From the Pastor |
Mark 1: 29-39
Today’s gospel reading picks up right where we left off last week. Once again we experience the fast-paced, urgency that is typical of Mark. After demonstrating his power and authority by teaching in the synagogue and driving out a demon, Jesus goes with his disciples to Simon and Andrew’s home. There Simon’s mother-in-law is sick with a fever. Upon hearing this, Jesus goes to her… takes her hand and helps her up… At once she is healed and begins serving them. I would like to note here that no one asked him to heal her… there was no great display of faith on her part that would have brought her healing. Jesus simply heard she was sick and had compassion on her and healed her. “That evening after sunset” we are told the whole town came to the door bringing everyone who was “sick and demon-possessed.” The people had to wait until after sunset because they had to wait until the Sabbath had ended… but then they came and “Jesus healed many who had various diseases. He also drove out many demons…” I imagine it ended up being a pretty long day for Jesus, and yet Mark tells us that very early the next morning… while it was still dark, Jesus gets up and goes off alone to pray. He needed a break… some solitude to recharge and reconnect with the Father. However, the people have once again begun to gather and are looking for him… So his disciples decide to track him down… “and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!” But Jesus had other plans… he tells them “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” So they left and went traveling throughout Galilee preaching and driving out demons. I mean… wow! Mark packs so much into these 10 verses. But today I would like to look at something that really stood out to me this week. When the people all came to find Jesus after the Sabbath ended… Mark tells us that Jesus healed MANY… he also drove out MANY demons. Many… NOT all. Maybe it was getting too late… maybe he was tired… whatever the reason, there were still people who were NOT healed. So the next morning… people came back looking for him. They wanted more. But instead of going back and finishing the “job,” Jesus tells Simon and the others that it is time to leave and go to other villages. You know… It is kind of heard to hear that… I mean, there was still work to do. There were still people in pain… people who were sick or injured… people who were possessed. There were still people who were suffering… yet Jesus moves on. He leaves. I can only imagine what was going through the minds of those who had not been healed… at the very least they had to be wondering “What about me? It’s not fair.” But Jesus knew what he had to do… and that was NOT to stay and be the personal physician for this one town… Jesus’ mission was to bring the offer of salvation to everyone, not just to bring physical healing to some. Jesus had a clear mission… that was to announce that the kingdom of God was near and to bring his message of repentance and salvation to all people, far and wide. He came to oppose those forces that threatened life and the well-being of the people and healing was simply one method for doing that… but it was not his main purpose. Jesus’ preaching and healings… the exorcisms and even the challenges made towards the religious authorities all went towards a single purpose… to oppose anything that impeded the flourishing of life. Jesus knew that the people needed so much more than just physical or mental healing. They needed spiritual healing… they needed to repent and be reconciled with God. Listen again to what Jesus said… “Let us go somewhere else… so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” Once again Mark stresses the power of Jesus’ word. His was a message that needed to be heard… his message of repentance and forgiveness and love… and this message needed to be heard by people far and wide. Jesus came to announce God's Kingdom… to proclaim the Good News… His word could heal, and exorcize demons… but his word also had the power to make people whole, and reconcile them to God. This was the reason for his ministry… NOT to simply heal the body and the mind… but to bring reconciliation with God. Providing physical healing… Fixing every aspect of their earthly lives… That was not why Jesus came. It is also probably why so many of those who once cheered for him were willing to let him be put to death… after all, Jesus demonstrated that he wasn’t there to do what THEY wanted him to do. He was not there to drive out the Roman Empire… he was not there to heal every single ill or to make their lives perfect in every way. Jesus was not even there to found a new religion. Jesus was there to preach the Good News and to reveal the love God has for ALL of God’s creation. Unfortunately… this Good News required something in return. It required repentance and the need for each person to change themselves before they try to change others… This is just as true today as it was some 2000 years ago. When we or our loved ones are in need of healing… we search out Jesus… we go to him in our prayers… asking for healing to come. Many find the healing they need… Many but NOT all… and it sometimes has us wondering… “What about me? It isn’t fair.” We need to realize that Jesus is not simply our personal physician… that is not why he came. The healing miracles may heal the body or the mind. The miracles of Jesus symbolize the very presence of God’s kingdom in this world. They demonstrate the power of Christ and point to the God of love and the salvation that is offered, but they do not vanquish the power of sin and death. Salvation is so much more than physical or mental healing. Salvation is the ultimate healing because it DOES vanquish the power of sin and death and brings eternal life. Salvation is the healing that comes… not through miracles, but through the grace and love of God, and through the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. THIS is why Jesus came. Not to simply provide physical and mental healing… not to drive out our demons… but to share the power of God’s word and the salvation that is made possible through his life, death and resurrection. However… like the Good News that Jesus preached… our salvation requires something of us as well. We too need to repent and turn back to God… to be reconciled with God… transforming our lives with the knowledge that God loves us and forgives us and sets us free so that we can become the very best that we can be as we live out God’s Law of Love. Let’s face it… this is not easy for any of us. It requires conscious effort on our part. It is hard work that has us allowing God to change us… transforming us until we become a reflection of God’s love in this world. Preaching God’s word… delivering the message of God to as many people in as many places as possible was the reason for Jesus’ ministry… the healings were not the mission… they were but a demonstration of God’s love and power found in God’s word. Jesus came to bring an offer of salvation… he came to bring healing for this world… not only of illness, but also of oppression, injustice and evil. Now it is our turn. As Disciples of Christ... sharing the power of God's word is our job now. We are called to reveal the kingdom of God through our words and actions every day. If we are to consider ourselves Followers of Christ then we need to reassess our daily lives and ask ourselves… Do our words… do our actions bring God’s word, healing and love into the world? Do they challenge the systems of oppression, injustice and evil? Does the message we proclaim through word and deed help to usher in the kingdom of God? If the answer is no… then a change needs to be made in our lives because that is exactly what Jesus came to do. Amen.
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Yeon Shin
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