Matthew 13:47-53

This Closes Out a 3 Chapter Section of Matthew

Chapters 11-13 are All One Related Section

Chapters 11 & 12 Were All About Jesus Being Rejected By His Generation

They Rejected Him Because He Didn’t Meet Their Expectations of Who the Messiah Would Be

Chapter 13 is Jesus’ Response to Their Rejection - Teaching in Parables

These Parables Would Reveal Secrets About the Messiah and His Reign

Secrets that Weren’t Revealed in the OT Scriptures

Secrets that Perfectly Explain Why Jesus Didn’t Meet the Expectations of the People

This Also Closes Out Matthew’s 3rd Major Teaching Discourse of Jesus

What We’ve Learned So Far in this Discourse is:

The Reason Jesus Began Teaching in Parables was to…

Reveal and Conceal Secrets (Things People Didn’t Previously Know) About the Kingdom

Secrets of What it Will Be Like When God Reigns Through His Messiah

Reveal Secrets to Those With Open Ears and Open Hearts

Conceal Secrets From Those With Closed Ears and Closed Hearts

The Parable of the Sower Revealed Why So Many Reject the Messiah

Hardheartedness

Self-Preservation

Self-Gratification

The Parable of the Tares Revealed How the Messiah Will Punish the Wicked and Establish Justice When He Returns at the End of the Age

The Parables of the Mustard Seed and Leaven Revealed How Such a Small and Insignificant Kingdom Could Fill and Change the World

The Parables of the Hidden Treasure & Pearl of Great Value Revealed the Amazing Value of the Kingdom

You Must Make Sacrifices to Inherit the Kingdom, But it’s Worth Every One

Now We are Going to Close Out this Discourse with 2 Final Parables

The First of Which is: The Parable of the Dragnet

This Parable’s Revelation is the Same as the Parable of the Tares

God is Going to Rescue the Righteous and Punish the Wicked at the End of the Age

Until the End of the Age, the Righteous Must Coexist with the Wicked

Matthew 13:47–48 (NASB95)

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet cast into the sea, and gathering fish of every kind; and when it was filled, they drew it up on the beach; and they sat down and gathered the good fish into containers, but the bad they threw away.

A Dragnet is a Large Net with Floats on the Top and Weights on the Bottom

When You Pull it into Shore it Traps Everything Inside it

Once You’ve Completely Dragged the Net Ashore…

Then You Start Sorting Out the Fish

You Collect the Fish that are Good for Eating in a Container

But the Fish that Aren’t Good for Eating are Thrown Away

As Jesus Will Immediately Explain to His Apostles:

This Parable Reveals the Same Secret of the Kingdom as the Parable of the Tares

Matthew 13:49–50 (NASB95)

“So it will be at the end of the age; the angels will come forth and take out the wicked from among the righteous, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

When Jesus Returns, He’s Coming with His Mighty Angels

As the Fisherman Gather “Every Kind” of Fish…

The Angels are Going to Gather “Every Kind” of Person Out of the World

“Kind” = the Word for “Race”, “Family”, “Descendant”, “Nation”

All People are Going to Be Gathered Together By the Angels

Then They Will Begin the Separation of the Wicked From the Righteous

Just Like the Good Fish, the Righteous are Useful to Jesus

They are Kept for Further Service and Safe-Keeping

But Like the Bad Fish, the Wicked are Useless to Jesus

They are Good for Nothing But Throwing Away

Specifically They Will Be Thrown into Something He Calls a Furnace of Fire

A Place Where People Cry and Grit Their Teeth

Whatever this Place is, Jesus Describes it as a Burning Furnace of Sadness and Pain

This is a Place that Absolutely No One Would Ever Want to Experience

But that is Exactly the Fate of Those Who Reject Jesus

Matthew 13:51 (NASB95)

“Have you understood all these things?” They said to Him, “Yes.”

Remember that Since Verse 36 Jesus has Been Alone in the House with His Disciples

While with His Disciples, He Explained the Parable of the Tares to Them

Then He Told Them the Parables of the Hidden Treasure and the Pearl of Great Value

Then, as We Just Read, He Told Them the Parable of the Dragnet…

Which Reveals the Same Truth as that of the Tares, Which He Just Explained to Them

So Now Jesus Asks His Disciples, “Have You Understood All These Things?”

He’s Referring to His Parables of the Kingdom

They Answer “Yes”

Since They Answer “Yes”…

Jesus Has One More Parable for Them

But this Parable Isn’t About the Nature of the Kingdom/Reign of the Messiah

This Parable is About the Disciples Themselves

Matthew 13:52 (NASB95)

And Jesus said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a head of a household, who brings out of his treasure things new and old.”

Jesus’ Next Word was, “Therefore”

What He’s About to Say Relates to What was Just Said

Because the Disciples Claimed to Understand His Parables…

And the Secrets of the Kingdom They Revealed…

He Tells Them, “Every Scribe Who Has Become a Disciple of the Kingdom of Heaven is Like…”

A Scribe is an Expert and Teacher of the OT Scriptures

“Become a Disciple” Literally Means “To Be Trained/Instructed”

Every Expert/Teacher of the OT Whose Been Trained for the Kingdom of Heaven…

Is Like a Homeowner Who Brings Out of His Treasury New and Old Things

The New and Old Things in the Homeowner’s Treasury…

Are the New and Old Revelations of the Kingdom

Revelations of the Kingdom in the OT Scriptures

And Secrets of the Kingdom Jesus Revealed

A Person Who is Familiar with the OT Scriptures…

And has Been Instructed in the New Revelations of the Kingdom

Will Bring Out the New and Old Truths of the Kingdom

They Will Share These Truths of the Kingdom with Others

Those With Understanding Have the Responsibility to Teach Others

Remember, This 3 Chapter Section (11-13) has Been Entirely Focused On Rejection

The Jewish People Rejected Jesus Because He Didn’t Meet Their Expectations

Where Did They Get Their Expectations for What the Messiah Would Be Like?

From the OT Scriptures

What was the Purpose of Jesus’ Parables?

To Reveal New Information About the Messiah and His Reign

Those Who Rejected Jesus Were Only Relying On the Old Treasures

But Jesus’ Disciples are to Be People Who Rely On Both Old and New

The Old Revelations of the OT Scriptures…

And the New Revelations of Jesus

As Disciples of Jesus, We Should Rely On Both the OT & NT

Both Tell Us About the Reign of Jesus

Both Tell Us About Our Future Hope

Both are Needed to Have the Complete Story of God’s Restoration of All Things

But One Without the Other is Incomplete

We Must Be Students of Both the Old and New

The Message of the Kingdom is Our Treasure

We Gain that Treasure From the OT and From Jesus

And, Like the Homeowner, We Must Share Our Treasure with Others

Matthew 13:53 (NASB95)

When Jesus had finished these parables, He departed from there.

“When Jesus had Finished” is Matthew’s Way of Telling Us:

The Teaching Discourse of Jesus is Over

Application

For the Application, I Want to Ask You the Same Question Jesus Asked His Disciples:

Have You Understood All These Things?

Do You Understand the Parables of the Kingdom?

Do You Understand that:

You Need Ears and Eyes that are Willing to Hear and See the Truth of the Gospel…

In Order to Inherit the Kingdom of Heaven?

Jesus is Going to Establish Justice When He Returns?

God has Made and is Making the Small and Insignificant Kingdom to Fill and Change the World?

The Kingdom of Jesus is Worthy of Every Sacrifice and Total Surrender?

Not Only Do You Understand These Things…

Are You Willing to Live as if You Believe These Things?

Do You Believe that Jesus is King and Has Authority Over Your Life?

Are You Willing to Devote Yourself Entirely to Him and Not Be Driven Away By Hardships or Lured Away By Pleasures?

Are You Willing to Endure this Evil Age and Hold Onto the Hope of God’s Coming Justice?

Are you Willing to Stand Faithfully By Jesus’ Side…

Even if the Entire World Stands Against You?

Are You Willing to Teach Others These Truths?

As Disciples of Jesus’ Kingdom, We Have a Very Important Mission

We are His Representatives, His Ambassadors, His Messengers

It is Our Duty to Tell the World About the King and the Reign He is Bringing to the World

In Order to Faithfully Fulfill that Mission…

We Must Be Like a Scribe Whose Been Trained/Instructed in the Kingdom

We Must Treasure the Truths of the Gospel of the Kingdom

We Must Hold These Truths in Our Hearts…

And Be Willing to Share Them with Others

King Jesus is Coming Again

And He is Going to Return with His Mighty Angels

Those Who Have Rejected Him and Have Lived Unfaithfully to Him…

Will Be Thrown into the Furnace of Fire

But Those Who Accept Him and Live Faithfully to Him…

Will Be Resurrected and Given Immortal Bodies to Reign with Him Forever