After Jesus sent out his disciples, some of John the
Baptist’s disciples came, asking Jesus if he was truly the Messiah. After pointing out the various signs that
were done, he talked a little about why they followed John. In Matthew 11:14-15 He describes the
relationship between John and himself. “And if ye will receive it, this is Elias,
which was for to come. He that hath ears
to hear, let him hear.” John was
just fulfilling the promise that before Messiah came, one like Elijah would
come and prepare people to listen to him.
Unfortunately, many of the most religious people did not
receive John as the prophet God had sent and were not listening to what he said. Jesus described them a being like a bunch of
little children playing in the streets, in Matthew 11:16-19. “But
whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children sitting in
the markets, and calling unto their fellows, And saying, We have piped unto
you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned unto you, and ye have not
lamented. For John came neither eating
nor drinking, and they say, He hath a devil. The Son of man came eating and drinking, and
they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and
sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children. “
While the Jews were quite strict about what they ate, John
only ate locusts and wild honey, so turned down their invitations to eat with
them, although not demanding that others follow his practices. The Jewish leaders accused him of being
demonically possessed because he was so strict and unsociable. When Jesus accepted invitations to eat with
various people, including the religious leaders, they accused him of only being
interested in food and wine, especially since he did not limit himself to
religious elite. That they were
hypocritical in their attitudes never occurred to them. Unfortunately we can nearly always justify
what we are doing on the grounds that our standards are better than other
people’s.
Jesus had spent most
of his time preaching is few villages around the Sea of Galilee. While the people had witnessed the miracles,
bringing many to him for healing, most of the people had not felt any need to
trust him or follow his teachings, convinced they were already good
enough. Jesus scolded those cities for
their attitude in Matthew 11:20-23. “Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein
most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not: Woe unto thee,
Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in
you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in
sackcloth and ashes. But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre
and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you. And thou, Capernaum, which art
exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works,
which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained
until this day. But I say unto you, That
it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than
for thee.”
Ezekiel 26 prophesied of the destruction of Tyre and Sidon
because of their wickedness. The
original city of Tyre was on an island just off shore, but later a suburb of
the city was located on land. When
Alexander the great destroyed it in 332 BC, He burnt the entire city, throwing
the constructions materials into the ocean and even digging up part of the
island. Later another city, known as
Tyre was built nearby, but it is not on the original site, and all that is left
of the island are some reefs, making the original harbor unusable. The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah for
their excessive wickedness is described in Genesis 19. Jesus said that if he had done the miracles in
Tyre and Sidon or in Sodom or Gomorrah, they would have recognized that the
power came from God and repented of what they were doing. In their self-righteous attitudes, Bethsaida,
Chorazin, and Capernaum considered themselves as deserving those miracles and made
no effort to change their lifestyles, not believing they had done anything wrong.
When we see miracles and blessings from God, Christians need
to understand it is not the result of their goodness, as Titus 3:5-7 tells
us. “Not
by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he
saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which
he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified
by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” We were saved because he loved us so much
he was willing to forgive us even though we were wicked. Rather than making us complacent or proud,
the miracles and blessings ought to make us realize how much God loves us and
result in a desire to draw closer to him.
Too often like the Jewish leaders, we define ourselves as the proper
standard, condemning others for not being like we are, with no awareness of how
sinful we are. Miracles or blessings are
considered proof of our goodness. It is
the same attitude described in Romans 2: 3-4.
“And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things,
and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God? Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness
and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth
thee to repentance?”
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