By removing some of sin’s effects, Jesus announced that He had come to deal with the root cause. He tears down the signpost of sickness in order to show us that he’s come to remove that which the signpost pointed to: sin itself.
The hard call of discipleship is a mercy, breaking us free from being satisfied with lesser things and freeing us to treasure the most valuable Person in the universe.
Your answer to the question “who is Jesus?” will be seen not just in the words you say but in the shape of your life.
We don’t want to be like the Pharisees, who stayed in their holy huddles and never got close to anybody they saw as dirty or bad. We want to be like Matthew, who got up and followed Jesus, and then invited his fellow patients to join him at the wedding feast.
When we think of power and compassion, they don't often go together. But not so with Jesus!
It’s not a question of whether we'll participate in the mission or not. If we are a follower of Jesus, that decision has been made for us already. The only question is what part in the mission we’ll play.
Are we willing for the hatred of the world? Do we really believe that to live is Christ, and to die is gain? Are we willing to take up our crosses and lose our lives because we believe that there is no true life outside of knowing Christ?
We can live for our best life now, and miss out on what’s really important, or we can be content with a difficult life now for the sake of an eternal reward.
Being a disciple of Jesus isn't something—as in, something we add to our lives or hold alongside of other relationships or loyalties in our life. Being a disciple of Jesus is everything. Jesus takes it all, and every other relationship or loyalty falls under His Lordship.