selected passages from Proverbs, Matthew 8:1-13
November 17, 2024
preached by Pastor Ryan Bouton
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Time of Reflection Quotations

“The modern world detests authority but worships relevance. Our Christian conviction is that the Bible has both authority and relevance, and that the secret of both is Jesus Christ.”

~ John Stott (1921-2011), English minister, theologian and author

“They like to get you in a compromising position.
They like to get you there and smile in your face.
They think, they’re so cute when they got you in that condition.
Well I think it’s a total disgrace, and I say.

I fight authority, authority always wins.
Well, I fight authority, authority always wins.
Well, I been doing it, since I was a young kid
I’ve come out grinnin’
Well, I fight authority, authority always wins.”

~ John Mellencamp, “Authority Song”

“The deepest problems of modern life derive from the claim of the individual to preserve the autonomy and individuality of his existence.”

~ Georg Simmel (1858-1918), German sociologist and philosopher

“By dissolving the bonds and obligation of family, tribe, and religion, the ruler can make his subjects entirely loyal to and dependent on the state. Liberalism does this in the name of freedom for the individual, while socialism does it in the name of the collective good, but the result is the same. Individuals are less and less likely to meet romantic partners through organic connections of family and church and more likely to have their dating experience mediated by large online companies promising to deploy advanced selection algorithms. Even churches are more likely to centralize and standardize operations, treating the winning of souls the same way a corporation treats a quarterly earnings report.”

~ Auron Macintyre, The Total State

Sermon Passage

selected passages from Proverbs, Matthew 8:1-13 (ESV)

Proverbs 24

²¹ My son, fear the LORD and the king,
and do not join with those who do otherwise,
²² for disaster will arise suddenly from them,
and who knows the ruin
that will come from them both?

Proverbs 25

⁶ Do not put yourself forward in the king’s presence
or stand in the place of the great,
⁷ for it is better to be told, “Come up here,”
than to be put lower in the presence of a noble…
¹⁵ With patience a ruler may be persuaded,
and a soft tongue will break a bone.

Proverbs 28

¹² When the righteous triumph, there is great glory,
but when the wicked rise, people hide themselves…
²⁶ Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool,
but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered…
²⁸ When the wicked rise, people hide themselves,
but when they perish, the righteous increase.

Proverbs 29

¹ He who is often reproved, yet stiffens his neck,
will suddenly be broken beyond healing.
² When the righteous increase, the people rejoice,
but when the wicked rule, the people groan.
³ He who loves wisdom makes his father glad,
but a companion of prostitutes squanders his wealth.
⁴ By justice a king builds up the land,
but he who exacts gifts tears it down.

Matthew 8

¹ When he came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him. ² And behold, a leper came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” ³ And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. ⁴ And Jesus said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a proof to them.”

⁵ When he had entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to him, appealing to him, ⁶ “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering terribly.” ⁷ And he said to him, “I will come and heal him.” ⁸ But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. ⁹ For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” ¹⁰ When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith. ¹¹ I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, ¹² while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” ¹³ And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed at that very moment.