The Life of Jesus The..

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com. That's cornerstonerbc.com. Welcome brothers and sisters to our Wednesday Bible study. Let's please open up our Bibles to the Gospel of Matthew.

Matthew chapter 13. So if you have your Bibles, please open them up to Matthew chapter 13. And we are going to be reading together the first 17 verses of Matthew chapter 13. And if it's possible, Brother Gies, I'm going to get you to read this portion of Scripture and to help me just reading this portion of Scripture, Brother. Matthew 13 from verses 1 to verse 17.

Sure. Thank you, brother. Matthew 13, verse 1. That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. And great crowds gathered about Him so that He got into a boat and sat down.

And the whole crowd stood on the beach. And He told them many things in parables, saying, A sower went out to sow. And as he had sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground. where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprung up, since they had no depth of soil.

But when the sun rose, they were scorched, and since they had no roots, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some 60, some 30. He who has ears, let him hear, Then the disciples came and said to him, Why do you speak to them in parables? And he answered them, To you it has been given to know the secret of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.

For to the one who has more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. Indeed, in their case, the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says, you will indeed hear, but never understand, and you will indeed see, but never perceive. 15, for this people's heart has grown dull, and with their ears, they can barely hear, and their eyes have been closed. Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I will heal them.

But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. For truly I say to you, many prophets and righteous people long to see what you see, and did not see it. and to hear what you hear and did not hear it. Amen. Amen.

Thank you so much, brother. This is the Word of God. Now, brothers and sisters, we are going to continue this evening by the grace of God with our series on the life of the Lord Jesus Christ. And the passage that we have read in Matthew chapter 13 is going to be the starting point for us to address the topic of the parables of the Lord Jesus Christ. This evening, we are going to be addressing the topic of the parables of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And brothers and sisters, this series on the life of the Lord Jesus Christ is going to go for another two weeks. We're going to be doing one Bible study today by God's grace. And then by God's grace, we will do the last one on the week that comes ahead. And after that, we're going to be started a new series. And that series is going to be focused on the life of the Lord Jesus Christ, not so much on his earthly ministry, but through the Spirit of Christ in the Church, that is Christ in the Church.

We started a couple of few months ago with Jesus Christ in the Old Testament. And now we have been doing for a number of weeks the life of the Lord Jesus Christ and His ministry. And we hope that we may be able to have the grace of God extended unto us so that we can cover the topic of Jesus Christ in the Church. Remember, brothers and sisters, that the purpose of this present, of this current series, which is the life of the Lord Jesus Christ, was to present the Lord Jesus Christ as the fulfillment of all these Old Testament prophecies that were prophesying and saying that this was going to be the Messiah. Our intention has been to clearly present to you, beloved of Christ, Jesus Christ as the Messiah of the Jews and as the Savior of the world.

For that reason we decided to choose seven different topics, seven different points of the life of the Lord Jesus Christ precisely to do that, to present the Lord Jesus Christ as the Messiah of the Jews and also as the Savior of the world. So we started with the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ with the genealogy of the Lord Jesus Christ. And we presented him as the king, the descendant of Abraham, the descendant, the offspring of David, according to the flesh, the king of Israel. But also the king that is of a kingdom, not of this world, but rather of a kingdom that is the kingdom of God or the kingdom of heaven. We presented to you the miraculous um a birth of the lord jesus christ and how he was born fulfilling the prophecy of isaiah how this man was presented to these gentile wise men and also how in jesus christ all righteousness is fulfilled and we did that study on the baptism of the lord jesus christ even the devil also recognize the credentials of the Lord Jesus Christ as the Son of God.

We study the temptation of the Lord in the wilderness. Also, in the last couple of Bible studies, we had the opportunity to address the beginning of the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ, starting in this Galilee of the Gentiles. Also, the last time that the Lord allowed us to come together. we address the miracles of the Lord Jesus Christ. As I said this evening, we're going to be addressing another aspect of the life of our Savior, our Redeemer, our Lord Jesus Christ.

And those are the parables of the Lord Jesus Christ. And I want us today to understand the purpose of the parables of the Lord Jesus Christ as it is given to us in this portion of scripture that our brother Jesus helped us reading. in Matthew chapter 13 from verses 1 to verse 17. Now, the parable that we have in the text in front of us is one of those very, very common or very, very famous and very important parables that is given to us in the New Testament. We have this parable of the sower that is sowing different types of seeds and these seeds fall onto different grounds.

We have the ground of those seeds that fall on the path or those seeds that fall on the rocky ground or those seeds that fall on the thorny ground and those seeds that fall on the good soil. So we have a sower that is sowing different seeds and these seeds fall into four different types of grounds. And also these seeds produce or do not produce fruit. Those are kind of like the characteristics of this parable that we have here in the text. They either produce temporal fruit or they do not produce fruit at all.

Or we're told of a type of seed that falls into the good soil that produce enduring or good fruit. But brothers and sisters, before we address the purpose or the importance of the parables of the Lord Jesus Christ as it is given to us in this portion of the scripture, it is of vital importance for us to understand what a parable is. What a parable is in the New Testament. And the simplest way that I can put the definition of what a parable is, and if we think about this concept, it will help us to understand the importance and the purpose of a parable is just by simply seeing a parable as a teaching tool. It's a tool of teaching that is used in this case, in the text that we have, by the Lord Jesus Christ.

It is a teaching tool that is used by the Lord Jesus Christ, who was a teacher, of course, and he was using that teaching tool to speak or to teach of the mysteries of the kingdom. These mysteries of the kingdom are spiritual things that the Lord was teaching through this teaching tool. And the way that he does it is through illustrations, but these illustrations are close to an immediate reality of the audience. So basically what I'm saying, beloved brothers and sisters, is that a parable is just simply an illustration or a teaching tool that is used by the Lord Jesus Christ in his ministry of teaching, bringing reality to spiritual realities through the use of an illustration of an immediate reality to the listener. So the listener will understand what the teacher was saying because he's using things that are very close and very real to them.

So what I'm trying to say is that a parable aims to explain a spiritual reality using an illustration of something that is natural, something that is immediate to the audience. And this is exactly the example of the parable that we have in front of us. in Matthew chapter 13, because the Lord Jesus Christ is using this illustration of a sower who is sowing different seeds. And these seeds are falling on four different types of grounds. And these seeds are either producing or not producing fruit.

But the Lord Jesus Christ, if we were to continue reading the passage in Matthew chapter 13, we will see that the Lord Jesus Christ is going to give an explanation, the spiritual explanation of that parable that he's using as a teaching tool to teach to his audience. And in this case, we are told not only here in Matthew 13, but also in the parallel passages of this parable in Luke and in Mark, that the seed, for instance, that the sower is throwing onto the ground is the word of God and that these four different types of grounds are for different type of people or for different types of hearts that receive that seed. And then those hearts or those souls produce a certain type of fruit. Some of them do not produce fruit. Some others produce temporal fruits that are that they come to an end because either tribulation or the deceitfulness of riches.

But there is a type of seed that falls into good ground, a good soil, and that one produces a type of enduring and ongoing fruit. We can see here, brothers and sisters, the perfect definition or description of what a parable is. A parable, as I said, explains a spiritual reality using an illustration of something that is natural, by using an illustration of something that is immediate. to the audience of those who are being taught, the students or the learners, those who are receiving the teaching from the Lord. But brothers and sisters, the importance of the parables is not so much established on what the parables are.

What I'm saying is that parables are not important because of what they are. I have told you what they are. They are teaching tools that are used by the Lord Jesus Christ to explain spiritual realities, to an audience by using illustrations of things that are natural or immediate to their reality. But the importance, brothers and sisters, of parables in the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ is not established upon what they are. But rather, when we come to the history of redemption, the importance of parables is established upon what they represent in the history of redemption.

This is very important. The importance of parables is not what they are, teaching tools, but rather the importance of parables is what they actually represent in the history of redemption. Or if you want to see it another way, the importance of parables is what they represent in the life and in the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. What I'm trying to say here, brothers and sisters, is that parables, these teaching tools that are used by the Lord Jesus Christ to speak to the multitude, explaining the spiritual realities using natural things, that these parables play a very important role in the history of redemption. This way of teaching plays a very important role in the history of redemption and in the workings of the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

So if we are going as Christians and as believers, if we're going to grasp and to put the value of this into our souls, into our hearts, we need to understand what parables represent in the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. We need to comprehend what is that role. I'm saying to you, beloved of Christ, that these parables play a very important role in this history of redemption. So we must understand what that role is so that we will understand the purpose of these parables. But brothers and sisters, in order for us to understand what they represent, what parables represent in the history of redemption, is very important for us to understand the context that Matthew is giving us in the introduction of these parables in chapter 13.

Remember that I've said this a few times in the opportunities that the Lord has given me to address you, brothers and sisters, either in the flesh or here. And that is that Matthew, the Book of Matthew, or the Gospel of Matthew, is a presentation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the King, the King of Israel, and the King of the Kingdom of God. It's a presentation of the Gospel from a Jew perspective to a Jew audience, to the audience of Israel. So Matthew has been very careful in structuring his gospel in a way that it will make a lot of sense for the person, for the Jew that is receiving from the audience. And also, he's very careful in structuring the stories and all the things that the Lord Jesus Christ did and performed in a way that will communicate something profound to the Jew audience.

For that reason, it's important if we are going to understand the role of what parables represent in the history of redemption in the life of the Lord Jesus Christ. as the Savior of our souls, then we need to understand that context. And in order to do so, I want you to go all the way back to Matthew chapter 4. Matthew chapter 4. Go in your Bibles, please, to Matthew chapter 4.

And this is a passage that we have already addressed in a Bible study a few weeks ago when we were doing the beginning of the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. But if you go in your Bibles to Matthew chapter 4, I want us to read carefully. verses 23, 24, and 25 of Matthew chapter 4. And again, if it's okay with you, Brother G's, I'm going to get you to please help me reading that portion of the scripture in Matthew chapter 4 verses 23 to 25, Brother G's. Matthew 4, 23.

And he went throughout all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people. So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought him all the sick and those afflicted with various diseases and pains, those oppressed by demons, epileptics, and and paralytics, and he healed them. And great crowds followed him from Galilee, and as Decepolis, and from Jerusalem, and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan. Thank you so much, brother, for that. Now, brothers and sisters, please pay attention to this portion of the scripture that a brother read for us.

This is the beginning of the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ, and Matthew is going to be very careful. to present to us two very important things. First, in verse 23, he says that he went through all Galilee, that that's the place where he started his ministry. And what he did is that he started to teach in the synagogues. And that teaching was the proclamation of the gospel of the kingdom.

That is one aspect of the beginning of the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ has started to teach, to proclaim, The Gospel of the Kingdom. This message, the Lord had started to teach it through all Galilee and through all other areas of Israel now. But there's a second thing that the Lord does. And that is that He also started to heal every disease and every affliction among the people.

So He started to teach and to proclaim the Gospel of the Kingdom. And on the other hand, the Lord Jesus Christ started to heal. He started to perform miracles. For that reason, verse 24 says that his fame is spread through all Syria. And in verse 25, we're told that great crowds started to follow him from Galilee and the Capulets and from Jerusalem and Judea and from beyond the Jordan.

That means that he was openly teaching and that he was openly performing diverse types of miracles. He was healing the sick and he was casting out demons. This is what the Lord Jesus Christ had been doing all of this time until chapter 13. And when you see, when you take a step back in the book of Matthew, you can see that this is exactly what Matthew presents in the book. Because then when we move on to Matthew chapter 5, we have the speech of the Sermon of the Mount, as it is called, And then we have here the Lord Jesus Christ doing precisely that, teaching.

proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom. All of that goes from chapter 5, chapter 6, and chapter 7. And then you have the Lord Jesus Christ in chapter 8, starting with his miracles. That is, with his healings and casting out demons and doing all of these miraculous things. This is how Matthew presents the Lord Jesus Christ.

He was doing all of these things. But now, it's important for us to notice that a time had passed already. And the teaching ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ was now known among the people. He had publicly presented his teachings and his doctrine. And also, there had been a confirmation of the power that was working in the Lord through his miracles and all the powerful things that he had been doing.

This is very important. This is the context of the parables that we have in Matthew chapter 13, because the Lord had been doing this in a public way. But there's an important component for us to understand before we get into the parables. And that is to ask ourselves, what was the response of Israel? What was the response of all of these people that were witnessing the teachings, the direct teachings of the Lord?

And all of these people that were witnessing the power of the Lord Jesus Christ through his miracles. What was the response of the Pharisees and the Sadducees and the great people of Israel? Then, if you go just to the previous chapter, chapter 12, and if we just check a couple of verses there, you will see what was the response of the people of Israel to this public teaching and to these public workings of the Lord in healing and in performing miracles and in casting out demons. If you go to Matthew chapter 12 in verse 14, for instance, we are told that the Pharisees went out and conspired against him. how to destroy him.

After they had witnessed the workings of the Lord, these Pharisees went out and conspired against him how to destroy him. The Pharisees hated the Lord. You need to hate someone if you're going to conspire against that someone how to destroy him. They hated the Lord Jesus Christ. They had witnessed the teaching, the direct teachings of the Lord.

They had witnessed the miracles of the Lord, but they wanted to destroy him. If you go a little bit down there in the passage and if you go to verse 24, for instance, verse 24 we are told that the pharisees are going to accuse in their hearts the lord they're going to bring an accusation to the lord it says the verse 24 but when the pharisees heard it they said it is only by beelzebul the prince of demons that these men cast out demons so now it is not only that they Hated Him and that they were conspired against Him to destroy Him. But also, they were accusing the Lord Jesus Christ that all of these miracles that He was performing. And all of these mighty and glorious things that were communicating the truth. That He was the Messiah, that He was the King of Israel.

They were accusing Him that He was doing this by Satan and not by the Spirit of God. Even if you go a little bit down in that passage in chapter 12 and you go to verse 38. We have some other aspect here that in verse 38 it says, Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered him, saying, Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you. They had already listened to the teachings. They had already seen many miracles and the mighty powers that were working through the Lord Jesus Christ.

But they did not only hated Him. They did not only want to see Him dead and destroyed. They did not only accuse Him. But also, in a very hypocritical way, they were coming to the Lord to ask Him for signs. We can clearly see, beloved brothers and sisters, that the context of the beginning of this parables in Matthew chapter 13 was one of the Lord Jesus Christ already performing already doing his ministry in teaching and healing or performing miracles.

And that their response of the high level people of Israel was a negative response. They hated the Lord. They rejected His authority. And they accused Him of having the spirit of Satan. They had rejected clearly.

Messiah. They had rejected clearly the Lord Jesus Christ. Now this is very important as I said because brothers and sisters Matthew is going to be very careful to present to us parables. The parables of the Lord in Matthew 13. Not only for us to see this tool of teaching but also to see that from this point onwards the Lord is going to teach the multitudes by using parables.

That is, that the Lord, before Matthew chapter 13, did not use parables to teach the multitudes. But from this point onwards, the Lord is going to use parables to teach to the multitudes. And then when we read in the parallel passage to Matthew chapter 13, in Mark chapter 4, we are told in Mark chapter 4, verse 34, that he did not speak to them without a parable. But he only explained to his disciples in a private way. That is that he did not speak from this point moving forward.

The Lord Jesus Christ did not preach, did not teach, did not explain, did not communicate to the crowds other than through different parables. That's why when you continue your reading from Matthew chapter 13 and you continue through the book, you will see the big amount of the amount of parables that we are given. Now, remember what I said, beloved of Christ. I said to you that the importance of parables is not of what they are. Parables are not important because of what they are, a teaching tool that is used by the Lord Jesus Christ to communicate a spiritual reality using a natural reality that is immediate to the audience.

But rather, I said to you, that the importance of these parables is in what they represent in the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. And we can clearly see here that in the timeline of the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ, there was a time in which he was not using parables for his public ministry of teaching. But then at some point he decides to start using parables. Now, he could have taught from the very beginning using parables, but he didn't do it. That, of course, speaks to us of the importance and the role of parables, not so much in what they are, as I have said, but in what they represent.

So there's a couple of questions that we need to ask ourselves in order to understand the importance of the parables in what they represent in the timeline of the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ or in the history of redemption as our Redeemer, as our Savior. And that first question that we need to ask ourselves is, why did the Lord Jesus Christ start to teach and to preach and to speak with parables from this point onwards? Why did the Lord Jesus Christ start to do these things when he had not done it in the past? And the answer to this question of why did the Lord Jesus Christ start doing this from this very point onwards is given to us in the same chapter in Matthew chapter 13 in verses 34 and verses 35. Now, let's just read carefully because these verses here are going to give the answer of why did the Lord Jesus Christ start to teach and preach and publicly speak to the crowds and to the multitudes through parables.

So if you go in your Bibles there to Matthew chapter 13 in verses 34 and 35, we are told this, and let's read carefully, beloved of Christ. Let's just read carefully these words in verse 34 and 35. Remember that we're trying to answer the question, why did the Lord Jesus Christ start to preach through parables or using parables? Verse 34, he says, All these things Jesus said to the crowds in parables. Indeed, he said nothing to them without parables.

That's what I told you. From this point onwards, he will not teach any other way than by using parables. All these things Jesus said to the crowds in parables. Indeed, he said nothing to them without a parable. Verse 35.

This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet and the prophets given. I will open my mouth in parables. I will utter what has been hidden since the foundation of the world. Verse 35 gives us the reason why the Lord Jesus Christ started using parables when he was teaching, preaching or speaking to the crowds. And that is that it was to fulfill a prophecy that was spoken by a prophet.

And that prophecy was very clear that the Messiah will open his mouth in parables and that he will utter, he will communicate those things that had been hidden since the foundation of the world. Now, brothers and sisters, this here is glorious and it's very important. Think about it. It is not only That what the Lord Jesus Christ was to fulfill this messianic prophecy that proved even the more that he was the Messiah. He was not only the miracles that he had performed and all the teachings, the direct teachings that he had given, for instance, the message that he preaches from the mount.

But rather, it is that this moment when he starts to teach with parables, that this is a proof that he's the Messiah, because this was a prophecy of the Old Testament that was fulfilled. But there's something more, because brothers and sisters, this prophecy does not reside with the prophet. The prophecy resides in the eternal decree of God. the fact that Jesus Christ did not teach with parables. And then at some point he decides to start teaching with parables.

It is, of course, the fulfillment of a prophecy. But beyond that, it is the fulfillment of the eternal decree of God, who decided in his pure wisdom, in his unfathomable wisdom in the eternity past to decide that it was important that the savior of the world may start in his ministry, earthly ministry, to start preaching using parables. This is why I said to you that the importance of parables is not established upon what they are, just simply ways of teaching. And the reason why I'm repeating this so much is because sometimes parables are used to teach preachers how to preach. And the importance of parables is not that preachers learn how to preach by doing the same thing that the Lord Jesus Christ did.

But the importance of parables go beyond a style of teaching. The importance of the parables is established upon what they represent. What they represent in the history of redemption. So brothers and sisters. The heart of God decided that it was necessary that the Lord Jesus Christ would start using parables in his public ministry of teaching.

And that from that point onwards, he will only use parables to communicate to the crowds. Let's not only focus on why did the Lord Jesus Christ start doing that? Because now we know that is to fulfill the prophecy that it is in the heart of God, in the eternal decree of God. But rather, let's now focus on the purpose of these parables. We know why he started doing it to fulfill a prophecy that corresponded to the decree of God.

But now let's focus on the purpose now of these parables so we understand the importance of these parables of the Lord Jesus Christ. And this answer is going to be given to us in the passage that we have just read in Matthew chapter 13. But this is going to be found in verses 10 through verse 17. And I'm going to get you, brother Jesus, if it's OK with you, brother, please to help me reading this portion of scripture, Matthew chapter 13 from verses 10 through verse 17. And brothers and sisters, pay careful attention to this.

because here we're going to see what is the purpose of the parables. So Matthew chapter 13 verses 10 through 17, brother. Thank you. Matthew 13, 10. Then the disciples came and said to him, why do you speak to them in parables?

And he answered them, to you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For to one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. Indeed, in their case, the prophecy of Uzziah is fulfilled that says, You will indeed hear and never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive.

For this people's heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes have been closed. lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I will heal them. But lest are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear. For truly I say to you, many prophets and righteous people long to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it. Amen.

Thank you so much, brother. Now, brothers and sisters, you have to pay attention carefully to this text because this is given as the purpose of these parables. And this is going to be glorious here because we're also told that the purpose of the parables fulfills a prophecy just as the answer to the question of why did the Lord Jesus Christ started to teach with parables through to the crowds and we saw it in Matthew 13 verses 34 and 35. The purpose of parables, which is clearly stated in verse 10 with the question that these disciples asked, why do you speak to them in parables? The answer to that fulfills also a prophecy.

Verse 14, we're told that indeed in their case, the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says, You will indeed hear, but never understand. And you will indeed see, but never perceive. Brothers and sisters, the parable that the Lord Jesus Christ was using to teach the multitudes was producing different type of answers. And one of the answers, the one that was of rejection for those who did not believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, was to fulfill a prophecy. Just as the prophecy that we previously addressed is part of the eternal decree of God, then it was also in the eternal decree of God that people will reject the Lord Jesus Christ and that they will not understand what he was teaching through The parable.

So he uses this analogy that you have eyes to see, but you do not see and that you have ears to hear, but you do not hear because the prophecy for these people was never understood. They could not understand. The parable of the teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ. It was, brothers and sisters, the purpose of God that these people will not hear or will not understand. When he was coming and using these parables, there were people that were simply going, what?

What is he saying? And the fact that they did not understand, that did not perceive, was the fulfillment of a prophecy that was the eternal desire of God. And this is terrifying, brothers and sisters, because the purpose of these parables was that they were meant to be instruments of judgment. to these high class, these self-righteous people of Israel, these doctors of the law, these ones that were the wise of society, these ones that claim to knew the scriptures, those who had memorized the scriptures, those who knew and were awaiting for the Messiah of Israel, those who had every type of knowledge of the scripture. It was the desire and the decree of God and the fulfillment of one of his prophecies, that having eyes they might not see, and that having ears they might not hear, that they may not come to the Lord and they might not be healed.

It was the purpose of God. And that is the judgment of God upon these people of Israel. But we are told in the text in verse 15 that for these people's heart has grown dull. That is that they have hardened their hearts and with their ears, they can barely hear. And with their eyes, they have closed their eyes.

So they have not come to the Lord Jesus Christ so that they will see the Savior who he is. Now, brothers and sisters, this is a terrifying reality. From the standards of the flesh, from the standards of the world, these people were the wise. These people were the good, the righteous people of Israel. These were the people that were supposed to be imitated.

These were the people that were supposed to be followed. These people, according to the standard of the world, were those who were close to God. If God was going to speak to someone, God would speak to these men. God would speak to this type of people because they fast and they sacrifice and they live lives that are devoted entirely apparently to God and they are giving themselves entirely to God. But the Lord and the prophecy says that they will not see and they will not hear.

Now this speaks that they were unable To listen, they were unable to grasp and to understand the wisdom of God. They were very good at producing and building or putting together wisdom of men and the wisdom of the flesh. And they labeled that the wisdom of God. They were very good at filling their mouths with high words to be seen by others as wise men of God. But the reality of what the Apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 2 came upon them.

This is what the Apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 2. But we, speaking of the Apostles and those who are in Christ, but we impart a secret and a hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. But none of the rulers of this age, that is, none of the important people, none of the Pharisees, none of the scribes, none of these doctors of the law, none of the rulers of this age understood this. For if they had understood it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. Brothers and sisters, through these parables, The high class, the doctors of the law, the reputable people of Israel completed the rejection of the Messiah.

That is what the Lord Jesus Christ says in Luke chapter 19, that Israel did not know the time or the day of their visitation. They did not know that the man that was speaking, it was God himself. Imagine that, brothers and sisters. This man claimed to be close to God. But when God himself was in front of them, in the flesh, in the likeness of a man, when God himself was before their eyes, and when they hear his words, and when they saw him there, they could not see.

They were blind. Their eyes of the Spirit were closed and everything that they were trying to obtain in their unrighteousness was completely unattainable because it was something that was spiritual. But it's glorious what is given to us in verse 16. Pay attention to verse 16. In verse 16 it says, but blessed are your eyes for they see and your ears for they here.

He's speaking to the disciples, to the humble, to the meek, to the despised, to the one that was lowly in society, to the one that was not a doctor of the Lord, to the one that was not high in reputation when it came to the knowledge of the scripture. He says, but blessed are your eyes for they see and your ears for they hear. Brothers and sisters, this prophecy of parables was for the judgment of the wise and the many in the people of Israel, but was for the salvation of the lowly, was for the salvation of the meek, was for the salvation of the despised. Of course, here we're not speaking about physical eyes and physical ears, but we are speaking about spiritual eyes and spiritual ears that these high people of Israel were blind and they were also unable to hear the words of God. So brothers and sisters, what I want you to see here is that it was the eternal desire and it was the decree of God in eternity past that Jesus Christ, the Messiah of the Jews, the Savior of the world, that he would start at a particular point of his ministry.

In this case, when we see it from the perspective of the book of Matthew chapter 13, but that he would start at that point of his ministry to teach with parables. And that particular point of his ministry is when the rejection of the high society of Israel had been or had reached a high point. They had hated him. They have accused him of being working through Satan. And they had even planned to destroy him and to kill him.

It is at this particular point that the Lord decides to start using parables. And this was with the purpose of bringing judgment upon These people that had rejected the Savior, they had rejected the Messiah. of Israel. But one question that we need to ask ourselves, it is, why would God, why would God do this? Why would God in eternity past decide to bring judgment upon Israel?

These people, why would He do it? What would be the intention and the purpose in bringing this judgment upon these people? And of course, we know that the answer is because Their hearts had grown dull and they were indifferent to this Messiah. They did not believe. They were filled with pride.

But what was the intention of God in bringing this judgment upon Israel who had rejected the Lord Jesus Christ? And the answer to that question is going to be given to us by Matthew in chapter 21. In Matthew chapter 21. verses 33 to 46 so please go in your Bibles to Matthew 21 verses 33 through 46 and here I want us to pay attention of the reason why the Lord God is bringing judgment upon Israel this judgment upon the people of Israel so brother Jesus I'm going to get you if it's okay with you brother to please help me read this portion of scripture that is found in Matthew chapter 21 verses 33 to verse 46. Matthew 21 verse 33.

Hear another parable. There was a master of a house who planted a vineyard and put a fence around it and dug a wine press in it and built a tower and leased it to tenants. And when into another country. When the season for the fruit drew near, he sent his servant to the tenants to get his fruit. And the tenants took his servants and beat one, killed another, and stoned another again.

He sent another servant, more than the first, and they did the same to them. Finally, he sent his son to them saying, they will respect my son, But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, this is the heir, come, let us kill him and have his inheritance. And they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. When therefore the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants? They said to him, will he put those wretches to miserable death?

and let out the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the fruits in their season. Jesus said to them, have you never read in the scriptures, the stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This was the Lord's doing and it is marvelous in our eyes. Therefore I tell you the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits. And the one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces.

And when it falls on anyone, it will crush him. When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they perceived that he was speaking about them. And although they were seeking to arrest him, they feared the crowd because they held him to be a prophet. Amen. Thank you so much, brother.

Now, brothers and sisters, please pay careful attention here to this portion of the Scripture that we have just Read, pay careful attention to it, brothers and sisters, because here we have not only another parable that is used by the Lord, but here we have the purpose of the judgment of God that comes upon the people of Israel because of their rejection. Even in this parable that is mentioned here, we are told about These servants that come and serve, and these are symbolizing the prophets that came first and they were stoned. They were rejected. And also the son that after came Jesus Christ, and he was also rejected. But all of these people, that's why the stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.

And this was, it says, verse 44, 42, the Lord's doing. And it is marvelous in your eyes. Brothers and sisters, verse 43 gives us the reason why this judgment came upon the people of Israel. The utterly, continuous, ongoing, unstoppable rejection of the people of Israel to the Messiah. Ended up in a judgment and that judgment was the rejection of the people of Israel or better to use a more biblical word to take the kingdom away from them and to give it to another people.

Verse 43 says, Therefore, I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits. And the one who falls on this stone, the Messiah, will be broken to pieces. Judgment will come. And when he falls on anyone, it will crush him. That is, brothers and sisters, glorious because it is through the rejection of the people of Israel that salvation is made available to other people.

That the kingdom is taken away and given to another people producing its fruits, namely the Gentiles. Those who were not the people of God under the Old Covenant. Now, through the judgment that comes upon the people of Israel because of the rejection. The kingdom of God is not available to them. That is that the rejection of the Messiah represented judgment for the Jews.

But for the Gentiles, it represented salvation. That's why Peter, in 1st Peter, in a passage that we have studied in the past, in 1st Peter, chapter 2, verse 6 through 10, he says, For it stands in Scripture, Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame. So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe. the stones that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone and a stone of a stumbling and a rock of offense they stumble because they disobey the word as they were destined to do but now pay attention to what peter says there in chapter two of his first letter in verse nine but you speaking to the gentile churches But you are a chosen race. You are a royal priesthood.

You are a holy nation. You are a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. So again, he says in verse 10, once you were not a people to the Gentiles, but now you are God's people. Once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy brothers and sisters the people of israel had rejected the messiah who had come to teach directly, to preach directly, who had come to work miraculously through the power of the Spirit, healing and casting out demons and performing all of these glorious things. They had rejected all of that.

They had hardened their hearts. The high society of Israel had rejected the cornerstone Jesus Christ. And when they did that, the Lord Jesus Christ started to use parables, to use simple language that will be understood by the meek, by the lowly, by the humble, but that it will be as a different language to the high society of Israel. They will not be able to understand and to comprehend. They were spiritually blind and they were spiritually unable to hear the words of God himself.

But there is a very important question that we need to ask ourselves at this point, brothers and sisters, because usually this portion of scripture will go to that point, and in a sense, the Bible study could end there. But there is a very important question that we need to ask ourselves to go a little bit deeper in the purpose of this parable. So pay attention, please, to this. Was this the ultimate purpose of God through these parables? Was this what he actually wanted?

His ultimate purpose was to reject the people of Israel because of the rejection of the Messiah, or they say to remove or to take away the kingdom from the people of Israel and to give it to other people, namely the Gentiles, and then to make salvation available to the world, that this Messiah was not only the Messiah of the Jews, but now it is the Savior of the world who takes away the sin of the world. Was that the ultimate purpose? Or was that the only purpose? Was He only with the intention to bring judgment upon Israel and to remove the kingdom from them? Brothers, beloved of Christ, beloved brothers and sisters, let me submit to you that there is a far deeper purpose with these mighty workings of God that even go beyond the judgment of Israel and the inclusion or the extension to the Gentiles that in the vocabulary of Paul is the engrafting of the Gentiles.

There's something deeper and more glorious that we really need to pay attention to. The reality that is centering the heart of the Lord is going to be addressed by the same Apostle Paul in Romans chapter 11. So please go in your Bibles to Romans chapter 11, because in Romans chapter 11, the Apostle is indeed going to speak about this reality of the rejection, if you want, of the people of Israel and the consequences of that rejection to the Lord. If you go then to Romans chapter 11. Romans chapter 11 from verses 1 to verse 8.

So please go in your Bibles to Romans chapter 11, because brothers and sisters, let me submit to you that if we stop there, if we stop there, we only reach the point in which we say, The rejection, the unbelief of the Jews and the hardened heart of the Jews represented that which was the rejection of the Messiah and ended up in the judgment of God upon them, removing the kingdom from them and giving it to the Gentiles. If we end there, if we stop there, if we not go any deeper, we are at a serious risk of falling into what the Apostle Paul describes later in Romans 11. I think, which is the, in Romans 10, I think, which is the puffing up of the Gentiles. The believing that God prefers the Gentiles over the people of Israel. And the scripture clearly, independently of what our positions in eschatology are, the Bible clearly calls this a puffing up of the Gentiles, that we need to be very careful.

But the Apostle Paul in Romans 11, in this first eight verses, is going to give us some insight in the glorious purposes of God when it comes to this judgment that came upon Israel. So let's just read carefully Romans 11, verses 1 through 8. Let's pay attention. He says, the Apostle says, I ask then, Has God rejected his people? That's the question that we may want to ask ourselves, right?

If salvation then is available for us Gentiles, has God rejected the people of Israel? When Matthew chapter 21 says that in verse 43, that the kingdom has been taken away from them and given to another people producing fruits, that that means that God has rejected his people. Now he's going to give us a deeper truth here. It says, I asked them. Has God rejected His people?

He answers, By no means! For I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not rejected His people whom He foreknew. Do you not know what the scripture says of Elijah? How he appeals to God against Israel?

Lord, they have killed your prophets. They have demolished your altars. And I alone am left and they seek my life. But what is God's reply to him? This is the reply.

I have kept for myself 7,000 men who have not bowed the knee to Baal. Verse 5. So in the same way, at the present time, there is a remnant chosen by grace but if it's by grace it is no longer on the basis of works otherwise grace would no longer be grace what then Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened as it is written. God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day.

In the words of the Apostle Paul in 2nd Corinthians, he speaks that they have the veil of Moses upon their fails, that it has not been removed, that they are unable to see the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. Brothers and sisters, I hope that you have seen it now in the text, because brothers and sisters, the deep reality of these parables and the rejection of Israel is not so much the removing of the kingdom of Israel but rather is teaching both Jews and Gentiles that salvation it is completely by grace, because brothers and sisters, the people, the lowly, the meek, the humble, that were able to hear, and the lowly, the meek, and the humble that were able to see and understand the things that the Lord Jesus Christ was doing, were not any better than the high people of Israel, than the scribes, and the Sadducees, and all of these Pharisees, and the scribes. Rather, brothers and sisters, there is a glorious truth that is given to us in our text. Go back to Matthew chapter 13. Go back to Matthew chapter 13, because there, in verse 11, there is the key aspect of this reality.

In verse 11, in Matthew 13, it says, and he answered to them, to the disciples. to you it has given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. Brothers and sisters, the glory of the parables is not so much in two different type of audiences, one that is unable to understand and another one that because it's humble Humble and lowly are able to understand, but rather that the destiny of the audiences is established upon the grace of God. Not even the high people of Israel, nor the humble, not even the disciples of the Lord deserved to see the Messiah. They did not deserve to hear the Messiah.

But in verse 11 said, it was given to them to know the secret. It is passive. It has been given to them to know those secrets. But to the others, it was not given. In the words, brothers and sisters, of Romans chapter 11.

It is that at that present time, these disciples were the remnant of Israel. and the remnant of Israel was not chosen because of works because it was not chosen because of who they were but as the apostle Paul says in Romans 11 it was by grace and if it's based on grace was not on the basis of works otherwise grace would no longer be grace so the reason why these humble people listened and heard the Lord Jesus Christ and understood him. It was because heaven was opened and grace came upon them. And the Lord Jesus Christ himself opened their ears and opened their hearts. And this teaches us the deeper truth of the rejection of the Messiah.

And that is that salvation is by grace alone. not on the basis of works, that apart from grace, we all, both Jews and Gentiles, have no ears to hear, no eyes to see, that we are blind, that we are unable to hear, that we're unable to understand, that we are completely dead in our trespasses. That reality is for the Jews, and that reality is for the Gentiles, that if we were going to be left to our own nature, Then the taking away of the kingdom from the Israelites would have been of no purpose because the Gentiles would have also rejected the Lord Jesus Christ. But the Lord Jesus Christ in his sovereignty did that showing that these people will reject and then that the church receive it. And let me tell you what in the end of the times that most of the church will reject.

So then they will come where he will make of the two men. one and to show to the world that salvation can only happen, can only happen by the glorious, abounding, unexplainable, unfathomable, unspeakable grace of our Triune God manifested in the person of Jesus Christ. These people were unable to see. And this is the teaching of the New Testament for all people. Have you not read?

Romans chapter 1 verse 18 through 25 for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth this is all he says for what can be known about God is plain to them because God has shown it to them for his invisible attributes namely his eternal power and divine nature have been clearly perceived ever since the creation of the world in the things that have been now being made known. So they are without excuse. In other words, The people of the world have eyes, but they do not see. They have ears, but they do not hear. And if it was left to them, they would reject Jesus Christ entirely.

But the Lord Jesus Christ has sent the victorious Jesus Christ to die upon the cross so that salvation will be made possible for both Jews and Gentiles, and this is by grace through faith. Apart from that, brothers and sisters, we are all blind. We are all unable to hear. We are all unable to understand. We are all unable to comprehend.

If it's not because of the Lord Jesus Christ, then we will spend the rest of our days in hell, pain for our unrighteousness. But the Lord decided to plan and to perform and to conduct this glorious history of redemption so that we may learn that all have fallen short of the glory of God, that there is no one good, that there is no one who seeks after God, that there is no one righteous, no one does good, not even one, and that salvation has been made available to us by the grace of the Triune God. Through the righteousness of Christ, he was publicly portrayed as a propitiation for our sins. And the message of the cross is, look unto me, look unto me. All the corners of the world look unto me.

Come and take from me without price. There's no need to pay. Salvation is available. Salvation is available for all the sinners. There's no sin that cannot be paid by the glorious blood of our Savior, both for Jews and for Gentiles.

That independently of the complications of the message, He simply opens our eyes He opens our ears so that the wisdom of God that was hidden before the ages may be made known to us that are rejecters of God and that in him we might be united to a Christ to never be separated from him. Amen. Amen, brothers and sisters. Thank you so much. Let's let's pray together.

Let's pray together. O Father, we come before you, Lord, in the name of Jesus Christ, and we give you thanks for your glory, your mercy, your kindness, the grace that comes from above, that makes our sins white as snow, your blood, Lord, that was shed upon that cross, that covers the whitest of our sins, that covers the deepest of our unrighteousness, O Christ, we come before you, Lord, to give you thanks, to exalt you with limited words. We don't have sufficient thoughts. We don't have sufficient hearts to manifest the gratitude of our souls for the salvation that you have given us. That even the sins that we continue to commit, Lord, are forgiven in you.

Give us the faith that we need to approach you with boldness, to come before your presence, Lamb of God, who is seated at the right hand of the Father, to worship you, Christ, and to give ourselves entirely to you, to live our lives entirely to you, Lord, not to see the things of this world and to be taken captive by these things, Lord, but rather to give our lives entirely to Christ and to die to self and to be happy and joyful of living in Christ, if that means death in the flesh, Lord. Help us, please, Lord, to open our eyes and ears to hear your words, not the words of Satan, not the words of the world, not the words of our flesh, not the words of our heart. Lord, that we might be blind, that we might be unable to hear those words, but only the words that come from your holy, perfect, sweet, tender lips, O Savior. That those might be the words that we hear, that those might be the words that we desire to follow, that these might be the words that we want to die for, that this may be the treasure of our hearts, that we might abound in your words, in our hearts, so that the treasure that we might have is your words. And then from that treasure that our mouth may speak, help us, Lord, not to be left to ourselves, to our flesh, and to our own powers and might, but rather, Lord, help us that you may be the one who lives in us.

We thank you for all the things that you do, Lord, All of your providence, all of your decrees, all of your judgments are pure and perfect and good, Lord. And we come before you humbly asking you, Lord, that independently of what comes tomorrow, our faith might be strengthened so that we might find joy in you alone. So if today is the last day of our lives, that we might be taken up in glory and spend the rest of our lives and eternity with the Savior. strengthen your church and strengthen your saints oh lord i pray in jesus name amen very good brothers and sisters now i'm going to finish the streaming and i'm going to send through through skype and i'm going to send through um through whatsapp and i'm going to send through um the facebook group i'm going to send you the link so if you can please join the skype meeting so that we can come together in prayer. May the Lord bless us.

Amen.