There are many parts of our life that we do not let Jesus have rule and reign over. Maybe we feel like are powerless and ineffective in our evangelism. Or perhaps we struggle with prayer. Or maybe we struggle to be with His people.
What does Mark 1:29-45 have to say to our struggles? What does it show us about God?
(A) Trust Jesus In Every Need (Mark 1:29-34)
Mark has already shown us how Jesus has the authority to call his disciples (Mark 1:17,20). It was not an invitation but a command, and they followed Him immediately. He also had authority as He taught in the synagogue (Mark 1:22), and His authority was different from that of the scribes. He also had authority over the evil spirits (Mark 1:27).
Jesus and the disciples moved from the synagogue (Mark 1:21-28) to Simon’s house (Mark 1:29). Jesus did not just teach publicly. He also took time to rest and be involved in the lives of the disciples.
There, Jesus encounters Simon’s sick mother-in-law (Mark 1:30). Jesus “came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them” (Mark 1:31). This was a complete and instant healing. Jesus brought authority not just in the public ministry of teaching and preaching, but also displays it in their personal and private life. He is concerned about what goes on in the disciples’ personal lives too. For the disciples too, following Jesus is not just knowing about His teachings but also knowing Him as a person. He is interested to be in their homes and sharing a meal with them.
Do we see Jesus as someone we read in Scripture or do we see Him as someone we are to know? When we read Scripture, are we seeking to know and love Him more, and seeking to be a disciple that knows and loves Him?
Mark also mentions the time. “At sundown” meant the end of the Sabbath (Mark 1:32) and the people seemed to have heard of the miraculous healing and immediately sought Jesus as soon as they could. Mark also tells us that the whole city was gathered together at the door (Mark 1:33). This shows us the need of the people. The coming of the city pictures how His rule and reign had come and is continuing to grow.
Jesus healed and yet the irony was that the people did not really know him (Mark 1:34). The demons knew who He was, but He did not permit them to speak because His time had not yet come.
What will we do with a Jesus with this kind of authority? How will we respond to Him? What area of your life are you not willing to let Jesus rule and reign over? Tonight, prayerfully and carefully consider it, and remember that His rule and reign is gentle. He is not harsh and unkind, but is compassionate. He is a God we can trust. When we give up these things, we are not shortchanging ourselves but are submitting ourselves to the better rule and reign of this King. From Temple to Home, trust Jesus in every need.
(B) Depend on God and Preach the Gospel (Mark 1:35-39)
“Rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark”, Jesus goes to a desolate place to pray (Mark 1:35). Jesus did not sleep in or rest, but intentionally went out to pray. He prioritised prayer, and went out in order to not be distracted. Prayer is pouring out our heart to God, and Jesus was intentional to do so. In doing so, Jesus had true rest.
The disciples seem to imply that they needed to meet the needs of the people (Mark 1:36-37). Yet, Jesus was determined and focused on his true purpose — to preach (Mark 1:38). Notice also how Jesus was in Galilee. It is not the centre of religion or the capital — which was Jerusalem. Jesus also wanted to preach the word in this part, because the people there also needed to hear the word taught and preached. Mark tells us in Mark 1:39 that Jesus did what He intended to do. He peached and cast out demons to demonstrate His authority, so that people will see, hear and put their faith in Him.
Our greatest need is not always our felt need. Jesus is clear that the people needed the word of God taught and preached.
Jesus also prayed and depended on God! Prayer fuelled His mission and the preaching. Friends, we may not all go out and preach but we will all go out to share the gospel with people. We need to be dependent on God through prayer as we do so. We can turn to Him in our need and brokenness, and ask for the Spirit to enable us to share and hold out the gospel.
(C) Come to Jesus and Return to God’s People (Mark 1:40-45)
What condition does the man have, and what would that have meant for his life among God’s people? (v40,
c.f. Lev 13:2-3, 4-8, 45-46) What does he ask Jesus to do, and what do his words show about his faith in
Jesus?
A leper came to Jesus (Mark 1:40). Leviticus helps us understand the significance of this by explaining to us the problem of leprosy. The leper is to brought to the priest to be examined and for the priest to pronounce a verdict on the status (Lev 13:2-3). Leprosy is not just a skin disease, but has an implication on cleanliness.
The details in Leviticus 13:4-8 reveal a care that ensures the leprosy is not contagious or breaks out. The leper lives as an outcast in the community (Lev 13:45-46). His dressing is obvious and he has to warn those around him that he has leprosy too. He is also socially not to be with God’s people and participating in corporate life. The cleansing of a leper is also done by the priest, at the end of the disease (Lev 14:2-3).
This is what the people know of leprosy and informs the people’s understanding in Jesus’ day. The leper would have known this as he approached Jesus, and we see it in the way he speaks to Jesus — “If you will, you can make me clean” (Mark 1:40). He clearly understands that he is not clean and does not ask Jesus to heal him of his disease. He asks something more than just a restoration of physical health, but desires to be restored back to the life of God’s people. He understands that he is outside the camp and approaches Jesus, confident in His authority that He can do this.
Jesus is “moved with pity” (Mark 1:41a) and once more, we see Jesus’ compassion. He is certainly not cold and distant. Jesus also stretched out His hand and touched him (Mark 1:41b). This would have made Jesus unclean and God’s people would have avoided it according to the law! Jesus was not bothered by this. Touching an unclean man did not make Jesus unclean. Instead, Jesus drew near to this leper and also made him clean (Mark 1:42).
Jesus does not just have the ability to make one clean but also desires to do so. He wants us to lay aside our pride and ask Him to make us clean and acceptable before God. And immediately, the leprosy left him (Mark 1:42). This contrasts with the process of becoming clean in Leviticus 13-14, which involved a lot of observation and waiting. In fact, in Leviticus, the priest could only observe and could not make anyone clean. In contrast, Jesus has the power to make the man clean.
Jesus’ instructions to him in Mark 1:43-44 was not needed to make him clean, but it was necessary for him to do so to be restored to the people. This was in line with what was instructed in Leviticus 14. And Jesus also “sternly charged him and sent him away at once” (Mark 1:43). However, he went out and spoke about it and spread the news such that Jesus could not openly enter the town (Mark 1:46). The man disobeyed the law and Jesus’ words and as a result, in some sense, Jesus took the place of the leper, and is now outside the city in a desolate place.
The events here foreshadows what Jesus will eventually do. One is walking free and the other is outside the camp, isolated and away from God’s people. This is the picture of Christ on the cross — separated from God for the sins of the world, that we might be brought in to God’s people.
We are called to be a Christian to live with God’s people. We are meant to be a part of a local church, where people know who we are and we can know them. Jesus came not just to save us to be on our own, but to be back into God’s people.
Are there areas in your life that you find hard to bring under Jesus’ authority? How might Jesus be inviting you to receive his grace personally, and also to live more deeply among his people?