Mark, Part 3, Ready, Set, GO!
Channel: Parkside Church
Date: 2015-02-02

Main Scripture: Mark 1:21-28

Jesus was baptized, then tested, and it is only then that He begins His ministry. He did not have to go through those things, because He was and is God to begin with. But He went through them for our benefit, so that we can know that we have a God who understands us.

In Mark, Jesus’ ministry is manifested in three ways: Teaching, healing, and casting out demons. Teaching is the foundation for the other two.

Jesus’ Teaching Ministry (Mark 1:21-28)

We can learn as much from Jesus’ conduct as we can from His content. Verse 21 tells that He started His teaching ministry in Capernaum. Why Capernaum? It happened to be the home of Peter, Andrew, James, and John. But it was also a bustling trade center.

Jesus started off by teaching in the synagogue on the Sabbath. Though it’s not an accurate translation, it is safe to say that if Jesus were coming to us today instead of in the first century, He would immediately enter the church on Sunday and begin preaching.

He went where God’s people supposedly were. Look what happens as soon as He begins preaching, the people recognized that authority, and immediately there was opposition! But Jesus quickly expels the demon and moves on.

Jesus’ Healing Ministry (Mark 1:29-45)

A few observations:

There is no gift of healing today
The gift of healing was given specifically to the 12 Apostles (Matthew10:8)
Each of the miracles that Jesus allows the apostles to do are demonstrations and delegation of His authority. He has authority over the spiritual realm, and can cast out demons. He has authority over the physical, and can heal disease.

If you’re paying attention to that Matthew passage, you might wonder, “Why a special category for leprosy?”

Lepers were total outcasts (Leviticus 13-14). They could not go near the temple. They had no spiritual comfort. They could not come within fifty feet of another human being. Yet Jesus specifically says, “Go to these people.”

Neither Jesus, nor the apostles limited their healing to bad backs. In Acts 3, a life-long cripple is healed. In Acts 9, Aeneas, who had been paralyzed for 9 years was healed. In Acts 5, anyone who even stood in Peter’s shadow was healed. That is the gift of healing.

Jesus began demonstrating His power over the spirit world, He now moves to the physical (Mark 129-31). As we look at Jesus’ healing ministry, notice that there is no formula, each healing is different. Here, there is no mention of faith or any dialog, Jesus simply heals the man.

Mark 1:40-45 is an interesting passage, because both Jesus and the leper break the Levitical Law. Remember, they are not supposed to be within fifty feet of each other. The point here is that people are more important than protocol.

We see here that Jesus is emotionally moved by the man’s condition, but I think He was also moved by the man’s boldness. He would not let the law stop him. After all, what did he have to lose? The leper’s initial state of hopelessness is a great picture of our spiritual condition without Jesus.

Mark: Man of Action

Mark certainly has packed a lot in this first chapter.

He identifies Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God.
Jesus is baptized and tempted as preparation for ministry and identification with us.
Best of all, we see that He has absolute authority over every realm, spiritual and physical. So when we ask, we can know confidently that He forgives.