Sermon Tone Analysis

Healing Many

The first purpose of Jesus’ power was to meet the needs of individuals and families.

Jesus visited Peter’s home.

We find that Peter was married, as his mother-in-law was home sick with a fever.

He didn’t ask what was wrong, He didn’t run tests to confirm a diagnosis, no, He simply toucher her hand and she was healed.

Remember at this time, women were seen as property, second-class citizens within Judaism, not prospering people of society.

Second, the touching of a woman would have been seen as wrong - and was banned by some Jewish traditions.

Regardless, Peter’s mother-in-law is healed and responds by getting up and serving the one who healed her.

Her action need imply nothing more than proper etiquette as a hostess.

But the verb diakoneō regularly came to refer to Christian service, and the distinctive “him” may suggest that the woman was beginning a life of discipleship at this point.

What is significant about Peter’s mother-in-laws response to her healing?

If we look at Mark 1:21, & 29 we find that these healings were done on the Sabbath.

Surely this is sacrilegious!

How could Jesus dare heal on the holy day?

But we now see why others were brought to Him in the evening - the end of the Sabbath when normal activity could continue.

From the description of people who came to see Him, he provides not only physical but spiritual healing.

Why is this significant?

He fulfils Isaiah 53:4

This quote comes from one of the “suffering servant” passages of Isaiah, which early Christianity consistently saw as pointing to the Messiah’s atonement for sin.

He explains that Jesus’ healing is a fulfillment of the prophecy about the Suffering Servant, who is also the Righteous Lamb and the Righteous Shepherd.

This anticipates Jesus’ sufferings on behalf of all sinners, as the guilt offering with which the Lord is pleased; and because he is the guilt offering accepted by God, forgiveness of sins is possible, and freedom from the consequences of sins like sicknesses become a reality.

The Cost of Following Jesus

Throughout scripture, we find Jesus attracts a crowd.

Notice here that the multitude gathered about Jesus because they had desperate needs, and He was meeting their needs out of a heart of deep compassion.

The whole countryside and surrounding towns were swarming with people who had heard that He was in Capernaum, and they had flocked to Him.

They were attracted to what they were hearing, ever hoping to have their needs met.

People often come to Jesus Christ because of what they can get out of Him.

There are several reasons why the multitude is attracted to Jesus.

Some like what they see: lives are changed for good, people are helped, ministry is carried on for the public good, and good works abound.

Some profess Christ and belong to a church because of the image and social standing it brings.

Some follow Christ and His church because of family and friends

Some feel more comfortable following Christ and attending church.

Their consciences would bother them if they did not profess Him and attend church at least occasionally.

Some have a faint understanding of God.

They want to be approved and accepted by Him.

They know that they must show some interest in Him if they wish Him to show interest in them, looking after and caring for them.

So they profess Him and attend church as much as they deem necessary in order to secure His approval and care.

Some have seen God’s power to change lives and deliver through terrible trials.

It may have been in the life of a family member, a friend, a fellow employee, a relative, or a distant acquaintance.

But the power of Christ was clearly evident.

Thus they know that Christ and His church might be able to help them when trouble comes.

Some believe Jesus is the Savior, the promised Messiah, and they want to be identified with Him.

So they follow Him and His church.

Why/what must we deny ourself?

But all of this misses the point - which is self-denial, otherwise known as discipleship.

We find such a man, a scholar, who was a disciple, a follower of Jesus, and was attracted to the teaching of Jesus.

He wanted to follow Him, but truly didn’t know the sacrifice and self-denial it would take.

When Jesus lays out the cost, the man backtracks - let me go home and bury my father first.

This was the man who had just told Jesus he would follow him anywhere.

But following Jesus wasn’t enough.

What we find throughout scripture is it requires us to accept Jesus as the Son of Man, that there would be a knowledge of personal poverty, and that he had to abandon everything he had for Jesus and His mission.

Many today WANT to follow Jesus, but they stumble at the requirements.

Some stumble over confessing Jesus to be the Son of Man.

Every belief and doctrine that points to His deity is questioned and doubted or denied.

Some stumble over personal poverty.

Giving and working ever so diligently in order to give more is foreign to them.

Giving to the point that they would have to trust Christ for the necessities of life is unknown.

They have allowed the world to influence them.

Being willing is not enough.

You must give all.

Some stumble over total abandonment of themselves and their possessions.

Lord, tell me what it is that you need me to do, but don’t tell me to do anything I don’t want to do.

This is the attitude we find many people in.

They want to follow Him, but do not want to sacrifice anything in the process.

Many are committed, but their commitments are self-commitments not Christ commitments.

We must realize that self-commitments involve great willingness, determination, and discipline—so much that a person often follows through in a great way.

But self-commitment is not enough for Christ.

There has to be a total commitment to the Son of Man, abandoning all of self and all of the world for Him and His cause.

Calming Storms

Jesus had the disciples preparing the boat which would carry them away from the chaos around them and take them to a different place.

But in the mean time, it would provide some peace and relaxation from all the teaching, learning, and healing that had taken place.

It was a breather, a pause, a time to take a deep breath.

But what happened once they got into the boat?

What happened to the disciples faith?

As faithful as His disciples were, and regardless of how quickly they followed Him anywhere, human nature took over and fear was experienced when a great storm arose.

Now, this had to be an unusual storm as many of His disciples were seasoned fishermen.

They knew what a storm at sea looked like.

They had experienced these before.

But there was something different about this storm in their life.

This was a most fearful experience; the apostles’ very lives were threatened.

The waves were covering the boat.

It was, so to speak, a trial of trials.

If Jesus could teach them His care through this experience, they would know He could take care of them through any storm or trial.

We face many storms throughout life, fearful storms that rock our boat the same as this storm did for the disciples.

Some storms swoop down on us unexpectedly, with no warning.

Some are great storms, that may overwhelm us and threaten to overtake us.

Some storms may even be life-threatening, where we see no escape, no way out, no deliverance.

But, these disciples went to the one they knew could help.

They sought out the Lord.

Danger can drive us to Christ, but we also need to remember we can wait too long.

We can die and slip into eternity before we ever call out to Him.

We risk it all by waiting.

We can also waste a lifetime of living (and having fullness of life) by putting off calling out to God.

Even though the disciples were seasoned fishermen, they were experiencing fear.

What they failed to see was completely hidden to them.

They were experiencing the root cause of fear: little faith.

Their trust in Christ (that their lives were completely in His keeping and under His care) was lacking.

Their trust was incomplete and immature.

They were not sure that He was aware of their desperate need.

Christ was not disturbed with their calling and interrupting His sleep.