Be Lifted Up

Mark 1:29-39 Being Lifted Up February 4, 2018 Fifth Sunday of Epiphany Year B Children’s sermon… In the morning, a great while before the day, he rose and went to a lonely place; there he prayed. (v. 35, RSV) Object: a clock. Lesson: Good morning, boys and girls. I want to talk with you today about talking with God. How many of you do that sometimes? (Let them respond.) All of us need to talk to God, as much as we can. We need to do it every day. Sometimes we do it here in church, don't we. Can you think of some times during worship when we talk to God? (Help them identify some times, including the prayers and the Lord's Prayer.) Do you have to use special words when you talk to God? No, you can use just ordinary words, just the way you talk to a good friend. In fact, God likes that kind of talking from us the very best of all. He likes it because it shows him that we really love and trust him and want to be his children and stay close to him. What kinds of times should we talk to God? (Discuss it.) We don't want to talk to God only when we are in trouble, or only when we want a favor. You wouldn't talk to your best friend only when you wanted to get something, would you! Instead, we want to talk to God whenever we have something to share, even if it doesn't seem very important. Do any of you have any special times when you talk to God? (Talk about this.) Sometimes we have trouble finding a good time in the day to stop and be quiet and talk to God. Here is a clock. You see how many minutes there are in an hour? There are sixty of them. It would be good to save a few minutes out of every hour to talk to God. And there are twenty-four hours in the day. That means there are 1440 minutes in a whole day. Of course, we are sleeping some of those minutes. But even if we just count the minutes we are awake, we have over 800 minutes every day. So it shouldn't be hard to find some minutes to use to talk to God, should it! And yet, some people never find any time. Today's Bible story tells one way Jesus sometimes talked to God. He got up early, before the sun came up and went out in a lonely place to talk to God. Why do you suppose he did it that way? (Let them answer.) Right. Nobody could interrupt him then. That's a good way to talk to God, when it's quiet and we're alone. Don't forget to talk to God today. CSS Publishing Co., Mark 1:29-39 Common English Bible (CEB) Jesus heals Simon’s mother-in-law 29 After leaving the synagogue, Jesus, James, and John went home with Simon and Andrew. 30 Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed, sick with a fever, and they told Jesus about her at once. 31 He went to her, took her by the hand, and raised her up. The fever left her, and she served them. Jesus’ ministry spreads 32 That evening, at sunset, people brought to Jesus those who were sick or demon-possessed. 33 The whole town gathered near the door. 34 He healed many who were sick with all kinds of diseases, and he threw out many demons. But he didn’t let the demons speak, because they recognized him. 35 Early in the morning, well before sunrise, Jesus rose and went to a deserted place where he could be alone in prayer. 36 Simon and those with him tracked him down. 37 When they found him, they told him, “Everyone’s looking for you!” 38 He replied, “Let’s head in the other direction, to the nearby villages, so that I can preach there too. That’s why I’ve come.” 39 He traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and throwing out demons. Common English Bible (CEB) Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible There was a preaching professor who gave his students the assignment of preaching a sermon based on the first chapter of Mark. This chapter is an interesting chapter- there are at least 50 different lessons in this one chapter. If you want to understand the bible, all you have to do is read this one chapter. It will tell you everything you need to know about what it means to be a Christian, who Jesus is, and why Jesus id the savior of the world. In the verse that we are reading today – 29-39 there are 4 major lessons. I will touch on them today – but I want to focus on 2 that I think are important for us. The first lesson is the most important. – that is the healing of Peter’s mother in law. There are 14 stories of Jesus giving healing in the gospels. This one is actually the second one in Mark chapter 1. By this time Jesus has recruited all twelve of his disciples. They are still near the sea of Galilee, and they go to synagogue in Capernaum. Jesus heals a man in the service. At the end of the service all 13 of the men are hungry and want something to eat. So Peter invites them back to his house, not realizing that the lady of the house is sick in bed, and not up to fixing lunch. The scripture says that she is sick with a fever. Our scripture calls this lady Peter’s mother in law. But that does not mean she is Peter’s wife’s mother. In those days families were pretty close together. But a grown man would always stay in the house of his father. The women would leave their family to stay get married. If something happen to Peter’s wifes mother, she would not come to live with her daughter, she would remain in her husbands house. So this woman was Peter’s aunt in law. She was Peter’s father’s brothers wife. She was living with Peter’s father because she lost her husband. now I am sure that you are thouroughly confused. But she was the lady of the house. The flu has ravished our whole country this year. It has also affected our community and our church. We know that when we are sick with the flu, and we have a fever, we just don’t feel like doing anything. Even those who are used to being busy can be sidelined by the flu. But if she is sick in bed, then what are these 13 hungry men supposed to eat. Luckily, one of them has the gift of healing. So Jesus makes her better, and she gets out of bed and fixes lunch. All of the scholars assure me, that this is not just a story about hungry men, needing the woman of the house to get up and feed them. It is much deeper than that. We have all been sick before, and when we are really sick you can tell that is not just a body thing, it affects your mind and your spirit. You cant do anything. But being really sick can also affect your social standing. We as a society tend to isolate sick people – we want them to say away from us. We also tend to make them useless – we don’t want them to do anything. And if people are really sick, we strip them of their titles, their duties and everything else. The good news is that when Jesus heals a person, you will notice that Jesus not only restores their body – but he restores their humanity. He gives them their place in society back and makes them feel like a person. The fact Peter’s mother in law immediately got out of bed and fixed lunch meant that she was grateful to have her humanity restored. She recognized Jesus as the messiah – she didn’t say anything – she repaid him in service. It is not Easter- but this story is the first step for us understanding what resurrection is. Scripture says that when he healed her, he told her to rise up. Jesus says this to all of the people that he heals in the book of Mark. Scripture always says that helifts them up. Once they are healed, not only are they feeling much better, but they are restored to their place in society – they get to go back to work, to reconnect with their family, to be the person they were before they got sick. Can you imagine how many people in this community who would give anything to be restored back to the person they were before they got sick? How many people would love to be a whole and complete person? That type of restoration is the power of resurrection. You cant get that type of healing from the hospital. That is a healing of mind, body and spirit. Once Jesus gives that power to Peter’s Mother in Law – the whole town starts to knock on their door – asking to be healed in that way. That leads us to the second point of this scripture - Jesus walks aways from it all and goes out to spend time with God. When in the business of healing and helping others, you have to take time to be restores and healed by God. There is a story that goes back to the industrial revolution. In a factory that made wool suits. On every sewing machine in the factory – there was a sign which said – if the thread gets tangled call the foreman. On her first day of work, one lady go the thread hopelessly tangled. The harder she tried to get it untangled, the more tangled it got. The foreman happen to be passing by and asked her why she did not call – she said that she was trying to untangle it herself. She wanted to do her best. The foreman told her that doing her best, was calling the foreman for help. God tells us the same thing- in order to do our best work – we have to rely on God just as Jesus did. Take time in our daily lives to spend with God, to be renewed, restored and resurrected. Sunday’s totally drain me. After church I am totally brain dead, so I have to sleep relax in order to work on Monday. The third lesson in this scripture – When Jesus is gone, the disciples tell him that everyone is looking for him. But he tells the disciples that he must not stay in one place, that the journey to heal the world must continue. The final lesson – Peter’s mother in law recognizes Jesus, but she does not verbally say who he is. But scripture also says that the demons recognized him as the messiah, but Jesus would not allow them to speak. All throughout the book of Mark, Jesus will reveal himself as the messiah, but will tell people not to say anything. This is called the messianic secret. Jesus knows that you cant understand who he is, unless you understand resurrection. You cant understand resurrection unless you understand sickness, suffering, and death. And it is not Easter yet, so the resurrection does not make sense. We are still looking for the messiah. In the meantime we must listen, pray, spend time with God, and look for our opportunities to serve and say thank you, Amen. Illustrations…… All Our Strength The story is told of a little boy and his father. They were walking along a road when they came across a large stone. The boy looked at the stone and thought about it a little. Then he asked his father, "Do you think if I use all my strength, I can move that rock?" The father thought for a moment and said, "I think that if you use all your strength, you can do it." That was all the little boy needed. He ran over to the rock and began to push on it. He pushed and he pushed, so hard did he try that little beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. But the rock didn’t move — not an inch, not half an inch. After a while, the little boy sat down on the ground. His face had fallen. His whole body seemed to be just a lump there on the earth. "You were wrong," he told his dad. "I can’t do it." His father walked over to him, knelt beside him, and put his arm around the boy’s shoulder. "You can do it," he said. "You just didn’t use all your strength. You didn’t ask me to help." The world in which we live tells us that it is all up to us. It tells us that we have to be strong and independent. It tells us we can’t and shouldn’t count on anyone or anything else. And yet, what faith tells us and what Jews and Christians have known forever is that we have a ready resource in God, strength for those who ask. Donald M. Tuttle Resources for Life’s Daily Battles There is a story that comes out of World War II. After the Battle of the Bulge, a German officer was describing the capture of an American unit early in the fighting. This unit had in its possession a box which contained a cake. What was remarkable about the cake is that it had been sent to an American soldier from Boston and it was still fresh. This German officer described his feelings when he realized that the Americans had the resources to fly over cakes from home even in the midst of a global war. He said that he knew then, that they would never defeat an enemy that had such resources for the waging of the battle. You and I have a resource that can help us in life’s daily battles, if only we will make room for it. It is time alone with God. It is one-on-One communication with the Creator and Sustainer of life. King Duncan, www.Sermons.com We Will Be Made Whole How can you know when you have been healed? Seems like an odd question. For many, the answer is obvious: when the pain is gone, the fever has come down, and the disease is no more. But the Gospel gives a better answer. “The fever left her,” we are told of Peter’s mother-in-law, “and she began to serve them.” As she was healed, she immediately began to serve others. When we are ready to help others in their need and focus once again outside ourselves we will know that we too have been cured. We will no longer be slaves to our hurts and resentments. We will at last be made whole. And we shall live. Frank Hegedus Where's Jesus? Where Do You Look for Jesus? You have perhaps heard the story of an elderly man who was quite ill who said to his wife, "You know, Sarah, you've always been with me - through the good and through the bad. Like the time I lost my job - you were right there by my side. And the war came, and I enlisted - you became a nurse so you could be with me. Then I was wounded, and you were there, Sarah, right by my side. Then the Depression hit, and we had nothing - but you were there with me. When our son got into trouble and we didn't know what to do, once again you were right there by my side. And now, here I am, sick as a dog, and as always, you're right here beside me. You know, Sarah, you're bad luck! Traditional, www.eSermons.com The Beginning of Healing “When we think about the people who have given us hope and have increased the strength of our souls, we might discover that they were not the wardens or moralists, but the few who were able to articulate in words and actions the human condition in which we participate and who encouraged us to face the realities of life. Those who do not run from our pains but touch them with compassion bring healing and new strength. The paradox is that the beginning of healing is in the solidarity with the pain. In our solution oriented society it is more important than ever to realize that wanting to alleviate pain without sharing it is like wanting to save a child from a burning house without the risk of being hurt" (p. 43, Reaching Out). Henri Nouwen, Reaching Out, p.43 The Social Healing The other day while visiting someone in a nursing home I stepped out of the elevator and into a room where frail men and women were slumped in wheel chairs in a posture that made my neck hurt looking at them. Their chins were on their chests or their heads were leaning limply on one shoulder. Some were drooling. All the chairs were lined up in front of a television showing a soap opera and the sound was much too loud for anyone, even those hard of hearing. It was a miserable sight. But then something unexpected happened. A young girl, maybe 7 or 8 years old, stepped away from her mother who was visiting someone else. With her mother's encouragement this little girl placed her hand upon the hand of man slumped in a wheelchair, numb, the living dead. She looked at him and smiled as she said her name. "What's your name?" she asked. And, I believe I witnessed a healing taking place in the living room of that nursing home. The man tilted his head up slightly and looked at her. His face broke into a smile and he said his name. Then the little girl went from person to person in each wheelchair offering the same healing touch and the same welcoming benediction. No one tossed a wheelchair out the window and no one danced a jig, but I believe we all experienced, for a moment, the restoration of the community of life where everyone has a place. This is the social healing that Jesus brings through people like this little girl. Roy W. Howard, The True Purpose of Healing Who Can Help with This? Back when I lived in Illinois, I once went to a neighboring parish to participate in a healing service led by Emily Gardiner Neal. She was an Episcopal deacon who for many years exercised an extraordinary ministry of healing. Near the end of her long life, she helped establish the Episcopal Healing Ministry Foundation, which is based in Cincinnati. At the service I attended, Deacon Neal invited people to come forward so that she could lay hands on them and pray with them. This is a typical part of healing services in our church, and the response that day was enormous. After ministering in this way to a large number of people, Deacon Neal grew weary. Many others were still waiting to come forward. With a trace of impatience in her voice, she addressed those of us clergy who were present. "Aren't there some priests here who can HELP me with this?" I, for one, was startled by this request. Deacon Neal was the one conducting the service, the one who had come a long distance to do so, the one with thirty years' experience in this ministry. And she wanted help! I felt that I had been impolite without meaning to be. I had left this elderly woman to do all the work, while I remained in the background, looking pious. Apparently several of us priests reached the same conclusion. In a flash we were at the altar rail, assisting Emily Gardiner Neal in the ministry of healing. Today's Gospel asks this question: "Won't you help me with this?" Jesus is concerned for our health, our complete health. He wants us to experience healing - first, to the degree it is possible for us to do so in this life; then, completely in the life still to come. And he wants us to become his agents in the healing of our neighbors, a healing that can happen when we serve one another. Charles Hoffacker, www.Sermons.com