First Presbyterian Church
Wichita Falls, Texas
December 15, 2013
THE ONE
Isaac Butterworth
Matthew 11:2-19 (NRSV)
2When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples 3and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” 4Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: 5the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. 6And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.”
7As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? 8What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. 9What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10This is the one about whom it is written,
‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare the way before you.’
11Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.” 12From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force. 13For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John came; 14and if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. 15Let anyone with ears listen!
16“But to what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to one another,
17 ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;
we wailed, and you did not mourn.’
18For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon;’ 19the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.”
Who is Jesus to you? This is the most important question anyone will ever ask you, and the answer you give will be the determining factor in your destiny, not only in this world but also in the world to come.
John the Baptist knew who Jesus was for himself. At least, he thought he did. He called him “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). But now John is in jail, and he is there because of sin. Not his own sin, but the sins of others. And he is about to be executed. And he may not be so sure anymore who Jesus is. So he sends his disciples to Jesus to ask Jesus about his identity. “Are you the one…?” he asks. “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?”
I want to turn that question back to you. I want to ask you, “Is Jesus THE ONE for you? Is he THE ONE in your life? Here in Matthew, chapter 11, you are given three facts to consider as you think about your answer. Consider them, if you will, and give answer.
The first fact is this: Jesus is revealed to us as the One who is to come. That’s what we see in verses 2 through 6. When John’s disciples approach Jesus with John’s question – “Are you the one…, or are we to wait for another?” – what does Jesus do? He tells them to report to John what they “hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them.” In other words, in the presence of Jesus “the kingdom of heaven has come” (Matt. 4:17).
Now, of course, it hasn’t come in all its fullness, but it has come. It has been launched. It’s not here in its final form, else John would not be in prison, facing execution – but the kingdom has been inaugurated. Things are happening. Good things are happening. Jesus is healing the sick and raising the dead and preaching the gospel. The kingdom of light is intruding into the kingdom of darkness. So go, Jesus says. Tell John.
But wait? What is John supposed to do with such information? What are we to do with it? Let me suggest two things, and they both amount to the same thing. We are to have hope. That is, we are to be confident that God is doing something magnificent. That’s the first thing. We are to take heart because God is rolling out his grand project to right what is wrong, to save what is lost, to restore what is ruined, not only in us but also in this sin-weary world.
And the second thing that we are to do is this: We are to live each and every day as if the kingdom has indeed already come, and come in its fullness! Imagine that! How would such a perspective shape the way we do things: the way we relate to other people, the way we prioritize the use of our time and our money, the way we manage setbacks, even reversals? I’ll tell you. If you and I were to live as if Jesus were already enthroned for all to see, we would relate to the world the way Jesus did: no resentment, no bitterness, no grudges, no fears, no excuses. We would be part of the healing force! Our transformed lives would be evidence that the kingdom has been launched, and Jesus would be revealed as THE ONE.
That’s the first fact that we need to consider when we think about who Jesus is to us. He is revealed as “the one who is to come.” The second fact has to do with Jesus’ reception, how he is received. Here we look in Matthew 11 at verses 7 through 15. And what do we discover there?
We find Jesus saying that, from the time John the Baptist began preaching until now, until the time that he arrived on the scene, “the kingdom of heaven” – these are Jesus’ words – “the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force” (v. 12). Now, this is a most unusual statement, but it is not difficult to understand. Jesus is not talking about persecution here or anything like that. In fact, he is not talking about anything negative at all. He is talking about something positive, something very positive. He’s talking about people’s reception of him as “the one who is to come.” “The violent” here – who are they? They are those who are desperate to get into the kingdom. They are those who are earnest in their resolve to enter it. Now, if you know anything at all about my theology, you know that I believe that salvation is all of God. You and I do not contribute a single thing to our salvation. So, if it’s all of God, what do we make of the effort of people to enter God’s kingdom so forcefully that Jesus refers to it as “violent?” Well, here’s what I make of it: When God goes to work in us, the Spirit of God stirs us to action. And the surge – what Jesus calls here a violent force – comes not from within us but, rather, from outside us, from God himself. He activates us. He energizes us. And, because of what he does in us, the thing we want most is him. We want his kingdom. We want his Son. We want his Son to rule. We want to live in his kingdom, under his rule. We want him to be our “One and Only” (John 1:18, NIV). And nothing is more important to us than that.
So, I ask you: Is there anything more important to you than that? Is there an urgency about you – tantamount to violence, to put it the way Jesus does here? Is there a necessity about the things of God that drives you, tugs at you, pulls you in its direction? Oh, but what if there is not? What then? Then this: Do not hesitate another moment. Get alone with God and plead with him to fill you with a desire for him above everything else. Plead with him violently, if you know what I mean. If you don’t yet want his rule with all your heart, pray until you do. Ask until the desire is given. Take heaven by force if you must, but take it. Don’t regard it as negligible.
Many people do. Many people do. And that brings us to the third fact in this passage, something you will want to consider. And that is this: The rejection of the One who is to come. We’ve seen the revelation of Jesus as “the one,” and we’ve seen his reception. Now we see his rejection. Look in verses 16 through 19. Jesus asks, “But to what will I compare this generation?” And then he says, “It is like children…” – children who cannot find enough seriousness within them even to play a simple game.
Jesus says, “John and I tried to get a game up. It didn’t matter what: funeral or wedding, whichever, but you wouldn’t play. We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not mourn.” Then Jesus explains what he means. He says outright, “For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon;’ the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’”
What’s the point? The point is this: People reject Jesus. They reject his rule. They reject his kingdom. They reject his person. What does Isaiah say of him? “He had no form or majesty that we should look at him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected…” (Isa. 53:2b-3a).
Listen to me now. I must tell you something harsh but true: That is what we all do to Jesus – we despise him and reject him, unless – unless the Spirit of God works a work of grace in us so miraculous that we cannot explain it any other way…unless the Holy Spirit so moves upon us that we come to see Jesus for who and what he truly is, that he is the One.
So, if you have any inclination at all to embrace Jesus, yield to it. Yield to it. It is God calling you. That’s how it happens. God calls you. It’s all over Scripture. Paul refers to it as “the calling to which you have been called” (Eph. 4:1). Peter names it “your call and election” (2 Pet. 1:10). And that’s how it starts. It doesn’t start with you and me. It starts with God. He calls us. And then what? And then this: the Holy Spirit opens our ears to hear the call. And with ears to hear – remember how Jesus himself says in verse 15 of our text? “Let anyone with ears listen!” When the Spirit gives you ears to hear and opens your eyes to see, you look upon Jesus, and no longer do you despise him. No longer do you reject him. You see him as he is. He becomes “the fairest of ten thousand” (Song of Songs 5:10), “the bright and morning star” (Rev. 22:16), the “pioneer and perfecter of [your] faith (Heb. 12:2) He becomes your “one and only” (John 1:18, NIV).
And what’s happening to you is this. It is conversion, and conversion is nothing more than repentance and faith. In repentance, which is itself a gift from God, you turn from your rebellion. You no longer reject Jesus. And in faith, which is also a gift from God, you receive him. You take hold of the kingdom with a kind of holy violence, and nothing becomes more important to you than having Jesus as your king.
Let me ask you again the question I asked at the beginning of my remarks: Who is Jesus to you? Who is he? In the last verse of our passage for today, we find Jesus acknowledging that there are those who reject him. “Yet,” he says, “wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.” Wisdom is vindicated by the evidence.
According Paul, Jesus has become for us “wisdom from God” (1 Cor. 1:30). So you must ask yourself: Has Jesus been vindicated for you? Is there evidence to verify his claim to be what God reveals him to be? If so, then rejoice. Give thanks. Get down on your knees and give thanks, because what it means is this: It means the Spirit of God is at work in your heart to make Jesus THE ONE.
