Sermon Tone Analysis

Psalm of the Day: Psalm 110

Scripture Reading: Hosea 2:19-20

Sermon

Good Morning Church!

I was glad when they sad to me let us go and worship in the house of the Lord!

SO it is probably not a secret because I know that I have said it before, but often when I start a series, I don’t know if every pastor is like this, But when I start a series, Going into it there are passages that I… less looking forward to than others.

That’s the nice way to say that.

And those are usually the really difficult ones, or the ones that are controversial, or have subject matter that is difficult or hard to hear.

But there are usually other sermons that I just look forward too.

For whatever reason, there is something about that passage or section that I really look forward to preaching.

Well today I am happy to declare is the second kind of passage.

Today we are looking at Matthew 9:18-26.

And the reason that I have been so looking forward to this is because this is a very unique and interesting passage.

It is sort of two stories, it is really one story, it is a narrative mixed with another.

Matthew is doing some very cool things here today.

As with many stories in Matthew, many of us are familiar with this passage.

It is the one with the Little girl being raised form the dead and the woman being healed of a lifelong bleeding issue.

AS I said Matthew 9:18-26 we will just read it then take a look at it this morning.

These are the words f the Lord for us this morning, lets begin with a word of prayer.

PRAY

So what makes this passage interesting, among tons of other things, what I was excited for, is that this is, in some sense a broken narrative.

WE have one story, the man whose daughter has died that Jesus will raise from the dead, and right in the smack dab middle of that story Matthew has given us another one, this woman with the discharge of blood for twelve years.

And what I look forward to is when we get a passage that has interesting literary things.

And then you get to ask: why would Matthew do this, and you get to dive into sort of grammar and puzzling out why is this passage this way?

And after spending time puzzling those questions and more a particular beauty comes out.

Matthew uses a broken narrative, a narrative sort of broken in tow with something in the middle to teach us something about broken faith.

To put this passage in context because it is always critical that we do that, there has been this sort of growing buildup of what Jesus is doing.

Jesus has done, up to this point, just about everything.

He has calmed the storm, he has cast out demons, healed a paralytic.

he has forgiven sin, or at least claimed to forgive sin, he has called disciples to follow him, he has done miracle after miracle.

and there is this growing sense that we might want to ask: “What else can Jesus do?” or rather “Is there anything that Jesus can’t do?”

And now we get to what must be the greatest most powerful miracle of Jesus.

If Jesus can do this one… well then what else ca we say, there is NOTHING he cant do.

and just to be clear, the “this one” is bring someone back to life.

The other miracles its POSSIBLE that we could chalk it up to something else maybe.

Like calming the storm, maybe that was a coincidence, storms stop eventually after all.

Casing out demons, well later we will see, the pharisees attribute that power to Jesus being the Lord of demons, that makes no sense, but hey, it is a way to not have to admit who jesus is.

Maybe he is just a “healer” but that type of person exists… i guess.

But to be able to bring someone back from the dead… that one defies explanation.

And s part of the story is asking: wait, can jesus do that?

but before we get to an answer the story breaks, it pauses.

Spoiler alert, we already read it, he can do that he does do that.

But the broken story begins to then tell us something about how jesus might work.

and we are introduced to characters who might teach us when we approach this savior who can do these things… how do we do that?

What is the proper mindset?

how do we understand how WE then interact with, in some way, how we are ministered to BY Jesus in another way.

How do we understand what we do with a savior who can do these things.

And so today what I would like to do is walk through this particular telling of this story.

Asking some questions, mostly looking at the characters, looking at what we can learn, and seeking to apply this then to our lives.

We start with the first new character in this: A RULER.

A RULER

Now this is very fascinating.

Matthew says: “when he was saying these things” - what are these things?

They were the parables.

He was teaching John's disciples, teaching about the kingdom, telling kingdom type things, BEHOLD a ruler came in an knelt before him.

What is fascinating is that Matthew just says that “ a ruler came in”.

We actually know, from Mark and Luke’s telling of this exactly who this is.

And so many times you will see, even as I read commentary's and listen to and read sermons on this passage, they go to mark and Luke and you find that this ruler s a man named Jairus.

we know from Matthew's telling that he is not just a ruler in general but that he is a man of prominence and power in the synagogue.

so we could know who this is.

But Matthew just says a ruler.

And so instead of going to Luke or mark to help us fully understand.

why don’t we ask: why wouldn't Matthew give us the same details.

Why don't we need to know, from Matthews POV at least, who Jairus is? why don’t we need to know what sort of ruler he actually is.

I think there are twofold reasons: 1) that’s not Matthews point and so he does not want to distract, but 2) i think there is something beautiful going on here.

This is because the ruler is then playing a role.

As a ruler he is a man with power and authority.

as a ruler, one who rules, he is one who is used to, on one hand getting what he wants, but more foundational, BEING ABLE TO GET WHAT HE WANTS!

SO simply put, by just telling us “a ruler” the role he is playing is of a powerful person who has no power.

and so he comes to one that he HOPES does.

By Just calling hi a “ruler” and having this man.

.. and this is what truly happened… but the way Matthew tells us… is that he comes before Jesus, he kneels before him in humbleness.

SO at the get go this is a ruler bowing before Jesus.

We know that makes sense, for Jesus is king of king and lord of Lords, but tat this point in the story of Matthew they don’t fully know that.

So here a ruler bows before this rabbi, teacher, and a controversial one at that (i mean, he claims divine power and doesn't even fast while eating with sinners, I men come on man).

And the picture then is the powerful man with no power who is in fact desperate.

Maybe he has tried everything.

We know that it is is daughter who has died.

SO what wouldn’t he do?

As a ruler he would have access to money and resources that other people might not have access to.

What doctor has he not called?

there is not one in the area!

what remedy, what method what route has he not pursued? he has tried all of them but none worked!

So this man is our first picture of broken faith, but here I don’t mean the faith is broken, but he himself is a broken man with nothing but faith.

And so his faith is then all that keeps him going.

In reality he “SHOULD NOT” be here.

He SHOULD be preparing the funeral.

He SHOULD be taking time and mourning.

there was actually a week long period, we talked about this briefly with the man who asked to bury his father.,

There was a week long funeral service that started the moment that a person died.

So he SHOULD have been mourning and taking care of affairs and making sure all was right there he SHOULD have been mourning there SHOULD have been if she just died he SHOULD NOT have been out and about looking for Jesus but here is a desperate and broken man with a desperate faith looking for Jesus.

A broken heartbroken man, the grief of all griefs placed upon him and he comes before the savior.

“My daughter has just died.”

come and lay your hand on her, she will live.

Part of, I would say broken faith shown in this man is the thought: come lay your hand on her so she will live, because she just has to.

He goes to jesus and says: my daughter has just died!

DO SOMETHING!

you are my last and only and final hope.

Put you hand on her, she will live again, that's what I need!

So the broken comes with faith.