Recap

So far in Mathew, we've read the prologue, the first block of Jesus' ministry, and started the second block. Matthew opens with a genealogy and the story of Jesus' birth. Both rooted Jesus in Old Testament prophecy and allusions. He's a descendant of David born through the Holy Spirit. A king and the son of God. He's given gifts from wise men that match what was given to Solomon's temple. He is God's presence on earth. He is brought out of Egypt as a new Israel.

Then we read through his preparation for ministry. John the Baptist prepared the way for him by encouraging people to live lives of repentance. John baptised Jesus and then the Holy Spirit then sent Jesus into the desert, where he fasted for forty days and nights, resisting the temptation of Satan. Jesus is succeeding where the Israelites before him failed.

After leaving the desert and choosing his first disciples Jesus declared the kingdom of God is at hand. He showed it by healing the sick and casting out demons, then explained it in the Sermon on the mount. Just as Moses went up Mount Sinai to bring back the law, Jesus is going up a mountain to unpack the law of the kingdom of heaven.

The Beatitudes showed the upside down nature of the kingdom of heaven. Jesus then pulled out a number of Old Testament laws and shows how they don't go far enough. It is not enough to behave well. It's the state of our hearts that's important. Murder and affairs are wrong, but they flow out of internal feelings of hatred and lust. Our priorities should always be to get our hearts right.

He challenged how people outwork their faith, telling them when they give, pray, and fast they shouldn't do it to show off. Our focus should be on God's kingdom, not power, money, or even providing for ourselves. God has that covered. Our focus needs to be on him. When it comes to others we're called to look inward before we judge others. To treat others how you would like to be treated. Judge others by their fruit, not by what they say. But judge ourselves by our relationship with God.

Then came the second block of Jesus' ministry, the kingdom of heaven, applied to people's lives. The first two miracles were to a leper and a Roman centurion. An outcast and a Gentile, far from God. Then, after more miracles, Jesus travels to a Gentile land to cleanse it of demons (and dirty pigs).

Matthew 9-10

Crossing back over the Galilee, Jesus came to his own city and was brought a paralysed man. Bizarrely, the first thing Jesus does is forgive the man's sins. This annoys the religious men in the room, because only God can forgive sins, and therefore Jesus must be blaspheming.

But the thing is, in the Old Testament, there is someone else who is given all authority, which would have included forgiving sins. In a vision that Daniel had, he saw "one like a son of man" (Daniel 7:13) sitting next to God, and he was given dominion and authority over all people. Now in the Old Testament the phrase 'son of man' wasn't a title. It was just another way of saying 'human' in Hebrew.

But we see Jesus pick up this phrase and turn it into a title for himself. He turns to the religious people and says, "that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins" (Matthew 9:6) and turns to the paralytic man and heals him. Again, Jesus' power and authority bear witness to his words.

A little later, Jesus meets a tax collector called Matthew (potentially the same Matthew that writes this book) and invites him to be a disciple. At first, everyone is horrified that Jesus would choose a sinner like a tax collector.

Jesus quotes a passage from Hosea 6:6, referring to a time when Hosea challenged the people because their repentance wasn't genuine. They had done all the 'right' things, making offerings and sacrifices, but they hadn't repented in their heart. Jesus is saying he would much rather have someone who's a little messed up and genuinely repentant than someone who has it all together, but inwardly isn't repentant.

Some disciples of John come to Jesus and ask him why his disciples don't fast. Jesus points out to them that currently they don't need to fast, because he is with them. When he goes, that will be the time to fast. But he also challenges the pharisees' assumption. Jesus has come to bring something new. If the pharisees try to limit Jesus' new thing with what they already know, it's going to be a mess.

Jesus is able to heal a woman who had an issue of bleeding for twelve years, and bring a young girl back to life. This story echoes the times that both Elisha and Elijah brought young children back to life (see 1 Kings 17 and 2 Kings 4). He healed two men who were blind and a man who couldn't speak. There are no limits to Jesus' power and authority to heal.

Having demonstrated the power of the kingdom of heaven in people’s live we move now to the second block of Jesus’ teaching, focused on how the disciples should bring the kingdom of heaven to others.

As Jesus is going round healing people, he sees how lost these crowds are. He turns to his disciples and points out that there are plenty of people that are in need of someone bringing the kingdom of heaven to them. What we need are more people who are willing to bring it.

Having established Jesus' authority, Matthew now wants to show that Jesus' authority extends to his followers, but the cost is high. Jesus gathers twelve of his disciples and gives them the authority to cast out demons and heal the sick.

He then prepares them to send them out. He tells them not to go out to earn money. Instead, find a house that will put you up for a while and accept only their hospitality and food. If nowhere will put you up, just move on to the next town.

Jesus warns them that they will face persecution. They will be arrested and taken before governors and to foreign lands. This is all to bring them before more people they can share the kingdom of heaven with. In those moments, it is the spirit of the father, God's spirit, who will give them something to say. Jesus points out that if people call him Beelzebub, Satan himself, how much more are they going to persecute his disciples as well?

But Jesus encourages them to not be afraid. They are to be ones who reveal all that is hidden. Do not fear your fellow humans, but fear God and allow yourself to be guided by his will. God will not forget you. He cares about you intimately and knows every hair on your head. He will be with you during these difficult times and will get you through.

But Jesus will only acknowledge those who acknowledge him. Anyone who denies Jesus publicly, Jesus will deny before his father, God. Jesus wants them to know the cost of following him. If his disciples follow him, then they will have enemies. Even their own families might turn against them. 

If they are more concerned about what their family thinks than what Jesus thinks, then they shouldn't bother. Only those who are willing to give everything will find the life that Jesus is offering. But the benefit of choosing to give everything up for Jesus is having access to God.

Psalm 91

This psalm isn’t attributed to anyone in particular, and falls into the category or trust psalm. The psalmist is encouraging other to trust in God’s protection.

Psalm 91:1-13 - God’s protection

Psalm 91:14-16 - God’s promise

The psalmist starts with the fact that protection is found in God’s presence. If you dwell and abide in him, he will be your refuge fortress. He will protect you from traps and diseases. He will protect you like a mother bird over her hatchlings, for he is a faithful God.

You don’t need to fear whether day or not. Whether terror, or enemies, or disease, or natural disaster. God will protect you. God might punish the wicked, but he will look after and sustain you.

All this is because you have dwelt in his presence. There, he is your refuge and he will protect you. He will even command angels to look after you so that you don’t stumble.

Then God enters the conversation. When an individual holds close to God in love, God will deliver and protect them. When they call to him, God will answer them and rescue them. They will be satisfied with long life.

In this psalm, we see this cause-and-effect relationship. Those who dwell in God, who hold close to him, and call out to him, will be protected. Doesn’t matter what the trouble, and doesn’t matter what the time. Ultimately, God will lead them through the hard times. This doesn’t mean that we don’t experience trouble. But it doesn’t mean God will be with us in troubles.