In the Gospel of Mark, Jesus’ first acts of ministry were to proclaim the presence of the Kingdom of God and to heal the afflicted. Jesus is not the first person in the scriptures to heal people, nor was he the last. Divine healing was a sign of God’s presence and authority operating through an individual to help others. Prophets were recognized because they could heal.

Jesus doesn’t heal so we will notice him, but so that we might see God’s authority and power over our world. The purpose of a healing is for us to give glory to God for God’s intervention. God’s healing is not to benefit, if received or punish if not received, the individual. It is always about bringing glory to God and our realization of God’s authority and power.

Let’s read the Gospel for this week – Mark 1:21-28.

²¹ They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. ²² The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law. ²³ Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an impure spirit cried out, ²⁴ “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!”

²⁵ “Be quiet!” said Jesus sternly. “Come out of him!” ²⁶ The impure spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek.

²⁷ The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, “What is this? A new teaching—and with authority! He even gives orders to impure spirits and they obey him.” ²⁸ News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee.

While the events of this scripture are set in the healing of a man possessed by an impure spirit the issue of concern is AUTHORITY. The people, and us the reader see a rabbi from Nazareth named Jesus. We must recognize that he is truly Jesus Christ the Son of God and does have full and complete authority over all.

The people recognize that Jesus taught as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law. This is why the Impure Spirits identify Jesus to the people as – “the Holy One of God!” and Jesus sternly tells them to “Be quiet!”

While Jesus has all authority, he does not have the power to manipulate or violate our free will. The “teachers of the law” have civil power and legal authority. They could imprison or kill Jesus and impede his proclamation of the Good News of God as they had already done to John the Baptist. Remember, the goal was not to heal as many people as possible and fix us. The mission of Jesus was to proclaim that the presence of the Kingdom of God was near and call us to repent and follow him and experience total healing. We maintain the power to decide.

“The creature has nothing else in its power but the free use of its will, and its free will hath no other power but that of concurring with, or resisting, the working of God in nature.”

-From A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life by William Law – from A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and Other Servants by Rueben Job and Norman Shawchuck, 2003, The Upper Room. Pg.72.

Jesus’ proclamation and acts of healing are directed to our free will, that we will chose to follow him. This is the critical move in our lives to recognize, repent, and follow Jesus that enables us to be disciples. It is not magic. It is not a birthright. It is not a piece of paper or ritual act.

Our salvation – righteousness – is grounded in our giving permission for the will of God, expressed in Jesus to become our will. We realize the presence of the Kingdom of God and seek to live as devoted participants in that kingdom. We abandon the kingdom of me and enter the Kingdom of God.

This is an amazing teaching, a new, authoritative teaching, and one that people desperately want and need to hear. Claim the Good News of Jesus Christ as your Good News and know that Jesus does have all authority to heal. Healing is far more than ending illness. It is the complete recentering of your life after the will of Jesus. Healing is “transformational” and involves our whole being, not just our health and is a gift from God. Blessings, Pastor Tom

UPGRADE THE MASK. With the new variants of Covid 19 being discovered it seems our best action is to UPGRADE OUR MASKING until the vaccination rates increase greatly over the next year. Face Shields, bandanas, and neck gators offer LEVEL ONE protection. Most home-made face coverings with two layers of cloth offer LEVEL TWO protection. Surgical Masks with THREE Layers offer LEVEL THREE protection. Surgical Masks with FOUR Layers and K-94 formed masks offer LEVEL FOUR protection. N-95 and KN-95 masks offer five levels of protection when they are well fitted and offer LEVEL FIVE protection.

Many of us have been practicing levels one, two, and three protection thus far. Because of the new more infectious variants of Covid 19 we need to move to level four and five protections. It is not sufficient to simply try to avoid infecting others, we must now seek to protect ourselves from becoming infected as well. If you can purchase K 94 or KN 95 masks, please wear them well. If you cannot, you can combine protective levels to “add up” to levels four and five. To double mask a Level Three surgical mask under a Level Two cloth mask provides nearly the same protection as a LEVEL FIVE, N-95 mask. Please mask, please wash your hands well and observe social distancing protocols. We are responsible for the welfare of each other. YES, we are our brother and sister’s keeper. Let us love one another as Jesus has loved us and be willing to sacrifice and share this responsibility and mask up.

The current Covid 19 infection information is good. In Lee County the infection rate is down to 8.28% and in the state is 8.25%. This is a major decrease and welcome news. Infections continue and in the three zip codes around the church the numbers are; 33903 – 1125 infections + 37; 33909 – 2233 infections + 84 and in 33917 – 1367 infections + 83. 43 people in Lee County have died since last week. We currently know of two Covid 19 infected church members, though neither was contagious or identified at the time they were at church. If you feel ill, please isolate yourself from others and seek medical attention. We will get through this difficult time together. Please take responsibility for yourself and those around you.

We are coming to the close of our building campaign, GROWING OUR FUTURE. We hope to receive all pledges and gifts by Feb 15 so we can move forward with our plan of converting the Construction Loan into a mortgage. The larger the “down payment” the smaller the mortgage amount will be. Please make every effort to complete your pledge giving and if possible, to give an additional gift in support of our church. We have raised enough to meet our first goal, but there are still outstanding pledges that could help us get to a more comfortable mortgage amount. We greatly appreciate your support and love for Good Shepherd. If you have a question about your pledge or giving please contact the church office.

Every Monday morning a small group of 4 ladies meet in the conference room of the Sanctuary Building to sew quilts and masks. A group has been sewing for over 12 years in this way and we have provided 1000’s of quilts to children and families over the years. If you are interested in joining or supporting this ministry, please contact the church office.

Saturday In Person Worship - Vespers on the PATIO at 4:45 PM every Saturday. If the temperature is below 70 or rainy, we will meet in the Sanctuary. Please register to attend. Bring you own chair to the patio or use one of the metal chairs from the church. We have space in this worship service.

Sunday In Person Worship - Sunday at 10AM. Please register to attend as we have limited seating. This past Sunday we were full and it was a blessing. Please wear your mask and be prepared to observe social distancing and no singing.

We currently have 63 YouTube Subscribers... please go to YouTube and like and subscribe search for: Good Shepherd UMC NFM - we are needing over 100 subscribers . Click below and please like and subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch our weekend services.

Who will win the Super Bowl? We don't know, but we do know about the Souper Bowl of Caring. Our collection will be Feb 6th & Feb 7th. Since 1990, it has collected over $163 million, with 100% providing hunger relief in local communities. Over 300,000 groups, including churches, schools, businesses, organizations and individuals contribute. More than 12,000 charities have benefitted from this campaign over the years. Our collection, being led by our United Methodist Women's group, will again be given to Harry Chapin Food Bank in Ft. Myers. The need is far greater this year and our usual means of collecting at church is not possible under the circumstances, so please be generous again. I will have labeled soup pots by the doors on that weekend for you to place your donations in, for those at church. You can als put your donation in the offering plate. If you do that or mail your donation to the church, please mark it for Souper Bowl of Caring. If giving a check, please make it out to Good Shepherd UMW. Thanking you in advance, for helping the needy in our area.

Wednesdays @ 7 PM by ZOOM. Please contact the Church Office to register and receive the ZOOM link to join. We will be using, N.T. Wright’s - For Everyone Bible Study Guides, “Gospel of MARK” - 20 studies for Individuals and Groups. Intervarsity Press 2009, purchase book from Amazon or Cokesbury. $9.99.

Due to covid-19 numbers rising…. All meetings will be held by ZOOM. All meeting leaders contact Pastor OR church office for those who need a zoom link to attend your meeting. A total of 3 people can be present on site… the host and 2 people who cannot attend by Zoom. We are asking EVERYONE to wear a MASK when entering buildings and attending meetings.