18-26)
Jesus Vs. Death Matthew 9:18-26 May 8, 2011 (am) I don’t suppose it is any mystery What man has perceived as his greatest threat in life. On a whole there is nothing that mankind fears worse than death. One man said: “Despite all our medical advances and great steps in technology death remains our nation’s number one killer.” Now certainly there are other words that scare us. “Cancer” or “He’s been in an accident” or “Heart Attack” or “Tornado” or “Fire” But those words really only scare us because of what they represent. They each represent the possibility of death. BUT I SUPPOSE WE SHOULD ASK WHY DO PEOPLE HATE DEATH SO MUCH? Some might say because of how it occurs; the pain of death. But really there are some who live with much more pain than they will ever die with. Some might say it is the uncertainty of death, Yet most still have a belief in some sort of afterlife or eternal reward. The thing that makes death so awful to us is its finality. As long as a person is sick there is hope, But once death moves in, there is a finality involved. It is after death that you hear terms like “It’s over” or “Closure” Because one thing we know of death is that once it enters, There is no reversal. And this reality has grieved more than one person in history. Solomon wrote: Ecclesiastes 2:12-17 “So I turned to consider wisdom, madness and folly; for what will the man do who will come after the king except what has already been done? And I saw that wisdom excels folly as light excels darkness. The wise man’s eyes are in his head, but the fool walks in darkness. And yet I know that one fate befalls them both. Then I said to myself, “As is the fate of the fool, it will also befall me. Why then have I been extremely wise?” So I said to myself, “This too is vanity.” For there is no lasting remembrance of the wise man as with the fool, inasmuch as in the coming days all will be forgotten. And how the wise man and the fool alike die! So I hated life, for the work which had been done under the sun was grievous to me; because everything is futility and striving after wind.” Ecclesiastes 9:2-6 “It is the same for all. There is one fate for the righteous and for the wicked; for the good, for the clean and for the unclean; for the man who offers a sacrifice and for the one who does not sacrifice. As the good man is, so is the sinner; as the swearer is, so is the one who is afraid to swear. This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that there is one fate for all men. Furthermore, the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil and insanity is in their hearts throughout their lives. Afterwards they go to the dead. For whoever is joined with all the living, there is hope; surely a live dog is better than a dead lion. For the living know they will die; but the dead do not know anything, nor have they any longer a reward, for their memory is forgotten. Indeed their love, their hate and their zeal have already perished, and they will no longer have a share in all that is done under the sun.” But he certainly wasn’t alone in his hatred and despair in light of death. Even people in Jesus day saw death as a final thing. Remember when Jesus allowed Lazarus to die? Martha John 11:21 “Martha then said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.” Notice she didn’t say, “O good You are here, because Lazarus has died.” She thought death to be final. Of course she proves that later. John 11:39 “Jesus said, “Remove the stone.” Martha, the sister of the deceased, said to Him, “Lord, by this time there will be a stench, for he has been dead four days.” Remember Mary? John 11:32 “Therefore, when Mary came where Jesus was, she saw Him, and fell at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.” Remember the Crowd? John 11:37 “But some of them said, “Could not this man, who opened the eyes of the blind man, have kept this man also from dying?” And even in the story we read here, Mark records that while Jesus is on the way to this man’s house He receives messengers. Mark 5:35 “While He was still speaking, they came from the house of the synagogue official, saying, “Your daughter has died; why trouble the Teacher anymore?” You see they all thought death was final. There is really no need to try anything else. Even after Jesus ascended and the church began to grow, There was one church that was grieving over believers Who were dying before Jesus returned. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 “But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus.” DEATH IS HATED ENEMY Now, in a theological sense We understand that death is merely a consequence of sin. Romans 5:12-14 “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned — for until the Law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come.” Death accompanied sin. And now people die because of sin. And that is what makes Jesus so wonderful. Scripture clearly declares That Christ came to defeat sin and ultimately death. 1 Corinthians 15:20-26 “But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s at His coming, then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power. For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. The last enemy that will be abolished is death.” Hebrews 2:14-15 “Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.” And thanks to the work of Jesus one day death will be no more. Revelation 21:1-4 “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” And to prove the reality of that promise Jesus displayed His power over death while on earth. No, He didn’t stop everyone from dying or even raise everyone from the dead. The full benefit of His redemption is yet to be fully realized. (We still have sickness and death) But while on earth Jesus unequivocally proved Himself to be the Messiah by overcoming it. And that is why Matthew includes this story here. Matthew doesn’t give you as much detail as the other gospel writers, But Matthew does drive home his main point with absolute clarity And that is that death was present and Jesus defeated it. What we have here in Matthew’s gospel is a compound miracle. • We have one person whose life was stolen after 12 years. • We have another whose life has been stole for 12 years. Jesus comes to deliver both. And with that being said, let’s look at Jesus’ power over death As we see these two miracles this morning. 4 points. #1 THE HUMBLE DECLARATION Matthew 9:18-19 Now we do know that the point of this miracle Is to prove Jesus’ power over death, But that does not mean that is the only point which Matthew makes. We have just learned in previous weeks what Jesus expects from sinners. Jesus expects sinners to leave their sin and follow Him. And it didn’t matter if that sin was The greed of Matthew, The arrogance of the Pharisees, The self-made religion of John’s disciples. They all had to deny themselves in order to come to Christ. I say that because not only does this incident prove Jesus power, But it also serves as a wonderful example Of another man coming to Jesus the right way. “While He was saying these things to them, a synagogue official came and bowed down before Him,” Now this is no little incident. Jesus is still in the middle of the conversation with John’s disciples About their legalism and the importance of leaving the old garment behind In order to embrace the new one. And they get a living illustration of man doing just that. Here comes “a synagogue official” The word Matthew uses is ARCHONE which is an official. Mark goes a little farther and calls him the (ar-khee-soon-ag-o-gos) And that phrase doesn’t make him just any old official, But the actual head honcho and premier ruler of the synagogue. One commentator writes: “It was his duty to select the readers or teachers in the synagogue, to examine the discourses of the public speakers, and to see that all things were done with decency and in accordance with ancestral usage.” Another writes: “He supervised the worship services and oversaw the work of the other elders, which included teaching, adjudicating disputes, and other such leadership duties.” And that is amazing since Jesus is in the middle of a conversation With Pharisees and legalistic followers of John. • But this man didn’t come at night. • He didn’t come under false pretense. • He didn’t come trying to save face. He came exactly how Jesus said a man should come. He came in humility and total self-denial. “came and bowed down before Him” There would have been no way for him to explain this away To all the other religious elite that were standing around. This man fully humbled himself. And we know why he did. “and said, “My daughter has just died;” Mark and Luke both say that she was at the point of death, But Matthew sort of quick telling the story Gets to the point and that is that the girl is dead. This man is driven to Jesus because death has struck his immediate family and like the rest of us, he has no answer for it. But he does have faith. “but come and lay Your hand on her, and she will live.” No doubt as Jesus has worked miracles all over this man’s area, There has been more than one person give testimony to him About what Jesus has done. Some probably came to ask his opinion on the matter But however he came to know about Jesus, He was certain Jesus could help his daughter. (19) “Jesus got up and began to follow him, and so did His disciples.” And yet again we see that Jesus responds to faith. The Humble Declaration #2 THE ACT OF DESPERATION Matthew 9:20-22 What happens here is interesting. It really happens as somewhat of an interruption in the story. This woman almost slips in unannounced. It almost reads like it wasn’t part of the script. But we have here another woman desperate For what could only be found in Jesus. This woman wanted her life back as well. “And a woman who had been suffering from a hemorrhage for twelve years, came up behind Him and touched the fringe of His cloak;” There again we know that Matthew isn’t giving the whole story. He seems much more interested on the outcome than the details. But the other gospels do help us fill in the gaps. Mark tells us just how bad it was for this lady. Mark 5:26 “and had endured much at the hands of many physicians, and had spent all that she had and was not helped at all, but rather had grown worse” Luke is similar only Luke doesn’t paint the doctors so badly as Mark. Luke 8:43 “And a woman who had a hemorrhage for twelve years, and could not be healed by anyone,” This woman was in bad shape, and nothing was helping her. She had been bleeding for 12 years. And of course that alone would be a nuisance, But you know it was far much more than that. Leviticus 15:25-27 “Now if a woman has a discharge of her blood many days, not at the period of her menstrual impurity, or if she has a discharge beyond that period, all the days of her impure discharge she shall continue as though in her menstrual impurity; she is unclean. ‘Any bed on which she lies all the days of her discharge shall be to her like her bed at menstruation; and every thing on which she sits shall be unclean, like her uncleanness at that time. ‘Likewise, whoever touches them shall be unclean and shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until evening.” This woman was like a leper – She was walking defilement. You couldn’t touch her. You couldn’t sit where she had sat. You couldn’t sleep where she had slept. She was unclean and therefore an outcast. The only difference between her and a leper is that she was not contagious And so she did not have to cut herself off from society. She may not have been dead, But you can hardly call what she experienced “life”. And here again we see great faith. She “came up behind Him and touched the fringe of His cloak; for she was saying to herself, “If I only touch His garment, I will get well.” And this is amazing to me. HOW DID SHE KNOW THAT? She obviously had accredited Jesus with more power than most people. Even the synagogue official asked for Jesus To “lay Your hand on” his daughter. But this woman believed that she could just touch His coat and be healed. And bearing in mind all the medical procedures she had had done, This is some kind of faith to think this will work. No we don’t know where she got this, but we do know her faith caught on. Matthew 14:35-36 “And when the men of that place recognized Him, they sent word into all that surrounding district and brought to Him all who were sick; and they implored Him that they might just touch the fringe of His cloak; and as many as touched it were cured.” Mark 3:9-10 “And He told His disciples that a boat should stand ready for Him because of the crowd, so that they would not crowd Him; for He had healed many, with the result that all those who had afflictions pressed around Him in order to touch Him.” That woman started something. (22) “But Jesus turning and seeing her said, “Daughter, take courage; your faith has made you well.” At once the woman was made well.” Now you have seen that before haven’t you? Matthew 9:2 “And they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a bed. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralytic, “Take courage, son; your sins are forgiven.” Remember the phrase the word Jesus uses here for “courage” Meant that which you are afraid of is gone. And he told the woman the same thing. “take courage; your faith has made you well.” WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? Jesus didn’t just heal her body, Jesus forgave her soul. Mark 5:34 “And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace and be healed of your affliction.” That woman was well and healed. She was forgiven and she stopped bleeding. JESUS RAISED HER FROM SPIRITUAL DEATH INTO SPIRITUAL LIFE The fact that she stopped bleeding was simply the proof. And this just for a woman that interrupted another miracle. The Humble Declaration, The Act of Desperation #3 THE NOISY DISORDER Matthew 9:23-24 Now I separate this part out of the story because I want you to realize that the faith of this synagogue ruler And the faith of this woman are NOT THE NORM. Their faith stands in stark contrast To the normal response of humanity and that is seen here. (23-24) “When Jesus came into the official’s house, and saw the flute-players and the crowd in noisy disorder, He said, “Leave; for the girl has not died, but is asleep.” And they began laughing at Him.” These were more of those professional mourners. In those days they actually had professional mourners who came And helped you have a horrible time in regard to death. These were people who made their living off the finality of death. Now it is easy to spot that they were not genuine, For when Jesus says, “the girl has not died, but is asleep.” This crowd instantly goes from heart wrenching sobbing, to “laughing”. And this, by the way, is the normal response of the world to Christ. It is faith that denies self and believes in Christ anyway. And Without faith you miss a miracle. (25) “But when the crowd had been sent out” I’ve often wondered if that was a moment similar to the temple clearing. Regardless of how they were sent out, we do know that Because of their lack of faith they missed a miracle. The Humble Declaration, The Act of Desperation, The Noisy Disorder #4 THE AMAZING DELIVERANCE Matthew 9:25-26 Here Matthew is just amazingly simplistic in what he writes. “He entered and took her by the hand, and the girl got up.” Do you know what is amazing about that? Nothing. – I do that to Hannah every morning for school. I mean, come on, this is death. • Shouldn’t you at least have to wave your arms or rebuke the demons or lay on top of her like Elisha did? • Shouldn’t there be some special prayer, or incantation, shouldn’t there be at least some loud shouting or something like that? And the answer is “no”. Jesus power was so much superior to the power of death That it didn’t even require a struggle. He reached into death, grabbed this girls hand, And pulled her right out of it. (And He didn’t even break a sweat doing it.) But that is nothing new for Him. He just told Lazarus to come out, and He did. He just told the widow’s son to get up, and He did. Death was no match for Jesus. • This enemy that so torments and so mocks humanity… • This enemy that is known worldwide for its ability not to surrender its prey… • This enemy that has a reputation of finality… This powerful taunting enemy comes up against Jesus And doesn’t offer any more resistance than a common cold. THE POINT? Jesus has power over death. Revelation 1:17-18 “When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. And He placed His right hand on me, saying, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.” Now days death can still mock us. (and it does) Now days death can still visit us. (and it does; taking loved ones) Now days death can still grab us. (and it will) But because of Jesus death cannot hold us. Jesus has the keys. Jesus conquered death. And as you know this isn’t really even about death. This is really about Jesus conquering sin. Death is just a consequence of sin. And what Matthew continues to show us is that Jesus can conquer sin. We know that because He is systematically undoing all of sins effects. • Sickness (the leper, the paralytic, the fever) • Fallen creation (the storm) • Demons (the Gadarene demoniac) • And even death (like we see here) There is no doubt that Jesus is the Messiah. Jesus is the Savior. Jesus is the One to follow. And if you want your sin forgiven, then do what the synagogue ruler did and bow before Him. If you want your sin forgiven, then do what the woman did and fight the crowd to get to Him. BUT RUN TO JESUS AND TRUST HIM. HE RESPONDS TO FAITH. Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
