Jesus Power over Sickness

Matthew 8:14-17

Matthew 8:14-17, Now when Jesus had come into Peter’s house, He saw his wife’s mother lying sick with a fever. 15 So He touched her hand, and the fever left her. And she arose and served them. 16 When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick, 17 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: “He Himself took our infirmities And bore our sicknesses.” Matthew singles out 9 miracles as examples of the power of Jesus Christ in Chapter ⁸ and 9. They are really His credentials as the Messiah.

They are those signs which point convincingly to His deity. Only God can do the things that He does. It comes at a very strategic point in the gospel of Matthew. Jesus has just delivered a amazing sermon in Matthew chapters 5, 6, and 7.

A first century Jew would say this.

Who is this saying these things?

By what authority does He speak? Matthew chapters 8 and 9 is the answer to that question. Jesus is God! Matthew is saying in chapter 8 and 9 that He is God. Matthew is showing beyond a shadow of doubt that Jesus is God.

The first three miracles

Jesus cleanses leper – Matthew 8:1-4 Jesus Heals Centurion servant- Matthew 8:5-10 Jesus heals Peter Mother-in-Law- Matthew 8:14-15 Last week we saw the first miracle of healing the leper in

Matthew 8:1-4.

The second miracle Jesus healed the servant of the Centurion. In all three there is God’s Word involved. God’s Word when Jesus says things like,

• I am willing, be cleansed or
• It be done for you as you have believed, and
• Touching and lifting her up.

The cluster of healings we read that He cast out demons with a word. God’s Word, beloved is what we need today.

• The Word of God, heals, brings to life, creates galaxies, and creates worlds.
• God’s Word brings us into a relationship with Him, it disciples, it causes us to flee from sin and walk closer with Christ.
• God’s Word saves us, heals us, and teaches us.

The question we should ask is why does Jesus save us and heal us? He does so for His own namesake as an extension of His great mercy and grace shown to us underserving sinners. Paul refers those whom God chooses for salvation as “vessels of mercy”

Romans 9:23, and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory, Mercy is presented to us as the basis of our salvation. God saves us from our sin, even though we are unworthy.

1 Peter 1:3, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

Titus 3:5, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit,

Ephesians 2:4, But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,

God is glorified for many things but today we will focus on in His mercy and grace. This incident is reported in all the three synoptic Gospels.

Matthew 8:14-16

Mark 1:29-31

Luke 4:38-39

We see from the chronology of Mark this has happened on the Sabbath.

Mark 1:21, Then they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught.

Then Jesus cast out the demons from the men who was in the synagogue.

1. Jesus’ Mercy and Grace

V 14-15, Now when Jesus had come into Peter’s house, He saw his wife’s mother lying sick with a fever. 15 So He touched her hand, and the fever left her. And she arose and served them. What a gift Jesus gave to Peter’s wife and her mother. Peter would be gone a lot as he followed Jesus. To bring this woman from death to life is a wonderful gift of mercy.

Did you know that Peter was married? 1 Corinthian 9:5, Do we have no right to take along a believing wife, as do also the other apostles, the brothers of the Lord, and Cephas? Obviously, you can’t have a “mother-in-law” without also having had a “wife”!

It would have taken a remarkable woman of God to be the wife of Peter! And it must have also taken a remarkable woman to be his mother-in-law too!! The Greek word is used to describe her situation (ballõ) meant that she was “cast” upon a sick-bed.

Her illness forced her into bed-riddenness.

Luke 4:38, Now He arose from the synagogue and entered Simon’s house. But Simon’s wife’s mother was sick with a high fever, and they made request of Him concerning her.

It may be that her situation was, in fact, very grave. In Jewish tradition to touch a sick person would make one unclean. Again, like with the leper Jesus touches her and she is healed. We also see again that Jesus’ touch does not defile Him but heals the defiled.

He not only "sees"intensely the needs of his loved ones, but He also goes out of His way to "touch"them. He made His "touch"a part of His act of mercy. We notice that she doesn’t lay there because she is still weak from the fever. She is immediately healed and immediately gets up and begins to serve Jesus.

Mercy truly makes disciples! No trace of the sickness is lingering. Not only is the sickness gone but everything that came with it are also gone. She is not weak but restored entirely.

She did serve Jesus and others as well. Perhaps she was a wonderful cook and prepared an evening meal for them. She was completely healed and second that her first concern was caring for Jesus, her Master.

• Matthew said Jesus touched her hand,
• Mark tells us He took her hand and
• Luke writes that He rebuked the fever.

So, the event has Jesus taking her hand rebuking the fever and raising her up completely healed. She feels so good, she is ready to serve Him. We see a great picture of immediate healing and immediate discipleship. It takes the touch of Jesus whether by word or deed to create disciples.

She became a servant of Jesus because He showed her mercy.

Are you serving Christ today?

Have you experienced His mercy?

Has Jesus touched you?

2. Jesus’ Mercy and Grace available to All

V 16, When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick, There is one piece that Matthew doesn’t really tell us that Mark is clear about.

Mark 1:29–34, Now as soon as they had come out of the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. 30 But Simon’s wife’s mother lay sick with a fever, and they told Him about her at once. 31 So He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and immediately the fever left her. And she served them. 32 At evening, when the sun had set, they brought to Him all who were sick and those who were demon-possessed. 33 And the whole city was gathered together at the door. 34 Then He healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He did not allow the demons to speak, because they knew Him.

The reason the people waited until sundown (Mark) or evening (Matthew) was that it was the Sabbath. Mark tells us that these healings took place after they had left the synagogue in Capernaum.

Word had apparently gotten out about Jesus’ presence at Peter’s place. And word had, no doubt, already begun to spread about the miracles of healing He had performed. Perhaps word had even spread about His healing of Peter’s mother-in-law. Mark tells us that, by the end of the day, “the whole city was gathered together at the door” (Mark 1:33).

What is very sad here is that the tradition had kept those who needed help from approaching Jesus. The Sabbath was turned into a day of stress and legalism rather than a day of rest and worship. Jesus, again does not observe protocol when it comes to showing mercy to others.

He goes to their aid even breaking the tradition that had been set up by the Jews. Now, this is where we are given a more expansive view of the mercy of our Saviour. First, we saw Jesus’ mercy to one person a dear little ‘granny’

with a fever. But Matthew now tells us that “many” came to Jesus with a variety of very serious needs. Whatever the need was, He met it completely.

Luke 4:40, When the sun was setting, all those who had any that were sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and He laid His hands on every one of them and healed them. Notice that it didn’t matter what the issue was.

• If a person had a fever it was lifted,
• If a person was sick, they were healed,
• If they had leprosy they were cleansed,
• If they were demon possessed the demon was removed.

Whatever the need was, the mercy and grace of Jesus was sufficient for that need. The exact same thing is true for us. Whatever our need is, Jesus’ mercy and grace are sufficient to meet it. If Jesus’ mercy and power can cleanse a leper and make him clean, then the same mercy and power can cleanse you from your past sins.

Jesus’ compassion is personal. He touched Peter’s mother-in-law. His compassion in that moment was especially for her. Jesus is will and able to show us the same compassion and mercy today.

Psalm 23:6, Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever. Jesus is willing. He healed all who were brought to Him. His mercy is available for all who come to Him by faith.

3. Jesus’ Mercy and Grace Complete

V 17, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: “He Himself took our infirmities And bore our sicknesses.” As we looked to both Luke and Mark to help us fill in some things that Matthew leaves out. Now let’s look at something that only Matthew reports.

Matthew writes that these miraculous healings are not just Jesus showing compassion on the sick and helpless but they go much deeper and more complete that you might imagine. These miracles are foretold in Isaiah as a sign of the One who would also heal us spiritually so we can stand before God without fear.

Whenever the Gospel writer quotes a verse or even part of a verse from the Old Testament, he has in mind that entire

section. This is very true here when Matthew quotes Isaiah 53:4. We might notice the wording is somewhat different. The issue comes from Matthew’s use of the original Hebrew and ours being a translation. We can discern that Jesus’ healing ministry points to something greater, namely healing holistically. He heals physical disease, which points to ultimate healing. One day because of Jesus healing us of our sin we will enter into paradise where there will be no more sickness and disease. In order to accomplish this our Lord had to bear our sins and share in even our sufferings.

Isaiah 53:1-6, Who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? 2 For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, And as a root out of dry ground. He has no form or comeliness; And when we see Him, There is no beauty that we should desire Him. 3 He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. 4 Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And

by His stripes we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. He took on our sin and even the diseases that sin brought. He was crushed and suffered physically so we could be healed.

Sin and suffering are connected. Jesus bears them both for us. One Jewish traditional interpretation of Isaiah 53:4 is that the Messiah would become a leper to remove our sin. He would suffer God’s wrath so we could be forgiven.

Isaiah wrote about our Saviour’s sacrifice on the cross over 700 years before He was crucified. The focus of Isaiah’s words about Jesus ‘taking our infirmities and bearing our sicknesses’ was clearly spiritual in nature – that is, that Jesus was crucified in our place because of our sins. In order that the guilt of our sin might fall upon Himself, and that He might pay the death penalty for it on our behalf.

The apostle Peter understood Isaiah’s words when he quoted from this same passage.

1 Peter 2:24, who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed.

(Quoting Isaiah 53:5). But when Matthew quotes this verse, he seems to see it as a prophecy that was fulfilled in the earthly healing ministry of Jesus.

So, which is it? Is it a prophecy about Jesus’ healing ministry, or is it a promise of His saving ministry? It is both! Matthew wasn’t being unfaithful to the things that Isaiah said. The original language of Isaiah’s words carried with them the idea of ‘healing’.

What Isaiah said can be legitimately translated, “Surely He has born our sicknesses and carried our pains”; because the Hebrew word for “griefs” (hõlî) really does mean “sicknesses”, and the word for “sorrows” (kã’ab) really does mean “pains”.

Isaiah spoke in the language of physical illness and physical suffering to describe the grievous consequences of sin that Jesus has delivered us from. When Matthew said that Jesus “took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses”, he was being true to the literal words of Isaiah.

When we read about the miraculous healing ministry of Jesus Matthew wants us to be amazed at that and then remember that it goes much further. It points to ultimate healing when we are glorified sin is gone and sickness is also gone. Sin is forever gone and sin’s corruption as well.

Just like when Jesus heals Peter’s mother-in-law and everything that went with her fever is also removed. She went from dying to never feeling better in a second. This is a picture of how Jesus completely heals us sin is gone and so are sins consequences. Sickness is gone and everything that came with it.

Revelation 21:1–5, Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. 2 Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of

God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. 4 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

5 Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things

new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.” In other words, you minister to the sick and hurting. If you claim to be the people of Christ, you must live as Jesus lived: “Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did” (1 John 2:6).

Jesus showed great compassion in this text. He touched Peter’s mother-in-law. Because women were unclean during their monthly cycle (Leviticus 15:19), most men would not touch women. Jesus cared more about this poor woman in bed than he did about ritual purity. Then, at the end of the day, when word got around about the Healer in town, Jesus spent time healing the sick and casting out demons.

Jesus showed great compassion to the hurting.

Matthew 14:14, And when Jesus went out He saw a great multitude; and He was moved with compassion for them, and healed their sick.

Matthew 20:34, So Jesus had compassion and touched their eyes. And immediately their eyes received sight, and they followed Him.

Romans 12:15, Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.

Colossians 3:12, Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering;

Conclusion

How can you show compassion to those who are sick?

• Maybe you go to the grocery store or pharmacy and take food or medications by the house.
• Maybe you call to check on someone and break up the monotony of being stuck at home.
• Maybe you offer rides to the doctor.
• Maybe you sit with them at the doctor’s office if there’s a chance of bad news.

Find someone hurting this week and show the compassion of Jesus.

How will you show Jesus’s compassion this week? Because Jesus bore diseases with his healing hands, you bear people to Jesus.

Matthew 8:16, When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick,

The demon-possessed people couldn’t have gotten to Jesus without help, and the demon-possessed people of Capernaum were brought to Jesus. Throughout the Gospels, you find the sick being brought to Jesus. In Capernaum, four men tried to get their lame friend to Jesus.

When there wasn’t any room at the door, they climbed up on the roof, dug through the roof, and lowered their friend down smack dab in front of the Lord (Mark 2:1-5). When Jesus arrived in Gennesaret, the people “ran throughout that whole region and carried the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was” (Mark 6:55).

When Lazarus was sick, Mary and Martha sent word to Jesus to come and heal their brother (John 11:1-3). There is absolutely nothing more powerful we can do for our sick friends than to take them to Jesus and ask the Lord to heal them.

Do you realize that when we pray for our sick friends and family that we are taking their names before the One who still has the power to heal the sick?

When Hezekiah was told that he was not going to recover from his illness, he turned his face to the wall and wept and prayed. God sent Isaiah to the king’s chamber to tell Hezekiah that he would add 15 years to his life. (2 Kings 20:1-11).

Remember what James, the brother of Jesus, said?

James 5:14-15, Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. In context, I’m convinced that the “sick person” is one who is spiritually sick, but the same principle applies.

God answers prayer according to his will, not yours. Yet, God still answers prayer in a mighty way. Ask God for healing. Ask God for his richest blessings upon each person. Ask God to do what no doctor can. Ask God to use His great power.

Do you need God to use His mighty power to cleanse your life of sin?