Nobleton Community Church
29084 Sentinel Street PO Box 224
Nobleton, Florida 34661
Rev. Paul V. Lehmann, Pastor
813-389-8683
Nobletoncommunitychurch.org
info@nobletoncommunitychurch.org
OUR VISION IS:
To experience SPIRIT-FILLED WORSHIP AND PRAYER
To be involved in EVANGELISM, DISCIPLINING AND TRAINING PEOPLE
To use our SPIRITUAL GIFTS
To SERVE AND REACH PEOPLE FOR CHRIST, BOTH
“ACROSS THE STREET AND ACROSS THE WORLD”
Nobleton Community Church
Date October 13, 2024
Text Matthew 9:1-13
Pastor Paul Lehmann
In these chapters, Matthew assembles a collection of miracle stories designed to demonstrate that Jesus is, indeed, the Messiah and that he works by God’s power. They also emphasize his commitment to restoring those who are in need of repentance and a new life. Beginning in verse 1 of chapter 9 until verse 8 we see the connection of forgiveness of our sins and healing. In this passage, the details of this account don’t mention the details as we read about in Mark and Luke. In those accounts friends of the paralyzed man tried to get him to Jesus who was teaching in a crowded room where he was teaching, back in his “home town” Capernaum. You may be thinking, I thought he was from Nazareth. Well yes, that is where he grew up after his birth in Bethlehem, Mary and Joseph returned there, but after he started his ministry, “he did very few miracles there, because of their lack of faith” in him. On the other hand, he did his first miracle at the wedding feast in Capernaum, and they responded to him so it became the base location for his ministry.
So now: JESUS HEALS A PARLYTIIC. MATTHEW 9:1-8
He is in someone’s home where he is staying, according to Mark 2; and because of the crowd, the men carrying the paralytic couldn’t get in the house so they went up the outside staircase to the flat roof and dug through the clay tiles, so they could lower him down in front of Jesus. Seeing this faith demonstrated by his friends, Jesus said to the paralyzed man “Take heart, your sins are forgiven. “
Sometimes our healing today may depend on whether we confess our sins or not. This man didn’t confess his sins, but he needed Jesus. I believe because it was before the cross, he was healed because of the faith of his friends. For us, we must confess our sins. (I John 1;9)
My dad had Multiple myeloma (bone cancer) was in severe pain and wasn’t expected to live much longer. We were in graduate school at Nyack, NY the Fall of 1966. We didn’t know about this, but my sister told me that my dad gave her a list of people to call and ask them to forgive him. I knew that he needed to ask my sister for forgiveness, because he tried to keep her from going to Pentecostal church meetings in Akron, Ohio. I also knew that he had bitterness against his sister (my Aunt Reva) for not being fair with the distribution of inheritance. So she was on the list. My surprise was, that my sister told me there were about 20 names on the list. She called them all, and I think some were surprised that he felt that way. But after this, he began to get better, and the Lord touched him, and he lived 4 more years. I believe there is still a connection between forgiveness of sin and healing for us today.
(9:1-8). Jesus inspired controversy by first saying, “Son, cheer up! Your sins are forgiven you” (v. 2), even though the man had neither confessed his sins nor asked for forgiveness. The scribes were offended at Jesus’ apparent blasphemy—his assumption of God’s prerogative to forgive sins. Jesus, however, validated his actions by healing the man. But unlike the paralytic, we must confess our sins to be restored in our relationship with God.
That story leads naturally into the next, in which Jesus again offends Jewish leaders and performs more dramatic healings that validate his ministry.
After the healing of the paralytic, we see that this was immediately prior to when in :
MATTHEW 9:9. JESUS CALLS MATTHEW
Verse 9 As Jesus passed by from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax collection office. He said to him, “Follow me.” He got up and followed him.
“As Jesus passed by from there.” This phrase serves as a transition from the story of the healing of the paralytic (9:2-8) to the story of the call of Matthew (9:9-13). Verse 9:1 spoke of Jesus coming “to his own town,” which Matthew earlier identified as Capernaum (4:13). Mark also locates the healing of the paralytic in Capernaum (Mark 2:1), and we can assume that the events of this account take place in that town. Capernaum is located astride the highway from Damascus to Jerusalem on the north shore of the Sea of Galilee and is therefore a major commercial center.
Jesus “saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax collection office” Since Capernaum is located on a major highway, Matthew may be serving as a customs agent, collecting duties on goods in transit. He does not ask to follow Jesus, nor does he repent or ask forgiveness. Jesus’ call to Matthew is as shocking as his earlier claim to forgive sins (9:2), and demonstrates that God loves and wants to redeem every person.
When Jesus said “Follow me,” Jesus is calling Matthew in much the same way that he called Simon and Andrew (4:18-22). He tells them to follow, and they follow.
However, the call of Matthew differs from the call of the fishermen, because Matthew is a tax collector. Fishing is an honorable profession; tax collecting is not. The Romans contract with local people to collect taxes, and the collectors extort excess taxes for personal profit, enriching themselves at the expense of their fellow citizens. They are thus held in great contempt, are barred from the synagogue, and are considered the moral equivalent of robbers and murderers (Barclay, pages 337-338).
“He got up and followed him.” To follow Jesus, Matthew must abandon his lucrative job, knowing that he can never regain it. By so doing, he also cuts himself off from his old network of friends. To obey Jesus’ command, therefore, requires Matthew’s absolute commitment. It is a remarkable act of faith.
Mark 2:14 and Luke 5:27 give the tax collector’s name as Levi, while this Gospel says that it is Matthew. We do not know if they are the same person, but it seems likely that they are. In lists of apostles’ names, we find Matthew but not Levi (Matthew 10:2-4; Mark 3:16-19; Luke 6:14-16; Acts 1:13).
Early Christians suggested that Matthew is the writer of this Gospel,
MATTHEW 9:10-13. JESUS EATS WITH SINNERS
10 It happened as he sat in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Jesus and his disciples. 11 When the Pharisees saw it, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
12 When Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick do. 13 But you go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ for I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
“It happened as he sat in the house” (v. 10a). Luke places the dinner in Levi’s house (Luke 5:29), but Matthew describes it only as “the house.” The “many tax collectors and sinners” that are present seem to confirm that it is Matthew’s house because they would constitute a natural guest list for the newly converted tax collector. It seems likely that, in a spirit of joy, Matthew invites Jesus and all his friends to a great feast at his house.
“Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” (v. 11b). Some translations call them “lowlife” or scum. The Pharisees are offended. Sharing a meal, especially in a public setting, implies acceptance—even approval. The Pharisees complain to the disciples rather than to Jesus. Perhaps they are afraid to engage Jesus directly—or more probably they have chosen not to enter the house and are reduced to asking their question of disciples who are within reach.
“Sinners” could mean nearly anything, but in this context probably refers to people who fail to observe Jewish food laws, concerns for ritual purity, and the like.
Jesus, however, overhears the question and responds, “Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick do. But you go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ for I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (vv. 12-13). The Incarnation ( that is, God, coming to earth in the form of the God-man Jesus the Messiah) is for the benefit of those who need it. The irony is that the Pharisees need the Incarnation as much as anyone, but their religious pride causes them to miss it.
The Pharisees might have responded very differently to this dinner. They too champion hospitality–but only to the righteous poor. They also champion distancing oneself from sinners.
The Old Testament emphasized that Israelites must separate themselves from pagan tribes. The Talmud taught, “Associate not with the wicked man, even if you can learn from him.” Psalm 1 blesses those who “do not take the path that sinners tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers.” The Psalmist asks for vindication, because “I hate the assembly of evildoers, and will not sit with the wicked” (Psalm 26:5). Paul says, “Don’t be unequally yoked with unbelievers” (2 Corinthians 6:14).
There is much wisdom here. Bad company corrupts! One bad apple spoils the barrel! Bad company is the devil’s net! You can’t run with dogs without getting fleas! These old proverbs reflect the truth that the company we keep makes a difference in our lives.
My wife and I taught our children to choose their friends carefully—not for social standing but for character. However, it is also true that our daughter Karen, had a positive influence on a boy of questionable character—so much so that we believe that God put her in touch with him during her Sophomore year in high school here in the States. Also, our son Eric, in his Junior year in high school, a group of kids wanted him to join them in playing the game Dungeons and Dragons. He refused, believing it was an Occultic game that was influenced by Satan. It is not easy to know when to avoid evildoers and when to mingle with them for the sake of the kingdom.
In looking at this text, we will do well to remember that the Pharisees have a point about evildoers. Their concern is not without merit. They are upholding wisdom that has been gained painfully through the centuries. They do not want evil companions, and they do not honor evil people with their presence. For us today, the problem with not separating from old companions is that too often new Christians are not filled with the Holy Spirit, and haven’t been discipled. Therefore, they are vulnerable to backslide and fall into the sins of those they are trying to reach.
It is only as we keep this perspective that Jesus’ actions take on real force. Jesus reaches out to the lost at great personal risk (actions like this will cost him his life, after all), in the hope of saving people who do not seem worth saving. We should be glad for that! Otherwise, who could hope to be saved? The key is to be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit before we attempt to witness to “old “ companions.
“But you go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice’” (v. 13a). The Pharisees’ question to the disciples (v. 11) constituted an indirect challenge to Jesus. Jesus responds by telling them to “go and learn,” implying that their understanding of scripture is defective—that they have failed to dig into the depths of the prophets.
The quotation is from Hosea 6:6. “I desire mercy, and not sacrifice” is a Jewish idiom meaning, “I desire mercy more than sacrifice.” The word sacrifice here stands for obedience to Torah law–the ultimate sign of one’s devotion to God. However, Jesus quotes the prophet Hosea to note that God prefers mercy to a slavish devotion to the requirement for sacrifices.
In his appeal for mercy, Jesus highlights God’s love for the undeserving. Ritual purity, while important, is less important than love of God and love of neighbor.
“for I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (v. 13b). These are categories that Pharisees use —–righteous and sinners as categories to pigeonhole people. Pharisees number themselves among the righteous, of course, and that is how most people see them. They are sinners too, but cannot see that, because they “tithe mint, dill, and cumin” observing the law even in its smallest details (23:23). The problem is that they neglect “the weightier matters of the law: justice, mercy, and faith” (23:23). The verse from Hosea highlights the fact that temple sacrifice requires less of the person than does mercy. Sacrifice can be done routinely—even mechanically—with no involvement of the heart. A person can sacrifice at the temple in a perfunctory manner that has little effect on day-to-day life. Mercy, however, quickly becomes an affair of the heart, involving a human face—a human story. Elsewhere in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus says, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second likewise is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments” (22:37-40). Sacrifice is a way of expressing devotion to God—of keeping the first great commandment. Mercy is a way of expressing both love of neighbor and devotion to God—of keeping both great commandments.
The fact that Christians are no longer subject to the Jewish sacrificial system does not make us immune from Pharisaic error. P.T. Forsyth a Scottish theologian warns, “It is possible to be so active in the service of Christ as to forget to love him.” It is certainly possible to be so active in the service of Christ as to forget to love our neighbor.