Advent Matthew 11:2-11
[2] Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples,
[3] And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?
[4] Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and show John again those things which ye do hear and see:
[5] The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them.
[6] And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.
[7] And as they departed, Jesus began to say unto the multitudes concerning John, What went ye out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken with the wind?
[8] But what went ye out for to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? behold, they that wear soft clothing are in kings' houses.
[9] But what went ye out for to see? A prophet? yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet.
[10] For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee.
[11] Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
THE SAVIOR, MEEK, LOWLY, AND ALL-POWERFUL
When we think of the Advent season, we can’t help but think of the joyful song of the angels to the shepherds on the fields of Bethlehem. We sometimes forget, however, that the coming of God’s Son was such an essential part of our salvation that He called a special person to announce it. That person was John the Baptist, God’s servant, whose sole purpose in life was to prepare the way for Jesus. Already before John was born, an angel had told his father, a priest in the temple, about the special life’s calling of his son. From birth on, therefore, John knew what he was called to do, so that when he began his ministry, he described himself as “the voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” Isaiah 40:3
Jesus, his Lord, meant everything to him. He felt honored to baptize Him, and heard the voice from heaven, pointing to His Son, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Matthew 3:17. John fearlessly proclaimed God’s message of repentance and remission of sins to prepare a people that trusted their own righteousness. Listen to his words, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.” Mark 1:25, and again he said, “O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” Matthew 3:7 John’s reputation grew rapidly. People from all around flocked to the wilderness to hear him preach, but they returned home disappointed. His message of repentance was not what they wanted to hear. Only a few followed him and ultimately became his disciples. Listen to how Jesus describes who came to hear John preach, “What did you expect when you flocked out to the wilderness?” “Were you looking for a mealy-mouthed preacher who would say what you wanted him to say, ‘a reed shaken in the wind?” John preached the word of God to them. His message was the same as the message Jesus preached throughout His ministry, “I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” Luke 5:32.
John called people everywhere to repentance, and that included even the King of Galilee. When King Herod had visited his brother at Rome, he had an affair with, Herodias, his brother’s wife. Soon he divorced his own wife and brought Herodias back to Galilee. When John learned of it, He approached the king and said, “It is not lawful for thee to have thy brother's wife.” Mark 6:18. Herodias was so angry that she had John put into prison and eventually beheaded.
John’s ministry was at an end, and he was prepared for it. He said, “He must increase, but I [must] decrease.” John 3:30. “Of the increase of [his] government and peace [there shall be] no end,” Isaiah 9:7. However, now that he was imprisoned, he was concerned about his disciples. They had grown to love him. They eagerly accepted his message of repentance and had followed him where ever he preached. These were his dearest friends, men who had stood by him and supported him in his preaching of the Gospel. It is easy to imagine how lost and discouraged they must have become at a time like this, especially because they didn’t know where to turn for a leader, and they hadn’t learned to trust Jesus. Now, when John had learned that Jesus was in the area, he called his disciples and sent them to Jesus with the question, “Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?” John knew the answer to that question before he had asked it. He had spent his entire ministry pointing the multitudes to Jesus, saying, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” John 1:29. He asked the question for His disciples” sake.
Somehow, in spite of everything John had said about Jesus, his disciples didn’t seem to grasp it. Perhaps they were looking for another dynamic personality who would attract crowds and ultimately lead a revolt against the hated Romans. Perhaps they were offended by what they had heard of Jesus, someone who preached the gospel to the poor and spent his time helping the helpless. Christ may not have been the dramatic preacher that their master had been, going about with a leather girdle and eating locusts and wild honey. Christ may not have been the fiery orator that attracted huge crowds. Christ was more than that. Christ was God’s only-begotten Son that came into the world to spare us from the penalty of eternal death. What better way for John to convince them that Jesus was the promised Messiah than by having them ask Jesus face-to-face, “Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?”
What was Jesus’ answer? “What do you see and hear?” Jesus spoke with the authority of God. When Jesus drove out an unclean spirit, the people cried, “What a word is this! for with authority and power he commandeth the unclean spirits, and they come out.” Luke 4:36. When Jesus preached in the temple, his hearers “were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power.” Luke 4:32. No other word in heaven or on earth has the power, not only to heal diseases, but especially to heal sin-sick souls. Jesus invited John’s disciples as He has invited sinners of every age, “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” Matthew 11:29. Jesus does not come to the proud and self-sufficient of this world as a popular and renowned preacher. He comes as one, meek and lowly, who has a heart for the poor in spirit. No one expresses this more clearly than the prophet Isaiah, “The Spirit of the Lord GOD [is] upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to [them that are] bound,” Isaiah 61:1. Jesus’ greatness lies in His humility and in His message.
Many throughout the ages have been offended by the Messiah simply because He
did not fit their pre-conceived ideas. That the holy Son of God would humble Himself to come to earth as a mortal man to serve sinners with the message of forgiveness has always been an offense. Why would He stoop to love the people of the earth and why He would even bother to seek those who have wandered far from Him? We know that He did. He came as a babe in a manger, was born of the virgin Mary, and lived among us as one of us. Many people of the first Century were offended by that. They did not want a spiritual leader but a political revolutionary. People in the 21st Century are no different. False preachers of every stripe ignore the call to repentance by declaring Christ merely as a great reformer, whose sole purpose was to make the world a better place in which to live. For our modern world Christianity is too narrow. It doesn’t leave room for Mohammedism or Buddhism, or whatever. People resent a Christ who teaches, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6. They call for political action to force Christianity on an unbelieving world, ignoring the fundamental truth that Christ rules, not with the sword, but through the changed hearts of men, women, and children, bringing them together in a lowly, spiritual family that glories in the Christ of whom the world is ashamed.
Hymn 346 ---------------------------- ---------------------
5. Ashamed of Jesus? Yes, I may
When I’ve no guilt to wash away,
No tear to wipe, no joy to crave,
No fears to quell, no soul to save.
6. Till then--nor is the boasting vain--
Till then I boast a Savior slain.
And oh, may this my portion be,
That Christ is not ashamed of me!