The Best House-visitation

Delivered on Lord's-Day Morning, May 23rd, 1875, by

C.H. SPURGEON,

At the [1]Metropolitan Tabernacle, Newington

"And forthwith, when they were come out of the synagogue, they entered
into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. But Simon's
wife's mother lay sick of a fever, and anon they tell him of her. And
he came and took her by the hand, and lifted her up; and immediately
the fever left her, and she ministered unto them. And at even, when the
sun did set, they brought unto him all that were diseased, and them
that were possessed with devils. And all the city was gathered together
at the door." Mark 1:29-33.

WE SEE BEFORE US small beginnings and grand endings. One man is called
by the voice of Jesus, and then another; the house wherein they dwell
is consecrated by the Lord's presence, and by-and-by the whole city is
stirred from end to end with the name and fame of the Great Teacher. We
are often wishing that God would do some great thing in the world, and
we look abroad for instruments which we think would be peculiarly fit,
and think of places where the work might suitably begin: it might be
quite as well if we asked the Lord to make use of us, and if we were
believingly to hope that even our feeble instrumentality might produce
great results by his power, and that our abode might become the central
point from which streams of blessing should flow forth to refresh the
neighborhood.

Peter's house was by no means the most notable building in the town of
Capernaum. It was probably not the poorest dwelling in the place, for
Peter had a boat of his own, or perhaps a half share in a boat with his
brother Andrew, or possibly he and Andrew and James and John were
proprietors of some two or three fishing boats, for they were partners,
and they appear to have employed hired servants. (Mark 1:20.) Still
Peter was not rich nor famous, he was neither a ruler of the synagogue,
nor an eminent scribe, and his house was not at all remarkable among
the habitations which made up the little fishing suburb down by the
sea-shore. Yet to this house did Jesus go. He had foreknown and chosen
it of old, and had resolved to make it renowned by his presence and
miraculous power. There hung the fisherman's nets outside the door—the
sole escutcheon and hatchment of one who was ordained to sit upon a
throne and judge with his fellow apostles the twelve tribes of Israel.
Beneath that lowly roof Immanuel deigned to unveil himself: God-with-us
showed himself. God with Simon. Little did Peter know hone divine a
blessing entered his house when Jews crossed the threshold, nor how
vast a river of mercy would stream forth from his door adown the
streets of Capernaum. Now, dear friend, it may be that your dwelling,
though very dear to you, is not very much thought of by anybody else;
no poet or historian has ever written its annals, nor artist engraved
its image. Perhaps it is not the very poorest cot in the place in which
you live; still it is obscure enough, and no one as he rides along
asks, "Who dwells there?" or, "What remarkable house is that?" Yet is
there no reason why the Lord should not visit you and make your house
like that of Obed-edom, in which the ark abode, or like that of
Zaccheus to which salvation came. Our Lord can make your dwelling the
center of mercy for the whole region, a little sun scattering light in
all directions, a spiritual dispensary distributing health to the
multitudes around. There is no reason except in yourself why the Lord
should not make your residence in a city a greater blessing to it than
the cathedral and all its clergy. Jesus cares not for fine buildings
and carved stones; he will not disdain to come beneath your cottage
roof, and cording there he will bring a treasury of blessings with him,
which shall enrich your house, and shall ensure the richest of boons to
your neighbors. Why should it not be? Have you faith to pray this
moment that it may be so? How much do I wish you would! More good by
far will be done by a silent prayer now offered by yourself to that
effect than by anything which can be spoken by me. If every Christian
here will now put up the supplication, "Lord, dwell where I dwell, and
in so doing make my house a blessing to the neighborhood," marvellous
results must follow.

I am going to speak of three things this morning. The first is, How
grace came to Peter's house; secondly, What grace did when it got
there; and thirdly, How grace flowed forth from Peter's house.

I. HOW GRACE CAME TO PETER'S HOUSE. The first link in the chain of
causes was that a relative was converted. Andrew had heard John the
Baptist preach, and had been impressed. The text which was blessed to
him was probably, "Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of
the world." Andrew followed Jesus, and having become a disciple, he
desired to lead others to be disciples too. He began, as we all ought
to begin, with those nearest to him by ties of relationship; "He first
findeth his own brother Simon." Beloved friend, if you are yourself
saved, you should cast about you and inquire, "To what house may I
become a messenger of salvation?" Perhaps you have no family of your
own; I do not know whether Andrew had: he seems at to time of this
narrative to have lived in a part of the same house as Peter: possibly
they had each of them a house at Bethesda, which was their own city,
but they lived together when they went on business to Capernaum.
Perhaps Andrew had no wife, and no children; I cannot tell. If it were
so? I feel sure that he said to himself, "I must seek the good of my
brother and his family." I believe, if we are really lively and
thoughtful Christians, our conversion is an omen for good to all our
kinsfolk. We shall not idly say, "I ought to have looked after my own
children and household, if I had owned any, and having none I am
excused"; but we shall consider ourselves to be debtors to those who
are kindred householders. I hope that some Andrew is here who, being
himself enlisted for Jesus, will be the means of conquering for Jesus a
brother and a brother's household. If there be no Andrew, I hope some
of the Maries and Marthas will be fired with zeal to make up for the
deficiency of the men, and will bring brother Lazarus to the Lord.
Uncles and aunts should feel an interest in the spiritual condition of
nephews and nieces; cousins should be concerned for cousins, and all
ties of blood should be consecrated by being used for purposes of
grace. Moses, when he led the people out of Egypt, would not leave a
hoof behind, nor ought we to be content to leave one kinsman a slave to
sin. Abraham, in his old age, took up sword and buckler for his nephew
Lot, and aged believers should look about them and seek the good of the
most distant members of their families; if it were always so the power
of the gospel would be felt far and wide. The household of which Peter
was master might never have known the gospel if a relative had not been
converted.

This first link of grace drew on another of much greater importance,
namely, that the head of the family became a convert. Andrew sought out
his brother and spoke to him of having found the Messias: then he
brought him to Jesus, and our Lord at once accepted the new recruit,
and gave him a new name. Peter believed and became a follower of
Christ, and so the head of the house was on the right side. Heads of
families, what responsibilities rest upon us! We cannot shake them off,
let us do what we may! God has given us little kingdoms in which our
authority and influence will tell for the better or the worse to all
eternity. There is not a child or a servant in our house but what will
be impressed for good or evil by what we do. True, we may have no wish
to influence them, and we may endeavor to ignore our responsibility,
but it cannot be done; parental influence is a throne which no man can
abdicate. The members of our family come under our shadow, and we
either drip poison upon them like a deadly upas, or else beneath our
shade they breathe an atmosphere perfumed with our piety. The little
boats are fastened to our larger vessel and are drawn along in our
wake. O fathers and mothers, the ruin of your children or their
salvation will, under God, very much depend upon you. The gracious
Spirit may use you for their conversion, or Satan may employ you as the
instruments of their destruction. Which is it like to be? I charge you,
consider. It is a notable event in family history when the grace of God
takes up its headquarters in the heart of the husband and the father:
that household's story will henceforth be written by another pen. Let
those of us who are the Lord's gratefully acknowledge his mercy to us
personally, and then let us return to bless our household. If the
clouds be full of rain they empty themselves upon the earth; let us
pray to be as clouds of grace to our families. Whether we have only an
Isaac and an Ishmael like Abraham, or twelve children like Jacob, let
us pray for each and all that they may live before the Lord, and that
we and all that belong to us may be bound up in the bundle of life.

Note, further, that the third step in the coming of grace to Peter's
house was, that after the conversion of the brother and Peter, there
were certain others converted who were partners and companions with the
two brothers. It is a great help to a man to find godly work-fellows.
If he must needs go a-fishing like Peter, it is a grand thing to have a
James and a John as one's partners in the business. How helpful it is
to piety when Christian men associate from day to day with their fellow
Christians, and speak often one to another concerning the best things.
Firebrands placed closely together will burn all the more freely, coals
laid in a heap will glow and blaze, and so hearts touching hearts in
divine things cause an inward burning and a sacred fervor seldom
reached by those who walk alone. Many Christians are called to struggle
hard for spiritual existence through having to work with unbelievers;
they are not only sneered at and persecuted, but all sorts of doubts
and blasphemies are suggested, and these materially hinder their growth
in the heavenly life. When they are brought into this trial in the
course of providence they have need of great grace to remain firm under
it. Beloved brother, if in your daily business you meet with none to
help but many to hinder, you must live all the nearer to God, for you
require a double measure of grace; but if in the providence of God you
happen to be placed where there are helpful Christian companions, do
not readily change that position, even though your income would be
doubled thereby. I would sooner work with James and John for twenty
shillings a week than with swearers and drunkards for sixty. You who
reside with really consistent Christians are much favored, and ought to
become eminent Christians. You are like flowers in a conservatory, and
you ought to bloom to perfection. You live in a lavender garden, and
you ought to smell sweetly. Prove that you appreciate and rightly use
your privileged position by endeavoring to bring grace to your house,
that it may be altogether the Lord's.

A fourth and more manifest step was taken when Peter and his friends
were drawn closer to their Lord. The good man of the house was already
saved, and his brother and companions, but by the grace of God they
rose to be something more than merely saved, for they received a call
to a higher occupation and a nobler service; from fishers they were to
rise into fishers of men, and from rowing in their own boats to become
pilots of the barque of the church. Peter was already a disciple, but
he was in the background; he must come to the front: he had been more a
fisherman than a disciple, but now he must be more a disciple than a
fisherman. He must now follow Jesus by a more open avowal, a more
constant service, a nearer communion, a more attentive discipleship, a
fuller fellowship in suffering; and for this he must receive an inward
preparation by the Divine Spirit: he was, in fact, by the call of his
Lord and Master, lifted to a higher platform altogether, upon which he
would abide and learn by the Spirit what flesh and blood could never
reveal.

Beloved, what a difference there may be between one Christian and
another. I have sometimes seen it with astonishment; and though I would
not go so far as to say that I have seen as much difference between one
Christian and another as between a Christian and a worldling; for there
must ever be between the lowest grade of life and the fairest form of
death a wider distinction than between the lowest and highest grades of
life, yet still it is a very solemn difference. We know some who are
saved—at least we hope they are—but oh, how few are the fruits of the
Spirit; how feeble is the light they give; how slender is their
consecration; how small is their likeness to him whom they call Master
and Lord. Thank God, we have seen others who live in quite another
atmosphere, and exhibit a far different life. It is not a higher life,
I hardly like that term, for the life of God is one and the same in all
believers; but it is a higher condition of the life, more developed,
more vigorous, more influential; a condition of life which has a
clearer eye, and a nimbler hand, a quicker ear, and a more musical
speech; a life of health, whereas too many only know life as laboring
under disease, and ready to give up the ghost. There are Mephibosheths
among the king's favourites, but give me the life of Naphtali,
"satisfied with favor and full of the blessing of the Lord;" or of
Asher, of whom it is written, "let him dip his foot in oil." An owl is
alive though it loves the darkness, and a mole is alive though it is
always digging its own grave, but give me the life of those who mount
as on the wings of eagles, who live upon the fat things, full of
marrow, and drink the wines on the lees well refined. These are the
mightier of Israel, whose joyous energy far surpasses that of the weary
and faint, whose faith is feeble and whose love is cold. Now, Peter and
his friends at this time had been called from their fishing tackle and
their boats to abide with Jesus in his humiliation, and learn of him
the secrets of the kingdom, which afterwards they were to teach to
others. They had heard the Master say, "Follow me," and they had left
all at his bidding. They were in the path of fellowship, boldly
pressing on at their Lord's command, so that now they had taken a grand
stride in their Christian career; and that is the time, beloved, when
men bring blessings on their houses. Oh, I could sigh to think of the
capacities which lie dormant in some Christians! It is sad to think how
their children might grow up, and with God's blessing become pillars in
the House of the Lord, and perhaps ministers of the gospel, under the
influence of an earnest consecrated father and mother: but instead
thereof the dulness, the lukewarmness, the worldliness, and the
inconsistencies of parents are hindering the children from coming to
Christ, hampering them as to any great advances in the divine life,
dwarfing their stature in grace, and doing them lifelong injury.
Brethren, you do not know the possibilities which are in you when God's
Spirit rests upon you; but this much is certain, if you yourselves be
called into a higher form of divine life, you shall then become mediums
of blessing to your relatives. Your husband, your wife, your child,
your friend, and the whole of your family shall be the better for your
advance in spiritual things.

Now, observe further, that at this time when the Lord was about to
bless the household of Peter he had been further instructing Peter
about Andrew and James and John, for he took them to the synagogue, and
they heard him preach. A delightful sermon it was—a sermon very full of
energy, and very unlike the discourses of ordinary preachers, for it
had authority and power about it a was when they came home front
synagogue, after hearing such a sermon, that the blessing descended
upon the house. The best of us need instruction. It is unwise for
Christian people to be so busy about Christ's work that they cannot
listen to Christ's words. We must be fed, or we cannot feed others. The
synagogue must not be deserted, if it be a synagogue where Christ is
present. And oh, sometimes, when the Master is present, what a power
there is in the word: it is not the preacher's eloquence, it is neither
the flow of language, nor the novelty of thought; there is a secret,
quiet influence which enters into the soul and subdues it to the
majesty of divine love. You feel the vital energy of the divine word,
and it is not man's word to you, but the quickening voice of God
sounding through the chambers of your spirit, and making your whole
being to live in his sight. At such times the sermon is as manna from
the slimier, or as the bread and wine with which Melchizedec met
Abraham; you are cheered and strengthened by it, and go away refreshed.
My dear brother, my dear sister, then is the time to go home and take
your Lord home with you. Peter and his friends had so enjoyed the great
Teacher's company at the synagogue that they begged him to abide with
them, and so they went straight away with him from the synagogue into
the house. Can you do that this morning? If my Lord shall come and
smile upon you and warm your hearts, do not lose him as you go down the
aisles, do not let him go when you reach the streets and are walking
home. Do not grieve him by chitchat about worthless matters, but take
Jesus home with you. Tell him it is noon-day, and entreat him to tarry
with you during the heat of the day; or if it be eventide, tell him the
day is far spent, and beseech him to abide with you. You can always
find some good reason for detaining your Lord. Do as did the spouse of
old, when he said, "I found him whom my soul loveth; I held him, and
would not let him go, until I had brought him into my mother's house,
and into the chamber of her that conceived me." Is there not a sick one
at home? Take Jesus home to her. Is there no sorrow at home? Entreat
your Lord to come home to help you in your distress. Is there no sin at
home? I am sure there is. Take Jesus home to purge it away. But,
remember, you cannot take him home with you unless you first have him
with you personally. Labour after this then; be not satisfied without
it. Resolve to be his servant—that I trust you are; to be his servant
walling in the light as he is in the light, and having fellowship with
him—that I hope you are; and then, having gone so far, resolve that you
will take him to your friends and to your kinsfolk, that so your whole
house may be blest.

I desire, before I pass to the second point, to lay great stress upon
this. We have an old proverb that charity must begin at home, let me
shape it into this,—piety must begin with yourself. Before you ask
salvation for your family, lay hold upon it for yourself. This is not
selfishness: indeed, the purest benevolence makes a man desire to be
qualified to benefit others; and you cannot be prepared to bless others
unless God has first blessed you. Is it selfishness which makes a man
stand at the fountain to fill his own cup, when he intends to hand that
cup round for others to drink? Is it any selfishness for us to pray
that in us there may be a well of water springing up unto everlasting
life, when our second thought is that out of us may flow rivers of
living water whereby others may be replenished? It is no selfishness to
wish that the power of the Lord may be upon you, if you long to
exercise that power upon the hearts of others for their good. Look ye
well, brethren, to yourselves; ye cannot bless your children, ye cannot
bless your households till first of all upon yourselves the anointing
of the Lord doth rest. O Spirit of the living God, breathe upon us,
that we may live yet more abundantly, and then shall we be chosen
vessels to bear the name of Jesus to others.

II. Now we take the second step, and show WHAT GRACE DID IN PETER'S
HOUSE WHEN IT CAME THERE.

The first effect that grace produced was, it led the family to prayer.
The four friends have come in, and no sooner are they in than they
begin to speak with the Master, for the text tells us, "Anon they tell
him of her,"—of Peter's wife's mother who lay sick. I like that
expression—I do not know whether you have noticed it—"Anon they tell
him of her." Luke tells us "they besought him." I have no doubt Luke is
right, but Mark is right too. "They tell him of her." It looks to me as
if it taught me this—that sometimes all I may do with my sore
affliction is just to tell my own dear Lord about it, and leave it to
his loving judgment to act as he sees fit. Have you any temporal
trouble or sickness in the house? Tell Jesus of it. Sometimes that is
almost as much as you may do. You may beseech him to heal that dear
one, but you will have to say, "Not as I would, but as thou wilt," and
so will feel that all you may do is to tell Jesus the case and leave it
with him. He is so gentle and loving, that he is sure to do the kindest
thing, and the thing which is most right to do; therefore we may be
content to "tell him of her." With regard to spiritual things, we may
press and be very importunate, but with regard to temporal things, we
must draw a line, and be satisfied when we have told Jesus and left the
matter to his discretion. Some parents may, when their children are
ill, plead with God in a way which shows more of nature then of grace,
more clearly the affection of the mother than the resignation of the
Christian; but such should not be the case. If we have committed our
way unto the Lord in prayer, and meekly told him of our crisis it will
be our wisdom to be still, and watch till God the Lord shall speak. He
cannot be either unjust or unkind, therefore should we say, "Let him do
what seemeth him good."

Very likely this good woman, Peter's wife's mother, was herself a
believer in Christ; but I venture to take her case as typical of
spiritual success, not at all wishing, however, to insinuate that she
was spiritually sick, for she may have been one of the most devoted of
Christians. But now, suppose you take Jesus Christ home with you, dear
friend, if you have an unconverted one in the house, you will
immediately begin to "tell him of her." "They told him of her." That is
a very simple type of prayer, is it not? Yes, in some respects it is,
and therefore I urge you to use it. Do not say you cannot pray for your
child; you can tell Jesus of her. Do not say you cannot plead for your
brother or your sister; you can go, and in a childlike manner tell
Jesus about the case, and that is prayer. To describe your needs is
often the best way of asking for help. I have known a person say to a
man of whom he needed aid, "Now, I am not going to ask you for
anything, I only want you to hear my story, and then you shall do as
you like"; and if he wisely tells his story, the other begins to smile,
and says,"You do not call that asking, I suppose?" Tell Jesus Christ
all about it; his view of the matter will be to your advantage.

This elementary form of prayer is very powerful. The police do not
allow people to beg in the streets, but I do not know that there is any
law to prevent their sitting down in attitudes of misery and exhibiting
holes at the knees of their trousers and bare feet staring through
soleless shoes. I saw that exhibition this morning. The man was not
begging, but it was wonderfully like it, and answered the purpose
better than words. To tell Jesus Christ about your unconverted relative
or friend may have in it a great deal of power, may be, in fact, one of
the most earnest things you could do; because the absence of spoken
pleas and arguments may arise from your being so burdened with anxiety
that you cannot find words to say, "Lord relieve me," but you stand
there and sigh under the burden, and those groanings which cannot be
uttered act as urgent pleas with the pitiful heart of Christ, and cry
aloud in his ear, "Lord, help me."

Telling Jesus is a simple mode of praying, but methinks it is a very
believing mode. It is as if they felt, "We only need to tell the case,
and our blessed Lord will attend to it. If anon we tell him of her,
there shall be no need to clasp his knees and cry with bitter tears for
pity upon the fevered one; for as soon as he hears, so loving is his
heart, he will stretch out his hand of power." Go to Jesus, then, dear
friends, in that spirit, about your unconverted friend or child, and
"Tell him of her."

There is something very instructive about this particular case, because
we are apt to think we must not tell the Lord of the more common
troubles which occur in our family; but this is a great error. Too
common? How can the commonness of an evil put it out of the list of
proper subjects for supplication? The seaboard of Capernaum in which
Peter dwelt is said by travelers to be a peculiarly damp, marshy,
aguish, feverish place, no end of people had the fever just around the
house; but Peter and Andrew did not argue that they must not tell the
Lord because it was a common disease. Do not let Satan get an advantage
over you by persuading you to keep back commonplace troubles or sins
from your loving Lord. Beloved, if he counts the hairs of your heads,
if not a sparrow falls to the ground without his knowledge, depend upon
it your commonest trouble will be sympathized in by him. "In all their
afflictions he was afflicted." It is a great mistake to think you may
not carry to your Redeemer the ordinary trials of the day; tell him,
yea, tell him all. If your child is only a common sinner, if there is
no unusual depravity in him, if your son hats never grieved you by
perverseness, if your daughter has always been amiable and gentle, do
not think there is no need to pray. If it is only a common case of the
fever of sin, yet it will be deadly in the end unless a balm be found,
therefore tell Jesus of it at once. Do not wait till your son becomes a
prodigal, pray at once! Do not delay till your child is at death's
door, pray now!

But sometimes a difficulty arises from the other side of the matter.
Peter's wife's mother was attacked by no ordinary fever. We are told it
was "a great fever": the expression used implies that she was burning
with fever; and she was intensely debilitated, for she was laid or
prostrate. Now the devil will sometimes insinuate, "It is of no use for
you to take such a case to Jesus; your son has acted so shamefully,
your daughter is so wilful: such a case will never yield to divine
grace in answer to prayer." Do not be held back by this wicked
suggestion. Our Lord Jesus Christ can rebuke great fevers, and He can
lift up those that are broken down and rendered powerless by raging
sin. "Wonders of grace to God belong." Go and tell Jesus of the case,
common or uncommon, ordinary or extraordinary even as they told Jesus
of her.

Now, notice one or two reasons why we think they were driven to tell
Jesus of her. I know the great reason, but I will mention the little
ones first. I fancy they told Jesus of her, at first, because it was a
contagious fever, and it is hardly right to bring a person into a house
that has a great fever in it, without letting them know. If there is a
great sin in your house, you may perhaps feel in your heart, "How can
Jesus Christ come to my house while my drunken husband acts as he
does?" Perhaps, more sorrowful still, the wife drinks in secret, and
the husband, who sees it with deep regret, says, "How can I expect the
Lord to bless us?" Or perhaps some great, sad sin has defiled your
child, and you may well say, "How can I expect the Lord to smile on
this house? I might as well expect a man to come into a house which is
infected with typhus fever." Never mind. Tell Jesus all about it, and
he will come, fever or no fever, sin or no sin.

I think perhaps they told him of her because it would be some excuse
for the scantiness of the entertainment they were likely to give. What
could Peter and Andrew do at preparing a meal? The principal person in
the house was ill and could not serve. We poor men are miserable hands
at spreading a table, we need a Mary or a Martha to help us, or a
Peter's wife, or a Peter's wife's mother. And so they say with long
faces, "Good Master, we would gladly entertain thee well, but she who
would delight to serve thee is sick." How often a family is hindered
from entertaining Christ through some sick soul that is in the house.
"O Lord, we would have family prayer, but we cannot: the husband will
not permit it." "Lord, we would make this household ring with thy
praises, but we should make one tenant of it so angry that we are
obliged to be quiet." "We cannot give thee a feast good Lord: we have
to set before thee a little as best we can, or the house would grow too
hot to hold us." Never mind. Tell Jesus about it; and Jesus will come
and sup with you, and turn the impediment into an assistance.

Moreover, the faces of the friends looked so sad. I care say while in
the synagogue Peter had almost forgotten about his wife's mother, he
had been so pleased with the preaching, but when he reached home the
first question when he crossed the door was, "How is she now?" The
servants replied, "Alas, master, the fever rages terribly." Down went
Peter's spirits, a cloud came over his countenance; and he turned to
Jesus and cried, "Good Master, I cannot help being sad, even though
thou be here, for my wife's mother, whom I love much, is sick of a
fever." That sadness may have helped Peter to "tell him of her."

But I think the grand reason was this, that our blessed Lord had such a
sympathetic heart that he always drew everybody's grief out of them.
Men could not keep anything to themselves where he was. He looked like
one who was so much like yourself; so much in all points tried like as
you are, that you could not help telling him. I exhort you that love my
Lord to allow his sweet sympathy to extract from you the grief which
wrings your heart; and let it constrain you to tell him of your
unconverted relative. He endured the contradiction of sinners against
himself, he loved the souls of men, and died for them; and, therefore,
he can tenderly enter into the anxieties which you feel for souls
rebellious and hardened in sin. Therefore, "tell him of her."

I think, however, that they told him of her because they expected that
he would heal her. Tell Jesus about your child, or your friend, who is
unconverted, and expect that he will look upon them with an eye of
love. He can save. It is like him to do it. He delights to do it. It
will honor him to do it. Expect him to do it, and tell him the case of
your unregenerate friend this very day.

May I put the question all round? You have each of you, probably, some
one left in your family unsaved, and you have said, "I was in hopes
that this one would be converted." Have you ever told Jesus of her or
of him? Oh, I hope you can answer, "Yes, I have many times" but it is
just possible you have not made a set business of it. Begin now, and go
upstairs and take time every day to tell the Lord every bit about Jane,
or Mary, or Thomas, or John. Wrestle with God, if need be, all night
long, and say, "I will not let thee go except thou bless me." I do not
think that many of you will be very long with that trouble to carry
when you have in that manner told it to your Lord. This is what they
did when Jesus came. Immediately they told him of her, for the word
"Anon" is really in the Greek "immediately." Directly Christ went in
they told him of her, and directly Christ went to heal her.

So the first work grace wrought in the house was it led them to pray;
and, secondly, this led the Savior to heal their sick. He went into the
chamber, spoke a word, gave a touch, lifted up the sick woman, and she
was restored, and the wonderful thing was she was able to rise from the
bed immediately and wait upon them. This never occurs in the cure of a
fever, for when a fever goes it leaves the patient very weak, and he
needs days and weeks, and sometimes months, before he recovers his
wonted strength. But the cures of Christ are perfect; and so at once
the patient rose and ministered unto them.

Thus we see that when grace came into that house and wrought its cure
it quite transformed the family. Look at the difference. There is the
poor woman, the patient, shivering, and then again burning, for the
fever is on her; she can scarcely lift hand or foot. Now look at her,
she is busily serving, with a smiling face; no one more happy or
healthy than she. So when God's grace comes, the one who has been the
object of the most anxiety becomes the happiest of all; the sinner,
saved by sovereign grace, becomes servant of the Lord; the patient
becomes the hostess.

Note the change in the rest of them. They had all been heavy of heart,
but now they are rejoicing.. There is no anxiety on Peter's face now,
Andrew is no more troubled, the skeleton in the closet has disappeared,
the sickness has been chased out, and they can all sing, a gladsome
hymn. The house is changed from an hospital to a church, from an
infirmary to a banqueting hall. The Lord himself seems changed, too, if
chancre can come over him, for, from a physician, going carefully into
a sick room, he comes forth a King who has subdued an enemy, and they
all look upon him with wonder and reverence as the mighty Lord,
victorious over invisible spirits. Now, I pray God that our household
may be transformed and transfigured in this way: our Luz become a
Bethel, our valley of Achor a door of smile, our sons of perverseness a
seed to serve the Lord. If you yourself get a fullness of grace, the
next step is for your families to receive of the boundless fullness,
till not one shall be soul-sick at home, but all shall be happy in the
Lord, all, all shall serve him.

III. When mercy had once entered, let us see HOW GRACE FLOWED FORTH
FROM THE HOUSE. They could not keep the fact hidden indoors that
Peter's wife's mother was cured. I do not know who told about it. Had
it been in our day I should have thought it was one of the servants
over the palings of the backyard, where they are so fond of talking; or
perhaps some friend who came in, and was told the news. Perhaps the
doctor called round to see the good woman, and, to his utter
astonishment, found her up and about the house. He goes to his next
patient, and says, "My business will soon come to an end; my patient
who had fever yesterday has been made perfectly whole by one Jesus, a
prophet of Nazareth." Somehow or other it oozed out. You cannot keep
the grace of God a secret; it will reveal itself. You need not
advertise your religion: live it, and other people will talk about it.
It is good to speak for Christ whenever you have a fair opportunity,
but your life will be the best sermon.

The story went through the town, and a poor man upon crutches said to
himself, "I will hobble out to Peter's house!" Another who used to
creep through the streets on all fours quietly whispered "I will go to
Peter's house and see." Others, moved by the same impulse, started for
the same place. Many who had sick ones said, "fire will carry our
friends to Peter's house;" so the house grew popular, and, lo, around
the door there was such a sight as Peter had never seen before. It was
a great hospital, all down the street patients were clamouring to see
the great prophet. "Almost the whole city came round about the door."
And, now, what say you to Peter's house? We began with calling it a
humble lodging, where a fisherman dwelt; why, it is become a royal
hospital, a palace of mercy. Here they come with every kind of
complaint, lepers, and halt, and lame, and withered, and there is the
loving Master, moving here and there till he has healed every one of
them. The streets of Capernaum rang that night with song of joy. There
was dancing in the street of a new kind, for the lame man was leaping;
and the music that accompanied the dancing was of a new kind too, for
then did the tongue of the dumb sing, "Glory be to God." It was out of
Peter's house that all this mercy came.

Ah, brethren, I would to God he would look first on Peter, and then on
Peter's wife's mother, or Peter's child or relative, and then on the
whole house, and then from the house cause an influence to stream forth
and to be felt by all the neighborhood. "It cannot be so with my home,"
says one. Why not, dear brother? If you are straitened at all, you are
not straitened in God; you are straitened in yourself. "But I live in a
place," says one, "where the ministry is lifeless." The more reason why
you should be a blessing to the town. "Oh, but I live where many active
Christians are doing a great deal of good." The more reason why you
should be encouraged to do good too. "Oh, but ours is an aristocratic
neighborhood." They want the gospel most of all. How few of the great
and mighty are ever saved! "Oh, but ours is such a low neighborhood."
That is just the place where the gospel is likely to meet with a glad
reception, for the poor have the gospel preached to them, and they will
hear it. You cannot invent an excuse which will hold water for a
moment: God can make your house to be the center of blessing to all who
dwell around it, if you are willing to have it so. But the way to have
it so I have described. First, you must be yourself saved, yourself
called to the highest form of life, yourself warmed in heart by the
presence of your Master; then your family must be blest; and after that
the widening circle around your habitation. Oh that it might be so. I
know some brethren who, wherever they are, are burning and shining
lights; but I know some others who are lamps, but it would be difficult
to say whether they are alight or not. I think I see a flicker, but I
am not sure. Brethren, aspire to be abundantly useful. Do you wish to
live ignoble lives? Do you wish to be bound to the loathsome carcase of
a dead Christianity? I abhor lukewarmness from my soul, let us have
done with it! We have a very short time in which to bear our testimony,
we shall soon be at rest; let us world while we can. The shadows are
lengthening, the day is drawing to a close. Up! brethren, up! If you
are to bring jewels to Jesus, if you are to crown his head with many
crowns, up, I pray you, and labor for him while you can.

There are some here who are unconverted. I have not spoken to them, but
I have tried to set you all speaking to them. Will you do it, or shall
I keep you to hear the second halt of my sermon? No, I will trust you
to deliver it, and may God bless you for Jesus' sake. Amen.

PORTION OF SCRIPTURE READ BEFORE SERMON—Mark 1:14-45.