A Master of a House

Matthew 13:51-58

Key Verse 52: “And he said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house, who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.”

1. Read Verses 51-52. Why do you think Jesus asked his disciples if they understood all these things?
2. Why might Jesus want to see his disciples “trained” to be like “a master of a house”?
3. What could Jesus’ expression “brings out of his treasure” refer to?
4. V53-58. Where did Jesus go after sharing the parables? How did people react to Jesus’ teaching?
5. V54-57. What type of confusion did the people of Jesus’ hometown have about Jesus? What questions did they ask?
6. V57. Why might the people have taken offense at Jesus even though they were astonished at his wisdom and might?
7. V57. Jesus said: “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his own household”. What can we learn from this?
8. V58. Jesus did not do many mighty works in his hometown. What might be the reason for this?

A Master of a House

Matthew 13:51-58

Key Verse 52: “And he said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house, who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.”

Summary

• In today’s verses Jesus speaks to his disciples and asks if they understood his teachings and parables. He shares that he wants them to be trained for the kingdom of heaven and even be like a master of a house that can bring out treasure both new and old.
• Jesus then goes and teaches in the synagogue of his hometown. He teaches with wisdom and might, astonishing the listeners. Surprisingly though they do not receive him and even take offense at him because of their unbelief.
• What a striking contrast between the disciples and the people of Jesus’ hometown!
  What can we learn from these 2 excerpts?

1. Read Verses 51-52. Why do you think Jesus asked his disciples if they understood all these things?
   1. Jesus wanted his disciples to not just listen to his words but to 'hear' and ‘understand’. Jesus was sharing the parables and words of the kingdom of heaven with the long term goal of grooming his disciples to become scribes/ experts/disciples of the kingdom of heaven and even be able to carry out the role as a master of a house. If we don't understand something we can go into the house and ask Jesus.
2. Why might Jesus want to see his disciples “trained” to be like “a master of a house”?
   1. Jesus wants his disciples to be like him in every way. Jesus came as the son of his Father's house and invited us to dwell with him. He wants to hand over the keys of the house and the kingdom of heaven to his disciples so that they can continue to do what he had been doing while he is away before he comes back. See (Matthew 24:45-46 ).
3. What could Jesus’ expression “brings out of his treasure” refer to?
   1. When you invite a guest over to your home it is common practice that you feed them and bring out your goods to share with them. What is the treasure? Based on the previous parables of the hidden treasure and the merchant in search of fine pearls, the treasure is the wisdom and secrets of the kingdom of heaven and ultimately Jesus’ love and salvation for all. When we invite someone into the Father’s house we are to share the good news and the words of the kingdom that we have learned from Jesus and his word with others (Matthew 10:27, Matthew 12:3-37)
   2. In Matthew 24:45-46, the wise servant who is over the household is to give those of his house food at the proper time. This could be an example of bringing out treasure. But first we need to get this treasure ourselves in order to be able to bring it out and share it with others. What does it mean to be a scribe trained for the kingdom of heaven? To delight in studying his word, to long to know and understand the secrets and the wisdom of the kingdom of heaven. To store up the words of the kingdom in our hearts, to love the words of God like treasure, so much so that we can’t help but share it with others.
   3. The concept of the new and the old treasure could indicate mastery of both the old testament and the new testament, old wine and new wine. We want to have a comprehensive understanding of the word of God and not be limited in our understanding, or only be comfortable with one side of the bible.
4. V53-56. Where did Jesus go after sharing the parables? How did people react to Jesus’ teaching?
   1. Jesus went to his home town and taught in their synagogue. Unexpectedly, he was not honored or treated well.
5. V54-57. What type of confusion did the people of Jesus’ hometown have about Jesus? What questions did they ask?
   1. The people of Jesus' hometown did not understand how Jesus had astonishing teachings full of wisdom and might and kept asking the question: “Where did he get all these things”?
   2. They looked to his family and to those who raised him but could not find an answer. They missed the fact that he was a prophet with vision and insight from God. In Fact he was even the messiah and the son of God, but they only saw his human side and could not believe or accept that he could be anything more.
6. V57. Why might the people have taken offense at Jesus even though they were astonished at his wisdom and might?
   1. Where did Jesus get his wisdom and mighty works? (Daniel 2:20-23) In Daniel 2, Daniel shares that wisdom and might come from God.
   2. For some reason when people hear the word of God they don't always receive it with open arms. As we have seen throughout the old testament, prophets with a message from God were not always received and not always treated well. Most likely because the word of God is conflicting with their lives in some way that they do not like. So despite the word of God being taught with wisdom and might, they took offense.
7. V57. Jesus said: “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his own household”. What can we learn from this?
   1. To honor someone means that you treat them well and listen to them and receive them. The people in Jesus’ hometown did not receive Jesus, did not want to listen to his teachings, and did not treat him well.
   2. In your hometown people know you and may judge you based on your person and your history and it may be difficult to separate your person from the work that God may be doing in your life. In a foreign place people do not know you or your history, your life etc., so it is much easier to see God working without other thoughts getting in the way. I.e. “Did not this person have a sin issue in the past?”, “Is this not the son of this family?” etc.
8. V58. Jesus did not do many mighty works in his hometown. What might be the reason for this?
   1. In verse 58 it says that Jesus did not do many mighty works because of the peoples’ unbelief. The will of God cannot be stopped and if God wants to do a mighty work he will, but sometimes he desires to do mighty works in our lives but our doubt, unbelief, and sin can sometimes get in the way and we may miss out on mighty works or not reach our full potential.
   2. See (Matthew 9:21-22, "Your faith has made you well." Matthew 9:27-30 "According to your faith it has been done to you." Matthew 15:25-28 “Great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” Matthew 17:14-20 “Why could we not cast it out? Because of your little faith.”) In these examples from Matthew we see a clear correlation between a person’s faith and the works that are done or not done in their personal lives. If we continuously seek the Lord like treasure, and store up his words and promises in our hearts, we will grow in our understanding and faith. As trials and trouble naturally come into our lives we also see that God is indeed watching us and shepherding us and this practical training also helps our faith and trust in him to grow.
   3. According to Matthew 17:20, if we have even a small amount of faith, like the grain of a mustard seed, we can see mighty works play out like the moving of mountains. “He said to them, “For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”