Encounters with Jesus #1
The other week I was reading Matt 9 and I was really taken back by this astonishing list of people who demonstrated their faith in Jesus. Indeed it often seemed that Jesus [the man of faith] was even impressed by them at times!
All of this has left me reeling so much so that I’d like us to spend some time in the company of these guys over the next 7 blogs.
But it all begins here: Back in the boat, Jesus and the disciples crossed the sea to Jesus' hometown. They were hardly out of the boat when some men carried a paraplegic on a stretcher and set him down in front of them. Jesus, impressed by their bold belief, said to the paraplegic… "Get up. Take your bed and go home." (Matt 9:1-2, 5 MSG)
This is all that Matthew chooses to record about this incident which ‘impressed’ Jesus so much. It is a frustratingly thin on detail.
Jesus had visited his home town once before which is recorded in Mark 6. Back then we where told that Jesus was “amazed at their lack of faith.” Back then he was unable to do any miracles because of this but this time was different; it seems that miracles would occur whether he intended them to happen or not (which we will see later)! We may never know what had happened in the intervening time but one thing we do know – it was dramatic! Jesus was once dismayed by the lack of belief in his home town but now he was impressed, and almost as soon as he steps foot on the shore!
Doesn’t this give you hope?
If you are like me you will have had times in your life when you lacked faith and Jesus walked on by. You could have experienced the miraculous but instead nothing changed. You’ve beaten yourself up over it but now Jesus is coming back; he hasn’t abandoned you, but will you greet him with faith?
These guys were desperate for Christ.
Perhaps they had been in the crowd last time Jesus visited. History told them that miracles didn’t happen in this town, but this did not stop them. They rushed at Jesus with a faith that flew in the face of history. They put down their lack of faith and picked up their paraplegic friend; their past failure now caused their hearts to burn with faith. Despite having no assurance that Jesus was going to see them let alone heal the guy, they put legs on their faith and ran to the shore with a different attitude from before – if Jesus was here a miracle was going to happen! This was not based on evidence or history, it was based on a desperate and repentant faith. This impressed Jesus deeply.
Today, rather than reliving past failures you and I can take up our faith and run to Jesus – even we can impress Christ!
All of this has left me reeling so much so that I’d like us to spend some time in the company of these guys over the next 7 blogs.
But it all begins here: Back in the boat, Jesus and the disciples crossed the sea to Jesus' hometown. They were hardly out of the boat when some men carried a paraplegic on a stretcher and set him down in front of them. Jesus, impressed by their bold belief, said to the paraplegic… "Get up. Take your bed and go home." (Matt 9:1-2, 5 MSG)This is all that Matthew chooses to record about this incident which ‘impressed’ Jesus so much. It is a frustratingly thin on detail.
Jesus had visited his home town once before which is recorded in Mark 6. Back then we where told that Jesus was “amazed at their lack of faith.” Back then he was unable to do any miracles because of this but this time was different; it seems that miracles would occur whether he intended them to happen or not (which we will see later)! We may never know what had happened in the intervening time but one thing we do know – it was dramatic! Jesus was once dismayed by the lack of belief in his home town but now he was impressed, and almost as soon as he steps foot on the shore!
Doesn’t this give you hope?
If you are like me you will have had times in your life when you lacked faith and Jesus walked on by. You could have experienced the miraculous but instead nothing changed. You’ve beaten yourself up over it but now Jesus is coming back; he hasn’t abandoned you, but will you greet him with faith?
These guys were desperate for Christ.
Perhaps they had been in the crowd last time Jesus visited. History told them that miracles didn’t happen in this town, but this did not stop them. They rushed at Jesus with a faith that flew in the face of history. They put down their lack of faith and picked up their paraplegic friend; their past failure now caused their hearts to burn with faith. Despite having no assurance that Jesus was going to see them let alone heal the guy, they put legs on their faith and ran to the shore with a different attitude from before – if Jesus was here a miracle was going to happen! This was not based on evidence or history, it was based on a desperate and repentant faith. This impressed Jesus deeply.
Today, rather than reliving past failures you and I can take up our faith and run to Jesus – even we can impress Christ!
-Andrew Carey
posted by Andrew at 7:35 am
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