March 15, 2026 - Encountering God in the Face of Jesus Matthew 9:9-13

Devotional

Day 1: The Cost of Following Jesus

Following Jesus is a call to a life that is often inconvenient and disruptive to our personal comfort. It requires a reordering of our priorities, where our relationship with Him takes precedence over even the most important earthly commitments. This path is not about mere intellectual agreement but about a willingness to be led out of our comfort zones. Embracing this cost is the first step toward a deeper, more authentic discipleship. [31:42]

Then a teacher of the law came to him and said, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” (Matthew 8:19-20 NIV)

Reflection: Where in your life have you prioritized personal comfort or convenience over a step of obedience Jesus might be asking of you? What would it look like to reorder that priority this week?

Day 2: Jesus Seeks the Spiritually Sick

Jesus’s mission was directed toward those who recognized their need, not those who were self-sufficient in their religiosity. He consistently moved toward the outcast, the sinner, and the broken, demonstrating that God’s heart is one of mercy. His presence at a tax collector’s dinner party was a powerful statement of His priorities. To follow Him is to adopt His heart for those who are far from God. [35:56]

On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Matthew 9:12-13 NIV)

Reflection: Who in your sphere of influence—a coworker, neighbor, or family member—might be “spiritually sick” and in need of the mercy you have received? How could you intentionally and compassionately spend time with them this week?

Day 3: Cultivating a Heart of Compassion

When Jesus looked at the crowds, He did not see problems or projects; He saw people who were lost, vulnerable, and without guidance. His response was not frustration or judgment but deep, gut-wrenching compassion. This compassion was rooted in His understanding of the high stakes of eternity. To see people as He sees them is to be moved with the same concern for their spiritual well-being. [42:49]

When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. (Matthew 9:36 NIV)

Reflection: When you consider the people around you who do not know Jesus, what is your initial, gut-level response? Ask God to give you His eyes to see them not as strangers, but as harassed and helpless sheep in need of a Shepherd.

Day 4: Praying to Be Sent into the Harvest

The need for workers in God’s harvest is great, but the number of those willing to go is small. The first step is not action, but prayer—a dangerous prayer that asks God to dislodge us from our comfort and send us out. This is a prayer for divine interruption, asking the Lord to forcefully place us where He is already at work, even if it is a place we would not choose for ourselves. [49:42]

Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” (Matthew 9:37-38 NIV)

Reflection: What would it look like for you to sincerely pray, “Lord, send me out into your harvest,” and truly mean it? What fears or comforts make that prayer difficult for you to pray today?

Day 5: Moving from Prayer to Practical Steps

A heart of compassion and a prayer to be sent must eventually lead to practical, tangible action. This begins with simple steps of making ourselves available and accessible to those who need Jesus. It can look like being a welcoming presence, extending an invitation, or simply valuing someone enough to share a meal or a coffee. The goal is not a presentation, but presence, allowing the love of Christ to flow through us. [01:02:07]

“And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” (John 12:32 NIV)

Reflection: Look at the practical opportunities around you—a church event, a coffee meeting, or simply being more welcoming. What is one specific, tangible step you can take this week to move toward someone who needs to experience the love of Jesus?

Sermon Summary

Jesus' presence brings immediate access to healing, mercy, and freedom; his nearness does not require a formal altar moment but moves in the midst of worship and honest invitation. Scripture reading from Matthew 9:11–12 anchors the theme: Jesus intentionally eats with tax collectors and sinners, declaring that the sick need a doctor and that mercy outranks sacrifice. The narrative thread moves through three linked encounters—an exchange about the cost of following, a meal with social outcasts, and a commissioning to pray for and enter the harvest—revealing a consistent posture: following Jesus will unsettle comfort, reorient priorities, and compel proximity to the spiritually vulnerable.

Following Jesus costs convenience and stable relationships; commitment may demand choosing the kingdom over familiar obligations and accepting discomfort as part of discipleship. Eating with sinners models incarnational ministry—breaking barriers through shared time, not just persuasive speech—and challenges habitual segregation of the faithful. The crowds evoke compassion: they appear harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd, which raises the stakes and motivates urgent outreach. The harvest language reframes mission as both invitation and divine dislodging: followers are to pray that God would force open their complacency and then send them out with authority.

Two Greek terms distinguish praying for workers and actually being sent: one asks God to dislodge and propel people into new contexts, the other imparts authority for the work ahead. Practical responses thread through the conclusion: cultivate a welcoming presence within the congregation, intentionally engage prodigals and pre-Christians in ordinary settings, use scheduled gatherings as entry points for inviting others, and persist in prayer both for specific people and for personal dislodging. The altar remains open as a tangible option for those ready to respond now—whether to ask for mercy, to return, or to begin following. The overall call centers on sacrificial proximity: to see people as vulnerable, to enter their spaces, and to trust God to use inconvenient obedience to extend mercy and heal the sick.

Key Takeaways

1. Following Jesus costs personal comfort True discipleship reorients priorities so following may interrupt convenience, family rhythms, and preferred plans. Cost does not negate joy; it exposes the trade-off between ease and participation in Kingdom work. Willingness to bear inconvenience demonstrates faith that Christ’s purposes outweigh personal comfort.
- Compassion prioritizes the spiritually sick
Compassion recognizes people as harassed, helpless, and vulnerable—conditions that demand urgent care rather than judgment. Seeing others through that lens reshapes mission from preservation to rescue and fuels courage to enter risky spaces. When compassion rises, action follows.
- Pray to be dislodged and sent
Prayer should ask God to uproot comfortable patterns so obedience moves into new places, and then to send with authority for the work encountered there. God’s dislodging can feel forced, but its goal remains redemptive: to position followers where the spiritually sick gather. Persistent prayer cultivates willingness to be both moved and empowered.
- Hospitality functions as gospel work
Sharing ordinary time—meals, coffee, walks—breaks down barriers and demonstrates mercy more than any prepared speech can. Intentional presence invites trust and creates openings for spiritual conversations to emerge naturally. Small, consistent hospitality gestures incarnate the good news. [31:19]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[25:04] - Gospel Reading (Matthew 9:11–12)
[25:27] - Series Context: Seeking God’s Face
[29:02] - Overview: Three Linked Encounters
[31:19] - The Cost of Following
[35:13] - Eating with Tax Collectors and Sinners
[42:17] - Compassion for the Harassed and Helpless
[47:29] - The Plentiful Harvest, Few Workers
[48:28] - Dislodged and Sent: Two Greek Words
[55:31] - Practical Steps: Welcome, Invite, Pray
[66:00] - Altar Open: Invitation to Respond

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading: Matthew 9:11-12 (NIV)
When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.”

Observation questions

In the passage, who was Jesus eating with and why did this upset the religious leaders?
What analogy did Jesus use to explain his actions and mission?
The sermon mentioned that following Jesus will "unsettle comfort, reorient priorities, and compel proximity to the spiritually vulnerable." What are the three linked encounters from Matthew that were used to show this progression? [29:02]
What two different Greek words for "send" were highlighted, and what is the distinct meaning of each? [48:28]

Interpretation questions

Jesus told a would-be follower to "let the dead bury their own dead." In the cultural context of prioritizing family honor and duty, what radical priority was Jesus establishing for the kingdom of God? [32:52]
The religious leaders saw Jesus eating with sinners as a compromise of holiness. How does Jesus's statement that he desires "mercy, not sacrifice" redefine what true, God-honoring religion looks like?
Jesus saw the crowds as "harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd." What does this imagery reveal about the spiritual condition of people who do not know him, and why should that evoke compassion rather than judgment? [42:17]
The first instruction to the disciples was to pray for the Lord to "send out" (force out) workers. Why would this kind of forceful, dislodging prayer be a necessary first step before being "sent out" with authority? [49:42]

Application questions

Following Jesus costs personal comfort and can interrupt family rhythms and preferred plans. [31:19] What is one area of your life—your schedule, your budget, or a relationship—where you sense an invitation to embrace inconvenience for the sake of participating in God's kingdom work?
Compassion recognizes people as spiritually vulnerable and demands urgent care. [42:17] Who in your orbit (a neighbor, coworker, or family member) have you primarily viewed with judgment or avoidance, and how could you begin to see them as "harassed and helpless" and in need of mercy?
Hospitality and sharing ordinary time—like meals, coffee, or walks—functions as gospel work by breaking down barriers. [35:13] What is one simple, intentional step you could take this week to spend meaningful time with a "prodigal" or "pre-Christian" you know, without an agenda to preach at them?
Prayer should ask God to uproot comfortable patterns and then to send us with authority. [49:42] What specific, comfortable pattern in your life (e.g., your social circle, your daily routine) are you willing to ask God to dislodge you from, and what would it look like to pray for that consistently?
The church is called to be a welcoming presence, which might mean sitting in an inconvenient seat or serving in a needed ministry. What is one practical way you can move out of your comfort zone on a Sunday to make someone new feel seen and valued? [56:05]
There are tangible invitations—to a Sunday service, Easter, or a healing night—that can be extended. [59:04] Who is one person the Holy Spirit brought to your mind during the message that you could intentionally invite, and what is stopping you from doing so?
Being "with Jesus" means going where he goes, which is to those who are sick. If all your friends are Christians, what does that suggest about the alignment of your life with the mission and priorities of Jesus? [39:12]

Sermon Clips

When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were harassed and helpless. They were vulnerable like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, the harvest is plentiful. What's plentiful? Harassed people, helpless people are plentiful, but the workers are few. There's too many people that is just inconvenient for. It's not that there's not plenty of people who who are of that God's been working on, but the workers are few. Ask the lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. [00:47:29] (37 seconds) #HarvestNeedsWorkers

this is what I want you to grasp. Two things as I close. The the one is just this flow. Right? Following Jesus is costly. It's wonderful, and the cost is amazing because once you get to be a part of Jesus helping sick people get better, sinners to find a hope, it is nothing's better than that. But if you wait to be involved in that until it is convenient, you're just not gonna do it. And so Jesus says, if you're gonna be my follower, then you need to be willing [00:53:54] (38 seconds) #CostOfFollowingJesus

Pray for God, who is it that you want me to begin to pray for? And I'm gonna pray for them until either you come back or until they come to you. You begin to just own some people that just say, I'm gonna pray for them. But then would you also pray for yourself? Say, Lord, would you would you me? Would you dislodge me from some of my comfort zones so that I would be available to do what you want me to do? Would you give me a heart would you give me a heart of compassion to see how high the stakes are? [01:00:50] (41 seconds) #PrayToBeDislodged

Have you been inconvenienced by Jesus lately? Because the question that's begged to be answered then is, well, why not? I mean, if Jesus is is preparing us, that if you follow me, it's gonna inconvenience you. If if you follow me, it's gonna cause you to have to, make some choices. If if you're not experiencing that, why not? Has Jesus changed his his level of expectations? So [00:33:34] (39 seconds) #InconveniencedByJesus

As a pastor, guess what? I never have a shortage of good Christian people who need my time. But for me, to do what Jesus did, I had to I had to take time away from something else. I had to take time, and it had to be inconvenient. I ask you the question, maybe Jesus is telling people, if you wanna be my follower, guess what? It's gonna cost you because part of being a follower of Jesus is prioritizing the spiritually sick. [00:38:05] (35 seconds) #PrioritizeTheSpirituallySick

Don't think of this. It has to be a meal. That's significant when it can be a meal. And I I don't think it's by accident that Jesus is having a meal with them. He's breaking down a lot of barriers when he does that. And don't think about the fact that you have to have a gospel presentation in your back pocket ready to share with them. What if you're just valuing them enough to spend time with them. Go for a walk with them. Have a coffee with them. [01:01:53] (33 seconds) #MeetThemWhereTheyAre

When people are saying, I wanna follow you, Jesus. He is saying, one is it's gonna be uncomfortable sometimes. It's gonna be inconvenient sometimes. And sometimes it's gonna make you prioritizing me in such a way that it it doesn't make sense. You're gonna have to pry prioritize your relationship with me even over some other highly important relationships. [00:32:57] (28 seconds) #PrioritizeJesusOverAll

Now, don't make that sound like it's, you're a sinner. I'm not. I mean so think of it as with a prodigal or with a pre Christian. Right? Someone who used to be in the faith and has kinda wandered, from it or or someone who's never come to the faith. Find a way, whether it's a meal, whether it's coffee, whether it's just, hanging out, but find a way to intentionally engage with a prodigal or a pre Christian. Because guess what? If you're hanging out with Jesus, you're going to. [00:37:02] (33 seconds) #EngageTheProdigal

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March 15, 2026 - Encountering God in the Face of Jesus Matthew 9:9-13

Devotional

Day 1: The Cost of Following Jesus

Day 2: Jesus Seeks the Spiritually Sick

Day 3: Cultivating a Heart of Compassion

Day 4: Praying to Be Sent into the Harvest

Day 5: Moving from Prayer to Practical Steps

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Chatbot

March 15, 2026 - Encountering God in the Face of Jesus Matthew 9:9-13

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