God Speaks
As Jesus Traveled about the Country, He Proclaimed the Kingdom of God, Healed the Sick, Raised the Dead and Cast out Demons
Verse of the Day: Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. (Matthew 9:35-36 NIV 2011)
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We Respond
Matthew 9
Reflection: Consider the following questions regarding each chapter of Matthew 9:
1. What does this chapter tell me about God?
2. What does this chapter tell me about the human beings He created?
Here is one possible answer to each of these questions. Ask the Holy Spirit if there are any others for you personally to ponder.
1. Jesus of Nazareth truly is God in human flesh. He does have the authority and ability to forgive sin.
2. People are wandering about, confused and without spiritual strength, powerless to save their own souls.
Prayer:
3. How might I pray regarding Matthew 9?
Thank You, Lord God, that You care about and deal with both the macro and the micro of life: the crowds and the individuals, the rich and the poor, the master and the servant, the king and the commoner, the righteous and the sinner, the healthy and the sick, the wise and the foolish, the educated and the ignorant, the citizen and the foreigner, the living and the dead. Some examples given in this chapter are: 1) Jesus proved that You, the Son of Man, had the authority on earth to forgive sins by healing a paralytic. 2) Jesus called Matthew, a hated tax collector and collaborator with the Roman government, to be one of the Twelve. You, Jesus, even ate at his house, a sign of true friendship and acceptance. 3) Jesus, You taught and modeled new procedures for a new agreement (covenant) between God and His people, such as fasting in the right context. 4) For another example, You healed blindness on the basis of faith in You. 5) Furthermore, You dealt with the underlying cause of the mute man’s inability to speak–demonic oppression–even though You were maligned for it. Thank You for traveling around, teaching in synagogues, proclaiming the good news of Your kingdom, and healing every disease and every affliction. Thank You for having compassion on us, undeserving human beings. We are harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. The harvest fields are ready. Please send laborers into Your fields to bring in Your harvest of souls. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)
4. What action does the LORD want me to take in response to Matthew 9?
- I will set a timer and spend at least 2 minutes just thanking the LORD that His purposes for ALL the big and small, good and bad things in my life will be fulfilled.
- I will ask the Lord to show me ways I can come alongside people like Matthew to accept them because of what Jesus accomplished for them on the cross, not reject them like the unforgiving cancel culture. I will follow through by showing His love to at least one person this week.
- I will share the good news of Jesus’ victory over sin and death with _____ (initials of a specific person) this week.
- I will take courage to stand up and speak up for righteousness and against evil in __________ (at least one specific situation) this week.
Luke 7
Reflection: A centurion recognized that Jesus had authority to heal. Jesus demonstrated compassion in bringing the widow’s son back to life. Through the messengers John sent, Jesus reassured John the Baptist that He truly was the coming Messiah he had proclaimed. Jesus went on to explain John’s role in God’s plan. Jesus taught Simon, a Pharisee, a lesson about love and forgiveness using a sinful but thankful woman as an illustration.
Prayer: Dear God who is the ultimate authority, thank You that Jesus, as God the Son, had and used that authority to heal the centurion’s servant and many others. Jesus, You exercised Your authority over death by bringing the widow’s son back to life. You reassured John the Baptist, imprisoned for preaching the truth, that his ministry was not in vain. You both taught and demonstrated to the Pharisee Simon that You had the authority to forgive sins. Thank You, Father God, that because of Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection, all of this authority is available to Your faith-filled followers. In Your great grace, because of my union with Christ in my spirit, You have delegated that authority to me. Help me to appropriately apply it to situations around me for Your glory. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, which one of these He wants you to work on or something else more personal that He points out.)
- I will open my mouth to proclaim that Jesus is who He says He is and does what He says He will do.
- I will write out a list of situations over which I have authority in Christ, giving scriptural references.
- I will take time to thank God for the specific aspects of authority He has given me.
- I will record times when I exercised my authority in Christ and the results, thanking God for the privilege of serving Him in this way.
Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.