MATTHEW LESSON 31

     We will begin this lesson in Matthew 15:29 "And Jesus departed
from thence, and came nigh unto the sea of Galilee; and went up into a
mountain, and sat down there."

     Jesus was near the Sea of Galilee quite a bit. Peter's home was
on the banks of the sea. Jesus was followed by such a large group of
people, that it was easier for them to gather out of town. When Jesus
was housed in His physical body, He had to rest. This was what the
Scripture above, probably, meant, when it said (sat down). Also, on the
side of the mountain would be a good place to minister to the masses
who followed Him.

     Matthew 15:30 "And great multitudes came unto him, having with
them [those that were] lame, blind, dumb, maimed, and many others, and
cast them down at Jesus' feet; and he healed them:"

     In this particular case, multitude was not a graphic enough word
to describe the huge number of people who thronged Jesus, so "great"
was added to stress how many. They followed Him everywhere He went,
wanting to receive a miracle from Him. Look at these diseases
carefully. Each one of these diseases can be either physical, or
spiritual. You see, it is just as bad to have a spiritual problem of
these diseases, as it is a physical. Just use blindness as an example.
Are we blind to the reality of Jesus in our lives?

     You see, to be blind spiritually would mean an eternity away from
Jesus. Jesus works on us physically, spiritually, and mentally.
He takes care of it all. I like the fact that this Scripture did not
say He healed a few of them. He heals everyone who has enough faith to
receive healing.

     Matthew 15:31 "Insomuch that the multitude wondered, when they
saw the dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and
the blind to see: and they glorified the God of Israel."

     Just as it is hard for people today to believe in miracles until
they see one, it was amazing to these people, as well. I am amazed
myself when I stand before a church and preach. I was so shy in my
church for so many years. I even sat on the back row to keep from being
called upon to say anything. When Jesus touches your life, you are
never the same again. We walk for Him, talk for Him, and are even
different in appearance, because  of His presence inside of us. Who
always should get the glory? The God of Israel.

     Matthew 15:32  "Then Jesus called his disciples [unto him], and
said, I have compassion on the multitude, because they continue with
me now three days, and have nothing to eat: and I will not send them
away fasting, lest they faint in the way."

     Just as these disciples were called to Jesus, so that they might
minister to the people, we are called to serve the people, as well.
The called of God (disciples) are actually servants. We are called to
minister to the needs of the people. I believe the reason three days was mentioned, here, had to do with fasting. When we are really serious about getting answers from God, that is a goodly amount of time to fast. Jesus said
if they fasted more, they would, probably, faint. You see a fast is no
food nor drink, other than water. So many people call themselves fasting
when they drink juice, but that is not a true fast. A true fast is total abstinence from everything of the world. You see, this three day fast had caused Jesus to have compassion for them. All of these things
combined make me believe that this is an appropriate time in God's
sight.

     Matthew 15:33 "And his disciples say unto him, Whence should we
have so much bread in the wilderness, as to fill so great a
multitude?"

     The amazing thing, to me, in all of this, is the fact that the
disciples did not remember how Jesus fed the 5,000 men with 5 loaves
and 2 fishes.

     Matthew 15:34 "And Jesus saith unto them, How many loaves have
ye?  And they said, Seven, and a few little fishes."

     A few means more than two, so we automatically know they had more
fish than the other time, and they had two more loaves than the last
time and fewer people. The disciples just quickly forgot.

     Matthew 15:35 "And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the
ground." Matthew 15:36 "And he took the seven loaves and the fishes,
and gave thanks, and brake [them], and gave to his disciples, and the
disciples to the multitude."

     There are several things we must look into here. Of course, there
was a miracle provision of food. The Bible says, "yet have I not seen
the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread." {Psalms 37:25}
God will feed us miraculously, if it is necessary, as He did the
Israelites with Mannah from heaven. Looking at the spiritual, here, I
can see that God should give the message to the minister in the church,
and that minister, without altering it in any way, should pass it on
to the believers. God's Word is the staff of life. We, ministers, must
not feed them food we have prepared, but should feed them what God
passes to them through us. The seven just means that the message of
God gives will be spiritually complete, we need not add to or take
away from it.

     Matthew 15:37 "And they did all eat, and were filled: and they
took up of the broken [meat] that was left seven baskets full."

     As new Christians we are fed milk and honey, but as we grow in
the Lord, He feeds us meat. The meat He fed the multitude was so
abundant that the disciples picked up seven extra baskets full. Notice,
this is broken meat. We must break the Word given us in the Bible,
properly, so that each listener can easily receive. Too large a bite
might choke us.

     Matthew 15:38 "And they that did eat were four thousand men,
beside women and children."

     Four, being a word that means universal, indicates that this
powerful sustenance is available to the entire world. Jesus is the
Tree of Life.  His food always takes care of His children. The
Scripture above, says that not only can the men receive Jesus, but it
is available to women and children, as well.

     Matthew 15:39 "And he sent away the multitude, and took ship, and
came into the coasts of Magdala."

     Jesus sends us away to tell others. We cannot just sit around the
table always and never go out. Jesus had others to bring into His
kingdom, and so on to Magdala, the city where Mary Magdalene lived.

     For the next lesson, study chapter 16 of Matthew.



                            Notes.

































                        Matthew 31 Questions

1.  What Sea did Jesus go to to minister?
2.  Why did He go to the mountain?
3.  Why had He left the city?
4.  What did the Scripture indicate when it said Jesus sat down?
5.  What disciple had a home near the Sea?
6.  Name four types of people the multitude brought.
7.  Why did they follow Jesus?
8.  What two ways should we look at the diseases?
9.  What three ways does Jesus work on us?
10. Who did the multitude glorify?
11. What makes us look different, if we have Jesus?
12. How long had the multitude fasted?
13. Why didn't Jesus just let them go and eat in town?
14. The called of God, or disciples, are what?
15. What is a fast? (two things)
16. How many loaves did they have?
17. What do we automatically know was different here?
18. There was a miracle provision of what?
19. What is the spiritual message here to pastors?
20. What is the staff of life?
21. What does the seven mean?
22. A new Christian receives milk and honey, but as he grows, what is 
    he fed?
23. Why must it be broken?
24. What does four mean?
25. Can only the men receive? Explain.
26. What was the name of the town where Mary Magdalene lived?