Mark 1 v 29-31
As soon as Jesus and his followers left the synagogue, they went with James and John to the home of Simon and Andrew.
Simon’s mother-in-law was sick in bed with a fever, and the people told Jesus about her.
So Jesus went to her bed, took her hand, and helped her up. The fever left her, and she began serving them.
Notes
This is such a simple story but there is so much in it, we see that the disciples trusted Jesus without question. There was a problem, someone was ill so they went to Jesus straight away, there was no waiting or giving Jesus time to recover from his work at the synagogue, the need was urgent and Jesus action was swift. We see Jesus love and power displayed here. When the disciples told him of the sick woman he does not even begin to make any excuse about being too tired or whatever, his love for this woman, as in the synagogue with the man, is what drives him to heal. Jesus did not use any fancy words or ‘special’ actions as some of the other ‘healers’ would have done in his day. Jesus did not need them, his power was supreme so he simply took her hand and helped her up, we are not even told he said anything! There is much for us to learn from these few verses. We need to have the kind of relationship with Jesus that those disciples had, Jesus needs to be the first person we turn to when things are not right. We can trust him without question for his power is as strong today as it was at Simon’s house that day. We also need to learn from Simon’s mother-in-law, the verses tell us that when she was well she ‘began serving them’. She took no recovery time, she didn’t say she was too weak she just got on with the job that needed doing. We too are saved and healed by Jesus and we need to find that love of serving others in our hearts. If you feel you need more of that servant attitude ask God for it today.
Mark 1 v 32-34
That evening, after the sun went down, the people brought to Jesus all who were sick and had
demons in them.
The whole town gathered at the door.
Jesus healed many who had different kinds of sicknesses, and he forced many demons to leave people. But he would not allow the demons to speak, because they knew who he was.
Notes
Once more in today’s reading we see Jesus healing power at work. In verses 29-31 we saw how Jesus disciples trusted him and he healed Simon’s mother-in-law, verses 21-28 spoke of how Jesus healed a man who was at the synagogue and had presumably gone there to meet with God. These three verses however give us something different, these are the people who come to God because they are in need. When life is well then they can manage on their own but as soon as it is difficult well that’s the time to pray, or in this case come to Jesus. It would have been very human and in some ways understandable if Jesus had turned round and said “no way – you didn’t want anything to do with me when life was ok so why should I help you now? My power is only to be used for good people who love God” That response would be human maybe but not Godly, Jesus was 100% human but he was also 100% God, his love never took the moral high ground, if people came to him he had time for them no matter who they were, no matter what they had done in their lives. Jesus not only spoke about the universal love God has for humanity, he showed it. I think there are two things we need to remember about Jesus the first and most important is that he loves us unconditionally and always accepts us when we turn to him. The second is that he requires those who love and follow him to demonstrate his love to others, we need to love people with that same unending and demonstrated love.
Mark 1 v 35-39
Early the next morning, while it was still dark, Jesus woke and left the house. He went to a lonely place, where he prayed.
Simon and his friends went to look for Jesus. 37 When they found him, they said, “Everyone is looking for you!”
Jesus answered, “We should go to other towns around here so I can preach there too. That is the reason I came.”
So he went everywhere in Galilee, preaching in the synagogues and forcing out demons.
Notes
Early in the morning, I don’t know what time you read this, what time you spend with God but lots of people don’t really function early in the morning. There are several occasions in the Bible where Jesus goes to be on his own with his Father God. Often we are told that’s early morning but not always. Does it matter? The time of day doesn’t matter the fact that time is spent with God does. Jesus spends some time with his Dad and then when they find him he tells them that they must go to other towns why did he tell them that then? Simple I believe he’d been asking his Dad what to do and Dad had said go to other towns and preach that’s what I sent you for. We need to spend a bit of time with God as often as we can, we need to be asking the same question, what do you want me to do God? God does have a plan for each person who follows him, he might tell you through another Christian, or by a bit of the Bible which suddenly strikes you, God has many ways of speaking to us but he also made us the way we are and the things we want to do are not necessarily wrong. God gave you the skills and gifts as well as the desires you have so if you really want a particular job or to go to a particular place that may be where God wants you to go. Don’t rule it out just because you want it, but don’t go just because you want it either! Ask God if he doesn’t want you to go there or do that then he’ll tell you or he’ll stop you, if you ask!!
Mark 1 v 40-45
A man with a skin disease came to Jesus. He fell to his knees and begged Jesus, “You can heal me if you will.”
Jesus felt sorry for the man, so he reached out his hand and touched him and said, “I will. Be healed!”
Immediately the disease left the man, and he was healed.
Jesus told the man to go away at once, but he warned him strongly,
“Don’t tell anyone about this. But go and show yourself to the priest. And offer the gift Moses commanded for people who are made well. This will show the people what I have done.”
The man left there, but he began to tell everyone that Jesus had healed him, and so he spread the news about Jesus. As a result, Jesus could not enter a town if people saw him. He stayed in places where nobody lived, but people came to him from everywhere.
Notes
Here we have a story of how Jesus broke the rules and kept them. This man came and spoke to Jesus, he was a sick man with a skin disease, in those times there was a great deal of fear about skin diseases, many were all described under the heading of leprosy. Lepers had very strict rules about what they could do and not do, but one thing is certain they were not allowed to go up and speak to people especially such a person as Jesus. However when the man approaches Jesus doesn’t run away, he doesn’t tell the man to go away once again his compassion means that he puts the mans needs first. Jesus reaches out an touches this man, disease holds no fear for Jesus. The man asks if Jesus is willing to heal him and of course Jesus says yes and the man is healed. Jesus then does a rather strange thing, he tells the man to say nothing and to go and offer the gift Moses commanded. When Jesus said to offer this gift he was asking the man to keep the rules of the law, so he broke them at the beginning by touching the man but now he asks for them to be kept. Jesus didn’t throw all the rules out of the window when he came but he did know what was at the heart of them. He knew how to live their spirit when others were tied up in there definitions. He then also tells the man to say nothing, Jesus did not seek publicity or fame that was not his aim. We need to think about why we do things sometimes, if we are honest most of us like to be noticed, we like people to think we are good or clever but those who follow Jesus need to think again if we want to be like him.
Mark 2 v 1-5
A few days later, when Jesus came back to Capernaum, the news spread that he was at home.
Many people gathered together so that there was no room in the house, not even outside the door. And Jesus was teaching them God’s message.
Four people came, carrying a paralyzed man.
Since they could not get to Jesus because of the crowd, they dug a hole in the roof right above where he was speaking. When they got through, they lowered the mat with the paralyzed man on it.
When Jesus saw the faith of these people, he said to the paralyzed man, “Young man, your sins are forgiven.”
Notes
This account of men bringing their friend to Jesus speaks of their love and friendship however I just want to look at what happened after these good friends had brought their mate to Jesus. What did Jesus say and do, when faced with a man who cannot walk, who has gone to great lengths to get near Jesus to be healed, well its quite simple he says “your sins are forgiven”. Can you imagine if you were the man, sins forgiven, never mind about sins forgiven what about my legs that don’t work!! It must have been a bit difficult for him to understand, why didn’t Jesus just reach out and heal him like he had others? Was this man a worse sinner than anyone else Jesus had met? I don’t think so, I think it is simply an example of Jesus wanting to deal with body and soul. The Bible tells us that everyone is a sinner, non of us are perfect in other words. We all get it wrong from time to time, we don’t live exactly as God wants us to, or even as we want to! Being physically fit was important to this man, but in the big picture being right with God is more important. When Jesus said “your sins are forgiven” he was referring to the fact that in his day people believed sickness to be a punishment from God, if you were sick God was angry with you. Jesus was saying “your sins are forgiven” and therefore letting the man know – it’s ok God’s not angry with you. Jesus speaks the same words to us when we get it wrong, it’s ok God’s not mad with you, come back to him.
Mark 2 v 6-12
Some of the teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves,
“Why does this man say things like that? He is speaking as if he were God. Only God can forgive sins.”
Jesus knew immediately what these teachers of the law were thinking. So he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things?
Which is easier: to tell this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to tell him, ‘Stand up. Take your mat and walk’?
But I will prove to you that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So Jesus said to the paralyzed man,
“I tell you, stand up, take your mat, and go home.”
Immediately the paralyzed man stood up, took his mat, and walked out while everyone was watching him.
The people were amazed and praised God. They said, “We have never seen anything like this!”
Notes
Here we see the completion of the story from yesterday. Jesus who is concerned with the Body and the Spirit has sorted both out. He forgives the man’s sin and that allows him to have a relationship with God, but he also heals him physically. There were some teachers of the law who were not happy at all, they knew only God could forgive sin, and they were right, but they had failed to realize who Jesus was. They simply saw a man who spoke wisely and clearly loved God, but they did not understand that Jesus was God, God the Son sent by God the Father for this very purpose, to heal people and forgive their sin. Jesus does heal the man simply by the command “stand up, take your mat, and go”. Once more we see ultimate trust in Jesus, the man did not argue or say “but I can’t” he took the risk and tried to stand up, when he tried of course he found he could and that Jesus had healed him, but he had to try to stand before he knew that for certain. If we trust Jesus and are willing to act in faith that Jesus will look after us, we too can experience the love and care of Jesus. Oh and by they way – do people see what God is doing in your life and praise God saying ‘we have never seen anything like this’? Ask him to move in you today so they do!
Mark 2 v 13-17
Jesus went to the lake again. The whole crowd followed him there, and he taught them.
While he was walking along, he saw a man named Levi son of Alphaeus, sitting in the tax collector’s booth. Jesus said to him, “Follow me,” and he stood up and followed Jesus.
Later, as Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and “sinners” were eating there with Jesus and his followers. Many people like this followed Jesus.
When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw Jesus eating with the tax collectors and “sinners,” they asked his followers, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
Jesus heard this and said to them, “It is not the healthy people who need a doctor, but the sick. I did not come to invite good people but to invite sinners.”
Notes
If there was any part of the Bible which showed really clearly the difference between Jesus and the Pharisees it is this. The Pharisees saw people such as tax collectors and their friends and described them as sinners so had nothing to do with them, they were looked down on and ignored. Jesus on the other hand saw this group of people as ones to be loved, as people who were in need of love and especially God’s love. When challenged about the company he was keeping Jesus simply replies the healthy don’t need a Doctor the sick do. Does this mean that only really bad people can come to Jesus, if you’re someone who has been to church all their life and has always tried to follow Jesus, or who never does anything really bad that Jesus isn’t interested in you? Not at all, Jesus was simply saying that these people needed him and that those who recognized a need were the ones to whom he could go and help. It is not about how good or bad we are but about whether or not we will admit that we do need Jesus. The Pharisees were convinced that they could get to God on their own by their hard work and laws, they were not willing to admit that they needed Jesus. If we want a relationship with God we must first recognize that we need God, that we cannot do everything on our own. The tax collectors and their friends were sinners who got it wrong, but when they met Jesus they knew they needed the love and friendship he had to offer.
word-on-the-web uses the Scripture text taken from the Youth Bible, New Century Version (Anglicised Edition) copyright 1993 by Word Publishing Milton Keynes