Sermon Tone Analysis

Psalm 110 part 2

Now I want no cheating!

No peeking!

Who can tell me what the verse on the front of the bulletin is? See, we hand them out, now I am checking whether you read them?!

There it is: [P] [Matthew 16:15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”]

It is a very good question.

Jesus Himself asked it of His disciples.

We are His disciples; it is a good question for us!

In fact, it is a vital question – the destiny of each and every person who ever lived will be determined by their own personal response to that question: [P] “WHO DO YOU SAY THAT I AM?”

There are many opinions as to who Jesus is.

Jesus’ disciples had just told Him a few of the current ones: a prophet, Elijah, John the Baptist, Jeremiah – there were a lot of theories doing the rounds.

But the issue is not what other people think but who do you yourself say?! I mean, in some ways it makes no difference what you say or what I say – Jesus is who He is, no matter what you say.

But you have to come to your own personal conclusion.

You cannot depend on the theory or opinion of someone else.

You cannot hook onto the coattails of someone else – Oh, I accept what the church says, or this particular teacher or that theologian.

No, you have to sort it out for yourself.

Your very eternal fate depends on this question!

There were various opinions in Jesus day: a prophet, a carpenter, someone risen from the dead, a man of God, a teacher, a rabbi.

Some were even wondering whether He was the Messiah, this anointed one “מָשִׁיחַ” which is what the Greek “Χριστός” or “Christ” means – anointed to be king.

There was this prophetic hope of the royal line of David being restored.

Israel again having its own king.

One of David’s line anointed as King to restore Israel to its former glory.

Many Jews, even today, are still looking for the coming of the Messiah.

There are messianic believers in Israel.

Some even believe that Jesus was the Messiah.

We think: fantastic!

They have come to believe in Jesus.

But they, sometimes, are just thinking of a human descendant from the royal line of David – just a man.

Yes, a special and significant man, but just a man.

In fact, Evan Thomas fudges on this issue in order to try and preserve unity amongst messianic believers.

In our own day you will not find many who think that Jesus didn’t actually exist – the question is: who is He? – who do you say that I am?

Some think that He was an itinerant rabbi, others a good teacher, a fine example, a leader and champion of the common people.

And some have come to the conclusion that He is the Messiah.

As I said, some were thinking the same thing in Jesus day.

There was this hope, a looking for the anointed one.

They were under occupation by a foreign power – they wanted a deliverer to restore the nation and its independence and glory.

But just who is this anointed one?

Let’s turn to Matthew 22. [P] The religious Jews of Jesus day were looking for the Messiah, they had their doctrine thoroughly thought through, they had all the correct answers, their messianic theology sorted.

Jesus had a big confrontation with the religious leaders of the day in the temple [P].

They disputed Jesus’ authority and assaulted Him with a myriad of questions, trying to trap Jesus, catch Him out.

Jesus eluded every trap, answered every question until they dared not question Him anymore.

[P] When they had finished all their questions, all of which were answered; Jesus then asked them just one question: [Matthew 22:41–46 Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question: [P] “What do you think (there’s that question again!) about the Christ, (that is the Messiah) whose son is He?” [P] They said to Him, “The son of David.”

(were they correct?)

[P] He said to them, “Then how does David in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Until I put Your enemies beneath Your feet”’?

“If David then calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his son?” [P] No one was able to answer Him a word, nor did anyone dare from that day on to ask Him another question.]

Now, you can ask questions for various reasons: I can ask “Where is Dion and Chariz’s new house?”

That is a question to find out an answer; I don’t know where it is and want to find out.

That is not the type of question that is being asked here.

In a few years’ time I might ask Nathaniel: “What is two and two?” Now, I actually know what two and two is – it is not a question to find out the answer but to test if he knows; Hannah will be asked a few questions in her exams, to find out what she knows – that is the type of question being asked here.

The Pharisees weren’t asking questions to find out, they knew all the answers already.

And let me tell you, if you already know the answers, you won’t learn anything.

They were testing Jesus.

Now Jesus is testing them – and they knew it.

They wanted to be sure that they gave the correct answer.

It was test time!

[P] Jesus asked them whose son the Messiah was.

Now this was not a hard question, there was no trick.

It was straightforward – everyone knew that the Messiah was of David’s line – the royal line.

[P] He would restore the Davidic dynasty.

Scripture clearly stated this.

For instance: [Isaiah 9:7 There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore.

The zeal of יהוה of armies will accomplish this.

Isaiah 11:1 Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, (David’s father) and a branch from his roots will bear fruit. 2 Samuel 7:13–14 (יהוה spoke to David) He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.]

And there are many more passages.

Did the Pharisees have the correct answer?

Yes, they were Biblically correct – but their answer was not complete.

And I fear that we can be the same – we are concerned with being correct; and may well be so; but are we complete?

Being correct is good; but correct, is not the truth.

We don’t get into heaven by getting 10 ticks on a doctrinal questionnaire!

Now Jesus’ question, His use of Scripture, His argument and exposition are all very logical and reasoned.

He clearly and carefully establishes the facts.

First, He got them to admit from their own mouths, was that the Messiah is the Son of David.

He had established the first essential point for His argument.

The next question is “how come David addresses the Messiah as “Lord”?”

Jesus got the Pharisees to admit the first fact; but they would not admit to this second fact.

So, Jesus is careful to establish it beyond all question.

How do you do that?

Jesus cited Scripture.

The Scripture is true!

Jesus Himself, on an earlier occasion, in establishing a truth from Scripture stated: [P] [John 10:35 the Scripture cannot be broken!]

These Jews held to Scripture, claimed to accept its authority.

So, Jesus quoted Scripture; in fact, He quoted the Psalm that we looked at last time: [P] Psalm 110.

Just the first verse: [Psalm 110:1 The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”]

That’s the first verse; but that is not how the Psalm starts!

How does it start?

There is that bit that we never read!

But it is part of the inspired text: “A Psalm of David.”

And Jesus made this an essential part of His argument.

Scripture itself establishes that [P] David wrote this Psalm.

That is vital to the logic of Jesus’ exposition.

The bit that we ignore, Jesus didn’t; He drew a theological truth from it!

So, this Psalm had David, a man, a human as its author.

But it is more than that!

This is Scripture!

This is not just David writing some nice thoughts that came into his head.

Oh, no, no, no! Jesus said: [P] “David was in the Spirit” – this is not mere human authorship, this is from the Spirit of God, this is inspired, this is God speaking: [2 Peter 1:20–21 But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.] Jesus clearly establishes that this is God speaking, that this is true.

David was not making some fallible remark – having some burst of human inspiration and coming out with a fine sounding line but without realizing its implications.

It is not a human getting his doctrine mixed up, saying things that are not quite right, No, this is God speaking.

This cannot be broken; it is unalterably true.

The Pharisees could not deny what David was saying here because he was speaking “in the Spirit”.