The Way - Day 241 (Matthew 9)

Pastor Tom's Journal on Today's Reading:
Matthew 9:1-13
Jesus is asked to leave the community where He had cast the demons out of the swine, so He got back into the boat departing to Capernaum. When He arrived people brought Him a paralyzed man whom He healed (9:2-8). Obviously the religious crowd did not like Jesus claims to be God so they became very angry. As Jesus passes from this situation He encounters Matthew (Levi) who was sitting at the tax office (9:9). Tax collectors were despised and essentially outcasts because they used money for personal gain and also for Rome. The Jewish people felt that tax collectors were traitors so they looked down on them. However, Jesus reaches out to Matthew and asks him to follow Him (be His disciple). Matthew instantaneously drops everything to follow Christ. The scene shifts to Matthew's home where he had invited many of his friends to eat together with Jesus and His disciples (9:10). Of course the Pharisees were there to add their commentary on what they thought about Jesus eating and interacting with tax collectors as well as sinners. Being cowards, the Pharisees approach Jesus' disciples to ask them why Jesus was eating with the outcasts. When Jesus heard of their complaints, He responded by saying that people who are well don't need a doctor, but those who are sick (9:12). Furthermore, He explains that His mission was not to call the righteous, but sinners to turn from their sin (9:13). Jesus was ultimately attacking the Pharisees attitude of pride and invincibility. The Pharisees thought they were righteous because they adhered to their created system of rules for spirituality, but Jesus knew their hearts were full of wickedness and selfish motives. Jesus came for the weak, strung out, and the people who knew they needed help, not those who thought they had life and righteousness all figured out. Through this account we learn that the most important thing about coming to God is humility. Without admitting your need for God, you cannot go any further in a relationship with God. Every day we must wake up and acknowledge that we cannot make it without God. We need His help.

Matthew 9:14-17
Disciples of John the Baptist and the Pharisees come to Jesus asking why His disciples did not fast. Jesus responds by using an illustration of marriage (specifically the bridegroom) and states that there is no need for mourning when the bridegroom is present, but only when he is gone (9:15). In the days when the bridegroom (Jesus) is gone, His followers will then fast. Jesus knew that He would soon die for the sins of mankind and after His death the disciples would be persecuted; however, since Jesus dwelt with them now there was no need to fast in mourning. Jesus wanted His followers to understand that things would change, especially in relationship to the Old Covenant (ceremonial fastings and other rituals). The moral law would never be done away with, but many of the ceremonies would be abolished because they symbolized what Jesus Christ fulfilled. Jesus was ultimately warning the Pharisees that rituals such as fasting had no connection with salvation (Gospel). We have to remember that the Pharisees found their security in outward obedience while Christ demanded obedience from the heart. Examine your heart today and make sure that you are following Him because you love Him, not because you want to impress Him.
 
Matthew 9:18-38
Jesus has already shown that He possesses all power and can intervene in any circumstance of life. He had demonstrated healings and miraculous signs which pointed to the fact that He was the Messiah, the One who was sent to save mankind from their sin. In these verses, Jesus evidences an amazing string of healings and concludes by giving a command to His disciples (9:36-38). I want to begin by sharing the command that Jesus gave and conclude with what caused Him to give this direction to His followers. In verse 37 Jesus said that the harvest (of souls) is plentiful, but there was not enough people to tell them about the hope. Jesus commanded the disciples to pray for the Lord to send people to harvest these souls (9:38). Jesus knew there were many people who needed hope and He wanted to do something about it. Over the last few days He had encountered a woman who was desperate for God to intervene in her health issues (9:20-22), a scared parent whose child was about to die (9:23-26), two blind men who needed Jesus to restore their sight (9:27-31), and a man afflicted by a demon needed a change of life (9:32-34). Verse 35 tells us that Jesus continued preaching, teaching, and healing in the surrounding cities and His exposure to the people caused Him to have great compassion for them (9:36). Furthermore, He said that they appeared as sheep having no shepherd, in other words they were wandering aimlessly without direction. What caused Jesus to react like this? Jesus was with the people and understood their needs - He knew they needed hope! I think this is profound. Oh that we would be so involved with people that we reach out to meet their needs.

Dear God, show me the needs of others and help me respond with hope.