Mark 3:7-12

Posted by DJL on May 14, 2012 in Daily Bread | 0 comments

Jesus departed with his disciples to the lake, and a great multitude from Galilee followed him; hearing all that he was doing, they came to him in great numbers from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, beyond the Jordan, and the region around Tyre and Sidon. He told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, so that they would not crush him; for he had cured many, so that all who had diseases pressed upon him to touch him. Whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and shouted, ‘You are the Son of God!’ But he sternly ordered them not to make him known.

This is something of a transition scene in Mark, moving from Jesus’ local healings and controversies to the national scene. For, indeed, the important detail in this brief scene is the sheer scope of Jesus’ growing influence and fame. The places Mark says people came from to hear Jesus mark out a massive territory in first-century Palestine, as the two maps below – of north and south Palestine, indicate.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

People, in other words, are coming from all over to meet Jesus.

And what happens when they come? Exactly what happened on the local scene: Jesus heals, proclaims, casts out demons, and orders the demons to keep their mouths shut. So what’s going on? Why is Mark telling his story of Jesus in this way?

I think Mark wants his readers – then and now – to notice that the whole people of Palestine recognize him as someone very special. Jesus has become, in today’s terms, a rock star and even has to take precautions to avoid being crushed by his fans. Mark wants us to notice that Jesus’ adversaries – the demons – recognize who he is. And Mark wants to point out that Jesus is on not a local, but global mission to oppose the powers of evil.

So when both commoner and adversary recognize Jesus for who and what he is, the only question is whether those appointed as religious elders and leaders will as well? Or maybe the question Mark poses is whether we will?

Prayer: Dear God, let us hear Mark’s story of Jesus and recognize him as the One who has come to save all the world, including us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Note: The post image and both maps are from Enter the Bible, an interactive Bible reference from Luther Seminary.