COMING DOWN THE MOUNTAIN.
Matthew 17:10-27.
Peter, James, and John had been in the mountain with Jesus. There they had seen Moses and Elijah, talking with our transfigured Lord (cf. Matthew 17:2-3). It is apparent from Peter’s desire to build temples that the three disciples on the mountain wanted to stay there (cf. Matthew 17:4). As Moses and Elijah were taken from their sight, their attention was drawn anew to Jesus by a voice out of the cloud, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!’ (cf. Matthew 17:5).
Matthew 17:10-13. As they came down the mountain, they asked Jesus, “Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?” This, of course, refers to the prophecy of Malachi 4:5. Yet Jesus did not point them to the Elijah whom they had just seen communing with Him, but to the recently murdered John the Baptist, who had already fulfilled that prophecy (Matthew 17:13).
And, He reminded them, “the Son of man will also suffer of them” (Matthew 17:12).
Speaking of His death, Jesus often refers to Himself grammatically in the third person as “the Son of Man” (Matthew 17:12; Matthew 17:22). He who is fully God is also fully Man: who humbled Himself (cf. Philippians 2:5-8) and gave Himself over unto death (cf. John 10:18). He is the new representative head of the human race; ‘the last Adam’ if you will: and as ‘the last Adam’ He gives His life as a substitute for the many; and became, by His resurrection (cf. Matthew 17:9), ‘a life-giving spirit’ (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:45).
We might like to enjoy our mountain-top experiences without the trouble of coming back down to the more mundane realities of everyday life, but we may not. There is work to be done in the valley!
Matthew 17:14-21. Meanwhile in the valley, the other disciples were trying to cure a poor boy who was troubled by a demon. They were trying this without having prayed, and in their own strength. But this kind, they were told, only come out with fasting and prayer.
Jesus, who had just been at prayer, healed the boy, and the evil spirit left him. The people marvelled!
Matthew 17:22-23. The emphasis on the Cross was still uppermost in Jesus’ mind as the apostolic band walked through Galilee on their way home to Capernaum, and Jesus again sought to convey this message to His disciples: but again, they found it a difficult pill to swallow.
We need not be surprised at this, because the way of the Cross has always been a stumbling-block to religious people: ‘For the message of the cross is foolishness unto those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:18). Left on his own, Man would rather trust in his own (in)ability to keep the Law of God than trust in the sacrifice of Another! Yet there is no other way (cf. John 14:6; Acts 4:12). Jesus came ‘not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give His life as a ransom for many’ (cf. Matthew 20:28).
Matthew 17:24-27. Matthew alone, the former tax-collector, records this encounter between Peter and those who received the tribute money (the Temple tax), and its interesting sequel.
In the first instance, rather than approaching Jesus Himself, the officials asked Peter, “Does your Master not pay tribute?” Impetuous as ever, and without referring the question to Jesus, Peter blurted out, “Yes.”
When he came into the house, Peter knew that he was in trouble when Jesus (who knows all things) asked, “What do you think, Simon? Of whom do the kings of the earth take customs and taxes? Of their own children or of strangers?” The point being, of course, that Peter had so very recently heard the voice which spoke of Jesus as ‘My beloved Son’ (cf. Matthew 17:5).
Why then should the Son of God be obliged to pay the taxes for the upkeep of His own Father’s house? Also, Jesus added, “then are the children free” - implying that even Peter and the disciples, as ‘sons of God’ in a secondary sense (cf. John 1:12) were also exempt.
“Nevertheless, lest we should offend them” - this is important. There is a time to stand on our dignity, and a time to waive it. We are to be obedient to authority, both in church and state. Like Paul, we need not insist upon our rights, ‘lest we should hinder the gospel of Christ’ (cf. 1 Corinthians 9:12).
Jesus would not compromise His ministry for the sake of an argument, but even went the second mile in paying Peter’s tribute money also!
