Mark 1:29 (NKJV) — 29Now as soon as they had come out of the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.
And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. Amen. (John 21:25). Sometimes we are too nearsighted when reading the scriptures, and miss some of the most blessed expressions of love and unity. Our passage today is one such place. After the wonderful and miraculous events in the Capernaum synagogue, Jesus and His new disciples spend time together in Simon and Andrew's home. I can't stress enough the importance of this act which underscores our Lord's ministry. I also cannot adequately convey the feeling of such a thing as this homey type of fellowship, which changes the way we view our world and each other in the faith.
Up until the earthquake that shook the city of Porte-Au-Prince Haiti in 2010 that killed around two hundred thousand people, I had made no less than a dozen trips to the country of Haiti doing missions work. What drew me to that third world country was not only their poverty and need of compassion, but their need of Jesus! What I found there was a people receptive to the gospel as well as many churches and Christians in need of help and love. The singleness of every one of those trips, which focused on the mission and void of the daily distractions of media and such, which steals away our hearts and time, had such a profound effect on me that every time I came back to the states, I found apathy in our church. There was something about the daily work of the gospel with no other distractions, praying desperately when we were in danger, seeing God's hand of power and the sweet fellowship of sharing meals and evenings together with team mates and Haitian brothers and sisters, that melded our hearts and lives together. I must also confess that I have never experienced that kind of fellowship here in America, except when our missions teams would spend months together in preparation for our trip. Meeting together every Sunday night to pray for our trip and to rehearse our parts for the dramas we would use to minister, excursions to pack food that we would bring to the orphanages, working together on our fund raising, and dinners together to tell stories of past trips. That kind of fellowship transcends our lives from complacency to real mission. But, lest you think you need to go on a mission trip to a third world country to experience this kind of transforming power, we can and must do mission together right now right here. We have everything we need to make it happen, and we can start by gathering in homes around meals and the word of God.