JESUS COMMISSIONS THE TWELVE - MATTHEW 10:1-15

 Matthew 10

Jesus Picks The Twelve

10:1-4

After stressing the need for laborers to proclaim the kingdom and shepherd the sheep, Jesus commissions the 12 disciples. Matthew called them “his disciples” which indicates they had already become a special group among the larger group of disciples. 

Matthew lists them for us in groups of two. First are Simon\Peter and his brother Andrew. Simon is a Hebrew name. It may be a contraction of the name Simeon.

Jesus announced that Simon would be called Cephas. (John 1:40) Cephas is an Aramaic name meaning “rock”. Jesus spoke Aramaic, as did most of the people in the area. The New Testament writers wrote primarily in Greek. They translated the name Cephas to “Petros”. It means a small rock or pebble. Paul mostly referred to him as Cephas. 

When the church adopted Latin as its language, it translated the name Cephas into “Petrus”. It was eventually Anglicized into “Peter”. 

Matthew also names Simon as “first” indicating a leadership role. 

Although John presents Andrew as following Christ before Simon, and bringing Simon to Christ, Simon becomes more prominent than Andrew.

Andrew’s role is bringing people to Jesus, as he did with Simon. He found the boy with the loaves and fishes and brought him to Jesus. (John 6:8) He, with Philip, brought some Greeks to see Jesus. (John 12:22)

Next, Matthew lists the brothers James and John. James is the first martyr of the Twelve. (Acts 12:2) They are also identified as sons of a man named Zebedee. 

They are part of the inner circle of three along with Peter. They are present at the Transfiguration. (Matthew 17) They were present at Gethsemene. (Matthew 26)

Then, Matthew lists Philip and Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, then Simon the Zealot.  

A Zealot was one who advocated violence to overthrow the Roman government. They were aligned with the Pharisees in their observance of the law, but looking for revolution.  

The King James Version labels Simon as the “Canaanite”. However, that would make him a Gentile and a pagan. The word should be “cananaean” which is Aramaic for “zealot”. 

Lastly appears Judas Iscariot. Judas is identified as the one who betrayed Jesus. There are seven places in the New Testament where Judas is listed by name and as the betrayer or traitor. 

So we see the disciples are a collection of very different kinds of people. Imagine the Zealot sitting down to dinner with the tax collector. One wants to expel the Romans by force, one works for the Romans. 

Four are fishermen and probably knew each other before becoming disciples. The others are not fishermen. 

Peter, Andrew, and Philip were all from Bethsaida, so they probably knew each other. 

They all come in with different backgrounds, different abilities, and different expectations. But Jesus makes them into his missionary force. 

It is a preview of the church. We come from different places and backgrounds but are united in Christ. As Paul wrote: “There is neither Jew or Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus”. (Galatians 3:28) 

Jesus gave these disciples authority to do some of the things Jesus had authority to do. He gave them authority over demons (unclean spirits) to cast them out of people, and to heal every type of disease.  (1) They were also given the authority to raise the dead to life. (8) These 12 now stand out from the rest of the disciples because of this authority.

This authority to perform miracles validates their authority to proclaim the gospel with Jesus as the Messiah\Christ. 

Jesus Sends the Twelve

10:5-15

Having given them authority, Jesus sent the Twelve out as evangelists. They were only to go to the Jews. (6) This is the principle that Paul followed: the Jew first and then the Greek, the Gentiles. (Romans 1:16)

These disciples were to proclaim that the kingdom is at hand. The king has come and the kingdom comes with him. They were also to show that the kingdom was at hand by healing the sick, raising the dead, and casting out demons. They were advancing the kingdom of Christ and driving out the kingdom of Satan. 

They were not to profit from their work. They were not to acquire gold, silver, or copper, no gas or extra clothes or shoes. The reason is they received without pay and, therefore, needed to give without pay.

They were also to depend on God’s provision for them through the people they ministered to. The people who received the them and the gospel were to provide for them. We follow this example today, providing financially for our ministers. 

They were to receive what was offered. If someone invited them to stay at their house, they were to stay there until they left the town. (11) They were not to shop around for the best quarters. They could declare peace on houses which welcomed them and withdraw it from those who rejected them. (13) They withdrew it by not staying there at a house where the welcome was withheld or given with reluctance. 

And the places that rejected them would be judged. The disciples were to shake the dust of the place off of their feet of those places. (14) This reflect a Jewish custom of removing dust from the feet or clothes when leaving a pagan land and entering Israel. Those who rejected the disciples were rejecting Christ. Thus, the disciples were to treat them as pagans. 

Those who rejected the disciples would also experience terrible judgment at the final judgment, so bad it would be worse than what happened to Sodom and Gomorrrah. 

God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah for their wickedness. (Genesis 18) He rained sulphur and fire upon them. 

Those who reject Jesus will suffer terrible judgment at the end of this age. Commit your life to him today! 

THE COMPASSIONATE SAVIOR - MATTHEW 9:18-38

 

Raising A Daughter, Healing A Woman

9:18-26

In the remainder of chapter 9, Matthew continues to tells us the series of healings that began in 8:28 with two interruptions. The first interruption was one who came to follow Jesus and was told the cost of doing so. (8:18-22) The second was the disciples of John asking about fasting. (9:14-17) 

The first healing story is an interruption of the interruption. While Jesus was explaining the fasting issue at the dinner table, a synagogue ruler came into the house and knelt before him. He was desperate. His daughter had just died and he wanted Jesus to come and restore her life, to resurrect her. (19) His kneeling before Jesus is an act of humility and respect. 

He believed Jesus could do this by touching her. (18) Jesus got up from the table and followed the man to his home. The disciples followed Jesus. 

On the way to the ruler’s house, however, another interruption occurs. A woman who had been bleeding for 12 years came up and touched the fringe, or tassels, at the bottom of Jesus’ garment. The Jews were required to wear these tassels on their garments. God gave this command while they were in the wilderness. Numbers 15:37-41 says:

The LORD said to Moses,“Speak to the people of Israel, and tell them to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a cord of blue on the tassel of each corner. And it shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the LORD, to do them, not to follow after your own heart and your own eyes, which you are inclined to whore after. So you shall remember and do all my commandments, and be holy to your God. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God: I am the LORD your God.”  

The woman had great faith in Jesus, believing she would be healed if she only touched his garment. Jesus acknowledged her faith and healed her instantly. (22)

Continuing on to the ruler’s house, Jesus did touch the daughter’s hand and resurrected her. As you would expect, people all through the area told others about this. (25)

There is also here some contrast between the faith of the different people. Remember the centurion? He believed Jesus could heal his servant without going to him. He could just say the word. Here, the Jewish ruler wanted Jesus to come to his home and touch her. 

The woman who was bleeding did not need Jesus’ attention, she believed just touching the bottom of his robe was enough. The Jewish leader barged into Matthew’s house during their dinner  and captured Jesus’ attention. 

Then there were the professional mourners and flute players outside the ruler’s house. They laughed at Jesus, not believing at all that he could restore her life. (24) They may have even believed Jesus could heal illness. But they did not believe he could restore life. He proved them wrong. He showed his authority over even death. 

Two Blind Men

9:27-31

After this resurrection, Jesus returned to Matthew’s house. Two blind men followed him into the house. They are notable because they referred to Jesus as “Son of David”. This is the first time Jesus is called that in Matthew’s gospel.

This is a term for the Messiah\Christ who is a descendant of David, according to God’s promise to David. (2 Samuel 7:12-16) The blind men were confessing Jesus as the Messiah. 

There was much expectation in Israel that the Messiah would come soon. They believed the statement of Isaiah concerning the Messiah: “Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened…”. (Isaiah 35:5) The blind men believed that Jesus, being the Messiah, would have mercy on them and would give them their sight. 

The men also affirmed to Jesus their faith that Jesus could heal their blindness. So, Jesus healed them. He gave them sight (opened their eyes).

Jesus told the men not to tell anyone what happened, but they did. They would have been asked why they were able to see after being blind. The men would have been excited to tell them. So Jesus’ fame continued to grow in the area.

The Quiet Man

9:32-34

Jesus’ next encounter was with a man oppressed by a demon. The demon made the man mute, unable to speak. Jesus cast out the demon, allowing the man to speak. Jesus exercised authority over the demon just as he exercised authority over illness and death.

The people watching had never seen this kind of thing. They marveled at it. They had been helpless in the presence of demons. Jesus was not. He had authority over them. As he enlarged his kingdom, he cast out the former power, Satan and his demons. Jesus would later say he bound Satan, the “strong man”. (Matthew 12:29)

The Pharisees, however, refused to believe. They accused Jesus of casting out demons by the prince of demons (Satan). That is ridiculous, of course. Satan would not relinquish his power to Jesus willingly. Rather, Jesus was expanding his kingdom and taking from the kingdom of Satan. 

Jesus put it this way: “now will the ruler of this world be cast out”. (John 12:31)

The Compassionate Christ

9:35-38

Jesus continued to travel across the area, visiting everywhere from small villages to cities. He taught in synagogues, his fame giving him the status to be invited to speak. When he taught, he proclaimed to gospel of the kingdom. 

As Jesus went, he healed those who came to him. He cast out demons from them. Yes, he did this to bring in his kingdom. But, he also did it because he had compassion for them. He saw them. They were harassed and helpless in the face of Satan’s power and their own sin. They were like sheep, basically defenseless. 

They needed a shepherd. Their shepherds had failed them. Their kings and the priests had failed them. God had already judged them. He said this through the prophet Ezekiel, as recorded in Ezekiel 34:1-10.

God also promised and vowed to be their shepherd by providing one from the line of David to be their shepherd. (Ezekiel 34:23) Jesus is that Shepard. He called himself the “good shepherd”. (John 10:11, 14)

Jesus also knew that more shepherds, or “under shepherds”  were needed.  He called them laborers. (37) He told his disciples to pray that the Father would send more laborers because there was a great harvest to be had. 

The first of these laborers were the Twelve Jesus called and to whom he gave authority to expand the kingdom, as we will see in chapter 10. 

HEALING, CALLING, FASTING - MATTHEW 9:1-17

 

Healing A Paralyzed Man

9:1-7

Jesus had been on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee, having crossed over to avoid the crowds. ((8:18) In this story, he crossed back over to Capernaum on the northwestern shore. Matthew wrote that he (Jesus)  came to his own city because Jesus had moved there from Nazareth. 

Peter lived in Capernaum. Jesus may have stayed with him. The following story may have occurred at Peter’s house.

This story of healing a paralyzed man is the same story recorded in Mark 2 and Luke 5. Matthew abbreviated the story, leaving out details that were not relevant to the point he wanted to make. Matthew does not tell us about the friends digging through the roof and dropping the man in front of Jesus.

But, Jesus is confronted with a paralyzed man who has been brought to him by friends. Jesus was impressed by their faith. The paralytic and his friends believed Jesus could and would heal him.

Jesus addressed the man as “my son”. This does not imply a familial relationship; it is simply an affectionate term used by a man to address a younger man. 

But, rather than touching the man and healing him, Jesus declares his sins forgiven. This implies a connection between the man’s sins and his paralysis. However, this is not the point if the story either.

The point of the event is to show Jesus’ authority. We see this from the context. In the previous stories, Jesus showed his authority over disease, over demons, and over nature. Here he shows his authority to forgive sins. 

So, Matthew moves on to the point. He noted that there were some scribes present and they began to say to each other that Jesus was blaspheming. They believed, rightly, that only God can forgive sins. Since Jesus was declaring the man’s sins forgiven, he was claiming to be God. 

Jesus knew their thoughts. This may have been part of his divine nature, but it could also be that he knew the scribes and how they thought, so he knew what they were thinking and saying. 

Jesus called their thinking evil. It is evil because they are denying Jesus’ divinity (that he is God). (4) Note the contrast: first he discerns the faith of the paralytic and his friends, now he discerns, knows, the evil thoughts of the scribes. 

He confronts them with a question, saying which is easier, to say sins are forgiven, or to say rise and walk, healing the man. (5) 

In our view, we would say it is easier to say your sins are forgiven, because that is not something you can see. But in the view of the scribes, it was more difficult to say your sins are forgiven because only God could do it. 

So, Jesus agreed to do the easier thing: he said rise and walk, and the man did. Yet, how could Jesus do this? A man of God could not commit blasphemy in one breath and declare healing, a power from God, in the next. 

Jesus, therefore, proved his ability to do the more difficult thing by doing the lesser thing. He proved his authority to forgive sins by demonstrating his authority to heal disease. He is the Son of Man. He is also God with us, Immanuel, whom God sent to save his people from their sins. This is exactly what the angel of the Lord said to Joseph: you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins”. (1:21)

Calling Matthew

9:9-13

As Jesus left Capernaum, he came upon a tax booth, likely at the border between the territories of Philip and Herod Antipas. If one were bringing goods from one territory to the other, one would be required to stop at the tax booth and pay an excise tax on those goods. 

Matthew was a tax collector. He was sitting in the tax booth, responsible for collecting the taxes. Tax collectors were often despised in Israel for cooperating with the Roman oppressors. In addition, they made an income from those collections and many were dishonest. They were considered sinners by the Pharisees. 

Matthew was, therefore, an unlikely candidate for disciple of a rabbi. But, Jesus had authority to forgive sin. He called Matthew to follow him and Matthew immediately followed. (9) 

Matthew evidently threw a party to introduce Jesus to his friends. He invited many tax collectors and other sinners. Sinners may have included those who did not follow the strict rules of the Pharisees, but otherwise kept the law. That is what the New International Version tries to convey by putting the word “sinners” in quotation marks. 

They all reclined at a dinner table with Jesus and his disciples, probably in a courtyard in front of the house. Matthew must have been wealthy to have a table big enough for all these people.

The Pharisees observed the dinner. They saw Jesus dining with all these sinners. Jesus and his disciples risked  ceremonial defilement for eating with sinners. They asked the disciples why Jesus, their teacher, ate with these people. This question was more of an accusation than a search for information. 

Jesus heard them and took the opportunity to reply. He replied with a medical metaphor. It is the sick who need a physician, not those who are well. (12) He meant, sinners were the exact people who needed a savior. Therefore, the savior went to them. 

Jesus then quoted Hosea 6:6 from the Septuagint. The word translated as mercy is “hesed”. It often means covenant love. The English Standard Version in Hosea 6:6 uses the term “steadfast love”. The point made in Hosea was that although the Israelites had continued to perform the rituals of temple worship, they had lost the meaning and the requirement to love God. 

Jesus was, therefore, telling the Pharisees they were more aligned in attitude with those apostate Israelites of Hosea’s time than with true worship. Their belief in their righteousness was misplaced as was their concept of the Messiah. Jesus corrected both. His mission was to save sinners. Those who refused to see themselves as sinners excluded themselves from salvation and the kingdom. 

The Old v. The New

9:14-17

Some disciples of John came to Jesus asking why his disciples did not fast. They noted that both they and the Pharisees fasted. The Jews had invented many fast days beyond that required in the Law.

Jesus heard the question and answered with 3 metaphors:

1. Wedding guests with the bridegroom

2. New cloth patched on old garments

3. Old wineskins with new wine.

Jesus said he is the bridegroom. He draws on the Father calling himself the bridegroom in the Old Testament (Isaiah 62:5; Hosea 2:19-20)

As long as the bridegroom is with the wedding guests, there is no mourning. But when he is taken away (the Ascension) they will fast.  

Jesus pointed out that you do not put a new piece of cloth that is not pre-shrunk as a patch on an old garment, for it will put away from the old cloth and make a new tear. When I was a little boy, my parents were very frugal. They would buy blue jeans (denim pants) for me to wear and they would buy them too long for me so I could grow into them.

At first, I would have to roll up the bottoms to the correct length. But as I grew, the cuffs would get shorter and shorter until I did not need to roll them up. But, sometimes the knee would wear out before I outgrew the length. My mother would iron on a denim patch to cover the hole. 

But, if the patch was not pre-shrunk, or my mother did not wash it, it would shrink and create a new tear. That is sort of what Jesus is talking about. You do not patch old cloth with new cloth.

Lastly, wineskins were made from animal skins. As they got old, they got stiff and less pliable. As the gases from new wine fermenting stretch the skin, it will rupture the old skin and ruin both the skin and the wine. So you put new wine in new wineskins that are pliable and can expand with the gases and not rupture.

Jesus was saying he brings something new. His kingdom is not just a graft onto the old covenant. There is a new relationship with God that obviates the need for the old ceremonies and observances.

We can love, fellowship with, and obey God if we are in Christ.

We do not require priests, temples, or sacrifices of animals to do so.  

JESUS' AUTHORITY OVER SICKNESS - MATTHEW 8:1-17

Jesus Healing A Leper

8:1-7

Having ended the Sermon On The Mount, Jesus enters into several interactions that involve healing and faith. There is still a large crowd following him. 

Matthew ended his record of the sermon by saying Jesus taught as one with authority. Matthew will now show us that Jesus has authority over disease as well.

As a side note, these events are likely not in chronological order. So, you might find the same or similar events in the other gospels in other places of the timeline. The reason is that Matthew often puts events together that have the same theme, showing the same thing about Jesus. 

The first encounter is with a leper, a skin disease. Generally, no one would come near a leper. The Old Covenant law had several regulations concerning this. A leper had to live alone outside the camp or city. He had to wear torn clothes. When he walked around, he had to cry out “unclean, unclean”. (Leviticus 13:45-48) 

People would avoid coming near a leper to avoid contracting the disease. You can imagine the life of this poor man. He wore ragged clothes. He was lonely. He suffered from the disease. He was a pariah to everyone. 

Yet, he was driven to approach Jesus. He came near him and knelt before him. He called Jesus “Lord”, a term of respect. It may be used like we would use the word “sir” today. Or, it may have been a recognition of Jesus’ deity. He acknowledged the ability of Jesus to heal him. Thus, he showed great faith in Jesus. 

Jesus expressed his willingness to heal him. He reached out and touched the man, something no one else would do. It would make a person ceremonially unclean to do so. But, Jesus could not be made unclean.

So, Jesus healed the man. He made him clean. He told him to obey the requirements of the Law regarding his healing, but not to tell anyone how it happened. 

The Centurion’s Servant

8:5-13

The next event occurs at Capernaum, Peter’s home town. There a centurion came to Jesus. He also referred to Jesus as “Lord”, something a Roman officer would not do to a Jewish man. 

A centurion was a professional Roman army officer. He commanded 100 men, known as a century. Obtaining this rank meant the man was brave, competent in leadership, and responsible. Centurions are usually presented in a good light in the gospels.

As an officer and a Roman, it is notable that he would come to Jesus on behalf of one of his servants. Jesus volunteered to come to the centurion’s home to heal the man.

But the centurion did not believe he was worthy of having Jesus come into his home, showing great humility. He believed, also, that Jesus could just declare the man healed and he would be healed. This showed great faith.

It also shows us the profound thinking of the centurion, greater than any Jew had expressed, for he understood that Jesus was under the authority of God the Father and, therefore, had the authority of God vested in him. That included the authority and power to heal.

Jesus acknowledged and commended the man’s faith. Matthew said “he marveled” at it. (10) He declared that he had not found this level of faith in anyone in Israel.  So, he told the man the servant would be healed and the servant was immediately healed. Jesus did not have to physically touch someone to heal them. He could simply declare it.

Jesus also taught a little lesson to those within hearing range. It was about the salvation of Gentiles. He said many will come from the east and west of Israel and be saved. They would recline at table with the patriarchs in the kingdom, meaning the wedding feast of the lamb. 

The marriage, or wedding feast of the Lamb is described in Revelation 19:7-9. It is when all evil has been destroyed and the church, all believers, come and commune with the Lord Jesus, symbolized in a supper. 

In contrast, Jesus said many Jews (sons  or subjects of the kingdom) will be cast into hell. It is described as a place of outer darkness and a place of agony (weeping and gnashing of teeth). (12) 

Peter’s Mother-in-Law

8:14-17

When Jesus came into Peter’s house in Capernaum, he found Peter’s mother in law sick with a fever. He touched her hand and healed her. Notice that all of these healings are instantaneous. 

Evidently, word got out about this healing and people from the town began to bring their sick to Jesus. The fact that they waited until evening may suggest that this was a Sabbath day. They would be required to wait for the Sabbath to end at sundown. Regardless, He healed all of them. 

They also brought him many who were oppressed by demons. There seems to have been much demonic activity in the region. Jesus cast out the spirits with a word. He did not need chants or ceremonies to cast them out. This shows he had authority over demons.

Matthew again cites the Old Testament to say Jesus fulfilled it. In this case, the healing of diseases fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah 53:4, which Matthew recited. This may be Matthew’s own translation of the verse since it does not match the Septuagint which is often quoted in the New Testament. 

Regardless, Jesus is shown as exercising his authority over illness and demons, ushering in the kingdom, or inaugurating it. When the kingdom is consummated, it will be as described in Revelation 21:4:

“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”