I.
This week we turn to the Gospel of Matthew as we continue to consider the Kingdom of God.

We hear from the crowd and from the Pharisees as both see Jesus heal a man, and both apparently agree the man is healed, but consider the power to heal comes from very different sources.

How is it possible for two groups (or two persons) to see the same thing, and yet be in such disagreement about what has happened right in front of them?

II.
Matthew 12:22-32 (NRSVue)

Then they brought to him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and he cured him, so that the one who had been mute could speak and see. All the crowds were amazed and were saying, “Can this be the Son of David?”

But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons, that this man casts out the demons.”

He knew what they were thinking and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand. If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how, then, will his kingdom stand? If I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your own exorcists cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. Or how can one enter a strong man’s house and plunder his property without first tying up the strong man? Then indeed the house can be plundered. Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. Therefore I tell you, people will be forgiven for every sin and blasphemy, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.

III.
Is this healing one of the signs of the presence of the Kingdom of God?

The Pharisees claim that “the ruler of the demons” is the power behind the healing. If that is the case, what are they saying about the work of Jesus?

The crowd asks, “Can this be the Son of David?”

I think the crowd deserves some applause for putting the question to one another, to the Pharisees and to themselves. The Pharisees sound very sure of themselves and the crowd seems open to seeking the truth.

Why do you suspect the Pharisees are so sure of themselves?

Probably most of us want to say we would side with the crowd in this confrontation, but what might cause us to take the Pharisees’ point of view?

charles
{ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est}