Who's in Charge Here? | Matthew 21:23

[00:00:00] Real Truth Daily. This is Daily Truths with Dave Ahlman.

[00:00:08] Hi everybody, welcome back to Daily Truths. Have you ever been in a chaotic situation and

[00:00:13] you're looking at that and kind of examining what's happening and you've got to say to

[00:00:17] yourself or maybe even say out loud, who's in charge here? I remember my dad was really

[00:00:25] a big administrative guy and really a great leader and stuff. When things were disorganized

[00:00:31] and things were chaotic, he'd oftentimes say in a situation, who's in charge here?

[00:00:38] Don't we sometimes say that about our lives and the way things are in the world? We're

[00:00:43] so easily susceptible to sin and temptation. Sometimes we think about the prospect of

[00:00:48] our impending death, that someday we're going to be laid to rest and sometimes we might

[00:00:53] have doubts about that and the uncertainty of where we're really going to go. Then we

[00:00:58] look at the chaotic events that are happening in this world. Holy cow, the thing with Hamas

[00:01:03] and Israel and of course the intrusion of Russia into that country. I'm forgetting the

[00:01:11] name of it. I'm getting older. All these things and of course the political strife

[00:01:19] and the things that are happening in our country and the tension on campuses today. It seems

[00:01:25] like the world is out of charge and we might say to ourselves or even out loud, who's in

[00:01:31] charge here? Now you remember that we're in Matthew chapter 21 and Jesus has come into

[00:01:39] Jerusalem riding on a full, the cult of a donkey, all of that. People are saying,

[00:01:44] hey, Luzanna, son of David. Then he goes into the temple and he clears the temple

[00:01:48] and then the lame and the blind come to him and he heals them. Then the children are

[00:01:52] saying, hey, Luzanna, son of David. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

[00:01:56] Then remember he curses a fig tree and we talked about that a day or two ago. Then

[00:02:00] he goes back into the temple and he's teaching. Now the chief priests and the

[00:02:05] elders have taken all this in and I love this, verse 23 of Matthew chapter 21.

[00:02:12] When Jesus entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came

[00:02:16] up to him as he was teaching and said, by what authority are you doing these things?

[00:02:21] And who gave you this authority?

[00:02:25] In other words, they were saying, who's in charge here?

[00:02:28] And do you know what Jesus could have answered by what authority?

[00:02:32] God's who's given me this authority?

[00:02:35] God. And it's the same Lord Jesus who just a few days later went to the cross

[00:02:40] to defeat sin and ill and death, then rose again from the dead to assure

[00:02:45] that all those who trust in him have eternal life.

[00:02:48] It's the Lord Jesus who is laying down the gauntlet saying I'm in charge.

[00:02:52] God is in charge.

[00:02:54] He's given me that authority and I went to the cross and I'm going to die on that

[00:02:59] cross and I'm going to rise from the dead so that all those who trust in me

[00:03:03] have eternal life and sins forgiven.

[00:03:05] We can look at Jesus and say, who's in charge?

[00:03:09] And he says, I am.

[00:03:10] I've got it under control and we can also say that about world events.

[00:03:14] Nothing happens on planet Earth that doesn't cross the desk of the Lord Jesus first.

[00:03:21] We've got to remember that and that also can be said about your life.

[00:03:25] My friends, everything as according to the book of Romans chapter eight verse

[00:03:30] twenty eight, all things work together for good to them that love God and are

[00:03:34] called according to his purpose.

[00:03:36] So sometimes it might seem like our life in the world around us is chaotic.

[00:03:41] But you got to remember it's leading to a culmination.

[00:03:44] It's leading to an end where Jesus comes back and he's going to finally say,

[00:03:49] I've had enough of this stuff.

[00:03:50] I'm going to straighten things out.

[00:03:52] I'm going to make things right.

[00:03:54] I'm going to establish my kingdom.

[00:03:56] Everybody will live at peace who trusts in me.

[00:03:59] We're going to have perfection.

[00:04:00] We're going to have holiness.

[00:04:02] We're going to live in a world without sin, without chaos.

[00:04:05] And so we can look at our life, at our sin, at the uncertainty of where

[00:04:10] we're going to go and all the chaotic things that are happening in this world.

[00:04:14] And we can say, who's in charge here?

[00:04:17] And what does Jesus say?

[00:04:20] I am.

[00:04:22] I'm an authority.

[00:04:24] I'm in charge and you think about the end of Jesus' life here on earth.

[00:04:28] According to the book of Matthew chapter twenty eight,

[00:04:31] Jesus gives this great commission and he basically tells us what to do

[00:04:36] until he comes back.

[00:04:38] He says this. Listen to this.

[00:04:39] Here's the word authority.

[00:04:42] I'm in charge here.

[00:04:43] All authority has been given to me.

[00:04:46] Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name

[00:04:52] of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and teaching them everything I have commanded

[00:04:57] you and law and with you always even to the very end of the age.

[00:05:01] You know what Jesus is saying here?

[00:05:03] I'm in charge and I commission you to give you

[00:05:07] authority to proclaim the gospel, to release captives,

[00:05:12] to give freedom to those who are held hostage by sin and hell and death and to

[00:05:17] proclaim my victory over death through my death and resurrection.

[00:05:22] Here's the thing, my friends, we know is in charge.

[00:05:25] We can say in the midst of a chaotic life, in the midst of a chaotic world,

[00:05:30] who's in charge here?

[00:05:31] And Jesus says I am now until I come back, go and make me known.

[00:05:36] And then what do we do?

[00:05:39] And to take a deep breath and we say, oh,

[00:05:42] yep, Jesus is in charge.

[00:05:45] He's got authority.

[00:05:46] My sins are forgiven.

[00:05:48] My certainty of heaven is wrapped up in what he's done for me.

[00:05:52] And because of that, I can trust him implicitly.

[00:05:57] My friends today as we say, who's in charge here?

[00:06:01] Jesus says I am and you can trust me and we can go take a deep breath,

[00:06:12] drink in the presence of God, know that his life, your life is in his hands.

[00:06:19] And you can rest in his presence.

[00:06:21] Who's in charge here?

[00:06:23] Jesus says I am have a great day in the Lord Jesus Christ.

[00:06:32] And that is today's daily truth.

[00:06:36] Thank you for tuning in to Daily Truths with Dave Alman.

[00:06:39] Pastor Dave Alman is the pastor of Monhope Church in Boulder, Colorado.

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[00:06:52] This helps us tremendously.

[00:06:54] Come back tomorrow for your next Daily Truth.