Grace To The Outcast!

SERMON OUTLINE:

The Willingness to Heal (Mat 8v1-4)

The Authority to Heal (8:5-13)

The Ability to Heal (8:14-17)

The Cost of Following the Healer (8:18-22)

SERMON BODY:

Ill:

• You might not know the face or the name.

• But each day you enjoy Thomas Sullivan’s invention.

• If you hang around at the end of the service,

• Enjoy a brew and think of Thomas.

• Thomas Sullivan is the man,

• Credited with inventing the t-bag.

• But this was no ‘Dragon’s Den’ moment,

• He was no entrepreneur,

• Pitching his idea to well-known businesspeople.

In fact, his invention was an accident!

• Around about 1908 Thomas Sullivan,

• Was working as a New York tea merchant,

• And his clients kept asking him for samples of his products.

• Sullivan was happy to oblige,

• And sent them samples of his tea,

• By packaging the tea leaves in small silken bags.

• Sullivan was expecting the clients to un-wrap the contents,

• And use the tea leaves in the normal way,

• By tipping them into a tea pot.

• However, his customers misunderstood,

• And thought they were meant to dunk the bags,

• Into the boiling water.

• Thus, by complete and utter accident,

• The tea bag was first created.

• And the rest as they say is history!

• TRANSITION:

• When it comes to God’s grace,

• There is nothing ‘accidental’ about it!

God’s grace is deliberate, it is focused, and it is unmerited, and it is available!

• Grace is getting what we don’t deserve (God’s favour),

• God's grace is his favour and kindness toward us,

• It is shown to us in various ways,

• Such as salvation, forgiveness, and freedom.

Quote: R.T. Kendall Total Forgiveness

“One difference between grace and mercy is that grace is getting what we don’t deserve (favour), and mercy is not getting what we do deserve (justice).”

In the passage we are looking at this morning,

• We will see, ‘Grace to the outcast.’ (vs 1-4).

• Grace to the foreigner, the invader and occupying enemy! (vs 5-13).

• Grace to the poor and needy (vs 14-17).

Note:

• This chapter begins a new section of Matthew's gospel,

• (chapter 8 verse 1 to chapter 9 verse34).

• We looked earlier in the year at a large section called,

• ‘The Sermon on the mount.’ (chapters 5 to 7).

• That section was all about the teaching, the words of Jesus.

• This next section (chapters 8 to 9).

• Will focus on the actions, the miracles of Jesus.

The Gospel of Matthew is carefully constructed.

• He does not write chronologically,

• That is recording events in the order they happened.

• But rather chooses to group themes together in this book.

Ill:

• We do that with photos.

• You can have your photo stored in a book or online.

• Chronologically,

• e.g. as a baby, a child, nursery, junior school, senior school, first job etc.

• e.g. Or you can keep your photos in themed batches.

• Family photos, friends’ photos, holidays photos etc.

• TRANSITION: Matthew’s gospel is themed.

• His aim is to show that Jesus is the promised Messiah,

• He does not make up his information,

• He simply groups together,

• The various information that he has.

• And now in chapters 8 and 9.

• He will record 10 miracles to show the power of Jesus Christ.

• They are recorded to show his credentials,

• That he is the promised Messiah.

Ill:

• Paul Gustave Dore (1821-1883) was a French printmaker,

• Illustrator, painter, comics artist, caricaturist, and sculptor.

• He is best known for his prolific output of wood-engravings.

• While he was traveling in Europe.

• He came to a border crossing,

• And found that he had forgot his passport.

• He hoped they would recognise him (celebrity of his day),

• And let him cross the border.

• But the guard did not and said,

• That many people attempted to cross the border,

• By claiming to be persons they were not.

• So, they will not be letting him pass.

• Dore insisted that he was the man he claimed to be.

• So, the guard said, "prove it!

• We'll give you a test,

• And if you pass it, we'll allow you to go through."

• The guard handing Dore a pencil and a sheet of paper,

• He told the artist to sketch several people standing nearby.

• Dore did it so quickly and skilfully,

• That the guard was convinced,

• He was indeed who he claimed to be.

• TRANSITION: His work confirmed his word!

• Likewise, Matthew in Chapters 8 and 9.