Sermon Tone Analysis
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There are many times that Jesus’ healing doesn’t fit into a nice, neat category.
But that doesn’t mean they are not important.
Simple Healings
Have you heard of the cobbler’s children who had no shoes?
It’s amazing, but sometimes those who have the greatest access receive the least.
But not with Jesus.
A nice, simple healing.
Peter’s Mother-in-Law is sick, so Jesus heals her.
It doesn’t say Peter asked for her to be healed,
Just that Jesus saw that she was sick, and He healed her.
Unlike getting over something today, Peter’s Mother-in-Law didn’t need a few days to recover.
She immediately got up and served them.
By this time Jesus’ reputation had spread.
All He has to do is show up and they come from all around seeking healing.
But as we’ve seen, Jesus’ healings can be controversial.
Controversial Healings
Jesus visiting a synagogue is nothing special.
But here, Jesus has a purpose.
Seeing a man with a withered hand, Jesus asks a question.
Not a simple question, but a pointed one.
He was looking for a reason to accuse them.
We don’t think of God “setting people up”.
But God did it with Pharoah, the king of Heshbon, and king Nebuchadnezzar, why not the leaders of this synagogue?
It wasn’t that Jesus was setting these leaders up for a fall,
But to show them the error of their understanding of Sabbath.
Jesus gives them an example from their own lives.
They would save a fallen animal on Sabbath, contrary to the rabbinical laws.
Why would they not save a fallen person on the Sabbath?
Jesus heals on the Sabbath,
This is not the only time Jesus has healed on the Sabbath,
But here we see that Jesus did so specifically to call out the hypocrisy of the synagogue leaders.
Compare this event with the one in Matthew 15:21
Jesus is traveling in the region of Tyre and Sidon, when a Canaanite woman cries out for Mercy.
She used similar language to others that Jesus had healed.
She asks for mercy.
She refers to Jesus with a Messianic title.
She is asking not for herself, but for her daughter.
So what does Jesus do?
He ignored her.
Even the disciples urge Him to get rid of her.
Why would Jesus ignore a woman in such pain?
She was not from Israel, but Canaan.
Jesus went out of His way to show the leaders of the synagogue of the priority of doing good, even if it conflicted with the rabbinical teaching.
So why not do good here?
Jesus wasn’t sent to save the Gentiles, but the Jews.
To our ears today, this seems quite rude.
But salvation comes through the Jews.
Jesus was a good Jewish boy.
Besides, it was not yet God’s time for the message to go to the Gentiles.
So Jesus brushes her off.
This woman is persistent.
She just keeps going, “Lord, help me!”
And how does Jesus react?
He compares her request to throwing the children’s food to the dogs.
This would definitely generate an HR complaint today.
Not only is He denying her help because of her race.
Racist.
He’s calling her a dog, Speciesist.
These is not the Jesus most of us learned about in Sunday School, is it?
But this woman is not done yet.
Does the woman storm off after being insulted?
Does she go to the papers with an expose on the cruelty of this new prophet?
No, she makes a simple point.
I don’t need a meal from the table, just the crumbs.
She takes Jesus comparison, and turns the tables, after a sort.
No, it is not right for the children’s bread to be thrown to the dogs.
But the dogs do get to eat the crumbs from the table.
No, it is not right for the miracles for the Jews to be given to Gentiles,
But can’t we get some of the crumbs?
Isn’t it amazing how often the faith of the Gentiles is shown to be greater than that of the Jews?
Her faith was great.
She approached a Jew, begging for a healing.
She persisted in the face of Jesus’ rejection.
She didn’t take His words as an insult,
But used them to make her point.
For this reason, she received her desire,
And her daughter was healed.
Healing His Enemies
The last healing I want to deal with today is quite unique.
When Judas betrays Jesus, he came with an armed multitude
The chief priests and elders finally had someone who would turn on Jesus.
And they were taking no chances, that’s probably why then sent a “great multitude with swords and clubs”.
When they attempted to seize Jesus, one of his disciples cut off the ear of the servant of the high priest.
This should not be a surprise.
Someone comes to your house and lays hands on someone, we tend to react, often violently.
But notice how Jesus reacts.
Jesus tells his disciples to permit the arrest.
He even goes so far as to heal the ear of the man attacked by his disciple.
But in Matthew’s account, we read even more.
We often think we need to defend Jesus,
Forgetting that He is more than capable of defending Himself.
What is a dozen rag-tag disciples with a couple of swords compare to TWELVE LEGIONS of angels?
A legion is a military division with approximately 6,000 foot soldiers and 700 calvary.
That’s 72,000 soldiers and 8,400 calvary!
I don’t think Jesus needed the disciple’s help.
But there’s more to it than what Jesus needed.
By jumping in to defend Jesus, the disciple was actually interfering with the fulfillment of Scripture.
How often have we jumped in to defend Jesus, or at least our understanding of Him,
And in doing so, interfered with the plans of God?
Don’t be mistaken, God’s will will be done.
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