Bible Study - verse by verse - 27

Matthew 9:2 Among the first words Jesus said to the paralyzed man were "Your sins are forgiven you." Then He healed the man. We must be careful not to concentrate on God's power to heal physical sickness more than on His power to forgive spiritual sickness in the form of sin. Jesus saw that even more than physical health, this man needed spiritual health. Spiritual health comes only from Jesus' healing touch.
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Matthew 9:2 Both the man's body and his spirit were paralyzed - he could not walk, and he did not know Jesus. But the man's spiritual state was Jesus' first concern. If God does not heal us or someone we love, we need to remember that physical healing is not Christ's only concern. We will all be completely healed in Christ's coming kingdom; but first we have to come to personally know Jesus.
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Matthew 9:3 Blaspheming is claiming to be God and applying His characteristics to yourself. The religious leaders rightly saw that Jesus was claiming to be God. What they did not understand was that He "IS" God and thus has the authority to heal and forgive sin.
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Matthew 9:5, 6 It's easy to tell someone his sins are forgiven; it's a lot more difficult to reverse a case of paralysis! Jesus baked up His words by healing the man's legs. Jesus' action showed that His words were true; He had the power to forgive as well as to heal. Talk is cheap, but our words lack meaning if our actions do not back them up. We can say we love God or others, but if we are not taking practical steps to demonstrate that love, our words are empty and meaningless. How well do your actions back up what you say?
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Matthew 9:9 When Jesus called Matthew to be one of His disciples, Matthew got up and followed, leaving a lucrative career. When God calls you to follow or obey Him, do you do it with as much abandon as Matthew? Sometimes the decision to follow Christ requires difficult or painful choices. Like Matthew, we must decide to leave behind those things that would keep us from following Christ.