Day 4

Matthew 10-12

“Wisdom is justified by her deeds.” 

Whatever Jesus said or did, they took the opposite view. They were skeptical because He challenged their comfortable lives.

Just verses before Jesus makes this statement, He compared the entire generation to children calling to their playmates saying, “We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.” (Matthew 11:16-17)

What exactly does this mean? Just a little context: Six centuries before Christ, a man named Aesop wrote a whole collection of stories that had a hidden meaning. It is likely that Jesus is making a reference to a fable that would have been passed down from generation to generation. I imagine that these stories would have been as familiar to them as the “Three Little Pigs” are to us. This particular fable, that is likely being referenced, is called: “The Fisherman Piping”. The story goes like this: 

“A Fisherman who could play the flute went down one day to the sea-shore with his nets and his flute; and, taking his stand on a projecting rock, began to play a tune, thinking that the music would bring the fish jumping out of the sea. He went on playing for some time, but not a fish appeared: so at last he threw down his flute and cast his net into the sea, and made a great haul of fish. When they were landed and he saw them leaping about on the shore, he cried, “You rascals! You wouldn’t dance when I piped: but now I’ve stopped, you can do nothing else!””

In other words, “I gave you plenty of opportunities to follow my voice, but you didn’t.”

Because there is no “dirge” in the original fable (which is simply a lament for the dead), we can only assume that Jesus is pointing to the distinct differences in the ministries of John and of himself. Jesus is pointing out the fact that John and Jesus were piping out two completely different tunes, but this generation wasn’t responding to either. They rejected both John’s stern message of repentance and Jesus’s generous offer of salvation. 

This offer of salvation still stands today. Jesus is waiting for His children to respond to this generous gift!