The Lord is faithful through all generations Psalm 100:5 5 For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations. Force and Violence at the proclamation of the Gospel Apathy: the attitude of a generation (Matthew 11) Innocence: The way to receive the Kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 18)

Matthew 11:1-6 After Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and preach in the towns of Galilee. 2 When John heard in prison what Christ was doing, he sent his disciples 3 to ask him, “Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?”

Matthew 11:1-6 4 Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: 5 The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. 6 Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me.”

John’s query: Are you the one? 4 Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: 5 The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.

Force and violence. Matthew 11:12 12 From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it. Force: The forceful advance of the message of the Kingdom of Heaven. Great miracles of force. The blind see, the lame walk…the good news preached to the poor…

Violence …and forceful men lay hold of it Violence …and forceful men lay hold of it. (violent men “seize’ it) Advance of the Gospel through the ages and generations is marked by blood. John the Baptist and Herodias. Jesus Birth (King Herod killing all the boys of Bethlehem) Jesus at the Cross Disciples The Church

A generation of Apathy 16 “To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: 17 “‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang 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, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and “sinners.”

Start of a new era: Matthew 11:12 12 From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing,… Matthew 11:13-14 13 For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. 14 And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come. (Malachi 4:5) 5 “See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes.

In Matthew 11, Jesus introduces a totally different way to enter the Kingdom of heaven. 8 What did you go out into the desert to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No those who wear fine clothes are in king’s palaces.. 11 I tell you the truth: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. Jesus introduces the reversed order: The lower, the higher.

The Greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven Matthew 18:1-4 At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 He called a little child and had him stand among them. 3 And he said: “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Innocence of a child, is the gateway to heaven!