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Beauty In The Details

Today’s Gospel reading is one that we are often tempted to quickly brush over. Nothing too exciting happens and there are no great words of wisdom spoken by Jesus. However, below the surface lies a Gospel full of beautiful details and great wisdom for us. We just need to look deeper to see those. Let me take a moment to unpack today’s Gospel.

Luke 4:38-44

And he arose and left the synagogue, and entered Simon’s house. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was ill with a high fever, and they besought him for her. And he stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her; and immediately she rose and served them. Now when the sun was setting, all those who had any that were sick with various diseases brought them to him; and he laid his hands on every one of them and healed them. And demons also came out of many, crying, “You are the Son of God!” But he rebuked them, and would not allow them to speak, because they knew that he was the Christ.

And when it was day he departed and went into a lonely place. And the people sought him and came to him, and would have kept him from leaving them; but he said to them, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other cities also; for I was sent for this purpose.” And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea.

Simon’s Mother

Let’s start with the healing of Simon’s mother. First to note is that the Greek word for she arose is “anistēmie”. That is the same word used in the start of the passage describing Jesus rising in the synagogue. It is also the same word used later in the Gospel to describe Jesus’s resurrection from the dead. So why does this matter? It is important for us to see the connection that Luke is making between the resurrection of Jesus and our own rebirth in Christ. The resurrection of Christ is the focal point upon which all of history rests and is to be understood. It is the resurrection of Jesus that enables his followers to experience new life: both on earth as one begins to follow Christ as well as the resurrection of the body that awaits those who enter into their eternal rest with him. Simon’s mother experienced this new life through Jesus’s healing of her.

Also, take notice of the response of Simon’s mother. She got up and served. In doing that, she was imitating Christ who came not to be served but to serve. This is the response that our faith in Jesus must illicit. This new life that we receive for him must be a life of service to our fellow man. To follow Christ is to follow him in service. We cannot claim to have faith in Christ but fail to serve.

The Rebuking Of The Spirits

The rebuking of the spirits is one of those curious details we see in this passage. Why would Jesus not want his identify revealed? The answer to that question lies in the expectations many of the Jewish people had regarding the Messiah. There was an expectation among many that the Messiah would be a great military leader who would drive out the Romans. The notion of the Messiah as the Suffering Servant of Isaiah was far from their mind. There was concern on the part of Jesus that if word spread that the Messiah was here before he could teach the people what the true mission of the Messiah was, the revolutionaries awaiting a military Messiah would rise up causing much pain and bloodshed. So he kept his identity close so that he could lead the people to the true understanding of who he is.

This is often the path of discipleship for the believer today. Jesus reveals himself to us a little at a time as our hearts and minds become more and more open to him. If we were to see the entire truth all at once it could be too much to handle: especially if our life has been one of great sine until that moment. Patience and perseverance are key characteristics of a disciple.

Jesus Retreats

Lastly, notice how Jesus deserts to a lonely place. This is Luke’s way of saying that Jesus went off to pray (We see this explicitly stated in Mark’s Gospel account of this event, “he rose and went out to a lonely place, and there he prayed”). Observe how Jesus had to pray first, before he could go on mission. Thus must it be with us as well. We are all called to go on mission and just like Jesus, our ability to carry out that mission is intimately tied to our connectedness with the Father. That connectedness only comes about in prayer. There is no other way. It is impossible to skip that part of the process and expect that our mission will bear much fruit. It is through prayers that our will becomes attuned to the will of the Father and we are at our best when his will is done and not ours.

Find your quiet place every day and retreat to spend time with the Father. Even if all you can find is 5 minutes, spend those 5 minutes alone with him and see how your life begins to change.

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