Matthew 11 Devotional0

Matthew 11:7-15

“John is a transitional figure who has prepared the way for the Coming One, but Jesus implies here that John will not live to see the full arrival of the kingdom. Jesus’ institution of the new covenant in his blood is a dividing line. The complex of events including the cross, resurrection, ascension, and sending of the Spirit at Pentecost brings the arrival of the kingdom’s redemptive life, by which time John was executed.”[1]

• Meditate on the fact that, as a New Testament Christian, I am far more privileged than even John the Baptist.
• What is it about the kingdom of God that requires “forceful men [to] lay hold of it?”  Think of examples of “forceful men” who lay hold of the kingdom.  What do I have to learn from them?

Matthew 11:16-19

• In what ways are people today like the children described in this passage–dissatisfied with Jesus because he does not respond to their tune?  How much can I identify with such people?

Matthew 11:28-30

“His easy yoke is neither cheap nor convenient. The surprising promise of the easy yoke was meant to free us from a self-serving, meritorious, performance-based religion. It is easy in that it frees us from the burden of self-centeredness; liberates us from the load of self-righteousness; and frees us to live in the way that God intended us to live.  The easy yoke sounds like an oxymoron. Plowing a field or pulling a load is hard work! And nowhere does Jesus promise soft ground for tilling or level paths for bearing the load. What he does promise is a relationship with Himself. The demands are great but the relationship with Jesus makes the burden light.”[2]

• Who are the ones to whom the invitation of v. 28 is issued?
• Reflect on the heart of Jesus as he issues this invitation to the world.  To what extent do I share this heart of Jesus for the wearied and burdened of the world?
• Do I agree that life apart from Christ is weary and burdened?  What are the things that cause people to feel “weary and burdened?”
• In what ways are Jesus’ yoke “easy” and his burden “light?”

Additional Questions:

Matthew 11:1-6

“He was not turning out to be the kind of Messiah the people had expected. Even John the Baptist had doubts (vv. 2-19), and the Galilean cities that were sites of most of Jesus’ miracles hardened themselves in unbelief (vv. 20-24)… The one to whom he had pointed, the one who would come in blessing and judgment (3:11-12), had brought healing to many but, it would seem, judgment to none–not even to those who had immorally and unlawfully confined the Baptist in a cruel prison…”[3]

• Although John was confident of Jesus’ identity earlier in their public ministries (cf. Matt 3:11-15, John 1:29-34), why does he now ask Jesus, “Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?”
• What are some ways in which difficult personal circumstances can cause me to potentially “fall away on account of [Jesus]?”

Matthew 11:7-9

• Think about the things Jesus contrasts with John.  In what way is John’s character and life as a prophet of God aptly captured by these contrasts?
• To what extent is my character and lifestyle in sharp contrast with “a reed swayed by the wind,” and people “dressed in fine clothes” living in palaces rather than in the desert?

Matthew 11:20-24

“ Jesus did not denounce these cities for vicious opposition but because, despite the fact that most of his miracles took place there–miracles that attested his messianic mission (vv.5-6)–they  had not repented.  The many miracles again remind us of the extent of Jesus’ ministry and of the depth of responsibility imposed on those with more light.”[4]

• What is the relationship between the miracles performed in these cities and their responsibility on the Day of Judgment?
• What warning does this have for me?

Matthew 11:25

“Many restrict the ‘wise and learned’ to the Pharisees and teachers of the law, but the context implies something broader.  Jesus has just finished pronouncing woes on ‘this generation’ (v.16) and denouncing entire cities (vv.20-24).  These are the ones from whom the real significance of Jesus’ ministry is concealed.  The contrast is between those whoa re self-sufficient and deem themselves wise and those who are dependent and love to be taught.”[5]

• What are the “things” that have been hidden from the wise and learned and revealed to little children?
• Contrast the attitudes of the “wise and learned” to that of the “little children.”   In what ways am I like the “wise and learned?”

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[1] Wilkins, Michael J. “Original Meaning” In NIV Application Commentary, New Testament: Matthew. By Michael J. Wilkins, 411-417. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2004.

[2] Wilkins, Michael J. “Matthew 11:20-30″  NIV Application Commentary, New Testament: Matthew. By Michael J. Wilkins, 2004 Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 428.

[3] Frank E. Gaebelein, Gen. Ed. Expositor’s Bible Commentary CD (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1992)

[4] Frank E. Gaebelein, Gen. Ed. Expositors Bible Commentary CD, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1992) notes for Matthew 11:20.

[5] Frank E. Gaebelein, Gen. Ed. Expositors Bible Commentary CD, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1992) notes for Matthew 11:25.