His Word

Introduce the Text

Read the Text

Preach the Text

1. Introduce

Our text today follows a few verses after last weeks. As I mentioned last week, Mark will use just a few verses to cover stories whereas others may take up a whole chapter. In between the baptism to now, Jesus is tempted, he begins his ministry, he calls the first disciples, and he heals people. In these four verses we see the real reason why Jesus came.

2. Read

Mark 1:35–39 ESV

35 And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. 36 And Simon and those who were with him searched for him, 37 and they found him and said to him, “Everyone is looking for you.” 38 And he said to them, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.” 39 And he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.

3. Preach

Introduction

Jesus begins his ministry and has shown his divinity to those he encounters

Exegetical Analysis

V. 35 - The prayer life of Jesus

Vv. 36-37 - Why the people are looking for Jesus

V. 38 - Why Jesus came

V. 39 - Jesus continues to fulfill the reason he came.

Jesus Word Vs. Miracles

He did not come to perform miracles

He came to preach

Introduction

As we open with our text, we’ve skipped a few verses since last week. Since Christ baptism, he has been tempted by the devil in the wilderness, he has begun his ministry telling people to repent and believe the Gospel, because that is all that is necessary to be saved is to repent and believe. He calls the first disciples. Now we encounter the events in which this story take place. He has come to Capernaum. While he is there he goes into the synagogue and heals a man with an unclean spirit. News spreads of this and the people of the town have come to see him. They have come to be healed. First he heals Simon’s mother-in-law. Then he heals many who are afflicted with diseases and drives out demons. This is where our Scripture picks up from. Christ has done these miracles and the people are in awe. Then he just wakes up in the morning and leaves.

Exegetical Analysis

The Prayer Life of Jesus

So early in the morning Jesus rises to go and be with God. He slips away from the disciples and town people to be alone. This was a frequent thing for Christ. After healing people and before journeying to go preach the Gospel, he prayed. When he feeds multitudes, heals people, is transfigured, and before going to the cross he prays. It was regular for him.

It is not the morning that makes prayer any more powerful. However, early in the morning, before the day begins, is the best time to slip away and be with God. Before the days begins and trials and temptations come, pray and communion with God must be the first thing we do. We should seek to be filled and satisfied by God with the start of each day. If there was any person who didn’t need to pray, it was Jesus and he made it a common practice to pray. How much more should we be in prayer and seek after God?

As man, Christ prayed to demonstrate his perfect obedience to the Father. As God, he prayed because he knew the importance of continual communion with God. He shows to us the absolute necessity of prayer for all Christians. If we seek to be like Christ, we must pray. If we truly love God, we must pray. A prayerless Christian is no Christian at all; just someone who has been deceived into believing they don’t need to be like Christ or seek after God.

2. Why the people are looking for Jesus.

In the next two verses we see that the people are looking for Jesus. It is only logical that the town people wold want to keep Jesus there. He drove out demons, healed the diseased, and cured the afflicted. He healed many, not all. They may have been thinking that the next day he would heal the rest. God will have mercy on whom he will have mercy. Keeping him there would insure that the people would never fear sickness or demons. Unaware of the work that Christ was going to accomplish, their healing was the greatest joy they could imagine. In similar fashion healing gives a glimpse of the power of the Gospel. However, the true healing is not sickness or disease, but rescued from sin and death. 

Imagine if someone came to the Watkins community and started healing people of sickness and disease. After the first day of him being here he has healed well over half the community. Those with cancer, diabetes, dementia, and other physical and bodily ailments come and re healed and night comes and we go to bed. Well we’re probably going to bed thinking that in the morning he will finish healing the rest of the people. We’re probably hoping that he’ll stay and heal people the next time they get sick. However, he leaves the next morning and as you can imagine the people are upset. Whether it was unbelief or something else Jesus doesn’t heal everyone. The verse is true, “I will have mercy on whom I will mercy” (Ex. 33:19) The greatest thing the we see and could ever know is the next verse.

3. That is when Jesus gives us the answer to the point of this sermon, but more importantly he gives the answer for why he came to earth. Let us go that I may preach there also, that is why I came. Jesus did not come to heal in fact he leaves sick people behind. What is healing compared to the word of God. Healing only give a temporary hope that as long as you are alive you are safe. The word of God saves for all eternity.

Jesus came to preach! He came to give his word. It almost seems harsh to imagine that Christ would leave people in need. We need to consider why Christ truly came. He came to give the world his word, not heal people. In almost every instance of healings it is a display of his power as God and not the message of the Gospel itself. Contrary to the popular notion of many today, healing has nothing to do with the Gospel. People were healed outside of the Gospel. Before Christ came some were healed by God and some by prophets. Many would use healings and other signs and wonders as the means to prove they know God or that they are preachers. Ironically, Jesus tells us that signs and wonders are the demands of the wicked (Matt. 12:39). He tells us that false prophets operate by using prophesy, healings, and other signs (Matt.7:21-23). All these things are not only temporal and serve no purpose after this life, but also puts the burden on the false teachers and the listeners to be able to muster up enough faith or work in order to receive something that will not last beyond this life. If you are looking to yourself as the evidence of salvation, you’re lost. If you believe that your salvation is the result of your works, you’re lost. This teaches people to put their trust in the work of themselves or the work of others instead of the person of Jesus and the complete and perfect work of Christ.

4. In the next verse he leaves for his journey preaching and driving out demons. No mention of healing. The casting out of demons can be directly related to the hearing of the word of God. Who can hear the word of God, receive faith, be justified and remain a child of the devil? No one. Who can hear the word and know the living word and be oppressed by evil spirits? No one. So he departs on his journey through Galilee preaching his word to all people. He came to to give us life, not healings, miracles, or signs and wonders.

Jesus Word Vs. Signs and Wonders.

His word is not temporal, but is the very word in which we find life. His word generates faith (Rom. 10:17) and raises to life the unbeliever (Eph. 2:4-5). His word is the assurance of our salvation. His word brings rest to the weary (Matthew 11:28 . Where signs and wonders fail the word of God never fails. It brings peace despite sickness and disease. It brings hope despite trials and tribulations (Rom. 8:1). His word is the only thing that brings life after life. His word is a reflection of his own nature. 

Faith comes by hearing his word. By faith we have been justified and have peace (Rom.5:1). Through his word we are declared right before him. It’s not, “blessed are those who have been healed”. It is, “Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.” (Psalm 32:1-2)

Christ tells us that false prophets will come healing in the name of the Lord and not enter the kingdom of heaven. Paul tells us that there is no condemnation for those in Christ. I firmly believe there are those who somehow found healing and never entered into the Kingdom of Heaven, but are perishing eternally, but because there is no condemnation for those in Christ. Every cancer patient, every diabetic, every person with dementia or Alzheimer, and every person who is sick and afflicted in some way will be raised to life if they are in Christ. They will be raised to life with a new body, free of pain and sickness. What is earthly healing compared eternal life? What is healing compared to peace with God? What is healing compared to being justified and having our sins forgiven.

The message of the Gospel is not be healed and enjoy the rest of your days on earth. It is repent and believe and have eternal life with God.