Sermon Synopsis
This sermon explores the comforting word Tharseo—“be of good cheer”—as spoken by Jesus to the paralytic in Matthew 9. It examines the scope of forgiveness, clarifies that salvation cannot be received vicariously, and emphasizes the necessity of personal faith in Christ. Through biblical teaching and personal testimony, the message calls listeners to genuine belief and assurance in Christ’s finished work. It concludes by highlighting the power of intercessory prayer offered in faith and righteous living.
Please note: This transcript is provided as close to verbatim record of the sermon.
“Son, Be of Good Cheer” (Tharseō)
Matthew 9:1–8
Introduction: The Word Tharseō
Good morning everyone.
We resume our study in the Tharseō series. If you recall, the word Tharseō is a Greek word which has been variously translated as be of good cheer, take heart, take courage, and be of good comfort.
There are eight references to this word in the New Testament. Seven of these eight occasions were uttered by the Lord Himself, except one which, God willing, we will look at next Sunday.
In this series, we are looking at various situations in which the Lord’s disciples, servants, and people found themselves in despair, despondency, and even fear. In those situations, the Lord came and whispered to them, “Be of good comfort.”
You remember the woman with the issue of blood for twelve years—the Lord said the same word to her: Tharseō. The disciples saw the Lord walking on the sea; they thought they saw a ghost and were petrified with fear. The Lord said to them, “Be of good cheer. It is I.”
Of course, the application is that this word still comes to us today in our daily Christian living. We go through different seasons of life and different situations. Sometimes we are sad, sometimes desperate, sometimes in despair, sometimes in pain. And the word comes to us again: Be of good cheer. It is I.
So this morning, we will study one more occurrence of this word.
Scripture Reading
Please turn with me to a familiar passage in Matthew chapter 9, and we will read from verses 1 to 8. It will be helpful if you look at your own version, as we will be going into a deeper study of certain verses.
(Scripture read: Matthew 9:1–8)
“Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee.”
May the Lord bless us in the reading of His precious Word here and elsewhere this morning.
Proposed Outline
This morning, I would like to share three thoughts with you:
“Son, be of good cheer; thy sins are forgiven thee.”
We have read this many times, and often we simply gloss over it. We say, “Well, the sins are forgiven.” But this morning, we want to go a little deeper and ask ourselves:
What was the scope of that forgiveness of sins?
What did the Lord have in mind when He said to the paralytic, “Thy sins are forgiven”?
It is presumptuous for us to know exactly what was in the mind of the Lord at that moment. Hence, there are several interpretations, and I will go through them briefly.
One view is that when the Lord said, “Thy sins are forgiven thee,” He was referring to specific sins that led to the man’s physical condition. The Lord, in His omniscience, knew what sins had caused the man to be in that state.
We know from medicine and health that certain lifestyles and sins can contribute to sicknesses and bodily conditions. Alcoholism and drug addiction, for example, can cause tragic health problems. More recently, vaping has become common among young people, even schoolchildren.
Parents, we need to pray especially and guard our children so they do not fall into bad company and take up such habits.
Another view is that the Lord was referring to all his past sins. This goes back to the Old Testament system. If a person sinned, he brought an animal sacrifice to the altar, laid his hands on the animal’s head, and identified himself with it. The animal took his place.
This was forward-looking to the cross. Under the Old Testament system, forgiveness was for past sins only. The sacrifice did not forgive present or future sins.
In the New Testament, we have a backward look to the cross. The Lord Jesus Christ is our sacrifice for sin, offered once and for all. That is why, after the three hours of darkness, He could say, “It is finished.”
In the new covenant of grace, when we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, there is forgiveness of sins—past, present, and future—because of His sacrifice on the cross.
These are wonderful words. They remind us of that happy day when we trusted the Lord Jesus Christ, and He came to us and said, Tharseō—your sins are forgiven.
That is a wonderful assurance and deeply comforting.
A Caution About a Particular View
There is another school of thought that says the Lord forgave all sins—past, present, and future—because this was a unique situation, and He claimed authority as the Son of Man to forgive sins.
I want to suggest we need to be careful with this view. The Lord had not yet gone to the cross. If He could forgive all sins fully before the cross, then there would have been no need for the cross.
For even one sinner, the Lord would go to the cross. He would never bypass the cross. In the Garden of Gethsemane, He prayed three times for an alternative, but it was the Father’s will that He drink the bitter cup.
For this reason, many commentators favour either the view of specific sins or past sins.
This is something very close to my heart.
Verse 2 says that Jesus saw their faith and said to the paralytic, “Thy sins are forgiven.”
The temptation is to interpret this as the faith of the four men only. That is a wrong interpretation. He saw the faith of all five—the four men and the paralytic himself.
If we say that only the four men had faith and the paralytic was forgiven without believing, that would give rise to the heresy of vicarious salvation—the idea that one person can believe on behalf of another.
That is heresy.
I am personally concerned about this because many people come from Christian families and assume they are Christians simply because of their background.
Personal Testimony
Coming from a Christian family, I thought I was a Christian. I attended Sunday school, won prizes, memorised verses—whatever quiz there was, I won.
But as I grew older, I realised something was not right. When I was a good boy, people asked, “Are you a Christian?” I said yes. When I was a naughty boy, I said no.
That could not go on.
One day, I asked my school teacher, Mr. Chua, “Sir, I come from a Christian family. Does that make me a Christian?”
He replied with an illustration: “If you are born in a garage, do you become a motor car?”
That was my very crude introduction to soteriology— the study of salvation.
Coming from a Christian family does not make you a Christian. God has no grandchildren.
Scriptural Foundation – John 1:12
“But as many as received Him, to them gave He the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name.”
There are three important points here:
Each one of us must believe and receive the Lord Jesus Christ personally.
While we cannot believe on behalf of someone, we can pray for someone.
Biblical Examples
These examples show that faith is important in intercession.
Two Types of Prayer God Delights In (James 5)
The prayer of the righteous “can accomplish much.” The Greek word used here implies power.
When we pray for our children, for the sick, for those seeking jobs or going for interviews, let us pray:
Conclusion and Closing Prayer
Father, we thank You for this time in Your house. We thank You for Your Word, and for this comforting word—Tharseō. In our Christian living, as we go through different situations, may we always remember Your voice saying, “Be of good cheer. It is I.”
Help us to live lives pleasing to You, and to pray for one another with faith and righteousness.
We ask this in the Lord’s precious name.
Amen.
Messages: 6
