Everyone was looking for the Lord. He had been healing many people of various diseases and of demon possession. The time had come for Him to be about prayer, speaking with His Father in heaven. He was in a solitary place, no doubt thanking His Father for sending Him down from heaven to be born of a virgin mother, to appear in human flesh, and to preach to His people, to preach to them a message of repentance, that His hearers would repent so that they would receive the full forgiveness of sins He would ultimately win for them. What He sought to give them and what they wanted, though, were rarely the same. He wanted to bring them the message of repentance for the forgiveness of sins—He wanted to preach the Gospel, which would be fulfilled in Him. They, however, wanted little more than healing, for the people saw Him as little more than a miracle worker. They saw Him as one who could heal their bodies but not as One who could heal their souls. They saw Him for what they wanted to see, not for what He really came to do.

This did not deter the Lord from His appointed rounds. Yet He still took the time to tend to those who came to Him, seeking His healing of their various illnesses and His casting out demons, who possessed many an individual. And when He cast them out, our Lord command the demons to not speak, lest they speak His Name, for the demons knew Him. Otherwise, they would speak the Name of Jesus—and not in a form of praise. The Lord forbids the speaking of His Name that does not give God all praise and glory; He commands that we “call upon [His Name] in every trouble, pray, praise, and give thanks.” This was the point of His preaching, that all who heard Him would believe in Him and praise His holy Name, receiving eternal life in this same Name. Yet He had time to tend to those who needed His healing touch, whether it would be Peter’s mother-in-law or the whole city of Capernaum. What we have in our text is not an example of the faith of the people, for they saw Him as little more than a faith healer. What we do have before us this Lord’s Day is the God of grace and love. He has come to His people with good news, the message He came to preach, going on to the synagogues of Galilee with the gospel. He preached to people of the whole region that salvation was of the Jews, for He has come, born of Mary, to be the Savior of the world and the Fulfillment of the Scriptures.