Lingering on the fringe of the crowd, the leper catches Jesus’ eye as people disperse and walk down the hillside. The man approaches the Teacher, kneels before Him and stammers, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” With compassion and gentleness, Jesus responds, “I am willing. Be clean.” (Matthew 8:2-3, NIV) In a split second, the horrific skin disease disappears and the outcast experiences complete healing. This is how Matthew reveals Jesus’ authority over illness.
Using a mix of action sequences, conversations, and teaching from Jesus, Matthew shows the authority of the King through chapters eight, nine, and ten of his gospel. Christ demonstrates authority over the natural and spiritual realms in many brief stories, including our favorite tax-collector’s choice to leave his life of sin and follow Jesus. Let’s hit the highlights of these three dense chapters.
Chapter 8
After eradicating his leprosy, Jesus tells the healed man to go and show himself to the priest for ceremonial cleansing. He also asks the man to keep the “messianic secret”—not wanting to “reveal His identity as Messiah until the proper time.”1
Next, a Roman centurion (a Gentile) displays incredible faith in Jesus by asking Him to heal his paralyzed servant who is suffering. When Jesus offers to go to the centurion’s home, he replies, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed.” (8:8, NIV) Despite his military power and political authority, the centurion humbles himself before Jesus and recognizes Him as the One who is superior in every way. The centurion exemplifies the heart posture of meekness Jesus highlights in the Sermon on the Mount. Astonished at the centurion’s faith and humility, Jesus replies, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith…Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.” Matthew concludes this encounter by explaining, “And his servant was healed at that moment.” (8:10 & 13, NIV) As an outsider, this Gentile reveals more faith than any of the Jewish people Jesus has encountered thus far.
The healings continue as Jesus cures Peter’s mother-in-law of a fever that has kept her bedridden. Many other sick and demon-possessed people also receive Jesus’ healing touch. After witnessing these miracles, two different men pull Jesus aside and declare their allegiance to Him. In both cases, Jesus instructs them to consider the high cost of following Him. “Both men desired to follow Jesus. One was eager without fully counting the cost; the other was willing, but only after his affairs were in order.”2 Seeking the King requires more than enthusiasm and good intentions–it involves focus and sacrifice.
Matthew reveals another aspect of Jesus’ authority during a sudden storm on the Sea of Galilee. As Jesus sleeps peacefully, waves swamp the small boat. Fearing for their lives, the disciples wake Him saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown.” (8:25, NIV) At the sound of His voice the wind ceases and the waves smooth out like glass. Amazed, the disciples respond with awe, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!” (8:27, NIV) Seeing His power over the natural world, their awe for Jesus continues to increase.
After their stormy voyage, the disciples and Jesus arrive in Gentile territory. “True to form, Jesus stepped outside of another cultural comfort zone and called His disciples to follow Him there.”3
Not long after arriving, they encounter two violent demon-possessed men who immediately recognize Jesus and shout “What do you want with us, Son of God? Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?” (8:29, NIV) Revealing both Jesus’ authority and their limited power, the demons plead to be driven into a nearby herd of pigs. When all of the swine rush off a cliff and drown in the waters below, the people urge Jesus to leave. “Two men were finally free, but the people were focused on what was lost. Their value system was revealed and it stood in stark contrast to God’s.”4 I wonder how often we’re like them.
Chapter 9
Matthew continues with more stories of healing that illustrate a variety of responses to Jesus, providing living examples of the Beatitudes from Matthew 5:
- A paralyzed man receives both forgiveness for his sins and complete physical healing. Teachers of the law accuse Jesus of blasphemy while other people respond with awe.
- A bleeding woman who has been an outcast for twelve years risks touching the edge of Jesus’ cloak, believing there is “healing in His wings” (Malachi 4:2, NKJV). Recognizing her deep faith Jesus says, “Take heart, daughter, your faith has healed you.” (9:22)
- Jesus raises the daughter of a synagogue ruler from death. Similar to the centurion, we see a person of authority humbling himself before Jesus, only this time he’s Jewish. (Story also recorded in Mark 5:22-43 & Luke 8:41-56)
- Two blind men ask for mercy from Jesus and receive their sight. They disregard Jesus’ warning to keep quiet and spread news about Him all over the region, betraying His request to keep the “messianic secret.”
- A demon possessed man unable to speak receives healing from Jesus. While most of the crowd reacts with amazement, the Pharisees accuse Jesus of using the power of the prince of demons to drive out demons.
Interspersed with these stories of healing, Matthew includes his own conversion. He describes leaving his tax collector’s booth with two simple words from Jesus: “Follow me.” (9:9)
As Matthew hosts Jesus and other “sinners” in his home, the Pharisees display their disdain, to which Jesus responds, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (9:12-13, NIV) Here Jesus re-emphasizes the importance of recognizing our spiritual poverty and of mourning our sin so that we can humbly receive Him. Jesus welcomes all who acknowledge sin and repent of it, but the Pharisees’ self-righteous pride prohibits them from doing that.
Chapter 9 ends by setting up chapter 10. Jesus continues traveling through towns and villages preaching the good news and healing diseases and sicknesses. “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.’” (9:36-38, NIV)
People today are still “harassed and helpless like sheep without a shepherd”; the harvest is still plentiful, and the workers are still few. Will you be one of the workers committed to sharing the good news with those who desperately need it?
Chapter 10
Although he hasn’t told each of their stories, Matthew now lists all twelve disciples by name as Jesus prepares to send them out on their first missionary journey. Among this varied bunch we see a range of extremes—from unschooled fishermen (Peter, Andrew, James and John) to an educated upper-class tax collector (Matthew); from Simon, a zealot seeking to overthrow Rome by force to Matthew, a tax collector complicit with the occupying government. With hearts humbly yielded to Jesus, His disciples reveal unity, but not uniformity. How can we learn from their example in these times of deep division?
Before hitting the road on their first missionary journey, Jesus gives warnings and instructions to the pairs of disciples going out to preach the good news of God’s kingdom (Mark 6:7). He gives them “Authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.” (10:1, NIV) He tells them, “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.” (10:16) He warns them that betrayal, hardship, and persecution await, but reassures them that when they’re called before the authorities “it will not be you speaking but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.” (10:20, NIV)
Jesus reassures them and urges them at the same time: “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell…Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.” (10:28 & 32-33). He continues to describe what it means to live in His upside-down kingdom: “Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” (10:38-39, NIV)
Through these action-packed chapters, Matthew reveals many truths about God and His character:
- The Lord is pleased and honored by those who approach Him with faith and humility
- He has power over the natural world (such as weather), the spiritual world (casting out demons), and the physical world (healing people)
- He has the authority to forgive
- He has compassion on sinners and all who are spiritually lost
- He bestows spiritual power and authority upon those who follow Him
- He uses those who follow Him to reach the lost
Which story from these chapters resonates with you most? Are you in a storm and crying out for help? Are you sick and in need of healing? Are you worried about someone you love and seeking the Lord’s intervention? Regardless of our circumstances, let’s follow the examples or those who repent of pride, humble themselves, and show reverence and awe for the authority of the King of Kings.
Follow along with our study by ordering your copy of Tara Leigh Cobble’s Knowing Jesus as King.
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- Tara Leigh Cobble, Knowing Jesus as King, Bethany House 2024, 65.
- ibid, 67
- ibid
- ibid, 70