Miracles that Demonstrate The Perfect Messiahship of Jesus. 
(Matthew 9: 18-31)

Introduction

How do we know that Jesus is the Messiah. From a biblical point of view the answer to that is found most clearly in one book of the Bible than in all others. No other book of the scripture that attempts to demonstrate that he is from Messiah then the book of Matthew. In the last few weeks, we’ve been going through two chapters. Matthew chapters 8 and 9, in these two chapters we are given a series basically of 9 miracles. Those nine miracles are given to prove that Jesus is the Messiah and if you look at the two chapters as a unit you quickly discover that the miracles appear in three groups of three. 

First there is a group of three and then a little interlude about discipleship. Then there is the second group of three and another interlude about discipleship. Then finally there is the third group of three.

In the first group he tells us about the healing of a man with leprosy and a paralyzed man, as well as Peters mother-in-law. At the end of that miraculous session, he plunges into a discussion about discipleship, and he talks about all the excuses some give for not being a disciple.

Then we spent a few days looking at the second round of miracles in that second group he tells the story of Jesus calming a storm, of casting out a demon, and of healing someone and forgiving their sin. At the end of that second cycle there was another pause and again he talks about discipleship. In this case we see Jesus says to Matthew, “follow me” who does just that. Then there is the grumbling of the Pharisees and even some followers of John the Baptist who complaint about not only what Jesus is doing, but how he is going about it as well.

Then there is this third round of miracles it's that third round that I want us to look at today. It's in this third round and what Matthew says about them that gives us Matthew’s idea of how Jesus really offers us the ultimate through his Messiahship. 

You might think that after all these miracles described to us so far what more could there be. To answer that let’s look at Matthew Chapter 9 beginning at verse 18. But like before we’re going to look at three miracles and then we’re going to look again at something that pertains to discipleship. So, let’s look at Matthew Chapter 9 beginning at verse 18 

A Girl Restored to Life and a Woman Healed

18 While He spoke these things to them, behold, a ruler came and worshiped Him, saying, “My daughter has just died, but come and lay Your hand on her and she will live.” 19 So Jesus arose and followed him, and so did His disciples.20 And suddenly, a woman who had a flow of blood for twelve years came from behind and touched the hem of His garment. 21 For she said to herself, “If only I may touch His garment, I shall be made well.” 22 But Jesus turned around, and when He saw her, He said, “Be of good cheer, daughter; your faith has made you well.” And the woman was made well from that hour.23 When Jesus came into the ruler’s house and saw the flute players and the noisy crowd wailing, 24 He said to them, “Make room, for the girl is not dead, but sleeping.” And they ridiculed Him. 25 But when the crowd was put outside, He went in and took her by the hand, and the girl arose. 26 And the report of this went out into all that land. (Matthew 9 18-26)

This scripture contains 2 miracles, but one is an interruption of the other, so I’m gonna consider this as a unit because we started out talking about one and then Jesus gets interrupted, a miracle takes place, and then goes back to that first incident and a second miracle takes place. This first part is the setup of a coming miracle a miracle where Jesus will ultimately raise somebody from the dead.Look at the opening verse again. “While He spoke these things to them, behold, a ruler came and worshiped Him, saying, “My daughter has just died, but come and lay Your hand on her and she will live.” (Matthew 9: 18) I need to explain that the Greek word translated worship here is not exactly what we think of when we hear the word worship today. It has the idea of doing bowing down, prostrating oneself, as matter of fact when Mark records this story he says is that the ruler fell down in front of Jesus.

So, what’s happening here is this ruler comes and prostrates himself at the feet of Jesus. Please come and lay your hands on my daughter and she will live, he says. Apparently, his daughter has just died, and this man still says, if you’ll come and just lay hands on her, she’ll be resurrected. I believe you can do that. So, in verse 19 Jesus says.  

19 So Jesus arose and followed him, and so did His disciples. 20 And suddenly, a woman who had a flow of blood for twelve years came from behind and touched the hem of His garment. (Matthew 9: 19-20)

So, they leave one place and they’re going to this and on their way, we are called in verse 20 a woman with a flow of blood for 12 years came from behind and touched his garment. That verse is packed with meaning, there is a lot going on in this verse that lies underneath the basic text. Let me explain. 

First of all it says she had a flow of blood. Now according to the Mosaic law if that happened to a woman, she was ceremonially unclean. What was significant about that is that she was not allowed to touch anything because if she did it also became unclean. Now we know she had spent 12 years in this state of being ceremonially unclean, spiritually, and socially isolated and the one thing she could not do was touch anything or anyone.  With all of that in mind read the verse again and we see the woman is behind him and she touches the hem of his garment. She did the unthinkable, she touched something that instantly would make it or them unclean. 

Something else in the critical, namely that she touched the hem of his garment actually she probably touched a long cape type robe that the Jewish men wore that had a tasseled hem. Look again at what this woman believed. “For she said to herself, “If only I may touch His garment, I shall be made well.”But Jesus turned around, and when He saw her, He said, “Be of good cheer, daughter; your faith has made you well.” And the woman was made well from that hour”.(Matthew 9: 21-22) This woman is demonstrating unimaginable faith, for 12 years she’s had this problem for which there was no known cure and she is saying if I could just touch the tassel that hangs from the rim of his robe? If I could just get that close and touch it I will be made healed. She does that and then the Lord turns to her and says you be happy, your faith has made you whole, and verse 22 says the woman was made well from that very hour. 

At this point there is a sort of the interruption, and an even bigger miracle occurs. We’re still on the way to the dead girls home so picking up that story in verse 23 it says.

23 When Jesus came into the ruler’s house and saw the flute players and the noisy crowd wailing, 24 He said to them, “Make room, for the girl is not dead, but sleeping.” And they ridiculed Him. 25 But when the crowd was put outside, He went in and took her by the hand, and the girl arose. 26 And the report of this went out into all that land. (Matthew 9: 23-26)

Back in those days when somebody died, they often hired professional wailers and the fact that they were playing the flute suggests that these were professional mourners and the funeral had begun. Jesus gets there, and in verse 24 he says, make room for the girl she is not dead she is sleeping. We need to explain that in the New Testament sleep is sometimes used as a metaphor for death, why, because when a person is dead it looks like they’re asleep, and yet if they’re a child of God they’re going to be resurrected, and that’s like waking up.Jesus looks at this and says, this is nothing more than the sleep of death, meaning he’s going to wake up from that state. When Jesus said about her being asleep, he meant in the of spiritually asleep waiting for the resurrection. Though he meant she wasn’t really dead, they were taking dead literally, physically and spiritually, and they said you’re crazy, this girl is dead and when the crowd was put outside Jesus went and took a hand and the girl arose.

So, in this passage Jesus raises a girl from the dead as well as healing a woman from a chronic disease, that she had had for twelve years. So, what’s the point of these two miracles? The main point that Matthew is making all the way through all nine of these miracle is that Jesus is the Messiah, I would like to submit that Jesus is showing and Matthew is testifying to the fact that Jesus is the Messiah, and he is the Messiah who has the power to raise the dead. Other prophets and teachers came and claimed that they know how to live you life, Jesus says I am the way, the truth and the life. The real way is not to know about truth or knowing about the way to live life, Jesus tells us we need to be the way and the truth by allowing his life to live in us. So that were we are up to, two miracles in one, A woman is healed and made clean and young girls is raised from the dead.

Two Blind Men Healed.

27 When Jesus departed from there, two blind men followed Him, crying out and saying, “Son of David, have mercy on us!” 28 And when He had come into the house, the blind men came to Him. And Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They said to Him, “Yes, Lord.” 29 Then He touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith let it be to you.” 30 And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them, saying, “See that no one knows it.” 31 But when they had departed, they spread the news about Him in all that country. (Matthew 9: 27-31)

Now this is another rather simply presented story, Jesus next encounters two men that are blind. Notice what they first call out to him, “Son of David have mercy on us”. Did you notice what they called him?  So, who is this “Son of David”. David was the father of Israel who was promised an eternal throne, so to say that Jesus is the son of David is to say more than he is in the line of David, he said he’s in the line of David and will also be the one who will sit on the throne of David. They are acknowledging that Jesus is the Messiah, clearly that’s the point, so Jesus says to them, are you ready for this, do you want to be healed? Did you know not everybody wants to band as such is the “Son of David” Did you notice how he answered them. He asked them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this? Do you believe I can do this and do you want to be healed. Please note, not everybody wants to be cured, but few are honest enough to admit to it. I’ve spoken to homeless people and people who are drug addicts or alcoholics and some say they don’t want to be healed. I know that not the majority of people with addictions problems, but it definitely is the case with some. So, Jesus says do you really want this, and do you really believe I can do it, and they said yes, and he said alright and he lays hands on them, and their sight is restored.

Jesus then says, don’t go tell anybody because he’s not ready to be publicly proclaimed Messiah. But they do the exact opposite, they told everybody. It’s really interesting you tell people to go, and they don’t, you tell them not to go, and they go. Maybe what we should do to promote evangelism by telling people what they have to give up and how hard it can be to make a commitment of faith rather than reducing the gospel of Christ to a form of easy believism.

Alright there’s one more story in this last cycle of nine miracles and this is the casting out of the demons thereby enabling a man with mutism to speak and we shall pick up the text in v32 next time.