Emmanuel
Friends of Jesus — Shown in His Actions
In his first miracle, Jesus drives an unclean demon out of a man (Lk
4:33-35). “And in the synagogue there was a man who had the spirit of
an unclean demon; and he cried out with a loud voice, ‘Ah! What have
you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I
know who you are, the Holy One of God.’ But Jesus rebuked him.”
Immediately after that, he reaches out to the sick, in this case Peter’s
mother-in-law who is ill with high fever. He cures her (4:38). But this
first day of ministry is not over. He continues his association with the
sick and needy as we read: “Now when the sun was setting, all those
who had any that were sick with various diseases brought them to
him, and he laid his hands on every one of them and healed them.
And demons also came out of many, crying, ‘You are the Son of God!’
But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak because
they knew that he was the Christ” (4:40-41).
To carry on his work, Jesus gathers followers. The first disciples he
chose were not the well-educated or the upper-class, but ordinary,
hardworking fishermen (5:2). Almost in passing, Luke then recounts
how Jesus stretched out his hand and touched and cured a man
“covered with leprosy” (5:13). In the same chapter, he heals the
paralytic who is brought to him through the roof. Jesus not only heals;
he forgives sins (5:17-26).
In addition to the simple fishermen, Jesus calls a more powerful and
influential person, Levi, a tax collector, to discipleship. Because of his
profession, he was not liked and was an outsider, someone most Jews
would never associate closely with (5:27-29). Indeed, the religious
leaders, the Pharisees and their scribes, complained that Jesus was not
only associating with, but “eating and drinking with tax collectors and
sinners” (5: 30). Consistent with his words and actions, Jesus justifies
this, explaining that he came precisely “to call not the righteous but
sinners” (5:32). There follows the story of the man with a withered right
hand (6:6), a miracle performed on the Sabbath, where mercy wins
out over a narrow legalism. As Jesus continues his mission, the crowds
grow in size. In particular, those in need of healing and troubled with
unclean spirits were trying to touch him, “for power came out of him
and healed all of them” (6:17-19).
In the following chapter, Jesus reaches out and shows compassion
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