[0:00] All right, good evening. Welcome back. We are progressing and we're going to start the Passion Week today, the last week of his life, the last five days.
[0:19] And so the plan is today and next class to cover right to the crucifixion.
[0:30] And the third class will be the crucifixion and the last one, his resurrection. So that's kind of what my thoughts are to push through in that way. And also, I would like permission to skip next week.
[0:50] And finish on December 3rd. If permission granted. Henry's got it.
[1:02] Would you guys be okay with that? Yeah. The reason is I'm taking a week off from work and going to be out in the woods. So that would save me from coming back in and having stuff.
[1:17] But that would put us into the first week of December, that Wednesday. We would need to be okay with that then. Yeah. Okay.
[1:29] All right. So let's open in prayer. Lord, it's good to be back together again. We thank you for, again, for your goodness to us and just your continual love and grace as you lead us, as we are the sheep of your pastor.
[1:50] And so tonight, Lord, as we continue the course here, we, again, just look to you, Lord, for strength, for guidance, for understanding, as you are the giver of life and of the Holy Spirit.
[2:07] And so we commit this hour to you in Jesus' name. Amen. So we left off last week in your notes.
[2:22] It would be page 18. Luke 19. R2. So we didn't, there was one left in that section.
[2:35] I'm not, we're not going to go into detail there with that one. But turning to Luke 19, verse 11. I'm just going to give a little bit of highlight there and then we'll move on.
[2:50] So Luke 19, verse 11. And remember, he had been at Zacchaeus' house.
[3:06] And salvation had come to Zacchaeus and his household. And verse 11 says, Now as they heard these things, he spoke another parable, because he was near Jerusalem, and because they thought the kingdom of God would appear immediately.
[3:26] So he's been alluding to the fact it won't be immediate, but he's going towards Jerusalem for the Passover, Easter.
[3:37] And it's going to be where he will die. And as he's approaching Jerusalem, and he's hearing their talk, and they are guessing that at the Passover, he's going to become king.
[3:57] And so to correct their teaching, that there's going to be a delay, he tells another parable about a certain nobleman that went to a country to receive a kingdom, and then he would return.
[4:10] So it's speaking of himself as the king, right? And he gives his servants some ten minas, and five, and three, and so on, and do business till I return.
[4:23] And so he is teaching them that I am going to be going away, and you need to be faithful till I come back.
[4:34] And so it's a direct teaching on their misunderstanding about the kingdom. Okay, so I'm going to leave that.
[4:45] We need to travel on. So the next page, the number nine, official presentation of the Messiah.
[4:56] And so here we're going to see him enter Jerusalem. So let's turn to John 11, the Gospel of John.
[5:07] I'm going to give you the mic.
[5:36] Okay. So John 11, 55 through 12, verse 1. And the Passover of the Jews was near, and many went from the country up to Jerusalem before the Passover to purify themselves.
[5:52] Then they sought Jesus and spoke among themselves as they stood in the temple. What do you think, that he will not come to the feast? Now both of the chief priests and the Pharisees had given a command that if anyone knew where he was, he should report it that they might seize him.
[6:11] Then six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany where Lazarus was, who had been dead, whom he had raised from the dead. Okay, and then we'll skip down to verses 9 through 11.
[6:25] Now a great many of the Jews knew that he was there, and they came, not for Jesus' sake only, but that they might also see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead.
[6:44] But the chief priests plotted to put Lazarus to death also, because on account of him, many Jews went away and believed in Jesus. Okay, thank you.
[6:56] So this is his arrival in Bethany, which is two miles out of Jerusalem.
[7:06] And it's also the home of Mary and Martha and Lazarus, whom he raised from the dead only a few months back.
[7:17] And so he has arrived. It's on the eve of the Sabbath, the day before Palm Sunday. And so Jesus has come to present himself as king, or as the savior.
[7:36] And interesting, the Jewish leaders who, after Lazarus was raised, plotted to put him to death. They were trying to come up with ways, how can we get him?
[7:52] And so they were actively looking to put him to death. And here they're pondering, surely he's going to come to the Passover, because it's commanded by God. All males need to come to the Passover.
[8:06] And so they're plotting, not only Jesus, but Lazarus as well, will put both of them to death. And that will put to rest the people that are believing because of it.
[8:24] Or so they think. That's their reasoning there. And so we have no more mention of Lazarus, whether they actually touch him or not.
[8:36] But we do know that six days later, Jesus has been put to death. And so no more mention of Lazarus, to my knowledge at least.
[8:49] All right. So that's his arrival. And then we have the Palm Sunday triumphal entry.
[9:05] And let's continue in John. John 12, 12 to 9. John 12, 12 to 9.
[9:17] John 12, 12 to 9. John 12, 12 to 9. John 12, 12 to 9. John 12, 12 to 9.
[9:30] John 12, 12 to 9. The next day, a great multitude that had come to the feast when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him and cried out, Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, the King of Israel.
[9:53] Then Jesus, when he had found a young donkey, sat on it. As it is written, Fear not, daughter of Zion, behold, your King is coming, sitting on a donkey's colt.
[10:06] His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written about him and that they had done these things to him.
[10:20] Therefore, the people who were with him when he called Lazarus out of his tomb were raised from the dead, bore witness. For the reason, the people also met him because they heard that he had done the sign.
[10:37] The Pharisees, therefore, said among themselves, you see that you are accomplishing nothing. Look, the world has gone after him. Okay.
[10:49] So we have the presentation of our King riding on a donkey.
[11:01] And so we have to realize that Jews from all over have come to Jerusalem for the feast. even though it's still five days before the actual Passover, many are already in town.
[11:18] And so there'll be extra people in Jerusalem. And so Jesus rides a donkey.
[11:30] The other gospel accounts tell us that he sends disciples to go get a donkey for him. And if the owner asks what he needed for or why are you taking my donkey, tell him the Lord has need of it.
[11:48] And immediately he let go. And so this is the foal, the colt of a donkey. Interesting that generally when you ride an unbroken animal that hasn't been trained, what happens the first time?
[12:08] Bronco. Rodeo time, right? And we see Jesus' authority even over an animal here. It wasn't rodeo time.
[12:20] And he, this young, young, untrained donkey took him into town. And so we have people spreading palm branches, putting their clothes on the road.
[12:35] The disciples put their clothes on the donkey where he sat on. And that's how he came riding in. With them shouting Hosianna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
[12:50] So there's excitement and there's some acknowledgement that our king has come. Okay? Even though just the previous parable, he stated clearly that the kingdom is not yet here.
[13:08] And yet these people are still anticipating that. Where's my city map? Okay, so this would be the I know you guys are far away.
[13:33] So this is the old city of Jerusalem in Jesus' day. This is the Temple Mount. This is the actual temple here. This is the Kidron Valley.
[13:44] and this is the Mount of Olives. And so Jesus, that's east. So Jesus came riding in from Bethany on the donkey and he would come looking over the city.
[13:59] The Mount of Olives is high at the top of the ridge and that's where he stopped and wept over the city as he saw the city that was rejecting him.
[14:13] And then he would have ridden down the Mount of Olives and then through Gethsemane and then up through the valley and then into Jerusalem and into the temple.
[14:26] And so that's, you can still today go up here and look. And even though there's a big highway through here now, a far lane, but that valley is still there and the gate is still there.
[14:44] And so even though there's a mosque there now, but you can still go picture it. So that's the route that he took. And that's also, Gethsemane is where he prayed four days later, right, on Thursday night for that cup to depart.
[15:11] So it gives us a bit of a picture of what he did there. We were at the Mount of Olives in the garden at the bottom and the Jewish guides said that some of the trees, the oldest olive trees there, would have been young trees when Jesus was alive and that they were a good 2,000 years old.
[15:43] We're not used to that, right? Our trees live a hundred and some. An aspen tree usually not even a hundred. Yeah, but different trees live different lives.
[15:58] Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Okay, any questions or thoughts there? Palm Sunday.
[16:10] Okay. Mm-hmm.
[16:42] Yeah. It showed His divine authority, right? Yeah. Yeah. And... I'll just read a few verses in Luke 19, 41.
[17:02] It says, Now as He drew near, He saw the city, so He's on top of Mount of Olives, and wept over it, saying, If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace, but now they're hidden from your eyes.
[17:20] For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embarkment around you, surround you, and close you in on every side, and level you and your children within you to the ground, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation.
[17:39] And so He says these things as He's looking over the city and as He wept over the city. And then He's prophesying the destruction of the city because of their lack of faith.
[17:52] And so we know from history that roughly 40 years later, the year 70, under the Roman Emperor Titus, that very thing happened.
[18:08] And not one stone was left upon another. Total demolishment. And the Jews were scattered. Okay, another interesting concept here with Palm Sunday.
[18:25] If we go back to Daniel chapter 9, the prophecy of the 70 weeks of years. Palm Sunday marking the end of the 69th week.
[18:41] meaning 69 times 7, 483 years have passed. And there's one more week of years left, seven years, which we know will be the tribulation period.
[19:01] And let's just quickly read one verse there, Daniel 9. It's good to connect these things together. I'll start in verse 25 and 26.
[19:27] He says, And so in the first seven weeks of years after their Babylonian captivity, they rebuilt.
[19:58] And Nehemiah chapter 2 is where the time clock started with this prophecy. So first the seven weeks and then the 62. And it says, After 62 weeks, Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself.
[20:14] And that marks, I haven't seen or read of any discrepancies among Bible scholars, that marks to the day, Palm Sunday, where He presented Himself, Here I am, I've come to die.
[20:35] I'm your King. And here it says, He will be cut off. And it's amazing detail how our Father prophesies and makes it happen.
[20:51] And as we read further, Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself. And then, and the people of the Prince who is to come.
[21:02] The Prince who is to come, talking about the Antichrist, the people of the Prince who is to come, so the Roman people, shall destroy the city and the sanctuary.
[21:17] The end of it shall be with a flood until the end of the war, desolations are determined. And so, all of this is already history. It's happened in real life.
[21:29] And the Prince of the people who is to come, so the Roman Empire, empire, they destroyed Jerusalem. And it happened after, after the 69th week.
[21:46] And then verse 27 alludes to the last week. Then He shall confirm a covenant with many for one week, but in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And that's referring to the tribulation period.
[21:58] So, so Palm Sunday is very significant in that way as well in, in, in the Bible timelines. All right.
[22:19] Any questions at all? Thoughts? If it will? Yes, several times.
[22:35] Yeah. The tribulation period, it speaks of there being a temple. And then during the millennium, the Ezekiel temple will be built. And so that's two more.
[22:48] And then we have a heavenly temple coming down in the New Jerusalem. That'll be a third one. A permanent one. Yeah.
[23:01] So we've got a few more to, to see yet. all right. So then, so that brings us right into that Sunday and let's, we'll go into the first couple days here now.
[23:19] So see the authority of the, of the Messiah. And let's go to Matthew 21. Matthew 21. Matthew 21. Matthew 21. Matthew 21.
[23:30] Matthew 21. Matthew 21. Matthew 21. Matthew 21. Matthew 21.
[23:46] Matthew 21. Matthew 21. 12 and 13.
[24:00] Yeah. Then Jesus went into the temple of God and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.
[24:20] And he said to them, It is written, My house shall be called a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves. Okay, and 18 and 19 as well, please.
[24:33] Now in the morning as he returned to the city, he was hungry. And seeing a fig tree by the road, he came to it and found nothing on it but leaves and said to it, Let no fruit grow on you ever again.
[24:52] Immediately the fig tree withered away. All right, thank you. So we have two signs that happen as he enters Jerusalem and the temple.
[25:05] And the first thing he does is to drive out the money changers, the seats of those who sold doves, and those who are there for commercial reasons and who are profiting off of the poor and so on.
[25:27] And so he again, for the second time in the beginning of his ministry, he did that once and he does that again. And he drives them out.
[25:38] And so we see his authority. So Jesus coming into the temple, seeing the abuse, what God had not intended, it drove a righteous anger.
[25:55] And I think he would have been very aggressive in driving them out. He would have shown his authority there big time.
[26:10] And so it would have been something to see, right? So there is such a thing as righteous anger when we see God's religious people doing the opposite of what God intended.
[26:33] Okay? The doves, those that sold doves, the doves were a symbol of the poor who couldn't afford a different sacrifice. They would sacrifice a dove or a bird.
[26:48] And so, but there's people there to take their money to kind of rip them off. And so, but it's commanded for everybody to sacrifice.
[26:59] And so there's no way around, right? And that was the system. And that evening, as he left the city, he went to go back to Bethany.
[27:12] He went back to Bethany. And then in the morning, he comes to the city, says he was hungry. And seeing a fig tree by the road, he came to it and found nothing on it but leaves and said to it, Let no fruit grow on you ever again.
[27:27] Immediately, the fig tree withered away. And have you seen a tree dry up that fast? You know, it actually wasn't the season for figs.
[27:44] One of the other gospels says that. But with the new leaves, from what I understand, the bud or for the actual, how do we call it, where the actual fruit will come out, that actually shows sign already when the new leaves come out.
[28:03] And so there was no promise. The leaves were there, but there was no blossoms. Maybe that's a better word. And so that's the understanding here. Jesus recognized that there's no potential here.
[28:22] And so this fig tree would also represent the people of Israel, the nation of Israel.
[28:38] And that Jesus came looking for fruit. There's no evidence. There's just rejection.
[28:52] And we're talking in generalities here, the majority. Because there were Jewish believers. And so Jesus says there's no fruit, and he curses the fig tree.
[29:04] And just like the day before, he wept over Jerusalem and then prophesied that you'll be broken down and scattered abroad.
[29:14] Well, here he curses the fig tree representing Israel, you are cursed. Because of your unbelief, you are cursed. It's actually a very heavy statement to make.
[29:28] And we look at Israel from then to 1948. 1900 years that went by, and they were truly cursed.
[29:44] There's no other people group in life gone through so much turmoil and so much war. We always think back to World War II and Hitler.
[29:59] But there's been many other periods where Jews were killed by the thousands. And some of the inquisitions that I read about, there's been millions that died.
[30:12] And so the Jewish population has been kept down because of that. So they've gone through much, much hardship.
[30:26] And Jeremiah refers to that as Israel has paid double for her sins. And so, yeah, it's a result of that.
[30:43] Let's turn to John 12. We're not going to read the whole piece there.
[31:04] It's quite long. John 12, 20 to 29. Now there were certain Greeks among those who came up to worship at the feast.
[31:16] Then they came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, Sir, we wish to see Jesus. Philip came and told Andrew, and in turn, Andrew and Philip told Jesus.
[31:32] But Jesus answered them, saying, The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified. Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone.
[31:48] But if it dies, it produces much grain. He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
[32:02] If anyone serves me, let him follow me, and where I am, there my servant will be also. If anyone serves me, him my Father will honor. Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say?
[32:17] Father, save me from this hour. But for this purpose I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name. Then a voice came from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it and will glorify it again.
[32:33] Therefore, the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, An angel has spoken to him. Jesus answered and said, This voice did not come because of me, but for your sake.
[32:46] Okay. Thank you. So, we have, I believe it would be Monday after Palm Sunday, and there's some Greeks, Greek-speaking.
[33:04] It doesn't say whether they're Jews. Likely not. But likely they're Gentile. But they've come to worship Jesus. And they approach the disciples and ask, Sir, we wish to see Jesus.
[33:23] And they've come to worship. Now, the last time Gentiles came to worship was with the wise men, right? When Jesus was born. And so here they've come to the Passover.
[33:37] They've come to worship, and they wish to see Jesus. And so word goes around, and they come to Jesus. Philip tells Jesus. And Jesus says, The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified.
[33:54] He is saying to the Greeks, I am not glorified yet. First, and then he goes on to say that in order for me to be glorified, I have to die.
[34:11] Then he gives the illustration of a kernel of wheat. A kernel of wheat is not glorified until it's put in the ground, and it dies, rots, and the new plant comes up and multiplies, right?
[34:25] And so we all understand that illustration. And so Jesus says, I first have to die, and then I will be glorified.
[34:37] But that time has now come. So he's telling the Greeks, you need to wait for my glory to come out. Okay, and then the illustration, or not the teaching.
[34:51] He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves me, let him follow me, and where I am, there my servant will be also.
[35:03] If anyone serves me, him my Father will honor. So spiritually speaking, we are to lay down our lives for Christ in order that we can live.
[35:19] And so Jesus will do this in the physical. He's going to die. So he does not ask us to die for salvation, physically, but spiritually.
[35:35] And once we are saved, some have been asked to lay down their lives physically after that for their Lord. But it's not for salvation, because of salvation.
[35:51] But the illustration is there. So he's introducing that concept that, like me, you will have to die spiritually. Give up on yourself.
[36:03] Okay, verse 27. My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour. So again, it's a prelude to the Garden of Gethsemane.
[36:18] And it's only, this is likely Monday, so Thursday night, Gethsemane, right? And he says, my soul is troubled. What shall I say?
[36:29] Father, save me. But then, but for this purpose I came. Jesus realizes, even though he's troubled, his soul is vexed.
[36:42] He's heavy burdened with this. Yet he knows this is the whole, his whole purpose was for that. And then, rather, he turns to the Lord, Father, glorify your name.
[36:59] And then a voice comes from heaven saying, I have both glorified it and will glorify it again. And, yeah, the Lord is not silent.
[37:14] And he spoke. Okay. Let's turn the page and read verses 44 to 50. Chapter 12 as well.
[37:35] Then Jesus cried out and said, He who believes in me believes not in me, but in him who sent me.
[37:52] And he who sees me sees him who sent me. And I have come as a light in the world. To whomever believes in me shall not, should not abide in darkness.
[38:08] And if anyone hears my words and does not believe, I do not judge him for, for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world.
[38:20] He who rejects me and does not receive my words has that which judges him. The world that has, that I have spoken will judge him in the last day.
[38:35] For I have not spoken my own authority, but my Father who sent me gave me a command that what I should say and what I should speak.
[38:48] And, and now that his command is everlasting life, therefore, I speak that, I speak just as my Father has told me, so I speak.
[38:59] Okay, thank you. It kind of sums up this, this whole passage or that whole event where Jesus declares that he is the light of the world and, and that we are to come to him.
[39:16] We are to believe and, and he will not reject us. So it's an invitation that he ends with. so even, even right that last week he is still inviting.
[39:33] There's, the grace of God is, is there continually. Even though there's so much rejection, he is still inviting, speaking of his purpose and so on.
[39:45] So, okay, that brings us to E, the proof of the authority of the Messiah and let's turn to Mark 11.
[40:04] Mark 11. Mark 11. We did talk about this a little bit, but, verse 19 through 25.
[40:22] And when even was come, he went out of the city and in the morning as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots and Peter calling to remembrance saith unto him, Master, behold, the fig tree which thou cursest is withered away and Jesus answered saying to them, have faith in God for verily I say unto you that whoever shall say unto this mountain be thou removed and be thou cast into the sea and shall not doubt in his heart but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass he shall have whatsoever he saith.
[40:56] Therefore I say unto you things soever you desire when you pray believe that ye receive them and ye shall have them and when ye stand praying forgive if ye have ought against any that your father also which is in heaven may forgive you for your trespasses.
[41:10] Okay, thank you. So the next morning so it's probably Tuesday morning as they come back out of Bethany and to the city and they pass the fig tree and Peter notices and he remembers what Jesus did the day before and he says, Rabbi, look, the fig tree which you cursed has withered away and he saw that the fig tree had dried from the roots up and so for him that's very significant.
[41:46] I think Peter understood what was happening here as Jesus was teaching that but then we have a lesson on faithful prayer the next few verses and I believe what Jesus is teaching Peter here and the others is that even when things look very dark as it did for Israel then they're kind of at the darkest hour of rejection because Friday morning they are going to yell crucify him, crucify him, let his blood be upon us and our children.
[42:32] Right? And so there must be a heaviness to the whole atmosphere as there is rejection and there is open plotting to kill and so Jesus teaches here to Peter to not give up but to pray faithfully knowing the Lord will still answer our prayers and often when it looks very dark it's hard to pray right?
[43:08] It seems like it's there's there's no use and so it may be in the context even regarding the Jewish nation Peter don't give up on them that one by one they will come and so but regardless there's a consistency here we are to we are to pray believing and the Lord will reward us I think there's application here for the church age as well definitely for us today that these principles are at work that we need to pray believing and our hearts are tuned in with God and we ask for things pertaining to God's kingdom he will give us so it's not selfish asking it's it's asking when our hearts are tuned in with the Lord's okay asking for souls to be one for an example which is far greater than asking for a new
[44:26] Ferrari or a new sports car of some kind you know that's the Lord's heart is that souls would be one all right going down to F the king's authority challenged and I know in your notes there's only room for I broke that down so we have by the priests and the elders first of all okay so Matthew 21 let's go to Matthew 21 and I'd like to go through this quite quickly the the
[45:41] AB or the 1, 2, 3 there and 4 so let's start off by reading Matthew 21 20 20 let's read from 23 to 27 and and when he was come into the temple the chief priest and the elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching and said by what authority does thou these things year 21 20 20 ma'ano says 18
[47:06] Why did ye not then believe him? But if we shall say of men, we fear the people, for all hold John as a prophet. And they answered Jesus and said, We cannot tell.
[47:18] And he said unto them, Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things. Okay, so we see Jesus answering very wisely. As obviously they are seeing the messianic activities that Jesus is doing.
[47:37] Even the withered fig tree driving out the money changers from the temple. Even going back to Lazarus coming from the dead. And so they know all the signs point to this must be the Messiah.
[47:51] And so now they question, you know, by what authority the chief priests and the elders, they confront him, By what authority are you doing these things?
[48:03] And who gave you this authority? And so for us it's clear, right? And yet they are seeking for, always for another sign.
[48:17] But yet refusing to believe. And so Jesus answers with a question. I will ask you one thing, which if you tell me, I like always will tell you, by what authority I do these things?
[48:32] And then he puts a question. The baptism of John, where was it from? From heaven or from men? So he put them into a dilemma.
[48:44] Okay? So, by the way, when we go back to John the Baptist baptizing, when the Pharisees came, what did John say? Okay.
[49:01] So they were never baptized. Right? They were never baptized because they rejected John's teaching. Because he confronted them, their hearts, their evil hearts.
[49:13] And so here Jesus puts them right back on the spot. So if they say from heaven, then Jesus would say, well, why did you not listen to him then?
[49:25] Why did you reject him? And if you say from men, then they feared that result because the general population held John in esteem.
[49:41] He was a prophet. They all got baptized by him. And so they're in a dilemma. And so they answer, we don't know. And Jesus says, well, then I won't tell you either.
[49:54] You figure it out. So, yeah, time and time again they try to trap Jesus and they can't. His words are always wiser. Now, what follows here is three parables.
[50:12] It's still under this one there by the challenge authority by the priests and elders. And he tells three parables in its two chapters.
[50:25] And so I'm just going to briefly paraphrase them instead of reading just to save some time here. So the first one is the parable of the two sons. And it's verses 28 through 32.
[50:38] And Jesus says, what do you think? A man had two sons. And he came to the first and said, son, go work in my vineyard. And the son says, I will not.
[50:50] And afterward he regretted and went. And the second son said, I will go. And he didn't go. And Jesus asks, which one did the will of the father?
[51:05] What's the lesson here? Faith.
[51:26] True faith is always accompanied by obedience to the father. Faith will bring action.
[51:43] Right? Can we separate the two? We can't. So if we are children of faith and we have the Holy Spirit, we will serve God.
[51:59] We will be obedient. We will strive to follow our Lord. So that's the first parable. And so he's challenging them right back with these three parables.
[52:14] So by what authority are you doing these things? And now he's saying, you know, you guys, if you had faith like you say you do, you would obey God. Okay.
[52:27] The second one is the parable of the landowner. And it's from verses 29 through 46, the end of the chapter. And there's this parable where a landowner plants a vineyard, puts a hedge around it, and a wine press, and a tower, and then he leases it to some vine dressers and goes to a far country.
[53:04] Okay. And when the harvest time has come, he sends servants to receive the fruit. So he's kind of rented out the land is the picture.
[53:18] And so they beat one, they kill another, they stone him, and he sends more servants. Likewise, and then last of all, he says, I will send my son.
[53:32] And they said, look, the heir has come. Let us seize him and kill him. And then we will have the inheritance. And so what will the vine, the owner of the vineyard do when he comes?
[53:48] Surely he will destroy those wicked men miserably, is what it says. And so the parable is against the leaders. And it's a parable.
[54:01] God, Israel is the vineyard. God is the owner. And he has sent his servants, the prophets, to look for fruit.
[54:12] And they have, throughout all ages, mistreated the prophets. Killed some. Stoned some.
[54:24] And now God said, I'll send my son. Surely they will respect the son. And so even though at the time of him saying this, his death is still three days away.
[54:37] But he's prophesying, this is what you guys are going to do. And verse 45, as we sum that up. So instead of learning from this very parable, illustrating the son whom they will kill, so instead of learning from that, they attempt to seize him right there.
[55:15] And so their hearts are hardened. They do not grasp. Okay, and then the third illustration that he sends is the parable of the wedding feast.
[55:31] Chapter 22, 1 to 14. And there he says, The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding, and they were not willing.
[55:47] So that's a reference to God inviting the Jewish people, and they're not willing, and then he sends out the servants to the highways and byways to gather in the Gentiles.
[56:02] And what's significant here with this is that, in verse 11, When the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment.
[56:15] And he said to him, Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment? And he was speechless. And the king said to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness.
[56:28] There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. For many are called, but few are chosen. And so the wedding garment here represents what? Salvation.
[56:43] Salvation. Righteousness. Which is pretty well the same here. And so it's a reference to you Jews. If you think you can sneak into the kingdom without righteousness, it's not going to work.
[57:00] And the Gentiles will enter before you. And so he says they will be thrown into hellfire. So very, very bold teaching.
[57:12] Right to their face. And so I believe they would have caught these parables. So that was in response to the chief priests and elders as they challenged him.
[57:30] The next one is by the Pharisees and the Herodians. And it's also Matthew 22, 15. I'm going to keep on just paraphrasing through these.
[57:47] And so the Pharisees now tried to entangle him or to trick him in their talk. And so they send their disciples with the Herodians.
[58:01] Now, to my understanding, the Herodians are not necessarily religious people, but a political group. And normally, they would not see eye to eye with the Pharisees.
[58:16] The Herodians were in favor of King Herod. They would back him. And the Pharisees would hate King Herod, right? And so, but now all of a sudden, they're working together to trick Jesus.
[58:35] And so they come and say, Teacher, we know that you are true and teach the way of God and truth, nor do you care about anyone. Tell us, therefore, what do you think?
[58:46] Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not? So what are they trying to do here? Wouldn't we have loved to say, loved if Jesus said no?
[59:01] Then we wouldn't have to pay taxes today, right? What were they trying to do here? Drop him.
[59:15] Because if he would have said no, then he would have had the Roman government on his back, right? Yeah.
[59:29] Yeah. And so, Jesus sees right through it, and he says, Why do you test me, you hypocrites? And he says, show me some tax money.
[59:41] And whose picture is on it? Well, Caesar's. Well, give unto Caesar what's Caesar's, and unto God what's God's. It's like, and they're just stumped, right?
[59:53] What do you say to that? And so, therefore, we pay taxes today. And we give to the Lord.
[60:04] The third test is by the Sadducees.
[60:22] And verses 23 to 33. And so, the Sadducees, they come to him. They're the ones that say there's no resurrection.
[60:35] And so, they go back to the law and say that Moses said in Deuteronomy that when a man dies having no sons, then his brother shall go into his wife and raise up an heir to him.
[60:50] Okay? Now, that's weird for our culture, right? But that's in the law of Moses. And so, and if the second brother dies without having children, then the third one should take that same wife and raise up a name.
[61:11] And so, they come to trick him, and they said, you know, there were seven brothers, and they all in a row had this woman. And so, in the end, they all died.
[61:27] And so, in heaven, by the way, the Pharisees don't believe in heaven, in the resurrection. And so, they're saying, whose wife is she going to be? They tricked Jesus, right?
[61:40] And so, but underneath, they're mocking because they don't confess the resurrection at all.
[61:51] We live it up today, and when we die, we're done. There is no life after death by their thinking. They don't believe in the angelic world either, the Sadducees.
[62:06] And so, Jesus simply answers, you are mistaken. You don't know the Word of God. You don't know the Scriptures nor the power of God.
[62:18] For in the resurrection, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like the angels in heaven. But concerning the resurrection of the dead, you have not read what was spoken to you by God, saying, I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.
[62:33] God is not the God of the dead, but of the living. And so, He corrected them and said, you are fundamentally wrong in your doctrine. There is a resurrection.
[62:46] And when we get resurrected, we'll be changed. We'll be like the angels. And we won't be given in marriage. And so, whose wife will she be of those seven men?
[62:59] None of them. Because we won't be given in marriage in heaven. And even though with our earthbound perspective, we would like to be married forever in heaven too, right?
[63:16] But we will, I believe, know each other, but the nature of our relationship will change. And we'll be like the angels. And so marriage is for our lifetime here.
[63:33] It's not for eternity. So that's food for thought there. So He shut up the Sadducees.
[63:46] And so they had something to chew on. What's that? They were sad, you see. If there was no resurrection hope, then I would be sad too.
[63:56] Yeah. Yeah. They sure got the right name there. Yeah.
[64:14] Yeah. See, these weren't religious like the Pharisees. Not nearly. They were much more into wealth and ruling and government and so on.
[64:27] But they didn't go around looking super religious like the Pharisees did. So Jesus responded different to them. Yeah.
[64:41] Yeah. Yeah. They're all within Israel. Yeah. Okay. And then lastly, by the Pharisees.
[64:53] So the second one was by the Pharisees and the Herodians together, and then by the Pharisees. Verse 34 to 40. Okay. So when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, and then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, saying, Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?
[65:17] And the Lord answers, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment, and the second one is like it, you shall love your neighbor as yourself.
[65:29] On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. And the Pharisees, they had taken all the commandments of the Old Testament, 613, and they divided them into two groups.
[65:48] And there was 248 commandments, this, do this. And there was 365 prohibitions, meaning don't do this.
[66:02] Do this, don't do this. So they had two groups. And sometimes, one, they were kind of, that's the right word, they were kind of, they weren't sure, should I do a prohibition, or should I do a commandment?
[66:25] And, which is the proper way to go? And so they would always argue about that. And, and so they're testing him here, which, how, how would you split that, Jesus? And Jesus simply says, there's two laws, there's two commandments.
[66:42] Love the Lord your God, and love your neighbor. Now the Ten Commandments, one to four, have to do with loving your God, and five to ten have to do with loving your neighbor.
[66:57] And so they're summed up in that, right? And so, he answered very, very wisely.
[67:09] And then, Jesus turns around, and challenges them. In G, and 41 to 46. And let's read that. 41 to 46.
[67:22] Then surrounded by the Pharisees, Jesus asked them a question. What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he? They replied, he is the son of David. Jesus responded, then why does David, speaking under the inspiration of the Spirit, call the Messiah my Lord?
[67:37] For David said, the Lord said to my Lord, sit at the place of honor at my right hand, until I humble your enemies beneath your feet. Okay.
[67:51] So, so while the Pharisees were still gathered, Jesus asks them a question. What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he? Well, was he the son of Joseph?
[68:09] Well, they answer from Scripture, he's the son of David. And they answer rightly. And, son of David, he said, how then, does David in the Spirit call him Lord?
[68:20] Because, because Jesus was of the lineage of David. He was the son of David. And even, you know, the blind man in Jericho cried out, son of David, have mercy on me.
[68:35] So, they called Jesus that. They, they all knew that the Messiah would come to the lineage of David, King David. And, and so, how is it that King David called him Lord, even though he wasn't even born yet?
[68:55] Well, that's food for thought. And it's, King David does that in Psalm 110. So, direct quote out of that. And so, he, he has them stumped.
[69:08] So, if they acknowledge that, that King David, back in his day, already called him Lord, he's ascribing deity to his son.
[69:24] And he would, he would be born a thousand years later. Or, almost. And, and in, in the spirit, so prophetic, King David calls him Lord.
[69:38] And you can read, uh, Psalm 110 for yourself. So, he, he's really making them think. So, David, our ancestor, who we believe in, he recognized that my son, that will be the Lord.
[69:54] He'll be, he'll be God. All right. let's move on. Um, H, a judgment by the Messiah.
[70:06] We're going to skip over that one. It's, uh, Matthew has a whole chapter, 23, and it is, the whole chapter is, woe unto you, Pharisees, scribes, hypocrites.
[70:18] and he, he proceeds to progressively condemn them. The whole chapter is given into condemnation.
[70:30] He calls them whitewashed tombs, he calls them a brood of vipers, he calls them one thing after another. Just calling them out for who they are. Um, the, Mark and Luke both only have three verses each on that, whereas Matthew took a whole chapter.
[70:52] Um, very explicit, and I'm sure you've all read, read these. Um, and so, uh, let you read that for yourself. So, so this last week is very volatile with his parables, the accusations that come to him, the, the, the trick questions, and Jesus confronting more boldly than ever.
[71:19] And here in chapter 23, just right to their face, just, woe unto you. And, uh, and so, that brings us to, uh, I, and, uh, let's turn to well, we can turn to Mark 12, 41 to 44.
[71:52] Now, Jesus sat opposite the treasury and saw how the people put money into the treasury, and many who were rich put in much.
[72:14] Then one poor widow came and threw in two mites which make a quadrants. so he called his disciples to himself and said to them, assuredly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all those who have given to the treasury.
[72:35] For they all put in out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all that she had, her whole livelihood. All right.
[72:47] So Jesus is sitting in the treasury in the temple and he, and he watches people put in money and many who were rich put in much and then this poor widow came in and threw in her two mites.
[73:02] Um, it's, uh, small copper coins and it sounds like that was her last. And, uh, and so Jesus proceeds to teach a lesson here.
[73:14] He says, I say that this poor widow has put in, has put in more than all those who have given to the treasury. For they out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all she had.
[73:28] Uh, what's the point of this observation? Does God want you to put all your money into the offering this coming Sunday?
[73:40] It's not the amount of the heart. Okay. What about the heart? Giving. Giving. Okay.
[73:53] So if, if, okay, so if you were that widow and you put in your last two mites, coins, what would that say about you?
[74:09] That you're foolish? didn't Jesus call her foolish? No, she didn't give a lot. She gave very little.
[74:21] It would be like two dimes today. Or maybe two quarters. Very little. But what does that, what does that tell us about this widow?
[74:33] Yeah. What do we call that?
[74:48] Faith. It's a lesson on faith here. Yeah. And so we have lots of rich Jews coming and putting in thousands maybe of dollars, but without faith.
[75:03] And they had millions more at home. So to them it, and in the context, many of them were used to giving publicly to the treasury in the temple.
[75:16] Like they would come in and they would openly display that they were giving lots to be seen by men.
[75:27] and, but here Jesus teaches that, that faith is more important than giving a lot. And so this lady, by giving all she had, demonstrated she was relying on the Lord, not on her money.
[75:45] So it's not a recipe that we are to give every last penny, but rather we are, we are to, to have faith in the Lord to sustain us.
[75:57] whether we have little or much. Faith is what God wants. All right, so we have 10, 12 minutes left.
[76:12] Let's, let's go on to the next section. So Matthew 24. So Matthew 24 and 25 are, go into eschatology, future prophecy.
[76:33] He's got two chapters committed to that. And, and as, as we read these chapters, we won't get through them today, but we'll start.
[76:45] We have to realize Matthew 24 and 25 are written in a Jewish context. okay, he's speaking to the Jews there.
[76:56] They ask the questions about the coming kingdom and he answers in their, from their perspective. And so this is not instructions for the church age, but for the Jews that will see the, the tribulation period.
[77:15] So let's, let's read one to three. Okay, so let's read one to three. And Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and his disciples came to him to show him the building of the temple.
[77:31] And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? Barely I say unto you, there shall not be left here one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down.
[77:46] And as he said upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be, and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?
[78:01] Okay. So as they go out and depart from the temple, his disciples show him the buildings of the temple.
[78:14] and I can just see, I can just see the pride here as they give Jesus a tour of all these buildings.
[78:27] By the way, King Herod put much pride into the temple building. And I think a different verse tells us that the temple has been 46 years in building already.
[78:42] they put much, much money and time into making this the most glorious structure in Jerusalem.
[78:54] And King Herod was making a name by that. And so there's probably a sense of pride here as they show him the buildings. And Jesus' response was like pricking a needle into a balloon.
[79:12] it deflated them very fast. And he says, Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another.
[79:24] He had said that on the Mount of Olives. Did he not? And here they are prideful of their buildings. He had ready a few days back, three or four days ago, told them that it will be leveled.
[79:43] And here they're lifting up the buildings and Jesus again reminds them it's going to be leveled. And then verse 3, they ask the question, in light of that, so it's starting to sink in, so then what will be the sign of your coming in the end of the age?
[79:59] When will these things take place? And so Jesus, in chapter 24, he doesn't answer the Romans coming in the year 70 and destroying the buildings, but he answers their last question, what will be the sign of your coming and the end of the age?
[80:20] And I think in their minds maybe those two, those events were the same. When it would be destroyed and Jesus coming, those two would be together.
[80:33] But they're not, not nearly. And so Jesus proceeds in the rest of the chapter to answer their second question. What will be the sign of your coming and the end of the age?
[80:46] And so in our answer, we have the first half, verses 4 to 8. See to it that no one misleads you, for many will come in my name, saying, I am the Christ, and will mislead many.
[81:04] You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. For nation will rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes.
[81:20] But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pains. things. Okay, thank you. So we, Jesus is now describing the 70th week that will come upon the world, and upon, that's determined upon the Jewish people, as in Daniel it says, upon thy people.
[81:41] And so he says, first thing for you guys is take heed that no one deceives you. take heed that you don't believe anything false.
[81:57] Okay? For many will come in my name saying, I am the Christ, and will deceive many. By the way, in the Jewish context, there have been so many Jewish messiahs from then till now, and there was one recently that they were so hopeful would be the messiah, or he claimed to be, and yet he too has died.
[82:26] And so, but they're following for it. They're falling for it. And in here, Jesus said, take heed that you don't fall for it.
[82:40] And each one of their false messiahs that has come, if you study scripture, and the indications what the messiah will do when he comes, none of them have met that.
[82:57] And yet Jesus met all of them, and him they have rejected. But these false ones, they're falling for, and they're getting disappointed every time. Okay, so there's that first indication.
[83:10] Jesus says, take heed. And then secondly, you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you're not troubled. For all these things must come to pass.
[83:22] The end is not yet. And so there will be reports of wars. And I think even in the church age, we're seeing a buildup towards that.
[83:34] and it will just keep on increasing. And then nation will rise against nation and kingdom against nation.
[83:45] And he says there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. And these are the beginning of sorrows or of birth pangs, as Jeremiah 31 says, of birth pangs.
[84:03] And it's the picture of a woman going into labor and there's no turning around. Once it's started, it's going to keep progressing worse and worse till it's over.
[84:20] And so verse 7 matches the first four sealed judgments and revelations. We have similarities there when we have war and pestilence and all those things that would put us into the first half of the tribulation period.
[84:43] All these are the beginning of sorrows. Okay, and then verses 9 through 14. verse 9 then they will deliver you to tribulation and will kill you and you will be hated by all nations because of my name.
[85:01] At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another. Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many because lawlessness is increased.
[85:14] Most people's love will grow cold, but the one who endures to the end, he will be saved. This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations and then the end will come.
[85:29] Okay, so some signs of the second half, the great tribulation. It says tribulation unto death.
[85:42] You're going to face persecution and they will deliver you, kill you, you'll be hated, by all nations for my name's sake. There will be offense, there will be betrayal and hatred.
[86:00] And remember Revelations 13, the Antichrist comes to full power at the midpoint of the tribulation period and he sets up the image and demands to be worshipped and he gives the mark of the beast so that if you do not worship me, you will not buy or sell.
[86:23] And the saints were given over to his hand to be killed. And so we have a description of that. It says, many false prophets will rise up deceive many and because lawlessness will abound the love of many will go cold.
[86:42] But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And the context here of he who endures to the end shall be saved is salvation from this persecution.
[86:57] he who makes it through will be saved from the antichrist. And so we have lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.
[87:13] So even with these signs, we're seeing here in the church age, it's increasing, right? Is lawlessness increasing?
[87:24] Is you know, sometimes when we watch the riots and demonstrations in the world, even this last year in the U.S., there's rioters entering stores and just demolishing it, taking whatever they want.
[87:44] There's no regard for the law. Lawlessness is increasing. And in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2, a description of the antichrist emerging is he is what's the word?
[88:00] He's a figure of lawlessness. And so it's characteristics of the end. Lawlessness. No respect for the law.
[88:13] And the love of many grows cold. Our hearts grow cold. Everybody for himself. And so that's how the betrayal will come.
[88:23] right.
[88:34] Yeah. Yeah.
[88:56] Yeah. Yeah, good question. Right. Yeah.
[89:10] And so the church is commanded to preach the gospel, right? To be ambassadors to the world. But this verse is often taken out of context to say that Jesus Christ cannot come until we've done that.
[89:27] That's false. That's false. Because then Jesus will never come. Because we have, in 2,000 years, not accomplished that.
[89:39] Right? And so in the context of the tribulation period, we have first, right in the beginning of the seven years, we have God sealing, picking out 144,000 Jews and putting his mark on them so that nobody can harm them.
[90:06] 144,000. And they will be preaching the gospel. And then we have two witnesses in Jerusalem who are Jews come out of heaven.
[90:21] And they will be witnessing. And the whole world will, they'll be center stage for the whole world at that point. Because when they die, at the end of three and a half years, the whole world rejoices.
[90:37] And they make merry, and they give gifts to one another, right? So the gospel is preached to, the gospel of the kingdom is preached to the entire world during the tribulation period.
[90:50] And then in the second half, after the two witnesses go to heaven and the 144,000 are martyred, in chapter 14, we have the second angel flying through the heavens with a scroll, with the everlasting gospel, preached to all men.
[91:11] Now what is that going to look like exactly? I don't know. But God is even, even with the mark of the beast being presented and enforced, even at that time, God is presenting the gospel.
[91:27] For you that are hesitating to take the mark, He's presenting the gospel. You have a way out. Turn to the Lord.
[91:40] And so we see the grace and the love of God here. But so I believe this command is for that time period, but does not take away from the church's mandate, right?
[91:56] That we are to preach till Jesus comes and to go. And our time is up. Okay, so that's the second half.
[92:09] So we'll pick up on C there next time. So Lord willing, we will, it'll be in two weeks then. If something changes that I can't go do that work next week, then we would tell you on Sunday.
[92:28] But if you don't hear anything, it'll be in two weeks from now. And as well, so we had Shanda doing the children's ministry today. And so we need, we need a volunteer or some volunteers.
[92:45] We have three more weeks left. And so if anybody would, or if you know of anybody else that might consider it. So we need three more times to do a children's ministry.
[92:58] Okay, thank you. With that, we are dismissed. Please.