Called to Serve

                                  I'm not asking for a show of hands but how many of you know the mission statement of our church, located on the front cover of your bulletin? It reads that our church is committed to "Helping people of all ages become mature disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ". So how do we do this? As Christ's body, the church, we have accepted Christ's call to be involved responsibly in the ministry of the church. According to the Book of Order of the Presbyterian Church this involvement includes (G-5.0102): (a)proclaiming the good news (b)taking part in the common life and worship of the church (c)praying and studying Scripture and the faith of the Christian Church (d)supporting the work of the church through the giving of time, money and talents (e)participating in the governing responsibilities of the church (f)demonstrating a new quality of life within and through the church (g)responding to God's activity in the world through service to others (h)living responsibly in the personal, family, vocational, political, cultural, and social relationships of life (i)working in the world for peace, justice, freedom and human fulfillment.

            Today's gospel lesson provides the scriptural basis for the 7th responsibility: responding to God's activity in the world through service to others. Unlike Matthew and Luke, the Gospel of Mark does not begin with the birth narrative, but immediately begins with the good news that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. When you read the gospel of Mark, you get the impression that everyone is in a hurry! Throughout this Gospel the word immediately is used more than 50 times. Jesus is baptized by John the Baptist and immediately the Spirit drives him out into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan. When Jesus calls his disciples Simon and Andrew, James and John, they immediately leave their nets and their families to follow him. Jesus heals and immediately news spreads all over the town about the miracles he is performing.

            Our passage for today illustrates one of the most hectic days in Jesus' earthly ministry. In this passage we get a telescopic view of 24 hours in the life of Jesus, as he begins his ministry of teaching and healing in Galilee. Throughout Galilee, Jesus "proclaimed the good news of God" and said to those with whom he came into contact: "The time is fulfilled, the Kingdom of God has come near; repent and believe in the good news."(Mark 1:14-15) Faith and belief are the same word in Greek, and in Mark's gospel are a standard for those who hear Jesus' message. The Kingdom of God that Jesus describes is the place where God reigns as the undisputed king over the people and all creation.

            Our gospel lesson for today is a section of a 5 part unit in chapter 1 of Mark's Gospel and includes the following: (1)Jesus, in the synagogue, on the Sabbath, teaching and casting out demons (vv21-28), (2)The healing of Simon's mother-in-law in Simon's house (vv29-31), (3)The healings and exorcisms of others who are brought to Jesus (vv32-34), (4)Jesus praying alone in a solitary place (vv35-38) (5) A summary of Jesus' itinerary in the area of Galilee (v39)

            Jesus' day begins in the synagogue. It is the Sabbath and he has gone there to teach. Those who hear him are "astounded at his teaching". They all said "he teaches as one having authority."(v22) Even though it is the Sabbath, Jesus chooses to heal a man with an unclean spirit. As Jesus rebukes the unclean spirit, the demon recognizes Jesus as the Holy One of God. All who were in the synagogue were amazed and asked each other, "What is this? A new teaching - with authority!"(v27) This man commands even the unclean spirits and they obey him! At once Jesus' fame began to spread throughout the region.

            Our lesson begins in the early afternoon, and we can only guess that Jesus is exhausted from his morning spent teaching and healing. So Jesus, along with Simon and Andrew, James and John, sets out for Simon's house, probably to get something to eat and for some rest and renewal. Upon entering the house, the disciples tell Jesus that Simon's mother-in-law is ill, she is in bed with a fever. Hearing this, Jesus takes her by the hand and lifts her up. With Jesus' touch, the fever leaves her and she begins to serve them. It is here in this unit that we have a compressed view of the usual healing story in Mark which includes the following four components: (1) a description of the illness (2) a request for healing (3) an action by the healer (4) some evidence that the ailing person has been restored to health.

            First, let's look at the description of the illness. To the modern reader this story appears to us to be a simple, physical healing. The patient is not even given a name. As modern readers we might consider that Peter's mother-in-law is sick in bed with the "flu" and Jesus heals her. However, in the first century, fever was not a symptom of a disease. Fever was considered the disease itself. Without antibiotic therapy, infectious diseases were either rapidly fatal, or chronic and recurring. Without knowledge about bacteria and viruses, people, seeing apparently healthy individuals suddenly ill with a "fire" in their body, and uncontrollable shaking chills, would imagine many possible causes for the ailment. And recurring fever and chills, as seen in diseases like malaria, certainly would raise the possibility of demon possession. In the parallel passage in Luke 4:38-39, Jesus actually "rebukes" the fever in the same fashion as he rebukes the demon in the synagogue.   

            We have to wonder why Mark would put this story so early in the ministry of Jesus, immediately following an exorcism in the synagogue?    Perhaps the key to understanding the passage is the "authority" of Jesus described in the preceding passage. A diagnosis of fever in the first century CE, would be, in most circumstances, a sentence of death. Simon's mother-in-law was not just "in bed with a fever," but "laid low" with a fever, and like the daughter of Jairus, likely to die without Jesus' intervention. Mark is less interested in why she has the fever, and more concerned with emphasizing Jesus authority over even the most devastating disease. Jesus has the authority to forgive sins, and restore people to health and wholeness. Like the demon in the previous unit, we, the reader, recognize that Jesus' authority can only be because he is the Son of God. The power of Jesus to heal is universal; those that are excluded from the community, either by physical or mental infirmity, are restored back into the community of God's people.

            Despite what should have seemed like a miraculous recovery to the disciples, Mark gives us no description of their response. What he does tell his readers is that the mother-in-law got up from her bed and began to "wait on them" (NIV) or "to serve them" (NRSV), thus evidence of her complete healing. When Mark says that Simon's mother-in-law began "to serve" them, he is referring to much more than just resuming her daily routine. It should be noted that the word "to serve" is translated from the word "diekonei" in Greek, from which we get the word deacon. The mother-in-law's response, "to serve", is exactly what Jesus calls for in his teaching on discipleship later in Mark 10:43-45. Jesus describes why the Son of Man came when he says: "Whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be servant of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many". Diekonei, is also the same word used to describe the angels waiting on Jesus in the wilderness, found earlier  in the first chapter of Mark.(v13)

            So Simon's mother-in-law may be the first person to understand what being a disciple of Jesus really means. By her actions she joins Jesus in the radical announcement of the Kingdom of God. Her diaconal work, in serving, is the beginning announcement of the gospel, the gospel of the good news of Jesus Christ. Simon and others won't understand Who Jesus is until Easter. Throughout Mark's gospel, the disciples never seem to understand that the Son of God came to serve and give his life for all.[1]

            In Greek, the verb to heal and to save (sozo) are the same. When Simon's mother-in-law serves, after she is healed, it is a way of saying that she is also saved and restored to the community of which she is a part. "That Simon's mother-in-law "served" is Mark's way of telling us she took her full place among the disciples who are charged to be servants".[2] In Mark's gospel, those that Jesus heals either "follow" or "serve". This is how their understanding and their discipleship are demonstrated. Both the healed woman and the angels recognize the authority of Jesus, and the need for a response of service. 

            True discipleship is service to others. Service is an essential characteristic of the Kingdom of God that Jesus introduces and exemplifies. Jesus tells us himself that to serve is a lived response to the good news: "I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me. I was in prison and you visited me".(Matthew 25:35-36)

             Even though service to others is an essential characteristic of the Kingdom of God, Jesus models another essential component of discipleship - that is prayer. Jesus was up late into the night healing all who were brought to Simon's home. Yet scripture tells us that Jesus got up early the next morning and went out to a deserted or solitary place. It was here that Jesus went to spend time alone, in prayer with God. Even in the very beginning when Jesus was launching his public ministry, he made prayer a vital part of that ministry. It was this quiet prayer time that renewed Jesus and gave him direction for his ministry. The Gospels all portray a Jesus who prays on a regular basis. Jesus teaches and heals but always sets aside time in the business of his earthly life to pray to God for direction and guidance. There is a rhythm to Jesus' day, one of engagement and withdrawal, engagement and withdrawal. Jesus needed a place to escape the crowds, a place of solitude where he could stay focused on his mission. Prayer and his relationship with God was his power source. Jesus tells us this in John 5:30 when he says: "I can do nothing on my own. I seek to do not my own will but the will of him who sent me." 

            Jesus came as one with authority, as one with the power to rule the universe - he came as the Son of God. Exemplified in the healed woman is the model of discipleship, that is, the model of servanthood. As a herald and instrument of God's reign, Jesus heals so that one may better serve others. Servanthood, the characteristic of God's imminent kingdom, will be demonstrated by Jesus throughout his ministry, even to his death on the cross.

            Jesus calls each of us to service today, just as he has called disciples throughout the centuries to follow him. Service is an essential characteristic of God's Kingdom. Jesus tells us that he has come that we may have life and have it more abundantly. He invites each of us to hear this good news, to accept his healing grace, and to follow him in service to others. Remember Jesus' words: "Whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be servant of all".(Mark 10:43-45) "Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me".(Matthew 25:40)

In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen

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