Mark 6:53 – 56

⁵³ When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret and anchored there. ⁵⁴ As soon as they got out of the boat, people recognized Jesus. ⁵⁵ They ran throughout that whole region and carried the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. ⁵⁶ And wherever he went—into villages, towns or countryside—they placed the sick in the marketplaces. They begged him to let them touch even the edge of his cloak, and all who touched it were healed.

I love that people catch sight of Jesus and their first reaction is like “Quick, go get Aunt Marge with pneumonia and little Bobby with the broken leg: Jesus the Healer is in town!” If they’d had social media in those days, I imagine twitter, tiktok and instagram would have “blown up” with the news of where Jesus was and people trying to take selfies with his disciples.  
 
Here’s what I find funny about celebrity though- you tend to get famous for one thing. Like Taylor Swift and her catchy pop anthem “Shake it Off”, or Bernie Sanders and those brown mittens, we often just see one dimension about famous figures, and miss other important factors. Sure, Jesus could heal – proof we was a powerful healer – but that was never the main game when you read all of Mark. When Jesus dies on the cross, there were still sick and injured people in the world. Jesus didn’t come to fix everyone here and now, but to offer you and me something even more precious- entry into God’s eternal kingdom, with eternal life to go with it! His ability to heal the sick is just one thing that points to something even greater: Jesus is God’s Son, sent to offer a way to get to God and welcome us into his family. 

 Danae Woodward – Creek Road