Author: David Petts

Talk 10   Mark 3:13-19   Jesus appoints the first apostles

Welcome to Talk 10 in our series on Mark’s Gospel. Today we’ll be considering Mark 3:13-19 where Jesus appoints his first apostles. I say his first apostles because there were, of course, later apostles mentioned in the book of Acts – Matthias, who was appointed to replace Judas, and, of course, the apostle Paul. I have gone into some detail about this in my book Body Builders where I also mention Barnabas and James, the Lord’s brother, who are just two others named as apostles in the New Testament, and argue that there is no reason why we should not expect to see the ministry of apostles at work in the church today. However, today I will not be repeating those arguments, but rather consider what we can learn from these verses about this important ministry.

13 Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him. 14 He appointed twelve – designating them apostles – that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach 15 and to have authority to drive out demons. 16 These are the twelve he appointed: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter); 17 James son of Zebedee and his brother John (to them he gave the name Boanerges, which means Sons of Thunder); 18 Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

13 Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him.

This verse teaches us important principles about how men and women are called to God’s service:

First, he calls those he wants

Actually, the translation wanted is rather weak. Those he wanted is literally whom he willed. In Acts 1:2 Luke refers to the apostles Jesus had chosen, or more literally, chosen out (i.e from among the rest). The call of God is rooted in the will of God. No doubt that’s why Jesus spent a night in prayer to God before appointing his apostles:

One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. When morning came, he called his disciples to him and chose (or picked out) twelve of them, whom he also designated apostles (Luke 6:12-13).

(Note, we’re not talking about salvation here. We’re talking about the call to apostleship. God is not willing that any should perish, and he calls everyone to be saved. But not everyone is called to be an apostle).

It’s not wrong to want to serve the Lord in a particular way (e.g. to desire to be a church leader – 1 Timothy 3:1), but no amount of wanting will make it happen if it’s not God’s plan for our lives. The gifts and ministries God distributes among his people are given as he determines (1 Corinthians 12:11) and it is God who places apostles in the church (1 Corinthians 12:28). And as Paul was to write later concerning his own apostleship, By the grace of God I am what I am (1 Corinthians 15:10).

Secondly, he calls those who are already disciples

It’s noteworthy that those he chose to be apostles were already his disciples. Mark has already told us how Jesus had called five of those named in this passage – Peter, Andrew, James, John, and Matthew – to follow him, and in the passage we’ve just quoted from Luke we’re told that Jesus picked out his apostles from among his disciples.  

And indeed, we would hardly have expected anything else. A disciple is a committed follower, someone who is willing to learn, not just one of a curious crowd who has come to see the miracles. Jesus said that the test of a true disciple is if they hold to his teaching (John 8:31). It goes without saying, then, if anyone is to be an apostle, someone who is sent to spread the good news about Christ and speak with his authority, they must first be a disciple.

Thirdly, despite what we have just said, those he called to be apostles had not been his disciples very long

They were called at the outset of Jesus’ ministry. They had a lot to learn but Jesus called them when they were relatively young. The gifts and calling of God are not dependent on age. Paul told Timothy to let no one despise his youth (1 Timothy 4:12). There’s a danger that older Christians sometimes find it hard to accept the ministry of those who are younger, and, conversely, young Christians themselves can be tempted to feel that they’re too young to serve the Lord.

Speaking from personal experience, I accepted the claims of Christ when I was just fourteen years old and began preaching in the same year. Hopefully, my understanding of God’s word has increased considerably over the seventy years that have followed, but the gift enabling me to preach was there from the start. When I was still in my thirties God showed me that I would become the Principal of a Bible College, but I, along I suspect with many others, thought I might be too young. But it happened as God said it would. Don’t be surprised if the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers that Christ is still giving to his church (Ephesians 4:11) arise from the ranks of young people.

And, fourthly, those he called were willing to come

How do we know? Because they came to him. Jesus didn’t compel them. He called them. The choice was theirs. Even Paul, who could say that God had set him apart from his mother’s womb (Galatians 1:15), had a choice about it. In saying this he almost certainly had in mind what God said to the prophet Ezekiel:

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations (Ezekiel 1:5).

At first sight this seems as though Ezekiel had no choice about it, but as we read the rest of the chapter it’s clear from God’s warning not to disobey him that he did! Note that in this verse God knows Ezekiel before he creates him and appoints him. The key to understanding the mystery of God’s predetermined purpose for our lives is his foreknowledge. He chooses us in advance because he knows in advance that when he calls us, we will choose to follow him. God chooses us. Then he calls us. We respond. Then he appoints.

14 He appointed twelve – designating them apostles – that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach 15 and to have authority to heal diseases and drive out demons.

The main purpose of these verses is to reveal Jesus’ purpose in appointing apostles, and we’ll turn to that in a moment, but first it’s interesting to consider if there’s any significance in the number 12. And Matthew 19:28 may well indicate that there is:

Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

So the number of the twelve apostles corresponds to the number of the twelve tribes of Israel. Now is not the time to enter into lengthy discussion of all the possible implications of this verse, but it does seem that Jesus is here giving an early indication of what was later to become clearer in the rest of the New Testament that the true Israel is not comprised of the physical descendants of Abraham, but of his followers, whether Jew or Gentile, who would believe as Abraham believed. The church was to become the Israel of God (Galatians 6:15-16, cf. 1 Peter 2:9-10, Ephesians 2:11-16). And the apostles Jesus appointed were to have a special role in the coming kingdom of God – which, incidentally, seems to indicate that The Twelve were a unique group and should be distinguished from later apostles like Barnabas, Paul and James to whom I have already referred. (For more on this, please see Body Builders).

But now let’s turn to Jesus’ purpose in appointing these men. We saw in chapter 1 how Jesus came proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God (vv.14-15) and how he called the four fishermen to follow him, saying, Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men v.17). They were to follow Jesus and learn from him how to proclaim the good news, and in so doing win other disciples for him. This same purpose is now made clear as he chooses and appoints the twelve apostles. They are to proclaim the good news and demonstrate its truth by healing diseases and driving out demons. And as we look at these two verses in a little more detail we see four key principles. He appointed them:

·      that they might be with him

·      that he might send them out

·      to preach (proclaim the good news)

·      to have authority to heal diseases and drive out demons.

that they might be with him

Before he could ever send them out to preach it was vital that they should be with him. They had so much to learn. If they were to proclaim God’s truth, they must first learn what it is. However great a person’s communication skills, if what they’re communicating is not the truth, they’ll do more harm than good. These men were to spend three years learning from Jesus and would continue to learn after Jesus had left them as they were taught by the Holy Spirit (John 16:12-13).

We can apply this to ourselves in three main ways.

First, there is no substitute for spending time with Jesus if we want to be effective in his service. Secondly, if we’re called to full time service, a period of intensive training is highly desirable. And thirdly, we need continually and increasingly to be learning what the Holy Spirit is teaching us.

that he might send them out

The word that’s used for send here is apostello. The word that’s used for apostle is apostolos. An apostle is essentially someone who is sent. However, it’s important not to assume that every time the verb apostello is used in the New Testament it’s a reference to apostles. The word is used in a much more general sense to refer to anyone who is sent, as, for example, when Pilate’s wife sent a message to Pilate in Matthew 27:19. For more on this, please see Body Builders.

But with regard to the twelve that Jesus designated as apostles it’s clear that in the context apostolos is used in a much more specific sense.  The word is sometimes used to refer to someone who is sent with a special commission and authority to represent someone else, rather like an ambassador who represents their country in another land, and that’s pretty much how it’s being used here. Paul certainly understood his apostleship in these terms for he saw himself as an ambassador for Christ imploring people on Christ’s behalf to be reconciled to God (2 Corinthians 5:20).

But of course, we mustn’t limit the responsibility to be Christ’s ambassadors to those who are called to be apostles. We all have a responsibility to share the good news with others. He sends us out as ambassadors to tell others about the heavenly country to which we now belong and to represent our King as we live in a land which is not our real home, for our citizenship is in heaven (Philippians 3:20). Why not ask God, Lord, who are you sending me to today?

to preach (proclaim)

The word translated preach here is the same as in Mark 1:14 referring to Jesus proclaiming  the good news. I must confess that some of the ‘preaching’ I have heard falls very short of proclaiming. The word means to herald or to announce. That’s what Jesus did and the disciples were to do the same because he had given them authority to do so.

And it’s clear from the last chapter of Mark’s Gospel that the disciples got the message. Jesus told them to go into all the world and preach (proclaim) the good news to all… (v.15). He promised them that miraculous signs would accompany their message, and in verse 20 we’re told that they went out and preached (proclaimed) everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.

to have authority to (heal diseases and) drive out demons.

The reference to healing diseases is not found in all manuscripts but is completely in harmony with both Matthew’s and Luke’s accounts. In Matthew 8:1 Jesus gives them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and illness…

and in Luke 9:1-2 he gives them power and authority to drive out all demons and sends them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal those who were ill.

Taking these accounts together the message is clear. The good news of the kingdom of God is to be proclaimed and demonstrated with miraculous signs. This is to be done by those to whom Jesus has given the authority to do so. But does this apply to all Christians or only to those who are apostles? The answer is neither! It doesn’t apply to all Christians and it is not only for the apostles.

Why do I say this? First, it doesn’t apply only to apostles because it’s clear from Luke 10 that Jesus later appointed 72 others, who are not designated as apostles, and told them to heal those who are ill and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near you (Luke 9:9). What’s more, it’s clear from Acts 8 that Philip, who was not an apostle, but an evangelist exercised a similar ministry.

And secondly, we mustn’t assume that it applies to all Christians because Jesus gave this authority to a limited number of people, whose names are given in verses 16-19, and he gave it at a particular time during his ministry. For example, in Matthew 10:8 Jesus gave the twelve people named in verses 2-4 authority to raise the dead, but that doesn’t mean that I can claim it as a promise, because the promise wasn’t made to me. If I am to raise the dead I must have Jesus’ authority to do so. And since Jesus is no longer with us in bodily form that authority can only come through the leading of the Holy Spirit. That’s why, after Jesus left them, even the apostles, who had already worked miracles while Jesus was with them, had to wait for the coming of the Spirit to empower them and lead them.

So the passages we’ve been looking at don’t give us a set of promises that we can appropriate for ourselves, but they do give us a clear indication of the kind of things we can expect to happen as we are led by the Spirit. We should expect miracles to confirm the proclamation of the gospel, but they will only happen as we follow the principles we have seen in these verses. We must spend time with Jesus, we must go where he sends us, we must speak what he tells us, and, as he through the Spirit gives us the authority, we will see miraculous things happen to confirm the good news we proclaim.

For more on this important subject, please see Just a Taste of Heaven – a biblical and balanced approach to God’s healing power.

Talk 9 Mark 3:1-12 Defying the Pharisees and dealing with demons

Welcome to Talk 9 in our series on Mark’s gospel. Today we’ll be looking at Mark 3:1-12. In previous talks we have seen how Jesus came proclaiming the Kingdom of God (1:14-15) and demonstrating with miraculous signs his authority over demons and disease. In chapter 1 he casts an evil spirit out of a man in the synagogue at Capernaum, heals Simon’s mother-in-law of a fever, and cures a man with leprosy, and in chapter 2 he heals a paralysed man, telling him first that his sins are forgiven.

We have also seen how his authority did not go unchallenged, particularly by the Pharisees, who understood full well the implications of the claims Jesus was making – his right to forgive sins, and to be the Lord of the Sabbath, which entitled him to heal on the Sabbath and to interpret the law of Moses very differently from them. Now, as we turn to the first six verses of chapter 3, we see Jesus once again antagonising his critics by healing on the Sabbath day.

Another time he went into the synagogue, and a man with a shrivelled hand was there. 2 Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath. 3 Jesus said to the man with the shrivelled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.” 4 Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent. 5 He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. 6 Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.

1 Another time he went into the synagogue, and a man with a shrivelled hand was there.

Mark doesn’t tell us which synagogue it was, but it may well have been the one in Capernaum again. The man’s disability would have made him unable to work, particularly if, as early tradition has it, he was a plasterer.

2 Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath.

Bearing in mind that there are no chapter divisions in the original text, some of them almost certainly refers to the Pharisees who had challenged Jesus at the end of chapter 2. They had clearly rejected his explanation of why his disciples were allowed to pick grain on the Sabbath, and would have hated his claim to be Lord of the Sabbath. To acknowledge the claims of Jesus would have undoubtedly required not only a massive shift in what they believed, but also a complete change in their lifestyle. People who are unwilling to repent will often look for a reason to find fault with Jesus – or with his followers as we saw in the last chapter.

3 Jesus said to the man with the shrivelled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.”

Why did Jesus say this? Did he want to draw attention to the miracle? By asking the man to stand up in front of everyone, he would certainly ensure that all those present would witness it. His miracles were signs validating his message about the kingdom of God and he longed for people to believe it. But at this early stage in his ministry, as we shall see later, it seems unlikely that Jesus would have called the man forward just to draw attention to the miracle.

Alternatively, from the question he asks next in verse 4, it seems possible that he did it as a direct challenge to the attitude and teaching of the Pharisees. What better way to expose their hypocrisy and to demonstrate the truth that the meeting of human need is more important than the ritualistic observance of the Sabbath, than to show his compassion by working a miracle of healing on the Sabbath day in front of the entire congregation?

But more probably, in my view, Jesus called the man forward for the benefit of the man himself. In the culture of the day, it would have been natural for people with disabilities to want to keep themselves hidden, partly because many people were revolted by any form of deformity, and partly because these afflictions were widely regarded as having resulted from personal sin. Here, as with the healing of the woman with curvature of the spine in Luke 13, Jesus’ calling the person to the front was a declaration that their disability was nothing to be ashamed of, and their years of embarrassment were now over. It would also encourage their faith.

4 Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent.

So far the Pharisees have said nothing, but Jesus knows what they’re thinking, so he anticipates their challenge by asking them a question. The Pharisees had so many man-made rules about the Sabbath that it was virtually impossible to do anything! But to do nothing when someone is in need is to do evil. If anyone knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them (James 4:17). Jesus was the only sinless person who has ever lived, and because he had the power to heal the man it would have been wrong for him not to do it. But he not only committed no sin, he was also never guilty of a sin of omission. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil (Acts 10:38). Surely the Pharisees knew he was right, but they refused to admit it.

5 He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored.

Notice the strong emotions of Jesus here. He is angry and he is deeply distressed. It’s not wrong to be angry. It’s right to be angry about injustice, about cruelty, about hypocrisy, about anything and everything that spoils the world we live in. And God is angry about sin because he loves us, and sin is the root cause of all that’s wrong in the world.

But here Jesus is not just angry. He is deeply distressed. He grieves over the hardness of human hearts, yes, even over the Pharisees’ stubborn hearts. His anger is mixed with love. He is distressed because he knows there is no hope for those who reject him. Hear the distress in his voice as he weeps over Jerusalem:

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing (Matthew 23:37).

The simple fact is, we all have a choice. To believe Jesus or not. The man with the shrivelled hand was completely and immediately made whole because he chose to believe Jesus. The Pharisees were lost because they chose not to.

6 Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.

We don’t know why the Pharisees were so opposed to Jesus. Were they jealous of his popularity? Did they hate anyone who didn’t agree with their point of view? Was their social position threatened by Jesus’ radical teaching? Or did his responses to their criticism make them look stupid? Whatever the reason, their opposition reached a point where they began to plot how they could kill him. They were prepared to break the moral law contained in the Ten Commandments to defend their interpretation of relatively minor regulations regarding the observance of the Sabbath!

7 Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lake, and a large crowd from Galilee followed. 8 When they heard all he was doing, many people came to him from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, and the regions across the Jordan and around Tyre and Sidon. 9 Because of the crowd he told his disciples to have a small boat ready for him, to keep the people from crowding him. 10 For he had healed many, so that those with diseases were pushing forward to touch him. 11 Whenever the evil spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.” 12 But he gave them strict orders not to tell who he was.

7 Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lake, and a large crowd from Galilee followed. 8 When they heard all he was doing, many people came to him from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, and the regions across the Jordan and around Tyre and Sidon.

The Jewish religious may have rejected him, but crowds of ordinary people were coming from far and wide because they heard all he was doing. Miracles, especially miracles of healing, always attract a crowd. We saw in chapter one how, when Jesus cast an evil spirit out of a man in the synagogue at Capernaum, news about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee (1:28). The people brought to Jesus all who are ill and demon possessed (1:32). After the healing of the leper the people came to him from everywhere (1:45). In chapter 2 they gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left… (2:2). And so it goes on throughout the earthly ministry of Jesus.

And it continues in the book of Acts where, in 1:1 Luke refers to the record in his Gospel of all that Jesus began to do and to teach. Through the ministry of his disciples Jesus was to continue to do and teach as they were empowered by the Holy Spirit. Miracles like speaking in tongues and healings drew thousands under the sound of the gospel. And they still do so today, except where cynicism and unbelief are rife in society (cf. Mark 6:5-6 where even Jesus could do no miracles in his home town because of their lack of faith).

Of course, as we have seen in previous talks, although miracles may draw the crowds, they do not necessarily lead to repentance. Some come out of curiosity, others because they are desperate for a solution to their problem, but not all are grateful, as we see in the story of the ten lepers. So, what is the purpose of miracles? They demonstrate God’s love and compassion. They manifest his power. They confirm the message of the gospel. They make it easier for people to repent and believe. And they vindicate God’s righteous judgment on all who, having experienced them, persist in their refusal to repent.

9 Because of the crowd he told his disciples to have a small boat ready for him, to keep the people from crowding him.

This is not the only reference in the Gospels to Jesus teaching from a boat. The reason given here is to keep the people from crowding him. It would also have had the added advantage that more than those immediately next to him would be able to hear his message. Living by the sea I have often noticed on a calm day how much farther sound carries over water than on land.

It’s interesting, too, that the disciples still had access to a boat.  Perhaps Zebedee, the father of James and John was still in the fishing business. The fishermen had forsaken everything to follow him, but God still had a purpose for the knowledge and experience they had acquired before their conversion.  Our natural talents, as well as any supernatural gifts he may entrust to us, can be very valuable in contributing to the spread of the message of the gospel.

10 For he had healed many, so that those with diseases were pushing forward to touch him.

Of course, Jesus was not afraid to touch or be touched by people with diseases. We have already seen how he touched the man with leprosy without fear of contagion. But we also know that he was able to heal at a distance, something well understood by the Roman centurion In Matthew 8, and the Syro-Phoenician woman in Mark 7.

11 Whenever the evil spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.”

Notice the word whenever. Jesus cast out many evil spirits, but they all, without exception, acknowledged who he was. And they knew that he had power over them:

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! (Mark 1:24 and Luke 4:34)

He shouted at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Swear to God that you won’t torture me! (Mark 5:7 and Luke 8:28)

They address him as Jesus of Nazareth, but they know that he is far more than a man from Nazareth. He is the Holy One of God. He is Son of the Most High God. They know that he has power to destroy them. As James, the Lord’s brother, tells us, Even the demons believe.., and shudder (James 2:19). Had James been present sometimes when Jesus had cast out demons and seen them cower before him? We don’t know, but whenever they saw him they fell down before him. And the day is coming when at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow… (Philippians 2: 9-11).

How did the evil spirits know who Jesus was? Because before Satan and his minions had rebelled against God and were cast out of Heaven they had known him as the Son of God through whom and for whom they were created, things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers, or rulers or authorities, all things were created  through him and for him (Colossians 1:16). No wonder they shudder in his presence.

12 But he gave them strict orders not to tell who he was

Jesus refused to accept the testimony of demons, even though what they were saying was true. Before we attempt to answer why, we need to bear in mind that it was not only demons that Jesus told to be silent. We’ve already seen in Mark 1:44 how he tells the leper he has healed, See that you don’t tell this to anyone. In 5:43 he tells Jairus not to let anyone know about how Jesus has raised his daughter to life. In 7:36, after the healing of the man who was deaf and had a speech impediment, he says the same thing. In 8:30 after Peter’s confession that Jesus is the Messiah, and in 9:9, after their experience of the transfiguration, he even tells his disciples not to tell anyone about him.

So, although, in the case of demons, Jesus may have ordered them to be silent as they were hardly reliable character witnesses, this would not account for why he told the people and his disciples to be silent. One explanation that’s frequently offer to this question, often referred to as the Messianic secret, is that if Jesus were openly identified as the Messiah the people would have probably attempted to crown him as their king, which was not, of course, in line with the reason he had come.

This may well be correct, but in my view another explanation is far more compelling. It’s clear that the restrictions Jesus imposed on his disciples were only temporary. In Mark 9:9, after his transfiguration, Jesus tells his disciples to tell no one who he was until he had risen from the dead. And in Acts 1:8 he tells them – and us – to be his witnesses to the ends of the earth.

So the restrictions he placed on telling others about him were temporary. But why? The answer surely lies in a combination of the two last points we have mentioned. The timing wasn’t right for the majority of people to know who he was, because if they did, they would want to make him the wrong kind of king and this could disrupt the years of training the disciples would need to fulfil their role of spreading the gospel after Jesus had returned to Heaven.

But that leads us to the subject of our next talk when we shall see how Jesus delegates his authority to the apostles he has chosen and gives them authority to heal the sick and cast out demons.

Talk 8     Mark 2:18-28     Jesus Questioned About Fasting and the Sabbath

Welcome to Talk 8 in our series on Mark’s Gospel. Today we’re looking at Mark 2:18-28 where Jesus answers questions about fasting and the Sabbath. As we shall see, these questions arose, partly from a genuine desire to know the answer, but more often from the critical attitude of the Pharisees who, like many people today, were only looking for a reason why they should NOT believe the claims of Jesus.

In the first part of this chapter, we saw the beginning of opposition from the Jewish religious leaders, especially the Pharisees. They question his right to forgive sins. They ask why he keeps company with tax collectors and sinners. Now they’re asking why his disciples don’t fast and why they’re breaking the law regarding the Sabbath. And in chapter 3, which we’ll look at next time, they look for an excuse to accuse him by watching to see if he will heal on the Sabbath day. They even start to plot about how they can kill him. It’s important to bear this overall context in mind as we consider the two issues raised in today’s passage which relate to the disciples’ behaviour with regard to (1) fasting and (2) the Sabbath.

Questions about fasting (vv18-22)

18 Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came and asked Jesus, “How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?” 19 Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? They cannot, so long as they have him with them. 20 But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast. 21 “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. 22 And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, he pours new wine into new wineskins.”

18 Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came and asked Jesus, “How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?”

Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting

Although regular fasting wasn’t part of the Law of Moses, by the time of Jesus it had become an important part of Jewish practice and was observed not only by the Pharisees but also by the disciples of John the Baptist. But the behaviour of Jesus and his disciples seemed to call into question the ceremonial law of the Old Testament and how it was currently interpreted and put into practice. In particular, it raised questions about fasting, and, as we shall see, the observance of the Sabbath (vv23-28 and 3:1-6).

Some people came and asked Jesus

The Greek just says, they came and said to him. So, in the context, the question is asked by John’s disciples and the Pharisees. Interestingly, Matthew (9:14) only mentions the disciples of John, and in Luke (5:33) it’s the Pharisees who asked the question. As we’ve already seen, the Pharisees were constantly looking for opportunities to catch Jesus out, but the motive of John’s disciples may well have been genuine.

They were probably fasting and mourning because John had already been imprisoned (1:14), and John would soon be taken from them.

How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?

Whatever the motivation behind it, the question is quite understandable. Why weren’t Jesus’ disciples fasting? Jesus’ replies by using three different analogies – a bridegroom, a patch of cloth, and a wineskin.

Vv19-20 The analogy of a bridegroom

19 Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? They cannot, so long as they have him with them. 20 But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast.

To understand what Jesus is saying here we need to remember that in both Old and New Testaments God’s people are referred to as his bride. For example, Isaiah 62:5 God says:

As a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you.

(cf. The parable of the ten virgins in Matthew 25:1-14, and Revelation 21:2).

God is the bridegroom, and his people are his bride. So, in using this analogy and applying it to himself, Jesus is surely implying his deity. But that is not his primary purpose here. His main point is that the period that he was with his disciples was not a time for them to fast. Fasting was usually associated with repentance, sorrow and mourning. But, in leaving everything to follow him, Jesus’ disciples had already repented and the time of fellowship while he was with them was a time for joy, not sorrow. The time for sorrow and mourning would come when he was taken from them – an early indication that Jesus already knew that he would eventually die for their sins.

On that day (NIV) is literally in those days. This suggests that the time for sorrow and mourning after Jesus’ crucifixion would be limited. It would soon give place to the joy of resurrection and would hardly be true of the disciples after Pentecost. But that does not mean that there is no place for fasting today. It’s clear from the book of Acts (e.g. 13:1-3) that there are times when fasting is appropriate especially when it’s accompanied by prayer.

But personally I see no clear basis in this passage for ritual fasting or for the observance of Lent, and although it’s right to remember regularly Christ’s suffering and death as we take communion (1 Corinthians 11:23-26), whatever the date on the calendar might be, I cannot help rejoicing in the knowledge that Christ is risen! If I mourn anything, it’s that my sin made his suffering necessary.

So the first part of Jesus’ answer to the question was that it was not the right time for his disciples to be fasting because they were enjoying fellowship with him while he was still with them. And, as we have seen, it also includes an implicit claim to deity and a prediction of his death.

But the second part of his answer, where Jesus uses two further analogies, makes another astounding claim. The kingdom of God which he had come to proclaim (1:14-15) could simply not be contained within the framework of Judaism. What Jesus had come to introduce was entirely new.

V21 The analogy of a patch of cloth

So in verse 21 Jesus says:

No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse.

The old garment of ceremonial Judaism was torn, but the new piece of Christ’s kingdom would only pull away from it, as it very quickly did as we see in Acts 15 with the church’s decision not to insist on circumcision for Gentile believers. The same point is made in verse 22 by Jesus’ use of the analogy of a wineskin.

V22 The analogy of a wineskin

And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, he pours new wine into new wineskins.”

Wineskins were watertight bags made from a goatskin. New wine was always put into new wineskins, because in time it would expand and stretch the bag. Old wineskins had already been stretched, and so if new wine were put into them, as the wine expanded it would only burst the wineskin. The lesson goes even further than the illustration of the patch of cloth. The new and the old are incompatible. Jesus had come to introduce something entirely new that would not only break free from the old (Judaism) and, if it didn’t, it would ultimately destroy it. But that brings us to verses 23-28 where Jesus is questioned about his disciples’ behaviour on the Sabbath.

Questions about the Sabbath (vv23-28)

23 One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. 24 The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?” 25 He answered, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need? 26 In the days of Abiathar the high priest, he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread, which is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions.” 27 Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. 28 So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

23 One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. 24 The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”

It wasn’t unlawful for the disciples to pick the heads of grain. This was explicitly permitted by the law of Moses for the benefit of the poor (Leviticus 19:9-10). But Exodus 34:21 did say that even in the time of harvest the people must rest on the Sabbath. This is presumably what the Pharisees had in mind. But what the disciples were doing was hardly harvesting.

It’s interesting that Jesus doesn’t get into a debate on the correct exegesis of these Old Testament verses – the Pharisees would probably have loved that – but he gets to the heart of the question, the purpose for which the law was given. It was given for the benefit of man.

The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath (v27). All God’s commandments are given for our benefit. God loves us, and he knows what’s best for us. What matters is not the letter of the law, but its intention. This is made clear in verses 25-26.

25 “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need? 26 In the days of Abiathar the high priest, he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread, which is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions.”

This is a reference to 1 Samuel 21:1-6 where David clearly broke the letter of the law given by Moses in Leviticus 24:9. And Jesus condones his actions! But why? Didn’t Jesus say that he had not come to destroy the law but to fulfil it? Yes, but he also taught that love (for God and for one’s fellow man) is the fulfilment of the law. So David had acted correctly because he understood that human need must take precedence over ceremonial law. So, as we shall see next time, Jesus taught that the Sabbath was a day to do good (Mark 3:4).

27 Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.

God created the Sabbath for our benefit, not his own. The laws about the Sabbath were given to ensure that God’s people took time to rest, did not exploit those who worked for them, and made time to worship the Lord – even the command to worship him was given for our benefit, not God’s.  

It’s noteworthy that in the teaching of Paul, the question of observing the Sabbath was a made a matter of individual conscience (Romans 14) and it’s worth remembering that the Sabbath was the seventh day of the week (i.e. our Saturday), not Sunday which was and – despite the wrong impression created by modern secular calendars – still is the first day of the week. Nowhere does the New Testament refer to Sunday as the Sabbath.

I’m so glad that most churches have now broken free from the restrictions that used to be placed on what Christians were allowed to do on Sundays. For example, we were told that it was wrong to buy anything on a Sunday as that made other people work when they should have been in church. I well remember putting a coin in a vending machine to buy a bar of chocolate as a group of us were travelling to take the Sunday evening service in another church. I was quickly challenged by one of my friends who told me that I shouldn’t be buying anything on a Sunday. Of course, the rebuke was well intentioned, but rather like the Pharisees, they had forgotten the intention behind the rule. The only thing I was making work that Sunday was a vending machine! And, incidentally, as we were travelling by rail to get to our destination, there were real people who were working to make our journey possible. My friend hadn’t thought about that.

But that brings us to the final verse in the chapter.

28 So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath

Wow! What a claim! We have already seen how, by referring to himself as the bridegroom, Jesus has made an implicit claim to deity. But now the claim is far more explicit. Not only does he again use the messianic title, Son of Man, to refer to himself, but as the last Adam, the representative man who came to succeed where Adam failed, he claims to be Lord of the Sabbath.

In making this statement Jesus is claiming to be the ultimate interpreter of the entire law of the Old Testament. He has the last word on the subject. How often did he say, You have heard it said of old time… but I say unto you? To understand it correctly the Old Testament must always be read in the light of the New, and especially in view of the teaching of Jesus.

So let’s conclude by reminding ourselves of the indications of Jesus’ deity we have seen in Mark chapters 1 and 2.

In 1:1 he is introduced as Jesus Christ the Son of God

In 1:3 the quote from Isaiah identifies him as YAHWEH

In 1:11 God’s voice is heard from Heaven saying, You are my Son…

In 1:34 we’re told that the demons knew who he was

In 2:10 he demonstrates supernaturally his authority to forgive sins

In 2:19 he refers to himself as the bridegroom, a title used of God’s relation to his people in both Old and New Testaments

In 2:28 he declares himself to be The Lord of the Sabbath.

It’s clear that the Pharisees understood what Jesus was claiming. And, as we shall see next time, that’s why they wanted to kill him.

Talk 7   Mark 2:13-17   The Call of Levi

Welcome to Talk 7 in our series on Mark’s Gospel. We’ll begin by reading Mark 2:13-17.

13 Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them. 14 As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him. 15 While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and “sinners” were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. 16 When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the “sinners” and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?” 17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

13 Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them.

As we saw last time, Jesus’ home was now in Capernaum (v1), a village on the western shore of Lake Galilee. We have also seen how, wherever Jesus went, large crowds gathered. There were two main reasons for this, his teaching and his healing. In Mark 1:22 we read:

The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law.

And in verses 27-28 we’re told that:

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 evil spirits and they obey him.” News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee.

Mark goes into great detail about the miracles of healing and exorcism that Jesus performed, but he says relatively little about his teaching. Here in verse 13 he simply says, he began to teach them. However, as we’ve said before, the miracles were not the message, but served as signs confirming the truth of the message (cf. Mark 16:20). In Mark 1:14 Jesus proclaims the message that the kingdom of God is near and tells the people to repent and believe the good news. In 2:2 he speaks the word to them, and in verse 13 he teaches them. It’s clear that he used a variety of methods to communicate the message.

14 As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him.

It’s important not to miss the connection with the previous verse. Jesus began to teach the people as he walked along. It’s so easy to think of teaching as something that you do in a standing (or sitting) position. But here Jesus is teaching as he walks along. A walk with someone is a great opportunity to share God’s truth with them. (When I was a Bible College principal I sometimes felt that I was able to teach my students more as I travelled in a car with them than when I was in the classroom).

It’s interesting too that Jesus felt able to interrupt his teaching to speak to an individual and call him to follow him. The call of Levi (identified as Matthew in Matthew 9:9) is almost identical to the call of the four fishermen in chapter 1. Jesus is walking along, he sees them, and calls them to follow him. And immediately they do so.

But the fishermen were earning an honest living. As a tax-collector, Matthew almost certainly was not. The story of Zacchaeus in Luke 19 indicates that tax-collectors were certainly in a position to extract money under false pretences. And because of their reputation they were outcasts from Jewish society, being treated as traitors as they served the hated Roman authorities. They were viewed as the worst of sinners – but Jesus had come to call sinners to repentance, to seek and to save those who were lost (Luke 19:10).

So, Matthew gets up and follows him. As the fishermen had left their nets, he leaves his tax-collector’s booth (Luke 5:28 says he left everything), to become one of Jesus’ twelve apostles. I wonder if the other apostles were surprised at Jesus’ choice. There is certainly no suggestion that they were, and neither should we be when he calls people with a questionable background into church leadership today. What matters is not what they were, but what Christ can make of them when they repent.

15 While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and “sinners” were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him.

Luke describes this meal as a great banquet. The angels in Heaven rejoice when a sinner repents (Luke 15:10) and it’s right that we should do so too. Overjoyed at his newfound salvation, Levi throws a banquet to celebrate in honour of Jesus. And perhaps he did it, too,  to provide an opportunity for his former business associates to get to know Jesus. Those who have just found Christ have a unique opportunity to tell others about what he has done for them.

If we are really grateful for what Christ has done for us, we will do the same – at the ‘banquet’ we call the communion service or eucharist, where we regularly remember and celebrate the Lord’s death, and as we testify to those around us of the transforming work Jesus has done in our lives.

We also see in this verse how the sinless Christ was willing to look like a sinner (as he was at his baptism in 1:9) foreshadowing his redemptive work on the cross, where he who knew no sin became sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him (2 Corinthians 5:21). He mixes with those seen as the worst kind of sinners. But the fact is that we’re all sinners – or we were, until we met Jesus – and not one of us is worthy of his grace. The word Christian occurs only three times in the New Testament, but far more frequent is the use of the word saint to refer to Christian believers. We who were once sinners God now calls saints.  What amazing grace!

16 When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the “sinners” and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?”

Despite the miracle performed on the paralysed man earlier in the chapter, the teachers of the law are still criticising Jesus. Now the question is not, What right has he to forgive sins? but Why is he eating with sinners? Did these Pharisees really think that they themselves were sinless? Probably not, but they certainly considered themselves a cut above the rest. Jesus’ story of the Pharisee and the tax-collector illustrates their attitude perfectly:

To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men – robbers, evildoers, adulterers – or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 18:9-14).

Of course, Jesus didn’t condone sin, but he mixed with sinners because their need was so great, and he loved them and sought to save them. Luke 7:36-50, where Jesus is in the home of Simon the Pharisee and where a woman who has lived a sinful life anoints Jesus’ feet with perfume, also illustrates what we’re talking about here. The Pharisee can’t understand why Jesus would allow a sinful woman to touch him, making him ceremonially unclean. Jesus explains that those who love him most are those who have the most to forgive. He tells the woman, Your sins are forgiven… your faith has saved you. Go in peace.

17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners (to repentance).”

Jesus’ message was that people should repent and believe the good news (1:15). This is what he came for. Of course we know that we have all sinned (Romans 3:23) and everybody needs to repent and believe the gospel. So Jesus is not suggesting here that the Pharisees were righteous and did not need to repent. But if no one is righteous then everyone, including the Pharisees, needs to repent and receive the forgiveness Jesus so freely offers. It’s true that the healthy do not need a doctor, but if everyone is sick, then everyone needs him.

Note, incidentally, that, although in the context this was not his intention, Jesus here acknowledges our need of the medical profession. Some Christians, because of God’s promises of healing, believe that to consult a doctor is an evidence of lack of faith. The people who take this view are usually those who believe that Jesus died for our sicknesses in exactly the way that he died for our sins. Both in my PhD thesis and in my book Just a Taste of Heaven, I show that this is not what the Bible teaches and that to teach this is not only erroneous but also potentially dangerous.

Although this is not directly relevant to the context of the passage we are studying in Mark 2, because it’s so important, I will conclude this talk by giving you a brief summary of why I believe it’s quite appropriate for us to seek medical help and advice, even though we passionately believe in the supernatural power of God to heal the sick today.

Firstly, it is noteworthy that on at least three occasions the New Testament actually advocates the use of medicinal means. One clear example, is Paul ‘s recommendation to Timothy  to take wine for the sake of his stomach (1 Timothy 5:23).  A further example is the instruction given to the church at Laodicea to purchase eye salve that they might see (Revelation 3:18), and although the use here is clearly metaphorical it seems hardly likely that such a metaphor  would have been employed if the use of medical  means were disapproved of.

Yet another example is the use of oil  and wine in the Parable of the Good Samaritan  (Luke 10:29-37).   In v.33 the Samaritan takes pity on the wounded man and in v.34 dresses his wounds , pouring on oil and wine.   He then takes him to an inn where he takes care of him.   It is clear from the context that the purpose of the oil and the wine was medicinal and Jesus commands his followers to Go and do likewise (v.37).  

Furthermore, there is no clear evidence in either the Old or the New Testament of a negative attitude towards the use of medicine. In fact, as we’ve just seen, there are indications of a positive attitude. This suggests that as Christians today we too should be positive about it and be grateful to God  for the advances in medical science that have been made since Bible times.

But given that the use of medicine and the medical  profession is appropriate for a Christian, the question arises as to when we should avail ourselves of it, bearing in mind that God has promised to heal us. In this connection it is important to realise that it need not be a question of God or medicine. It can, and probably should, be a matter of both. As Christians we should seek the Lord in everything, so we should not, like Asa (2 Chronicles 16:12) , consult the doctor  and forget the Lord. On the other hand, we should remember that God works through the natural as well as through the supernatural. It would seem foolish to ask God for a miracle  when there is a simple natural solution.

A good illustration of this principle is God ’s miraculous provision of food for the Israelites when they were travelling through the desert. Exodus 16 reveals how God provided ‘manna’ as food for his people. There was always enough for each day …until they came to a land that was settled; they ate manna until they came to the border of Canaan (v.35). This is confirmed in Joshua 5:12. The manna  stopped the day after they ate food from the land; there was no longer any manna for the Israelites, but that year  they ate the produce of Canaan.

The lesson from this is very clear. God  has many natural ways of providing for the needs of his people. It is when our needs are beyond our natural resources that we may expect God to provide supernaturally. God does not work miracles when there is no need for them. Applying this principle to healing, since we are to pray continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17), we should pray as soon as we are ill and continue to pray until we are better. But that does not mean that we should not consult a doctor  or take medicine.  Indeed, in most cases it seems that it is through medical  means that the Lord chooses to heal us. Where human skill is insufficient, however, as Christians we have the assurance that even when something is impossible with man, all things are possible with God .

Talk 6   Mark 2:1-12   Jesus Heals a Paralysed Man

Welcome to Talk 6 in our series on Mark’s Gospel. Today we’re in chapter 2 and we’ll be looking at the first 12 verses to which the NIV gives the heading, Jesus heals a paralysed man. And that indeed is what the story is about. It’s about Jesus, it’s about healing, and it’s about a man who could not walk. But, as we shall see, it’s about far more than healing. So let’s read it.

A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. 2 So many gathered that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. 3 Some men came, bringing to him a paralysed man, carried by four of them. 4 Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on. 5 When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralysed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” 6 Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, 7 “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” 8 Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? 9 Which is easier: to say to the paralysed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? 10 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins….” He said to the paralysed man, 11 “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” 12 He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”

So, as we’ve said, this passage is about healing, but it teaches us far more than that. It teaches us about who Jesus is, about the seriousness of sin and the importance of forgiveness, about faith, and about different groups of people and their attitude to Christ. We’ll work through it a verse or two at a time and then summarise the lessons we have learned.

1 A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home.

As we saw last time, Jesus had extended his ministry beyond Capernaum, travelling throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons (1:39). Now he returns to Capernaum, which this verse refers to as home. When the people hear this there’s an immediate effect:

2 So many gathered that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them.

The house is filled with people and they overflow into the street. As we saw in chapter 1, it was his miracles of healing and exorcism that attracted the crowds, but Jesus’ primary purpose was to preach the word to them. His miracles were not the message. They were signs confirming the truth of his message – The good news of the kingdom of God (1:14). Compare Mark 16:20 (the very last verse of Mark’s Gospel):

Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.

3 Some men came, bringing to him a paralysed man, carried by four of them.

Notice the extremity of the man’s condition. He was paralysed. He was clearly unable to get to Jesus without considerable help. He wasn’t walking with a man on either side supporting him. It took four men to carry him there.

4 Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on.

These men were clearly determined to get their friend to Jesus. And, as the next verse reveals, they were clearly men of faith. What would be the point of going to all that trouble if you didn’t believe that Jesus would work a miracle?

5 When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralysed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

Jesus saw their faith. This could mean the faith of the four men, or it could include the faith of the paralysed man himself. He certainly exercised faith in obeying the command of Jesus to get up and walk. But, either way, it wasn’t just his faith. In my book, Just a Taste of Heaven, I have a chapter on the relationship between faith and healing. As I examined the passages in the New Testament where faith is mentioned in connection with healing, I discovered that in half the cases it was the faith of the sick person that resulted in healing, and in the other half it was the faith of someone else. In fact it’s the person bringing the request for healing who is expected to have faith. Later, in Mark 6:5-6, we’re told that Jesus was unable to do any mighty work in his home town because of their unbelief.

But why does Jesus say, Son, your sins are forgiven, before he heals this man? Three possibilities come to mind:

a.     The man’s sickness was the result of his sin

b.     The man believed that his sickness was the result of his sin

c.      Jesus wanted to emphasise that the forgiveness of sin is far more important than the healing of the body.

With regard to a. This is certainly a possibility. The Bible makes it clear that sickness is sometimes the result of personal sin, but both Old and New Testaments are equally clear that this is by no means always the case. (For more on this, please see the relevant chapter in Just a Taste of Heaven).

Regarding b. Even if his sickness was not caused by sin, the man may very well have believed that it was, because this was the common view at the time. I’ve heard it suggested that Jesus just wanted to reassure the man by putting such thoughts out of his mind. But if that had been his intention, would it not have been easier to say, Son, this sickness has not been caused by your sin?

Surely it’s much more likely that Jesus simply wanted to emphasise that the forgiveness of sin is far more important than the healing of the body. The effects of sickness may last for a lifetime. Sin has eternal consequences.

6 Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, 7 “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

Well, they certainly got one thing right. Ultimately it’s only God who can forgive sin. Of course, we can, and we must, forgive those who sin against us, but every sin against man is a sin against God. For example, I can forgive you for stealing from me, but in stealing from me you have broken God’s law, You must not steal. All sin is an offense to God, and it’s only God who can give ultimate forgiveness.

So the teachers of the law were right about that. But what they failed to see was that Jesus was not blaspheming, because Jesus WAS God. And that’s exactly what Jesus is claiming when later he says, the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins (v10). Their fundamental problem was that their attitude to CHRIST was wrong. Note how they refer to him as this fellow. Their preconceived ideas blinded them to who he was.

8 Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things?

While Jesus was a man here on earth, he did not know everything. (See Mark 11 where he expects to find fruit on a fig tree when there was none). But he received supernatural revelation through the Holy Spirit, as we sometimes do through spiritual gifts like what is often referred to as a word of knowledge. So the fact that he knew what they were thinking is not, in my view, a proof of his deity, but it is a sign of the truth of what he was saying.

9 Which is easier: to say to the paralysed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’?

The point here is verifiability. No one could verify the statement that the man’s sins were forgiven, but if gets up and walks, the integrity of Jesus’ words is immediately verified. In other words, it’s easier to say that a person’s sins are forgiven, because there’s no immediate way of knowing if it’s true. It’s much harder to say, Get up and walk, because everyone will immediately see whether he does so or not.

10 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins….” He said to the paralysed man, 11 “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.”

In healing the paralysed man Jesus demonstrates his authority to forgive sins and in so doing demonstrates his deity. The term Son of Man is a Messianic title. The signs he performed confirmed that he was indeed the Messiah, God’s anointed one. This passage shows the urgent priority Jesus placed on forgiveness – he even wanted to forgive the critics, if only they would believe (v 10, that you may know…). It also indicates his willingness to die for us. It was his claim to deity that led to his crucifixion.

12 He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”

This astounding miracle resulted, first, in amazement. This is one of the main purposes of miracles. They are signs and wonders. They are designed to make man wonder, to think and to ask, What does this mean? (as, for example, the miracle of tongues at Pentecost).

It also resulted in praise to God. But God is looking for more than praise. He’s looking for repentance. Jesus’ message was Repent and believe the good news (1:15). And, as we’ve seen in previous talks, it’s clear from Matthew 11:23 that, despite the miracles, Capernaum did not repent.

So now let’s try to summarise some of the lessons we have learned from this passage.

·      What we learn about healing, sin and forgiveness

·      What we learn about people

·      What we learn about Jesus

What we learn about healing, sin and forgiveness

Jesus has power to heal incurable diseases

Jesus heals in response to faith

Jesus makes it clear that sickness, however serious, is not our greatest problem

Sin is more serious than sickness

What we learn about people

Some people come to Jesus because they’ve heard what he can do

Some people come to Jesus because of their desperate need

Some people come to Jesus because they care about their friends or family

Some people reject Jesus and only want to criticise

What we learn about Jesus

Jesus knows the thoughts of our hearts

Jesus is God himself and only Jesus has authority to forgive our sins

Jesus loved us enough to die for us – his claim to deity was why they crucified him

Talk 5   Mark 1:29-45 Miracles of healing in Capernaum and beyond

Welcome to Talk 5 in our series on Mark’s Gospel. Today we’ll be looking at Mark 1:29-45. We’ll begin by reading verses 29-31.

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.

As we saw last time, Jesus has just cast a demon out of a man in the synagogue. He and his disciples now leave the synagogue and go to the home of Simon and Andrew. This passage gives us an interesting insight into family life at the time. Although Simon was married, his brother Andrew was living with them, and so was his wife’s mother. For the extended family all to live under the same roof was normal at the time and is not uncommon in some parts of the world today. This may well account for the fact that, later in his ministry, Simon Peter, also known as Cephas, was able to take his wife with him on his apostolic travels, as did some of the other apostles (1 Corinthians 9:5).

However, more important than the social conditions prevailing at that time, is the miracle of healing so briefly described in the verses. Simon’s mother-in-law is in bed with a fever. They tell Jesus. He responds immediately, goes to her, takes her hand, and helps her up. She is healed straightaway and is able to wait on them. So Jesus’ response to the need is immediate and so is the healing.

Interestingly, in Matthew’s account of this miracle, Jesus simply touches her hand (Matthew 8:15), and in Luke we’re told that he bent over her and rebuked the fever and it left her (Luke 4:39). Of course, the differences in these accounts are not contradictions. They complement each other and give us the full picture. They all show his willingness and power to heal. Sometimes Jesus healed with a touch, at others with a word of command. In this case he does both. I have often preached about his miracle, usually from the passage in Matthew, and have commented that in many ways his word is synonymous with his touch. He touches us with his word.

On one such occasion, in March 2009, on a visit to Portugal where I was teaching for a week in Mount Hope Bible College near Lisbon, I was asked to do a weekend of teaching in a place called Tomar. On the Sunday morning I was preaching about the power of Jesus and how He healed people just by touching them. I explained that today He often ‘touches’ us through the message that is preached and that He could touch and heal people now, even while I was preaching. While I was saying this, I noticed a woman in the second row who was quietly crying.

As soon as the service ended, this woman came to me and spoke to me. She did so through an interpreter as I don’t speak Portuguese.  She insisted on showing me the lower part of her leg which for some time had been very swollen, had caused her great pain, and which had been greatly discoloured. Her friend, who interpreted for her confirmed that this was true. However, during my preaching the swelling had gone down completely, the discolouration had disappeared, and she was no longer in pain. Her tears were tears of joy! She pulled up her trouser leg and revealed a perfectly normal ankle. There was no evidence that she’d ever had a problem.

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.

We saw last time that in verse 28, after Jesus had driven out the demon in the synagogue, the news spread quickly throughout Galilee. This is demonstrated by the immediate effect on the people of the town. In fact, the whole town gathered at the door. It’s understandable that people who are suffering will flock to someone who is able to meet their need, but sadly this does not always lead to genuine conversion, as the story of the ten lepers in Luke 17:11-19 makes clear. And, as we saw last time, the miracles Jesus performed in Capernaum did not bring the people to genuine repentance.

In the New Testament, miracles almost invariably attracted the attention of the crowds, and the same is generally true today, though their effect seems to vary in different cultures. For example, in Africa multitudes used to gather at the evangelistic and divine healing crusades conducted by Reinhard Bonnke, but I know from personal experience and acquaintance with him that the effects of his ministry were considerably less in Europe. Rather as in the ministry of Jesus, the Lord could do no mighty work because of the scepticism and even cynicism in the region, although he did lay his hands upon a few sick people and heal them (Mark 6:5).

Despite this, Jesus healed many who had various diseases. He also drove out many demons. We’re told in verse 41 and elsewhere that he did this because of his compassion (Matthew 14:14, 20:34, Mark 1:41, 5:19, 9:22, Luke 7:13). In healing the sick he demonstrated the love of God, even for those who were ungrateful, just as later he died for the sins of the whole world even though he knew that many would reject him.

In verse 34 Mark tells us that Jesus drove out many demons, but he would not let the demons speak because they knew who he was. We have already seen one example of this with the demon-possessed man in the synagogue (vv24-25). Jesus tells the demon to be quiet because it knew who Jesus was – the holy one of God.  James 2:19 shows us that even the demons believe – and shudder. They believe, but they do so grudgingly. Jesus silences all such testimony. He looks for a voluntary and glad acceptance of who he is, as the truth is revealed by the Spirit of God to those who repent and come to faith in him as their Saviour.

Finally, in Matthew’s account of these miracles (8:17), he says that Jesus performed his healings

…to fulfil what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: “He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases.”

This is one of the ‘proof-texts’ used by those who believe that Jesus died for our sicknesses in just the same way that he died for our sins. However, as I have argued in detail in my PhD thesis, and in a more simplified way in my book, Just a Taste of Heaven, whenever Matthew quotes the Old Testament he does so in connection with the events in Jesus’ life and ministry that he is there and then recording, not to something that will take place later. And in Matthew 8:16-17 he uses the quote from Isaiah in connection with Jesus’ healing ministry in Galilee, not in the context of his atoning work on the cross, which took place three years later. So, as we’ve already seen, Jesus’ miracles are best understood as signs of the kingdom of God. They confirm the truth of the gospel message as they demonstrate God’s power and his loving compassion for those who are sick.

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.

Verse 35 undoubtedly reveals the key to Jesus’ power. Although he was the Son of God (v1), and although he had been baptised in the Spirit (v10), he still needed to spend time alone in communion with God. He got up very early, he found somewhere to be alone, and he prayed. It was surely on these occasions that he received revelation from God about everything he was to do. In John 5:19, after he has healed the man at the pool of Bethesda on the Sabbath day, he says:

 I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.

This surely makes it clear that even Jesus could not tell God what to do. And we, as his disciples are to follow his example. We are God’s servants. He dictates the agenda. If we are to be used in healing, as Jesus was, we must first hear what God is saying. The level of our authority is directly related to the extent to which we are hearing what God has to say.

But these verses also give us an insight into two other aspects of public ministry:

(1)  the external pressure of both the disciples and the general public demanding attention (36-37), and

(2)  the inward pressure of one’s personal conviction of God’s call and purpose for our lives (38-39. Cf. also v45).

God’s call to serve him is what should motivate all we do, but if we are to be effective in his service we must find the right balance between spending time with him and responding to the inevitable demands made by our fellow Christians and the desperate need of those who do not yet know Jesus. This is probably the most important reason why we need to follow closely the example of Jesus in seeking to win others for him.

And finally in verses 40-45 we have the account of the healing of the leper.

40. A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” 41. Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” 42. Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured.

There are several points of interest here. First is the fact that the leper came to Jesus. This was unusual in that lepers were required to keep their distance due to the highly contagious nature of the disease. Perhaps his boldness in doing so can be accounted for by the fact that he had presumably heard of the miracles Jesus had already performed and that, like the four lepers in 2 Kings 7, he felt he had nothing to lose.

Secondly, what he says makes it clear that he did not doubt Jesus’ ability to heal him, but that he was unsure of Jesus’ willingness to do so. I’ve often heard it said that to be healed we must not only have faith that God can heal us, but also that he will. But that is clearly not the case. Jesus healed the leper despite his lack of faith in his willingness to do so. But Jesus’ words of reassurance – I am willing – are surely an encouragement to us all. This is the only case in the Bible where someone prays in effect, Lord, heal me if it is your will. And Jesus replied, I am willing. In the light of this, and the fact that Jesus never refused healing to anyone who came to him, we should surely continue to expect healing, at least until he shows us that there is a reason for his not doing so (as in the case of Paul’s thorn in the flesh in 2 Corinthians 11 where the apostle was told that God’s grace would be sufficient for him).

Thirdly, Jesus’ motive for healing the leper was compassion. Ignoring social convention and the danger both of catching the disease and of being made ceremonially unclean, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man – because he loved him. And we’re reminded, as we saw in an earlier talk, of Jesus’ willingness to be baptised even though it made him look as though he was a sinner who needed to repent. These things all foreshadow – they are a prophetic picture – of all that Jesus was to do on the cross. Although he never sinned, he was willing for God to treat him as a sinner so that he could make us acceptable to God (2 Corinthians 5:21 CEV). And he did so because he loves us.

Fourthly, please notice that the healing was immediate. Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured (v42). In the Gospels Jesus’ healings were almost always immediate. There is little evidence for miracles of gradual healing. Admittedly, in Mark 8:22-26 the healing of the blind man was not instantaneous, and the ten lepers who came to Jesus for healing were all healed, but it was only as they set off to see the priest as Jesus commanded them that on their way they were healed (Luke 17:14).

However, it’s clear from the context that these healings occurred almost immediately or at least very soon after Jesus had ministered to those who were suffering. This does not mean of course that God may not sometimes have a purpose in gradual healing today, but healings really need to be immediate if they are to fulfil their purpose as manifestations of the kingdom of God and as signs confirming the truth of the good news of the gospel.

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.

Why did Jesus tell him not to tell anyone about his healing? Because he didn’t want people to come to him simply for the physical benefits they could get. He had compassion on the sick and never refused healing to anyone who asked for it, but he didn’t go looking for the sick and the demon possessed. He didn’t advertise his healings – nor did the apostles in the book of Acts – his miracles advertised him! His priority, as we have seen was to take time to hear what his heavenly Father was saying.

So he tells the man he has healed to obey the Law of Moses in Leviticus 14 for the priest to examine him and confirm the healing. We might have thought that the man would have gladly obeyed Jesus’ instructions out of sheer gratitude, but instead he does the opposite! We’re not told why, but whatever the reason, his enthusiasm to tell his story didn’t help the cause of the kingdom of God. The proclamation of the good news of the kingdom of God is demonstrated with miraculous signs and wonders, but his kingship does not take away our freedom of choice or our responsibility to obey him. And surely the greatest evidence that Jesus is Lord is in the obedient lives of those who profess to follow him. If we want Christ’s kingdom to be extended, we must do things his way.

And finally, seven key points to summarise what we’ve been saying:

(1)  Jesus’ authority to heal sprang from the time he spent in communion with God and his obedience to what God revealed to him.

(2)  The purpose of Jesus’ healings was to confirm the good news of the kingdom of God and to show his compassion for suffering humanity.

(3)  His healings, as signs of the kingdom, were immediate rather than gradual.

(4)  Jesus healed by a word of command, or by a touch, or by both.

(5)  While his healings brought multitudes under the sound of his teaching, relatively few became true disciples.

(6)  Despite this, his willingness to be identified with suffering and sinful humanity foreshadowed what was to happen at Calvary.

(7)  His willingness and power to heal all who came to him, like his willingness and power to save all who come to him, were no guarantee that all would come. But he heals and he saves anyway, because he loves us. The choice is ours, whether we come to him or not.

Talk 4   Mark 1:21-28  Jesus Drives Out an Evil Spirit

Welcome to Talk 4 in our series on Mark’s Gospel. Today we’ll be looking at Mark 1:21-28. So far we have seen how Mark introduces us to the good news about Jesus who is the Son of God. He tells us of the preaching of John the Baptist whom God sent to prepare the people for the coming of Jesus. His message was Repent and be baptised.

He tells us of Jesus’ baptism in the River Jordan and how, immediately after his baptism in water, where God declared him to be his beloved Son in whom he was well pleased, he was baptised in the Holy Spirit and equipped with power to fulfil his God-given mission.. This was to be the time when Jesus would start his public ministry, and after a period of fasting in the desert where he conquered Satan’s temptations, he began preaching the good news of the kingdom of God evidenced by miracles of healing and deliverance.

We saw how Jesus called the four fishermen, Andrew, Simon, James and John, and we saw through the example of Jesus, and the response of the disciples to his call, key principles of  how to win other for Jesus.

Now in today’s passage, and in the rest of the chapter, Mark gives us examples of what proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God actually means in practice:

21-28 Jesus Drives Out an Evil Spirit – a miracle in the synagogue

29-31 Jesus heals Simon’s mother-in-law of a fever – a miracle in a home

32-34 Jesus heals all the sick and demon possessed – miracles outside

35-39 Jesus spends time in prayer

40-45 Jesus heals a leper.

But today we’ll just be looking at verses 21-28 where Jesus delivers a demon possessed man in the synagogue in Capernaum.

21-28 Jesus Drives Out an Evil Spirit – a miracle in the synagogue

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 evil 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 evil 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 evil spirits and they obey him.” 28. News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee.

21 They went to Capernaum

After Jesus has called the four fishermen to follow him they go to Capernaum. Capernaum was a small town on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee.

It’s probably where the four fishermen were living. If you go there today you can see the remains of what is believed to be the house where Simon Peter lived and the synagogue where Jesus preached.

and when the Sabbath came

So they came to Capernaum and it seems that they stayed there for a few days, at least until the following Sabbath.

Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach.

We know that it was Jesus’ custom every Sabbath to attend the synagogue (Luke 4:16), where, like any other adult Jewish male, he had the right to teach. But his teaching was different!

22. The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law.

It was the custom of the rabbis in those days to be constantly quoting the opinions of others, but Jesus spoke with an authority that came from Heaven. This undoubtedly sprang from who he was, the Christ, the Son of God (v1), but at a human level, resulted from the time he spent in prayerful communion with his heavenly Father (cf. v35).

In teaching and preaching in this way, he was not only instructing the congregation in the synagogue, but also setting an example to his disciples, and us, as to how the kingdom of God should be proclaimed (cf. v14). He was showing them how to become fishers of men. Of course, there is a time and place for giving a reasoned explanation for why we believe what we believe (1 Peter 3:15), but, as the apostle Paul discovered, the enticing words of man’s wisdom are no substitute for preaching with the demonstration and power of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:1-4). This is nowhere more evident than in the reaction of the people to Jesus in the synagogue:

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 evil spirits and they obey him” (v27).

This, of course, was the result of Jesus having just cast out an evil spirit, described by Mark in verses 23-26:

23. Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an evil 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 evil spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek.

23. Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an evil spirit

The same incident is recorded in Luke 4:33ff where again the NIV uses the word possessed to describe the man’s condition. However, literally translated, Mark says:

And there was in their synagogue a man with (or in) an unclean spirit and Luke describes him as a man having a spirit of an unclean demon (Luke 4:33).

I mention this simply to point out that the New Testament uses a variety of different expressions to refer to what today is commonly described as demon possession (another of which is to be demonized (e.g. Matthew 4:24, 8:16, 28, 33; Mark 1:32, 5:15,16, 18; Luke 8:36). It’s clear to me that all these expressions are used interchangeably and that it’s a mistake to try to draw a distinction between them.

What’s particularly interesting is that in the case we’re looking at the man was in the synagogue. But this is no basis for the argument that a born-again Christian can be demon possessed. There is no evidence that the man was a believer (even though the demon in him knew who Jesus was). Literally translated, verses 24-26 read:

Away! What to us and to you, Jesus of Nazareth? You came to destroy us. I know who you are – the holy one of God. And Jesus rebuked it, saying, Be silenced, and come out of him. And the unclean spirit tore him and cried out with a great voice and came out of him.

It’s important to note that it’s the demon, not the man, who is speaking, though the demon is speaking through the man. And it’s the demon that Jesus rebukes and tells to be silent. The demon says, Away! It wants Jesus to keep his distance. Jesus and demons have nothing in common. An unclean spirit cannot bear the presence of the holy one of God.

The NIV translation Have you come to destroy us? can equally well be translated as a statement rather than a question. (There are no punctuation marks in the Greek text, so it could mean You have come to destroy us). The demon knew who Jesus was. It might well have known the purpose for which he has come – to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8).

Notice that Jesus didn’t argue with the demon. He didn’t need to. He had complete authority over it. He didn’t need to take authority. He exercised the authority he already had, because he was a man under authority – the authority of his Father. He rebuked it and commanded it to be silent and come out of the man. And, of course, it did!

Now please note that I am not teaching a methodology for exorcising demons here. But there are at least two clear principles implicit in what I have said:

1.     As Christians we are in Christ (Ephesians 1:13) and Christ lives within us by his Spirit. Demons cannot cohabit with Christ. They flee from his presence. So I believe it’s a mistake to attempt to cast a demon out of a Christian. As Christians we need to resist the devil and sometimes it’s necessary for another Christian to stand alongside us in prayer when we’re under attack. But we don’t need exorcism.

2.     If we’re going to be used in setting others free we need to be living under the authority of Jesus. We cannot take authority. In the Bible, authority is always something that’s given. We only have authority if we’re under authority. We either have it or we don’t. If we have it, we don’t need to take it. We exercise it. And if we don’t have it, no amount of ‘taking’ it will help.

But that leads us to the question, Why did Jesus cast out the demon? The man certainly didn’t ask Jesus to help him. There are several possible answers to this. Consider the following:

1.     Because the man was causing a disturbance in the synagogue.

2.     Because the man was so controlled by the demon that he was incapable of asking for help.

3.     Because it was not yet time for Jesus to fully reveal who he was.

4.     Because he refused to let the devil set the agenda.

5.     Because he hated the devastation the enemy had caused in this man’s life.

6.     Because he had compassion on the man. Compare v 41 where Jesus is moved with compassion for the leper.

7.     Because the reason he had come to earth was to destroy the works of the devil. The Greek word for destroy in 1 John 3:8 is luo, which means to loose or undo. The devil binds people. Jesus unties them. He sets them free.

8.     Because he knew that it was his Father’s will (cf. John 5:19).

9.     Because casting out demons was a sign that the kingdom of God had come.

10.Because the miracle would cause the people of Capernaum to become his disciples?

Now, although most of these suggestions have merit – some more than others – I think the first one is improbable and the last one is definitely inaccurate. Look at verses 27-28:

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 evil spirits and they obey him.” 28. News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee.

The people were amazed, but did they repent and believe? Compare Matthew 11:20-24:

20. Then Jesus began to denounce the cities in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent…

23. And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depths. If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. 24. But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”

This indicates that despite the miracles he performed there, the people of Capernaum did not repent. Possibly because of pride. The simple fact is that where miracles of healing and deliverance are taking place people will come out of curiosity and in the hope that their needs will be met. But though many are healed, relatively few become true disciples of Jesus.

So why does God bother? Because miracles are signs of the kingdom and make it easier for people to believe. God wants everyone to be saved, but the choice to repent and believe is theirs. It’s one thing to be amazed at the miracles, as the inhabitants of Capernaum were, but quite another to believe the message of the kingdom of God and to repent and put your trust in Jesus as your Saviour.

And perhaps this is why we don’t see more miracles in this country today? Even Jesus could do no mighty work in Nazareth because of their unbelief (Mark 6:5-6). Unbelief in a community inhibits the miraculous. And so can lack of faith and prayer on the part of God’s people. But that doesn’t alter the truth that miracles are God’s way of confirming his word (Mark 16:15-20). It’s our responsibility to preach the word and be led by the Spirit as we believe for miraculous confirmation. But we will have more to say about this in future talks.

Talk 3  Mark 1:14-20  Winning others for Jesus

Welcome to Talk 3 in our series on Mark’s Gospel. So far we have seen how Mark begins by establishing very clearly that Jesus is none other than God himself who came to make possible the forgiveness of our sins. To prepare for his coming the people were to confess their sins, repent and be baptised. But when Jesus came he would do more for them than baptism in water ever could. He would baptise them in the Holy Spirit.

I also pointed out that in New Testament times repentance, faith, water baptism and baptism in the Spirit would usually have all taken place on the same day, and that, though these are each distinct elements with the process of Christian initiation, they would probably have been viewed as all part of the same event.

In our last talk we saw in the baptism of Jesus, his willingness to be identified with sinners even though he was sinless, his determination to do what is right, and his desire always to do the will of God. And we suggested that, if we truly wish to be his disciples, we must not only repent and believe the gospel, but that we should follow his example and be baptised by total immersion.

We saw too that Jesus’ baptism in water also teaches us about the relationship between water baptism and the baptism in the Spirit. The baptism in the Spirit was the gateway to his miracle working ministry. For Jesus, this was received at/after his baptism in water. And this was just what the early disciples expected and, although this is rarely the case today, it is certainly what we should be teaching and believing for.

And finally, we considered five reasons why the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the desert to be tempted by the devil. Perhaps the most important of these was that we could learn from his example how to deal with temptation. We saw the importance of keeping full of the Spirit, of being led by the Spirit, and of correctly understanding and using the Spirit’s sword, the word of God.

Today we’ll be looking at Mark 1:14-20. The passage introduces us to the message that Jesus preached and how he called his first disciples. It also shows us how, like the first disciples, we can get involved in spreading the good news of the gospel – how we can win other people for Jesus. The key, as we shall see, is found in verse 17 where Jesus says:

“Come, follow me, …and I will make you fishers of men.”

If we want to win others for Jesus, we must first follow him ourselves. And we must allow him to make us. And as we work through the passage we’ll see from the example of Jesus and the response of the disciples several other important principles. But first, let’s begin by reading the whole passage.

14. After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of (the kingdom of) God. 15. “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!” 16. As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 17. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” 18. At once they left their nets and followed him. 19. When he had gone a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets. 20. Without delay he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.

After John was put in prison (14)

Mark begins by mentioning briefly that John the Baptist, Jesus’ cousin, had been put in prison. We know from chapter 6 that this was because he had annoyed Herod by telling him that it was not lawful for him to have married his brother’s wife. Undeterred by this news, Jesus begins his public ministry. He preaches essentially the same message as John – Repent and believe the good news. Despite the possible danger in doing this – John was eventually executed by Herod – Jesus is determined to do God’s will. So the first thing we can learn from the example of Jesus is that if we are going to be used in spreading the good news, we must not be deterred by apparent setbacks. We will need to embrace the danger.

Jesus went into Galilee (14)

Before Jesus could proclaim the good news he had to go. Actually, the Greek literally means, he came. I’m reminded that before Jesus could tell us the good news, he had to come. He had to come from the glory of Heaven to a sin-sick world to make our salvation possible. And if others are to be saved, we too need to go. This is what he commanded us – Go into all the world and preach the good news (Mark 16:15). And the world begins right where you are. Jesus went into Galilee. Jesus had been brought up in Nazareth, which is in the region of Galilee. He went to where he had been brought up. If we’re going to be used in spreading the good news about Jesus, we must be willing to go. If need be, to the ends of the earth, but at least to those who are already around us. This implies intentionality. To catch fish, you have to GO fishing.

proclaiming the good news of (the kingdom of) God. (14)

The message must be proclaimed, announced. Of course, it’s no good talking the talk if we’re not walking the walk. Nevertheless, living good lives is not enough. Actually I’m not living a good life if I’m not telling others what they need to hear.

The message is good news about God. More specifically, the kingdom of God. It’s good news that God’s in charge. More of this in a moment.

The time has come (15)

For thirty years Jesus had been relatively silent, but now the time had come. How did he know? He lived life in dependence on his Father and in close fellowship with him. He was now baptised in the Spirit and empowered to begin his ministry. It was through the power of the Spirit that the kingdom would be manifested.

In Matthew 12:28, after healing a demonized man who had been blind and mute Jesus says:

If it is that by the Spirit of God I drive our demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you (v28).

The kingdom of God is near.  Or, the kingdom of God has come.

The Greek verb engizo literally mean to come near.

The kingdom is present wherever the king is present. Wherever Jesus was present, there were manifestations of the kingdom like healing and casting out demons. And in Matthew 10:1 he gave his disciples authority to do the same:

He called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.

And in verses 7-8 he went on to say:

As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.

They did this with the special authority Jesus gave them at that time. Later, after Jesus had returned to Heaven, to do these things they had to wait until they were baptised in the Spirit. Their authority would come from the Spirit, and the miracles they performed, like those performed by Jesus, would be done through the direction and power of the Spirit. When we’re baptised in the Spirit we should expect him to work miracles through us. It’s not so much a matter of claiming promises as being led by the Holy Spirit.

Repent and believe the good news! (15)

The message we have to share with people is good news, demonstrated by amazing miracles of healing, deliverance, provision and forgiveness. But its blessings are to be received by repenting and believing. When we share the good news with people, we must not dodge the issue of repentance. It’s not good news for those who refuse to repent and believe.

So we’ve looked at the example of Jesus. We’ve seen that if we are going to be used in spreading the good news:

·      We must not be deterred by apparent setbacks. We will need to embrace the danger.

·      We must be willing to go.

·      We must be willing to speak.

·      We should expect God to work miracles through us as we are led and empowered by the Holy Spirit.

·      We must not dodge the issue of repentance.

But now let’s look at the response of the disciples.

16. As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 17. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” 18. At once they left their nets and followed him. 19. When he had gone a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets. 20. Without delay he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.

17. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.”

The purpose of our calling to follow Jesus is to make us fishers of men (17).

18. At once they left their nets and followed him

At once… they followed him

Taken with verse 20 where we’re told that Jesus called his disciples without delay, we see three things:

·      We should not delay in telling others the good news.

·      When Jesus calls us to salvation, we should not delay.

·      When he calls us to serve him, we should not put off the decision.

There is a clear sense of urgency in all this, and this is emphasised in verses 18 and 20 where the fishermen left their nets (v18) which were their livelihood, and their father (v20). They left their family as well. They left all to follow him. Their attitude can best be summarised in one word – COMMITMENT.  As CT Studd, a Cambridge graduate and former England cricketer once said:

If Jesus Christ be God, and died for me, no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for him.

And Studd lived up to his words. After his father’s death, he gave away his entire inheritance and became a missionary, serving the Lord in China, India, and finally in Africa. Now we may not all be called to give up our means of livelihood or our family to follow Jesus, but we should all be willing to do so. We are all called to commitment. So now let’s summarise the principles we have discovered in today’s passage.

·      When Jesus calls us to salvation, we should not delay.

·      When he calls us to serve him, we should not put off the decision.

·      We should follow his example and allow him to make us fishers of men.

·      We should not delay in telling others the good news of the kingdom of God.

·      We should expect God to work miracles through us as we are led and empowered by the Holy Spirit.

·      We must not be deterred by apparent setbacks. We will need to embrace the danger.

·      We must be willing to go.

·      We must be willing to speak, and we must not dodge the issue of repentance.

Of course, we’re all different, but how can these principles be worked out in YOUR life?

Talk 2   Mark 1:9-13  The baptism and temptation of Jesus

Welcome to Talk 2 in our new series on Mark’s Gospel. In our first talk we saw how Mark begins by establishing very clearly that Jesus is none other than God himself who came to make possible the forgiveness of our sins. To prepare for his coming the people were to confess their sins, repent and be baptised. But when Jesus came he would do more for them than baptism in water ever could. He would baptise them in the Holy Spirit.

From elsewhere in the New Testament, we saw that it was through the work of the Spirit that we are empowered to live new lives by being born again. We begin to show the fruit of the Spirit which Paul describes in Galatians 5. And when we are baptised in the Spirit we are told in Acts 1 we receive power to be effective witnesses for Christ.

I also pointed out that in New Testament times repentance, faith, water baptism and baptism in the Spirit would usually have all taken place on the same day, and although today we often think of each of them as distinct experiences, the early disciples may well have thought of them all as part of the same event. This probably accounts for those occasions in the New Testament when writers may appear to use expressions like repentance, baptism, or baptise in the Spirit to refer to the whole event of Christian initiation, not just to the distinct aspect that each of these terms represents. If all this seems a bit complicated, don’t worry. I’ll be saying more about this when we look at the baptism of Jesus and its close relationship with his baptism in the Spirit.

So today we’ll be considering:

·      The baptism of Jesus

·      His baptism in the Spirit

·      His temptation in the wilderness

We’ll begin by reading verses 9-13.

9. At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptised by John in the Jordan. 10. As Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” 12. At once the Spirit sent him out into the desert, 13. and he was in the desert forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him.

Jesus’ baptism

Notice, first, how Jesus was baptised. As we said last time, in the Greek language in which the New Testament was originally written, the word baptise means immerse. This is confirmed by how Mark describes Jesus’ baptism. In verse 10 he refers to Jesus coming up out of the water. This implies that he had first gone down into the water. In fact, wherever the New Testament gives us a description of people being baptised, it’s clear that baptism was always by immersion. For example, in Acts 8:38-39 we read how Philip baptised the Ethiopian eunuch:

…Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptised him. When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing.

So Jesus, like everybody else, was baptised by being immersed in water. But why was Jesus baptised? We saw last time that John was preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins (v4) and that the people were baptised confessing their sins (v5). But Jesus had no sins to confess. He was God’s beloved Son with whom God was well-pleased (v11). He was the spotless Lamb of God who had come to take away the sins of the world (John 1:29). In fact, Matthew 3:14 tells us that, when Jesus came to John to be baptised, John protested, saying, I need to be baptised by you, and do you come to me?

So why was Jesus baptised? Jesus himself gives us the first part of the answer in Matthew 3:15, where he says. Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfil all righteousness. The purpose of Jesus’ life was to do the will of God, right down to the last detail. This is no more clearly seen than in the Garden of Gethsemane when, the night before he was to be crucified, Jesus prayed earnestly that, if it were possible, he might not suffer the agony of crucifixion, but, in total submission to the will of his Father, ended by saying, Yet not as I will, but as you will (Matthew 26:39). Everything he did was motivated by his desire to do God’s will (Hebrews 10:7). So for Jesus, being baptised was an essential part of doing God’s will. He said it was necessary to fulfil all righteousness.

For Jesus the ultimate fulfilment of all righteousness, of doing God’s will, was to die on the cross to save us from our sins. But how does this relate to his baptism? Perhaps the answer lies in the understanding that his baptism in water was a foreshadowing of the baptism of suffering he was to endure at Calvary (Matthew 20:22-23, Luke 12:50). At Calvary Jesus suffered the death of a common criminal. This made him look like a sinner. But more than that, when he died on the cross he was carrying our sin.

And at his baptism too, to those who were watching, he looked like a sinner. The sinless Lamb of God identified with sinners. Perhaps that’s one reason why the voice from Heaven was heard, saying, You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased. All the others who were being baptised were sinners, but God was making it clear that his Son was different.

Finally, before we leave the subject of Jesus’ baptism, it’s perhaps good to remind ourselves that his baptism is a compelling reason for us to be baptised. In John 12:26 Jesus told us that if we serve him we must follow him. And 1 Peter 2:21 tells us that Jesus has left us an example that we should follow in his steps. For more reasons why we should be baptised, please see You’d Better Believe It, pages 83-85.

His baptism in the Spirit

10. As Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.

I’m referring to this as Jesus’ baptism in the Spirit because of the words descending on him. Jesus himself identified the baptism in the Spirit as the Spirit coming on us (Acts 1:5, 8), and his promise was fulfilled in the experience of the disciples at Pentecost (Acts 1:17), the Samaritan converts (Acts 8:15-17), Cornelius and his household (Acts 10:44-46), the Ephesians (Acts 19:1-6), and countless millions of Christians ever since.

The purpose of this wonderful baptism in the Spirit was, and still is, the equipping of God’s servants with power for service, and even Jesus needed this empowering of the Spirit before beginning his miracle-working ministry. Of course, the miracle of the incarnation – how Jesus could be both fully God and fully man – is a mystery. But while he was here on earth as a man he was totally dependent on his relationship with the Father and the Holy Spirit. He was a man under authority (Matthew 8:8-9) and the miracles he did were performed as a result of the anointing of the Spirit (Acts 10:38).

It’s noteworthy, too, that all three Persons of the Trinity are actively present in the passage we’re looking at. Jesus, God the Son, is coming up out of the waters of baptism. The Holy Spirit is descending upon him like a dove. And he hears the voice of God the Father speaking from Heaven. If Jesus needed this empowering of the Spirit, how much more do we?

So Jesus is baptised in water and in the Spirit on the same occasion. But what is the relationship between them? Notice, first, that in all four gospels being baptised in the Holy Spirit is distinguished from being baptised in water. John was baptising in water, but Jesus would baptise with the Holy Spirit.

The nature and purpose of baptism in the Spirit is not made clear here – as we have seen, Jesus himself does that in Acts 1:4-8 – but it is evident that Spirit-baptism is not only distinct from water-baptism but also vastly superior to it and more important than it. Jesus is greater than John, and the Spirit is greater than water! So water-baptism must never be confused with Spirit-baptism.

However, Jesus’ baptism does indicate that there is a close relationship between them. The Holy Spirit came upon Jesus at or at least immediately after his baptism in water. And, as I mentioned last time, elsewhere in the New Testament the baptism in the Spirit usually occurred at about the same time as baptism in water.  It happened so close to it that we might reasonably say that it happened at baptism. Yet its timing was usually sufficiently distinct from baptism for us truthfully to say that it happened after baptism. That’s why, in my book, The Holy Spirit – an Introduction, I coined the phrase at-after. I suggested that Jesus received the Spirit ‘at-after’ baptism.  Consider the following literal translations:

Jesus, having been baptised, came up immediately from the water; and behold the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God coming down on him like a dove (Matthew 3:16)

And Jesus was baptised in the River Jordan by John. And immediately, coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit coming down like a dove (Mark 1:9-10)

And it came to pass that, while all the people were being baptised, Jesus also having been baptised and continuing to pray, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended…. (Luke 3:21-22).

We notice that in Matthew Jesus has already been baptised, but he is hardly out of the water when the Spirit comes upon him. In Mark he is coming up out of the water. In Luke he has been baptised and is continuing to pray when the Spirit descends.  From this it is clear that Jesus’ baptism in the Spirit occurred immediately after his baptism in water and yet was in a very real sense a definite part of it. So it would be wrong to teach that the Spirit is automatically received at baptism, for reception of the Spirit is distinct from baptism. Yet we must equally strongly resist the temptation to make a wide separation between them, for they are closely associated in the New Testament. We should expect people to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit at or shortly after water-baptism (unless, like Cornelius, they have already received beforehand). For the promise still holds true:

Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38).

Jesus’ temptation

We now come to the temptation of Jesus in the desert. Mark records this extremely briefly:

12. At once the Spirit sent him out into the desert, 13. and he was in the desert forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him.

Matthew and Luke are far more detailed. All three synoptic gospels tell us that after his baptism Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert where he was tempted by the devil. But Matthew 4:1 clearly indicates that the temptation was the purpose of Jesus’ being led into the desert. He was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. At first sight this seems a rather surprising statement. The Lord Jesus himself taught us to pray that we should not be led into temptation and James 1:13 makes it clear that no-one is tempted by God. So why did the Spirit lead Jesus to be tempted?

Before attempting to answer this question we need to remember that although God tempts nobody he may nevertheless sometimes allow temptation in order that we might be tested. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 10:13 that God will not allow us to be tempted more than we can bear and that he will always provide a way of escape. In Jesus’ case God knew that he was able to fight off the devil’s temptations successfully. But what was God’s purpose in allowing his temptation? In my book, The Holy Spirit – an Introduction, I suggest five things:

So that Jesus might truly sympathise with us in our temptations

In Hebrews 4:15 we are told that Jesus is a high priest who can sympathise with our weaknesses because he was tempted in every way just as we are – yet was without sin.

So that he might succeed where Adam failed

In several passages Paul contrasts Jesus with Adam and refers to him as the last Adam (e.g. Romans 5:12ff, 1 Corinthians 15:21ff (esp. vv45ff). The temptations Christ resisted in the desert may be compared with the original temptation faced by Adam in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3). Where Adam failed, as we all have at times failed to resist temptation, Jesus triumphed.

So that he might demonstrate his perfection

Hebrews 9:14 tells us that through the eternal Spirit Christ offered himself unblemished to God. Nothing but a perfect sacrifice could atone for sin. In overcoming the temptations to which all other human beings have succumbed Jesus demonstrated that he was a worthy sacrifice for the sins of the whole world.

So that we might learn from his example how to deal with temptation

Because Jesus has overcome temptation, he has shown us how it is possible for us to do so. In this connection notice the importance of:

a)     keeping full of the Spirit (Luke 4:1)

b)     being led by the Spirit (Luke 4:1). It is noteworthy that Luke says that Jesus was led by the Spirit in (not into) the desert. The suggestion is perhaps that the Spirit assisted Jesus during his temptations.

c)      correctly understanding and using the Spirit’s sword, the word of God. The Word of God is called the sword of the Spirit in Ephesians 6:17. Jesus used that sword against the enemy by quoting the Word in connection with each temptation (Matthew 4:4, 7, 10).

Notice, too, that Jesus was tempted to doubt what had happened when the Spirit came upon him after his baptism. God had said, You are my Son (Luke 3:22), but Satan came with the temptation, If you are the Son of God…. (Luke 4:3, 9). As Christians we are sometimes tempted to doubt the genuineness of what happened at our baptism in the Spirit. Like Jesus we must resist with the word of God. A helpful scripture in this connection is Luke 11:11ff. We sometimes need to remind the devil – and ourselves – that God does not give snakes or stones or scorpions to his children.

So that he might prove that he could be trusted not to abuse his miracle-working power

Two of the temptations suggested that Jesus should use his miracle-working power for the wrong reasons, i.e., to satisfy personal desires and to exhibit God’s power as a spectacle to the crowds. The right motivation for the working of miracles is love (1 Corinthians 13). Jesus had received the Spirit in order that his anointed ministry might begin (cf. Luke 3:22, 4:18ff).

Before embarking upon that ministry, it seems that his motivation for working miracles first had to be tested. We mustn’t be surprised if God tests us before entrusting us with more of his supernatural power.

But now it’s time to summarise what we’ve said so far.

In our first talk we saw that the coming of Jesus was good news. He was none other than God himself who came to make possible the forgiveness of our sins. We saw the importance of repentance, confession of sin, and water baptism. This was to prepare people for an even greater baptism, a baptism which came from Jesus himself, the baptism in the Holy Spirit.

We saw that it was through the work of the Spirit that we are empowered to live new lives by being born again. We begin to show the fruit of the Spirit which Paul describes in Galatians 5. And when we are baptised in the Spirit we are told in Acts 1 we receive power to be effective witnesses for Christ.

In this talk we have considered:

·      The baptism of Jesus

·      His baptism in the Spirit

·      His temptation in the wilderness

In the baptism of Jesus, we have seen his willingness to be identified with sinners, even though he was sinless, his determination to do what is right, and his desire always to do the will of God. And, if we have repented and believed the gospel, we learn from his example that, if we truly wish to be his disciples, we too should be baptised by total immersion.

But Jesus’ baptism in water also teaches us about the relationship between water baptism and the baptism in the Spirit. The baptism in the Spirit was the gateway to his miracle working ministry. For Jesus, this was received at/after his baptism in water. And this was just what the early disciples expected and, although this is rarely the case today, it is certainly what we should be teaching and believing for.

Finally, we considered why the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the desert to be tempted by the devil. Perhaps the most important answer we gave was so that we might learn from his example how to deal with temptation. We saw the importance of keeping full of the Spirit, of being led by the Spirit, and of correctly understanding and using the Spirit’s sword, the word of God.

If Jesus so needed the help and power of the Holy Spirit in fulfilling God’s will for his life, how much more do we?

Next time: Jesus calls his first disciples – what lessons can we learn about winning others for Jesus?