Today’s Message

Date:               February 18, 2006

Speaker:          Pastor Steven Thomas

Title:                The Right Time, The Right Way

Text:                Mark 1:29-34

29 As soon as they left the synagogue, they went with James and John to the home of Simon and Andrew. 30 Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told Jesus about her. 31 So he went to her, took her hand and helped her up. The fever left her and she began to wait on them.

32 That evening after sunset the people brought to Jesus all the sick and demon-possessed. 33 The whole town gathered at the door, 34 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.

Introduction:  The man whom Time magazine dubbed “America’s Pastor,” has recently launched a initiative that he calls a global peace plan.  It is an attempt to spread peace throughout the world by tackling what he calls the “giants” that have disrupted the world.  These giants include ego-centric leadership—so the problems of the world are caused by those in authority.  Therefore the church needs to forge alliances to transform leaders in government and business.  The giants also include poverty, disease, and illiteracy.  If we can simply address these things on a global scale, we can usher in an age of peace. 

Right now, he is attempting to organize and mobilize a billion “Christians” (which is suspect) to get the job done. 

What is the biblical justification?  We must minister as Jesus ministered.  We must care about the things Jesus cared about.  On the surface, those unfamiliar with the Bible will find this compelling.  After all, everyone knows that Jesus healed the sick.  And who among us is really pro disease or poverty or illiteracy?

Today we will address a topic that will help enlighten us on this matter.

One of the sub-themes encountered in the Gospels, and especially in the book of Mark, is Jesus’ determination to minimize the spread of his fame.  Nine times he commanded various groups to keep silent about him.  Twice we read that he withdrew from populated areas to avoid detection.  Today we will address a question that has interested many Bible interpreters:

Why did Jesus silence those who knew his true identity?

Before we attempt to answer this question, let’s retell the story recorded for us by Mark.  You will remember from last week that Jesus and his follows (totaling four at this point) were in the city of Capernaum on the shore of the Sea of Galilee.  The Sabbath day, or Jewish day of worship (Saturday) came and Jesus went to the synagogue to teach.  The people were amazed at is teaching.  He did not rely on the old, worn out opinions of men, but he spoke with the authority of God.  The service was disrupted when a demon possessed man began to cry out, “I know you—you are the Holy One of God.  What do you want?  Are you going to destroy us?”  Jesus commanded him to hold his tongue, cast him out, and the crowd was even more amazed. 

Now we saw that Mark makes this important connection for us:  the people saw the miracle as an act that demonstrated the authority of his message.  You will not understand what goes on in the life Christ unless you grasp this fact.  Mark now develops this point further.  In fact, what we have he intended today’s text to be understood as part of this larger story that began in verse 21.  Before he is done, he will drive home his point:  Jesus came with a message from God.  He authenticated it by demonstrating his authority over the spirit world and the physical world.  The king has broken into history.  This one, Jesus, is the King and the kingdom is near.

At the conclusion of this unusual service in the synagogue, Jesus and his little band of followers made there way to Peter’s (Simon) house.  Last time I mentioned that fact that archaeologists have uncovered the ruins of a synagogue in Capernaum which undoubtedly was the place where the events of 21-28 took place.  Interestingly, nearby are the ruins of an ancient house that was converted to a church near the end of the first century.  It is traditionally thought to be the home of Peter.  It was a two story home with several living quarters opening toward a central courtyard.  Upon arriving members of the household informed Jesus that Simon Peter’s mother-in-law was burning up with a fever.  Undoubtedly, they thought that if this One had authority over the spirit world, he surely could do something about this. 

BTW, there is a large denomination that forbids its priests to marry.  They also claim that Peter was the first pope.  Yet, here it is clear that Peter was married.  Paul will state later that Peter even took his wife with him throughout his ministry travels.  That denomination is wrong about a lot of other things, as well.

Jesus went to her, took her hand, and helped her up.  There was no pomp, no ceremony, no display for self promotion.  The King simply touched her and all was well.  Notice that there was no half measure.  He did not cause the fever to break, thus beginning the recuperation process.  No, she was fully healed as evidence by the fact that she began to scurry about to find refreshments for her guests.  She was probably like my aunt Maebel—“If I knew you were coming I’d have had something for you to eat” all the while filling the table with more food than I had ever seen.

Evening came.  That was significant.  According to Jewish law, one could not carry a burden on the Sabbath.  The Sabbath lasted from sundown to sundown.  It was now lawful to carry the sick across town.  Word had spread of the miracle at the synagogue, so at the earliest opportunity a crowd gathered.  They brought with them the sick.  They brought with them the demon possessed (cf. last week’s discussion).  Jesus now demonstrates his authority on a wide scale, thus authenticating his message. 

But here once again we have this enigmatic statement that the demons knew who he was, but he commanded them not to speak. 

So the question that we want to consider is this:  Why did Jesus silence those who knew his true identity?

Mark does not tell us the answer.  He assumes that we will be able to readily see the answer.  Therefore, I suggest that we begin with the obvious.

I.          Jesus would not allow his enemies to promote his ministry.

It should be obvious to us that there is something unseemly, something blasphemous about the thought of Jesus’ true identity being unveiled for the twisted, deceiving mouths of his great enemies.  They knew him, the divine Logos, eternal Son, had created them.  They saw him in his glory before he took to himself humanity.  And what is more, they feared him.  Jesus would not allow his credibility to be established by them. 

II.        Jesus would have no one but God determine the timing of his ministry.

OK, we can understand this as far as the testimony of demons is concerned.  But, notice verse 43.

Listen, if Jesus had wanted to catapult himself into fame, he could have put on a road show like no other:

            Hurry, Hurry, Hurry

            Step right up—See lame walk, the blind see, the dead raised.  Free fish sandwiches to all who attend!

Jesus’ growing fame could have affected the timetable of his ministry in a variety of ways.  For example, one of the by-products of his growing fame was an intensifying scrutiny on the part of the religious leaders who eventually would order his execution.  Indeed, it appears at one point in his ministry that he withdrew from Judea in the south because opposition to his was developing too quickly. 

Another way the timing could have been affected was by creating a frenzied attempt on the part of the people to force him to be King—the wrong kind of King.  On one occasion the people were so enthralled by his miracles that the Bible says they attempted to take him as king by force!  A lesser man could have used miracles as an unscrupulous tool to create a mob following.

No, Jesus was ever conscious that he came for “his hour,” an expression that revealed he was on God’s timetable.  Everything built to that climactic day when Jesus fulfilled Zechariah 9:9:

9 Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion!

Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem!

See, your king comes to you,

righteous and having salvation,

gentle and riding on a donkey,

on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

In the end they would not have the kind of King Jesus presented himself to be.  They stood by while he was nailed to a cross. 

III.       Jesus would not cater to the desires of men to accomplish his ministry.

I never cease to be amazed at the simplistic and often foolish statements that I hear about Christian ministry.  “We need to minister as Jesus ministered.  We must mobilize to feed the hungry, eradicate poverty, and heal the sick.”

If you think that is what Jesus came to do, you have missed the point of the Gospel accounts.  Jesus’ miracles served a purpose.  It was prophesied that he would perform miracles, thus authenticating his message.  The point was the message. 

His healing touch was an expression of grace and compassion—but he came to give a message.

He fed the hungry as he had opportunity because he was gracious and caring—but he came to give a message. 

Listen, a fair reading of the accounts gives you the impression that the miracles actually created an unwelcome distraction from the real business.  How else can you understand these words?

Mark 1:43-45

43 Jesus sent him away at once with a strong warning: 44 “See that you don’t tell this to anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.” 45 Instead he went out and began to talk freely, spreading the news. As a result, Jesus could no longer enter a town openly but stayed outside in lonely places. Yet the people still came to him from everywhere.

Listen, the miracles served their purpose, but they were not the focal point of his ministry.  He brought life, true life, spiritual life accomplished only by the Spirit of God through the word of God.  And the people’s response to the miracles—if anything—simply proved their need for new life. 

John 6:26-30; 41; 66-69

When you cater to the desire of men, you will find that the thing that they really want is never Christ.  The words of Christ are the focal point of his ministry; the message is central. 

Why did Jesus silence those who knew his true identity?

We could summarize our answer to this question this way:

Today’s take-home truth:  Jesus resisted the tide of popularity in order to accomplish his mission at the right time, in the right way.

Now, if I have presented a correct portrait of Jesus’ reasons, we find here some important implications for ministry today:

1.         We must exercise great care in choosing our ministry partners.

If Jesus rejected the testimony of those who opposed him or did not trust him, why would we forge ministry alliances with the enemies of truth?  I am sad to say that I could offer lengthy lists of illustrations of those who claim to believe the Bible, those who claim to do the work of Christ, who have forged ministry alliances with those who oppose the truth.  Some of these opponents lurk inside denominational structures or haunt the halls of educational institutions.  But some of these alliances are open and blatant.

Ill.  Rick Warren’s global peace plan, Aids initiative—invited a representative of the radical gay activist group Act Up to participate to prove that is work is not an evangelical program of gay bashing.

Folks, I have received grief through the years for sounding a warning about the direction that Rick Warren is leading American evangelicalism.

What in the world are we doing? 

2.         We must entrust the outcome of our ministry to the sovereign God.

Let me just tell you that there is enormous pressure on churches, ministries—pastors, to find the right “key” to explosive growth.  “Let’s try this and let’s try that.”  And in the frantic search for the “key,” many succumb to the seductive voice of success, a voice that offers results at the cost of compromise.

Listen, there is no key.  God has established a process for ministry.  It includes the “foolishness of preaching.”  It’s focus in on the message of Christ, communicated clearly and accurately.  That’s it.

Men don’t like to hear this, but that fact is that we must attend to the depth of our ministry and God will take care of its breadth.  He will give success as he defines and in his good time.

3.         We must carefully avoid methods that appeal to the “felt needs” of the world.

There is a movement in our American culture that says in order to succeed in ministry you must find a felt need and meet it.  Now, I am not talking about normal, daily activities of grace and mercy.  I am talking about contrived evangelistic strategy.  So, to be successful in evangelism, you must do things like:

Open your church to AA meetings in the hope that as the participants acknowledge a power high than themselves, they will pick the right One.

Start an auto garage to service the cars of divorcees.

Speaking of divorced people—start a recovery group for them.

Host a weight loss accountability group. 

And the list goes on and on.

Now again, I am not talking about Christians meeting people at the gym helping neighbors, but the organized evangelistic strategy of the church.  Instead of “preach the gospel,” it is “find what people want and give it to them.” 

The justification?  “Jesus met the needs of people.”  Has there ever been a more superficial and errant interpretation of the ministry of Jesus?

If you have never committed your life to Christ, please listen carefully.  It is true that in the church you will find friendships and help with the many problems of life.  In the church you will find help for unfelt needs—spiritual growth and holiness.  But all of that comes after you have your greatest need met:  the forgiveness of sins that only Jesus can give, a relationship with God that only Jesus can establish.  He said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.”  You will only know God through him.  You will only have peace through him.  You can only have a home in heaven and escape the judgment to come through him.