THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MATTHEW
INTRODUCTION
There is no reason to doubt that this Gospel was written by Matthew. It presents the narrative of our Lord’s life from the standpoint of the pious Jew; and the evident design of the writer is to show how completely and continually our Lord fulfilled the Old Testament Scriptures. No other Gospel contains so many quotations from the Law, the Prophets and the Psalms. In it the predominant aspect of our Lord’s character and work is the Messianic. He was great David’s Greater Son. The keyword of the book is “Behold your King.” As King, His line is traced through the kingly race. As King, He proclaims the kingdom of heaven. As King, He promulgates the laws, describes the subjects, and announces the rewards of the Kingdom. When describing His own action at the last, when He sits on His throne and all nations are gathered before Him, He speaks of Himself as King, Mat_25:40. It was on His avowal of kingship that He was condemned to die. From every viewpoint this Gospel is one of the most precious documents in the world.
By F.B.Meyer
{e-Sword Note: The following material was presented at the end of Matthew in the printed edition}
Find the outline of our Bible study on The Gospel of Matthew at the link below.
OUTLINE OF THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MATTHEW
The King of the House of David
3. Miracles of Healing, Mat_8:1-34; Mat_9:1-35
NB !Note:
The Judean ministry of Jesus, which lasted almost one year, is not discussed by Matthew. This one year period is covered in John 1;1 to the end of John 4: and fits between Mat_4:11 and Mat_4:12. Matthew takes us from the temptation directly to the Galilean ministry.
Today we will look at the following questions in the outline.
25. What did Jesus require of those who would be His disciples?
The Cost of Following Jesus
Now when Jesus saw great multitudes about him, he gave commandment to depart unto the other side.
a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.
And Jesus saith unto him,
The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.
And another of his disciples said unto him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.
But Jesus said unto him,
Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.
Jesus Calms a Storm
And when he was entered into a ship, his disciples followed him.
And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep.
And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish.
And he saith unto them,
Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith?
Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.
But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him!
Comments by F.B.Meyer
on
LEADER OF MEN AND RULER OF NATURE
The answer to question 25. What did Jesus require of those who would be His disciples?
Christ winnows men. Before any enter upon His service, He places before them the inevitable trials which they must meet, among which loneliness and homelessness bulk large. See that in your heart Christ has a home. Where, however, there is lethargy, the Savior stirs the soul to follow Him. Do not mourn about the grave of the past; leave it and enter the life of resurrection and ascension.
Storms must sweep over all our lives. The Master’s sleep indicates the peace and security of His nature. What a contrast between our impatience and His infinite serenity! Our Lord was sure that the Father was with Him, Joh_8:29. Near though the enemy may be, the Father is nearer. The everlasting arms are beneath you. You are beset behind and before, but no boat can sink when Christ is on board.
Believer’s Bible commentary
Book by William MacDonald
E. The Miracle of Human Refusal (8:18-22)
We have seen Christ exercising authority over disease and demons. It is only when He comes in contact with men and women that He meets with resistance—the miracle of human refusal.
8:18-20 As Jesus prepared to cross the Sea of Galilee from Capernaum to the east side, a self-confident scribe stepped forward pledging to follow Him “all the way.” The Lord’s answer challenged him to count the cost—a life of self-denial. “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” In His public ministry, He had no home of His own; however, there were homes where He was a welcome guest and He ordinarily had a place to sleep. The true force of His words seems to be spiritual: this world could not provide Him with true, lasting rest. He had a work to do and could not rest till it was accomplished. The same is true of His followers; this world is not their resting place—or at least, it shouldn’t be!
8:21 Another well-meaning follower expressed a willingness to follow Him, but had a higher priority: “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” Whether or not the father had already died makes little difference. The basic trouble was expressed in the contradictory words: “Lord … me first.” He put self ahead of Christ. While it is perfectly proper to provide a decent burial for one’s father, it becomes wrong when such a worthy act takes precedence over the Savior’s call.
8:22 Jesus answered him, in effect: “Your first duty is to follow Me. Let the spiritually dead bury the physically dead. An unsaved person can do that kind of work. But there is a work which you alone can do. Give the best of your life to what really lasts. Don’t waste it on trivia.” We are not told how these two disciples responded. But the strong implication is that they left Christ to make a comfortable place for themselves in the world and to spend their lives hugging the subordinate. Before we condemn them, we should test ourselves on the two terms of discipleship enunciated by Jesus in this passage.
F. Power Over the Elements (8:23-27)
The Sea of Galilee is noted for sudden, violent storms that whip it into a churning froth. Winds sweep down the valley of the Jordan from the north, picking up speed in the narrow gorge. When they hit the Sea, it becomes extremely unsafe for navigation.
On this occasion, Jesus was crossing from the west side to the east. When the storm broke, He was asleep in the boat. The terrified disciples awoke Him with frantic pleas for help. It is to their credit that they went to the right Person. After rebuking them for their puny faith, He rebuked the winds and the waves. When a great calm descended, the men marveled that even the elements obeyed their humble Passenger. How little they comprehended that the Creator and Sustainer of the universe was in the ship that day!
All disciples encounter storms sooner or later. At times it seems we are going to be swamped by the waves. What a comfort to know that Jesus is in the boat with us. “No water can swallow the ship where lies the Master of ocean and earth and skies.” No one can quell life’s storms like the Lord Jesus.
WE ARE STUDYING THE FOUR GOSPELS MATTHEW, MARK, LUKE AND JOHN TO KNOW THE LORD AND SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST.
TO KNOW HIM IS TO LOVE HIM.
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