After touching the untouchable, Matthew narrated that Jesus went to the house of Peter and healed his mother in law.
Matthew 8:14–15 presents the scene in which Jesus heals Peter’s mother in law, and when Mark 1:29–31 and Luke 4:38–39 are examined together, we can know the situation in more detail. Luke describes this fever as “a high fever" and records that Jesus “rebuked the fever.” When Jesus laid His hand on her and rebuked the sickness, the fever immediately left her, and the woman at once rose and served Jesus. This event is not merely a record of healing but a good example showing how human beings ought to respond when grace comes.
Wherever Jesus came, there always appeared the work of darkness retreating and life being restored. Peter’s house, which had been a place pressed down by sickness, was transformed into a place of grace the moment Jesus entered. Wherever Jesus went, demons departed, the sick were healed, and the oppressed received freedom. In the same way today, wherever the gospel of Jesus Christ enters, the work of transformation takes place.
Another element that draws attention in this event is the role of intercessory prayer. Mark and Luke record that people pleaded with Jesus on behalf of Peter’s mother in law. The woman herself was in no condition to come to Jesus, but the petitions of others led her before the grace of Jesus. Scripture repeatedly emphasizes the importance of intercessory prayer. The prayers of parents or a spouse, and the prayers of the church, are a holy ministry that bears before God the spiritual weight the person cannot carry. When Moses prayed for Israel, God withdrew His anger (Exod. 32:11–14); when Samuel prayed for the people, God delivered them from the hand of the Philistines (1 Sam. 7:9–10); and Jesus even now is interceding for us at the right hand of God (Rom. 8:34). Behind every spiritual revival in church history, there were always the tears and petitions of unnamed saints who prayed, and this fact clearly shows how important the ministry of intercessory prayer is.
The fact that Peter’s mother in law, after being healed, immediately served Jesus shows what the proper response to grace is. The one who truly realizes the Lord’s grace does not remain merely in the emotion of gratitude but surely bears the fruit of devotion that appears in life. Paul confesses, “By the grace of God I am what I am… I worked harder than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me” (1 Cor. 15:10). Gratitude for grace does not remain as a feeling of the heart but leads to voluntary devotion and to a life that offers oneself to God.
For the AI-generated song version of this article, check From the Bed to the Table.
