Daily Blast - The Book of Matthew: Chapter 8
Scripture
“When Jesus came down from the hill, large crowds followed him. 2 Then a man suffering from a dreaded skin disease came to him, knelt down before him, and said, “Sir, if you want to, you can make me clean.”
3 Jesus reached out and touched him. “I do want to,” he answered. “Be clean!” At once the man was healed of his disease. 4 Then Jesus said to him, “Listen! Don’t tell anyone, but go straight to the priest and let him examine you; then in order to prove to everyone that you are cured, offer the sacrifice that Moses ordered.””
Reflection
Within verses 1 to 17, and 28 to 34, we see Jesus doing pretty amazing things; Him demonstrating Himself as our Healer and a Giver of New Life. Looking specifically at the first miracle (verses 1 to 4), we see how Jesus heals a leper. People with leprosy in Biblical times were deemed as ‘unclean’ and were set aside as outcasts, but this leper had such faith which led him to not be restrained or intimidated by what people thought of him. He stepped out, acted in faith, and started worshipping Jesus as he approached Him; declaring that “if [He is] willing, [that He] can make [him] clean”.
God loves it when we approach Him with such faith when we are believing Him to do something – not only did the act of the leper approaching in itself displays his level of faith, but also the act of worshipping Him and even giving Him thanks in advance. The leper said “You can make me clean” – he believed that He CAN healer him. You see, God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him as without faith it is impossible to please Him (Hebrews 11:6). Without works, faith is dead (James 2:17). If one believes in something, they will attach actions to their faith. If you are believing God to help you pass a test in school for example, as well as praying and believing for Him to help you, you have to of course open up your textbook and prepare adequately enough! God will do the rest. In our series about wearing the armour of God, we learnt about the shield of faith, and we know that faith is having that assurance of the thing you are hoping for, and in itself, faith is the evidence of the yet to be seen thing (Hebrews 11:1).
The centurion had such faith in Jesus being able to heal his paralysed servant, that in his humility and reverence of Him, he said that “[he is] not worthy that [Jesus] should come under his roof. But [if Jesus was to] only speak a word, [his] servant will be healed” (verse 8). The centurion believed in the power of the spoken words of Jesus. In Isaiah 55:11, there’s a powerful declaration from God saying “so shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it”. The centurion evidently grasped this revelation and Jesus saw that and rewarded his faith with healing of his paralytic servant. Hold on to God’s promises! Declare them to God in prayer and believe that He will fulfill what He has said in His Word in your life!
Looking at the other themes in Matthew chapter 8, we learn about the cost of discipleship in verses 18-22, where Jesus instructs his disciples to drop everything and follow Him. Contrary to what we saw in verses 1 to 17, when Jesus and the disciples were on the boat and the “great tempest arose”, the disciples were fearful, and Jesus, before He rebuked the storm, responds with “why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” (verse 26). Even after Jesus calmed the storm, the disciples said, “Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”. They were yet to fully grasp the revelation of Who Jesus is to them, and so they consequently lacked faith in believing that He would calm the storm. The overwhelming situation should look tiny in comparison to Almighty God. It’s important to know who God is to you. Make it personal. Do you see Him as your FATHER (Psalm 103:13)? Your HEALER (Jeremiah 30:17)? Your SHEPHERD (Psalm 23)? Your PROVIDER (Philippians 4:19)? ALL OF THE ABOVE AND SOME? Have a think.
Challenge
Make a list of your favourite promises of God stated in His Word and make a conscious effort to speak out these verses in prayer. What are you believing God for currently? And why not try thanking God in advance for the thing(s) you are believing Him for in prayer? Also, have a think of WHO God is to you, and write it down.