Matthew 11 Discussion

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What happens when the greatest prophet who ever lived begins to doubt? Matthew chapter 11 takes us on a rollercoaster journey through some of the most profound theological tensions in scripture—doubt and faith, judgment and mercy, revelation and concealment.

We begin with John the Baptist, languishing in prison and questioning everything he thought he knew about Jesus. The same John who boldly proclaimed Jesus as "the Lamb of God" now sends disciples to ask, "Are you really the one?" Jesus responds not with simple reassurance but by pointing to fulfilled prophecy—while subtly omitting the part about freeing captives. The message is clear: John, you're right about who I am, but your suffering will continue. This poignant exchange reminds us that faith can coexist with honest questioning, and God's plan may include suffering for even his most faithful servants.

The chapter then pivots dramatically as Jesus unleashes scathing condemnation on unrepentant cities. This isn't the sanitized, always-gentle Jesus of greeting cards but the righteous judge who holds accountable those who witness divine power yet refuse to change. Most provocatively, Jesus thanks his Father for deliberately hiding truth from "the wise and understanding" while revealing it to "little children." He celebrates that salvation comes not through human intelligence or effort but through divine revelation—a profound truth that has fueled theological debate for centuries. The chapter concludes with Jesus's tender invitation to find rest in him, a beautiful contrast to his earlier words of judgment.

Whether you're wrestling with doubt, curious about Jesus's full character beyond popular stereotypes, or simply seeking spiritual rest, this exploration of Matthew 11 offers challenging insights and comforting truths. Join us as we discover that Jesus is both more demanding and more compassionate than we often assume.

Episode Transcript

Pastor Plek (00:11):
And welcome back to a chapter a day.
Keeps the devil away.
I'm Pastor Plek, along withPastor Holland, and we are
talking Matthew, chapter 11.
Let's outline it real quick andthen we'll get into some
observations, someinterpretations and some
application.
So first off, we have Jesus,affirms John the Baptist, when
John the Baptist has a littlebit of a doubt in him and he

(00:32):
sends his disciples asking areyou really the one?
And so for the first 15 versesyou have the interaction with
John's disciples.
And then Jesus starts talkingabout John.
He praises him as the greatestprophet, the forerunner to the
Messiah, quoting scripture fromIsaiah he is the one calling in

(00:53):
the desert, he is the Elijahthat Malachi also referred to.
Then you hear Jesus then rebukesunrepentant cities, which is
sort of a wild thing.
We always think of Jesus gentleand mild.
And then he goes on a rant Imean this is like it doesn't get
any more hardcore pronouncementof doom on all these different

(01:16):
cities.
And as he compares, first offhe compares all that generation
to fickle children, because he'sdissatisfied with both John's
austerity like people are, likewhatever and then the fellowship
that Jesus kept.
And he says listen, wisdom isjustified by our deeds.
Then he denounces Chorazin,bethsaida, capernaum, and then
compares them to Old Testamentcities that had been condemned,

(01:39):
like Tyre, sidon and Sodom andGomorrah.
Finally, he invites in 25through 30, he invites an
invitation to the weary, whichis interesting.
He goes from condemning peopleto inviting people and says
listen, god has rejected thesmart and wise and he is happy
about it because God isrevealing himself to little
children, which to me gets alittle awkward when you think

(02:01):
about.
He is excited about the smartpeople, all the things of them,
going to hell because theirpride is taken there.
We'll talk about that.
And then Jesus invites theweary to take his yoke upon him
in promising true rest.
All right, what are someobservations you picked up in
this text?

Pastor Holland (02:18):
Yeah, I mean, a big part of what you were just
talking about is it's the samechapter that Jesus, you know, is
called gentle and lowly, thathe pronounces judgment on these
wicked, unrepentant cities.
And so it's important to readBible verses in context If all

(02:41):
you do is pluck out, you know,verse 29, and that's who Jesus
is to you Gentle and lowly Jesus.
That is true, he is gentle andlowly in heart, um, and he does
give rest to our souls.
But you know what else is true?
He pronounces judgment onunrepentant cities and um, you

(03:02):
know, in very strong and sharpterms, and both of those things
are true about Jesus, can I just?

Pastor Plek (03:07):
I'm going to read this first and I want, like it's
wild.
At that time Jesus declared Ithank you, father, lord of
heaven and earth, that you'vehidden these things from the
wise and understanding andrevealed them to little children
.
Yes, father, for such was yourgracious will.
Yeah, little children.
Yes, father, for such was yourgracious will.

(03:28):
And then and then, this getsinto the sovereignty of God.
No one knows the Father exceptthe Son and anyone to whom the
Son chooses to reveal him.
This is like, it seems like.

Pastor Holland (03:40):
Jesus was a Calvinist.

Pastor Plek (03:41):
Yeah.

Pastor Holland (03:44):
I don't know if we have time for all that on
this episode.
Man, it's wild.
Clearly, salvation is ordainedby God.

Pastor Plek (03:50):
Sure, we'll have some other verses that Armenians
will probably champion, butright here the Calvinists seem
to be winning on this one.
But yeah, so what about that?
Jesus comes off with a hardcoremessage to those who are wise
and understanding, and then hewas super compassionate and
super gentle with those who arelittle children.

(04:12):
Let's talk about that just fora second, about who those people
might have been.

Pastor Holland (04:15):
Yeah, I think the wise and understanding here
is speaking of wise in their owneyes, understanding in the way
of the world, you know so thosewho are these are people who he
said had seen his mighty works,but they didn't repent.
And so these are people whowitnessed and yet they were too

(04:36):
arrogant to repent, admit theirneed for Jesus.

Pastor Plek (04:43):
This is what an Arminian might say.
Well, see, there it was.
They were prideful and sotherefore they didn't receive it
when Jesus offered it.

Pastor Holland (04:53):
And yet what does Jesus say?
I thank you, father, that youhave.
You have hidden these thingsRight, and so God.
Actually, jesus is thanking God, for that's wild His goodness
and his true wisdom in hidingthings from the proud and
revealing them to the humble andthe little children.
I don't think he means literallittle children, but rather

(05:16):
those who are humble.
It could.
It would include you sometimesgo hand in hand.
Yeah, would include littlechildren literally, but I think
metaphorically the idea is thosewho are humble, those who saw,
you know the signs that Jesusdid and believed in him,
primarily his disciples.

Pastor Plek (05:32):
This is why I think it's so important to train your
children in the way of the Lordyeah, so that when they're
older they won't depart from itis because they're most
susceptible to believe thatJesus is who he says he is as
children.
And then when they're older,that's just a fact and it might
listen.
We have a whole world ofdeconstruction going on, but for

(05:52):
the most part, people return tothat truth.
And now, granted, the son hasto choose to reveal to you
anyway.
So that's the reality.
I love that.
He hides it from those who arewise in their eyes, reveals it
to those who are humble.
Okay, let's talk about someother observations you found
here.

Pastor Holland (06:10):
You know, I found it interesting.
When John the Baptist is going,you know, he sent word, yeah,
and said are you the one who isto come?
And Jesus answers him with thisseries of statements um,
fulfillments of prophecy,prophecies from you know, the
book of Isaiah, yeah, um, theblind received their sight.

(06:33):
The lame walk, lepers arecleansed, the deaf hear, the
dead are raised up, the poorhave good news preached to them.
Um, so, isaiah 61,.
It says you know, the Lord'sanointed me to bring good news
to the poor.
But then he leaves out Isaiah61B, which is to proclaim
liberty to the captives and theopening of the prison to those

(06:54):
who are bound.
Where was John when he heardthis Captive?
That's pretty wild.
And so he's saying to John itis me and I'm doing some great
things.
Unfortunately, john, you're notgetting out of this one.
And then he says blessed is theone who's not offended by me.

(07:15):
John, are you?
Are you offended by me, john?
Are you going to believe in me,even if it means that you don't
get released from prison, whichhe wasn't?
He's beheaded, right, kingHerod gets his head on a platter
.
And so Jesus is man.
He sends a little message toJohn of like it is me.

(07:36):
But your lot in life, john, isto suffer unto death as a
faithful prophet, and you'll behonored for it.
You're the greatest among theprophets, but there's no getting
out of it for you.

Pastor Plek (07:47):
Yeah, and I do love that Jesus doesn't answer us
like, yes, I am.
He lets the scripture revealhim and he quotes Isaiah 35 and
Isaiah 61, as you mentioned, andhe's letting the works that
he's fulfilled from Isaiah bethe evidence that he is who John
thinks he is and has thought hewas.

(08:09):
But here he is in prison,thinking he was going to usher
him to the kingdom and be hisright-hand man as a herald or
something.

Pastor Holland (08:16):
And you know.
And so John didn't.
That didn't happen, he died.
But at the same time, like Johnis exalted and lifted up by
Jesus.
Jesus says basically, this isthe greatest man to ever walk
the earth, which is sort ofcrazy.
You know, under Jesus he's likeJohn the Baptist.
He's the man, he's the greatestprophet, and he gives him this.
You know, he's like what didyou go out to see A man dressed
in soft clothing?
That's not my John.

(08:36):
Yeah he's rugged.
He's a rugged masculine dudewho preaches the truth, and
among those born of women, therehas arisen no one greater than
John the Baptist.

Pastor Plek (08:50):
And then he says yet the one who is least in the
kingdom of heaven is greaterthan he.
Now, what happened when Johngot to the kingdom of heaven?
Did he get a demotion?
All right, all right, okay.
So what else?
What other things stuck out toyou?
Well?

Pastor Holland (09:04):
Um, you know the part in where he's comparing
the generation, um, who's justnot satisfied with anything.
And it's just a reminder that,like, if your aim is to please
the world, you're never going towin.
Dance no, um, cry no.
You know, john came, neithereating nor drinking, and they go
ah, demon possessed, he has ademon.

(09:24):
Son of man came eating anddrinking.
They go out, center glutton,drunkard.
Like, if you're trying toplease the world, like it's just
there's, you can't do it.
Yeah, um, no matter what you do, you're going to be criticized.
Um, the world is never going tobe satisfied, no matter how.
You know, if you try to reachthe world by being the nicest
guy ever, you know it's notgoing to work.

(09:46):
If you try, being the only waythat someone can be reached is,
like we brought up, if the sonof man reveals him, chooses to
reveal himself, and so all wecan do is just be faithful.
Be you, be faithful to God,trust in him to do the hard work
, don't try to.

Pastor Plek (10:01):
Here's one truth I got God reveals truth to the
humble, yes, uh, but God revealstruth to whom he chooses, and
they will be humble.
He gives them the gift ofknowing, so therefore, that's
what makes them humble.
Can I say that?
You can say that God hidestruth from the self-proclaimed

(10:22):
righteous right and he gives itto those who are like oh, what
must I do to be saved people?
Yeah, what else?
What do you get for truth?

Pastor Holland (10:34):
Jesus gives rest .
Not only does he give truth,but he gives rest, and I think
for me, even moving you knowthis will be my application as
well is go to Jesus to find rest.
I personally, I'm about to goon a month-long sabbatical here.
This will be my application aswell is go to Jesus to find rest

(10:54):
.
I personally, I'm about to goon a month-long sabbatical here
and first time ever doing thatand I'm really looking forward
to just spending time with Jesus, apart from the work of
ministry and reflecting,meditating on Him, receiving His
grace.
I'm excited about that, thathe's a God who loves to give us
rest.
I love it.

Pastor Plek (11:11):
How about this?
People are prone to doubt EvenJohn the Baptist, who probably
had God speak to him in somesort of way for him to know that
Jesus was the Messiah.
Right, he saw the Holy Spiritfall or light upon Jesus like a
dove.
He saw the miracles.
He baptized him.
He baptized.

(11:31):
Jesus, he was right there, he'slike this is the Lamb of God.
Behold the Lamb of God whotakes away the sin of the world.
Even that guy had doubts.
So, instead of deconstructingyour faith, I want to challenge
you the thing I want you to do,if that's you, if you're having
doubts, go to Jesus, look up thescripture and see if he did
what the scripture said he woulddo.
Amen, that's good.

(11:52):
Okay, any other point ofapplication?
I think that's about it.
I think that's.
Let's go and follow that out.
Hey, thanks so much forwatching.
We'll see you tomorrow on AChapter A Day.