by whom all things were made;
There is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live. (1 Corinthians 8:6)
Matthew records a number of parables in chapter 13, and then in chapter 14 he returns to the description of some of Jesus’ mighty works that portray Him not simply King of the Jews now but Lord of all creation. The 14th chapter begins with a report that Herod (not Herod the Great who died just after Jesus was born, but one of his sons) had had John beheaded in prison. This is the first significant sign of the growing opposition to Jesus and John. As a result, Jesus begins to widen His appeal to include the Gentiles more and more.
In the last chapter of the book we saw how strong the opposition to Jesus had grown, and how Jesus warned the people of the danger they were in if they rejected Him, their Messiah. Now that their rejection has been officially recorded, Jesus began to teach the people with parables. We shall have to learn why this different style of teaching was now used by Jesus, as well as how such parables should be studied. This is a large subject, as you could probably guess (some seminaries have courses on the parables), but we shall work with the basic principles to follow.
In Matthew 12 the confrontation between the Jewish leaders and Jesus has come to a head with their accusing Jesus of doing His works by Satan’s power, and His warning them of the unpardonable sin. The point that Jesus was making was that the Kingdom of Heaven had come and that they were going to be excluded if they persisted in their rejection of Him. This warning troubled them, but they were still not convinced that He was the Messiah--far from it. So they demanded a sign from Him.
In this section of Matthew we see the conflict between Jesus and the religious leaders of His day intensify to the point of their complete rejection of Him, and His warning to them of what that would mean. In many ways this portion of Matthew provides the turning point for the emphasis of the book. It is one thing to oppose Jesus’ apparent violations of the current rules made by religious leaders, but to say that He is empowered by Satan is another matter altogether.
being of one substance with the Father,
In Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. In Him all the fullness of the Godhead lives in bodily form. (Colossians 2:3, 9)
begotten, not made,
Christ is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. (Colossians 1:15-17)
very God of very God,
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. (Hebrews 13:8)
God of God, Light of Light,
The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand. (John 3:35)
begotten of the Father before all worlds,
By this the love of God was manifested to us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. (1 John 4:9-10)
