The Harvest Is Plentiful

Matthew 9:18-38
Key verse 9:38

³⁷Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. ³⁸Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field."

1. Read verses 18-19. What was this ruler's practical situation? How do people typically respond to such situations? Yet, how did this ruler respond? What can we learn from him?

*His daughter had just died. It was a terrible, painful tragedy. She was his little girl.
*Many people become angry at God or despair.
*He came to Jesus. He believed that Jesus could raise his daughter from the dead.
*He had "crazy" faith. He believed in Jesus' power in a way that would seem "crazy" to other people. We learn from him, faith in Jesus' power over every problem--even death.

2. Read verses 20-22. What was the situation of this woman before she met Jesus? Why do you think she believed that simply touching Jesus' cloak could heal her? What does Jesus' response show us about him? What can we learn about faith from this woman?

*She had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. This is a long time. It must have made her weak and her health very poor. It also made her ceremonially "unclean" by the Jewish law. After suffering for so long, she could have completely lost all hope of being healed and resigned herself to living with the problem.
*I think it was both because of her faith in Jesus and her lack of confidence about herself. She didn't have confidence to approach Jesus directly, but she found a way to "touch" Jesus by faith.
*Jesus' response shows us his love for, and compassion on, this woman. It also shows that he responds to faith.
*We can learn from her to have faith in Jesus' power to heal us of even the most long-term, impossible-seeming problems to solve.

3. Read verses 23-26. Why were "flute players" and a "noisy crowd" at the rulers' house? Why do you think Jesus told them to go away? Why do you think the crowd didn't believe in Jesus (they "laughed at him") while the girl's father believed in Jesus?

*They were there to mourn for the girl who died. They were probably professionals who were hired for this purpose.
*Jesus probably wanted to have a "believing" environment.
*The crowd didn't care for the girl like the father did. When we have a personal, practical problem, it gives us a reason to humble ourselves and turn to God for help.

4. Again, looking at verse 24 and 25, what do Jesus' words show about his view of death? How did Jesus raise her from the dead? What does this show about Jesus?

*Jesus views death merely as "sleep."
*He simply touched her.
*Even death is not a problem for Jesus. His authority is even greater than the power of death.

5. Read verses 27-31. What do you think the lives of these two blind men were like? How did they cry out to Jesus for help? What did Jesus ask them? How did Jesus heal them? What does Jesus teach us about faith here?

*They could not enjoy the simple pleasures of life, such as seeing a beautiful flower or butterfly. They could not enjoy games, such as baseball. They could not earn a living. They had to live as beggars.
*They followed Jesus and cried out to him for mercy. It may not have seemed "proper" but they didn't care.
*"Do you believe that I am able to do this?"
*Jesus touched their eyes and said, "According to your faith will it be done to you."
*Faith is faith in Jesus--who he is and what he can do. This is specific, not vague faith. The limitation is not in God's power, but in our faith.

6. Read verses 32-34. What might this man's life have been like? What did Jesus do for him? How did the crowd respond to this? How did the Pharisees respond? Why do you think there were two completely different perspectives on Jesus' work?

*He was a prisoner to the demon. He was unable to even speak. It was a terrible life.
*Jesus drove out the demon.
*They were amazed.
*They accused Jesus of being an agent of Satan.
*The Pharisees saw Jesus as a threat to their position. They were blinded by their love of power, their pride, and their self-righteousness.

7. Read verses 35-38. What did Jesus do as he traveled through all the towns and villages? How did Jesus see the crowds? Why did he talk to his disciples about the harvest? What prayer topic did Jesus give his disciples? What does this show about Jesus' purpose in raising disciples?

*Jesus did three things: teaching, preaching, and healing
*As sheep without a shepherd. He had compassion on them.
*He wanted them to share in his vision and prayer. He wanted them to share in his work.
*To pray for more harvest workers.
*Jesus wants them to be harvest workers. He also wants them to raise other harvest workers.

---