Friends Church Sermons

This morning we are closing chapter 13 of Matthew’s Gospel with the remaining 6 parables of the Kingdom. This chapter marks the halfway point in the Gospel and a transition in Matthew writing – What follows is the teaching of the rejected King. After this morning we are going to take a short break from the Gospel and we will return to the second half in early summer. As we look at these 6 parables we see Jesus revealing to His disciples the deeper plans and heart of God for the Kingdom. To understand what Jesus is about to teach them you have to understand what they have already been taught. The Tanakh – the collection of the Old Testament writings including the Torah and Neviim (prophets) and the Ketuvim (poetry) point to a picture of what Messiah will be when He comes. That picture, however, is somewhat confusing. On one hand we see a Messiah who will be the lamb of God (Isaiah 53:4-5; 7) but on the other hand we see Him as a King who will bring judgment and rule over all nations (Isaiah 40:10, 11:4-5). We