Who is Doing the Devil's Work?

[0:00] The following message is given by Walt Alexander, lead pastor of Trinity Grace Church in Athens, Tennessee.! For more information about Trinity Grace, please visit us at TrinityGraceAthens.com.

[0:13] We tend to assume there's two types of people, those who do the Lord's work and those who do the devil's work, right? You know, we tend to think of a divided between two options type of world.

[0:23] But I think Mr. Ortlund is right, that there are these three doing the Lord's work in the Lord's way, doing the Lord's work in your own way, or doing the devil's work.

[0:35] Now, Mr. Ortlund points out that the great divide is not between those who do the Lord's work in their own way and the devil's work. The great divide, the great chasm, the big dangerous divide is between those who do the Lord's work in the Lord's way and those who do the Lord's work in their own way.

[0:57] To do the Lord's work in your own way is to do the work of the Lord for how it benefits you.

[1:11] It is to do the work of the Lord according to your own wisdom and strength. It is to do the work of the Lord for your own praise and glory.

[1:25] You know, it's the heart that hears what John the Baptist is saying, I must decrease and he must increase, that says, why can't we increase together?

[1:36] You know, Jesus, you must increase, but can you throw me a bone? You know, I want a seat at the table too. I want my platform enlarged too. I want people to be impressed with me too.

[1:49] But obviously that is not the Lord's work, is it? To do the Lord's work in your own way is betrayal. It's the kiss of Judas.

[2:01] It is a stab in the Lord's back. It is in fact the devil's work. Now generally, we can conclude who's doing the devil's work.

[2:12] I don't have to enumerate those in our culture right now. Who's doing the devil's work is pretty clear. I mean, they dress in black. They do their thing in the darkness. But how do we discern who's doing the Lord's work in the Lord's way and who's doing the Lord's work in their own way?

[2:26] How do we know the difference between, how do we tell the difference between the 11 and Judas? How do we detect true godliness from the appearance of godliness that lacks the power of godliness as Paul warned us would come in the last days?

[2:46] Well, in our text this morning, Mark crafts this section to alert us to who really is doing the Lord's work. I've said it before.

[2:56] Mark carefully composes his eyewitness account. You know, he's writing Peter's gospel. And he carefully composes his eyewitness account. And we come this morning to one of the distinctive features of the way he writes.

[3:11] We come to what commentators call the Markin sandwich. Now, Markin is just kind of a fancy way to say the Mark sandwich, you know. But, you know, with Paul, they call it Pauline. Mark, they call it Markin, you know.

[3:23] And I could go through the other ones. But we come to the Markin sandwich. The idea is that our text tells a story about Jesus and his family, but breaks up the story with this teaching.

[3:36] And you see that in verse 20. You know, then he went home. Verse 22, and the scribes. So a transition to the scribes and this teaching about the devil that seems to have no bearing on what's going on.

[3:48] And then verse 31, and his mother and brothers came. So we hear, well, I don't want to preach the sermon until I get there. But you see these transition points, but they're all clustered together.

[4:00] And so Mark sandwiches this teaching in the midst of a story to help us understand what the teaching and the story actually mean.

[4:11] It's only in taking up the whole sandwich that you understand what Mark is trying to say. So this morning, we're going to work our way through the whole sandwich one bite at a time to figure out what in the world is going on here.

[4:27] So rather than state the main point up front, we're going to work this through and discover what this story means, what this teaching means, and who's doing the Lord's work.

[4:38] So the top bun, point one, the top bun. I don't know if you start on the bottom, you bottom up, but I think it's the top bun is what we're going with. The top bun is kind of how he introduces this story.

[4:52] The top bun begins this story about Jesus and his family. And Jesus is back in Capernaum, and his ministry is humming along with great success. Look there in verse 20. He went home, and the crowd gathered again so that they could not even eat.

[5:05] So he's home again. As I've told you, he's at Peter's house in Capernaum where he lives now. And the crowd gathered. They follow him, and they gather around him, so much so that the disciples could not even eat.

[5:17] Now, the idea is not that anyone is keeping them from eating. The idea is the crowd is gathering, and Jesus is so compelled to teach and to heal and to cast out demons that there's no time left to eat.

[5:30] And his mama and his brothers hear what's going on. Look in verse 21. His family heard it. What did they hear? They heard that he wasn't eating. He was just ministering all day long.

[5:43] Morning, noon, and night, they went out to seize him, for they were saying he is out of his mind. You know, the family heard they were not excited. They were alarmed. What is going on with Jesus?

[5:55] I mean, we knew he had a special mission since 12 years old, but no time to eat? What in the world? No time for himself. He's taking this ministry thing too far, like a mother that rushes to prevent her son from any fall.

[6:10] Mother Mary busts in. She decides to intervene. They went out from the home in Nazareth, we believe, to find Jesus and to seize him because he's out of his mind.

[6:20] And then the story is broken off. It's broken off. Which means we get to the meat.

[6:32] Point two, the meat. So we had top bun. Now we're getting to the meat, you know. The action, the goodness. Yeah.

[6:42] Thank you, Rob. I'll move with an adverb or adjective. The middle of the sandwich is the teaching. We heard the beginning and we'll soon hear the end, but sandwiched in the middle is this teaching.

[6:59] Now, Jesus is being opposed by the scribes again. Now, I've told you this before, but the scribes are those men who are the official interpreters of the law and official teachers.

[7:13] So they call the shot on what the law means, and they're well respected by everyone, and they're opposed to Jesus again and again and again. But these scribes are different. These are the ones from Jerusalem where the temple is.

[7:25] So everybody traveled to Jerusalem to offer sacrifices in that temple. Everywhere else were synagogues. There wasn't another temple. And so these are the big guys. These are corporate, you know.

[7:36] I mean, these are the guys. And it alerts us immediately that opposition to Jesus Christ has become official. It's become official business of the Jewish religion.

[7:49] Look at verse 22. And the scribes who came from Jerusalem were saying, He is possessed by Beelzebub. And by the prince of demons, he cast out demons. So they don't deny that he's doing some crazy things.

[8:03] So he's casting out demons. They don't deny that. They say, You're doing some stuff. But they say he's possessed by the prince of demons, by Beelzebub.

[8:15] Later, bracketing this whole section, look at verse 30. They say he has an unclean spirit. So they come with some accusations against our Lord.

[8:25] Jesus kind of says two things back to them. The first, he says, is I can only cast out demons because I've conquered Satan. I can only cast out demons because I cast him out.

[8:40] Jesus says, or they say Jesus is possessed by Beelzebub. The exact meaning of this word is difficult to recover. But the context seems to say he's a leader.

[8:51] He's a ruler of demons. Look at verse 22. So he's possessed by him. And then by the prince of demons, he cast out demons. So I think it's just by context alone, it's saying he's a prince of demons.

[9:04] So he's like a head honcho of the demonic forces over some hierarchy of demons. And so the idea is what they're saying is he's possessed by this prince of demons.

[9:15] So Jesus can now direct demons to go wherever he wants them to go. That make sense? I mean, if he's the general, then he tells the soldiers where to go.

[9:26] And that's kind of what's going on. But Jesus says that doesn't make any sense. That don't make no sense. You know, look at verse 23b. He says in his main argument, how can Satan cast out Satan? A kingdom is divided against itself.

[9:38] That kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. If Satan's risen up against himself and is divided, and he cannot stand, but it's coming to an end. Jesus responds with a parable.

[9:50] We're going to encounter some more parables next week. It's just an analogy, extended analogies. What he's saying is a kingdom is divided and fighting against itself. That kingdom cannot stand. Each side will take out the other side, and there'll be nothing left in the kingdom.

[10:06] Same thing in a household. If a household is divided against itself, like cheering for UT Vols and cheering for Alabama, that household cannot stand. Those things cannot or should not coexist.

[10:19] Same thing with demonic forces. Very close. In similarity. If Satan divides and fights against Satan, how can he stand?

[10:33] How can he cast out Satan? You get Jesus' argument. Abraham Lincoln famously quoted these words when he was a Republican candidate. In 1858, a house divided, you remember this, a house divided against itself cannot stand.

[10:46] I believe that this government cannot endure permanently as half slave and half free. Little did he know he'd be the president during the Civil War. But his point is clear.

[10:59] America cannot be half slave and half free. Something has to give. And Jesus is kind of making the same statement. Me, the prince of demons, that doesn't make sense.

[11:10] He says, I cast out demons because I've casted out Satan. I've conquered Satan. Look in 27.

[11:22] No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods unless he first binds a strong man. Then indeed he may plunder his house. Now everything's a metaphor here. But the strong man is Satan.

[11:37] That's kind of obvious. Strong man's Satan. The house is this world. So Satan keeps all who are in his house, this world, in chains, captured by him to do his will.

[11:49] 2 Timothy 2.19 says, And only when someone puts him in chains can they rescue anyone from this world. You get that? So the strong man's Satan. The house is this world.

[12:00] He is the God of this world. He keeps all those enslaved in this world. He's the prince of the power of the air. And only someone who has bound him can unbind other people. That's what Jesus is talking about.

[12:10] Jesus is talking metaphorically about his temptation. He's teaching them that he was the one John promised was coming. The one who was mightier than John. Remember John the Baptist said that.

[12:21] There's one who's coming who's mightier than I. The strap of whose sandal I'm not worthy to stoop down and untie. The idea is that he's the Lord and he's come to conquer Satan. Now listen to John Knox, Scottish theologian, state the terms of Jesus' temptation.

[12:41] So this is in the first person because it's our Lord stating the terms of what was going on when he was drug into the wilderness.

[12:53] I think we have that for you. He says, Lo, I am a man like to my brethren. So I'm like him in every way. My having flesh and blood and all properties of man's nature.

[13:04] Sin, which is thy venom, O Satan. Accept it so he's sinless. Tempt, try and assault me. I offer thee here a place most convenient, the wilderness.

[13:19] Outside of Eden. There shall be no mortal creature to comfort me against thy assaults. Thou shalt have time sufficient to do what thou canst.

[13:31] I shall not fly the place of battle. It's a just war. If thou become victor.

[13:45] Now these, these and nows are a little bit hard. If thou, if you become victor, thou may still continue in possession of thy kingdom in this wretched world.

[13:57] But if thou canst not prevail against me, then must thy prey and unjust spoil be taken from thee. Thou must grant thyself vanquished and confounded.

[14:10] And must be compelled to leave off from all accusations of the members of my body. For to them doth appertain, to them belong, the fruit of my battle.

[14:23] My victory is theirs as I am appointed to take the punishment of their sins in my body. It's wonderful. For forty days, our Lord did not fly the battle.

[14:39] He leaned in on the devil's temptations, invitations, and assault so that he might push him out and plunder and pillage his house forever.

[14:51] So that he might rescue the spoil. Who's the spoil? You are. The spoil. The spoil. The spoil. So he's saying, I bound the strong man.

[15:04] That's what's going on. Not a prince of demons. I'm the one who looked hell in the eyes and crushed its back. Now, can Satan still possess people in this world?

[15:18] That bothers people. Yes. Can Satan still stop, still roam the earth looking to afflict and accuse?

[15:30] Yes. He can accuse us before God. But can Satan stop people, or stop Jesus from raiding and ransacking his house?

[15:43] Can Satan stop Jesus from rescuing people from his grass and delivering them into the kingdom of light? No. That's what's going on here. This was throwing down the gauntlet for our Lord.

[15:58] Now, we love rescue stories as a culture. Every once in a while, the whole world wonderfully works together and unites to rescue a single life. And if you remember, I don't know if you remember 2008 or something like that? No, 2000.

[16:10] I don't know. The 33 Chilean miners were stuck a half mile into the ground for 69 days. You remember that? The whole world waited anxiously.

[16:20] We didn't even know where Chile was. They were all watching Chile. The rescuers worked frantically. The Chilean government spent millions of dollars. The president said, Every peso well spent.

[16:33] And everyone rejoiced when these 69 grimy miners were yanked up, lifted up, one at a time to the surface. It's so wonderful. But our rescue from Satan is so much more wonderful.

[16:49] We were not only bound by our sin, unable to free ourselves by our own volition from our sin, but we were bound by the God of this world that blinds the minds of unbelievers that keep us captive to do His will.

[17:02] But Jesus came to fight the battle. That's what He's saying. He's the one who has promised who comes to take down Satan. Isaiah 49 says, Can the prey be taken from the mighty, and the captives of a tyrant be rescued?

[17:15] Can they from Hitler and Napoleon? Thus says the Lord, Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken, and the prey of the tyrant be rescued.

[17:27] For I will contend with those who contend with you, and I'll save my children. Then all flesh shall know that I am the Lord, your Savior, and your Redeemer, the mighty one of Jacob. That's what's going on.

[17:38] Jesus says something else, though. The second thing Jesus says is, You are opposing God when you oppose me. I bound the strong man.

[17:52] And you're opposing God when you oppose me. He looks directly at him on this. Look at verse 28. Truly I say to you, All sins will be forgiven.

[18:06] And the children of men, whatever blasphemies they utter. But whoever blasphemes the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin. This is one of the most notoriously difficult teachings in the Scripture.

[18:18] So it's no surprise that Jesus introduces it very solemnly. Truly I say to you. That's kind of one of his formulas. Truly, truly I say to you. To blaspheme just means to despise or revile something.

[18:33] What's the blasphemy of the Spirit? What is this sin that's so bad you can't be forgiven? Well, we could spend a whole day on this.

[18:44] Let's be honest. First, it's not a matter of words. So I think sometimes we think about this. Oh, my goodness, did I blaspheme the Spirit? You know, like this word that's shut out. You know, it's not saying certain words that are off limits.

[18:56] Not even words that are of doubt or disbelief or disdain. You're not going to blaspheme the Spirit by saying something. You can and will be forgiven for wrongful words if you repent.

[19:10] Look at 28. All sins will be forgiven the children of men, whoever blasphemes too. Whatever blasphemes they utter. So it can't be single words.

[19:24] It's got to be something else. But that is incredible. All sins will be forgiven and whatever blasphemies. It's an incredible invitation. That if you will bow the knee right now, regardless of what's going on in your life, you can be forgiven before the eternal God forever and ever.

[19:47] It doesn't matter. Don't harden your heart. That's such a wonderful invitation. So it's not a matter of saying words, but what is it?

[20:00] It must be understood in light of the context of Mark. Jesus, we've been covering this, Jesus is the long-awaited Messiah who is filled with the Spirit at his baptism and has demonstrated spiritual power through his mighty works and signs and wonders.

[20:17] That's what was going on. So Jesus was filled. It was his commissioning service when he was baptized in the Holy Spirit at his baptism. And then he's sent out.

[20:27] He's doing the works of the truly spiritual man. One theologian says, Jesus is man fully alive. So he's man fully alive to the Spirit.

[20:38] He's doing all these works. And he's also the one who adds the Messiah and says he'll baptize other people in the Spirit. He'll fill people with the Spirit. He'll set them free. And so the idea is the blasphemy of the Spirit is opposition to what the Spirit is doing in Jesus.

[20:55] So the blasphemy of the Spirit, not these single words that just kind of uttered and float in the air and then condemn us in the end. They're opposition to what the Spirit is doing in Jesus.

[21:06] It's a decided position of defiance and disdain for the work God is doing in Jesus Christ. It is a determined refusal to repent. All day long I hold out my hand to a guilty and rebellious people.

[21:19] Romans 11 says, it's a hardening of your heart to what God is doing in Jesus and what he's doing in the world. Like Pharaoh and many others, it's a hardening of your heart, living according to what is wise in your own eyes.

[21:31] There's no man in worse shape in the Proverbs than one who's wise in his own eyes because he's hardened his heart. So that means if you're anxious about having committed this sin, you have it.

[21:43] Your very anxiety reveals that there's potential to repent. So I've counseled people. I did the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. And it's, you know, all of us have a different conscience.

[21:57] And that book is actually very excellent. It's the best book I've ever read on the conscience. And our consciences can be seared.

[22:12] They can be misinformed. And so we have to educate them. And this is one of the areas. You've got to educate them. What does this blasphemy mean? So if you're anxious about having committed it, you've not.

[22:25] In my humble opinion. That said, so it's this decided position of disdain to Jesus Christ. What God is doing.

[22:35] What the Spirit is doing in Jesus Christ. But we must keep in mind that this is a warning to the scribes. This is a warning to the religious people.

[22:48] Jesus does not say this to the tax collectors and sinners. He says it to the people that have all their rules together. About how God is supposed to work.

[22:59] About who's supposed to be healed. Who's supposed to be welcomed. Who's clean and unclean. And all their rules. They're missing what God is doing. Jesus is saying to them, you are opposing God when you oppose me.

[23:10] You are the one who has an unclean spirit. You're the one doing the devil's work. You're the one doing the devil's will. That's bold talk. But if it's a warning for the scribes, it's a warning for us too.

[23:24] One commentator said, Mark signifies the unique pitfall that this sin can pose for religious people. How do we fall into blasphemy of the spirit?

[23:39] By gradually beginning to oppose what God is doing through Jesus. By becoming the rules police. By growing bitter when someone less faithful is blessed.

[23:52] By withdrawing when someone we dislike is saved and welcomed. By drawing an invisible circle around the types of people welcome in the community.

[24:03] Leaving outside those who do not have the right family background. The right race. The right clothing choices. The right politics. Or the right whatever. It's a slippery slope.

[24:17] From softness. Let us not be found opposing God. I want to keep my eyes peeled. For what God's doing in the world.

[24:29] Keep my knee bent. I believe that the way I'm doing things is the way it's always got to be done. I recently heard this story about Pastor Tony Campolo.

[24:43] Campolo. He'd flown into Hawaii for a speaking engagement. He couldn't sleep so he went to an all night diner. Where he overheard a group of prostitutes talking.

[24:57] One of the prostitutes mentioned that tomorrow was her 39th birthday. So he's kind of over here in this conversation. One says tomorrow is my 39th birthday.

[25:07] And another kind of says sarcastically. What do you want? A birthday party? She responded quietly almost to herself. Never had one in my whole life.

[25:18] Why should I expect one now? Overhearing their conversation. Mr. Campolo decided to plot with the owner of the diner to throw a surprise party the following night.

[25:32] I guess he went back in at 3 in the morning. Cake was baked. Everything was prepared. The lady was shocked when everyone, including this stranger, was singing happy birthday to her, a prostitute.

[25:46] And celebrating her. When she left, Mr. Campolo offered to pray with the staff for this lady and for her salvation and for God to be good to her.

[26:03] After the prayer, the prayer startled the owner and he said, You never told me you were preaching. What kind of church do you go to? He says, a church that throws birthday parties for prostitutes at 3.30 in the morning.

[26:16] That's somebody who's looking for what God's doing. There's all these stupid little boxes that get in our way of seeing where the Lord's at work.

[26:27] It's a long road to glory. And a lot of it's avoiding those stupid boxes. Point three, the bottom bun.

[26:38] We've got to get back to the sandwich. What happened to the sandwich? The bottom bun of the sandwich is the rest of the story. After the teaching, Mark returns to the story.

[26:52] Look at verse 31. And his mother and his brothers came. And standing outside, they sent to him and called him. And a crowd was sitting around him. And they said to him, Your mother and your brothers are outside seeking you.

[27:06] So while Jesus was teaching, the mother and brothers made their way to Capernaum. And when they got there, they stayed outside the house. They did not go inside the house.

[27:18] Mark points that out twice. They stayed outside. By this point, their intentions are clear. They called him inside the house. And the crowd said to him, Your mother and brothers are outside seeking you.

[27:28] Now this word seeking in the book of Mark refers to more than looking for something that is lost. It's used 14 times by Mark and always refers to the attempt to find and take control of the Lord Jesus Christ. It's the word used just littered throughout Mark 14, 15, and 16.

[27:42] Right before, or 14 and 15, right before Jesus' crucifixion. So they are after him to detain him. And get him back in line. Get back in the box. Jesus.

[27:53] Now look at verse, then they come to him, or I guess the crowd kind of, they shout it out. And the crowd comes in and he answered them, Who are my mothers and brothers? Who's my brother and brothers?

[28:05] And looking around at those who sat around him. Now that's used in Mark. Very serious. He kind of, remember he scanned the crowd right before he healed that leper. And Mark 3, 4 or so.

[28:18] He does the same thing here. Just getting everybody's attention. Here are my mother and brothers, whoever does the will of God. He is my brother and sister and mother. Now that's harsh.

[28:32] Right? That's a little intense. Jesus is making a very important point. You don't belong to the people of God by being born into the right family.

[28:43] Not even being born into Jesus' family. No one's riding in on those coattails. Jesus warns us, don't assume you belong to the people of God because you've grown up in a Christian home, gone to church, been baptized, or anything else.

[29:01] All those things are broken crutches. The whole passage, in fact, is coming together right here. You know, if you think you're doing the Lord's work because of your church attendance, your religious background, your baptism, or who your family is, you are just as lost as the scribes.

[29:17] I mean, that's what's going on. That's why these stories, I mean, the family, the blood, the kin, you know, the people we're closest with are juxtaposed or they're contrasted with these scribes who are only opposition always in the book of Mark.

[29:31] And he's contrasting them, but he's saying they're both outside. So the ones who are outside are the scribes and the family. They're both there together because the only ones that are inside are people that do not lean on those things.

[29:44] So those who are doing the Lord's work and the Lord's ways are not those of a certain background. There's no background called for. None of these things, those who are doing the Lord's work and the Lord's way are not those of a certain family.

[29:56] The right background and the right family gets you right outside. That's all it gets you. It doesn't get you in the house. Those who are doing the Lord's work and the Lord's way give full allegiance to Jesus Christ.

[30:11] They don't try to detain him. They bow before him. That's what's going on here. I mean, this crowd is bowed on knees before him and they've given full allegiance to Jesus Christ.

[30:25] That's incredible. Let me make a couple. So that's the main point. Those who are doing the Lord's work and the Lord's way give full allegiance to Jesus.

[30:37] I'll make a couple application points. If you're a Christian, you're Jesus' brother or sister. Take that in. If you give allegiance to Jesus Christ, you are his brother or sister.

[30:56] He's the firstborn among many brethren. You're closer to him than his own family. There's one who sticks closer than a brother.

[31:10] There's one who sticks closer than a brother. J.C. Ryle says, Let all true Christians drink comfort out of those words. There are certain words you drink in.

[31:22] Let them know that there is one at least who knows them, loves them, cares for them.

[31:35] Is there anyone who cares for me? cares for them and reckons them as his own family. What though they be in this world? What though they be poor in this world?

[31:47] They have no cause to be ashamed when they remember that they are the brethren and sisters of the Son of God. Who's your mother?

[32:00] Who's your dad? Who's your brother? Who's your sister? Perhaps family has been a tremendous gift to you and it's pointed to you to Jesus Christ. If so, praise the Lord. But perhaps it hasn't.

[32:13] Perhaps your mom and your dad were too strung out. Perhaps they pushed you around and pushed you down your whole life. Perhaps they have an airbrushed Christian image but only want to be in your life when they call the shots.

[32:31] Your brother is Jesus Christ. You're in his family now. He will never let you down. Now graduates, that's what you take with you.

[32:51] Wherever you go, whatever you encounter, you need not fear. You need not be ashamed. Point two, your allegiance to Jesus and what he is doing should rise above every other commitment even to your family and your country.

[33:11] In the South, there are three commitments. God, family, country. Not necessarily in that order. I would argue usually not in that order.

[33:23] In his book, Forrest Carter's novel about life in the Depression era in the 1930s, a grandfather explained what he means by the phrase, I kin you.

[33:34] Have you heard that phrase? I feel like it's in Oh Brother, where art, let out one somewhere, you know. I kin you. Grandpa said, back before his time, kin folks meant any folks that you understood and had an understanding with.

[33:50] They were loved folks. But people got selfish and brought it down to mean just blood relatives. But that actually, it never was meant to mean that.

[34:04] Far too often, we elevate our commitment to our kin, our family and blood relatives, above everything else. And this passage is pushed on.

[34:18] This is not me being mean. So by all means, take care of your extended family, provide them, do good to them. You're worse than an unbeliever if you don't. But find ways to tell yourself and tell your immediate family that your allegiance is to Jesus Christ.

[34:34] One way is to make church attendance non-negotiable. Make it unthinkable. Because every Sunday, that's what it will say to those kids.

[34:46] If it's negotiable, if it's thinkable, thinkable, when school, ball games, vacations, and family gatherings are not, what are you saying? I don't think they'll catch your allegiance.

[34:59] That's my point. And Jesus is pushing on that. There's tons of caveats I can include there, but I'm not going to. You can talk to me later.

[35:11] Point three, if your allegiances are not, allegiances are not rightly ordered, there is still time to repent. Now, Mary was still alive when Mark wrote this gospel.

[35:31] And she was with our Lord at the crucifixion. And James, one of our Lord's brothers, was the big head honcho in Jerusalem church.

[35:44] He wrote the book of James. Now, what do you think they thought about Mark including this little story? I think Mark is telling us they repented.

[36:00] Or we know from the Bible that they did. And so can we. That is such a precious invitation. So, you know, if your allegiances are out of order, come and repent.

[36:16] You know, that's what Christian life is. Martin Luther said it, life is, Christian life is one of continual repentance. That doesn't mean we're dull drums and doomsdayers or something like that.

[36:28] But it's just that we're trying to keep on turning to Jesus Christ. We're turning our eyes to Him, but we're also turning our whole life to Him. Again and again and again. Lord, Lord, align my life with Jesus Christ again and again and again that I might give full allegiance to Him, not to a family, not to my kin, not to a flag or any of these things.

[36:47] But to Him who is the King and who's bringing in a kingdom that will have no end. Let us pray. Father in heaven, we thank You for this Word and thank You for the opportunity to dive into it.

[37:00] God, we do, we give You complete allegiance. we come in here not to recite some pledge, but to declare that we live for Your glory alone.

[37:16] There's nothing we want more. What on earth do we have except for You, being with You, You, all the words of eternal life and we long to know You and the power of Your resurrection.

[37:31] We thank You and worship You. In Jesus' name, Amen. You've been listening to a message given by Walt Alexander, lead pastor of Trinity Grace Church in Athens, Tennessee.

[37:43] For more information about Trinity Grace, please visit us at trinitygraceathens.com.