Read Through The Bible

The story of the four men bringing the paralytic through the roof is one of my favorite stories in the Gospels.  Because of the absence of the genealogy, birth narrative, temptation of Jesus, and Sermon on the Mount, the miracle stories come much sooner in the Gospel of Mark.  One of the first extended miracles in Mark is this story of Jesus’ healing of the paralytic in Mark 2.  Most interesting in light of Mark’s brevity in comparison to Matthew is the fact that Mark gave more details to this story than did Matthew.  Matthew simply indicated that some men brought a paralyzed man to Jesus.  Mark, on the other hand, gave the details of the “trouble” that these men went through to get to Jesus.  As a result of the effort of these men, Jesus forgave the paralyzed man of sin before he healed his infirmity.  The urgency with which these men brought their friend to Jesus overcame all barriers.  They could not get in the door.  No problem!  They went through the roof.  When something is important we always find a way.

The example of these men who brought their friend to Jesus is such a beautiful example of the Spirit we should have in sharing Jesus.  I believe Mark included these additional details, left out by Matthew, because he wanted to show the servant heart spirit required to be a disciple of Jesus.  In bringing this man to Jesus, the unidentified (perhaps left anonymous to capture the true spirit of a servant) men showed the essential qualities of a servant:  (1) concern, (2) cooperation, (3) creativity, and (4) commitment.

Is urgency a word that describes the spirit in your life and in your church to share Christ with those who do not know Him?  

The Passion Week narrative culminates in a quite simple phrase, “And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit” (27:50).  What follows from that is not quite so simple.  Matthew recorded that the curtain of the temple was torn, the earth shook, the rocks split, the tombs broke open, and bodies of holy people were raised to life (27:51-53).  No wonder the centurion and those with him exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God” (27:54).  The lesson in these last moments is the overall message of the Gospel:  this is no ordinary man, this is God.  This truth is validated by one last series of miracles at the moment of Jesus’ death only to be trumped by one final, greater miracle—His resurrection.

Before the ascension back to Heaven, Jesus leaves His disciples one last command.  If ever we should pay attention to last words, we should pay attention to these last words from Christ.  Notice in Matthew 28:19 that His command comes with a power, a purpose, a plan, and a promise.  We do not need a conference to decide the purpose of the church—here is our purpose.

Matthew 24:42-25:13 contains three separate parables regarding Christ’s return.  The three parables together make the singular point to be ready.  The first parable compares Christ’s coming to a robber.  If we knew the time a robber might come, we would be ready.  The truth is we do not know.  The second parable tells the story of a master who put a slave in charge of the household before going on a trip.  The slave would make a great error if he concluded that the master’s coming would be a long time from the present.  Jesus’ third parable tells the story of 10 waiting brides who went to meet their bridegrooms.  Five brought oil for their lamps; five brought none.  Because of the delay of the bridegroom, the five who had no oil were found ill prepared.

The weight of the three parables together is as follows.  The first parable establishes the principle to be ready at all times while the succeeding two parables develop that principle from either extreme.  Jesus’ point in the second parable is that His coming might be sooner than some might expect.  Finally, Jesus’ point in the third parable is that His coming might be more delayed than some might expect.  What is the answer?  Be ready always, for “the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him” (Matthew 24:44).

Today, many make the mistake that Jesus’ coming is soon.  It might be.  Others make the mistake that His coming is a long time away.  It might be.  The key to kingdom living is living every day as though His coming could be today, but not losing hope if it is not today.

Matthew indicated a paradox in following Jesus.  On one hand, following Jesus is a challenge.  On the other hand, following Jesus is an easy road.  Read the words of Matthew 11:28-30 slowly and let them apply to every single struggle that you may be facing.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Though the requirements of discipleship are costly, remember that the sacrifice that Christ made for your salvation was costly.  Remember too that your road is easy because He took the difficult road to the cross.

Matthew took about one-fourth of his gospel to recreate the last week of Jesus’ life.  One does not have to wonder what is the most important feature of Jesus’ life for Matthew.  Even in this final quarter of Matthew’s gospel, he still weaved together the miracles of Jesus with the message of Jesus.  Even in this last week, Jesus is teaching.  Isn’t it amazing that our Savior is still teaching even as He prepares for His walk of death?  Wouldn’t we be foolish to miss or disobey these lessons of such significance?   

Peter’s Confession of Christ is the most important passage, I believe, in the entire Gospel.  Matthew set out to give a Gospel that intertwined the miracles and messages of Jesus to show that He was the Christ.  Peter’s confession of Jesus is the boldest statement that Jesus was the Messiah.

Peter’s confession of Jesus is followed by a bold proclamation to Peter from Christ.  “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.”  I understand that Jesus was saying that on the kind of faith statement made by Peter, the church would be built.  Others, of course, understand this statement to refer to the church being founded upon Peter.  Though much could be said in a Biblical response to this position, the words of Peter in his first letter are enough.  “As you come, the Living Stone—rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to Him . . . .”  And further, Peter quotes from the Old Testament, “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame” (1 Peter 2:4,6).  By Peter’s own account in a later letter, there is no doubt in his understanding as to the pronouncement that Christ made to him on that day of his own confession.  Peter knew that Christ was the chief cornerstone of the church.

As a result of Peter’s confession, Christ began to reveal unto him and the rest of the disciples that they would be the instruments in God’s hand to take that message to the rest of the world.  In giving them these “keys to the kingdom” Christ was giving them the awesome responsibility to share with others that He was the Christ.  Their obedience to this responsibility would be the means by which some entered heaven and others did not.

The weight of this verse is almost too much to bear.  We have been given much in regards to our salvation.  With that salvation comes the responsibility to share that message with others. 

The example of Peter walking on the water reveals the basic necessity of following Jesus—faith.  Initially Peter had the faith that he could walk on the water.  Indeed, he succeeded as long as his faith was in Jesus.  When he looked down, he sank.  However, out of this experience, Peter came to have real, lasting faith in Jesus.  This kind of faith in Jesus gives us the greatest statement ever recorded about Jesus as we will read tomorrow.

One of the things interesting to note in Matthew is that there is a continuing exchange between the works of Jesus and the words of Jesus—the miracles and the message.  We read today of several miracles.  We read of healings, exorcisms, and a calming of the sea.  Notice that as Matthew related these miracles, he also related the reaction of others.  Some of these reactions are favorable as is the case in 8:18-22, 8:27, 9:8, and 9:9.  Other times the reaction to Jesus’ miracles was unfavorable as is the case in 8:34, 9:10-11, 9:14-17, 9:24, and 9:34.  These responses remind us of the theological principle that some will always choose to reject Christ.

In addition to these listed above, some of the more notable responses are the rejections of entire groups.  Woe is pronounced by Jesus to the cities of Korazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum. (11:20-24)  Certainly, most disheartening for Jesus is the response of his own hometown which you will read tomorrow.  Perhaps the most astonishing response is that recorded in 8:34.  Rather than welcome the ministry of Jesus to their town, they “pleaded with him to leave their region.”  Such is the case in many hearts today.  Rather than gladly accept Jesus, some turn Him away in disbelief.

Why do some find it hard to follow Jesus?
Following Jesus is hard for some for a variety of reasons, but perhaps the greatest is the cost of following Jesus.  The cost is one of personal sacrifice and complete surrender.  Because many of us struggle with pride and selfishness, the life that Christ calls us to is often difficult, leaving many to reject the claims of Christ on their life.

Today’s reading, as you very well know, is referred to as the Sermon on the Mount.  From the beatitudes in the beginning to the story at the end, every line is filled with a message that is as relevant today as it was in the first century.  I have always loved the way that this message ends.  The closing story about the wise man and the foolish man contains both a warning and a promise.  The warning is that a person who chooses to ignore Jesus’ word will be destined for a great fall.  The promise is that the person who decides to follow Jesus’ words will be rewarded with a secure future.  As Moses said as recorded in Deuteronomy and Joshua said as recorded in the book named for him, the same clear choice is recorded from the lips of Jesus.  The choice is clear—I want to follow Jesus.

I suspect that many of you have been waiting a long time for today as we begin to read the New Testament.  The downside is that at times you are going to want to know more about the specific passage that we are reading for the day.  Keep reading and I will make a deal with you.  LORD willing, as folks sometimes say, I plan to continue this journey with you next year, but take the entire year to read only the New Testament.

Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are what we call the four gospels.  The word gospel comes from a Greek word, which has the connotation of “good news.”  The four gospels reveal the “good news” about Jesus.  Matthew, Mark, and Luke are called the synoptic gospels, because of their similarity.  These three gospels share common characteristics, material, and stories.

The Gospel of Matthew is written by one of the twelve men chosen by Jesus as one of His disciples.  In addition, the text indicates that Matthew was a tax collector (10:3).  Matthew’s purpose, like all of the gospel writers, was to present Jesus as the Messiah.  Much like a lawyer would in a courtroom, Matthew’s objective was to present the case for belief in Jesus as Messiah.  Matthew seemed to be particularly interested in Jesus as the one who brings about the Kingdom of God.

Matthew began his gospel with a narrative of Jesus’ birth, baptism, temptation, and the beginning of His ministry.  In the telling of these events we see that Jesus is no ordinary man.

As you have read the narrative again of Jesus’ birth, spend time thanking God for humbling Himself to the point of becoming a man and dwelling among the earth so that ultimately He might give Himself up for us.