Marcos 6

Marcos 6

Stedman - This is a beautiful scene of the ministry of Jesus. As you can see, the story of the woman with the issue of blood who was healed by touching the hem of Jesus' garment as he was on his way to the house of Jairus has spread now throughout all the regions around Galilee. So wherever Jesus appears, instantly the people begin to bring out the sick and the diseased and the demon possessed, that they might touch even the fringe of his garment. And, as Mark tells us, "...as many as touched it were made well." This is a wonderful fulfillment of that beautifully poetic prediction, one of the most majestic passages of Isaiah the prophet, in Isaiah 35: "Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then shall the lame man leap like a hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing for joy." (Isaiah 35:5-6RSV+) We can see this in Mark's beautifully descriptive account, as our Lord fulfilled those other words of Isaiah, which Matthew quotes: "He took our infirmities and bore our diseases," (Matthew 8:17RSV). And as many as touched it were being cured - As many as indicates there was no limit to the numbers that Jesus could heal. Cured is the verb sozo often used of spiritual salvation, but clearly in this context it speaks of physical cure and not spiritual cure. This reminds us of the woman with 12 years of hemorrhage in Mark 5 who "thought, “If I just touch His garments, I will get well.” (Mark 5:28+) After confronting her Jesus declared "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace and be healed of your affliction.” (Mk. 5:34+) Touched (681)(hapto/haptomai) means to grasp, to lay hold of with the basic meaning of touching for the purpose of manipulating. Hapto conveys the sense handling of an object as to exert a modifying influence upon it or upon oneself. The majority of the 39 uses are in the Gospels and are associated with Jesus touching someone (or someone touching Him) usually with a beneficial effect. All uses in Mark - Mk. 1:41; Mk. 3:10; Mk. 5:27; Mk. 5:28; Mk. 5:30; Mk. 5:31; Mk. 6:56; Mk. 7:33; Mk. 8:22; Mk. 10:13; Were cured (4982)(sozo) in this context means to free from disease. All uses in Mark -Mk. 3:4; Mk. 5:23; Mk. 5:28; Mk. 5:34; Mk. 6:56; Mk. 8:35; Mk. 10:26; Mk. 10:52; Mk. 13:13; Mk. 13:20; Mk. 15:30; Mk. 15:31; Mk. 16:16 CHRIST’S JOURNEYS OF MERCY Mark 6:56 Of Jesus, it is emphatically said that He went about doing good; the great end of His mission into our world was to banish sin and misery, and to introduce grace and holiness. Sin had converted our world into a desert, a howling wilderness; He came to make it bud and blossom as the rose. What a contrast between the first Adam and the second; the first brought a train of evils on body, soul, and estate; the latter, a train of blessings. I. Observe the Characters Referred to. “The sick.” Now, sickness is the result of sin, the precursor of death; but there is soul-sickness, blindness of mind, deafness of soul, moral impotency, leprosy of pollution. Soul-sickness is the worst disease by far; it weakens, deforms, and, if not healed, destroys the soul. II. The Favorable Circumstances in Which Sick Were Placed. Jesus visited their cities, etc. These visits, A. Were designed, not accidental. Christ had a work to do; He came to work the work of His Father; He went forth purposely, etc. B. They were gracious. He went not to see the works of nature or the displays of art; He went to bless the wretched sons and daughters of man: He went not to inspect the records of their guilt; He went not as a destroying angel, but as the Angel of God’s presence, the Messenger of mercy, to pity, to pardon, to love; good Shepherd. “The Son of man came to seek and to save,” etc. C. His visits were impartial. Cities, villages, country, rich and poor, Pharisees and publicans; only one qualification necessary, i.e., misery. III. Observe the Course Adopted. A. They brought their sick into Christ’s way. “Streets,” etc.; means of grace are the ways where Christ passes. B. They supplicated His healing power. “Might touch,” etc. What earnestness and faith! IV. The Results That Followed. Connection between the sick and Christ produced a cure. Application What a glorious Redeemer! What provision for sin-sick souls! Let us feel for those around us, and labor to bring them to Jesus.JABEZ BURNS