This sermon is from the Rev. Charles G. Dennison sermon archive, part of “The History of Salvation” series, and was preached at Grace Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Sewickley, PA, during a worship service on Sunday, November 25, 1990.
Tonight our scripture reading begins in Matthew chapter 21. We are beginning at verse 12 and we will read through verse 22. Hear the word of God. And Jesus entered the temple and cast out all those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changer and the seats of those who were selling dogs.
And he said to them, It is written, My house shall be called a house of prayer, but you are making it a robber’s den. And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple and he healed them. When the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he had done, and the children who were crying out in the temple and saying, Hosanna to the Son of David, they became indignant, and they said to him, Do you hear what these are saying? And Jesus said to them, Yes, as you never read, out of the mouth of infants and nursing babes thou hast prepared praise for thyself.
And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany Lodge there. Now in the morning, when he had returned to the city, he came hungry. And seeing a lone fig tree by the road, he came to it and found nothing on it except leaves only. And he said to it, No longer shall there ever be any fruit from you. And at once the fig tree withered. And seeing this, the disciples marveled, saying, How did the fig tree wither at once? Jesus answered and said to them, Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you shall not only do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, be taken up and cast into the sea, it shall happen. Everything you ask in prayer of believing, you shall receive. rather the twelfth chapter, the twelfth chapter of the twenty-eighth verse.
And one of the scribes came and heard them arguing, and recognizing that he had answered them well, asked him, What commandment is the foremost of all? Jesus answered, The foremost is, Hero Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord. And thou shalt love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. And the second is this, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these. And the scribe said to him, write, teacher, you have truly stated that he is one and there is no one else besides him. And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength and to love one’s neighbor as himself, is much more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices. When Jesus saw that he had answered intelligently, he said to them, You are not far from the kingdom of God. And after that, no one would venture to ask him any more questions.
Turning over to Luke’s Gospel, page 21, reading from verse 20. But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then recognize that her desolation is at hand. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are in the midst of the city depart, and let not those who are in the country enter the city, because these are days of vengeance, in order that all things which are written may be fulfilled. to those who are with child and to those who nurse babes in those days. For there will be great distress upon the land and wrath to this people, and they will fall by the edge of the sword and will be led captive into all the nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. And there will be signs in sun and moon and and upon the earth this may among nations in perplexity at the roaring of the seas and the waves men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things which are coming upon the world for the powers of the heavens will be shaken and then will they see the son of man coming in a cloud with power coming in a cloud with power and great glory but when these things begin to take place straighten up and look up lift up your head because your redemption is drawing near.
And he told them a parable. Behold the fig tree and all the trees. As soon as they put forth leaves, you see it and know for yourselves that the summer is now near. Even so, you too, when you see these things happening, recognize that the kingdom of God is near.
Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. Be on guard that your hearts may not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life, and that they and that they come on you suddenly like a trap. For it will come upon all those who dwell upon the face of all the earth.
But keep on the alert at all times, praying in order that you may have strength to escape these things that are about to take place and to stand before the Son of Man. Now during the day he was teaching in the temple, but at evening he would go out and spend the night on the mount that he called Olivet. And all the people would get up early in the morning to come to him in the temple to listen to him.
Our Father, by your Word, the world was created. And by your Word, your Church, the center of your new creation is brought into existence. As there is order in the original creation, so there is order in the second creation. And Father, we rejoice in the order that you have placed within that second creation. We thank you for the order of triumph. and how he ordered this church. And we rejoice, Lord, in the structure that you have raised up, whereby through elders, through those who would rule, that structure is made apparent, whereby through ministers of the Word, that structure is made evident as well. And how wonderfully, Lord, you care for your people, and the order that you have provided provides for them.
Surely there are those now who care for living stone. Living stone from the temple of our God, the house of our Savior, the body of Christ. So Lord, we ask that for your church throughout the world, you would grant strong ministers of the word, that you would be pleased to grant good and strong and faithful elders within the congregations of your people, and that you would supply your own with those who have diaconal ability so that they may be able to care for the needs of the people that pass before them, whose concerns and needs are great. These things we pray as we look to you in the preaching of the word, so that our hearts may be strengthened with respect to that order that you have established, and that we might be found submissive, obedient, living within the freedom that you have established for us in this new creation founded in Jesus Christ.
Amen. Jesus last week, before his crucifixion, confronts us with the mystery of that rejection that he experienced, the rejection that he experienced at the hands of his own people, rejected by Israel. How is it that Israel, those who bear God’s name, we get them there. And there is. How is it that they’re gone we get them. How are these things working out as part of the plan.
But even beyond that with respect to the matter of rejection of the bill we look at the rejection that Jesus during the week. What of the incalculable pain and travail for God’s people, who, under the banner of Christ, serving him faithfully, know the nearly unbearable sorrow of rejection at the hands of us? So it is, then, we come in our survey of New Testament time to this final week for Jesus prior to his crucifixion. and that’s subject of his rejection.
Jesus enters Jerusalem, as we have pointed out previously, on Sunday. We know of the fallen Sunday. Jesus enters Jerusalem on Sunday, prior to the Friday of his crucifixion. And we read of his entry into Jerusalem in the Gospels Each of the Gospels has a record of it.
Matthew’s account of it is in the 21st chapter, the first 11 verses. Now Mark tells us that upon entering the city, he surveys the city. But having looked things over, he leaves and stays in Bethany that night. And Bethany became something of a home base for him as he moved in and out of the city. The next day then, Monday, the final conflict with Christ begins.
Jesus casts out the merchants, there is the cleansing of the temple, earlier he had cleansed it, you know the account at the end of John 2, so that there were two cleansings of the temple, one at the beginning of his ministry and then another at the close. John’s account of that early cleansing is very instructive. He tells us that Jesus on that occasion chastised the leaders of Israel because they had allowed the merchandisers to set up shops within the temple precincts.
Think of it. Merchandisers. Those who buy and sell. Those who are profiteers. Enterprises. Even religious entrepreneurs. We see certain similarities, do we not? Between what is occurring in Jesus’ day and our own. As a house of God is transformed into a house of merchandise. Into an environment where there is much buying and selling. Prosecution, even. Jesus cast out the merchants. the merchandise. He cleanses the temple. He teaches. He heals. He challenges the leader that is challenged by them.
On that Monday, then, within the context of his entrance into the temple and his cleansing of it, we also are face to face with the It’s a difficult passage, quite enigmatic, but I think that we’re all clear about this much, that the fig tree represents Israel, and because there is no fruit to be found on the fig tree, it is condemned, and thus the fig tree’s cursing becomes a prophecy of what is awaiting Israel.
The disciples in that context are encouraged to faith. A faith by which they will then participate in the apocalyptic holocaust that is sure to come. Mountains being cast into the midst of the sea is an end-time vision. It is faith alone that will enable one to endure when everything is brought to its conclusion, when the elements of this world will be dissolved. and we will be face to face with judgment and God. So then, we have the event of that Monday, as the final conflict begins, Jesus cleansing the temple, teaching, healing, challenging leaders being challenged by them, the cursing of the fig tree, The prophecy of the judgment that is coming, and through that, the promise of an even greater judgment. For beyond the dissolution of Jerusalem is the dissolution of this world order. We ought to be prepared for that. And truly, there is no other way to be prepared for that than by faith. And on Tuesday, Jesus enters the city once again. He spends this day teaching extensively. He’s in the temple, and there he teaches and responds to the attacks of his enemies. In this context, his wits and critical ability are revealed in all their forcefulness. He is questioned, for instance, about his authority. By what authority do you perform these signs? By what authority do you enter the temple and cast out our money changers? By what authority do you do these things?” he asked.
But Jesus, as I said, his wit and his critical ability at his height, at their height, turned upon his accusers, his inquisitors, and asked them about John the Baptist. Was John’s ministry from heaven or from heaven? And when the leaders of the people refused to answer that question, Jesus said to them, I refuse to have you by my authority. I do the same. Why didn’t they receive John? Or to receive John was to receive the one He prepared the way for the Messiah. And who was the Messiah? Jesus. And what do Jesus and John the Baptist preach?
The coming of the kingdom of heaven. The coming of the kingdom of God. And ironically, within the proclamation of that kingdom, the Jewish leaders can recognize nothing that is familiar to them. They are men of the earth. They are driven by the flesh. They cannot see beyond the appearance of things. They are not able to peer by faith to heaven, to see eternal life. So, they refuse to answer Jesus. This then opens the door for Jesus, for his great parable, in which he powerfully exposes the leaders of the people. The most powerful of all is that parable of the wicked husbandman that appears at the end of Matthew 21, beginning with verse 33.
You remember how it goes. The warden of the vineyard sends out his servant in series to receive for himself the produce that is his. These servants are wickedly treated, and then finally the Lord sends out his sons. Surely they will respect my son, but his sons are still treated and even executed. What then will the Lord do to these wicked husbandmen? The Jewish leaders are invited out of their own mouths. He’ll come and destroy them. He’ll place others in charge of the vineyards so that he might receive what is his due.
And Jesus says, truly the kingdom of God shall be taken away from you and given to a nation bearing fruit. The chief priests and the Pharisees know too well Jesus’ meaning. Now he speaks in this fashion. Jesus then proceeds to tell another parable, the parable of the wedding feast, in which the king’s invitation is issued and goes out so that there might be many of his countrymen, his friends, who come to the king’s son’s wedding. But that invitation is rejected, rejected by his subjects, supposedly loyal subjects. When that happens, The king sends out his servants afresh, that his banquet hall might be filled, and others come in to enjoy the wedding feast that the king has prepared for his son. This parable that appears at the beginning of Matthew 22, the first 14 verses, previews the rejection of the Jews and the re-gathering of the Gentiles, as you know.
Then we move on. The various religious and political factions, because of Jesus’ teaching now in the temple, are driven all the more in their hatred for him. We have a strange alliance forged here in the midst of this conflict. You read about it in the 22nd chapter of Matthew, beginning with verse 15. Here the The Pharisees, as you move on from the 15th verse into the 16th, here the Pharisees join together with the Herodians. They come at Jesus with their clever questions about Jesus’ Trinity.
In these two factions, religious and political, the Pharisees being religious, quite religious, not wholly apolitical. The Herodians definitely political, but not apolitical. In these two factions, representative of religious and political power, the love of the world is being perfected. Jesus who founds them both.
They are interested in one thing, his destruction, because his presence speaks to them of something that challenges their authority, their place, their privilege. all the things that they have amassed for themselves. Next come the Sadducees. The Sadducees were the real power behind the priesthood in Judaism at that time. They were a worldly aristocracy that controlled the court system, the legal apparatus within as well as the official religious worship services for Israel.
They attempt with their questions to make the resurrection of the dead look ridiculous, because they did not believe in spirit, they did not believe in the supernatural, and they did not believe in the resurrection of the dead. So Jesus confronts them, chapter 22, verse 23 and following. and how marvelously he does confront them, confounding them out of the Old Testament scriptures, taking those scriptures that they revealed to prove the fact that there was a resurrection. In fact, the resurrection is at the very heart of what the Old Testament is all about. If you don’t understand the resurrection, there’s no hope with respect to the resurrection, then you’ve missed the point.
But then there comes that lone paragon, a lawyer as he is called, in one instance, with his question about the greatest commandment, chapter 22, 34 through 40, and we read the parallel passage in the Gospel of John chapter. While each receives the appropriate and perfect response, this last figure is one in whom we can see hope. According to Mark, and we’ve read him this evening, Jesus told him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God, verse 34 of that twelfth chapter in Mark.
Indeed, the structures of Israel, political and religious, are corrupt. The parties and their orders, with their aspirations and vested interests, have become even murderous. They’re contemplating destroying this man, Jesus. that this solitary lawyer, this solitary therapy stands out as a figure in whom we are able to see the proportion of salvation and its prospect for the Israelite salvaged from the jaws of death. All hope is not lost, even with respect to Israel.
All Israel will be saved. therapy indicative of the fact that yes, God’s purpose, His plan is perfect. We can speak about God’s rejection of His people, but yet we know His people are not rejected in the sense that any of His elect are lost. seemingly is not far from being gathered by God into the ultimate and eternal sense. But now, the one who has been interrogated, Jesus, as we end that 22nd chapter of Matthew, the one who has been interrogated becomes the interrogator. the end of his encounter with these leaders, with these inquisitors, by asking them a question.
What do you think of Christ? Whose son is he? Jesus asked, beginning in verse 41 of that twenty-second chapter. And then quoting from Psalm 110, The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand. He asked further how David can refer to his son as his Lord. And at the asking of that question, all mouths are stopped. For in order for David’s son to be his Lord, his son must be one greater than him.
Jesus then addresses the multitudes and disciples with an avalanche of woes in Matthew 23, telling them about the manifest hypocrisy that is increasingly evident within the Jewish establishment. Woe after woe articulated for you there, and Jesus goes through that. that indict a nation. But Jesus, at the conclusion of that 23rd chapter, launches on into a lament, for he is crushed personally in his spirit by the uncertainty of Jerusalem’s impending demise.
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and those who are sent to her, how often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wing, and you were unwilling. Behold, your house is being left to you desolate, for I say to you, from now on you shall not see me until you say, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.” Jesus retires to the Mount of Olives with his disciples, and there he delivers his great but controversial description of what is coming for Jerusalem. But lest we are too short-sighted, it is not just the end that is coming for Jerusalem, but on the background of that end that is coming for Jerusalem, the end of all things, the end of the world. how many an interpreter has floundered on Matthew 24, how many an interpreter has run aground when he has tried to steer his boat, the boat of Matthew 24, exclusively into the harbor of either the event of Jerusalem’s demise or the event of the end of the world.
Actually, this twenty-fourth chapter speaks of both events in apocalyptic terms. One must see the end of the world in the end of Jerusalem. Jesus speaks about the end, the coming end of Jerusalem, and on the background of that impending destruction, he then telescopes with respect to those events that are coming that shall conclude the age in its entirety. So both are in view. And one must read, one must read that twenty-fourth chapter with both eyes clear and well focused. For it’s not one versus the other, it’s not an either-or, rather it is a both-and.
Jesus then closes out this day, this Tuesday before his death. with appropriate warnings to his disciples. The warnings that you find at the end of the twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew’s gospel. For instance, the forty-third verse. If the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. For this reason, You are to be ready too, Jesus says to his disciples, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think he will. Jesus, as he closes out the day, gives to his disciples those wonderful parables with respect to preparedness. In chapter twenty-five you have the parable of the ten virgins. Do not let the day overtake you. as those who would be unprepared as the foolish virgins were.
Instead, we are to be on the alert, we are to be prepared that we might enter into the wedding ceremony that is coming for the King and his bride. There then follows Jesus’ parables In verses fourteen through thirty of that twenty-fifth chapter, a parable of a talent. We are told that we are to live wisely, circumspectly. We are to think hard and well about those things that have been committed to our care. We are to be answerable and responsible before our Lord. as we look to the day when he shall come and give us our reward.
Finally, at the end of that twenty-fifth chapter, there is the sobering picture to the image of the sheep and the goats of the final judgment. The goats are placed on the left hand and the sheep on the right. The sheep are welcomed into the kingdom and blessed The ghosts are cast into utter darkness. The terrible despair of this man will come at the end of that day, that Tuesday, prior to Christ’s crucifixion.
So now, halfway through the final week, the stage is set for a conspiracy to work itself out for Christ’s betrayal or His execution. Our purpose here tonight has been to lay out the events to that midweek point, but it’s also appropriate to make some comments. The mystery of Jesus’ rejection, we know, is the mystery of sin. What is it about that so rebelled against the good, and when the good is epitomized in an individual, in the Son of Man, in the Son of God, how that rebellion is accentuated, how it is excited.
It’s very appearing. He draws it out of us. And are we any different than the Jews of the first century? Can we really stand apart from them and say, well, if we had been there, if we had been in that situation, we wouldn’t have acted as they did. We wouldn’t have been party to their crime. Are we so sure? Are we so certain?
Have we not been convinced by what we have seen here as Jesus virtually stands alone and makes his way through these events? that it is only by grace that we are going to stand at all. It is only by grace, in fact, that His disciples stand. Grace alone gains the victory over their misconceptions and doubts. And likewise for us, it is grace alone that enables us to stand.
It is not our goodness, it is not our righteousness, it is not our good sense. It isn’t because we’re so intelligent and we see everything so clearly that we can set ourselves apart from these Jews who were the perpetrators of this crime against the Son of God. No, we are involved. We are involved. Our sin, likewise, condemns us.
We are indicted, and except by grace, we stand under the judgment. that falls upon them, and as they were destroyed, likewise we are destined for destruction. But we believe that God is merciful and looks favorably upon a people which he has determined to preserve for himself. That by mercy, God’s grace, we have come to believe and to trust. We have repented of our sins Our faith and our repentance be the evidence of His working in us.
We are now poised. We are now poised for glory, for eternal life, rather than judgment. And to Him alone belongs all praise. To Him who was rejected To him who died, to him who was raised again from the dead, we long all praise. As you have confessed your faith, as you have repented of your sins, we do not this evening praise him for his matchless courage on your behalf. Amen.
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