Think about this ... “Matthew chapter 11 focuses on John the Baptist’s spiritual crisis and Christ’s response to it. After Jesus officially commissioned His Twelve Apostles to the Gospel work for the first time, He was found teaching and preaching in various cities—probably alone. At John’s request, two of his disciples queried Jesus on whether He was the promised Messiah (v. 3). John had been unjustly imprisoned by king Herod for a while now. Jesus directed John’s attention to His miracles and the spreading of the Gospel as referred to in Isaiah 61:1-3 (v. 5). Christ then commended John for being ‘more than a prophet’ (v. 9) and the greatest man ever born of a woman (v. 11) who was however the least among those who are in the kingdom of heaven (v. 11). Then Christ pointed to the forceful statement that from John, ‘the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force’ (v. 12). That violence is directed to self and sin. Hence, for Christ, making it in the Kingdom is the number one priority of life. Capitalizing on the moment, Jesus then turned to His audience and their cities comparing their generation to a crowd that was insensitive to the Gospel call whether given by the ascetic John the Baptist or the ‘easy-going’ Christ (vv. 16-24). They accused John of having a devil and charged Christ of debauchery regardless of the mighty works done among them. Christ therefore pronounced woes unto the cities of Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum for stubbornly refusing to repent. It must here be noted that those cities were blessed above all the cities in history because they benefited the most from the ministry of Christ on earth. But yet, they refused to repent—a confirmation to the fact that a pictorial experience with God does not automatically guarantee conversion of heart. Yes, the human heart is ‘deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. Who can know it?’ (Jeremiah 17:9). Thus for Christ, the miracle of repentance and conversion far outweigh any other miracles. Shifting from the woes to the unrepentant cities, Jesus burst into thanksgiving to God—His ‘Father, [and] Lord of heaven and earth’—for hiding such spiritual insights to the wise and prudent and revealing them to the babes (v. 25). By comparing the wise to the babes, Jesus here contrasts the savvy with the needy. He therefore confirms the truth that the mysteries of the Gospel and the Kingdom of God are accessed not by might, nor by power, nor by intelligence, nor by status but by humble surrender to the suzerainty of God as manifested in Christ and effected by the Holy Spirit. The Gospel of Christ and the Kingdom of God are accessible exclusively to those who—like in the Beatitudes—are poor in spirit, hungry and thirsty for righteousness, and meek like Christ Himself was (v. 29). Next, Jesus highlighted His perfect intimacy with the Father. By so doing, Christ confidently assumed His divine authority and responsibility for being the One through Whom the revelation of God to men is effected. Having received all things from the Father and being one with Him, Christ is the Son who reveals the Father (v. 27). Many today would like to see God but fail to the task. Some look for Him in wrong places like idols and shrines. Others search Him with a wrong attitude like confronting Him for example as the Pharisees usually did. Still others seek Him with wrong mobiles like taking advantage of Him for example. They do not realize that God is best revealed in the face of Jesus Christ who declared, ‘I and My Father are one’ (John 10:30). Hence to see Christ is to see God. And to see God, we must find Christ. Christ ended His address by a poignant appeal. He invited His weary audience to ‘Come to Him … Take [from Him] … and learn of [Him]’ in order to receive rest in their souls (vv. 28-29). Jesus understood that a soul without Him is under unrest. He therefore offered Himself as the peace Giver to the depressed, suppressed, broken, shaken, crying, and dying multitudes of all times. Genuine and lasting peace can only be found with the presence of Christ in and around us. In Christ, God sets sinners free from sin, its guilt, and its power. There is still power in the blood for those who surrender to the easy yoke of His presence and the light burden of His Spirit. Christ is the end of troubled hearts. Unfortunately many even among believers today do not have (lasting) rest in their souls. Some do not have it at all. Others have it but inconsistently. They fail to maintain their connection with Christ, the source of genuine peace. They need to learn how to consistently focus on, surrender to, depend on, and dwell in Christ Whom alone can secure ‘the peace of God’ and ‘the God of peace’ to troubled souls (Phil 4:7, 9). Are you overwhelmed with life? Are you crying and dying inside? Let go … Let God … Allow Christ in and savor genuine peace daily! Why not kneel and talk with God now?” Pr Christian E. Ekoto, Personal Morning Devotion Reflections on Matthew 11:1-30 on September 11, 2014
Posted on: Wed, 10 Sep 2014 23:59:28 +0000