The King's Authority (Part 1)

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The King's Authority (Part 1)

Matthew 8

Chapters 8 and 9 of Matthew's Gospel stand together as one unit, so it may be best to think of them as a two-part treatment of the authority of Jesus. As we saw earlier, Matthew is arranging his material intentionally, but not necessarily chronologically. In these two chapters, Matthew arranges his material around certain themes, and in particular a theme he introduced in Matthew 4:23—the words and works of Jesus.

Matthew 4:23 says, "Jesus was going all over Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people." This is a summary of Jesus' ministry, carried out in both word (teaching/preaching) and deed (healing). In the Sermon on the Mount, the passage that follows Matthew's summary statement in 4:23, we saw Jesus' ministry in word. Then, right after this grand teaching section in chapters 5-7, you get several stories in chapter 8 of Jesus' healing or showing His power in various ways. We might put it this way: Matthew has shown us the words of Jesus in chapters 5-7; now in chapter 8 he's going to show us the works of Jesus.

The Basic Outline of Matthew 8-9

It will be helpful to understand the basic outline of Matthew 8-9 as we examine these miracle stories and descriptions of discipleship. Here is a general guide to these chapters:

• Three Miracle Stories (8:1-17)
• Two Descriptions of Discipleship (8:18-22)
• Three Miracle Stories (8:23-9:8)
• Two Descriptions of Discipleship (9:9-17)
• Three Miracle Stories (9:18-34)

In these two chapters alone there are nine miracle stories that contain a total of ten miracles. It's as if Matthew is giving us back-to-back-to-back highlights demonstrating the authority of Jesus. At the end of the Sermon on the Mount in chapter 7, Matthew says, "When Jesus had finished this sermon, the crowds were astonished at His teaching, because He was teaching them like one who had authority, and not like their scribes" (7:28-29). Now in chapter 8 that same authority is put into104 action as Jesus rules over sickness, nature, demons, and death. So what is Matthew's point in telling us all this?

The Bottom Line of Matthew 8-9

Matthew shows us in these chapters that Jesus possesses absolute authority in the world and warrants absolute allegiance from the world. This is good news, for in this sin-stricken world we are familiar with sickness and struggle and disease and suffering. The National Cancer Institute reports that one out of every two people who are born in the United States today will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lifetime. Even if it's not cancer, there are any number of sicknesses and struggles that we have to deal with. Right here in Birmingham, the city where I minister, we have recently experienced the deadly force of a natural disaster in the form of a tornado. So whether it's cancer, tornadoes, disease, or death, Matthew wants us to see that Jesus has authority over it all. And once we see this, then it's only logical to conclude that Jesus has authority over our lives as well. For those who know they are sinful and weak, this is really good news.

The Portrait of Jesus in Matthew 8

Matthew 8:1-34

Jesus has authority over disease

Immediately in the opening verses of chapter 8, we see that Jesus has authority over disease. This authority is revealed in three different ways in three different stories. In verses 1-4, He cleanses the physically unclean. This term "cleanses" is a key term for Matthew, for this story is not simply framed as a story of healing. Leprosy, also called Hansen's disease, is probably the "serious skin disease" in view here. Leprosy was not simply looked at as a physical condition in first-century Judaism. To be sure, leprosy is a physical disease that attacks the nerve system, sometimes to the point where a victim can no longer feel pain. Those with leprosy experience infection easily, which leads to the degeneration of tissues, organs, and limbs, to the point where limbs become deformed and then eventually fall off. So leprosy is definitely a physical condition—brutally physical; but it is more than that.

Leviticus 13-14 describes skin conditions not simply as physical illnesses, but as spiritual contagion. Lepers were seen as repulsively105 unclean, cursed by God (Num 12:10). They were required to stay a certain distance from everyone around them. If someone began to approach them, or if they began to approach someone else, they were to yell out, "Unclean, unclean!"—even to touch a leper would be to make yourself unclean (Lev 13:45; 22:4-6). With this background, we are better able to grasp the significance of this first miracle in Matthew 8. Jesus is coming into contact with the physically, spiritually, and ceremonially unclean. The leper approaches Jesus, which immediately creates a sense of tension in the story. He says, "Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean" (Matt 8:2).

Consider what the leper does know: Jesus is able to heal. The leper didn't question Jesus' ability or power; he knew that Jesus was able to heal. The issue becomes what the leper doesn't know: Is Jesus willing to heal? Will Jesus choose to heal him?

We must understand the distinction between Jesus' sovereign power and Jesus' sovereign will. Both of them are extremely important, especially when it comes to praying for healing in our lives. For example, if you have cancer or any other sickness or disease, you shouldn't doubt Jesus' sovereign power. He is absolutely able to heal you, no question about it. He has authority over disease.

The question then becomes, "Is Jesus willing to heal?" In other words, is it His will for you to be made well? That's a different question altogether. In this instance in Matthew 8, the answer is "yes," Jesus is willing. However, in the case of Paul's struggle with "a thorn in the flesh" (2 Cor 12:7), the Lord was not willing to heal in that instance. He told Paul the reason He refused to heal him, namely, so that Paul would know the strength and sufficiency of Christ (2 Cor 12:9). In such situations, we too have to trust both the power and the wisdom of God. The One who is able to heal also knows when to heal. The Lord knows what will bring Him the most glory and what will bring us the most good.

In the spring of 2000, James Montgomery Boice, the well-known pastor of Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, was diagnosed with cancer. He shared with his congregation about how they should pray for him:

Should you pray for a miracle? Well, you're free to do that, of course. My general impression is that the God who is able to do miracles—and he certainly can—is also able to keep you from getting the problem in the first place. So although miracles do happen, they're rare by definition. A miracle has106 to be an unusual thing. Above all, I would say pray for the glory of God. If you think of God glorifying himself in history and you say, where in all of history has God most glorified himself? He did it at the cross of Jesus Christ, and it wasn't by delivering Jesus from the cross, though he could have. Jesus said, "Don't you think I could call down from my Father ten legions of angels for my defense?" But he didn't do that. And yet that's where God is most glorified. God is in charge. When things like this come into our lives, they are not accidental. It's not as if God somehow forgot what was going on, and something bad slipped by. God is not only the one who is in charge; God is also good. Everything he does is good.

Boice's testimony is a model in terms of what it means to have confidence in the sovereign power of God and to trust in the sovereign will of God. Like Boice, we too must trust that God will do what is good. Boice died eight weeks after sharing those words with his congregation, but he died trusting in the sovereign power and sovereign will of God. He knew that Jesus was able to heal, yet He submitted to Jesus' will—His good, pleasing, and perfect will (Rom 12:1-2).

In the case of the leper in Matthew 8, it was Jesus' will to heal him. He reached out and touched the man, saying, "I am willing; be made clean" (v. 3). Have you stopped to realize the beauty of Jesus' response? To touch a leper is to take his uncleanness upon yourself, and yet we know from the healing of the centurion's servant in the next story that it was not at all necessary for Jesus to touch this leper in order to heal him (v. 8). He could have spoken a word, and the leprosy would be gone. But Jesus touched him. Don't miss the point: Jesus identifies with the uncleanness of the leper in order to make the leper clean.

In this brief scene we get a foretaste of what Jesus will do, ultimately on the cross, with the uncleanness in the lives of every one of us. All of us stand before Christ dirty and stained with the shame of sin. We have things in our lives, either past or present, that make us feel untouchable—sins we've struggled with or sins others have committed against us. In and of ourselves, we are unclean before a holy God. But on the cross, Jesus identifies with our uncleanness, taking the shame and filth of our sin upon Himself in order to make us clean. Praise God for such a compassionate Savior!

In verse 4 Jesus tells the man not to say anything to anyone, but to go and present himself to the priest to show that he is clean, which107 is what the law prescribed.16 Have you ever wondered why in certain instances Jesus tells people to stay quiet?17 Several explanations have been offered, but we can at least see in this first miracle story in Matthew 8 that Jesus' goal was not to advertise Himself as a wonder worker who would miraculously overthrow the Roman government, which is what some thought the Messiah would do. Jesus had not come to impress the crowds; He had come to die for sinners (Carson, Matthew, 199).

After seeing Jesus heal the physically unclean in verses 1-4, now in verses 5-13 we see that He heals the ethnically outcast. The centurion in this story and his servant would have been Gentiles, likely brought in for military service from somewhere outside Galilee, like Lebanon or Syria. As a Roman centurion, he was not only viewed as an ethnic outsider by the Jewish people, but also as one who was deliberately opposed to the people of God. This context makes Jesus' reply in verse 7 surprising, because a devout Jew would likely not even go into the home of an unbelieving Gentile. Yet, as soon as Jesus surprisingly offered to come to this Gentile's home, the centurion confessed that he was not worthy to have Jesus come under his roof. He knew that Jesus only needed to speak the word for the healing to occur.

When Jesus hears the centurion's reply, He says, "I have not found anyone in Israel with so great a faith!" (v. 10). This should cause us to ask, "What kind of faith is this?" Here's the picture Matthew gives us: faith is humble trust in the authority of Jesus. See the humility of this Gentile centurion calling Jesus, a Jewish teacher, "Lord." He is too overwhelmed to even have Jesus in his home, so he implores Jesus to merely speak the word. The centurion's explanation for such faith in verse 9 is astounding. He knew what it was like to have authority over soldiers and servants, since Rome's authority had been bestowed on him. The centurion perceived that Jesus had this kind of authority over disease. Jesus says "Go," and sickness will go; He says "Do this" to paralysis, and it is done. Jesus has absolute authority over disease.

We have no evidence before this in Matthew that Jesus had ever performed a miracle in this manner. So this man, this Gentile centurion, wasn't leaning on prior information. He simply and humbly108 had absolute trust in the authority of Jesus in a way that no one else among the Jewish people, including the disciples, had displayed up to this point. In verses 11-12 Jesus goes on to talk about how the "sons of the kingdom"—a reference to Jewish men and women who assumed they had a biological right to be part of the people of God—would be cast out of God's presence into hell for eternity because of their lack of faith. The example of the centurion's faith, then, is not only important because it displays humble trust, but also because such faith is the essential determinant of a person's eternal destiny.

Jesus' words about Gentiles being a part of the kingdom in verses 11-12 would have been shocking to Matthew's Jewish readers, essentially saying to them that their Jewishness guaranteed them nothing in eternity. The only thing that mattered was whether or not they had faith. This same truth applies to every human being alive today. Your eternal destiny is dependent on humble trust in the authority of Jesus to save you from your sins and to rule over you as the Lord of your life. And all who trust in Him like this, regardless of ethnicity or background, will be welcomed by the King at His table forever.

Finally, in relation to Jesus' authority over disease, He not only cleanses the physically unclean and heals the ethnically outcast, but also He restores the culturally marginalized. In verses 14-15 Jesus healed another unlikely candidate from the outskirts of Jewish society and culture: "When Jesus went into Peter's house, He saw his mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever. So He touched her hand, and the fever left her. Then she got up and began to serve Him." After healing a leper and a Gentile, Jesus now heals a woman, Peter's mother-in-law. Jesus heals her with a simple touch. Again, in His extravagant grace, Jesus defies the traditions and practices of His day (Osborne, Matthew, 298).

Matthew concludes this first section in verses 16-17 by telling of Jesus' healing of "many" who were demon-possessed and sick, followed by another fulfillment saying:

Matthew's quotation in verse 17 is from Isaiah 53:4, a part of the prophecy of Jesus as the suffering servant in Isaiah 53. In the verses that immediately follow, Isaiah prophesies,109

Isaiah's prophecy concerns Jesus' substitutionary death in the place of sinners, which causes many to wonder how this prophecy relates to Jesus' physical healing ministry. Does Christ's death on the cross ensure that believers won't have to endure sickness in this world anymore? This is an important question, for we can't afford to be confused concerning what it means that Jesus has authority over disease.

Some people have read these verses and concluded that as a Christian, God's will for you is to be healthy (even in this world), because Jesus has taken away your sicknesses. This kind of thinking is at the core of health-and-wealth teaching, or prosperity doctrine as it is sometimes called, both here in the United States and around the world. For example, here's well-known pastor and author Joel Osteen's advice:

Maybe Alzheimer's disease runs in your family genes, but don't succumb to it. Instead, say every day, "My mind is alert. I have clarity of thought. I have a good memory. Every cell in my body is increasing and getting healthier." If you'll rise up in your authority, you can be the one to put a stop to the negative things in your family line.... Start boldly declaring, "God is restoring health unto me. I am getting better every day in every way." (Osteen, Becoming a Better You, 45, 114)

Osteen is not the only person putting out this kind of unbiblical teaching. Health, wealth, and prosperity teachers are all too common in Christian circles today, as people flock to hear these men and women speak, and they buy their books by the millions. This is most certainly not what Matthew 8:17 or Isaiah 53:4 is teaching.18110

By connecting Jesus' healing authority to Isaiah's prophecy, Matthew is showing that He has the power to overcome all our suffering. In light of the larger context of Isaiah, Matthew attributes this power and authority to Jesus because He paid the price to overcome all our sin. That is the point of the cross. And this truth makes sense if we consider the larger context of redemptive history.

All suffering in the world ultimately goes back to sin, for before sin came into the picture, there was no suffering, according to Genesis 1-2. But when sin entered the world in Genesis 3, suffering entered the world, and as a result, we live in a world marked by evil and suffering, sickness and pain. So when Jesus came to die on a cross, He came to address the root problem, which is not suffering; the root problem is sin. And He paid the price with His life to overcome our sin, so that you and I could be free from sin's penalty.

If, therefore, God has dealt with the root of sin through the death of His Son, does that mean His will for us in this world is that we would no longer experience pain, sickness, and suffering? Absolutely not! The miracles in Matthew's Gospel are intended to give us a picture of what is to come in the fullness of God's kingdom, that is, when Christ fully and finally asserts His authority and reign over the earth. But that time is not yet. In the meantime, we still live in a world of suffering and pain, and we will see later on in this Gospel that our suffering actually increases in this world as a result of trusting in Jesus for salvation. Two chapters later, Jesus is going to tell His disciples that they will be flogged, betrayed, hated, and persecuted in this world for following Him (10:16-25). And this is not just an isolated verse or theme. Listen to Paul's consistent testimony to suffering in the lives of believers:

We could list a host of other verses on the theme of suffering, but let it suffice to say, the Bible nowhere says that because you have been saved from your sins, you will not get cancer or some other illness. Instead, the Bible says that Jesus has overcome the root of all suffering—sin itself—and that He has paid the price to conquer sin so that you don't need to be afraid of cancer or tumors or Alzheimer's or anything else. Regardless of what happens in this decaying world, there is a day coming when death, mourning, crying, and pain will be no more (Rev 21:4). As we wait for that day, we don't run from suffering; we rejoice in suffering. Paul, the same apostle who wrote so much about the reality of suffering in the lives of Christians, also wrote about the joy that we can experience in the midst of suffering.

Before moving to the next section, it's important to recognize at least two kinds of suffering. Some suffering is simply due to the general effects of sin in the world. Job experienced this kind of suffering, which was not directly tied to a particular sin in his life. God brings about suffering like this for His own purposes, though those purposes are often hidden from us, and we should humbly embrace this kind of suffering with trust in God. But there's another type of suffering in the Bible, and that's suffering that happens due to a particular sin in someone's life. When a Christian continues in sin, he will inevitably suffer, for God disciplines those whom He loves (Heb 12:5-11). A person may suffer112 physically, emotionally, relationally, or in other ways, but in the end sin inevitably leads to suffering. The proper response in that kind of situation is not to rejoice in suffering, but to run from your sin.

Jesus has authority over disciples

Following this section on Jesus' authority over disease, Matthew inserts a story of two potential disciples in verses 18-22. A similar passage is found in Luke 9:57-62, where three men approach Jesus, and there too we find out the steep cost of what it means to follow Jesus. It may not be immediately obvious how this teaching on discipleship relates to Jesus' healing in the previous section, but Matthew purposefully places these events alongside one another. Jesus has authority over disease and Jesus has authority over disciples.

The first man comes to Jesus in verse 19 in seeming over-eagerness, saying, "Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go!" but Jesus knows this man hasn't counted the cost of what is involved in discipleship. Jesus tells the man that following Him will not even guarantee a roof over the man's head. In other words, "If you follow Me, I'm all you've got." This potential disciple needs to learn that Jesus is worthy of unconditional trust, even if it means giving up earthly security and comforts. We too must know this if we want to follow Jesus.

Following Christ may mean losing everything in this world. This is another problem with the prosperity gospel—it makes Jesus a means to an end. You come to Jesus to get health, wealth, or anything else you want; just fill in the blank. The problem is that you shouldn't come to Jesus to get stuff; you come to Jesus to get Jesus. You may lose everything in this world, but He is enough.

The second potential disciple learned an equally valuable lesson in verses 21-22: Jesus is worthy of undivided affection. This man said to Jesus, "First let me go bury my father." Commentators disagree over what is actually being requested here. Does the man just want to give his father (who is deceased) a proper funeral, or does he want to wait until his father (who is alive) dies and he gets his inheritance before he agrees to follow Jesus? Regardless of the precise meaning of the request, Jesus' response is direct: "Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead." More important than honoring your father or receiving an inheritance is following Jesus. The Savior wants undivided affection.

Recognizing Jesus' sovereign authority in the world should lead to giving Jesus total allegiance in your life. His authority is not to be toyed113 or trifled with. J. C. Ryle once said, "Nothing, in fact, has done more harm to Christianity than the practice of filling the ranks of Christ's army with every volunteer who is willing to make a little profession" (Ryle, Matthew, 59). Remember, Jesus is not begging for followers in Matthew 8. He's actually turning them away because He warrants unconditional trust and undivided affection from those who follow Him. When Jesus speaks, leprosy, paralysis, and fever obey. The question is, "Do you obey?"

Jesus has authority over disaster

Jesus' authority over His disciples sets the stage for three consecutive miracle stories that come next in chapters 8-9, the first of which appears in 8:23-27. In this brief and miraculous account, we see that Jesus has authority over disaster. It's at this point that many sermons on this text launch into extravagant promises about how Jesus will calm the storms in your life. As the question usually goes, "What storms are you facing in your life—in your marriage, in your home, or in your health?" We are then assured, "Jesus will calm those storms." The only problem is that's not the point of this story. The point is much deeper than that, which becomes obvious when you pay attention to the question the disciples ask at the end of the story in verse 27: "What kind of man is this?—even the winds and the sea obey Him!"

The disciples were good Jewish men, and they knew that only God (Yahweh in the Old Testament) is able to direct the wind and the waves. Psalm 89:9 says, "You rule the raging sea; when its waves surge, You still them." Likewise, in Psalm 107:29 the psalmist announces, "He stilled the storm to a murmur, and the waves of the sea were hushed." Jesus' disciples marveled because they began to realize that the man in the boat with them was not just a man. God Himself was in the boat with them! That's the point of the story: Jesus is God. The authority that belongs to God is the authority that belongs to Jesus.

Having seen the point of the story, we also need to see the promise in the story. The promise is not that all the storms in your life will end soon. The Bible does not guarantee this, nor can anyone else. Your cancer may not go away, and that struggle in your marriage may not end this week, or even this year. As a believer, your confidence is not that these storms will end very soon, but that in the midst of the storms in your life, you will never be alone. God Himself, in the person of Jesus Christ, will be with you every step in the midst of the storm.114

Faith is not confidence that trials won't come your way. Faith is confidence that no matter what wind and waves come your way in this world, the God of the universe will be right there in the boat with you. His power and His presence will see you through. Christian, you are not alone, and ultimately you are safe in the presence of the One who has ultimate authority over all disaster.

Jesus has authority over demons

The second miracle story that occurs at the end of chapter 8 occurs in verses 28-34. Jesus has authority over disaster, and Jesus has authority over demons. In this fascinating account, we have a portrait of demons who violently possess two men, yet they are deathly afraid of the Son of God. Knowing that Jesus has absolute authority over them, the demons plead for Him to cast them into a herd of pigs, and He does. It's quite telling that these demons hate and loathe everything about Jesus, yet they are powerless to do anything apart from His permission! Satan can do nothing in this world, and nothing in your life, apart from the sovereign permission of God. Satan is a lion (1 Pet 5:8), but he is a lion on a leash. And God holds the leash. Demons decidedly do not have all authority; Jesus does.

Do you see how passages like this encourage us not to fear? We don't have to be afraid of what may happen in this world, because Jesus has authority over it all. Many Christians, in the midst of a world of pain and suffering, live in fear and anxiety and worry, wondering what will happen in this or that situation. This tendency to fear is why we must remember the authority of Jesus. Sometimes we lack even the faith of demons, for the demons have fear because of their belief. They know who Jesus is, and they are scared out of their minds (Jas 2:19). But we are just the opposite: We often have fear because of our unbelief. If we realized what the demons realize, we would know that we have no reason to fear.

Jesus is the Son of God, with all authority over disease, disaster, and demons, and nothing can touch us apart from His sovereign power and in accordance with His sovereign will. We, as followers of Christ, are the most secure people in the world, and our security is not based on how big our house is, how good our job is, how stable our economy is, or who our president is. We are secure simply because we are in the hands of the One who has all authority in the whole world, and because this One with all authority loves us and cares for us. God is committed to providing for us in the midst of struggles with sin, demons, natural disasters,115 and various diseases. Hear, then, Christ's question in verse 26: "Why are you fearful, you of little faith?" How can we not trust such a Savior?

Did you notice the question the demons shouted out in verse 29? They said, "What do You have to do with us, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before the time?" Notice that phrase, "before the time." The demons know that there is coming a day when they will be fully and finally judged by the Lord and cast out completely into utter darkness (Matt 25:41). As believers, we look toward that day with great anticipation. Leprosy, paralysis, fever, and natural disasters will be no more. Demons will no longer tempt or torment God's people. The authority of Jesus will be fully and finally asserted; His kingdom will come and His will be done on a new earth as it is in heaven. And all of this is possible, all of this is guaranteed, because of what Jesus has done on the cross. This is our great hope.

A Pause after Reading Matthew 8

Jesus' power and sovereignty are not simply there to be observed, but to be relied on and rejoiced in. In light of the realities of Jesus' authority in this text, we should respond in a number of ways:

• Let's trust wholeheartedly in Jesus' authority.
• Let's rest peacefully in Jesus' authority.
• Let's submit completely to Jesus' authority.
• Let's rejoice gladly in Jesus' authority.

Reflect and Discuss

1. How does Jesus' absolute authority contrast with the relativism of our day?
2. Why is a privatized, keep-it-to-yourself faith incompatible with Jesus' authority?
3. Jesus heals three unlikely characters in this chapter. How might this impact those with whom you seek to share the gospel?
4. How does the account of the centurion highlight the centrality of faith in our response to Jesus?
5. Does Jesus' healing ministry guarantee the healing of those for whom we pray? Why or why not?
6. How would you counsel someone who wanted to follow Jesus as long as they could maintain their current lifestyle?116
7. Explain how Matthew 8 speaks against the prosperity gospel.
8. How can Jesus' calming of the storm give you comfort in your own trials and suffering?
9. How do verses 28-34 speak to Jesus' authority in regard to Satan?
10. List five ways Matthew 8 demonstrates that Jesus was more (though not less) than a mere man?