Today’s Gospel MK 6:53-56
In today’s Gospel, Jesus and his disciples land in Gennearet.  As with every place that Jesus has gone, the sick are brought to him in droves. 
With today’s scientific knowledge, it is very easy to understand why sickness was so ramped throughout civilization in Jesus’ time.  Food sources were localized and it was very hard to obtain a well-rounded balance of nutrition.  2000 years ago, there was very little understanding of micro-organisms and how they caused disease.   There were no vaccinations available to prevent disease, and the lack of knowledge on how to control them once they were obtained, made it difficult to stop them from being passed onto other victims.  If there was a famine in a region it took a severe toll on the wellbeing of the populous.  They couldn’t simply look to another country half way around the world to import food from to keep their people from starving to death. 
We can be eternally grateful that we live in a time when we understand how viruses, bacteria and microbes work.  We know how to fight against them entering our bodies through proper food handling, cooking and vaccination programs.  We have the ability to circumvent the globe to provide nutritious foods year round and transportation technology that allows that food to be transported before it spoils. 
Today, we have the ability to prevent a lot of the ailments that Jesus saw in his ministry; however,I would like to point out that there is another ailment that was ramped throughout society to which there was no cure other than Jesus.   Adam and Eve had cast themselves and us into the black chasm of the darkness of sin.  They deliberately disobeyed God’s command and as a result the entire human race had an incurable disease, original sin.   This was an open invitation for Satan and his followers to feast on the souls of their descendants.  This is very evident in the number of people that were possessed and the number of exorcisms that take place by Jesus and the disciples. 
On a spiritual level, we see Jesus who is the son of God.  The one true, pure spirit… who’s spirit is so clean that it must literally glow in and outside of his body.  Imagine being the only true light walking on the face of the planet and shining so brightly that even the sun would look like a candle in comparison.  The people that he encountered were literally drawn to him like a moth to the brightest, holy saving flame ever seen.  As Jesus and the disciples cured the sick, drove out the demons and passed the Holy Spirit onto the converts through baptism, the beautiful light would have turned the countryside into a sea of light, pleasing to God and immensely irritating to the devil.  The devil fights back at every turn … going out and possessing unsaved victims and turning the disbelieving priests and rulers against Jesus and his disciples.
This is the legacy that we have been called to complete as Jesus’ disciples.  The light of God was passed to us and it is up to us to create a sea of Holy Light  throughout the world.   Be aware that your efforts will make you an enemy of the dark forces cast out of heaven.  LIGHT UP THE WORLD for…He is with you!
Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God:  I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. Isaiah 41:10