This sermon was preached to Grace Church Guildford on 26 February 2023. The audio recording of the sermon can be found below along with the transcript.
Near the end of last week’s sermon, we reflected on one of the most horrific events in history, the mass murder of six million Jews in the Holocaust of WWII. It is an atrocity that rightly causes universal outrage today. Yet it is sobering to remember that this has not always been the case. For after all, despite signs of clear antisemitism, the Nazi Party was democratically elected into power. And while many under Hitler’s rule were unaware of the full extent of what was happening, it was widely known that Jews were being rounded up like animals, and other minorities persecuted. It is a sad fact that an entire generation of people seem to have either supported, or turned a blind eye to such great evil.
And yet, despite there being widespread acceptance of this great wickedness, there were a few who resisted it at the time. For set against the dark backdrop of those days are the bright stories of those who protected the venerable and sought to bring this evil to an end. Names such as Corrie Ten Boom, Diedrich Bonhoeffer, Oskar Schindler are well known to us for their heroic actions. And there are thousands of other names that we will never know. For right across Hitler’s great empire, little groups resisted. On the surface it seemed that a whole generation had given into evil, and yet there were pockets of people who remained faithful.
And in our passage tonight, we are going to see the same reality. This evening we arrive at the end of this particular section of Matthew’s Gospel. If you remember, the book of Matthew is structured like a cake, split into alternating layers of sermon and story. Back in chapter 10, Jesus preached a sermon to his disciples. And so, in chapters 11 and 12, we have been considering the story of his ministry. However, when we pick up again next time in Matthew 13, we move into a new section, for there we have another sermon that Jesus preached, one that is often known as the Parables of the Kingdom. And so, our passage tonight is really the climax of all the stories we’ve had in the section that is Matthew 11-12.
Over these last few weeks, we have watched Jesus being rejected by his generation, and have heard how religious leaders are now planning to put him to death. And so, in our passage tonight, Jesus gives us his final verdict. As we read again and again in 12:38-45, Jesus declares this is a wicked generation, the worst generation in history, and so will be judged accordingly. And yet, even within this wicked generation, we find a few who are faithful. For in 12:46-50, we see there are some who follow Jesus, doing the will of his Father.
Back in WWII, those who came under Nazi rule had a clear yet challenging choice to make: they could follow the general direction of their generation, by supporting or staying silent about the great evil taking place, or they could try to stand against it. They could choose to go with the crowd, or to fight with the few. Each of us should be thankful that we do not have to make such a decision today. And yet tonight, our passage reminds us that a very similar, yet even more significant choice does lie before each of us. We too must decide which group we will be part of, whether we will stand with a wicked generation in rejecting Jesus, or whether we follow Jesus like the faithful few. These are the two options presented in the two parts of our passage, the two possibilities before us: (1) Reject Jesus and receive a greater judgement (12:38-45); (2) Follow Jesus and find a better family (12:46-50).
1. REJECT JESUS AND RECEIVE A GREATER JUDGEMENT (12:38-45)
Reject Jesus and receive a greater judgement. Does that idea sound familiar to you? I hope so, as it has been a key theme throughout Matthew 11-12. We have said our text tonight brings these two chapters to a close. And it does this by drawing together many of the themes we have already examined over the last four weeks. Much of what Jesus says here is not new. However, as we approach the climax of this whole section, these truths are painted in brighter colours for us, explained in even weightier language. It is like we have been driving towards a cliff edge for two chapters, and the closer and closer we have got, the bigger and brighter the warning signs have become.
Think of how our story begins. In 12:38, we read: [READ]. In isolation, this might sound like a reasonable request. Jesus claims he is the Messiah. And the religious leaders are simply asking for the evidence before they believe. And yet, when you remember the context of our story, you realise just how unreasonable this request is. Jesus has been performing miracles for over a year now: healing the sick, driving out demons, raising the dead! And still, these religious leaders ask for a sign. You wonder where they have been for the last year! What do they think all the miracles so far have been, if not signs?!
Last week in 12:22, we heard the Pharisees witnessed the most amazing miracle so far, as Jesus healed a blind mute demon-possessed man. It was such an incredible sign, that the crowd who previously complained about him ask in astonishment, "Could this be the Son of David?" And yet, despite such a conclusive sign, in 12:24 the Pharisees refuse to believe, and instead claim that Jesus is acting for Satan rather than God. As we heard last week, the problem with the Pharisees is not the evidence before their open eyes, but the unbelief in their hard hearts. They are not neutral observers waiting to be convinced, but vicious opponents who refuse to believe and are already planning to put Jesus to death. No matter what the evidence says, no matter what sign they see, these religious leaders will not follow Jesus. So, when they ask for a sign here, Jesus refuses to perform any more miracles. This generation have already had more than enough signs to show who he is! And so, Jesus declares in 12:39 that they are a wicked generation, one who will not believe him despite all the evidence.
And this is the point Jesus makes in 12:41-42, where he illustrates just how wicked his generation really are by comparing them with two other groups who believed with far less evidence. If you remember, at the start of our section, in 11:21-22, Jesus compared this generation to two sets of Old Testament cities. And here at the end, he makes the same point by referring to Nineveh and then the Queen of the South, both also from the Old Testament.
In 12:41, we read: [READ]. The book of Jonah tells the story of how God sends a prophet to Nineveh to warn that unless they repent of their sin, they will face God’s judgement. However, Jonah refuses to go because Nineveh was a gentile, non-Jewish, city, and an enemy of Israel. However, after his encounter a large fish, who swallows and then three days later vomits him up again, Jonah reluctantly goes to Nineveh to conduct what is quite possibly the worst evangelistic mission in history. Jonah spends a single day in the city, just walking around shouting that in 40 days judgement would come. And yet, amazingly, the whole city, including its King, repent of their evil and believe in God. Jonah was a reluctant preacher, a poor evangelist, showed no signs to prove his message, and yet the whole city believed.
What a contrast this is to Jesus! He has been preaching for a year, not just a day. Jesus shows love and compassion to his enemies. Jesus performs all manner of miracles to prove his message. In short, Jesus is greater than Jonah. And yet, unlike the people of Nineveh, this generation refuse to repent and believe.
The example of the Queen of the South in 12:42 makes the same point. The story is found 1 Kings 10, where we read how the Queen of Sheba, probably the land somewhere in Yemen/Ethiopia today, hears of the wisdom of King Solomon in Jerusalem, and so she makes the long journey to meet him, to see the glory of his kingdom, and test the wisdom of his teachings. And yet, Jesus points out that he is even greater than Solomon. Jesus is a wiser teacher. As we have sung tonight, Jesus is the most glorious king. And yet, far from falling at his feet in wonder and worship, this generation have turned away from him, are refusing to follow his teaching, rejecting him as their King.
The words of Jonah and wisdom of Solomon were sufficient for these two gentile groups in the Old Testament to repent and believe. And yet, though Jesus is greater than both Jonah and Solomon, he is rejected by this Jewish generation. And so, he warns they will receive a greater judgment, for in rejecting God’s greatest messenger, indeed God’s Messiah himself, they incur greater guilt and deserve greater punishment than all others.
Back in 12:6, Jesus declared he was greater than all the priests in the temple. Here we see that he is greater than the prophet Jonah and the kingSolomon. Those three roles, prophet, priest and king, are the three roles in the Old Testament for which one had to be anointed, specially chosen and set apart by God. And so by declaring that he is the great prophet, priest and king, Jesus declares in Matthew 12 that he is the great anointed one, he is literally the Messiah, for that is what the word Messiah/Christ means: the anointed one. Jesus is the great Messiah who has come to save his people, and yet this generation will only end up being worse off for it, because they will not believe in him.
And it is this idea of being worse off that Jesus closes with, for in 12:43-45 he describes his effect on this generation by using an illustration of a man who has a demon removed, only to have it return with seven others, leaving him worse off than he was originally. And Jesus uses this analogy to explain that his ministry to this generation is similar. Oh yes, he has cast out some demons, but their failure to believe means these demons will not stay away for long. Things may look better for a moment, but those demons will only come back in greater numbers and cause even more evil in the future. Like someone who washes their car before driving up a muddy road, or does some exercise before ordering a takeaway, ultimately whatever good has been accomplished by Jesus will soon be wiped out. In the end, the Messiah’s ministry will make matters worse. As he explains in 12:45, "And the final condition of that person is worse than the first. That is how it will be with this wicked generation." Because they reject Jesus, they end up receiving greater judgement, are in a worse condition than they were before.
If you are here tonight and you are not following Jesus, I want you to stop for a moment to consider this question: What would convince you to become a Christian? Young people, if I may speak directly to you for a moment, many of you have grown up in Christian families, your parents have brought you along to church for many years. You perhaps have siblings and friends who have been baptised and are openly following Jesus, but you’ve not yet taken that step, not yet publicly acknowledged you too trust Jesus and want to follow him as well. What would it take for you to do that? What is it that would finally persuade you to follow Jesus? What evidence are you waiting for before you get baptised too? What questions do you want answered before you believe? If you have genuine questions, can I urge you to ask them. Speak to the friend or family member who brought you, an older Christian, a YPF leader, an elder, myself. If a particular problem is keeping you from believing in Jesus, let’s work through it together.
But if tonight there is no particular problem holding you back, preventing you from coming to Christ, then I must give you the same warning that Jesus gave to this generation. Based on this passage, if you have been around Christianity for a while, perhaps even heard the Bible taught for years, then you must ask yourself whether you are acting like these Pharisees. Waiting for a sign, despite having enough evidence already. Wanting proof, even though you already know all you needed to know.
Friend, is that you tonight? For if so, I must warn you. The people of Nineveh only heard a man talking about judgment for a day, and that was enough for them to repent and believe. The Queen of Sheba simply heard rumours of a great king far away, and they were enough for her to leave all she had to go to see him. Friends, is what you already know about Jesus not enough for you to believe in? You know more than the Queen of Sheba, heard the gospel more times than people in Nineveh. And so see here in this passage that if you have still not believed, still not been baptised and started following Jesus, that you too will receive a greater judgment. For like this wicked generation, you have heard much and done nothing, seen the evidence and still not believed. Like this generation, if you keep rejecting Jesus, then you will be worse off for knowing all about him. For every sermon you have sat through, every Sunday school lesson you have listened to, will only make you more accountable, more guilty, even more without an excuse, on the final day of judgement.
Reject Jesus and receive a greater judgment. Here we see all the truths about judgement from the last four weeks reappear again at the end of the chapter. And yet, praise God the great truth of his grace also reappears as well. We have heard and seen that Jesus is gentle and humble in heart, full of grace and mercy, and we see it here again. For while the Pharisees unreasonably ask for another sign, Jesus responds in 12:39-40: [READ]. Jesus refuses to perform more miracles, and yet promises that there will be another sign, for the greatest sign is still to come. Jesus is not just greater than Jonah because he is a better prophet. Jesus is greater than Jonah because he descended not into the depths of the sea, but into the depths of death itself. Jonah went into a fish and on the third day came back again. But Jesus went into a grave and on the third day rose again. And it is this great sign of the resurrection that the apostles went out and proclaimed to this same wicked generation in the book of Acts. Standing before the crowds that once condemned Jesus, indeed that cried for him to be put to death on the cross, the apostles declared that through his death Jesus suffered the judgement of God for his people, and that he rose from the dead to prove he was who he said he was and can save all who repent and believe in him! And today those who follow Jesus continue to preach this same message, point to the same sign of the resurrection, as proof, evidence, that shows that Jesus really is the Messiah, the one who can save his people from their sins. Who can save you tonight if you repent and believe, stop rejecting and start following. Oh yes, you can join this wicked generation in rejecting Jesus and receive a greater judgement. But the good news of the gospel is that another way is open to you, there is another group to which you can belong. For as we see in 12:46-50, you can follow Jesus and find a better family.
2. FOLLOW JESUS AND FIND A BETTER FAMILY (12:46-50)
I’m not sure about you, but in ways this short simple story initially seems like a rather odd ending to our chapter. It is unclear how it fits with what we’ve just heard. Yet, when you consider it more closely it starts to make sense. I wonder whether you noticed where Jesus is teaching at this time. Did you see that in 12:46? From the reference to Jesus’ family standing outside, it seems Jesus is talking to the crowd inside a building, likely a house. And yet, his family will not come in. It seems like they do not want to participate in what he is doing, but rather want to distance themselves from his ministry. Further, by sending someone inside to tell Jesus to come outside, they are trying to take him away from his work, get him to stop speaking to the crowds and instead come away with them.
If this all seems like we are reading a bit too much into what Matthew tells us here, we find that is exactly what Mark tells us when he recounts the story. In Mark 3:21, we are told that Jesus’ family come to take him away because they think he is out of his mind! Further, Matthew will soon reference this, for in 13:57 Jesus comments that he is without honour both in his hometown and household. This may be his family, but they are not followers. They do not believe in him, and will not even come under the sound of his preaching.
It is a good reminder to us, that although families share similar biology, they will not always have similar theology. Jesus himself had to live with the tensions of having family members who did not believe in him. He knows what it is like to disappoint a parent, offend a sibling, be accused of causing a scene or making things awkward, for following God. Jesus was considered the religious weirdo in his family! And so, we should not be surprised if those who follow him find themselves occupying that role as well. Here we see Jesus is not only rejected by his generation, but he is also forsaken by his family. And yet, there are a set of devoted disciples around him. For we read in 12:48-49: [READ].
If the first half our of passage introduced us to the worst generation, this second half tell us of the best family. For Jesus uses this opportunity to point out that while he is forsaken by his biological family, he has found himself a spiritual family. What a privilege and honour it is for Jesus to point to these disciples, this assortment of outcasts and sinners, and say there is my family. As the writer of Hebrews puts it so well in 2:11, "Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters." And Christian, we know he is not ashamed to call us brothers and sisters too. For from 12:50, it is clear this family extends beyond the limits of those who were in that house, who physically followed Jesus during his ministry. For 12:50 says: [READ].
This family is one open to everyone, all who follow Jesus, who do the will of his Father, are included. Not just Peter, James and John, but you and I today, Christian. We are all beloved brothers and sisters of Jesus, obedient sons and daughters of our Father in heaven. Even if your biological family forsake you, there is a spiritual family who will be you forever. If you follow Jesus, you find a better family. Blood may be thicker than water, but see here that faith is stronger than them both. For when Jesus becomes your brother, you get lots of other brothers and sisters as well. When God becomes your Father, you find yourself among his many other children. We see this idea not only here, but throughout the rest of the New Testament as well. For God’s people being referred to as a family is something Paul and Peter and other writers repeatedly do. It is a key way the church is described in Scripture. We are the household, that is the family of God (1 Thessalonians 4:10), family of faith (Galatians 6:10), family of believers (1 Peter 5:9). God’s church is God’s family. When you start following Jesus, you not only find a Saviour, but you find yourself a family as well.
When we step back and consider it, this overarching idea of church as a family can help us think through many different aspects of our life together. There can be a temptation to label some churches as ‘family churches’, while others are more ‘student churches’, or ‘commuter churches’, or ‘big churches’. And yet, see here that every church is a ‘family church’, because every church is part of God’s family. This idea of church being a family is not an optional add-on, one potential way of doing church, a method for a certain kind of group in a certain kind of place. No, if we are following Jesus, we are all part of his family. And so, every church is a family church. We could apply this in many different ways [...]. However, as we close, I want us to consider three implications of this, three aspects of family life that can help us to think well about our life together here as a family here at Grace Church.
First of all, families can be messy. As the old adage goes, you can choose your friends but your family. You have to love the family God gives you, even if some of them are difficult, odd, or problematic. And this is true of church as well. Though a church should be a better family, it will never be a perfect family. When we get to heaven, we will be a perfect family. And yet, until then, we remain a group of sinners trying to love and live alongside each other. Things may get messy. We are a family that will get things wrong, offend and annoy one another, even hurt and harm each other. If you are a new member with us, or perhaps thinking about joining, do not think that we are a perfect church family. For we have problems like everyone else, and yet by God’s grace these faults and failings can become opportunities for us to grow and show mercy to each other. The mess is often the means by which God grows us more and more into Jesus’ perfect likeness. Relational difficulties provide opportunities for forgiveness. Disagreements provide opportunities for humility and teaching. Suffering provides opportunities for comfort and care. Sin provides opportunities for correction and training. Families are messy, and so churches are messy too. And yet, through the parenting of our Father and example of our brother, we can all grow up together. We are a family, not because we are somehow perfect, but because we all have the same perfect heavenly Father.
Secondly, families come in many shapes and sizes. While some idealise a family as being 2 parents with 2.4 kids in a little cottage in the country with a dog, we all know many other kinds of families exists! For families come in many different shapes and sizes. And yet while the dynamics of different families may change, they are all still families nonetheless. A family with no children or with an only child is going to have very different dynamics to one that has twelve children! And yet, while the dynamics will be a bit different, they are both still true families! And the same is going to be true of churches. A church of 30 members is going to have a slightly different dynamic to a church of 300 members, and yet both are still families. For families come in many different shapes and sizes. We could widen the spectrum even more. On the one hand you have a 3 member underground house church in a closed country and on the other you have that great eternal family gathering where God’s family will be so large that no one can count or number the extent of his children. And both are true expressions of God’s family. For we are a family, not because we are a certain size or shape, but because we all have the same Saviour. It is our relationship with Jesus that results in our family relationship with each other, no matter what size or shape we are.
Thirdly, families change through different seasons. Sarah and I can certainly testify to this over the last few weeks, as we have moved from being a family of two to a family of three. And I’m sure that you have seen that in your own biological families. As new generations are born, and other people marry into the family, things may change. And we will see the same sort of thing happen in a church family. As new Christians are born among us, as they come to faith in Jesus, and other Christians move to join our branch of the family from other churches, we will find that things may change. Just as families change through different seasons, churches change through different seasons as well.
And I know many of us here at Grace Church are feeling this right now. Though as a church we are still the same size as we have been for the last 6-7 years, around 240 members, however almost half our current membership have joined in that same period. In the last 6-7 years, we have had almost half the membership of our church change. And we shouldn’t ignore the fact that is a big change, it would be shocking if that didn’t make things feel a little difference. And yet, it doesn’t mean we aren’t a family anymore, but simply that we must be intentional and deliberate in trying to build up our family relationships with each other again.
If you have been around Grace Church, Chertsey Street, for years, it means you have a responsibility to look out for new members and try to build relationships with them, to draw them deeper and deeper into the church family. That can be hard when there seems to be some many new people, so why not try to concentrate on those who are in your fellowship group first. Try to bring them into the web of relationship that you have built up over many years.
And for our newer members, it means you have a responsibility to not only get to know the other new members, but also forge relationships with long standing members as well. Listen for the names of people we mention in prayer or in our services, and try to track them down and get to know them. Again use your fellowships groups as the starting place, look around the room over the next Thursday nights and seek out those you don’t know yet to speak to. Families change through different seasons, and it seems the Lord has given us a season of change as a church. So let’s embrace and face this together so that we come out the other side of this season even closer as a church family.
ALEXANDER ARRELL