Life Project Blog

When Jesus had finished these parables, he moved on from there. Coming to his hometown, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? Aren’t all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” And they took offense at him.

But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home.”

And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.

Matthew 13:53-58

If you just stumbled upon this passage, you might wonder why Matthew includes it in his narrative; it doesn’t really have the kind of content that the rest of the chapter has. Yet if we recall the context of this section, it may make a little more sense; and we might also notice that it has something interesting for us to learn.

The scene has shifted from the Sea of Galilee to Nazareth, Jesus’ mountainside hometown. Jesus is teaching in the synagogue there, just as He has in so many other places throughout the region, but the people in His hometown react differently; they take offense. At first, this might surprise us; whatever happened to “local boy makes good”?

In my personal experience “local boy makes good” only applies to “local boys” that a person has never met, these people had known Jesus, and here He was teaching with the authority of God and performing miracles; He was the talk of Galilee… Who did He think He was?

Many years ago I was visiting “back home” and got into a lengthy conversation with my sister who was holding forth on a particular item from the news that was being much discussed at that time. It was also an issue that I was working on at my job in Washington; I knew all of the players personally, and had discussed this issue in depth; I was literally one the players myself. I knew the information about the issue that wasn’t being reported in the news, and for several weeks this issue and its resolution had more or less become my life 24/7. From my sister’s point of view, I was nothing more than her stupid little brother… You know where this is going, right?

So, when we came to the part of the conversation where she exclaimed that I had no idea what I was talking about and ought to just shut up, I smiled and moved on to chat with someone else, wondering how long it would take before that conversation ended the same way, and each conversation would begin with me saying that I’d rather not “talk shop” on vacation…

They sometimes say that once you leave, you can never really go home again. I don’t know if that is really true or not, but it is never quite the way it was before; of that I am certain.

Jesus’ experience in Nazareth stems from this kind of thing in human nature, but of course this story tells us more than that. The opposition to Jesus, and thus to His Father was growing, for even though Jesus was playing the central role in God’s redemptive plan, there was always opposition to His message, and as time went on, the opposition would grow, just as in our world today. At this point, even His own earthly family was in opposition, yet the day would come when many things would change.

“Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Matthew 13:47-50

Jesus tells another parable, the last in this series of parables. This one has some similarity to the Parable of the Weeds, for its conclusion reveals something about the end of the age. Here we have fishermen as the example; they cast their nets and haul in a big catch. They drag their nets to the shore and sort their catch, for there are good fish, ready for market, and there are fish to throw back; Jesus likens this process to what will happen on the last day, when the angels of God will sort out the Kingdom. The “good fish” will enter, and the “bad fish” will be tossed out. To put it another way, the Kingdom of heaven is open to everyone, but not all will choose to enter, and when the day comes, many will find that they waited too long, and that the doors are now closed.

The main point of the passage comes next:

“Have you understood all these things?” Jesus asked.

“Yes,” they replied.

He said to them, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.”

Matthew 13:51-52

Jesus asked the disciples if they followed His lesson; they said that they did. After His explanation of the Parable of the Weeds (13:36-40) they would have needed to work pretty hard not to understand. Jesus continued with His remark about a “teacher of the law” becoming a disciple; he would have both old and new treasures to share.

The old treasures are the treasures of the Scriptures that we would call the Old Testament, including the story of Israel, the Law and the Prophets, along with the wisdom literature; the entire Word of God that pointed the people to Jesus, the Messiah. The new treasures would be the story of Jesus, the Kingdom of heaven, the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets, and the message of salvation and redemption for humanity that Jesus embodied.

In our time many of us attempt to teach the wonders and riches of God’s Word, and we have in our storerooms abundant treasure to share with our guests, but what do we share with them? Do we share His Kingdom, or do we discuss rules and regulations as though we were still awaiting His coming? Do we share the message of redemption and the glory of His Kingdom in our midst, or do we get so caught up in forms, rituals and even future events, that we cannot see the Kingdom right in front of us?

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

Matthew 13:44-46

Jesus continued His discourse with two very short and very similar little parables, each dealing with someone who found something of exceedingly great value and who sold everything he had in this life to buy what he had found. It would seem that the thing that was found, the treasure or the pearl was far more valuable than the entire net worth of the one who found it.

Yes, the Kingdom of heaven is just like that!

Do you remember when Jesus said that the person who loses his life will find it, and the one who finds his life will lose it? These two parables provide us with an explanation of that statement, for in both cases the one who found the treasure divested himself of his life’s savings, belongings, possessions; everything… to obtain the one real treasure that made the effort worth it. In the end, each one was enriched beyond measure.

Yes, the Kingdom of heaven is just like that.

I wonder how many other people might have come upon these same treasures, but were afraid to sell everything in order to acquire them? I wonder how many came along and said, yes, I would love to have this, but the price is much too high?

Yes, the Kingdom of heaven is just like that!

Yes, I wonder…

Matthew 13:36-43

Jesus told the Parable of the Weeds to the crowd in 13:24-30, and we covered it a couple posts back. At the end, I gave a simplified and “practical” or “every day” kind of explanation and mentioned that it has apocalyptic implications. For the most part, I just left it at that, knowing that A) you wouldn’t believe me if I went into it further, and B) that Jesus spoke about in this passage. Jesus isn’t as easy to argue with as I am!

Last time, I mentioned that everything about the Kingdom is apocalyptic, both because it reveals things in the here and now, and because it has eternal significance, as you will shortly see.

The disciples ask about the parable and Jesus holds nothing back:

He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the evil one, and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. (13:37-39)

Can you see the “here and now” in this? The here and now is everything except for the last sentence, which is the end, when Jesus returns. We are living in that messed up field, in which good seed has been planted by the Gospel, and in which the weeds planted by the nasty neighbor, the enemy of the farmer (Jesus) has sought to sabotage the crop (Satan). Like the wheat of the field, we struggle with the weeds that try to choke us off. But when the harvest comes…

“As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears, let them hear.” (13:40-43)

Sometimes apocalyptic passages reveal things about the present that have future implications. These verses however do the opposite; they speak of the future in a way that has implications about the present. Take special notice of the weeds in the Kingdom in 41b:

…and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil.

Are there “weeds” in the Kingdom today that cause “sin “? Are there “weeds” in the Kingdom today who do evil?

At this point, we might run into a problem if we don’t recognize that fact that there is another Biblical term for the Kingdom, and that term is the “church”. Are there such “weeds” in the midst of the church today?

I would have to say that, “Why yes, there are weeds in the church today, and that these “weeds” cause tremendous harm to both the citizens of the Kingdom, and to the very Kingdom itself.

OK dear reader, are you getting the hang of this whole “apocalyptic” business now? Present things have future implications, and future things have present implications, for both of them reveal considerably more than it would seem at first. Apocalyptic = Revelation.

Now that we are understanding this revelation of the Kingdom, I would offer an “editorial opinion”:

I hear and read a great deal of criticism of the church today, and I also offer some of my own periodically. These weeds have created chaos to a certain degree, filling the church with hierarchies, forms, rules, ceremonies, rituals, and many other abuses that tear people away from Christ; I get that. Yet I grow weary of those who blame the Kingdom (Church) for the subversion of the weeds planted by Satan. Can’t they see that they are playing Satan’s game?

Look carefully: The harvest, the ones who “will shine in the Kingdom of their Father” are not the ones who allow themselves to be choked off and separated from the Kingdom, they are ones who persevere, who resist the devil to the end.

We might ask ourselves where the constant critics are in this picture…

He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.”

He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds of flour until it worked all through the dough.”

Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet:

“I will open my mouth in parables,
I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.”

Matthew 13:33-35

Jesus continues His teaching of parables; there are two more in these few verses. As before, He begins with the words, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like…” denoting that 1) this is a parable (Is like) and 2) that the subject is indeed the kingdom of Heaven.  As we read these parables about the Kingdom of Heaven we would be well advised to keep in mind that everything about the Kingdom of Heaven has a strong apocalyptic implication. I would also mention once again that “apocalyptic” doesn’t mean the “End”, it means “to reveal” and what is revealed may or may not be about the “End”.

The Parable of the Mustard Seed is a simple one, since a mustard seed is so small, so apparently insignificant, and yet it can grow into a very large bush. We might say that the mustard plant is in a sense, counter-intuitive, since when we see one, we would likely assume it has a large seed as other bushes normally do, but it is actually one of the smallest of seeds.

In the world’s terms, the Kingdom of Heaven isn’t all that significant, in fact a great many liken it to a fairy tale as they scoff at the very idea of such a thing. But the Kingdom of Heaven is the most counter-intuitive of all things, because its power is found in its apparent weakness and insignificance.

The Parable of Yeast is similar to that of the mustard seed, for when we put a small amount of yeast into the flour to make the dough for bread, little would we suspect that such a small amount yeast would find its way into the entire dough mixture, becoming something so powerful that it entirely changes the nature of the dough. The Kingdom is like that because it comes into the world, and changes everything; no wonder it is opposed so fiercely!

The section ends with Matthew yet again showing us how this speech of Jesus’ ties into Israel’s history of prophecy.

Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.

“The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’

“‘An enemy did this,’ he replied.

“The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’

“‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’”

Matthew 13:24-30

The last thing anybody wants when they are planting seeds is to discover later that their seeds included the seeds of weeds, so seed providers are very careful to ensure that their seed packages are clear of such an infestation. In this parable, a farmer had good wheat seeds, free of weeds, but his enemy came into the field under cover of night and infested the man’s fields with weeds nice guy.

Jesus began the story by saying that the Kingdom of Heaven is like that. I’m sure I don’t really need to explain this to anybody, but obviously, the Gospel is represented by the seeds, the enemy is Satan, and the weed seeds are the notions, cares and philosophies of this world. As the Gospel message begins to grow inside a person, the weeds of the enemy grow and seek to choke out the pure message of hope. In the end, when the time has come for harvest, the Harvester will pull out the weeds so they can be burned, and the wheat will be harvested.

You might want to take note of the apocalyptic implications of this, for when Jesus returns, those weeds in the harvesting fields will be separated from the harvest and burned.

We might also note, in light of the previous passage, that the parables Jesus is using to explain the Kingdom are really not very hard to follow, unless of course, you just don’t want to follow them.

Matthew 13:1-23

This passage contains the Parable of the Sower, and in many translations, it has this as a heading, added by the translators. Yet, while the parable is in this passage, the passage is not entirely about the parable. You will no doubt recall that we are right in the middle of a section of Matthew’s Gospel that has the growing rejection of the Jews as its theme; consequently, if we view the passage outside of this theme, we will be taking the passage out of its context, and that is never a good idea.

That is how it is usually taught, however.

The scene opens shortly after Jesus had Pharisees for lunch, as we saw last time; He and the disciples went out to the Sea of Galilee, and the crowds were so big, he addressed them from a boat out on the water. Why shouldn’t the crowds be huge? In the last scene, He had healed everybody who needed healing… on the Sabbath, no less. I’m sure the news spread quickly and since everyone had the day off from work, they came out for the show. Maybe if they were lucky, a Pharisee or two might be crazy enough to challenge Him again!

In verses 3-9, He told the crowd the Parable of the Sower. Beginning at verse 10, we have His aside with the disciples; remember, they are in a boat, and the crowd is ashore… They asked Him why He was speaking to the people in parables. Before we look at the answer He gave, a parable is a metaphorical story that uses common frames of reference to deliver an inconvenient or uncomfortable truth in a non-threatening way, and has been used by the wise to communicate with and instruct others for about as long as people have been writing things down; they are used pretty much universally, and we still use them today, although in our time we usually call them “illustrations”.

In our passage, Jesus answers this way:

He replied, “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. (13:11-12)

I hope that the first thing you recognized in reading these two verses is that He hasn’t answered their question yet; this is a set up for the answer that will become apparent as He goes along. In short, what He is telling them so far is that they have been chosen as His disciples to have everything reveled to them, but the crowd hasn’t been. Consequently, He speaks to them in a way that requires a certain level of discernment before a person comprehends. He continues:

This is why I speak to them in parables:

“Though seeing, they do not see;
though hearing, they do not hear or understand. (13:13)

Just looking at this, you might expect that Jesus is quoting an Old Testament passage here, but He is not quoting anyone (yet). However, this is the answer to their question; He is speaking to the people in parables because they are not ready to deal with Truth, for they are in open rebellion against God. Why do I say this? Simple Jesus is not the kind of Messiah they are looking for, for they want a Messiah to deal with their political problems (i.e. the Roman occupation) not their spiritual problem of sin. Since God’s plan isn’t what they want, they rebel.

If you are in the habit of sharing your faith, you will recognize this as something quite common in our time, for it is fairly common to find a person who is quite open to the Gospel, as long as Jesus is the kind of Savior who will solve the person’s earthly problems, say financial or career problems, or their relational problems, or their problems with substance abuse or other addictive issues. Yet when their sin is mentioned, they are no longer interested, for they don’t see that as an issue, because they are “a good person”.

Jesus continues quoting from Isaiah 6:

In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah:

“‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding;
you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.
For this people’s heart has become calloused;
they hardly hear with their ears,
and they have closed their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts
and turn, and I would heal them.’ (13:14-15)

At the beginning of this passage, I reminded you of the overall theme in which this falls, that of Israel’s growing rejection of Jesus; do you see it now? It is nothing new in Israel’s history, and Matthew has once again tied the story of Jesus into Israel’s history, even though in this particular case, it is on the negative side of history. The people, by and large, want what they want, when they want it, and if God doesn’t deliver, they turn their backs on Him.

Jesus taught in parables, and those who were seeking relationship with God could very easily understand His teaching, and those who didn’t particularly care what God was doing if it wasn’t what they wanted would have no clue.

If you are wondering about the actual parable, you can read it in verses 3-9, and if you are curious about its meaning, Jesus explains that in verses 16 ff.

Matthew 12:22-37

I must confess that most of the time when I read a passage in which Pharisees are involved, I see politicians in my mind’s eye and this passage is no exception. Have you ever noticed how some politicians will keep reading the day’s talking points no matter how idiotic they sound?

Here they go again!

Jesus is presented with another person who is possessed by a demon; He drives out the demon, and the Pharisees start reading off their talking points:

But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.” (12:24)

As we know, Jesus has already made them look like fools for saying this, and here we go yet again. This time, He has even more to say, even borrowing heavily from one of Abraham Lincoln’s most famous speeches (or was it the other way around?):

Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. (12:24-28)

Jesus’ words were so memorable; I would have simply said, “What are you, stupid?”

First, Jesus points out the sheer stupidity of their charge, and then He turns it around on them: Maybe they drive out demons by the power of demons, but Jesus doesn’t, and if they drive out demons by the Spirit of God and the Son is before them driving out demons by the Spirit of God, then the Kingdom of God is standing right in front of them.

I don’t think I want to debate against Jesus, how about you?

He uses another example in verse 29 of a strong man’s house to make the same point again. Then, beginning in verse 30 it gets more serious:

“Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. And so I tell you, every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come. (12:30-32)

I am guessing that if we could have seen the faces of those Pharisees at this point, we would have seen a very special shade of bright red as they seethed in their fury against their long awaited Messiah. They have just been informed of having attributed to work of the Holy Spirit of God to the Devil, a sin for which there is no forgiveness, and they have done so sounding like complete fools in the process.

Ouch.

The passage, and the chapter ends with these words, and I don’t think that I need to say anything more, for they are more than self-explanatory:

 “Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” (12:33-37)

It is interesting for us to note that in almost all cases, Jesus speaks in a manner that is respectful, reasonable and calm; you just don’t see Him go off on anybody… except from time-to-time, when He goes off on the Pharisees. I think I have an idea why that is: for one thing, they are supposed to know better, and of all Gospel characters, they are the ones who should recognize the Messiah. For another thing, they are never really reasonable; it’s their way or the highway. Lastly, as mediocre politicians will always do, they just keep on  reading their talking points, no matter what else might happen, for, again like any mediocre politician, they believe that if they just tell their stupid lie enough times, people will believe them. The sad part is that those politicians usually turn out to be right, and people believe them in the end.