a.
In Capernaum on the Sabbath.
b.
Tradition says that Peter’s house was only about 100 yards from the
synagogue. They have a church built
on the spot. But part of the site
location problem in Israel is that Constantine’s mother-in-law came through
Israel around 300 AD and had churches built on various spots to represent this
or that event from the NT. It is
highly debated as how accurate she was.
c.
There are two mothers-in-law in the Bible who don’t have the typical
mothers-in-law relationships. Naomi
and Peter’s mother.
Luke
points out that the fever was high. He
wants you to know that it is serious. It
is even more serious for an adult to have a high fever than for a child.
The
disciples speak to Jesus about her fever. Here
we see their intercession for her.
1.
In Mark we see that Jesus took her hand.
This is the helping hand of the servant.
2.
Matthew says “when he touched her hand...”
Why the difference? Matthew
is writing to a Jewish audience. If
a Jew touched a sick person, it would make them unclean.
Jesus can touch sick people without becoming unclean because his touch
heals them.
3.
In Luke we see Jesus’ bedside manner - “He bent over
her...”
4.
This may be pure speculation as to the reasons for the differences
between the different authors, but it is interesting to see how the different
writers emphasized different things for their audiences.
If you asked the question, “Did he touch her, Did he bend over her, Did
he grab her hand and help her up?” The answer is yes to all of them.
It is not hard to harmonize.
5.
I addition Luke mentions that Jesus rebuked the fever.
Now
notice not just the absence of disease, but the restoration of strength.
If you ever watch some of these miracle worship services on TV, the
people that are healed sort of shuffle off the stage.
But
this woman arose and she served them. In
the gospel of Mark, serving is a sign of greatness. So we see a little bit about her character.
It is interesting that only angels and women served Jesus in the gospels.
a.
Once the Sabbath was over, the people flocked to Jesus with their sick
and demon possessed to have Him heal them..
b.
They had to wait until the Sabbath was over so that they didn’t violate
the Pharisees’ rules about carrying burdens on the Sabbath. Again we see that
the Pharisees rules were more of a burden to the people than a fulfillment of
the original intent of the Sabbath, which was to provide rest.
c.
What better way to rest than to go and be healed by Jesus. But
the people had to wait. To the
Pharisees rules were more important than people.
d.
Vs 35 After a very full
day of ministry, Jesus gets up early the next morning to spend time with the
Father. “And in the morning, rising up a
great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and
there prayed.”
e.
I know the human tendency
after a full day of ministry is to sleep in the next day. I think this
illustrates that Jesus’ strength came from the Father.
· We now learn that Jesus has the authority to heal disease. Why is that important? Cf. Isa 35:5-6; 53:4-5. 5Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. 6Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert. Isaiah predicts that the Messiah would heal. So, these events further identify Jesus as the Messiah.
· Jesus is not someone who majors in fixing bad backs or leg lengthening. He can heal all manner of diseases. Notice also that they aren’t performed on a platform. It took place in her bedroom probably, out of sight of the crowds.
· Is sickness always the result of sin? No. There is nothing in the passage about sin she needs to confess.
· Five reasons for sickness:
1. It may be the result of sin 1Cor 11:
2. It may be the result of demonic activity
3. It may be to teach maturity or humility.
4. 1 Pet 4:1 to purify us. Like the refiner’s fire.
5. It may be to simply demonstrate the power and glory of God. John 9:
· We see the importance of intercession. Others become the channel of blessing for someone else.
1 Tim 1:3 “I
exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and
giving of thanks, be made for all men;”
The New Testament teaches that intercession is expected of all believers (1 Tim. 2:1-3). Intercession for the sick is particularly important (Jas. 5:14). Paul in his letters constantly referred to his prayers for the readers, and Jesus set forth the supreme example of intercession (Luke 22:32; 23:34; John 17).
The Bible reveals that intercession is performed by the Holy Spirit, Christ, and Christians. God accepts a believer’s prayers and praises through Christ’s intercession..
· While there are times to get away, ministry sometimes needs to be done when I’m tired. Jesus had just been teaching in the synagogue and they’ve gone home to eat and rest.
· Serving should be the natural response of gratitude for the work of God in our lives. She got up and immediately began to wait on them. Luke and Mark both point this out. Luke points it out because as a doctor, he wants to emphasize the completeness of the healing. Mark points it out because it fits his theme of serving.
· Being a follower of Jesus does not exempt your family from sickness.
· Sickness can be used to teach us what to do with our health. There are times when I’ve been in bed with a bad back or pinched nerve in my neck or last month with my broken ribs and it motivates me with what I want to do when I’m healthy.
ILLUSTRATION: I recently read a story by a woman who said that as a girl she was poor. She said, "I grew up in a cold water flat, but I married a man who had money. And he took me up to a place where I had flowers, and I had gardens, and I had grass. It was wonderful. And we had children.
"Then suddenly I became physically sick. I went to the hospital, and the doctors ran all sorts of tests. One night the doctor came into my room, and with a long look on his face, said, 'I'm sorry to tell you this. Your liver has stopped working.'
"I said, 'Doctor, wait a minute. Wait a minute. Are you telling me that I am dying?' And he said, 'I, I can't tell you any more than that. Your liver has stopped working. We've done everything we can to start it.' And he walked out.
"I knew I was dying. I was so weak, I had to feel my way along the corridor down to the chapel of the hospital. I wanted to tell God off. I wanted to tell God, 'You are a shyster! You've been passing yourself off as a loving God for two thousand years, but every time anyone begins to get happy you pull the rug out from under them.' I wanted this to be a face-to-face telling off of God.
"And just as I got into the center aisle of the chapel, I tripped, I swooned, I fainted. And I looked up, and there stenciled along the step into the sanctuary, where the altar is, I saw these words: LORD, BE MERCIFUL TO ME A SINNER. I know God spoke to me that night. I know he did."
She didn't say how God communicated this to her, but what God said was, "You know what this is all about. It's about the moment of surrender; it's about bringing you to that moment when you will surrender everything to me. These doctors, they do the best they can. but they only treat. I'm the only one who can cure you."
And she said, "There with my head down on my folded arms in the center of the chapel, repeating, 'Lord, be merciful to me a sinner,' I surrendered to God. I found my way back to my hospital bed, weak as I was.
"The next morning, after the doctor ran the blood tests and the urinalysis and so forth, he said, 'Your liver has started working again. We don't know why. We don't know why it stopped, and we don't know why it started up again.' And I said in my heart, But I know. Oh but I know. God has brought me to the brink of disaster, just to get me to turn my life over to him."