My Daily Pause

Jesus at the House of the Pharisees – Tintoretto (1518–1594)

As I make notes about the opening verses of Matthew 12, I see an amazing picture being drawn. With a quick reading of Matthew 12:1-8 this is what jumps out at me:

• The Pharisees nitpicking Jesus actions
• The Pharisees holding their interpretations of the law more sacred than the law itself
• The Pharisees excusing David’s sinful actions but condemning Jesus’ perfectly legal actions
• Jesus demonstrating his superior knowledge of the law
• Jesus using logic to silence the Pharisees

The leadership of the Jews thought they had a pretty good excuse for resisting Jesus. I say they were in fear for their way of life. They had an opulent setup that had no future if Jesus really was the Messiah. It must be the nature of people to not want to change, because they sure haven’t changed yet.

The enemies of Christ are still around and they still fear for their way of life. They’re even using the same old tactics against him:

• People nitpick Christians’ beliefs at every turn
• People want to hold what they “feel” is right more sacred than God’s word
• People are tolerant of sin but intolerant of obedience to God’s word

It is up to us to stand firm against those that are trying to bring down Christ. We are in charge of using our superior knowledge and logic to counter those who want to silence God.

Would you have known how to argue against the Pharisees in the Matthew 12:1-8 event? What can you change today to get better at defending God’s word?

Jesus (on the left) is being identified by John the Baptist as the “Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world”, 17th century depiction by Vannini.

Previously, we looked at something that Jesus found praiseworthy – that being people willing to stand firm in claiming him and believing in him. There is also an attitude in people that Jesus was thankful for. In Matthew 11:25, he gave thanks for people that aren’t so vain about their wisdom and knowledge that they can take the time to believe in God.

This bit of scripture is often referred to as “The Great Invitation.” (Matthew 11:25-30) For those willing to listen, Jesus offers a life that no earthly “wisdom” can match:

• He offers rest – a sinful lifestyle is difficult to maintain and leaves only sadness in the end
• He offers sympathy – Jesus became one of us, so he knows exactly how we feel when we are troubled
• He offers help – Jesus’ yoke will help us deal with much more than we can on our own

Answering Jesus’ call starts with two simple commandments:

• Love God – Matthew 22:37
• Love your neighbor – Matthew 22:39

When you have these two things down – living according to the rest of God’s law is easy.

What can you change in your life to make Jesus thankful for you?

John the Baptist – Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519)

If Jesus ever gave a higher opinion of anyone than he did of John the Baptist in Matthew 11:7-19, I don’t know where to find it in the Bible.

I particularly like the question, “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind?” (Matthew 11:7)

What Jesus noticed first and foremost in John was his steadfastness – Once he knew the truth, he never strayed from it. He never stopped asserting his message even when faced with prison and death.

The power of the world’s message today depends on Christians that can be bent every which way the wind blows.

Evolution….

Homosexuality…

Social drinking…

Immodest dress…

So many that claim to be Christian have softened their resolve against these sins and are willing to overlook them. Some go so far as to participate.

I realize it is difficult to stand firm against the world. The world will not be pleased with God’s word no matter how we approach it. Jesus proved that to us when he contrasted John’s and his lifestyles and pointed out the people mistreated them. (Matthew 11:18-19)

In the end, the ones that Christ will praise will be those who are not shaken by the winds of society. So, like Jesus and John the Baptist, let’s be strong enough to let “Wisdom justify her deeds” (Matthew 11:19b)

Calling of the Apostles – 1481 – Domenico Ghirlandaio (1449–1494)

In Matthew 10, Christ gives a complete set of instructions to the newly empowered apostles to carry out their first and limited commission. They were to only go to the Jews (Matthew 10:5-6) and were sent despite the personal danger that they were about to walk into.

I believe they concentrated on the Israelites as a way to counter the influence of the Sadducees and Pharisees, who were doing their best to discredit Jesus and lead the Jews away from notion that this was the Messiah. They could no longer remain silent against them.

Even though this was a special instruction meant only for the twelve, there is still a lot of application for us. The world is certainly doing its part to discredit Jesus these days, and this is something we have been given to work against.

In just a few verses, we can see what we should be doing:

• Matthew 28:18-20 – The full commission to go into all the world, teaching and baptizing is given
• 2 Timothy 2:2 – Follow the apostles example and teach others
• Philippians 4:9 – Follow the example of Paul
• Hebrews 2:1 – Don’t be neglectful of the word
• 1 Peter 1:6-7 – Keep going even when it is challenging

If we remain silent, the noise of the world obscures Christ from honest seekers. This sample of instructions gives us the same responsibility against the world as the twelve had against the Jews.

I’m sure we all know someone that is receptive to the idea of Christ. What can we do to light their way to him?

The Calling of Matthew – 1502 – Vittore Carpaccio (1466–1525)

As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” – Matthew 9:9

When Jesus looked at Matthew, he saw the man. He didn’t see the publican, the dregs of society, nor a soul that should be overlooked.

As the beginning of Jesus’ ministry is recorded, we see him taking every opportunity to heal and teach. He doesn’t pick out just the more desirable people. He doesn’t even pick out those he knows would be appreciative or obedient to him afterward.

I realize am making a simple observation based only on my small portion of the world, but Christians probably need to get better at looking beyond the exteriors and seeing the people within. If we are to follow Jesus perfect example, then we need to see every soul as one with the potential to be saved.

There is plenty more that could be said, but I want to plant the idea like a seed to see where others would go with it. The challenge: How can we be better at introducing Christ?