No. 04. PART B: "He Also Knows About The Trials"
Matthew’s Memories of Jesus - No. 04. PART B: "He Also Knows About The Trials"
Matthew 10:24-39
June 22, 2008
INTRODUCTION
I have a book by F. F. Bruce called The Hard Sayings of Jesus. On seeing that title on the shelves of a Christian Book Store , one man is said to have commented, “I wasn’t aware there were any easy ones.” True enough. Nevertheless, most preachers and those who sit through sermons, recognize that some of Jesus’ sayings are frankly much harder than others. And at the end of today’s already challenging verses we have Matthew 10:37 which truly is one of the hardest sayings. "Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me…” Here is a statement to widen the eyes. What can it possibly mean?[1]
These verses in Matthew 10:24-39 are part of Jesus' instructions to his disciples prior to their first mission. He has been telling them about all the dangers and hardships they may have to endure. He sums that up by saying (in effect), "What do you expect? A disciple is not greater than his teacher. If the world gives me a bad time, it will give you one too" (Matthew 10:24-25).Now I hope that, as we meet here only a week after having celebrated Father’s Day, that you will again wonder about these verses. They are very intimidating. Clearly this passage cries out for interpretation.
Jesus’ Solution
What does Jesus do as he shares this threatening advice?? Sell them life insurance? Give them bullet-proof vests? Teach them how to diffuse conflict? Hardly. Instead he comes out very aggressively and says, "Don't ever be afraid of your enemies and critics. Even though it's not obvious now, the truth will come out finally. So, speak up; shout it out; stand and deliver" (10:26-27). Oh, my. We don't want to be heroes, do we; especially not religious ones? It's all we can do to get to church on Sundays. Now we're supposed to be shouting the word of God from the housetops? And we have to love him so much it seems like in contrast that we hate everyone else? No way. We're afraid. That would be too radical, wouldn’t it? After all, we are Canadians (and Baptists).
One commentator writes: While our study may take a little of the bite out of these words, in what follows we should not lose sight of the radical nature of Matthew 9 & 10. In the end, a stubbornly hard kernel of truth remains. Those who wispily bite into the gospel thinking it is so much sugar and meringue will crack a tooth on this particular gospel kernel.[2]
Sold Out For Jesus
So what might be the repercussions today of being “sold-out” for Jesus? What kind of Opposition do you face?
-Personally?
-Financially?
-Popularity/Socially?
-Does it lead to a lack of political power?
-Does it lead to division within your family?
And when we say “opposition” we are not just talking about the “angry old man” syndrome here either. Have you heard that phrase? There is a tendency for certain of us, when we get to a particular age in life, to see everything around us as a threat. And furthermore, we often interpret it as a threat to our faith. At least that’s how we describe it. But on closer scrutiny, it may just be a threat to our personal “comfort zone.” But if we truly do try to courageously live our lives for Jesus, the opposition mentioned above can be very real.
Big Problems in Jesus’ day
1. Divided Families (10:21–22) Jesus promises opposition so severe that it will divide even families. The hatred of all will extend even to those in closest relation to us.
But what could such harsh words mean? There is an important Old Testament background to the word “hate.” In many passages the word is invoked to convey a lesser form of love. Some of the patriarchs were said to “love” one of their wives but “hated” all the others. Similarly God was once described as loving Jacob but “hating” Esau. These verses utilize hate not as some wild-eyed, loathing fury but as a lesser, secondary attachment. So Matthew may be using this meaning when he writes: “Whoever loves his family more than they love me cannot be my disciple” (Matt. 10:37).[3]
In Jesus day, the culture was dominated by honor and shame, in which the opinion of family members was paramount, so such a threat demanded an incomparably high allegiance to Christ (Mt 10:37–39). Nevertheless, the gospel is offensive to those who reject its demands or whose culture or tradition it challenges.
2. Opposition from Unconverted Family Members (10:34–37) Although Jesus highly values families (Matthew 5:27–32; 15:4–6; 19:4–9), his mission also brings division (compare Matthew 10:21; 1 Cor 7:16). Jesus’ example demonstrates how this division is accomplished: although we are actually “harmless” (Mt 10:16; 12:19–20), as God’s agents we are to bravely proclaim the truth of his kingdom and thus face hostility from others (Matthew 13:57). Jesus’ mission separates us from the values of our society, and so our society responds with persecution. Jesus selects these specific examples of in-laws (mother-in-law and daughter-in-law) because young couples generally lived with the man’s family.
Yet don’t forget that throughout his ministry Jesus frequently upheld the marriage relationship… while also chiding those who showed a lack of respect for parents. Perhaps this is why the balance of the New Testament urges believers to have good family relationships. In 1 Timothy 5:8 Paul goes so far as to suggest that a man who fails to provide for family members has “denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever”[4] Furthermore, since Jesus said the hallmark of discipleship is loving everyone, including even enemies and persecutors, it can hardly be the case that Jesus would literally call disciples to hate those closest to them. But at the end of the day, Jesus is to matter more than the approval or even the friendship of our family (Matthew 10:37).
3. Love Jesus More Than Life (10:38–39) We must love Jesus not only more than our families but more than our own lives. Today most of us still cling desperately to our physical lives (compare Eph 5:29). But the moment we become Christ’s followers, our own lives and wills become forfeit; the Bible says we symbolically “die” with Jesus (that is, we give up right to make selfish choices; Rom 6:3–4) and choose a path that could lead any day to our execution for Jesus’ name (Mt 16:24). But this notion of cross bearing is one of the most commonly misapplied of all Jesus’ sayings. Unfortunately today we often speak glibly of “our cross” as the need to put up with a cranky “Aunt Molly” or a leaky roof, or our latest health concern, or a troublesome family member, or our less-than-fulfilling job and then say, “Well, I guess that’s my cross to bear in life.” Unhappily, such a sentiment washes out the meaning of Jesus’ image because then the cross becomes something that miserably happens to a person instead of being a lifestyle which is consciously chosen by a person. Jesus surely intends the latter—the cross we bear is the way we choose to look at all of life. “Taking up the cross” in Jesus’ day meant being forced to bear the instrument of one’s execution past a jeering mob to the site of one’s imminent death as a condemned criminal. [5]
No Fear
But what about today? Often we do worry way too much about what other people will say or think of us. And we worry far too little about what God thinks of us...we know this is true. We've heard it before.
So what's the solution? More advice? More instruction? That's what we would expect. But Jesus is not only a teacher. He is also the revelation of God, though he doesn't stop being a good teacher when he opens a window into God. If I can borrow the words of a recent advertising campaign, Jesus says in effect, “No Fear.” "Stop being afraid" (that's the force of the verb); "stop being afraid" – stop not just one time but for always. "Stop; Stop being afraid of people who can kill the body but not the soul." He asks, "Aren't sparrows the most common and cheapest bird around? Yet not one of them dies apart from God your Father" (10:29). Wow. "And what about you?" Jesus asks. "God even knows every hair on your head. So stop being afraid. You are of much more value than any sparrow" (10:30-31). Isn't that amazing? God knows everything that we go through and nothing that happens to us escapes him. Even if we die, it doesn't happen apart from God. Even if we seem totally abandoned, even if our prayers don't seem to be answered, even if everything seems hopeless, God knows and God cares. If that's the case, we can stop being afraid.
We know from history that this is not an unnatural fear.
The church went through ten tragic waves of persecution under ten Roman emperors. During this time, perhaps as many as 175 million Christians were killed. Until the rule of Constantine, Christians were systematically scourged, beaten, and burned. Caesar Nero had believers dipped in hot wax so he could ignite them and use them as torches in his palace gardens.[6]
The point is, yes, people can hurt us, but in reality it is only temporarily because life comes from God. Even if they kill us, God the author of life will raise us. "Don't fear people; fear God" (the one who can kill both body and soul) (10:28).[7]
But not being afraid isn't something that we can accomplish on our own. As long as we think it is, we will still be afraid; of other people, of death, of circumstances (real or imagined). But as Jesus reveals it, we can stop being afraid because of a promise -- a promise that God who watches over even the commonest of birds will take care of us.[8] In light of this, are we really still able to claim, that if we find ourselves in the midst of persecution, that it is a sign that God has abandoned us?
He Will Never Let Go – Dr. Zhivago
What is our vision of God? Does it have room for a relationship with a God who truly cares, no matter what we may be facing? In the novel Dr. Zhivago, the Comrade General is talking with Tanya. He asks her, "How did you come to be lost?" She replies, "Well, I was just lost." He asks again, "No, how did you come to be lost?" Tanya doesn't want to say. She says simply, "I was just lost. My father and I were running through the city and it was on fire. The revolution had come and we were trying to escape and I was lost."
The Comrade General asked more emphatically, "How did you come to be lost?" She still didn't want to say. Finally though, she was able to say, "We were running through the city and my father let go of my hand and I was lost." Then she added plaintively, "He let go." This is what she didn't want to say.
The Comrade General said, "This is what I've been trying to tell you, Tanya. Komarov was not your real father. Zhivago is your real father and I can promise you, Tanya, that if this man had been there, your real father, he would never have let go of your hand."
But that is the difference between a real father and a false father, is it not? A real father would never let go of his daughter's hand. That is also the difference between a real god and a false one.[9]
The inference from these verses is that, yes, in very extreme circumstances, even when these types of events happen, your true Heavenly Father, the God who loves you, will always be there for you; He will NOT let go!
CONCLUSIONS
This is the kind of attitude and lifestyle that will ultimately bear fruit. Jesus said that “They will KNOW you are Christians by your love.” We are responsible for those who become cynical to the whole of the Message of Jesus because of the (supposed) failings of his followers. So how do we prevent others from becoming cynical? We can try to take the things regarding our faith more seriously.
-We can Re-dedicate our lives to the mission of Jesus.
-We can Pay more attention to his requests and his commands.
But in this chapter, Jesus gave His disciples instructions for winning the world around them. In the midst of opposition he wants us to be personal magnets, attracting others to Himself. When we trust in and try to follow Jesus, we attempt to let His Spirit radiate through us. That “cross-shaped” life is still the power that will draw all people to Him. How are you doing with that assignment?
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[1] Scott Hoezee , in Roger Van Harn, The Lectionary Commentary : Theological Exegesis for Sunday's Texts (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2001), 403.
[2] Scott Hoezee , in Roger Van Harn, The Lectionary Commentary : Theological Exegesis for Sunday's Texts (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2001), 403.
[3] Scott Hoezee , in Roger Van Harn, The Lectionary Commentary : Theological Exegesis for Sunday's Texts (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2001), 403.
[4] F. F. Bruce, The Hard Sayings of Jesus [Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity, 1983], pp. 119–21.
[5]Scott Hoezee , in Roger Van Harn, The Lectionary Commentary : Theological Exegesis for Sunday's Texts (Grand Rapids , Mich.: Eerdmans, 2001), 403.
[6] Jon Courson, Jon Courson's Application Commentary (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2003), 75.
[7] Marc Kolden Stop Being Afraid
[8] Marc Kolden Stop Being Afraid
[9] King Duncan, Where Are The Laborers?, www.Sermons.com