This is the word of the Lord from Matthew 11. When Jesus had finished instructing his 12 disciples, he went on from there to teach and preach in their cities. Then when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another? And Jesus answered them, go and tell John what you hear and see. The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk. Lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear. And the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is the one who is not offended by me. As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds concerning John. What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? What then did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Behold, those who wear soft clothing are in kings' houses. What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is he of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you. Truly I say to you, among those born of women, there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who is to come. He who has ears to hear, let him hear. But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their playmates. We played the flute for you and you did not dance. We sang a dirge and you did not mourn. For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they said, he has a demon. The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they said, look at Him, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners. Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds. Then He began to denounce the cities where most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent. Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades. For the mighty works done in you have been done in Sodom. It would have remained until this day. But I tell you that it will be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you." At that time, Jesus declared, I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my father, and no one knows the son except the father, and no one knows the father except the son, and anyone to whom the son chooses to reveal him. Come to me. all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light. The word of the Lord. Keep your Bibles open as we start looking at that. Expectations. It's interesting that on Wall Street, rather than just surpassing expectations, they beat them, as though it were some form of competition. I don't know if you were interested, I was caught very unexpectedly by Ben Bernanke's confession of the index that he used to test the American economy. Did you hear about that? I went to Wikipedia, the substantive authority, and let me read to you what he revealed. The Men's Underwear Index, yes there is one, is an economic index that can supposedly detect the beginnings of a recovery during an economic slump. The premise is that men's underwear are a necessity in normal economic times and sales remain stable. During a severe downturn, demand for these goods changes as new purchases are deferred. Amazing, isn't it? What people will think of. It's interesting, though, that generally speaking, expectations are now said or is closely linked with disappointment. In fact, we're told the best way to avoid disappointment is to lower your expectations. How sad. And yet, I think that's part of what happened in this case with John and with the current generation at the time that Christ was alive. I think their expectations of Christ came up short. And as a result, they missed the opportunity of seeing Jesus. I wonder how much we're like them. I need to explain to you that this is the first of a two-part series. I've been given two Sunday nights in a row, so this is the first that will be focusing on Matthew 11. And this one specifically on expectations. It actually comes in a couple of things. There are two underlying themes that are woven through the chapter. The first is deeds versus beliefs or expectations. The second is the names that are used for Christ. And I don't know if you picked that up in the reading. You sometimes have to look at it a little bit longer. But initially, it is the Christ. verses 1 through 6, then the Son of Man, verses 7 through 24, and finally, the Son of the Father who is Lord of heaven and earth, verses 25 through 30. So the names and the expectations will construct the framework of our study tonight. As Jesus responds to each of these names, we will see his true gentleness, instruction, and perhaps be surprised by his third response. So let's start off with the first, expectations of the Christ. Before Jesus heads out on an itinerary that will hit many different towns in the area, John's disciples come to catch up with him. And having heard about the deeds of the Christ, verse 2, John is asking if he, Jesus, is the Christ. Now, it's interesting that you kind of look and say, is John really asking this question? Dear John, is he asking this question? Surely not. In fact, there were a number of Christians and older commentators who refused to say that. They thought that John's disciples were asking this question, or they were the ones who were pushing the agenda. Among them, Chrysostom, Augustine, Jerome, Luther, Calvin, and Beza. They actually thought that it was coming from John's disciples. But if you look at the text, it's very clearly John's question. You see, we're trying to avoid the embarrassment that John himself would have any doubts about the Christ. He was the one who identified him as the Lamb of God. However, was it because of the expectations he had of the Christ that John was disappointed? And I would suggest that that actually is where we begin. If we look back at Matthew 3, where John is answering those who have come, it's the parallel verse to the one I opened with tonight. He says, Someone is coming after me who is greater, whose sandals I'm not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. And then verse 12, his winnowing fork is in his hand and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn. But the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire. This is Old Testament prophecy type of burning idea and message. But do you hear behind it? where John might have had greater expectations of what the Christ might have done. John was an outdoorsman. He was one who wore rough clothing. And now he was imprisoned just east of the Dead Sea in the Arab desert. And as such, he was struggling. And what's interesting is he would have been familiar with all of the quotations from Isaiah. In fact, when the Pharisees came and asked, you know, who are you, he responded with the words of Isaiah 43, a voice who cries in the wilderness, prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. So the words that Jesus would have told him would have echoed back from Isaiah 26, 29, 35, 53, and 61. They would have come back easily. Let me read them from verses 4 and 5. And Jesus answered his disciples, go and tell John what you hear and see. The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. John knew all that. So what was happening? You see, his expectations were getting in the way because he believed, as did much of the populace, that the Christ was going to come with political freedom, saving them from Rome. You see, he was waiting. He was anticipating that the Christ was going to come and save the imprisoned John. And it's interesting that Jesus could have easily spoken to him and just said, John, you got it wrong. But he doesn't. You see, Jesus is so gentle. He could have said, well, John, don't worry. I'm coming to rescue you. Just going to take a little bit of time. Or, John, you know the schedule? Let me tell you. John, I have to start in Jerusalem, but I'm going to get to you. Just hang in there. Or he could have been patronizing and say, you know, John, you've done a great job. Good. Well done. Faithful servant. Just hang in there. I'll get there. But he doesn't. Instead, what he does is he points John back to the truth of who the Christ is. Back to Scripture. Isn't that what we just heard this morning? Back to the truth that was in Scripture. And he says, listen, listen, listen. to what you hear and see, what fulfillment of scripture there is. Remember that you need to come to the Christ. You see, and that's what verse six says, blessed is the one who is not offended by me. Jesus keeps on saying, do not let that be offensive, but rather come to me. Come To me, John, you've identified me, now come and trust in me. Trust in the Christ who is true, not the image, the expectation, the belief that you've set up falsely. It's interesting because I have to admit there are times when my expectation outstrips God, which sounds pretty crazy. Maybe I should say fall short of God. I'll suddenly realize that, you know, I've got a great trajectory here. God, just bless it. Thank you very much. And all will be copacetic with the world. I'm getting my junior God on. And the fact is, I have not listened to nor submitted my plans to the Lord. I have not waited for his divine review of what I have prayed. And as a result, I slap up against the expectations that I have of the sovereign God and of his will. And I'm disappointed. Really? No, I shouldn't be disappointed. I should be learning. So you see, I'm very happy to see how Jesus is so gentle with John because I know that he'll be the same way with me when my expectations are messed up. Secondly, What about the expectations that others had of John the Baptist as well as the Son of Man? You see, John's disciples head southward, and Jesus addresses the expectation of those who are listening. And he says, what expectations did you have? First of all, he totally dispels that John the Baptist was a weak or pampered figure. And then he declares instead that John was a genuine prophet and more than a prophet. He identifies him as the prophet Elijah, which is an amazing statement. But also, it's very nice when Jesus interprets scripture for us. You see, this idea of the whole idea of Elijah goes back to that holy checklist. Do you remember when John was baptizing in the Jordan and the Pharisees sent out some leaders to ask him? And they went through the holy checklist. Are you the long-awaited Messiah and Christ? No. Okay. Second, are you Elijah who we know must come before the Christ? And no, huh? Okay, third, are you the prophet who some believe Moses promised would come when he was identifying Israel's next leader in Deuteronomy 18.15? You're what? You're the voice of one crying in the wilderness. Thank you very much. That really helps us. We don't have a category for that. Correctamunday, good. You're so quick on the uptake. You see, that's one of the things that goes by. But what's interesting is later on, do you remember when Peter, James, and John were coming down from the Mount of Transfiguration? And they start asking things about what was going on. And this is what Jesus said to them in Matthew 17. Then why do the scribes say that first Elijah must come? And Jesus answered, Elijah does come, and he will restore all things. But I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they didn't recognize him, but did to him whatever they pleased. So also the Son of Man will certainly suffer at their hands. Then the disciples understood that he was speaking to them about John the Baptist. Okay, so what was this prophecy about Elijah returning? Let's go back. The original reference is in Malachi, or as Fr. Garibaldi used to say, the last good Italian prophet, Malachi. If you go back to chapter 3, which is on page 802, if you're using the church Bible, you'll find that the words there echo Isaiah 40, verse 3, the exact same words. But Jesus picks up this wording in Malachi because he's then going to go to chapter 4, to add some verses, verses 5 and 6. And here's what he says, Doesn't that sound like a call for repentance? That's exactly what it is. And isn't that what John the Baptist did? He called people to repent because the kingdom of God was near. That's exactly what John did. And with this as the backdrop, we suddenly realize that the focus of John's ministry was on the kingdom of God. That's why it's so interesting that the people, the crowd of that time, missed it. And Jesus was able to say, no, go back. to the whole reason why John had a ministry. What was the message that was given? And you see, Jesus can use this poignancy because he's just had John's disciples dismissed because they were carrying John's mis-expectations of the Christ. And now he was able to say, but here is the focus of the kingdom. Just what I said to John. Listen to what prophecy has already been put into place. Consider what is being done here and now. It's interesting that repentance and preparation for the kingdom was not only John's message, but Jesus came right after as the fulfillment of the king. And yet some people missed it. There were two very different responses to this idea, and that's why as Jesus had this title, the Son of Man, he brought that in to be able to confront the first ones who looked at the deeds that Christ had done, but just dismissed them. So this was the first part. He says Son of Man rather than Christ because so many people had this idea of what the Christ was going to do. Political freedom. Boy, wouldn't that be great for these United States. Political freedom, let's bring on the Christ. And yet, What Christ does is He takes a new name, the Son of Man, so that He can use that and fill that with the true projection of what His ministry was as the King. He is able to do that so that people would understand that the message of John and the message of the Christ are the exact same in Him. That's why we must understand that the focus is on the spiritual ministry of Christ. As we look at the deeds, we'll find that those will show us our need for repentance and for anticipation of expecting Christ's kingdom now. That's why it's so difficult to be able to understand how anyone could be complacent about that. It's interesting that Jesus then picks up. He starts talking about this generation. He says how they were having an informed opinion based upon ministry style. Look at John the Baptist. Oh, never did anything. Never loosened it up. So obviously he was just a stuffed shirt. And let's look over at Jesus. Well, he's a winebibber. He was hanging out with all the wrong crowd. Obviously he can be dismissed as well. Rather than seeing the deeds that were being done. And that's the interesting thing. They did not see that the kingdom of God was there. Now there's a disturbing comment in verse 12, and I think it begs a slight detour to be able to get there. What violence has occurred or has been perpetrated against the kingdom of heaven? And why is that word used? Why does Jesus say, since John's coming ministry, violence has been against the kingdom? And again, it's when one kingdom abuts against another kingdom that there's violence. Isn't that what we're seeing in Iraq right now? One people's governmental idea is bumping up against another. And there are innocent people who are being crushed in between the violence that is being used. In the same way, there is a violence which comes when the kingdom of God butts up against our kingdoms, our little kingdoms, our little ideas of who should govern the universe. But look at it from scripture. What had happened since the time of John? The muzzling of John through imprisonment, the withdrawal of a welcome following the healing of two demon-possessed men, even the complacent attitude and intolerance of what Jesus was saying to those who were in his audience. Not to mention the many and various ways to destroy Jesus by the religious leaders. That's just to mention a few. It was violence itself. New Testament scholar James Denny says, the kingdom of heaven is not for the well-meaning, but for the desperate, that no one drifts into the kingdom, that the kingdom only opens its doors to those who are prepared to make as great an effort to get into it as people do when they storm a city. So even though John the Baptist refigured Elijah, healing fractured homes to grasp and unify the spiritual need for Christ, it's interesting that in the chapter before, Matthew 10, Jesus takes up a sword to divide families whose loyalty is not to their king first and foremost. It should teach us an awful lot about the importance of our home as a place where spiritual life grows. But at the same time, recognizing our each individual fealty to our king and to our king alone. The second is that concept of the deeds unto repentance. Jesus suddenly takes off almost on a rant to talk about this generation missing all the miracles that have been done around. You see, it's interesting that as he talks about the violence, now he talks about how it has been so overt that the kingdom can be seen. Look at how all of the ailments of society have been taken on and destroyed by the coming of the king. How all who have been suffering have been healed. How those who have been deaf. But it's fascinating that it's the poor who are listed last. The poor are the ones who have heard the gospel of freedom and grace in Christ. You see, this is the kingdom of God. It is a spiritual kingdom that has no boundaries. It is the kingdom that transforms from within and ignores the circumstances in which we live. That is what Christ brings. That is what the Christ's prophecies should have informed us about. That is why the Son of Man came. And that is why there should be so much. Is the word denounce too strong in this kingdom struggle? Because that's exactly what Christ does. He denounces the cities that are around because he wants to show the perfectness of the kingdom that he is bringing. This summer, I read a book about an Iraqi translator who had been embedded with the United States SEALs during the invasion of his country back in 2003. Because he believed that with justice and economic stability, Iraq could be restored as a nation, he risked his life and that of the life of his family. In other words, he had a vision of something better, and to that end, he risked everything. Are we doing that? Have we worked past wrong expectations and are ready to put everything on the line for this kingdom because of this message, which has given us freedom, that others might be free? Are we ready? Have we understood this is warfare? See, Jesus did miracles in all of the towns that were listed. The deeds were so that others would repent. Korazin was the place of the Sermon on the Mount, which in Matthew 7 concludes with, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority and not as their scribes. Bethsaida was the location where Jesus preached to the crowd about the kingdom of God and healed many. And surprisingly, the king himself feeds them, Luke 9. And in Capernaum, after preaching with authority, Jesus rescues a man with an unclean spirit merely by speaking to the spirit. Mark 1. These are not simple miracles. They're not what a magician can conjure up. These are true healings that were done by authority, by the one who has the authority to rebuke healings, to rebuke unclean spirits, who can change the world by a word. This isn't a great political leader. This is the God of the universe. This is the kingdom he desires to bring. Want to be a part of it? What was the conclusion which should have been drawn? having heard the authoritative preaching of truth, having seen the miracles backing the veracity, the awareness of God's kingdom was blatantly obvious, awakening a desire to be part of it and the need of repentance because we didn't belong. You see, that's what should have happened. So let's go to this third thing. What were the actual deeds of the sovereign Lord beyond the expectations? You see, at this point, you'd expect Christ to start preaching and have an altar call, right? I mean, isn't that what you'd expect? Everyone has already heard the denunciations. They've been struck in their spirit. They need this gospel. Give an altar call. And yet, Jesus breaks into worship. What? Yeah, He breaks into worship. He gives thanks to the Father Creator. And that is such a twisted expectation, wouldn't have expected it in a million years. But you see, that's what Christ does because he recognizes the spiritual peak to which this is all culminated in this chapter. And he says, Father, I praise you. I thank you. It's interesting because he starts off with the heart of worship. It's stunning how direct Christ is in his worship. And isn't it wonderful to have a record of how Christ does it and does it so well? Christ is so direct he gets to the heart of worship and he says, this is life itself, to know the Father. Father, I praise you and now come to me. At the end of verse 27, Jesus praises the Father for revealing these things, this knowledge which leads to repentance and embracing the freeing grace of the kingdom of God to little children. I'm delighted to be included in such a humble gathering. You see, this is the community that I want to be a part of. I don't want to have to try to redact what Christ is saying so that it might fit some type of theological platitude, so I'll feel better about myself accepting this. I'm so grateful that all I need to do is be like a child and accept it at face value, point blank, do you think it's true, come to Christ and accept it. To certainly, that is as simple as it gets. But our problem is we grow older, we think we're better, we think somehow we get to know more, we become more knowledgeable, and wow, we've grown up spiritually, haven't we? And yet the foundation is the exact same. This Christ, this King, is the one who says, come to me humbly, come. But don't come with pride. Don't think you're bringing something to the table, because you're not. I am the king. You are the one I give an invitation to. Come. It's that simple. I gotta tell you that this sermon, and the reason I started this sermon, was because of how weary I am. When I started, I'm grateful this is after vacation, When I went on vacation, I was so spiritually weary. I was bone spiritually weary. Since November, it's been a struggle. I've been struggling with sin, with disappointment, with pastoral cares, concerns, and discipline, and I am bone weary. And what was good is That as much as as a pastor, I have to deal with sin in the congregation, I first and foremost got to deal with my sin. Now, for our vacation, we went to our cottage. Some of you do know about our rustic cottage in Canada. There is no running water. There is no electricity. There is no cell coverage. It's a completely unplugged situation. This is not bad. There is one privilege duty I get to do, because none of my boys are ready to do it, and that is to shovel out the outhouse. Yes, it happens and it's necessary to do. When it gets up that high, time to shovel it out. And I find that the odor that clings to me, that fills my nostrils, reminds me way too much about my sin. about how horrible the odor is that must come before my heavenly father's throne of grace. And how the aroma of Christ can somehow expunge that, that he might look at my sin and say, it's done. You see, that's the grace. Sorry, I get emotional. I'm the one on pastoral staff that has it on the sleeve, you know? That is grace. But here's the point. This is the kingdom. This is what Christ is all about. This is what we're going to celebrate at this table. This isn't something to hold. This is something to share. This is something to give away. This is something that we need to clarify. And the reason is because there are many people who think the reason we get together here is so we will feel good about ourselves. And we will feel good about knowing some religious truth. Because you know, all religions have some modicum of truth. And that's garbage. Because Christ is the only truth. We need to be able to walk in this way. I'd like to put two challenges out. One, if you're carrying any mis-expectations about who Jesus is, I'd encourage you to drop them now. This passage makes it clear who Christ is. Drop it now. Get over yourself. Get over your pride. Come humbly. Accept his invitation. Come humbly. If you've already done that, and right now things are going well, great. Now capture a vision. The reason why people don't come to church is because they don't want to have guilt. They don't want to be guilted in and out of whatever. Let's change the culture here. Let's make this a place of safety, where broken people can come, where people who have missed expectations about Jesus can come. Where those who have a beautiful vision of their sin can come. Where those who are too proud to even consider Christ, they can come and be able to learn and see him. Let's make it a place where those who walk through the door are welcomed because we're all seeking Jesus. You see, if that would be what would happen, then suddenly we're all looking at each other and looking to Christ. We're suddenly unified because no one's better than the other, because it's only by Christ that we are free. And my freedom, your freedom, no different. Christ is the same in what he offers. I'm no further along. It's terribly funny. A billionaire minister, all these people think that there's something holy about you. But that's not true. Are we ready to be able to strip away expectations by the way that we love other people with the grace and the freedom that we have in our Christ, in the one who we know is true? If so, the next week as we talk about rest, real rest. It will be something that not only ministers to our soul when we feel beaten down, but it's something we can offer to others when they're beaten down. Spend time this week going over this passage, preparing your own soul, so that as we come We'll be ready to hear from our God about grace that gives rest now and brings us into the school of learning rest, because that will be exciting. At the same time, don't forget that we have a special invitation from Christ tonight to come into his presence. Lord, we pray that indeed you will work in our lives by your spirit, that this truth will not only be satisfying to our own souls, but rather it would be transforming to this city in Christ's name. Amen.