WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.320 Good morning. My name is Matthew Capone, and I'm the pastor here at Cheyenne Mountain 00:00:05.320 --> 00:00:10.120 Presbyterian Church, and it's my joy to bring God's Word to you today. A special welcome if 00:00:10.120 --> 00:00:14.339 you're new or visiting with us. We're glad that you're here, and we're glad that you're here not 00:00:14.339 --> 00:00:19.460 because we're trying to fill seats, but because we're following Jesus together as one community. 00:00:20.140 --> 00:00:24.320 And as we follow Jesus together, we become convinced that there's no one so good they 00:00:24.320 --> 00:00:28.900 don't need God's grace, and no one so bad they can't have it, which is why we come back week 00:00:28.899 --> 00:00:33.219 after week to hear what God has to say in His Word, because we believe that God has something 00:00:33.219 --> 00:00:39.320 to say to everyone. We're continuing our series in the Gospel of Mark. You'll remember that the 00:00:39.320 --> 00:00:45.539 Gospels tell the story of Jesus and His life and His death and His resurrection, and you'll also 00:00:45.539 --> 00:00:51.079 remember that when we talk about Jesus, we are not talking about an idea or a theory or an abstraction 00:00:51.079 --> 00:00:57.060 or a mythological figure, but we're talking about a real man who came to this earth in real time and 00:00:57.060 --> 00:01:04.159 real space. He was born in Bethlehem, five miles south of Jerusalem. He grew up in Nazareth, 64 to 65 00:01:04.159 --> 00:01:10.260 miles north of Jerusalem. He had four brothers. He had at least two sisters. He worked jobs because he 00:01:10.260 --> 00:01:15.359 needed to make money to feed himself. When he didn't work jobs, other people supported him. Jesus was a 00:01:15.359 --> 00:01:22.960 real person. He walked in this world. Jesus was hungry, like you might get hungry. Jesus needed to drink 00:01:22.959 --> 00:01:29.119 water. All of those things are true as we come. To talk about Jesus in this morning, we are going to 00:01:29.119 --> 00:01:34.139 come to an important portion in the Gospel of Luke because we are going to see Jesus' first healing. And 00:01:34.139 --> 00:01:39.039 healings are important, but firsts are also important. There's something significant about this being the 00:01:39.039 --> 00:01:44.979 one that Mark chooses to tell us about first. And so as we come to this, I'm going to ask what is a harsh 00:01:44.980 --> 00:01:54.760 question. Jesus heals someone in this passage. Who cares? Why should it matter to us here in 2021? 00:01:55.120 --> 00:02:01.480 Jesus is not here with us physically. We can't visit him right now to have him heal us. Man, it's really 00:02:01.480 --> 00:02:07.180 great that that happened to the people in this story. Jesus' earthly ministry is over. He is now seated at the 00:02:07.180 --> 00:02:14.800 right hand of God the Father in the heavenly places. Why then for us, how for us, is this anything more 00:02:14.800 --> 00:02:19.520 than a nice story? That's my harsh question for us this morning. And with that, we're going to jump 00:02:19.520 --> 00:02:25.820 right in. We're in the Gospel of Mark chapter 1. We're starting at verse 29. And I invite you to turn 00:02:25.820 --> 00:02:30.880 there with me. You can turn in your worship guide. You can turn in your Bible. You can turn on your 00:02:30.880 --> 00:02:36.240 phone. Remember, no matter where you turn, that this is God's Word. God tells us that His Word is more 00:02:36.240 --> 00:02:42.740 precious than gold, even the finest gold. And it is sweeter than honey, even honey that comes straight from 00:02:42.740 --> 00:02:45.780 the honeycomb. And so that's why we read now, starting at verse 29. 00:02:47.120 --> 00:02:53.460 And immediately he left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John. 00:02:54.340 --> 00:03:01.200 Now Simon's mother-in-law lay ill with a fever, and immediately they told him about her. And he came 00:03:01.200 --> 00:03:06.960 and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them. 00:03:06.960 --> 00:03:08.760 Verse 32. 00:03:08.759 --> 00:03:34.099 I invite you to pray with me as we come to this portion of God's Word. Our Father in Heaven, we 00:03:34.099 --> 00:03:40.819 thank you. We ask that we would never take for granted that you do speak to us clearly in your 00:03:40.819 --> 00:03:47.639 Word, that you haven't left us to piece things together, but instead, like a good and wise Father, 00:03:47.759 --> 00:03:51.780 you instruct us and you help us. We ask that simply you would do that this morning, that you would 00:03:51.780 --> 00:03:58.139 instruct us and that you would help us, that you would show us our need for your grace, and you would 00:03:58.139 --> 00:04:05.219 show us how you meet us at that very same point of need. We thank you that you do this, not because 00:04:05.219 --> 00:04:10.659 we're good or great, but because Jesus is. And so we ask these things in his name. Amen. 00:04:15.459 --> 00:04:22.039 During my time as a pastor, my very short time, and also just in my own family, I've learned, 00:04:22.040 --> 00:04:29.120 perhaps the hard way, that any time you have a major medical issue, you'll find yourself with a 00:04:29.120 --> 00:04:34.800 full-time job. And that full-time job is the job of interacting with doctors and with insurance 00:04:34.800 --> 00:04:40.040 companies. And even if you don't have that battle, there's probably going to be all other sorts of 00:04:40.040 --> 00:04:44.820 battles, right? There's an agony. There's this agony of finding solutions to things when you have a 00:04:44.820 --> 00:04:49.879 health problem. Maybe you're hunting. You're trying to find the right diagnosis, right? Maybe you have 00:04:49.879 --> 00:04:54.959 found the right diagnosis, but it's chronic. It's permanent. You know this is something that you're 00:04:54.959 --> 00:04:59.759 going to have to face for the rest of your life. Maybe you find the right diagnosis. The problem is 00:04:59.759 --> 00:05:05.699 you can't find the right doctor. Maybe you find the right doctor, and the problem is he doesn't have 00:05:05.699 --> 00:05:12.219 an opening for another six months. And that's the only person, the best person, who can help you. 00:05:12.300 --> 00:05:18.540 There is a powerlessness that comes at times. There's a despair that comes at times with being a person in 00:05:18.540 --> 00:05:24.520 this world who has a body. Okay, that's the reality of life in this world. There is an anger, a despair, 00:05:24.620 --> 00:05:30.200 a helplessness that comes with these things. Now, don't hear what I'm not saying. I'm a huge fan of 00:05:30.200 --> 00:05:35.400 modern medicine. I'm so glad God has given us doctors, right? I'm so glad he's given us dentists. 00:05:35.759 --> 00:05:47.240 Praise God. And even in 2021, we have not escaped our humanity, right? We have not escaped the ravages of 00:05:47.240 --> 00:05:53.819 evil on our bodies. And so we know how challenging it is. Now, there's some things that are different 00:05:53.819 --> 00:06:00.220 for us about the people in this passage, right? If it's challenging for us, imagine how much more 00:06:00.220 --> 00:06:07.819 challenging it was for people in Jesus' time, right? We face difficulty. Think about how much more 00:06:07.819 --> 00:06:13.460 difficult it was for them, okay? They didn't have the same medical care that we do, so in some ways, 00:06:13.459 --> 00:06:21.000 it was very different. In other ways, it is pretty much the same deal, right? And what I mean by that 00:06:21.000 --> 00:06:28.620 is we too would still welcome someone who's able to heal with a touch. We in this room would still be 00:06:28.620 --> 00:06:34.859 excited about someone who's able to get rid of our medical problems just by touching us. Even all the 00:06:34.859 --> 00:06:40.879 advances we have seen in 2,000 years doesn't prevent us from that, right? We are still human. We still live 00:06:40.879 --> 00:06:46.360 with the problems of this world. And so we understand what's happening here in this passage. 00:06:46.500 --> 00:06:51.759 In verse 29, it tells us we are on the same day that Jesus cast out this demon. It tells us he left 00:06:51.759 --> 00:06:56.399 the synagogue immediately. He enters the house of Simon and Andrew. You'll remember from last week, 00:06:56.420 --> 00:07:02.339 he's in Capernaum. That's his base of operations. Simon and Andrew have a house there, and we can guess 00:07:02.339 --> 00:07:08.459 or assume this house is probably Jesus' base of operations within his base of operations. This is most 00:07:08.459 --> 00:07:12.819 likely where Jesus is staying and is operating out of. And so he's coming back from the synagogue. 00:07:13.139 --> 00:07:18.379 Probably Jesus is coming back for lunch, right? What do you want to do after church, especially after 00:07:18.379 --> 00:07:24.379 you've preached? Jesus probably wants to eat. He's probably hungry. He just cast out a demon. I mean, 00:07:24.399 --> 00:07:30.759 can you imagine how many calories you burn when you cast out a demon? It's probably a lot. I've never 00:07:30.759 --> 00:07:36.099 done it. I've never counted it. But my guess is the number is up there. So Jesus is coming back. 00:07:36.100 --> 00:07:40.439 In fact, it's lunchtime. What does he find? Well, verse 30, Simon's mother-in-law is sick 00:07:40.439 --> 00:07:44.939 with a fever. Now for us with modern medicine, we might think this isn't such a big deal, 00:07:45.140 --> 00:07:49.640 but we happen to have a lot of ancient literature that tells us about what it was like to have a 00:07:49.640 --> 00:07:53.640 fever in the ancient world and what people thought about it. And we know two things. First, 00:07:53.920 --> 00:07:59.760 for many people, the perception was that a fever was pretty close to being given a death sentence. 00:08:00.300 --> 00:08:05.879 Not always, but often enough that it was very feared. In fact, people would use 00:08:05.879 --> 00:08:10.079 fevers as something they would try to curse someone with to get back at them. So we know 00:08:10.079 --> 00:08:14.920 that, first of all, fever is very serious. He comes back to the house. There's most likely an 00:08:14.920 --> 00:08:20.180 emergency here. We also know not just that it's very serious, but that body posture matters. So in 00:08:20.180 --> 00:08:26.620 verses 30 and 31, we see that this woman is laying ill with a fever. Jesus has to lift her. 00:08:27.279 --> 00:08:32.440 The understanding would be that if someone were lying down with a fever, it was at an advanced stage. 00:08:32.440 --> 00:08:41.160 Things were bad. Their odds of coming back to life, of recovering, are very low. So Jesus comes back 00:08:41.160 --> 00:08:46.900 here from performing a great wonder. He comes back from casting out a demon. Here, there is someone who 00:08:46.900 --> 00:08:54.560 is potentially about to die. So the question is this, what is Jesus going to do? We have seen his power 00:08:54.559 --> 00:09:02.819 in casting out this demon. Does he also have the power to heal? How extensive is his authority? 00:09:02.959 --> 00:09:08.739 Remember, last week was all about authority. The question was, who is this? Even the demons obey him. 00:09:09.859 --> 00:09:14.939 And this is a very short passage here, so the question is answered very quickly. Verse 30, they tell 00:09:14.939 --> 00:09:21.059 Jesus what the problem is. Jesus enters the room. Verse 31, he comes. He takes her by the hand. 00:09:21.059 --> 00:09:25.799 We're wondering what's going to happen as he lifts her. There's the climax of the story here, and then quickly 00:09:25.799 --> 00:09:32.119 the resolution. She is able to stand up. The fever leaves her, and she begins to serve them. 00:09:33.639 --> 00:09:38.979 Very simple, right? Jesus faces this problem. The question is, does he have the power? The answer is yes, 00:09:39.279 --> 00:09:44.939 he does. Remember, our two questions for the Gospel of Mark are, who is Jesus, and how do we respond to him? 00:09:44.940 --> 00:09:52.240 In this, we begin again to see who Jesus is. He is the king, remember, who has come to restore his kingdom 00:09:52.240 --> 00:10:00.300 in every way. And so, of course, he's going to be performing miracles. He's going to be healing people 00:10:00.300 --> 00:10:08.380 because sickness is one of the ways that sin has twisted and distorted this world. So, Jesus' ministry, 00:10:08.460 --> 00:10:14.360 his ministry of healing the sick and casting out demons, they are separate but related. Demons and 00:10:14.360 --> 00:10:20.620 sickness are not the same thing. This woman is not possessed. But Jesus is demonstrating his power 00:10:20.620 --> 00:10:27.899 to restore his world in every way. He is showing his power over every kind of evil. 00:10:29.620 --> 00:10:34.379 Now, we get to make many things of Jesus' miracles. Yes, of course, they're authenticating his message. 00:10:34.820 --> 00:10:40.360 Yes, they're showing his power, and they're doing much more than that. Jesus is showing us what the 00:10:40.360 --> 00:10:46.840 world was meant to be and what it will be one day. Imagine, for example, I heard this story recently 00:10:46.840 --> 00:10:52.779 of someone who was a renter. They rented out their house, right? They were so excited because this was 00:10:52.779 --> 00:10:58.500 going to be a way to generate income. The renters left. They showed back up to the house. What did they 00:10:58.500 --> 00:11:05.279 spend all that income on? All the repairs, all the things that had been damaged by the people in the house, 00:11:05.279 --> 00:11:13.939 right? What did they do? Of course, they repaired it. It's their house. Of course, Jesus heals people who 00:11:13.939 --> 00:11:22.980 are sick. Of course, he casts out demons. It's his world. He has come back. He has returned to fix and 00:11:22.980 --> 00:11:32.159 heal his kingdom because he's a great king. That is who Jesus is. The king has come to restore his 00:11:32.159 --> 00:11:40.159 kingdom. He is so powerful that he has the holistic power, the overarching power to end the rule of sin 00:11:40.159 --> 00:11:48.719 and death in this world. And so that's another answer for us about who Jesus is. He is coming to 00:11:48.719 --> 00:11:55.500 restore everything. But you'll remember, I asked this question, who cares, right? This happened 2,000 years 00:11:55.500 --> 00:12:02.419 ago. How do we respond? Jesus is not among us healing right now. As far as I know, Jesus is not 00:12:02.419 --> 00:12:06.480 going to show up at the end of this worship service for you to line up and be touched and healed. 00:12:07.440 --> 00:12:12.080 And so what does this have to do with us? Well, first of all, Jesus is giving us a picture. 00:12:12.759 --> 00:12:19.460 There are many places in the Bible where we see the future break into the present. This happens in terms 00:12:19.460 --> 00:12:26.000 of judgment. So when Sodom and Gomorrah is judged in the book of Genesis, God is giving us a small 00:12:26.000 --> 00:12:32.240 picture of what full and final judgment will look like one day. So it's future judgment being brought 00:12:32.240 --> 00:12:37.420 into the present. The same is true with Jesus' healing, but in a different way. It's future grace, 00:12:37.860 --> 00:12:42.560 future healing, future restoration being pulled from the future, brought into the present. 00:12:42.559 --> 00:12:50.959 into the present. Jesus here is giving us a picture of what the world will one day be. And so yes, 00:12:51.119 --> 00:12:56.559 Jesus is not here right now. He is probably not going to touch you after this service and remove 00:12:56.559 --> 00:13:04.199 whatever physical ailment is afflicting you, but he will one day. He has given us a picture, a small 00:13:04.199 --> 00:13:12.479 moment, and we know that we will see it in full. And so this healing for us, Jesus' ministry, 00:13:12.559 --> 00:13:24.039 on this earth is an appetizer. Jesus gives us small pictures. He gives us small tastes of what it 00:13:24.039 --> 00:13:32.339 will look like when he returns and he is the king over the entire world, when he fully rules and reigns. 00:13:33.619 --> 00:13:38.139 We talked about that many times in the book of Daniel, right? That Jesus is coming back 00:13:38.139 --> 00:13:45.399 to restore his kingdom. So when we see him healing, we're not meant to think that Jesus is just 00:13:45.399 --> 00:13:52.360 performing a party trick, right? We are meant at some level to see Jesus' authority. We're meant at an 00:13:52.360 --> 00:13:59.539 even greater level to see Jesus as the one who restores and heals, who is coming, who cares so much 00:13:59.539 --> 00:14:06.580 about his creation and his world that he will defeat and end all parts of sin once and for all. 00:14:06.580 --> 00:14:11.680 The sin that comes with demon possession and the sin that comes with sickness. 00:14:13.420 --> 00:14:20.560 And so how do we respond to Jesus? We trust in him. We hope in him. We look to him as the one who 00:14:20.560 --> 00:14:29.840 is coming back to make all things right. We know that we have hope in this world, no matter what happens 00:14:29.840 --> 00:14:38.480 to us. And so we can agree with Revelation chapter 22, verse 20. It says, he who testifies to these 00:14:38.480 --> 00:14:46.320 things says, surely I am coming soon. That's Jesus who's coming soon. And the response is this, amen, 00:14:47.040 --> 00:14:54.879 come Lord Jesus. Part of what we do when we read the gospels and we see Jesus healing as we long for his 00:14:54.879 --> 00:15:05.139 return. We know that he's giving us a picture of what he will do one day. We also know that hope is 00:15:05.139 --> 00:15:13.779 not here for us in this life. There's a sadness, there's a futility, there's a hopelessness to sickness 00:15:13.779 --> 00:15:20.279 and aging if this life is all there is, right? Culture that's around us tells us that happiness and pleasure 00:15:20.279 --> 00:15:27.919 and self-fulfillment are the greatest goods. And yet that's not good news if your body isn't perfect. 00:15:29.439 --> 00:15:38.120 It's not good news if you have $100,000 in debt. It's not good news if you're facing the death 00:15:38.120 --> 00:15:44.319 of a loved one. It's rare to have all kinds of happiness and pleasure and self-fulfillment. 00:15:44.320 --> 00:15:52.600 And so we want hope that's in something greater. This small healing points us forward to a greater 00:15:52.600 --> 00:15:58.800 and more powerful healing. And it's not just physical, right? It's not just spiritual. Some 00:15:58.800 --> 00:16:03.440 people might say, oh, this healing, it's just a picture for us of what Jesus does for us when he 00:16:03.440 --> 00:16:10.280 saves us. Well, yes, that's true. There is a spiritual component to us, to this. And this world's a physical 00:16:10.279 --> 00:16:16.299 world. Jesus has come back to restore it in every way. And so we have spiritual hope and we have 00:16:16.299 --> 00:16:23.579 physical hope. Jesus is showing us what the world was meant to be and what it will be one day. 00:16:25.100 --> 00:16:30.259 Okay, it's a picture. It's an appetizer. It's a trailer that you watch when you go to the movie 00:16:30.259 --> 00:16:38.079 theaters of coming attractions. Jesus is giving us a small taste of the future. 00:16:38.080 --> 00:16:43.200 By the way, it's easy to miss, but I want you to look with me in verse 31. 00:16:44.320 --> 00:16:48.259 It tells us that Jesus came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. 00:16:49.120 --> 00:16:55.420 This word lifted her could also be translated as raised her. And it's the exact same Greek word 00:16:55.420 --> 00:17:00.900 that's used throughout Mark to talk about resurrection from the dead. Resurrection of those who have 00:17:00.900 --> 00:17:08.019 actually died that Jesus raises and Jesus' own resurrection. In other words, Mark is 00:17:08.019 --> 00:17:17.259 winking at us. Yes, Jesus is raising this person who is close to death. And there's something more 00:17:17.259 --> 00:17:24.279 going on here. There's a greater rising that's going to happen. There's a greater power at work 00:17:24.279 --> 00:17:32.180 here. This is the power that can and will raise someone from the dead. This is something that points 00:17:32.180 --> 00:17:38.860 forward to Jesus himself rising from the dead. And so there's something physical going on here. 00:17:39.299 --> 00:17:42.860 There's also something much more than that. There's something spiritual going on here. 00:17:43.940 --> 00:17:49.180 Mark is poking with us. He's winking at us for what's going to come in the gospel of Mark. And so it's 00:17:49.180 --> 00:17:53.240 appropriate that this is the first healing, a healing in which Jesus, who will later be raised, 00:17:53.240 --> 00:17:58.660 himself raises someone, someone who is close to death. 00:18:01.420 --> 00:18:08.299 So Jesus is the king. Jesus comes to heal everything and everyone who trusts in him and looks to him, 00:18:08.359 --> 00:18:14.720 his entire world. He gives us a small taste now. We hope and look for that in the future. 00:18:14.720 --> 00:18:22.799 We trust in him. We hope in him. We follow him. But that's not the end of our story. 00:18:23.900 --> 00:18:29.660 Mark winks at us in another way. We know that this is the same day that Jesus was teaching. And we're 00:18:29.660 --> 00:18:36.259 told verse 32, at sundown, the entire city comes to Jesus. Now, why are they waiting? We would imagine 00:18:36.259 --> 00:18:42.180 that a word has spread throughout this entire town. Apparently, this healing of the demon was a big deal 00:18:42.180 --> 00:18:46.539 earlier in the morning. People have been talking and all of Capernaum knows that this is going on. 00:18:46.580 --> 00:18:51.080 They also clearly know where Jesus lives, which confirms what we talked about last week, which is 00:18:51.080 --> 00:18:58.480 that Jesus has been at work in this city for a while. If the one who can heal is present, why are you 00:18:58.480 --> 00:19:04.840 waiting till sundown? Well, the reason is they know what they've been taught by their religious leaders. 00:19:05.000 --> 00:19:10.140 It's not appropriate to heal on the Sabbath. So they're waiting till that day is over. 00:19:10.140 --> 00:19:17.980 But Jesus has already healed someone on the Sabbath. He didn't wait until sundown. And so Mark, again, 00:19:18.020 --> 00:19:23.020 he's foreshadowing for us something that we'll talk about in just a few weeks. But there's this scene now 00:19:23.020 --> 00:19:29.120 of everyone coming to Jesus. It tells us the entire city that they want healing. Those who are sick or oppressed 00:19:29.120 --> 00:19:34.600 by demons. And the whole city was gathered together at the door. So people are pressing in and lining up. 00:19:34.599 --> 00:19:41.079 I would like to imagine that this scene looked a little bit like the Chick-fil-A drive-through, 00:19:41.339 --> 00:19:45.819 you know, at 12 p.m. or 5 p.m. 00:19:46.740 --> 00:19:52.179 I don't know that for sure. Maybe it wasn't that organized. But what we do know is everyone was 00:19:52.179 --> 00:19:57.559 pressing in. There's probably more people than Jesus might want or desire at that moment, or maybe 00:19:57.559 --> 00:20:02.859 that others would want their coming. Jesus is there probably for a long time, touching and healing. 00:20:02.859 --> 00:20:08.659 It tells us, verse 34, he healed many who are sick with various diseases and cast out many demons. 00:20:08.799 --> 00:20:15.079 This is quite the scene here. There's an excitement and an energy and a zeal of all these people 00:20:15.079 --> 00:20:21.119 coming, knowing that the one who can heal them is there. And so again, who is Jesus? 00:20:22.279 --> 00:20:29.279 We see here Jesus' care and his compassion and his selflessness. Jesus has already preached. 00:20:29.279 --> 00:20:38.700 He's already cast out a demon. He's already then healed someone. And most likely, the human part of 00:20:38.700 --> 00:20:45.019 Jesus would be grateful for a break, right? These people line up at his door late at night. 00:20:46.220 --> 00:20:52.240 And Jesus is just there. He stands there and stays, and he heals them, and he touches them. Jesus 00:20:52.240 --> 00:20:57.899 certainly could have said no, and at times he does, right? Remember, Jesus withdraws from the crowds. 00:20:57.900 --> 00:21:03.420 But here, Jesus just stands and stays, and he serves them selflessly. 00:21:05.600 --> 00:21:10.820 He's healing whoever comes to him. He's casting out whatever demon has possessed them. 00:21:12.420 --> 00:21:18.340 And so Jesus is not just the king who's come to restore his kingdom. He's also the king who is filled 00:21:18.340 --> 00:21:25.900 with love and compassion for his people. And I'll also add, for those who are not his people. 00:21:25.900 --> 00:21:31.700 It doesn't tell us here that all these people ended up following Jesus. 00:21:33.600 --> 00:21:38.720 It doesn't talk about Jesus teaching them later. It doesn't talk about these crowds leaving Capernaum 00:21:38.720 --> 00:21:44.600 and becoming Jesus' disciples. And that gives us a hint at the question here, 00:21:44.820 --> 00:21:48.120 if Jesus is the one filled with compassion again, how do we respond to him? 00:21:48.119 --> 00:21:53.899 One of the things the Gospels do for us is they provide us with models, models of positive responses 00:21:53.899 --> 00:21:58.019 and models of negative responses to Jesus. You're going to see this throughout Mark. 00:21:58.339 --> 00:22:02.739 You're also going to see it in other Gospels. Here, we have a positive and a negative example. 00:22:02.939 --> 00:22:06.559 We need to know that we don't want to respond like the crowds. 00:22:06.559 --> 00:22:13.940 Yes, they come to Jesus for healing, and that's right and good, and they need more from him. 00:22:15.000 --> 00:22:19.599 There are many people who are only interested in Jesus for what he can offer them. 00:22:21.139 --> 00:22:27.059 There are many people who come to church, and they're here because it's a good place to find fellowship and community. 00:22:27.200 --> 00:22:30.559 Maybe it's a good place to network for various types of businesses. 00:22:30.559 --> 00:22:35.179 Maybe it's a wonderful place to find a group of friends. Maybe you can find a spouse. 00:22:36.299 --> 00:22:38.019 None of those are necessarily bad things. 00:22:38.799 --> 00:22:40.879 And that's not why we're here, right? 00:22:41.659 --> 00:22:46.440 We are here to worship the risen King, King Jesus. 00:22:47.259 --> 00:22:52.659 And so we want to be people who come to Jesus, not just for what he can offer for us. 00:22:53.619 --> 00:22:58.759 We want to be people who come to Jesus and follow him and love him and serve him. 00:22:58.759 --> 00:23:03.680 And so the crowds here, in a sense, now maybe some of them follow Jesus, right? 00:23:03.740 --> 00:23:07.980 I'm not saying none of them did, but it's unlikely that all of them did. 00:23:08.059 --> 00:23:09.680 And so there's a warning here for us. 00:23:09.799 --> 00:23:13.440 We want Jesus not just for what he can do here and now in the moment, 00:23:13.619 --> 00:23:19.339 but also for what Mark winks at us for, that he is the one who raises people from the dead. 00:23:21.000 --> 00:23:24.180 Thankfully, though, Mark also gives us a positive example. 00:23:24.319 --> 00:23:26.640 We skipped over Simon's mother-in-law. 00:23:26.640 --> 00:23:28.860 We went to the healing in Jesus and then we've left her. 00:23:28.940 --> 00:23:30.660 I'm going to go back to her in verse 31. 00:23:32.420 --> 00:23:36.880 The fever left her and she began to serve them. 00:23:38.880 --> 00:23:42.360 She sees Jesus' power and his healing to her. 00:23:42.800 --> 00:23:47.000 Her immediate response is one of obedience and service. 00:23:47.160 --> 00:23:51.140 She is not accepting Jesus' healing as something just good and nice, 00:23:51.180 --> 00:23:53.140 and she's going to go on her way and in her life. 00:23:53.140 --> 00:23:55.080 No, she responds. 00:23:55.200 --> 00:23:57.380 Jesus is the one who comes and heals her. 00:23:57.880 --> 00:24:01.060 She's the one who turns in response to serve Jesus. 00:24:01.240 --> 00:24:04.200 Brothers and sisters, the same is true for us. 00:24:04.520 --> 00:24:07.500 We respond to God's grace and glory and his power. 00:24:07.600 --> 00:24:10.180 We look at what he's showing us that's going to come. 00:24:10.259 --> 00:24:12.740 We long for the world where healing is full and complete, 00:24:12.980 --> 00:24:15.640 and we want to be just like Simon's mother-in-law. 00:24:15.740 --> 00:24:19.140 We want to see that and turn with it and serve Jesus. 00:24:19.140 --> 00:24:24.759 We want to be people who understand God's grace and his power, 00:24:24.900 --> 00:24:27.500 and so we follow him no matter where he goes. 00:24:27.660 --> 00:24:30.120 We listen to him no matter what he teaches. 00:24:30.400 --> 00:24:35.680 We take his grace and we respond and follow and obey. 00:24:37.880 --> 00:24:41.120 Jesus is filled with compassion and care, 00:24:41.680 --> 00:24:47.640 and so we follow like Simon's mother-in-law in serving him and listening to him. 00:24:47.640 --> 00:24:52.840 We're people who don't just come and show up for the free things and the goodies, 00:24:53.900 --> 00:24:57.520 but we're people who show up for the relationship and the journey. 00:24:58.280 --> 00:25:01.860 We're people who show up not just for what we can get from Jesus, 00:25:02.320 --> 00:25:05.060 but also from Jesus himself. 00:25:06.240 --> 00:25:08.960 If you've lived for any time in this world 00:25:08.960 --> 00:25:11.440 and you've had any measure of power or influence, 00:25:11.440 --> 00:25:16.160 you know the difference between people who want what they can get from you 00:25:16.160 --> 00:25:19.100 and those people who want you. 00:25:20.259 --> 00:25:22.140 Of course, which one do you prefer, right? 00:25:23.539 --> 00:25:26.880 Not the people who are simply looking for what they can gain from you, 00:25:27.660 --> 00:25:31.559 but people who want you for yourself. 00:25:32.100 --> 00:25:33.640 Same is true of our Lord Jesus. 00:25:34.900 --> 00:25:35.580 He's coming. 00:25:35.579 --> 00:25:39.039 He's calling followers to himself, people who want him 00:25:39.039 --> 00:25:41.159 and not just what they can get from him. 00:25:44.740 --> 00:25:46.759 Now, I asked you at the beginning, why do we care? 00:25:47.699 --> 00:25:49.179 Why does this matter to us at all? 00:25:50.259 --> 00:25:51.579 I could ask you another question. 00:25:51.679 --> 00:25:53.240 Why does Simon's mother-in-law care? 00:25:54.619 --> 00:25:55.559 Yeah, she was healed. 00:25:55.859 --> 00:25:56.480 That's great. 00:25:57.419 --> 00:25:59.159 Healing is great, but you know what? 00:25:59.179 --> 00:25:59.839 It's not everything. 00:26:02.379 --> 00:26:04.099 Simon's mother-in-law is now dead. 00:26:04.099 --> 00:26:07.919 In 2021, she's not alive anymore. 00:26:09.519 --> 00:26:13.839 None of those people who Jesus healed are still alive. 00:26:14.619 --> 00:26:16.439 Some of them probably got sick again. 00:26:17.939 --> 00:26:18.799 Who knows? 00:26:18.879 --> 00:26:20.939 Simon's mother-in-law might have gotten a fever again. 00:26:23.039 --> 00:26:27.099 Jesus' physical healing on this world isn't enough. 00:26:28.939 --> 00:26:30.059 And so, brothers and sisters, 00:26:30.279 --> 00:26:33.439 we don't want just the temporary healing. 00:26:34.160 --> 00:26:36.340 We want the permanent healing. 00:26:37.460 --> 00:26:39.920 We don't want just what it points to. 00:26:40.120 --> 00:26:42.820 We want the thing itself. 00:26:44.259 --> 00:26:46.539 We need something greater. 00:26:47.600 --> 00:26:49.220 We need Jesus himself. 00:26:50.660 --> 00:26:51.779 Imagine again with me, 00:26:51.860 --> 00:26:53.480 imagine that what I said earlier was false. 00:26:53.600 --> 00:26:56.440 Imagine that Jesus physically shows up 00:26:56.440 --> 00:26:58.460 after I give the benediction in this worship service 00:26:58.460 --> 00:26:59.340 and he's healing people. 00:26:59.539 --> 00:27:01.820 And you can come up and whatever ailment you have, 00:27:01.819 --> 00:27:03.200 he's going to make it go away. 00:27:04.519 --> 00:27:05.240 Guess what? 00:27:06.079 --> 00:27:07.019 That's not enough. 00:27:08.539 --> 00:27:11.599 You are still going to die. 00:27:13.639 --> 00:27:17.279 We need something greater than Jesus' physical healing. 00:27:17.799 --> 00:27:20.579 Thankfully, the wink that Mark gives us 00:27:20.579 --> 00:27:22.079 is not just flirting. 00:27:22.079 --> 00:27:25.919 He is going to back it up. 00:27:25.920 --> 00:27:30.740 Jesus does not just raise this woman who is near to death. 00:27:31.060 --> 00:27:34.200 Later, he's going to raise another woman who is dead. 00:27:34.600 --> 00:27:37.000 And then, as the gospel continues, 00:27:37.160 --> 00:27:41.700 Jesus himself is going to die and be raised from the dead. 00:27:41.700 --> 00:27:45.240 That is the healing that we need more than any other. 00:27:45.440 --> 00:27:47.720 Yes, physical healing is good, 00:27:47.799 --> 00:27:49.400 and it's a small thing. 00:27:49.779 --> 00:27:51.680 Yes, physical healing is good, 00:27:51.799 --> 00:27:55.860 and we need something much greater and more powerful. 00:27:56.080 --> 00:27:59.019 We need Jesus himself to be the king 00:27:59.019 --> 00:28:00.940 who puts an end once and for all 00:28:00.940 --> 00:28:04.480 to all evil and sin and sickness in this world, 00:28:04.680 --> 00:28:06.120 and he will. 00:28:06.119 --> 00:28:09.579 Our hope and our confidence 00:28:09.579 --> 00:28:11.579 is not what happens in this episode. 00:28:11.759 --> 00:28:13.939 Even if Jesus were here right now 00:28:13.939 --> 00:28:15.579 and he did these things, 00:28:15.679 --> 00:28:17.619 it would not be enough for us. 00:28:17.979 --> 00:28:20.659 We need a savior who is much greater 00:28:20.659 --> 00:28:23.319 and more powerful even than one who can heal. 00:28:23.679 --> 00:28:26.939 We need one who is going to do what Jesus has done 00:28:26.939 --> 00:28:29.379 by going to the cross on our behalf, 00:28:29.539 --> 00:28:31.979 by dying, by being dead, 00:28:32.159 --> 00:28:34.959 by taking our punishment that we deserve, 00:28:34.960 --> 00:28:36.660 and then rising again from the dead 00:28:36.660 --> 00:28:38.759 after he has lived the perfect life 00:28:38.759 --> 00:28:40.059 that we should have lived. 00:28:40.259 --> 00:28:42.579 That is the healing that we need. 00:28:43.360 --> 00:28:47.579 That is the king that we are looking to and looking for. 00:28:49.600 --> 00:28:50.680 Why do we care? 00:28:51.900 --> 00:28:54.380 Well, even if Jesus were here to heal, 00:28:54.680 --> 00:28:55.960 it would not be enough. 00:28:56.140 --> 00:28:59.240 Jesus is offering something to us 00:28:59.240 --> 00:29:00.440 and done something for us 00:29:00.440 --> 00:29:03.200 that not everyone, even in this passage, embraced. 00:29:03.200 --> 00:29:06.019 In other words, you are in a better position 00:29:06.019 --> 00:29:08.779 than many people who are healed by Jesus 00:29:08.779 --> 00:29:11.160 if you are following after him 00:29:11.160 --> 00:29:13.240 with trust and faith and obedience. 00:29:13.700 --> 00:29:15.720 You have something greater and better 00:29:15.720 --> 00:29:18.680 than being touched and healed of your physical ailments. 00:29:19.779 --> 00:29:23.660 A greater and more powerful healer is here. 00:29:24.900 --> 00:29:26.000 And so we hope in him, 00:29:26.140 --> 00:29:27.080 we trust in him, 00:29:27.079 --> 00:29:28.480 we follow him, 00:29:28.859 --> 00:29:31.139 and we obey him 00:29:31.139 --> 00:29:33.759 because the king has arrived. 00:29:36.759 --> 00:29:38.699 Many people who have experienced 00:29:38.699 --> 00:29:41.240 the challenges that I talked about at the beginning, 00:29:41.899 --> 00:29:44.179 not being able to find the diagnosis they need, 00:29:44.240 --> 00:29:45.980 not being able to find the doctor they need. 00:29:46.720 --> 00:29:48.619 Some of them will travel for miles. 00:29:48.740 --> 00:29:50.539 Some of them will do what's called medical tourism. 00:29:51.099 --> 00:29:52.519 They'll travel to another country 00:29:52.519 --> 00:29:54.059 to find the service that they want. 00:29:55.460 --> 00:29:58.720 And so they sacrifice many things to gain. 00:29:59.599 --> 00:30:01.139 There's also doctors who will travel. 00:30:01.279 --> 00:30:03.240 There's places who don't have what they need. 00:30:03.519 --> 00:30:04.660 There's nurses who will travel. 00:30:04.759 --> 00:30:05.379 Why do they do it? 00:30:05.440 --> 00:30:06.680 Yes, out of their compassion 00:30:06.680 --> 00:30:08.379 and because there's something to gain. 00:30:09.819 --> 00:30:13.099 There is greater money and reward for that. 00:30:14.240 --> 00:30:15.139 Brothers and sisters, 00:30:15.139 --> 00:30:17.420 our Lord Jesus, our great physician, 00:30:17.420 --> 00:30:18.200 is the opposite. 00:30:18.200 --> 00:30:21.420 He does medical tourism, 00:30:21.420 --> 00:30:25.019 but he does it not to gain but to lose. 00:30:25.799 --> 00:30:28.660 He comes not from one country to another, 00:30:28.799 --> 00:30:32.160 but he leaves his perfect communion with his father 00:30:32.160 --> 00:30:34.740 to come down to this earth 00:30:34.740 --> 00:30:36.440 to suffer and lose 00:30:36.440 --> 00:30:39.819 so that we would gain and be healed. 00:30:41.000 --> 00:30:44.960 He is the great physician greater than any other. 00:30:45.080 --> 00:30:46.460 And so who is Jesus? 00:30:46.460 --> 00:30:49.660 Jesus is the one who comes to end the reign of sin 00:30:49.660 --> 00:30:50.579 in this world, 00:30:50.680 --> 00:30:52.400 to end the reign of death. 00:30:52.480 --> 00:30:54.940 He is the one who offers us full and final healing. 00:30:55.279 --> 00:30:57.579 He gives us a small picture and taste 00:30:57.579 --> 00:30:59.019 and foretaste and appetizer 00:30:59.019 --> 00:31:02.779 of what will come in this world in full one day. 00:31:04.000 --> 00:31:06.740 How do we respond to him? 00:31:06.920 --> 00:31:09.600 We hope in him more than anything else. 00:31:09.700 --> 00:31:12.039 We listen to him more than anyone else 00:31:12.039 --> 00:31:16.980 and we see him as the one who will give us full and final life. 00:31:17.099 --> 00:31:17.920 Brothers and sisters, 00:31:18.099 --> 00:31:19.279 will you trust him? 00:31:20.019 --> 00:31:21.299 Will you follow him? 00:31:22.940 --> 00:31:23.619 Let's pray. 00:31:25.500 --> 00:31:26.659 Our Father in heaven, 00:31:27.180 --> 00:31:29.180 we praise you and thank you 00:31:29.180 --> 00:31:33.519 that you offer something better than physical healing. 00:31:33.519 --> 00:31:35.400 and we thank you 00:31:35.400 --> 00:31:36.819 that you offer us pictures 00:31:36.819 --> 00:31:38.639 that remind us 00:31:38.639 --> 00:31:40.180 of your great hope. 00:31:41.079 --> 00:31:41.980 We thank you 00:31:41.980 --> 00:31:42.579 that you 00:31:42.579 --> 00:31:44.940 did a medical tourism 00:31:44.940 --> 00:31:45.839 that no one else 00:31:45.839 --> 00:31:46.819 would have done. 00:31:46.900 --> 00:31:48.099 You traveled not to gain, 00:31:48.700 --> 00:31:50.299 but you traveled to lose 00:31:50.299 --> 00:31:51.920 for us. 00:31:51.980 --> 00:31:54.079 We ask that you would drive this deep into our hearts 00:31:54.079 --> 00:31:55.160 that we would look to you 00:31:55.160 --> 00:31:56.259 and hope in you 00:31:56.259 --> 00:31:57.519 and trust in you more and more. 00:31:58.099 --> 00:31:59.099 And we thank you 00:31:59.099 --> 00:32:01.200 that we never have to earn these things, 00:32:01.200 --> 00:32:02.319 but instead we ask them 00:32:02.319 --> 00:32:03.880 in the mighty name of Jesus Christ. 00:32:04.380 --> 00:32:04.700 Amen. 00:32:06.420 --> 00:32:08.460 I invite you to stand for our closing hymn. 00:32:08.460 --> 00:32:09.980 hymn of Jesus Christ. 00:32:10.180 --> 00:32:11.960 Hymn is ranking 00:32:20.840 --> 00:32:25.840 if you don't have a chance 00:32:25.840 --> 00:32:26.600 our pilgrims 00:32:26.600 --> 00:32:28.579 is khutna 00:32:28.579 --> 00:32:31.420 in the Pu Spray 00:32:31.420 --> 00:32:36.039 when we gust 00:32:36.039 --> 00:32:44.899 Though with life's great God has blessed us, care for us from earliest years. 00:32:45.299 --> 00:32:53.980 Unto thee our thanks be rendered, because the Lord comes of fears. 00:32:53.980 --> 00:33:03.119 For our world of need and anguish, we would live to thee our prayer. 00:33:03.119 --> 00:33:11.979 Faith, most the words of thy bounty, may we with our brother share. 00:33:12.500 --> 00:33:20.679 In the name of Christ our Savior, who redeems and sets us free. 00:33:21.199 --> 00:33:29.259 If we bring a heart and treasure, that our life may worth your feet. 00:33:29.259 --> 00:33:39.339 In the midst of time we journey, from thy head comes each new day. 00:33:39.799 --> 00:33:48.319 We would use it in thy service, only wisely while we pray. 00:33:48.319 --> 00:33:57.059 So to thee, Lord and Creator, praise and honor we accord. 00:33:57.599 --> 00:34:01.619 Light the earth and light the heavens. 00:34:03.319 --> 00:34:06.319 Eternal word. 00:34:06.319 --> 00:34:11.719 We end our time together with a benediction. 00:34:12.159 --> 00:34:14.599 And a benediction is simply a good word from God. 00:34:14.840 --> 00:34:18.960 It is a word that is true in a world filled with words that are not true. 00:34:19.360 --> 00:34:23.679 It's tradition for the minister to hold up his hand, to send out God's blessing on God's people, 00:34:23.900 --> 00:34:26.559 and for God's people to hold out their hands to receive God's blessing. 00:34:27.039 --> 00:34:30.860 And so hear now God's good word over you from Hebrews chapter 13. 00:34:30.860 --> 00:35:00.840 Now may the God of the Lord be with us.