Matthew Chapters 7 and 8

By William Cunningham

Introduction

We are learning how to operate in God’s Kingdom as His people.  We have learned many things from the sermon on the mount by Jesus Christ.  We will continue with Matthew 7:13 to learn more about the Kingdom of God and how we should therefore live.

Entering the Kingdom

Matthew 7:13–14 (HCSB) — 13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the road is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who go through it. 14 How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.

  • The “narrow gate” verses 13 and 14 uses the Greek word stenos, which plainly means narrow.
  • The “wide gate” in verse 13 uses the Greek word platus, which simply means wide.
  • The “broad road” in verse 13 uses the Greek word euruchoros, which means spacious. This has a connotation of being easy.
  • The “difficult road” in verse 14 uses the Greek word thlibomai, which means to crowd against, press, cause trouble to, suffer hardship, feel persecution, be narrow.

The narrow gate is the entrance to a road (or way) that ultimately leads to life.  The broad gate leads to a wide road that leads to destruction.

We also note that Jesus said many people will find the broad gate and way and that few people will find that narrow gate and subsequent way.

False Prophets

See Matthew 7:15-20

Jesus warns us to beware of false prophets.  There will be many who are not concerned about the body of Christ, but instead want to destroy it.  They will come teaching, but their entire agenda is to destroy you.

The Discernment Through Doing

Jesus goes on to tell us that there are those who do good things in His name, but they are ravenous wolves.  There will be those who do great signs and wonders in the name of the Lord, but the Lord will have no relationship with them.

Doing the Word

Matthew 7:24-27

Jesus tells us that those who are wise are those who do the word and not merely hear it.  He gives an illustration to show his point.

Jesus’ Will to Heal

Matthew 8:1-3 is very important to us.  It gives us conclusive evidence that it is God’s will to heal us.  A man came to Jesus knowing that He could heal, but he didn’t know if Jesus would heal him.  He told Jesus this and Jesus told him that he is willing and He then healed the man.

People know that God has the ability to heal, but they don’t know whether he would heal them or not.  Jesus sets the precedence here that it is his will to heal. Some things to consider about this.

  1. Reading through the Gospels we find that Jesus healed each and every person that came to Him for healing. He turned no on away.
  2. If Jesus was willing to heal then, He is willing to heal now. See Hebrews 13:8.
  3. See also Malachi 3:6 – God doesn’t change

Therefore, if Jesus was willing to heal that man then he is willing to heal you of whatever ails you.

A Centurion’s faith

Read Matthew 8:5-13

A centurion demonstrated great faith when He told Jesus that He only needed to speak the word and his servant would be healed. The centurion truly believed that all Jesus had to do was say it and his servant would be well.  He recognized that Jesus had some kind of authority over sicknesses and diseases. Jesus marveled over the centurion’s great faith.

Jesus Heals All In Capernaum

See Matthew 8:14-17

In Matthew 8:14-15 Jesus saw Peter’s mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever.  Jesus touched her and made the fever leave her body.  What do you do when you or someone else in your household have a fever?

Later that evening (after healing Peter’s mother-in-law many sick people were bought to Jesus to be healed.  The bible says that Jesus healed them all.  You will notice this theme throughout the ministry of Jesus.  When people came to him for healing or deliverance, he healed or delivered them respectively.

In our normal everyday activities, we should remember that it is not God that makes us sick, but rather the enemy, the devil ultimately.  Sure, sometimes we suffer poor health because of our own decisions, however, sickness itself comes from the sin of man in the Garden of Eden, which was instigated by the devil.

The Cost of Your Discipleship

Matthew 8:20 (HCSB) — 20 Jesus told him, “Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.”

Matthew 8:22 (HCSB) — 22 But Jesus told him, “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”

Sometimes as disciples of Christ we have to go against the paths of others and in some cases earthly authorities, which is why many Christians throughout history were persecuted.  Sometimes the road of discipleship is a hard one, e.g., missionaries going abroad.  Sometimes it may involve opposing the wishes or expectations of your family and friends.  Following Jesus requires great dedication and focus as the world will oppose you at every step.

Pursue God and live the life that He has called you to!