Matthew 8-10
- Jesus touched the leper. This is something that Brad talks about all the time, and for a very good reason. Jesus touched the man with leprosy.
Leprosy is a skin disease that was believed to mean that someone was cursed and contagious. They were ostracized (big word that means "kicked out") from the towns. They had to leave their homes and their families.
They would yell "UNCLEAN!!! UNCLEAN!!!" so that people would know not to go near them. They were literally "untouchable." If you touched them, you would also join in "their curse."
Jesus touched this man. Jesus touched the man who was "untouchable." Jesus joined in the curse. This is 100% an example of the gospel. It is a beautiful picture.
- Jesus healed the centurion's servant. This story may be more amazing than the leper story. Think about it... this Roman (not-Jewish) centurion hears about Jesus and believes. And he doesn't even want a "magic show."
99% of the people who followed Jesus wanted to see miracles and magical stuff. This guy just wanted his servant to be healed. He didn't even think that he was worthy of having the Messiah in his house.
This centurion has a respect for Christ and His power that very few Christians (even today) have. (Maybe especially today is more appropriate)
- Jesus doesn't want just anyone. Matthew 8:19-22 (and the same passage in Luke) has always been a crazy, "non-American church" passage.
People come to Jesus wanting to follow Him and to become disciples. And what does Jesus do? He tells them "thanks, but no thanks." He sends them away. He gives them reasons not to follow Him.
Jesus would be a terrible pastor. He tells people not to join His flock. The point He is making is something that we too often miss. Jesus doesn't want to be an add-on to our lives. He doesn't want to jump in trunk off our car and become our own little trunk monkey to fix flat tires and ward off road rage.
He wants (and demands) to be the driver. And if you think about it, He made the car... so He knows best.
- The disciples still don't get it. 8 chapters into Matthew and the disciples still don't understand who Jesus is. The believe He is the Messiah, but it amazes them when He calms the storm. Those guys...
sound eerily similar to me. 24 years into my life and I still don't get it. I still try to do life my own way. I still don't trust God to handle situations. I still think I am in control. At least the disciples had only been with Jesus for a couple months/years at this point. What's my excuse?
- Healthy people don't go to the doctor. Jesus is hanging out with Matthew's buddies (who happen to be liars, cheats, and prostitutes) and the church-goers don't like that. And what is Jesus' response? He says "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick."
If churches really believed this, I think it would completely change the way that we did life at church. But when church is about me and my wants and my desires and my preferences, I think I miss the point.
(One quick example) What kind of music do teenagers listen to? Hip-hop. What kind of music is put out by 90% of Christian musicians? Pop/Rock music. I know of 1 hip-hop/rap artist who puts out Christian music (that is good enough for me to recommend to teens). 1... that's it. I think the church is missing something here...
- Demons were real in Jesus day. Luckily, Satan and his demons no longer attack us. They no longer cripple people. They no longer make people insane. Demons haven't been around in 2000 years. Or have they?
Why do we ignore the spirit realm so much? Are we too weak as Christians to ward off Satan and his demons? Are too weak to even acknowledge their existence? Do we think that if we ignore it, that Satan doesn't exist?
I think that Christians (especially non-Charismatic ones) are very ignorant of the spirit world. The Bible talks about it all the time, but (in our literal translation) we don't take those parts literally.
- Jesus describes the life of a Christian. Matthew 10 is Jesus' description of what it means to be a Christ-follower. This is how Jesus describes the church. This is what Jesus expects of His followers.
Read it... seriously, do it. Does that look at all like my Sunday morning hobby? HECK (I don't think heck is a strong enough word) NO!!! We have so missed the mark. We are so far from what Jesus describes.
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