Hills and Valleys

When you open your Bible, God opens his mouth. And after a worship like that, I think our ears have been prepared and our hearts have been prepared to hear what God has to say. And somebody says, no, but what happened there in those Bible days, that doesn't happen today.

Oh, yes it does. You see, when you follow Jesus Christ, you never know what a day is going to bring forth. The Christian life is a land of hills and valleys.

Take Matthew 17, for example. At the beginning of Matthew 17, the Lord says, Peter, James, John, come with me. And they go off to a mountain apart, and Jesus is praying.

And he shines brighter than the brightest beacon. The glory of God is revealed. And then two men appear, Moses, Elijah.

And they talk with Jesus about the cross. Peter and James and John are on the mountaintop, and they come down. And they hear noise, noise, arguing.

There's a little boy on the ground, and he's writhing in pain. He's frothing at the mouth. And the father said, I brought him to your disciples, and they couldn't heal him.

Here they go from the mountaintop of glory down to the valley of battle. And Jesus delivers the boy, and all is well. Now, what's going to follow that? Well, Matthew 17, verse 24, tells us.

Oh, you say, I've never been on a mountaintop of glory. Maybe not. I've never had, I've never had contact with that kind of demonic activity, perhaps.

But I think when I read verses 24 through 27, you'll say, I know something about that. Peter had to pay his taxes. And when they had come to Capernaum, those who collected the two drachma tax, that's the temple tax, came to Peter and says, does your teacher not pay the two drachma tax? He said, yes.

Shortest speech Peter ever made. And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first. Jesus could tell Peter had it already worked out.

He said, I know exactly how we can get this money. Don't we do that? We face a crisis, and we figure out how to do it without saying the Lord will see to it. When he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first saying, what do you think Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect customs? That's on merchandise.

Or poll tax, that's on people. From their sons or from strangers? And upon his saying, from strangers, Jesus said to him, consequently the sons are exempt. But lest we give them offense, go to the sea, throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth, you will find a stater.

Take that and give it to them for you and me. A stater was a coin that was composed of two drachmas, and so there was enough for Jesus, enough for Peter. An interesting miracle.

Quiet little miracle. Jesus knew it happened. Peter knew it happened.

Nobody else did. But you know, if we really understood this miracle, we'd stop worrying. If you really understood this miracle, those of you who aren't Christians, who have never trusted Jesus, you'd get saved.

If we really understood this miracle, we would fall on our faces before Jesus and say, just as we just sang, how great you are. It wasn't a miracle of raising somebody from the dead. It wasn't a miracle of healing somebody's leprosy.

It wasn't a miracle of opening the eyes of the blind. No, no. But oh, what a miracle.

Because this miracle has a number of unique characteristics. And when you understand those characteristics, you'll be overwhelmed. Characteristic number one, this miracle was recorded only by Matthew.

At least, that makes good sense. Matthew was a tax collector. He knew about taxes.

Well, Matthew knew about Roman taxes. This was a Jewish tax. But when the Holy Spirit used different people to write the Word of God, and he was working through Matthew, he said, now, Matthew, I want you to tell the story about the temple tax.

All right, Lord. Because Matthew is the gospel of the King. The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David.

That's the way it starts. David, the Jewish king. Chapter 2, the Magi show up and say, where is he who is born King of the Jews? Excuse me.

You are not born a king. You're born a prince. He was born a king.

It's the book of the King. And this miracle reveals to us Jesus Christ, the King. A King has authority.

When you page through Matthew, you find it says this, he had authority to teach and no one taught as he taught. He had authority to heal. He gave to his disciples authority to cast out demons and to heal all manner of diseases.

This is the book of the authority of Jesus Christ. Chapter 9, verse 6, Matthew wrote, he has authority to forgive. You need forgiveness today.

He's got that authority. When you get to the end of Matthew, our Lord is about to go back to heaven and he says to his disciples, all authority, all has been given to me. Remember that the next time the devil tells you you're a weakling.

All authority is given to Jesus. Paul wrote in Ephesians that he ascended far above all dominion. All names, every name that is named in this age or any age to come.

Matthew recorded this miracle because Matthew talks to us about the King. Let's go back to the beginning of the Bible. God creates the heaven and the earth and he forms and he fills and he forms and he fills.

He's making a home for our first parents and looked around and said everything is very. Created Adam from the dust of the earth, created Eve from Adam's side, and then he said I'm going to crown you. You are King Adam, Queen Eve of my creation.

I'm giving you dominion, a great word. I'm giving you dominion over the birds of the air, the beasts of the field, and the fish of the sea. And Adam and Eve one day lost their crowns.

They sinned. And when they lost their crowns, they lost their dominion. Oh, how many duck hunters wish they had dominion over the fowl of the air, but they don't.

How many of you patient fishermen wish you had dominion over the fish of the sea, but you don't. But Jesus does. Because Jesus Christ, the last Adam, came to earth to regain our crowns.

And when our Lord was here on earth, he was King. He had dominion over the beasts of the field. Mark tells us he was out in the wilderness being tempted and the wild beasts were there.

It didn't bother him. When he rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, he rode on an animal on which no one had ever sat. I wouldn't do that.

He did, but he wasn't afraid. He had dominion over the beasts of the field. He had dominion over the fowl of the air.

He said, Peter, you're gonna deny me three times. Cock's gonna crow. That rooster's gonna crow.

I don't know how many roosters there were in Jerusalem. Must have been hundreds. And my Lord kept all of them quiet until Peter denied him.

And then Peter heard the crowing of one cock. And usually when one starts, the rest of them start. Now he kept them quiet.

Dominion over the fowl. And he had dominion over the fish. Luke chapter 5, when Jesus called Peter and Andrew and James and John, he had given them a great catch of fish.

They'd fished all night and caught nothing. Now they were cleaning up their nets. He said, let's go on out again.

And they caught a great catch of fish. But this isn't fish swimming into a net. This is one hook, one line, one fish, who's not likely to bite on anything because he's got a coin stuck in his mouth.

But Peter put bait on the hook and dropped it down, caught the fish, and there was the money. This miracle is recorded only by Matthew because this miracle reminds us that Jesus Christ is the King. And when you trusted him, you became a child of the King and the authority that he has.

We can claim in prayer. That's why we pray in the name of Jesus. Now there's a second characteristic to this particular miracle.

It's the only miracle recorded that Jesus did for himself. Oh, he did so much for other people, but that's the only miracle he did for himself. He had to pay his temple tax.

Now, I just said Jesus is the King. Who wants to follow a bankrupt king? Peter said to the tax collectors, yes, in turns, and between the outside and the inside began to figure out how to do it. Jesus anticipated him, told him what to do.

Now, when Jesus began his ministry, he was tempted in the wilderness by the devil. And the first temptation Satan threw at him was, I just heard what your father said when you were baptized. This is my beloved son.

If he loves you so much, why are you hungry? Would a loving father let his child be hungry? Now, why don't you turn these stones into bread? You've got the power to do it. Satan's first temptation was, use your miraculous power for yourself. My Lord had laid aside the independent use of his attributes.

When he emptied himself he didn't cease to be God, but he joined himself to human nature, sinless human nature, and laid aside his own independence. His prayer every day was, not my will, but your will be done. The father told him what to say, and the father told him where to go, and the father told him what to do.

And Satan said, you've got the power, use it. Jesus said, no. I didn't empty myself and come down here to do something for myself.

I came to do something for the whole world. Paul knew this. Paul, when he was writing 2nd Corinthians, said to those people in Corinth who were stingy, they'd made a promise to give to a missionary offering, and they hadn't given anything.

Paul wrote and said, you know, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that you through his poverty might be made rich. The only miracle Jesus performed for himself to remind us that he became poor, that we might become rich. Paul talks about the riches of his grace, the riches of his mercy, the riches of his wisdom, unsearchable riches.

The only miracle recorded that he performed for himself, but he did it for the sake of Peter. That's the third characteristic. This miracle was done especially for Peter.

In fact, you can go through the Gospels in the book of Acts and discover one miracle after another that Jesus did for Peter. He visited Peter's house one Sabbath day. Peter said, I'd be glad to give you something to eat, but my mother-in-law is sick.

Well, he said, we can take care of that, and he went and healed his mother-in-law. Peter was walking on the water one night, got scared, began to sink, and Jesus reached over and they walked back to the boat together. He did it for Peter.

In the garden, Peter got very brave and very frightened and pulled out his sword and cut off a man's ear. Jesus said, permit me this, and healed the man. He did it for Peter, and he had Peter go catch a fish to pay his taxes.

Is it any wonder all these things that Jesus did for Peter, and I've just named a few of them, is it any wonder that when Peter sat down to write his first letter, he got to close to the end of it, and the Holy Spirit said, now Peter, before you go too far, I want you to put this down there. Casting all your care upon him, for he cares for you. Peter said, O Lord, how true you cared for me.

You rescued my life, and you blessed in catching fish, and you paid my taxes, and you healed my mother-in-law, and you got me out of prison, and I want to tell all of God's people you can cast your cares on him. He cares for you. See, our problem is that we start out the way Peter started out.

As he turned to walk into the house, he was figuring out how to do it. Don't second-guess Jesus. Some of you have got problems, school problems, health problems, finance problems, relationship problems, and you're trying to figure it all out.

Faith is living without scheming, and as Peter turned to go in, he opened his mouth, and Jesus interrupted him. By the way, when you read the Bible, you find that God interrupted Peter three times. I don't like interruptions.

I'm methodical, and I'm at my computer working, or I'm at my desk studying, and Betty says, well, there's a phone call. I don't like interruptions. It took me so long to discover the interruptions are the ministry.

God the Father interrupted Peter on the Mount of Transfiguration. Peter says, good for us to be here. Let's build some huts and just stay here.

This is my beloved Son. Listen to him! Interrupted by God the Father. Now he's interrupted by God the Son.

Peter, don't worry. I got it all worked out. Acts chapter 10, Peter's preaching in the household of Cornelius and says that whoever believes in him will have eternal life.

And they believed, and the Holy Spirit interrupted Peter and came down, but Peter never did finish the sermon. This miracle is recorded only by Matthew. It's the only miracle recorded that Jesus did for himself, and the miracle was done especially for Peter.

And the next time you're trying to figure out how to get out of something, just stop and say, Lord, before I call you, answer. You know my needs. Just show me what to do.

It's the only miracle recorded that uses one fish. Luke 5, a multitude of fish. The nets were breaking.

John 21, a great catch of fish. One fish. Now, I hope I don't talk myself into a corner and end up offending anybody, but you know what's wrong with us in America? Oh, a lot of things, I suppose, but when it comes to the church, there are two things.

One is we want everything to happen too fast. It's got to happen right now. We Americans are great achievers.

And secondly, it's got to be big. It's not big. God's not working.

Now, hear me. I don't think we should work harder and harder to have fewer and fewer. No, no.

I just want to show you something interesting. Peter goes down to the water, and these people knew Peter. He'd lived in Capernaum.

They'd seen him come in with that great catch of fish in Luke 5. They knew he knew how to throw the nets out and catch the fish. What are you going to do, Peter? Fish. Where's your net? Boat? Nope.

Got my hook and line. Peter, nobody fishes like that around here. You know why some of you people aren't Christians? You don't want to be different.

You want to be like everybody else. You want to go with the flow and run with the herd. That's all right.

You have that privilege. Dr. Barnhouse used to say, you can go to hell your own way or go to heaven God's way. Make your choice.

What are you going to do, Peter? I'm going to catch a fish. So Peter threw in the baited hook. This is a marvelous miracle.

It's so complex. Only God could do this. Number one, somebody had to lose a coin that did not get buried in the bottom of the sea.

Number two, some fish had to come along and do what a fish doesn't usually do. Grab the coin. Number three, Peter had to lower the hook with the bait just at the point where that fish was going to come along.

And number four, the fish would bite on the bait even though it had an impediment in its mouth. You think your problems are bad? Just see what Jesus can do. Caught one fish.

Paid his taxes. My Lord is saying to me, there are times when my people throw out the net and catch many fish. Now you follow me.

I'll make you a fisher of men. But there are also times when we don't throw out the net, we just drop the hook and catch one. At chapter 3, Peter says to John, time for prayer meeting.

So they were going down to the temple to pray. At the gate of the temple was a beggar who couldn't walk, born lame, and he's begging. And Peter and John stop and look at him.

And he looks at them expecting to get something and John may have said, I'm not saying he did, but if I had been there, I would have said, excuse me Peter, it's time for prayer meeting. Did you ever interrupt prayer meeting, going to prayer meeting, to help somebody? Excuse me Peter, it's time for prayer meeting. Anyway, it's just one.

I mean you just led 3,000 people to Jesus at Pentecost. Are you concerned about one? Peter says, yes I am. My Lord had time for individuals.

And I remember one day I caught one fish. And so Peter led this man to the Lord. And you know what happened? 2,000 people were saved because of it.

Don't you ever minimize witnessing to one person or leading one child to Jesus. A Sunday school teacher walked into the back of a shoe store in Boston and talked to a teenager and led him to Jesus. And that teenager was Dwight Lyman Moody, who preached to millions of people in the United States and Great Britain and saw tens of thousands come to Christ.

Never minimize catching one fish. We must go on. This miracle was recorded only by Matthew and the only one recorded that Jesus did for himself that involved one fish.

It was especially done for Peter. And it's the only miracle recorded that used money. Did you ever read what Jesus had to say about money? He said things like, and they laughed at him, he said things like this, those things that are held in high regard among man are nothing in the kingdom of heaven.

Now this money wasn't ordinary money. This was the temple tax, where the temple tax come from. Back in Exodus, they were building the temple, the tabernacle, and God said to Moses, Moses, here's a law.

Every year take a census of the men 20 years and older and each man has to give you a half a shekel. Two shekels made up a drachma. And you take that silver money and you mold it down into cubes and put the tent poles of the tabernacle in these silver squares.

And you know what Moses called this money back in Exodus chapter 30? Redemption money. So once a year they counted the number of young Jews from 20 up to the oldest. Each one of them had to give a half a shekel.

That went down to the temple to pay for the various things that had to be paid for there. Redemption money. Now were these people redeemed by silver? No, no, they were redeemed by God.

Book of Exodus, they'd been delivered from Egypt by the blood of the Lamb. But every year God said, I want to remind you of something. And Peter wrote that something in his first letter.

Holy Spirit said, right here Peter, for as much as you know that you were not redeemed by silver and gold from that empty way of life you used to live, but by the precious blood of Jesus as of a Lamb without blemish, without spot. It's the only miracle recorded using money and it's redemption money. If you're going to be redeemed it's not going to be with silver and gold.

Not going to be with the good works that produce silver and gold. If you're going to be redeemed, saved from your sins, go to heaven. It's going to be by the blood of Jesus which Peter calls precious.

You know when something is precious? It can't be duplicated and it can't be replaced. You know why the little baby is precious? The only one like it. You know why men and women get married? They love each other and each of them is unique, the only one.

You know why the blood of Jesus is precious? You can't manufacture it, you can't duplicate it. He's the only lamb without blemish, without spot. The only miracle recorded using money and it's redemption money, and I'm saying to you who aren't saved you need to be redeemed.

You say what does redeemed mean? Set free. Set free from what? Your sins. Behold the Lamb of God who carries away the sins of the world.

One final characteristic. The only miracle in the Bible that I can find where the miracle is not described. You see there ought to be verse 28 and Peter took a hook and a worm and a line and went down to the Sea of Galilee and cast it in and caught a fish and took the money out of his mouth and went to Jesus.

Doesn't say that. Do you believe it really happened? Sure. I wouldn't be standing here talking about it if I didn't believe it really happened.

Well, then why doesn't it say so? It doesn't have to. Doesn't have to. If Jesus tells you to do something it'll happen.

All Peter had to do was trust and obey. That's all. So we have burdens and problems and we read in the word and here's a promise.

Hey, here's a promise. All right, believe it and obey. And God will fulfill it.

In a sense Peter made a fool of himself going down there and fishing with a hook and a line. He wasn't that kind of a fisherman. That's like asking a jet pilot to throw balsa wood airplanes around or a master chef to make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

Peter was a master fisherman. He said, all right Lord, if you say it, I'll believe it and you'll do it. Do you believe that today? You who carry burdens, you who have insoluble problems, you who face giants that frighten you, do you believe that when you have a promise from the Word of God, if you believe it and act upon it, that Jesus will do it? If Peter were here, he'd say, sure, I get it.

Oh, it's a marvelous miracle. And this miracle talks to two kinds of people here. One, believers who have problems.

And my word to you is find out what Jesus wants to do. Trust him and obey him and he'll work the whole thing out. Those of you who aren't saved, you've got the biggest problem of all, sin.

Judgment. And what you need to do is get a hold of that redemption money. When Peter brought that coin to Jesus, Jesus took it.

And when Jesus looked at that coin, he didn't see silver. He saw his blood. He knew that within a short time he would shed his blood on the cross for the redemption of lost sinners.

And you who don't know Jesus, receive the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. And join the rest of us on this wonderful journey to glory. And so, Father, we're thankful for this word.

And we ask in the name of Jesus, apply it to our hearts. And may those who need Jesus come today and receive him. I pray in Jesus name. Amen.