Discipleship 101: Finding Our Place in the Mission of God - Mark 1:29-34

 

Discipleship 101: Finding Our Place in the Mission of God

Mark 1:29-34

Introduction:  Looking back to the opening of Mark’s Gospel, Mark gave us something of a “thesis statement” that he has been expanding on in the first chapter: The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. The Jews were expecting a Messiah, a descendant of David who would lead them to a life of security and prosperity in the Land. But they had little understanding that this Rescuer would be One who would provide a much more profound deliverance: He would save them from their sins by making a way, actually by being the Way, for them to be reconciled to God.

       That sets the context. Many were rightly expecting the coming of Messiah, but they had a limited and inadequate, view of His nature. Jesus’ authority in the spiritual and physical realm revealed His identity: the kingdom was “at hand” because the King was present. Jesus presented himself in the synagogue at Capernaum and astonished those present by teaching, not as the scribes, but with authority. He showed his authority even further by speaking and casting out a demon. And now, in this passage, He shows His power to heal — His authority extends to the physical as well as the spiritual.

        Mark is not only telling us what happened, then and there, in the life of Jesus. He is calling on us, as readers of his Gospel in the 21^st century, to believe, and to follow Jesus.  Remember, God sovereignly chose to give us four accounts of the life and ministry of Jesus. He could have given us a single, exhaustive biography of the life and times of Jesus of Nazareth, but instead he gave us four gospels, written by different authors to different audiences, answering pastoral or theological questions that were relevant to them and their readers. In accordance with the inspiration of the Divine Author, each has a message that is relevant to us.  We have been approaching Mark’s gospel under the rubric of three primary questions that he is answering: 1) Who is Jesus? 2) Why did He come? And, 3) What does it mean to follow Him?  All three of those questions are not only important, they are essential if we are going to be a disciple of Jesus.

The BIG Idea: Jesus is the answer to the deepest need of every human, and He would use us to bring others to Himself. I’ve been calling this series “Discipleship 101.” Mark wants us to understand the basics of what it means to follow Jesus, to be His disciple. That starts with asking...

I. Is Jesus welcome in your home and in your life? Discipleship starts with welcoming Him. Simon and Andrew did! They brought Jesus to their home [oikos] where Peter’s mother-in-law lay sick (29, 30).

²⁹ And immediately he left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.  ³⁰ Now Simon's mother-in-law lay ill with a fever, and immediately they told him about her.

       They welcomed Him in their home.  The sequence is pretty emphatic. They went with Jesus to the synagogue, they heard Him teach with authority and they saw Him cast out a demon.  And then they went to the nearby home of two of them, Simon and Andrew. They welcomed Jesus, and also two of his other followers, James and John, into their home. It is easy for us to center our life around our career, or our hobbies, or even our family.  Yes, if you are a believer, Jesus is part of your life, of course. But is Jesus the center of your life?  How do you know? Do you spend time with Him daily? One of the means of grace God has given us is the Bible, His written Word. And another is prayer. Both of these take time. We speak to God in prayer, we listen, and meditate, and seek Him. We spend time in the Bible, reading, studying, reflecting. Does His presence guide you through the day? Do you repeatedly, without ceasing, utter prayers, seeking guidance or wisdom or help with what you are dealing with in your life? Is Jesus welcome in your home, or is that for Sunday, for church? These men invited Jesus not only into their home, but into their lives. And one who they loved was in need...

       They immediately “told Him about her...” These men had decided to follow Jesus. There was something about Him, about His teaching, about the call He extended to them, about the astounding authority He seemed to have in the spiritual realm. This was not simply a new or engaging rabbi that they were following! Could He be the One? Were they already thinking that perhaps Jesus could help Simon’s mother-in-law as they walked to the house? She was probably quite sick, unable even to get up from her sick bed and come to the door to great them as they arrived.  Immediately, “they told him about her.” 

       Now as we read the story, with a fuller sense of who Jesus was than the disciples had at that moment, do you think He needed them to tell Him about her? He is the eternal Son of God, surely He knew! But it was a step in their faith, even an opportunity for them to grow.  It was a preliminary opportunity to look to Jesus for help with something they had no power to address on their own. Peter’s mother-in-law was sick, really sick, and she needed help.  What about those in your home, your extended family, your friends and neighbors. What are their needs?  Have you gone to Jesus about them? Let’s take to heart our calling as a Royal Priesthood (I Pet 2:9) and intercede on behalf of our family, friends, and neighbors! If they don’t know Christ, that is their greatest need. Let’s tell HIM about them! Are we praying for those in our oikos? Yes, He already knows all about them, but we are called to pray. Do you agree that Jesus is the answer to the deepest need of every human?  He would use us to bring others to Himself! 

II. How is your “serve”? We are saved to serve: Jesus raised up Simon’s mother-in-law, and she began to serve (31). “And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them.”

       Let that sink in. Jesus raised her up, he healed her.  One thing that is striking about this miracle is that there is no request on the part of the woman, no action at all on her part as far as we know.  We don’t hear anything about her faith.  We don’t know much about her illness, but she is in bed, with a high fever, apparently unable even to rise to greet her house guests. Jesus comes to her, He takes her by the hand, and He lifts her up. Jesus did it all. And the fever “left her,” she was healed. As surely as the demon left the man in the synagogue, the fever leaves this sick woman. She is well. Notice that there was no recovery period, no action or preparation for what comes next, immediately, she began to “serve” them.

      At once, without any request, she began to serve. The sequence shows the immediacy: the fever left, she began to serve. Her action comes across as necessary and natural, without delay. What else could she do? How could she not serve? Sometimes, like the thief on the cross, God saves someone and immediately takes them to Heaven. Thank God for those last minute conversions! Most often, at least for a little while, He leaves us in this fallen world. Why? Because we have a part in His mission. It might not be immediately clear, but you can know He saved you on purpose for a purpose. Back in 1980, when as new Christian attending a “Jesus Festival” in Orlando, I heard Keith Philips of World Impact challenging the audience, it seemed he was speaking directly to me. He asked, “In view of what God has done for you, are you willing to allow Him to use you in whatever way He determines to use you?” I was clueless as to how God could use me, but I knew I owed Him everything, my life, my eternity. I had to be available to serve in whatever way He desired. So, I raised my hand at the invitation, “Here am I!”

       The word “serve” in our text in Mark is the verb diakoneo, a word used for serving at the table, but also used more broadly for “service” in general, the noun form of the same root is where we get the word “deacon.”  After Jesus’ gracious intervention in her life, after experiencing His healing touch, she served them. Has Jesus touched your life?  You might think, “I wasn’t sick!” Maybe not, but you were more than sick, you were dead in your trespasses and sins. He made you alive! Yet sometimes, even though we have been raised up by the Master, even though we have a new life, even though we’ve been “born-again,” even so we hesitate to serve, we hesitate to raise our hand and say, “Here am I, send me!”  He saved you on purpose, for a purpose.

       He has given you a gift to use for the edification of the body. How are you serving? If not, why not? God has designed us as a body. Each part is important, essential, to the proper working of the body. No one can do everything, but everyone can do something, if we belong to Him. Do you know your gift(s)? Are you engaged in serving? And we are all called to be His witnesses.  After all, Jesus is the answer to the deepest need of every human and He would use us to bring others to Him.

III. Jesus is the answer to the deepest needs for every person (32-34).

³² That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or oppressed by demons.  ³³ And the whole city was gathered together at the door. ³⁴ And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. And he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.

        They brought the needy to Jesus. “That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or oppressed by demons...” For most of the people, the motivation was simple: their friends needed help, and Jesus, this rabbi, or prophet, or whatever He was, seemed like He could help them. So they came, and they brought their loved ones to Jesus. They came at sundown, after the Sabbath had ended, looking for help from this remarkable teacher and miracle worker.  Did they have faith in Jesus? Did they know who He was? Probably not, at least not yet. But they loved those who were needy, and so they brought them, they came seeking help. It was worth a shot, they probably thought, others had failed but maybe He could help. The news about Him spread quickly!

      “The whole city was gathered at the door...” That is surely an example of Eastern hyperbole, a deliberate exaggeration to make a point. Not that every single person in town had come, but Mark is saying there was a huge crowd, from all groups and from all over the city.  His fame was spreading, word was getting out. And people came, looking for help, looking for hope. Could this be the One for whom they were waiting?

       He healed “many” and cast out “many” demons.  On other occasions it says that the multitudes came, and Jesus healed them all. Here is doesn’t say that, simply that He healed “many.” There were a lot of them!  By the way, we need to think about what Jesus was doing, and why He was doing it. He taught with authority. That was different. He healed, in some cases He healed people that were essentially without hope: a man born blind, a paralytic who hadn’t walked in nearly 40 years.  There was nothing psychosomatic here, these were genuine, uncontestable miracles!  What was going on? Later, John the Baptist, who is imprisoned, seeks to learn more about what is happening. We read this in Luke 7:19-22,

...And John, ¹⁹ calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, "Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?"  ²⁰ And when the men had come to him, they said, "John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, 'Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?'"  ²¹ In that hour he healed many people of diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many who were blind he bestowed sight.  ²² And he answered them, "Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them.

What is Jesus saying? He is saying that His works confirm His identity. He is showing by His actions a preliminary “glimpse” of the future kingdom. The prophets had spoken of the blind seeing and lame being healed. Jesus was showing He has all authority.  The day will come that Paul speaks of in Romans 8:16-24,  

...we are children of God,  ¹⁷ and if children, then heirs- heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.  ¹⁸ For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.  ¹⁹ For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God.  ²⁰ For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope  ²¹ that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.  ²² For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.  ²³ And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.  ²⁴ For in this hope we were saved.

      The day is coming when the curse will be undone, when there will be no more sickness or suffering, when Satan will be bound, and ultimately cast into the lake of fire, and when God himself will wipe away the tears from our eyes. Jesus came to provide the redemption that would make that day possible. But God had a plan, and the works Jesus did were a glimpse into the future, and a revelation that He is Yahweh, the God of the Bible. The people that He healed would one day get sick again, and eventually die. It is appointed unto men once to die...  The good news is that if we trust Christ, death does not have the last word!  For now, we pray as He taught us, “...thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven...” These people were bringing the sick and the demonized to Jesus.

       Do we hesitate to bring the “hard cases” to Jesus? The sick? That is easy, we’ll pray for anyone, no matter how sick they are. And we’ll hope for a miracle to the end. But is physical healing the greatest need of those in your “sphere of influence”? And what about the hard of heart? What about our sibling, or our cousin, who for 40 years has rejected the gospel? What about the spouse, who tolerates his wife’s faith, but has resisted making a personal commitment to Christ? What about your lifelong friend, who knew you before you were saved, and apparently is still just counting the days until you go back to your old ways? What about the wayward child, who grew up in the church but has seemingly gone the way of the world and is living like his or her unsaved friends?  One question: Is anything too hard for the Lord? Tell Jesus about them. In other words, pray. Pray for a softened heart, and pray for an open door, an opportunity to give a reason for the hope that is in you.

       P.S. Notice again, Jesus would not permit the demons to speak. We saw Him silence the demon in the synagogue and we’ll see Him consistently forbidding demons to speak. Why? He did not desire or want their testimony – When the time came, He would send His witnesses. That would be the work of His followers (see Acts 1:8)! Those who would testify would do so in faith, empowered by the Spirit.

What is God saying to me in this passage? Jesus is the answer to the deepest need of every human… and He would use us as He brings others to Himself.

What would God have me to do in response to this passage? You have heard about the person and the work of the Master. Do you believe in Him? Do you know Him?  Has he graciously, mercifully, brought healing to your soul? If so, will you serve Him?  If you know Him, and understand what He has done for you, you will love Him. And if you love Him, it will be a joy to serve Him. For every one of us that means recognizing that the Holy Spirit has given us a gift to use for the building up of the body.  

     He is the Potter, you are the clay, and He has given you a unique “S.H.A.P.E.”— (Remember Rick Warren’s acrostic: Spiritual gift(s) Heart’s desire, Abilities, Personality, Experiences). Just as a potter shapes a lump of clay, He has made you who you are, and He has a purpose for your life. Some may be called to be teachers, some might have a gift, like Barnabas, of encouragement. Others might be able to “help” or to “serve.” Are you a friendly, “people person”? Couldn’t you be a greeter, either officially or unofficially, making it your business to welcome people, especially visitors, to our church?  God has molded you into the person you are, and He desires that you have a part in His mission in the world. He has also called every one of us to be His witnesses. One near term opportunity is to invite someone, or several “some ones,” from your oikos for one of our church services. We hope to have a special service and a potluck lunch on July 3^rd… might that be a time to invite a neighbor or friend for whom you have been praying?

      Our lives are a testimony to those people that are around us, first of all, our family and closest friends, our neighbors and the people we work with or go to school with.   We are a witness right where we are at, right where God has placed us. The disciples told Jesus about Peter’s mother-in-law. We do that when we pray for those around us. It is a mystery, but God works through our prayers. He may soften the hearts of our loved ones to listen, and He may embolden our hearts to speak. He would use us in His mission, as He continues to build His church. Are you ready and willing to serve?  AMEN.