Order from Chaos “Moved with pity, He stretched out His hand and touched him and said to him, ‘I will; be clean.’” Mark 1:41 -- Our Lord is one of order. He doesn’t create chaos; He eliminates it. He doesn’t create darkness; He brings light. And so it is that when He works, He does so through specific means, through tangible things, in ways that our faith can lay hold of, by methods we can see and understand. He did, after all, because a man. He was incarnate as one of us. He is not the ethereal god of mysticism or the untouchable gods of the Eastern religions or the nebulous postmodern god that “lives inside each of us.” As Jesus touches the leper and pronounces him clean, He also bids him to go to the temple, to be about the work of His Father’s business. He heals the man’s body, even as He simultaneously heals the man’s soul. He does both, never divorcing one from the other. Our Lord shows us this same mercy. And He does it all physically, actually, literally. He is tangible for us in the font, on the altar, in His Word. He brings order and does away with chaos. He loves and shows mercy. And He does it all for us. (Dear heavenly Father, thank You for tending not only to the souls of Your children but to the well-being of their physical bodies as we ll, showing mercy to the whole person. Amen.) -- Mark 1:29-45 English Standard Version (ESV) Jesus Heals Many 29 And immediately he[a] left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. 30 Now Simons mother-in-law lay ill with a fever, and immediately they told him about her. 31 And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them. 32 That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or oppressed by demons. 33 And the whole city was gathered together at the door. 34 And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. And he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him. Jesus Preaches in Galilee 35 And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. 36 And Simon and those who were with him searched for him, 37 and they found him and said to him, “Everyone is looking for you.” 38 And he said to them, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.” 39 And he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons. Jesus Cleanses a Leper 40 And a leper[b] came to him, imploring him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean.” 41 Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.” 42 And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. 43 And Jesus[c] sternly charged him and sent him away at once, 44 and said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to them.” 45 But he went out and began to talk freely about it, and to spread the news, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in desolate places, and people were coming to him from every quarter. Footnotes: Mark 1:29 Some manuscripts they Mark 1:40 Leprosy was a term for several skin diseases; see Leviticus 13 Mark 1:43 Greek he; also verse 45 .. Psalm 9:1-8 English Standard Version (ESV) I Will Recount Your Wonderful Deeds [a] To the choirmaster: according to Muth-labben.[b] A Psalm of David. 9 I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds. 2 I will be glad and exult in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High. 3 When my enemies turn back, they stumble and perish before[c] your presence. 4 For you have maintained my just cause; you have sat on the throne, giving righteous judgment. 5 You have rebuked the nations; you have made the wicked perish; you have blotted out their name forever and ever. 6 The enemy came to an end in everlasting ruins; their cities you rooted out; the very memory of them has perished. 7 But the Lord sits enthroned forever; he has established his throne for justice, 8 and he judges the world with righteousness; he judges the peoples with uprightness. Footnotes: Psalm 9:1 Psalms 9 and 10 together follow an acrostic pattern, each stanza beginning with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet. In the Septuagint they form one psalm Psalm 9:1 Probably a musical or liturgical term Psalm 9:3 Or because of
Posted on: Fri, 07 Mar 2014 13:49:37 +0000
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