Important Instructions From Jesus Our King (Part 3) Series

Important Instructions from Jesus Our King (Part 3)

The Gospel of Matthew

Matthew 10:24-33

Sermon by Rick Crandall

(Prepared February 8, 2022)

MESSAGE:

*Please open your Bibles to Matthew 10:24. In this chapter, Jesus was about to send His Apostles out to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. The Lord commanded them to preach that the kingdom of Heaven was at hand. And to confirm this vital message, Jesus gave the Apostles the power to perform mighty miracles in His name. In Matthew 10:8 Jesus told them, "Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give."

*This was their mission, but the Lord also filled this chapter with important instructions that still apply to His followers today.

1. FIRST: STRIVE TO BE LIKE OUR SAVIOR.

*This should be our greatest goal in life: To be more like our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. As the Lord said in vs. 24-25, "A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. . ."

[1] HOW CAN WE BE MORE LIKE JESUS? ONE WAY IS TO SERVE LIKE JESUS SERVED.

*Over in Matthew 20:26-28 Jesus said this to His followers:

26. . . "Whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant.

27. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave

28. just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.''

*Jesus Christ is Lord of all! But He came to earth with a servant heart. And He wants us to have a heart like His, so again in vs. 25 Jesus said, "It is enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master."

*God designed the Christian life to be a life of serving the Lord with good works. Paul put it this way in Ephesians 2:8-10: "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them."

[2] IF WE ARE GOING TO BE LIKE JESUS, WE SHOULD SERVE LIKE JESUS SERVED. WE MAY ALSO BE ASKED TO SHARE IN HIS SUFFERING.

*This is why Jesus gave this warning in the last part of vs. 25, "If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub." (Beelzebub was one of the names for Satan, the prince of the evil spirits.) "If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more will they call those of his household!"

*The world's hatred for Jesus spills over to His followers, so William Barclay said, "We not only share His glory but His agony too." (1)

*We see this kind of suffering in the Book of Acts, when Saul did everything he could to persecute the church. Then Jesus appeared to Saul on the Damascus Road to save him and transform him into the Apostle Paul. And when the Lord appeared to Saul in Acts 9:4, Jesus did not say, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting My church." No. Jesus asked, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?"

*Christians: When we suffer for Jesus Christ, the Lord takes our suffering as His own. We truly are sharing in His suffering. So, years later when Paul wrote to the Christians in Colosse, he said, "I am glad when I suffer for you in my body, for I am participating in the sufferings of Christ that continue for His body, the church." (Colossians 1:24 NLT)

*If you are like me, you would have to say, "I'm not even close to that kind of wisdom, love, and commitment." But God will help us, and Jesus wants us to strive to be more like our Savior.

2. CHURCH: HE ALSO WANTS US TO FOCUS ON FEARING THE LORD.

*Jesus talked about two kinds of fear in vs. 25-28, and here He said:

25. "It is enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more will they call those of his household!

26. Therefore do not fear them. For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known.

27. Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops.

28. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."