Mark 1:35-45 Bible Study Questions
Mark 1:35-45 (ESV)
35 And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.
36 And Simon and those who were with him searched for him,
37 and they found him and said to him, “Everyone is looking for you.”
38 And he said to them, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.”
39 And he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.
40 And a leper[a] came to him, imploring him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean.”
41 Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.”
42 And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean.
43 And Jesus[b] sternly charged him and sent him away at once,
44 and said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to them.”
45 But he went out and began to talk freely about it, and to spread the news, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in desolate places, and people were coming to him from every quarter.
Footnotes
a. Mark 1:40 Leprosy was a term for several skin diseases; see Leviticus 13
b. Mark 1:43 Greek he; also verse 45
Jesus Came to Preach
Mark 1:35-45
Key Verse: 38:
And he said to them, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.”
1. What did Jesus do early the next morning (35)? What does this teach us about the importance of prayer and personal time with God? (Ps. 5:3; Ps. 88:13) Why did Simon and his companions look for Jesus (36-37)? What was Simon Peter’s reaction when he found Jesus? What does this reveal about the urgency and importance of Jesus’ mission?
2. What did Jesus reply and do (38-39)? What does this tell us about Jesus’ purpose in ministry? How did this express Jesus’ vision to spread the kingdom? How does this reflect His overall mission? (Mk. 2:17) How did Jesus balance teaching and healing during His ministry? What can we learn from this balance? (Ro. 10:13-15)
3. Consider the leper’s approach to Jesus. (40) What does his attitude demonstrate about faith and desperation? Jesus was moved with compassion. (41) How does this characteristic of Jesus influence your understanding of His ministry and His relationship with humanity?
4. What might the healing of the leper signify in terms of physical and spiritual cleansing? (42-43) Why did Jesus instruct him not to tell anyone? (44; Lev. 14:1-4) Why wouldn’t Jesus want him to tell everyone about this miracle? What did Jesus want the priests to learn from this miraculous healing?
5. How did the leper’s actions affect Jesus’ ministry? (45) Was the leper sinning by disobeying Jesus’ command? What implications does this have for how we share our experiences of faith and healing with others? What does this event teach us the difference between healing and cleansing of our sins? (1 Jn. 1:7, 9)
