Monthly Archives: March 2022

Matthew 8- Demons Tremble

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And when he was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way. And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time? And there was a good way off from them an herd of many swine feeding. So the devils besought him, saying, If thou cast us out, suffer us to go away into the herd of swine. Matthew 8:28-31

 When you ask the average Christian, what are your thoughts on demons and angels? Many of them either are skeptical or don’t believe in the supernatural at all. It’s amazes me how anyone can be a Born Again Christian and read the Bible, and not accept the supernatural world is real. Angels and Demons are real, Heaven and Hell are real, you have a soul. My concern with this lack of belief, is not only do you deny scripture, but you are not getting the full picture of the spiritual warfare (Ephesians 6) that is going on right now for your soul, and every soul on this Earth

Here in Matthew, we see the Legion story that is in more detail in Luke. Now in Luke he focuses on just one made possessed with multiple demons named Legion. However here we see there is actually multiple people filled with demons, their behavior is violent and blasphemous. But notice when the demons see Jesus they know exactly who he is and the power Christ has over everything! We read yesterday Jesus has power and authority over the winds and the sea, now we see Christ has the power and authority over all the demons and Satan. Remember every knee will bow down to Christ, not just the saved but also the wicked (Philippians 2)

The demons address Jesus as the Son of God, does that mean they are saved? Of course not, because they reject Christ authority as Lord over them. My point is we have a weak gospel nowadays, where anyone who “believes” in Christ is saved, this is not true or Biblical. You must repent of your sin and be Born Again through Christ to be saved, not just believe who He is. Secondly, notice the demons beg Jesus not to “torment” them, what are they talking about? They are talking about Hell, Christ holds the keys to life , death, and Hell (Revelation 1:17-18)

And he said unto them, Go. And when they were come out, they went into the herd of swine: and, behold, the whole herd of swine ran violently down a steep place into the sea, and perished in the waters. And they that kept them fled, and went their ways into the city, and told every thing, and what was befallen to the possessed of the devils. And, behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus: and when they saw him, they besought him that he would depart out of their coasts. Matthew 8:32-34

Notice again the authority of Christ, the demons begged him to let them enter the pigs and he allowed it. See the demons and Satan are in subjection to Christ. So why are some people possessed with demons then? Because they are not filled with the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6) A Born Again Christians who’s body is the Temple of God can’t be overtaken by demons. However those who reject Christ and open themselves up to demons with worldly sin can easily be overtaken by demons. 

Now I know this article may have made you feel uncomfortable or maybe questioned your beliefs, but that is not a bad thing. It’s best we understand the Spiritual War we are in and make sure we are Born Again in Christ, nobody came come to the Father God except through Jesus Christ (John 14:6) Amen

Matthew 8- The Calm In The Storm

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And when he was entered into a ship, his disciples followed him. And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep. And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish. Matthew 8:23-25

When Moses led the Israelites from Egypt, God parted the Red Sea, I think we can all agree on that. However here we see Jesus is in control of the Sea, the winds and the sea obey him. Jesus is not just another prophet from God, Christ is God in the flesh, all the disciples fully understand this with Jesus actions here

From another practical perspective, Jesus is the calm of the storm in your life also. Question is do you obey him as Lord as the winds and sea do? While the disciples were out in the boat, a great storm came upon them, what was their response? “Lord Save Us, we are perishing” ! While it’s great they called upon The Lord, why are the disciples living life in such fear? We can ask ourselves this question also, during the pandemic we seen who truly had faith and who completely wavered

And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him! Matthew 8:26-27

Jesus’ response to his disciples “Why are you so fearful?” also “Where is your faith”? Many Christians live like they don’t have any faith at all. Do you truly believe Jesus is your Lord? Do you truly believe Christ has risen from the dead? Then why don’t you live like you believe? This is what Jesus was saying to his disciples, c’mon guys you seen me perform miracles, you seen me raise the dead, why don’t you guys have any faith?

Now I understand we all have our moments of weakness, I know some struggle with anxiety more than others, put your full faith in Jesus Christ! The disciples marveled at Jesus “Even the winds and sea obey Him”! Think about that, the same Lord who died for you on the cross, is the same Lord that created the Heavens and Earth

If your in the storm today, go to the one who can truly calm the storm. Go to the permanent solution not the temporary fix, go to the eternal Son of God Jesus Christ, Amen!

Matthew 8- So You Want To Be A Christian?

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Now when Jesus saw great multitudes about him, he gave commandment to depart unto the other side. And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest. And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head. Matthew 8:18-20

The world today has a very cheap perspective of Christianity, even most of the Church today does as well. Many claim you just repeat a few lines and magically you get a golden ticket to Heaven. But as Jesus taught us Christianity has a cost, what is the cost? True Christianity will cost you everything, Jesus said “Anyone who wants to save their life, must lose it” (Matthew 16:25) Jesus also said “Deny yourself, carry your cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23)

Many want the salvation of Christ but they don’t want to be transformed by Christ. This is an important step, as Jesus said “Unless you are Born Again, you will not see the Kingdom of Heaven” (John 3:3)Again there is a price to pay to become a Christian, it’s not a cheap grace, it’s eternal life bought by the price of Jesus Christ himself.

The man said “Master I will follow you wherever you go” Really? Are we willing to follow Christ to the cross? Are you willing to let your old self die and let your new self be risen and transformed? Many want paradise but don’t want repentance or obedience to Christ. You are either a slave to sin or a slave to Jesus Christ (Romans 6:20) 

And another of his disciples said unto him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father. But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead. Matthew 8:21-22

Jesus is saying “You really think you want to follow me”? You really think its going to be a glamorous road following Christ? Think of the opposite, if they killed your Master, they will kill you also. They will hate you, they will spit on you, they will curse your name, why? Because the world hates the real Jesus, because the world is ruled by the evil one

So before you identify yourself as a Christian, ask yourself did I really become Born Again? Did I really die at the cross to my sins, and I was baptized by the Holy Spirit and transformed? If you truly want to be a disciple of Christ, deny yourself, carry your cross and follow your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Amen

Matthew 8- Faith of a Gentile

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And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. Matthew 8:5-9

Today we are going to see the fruition of the New Covenant of Christ. To understand this story in better detail, we first need to understand what a Centurion was. A Centurion was a Roman commander in the military responsible for 100 men, hence century where the name Centurion derived from. So this wasn’t just any ordinary Gentile (Non-Jew) this was a Roman soldier. 

And notice what the Centurion does, He goes and asks the Christ to heal his servant. Wow, talk about radical faith, this Roman soldier goes to the Jewish Messiah for healing, why? Because he has true faith and understanding who Jesus is, the Son of God. Next, notice the Centurion demonstrates and understands the authority Christ has. The Centurion says “Lord I am not worthy for you to come under my roof” Imagine this, a Roman Centurion, who has power and authority, is telling The Messiah he’s not worthy to be in his presence, this is true faith and repentance.

When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour. Matthew 8:10-13

Notice what Jesus says here “I haven’t found anyone in Israel with such great faith” think about that! This was a Roman soldier, and he had greater faith according to Christ, then all the religious leaders of Israel. Why? Because this Gentile recognized that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, while the religious leaders all rejected Jesus and had him crucified

Jesus said “ There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth for many sons of Abraham” why? Because salvation is found in Jesus Christ alone (John 14:6) no other way can you be saved. This Roman Centurion was going to see the Kingdom of Heaven and many religious leaders of Israel wont, why? Because of one simple denominator, the blood of Christ for forgiveness of sins.

This is the beginning of the New Covenant, the Gentiles are getting grafted into the Kingdom of God by faith in Jesus Christ, Amen

Matthew 8- The Lepers Prayer

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When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him. And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them. Matthew 8:1-4

Leprosy was a major issue in the 1rst Century, not only physically was it horrible to have the disease, but from a social perspective also. When you had Leprosy, you were essentially cut off from all of society. You couldn’t work, you couldn’t be in the presence of other people. It was a lonely and miserable life for the Lepers. Now you might wonder, how does this relate to you? We might not have physical leprosy, but we all had spiritual leprosy , which is caused by sin. The Bible tells us “We have all sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God” (Romans 3:23) So this includes all of us, until we become Born Again through Jesus Christ

First thing to notice is the faith of the Leper, he went after Christ and worshiped Him. The Leper understood who was the ultimate cure for him, it was Jesus. It wasn’t a mistake or an accident that he encountered The Lord, He came running after Jesus. And he understood who Jesus is, the Son of God, the Christ, the one worthy to be worshiped. Jesus didn’t rebuke the man for worshiping him, because Christ is God in the flesh. If Christ wasn’t God then this would have been idolatry. However this man knew Jesus is God and Christ allowed it

Notice the next thing Jesus does, Christ put forth his hand for the Leper to touch him. This was completely forbidden by the Torah, you can have no interaction with a Leper. However again, Jesus is God, Christ is the Living Torah made flesh, and He allowed the Leper to touch his hand. Notice also Jesus said “Be Clean” , Christ didn’t need to pray to God to heal the man, because Jesus is God

The last thing we see is Jesus told the man, “Don’t tell anyone”, but go to the priest and offer a gift as a testimony” Christ didn’t heal the Leper for fame, in fact he wanted the healing to remain silent until the hour has come that the Son of Man was glorified. We don’t know if the man ever did what Jesus asked, however we know Christ brought a dead man back to life. 

You might have Spiritual Leprosy today, you might still be dead in your sins. You need to run to The Lord and worship Him, Let Christ create you a new Clean Heart and a Clean Mind, become Born Again by the Holy Spirit Amen!