Matthew 9:27-34
27 As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, calling out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!”
28 When he had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he asked them,“Do you believe that I am able to do this?”
“Yes, Lord,” they replied.
29 Then he touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith let it be done to you”; 30 and their sight was restored. Jesus warned them sternly, “See that no one knows about this.” 31 But they went out and spread the news about him all over that region.
32 While they were going out, a man who was demon-possessed and could not talk was brought to Jesus. 33 And when the demon was driven out, the man who had been mute spoke. The crowd was amazed and said, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.”
34 But the Pharisees said, “It is by the prince of demons that he drives out demons.”
questions:
ReplyDelete- What if only one of the men said that they believe? What would have happened to the man who honestly said, "I don't completely believe."
- Were they sinning to spread the word about Him against His instructions?
- What were the Pharisees guilty of when they said that the work of God was by demons? Is this what blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is?
http://www.believers.org/believe/bel164.htm says:
ReplyDeleteYou will receive from God according to your faith.
EPHESIANS 3:20 NKJ
20 Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,
This verse says two things. God can do more than it is possible for us to even imagine. Second, what He will do in our lives, is dependent on the power at work within us.
What is that power? It is the power of His Word, activated by the Holy Spirit.
ROMANS 1:16-17 NKJ
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.
17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith."
The Gospel is the power of God. It will bring faith. It will bring freedom.
MARK 9:23 NKJ
23 Jesus said to him, "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes."
Anything is possible -- if you have faith. Faith comes from receiving the Word of God. God's Word is faith food; if you eat it, it will produce faith in your life.
ROMANS 10:17 NKJ
17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
In English New Testaments, the words translated faith and believe are the same word in the Greek. Faith is the noun form and believe is the verb form of the same Greek word.
MATTHEW 17:20 NKJ
20 So Jesus said to them, "Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, `Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.
Nothing is impossible -- if you have faith.
MARK 11:22-25 NKJ
22 So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God.
23 "For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, `Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will come to pass, he will have whatever he says.
24 "Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.
25 "And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.
MATTHEW 21:21 NKJ
21 So Jesus answered and said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, `Be removed and be cast into the sea,' it will be done.
LUKE 17:6 NKJ
6 So the Lord said, "If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, `Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,' and it would obey you.
http://www.believers.org/believe/bel164.htm continued:
ReplyDeleteMATTHEW 9:29 NKJ
29 Then He touched their eyes, saying, "According to your faith let it be to you."
Jesus is no respecter of persons. He would not tell these people they would receive according to their faith -- then let you receive according to something else.
MATTHEW 8:13 NKJ
13 Then Jesus said to the centurion, "Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you." And his servant was healed that same hour.
What the centurion believed determined what he received from God. It is still the same today -- for God never changes.
GALATIANS 3:9 NKJ
9 So then those who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham.
Only those who are of faith are blessed. God can do a lot -- but only does what we believe.
GALATIANS 6:9 NKJ
9 And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.
We reap only if we do not give up and quit.
ROMANS 5:2 NKJ
2 through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
All that we receive from God is by His grace. We do not deserve God's blessing. However, we receive it by faith. We have access to God's grace only by faith. Without faith we will not receive any blessing from God.
(You may say that some people receive who seemingly have no faith. They are receiving based on someone else's faith.)
EPHESIANS 2:8 NKJ
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
We are saved, or delivered, only through faith. Everything we receive is a gift from God -- we do not earn it, or deserve it. Without faith we will not receive it.
ROMANS 4:16 NKJ
16 Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all
By blessing people on the basis of faith, God can freely give to all people, by His grace. No matter what anyone has done, God can bless them if they will believe Him.
ROMANS 10:11 NKJ
11 For the Scripture says, "Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame."
If we do not believe -- we will be put to shame.
These scriptures should make the importance of faith in receiving from God clear to you. Because faith comes from the Word of God, you should realize the great importance of feeding on God's Word, the Bible.
If your faith is weak -- feed it God's Word. You do that by reading, by hearing, and especially by speaking the Word.
http://www.jesusfreakhideout.com/devotionals/according.asp says:
ReplyDeleteMaybe you've heard the following imagined story of a scene in heaven. Some angels approach the throne and say, “Father, there is a mortal on earth asking for a blessing. What is Your pleasure concerning his request?” The Father asks, “What did he send his faith in?” The angels answer, “He sent his faith in a thimble.” The father responds, “Well then, fill the thimble with blessings and send it back to him. According to his faith, be it unto him.” Again the angels come and say, “Father, another mortal is asking blessings of Thee.” Again the Father inquires, “And what did he send his faith in?” The angels respond, “He sent his faith in a huge barrel.” With a smile the Father says, “Fill the barrel with blessings and send it back to him. According to his faith, be it unto him.”
Until I began seriously studying the Bible some years ago, I didn't know just how much of an impact my faith could have on my life and the lives of others. No one had ever told me that praying in faith, using my faith, and nurturing my faith were largely my responsibility. One of the verses that God used to begin opening my eyes to this truth is in Matthew 9:29 (NKJV) where Jesus says, “According to your faith let it be to you.” The Savior spoke these words to two blind men who came to Him for healing, letting them know that the quality of their faith played a role in how the Lord responded to their request. The fact is that we DO have a certain amount of control over our lives, and how we exercise our faith and trust in God CAN determine our outcome to some extent. While it's true that God IS sovereign, He gives believers the awesome privilege of playing an important part in their own futures.
Our faith and trust in God can also make a tremendous difference in the lives of others. In Matthew 8:13 (NIV), when Jesus said, “It will be done just as you believed it would,” He was speaking to the centurion about the healing of his servant, not about the soldier's own healing, as in the case of the blind men. And in Mark 2:5 (TLB), when four men brought their crippled friend to Jesus for healing, the Scripture says that the Savior healed the man “when Jesus saw how strongly they believed that He would help.” I think it's interesting that the Bible doesn't reveal whether or not the ailing friend had faith for his own healing. It only talks about the faith of his friends, and apparently, that is what we're supposed to focus on. In Mark 9:20-24 (NIV), when a distraught father comes to Jesus to ask for his son's healing, the Lord indicates that the man's own faith will play a vital part in his son's fate. Jesus tells him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.”
We don't have to let these awesome truths intimidate us or make us fearful. Instead, we can thank God for making a way for us to make a major difference in our own lives and the lives of others. If it's your desire to have greater faith, ask the Lord to increase your faith daily. But don't stop there. Do your part by devoting yourself to God's Word--reading it, believing it, memorizing it, meditating on it, and obeying it. Before you know it, your faith will begin growing in leaps and bounds. And you'll begin experiencing more and more of the joy and satisfaction that come from bearing fruit for God's kingdom and glory. I heard a world-changing minister of the Gospel being interviewed one day. He was asked how he had accomplished so much for God. His answer was, “I always figured that if you've got a big God, you should ask Him for big things!” Don't play it safe with your faith. Start taking risks with it. The next time you have a need or seek a blessing from the Lord, don't send Him your faith in a thimble. Send it in a barrel overflowing with faith, knowing He'll return it to you overflowing with blessings!
http://emilytomko.com/according-to-your-faith-so-let-it-be-done-to-you/ says:
ReplyDeleteThese words of Jesus to the blind men are nearly the same words he’d used with the centurion in the preceding chapter: “It shall be done to you as you have believed” (Matthew 8:13).
There is a mindset in much of the church of “God’s going to do what He’s going to do” which takes any responsibility off of us for anything in our lives and the world around us. The focus on the sovereignty of God (His supreme power and authority) to the exclusion of how He moves and acts in connection with humanity can detract from understanding the need for faith from His followers. Not just faith for salvation and a hope of Heaven someday. There is a need for faith now in this life to see God’s kingdom come in our circumstances – in every single issue that we face.
Along with the lack of emphasis on faith (which Jesus, Paul, and the writer of Hebrews all focused on at length), there has also been a denigration of faith in much of the western church, with entire books written by evangelical leaders criticizing those who operate in “too much faith.” A popular theme of Hollywood and secular literature, especially during the 1970′s and 1980′s was abuses perpetrated by “faith healers” (This can be seen in countless syndicated television shows, such as The Waltons and Little House on the Prairie, as well as prize-winning literature such as Lee Smith’s Fair and Tender Ladies, etc. etc.)
Certainly it is not helpful to condemn people for their lack of faith – on the contrary, many of us have seen the damage that can do, especially to a sick person or his family. However, Jesus did say to His disciples, “Where is your faith?” I wonder if he stressed the word, “your” – as in, “I employed my faith. But where is your faith?” Scripture further tells us that if our faith is lacking, we can get more. “Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17).
The focus that Jesus and the gospel accounts place on faith makes me wonder how much of my life has been limited by the faith that I have in my God? It is a serious question, and one that should not be ignored. It is much better to be seen in the world’s eyes as foolish than it is to be simply faithless.
http://rickwarren.org/devotional/english/god-grows-your-faith-in-six-phases says:
ReplyDelete“Everything is possible for the person who has faith.” (Mark 9:23 GNT)
The Bible says in Matthew 9:29, “According to your faith let it be done to you” (NIV). That’s the key to the great adventure of following Jesus Christ. God says, “You get to choose how much I bless your life. You believe, and I’ll do it. You believe, and I’ll bless.”
Faith is like a muscle — it develops. It can be strengthened or it can grow weak, depending on how much you use it. So how does God build your faith? He uses a very predictable process. If you understand it, you can cooperate with it.
First, God gives you a dream for your life. Then, you have to make a decision about it. The third stage is delay, where you wait for God to work in his time. The next stage is difficulty, where God tests you. Then, you might reach a dead end, which will make you want to give up. But, in the end, God always brings you to deliverance, the final stage of his six phases of faith.
As a pastor, probably the question I’m asked more than any other is, “Why is this happening to me? I don’t understand it.” When you don’t understand God’s six phases of faith — the steps he uses to build your character — you will get discouraged. You may become resentful. You will certainly worry. You may become fearful about the future or depressed. And most of all, you can’t co-operate with what God is doing when you don’t understand the process he’s taking you through. But when you understand the six phases of faith, then you can say, “Oh, I’m in stage 4 right now” or stage 6 or stage 2. You understand better what God’s doing, and you don’t get disheartened when times are tough.
Mark 9:23 says, “Everything is possible for the person who has faith” (GNT).
Do you want to have a stronger faith as you go on this great adventure with God? You first need to understand the six phases of faith that God takes you through so that you won’t get discouraged when you don’t see results or answers right away.
My 2 cents on faith:
ReplyDeleteThe Bible is clear that God works through those who have faith. My concern is when we flip the concept around and think God is not working because I/they don't have faith.
Yes, it's true that God works through those who have faith. When we have faith, many times we can see God's work - and it's great. Does it mean that we don't have faith when God doesn't grant our request, though? I believe that answer is no.
It's right to say that God works through people with faith. It's wrong to say that God is not working (in a specific instance) because no one had faith.
It's a tricky subject. Most of us have very little faith (like the disciples). I know I do. But my reaction to that should be to ask God for help, not beat myself up over it. Furthermore, we shouldn't make judgments about people's (or even our) lack of faith when God doesn't seem to be working. We just don't have enough wisdom and insight to know when and how God is working.
http://www.bible-studys.org/Bible%20Books/Matthew/Matthew%20Chapter%209%20Continued.html says:
ReplyDeleteYou see, if you could see the evidence, it would be fact, not faith. Some ministers will tell you to shut your eyes and see your prayer request happening in your mind. That is not really what faith is. Faith is when we pray and ask God for something; and then trust God with all the details, never doubting in our hearts that God is able to do more than we can ask, or think.
I believe these two blind men had that kind of faith. They came to Jesus, believing that He would restore their sight, and He did. They did not follow His instructions not to tell anyone. If they were blind, and could suddenly see, there would be no way to keep them from telling the good news.
There is another way to look at this, also. Before a person is saved, they are spiritually blind. When they seek out the Lord Jesus, it is faith that opens their eyes. A new Christian is just like these blind men. There is no way not to tell the good news. Once I, too, was blind, but now I see.
http://www.bibletools.org/index.cfm/fuseaction/Bible.show/sVerseID/23410/eVerseID/23411 says:
ReplyDeleteJesus gives this command in five of His thirty-three miracles. His warning is sternly given, as in Greek it is a scolding phrase linked to strong emotion like anger. It adds extra force and implies danger in disobedience. Here, it suggests that the two men need to improve in doing right.
We should not always go easy on new converts about living a strict, upright life. God's standards must be upheld, guarded, and not watered down, whereas today's society tolerates sin and weakens standards that are deemed "too hard" to keep. While ministers must follow God's command in Isaiah 58:1 to, "Cry aloud, spare not; . . . tell My people their transgression," they must be careful not to offend or burden new converts with requirements that, because of their weak understanding, they cannot fulfill completely. Nevertheless, new members need to know God's holy standards. If His Spirit is working in their hearts and minds, they will not be driven away by them.
At first, Christ's warning to keep quiet may seem to contradict the Christian duty to tell the world about His works (Mark 16:15). In this case, He has something else in mind. His command is first to protect against the impedance of His ministry (Mark 1:45) and imperiling Himself.
In addition, He wants to keep the healed men from being puffed up with pride, as well as to give proof of their healing in their conduct, not by words. Nothing proves faith in Christ as well as righteous conduct that comes from a true change of heart. However, though these men had faith enough for healing, they did not have enough to follow His commands. A Christian must make sure that His faith is not a temporary faith that lacks obedience, but one based on love for God. As Christ says in John 14:23-24, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word."
http://dougenick.blogspot.com/2011/01/why-did-jesus-say-dont-tell.html says:
ReplyDeleteIf his miracles were widely known they would attract so much attention and create so much excitement that his movements would be inhibited. He “could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in desolate places.” He could no longer move about as he wished. This was while he was in the land of Israel, where he conducted almost all his earthly ministry. When he told the Geresene demoniac to tell everyone about the miracle he received, it was in a land that Jesus visited once, and then only very briefly. It would not hinder his movements there if everyone knew about it because he was not planning to stay there.
I should also point out that there was undoubtedly a concern on Jesus’ part that people’s attention would be distracted from what he regarded as a more important aspect of his ministry than that of working miracles, namely the ministry of the word. He came as a prophet and a teacher. But many would be attracted to Jesus only for the sake of the miracles he performed. They would be attracted to him much like they would be attracted to a carnival sideshow. They would not be interested in the truth he came to teach, but in having their senses dazzled by seeing a miracle. They would be like Herod. When Jesus was on trial before Herod, we’re told that Herod was very glad to see him, “because he had heard about him, and he was hoping to see some sign done by him” (Lk. 23:8).
These are the main reasons why he told people not to tell. But the thing we should remember is that circumstances have changed and we should now do what Jesus told the Geresene demoniac. We should now declare to everyone how much God has done for us.
http://www.beliefnet.com/columnists/forbiblestudynerds/2015/03/matthew-927-34-jesus-heals-the-blind-and-mute-cultural-commentary.html says:
ReplyDeleteThe name itself originates from the insulting Hebrew term, “Baalzebub,” which referred to the false god, Baal, and means alternately “Lord of the flies” and “Lord of the dung heap,” Some have assumed Beelzebul to be another name for Satan, which could be the case, but that assumption is inconclusive; the name could also refer to a lesser demon in the service of Satan but who wields some measure of authority over the demonic realm.
In any case, this “prince of demons” is a vile, contemptible being, a force intent on wreaking evil—and the Pharisees of Jesus’ day knew that. Given that knowledge, it’s unlikely that their accusation of Jesus was a serious one. Beelzebul would never free people from demonic possession and captivity; it simply isn’t that being’s nature, nor is it consistent with the goals of the supernatural enemies of God. (Jesus made clear that obvious thinking in Matthew 12:25-29.)
It’s much more likely the Pharisee’s accusation was simply a desperate smear attempt by people who hated Christ. Convincing people that Jesus was associated with the infamous “prince of demons” would have been both a contemptuous personal insult (calling Jesus lower than a big pile of feces) and an attempt to discredit his reputation as a holy man and prophet.
The tragic irony was that, in calling Jesus a slave to Beelzebul, the Pharisees discredited themselves instead of Christ—and entrenched themselves as allies of the so-called “prince of demons” that they claimed to despise.
http://www.scripturestudies.com/vol7/g9/nt.html says:
ReplyDeleteBy their reaction, "we learn that when godlessness comes to the extreme point of blindness, there is no work of God, however plain, which will not be distorted in its eyes" [Calvin, 276].
http://thirdmill.org/studybible/note.asp/id/40893 says:
ReplyDeleteThe general idea of "blasphemy" is "speaking impiously," "slandering" or "using abusive language." Jesus warned the Pharisees that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit was unpardonable both in this age and in the next (Matt. 12:32; Mark 3:29-30) in response to their insistence that he exorcised demons by being in league with Satan (Beelzebub). By denying that the Holy Spirit was the power behind the exorcism, attributing that power to Satan, the Pharisees spoke against the Holy Spirit. On this basis, theologians have commonly understood blasphemy of the Holy Spirit to be attributing the work of the Holy Spirit to Satan or other demonic forces.
However, even this definition, needs refining. In responding to the Pharisees, Jesus also made the point that the work he did was obviously from the Holy Spirit (according to the logic of his argument in Matt. 12:25-29 and Mark 3:23-27). There was no reasonable explanation for the exorcism other than the power of the Holy Spirit; and this should have been evident to all. The Pharisees' rejection of the Holy Spirit was thus informed and willful; they had not simply made a mistake. Speaking from the evil of their hearts (Matt. 12:34-35), they had intentionally blasphemed what they knew to be the power of the Holy Spirit.
Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit then is informed and intentional and motivated by evil. Because it is unforgivable, it cannot be committed by a Christian, or even by someone who is not yet a Christian but who later will come to faith. Even so, sincere Christians sometimes fear that they have blasphemed the Holy Spirit. Usually, these people have simply misunderstood the nature of such blasphemy, or have misjudged their own actions. In any event, since the reprobate (those who will never come to faith) cannot truly repent of their sin (cf. Acts 11:18), Christians who fear that they may have committed this unpardonable sin, show by their very anxiety and repentance that they have not done so.