The passage is Matthew chapter 11, starting with verse 25.
Please turn to your Bibles. Don't look at me. It's not written on my face.
It is written in your scriptures. And we need to follow it carefully.
I want you to see it so you don't think I'm making this up.
It really is written in the scriptures.
I'm sure you know by now that this is an election year
and that there are many opinions about so many things
and there are almost as many opinions as there are commentators
who would like to state an opinion about everything.
In Wisconsin, I suppose one of the issues is,
is Governor Walker good or is he bad?
Is he helping the economy or is he discouraging the economy?
Is he creating jobs or is he not creating jobs?
Is he good to education or is he bad to education?
And of course, your answer depends on whom you listen to.
And there are some who say one thing and some who say something else.
And then we have political parties, the Republicans, the Democrats,
the Tea Party, the Green Party, the Massouh Party.
You know, I'm the only member of that party.
You know, so there are many opinions about so many things.
And at the time of Jesus, it wasn't that much different.
You had all kinds of parties with people with various views.
You had the Sadducees who were basically priests
who thought it was okay to cooperate with Rome.
You had the Zealots who were militants and who said the exact opposite.
It's not okay to cooperate with Rome.
You had the Pharisees who emphasized the study of the law.
But you also had the Chassidim who are not mentioned often in the New Testament,
but who were the primary opponents, the primary enemies of the Pharisees.
When you read intertestamental period, the Talmud and things like that,
you think Jesus was harsh on the Pharisees.
He was mild compared to what the Chassidim said.
There's a famous section about the 11 great hypocrisies of the Chassidim.
You know, I mean, it's creative, to say the least.
And then you had the people of the land, Ham Haaretz.
And so you could ask them, what should we do?
And you got as many opinions as there were parties and rabbis to think and discuss.
Into the scene appears Jesus.
And it looks like this is just another opinion in a milieu of many opinions.
And it's easy to think, well, that is his view.
But, you know, why shouldn't I trust the Zealots more?
Why should I accept Jesus?
Why should I not accept the Sadducees or the Ham Haaretz?
So I want us to look at this passage to try to understand why Jesus matters and others don't.
Why Jesus is special and the others are not.
Why Jesus' word is of a different caliber and a different quality and a different status than the other ones.
So please turn with me to Matthew 11, verse 25.
At that time, Jesus said,
In case you didn't get it, the wise and the learned are the Pharisees.
They were wise in their own opinion.
They were learned in their own opinion.
Lord, Father, praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth.
Because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned and revealed them to little children.
Yes, Father, this was your good pleasure.
God hid certain truths from those who thought they were wise and learned.
And why would God hide certain truths from them?
There are all kinds of reasons.
Some people are self-righteous.
Some people are unteachable.
They remind me of my freshmen in college who think they know everything.
And then I ask them to spell Heidegger and they find out that they don't know everything.
Some people are opinionated and they are so convinced of the truth of their opinions that they don't see why the rest of us don't agree with them.
Some of us are bigots.
Some of us are prejudiced.
Some of us think we know it all.
For those of you who are parents with little children, that phase will come.
You know, give it time.
The know it all.
But the Father has hidden these things from the wise and the learned and revealed it to little children.
In the next verse, he says,
Yes, Father, this was your good pleasure.
All things have been committed to me by my Father.
No one knows the Son except the Father.
Even Paul says, expresses his wish that I may know him and the power of his resurrection.
Even Paul realizes he hasn't arrived.
Now I see in part.
We know Jesus a little bit, but we certainly don't know everything about Jesus.
And that's the glory of eternity, I suspect.
So, no one knows the Son except the Father.
And now listen to this bold statement.
And no one knows the Father except the Son.
And the one to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
No one knows the Father except the Son.
If I stood up in front of you here and I said,
I'm the only one in all of America who knows how to balance the budget.
I, I alone, I'm the only one in all of America.
What should you think?
Well, the naive, of course, would agree with me.
But that's why you're naive.
C.S. Lewis says, when somebody stands up and says,
I'm the only one, you think, you should think one of three things.
You know, somebody slipped LSD in his coffee.
You know, they're psychotic.
He's having grand illusions.
You know, send him to psychiatric ward.
He's lunatic.
That's one option.
The other option is that he's a liar.
He's a liar through and through.
So you could be a lunatic.
You could be a liar.
Or the other possibility,
you, Jesus is Lord.
Is Jesus lunatic?
Is Jesus liar?
Is Jesus Lord?
Lord, you read the Gospels.
And you ask the Holy Spirit to help you see which one of those three he is.
But Jesus is making a really bold statement.
I'm the only one who knows the Father.
My goodness.
So, not only does Jesus know the Father,
but also,
and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
Please notice the word reveal.
It has appeared twice now.
I thank you, Father,
because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned
and revealed them to the little children.
No one knows the Father except the Son,
and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
This is a passage about revealing the truth.
This is not a passage about soccer.
It's not a passage about how to cook pizza.
It's a passage about revealing the truth.
The truth is what is important at this point.
Because the truth is so important,
Jesus says something really,
I mean, boy, he is bold in this passage.
Come to me, come to me,
all you who are weary and burdened,
and I will give you rest.
He doesn't say,
come to Rabbi Gamaliel,
or wait till Rabbi Akiba appears on the scene,
or wait, or go to this teacher,
or that teacher, or Nicodemus.
Jesus says, come to me.
Now, why does Jesus say, come to me,
rather than go to somebody else?
I am very good at some things,
and I say that just as a matter of fact,
not as a boast.
I happen to be good at some things,
but in other things, I'm just awful.
And I know myself.
I don't have illusions.
When it comes to cars,
I'm awful.
In 67, I bought a VW Beetle,
and foolishly opened the hood,
and couldn't see the engine anywhere.
And somebody had to remind me that the engine is in the back,
in a VW Beetle.
How am I supposed to know that?
You know,
you know,
the light comes on,
the tires.
Well, I can't tell whether they're low or too much.
In certain things,
I am not the right person.
If you want to know something about your car,
if you're having car problems,
you don't come to me.
I'm telling you,
I know nothing about cars.
I'm the last person
that you should go to,
maybe not even then.
But,
if you want to understand how to fix cars,
you go to a good car mechanic.
We've had a lot of electricity problems at home,
and just as I don't know anything about cars,
I don't know anything about electricity.
But,
there is a person here that,
at church,
a dear friend,
and I said,
you know a lot better than I do.
You know,
you're a handyman.
I'm not a handyman.
You take a look at it.
You know,
if I fix it,
it'll get worse.
So,
Jesus says,
come to me.
Not Nicodemus,
not Gamaliel,
not Akiba,
not any of those.
Come to me.
Why should we go to Jesus?
For the very simple reason
that Jesus just told us,
no one knows the Father except the Son.
So,
if the Son knows the Father,
and you want to know something about the Father,
you go to the right teacher.
You don't go to the wrong teacher.
If you want to study medicine,
you don't go to a conservatory.
In a conservatory,
you learn a lot about music.
You won't learn a thing about medicine.
You go to the right teacher.
And who is the right teacher?
Jesus.
Why?
Because Jesus knows the Father.
But sometimes,
you go to the right place,
and the person says,
no,
I don't want to tell you.
You know,
I'm not interested.
I don't have time for you.
You know,
just before the test,
student asked me,
what's the answer to this question?
And I say,
why didn't you ask me four days ago?
Or a week ago?
I would have told you then.
I'm not going to tell you two minutes
before the test.
Sometimes students ask me,
you know,
how many languages do you know?
And I say,
it's none of your business.
I don't know if I should share this with you,
but,
you know,
there's a dark side to me too.
I was teaching
second year Hebrew,
and I had really,
really,
really bright students.
I mean,
they were fantastic.
They're probably the best students I had.
And they were getting,
you know,
proud of themselves
and conceited,
and I thought to myself,
pride comes before the fall.
I will bring about the fall.
And they were just,
you know,
they were just brilliant,
and they were good.
And I wanted
to teach them a lesson in humility,
that they really don't know everything.
So on the test,
even though it was a course in Hebrew,
I gave them a passage in Aramaic
to translate.
Hebrew and Aramaic
alphabet is the same.
So I know
how to tell the two languages apart.
They don't.
So I gave them a passage
in Aramaic
to translate.
And halfway through the course,
they came to me,
the test,
they came to me and said,
Professor Masuh,
this is much harder
than anything
we've done in class.
And I snapped at them,
next time,
study more.
And for a week,
I pretended that I was totally unhappy with them
because they are dingbats.
And then after a week,
I told them that I pulled a trick on them
that as a matter of fact,
it was Aramaic,
not Hebrew,
so I didn't expect them
to be able to translate anything.
Well,
they didn't think it was funny.
Arthur was hilarious.
But you go to the teacher
who knows what he's doing.
And in the case of Jesus,
Jesus doesn't say,
I know the Father
and I'm not telling anybody.
It's my secret.
It's for me.
You're left out.
You're excluded.
You know,
you're outside the ark.
What Jesus says,
no one knows the Father
except the Son
and those to whom the Son
chooses to reveal him.
And if we come to Jesus
and Jesus decides to reveal him,
the Father to us,
he will.
Jesus knows the Father,
can reveal him,
and in some cases,
will reveal him
as he pleases.
As he pleases.
Come to me,
all you who are weary
and burdened,
and I will give you rest.
And then,
here comes the difficult passage.
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.
I want you to hear me carefully.
What I'm going to say
is probably new
to most of you.
You have probably
never heard this before.
And so,
I want to make sure
you understand
what I'm saying.
Jesus says,
take my yoke upon you.
I would have thought
that the next thing
he would say is,
and rest in me,
or find comfort in me,
or find consolation in me.
But he says,
take my yoke upon you
and learn of me.
Learn and yoke go together.
The reason that is the case
is that in rabbinic literature,
yoke is a technical term.
It's not an ordinary term.
It's a special term.
If in a computer lab,
the professor says,
stop playing with the mouse,
he doesn't mean Mickey Mouse,
and he doesn't mean
chasing a mouse on the floor.
When he says,
don't play with the mouse,
he means that thing
that you use
to maneuver the computer.
So, in a computer lab,
mouse is a technical term.
Yoke is a technical term
in rabbinic literature.
Yoke means
knowledge,
education,
teaching.
So, when Jesus says,
take my yoke upon you,
it's the same thing
as saying,
take my teaching upon you.
Everybody in Israel
knew that.
Certainly,
all the rabbis
knew that.
As a matter of fact,
in Israel,
when a Gentile
wanted to convert
to Judaism,
they would be put
through a series
of questions
and lessons
and initiation rites.
And if you pass them all,
the last two questions
you would ask the Gentile
is,
are you aware
that Israel
at the present
is only a servant?
That Rome
is the powerful city.
at the present,
not always,
but just right now.
If you want
political power,
you cast your lot
with Rome.
And so,
if you join Israel
for political power,
you're joining
the wrong country.
Rome
is the world power.
So,
they would ask
as the second
to the last question,
are you aware,
do you understand
that at the present,
we are a defeated,
conquered country,
oppressed by Rome?
And then,
if the person
said yes,
then you ask
the very last question.
And the last question
is,
are you willing
to accept
the yoke
of the Torah?
Are you willing
to accept
the teaching
of the Torah?
what Jesus
is doing here
is paraphrasing
a passage
from a
famous book
called
Ecclesiasticus,
not Ecclesiastes,
Job,
Psalms,
Proverbs,
Ecclesiastes.
It's not that book,
it's another book.
It's a book
on wisdom.
And,
and,
because of that book,
yoke
means teaching.
And so,
Jesus,
take my yoke,
teach my,
take my teaching
and learn.
For I am gentle
and humble
in heart
and you will find
rest for my,
for your souls
because my teaching,
my yoke is easy
and my burden
is light.
Let me say
something very important.
I am not saying
that we shouldn't
come to Jesus
for our problems.
I am not saying that.
I would never say that.
I am as emphatic
as ever
that we should come
to Jesus
for all of our problems
and I can give you
a whole host
of passages
that deal with
going to Jesus
for your problems.
Casting your anxieties
on him
because he cares for you.
Be anxious
for nothing.
1 Peter 5,
7,
Philippians 4,
6.
But in this passage
he is talking
about the yoke
of his teaching.
He is saying
his teaching
is lighter
or easier
than the teaching
of the other teachers
that you shouldn't
go to
because they don't
know anything
about God
to begin with.
Well,
we are only
halfway through
the sermon.
I want you
to look at
chapter 12,
the first
eight verses.
Chapter 12,
the first
eight verses
is an illustration
of what Jesus
has just
finished teaching.
Jesus has made
certain bold
statements
and now we see
them in real life,
in concrete shape,
in form.
So the first
thing that
Jesus said
is that
the Father
has hidden
these things
from the learned
and the wise.
Look at how
chapter 12
begins.
At that time,
Jesus went
through the
grain fields
on the Sabbath.
His disciples
were hungry
and began
to pick
some heads
of grain
to eat them.
when the
Pharisees
saw this,
they said
to him,
Lord,
your disciples
are doing
what is
unlawful
on the
Sabbath.
You know
what they
should have
said?
Your disciples
are doing
what we
think
is unlawful
on the
Sabbath.
Here we
have the
learned and
the wise
passing judgment
on the
meaning of
the Sabbath
and what
is legal
on the
Sabbath
and what
is not.
And what
does Jesus
say?
he has
hidden.
The Father
has hidden
it from
the wise
and the
learned.
And there
are your
wise and
the learned
who don't
get it.
And Jesus
has to
straighten
them out.
In spite
of all
of their
learning,
they don't
see it.
And Jesus
has to
explain it
to them.
Okay.
Jesus
says,
he knows
the Father
and he
can reveal
the
Father.
Let's
look at
this passage
and as
we read
it,
let's
see what
does Jesus
reveal about
the Father.
Aside from
this debate,
should we
harvest or
should we
not harvest?
Is picking up
grains harvest
or not?
Let's see
whether Jesus
tells us
anything about
the Father.
Father.
Starting
with verse
three.
He
answered,
haven't you
read what
David did
when his
companions
were hungry?
He
entered the
house of
God and
he and
his
companions
ate the
consecrated
bread,
which was
not lawful
for them
to do,
but only
for the
priests.
Or
haven't you
read in
the law
that on
the Sabbath,
the priests
in the
temple
desecrate
the day
by cleaning
the temple
which is
working and
yet are
innocent?
I tell
you,
verse six,
don't miss
the point,
verse six,
I tell
you that
one greater
than the
temple is
here.
One
greater than
the temple
is here.
Jesus
is here.
verse
seven,
if you
had known
what those
words mean,
I desire
mercy,
not
sacrifice,
you would
not have
condemned
the innocent,
for the
son of
man is
Lord over
the Sabbath.
Look at
that verse,
I desire
mercy and
not sacrifice.
That is a
quotation from
the Old
Testament.
It's from
Hosea six,
seven,
in which
God says,
I desire
mercy and
not sacrifice.
The word for
mercy is the
word chesed,
that wonderful
Hebrew word.
I desire
mercy,
not sacrifice.
Jesus says,
if you only
understood this
verse,
you wouldn't
be doing all
these foolish
accusations.
Who is
saying,
I desire
mercy?
The father
in Hosea
is saying,
I desire
mercy.
So Jesus
is saying,
let me reveal
to you something
about the
father.
The father
desires mercy,
not sacrifice.
But you
don't think
so.
You think
that the
father is
stuck on
ceremony and
details.
Whether we
can pick up
grain or
whether we
can't pick
up grain.
But the
real issue
is mercy,
not sacrifice.
And furthermore,
in addition to
that, a couple
more things.
Of course,
it's the father
who gave us
the Sabbath.
You only have
to read the
Ten Commandments
to see that
in Exodus 20.
But who
is the
Lord of
the Sabbath?
Is the
Sabbath above
the son of
man or
is the son
of man?
Who is the
Lord of
whom?
The son
of man is
Lord over
the Sabbath.
He is
trying to
help us
understand the
father and
the way the
father ordered
things and
put things
together.
The son
of man is
Lord over
the Sabbath.
He decides
what is
legal and
what's not
legal.
He decides
what's right
and what's
not right.
He decides
what should
be done
or what
should be
done.
Not the
Pharisees with
the wrong
interpretations,
but the
son of man.
And how
does the
son of man
know that?
Because he
knows the
father.
That's how
he knows
that.
And then
Jesus said,
my yoke
is easy
and my
burden
is light.
How are
we seeing
this in
this passage?
Go to
verse 1.
At that
time Jesus
went through
the grain
field on
the Sabbath.
His
disciples were
hungry and
began to
pick some
heads of
grain and
eat them.
When the
Pharisees saw
this, they
said to
him, look,
your disciples
are doing
what is
unlawful on
the Sabbath.
If it
were left
up to
the Pharisees
to decide
what should
or should
not happen,
the Pharisees
would have
said, don't
pick up
grain.
And if
the disciples
don't pick
up grain,
what will
happen to
the disciples?
They will
go hungry.
Jesus
gives them
permission
to pick
up grain.
Which is
more merciful?
which is
an easier
commandment
to carry,
to say to
someone who
is hungry,
don't eat,
or to
say, eat.
Here is
food, it's
okay.
Which is
more merciful?
I don't
know what
you think
you're going
to do when
you encounter
Jesus.
Maybe for
some of
you, for
some teaching
in your youth,
think that he's
the boogeyman,
or some
dreadful character,
or you
know, Jack
the Ripper,
or some
slasher,
and some,
you know,
Friday the
13th.
In
relationship to
his discipleship,
Jesus was
full of
mercy.
The
father
desires
mercy,
I desire
mercy,
not sacrifice,
and what
is Jesus
doing?
Allowing
the merciful
thing to
do.
Who on
earth
understands
the father
better?
The Pharisees
who say
don't,
or Jesus
who says
yes?
So this
passage
is telling
us that
Jesus
knows the
father,
he is
willing to
reveal him,
and don't
waste your
time going
to the
long
teachers.
father,
there are
thousands of
teachers out
there,
thousands.
I mean,
we are in
some ways
protected.
You just
go to
Southern
California,
and it
multiplies by
ten times.
You know,
even words I
can't pronounce,
and I can't
pronounce just
about anything,
but there
are thousands
of people
with crazy
ideas,
and Jesus
says,
no one
knows the
father except
the son.
Don't waste
your time
going to
the wrong
place.
Don't waste
your time
studying with
the wrong
teacher.
Don't waste
your time
joining the
wrong
organization.
If you
want to
know who
the father
is, you
come to
Jesus.
And on
top of
that,
Jesus is
not like
taking
comps for
PhDs,
where they
try to
kill you
before you
even finish
the program.
Jesus'
yoke is
easy,
and his
burden is
light.
It is
filled with
mercy
toward his
people.
That is
what Jesus
wants us
to see
about himself
and about
his word
and the
invitation
to come
to him.
Amen.
fed'r