Sermon Tone Analysis

Jesus, the Great King

The central personality of the Old Testament is the coming Great King.

He is told to be righteous, wise, all-powerful, the sovereign authority and ruler over the entire earth.

He would have the authority and power to bruise Satan’s head and take back man’s dominion lost through sin.

His scepter, according to , “shall not depart from Judah.”

He would exercise a reign that would be everlasting, eternal, and forever — This could never apply to a mere human king.

Only One could fulfill the Lord’s prophecy Nathan spoke to King David:

David’s kingdom was succeeded by David’s son, Solomon, upon whom’s death, the kingdom was shattered and divided — and yet had never been reestablished.

Yet in , God tells us of the One who was to establish this eternal kingdom.

The Old Testament prophets speak of this Great King as both human and divine.

Isaiah prophesied He would be born of a virgin in 7:14 and chapter 53, that He would be despised and rejected by men, oppressed and afflicted — the Lord would crush Him.

Through Micah the Lord promised Bethlehem — “One will come from you to be ruler over Israel for Me.

His origin is from antiquity, from eternity.”

Danie

Zephaniah prophesied — “The King of Israel, the Lord, is among you.”

And Zechariah tells us that when this Great King reigns that every family on earth will be able to “go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of Hosts...”

And though as Peter indicated, none of the ancient writers comprehended the full nature of the One of whom they prophesied — This would be the Great King — the God Man.

1 Peter

His full nature and identity are presented and explained in the Gospels.

We know his authorship because his name is attached to all early copies of the manuscripts and the early church Fathers unanimously attest to him as the author.

I admire the way Matthew wrote his Gospel account.

He was particularly modest referring to himself in the 3rd person and nowhere speaking of himself as the author.

This is partly due to who he was, a tax collector of the Roman Empire.

Though a Jew, he was seen as a traitor to his people ranking with the lowest of human society — sinners, prostitutes, and Gentiles.

Matthew, also called Levi, was a tax collect when Jesus called him to be one of the twelve disciples.

I think the greater reason for the way Matthew wrote his Gospel account was to shine a divine spotlight that focused solely on Jesus Christ.

And through one event after another, show this Jesus to fulfill all the requirement of the prophesies in the Old Testament.

He is the promised Great King.

And Matthew, the first, shines a divine spotlight that focuses on Jesus Christ.

And through one event after another, show this Jesus to fulfill all the requirement of the prophesies in the Old Testament.

He is the promised Great King.

The message of the Gospel according to Matthew centers on Jesus’ Kingship.

Virtually every paragraph of Matthew points to something of His Kingship.

Obviously from the text, Matthew wrote his gospel prior to the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in A.D. 70.

Matthew presents Jesus Christ as the King Revealed, the King Rejected, and the King Who Will Return.

I.

The King Revealed

As we saw last week, Matthew began his gospel with the genealogy of the Lord.

Jesus is painted in royal colors in this gospel as in none other.

First we see it in the Genealogy of the King.

He is the Son of David — the King of Israel, who was promised that his throne would be an eternal kingdom.

There is no way this could be fulfilled through Solomon or any other human in his lineage.

Only the One who is eternally God — Jesus Christ.

2 Samuel

His birth is dread by the jealous earthly king Herod.

So, the response of Herod is exactly the opposite of the Magi.

They rejoiced and sought to worship Him.

Herod was intensely jealous and paranoid at the mere mention of another king of the Jews — so much so, that he later ordered the murder of every male child in and around Bethlehem who were two years and under.

And this fulfilled the prophesy of Jeremiah.

John the Baptist, the herald of the Messiah, Jesus Christ, announced His kingdom.

Matthew 3:

In , we read of the temptation of Jesus by Satan who offers Jesus the Kingdoms of the world.

Matthew 4:

His Divine credentials are confirmed through His preaching, teaching, and the power of miracles He performed at the end of chapter 4.

His Sermon on the Mount is the manifesto of the King.

The beatitudes begin and end with the statement: “because the kingdom of heaven is theirs.”

“because the kingdom of heaven is theirs.”

The sermon ends with citizenship into His kingdom comes through a narrow way.

He identifies Himself with the king’s son in a parable and makes His royal entry into Jerusalem.

Facing the cross He predicts His future reign.

He stands before an earthly ruler and declares the otherworldliness of His kingdom: “My kingdom is not of this world.”

He claimed dominion over the angels in heaven.

His last words are a declaration of authority in Heaven and earth.

Jesus Christ is uniquely the Great King and Matthew revealed Him as such.

II.

The King Rejected

Though revealed as the Great King, Matthew also focused uniquely on the rejection of His Kingship.

No other gospel reveals the vile and bitter attacks like Matthew’s.

Before Jesus was born, His mother, Mary was in danger of being rejected by Joseph.

Matthew

But the Lord sent an angel:

Soon after He was born, Herod threatened His life.

His parent, warned and commanded by God in a dream, fled to Egypt.

This also was a fulfilment of prophesy.

Matthew

His herald, John the Baptist, was put in jail and eventually beheaded.

All during His earthly ministry He had no place to lay His head, no place to call home.

There is friend, no loved one, at the foot of the cross — only mockers and scorners.

is where it’s recorded that Jesus cries from the cross.

Only a Gentile centurion speaks a favorable word.

When the guards report His tomb is empty, the Jewish authorities paid them to lie and say His disciples stole His body. .

Though revealed to be the Great King, the shadow of rejection is never lifted from Matthew’s story.

Yet the story of this Great King doesn’t end in rejection — but in triumph because He is the King Who Will Return.

III.

The King Who Will Return

This Great King will ultimately return to judge and to rule.

And all the earth will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

and 25, often referred to as the Olivet Discourse, is Jesus’ prophecy concerning first the destruction of Jerusalem and second His second coming.

This portion of scripture has become one of the most controversial chapters in all of Scripture.

Some have even predicted the exact date of Jesus’ return and the end of the world, even though He poignantly stated that no one knows the day or the hour.

Though solid, Bible-believing Christians and scholars debate the various details of this discourse, and whether it supports the premillennial, post millennial, or amillennial view of end times or whether there is a pre, post, or mid-tribulation rapture — or any rapture at all.

Amid all the minor questions that arise from and 25, regardless of the details about when or how or where these things will happen, arises the overwhelming reality and truth —

Regardless of the details about when or how or where these things will happen

Are you ready for the

Jesus Christ is the Great King, not only revealed and rejected — but He as King has all the authority and power as King who sovereignly controls the future.

Approximately 40 years after Jesus spoke these words, around A.D. 70, Roman armies began surrounding the city of Jerusalem to overtake it.

When they did take the city, the Roman army destroyed the temple and made sacrifice to false gods, declaring Titus, the Roman emperor, to be supreme.

However, the second reality of this discourse is yet to take place.

For the Lord of history who spoke with sovereign authority about the destruction of Jerusalem, not only knows the future — He ordains it.

He also spoke of His return one day and that too will happen.