GREATEST IN THE KINGDOM

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Matthew 18:1-6

Today we come to an interesting scene that begins with a question from the disciples: 1At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"

The answer Jesus gives is set forth in four parts: FIRST-Jesus pulls in a child and declares that no one will enter the kingdom of heaven without becoming like a child. 2He called a little child and had him stand among them. 3And he said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

SECOND-Jesus gets to the question of the disciples more directly and says that the greatest in the kingdom of heaven has the humility of a child. 4Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

THIRD-Jesus announces the blessing to those who receive one child such as this that they also are receiving Jesus personally. 5"And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me.

FOURTH-Jesus warns of the curse upon those who cause one of these little ones to stumble. 6But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.

NOTE that there are basically two conditions to enter the kingdom. Unless you are converted is the underlying theme here:

1. Converted means to have a change of mind-a change of mind toward Jesus. 2. Unless you become like children-humble, innocent, respectful and most of all, a teachable, tender heart, you cannot be converted in your heart and enter the Kingdom.

So, who are these "children" Jesus is referring to? Let me suggest three "children" that may fit this category:

1. Actual, real young children who are easily influenced. It's clear to most that the most strategic time to mark a person indelibly is in the younger season of life.

2. Young believers who are very new in their faith. They are easily influenced and distracted away from what's foundational and most important.

3. Immature followers of Jesus who just haven't been taught and also just don't know any better.

NOTE that this is a serious issue for Jesus. Your actions and reactions must be pulled into check. Your life is not just about you. There are many looking on and following you in your attitudes and actions. I like thinking that YOU ARE THE ONLY BIBLE SOME PEOPLE WILL EVER READ AND THE ONLY WAY JESUS WILL EVER BE ABLE TO TOUCH THEM, so pay attention to who you are and what you do.

FREEDOM OF BEING IN JESUS

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On this day of celebration of our freedom in this great country, there is a greater freedom to celebrate! In fact, the freedom I am speaking of has to do with personal freedom. It's the freedom that if you have it, then you could live under political domination and still be free. Or, if you don't have it, you could live in the freest of countries and still be enslaved. There is only one kingdom on planet earth where you can celebrate true freedom inside out and that is in the kingdom of God, where Jesus is King. Where the King is, there is the kingdom. And where Jesus is, there is FREEDOM.

I grew up enslaved as a kid by people who didn't understand this freedom. You see, you can know lots about Jesus and still not experience His freedom. The letter to the fellowship of believers in Galatia deals with this issue as its primary theme. In Galatians 5 the writer says, "It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery. Behold I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you. For we through the Spirit, by faith, are waiting for the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but faith working through love."

The letter to the fellowship of believers in Rome is the basic source for the Galatian letter and in chapter 8 Paul says, "Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death." You can't get much clearer than NO CONDEMNATION FOR THOSE IN JESUS.

Jesus said to those who believed Him, "If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free." Now the way I figure it, those of us who are doing the best we can to walk with Jesus, walk with others and wait on Jesus to lead out are walking as disciples of Jesus and continuing in His word, therefore we ought to know His freedom in our lives and celebrate it!

In the Acts of Jesus (13:38-39) this freedom is summed up with, "Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through Him forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, and through Him everyone who believes is freed from all things, from which you could not be freed through the Law of Moses."

The best invitation to freedom is from Jesus Himself when He says, "Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest." All who are weary and burdened down with all of the religious systems of performance out there that produce every level of guilt imaginable. You are the ones Jesus is calling to COME TO HIM. Then note He is calling you and me into REST. That rest is the freedom of not having to pay attention to the religiosities of our world and world systems and of our church and cultural systems that weigh us down. JESUS IS CALLING US TO BE HIS DISCIPLES AND THAT CALL IS AN INVITATION TO REST. AND THAT REST IS AN INVITATION TO HIS FREEDOM.

I sum it up this way: YOU CANNOT BE A FREE PERSON UNTIL YOU BECOME BOUND TO THE PERSON OF JESUS!

SOME SEE THE KINGDOM

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Matthew 16:28-17:8

The next mention of the Kingdom in Matthew is within the same chapter-chapter 16. Here Jesus makes a strong statement concerning some who are standing in front of Him. He says they will not taste of death until they see the Son of Man coming in His Kingdom.

28 "Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom."

What does this mean? Who will the "some" be? And, when is the coming of the Son of Man that it can be seen? The next few verses give us the answer: 1 After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. 2 There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. 3 Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.

4 Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters-one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." 5 While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!"

There you have it. The "some" refers to Peter, James and John who were taken up into the mountain by Jesus. And, the event was what is called the "transfiguration" or the transformation of Jesus from His physical condition into a glorious one where His face shone like the sun, His clothes became white as light and the voice of God affirming Jesus as the Son of God.

The coming of the Son of Man in His glory is the Kingdom. Remember, the Kingdom is wherever the presence of the King is. Jesus pulled back the screen a bit and revealed His God-like presence in front of these three disciples. They indeed saw the Kingdom in Jesus.

NOTE who showed up for this Kingdom display. It was Moses and Elijah. Moses represents the Law and Elijah represents the Prophets. So, you have a good illustration of the Law and the Prophets standing with Jesus. But it doesn't end like this.

6 When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified. 7 But Jesus came and touched them. "Get up," he said. "Don't be afraid." 8 When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus.

Moses (the Law) and Elijah (the Prophets) disappear and "When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus." This is beautiful! The Law and the Prophets find all of their meaning and fulfillment in the person of Jesus. This is one of the best passages that illustrates the very essence and bottom-line of the Gospels. I hope you see it and never forget it. It's JESUS PLUS NO ONE ELSE-PLUS NOTHING.

THE KEYS OF THE KINGDOM

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Matthew 16:13-20

As we continue to move through Matthew's perspective on the Kingdom, we have arrived at Matthew 16:

13When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?" 14They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets."

15"But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?"

16Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

17Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. 18And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. 19I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." 20Then he warned his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Christ.

Years ago when working on university campuses, we made it our goal to do whatever we could to make Jesus the issue on the campus. We did this by speaking to the needs of the students and then relating Jesus as the solution to those needs. This was the atmosphere during the times of Jesus in the 1st Century. He was the issue that everyone was talking about and everyone had an opinion about Him.

Jesus asked "What are people saying out there?" Then, turns the corner and asks, "Who do you say that I am?" Peter came through with the answer: "YOU ARE THE CHRIST (Messiah), the Son of the living God!"

Just when Peter was about to take credit for this observation, Jesus points out that His Father gave him that insight.

Then Jesus makes one of the most important statements of His early ministry. "You are Peter (little rock) and upon this rock (big ledge) I will build My church." He refers to some sort of huge rock or ledge upon which Jesus will build His church. Here are the most common options:

· He is speaking of Peter as the foundation of the church. (This would place Peter as THE leader-even the Pope of the church. This would give great power to the leadership of man and especially those who are successors of Peter.)

· He is speaking of the words Peter spoke-the confession of who indeed Jesus is-the Messiah, the Son of the living God. (This would place words and theology as the governing foundation and force of the church of Jesus.)

I have difficulty accepting either of these explanations of Jesus' words. And, in fact, at the rate of 70+ churches shutting down in the USA every week, it seems that the gates of Hades or something may be overpowering them. These are not the churches of Jesus. They are based upon man's leadership and man-made theological structures. I think the best is the third option:

· He is speaking of the actual living confession of Peter to make this testimony and assessment of Jesus. The church of Jesus that will not be destroyed by the gates of Hades is the testimony of the followers of Jesus as they speak of Him. It is the beauty of people from a variety of backgrounds and status who are given by the Father the power and courage to confess that they are followers of Messiah Jesus, the Son of the living God.

NOTE that Jesus says that He will build His church. That's the only kind of church that will not be overpowered. So if Jesus is building the church, what does He want us who follow Him to do? Let's get it straight: HE BUILDS THE CHURCH; WE ARE TO BE THE CHURCH.

ONE MORE THING: What is this "church" that Jesus says He will build? The Greek term is ekklesia. It literally means those who are "called out" for a reason. This could refer to a city council, an assembly or a gathering of any kind. So, this term is a very common term and has no great significance at all. This is one of two times Jesus even uses the term.

When Jesus speaks of "building" His "church", He is speaking of a gathering of those who are followers of Jesus. The revolutionary movement of Jesus is being built-energized-by Jesus Himself. Nothing can stop this movement. Don't you see that this kind of movement is the Kingdom movement.

NOTE that those who are actively expressing this confession of being followers of Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of the living God are given the "keys of the Kingdom" to bind things on earth. And, those things that are bound on earth are also bound in heaven. This is the essence of the Kingdom teaching. There is no separation between the earth and the heavens. Why? Because the Kingdom of heaven is all about living life on earth. It's the presence of God in and through us right here, right now. Here's how it works: Confess that Jesus is God's deliverer for planet earth and He wants to set up His Kingdom right here among us RIGHT NOW.

IN SUMMARY OF MATTHEW 13

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Today I want to sum up the 8 parables in Matthew 13. Remember, Jesus is answering a fundamental question going through the disciples' minds: "Jesus, what's going to happen to the Kingdom now that the Jewish leadership has rejected you as the King?"

Jesus answers with the 8 parables we've been discussing over the last several days. His answer is: FIRST-The Kingdom will consist of the sowing of the word-the good news of the Kingdom. This sowing will be indiscriminate to all who have ears to hear and eyes to see. The Kingdom will be a continual invitation to everyone, no matter their background.

SECOND-The Kingdom will consist of two types of people-wheat and tares (false wheat or weeds). In other words, there will be a constant imitation of genuine wheat standing alongside which are the weeds and will be so much like the real thing it will be difficult to sort it all out. So, don't even try. Jesus will take care of the sorting later.

THIRD-The Kingdom will enjoy incredible growth. It will begin with very few-a very small seed like a mustard seed, then that seed will grow immensely into the size of a large bush. That bush will be strong enough for birds to nest there.

FOURTH-The Kingdom will experience an irreversible growth as when leaven or yeast is worked into a large amount of dough. There is no way to remove the leaven once it is present. In the same way, the Kingdom cannot be stopped; it's irreversible.

FIFTH-The Kingdom is a movement where many will enter into it by surprise. They were not looking for the Kingdom, but when they were exposed to it dropped everything in order to embrace it for themselves.

SIXTH-The Kingdom is a movement where there will also be many who will enter it by searching for it. Many spend their lives seeking out the ultimate answers to life. Then, when they discover what they have been searching for in the good news of the Kingdom, they also drop everything and hold on to this discovery for dear life.

SEVENTH-There will be an ultimate accountability at the end of the age and everyone in the great dragnet will be sorted out individually by Jesus, Himself.

EIGHTH-A person who receives and studies the Kingdom is like a person who now can relate to anyone, because he is able to think through all of God's truth. Once you receive this good news message with ears to hear and eyes to see, you will enjoy an ongoing journey of learning and sharing the universal principles of life.

You know what strikes me the most as I think through all 8 parables? There seem to be only two actions on our part. All of the rest is out of our hands altogether. The two actions are:

1. The primary action that we are to be caught up in is the sowing of the seed-the word-the good news of the Kingdom.

2. The secondary action is that we are to be students of the Kingdom as it universally applies to not only our lives, but for all who God brings to our homes.

In other words, what we are to be all about in our life's work is the sharing of the Kingdom and the studying of the Kingdom. For some reason, I missed it all these years. I have spent my time building churches, producing books, audio and video publications, developing my ability to communicate with the masses in the church and corporate arenas, and discussing the many issues of life-all without any thought of the message of the good news of the Kingdom. I've read about it, but I never understood how pervasive this good news of the Kingdom is. And, I also have missed that this Kingdom of God is already right here, right now. How is it going with you?