Jesus Heals a Paralytic
Jesus stepped into a boat and crossed the water to return to his own town. There, some men carried a paralyzed man to him on a stretcher. When Jesus saw how much faith these men had, he looked at the paralyzed man and said, "Be encouraged, my son. Your sins are forgiven." Some of the religious teachers who were watching heard this and thought to themselves, "This man is speaking against God!" But Jesus knew exactly what they were thinking. He said to them, "Why are you thinking such evil thoughts in your hearts? Tell me, which is easier to say: 'Your sins are forgiven,' or 'Stand up and walk'? I will show you that the Son of Man has the power here on earth to forgive sins." Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, "Stand up, pick up your stretcher, and go home." The man immediately stood up and walked home. When the crowds saw what had happened, they were amazed and filled with wonder. They praised God for giving such incredible power to human beings.
The Calling of Matthew
As Jesus continued on his journey, he came across a man named Matthew who was sitting at his tax collection booth. Jesus looked at him and said simply, "Follow me." Matthew immediately stood up, left everything behind, and began following Jesus. Later that day, Jesus was having dinner at Matthew's house. Many tax collectors and other people whom the religious leaders considered sinful came and joined Jesus and his disciples at the table. When the Pharisees saw this happening, they were troubled and went to Jesus's disciples with a question: "Why does your teacher choose to eat meals with tax collectors and sinners?" When Jesus heard what they were asking, he answered them directly: "People who are healthy don't need a doctor—only those who are sick need one. Go and think carefully about what this Scripture means: 'I want mercy from you, not religious sacrifices.' I didn't come to invite people who think they're already good enough, but to call those who know they need help."
Jesus Questioned About Fasting
At that time, the followers of John the Baptist came to Jesus with a question. They asked him, "Why do we and the religious leaders fast and go without food so often, but your followers don't fast at all?" Jesus answered them by asking a question of his own: "How can wedding guests be sad and mourn while the groom is celebrating with them? Of course they can't! But there will come a time when the groom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast." Then Jesus told them two illustrations to help them understand. "No one takes a piece of new, unwashed cloth and sews it onto an old piece of clothing. If you do that, the new patch will shrink and pull away from the old fabric, making an even bigger tear than before." "In the same way, no one pours fresh, new wine into old leather containers that have already been stretched. If you try to do that, the old containers will burst open from the pressure of the fermenting wine. Then the wine will be lost and the containers will be destroyed. Instead, people pour new wine into new leather containers, and that way both the wine and the containers are kept safe."
Jesus Raises a Dead Girl and Heals a Sick Woman
While Jesus was speaking, a leader from the synagogue came and bowed down in front of him. The man said, "My daughter just died. But please come and put your hand on her, and she will come back to life." Jesus stood up and went with the man, and his followers came too. As they were walking, a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years came up behind Jesus. She reached out and touched the edge of his robe. She had been thinking to herself, "If I can just touch his clothes, I will get well." Jesus turned around and saw her. "Don't be afraid, daughter," he said. "Because you believed, you are now healed." Right at that moment, the woman was completely cured. When Jesus arrived at the synagogue leader's house, he saw musicians with flutes and a crowd of people making a lot of noise. He told them, "Leave this place. The girl isn't dead—she's only sleeping." The people laughed at him because they thought what he said was foolish. After Jesus had made everyone go outside, he went into the room and took the girl's hand. She got up immediately. Word about what had happened spread everywhere throughout that whole area.
Jesus Heals Two Blind Men
As Jesus was leaving that place, two blind men began following him. They called out loudly, "Have mercy on us, Son of David!" When Jesus went into a house, the blind men came to him there. Jesus asked them, "Do you believe that I have the power to do this?" They replied, "Yes, Lord, we believe." Then Jesus reached out and touched their eyes. He said to them, "What you receive will match your faith." Immediately their eyes were opened and they could see. Jesus spoke to them with strong urgency, warning them, "Make sure that no one learns about what happened here!" But after they left, the two men told everyone they met about Jesus, spreading the news about him all across that region.
Jesus Heals a Mute Man
As Jesus and his disciples were leaving that place, some people brought a man to him who could not speak because a demon had taken control of him. When Jesus forced the demon to leave, the man immediately began to speak normally. The crowds who witnessed this were absolutely astonished. They said to each other, "We have never seen anything like this happen in all of Israel!" But the Pharisees had a very different response. They declared, "He casts out demons by the power of the ruler of demons."
The Workers Are Few
Jesus traveled throughout all the towns and villages, teaching in their places of worship, announcing the good news about God's kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and illness. When he looked out at the large crowds of people, his heart was filled with deep compassion for them. He could see they were troubled and lost, wandering around like sheep that had no shepherd to guide and protect them. Jesus turned to his disciples and said, "The harvest is huge and ready to be gathered, but there are so few workers to bring it in. So pray to the Lord who owns this harvest, and ask him to send more workers out into his fields."