20 Jesus began to speak against the towns where he had done most of his miracles. The people there had not turned away from their sins. So he said, 21 “How terrible it will be for you, Chorazin! How terrible for you, Bethsaida! Suppose the miracles done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon. They would have turned away from their sins long ago. They would have put on clothes for mourning. They would have sat down in ashes. 22 But I tell you this. On judgment day it will be easier for Tyre and Sidon than for you. 23 And what about you, Capernaum? Will you be lifted to the heavens? No! You will go down to the place of the dead. Suppose the miracles done in you had been done in Sodom. It would still be here today. 24 But I tell you this. On judgment day it will be easier for Sodom than for you.”
25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father. You are Lord of heaven and earth. You have hidden these things from wise and educated people. But you have shown them to little children. 26 Yes, Father. This is what you wanted to do.
27 “My Father has given all things to me. The Father is the only one who knows the Son. And the only ones who know the Father are the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to make him known.
28 “Come to me, all you who are tired and are carrying heavy loads. I will give you rest. 29 Become my servants and learn from me. I am gentle and free of pride. You will find rest for your souls. 30 Serving me is easy, and my load is light.”
Read Matthew 11:20-30 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!
Hidden in plain sight within this passage from Matthew’s gospel are two phrases that we may be tempted to skip over while reading. The first phrase directly relates to Jesus, and it focuses on something He has received from God.
Matthew tells us that following one of Jesus’ prayers, He says that “My Father has given all things to me.” (v. 27a)
This statement is a little perplexing if we think about it deeper, because what does Jesus mean by “all things”?
Does “all things” mean everything organic and inorganic in the universe?
Does “all things” mean all people, animals, and life?
Does “all things” mean remove an individual’s free will or free choice?
While we could answer yes to some or all of these questions, a more important and deeper question for us to ask is what caused God to choose to give Jesus “all things”? Aside from being His own Son, what made Jesus worthy to be entrusted with everything?
The clue we have comes from an unlikely place – which is the other phrase we may be quick to gloss over. Several verses earlier, prior while describing the cities where He had been rejected, Jesus says that “the people there had not turned away from their sins.” (v. 20b)
In these cities where Jesus spent much of His time, and where a good percentage of His miracles had happened, the people had not changed. Perhaps they believed Jesus to be special, significant, and maybe even sent from God, but it was not enough to convince them to give up the sin in their lives and/or their sinful lifestyles.
These people are condemned because they chose not to give up something when Jesus came offering something better.
In contrast, it seems as though Jesus continually gives things up. Jesus gave up heaven and He came down to earth to be with us. Jesus gave up fame and popularity numerous times by intentionally challenging those present about their lives and their focus. Jesus gave up His life so that others could be saved.
It is in Jesus’ nature to give up, and because Jesus is more other-focused than self-focused, He can be trusted with everything. God gave Jesus “all things” and that includes you and me. We didn’t have a choice in this matter. But the first thing Jesus did following receiving us as a gift is return our freedom of choice. We cannot change the scope of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, but we can choose whether we will accept it and let God/Jesus/The Holy Spirit work in and through our lives.
This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Study” package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!
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