CLICK TO LISTEN: 061 The Giver of Rest (Matthew 12 ,15-21)
The Giver of Rest
Matthew 12:15-21
August 14, 2011
In studying Matthew’s gospel we are in the middle of a section
That overwhelmingly illustrates the rejection that Jesus received
During His ministry on earth.
He went out in search of the lost sheep of the house of Israel,
Only to find that the lost sheep preferred to remain lost.
He found those lost sheep to be selfish and immature,
Like children who were unwilling to change.
But Jesus still offered them salvation.
Matthew 11:28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.”
Even though Israel was stubborn and selfish,
Jesus still offered them the rest that had so long eluded them
If only they would submit to Him.
He even demonstrated His rest in the text we saw last week
As He set a man free from his withered arm, even on the Sabbath.
But even then they still hated Him.
Matthew 12:14 “But the Pharisees went out and conspired against Him, as to how they might destroy Him.”
THEY HATED HIM BECAUSE HE WAS DIFFERENT
He wouldn’t dance when they played the flute
And He wouldn’t mourn when they sang a dirge.
He ate with sinners…
He fellowshipped with tax collectors…
And worst of all He exposed the hypocrisy of those in organized religion.
The Pharisees were those:
Matthew 23:4 “They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger.”
But Jesus was just the opposite.
They brought burdens and Jesus brought rest.
He was indeed completely opposite of them in every way.
In fact, the first thing we see is:
#1 PUBLICITY FORSAKEN
Matthew 12:15-16
We quickly recognize the omniscience of Jesus
As He once again reads the hearts and intentions of men.
The Pharisees wanted to destroy Jesus
And Matthew says that Jesus was “aware of this”
And because of this brewing hostility, Jesus “withdrew from there”.
He was not running from a fight, but we do understand
That fighting was not His main objective.
He was not about to continually cast His pearls before swine.
So Jesus left.
And as they commonly did, “the crowd followed Him”
And as is common with Jesus, “He healed them all,”
Then comes that same old peculiar statement.
(16) “and warned them not to tell who He was.”
We have seen that statement before.
After Jesus cleansed the leper in
Matthew 8:4 “And Jesus said to him, “See that you tell no one; but go, show yourself to the priest and present the offering that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”
After Jesus restored sight to the blind man in
Matthew 9:30 “And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them: “See that no one knows about this!”
And we said on those occasions that it had to do with
The crowd missing the point.
Their selfish desires for temporal gain
Often worked against His desire to minister spiritual healing.
But in this text Matthew seems to be hinting at another reason
Why Jesus didn’t want anyone to know.
And that reason is that Jesus wasn’t trying to become famous,
Or to overly publicize Himself.
Certainly He was the Messiah.
Certainly He is the Savior of the World.
But when Jesus walked the earth it wasn’t all about publicity and fame.
This by the way was also in stark contrast to the Pharisees.
Matthew 23:5-7 “But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments. “They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men.”
A Pharisee loved to be recognized.
• That is why they sounded trumpets when they gave.
• That is why they prayed on the street corners.
• That is why they neglected their appearance when they fasted.
• That is why they broadened their phylacteries and lengthened the tassels on their garments.
Jesus was exactly opposite.
He was not out for publicity, He was out to save sinners.
The problem is that because the people were so accustomed
To the religious leadership of the Pharisees,
They had difficulty seeing Jesus as legitimate.
He was not what they were expecting to say the least.
• They were looking for a bold ruler…
• They were looking for an “in your face” deliverer…
And that certainly was not Jesus.
Isaiah 53:1-3 “Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, And like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him. He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.’
Jesus didn’t come craving attention, and this confused the Jews.
Because Jesus continual rejection of publicity confused the people, Matthew includes here in his gospel the explanation for that.
So first Publicity Forsaken
#2 PROPHECY FULFILLED
Matthew 12:18-21
The Jews had extreme difficulty believing Jesus could be the Messiah,
Largely in part to His extreme differences with
The dominating religious leaders they were accustomed to.
So this Jesus who showed up meek and mild,
Just couldn’t be the long awaited Messiah,
Regardless of the miraculous power He has.
That is why Matthew includes this prophecy.
It is to answer the critics who think Jesus is too mild.
Matthew is revealing an often overlooked Messianic prophecy,
But it was one that Jesus fulfilled to a “T”.
Matthew quotes from Isaiah 42:1-4
Matthew focused on Jesus willingness to forsake publicity and said, “This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet:”
If you want to know why Jesus didn’t seek a crowd…
If you want to know why Jesus didn’t seek the limelight…
This is why:
1) HIS CALLING (18)
“BEHOLD, MY SERVANT WHOM I HAVE CHOSEN; MY BELOVED IN WHOM MY SOUL is WILL-PLEASED; I WILL PUT MY SPIRIT UPON HIM, AND HE SHALL PROCLAIM JUSTICE TO THE GENTILES.”
The first thing Matthew wants you to recognize is that
The man described here is in fact the chosen servant of God.
“BEHOLD, MY SERVANT WHOM I HAVE CHOSEN;”
The problem with Israel is that they were always looking for
The type of Messiah they would choose.
What they should have been looking for
Is the Messiah that God would choose.
And you understand that.
• It is not man who had to be appeased, it is God who had to be appeased.
• It is not man who requires payment, it is God who requires payment.
And man does not get to give God what they want to give Him,
They must give God what He requires.
So we are not looking for the Messiah that fits our description,
We are looking for the One who fits God’s.
Isaiah pointed to that man.
And what we learn from Isaiah is that
The “SERVANT” would be the “Son”
Not only would He be “MY SERVANT WHOM I HAVE CHOSEN;”
But He would also be “MY BELOVED IN WHOM MY SOUL IS WELL-PLEASED”
For a servant, God chose His Son.
Psalms 2:7-9 “I will surely tell of the decree of the LORD: He said to Me, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You. ‘Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, And the very ends of the earth as Your possession. ‘You shall break them with a rod of iron, You shall shatter them like earthenware.'”
WHY WOULD GOD CHOOSE HIS SON?
Because the Son is the only one who was pleasing to the Father.
At the Jordan:
Matthew 3:17 “and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.”
On the Mountain:
Matthew 17:5 “While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!”
The Son was the only one pleasing to the Father,
And therefore the Father chose the Son to be the servant.
No one else could please the Father.
No one else could meet His high standards.
No one else could appease the Father’s requirements.
So the Father chose the Son.
God chose the Son to be the Servant, and God made a decision.
“I WILL PUT MY SPIRIT UPON HIM”
This is the anointing of the Father.
This is the approval.
And we saw this too didn’t we?
Matthew 3:16 “After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him,”
Jesus was God’s Son long before His baptism…
Jesus was chosen of God long before His baptism…
Jesus was filled with God’s Spirit long before His baptism…
That event was to solidify in our minds that
Jesus was the One whom God had chosen and whom God had sent.
And God sent Him for a purpose.
“AND HE SHALL PROCLAIM JUSTICE TO THE GENTILES.”
DON’T YOU LOVE THAT!
The Gospel that Jesus preached:
JUSTICE
• Jesus preached that man was sinful.
• Jesus preached that God was holy.
• Jesus preached that hell was real.
• Jesus preached that sinners went there.
He preached “JUSTICE”
He preached repentance.
Matthew 4:17 “From that time Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
And by the way, this is the gospel.
So many today want to start with mercy and grace.
If you go out offering mercy to a man who doesn’t know why he needs it,
You have a terrible time getting him to accept it.
Jesus only offered mercy after He proclaimed justice.
He condemned people under the Law of God,
And then offered them forgiveness through His sacrifice.
That was His calling!
So if you were looking for someone else, then change your search,
For this is who Isaiah said we should be looking for.
His calling
2) HIS COMMUNICATION (19)
“HE WILL NOT QUARREL, NOR CRY OUT; NOR WILL ANYONE HEAR HIS VOICE IN THE STREETS.”
Here was another issue the Jews had with Jesus.
They were looking for that arrogant, loud, boisterous preacher.
WHY?
Because that is what the Pharisees were.
And because Jesus was not like them,
They didn’t think He could be the Messiah.
But Matthew says, His meekness does not exclude Him from being Messiah, on the contrary it proves it.
For Isaiah said this about the Messiah:
“HE WILL NOT QUARREL, NOR CRY OUT; NOR WILL ANYONE HEAR HIS VOICE IN THE STREETS.”
“QUARREL” translates EPIZO
“to strive”
It also means “to wrangle, or harass, or even to brawl”
Jesus wouldn’t do that.
• He was not argumentative.
• He didn’t relish shouting matches.
• He would have hated to be on one of today’s political shows where people try to yell over one another in order to get their voice heard.
He spoke truth, but He didn’t harass to do it.
(Mrs. Johnson in high school taught us like that)
“HE WILL NOT QUARREL, NOR CRY OUT”
“CRY OUT” translates KRAUGAZO
“to yell or scream excitedly”
It is actually used to describe how the demons yelled.
Luke 4:41 “Demons also were coming out of many, shouting, “You are the Son of God!” But rebuking them, He would not allow them to speak, because they knew Him to be the Christ.”
It is used other places to describe a dog’s bark or a raven’s squawk.
And this wasn’t Jesus either.
He wasn’t a carnival barker.
Jesus didn’t harass crowds.
• He wasn’t a bully.
• He wasn’t a motivational speaker.
• He didn’t try to intimidate people.
He simply spoke the truth in love.
Ephesians 4:15 “but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ,”
Colossians 4:6 “Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.”
That was Christ.
Today there has become a fascination
With preachers using profanity in their pulpits.
I obviously can’t give you quotations.
But in the rage to be hip and relevant and trendy and cool,
Pastor’s have resorted to using language to better identify
With their congregations.
The most prominent is a man named Mark Driscoll.
His nickname is “The Cussing Pastor”.
He does it to make a point and to get people’s attention.
But Jesus never did this.
He didn’t have to yell at you or cuss at you
Or scream until a vein was about to pop in His neck.
Jesus spoke the most direct and penetrating truth
Ever to come off the lips of a human being,
And yet He did so without bantering people with it.
The Jews shouldn’t have been surprised at Jesus,
They should have seen He is exactly what Isaiah promised.
His Calling, His Communication
3) HIS COMPASSION (20)
“A BATTERED REED HE WILL NOT BREAK OFF, AND A SMOLDERING WICK HE WILL NOT PUT OUT.”
This obviously speaks of His compassion.
“A BATTERED REED…AND A SMOLDERING WICK”
Both spoke of the outcast.
“A BATTERED REED” was a reed which had been bent or broken, and was no longer sturdy enough to be of any use to anyone.
This was like the person whose life was so broken
That they needed help, but were unable to contribute.
“A SMOLDERING WICK” referred to a match that had already been burned. It couldn’t be lit again.
This was like a person whose light was gone. They were hopeless.
These were down and outers.
They couldn’t help, they couldn’t encourage.
They are the people that most of society wants to throw away.
They have been used and abused and are now used up.
But Jesus wouldn’t discard them.
He wouldn’t “BREAK OFF” those reeds.
He wouldn’t “PUT OUT” those wicks.
• Who else talked to the woman at the well?
• Who else saw the widow putting in her two mites?
• Who else would eat with Zaccheus?
• Who else wanted Matthew to follow?
• Who else gave time to Mary Magdalene?
• Who else touched lepers?
Those were all people that the world had discarded.
Those were all people that the world had no use for.
And yet Jesus didn’t overlook them.
The point is He wasn’t like the Pharisees.
• The Pharisees used people to achieve their goals.
• They put their burdens on people to carry for them.
• They brow beat people and threatened people.
• And they did it all to promote themselves.
But that wasn’t God’s intended religion.
Jesus came just the opposite.
He was concerned about people not His own reputation.
When the woman came wetting Jesus feet with her tears
And wiping them with her hair;
The Pharisee said:
Luke 7:39 “Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet He would know who and what sort of person this woman is who is touching Him, that she is a sinner.”
But Jesus wasn’t concerned about what the Pharisee thought of Him
And He defended her.
Luke 7:44-48 “Turning toward the woman, He said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has wet My feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. “You gave Me no kiss; but she, since the time I came in, has not ceased to kiss My feet. “You did not anoint My head with oil, but she anointed My feet with perfume. “For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.” Then He said to her, “Your sins have been forgiven.”
A Pharisee would have run the woman outside and said
“Get away from me” in order to save face.
Jesus wasn’t about to reject her.
And those closest to Jesus knew this about Him.
When the disciples found Jesus talking to the woman at the well?
John 4:27 “At this point His disciples came, and they were amazed that He had been speaking with a woman, yet no one said, “What do You seek?” or, “Why do You speak with her?”
Apparently they had received the same lecture as Simon had before.
Jesus was compassionate.
And He was compassionate to a purpose.
“UNTIL HE LEADS JUSTICE TO VICTORY.”
Let me say it another way.
UNTIL JUSTICE IS SATISFIED
Jesus knew that He would one day die upon a cross
And satisfy the righteous requirement of God.
There was no way He was going to cast aside these broken people
So long as salvation was readily available.
The Messiah is not a Tyrant, the Messiah is a Savior.
But the Jews didn’t know that
And therefore they failed to recognize Jesus.
His Calling, His Communication, His Compassion
4) HIS CONSUMMATION (21)
“AND IN HIS NAME THE GENTILES WILL HOPE”
This is what He accomplished.
The Messiah came to give hope.
And hope not just to Jews, but to the entire world.
And we have seen this before.
Matthew 4:12-16 “Now when Jesus heard that John had been taken into custody, He withdrew into Galilee; and leaving Nazareth, He came and settled in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali. This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet: “THE LAND OF ZEBULUN AND THE LAND OF NAPHTALI, BY THE WAY OF THE SEA, BEYOND THE JORDAN, GALILEE OF THE GENTILES — “THE PEOPLE WHO WERE SITTING IN DARKNESS SAW A GREAT LIGHT, AND THOSE WHO WERE SITTING IN THE LAND AND SHADOW OF DEATH, UPON THEM A LIGHT DAWNED.”
More than one prophecy revealed that the Messiah would save the Gentiles, and Matthew affirms that here.
Jesus wouldn’t come to exterminate sinners,
He would come to give them hope.
And this is really what the people couldn’t grasp about Jesus.
In fact this was the main accusation the Pharisees made against Him.
Matthew 9:10-11 “Then it happened that as Jesus was reclining at the table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were dining with Jesus and His disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, “Why is your Teacher eating with the tax collectors and sinners?”
Matthew 11:19 “The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.”
Luke 15:2 “Both the Pharisees and the scribes began to grumble, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”
The thought of Messiah associating with the lowly was hideous to them,
And the people had sort of adopted their wrong thinking.
• Jesus came to be a friend of sinners.
• Jesus came to save sinners.
• Jesus came to live among sinners.
He came to give them “hope”
He came to show them that there was forgiveness for their sin,
And the hope of a real relationship with the Father.
In short, Jesus came to set their souls at ease and give them REST
Matthew 11:28-29 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.”
The reason the Jews continually rejected Jesus
Is because He didn’t look like what they were expecting.
But their expectation was wrong, for all they had ever seen
Was the corrupt, dominating religion of the Pharisees.
But Jesus didn’t come like them.
• They came in arrogance, He came in humility
• They came in power, He came in meekness
• They came dominating people, He came ministering to people
• They trampled on the weak, He picked them up
• They offered threats, He offered hope
• They brought a burden, He brought rest
He didn’t look like them, but that doesn’t mean He wasn’t the Messiah.
Jesus was the Messiah God had promised.
They were the imposters.
Matthew wanted them to know that,
And he wanted you to know it as well.
Jesus is THE GIVER OF REST.
He comes preaching justice and demanding repentance,
But He also comes offering forgiveness to all who will trust Him.
He doesn’t throw anyone aside, He only demands that you
Repent of your sin and submit your life to Him.
Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
