Imagine what it would have been like to walk alongside Jesus as He conducted His ministry on earth. Think about the people you'd meet, the conversation you'd have, and how your love for Jesus would grow as you saw His compassion and felt His grace. Today on Insight for Living, Chuck Swindoll presents a brand new study through the Gospel according to Matthew. Essentially, this series gives us an occasion to roll back the calendar 2,000 years to experience the ministry of Jesus in real time.
Chuck titled his first message, Let's Meet the King. In the quietness of this moment, our Father, we are grateful for a relationship with You that has brought peace in place of chaos and has brought relief in place of guilt and has brought hope in place of emptiness and has introduced us to one who knows us the best yet loves us the most, Your Son, Jesus. We never tire of worship. We're weary of activities, even religious activities. There are times when we long for just moments with You, where we might get to know You better and understand You more in depth than we have before. We have no idea what the future holds. We couldn't predict what this year will be like or even tomorrow. You've told us in other parts of Your Word that Your life is a vapor.
It appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Use the things we discover to remind us over and over that we really are not ready to live until we are ready to die. And being ready to die, we're able to grasp all that life has for us and live it to the full. Thank You, Father, today for the reminder that Your love for us is constant, unconditional, pure, that it comes to us again and again, often when we least expect it. Today, on this day of worship, we thank You again for Your profound gift to us in Your Son, Jesus. Teach us in the years we walk with You to become increasingly more unselfish as we share the good news and as we share from our own treasure that this message might spread far beyond the familiar world in which we live. May our gifts today take that message and spread it far and wide. We release that with great joy and faith, just as we give our gifts today in the name of Christ our Lord.
Everyone said, Amen. And now the message from Chuck entitled, Let's Meet the King. The book we began to study is a book filled with this story. It's the story of the great king who left the riches of heaven to become a commoner on this earth. That we, the commoners, after believing in him, would become the regal children in his family. No one ever said it better than Paul, 2 Corinthians 8-9. You know, the grace of our Lord Jesus, who though he was rich, yet for our sakes became poor, that we, through his poverty, might be rich.
Only a God of surprises would have come up with a plan that magnificent. It's our joy to begin today to take on the study of this gospel story. I've provided you with an outline and I'd like you to keep your eye on it as we work our way through it.
Have your pen ready or your pencil. I've given you four columns that mark out the four gospels, but you might want to write in the margin the meaning of the word gospel. It's an Anglo-Saxon word, good spell. It comes from a term that means good news. So the gospel would be the good news, the good news of Matthew, the good news of Mark, the good news of Luke, the good news of John.
Now, with that in mind, be ready to write in each column various things. Matthew presents Jesus as the king, so put king below his name. You will see all the way through the writing of Matthew, the king, the king, the Messiah, the promised one. Matthew was written to Jews, that's why there are so many references of Jewish significance.
References to the law, references to the customs, references to the feast and events of the Jews, very familiar to Jews. Let's go back to the outline and notice that there is a writer and he writes for a reason to begin with. The writer in this book, of course, is Matthew. He's only called Matthew in this book. Mark and Luke call him Levi. No doubt Jesus gave him the name Matthew. Back for your notes, you may want to note it means gift of God, gift of Yahweh. So God chose, the Lord Jesus chose Levi to walk with him and he chose this man giving him a name, gift of God.
What a man he was. Now, why do they write? Well, Matthew writes, obviously, to show us that the king who has come is worthy of our trust. That's the reason Matthew put his words together.
He wants us to know this is written by a man who knew him personally, walked with him, was among the disciples. How about their family? What do we know about them? Well, first let me have you go to the list. Look at Matthew 10 where the Lord gives us a list of all the disciples. There in verse 2, here are the names of the 12 apostles.
You can read them. Simon called Peter. Andrew is Peter's brother. James is the son of Zebedee. John, James' brother. So we've already got brothers, James and John. They were called otherwise sons of thunder. They had a real anger problem.
That's another subject. And then Philip comes along. Then Bartholomew is mentioned. Thomas, who was a twin, named Didymus in John's Gospel, meaning twin. Here's Matthew, parenthesis, the tax collector. James, son of Alphaeus, Thaddeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot. Study the name.
Study the list of these names for a few moments. You can't tell by looking, but no doubt it's pretty close to probable that Matthew and James, the son of Alphaeus, were brothers. See Matthew followed by James. In another Gospel writer, in another Gospel, two others, Matthew, I should say Mark and Luke, Matthew was called son of Alphaeus, just as James is. They're brothers.
Listen to the writings of Michael Green, who adds this about this fascinating family. We learn from Mark and Luke that Matthew was the son of Alphaeus. And so was James, Mark 3.18, as well as Matthew 10, verse 2.
They were therefore brothers. And at the end of the apostolic list for all its variations, we find James, son of Alphaeus, Thaddeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot, for the last four who were named. We know that Simon was a zealot, not to be confused with Simon Peter. See down next to the last, Simon is called a zealot.
What does that mean? That is to say, a violent resistance fighter against the occupying Roman forces. Very likely, Judas Iscariot was one as well.
One of the more probable derivations for his name is Sicarius. The word means dagger carrier. He carried a dagger. He would be among those so bent on resistance that they were ready to assassinate.
And the dagger was always handy. Judas, no doubt, was the most zealous of the twelve, which explains his departure from the faith. He never was really a believer in the Lord Jesus, but he followed Jesus, believing Jesus would overthrow the Romans. And he lived for that.
And when he realized he would not be doing that, Judas turned on him. It's another subject. We'll go into it some other time. Back to this quote.
Most of the common people of Israel were people of nationalistic patriotism. But his brother Matthew or Levi was totally different. Now follow this carefully. James is a zealot. He's a son of Alphaeus. So is Levi.
But Levi's different. As he grew up, he farmed taxes for Herod Antipas. He cooperated with the occupying power that his brother was set on seeking to overthrow with a bloody revolution.
Imagine that. You're a strong right-winger, and you have a left-wing liberal for a brother. And to make matters worse, he works for the IRS. And so here you are with a brother, completely different agenda in life than you have, and you wind up in the same list of disciples. I told you he was a god of surprises. Only a life and a person like Christ could change the heart of a Matthew, and while I'm at it, change the heart of a James, who must have grown up prejudiced against his own brother. Matthew was a quisling. James was a freedom fighter. Here they are winding up, not just in the same family, but among the same body of disciples. He writes in conclusion, it took Jesus of Nazareth to bring the two brothers together. Nobody else could.
You know I'm not going to let that go without an application. Some of you are sisters or brothers to someone who is totally different. You're convinced of one frame of thinking, and your sibling is convinced of another. You don't walk together. You don't think alike. You don't vote alike. You aren't in the same camp.
And I'm sure people who know both of you have said to you on occasion, you know it's hard to believe that you're sisters or that you're brothers because you're so different. And you know what's the shame of all that? Your tendency is to write them off. Oh, he's so right-wing he won't ever make a left turn. Or the other side, he's so liberal he can't think outside the boundaries of liberalism.
I mean, on top of that, he works for the IRS. What can you expect? I won't go any further. I'll get an amen if I go further, so I'm not going to go there. But you know what I'm saying.
Now, bring Jesus into the picture. All of a sudden, all of your habit of writing off has to stop. I want to warn you about writing anybody off.
In case you need a reminder, someone probably once wrote you off. And look at where you are today. And look at your background. Maybe you're not a quisling, maybe you're not a fraud. But truth be told, you've done some things you're ashamed of.
So have I. We're all sinners, sorry sinners who don't deserve the breath that's in our lungs. And along came Christ, who said to us, I want you to follow me. Let me show you how this works its way out while I'm on this sort of personal side. Go back a chapter to Matthew 9. What are your thoughts like this?
Matthew 9, as Jesus, verse 9, is walking along, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector's booth. By the way, it's the last place that you ever wanted to go that was a strong right-winger. Stay away from those crooks. Stay away from those people. They want your money.
By the way, it's a good time for me to add this before I go any further. Matthew, being a tax collector, it took the life of Jesus to change him. They were as much hated as social pariahs. The Jews classed them with murderers.
They weren't even welcome in the synagogue. There were two kinds of taxes. There was the fixed tax, made up of ground tax, grain and wine taxes, oil tax, fruit tax, income tax, and poll tax. Those were fixed taxes. And then there were the arbitrary taxes levied on customs, transport, exports, and imports. The former, that is the fixed tax, had a fixed percentage, well known by everybody.
It was figured to be about 25 percent. It was in the latter category that there was limitless opportunity for bribery and extortion. That made the publicans so hated. To make matters worse, Matthew worked under the employ of Herod Antipas, who in turn had to make massive block tax disbursements to the swine of Rome.
It was a very lucrative place in which to work. This is the man who was changed from his disreputable profession to become a follower of Jesus. Now, all of that as a background, I want you to get the picture of Levi before Christ got a hold of him. This is not the first time he hears of or meets Christ. I think there have been weeks that have passed where he's followed from a distance and maybe even believed in his heart that this is Messiah.
He doesn't quite know what to do with all of this. Now look closely. Jesus comes along, he sees Matthew sitting in the collector's booth, and rather than walking away as all the other freedom fighters would have done, he walks in and says, follow me and be my disciple.
Matthew got up and followed him. Think about it. Cheat though he was, he was rich. He has mated money on the hide of fellow Jews. Hated? Why would he want to be numbered among those who were going to follow Jesus?
They're filled with people who are going to hate people like him. It was the power of Christ that drew him. Read on. I love this part. Later, Matthew invited Jesus and his disciples to his home. I'm sure it was a big place.
Really big place. He invited them to be his dinner guests along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. Now that doesn't mean much to you because we don't have tax collectors today. Well, we do. We call them by their names. But let's say you have a party and you bring in a bunch of your friends from the IRS. And you bring your buddies along with those with whom you once worked.
We're all together at one table. Isn't that going to be fun? I could just imagine how some of you would respond to that.
I'm sure you'd be very gracious. But we read verse 31, or I should say verse 11, and the Pharisees saw this. Saw what? This whole group sitting together for dinner. Disreputable sinners, tax collectors, people that are hated as well as those disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to the disciples, Why does your teacher eat with such scum?
These are Pharisees looking in from the outside. They wouldn't dare go in there and get their garments soiled by this sorry bunch of sinners sitting around the table. Now look at Jesus' response. He said, Healthy people don't need a doctor.
Sick people do. Then he added, Now you go and learn the meaning of this scripture. I want you to show mercy. Not offer sacrifices. They're all busy doing all their sacrifices, all their feasts, all their customs.
Don't go that route. Go and show mercy, for I've come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners. By the way, do you know that about yourself?
Honestly, there are some so smug and snobbish, they'd consider that an insulting question. If you are born without Christ as you are, and if you're living your life without God, you have no righteousness. Oh, you have status. Oh, you may have all the stuff that money can buy, but you're a sinner. Not until you acknowledge that and see yourself as that will you ever come anywhere near the ranks of those who are followers of Christ. No one comes to Jesus who doesn't first see herself or himself as a sinner. Because when you see yourself in that light, you have no trouble believing in one who can save you from your plight. Because the tragedy is, if you are like most, is that you die in your sins. And you have nothing when you face eternity to bring you before God clothed in the righteousness of Christ. See, you're not surrounded by personally righteous people today. You're not hearing the words of a righteous person in myself.
I'm a sinner that's been delivered from my sin by the grace of God. Like every one of you know Christ. That's what the Pharisees could never see. All they could see was the sinfulness of life.
And they didn't realize they were in the same camp in need of a physician as much as any other sinner. I love this thought as one man writes, when Jesus called Matthew as he sat at his receipt of custom, Matthew rose up, followed him, left everything behind him except one thing. His pen.
Isn't that good? He brought along his pen. You see, with the other disciples, they weren't writers. They're fishermen.
They're people who worked the trades. Matthew made his living writing. That's why when you read through Matthew, you find it excellent, excellent Greek, excellent writing.
Well, as D.A. Carson writes, Matthew was a skilled literary craftsman and gave his gospel structure, form, and rhythm. That's the Matthew we're going to be studying. It'll be a book of structure, form, and rhythm. Now, as far as his styles and phrases are concerned, just keep in mind what he loves to refer to.
You'll see it on the chart. He refers 32 different times to the kingdom of heaven. That's a phrase he loves. He also will refer to the law.
He will refer to customs. He'll refer to many of the Jewish traditions because it's a Jewish gospel written to fellow Jews. And by the way, while we're on the subject of styles and phrases, get this, only 20 references to the Old Testament are in John's gospel, 25 are in Luke's gospel, 36 Old Testament references are in Mark's gospel, 53 are in Matthew's gospel.
Did you get them? 53 in Matthew, 36 in Luke, 25 in, I'm sorry, 36 in Mark, 25 in John's gospel. Let me start over, shall I? There are 20 in John's gospel. There are 25 in Luke's.
There are 36 in Mark's and 53 in Matthew. Got that said. Now then, here's the theme. Jesus Christ is Israel's Messiah. There you have it. Jesus Christ is Israel's Messiah.
All right, I think we have those facts straight now. And of course the most important one is underscoring that Jesus Christ is Israel's Messiah. You're listening to Insight for Living, and Chuck Swindoll titled the first message in his new study of Matthew, Let's Meet the King. To learn more about this ministry, visit us online at insightworld.org. And the fact of the matter is, Jesus is Israel's Messiah will be our theme over the next several months, in fact, the better part of the year, as Chuck guides us through a verse-by-verse study of Matthew.
We'll start with the birth of our King and trace his footsteps all the way through his Great Commission. Now, in conjunction with this broadcast series, you'll be glad to learn that Chuck has just completed a commentary on Matthew, and it's available right now. In fact, because of this, Chuck's commentary comes in two hard-bound volumes. The set is called Swindoll's Living Insights Commentary for Matthew. Whether you're new to the Bible or you're teaching the Bible as a pastor, you'll find Chuck's approach to Matthew both scholarly and accessible.
And it's written in the engaging style that's become a hallmark of Chuck's teaching. To purchase Swindoll's Living Insights Commentary for Matthew, check out our website. To purchase Swindoll's Living Insights Commentary for Matthew, go to insight.org slash store. If you prefer to call us and you're listening in the United States, dial 1-800-772-8888. Insight for Living Ministries is supported not by the purchase of commentaries, but through the voluntary contributions of grateful listeners.
And we invite you to join our mission to introduce King Jesus to all 195 countries of the world. To give a donation, call us. Again, if you're listening in the U.S., call 1-800-772-8888. Many are choosing to automate their giving by becoming a monthly companion.
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Or you can easily sign up online at insight.org slash monthly companion. Join us again when Chuck Swindoll continues his message, Let's Meet the King, Friday on Insight for Living. The preceding message, Let's Meet the King, was copyrighted in 2014 and 2021, and the sound recording was copyrighted in 2021 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited.
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