Matthew 11:16 But to what shall I liken this generation?. (17) And say, We have played the flute to you, and you did not dance; we have sung a dirge, and you did not mourn. (18) For John came neither eating nor drinking; and they say, He has a demon. (19) The Son of Man came eating and drinking; and they say, Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners. Yet wisdom is justified by her works. 1 Cor 1:24 But to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
Christ and John the Baptist "played the flute" to preach the gospel of the kingdom, but the Judaizers "did not dance" for the joy of salvation. John and Christ sang "a dirge" to preach repentance, but the Judaizers "did not beat the breast" for the grief of sin. The righteousness of God required them to repent, but they would not obey. The grace of God afforded them salvation, but they would not receive it. John, coming to bring men to repentance and to cause them to grieve for sin, had no taste for eating and drinking; whereas Christ, coming to bring salvation to sinners and to cause them to rejoice in it, had the joy of eating and drinking with them. Because John the Baptist lived in a strange and peculiar way, not eating and drinking in the regular way, the opposers said, "He has a demon"--he is demon-possessed. But they called Christ a gluttonous man and a wine drinker, a friend of tax collectors and sinners. Christ is not only the Savior, but also the friend of sinners, sympathizing with their problems and sensing their griefs. In verse 19 the Lord said, "And wisdom was justified by her works." Wisdom is Christ. Whatever Christ did was done by the wisdom of God, which is Himself. This wisdom was justified, vindicated, by His wise works, His wise deeds. In this verse some authorities read "children" instead of "works." The kingdom people are the children of wisdom, who justify Christ and His deeds and follow Him as their wisdom. Christ is justified by the kingdom people, who know when to eat and when not to eat and who recognize the playing of the flute and the singing of the dirge, knowing when to rejoice and when to repent. We, the kingdom people, the children of wisdom, have the wisdom to discern when to repent and when to rejoice. But the rejecting generation is absolutely foolish. If you play them a song, they do not respond. If you sing them a dirge for repentance, they do not respond to that either. They are stubborn and foolish, and they lack wisdom.
Bible verses are taken from the Recovery Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Witness Lee, Life-study of Matthew, pp. 384-385. Both are published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, CA. Please visit us at www.emanna.com. Send comments to: [email protected].
To unsubscribe from the mailing list, either: Send an email to: [email protected] (No subject or message needed; a blank email will work) or visit www.emanna.com and fill out the unsubscribe form there.
