Kingdom Demonstrations

Mark 1:21-45 Manuscript

January 18, 2009

You’ve surely heard the expression, “Actions speak louder than words.” It’s the idea that what we do is more powerful than what we say. A husband can tell his wife that he loves her, but his actions toward her demonstrate the degree to which this is true. A politician can promise all kinds of things, but we want to see whether any action is taken to back it up.

Last week we began to study the person of Jesus as revealed in the Gospel of Mark. We’re doing this because the goal of our new church is to embody the message and mission of Jesus to every place that God sends us. We want to be representatives of Jesus in our lives and we want to be a church that serves like an embassy of the kingdom of God to our community.

We saw in Mark 1:1 an overview of what Mark’s account is—good news (not advice) about Jesus the Messiah (the anointed one who would bring in a new reality) and who is the Son of God. We focused last week on Jesus’ message from verse 15: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” When Jesus said that the kingdom of God is at hand, he was saying that the new reality of life with God as king was breaking in. The kingdom of God was a new beginning—the beginning of God’s new age. This new age would be a time of righteousness, peace, the fullness of God’s Spirit, the end of sickness and sin, and the restoration of the broken creation.

The implication of the kingdom of God breaking in is that people everywhere are to “repent and believe in the gospel.” We said last week that this is not just turning from specific sins (though it does include this), but also a reorientation of our whole lives around Jesus as king. What does this look like? Rebecca Pippert says it like this:

“What does it mean, then, to allow Jesus to be Lord of our lives?… Just this: whatever controls us is our lord. The person who seeks power is controlled by power. The person who seeks acceptance is controlled by the people he or she wants to please. We do not control ourselves. We are controlled by the lord of our life. If Jesus is our Lord, then he is the one who controls, he has the ultimate power. There are no bargains. We cannot manipulate him by playing ‘let’s make a deal’. If he is Lord, the only option open to us is to do his will, to let him have control. [Of course] Jesus remains Lord whether we accept him or not. His lordship, his essence, is not affected by what we choose. But our lives are drastically changed by our choice.”

Well, if Jesus has said that the kingdom of God is at hand, then we would expect to see some evidence of it. After all, “Actions speak louder than words.” We might challenge Jesus and say, “Oh, yeah? All kinds of people claim to be sent from God. Prove it!” And so, in today’s passage we turn our attention to what could be called “Kingdom Demonstrations.” We see evidence that Jesus’ claim is actually true. We see miraculous signs that point to the reality that Jesus actually is ushering in a new reality with God as king.

Let’s take a look at the text.

Mk 1:21-22 - And they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue and was teaching. And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.

Jesus and his few disciples go to the synagogue in Capernaum, which was a city on the northern edge of the Sea of Galilee (I’ve actually had the chance to go to Capernaum and see the remains of the synagogue there—show some pictures).

So Jesus is teaching there and notice what stands out about his teaching: “he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.” There was something about Jesus’ teaching that was authoritative and different than the scribes. What does this mean?

Well, the practice of the scribes when they taught was to quote from Rabbi so-and-so and to appeal to the knowledge or insight of other people when they taught. This would be like me quoting something that Billy Graham said in order to demonstrate that there are reputable people who could agree with what I’m saying. Even the prophets of the Old Testament would always say, “Thus says the Lord.” But Jesus’ teaching is different—it’s authoritative. Jesus doesn’t quote other Rabbis or say “Thus says the Lord.” He says, “Truly, I say to you” (KJV – Verily, verily). Twelve times in Mark’s gospel we hear this phrase. We see the same idea in Matthew in the Sermon on the Mount, when Jesus repeatedly says, “You have heard that it was said…but I say to you.” At the end of this sermon, Matthew records almost the identical thing as Mark: “And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.”

Not only is Jesus teaching authoritative because he doesn’t quote others, but it’s also demonstrated as authoritative by the powerful works that accompanies his teaching. The first of these powerful works is recorded next—the healing of a demon-possessed man.

Mk 1:23-28 - And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God.” But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!” And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him. And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.” And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee.

This is one of four instances of demonic healing that Mark records in this gospel, and it’s significant that this is the first story he records as evidence that the kingdom of God has broken in. If the kingdom of God has truly broken in, we would expect it to confront the areas of spiritual darkness, and that’s exactly what happens.

Notice a few things:

· Demonic powers know who Jesus is better than most people. Notice that they know who Jesus is—“the Holy One of God”—and they know what he has come to do—“Have you come to destroy us?” It’s an ironic twist that throughout the book of Mark people will constantly be trying to discern who Jesus is, but the demons never wonder. They know exactly who he is. And, despite their knowledge of him, they don’t believe or love or worship Jesus.

Have you seen the show, “Are you smarter than a 5th grader?” It’s kind of a cute show (though mostly annoying) where people are pitted against 5th grade students to answer questions that most elementary kids would know but adults have forgotten. Well, when I was reading this passage this week I kept having the question, “Do you know Jesus better than a demon?” That is, do you not just know that Jesus is the Holy Son of God, but do you also worship him, love him, and live for him? Does your life demonstrate your belief in Jesus?

James 2 teaches us that faith without works is meaningless: “So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, ‘You have faith and I have works.’ Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!”

· Jesus speaks and demons obey. Jesus simply says, “Be quiet,” which literally means, “Be muzzled.” It’s really the equivalent of saying “Zip it!” or “Shut up!” Jesus quiets the demon and tells him to leave—and he does. Now historical records show that there were instances of other people who performed exorcisms. First century historian Josephus writes of a particular exorcist named Eleazar who used a particular root to pull out demons from people’s nostrils and who appealed to the name of Solomon for his power to do so. But Jesus is different. He doesn’t use a technique. He doesn’t need props. He doesn’t need to appeal to Solomon or anybody else. He simply speaks the word and demons obey. This is what the crowds notice—Jesus is proclaiming a new teaching with authority (the kingdom of God is at hand) and demonstrating it by casting out a demon with a word.

But the in-breaking of the kingdom of God is not simply about spiritual encounters—it’s also about bringing wholeness to all areas of life, big and small. And so Mark records another example of how the kingdom of God is at hand.

Mk 1:29-31 - And immediately he left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. Now Simon’s mother-in-law lay ill with a fever, and immediately they told him about her. And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them.

So after the synagogue, they head over to Peter’s house (just down the street – see picture) and it happens that Peter’s mother-in-law is sick (yes, Peter was married—which doesn’t square with Roman Catholic teaching that clergy should be celibate). So Jesus, with a tender touch, heals her and she is restored to such strength that she is able to serve them. This provides a good lesson for us—Jesus heals us so that we can serve him. If you’ve experienced Jesus’ healing grace, then it is so that you can begin to serve him.

Mk 1:32-34 - That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or oppressed by demons. And the whole city was gathered together at the door. And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. And he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.

Next Mark tells us how the day ends. The Sabbath ends at sundown and as soon as is possible, tons of people show up at the door to be healed by Jesus. And Jesus, graciously, heals them. Notice that the variety of things that Jesus deals with shows that he was authoritative over all of it. He was a general practitioner, not a specialist. This is because he is King and his kingdom has broken in.

What a day! Just think of all that has happened during this one day. You’ve got to think that Jesus was pretty tuckered out and ready for a good night’s sleep. Yet the next thing we read is that, rather than sleeping in, Jesus is out early for prayer.

Mk 1:35-39 - 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. And Simon and those who were with him searched for him, and they found him and said to him, “Everyone is looking for you.” 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.” And he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.

Notice a few things:

· Jesus made prayer a priority. While we often think that we don’t have enough time to pray because we’re too busy, Jesus knew that he needed to have time to pray because he was so busy. 19th Century Pastor JC Ryle writes, ‘If he who was “holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners” prayed continually like this, how much more ought we who are subject to weakness?’[1]

· Jesus’ agenda was different from his followers. Peter finally finds Jesus after lots of diligent searching and says, “Everyone is looking for you.” He’s thinking, “Wow, what a day we had yesterday. We could really make a big impact by getting back to town and helping out all these people.” But Jesus is on a different agenda. Jesus isn’t there just to settle down with one small community, but to proclaim the good news of the kingdom to as many people as possible. So he replies, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for this is why I came out.”

We face the same challenge today, don’t we? We begin to experience the grace of Jesus and we want to hunker down and keep experiencing him the way we want. This could be a temptation for us at Second Mile—to so enjoy things the way they are at the beginning that we don’t want to reach out to new people and different communities. But Jesus heart is to keep moving and preaching to more people. So our heart should be to reach as many people as possible with the good news that Jesus is King.

· Jesus’ ministered to people through words and works. Look at verse 39: “And he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.” For Jesus, the kingdom was about proclamation and demonstration. It was about meeting spiritual needs and physical needs. For us, this means that we need to be a people who are concerned about ministering to people with words and deeds—we need both. We can’t simply be a people who talk about God’s love—we have to demonstrate it. Here’s how 1 John 3:16-18 says it: “By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.”

Some of us are great at talking about God and sharing the good news with people but we don’t care that much about caring for the hurting and poor and marginalized. Others are great at caring for practical needs but are gun-shy about declaring the truth about Jesus. That’s why we need each other, and that’s also why we need to work to care about both word and deed.

Jesus’ ministry was remarkable. And few things would have been more amazing than what Mark records next.

Mk 1:40-45 - And a leper came to him, imploring him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean.” Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. And Jesus sternly charged him and sent him away at once, and said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to them.” But he went out and began to talk freely about it, and to spread the news, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in desolate places, and people were coming to him from every quarter.

You may have heard of leprosy—it’s an appalling skin disease that rots a person’s body away. Now the word that’s used here may or may not actually mean leprosy as we know it. The Greek word that is translated as “leprosy” was really a catch-all word for a variety of horrible skin diseases. But whatever this man’s specific affliction was, history tells us that life would have been miserable for this man.

According to Old Testament law, a person who was afflicted with leprosy was unclean. This meant that they were not able to participate in the life of the community and were forced to live outside the camp. They could not, obviously, have any physical contact with others because that would make the other people unclean. Additionally, they were required to call out “Unclean! Unclean!” whenever somebody came near. So, not only were lepers afflicted with a terribly painful disease, but they were also socially outcasted and utterly alone.

Additionally, there are a few Old Testament passages where the judgment of God is represented by people becoming leprous. So this led many people to conclude that having leprosy was the outward sign of being inwardly corrupt and immoral. It was thought of as a physical representation of sinfulness.

Not surprisingly, lepers did not heal or get better and often died as a result of the disease. Those who know the history of the times say that in the minds of the rabbis, healing a person of leprosy was as difficult as raising a person from the dead—it didn’t happen.

Therefore, Jesus’ healing this man is a significant sign of the kingdom of God coming. Notice:

· The leper’s confidence in Jesus’ power. He doesn’t ask if Jesus will heal him. He simply says, “If you will, you can make me clean.”

· Jesus touched him. Jesus did not need to touch the man in order for him to be healed. As we saw with the demon, Jesus could have simply spoken a word. Yet verse 41 says that Jesus, “moved with pity,” “stretched out his hand and touched him. This man who had experienced the physical pain of his body deteriorating and then the horrific pain of being abandoned and rejected by those who were closest to him now experiences the healing and compassionate touch of Jesus. Jesus doesn’t just think about his physical ailments, but his emotional pain as well. He doesn’t just heal him physically, but he restores him to society. He approaches the man holistically.

· Jesus is the source of cleanness. Though leprosy was this incurable, defiling disease of the skin that makes everyone unclean, Jesus reaches out to his uncleanness. Instead of Jesus catching the man’s uncleanness, the man caught Jesus’ cleanness.

The passage ends with a puzzling thing. Jesus tells the man not to say anything to anyone and to make his offering as required by the Scripture, but he ignores the command and tells people everywhere, so much so that Jesus can’t even do ministry anymore in the towns and has to be out in the desolate places.

· When your life is touched by Jesus, you can’t help but talk about it.

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[1]J. C. Ryle, Mark, The Crossway classic commentaries (Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway Books, 1993). 12.