I am reading from the Gospel
of Matthew 12 this morning. Let me read to you, and if you
want to follow along, you may read with me, verses 14-19. Matthew 12, verses 14-19 reads
this way. Then the Pharisees went out and
held a council against him, how they might destroy him. But when
Jesus knew it, he withdrew himself from thence, and a great multitude
followed him, and he healed them all. And he charged them that
they should not make him known, that it might be fulfilled which
was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying, Behold my servant, whom
I have chosen, my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my spirit upon him,
and he shall show judgment to the Gentiles. He shall not strive
nor cry, neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets."
The Lord Jesus Christ had many run-ins with the Pharisees. Who were the Pharisees? Well,
the Pharisees were the religious leaders of their day. They were
the doctors, those with degrees of doctor divinity behind their
name. They were the reverends who thought
they were righteous. Men who thought they were righteous. In other words, they were self-righteous. Men who thought they knew everything
about God and were teachers of God's law. Men who pretended
to be looking for the Christ, but in fact, they didn't know
either God or Christ. You see, God had hid these things
from these wise and prudent or self-styled wise and prudent
men and revealed them unto babes. What things? The things of God,
that is, who God really is, who Christ really is, what salvation
really is. And it is the same today. God
had hid these things, the truth, salvation, from the self-professed
wise and prudent and revealed them unto the hungry, the thirsty,
those who want to know the truth. Well, these Pharisees held a
council, it says. They went out and held a council
against him, how they might destroy him. They got together and had
a big meeting, a synod, to see what they were going to do with
this Jesus. And you know what God thinks
of the councils that men hold. In Psalm 2 verse 2 it says, The
kings of the earth set themselves. The rulers take counsel together
against the Lord and against his anointed. In verse 4 it says,
He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh. The Lord shall have
them in derision. God Almighty laughs at man's
counsels and their counselors. One counsel was held by God before
the world began. One counsel, and no one was there
but God. And all things were determined
then. All things were purposed by God
then. God says in Isaiah 46.10, My
counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure. Ephesians 1.11 says, God worketh
all things after the counsel of his own will. Well, he laughs
at the councils, the meetings, the gatherings of men, of what
they are going to do with God. Verse 15 in our text of Matthew
12 says, When Christ knew they were holding this council, he
withdrew himself from it, and some great multitudes followed
him, and he healed them all. All who follow Christ, the counselor,
yes, Isaiah 9, 6 says his name shall be wonderful. counselor. All who truly hear Him and believe
Him and follow Him will be healed of the disease of all diseases,
sin. Verse 16, it says, He charged
them that they should not make Him known. He charged them all
to not publish abroad, not sound out that He was the Christ. Why? Why would He tell them to keep
silent and not publish His name? Well, there will be a time for
that later on, but at this time he says this, verse 17, that
it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet.
To fulfill scriptures, in other words. Everything Christ did
was to fulfill scriptures. All the Old Testament speaks
of Christ. Christ said, they are they which
testify of me. The Christ of the New Testament
is the Christ who was promised and prophesied and typified in
the Old Testament. He must fit the character described
in the Old Testament, and this is in fulfillment of Isaiah 42,
which goes on to read, Behold my servant, and goes on to say,
He shall not strive nor cry, neither shall any man hear his
voice in the street. Let's consider this just a moment.
The word behold means just that, to look, to see, stop and consider. Here is the glory of the Lord
Jesus Christ. Behold, God said. Stop, see,
consider, look at. Behold, my servant. My servant. Now, God is speaking
through the prophet Isaiah, and he calls the Lord Jesus Christ,
my servant, as if he is the only Now, there were many servants
of God, and yet he calls Christ, my servant, as if he is the only
one. Just as he said that Christ was
that prophet. He said that through Moses, that
God would raise up a prophet, that prophet. Now, God had many
prophets, yet Christ was that prophet, the one to end all prophecies. Christ was his messenger, the
messenger of the covenant Malachi spoke. God had many messengers,
but yet God spoke of Christ as if he were the only one, his
witness, the true and faithful witness. Though he had many,
yet Christ was spoken of as being the only one because he is the
one true original, the one to whom all the others give witness,
bear witness. the one who is the message of
all other messengers. All others are imitations. This
is the true and original. My servant, God said. Behold, my servant. Now, if I may illustrate in this
manner so you will know what God is saying here of Christ.
Back in days of old, rich lords of vast plantations and vast
landholding, rich lords of old had but one true servant. Though they had many servants
throughout their kingdom or their plantation, or they had servants
who worked in the gardens, servants who worked on the ground, servants
who worked around the house, in the kitchen, and so forth,
yet the rich lord of the manor had but one true servant, a butler. And he was the most trusted.
He was the most faithful. He was the loyal, diligent, most
conscientious of all the servants. In fact, he was the one who was
entrusted with the care of the whole manor, the whole house,
the one with the most important task. He was the one to whom
all the other servants answered, the one whom the The Lord held
in strict confidence, that is, told him his innermost thoughts.
He was the one whom the Lord of the manor chose to be his
right-hand man because this man knew what he did, thought as
he did, and held his own convictions. This man had his best interest
in mind. And all of the Lord's holdings
were safe with this one man, the one in charge of the whole
estate. And so God says, of the Lord
Jesus Christ, behold my servant, God's faithful, loyal, diligent
servant, the one entrusted with all, the one in charge over all,
the one to whom all other servants answer. God says, he shall do
it all. He shall do all my will. The scripture says, lo, I come
in the volume of the book it is written of me, of Christ.
I come to do thy will, O God." God's trustworthy servant, servant
of the covenant to do God's will. Verse 18 says, Whom I have chosen,
my servant whom I have chosen. Psalm 89, 19 says, I have laid
help on one that is mighty. I exalted one chosen out of the
people. Jesus Christ was a man, yes,
but the God-man, out of the people, amongst the people, in the world
but not of the world, exalted by God, laid help upon, one that
is mighty. All power is given unto me, Christ
said, in heaven and in earth, over all flesh. God says, Isaiah
says, mine intellect, hand-picked, chosen, exalted, elevated, put
in the highest and loftiest position of all. King of kings and Lord
of lords, yet while on this earth, he said, I am one among you that
serveth." Servant of God. Now, we do not make him Lord.
God laughs at that. God made him Lord, he said in
that same psalm we read a while ago, Psalm 2, verse 6, I have
set my King on my holy hill of Zion. We don't make him Lord. God made him Lord before the
universe was created. My servant, he said, my beloved,
my chosen, my beloved, he says, in whom I am well pleased. The only begotten, well beloved
son of the Most High God, first son, first love. It says in Isaiah
42, that same chapter, verse 21, God is well pleased for his
righteousness sake. As you would be with a perfect
child, an obedient child, a model child, and there has never truly
been one, never any human child born without sin, perfect, but
Christ was, the express image of God the holy, spotless Son
of the Most High God. Scripture says, He will magnify
the law and make it honorable. God's Word. And He did so, and
God said, He is well pleased. This is My Son in whom I am well
pleased for His righteousness sake. And the only way God is
pleased with us is by faith in Christ our righteousness. He goes on to say in verse 18,
I will put My Spirit upon Him. My Spirit, the Holy Spirit, pure,
spotless, holy, righteous, sinless, sanctified Spirit of the Most
High God. He had the Spirit without measure. Do you know what the name Christ
means? Christos in the Greek, it means
the Anointed One. There is only one man who can
hold that title, the Anointed One. No man can ever say at any
time, I am anointed. No man has ever said that, no
true man of God. And anyone who says that today
is an imposter. Anyone who claims, I am anointed,
is an imposter. Isaiah 61 is what Christ read
in that day when they gave him the book as a 30-year-old man.
And he read from that, The Spirit of the Lord hath anointed me,
it says. And Christ went on to say, This day is this scripture
fulfilled in your ears. Isaiah spoke that not of himself,
but of the Christ, the Anointed One. He goes on to say, I will
put my Spirit upon him, and he shall show judgment to the Gentile.
Judgment to heathen, to Gentile, true, righteous judgment, understanding. And he shall not strive nor cry,
neither shall any man hear his voice in the street. He wasn't
striving with the sons of men. He wasn't trying to get people
to believe him. No, he's looking for his sheep,
looking for God's chosen one. And he found them all and saved
them all. Behold my servant, God said,
mine elect. Oh, do you know him? Ask God
to reveal him. Until next Sunday, good day.