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Jesus Heals the Sick

September 19, 2007

 Bob Bradley

_________________________ 

Mark 1:28-31

 

28 And immediately his fame spread abroad throughout all the region round about Galilee.

29 And forthwith, when they were come out of the synagogue, they entered into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.

30 But Simon's wife's mother lay sick of a fever, and anon they tell him of her.

31 And he came and took her by the hand, and lifted her up; and immediately the fever left her, and she ministered unto them.

 

It is an awesome thing that is happening here.  Jesus has come to Capernaum.  Capernaum was a city over on the Sea of Galilee.  The Bible testifies that Capernaum was a place where Jesus did most of His mighty works.  It was a city of two or three hundred thousand people.  It was a great big place.  We know that Peter lived here and had a house here.  We know that Jesus came and used Peter's house for the headquarters of His ministry when He was in this area. 

 

Last week we talked about a fellow that as Jesus was teaching in the synagogue, this guy had an unclean spirit.  That means that they had a guy who came to church with them, who was in the synagogue with them, and who was demon possessed.  We know that when Jesus quits speaking, or when He gets through with His teaching, the demons that are within this fellow had a conversation with Jesus.  We know that the ultimate end here is that Jesus commanded the unclean spirit to come out of this guy. 

 

He told him to hold his peace and shut his mouth.  We know that the Bible says as the evil spirit is coming out, he threw the guy on the ground and he began to convulse and have spasms.  He had to let loose.  The demons that were in this fellow when Jesus commanded him to come out, had to come out.  That is awesome to think about.  Greater is He that is in us than He that is in the world. 

 

Not only that, but Jesus, the one that we serve today, the one that sits on the right hand side of the throne in heaven tonight, even though that satan may have a lot of power, it is nothing compared to our Savior tonight. 

 

When Jesus says that he has to get out, then he has to get out.  He may rebel.  He may not want to do that.  He may want to hold on as long as he can, but when Jesus says he has got to go, then he has got to go.  He does that. 

 

This guy had been in the synagogue, and people knew him.  When this happened, the Bible says that they were astonished.  They were just flabbergasted that even the unclean spirits were obedient unto Jesus.  That tells me that they had to know this guy was unclean.  They had to know this guy was possessed with devils.  I do not know what all he may have done.  The people in this synagogue, on this day, knew that this guy had just been cleansed.  They knew that the evil spirits were cast out of him.  When they saw that, it was an amazing for them and they made the statement, that even the unclean spirits are subject unto Him.  They were just amazed.

 

As we read in verse 28:

 

28 And immediately his fame spread abroad throughout all the region round about Galilee.

 

When this happened, the demons that were controlling him, when they were cast out then the fame of this teacher, the fame of Jesus Christ starts going everywhere. 

 

I do not want to downplay anything with what I am going to say.  Today, we hear a lot about people being healed.  If you would follow those around that say they got healed; they did not actually get healed. 

 

If God heals me from cancer, I am not going to die of cancer next week.  Whether you like that, or whether you do not, when God does something, He does not just do something for a week.  When God does something, He does something. 

 

I know that God heals.  I am not downplaying that at all.  I know that for sure.  I also know that not everybody who says they are healed gets healed.  I also know that when somebody is healed their life changes. 

 

This guy was demon possessed, but I guarantee you that when he left church on this day, his life was different.  In addition, as he walked through life, his life was different. 

 

When people heard that evil spirits were subject unto Him; His fame went everywhere. 

 

If you truly could go and lay your hands on someone to raise them from the dead, what would you be doing tonight?  If you could go and lay your hands on someone and heal those who are dying of cancer; where would you be tonight?  You would not be here, would you?  You also would not be renting coliseums that hold fifty thousand people, and charging people $1,800 to sit on the front rows.  You would not be having a prayer line that cost $500 for people to get in.  If you could actually lay your hands upon somebody to heal them, you would not be doing those things because you love people.  If you could really change people's lives today, you would go from hospital to hospital and from rest home to rest home; you would be going everywhere if you could really do that.  You cannot do that and there is not a man on planet earth today that can do that either.  I do not care who they are.  I do not care what you might see on TV.  I do not care what they may tell you.  There is not a man on planet earth today that can lay his hand on you and heal you.  If you believe that, you are wrong.  You are going to be deceived.  It does not happen that way.

 

Jesus Christ heals.  He heals people.  Why He heals some and others He does not, I do not have a clue.  You, or me being healed does not depend on what I give to somebody monetarily.  It does not depend on laying my hand on a radio, or laying your hand on a TV set; now that is stupid.  If you do that, it is your own business.  I believe that some of you must do that.  I am not downplaying that at all. 

 

29 And forthwith, when they were come out of the synagogue, they entered into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.

 

They have been to the synagogue.  We know that the synagogue is not the temple because they offered scarifies in the temple.  The synagogue was a place of prayer.  It was a place of worship.  It was a place where they read scriptures.  It was a place of teaching.  They had been to church. 

 

Sometimes we do not understand what we miss when we do not come to church. 

 

They had been to worship.  Jesus had been teaching.  When He gets through teaching, the man is healed.  The Bible says His fame went throughout the whole region.  When He leaves synagogue, Peter has asked the Lord to go home with him. 

 

Isn't it amazing when we come to the house of God to worship, that we can take Him home with us.  That is great.  When we come to His house, to worship Him, when I leave here, I do not have to leave Him here.  He goes home with us. 

 

When I take Him home with me, then there are things that happen.  We miss a lot sometimes because we do not come to church.  If Peter, Andrew, James and John had not been to synagogue, on this particular day, then some things in Peter's house would have never changed.  I can say a lot about mothers-in-law.  I would get some A-men’s.  Also, I would get some funny looks. 

 

29 And forthwith, when they were come out of the synagogue, they entered into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.

30 But Simon's wife's mother lay sick of a fever, and anon they tell him of her.

 

That tells me Peter had a wife.  If he had a mother-in-law, then he had to have a wife.  They come to the house..."anon" that means that soon after they get to the house, they tell Jesus about Peter's wife's mother.  They have been to the synagogue.  They have asked Jesus to go home with them.  Since He is going to go home with them, then there is the possibility here that some things in this house are going to change for the better because He is there. 

 

Wherever Jesus is at, there is a great possibility that things are going to be done.  Wherever Jesus Christ is at, we need to understand that there is going to be some good things that are going to take place.  They would have never saw that, they would have never knew that, and they would have never experienced this, had they stayed home this particular night. 

 

They come to the house and she is sick.  When I read this in the original manuscripts, it tells me that this woman was sick.  This woman had more than sinus problems.  This woman was sick.  The Bible says that she had a fever.

 

Everybody here has had a fever.  Fevers are caused by some kind of infection.  She has a great fever.  Soon after they get there, when Peter brings Jesus home with him, they come and tell Him that Peter's mother-in-law was sick.

 

He has been teaching.  Just a few short days before this, Peter, Andrew, James and John have just totally and completely surrendered their life to Him.  Now they have been saved before that.  In other words, they have recognized who the Messiah was before that.  Here they had completely surrendered to the call into full time ministry for Jesus. 

 

They go to synagogue.  Now they come home.  Peter has a problem with his mother-in-law and she needed help.  There is one thing worse than a mother-in-law, and that is a sick mother-in-law; especially if she is living in your own house.  Because Jesus was there these guys knew there was hope because of Jesus' presence being in this house, there is hope.  Where Jesus Christ is there is hope.

 

Look what happens here. 

 

31 And he came and took her by the hand, and lifted her up; and immediately the fever left her, and she ministered unto them.

 

I would say, when you read customs and things about customs, I would say that probably, Peter might have felt a little uncomfortable because someone in the house was sick.  When she is healed here, she gets up and cooks them something to eat.  Probably there was nothing prepared in the house because of the sickness that was here. 

 

If you got someone that is in your house that is real sick, the last thing that you want to do is entertain company.  The last thing that you would want to be doing is taking time from your mother-in-law to prepare something to eat because you would want to take care of those that were sick. 

 

"...he came and took her by the hand..."

 

They tell Jesus that this woman is sick and she has a fever.  He did not go in and ask her a bunch of questions.  He did not ask her if she had sinned.  He did not ask her if she went to church.  He did not go in and ask her how much she threw into the treasury.  He did not ask any of those questions.  He goes in and takes this woman by the hand. 

 

As you read this, it brings in my mind, as a doctor would go into a hospital room and look at a patient lying on a bed.  This is what Jesus was actually doing.  He was not examining her, because he knew exactly what was wrong with her.  We know that He is the great physician.  How that He goes about healing people is none of my business.  Sometimes He touched people when He healed them.  Sometimes He spoke the word.  Sometimes they were in His presence and sometimes they were many miles away.  When Jesus Christ heals people and how He does it; that is His own business. 

 

"...he...took her by the hand, and lifted her up..."

 

There are many things that I don't know, but I can read in the scriptures one time when He went into a city where there was a dead boy in a coffin.  He just reached down and took him by the hand and He sat up.  There is power in His presence and in His touch.  There is power. 

 

I am glad when He comes along and touches this old boy.  I am glad when He is there and you know He is there.  I am glad for that touch because that gives me strength.  That gives me the power to be able to deal with life and what life brings everyday.  His touch, His presence, and His hand brings many things in our lives.

 

"...lifted her up; and immediately..."  He did not give her penicillin.  He did not give her any antibiotics.  The Bible says that immediately the fever left her.  Absolutely, totally and completely gone, immediately. 

 

Isn't that great when He touches us that things change instantly.  There are things that we may pray about for many years, but when the touch comes, things change immediately.

 

When we get saved, I may pray for fifteen minutes, or I may have prayed for fifteen days in a row.  When I surrendered my life to the Lord and the touch came, it was immediate. 

 

31 And he came and took her by the hand, and lifted her up; and immediately the fever left her, and she ministered unto them.

 

That means that He took her by the hand.  The Bible says that immediately the fever was gone.  She gets up, goes to the kitchen, and starts cooking. 

 

When your fever breaks, the last thing that you feel like doing is cooking dinner for a whole bunch of fishermen.  When this woman was healed, she goes to work.  When Jesus touches this woman and cures her, she begins to minister.  Minister means to work, to labor. 

 

When Jesus saves us, He saves us to minister, or work for Him.  Do you know why many people are not healed today?  They pray and ask God to heal them, but they may not be healed.  It is not because you don't have enough faith.  The bible does not say anything about her faith.  God healed her.  If they actually got healed they would not have anything to complain about.  They would not have an excuse at all for not working for Him.  If God has saved you and God has healed you, then God expects you to do something for Him. 

 

Jesus healed this woman and the first thing that she did was she went to work. 

 

When our lives are changed, God expects us to go to work.  He is doing some great things and we need to be working for Him.

 

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