Well, if you have your Bible with you this morning, please turn with me to the Gospel of Matthew chapter 11. The Gospel of Matthew chapter 11. Our focus text this morning is going to be on verses 20 through 24. 20 through 24. If you don't have a Bible and you need one, there should be two or three in the seat pockets in the room in front of you. We'll hear now the very word of God, which is written for you and for me today. Then he began to rebuke the cities in which most of his mighty works had been done, because they did not repent. Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you. And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you. Amen. Thus far the reading of God's holy word. Let us go before him in prayer asking his blessing on the preaching of it. Our gracious God and heavenly father, as your word has been read into our hearts, we pray that you would open our hearts to receive your word and to act upon it. Oh Lord, by your spirit, impress your truth, impress the wonderful good news of Christ and his person and work to us that we may praise you and rejoice all the more and be all the more diligent in our service to you. We pray this in Christ's name. Amen. Well, beloved congregation, in the midst of rising opposition to Jesus and his mission, one of the big messages that you've, Lord willing, gleaned from Matthew 11 is Jesus Christ as the one who has come as the greatest preacher, as the only savior and the sword bearer. And therefore, as the one who brings division with the sword of judgment, with the sword of his word that cuts men to the heart, he has also brought clarity about the offended and the unoffended. Those who deny Jesus and are offended at his being the Messiah and King, and those who embrace him with much faith and love, bearing their crosses on their backs as they follow him. It's this picture that Christ continues to fill in and to develop as he paints this in this chapter. Do you have the ears of faith to hear the call to repentance from the prophets? Do you have ears to value the herald cry of the same from John the Baptist who paved the way as he testified of Christ who came to save sinners? Do you have ears to hear the preaching of Christ himself, even as he has made such grand connections between the Old Testament and the New Testament in this chapter, and who he is, and what his kingdom is all about? If you have such ears, truly hear these good words. May the fruit of your hearing and faith then be evident in how you live, knowing the blessing of the living God upon you as you do. For the generation that Christ spoke directly to, along with every generation, was and is filled with those who are like sullen children who their friends couldn't persuade to cheer up and dance with them or even be affected by mournful songs, we've been taught. And though both John and Jesus preached the gospel before their eyes, in their ears, and to their hearts, due to the deadness of their hearts and the Spirit of God not converting them, many weren't persuaded or able to receive and hear. And because this is true, Jesus now gives sharp words to those who heard the words out of his mouth and saw his miracles but didn't believe in him. Let us consider Christ's rebuke of certain cities in verse 20. His words of woe to Chorazin and Bethsaida in 21 and 22, as well as his words of woe to Capernaum in verse 23 and 24. Look at what he says in verse 20. Matthew tells us, then he began to rebuke the cities in which most of his mighty works had been done because they did not repent. Now, as you consider Christ's rebuke, let's make the connections in the context that led to this. If you recall, going back to Matthew 4.17, Jesus began his preaching ministry in Galilee. He went with his disciples to many cities, as he did, and Capernaum being his home base in the region. We see that in Matthew 4 verse 13. But remember how Jesus healed the centurion's paralyzed servant in Capernaum. He also went around all of Galilee teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom and healing all kinds of sicknesses and all kinds of disease among the people. Indeed, these and many others he did, and those comprise the list of his mighty works that are referenced here. Remember what Matthew tells you in chapter 11, verse 1. Now it came to pass when Jesus finished commanding his 12 disciples that he departed from there to teach and preach in their cities. And so we see this context that's very helpful of what Christ had done, not only in the beginning of his ministry, but even as it progressed and even now. As he's left the apostles, he's going out and preaching in their cities. And so in light of everything that Jesus had said and done in their cities, considering the grace and compassion and conviction that he preached with in calling men and women to repentance for the kingdom of heaven is at hand, what you need to see is that when the call of wisdom is rejected, divine rebuke follows. When the call of wisdom is rejected, divine rebuke follows. God won't leave sinners unchecked in their rebellion. We find this true in Proverbs 1, beginning in verse 20. If you would like, turn with me there. There are some wonderful things to glean. Proverbs 1, beginning in verse 20. We read there, wisdom calls aloud outside. She raises her voice in the open square. She cries out in the chief concourses at the openings of the gates of the city. She speaks her words. And what were her words? Look at verse 22. How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? For scorners delight in their scorners, and fools hate knowledge. Turn at my rebuke. Surely I will pour out my spirit on you. I will make my words known to you. Because I have called and you refused, I have stretched out my hand and no one regarded. Because you disdained all my counsel and would have none of my rebuke, I also will laugh at your calamity. I will mock when your terror comes, when your terror comes like a storm. and your destruction comes like a whirlwind when distress and anguish come upon you. Here are these words of Lady Wisdom. Lady Wisdom points you to Christ. Do you see that? She points you to Christ, the wisdom of God. See how her words and the promises of judgment against those who don't turn, line up with Christ against those who refuse to repent as they reject him, his words and his work, his kingdom. And notice also who Jesus rebukes in Matthew 11. He doesn't rebuke unrepentant individuals. He rebukes unrepentant cities. Yes, individuals are held responsible for their rejection of Christ, but there is corporate application as well. See here that just as nations need to turn and are called to turn in the Scriptures and to bow the knee to King Jesus, so do cities. You see an example of this in God's gracious work in and through the ministry of the reluctant Jonah, who was called by God to go and preach to his enemy, to the great city of Nineveh in Jonah chapter three. And you know, if you know that story, if you know that account, Jonah did so. He went. And what did God bring about? In Jonah 3, verse 5, we read, So the people of Nineveh believed God, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth from the greatest to the least of them. And further we're told that the king made a decree that man and beast be covered with sackcloth and cry mightily to God. Yes, let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. We know that the king's words were very accurate, were very true to their situation, for they were a wicked and bloodthirsty and violent city. And now through Nahum's prophecy, we also know that Nineveh would in time return to its evil ways and the whole city would come under divine judgment. But further, you find many nations in the Old Testament coming under judgment and the wrath of God being poured out on them for their sin and wickedness. And so here, Jesus rebukes three cities for not turning from their sin to him in true repentance. And he begins with Chorazin and Bethsaida. Look at verse 21 of Matthew 11. Woe to you, Chorazin, Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago and sat clothed in ashes." Beloved, these are very sharp words from the Son of God. Very sharp words from the living God to these unrepentant cities. My friends, it is a terrible thing when the living God pronounces a woe upon people, cities, or nations. For that is the prophetic equivalent of a curse. Woe to you, he says. I was in your midst. You did not turn. Woe to you. Now, who are Chorazin and Bethsaida? And what's true of these two cities? Well, the two cities were in Galilee, and they were close to each other geographically. They were separated by the Lake of Gennesaret, with Chorazin being on the east side and Bethsaida being on the west. And both of these cities were known to be wealthy and full of people, well populated. Regarding Chorazin, we don't know anything else about Chorazin other than their seeing and hearing the mighty works of God, and, of course, where they were located. Bethsaida was also blessed to hear and see the mighty works of Jesus, and also Christ called three of his apostles, Philip, Andrew, and Peter, from this city. We see in John 144. But why did Jesus pronounce a woe against these two cities. They rejected Christ instead of turning to him in faith and repentance, though they heard his preaching and though they saw his works." Here's a lesson for you. The words and works of Jesus are truly powerful and miraculous. They accomplish his purposes, either to draw men and women to himself or to leave them unaffected or even offended. Like the Apostle Paul taught Corinth in 1 Corinthians 1, beginning in verse 21. For since in the wisdom of God, the word through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached. to save those who believe. For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified. To the Jews, a stumbling block, and to the Greeks, foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power of God, and the wisdom of God." And indeed, this was the same message that Christ was preaching in Chorazin and Bethsaida. He was preaching himself as king in the kingdom. And therefore, because Chorazin and Bethsaida didn't repent, Jesus said this was to their shame and to their hurt. And why? He presses this point home as he compares them to Tyre and Sidon. We see the message of that why there. And who were Tyre and Sidon? They were heathen cities that bordered Galilee. They were both famous port cities, Tyre being one of the chief cities in Phoenicia. They were full of Canaanite idolaters and other wicked people. Isaiah prophesied against them in Isaiah 23, as did Ezekiel in Ezekiel 26 through 28. Amos declares in Amos 1, beginning in verse 9, thus says the Lord, for three transgressions of Tyre and for four, I will not turn away its punishment because they delivered up the whole captivity to Edom and did not remember the covenant of brotherhood. but I will send a fire upon the wall of Tyre, which shall devour its palaces. And even further, we read in Zechariah chapter nine, beginning in verse one, the burden of the Lord against the land of Hadrach and Damascus, its resting place. For the eyes of men and all the tribes of Israel are on the Lord. also against Hamath, which borders on it, and against Tyre and Sidon, though they are very wise. Notice that characteristic about those cities. For Tyre built herself a tower, heaped up silver like the dust, and gold like the mire of the streets. Behold, the Lord will cast her out. He will destroy her power in the sea. and she will be devoured by fire." And so, my friends, though Tyre and Sidon's acts were evil in forgetting the covenant and turning on Israel, as well as idolatry, notice that Jesus said Chorazin and Bethsaida were worse than those pagan people, who were contemptible in the eyes of Chorazin and Bethsaida. And why? Jesus said that Tyre and Sidon would have seen and heard his works and repented long before them and sat clothed in ashes like Nineveh did. Now, some of you may be wondering, well, pastor, wait a minute. Why then was Tyre condemned instead of preached to if they would have repented? My friends, this isn't what Jesus was saying. His statement was hyperbole to emphasize the power of his word and work and the severity of their true contempt in rejecting him. And therefore, what did Jesus say would be true as a result? Look at verse 22 of Matthew 11. But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you. Beloved, the judgment of God will not be pleasant on those that it has poured out upon. It will be horrible and painful. When you suffer the judgment of God, you will wish that you had repented and escaped his wrath, but you will not be able to. Indeed, with greater revelation comes great accountability and greater condemnation for unbelief. Take that with you today. With greater revelation comes great accountability and greater condemnation for unbelief. For the Jews in Chorazin and Bethsaida rejected Jesus and therefore divine judgment would be even worse for them on that last day. The pagans in Tyre and Sidon were ignorant by comparison. They didn't have God's word or see or hear Jesus's works. The wrath of God upon them would be just. He will deal with Tyre and Sidon. But it'll be less than that against the Jews in those Galilean cities who saw and despised his mighty works and showed that they truly had much contempt on the living God, even though they would rather say and did, oh no, they're the ones that contempt the Lord. We don't. No, no. Here's where the truth lies, he says. He's painting in this picture. Some of you may also be wondering, with these words of greater judgment, Pastor, will there be degrees of punishment in hell, considering Jesus's words? The clear teaching of this passage, along with others in scriptures, is that there will be degrees of punishment during that day of wrath. Even the smallest sin makes us guilty of the whole law and liable to eternal torment. We read in James 2, verse 10, for whoever shall keep the whole law yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all. But also we know that hell will be a place of weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 8, verse 12. And that will be true for all there. And this suffering will be forever, Revelation 14 verse 11. And yet some sins are worse than others and deserve harsher punishment, we see in Numbers 35 verses 9 through 29. And so understanding this, see that Jesus then goes on to speak against his hometown. He speaks broadly, he rebukes broadly, and now he brings it home. In verse 23, he says, and you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades, for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. The Jews in Capernaum had the blessing of Jesus residing in that city. They had the blessing of hearing the good news preached and proclaimed in its power and purity in their midst often and frequently from the mouth of the Son of God. In that sense, it was exalted to heaven. And yet because of their sin and filth, because of their refusal to believe in Christ, they too would be judged, being brought down to Hades, he said. like the king of Babylon in Isaiah 14 verses 12 through 15. Now, know that Capernaum would receive the same judgment as Tyre. And how do we know that that's true? Ezekiel says in Ezekiel 26, beginning in verse 19, for thus says the Lord God, When I make you a desolate city, like cities that are not inhabited, when I bring the deep upon you, and great waters cover you, then I will bring you down with those who descend into the pit, to the people of old. And I will make you dwell in the lowest part of the earth, in places desolate from antiquity, with those who go down to the pit, so that you may never be inhabited. and I shall establish glory in the land of the living. I will make you a terror, and you shall be no more. Though you were sought for, you will never be found again, says the Lord God." Again, sharp words from the living God. Do you hear these? Do they impact you today? People will look after you. People will look for you. Where is it? They can't find you. Oh city, because you're gone. You've been destroyed by my fire. Here again in verse 23, you see the grounds for such punishment being shown in a comparison with another wicked city, and that being Sodom. Some of you may be wondering, wow, would anybody be compared to Sodom? Yeah, here we see this. Sodom was that corrupt and wicked city that, along with Gomorrah, was destroyed for its heinous idolatry. Again, the principle, with greater revelation comes great accountability and greater condemnation for unbelief. And so what punishment will be true for Sodom? Well, the apostle Jude says in Jude 1-7, as Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them in similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire." That's their punishment, ultimately. We see temporal punishment. They were wiped out. We see the punishment of eternal fire that is yet to come. And though God will judge and punish Sodom and Gomorrah terribly on the day of judgment, Jesus's message was that those who heard but rejected the good news of the kingdom would receive a more severe punishment. In verse 24, he says, but I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you. Now, Jesus is denouncing Capernaum matches perfectly with the words in his instructions to the apostles in Matthew chapter 10, beginning in verse 14. Remember what he said there, as he said, and whoever will not receive you or hear your words when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet. What does he say in verse 15? Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah and the day of judgment than for that city. Same principle, same message. For those who hear the message, but do not receive the message and they reject Christ, same punishment. The apostles were to know that as he was sending them forth and here he pronounces his own direct woe. And so, beloved, as you consider this passage, the picture of the holiness and righteous judgment of Christ, as seen in his dividing work, is further developed for you in this passage. Take this with you today. Consider Christ's woes against these cities and take with you the promise that more severe punishment in hell is reserved for those who have seen and heard, for those who have lived close to gospel privileges and yet have continued in sin and have rejected Christ. The gospel of Christ brings great accountability to those who hear it. I can't say that enough. As Jesus separates the sheep from the goats, you find his people believing the gospel and embracing Christ in true faith and love and service, whereas those who see and hear his mighty works and yet remain dead and blind in their sin reject him, especially cities here. And they are justly sentenced to terrible temporal judgments that will lead to just eternal punishment in its various degrees on the day of judgment if the sinners don't repent and turn from their sin and call upon the mercy of the true Messiah and King. And thus, the importance of not only calling individuals, but cities and nations to repentance is before you this morning. Don't miss this evangelistic message that has corporate application, a corporate view here. It's good and right not only for the church to pray for our cities and for our land, but also to herald the gospel in and to them, calling magistrates and calling people to repent and turn to Christ and calling them to rule and walk according to his word, to submit themselves to the sovereign authority of the King, of Christ himself. For it is good for a city to live and rejoice in the grace and blessings of the Lord. than under his just judgment, which is sure to befall them if they continue to reject him." Well, amen. Praise God for this, his word. Let's pray together. Our gracious God and heavenly Father, Lord, we thank you for these sharp words, but important words, O Lord. May they pierce and penetrate our hearts, May we be those who not only embrace and love and follow after Christ all of our days, but may we be those who also call others, even cities and nations to do the same. Knowing the great and terrible judgment of God, knowing the great blessings and the peace that is in Jesus, Oh Lord, we pray that you would use this passage in our hearts and lives to give us clarity, to grow our knowledge, but also to give us greater zeal, zeal to walk rightly before you and to do so in the midst as a witness and testimony in this world. May we not shy away from that, which is good and right. May we not shy away from that which you call us to do. We pray this in Christ's name, amen.