Lesson Focus
Jesus heals us so that we might engage in active and
intentional Christian ministry.
Lesson Outcomes:
Through this lesson students should:
1.
Comprehend that our healing from sin and death
prepares us to engage in Christian ministry.
2.
Examine their lives to see if they are
ministering as a result of their healing.
3.
Examine the ministries of our church to see if
they are faithful to our mission of bearing witness to the kingdom of God in
word and deed.
Catch up on the
story:
Mark’s narrative is off to a fast start. He introduces us to John the Baptist, a
preacher who begins to prepare the way for Jesus’ coming. John the Baptist, and the context in which he
is set, places the narrative that follows squarely within the scope of Israel’s
hope for the future found in the Old Testament.
Jesus, then, is seen as a continuation of what God has been doing for Israel
in the past.
Jesus is baptized at the hands of John. It is his public commissioning. Even though the crowds do not hear the voice
of God proclaiming his pleasure with his Son, we, the readers, hear it. There can be no doubt that Mark wants us to
understand that Jesus is the divine messiah who has come to set Israel
free. Immediately after his baptism
Jesus goes off into the wilderness and is tempted by the devil. While the narrative is sparse, Jesus does not
succumb to the temptation and emerges from the wilderness to begin his public
ministry. Jesus begins to preach about
the coming kingdom of God. He also
begins to call men to follow him and be his disciples. His mission will consist of preaching and
healing. Both of these things he will
do, not as the crowds have experienced others doing these things, but as one
with authority.
The Text:
The setting of our text for this week is the small city
of Capernaum. Jesus, his followers
Simon, Andrew, James and John, have been in the synagogue on the Sabbath. Jesus has begun to teach and cast out unclean
spirits. Word is beginning to spread
about this Jesus fellow. His
authoritative teaching and his works of power begin to be known in the surrounding
area.
Scene #1:
While the passage takes place entirely in Capernaum, there
are three distinct scenes. Scene one is
the home of Simon’s mother-in-law. Jesus
and his entourage enter the home and we are immediately told that Simon’s
mother-in-law is in bed with a fever. A
few things need to be noted here about fevers.
They were not seen as a symptom but a terrible force that could bring
about death. A simple fever could become
life threatening very quickly.[1]
Simon mentions the ill fortune of his mother-in-law to
Jesus upon entering the home. There are
a few possible reasons that Simon could have chosen to point out the
situation. First, it could have been a
veiled attempt to ask Jesus to heal his mother-in-law. Although at this point in the narrative,
Jesus has yet to heal anyone. He has
cast out an unclean spirit so it might stand to reason that the disciples
believe he has the power to heal as well.
Second, Simon may have mentioned the fever as a precaution and warning
for his guests. Contact with a sick
person was frowned upon, not from our normal understanding of contagions, but
because it would have made the individual ceremonially unclean, and thus keep
the person from full participation in community life. Finally, Simon could have mentioned the fever
as an excuse for the lack of hospitality that would normally have been provided
by his mother-in-law.
Whatever the reason may have been, Jesus acts immediately
and decisively to rectify the situation.
Jesus takes the sick woman by the hand and lifted her up. Immediately the fever left her! No words were spoken, no spell was cast;
Jesus’ touch was enough to make her instantaneously well. As we have already mentioned, touching a sick
person would have made Jesus ceremonially unclean. In the same way, men did not touch women who
were not a part of their family.
Additionally, Jesus performs this healing on the Sabbath, which could be
constituted as work. Thus, Jesus touches
an unrelated sick woman and heals her on the Sabbath. In performing this act in the way he did he
breaks more than just a few social and religious taboos.[2] Mark, however, does not believe that Jesus is
doing anything wrong, but that he is faithfully bringing about God’s
kingdom.
Excurses: Sabbath
Touching a woman, a sick woman at that, could be
overlooked. Working on the Sabbath was a
greater offense, one that would land you in serious trouble with the religious
authorities. A proper understanding of
Jewish Sabbath theology is important to grasping why Jesus heals on the
Sabbath. For the Jewish people, the
Sabbath had become a symbol of rest and peace (shalom -wholeness) that would
happen when the messiah finally arrived ushering in the age to come. Creation, and all it’s inhabitants, would be
relived of all the turmoil, disease, destruction and death that existed as a
consequence of the fall. This rest and peace was much anticipated and longed
for by Israel and her religious leaders.
Honoring the Sabbath was a mini preview of the peace and wholeness that
would accompany the coming of God’s dominion.
Jesus, by beginning his work of healing on the Sabbath,
intended it to be seen as the first act in bringing about the end-time Sabbath
rest and wholeness here and now. What
better way to honor the Sabbath than by offering healing to a woman who was in
the midst of suffering? Like the
exorcism that took place earlier in the chapter, Jesus’ healing of Simon’s
mother-in-law is part of the breaking in of the kingdom of God.[3] Unfortunately, Jesus’ actions on the Sabbath
would not be seen this way by the religious leadership.
After Jesus heals Simon’s mother-in-law, she immediately
gets up and begins to serve Jesus and his companions. There is no trace of the fever or the malady
that might have caused it. The word that
Mark uses here for “serve” comes from the word diakonos. In Mark, and the
larger Christian tradition, this word, from which we get Deacon, is associated
with Christian ministry. Simon’s
mother-in-law is healed and immediately sets about serving Jesus and his
companions in response to her healing.
In many ways, this should be a model for us as we experience Jesus’
healing in our lives. As we are healed,
our response should be to rise and engage in Christian ministry!
Scene #2:
Word begins to spread quickly of Jesus’ deeds of
power. He has taught with
authority. He has cast out unclean
spirits and now he has healed a woman of her fever. Not only has word spread about his actions,
but about his whereabouts as well. At
sundown on the Sabbath people begin bringing their sick and
demon-possessed. They begin to gather at
sundown because sundown marks the end of one day and the beginning of
another. This is unlike our conception
of time with the beginning of a new day beginning at dawn. The crowds, now that the Sabbath was over,
did not have to fear that they were breaking the Sabbath by bringing their sick
to Jesus. Realistically, some of the
sick would need to be carried, constituting work.
Mark tells us that the whole city comes out to the door
of the house where they were staying. It
is unlikely that they showed up en masse, but perhaps as a steady stream of
those seeking help from Jesus. Regardless,
Jesus heals many people with various kinds of diseases and casts out many
demons. The demons were instructed not
to speak because they knew whom Jesus was.
Why would Jesus need to instruct the demons not to speak? It could possibly be that it was not yet the
right time for Jesus to proclaim who he was.
Or, Jesus may not have wanted the proclamation about who he is coming
from the mouths of demons.[4] Either way, Jesus shows his power over the
demons by not only casting them out but by keeping them from divulging what
they know.
Scene #3:
We are not told how long into the night Jesus was with
the crowd. It may have been late into
the night due to the large crowds. Mark
tells us though, that Jesus gets up early in the morning while it is still dark
and sets out to find a place to pray. He
arrives at a deserted place, perhaps one that he had used before. Soon enough, Simon and the others realize
that Jesus is not in the house where they had been staying. They set out to find him and upon doing so
they encourage him to come back into town.
The reason that Simon and the others use for a return to
Capernaum is because everyone is looking for him. Behind this suggestion may be an urge to stay
where they are because they have enjoyed success there. Jesus’ reputation is growing among the
people. Greatness can be achieved when
you have the support of the people.
Perhaps Peter is already thinking about the positive political
ramifications of a man who has such great power.
Jesus, however, refuses to go back to Capernaum. He tells us that his primary mission is
preaching the message of the kingdom of God.
Jesus insists that they must go to the neighboring towns (which were not
bigger than Capernaum, but smaller) to preach.
This is, after all, what he has been sent to do. So, we are told, Jesus heads out throughout
the region of Galilee preaching the message of the kingdom of God.
So What?
I think two things are important for us as we consider
this text. First, the way Simon’s
mother-in-law responds to her healing and second, Jesus’ laser-like focus on
his mission.
As soon as Simon’s mother-in-law is healed she gets up
and serves Jesus and his followers. As
we have said above, the Greek word that Mark uses carries with it the sense
that as she was caring for Jesus’ needs she was engaging in intentional
ministry in service to the kingdom of God.
Whether or not she totally understood her actions in that way is,
perhaps, inconsequential. For this is
how Mark wants us to read her response.
Mark has been up front with us, his readers, about who this Jesus really
is. He is the divine Son of God. While the characters in the story will need
some time to figure this out, Mark’s narrative is largely about helping us to
discover what it means to be faithful disciples of Jesus.
Our faithful discipleship begins with our healing. For some, in early Christianity, anything
that has enslaved us, any sin, any addiction, was seen as life-sucking
fever. “For each and every one of us suffers
from fever. When I grow angry, I am
feverish. So many vices, so many
fevers.”[5] Christ has come, however, and touched our
hand, lifting us up and freeing us from our fever. We are never freed just from our fever,
though. We are freed so that we might
serve. In our healing we are given the
immediate opportunity to get up and to serve in Christian ministry. We become more mature disciples of Christ
when we are actively and intentionally engaged in serving in some kind of
Christian ministry.
Secondly, our passage indicates Jesus’ laser-like focus
to his mission. Jesus could have stayed
in Capernaum while word of his deeds of power spread throughout the land. No doubt many would have made a pilgrimage to
him so that their loved ones might be healed.
From this he could have begun to garner great political support as
well. Jesus, however, was not tempted by
this initial success and the desire to build on it. He knew the plan. The plan was to proclaim the kingdom of God
throughout the land.
At times, we are not as laser-like focused on our God
given mission as Jesus was. Too often
the tendency is to stick with whatever is causing us to have success. In fact, the temptation is to spend a lot of
time trying to find that one thing that will bring us successes. It’s not wrong to be successful, but we can
be tempted by it to neglect our real mission of bearing witness to the kingdom
of God in word and in deed.
Critical
Discussion Questions:
1.
How does this text reveal to us the nature and
character of God/What is God doing in this text?
a. God
is beginning to bring about the pace and rest that we long for. Through healing and exorcisms, Jesus is, in a
small way at first, allowing creation to rest. He is granting us freedom from
the various things that plague us.
2.
What does holiness/salvation look like in this
text?
a. Our
growth as disciples is contingent upon our response to the healing we have
received at the hands of Jesus. Like
Simon’s mother-in-law we are to rise from our infirmities so that we might
begin to engage in active and intentional Christian ministry.
b. Our
growth as disciples also means that we resist the temptation to chase after all
that might be successful at the cost of being faithful to our mission of
bearing witness to the kingdom of God in word and in deed. While we are committed to excellence in
ministry, we are also called, at times, to focus our energy on things that
might not be seen as wise in the minds of the world around us.
3.
How does an encounter with this story shape who
we are and who we should become?
a. This
passage calls us to respond to the healing we have received at the hands of
Jesus and engage in active and intentional ministry.
b. It
also calls us to examine our ministries as a church to see if they are true to
the mission of bearing witness to the kingdom of God in word and in deed.
Specific
Discussion Questions:
Read the text aloud. Then, read the text to yourself
quietly. Read it slowly, as if you were
very unfamiliar with the story.
1.
What are the possible reasons why Simon informs
Jesus of his mother-in-law’s sickness?
2.
What is significant about the way Jesus heals
Simon’s mother-in-law? Keep in mind; it
would have been taboo for a man to touch a woman who was not related to
him.
3.
Some early Christians looked metaphorically at
the fever that Simon’s mother-in-law.
The fever was a stand in for anything that causes us to sin. What kinds of “fevers” have plagued your life
in the past? What kinds of fevers do you
suffer from now? How has Jesus healed
you from those things in the past? How
might Jesus heal you now?
4.
Simon’s mother-in-law’s first response is to get
up and serve Jesus and his followers.
What is this important? Have you
gotten up after your healing and begun to serve?
5.
Why might Simon really want Jesus to stick
around in Capernaum? What reason does
Jesus give for moving on?
6.
Jesus exercised laser-like focus on his mission
to proclaim the kingdom of God all around.
He refused to be tempted by the immediate and initial successes he
enjoyed in Capernaum. As a church, are
we ever tempted to go with whatever is successful at the expense of
faithfulness to our mission?
7.
Jesus had a single-minded focus on his mission
of preaching the kingdom of God. Simon’s mother-in-law, once healed, became a
servant of Jesus and supported his mission.
As a church, the third part of our mission statement is to bear witness
to the kingdom of God. List some of the ministries in our church that help us
do that.
8. What
keeps us from focusing on and participating in those ministries?
9. Have
an honest conversation about whether or not you are like Simon’s mother-in-law.
Are you one who has been healed by God’s grace and is now serving and
ministering? What would it take for you to take the next step toward faithful
service and ministry?
[1] M. Eugene Boring, Mark: A Commentary,
The New Testament Library (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox
Press, 2006), 66.
[2] Ben Witherington III, The Gospel of Mark: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary (Grand Rapids,
MI: Wm. B.
Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2001), 98.
[3] Ibid., 100.
[4] R. T. France, The Gospel of Mark: A Commentary on the
Greek Text, New International Greek Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI;
Carlisle: W.B. Eerdmans; Paternoster Press, 2002), 110.
[5] Jerome, Corpus Christianorum, LXXVII,
468 quoted in Lamar Williamson Jr, Mark:
Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching (Louisville,
KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2009) 55.
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