Episode 77 Matthew 20 The King is Coming

Dan: (00:00)
Hi, everyone. And welcome to training for life redeemed. I’m your host, Dan and I am here with my dad, David Jackson. We are continuing to work through the book of Matthew. We’re up to Matthew chapter 20 and Dad, chapter 20 begins with Jesus telling a bit of a parable around the workers and how much they get paid. And basically saying that if you come and work all day, you get the same pay as the person who came and worked for half an hour. Yeah. doesn’t quite sound fair, I guess, but definitely in modern sense, probably not to the readers or the listeners, these disciples were probably listening at that point. why is he saying this particularly just after he is just told everyone that the first will be last and last week first, he’s just the guy coming last, still getting the same equal amount as the first. Is that the point they’re all the same

David: (00:53)
could be, he’s just told the, just told the 12 that they’re gonna get to rule on 12 Thrones. So they’re obviously getting more than other people. Yeah. and another par, he tells people that, you know, if you take the gifts God’s given you, you invest them. Some will rule five cities, some will rule 10 cities, whatever. there seems to be a bit of a contradiction. I think there between the more you do, the more you get versus everybody gets the same in the parable. And I think in the context of this chapter, the point is you don’t earn it at all. It’s not about you. It’s about God deciding where you fit in his story. And he’ll allocate things for his glory, not measured according to how much you think you’re worth. So it just takes away that whole idea of human merit.

David: (01:55)
it’s not that he’s being unfair. He’s just, he’s telling us that we don’t decide what is fair. We don’t decide, how things are gonna work in the kingdom of God. It’s his kingdom. He works at the way he wants for his glory and we just play our part in it. So if he wants to give, you know, the guy that gets you look at the guy that got converted on the cross, I think is a classic. I think of godly people who spend 40, 50, 60 years serving the Lord faithfully and nobody remembers their name. And then you think of this guy who was converted and lasted probably a couple of hours that everybody knows about him. Yeah. So it’s as if God takes all of these different combinations of things and puts his story together. And it’s not about whether you did more or you did less, it’s about our contribution to God’s glory.

Dan: (02:58)
Okay. So some of the stuff you said there, I was thinking, as you were saying, that there are passages where Jesus talks about, you know, if you’re a good steward of what’s given to you. Yeah. You know, to those who you have more will be given more, will be given, in the sense of, you know, if you are faithful with what you’re given here, you’ll be given more later basically. how does that then go with what you just said with that? Yeah.

David: (03:22)
Well, it’s God who allocates according to what he thinks.

Dan: (03:27)
Yeah. Not according to what We think,

David: (03:28)
not according to how we, it’s not, you know, I put in seven and a half hours, why do I get the same money as the guy who put in half an hour? it’s not a God’s kingdom is not run by a trade union. , you know, we don’t do an MEA with God. that is not how it works. So he has written my life, your life into his story for his glory. And at the end of it, he then rewards us according to his grace, not according to our merit. And one of the challenges in these parables is to get over this idea that we can think about, earning basically a wage from God for serving him. When the motivation for serving him is to glorify him.

Dan: (04:20)
Well, I mean, Jesus then follows this parable on with telling, pulling his disciples aside and saying, we’re going to Jerusalem. And when I, when we get there, I’m gonna die. I’m gonna rise again. EtCetera. is that I think that that links, well, I think with what you’re saying, then the point of the parable is the idea that you don’t earn it. It’s not, you know, and then he’s going, well, now I’m about to go and die and which I’m Gonna pay for This whole that’s right.

David: (04:47)
I’m gonna pay for this whole package at great cost. You know, how many times has he told these guys I’m going to Jerusalem to die and I’m gonna be arrested and all these terrible things are gonna happen. They’re actually on their way to Jerusalem. in the next chapter they’re gonna arrive and the spaghetti’s really gonna hit the fan, but they’re still thinking in terms of Jesus becoming a king on a throne in Jerusalem and all the Jews deciding that the Davidic King has arrived. They’re all gonna set up a Jewish kingdom and off we go,

Dan: (05:25)
Doesn’t help that their mother comes in straight afterwards. He goes, my boys, can we put them one on your left, one on your right? And she is like, I just told your boys that I’m gonna die. and you wanna, how,

David: (05:38)
How, how best could your mother embarrass you then when you are on a representative soccer team for mum to turn up and tap the coach on the shoulder and say, can you please put him forward as striker? my, boy’s the best striker in the club. You gotta put him up front whack. Whack it . Yeah, this is yeah. Such a mother . Yeah. And, and yeah, so John and James mother, isn’t it interesting. She’s with them, they’ve traveled from Galilee down to Jerusalem. They’re going up for the feast of Passover

Dan: (06:17)
In Jericho at the moment. Aren’t they? The next they’re about to leave Jericho.

David: (06:21)
Yeah. So on this journey, Mum’s with you, you know, you brought your mother, you probably, the wife and kids are coming along. This is, it’s not just the 12 roaming men with Jesus. There’s this much bigger community moving down the road. And she decides it’s her op, but what are we thinking? We’re thinking geopolitical kingdom in Jerusalem. We’re thinking politics. We’re thinking Roman empire kick the Romans out. When you do, she’s totally ignored. I’m gonna go to Jerusalem and get crucified. And she’s still thinking he’s gonna go to Jerusalem and become king. I want my son one as prime minister and one as treasurer. , you know, I want to be the wife of the prime mother of the prime minister. It’s what happened to this whole big discussion on rewards. Yeah. On grace, on dying in your place? We just, how many times has he said it? How many ways has he said it? And we still don’t get it.

Dan: (07:22)
We then have a very physical description really of possibly the woman. This is like, you know what? Let’s just have two blind men here call for my attention. I’ll wanna hear the blind men. Yeah. And that’s gonna also point out the fact that you guys are so blind. You can’t actually fathom what I’m saying to you. That I’m gonna go and die rise again. And then you’re like, no, I wanna, I wanna sit next to you on the throne in Jerusalem.

David: (07:47)
Yeah. The, the blind men are, it’s always the blind men that call him son of David. I find that interesting. There, there are two incidents where blind men, are there. They can’t see Jews. They hear that he’s passing by. And because they can’t see him, they just start yelling. Jesus’ son of David have mercy on me. you don’t call him son of David that, you know, the one thing that the Pharisees and scribes and everybody else has been waiting for is for Jesus to come out in public and say, I’m the Christ. I’m the king. I’m the anointed one. I’m here to take down, you know, king Caesar and king, her and anybody else that thinks they’re in charge. You don’t, he’s kept that right out of the conversation all along. he’s used parables. He’s used, miracles or visual parables. He’s done everything to avoid the terminology so that if you’re in on the secret, you’ll get it. And if you’re not, I’ll just confuse you. The daylight’s outta here. A blind man calls out son of David and he’s, he’s in Jericho he’s 10 K from Jerusalem. I mean, this is art. This is just giving a signal to the people in Jerusalem. You know, it’s on the king is coming and this time, Jesus doesn’t silence The guy which tells you it’s on. Yeah. The king is coming.

Dan: (09:20)
Yeah. But his time be glorified as John would say

David: (09:23)
. Yeah. And talk about tipping. All your values upside down. Glorified means you’re dead on a Cross

Dan: (09:29)
in John. We’re doing Matthew though. We’re doing Matthew,

David: (09:32)
But all of this is happening. And the blind guy knows, you know, this is his one chance in life to be healed. Son of David have mercy on me. What do you want me to do for you? That’s a really challenging question. And the guy says, just gimme my sight. Mm. And when he does, I like the response, the two blind men follow Jesus. That’s a discipleship term. So they’ve signed on. Yeah. You healed me. You’re the son of David I’m with you. beautiful. It it’s,

Dan: (10:12)
It’s a good way. Good way to end you way to end this, this episode. So if you want to grab the study notes for this episode, you can head over to trainingforliferedeemed.com/77. if you enjoy this episode, we’ll love for you to leave us a review. We’d love to hear from people there and make sure you hit the subscribe button. Make sure you come back and join us next week. We’ll be looking at chapter 21. And we’re talking about, you know, the whole change of, Jesus’ mentality. We go from accepting the title of being the son of David to now he’s gonna write a donkey in yeah. Into Jerusalem and really proclaim and annoy people and show off that. He’s definitely the Christ. So come and join us as we chat about that next.