WWUTT 1997 Even Greater than John the Baptist (Matthew 11:7-11)

Jesus said of John the Baptist that there is no one born of woman who is greater than he, but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is even greater than John in the kingdom.

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When We Understand The Text, a daily Bible study in the word of Christ that men and women of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

Tell your friends about our ministry at www .utt .com. Here's your teacher, Pastor Gabe.

Thank you, Becky. We're back to our study in the Gospel of Matthew chapter 11. Picking up where we left off yesterday,

I'm going to go ahead and read that whole section again. So starting in verse 1 and going through verse 19 out of the

Legacy Standard Bible, hear the word of the Lord. Now it happened that when Jesus had finished giving instructions to his 12 disciples, he departed from there to teach and preach in their cities.

Now when John in prison had heard of the works of Christ, he sent word by his disciples and said to him,

Are you the one who is to come or shall we look for someone else? And Jesus answered and said to them,

Go and report to John what you hear and see. The blind receive sight and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them.

And blessed is he who does not take offense at me. Now as these men were going away,

Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John. What did you go into the wilderness to see?

A reed shaken by the wind? But what did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing?

Behold, those who wear soft clothing are in king's palaces. But what did you go out to see?

A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and one who is more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written,

Behold, I send my messenger ahead of you who will prepare your way before you.

Truly I say to you, among those born of women, there is not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist, yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

And from the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffers violence and violent men take it by force.

For all the prophets in the law prophesied until John, and if you are willing to accept it,

John himself is Elijah who was to come. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in a marketplace who call out to the other children and say,

We played the flute for you, and you did not dance. We sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.

For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say he has a demon. The son of man came eating and drinking, and they say,

Behold, a gluttonous man who is a drunkard and a friend of tax collectors and sinners. Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.

So we're picking up here in verse 7. This is right after Jesus said to John's disciples,

Go and tell him what you have seen. And then he quotes the scriptures from the prophet Isaiah.

Isaiah is one who prophesied about the one who is coming to prepare the way of the

Lord. We saw that earlier in Matthew's gospel in chapter 3, that John the Baptist is the fulfillment of that prophecy from Isaiah.

So Jesus quotes from Isaiah again to John and says, Go and tell him what you have seen.

Not just the miracles that he's performed, but that these miracles were prophesied about by Isaiah, that this is what the

Messiah would come doing. And so as John's disciples come back to him and tell him what it is that they have seen, what

Jesus has done, it demonstrates not only the works that he's done, but that it's a fulfillment of what was prophesied.

So he is the one that was prophesied by God's apostles.

So then after telling the disciples to go back and testify to John about these things in verse 7, it says,

Now, as these men were going away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John.

What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind?

So we asked these three questions about John. Was he a reed shaken by the wind?

Was he somebody wearing soft clothing or was he a prophet? So there's the three questions.

And of course, the answer to that is we went out to see a prophet and Jesus says, yes, he was even more than a prophet.

So what are the first two questions about? Did you go out to see a reed shaken by the wind? Do you think of a reed shaken by the wind as a very strong plant?

No, it's very weak. It's shaken by the wind. You could go up and grab it and pluck it, and that would be the end of that plant.

So Jesus is saying, did you go see a reed shaken by the wind? No, you didn't go out to see a weak man.

Why would anybody go out to the wilderness to see a weak man? I want to go see this guy get beat up and pushed around, which he's subjecting himself to.

You would think he's just a crazy guy. So you would not go hear what it is that he was saying.

But many people went out to hear him preach. The Pharisees even came out to hear him preach. According to the testimony we have in Matthew three, some even came to him to be baptized.

And John says to them, you brood of vipers, who told you to flee from the wrath that is to come?

So they kind of wanted to look like they belong to the rest of the people, and they go out to John to be baptized.

John was not a weak man. He was a strong speaker. And the way that he testified is what drew the attention of people to go out and listen to him.

They were convicted of heart by what he said, which was why many of them were baptized. They witnessed the strength in John's words.

So this was not a man who could be compared to a reed shaken by the wind. Is that what you went out to go see?

No, you didn't go see a weak man being pushed around, tossed around by everybody. But what did you go out to see?

Jesus asks the next question. Verse eight, a man dressed in soft clothing. Who wears soft clothing?

The rich did. John wore what? He wore a garment that was made out of what?

Do you know this? Camel's hair. That's not a soft garment.

Camel's hair is very coarse. So did you go out to see a man dressed in soft clothing?

Behold, those who wear soft clothing are in king's palaces. And that's not where John was. John was out in the wilderness.

He's in the king's palace now, but he's in the dungeon. You know, John had prestige.

His family had a prestigious name when he was born. He could have he could have continued on as a very famous individual, worked his way up through the ranks of the priest, probably even among the

Sadducees, because his father was a priest who was serving in the temple. You know this story from John one, right?

An angel comes to Zechariah and says that you're going to have a son. And Zechariah says,

I can't have a son. I'm too old. My wife is too old. And so the angel, who is Gabriel, tells

Zechariah that because he has doubted, then he is going to be mute and be unable to speak until his son is born.

And his son is going to be named John. And that, of course, was John the Baptist. So Zechariah worked in the temple.

John could have had a very high religious position, but he is called by God to go out into the wilderness and preach.

Now, Zechariah and Elizabeth, these are John's parents, remember?

They knew that John the Baptist was a miracle baby. They knew that. He wasn't virgin born like Jesus was virgin born.

Of course not. But he was still a miracle baby. He was a miracle baby like Isaac was a miracle baby. And so if God is telling

John to go out into the wilderness and preach, and like I had pointed out to you yesterday, God had spoken to John the

Baptist prior to Jesus coming. This is in John 1. John testifies of this.

We don't have it in the narrative, but John testifies to it. That God said to him, the one upon whom you see the spirit descend and rest upon like a dove, that's the one that I have sent.

So God had said this to John. If God is speaking to John and he's going out into the wilderness to proclaim these things,

I have to believe that Zechariah and Elizabeth were right along with him on that. Not with him as in they went out to the wilderness with him, but they loved their son and believed him and knew that what he was doing was of God.

We don't know how much Zechariah and Elizabeth are even in this picture because they were old. Maybe they had already died.

But I highly doubt, highly, highly doubt that even if they were still alive at this time when

John is going out to the wilderness to preach, that they're sitting at home shaking their heads. What have we done with this boy?

He could have been great. He could have been a priest like his dad, and he's going out to the wilderness and everybody thinks he's weird.

He's wearing camel's hair. He's eating locusts and honey, and people are whispering all kinds of strange things about him.

They go out and he baptizes them in the river. That would not have been the way that John's parents would have thought of John the

Baptist because again, they knew this was a miracle child. Zechariah didn't exactly hear from God himself, but he heard from an angel.

An angel of God came to him and said that his wife would be with child.

Zechariah doubted, paid a price for that. He was not allowed to speak until John was born, but then when he could speak, he said, his name is

John. This is going to be the child's name. And Elizabeth knew this miracle baby.

She knew that when Mary, her relative, came to her and it had been conceived in her that she would bear the son who is

Jesus Christ, conceived of the Holy Spirit. When Mary comes to Elizabeth, John the

Baptist, who is in Elizabeth's womb, leaps for joy. We read about that in Luke 1.

So Elizabeth knew this was a miracle baby and that what Mary was expecting, the child that Mary was expecting was even greater than the child that Elizabeth was expecting.

These were cousins. John the Baptist and Jesus in the flesh were cousins.

And Elizabeth, again, she knew of this miracle child. She knew Jesus was the promised one.

So we don't have these names come up again. After Luke 1, Zechariah and Elizabeth are not part of the narrative anymore.

But again, I have to believe they knew what their son was doing was from God and would have testified right along with him, whatever he is saying, it comes from the

Lord. I mention that to you because of what Jesus says by this question.

What did you go out to see? A man in soft clothing? John the Baptist could have grown up that way.

He could have had that if he wanted. But he would not have been obeying God. And as the last prophet bringing the era of the prophets to a close, preparing the way of the

Christ who is to come. Jesus last question is, but what did you go out to see?

A prophet? Yes. Yes. John was a prophet. He's the last prophet before Jesus Christ arrives.

I know that there are prophets along with the apostles in the book of Acts. We read about that, of course, different kind of prophet, though.

It's not the same thing. These are prophets who testify to the authenticity of the message of the apostles.

But the prophets in that sense are subservient to the apostolic ministry that is going forward.

They're servants to that ministry. So the prophet in the book of Acts on is a different kind of prophet than what we saw in the

Old Testament. Thus you have the statement in Hebrews 1, starting the book of Hebrews, long ago at many times and in various ways,

God spoke to our fathers by the prophets. But in these last days, he has spoken to us by his son.

Whom he has made the heir of all things. So these prophets that would come in the time of apostolic ministry were supporting that ministry, verifying that ministry, still having things shown to them in a very miraculous way.

But they were not testifying the same way that prophets did in the Old Testament or even that John the

Baptist is doing here. The ministry had changed after Christ had come.

So John the Baptist is the last prophet before Christ. Of course, Christ is called a prophet, too.

Later on in Matthew's gospel, when you have the story of the triumphal entry and Jesus comes riding on a donkey's colt through the streets of Jerusalem, you have the people shouting,

Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. And all of this commotion is stirred up that people are saying, who is this?

Who are you guys praising? What is this guy about? And the answer that comes back to them is, this is

Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth. So indeed, Jesus is a prophet in that sense, too.

But John is the last prophet as the one testifying of the word of God before the word of God.

The word of God, lowercase w, testifying of the word of God, capital W. Yeah, OK.

Tried to be tried to be creative there, and maybe that didn't work out so much anyway.

So coming again to this statement that Jesus makes, he is a prophet and he's more than a prophet.

Yes, I tell you, one who is more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written, behold,

I send my messenger ahead of you who will prepare your way before you.

So John the Baptist did more than testify of the word of God, which is what a prophet did.

God would speak to a prophet. The prophet would tell the people what it is that God said, and then the prophet would even verify this word that had been given through some sort of miraculous sign, or he would predict something that would come to pass, you know, something to that effect.

John the Baptist is doing more than that. He's doing more than testifying of the word that had been given to him by God.

He is preparing the way of God, who is to come the incarnate son of God, God in flesh who dwelt among us.

And this is in fulfillment of what is said in Malachi chapter three.

That's what Jesus quotes next. So in verse 10, this is the one about whom it is written, behold,

I send my messenger ahead of you who will prepare your way before you.

So this is Malachi 3 .1, behold, I am going to send my messenger and he will prepare the way before me and the

Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his people and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight.

Behold, he is coming, says Yahweh of hosts, but who can endure the day of his coming and who can stand when he appears for he is like a smelter's fire and like fuller's soap, and he will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver so that they may present to Yahweh offerings in righteousness.

That's all of us. We are called a royal priesthood in first Peter two, nine.

So we are the priests of Levi that have been purified by Christ that we may offer in righteousness.

We may give offerings in righteousness. It is Christ who makes us righteous. Now, John is just mentioned in the first part of that prophecy in Malachi three, behold,

I'm going to send my messenger. That's John the Baptist, and he will prepare the way before me.

Capital M E. If you're reading that in the LSB in particular, the pronoun is capitalized me.

He, he prepares the way before me as though this is the pre -incarnate son of God who is testifying to this, and the

Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple and the messengers of the covenant in whom you delight.

Behold, he is coming, says Yahweh of hosts. So everything that's being said after that is concerning what the

Christ is going to do when he comes. But the reference to the messenger in Malachi three, one, that messenger is

John the Baptist, and Jesus is saying that he is, he is that one who fulfills this word.

I send my messenger ahead of you who will prepare your way before you. Truly I say to you, among those born of women, there is not arisen anyone greater than John the

Baptist. And you consider the humility that John the Baptist demonstrates again, giving up his, what was, what was considered religious nobility to go out into the wilderness and testify of the

Messiah who is to come in obedience to God who sent him out to do this. This isn't some hobby that John took up.

I'm going to go be weird out in the wilderness. He is obeying what God told him to do.

Among those born of women, there's not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist, yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

Now that is, that's an interesting statement. And there are some who have assumed that Jesus was actually making reference to himself.

Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than, than he, because men esteemed

Jesus even less than they esteem John the Baptist. So maybe then

Jesus is making reference to himself that he who is least in the kingdom is greater than he.

But that's unlikely because Jesus doesn't make a reference like that about himself anywhere else in the four gospels.

And it would also be a strange thing to say that the king is the least in the kingdom.

That would be an odd phrase. So it doesn't seem like then Jesus is making reference to himself as the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven.

But he does talk about his disciples as being the least. He talks about his own disciples as being like little children.

And when you have later on the most famous statement in Matthew's gospel about the least comes in Matthew 25, that which you have done to the least of these brothers of mine, you have done also to me.

So that is in reference to his disciples who he sends out and anybody in the kingdom who has given up everything and even suffered much to proclaim the gospel of Christ is considered someone who is the least of these in the kingdom.

So that's what Jesus is referencing. It's not one man that he's talking about, but rather any of those who from this point forward would give their lives for the sake of the gospel.

They are considered least in the kingdom of heaven, and yet they might be considered even greater than John the

Baptist. In verse 12, Jesus says, and from the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffers violence and violent men take it by force for all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.

And if you are willing to accept it, John himself is Elijah who was to come.

He who has an ear, let him hear. Now I'm already out of time for this lesson, so I'm going to pick it up there tomorrow in verse 12, from the days of John the

Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffers violence and violent men take it by force.

So we'll pick up there and finish up the section verses 12 to 19.

But understand how we in the kingdom of God can even be considered great or greater than John if we're willing to give up everything for the cause of Christ and we would suffer for his name.

We who have not seen with our eyes, we were not there to witness these things as John the

Baptist witnessed them as his disciples witnessed them. We didn't get to see that yet. As Jesus said to Thomas at the end of John's gospel, blessed is he who has not seen and believes even they would be considered greater in the kingdom of God.

We have not seen with our eyes, those things that Jesus has done, but we believe because they are testified right here in the scriptures.

Let us pray. Heavenly father, I pray that as we've heard the word of God, it draws us all the more near to Christ and we're willing to suffer loss for his gain, that the gospel would be proclaimed, that others would come to faith in Christ.

We would be willing to give up for their sake. We'd be willing to even suffer ridicule so that others might hear and believe and be saved from the wrath of God that is to come against all the idolatry and lawlessness and sinfulness of man.

It is only by faith in the gospel that we can be forgiven our sins and given the kingdom of God.

It's in Jesus name we pray, amen. Pastor Gabe keeps a regular blog, sharing personal thoughts, alerting readers to false teachers and offering commentary on the church and social issues.

You can find a link to the blog through our website, www .utt .com. Thank you for listening and join us again tomorrow as we continue our study in God's word when we understand the text.