THE LAST QUESTION
What think ye of Christ?
Matthew 22:42
HOWARD BARNETT
Jesus asked, "What think ye of Christ? whose son is he? They say unto him, The son of David. He saith unto them, How then doth David in spirit call him Lord, saying, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool? If David then call him Lord, how is he his son? And no man was able to answer him a word, neither durst any man from that day forth ask him any more questions." (Matthew 22:42-46)
Jesus when quoting the 110th Psalm with the words of David, silenced the religious questions concerning the Christ. Their doctrines had not prepared an answer for the wisdom of God. How can he be Lord and son to David. The prophet Ezekiel speaking with the mouth of God had declared when Jesus would be Lord. (Ezekiel 37:13-14) "And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves. And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live. . ."
That there would be no doubt as to the identity of the one that was crucified on the cross, Matthew wrote, concerning the undeniable son of God, the fulfillment of this lordship. (Matthew 27:50-53) "Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many." Surely, this is the Son of God. The awesomeness of this event shook the foundations of heaven and earth. Jesus didn’t fall by the wayside as the princes of this world had thought. He walked as a light into the kingdom of darkness and by the spirit
". . . he went and preached unto the spirits in prison."(see I Peter 3:19) He declared the gospel ". . . to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit." (see I Peter 4:6) He ". . . proclaimed liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound." (see Isaiah 61:1) A few weeks later the same Peter who had denied the Lord before the cock crowed, walked out of an upper room, forever a new man, speaking in the power of the Holy Ghost and declaring "Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day. Therefore being a prophet and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne; He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption. This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses. Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear. For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, Until I make thy foes thy footstool. Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ." (Acts 2:29-36) Peter through the Holy Ghost had revealed Jesus as both Lord and Christ. He is the coming Lord and he is the coming Christ.
The Coming Lord
As Lord, "thou madest him a little lower than the angels; thou crownedst him with glory and honour, and didst set him over the works of thy hands: Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him." (Hebrews 2:7-8) "But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool." (Hebrews 10:12-13)
The Lord is bringing a heavenly army into his day. "The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath. He shall judge among the heathen, he shall fill the places with the dead bodies; he shall wound the heads over many countries. He shall drink of the brook in the way: therefore shall he lift up the head." (Psalm 110: 5-7) Jesus is the head!! We are his body and therefore his feet!! Jesus, as Lord, entered into death ". . . that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is the devil; And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage." (Hebrews 2:14-15) Praise God!! He is Lord!! Lord, thy kingdom come!
As Lord, he is surely at the hand of the Father. He is in the throne (the authority) of the Father. "For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings." (Hebrews 2:10)
The Coming Christ
"Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me, are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the Lord of hosts, which dwelleth in mount Zion." (Isaiah 8:18 and see Hebrews 2:13) The children of God have been the signs and wonders of God down through the ages. They have stood holding the banner of Jesus. Their motto has been "Whether I live or whether I die, blessed be the name of the Lord". Their creed has been, "Christ in us, the hope of glory." As they enter into the latter rain they are refreshed and anointed for the coming battle. The Lord their God has become a wall of fire around them and the glory within them (see Zechariah 2:5). The ‘Lord said unto my Lord’! I hope someone is seeing this. There are two battle fronts. The Lord has overcome and completed the Father’s work! But, let’s now look at the ‘greater works than these shall ye do’. "For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ." (I Corinthians 12:12) HELLO ARMY! ". . . Christ is all, and in all." (Colossians 3:11) HELLO AGAIN! Paul revealed the mustering of the troops when he spoke of these ". . . children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you." (Galatians 4:19) Paul was laboring in the birth, the travail of bringing forth this many membered body!
A birth is a coming forth from one stage of life to a greater stage of life. Much of the church world has taught that life begins at birth. We have heard many times in our generation ‘get born again’. But every mother-to-be recognizes the life that is with her child before it comes to the birth day. If you don’t believe that life begins before birth then you are giving place to the spirit of abortion that is raging in the land!! We are his body and we will bring the feet forth to see the enemy in subjection and death under them. ". . . If we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end." (Hebrews 3:14) Christ is the beginning (the head) and Christ is the end (the feet). Peter said it very plainly (I Peter 1:23) "Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever." The translated word ‘being’ in this scripture is from the Greek word [GINOMAL] which means ‘to cause to be . We are being born as the body of Christ. As we manifest his presence in us ". . . a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations. A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth. . ." (Joel 2:2-3) Jesus as Christ is bringing his many membered body of sons into righteousness. John said ". . . Now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be (we are not complete yet); but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure." (I John 3:2-3)
Brethren, we are changing, but we are not there yet. Our righteousness is the Christ that is being formed in us. We are becoming righteous as we are purified by the appearing of Him. "Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God." (I John 3:9) We are putting on the mind of Christ. We are putting on the armor of God. We are pressing onward toward our high calling in God, washing our robes in the blood of the Lamb; laying aside each weight that does best us; laying aside the old man and putting on the new man which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him. JESUS CHRIST IS COME IN THE FLESH!! His love is perfected in us (see I John 4:12). As we become exposed to his love we enter into the birthing and we suffer with him!
"And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever." (Revelation 11:15)
When the Lord with his coming city, reach the appointed dominion and the Christ raises his children to the nature of their Father, there will be no more enemy. The battle will be won!
He who hath an ear to hear, let him hear.
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