You Can't Put Jesus in a Box -- a study of Jesus' authority in Matthew 8
- mww
- 6 hours ago
- 16 min read
There are no limits to Jesus' authority.
Bible Study Ideas and Commentary for Matthew 8
Fresh off of the world-changing Sermon on the Mount, Matthew shows how Jesus backed up His claims to say such astonishing truths by demonstrating His authority over everything on earth -- sickness, paralysis, demons, even nature itself -- culminating in the revelation that Jesus even has the authority to forgive human sin on God the Father's behalf.
But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—then he told the paralytic, “Get up, take your stretcher, and go home.” (8:6)
When We've Studied These Events Before
All right, y'all, I'm realizing that this "when we've" section is getting unwieldy. Not only have we studied this week's passage in Matthew before, but we've also studied the parallel passages in Mark and Luke. That's a lot of resources. Remember my purpose -- if you're reading my notes and wonder "hey, what about . . .?" then come back up here; I probably address your question in one of these.
A strong outline of this section of Matthew
The Roman military
Capernaum
Diseases in the New Testament
Your friends
Thatched roofs
The "Messianic Secret" in Mark
Whose house was it?
Harmony of the Gospels
Taking on the authorities
About paralysis
"The Son of Man"
Don't Lose Sight of This Week's Passage!
I have said (and I believe!) that comparing the different Gospels is a valuable tool for understanding what they mean. They fill in the gaps of the questions we sometimes want answered. But if you want to know what Matthew means, don't focus on what he omits -- focus on what he includes. That's what I'm going to in this week's notes.
Getting Started: Things to Think About
Why Do People Gather in Crowds?
There are later events in Jesus' ministry that probably better apply to this topic, but this topic is heavily in the news right now.
The point of this topic is not whether or not you agree with the cause of the crowds. So if your group can't handle that kind of nuance, don't bring it up. This topic is about the phenomenon of crowds (mobs) itself.
Why do people gather in large crowds? What tends to cause such gatherings?
At this moment, there are large crowds in Minnesota, in Iran, and in Venezuela. There is no simple answer to the psychology of a crowd. People find safety in a crowd; some find power in a crowd; some just have FOMO. The authorities in Minnesota are keenly aware of the dangers of a crowd.
Everywhere He goes for the rest of His ministry, Jesus will draw a large crowd. Using current examples, I hope your group realizes that the people in those crowds will be there for different reasons and be hoping for different outcomes. This is a big part of the reason for the phenomenon some scholars call "the Messianic Secret" and why Jesus tends to leave a crowd once they get to a certain point.
He has a mission -- not to raise a mob and punch the Roman and Jewish authorities, but to destroy sin.
The Gossip Train
If you're like me, you have bad experiences with gossip. There's a reason why the Bible is very clear that Christians shouldn't gossip (like Prov 26:20, Rom 1:29). But that doesn't change the fact that gossip happens. What's a story you have of gossip spreading quickly? Preferably -- a story that doesn't involve social media. This dates me, but I always think of that scene in Grease involving Rizzo and Kenickie. Iykyk.
This point of this topic would be to establish how a large crowd could gather so quickly, even in an age before social media. Word about Jesus spread fast.
Sickness and the Sanctity of Human Life
The third Sunday of the year is called the "Sanctity of Human Life Sunday". We make it an emphasis in Sunday School every year. Here are some of the passages we have covered on this Sunday in the past.
Obviously, I'm interested in the lesson plans for the ones from Luke and Matthew. But truly, every passage in the Bible speaks to the sacredness of human life to God Almighty who created us and sacrificed Himself for us.
If you need to know anything else about the Sanctity of Human Life Sunday, please use any of those other articles as a reference. I'm just going to jump into it.
Lifeway is taking the approach that Jesus' willingness to heal people with various diseases proves the value of each of their lives to Him. So, let's go with that.
This really cool headline appeared yesterday:
Screening has improved, treatments have improved, and lifestyle choices have improved. All of these work together for hope for people with a cancer diagnosis.
What story do you have of a doctor/hospital caring for one of your loved ones through a difficult illness or infirmity?
We have a number of medical professionals in our church family, and I never cease to be awed by the stories they're allowed to share. And in my position as a pastor, I hear from church members about the patient side of that equation. So many stories of medical professionals working tirelessly to save and improve the quality of lives.
In that, I am in lockstep with Lifeway that the work done to care for people during illness is wonderful proof that we believe in the sanctity of human life.
[Note: the purpose of the Sanctity of Human Life Sunday is to raise awareness about those people who would cut life off at its beginning and ending -- abortion and euthanasia. Both of those are in the news now as much as ever. If you need to bring your group up to speed on those topics, please do so.]
Where We Are in Matthew
We have just covered the Semon on the Mount, and now Matthew moves as breakneck speed into a narrative of miracles and action. Here's a simplified reminder about the structure of Matthew:
Part 1: Introducing the Gospel of the Kingdom
Jesus' early ministry (Matt 3-4)
The first discourse: The Sermon on the Mount (Matt 5-7)
Transition: Jesus' authority (Matt 7:28-29)
Part 2: The Kingdom Grows
Demonstrations of Jesus' authority (Matt 8-10:4)
The second discourse: Sending the Disciples (Matt 10:5-42)
Transition: The ministry expands (Matt 11:1)
Part 3: Opposition Rises
Conflicts with the authorities (Matt 11-12)
The third discourse: Parables of the Kingdom (Matt 13)
I'm going to stop there because we're not trying to cover the whole Gospel today. This is just to point out how Matthew has structured his Gospel and given us clues as to his purposes.
Remember the end of the Sermon on the Mount we talked about last week:
7:28 When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, 29 because he was teaching them like one who had authority, and not like their scribes.
I said that the key word was "authority", and that Matthew would carry that through this next section of action.
With all due respect to Lifeway, I need to make sure you understand what Matthew is actually getting at in this section. To make it line up with the Sanctity of Human Life Sunday, the Lifeway material seems to be suggesting that Jesus' purpose of these miraculous healings was to demonstrate His love and compassion for all people.
Jesus absolutely did love and have compassion for all people, but that is not the purpose of these miracles. At least, not according to Matthew. No, these miracles establish proof of Jesus' authority to say the very provocative things Jesus just said in the Sermon on the Mount.
Here's the way I said it in my 2016 post:
[block quote begins]
Jesus heals a leper (8:1-4)
. . . the centurion’s servant (8:5-13)
. . . Peter’s mother-in-law (8:14-15)
. . . many at evening (8:16-17)
// Authority <> comfort (8:18-22) //
Jesus calms a storm (8:23-27)
. . . exorcises two men (8:28-34)
. . . forgives the paralytic’s sin (9:1-8)
// Jesus calls Matthew (9:9)
Authority over sinners and fasting (9:10-17) //
Jesus raises a dead girl (9:18-26)
. . . and the “hem of His garment”
. . . heals two blind men (9:27-31)
. . . exorcises a mute man (9:32-34)
Catch the variety. Power over disease. Power over demons. Power over sin. Power over nature. Power over the law. Power over death. Power to heal directly. Power to heal indirectly. Power to heal from a distance. It’s a tour de force of Jesus’ authority.
[block quote ends]
This Week's Big Idea:
The Differences Between Matthew, Mark and Luke
Somebody might bring this up, so I'll give you the quick and dirty. You might notice that Matthew does not present the individual stories (called "pericopes") in his Gospel in the same order as Mark or Luke. In fact, it seems that some of these events probably took place before the Sermon on the Mount! What gives?
Remember that a Gospel is not a modern biography. We're obsessed in knowing the order of events -- and for good reason! Events that happen early can help explain events that happen later.
But Jesus was an itinerant preacher. He had the same kinds of encounters over and over again throughout Galilee. Matthew wasn't worried about the exact order of events -- he was worried about helping us see how these events explain Jesus' ministry. Remember these introductory words from Matthew:
4:23 Now Jesus began to go all over Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.
Matthew had shown an example of Jesus' preaching and teaching, and now he shows various miracles of healing.
But it's not just healing human diseases. This is about authority. Jesus has authority over creation itself and everything in it. That includes human disease. It also includes the earth -- His miracles of nature are bringing order to a disordered earth. It also includes demons -- demons are just created things of God.
So, in this section, Matthew has gathered stories of Jesus demonstrating authority over all of these things.
You'll also notice that Matthew has slightly different versions of these stories from Mark or Luke. The differences are interesting and valuable to study, but remember what I said above: the most important way to study Matthew is to study what he includes, not what he omits.
Part 1: Authority Over Uncleanness (Matthew 8:1-4)
When he came down from the mountain, large crowds followed him. 2 Right away a man with leprosy came up and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” 3 Reaching out his hand, Jesus touched him, saying, “I am willing; be made clean.” Immediately his leprosy was cleansed. 4 Then Jesus told him, “See that you don’t tell anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”
This is obviously where my "large crowds" topic came from. Jesus has just said earthshattering things, and the people are in awe. They want more! They want to see what happens next! Word like that travels fast.
As I said above, according to the order of things in Luke and Mark, some of these events might have happened before the Sermon on the Mount. One reason why that bothers some readers is this translation in v. 2, "Right away." That suggests something immediately follows. But the actual Greek phrase really just means something like "and behold" or even "and"; it's just a connective. Events like this would have happened probably everywhere Jesus went.
Remember what happened to Miriam to know what you need to know about the people's attitude toward someone with leprosy:
Num 12:10 As the cloud moved away from the tent, Miriam’s skin suddenly became diseased, resembling snow.
They saw leprosy (which could really be the term for any number of skin diseases) as a curse from God. Anyone who made contact with a leper was unclean.
Note that this man believed Jesus had the power to heal him. Considering the stories in Numbers 12 and 2 Kings 5 (the only examples of such healing in the Bible), this is saying a lot. This man believed that Jesus was bringing in the Messianic Age. And, of course, Jesus could and did heal him.
Matthew's point at including this story is Jesus' authority over uncleanness. Here's a quote from D. A. Carson's commentary:
By touching an unclean leper, Jesus would have become ceremonially defiled himself (cf. Lev 13-14). But at Jesus' touch nothing remains defiled. Far from becoming unclean, Jesus makes the unclean clean.
(1) This shows Jesus' authority over this kind of disease. But (2) this also shows Jesus' authority over the law (like He talked about in the Sermon on the Mount). The Old Testament laws -- like those about ceremonial uncleanness -- are fulfilled in Him and enter a new era.
Sanctity of Human Life Connection. The Lifeway point -- which is still extremely valuable -- is that Jesus did not let a barrier keep Him from ministering to a person in need.
What are modern equivalents of "leprosy" -- things that make us consider another person as "unclean" and not safe for us to minister to?
Jesus came to save those people.
Aside: The Centurion's Servant
We skip Matthew 8:5-13 -- the story of Jesus healing the centurion's servant. This is a really important lesson about the nature of Jesus' authority, and it's really important for us to understand.
Frankly, because this is a story about Jesus' compassion toward someone who was considered an enemy of the Jews, I'm surprised Lifeway didn't include it this week.
Capernaum was a garrison town. Some of those Roman soldiers would have been there for long deployments, and they would have been aware of what's going on in the region. They would have also been aware of the anger of the people towards them and the dangers of large crowds.
Anyway, Matthew's purpose is to point out the nature of Jesus' authority. The Roman military conquered the known world because they were the greatest fighting force in human history. Their discipline and structure is legendary. And it's because they had a very strict chain of command.
Caesar gave authority to his generals. They in turn gave authority to their commanders. And it trickled down to the local level, like this centurion (a commander of "100"). The centurion knew that when he gave a command, he had the authority of Caesar backing him, and so he knew that his commands would be carried out.
Likewise, the centurion realized that if Jesus was indeed speaking with the authority of God (and centurion believed that He was), then any command Jesus gave would have the power of God behind it. Caesar could command soldiers -- God could command existence itself. And that was the authority Jesus had.
The centurion was right, and Jesus wanted His followers to recognize that faith. Particularly, faith of a non-Jew.
Just another clue that Jesus' mission wasn't just about Jews. It started there, but it didn't end there.
Part 2: Authority Over Other Maladies (Matthew 8:14-17)
14 Jesus went into Peter’s house and saw his mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever. 15 So he touched her hand, and the fever left her. Then she got up and began to serve him. 16 When evening came, they brought to him many who were demon-possessed. He drove out the spirits with a word and healed all who were sick, 17 so that what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: He himself took our weaknesses and carried our diseases.
Remember that in that day, fever was considered the disease itself, not a symptom. This could have been something like malaria. In any event, touching someone with a fever was forbidden by the Pharisees.
Also don't get caught up in the mother-in-law immediately serving Jesus. I like how The Chosen explores the relationship the two likely had. Once Jesus healed her, she would have switched to "Jesus is a guest in my home" like no big deal. Yes, Peter had lived in Bethsaida, but it makes sense that he would have moved to Capernaum with Andrew to be closer to Jesus' ministry.
Matthew goes from there to a laundry list of miracles, particularly demon exorcism. Again, this is about clear demonstrations of Jesus' authority -- there are no limits to His authority.
I know I just said to focus on what Matthew said, not Mark or Luke, but the parallel passages in Mark (1:32) and Luke (4:40) say that this happened on the Sabbath, which would explain why so many people waited until evening to come out.
Demon Possession. I consider demon possession to be pretty rare. But in the Gospels, demons seem to be pretty much everywhere. What gives? Here are two good explanations:
a number of maladies (for example, epilepsy) were blamed on demons, so some of the demon possessions might have been medically explicable;
the bigger explanation is the presence of Jesus -- simply being in the world would have drawn demons to the area around Jesus in a way that will never be repeated.
For my part, the thing that requires study is verse 17 where Matthew quotes Isaiah 53:4. Most scholars think Matthew used his own translation. So, what does it mean that Jesus "carried" our diseases?
Several things to know:
Matthew is genius enough to have all of Isaiah 53 in mind when he cited this verse. Isaiah 53 is one of the most important passages in the Old Testament about who Jesus was and what He came to do -- God Justifies - Seeing Jesus in Isaiah 53 (Also, What Did Jesus Look Like?)
Like with Paul, Jewish tradition recognized that all sickness and frailty was a result (even indirectly) of sin. So, Isaiah 53 can be rightly understood to mean that when the Suffering Servant took up the people's diseases, He was paying for their sin.
[Note: the final part of this week's lesson can be rightly seen as fleshing out this connection between sin and sickness.]
Our current knowledge of "substitutionary atonement" applies here -- Jesus "became sin for us" by taking our sin on Himself. Well, in Jesus' earthly ministry, all of these physical miracles come to symbolize the ultimate spiritual miracle of salvation.
But most importantly, we should connect this with Matthew's given current theme of authority. The Messiah has all of this authority, but He uses it for the good of others, previewing how He will soon give His life as a ransom for many, because He has the authority to "lay down His life" and also "take it up again". The Conquering King is also the Suffering Servant.
Sanctity of Human Life Connection. The Lifeway point is that Jesus cared about people in every life situation and every need.
Part 3: Authority to Forgive Sins (Matthew 9:1-8)
So he got into a boat, crossed over, and came to his own town. 2 Just then some men brought to him a paralytic lying on a stretcher. Seeing their faith, Jesus told the paralytic, “Have courage, son, your sins are forgiven.” 3 At this, some of the scribes said to themselves, “He’s blaspheming!” 4 Perceiving their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why are you thinking evil things in your hearts? 5 For which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 6 But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—then he told the paralytic, “Get up, take your stretcher, and go home.” 7 So he got up and went home. 8 When the crowds saw this, they were awestruck and gave glory to God, who had given such authority to men.
This is one of everybody's favorite stories, as it should be. We covered it in more detail in some of the other articles linked at the top. Matthew doesn't go into all of the detail that Mark or Luke does, and that's because Matthew is focused on the theme of authority.
If Jesus has the authority over all of these diseases -- and nature itself! -- does it surprise anyone that He has authority over the forgiveness of sin?
Just like the leper knew that Jesus could heal him, and the centurion knew that Jesus could heal his servant, this man's friends know that Jesus can heal the paralytic.
Aside: The Word-Faith Movement. A number of movements in Christian circles look at passages like these and conclude that Jesus acted based on the "proportion" of faith. The more faith, the bigger the miracle. "If you want Jesus to perform a miracle in your life, you have to have better faith." That's not at all what Matthew is trying to demonstrate! Jesus is not acting at all according to these outside influences -- the people are not controlling Jesus' actions in any way. Their faith rightly lined up with Jesus' intent. Matthew 9:1-8 is the surest rejection of the Word-Faith proposal. The men brought their friend to be healed of his paralysis, and what did Jesus do? Forgive his sin -- a very different but far more important thing! But more on this as we get back to the passage.
So, Jesus unexpectedly forgives the paralytic's sins. This is rightly flagged by the religious leaders -- only God has the authority to forgive sins (ex. Ps 51). Jesus did not have to "read their minds" to know this is what they were thinking.
Jesus' subsequent actions tie everything together.
First, what's the harder thing to say -- "Your sins are forgiven" or "Get up and walk"? Well, anybody can say that sins are forgiven, but there's immediate proof if someone can get up and walk or not.
Conversely, what's the harder thing to do -- forgive someone's sins or supernaturally heal someone? Both of them are impossible in the power of humans; the only way either can be done is in the power of God.
So we can rightly say that Jesus performed the miraculous healing to prove His authority to perform the miraculous grace. Remember that not only could God alone forgive sins, but God alone had the power to perform miracles -- so by performing the miracle, Jesus both refuted the charge of blasphemy and also gave evidence of the man's forgiveness.
Beautiful.
Matthew's point is Jesus' authority.
Lifeway's Sanctity of Human Life Sunday point is that Jesus came for all people, including those with disabilities. (Which, again, is true, but leaves some meat on the bone, so to speak.)
For our part, let's put ourselves in the position of Jesus' audience -- they've heard some scandalous teaching, but the Man saying it backs it up with these incredible miracles. That's how people began to believe in Jesus during His ministry, and it should still encourage faith among us today. Only God can do these things.
Closing Thoughts: Churches, Ministries, and Disabilities
This will come up again in the Gospel of Matthew, but let's not miss our opportunity to plant some seeds now. And yes, we've talked about this before.
Very few churches are truly equipped to minister effectively to a wide spectrum of disabilities. (I've mentioned before that the deaf population of the US is one of the most unreached.) It takes the right facility, and it takes special training. For that reason, Lifeway is right to suggest that people today (like in Jesus' day) with certain disabilities can feel like second-class citizens, not only in society but also in churches.
That's clearly unacceptable.
But even the largest churches can't minister equally to everybody -- it's impossible. They have to prioritize, and they generally do so based on the needs they are aware of in their community. And that might be your starting point for a discussion related to your church.
Are there people in your community who feel isolated from church (or more importantly Jesus)? What can your church do about it?
And most importantly of all -- what are you personally willing to do to help your church minister to these individuals?
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