Reflective Bible Study

After Jesus finished healing at the synagogue, Luke’s gospel then tells us about someone else who needs healing. We also discover something we don’t often think of when we think of Jesus’ disciples, and we see the best response we can have when God has healed us. And this is all shared in just two short verses.

Let’s read this short, two-verse passage and discover some amazing truths about God’s character, Jesus’ love for us, and our response. Our passage is found in Luke’s gospel, chapter 4, and we will be reading it from the New International Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 38, Luke tells us that::

³⁸ Jesus left the synagogue and went to the home of Simon. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever, and they asked Jesus to help her. ³⁹ So he bent over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. She got up at once and began to wait on them.

In these two verses, we discover many things. In the first verse, we read that Jesus headed home with Simon after the synagogue service was finished, and when we compare this passage to Matthew and Mark, this Simon is Simon Peter, the disciple of Jesus. While Jesus and the disciples are at Simon’s home, we learn that Simon has a mother-in-law who has a fever.

It isn’t common to think of the disciples as being married and/or having families, but it is possible that some of them did. In this case, Simon Peter has a mother-in-law and the only way you have a mother-in-law is if you have a wife. Since this was Simon Peter’s home, it is likely that Simon’s wife was taking care of her mother even though she isn’t mentioned in this event.

When Jesus arrived, He is asked to help, and while help could mean a lot of things in this context, I believe Simon is asking for a miracle. Up to this point, Jesus has turned water into wine, He has cast out a demon, and He has promised a father that his son would be healed. While the gospels were written after the events had happened, it is unclear if word had returned to Jesus and the disciples that the long-distant miraculous healing had worked. All this is to say that Simon’s request for help might refer to a miracle, but it’s possible that he hasn’t seen any healing miracles at this point to base his faith on.

In the context of where this miracle is placed in the gospels, Peter simply places His faith in Jesus, specifically in who Jesus is, and not on a track record of seeing Jesus heal others. Having faith in Jesus because of who Jesus is and not what He can do is the way God wants us to have faith in Jesus. Faith in Jesus shouldn’t be self-serving even if we occasionally ask for help in a personal way.

In the second verse of our passage, Jesus heals Peter’s mother-in-law, and she “got up at once and began to wait on them”. (v. 39)

This event ends with one of the most appropriate responses we can see when God has touched someone’s life. Immediately following being healed, Peter’s mother-in-law gets up and says “thank you” by serving Jesus and the group of disciples. One of the most appropriate ways of saying “thank you” to Jesus and to God for everything He has done for you and I is through serving Him.

While the other primary way we can give God thanks is by praising Him and giving Him the credit for this miracle, those things are immediate responses, and responses of a temporary nature. Serving lasts longer and actions speak louder than words. In the case of us living over 2,000 years later, we serve God through serving others, and when we serve those who cannot repay us with more than a “thank you”, we are serving as God has called us to serve.

It is also interesting that this miracle would have happened on a Sabbath afternoon. That morning, Jesus and the early disciples were worshiping at the synagogue, and this happened immediately following this. This detail is interesting for two reasons. First, this detail is interesting because this was still the day set apart for rest, and on this day, Jesus should be resting. Healing people didn’t exert the same level of sweat as plowing a field or lifting a hammer, but it was one thing Jesus was known for, and while Jesus had been a carpenter before starting His public ministry, healing people became what He was known for leading up to His death.

This first detail teaches us that: Jesus helps others because He can and because they need help. Jesus wasn’t interested in making people wait because He needed rest and Jesus was more than willing to use the time set aside for resting to help those who needed help. We don’t have any indication that Peter’s mother-in-law would have died if Jesus had waited, but waiting to heal someone isn’t the impression Jesus wants us to have about God’s love for us. God wants us to know that He is ready and willing to help us when we need help, and He never waits when there isn’t a good reason.

The second detail is that when Peter’s mother-in-law is healed, she gets up and serves Jesus and the disciples. This serving is also not resting, but we don’t see any hint of judgment or correction given from Jesus regarding this response. Perhaps this service didn’t draw negative light because it was a normal level of service for someone who was a host or hostess, and perhaps because there were no Pharisees around to look down on this healing miracle and the response it prompted.

In these two short verses, we discover how God is more than willing to help us when we need help, and that serving God is an appropriate way to say “thank you” for what He has done for us. And all of this help, service, and response is more than acceptable on the day God set aside for worship and rest.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

Always continue to seek God first and place Him first in your life. Don’t be afraid of asking God for help and don’t be afraid of saying “thank you” to God through serving Him and helping others.

Also, be sure to pray and study the Bible for yourself to personally grow closer to God each and every day. While other people can give you things to think about, always filter what you learn through the lens of the Bible – especially for the subject matters the Bible speaks most clearly about.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, or chicken out of where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

In Jesus’ ministry, we don’t have to look far to discover places where Jesus challenges the preconceived ideas of the religious teachers. As we move through Mark’s gospel, not much of the year has gone by and we already see the religious leaders shifting into opposition-mode regarding Jesus’ ministry. In the event we are focusing on in this episode, we will discover how these religious leaders orchestrate an event in an attempt to catch Jesus doing something wrong.

Our passage is found in Mark’s gospel, chapter 3, and we will read from the Good News Translation. Starting in verse 1:

¹ Then Jesus went back to the synagogue, where there was a man who had a paralyzed hand. ² Some people were there who wanted to accuse Jesus of doing wrong; so they watched him closely to see whether he would cure the man on the Sabbath. ³ Jesus said to the man, “Come up here to the front.” ⁴ Then he asked the people, “What does our Law allow us to do on the Sabbath? To help or to harm? To save someone’s life or to destroy it?”

But they did not say a thing. ⁵ Jesus was angry as he looked around at them, but at the same time he felt sorry for them, because they were so stubborn and wrong. Then he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and it became well again. ⁶ So the Pharisees left the synagogue and met at once with some members of Herod’s party, and they made plans to kill Jesus.

Pausing our passage briefly, I find it fascinating that this man with a paralyzed hand happened to be at this synagogue when Jesus was there, and also when some people who wanted to accuse Jesus were there too. This event appears to be a set up if there ever was one.

However, an amazing parallel I see in this first part of our passage is in Jesus’ question, contrasted with the Pharisees’ response. Jesus asked those present in verse 4, “What does our Law allow us to do on the Sabbath? To help or to harm? To save someone’s life or to destroy it?” Contrast this with verse 6, where Mark tells us that “the Pharisees left the synagogue and met at once with some members of Herod’s party, and they made plans to kill Jesus”.

The Pharisees leave the synagogue and immediately they meet with some people from Herod’s supporters to make plans to kill Jesus. Because this happened immediately, we can conclude that these Pharisees met to plot against Jesus on the Sabbath, and that means that the answer to Jesus’ question in the minds of these religious leaders was that their law allowed them to harm others and to destroy life on the Sabbath instead of helping or saving life. This is what the actions of these Pharisees show.

In contrast, Jesus’ question and Jesus’ actions throughout His ministry answers the question of the Sabbath saying that it is lawful to help people regardless of the day, and it is always lawful to save someone’s life regardless of the day of the week it is.

However, Jesus knew what these leaders were plotting. Continuing reading in verse 7:

⁷ Jesus and his disciples went away to Lake Galilee, and a large crowd followed him. They had come from Galilee, from Judea, ⁸ from Jerusalem, from the territory of Idumea, from the territory on the east side of the Jordan, and from the region around the cities of Tyre and Sidon. All these people came to Jesus because they had heard of the things he was doing. ⁹ The crowd was so large that Jesus told his disciples to get a boat ready for him, so that the people would not crush him. ¹⁰ He had healed many people, and all the sick kept pushing their way to him in order to touch him. ¹¹ And whenever the people who had evil spirits in them saw him, they would fall down before him and scream, “You are the Son of God!”

¹² Jesus sternly ordered the evil spirits not to tell anyone who he was.

The way this passage concludes reminds us of some things we looked at earlier. When given the opportunity to speak, Jesus quickly silenced the evil spirits claim about Jesus being the Son of God. As we have already seen, it is never wise to listen to evil spirits, even if what they are saying is truthful. An evil spirit is never a trustworthy source of information.

In both parts of this passage, we discover that Jesus is gaining popularity because of what God is doing through Him, and this popularity irritated some of the religious leaders. While some religious leaders were likely jealous of Jesus’ popularity because they would rather be popular like Jesus, I also believe some of these leaders were jealous of Jesus because they wished they could do what Jesus did.

Other religious leaders were probably hostile towards Jesus because they were more afraid of Rome noticing what was happening and misinterpreting Jesus’ ministry as being a Jewish-sponsored movement worth crushing. If Rome believe the Jews were behind Jesus’ movement, they would not only target Jesus and His followers, but also everyone else present as well. These religious leaders saw the power in Jesus’ popularity and they likely wanted to distance themselves from being targeted if this movement failed.

However, I’m sure these fearful leaders would have completely flipped and supported Jesus if Jesus had actively expelled the Romans. These leaders would have opposed Jesus publicly until a new nation was formed and then they would try to rewrite their history claiming to have secretly supported Him all along.

But the problem with all this speculation is that God isn’t interested in support only when things are going well. God is worthy of being praised and given glory even when things are not going the way we might want them to go. While huge crowds followed Jesus because He was interesting and because He healed and helped people, everyone deserted Jesus when the religious leaders get their chance to arrest Jesus under the cover of night.

When we choose to follow Jesus, we are called to follow Jesus through the good times and the challenges, through the triumphs and the trials. God is much bigger than our problems and with His help we can move through anything and everything. While God does not promise His people a life without trials, God does promise us that with His help, we are better equipped to handle whatever life throws our way.

When we side with Jesus, know that there will be people who stand up against us because of our decision, but also keep in mind that Jesus wasn’t immune to opposition either. Jesus probably faced more opposition in His life than anyone else ever in history. When we face opposition, we can know that with whatever challenges we face in this life, we will be rewarded when Jesus returns to bring us home and into His kingdom!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life and choose to trust in Him regardless of the trials and challenges that come your way. Know that when challenges come, Jesus faced worse challenges and abuse, and even if remembering this doesn’t make our situation easier, know that Jesus understands what we are facing because He has faced similar trials. Jesus overcame the trials and challenges in His life and He opened the way for us to be saved!

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself to learn and grow closer to God each and every day. Don’t take a speaker, pastor, author, or even a podcaster’s word for what the Bible teaches. Pray and study the Bible for yourself to grow personally closer to God each and every day.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or let other people push you out of where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!