Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
This automated analysis scores the text on the likely presence of emotional, language, and social tones. There are no right or wrong scores; this is just an indication of tones readers or listeners may pick up from the text.
A score of 0.5 or higher indicates the tone is likely present.
Emotion Tone
Anger
0.1UNLIKELY
Disgust
0.08UNLIKELY
Fear
0.1UNLIKELY
Joy
0.57LIKELY
Sadness
0.57LIKELY
Language Tone
Analytical
0.53LIKELY
Confident
0UNLIKELY
Tentative
0.29UNLIKELY
Social Tone
Openness
0.85LIKELY
Conscientiousness
0.82LIKELY
Extraversion
0.18UNLIKELY
Agreeableness
0.94LIKELY
Emotional Range
0.57LIKELY
Tone of specific sentences
Tones
Emotion
Language
Social Tendencies
Anger
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9
Introduction
[Slide, Title] Attention: Have you ever been helpless?
Maybe you were helpless to do something for yourself or maybe you were helpless to aide a loved one?
It's a terrible feeling!
And yet a state that we humans are in more often than we realize...
Big Picture: When Jesus traveled through Israel He met many helpless people.
Last week we looked at the end of Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mt.,” considering Jesus as the ultimate Teacher and Preacher
This week we are picking up right after that looking at “Jesus the Healer: Our Compassionate King”
Jesus said some pretty bold things in the Sermon in the Mt...
Some hearers may have thought, "Who does He think He is, claiming things like this?"
Sure, Jesus spoke with authority, but did He really have authority?
Words without action are rather suspect!
And so immediately after this sermon Matthew shares with us how Jesus demonstrated His kingly, divine, messianic authority in many powerful ways--especially through healing the helpless!
Thesis: In this I hope that you will better understand the majesty and beauty of Jesus, in that...
[Slide, Thesis] Jesus heals with compassion and authority
In this we see the beautiful pairing of Jesus' ultimate authority with His supreme compassion
Context: How do we see this is Mt.?
Matthew 8-9 shares 3 sets of 3 miracle stories
The miracles demonstrate Jesus’ authority over illness, nature, spiritual powers, & even life and death.
These 3 miracles sets are separated with teachings and examples of the cost of discipleship, which we will look at on another day.
Matthew presents these stories as supporting evidence to Jesus’ claim as the Saving Messiah King introduced to us at Christmas
[6 Slides, Verses] Verses: Now, please join me in Matthew 8:1-17 as we see this very thing...
Transition: Indeed, "He himself took our weaknesses and carried our diseases" & in this you can see that...
Jesus Heals with Compassion
[Slides, MP1a] Explain: Let us first consider the recipients of Jesus’ healing power, Who did Jesus heal?
Recipients: The leper, centurion’s servant, aged woman, demon-possessed, & sickly
And when you look in later verses, you also see that he healed a Gentile demoniac, a paralytic, a chronically hemorrhaging woman, a dead young girl, two blind men, & a mute!
High & low class, men & women, Jews & gentiles, citizens & foreigners, civilians & military servants, & sinners of all types...
[MP1b] A common theme of the recipients of Jesus’ compassionate healing—most of these individuals were outcasts of that time!
Perhaps sometimes we feel we could relate!
It was those who knew they needed healing & humbly came to Him that received this!
Manner of healing: But with this, let's also consider the matter of His healing, How did Jesus heal people?
[MP1c] It was intensely personal!
So often He touched the untouchable!
Jesus touched the feverish mother of Peter, although many men would not touch women outside of their family, for fear of ceremonial uncleanliness and the appearance of impropriety
Jesus touched the leper
Although none would touch such people both for fear of catching their condition & also becoming ceremonially unclean—
Interestingly, instead of the leper’s uncleanliness infecting Jesus, Jesus’ cleanliness ‘infected’ the leper!
And just imagine how long it had been since this leper had felt such gentleness!
And realize that He didn’t need to do this… He could have simply spoken a word!
Touch was an important part of Jesus’ ministry
[MP1d] He gets close to the hurting & needy, offering His compassionate touch!
He was even willing to enter the home of the outcasts & be associated with them!
Although it is not clear in this passage, in Luke’s parallel version of this account Jesus with the Centurion (Luke 7), Jesus was coming to enter this Gentile’s house, something unlawful for the Jews (by their customs)
Jesus actually spent so much time at the houses of outcasts that His enemies began to gossip about Him, calling Him “...a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!...” (Matthew 11:19)
He did not fear what others would say about Him, He showed them great compassion!
[MP1e] Furthermore, do you see the willingness of our God here?
Too often we view God as cold & distant, and sometimes we pray as though we have to convince Him to care for us!
Yet here, through Jesus, God introduces Himself to us as a compassionate God who is close to us in our pain & actually wants to heal us!
Although admittedly He doesn’t always do it in the way or the time that we want!
Now, let’s consider one last element of Jesus’ healing--
Purpose of healing: Why did Jesus heal people?
Jesus’ compassion was not merely demonstrated through physical healing…
Actually, Jesus’ physical healing was the lesser of a greater healing that He offered!
Greater than physical wounds are the spiritual wounds that Jesus heals
[MP1e] Jesus healed people physical to lead to their spiritual healing!
Matthew’s Old Testament prophetic quote at the end of this passage actually highlights this truth…
This quote is from Isaiah 53:4, & within that same passage we find these words, (Isaiah 53:5-6, 11-12)
“he was pierced because of our rebellion, crushed because of our iniquities; punishment for our peace was on him,” (v5)
“the Lord has punished him for the iniquity of us all” (v6)
“my righteous servant will justify many, and he will carry their iniquities.”
(v11)
“he bore the sin of many and interceded for the rebels” (v12)
The physical healing that Jesus provided was an arrow to the deeper spiritual healing that He offers
In Matthew 9:1-8, we even see Jesus first this spiritual healing to a paralytic..
Only to offer physical healing as evidence that He could also heal spiritually!
Transition: With that, let’s go to our final point for today—
Jesus heals with compassion & Jesus heals with…what?
Jesus Heals with Authority
[Slide, MP2a] Explain: To a degree this is an easy point to consider, but the deeper we dig, the more challenging it becomes!
[MP2b] Jesus has the authority to heal anything!
The leper demonstrated an understanding of this when...
He “came up and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.””
(v2)
The Gentile centurion demonstrated an understanding of this when he said…
“..I am not worthy to have you come under my roof.
But just say the word, and my servant will be healed.
For I too am a man under authority...” (vv8-9)
Here we see Jesus’ authority over our physical well-being
In later verses we see Jesus demonstrating authority over the natural elements & even demonic power!
[MP2b] Jesus is the king of kings, but His authority actually reaches over all creation…
When you pair Jesus’ authority with His compassion, it brings up the difficult point...
Why does Jesus not heal everything or simply all good people?
The age-old western challenge, “Why does a good God let bad things happen to good people?"
You see, while Jesus has the authority to heal anything, it is also true that...
[MP2c] Jesus has the authority to not heal!
Jesus is not a cosmic gum-ball machine, where you put in a measured item & out pops exactly what you want!
As we have free will, in an even great way, the Almighty God has free will!
Remember what God shares in Isaiah 55:8-9,
The challenge for us ultimately comes to trusting our God.
Not that, “We trust Him to do what we want.”
that is to subject His will to our own…
[MP2d] But rather this, “We trust in God’s compassion and promises.”
When considering promises like Romans 8:28,
Do we trust that He is fulfilling these...
…even when we can’t see the result?
…even when we have experienced great loss?
Do we trust Him to truly be good & just?
Gracious & righteous?
Honestly for some Christians this is one of the most challenging elements of personal spiritual growth!
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9