Sermons

August 10, 2025

Beware of Religious Phonies – Matthew 23:1-12

Beware of Religious Phonies

Matthew 23:1-12

In this section of Matthew’s Gospel, we are following the events in the final week of Jesus’ life before He went to the cross. We have seen increasing conflict between Jesus and the religious authorities in the temple in Jerusalem. The religious leaders of Jesus’ day were by and large hypocrites, and over the last few days in the temple, Jesus has exposed their unrepentant hypocrisy in the parables He told and the questions He answered. The last six verses of Matthew 22 confirmed their hardness of heart. In those verses, Jesus proved from the Old Testament that the Messiah would be more than a man. But rather than believing God’s word and repenting, the Pharisees were silent.

In Matthew 23, we have the last public teaching of Jesus—His last sermon to the multitudes. After this, Jesus will only teach His disciples privately. Jesus knows these will be His last words of counsel to the people. They are words of warning against their religious leaders, namely the scribes and the Pharisees.

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Greatness, Hypocrisy, Jesus Christ, Matthew, Servanthood / 0

August 3, 2025

What Do You Think of the Christ? Matthew 22:41-46

What Do You Think of the Christ?

Matthew 22:41-46

What do you suppose might be the most significant question that anyone could answer? In Matthew 22, we have witnessed the Jewish religious leaders in Jerusalem questioning Jesus just a few days before they would condemn Him and hand Him over to be crucified by the Romans.

You recall that in Matthew 21, Jesus had shaken the whole city when He rode into Jerusalem on a donkey’s colt to the praise of the multitudes, shouting,

“Hosanna to the Son of David!
‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!’[fn]
Hosanna in the highest!” (Matt. 21:9).

The next day, after He cleansed the temple, saying, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a ‘den of thieves,’” the chief priests and scribes angrily complained about the praises of the children in the temple saying to Jesus, “Hosanna to the Son of David!”

In the temple again the following day, the chief priests and the elders of the people confronted Him as He was teaching, and demanded, “By what authority are You doing these things? And who gave You this authority?” (Matt. 21:23). And when they would not answer His question about the authority of John’s baptism, Jesus did not directly answer theirs, but rather He told a series of three parables that indicted them for their unrepentant unbelief and rejection of Him, saying, “Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it.” (Matt. 21:43).

Still unrepentant, the religious leaders then “went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk” (Matt. 22:15). Their plan was to press Jesus with questions designed to trap Him and discredit Him before the people. The Pharisees had asked Jesus about politics; the Sadducees had asked about the afterlife; and the lawyer had asked about the Law. But Jesus answered each question with great wisdom; and He exposed the hard-hearted unbelief of His opponents in the process. In the end, all they succeeded in doing was discrediting themselves.

Finally, Jesus turns the tables and asks them a question that gets down to the central issue.

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Jesus Christ, Lord's Supper, Matthew, Salvation / 0

July 27, 2025

The Great Commandment — Matthew 22:34-40

The Great Commandment

Matthew 22:34-40

In Matthew 22, we are following Jesus and His encounters with the religious leaders in the temple at Jerusalem. Remember that this happened only a couple days before Jesus would be betrayed by Judas, arrested at prayer, put on trial, falsely accused, unjustly convicted, beaten, and crucified. The confrontations in Matthew 22 draw attention to the unrepentant unbelief of the Jewish leaders, while at the same time, highlighting the courage, wisdom, and compassion of our Lord Jesus.

Recall that first, the Pharisees, together with the Herodians, tried to ensnare Jesus in His words by asking a question about paying taxes to Caesar. Next, the Sadducees tried a trick question about the resurrection. Jesus had not only wisely answered their perplexing questions, He exposed their sinful unbelieving hearts. By the end of the chapter, Matthew records, “And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore” (Matt. 22:46). When their trap questions fail, the religious leaders will conspire to get rid of Jesus through crucifixion.

Today, we look at the last question they ask Jesus, and next time, Jesus Himself will ask them a question of His own about His identity as the Son of God. Even though they were trying to trap Jesus, He still gave them an invitation to believe.

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Commandments, Jesus Christ, Law, Love, Matthew / 0

July 20, 2025

The Question of Resurrection — Matthew 22:23-33

The Question of Resurrection

Matthew 22:23-33

We gather each week at this time to read, exposit, and apply the scriptures. We do so because we believe what the Apostle Paul says, that “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Tim. 3:16-17). We believe that the Bible is the very word of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit, and is completely authoritative and sufficient. Today, in our study of Matthew 22, we meet a group of men who claim to know God, but who do not understand or believe the scriptures.

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Jesus Christ, Matthew, Resurrection / 2

July 13, 2025

God and Caesar — Matthew 22:15-22

God and Caesar

Matthew 22:15-22

In this section of Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus has just rebuked the religious leaders in Jerusalem for their unbelief through a series of three parables. And Matthew 21:45-46 tells us their attitude when Jesus taught these parables:

Now when the chief priests and Pharisees heard His parables, they perceived that He was speaking of them. But when they sought to lay hands on Him, they feared the multitudes, because they took Him for a prophet. (Matthew 21:45-46).

Now they retaliate by trying to ensnare Jesus with trick questions. They plot together to confront our Lord—all with the intention of trapping Him in His words. They bring three challenges to Him in here in Matthew 22. They first ask about paying taxes to Caesar, then about the resurrection, and thirdly about the greatest commandment. Each of these question were calculated to damage the popularity of Jesus and to find a reason to condemn Him. In all three attempts, Jesus answers them in such a way as to make them marvel, and to leave them with nothing more they can say.

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Government, Jesus Christ, Kingdom of God, Matthew, Taxes, Worship / 0

July 6, 2025

The Parable of the Wedding Banquet – Matthew 22:1-14

The Parable of the Wedding Banquet

Matthew 22:1-14

The events in Matthew 22 take place during the last week of Jesus’ life. Earlier in the week, Jesus had come into the city of Jerusalem while His disciples and other Jews praised Him as the Messiah and King. The next day, Jesus went into the temple and cleansed it, driving out those who had made His Father’s house a marketplace and a den of thieves. The following day, He’s back in the temple teaching the people when the chief priests and elders confront Him about His authority to do these things. And He silenced them, as He always did. And then Jesus spoke three parables, one right after the other.

In the parable of the two sons, Jesus condemned their hypocrisy and unbelief, saying, “Assuredly, I say to you that tax collectors and harlots enter the kingdom of God before you…” (Matt. 21:31), because they believed, but you did not repent and believe (Matt. 21:32). Then in the parable of the vineyard, He exposed their treachery and told them, “Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it.” (Matt. 21:43).

Now, in the parable of the wedding banquet, Jesus explains that statement.

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Matthew / 0

June 29, 2025

Praying for Jerusalem’s Peace – Psalm 122

At our Wednesday night prayer meeting, we have started to look at Psalms 120 – 134, the “songs of ascents”. Another name for them might be “songs for going up” or “songs for the journey”. In ancient Israel, they were probably sung by travelers making their way to Jerusalem for the annual feasts. Jerusalem was a high point in the land of Palestine, and as they journeyed, they were literally “ascending”. And these songs we intended to help them also ascend spiritually as they joined together in song and prepared their hearts to worship the Lord.

I intended to share some thoughts about Psalm 122 on Wednesday, but didn’t make it back in time due to some car trouble As I read this psalm and you follow along, I want you to see if you can pick out a key word or idea in this psalm. The very first verse captures some of the excitement, the anticipation, of the psalmist preparing for the journey. “I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go into the house of the Lord.”” (Psalm 122:1).

Richard Sipes / Fifth Sunday, Sermons / Fifth Sunday Sing, Joy, Psalms, Worship / 0

June 15, 2025

Parable of the Vineyard – Matthew 21:33-46

Parable of the Vineyard

Matthew 21:33-46

The parable of the vineyard is the second of three parables in a row that Jesus spoke as He was being confronted by the chief priests and elders of the Jews in the temple. It was just a couple of days after He made His triumphal entry into the city, and a couple of days before His death on the cross. In the temple this last week, Jesus had cleansed the temple, healed the blind and lame in its courts, received worship in it as Messiah, and taught the people within its walls.[1] The religious leaders refused to recognize Jesus’ authority to do these things, asking Him, “By what authority are You doing these things? And who gave You this authority?” (Matt. 21:23).

When the chief priests and elders refused to answer Jesus’ counter-question about the authority of John’s baptism, He declined to answer their question about His authority. If they had repented and recognized John’s authority from God, they would have had the answer about Jesus’ authority. Yet, Jesus doesn’t just drop the matter. He tells a series of parables and continues to question them in order to highlight the real issue, namely their stubborn refusal to repent and believe.

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Jesus Christ, Judgment, Matthew, Parables / 2

June 8, 2025

The Parable of the Two Sons – Matthew 21:28-32

The Parable of the Two Sons

Matthew 21:28-32

Context

Our passage today from Matthew 21 is the first of three parables that Jesus spoke to the chief priests and elders in Jerusalem. We have already seen in Matthew 21 how Jesus’ actions and words have provoked the religious leaders in Jerusalem. First, Jesus rode into the city of Jerusalem on a donkey’s colt while the people declared Him to be the Messiah and King (Matt. 21:8-11). He had purposefully arranged the details carefully to fulfill the prophecy of Zechariah 9:9, thus, proclaiming Himself to be the King of the Jews (Matt. 21:1-7). Next, Jesus entered into the temple and overturned the tables of those buying and selling there, saying “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a ‘den of thieves.’ ” (Mat. 21:13). In so doing, Jesus stood against their hypocrisy and false worship.

Jesus then showed what true faith in God looks like when He healed the blind and lame in the temple and received the praise of children over the objections of the chief priests and scribes (Matt. 21:14-16). Then, He cursed the fig tree as a sign of God’s judgment coming on the Israelites for their lack of fruit and lack of faith.

In Matthew 21:23, the chief priests and elders in the temple pushed back, confronting Jesus in the temple and asking Him, “By what authority are You doing these things? And who gave You this authority?” It was an insincere question designed to trap Jesus and accuse Him. But Jesus, knowing their unbelieving hearts, didn’t fall for it. Instead, He turned the tables on them and asked about John’s baptism, was it from heaven or from men? (Matt. 21:25). Jesus said if they answer His question, He would answer theirs (Matt. 21:24). In fact, if they truly answered Jesus’ question, it would answer their own question because John had testified that Jesus was the Christ and the Son of God. But they did not want to recognize Jesus’ authority, so they answered, “We do not know” (Matt. 21:27). Therefore, Jesus would not tell these unbelieving leaders the answer to their question either.

Yet Jesus doesn’t simply drop the matter. Instead, He tells a series of parables and continues to question them in order to highlight the real issue, namely their stubborn refusal to repent and believe.

Richard Sipes / Sermons / faith, Matthew, Parables, Repentance / 2

June 1, 2025

The Authority of Jesus – Matthew 21:23-27

The Authority of Jesus

Matthew 21:23-27

The section of Matthew’s Gospel (chapters 21-23) describes the confrontations that Jesus had with the religious leaders of Israel only days before He was betrayed into the hands of evil men and nailed to the cross. We have already seen in Matthew 21 how Jesus’ actions and words have provoked the religious leaders in Jerusalem. First, Jesus came into the city of Jerusalem, riding on a donkey in the midst of a procession which was declaring Him to be King! He arranged the details carefully, so that He would ride into Jerusalem upon a donkey in accordance with the prophecy made in Zechariah 9:9. In so doing, Jesus was proclaiming Himself to be the King of the Jews. Next, Jesus entered into the temple and overturned the tables of the moneychangers, who were seeking to make a profit with their religion, saying “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a‘den of thieves.’ ” (Mat. 21:13). In so doing, Jesus stood against the false worship in the Jewish religious system. Then, by cursing the fruitless fig tree, Jesus taught His disciples about the false and fruitless profession of religion without faith in Him.

As you can imagine, Jesus’ actions and words in Jerusalem provoked a response from the religious leaders there. They had to respond to Jesus. Would they respond favorably by repenting of their evil deeds and believing in Him? Or would they continue to resist the word of God, refuse to believe in Jesus as the Messiah, and seek to destroy Him?

Richard Sipes / Sermons / Authority, Matthew / 0