Jesus in Galilee
TRANSLATION
(31) Then he went down to Capernaum, a town in Galilee, and, on the Sabbath, he was teaching the people. (32) And they were amazed at his instruction, for he spoke with authority. (33) In the synagogue was a man possessed by a demon, an impure spirit, and he cried out with a loud voice, (34) “Leave us! What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.” (35) And Jesus rebuked him saying, “Be quiet and leave him!” And after the demon had thrown him down in their midst, it left without doing him any harm. (36) And they were all amazed and asked one another, “What words are these, for with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they leave?” (37) And news about him spread throughout the surrounding region.
(38) And he left the synagogue and entered Simon’s home. And Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever, and they begged Jesus to help her. (39) As he stood over her, he rebuked the fever, and it left her. Immediately she got up and began to serve them. (40) At sunset, all those who were afflicted with various diseases were brought to him, and he laid his hands on every one of them and healed them. (41) And demons also were banished from many, crying out (as they left), “You are the Son of God!” And rebuking them, he did not allow them to speak because they knew he was the Messiah.
(42) The next day when Jesus departed for a solitary place, the crowd searched for him. And, when they found him, they tried to keep him from leaving their area. (43) But he told them, “I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to other towns as well. For this purpose was I sent.” (44) And he kept on preaching in the synagogues of Judea.
OBSERVATIONS
Jesus’ remarkable healing ministry was on display in this segment. Several important terms lead us to the thrust of this passage. The synonyms, “teaching/instruction” (vss. 31 & 32), the repetitions of “authority” (vss. 32 & 36), and “preach/preaching” (vss. 43 & 44) described the essence of Jesus’ ministry of proclamation in Galilee while three uses of “synagogue(s)” described where his ministry largely took place (vss. 33, 38, & 44).
Four references to “demons” and “unclean spirits” (vss. 33, 35, 36, & 41) identified the opposition Jesus faced as he ministered. Five times we find “leave/left” (in vss. 35, 36, 39, & 41) demonstrating his authority over demons and disease. Twice Luke used “fever” to describe the illness from which Simon’s mother-in-law was delivered by Jesus’ healing power.
OUTLINE
I. His teaching authority was authenticated… (31-41)
– by his healing the man in the synagogue who was demon possessed. (31-37)
– by his healing Simon’s mother-in-law and others who were sick. (38-41)
II. His prioritizing the ministry of proclamation was established. (42-44)
IDEA STATEMENT
Jesus’ teaching authority was constantly authenticated not only by the impact of his words but also by his healing the sick and demon possessed.
APPLICATION
In focusing on Jesus’ authority both to teach and to heal, we can miss the significance of one important miracle in Capernaum. In the home of the man Jesus was preparing to become the leader of the church he would eventually establish, the Savior healed Simon’s mother-in-law who was afflicted with a dangerously high fever. Never again do we hear about Peter’s family in the New Testament, but it is quite significant that at least some of the men whom Jesus chose to become his closest associates were married with families.
At least three important truths emerge from this brief incident. First, Simon Peter’s family was greatly indebted to Jesus for his healing Peter’s mother-in-law. It helps explain why Peter was devoted to Jesus as his disciple. In addition, we can see that following Jesus always comes with a cost, namely, leaving family, friends, and the familiar surroundings of home. As Jesus would later say, “If anyone comes after me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple” (Lk. 14:26). Finally, this story reminds us that celibacy was never required of those who followed Jesus. If Peter, whom some claim to be the first pope, was a family man, and you cannot have a mother-in-law without having a wife, how much more do those who follow him today have the right to be married as well.