Burunche’s Blog

Matthew 10:1 “Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. ² These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; ³ Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; ⁴ Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. ⁵ These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. ⁶ Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. ⁷ As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ ⁸ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy,^[a] drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give. ⁹ “Do not get any gold or silver or copper to take with you in your belts— ¹⁰ no bag for the journey or extra shirt or sandals or a staff, for the worker is worth his keep. ¹¹ Whatever town or village you enter, search there for some worthy person and stay at their house until you leave. ¹² As you enter the home, give it your greeting. ¹³ If the home is deserving, let your peace rest on it; if it is not, let your peace return to you. ¹⁴ If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet. ¹⁵ Truly I tell you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.”

Jesus had already told his followers that he had pity on the multitudes because they were like lost sheep without a shepherd. Having observed that laborers are needed for the spiritual harvest, Jesus did something about it! Many times, we don’t; we are quite fond of talking a situation to death, substituting discussions for solutions. Jesus gave very specific instructions. 1. Go only to Jewish communities 2. Give a very simple message “the kingdom of God is at hand.” 3. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, and drive out demons. 4. Don’t collect any money for your services and don’t take any money with you. 5. Don’t even take extra clothes or a staff for walking and/or defense. 6. Seek out a worthy person and stay with them. 7. Bless anyone who helps you but shake the dust off your feet against anyone who will not listen or who does not welcome you. 8. People who do not receive you will be treated more severely than the people of Sodom and Gomorrah on judgment day!

Why go only to Jewish communities? The disciples were just starting out. Had the disciples gone to non – Jewish communities, they might have gotten caught up in senseless religious arguments. (Remember Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well; the lady was trying to argue religion with Jesus.) Keep the message simple – good advice in any age. Do miracles? Jesus told the disciples that he was giving them authority to do these things. The disciples had just watched Jesus do all of these miracles in the past few days, so why not? But Jesus’ next instructions were counter – intuitive: WHAT??? Don’t collect anything for your services? Don’t take any money with you? Not even any copper coins at all?? No bag? No extra clothes or sandals? Not even a staff? Everybody carried staffs. The paths were rocky and uneven and in a pinch, a staff could become a defensive weapon. This is getting serious! Didn’t Jesus know what might happen?

The British have a saying, “Begin as you mean to go on.” Jesus wanted the disciples to learn early on that God could be trusted and that God already had people in these various communities who were “people of peace,” that is, seekers after God, who would gladly shelter and feed someone who could tell them more about the Kingdom. But Jesus also knew what was in the heart of man and he knew that the disciples might face rejection, so he also prepared the disciples for that eventuality.

Think of the people who had the chance to shelter and feed the disciples and to be part of their ministry, but who refused. “What? He’s just some slob of a fisherman! His “master” is a carpenter! Why should I listen to him?”

And once more, we realize that eternity and untold blessings were following these disciples throughout their travels. For those with hearts open to God, there would be incredible experiences that they would remember for the rest of their lives. But for those who refused to listen or believe, hell had already begun. May we always be ready to receive new messengers from God!

PRAYER: Father God, thank you that you are no respecter of persons! Thank you that you still give power to witness, to heal, to restore, and to lift up. Help us to recognize your messengers when they come to us so that we will be able to help them and receive the blessings that come as a result of our efforts. We bless your Mighty Name now and forever! Amen.

Matthew 9:35 “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. ³⁶ When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. ³⁷ Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. ³⁸ Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

Jesus looked up at the hillside, where a flock of sheep was scattered helter – skelter. Where was the shepherd? There should have been a small boy or girl watching those sheep. Didn’t anybody realize how quickly sheep could become confused and what would happen if the sheep panicked? Those sheep would be gone in a few minutes with no way to retrieve them. Then Jesus turned and looked at the crowd outside the synagogue where He had just been teaching and healing. Those people looked just like the sheep on the hillside! Each one of those people had a hurt, lost, lonely look in his or her eyes. Centuries of teaching in the temple had done nothing to give these people help or hope. And Jesus advised his disciples to beg the Lord of the harvest for workers.

Today the world is caught up in a pandemic and people are as confused and frightened as those sheep on the hillside. Those of us who know the master Shepherd should be demonstrating love in practical ways and communicating faith, not fear.

PRAYER” Father God, today we are all worried and frightened. But if we know Jesus as Savior and Lord, we have nothing to fear. Help us to go forth in Your Love, full of compassion. Help us to minister wisely and kindly, so that others will learn to know the Shepherd as well. In the mighty and precious Name of Jesus. Amen.

Matthew 9: ³² While they were going out, a man who was demon-possessed and could not talk was brought to Jesus. ³³ And when the demon was driven out, the man who had been mute spoke. The crowd was amazed and said, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.” ³⁴ But the Pharisees said, “It is by the prince of demons that he drives out demons.”

Jesus was still in Capernaum and had just healed the two blind men because of their faith. As Jesus was walking out the door, a demon – possessed man who could not speak was brought to him. How did people realize that this man was demon – possessed? Perhaps this man once was able to talk quite well, but then something happened..

“Stay away from the high places! They are evil and full of devils!” Samuel’s mother had told him that repeatedly ever since he was an inquisitive small boy. But that night, Samuel had been drinking with friends. And as the wine flowed freely, Samuel had made a terrible mistake; he boasted that he could stay all night at the old high place where the pagans used to worship Molech without suffering any consequences. Samuel’s friends tried to dissuade him and convince him to stay home. But, full of wine and bravado, Samuel had staggered up the mountain and had lain down where the pagan altar used to be. And in the morning, Samuel was unable to speak and had a wild desperate look in his eyes. From that day onward, not only was Philip unable to speak but he was also unable to work. Ssamuel’s widowed mother and his two brothers had to support him, and it wasn’t easy. If left alone, Samuel was likely to wander out into dangerous places as the demons that had entered him drove him from the lake to a high cliff and back again. Finally hearing that Jesus was in Capernaum and that He was healing people, Samuel’s brothers dragged him down the street. dropping him at the feet of Jesus. And Jesus, recognizing what had happened and recognizing the demons, wasted no time but uttered a single command, “Get out!” Samuel collapsed to the ground but then stood up straight and looked Jesus full in the face. “Son of David, Messiah,” Samuel said, “blessed be your name! I will follow you for the rest of my life!”

The townspeople realized what had happened. Although there were itinerant healers who claimed to be able to cast out demons, nobody had ever witnessed a case in which the demons had left permanently. But the local religious leaders were furious! This upstart was interfering with their teaching and threatening their prestige. Some of them had prayed for Samuel in the past without any results, had prayed for several hours, invoking all the Names of God and quoting all the scripture they could think of. Now this carpenter showed up, speaking one simple command, and the demons left! What power did this man have that they didn’t? Surely this man must be in contact with the prince of demons to be able to order lesser demons around! There could be no other explanation!

The poetess Elizabeth Barrett Browning once said, “Earth’s crammed with heaven, And every common bush afire with God, But only he who sees takes off his shoes; The rest sit round and pluck blackberries.” God was doing a brand new thing right in front of these Pharisees, and they were too prejudiced to recognize what was happening. They were too blind to see that a Holy God had touched this man, filling him with the Holy Spirit and driving out the demons. Caught up in their own teachings, the Pharisees could not recognize a miracle when they saw one.

PRAYER: Father God, please help us to see what you are doing and to recognize your power that is working in our lives. Lord, forgive our blindness and help us to be grateful and not critical when you heal with only a touch. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

 Matthew 9:27 “As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, calling out,“Have mercy on us, Son of David!”²⁸ When he had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he asked them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?”

“Yes, Lord,” they replied. ²⁹ Then he touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith let it be done to you”; ³⁰ and their sight was restored. Jesus warned them sternly, “See that no one knows about this.” ³¹ But they went out and spread the news about him all over that region.”

Jesus is in still Capernaum. It’s been an incredible day! Jesus has just finished raising the synagogue leader’s daughter from the dead and is walking down the street, probably on his way back to Peter’s house, when two blind men begin following him and begging for help. First, Jesus gets indoors, and then He interviews the two blind men, asking a simple question, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” Remember, this day began with Jesus healing a paralyzed man, calling Levi/Matthew to be a disciple, raising a young girl from the dead, and incidentally healing a woman who had been suffering with vaginal bleeding for twelve years. So far, that’s at least three miracles – four, if you count Levi/Matthew’s change of heart. And these blind guys are Capernaum natives; these are their friends and relatives who have gotten healed. At this point, they have no doubts that Jesus can do anything he wants to! They have all the faith in the world!

It’s interesting that Jesus did not heal the two blind men out on the open street where everybody could see the miracle. Jesus waited until they were all indoors before proceeding with a healing. Jesus even warns them STERNLY not to tell anybody! Why? Well, perhaps Jesus did not want to be noted for miracles but for His teachings about the Kingdom. If everybody thought that Jesus was just a miracle worker, they would be hanging on, waiting for the next sensational healing and ignoring the messages He was bringing. But, think about these two men. Suppose you have been blind all your life. You are perfectly healthy, but all you have to look forward to is begging on the steps of the synagogue or in the market place. In some places, blind men might even have been refused admission to the temple due to their physical disability. That morning you woke up and the whole world was black, just as it had been all your life. Then you heard that Jesus of Nazareth was coming. Your blind friend and you were right there on the street as Jesus was passing. AND you also had heard that the legends about healing being present in the tassels of the Messiah’s talith (prayer shawl) were true! Just an hour ago, poor Miriam, who had been a social outcast for twelve years because of the continuing issue of blood, suddenly was healed when she touched one tassel of Jesus’ talith.

Notice the fashion in which the blind men asked for help. They did not say, “Jesus of Nazareth;” instead, they said, “Have mercy on us, Son of David.” The blind men were signaling to Jesus that they too believed that He was the Messiah. They were appealing to Jesus as Messiah, as the one with “healing in His wings” to heal them. And Jesus honored their faith and healed them.

 The Amplified version says, “But they went off and blazed and spread His fame abroad throughout that whole district.” Do you think Jesus was surprised that they didn’t hide their healing? Jesus has just healed two well – known blind beggars in a close – knit community of 1500 people. The word must have been all over town in twenty minutes, even without the blind men running out and telling everybody. Really, how were these two men to hide their healing? These men were fixtures in the community; everybody knew them. All anybody had to do was to look into their bright wide – opened eyes and they would know that they had been healed. These fellows were probably running all over town, looking at things! “Wow! Look at the lake! Look at the hills! Those flowers are incredible! I never knew what colors looked like before .” And what do you think happened when these men returned to their family homes? Can you imagine seeing your mother’s face or your wife’s face or your children’s face for the very first time?

There are all kinds of blindness apart from physical blindness. Many times we are spiritually blind. Perhaps we have been struggling with problems for so long that we feel overwhelmed. We see no way out of our predicament. Perhaps we think everything is fine and that we are on top of things when we really aren’t. We might pride ourselves on being tough bosses with high standards while our workers feel crushed.

PRAYER: Father God, today we ask you to show us our blindness and to help us confess it as sin. We thank you that there are no problems too big for you and no relationships that cannot be mended if we will only turn them over to you. Please heal our blindness and help us to see you clearly so that we can also see others as You see them, as people worthy of love. In the mighty Name of Jesus. Amen.

1 I bind unto myself today
the strong name of the Trinity
by invocation of the same,
the Three in One and One in Three.

2 I bind this day to me forever,
by power of faith, Christ’s incarnation,
his baptism in the Jordan river,
his death on cross for my salvation,
his bursting from the spiced tomb,
his riding up the heavenly way,
his coming at the day of doom,
I bind unto myself today.

3 I bind unto myself today
the virtues of the starlit heaven,
the glorious sun’s life-giving ray,
the whiteness of the moon at even,
the flashing of the lightning free,
the whirling wind’s tempestuous shocks,
the stable earth, the deep salt sea
around the old eternal rocks.

4 I bind unto myself today
the power of God to hold and lead,
God’s eye to watch, God’s might to stay,
God’s ear to hearken to my need,
the wisdom of my God to teach,
God’s hand to guide, God’s shield to ward,
the word of God to give me speech,
God’s heavenly host to be my guard.

5 Christ be with me, Christ within me, 
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort and restore me.
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.

6 I bind unto myself the name,
the strong name of the Trinity
by invocation of the same,
the Three in One and One in Three,
of whom all nature has creation,
eternal Father, Spirit, Word.
Praise to the Lord of my salvation;
salvation is of Christ the Lord!

PRAYER: Our Father and our God, who gave Patrick the wisdom and courage and perseverance to confront the powers of darkness in Ireland, give us that same wisdom and courage and perseverance! Help us to follow hard after You all the days of our lives! Help us to minister as You want us to, refusing to give in to fear or panic, but doing acts of love in this time of crisis. In the mighty and precious Name of Jesus. Amen.

Matthew 9: ¹⁸ While he was saying this, a synagogue leader came and knelt before him and said, “My daughter has just died. But come and put your hand on her, and she will live.” ¹⁹ Jesus got up and went with him, and so did his disciples. ²⁰ Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. ²¹ She said to herself, “If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.” ²² Jesus turned and saw her. “Take heart, daughter,” he said, “your faith has healed you.” And the woman was healed at that moment. ²³ When Jesus entered the synagogue leader’s house and saw the noisy crowd and people playing pipes, ²⁴ he said, “Go away. The girl is not dead but asleep.” But they laughed at him. ²⁵ After the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up. ²⁶ News of this spread through all that region.

WOW! What a day! Jesus has just barely finished answering the question about fasting when a synagogue leader comes begging for help! Remember, Jesus is still at Matthew’s house with all the local tax collectors. This leader kneels before Jesus, right in front of the tax collectors. This man is desperate! His daughter is dying and he has no hope apart from Jesus. Then as Jesus is walking down the street with people pushing and shoving on him, he can feel that power has transferred from him to someone and realizes that this lady has touched the edge of his cloak. According to many sources, this lady actually touched the tassels attached to the four corners of his garment.

The prophet Malachi spoke of the Messiah of Israel and said of Him, “But for you who revere My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in His wings” (Mal. 4:2). The Hebrew word for “wings” used in this passage is kanaf, which is a word that specifically means the fringe-like feathers or edges of a bird’s wing, not the whole wing. All of us have seen an eagle or hawk circling in the summer sky and have seen these fringe-like feathers. This word, therefore, had two meanings and could be translated wings, or fringes. This lady believed that Jesus was the Messiah and remembered this promise from Malachi. After all, she was desperate! What else was she going to do? And that morning the promise came true! This lady touched one of the tassels and immediately power went through her body and healed her. Jesus recognized what had happened and encouraged the lady. Then Jesus continued to the synagogue leader’s house.

The little girl was already dead! That was obvious. The hired mourners had already begun their wailing and their piping on death pipes. The synagogue leader was heart broken. But Jesus came and took the girl by the hand and by the authority vested in the Messiah the girl was healed. The girl’s parents must have been weeping tears of joy.

Perhaps today your hopes are dead! You have struggled for years to overcome some problem and nothing is helping! You desperately need a touch from God. Do not despair! God is still on the throne and His power is still available.

PRAYER: Father God, help us! Save us! We are caught in problems that are overwhelming us. Please, Lord, let us touch just one of the tassels of your garment and send your power throughout our bodies, minds, and souls. Transform us into your image. In Jesus’ mighty Name. Amen.

Matthew 9:¹⁴ Then John’s disciples came and asked him, “How is it that we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?” ¹⁵ Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast. ¹⁶ “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse. ¹⁷ Neither do people pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.”

Jesus was still reclining at Matthew’s table, chatting with his guests when one of John’s disciples came up and began questioning him. It’s tough to know whether this fellow was an honest seeker or whether he was hoping to embarrass Jesus. After all, here was Jesus, feasting with the local tax collectors! What a scandal!

As we listen to the question, we can practically hear the sly insinuations in these questions. “Oh, we and the PHARISEES (the spiritual super – stars) have been fasting often, but YOUR disciples do not fast.” What is this? Spiritual one-upmanship masquerading as a truth – seeking question? Is this guy complaining? bragging? or does he really want an honest answer? No matter what this man’s motivation, Jesus is more than equal to the occasion. We can see Jesus as he sits up and turns to the man and smiles with delight at these questions. This is going to be good!

First, Jesus reminds this man that nobody fasts during a wedding feast. Weddings were times for delicious food and plenty of wine. People would defer their fasts until after the wedding was over and the bridegroom was no longer around. As long as the wedding was going on, people were going to enjoy themselves. Here Jesus was actually prophesying his death and resurrection; however, the disciples would not realize that until much later. But Jesus doesn’t leave the matter there but goes on to answer using two examples from every day life.

When I was learning to sew in the 1950’s, the first thing we had to do with our material was to wash it in hot water so that it would shrink as much as it was going to. Any seamstress foolish enough to sew a garment without first pre-shrinking the material would find that the garment would not fit and that the pieces might be distorted the first time the garment was washed. Jesus reminds his questioner that using new unshrunk material to patch a garment would be foolish because the patch would pull away, making the tear worse. Then Jesus goes on to remind this man that new wine must be put into new wine skins so that as the wine ferments and expands, the wine skins can stretch. Old wine skins have no elasticity and therefore cannot stretch to accomodate the gases generated by the fermentation of the new wine.

 The questions that this man hoped might embarrass Jesus only gave Jesus the opportunity to give new insights into the Kingdom of God. Jesus was comparing himself to a bridegroom, to someone whose coming brought joy and laughter and excitement and fulfillment. God was doing new things and attempting to squeeze the Holy Spirit into old patterns would be just as useless as filling old wine skins with new wine. As Jesus was answering this man, he may have already been looking forward to Pentecost when the Holy Spirit would descend on the disciples and nothing would ever be the same again.

Today, do you feel that your life has become like one of those old wine skins? You are doing the same things over and over but nothing is changing spiritually? Perhaps you are looking to a pastor or to a church or to a particular leader for answers. Why not ask Jesus instead?

PRAYER: Dear Jesus, please open our eyes to the new things you want to do in our lives. Help us to open our hearts and to give your Holy Spirit the chance to fill us and to change and empower us. In your mighty and precious Name, Jesus. Amen.

Matthew 9:9 – 13 “As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.¹⁰ While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. ¹¹ When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”¹² On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. ¹³ But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

IT WAS A SCANDAL LIKE NO OTHER!!! Capernaum was abuzz with excitement! That morning Jesus had already healed Eli the paralytic and forgiven his sins, shocking the teachers of the law in the process. Then, as Jesus was walking on down the main street of Capernaum, he saw Levi the tax collector. Levi was collecting duties on imported goods brought by farmers, merchants, and caravans. Under the Roman Empire’s system, Levi would have paid all the taxes in advance, then collected from the citizens and travelers to reimburse himself. Tax collectors were notoriously corrupt because they extorted far and above what was owed, to ensure their personal profit. Because their decisions were enforced by Roman soldiers, no one dared object.

Now Jesus was walking boldly right up to this tool of Roman oppression and saying ….what? “Jesus, are you really inviting this criminal to be your disciple? Don’t you know who he is and what he does?” Yes, Jesus knew Levi, knew him down to the soles of his fancy sandals. But Jesus also knew something else about Levi: Levi had an intense hunger for God that he had been trying to satisfy with money. Jesus didn’t make any elaborate speeches or arguments; all he said to Levi was “Follow me.” And Levi got up and followed. That day, Levi’s life changed so radically that he even changed his own name. The name Levi meant “joined” or “attached” and was a traditional Jewish name. But that day Levi changed so much that he re-named himself “Matthew.” “Matthew” is a contraction of “Mattathias” and means “God’s gift.” Levi/Matthew wanted to signal to everybody that he was no longer attached to money but that he was now following God.

On the same day Jesus invited Matthew to follow him, Matthew threw a great farewell feast in his home in Capernaum, inviting his friends so they could meet Jesus too. From that time on, instead of collecting tax money, Matthew collected souls for Christ.

Despite his sinful past, Matthew was uniquely qualified to be a disciple. He was an accurate record keeper and keen observer of people. He captured the smallest details. Those traits served him well when he wrote the Gospel of Matthew some 20 years later.

By surface appearances, it was scandalous and offensive for Jesus to pick a tax collector as one of his closest followers since they were widely hated by the Jews. Yet of the four Gospel writers, Matthew presented Jesus to the Jews as their hoped-for Messiah, tailoring his account to answer their questions. Matthew displayed one of the most radically changed lives in the Bible in response to an invitation from Jesus. He did not hesitate; he did not look back. He left behind a life of wealth and security for poverty and uncertainty. He abandoned the pleasures of this world for the promise of eternal life.

Today, are you like Levi? To what are you attached? Wealth? Fame? Power? Position? A comfortable life style? A profession? Security? As I am writing this devotional, the Covid-19 virus is upsetting economies and societies all over the world. People who thought they had everything figured out now are panicking, wondering what is going to happen next.

Levi made the wisest choice possible; he detached himself from the money he thought he needed and attached himself to Jesus as Matthew the Disciple. Today, each of us has a choice: to turn and follow Jesus or to continue to try to fill a God – sized hole in our hearts with things that can never satisfy. What will you choose?

PRAYER: Father God, today we are afraid! We hear so much terrible news about the Covid – 19 pandemic and we wonder what will happen next. But Father, you are the only One who can really give us security. Help us to leave these other things that we have been trusting and put our trust totally in you. In the mighty Name of Jesus. Amen.

Source of information regarding Matthew: https://www.learnreligions.com/matthew-tax-collector-and-apostle-701067

Matthew 9:1 – 8 “Jesus stepped into a boat, crossed over and came to his own town. ² Some men brought to him a paralyzed man, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.” ³ At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, “This fellow is blaspheming!” Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in yourhearts? ⁵ Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up andwalk’? ⁶ But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgivesins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, take your mat and go home.” ⁷ Then the man got up and went home. ⁸ When the crowd saw this, they were filled with awe; and they praised God, who had given such authority to man.”

Eli was stuck, trapped a prisoner in his own body! Year after year, his own bitter angry words rang in his ears – the last words he had hurled at his wife before he collapsed with a stroke. What had she done to make him so angry? Now he could no longer remember. All Eli knew was that he was completely paralyzed on the right side of his body, his arm and leg stiff and unusable. Eli had had to learn to eat with his left hand – an almost unforgivable social sin, but a necessary one if he was to live. Oh, if only Eli could return to that day and take back those bitter words! All this time the wife he thought he had hated had cared for him affectionately and tenderly. Eli groaned within himself; he didn’t deserve such love! Then one day, a friend told Eli that Jesus was returning to Capernaum. Jesus! That carpenter’s son from Nazareth who had been healing people. Why, Jesus had even driven out demons from two demon – possessed men in Gadara. Too bad the townspeople didn’t appreciate a miracle worker when they saw one! So Eli messaged his friends and begged them to pick up the mat on which he was lying and to send him to Jesus.

When Eli got to Jesus, he was so excited that he could scarcely speak. And then Jesus looked at him with eyes full of compassion and love and …..forgiveness? The local teachers of the law were there scrutinizing everything Jesus did! THEY KNEW what Eli had done! Those teachers had already smugly informed him that he would pay for his sin of anger for the rest of his life and that punishment was no more than he deserved! They felt far superior to Eli!

And then Jesus came and spoke those miraculous words “Take heart, son, your sins are forgiven!” And suddenly Eli knew it was true! Forgiveness flooded his ravaged body. And Eli lifted his unparalyzed left hand to praise God. Now it did not matter if he was trapped in this body for the rest of his life; his sins of anger and bitterness had been forgiven. But wait, what was Jesus saying now?

Simon, the leader of the local teachers of the law, was squeezing his face, horrified by what he thought was blasphemy. And Jesus looked at Simon and smiled and asked, “Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’?”But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.”  Then Jesus turned to Eli and said,”Get up, take your mat and go home.” Suddenly Eli’s right side became strong again! There were no more pains, no more stiffness, in fact, Eli felt wonderful. With the light of heaven on his face, Eli quickly rolled up his mat and walked out of the house, leaving Simon and his fellow teachers dumbfounded.

Today, what bitterness or unforgiveness is paralyzing you? Perhaps you are stuck in a toxic work environment, striving to do your best for an ungrateful supervisor. Perhaps you feel your marriage has become a loveless one and you are hanging on fot the sake of the vows you made so many years ago. Perhaps you have been forced to live with a relative whose every sentence grates on your nerves. Bitterness is so easily acquired and so difficult to get rid of!

Ask Jesus to come into your life and to help you and heal you! “But,” you say,”I’m not really sure I even believe in Jesus.” Fine. Ask anyway! What do you have to lose? If Jesus comes and heals, isn’t that better than the situation you are in now? Emotionally, you are like that paralyzed man lying on that mat. You can’t help yourself; if Jesus can help you, why not ask Him?

PRAYER: Jesus, please help me! My bitterness is more than I can bear. I feel emotionally paralyzed and stuck. Lord, please heal me. In your Name, Jesus. Amen.

Matthew 8:⁸ When he arrived at the other side in the region of the Gadarenes,^[c] two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met him. They were so violent that no one could pass that way. ²⁹ “What do you want with us, Son of God?” they shouted. “Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?” ³⁰ Some distance from them a large herd of pigs was feeding. ³¹ The demons begged Jesus, “If you drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs.” ³² He said to them, “Go!” So they came out and went into the pigs, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and died in the water. ³³ Those tending the pigs ran off, went into the town and reported all this, including what had happened to the demon-possessed men. ³⁴ Then the whole town went out to meet Jesus. And when they saw him, they pleaded with him to leave their region.

It happened in Manhattan many years ago. We were walking down the street when suddenly a homeless woman took one look at us and began screaming at us. Not long after that, another homeless person took one look at us and ran away. We were perplexed; we hadn’t done anything unusual to make these people freak out. When we described our experiences to the elders of the church we were attending, they said, “Oh, those people had demons. The demons in them sensed the Jesus in you, and they couldn’t stay around you.”

There are several very interesting parts to this story. First, notice that Jesus arrived specifically at the location frequented by the two demon – possessed men. Was this an accident? Scarcely! Jesus probably had whoever was handling the boat he was in steer right for that spot. Can you imagine the conversations in the boat as they were heading straight for these two scary guys?
“Jesus, you want us to go WHERE? You know those guys are going to tear us limb from limb! Nobody has been able to pass that way in years. They even stopped burying people in those tombs because of those two men. Are you crazy?”

Next, notice that all Jesus did was to get out of the boat and walk toward the two demon – possessed men. Jesus didn’t say anything; it was the demons who began accusing Jesus. The demons knew that Jesus was going to order them to leave the two men, so they suggested that Jesus allow them to enter the swine. Jesus doesn’t have a conversation with the demons; he simply tells them “Go!” and they leave the men.

Why was there a herd of pigs there in the first place? Pigs were considered unclean animals and no Jew would touch pork. Evidently, these pigs were being raised to be sold to Gentiles who wouldn’t be so picky. The reaction of the townspeople is also fascinating. These two guys had been terrorizing the area. You might think that the local people would be thrilled to find that the demons were gone, but no. The whole town went out to meet Jesus and begged him to leave. Were they also demonically influenced or simply afraid of anybody who had that kind of power?

Demons and their influence are very real and very dangerous. Recently there were cartoons released that purported to teach kids how to summon demons. This is crazy! You don’t have to go looking for demons; they can easily find you. But the fallacy many people wish to believe is that you will somehow be able to control the demons. Nothing could be further from the truth! Inevitably, the demons will end up controlling you and your life will be ruined. Today, search your heart! Examine yourself! Are there any areas of your life into which demons can enter? There are really only two paths in the universe: you will either follow God or Satan. Which will it be?

PRAYER: Father God, today we are afraid! We don’t want to invite demons into our lives, but we are unsure about some of the things we have seen on television or on the internet. It was your power that Jesus used to cast out demons. Please Lord, clean our hearts and minds so that we can follow you and only you. In the mighty Name of Jesus. Amen.

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