Matthew 21–28: The Authority of Jesus, Repentance, and the Great Commission

Matthew’s Gospel crescendos with a single, clarifying theme: Jesus has authority. In this Sermon Notes conversation, Brian Ball and Aaron Bryant walk through Matthew 21–28 to show how that authority is challenged, rejected, and ultimately revealed as absolute. The episode begins with the religious leaders confronting Jesus in the temple, exposing how fear of man can quietly become a rival authority in our hearts. Their discussion presses listeners to ask a core question: who actually sits on the throne of my life?

From there, the conversation explores Jesus’ parables of the two sons and the wicked tenants, highlighting the danger of saying the right things while living the opposite. These stories confront outward religion without inward repentance, reminding us that repentance isn’t a grim penalty—it’s a hopeful doorway into new life. Jesus didn’t come to make bad people good; He came to raise dead people to life, and that requires surrendering control and trusting His wisdom.

The episode closes where Matthew closes: with the Great Commission. Jesus’ declaration that “all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” isn’t a footnote; it’s the foundation for discipleship. Because He holds all authority, we can invite Him into every decision, obey Him in every season, and join His mission to make disciples of all nations, confident that He is with us always.