What Jesus Did

[Jesus said,] "My Father has entrusted everything to me. No one truly knows the Son except the Father, and no one truly knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him."

—Matthew 11:27 NLT

Key Thought​

The New Testament makes strong and exclusive claims for Jesus. These claims are not just based on the conclusions of men, but go back to several powerful claims of Jesus. While these claims are most clearly seen in the Gospel of John in the "I...

 

At about that time Jesus was walking through some grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry, so they began breaking off some heads of grain and eating them. But some Pharisees saw them do it and protested, "Look, your disciples are breaking the law by harvesting grain on the Sabbath."

—Matthew 12:1-2 NLT

Key Thought​

Legal loop holes are one thing, but a political and legal pothole is another. The Pharisees were looking to harm Jesus and hurt his growing ministry...

 

[Jesus continued:] "Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light."

—Matthew 11:29-30 NLT

Key Thought​

Rest! Doesn't that sound nice? In a culture that has gone mad for business and activity and has exchanged recreation for rest, it sounds especially nice. But we must not be deceived. Jesus' way isn't necessarily simple. His call to...

 

Then Jesus said, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest."

—Matthew 11:28 NLT

Key Thought​

Tired! Weary! Exhausted! Depleted! Burdened! Is that you? There are times when the limits of our mortality overwhelm our intentions, commitments, and abilities. In our quest for significance, we chase so many things. But there is only one true source of significance that leads to rest: We must surrender all of those burdens to Jesus and...

 

[After his condemnation of cities where people wouldn't believe,] Jesus prayed this prayer: "O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way!"

—Matthew 11:25-26 NLT

Key Thought​

God has always despised arrogance. Yet, it is a repeated sin of his creatures. Satan's rebellion and Adam and Eve's sin have their source in the...

 

[Continuing his denouncement of cities that hadn't repented, Jesus said:] "I tell you, Tyre and Sidon will be better off on judgment day than you.
"And you people of Capernaum, will you be honored in heaven? No, you will go down to the place of the dead. For if the miracles I did for you had been done in wicked Sodom, it would still be here today. I tell you, even Sodom will be better off on judgment day than you."


—Matthew 11:22-24 NLT

Key Thought​

In today's society, we...

 

Then Jesus began to denounce the towns where he had done so many of his miracles, because they hadn't repented of their sins and turned to God. "What sorrow awaits you, Korazin and Bethsaida! For if the miracles I did in you had been done in wicked Tyre and Sidon, their people would have repented of their sins long ago, clothing themselves in burlap and throwing ashes on their heads to show their remorse."

—Matthew 11:20-21 NLT

Key Thought​

Why is it so hard to change? Why is a...

 

[Talking to the crowds, Jesus concluded the things he said about John the Baptist:] "To what can I compare this generation? It is like children playing a game in the public square. They complain to their friends,

'We played wedding songs,
and you didn't dance,
so we played funeral songs,
and you didn't mourn.'

For John didn't spend his time eating and drinking, and you say, 'He's possessed by a demon.' The Son of Man, on the other hand, feasts and drinks, and you say, 'He's a glutton...

 

[Talking to the crowds about John the Baptist, Jesus continued:] "For before John came, all the prophets and the law of Moses looked forward to this present time. And if you are willing to accept what I say, he is Elijah, the one the prophets said would come. Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!"

—Matthew 11:13-15 NLT

Key Thought​

John is Elijah who has come back. This is more than just a novelty; he is the signal of a new time, a new age. Jesus is accepting...

 

[Talking to the crowds about John the Baptist, Jesus continued:] "John is the man to whom the Scriptures refer when they say,

'Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, and he will prepare your way before you.'

"I tell you the truth, of all who have ever lived, none is greater than John the Baptist. Yet even the least person in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than he is!


—Matthew 11:10-11 NLT

Key Thought​

John the Baptist was the key bridge for the gap from the...