Who is the Greatest - Matthew 11

Image result for greater is than the least in the kingdom
"Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he."  Matthew 11:11

 This is a challenging verse.  After all Jesus had plenty of good things to say about John the Baptist.  John's greatness came from his unique place in history.  Here are some of John's great attributes:
  1. John introduced the world to Jesus
  2. John baptized Jesus.
  3. He preached unflinchly about the kingdom of God.  He preached for people to repent and be baptized. 
  4. He was a prophet that broke of a 430 year period silence, where God had not spoken through anyone.  
  5. Every other prophet said the Messiah was coming, John said he is here. 
So despite all of these accolades and the important role John played, Jesus says the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than John.  Jesus is not talking qualitatively better but relatively better.  The difference is Jesus was the fulfillment of the new covenant John came to bring in.  John ministered under the old covenant and Jesus initiated a new covenant.  John lived under the dispensation of the Law.  Most importantly though John was empowered by the Spirit, he had not received the Spirit in the same way the disciples would on the day of Pentecost.  

The difference in the disciples before and after they received the gift of the Holy Spirit is stark.  Before he sent them His Spirit, they were fragile and fearful.  Though they loved Jesus, they had no power to carry out what he needed them to do.  In the power of the Spirit they preached and performed signs and miracles to show that the kingdom was now being realized on earth. 

Though you may be least in the kingdom of heaven you have entered the new covenant God has made with his people through Jesus Christ.  As we have received these great promises from Christ let us honor him by living a life empowered by the Holy Spirit helping usher in God's kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Acts 22 - Paul Sees the Light

Image
6  “About noon as I came near Damascus, suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around me.   7  I fell to the ground and heard a voice say to me,  ‘Saul! Saul! Why do you persecute me?’  8  “‘Who are you, Lord?’ I asked.  “  ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth,  whom you are persecuting,’  he replied.   9  My companions saw the light,  but they did not understand the voice  of him who was speaking to me.  10  “‘What shall I do, Lord?’ I asked. “  ‘Get up,’  the Lord said,  ‘and go into Damascus. There you will be told all that you have been assigned to do. This is the famous story of the apostle Paul's conversion on the road to Damascus.  Paul was going there to persecute Jewish Christians and throw them into prison and he meets Jesus is a spectacular way.  Not only is he blinded by a briliant light, but he hears the Lord's voice audibly.  And the Lord asks him, "Lord, Lord why are you persecuting me!"  Paul thought he was serving the Lord, but he was persecuting him b
Read more

2 Timothy 4 - Fight the Good Fight! Finish the Race!

Click Here to Read or Listen to 2 Timothy 4 4 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. 3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry. Paul gives a closing charge to Timothy. First of all, he is to preach the word. God's Word speaks to all situations and seasons. The Word of God will sometimes correct us. Our lives can get of out alignment with God's will as outlined in
Read more

Hebrews 6 - Have You Graduated From Elementary School of Faith Yet?

Click Here to Read or Listen to Hebrews 6 6 Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, 2 instruction about cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. 3 And God permitting, we will do so. The author once again picks up with the theme of moving on to Christian maturity.  He teaches them to move on from the "elementary" teachings about Christ. What does he mean by that?  He gives clues by citing repentance, faith, cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, and teaching on the judgment and resurrection from the dead. We might call these the basics of the Christian faith. If you read through the Apostle's Creed, which our church confesses in our 8am service, it contains many of these core doctrines.  Click here to see the Apostle's Creed Written Around “When we consider the
Read more