Introduction
What does it mean to be a friend? Is it someone willing to help you out in your time of need? Is it someone you enjoy doing some recreation activity with? Is it someone you can tell all of your personal problems to and who helps you through a difficult time? We probably all have our own way of defining what a friend is to each of us. What’s important, what matters, how we feel about those characteristics. But, one thing that’s always in common with however you look at friendship, each of our friends is willing to dedicate time to spend a moment with us. They’re willing to put aside part of their busy schedule, or their own crisis and personal problems, and dedicate part of their day for us.
Tonight, I’d like to look at friendship and three different people from the gospel story. Peter, Jesus and Peter’s mother-in-law all had different ways of showing their friendship. But, each was willing to dedicate time to each other. Each was willing to take a look at what the others needed, and tried to fulfill that need. All three did things for each other without being asked. That’s what friendship is all about.
Jesus, tired from a busy day
Lets take a look at the friendship that Peter offered. Jesus spent the better part of the Sabbath teaching those around him. He impressing them because of His confidence, authority and knowledge. The crowds were amazed at how He spoke, what He said, and what He did. He chased a demon out of a man with only a word. He commanded this unclean spirit, and the spirit obeyed. He dumbfounded those around Him. They didn’t understand, but they wanted to hear more. They didn’t know who this man was, but they wanted to learn more about him. They didn’t understand the power he possessed, but some wanted his help.
Think of the crowds that must have gathered around Him, pressing in, trying to get closer to this new teacher, perhaps pushing their way to the front. As Jesus spoke, people listened. As they heard His message, they talked to those next to them. Who is this guy? Did you hear what He said? As the murmuring increased, so did the size of the crowds listening. More and more people gathered to see this new teacher and hear what He had to say. Once they saw Him give orders to the spirit in a man, it grabbed their attention even more. He spent the day at the Synagogue teaching, preaching, and cleaning the spirit of one man. All while fighting off the crowds, answering questions, and building the beginning of His new ministry.
Think of one the busiest days you’ve had. You’ve spent 12, 14, maybe 16 hours or more working your tail off. You were tired, exhausted, ready for a break. You looked forward to just sitting down and relaxing, perhaps even enjoying a good meal with friends, and getting your mind off of the day’s events and the stresses sure to come tomorrow. That was how Jesus felt. He was tired, hungry, and ready for a break. After a long day teaching and healing at the temple, Jesus was looking forward to spending a bit of time relaxing. He wanted to take a load off of His feet, ease back in a comfortable lazy boy chair and just enjoy a few moments of peace and quite.
Peter takes Jesus home
Peter was there to help Jesus unwind after such a busy day. He had followed the Lord, listened intently, and knew He had a lot more to learn from this man from Galilee. So, he invited Jesus to his house to help him relax, and take care of his tired mentor.
It was common for folks to eat a meal after being in the temple on the Sabbath and this is where Peter, Jesus and the others were headed. Peter had established a relationship with Jesus. He didn’t leave the Lord at the synagogue. Instead, he invited Him to come home with him. Invited Him to be part of His life outside the church. He invited Him to spend time away from the temple, and in his everyday life.
He shared his house, his table, his life, with his Lord and Savior. He chose to spend more than just a few minutes a week with God. He spent hours and days dedicated to learning about, and following Jesus. Perhaps we can learn a lot from how Peter chose to spent time with God.
Peter showed his friendship by spending time with Jesus, by listening to His conversations, and giving Christ the attention He deserved.
Jesus meets people where they are
Jesus accepted the invitation Peter offered, and they strolled to Peter’s house. No questions asked. No demands of “ensure the place is ready for me when I arrive.” No protocol. No red carpets laid out. No assistants helping Jesus with His bags or His schedule. No uniform requirements. Just two friends walking down the street to enjoy some time together.
That’s a lot of what friendship is. Both Peter and Jesus dedicated time to each other. Time to talk. Time to laugh. Time to enjoy life together. Time to learn about each other, and develop relationships.
When Jesus went to Peter’s house, he didn’t place any demands on the household. He didn’t tell them that they had to wear something special to spend time with him. He didn’t tell them to go through any rituals before meeting with Him. He didn’t tell them to play a certain type of mood music, paint the walls a certain color, greet Him a certain way, or any other restrictions on their actions. He met them where they were, how they were, and who they were.
When he came to the house, he found Peter’s mother-in-law sick with a fever. He could have healed from a distance, but he chose to create a relationship with her instead. With a word, He could have told this woman to get up and her fever would have left immediately. He could have thought about her being well while he was still at the temple, and she would have been better, instantly. But, Jesus used these opportunities to build up, and develop, interaction between others and Himself.
You see, wherever you are, Jesus is ready to meet you there. It doesn’t matter how smart you are, how mature you are, how old or young you are, what you wear or where you live. Jesus is ready to come to you to make a difference in your life. Jesus is a friend to us as well as Peter and the others. He meets us where we are. His words have shown us that He’s all about relationships. He’s about spending time with us. He accepts our flawed, sinful nature, and gives us advice to turn away from our past.
Jesus never required them to attend a certain synagogue. He never required them to change their appearances. Instead, He got to know who He was dealing with. He traveled on a boat with fishermen. He walked the roads with tax collectors. He sat on a hill with 5,000 and ate with them. He spent time doing the everyday, ordinary things with everyday, ordinary people. He learned what they loved. Learned what irritated them. He learned where they hurt, how they felt, and who they were. He established relationships with the lives He touched, because that’s what was important.
Peter’s mother-in-law accepted Jesus, then served Him
Peter’s mother-in-law experienced this style of relationship building first hand. Now, she had a fever. Luke says a high fever. It’s likely that she had a life threatening condition that could have taken her from this world. But, Jesus was there to assist.
When He healed this woman, she could have chose to relax, and enjoy the moment, or maybe share her joy with other about the miraculous event. But, she had a different idea.
She had a guest in the house, and that guest was Jesus. He had just shared His power with her by blessing her with the removal of her fever. She chose to show her appreciation, her friendship, by serving her house guest. She chose to spend time with Jesus and help take care of His needs by taking care of His comfort, His appetite, and His rest.
Part of being a friend, is being there for your friends when they need you. It’s taking care of some of their needs even when we have needs of our own. Jesus needs our attention so that we can hear what He has to say.
Conclusion
This short story in Mark has shown us what it means to be a friend. Being a friend is about spending time with those you want to develop a relationship with. It’s about acceptance of others, even if they’re different from us. It’s about doing things for our friends to help them achieve their goals. It’s about building a relationship with Christ.
Why do we limit God in our lives? Where many can’t seem to find time to crack open the good book during the week and read the words of wisdom He’s prepared for us, Jesus has always been ready to meet us where we are. He was all about relationships, and still is. But the most important aspect is dedicating our time. And who better to dedicate our time to than the Lord who dedicated so much on our behalf. What a minor thing to do, for such a gift as Calvary.
The problem really comes to this. We have people in our Christian communities who leave Jesus and the church and never bother to take Him along. They see church as a place of worship, and the rest of the world as a secular society. They divide themselves into two people. The religious side of them might attend church on a regular basis, sing the praise songs along with the choir, listen intently as the message is delivered. On Sundays, they might be the ideal church member giving God His deserved praise and adoration.
But, once they leave the walls of the church in their rearview mirror, it might be a different story entirely. Where Jesus spent His entirely earthly life suffering, being ridiculed, experiencing pain and hardship, enduring the jeering crowds and the long walk to Galgatha. Over thirty years dedicated to wiping our mistakes out of the book of life so that we could join Him in the eternal kingdom.
Some people don’t pay attention to what Jesus did. Instead, they see demanding work schedules, kids soccer matches, dad’s bowling night, mom’s spa treatments, family events, personal time, run, run, run, go, go, go, there’s no time left, none to spare . But, at least they were able to squeeze Jesus in between a late night on the town Saturday, and brunch at the club on Sunday afternoon. Some choose to invite Jesus into their hearts, but keep him out of their homes. Some choose to invite Jesus into their hearts, but keep him out of their workplaces. Some choose to invite Jesus into their hearts, but keep him out of their hobbies and recreation.
If we want a relationship with Jesus, as our Lord, Savior and God, we need to be willing to dedicate time to Him. We need to dedicate time outside of the church to Him. Not just when we attend worship services, but ever moment of the day. We need to keep a single face, rather than becoming a Jeckle-and-Hyde.
Peter didn’t leave Jesus at the church door. He chose to invite Him into his life, into his home, and into his family. Jesus took up the offer to come into Peter’s house and followed, spending time with Peter and listening to his concerns. Once Jesus established a relationship with Peter’s mother-in-law, she immediately came to serve Jesus in the only way she knew how.
