Sunday 1st Service
Title/Scripture: The Church That Saves the Field (Matthew 9:1-8)
Speaker: Pastor Ryu Gwang-su
Date/Location: February 20, 2022, Immanuel Church
Matthew 9:1-8
Jesus stepped into a boat, crossed over and came to his own town. 2 Some men brought to him a paralyzed man, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.”
3 At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, “This fellow is blaspheming!”
4 Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts? 5 Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 6 But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, take your mat and go home.” 7 Then the man got up and went home. 8 When the crowd saw this, they were filled with awe; and they praised God, who had given such authority to man.
Summary
▣ Introduction
1. You must not miss God’s opportunity because of people.
1) The people of the world, shell-of-a-success types, and religious people who attend church but have no gospel — because they do not believe in God and are of no help, they look down on and dislike the weak and the sick.
2) Today, a paralytic who could not even move — four men made a stretcher and carried him in.
3) Jesus, seeing their faith, said: “Son, your sins are forgiven you. Take up your bed and go home.”
4) This is what caused the scribes to criticize so fiercely.
2. People who hindered the sick and the weak
1) The scribes who hindered Jesus — who said to the sick man, “Son, your sins are forgiven you” — by crying out, “This is blasphemy. How dare you use such holy words on someone so worthless?”
2) The Pharisee who called Jesus immoral for eating with tax collectors
3) Those who followed Jesus around criticizing him for lacking piety, when Jesus had said there was no need to fast and asked whether this was a time for fasting
4) The Pharisee who, when Jesus cast out demons, asked whether he was the king of demons
▷ These are people who attend church.
3. Things to be careful of
1) The people of the region of Gerasa (Matthew 8:34) — when Jesus healed the demon-possessed man, they told him to leave their town. So Jesus went to Capernaum, and after that there is no record of Jesus ever going to the region of Gerasa. There is no record of the gospel being proclaimed and people being saved in that region.
2) The people of the region of Capernaum (Matthew 9:2) — they carried the paralytic to Jesus, begging him to save him. Jesus did not give up to the end. He who holds with faith to the covenant of Christ — Jesus takes responsibility for that person to the very end. There is no reason to despair.
▣ Main
1. “Seeing their faith, he had compassion on him and said, Son, your sins are forgiven you.” (verse 2)
Four men carried a paralytic who had no strength, no money, and no connections — in order to save him. This man could not come to meet Jesus without people helping him.
1) The blessing of the throne came upon him — the moment you hold to the covenant of Christ, all darkness, curses, and the background of hell are removed, and the blessing and power of the throne come upon you. That is why healing suddenly took place. If there is someone who can transmit the power of the throne, anyone can do it. If you can move the power of the throne, you will move the world. You too can receive this answer, so do not give up.
2) The function of the throne also came upon him.
3) The mission of the throne was given — “Arise, take up your bed, and go home.” (verse 6)
▷ Romans 8:31(39) Neither height nor depth, nor any other power can separate you from the love of Christ. No one can snatch you out of the hand of Christ. Do not give up because of what people say or what Satan says. There is no reason to despair. The moment you meet Christ, it is finished.
2. “Take up your bed and go.” (verse 6, latter half) — He healed him completely. Christ takes responsibility for you as an individual until you become enthroned.
1) Go with that authority.
2) He healed the root cause (something greater than healing). — He healed what it means to not know Christ and to be held captive by people’s voices, by darkness, and by Satan.
3. “Go home.” (verse 6, latter half) — The moment you truly believe this covenant, Christ will enthrone your home and your field of life.
▷ Those who look down on the poor, the struggling, the sick, and the tax collectors cannot know the blessing of the throne, have no reason to know it, and cannot go there. That is why the Jews were destroyed down to their descendants.
▷ Christ takes responsibility for you to the very end. He takes responsibility until you are freed from all darkness and become the blessing of the throne. It was not enough that the paralytic’s friends believed — Christ blessed the paralytic himself to have faith. He did not merely give identity and authority — he said, “Go as a witness.” Do not despair at the voices of Satan and those without the gospel. If you are deceived by them, your descendants will be destroyed. Hold firmly to this covenant.
▣ Conclusion — Do not give up until these five things come to pass.
1. Do not give up until you experience Christ.
2. Do not give up until your future is clearly the gospel.
3. Do not give up until 24, 25, eternity is held in your hands.
4. Do not give up until the blessing of the throne is visible.
5. Do not give up until world evangelization truly comes to pass.
– Before that point, you have no right to give up. When Jesus first called you, he called you to world evangelization. Absolutely.
▷ Blind Bartimaeus cried out: “Have mercy on me.” That is the best prayer. There, Christ stopped in his tracks. It was finished. The experience of Christ is that important.
Transcript
▣ Introduction
Our families across the nation and around the world are going through hardship because of COVID, or because of various other difficulties. You do not need to worry. Because the many things of this world are not the answer for you. There were three heroes in Japan. As you know, Nobunaga, Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa — these three are Japan’s heroes. All three were from Nagoya. Perhaps that is why God sent good people like Missionary Jong-woo Lee and Elder So to our Nagoya. They are in Nagoya now.
It was a time of intense warfare. There was a famous saying that came out of that era. The cuckoo — why won’t the cuckoo sing? Put simply, why can’t the people understand? So Nobunaga, that hero, said this: “Get rid of it. Kill the cuckoo that won’t sing.” Hideyoshi said this: “Make it sing. If it won’t sing, make it.” And Tokugawa Ieyasu said this: “If it won’t sing, wait.” And that man ultimately unified Japan and even influenced world peace.
1. You must not miss God’s opportunity because of people.
You must not miss God’s opportunity because of people.
Mainly there are people of the world, and many shell-of-a-success types. And there are many religious people who attend church but have no gospel. These people look down on the weak. Isn’t that right? Because they are of no use. They prefer the impressive, the great — they do not like people like you. Especially today, we see a paralytic — a paralytic who cannot even move came. These people do not like such a person. The scribes and Pharisees do not like them. They say they believe in God, but they do not really believe. Why don’t they like them? Well, if someone gets sick but they are wealthy, from a rich family with power — they have no reason to come seeking help. They can just call a doctor, they can do whatever they need — why would they go searching around like that?
This one paralytic, because he could not move, was carried by four men. They must have made a stretcher. And they came like this. Jesus said he saw their faith. And seeing that faith, what he said was: “Your sins are forgiven you. And take up your bed and go home.” Jesus said that. And so the scribes criticized him fiercely. Among you and among the many people living on this earth, there are many sick people, many weak people — many such people. The church dislikes these people. That is how it has always been. The scribes and Pharisees disliked them.
2. People who hindered the sick and the weak
As will come out in the second service — they disliked people like tax collectors. It was not just dislike — they actively hindered. Let us look at how they hindered. Today, when Jesus said, “Sick one, your sins are forgiven you,” they fiercely criticized Jesus, saying, “This is blasphemy.” What does that mean? “How dare you use that sacred, holy word on someone so worthless? How dare you say such a thing?” That is what they were saying. And as will come out in the second service — because he ate with tax collectors, they criticized Jesus, saying he was quite immoral. And then it comes after. About fasting, Jesus said, “Do you even need to do that?” Jesus said, “Is this the time for fasting?” And then these people kept following him around criticizing him. They said to Jesus, “You lack piety.” And then when he cast out demons: “Is that person demon-possessed? Is he the king of demons?” That is what they said. These people are church-going people. They dislike the very difficult, the incapable, the worthless. Why? Because it seems like they won’t succeed.
3. Things to be careful of
Jesus, seeing the faith of those people, had healed such sick people not just once or twice. There is one thing to be careful of in this passage. You must not just pass by today as you read this passage. There are times when you need to look carefully at the Word. Only then can your life be changed.
1) The people of the region of Gerasa (Matthew 8:34)
Today we read from chapter 9 verse 1, but there was an important Word in chapter 8 verse 34 just before. Last week we saw the event of healing the demon-possessed man. To save that man, that person who had lost his mind, Jesus sent the demons into pigs and saved him. And then what did the people of that town say to Jesus? “Leave our town.” That is what they said. “Why did you come here?” That is what they said. The name of that region was Gadara. We read it last week. Today, Jesus departed from there and came to Capernaum. There is an important truth here. After that, Jesus never went to the Gadara region again. There is no record of the gospel being proclaimed and people being saved in that region.
2) The people of the region of Capernaum (Matthew 9:2)
In contrast to that — to this Capernaum, begging Jesus to save him, they carried this sick man — not even their own sickness but a paralytic — they carried him. Jesus did not give up to the very end. You must keep this in mind.
He who holds with faith to the covenant of Christ — Jesus takes responsibility for that person to the very end. This passage explains that. There is no reason to despair. People can look down on you. The uneducated, church members — they can look down on you. The incapable — many religious people, many Christians may dislike you. But in today’s passage, Jesus took responsibility for them to the very end.
▣ Main
1. “Seeing their faith, he had compassion on him, and said, Son, your sins are forgiven you.” (verse 2)
This is the first point. How did it happen? It says in verse 8. It says in verse 2: “Seeing their faith, he had compassion on him. Son, your sins are forgiven you.” Would you have done that? Even for a paralytic who cannot even move, who has no strength, no money, no connections — four men carried him in to save him. What do you make of that? This man cannot come unless someone helps him. Because he cannot walk, without these people he cannot even come to meet Jesus. Because he has no money, no one can go and treat him.
1) The blessing of the throne came upon him
Look at these four men — these friends. They brought him. Jesus was so startled, he praised him so much. “Your sins are forgiven you. Seeing their faith.” What is this saying? “Seeing their faith, your sins are forgiven you.” This means: the blessing of the throne has come upon you. You must remember this. Today, the moment you hold to the covenant of Christ — put simply, “Your sins are forgiven you” — this means all darkness, curses, the background of hell are removed, and the blessing of the throne has come. This is the moment that power comes upon you. That is why healing suddenly took place. If there is someone who can transmit the power of the throne, anyone can do it, right? If you could move the power of the throne, you would move the world, wouldn’t you? This is what Jesus did. And so, that person who believed in Jesus was saved. You can also receive this answer. Do not give up. People will tell you to give up. Jesus says do not give up. People say you have no ability, so go away. Jesus says come. Right? People criticize you. In today’s passage, Jesus had compassion on him. Which is right? Which is the gospel? Which is life?
Even an unbeliever like Tokugawa saved Japan, they say. Even an unbeliever. He was a person of ability. A person of true ability can wait. A person like Nobunaga ahead of him said, “Kill it. Why keep a cuckoo that can’t even sing? Kill it. Replace it.” That person cannot save Japan. A person like Hideyoshi said, “Beat it until it sings. If you beat it, it will sing. Make it that way.” That person invaded our country. That happened, didn’t it. Tokugawa said, “Wait. When the time comes to sing, it will sing.” That person saved Japan. It is a matter of ability.
2) The function of the throne also came upon him
One who truly knows Christ does not give up. What does that mean? That moment — this is no ordinary word. The moment you meet Christ, out of compassion, “Son, your sins are forgiven you” — this word does not just bring the power of the throne. At that moment, the second — the function of the throne also came upon him. He rose up.
3) The mission of the throne was given — “Arise, take up your bed, and go home.” (verse 6)
And then what did he say? The mission of the throne was given. He was told to go. “Arise and carry it and go.” This is Christ.
It says throughout Romans chapter 8, but in verse 31 it says: “Neither height nor depth, nor any other power can separate you from the love of Christ.” It cannot be cut off. “No one can snatch you out of the hand of Christ.” Do not give up. Do not listen to what people say and give up. This is not a call to muster up false courage. Do not listen to what Satan says and give up. Right? This is not a call to hold on to the bitter end. There is no reason to despair — at the moment you meet Christ. That is what this means. For me, this is not just a sermon. The true moment you meet Christ, it is finished. Right? That is the Word. I pray you experience that today.
2. “Take up your bed and go.” (verse 6, latter half) — He healed him completely. Christ takes responsibility for you as an individual until you become enthroned.
This is the second point. It was not just a healing. What kind of second point? It did not end with “Your sins are forgiven.” What else did he say? “Take up your bed and go.” That is what he said. He told him to take the bed with him. Not to leave it and go — what does this mean? “He healed him completely.” That is what this means. He healed him completely. What does this mean? The moment you meet Christ, Christ takes responsibility for you as an individual until you become enthroned.
1) Go with that authority.
It is not just that he revealed that authority — he gave it. And he said to go with that authority. For ordinary illness, you go to the hospital. This is not talking about that — it is talking about a person for whom there is utterly no possibility, for whom hope itself has disappeared.
2) He healed the root cause (something greater than healing).
What is more important is that this person had even more spiritual problems. Do you know what is greater than healing? He healed the root cause. Right? He healed this person’s being held captive by people’s voices, by darkness, and by Satan, without knowing Christ. You must remember this. Do not give up.
3. “Go home.” (verse 6, latter half) — The moment you truly believe this covenant, Christ will enthrone your home and your field of life.
This is the third point. What did he say? In verse 6, latter half. “Go home.” That is what he said. Taking up the bed is good — but what does “go home” mean? Until now, he had been a burden at home. “Now go home in health.” Christ will enthrone even your home. This is not just a story. The moment you truly believe this covenant, God will enthrone even your field of life.
Those who look down on the poor, the struggling, the sick, those who look down on tax collectors — they cannot know the blessing of the throne, have no reason to know it, and cannot go there. That is why these Jews destroyed their descendants. It is a sad thing. This is not a trivial matter. The Pharisees and scribes were enormous. The Jewish spirit, the kibbutz spirit — enormous. Clinging to that, they were destroyed down to their descendants. And it was not just that. The nation disappeared. What are you going to do? The nation disappeared. That much might still be tolerable. But your sons, daughters, grandsons, granddaughters — all of them, wandering like beggars across every street in every nation of the world.
This is not just a word. “Son, your faith has saved you. Your sins are forgiven.” That is what he said. This is not just words. This is not just healing — that is what this means. For ordinary healing, you go to the hospital. “Take up your bed and go home.” These are the words Jesus said. There, a remarkable thing took place. The people were so startled: “What kind of authority does this person have that such a thing happened?”
Christ takes responsibility for you to the very end. He takes responsibility until the blessing of the throne comes upon you from all your darkness. And it does not stop there. It is no longer the faith of the friends — Christ blessed the paralytic himself to have faith. And it goes beyond that. “Go home and testify.” Is that not remarkable? He did not merely give identity and authority — he said, “Go as a witness.” Do not despair at the voice of Satan. Do not despair at the voice of people. Do not despair at the voice of those without the gospel. It is a lie. If you are deceived by it, your descendants will be destroyed. The evidence is clear. Hold firmly to this covenant.
Strangely, when we were young, it was like that back then. Because we believed in Jesus, our family persecuted us. Isn’t that funny? Our country has developed a great deal. These days that would be a big problem. But back then, the family would come together and persecute. We showed them evidence. Right? God, through Christ, blessed us to the very end. We did not even know what blessing was, but he blessed us in their very words. They said later, “You were blessed.” Those people didn’t understand. People who think that eating well, living comfortably, getting around, riding in a car — that’s being blessed. And in our village, people persecuted us for believing in Jesus. Isn’t that funny? That’s how it was in the old days. It is remarkable. Almost all those village people failed. We are evangelizing the world. Right? Do not be deceived. And there was also in the village someone who was not quite all there — not fully there but not not-there — going around telling fortunes. Fortune-tellers get paid to tell fortunes, right? But this person, whenever bored, would do it for free without even being paid. They came to our house. I remember what that person said at the time. They looked at me, said something to us — do you know what they said? That people who believe in Jesus all become poor when they believe. “Oh, is that so?” Because an adult was speaking, I said nothing, but inside I thought, “That’s ridiculous.” That’s what I thought. “Countries that believe in Jesus do better, don’t they?” I wanted to educate them but held back. That person failed. They fled in the night. We are still evangelizing the world. Do not be deceived.
▣ Conclusion — Do not give up until these five things come to pass.
1. Do not give up until you experience Christ.
This is the first point — until you experience Christ. Do not bring things from the world into the church and try to have an experience there — hold on until you experience Christ. Right? It is finished. This paralytic had no hope whatsoever, but he experienced Christ.
2. Do not give up until your future is clearly the gospel.
What does this mean? Do not give up until your future is clearly the gospel. That belongs to you.
3. Do not give up until 24, 25, eternity is held in your hands.
Do not give up until 24, 25, eternity is firmly held in your hands. The people of the world will tell you to give up. Church members without the gospel will tell you to give up. Leaders without the gospel will tell you to give up. They will look down on you and tell you to give up. God says do not give up. Hold to the covenant. These Pharisees followed him around and hindered, you know. Isn’t that ridiculous — these people who kill people, following after Jesus every step of the way, hindering. There, Jesus showed them evidence. Because the paralytic, the one who had been carried in, rose up and took his bed and walked away.
4. Do not give up until the blessing of the throne is visible.
Do not give up until the blessing of the throne is visible. Because that belongs to you.
5. Do not give up until world evangelization truly comes to pass.
What is the last, fifth point? Do not give up until world evangelization truly comes to pass. Before that point, you have no right to give up. Why? Because when Jesus first called you, he called you to world evangelization. Absolutely. Hold firmly to this covenant and go forward.
Today Jesus spoke one word. What word? God only needs to say one word toward your work. Right? Jesus looked at the Jerusalem temple and spoke one word. What did he say? It is a fearful word. “Not one stone will be left upon another.” It collapsed. And they still cannot rebuild it. They cannot rebuild it even now. God must permit it for it to be built — how much money do Jewish people have? They still cannot build it. Blind Bartimaeus, because he could not see, cried out. Not just “Heal me.” “Have mercy on me.” That is the best prayer. “Have mercy on me.” There, Christ stopped in his tracks. It was finished. The experience of Christ is this important.
I pray you receive this blessing this week. Experience Christ. Do not give up. Only when this happens will your future truly be seen. Only when this happens will 24 and 25 come to pass. Only when this happens will the blessing of the throne come. Only when this happens will world evangelization happen. Until then, do not give up.
Jesus takes responsibility to the very end. To that Gadara region, Jesus never went again. There is no record in the Scripture. This week will be a week of new grace. Let us pray.
Prayer. We give thanks to God. We give thanks to God who saved us. Let us testify of this grace to all nations. Let us testify to those who are struggling. Let us testify in places where the people of the world do not go. We pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.