Matthew 8:1 ¶ When he was
come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him. 2 And, behold, there came a leper and
worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. 3 And Jesus put forth his hand, and
touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was
cleansed. 4 And Jesus saith unto him,
See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the
gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them.
Chapter 8 of Matthew is the one that calls into question my belief
that the sermon in Luke 6 is a different sermon rather than a differently
remembered account of the one here in Matthew. Here in Matthew, before Jesus
encounters the Centurion’s sick servant he heals a leper. In Luke 7 He goes
right to Capernaum and His encounter with the sick servant of the Centurion.
So, if it is true that the Sermon on the Mount is the same event
in Matthew and in Luke then we come to a very important point of Biblical
interpretation. These writers are going on the memory of eyewitnesses and
participants of the importance and meaning of what Jesus said. We have the
meaning, the points made, here in Matthew and Luke’s accounts (Matthew isn’t
present until 9:9 and both were writing, I think, from the memories of others
under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit).
But different events are emphasized and different conditions are
explained. When things happened in reference to others is not as important as
the teachings given to us. Still, I am inclined to believe that these sermons
were given at different times, even if only slightly different, due to the
details. Think about that and pray. Most evangelicals believe they are the same
sermon, just different recollections. Just remember you cannot read the Bible
like you would your car owners’ manual. And if two people’s accounts on any
historical event are exactly the same either they copied from each other or
some scribe altered the content to make it match. Two accounts of the same
event, especially if neither of the authors were actually present and they
depended on witnesses, are going to have differences. It is only the error of
modernism that forces us to treat the Bible accounts like the instruction
manual for our computer.
We are reminded in this discussion that given by inspiration
does not mean word for word dictation and even uses, not only the writing
skills of the men who wrote, but their human memories. Keep in mind what God
has said about inspiration.
Job 32:8 But there is a
spirit in man: and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding.
2Peter 3:15 And account
that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother
Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;
Keep in mind also that Matthew, an exacting collector and recorder
of taxes, relates a very spiritual message while Luke is recounting eyewitness
accounts he has gathered together. If they are the same sermon then we can use
Matthew to define what is meant by Luke’s account and compare the two sermons
carefully as Matthew’s thought is more complete.
What do you think? Do you believe they are the same sermon, just
two different versions, or are they different sermons given at different times
to different audiences?
Jesus is willing to heal the leper and the leper is willing to be
healed. This is very important for us. We ask for healing, spiritual and
physical, but are we willing to be healed? I remember a book by a
pop-psychiatrist named M. Scott Peck. I think it was People of the Lie. He
said, if I recall correctly, that he was amazed at the number of people with
severe mental illness who clearly resisted the efforts to heal them. The leper
was willing to be healed and Christ was willing to do the healing. Perfect arrangement.
What about us?
Jesus tells the healed leper to go to the priest and follow the
Law to be a testimony to the priests. See Leviticus, chapter 14. As one sermon
possibility when we follow the rules and are not rebellious as Christians we
testify to God’s power before those over us in authority. However, that is
difficult in reality in today’s world where outright communists rule over us
using a twisted definition of democracy as a cloak for their evil designs.
Another possible sermon illustration is that the Jews looked upon
someone with leprosy as a shameful recipient of God’s particular displeasure,
much like poverty was sometimes looked at in the past. Jesus was willing to
heal even the outcasts of society as He is willing to save even the bottommost
part of the social web.
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