The “Secret” Ambition of Jesus
Matthew 12:14-21, NRSV - But the Pharisees went
out and conspired against him, how to destroy him. When Jesus became aware of this, he departed.
Many crowds followed him, and he cured all of them, and he ordered them not to make him known. This was to fulfill what had been spoken
through the prophet Isaiah:
“Here is my servant, whom I have chosen,
my beloved,
with whom my soul is well pleased.
I will put my Spirit upon him,
and he will
proclaim justice to the Gentiles.
He will not wrangle or cry aloud,
nor will anyone
hear his voice in the streets.
He will not break a bruised reed
or quench a
smoldering wick
until he brings justice to victory.
And in his name the Gentiles will hope.”
As we have noted before in our
study of Matthew’s gospel, one of the things that Matthew wants to emphasize in
his telling of the Jesus story is how Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s plan
prophesied throughout the Old Testament.
In the passage above, we find the largest single quote of Old Testament
prophecy in the book of Matthew. Matthew
cites Isaiah 42:1-4 as a confirmation of what Jesus has just done. What Jesus has just done is run from the
Pharisees (who are plotting to kill Him), attracted a large crowd, healed all
the sick and broken among the crowd , and then instructed the crowd not to make
Him known. It should also be noted that
Matthew has already eluded to Isaiah 42 in chapter 3, when Jesus is baptized by
John the Baptist. As Jesus is baptized,
a dove (a symbol for the Holy Sprit descends upon Jesus and God speaks, “ this
is My Son, in whom I am well pleased.” This is a paraphrase of Isaiah 42:1
spoken by God. Matthew wants us to
notice this.
Isaiah 42 is a prophecy first given
to the Israelites who are in exile. Their
nation has been conquered, their resources seized, and their people scattered
across the vast Babylonian Empire. Spend
some time thinking about what it must have been like to have experienced this kind
of trauma. Imagine the hopelessness that
might set in over the course of multiple generations of Israelites who lived in
exile for decade after decade. Then,
imagine how the words of the prophet might provide hope that someday, God will
send a special “servant” to restore justice to the people of God. In Isaiah’s day and in the hundreds of years after
Isaiah and before Jesus arrived, leaders came along that folks thought “well,
this might be the Servant for whom we’ve been waiting.” Matthew is making it clear that, no matter who
people thought that prophecy was about before, Jesus is the one for whom Israel
and the whole world has been waiting. Jesus
will not only restore justice and hope for Israel, but for “the Gentiles” as
well.
But Matthew is pointing out
something else here as well. Jesus heals
all the sick and broken in the crowd, but instructs them not to make Him
known. Jesus is not trying to create a
buzz of become famous enough to eventually be made King. Isaiah speaks of a humble Servant who resists
“wrangling” and “crying aloud.” This Servant
goes about the mission quietly and without fanfare. He doesn’t fan the flames of conflict
(breaking bruised reeds), but keeps nurturing hope (smoldering wicks). His mission is justice for all nations and He
will not stop until it is accomplished.
Matthew will continue to develop this notion throughout the rest of the
gospel, but it is here that He signals strongly that Jesus is not the next
conqueror. His kingdom transcends all
earthly kingdoms.
This message is important for us to
hear today as well. The Kingdom we are
invited to be a part of is not nationalistic.
It doesn’t pit one nation against others. It is for ALL nations. It is about healing, justice and hope, not an
engaged conflict to usher in an earthly King.
The Servant that comes from God doesn’t choose sides for the mission is
to bring all to one side. The politics of
division have no place in God’s kingdom.
Healing, Justice, and Hope – that’s the Servant’s mandate and it is our
mandate as well.
Question: Do you ever
find yourself hoping God will take your side over against others?
Prayer: God, help us
to view the world through your lens of healing, justice, and hope. Empower us to serve faithfully as Your
Servant Jesus did. Amen.
Prayer Focus: Pray
for peace to take hold in the world’s fiercest conflicts today.
Song: Secret Ambition
– Michael w. Smith
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