Jesus' Turn

Living Hope Presbyterian Church

~ Matthew 22:41-46 Jesus challenges the Pharisees with a question about the Christ’s identity, revealing his authority and divinity.

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Matthew 22:41 Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question, 42 saying, “What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?” They said to him, “The son of David.” 43 He said to them, “How is it then that David, in the Spirit, calls him Lord, saying, “‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet”’? 45 If then David calls him Lord, how is he his son?” 46 And no one was able to answer him a word, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.

ESV: The Holy Bible, English Standard Version ©2011 Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.

Sermon Summary

The sermon continues the account of Jesus’ last week in Jerusalem, focusing on a pivotal interaction with the Pharisees regarding the identity of the Christ. Jesus challenges the Pharisees with a question about the Christ’s lineage, leading to a profound discussion on Psalm 110 and the true nature of the Christ as both the Son of David and the Son of God. The sermon emphasizes Jesus’ authority, his role as high priest, the sufficiency of his sacrifice, and the believers’ new identity in him. It concludes with a call to repentance and belief in Jesus as the reigning Lord at the right hand of God.

Key Points

• The importance of understanding the true identity of the Christ.
• Jesus’ authority as both the Son of David and the Son of God.
• The significance of Psalm 110 in revealing the Christ’s exalted position.
• The implications of Jesus’ role as high priest and his sacrificial work.
• The believers’ new identity and relationship with Christ.

Bible Verses Mentioned

• Matthew 22:41-46
• 2 Samuel 7
• Psalm 110
• Various New Testament references to Psalm 110 (1 Corinthians 15, Hebrews, Revelation)

Humor and Anecdotes

• The speaker shared a personal anecdote about misjudging a rocket launch, likening it to the Pharisees’ misunderstanding of Jesus’ true identity.

Key Quotes

• “What do you think about the Christ? Whose Son is he?”
• “Jesus is seated at the right hand of God today.”
• “Every knee in this room will bow. Every tongue in this room will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.”

Themes

• Identity of Christ: Exploring the dual nature of Jesus as both the Son of David and the Son of God.
• Authority and Kingship: Emphasizing Jesus’ authority as the reigning Lord at God’s right hand.
• Redemption and Sacrifice: Highlighting the sufficiency of Jesus’ sacrifice and his role as high priest.
• Repentance and Belief: Calling for a response of repentance and faith in Jesus as the Savior and Lord.

Discussion Questions

1. How does understanding Jesus as both the Son of David and the Son of God impact your view of his authority and kingship?
2. In what ways does Psalm 110 reveal the depth of Jesus’ role as our high priest and mediator before God?
3. Reflect on your own understanding of Jesus’ identity. How does this sermon challenge you to deepen your relationship with him and align your life with his lordship?

Metaphors and Stories

• The metaphor of a rocket launch symbolizes the Pharisees’ limited perception of Jesus’ identity compared to the grandeur revealed in Psalm 110.
• The analogy of being like “idiots on the bridge” highlights how our misconceptions can be corrected by recognizing Jesus’ true exalted position at God’s right hand.

An Essay on This Sermon

The Most Important Question

What do you think about Jesus? This turns out to be the most important question anyone can ask. Not just for religious people, but for everyone.

When Jesus asked the religious leaders of his time “What do you think about the Christ?”, he wasn’t trying to trap them like they had tried to trap him. He was asking the central question that everything else revolves around.

The religious leaders thought they knew the answer. To them it was as simple as 1+1=2: the Christ would be a descendant of King David. They had memorized all the prophecies and requirements. But they had missed something big.

Jesus pointed them to Psalm 110, where David calls the Christ “Lord.” This created a puzzle they couldn’t solve: How could the Christ be both David’s son (and therefore lesser than David) and also David’s Lord (and therefore greater than David)?

It’s like looking at the night sky and mistaking a space shuttle launch for the blinking light of an airplane. The religious leaders had reduced the Christ to something small and manageable - just another king like David. But Jesus was suggesting something much bigger. This is still how people often think about Jesus today. They’re willing to accept him as a good teacher or moral example - a kind of ancient lifestyle guru. But they balk at the full implications of who he claimed to be.

Those implications become clear after his resurrection. The early Christians saw that Psalm 110 wasn’t just about the Christ being David’s descendant - it was about him being at God’s right hand, ruling over everything, even death itself. This was way beyond what anyone expected from a mere human king.

The religious leaders responded to this claim with hostility. They tried to destroy Jesus because he wouldn’t fit into their predetermined categories. The crowds, when they finally understood what he was saying, had a different response: “What should we do?”

That’s still the key question today. If Jesus really is who he claimed to be - not just a good teacher but the Son of God seated at God’s right hand - then we can’t remain neutral. We either have to reject him like the religious leaders did, or accept him and adjust our lives accordingly. This explains why arguments about Jesus get so heated. If he’s just another religious figure, we can comfortably ignore him. But if he’s God’s Son who will one day return as judge, that changes everything. No wonder people prefer to keep him small and manageable.

The religious leaders couldn’t solve the puzzle Jesus posed because they weren’t willing to accept the obvious but radical solution: that Jesus was both fully human (David’s son) and fully divine (David’s Lord). They wanted a Christ who would fit their expectations. Instead they got one who shattered them.

We face the same choice today. We can try to make Jesus fit our preferences, reducing him to something comfortable and manageable. Or we can accept him as he actually presented himself - as something far bigger and more demanding than we expected. What do you think about Christ? It’s not just a theological puzzle. It’s the most important question you’ll ever answer.