WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.480 Good morning. My name is Matthew Capone, and I'm the pastor here at Cheyenne Mountain 00:00:07.480 --> 00:00:14.460 Presbyterian Church. And it's my joy to bring God's word to you today. A special welcome if 00:00:14.460 --> 00:00:19.260 you're new or visiting with us. We're glad that you're here, and we're glad that you're here not 00:00:19.260 --> 00:00:24.800 because we're trying to fill seats, but because we're following Jesus together as one community. 00:00:24.800 --> 00:00:29.900 And as we follow Jesus together, we become convinced there's no one so good. They don't 00:00:29.899 --> 00:00:35.359 need God's grace, and no one so bad that they can't have it, which is why we come back week 00:00:35.359 --> 00:00:42.179 after week to hear what God has to say to us in his word. We're continuing our series in the gospel 00:00:42.179 --> 00:00:47.619 of Mark. You'll remember that the gospels tell the story of Jesus in his life, in his death, 00:00:48.000 --> 00:00:53.039 in his resurrection. And as we began the gospel in chapters one through eight, we were asking these 00:00:53.039 --> 00:00:58.599 two questions, who is Jesus and how do we respond to him? Peter gives the definitive answer to that 00:00:58.600 --> 00:01:03.320 in the middle of chapter eight, where he finally confesses Jesus as the Christ, the one who fulfills 00:01:03.320 --> 00:01:09.120 all the promises of the Old Testament. And so now in this second half of Mark, in Mark chapters nine 00:01:09.120 --> 00:01:15.760 through 16, we're instead looking at this question of what it means to follow after Jesus. And what we've 00:01:15.760 --> 00:01:22.659 seen over the last few weeks is the great sacrifice that's involved. We're going to continue that theme 00:01:22.659 --> 00:01:31.759 this morning as Jesus outlines for us how serious our battle against sin is, that we need to do no 00:01:31.759 --> 00:01:40.019 matter what to put it to death. And so with that, I'm going to invite you to turn with me to Mark 00:01:40.019 --> 00:01:45.079 chapter nine. By the way, as we begin, let me make one note. You'll notice that there are two verses 00:01:45.079 --> 00:01:52.000 missing. There's no listing for verse 44 and no listing for verse 46. This is not some sort of conspiracy. 00:01:52.000 --> 00:01:58.480 If you have an English standard version Bible, you'll see a note that says this, some manuscripts 00:01:58.480 --> 00:02:05.640 add verses 44 and 46, which are identical with verse 48. So if you want to know what those two verses 00:02:05.640 --> 00:02:11.139 said, just read verse 48. The translators of the ESV removed those, assuming that it was, I believe, a 00:02:11.139 --> 00:02:18.139 scribal error, most likely. So probably some other explanations as well. With that, I invite you to turn with 00:02:18.139 --> 00:02:25.759 me to Mark chapter nine, starting at verse 42. You can turn in your worship guide. You can turn in your 00:02:25.759 --> 00:02:31.500 Bible. You can turn on your phone. No matter where you turn, remember that this is God's word. God tells 00:02:31.500 --> 00:02:37.299 us that his word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path, which means that he has not left us to 00:02:37.299 --> 00:02:43.239 stumble alone in the dark, but instead he's given us his word to show us the way to go. And so that's why we 00:02:43.240 --> 00:03:13.219 read now starting at verse 43. 00:03:13.219 --> 00:03:23.400 It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell. 00:03:24.219 --> 00:03:32.860 Verse 48, where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched, for everyone will be salted 00:03:32.860 --> 00:03:41.280 with fire. Salt is good, but if the salt has lost its saltiness, how will you make it salty again? 00:03:41.280 --> 00:03:49.340 Have salt in yourselves and be at peace with one another. I invite you to pray with me as we come 00:03:49.340 --> 00:03:57.840 to this portion of God's word. Our Father in heaven, we thank you again that you feed us day by day and 00:03:57.840 --> 00:04:05.520 week by week with your word. You don't leave us to wonder or guess how we're supposed to live, 00:04:05.520 --> 00:04:13.420 but instead you show us the right path. You show us the way to go. Most of all, you show us your grace in Jesus Christ 00:04:13.420 --> 00:04:16.240 that when we falter and stumble and fail in sin, 00:04:16.900 --> 00:04:18.860 your grace is there to meet us. 00:04:19.519 --> 00:04:23.120 We ask that you would show us both of those things this morning, that you would show us 00:04:23.120 --> 00:04:27.360 the path that you have for us and the grace that you offer us in Jesus Christ. 00:04:27.360 --> 00:04:31.160 We ask all of these things in his name. Amen. 00:04:35.220 --> 00:04:41.460 In his autobiography, About Faith, the great army legend, Colonel David Hackworth, 00:04:42.080 --> 00:04:46.960 tells about his time in the military through several wars. And if you're familiar with David Hackworth, 00:04:47.060 --> 00:04:52.939 you know he's famous most of all for publicly opposing the Vietnam War on television. 00:04:52.939 --> 00:04:59.839 His career was not always that exciting, though. At one point, he was stationed at a U.S. Army hotel 00:04:59.839 --> 00:05:05.680 in Nuremberg, and he was losing his mind out of boredom, believing his gifts were not being used 00:05:05.680 --> 00:05:11.459 as much as they could be. But he makes some friends during this time, and one of his friends, 00:05:11.819 --> 00:05:16.100 who he's especially close to, one day makes an interesting request of him. He says, 00:05:16.100 --> 00:05:22.740 I really want you to help me out by getting me an army hat so that I can give that hat to my nephew. 00:05:22.740 --> 00:05:28.160 It would just mean the world to this nephew if he could have an army hat. 00:05:29.620 --> 00:05:36.200 Hackworth immediately forgets about the hat and does not get it. And so this friend comes back again 00:05:36.200 --> 00:05:41.520 and reminds him, remember I told you about the hat that I wanted. By the way, you know what my nephew 00:05:41.519 --> 00:05:50.240 would also love, he would love an army jacket. If you could get him a hat and a jacket, it would mean 00:05:50.240 --> 00:05:56.319 the world to him. What does Hackworth do at this point? He immediately reports this man to the 00:05:56.319 --> 00:06:02.759 counterintelligence corps and becomes his handler. And so for the next few months, he's spending tons 00:06:02.759 --> 00:06:07.919 of time with this man, traveling with him, trying to find out as much information as he can. At one point, 00:06:07.920 --> 00:06:13.280 he turns up the thermostat in his house to an unbearable level to force this man to take his 00:06:13.280 --> 00:06:21.220 jacket off so he can grab his passport. So they don't know for sure that this man is a spy, but 00:06:21.220 --> 00:06:26.980 they do their best to find out. And the requests actually continue to increase. So next, he asks 00:06:26.980 --> 00:06:33.660 Hackworth for a gas mask because he just wants to see what the new army gas masks look like. And then 00:06:33.660 --> 00:06:39.200 he wants books on atomic warfare. And so the counterintelligence continue to feed him these 00:06:39.200 --> 00:06:45.080 items so that he can give them to this man. Their suspicions eventually confirmed. He's arrested 00:06:45.080 --> 00:06:52.520 for buying secret documents at a train station. He's found guilty of spying on behalf of East Germany. 00:06:52.520 --> 00:06:58.560 And so it becomes clear that this man was a spy for the communists. The question is this, 00:06:58.560 --> 00:07:06.439 what tipped David Hackworth off? How did he know this man was a communist spy? Well, the reason he 00:07:06.439 --> 00:07:12.980 knew he was a communist spy is he remembered his training, the basic tactics of espionage. If you 00:07:12.980 --> 00:07:20.120 are trying to recruit an asset, what you do is you start with a small, seemingly harmless request. 00:07:21.279 --> 00:07:25.939 Technically against the regulations for David to give him this army cap, but who is it going to hurt, 00:07:25.939 --> 00:07:31.319 right? And then you move on from the army cap and you move to the field jacket. And after you've 00:07:31.319 --> 00:07:36.839 acquired that, you then ask for the gas mask. And the goal is to get this point, this person to the 00:07:36.839 --> 00:07:43.980 point where they are so compromised, they cannot get out. Their hands are tied at this point. You start 00:07:43.980 --> 00:07:51.699 with a small, minor infraction and you grow. You move towards greater, larger infractions until you can 00:07:51.699 --> 00:08:01.599 get them to the point of no return. Brothers and sisters, Satan, our enemy, is the master of 00:08:01.599 --> 00:08:10.699 espionage and asset recruitment. He has been doing it longer than anyone else. John chapter 8 tells us 00:08:10.699 --> 00:08:19.259 that the devil is a liar and the father of lies. The point is this, small compromises lead to great 00:08:19.259 --> 00:08:28.819 compromises. It is tempting to play around with sin. Satan knows it's easier to get you to do something 00:08:28.819 --> 00:08:34.299 small than to do something large. And yet the problem is that sin has this trajectory to it. It has an 00:08:34.299 --> 00:08:42.980 escalation to it that while it might start tiny, it never stays there. And so this passage is telling us 00:08:42.980 --> 00:08:52.000 this morning the importance of making no compromises with sin. It is critical to kill sin now before it 00:08:52.000 --> 00:08:59.720 is too late. And so that's why we see the repetition twice of this phrase in verses 43 and 45 to cut it 00:08:59.720 --> 00:09:10.480 off. Verse 47, to tear it out. In other words, deal with sin at the very root. Do whatever you need to do, 00:09:10.480 --> 00:09:17.879 no matter how radical and sacrificial, to make sure sin does not gain this foothold in your life. 00:09:18.899 --> 00:09:24.240 Now, I want to say at this point, I hope that it is obvious for all of us that Jesus is speaking in 00:09:24.240 --> 00:09:33.680 hyperbole. My application today is not to go home and rip out your eye. In fact, even if you did that, 00:09:33.720 --> 00:09:38.759 it would not solve your problem. Remember what Jesus teaches in the Sermon on the Mount, that sin is a 00:09:38.759 --> 00:09:44.779 matter of the heart. And so actually getting rid of these objects is not going to solve your problem. 00:09:44.879 --> 00:09:51.159 Your problem is greater and larger and more difficult than that. The point is that Jesus is 00:09:51.159 --> 00:09:59.120 telling people to completely eliminate the cause, the enabler, the temptation to sin. There is a painful, 00:09:59.299 --> 00:10:06.439 a decisive cutting out of whatever would cause us to walk away from God and towards sin. 00:10:06.440 --> 00:10:12.660 Now, commentators have pointed out the reason that Jesus focuses on the foot here is that that's the 00:10:12.660 --> 00:10:19.220 thing that can take us to a place where we can sin. And yet in today's culture, we don't have to leave 00:10:19.220 --> 00:10:26.460 our house to be presented with all kinds of temptations to sin. There's all sorts of options 00:10:26.460 --> 00:10:33.840 and opportunities. And so for us, cutting out sin at the root could involve a variety of things. 00:10:33.840 --> 00:10:42.040 I had a friend at one point, because of this verse, he decided he was no longer going to have 00:10:42.040 --> 00:10:50.300 internet access at his house. He had no cable internet. The only way he could access the internet 00:10:50.300 --> 00:10:55.360 was to go to a library or a public place. Now think about all the sacrifices you would have to make at 00:10:55.360 --> 00:11:01.139 that point. You wouldn't be able to watch any of your streaming shows. You wouldn't be able to look up 00:11:01.139 --> 00:11:09.120 something quickly that you had a question about. And putting sin to death was more valuable than all 00:11:09.120 --> 00:11:16.139 of those things. Cutting out your eye might look like throwing away your smartphone and replacing it 00:11:16.139 --> 00:11:22.080 with a dumb phone, regardless of all the awkward conversations you might have afterwards. 00:11:23.240 --> 00:11:29.779 It might mean you completely stop watching a particular show that confronts you with temptations 00:11:29.779 --> 00:11:35.339 over and over again. Can you not stop posting foolish comments on Facebook? 00:11:36.939 --> 00:11:39.899 Cutting off your hand might mean deleting your account. 00:11:41.039 --> 00:11:45.279 Having a friend change your password so you can never access it again. 00:11:46.339 --> 00:11:51.459 Of course, not all the challenges to sin that we face in this life are related to technology. 00:11:51.460 --> 00:12:00.420 You find yourself drawn and attracted and maybe even flirting with someone you are not married to. 00:12:01.560 --> 00:12:03.759 And you also have a spouse. 00:12:05.460 --> 00:12:10.840 Cutting off your hand might mean you don't go where they go anymore. 00:12:11.580 --> 00:12:17.480 You stop going to that coffee shop or that club even though it's your favorite spot. 00:12:17.480 --> 00:12:25.279 It might mean you eventually have to quit that job and find another or move on to another team. 00:12:26.180 --> 00:12:34.759 Whatever it takes to eliminate that temptation from your life, no matter how challenging and difficult it is. 00:12:34.759 --> 00:12:41.960 If your finances are out of control, you may have to finally listen to the immortal words of Dave Ramsey 00:12:41.960 --> 00:12:44.379 and cut up your credit card 00:12:44.379 --> 00:12:49.319 and figure out how are you going to survive in this world without it. 00:12:50.679 --> 00:12:55.600 Jesus is calling here for radical and decisive action. 00:12:55.600 --> 00:13:00.440 To do whatever it takes to be done with sin. 00:13:01.480 --> 00:13:07.040 Maybe you had a couple drinks and you shared information that was not yours to share. 00:13:08.560 --> 00:13:15.040 Cutting out sin might be realizing you have to take a break from alcohol 00:13:15.040 --> 00:13:21.320 because you don't want to violate one of your friends like that again. 00:13:21.320 --> 00:13:25.760 The wise person does not say, 00:13:26.480 --> 00:13:28.220 I can handle this temptation. 00:13:28.400 --> 00:13:29.000 It's okay. 00:13:30.060 --> 00:13:34.500 The wise person stays away entirely. 00:13:35.600 --> 00:13:38.100 The wise person does not lie to himself and say, 00:13:38.180 --> 00:13:39.100 you know what, it's not a big deal. 00:13:39.200 --> 00:13:40.340 I can deal with it. 00:13:40.340 --> 00:13:41.040 I can handle it. 00:13:41.080 --> 00:13:44.200 No, he finds a way to be removed from that temptation. 00:13:44.200 --> 00:13:52.340 Now, why is it that we need to be so dramatic, so decisive in our war with sin? 00:13:52.460 --> 00:13:59.280 Well, Jesus tells us here that the severity of the solution reveals the seriousness of the problem. 00:13:59.720 --> 00:14:04.320 The severity of this solution reveals the seriousness of this problem. 00:14:04.320 --> 00:14:07.320 And we see that seriousness in verse 43. 00:14:07.620 --> 00:14:10.020 What is going to happen if you don't do this? 00:14:10.019 --> 00:14:18.079 Well, you could go with two hands to hell to the unquenchable fire. 00:14:19.319 --> 00:14:22.379 Different words are used in verses 46 and 47. 00:14:22.600 --> 00:14:26.559 Twice we hear about being thrown into hell. 00:14:28.220 --> 00:14:35.740 Sin often appears cute and harmless until the day it kills you. 00:14:35.740 --> 00:14:41.720 Sin often appears cute and harmless until the moment it kills you. 00:14:41.820 --> 00:14:45.299 And Jesus here is telling us what we already know from Romans chapter 6, 00:14:45.720 --> 00:14:47.460 that the wages of sin is death, 00:14:47.600 --> 00:14:51.620 but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. 00:14:52.240 --> 00:14:56.720 This passage gives us a picture of what hell looks like in verse 48, 00:14:56.899 --> 00:15:00.100 where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched. 00:15:00.100 --> 00:15:03.320 This is a picture that comes from Isaiah chapter 66, 00:15:03.639 --> 00:15:05.639 which Scott read earlier this morning, 00:15:05.720 --> 00:15:09.460 and it's a picture of the ultimate end of people who reject God. 00:15:09.980 --> 00:15:11.639 It is unending. 00:15:13.100 --> 00:15:15.019 The fire goes on forever. 00:15:15.720 --> 00:15:18.800 It is a place of death and decay and destruction. 00:15:19.240 --> 00:15:20.600 That's why worms are there. 00:15:21.300 --> 00:15:25.200 Worms show up where things are nasty and decomposing. 00:15:25.200 --> 00:15:29.040 And so we're coming up face to face this morning 00:15:29.040 --> 00:15:34.140 with one of the most challenging and offensive teachings of the Bible 00:15:34.140 --> 00:15:36.280 is that when you are a person in this world, 00:15:36.360 --> 00:15:39.820 there are two and only two destinations for you. 00:15:40.080 --> 00:15:44.040 You can either, verses 43 and 45, enter life. 00:15:44.820 --> 00:15:48.200 Verse 47, enter the kingdom of God. 00:15:49.020 --> 00:15:51.460 Or you can be thrown into hell. 00:15:51.460 --> 00:15:55.900 Those are the only options. 00:15:57.980 --> 00:16:04.280 And so the severity of the solution reveals the seriousness of the problem. 00:16:04.480 --> 00:16:07.700 Why is it that we need to be so decisive in dealing with sin? 00:16:07.780 --> 00:16:13.660 Because no matter what, we want to enter the kingdom of God. 00:16:14.980 --> 00:16:19.200 Nothing is more worthwhile and precious. 00:16:19.200 --> 00:16:24.820 There is nothing that is worth holding on to outside of that kingdom. 00:16:26.259 --> 00:16:29.780 And so we do whatever it takes. 00:16:30.780 --> 00:16:35.100 This passage is reminding us that we can play with sin for a time. 00:16:35.420 --> 00:16:37.980 We cannot play with it forever. 00:16:37.980 --> 00:16:45.659 The book Death in Yellowstone chronicles all the different ways 00:16:45.659 --> 00:16:50.180 that people have died in one of our favorite national parks. 00:16:50.700 --> 00:16:54.779 And there's a whole chapter dedicated to death by bears. 00:16:55.600 --> 00:16:59.680 And in this chapter, we hear the story of a woman in the 1930s 00:16:59.680 --> 00:17:02.440 who made friends with a bear in the park. 00:17:02.440 --> 00:17:07.640 And she was warned repeatedly by the rangers to stop feeding the bears. 00:17:08.660 --> 00:17:10.680 Now, she had great success feeding the bears. 00:17:11.000 --> 00:17:13.820 And so she flouted the park regulations. 00:17:14.039 --> 00:17:18.160 And one day, she was showing off to new visitors in the park the trick that she had. 00:17:18.220 --> 00:17:20.080 She would feed this bear candy. 00:17:20.180 --> 00:17:23.039 And they had a special relationship with one another. 00:17:24.180 --> 00:17:27.559 Except this time, things ended a bit differently for her. 00:17:27.559 --> 00:17:31.099 She eventually became tired of feeding candy to the bear. 00:17:31.759 --> 00:17:34.480 And so she told the bear, you know, this session is over. 00:17:34.559 --> 00:17:35.599 It's time for you to go away. 00:17:37.460 --> 00:17:40.339 Well, that bear was up on his hind legs. 00:17:40.659 --> 00:17:42.339 And so we're told this. 00:17:42.419 --> 00:17:44.639 As the bear dropped down on all fours, 00:17:45.539 --> 00:17:47.720 he put out his front feet toward her, 00:17:48.279 --> 00:17:52.960 much as he would to a tree or any other convenient object to ease his descent. 00:17:52.960 --> 00:17:57.799 The woman screamed as his paws touched her shoulders. 00:17:58.880 --> 00:18:02.019 His claws, sharp as knives, seeking support, 00:18:02.840 --> 00:18:04.740 ripped through her clothing and skin. 00:18:05.819 --> 00:18:09.660 They tore deep cuts a foot long across her breasts, 00:18:09.840 --> 00:18:11.180 and blood spurted from them. 00:18:11.860 --> 00:18:13.200 The woman fainted. 00:18:14.140 --> 00:18:18.480 The bear backed away and disappeared in the pandemonium that ensued. 00:18:20.880 --> 00:18:21.880 Feeding bears. 00:18:22.960 --> 00:18:24.960 Feeding bears. 00:18:25.039 --> 00:18:25.860 Feeding bears. 00:18:25.860 --> 00:18:26.440 Feeding bears. 00:18:26.440 --> 00:18:27.079 Feeding bears. 00:18:29.019 --> 00:18:43.200 Playing around with sin is all fun and games until the day you die. 00:18:43.200 --> 00:18:48.779 Turn back now before it's too late. 00:18:48.779 --> 00:18:56.799 Cut it off now while you still have time. 00:18:59.539 --> 00:19:03.220 You can play with sin for a time. 00:19:03.500 --> 00:19:06.279 You cannot play with sin forever. 00:19:10.539 --> 00:19:14.279 Jesus gives a severe warning here. 00:19:14.279 --> 00:19:17.079 And so one question we might have is, where is the grace? 00:19:17.980 --> 00:19:20.919 Where is the gospel in the midst of all of this? 00:19:21.000 --> 00:19:25.439 Well, the grace in this shows up not once, not twice, but three times. 00:19:25.960 --> 00:19:31.559 We see this word in verses 43, 45, and 47, the word if. 00:19:32.699 --> 00:19:36.939 If your eye, your hand, your foot causes you to sin. 00:19:37.000 --> 00:19:41.679 In other words, Jesus is talking about what to do after you've fallen into sin. 00:19:41.679 --> 00:19:45.539 The assumption here is that you have already failed. 00:19:45.539 --> 00:19:48.500 You have already rebelled against God. 00:19:48.980 --> 00:19:54.200 And he offers this, saying, run away now from sin. 00:19:54.279 --> 00:19:59.759 In other words, there is an opportunity to escape the punishment for sin. 00:19:59.920 --> 00:20:05.599 If you look back on your life and you see the ways in which you've fallen short, there is still hope. 00:20:05.599 --> 00:20:17.319 The good news of the gospel is that while you live and breathe in this life, no matter what you have done in the past, there is still hope. 00:20:18.519 --> 00:20:22.359 There is still a future for you. 00:20:22.359 --> 00:20:30.899 You may have gotten so far in your sin in this life that you cannot escape earthly consequences. 00:20:30.900 --> 00:20:38.500 You have not gotten so far in your sin in this life that you have gotten so far in this life that you cannot escape eternal consequences. 00:20:39.780 --> 00:20:43.460 You may serve a prison sentence. 00:20:44.000 --> 00:20:48.140 And while you live and breathe, God's grace is still offered to you. 00:20:48.140 --> 00:20:55.440 There is always a chance and an opportunity to run away from sin. 00:20:57.440 --> 00:21:04.520 And no one knows the day or the hour of her own death. 00:21:06.460 --> 00:21:09.100 Turn away now. 00:21:09.099 --> 00:21:13.859 There is serious judgment in this passage. 00:21:14.039 --> 00:21:16.459 There is also serious grace. 00:21:18.240 --> 00:21:21.500 God doesn't leave us without power or motivation. 00:21:21.659 --> 00:21:25.359 The power in this passage is the vision and picture of the future. 00:21:25.539 --> 00:21:29.939 That God tells us the reward that waits for us. 00:21:30.619 --> 00:21:35.379 That we run away from sin because we know we're running to heaven. 00:21:35.380 --> 00:21:40.880 We run away from sin because we know we're running away from heaven. 00:21:43.320 --> 00:21:46.900 Jesus then gives another picture in verse 49. 00:21:47.200 --> 00:21:51.560 We have this interesting phrase about salt and fire, which is a strange combination. 00:21:52.080 --> 00:21:56.640 The place where we see those combined is with the sacrifices of the Old Testament. 00:21:57.100 --> 00:22:04.600 In the books of Leviticus and Ezra and Ezekiel, salt and fire are things that both happen to something that's sacrificed to God. 00:22:04.599 --> 00:22:12.980 And so Jesus here is saying, look, life following me is going to be life offered as a sacrifice. 00:22:14.119 --> 00:22:17.199 Life following me is going to be life offered as a sacrifice. 00:22:17.359 --> 00:22:20.279 It's going to be life that involves fire and suffering. 00:22:22.459 --> 00:22:26.779 Cutting temptation out of your life is part of that suffering now. 00:22:26.779 --> 00:22:34.359 In other words, Jesus is saying, you can burn now or you can burn later. 00:22:36.160 --> 00:22:37.440 You choose. 00:22:38.740 --> 00:22:41.460 Choose suffering now, choose suffering later. 00:22:41.559 --> 00:22:42.740 You can't escape suffering. 00:22:43.619 --> 00:22:47.539 You just choose whether it's going to be the suffering from cutting off your hand 00:22:47.539 --> 00:22:50.639 or it's going to be the suffering from burning in hell. 00:22:50.640 --> 00:22:56.380 Let your life instead be offered as a sacrifice to God. 00:22:56.500 --> 00:23:00.880 Experience the suffering that comes from putting sin to death in this life 00:23:00.880 --> 00:23:03.960 so that you can have life with God eternally. 00:23:06.920 --> 00:23:11.020 Finally, Jesus here adds one other reason for our obedience. 00:23:11.320 --> 00:23:14.600 It is not just to avoid eternal destruction. 00:23:14.599 --> 00:23:20.139 Jesus tells us in this very last verse, in verse 50, 00:23:20.879 --> 00:23:25.679 that as we put sin to death, we're actually acting as a preservative in the world. 00:23:26.659 --> 00:23:29.539 He says, salt is good, but if the salt has lost its saltiness, 00:23:29.659 --> 00:23:31.939 how will you make it salty again? 00:23:32.059 --> 00:23:35.079 Have salt in yourselves and be at peace with one another. 00:23:35.179 --> 00:23:38.539 And Jesus is drawing on the same imagery that he used in the Sermon on the Mount 00:23:38.539 --> 00:23:44.200 in Matthew chapter 5, that Christians serve as a preserving power in society, 00:23:44.279 --> 00:23:45.980 that they're like salt on meat. 00:23:46.319 --> 00:23:49.980 A little bit will keep something from going bad. 00:23:50.079 --> 00:23:55.779 Just a little bit will hold back the world from being what it could be. 00:23:55.859 --> 00:23:58.259 In other words, you are burned, you're changed, 00:23:58.399 --> 00:24:02.299 you're a sacrifice so that you can change. 00:24:03.200 --> 00:24:07.379 Why is it that hot dog buns never mold? 00:24:08.539 --> 00:24:11.980 Because they're filled with preservatives. 00:24:13.099 --> 00:24:19.700 Why is this world not as wicked and far gone as it could be? 00:24:20.519 --> 00:24:24.299 Because the church is holding back that chaos. 00:24:24.899 --> 00:24:31.359 God is using the holiness of his people as salt to preserve this world. 00:24:32.379 --> 00:24:36.599 We cut off sin to protect and save ourselves. 00:24:36.599 --> 00:24:44.480 We cut off sin to preserve and hold this world together. 00:24:45.959 --> 00:24:49.539 On the back of your worship guide, you'll see a few quotes. 00:24:50.619 --> 00:24:56.799 And one of them talks about the preserving influence of just a small number of people. 00:24:56.899 --> 00:24:59.119 The second quote, we're told this, 00:24:59.119 --> 00:25:04.559 When Christians live a life that's pleasing to God, 00:25:04.559 --> 00:25:07.139 have a palpable effect on the way life is lived, 00:25:07.539 --> 00:25:10.279 when their numbers reach at least 5 to 10 percent, 00:25:10.819 --> 00:25:12.940 and when the members are active in public life. 00:25:13.440 --> 00:25:18.759 I have heard it said that when the number of prison inmates following Christ reaches 10 percent, 00:25:19.000 --> 00:25:23.179 the very culture and corporate life of the prison changes. 00:25:23.180 --> 00:25:29.420 When Christians live a life that's pleasing to God, 00:25:29.519 --> 00:25:32.539 even as they're a minority in the world around them, 00:25:32.940 --> 00:25:37.680 the very culture and corporate life of our society changes. 00:25:37.680 --> 00:25:46.940 So Jesus is saying, preserve yourself and preserve this world. 00:25:48.240 --> 00:25:52.000 Preserve yourself and preserve this world. 00:25:54.820 --> 00:25:58.180 Near the end of chapter 8 in the Gospel of Mark, 00:25:58.240 --> 00:26:03.080 I told you a story about a woman named Zane Asher, 00:26:03.160 --> 00:26:05.799 who's currently a news anchor with CNN National. 00:26:05.799 --> 00:26:08.680 She had written her autobiography, which came out this year, 00:26:08.759 --> 00:26:10.279 called Where the Children Take Us. 00:26:10.940 --> 00:26:15.279 And you may remember that it tells this unlikely story of her being raised by her mom, 00:26:15.339 --> 00:26:19.419 who was also a widow, an immigrant from Nigeria in South London. 00:26:20.139 --> 00:26:24.619 And against all odds, Zane goes to attend Oxford and then will work for CNN, 00:26:25.279 --> 00:26:28.579 much of it because of her mom's vision that she would attend that school. 00:26:28.779 --> 00:26:32.599 So last time I told you the story of how whenever she would misbehave, 00:26:32.599 --> 00:26:37.779 her mom would take her to tour Oxford so she could remember her vision for the future, 00:26:38.059 --> 00:26:40.879 and that would be what motivated her in the present. 00:26:41.919 --> 00:26:48.699 Now, that wasn't necessarily always enough for Zane to stay on the straight and narrow path. 00:26:50.259 --> 00:26:54.799 And so her mother, realizing the hard work that it would take to get into Oxford, 00:26:54.799 --> 00:26:58.299 the effort that it would require from Zane, told her, 00:26:59.339 --> 00:27:06.539 you can't watch any more TV until your Oxford acceptance letter is in your hands. 00:27:08.000 --> 00:27:09.099 No more TV. 00:27:10.180 --> 00:27:14.139 Now, Zane didn't have a problem with this because her mother, as a single mother, 00:27:14.259 --> 00:27:15.599 was often out working. 00:27:16.119 --> 00:27:20.619 And so Zane just figured out she would watch TV around her mom's work schedule. 00:27:20.619 --> 00:27:25.759 As her mom's car returned from work, she would quickly turn it off and go back to her studying. 00:27:26.699 --> 00:27:30.879 Until one day, she became so engrossed in the television show 00:27:30.879 --> 00:27:35.879 that she did not hear her mom coming in, and she was finally busted. 00:27:37.000 --> 00:27:38.899 Her mom, very stern, said, 00:27:39.219 --> 00:27:41.859 this won't be happening again. 00:27:43.579 --> 00:27:46.619 The next day, Zane's mom left again for work, 00:27:46.659 --> 00:27:48.000 and Zane did what she always did. 00:27:48.000 --> 00:27:50.660 She went back to go and turn on the TV. 00:27:51.099 --> 00:27:55.440 The only problem was, for some reason, the TV would not work for her. 00:27:56.299 --> 00:28:00.019 She tried multiple times to get it on until she investigated 00:28:00.019 --> 00:28:04.000 and found the power cord lying behind it, 00:28:04.640 --> 00:28:07.240 cut into two pieces. 00:28:09.359 --> 00:28:10.740 And she says this, 00:28:10.740 --> 00:28:32.120 Brothers and sisters, Christians operate under a different code. 00:28:32.119 --> 00:28:36.199 The code of God's people in which long-term success, 00:28:36.679 --> 00:28:41.500 even survival, often requires serious short-term pain. 00:28:42.539 --> 00:28:46.879 It is time to cut the cord on sin. 00:28:46.880 --> 00:28:52.920 And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. 00:28:53.380 --> 00:28:57.400 It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye 00:28:57.400 --> 00:28:59.980 than with two eyes to be thrown into hell, 00:29:00.220 --> 00:29:02.020 where their worm does not die, 00:29:02.540 --> 00:29:05.900 and the fire is not quenched. 00:29:06.640 --> 00:29:07.320 Let's pray. 00:29:07.319 --> 00:29:13.220 Our Father in heaven, we thank you that you're not afraid 00:29:13.220 --> 00:29:16.159 to speak hard words to us, 00:29:16.319 --> 00:29:20.059 but like a loving Father, you discipline us and you teach us. 00:29:20.619 --> 00:29:24.240 We ask that you would drive this warning deep into our hearts, 00:29:24.299 --> 00:29:26.179 that we would embrace your grace, 00:29:26.679 --> 00:29:28.879 that we would run away from sin, 00:29:28.960 --> 00:29:30.599 and we would run towards you. 00:29:31.259 --> 00:29:33.759 We confess this morning that we don't have the power 00:29:33.759 --> 00:29:35.539 or the ability to do that by ourselves, 00:29:35.640 --> 00:29:37.740 and so we ask that you would send your spirit 00:29:37.740 --> 00:29:39.220 to be at work in our hearts, 00:29:40.059 --> 00:29:41.500 softening them towards you, 00:29:42.180 --> 00:29:45.460 growing our love for what is right and true more and more. 00:29:46.799 --> 00:29:48.660 We thank you that we don't have to worry 00:29:48.660 --> 00:29:50.859 about whether we've earned or deserve these things, 00:29:50.900 --> 00:29:53.940 but instead we ask them in the mighty name of Jesus Christ. 00:29:54.319 --> 00:29:54.559 Amen. 00:29:56.559 --> 00:29:58.740 I invite you to stand for our closing hymn.