Is There A Doctor In The House?

The idea for this sermon comes from Beth Moore’s book "Jesus, The One And Only."

I want to start this morning by asking you to get a picture in your head that illustrates ministry.

Was your mental image of ministry:

• A man passing out tracts on a street corner?

• A missionary sharing Jesus with tribal natives?

• A preacher with a Bible?

• A gospel meeting?

Maybe you had a totally different image; for example:

• Two men eating lunch at a business convention.

• Two friends out playing a game of tennis?

• Two construction workers up high on a steel beam, conversing in the noonday sun.

Now in all honesty most of you probably imagined images like the first five. After all, those are evangelistic settings, right? We’d probably call those “spiritual”, in context: the church, the gospel meeting, the missionary.

And we’d probably figure the other three were worldly in nature. an business luncheon, a game with an old friend, sweating on the job site. We usually think there’s nothing “spiritual,” in those scenarios, unless those people were talking about the Good News of Jesus Christ!

I believe it’s an Interesting concept, but one that’s false. Jesus Himself ignored the labels of “worldly” and “spiritual,” because any place He went became sacred. In reaching out to sinners, He personalized the gospel to each individual, speaking in terms the world understood, wherever He met them.

I want you to first notice about our reading today that Jesus leaves the Synagogue to minister. Let’s look at Marks account of the day’s events in Mark 1:29 –31

As soon as Jesus and his followers left the synagogue, they went with James and John to the home of Simon and Andrew. Simon’s mother-in-law was sick in bed with a fever, and the people told Jesus about her. So Jesus went to her bed, took her hand, and helped her up. The fever left her, and she began serving them.

I have been involved with too many churches that think if the doors are open on Sunday then the church will grow. Now while I know that there is some ministry that goes on in this building I want you to see today that 99% of it goes on out side.

Anywhere that we happen to be we have the opportunity to minister. Ken Abram tells us that if we live to the age 75 and have attended Sunday School, Morning and Evening worship on Sundays, Wednesday evening Bible Study, and Two weeks of Gospel Meetings a year we will die only having spent 1% of our lives in worship. Guys 1% doesn’t cut it anywhere.

Today let’s look at this wonderful story and see what we can learn from Christ.

I. Jesus made house calls

I can’t tell you how relieved I was when I realized that God doesn’t just go to church, He goes to our homes!

My nieces Cassie and Caylie were three years of age when they told me they knew where Jesus lived. Thinking about the heaven discussion I was about to have with 3-year-old girls I must say I was startled when Cassie announced that it was behind the stage at Mayfair.

As we talked I realized that in their minds the baptistery was where Jesus lived. If you want to be a Christian all you have to do is go to Jesus’ house take a bath and there you go.

Brethren I am happy to report that God doesn’t live in the baptistery. He lives in the hearts of those who trust Him and in the homes of those who provide Him room.

But sometimes we don’t bother to ask Jesus Christ into our homes until we are overwhelmed by this world.

After my marriage I realized how one person suffering in a home is enough to affect everyone who is living there. The more people you add the worse it gets. We don’t know how many people were in the crowd that left the Synagogue and went to Peter’s house but the crowd could have been upwards of 50 people.

I am sure the large group of guests combined with the sickness of the hostess made for a stressful situation. But whether it is storms on the sea of Galilee or storms in our families the very presence of Jesus will bring peace.

Now don’t miss the point found in verse 38, “they asked Jesus to help her". Understandably, she would not have been in a position to seek help for herself.

Aren’t you thankful we can approach Christ on another person’s behalf? Aren’t you also thankful that others have approached Him on yours?

Our homes today are threatened by fevers of all sorts-far beyond the physical: There is so much unresolved conflict, unforgiveness, unfaithfulness, compromising media communications, pornography, and more. We need Jesus in our homes.