Day 3 | 40 Days Through Mark

Day 3 | March 4 | Mark 1:40-2:12
By: Mike Gough

In today’s passage, we observe a significant trait of Jesus: he stops when he senses a person in need. Jesus knows those he encounters that need his special touch.

Throughout Mark, Jesus is followed by large crowds. He preaches in their synagogues, on hillsides, and even feeds thousands of people. Almost every minute of the day, Jesus is surrounded by crowds with great needs. In the midst of the busyness, Mark shows us a pattern. That Jesus intentionally stops for individuals in need.

Mark 1:40-45 tells the story of a person who calls out to Jesus. Not just any person, but a leper. There was no worse disease than leprosy.
Incurable. Humiliating. Excruciatingly painful.

When a person developed leprosy, the priest led that person into the local synagogue and pronounced the burial rites over them. The leper would never be inside a building again. They now had to live alone outside of town. The leper was considered unclean and had to shout “Unclean!” whenever they were near others. No one would touch the leper due to fear of contracting the disease. The leper was, for all intents and purposes, considered dead.  
Jesus heard the leper call. The leper believed that Jesus could heal him. Moved with compassion, Jesus bent down and physically touched the leper, healing him. Think about this - no one had touched the leper in years!

Afterward, Jesus asked the former leper not to tell anyone. But the former leper couldn’t help himself. He told everyone he saw that he was now clean! He no longer had to shout, “Unclean!” Instead, he could now shout that he was clean.

Mark 2:1-12 tells the story of a group of people who brought their paralytic friend to Jesus. They broke through the roof of the house and laid the paralyzed man in front of Jesus. Jesus stopped preaching in order to heal this man.

Over and over again, we read that Jesus stopped what he was doing for the sake of others. Jesus made space for individuals to come to him with their needs.

Know this, Jesus will stop for you as well! You may feel unclean because of sin, or you may be burdened by life’s difficulties. The Good News is that Jesus is willing to stop, meet you at your point of need, touch you, and cleanse you.
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7 Comments


Amy Wetmore - March 3rd, 2022 at 8:46pm

So good, Mike! Thanks!

Ron spruill - March 4th, 2022 at 6:22am

Thank you Micheal! You have spoken truth! God blessings on you today!

Rob - March 4th, 2022 at 7:14am

Jesus made time to stop, regularly to be interrupted. Think I found my challenge for the forty days!

Tammy Madden - March 4th, 2022 at 1:48pm

Thank you for the reminder that our daily agenda should always yield to God’s agenda.

John Pickens - March 5th, 2022 at 7:14am

A great truth about Jesus! And an encouragement to each of us to model that in our lives.

Christi Ledo - March 6th, 2022 at 10:30am

What a great reminder to be aware of God’s hand at work in the “interruptions” . God wastes nothing!

Joanna Block - March 7th, 2022 at 10:42pm

It's a good reminder, too, that the paralyzed man would never have made it to Jesus if it was not for his friends and their faith. I have always loved this story!

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