Matthew 12:22-23……Ready

Matthew 12:22-23……Ready

12:22 Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute  and Jesus healed him so that he could both talk and see. 23 All the people were astonished  (Some assume the crowds astonishment was due to the fact that Jesus’ miracles were complete, whereas other exorcists could only heal one but not two at the same time. Or because nowhere in the Old Testament was a demonic spirit ever cast out, and here one was by Jesus.) and said, Could this be the Son of David? (For Complete Expository See Book)

Extended Sermons

“Teaches no matter how much the Enemy tries to silence our voice or mute our witness Jesus speaks truth and light.” → When the Enemy tries to shut us up, Jesus fills us with a fire that cannot be contained. When the Enemy tries to bury our testimony, Jesus turns the grave into a stage. The very place the Enemy hoped would silence us becomes the place where God’s power speaks the loudest. The Enemy knows a silent believer is easier to defeat. So he tries to shut down your witness, your confidence, your speech. But where the Enemy tries to shut you down, Jesus lifts you up. Jesus gives boldness where fear once lived. He gives testimony where silence once ruled. He gives praise where heaviness once sat. Jesus turns your story into a weapon. He turns your healing into a message. He turns your breakthrough into someone else’s hope. Every place the Enemy tries to suppress you is a place Jesus intends to empower you. Where the Enemy binds, Jesus frees. Where the Enemy blinds, Jesus illuminates. Where the Enemy silences, Jesus gives a voice. Every place the Enemy attacks Jesus restores. Your voice can rise again. Your witness can shine again. Your understanding can be clear again. Where the Enemy tries to silence, Jesus empowers. Where the Enemy tries to blind, Jesus reveals. Where the Enemy tries to bind, Jesus breaks through. Where Jesus is, darkness cannot remain, and silence cannot last. Our story, our witness, and our understanding are secure in Him, because His grace and truth always triumph over every attempt that tries to to suppress them.

“Calls for living in a way that people can’t help but marvel and stand in awe at what Jesus has done in our life” → When people see the transforming work the Lord has done in our lives, replacing anger with forgiveness, impulsiveness with patience, despair with hope—it makes them pause and take notice. The crowd didn’t just say, “Wow, that’s impressive.” They said, “Could this be the Son of David?” In other words, the change made them think about God. When God reshapes your character—softens your heart, heals old wounds, breaks destructive patterns—people around you take notice. They may not understand it at first, but they can’t deny it. A life touched by God naturally draws attention. When your character shifts in ways that don’t make sense apart from God’s work in you, people begin to ask deeper questions. Your life becomes a signpost pointing toward something greater. A changed life forces people to reconsider what they thought they knew—about you, about God, about what’s possible. Sometimes the most powerful witness isn’t what you say but who you’re becoming. Your growth becomes evidence that change is possible for them too. When God changes your character, it influences your home. It shifts the atmosphere in becoming more peaceful and easy to love and get along. It influences your friendships. People feel safer, more valued, more encouraged. It influences your workplace. Your integrity and work ethics stand out. People will want to go to you for advice. It influences your community and ministry. A transformed life becomes a quiet but powerful testimony that God is real and active. You don’t have to preach a sermon. You become one. Sometimes the greatest influence you’ll ever have is not in what you do for God, but in what God does in you! A transformed life becomes a testimony that speaks louder than words. Will you pray “Lord, continue Your transforming work in me. Let the changes You make in my heart become a testimony that draws others toward You. Shape my character so that my life reflects Your goodness, Your power, and Your love. Amen.”

“Even today, do you you come with a soft heart that is open, humble, and receptive. Or do you come with a hard heart that is resistant, defensive, and skeptical?” → Are you interested in spiritual matters. When witnessing supernatural breakthroughs, do you ask, “God what are you trying to say to me through this? Do you have the kind of heart that is receptive, teachable, ready to believe. The questions we ask reveal the posture of our heart. When we come to Jesus with honest, humble, truth‑seeking questions—rather than defensive, skeptical, or self‑protective ones—we position ourselves to actually hear Him, understand Him, and follow Him. The right questions opens the door for Jesus to correct our assumptions, reshape our priorities, and lead us into deeper faith. In Scripture, people who benefited most from their encounter with Jesus were the ones who asked questions that drew them closer to Him, not questions that kept Him at arm’s length. A sincere question becomes an act of discipleship, because it shows we’re ready to learn, ready to be changed, and ready to walk in the truth He reveals.

Additional Notes & applications

Displays how our changed lives can be testimony that impacts everyone around us who witnesses it.

Calls for looking beneath the surface to the deeper divine power and source behind it.

Challenges believers to respond immediately to divine revelations God sets right in front of us, rather than wait for more signs, more proof, more evidence.

Teaches how faith grows when we stop postponing obedience and start responding to the light we already have.

Note: When we hear about this man’s condition we can wonder at the challenges and difficulties he most have had to face. He can never fully express himself. He can’t worship God with his mouth. He can’t pray out loud. He’s virtually a prisoner inside his own body. His blindness greatly limited him. There was no brail back then, that would have allowed him to read using his fingertips. His muteness greatly limited him, especially in those days when sign language and other communication helps did not exist as prominently as they do today. The poor had no access to speech therapists, and the medical practices of the time offered no hope at all. If he was deaf as well his deafness also put him in danger, as people use their hearing more than they realize to avoid harm.

Note: Not every ailment or disorder is rooted in natural causes. Some are spiritual in origin — the result of doors we’ve opened, knowingly or unknowingly. When we entertain sin, embrace unforgiveness, dabble in darkness, or agree with the enemy’s lies, we create spiritual entry points. An open door is any area of your life where you’ve given the enemy room to operate — through sin, agreement, neglect, or deception. These open doors don’t always manifest as dramatic possession; often they show up as torment, oppression, confusion, or cycles that feel unbreakable; alcoholism, drug addition, pornography, etc.. The Bible consistently shows that human beings are not just physical creatures — we are spiritual beings living in a spiritual world. And when spiritual doors are opened, spiritual consequences follow. The enemy looks for access points: habitual sin……bitterness and unforgiveness……occult involvement……..generational patterns…..trauma that was never surrendered to God……lies we agree with about ourselves or God. When these doors stay open, the enemy doesn’t need permission — he already has it. And what begins as a “small compromise” can grow into a spiritual foothold, then a stronghold, and eventually a form of bondage that affects the mind, emotions, or even the body. But here’s the good news: What was opened can be closed. What was invited can be evicted. What was bound can be loosed. Jesus didn’t just heal bodies — He cast out spirits, broke chains, restored minds, and shut doors the enemy had walked through.

Note: Some interpret the crowds inquiry “could this be the Son of David” not as a “maybe or perhaps” but in the Negative as “this can’t be”. In English there’s two ways you can formulate a question. One way your generally asking for a response, you’re not trying to bait them in either direction, you just want a answer. As an example when you ask someone “do you want a cookie” your only looking for a “yes” or “no”, do you want it or not? Now you could also phrase the question “do you want a cookie” in such a way that your fishing for a certain answer. As an example you could say “Hey fatso you don’t want a cookie right”? Here your moving them in a certain direction to obviously saying “No”. But in the Greek you can do that differently grammatically. You can structure a sentence that demands a certain type of answer. So in Greek if you start a question with the particle “OU” that means you want a positive answer. But if you start a question with the particle “UN” it means you want a negative answer. A good example of this can be found in James chapter two: “ What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them”?-(James 2:14) The implied answer is obviously  “No” of course that faith can’t save them. Or how about this one from Romans chapter six. “What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? Again that sentence begins with the particle “UN” expecting a “No”, “By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer.”?-(Rom. 6:1-2) Based on this they say the question posed by the crowd “Could this be the Son of David” you get the particle “UN”, that is demanding a negative. Therefore they argue what the text is getting at is that the crowd were expecting a “No” in reply. [Note: Many don’t agree with this interpretation due to the fact that when the Pharisees heard their response they took it as positive particle “OU” as “This must be the Son of David”. Or they would not have tried to sway the crowds opinion by claiming “It is only by the prince of demons, that this fellow casts our demons”. If they took the crowds question in the negative “UN” they would not have bothered trying to turn their opinion, seeing that they came to their own conclusion that he was not the Messiah, therefore no need to change their minds.]