The Power of Jesus Is Revealed in Healing And A Further Casting Out Of Spirits, But He Emphasises That His Main Ministry Must Be That of Preaching in Their Synagogues (1:29-39).
Having revealed His authority in His teaching and in the casting out of an unclean spirit with a word of command, Jesus carries out a healing ministry, commencing with Peter's mother-in-law in Capernaum, and which also includes the casting out of unclean spirits who are ‘aware of Who He is', although we do not learn the answer to the puzzle until Mark 3:11, where they declare Him to be the Son of God (unless it refers to the reference to Him as ‘the Holy One of God'). But these healings are only secondary to His main purpose which is to proclaim the Kingly Rule of God (Mark 1:15). Note the deliberate connection between His healings and exorcisms as taking place ‘in the evening' and His parallel prayer life which takes place ‘early next morning', illustrating what He later tells His disciples in Mark 9:29 that the foundation of His successful ministry is, humanly speaking, to be found, in prayer.
Analysis of 1:29-39.
a And immediately, when they were come out of the synagogue, they came into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John (Mark 1:29).
b Now Simon's wife's mother lay sick of a fever, and immediately they tell Him of her, and He came and took her by the hand, and raised her up, and the fever left her, and she ministered to them (Mark 1:30-31).
c And in the evening, when the sun set, they brought to Him all who were sick, and those who were possessed with devils, and all the city was gathered together at the door (Mark 1:32-33).
d And He healed many who were sick with various kinds of diseases, and cast out many devils, and He would not allow the devils to speak, because they knew Him (Mark 1:34).
c And in the morning, a great while before day, He rose up and went out, and departed into a desert place, and there prayed (Mark 1:35).
b And Simon and those who were with him followed after Him, and they found Him, and say to Him, “All are seeking you”. And He says to them, “Let us go elsewhere into the next towns, that I may preach there also, for to this end I came forth” (Mark 1:36-38)
a And He went into their synagogues throughout all Galilee, preaching and casting out devils” (Mark 1:39).
Note that in ‘a' they come out of the synagogue, and in the parallel Jesus went to their synagogues throughout Galilee. In ‘b' Simon and others are involved in seeking Jesus help for Simon's mother-in-law, and He heals her and she ministers to them, and in the parallel Simon and others seek His help for the crowds, and He explains that He must move on and minister to others. In ‘c' we learn what Jesus did in the evening, when He was surrounded by crowds, and in the parallel what He did in the early morning when He went alone with God because He knew that He must move on. Centrally in ‘d' He would not let the demons speak because they knew Him. Mark possibly deliberately leaves this unexplained, probably because He wants his readers to think about it, but he provides the explanation later in Mark 3:11.