WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:09.080 This morning, we're going to read from Mark chapter 1, verse 29 through 34, and this is what it says. 00:00:09.839 --> 00:00:16.240 It says, as soon as they left the synagogue, they went with James and John to the home of Simon and 00:00:16.240 --> 00:00:22.519 Andrew. Simon's mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they immediately told Jesus about her. 00:00:22.960 --> 00:00:29.539 So he went to her, took her hand, and helped her up. The fever left her, and she began to wait on 00:00:29.539 --> 00:00:36.979 them. That evening, after sunset, the people brought to Jesus all who were ill and demon-possessed. 00:00:37.299 --> 00:00:43.619 The whole town gathered at the door, and Jesus healed many who had various diseases. He also 00:00:43.619 --> 00:00:49.899 drove out many demons, but he would not let the demons speak because they knew who he was. 00:00:51.840 --> 00:00:59.439 Thanks, Abby. Welcome again. Let me just pray before we get started. 00:01:00.500 --> 00:01:06.980 Father, thank you for bringing us together, for bringing us this morning with the beautiful sunshine, 00:01:06.980 --> 00:01:13.539 reminding us of your goodness. God, we thank you for your word, for what you tell us about yourself 00:01:13.539 --> 00:01:21.079 in it, how you reveal yourself to us so that we may know you. We might come to understand who you are and 00:01:21.079 --> 00:01:29.159 what you are doing and have done in our world so that we might find ourselves in you and trust you 00:01:29.159 --> 00:01:36.900 and follow you. Lord, we submit ourselves this morning to what you have for us. Lord, I pray that 00:01:36.900 --> 00:01:43.500 the words that I have prepared would not be from me, but God, they would be from you, and that you would 00:01:43.500 --> 00:01:50.299 teach us all as we sit today. So, Lord, be with us this morning. I pray that you would continue what 00:01:50.299 --> 00:01:56.840 you've started with our worship and lead us further in to your spirit. In Jesus' name. Amen. 00:01:56.840 --> 00:02:04.700 Amen. Well, welcome, everyone. Let me say again, I'm really glad to be here, glad to be back up front 00:02:04.700 --> 00:02:10.780 and being able to bring the word to you today. We're continuing in the book of Mark. If you've 00:02:10.780 --> 00:02:16.599 been here the last few weeks, we've been journeying through Mark. And Mark, as you might or might not 00:02:16.599 --> 00:02:24.319 know, is one of four biographies of Jesus that we find in our Bible. And Mark, the person who wrote 00:02:24.319 --> 00:02:29.919 this one, or possibly more accurately, his name was John Mark, but they didn't want to get him 00:02:29.919 --> 00:02:36.379 confused with the other John. So Mark is what we get. He's actually not a disciple. He wasn't one that 00:02:36.379 --> 00:02:44.900 was following Jesus around. Most agree that he was an attendant and a writer for the apostle Peter. 00:02:45.459 --> 00:02:51.459 And so he was writing down accurately and as furiously as he could all the things that Peter 00:02:51.460 --> 00:02:57.560 was saying as he was following Peter around. Right? And so this is one of four, right? The reason we 00:02:57.560 --> 00:03:03.540 have four different accounts of the gospel and the biographies of Jesus is they come from four 00:03:03.540 --> 00:03:09.460 different writers, right? And each of whom have a different purpose for writing it or a different 00:03:09.460 --> 00:03:17.120 aim in recording their version of the events. And so the ultimate purpose of Mark is that he wants us, 00:03:17.120 --> 00:03:25.819 he wants to present and defend Jesus's call to discipleship. Right? And Mark's effort in presenting 00:03:25.819 --> 00:03:33.060 and supporting this is to narrate the identity and the teaching of Jesus. Right? Discipleship, 00:03:33.319 --> 00:03:40.460 as it's shown in Mark, and I think as we would believe, it's essentially a relationship with Jesus. Right? 00:03:40.460 --> 00:03:49.680 It's being with him and following him and doing what he does. Right? It's not following a certain code 00:03:49.680 --> 00:03:57.260 of conduct. It's not, you know, do these things in this way and then you will be called a disciple. No, 00:03:57.360 --> 00:04:03.600 it's fellowship with Jesus. Right? That's what's at the heart of a true disciple's life. It's trusting 00:04:03.600 --> 00:04:09.960 him. It's confessing him. Right? It's taking note of what he's doing and his conduct. It's following his 00:04:09.960 --> 00:04:16.400 teaching and it's being shaped in your character and in your life by your relationship with him. 00:04:16.680 --> 00:04:22.040 Right? And at the end of the day, it's being prepared to face the kind of rejection and the 00:04:22.040 --> 00:04:26.939 kind of persecution that Jesus himself faced. Right? So what we'll look at is what Mark is doing 00:04:26.939 --> 00:04:32.720 in this chapter in particular. Right? Chapter one of his story, of his biography. He's showing us 00:04:32.720 --> 00:04:38.939 something about who Jesus is. Right? So this morning, I want us to help and see just in this little tiny 00:04:38.939 --> 00:04:46.219 section of a passage, just a few verses. I want us to see four things about Jesus from this passage. 00:04:46.379 --> 00:04:52.420 Four things that Mark is trying to communicate to us about Jesus. And then I want to look at one 00:04:52.420 --> 00:04:58.459 thing that's a little curious that we might see in the passage that I think carries enormous weight 00:04:58.459 --> 00:05:09.039 for us today. Sound good? Let's do it. So I had a sport-related analogy prepared, but when Steve used 00:05:09.039 --> 00:05:15.000 one about the football last week, it fell fairly flat. So I've shifted gears. And so maybe you know 00:05:15.000 --> 00:05:23.159 film and Hollywood a bit better than sport. So has anyone heard of this film? The Good, the Bad, 00:05:23.160 --> 00:05:27.900 and the Ugly. If you haven't, I recommend it to you. It's a fantastic old western. Clint Eastwood, 00:05:28.439 --> 00:05:33.520 spaghetti western. I don't know if you're familiar with that. So it's the Italian guys making westerns 00:05:33.520 --> 00:05:40.600 in Spain, but trying to pretend like the old west in the west of the U.S. But The Good, the Bad, 00:05:40.600 --> 00:05:46.640 and the Ugly. Right? So it's fantastic. It's one of the best films ever made. Right? So it feels like 00:05:46.640 --> 00:05:51.800 it's falling flat as well. No one's nodding at me with admiration. So let me tell you about it. 00:05:51.800 --> 00:05:57.079 Right? But the idea is that there's three characters. There's a guy who is the good, 00:05:57.860 --> 00:06:03.800 and then there's one that's the bad, and then there's one who's the ugly. Right? And funny 00:06:03.800 --> 00:06:09.300 enough, this one you might like actually better. Who's a fan of The Holiday? The Christmas film, 00:06:09.360 --> 00:06:14.800 The Holiday? Anyone know that one? Anyway, this guy, this actor, is the old man in The Holiday, 00:06:15.340 --> 00:06:21.439 like 50, 60 years later. So just FYI. But anyway, so this is what happens at the beginning of the film. 00:06:21.800 --> 00:06:26.680 They do a quick little montage of each of these characters, and then it pops up this screen 00:06:26.680 --> 00:06:34.100 where it says, the good, or the bad, or the ugly. Right? And it's introducing the character 00:06:34.100 --> 00:06:38.300 and telling you something about that person so that when you watch the rest of the film, 00:06:38.960 --> 00:06:44.180 you know kind of what the context is. Right? This one's the good guy. Okay? This one's the bad guy. 00:06:44.280 --> 00:06:48.259 And then that one, he's just the ugly guy. The funny thing is, in the film, as you see, 00:06:48.259 --> 00:06:52.399 like, those lines are blurred. The good guy's maybe not as good as he seems, and the bad guy, 00:06:52.500 --> 00:06:57.019 maybe, well, he's definitely bad, but the ugly guy, he's kind of fun. He's comedic relief. But 00:06:57.019 --> 00:07:03.060 the point is, they're telling you something about them so that you know what to expect. Right? And I 00:07:03.060 --> 00:07:07.099 think that's what Mark is doing here at the beginning of his book. Right? He's going to tell us 00:07:07.100 --> 00:07:12.360 something about who Jesus is. So first, you know what? I don't have a Bible with me up here. Can I have 00:07:12.360 --> 00:07:18.920 one? I've got all these references I've got to read, and I don't have it with me. Apologies. 00:07:20.240 --> 00:07:28.080 So the first thing Mark says, he begins to give us an idea of who Jesus is. And if you look through 00:07:28.080 --> 00:07:32.520 chapter 1, there's a bunch of other characters in the story, and they say something about Jesus. So 00:07:32.519 --> 00:07:37.799 let's look real quick. In verse 1 of chapter 1, it says, this is the beginning of the good news 00:07:37.799 --> 00:07:45.759 about Jesus, the Messiah. Right? Or the Christ, if you look at other versions. Right? He's telling us 00:07:45.759 --> 00:07:50.139 not just, this is Jesus. He's a character in this story. He's saying, no, this is Jesus, 00:07:50.639 --> 00:07:54.879 the Messiah, the one that you've been waiting for. Right? If you're in the Jewish audience, 00:07:55.359 --> 00:08:00.339 you understand the concept of a Messiah, a Savior that's supposed to come. And Mark is saying, 00:08:00.339 --> 00:08:04.739 this is him. Right? And then it keeps going. He says, about Jesus, the Messiah, 00:08:04.919 --> 00:08:11.519 comma, the Son of God. Right? So in case you were unclear what it meant that the Messiah was, 00:08:11.859 --> 00:08:18.159 he says, let me tell you, just to be certain, he's the Son of God. Right? And then it keeps going. 00:08:18.339 --> 00:08:24.779 Verse 7, John, the Baptist, who is the messenger who came in front, he says, and this was John's 00:08:24.779 --> 00:08:32.600 message, he says, after me comes the one more powerful than I, the straps of whose sandals 00:08:32.600 --> 00:08:38.579 I'm not worthy to stoop down and untie. Right? He's saying something about this Jesus. He's 00:08:38.579 --> 00:08:43.500 more powerful. Right? Everyone was following. John had a lot of followers. And John is saying, 00:08:43.559 --> 00:08:50.059 no, not me, this guy. Right? And then he goes going. And in verse 8, he says, look, I baptize 00:08:50.059 --> 00:08:58.839 you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit. And then in verse 11, John 00:08:58.839 --> 00:09:04.979 is baptizing Jesus. Right? And this amazing thing happens. The heavens split open. A voice 00:09:04.979 --> 00:09:11.699 comes from heaven and a dove descends and the voice from heaven says, you are my son whom 00:09:11.699 --> 00:09:17.079 I love and with whom I am well pleased. Right? So if you didn't believe Mark saying this is 00:09:17.080 --> 00:09:22.960 the son of God, God himself is saying, look, you are my son. And then as you keep going, 00:09:23.120 --> 00:09:29.980 we get to the story that Steve preached on last week. And in verse 24, there's this man 00:09:29.980 --> 00:09:36.420 possessed by a demon, by an impure spirit. And in verse 24, it says, what do you want with us, 00:09:36.500 --> 00:09:42.980 Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God. 00:09:42.980 --> 00:09:47.420 Right? So we've got all of these characters telling us something. And what are they telling 00:09:47.420 --> 00:09:53.960 us? One is Jesus is God. Right? If you were unclear, if you were unsure about who this man 00:09:53.960 --> 00:10:00.379 was, he is the son of God. He is the Messiah. He is more powerful. He baptizes with the Holy 00:10:00.379 --> 00:10:08.420 Spirit. He is the Holy One of God. Right? So very clear. This is who he is. Right? If you go 00:10:08.419 --> 00:10:13.539 to the store, you go to Waterstones or Daunt or someplace and you buy a book and you look 00:10:13.539 --> 00:10:16.879 at the book and you don't know much about it. You don't know the author. You flip it over 00:10:16.879 --> 00:10:21.360 on the back or just inside the cover. And what do you see? What's in there? Right? It's a 00:10:21.360 --> 00:10:26.459 bunch of other authors, probably ones that have more notoriety, more recognition, right? 00:10:26.459 --> 00:10:30.839 That you might know that name. Right? And they say something about it. They say, look, 00:10:31.360 --> 00:10:34.899 here's my recommendation. You trust me. You don't know this guy yet, but here's my 00:10:34.899 --> 00:10:41.299 recommendation to read this book. Right? It's to emphasize the validity of the message. 00:10:41.939 --> 00:10:46.620 Right? You describe, look, I'm giving credence to this. Right? These people are 00:10:46.620 --> 00:10:50.939 recognizing, they're saying this is something to listen to. And so this is what's happening. 00:10:51.059 --> 00:10:56.959 Right? This is how that's working. Right? In a similar way, if you're on trial, you're in 00:10:56.959 --> 00:11:02.960 a court. Right? And it's something you hadn't done. What would, who would you bring to 00:11:02.960 --> 00:11:08.460 establish your character? Right? You'd bring a witness. Someone who knows you. Someone 00:11:08.460 --> 00:11:12.980 who is of good report on their own accord. And you would say, they will vouch for me. 00:11:13.040 --> 00:11:18.840 They'll tell you who I am. Right? They will give witness and testimony to who I am and 00:11:18.840 --> 00:11:24.360 what I stand for. Therefore, the court who doesn't know me yet knows who you are. Right? 00:11:24.460 --> 00:11:28.460 So this is kind of what Mark is doing. He's putting some people. He's saying, look, if you 00:11:28.460 --> 00:11:32.200 don't listen to me, listen to these people, here's all the people that Jesus is running 00:11:32.200 --> 00:11:37.720 into. And they're saying this about him. Right? They're saying it. Right? So he's saying, 00:11:37.780 --> 00:11:42.080 look at him. See what they're saying. It's clear. This is Jesus. He's the one you've been 00:11:42.080 --> 00:11:49.860 waiting for. He's God. Right? So that's one. Next, as we keep reading, we see that Mark 00:11:49.860 --> 00:11:56.740 shows us something about Jesus that he has authority. Look at 27. 27. The people are all 00:11:56.740 --> 00:12:01.860 so amazed. They ask each other, what is this? This new teaching. And with authority. He gives 00:12:01.860 --> 00:12:07.700 orders to impure spirits and they obey him. Right? And back in verse 22, the people were 00:12:07.700 --> 00:12:14.480 amazed at Jesus' teaching because he taught them as one with authority. Not like the teachers 00:12:14.480 --> 00:12:21.419 of the law. Right? In 25 and 26, he looks at that impure spirit. He says, be quiet. Come 00:12:21.419 --> 00:12:28.100 out of him. And the impure spirit leaves. He doesn't. He shrieks and gets out. So Jesus 00:12:28.100 --> 00:12:33.980 has power and authority over the impure spirit. And in today's chapter, in today's 00:12:33.980 --> 00:12:39.840 verses, in 31, he goes to Peter's mom, mother-in-law. He takes her hand. He lifts 00:12:39.840 --> 00:12:46.980 her up. And the fever just leaves. Peter. Jesus has power over a fever. He has power 00:12:46.980 --> 00:12:52.360 over disease. Right? In 34, he heals many who came with various diseases. People keep 00:12:52.360 --> 00:12:59.120 coming. And he has power over demons. Right? He also drove out many demons. And he wouldn't 00:12:59.120 --> 00:13:03.960 let him even let them speak because they knew who he was. Right? The point is, Jesus has 00:13:03.960 --> 00:13:09.940 authority. And Mark wants us to know that he has authority. Right? Reinforcing what we 00:13:09.940 --> 00:13:14.139 said about him. It's like, oh, this is, he's from God? He is God? Right? Well, how do 00:13:14.139 --> 00:13:19.159 I know? Look. Look at what he's able to do. It would seem, right, that Jesus can't even 00:13:19.159 --> 00:13:25.379 be around sickness. Right? He can't help himself but heal people who come near him. Right? 00:13:25.439 --> 00:13:32.759 The darkness and the sickness and the brokenness, they can't even be where he is. What does the 00:13:32.759 --> 00:13:38.419 Bible say about heaven? Right? Revelation 21, it says, there will be no more death. There 00:13:38.419 --> 00:13:43.259 will be no more mourning. There will be no more crying. No more pain. For those have passed 00:13:43.259 --> 00:13:51.299 away. Right? And heaven is what? It's where we are in communion with God. And so Jesus walking 00:13:51.299 --> 00:13:55.860 around on the ground in Israel, it's a little bit of this heaven, this kingdom of heaven that 00:13:55.860 --> 00:14:01.179 he's just declared is coming. It's following around. It's overlapping the world. And sickness 00:14:01.179 --> 00:14:09.539 can't even exist. Things just get fixed when he's there. Right? So how does someone establish 00:14:09.539 --> 00:14:16.000 authority? Right? They build trust by being consistent. They demonstrate competence by 00:14:16.000 --> 00:14:20.879 delivering results. And so Mark is showing us the authority of Jesus. He's trustworthy. 00:14:21.099 --> 00:14:25.599 Look at what he's done. Look at who he is. He's consistent. He keeps doing it. He's competent. 00:14:25.819 --> 00:14:30.759 He has authority and power over these things. And he delivers results. These people get up 00:14:30.759 --> 00:14:36.839 and they walk. The demons come out. Right? It was true then and it's true today. Jesus has 00:14:36.840 --> 00:14:43.300 authority. Right? Because he's God. So let's keep going. The next thing Mark shows us 00:14:43.300 --> 00:14:48.280 is that look at all the people who come into contact with Jesus. Right? Well, what do they 00:14:48.280 --> 00:14:53.600 do? They can't help themselves but start sharing about him. Right? Look at verse 28. 00:14:55.240 --> 00:15:05.000 News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee. And then you keep going. 00:15:05.000 --> 00:15:12.200 And so what we see then is that it says in 33, the whole town gathered at the door. Right? That's 00:15:12.200 --> 00:15:18.340 how quickly this news had spread about Jesus. That the whole town came to see Jesus. Right? 00:15:18.399 --> 00:15:24.480 Everyone who had a sick friend, a sick mom, they came and they said, well, we must know. We've heard 00:15:24.480 --> 00:15:29.919 about you. Right? And then if you keep going, I'm bleeding into future weeks, but I think it's 00:15:29.919 --> 00:15:37.120 important. In verse 45, Jesus actually commands some people. He heals them and he says, look, 00:15:37.120 --> 00:15:45.719 don't talk about this. Just go do, show yourselves to the, to the elders. And instead, this man goes 00:15:45.719 --> 00:15:51.639 out and he talks freely. He's spreading the news and he can't help himself. And in verse 00:15:51.639 --> 00:15:56.000 five, yeah, 45, he spreads the news such that Jesus couldn't even go out anymore. Right? 00:15:56.000 --> 00:16:01.100 Have you seen, you know, a famous person? Actually, I was walking on Kilburn High Road 00:16:01.100 --> 00:16:09.360 a year ago and it was right before the FA Cup and Man United was staying at the Marriott on Kilburn. 00:16:09.500 --> 00:16:14.740 Right? And so you're walking up and there's the, the, the bus is outside the, the coach, right? 00:16:14.740 --> 00:16:18.220 That's going to take them over to the stadium. And what was, what was around? There was like 00:16:18.220 --> 00:16:24.299 hordes of people around the door waiting for, to get a glimpse at this, you know, footballer that's 00:16:24.299 --> 00:16:29.939 going to come out. United's not even any good, but there was people everywhere. Right? And 00:16:29.939 --> 00:16:36.139 so they, they wanted to see this thing that they'd heard about and they go, right? Jesus 00:16:36.139 --> 00:16:41.039 is, is worth sharing. Right? These people see it. They're like, something happened here. 00:16:41.139 --> 00:16:46.919 I got to tell someone about this. I can't keep this to myself anymore. Right? And when you, 00:16:47.319 --> 00:16:51.099 you see what, when you see and experience the glory of God, you can't help but tell someone. 00:16:51.100 --> 00:16:57.120 If you were miraculously healed, right? If you were sick and you were miraculously healed, 00:16:57.379 --> 00:17:03.639 would you keep that to yourself? Or would you tell someone? Right? Of course not. You wouldn't 00:17:03.639 --> 00:17:08.400 be able to keep it to yourself. Right? I mean, this silly thing, Ashley's in the other room so I can 00:17:08.400 --> 00:17:13.539 tell the story, right? Ashley will, will find something at TK Maxx or whatever, and she's wearing 00:17:13.539 --> 00:17:18.779 it and someone's, oh, I love your top, blah, blah, blah. She's like, guess what? I got it for a really good 00:17:18.779 --> 00:17:22.740 deal. Like, she can't help herself but tell you that she got it on sale or that it was like, you 00:17:22.740 --> 00:17:27.160 know, only, you know, 10 pounds or whatever it was. Right? It's, it's like, I can't help it. Right? 00:17:27.180 --> 00:17:32.160 If she can't, she can't help herself with that, how much more, right? The savior of the world and 00:17:32.160 --> 00:17:37.539 someone who's come and healed you. Right? It reminds me of the, the parable of the treasure in the field. 00:17:37.940 --> 00:17:43.579 Right? In Matthew 13, uh, there's a man walking in the field and he, he kind of comes across a 00:17:43.579 --> 00:17:47.319 treasure in the field and he looks at it and he says, this is, this is more money. This is more treasure than 00:17:47.319 --> 00:17:52.339 I've ever known in my, in my life. And what does he do? He, he covers it up and he goes and he sells 00:17:52.339 --> 00:17:57.700 everything so he can come back and get it. Right? He's, he's elated. He can't help but do something 00:17:57.700 --> 00:18:03.139 about when he, when he's found the treasure that's worth sharing, he goes and does it. Right? If we've 00:18:03.139 --> 00:18:08.399 truly tasted and seen that the Lord is good, we can't help ourselves but share it with others 00:18:08.399 --> 00:18:14.539 because Jesus is worth sharing. So one more thing that Mark tells us, right? What else do we notice? 00:18:14.539 --> 00:18:21.680 So Mark, uh, he's one of my favorite authors because mostly he gets to the point. He doesn't, 00:18:22.139 --> 00:18:26.700 there's not a lot of fluff. There's not a lot of unnecessary words, right? He gets to it. If you, 00:18:26.899 --> 00:18:32.460 as you get to know me, uh, you will understand that that's why I, why I say that is I'm really, 00:18:32.460 --> 00:18:36.700 uh, trying to, I had to fill in, I had like four points and I had to come up with a bunch of other 00:18:36.700 --> 00:18:42.559 things to say this morning. Uh, I just wanted to get, get to the point, but Mark, he adds the thing 00:18:42.559 --> 00:18:47.579 in here. It means that it's, it's worth noting, right? So he, he tells us this little note about 00:18:47.579 --> 00:18:53.259 Peter's mother-in-law. Look at it, um, in 30. It says, Simon's mother-in-law was in bed with a fever 00:18:53.259 --> 00:18:58.399 and they told Jesus about it. So Jesus goes to her, he takes her hand, he helps her up. 00:18:58.659 --> 00:19:06.819 The fever left her. And then what? She began to wait on them, right? She, she goes immediately to serve. 00:19:06.819 --> 00:19:11.839 And so you're like, well, why would he include that little bit? Is that important? Is that necessary? 00:19:12.399 --> 00:19:18.659 When it's like, the point is, I think that Jesus saves us for a purpose, right? I think if a neighbor 00:19:18.659 --> 00:19:25.460 came to your house, right? And you just unannounced, just popped over and they, you welcome them in, 00:19:25.519 --> 00:19:27.679 right? What are you going to do? You're going to, you're going to offer them a cup of tea, 00:19:27.819 --> 00:19:30.639 maybe a biscuit. You're going to scrummage for something that you've got in your cupboard and you 00:19:30.639 --> 00:19:34.299 say, oh, can I give you something? Right? You serve them, right? That's, that's natural, 00:19:34.299 --> 00:19:40.779 right? If, if, if his Royal Highness King Charles showed up at your house, right? You, you would 00:19:40.779 --> 00:19:45.200 offer him a cup of tea, right? Uh, you wouldn't get your regular mug either. You'd probably go find 00:19:45.200 --> 00:19:49.539 the good one. Um, you might pull out the good tea set from the back of the cupboard that you never use, 00:19:49.720 --> 00:19:58.119 right? You would definitely serve him. If the King of the universe comes to your house and heals you 00:19:58.119 --> 00:20:04.220 from your sickness in a miraculous fashion, wouldn't you get out your best, bring them anything, 00:20:04.759 --> 00:20:10.980 do whatever you could to serve this person? I think you would, right? Your gratefulness 00:20:10.980 --> 00:20:13.159 compels you to serve. 00:20:16.019 --> 00:20:21.180 And Jesus, right? He doesn't just heal someone for them to feel good about themselves, right? He doesn't, 00:20:21.259 --> 00:20:26.099 he doesn't heal them to sit around and be pleased, right? If she sat there and she's like, oh, thanks, 00:20:26.200 --> 00:20:30.159 Jesus, and then just kind of waited for the next thing, would that be right? Would that, 00:20:30.160 --> 00:20:36.779 would that be what it is? He heals them so they can get back to doing what they were made to do, 00:20:36.840 --> 00:20:43.540 right? And it's the same with us. Jesus doesn't save us for us to be happy and content about it and 00:20:43.540 --> 00:20:50.560 just sit on our hands and enjoy the rest of our life. No, he saves us so that we might be with him. 00:20:50.840 --> 00:20:56.920 He saves us that we might become like him. He saves us so that we might start doing things that he does, 00:20:56.920 --> 00:21:02.759 right? Living in to the purpose that he created us for. Whatever that looks like, we don't know. We 00:21:02.759 --> 00:21:09.940 know what the Bible tells us we should do, and that's the point. You're saved not because just to 00:21:09.940 --> 00:21:15.560 sit around and be happy about it, but to go and serve him and tell people and do the things that 00:21:15.560 --> 00:21:21.600 he's made you to do. So there's four things, four things about Jesus that we see in Mark chapter one. 00:21:21.599 --> 00:21:29.719 I think that those are important things for us to know about this Jesus. It'll be important things 00:21:29.719 --> 00:21:35.019 for us to understand as we read the rest of Mark. I hope you wrote them down and you take that home 00:21:35.019 --> 00:21:40.459 with you, and I want to spend some time thinking about kind of another little piece that's in this 00:21:40.459 --> 00:21:45.519 that's a little more curious, something maybe when you first read it might make you sit up and say, 00:21:45.519 --> 00:21:52.039 that's a bit odd. I'm not really sure why Mark would say that. Do you know what I'm talking about? 00:21:52.680 --> 00:21:57.839 Have you picked up on it? Right? If you've fallen asleep, I'm sorry that I bored you to this point, but 00:21:57.839 --> 00:22:02.799 stand up, sit up. Don't stand up. You can stand up if you need to. Stand up and keep yourself awake, but 00:22:02.799 --> 00:22:08.740 look at Mark one. Open it back up and look at me, particularly at verses 32 to 34. 00:22:08.740 --> 00:22:38.720 It says, 00:22:38.740 --> 00:22:45.240 He wouldn't let the demons speak because they knew who he was. That part is a little surprising. 00:22:45.960 --> 00:22:52.200 I'm not really sure exactly what he's doing there, right? It's not that he just doesn't want them 00:22:52.200 --> 00:22:58.839 speaking. He doesn't want them to tell everyone who he was, right? Isn't that weird, right? Just a few 00:22:58.839 --> 00:23:04.819 verses earlier in verse 14, Jesus proclaims to the city that the time is fulfilled. The kingdom of God is 00:23:04.819 --> 00:23:11.500 at hand, right? He's actually saying, I'm here. Doesn't Jesus want people to know who he is? 00:23:12.740 --> 00:23:20.639 Isn't that exactly what he came for? So why is Mark telling us this, right? But look, it's not just 00:23:20.639 --> 00:23:26.539 here. It also happens in the passage we looked at last week. In verse 24, the demon cries out, 00:23:26.539 --> 00:23:31.599 What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? I know who you are, the Holy One of God. And what 00:23:31.599 --> 00:23:41.019 does Jesus say? Be quiet. And then later in that verse 45, a few verses later, he cleanses this 00:23:41.019 --> 00:23:50.180 leopard and Jesus sternly charges him, See that you say nothing to anyone. It's quite odd, isn't it? 00:23:50.180 --> 00:23:58.779 So back to Mark's direct and concise writing style. He doesn't include fluffy language. This 00:23:58.779 --> 00:24:04.799 isn't frivolous, you know, notes, right? He makes a concerted effort to only write things 00:24:04.799 --> 00:24:13.400 that carry weight and carry meaning. So we know that the inclusion of these bits in the narrative 00:24:13.400 --> 00:24:20.380 have purpose, right? Mark included them on purpose for us to understand something about 00:24:20.380 --> 00:24:28.080 what Jesus is doing here. But what is it saying? What is it meant to show us? See, I think what's 00:24:28.080 --> 00:24:34.240 happening here, Jesus is aware of it because he's saying it to these people. And I think Mark 00:24:34.240 --> 00:24:40.780 picks up on it, which is why he includes this bit, is that there's a great danger for these 00:24:40.779 --> 00:24:47.359 people. There's a danger that's lurking kind of underneath the surface here that Jesus is 00:24:47.359 --> 00:24:54.960 aware of and Mark picks up on. And this danger puts our eternal destination at risk. And it's 00:24:54.960 --> 00:25:02.359 so important that Jesus tells people to not talk. Don't do it. Because what we just looked 00:25:02.359 --> 00:25:06.980 at is Jesus has authority over sickness. He has authority over death. He has authority 00:25:06.980 --> 00:25:13.299 over demons. He has authority over Satan. He shows that he's able to heal sicknesses. He 00:25:13.299 --> 00:25:19.339 shows that he's able to drive out demons. He shows that he's able to deliver people from 00:25:19.339 --> 00:25:26.839 the things that confine them and control them. But he's careful because Jesus isn't looking 00:25:26.839 --> 00:25:37.159 for the people's praise for his healing or deliverance from their afflictions. Right? He still today 00:25:37.159 --> 00:25:44.439 has authority over sickness. He has authority over death, over demons, over Satan. Right? If 00:25:44.439 --> 00:25:48.039 you're sick here, he could look at you. He doesn't have to say a word. He doesn't have to do anything. 00:25:48.159 --> 00:25:54.779 You could be healed in a moment. He's able to heal them. He's able to drive out demons. 00:25:54.779 --> 00:26:00.319 He's still able to deliver you and me from the things that confine us and control us. 00:26:01.200 --> 00:26:09.579 But Jesus is still not looking for your praise or my praise for his healing of my body or the 00:26:09.579 --> 00:26:16.079 deliverance from that affliction. Say what? Do you know what? Everyone in this story, 00:26:16.960 --> 00:26:23.639 every one of the people that he healed from the whole town, the hospital was empty so that 00:26:23.640 --> 00:26:26.759 everyone was healed, guess what? They all eventually died. 00:26:30.060 --> 00:26:37.960 Here's the thing. If they were only healed of their bodily sickness, then it was all for nothing. 00:26:38.740 --> 00:26:39.440 Because they died. 00:26:41.400 --> 00:26:46.820 If everyone was freed, everyone who was freed from a demon in this story, guess what? They 00:26:46.819 --> 00:26:52.799 eventually died too. And if they were only freed from the clutches of a physical demon, then 00:26:52.799 --> 00:27:01.939 it was all for nothing. Don't get me wrong. There is nothing wrong with praying and yearning 00:27:01.939 --> 00:27:07.139 for physical healing. Right? We should pray for it. We should probably pray for it more than 00:27:07.140 --> 00:27:14.700 we do. There's nothing wrong with praying for deliverance from the clutches of sin and vice and 00:27:14.700 --> 00:27:20.380 addiction and depression and anxiety. We should pray for it. We should pray for it more than we do 00:27:20.380 --> 00:27:27.960 currently. So don't hear me saying that's not the point here. We should pray. But the danger that exists, 00:27:27.960 --> 00:27:35.480 like if you get healed, if you're delivered, you might think that that was your biggest problem. 00:27:37.059 --> 00:27:41.480 And you might believe that Jesus' greatest work was delivering you from that sickness. 00:27:43.039 --> 00:27:48.920 And the truth is, guys, it's not. You see, Jesus, we read about in the Bible, this Jesus that 00:27:48.920 --> 00:27:53.460 is in these verses of Mark, this Jesus that Mark is trying to show us, he is so much better 00:27:53.460 --> 00:27:59.880 than the one who can heal your body from sickness. He's so much better and has so much more for you 00:27:59.880 --> 00:28:05.920 than delivering you from some addiction or vice or sin that you can't quite get out of. Like, 00:28:06.039 --> 00:28:12.539 he can do those things. He will do those things. But he's better than that. Don't minimize him to just 00:28:12.539 --> 00:28:19.160 that. Jesus wants to heal you of your true and ultimate sickness. He wants to free you from what is 00:28:19.160 --> 00:28:26.300 truly and ultimately imprisoning you. Right? The truth is, we're all sick. We are all, every one of 00:28:26.300 --> 00:28:31.820 us, terminally sick. We've been ill with the debilitating disease of self-reliance. 00:28:33.500 --> 00:28:41.700 The truth is, we're imprisoned. We are all bound and tied with no hope of escape. We've been shackled 00:28:41.700 --> 00:28:49.519 with a demoralizing heavy chain of self-dependence. And Jesus knows that we can be free of those 00:28:49.519 --> 00:28:57.160 things. So he isn't content to heal our bodies. He isn't consent to free us just in a physical sense. 00:28:57.799 --> 00:29:04.759 Right? Jesus can heal our souls. And he can free us for eternity. And all we have to do is let him. 00:29:04.759 --> 00:29:12.700 Right? That's the gospel. So look, I don't know how you got here today. I don't know what you bring 00:29:12.700 --> 00:29:18.839 with you when you come into this room. Right? Maybe you are physically sick. Maybe you're dealing with 00:29:18.839 --> 00:29:25.379 something that is a disease or an ailment that you can't get better from. Maybe you love someone 00:29:25.379 --> 00:29:31.799 who is sick. And you are desperate, desperate to be well again or to have that person be well again. 00:29:31.799 --> 00:29:39.819 Right? I've seen God do amazing things and to heal people miraculously, just like in this story from 00:29:39.819 --> 00:29:48.619 Mark. And I will pray with you and we as a church will pray with you and ask him to do it. And we know 00:29:48.619 --> 00:29:56.759 because he has the authority over all of it that he can do it. And the thing is, he might do it. He might 00:29:56.759 --> 00:30:04.900 do it. And I pray that he does. But listen to this. Don't let the hope of that keep you from believing 00:30:04.900 --> 00:30:14.319 and knowing what he will do. He will heal your soul. He will adopt you into his family. He will give you 00:30:14.319 --> 00:30:20.900 a chance to live with him in eternity. And where, as we read earlier, there is no death. There is no 00:30:20.900 --> 00:30:27.160 sickness. There is no pain. There are no tears. Right? He will do that. There are people who didn't 00:30:27.160 --> 00:30:33.960 get healed of their body in the story. But he offered to each one of them the opportunity to be 00:30:33.960 --> 00:30:40.759 healed in eternity, to be with him forever. Right? And so maybe you're here today and you feel 00:30:40.759 --> 00:30:46.560 completely captured by something that you have no control over. Maybe you love someone who is. 00:30:46.559 --> 00:30:52.759 Right? And you're desperate to be freed from that thing. You're desperate for them to be freed 00:30:52.759 --> 00:30:59.960 from the suffering and the pain or the clutches of that sin or affliction that's holding you. 00:31:00.779 --> 00:31:07.539 Right? And I pray and we'll pray that we'll pray with you that God would set you free in this life. 00:31:08.099 --> 00:31:14.639 Right? And he might do it. He has the power to do it. But don't let the hope of that temporary freedom 00:31:14.640 --> 00:31:19.360 make you miss the hope that Jesus offers an eternal freedom from those things. 00:31:21.640 --> 00:31:28.700 Because he will do that. He's promised to do that. You can be freed forever. You can be adopted as his son. 00:31:28.840 --> 00:31:35.340 You can be adopted as his daughter. You can live in eternity beside him. There's no captivity. 00:31:35.840 --> 00:31:42.840 There is no slave. There is no prison. There's only freedom. There's only love and joy of the father 00:31:42.839 --> 00:31:50.859 and the son together with us forever. This is what Jesus offers and this is what Mark and Jesus are afraid 00:31:50.859 --> 00:31:57.419 that we might miss. So if you go tell about people now after I've just healed your body, 00:31:57.579 --> 00:32:02.599 that's going to be the thing that you tell them. You say, man, this guy can do miracles. He can make me 00:32:02.599 --> 00:32:09.099 better. He can fix that thing in you. And he can do that. And he might do that. He does it all the time. 00:32:09.099 --> 00:32:16.599 But he says, wait, wait, wait. Keep this healing stuff. Keep it quiet. Keep it to yourself. Why? 00:32:17.119 --> 00:32:22.719 Because I've got something better to show you. Just wait. I've got something greater to give you. 00:32:23.399 --> 00:32:35.740 And it will be worth it. Amen? Let's pray. Father in heaven, thank you so much for how you love us, 00:32:35.740 --> 00:32:42.079 how you show yourself to us. Lord, I pray that we would not miss who you are. 00:32:43.700 --> 00:32:48.420 We would not miss the goodness of your character for the goodness of your gifts. 00:32:49.339 --> 00:32:56.279 That the things that you can do for us would not overshadow the thing that you are to us. 00:32:56.279 --> 00:33:02.980 Lord, I pray that you are our Savior, our God, our King. And we can come to you and be with you forever. 00:33:03.440 --> 00:33:08.339 Lord, all we have to do is submit and trust you and follow you. 00:33:08.700 --> 00:33:17.099 Lord, I pray that we would. I pray that those who are afflicted with sickness or any sort of ailment 00:33:17.099 --> 00:33:20.379 that they are desperate to be free from, God, I pray for them now. 00:33:20.379 --> 00:33:23.819 Lord, would you see fit that you might do something in their lives? 00:33:23.819 --> 00:33:29.519 And Lord, even more than that, I pray that you would make yourself real and known to them. 00:33:31.159 --> 00:33:37.879 And that you have great purposes and plans for them that are wildly, amazingly more and beyond 00:33:37.879 --> 00:33:42.919 than a healthy body or free from something that holds them back. 00:33:44.079 --> 00:33:47.439 God, you are good and you want us to be with you. 00:33:47.960 --> 00:33:51.099 Thank you, Lord, for being that. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. 00:33:51.099 --> 00:33:51.159 Amen.