Authority Over Sickness

Authority over Sickness

Mark 1:29-39

As we have traveled through the first chapter of Mark, we have seen many demonstrations of Jesus’ authority. Jesus’ authority over nature is seen when Jesus was driven into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit and lived with the wild beasts. The Judaean wilderness was full of dangerous animals. Jesus, who had been weakened by hunger and thirst would have presented an easy target for a hyena, wolf, or lion. Jesus was kept safe from them. Also, when Peter and the fishermen could not catch fish, Jesus makes an outlandish request to cast the net over the deep side of the boat. The nets they used were only made for catching fish in the shallow waters toward the shore. In deep water, the fish would simply have dived under the net. But Jesus must have commanded authority over the fish to where they would be caught where they could not be caught. This teaches us something about evangelism, that only the Lord’s way will work, no matter how wise some of our methods might seem.

In last week’s message, we noticed that Jesus taught with authority in the synagogue in Capernaum. His authority was superior to the Scribes and Pharisees who were the most informed people of the day as concerning Scripture. The people immediately noticed the difference. Then Jesus demonstrated His authority over a demon spirit by first silencing him then casting it our of the man. Today, we will see Jesus’ authority over sickness. Turn your Bibles to Mark 1:29. We will read to verse 39.

After the events of the synagogue that day, the people left amazed and went to tell everyone what they had witnessed. This would soon lead to a massive crowd being assembled at the door. In the few intervening moments before they came, Jesus came to Peter and Andrew’s house for lunch and rest. When they got there, Simon Peter’s mother-in-law was lying sick from a fever. Without modern medicine, having a fever could be life-threatening. The Greek text seems to indicate that she was seriously ill. When Jesus lifts her up from the bed, the Greek word “egeiro” is used. This word is often used of Jesus’ resurrection. This does not necessitate that she was at the point of death, but it perhaps is a hint.

We do not know how long she had been sick. Peter and Andrew had been out with Jesus and were unaware of her condition. But as soon as they got there, they entreated Jesus to heal her. She arose and ministered to them. This was not a miracle of convenience on the part of Jesus as though He needed her to prepare lunch for them. This was the Sabbath. All food on the Sabbath had to be prepared in advance as work was forbidden on the Sabbath. This brings up something quite subtle here. The woman was in bed. She was in a way resting, although she was tormented by the fever. But when she gets up to minister, she is now doing work, and that on the Sabbath! Jesus is the one who turned the Jewish Sabbath laws on their head. Donkeys resting in the pit allowed its owners to do work in freeing them. Jesus healed on the Sabbath. The Sabbath was meant to give real rest to people. Simon’s mother-in-law found more rest by serving than she would have gotten lying in the bed sick. We as Christians should see the Sabbath as giving relief to the sick and hungry. Hebrews tells us there is a Sabbath rest that remains for the people of God. He admonishes us to labor that we might enter into that rest. We are called to be Sabbath bringers. By this we keep the Sabbath.

We know now that most fevers are symptoms of infection by either bacteria or viruses. They are part of the created realm. So Jesus exercising authority over them is no different than the wild beasts or the fishes.

At this point we need to go back to the Book of Genesis. In it is says that Adam was given authority over all the earth. Part of this authority was demonstrated by the naming of the animals. There were no wild beasts then. Neither was there any sickness because Adam had been given authority over them. But when Adam fell, His disobedience to God was cursed in that all of creation became disobedient to the authority of Adam. This is where sickness and death come from. This is where attacks from wild beasts come. What we see here in Jesus is the second Adam, as Paul puts it. Because He had not sinned and rebelled against God, He could exercise his delegated authority over creation as Adam once did. Jesus authority is a pledge that all of creation will be restored in and by Him. The heavens and the earth which labored and know no certain rest will find its new order in the eternal Sabbath. This includes those who believe in Jesus.