A Hospitable Miracle

A Hospitable Miracle

Luke 4:38-39, NLT

After leaving the synagogue that day, Jesus went to Simon’s home, where he found Simon’s mother-in-law very sick with a high fever. “Please heal her,” everyone begged. 39Standing at her bedside, he rebuked the fever, and it left her. And she got up at once and prepared a meal for them.

Setting the Scene

Several of Jesus’ disciples were businessmen in Capernaum. Four were fishermen; one was a local tax collector. At least Matthew (Matthew 9:10) and Simon Peter owned homes. Mark 1:29 tells us that the brothers Simon and Andrew owned the home together. The reference to Simon’s mother-in-law indicates that he was a married man, and others of Jesus’ disciples probably were too. Paul mentions in 1 Corinthians 9:5 that Peter and “other apostles” traveled with wives.

Going to Simon and Andrew’s home involved certain strict rules of hospitality. Visitors were to be welcomed, protected, fed, and treated with respect. Having a sick mother-in-law in the home made the situation awkward and difficult; Simon was going to have difficulty providing hospitality. Having just seen Jesus heal a man in the synagogue, those with Jesus asked him to heal the ill woman.

Matthew, Mark, and Luke all record what follows, but each supplies a unique detail. Matthew noticed that Jesus touched the woman’s hand (8:15); Mark adds that Jesus helped her stand (1:31); and Luke used the same Greek word “rebuked” to describe how Jesus dealt with the demon in the synagogue and the woman’s fever at Simon’s house. While some might conclude that Jesus was dealing with demonic forces in both cases, we need to remember that Jesus also “rebuked” the wind while he stood in a storm-tossed boat on Galilee (Luke 8:24). The one who spoke the world into existence has authority to correct the natural world. But he also treated Simon’s mother-in-law with a compassionate touch.

The woman was healed immediately. Her raging fever left her, and she was refreshed enough to help entertain Simon’s guests. Jesus had delivered a housewarming gift none of them would ever forget.

Getting Personal

What rules of hospitality do you practice in your home?

How have you experienced Jesus’ healing touch?

In Jesus’ day, the rules of hospitality required people to relate to each other in ways we forego by our tendency toward privacy and separate lives. It isn’t easy to make others feel at home, but the practice of hospitality often opens doors for God to work in special ways.

Talking to God

Commit your home, its uses, and your family who live there to the Lord today. Put all you have at God’s disposal for his purposes and his glory.