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Please turn with me in your Bibles 
to Matthew chapter 10. Matthew chapter 10, I'll begin 
reading in verse 16. Behold, I send you out as sheep 
in the midst of wolves. Therefore, be wise as serpents 
and harmless as doves. But beware of men, for they will 
deliver you up to councils and scourge you in their synagogues. 
You will be brought before governors and kings for my sake, as a testimony 
to them and to the Gentiles. But when they deliver you up, 
do not worry about how or what you should speak. For it will 
be given to you in that hour what you should speak. For it 
is not you who speak, but the spirit of your father who speaks 
in you. Now brother will deliver up brother to death and to father 
his child. And children will rise up against 
parents and cause them to be put to death. And you will be 
hated by all for my name's sake. But he who endures to the end 
will be saved. When they persecute you in this 
city, flee to another. For assuredly, I say to you, 
you will not have gone through the cities of Israel before the 
Son of Man comes. A disciple is not above his teacher, 
nor a servant above his master. It is enough for a disciple that 
he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. If they have 
called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more will 
they call those of his household? Therefore, do not fear them, 
for there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and 
hidden that will not be known. Whatever I tell you in the dark, 
speak in the light, and what you hear in the ear, preach on 
the housetops. And do not fear those who kill 
the body but cannot kill the soul, but rather fear him who 
is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two 
sparrows sold for a copper coin, and not one of them falls to 
the ground apart from your father's will? But the very hairs of your 
head are all numbered. Do not fear, therefore. You are 
of more value than many sparrows. Therefore, whoever confesses 
me before men Him I will also confess before my father who 
is in heaven. But whoever denies me before 
men, him I will also deny before my father who is in heaven. Do 
not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come 
to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man 
against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law 
against her mother-in-law. And a man's enemies will be those 
of his own household. He who loves father or mother 
more than me is not worthy of me. And he who loves son or daughter 
more than me is not worthy of me. And he who does not take 
his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me. He who finds 
his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for my sake 
will find it. He who receives you receives 
me, and he who receives me receives him who sent me. He who receives 
a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward. 
And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous 
man shall receive a righteous man's reward. And whoever gives 
one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name 
of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means 
lose his reward. Now it came to pass when Jesus 
finished commanding his 12 disciples that he departed from there to 
teach and to preach in their cities. Amen. Let us pray. Our gracious God and our Holy 
Father, we come before you now and we pray that you would send 
your spirit upon us. We pray that he would guide us 
and lead us and teach us your truth. That we would hide your 
word in our hearts, that we might not sin against you. As well, 
Father, we pray that you would cleanse us afresh in the blood 
of the Lord Jesus. For as we come before scripture, 
as we Acknowledge your glory and your holiness. We are mindful 
of our own sinfulness, our own waywardness. As the hymn writer 
says, we are prone to wander and prone to leave the God that 
we love. We pray that you would cleanse 
us, that you would wash us, that you would purify us, and that 
you would cause us to receive the things that you have for 
us in this passage of scripture. May you conform us more and more 
unto the image of your beloved son. We know that He bore His 
cross on our behalf, and we pray, God in heaven, that You would 
give us the grace to prize, to value, to esteem, and to adore 
Him above all other things. And we pray through Jesus Christ 
our Lord. Amen. Well, we have been considering 
Matthew chapter 10. This is the second major discourse 
in Matthew's gospel. There are five of them. And in 
the beginning of chapter 10, we see the appointment of the 
12. The Lord Jesus ends chapter 9 by saying, the harvest truly 
is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore, pray the 
Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. And 
as an immediate answer to that prayer, he appoints the 12, the 
apostles, and he sends them out. on a particular mission. He indicates 
that in verses 5 to 15. They will be localized. They 
will go to the cities of Galilee, preaching to the lost sheep of 
the house of Israel. And then in 16 to 23, he seems 
to broaden the horizon. So that's speaking specifically 
of that mission spoken of in 5 to 15, but in verses 16 to 
23, seems to encompass the entirety of the church age. While the 
disciples of Christ preach the gospel, there is an expectation 
of persecution. They will be persecuted. They 
will suffer. When we seek by God's grace to 
live holy and righteous in this present world, there will be 
opposition to us. So the Lord tells them to expect 
persecution. And then in verses 24 to 33, 
he tells them how they are to respond. to persecution, how 
they are to deal with that. They are to propagate the truth 
in the midst of it. They are to realize the limitation 
of man. He can only kill the body, but 
can do no other thing. Rather, fear the God who is able 
to destroy both soul and body in hell. And then he says to 
trust in the providence of God. God's goodness and His kindness 
extends to us individually. And as a result, we ought to 
take great comfort in that and embark in gospel missions. And then he has an exhortation 
to persevere in the midst of persecution in terms of faithful 
confessing. Verses 32 and 33. Therefore, 
whoever confesses me before men, him I will also confess before 
my Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before 
men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven." 
So that's a bit of an overview of where we've been. This final 
section in verses 34 to 42 is the effect of Christ's mission. In other words, Christ, by way 
of conclusion of this particular discourse, is going to tell the 
disciples what the effects of his mission will be. And basically, 
there are two broad categories that we see in this section. 
There is division and there is reception. So we'll take up our 
study this morning under three considerations. First, the division 
over Christ in verses 34 to 39. Secondly, the reception of the 
apostles in verses 40 to 42. And then 11.1 is a summary and 
a transition. Each of the five discourses in 
Matthew's Gospel ends with a summary statement and a transition into 
the next block of narrative. So we'll look briefly at that 
and then move to some concluding application. But notice first 
the division over Christ. Do not think, he says, that I 
came to bring peace on earth. It's a similar statement grammatically 
to 517. Do not think that I came to abolish 
the law and the prophets. What he is saying is do not let 
it even rise up in your head. Do not let it even begin to surface 
in your mind. Do not begin to entertain this 
thought that I came to bring peace. Now, the messianic expectation, 
as spoken of in the Old Testament prophets, was one of peace. Isaiah 
9, he is called the Prince of Peace. Isaiah 11, one of the 
fundamental characteristics of Messiah's reign, is peace. For the chastisement of our peace, 
he is wounded, in Isaiah the prophet 53. And in Zechariah 
9.10, which envisions the messianic age, it says, he will speak peace 
to the nations. So this idea of peace is, in 
fact, connected with the Messiah in one sense. And in that sense, 
he is not saying, do not think that I came to bring peace on 
earth between God and individuals who are justified freely by his 
grace, Romans 5.1. Therefore, having been justified 
by faith, we have peace with God. Certainly, we have peace. 
In a church like this we have peace with one another. He is 
talking about the effects of apostolic preaching. He is talking 
about what Pastor Cam just read in 1 Corinthians 1. For since, 
in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, 
it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save 
those who believe. Now, when men by God's grace 
are conquered, when of Him they are in Christ Jesus, who becomes 
unto us redemption, righteousness, and sanctification, and everything 
a sinner stands in need of, there is peace with God. There is peace 
within the church. But when men oppose the gospel, 
When men reject the truth, when men despise the preaching of 
Christ and His message, that is when division comes. So Jesus 
Christ says, do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. The context, I think, is as well 
very clear when He says, I did not come to bring peace but a 
sword. He's not talking about the magistrate's 
sword. He's not talking about in this 
first Advent that He's going to punish the earth with the 
sword. Parallel gospel, or parallel passage in Luke 12, 51, it says 
he brings division. That's the point. There is conflict. There is division. There is hardship. There is strained relationship 
as a result of those who reject the preaching of Christ and Him 
crucified. Spurgeon said, in producing the 
peace of heaven, he arouses the rage of hell. In producing the 
peace of heaven, he arouses the rage of hell. He says truth provokes 
opposition, purity excites enmity, and righteousness arouses all 
the forces of wrong. So the general statement of verse 
34, do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did 
not come to bring peace, but a sword. So when you go out about 
the various cities in Galilee, when at the end of Matthew's 
gospel in chapter 28, when he commissions his church, to go 
therefore and make disciples of all the nations realize this 
truth, realize this fact, that in a world cursed as a result 
of sin, in a world where man's heart is at enmity with God the 
Lord, where there is distaste and disdain and despising of 
God and His rule, in a Psalm 2 sort of a world, where the 
nations rage and the peoples plot a vain thing. Do not think 
it strange when you proclaim the gospel that men despise it 
and men reject it and men loathe you. Do not begin to think that. And then he offers this proof 
in verses 35 and 36. He's already alluded to this 
in chapter 10 at verses 21 and 22. where he says that within 
the household there will be enmity. Well, here he cites specifically 
Micah the prophet, chapter 7, verse 6. Just a couple of thoughts 
with reference to the prophet Micah. He was living in dark 
days. In fact, chapter 7, the first 
half, reads in a very melancholy and in a very sad way. He has 
no godly fellowship. The prophet is all alone. He 
looks around at society. According to chapter 7, verses 
2 to 5, society has gone a-whoring from God. There is sin, there 
is crime, there is wickedness. And then he shows and he indicates 
in verse 6 that even within the family, even within marriage, 
there is disintegration. The righteous and the wicked 
contrast. The righteous and the wicked 
do not get along. There is an antithesis that exists 
which goes all the way back to that first announcement of the 
gospel in Genesis 3.15. Doesn't God Almighty say, I will 
put enmity between you, or between your seed and His seed. Does 
not God the Lord announce that in the life in this world there 
will be enmity, there will be discord among the righteous and 
the wicked. And so what Jesus is highlighting 
here with reference to this passage is a proof that he did not come 
to bring peace, but division. Again, when we read through this 
passage, we say, wait a minute. We don't see these sorts of things 
happening. We just heard a prayer letter this morning about a man 
in India who was beheaded because he would not renounce Jesus Christ. Who wielded the sword? his father-in-law. So do not think it's hyperbolic 
language that we find here in either the prophet Micah or in 
the lips of the Lord Jesus. This is reality. This is the 
truth. This is what happens when a man 
is conquered by sovereign grace and he goes home to an unconverted 
family. Do they rejoice? Do they celebrate? Do they throw parties? Consider 
a man who swims the Tiber in the opposite direction. It's 
kind of theological shorthand. If we refer to somebody swimming 
the Tiber, that means that they've gone to Roman Catholicism. The 
Tiber River is right there before Rome. So if we say of a Protestant, 
he swam the Tiber, that means he ended up in Rome. Well, by 
God's grace, some people swim the Tiber the other way, and 
they end up in Geneva. Do you think that the family 
who loses one to Protestantism is happy and rejoicing because 
their son now is serving God according to the Scripture? If 
you think that, you know nothing about the Church of Rome. What 
Christ is proving and what Christ is instancing is this reality 
that as we, by grace, seek to live godly in Christ Jesus in 
a sin-cursed world, there will be persecution, there will be 
trial, there will be enmity, there will be hardship. J.C. Ryle says it this way, we are 
not to think it strange if the gospel rends asunder families 
and causes estrangement between the nearest relations. It is 
sure to do so in many cases, notice, because of the deep corruption 
of man's heart. You see, the natural tendency 
in an interpretation is to take Jesus' words here in verse 34 
and say, well, that's not very fair, Jesus. Who do you think 
you are coming into our wonderful world? And instead of bringing 
peace, bringing a sort of conflict and division, Jesus, why don't 
you just stay out of our world so that we can conduct ourselves 
in peaceful relations and live happily ever after? That's the 
natural, the humanistic tendency in interpreting verse 34. The 
biblical interpretation is not that Christ is the author of 
this, but that man's corrupt heart in rejecting Christ and 
the proffers of God's grace is to blame for this division that 
exists. In other words, Jesus' gospel 
comes offering life and happiness and peace and joy and all those 
things. People ought to welcome that. People ought to receive that. 
People ought to joyfully bow in submission to the Lord. I 
mean, what is bad about those concepts? If you're an unbeliever 
here this morning and you've not believed on the Lord Jesus, 
what is it about life? and happiness, and peace with 
God, and the forgiveness of sins that sounds so offensive to you, 
that sounds so brutal and so unhappy. The problem isn't the 
proffer of grace. The problem isn't the gospel 
of our Lord Jesus. The problem is the hardness of 
man's heart. Corruption. You would think a 
family would rejoice if their son or daughter came home. saying, 
I found the pearl of greatest price. My sins are forgiven. I'm heaven bound. I am going 
to be with my Lord Jesus. You think there'd be feasting? 
That's not the case, is it? Ryle says, it is sure to do so 
in many cases because of the deep corruption of man's heart. 
So long as one man believes and another man remains unbelieving, 
so long as one is resolved to keep his sins and another desirous 
to give them up, the result of the preaching of the gospel must 
needs be division. Don't be surprised. I can't believe everybody's mad 
at me. Why? Jesus said He didn't come 
to bring peace, but a sword. And if you're faithfully preaching 
or proclaiming or witnessing or testify concerning His truth 
to men who are dead in their trespasses and sins, what do 
you think they're going to do? Throw parties for you? Wow, I 
love it when that guy tells me what a sinner I am. Is that how 
sinners respond? Really? Have you ever witnessed 
to somebody and they said, thank you for telling me that I'm a 
wretch? Thank you for telling me that my heart, my inclinations 
are only evil continually from my youth. Thank you for telling 
me that my children go estranged from the womb speaking lies as 
soon as they are born. I've yet to meet that pagan that 
said, thank you for telling me this. I appreciate it. Now I 
feel whole. For this, he says, the gospel 
is not to blame, but the heart of man. So Jesus makes the statement, 
verse 34, he offers the proof, verses 35 and 36. For those of 
you reading the text, you'll see daughter-in-law and mother-in-law. Probably because the man would 
bring his wife into his home. So the antithesis there between 
mother-in-law and daughter-in-law would be sharp and the breach 
would be seen in that particular instance. If you're wondering 
why Jesus speaks there of daughter-in-law, mother-in-law. But notice the 
implications that the Lord draws out in verses 37 to 39. Makes the statement, He offers 
the proof, and now He draws out some implications concerning 
this reality. Notice first, Christ comes before 
family. Christ comes before family, verse 
37. He who loves father or mother 
more than me is not worthy of me. And he who loves son or daughter 
more than me is not worthy of me. Luke's Gospel. We read, he who does not hate 
father or mother or who does not hate son or daughter. Matthew 
is just giving us the Hebrew idiom. It does mean to love less 
or to love more. Maybe Luke is trying to shock 
people into conscious reality. Jesus is not enjoining upon anyone, 
despise your parents, despise your children for non-gospel 
reasons. That's okay. Destroy them, hate 
them. No, he is not engaged in putting 
the kibosh on natural filial relationship. What are you saying? is that when it comes to these 
12 men that are being sent out on mission, they are not to compromise 
the truth with reference to filial obligation. In other words, if 
their parents or their family members oppose them, these 12 
are to say, I must preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. France 
says it this way, family enmity is not a virtue in itself. You don't find any help in this 
text if you hate your father. You don't find any help in this 
text if you hate your son. Jesus' point is not that. Jesus' 
point is about priority. When it comes to considering 
this enmity that exists within the family structure, the twelve 
must not kowtow to the family structure, but must rather proclaim 
the truth of the gospel. Frantz says family enmity is 
not a virtue in itself, nor is it the universal experience of 
Jesus' disciples. If your father doesn't hate you 
as a Christian, that's okay. Don't go home and say, Dad, you 
have to hate me because I'm a Christian. That's not the point of the text. He says, it is a matter of priorities. Loyalty to Jesus and his mission 
comes first. And the result of that may be 
that family ties are strained to the breaking point. You hear it, Matthew's house. My son was a successful tax gatherer. My son made lots of money. My son was doing quite well for 
himself. And then this Nazarene came on 
the scene, called my son to follow him. And now my son no longer 
has his job. My son no longer has a place 
to call home. My son is out as a renegade now. What's Matthew say? Jesus is 
first. The 12 must not compromise loyalty 
to Christ because of filial or family obligation. But the larger 
principle that flows from this is that the 12 are to remain 
faithful to Christ in all things. And here the 12 extends to you 
and I. Christ must come first. Isn't it a wonderful reality 
that the first commandment precedes the fifth? That's not just a marvel of chronology, 
but it is a marvel of principle. God comes first in the order. It is conspicuous. In fact, without 
the first, there really can be no fifth. But Christ is highlighting 
what Israel received at Sinai. What was written on Adam's heart 
in the garden was that you shall have no other gods. God is first, 
not parents, not children, not family, not friends, not peers, 
not anything, but Jesus Christ demands absolute allegiance. You see what Christ is doing 
to his disciples. He's preparing them. Have you 
considered discipleship? Have you considered belief on 
the Lord Jesus? You hear it preached from this 
pulpit. You probably hear it at your family altar. You probably 
hear parents or friends or children saying, you need to believe on 
the Lord Jesus. You do need to believe on the Lord Jesus. And 
this is what saving faith looks like. He comes first. Not second, 
not third, not fourth, not fifth. I'll fit him in after I bow over 
the altar of my child. No! You know what truly benefits 
your child if Christ comes before him or her? truly benefits your 
spouse if Christ comes before him or her? It truly benefits 
everything if Christ comes first. Wasn't this the principle set 
forth by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6? Don't 
worry about what you'll eat, don't worry about what you'll 
wear. The fundamental underlying principle that Jesus caps that 
portion of the sermon off with is, seek first the kingdom of 
God and His righteousness. all other things will be added 
unto you, or all these things will be added unto you. With 
reference to their commitment to Christ, it mustn't be family 
than Jesus. It must be Jesus first. You see, 
when Christ calls a man to discipleship, it really is discipleship. And 
it's like He just escalates that. These are hard sayings, aren't 
they? Who but Jesus could say this? Carson rightly points out 
Christ is either speaking as Messiah or a maniac. Because who could say you need 
to be devoted to me over your family? You need to love me more 
than your children. You need to esteem me more than 
your parents. He moves from that statement 
in verse 37 that Christ before family to Christ secondly before 
physical life. Notice in verse 38, he who loves 
father or mother, I'm sorry, and he who does not take his 
cross and follow after me is not worthy of me. The reality 
of martyrdom was presented in chapter 10 verses 21 and 28. 
21 talks about father, son, delivering 
each other up to death. 28 says, do not fear those who 
can kill the body only. And now Jesus is telling them, 
you need to be willing to take up your cross and follow me. 
Yes, the concept of self-denial is most certainly there in verse 
38. But you know, as 21st century North American Christians, we 
take this text and we plug it into our lives and we say, you 
know, cross-bearing for me is having to deal with that nasty 
fellow at work. Cross-bearing for me is that 
two-year-old who doesn't submit to my authority. I really am 
bearing my cross. Cross-bearing to me is living 
with that man or woman. Boy, what a cross I have to carry. 
That's what my wife probably says. Just kidding. I don't say 
that about her. Actually, maybe in the recesses 
of my heart I might, because I'm still a wretched sinner. 
Do you see what we do? We plug verse 38 into little 
trials that we are having. Boy, I'm really taking one for 
Jesus, because I took my Bible out in the lunchroom at work 
Let me just tell you, in the Roman Empire, in the hearing 
of these disciples, when Jesus says, if you do not take up your 
cross, they understood what that meant. It meant public disgrace 
and it meant savage pain. That's what it meant. Jesus has 
already mentioned in 9.15 that the bridegroom will be taken 
away. At the appointment of the Twelve, when Judas Iscariot is 
mentioned, he is identified as the one who would betray him. 
This is the first mention of the cross. Later in chapter 16, 
Jesus is going to announce that he must go to Jerusalem, he must 
be killed, and he must rise on the third day. And interestingly 
enough, on the heels of that discussion, he gives essentially 
the same lesson on discipleship that he gives here. Do you see 
what discipleship involves? Do you see what discipleship 
with Christ is about? Just because you can say Jesus, 
or just because you show up in a church once in a while, or 
just because you have daily bread in your glove box in your car, 
does not mean you're a disciple. Just because you live in North 
America, and you're not a Muslim, and you're not a Hindu, and you're 
not a Buddhist, and you don't happen to be an atheist, doesn't 
mean you're a disciple. Discipleship is about belief 
in the truth of the gospel. And that belief in the truth 
of the gospel will then affect one's life. They will put Jesus 
before family. They will put Jesus before earthly 
comfort, physical comfort, physical blessing. France again says this, 
to represent Jesus is to accept their share in the way he is 
treated by a hostile world. And now the lethal nature of 
that opposition is made explicit by the first reference in this 
gospel to the cross. It's the first time. in Matthew's 
gospel that the cross has been mentioned. Now, we've read Matthew's 
gospel, haven't we? We know the passages that speak 
of the cross. When we read Matthew 1.21 and 
it says, for it is he who will save his people from their sin, 
we know it's because of the cross. But if we jump from the 21st 
century in Chilliwack, BC into this context, When Christ speaks 
this word to these 12, their association of cross is not jewelry. Their association of cross is 
not the nifty Bible cover that the Christian bookstore sells. 
Their notion of cross is execution. That's their notion of cross. France goes on to point out, 
And it comes on the scene, this mention of cross, startlingly, 
not only as his eventual fate, but as theirs. Interesting. He says, to follow 
Jesus is to embrace martyrdom. Now again, for most of us, we 
are not being executed for the cause of Christ and truth. For 
most of us, we can go to our workplace and we can bow our 
head and we can praise Jesus for the burrito that we have. 
For most of us, we are not being executed for the cause, but discipleship 
means a willingness to do so. There must be this in the heart, 
and it will be there by the power of the Spirit, through regenerating 
grace, having believed the gospel, we are now willing, by His grace, 
to put Jesus first, before our family and before our physical 
well-being. France goes on to say, that is 
the prospect Jesus holds out before any worthy disciple, a 
savage death and public disgrace. And isn't it interesting the 
language that our Lord Jesus uses here in verse 38? He who 
does not take his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me. It's discipleship. It's following 
after Jesus. You know what's really curious? 
Later on in Matthew's Gospel, when Jesus is actually bearing 
the cross, none of these 12 are there. 27.32 
tells us Simon the Cyrenian. bore His cross for Him. Oh, praise 
God for sovereign grace. Praise God for forgiveness. Praise 
God for blood. Praise God for the gospel. These 
twelve deserted Him in that hour where He bore His cross. They 
were not following Him bearing their cross. And then notice 
thirdly the implication in verse 39. Christ or no eternal life. Christ or no eternal 
life. I'll just amplify the text. He 
who finds his life in this world. He who makes his way in this 
world. He who rejects Christ. He who 
esteems himself. He who prizes family first. He who prizes his own physical 
life. All those who find their own lives in this world will 
lose it. in the life to come. That's what 
he's meaning. That's what he's saying. And 
he who loses his life, here it is, for my sake. That's the running 
theme in this whole section. It's for my sake. Not just because 
you went out and died, but you went out and died for Christ. If you lose your life in this 
world for the sake of Christ, you will find it in the world 
to come. You see what is another running 
theme throughout the teaching of our Lord Jesus. We saw it 
in chapter 10 at verse 28, and we see it here. There is a world 
to come. There is a resurrection. There 
is eternity. There is something beyond the 
grave. There is life to be won by grace through faith in Christ. or hell to be suffered because 
of rejecting and despising the Lord of glory. That's his point. 
That's the implication. He makes the statement, do not 
think that I came to bring peace. I came to bring a sword. You 
can see it when you look at families that have been affected by the 
gospel, where there are those who receive and those who despise. 
And you disciples need to understand this reality, that family must 
come second, that physical life must come second. And this reality 
holds true for each and every one of us. He who finds his life 
will lose it, and he who loses his life for my sake will find 
it. Spurgeon says he gains the temporal at the expense of the 
eternal. Doesn't Jesus teach this elsewhere? 
What shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world and 
loses his soul? What difference does it make? 
What good is it going to do to have barns filled with stuff? Can you take your ATV into the 
next world? Can you take your trinkets into 
the next world? If anybody has ATVs, I'm not 
picking on you. It could be your books. It'd 
be nice to take my books. Actually, I won't need my books, 
because all those brothers will be there to edumacate me in person. What can you gain that will profit 
your soul? What will you exchange for your 
soul? That's the emphasis here. Spurgeon 
is right. He gains the temporal at the 
expense of the eternal. We could say he gains the eternal 
at the expense of the temporal. So that is Christ's teaching 
concerning division over the mission that he sends these men 
out on. It's pretty heavy, isn't it? Pretty strong statement. I got 
to say, if I was part of that original 12, I'd be like, I'm 
glad you're going to give us grace, because this is going 
to be hard. Notice how he ends. Notice what 
he does in verses 40 to 42. There are going to be worthy 
ones. Remember in chapter 10, verses 
11 to 13, when you go into cities, find those who are worthy and 
pronounce peace upon those homes. He ends with encouragement. Yes, 
there's going to be division. Yes, it may arise in your own 
families. Yes, there may be the strain 
of filial relationship. All those things are true. But 
God has his elect. God has his 7,000 that haven't 
bowed the knee to Baal. God has people out there to be 
called by the foolishness of the message preached. And he 
ends on that very positive and very encouraging note. Three 
things quickly. Notice first the reception of 
the apostles. Verse 40, he who receives you 
receives me, and he who receives me receives him who sent me. That's encouraging. Jesus indicates 
there's a solidarity between himself and his messengers. In fact, notice what the text 
says. The text says, in the language 
of one particular man, that God himself enters homes when his 
messengers are received. Isn't that beautiful? He who receives you receives 
me, and he who receives me receives him, the Father, who sent me. So there will be those people 
out there that will say, come in, brother. Here's some food. Here's some drink. Here's a bed. Find some rest. Get some relaxation 
so that you're fit and able to go back out on your task as a 
preacher. Notice, secondly, the reward 
for those who receive the apostles. Now, there's a lot of discussion 
between the gradations indicated in these verses. We go from Prophet 
to righteous men and to little little ones. I think they're 
all speaking of the same group Now we can debate that that's 
not the point of the text. So just follow along here Let 
me just read friends. I think he nails it They represent 
Jesus and through him the one who sent him they come in the 
character of prophets and righteous people as well as in that of 
disciples, and those who respond to them as such will receive 
an appropriate reward." So the reference in the name of a prophet, 
the ESV gives the right interpretation. It's not a literal translation, 
but it is interpretive and it's correct. He who receives a prophet 
because he is a prophet. Remember Amos in chapter 1 verse 
1 tells us that he was a sheep breeder from Tekoa. The ones 
spoken of in this text do not receive Amos because he's a sheep 
breeder that happens to speak once in a while about the Lord, 
but they receive Amos because he's a prophet of the living 
God. They receive righteous men because they are righteous men 
serving the living God. They recognize the authority 
of Christ behind these messengers. And for the sake of Jesus, they 
bring these ones into their home. The reward they receive, again, 
lots of pages, lots of ink written on this whole thing. It's hard 
not to think eschatology, though. It's hard not to think about 
the eternal state. When we look at verse 39, when 
he talks about losing our lives, he is talking about going to 
hell. When he talks about finding life, he means about in the world 
to come. When we parallel Matthew 25, 
31 to 46, where the righteous are lauded for the good things 
they do for these little ones, they are welcomed into eternal 
life. That's what the men receive that 
open their doors and give these little ones a drink of cold water. That's what the end says in verse 
42. The encouragement for those who receive the apostles. Now, 
I really want you to listen here. Not that I didn't want you to 
listen any other time, but I want you to listen to this. This transcends 
the 12th. This transcends the early church. This speaks to you, sitting in 
your living room. You can do that, right? So, I 
mean, the temptation is to read Matthew 10 and say, wait a minute, 
I'm not going to the cities of Galilee to preach to the lost 
sheep of the house of Israel to believe on the Lord Jesus. 
I certainly don't have power to heal. I certainly don't have 
power to cast out demons. I certainly don't have power 
to raise the dead. You know, as a New Covenant believer, I 
work in this particular job. I work in this particular trade. 
I'm not a preacher. I'm not like Amos that was a 
sheep breeder and made profit. That's just not me. There's nothing 
I can do to participate in the mission. There's nothing I can 
do to serve Christ. There's nothing I can do. Either 
you're a preacher, a prophet, a righteous man, or a missionary, 
or you're nothing. Verse 42, whoever gives one of 
these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name of 
a disciple Assuredly I say to you he shall by no means lose 
his reward You see that You see what God sees It's not size of the contribution 
It's not the significance of the contribution, it's the motive 
behind the contribution. So you, sitting in your living 
room, some preacher comes to your door, says, I'm about to 
die of thirst. I'm a disciple. I'm a little 
one. I'm a servant of Christ. And you give him a cup of cold 
water. You give him a place on your 
couch for the night. You give him access to your library. What are you doing? You're serving 
Jesus. You're serving the Father who 
sent Jesus. You see, it's been one of the 
problems in Protestantism, unfortunately borrowed from Romanism, to make 
this distinction between the preacher, the missionary, the 
pioneer, the one who does all these things, and the rest of 
us schlubs. We can participate in a very 
viable way in the propagation of gospel truth. If preachers 
don't get water, they die. If preachers don't get quarter, 
they die. If preachers don't get rest, 
they die. And for all the saints along 
the way that are opening their doors and welcoming them in and 
allowing them quarter, those people in the eye of God are 
blessed. It's not the size, it's not the 
significance, it's the motive behind it. Spurgeon says it this 
way, acts of love are divinely estimated rather by motive than 
by measure. Davies and Allison, I think, 
nail it with this idea. The thought which focuses on 
one's motive, not the size of one's deed, fittingly closes 
chapter 10 by showing that even those who do not set out for 
the mission field can still participate in the Christian mission. Not 
everybody is going to preach. Not everybody is going to be 
a missionary. Not everybody is going to have 
the sort of calling that everyone else has. Praise God that in 
your way you can serve the living and true God, what may seem insignificant 
to others, what may seem small to others, your work or your 
labor in the Lord is not in vain. What a glorious and wondrous 
way our Lord Jesus Christ ends this discourse concerning mission 
and martyrdom. Look at, finally, the summary 
and transition, the command of Christ, chapter 11, verse 1. 
Now, it came to pass when Jesus finished commanding his 12. It's 
very important. They didn't appoint themselves. 
They didn't place themselves into office. They didn't go to 
be a minister or be an apostle.com. and pay their fee online and 
get something in the internet or on the email or in their mail 
that says, I'm now an official preacher of whatever ministries. 
People do that. Do you realize that? When I say 
these things, it's not because nobody's doing that. People do 
that. People really get things from 
the internet and then try to lead others. Just say, beadoctor.com. Send me my certificate that says 
I am now fit to do surgery. We'd say, no way. But anybody 
should get up and preach, because we don't care about our never-dying 
souls. It's amazing to me. We're actually 
in better hands, if we're in Christ, to let some act work 
on us physically than to listen to some heretic. I know we don't believe that, 
but it's true. Verse 39, you don't like to think 
of yourself losing your life to some hack that doesn't know 
how to wield a scalpel, but it could be the case. Hopefully 
not. So Jesus commands his 12 disciples, 
and then notice, he departed from there to teach and to preach 
in their cities. When he delegates these men, 
when he appoints these men, when he commissions these men to go 
out, he doesn't now go to the golf course. He doesn't now fly 
to the Bahamas. He doesn't take the Bible bus 
to wherever it's sunny and happy. He goes right back to the task 
that was given to him. Remember, he is multiplying. 
He is exponentially increasing. He is sending out these twelve 
to canvas Israel with the truth of the gospel of the kingdom. 
He himself continues to do that. And already you're starting to 
see this subtle shift. You're starting to see this subtle 
trajectory. Where has much of the emphasis 
been in Matthew's gospel up to this point? Both on Jesus' words 
and His works. Here all that's mentioned is 
His words. Remember that the sign gifts, 
the miracles are given to affirm and confirm that the revelation 
is from God the Lord. As this gospel moves on, and 
as we come to the crescendo in Matthew 28, when Jesus commissions 
his church, it is not to go out and heal, it is not to go out 
and cast out demons, it is to go out and preach. Make disciples 
of all the nations. It is to baptize than in the 
name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. 
It is to teach. You see, what is to be normative 
in this new covenant age? Disciple-making, disciple-baptizing, 
and disciple-teaching. Allah, the Church. That's what 
we need to appreciate. Well, in conclusion, we have 
seen, first of all, this division over Christ. I argue it originates 
in God's Word in Genesis 3 15. And I will put enmity between 
you and the woman and between your seed and her seed. He shall 
bruise your head and you shall bruise his heel. This is the 
first statement concerning what we find fleshed out in verse 
34. God will put enmity. God will 
bring enmity. Why? Because there will be the 
godly line There will be the ungodly line. There will be antagonism. Cain will rise up and bash Abel's 
head in. The world is going to go exceedingly 
corrupt and filled with violence, save Noah and his family. That's to be expected. Do not 
be surprised. Do not be shocked when people 
call you names because you're a Christian. Make sure it's because 
you're a Christian and not because you're irritating. Secondly, I've already mentioned 
something concerning the Christology of the passage. The claims made 
by Christ here are absolutely amazing. He comes before family. Could you imagine buying a book 
on parenting? I just received a new one in 
the mail by Gush, the old brother who wrote the big fat volume 
on Hebrews. They're reprinting his stuff on the family. It's 
about that thick. You know, a book written on how 
to be a godly husband or a godly wife or a godly son or a godly 
daughter would really only need to be about one line. Follow 
Jesus. Now that can be fleshed out and 
teased out and demonstrated and illustrated and all of that sort 
of thing. That's most important. Man, you want to serve your families? 
Serve Christ. Women, you want to serve your 
families? Serve Christ. Children, you want to honor your 
parents? Christ first. Parents, you want to do the best 
by your children? Be like John G. Payton's dad. 
Let the family know Christ comes first. Don't mess with Daddy. Don't mess with Mommy. We need 
our communion with Jesus first. Your Cheerios will be there in 
a half hour. My Lord bids me come. I'm coming. That's what 
discipleship is. It's not tacking Christ onto 
our family. It's not tacking Christ on to 
our whatever. It's Christ first. It's an amazing 
claim by an amazing man. He comes before physical life. 
You might be here this morning as an unbeliever thinking, wow, 
I've never quite heard it like this. Praise God. Hopefully the 
Spirit's at work. You don't understand the demands 
of the text. You're going to follow Jesus? 
That means embrace martyrdom. That means public shame. That 
means savage brutality. That's what the cross meant for 
these brothers when they heard it. Doesn't mean just going down 
to the local jewelry store and buying a nice new gold cross. 
It means being willing to go up on a cross for the cause of 
Jesus Christ, our Lord. Another portion that speaks a 
high Christology in the passage, he receives also the one who 
sent me. Christ is on a mission. Christ 
is on a specific errand. Christ is the surety of a better 
covenant. He is the mediator of the new 
covenant. He has come willingly, submissive 
to his father, to execute the demands placed upon him. To fulfill all righteousness 
and to take the wrath of his father on behalf of all those 
whom the father had given him. Truly, truly, it is an amazing 
section concerning Christology. Thirdly, instruction concerning 
discipleship. We've touched on that. France made an interesting statement 
here as well. Actually, he was quoting somebody 
that said this about football. I mean, somebody said what I'm 
about to read about football. Certainly as Christians, we ought 
to imbibe that with reference to our Christianity. Discipleship, 
this is France words, and then what he says. Discipleship is 
not a matter of life and death. It is much more serious than 
that. Could you imagine somebody saying 
that about football? Can you imagine somebody not 
saying that about Christ? It's more than life and death. It's more than what this physical 
eye sees. We will all die. If the events 
associated with our church in the last month have taught us 
anything, Hebrews 9.27 ought to be one of the top five. It 
is appointed unto man to die, and then comes judgment. I think 
some of you have not reckoned with that reality. Praise God 
that Brad is with us this morning. Speaking with him, he said, there's 
probably 10 things that happened where I should have died. He's 
18. We don't think it will ever happen 
to us. One good pastor used to say, 
especially with young people, and I'm not picking on you, but 
you need to hear this. Sometimes you think you're eight 
foot tall and you're bulletproof and nothing can happen. Like 
you're the man of steel. You can just walk through walls, 
and you can deflect bullets, and you can pick up trains, and 
there's nothing that will ever happen to you. Really? Talk to 
Brad today and ask him. Yeah, I think it's amazing that 
someone would say football is not a matter of life and death. 
It is much more serious than that. I think that guy needs 
some psychological help. But somebody who doesn't say 
this concerning Jesus needs some theological help. Christ is everything, 
brothers and sisters. Christ is everything, unbeliever. 
Christ is everything. Come to Him, and by the grace 
of God, you will receive forgiveness for your sins. You will receive 
a righteousness that avails with God. You receive every spiritual 
blessing in the heavenly places in Christ purchased for you by 
Him. It's the beauty of this covenantal 
arrangement. It's the beauty of the covenant 
of grace. There is a mediator. There is 
a head. There is a champion. There is 
a victor. And he has secured these prizes 
for his people, and he gives them to us. Come, and you will 
receive. And let the language of Luke's 
parallel ring in your ears. He who hears you hears me. Jesus 
says essentially the same thing in verse 40. He who receives 
you, receives me. Luke's parallel says, he who 
rejects you, rejects me. And he who rejects me, rejects 
him who sent me. You'll do one of two things with 
this message this morning. If you're a believer, you'll 
praise God that you're a believer. If you're an unbeliever, you 
will either believe, which is the hope and the prayer of everyone 
in here, come to the Lord Jesus Christ, and he will receive you, 
or you will reject him. You'll continue to live your 
life, you'll continue to prize everything above him, you'll 
continue to go on your very merry way, and then comes judgment. And as Moses, the man of God, 
would ask you, where will you fly away to? Let us ask the Lord 
to take these things, to seal them to our heart, and cause 
each and every one of us to have saving dealings with our Lord 
Jesus. And before we pray, I've got 
to get this off my chest. When I mention children or I 
mention young people, it's not to pick on you and say you're 
the worst sinners in the group. I think your parents are the 
worst sinners in the group. There's a genuine desire on the 
part of the people in this congregation that our children would pass 
from death unto life, that they'd own Jesus Christ as Lord and 
Savior, and that they would go out and do a thousand times more 
than we have ever done with this truth. May God indeed raise men 
up, raise young women up from this church to go and to serve 
Him and to die for Him and to give everything for Him, because 
that is what is most important. That's what really matters. Well, let us pray. Father, we 
thank you for our Lord Jesus. We thank you for his instruction. 
We thank you for the clarity of his words. God, certainly 
this is an easy passage to understand. In a passage, we need great grace 
and the power of the Spirit to put into practice. Help us to 
value and to prize Jesus above everything. Family, our own lives, 
comfort, everything, God, help us to see that Christ is all 
in all. As well, Father, for those who are outside of Christ, 
we pray that you'd open their hearts, cause them to receive 
the truth, to come to Him, and to know the joy of being found 
in Him. And we ask in Jesus' blessed 
name, amen. We'll have a brief time of meditation, 
and then I'll come back up, and I'll give thanks for the food. 
And then if I could just encourage everybody to quickly make their 
way upstairs before we actually eat, before we get to the food 
and the fellowship time. There's a presentation that we 
like to make to the graduates in our church. So right afterwards, 
go upstairs. We can talk and chat up there, 
and then we'll eat after we make that presentation.