Three Reactions

Matthew 26:1-16

Good morning, church!

It is a great Sunday morning here at CCMP! Thank you worship team for leading us in worship!

This morning, we are going to be in Matthew 26, if you want to go ahead and turn there in your Bibles.

This Sunday marks a year of going through the book of Matthew together! I hope you have found it as rich and satisfying as I have.

We have covered so many topics.

What we are seeing in this year anniversary is a transition in Jesus’ ministry.

We are seeing the end of Jesus’ outward public ministry.

He will no longer be teaching, traveling, or healing publically. His public ministry is completed. He has a few more things to teach His disciples and close friends, but for the past 3 years, Jesus has been on a mission to proclaim the Gospel of the Kingdom of Heaven.

John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus’ ministry by teaching repentance and saying, Matthew 3:11 ““I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.”

Jesus makes His first public statement by proclaiming, Matthew 4:17 ““Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.””

He taught about a Kingdom that brings blessings on those who are poor in spirit, for those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for those who are pure in heart and peacemakers.

He taught repeatedly that the heart matters more than the outward actions of a person in the Kingdom.

He taught us how to pray, “Our Father in heaven, hallowed by your name…”

He preached that we have nothing to be anxious about in this life if we “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness…”

For the past three years, Jesus healed sickness, paralysis, blindness and muteness in jews, samaritans, Roman centurion’s daughters and servants.

He cast singular demons and legions of demons out of children and adults.

He called twelve men to be His closest disciples. He taught them, empowered them to cast out demons and heal the sick. He sent them out and celebrated in the Spirit with them.

He walked on water and calmed winds, waves and storms.

He said that “whoever does not take up their cross daily and follow me is not worthy of me…”

and “Come to me all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”

He taught in parable for those who had eyes to see, ears to hear and hearts that could understand.

He confronted lawyers and scribe, Pharisees and Sadducees with how they had twisted the law and the prophets to satisfy their own pride, selfishness and self-righteousness.

He mourned the loss of His cousin and close friend, Lazarus.

He revealed His glory to Peter, James and John on a mountain top.

He taught about forgiveness, grace, love, sacrifice, worship and true discipleship.

He cleanse the temple and declared it to be a house of prayer.

He prophecied that He time was about to end and that He was going to be betrayed, arrest, crucified but yet, He would return, not just three days later, but again in the future.

He warned us to be ready and get prepared for His return to take His bride, the church, to the wedding feast.

For three years, Jesus had proclaimed all that the Father had told to say, done all that the Father told Him to do.

Jesus said, early in His ministry.

Luke 4:43 ESV

but he said to them, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well; for I was sent for this purpose.”

And at the end of His ministry, John records a prayer that Jesus prayed around this time of the passover. Jesus prayed,

John 17:4–8 ESV

I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed. “I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you. For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me.

Jesus sees that His earthly, outward Kingdom ministry is closing but His work is not complete yet.

For His main mission, His primary work was yet to be completed.

His life and ministry was always looking towards and moving towards the cross.

Back in Matthew 20, Jesus said that the things that were about to happen, had to happen.

Matthew 20:17–19 ESV

And as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside, and on the way he said to them, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day.”

John 12:32 ESV

And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.”

See, in our study of Jesus’ life through the gospel of Matthew, this is a transition point from the life and ministry of Jesus to the place to where Jesus fulfills His true and ultimate task that He was sent to this earth to fulfill.

Since, before the foundations of the earth, Jesus was heading to the cross to offer His blood to atone for the sins of humans created in His image!

These final chapters of Matthew are the heaviest and most important days of Jesus’ earthly mission.

So many prophecied are fulfilled in these chapters. The center point of all of human history happens here.

We ought to not just see these chapters as the final days of Jesus’ life but as the most important days of all human history!

There is gravity and weight here that we can not breeze through.

I hope and pray that over the coming weeks that our hearts are prepared to see all that the Lord has for us to hold on to through these chapters.

In our passage this morning, Matthew 26, what we see is

three different reactions to the end of Jesus’ outward, public ministry.

At the end of His outward ministry, there are three different reactions that we are going to see.

(Pray)

Matthew 26:1–16 ESV

When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples, “You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.” Then the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, and plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him. But they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people.” Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, a woman came up to him with an alabaster flask of very expensive ointment, and she poured it on his head as he reclined at table. And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste? For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.” But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me. For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me. In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial. Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.” Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him.

So, like I said, we see three different responses to Jesus’ ministry and all three are pretty hard set. They have made up their minds about Jesus and all that He revealed and taught. And now, all three of them are going to respond by taking action.

I think you are going to see that these three types of reactions are the same types of reactions that people still have today to the life and ministry of Jesus.

1. The religious elite

First, the the chief priest, the elders, the scribes and pharisees.

These had always been set against Jesus. They followed Him around to nick pick Him apart. They looked for Him to slip up, to make a mistake and when they thought He did, they would pounce!

These men were hard set against Jesus from the beginning and nothing that Jesus said or did made a dent in the hardness of their hearts.

So, here at the end of Jesus’ public ministry,

their hearts were set on destruction.

They were done trying to take Him down in shame. They had murder on their hearts.

See, Jesus directly confronted their power, control and influence. They worshiped themselves, their knowledge and their wealth.

Self-righteousness was one of the chief sins that hardened their hearts. They thought that they could write scripture and that it was more important that what God wrote with His own finger on Mt Sinai.

They thought they knew better than God.

People like this are all over the world today.

They believe that their morality is better than God’s.

They believe that God is wrong and has no power over them.

They believe that they can be righteous on their own because THEY get to decide what is right and wrong. That truth and morality are subjective to each person’s own thoughts and feelings.

These people have hearts that are set completely against Christ and His followers.

They have violent reactions to the truth. Hatred flows from their hearts and through their mouths against Christ and all that He taught.

Today, they deny all forms of organized religion while creating their own religion, in their image, and they think that it is elite to Christianity.

Therefore, the religious elite reaction to Jesus is still prevalent today.

2. The Selfish Follower

The second reaction is the Judas reaction.

John’s account of Jesus being anointed includes some extra details.

John says that they were at Lazarus’ house and Mary and Martha was there.

Martha was busy serving, but John states that Mary is the woman who poured the oil on Jesus.

John also reveals that it was Judas who was the most outspoken against Mary’s action.

John says, John 12:4-6

John 12:4–6 ESV

But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it.

Jesus rebukes Judas, but in the very next verses we see,

Matthew 26:14–16 ESV

Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him.

Here we see the reaction of the selfish follower.

A man who was chosen by Jesus to be His disciple. A man empowered by Jesus to heal people and cast out demons.

A man that saw all that Jesus did, witnessed all of the miracles and listened to all of the teachings of Jesus.

A man hellbent to take care of himself and his selfishness first.

A man that was only following Jesus for what HE got out of it.

A man that thought more of himself, his comfort, his wants and desires more than anything else!

He saw the massive sacrifice of Mary and his greed overtook him. His need for more money and more stuff overwhelmed him.

It drove him to betray Jesus to those who sought to kill Jesus. The Religious Elite.

He did so for 30 pieces of silver. The cost to purchase one slave in the Roman Empire.

Judas rejected Jesus’ teaching in his heart because he could not let go of his greed and selfishness.

This type of reaction still happens today. Over the teaching of Matthew, we have read some really difficult passages about what Jesus says a disciple of His does.

Jesus calls His disciples to be willing to down your nets or leave your booth to follow Him wherever He may lead.

Jesus said that true disciples of His do the will of the Father.

They love Him more than they love their mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, and children!

He said that His disciples die to themselves and take up their own crosses every day.

There is no room for selfishness or personal gain in following Jesus.

To make Him your Lord is exactly that, to bend your knee before Your King and hold nothing back from Him.

And certainly, like Judas, to follow Jesus, we can not be motivated my selfish gains. Following Jesus is not about what we get out of it.

If our motive for following Christ is primarily about ourselves, our success or our greed, when it doesn’t work out that way, then we will feel a pang of anger rise up.

Because Jesus is not seeking my will, or my success first.

Yeah… He won’t. Our God seeks His will and His glory first! Our job is to do the same FIRST!

Now, are we blessed in the process? Absolutely!

Are our needs met if we seek Him first? Without a doubt!

Are their heavenly riches and eternal blessing that we will receive by following Jesus? Absolutely!

But if these things are our primary reason for following Jesus, we will be disappointed.

Because Christianity is not about you, your glory or your wealth.

Christianity is about Jesus. Its about the revelation of His glory! Its about Jesus revealing who God is to the world!

And even His salvation offered through His Son Jesus Christ is not for you primarily, He saves us for His glory first.

Psalm 106:8 ESV

Yet he saved them for his name’s sake, that he might make known his mighty power.

Praise be the God!

The final reaction that we see is

3. Worship

Mary’s reaction to Jesus’ life and ministry was a willingness to sacrifice it all in worship of who Jesus is!

Mary, who chose the good portion by sitting at the feet of Jesus to listen to Him speak.

Mary, who fell at Jesus’ feet and wept when her brother Lazarus died.

Mary, whose tears brought Jesus to cry with her!

Mary, the person who possibly spent more time at Jesus’ feet than anyone else, recognized rightly who Jesus was and once again fell at the feet of Jesus.

She broke this jar of pure nard, that cost over a year’s salary to purchase. And she poured it over Jesus’ head and John says, His feet as well.

She bent down and with her hair, rubbed the oil on Jesus’ feet…

(Pause)

This act of sacrifice, humility, worship and adoration is so great that Jesus said that we would be talking about in our church today.

See,

Mary saw Jesus worthy of worship, adoration and sacrifice.

Mary once again, fell at the feet of Jesus without selfishness or pride, without trying to justify herself, without worrying about the cost.

She saw Jesus for who He really was and worshiped and adored Him.

What is your heart’s reaction to the revelation of Jesus in His Word?

See, Mary’s action meant more that just worship. She probably didn’t even understand that there were greater implications of her actions.

See,

she was preparing Jesus for His burial and offices.

I couldn’t find anywhere in Jewish tradition that someone is prepare with oil prior to death. Afterwards, yes. But not before.

So, why before and why was it significant.

Jesus’ death and resurrection put Jesus into three eternal offices. Three positions of power fulfilled in one God-man. Three positions that were previously held by men.

Three position that we often commissioned by being anointed with oil.

Jesus became the eternal Prophet.

1 Kings 19, God tells Elijah to go and anoint Elisha to be His successor as prophet.

Jesus was and will forever be the eternal Chief Prophet!

John 1:1–3 ESV

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.

Jesus is the literal Word of God! When He speaks, He speaks the words of God!

Mary anointed Jesus as the eternal Prophet!

Jesus also serves as the

Jesus became the Eternal Priest

Exodus 40:15 ESV

and anoint them, as you anointed their father, that they may serve me as priests. And their anointing shall admit them to a perpetual priesthood throughout their generations.”

All of the priest in the OT that served in the Temple were anointed with oil to signify their position as the one who makes the sacrifices for the sins of Israel

Mary anoints Jesus at the eternal Chief Priest!

Hebrews 2:17–18 ESV

Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

Hebrews 4:14–16 ESV

Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Thank God! That Jesus is our eternal Great High Priest!!

Lastly,

Jesus became the Eternal King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

God sent the prophet Samuel to anoint a new king for Israel. He went to the house of Jesse and called for the youngest son who smelt like sheep, named David

1 Samuel 16:13 ESV

Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward.

Mary anoints Jesus as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords prior to His death and resurrection!

And we know that Jesus is seated on the throne now, and all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Him!

See, Mary’s reaction to the life and ministry of Jesus is the correct response.

She spent years at the feet of Jesus, listening, weeping and just being with Him. And her heart of worship and adoration of who Jesus was lead her to pour out her most valuable possession in worship to Him.

And her worship anoints Jesus for His three main offices that He fulfills today.

That of our Chief Prophet, our Great High Priest, and our eternal King of kings and Lord of lords!

At the end of our study of Jesus’ earthly ministry through the gospel of Matthew, what is your heart’s reaction to the revelation of Jesus through His Word?

Let’s pray