The Gospel of Mark Chapter 1:29-45 Healing of Peter’s Mother-in-Law 1:29 “And immediately after they had come out of the synagogue, they came into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John” Mark says that Jesus entered the house with Andrew, James, and John (1:29). Jesus was also told of this situation as He entered the home (Mark 1:30). The synagogue that Jesus had just been in was the synagogue in Capernaum (Luke 4:31), where He has just healed a man of demon-possession. 1:30 “Now Simon’s mother-in-law was lying sick with a fever; and immediately they spoke to Him about her” Peter was a married man. Years later, Peter is still a married man, for Paul notes that Peter and the rest of the apostles had believing wives who traveled with them (1 Corinthians 9:5); and Peter calls himself an “elder” (1 Peter 5:1), which means that he had to be the husband of one wife and have believing children (Titus 1:5-6). Of course, all of this really contradicts the claim that Peter was the first Pope and that the Pope, must be celibate.
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1:31 “And He came to her and raised her up, and taking her by the hand, and the fever left her, and she waited on them” Luke says that is fever was a “high fever “ (4:38). The ancient physicians distinguished fevers between great and small. This was a burning fever. The analytic imperfect implies that the fever was chronic, and the verb indicates that it was severe. Luke specifically notes that this just wasn’t a minor fever, but was a very serious situation. The fever was so severe that Peter’s mother-in-law was bedridden. Jesus simply speaks the word, and she is healed. Jesus healed her so completely with just an authoritative word that, although she had been suffering from a great fever, which leaves one weak, worn-out and exhausted, she immediately arose and starting serving those present. When Jesus healed someone there wasn’t any time needed for recovery, the cure was immediate and complete, as if the person had never been sick. In addition, this part of Galilee, in the vicinity of Capernaum was known for Malarious fevers. “The quantity of marshy land in the neighborhood, especially at the entrance of the Jordan into the lake, has made fever of a very malignant type at times the characteristic of the locality” (Hours with the Bible, Geikie). 1:32 “And when evening had come, after the sun had set, they began bringing to Him all who were ill and those who were demon-possessed” This had been a Sabbath day (4:31), and at sunset the Sabbath ended. “The multitudes waited until sunset because the tradition of the elders interpreted the command to do no work on the Sabbath day as meaning among other things, that they could not carry a burden (like a sick friend) on the Sabbath” (Foster p. 419). In addition, the Sea of Galilee and the cities which were situated on its shores, such as Capernaum, all sat in a basin. This basin would become very hot and muggy during the day and at sunset it would finally get a breath of fresh, cool air. Hence, at sunset there would be a renewal of activity around the lake. “On that evening no one in Capernaum thought of business, pleasure or rest” (Edersheim p. 487). Mark is making the point that the two previous miracles mentioned were not isolated cases. Jesus healed everyone who was brought to Him. Jesus could 2
have simply healed everyone in town without anyone coming, but He never did this. Only those who showed up were rewarded. 1:33 “And the whole city had gathered at the door” 1:34 “And He healed many who were will with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He was not permitting the demons to speak, because they knew who He was” As we previously noted in other lessons, Jesus cannot become too popular too soon, for this would hinder His work. In addition, testimony from demons was not the most flattering evidence of His true identity. Yes, what they said was true, but they were also rebels and liars. In addition, Jesus’ enemies would claim that He cast out demons by the power of the devil. Thus, Jesus is making it clear that He has nothing in common with them. Rather, He would demonstrate His authority by His teaching and His deeds. 1:35 “And in the early morning, while it was still dark, He arose and went out and departed to a lonely place, and was praying there” In other situations Jesus would equally seek God privately in prayer (Mark 6:46; 14:32-41). Jesus viewed prayer as very important for preparing oneself for the next challenge. The Sea of Galilee was surrounded by some desolate places. 1:36 “And Simon and his companions hunted for Him” 1:37 “And they found Him, and said to Him, ‘Everyone is looking for You’” Mark uses a term that means to “track someone down”, and it looks like to took a while and some effort to find Jesus. Peter and the other disciples assume that Jesus will be happy that everyone is looking for him and appear to be puzzled as to why Jesus would avoid this popularity. “The disciples saw a multitude seeking Jesus for various causes: some to hear, some for excitement, some for curiosity. To satisfy the people seemed to them to be Christ’s first duty. Jesus understood His work better than they. He never encouraged those who sought Him through mere curiosity or admiration (John 6:27). Capernaum accepted the benefit of His miracles, but rejected His call to repentance (Matthew 11:23)” (McGarvey p. 173). 3
1:38 “And He said to them, ‘Let us go somewhere else to the towns nearby, in order that I may preach there also; for that is what I came out for’” Jesus knows that others need to hear the gospel and see the miracles, in addition, the motivations of the people in Capernaum might be shallow, that is, just coming to be healed, but not to repent. Miracles and healings were great, but the primary purpose was to heal men’s souls through preaching. Viewing Jesus was a wonder-worker was not enough. “The towns nearby”: Galilee was more rural than Judea, but it was thickly populated. There were many towns around the lake that had at least 15,000 inhabitants in the time of Christ. Healing of the Leper 1:39 “And He went into their synagogues throughout all Galilee, preaching and casting out the demons” What He had down in Capernaum, He repeated in many other Galilean cities. Many people were given the chance to both hear Him and see the power of God in His miracles. 1:40 “And a leper came to him, beseeching Him and falling on his knees before Him, and saying to Him, ‘If You are willing, You can make me clean’”: One of the proofs that Jesus is Divine, and was certainly God even while He was on earth is that He accepted worship. When men tried to worship angels or apostles, they were promptly told to worship only God (Acts 10:26; Revelation 22:8-9). Yet Jesus never corrected people when they paid homage to Him, in fact, He stated that all men must honor Him just as they honor the Father (John 5:23). “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean”: What a wonderful attitude. “This humble submission, placing his own sad case completely into the hands of Jesus just as a true child of God must always place himself into God’s hands….This leper is willing, if Jesus shall so will, to remain in his living death. Submissive faith can go no farther” (Lenski pp. 318-319). Do we have faith like this, that we are willing to submit cheerfully to God’s ordering of our lives, even if such ordering involves suffering on our part? Here is a good example for the attitude that we need to have when approaching God in prayer (Luke 22:42). “Instead of keeping 4
his distance from Jesus, as the law demanded, the leper came directly to him and fell down on his knees to make his plea. He had no doubt that Jesus could heal him. He only wondered whether Jesus was willing. Sometimes it is easier to believe in God’s power than in His mercy” (Gaebelein p. 630). 1:41 “And moved with compassion, He stretched out His hand, and touched him, and said to him, ‘I am willing; be cleansed’” Luke notes that this man was “full of leprosy” (Luke 5:12). Here was a man in the final stages of the disease, a man who was in a hopeless condition. Leprosy was a long-lasting disease, untreated cases may be sick from ten to twenty years, death occurring from the disease itself. Being full of leprosy meant that his flesh in various places, like fingers and toes had dropped off, and raw sores were spreading all over this body. When Jesus healed him all of this instantly changed, and it was as if he never had the disease. “All modern ‘healing’ fades into nothing in comparison with this omnipotent deed of Jesus” (Lenski p. 320). Jesus actually touched this man. Leprosy was contagious, but Jesus demonstrates that He had power even over contagious diseases. Jesus wasn’t afraid of this loathsome disease. Notice the brevity used to describe this miracle. “No ordinary writer of any age would be satisfied with such brevity” (Lenski p. 320). It has been argued that in touching the leper, Jesus was made legally unclean until the evening (Leviticus 13:46; 11:40). Yet this was no ordinary touch, this was a touch to heal and when Jesus touched him he was immediately cured. The healing and the touch were simultaneous. 1:41 “Moved with compassion”: Jesus saw so many people who were suffering and yet He never became numb or callous. In spite of all the suffering He had seen, He was still moved with compassion for this man. So no matter how many people are on this planet and all their problems, God still cares about me and my problems. 1:42 “And immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed”: His power over various diseases and the demons is equally immediate. This is also something that everyone present would “see”. 5
1:43 “And He sternly warned him and immediately sent him away”: Too much publicity too soon would hinder Jesus’ preaching, and the multitudes did not need any encouragement (Luke 4:42). If a person can really heal then they don’t need any advertising! Jesus has to keep the healing from crowding out His preaching, else His ministry would degenerate into a social gospel for the bodies of men, while leaving their souls in sin. “To say that Jesus meant the man to tell—that the warning was encouragement to tell, it would have Jesus invite the man to disobedience to secure His own ends” (Foster p. 424). 1:44 “But he went out and began to proclaim it freely and to spread the news about, to such an extent that Jesus could no longer publicly enter a city, but stayed out in unpopulated areas; and they were coming to Him from everyone” Here appears to be the explanation as to why Jesus had been so stern to the previous man. Jesus knew that the man really wanted to tell “his story”, and this would hinder Jesus’ ability to come and go. Observe that the man did not tell a person here and there, rather, he “freely” blurted out to everyone what Jesus did for him. We are not given the inward motivations of the man, he clearly disobeyed Jesus. Yet, even if his motivations were ‘good’, he still hindered Jesus. We need to learn the lesson. When people disobey God—yet argue extenuating circumstances or a good heart—they are still hindering the gospel. In fact, some of the most dangerous people in the world are people who look like they are going things for a good reason—and yet are teaching error or disobeying God. 1:44 “They were coming to Him”: Even though Jesus had to stay away from the urban areas, people still found Him despite the inconvenience, trouble and time. Yet remember, many were seeking Him for a healing rather than for salvation.
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