Matthew 8:2: And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. 5, And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him

I. Who they are. Needy people (needy of Jesus and His kind of help) – Not self-sufficient – Not Self-dependent.

A. Matt. 4:17 – Jesus preached repent for the kingdom of is at hand.

B. Matthew 4:19 – A special call to those who would become apostles.

C. Matthew 4:24,25 – A needy people –

1. of physical healing.

2. To understand spiritual truths and how they relate to everyday living.

D. Matthew 8:1 – They wanted more.

E. Matthew 8:2 – Leper – personal diseases and problems – stress, so forth.

F. Matthew 8:5 – The Centurion – those in power who want to help those under their control.

G. Matthew 8:16 – Others who bring acquaintances because of their problems.

H. They believe Jesus can help them.

II. They come because they know they have no power to help themselves.

A. They recognize their total inability to help themselves or the ones they love.

B. They see that Jesus is the only one that can help them.

1. He is powerful.

2. He can do the impossible.

C. Those that don’t come.

1. The religious people of the day because they have their own religion, and don’t need Jesus.

2. Matthew 9:10-12 – "And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples. 11 And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners? 12 But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick."

3. Those people that are going to work out their own problems don’t come to Jesus.

4. Those people that haven’t reached the "end of their rope" don’t come to Jesus.

5. Those people that are full of good health don’t come to Jesus.

6. They believe Jesus can not help them.

III. They recognize that Jesus is God, and what He does for them is real.

A. They realize there is something vastly different about Jesus.

1. His message is not like the scribes and the Pharisees because He speaks with authority.

2. Jesus is not like other "gods" because He can do something about our problems, troubles, and trials. He can fix them, if we will only give them over to Him, and make a request about them. But we must remember to leave the end result to Him. God will always do us good, and not evil. He just might not fix it the way we want it fixed.

3. There is something vastly different about the gospel message.

4. IBC is not like many churches. The message we preach will set you free, because it is the message of God.

5. It is God’s power, not our power.