INVERSE FOCUS ADVENTIST RADIO
Matthew 8
1-4 this leper had a serious disease called leprosy. A terrible disease and apparently contagious. Anyone with this disease is unclean and has a plague Leviticus 13:44-46; Numbers 5:2-3. The leper asked Jesus if He was willing and of course, Jesus responded and said "I will" the man was clean. When no one touched him, Jesus not only healed him but also touched him. He put forth His hand and touched him. Leprosy is also a symbol of sin Leviticus 13:44-46, which is unclean and being unclean is sin or iniquity Isaiah 64:6. Being unclean is sin Zechariah 13:1; 2 Corinthians 12:21; Leviticus 16:16. What Christ did for this man represent what He can do in cleansing the soul temple from sin. In some instances when we pray for healing it does not happen immediately, but in the case of leprosy the appeal is granted immediately. When we ask for deliverance from sin, God does not delay to grant the blessing DA 266.2. A priest have to examine the person to determine if a person has leprosy or not Leviticus 13:2-3. After being healed Jesus told him to show thyself to the priest and offer the gift that Moses commanded. Here, Jesus shows respect for keeping the ceremonial law and also He was trying to reach the priest that they may also believe in Him. It would have been a testimony to them or should I say it was testimony but they refused it. This typified when we come to Jesus today not only will He clean us but when He also examine us there will be no spot or blemish. Jesus is our priest today.
5-13 Jesus went into Capernaum and a centurion must have had a close friendship with his servant who was sick. In Matthew it appears that the centurion came to Jesus, but in Luke he sent someone or the elders of the Jews to Jesus. Either way he was seeking Jesus. A centurion is a Roman soldier who commands 100 men, where the word century is related which means 100 years. Obviously he was a nice man because he also built the Jews a synagogue Luke 7:5. So he heard of Jesus and wanted his servant to be healed. This is a great example of intercession prayer for the sick. His servant was sick with palsy, which sounds like a disease affecting motion which causes to be mostly in bed Matthew 9:2; Mark 2:3-4; Acts 9:33.
The centurion has never met Jesus in person, he only heard of Him Luke 7:3, 6. But he was moved and inspired by what he heard. This led him to see his unworthiness (humility) and sought the Jews to ask (faith) Jesus about healing his servant (humility and faith go hand and hand). The Jews thought he was worthy and he thought he was not worthy. The centurion had an understanding of authority. He recognize that Jesus was the creator and all He had to do was just say the word and his servant will be healed. Jesus marveled at him and was impressed with his faith. Then Jesus said there will be more outside coming into the kingdom than those who are inside going out. Matthew 8:11-12. Jesus told the centurion to go back because it has been done according to thy faith. His servant was healed the same hour. This centurion was focused and don’t let prejudice, hatred, or discrimination deter him. He has heard of the teaching of Christ and he knew he can met the need of the soul. His faith was in the word of Jesus only and he depended on it and expect it to perform and do exactly what was said. We have to believe in the power of the word of God. Jesus demonstrates the power of His word all through our His ministry.
The Jewish elders who recommended the centurion to Christ had shown how far they were from possessing the spirit of the gospel. They did not recognize that our great need is our only claim on God's mercy. In their self-righteousness they commended the centurion because of the favor he had shown to "our nation." But the centurion said of himself, "I am not worthy." His heart had been touched by the grace of Christ. He saw his own unworthiness; yet he feared not to ask help. He trusted not to his own goodness; his argument was his great need. His faith took hold upon Christ in His true character. He did not believe in Him merely as a worker of miracles, but as the friend and Saviour of mankind. It is thus that every sinner may come to Christ. "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us." Titus 3:5. When Satan tells you that you are a sinner, and cannot hope to receive blessing from God, tell him that Christ came into the world to save sinners. We have nothing to recommend us to God; but the plea that we may urge now and ever is our utterly helpless condition that makes His redeeming power a necessity. Renouncing all self-dependence, we may look to the cross of Calvary and say,—
"In my hand no price I bring;
Simply to Thy cross I cling." . DA 316.4-DA 317.2
14-17 Jesus went to Peter’s house and his mother-in-law was sick with a fever and he touched her hand and she was healed. As soon as she was healed, she started to minister unto the people that were in the house. This account is also at Mark 1:29-34; Luke 4:38-41 and it gives a little more detail. This was the Sabbath day, in Luke 4:15, 16 it tells us that Jesus went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, but verse 29 says they thrust him out. Then verse 31, Jesus went to Capernaum and taught on the sabbath and also cast out an unclean spirit. After this he arose out of the synagogue and went to Simon’s house which is Peter and it was still the Sabbath. It says all the city was gathered together at the door because the city heard Jesus was there. The reason it says "when even come" because it was the Sabbath day and for fear of the rabbis, they waited for the sunset to come to Jesus to be healed DA 259.2. The fascinating point is in Matthew 8:16 it says, "he cast out the spirits with his word" the word has power, in Mark 1:27 it says ..."even the unclean spirits...obey him." Like the centurion, Christ is looking for those who has faith in Him and His word. Do you believe His word has power? Psalm 107:20. When Jesus healed, it says he took our infirmities and bare our sicknesses. When and how did Jesus took our infirmities and bare our sicknesses? Matthew 26:38, it was at Gethsemane and the cross that He bore the weight of sin upon Him. This shows that Christ personal relation to disease, not in a way physically. Christ’s relation to human sickness was of the same kind as His relation to human sin. He knew no sin, yet He was made sin for us. He felt the weight pressing upon Him. His flesh may never been subject to disease, but He did bear them or He sense something was different. When Jesus said "Somebody hath touched me" in the story of the woman who touched His garment, this virtue was power that left Him. It was love and life giving power Luke 6:19; Mark 5:30. Where did that sickness go? Jesus bore it in His own body 1 Peter 2:24. All the sicknesses that even exist today Christ bore them as well. Isaiah 63:9 In all their affliction he was afflicted. He carried the sickness of others TMK 48
Christ alone was able to bear the afflictions of the many. "In all their affliction he was afflicted" (Isaiah 63:9). He never bore disease in His own flesh, but He carried the sickness of others. With tenderest sympathy He looked upon the suffering ones who pressed about Him. He groaned in spirit as He saw the work of Satan revealed in all their woe, and He made every case of need and of sorrow His own. No multiplicity of numbers distracted Him. No anguish overwhelmed Him. With a power that never quailed He cast out the evil spirits that possessed mind and body, while the pain of the sufferers thrilled through His whole being. The power of love was in all His healing. He identified His interests with suffering humanity. . TMK 48.2
18-22 similar passage is in Luke 9:57-62. So Jesus shares what is discipleship. Here you have two different people, a scribe and a disciple. For the scribe it doesn’t say what his excuse is but by Jesus’ response maybe he didn’t consider that Jesus doesn’t have a place to stay or how poor He was 2 Corinthians 8:9. However, it does say it for the disciple. He wanted to bury his father and Jesus said let the dead bury the dead. If you look at this literary the dead cannot bury the dead, so Jesus must refer to those who are still living, that they are spiritually dead. It’s a good duty to properly bury your loved one, but he was making an excuse and using it as a way to delay following Jesus. We make too many excuses, it’s because we don’t love the Lord.
23-27 Jesus was pretty busy teaching and healing and He finally was able to enter a ship to get some rest. But while sailing across the sea, there came a great tempest upon the sea. It sounded pretty rough that the disciples had a hard time controlling their boat. Jesus was still sleeping and they woke Him up frantically saying "Lord, save us, we perish" and Jesus tells them Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? but He framed it in a question. We need to have more faith. Psalms 89:9; 93:3-4; 107:29, 30. Fear shows lack of faith. Jesus rebuked the winds and the sea and it was calm. Here, Jesus was sleeping in the storm and had no fear because He rested in the Father’s care. The word that He spoke was the power of God, His Father’s Word DA 336.1. Isaiah 32:17. The lesson here is as Jesus rested by faith in the Father’s care, so we are to rest in the care of our Saviour DA 336.2. Th other lesson also is that Jesus can calm our troubled soul and give us peace. Christ is our peace Ephesians 2:14, we have to learn to come to Him with our burdens and troubles and he will give us peace.
28-34 This story demonstrates how we are not to have any fear. Jesus cast out the devils from these men. Before casting them out the demons speak and ask Jesus if He was coming to torment them before the time. I wonder why they said that? In 2 Peter 2:4, it says God spare not the angels that sinned...to be reserved unto judgment. What is their judgment? 2 Peter 2:9 to be punished. Jude 1:6 these demons recognize Jesus and knew He was the son of God. The devil knows he has a short time Revelation 12:12. After the Second Coming of Christ, the evils angels will be left here on earth to reflect for a thousand years their rebellion. Satan will be bound and can’t tempt and deceive no longer until this period is complete. Paul says that the saints shall judge the world and angels 1 Corinthians 6:2-3. The time that the demons are afraid of is the time of the judgment to receive punishment at the end of the millennium. God is keeping the angels alive until the very end. GC 660.2. In Luke 8:31, the demons ask Jesus not to command them to go out into the deep. The demons are herded to a swine of pigs and the pigs drown in the sea. The Lord delivered these men and in Mark 5:15 it says, these men were clothed and in their right mind. Jesus told them to go home and share the great things the Lord hath done for them. They began to publish what God had done and people marveled. Although, they told Jesus to leave, He sent them witnesses through other means to receive the message of salvation. It is in working to spread the good news of salvation that we are brought near to the Saviour DA 339.4. Even the power of demons is under the control of our Saviour, and the working of evil is overruled for good DA 340.3.