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[0:00] Take your Bibles, go with me to the book of Matthew. I'm a little loud and I have monitors coming back to me if you don't mind, guys. Go with me to the book of Matthew. Matthew chapter 12 is where we will be at this morning.

[0:11] Matthew chapter 12, verses 1 through 21. Matthew chapter 12, verses 1 through 21 will be our text this morning. So if you're physically able and desire to do so, I'm going to ask you if you'll join together with me as we stand and we read the Word of God together found in Matthew chapter 12, starting in verse 1.

[0:29] And we're going to read down to the 21st verse there in our text. The Word of God says, At that time Jesus went through the grain fields on the Sabbath and his disciples became hungry and began to pick the heads of grain and eat.

[0:44] But when the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, Look, your disciples do what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath. But he said to them, Have you not read what David did when he became hungry, he and his companions, how they entered the house of God, and they ate the consecrated bread, which was not lawful for him to eat, nor for those with him, but for the priests alone?

[1:03] Or have you not read in the law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple break the Sabbath and are innocent? But I say to you that something greater than the temple is here. But if you had known what this means, I desire compassion and not a sacrifice, you would not have condemned the innocent.

[1:20] For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath. And departing from there, he went into their synagogue, and a man was there whose hand was withered. And they questioned Jesus, asking, Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him?

[1:35] And he said to them, What man is there among you who has a sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not take hold of it and lift it out? How much more valuable then is a man than a sheep?

[1:47] So then it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath. Then he said to the man, Stretch out your hand. And he stretched it out, and it was restored to normal like the other. But the Pharisees went out and conspired against him as to how they might destroy him.

[2:03] But Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. Many followed him, and he healed them all, and warned them not to tell who he was. This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet.

[2:14] Behold my servant, whom I have chosen, my beloved, and whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my spirit upon him, and he shall proclaim justice to the Gentiles.

[2:26] He will not quarrel, nor cry out, nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets. A battered reed he will not break off, and a smothering wick he will not put out, or smothering wick, until he leads justice to victory.

[2:39] And in his name the Gentiles will hope. Matthew chapter 12, verses 1 through 21. You may be seated. We see from our text this morning, or at least I hope we will see from our text this morning, the byproducts of an easy yoke.

[2:56] The byproducts of an easy yoke. Now when we read scripture, especially when we read it in the corporate setting, or we gather together for the preaching or proclamation of the word, we have to just by nature break scripture up in smaller chunks, so that we can get a better grasp of it, or a better understanding of it.

[3:14] But we must be careful that we don't take those smaller chunks, and separate them from the context in which they exist within the word. And we also understand that the reality, that the original recipients of the gospel of Matthew, did not have the book broken up into chapters and verses, rather it came as one long letter, and would have been read as one would read a letter, that is sitting down and reading it in its entirety from beginning to end.

[3:40] And while that may seem a little kind of too much for us, and it really is too much, if you want to sit down and read a book as a whole, then you need to go back and kind of break it apart often.

[3:52] When I go into new sermon series, or I go into a new book, or even in my own personal study, I will read through a book of scripture, and then go back and begin to digest it in smaller sections.

[4:04] But the danger there is that we separate it from the things which either come before it, or the things which come after it. Now that's a long way of saying, as we need to understand exactly what is going on here, because it says there in the 12th chapter in the first verse, then he went through the grain fields.

[4:22] Now the literal wording is, at that particular time. And we say, well, what particular time is that? Well, we have to go back into the 11th chapter, and we have to see the invitation which Jesus extends, because this helps us in the interpretation of the text before us.

[4:39] In the invitation, if you remember what Jesus says, come to me, all you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

[4:52] That's the invitation. And then he begins to show the application, or the byproducts of accepting that, or rejecting that invitation, found in the 12th chapter, verses 1 through 21.

[5:03] Now, if you remember last week, when we were together, and we looked at that invitation, just to kind of put it in a nutshell, what Jesus is saying is, come to me, all you who are exhausted, from trying to do all you can, who have worked yourself till exhaustion, those of you who have tried, and tried, and labored, and labored, and labored, and you're pressing, and you just don't think you can do it anymore, and you have literally, physically worn yourselves out, come to me.

[5:33] He doesn't say, I'll give you cessation. He doesn't say, you will stop working. He says, I will give you rest, or a calm assurance. And then he begins to speak of this burden, and this yoke.

[5:44] He says, be yoked up with me. Now, what we need to understand, in this Jewish context, or in the context of scripture, because Matthew is writing to a Jewish audience, the yoke was seen as the law, right?

[5:57] Quite often the law, or the first five books of the Bible, the Pentateuch, or the law of Moses, often with a capital L, encompassing all of the Old Testament. The law was seen as the yoke, which would rest upon the nation of Israel, in order to lead them to righteousness.

[6:15] Right? This was the yoke of the law. These are the things that they should, or should not do. Paul refers to the law as a tutor, that which would keep them in bounds, that which would guard God's people, until the day of fulfillment of the promise.

[6:29] We see that in the book of Galatians. But what we see here, is Jesus using something, that was very common to the people around him, and really just enlightening it. They were to be yoked with the law.

[6:41] The law was the very thing, which tied them to God, and helped them, or theoretically, enabled them to walk a life pleasing to God. Now, what we need to understand, is from the time of the giving of the law, Mount Sinai, that we found in the book of Exodus, in Exodus chapter 20, and then repeated again, in the book of Deuteronomy.

[7:02] From the time of the giving of the law, in ten commandments, ten great sayings, ten great words, if you will, I will be your God, and you will be my people, if, and then God begins to list these ten commandments, just as man does, what God proclaimed in ten great words, man turned into a list, and list, and list of rules and regulations.

[7:22] It's always amazed me, how you could find a commentary, on the book of Philemon, Philemon is one single chapter, one small page, page, or page and a half, or Philemon, however you want to see it, I'm not really sure how to say it, okay, I have this great southern draw, so if things come out wrong, I do apologize, I know it does not come out, in its Hebrew or Greek dialect, but it comes out, in Billy Joe dialect, so it is what it is, right, so, whichever one you want to call it, it's you know, just a very short book, and a passage of scripture, and you can open it up, and if not easy, the pages will stick together, and you will miss that book, but yet we can find commentaries, on that one small book, that encompass a multitude of chapters, that man can write for pages, and pages, and pages, and pages upon end, what God declared, in one simple wording, and we see this with the law, the law is 10 commandments, or 10 great sayings, the Decalogue, by the time Christ came in, there was the Mishnah, which was the oral law, which encompassed everything, that the people should do, based upon the 10 commandments, and there were over 630, rules and regulations, of what you should, and should not do, because man has a way, of splitting atoms, and splitting frog hairs, for a lack of better way, of saying it,

[8:38] I know that doesn't sound, very sophisticated, but really just making things, very very complicated, because rather than looking, at the spirit of the law, man wants to really, he wants to pigeonhole God, if God would just tell me, what I should, and should not do, then I will be sure, to follow the rules, and my great theological answer, to that is yeah right, because we can't keep 10, let alone 600 plus, we can't, but we really want to define it, so that we would know the bounds, and really by defining it, if we're just going to be honest, right, by wanting to define it, what we're trying to do, is set the parameters, and it's not so that we know, where we should say it, so that we can know, how far we can go, that's what we really want to know, we want to know, how far we can go, at what point, does it become wrong, because I don't want to cross that line, I sure do want to walk, as close to it, as possible, and when man seeks, to define what God, has clearly stated, all we're trying to do, is to find out how far, and the reason,

[9:45] I know this, is because I see, this same tendency, within my own life, I remember when I became, a believer, I first accepted Christ, into my life, and really was allowing, and really kind of working, through him being, the Lord of my life, I was rejoicing, in the fact, that he was Savior, and I understood, he needed to be Lord, and I had all these questions, that since I've given my life, to Christ, what can and can I not do, and I was always going, to brothers, ordering me, and saying, well can I do this, and should I do this, and is this wrong, and the wisest of brothers, would give me an answer, and they would just say, what does the scripture say, that I used to make me mad, and I used to get angry, about that, and used to get real upset, about that, because I wanted someone, to tell me how far, I could go, and still be right, rather than tell me, I needed to live, in a relationship, with Jesus, that would be so sensitive, to the reality, that he would let me know, when I became wrong, big difference, but what we see here, in John, in Matthew 12, verses 1 through 21, is Jesus defining, or displaying, the byproducts, of this easier, yoke, because while,

[10:53] I cannot tell you, what it is, he's going to ask you to do, I can tell you, what it's going to look like, when you yoke up with him, and these are the byproducts, we see very clearly here, that there is a release, from legalistic expectations, there is a release, from legalistic expectations, because it says, then at that time, after Jesus spoke, of those who had been, wearied and burdened, now, what you need to understand, one thing that I have come, just to be amazed at, in scripture, is that everything recorded, for us that Jesus Christ did, he did it intentionally, right, nothing happened upon him, accidentally, nothing happened upon him, coincidentally, everything that he did, was intentionally done, okay, so when he put his disciples, in the boat, and sent them across, the sea of Galilee, he intentionally, set them without him, knowing that a storm, would arise, that would fear, cause them to fear, their own lives, right, so that he could walk, on the waves of the sea, Jesus intentionally, waited an extra day, until Lazarus died, because he wanted to be sure, that Lazarus was dead, four days, by the time he got there, you say, why four days, because according to,

[11:57] Jewish tradition, a man was not really dead, until he was dead four days, because three days, the spirit could come back to him, and all this other stuff, right, so he just, he wanted to wait, till it was beyond, the point of hope, everything that Jesus did, he did intentionally, which means, let's just go ahead, and say this, everything that he does, in your life, is intentionally done, so then at that time, after he spoke, of this legalistic, burdensome requirements, of the law, and the people being, so burdened, and exhausted, then he began, to walk through, the grain fields, and his disciples, became hungry, and becoming hungry, they began to take, some of the grain, and rub it together, in their hands, and eat it, now the law, when you go, into the book of Deuteronomy, in particular, and you find it, in the book of Leviticus, as well, made allowance, for an individual, who could walk, through a field, and reap the harvest, of someone else's field, if I had a corn field, or I had a wheat field, it was absolutely legal, for you to walk, through my field, and pick some of my corn, and eat it, and that's okay, I couldn't get mad at you, I couldn't get upset, what you couldn't do, is walk through my field, pick some of your corn, pick some corn, and put it in a basket, and carry it on, you could eat enough, to be satisfied, you couldn't back, your truck up, to the edge of my corn field, and fill the bed, of your truck up, you could eat enough, to be satisfied, at that moment, and that was the legal, allowance of the law, so what we see them doing, about the allowance, of the law, is absolutely permissible, and they're walking, through it, and they're hungry, so they're eating, but now there's always, people watching, and the Pharisees, see this, now the Pharisees, before we bash them, too much, had great intentions, the Pharisees, are those who, genuinely sought, to be pleasing to God, they wanted to please him, with their efforts, they really wanted, to please him, with their actions, they tried their best, to earn his favor, and to walk, in righteousness, according to the best, of their ability, and so much so, that when they saw this, they went up to Jesus, and said, do you not know, they are doing, what is not allowed, they're breaking, the Sabbath law, they're doing, what is not permissible, according to the law, now we've already said, there is a provision, within the Old Testament, but according to, rabbinic tradition, according to, the Pharisaic, interpretation, of the law, for one to pick, the head of grain, would be to be reaping, and then to, rub it together, in your hand, would be to be harvesting, and you were therefore, working, you were doing, work, on the Sabbath, and this just wasn't allowed, because a man couldn't work, on the Sabbath, they were, so meticulous, in their keeping, of the Sabbath tradition, they could tell you, exactly how much weight, you could carry, how many steps, you could take away, from your house, how, you couldn't, you couldn't light a fire, to cook, in your oven, because ovens, were usually earth, and kind of, think pizza oven, right, like stone pizza oven, and they had this, you couldn't light a fire, because you would be working, by gathering firewood, you couldn't do, any of those things, right, there are all these traditions, that were just, really just burdensome, and they come to Jesus, and they're blown away, and says, your disciples are doing, what is not allowed, now, let's just go ahead, and settle the matter, that Jesus did this, on the Sabbath, intentionally, because he is, demonstrating, for us, the difference, between the yoke of the law, and the yoke of Christ, and they're saying, this just shouldn't happen, and then Jesus, confronts them, with scripture, by the way, every time, the enemy attacks you, whether it be, a legalistic enemy, or the enemy of Satan, attacks you, and a thorn is cast, to your side, and the fiery darts, of Satan, are thrown at you, do not answer them, according to your wisdom, just answer them, according to scripture, we see this, when Jesus, in his wilderness temptations, because he says, it is written, it is written, it is written, and if Jesus, must answer, every accusation, according to scripture, rather than, according to his own, human knowledge, how much more so, us, because Jesus, rather than saying, no that's okay,

[15:52] Jesus says, two examples, or he gives two examples, found in the Old Testament, which the Pharisees, would have to, kind of wrestle with, he said, have you not read, of what happened, with David, and his men, and you know the story, David, and his men, are fleeing, from Saul, and they're on their way, and they get hungry, and they come to the priest, and there's nothing to eat, and they don't know, what to eat, and they come into the, the place where the priest is, and there's the table, of the show bread, the twelve loaves of bread, the bread of the presence, it was to signify, God's presence, among the nation of Israel, and this was holy, consecrated bread, that would be changed out, every seventh day, and it was to be consumed, by the priest, and the priest alone, but David knew, that it was there, so he went to the priest, and he says, we have nothing to eat, so he took of the bread, of the presence, and they ate it, and all of a sudden, Jesus is confronting them, with this reality, this David, whom you say, is a man after God's own heart, and he is, this David, who is the, kind of the litmus test, of what the king, needs to be, this David, that is so highly exalted, among the nation of Israel, he broke the law, so is he, unrighteous, and he didn't give them time, to answer, because then he says, and what about the priest, because if we're to do no work, on the Sabbath, every Sabbath, the priest, break, the Sabbath, every priest, every priest, is in the temple, or the tabernacle, in the Old Testament, they're in the temple, every Sabbath, and there are twice as many, sacrifices, offered on the Sabbath, than any other day, of the week, so the priest, is working twice as much, on the Sabbath, and Jesus points out, and says, yet he does not, break the law, how do you answer that, and again,

[17:43] Jesus just, lets it stay there, he doesn't wait, for them to answer, because he says, but if you had known, the truth of what is written, I desire compassion, and not a sacrifice, see what Jesus does, with his yoke, is he releases, the individual, from the legalistic, expectation, of the law, and returns us, back to the very heart, of God, when God, gave the ten commandments, and God, declares the law, God never intended, to put a burden, of legalistic expectations, rather, it was to lead, the individual, to a heartfelt, worship, and a loving obedience, obedience, the law, was to be the bounds, which kept the individual, in a relationship, with the Lord, his God, and therefore, would be a result, of a worshiping attitude, it was never to be, just a checklist, of things to do, and not to do, because here's the reality, any man, can go through there, and to the best of his ability, maintain every standard, and every Pharisee, could do it, and they could put a check mark, next to every written law, and every oral law, and they could say,

[18:51] I did this, and I did this, and I did this, and I did this, and I did this, and they could do, every bit of that, and still not, love the Lord, his God, with all his heart, with all his soul, with all his mind, because legalistic, displays of obedience, do not necessarily, do not necessarily, point to the reality, of a loving, worshiping attitude, in today's time, I would say, just because you're in the, pew every Sunday, just because you read, your Bible daily, just because you give, to the church, and just because you pray, just all these actions, and I wouldn't say it, Paul himself says, by the works of man, no man is justified, anything we can do, is a work of the flesh, right, and by the works of the flesh, no man is justified, and he literally, Paul says, in the book of Galatians, that the spirit of the letter, that is the law, leads to destruction, but Jesus here, leads to liberty, it is release, it is release, and how much better it is, when we come to the understanding, that as our Lord and Savior, he desires us to live, in relationship with him, more than he desires, in us to live, in legalistic adherence, to every command, because I can promise you this, you will not, do what you should not do, when you are doing it, with him, when you are living, in relationship, with him, it is a release, from legalistic expectations, not only do we see that, we also see the restoration, at our moment, of greatest needs, one of the byproducts, of the easy yoke, is restoration, at our moment, of greatest needs, because it says, that Jesus now, left the grain field, and it says, and he went into one of, their synagogues, verse nine, departing from there, that is the grain field, he went into, their synagogue, now, that wording, just really stands out to me,

[20:57] I read from the New American Standard, but in NASB, and there are other translations, that say it as well, and I'm not particular, I don't know exactly, which translation you're in, but it says, he went into, their synagogue, now, the synagogue, was to be a place, which would lead, men and women, and boys and girls, and instruct individuals, into the way, of the Lord, their God, it was to be, a place of instruction, it was to be set up, to be a place, of really honoring God, and studying the word, and to be a place, where people would come, to the knowledge of God, and come to a greater understanding, of his expectations, and of his love for them, but unfortunately, it had become, their place, had become, their place, because how too easy, or how easy it is, for man to take, that which was once, dedicated to the Lord God, and make it their own, we see this, in particular, with the Passover, all throughout the Old Testament, the Passover is referred to, as the Passover, of the Lord, the Passover of the Lord, the Passover of the Lord, by the time, we get into the New Testament, it's referred to as, the Passover of the Jews, it has become, a nationalistic celebration, rather than, a God honoring, event, it has become, something that is, defined by themselves, rather than, being defined, by the Lord God, we see this today, the moment, that this becomes, our church, we are in jeopardy, because, when it is mine,

[22:29] I get to define, what it is, and what it is not, when it is mine, now I know, we all say this, that's where I go to church, or that's my church, I understand that, and I don't think, that we ever mean it, with that intent, and that heart, but we need to pay attention, to this okay, when it is their synagogue, they get to determine, what takes place, in there, right, when it is the Jewish temple, the Jewish temple, gets to take place, gets to determine, the Jew gets to determine, what takes place, when it is the Lord's, then he gets to determine, right, when it's my church, that means, I get to set, the standards, and the parameters, and the expectations, when it's his church, that means, even when his standards, and parameters, and expectations, conflict with what, I think they should be, he does not need to change, I should change, and this is where, the traditions of men, begin to stand in the way, of the commandments of God, Jesus spoke of this quite often, you raise up the traditions of man, and neglect the command of God, wow, because when we take ownership, of anything, all of a sudden, we have control of it, and that's dangerous ground, and Jesus went into there, he went into there, the synagogue,

[23:47] God, now this event is recorded for us, in Mark, and then also Luke, and we see them pointing, to this reality, the same event that happens, I believe it's in Mark chapter 11, and Luke chapter 6, no it's Mark chapter 3, and Luke chapter 6, is where this is recorded, and this same event, and this same thing that happens, that Jesus goes in there, and there's a man in there, he's got a withered hand, Matthew tells us, that they asked Jesus, is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, Mark and Luke tell us, that it is Jesus who asked them, either way, what I really think, is that Jesus posed the question, intentionally he walked in, and said is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, and they really wanted to know that anyway, he just really spoke, what was in our heart and mind, but as is often the case, they were setting him up, and it says they were watching him, to see what he would do, and then Jesus gives a good illustration, this great illustration, it says what man, if he had a single sheep, and that sheep fell into a well, would not go and pick up that sheep, on the Sabbath, and set him free, right, who wouldn't go deliver that sheep, he says how much better, how much more important, is a man than a sheep, or an animal, so it is right, to do good on the Sabbath, now I'll tell you, what the rabbinic tradition said, about helping an individual, on the Sabbath, if someone became injured, or someone became sick, you could help them, to the point of making sure, they didn't die, but you could not help them, beyond that, so if someone had a gaping wound, you could stop the bleeding, but you couldn't stitch it up, you could keep them alive, through the Sabbath, and then come, come Sunday, because Sabbath is Saturday, come Sunday, then you could go back to them, and say, oh I'm glad you made it, through the night, now we can take care of you, because you couldn't do any work, now they held man up enough, right, it'd keep you alive, but they're not going to restore you, they keep you alive, but they're not going to make you whole, so when this man, has a withered hand, in their legalistic mindset is, he's okay, he can make it through the day, with that messed up hand, he's not supposed to be doing, any work anyway, and you see the difference here, we're not, all of a sudden, we are exalting tradition, over God's honoring, of the individual, and Jesus calls the man up, and says stretch out your hand, and he stretched his hand out, and he says that it became, whole or well, like the other one, he restored it,

[26:06] I want to tell you, Jesus met that man, on a Sabbath, and that was the day, of that man's need, he might not have seen him, on Sunday, or Monday, he met him on a Saturday, he met him on a Sabbath, that was his moment of need, and at his greatest moment, of need, Jesus offers, full restoration, it becomes whole, just like the other one, see what the law can do, is keep you alive, for a while, the law can keep you afloat, and hopefully you keep your head up, long enough until the day comes, when we can really address the issue, the law can hold you up, and your efforts, and your abilities, it can raise you up, for just a little while, but what Jesus does, is he meets you where you're at, and regardless of the day, the time, the place, or the space, he can restore you, and make you completely whole, he doesn't just hold you up, he pulls you out, he fully restores, the individual, at his moment, of greatest need, Jesus doesn't come, just to keep you alive, Jesus comes to make you whole, and that's a, that's a great reality for us, right,

[27:12] Jesus did not come to you, and come to me, and he does not meet us, where we're at, he doesn't meet us, in our pit of despair, and our misery of sin, he doesn't meet us, living as a dead man, walking, he doesn't meet us, when we're in all of our misery, and all of our filth, and he doesn't just say, well I'll keep you alive today, no he doesn't say that, he says I'll help you make it, to tomorrow, he doesn't say that, he doesn't say, well I can do a little something, for you now, come back to me later, and I'll make it better, from there on, he doesn't say that, what Jesus does, is he meets you, in your moment of greatest need, and at that very moment, he makes you perfectly whole, the Bible says, he takes you out of death, and puts you in life, and he doesn't just, kind of fix the problem, he removes the issue, behold, the Lamb of God, John the Baptist said, who has come, to take the sin, from the world, see what the law, wants to do, and what your efforts, hope to do, and what our abilities, try to do, is to take care of our sins, that is the things, we do bad, it tries to deal with the sins, with an S issue, that is the bad things, we do, and the more bad things,

[28:26] I learn, the more bad things, I try to take care of, and what is a sin, may not be, evident to me today, I can just see this, one big sin issue, and I'm going to address it, but this is what I have found, maybe I'm the only one, that after I address that one, there's always another one, right, the moment I get beyond this one, there's another one, and the moment I say, well I'm going to stop doing this, something else pops up, and I may conquer this one, but there's another one, and then I may conquer that one, but there's another one, and it seems like, there's this no end to this, and Paul says, oh wretched man that I am, because the more effort, and the more abilities, and the more work, and the more labor, I put into it, the more I find, there are more, and more, and more, and more issues, that I knew, that I ever thought, that I ever had, and I can't deal with, the multitude of sins, in my own life, but the good news is, Jesus didn't come, to take care of my sins, he come to take care, of my sin nature, he doesn't just fix, the problems, he addresses the issue, he's not addressing, the situations, he's going to the root cause, and he meets us, in a moment, of greatest need, and restores us, and that, is a byproduct, of the easy yoke, it is restoration, do I stumble, and fall, well yes, absolutely, absolutely, but my sin problem, has been addressed, we just got to work, on how I live, in the light, of that new reality, we got to work, on how I live, in the light, of that, that new identity, he restores us, in our moment, of greatest need, now here's one, of the despairing, byproducts, of the easy yoke, there is the rejection, by the self-confident, individual, because not everyone, rejoices at the reality, of the easy yoke, and the new liberty, that comes from it, not everyone, celebrates this, this new truth, that I am now, released, and restored, and not everyone, rejoices in that, as a matter of fact, there are many, who reject it, because it just doesn't, make sense to them, and when the Pharisees, saw this, and they saw the man's, withered hand, it says they became angry, they became mad, and it says there, the Pharisees went out, and conspired, against him, isn't that amazing, that when he does, such a great work, in another individual's life, the multitude begins, to conspire against him, and it says, that they sought, how they might destroy him,

[30:58] Mark tells us, an even more amazing thing, Mark says, as a result of this, the Pharisees went out, and began to conspire, together with the Herodians, now history shows us, that there are two people, in society, that don't get along, that is the Pharisees, and the Herodians, there are three major groups, within the confines, of Jerusalem at this time, and there is a fourth one, which John the Baptist, was probably a member of, the fourth one, was the Essenes, the Essenes, weren't necessarily, prevalent within Jerusalem, or around the vicinity, of many of the Jewish cities, because the Essenes, were the men, who would go out, and live in the wilderness, and live among the caves, and they thought, that kind of a, kind of like a monastery, right, a monastic lifestyle, would be the very way, to make pleasing to God, that we would, really just crucify, the desires of the flesh, and we would cast off everything, and it shouldn't surprise you, any that the Essenes, didn't last, because I said, it was a group of men, that went out into the wilderness, and lived together, and what I have found, is you know, you don't procreate, when it's a group of men, so they died out, that's what happened, so they're out there, and they die out, so the Essenes, are kind of just this, kind of really, fanatical group out there, but inside the cities, the major cities, there were three major groups, there were the Pharisees, you know a lot about them, the Pharisees were, really kind of the scribes, and the elites, and there were those, who sought to adhere to the law, there were the Sadducees, the Sadducees were those, who wanted to be pleasing to God, but also enjoyed the benefits of Rome, so they bought the high priesthood, they were the ones, who had the greatest money, and you know, they really took on Roman tradition, and Roman culture, and really tried to balance, they wanted, they loved God in Rome, that's what they did, they blended the two, they loved Rome so much, they thought that that was glory, because they denied the afterlife, the resurrection, angels, and heaven and hell, they thought everything, was wrapped up in Rome, so there's your Sadducees, and then there were Herodians, the Herodians were the people, who wanted nothing to do with God, they just loved Rome, they loved Herod, and they really adhered, to Herod, and really backed him, and were supported by him, so you have these people, at this great end of the spectrum, the Pharisees, and the Herodians, natural enemies, yet, when it comes to wanting, to get rid of Jesus, they conspire together, they conspire together, because man will go to great lengths, and you're not with anyone, to get rid of that which convicts him,

[33:22] Herod and Pilate, became great friends on the day, that Jesus was passed back and forth, between the two of them, all of a sudden now, they become very friendly, or cordial, what we see here, is this rejection, by the self-confident individual, it upsets them, that what Jesus is offering them, has nothing to do with them, that they can't do it, they can't labor for it, it's nothing to do, with their own abilities, or their own efforts, or their own work, and to them, it just seems, too much, right, it is blasphemy, they don't understand it, and therefore, they try to get rid of it, and they want to, get rid of him, because they would rather, trust in their own efforts, and in their own goodness, and in their own abilities, than to surrender, and to be yoked up, with Christ, to this day, while the Essenes, are no more, the Herodians, are no more, because you know,

[34:28] Rome has fallen, the Sadducees, are no more, because Rome has fallen, of the religious groups, that were prevalent, in the day of Christ, the Pharisee, is the only one, that still exists, to this day, the heart of the Pharisee, rests in a multitude of people, and it's not just Jewish people, it is the man or woman, who thinks that they can do it, on their own, and by their own efforts, they will accomplish glory, by their own efforts, they will be counted as righteous, and by their own works, and abilities, they will be pleasing to God, and that Pharisaic heart, is condemning, and it is so condemning, that they reject, the work of Christ, they may acknowledge, the person of Christ, and they may acknowledge, the reality of Christ, but they want nothing to do, with the work of Christ, and even though, they may declare, their trusting in it, by their own actions, and by their own efforts, and by their own, legalistic standards, you can see, that rather than, trusting in Christ, they are trusting in them, on their own selves, see Jesus, is not a part, of the solution, he is the solution, we don't need, as some say,

[35:36] Jesus to pick up, where we fall short, we need Jesus, to take over, because we have failed, miserably, and the Pharisaic heart, which just looks to Jesus, to pick up, where they cannot, make it anymore, the one that looks to Jesus, and says, Lord take it from here, is one that ultimately, is rejecting him, and we see this, rejection by the, self-confident individual, may we never have, confidence in ourselves, I've got one more, and I promise, it will be short, and I will be done, not only do we see, the release, from legalistic expectations, the restoration, and our moment, of greatest needs, the rejection, of the self-confident individual, we see the realization, of the prophetic hope, Jesus, and the yoke, which he offers, is the realization, of the prophetic hope, as Matthew often does, he quotes Isaiah, he says, this was to fulfill, what was spoken, through Isaiah, and this is the longest, quote that he gives, from that prophet Isaiah, and it is a quotation, from the portion of scripture, of the suffering servant, and he speaks, of the suffering servant, who will come, with such humbleness, and meekness, that even a smoldering ember, would not be put out, one who would not, break a broken reed, one who would not come, and to make a spectacle, in the streets, and one who did not stand out, but he would come, to release the captives, he would come, to proclaim, freedom to the Gentiles, and he would be, the hope of the nations, friend listen,

[37:02] Jesus is the final word, of the prophet, Jesus is the fulfilled, promise, of all prophecy, Jesus is the fulfillment, of every New Testament, scripture, and the yoke, which he offers, is ultimately, it is ultimately, the hope, that the prophets, were always, pointing towards, it is not, greater effort, it is not, better work, it is not, harder labor, it is the person, and work, of Jesus Christ, he is the realization, of the hope, of the prophets, he is the realization, of the need, of every man, and may we, walk daily, underneath the ease, of his yoke, and the rest, that he offers us, even in our labor, let's pray, Lord we thank you, so much, we thank you, for your word, we thank you, for the truth, that it contains, and Lord pray, that it would come, with power, and impact, upon our lives, we pray, that you would move, within the heart, of every individual, you would be glorified, and you would be honored, and we ask it, in Christ's name,

[38:14] Amen. Amen.

[39:11] Amen. Amen.

[40:11] Amen. Amen.

[41:11] Amen. Amen.

[42:11] Amen. Amen.

[43:11] Amen. Amen.

[43:42] Thank you.

[44:41] Thank you.

[45:11] Thank you.