hear today.

There is hope

There is a fullness

And there is a freedom

That is found in being yoked with Jesus and in that alone.

And Jesus said… Come… Come to me.

All who are weary… burdened… and broken - Come to me.

Will you? Lay down your expectations… and all the baggage they’ve created.

Knowing Jesus is greater… and come to Him. No matter where you are with Him… here and now… will you come to Him or come to Him again.