ATTENTION TO ALL MY PRECIOUS READERS

We have just finished our study of the very interesting and informative Chapter 9 in the Gospel of Matthew.  There were eight marvelous incidences in the life and ministry of our Lord Jesus that sparked great interest in the hearts and minds of His followers, while it upset those who were against Him because they didn’t think a human should have such power and authority over sickness and demons.

When they brought Him a paralyzed man on a stretcher, the first thing Jesus told him was that his sins were forgiven.  This made His opponents so mad they accused Him of blasphemy.  But instead of shouting back at them and calling them names, our Lord simply turned to the man, healed him and sent him on his way.

Then we are told how Matthew was called to be a disciple.  It is obvious that Matthew knew who Jesus was, because he followed Him right away.  But when Jesus went to Matthew’s house for a meal, and Matthew invited some of his fellow tax collector friends, these opponents of Jesus got upset again and accused Him of hanging around with sinners.  But Jesus told them that was like accusing a doctor of hanging around with sick people.

So these opponents got some of John the Baptizer’s disciples to confront Jesus about the fact that His disciples did not fast as the law required.  But Jesus told them that this was like telling a groom not to celebrate during a wedding with his groomsmen.  He also said it was like telling a wine maker to pour new wine into old wine skins.

Then the leader of the local synagogue came running to Jesus, asking Him to come quickly because his daughter had just died and he wanted our Lord to lay His hands on her so she would come back to life.  But before Jesus could get there, a woman waiting in the crowd alongside the road reached out and touched Him and was instantly healed.

Then when Jesus got to the synagogue leader’s house, the mourners and grievers were already there.  As Jesus was going into the house He told them to go away because the girl was only sleeping, they started laughing at Him.  But they weren’t laughing when Jesus came back out with the girl who was now alive and well.

As Jesus started back to His house, two blind men started following Him crying out for mercy.  When Jesus got to His house He took them inside, and after asking if they really believed He could heal them, as soon as they said “Yes,” Jesus opened their eyes so they could see.

As they were going out the door, people were bringing in a man who could not speak.  They told Jesus that the man had a demon that prevented him from talking. So Jesus quickly drove the demon out and the man left talking and rejoicing. While the crowd saw this and were amazed because they had never seen anything like that before in their lifetime, the opponents of Jesus said sarcastically that Jesus was able to do this by the power of Satan.  Seems they just wouldn’t believe no matter what Jesus did or said.

But this didn’t stop Jesus, He started going through all the towns and villages in northern Galilee preaching the good news, healing the sick, and taking authority of demons.  As He saw the crowds in such need for guidance, He told His disciples that the harvest of souls was just to big for them to handle, so He told them to plead with God for more workers.

As we look back now, let us be glad that they did pray because that’s why you and I were chosen and sent out into the harvest.  The question is: are we really doing our job?  Or have we stopped because people have spoken against us, laughed at us, or called us strange as though we were possessed by some sinister power?  If so, don’t argue back, just go ahead and keep speaking the truth, praying for the sick and those under the power of Satan, and keep asking God for more helpers to join the effort.