Matthew 22:1-14 Series Part 3
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Introduction/Welcome
Introduction/Welcome
Good morning and welcome to FCC where we worship God in Spirit and in Truth, one verse at a time.
We are so glad that each one of you have joined us this morning, and I hope you are looking forward to what the Lord has to say.
Thank you for your thoughts, prayers, and text messages while I was gone visiting my family, back home in Indiana. This was one of the best trips I have had since moving to the Pacific North West.
Praise God for that message of music and for Larry bringing the Word last week!
God is so, so, Good! AMEN?
Prayer
Prayer
Thanksgiving
Barbara Nasralla, Matt and his 2 children, Mary, Beth, Holly and all the family>>> The Loss of Rachel
Carolyn Swanson called and asked for prayer for the family. Her sister-in-law, Janyce Swanson's niece was killed in a motor cycle accident.
Sharon Gordon’s husband CAC
For those shut in and for those struggling
For those that have yet to completely surrender their lives to You Father, to live for you, to forsake the thing of this world.
Read Matthew 22:1-14
Read Matthew 22:1-14
Review
Review
In the last few weeks before I left we talked about what a Jewish wedding looks like and that this is the Wednesday before Jesus is crucified and dies for the sins of the world. That mean you and I, that means for your families and friends, that means for your neighbors and your co-workers, and it also means for your enemies and for those you might struggle with.
We also learned that the tradition was that there would be 2 invitations sent out. The first invite was the let people know there was a Royal Wedding feast and the second was the the wedding was ready. We know that these weddings could last for 7 days, but because this is a Royal Wedding Feast, it would possibly last for longer.
Just a reminder:
The King is God or the Father
The Son is Jesus
The first two invitations went to Israel, to the Jews
And here we see Jesus speaking a third parable, that is actually giving repeated invitations to the Pharisee’s, to the Herodians, to the Sadducee’s, to the Scribes, to the priest in the temple. To the Sanhedrin.
Remember, it is passover time and Jesus is in the temple sharing this parable, surrounded by a multitude of Jews.
How many invitations this past week did God give to you?
How many invitations did you give?
Or let me re-phrase this: How many times did you share the gospel, the love of God, and Jesus this past week?
But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business.
We left off here a few Sundays ago and I wanted to take a closer look at this text in light of the excuses they had.
It is interesting to me that Jesus used the farm and a business.
The farm is in the country, while businesses were in the city.
They made light of it actually means they were careless, they were more focused, and more consumed with the things of this world, rather that the things of God.
For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
What does is profit you if you gain it all, but lose your soul?
Dr. Henry Cloud says, “Our life is never on the outside. It is always on the inside. The invisible life always produces the visible life. Life works form the inside>OUT!”
He goes on to say he finds three things true:
First, the good life sometimes has little to do with outside circumstances. We are happy and fulfilled mostly by who we are on the inside. Research validates this.
Second, our internal lives largely contribute to producing many of our external circumstances. Our talents and abilities, when invested with God, actually build the external life. When we invest our talents for God’s kingdom church, there is fruit.
Only 10% of our happiness comes from circumstances, or the external. 90% comes from what is going on in our hearts or from our realtionship with the Lord.
The scientific research affirms what God tells us over and over again: if we pay attention to the inside of us, then the outside will take care of itself.
Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.
The fruit is in the root church.
If a tree or any other plant is not good on the inside, then it will definitely not be good on the outside.
The fruit comes from what is going on inside
In order to have the outside life we desire, we must seek God and develop as people. For the life that is on the inside will naturally flow to the outside.
If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
If we were raised with Christ, then we should be seeking the things above. We should be setting our minds on thing above, not on this earth.
If we have not been raised with Christ, then we would not be seeking things above, but rather the things of this earth.
Here, we can see that those that were given the second invitation were focused on the earth.
The spent more time with the farm and their business, then they did with God.
We always will make time for what is most important in our lives church. Our priorities show us were our focus really is.
The Bible Exposition Commentary Chapter Eight: Heaven on Earth (Colossians 3:1–11)
Christ not only died for us (substitution), but we died with Him (identification). Christ not only died for sin, bearing its penalty; but He died unto sin, breaking its power. Because we are “in Christ” through the work of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 12:13), we died with Christ. This means that we can have victory over the old sin nature that wants to control us.
But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business.
Church, they made excuses. Our excuses will make us careless like Israel. And although Israel will be grafted back in, their were some that lost eternal life, because:
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing!
You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me. But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life. “I do not receive honor from men. But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you.
Church, Israel would not come to Jesus because they had excuses:
They knew better
They placed the traditions of man over God’s Law
They added to God’s Law
They had an outward religion that could not transform the heart
They were more concerned how they looked on the outside, rather than on the inside.
Look at what Jesus said:
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also. “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
Church, when Jesus showed up, he wanted then to see and us to see that religion does not fix the human heart
When Jesus turned over the money changers tables, what He was trying to do was turn over the religious leaders hearts.
Jesus desires to deal with our hearts.
He was trying to move Israel from outside conforming, to inside transforming
What does Jesus want to turn over in your heart?
Let’s look at what Luke wrote regarding excuses
Now when one of those who sat at the table with Him heard these things, he said to Him, “Blessed is he who shall eat bread in the kingdom of God!” Then He said to him, “A certain man gave a great supper and invited many, and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, ‘Come, for all things are now ready.’ But they all with one accord began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it. I ask you to have me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them. I ask you to have me excused.’ Still another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’ So that servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house, being angry, said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here the poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind.’
They were all in one accord, they were all making excuses together.
Church, I stand amazed how others in our lives can influence us to make excuses
They can actually cause us to fall away form the faith even
There is no relationship, no farm, no ox, no cattle, not car, no house, no etc…
He that is good for making excuses, is seldom good for anything else. Ben Franklin
Let’s look at an OT example:
Then Moses said to the Lord, “O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither before nor since You have spoken to Your servant; but I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.” So the Lord said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes the mute, the deaf, the seeing, or the blind? Have not I, the Lord?
Moses’ excuse came from looking at himself, rather than looking at God. He was focused on himself rather than what God could do through him church.
If we focus inward on self, instead of upward to Heaven, we will always make excuses for everything.
I believe excuses are like addictions. You start off one at a time, next thing you know it, your doing it all the time.
Common things a Christian might make excuses for.
Praying
Sharing their faith
Reading Scripture
Serving others
Blaming others for sin, instead of taking full responsibility.
Not going to church.
Not giving to someone.
Exercising
Poor Eating habits
Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him. The sluggard says, “There is a lion in the road! A lion is in the open square!” As the door turns on its hinges, So does the sluggard on his bed. The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; He is weary of bringing it to his mouth again. The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes Than seven men who can give a discreet answer.
Excuses Church, leads to laziness and laziness cast one into a deep sleep
Kyle Leslie from the mission died of cancer at the age of 51. Kyle was an early riser and loved his coffee. When he would get the first few cups in he would often say to the other men: WAKE UP!!!
JESUS SAID:
For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
What are you exchanging your soul for?
What excuses are you making?
Church, I want to share a quick story about one of my co-workers husbands.
They are a godly family and they truly love the Lord with al their heart, mind, and strength.
They love others and have been walking with the Lord much of their life. They have been involved in church forever. Sharon and Robert had 4 wonderful children.
They are both in great health and lived a healthy lifestyle
On Tuesday, Robert went for his morning run and guess what church: He had a heart attack and died!
Read the obituary:
For He says: “In an acceptable time I have heard you, And in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
while it is said: “Today, if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”
“Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
Church, we are not promised tomorrow, what excuses are you making? What is stopping you from selling out for Jesus?
Or what excuses are you making regarding others things? Remember, making excuses will cause you to fall into a deep sleep.
Prayer
Prayer
Announcements
Announcements
Benediction
Robert’s favorite verses was Psalm 73:25, “Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.”
The Lord bless you!
Your mission starts now!