This incident follows immediately after the sermon on the mount. It is questionable whether any of the great words of that discourse reached the leper, who could only have stood beyond the outermost ring of the crowd. But though at first he was quite shut away from Christ, his opportunity came while our Lord was coming down the hill; then he could claim the beggar's privilege and stand by the wayside. Jesus speaks to multitudes, but he cares for individuals. He is not so taken up with the crowd as to have no time for special needs. Thus the gospel story repeatedly records the transition from public utterance to private kindness. These more private scenes best reveal to us the heart of Jesus. Let us look at the story of the leper, first as it regards the sufferer, and then as it concerns the action of the great Healer.
I. THE BEHAVIOUR OF THE POOR SUFFERER.
1. His condition. A leper. His disease was loathsome, and his state of life pitiable in the extreme. An outcast from society, shunned as an unclean person, regarded as hopelessly afflicted, he was an object of perfect misery. The leper has always been regarded as typical of the sinner in his uncleanness, shame, and misery.
2. His action. He came to Christ. Why? Doubtless be had heard of previous cures (Matthew 4:24:). But the very look of Jesus would be enough to draw him to the feet of the Friend of the miserable. Never had he seen suck sympathy and kindness. We need to know something of Christ to be drawn to him. When we do perceive his grace, we must come to him if we would have his salvation.
3. His reverence. He worshipped. We cannot suppose that he perceived the full Divinity shining through the garb of simple humanity. Yet it may be that he saw more of it than any one else, for it is most revealed in compassion. But if he only bowed as an act of homage to a great one, this showed reverence - a fitting accompaniment of faith in Christ.
4. His words. He begged for cleansing, not for money. He knew his need, and he sought for the one thing most essential. He showed faith in the power of Christ; he only prayed for Christ's willinghood. Both are needed for salvation.
II. THE RESPONSE OF THE GREAT HEARER.
1. His brotherly touch. This is one of those single actions that send a flash of light into the nature of Christ. No one else would defile himself by touching a leper. The sufferer did not expect such an act of condescension, and Jesus had to "stretch forth" his hand to reach him. Here is Christ's unlimited brotherhood. If there is danger of contagion he will not think of it. Christ heals through personal contact, through gracious brotherhood.
2. His consenting words.
(1) The word of grace: "I will." Then the two conditions are fulfilled. The father of the lunatic boy doubted the other condition - the power (Mark 9:22). But both are present with Christ.
(2) The word of power: "Be thou made clean." His language to the leper is typical of his message to the sinner. He saves by cleansing.
3. His perfect healing. There is no delay, there is no slow process. Immediately the cure is complete. Thus Christ is perfectly successful. His works prove his claims. He is able to save unto the uttermost - lepers in body, lepers in soul.
4. His final directions.
(1) Silence. Perhaps from natural modesty. He was not like the Pharisees who trumpeted their alms. He would not let his left hand know what his right hand did.
(2) Obedience to the Law. This was not yet superseded. The leper lived under the Law. The priest would give the man a certificate. The offering would be a sign of gratitude. - W.F.A.
And, behold, there came a leper.
I. THE LEPER'S FAITH.
II. Christ's TREATMENT or THE LEPER.
1. That this disease is a type of moral corruption.
2. God's grace alone can effect a cure.
3. We see the power of prayer.
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I. THE LEPER'S OPPORTUNITY. Let every hearer of the word follow Jesus Christ till he finds Him in secret.
II. THE LEPER'S DEFILIMENT.
1. The disease of leprosy seems to have appeared first in Israel while in the land of Egypt, the earliest notice of it being in the leprous hand of Moses. Sin, like leprosy, is deeply hereditary. It spreads corruption and dissolution through the entire body. It was viewed with the hopelessness of death.
2. The leprosy, selected by God as the special type of sin, #as more than other diseases sent immediately from heaven as the express punishment of sin. Thus with Gehazi.
3. The leper, alone of all the sick, was shut out from the camp of Israel. The sinner excluded from holy fellowship.
4. The leper was appointed to bewail himself as one already dead; he was to become his own mourner (Leviticus 13:45). These were three of the chief symbols of sorrow for the dead. The leprous sinner is dead, while he lives.
III. THE LEPER'S PRAYER.
1. He was convinced of Christ's ability to heal him. This the chief element of saving faith.
2. There is an appeal to the compassionate will of Jesus.
IV. THE LEPER'S CLEANSING.
1. Jesus is moved with compassion, touches, and cleanses.
2. The thanksgiving is seasonable and acceptable in one case; the gratitude, unwise and not obedient in the other. The case of the ten lepers.
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I. THE INDIVIDUAL REFERRED TO — "a leper." No condition more awful and distressing. Striking representation of sin. Leprosy was generally hereditary; small in its first appearance, deep-seated and inveterate in its nature, universal in its prevalence, loathsome in its appearance, excluded from society, incurable by human power, and generally produced a most awful death.
II. His ADDRESS TO THE REDEEMER. It was an address of humble respect, associated with faith, affecting appeal to his misery and Christ's goodness.
III. THE CONDUCT OF THE SAVIOUR. Responded to his appeal; His word was omnific and conveyed His healing power; He put forth His hand to testify to his cleanness; He sent him to the priest that his recovery might be duly attested; He was to present a gift unto the Lord. See how you are to obtain healing and purity. See the way in which Christ will receive you.
1. Bless God for health of body.
2. Especially be anxious for health of soul.
3. Praise God for the means of spiritual health and felicity.
4. Come and be healed.
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I. His lamentable condition.
II. His appropriate prayer.
III. His complete restoration.
IV. His instant dismissal.
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It was a touch
(1)of purity;(2)of sympathy;(3)of power.()
"Blessed are the merciful," so our Lord had said; now the act follows the word.I. How truly HUMBLE and lowly was Jesus. Free from ostentation He walked among men. Christ can heal the leprosy of pride.
II. Though lowly, the Saviour was NOT FEARFUL. With all our pride, how many things we fear. We fear labour, difficulty. Let us learn from Christ what courage is. He can cleanse from the leprosy of fear.
III. IMPURITY IS ANOTHER FORM OF LEPROSY.
IV. INDOLENCE, TOO, IS A LEPROSY. Christ's is an active Spirit, by feeling the influence of which we shall be healed of sloth.
V. SELFISHNESS IS LEPROSY.
VI. We shall see in DISCONTENT an irritating leprosy, eating into our mind's health and our soul's peace. These are instances of our moral disease. The Saviour's band can heal.
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Notice in Christ's touch of the sick.I. His FIXING AND CONFIRMING FAITH IN HIMSELF THE HEALER. It is in condescension to human weakness that He lays His hands on sick folk; we believe in little that we cannot see. Naaman said, "Behold, I thought," etc. Pain and sickness are sensible; we look for equally sensible tokens of the energy of the Restorer. Thus we are touched into attention.
II. His ANSWER TO OUR CRAVING FOR SYMPATHY. Had Jesus held aloof from the diseased they would never have trusted Him. His touch was healing; some touches irritate. In the Incarnation Christ touches us in sympathy. It is a comfort to be touched by Christ.
III. THE SYMBOL OF HIS BEARING OUR INFIRMITIES AND CARRYING OUR SINS. He touched our nature in all its pollution. He is not ashamed to call us brethren.
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A good Christian lady living in Sweden opened a home for crippled and diseased children — children whom nobody really cared about but herself — and received about twenty of them into it. Amongst them was a little boy of three years old, who was a more frightful and disagreeable object than you ever saw, or are ever likely perhaps to see in your life. He resembled skeleton. His poor skin was so covered with blotches and sores that he could not be dressed. He was always crying and whining, always peevish, and the poor little fellow gave more trouble almost than all the others put together. The good lady did her best for him; she was as kind as possible — washed him, fed him, nursed him; but the child was so repulsive in his look and ways, that she could not bring herself to like him, and her disgust, I suppose, occasionally appeared in her face. One day she was sitting on the verandah-steps with the child in her arms. The sun was shining warm, the scent of the autumn honeysuckles, the chirping of the birds, the buzzing of the insects, lulled her into a sort of sleep; and in a half-waking, half-dreaming state, she thought of herself as having changed places with the child, and lying there, only more foul, more disagreeable than he was. Over her she saw the Lord Jesus bending, looking intently and lovingly into her face, and yet with a sort of expression of gentle rebuke in it, as if He meant to say, "If I can love and bear with you, who are so full of sin, surely you ought, for My sake, to love that guiltless child, who suffers for the sin of his parents." She woke up with a start, and looked in the boy's face. He had waked up too, and she expected to hear him begin to cry; but be looked at her — poor little mite! — very quietly and earnestly for a long time, and then she — sorry for her past disgust, and feeling a new compassion for him, and a new interest in him — bent her face to his, and kissed his forehead as tenderly as she had ever kissed any of her own babes. With a startled look in his eyes, and a flush in his cheeks, the boy, instead of crying, gave her back a smile so sweet, that she had never seen one like it before: nor will, she thinks, till it will light up his angel features some day on their meeting in heaven. From that day forth a perfect change came over the child. Young as he was, he had hitherto read the feelings of dislike and disgust in the faces of all who approached him, and that had embittered his little heart; but the touch of human love, swept all the peevishness and ill-nature away, and woke him up to a new and happier life.()
(ver. 4): — Why was this reserve insisted on? What would have led the restored leper to act at variance with Christ's command? Two motives — a desire of bearing personal witness to the miraculous power of his Benefactor: or a wish to draw the eyes of men on the favour he had received. Both these we can conceive our Lord. would be likely to prohibit — the one, because it was needless; the other, because it was exposed to harm.1. The first of these objects was prohibited for reasons of our Lord's showing. He did not wish to be the idol of strong excitement.
2. It was not His purpose to take men's minds, as it were, by force. He would lay no compulsion on faith.
3. Then there was also the fact itself, clear and patent to the observation of all men. Then see, on the other hand, how the injunction of our Lord seems to have borne on the personal case of the leper himself. "Go show thyself to the priest." As if our Lord had said, "Be not occupied with thine own self, make no display of what I have clone, let not that distract thee from what thou oughtest to do, thy duty is more than words, more than even magnifying thy blessings." Thus our Lord prohibited words that He might enjoin actions. The full heart can seldom find adequate vent in words; deeds do not fail us. This is a comfort to the poor.
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(ver. 4): — Why did Jesus give this charge?I. It may be observed that though our Saviour's injunctions of silence and secresy were frequent, they were BY NO MEANS CONSTANT. Many of His miracles were wrought in public. Jews expected a temporal Messiah. He wished to prevent popular rebellion. Fear did not suggest the injunction; but it was the course of courage, benevolence, and wisdom. He guarded Himself against the imputation of political intentions and of turbulence.
II. Our Lord desired To AVOID ALL IDLE AND UNPROFITABLE EXCITEMENTS. A love of display formed no part of His character. Quiet faith was the grace He loved to see. He desired obedience rather than profession. Is all need for caution gone? A due regard to circumstances and consequences no proof of a timid spirit.
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(ver. 1-13): —I. WHAT IT SEES IN CHRIST.
1. Both of these ,applicants assigned to Him the character of a Great Healer. Saving faith sees in Christ the attributes of a great Physician.
2. They both saw in Christ a superhuman Power. Saving faith never thinks meanly of Christ.
3. They both saw in Christ a most encouraging beneficence. True faith sees in Christ a Rewarder of them that seek Him.
II. WHAT ARE THE AFFECTIONS WITH WHICH IT MOVES TOWARD HIM.
1. It despairs of help in any one but Christ.
2. True faith is also attended with feeling of great unworthiness.
3. True faith is attended with earnest and practical interest in others.
III. THE MANNER IN WHICH THE SAVIOUR MET THE FAITH OF THESE MEN.
1. He graciously entertained their applications.
2. He mercifully granted their requests.
3. He introduced them into another empire. They were to sit down with Abraham, etc.
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I. THE LEPER.1. He comes.
2. He worships.
3. He pleads.
II. THE HEALER
1. He puts forth His hand.
2. He touched him.
3. He spoke.
(1)It is the voice of love;(2)of authority;(3)of power.()In the leper two things are remarkable — the weakness of his body; the virtues of his mind.
I. THE WEARINESS OF HIS BODY. Weakness proceeds from wickedness. The weakness of his body brought him to the Physician of his soul. He felt his misery great; but hoped Christ's mercy was greater.
II. THE VIRTUES OF HIS MIND.
1. Faith.
2. Adoration.
3. Wisdom in selecting place, not on Mount, but in valley; time, not interrupting His sermon.
4. Patience. Content to stay God's leisure.
5. Confession.
III. NOW LOOK AT THE PHYSICIAN.
1. His mercy.
2. His might.
(1)Christ touched the leper, which was forbidden by Moses. Hence He was greater than Moses.(2)Moral duties superior to ceremonial observances.(3)This intimates that Christ was very man in touching, but more than a man in healing with a touch.(4)To demonstrate that Himself and none other cured him.(5)Christ's humility in touching a leper.1. The leper was commanded to tell no man. We must temper zeal with knowledge and obedience.
2. It was needless to tell it since his whole body, made clean, was a tongue to tell it.
3. It was absurd that he should boast he was clean, before he was so judged.
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I. THE CHARACTERISTICS OF LEPROSY AS SET FORTE IN SCRIPTURE. Loathsome — helpless — hopeless.1. The position of this leper was one of shame and disgrace. He inspired repugnance in those around him. Sin is a disgrace. It ought to fill with shame.
2. Other maladies healed by Christ invited sympathy and help and society. The leper was reminded by everything that he was alone in the world. Each one of us alone before God.
II. HIS FAITH.
1. There was a thorough consciousness of his own misery and a perfect conviction of his own helplessness. But he knew it was not too bad for Christ to deal with successfully.
2. The concentrated force which resides in the leper's petition. His entire resignation; he is willing to leave the matter in the hands of Christ.
3. What a Divine concentration there is in the answer — "I will; be thou clean." What a majestic utterance. Christ accepts the recognition of His power. The main point of the answer is, not His power, but His will.
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Each one of us is alone before God. However great may be the human crowd in which we live, however closely we may be connected with one another by affection, by interest, by duty, each soul is solitary in its relation to God. Just as in those great American forests, which stretch in vast succession over mountain and plain — whatever be the interlacing of the foliage — whatever be the beauty which comes from the blending of sunlight and shade — whatever havoc may be done on a great and extensive scale by storm and tempest — each tree, rising from its own root, with its one stem, and with the outgrowth of its own branches, is a solitary tree. So is the human soul, with the outgrowth of its own words and deeds, a solitary soul. No other human soul can share its responsibility.()
I have seen a fair and well-built house, lifting its head proudly above its neighbours, and having a goodly outside presence. And I have looked within, and found that the dry rot had eaten away rafter and beam, and that the house was ready to fall to ruin. During the Crimean War, our ships suffered far more from the dry rot within their timbers, than from the outside attacks of shot and shell. How many lives there are like that grand house, or those stately ships! Outside they are fair to look upon, men envy their wealth, or position, or good fortune, and all the while the foul leprosy is within, eating away the moral nature, making that life a ruin.()
Is it the leprosy of an impure life, or a selfish nature, or a cruel tongue, or a proud, rebellious spirit? Whatever it be, once more, are you willing to be made clean? Before you can find pardon, you must see your sin and hate it.()
People
Esaias, Isaac, Isaiah, Jacob, Jesus, PeterPlaces
Capernaum, Gadara, Galilee, Sea of GalileeTopics
Crowds, Descending, Follow, Followed, Hill, Immense, Large, Mount, Mountain, Multitudes, NumbersOutline
1. Jesus cleanses the leper;
5. heals the centurion's servant,
14. Peter's mother in law,
16. and many others;
18. shows the cost of following him;
23. stills the storm on the sea;
28. drives the demons out of two men possessed;
31. and tells them to go into the pigs.
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Matthew 8:1 4831 largeness
5279 crowds
8120 following Christ
Matthew 8:1-3
2015 Christ, compassion
Library
The Touch that Cleanses
'When He was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed Him. 1. And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped Him, saying, Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean. 3. And Jesus put forth His hand, and touched him, saying, I will; he thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. 4. And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them.'--MATT. viii. 14. THE great collection …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy ScriptureThe Healing Christ
'Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.'--MATT. viii. 17. You will remember, probably, that in our Old Testament translation of these words they are made to refer to man's mental and spiritual evils: 'He bare our griefs and carried our sorrows.' Our evangelist takes them to refer, certainly not exclusively, but in part, to men's corporeal evils--'our infirmities' (bodily weaknesses, that is) 'and our sicknesses.' He was distinctly justified in so doing, both by the meaning of the …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture
Swift Healing and Immediate Service
'And when Jesus was come into Peter's house, He saw his wife's mother laid, and sick of a fever. 15. And He touched her hand, and the fever left her: and she arose and ministered unto them.'--MATT. viii. 14-15. Other accounts give a few additional points. Mark:-- That the house was that of Peter and Andrew. That Christ went with James and John. That He was told of the sickness. That He lifted her up. Luke, physician-like, diagnoses the fever as 'great.' He also tells us that the sick woman's friends …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture
Christ Repressing Rash Discipleship
'And a certain scribe came, and said unto Him, Master, I will follow Thee whithersoever Thou goest. 20. 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.'--MATT. viii. 19-20. Our Lord was just on the point of leaving Capernaum for the other side of the lake. His intended departure from the city, in which He had spent so long a time, and wrought so many miracles, produced precisely opposite effects on two of the …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture
Christ Stimulating Sluggish Discipleship
'And another of His disciples said unto Him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father. 22. But Jesus said unto him, Follow Me; and let the dead bury their dead.'--MATT. viii. 21-22. The very first words of these verses, 'And another of His disciples,' show us that the incident recorded in them is only half of a whole. We have already considered the other half, and supplement our former remarks by a glance at the remaining portion now. The two men, whose treatment by Christ is narrated, are …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture
The Peace-Bringer in the Natural World
'And when He was entered into a ship, His disciples followed Him. 24. And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves; but He was asleep. 25. And His disciples came to Him, and awoke Him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish. 26. 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. 27. But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man la this, that even the …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture
The Peace-Bringer in the Spiritual World
'And when He was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met Him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way. 29. And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with Thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art Thou come hither to torment us before the time? 30. And there was a good way off from them an herd of many swine feeding. 31. So the devils besought Him, saying, If Thou cast us out, suffer us to go away …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture
The Faith which Christ Praises
'The centurion answered and said: Lord, I am not worthy that Thou shouldest come under my roof, but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. 9. For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go! and he goeth; and to another, Come I and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this; and he doeth it.'--MATT. viii. 8-9. This miracle of the healing of the centurion's servant is the second of the great series which Matthew gives us. It is perhaps not accidental that …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture
The Cross and Crown.
At last He cried, with a loud voice: "It is finished!" Perhaps not many on earth heard it, or cared about it when they did hear it; but I can imagine there were not many in heaven who did not hear it, and if they have bells in heaven how they must have rung out that day; "It is finished! It is finished!" The Son of God had died that poor sinful man might have life eternal. I can imagine the angels walking through the streets of heaven crying: "It is finished!" and the mansions of that world ringing …
Dwight L. Moody—Moody's Anecdotes And Illustrations
On the Words of the Gospel, Matt. viii. 23, "And when He was Entered into a Boat," Etc.
1. By the Lord's blessing, I will address you upon the lesson of the Holy Gospel which has just been read, and take occasion thereby to exhort you, that against the tempest and waves of this world, faith sleep not in your hearts. "For the Lord Christ had not indeed death nor sleep in His power, and peradventure sleep overcame the Almighty One as He was sailing against His will?" If ye believe this, He is asleep in you; but if Christ be awake in you, your faith is awake. The Apostle saith, "that Christ …
Saint Augustine—sermons on selected lessons of the new testament
On the Words of the Gospel, Matt. viii. 8, "I am not Worthy that Thou Shouldest Come under My Roof," Etc. , and of the Words Of
1. We have heard, as the Gospel was being read, the praise of our faith as manifested in humility. For when the Lord Jesus promised that He would go to the Centurion's house to heal His servant, He answered, "I am not worthy that Thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and he shall be healed." [2163] By calling himself unworthy, he showed himself worthy for Christ to come not into his house, but into his heart. Nor would he have said this with so great faith and humility, had …
Saint Augustine—sermons on selected lessons of the new testament
Heaven and Hell
To-night, I shall, I hope, encourage you to seek the road to heaven. I shall also have to utter some very sharp things concerning the end of the lost in the pit of hell. Upon both these subjects I will try and speak, as God helps me. But, I beseech you, as you love your souls, weigh right and wrong this night; see whether what I say be the truth of God. If it be not, reject it utterly, and cast it away; but if it is, at your peril disregard it; for, as you shall answer before God, the great Judge …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 1: 1855
Twenty-Seventh Day. Activity in Duty.
"I must work the works of Him that sent me, while it is day; the night cometh, when no man can work."--John, ix. 4. How constant and unremitting was Jesus in the service of His Heavenly Father! "He rose a great while before day;" and, when His secret communion was over, His public work began. It mattered not to Him where He was: whether on the bosom of the deep, or a mountain slope--in the desert, or at a well-side--the "gracious words" ever "proceeded out of His mouth." We find, on one touching …
John R. Macduff—The Mind of Jesus
Healing the Centurion's Servant.
(at Capernaum.) ^A Matt. VIII. 1, 5-13; ^C Luke VII. 1-10. ^c 1 After he had ended all his sayings in the ears of the people, ^a 1 And when he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him. ^c he entered into Capernaum. [Jesus proceeded from the mountain to Capernaum, which was now his home, or headquarters. The multitudes which are now mentioned for the third time were not wearied by his sermon, and so continued to follow him. Their presence showed the popularity of Jesus, and also …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel
Healing Peter's Mother-In-Law and Many Others.
(at Capernaum.) ^A Matt. VIII. 14-17; ^B Mark I. 29-34; ^C Luke IV. 38-41. ^c 38 And he arose out of the synagogue [where he had just healed the demoniac], ^b 29 And straightway, when they were come out of the synagogue, they came { ^c entered} ^b into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. [Peter and Andrew had dwelt at Bethsaida (John i. 44). They may have removed to Capernaum, or Bethsaida, being near by, may be here counted as a part, or suburb, of Capernaum. Its name does not contradict …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel
Jesus Stills the Storm.
(Sea of Galilee; Same Day as Last Section) ^A Matt. VIII. 18-27; ^B Mark IV. 35-41; ^C Luke VIII. 22-25. ^b 35 And that day, { ^c one of those days,} ^b when the even was come [about sunset], ^a when Jesus saw great multitudes about him, he gave commandment to depart unto the other side. { ^b he saith unto them, Let us go over unto the other side.} [Wearied with a day of strenuous toil, Jesus sought rest from the multitude by passing to the thinly settled on the east side of Galilee.] ^a 19 And there …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel
Jesus Heals Two Gergesene Demoniacs.
(Gergesa, Now Called Khersa.) ^A Matt. VIII. 28-34; IX. 1; ^B Mark V. 1-21; ^C Luke VIII. 26-40. ^b 1 And they came to the other side of the sea [They left in the "even," an elastic expression. If they left in the middle of the afternoon and were driven forward by the storm, they would have reached the far shore several hours before dark], ^c 26 And they arrived at the country of the Gerasenes, which is over against Galilee. ^a 28 And when he was come into the country of the Gadarenes. ^c 27 And …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel
A Sabbath in Capernaum
It was the Holy Sabbath - the first after He had called around Him His first permanent disciples; the first, also, after His return from the Feast at Jerusalem. Of both we can trace indications in the account of that morning, noon, and evening which the Evangelists furnish. The greater detail with which St. Mark, who wrote under the influence of St. Peter, tells these events, shows the freshness and vividness of impression on the mind of Peter of those early days of his new life. As indicating that …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah
The Return to Capernaum - Healing of the Centurion's Servant.
We are once again in Capernaum. It is remarkable how much, connected not only with the Ministry of Jesus, but with His innermost Life, gathers around that little fishing town. In all probability its prosperity was chiefly due to the neighbouring Tiberias, which Herod Antipas [2583] had built, about ten years previously. Noteworthy is it also, how many of the most attractive characters and incidents in the Gospel-history are connected with that Capernaum, which, as a city, rejected its own real glory, …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah
Christ Stills the Storm on the Lake of Galilee.
IT was the evening of that day of new teaching, and once more great multitudes were gathering to Him. What more, or, indeed, what else, could He have said to those to whom He had all that morning spoken in Parables, which hearing they had not heard nor understood? It was this, rather than weariness after a long day's working, which led to the resolve to pass to the other side. To merely physical weariness Jesus never subordinated his work. If, therefore, such had been the motive, the proposal to …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah
At Gerasa - the Healing of the Demonised.
THAT day of wonders was not yet ended. Most writers have, indeed, suggested, that the healing of the demonised on the other side took place at early dawn of the day following the storm on the Lake. But the distance is so short that, even making allowance for the delay by the tempest, the passage could scarcely have occupied the whole night. [2899] This supposition would be further confirmed, if the evening' when Jesus embarked was what the Jews were wont to call the first evening,' that is, the time …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah
Essential Character of the Work of Jesus.
Jesus, it will be seen, limited his action entirely to the Jews. Although his sympathy for those despised by orthodoxy led him to admit pagans into the kingdom of God--although he had resided more than once in a pagan country, and once or twice we surprise him in kindly relations with unbelievers[1]--it may be said that his life was passed entirely in the very restricted world in which he was born. He was never heard of in Greek or Roman countries; his name appears only in profane authors of a hundred …
Ernest Renan—The Life of Jesus
Christ the Son of Man.
"The foxes have holes, and the birds of the heaven have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head" (Matt. viii. 20). "Who do men say that the Son of man is?" (Matt. xvi. 13). "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up; that whosoever believeth may in him have eternal life" (John iii. 14). It is a matter of profound gratitude that our Saviour was a man. "The Son of man," as well as "the Son of God," was essential to His great work …
Frank G. Allen—Autobiography of Frank G. Allen, Minister of the Gospel
Kingo's Church Hymns
Kingo's church hymns naturally differ from his spiritual songs. They are more objective in form and less fiery in spirit. Most of them follow their themes quite closely, reproducing in many instances even the words of their text. Kingo is too vital, however, to confine himself wholly to an objective presentation. Usually the last stanzas of his hymns are devoted to a brief and often striking application of their text. He possessed to a singular degree the ability to express a thought tersely, as …
Jens Christian Aaberg—Hymns and Hymnwriters of Denmark
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