Grace Bursting At The Seams!

Jesus used three illustrations to explain His answer to John the Baptist's disciples. The first illustration was about how the guests at a wedding couldn't possibly think about fasting with the joyful Bridegroom among them.

2) The second illustration was a well-known parable about the impossibility of mixing the old with the new. Putting a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment would cause the old cloth to pucker and tear. Since the new patch came from a new garment, this would have spoiled both cloths, because the new one would now have a hole in it and the old one would be torn.

3) The third illustration was very similar, concerning the impossibility of the old holding the new. Skin bottles were made by skinning an animal carcass, cutting off the head and limbs, sewing it up with the fur on the outside, and closing it all up except for the neck.

A new wineskin was soft and pliable. As the leather aged it would become hard and brittle. If new wine, which was still fermenting, were put into an old skin, then the buildup of fermenting gases would split the hardened container, spoiling both it and the wine.

These last two illustrations showed that Jesus' way of grace could not simply be patched onto old Judaism, or poured into the old wineskin of tradition.

To try to mix the two together would ruin Judaism and Jesus' teaching. This was what Jesus was saying to Nicodemus:

"...unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." [John 3:5-6]

Compare that to what Jesus is saying here,

"And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins—and the wine is destroyed, and so are the skins. But new wine is for fresh wineskins."" [Mark 2:22]

If the new wineskin is the born-again believer, the new wine is grace, God's love to the utterly undeserving.

1) Grace is God's goodness, the kindness of His heart, His good will, His benevolence.
2) Grace is God's compassionate attitude towards sinners, His willingness to forgive and restore
3) Grace is God's divine assistance, He helps us to do what we can't do alone. It is His power which begins with salvation, then sanctification which is the growing in personal holiness, and finally glorification, when we will see Jesus face to face, being just like Him.

Saving grace is found in the most important doctrine of Christianity: Justification by grace through faith. It means you and I are saved on the basis of God's unmerited favor towards us through the Lord Jesus Christ, which we can only receive by believing His Word when He tells us of it.

Following Jesus requires being reborn, living a new way of life

* The Pharisees preferred the old wine and saw no need for the new.
* John’s disciples were cautious, admiring the old wine and distrustful of the new.
* How about you?

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Why Didn't The Disciples Fast?

Matthew’s banquet drew out another group of people who were having trouble accepting Jesus’ ways: John the Baptist's disciples.

They were fasting, as were the Pharisees, yet here were Jesus and His disciples having a big feast. John the Baptist was known for his devout personal discipline, and his disciples admired him for it, they copied John the Baptist. So they asked Jesus

"Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast? The disciples of John fast often and offer prayers, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink." [Matthew 9:14 with Luke 5:33]

Was Jesus against fasting? By no means! Jesus taught, in the Sermon on the Mount, in Matthew chapter 6, how to fast in a way that pleased God. His answer to John's disciples was to teach them a deeper truth: the difference between the law and grace.

John’s disciples were living the old life, the life of legalism to earn the acceptance and forgiveness of God. Jesus was saying that His grace would burst the seams of this old life of earning acceptance, because grace is infinitely abundant, a gift that couldn’t possibly be earned.

Jesus used three word pictures:
1) The first was of a bridegroom with his guests. A Jewish wedding was all about joy, a week of feasting, all the friends and family came to eat at the new couple’s house. It was unthinkable to fast during that time, fasting was for sorrow.

Jesus was using a Messianic metaphor taken from the prophet Isaiah who referred to God as the Bridegroom. Jesus was saying the Messianic age had come, He was the Messiah. God's people had been mourning over their sin, waiting for the Messiah. Now the Messiah was here, it was time for celebration.

Have you ever really thought about what that means, that Jesus is your Bridegroom? All throughout the prophets God describes Himself as the Bridegroom: He chose you for Himself, He desires you and the Bible says He sings love songs to you. God exults over you and values you above even the life of His own Son, which He was willing to sacrifice for you.

The Bible says God thinks about you all the time, even when you’re asleep. He is faithful to you, He longs for the day when you will be together with Him, He even has your initials carved in the palms of His hands. He has sent you His word as a love letter.

How in love are you with your Bridegroom? Right now is the time of the Lord's favor, and your life can be a celebration of being with Jesus. What will you change this week to reflect your joy of being Jesus' bride?

[The other two illustrations come tomorrow]

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The Pharisees Have a Problem: Eating With Sinners

The word used for “sinner” in this passage actually refered to notoriously evil people as well as those who refused to follow the Mosaic law as interpreted by the teachers of the law.

Anyone eating with these "sinners" was assigning friendship to them and ran the risk of ceremonial uncleanness. Matthew wanted his friends to be able to experience the same forgiveness and joy that Jesus had given him, and Jesus freely came.

How closely does this picture resemble your church?
* How often have you introduced Jesus to your friends in this joyful, generous way?
* How approachable are you?
* Do you keep your distance from certain types of people?
* Or are you the kind of person that puts others at ease?
* Can you name five people you know that need to be introduced to Jesus Christ?
* How about three? If you are struggling to come up with names, you're out of circulation!
Christians are to bring others to Christ

The Pharisees had a real problem with this. They were expecting a Messiah who would crush the sinful and support the righteous. Instead Jesus welcomed the sinner and dismissed the Pharisees.

And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?" [Matthew 9:11]

Notice Who answers them! Jesus heard what they were talking about, standing on the outskirts of this banquet

Jesus answered them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance." [Luke 5:31-32]

which is from Hosea 6:6,

For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.

What do you do when you’re criticized? Isn’t the first instinct is to either defend yourself, or get the other person back? But Jesus didn’t do either of these things. He explained to his critics what He was doing so that they could learn. The Lord said He came for the very people the Pharisees had rejected and expelled because they knew they were sick, they knew they needed to be healed.

He came to give forgiveness to those who were filled with sorrow over their sins. Jesus did not come for the people who felt they’re perfectly healthy and didn’t need a doctor. It is God’s desire for you and I to extend to others the same covenant love He gives to us. That is more important, more valuable to God than any religious observance.

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Blended Gospels: A Question About Fasting

And Levi made him a great feast in his house, and there was a large company of tax collectors and sinners reclining with Jesus, eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. And when the Pharisees, and the scribes of the Pharisees saw this, they grumbled and said to his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?"

But when he heard it, he said, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, 'I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.' For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."

Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Then the disciples of John came to him, saying, "Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast? The disciples of John fast often and offer prayers, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink."

And Jesus said to them, "Can the wedding guests mourn and fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in that day.

He also told them a parable: "No one tears a piece from a new garment and puts it on an old garment. No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, he will tear the new, and the piece from the new will not match the old. For the patch tears away from the garment, and a worse tear is made.

"Neither is new wine put into old wineskins. If it is, the wine will burst the skins—and the wine is destroyed and so are the skins. But new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved. And no one after drinking old wine desires new, for he says, 'The old is good.'"

[Matthew 9:10-17, Mark 2:15-22, Luke 5:29-39 ESV]

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Blended Gospels: Matthew Levi

[Jesus] went out again beside the sea, and all the crowd was coming to him, and he was teaching them. As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man named Matthew (Levi, son of Alphaeus), a tax collector, sitting at his tax booth.

And he said to him, "Follow me." And leaving everything, he rose and followed him.

[Matthew 9:9, Mark 2:13-14, Luke 5:27-28 ESV]
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The next person the Lord Jesus decided to call as His talmidim was a despised publican.

In order to be a tax collector, Matthew had to
- have been highly educated,
- fluent in Aramaic, Greek, and Latin,
- able to write well,
- give close attention to detail and
- have the ability to compute large sums.
He also had to be dishonest, without many morals and content to sin daily without repentance.

Tax collectors were local men who contracted with Rome to gather the local taxes. Since the locals never knew what the actual tax rate was, tax collectors could make any commission they could figure out how to levy out of their fellow citizens. Publicans tended to be very wealthy.

Matthew's collection booth was probably located on the major international road that went from Damascus through Capernaum to the Mediterranean coast and on to Egypt, so he could collect all the traders’ taxes, too.

Naturally, everybody hated tax collectors to death, didn’t consider them to be trustworthy as witnesses in a court of law, barred them from being judges, expelled them from the synagogue and even held their whole extended family in public disgrace.

--> Matthew had to have already heard of Jesus, and may have even heard his teaching, since we know the whole town of Capernaum had already been through Peter’s house, listening to Jesus and observing His miracles.

Matthew would have had time to evaluate his life, rich in material wealth, but miserable and empty spiritually. Today the time had come for a decision.

Jesus...said to him, "Follow me." [Matthew 9:9]

Matthew recognized Jesus' greater authority over his life than his job or even Rome.

What is your response to Jesus’ call to follow Him?
* How ready are you, like Matthew was ready, to walk away from your old life, all the things you were living for before, and say yes to the One Who loves you and knows you better than anyone else?
* Are you ready to celebrate, to be passionate, and joyful about your new life?

Those who experience the greatest grace are the very ones who deserve the greatest punishment. Encountering Jesus was the most wonderful, most special event that had ever happened in Matthew's life. The first thing Matthew wanted was to have all his reprobate friends come over to meet this remarkable Jesus.

Since they were all barred from the synagogue, they would have to meet the Lord in Matthew’s house. Who of your family and friends needs to come to your house, or come to your church, or come to your Bible study and meet this incredible Jesus?

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Which Is Easier: To Forgive or to Heal?

Some of the teachers of the law didn’t like what was happening,

And behold, some of the scribes said to themselves, "This man is blaspheming." [Matthew 9:3].

There were about 6,000 Pharisees, called "separated ones," throughout Israel. They were the teachers in the synagogues, religious examples, self-appointed guardians of the law and its proper observance. They considered their own interpretations and regulations, handed down by tradition, to be virtually as authoritative as Scripture.

Their criticism and alarm was understandable. Here was a mere man having the impudence to usurp God’s position on the mercy seat, dispensing forgiveness for sin!

It was total blasphemy.

Only God can forgive sin.

The scribes had it right.

If Jesus was not God then He was either terribly evil, a blasphemer of the worst kind, in league with the prince of demons, or He was truly God.

Jesus knew their thoughts,

"Why do you think evil in your hearts? For which is easier, to say, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Rise and walk'? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins"—he then said to the paralytic—"Rise, pick up your bed and go home." [Matthew 9:4-7]

By asking them which was easier, to heal or forgive, Jesus made the point that both were equally impossible for a mere man, and equally easy to God. When Jesus told the paralytic his sins were forgiven, the paralytic,
(1) according to God's promises in the Bible, was cleansed of all unrighteousnes by grace.
(2) He was also empowered by Jesus, now justified and cleansed, with the desire and the ability to apply Jesus' word to his life.

Jesus told him to get up, pick up his bed and go home.
* He listened to Jesus,
* he believed
* and he obeyed.

The friends of the paralytic believed Jesus could heal their friend, and Jesus responded to their faith by forgiving their friend's sin, who received God’s forgiveness, cleansing and enabling power in his life.

Jesus responded to the evil in the scribes' hearts by demonstrating His authority as the Son of Man. It's what they really needed, to experience new life and the fulfillment of God's promises in their lives, but they rejected Jesus' teaching.

Jesus has both the compassion and the authority to forgive your sin

The crowd was overcome

When the crowds saw it, they were afraid, and they glorified God, who had given such authority to men. [Matthew 9:8]

The word translated as “fear” means "reverential awe;" as one author put it, "stark terror mingled with inexpressible joy," breathless awe and intense joy, so that people were overcome with a sense of wonder and adoration.

What is your response to Jesus’ forgiveness, His commands to you, and His powerful enabling of you to obey?

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Jesus Forgives and Heals

The Lord Jesus was probably teaching in Peter’s home at the beginning of this chapter,

And behold, some people brought to him a paralytic, lying on a bed. [Matthew 9:2a]

What is your response to great need in the people in your life? How involved are you willing to get, to help them?

Typically, a Palestinian house had a flat roof accessible by means of an outside staircase. The roof was often made of a thick layer of clay supported by mats of branches across wooden beams. As Jesus was teaching, the crowd would have noticed dust and bits of clay begin to fall from the ceiling, and then, as the ceiling tiles were removed a beam of sunlight would have surrounded Jesus. As all watched in dismay, down came the paralyzed man, right in front of Jesus.

As the Lord looked up, He read their hearts

And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven." [Matthew 9:2b]

This was not the way Jesus usually healed people. Usually He physically healed them first. But Jesus must have seen how feelings of guilt and concern over sin were this man’s first and most prominent problem.

What Jesus said to him uncovered this man's deepest need. It wasn’t to walk. What he really needed was to know and experience God’s forgiveness. Jesus gave him release from his spiritual paralysis, deliverance from guilt and sin, to enter into a life of communion with God and to be assured of God's eternal favor.

What might be paralyzing you right now?
* How often do you bring your own sins to Christ, seeking His forgiveness?
* Do you allow the burden of your sin to weigh you down, to paralyze your spiritual life, so you're just not able to get up and walk that part of your faith?
* Or do you come to Jesus as often as possible, desiring the joy of God's forgiveness, knowing what it is for God to be pleased with you?

Sometimes a person believes God simply can’t forgive them. You believe in your heart that what you’ve done is just too awful, or you’ve done it too many times, and you’re discouraged. But the truth is that when you confess your sin, God says in the Bible that He does forgive you, and cleanses you from all unrighteousness.

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. [1 John 1:9]

Sometimes a person believes that if they feel something is true, it must be true.

-->If I feel unloved, I must be unloved.
-->If I feel unforgiven, I must be unforgiven.
-->If I feel like my situation is hopeless, then it must really be hopeless.

Maybe that’s how the paralytic felt, he was so depressed and so discouraged, that he was numb with hopelessness.

But the truth is our feelings do not dictate reality. The truth is God is good whether you and I feel like He is or not. He loves you even when you don’t feel loved. As soon as you confess your sin, the Bible says, He forgives you, even when you don’t feel forgiven. The Bible says that you and I are to think only about what is true, and then the peace of God will be with us,

...whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.[Philippians 4:8-9]

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Blended Gospels: Jesus Heals a Paralytic

And when he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. And many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even at the door. And he was preaching the word to them.

As he was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with him to heal. And behold, some men were bringing on a bed a man who was paralyzed, carried by four men. And they were seeking to bring him in and lay him before Jesus.

But finding no way to bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down with his bed through the tiles into the midst before Jesus.

And when he saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven you."

And the scribes and the Pharisees began to question in their hearts, saying, "Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Why does this man speak like that? Who can forgive sins but God alone?"

And immediately Jesus perceived their thoughts, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves. He answered them, "Why do you think evil in your hearts? Why do you question these things in your hearts? Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven you,' or to say, 'Rise, take up your bed and walk'? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins"—he said to the man who was paralyzed—"I say to you, rise, pick up your bed and go home."

And immediately he rose up before them and picked up what he had been lying on, went went out before them all and went home, glorifying God. And amazement seized them all, they were afraid, and were filled with awe, saying, "We have seen extraordinary things today. We never saw anything like this!" They glorified God who had given such authority to men.

[Matthew 9:2-8, Mark 2:1-12, Luke 5:17-26 ESV]

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Jesus Touches the Leper, and Heals Him

Jesus' love and compassion extended to even those ostracized from society, those who were considered so unclean they were not even allowed within the city limits, for no one is beyond the reach of the Lord's love.

"You can make me clean," had a double meaning -- to cleanse the leprosy, certainly, but it also meant spiritual cleansing, that his sins might be forgiven -- remember that miracles were an illustration to the deeper truths of the gospel, and the revelation of Who Jesus really is. Leprosy, in scripture, was often a metaphor for the corruption of sin.

The leper knew of Jesus' power, but he was unsure of how far the Lord's compassion would go.

By touching the leper Jesus endangered Himself, according to Levitical law, since such contact rendered him ceremonially unclean which would have meant isolation for the proscribed period of time, and a cleansing ceremony including sacrifices at the temple and an examination by the priest.

However, the leper's healing was immediate; the Lord Jesus was able and willing, and the man was clean before Jesus' hand ever touched him.

The leper was to bring his message of healing and restoration to the temple as a testimony to the priests. This was to be a sign that Isaiah's prophecy had indeed been fulfilled: Messiah had come and the lepers were being healed.

The word did spread, and the crowds became nearly unmanageable in their size and demands of His time, however the Lord sought out regular time to be alone with the Father.

"Seeking time with God is key to ministering effectively"

Soon there would be one conflict after another in Jesus' work, so He gathered His courage, His perseverance, strength, wisdom and confidence from communion in the Spirit with the Father.

How do you prepare for what's ahead? How consistently do you set aside time to be alone with the Lord, to receive from Him not only His words of wisdom and encouragement, but His empowering and His instructions for how to face what's coming?

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Blended Gospels: The Healing of a Leper

While [Jesus] was in one of the cities, a leper came to him, full of leprosy, imploring him, he fell on his face, [then] kneeling, begged him and said to him, "Lord, if you will, you can make me clean."

Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, "I will; be clean."

And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. And Jesus sternly charged him and sent him away at once, and said to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to them."

But he went out and began to talk freely about it, and to spread the news, now even more the report about him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in desolate places, and people were coming to him from every quarter.

But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray.

[Matthew 8:2-4, Mark 1:40-45, Luke 5:12-16, ESV]

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Jesus' Training Through Prayer, Teaching And Acts of Mercy

Jesus’ greatest ministry was to His disciples, training them to carry on the work of the gospel when He would go into heaven.

With His disciples now learning from Him, Jesus added teaching to His preaching, explaining what scripture was saying, and how it pertained to Messiah, what Messiah was doing and would do:

And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom [Matthew 4:23a]

Jesus taught with authority and with power

...healing every disease and every affliction among the people. So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and pains, those oppressed by demons, epileptics, and paralytics, and he healed them. [Matthew 4:23b-24]

Everywhere Jesus and His disciples went He brought the gospel, blessing and restoration to everyone who came to Him.

And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decapolis, and from Jerusalem and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.[Matthew 4:25]

God's word is living and powerful to direct our lives

If you have the Holy Spirit, then you will have something to show for it. Fruitfulness in someone else’s life follows faithfulness in your own private life, for remember that before He would teach, preach and heal the Lord Jesus would find a way to get alone with the Father and pray. Jesus received from the Father all that He needed in power and wisdom to carry out His mission.

In what ways is God’s word bearing fruit in your life, and bringing blessing and restoration in others’ lives?

Jesus knows what it is like to be in the press, to go through the painful process of disciplining His appetites, and resisting temptation. The obedience Jesus learned He taught to His disciples and He is ready to teach to you if you will only ask Him. He will fill you with His life so that you will know the Father’s pleasure as you call out to Him for rescue and ask Him to help you hang onto obedience.

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Jesus' First Tour of Galilee

And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. And the people sought him and came to him, and would have kept him from leaving them. And Simon and those who were with him searched for him, and they found him and said to him, "Everyone is looking for you."

And he said to them, "Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out. I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well; for I was sent for this purpose"

And he went throughout all Galilee and Judea, teaching [and] preaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, healing every disease and every affliction among the people and casting out demons.

So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and pains, those oppressed by demons, epileptics, and paralytics, and he healed them. And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decapolis, and from Jerusalem and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.

[Matthew 4:23-25, Mark 1:35-39, Luke 4:42-44]

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Jesus Ministering Throughout A Long And Full Sabbath

Jesus' power is not limited to driving out demons. He also has authority over every disease, and over life itself. All the Lord Jesus had to do was rebuke the fever, displaying His power and authority once again. The effects of His command were immediate. Peter's mother-in-law was instantly well, filled with energy and gratitude.

As the Sabbath wore on, Jesus continued to heal without a break. There were so many people with their sick and ailing, and the demon-possessed, shrieking and flailing, and the bustling, crowding activity, that there was no longer even standing room within Peter's house -- people were pressing each other outside the door, for

"...the whole city was gathered together at the door" [Mark 1:33]

Jesus showed that His power and authority were not flukes, not coincidences, not luck, but a steady flowing stream of healing and liberation. He gave of Himself completely to all those in need, fighting evil with love and compassion, as

"He laid his hands on every one of them healing them all" [Luke 4:40]

In what area of your life do you need Jesus' overflowing mercy, love and compassion to bring healing and liberation? All you need to do is come to Him in your need, believe in His power and authority, and receive His healing touch.

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Blended Gospels: Jesus Heals Many

And immediately he left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. Now Simon’s mother-in-law lay ill with a high fever, and immediately they told him about her and they appealed to him on her behalf. And when Jesus entered Peter’s house, he saw his mother-in-law lying sick with a fever.

He came and stood over her, rebuked the fever, took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her. And immediately she began to serve them.

That evening, when the sun was setting, they brought to him all those who were sick or oppressed by demons. And the whole city was gathered together at the door. And he laid his hands on every one of them healing them all: many who were sick with various diseases.

And demons also came out of many, crying, "You are the Son of God!" But he rebuked them and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him, that he was the Christ. And he cast out the spirits with a word.

This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: "He took our illnesses and bore our diseases."

[Luke 4:38-41, Mark 1:29-34, Matthew 8:14-17 ESV]

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Jesus Casts Out A Demon

This miracle, early in Jesus' ministry, involved a man possessed by a demon, an evil spirit. Demon possession, as it is depicted in Scripture, is "the direct exercise of demonic power from within a person." Sometimes these possessions caused a person to become violent, to hurt themselves or others, to be thrown down in fits, and sometimes to have the ability to tell fortunes, and make predictions.

It has been suggested that the people of Jesus' day would call any unusual behavior demon possession, but in fact Jesus, and others, knew the difference. Some overlap in terminology did exist, but overall demonic possession could be detected through certain types of behavior or physical impairment.

Descriptions of demonic activity are scattered all throughout the gospels and demons are discussed in the epistles as well. In Jesus' day it was believed by some that demonic control of humans would end on the Day of the Lord, and/or in the messianic age. In His own teaching the Lord Jesus confirmed this thinking.

Jesus had already roundly defeated Satan during His forty day ordeal in the desert. Now He was proving Himself victor over Satan's minions.

The demon's question to Jesus,

"What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us?" [Luke 4:34]

revealed Jesus' authority over all evil spirits, and the demons knew it. Perhaps the demon thought that Jesus could not defeat him without also causing harm to the man he possessed. But God is so much more powerful than any other force or entity in the universe!

God is Creator and Sustainor of all that is.

Whatever power or authority Satan and his fallen angels have, it is by God's permission. Their time is limited, and so is their arena, and their power.

Possibly the demon was trying to get control of the situation by calling out the Lord Jesus' true name during this supernatural confrontation, calling attention to the significance of what was happening. Satan and his demons know exactly who Jesus is, but they refuse to accept it. Jesus not only met the challenge, He
* Silenced the demon
* Neutralized his power
* Removed his presence from the man
* And prevented the man from experincing any harm (even though the demon tried, by throwing him down in convulsions)

As one commentator concluded, "Evil cannot stand up to righteousness when righteousness takes a firm stand. Any victory it may appear to have is fleeting."

The crowd was dumbstruck! "What is this teaching?" They had never seen anything like it before, even though excorcism was well-known. But it was Jesus' calm and awesome authority over the forces of evil that amazed them. Who could this man be? The demon's declaration, "I know who you are—the Holy One of God," was their only answer.

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The Power Of Miracles

Miracles were real events that gave evidence of Jesus' authority. This was the established way God endorsed and empowered His prophets all throughout the Bible beginning with Moses.

People have more and more, through the intervening centuries, questioned the actuality of miracles or have tried to explain them away with scientific reasoning. But the most spectacular miracle of all is also the easiest one to prove: the resurrection (more on this when we get to that part in the gospels).

So if something like the resurrection is possible, then the other miracles would be easy. The real question is: Is God that powerful? Is He for real? Can He and does He interact in supernatural, physically discernible ways with our world? Miracles, signs and wonders, from the burning bush to the resurrection give an emphatic "yes"!

The Lord Jesus' ability to perform such powerful signs pays testimony to His unique union with God. As Jesus Himself pointed out, if his power is not from Satan, then it must be from the "finger of God"(as witnessed by Pharaoh's magicians, Moses, the Babylonian king's court with the prophet Daniel and Luke)

Miracles are also demonstrations of a deeper reality. God doesn't cause a miracle to occur just to impress. Miracles are intended to illustrate something more important.

Casting out demons and healing the sick illustrated the reality of God's power over corruption and death. One day He will restore all things to the health and wholeness, the spiritual purity and beauty He intended.

Finally, miracles reveal "the deep cosmic struggle between the forces of evil and Jesus." In casting out demons Jesus showed His complete authority and power over evil and its forces. There is no contest! What struggle with evil are you involved in right now? How willing are you to trust the Lord Jesus with it and ask Him to demonstrate His power over your situation?

By overcoming evil and restoring those who were sick, Jesus proved He has the key to life. He has the authority and the awesome, supernatural power to speak confidently about God's rule, and of His kingdom.

The gathering crowds already knew that Jesus was an amazing teacher, that He taught with authority, unlike the other scribes and teachers of the law. He did not rely on past interpretations. Jesus spoke directly about God and His will. And there was more to Jesus' authority than His ability to preach the Word; He could show the presence of God's power.

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Blended Gospels: Jesus Heals a Man with an Unclean Spirit

And they went into Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue and was teaching. And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.

And immediately there was in their synagogue a man who had the spirit of an unclean demon. And he cried out, "Ha! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God."

But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!"

And the unclean spirit, when he had thrown him down in their midst, convulsing him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him, having done him no harm. And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, "What is this? A new teaching with authority and power! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him and come out."

And at once reports about him went out into every place, and his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee.

[Mark 1:21-28, Luke 4:31b-37 ESV]

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Becoming A Disciple

We know from the apostle John’s gospel that both John the Baptist and Jesus spent time preaching and teaching by the Sea of Galilee. John the Baptist, as a prophet and rabbi, was surrounded by his disciples, and even urged two of them to get to know Jesus (which they did).

In fact, five men from this region had begun to spend a great deal of time with Jesus whenever He was in town, but had not become His disciples in the way disciples are called by a rabbi.

But today, as the Lord was walking along the lake and saw Andrew and Peter, and later James on John, He called to them with a special request, one that was rich with meaning, "Come follow me!”

It may seem incredible to you and me today that these young men (possibly in their late teens) simply left their dads in the lurch, got up, dropped everything and went to Jesus. Did their fathers really just stand there and let them leave without even one word of astonishment? Caution? Rebuke?

Rabbis were teachers of God’s word. A rabbi would interpret scripture and teach his interpretation of how to live the Torah. This process was called “binding and loosing.”

To “bind” something was to forbid it.

To “loose” something was to permit it.

This was called the rabbi’s yoke, and he would teach it with authority. One day he would give his disciples the authority to teach his yoke in his name, and this was called “giving the keys of the kingdom.” You will see all of this happening in the gospels.

Around the age of fourteen or fifteen most kids had moved on from studying Torah and talmud, to learning the family business and starting families of their own. But there were always a few who showed great promise and continued to study with the village elders and rabbis. These few would apply with a well-known rabbi to become that rabbi’s talmidim, his disciple.

Being a disciple was far more than being a student. The goal of the disciple was not just to know what the rabbi knew, but to be just like the rabbi.

So a student of Torah would approach a rabbi and say, “Rabbi, I want to become your disciple.” I want to take up your yoke.

The rabbi would then put the hopeful young student through a series of interviews to discover if this young teen had what it took to become like the rabbi and one day spread his yoke. Then he would make his decision.

If no, he would send the student home to learn the family business.

If yes, he would say, “Come, follow me.”

After that it was expected that the student would leave his home and family, his synagogue, his friends, his village and devote his life to learning how to be like his rabbi. For their families it was a great honor to produce a talmidim.

Very early on John pointed Jesus out to two of his disciples and told them Jesus was the Messiah. One of those two disciples was Andrew and the other was probably the apostle John. They decided to follow Jesus, surely with John the Baptist’s blessing, and spent the day and night with the Lord.

Then Andrew went to find his brother Simon, brought him back to Jesus, and Jesus renamed Simon, Peter. Through Andrew, Philip and Nathanael also got to know Jesus, and through John James got to know Jesus.

But clearly, they had not yet become Jesus’ disciples because they had been sent home to work in their family businesses of fishing. Now, months later, after John the Baptist had been arrested and imprisoned, and the Lord Jesus had relocated to Capernaum, we come to Jesus' commission,

"Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men."

“Fishers of men” was a phrase that had been in circulation for hundreds of year. Roman and Greek philosophers used it to describe those who could catch people with strong and persuasive teaching.

By Jesus' command, and with His help, these men had just finished hauling in a remarkable catch of fish. This was Jesus' miraculous illustration to them of the amazing ministry they would one day have in bringing people to faith in Messiah.

It was a particularly apt phrase for these first four disciples, since they were well acquainted with the patience, concentration, perseverance and hard work every day it took to fish.

These were just ordinary men, not seminary students.

But they had the one thing that was critically necessary to become apostles one day: They loved Jesus with their whole hearts and were willing to give Him their whole-hearted devotion.

Jesus would give them all the rest of the equipping they would need. Is that you?
* What new step is Jesus asking you to take in order to follow Him?
* Today is Jesus is asking you to move on from something?
* What will you need to leave behind you?

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Blended Gospels: A Remarkable Catch of Fish

On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat.

And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch."

And Simon answered, "Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets."

And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord."

For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken, and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon.

And Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men."

While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And he said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men."

And when they had brought their boats to land, immediately they left their nets and everything and followed him.

And going on a little farther from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father with the hired servants and followed him.

[Luke 5:1-11, Matthew 4:18-22, Mark 1:16-20, ESV]

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Jesus' New Home In Capernaum

And leaving Nazareth [Jesus] went and lived in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, so that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

"The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,
the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—
the people dwelling in darkness
have seen a great light,
and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death,
on them a light has dawned."

From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

[Matthew 4:13-17, Luke 4:31a, ESV]
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The Galileans were a people dwelling in darkness, and Jesus brought them a great light because He was, as the apostle John put it in his gospel, the "Light of the world."

Here is another fulfillment of ancient prophecy in the person and work of Jesus.
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Luke 4:16-31: Jesus Knew He Would Be Rejected

Jesus' message was short: "today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." But this claim created a dilemma for those in the synangogue, people He had grown up with, as well as for every reader of Luke. Jesus was not teaching something about ethics or morality, He was not giving steps for following God's commandments, or for better living. He was claiming to be God's promise of salvation. Every person had to make a choice: Believe Him.....or not.

Either He is the Messiah, promised by God since the days of Adam and Eve....Or He is a blasphemer

The crowded synagogue was full of pensive neighbors who had seen Jesus grow up, who knew His family and his family's history. Many of them must have known Jesus as a boy, taught Him in synagogue, known His family's income bracket and their place in the social sphere. Luke tells us they were amazed and perplexed at the same time.

On the one hand, they realized He had spoken well, with gracious words. How did He grow up to be such a fine speaker, with such authority and power? With such wisdom and insight? They spoke well of him. They recognized His giftedness. But His family background, His humble beginnings...Isn't this Joseph's son? How could he be the promised one of God?

Jesus knew what they were thinking. Typically, in the gospels, when Jesus knows someone's thoughts His response holds a rebuke in it.

His admonition had three parts to it:
First, he repeated the proverb He knew they were thinking: They wanted him to prove it. They'd heard of all His powerful miracles, but ya know, reports can be exaggerated. Let's see it with our own eyes. Let's see what a carpenter of questionable origins can do.

But Jesus told them that even the evidence that miracles could offer wouldn't be enough to convince them. The fact is, they didn't, deep down, want to believe Jesus. They were predisposed to doubt Him. Miracles never convince the person who does not want to come to God. As one commentator put it: "People must be willing to hear the Word of God and receive it before they will see anything as God's work."

How about you? Have you been insisting to God that He must perform for you before you are willing to trust Him?

* What promise of God, or what instruction from God, have you been holding at arm's length because God's character is not enough for you to believe?

* In what area of your life might you now need to humble yourself before God and be willing to believe His word is true, even though you have not yet seen the fulfillment of it?

* What promise, or instruction, in Scripture, will you now simply agree to believe and live by, in confident faith, trusting in God's character, His love, wisdom and power alone, to make come true in your circumstances?

Jesus next quoted a well-known proverb that a prophet is not honored in his home. He knew that God's prophets had been repeatedly rejected in the Scriptures. This proverb was also a prophecy of Israel's rejection of the gospel that brought the Apostle Paul to tears many times

Finally, Jesus used examples from His people's two most famous prophets: Elijah and Elisha.

Jesus was making reference to a spiritually low water-mark In Israel's history, when rejection of God was at an all-time high and idolatry and unfaithfulness ran rampant. Because of this, God moved his works of mercy outside the nation into Gentile regions as acts of both warning and rebuke: The widow in Sidon and Naaman the Syrian.

Isaiah was the perfect text to read from to carry God's severe warning: If His own people would reject His mercy, then He would bring in the Gentiles, and no longer place His favor on His own people. For the rest of His ministry Jesus laid out this warning, and the apostles reaped the harvest of Gentile believers.

The people of Jesus' hometown did not receive this teaching well. They were furious with Him for
* Refusing to perform miracles as proof of His veracity
* Refusing to bring to them the bounty of healing and release that He had so freely given to other villages and towns
* Claiming to be the Messiah and expecting them to believe that Joseph the carpenter's son was anything more than that
* Rebuking their unspoken thoughts
* Prophesying of their disfavor with God
* Prophesying of the Gentiles' benefitting from God's mercy at the Jews' expense

The crowded synagogue became an angry, dangerous and violent mob that drove Jesus to the brink of death. This would be the first of many scenes when the gospel would be rejected and Jesus' life would be threatened.

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Luke 4:16-31: The Time of Fulfillment Has Come

Jesus did not end up staying in Cana for very long before He began His return to Nazareth. It might have even been within the week when He found Himself in His hometown on the Sabbath, preparing to worship at the synagogue where He had grown up.

A typical synagogue service began with the Shema, taken from Deuteronomy 6:4-9,

"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Next would come a set of prayers, including the Tephillah and the Eighteen Benedictions. After this the chazzan, or minister, would approach the Ark (a special container in the manner of the ark in the temple) and bring out the scroll of the Law. All present would kiss the scroll, as it was unwrapped, before the hearing of God's word.

Seven men would then be selected to read from the Law and the Prophets. First a portion from the Torah (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy) would be read, and then a section from the Prophets. After the reading of the scriptures someone would be invited to teach on the passages. The ancient Jews highly valued good preaching, so this was always considered an honor. Often the speaker linked the texts together through appeal to other passages. The service then closed with a benediction.

From His reading Jesus explained that "the Spirit of the Lord was upon Him," the meaning of which was deep for those reading Luke's gospel -- Jesus had been anointed with the Holy Spirit at His baptism as the Messiah. He then explained that Isaiah's prophecy was being fulfilled in Him, before their very eyes.

As one commentary put it, "For those looking to God for hope, Jesus was the answer. To respond to God, one must be open to him. For those in need of God, Jesus has a message of good news." Jesus' physical miracles were powerful demonstrations of the even more miraculous healing and restoration He was capable of performing in the spiritual realm.

Jesus had come to "proclaim the year of God's favor," a reference to the Jubilee. The background for this is the sabbath years, and the Jubilee that God wrote into the law for ancient Israel. Crop rotation was an unknown concept in ancient times, but when God instituted the Sabbath Year, He did it so that the land could benefit from resting, and the soil would be replenished.

People were not to work the fields or have organized harvests, but whatever the land produced naturally, anyone could come and get enough to have a meal from it. The idea was that every person living in Israel would be God's guest at His table, the poor, the sojourner, everybody.

Not only did the land rest, but so did the people and farm animals. The normal activities that go with farming and animal husbandry, besides just taking care of their animals' basic needs, were prohibited – animals were not to be worked and servants were not to be worked either.

During the Sabbath Year all debts were to be canceled, all Israelite slaves were to be freed. At the Feast of Tabernacles, when all the Israelites came in to Jerusalem to celebrate the final harvest and give thanks for God's provision in the desert, they would also have a Bible conference. The people would receive special instruction from the priests, teaching them God's word in an organized way and the whole rest of the year would be holy, dedicated to the Lord.

God would see to it that they would be provided for, that they would have enough in order to obey God. How seriously do you and I take God's instructions concerning rest and good stewardship? They had to trust God for that bumper crop every sixth year in order to take the Sabbath year.

The Jubilee was to occur every 7x7, or fifty, years. God intended the Year of Jubilee to be a blessing for everyone. All land was returned to the original owner as their holy inheritance from the Lord. Everyone was to eat at God’s table for a year and enjoy the work of God’s hands, to look around at what God had done for them and say "It is all good" with grateful hearts.

Jesus presented three important concepts:
(1) Jesus is anointed with the Holy Spirit

(2) He is the of fulfillment of two thousand plus years of prophecy concerning the Redeemer, the Messiah. He is "the prophet like Moses," for He is bringing in the new era of salvation

3) Jesus not only proclaims the good news, He embodies it: He is Messiah

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Blended Gospels: The First Rejection of Jesus of Nazareth

And [Jesus] came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written,

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor."

And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. And he began to say to them, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."

And all spoke well of him and marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth. And they said, "Is not this Joseph’s son?"

And he said to them, "Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, 'Physician, heal yourself.' What we have heard you did at Capernaum, do here in your hometown as well."

And he said, "Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his hometown. But in truth, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heavens were shut up three years and six months, and a great famine came over all the land, and Elijah was sent to none of them but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.

"And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian."

When they heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath. And they rose up and drove him out of the town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they could throw him down the cliff. But passing through their midst, he went away.

[Luke 4:16-30, ESV]

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The Miracle In Capernaum Was Faith

The Bible teaches that we are to move from faith to faith The official had started out with a crisis of faith. He was about to lose his son and he had no one to go to but Jesus.

His crisis of faith became confident faith when he decided to take Jesus at His word. He believed Jesus and experienced peace in his heart. He was even able to delay his trip home rather than rush off in an anxious panic, because of his confidence in Jesu' word.

Then his confident faith became confirmed faith when he found out that his son had been completely healed, and at that very moment when Jesus had spoken the word.

The official shared first with his servants, and then with the rest of his family, resulting in the conversion of his entire household. The official moved his faith from Jesus' specific power to heal a sick boy, to a deeper faith of Jesus as a person, the Messiah.

Read how John put it all together,

The father knew that was the hour when Jesus had said to him, "Your son will live." And he himself believed, and all his household. This was now the second sign that Jesus did when he had come from Judea to Galilee. (John 4:53-54)

This miracle of faith in the official and his entire household, confirmed by the healing of his son, was Jesus' second sign.

Meeting the spiritual need is always Jesus' priority

* In what ways is the Lord moving you from faith to faith?

* Are you in a crisis of faith? Then what word of Jesus do you need to believe this week?

* Have you moved to confident faith? Then what do you need to do this week to show your trust in Jesus?

* Are you experiencing confirmation of your faith? Then who around you needs to hear you say so, this week, telling them the glorious things Jesus is doing right now?

True satisfaction is not found in having our needs met in the way we think they should be met. Relief may feel like satisfaction for a while. But true satisfaction, the deep and lasting kind, can only come through faith in Jesus, personally relating to Jesus and doing His will.

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Jesus Healed the Capernaum Official's Son From Afar

Jesus, because He is God, could easily restore life at a distance. The word of His power spans distance, time, life and even death. The healing power of Jesus is not limited by geography. He is never so far away that He cannot answer your prayers.

Jesus said to him, "Go; your son will live." (John 4:50a)

Doesn't it seem like Jesus wanted this miracle to seem as unmiraculous as possible? "You don't have to see to believe. First believe -- then you will see," Jesus seemed to say.

John called this Jesus' second sign, but possibly the real miracle is what happened in the official's heart,

The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went on his way. (John 4:50b)

Here is an illustration of true faith. The official decided to believe, and the servants, twenty miles away, saw the immediate healing.

It was a real miracle, a stunning one. The man believed the witness of Jesus and acted upon it. He simply trusted what Jesus said to be true and went about his business, He believed without the evidence of a sign or miracle. This is what Jesus consideered to be a strong and more appropriate faith.

For whatever reason, the man did not return to Capernaum the day his son was healed, but instead found a place to spend the night. It's possible that it was too late in the day to start the twenty mile trip home. In any case, the official waited until the next day to start home, and met his servants along the way. The father thought his son would gradually improve,

So he asked them the hour when he began to get better, (John 4:52a)

But above and beyong his expectations, the servants replied,

"Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him." (John 4:52b)

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The Official's Need For Stronger Faith

After His two-day retreat with the Samaritans it was time for Jesus and His disciples to continue on to Galilee. Here, John wrote, in parentheses,

(For Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in his own hometown.) (John 4:44)

And yet the very next verse says that the Galileans welcomed Him. What was John trying to say, then? The Samaritans had put their faith in Jesus as the prophet Moses had prophesied, as the Savior of the world. They didn't need any signs to believe.

Now look at why the Galileans welcomed the Lord: because they had

...seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast. (John 4:45b)

They didn't know Jesus for His teaching, or for Who He was. They were just glad to have the miracle worker in town.

Jesus and His disciples made their way to Cana, which was Nathanael's home town, very likely to revisit friends and family,

...where he had made the water wine. And at Capernaum there was an official whose son was ill. When this man heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. (John 4:46-47)

This man was likely an official of Herod Antipas, the tetrarch of Galilee.

It's possible this is the same person we read about in Luke 8, Herod's steward Chuza, whose wife Joanna helped provide for Jesus' ministry. Or, he might have been Herod's foster brother Manaen, from Acts 13, who was one of the early leaders in the church. In either case, this is how the Lord became connected with his life.

Capernaum was twenty miles away, so this official had spent all day getting to Jesus. He was worried about his little boy, and he had come to Jesus for a miracle. It was his last-ditch chance to save his child's life.

Imagine the scene.

Jesus was probably at Nathanael's house with His disciples around Him. Others were there because of Jesus' fame for performing these signs. Now a royal official had arrived and wanted to take Jesus all the way back to Capernaum to heal his son. Imagine Jesus looking at the crowd around Him, then saying,

"Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe."

That seems like a harsh answer to a father who's on the verge of losing his son!

You know the saying, "seeing is believing." The official took it for granted that Jesus would have to go to Capernaum to heal his son. He was convinced that Jesus' power did not extend beyond His immediate surroundings. He also thought that all would be lost if his little boy died. So whatever faith this official had, it was not in the person of the Lord Jesus, Messiah, God the Son. It was the kind of faith you might put into a miracle worker.

A faith based on miracles is a weak faith. A faith based on what that sign points to is biblical faith. Miracles should never be a substitute for the person from Whom that power comes: the Lord Jesus, Messiah, God the Son. Miracles are secondary and they should have a secondary place in our lives to trust.

Jesus' purpose for this official was not just for his little boy to be healed. After all, that little boy would one day grow up and die of something else. We all eventually die of something. When God doesn't seem to meet your urgent need, there there is a spiritual need that is even more urgent. Jesus' purpose for this man, and his household, was to have eternal life.

So the Lord challenged the official to a stronger faith, to take Jesus at His word, even without any visible change or sign. "Don't just believe in what I can do for your little boy," Jesus was saying, "Believe in Who I AM!"

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Blended Gospels: The Healing of a Capernaum Official's Son

So [Jesus] came again to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. And at Capernaum there was an official whose son was ill.

When this man heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. So Jesus said to him, "Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe."

The official said to him, "Sir, come down before my child dies."

Jesus said to him, "Go; your son will live."

The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went on his way. As he was going down, his servants met him and told him that his son was recovering. So he asked them the hour when he began to get better, and they said to him, "Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him."

The father knew that was the hour when Jesus had said to him, "Your son will live." And he himself believed, and all his household.

This was now the second sign that Jesus did when he had come from Judea to Galilee.

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Blended Gospels: The Arrival and Reception of Jesus in Galilee

Now after John was arrested, Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee. The Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast.

From that time Jesus began proclaiming the gospel of God, saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." A report about him went out through all the surrounding country.

And he taught in their synagogues, saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel." [And he was] being glorified by all.

[Blended Gospels, Matthew 4:17, Mark 1:14b-14, Luke 4:14-15, John 4:45, ESV]
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The Galileans were a people dwelling in darkness, and Jesus brought them a great light, The word in Greek for “proclaim,” or "preach" in some translations, in this text means "a herald’s proclamation from the king."

Jesus preached with certainty and authority. He was announcing~

1) The King’s law, "The time is fulfilled..."
2) The king’s command, "...repent and believe in the gospel..."
3) The king’s decision, "The kingdom of God is at hand."

This wasn’t His personal opinion. Jesus spoke with God’s voice: It’s time to believe in the gospel.

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The Disciples See Righteousness In The Samaritans

The Samaritans were despised by the Jews as a mixed-race, mixed-religion people. The very word "Samaritan" conjured up in the Jewish mind everything they considered to be abhorrent to God; unlike themselves, whom they (rightly) considered to be God's treasured people. However, they saw themselves as righteous and the Samaritans as unrighteous, just by virtue of birth.

However, measured against God’s standard of righteousness, every person ever conceived stands condemned. Nobody can have genuine, authentic, righteousness without having God’s nature, for he alone is sinless.

But God understands our failure and has provided His own true righteousness, His perfect righteousness, in place of the righteousness you and I do not have. It is given to us freely, without contribution on our part, as we have faith in Jesus Christ. This is called justification, which means that we are now “made right” or “just” before God on the basis of Jesus’ achievements.

Once righteousness has been received into your inward being through the indwelling Holy Spirit, then your character traits and outward behavior can’t help but change to reflect the profound spiritual change you’ve undergone.

Righteousness does also refer to “upright moral conduct,” in keeping with God’s standard set down in His law. Certainly your and my testimony to the reality of God’s goodness and righteousness to the people around us would have little effectiveness if our conduct and our character were not also morally upright.

But to live morally is not just about outward moral behavior. Our confession that Jesus is Lord, and that God raised Him from the dead is going to be more than what we say. To live morally, according to God’s way, is to actively enrich the lives of the people around you.
According to this standard, the Samaritan woman was the most righteous person there, and her townspeople were also learning true righteousness at Jesus' feet.

* A righteous person lives in humility, submitting her life to God, inviting the Holy Spirit to control her thoughts, her feelings and thereby her words and actions.

* A righteous person, in submission to God, understands her complete and utter dependence on Him for the course of her life, the course of her day-to-day living, and sees the hand of God in all the events and people in her life.

* A righteous person’s words naturally glorify God and build up the people who listen. Her words come out of the overflow of her heart, filled with God’s righteousness.

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The Disiciples Learn Righteousness

The disciples were doing good. They were doing what they could to serve their rabbi and take care of His needs.
+ They made sure He had a place to rest
+ They did the work of finding food
+ And when they came back they tried to get Him to eat as they watched all these people begin to stream out of Sychar towards them.

Their whole focus was on the physical plane, thinking about Jesus’ physical needs, not on the spiritual plane, realizing the amazing spiritual birth that had taken place in the Samaratian woman, and the immediate spiritual fruit all these people coming towards them meant.

Jesus was training His disciples to recognize a different kind of being good than simply serving Him by taking care of His physical needs. This kind of work, providing for your family, is good work. But there is an even more important work that transcends the needs of earthly life, and that is meeting the need for eternal life.

The Lord was opening His disciples’ eyes to the deep satisfaction of true righteousness, believing in Him and doing God’s will. This kind of righteousness wasn’t unknown to Jewish thinking. The Jewish concept of wisdom was what a person needed to know in their heart and mind to live a life of righteousness.

Wisdom and a life of righteousness are, in other words, inseparable.

Every person, regardless of their cultural and religious background, understands God’s Moral Law. And because we understand it, deep down, that can fool us into thinking we’re good people. The temptation is to reassure ourselves of our own righteousness by comparing ourselves with someone who seems less mature, less righteous.

But the standard for righteousness is perfection, it is God’s standard, not people’s standards.

Righteousness means just what it sounds like: “Right - ness.” The human definition of righteousness is more about character traits and outward conduct, while God’s righteousness is an expression of His divinity, His holiness.

-->Since righteousness and goodness flow out from the character of God Himself as a part of His attributes, as part of His nature, righteousness is actually a matter of your inner essence.<-- Righteousness refers to a right standing with God, free from guilt and sin.

[More on Righteousness tomorrow]
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