Servant, Savior, Strongman, Son (Mat 12.15-37)

Matthew Sermon 39 – Servant, Savior, Strongman, Son (Mat 12.15-37)

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Jesus exhibits a paradoxical mix of characteristics in this stretch of Matthew 12. He begins by withdrawing to avoid conflict with the Pharisees and ends up telling them that if they are not for Him they are against Him and are in danger of committing sin that will never be forgiven. One minute Jesus is the gentle Servant who won’t discard the broken reed or the smoldering wick, and the next minute He is the Warrior who is binding Satan and plundering his house. These paradoxes are not new. We find them throughout Scripture pertaining to God and His salvation. One place we find them is in the famous Servant passage of Isaiah which Matthew quotes as being fulfilled by Jesus. (Mat 12.18-21 quoting Isa 42.1-4.) Servant, Savior, Strongman, Son – these are all the same person in Isaiah’s Servant passage, which leads up to Isaiah 53, one of the most famous chapters in Scripture, in which the Servant bears the sins of God’s people. (Isaiah 52.13-53.12.) Servant, Savior, Strongman, Son – Jesus is all of these. And being all of these is how He redeems this fallen world and this fallen race. And that is Matthew’s point. I hope you enjoy the sermon. Thanks for listening. –Alan Burrow

Discussion questions

1. In what ways and settings do we need to exhibit the following characteristics of Christ displayed in Matthew 12?