Jesus withdrew with a large number of his disciples to a lake, where they had gathered along with a vast multitude from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, Idumea, beyond the Jordan River, and around the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon [who] came to him when they heard about the things he had done. They came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases.
Because of the crowd, he told his disciples to have a small boat ready for him so the crowd would not press toward him.For he had healed many, so that all who were afflicted with diseases pressed toward him in order to touch him, because power was coming out from him and healing them all.
And those who suffered from unclean spirits were cured,[1] for whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.” But he sternly ordered them not to make him known.[2]
This fulfilled what was spoken by Isaiah the prophet: “Here is my servant whom I have chosen, the one I love, in whom I take great delight. I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations. He will not quarrel or cry out, nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets. He will not break a bruised reed or extinguish a smoldering wick. Finally, justice will be victorious, and in his name the nations will hope.”
MISSIONAL OPPORTUNITY
This withdrawal happened after the Pharisees began to plot to kill him. It reads as if Jesus found out about this, and he moved on to get away from their plans. This is interesting to me, as often I think we get the message that avoiding persecution or removing ourselves from difficult or fruitless situations makes us cowardly, weak or outright unfaithful. But Jesus avoided places at times (never returning to his hometown after they tried to kill him, for example), as did Paul (Acts 9), as did the disciples at Jesus’ command.
“Whatever town or village you enter, search there for some worthy person and stay at their house until you leave. As you enter the home, give it your greeting. If the home is deserving, let your peace rest on it; if it is not, let your peace return to you. If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet… When you are persecuted in one place, flee to another…. Truly I tell you, you will not finish going through the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.” (Matthew 10:12-14; 23)[3]
The need for Gospel truth is everywhere. Moving on from a place that needs to hear the gospel to another place that needs to hear the gospel is not always a sign of failure; it can be a sign of wisdom. We want to sow seeds of the gospel in the right kind of ground. There are times when we are on tough mission that staying is better than leaving – and times when leaving is better than staying.
The rejection of the Gospel in one place has often been the means of sending it to and establishing it in another. - Adam Clarke
This is what you see happen here. Jesus moves on to a place where he is attracting massive crowds who hear his message. Neither I nor the Bible have a formula for when we know to shake the dust off of our feet and move on and when we ought to stay. I suspect that individual people are called to different expression of faithful presence in the world when it comes to particular people or places.
Some of you, God has built to stay in a situation or with people from which he is calling others out. You will need to fight the tendency to judge those who move on as weak.
Some of you, God is calling to leave places or people and move one. You will need to fight the tendency to think that those who remained are probably compromised.
I have three bits of advice that may only be worth two bits:
Be faithfully honest about where God calls you to be and what God calls you to do.
Don’t require others to be you.
Learn from each other.
KINGDOM CHARACTER
The gospel writers describe Jesus by quoting Isaiah:
“Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations. He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice; he will not falter or be discouraged before establishing justice on earth. In his teaching the islands will put their hope.” (Isaiah 42:1-4)
This picture is of a bringer of justice who shows gentleness and humility while speaking (11:29).[4] One thing that impressed me when studying this week was just how counter-cultural Jesus’ approach is in probably every time and culture, and our time is no exception.
This King who is God’s “servant” will not reach His rightful place of eminence by any of the usual means of carnal force or political demagoguery. (McClain)[5]
He should not do his work in any passion or roughness, nor carry on his kingdom with any strife or violence… not crying out to stir up any sedition; not setting a trumpet to his mouth, when he had wrought a miracle, that people might take notice of it. (Matthew Poole's Commentary)
He shall not contend…in a clamorous way, using reviling and [scornful] language, or menaces and threatenings; but, on the contrary, he silently put up all abuses, and patiently bore every affront, and behaved peaceably, quietly, committing himself and cause to a righteous God. (Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible)
The spirit of Christ is not a spirit of contention, murmuring, clamor, or [argument]. He who loves these does not belong to him. (Adam Clarke)
I’m not sure how popular Jesus would be today. There is a new kind of ‘muscular Christianity’ – especially on social media - that reflects values that rise from the empire, not the Kingdom. This approach admires abrasiveness and even mockery, and thinks deliberately triggering offense is admirable. It get clicks and likes, builds an audience, and even jump starts careers. It’s just not Christ-like.
This is made clear in the analogies of the bruised reed and smoking flax. The weaknesses aren’t signs to pounce and finish the breaking or snuff out what life and hope was there. They are opportunities for ministry. Because I got soaked in thinking about this, I’m going to pass some what I read on to you.
“He would not trample on the dispossessed or underprivileged in order to reach His goals. He would encourage and strengthen the broken-hearted, oppressed person. He would fan even a spark of faith into a flame.” (Believers Bible Commentary)
The “bruised reed” is the type of one broken by the weight of sorrow, or care, or sin. Such a one people in general disregard or trample on. The Christ did not so act, but sought rather to bind up and strengthen. The “smoking flax” is the wick of the lamp which has ceased to burn clearly, and the clouded flame of which seems to call for prompt extinction. Here we read a parable of the souls in which the light that should shine before men has grown dim. Base desires have clogged it; it is no longer fed with the true oil. For such, the self-righteous Pharisee had no pity; he simply gave thanks that his own lamp was burning. But the Christ in His tenderness sought, if it were possible, to trim the lamp and to pour in the oil till the flame was bright again. (Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers)
What is pictured is a ministry so gentle and compassionate that the weak are not trampled on and crushed till the full righteousness of God triumphs. Small wonder that the Gentiles ("nations") would put their hope in his name (cf. Isa 11:10; Ro 15:12). [6]
I love that we serve a God like this. How often have we been bruised, near breaking? How often has our faith, either in belief or action, smoldered instead of burned? God did not come into the world to condemn the bruised and smoldering, but to save it. Which means God does not send His people into the world to finish the breaking or extinguish the smoldering, but to take His message of salvation and hope.
GLOBAL MESSAGE: “He will proclaim justice to the nations.”
The word for justice in Isaiah 42 is used quite a few times in the Old Testament. To give you an idea of what is expressed by this word, here’s how it is used in some other passages (there are more, but these passages capture all the uses I could find):[7]
Genesis 19:18 – keeping the way of the Lord
Genesis 19”25 – doing what is right
Genesis 40:13; Exodus 21:9 – custom or manner
Exodus 15:25; Exodus 21:1 – statute, ordinance, regulation
Exodus 26:30 – plan
Exodus 28:15 – making just decisions
In the Bible, justice means fulfilling mutual obligations in a manner consistent with God’s moral law. Biblical justice creates the perfect human society,[8] or perfect order.[9]
In other words, through Jesus first and then the church, the message of the goodness of God and His Kingdom will be spread throughout the world. Where Kingdom principles of justice flourish, the kind of harmony and order God intended will follow. One thing that will tell you it’s happening is when the bruised reeds and smoldering wicks are cared for, healed and brought back to life rather than trampled.
It’s a promise about the transformative power of the gospel going everywhere. Jesus transforms individuals to be sure, but the good news does not stop there. What happens in individuals trickles out into society: family, school, church, business.
* * * * *
I’ve been having an oddly hard time organizing my thoughts on this passage. I’ve spent the week feeling like a well-ordered conclusion that wraps this up in a nice bow has been eluding me. I think I just have so many thoughts about the implications of this bouncing around in my head. So I’m just going to bounce them out to you to talk about over lunch J
1. As we go through the gospels, each Sunday is a snapshot of Jesus that makes up a bigger picture that emerges when all the snaphshots are put together. If this is the only snapshot we see, we can forget something important: Isaiah and the gospel writers don’t say in this passage what Jesus will do to the proud and the powerful. But based on other passages, God confronts the arrogant, the cruel, the hardened in a very different way. We’ve already seen this on some level with his confrontation (and even public embarrassment) of the Pharisees. Sometimes, as was the case with Saul, getting knocked off your high horse is the kindest thing God can do for you. If you don’t see your own bruises, and the ways in which you smolder instead of burn brightly – if all you see are all the losers and failures and weakling around you - heads up. God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.[10]
There is a time and a place for us to apply both these things. We will cover other scenarios as we get there. Today, let’s remember the gentle kindness Jesus has shown us, and think about what it looks like to pay that forward.
2. Our alliances matter. Jesus’ character and message supported his mission. Our character and message need to support our mission. Jesus rejected the witness of evil spirits even though they spoke truth in that moment. I’m pretty sure that those with whom we consistently and publicly align ourselves ought a) to consistently share our values when it comes to character and b) consistently share our worldview when it comes to message. Are the people, groups and organizations we align ourselves building our witness with the same character and message or are they undermining it? Let’s look at some contrasts from what has come up in this passage about Jesus. Are we known for yoking with those who are:
Abrasive and insulting or speaking truth with grace?
Creating strife with menace and scorn or speaking with gentleness and care?
Arrogant and pompous or humble and kind?
Deceptive or truthful?
Trampling the wounded and struggling or protecting them?
Crushing the poor and powerless or helping them?
Dismantling justice or building it?
Why does this matter? Because we will be connected to the company we keep.
“Walk with the wise and become wise; associate with fools and get in trouble.” (Proverbs 13:20)
“Do not be misled: ‘Bad company corrupts good character.’” (1 Corinthians 15:33)
I’m also not suggesting there is never a good reason to seek justice in the world by uniting with others who share our passion for a common good. I’m just wanting us to consider that we need to be careful with whom and how deeply we yoke. When two parties get too intertwined, people will assume those yoked together are on the same mission. “Unequal yokes” can be deeply, deeply confusing.[11] We must consistently walk those who are wise and of good character.
3. This passage should reorient how we think about ourselves when we see our bruises through the smoldering ruins in our lives. Shame can be powerful. Self-loathing is such a heavy burden. We can look at our lives and just see failure and disaster. But Jesus doesn’t plan to dismiss us, shame us, or rub it in. He’s here to heal and restore. He plans to turn our shack into a temple. If God is for us, let’s not give up on us. Our history is not our destiny when Jesus is in the house.
4. This passage should reorient how we think about and respond to others. Neither Isaiah nor Jesus said why people were bruised or smoldering. They just were, and that was enough for Jesus to bring humble, gentle nourishment that brought healing and hope to the sick and hopeless. Other people abused and wounded them? Jesus was there to gently show them how to re-order their lives in the glorious and healing truth about Christ and His Kingdom. Those broken by their own sin or dumb choices? Jesus was there to gently show them how to re-order their lives in the glorious and healing truth about Christ and His Kingdom. The Good Samaritan didn’t ask why that guy got beat up. He just helped him because he was beat up. The Good Shepherd didn’t ask why that one sheep wandered off. He just went and got him. This is how grace works. We don’t need to deserve it. God gives it to us because we need it.
"Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity." Colossians 3:12-14
So while we lunch together today, remember that you are sitting across from someone who I promise you has bruises somewhere, and whose candles are down to the nub somewhere. Love them well. And then do it again next Sunday J
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[1] Side note: I’ve heard (in some Christian circles) the idea that all sickness = spiritual attack. This paragraph alone demonstrates that’s not accurate. There are those who are simply sick; there are others in whom evil spirits bring about sickness.
[2] Why does Jesus silence them? In the first-century setting, most would have considered it ominous for demons to shout out a name in recognition. They would assume either Jesus and demons were connected, or that they were attempting to control him by pronouncing his divine name. (This comes up later with the Pharisees, who accuse him of casting out demons by the power of the devil.) I suspect Jesus silenced them because he would not receive the witness of evil spirits. He didn’t want voices of evil preparing the way of the Lord. Jesus doesn’t want there to be any confusion about with whom he had aligned himself.
[3] Adam Clarke says, in relation to Jesus leaving the Pharisee’s murderous environment:
It is the part of prudence and Christian charity not to provoke, if possible, the blind and the hardened…a man of God is not afraid of persecution; but, as his aim is only to do good, by proclaiming everywhere the grace of the Lord Jesus, he departs from any place when he finds the obstacles to the accomplishment of his end are, humanly speaking, invincible.” - Adam Clarke
[4] Expositors Bible Commentary
[5] Believers Bible Commentary
[6] Expositors Bible Commentary
[7] “By judgment, understand the Gospel, and by victory its complete triumph over Jewish opposition and Gentile impiety. He will continue by these mild and gentle means to work till [Christianity is brought to the whole world], and the universe filled with his glory.” (Adam Clarke).
[8] ESV Global Study Bible
[9] NIV Study Bible Notes
[10] James 4:6
[11] “Several years ago, a combative atheist wrote that his fellow atheists should drop the word atheism because it gave too much weight to theism. The ultimate goal, he argued, was not to spread atheism but to emphasize that belief in God is so lacking in credibility that it doesn’t deserves to be seriously entertained. His arguments included no little sarcasm about the perceived stupidity of Christianity, along with strategies to move people away from their supernatural “myths” toward what he saw as realism—a world without God. That same atheist spoke at a recent pastors’ conference. He has appeared in videos by evangelical groups to accuse other evangelicals of being “woke” and—in an unacknowledged, dizzying irony—of denying the sufficiency of Scripture. In his view, the dividing line between the “sheep” and the “goats” is the “correct” view on political causes, not belief in Christ or fidelity to the gospel.” - Russell Moore, “The Rise of the Evangelical Heretic,” Christianity Today