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 Jesus 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. Mark 1:29-31 Your home is your most personal space. No other place could be more private. So it's interesting that Jesus didn't confine His ministry to public squares -- He came to peoples' homes. Here in Mark 1:29, we see Him coming into Simon Peter's home, where Peter's mother-in-law was sick with a fever. The woman had probably never met Jesus, and maybe wasn't even aware that He could heal her. But Peter was. He and the disciples didn't hesitate to tell Jesus about her need, and Jesus acted swiftly. Tenderly taking her hand, He lifted her up, and "immediately" healed her (verse 31). Jesus touched her life that day, and she never even stepped outside the house. He had worked powerfully and quickly on her behalf, simply because Peter had asked Him to. You know, we can sometimes forget the urgency of Jesus' love. Jesus didn't wait for people to come to Him -- He went to them. He visited sinners in their most personal spaces, far from the "spotlight" and safety of the public arena. He went not only where He was loved, but where He was needed. While He visited Peter's house, Peter presented a need, and Jesus responded "immediately." Even at this early point in the book of Mark, it is already the sixth time that word, "immediately," has been used. And I don't think it's an accident. Jesus acted immediately, with urgency, because He loved people. We all have friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers who need the healing touch of Jesus Christ. Let me encourage you today to lift up the people around you to Jesus. Like Peter lifted the needs of his mother-in-law to Jesus, lift up your family and friends to Him, that He might heal them, and that they might encounter His love for them. Jesus answers prayer. He tells us in John 14:14, "If you ask anything in My name, I will do it." Maybe today, though, you are like Peter's mother-in-law -- you are the one in need of healing, whether physically, emotionally, or spiritually. You may have known Jesus for years, or perhaps you've never known Him. Whatever the case, let me encourage you that you don't even have to leave your house -- He will come to you. Wherever you are, simply ask Him to touch your life, and He will respond immediately, according to His perfect will. He loves you more than you will ever understand, and is thrilled to hear your voice. He urgently wants to give you "a future and a hope" (Jeremiah 29:11), because He loves you. Jesus wants to touch your life, and the lives of those you love, this very moment. Not tomorrow, but today. Let us never forget or dismiss the urgency of Jesus' love! |
