They ran throughout that whole region and carried the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. (Mark 6:55, NIV)
Most reviews of the 2019 professional golf season point to Tiger Woods’ Masters victory as the highlight above all other highlights. Whether or not you are a Woods fan yourself, if you saw this event, you had to be impressed by the celebration of the fans and the celebration among Tiger’s family. Though uncertain they would ever see it again, Augusta’s patrons got what they came to see. Their champion was back on the podium.
As much as we may think these kinds of loud—and sometimes dangerous—celebrations belong only to the milieu of modern sports, where masses gather with the highest of expectations, people have always looked for one great icon. The Hebrews at the foot of Mt. Sinai saw the glory on Moses’ face and knew he was their leader. The later Israelites recognized the kingly mien of Saul, who stood a head taller than the rest. Even in the enclave of the exiled, the young men taken to Babylon gravitated to Daniel, who held fast to the ways of God.
And then there was Jesus.
As he moved through the Galilean countryside, Jesus’ works always seemed to precede him. Though the people’s amazement at him alternated with their fear of all he could do, they kept coming to him, bringing their sick and possessed, desperate for him to heal their loved ones. It reached as far as this: “They begged him to let them touch even the edge of his cloak, and all who touched him were healed” (Mark 6:56).
Though the people’s amazement at Jesus alternated with their fear of all he could do, they kept coming to him.We don’t take the time we should to think about such reports. We read them and move on to the verses that follow, or shut our Bible for the day. If we stopped long enough to give the words a chance to stick with us, we’d still be far less blessed than those who ran to him in those days, but at least we would see him for something more than the “main character” of Scripture.
Jesus of Nazareth, the one who whose blood would one day cover our sins, lived each day of his life in a way that drew crowds. They would sit for hours, ignoring their hunger, listening to the richest words they had ever heard pour from his mouth. They counted on him to confront the hypocritical religious leaders in a way they could not. And they knew that if he touched their sick children or dying mothers, life would stir them again.
The wonders of Jesus leap off the pages of the Gospels, but do we leap into them? When we make time, perhaps. But it’s probably not as much time as we spend watching athletes and others to see what they might do today. There’s no “might” in Jesus. He has done all we need. He can be all we need. If we run to him.
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Jeff Hopper
January 21, 2020
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The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.