Youth Sunday: Jesus Heals
For Meditation
Just as the Kingdom of God upsets the kingdom of this world by elevating what the world says is lowly and humbling the things the world says are great, so Jesus upsets the standards of the world in the things that he does. It’s not that Jesus is against the world; he is more for it than any person has ever been or ever will be, and when he acts, he does so not for his own gain but instead so that the world will become more of what it’s supposed to be. When Jesus acts, he brings the Kingdom of God more clearly into focus.
As we look at Mark 1:21-45 we see that Jesus does significant amounts of healing, of restoring bodies and minds. Understandably as he did this word about his spread throughout communities and people from all over came to see him and to be healed by him. It would have been easy to let something like this go to his head, or even to take advantage of this and make a lot of money, but instead Jesus continued to move from village to village healing and restoring people. He didn’t heal others to make a name for himself but instead he healed so that God’s kingdom would be made manifest. He was making right the things that sin had broken, even the human body.
For some of us, maybe we’re doing good things in the name of the Lord, working so that God’s kingdom is more visible to the world, but an important question for us to think about is if we’re working for the glory of the kingdom or our own glory.
For others of us, we might be desiring to be healed. Jesus sees us, he knows our needs, and he moves towards us to heal us. For those of us who have been healed, Jesus doesn’t heal us so that we can just rest in our healing but instead, we’re healed so that we can glorify God in what we do in response to that healing.
Jesus heals. He heals each person as they need to be healed so that the Kingdom of God may be seen in and through each and all of us.
Mark 1:21–45
21 They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. 22 The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law. 23 Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an impure spirit cried out, 24 “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!”
25 “Be quiet!” said Jesus sternly. “Come out of him!” 26 The impure spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek.
27 The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, “What is this? A new teaching—and with authority! He even gives orders to impure spirits and they obey him.” 28 News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee.
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 immediately 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.
35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. 36 Simon and his companions went to look for him, 37 and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!”
38 Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” 39 So he traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons.
40 A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.”
41 Jesus was indignant. He reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” 42 Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed.
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.