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  • Date: June 23, 2024
  • Book: Matthew, Psalms
  • Passage: Matthew 26:57–66, Psalm 2
"Who is Jesus?” In this sermon we continue to answer that question by examining three different titles used of him: (1) Messiah (from the Hebrew, or Christ, from the Greek), (2) Son of God, and (3) King. Read the following passages and note how each title is used:
  • John 20:30-31 — our eternal destiny hinges on two of the titles;
  • Matthew 26:57-66; Luke 22:66-72 — the High Priest Caiaphas as well as the Sanhedrin (the “supreme court” of Judaism), use two titles to condemn Jesus;
  • Luke 23:3 — one of the titles forced Pilate to execute Jesus.
It should come as no surprise that all three titles are presented in the twelve short verses of Psalm 2, a messianic-prophetic psalm. The psalmist concludes by telling us — we serve God by worshipping the Son (Psalm 2:12). The psalm ends with eight of the most important words found in all of the wisdom literature—and perhaps in all of the Old Testament: “Blessed are all who take refuge in him.” This word “refuge” in Hebrew implies trust, confidence, and hope. The way we serve God the Father, is to place our trust in God the Son — the Messiah, Son of God, and eternal King.

First, in Matthew 16:18, Jesus said he would build his church (his community of called-out people). He is the architect and he engineers its growth. It’s an indestructible community, for he said, “the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” Christ’s church has something to do with life and death, and the good news of rescue both locally and globally. But how does Jesus build his church?

Second, Ephesians 4:11-16 is a single sentence with a subject and a verb. Christ (the subject) gave (the verb) something to the church, and those gifts are to result in its growth. The emphasis of Jesus and Ephesians 4, and therefore the emphasis of verbally gifted leaders, is love and unity (John 13:34-35; Ephesians 4:2-3, 15-16). Doctrine certainly matters (Ephesians 4:4-6), but love-deficient doctrinal separatism was rebuked in the church at Ephesus (Revelation 2:1-7).

Church growth is not really a secret. Jesus said, “just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:34-35).