Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him

 Now as soon as they had come out of the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.  But Simon's wife's mother lay sick with a fever, and they told Him about her at once.  So He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and immediately the fever left her.  And she served them.

At evening, when the sun had set, they brought to Him all who were sick and those who were demon-possessed.  And the whole city was gathered together at the door.  Then He healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He did not allow the demons to speak, because they knew Him.

Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed.  And Simon and those who were with Him searched for Him.  When they found Him, they said to Him, "Everyone is looking for You."  But He said to them, "Let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also, because for this purpose I have come forth."  And He was preaching in their synagogues throughout all Galilee, and casting out demons.

Now a leper came to Him, imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, "If You are willing, You can make me clean."  Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, "I am willing; be cleansed."  As soon as He had spoken, immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed.  And He strictly warned him and sent him away at once, and said to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing those things which Moses commanded, as a testimony to them."  However, he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the matter, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter the city, but was outside in deserted places; and they came to Him from every direction.

- Mark 1:29-45

Yesterday, we read that after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand.  Repent, and believe in the gospel."  And as he walked by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen.  Then Jesus said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men."  They immediately left their nets and followed Him.  When He had gone a little farther from there, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the boat mending their nets.  And immediately He called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went after Him.  Then they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught.  And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.  Now there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit.  And he cried out, saying, "Let us alone!  What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth?  Did You come to destroy us?  I know who You are -- the Holy One of God!"  But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!"  And when the unclean spirit had convulsed him and cried out with a loud voice, he came out of him.  Then they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, "What is this?  What new doctrine is this?  For with authority He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him."  And immediately His fame spread throughout all the region around Galilee.

 Now as soon as they had come out of the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.  But Simon's wife's mother lay sick with a fever, and they told Him about her at once.  So He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and immediately the fever left her.  And she served them.  Jesus' ministry has begun with finding disciples and teaching in the synagogue.  There an "unclean demon" unwittingly testified of His presence, and the demon was cast out by Jesus.  Here is the next event:  Peter's mother-in-law is healed of her fever.  Christ comes "setting things aright" in some sense.  The woman who was laying sick with fever is now restored to her place, upright.  We note this personal and intimate place; Jesus took her by the hand and lifted her up, something unusual for a man (not a relation) in His time and place.

At evening, when the sun had set, they brought to Him all who were sick and those who were demon-possessed.  And the whole city was gathered together at the door.  Then He healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He did not allow the demons to speak, because they knew Him.  My study bible says that our Lord's refusal to fully disclose His identity as Messiah is foreseen by Isaiah (Isaiah 42:1-4).  It lists the following reasons for secrecy:  (1)  the growing hostility of the Jewish leaders; (2)  the people's misunderstanding of the Messiah as an earthly, political leader; and (3)  our Lord's desire to evoke genuine faith not based solely on marvelous signs.  We note that "setting aright" here -- healing -- includes the casting out of demons.  Everything that Jesus does is based on a spiritual reality present in our world and working through or behind all things.  He is here for a purpose, to redeem or ransom those held captive to that which is "not God" or "against God."  In other words, to free us from what is not good for life, to set aright our orientation for complete health on all levels of who we are as human beings.

Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed.  And Simon and those who were with Him searched for Him.  When they found Him, they said to Him, "Everyone is looking for You."  But He said to them, "Let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also, because for this purpose I have come forth."  And He was preaching in their synagogues throughout all Galilee, and casting out demons.    My study bible points out that Jesus sets forth for all of us an example of the spiritual life.  It says, "Though God incarnate, He prayed continually, often finding a solitary place to be free from distraction, despite the multitude's need of Him.  Our Lord's ministry comes forth from His communion with the Father and the Holy Spirit and flows to people in their needs.  His praying in the morning teaches us that we must put as first priority our commitment to God, and only then will we be equipped to serve others."  Again, what is put first here is the spiritual reality of what Jesus' mission is about; that is the foundation of our lives.  Even as we are created by God, the rest of what we are is manifest from this beginning.  The spiritual life isn't a kind of appendix we think about or don't think about.  Rather's it's the foundation of all that we think of as part of our lives:  mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual.

 Now a leper came to Him, imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, "If You are willing, You can make me clean."  Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, "I am willing; be cleansed."  As soon as He had spoken, immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed.  And He strictly warned him and sent him away at once, and said to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing those things which Moses commanded, as a testimony to them."  However, he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the matter, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter the city, but was outside in deserted places; and they came to Him from every direction.  The healing of a leper is a tremendously important act in the context of Scripture; Moses was able only to pray and appeal to God's mercy that Miriam be healed from leprosy, and that happened gradually and over a period of seven days (Numbers 12:10-15).  The biblical law concerning leprosy is found in Leviticus 13 and 14.  Deuteronomy 24:8 describes the purification of lepers and leprous houses, a duty entrusted to priests.  My study bible says, "Leprosy was considered a direct punishment for sins, and as lepers were unclean, they were not permitted to live in the community or to worship in synagogues or the temple.  Touching the unclean was forbidden (Leviticus 7:21), yet Jesus touched the leper, showing His compassion, and showing that He is not subject to the Law but over it.  To the clean, nothing is unclean."

We observe Jesus in so many different ways already at the beginning of His ministry.   Aspects of His ministry already include His baptism in the Jordan, His temptation in the wilderness, the choosing of disciples, teaching in the synagogue, casting out an unclean spirit, healing Peter's mother-in-law, and becoming known as healer and teacher -- even to the point of healing a man with leprosy.  And in all this, there is the personal, intimate touch that makes Him so radically different:  he lifts Peter's mother-in-law by the hand, He touches even the leper to heal and clean him of this horrible disease, a death sentence via awful suffering.  All the while, Jesus maintains the righteousness asked in the law, and yet His hallmark and distinction is His compassion.  But everything is done with the spiritual basis of His ministry; there is nothing Jesus will do that is outside of this basic understanding of what He is here for:  to set aright, to free, to heal.  It's all one, of the same picture, because the spiritual life is the foundation of all life.  God, who is love, is the root to which we return.  Whatever the problem we encounter, we can always dig deeply into what we experience, and find a spiritual reality awaiting our attention.  Often one may find that time spent recuperating and healing from an ailment is actually a period in which we are invited to dig more deeply into our own hearts, our perspectives -- to find a place in which we walk with Christ through the experience of illness of one form or another.  There's quite a powerful book that has been written by Henri Nouwen, chronicling a journey during a time of crisis and despair, and the voice of love that came to him through that experience.   It's called, appropriately, "The Inner Voice of Love."  It's one example of a time of healing, and the opening to that deeper journey within that truly had to accompany his illness.  Jesus' healing isn't just about fixing up what hurts via miracles.  It's a setting aright, a making whole -- giving health to the whole of what life is about for us.  In this sense, the spiritual life really is the basis for the whole of our lives and the fullness of what we are on all levels.  True health can be thought of as setting aright, or setting in balance, the fullness of what it means to be human, with nothing neglected:  spiritual, physical, emotional, mental -- all the things that go into what makes a human being, the true whole of our lives.  As such there is nothing to be kept from God, no secret too shameful to tell and to explore with prayer and spiritual help.  There's no shameful past that makes us unclean in the sight of God.  There is only what needs to be healed, mended, tended to, and the heart that opens to what love and life can be received.  We may never have "perfect lives" in the sense that we think of as perfect.  But the message here is the good news that God is with us, and that for our own well-being and health, we need to remember that this One who sets aright has to be with us for true healing, even for our true recognition of what it means to be fully a person, and what makes for our own personhood.  Without it we don't have the fullness of real health, the wholeness of a life that acknowledges all of who we are.  It is the spiritual that contains the physical, and not the other way around.  It fills all things, gives life meaning and purpose, and maybe -- just maybe even more importantly -- gives even our suffering meaning and purpose and opportunity for the loving grace in which we share with Him. In our struggle to be free, liberation comes through His word about what we need to have, and about the things that ail us and need to be cast away.   His is the way of life, and love.  Let's not forget the personal touch, the intimacy, the One for whom nothing is unclean -- in Whom is truly included all of life.