Mark 1: 29-34 - As soon as they left the synagogue, they went with James and John to the home of Simon and Andrew. Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they immediately told Jesus about her. So he went to her, took her hand and helped her up. The fever left her and she began to wait on them.
That evening after sunset the people brought to Jesus all
the sick and demon-possessed. The whole
town gathered at the door, and Jesus healed many who had various diseases. He
also drove out many demons, but he would not let the demons speak because they
knew who he was.
After having a promising start to his public ministry, Jesus
and his new disciples go to the home of Simon (Peter) and Andrew. Simon’s
mother-in-law was in bed sick, so Jesus went in to see her. He heals her sickness and evidently the word
spreads quickly. Soon the entire town is
at the door with all the sick and demon-afflicted. Jesus graciously heals them all. He drives out all the demons. The authority Jesus publicly established at
the synagogue is demonstrated in a more private setting. The point made here is that Jesus heals not
because it shows His authority (though it definitely does that?); he heals
because is moved with compassion for those sick and tormented.
In the New Testament, it is fairly common to come across
those afflicted by demons. Unless you
consider all the the horror-genre films of our present culture, this “demon talk”
causes a disconnect with us in the twenty-first century. But that need not be the case. Mental illness was not a term used in the
first century. The fields of psychology
and psychiatry will not be founded for another fifteen-hundred years. Mental illness is the term that we generally use
to describe the same people in those New Testament stories. Though I do not deny the existence of evil
spirits that torment humans, this is not the norm. That is why I use the term heal above to
address both the sick and tormented that Jesus encountered in this passage.
Truth be told, most of us human beings have our “demons.” We find ourselves mentally tormented by thoughts
and feelings that we can’t seem to control, much less cast out ourselves. The bridge between these kinds of passages
and our own time is that in Jesus’s compassion, He wants to heal us as well.
Question: How would
describe the “demons” that torment you?
Do you believe that Jesus can deliver you?
Prayer: Jesus cast
out and silence our demons – all that
torments us spiritually, mentally, and emotionally - all that keeps us from the life that is
truly life that you want for us. Heal us
and those we love by Your authority.
Amen.
Prayer Focus: Pray
for those you know that struggle with mental illness.
Song: Heal – Tom Odell
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