Always Able to Save January 18

Jesus is always able to save those who approach God through him, since he lives forever to make intercession for them. Hebrews 7:25

And whenever unclean spirits saw him they would fall down before him and shout, “You are the Son of God.” He warned them sternly not to make him known. Mark 3:11-12

Piety

(Note: If you don’t have a favorite Psalm yet, Psalm 40 is a good one to consider. It echoes the great “Here I Am” theme that we encounter time and again in 1 Samuel 3, Isaiah 58, from Ananias in Acts 9 and elsewhere.)

Let us pray: Jesus, draw me out of the pit of self-destruction, out of the mud of the swamp that draws me away from you and tries to maintain its transient hold on my with physical pleasures in the modern world. I am surrounded by evils beyond count – violence, racism, hatred, laziness, jealousy, affluence, indifference. My personal and social sins are so overwhelming that I cannot see you without help.

I waited, waited for the LORD; who bent down and heard my cry. Jesus, you lifted me up and set my feet upon rock, the rock of Peter. The rock of ages. You steadied my steps. You revealed your plan to me through scripture and prayer. In your plan, there is none to equal you. Then I took the first steps into your awaiting arms.

Here I am, Lord. I come to do your will. Not my will but yours. Not my will but yours. Not my will. But Yours. Here I am. Lord! Amen.

Study

http://www.usccb.org/nab/011807.shtml

If Jesus does not want people to know about what he is doing, the path his ministry has taken in these early chapters of Mark’s Gospel are, to say the least, a funny way to show it. As he heals those with diseases, his ministry attracts larger and larger crowds. The numbers swell so much that Jesus is afraid of being crushed by the crowd and has to have a boat ready for a fast escape.

Jesus, who has been calling people to follow him, has been remarkably successful. People are now following him “from Galilee and from Judea.” “Hearing what he was doing, a large number of people came to him also from Jerusalem, from Idumea, from beyond the Jordan, and from the neighborhood of Tyre and Sidon.” Mark 3:8

Refresh your biblical geography here. See Galilee in the northern part of Israel/Palestine in the New Testament era. This was where Jesus grew up (Nazareth was in this region). Judea was the southern part. Word has not only spread to the countryside, but it also has already spread to Jerusalem, the religious center of Judea during the Roman occupation. The birthplace of Jesus in Bethlehem is slightly south and east of Jerusalem.

Idumea (Edom) lies even father south from Judea. This is the area we know today as the Hebron Valley. The Jordan River was the western border and Tyre and Sidon were much farther north. These were Phoenician seaport cities located in what we would call Syria.

So here, just two and a half chapters into this Gospel, word about Jesus’ healing ministry has spread all over the Jewish world and into surrounding areas. The crowds are so large they are hard to manage.

Imagine the largest crowd in which you have ever been a part. Imagine the National Mall on July Fourth. The concert is over. The fireworks finished and you and 200,000 of your closest new friends all want to get on Metro and head home at L’Enfant Plaza Station. Everyone wants the same thing and will push and shove to get to the front of the line.

Consider that the crowd is not just fighting for a place on a train but for health. Ever spend a holiday weekend in the Emergency Department at your local hospital? Just think what would happen if there were no hospitals (New Orleans after the hurricane or Indonesia after the tsunami). No hospitals, few doctors and one itinerant preacher walking around the countryside healing people for free. No Blue Cross card needed. You won’t need an award-winning commercial to attract crowds. It goes without saying that word-of-mouth will spread the Good News quickly. Or as the letter to the Hebrews describes, “Jesus is always able to save those who approach God through him, since he lives forever to make intercession for them.”

How does Jesus react to all of this? He chastises the unclean spirits not to make him known even though Jesus is known far and wide already. Puzzling? Yes. Well maybe.

Jesus has not yet revealed his messianic mission described in the letter to the Hebrews – to offer Himself as a sacrifice once and for all so that our sins may be forgiven. Maybe the purpose of these early battles driving out demons and unclean spirits and healing the sick is intended just to get our attention for the main act which will unfold soon.

Action

Here I am, Lord. I come to do your will. These early crowds do not turn to God to do His will. Instead, they want God to do their will – drive out this demon, cure this illness, make the lame walk, mend the cripple. Perhaps Jesus wants to control how the more important message – about his mission – is revealed to his followers and will spread. He has our attention now. He has something special in mind for each of us. He wants us to come to him not for our own selfish purposes, but to fulfill His purpose for us on earth.

There will be mountains to climb. And more mountains beyond those mountains. Are you ready?