This morning that we began last night is Reform still relevant? Is the Reformed faith relevant today? And we gave a resounding yes last night as we answered that question and we pointed to the Word of God and the glory of God and the mission of God and emphasized how the Reformed faith upholds the authority of Scripture, the sovereignty of God in all things, in salvation and everything for His glory, and the mission of God in the world to make men and women and boys and girls of every tribe, tongue, people, and nation part of the people that Jesus has redeemed and for them to live for His glory in the world.
And we said that’s a very important thing today. The Church needs that message, the world needs that message.
Today I want to continue along with that theme, looking especially at the sovereignty of God in salvation. You’ve already sung several times this morning about the sovereignty of God in all of life.
For instance, you sang Margaret Clarkson’s beautiful hymn “O Father, You Are Sovereign.” One of the lines that you sang is, “O Father, you are sovereign in all the affairs of man.”
By the way, she also has this beautiful line, “O Father, you are sovereign, the Lord of human pain.” That means a lot because Margaret Clarkson suffered from chronic pain and yet she recognized that God was even sovereign in that very, very difficult part of her life.
This is a passage that we’re going to study this morning in Matthew 11 where Jesus acknowledges God’s sovereignty in all things, but especially in matters of salvation. God is sovereign in salvation, and that’s important for our consolation and for our confidence in bearing witness to Christ, in sharing the Gospel to others, and I hope you’ll be helped by this as we meditate upon it this morning.
We are going to be looking at Matthew chapter 11, verses 20 to 30.
Let’s pray before we read God’s Word.
Heavenly Father, we do not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. So open our eyes to behold wonderful things in Your Word and grant that we would believe them, that we would trust You. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
This is the Word of God. Hear it beginning in Matthew chapter 11, verse 20:
“Then He began to denounce the cities where most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent. ‘Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I tell you that it will be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you.'”
“At that time Jesus declared, ‘I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him. Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.'”
Amen, and thus ends this reading of God’s holy, inspired, and inerrant Word. May He write its eternal truth upon all our hearts.
Jesus in this passage utters some of the most important words ever spoken about the sovereignty ...