2.20.2015
Friday Mark 1:29-45 Jesus heals all kinds of
diseases
Jesus
begins His public ministry with healing both physical and mental illnesses. He
does not allow the demons to reveal His divine identity. This will be revealed
at the cross, when the centurion will confess Jesus as the Son of God.
Jesus
ministered with a personal touch. He took Peter’s mother-in-law, who was sick
with a fever, by the hand and “lifted her up.” He lifted her up to health. It
was the lift of love and compassion for a sick one. Here we have not only
compassion but also the power of Jesus to heal. Love always gives us a lift. A
lift from sickness to health. From despair to hope. From sin to holiness. From
death to life.
Jesus
is for every person of every nation of ever race. No one had a monopoly on
Jesus. We cannot keep Him to ourselves. Christ is as wide as the world. He
heals all diseases. Vs 32 He preaches to all cities. Vs.38 He is sought by
everyone. Vs.37 [2]
Jesus
authenticates His authority by superhuman deeds. The healing of a leper is a
cleansing. Like the exorcism of the man with an unclean spirit, Jesus heals a
man with an unclean body. Naaman, the Syrian general, was healed of leprosy
through the prophet Elisha (2 Kings 5:1-14). He would not have been cleansed if
he had continued in his rage of protest and only when he controlled himself by
dipping himself seven times in the Jordan was he headed. Likewise, there is
self-discipline in the leper’s obeying Jesus’ command to report to the priests
and make the necessary offering.
In
Jesus’ day, leprosy was a dreaded incurable disease. Similar to AIDS in the
early 1980’s. Because of modern medical science, leprosy, like smallpox, is no
longer a scourge. Leprosy was considered a symbol of sin. In this sense,
leprosy is relevant to this generation. Sin is an incurable “sickness unto
death,” a dreadful, disfiguring terminal illness, for “the wages of sin is death.” To be saved from spiritual death
requires a miracle by Christ, as was the miracle of healing a leper.[3]
In whom do you trust? Trust no one but
Christ. He is the One sent from the Father. He is the One who has a clear
message, “Repent, and believe in the
Gospel.” (Mark 1:9) He is the help
of the helpless. We come to Him, as helpless, needy, guilty people who cannot
have life with God apart from Him. We repent, and believe for He alone has a
message of hope, good news He is the only one lost sinners will ever need.
Support
us, O Lord, with your gracious favor through the fast we have begun; that as we
observe it by bodily self-denial, so we may fulfill it with inner sincerity of
heart; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the
Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.[4]
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