JESUS ON THE REWARDS AND THE RESURRECTION
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3WeqqTKqhU
Reminds me of Paul and of running the race:
1Co 9:23 And I do all things for the cause of the good news, so that I may have a part in it.
24 Do you not see that in a running competition all take part, but only one gets the reward? So let your minds be fixed on the reward.
25 And every man who takes part in the sports has self-control in all things. Now they do it to get a crown which is of this world, but we for an eternal crown.
26 So then I am running, not uncertainly; so I am fighting, not as one who gives blows in the air:
27 But I give blows to my body, and keep it under control, for fear that, after having given the good news to others, I myself might not have God's approval.
(BBE)
And he would say at the end:
2Ti 4:6 For I am even now being offered, and my end is near.
7 I have made a good fight, I have come to the end of my journey, I have kept the faith:
8 From now on, the crown of righteousness is made ready for me, which the Lord, the upright judge, Will give to me at that day: and not only to me, but to all those who have had love for his revelation.
(BBE)It deals with
Clearly, there IS a race against time for our lives are short and meant to end at a time most of us do not know. Clearly, there are rewards for running the race well.
To run one must train, in the Word, the Bible; in prayer, in time with the Lord: in practice, in acting out the faith with good works and with the message of the Gospel: in time with others to nurture the connection with the church, the Body.
Now we arrive at one of the toughest stretches in Scripture for someone like me who believes in eternal security. It deals with an extensive set of warnings for the Church that are related to the Rapture event Warnings He did not feel were needed in the "Jewish" segment of the promises of His return. My interpretation of these does not always agree with other commentators.
Another reason, I placed Matt 24 and 25 in the midst of a pause from the battles that were a pause from the judgements because some of these warnings are meant for the saints to avoid the Tribulation. You have thus far seen only the tip of the iceberg of judgements and disasters that sweep through the Tribulation. While we might think of the Tribulation saints as Noahs preserved from harm by a spiritual ark, we need to realize these passages show us a different story for the saints left behind at the beginning of the Great Trouble.
Mt 24:42 Be watching, then! for you have no knowledge on what day your Lord will come.
43 But be certain of this, that if the master of the house had had knowledge of the time when the thief was coming, he would have been watching, and would not have let his house be broken into.
44 Be ready then; for at a time which you have no thought of the Son of man will come.
45 Who is the true and wise servant, whom his lord has put over those in his house, to give them their food at the right time?
46 A blessing on that servant, who will be doing so when his lord comes.
47 Truly, I say to you, he will put him over all he has.
48 But if that evil servant says in his heart, My lord is a long time in coming;
49 And is cruel to the other servants, taking his pleasure with those who are overcome with wine;
50 The lord of that servant will come in a day when he is not looking for him, and in an hour of which he has no knowledge,
51 And will have him cut in two, and will give him a part in the fate of the false ones: there will be weeping and cries of sorrow.
(BBE)
First, don't miss the symbolic meaning here. The fallen flesh cannot enter heaven. Our "new" flesh can be refreshed in the continued acts of obedience and service. These feed our connection with Jesus, ur relationship. The old flesh and following its' desires starves the "new man".
But, of curse, the actuality of the text the fact the Resurrection WILL occur vastly outweighs the symbolism.
Start with Matt Henry. Extensive but amended here. Despite my disagreements, it sums up much and enlightens.
Mt 24:32-51
2. The reasons to induce us to this watchfulness and diligent preparation for that day; which are two.
(1.) Because the time of our Lord's coming is very uncertain. This is the reason immediately annexed to the double exhortation (Mt 24:42,44); and it is illustrated by a comparison, Mt 24:43. Let us consider then,
[1.] That we know not what hour he will come, Mt 24:42. We know not the day of our death, Ge 27:2... may never boast of a year's continuance (Jas 4:13), no, nor of tomorrow's return, as if it were ours,
Pr 27:1 Do not make a noise about tomorrow, for you are not certain what a day's outcome may be.
(BBE)
Lu 12:16 And he said to them, in a story, The land of a certain man of great wealth was very fertile:
17 And he said to himself, What is to be done? for I have no place in which to put all my fruit.
18 And he said, This I will do: I will take down my store-houses and make greater ones, and there I will put all my grain and my goods.
19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have a great amount of goods in store, enough for a number of years; be at rest, take food and wine and be happy.
20 But God said to him, You foolish one, tonight I will take your soul from you, and who then will be the owner of all the things which you have got together?
21 So that is what comes to the man who gets wealth for himself, and has not wealth in the eyes of God.
(BBE)
[2.] That he may come at such an hour as we think not, Mt 24:44...
...
[3.] That the children of this world are thus wise in their generation, that, when they know of a danger approaching, they will keep awake, and stand on their guard against it.
...
Therefore be ready, be ye also ready; as ready at all times as the good man of the house would be at the hour when he expected the thief: we must put on the armour of God, that we may not only stand in that evil day, but, as more than conquerors, may divide the spoil.
(2.) Because the issue of our Lord's coming will be very happy and comfortable to those that shall be found ready, but very dismal and dreadful to those that shall not, Mt 24:45, &c.
...
[1.] Concerning the good servant; he shows here what he is--a ruler of the household; what, being so, he should be--faithful and wise; and what, if he be so, he shall be eternally--blessed. Here are good instructions and encouragements to the ministers of Christ.
First, We have here his place and office. He is one whom his Lord has made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season. Note,
1. The church of Christ is his household, or family, standing in relation to him as the Father and Master of it. It is the household of God, a family named from Christ, Eph 3:15.
2. Gospel ministers are appointed rulers in this household; not at princes (Christ has entered a caveat against that), but as stewards, or other subordinate officers; not as lords, but as guides; not to prescribe new ways, but to show and lead in the ways that Christ has appointed: that is the signification of the hgoumenoi, which we translate, having rule over you (Heb 13:17); as overseers, not to cut out new work, but to direct in, and quicken to, the work which Christ has ordered; that is the signification of episkopoi--bishops. They are rulers by Christ; what power they have is derived from him, and none may take it from them, or abridge it to them; he is one whom the Lord has made ruler; Christ has the making of ministers. They are rulers under Christ, and act in subordination to him; and rulers for Christ, for the advancement of his kingdom.
3. The work of gospel ministers is to give to Christ's household their meat in due season, as stewards, and therefore they have the keys delivered to them.
...
Secondly, His right discharge of this office. The good servant, if thus preferred, will be a good steward; for,
1. He is faithful; stewards must be so, 1Co 4:2. He that is trusted, must be trusty; and the greater the trust is, the more is expected from them. It is a great good thing that is committed to ministers (2Ti 1:14); and they must be faithful, as Moses was, Heb 3:2. Christ counts those ministers, and those only, that are faithful, 1Ti 1:12. A faithful minister of Jesus Christ is one that sincerely designs his master's honour, not his own; delivers the whole counsel of God, not his own fancies and conceits; follows Christ's institutions and adheres to them; regards the meanest, reproves the greatest, and doth not respect persons.
2. He is wise to understand his duty and the proper season of it;
3. He is doing; so doing as his office requires. The ministry is a good work, and they whose office it is, have always something to do; they must not indulge themselves in ease, nor leave the work undone, or carelessly turn it off to others, but be doing, and doing to the purpose--
4. He is found doing when his Master comes; which intimates,
(1.) Constancy at his work.
"What, would you have my Master find me idle?"
(2.) Perseverance in his work till the Lord come. Hold fast till then, Re 2:25. Continue in these things, 1Ti 4:16; 6:14. Endure to the end.
Thirdly, The recompence of reward intended him for this, in three things.
1. He shall be taken notice of. .
2. He shall be blessed? Blessed is that servant; and Christ's pronouncing him blessed makes him so. All the dead that die n the Lord are blessed, Re 14:13. But there is a peculiar blessedness secured to them that approve themselves faithful stewards, and are found so doing. Next to the honour of those ... suffering for Christ as the martyrs, is the honour of those that die in the field of service, ploughing, and sowing, and reaping, for Christ.
3. He shall be preferred (Mt 24:47); He shall make him ruler over all his goods. The allusion is to the way of great men, who, if the stewards of their house conduct themselves well in that place, commonly prefer them to be the managers of their estates; thus Joseph was preferred in the house of Potiphar, Ge 39:4,6. But the greatest honour which the kindest master ever did to his most tried servants in this world, is nothing to that weight of glory which the Lord Jesus will confer upon his faithful watchful servants in the world to come. What is here said by a similitude, is the same that is said more plainly, Joh 11:26, Him will my Father honour...
[2.] Concerning the evil servant. Here we have,
His description given (Mt 24:48-49); where we have the wretch drawn in his own colours. The vilest of creatures is a wicked man, the vilest of men is a wicked Christian, and the vilest of them a wicked minister... Wickedness in the prophets of Jerusalem is a horrible thing indeed,
Jer 23:13 And I have seen ways without sense in the prophets of Samaria; they became prophets of the Baal, causing my people Israel to go wrong.
14 And in the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a shocking thing; they are untrue to their wives, walking in deceit, and they make strong the hands of evil-doers, so that a man may not be turned back from his evil-doing: they have all become like Sodom to me, and its people like Gomorrah.
15 So this is what the Lord of armies has said about the prophets: See, I will give them a bitter plant for their food, and bitter water for their drink: for from the prophets of Jerusalem unclean behaviour has gone out into all the land.
16 This is what the Lord of armies has said: Do not give ear to the words which the prophets say to you: they give you teaching of no value: it is from themselves that their vision comes, and not out of the mouth of the Lord.
17 They keep on saying to those who have no respect for the word of the Lord, You will have peace; and to everyone who goes on his way in the pride of his heart, they say, No evil will come to you.
(BBE)
Here is,
1. The cause of his wickedness; and that is, a practical disbelief of Christ's second coming; He hath said in his heart, My Lord delays his coming; and therefore he begins to think he will never come, but has quite forsaken his church. Observe,
(1.) Christ knows that they say in their hearts, who with their lips cry, Lord, Lord, as this servant here.
(2.) The delay of Christ's coming, though it is a gracious instance of his patience, is greatly abused by wicked people, whose hearts are thereby hardened in their wicked ways...
Eze 12:16 But a small number of them I will keep from the sword, from the need of food, and from disease, so that they may make clear all their disgusting ways among the nations where they come; and they will be certain that I am the Lord.
17 Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
18 Son of man, take your food with shaking fear, and your water with trouble and care;
19 And say to the people of the land, This is what the Lord has said about the people of Jerusalem and the land of Israel: They will take their food with care and their drink with wonder, so that all the wealth of their land may be taken from it because of the violent ways of the people living in it.
20 And the peopled towns will be made waste, and the land will become a wonder; and you will be certain that I am the Lord.
21 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
22 Son of man, what is this saying which you have about the land of Israel, The time is long and every vision comes to nothing?
23 For this cause say to them, This is what the Lord has said: I have made this saying come to an end, and it will no longer be used as a common saying in Israel; but say to them, The days are near, and the effect of every vision.
24 For there will be no more false visions or smooth use of secret arts in Israel.
25 For I am the Lord; I will say the word and what I say I will do; it will not be put off: for in your days, O uncontrolled people, I will say the word and do it, says the Lord.
26 Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
27 Son of man, see, the children of Israel say, The vision which he sees is for the days which are a long way off, and his words are of times still far away.
28 Say to them then, This is what the Lord has said: Not one of my words will be put off any longer, but what I say I will do, says the Lord.
(BBE)
They that walk by sense, are ready to say of the unseen Jesus, as the people did of Moses when he tarried in the mount upon their errand, We wot not what is become of him, and therefore up, make us gods, the world a god, the belly a god, anything but him that should be.
2. The particulars of his wickedness; and they are sins of the first magnitude; he is a slave to his passions and his appetites.
(1.) Persecution is here charged upon him. He begins to smite his fellow servants.
(2.) Profaneness and immorality; He begins to eat and drink with the drunken...
Secondly, His doom read, Mt 24:50-51...
1. The surprise that will accompany his doom (Mt 24:50); The Lord of that servant will come. Note,
(1.) Our putting off the thoughts of Christ's coming will not put off His coming. Whatever fancy he deludes himself with, his Lord will come. The unbelief of man shall not make that great promise, or threatening (call it which you will), of no effect.
(2.) The coming of Christ will be a most dreadful surprise to secure and careless sinners, especially to wicked ministers; He shall come in a day when he looketh not for him. Note, Those that have slighted the warnings of the word, and silenced those of their own consciences concerning the judgment to come, cannot expect any other warnings; these will be adjudged sufficient legal notice given, whether taken or no; and no unfairness can be charged on Christ, if he come suddenly, without giving other notice. Behold, he has told us before.
2. The severity of his doom, Mt 24:51. It is not more severe than righteous, but it is a doom that carries in it utter ruin, wrapped up in two dreadful words, death and damnation.
(1.) Death. His Lord shall cut him asunder,
"he shall cut him off from the land of the living,"
from the congregation of the righteous, shall separate him unto evil; which is the definition of a curse (De 29:21), shall cut him down, as a tree that cumbers the ground; perhaps it alludes to the sentence often used in the law, That soul shall be cut off from his people; denoting an utter extirpation... The wicked servant divided himself between God and the world, Christ and Belial, his profession and his lusts, justly therefore will he thus be divided.
(2.) Damnation. He shall appoint him his portion with the hypocrites, and a miserable portion it will be, for there shall be weeping. Note,
[1.] There is a place and state of everlasting misery in the other world, where there is nothing but weeping and gnashing of teeth; which speaks the soul's tribulation and anguish under God's indignation and wrath...
[2.] The divine sentence will appoint this place and state as the portion of those who by their own sin were fitted for it...
[3.] Hell is the proper place of hypocrites. This wicked servant has his portion with the hypocrites. They are, as it were, the freeholders, other sinners are but as inmates with them, and have but a portion of their misery...
[4.] Wicked ministers will have their portion in the other world with the worst of sinners, even with the hypocrites, and justly, for they are the worst of hypocrites. The blood of Christ, which they have by their profaneness trampled under their feet, and the blood of souls, which they have by their unfaithfulness brought upon their heads, will bear hard upon them in that place of torment. Son, remember, will be as cutting a word to a minister if he perish as to any other sinner whatsoever. Let them therefore who preach to others, fear, lest they themselves should be cast-aways.
My own take:
While much of what Matt says holds true and applies to the lost and those who have been saved and turned away, I think it a reach to apply eternal damnation to THIS passage. I see this as a rapture passage, as I mentioned before, and believe Jesus has set it apart as such by his description of the workers in the field and their surprise and by his "thief in the night" reference. That implies a secret arrival, a coming without expectation while the Second Coming on Earth will be greatly expected after the seven years of Tribulation though we will not be certain of the exact time of the coming, it will be looked for by any surviving Christians.
What I see from my perspective living in a century that draws so close to the End is that Jesus comes for the saved, I see a clear reference to Jesus arriving and finding /Christians who have gone back to the ways of the world in drink and anger and violence. He will not take them with Him in the Rapture. They will not see heaven that day. The dream of eternity in Paradise will have slipped from their grasp. They will be weeping and gnashing teeth "and (Jesus) will give him a part in the fate of the false ones: there will be weeping and cries of sorrow."
We need to understand a couple thing that Matt Henry would have taken for common knowledge, but that we today, especially in the USA, really give little consideration.
The writer of the Gospel, Matthew, was a tax collector, one of the lost, living a fallen life though he came from the Jewish populous. The Jews then believed they were born saved because they were born Jewish. He fit the description of the evil servant perfectly, one who was "saved" then fell into the trap of the world. Moreover, he found his King living before him and he felt the impact of that fact so deeply it is the theme of his Gospel. Commentators all agree on that fact. Jesus the King. So he dwells on Jesus the King and that is the emphasis of his message.
Matt Henry meanwhile:
Henry was born at Broad Oak, Iscoyd, a farmhouse on the borders of Flintshire and Shropshire, Wales, United Kingdom. His father, Philip Henry, was a Church of England cleric and had just been ejected under the Act of Uniformity 1662. Unlike most of his fellow-sufferers, Philip possessed some private means, and was thus able to give his son a good education. Matthew went first to a school at Islington, at that time a village just outside London, and then to Gray's Inn, in the heart of the capital. He soon gave up his legal studies for theology, and in 1687 became minister of a Presbyterian congregation at Chester.[1] While in Chester, Henry founded the Presbyterian Chapel in Trinity Street.[2] He moved again in 1712 to Mare Street, Hackney. Two years later (22 June 1714), he died suddenly of apoplexy at the Queen's Aid House (41 High Street) in Nantwich, while on a journey from Chester to London.
He was accustomed to human kings and the talk and walk of obedience or punishment. He was also one who walked away from some level of privilege to serve God so his sensitivity to the topic stands out. He sees the king as saying over and over, "Do this or I will execute you."
So let that knowledge of kings and sacrifice echo behind Henry's comments
Jesus meanwhile has always taught the sinner with the warning of Hell. It s not a threat so much as a caution that the danger exists and we will go there of we fail. His is more the warning on a frozen pond, "Thin Ice Ahead, Danger." It is a very real deadly danger. It will kill and if you fail this you have a fate of anguish ahead."
On the other hand, the "evil" servant has CHOSEN to leave the service of God and return to the service of the world. He puts his foot on the first small space of ice, finds it holds, goes on, the second section, it holds, goes on. and on. The ice crackles, makes noise that it ks not safe, but he still goes on so long he forgets it is thin ice and then, he plunges in and is lost.
He has "returned to his vomit", "gone back to Egypt" has chosen the idols of power and their illusions of self control and the anaesthetic of liquor to numb the pain of not being with God any longer. He has forgotten his salvation. He has forgotten the most important lesson, one the belief in eternal security can be used to hide: our salvation is not our own and is not for our purposes.
Repeat: our salvation is not our own. If we could save ourselves, we could be Mormons or Muslims or Hindi and do all these good works to overpower the weight of sin in our lives. We show we have forgotten that when we turn our gifts to our own purposes or when we decide we can live like Hell six days a week and get into heaven by being good the one day of the week. As we proceed we will see this is one of Jesus' prime messages, He has given salvation. He is the rescuer and we the drowning. He already pulled us from the broken ice once. He is the reason for EVERY season.
Repeat: our salvation is for HIS purposes. That is what servanthood means. He died for us so we might live and live abundantly...for Him. I read the charter to one church we attended and it said the minister would receive 80% of the tithe for his salary. My only comment to that was" "God only asks 10%." It would be clearer if I had said, "God gave 100%
See clearly, we ARE servants, "bought at a price".
Among the false servants who have forgotten who they belong to, Matt Henry saw another clear reference to such men, ones who seek to turn the will of God to profit, a reference to the false prophets mentioned earlier in the Discourse.
We see a specimen of what I have come to call Elvis Christianity. Worldly success seduces one from the way but the misunderstanding of eternal security becomes as much an anaesthetic as any beer or drug. "It's okay, I was saved sixty years ago in a Billy Graham Crusade so I will be okay no matter how I live." That lie seduced despite the very clear warning.
But the enlightening arrives suddenly, with no warning. Left behind, these failed servants will realize what is ahead on the Earth. They face the Tribulation and incredible tortures and anguish. Many Christians in this fate realize their way to heaven is now paved with pain. Either take the mark of the AC or be killed by starvation, thirst, torture and whatever else he decides. The three and half years before that forced mark may give them time to prepare and run for cover but their names will be on record as being in a church. Nothing here says they get a chance to go back to being Christ's own. That should terrify anyone who wants to live for the world today. The Henry idea of Hell alone awaiting MAY well be true. Many may just jump at the chance to survive as long as possible and figure their fate is sealed. But we know there is a massive revival coming in the midst of the AC's rule. So they may yet be able to be redeemed again.
But. if re-redeemed, it will not be the same for them as for the ones who believed without seeing and had faith before the Rapture. Their Thomas event will mar them. The lost left behind will face a life without the Spirit to guide them as it did during this span of time. (They may again be indwelt, I simply don't know about AFTER the Rapture.) They will know He is there from experience, not from faith. I hope they will be as Thomas, saved but not blessed as the living church was.
But let's not miss the message: He is coming. Be ready to go at any time. Dispose of all the worldly distractions and prepare for the final ride of this lifetime.
But something else goes along with that preparation. And we discuss it next time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlxFee1mRtE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3WeqqTKqhU
Reminds me of Paul and of running the race:
1Co 9:23 And I do all things for the cause of the good news, so that I may have a part in it.
24 Do you not see that in a running competition all take part, but only one gets the reward? So let your minds be fixed on the reward.
25 And every man who takes part in the sports has self-control in all things. Now they do it to get a crown which is of this world, but we for an eternal crown.
26 So then I am running, not uncertainly; so I am fighting, not as one who gives blows in the air:
27 But I give blows to my body, and keep it under control, for fear that, after having given the good news to others, I myself might not have God's approval.
(BBE)
And he would say at the end:
2Ti 4:6 For I am even now being offered, and my end is near.
7 I have made a good fight, I have come to the end of my journey, I have kept the faith:
8 From now on, the crown of righteousness is made ready for me, which the Lord, the upright judge, Will give to me at that day: and not only to me, but to all those who have had love for his revelation.
(BBE)It deals with
Clearly, there IS a race against time for our lives are short and meant to end at a time most of us do not know. Clearly, there are rewards for running the race well.
To run one must train, in the Word, the Bible; in prayer, in time with the Lord: in practice, in acting out the faith with good works and with the message of the Gospel: in time with others to nurture the connection with the church, the Body.
Now we arrive at one of the toughest stretches in Scripture for someone like me who believes in eternal security. It deals with an extensive set of warnings for the Church that are related to the Rapture event Warnings He did not feel were needed in the "Jewish" segment of the promises of His return. My interpretation of these does not always agree with other commentators.
Another reason, I placed Matt 24 and 25 in the midst of a pause from the battles that were a pause from the judgements because some of these warnings are meant for the saints to avoid the Tribulation. You have thus far seen only the tip of the iceberg of judgements and disasters that sweep through the Tribulation. While we might think of the Tribulation saints as Noahs preserved from harm by a spiritual ark, we need to realize these passages show us a different story for the saints left behind at the beginning of the Great Trouble.
Mt 24:42 Be watching, then! for you have no knowledge on what day your Lord will come.
43 But be certain of this, that if the master of the house had had knowledge of the time when the thief was coming, he would have been watching, and would not have let his house be broken into.
44 Be ready then; for at a time which you have no thought of the Son of man will come.
45 Who is the true and wise servant, whom his lord has put over those in his house, to give them their food at the right time?
46 A blessing on that servant, who will be doing so when his lord comes.
47 Truly, I say to you, he will put him over all he has.
48 But if that evil servant says in his heart, My lord is a long time in coming;
49 And is cruel to the other servants, taking his pleasure with those who are overcome with wine;
50 The lord of that servant will come in a day when he is not looking for him, and in an hour of which he has no knowledge,
51 And will have him cut in two, and will give him a part in the fate of the false ones: there will be weeping and cries of sorrow.
(BBE)
First, don't miss the symbolic meaning here. The fallen flesh cannot enter heaven. Our "new" flesh can be refreshed in the continued acts of obedience and service. These feed our connection with Jesus, ur relationship. The old flesh and following its' desires starves the "new man".
But, of curse, the actuality of the text the fact the Resurrection WILL occur vastly outweighs the symbolism.
Start with Matt Henry. Extensive but amended here. Despite my disagreements, it sums up much and enlightens.
Mt 24:32-51
2. The reasons to induce us to this watchfulness and diligent preparation for that day; which are two.
(1.) Because the time of our Lord's coming is very uncertain. This is the reason immediately annexed to the double exhortation (Mt 24:42,44); and it is illustrated by a comparison, Mt 24:43. Let us consider then,
[1.] That we know not what hour he will come, Mt 24:42. We know not the day of our death, Ge 27:2... may never boast of a year's continuance (Jas 4:13), no, nor of tomorrow's return, as if it were ours,
Pr 27:1 Do not make a noise about tomorrow, for you are not certain what a day's outcome may be.
(BBE)
Lu 12:16 And he said to them, in a story, The land of a certain man of great wealth was very fertile:
17 And he said to himself, What is to be done? for I have no place in which to put all my fruit.
18 And he said, This I will do: I will take down my store-houses and make greater ones, and there I will put all my grain and my goods.
19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have a great amount of goods in store, enough for a number of years; be at rest, take food and wine and be happy.
20 But God said to him, You foolish one, tonight I will take your soul from you, and who then will be the owner of all the things which you have got together?
21 So that is what comes to the man who gets wealth for himself, and has not wealth in the eyes of God.
(BBE)
[2.] That he may come at such an hour as we think not, Mt 24:44...
...
[3.] That the children of this world are thus wise in their generation, that, when they know of a danger approaching, they will keep awake, and stand on their guard against it.
...
Therefore be ready, be ye also ready; as ready at all times as the good man of the house would be at the hour when he expected the thief: we must put on the armour of God, that we may not only stand in that evil day, but, as more than conquerors, may divide the spoil.
(2.) Because the issue of our Lord's coming will be very happy and comfortable to those that shall be found ready, but very dismal and dreadful to those that shall not, Mt 24:45, &c.
...
[1.] Concerning the good servant; he shows here what he is--a ruler of the household; what, being so, he should be--faithful and wise; and what, if he be so, he shall be eternally--blessed. Here are good instructions and encouragements to the ministers of Christ.
First, We have here his place and office. He is one whom his Lord has made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season. Note,
1. The church of Christ is his household, or family, standing in relation to him as the Father and Master of it. It is the household of God, a family named from Christ, Eph 3:15.
2. Gospel ministers are appointed rulers in this household; not at princes (Christ has entered a caveat against that), but as stewards, or other subordinate officers; not as lords, but as guides; not to prescribe new ways, but to show and lead in the ways that Christ has appointed: that is the signification of the hgoumenoi, which we translate, having rule over you (Heb 13:17); as overseers, not to cut out new work, but to direct in, and quicken to, the work which Christ has ordered; that is the signification of episkopoi--bishops. They are rulers by Christ; what power they have is derived from him, and none may take it from them, or abridge it to them; he is one whom the Lord has made ruler; Christ has the making of ministers. They are rulers under Christ, and act in subordination to him; and rulers for Christ, for the advancement of his kingdom.
3. The work of gospel ministers is to give to Christ's household their meat in due season, as stewards, and therefore they have the keys delivered to them.
...
Secondly, His right discharge of this office. The good servant, if thus preferred, will be a good steward; for,
1. He is faithful; stewards must be so, 1Co 4:2. He that is trusted, must be trusty; and the greater the trust is, the more is expected from them. It is a great good thing that is committed to ministers (2Ti 1:14); and they must be faithful, as Moses was, Heb 3:2. Christ counts those ministers, and those only, that are faithful, 1Ti 1:12. A faithful minister of Jesus Christ is one that sincerely designs his master's honour, not his own; delivers the whole counsel of God, not his own fancies and conceits; follows Christ's institutions and adheres to them; regards the meanest, reproves the greatest, and doth not respect persons.
2. He is wise to understand his duty and the proper season of it;
3. He is doing; so doing as his office requires. The ministry is a good work, and they whose office it is, have always something to do; they must not indulge themselves in ease, nor leave the work undone, or carelessly turn it off to others, but be doing, and doing to the purpose--
4. He is found doing when his Master comes; which intimates,
(1.) Constancy at his work.
"What, would you have my Master find me idle?"
(2.) Perseverance in his work till the Lord come. Hold fast till then, Re 2:25. Continue in these things, 1Ti 4:16; 6:14. Endure to the end.
Thirdly, The recompence of reward intended him for this, in three things.
1. He shall be taken notice of. .
2. He shall be blessed? Blessed is that servant; and Christ's pronouncing him blessed makes him so. All the dead that die n the Lord are blessed, Re 14:13. But there is a peculiar blessedness secured to them that approve themselves faithful stewards, and are found so doing. Next to the honour of those ... suffering for Christ as the martyrs, is the honour of those that die in the field of service, ploughing, and sowing, and reaping, for Christ.
3. He shall be preferred (Mt 24:47); He shall make him ruler over all his goods. The allusion is to the way of great men, who, if the stewards of their house conduct themselves well in that place, commonly prefer them to be the managers of their estates; thus Joseph was preferred in the house of Potiphar, Ge 39:4,6. But the greatest honour which the kindest master ever did to his most tried servants in this world, is nothing to that weight of glory which the Lord Jesus will confer upon his faithful watchful servants in the world to come. What is here said by a similitude, is the same that is said more plainly, Joh 11:26, Him will my Father honour...
[2.] Concerning the evil servant. Here we have,
His description given (Mt 24:48-49); where we have the wretch drawn in his own colours. The vilest of creatures is a wicked man, the vilest of men is a wicked Christian, and the vilest of them a wicked minister... Wickedness in the prophets of Jerusalem is a horrible thing indeed,
Jer 23:13 And I have seen ways without sense in the prophets of Samaria; they became prophets of the Baal, causing my people Israel to go wrong.
14 And in the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a shocking thing; they are untrue to their wives, walking in deceit, and they make strong the hands of evil-doers, so that a man may not be turned back from his evil-doing: they have all become like Sodom to me, and its people like Gomorrah.
15 So this is what the Lord of armies has said about the prophets: See, I will give them a bitter plant for their food, and bitter water for their drink: for from the prophets of Jerusalem unclean behaviour has gone out into all the land.
16 This is what the Lord of armies has said: Do not give ear to the words which the prophets say to you: they give you teaching of no value: it is from themselves that their vision comes, and not out of the mouth of the Lord.
17 They keep on saying to those who have no respect for the word of the Lord, You will have peace; and to everyone who goes on his way in the pride of his heart, they say, No evil will come to you.
(BBE)
Here is,
1. The cause of his wickedness; and that is, a practical disbelief of Christ's second coming; He hath said in his heart, My Lord delays his coming; and therefore he begins to think he will never come, but has quite forsaken his church. Observe,
(1.) Christ knows that they say in their hearts, who with their lips cry, Lord, Lord, as this servant here.
(2.) The delay of Christ's coming, though it is a gracious instance of his patience, is greatly abused by wicked people, whose hearts are thereby hardened in their wicked ways...
Eze 12:16 But a small number of them I will keep from the sword, from the need of food, and from disease, so that they may make clear all their disgusting ways among the nations where they come; and they will be certain that I am the Lord.
17 Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
18 Son of man, take your food with shaking fear, and your water with trouble and care;
19 And say to the people of the land, This is what the Lord has said about the people of Jerusalem and the land of Israel: They will take their food with care and their drink with wonder, so that all the wealth of their land may be taken from it because of the violent ways of the people living in it.
20 And the peopled towns will be made waste, and the land will become a wonder; and you will be certain that I am the Lord.
21 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
22 Son of man, what is this saying which you have about the land of Israel, The time is long and every vision comes to nothing?
23 For this cause say to them, This is what the Lord has said: I have made this saying come to an end, and it will no longer be used as a common saying in Israel; but say to them, The days are near, and the effect of every vision.
24 For there will be no more false visions or smooth use of secret arts in Israel.
25 For I am the Lord; I will say the word and what I say I will do; it will not be put off: for in your days, O uncontrolled people, I will say the word and do it, says the Lord.
26 Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
27 Son of man, see, the children of Israel say, The vision which he sees is for the days which are a long way off, and his words are of times still far away.
28 Say to them then, This is what the Lord has said: Not one of my words will be put off any longer, but what I say I will do, says the Lord.
(BBE)
They that walk by sense, are ready to say of the unseen Jesus, as the people did of Moses when he tarried in the mount upon their errand, We wot not what is become of him, and therefore up, make us gods, the world a god, the belly a god, anything but him that should be.
2. The particulars of his wickedness; and they are sins of the first magnitude; he is a slave to his passions and his appetites.
(1.) Persecution is here charged upon him. He begins to smite his fellow servants.
(2.) Profaneness and immorality; He begins to eat and drink with the drunken...
Secondly, His doom read, Mt 24:50-51...
1. The surprise that will accompany his doom (Mt 24:50); The Lord of that servant will come. Note,
(1.) Our putting off the thoughts of Christ's coming will not put off His coming. Whatever fancy he deludes himself with, his Lord will come. The unbelief of man shall not make that great promise, or threatening (call it which you will), of no effect.
(2.) The coming of Christ will be a most dreadful surprise to secure and careless sinners, especially to wicked ministers; He shall come in a day when he looketh not for him. Note, Those that have slighted the warnings of the word, and silenced those of their own consciences concerning the judgment to come, cannot expect any other warnings; these will be adjudged sufficient legal notice given, whether taken or no; and no unfairness can be charged on Christ, if he come suddenly, without giving other notice. Behold, he has told us before.
2. The severity of his doom, Mt 24:51. It is not more severe than righteous, but it is a doom that carries in it utter ruin, wrapped up in two dreadful words, death and damnation.
(1.) Death. His Lord shall cut him asunder,
"he shall cut him off from the land of the living,"
from the congregation of the righteous, shall separate him unto evil; which is the definition of a curse (De 29:21), shall cut him down, as a tree that cumbers the ground; perhaps it alludes to the sentence often used in the law, That soul shall be cut off from his people; denoting an utter extirpation... The wicked servant divided himself between God and the world, Christ and Belial, his profession and his lusts, justly therefore will he thus be divided.
(2.) Damnation. He shall appoint him his portion with the hypocrites, and a miserable portion it will be, for there shall be weeping. Note,
[1.] There is a place and state of everlasting misery in the other world, where there is nothing but weeping and gnashing of teeth; which speaks the soul's tribulation and anguish under God's indignation and wrath...
[2.] The divine sentence will appoint this place and state as the portion of those who by their own sin were fitted for it...
[3.] Hell is the proper place of hypocrites. This wicked servant has his portion with the hypocrites. They are, as it were, the freeholders, other sinners are but as inmates with them, and have but a portion of their misery...
[4.] Wicked ministers will have their portion in the other world with the worst of sinners, even with the hypocrites, and justly, for they are the worst of hypocrites. The blood of Christ, which they have by their profaneness trampled under their feet, and the blood of souls, which they have by their unfaithfulness brought upon their heads, will bear hard upon them in that place of torment. Son, remember, will be as cutting a word to a minister if he perish as to any other sinner whatsoever. Let them therefore who preach to others, fear, lest they themselves should be cast-aways.
My own take:
While much of what Matt says holds true and applies to the lost and those who have been saved and turned away, I think it a reach to apply eternal damnation to THIS passage. I see this as a rapture passage, as I mentioned before, and believe Jesus has set it apart as such by his description of the workers in the field and their surprise and by his "thief in the night" reference. That implies a secret arrival, a coming without expectation while the Second Coming on Earth will be greatly expected after the seven years of Tribulation though we will not be certain of the exact time of the coming, it will be looked for by any surviving Christians.
What I see from my perspective living in a century that draws so close to the End is that Jesus comes for the saved, I see a clear reference to Jesus arriving and finding /Christians who have gone back to the ways of the world in drink and anger and violence. He will not take them with Him in the Rapture. They will not see heaven that day. The dream of eternity in Paradise will have slipped from their grasp. They will be weeping and gnashing teeth "and (Jesus) will give him a part in the fate of the false ones: there will be weeping and cries of sorrow."
We need to understand a couple thing that Matt Henry would have taken for common knowledge, but that we today, especially in the USA, really give little consideration.
The writer of the Gospel, Matthew, was a tax collector, one of the lost, living a fallen life though he came from the Jewish populous. The Jews then believed they were born saved because they were born Jewish. He fit the description of the evil servant perfectly, one who was "saved" then fell into the trap of the world. Moreover, he found his King living before him and he felt the impact of that fact so deeply it is the theme of his Gospel. Commentators all agree on that fact. Jesus the King. So he dwells on Jesus the King and that is the emphasis of his message.
Matt Henry meanwhile:
Henry was born at Broad Oak, Iscoyd, a farmhouse on the borders of Flintshire and Shropshire, Wales, United Kingdom. His father, Philip Henry, was a Church of England cleric and had just been ejected under the Act of Uniformity 1662. Unlike most of his fellow-sufferers, Philip possessed some private means, and was thus able to give his son a good education. Matthew went first to a school at Islington, at that time a village just outside London, and then to Gray's Inn, in the heart of the capital. He soon gave up his legal studies for theology, and in 1687 became minister of a Presbyterian congregation at Chester.[1] While in Chester, Henry founded the Presbyterian Chapel in Trinity Street.[2] He moved again in 1712 to Mare Street, Hackney. Two years later (22 June 1714), he died suddenly of apoplexy at the Queen's Aid House (41 High Street) in Nantwich, while on a journey from Chester to London.
He was accustomed to human kings and the talk and walk of obedience or punishment. He was also one who walked away from some level of privilege to serve God so his sensitivity to the topic stands out. He sees the king as saying over and over, "Do this or I will execute you."
So let that knowledge of kings and sacrifice echo behind Henry's comments
Jesus meanwhile has always taught the sinner with the warning of Hell. It s not a threat so much as a caution that the danger exists and we will go there of we fail. His is more the warning on a frozen pond, "Thin Ice Ahead, Danger." It is a very real deadly danger. It will kill and if you fail this you have a fate of anguish ahead."
On the other hand, the "evil" servant has CHOSEN to leave the service of God and return to the service of the world. He puts his foot on the first small space of ice, finds it holds, goes on, the second section, it holds, goes on. and on. The ice crackles, makes noise that it ks not safe, but he still goes on so long he forgets it is thin ice and then, he plunges in and is lost.
He has "returned to his vomit", "gone back to Egypt" has chosen the idols of power and their illusions of self control and the anaesthetic of liquor to numb the pain of not being with God any longer. He has forgotten his salvation. He has forgotten the most important lesson, one the belief in eternal security can be used to hide: our salvation is not our own and is not for our purposes.
Repeat: our salvation is not our own. If we could save ourselves, we could be Mormons or Muslims or Hindi and do all these good works to overpower the weight of sin in our lives. We show we have forgotten that when we turn our gifts to our own purposes or when we decide we can live like Hell six days a week and get into heaven by being good the one day of the week. As we proceed we will see this is one of Jesus' prime messages, He has given salvation. He is the rescuer and we the drowning. He already pulled us from the broken ice once. He is the reason for EVERY season.
Repeat: our salvation is for HIS purposes. That is what servanthood means. He died for us so we might live and live abundantly...for Him. I read the charter to one church we attended and it said the minister would receive 80% of the tithe for his salary. My only comment to that was" "God only asks 10%." It would be clearer if I had said, "God gave 100%
See clearly, we ARE servants, "bought at a price".
Among the false servants who have forgotten who they belong to, Matt Henry saw another clear reference to such men, ones who seek to turn the will of God to profit, a reference to the false prophets mentioned earlier in the Discourse.
We see a specimen of what I have come to call Elvis Christianity. Worldly success seduces one from the way but the misunderstanding of eternal security becomes as much an anaesthetic as any beer or drug. "It's okay, I was saved sixty years ago in a Billy Graham Crusade so I will be okay no matter how I live." That lie seduced despite the very clear warning.
But the enlightening arrives suddenly, with no warning. Left behind, these failed servants will realize what is ahead on the Earth. They face the Tribulation and incredible tortures and anguish. Many Christians in this fate realize their way to heaven is now paved with pain. Either take the mark of the AC or be killed by starvation, thirst, torture and whatever else he decides. The three and half years before that forced mark may give them time to prepare and run for cover but their names will be on record as being in a church. Nothing here says they get a chance to go back to being Christ's own. That should terrify anyone who wants to live for the world today. The Henry idea of Hell alone awaiting MAY well be true. Many may just jump at the chance to survive as long as possible and figure their fate is sealed. But we know there is a massive revival coming in the midst of the AC's rule. So they may yet be able to be redeemed again.
But. if re-redeemed, it will not be the same for them as for the ones who believed without seeing and had faith before the Rapture. Their Thomas event will mar them. The lost left behind will face a life without the Spirit to guide them as it did during this span of time. (They may again be indwelt, I simply don't know about AFTER the Rapture.) They will know He is there from experience, not from faith. I hope they will be as Thomas, saved but not blessed as the living church was.
But let's not miss the message: He is coming. Be ready to go at any time. Dispose of all the worldly distractions and prepare for the final ride of this lifetime.
But something else goes along with that preparation. And we discuss it next time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlxFee1mRtE
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