Matthew 11.25-30 is a capsule summary of the message of the entire Gospel.
Jesus’ words came after the unbelief of the Galilean villages and their rejection of Jesus and his message (11.20-24).
At that time Jesus said, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants;
“Yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father,
“And no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him” (Matthew 11.25-27).
Jesus praises the working out in reality of God’s sovereign will. God’s will is present even in the midst of rejection.
It may seem strange that the presence of the Son of God, His miracles, and His message are rejected.
Isaiah was told that people would not be able to comprehend or be healed by his ministry.
And he said, “Go and say to this people:
‘Keep listening, but do not comprehend;
keep looking, but do not understand.’
“Make the mind of this people dull,
and stop their ears,
and shut their eyes,
“So that they may not look with their eyes
and listen with their ears
and comprehend with their minds
and turn and be healed.” (Isaiah 6.9-10)
How can people be so blind to the ministries of Isaiah and Jesus? Does God blind some and open the eyes of others?
In both Isaiah and in Jesus’ ministry, people are responsible for their rejection of God’s activity. If we have no choice in the matter, God is a tyrant not a loving Being by making us responsible for decision that are beyond us.
One of my seminary professors explained this phenomenon like this: one kind of soil becomes more pliable through the heat of the sun. At another time, there is another type of soil that becomes harder and more difficult to work because of the sun.
The sane sun makes one more receptive to seed, while the other the sun makes the soil impervious to the seed.
Jesus and Isaiah were the same persons who spoke to their audiences. Some received the message gladly, and others hotly opposed it.
Jesus noted that the wise, who tend to be proud and self-sufficient in their wisdom, were not receptive to the new and unexpected message and activity of Jesus.
The childlike were those to whom Jesus addressed his first beatitude: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5.3). They gladly welcomed Jesus into their midst and received his words and message.
God’s Saving Will
There was no outside force that wrote a rule book for how God would deal with His creation. His essential nature of love was the controlling force in His will to send His only Son to save a broken humanity.
Jesus both knew and had the authority to reveal the nature of the Father. If you want to know what God the Father is like, watch Jesus in action.
When Jesus says that He knows the Father, He is saying that He knows God exactly, completely, through and through. He has an intimate knowledge that is both a give and take with the Father. He knows the Father, and the Father knows Him.
Not only does Jesus know the Father, He reveals the Father to us. He shows us God’s salvation purposes to bring us into fellowship with Him.
The preacher had it right when he said that the person who doesn’t read their Bible is no better off than one who doesn’t have a Bible or can’t read.
In the Gospels, we have the revelation of God’s saving will for humanity. We are impoverished if we don’t take the time to read it, know it, and follow it.
YouTube Discussion
Rudy Ross and I discussed this passage on YouTube today. It is on the Bob Spradling channel.
Real Voices 