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Gospel of Matthew - Chapter 8 - Authority over Diseases

by Paul George  
4/15/2008 / Bible Studies

Matthew 8:1-4

"When he came down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him. Behold, a leper came to him and worshiped him, saying, 'Lord, if you want to, you can make me clean.' Jesus stretched out his hand, and touched him, saying, 'I want to. Be made clean.' Immediately his leprosy was cleansed. Jesus said to him, 'See that you tell nobody, but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them'" (WEB)

In teachings the mount, Matthew chapters 5 through 7, Jesus turned the Jewish religious world upside down by saying that its teachings, attitudes, and actions were wrong. Much of what they believed in and hoped for was wrong. Unlike other teachers, Jesus never bothered to quote any rabbis or any of their well- known sources of authority. He affirmed the truth by repeatedly saying, "You have heard that the ancients were told" or "You have heard that it was said but I say."

In Matthew 7:28-29 it is written, "It happened, when Jesus had finished saying these things, that the multitudes were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them with authority, and not like the scribes" (WEB); for "he taught them with authority, and not like the scribes." The scribes had to rely on tradition for their authority, but Jesus merely spoke without quoting any source.

Jesus came down from a mountain near the village of Capernaum. The people that followed Him were not because they loved Him or believed in Him; they were curious about His unique authority. They had never heard anybody speak in such a manner or heal people so miraculously. As a result, a huge crowd followed Him to see what other things He would do.

This brings up some very important questions; by what authority does He speak? Why should we believe what He's saying?" Chapters 8 and 9 provide the answers to those questions. The fact that Jesus Christ is God and can perform miracles is proof that He had the right to speak as He did. In the person of Jesus, we see God at work. As God Jesus has authority over diseases.

When Jesus came down from the mountain, a leper came to Him and bowed down before Him, and said, "Lord, if you want to, you can make me clean" Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him, saying, "I want to. Be made clean" and immediately his leprosy were cleansed. And Jesus said to him, "See that you tell nobody, but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them."

Note the reason Jesus told the leper "show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded."

A leper had to cover his face and make an announcement of his presence so that no one would get near him, the Talmud forbade a Jew from getting any closer than six feet to a leper, and if there was a wind blowing, one hundred fifty feet. Of the sixty-one defilements in Judaism, the most serious was encountering a dead body and next to that was being infected with leprosy. Consequently, people did not go near lepers, let alone touch them. Only a priest could declare a leper healed. This is reason to show the priests that he was healed; this was also evidence of Jesus' authority over diseases.

What is unusual about the incident is that a leper would not normally dare to approach someone; but this one did, and no one would touch a leper, but Jesus did. Jesus touching the leper and not being infected by leprosy was also evidence of His authority over diseases.

The act of bowing down before Jesus as the leper did and Jesus touching him was unthinkable, shameful, and contrary to Old Testament law. The fact that this leper approached Jesus shows us that he came with confidence. What we see here is a desperate man and he did not care what others thought. Normally, people in his condition would be so socially devastated that they would not show up in a crowd, but this leper lost all sense of shame and social stigma. Nothing was going to stop him from coming to Jesus because he recognized that his need was beyond his power or anyone else to remedy and he wanted help more than he wanted to save his reputation.

In stark contrast to the Pharisees, who were arrayed in their fancy robes and had their beards perfectly trimmed, but were spiritually wretched on the inside (Matthew 23:27-28), is the leper. He was wretched and filthy on the outside, yet reverent on the inside. When he said, "Lord," he was not using it in the sense of "Sir"; rather, he acknowledged that he was in the presence of God. He came and bowed before Jesus in a way men come before kings and God. He came and bowed before Jesus because he knew he was in the presence of God.

What a great example for the church.

When the leper came and bowed before Jesus he did not demand anything, he did not ask his will be done expecting Jesus to comply with his will. He did not list the reasons why he had to be healed. He did not try to affirm his own worthiness or complain because he had a disease that other folks did not. He did not talk about his rights or even about his desires, saying, only, "Lord, if you want to, you can make me clean."

That is very different from what you hear today when people are told to demand healing from God by "claiming" it. This man, however, made no such claim, he was willing to accept Jesus' choice to heal him or not heal him.

The crowd was probably stunned when Jesus touched the leper.

Jesus touched the leper though He did not have to. He could have stood six feet away, as required by law or a hundred feet away and shouted, "Be cleansed." However, he chooses to touch the leper and immediately the leper was cleansed.
Note the leper was healed immediately. All of Jesus' miracles were immediate. When people say, "I went to the healer and was healed, and have been getting better ever since." That is not healing. Jesus put forth His hand and touched the diseased and sick and immediately, not days, weeks, months, years later the healing occurred. Jesus was able to restore the leper instantly to his former health.

What is amazing Jesus can do the same to a sinful heart.

Why did Jesus instruct the man not to tell anyone? Some people believe that Jesus did not want to stir up a crowd that only followed Him because he was a miracle worker. That is very possible because large crowds made it difficult for Him to function. Others say Jesus said that because He did not want the people to see Him as someone who could throw off the yoke of Rome as a political leader. You may remember in John 6:15 that the people tried to do that very thing. Still others say that Jesus did not want to seek any exaltation during the time of His humiliation.

If you read the rest of the verse, you find that he was instructed to appear before the priests "for a testimony to them." If the leper had gone down to the Temple to participate in the cleansing and eight-day examination required in the Mosaic law, the priests would had to have concluded he was cleansed, when they discoverer that Jesus of Nazareth was responsible for the leper's healing; they would be trapped in their own conclusions. Their own examination would confirm the power of Christ. However, that all hinged on the leper's hurrying to Jerusalem without spreading the news, or word would get around that Jesus healed him and the priests would not be interested in examining him.

Unfortunately, the man did not follow Jesus' instruction, as Mark 1:45 tells us. He became so excited that he failed to obey.

We often miss out on blessings because we fail to obey.

Retired pastor,Church of the Nazarene

Author of web site Exploring God's Word

www.thewordofgodonline.net

New American Standard Bible

King James Version

The World English Bible

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