To open up this chapter, verse one tells us that Jesus returned to His own town, and a group of people brought a paralyzed man to Him to be healed. Initially, He told the man His sins were forgiven, but the religious teachers of that time claimed He was committing blasphemy. They questioned within their minds did Jesus think that He was God, and of course, Jesus heard their thoughts. He called their thoughts out and told them He would prove that He had the authority on earth to forgive sin. He turned to the man and commanded him to stand up, pick up His mat, and go home. And the man got up and went home.
Friend, I cannot express this enough; you NEED friends that are on the same spiritual journey as you. You need friends that have made a decision to live for God. You need friends that are able to see that you have become paralyzed within yourself and carry you before the King! You need friends that are able to see your vulnerabilities and areas of need. You need friends that are able to pray over you, speak life to you, and hold you accountable.
I want to encourage you not to doubt Jesus and His authority like the religious teachers did. God in the flesh was standing right before them, and they did not even realize it. Open your eyes, friend. See Jesus standing in the midst of those circumstances that feel as if they are overtaking you. See Jesus utilizing some of those circumstances to cause a shift within you, to increase your faith, to kill your flesh, to being you into submission to Him, to bring you to a place of complete surrender to Him. Friend, the same power that Jesus possesses to heal the sick, make the lame walk, make the blind to see, and cause the storms to calm rests within you. You were created with that same dominion and authority within you. Exercise your authority against the plots of the enemy, and see Jesus in the midst of the valley!
In verses nine through 13, Jesus calls Matthew as His disciple. Matthew was a tax collector, and He left His business to follow Jesus. We read that Matthew hosted a dinner party and invited Jesus and the disciples to join him. When the Pharisees saw Jesus there, they questioned the disciples as to why He was eating with those types of people. And you know Jesus clapped back. He told them that healthy people do not need a doctor, sick people do. Jesus told them He came to call the sinners, not the people who think that they are righteous. Jesus had a valid point. Why would He be dining those who thought that they had already arrived? I reflected on these points in relation to my personal life. I used to be the life of the party, but since turning back to God, I avoid those types of environments. I don’t avoid them due to believing that I would partake in the festivities because I know I have been delivered from that lifestyle. I avoid them because I felt out of place; I also felt as if I would be judged for being “out of place” as a leader within my church. But I realized that I had a similar mindset as the Pharisees did by thinking that I did not belong in such an environment. The same people that witnessed me being the life of the party have witnessed me be transformed. And just as Jesus dined with sinners, I have the duty to as well in an attempt to show them Christ! Because it is in these verses that Jesus revealed that He desires for the lost to be found. He desires to save the sinners. No matter how far we think we’ve come, we still have work to do within ourselves. No matter how righteous we think we are, we are not perfect and never will be perfect. So friend, everywhere you go, allow God’s glory to shine through you and render your vessel to His Spirit when He reveals a need for you to go into the uncommon places.
In verses 18 through 34, Jesus heals a synagogue leader’s daughter, the woman with the issue of blood, two blind men, and a mute man possessed by a demon. He did so in response to their faith. Friend, it takes faith! You have to believe wholeheartedly. And when those thoughts of unbelief attempt to plague your mind, you must cast them down by not thinking on them or entertaining them. This is why it is important to know and live the Bible. So when thoughts like, “You know you don’t have enough money to do that so you may as well sit down”, come into your mind, you can call on Jehovah Jireh! The woman suffered 12 years with her issue, but she did not give up. She had went everywhere and to everyone attempting to be healed. BUT she heard of a Man named Jesus! So she PRESSED through that crowd with healing on her mind. She thought “if I can just touch the fringe of His garment, I can be healed”. And that’s exactly what happened! After 12 years the woman got her healing. She believed, but she also acted!
To wrap this up, I want to reference verses 36 and 37. Jesus looked upon the crowd and had compassion towards them because they looked confused and helpless; they looked like “sheep without a shepherd”. Jesus told the disciples that the harvest for the Kingdom is great, but the workers are few; He instructed them to pray to God for more workers. Friend, you and I are the workers that Jesus was referencing. There are souls out there that are lost, confused, helpless, and they need Jesus. But we must show them Jesus, lead them to Him, and assist them in developing their relationship with Him. We have work to do so let’s get to it!
Real Talk with Keve 