Matthew records three instances when Jesus predicted what he was about to face in Jerusalem. This is the second of those three predictions.
As they were gathering in Galilee, Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised.” And they were greatly distressed (Matthew 17.22-23).
Words cannot express the deep sorrow and dread that Jesus’s close friends and followers felt when they heard this.
I think we will find it profitable to take time and meditate on Jesus’s impending death, his work for us on the cross, and then the resurrection.
Let’s not let these images slip from our minds, because they reflect the cost that the Son of God paid to afford us forgiveness and a relationship with him.
Authority and Obedience
I doubt if Peter ever tired of seeing Jesus perform miracles. The next short story is one more amazing account of Jesus in action.
When they reached Capernaum, the collectors of the temple tax came to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay the temple tax?” He said, “Yes, he does.”
And when he came home, Jesus spoke of it first, asking, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tribute? From their children or from others?”
When Peter said, “From others,” Jesus said to him, “Then the children are free.
However, so that we do not give offense to them, go to the sea and cast a hook; take the first fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth you will find a coin; take that and give it to them for you and me” (Matthew 17.24-27).
When Jesus asked Peter if the kings of the earth take their tribute from children or from others, the answer was from others. Jesus was equating himself as a child of the king.
The miracle of finding the coin in the fish is a picture that authenticates Jesus’ kingly status as the Son of the Living God.
The authorities were doing what they do best: exercising their authority. We will frequently find people who have a position of power over us, and they may attempt to make us to feel small or bad about ourselves.
If we’re following Jesus, we should recall Jesus’ word, which is, no, we are not what they think we are. We are children of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
Jesus led Peter to experience a miracle by catching a coin in the mouth of a fish. In reality, Peter was a miracle. He had been transformed by the power of Jesus Christ.
We may not catch fish with coins in them, but we are a miracle just as Peter was. We are a miracle of God’s love, forgiveness, and grace.
Take a look at what Paul has to say about this.
You were dead through the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world,
But God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ — by grace you have been saved —
And raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2.1-2, 4-6).
YouTube Discussion
Rudy Ross and I discussed this passage on YouTube today. It is on the Bob Spradling channel.
Real Voices 