Mark 1:44,45 Say Nothing

This morning I had just arrived at work when I got a phone call from my wife. My 17yo son had lost control of the car in the wet and had an accident. My 21 yo daughter was a passenger. My wife asked me to come immediately.

The spot was only 5 minutes drive away and the police were there directing traffic to a detour around the accident, which we couldn't see. It had happened on a downhill right-hander with a cliff rising from the left side of the road.. I was worried.! But apart from being shaken, neither driver nor passenger were injured. The car is already fixed and ready to go again.

He was running late for college, driving within the speed limit but too fast for the heavy rain. He had lost control on the corner, spun to the wrong side of the road, and then back to the left where the car spun up the side of the cliff prescribing an arc 20 metres long on the sandstone, back down to the verge over some shrubby trees and came to rest, still on the left side of the road, about 100 meters from where the slide started. At that busy time of day, no other car was near! The damage: one flat tyre, a broken headlight and a bent and mud-filled exhaust system!

The policewoman gave him a stern lecture on driving in wet conditions, but didn't book him. The firemen turned off the LPG in case of leaks and the tow truck operator (from Sydney - up here to help clear the 5000 storm damaged cars from the roads) made an interesting comment that I would not have expected from such a man.

He said "God was a passenger in this car today, it should have rolled!"

Yes God was good to our family today, even miraculously good.

Shouldn't we witness to the miracles in our lives and tell others about what God has done for us? Yet Jesus tells the healed leper not to tell anyone about it!

There are a few reasons I can think of:

1. Healing was secondary to something else in Jesus ministry


2. Healing is only here and now. Christ is focused on eternity


3. Miracles would focus our attention on earthly power


4. Focus on the miraculous doesn't allow Christ to do His real work

The man proclaimed it freely, a very natural human response, one I just made!. And it looks like reason number four came true as Jesus could no longer "openly enter" Capernaum. He had to stay in the desert. But people still came from everywhere. He was still very attractive.

Do I concentrate just on the miraculous when He wants to do something more for me? Do I overlook the greatest things for just something good just now?

It seems Jesus never succumbed to the lure of fame. I would have become a showman, but Jesus retires. he would only meet people on His terms. Sure He would heal people, but only in the context of His preaching. It must have been around this time that He preached the sermon on the mount.

Reason 3 is all about fame and power in this world., But Jesus came preaching the kingdom of God, a very different kingdom to any in this world.

Reason 2 is all about this temporary old world. Jesus didn't want to change the world., He wanted a completely new one, with a whole different way of operation, which we will see more about in Chapter Two, where we find out what is more important to Christ than miracles.

What could be more important than my kids being safe and well?

Mark 1:44 For Your Cleansing

Cleaning up after our flood continues. Unfortunately the rain has returned, making things difficult.

The basic process is to wash all the dirty (now smelly) water out with clean water then let the item dry in the sun. This is a tedious process, so lots of things that were once precious are now on the pile to throw out.

Cleansing was no less complex for lepers: The now-clean leper is to go show himself "to the priest and offer for your cleansing those things which Moses commanded".
Moses' commands are found in Leviticus 14.

To summarise this process for a poor man:

1. The priest takes the man away from a settled area to examine him for signs of leprosy
2. If the leper is found to be clean, the priest will take two "clean and living birds", apparently wild birds, often sparrows. (Was this why two sparrows are sold?) The priest kills one bird over a stream and catches it's blood in an earthen vessel.
3. The living bird, along with some cedar wood, scarlet (dyed wool) and hyssop (cleansing herb), is dipped into the blood.
4. The drenched living bird is sprinkled, seven times, over the leper, who is now pronounced clean.
5. The living bird is released there in the field.
6. The now-clean man washes his clothes, shaves completely and washes himself.
7. The man goes home, but he is not allowed inside, he has to camp outside for seven days.
8. On the seventh day he shaves again (head, beard, eyebrows), washes his clothes and himself in water and "he shall be clean".
9. On the eighth day he visits the temple for the first time, taking a male lamb, two doves or young pigeons, 2 litres of fine flour mixed with oil and 300mls of oil. He gives these things to priest at the temple door.
10. The priest takes the lamb, as a trespass offering - "to make atonement for him", and the oil and "waves" them before the LORD. The priest then kills the lamb and puts some of its blood on the man's right ear, right thumb and right right big toe.
11. The priest pours some of the oil into his left palm and using his right-hand fingers, sprinkles some of the oil "seven times before the LORD", he puts some on the man's right ear, thumb and big toe on top of the blood and the rest is put on the man's head "to make atonement".
12. The priest offers one of the doves as a sin offering and the other with the grain as a burnt offering.

Why did Jesus command him to do this, he was obviously clean. already. Why go through all this unnecessary ritual?

Some of the reasons may have been:

• As LORD himself, Jesus would uphold the laws that He Himself had told Moses to enact.
• The purpose of the ritual was to "make atonement", and Jesus' purpose was to preach the good news of atonement.
• His stated purpose in this verse, is that it would be a testimony to the priests. He was intent on converting the priests and didn't want any "illegal" behaviour to get in the way of their acceptance of Him

Actually, just reading all this ceremony is a testimony to me. I realised that:

• My cleansing.requires lots of blood and a long process. It is no simple, one-off event.
• The birds show me justification: Jesus died and washed in that blood I am "free as a bird".
• The wait outside home shows me that, despite the fact that I am clean, I still haven't "arrived" yet, I am still not home, there is more to be done. In a way I'm on probation.
• The real atonement, becoming close to God, didn't happen out in the field, it happens through Christ's sacrifice and work as a priest.
• This atonement is only complete when the "Lamb's" life blood has made a restitution for my wasted and filthy life and the same blood has been applied to my all hearing, doing and going And then the oil (the Spirit?) sanctifies those same areas and blesses my clean-shaven head. So now I am consecrated to God in the same way as a priest.
• The atonement is complete, I am back with God!. But the process is not finished yet. A sin offering must be made. Even though I am clean and at peace with God, I still offend Him. Christ as my High Priest must continue to present His blood for me in the heavenly sanctuary.

What a wonderful Saviour! I come to your temple...atone for me.

Mark 1:42 And he was Cleansed

Last Friday, Lake Macquarie (and the whole Hunter Valley)was hit by a storm. We had over 300m of rain and 120k/h winds that blew a huge collier up on beach in town (Newcastle).

Andrew,my 17 yo son, picked me up from work that day. It was dark at 5.00 and the rain was blinding. We passed at least 6 "drowned" cars on the short drive home. Andrew has become an excellent driver, I'm not sure that I could have handled the treacherous conditions as well as he did.

Once home our problems had just begun. By 9:30 flood waters were rising downstairs and we had to bring the washing machine and whatever else we could salvage, up stairs. There is nothing worse than watching the water slowly going up the doors of the cars, knowing that there is no way of moving them.

By the time we went to bed the water was knee deep and almost waistdeep out in the back yard. (We went down to rescue the hens, they spent the night in the bathroom). The water was so cold that we were hypothermic after our efforts.

By Saturday morning the water had gone, but all our stored papers, clothes, Julie's sewing materials, the car floors and our camping and garden equipment were covered with a layer of grey mud. The firewood had washed down the backyard and the bananas were over at crazy angles.

We had no power but just a visiting the neighbors, made us realise that we had gotten off lightly. Both neighbors were evacuated and one had water through the living area of the house (and their car was flooded to the roof). On our block, at least 4 houses were flooded that we know of.

So after 5 days of cleaning I'm exhausted but downstairs is almost back to normal (minus the two large piles of things that we used to consider important) So I can sympathise with our leper in today's verse. He wanted to be clean. I know just how wonderful that first hot shower on Monday night felt. Clean at last!

Jesus touch, though wonderful, didn't bring the cleaning, it was His words. His words still had (and have) the same power they held when he spoke the solar system into existence.

The leprosy left. What a wonderful result - nothing like this had happened since Elisha's time. And everything left behind was beautiful and clean.

I know that cleaning is hard work. In this case it was Christ that did the work. And so it is with my sin, He bears the cost.

Speak to me, Lord.

Mark 1: 40-41 Moved with Compassion

A leper came... He must have had some hope that this man would do something for him. And how did he find out? Lepers were (are?) outcasts, they didn't live with uninfected people. Separated from family, synagogue and community - alone.

Anyway, as Christ's fame for healing and casting out demons spread, the leper thought that maybe there was a something Christ could do in his case. And he "came"...Jesus is attractive!

The filthy leper comes, he implores and kneels down and asks. I should show my faith more.

And his question doesn't have a question mark. It is a statement of fact and of faith. "You can do anything You want to, even make me clean."

But is Jesus willing? Would He stoop to heal a smelly, dirty outcast, a God-forsaken person ( I guess a "good" Jew would remember when God punished Miriam and Elisha's servant with leprosy - so they may have thought that every case was a punishment from God. - I imagine most lepers felt God-forsaken)

Jesus cared - He was moved. Wow the first emotion Mark records is compassion. I guess I would be too. I've seen deformed beggars but I certainly couldn't do what Jesus could do, maybe give some money but not "cleaning" from leprosy!

Jesus acted before he spoke, reached out and "touched him". He broke with the old laws and norms. He actually touched the untouchable. This man's greatest need was not even cleaning, it was human contact he craved. Like us all, his greatest need was to be loved. To be touched.

Jesus came through. He loved enough to richly bless an outcast with the love he craved.

Then he spoke.. "I am" The name God used when He
rescued Israel from Egypt.

"I am willing". Great news. The Son of God is willing! Heaven is willing!

"Be cleansed"

Say it to me, Jesus.

Mark 1:35-39 He Went Out

Even after a hectic evening, Jesus gets up early to be alone and pray. This is a favourite text for all of those people who, over the years, have tried to improve my prayer life. And it still isn't what it should be. Yes, I wake early, but bed is warm and I'm too busy obsessing over the things I need to do that day.

Maybe the secret is to actually pray - talk to my Father. Maybe that is why my whole devotional life isn't up to scratch. Yes ... I need to pray more.

But the disciples go looking for Him because "everyone" wants Him. Already? Weren't they satisfied with the night before. What else did they want of Him? If they are already healed then it must be for the entertainment of seeing others healed. Maybe they had brought people who had chosen not to be healed the night before.

But they would have to wait, Jesus didn't even go back to town, that day anyway. He states His purpose as preaching to more people. He had to invite more people to change their thinking and believe the good news.

His job was not to 'just' heal and do miracles. So why did he heal? Why not just preach?

Why do we love miracles? I guess for the same reason we go to movies... to see something new and spectacular. But to hear good news; less spectacular but more satisfying? More necessary? Certainly is... all the miracles are signposts to what Jesus says. He felt that what He said spoke louder than what He did. It's just the opposite with us. I need to take more notice of what He said.

And true to His purpose, Jesus preaches in the synagogues of "all Galilee", everywhere, in every town - traveling and preaching.

Oh, and just as an aside, casting out demons! He had to do that to reach some of the people. Physically sick people can hear the gospel preached, are demon-possessed people prevented from hearing?

Mark 1:32-34 He Healed Many

Even though Jesus had shown that He was alright with healing on the Sabbath, the people waited until after sunset, to bring "all" the sick and demon-possessed to Jesus. It had to be them all because whole town was gathered there. So the town must have been only small.

They must have seen the first healing in the synagogue and heard about Peter's mother-in-law, so they came out for something to do on Saturday night in a small town.

Then in front of the crowd, Jesus heals "many". Does that mean some weren't healed?

And they were sick of "various diseases", so there was no limitation on the type of disease that Jesus healed. He could heal disease, any disease.

And He cast out many demons. So even "many" demons have no authority over Him.

But like the first demon (unclean spirit) from that morning, the demons knew Him. They knew who He was and would have said that if he allowed them. But he didn't allow them to speak. I guess He didn't want demons advertising for Him.

These verses show that Jesus is great healer. A healer who fitted in with the needs of people around Him. Heal me please, Jesus. and do I have faith to bring others to You?