Matt 17:5 states: “This is My Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased. Listen to Him.”
Why is this small verse within the mass of what was spoken within the Gospels and within the whole Bible so significant?
In Matt 4:4, almost the first words spoken by Jesus in the Gospels, He replies to the devil, saying: “It is written: ‘Man does not live by bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Man’s life is in the spoken words that come out of God’s mouth. While we refer to the Bible as the Word of God (and rightly so, because “All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness…” – 2 Tim 3:16), contained within all of those words are words that have been recorded as spoken by humans, angels, demons and by God. We are told that it is by the words that actually come from the MOUTH of God, spoken by God that man shall live.
If we have a look through the Bible, we see a picture that reveals the significance of these words.
In Exodus 15, the Israelites have just crossed the Red Sea, delivered by the mighty hand of the Lord, when He drowned the Egyptian army behind them. Just 3 days later, the Lord says (Ex 15:26): “If you listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His eyes, if you pay attention to His commands and keep all His decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you.”
This is the first time God reveals Himself as “I am the Lord who heals you”. It is preceded by a condition – “If you….” For the Israelites, the Lord adds a longer and longer list of conditions to this as they continue to grumble, complain and disobey Him. This is the Levitical Law, or Law of Moses. In Lev 26:3, the rewards are dependant upon following the Lord’s decrees and obeying His commands. In Lev 26:14-16 the Lord says: “But if you will not listen to Me and carry out all these commands, and if you reject My decrees and abhor My laws and fail to carry out all My commands and so violate My covenant, then I will do this to you:….”. He repeats these conditions in verses 18, 21, 23 and 27. So the punishments come as the result of not listening to His voice and being obedient.
However, in Ex 20, at Mt Horeb, the Lord first met and spoke to the whole Israelite community and gave them the Ten Commandments. The Israelites were afraid of the Lord and refused to listen to His voice, choosing instead for Moses to listen to the Lord and then tell the Israelites what He said (Ex 20:19). Although they promised to obey, they were not even able to keep the first command (which they did hear from the mouth of God for themselves - Ex 20:3) for 40 days while Moses was getting a few basic guidelines for living and instructions for the tabernacle.
In Deut 18:14-20, Moses prophesied about the Prophet (Jesus). He says:
Dt 18:14 The nations you will dispossess listen to those who practice sorcery or divination. But as for you, the LORD your God has not permitted you to do so.
Dt 18:15 The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers. You must listen to him.
Dt 18:16 For this is what you asked of the LORD your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said, “Let us not hear the voice of the LORD our God nor see this anymore, or we will die.”
Dt 18:17 The LORD said to me: “What they say is good.
Dt 18:18 I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers; I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him.
Dt 18:19 If anyone does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name, I myself will call him to account.
Dt 18:20 But a prophet who presumes to speak in my name anything I have not commanded him to say, or a prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, must be put to death.”
Jesus Himself bears witness to the fact that he speaks the words of His Father in John 5:19 – ‘Jesus gave them this answer: “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by Himself; He can do only what He sees His Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.”’ John 7:16 – ‘Jesus answered, “My teaching is not My own. It comes from Him who sent Me.”’ John 8:28,29 – ‘So Jesus said, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am the one I claim to be and that I do nothing on My own but speak just what the Father has taught Me. The one who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do what pleases Him.”‘ John 12:49,50 – “For I did not speak of My own accord, but the Father who sent Me commanded Me what to say and how to say it. I know that His command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told Me to say.” John 14:10: “Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in Me? The words I say to you are not just My own. Rather, it is the Father, living in Me, who is doing His work.” John 14:24: “He who does not love Me does not obey My teaching. These words you hear are not My own; they belong to My Father who sent Me.”
Let’s take a closer look at the Mount of Transfiguration. Matt 17:1-13, Mark 9:2-13 and Luke 9:28-36. The circumstances tell us a lot. Those present are Jesus with Peter, James and John, the three closest of His 12 disciples. Then Moses and Elijah, two of the greatest men of the Old Testament, arrived and were speaking with Jesus about His departure which He was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem (Lk 9:31). While they were all there, a bright cloud came and enveloped them, and the Father spoke to them from the cloud: “This is My Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased. Listen to Him.” (Matt 17:5) This one statement from God the Father contains both a decree: “This is My Son, whom I love” and a command: “Listen to Him.” It is given to the three closest disciples who would be instrumental in building Jesus’ church after He had ascended. It is interesting to note that the Father made no mention of listening to Moses (and the Law) or Elijah (and the prophets), and He did not instruct the 3 disciples to discuss amongst themselves what they thought about what Jesus said (or about anything else, for that matter!) The command is so simple and small that it has been forgotten and largely overlooked as the ONLY thing required of us as Christians, children of God, living under the New Covenant.
Paul understood the uselessness of trying to follow the Law. Romans chapters 2 to 8 contain a comprehensive study on how the Law was never meant to put us right with God – it’s purpose was to identify sin for what it is. Once sin is identified, it can then be addressed. This is what was achieved as a gift to us through Jesus. Rom 5:20,21 states: “The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
So why has the church not followed the words of Jesus exclusively? Why is the Church still following the Old Covenant given to the Israelites through Moses? Or mixing it with the teachings of the Apostles? It is because this command, as small as it is, was lost to the disciples and therefore, lost to the church. Perhaps if the command were a few pages long, we would have noticed it and followed it… In John 17:8, when praying to the Father just before His trial and crucifixion, Jesus says: “For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me.” It is interesting to note that Peter remembered what Moses said about listening to Jesus in Acts 3:22-23 – “For Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you must listen to everything he tells you. Anyone who does not listen to him will be completely cut off from among his people.’”
However, by the time Peter wrote his second letter, he appears to have forgotten this command. He writes of God the Father speaking on the Mount of Transfiguration, but fails to mention His last three words, “Listen to Him.” – 2 Peter 1:17, 18 says: ‘For He (Jesus) received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to Him from the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is My Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased.” We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain.’ The command is not mentioned during any of the sermons after Acts 3 or in any of the letters written by the Apostles. (And in Acts 3, it is not credited to God the Father.) However, the Holy Spirit ensured that it was well recorded in three of the four Gospels, so that it would not be completely lost forever.
So, what is the command given by God the Father to the Church of Jesus Christ? Matt 17:5: “This is My Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased. Listen to Him.” Mark 9:7: “This is My Son, whom I love. Listen to Him!” Luke 9:35: “This is My Son, whom I have chosen; listen to Him.”
(“Love the Lord your God” and “Love your neighbor” were first given to the Israelites. “Love your enemies” and “Love one another” were given by Jesus, not by the Father)
So let’s look at a few of the key things that Jesus said:
Matt 7:24-27 – Listen to his words and put them into practice.
Mt 7:24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.
Mt 7:25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.
Mt 7:26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.
Mt 7:27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
John 21:20-22 – Follow Me (and don’t worry about what I want anyone else to do for Me!)
Jn 21:20 Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, “Lord, who is going to betray you?”)
Jn 21:21 When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?”
Jn 21:22 Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.”
Rev 2:7, 11, 17, 29; Rev 3:6, 13, 22 – Corporately as a church, we need to be listening to the Holy Spirit
“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
Of course, there are many more things that Jesus said, and it is up to us to search out the words spoken by Jesus in the Gospels for ourselves and put them into practice.
Listen To Jesus
