And they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue and was teaching. And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes. And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God.” But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!” And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him. And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.” And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee. And immediately he left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. Now Simon’s mother-in-law lay ill with a fever, and immediately they told him about her. And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them.
Comment: We must remember as we read the gospel stories that Orthodoxy believes that the Bible is the Word of God and True Truth. That does not mean that we don’t have to put things into the context of the whole record of scripture. You read Matthew’s gospel and it gives many of the same facts in its initial chapters but he doesn’t mention this event. Luke recounts the story but describes considerable happening before it occurs! Mark has the goal of letting people know what the gospel of Jesus is! Remember that the very first verse of Mark’s gospel reads “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” The non-Jewish world religions had their gods slipping down from the skies at every opportunity and there were to them many ‘sons of the gods’. Mark calls Jesus the Son of God – He is unique and very different from the gentile ‘sons of their gods’. Jewish readers would have believed it heresy and blasphemy to say that God had a Son! So Mark has to prove his point that Jesus is the Son of God. In this passage he makes the point three times that Jesus was head and shoulders above everyone else who went about as a Rabbi. 1. Jesus teaching was enlightening and authoritative. 2. When faced with a very awkward situation Jesus did what amazed them by healing a demon possessed man with His spoken word! 3. And just in case you think mind stuff is hocus pocus, Mark records that immediately Jesus healed a physically sick woman who immediately was able to get up and serve at table!
Proverbs 21: 5 – The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance,
but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty.
Prayer: Please re-inforce my ‘certainty’ that the gospel is about Your Son, Father God.
As I read it! 