Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed

 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.  Even in this shortest of the Gospels, we are given Jesus' life not only in its public aspect, but also in private.   Here, after preaching in the synagogue and astonishing the people, Jesus and the disciples go to their "headquarters," which is Peter's family home in Capernaum.  There is need for His healing here, too, as Peter's mother-in-law is ill.  The setting is intimate; He takes her by the hand and lifts her up, and she is restored to her place in the home, a place of honor and respect.

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.  The public in need comes to Jesus; all come to Peter's family home to be healed, and others come to see what is happening.  The demons know Him; Jesus does not want them to speak because His divine and Messianic identity is at this time a secret.  My study bible gives several reasons for this:  the growing hostility of the religious leaders; the people's misunderstanding of the Messiah as an earthly, political leader; and Christ's desire to evoke genuine faith that is not based solely on marvelous signs.  That the demons know Him is also a sign of a deeper reality at work here, another realm we don't see but with which Jesus is familiar and where He is known.  The word mystery comes from a root meaning "secret."

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.  Again, we are given multiple dimensions of Jesus' life, and here is another example of intimacy.  In His private life, He sets out an example to the disciples of spiritual life.  He goes very early in the morning, while it's still dark, to a solitary place to pray.  Jesus sets the example of continual prayer and devotion to prayer life.  A solitary place is where He can be free from distraction, although so many people seek Him and have need of Him.  My study bible says that Christ'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 shows us that we must put as first priority our commitment to God; only then are we equipped to serve others.  Prayer in our own lives strengthens us for what we need to do, and supplies to us as well wisdom, discernment, renewal, and faith.

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 biblical law regarding leprosy is found in Leviticus 13-14.  Deuteronomy 24:8 describes the purification of lepers and leprous houses, a duty which was entrusted to the priests.  My study bible explains that leprosy was considered a direct punishment for sins.  As lepers were considered unclean, they weren't permitted to live in the community or to worship in synagogues or the temple.  to touch the unclean was forbidden (Leviticus 7:21).  But Jesus touched the leper, showing His compassion, and also that He is not subject to the Law but over it.  To the clean, my study bible says, nothing is unclean.

Although Jesus' fame is spreading everywhere, Mark's Gospel also gives us His intimate moments.  This is a sign of the testimony of disciples, as they share not only His public ministry but also His private life.  They learn by living with Him.  We're told that Mark's Gospel was written for the community at Rome that was ministered by Peter, and so the stories we know of the intimacy of life in Peter's home in Capernaum, which served as a kind of headquarters for the Galilean ministry, seem to come out of this history.  The story of Peter's (Simon's) mother-in-law appears in all the Synoptic Gospels, and we're given the details of Jesus' touch; He takes her by the hand and lifts her up, and she takes her place again in the household, restored.  It's Peter and those with Him who seek out Christ in the earliest hours of the morning.  There is a deep privacy and intimacy in the gesture toward the leper; Jesus reaches out his hand and touches him.  Someone was there to witness and to tell us the story of Jesus' personal ministry, full of moments like these in which He reaches out to those whom He heals.  Without the kind of discipleship in which they learned by sharing each of these moments with Him, we would not be able to learn as they did.  We would not know the deeply personal and humane character of Christ, we would only know the public ministry, the divine Messianic identity, the miraculous healings -- but not His character and persona, His compassion, His love, His devotion to the Father and to constant prayer.  What we are given is the true "personhood" of Jesus (if you will), His character and personality, the fullness of the Person, and not merely a distant and magisterial image.  We are given the fullness of identity in these moments, the same Person to whom we pray and with whom we are also invited into the true intimacy of communion.  We, too, may know this kind of discipleship and the immediacy of His love.  This distinguishing mark of the Gospel gives us the power of that love at work within and for each one and also for all.  Without His prayer (and the many direct examples given us in the Gospels), what would we know of Him?  What would we understand?  His relationship to the Father also informs us about ours, and what we are a part of through faith.  God condescends not only to be one of us, but to be with us at all times and in every way.  Let us be grateful for that which truly sets Him apart and stamps our faith:  God who is with us and has made Himself known to us.  His sacrifice for all those who are His friends will be the gesture of love, and there is no greater.