Well, this past week we had some visitors stop by the building.
Evidently, last century, there was a leader from the Baha'i faith who came and spoke in this building.
And so every once in a while we'll have people who are adherents to the Baha'i faith come and kind of check out the historicity of what happened.
And if you're not aware, those people who align themselves with the Baha'i faith, the Baha'i faith embraces a kind of universal salvation that all religions lead to the same God.
Well, here we are and we have these people visiting the building who hold to a different belief than we do.
And so I found it an opportunity just to ask very respectfully a question to this couple.
And I said, well, what do you make of Jesus?
And it quickly became evident that both the husband and the wife, their understanding of who Jesus is was based upon what other people had told them.
That they hadn't seen in the Gospels themselves what the claim of the Gospels is about Jesus.
What he says of himself.
And so I asked, well, what do you think about Jesus' claims to be God?
They're quick to say, well, we believe he's a prophet.
And he's like a God.
There's a lot of opinions out there about who Jesus really is, isn't there?
This morning, I just want to lay before I say, would the real Jesus please come forward?
And in Matthew 12, the real Jesus comes forward.
We're going to see a series of conflicts between Jesus and the Pharisees this morning.
Tensions are rising.
What's becoming clear is there is an incompatibility between who Jesus is and what he claims the Scriptures teach and what the Pharisees claim the Scriptures teach.
Jesus says of himself that he is humble, gentle of heart.
He's revealing that he is the Messiah, the Christ, the all-authoritative King who has come to establish the saving reign of God on earth.
That's what the whole book of the Gospel of Matthew is about from beginning to end.
To show that Jesus is the Christ.
The Pharisees, though, have rejected Jesus as the Messiah.
That's just going to become more and more clear as we move through the Gospel of Matthew.
They reject him.
They reject his teaching.
They think he's a contrarian, that he is disruptive, and that he's a threat.
How about you?
Coming in this morning.
What do you think about the real Jesus?
Maybe you've come in and just to be all honest, you know that you've been mocking Jesus.
You think that religion is a crutch.
That Jesus is truly a historical figure, but you know what?
All the stuff about him has just kind of gone to a little too far.
You may say religion is okay, it helps people, but you yourself don't buy it.
Before you write Jesus completely off, would you listen this morning to what the Gospel of Matthew reveals about him?
Would you take it to heart what he claims about himself?
Or maybe you've come into the building this morning and you're kind of on the fence.
We're going to see a group of people in Matthew 12 to say, they're going to see him do a miracle and they're going to ask,
can this be the Son of David?
And maybe this morning you're approaching Jesus that way.
Can this be the one?
Can this be the one Messiah?
Well, it's good that you're asking the question, but just to let you know up front, you can't stay neutral on who Jesus is.
You can't stay neutral on his claims.
You're going to decide.
You're going to have to decide whether he is the Christ or not.
You're going to decide whether you're going to follow him.
And if you are a follower of Jesus and you've come in here this morning and you're kind of like thinking,
well, life's tough.
It's hard to be a follower of Jesus.
And you know what, sometimes I kind of wonder if it's all worth it.
This morning you're going to see some Christological fireworks out of Matthew 12.
And my prayer for you today is that you're going to find yourself strengthened in saying, oh, he is so worth it.
He is awesome.
So this morning, here's how we're going to proceed.
We're going to walk through all of Matthew 12.
We're going to walk through the four conflicts.
Let me just summarize.
There's a conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees over plucking of grains on the Sabbath.
That's the first one.
The second conflict is a conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees on Jesus healing on the Sabbath.
The third conflict is a conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees on by whose authority, power, Jesus is casting out demons.
The Pharisees say, by Satan you cast out demons.
The second conflict is a conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees on the Sabbath.
The final conflict is over the request for a sign.
So Sabbath, Sabbath, Satan, sign.
That's what we're going to do.
So four conflicts.
And after that, we're going to come back.
And I want you to see something in this passage that seems kind of out of place at first.
You kind of read it and you're kind of like, what is that doing there?
We'll come back to that.
And that's going to help you realize the good news of who this man is.
We're going to see the real Jesus this morning.
So let's start by looking at Matthew 12, verses 1-8.
The first, this conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees.
Verse 1, we see the situation.
Jesus and His disciples are traveling on the Sabbath.
And there were actually regulations of the day on how far you could travel on the Sabbath.
And Jesus and His disciples were well within those regulations.
But the disciples were hungry.
And they're walking through a grain field.
And His disciples start picking grains of head off the crops.
And all of a sudden, there's this Pharisee on the scene.
Whip, whip, whip.
Whip, whip, whip, whip, whip.
Yeah, I'm Jacob.
Jacob Ben David.
I'm with the GPD, Galilean Pharisee Department.
Yeah, I'm here to enforce Sabbath regulations.
It appears as though, verse 2, your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath.
Leon Morris in his commentary helps us to understand what's going on.
They were plucking grain, which technically is reaping.
They were rubbing to separate the grain from the husk, which was technically threshing.
They were blowing away the husks off the grain, which was technically winnowing.
And altogether, technically, this is food preparation.
Something that you're not to do on the Sabbath.
Whip, whip, whip.
So according to the man-made regulations of the Pharisees, Jesus' disciples were declared guilty for breaking the Sabbath.
The Pharisees were seeking to honor the Sabbath in a way that stayed nicely within the regulations, the man-made regulations, the tradition of the elders.
So the issue here is the right honoring of the Sabbath.
The Pharisees insist a good Jew must adhere to the tradition of the elders.
And there were so many rules governing the Sabbath, no one person could really remember them all.
But Jesus doesn't roll that way.
Jesus responds in verse 3.
And the way He responds is not by appealing to the tradition of the elders.
He responds by pointing them right to the Scriptures.
And Jesus points to two different passages that raise exceptions to what they are saying.
First, He points to David in 1 Samuel 21.
You see that in verse 3.
He says this,
Have you not read that David?
What David did.
And back in the Sermon on the Mount, He's talking to the people and He's saying,
Have you not heard?
There were uneducated people.
Now He's talking to the Pharisees who are well-educated.
Have you not read?
Have you not read what 1 Samuel 12 says about David?
David, on His fleeing from Saul, He shows up in a town and talks to the priest and says,
Hey, you got any bread for my boys?
My guys?
The priest says, No, we don't have any common bread, but we do have some holy bread.
And the holy bread of the time was reserved only for the priests to eat.
And so the priest asked David, David, are your guys clean?
Are they holy?
And David says, Yeah, they're holy.
And so the priest gives them the holy bread intended for just the priests.
And so what Jesus is saying, Hey, that was kind of out of bounds.
But the point of Jesus bringing up is saying,
David was never condemned for that in the Scriptures.
He goes on to raise another point.
Let me just say this.
Jesus is making the point that there's a place for mercy.
Mercy trumps the practice of ceremonial law.
There was a need and it was met.
The second appeal, he points to a practice that the Pharisees would have been very familiar with as well.
In verse 5, he says this,
Have you not read in the law how on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath and are guiltless?
What does that mean?
Well, priests would serve on the Sabbath.
They would work on the Sabbath in order to facilitate all of the offerings and all of the other things going on in the Sabbath in the temple.
And so Jesus is raising, are you guys not aware of what the Scriptures say about priests serving on the Sabbath?
And the point is that there are situations when godly people profane the Sabbath but are guiltless in God's eyes.
So you take those two together and Jesus has just demonstrated through two biblical examples that the Pharisees aren't right.
These two examples contradict what they are saying.
And so Jesus is saying what my disciples are doing is not unlawful on the Sabbath.
Honoring the Sabbath does not mean we are unable to pluck grain and eat it as we advance the kingdom of heaven.
And so then he drops a rebuke in verse 7.
He's quoted, he's already mentioned this back in Matthew 9.
He says,
And if you had known what this means, I desire mercy and not sacrifice,
you would not have condemned the guiltless.
You would not have condemned my disciples if you knew what this meant.
But the Pharisees, if the Pharisees were actually looking to love their neighbors,
as themselves, they would have been merciful,
not insistent on keeping small details of man-made traditions.
They would know what God meant when he said,
I desire mercy and not sacrifice.
They wouldn't have condemned them.
They would have said,
Yeah, you do what you need.
You advance the kingdom.
You go.
What Jesus is saying to the Pharisees is,
you don't get God's heart revealed in the Scripture.
My disciples are guiltless.
The Sabbath isn't meant to deny mercy.
The Sabbath is actually a mercy.
Jesus makes some claims here.
Did you notice that?
Verse 6,
I tell you something greater than the temple is here.
Priests serve in the temple.
The two examples he gave,
both with David and in the temple service,
focuses on priests.
Priests are part of it.
What Jesus is saying is,
hey, priests up to me were imperfect,
but you're looking at the perfect priest.
He goes on to say that the Son of Man,
it's a direct reference from Daniel chapter 7,
it's a messianic reference,
and then he says,
the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.
You've got to look at it in verse 8,
for the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.
That is a huge claim.
What he's saying is this.
He's got authority over the Sabbath.
The Sabbath belongs to him.
He knows what it's meant for.
The Sabbath is to refresh, not to condemn.
The Sabbath is to give mercy,
not to be merciless.
The Sabbath is to bless God's people,
not to stress God's people.
Jesus and the Pharisees
have fundamentally different understandings
of how to observe the Sabbath.
You've got the yoke,
the teaching of the Pharisees,
which was really heavy.
And then you've got the yoke of Jesus,
which was light and easy.
Jesus won, Pharisees zero.
Let's move on to the next conflict.
We see this in verses 9-14.
It's again a conflict related to the Sabbath,
but Jesus healing on the Sabbath.
The situation,
we see in verse 10,
note verse 9,
he went on from there
and entered their synagogue.
And so Jesus,
from that first conflict,
he doesn't linger.
He moves on.
He kind of withdraws a little bit,
which should raise some questions,
like, why is he doing that?
But here in verse 10,
he shows up in a synagogue
and there's a man there
with a withered hand.
And apparently,
there are Pharisees there too.
Whip, whip, whip.
Yeah, Simon Ben-Jacob,
I'm here with the GPD.
I noticed that there's a man
with a withered hand here.
Well, I'm just kind of wondering,
Jesus,
is it lawful
to heal him on the Sabbath?
And Matthew inserts in verse 10
that he's asked that
in order to accuse Jesus.
The Pharisees held that
someone could only be healed
on the Sabbath
if that person was on the verge of death.
So if you broke your leg
on the Sabbath,
so sorry,
you're going to have to wait
to the next day
to set that.
So the issue here
is again
what's permitted
on the Sabbath
and this Pharisee
is baiting Jesus.
He's saying,
hey,
is it lawful
to heal on the Sabbath?
And look at Jesus' response
in verse 11.
Jesus says,
which one of you
who has a sheep
if it falls into a pit
on the Sabbath
would not take hold of it
and lift it out?
He's saying,
hey, guys,
let's be honest,
seriously.
If you've got a sheep,
if you've got an animal,
you're going somewhere,
it falls on the pit
on the Sabbath,
what are you going to do?
He's going to pull it out, right?
Right!
He assumes
that they're going to say yes.
And then he kind of drops
what's called
a how much more argument
in verse 12.
So he's established
the fact that
people are going to
pull out their sheep
from a pit
on the Sabbath
because they want to do good
to their sheep.
And so Jesus
then goes on to say
in verse 12,
how much more value
is a man
than a sheep?
Get the logic?
If you're willing
to do good
to your animal
on the Sabbath,
how much more
should you be willing
to do good
to a fellow
image bearer
of God?
People are more valuable
than sheep.
So he draws a conclusion
in verse 12.
So it's lawful
to do good
on the Sabbath.
You've got to understand
what he's saying.
It's just not permitted
to do good
on the Sabbath.
It's lawful.
It's right.
It's to be done.
It fulfills
the intent
of the law.
Showing mercy
to others.
Loving your neighbor.
And so there's
a subtle claim here.
He's again saying
I'm the Lord
of the Sabbath.
Let's make sure
we know what the Sabbath
is meant for.
In Mark 2,
he says
man was not made
for the Sabbath,
but Sabbath
was made for man.
Man?
So the point
of all this
is this.
On the Sabbath,
God has given
this day
to refresh
his people.
To show mercy
to his people.
To bless
his people.
We do good
to one another.
It's the right
thing to do
on the Sabbath.
Sabbath.
And then he pulls
out a trump card.
In verse 13,
then he said
to the man,
stretch out
your hand.
The man
stretches out
his hand
and then in verse,
what we see is
it's fully restored.
Now,
could you imagine
that Pharisee
what he's thinking
at that point?
Not only was he
kind of rebuked,
but then Jesus
goes ahead
and does the good
thing on the Sabbath.
He does the very
thing that he was
being kind of
baited on.
He heals
this man.
So Jesus
and the Pharisees
have a fundamentally
different understanding
of observing
the Sabbath.
A day to do
good to others.
You do it
if your animal
got stuck in a pit.
How much more
should we do that
for fellow image bearers?
Jesus 2,
Pharisee 0.
Did you notice
verse 14?
The Pharisees
went out
and start to
conspire.
Tensions are
rising.
You know
they start
conspiring?
They start to
conspire to do
what?
To destroy
Jesus.
Now,
that's pretty
interesting
because it is
the Sabbath.
And I find it
quite ironic
that these
Pharisees
go now
to plan
to destroy
Jesus
on the
Sabbath.
It shows
you the
hardness
of their
hearts.
They don't
believe.
They're
standing
against.
Conflict
number three.
Jesus
has a
conflict
with the
Pharisees
about
casting out
demons.
It's in
chapter 12
verses 22
through 37.
Now,
I know
you're probably
wondering,
hey,
we just
skipped
verses 15
through 21.
And it's like,
that's okay.
We're going to
come back to it.
It's going to
make sense.
But here's the
situation going on
in verses 22
through 37.
A demon,
22 and 23,
a demon-oppressed
man,
unable to see
or speak,
is brought to
Jesus,
and Jesus
heals him.
And he heals
him by casting
out the demon
that was oppressing
him.
That doesn't
mean that all
blindness and
inability to
speech is
directly the
cause of
demonic oppression.
But in this
case,
it was.
And so the
man is
immediately able
to speak and
see,
and I would
have just
loved to
know what
he said.
But in
verse 23,
what we see
is this.
There was a
group of
people there
who were
watching this
take place,
and all the
people were
amazed.
And they
said,
can this be
the son of
David?
And what
they're saying
there is
this.
Could this
be the
Messiah?
Could this
be the
one who's
descended
of David
who's going
to reign?
2 Samuel
7.
Is this
the guy?
Is he
the Christ?
The one
who would
inaugurate an
everlasting
kingdom?
And in
verse 24,
we see the
accusation.
When the
Pharisees hear
about it,
they kind
of go
crazy.
And by
the way,
it's not
because it's
the healing
itself,
and it
doesn't seem
like it's
even the
amazement of
the crowd,
it's what
the crowd
is saying.
Can this
be the
Messiah?
And so
the Pharisees
are,
are they
actually
thinking that
this guy
could be
the Messiah?
We've
got to
squelch
this real
quick.
And so
what they
say is,
you can
read it
in verse
24.
It's not,
they say,
it's only
by Beelzebul,
the prince
of demons,
that this
man casts
out demons.
And Beelzebul,
the prince
of demons,
is Satan.
They're
reaching.
They don't
want him
to get
any kind
of
messianic
credit,
Jesus.
And so
they're
saying,
no,
no.
That is
not the
power of
God at
work.
That's
the power
of Satan
at work.
He's
not the
Christ.
He's
casting out
demons
by the
power of
Satan.
So the
issue here
is,
whose
power is
Jesus
casting
out
demons?
Satan
or the
Holy
Spirit?
And
Jesus
responds
with a
multi-stage
response.
And so
in verse
25-30,
the first
stage in
what Jesus
is basically
saying is,
are you
guys
ridiculous?
If you
look at
verse 25,
he says
this,
every
kingdom
divided
against
itself
is laid
waste,
and no
city or
house
divided
against
itself
will
stand.
And if
Satan
casts out
Satan,
he's
divided
against
himself.
How
then will
his
kingdom
stand?
His
point
is like,
hey,
Satan's
not
dumb.
Even
Satan
knows not
to divide
his own
kingdom by
casting out
demons in
his name.
The demons
are doing
his work.
Why would
he cast
them out?
It's a
ridiculous
argument that
the Pharisees
are making,
but hard
hearts are
stubborn hearts,
and hard
hearts are
unwilling to
see the
things the
way they
are.
Hard
hearts have
a hard
time admitting
when they
are mistaken.
So,
Jesus is
saying,
hey,
what you're
saying is
actually pretty
stupid.
And then
in verse
27,
he takes
it a
step
further.
He says
about
the sons
of the
Pharisees,
he says,
if I cast
out demons
by Beezable,
by whom
do your
sons cast
them out?
Therefore,
they will
be your
judges.
And so,
what's going
on right
there is,
there was
a group
of people
associated
with the
Pharisees
who were
casting
out demons
too.
And what
Jesus is
saying,
hey,
man,
I've been
casting
out demons
for a
while now.
I've been
casting out
way more
demons than
your boys
have been
casting out
demons.
And if
I'm casting
these demons
out by
the power
of Satan
and having
a tremendous
effect,
whose power
are your
guys doing
it by?
Then he
goes,
they will
be your
judges.
You should
go ask
them by
whose power
I am
casting
these demons
out.
They will
give you
an honest
answer.
And then
he goes
in verse
28.
He says
this,
but if
it's by
the Spirit
of God
that I
cast out
demons,
then the
kingdom of
God has
come upon
you.
It's like
he's saying,
well,
here's a
possible
alternative
that I'm
actually
casting out
demons by
the power
of God.
that it's
the Holy
Spirit working
through me
to cast
out the
very demons
you're accusing
me of
casting out
by Satan.
And if it
is that,
here's what
that means.
If I'm
casting out
demons by
the Holy
Spirit,
it means the
kingdom of
heaven has
come upon
earth.
And if the
kingdom of
heaven has
come upon
earth,
that really
seems to
say that I
am the
Messiah.
But they
were unwilling
to admit
that.
And he
gives this
illustration.
It's kind
of continuing
with this
thought of
if I do
this by
the power
of the
Holy Spirit.
In
verse
29,
he says,
how can
someone enter
a strong
man's house
and plunder
his goods
unless he
first binds
the strong
man?
Then indeed
he may
plunder
his house.
If I
do this
by the
Spirit
of God,
that means
I am
binding
the strong
man Satan.
It means
that I
am entering
his domain
and plundering
his house
for my
kingdom.
The kingdom
is advancing
in other
words.
It's a
sign.
If it's
by the
Spirit
of God
that he's
doing this,
it is
signaling
to everyone
who has
eyes to
see that
the kingdom
has arrived
and that
the king
is getting
it done.
Advancing
his kingdom.
So verse
30 is the
conclusion.
Jesus says,
whoever is
not with
me is
against
me and
whoever
does
not
gather
with
me
scatters.
He's
saying you
can't be
neutral,
guys.
Either you're
with me
or you're
against me.
Either it's
by the power
of Satan
I'm doing
what I'm
doing or
it's by
the Spirit
of God
I'm doing
what I'm
doing.
If it's
by the Spirit
of God
the kingdom
has come.
That's his
first stage.
The second
stage
he goes a
little
talks about
some things
that might
be uncomfortable
for us
to hear.
In verses
31 and
32
he goes
on to
say
start talking
about
blasphemy.
Blasphemy
of the
Spirit.
Again
this is in
response to
the charge
by the
Pharisees
that he's
casting out
demons
by Satan.
And Jesus
is responding
to that
in verses
31 and
32.
And what
Jesus is
basically
saying is
this.
You have
no idea
what you're
saying right
now.
Your hearts
are so hard
they point
to the
reality
that you
are now
beyond the
scope of
God's
forgiveness.
You are
saying things
that are
condemning
you.
The
context
here
clarifies
what
Jesus
means
by
blasphemy
against
the
Spirit.
Now I'm
guessing
if you're
a Christian
in the
room
you've
heard that
phrase
before
the
unforgivable
sin
and you
can start
stressing out
a little bit
and you're
like have
I
blasphemed
the Holy
Spirit
because
if I
blasphemed
the Holy
Spirit
that means
I am
beyond
the scope
of God's
forgiveness
and I
certainly
don't
want to
be
like
that.
The
context
makes it
clear what
Jesus
means by
blasphemy
of the
Spirit.
Speaking
against
the
Spirit.
Remember
I just
want to
see this
remember
in verse
28
Jesus
is
claiming
to
cast
out
demons
by
the
Spirit
of
God.
And
what
blasphemy
is
attributing
a work
of God
to
someone
other
than
God.
Jesus
himself
was
accused
of
blasphemy
back
in
Matthew
chapter
9
remember
he
tells
this
paralytic
your sins
are
forgiven
the Pharisees
are like
only God
can forgive
sins
you're
blaspheming
and then
what Jesus
does in
response is
in order
that you
may know
that the
Son of
Man
has
authority
to
forgive
sins
on
earth
get
up
walk
gets
up
and
walks
it
points
to
the
fact
that
he's
not
blaspheming
he's
God
in
the
flesh
now
Jesus
is not
being
accused
of
blasphemy
here
he
is
actually
saying
you
guys
are
blasphemy
you
guys
are
attributing
and he
talks about
two kinds
of
blasphemy
there's
the
blasphemy
against
the
Son of
Man
that
can
be
forgiven
and
then
there's
the
blasphemy
against
the
Spirit
which
cannot
be
forgiven
it
is
unforgivable
an
example
of
blasphemy
that
can
be
forgiven
is
a
word
against
the
Son
of
Man
it's
like
denying
that
Jesus
is
the
Christ
you
go
a
long
time
in
your
life
and
you're
like
he's
not
God
he's
not
my
master
he's
not
who
he
says
he
is
that
can
be
forgiven
remember
the
apostle
Paul
remember
how
long
he
persecuted
the
church
do
you
know
why
he
persecuted
the
church
because
the
church
was
proclaiming
that
Jesus
was
the
Christ
but
Paul
was
forgiven
of
that
so
what
is
blasphemy
against
the
Spirit
and
why
is
it
unforgivable
well
contextually
blasphemy
against
the
Spirit
is not
only denying
the Holy
Spirit's
work
not only
denying the Holy
Spirit's
power and
casting out
demons
but it's
actually
attributing
the Holy
Spirit's
work of
casting out
demons
to Satan
that's
blasphemy
against the
Holy
Spirit
it's
attributing
to Satan
what the Holy
Spirit is
doing
and what
it reflects
is a
hardened
heart
a
heart
so
hard
that
it
is
not
willing
to
consider
that
this
is
a
work
of
God
a
hard
heartedness
so
set
in
its
ways
it
sets
you
outside
of
forgiveness
God
hands
you
over
it's
a
blasphemy
that
goes
too
far
and
so
when
Jesus
says
it
will
not
be
forgiven
in
this
age
or
in
the
age
to
come
what
he's
saying
is
never
if
you
reach
that
point
of
settled
defiance
against
God
and
saying
there
is
no
way
the
Holy
Spirit
can
do
that
is
a
work
of
Satan
you've
crossed
over
generally
speaking
those
who are
concerned
about
blasphemy
against
the
Holy
Spirit
because
you're
concerned
about
it
usually
indicates
you
haven't
blasphemed
the
Holy
Spirit
because
those
people
who do
blaspheme
the
Holy
Spirit
they
don't
care
they
don't
it
doesn't
matter
they
are set
in their
ways
and
there's
no
turning
back
but
let me
tell you
something
I'm
not
sure
if
you
notice
this
I
frankly
find it
amazing
that
God
in His
grace
would
forgive
anyone
against
blaspheming
the
Son of
Man
could
you
imagine
that
God
is
willing
to
forgive
that
what a
God
so
this
is a
sober
warning
to
those
willing
to
hear
it
who
have
yet
to
blaspheme
the
Spirit
but
maybe
you've
already
blasphemed
the
Son
don't
go
there
you
still
can
be
forgiven
that's
stage
two
stage
three
of
Jesus
response
to
this
charge
that
he's
been
casting
out
demons
by
Satan
is in
verses
33
through
37
and
what
he
basically
says
is
this
hey
there's
a
cause
and
effect
relationship
between
what's
in
your
heart
and
what
comes
out
of
your
mouth
and
your
evil
heart
that
has
rejected
me
as
the
Messiah
and
it's
just
becoming
harder
and
harder
as
you
see
more
and
more
of
my
work
the
harder
it
gets
the
worse
you
speak
what
you
value
most
will
inevitably
show
up
in
your
speech
and
what
Jesus
is
saying
to
these
Pharisees
is
your
evil
heart
towards
me
is
revealed
by
your
evil
speech
attributing
to
the
Holy
Spirit
that
this
work
of
casting
out
demons
is
by
Satan
what
Jesus
is
saying
is
right
there
it's
like
your
words
condemn
you
it's
your
words
justify
the
verdict
that
you're
beyond
forgiveness
these
three
stages
of
Jesus
argument
in
response
to
this
charge
is
he
goes
from
ridiculous
you
guys
seriously
Satan
casting
out
Satan
it
makes
no
sense
to
blasphemous
do you
have
any
idea
that
what
you're
saying
is
horrid
it's
wrong
to
finally
saying
your
words
condemn
you
Jesus
three
Pharisees
zero
the
last
conflict
is
over
the
request
for
a
sign
in
verses
38
through
42
situation
some
scribes
and
Pharisees
in
verse
38
they
ask
Jesus
for
a
sign
show
us
something
to
demonstrate
who
you're
claiming
to
be
but
what
you need
to
understand
is
the
Pharisees
are
being
less
than
genuine
in
Mark
and Luke
when you
read
similar
accounts
of
this
the
asking
of
a
sign
is
followed
by
to
test
him
the
Pharisees
really
don't
want
to
be
convinced
that
Jesus
is
the
Messiah
they
just
want
him
to
do
something
so
that
they
can
accuse
him
more
of
things
and
so
they're
not
asking
for
a
sign
to
convince
them
that
they
are
to
follow
Jesus
so
let
me
put
it
this
way
what
is
being
shown
about
the
Pharisees
is
they're
not
the
poor
in
spirit
they're
not
those
who
mourn
their
sin
they're
not
the
meek
they're
not
the
harassed
and
helpless
they're
not
they don't
feel
the weight
the weary
and weight
of being
under
something
and needing
rest
that's
not
them
we're
going to
see in
just a
moment
that
they're
not
bruised
reeds
they're
not
smoldering
wicks
of
people
they're
hard
hearted
they want
Jesus
destroyed
the issue
here is
proving
to us
what you
claim to
be
and
Jesus
will have
nothing
of it
his
response
is again
to point
to two
different
passages
in the
scriptures
he points
to Jonah
the sign
of Jonah
he was
in a
whale
belly
of a
whale
for three
days
and three
nights
and then
he says
the son
of man
is going
to be
in the
heart
of the
earth
for
three
days
and three
nights
that's
your
sign
what he's
about
to do
his
death
burial
and
resurrection
that will
be your
sign
to this
generation
but you're
going to
reject it
and he
goes on
to say
just
as
he goes
on to
say
this
the
Ninevites
who were
Gentiles
when
they heard
the preaching
of Jonah
and realized
this guy
came from
the belly
of the
whale
to preach
to us
they repented
they turned
to the
living God
and that
Jesus says
something greater
than
Jonah is
here
Jonah was
an imperfect
prophet
Jesus is
a perfect
prophet
he already
knows
this generation
this evil
generation
they're not
going to
respond
even to
his death
burial
and resurrection
he already
knows
but he
still goes
on to
say
someone
greater
than
Jonah
is
here
and then
he points
to
in verse
42
I believe
this other
biblical
example
the queen
of the
south
the queen
of Sheba
in 1
Kings
10
she came
to hear
and benefit
from the
wisdom
of Solomon
and the
queen
of Sheba
will
on the
last day
rise up
and condemn
this generation
because she
responded to
the wisdom
of Solomon
and someone
greater than
Solomon
is here
a greater
king
with a
greater
wisdom
Jesus
and so
his response
to the
request
for signs
hey
you had
the sign
of Jonah
and now
I'm telling
you I'm
going to be
dead
buried
and raised
and the
Ninevites
these Gentiles
are going to
stand up
and condemn
you
and then
the queen
of Sheba
came
who is
another
Gentile
and when
she rises
up
with this
generation
she's going
to condemn
you too
because she
responded to
the wisdom
given to
her
and someone
greater than
Solomon
is here
Jesus
refuses the
request
of a sign
and tells
the Pharisees
that they
will be
condemned
by Gentiles
who repented
for far
less
from a
lesser
prophet
and a
lesser
king
they
stand
condemned
Jesus
four
Pharisees
zero
in each
of these
conflicts
Jesus
is
graciously
and firmly
responding
to them
and it's
the real
Jesus
and we're
left
asking
kind of
the
question
who
is
this
guy
and
that's
where I
want to
point you
back
to
verses
15
through
21
who
is
this
guy
so far
in chapter
12
we've seen
some significant
claims about
Jesus
Jesus has
said I am
the son of
man
he says it
three times
in this
chapter
verse 8
32
and 40
he's the
one who's
been given
dominion of
an everlasting
kingdom
he's the
son of
David
verse 23
he's the
Lord of
the
Sabbath
verse 8
only God
is the
Lord of
the
Sabbath
he has
the
authority
to
clarify
the
scriptures
about
David
about
priests
on the
Sabbath
about
Jonah
and
the
queen
of
Sheba
he knows
the
thoughts
of the
Pharisees
in
verse
25
he has
the
authority
to
bind
Satan
verse
29
all
these
Christological
fireworks
going off
in chapter
12
this is
the real
Jesus
and
then
Matthew
interjects
in
verses
15
through
21
he said
just make
sure
that you
really
know
who
this
is
this
is
the
one
that
fulfilled
Isaiah
chapter
42
verses
1
through
4
his
withdrawing
you may
think
it's
weak
it's
not
weak
it's
messianic
his
remaining
silent
you may
think
it's
weak
it's
not
weak
it's
messianic
the
suffering
servant
has
come
Isaiah
42
1
through
4
is
a
prophecy
of
a
suffering
servant
who
would
come
in
the
name
of
God
in
verse
18
you see
my
servant
applied
to
Jesus
Matthew
saying
he
is
the
fulfillment
of
this
behold
my
servant
whom
I
have
chosen
Jesus
is
the
servant
of
his
father
we
go
on
to
read
this
my
beloved
with
whom
my
soul
is
well
pleased
this
is
in
stark
contrast
to
the
Pharisees
they're
not
well
pleased
doing
it
for
them
he's
seeking
to
please
his
father
and
then
we
read
on
I
will
put
my
spirit
upon
him
do
you
know
what
why
Jesus
casts
out
demon
in
the
power
of
the
Holy
Spirit
because
he
is
the
suffering
servant
of
Isaiah
42
1-4
he
fulfills
the
messianic
promise
that's
who
it
points
to
he
will
proclaim
justice
to
the
gentiles
he's
declaring
the
kingdom
of
heaven
not
just
to
Jews
but
it's
going
to
go
global
and
verse
19
the way
that
he
proclaims
it
he
doesn't
quarrel
or cry
out
loud
nor
will
anyone
hear
his
voice
in
the
streets
he's
gentle
he's
not
shoving
it
down
people's
throats
and
then
in
verse
20
a
bruised
reed
he
will
not
break
in
a
smoldering
wick
he
will
not
quench
do
you
know
what
a
bruised
reed
was
I
walk
here
from
my
house
and
I
walk
through
Lincoln
Park
and
by
the
lagoon
over
there
and
it's
just
surrounded
with
reeds
it's
like
a
dime
a
dozen
and
you
know
what
I'd
do
if
I
saw
a
broken
reed
there
I'd
be
like
whatever
I'm
moving
on
I'm
not
going
to
help
that
thing
not
out
of
the
billions
of
people
on
the
face
of
the
planet
if
there's
one
bruised
reed
he
is
fully
aware
of
it
a
smoldering
wick
you've
all
experienced
it
as a
candle
and
the
flame
has
gone
out
and
you're
just
kind
of
smoldering
and
you
want
to
put
your
fingers
together
and
snuff
it
out
it's
a
picture
of
another
kind
of
person
someone
who
is
at
the
end
of
their
rope
end
of
their
wick
they're
smoldering
they're
like
this
is
done
you
know
how
Jesus
responds
to
that
out
of
the
seven
and
a
half
billion
people
on
the
planet
he
takes
note
of
smoldering
wicks
he
doesn't
roll
over
he's
gentle
Isaiah
42
pictures
a
gentle
messiah
he's
the
hope
of
the
nations
do
you
know
what
the
bruised
reed
and
the
smoldering
wick
you
know
what
they
point
to
there's
a
theme
coming
through
the
gospel
the
poor
in
spirit
those
who
mourn
their
sin
the
meek
the
harassed
and
helpless
those
who
are
heavy
weary
and
heavy
laden
who
need
rest
those
are
who
Jesus
came
for
he
came
for
the
bruised
reeds
he
came
for
the
smoldering
wicks
he's
not
going
to
break
a
reed
he's
not
going
to
squelch
a
smoldering
wick
he's
going
to
restore
it
and
so
what
Matthew
is
doing
for us
here
is
like
this
is
the
real
Jesus
he's
the
fulfillment
of
Isaiah
42
and
he's
going
to
be
a
servant
who's
going
to
bring
justice
to
victory
Matthew
20
28
says
I
came
not
to
be
served
but
to
serve
and
to
give
my
life
as
a
ransom
for
many
the
ultimate
act
of
service
is
the
giving
of
his
life
for
bruised
reeds
and
smoldering
wicks
in
his
name
Gentiles
hope
who
he
is
fully
he
is
a
glorious
great
and
gentle
Messiah
his
character
is
the
very
hope
of the
nations
so
what we
see
happening
here
in
Matthew
12
is
this
Jesus
is
the
son
of
man
he's
the
son
of
David
he's
the
Lord
of
the
Sabbath
he's
the
binder
of
Satan
and
he
has
come
as
a
servant
that's
the
real
Jesus
Israel
the
Pharisees
were
expecting
their
Messiah
to
come
on
a
war
horse
to
come
with
armies
taken
over
trampling
on
bruised
reeds
smoldering
just
putting
out
smoldering
wicks
a
Messiah
to
conquer
in
strength
and
brutality
not
Jesus
kingdom
is not
survival
of the
fittest
Jesus
kingdom
is
supernatural
grace
for the
weak
Jesus
defied
all the
expectations
of the
Pharisees
God
came
as
a
servant
that's
why
he
withdrew
that's
why
he
didn't
abuse
people
in
return
that's
why
he
went
to
the
cross
as
a
servant
substitute
for
sinners
he
came
as
a
servant
and
established
his
kingdom
of
the
meek
of
the
poor
of
the
mourning
of
the
harassed
and
helpless
the
labor
heavy
laden
the
bruised
reeds
and the
smoldering
wicks
the
poor
in
spirit
comprised
the
kingdom
of
God
because
we
realize
he's
our
only
hope
the
hope
of
the
nations
this
is
the
real
Jesus
maybe
you've
come
in
here
this
morning
and
on
Friday
you
were
just
mocking
Jesus
you're
not
outside
God's
ability
to
forgive
that
do
you
see
him
for
who
he
is
or
maybe
you
came
in
here
and
you're
kind
of
responding
can
this
be
the
son
of
God
you
can't
stay
neutral
you
got
to
decide
you
got
to
come
down
one
way
or
other
and
if
you're
there
and
you're
like
I'm
ready
to
go
I'm
ready
to
follow
here's
what
you
just
need
to
do
you
just
call
out
to
him
you
say
something
to
the
risen
Christ
you
are
the
one
who
came
for
me
you
are
the
servant
and
if
you're
a
follower
of
Jesus
and
you've
been
kind
of
asking
the
question
is
this
all
worth
it
when
you
look
at
Christ
and
his
glory
his
greatness
and
his
gentleness
you're
like
oh
yeah
it's
worth
it
you
can
reject
Jesus
and
end
up
like
this
generation
in
verses
43
through
45
or
you
can
repent
and
trust
Jesus
and
what
you
see
at
the
end
of
chapter
12
is
the
promise
for
those
who
believe
that
we're
part
of
his
family
that
we're
his
brothers
and
sisters
that
we're
set
on
doing
the
will
of
the
father
and
the
will
of
the
father
begins
with
bowing
your
knee
to
King
Jesus
let's
pray
God
in
heaven
we're
so
grateful
for
your
word
now
God
would
you
take
Matthew
12
and
do
your
work
with
it
would
you
bring
it
to
bear
in
the
hearts
of
your
people
and
bring
about
the
fruit
that
you
have
purposed
from
long
ago
for
the
glory
of
your
great
name
among
the
nations
and
it's
in
Jesus
name
we
pray
amen