Christ Heals the Sick and Casts out Demons

Introduction: The Necessity of a 40-Century Journey

0:03 This sermon was preached on Sunday morning, March 18th, 1984, at the Trinity Baptist Church in Montville, New Jersey.

0:16 Now will you turn with me in your own Bibles to the first chapter of Mark's Gospel, the Gospel of Mark, Chapter 1, and follow as I read verses 32 through 34. The next incident recorded by Mark in the Galilean ministry of our Lord Jesus tells us that at even when the sun did set, they brought unto him all that were sick and them that were possessed with demons. And all the city was gathered together at the door. And he healed many that were sick with various kinds of diseases and cast them out of the city. And cast them out of the city. And cast out many demons. And he did not permit the demons to speak because they knew him.

1:13 Now let us again seek to gather up the sentiments expressed in our hymn and plead with God to send his spirit of unction and illumination upon us in the ministry of the Word.

1:29 Surely, O Lord, we could ask for nothing more than what we have asked in the singing of this hymn and to ask for nothing more than what we have asked in the singing of this hymn and to ask for anything less would reflect gross unbelief and tragic indifference to the well-being of our own souls. And so we would again with one heart and mind cry to you, rest upon this congregation. O holy dove of God, come upon the mind and spirit and voice of the one who speaks and upon the ears of the heart, and hearts of those who listen that together we may all be conscious that Your Spirit is indeed present taking the things of Christ and making them real to our needy hearts. Oh, give us a sight of the beauty, of the power, of the condescension and compassion of Jesus that will cause our hearts to run after Him, hear our cry as we present our plea before You in His worthy name. Amen. Now it was some weeks ago in the course of our studies in the first chapter of Mark's Gospel

2:58 that I had occasion to say that all responsible study and application of these first century documents contained in the New Testament in a very real sense demand of us a journey of 40 centuries every time we would properly study them and apply them. And I used the imagery of a space capsule, or sorry, a time capsule into which we must strap ourselves and go back from 1984 to the first century and seek to understand what these documents tell us in their own original setting. Then having done that, we must strap ourselves back in our time capsule and shoot ahead 20 centuries and seek to understand the application of what happened then to our world of experience now. And the passage that I've just read in your hearing very vividly illustrates the principle of this necessity for this 40 century journey. The text begins, with the words, and that even when the sun did set, they brought such and such unto him. Luke tells us that these things occurred

The Significance of 'When the Sun Did Set'

4:25 when the sun was setting, when it was in the process of setting. Mark tells us when it had fully set. And if we simply think of that in terms of our relationship to the setting sun, we merely, we merely regard it as a little stroke of interest to give a little more flavor of the natural setting and nothing more. But if we put ourselves in that little time capsule and go back into the first century and into the city of Capernaum and into the circumstances in which these events occurred, we realize that Mark's account that these things happened at even precisely when the sun was setting. The fact that the sun did set has tremendous significance. For you will remember that this was in Palestine. The events previously recorded happened on a Jewish Sabbath day.

5:27 And now we are told that even when the sun did set. And according to Jewish reckoning, both by divine directive and current tradition, they reckoned their Sabbath day from 4 to 5,000 years ago. From Friday evening until Saturday evening. According to Leviticus 23, 32, they were to reckon their Sabbaths from evening unto evening.

5:56 And these people at Capernaum were not only Jews who would reckon their Sabbath in that way, but they were also Jews who had been greatly influenced by the teaching of the scribes and the Pharisees and the rabbis. And you will remember that in our initial study of verse 21, when we studied the institution of the Sabbath and the synagogue, we had occasion to note that one of the tragic fruits of the teaching of the rabbis and the scribes and the Pharisees was a teaching in which they overlaid the institution of the Sabbath with a multitude of trappings of men's traditions. All kinds of little rules and regulations, all kinds of little rules and regulations, which if anyone even approached being a sincere Jew, he would not have dared to come out of his house on the Sabbath day carrying a sick brother or sister. A mother would not have felt free to come and carry a sick son or daughter into the presence of Jesus. And so word, according to verse 28, has spread as to what happened in the synagogue on that particular Sabbath day. on that particular Sabbath day.

7:13 Throughout that entire region, the word has spread like wildfire that there is someone preaching and teaching with authority and not as their scribes. Illustrative of that authority, in that very synagogue where he preached with power, he spoke a word, and the demon fled the body and the personality he had inhabited. Further on in that Sabbath day, as we saw last week, the Lord Jesus had entered into the home of Peter and Andrew, and there he found Peter's mother-in-law burning up with a fever. To use Luke's words, she was held by a great fever.

7:55 And the Lord Jesus miraculously and wonderfully suddenly heals her. Get the picture now. Word is spreading through that whole area of Capernaum that here is one who has preached with authority, one who is preaching with authority, one who has spoken to the demons with authority. And now, no doubt, word has leaked out from the neighborhood of Peter that when Jesus came from the synagogue and entered Peter's house and found his mother-in-law there burning up with a fever, he took her by the hand, spoke a word, and raised her up so that now they begin to make the connection, that this one who speaks with authority, who commands evil spirits and they obey him, who can touch a fevered person and heal him, they begin to understand there must be a tremendous reservoir of healing power. And they long as they look about them and see their sick relatives and demon-possessed friends to bring them to Jesus. And word has spread that Jesus is now at the house of Simon Peter, that He's at the house of Simon and Andrew, and yet it's still the Sabbath day. And so there is this pent-up, pent-up longing to bring their needy loved ones to this One who in His compassion and power would be able to touch them.

9:19 And yet, they dare not break the rules and regulations imposed upon them by their religious leaders. And so the picture Mark sets is like runners in the starting blocks waiting for the official starter to pull the trigger on his gun. And the moment it is pulled, they come out of the block, out of the blocks. And one can only imagine what it was like in those households with people standing and sitting or cradling their sick loved ones in their arms, watching the sun as it begins to set.

9:53 And Luke says as the sun was setting, and it may have been an area where there was a little bit of allowance for diversity of interpretation, some begin to leave their houses. The sun has already begun to dip. The first edge of it has gone down. Out of sight.

10:11 And they begin to move as drawn with a magnet from all over Capernaum to the house of Peter. And by the time they all arrive, the sun has fully set because for them, the Sabbath was over. And now it was kosher for them to do the work of bringing sick loved ones to One who may heal them. Now, do you see how vital it is to take that journey in the time capsule?

10:40 It makes the whole narrative come alive when we picture these people with the tremendous diversity of need, longing to bring that need into the presence of Jesus and yet unable because of the strictures of their religious leaders. But the moment those strictures are over, they come with abandonment. And we then have the account that I will attempt to open up in your hearing. First of all, a description of the gathered crowd.

A Description of the Gathered Crowd

11:12 A description of the gathered crowd. Mark tells us that the crowd was so vast that it could, with normal literary liberty, be described as the whole city gathered at the door. You'll notice in verse 33, and all the city was gathered together at the door. And I like to picture it as the point of a funnel resting against the door of Peter's house.

11:46 And out from that, the wider end, this vast mob of people who are there. And Mark describes this gathered group not as a frenzied, noisy, lawless mob such as the mob that gathered at the door of Lot. You remember that incident? Burning with their perverted passions, and ready to knock down the door that they might have illicit sexual relationships with these visiting strangers.

12:18 But there's something different about this mob. It is a mob. All the city, Mark says, is gathered to the door, and yet there's not a shred of evidence that there was anything unruly, that there was anything of that frightening specter of a mob that was out of control. And as they come, and you and I draw near to see them, what do we see?

12:44 Well, amongst the many who gather on that particular occasion, we see some who have every appearance of being normal, healthy, average Palestinians. We see some short ones. We see some tall ones. We see some skinny ones.

13:02 We see some less than skinny ones. We see some relatively young, some relatively old. We see people who have every appearance of being healthy, and they are there with an aspect and an attitude of evident expectancy. And as we draw a bit closer, we notice that many who appear well and strong and healthy have others leaning upon them, or they are supporting them by the arm, or some are actually being carried by others.

13:34 For the passage tells us that in that crowd gathered at the door, they brought to Him all that were sick. And later on, the passage tells us that Jesus healed various kinds of diseases. And the word used to describe the sick is a very general term that can bring within its orbit every single form of abnormality in the realm of human health. No doubt there were some there who had the pale, drawn, weak face and bearing of one whose whole life is being squeezed out by a dread internal degenerative disease. Perhaps there were others who by their grotesquely twisted limbs gave evidence that they had deformities that no medical help could ever correct. And perhaps others were being led by the arm because their sightless eyes could not tell them the way to Peter's house. And perhaps others were deaf.

14:49 All forms of human need are present in that crowd. At that door, we see what could be likened to an infirmary on a mission field where medical science has had very little inroads. And some of us have seen slides and pictures, pictures of what those infirmaries look like. And in a crowd of 100 or 200 people, you see almost every single form of the ravages of sin as those ravages come to expression in physical maladies and abnormalities.

15:24 And then the text tells us there is another group. We draw closer to that crowd and we notice not only those who appear healthy and well and normal, the sick and perhaps the maimed, and the deaf and the blind, and those who seem to be on the very verge of death from internal disease, but we see others who seem to have a strange look in their eyes. There is something about them that doesn't look right when we get close enough to see their eyes. We notice as we try to discern what it is that some of them will suddenly go into strange convulsions and out of their throats will come strange sounds.

16:07 The passage tells us they were brought unto him there at the door of Peter's house, not only those who were afflicted with sickness, but those that were possessed with demons, literally demonized. The Greek has one word to describe demon possession. They are demonized. And the passage obviously makes a clear distinction.

16:38 between physical maladies and demon possession. There were some who were sick. There were others who were possessed of demons. And that distinction is very clearly set before us in this passage and in many others.

16:59 Now granted, the Bible teaches us that there were times when the demon's presence within a personality manifested itself in certain physical problems, convulsions, deafness, dumbness. We have the incident where Jesus spoke to the man who was deaf and dumb and he cast out a demon and it says the deaf could now hear and the dumb could speak. But even though there could be physical manifestations of the possession, the possession was real. And we must never yield to the notion that this idea of demon possession was an ancient oriental superstition.

17:42 And that somehow the biblical writers were just accommodating themselves to that superstition in order to describe what really was purely physical illness. No, there were people demonized. On the other hand, we must not yield to the fanatical notion that all sickness is the direct result of some demonic influence. There was sickness and there was demon possession.

18:09 And the two are distinct and the two are real. And now such are brought to the door of Peter. Now try to use your imagination. Imagination should be used like a magnifying glass upon the text of Scripture.

18:27 You see, a magnifying glass when you go to look at something doesn't put anything there that isn't there. It just helps you to see more clearly what's already there. God has given us the faculty of imagination and we ought to use it when we study the Scriptures. God often just gives the broad strokes and it's in meditation and reflection, in sanctified imaginative concentration that the Scripture comes alive to us.

18:54 And Mark tells us that people of these various categories were gathered at the door. Try to think of what it must have been like. Coming from all parts of the city with all kinds of maladies and varying manifestations of demon possession, ringing in their ears is the report that has come from so many quarters that they know there must be some substance to it. There is a young preacher who preached at our synod today and he was qualitatively different from our scribes.

19:30 He was utterly, radically different from them. He did not drone on rabbis. So-and-so says and rabbi so-and-so says. He stood and said, I say unto you.

19:45 When he spoke our hearts were laid bare. He spoke as one who was in direct contact with spiritual realities. And we've heard it told us upon many witnesses that in that synagogue service someone cried out under the pressure of a demon influence upon his personality and he rebuked the demon and the demon left him. And furthermore it's been reported to us that the fever left at his touch and at his words.

20:14 And so there is raised in their hearts this tremendous hope and expectation. Could it be that this son who is the darling of my heart but upon whom I've had to look for years with that crippling malady that makes every day as it were a day of intense agony. As I see him attempt to cope with his affliction. That husband whose heart is broken as he sees his wife wasting away to nothing.

20:44 Dying with a degenerative disease. Think of all kinds of diseases. Of all the emotional and psychological trauma that they create. And many of us don't need to look far to know what that is.

20:59 We have known it. All of that bound up in this crowd. And now their hopes are all focused. Upon the door of Peter's house.

21:08 They know that behind that door is the one who speaks with authority. Behind that door is the one who can say to demons be muzzled and be gone. And they obey him. Will he say to the demon in my son, in my father, in my aunt, my uncle, my neighbor.

21:28 Will he say to that demon be muzzled, be gone. Behind that door is the one who speaks with authority. The one who touched the fevered Mrs. whatever her name was.

21:41 Peter's mother-in-law. Will he touch the fevered brow of my son, my loved one. There are the hopes. There are the expectations.

21:49 There's the crowd gathered at the door. That's Mark's description of the gathered crowd. Now then. Notice in the second place Mark's account of Jesus' activity.

Jesus' Activity: Healing the Sick and Casting Out Demons

22:04 Mark's account of Jesus' activity. Verse 34. The structure indicates there were two basic activities. And the third was subservient to the second.

22:15 And the structure in the original makes this very, very clear. Notice what the activity was. Verse 34. And he healed many that were sick with various kinds of diseases.

22:29 And cast out many demons. Those are the two major activities. He healed. He cast out.

22:38 And, secondary under that second activity, he was not permitting the demons to speak. Because they knew him. Mark's account of the activity of Jesus is simple and straightforward. He healed many that were sick.

23:00 Luke adds the beautiful little stroke of the pen. Or if we may change the imagery. A stroke of the brush in Luke 4.40.

23:09 It says he laid his hands on every one of them and healed them. Think what it meant now. How many were here we do not know. We don't know the precise size of Capernaum.

23:24 But the entire town or city is gathered at the door. And with general literary license that means a great representative crowd is there. And what does Jesus do? He could have come out and simply said all of you demons hear me.

23:42 Leave and be gone. And all the demons would have left. He could have spoken to every sickness and said leave. And every fever would have left.

23:55 Every gnarled twisted limb would have been straight. But he didn't do that. Luke says he laid his hands upon every one of them. And he healed.

24:07 Can you picture what that must have been like? There they are gathered at the door. The door opens. And their eyes fixed upon Jesus.

24:18 What will he do? Is he going to say look it's been a wearisome day. I've taught and preached in your synagogue. I came into hand to hand combat with the prince of darkness and cast out a demon.

24:33 I've sought to minister in this household. And though I am the son of God. I am the man dear people. Let me just pronounce a blessing and send you home.

24:44 Come back tomorrow I must rest. Is that what he's going to do? Is that what he's going to say? The door is open.

24:52 And out he comes. The first one who comes with a look of hope and expectancy. And holds up perhaps a little babe in arms. Obviously dying with some dread disease.

25:04 What does Jesus do? Lays his hands upon that little one. And then he moves to the one with the twisted body. Lays hands upon it and healed.

25:18 And how long this went on we do not know. But Luke says he laid his hands upon every one of them. And he healed them. Now can you imagine?

25:30 I don't know how to describe it. I fished for words to try to describe what probably was controlled disruption. And restrained hilarity. For we read in Acts of one man who had been lame from his birth.

25:44 And when he got healed he went through the temple. Clicking his heels and running and shouting and dancing and jumping. What must have happened that night outside the door of Peter's house? Particularly with the Hebrew temperament that is much less inhibited than ours.

26:00 I cannot imagine that a mother who thought that the little one was just a whisper from death. Would see life immediately. Surge into that little one. Jump and squiggle and wiggle out of its mother's arms.

26:13 And go running around. I can't imagine that mother standing there saying no isn't that lovely. Tears would flow. Hands would be raised.

26:22 Praise be to Jehovah. And then over here someone who had grown so accustomed to living with that person. With the gnarled hands and twisted limbs. Suddenly those limbs are free to work.

26:34 Can you imagine such a person just saying. Oh well that's very nice I'm healed. One can only imagine what it would have been like. Just saying look, look.

26:42 And going around saying I can work my arms. Look my feet can work. And he healed them all. One after another.

26:48 Hands laid upon him. I say it must have been controlled disruption. Restrained hilarity. It must have been a kind of holy confusion.

26:58 Outside of the door of Peter's house. As the Lord Jesus entering into sympathetic identity. Sympathetic identification with men in their need. Lays his hands upon them.

27:13 And heals them. Notice neither Matthew, Mark nor Luke say that he made any demands of them. He made no incantations over them. He asked for nothing from them in the way of money.

27:32 And all the so called healers. Who supposedly heal in the name of Christ. Palatins. Sing people.

27:46 Have faith. Have faith. Have faith. Have faith.

27:52 And if they get healed they say that's proof that I'm a healer. And if they don't say that's proof you've got unbelief. Jesus came. Laid his hands upon them.

27:59 He didn't even ask them to believe in him. Some instances he did. But nothing said here. He simply laid his hands upon them.

28:08 And fevers left. Twisted limbs were straightened. Organic disease is left. No demands made of them.

28:19 No incantations over them. No psychological manipulation. Believe it's gone. Though it's still there and you can see it.

28:26 It's a lying vanity. Don't. No sir. He didn't ask them to play head games.

28:31 When he put his hands on them the man whose arm was like this was like that. And he could see it. And it stayed like that. Didn't go back to this when Jesus went back in the house for sleep.

28:40 But the majesty of creative power. Subfused with the compassion of infinite kindness. Jesus. Radically.

28:50 Instantaneously. Majestically. Healed them all. But then the second thing he did.

Jesus' Refusal to Permit Demons to Speak

28:54 Luke Mark tells us. Is. That he cast. Out.

28:58 The demons. Notice the language. He healed. Diverse.

29:03 Or many kinds. Of sicknesses. And diseases. And diseases.

29:07 And diseases. And diseases. And diseases. And diseases.

29:12 And diseases. And diseases. And diseases. And diseases.

29:16 And diseases. He cast. Out. many.

29:20 Demons. As Luke adds the interesting touch. That in his healing. He laid.

29:24 His hands. Upon them. Matthew adds this touch. U.

29:28 to., Matthew 8 16. That he. Cast.

29:32 Out. The spirits. With. A word.

29:36 Now. Can you picture it? He's. Going.

29:41 Through. The crowd. Lays. His hands.

29:45 Upon. One. he comes to another and begins to lay his hands and he draws his hands back and he discerns this is not organic sickness this is demon possession what does he do? he speaks a word and says because and the demon goes and he lays his hands upon another and another and then he discerns another who is possessed of a demon and with a word he casts out many demons here again suddenly without any reason for people to question what had happened that personality that spirit that had possessed these individuals they were cast out one by one by the word and authority of Christ and Mark goes on to say and he was not permitting the demons to speak because they knew him and when we tie that in with Luke 4 4 this is the picture we get let me read Luke 4 44 that as the Lord Jesus was casting out the demons something would happen Luke 4 I'm sorry 41 and the demons also came out from many crying out and saying you are the son of God and rebuking them

31:12 he suffered them not to speak because they knew that he was the Christ Luke's account says that the demons came out crying and saying you are the son of God when they did it Jesus rebuked them and would not permit them to speak any further Mark says that when he cast out the demons he was not permitting the demons to speak because they knew him now is there contradiction here? no there is not contradiction in all likelihood this is what happened when the Lord Jesus discerned that someone was possessed of a demon and commanded the demon to leave either initially or periodically the demon would try to speak as he did in the synagogue and identify Jesus what have we to do with you son of God and when the demon would thus speak either in the first few instances of being cast out or periodically Jesus would add to his word of dismissal a further word of rebuke and say be muzzled be silent I do not need your confession of my identity and Mark tells us he rebuked those demons and would not suffer them to speak because they knew him

32:37 they were correct in their identification of Jesus of Nazareth that he was the son of God that he was Messiah now why did Jesus rebuke the demons and not allow them to confess him may I suggest at least three reasons first of all it was contrary to the divine method of revealing his identity Jesus had chosen to reveal his identity in this way his works and his words by an act of divine illumination would reveal who he was his works his words by divine illumination would secure a proper assessment of his identity who do men say that I am who do you say that I am flesh and blood has not revealed it but my father the works testify of my identity my words testify of my identity it was not the Lord's method to herald abroad unequivocal statements throughout his ministry I am the son of God I am Messiah now whenever anyone suspected that he was and asked him he never denied it are you Israel's king you have said when Messiah comes he'll tell us all things he has come I am he

34:05 he does affirm he does confirm that this was not his method so it was contrary to the divine method of revealing his identity secondly it was contrary to the divine timetable remember the multitudes healed were not necessarily multitudes saved many had their bodies healed whose souls were still in darkness you remember on another occasion when he had fed the multitudes they wanted to take him by force and make him a king Jesus didn't want to be troubled with all that kind of carnal pressure and had his identity been known at this relatively early part in his ministry it would have been contrary to the divine timetable that would ultimately lead to his crucifixion and then thirdly it was contrary to the divine method God does not need the devil to advance his cause I will have the confession of my identity not from you demons in league with the devil I will have it from those upon whom my grace has been conferred and the illuminating power of my spirit has come so that when they make the confession it is not the grudging confession of terror but the loving confession of faith and spiritual sight

The Overarching Message: Jesus as the Burden-Bearer

35:33 so he did not suffer the demons to speak what an evening outside a home in Capernaum I hope I've helped you to get a little glimpse of it what an evening outside a home in Capernaum this marks that evening after the Sabbath when Jesus sees a suffering humanity came forth and poured himself out in loving service to heal all that were sick Matthew tells us and to cast out all the demons who possessed those who were present now what does all of this say to us as we seek to strap ourselves back in our time capsule and come forward to 1984 what message comes to us from the door of Peter's house in Capernaum well there are many things surely one is tempted in preaching to expand upon the example of Jesus of self-giving sacrificial love and service at the end of that long day in which he had poured out his soul in teaching and preaching had cast out the demon from the man in the synagogue had entered in sympathetically to the needs of the people and to the needs of Peter's house surely if there was ever a time

37:01 when one could legitimately go to his rest it was then but he did not he came forth and gave individual attention that's the thing that strikes me laid his hands upon every one of them every one of them every one of them every one of them and he spoke individually to all of the demons and he cast them out much more much to teach us both to our shame and to prod us to a life of self-giving service and love surely there are lessons here on the whole nature of faith the expectation of faith based upon credible testimony how did they know that that was the place to come because they had heard that here was one who could cast out demons with a word and raise up people from a bed of fear with a touch of his hand and by a word of his power and surely there is much in the whole area of the analogy of what true faith involves and service ministry but there is one central fundamental overarching message in the passage and what is that message it is that you and I need to behold in Jesus at Nazareth

38:29 the willing and able burden bearer of the world's ills and woes the almighty conqueror of the devil and his works and we're not left to the preacher's judgment to make that application for if you turn to Matthew chapter 8 you will find that the Holy Spirit has made the application for us Matthew chapter 8 in the parallel passage Matthew describes this very incident verse 16 and when even was come they brought unto him many possessed with demons and he cast out the spirits with a word and healed all that were sick that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through Isaiah the prophet saying himself took our infirmities and bear our diseases himself took our infirmities and and bear our diseases now that's quoted directly from Isaiah 53 in verse 4 and most of you are familiar with the basic contents of Isaiah 53 it is the chapter which depicts with the minute detail of an eyewitness the sufferings of the servant of Jehovah and as we read Isaiah 53 and if we had no commentary

39:59 upon it in the New Testament we would assume that when it says in Isaiah 53 4 that himself took our infirmities and bear our diseases that in his suffering upon the cross he bore the consequences of sin one of which is sin and sickness and by his vicarious suffering he bears away sin and all of its consequences and that's a wonderful and blessed truth thank God for that truth by the Holy Spirit Matthew tells us that Isaiah 53 4 found fulfillment in a differing dimension ultimately of course it finds its fullest dimension of fulfillment in his work upon the cross when he dies the just for the unjust and takes away all that the curse of a broken law has inflicted upon the people of God but in a very unique way what happened outside of Peter's door that night in Capernaum was a fulfillment of this verse himself has taken our infirmities himself has taken our infirmities and bear our diseases now what is he talking about is he saying that Jesus actually became afflicted with every

41:28 sickness that he bore that's the fanciful interpretation some have given to the passage but that's contrary to everything that scripture teaches well what does it mean himself took well may I remind you of some other data in the gospels you remember there are incidents where Jesus healed where it's made very plain that the healing ministry of Jesus was not something that he did automatically as though there were some infinite reservoir of power and all he did was touch people and they were healed and nothing went out of him remember that incident he's in the crowd and he turns suddenly and says who touched me and the disciples said what are you talking about who touched you everybody's pressing around you you're being touched by lots of people no no someone touched me I feel that what virtue has gone out there was a woman who came in faith and touched the hem of his garment and when she did he said virtue has gone out of me he sensed in his what shall we call it I don't know but he sensed in his being as the god man virtue had gone from him add to that these testimonies he stands before a blind person he makes spittle and puts it upon the eyes of the blind person then it says he sighed

42:58 and then he looked up to heaven before the grave of lazarus what did he do it says he groaned in his spirit what are these passages teaching us they are teaching us that when Jesus came forth to heal when he beheld multitudes who were without spiritual leadership you remember it says his heart was moved with compassion when he stood in the midst of the ravages of sin in human bodies his holy compassionate soul was stirred he could not look upon twisted limbs with indifference and with detachment he I'm personally convinced that's why he laid his hands upon every one of them so that as it were at least symbolically as the virtue of his healing power flowed into those whom he touched something of the reality and the ugliness and the heart breaking ness of human tragedy flowed into his own soul as his own virtue flowed into the body of the one whom he healed himself our infirmities and bear our diseases he sees death and he groans in his spirit he stands before a blind man and he sighs

44:27 he takes in that act of empathy and compassion and servanthood he takes our diseases he bears our infirmities whatever else it's saying I'm convinced scripture the analogy of scripture tells us it's at least saying that much and what is that set before us dear people what a picture what a picture of him who is the savior of the world as the physical ailments are pictures of spiritual as physical deformities are pictures of spiritual deformity as demon possession is a picture of man under the control of Satan the prince of the power of the air so Jesus taking away sickness and infirmity and deformity by his touch and his word is a picture of the power to forgive and cleanse the soul and as he speaks a word and casts out demons and releases people from satanic bondage it is a picture of what he does in the gospel in liberating us from the power of darkness and translating us into his own kingdom that night in Capernaum the only sick people who went to bed

Application: The Folly of Pride and Procrastination

45:56 who came to that evening sick and woke up sick the next morning were those who were either too proud to acknowledge the reality of their malady or too busy to get where Jesus was any who came let us heal he healed all and anyone who came to that evening possessed by a demon and the next morning woke up under the control of a demon did so because he was either unwilling to acknowledge the tragic nature of his state or he was too busy to go where Jesus was my dear friend listen the only reason any one of you will come to the door of Jesus dwelling which is his church now the only reason you'll come and go away in the same condition is because you're too proud to acknowledge your disease Jesus said I did not come to call the righteous but sinners they that are well have no need of a physician can you imagine the folly that night as the crowds are beginning to be drawn from all of their dwellings and someone is seen carrying a loved one and looks over the shoulder to a neighbor and says

47:25 oh my neighbor friend come come we're going to the one whom we have reason to believe can with a word cast out demons and with a touch and with a word can heal every malady the person whom everyone knows is the one with the twisted hands with the emaciated frame and with the fevered brow yells back and says I don't need him what would you do if you had compassion for that person you'd weep you'd say what kind of madness has gripped my neighbor I don't need him can't he look in the mirror and see his deformed and twisted body can't he feel his fevered brow what madness has gripped him my friend your madness is worse because before the eye of almighty God your spiritual deformity is ugly and it's ugly before anyone who has eyes to see you for what you are the deformity of your pride and your lust and your unbridled passion and envy and greed the pride of your heart the lust of your heart the greed of your heart it's spiritual deformity and it's ugly and it'll shut you out of heaven forever you're burning up with the fever of your own

48:53 carnal ambitions and it's evident to everyone but you stand like a fool and say I'm alright I'm alright may God have mercy on you you go on that way and God will have to send you to hell for your arrogance it won't be because Jesus is not at the door willing to touch everyone he laid his hands upon everyone all you need to do is come and say Lord Jesus you see my deformity as I can never see it but I see enough of it and know enough of it that I know the answer doesn't lie in me it doesn't lie in any other human being Lord Jesus it lies in the infinite love and compassion of your heart and the power of your grace Lord Jesus by the virtue of your cross by the virtue of your spirit deal with this deformed fevered soul of mine and make it whole only those who are too proud to acknowledge their need left that night unhealed for those who are too busy to come maybe there were some who said yes I know I've got a need and I know

50:22 he can need it but other things must come first one of the greatest tragedies is to hear a person say I know I'm lost and I need to be saved and Christ is the only savior and I hope someday to settle the great issues of my relationship to him there's no surer way to go to hell my friend than to say manana boast not thyself of tomorrow for you do not know what a day may be bring forth Jesus comes to the door today today is the day of salvation now is the accepted time Christ stands in the gospel and says to you young man woman boy girl old grey haired sinner and he says come come and I will give you rest himself himself not his church not his people not his sacraments himself himself took himself for and thank God that's the glory of the gospel the sinner in all his need comes into living contact with the savior in all the plenitude of his grace and power do you know him as yours have you come to him and oh child of God my word of application to you is obvious in the passage it says

Application: Carrying Sinners to Jesus

51:50 that many sick were brought to Jesus and that word brought many times literally means to carry to carry to carry thank God there were people who cared enough to carry others to Jesus that night are you carrying needy sinners to Jesus by your prayers by your godly example by every effort to bring the word of God into contact with their consciences are you carrying sinners to Jesus oh that God will make us a congregation of people who count no pain no sacrifice too great to carry people to Jesus it costs something remember the sun had already gone down it was bedtime and if you were at the back end of that crowd perhaps you had to wait a long time because he was laying his hands upon every one of them but if you had enough compassion for that sick son or daughter relative friend you would have hung in there until the son of God God laid his hands upon that one beautiful picture of persevering efforts to bring sinners to Christ oh the fountain of his grace and power has not been stopped it flows today may God make us a people determined to bring sinners to Jesus bring them to Jesus

53:19 the one who alone can heal them as we stand by the door of Peter's house my prayer has been oh God give us a sign of your son that at least is a refraction of a little bit of the glory that they saw that night when that Palestinian sky was studded with stars there wasn't much to draw eyes upward to the beauty of the stars that night eyes were all fixed upon the compassion Christ who healed them all and cast out demons from all who were possessed and healed by the power of the Holy Spirit he is with us he is here call upon him trust him prove his saving grace and power let us pray our father we thank you for the record of the life and ministry of your beloved son as we stand before the glory of his self-giving love the very love that would ultimately take him to the cross to bear our sins in his own body we confess that we who know you are ashamed at our selfishness

54:48 our self-sparing we pray that something of his self-giving love will be poured into our hearts and oh God have mercy upon those who in their moral madness go on in the deformity of their sin when all the while you stand ready and willing to forgive and cleanse and heal draw some to yourself even this day that where they have counted the Lord Jesus something of little or no worth they may from this day on regard him as the pearl of great price seal your word to our hearts and continue to minister to us as you know we have pleased even our Lord Jesus Christ Amen