Blessed To Share

Matthew 14:14-20; 

When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.

As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.”

Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”

“We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.

“Bring them here to me,” he said. And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.

Walking On Water

I was reading from Mark 6 and from Matthew 14 this morning - the account of Jesus walking on the water in the midst of a storm and inviting Peter to walk on the water with Him while the rest of the disciples looked on from the boat. 

Mark 6:45-50; Immediately Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. After leaving them, he went up on a mountainside to pray. Later that night, the boat was in the middle of the lake, and he was alone on land. He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. Shortly before dawn he went out to them, walking on the lake. He was about to pass by them, but when they saw him walking on the lake, they thought he was a ghost. They cried out, because they all saw him and were terrified. Immediately he spoke to them and said, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

Matthew 14:28-33; "Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” "Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

Notice here that Jesus was about to pass by. He was walking on the water, in the midst of a storm, in the middle of the night, and He was about to pass by. Even after they saw Him, even after they called out in fear - in complete terror - He was about to pass by. It wasn't until Peter called out to Him - when He asked Jesus for a personal invitation - that Jesus stops and calls Peter out. 

As I read this passage it occurred to me, Jesus passes by every day. Every day each of us have the opportunity to encounter Him. Everyday He passed right by each of us - sometimes multiple times. 

Jesus is about to pass by and it is not enough to see Him in fear and terror. Jesus is about to pass by and His desire is for us to call out to Him and ask for the otherwise impossible. Jesus is about to pass by and His desire is for us to ask Him for a personal invitation. 

Then Jesus stops and invites us out. 

I've heard others share accounts of Jesus moving in their lives - doing the miraculous - the otherwise impossible - in their lives. And sometimes I feel like I'm sitting in the boat while others are being moved - walking on the water with Jesus. But I don't want to sit in the boat and watch Jesus move. I want to get out of the boat and be the one that Jesus moves. 

Will you call out to Jesus - asking for a personal invitation? Will you get out of the boat and walk with - be moved by - Jesus? 

Jesus' Love in Matthew 9

In His Hometown

Mark 6:4, 6; Jesus said to them, “Only in his hometown is a prophet without honor.” And He was amazed at their lack of faith.

The Paralytic Man

Matthew 9:1-8

• Mark 2:1-12
• Luke 5:17-26

What do you see in Jesus’ love?

What did Jesus see before He healed the man?

• The man’s faith

What were the results of Jesus’ love?

• The paralytic was healed and went home
• The crowd was filled with awe
• The crowd praised God

Jairus’ Daughter

Matthew 9:18-19, 23-26 

• Mark 5:21-24, 35-43
• Luke 8:41-42, 49-56

What do you see in Jesus’ love?

What did Jesus tell Jairus to do?

• Believe (Mark and Luke)

What were the results of Jesus’ love?

• The girl was healed and got up
• News spread throughout the region

The Bleeding Woman

Matthew 9:20-22

• Mark 5:25-33
• Luke 8:43-48

What do you see in Jesus’ love?

What did Jesus say healed the woman?

• The woman’s faith

What were the results of Jesus’ love?

• The woman was healed from that momen

The Blind and Mute Men

Matthew 9:27-31

 

What do you see in Jesus’ love?

What did Jesus say healed the men?

• The men’s faith

What were the results of Jesus’ love?

• The men had their sight restored
• News spread throughout the region 

The Demon-Possessed Man

Matthew 9:32-33

 

What do you see in Jesus’ love?

What were the results of Jesus’ love?

• The man was delivered from the demon and he spoke
• The crowd was amazed

In many of these accounts we read that when Jesus looked – with love – at the individuals that we suffering, what He saw was their faith.

• Sometimes I wonder what it is we see when we look at the people that are suffering around us. Do we look for their faith?
• And I wonder if we attempted to truly love like Jesus loved – the way Jesus calls us to love – if we would see things different

In most of these accounts we read that the affects of Jesus love were far reaching – far beyond the person that had been healed or delivered.

• What affect will our Christian love have on those in our church – our community – our world?

Jesus’ Ministry of Love

Matthew 9:35-36

Our Call to Love Like Jesus

Matthew 9:37-38

A Jesus Timeline

We just began a teaching series on Sunday evenings - "Journey Through The New Testament". Below is part of the outline from week one  - "The Gospels". This is a brief (limited) timeline of Jesus' time on this earth according to the Gospel accounts.

Autumn, A.D. 28:

•          Jesus left Nazareth and went down for Him baptism

•          Right after His baptism He went into the mountains to be tempted by Satan

•          Then He went back to Salem, and then to Cana

◦          The first disciples were from there – John, Andrew, Peter, Philip, and Nathaniel

Spring, A.D. 29:

•          The first miracle was at the wedding in Can

•          Jesus then moved to Capernaum, where he established His base of operations.

•          While Jesus was at Passover in Jerusalem, Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews, came to Him at night and Jesus explained the need to be “born again” (John 3:16)

•          This was about the time of John the Baptists last testimony

 

Winter, A.D. 29:

•          Jesus met the woman at the well at Sycar

•          Jesus went back to Cana and healed the son of a royal official

•          Jesus healed a man at the Pool of Bethesda

Spring, A.D. 30:

•          John the Baptist had been imprisoned in  Jerusalem

•          In Galilee, Jesus began to broaden His public ministry

•          At the synagogue, in Nazareth, Jesus read from Isaiah and the townspeople tried to throw Him off of a cliff

•          Jesus left Nazareth and went back to Capernaum

◦          There He called four more disciples

•          Peter's mother-in-law and a leper were healed

 

Summer, A.D. 30:

•          Jesus healed a paralytic in Capernaum

•          Matthew was called

•          Jesus and His disciples picked grain on the Sabbath

•          Jesus healed a man with a withered hand on the Sabbath

•          Jesus preached the sermon on the mount 

Fall, A.D. 30:

•          Jesus healed a blind and dumb man in Capernaum and was accused of doing this by the powers of Satan

•          From this point on Jesus spoke publicly only in parables

•          The seven kingdom parables in Matthew 13 were spoken

•          The people accused Jesus of being Satan

•          Jesus rebuked the storm

•          Jesus encountered the demonic man in the region of the Gadarenes and permitted the demons to go into a heard of pigs

•          The disciples went back to Capernaum

Winter, A.D. 30

•          Jarius's daughter is raised

•          A woman with an issue of bleeding was healed

•          Two blind men and a dumb man were healed

•          Jesus arrived back in Nazareth and opffened people.

•          John the baptist was beheaded

•          The Apostles were sent out in pairs

•          Jesus returned to Capernaum

Sprint, A.D. 31:

•          The twelve apostles returned to Capernaum

•          Jesus then returned to Bethsaida, which became a major base

•          Jesus fed 5,000

•          Jesus walked on water and returned to Capernaum

•          Jesus preached His sermon on “the Bread of Life”

•          Jesus was accused of eating with unwashed hands

•          Jesus went to the region of Decapolis

•          Jesus healed a deaf and dumb man and fed 4,000

•          Jesus went to Magdela where the Pharisee's demanded a sign

•          Jesus took a ship to Bethsaida where he talked about the yeast of the Pharisee's

•          Jesus traveled north to Caesarea Philippi

•          Jesus went up on the Mount of Transfiguration

•          Jesus healed a possessed boy and returned to Capernaum

•          Jesus went down to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles where He declared Himself to be the Living Water

•          He forgave a woman of adultery and returned to Galilee

Winter, A.D. 31:

•          The Samaritan's rejected Jesus

•          Jesus went to Perea, east of the Jordan and presented several parables

◦          the good Samaritan, the unrighteous steward, the rich man and Lazarus

•          Jesus sent out the seventy disciples

•          Jesus traveled to Jerusalem and healed a man born blind

•          Jesus stayed at Bethabara

Spring, A.D. 32:

•          Jesus traveled to Bethany

•          Lazarus was raised from the dead

•          Jewish leaders plotted to kill Lazarus and Jesus

•          Jesus moved to the village of Ephraim

•          Jesus encountered ten lepers and gave a number of parables

•          James and John's mother made the request that Jesus make her sons one and two

•          Jesus traveled back to Jericho where He healed blind Bartimeus

•          Jesus called Zaccheus and presented the parable of the ten talents

•          Jesus went to Bethany for His final week – the “Passion Week"