Matthew 8:1 When Jesus came down from the hill, large crowds followed him. 2 Then a man suffering from a dreaded skin disease came to him, knelt down before him, and said, “Sir, if you want to, you can make me clean.” 3 Jesus reached out and touched him. “I do want to,” he answered. “Be clean!” At once the man was healed of his disease. 4 Then Jesus said to him, “Listen! Don’t tell anyone, but go straight to the priest and let him examine you; then in order to prove to everyone that you are cured, offer the sacrifice that Moses ordered.”
Jesus never sinned and hurt anyone. Jesus would heal many people though. This is one way of looking at Jesus as a person who’s out to do good and love us. Also we know it is right to listen to Jesus and obey Him, so when he commanded this guy not to tell people, he should obey.
Matthew 8:5 When Jesus entered Capernaum, a Roman officer met him and begged for help: 6 “Sir, my servant is sick in bed at home, unable to move and suffering terribly.” 7 “I will go and make him well,” Jesus said. 8 “Oh no, sir,” answered the officer. “I do not deserve to have you come into my house. Just give the order, and my servant will get well. 9 I, too, am a man under the authority of superior officers, and I have soldiers under me. I order this one, “Go!’ and he goes; and I order that one, “Come!’ and he comes; and I order my slave, “Do this!’ and he does it.” 10 When Jesus heard this, he was surprised and said to the people following him, “I tell you, I have never found anyone in Israel with faith like this. 11 I assure you that many will come from the east and the west and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the feast in the Kingdom of heaven. 12 But those who should be in the Kingdom will be thrown out into the darkness, where they will cry and gnash their teeth.” 13 Then Jesus said to the officer, “Go home, and what you believe will be done for you.” And the officer’s servant was healed that very moment.
This Roman officer was praised by Jesus for having great faith. The Roman officer knew Jesus didn’t have to be physically at the location to heal his servant. God is like this today. Jesus doesn’t need to be in the hospital for you to pray for a loved one to get better. Just pray to God and God will do what he knows as best. Sometimes God will not send a healing to us today, but it might be for the best. We’ll all be raised to life on the last day, so even death doesn’t defeat God’s plan.
Matthew 8:14 Jesus went to Peter’s home, and there he saw Peter’s mother-in-law sick in bed with a fever. 15 He touched her hand; the fever left her, and she got up and began to wait on him.
There are many healings Jesus did. In this one He healed one of his disciples loved ones. And then she waited on Jesus. This is something we should do too. If God acts in our life, we should immediately start serving Him for the rest of our lives. Jesus did act on your behalf on his death on a cross, so we’re indebted. We should serve Jesus by helping the poor.
Matthew 8:16 When evening came, people brought to Jesus many who had demons in them. Jesus drove out the evil spirits with a word and healed all who were sick. 17 He did this to make come true what the prophet Isaiah had said, “He himself took our sickness and carried away our diseases.”
I’ve heard people say demons are part of the 1/3 angels who fell rebelling against God. I can’t say for certain I understand what they are other than various forms of evil. Jesus has all power of good available, so he can banish demons out of people. Also He healed many. There are many healings talked about in the Bible, and here He is listed as healing many.
Matthew 8:18 When Jesus noticed the crowd around him, he ordered his disciples to go to the other side of the lake. 19 A teacher of the Law came to him. “Teacher,” he said, “I am ready to go with you wherever you go.” 20 Jesus answered him, “Foxes have holes, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lie down and rest.”
If you follow Jesus, it should be 24/7 lifetime dedication. Jesus had no place to relax and put down his burden. Jesus burden was with him until he was raised from the dead. Jesus knew he was destined for the cross, and everything going up to it was work. So maybe when this teacher of the Law came to Jesus he didn’t realize what he was signing up for, and Jesus warned him it is harder than he expected. Sometimes God will warn people that the road is tough, and the people choose it anyway. Nothing more specific is said about this guy though.
Matthew 8:21 Another man, who was a disciple, said, “Sir, first let me go back and bury my father.” 22 “Follow me,” Jesus answered, “and let the dead bury their own dead.”
That sounds pretty brutal if you don’t know the situation. Following Jesus is more important than anything. Following Jesus is more important than attending a funeral. Today attending a funeral is a good duty if you follow Jesus. At this time was specific though, he could have asked for his father to be resurrected even. This time was specific that Jesus was in the flesh and nothing is more important than following him. Following Jesus is still the most important thing you can do, but you can make time for day to day activities.
Matthew 8:23 Jesus got into a boat, and his disciples went with him. 24 Suddenly a fierce storm hit the lake, and the boat was in danger of sinking. But Jesus was asleep. 25 The disciples went to him and woke him up. “Save us, Lord!” they said. “We are about to die!” 26 “Why are you so frightened?” Jesus answered. “What little faith you have!” Then he got up and ordered the winds and the waves to stop, and there was a great calm. 27 Everyone was amazed. “What kind of man is this?” they said. “Even the winds and the waves obey him!”
I’m not sure why the disciples are amazed at Jesus calming the storm. Jesus has all the powers of God. Jesus could have made it rain mana if he wanted to. It is good that these stories are here though. For some people, it helps to know what Jesus can do. And He can do anything, but doesn’t do things contrary to His nature such as lying or evil acts.
Matthew 8:28 When Jesus came to the territory of Gadara on the other side of the lake, he was met by two men who came out of the burial caves there. These men had demons in them and were so fierce that no one dared travel on that road. 29 At once they screamed, “What do you want with us, you Son of God? Have you come to punish us before the right time?” 30 Not far away there was a large herd of pigs feeding. 31 So the demons begged Jesus, “If you are going to drive us out, send us into that herd of pigs.” 32 “Go,” Jesus told them; so they left and went off into the pigs. The whole herd rushed down the side of the cliff into the lake and was drowned. 33 The men who had been taking care of the pigs ran away and went into the town, where they told the whole story and what had happened to the men with the demons. 34 So everyone from the town went out to meet Jesus; and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their territory.
I have a hard time discussing this. I just see pigs can tolerate even less than a human would. The main idea is that Jesus healed a guy, but the rest of the land is concerned more with their live stock than a man coming back to his senses. That is a sad reason to reject Jesus, but they did. Do some people today prefer to wallow in sin than accept Jesus and live? That is a sad reason to reject Jesus too.
-James Sager