THE BOOK OF MATTHEW – Chapter 9
The Paralyzed Healed, Matthew Called, Fasting, Healing
There are those who will tell you that the Bible was written to certain people at certain times or for particular and specific reasons. That is incorrect. The Bible is written to every person, for all times and for all the right reasons. Put more succinctly, the Bible is God’s Word, His breathed out Word, a love letter of instruction for life, both now and for eternity, written specifically to you so you may know the Lord, follow Him and do His will.
Jesus meant every word he said and said every word He meant to say. We cannot add to it and we must not take away from it. It is personal and it is powerful. Handle it with care. It is explosive.
Jesus, in this chapter, continues to teach His disciples and minister to the masses. Please, pray and ask God for insight, wisdom and understanding in the Chapter. Please read carefully and know that these are your instructions for life. Watch for your calling through these Words.
A Paralyzed Man Healed
Matthew 9:1, Getting into a boat, Jesus crossed over the Sea of Galilee and came to His own city. Verse 2. And they brought to Him a paralyzed man lying on a stretcher. And seeing their faith, Jesus said to the man who was paralyzed, “Take courage, [footnote ‘a’] son; your sins are forgiven.” Verse 3. And some of the scribes said [footnote ‘b’] to themselves, “This man is blaspheming!” Verse 4. And Jesus, perceiving their thoughts, said, “Why are you thinking evil in your hearts? Verse 5. For which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? Verse 6. But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”, then He said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, pick up your stretcher and go home.” Verse 7. And he got up and [footnote ‘c’] went home. Verse 8. But when the crowds saw this, they were [footnote ‘d’] awestruck, and they glorified God, who had given such authority to men.
(Commentary Break: These verses give us an example of what happens when frail people become arrogant and think they speak for God. We accuse and condemn. In this case the scribes misunderstood the meaning of the words ‘sin’ and ‘forgiven’, or perhaps the simply assigned their own meanings, thereby changing the Word of God by adding to it – like many theologians, Bible teachers and pastors do today.
We might equate Biblical ‘sin’ with Biblical ‘transgression’, which translates as ‘lawless disobedience’, and is similar but separate from sin. ‘Transgressions’ are willful, reckless, disobedient, and deliberate rebellion toward God and His Word.
The word ‘sin’, however, comes from the Greek word ‘Hamartía’, which means ‘to miss the mark’. Hamartia is a noun derived from the words ‘not’ and ‘a part or a share of’; ‘no part of, a loss or forfeiture from not hitting the target, i.e., missing the mark. The idea can be equated to an old English term used in archery competition. When an archer would miss the target, the judge would shout, “sin!” which meant the archer had missed the target. This should cause us to ask, “what is the target” when spoken in Biblical terms?
The ”target” is God’s Will for your life. Besides your obedience to Him, it is His Will that none perish, but all come to repentance. It is His Will that the obedient would not just have life but they would have an abundant life. It is His will that you would prosper just as your soul prospers. So, when you sin, the remedy is a contrite and humble confession of your sin, and He will forgive your sins and cleanse you of all unrighteousness.
Finally, this public healing of a paralytic caused people to be “awestruck, so they would glorify God, who had given such authority to men”. Now the questions remain, are you and I awestruck and do we glorify God? And, why or why not? We should answer and resolve these questions in our own lives. (End Commentary Break).
Matthew Called
Verse 9. As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man called Matthew sitting in the tax collector’s office; and He said to him, “Follow Me!” And he got up and followed Him.
Verse 10. Then it happened that as [footnote ‘e’] Jesus was reclining at the table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and [footnote ‘f’] sinners came and began dining with Jesus and His disciples. Verse 11. And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, “Why is your Teacher eating with the tax collectors and sinners?” Verse 12. But when Jesus heard this, He said, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick. Verse 13. Now go and learn [footnote ‘g’] what this means: ‘I DESIRE [footnote ‘h’] COMPASSION, [footnote ‘i’] RATHER THAN SACRIFICE,’ for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
(Commentary Break: At first glance, these verses would seem to be a simple narrative. But think about them. Jesus sees a man called Matthew, sitting in a tax collector’s office and says to him, “Follow Me!” And Matthew got up and followed Him. No questions, just obedience. Compare this to your response to the spoken and written Word of God to you and your response to Him.
Secondly, it is interesting to know that the words “Jesus sees a man” is correctly translated as “Jesus sees a man and he perceived everything about that man, and Jesus’ call to Matthew, “Follow Me!” is an imperative command with gravity and force. It is not an optional request.
Finally, see that the Gospel Message is for all who will have ears to hear. But, Jesus targets the sinners of this world. The ones who have missed the mark. (End Commentary Break).
The Question about Fasting
Verse 14. Then the disciples of John came to Him, asking, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?”
Verse 15. And Jesus said to them, “The [footnote ‘j’] attendants of the groom cannot mourn as long as the groom is with them, can they? But the days will come when the groom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. Verse 16. But no one puts a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for [footnote ‘k’] the patch pulls away from the garment, and a worse tear results. Verse 17. Nor do people put new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wineskins burst, and the wine pours out and the wineskins are ruined; but they put new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved.”
Miracles of Healing
Verse 18. While He was saying these things to them, behold, [footnote l’]’ a synagogue [footnote ‘m’] official came and [footnote ‘n’] bowed down before Him, and said, “My daughter has just died; but come and lay Your hand on her, and she will become alive again.” Verse 19. Jesus got up from the table and began to accompany him, along with His disciples.
Verse 20. And behold, a woman who had been suffering from a hemorrhage for twelve years came up behind Him, and touched the [footnote ‘o’] border of His [footnote ‘p’] cloak; verse 21, for she was [footnote ‘q’] saying [footnote ‘r’] to herself, “If I only touch His cloak, I will [footnote ‘s’] get well.” Verse 22. But Jesus, turning and seeing her, said, “Daughter, take courage; your faith has [footnote ‘t’] made you well.” And [footnote ‘u’] at once the woman was [footnote ‘v’] made well.
Verse 23. When Jesus came into the [footnote ‘w’] official’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd in noisy disorder, verse 24, He said, “Leave; for the girl has not died, but is asleep.” And they began laughing at Him. Verse 25. But when the crowd had been sent out, He entered and took her by the hand, and the girl [footnote ‘x’] got up. Verse 26. And this news spread throughout that land.
Verse 27. As Jesus went on from there, two men who were blind followed Him, crying out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!” Verse 28. And after He entered the house, the men who were blind came up to Him, and Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They *said to Him, “Yes, Lord.” Verse 29. Then He touched their eyes, saying, “[footnote ‘y’] It shall be done for you according to your faith.” Verse 30. And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them, saying, “See that no one knows about this!” Verse 31. But they went out and spread the news about Him throughout that land.
Verse 32. And as they were going out, behold, a demon-possessed man who was unable to speak [footnote ‘z’] was brought to Him. Verse 33. And after the demon was cast out, the man who was previously unable to speak talked; and the crowds were amazed, and were saying, “Nothing like this has ever [footnote ‘aa’] been seen in Israel.” Verse 34. But the Pharisees were saying, “He casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons.”
Verse 35. Jesus was going through all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness.
Verse 36. Seeing the crowds, He felt compassion for them, because they were [footnote ‘ab’] distressed and downcast, like sheep [footnote ‘ac’] without a shepherd. Verse 37. Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Verse 38. Therefore, plead with the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.”
(Commentary Break: The foregoing verses speak for themselves.. But the recurring theme is that ‘their faith has made them well’, as we discussed in the last chapter.
It is also interesting that although the Pharisees, the lawmakers, would slander and castigate Jesus, but that Jesus would continue to teach in their synagogues, proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom and healing every disease and every sickness. Let me repeat those last words: healing every disease. Healing every sickness. (End Commentary Break).
Jesus preached to everyone. But He has a heart for ‘the distressed, the downcast, those like sheep without a shepherd’.
It seems that many larger churches, now-a-days, while working hard to do the work of the Gospel, are leaving so many feeling like they are nothing more an audience – and sadly, the sheep have come to willingly accept that they are ‘the managed’, but without a shepherd. While the church has appointed shepherds and appoints others as ‘under shepherds’, such as deacons and elders, they still collect themselves together and lift one another up in ministry. It seems, far too often, that the sheep are just additional work and provide employment. This should not be so. We must come together in unity as the Church, each doing as he or she is called and appointed. No one is greater than any other. There is no professional and there is no laity. We are all one under Christ. We are all “ministers being built up into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ”. (see 1 Peter 2:5).
The words, teachings and instructions contained in the Bible are for our rebuke, correction, and training in righteousness, so that we, the man or woman of God, may be fully capable and equipped for every good work. Anything less is a counterfeit.
Your Brother and Friend,
Mike Young
NEXT: (coming soon) THE BOOK OF MATTHEW – Chapter 10, Instructions for Service, A Hard Road, Discipleship and The Rewards
(Please bookmark this page or subscribe for future episodes).
Discover more from Whitestone Fellowship
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
