| (God we thank you for giving us another day to praise You and worship you through our lives. May we resemble you and do Your Word each and every day. In Jesus name.) |
Matthew Chapter 9
New Living Translation
Jesus Heals a Paralyzed Man
1Jesus climbed into a boat and went back across the lake to his own town.
2Some people brought to him a paralyzed man on a mat. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “Be encouraged, my child! Your sins are forgiven.”
3But some of the teachers of religious law said to themselves, “That’s blasphemy! Does he think he’s God?”
4Jesus knewa what they were thinking, so he asked them, “Why do you have such evil thoughts in your hearts?
5Is it easier to say ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or ‘Stand up and walk’?
6So I will prove to you that the Son of Manb has the authority on earth to forgive sins.” Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home!”
7And the man jumped up and went home!
8Fear swept through the crowd as they saw this happen. And they praised God for sending a man with such great authority.c
Jesus Calls Matthew
9As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at his tax collector’s booth. “Follow me and be my disciple,” Jesus said to him. So Matthew got up and followed him.
10Later,
Matthew invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests,
along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners.
11But when the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with such scum?d”
12When Jesus heard this, he said, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do.”
13Then he added, “Now go and learn the meaning of this Scripture: ‘I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.’e For I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.”
14One day the disciples of John the Baptist came to Jesus and asked him, “Why don’t your disciples fastf like we do and the Pharisees do?”
15Jesus replied, “Do
wedding guests mourn while celebrating with the groom? Of course not.
But someday the groom will be taken away from them, and then they will
fast.
16“Besides, who would patch old clothing with new cloth? For the new patch would shrink and rip away from the old cloth, leaving an even bigger tear than before.
17“And
no one puts new wine into old wineskins. For the old skins would burst
from the pressure, spilling the wine and ruining the skins. New wine is
stored in new wineskins so that both are preserved.”
Jesus Heals in Response to Faith
18As
Jesus was saying this, the leader of a synagogue came and knelt before
him. “My daughter has just died,” he said, “but you can bring her back
to life again if you just come and lay your hand on her.”
19So Jesus and his disciples got up and went with him.
20Just
then a woman who had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding
came up behind him. She touched the fringe of his robe,
21for she thought, “If I can just touch his robe, I will be healed.”
22Jesus turned around, and when he saw her he said, “Daughter, be encouraged! Your faith has made you well.” And the woman was healed at that moment.
23When Jesus arrived at the official’s home, he saw the noisy crowd and heard the funeral music.
24“Get out!” he told them. “The girl isn’t dead; she’s only asleep.” But the crowd laughed at him.
25After the crowd was put outside, however, Jesus went in and took the girl by the hand, and she stood up!
26The report of this miracle swept through the entire countryside.
Jesus Heals the Blind
27After Jesus left the girl’s home, two blind men followed along behind him, shouting, “Son of David, have mercy on us!”
28They went right into the house where he was staying, and Jesus asked them, “Do you believe I can make you see?”
“Yes, Lord,” they told him, “we do.”
29Then he touched their eyes and said, “Because of your faith, it will happen.”
30Then their eyes were opened, and they could see! Jesus sternly warned them, “Don’t tell anyone about this.”
31But instead, they went out and spread his fame all over the region.
32When they left, a demon-possessed man who couldn’t speak was brought to Jesus.
33So
Jesus cast out the demon, and then the man began to speak. The crowds
were amazed. “Nothing like this has ever happened in Israel!” they
exclaimed.
34But the Pharisees said, “He can cast out demons because he is empowered by the prince of demons.”
The Need for Workers
35Jesus
traveled through all the towns and villages of that area, teaching in
the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And he
healed every kind of disease and illness.
36When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
37He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few.
38So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.”
There is so much in this chapter to talk about. First, the main reason that Jesus came down to the earth is to save each one of us and bring us back to God. 1 John 3:8 says, "For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil." So when he says in verse 2 your sins are forgiven, Jesus can do this because this was what he was sent to do. To establish this in our lives and give us eternal life he dies on the cross so that we can come back through God through the one time sacrifice of Jesus. God we thank you so much!
ReplyDeleteSecond, when we come to God we need to have faith that He is able. mark 9:23 says"Anything is possible if a person believes." The key is that we have to believe. How can we ask God to do something for us if we do not believe that He can? The more we know about Him the more we can trust in Him,
Last, I want to address the call to believers. In verse 37 thru 38 it shows how many people are just waiting to hear about Jesus. Especially today there are so many people who need to hear that there is hope. Romans 10:14 says,"But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them?" As believers it is our job to let others know about the hope that is found in Christ. It is not all about telling people all the bad stuff they are doing but focusing on what they need, which is Christ. We were all once doing things that we now regret but God saw past that and saved us. Let others know of the peace that God gives you through every situation and although you may go through hard times you can still be encouraged because God said He will never leave you nor forsake you!
Be a blessing today and remember what Jesus has done for you!