Matthew Reflections (1)
Matthew wrote his "gospel" to and for Jewish communities
that were committed to Jesus Christ. If he wrote it in Greek then he
probably wrote it to Jewish Christians that lived outside Palestine; but
he wrote it to Jews.
You hardly get the book open before Matthew talks about the "fulfilment" of this or that OT prophecy. Take a little while and just read through the whole text and see how often this occurs. See, as a few examples 1:22, 2:5,18, 3:3.
This motif would certainly serve to make the point that what these
Jewish believers committed themselves to was grounded in their sacred
scriptures. They hadn’t gone off the rails and impatiently grabbed one
of the many Messiahs that were on offer from time to time. This Jesus to
whom they had given their lives was the One sent by God and the one in
whom the kingdom of God had come.
Matthew’s stresses that the Jewish Torah and the teaching of the prophets remained as potent and as binding as ever.
This Messiah not only fulfils OT predictions and the drift of OT
history and prophecy he was obedient to the ethical and religious call
of the entire OT message. Jesus Christ was the OT come into its own as
never before. If he is asked how eternal life is gained, he calls people
to obey the Torah. If people think he has come to undermine or abolish
the Torah and the prophets he sets them straight in no uncertain
fashion! See, for example, 4:4,7,10, 5:17-18, the entire Sermon (chapters 5--7) and 23:3.
Matthew makes it clear, however, that the Torah is to be understood in light of the way Jesus embodied and taught it.
The people knew the Torah via their leaders and what they got from them
undermined the heart and nature of the Torah. Those who said yes to
Jesus Christ said no to the scribal leaders when it came to
understanding the heart of God and scripture. Note, for example, the
series of "I say unto you" in the Sermon and 7:24-27.
Matthew stresses the kingdom authority and power of Jesus Christ. Jesus insists that those who refuse to build their lives on his
teaching will not be able to survive the coming storms. He speaks and
people everywhere are astonished at his wisdom and understanding. They
can hardly believe his depth and insight and they certainly knew the
difference between Jesus and the Torah-lawyers. See this, for example,
in 7:28-29, 13:53-54, 22:33.
But it wasn’t just his teaching that awed the people and his own
disciples—it was the power he exercised in healing all manner of
diseases, in expelling demons and commanding nature to obey. See 9:8, 13:54, 14:33.
Nor was it how he developed texts and healed the country alone that
stresses Christ’s authority; it was how he laid demands on his disciples
or those that would be his disciples. See this in 5:10-12, 10:34-39. 16:24 and elsewhere. Then there are his flat claims to kingdom authority that startle the reader. See Matthew 11:27, 12:39,42, 13:41, 16:19, 25:31-32 and 28:18 are examples.
Matthew stresses that opposition to Jesus is satanic in nature
and was to be explained that way, whether it was a Judas that betrayed
him or the many who refused to receive the word that Jesus and his
followers sowed. See 13:19, 25,39.
Matthew stresses that the ministry of John the Baptist "failed"and
that the people (following the lead of their leaders) had not turned
again to God as they had been called to by Malachi 4. The proof of this
would be seen in how they would treat the Messiah. This in turn connects
with Matthew’s repeated warnings of judgement on the nation. See
Malachi 3:1, 4:4-6, Matthew 11:18,19, 16:21, 17:12,13, 21:32 with 12:39-45, 13:39-43 and chapters 24—25
Matthew stresses that those Jews who receive Jesus as the
Messiah are the righteous remnant that lives among the weeds sowed by
the Evil One. See 7:21-23, 21:43 with 8:12 and 13:38,40-43. Click here
Matthew stresses that the coming of the kingdom of God as seen
in Jesus Christ is all about healing, release, re-creation and such
like. See 4:23-24, 10:1,7-8, 12:15-21,24-28
Mathew stresses that the connection between sin, sickness and suffering is immediate and undoubted. See 9:1-7,10-15Not only does he heal people but often, in healing them, he expels
demons and undermines satanic power so that healing is not simply a
blessing to a sufferer, it is also an assault against satanic and
demonic power. 4:24, 13:22-28.
©2004 Jim McGuiggan. All materials are free to be copied and used as long as money is not being made.
Many thanks to brother Ed Healy, for allowing me to post from his website, the abiding word.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment