WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:08.660 Our reading this morning is from Mark 1, verses 35 to 45. 00:00:09.160 --> 00:00:12.939 We're on page 1003 in the Church Bibles. 00:00:15.519 --> 00:00:23.980 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went off to a solitary place where he prayed. 00:00:23.980 --> 00:00:29.719 Simon and his companions went to look for him, and when they found him, they exclaimed, 00:00:29.880 --> 00:00:31.420 Everyone is looking for you. 00:00:32.359 --> 00:00:38.060 Jesus replied, Let us go somewhere else, to the nearby villages, so that I can preach there also. 00:00:38.740 --> 00:00:40.120 That is why I have come. 00:00:41.120 --> 00:00:45.179 So he traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons. 00:00:46.400 --> 00:00:49.579 A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, 00:00:49.579 --> 00:00:52.359 If you are willing, you can make me clean. 00:00:52.359 --> 00:00:54.560 Jesus was indignant. 00:00:55.200 --> 00:00:57.299 He reached out his hand and touched the man. 00:00:57.859 --> 00:00:59.039 I am willing, he said. 00:00:59.320 --> 00:00:59.979 Be clean. 00:01:00.899 --> 00:01:04.200 Immediately, the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed. 00:01:05.039 --> 00:01:09.439 Jesus sent him away at once with a strong warning. 00:01:10.000 --> 00:01:14.500 See that you don't tell this to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest, 00:01:14.500 --> 00:01:19.939 and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing as a testimony to them. 00:01:19.939 --> 00:01:24.859 Instead, he went out and began to talk freely, spreading the news. 00:01:25.340 --> 00:01:31.019 As a result, Jesus could no longer enter a town openly, but stayed outside in lonely places. 00:01:31.239 --> 00:01:34.099 Yet, the people still came to him from everywhere. 00:01:34.099 --> 00:01:35.319 That's great. 00:01:35.399 --> 00:01:36.179 Thank you, Natasha. 00:01:36.299 --> 00:01:37.579 Keep your Bible open. 00:01:37.739 --> 00:01:43.019 We're going to be working our way through that passage together this morning. 00:01:43.019 --> 00:01:45.479 And let me pray as we come to God's word. 00:01:45.539 --> 00:01:45.939 Let me pray. 00:01:45.939 --> 00:01:45.939 00:01:45.939 --> 00:02:00.019 Heavenly Father, we pray now as we come to your word that you might still our hearts. 00:02:01.959 --> 00:02:09.379 There's lots of hustle and bustle in our morning service, and it's great because we love the fact there are lots of people here and lots of children running around. 00:02:09.379 --> 00:02:11.759 And we're grateful to you for all of those things. 00:02:13.319 --> 00:02:17.979 But we want now to listen carefully to your word to us. 00:02:18.859 --> 00:02:21.699 We want to make the most of this opportunity that we have. 00:02:22.359 --> 00:02:27.359 We want to pray for your blessing and your help for me as I speak, all of us as we listen. 00:02:28.099 --> 00:02:30.340 Bring glory to your name, we pray in Jesus' name. 00:02:31.219 --> 00:02:31.560 Amen. 00:02:31.560 --> 00:02:31.780 Amen. 00:02:31.780 --> 00:02:45.639 I think perhaps one of the most important things that any church leader can do is to point past themselves to the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:02:46.159 --> 00:02:56.819 It's really important, isn't it, that anybody with any level of responsibility in the church, whether that's a leader in the church, whether you're helping out in Sunday school, you're teaching the children in creche, 00:02:56.819 --> 00:03:07.560 whether you're leading a small group Bible study, whatever it is that you're doing, that you are actively pointing in your words and your deeds, cast yourself to the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:03:08.919 --> 00:03:13.000 We want to say to people, think about him, not me. 00:03:13.519 --> 00:03:16.359 Listen to what he says, not what I say. 00:03:16.780 --> 00:03:19.299 Consider his words and his ways. 00:03:20.379 --> 00:03:22.439 Jesus is the head of the church. 00:03:22.519 --> 00:03:23.719 He is the leader. 00:03:23.859 --> 00:03:25.719 He is our king, our shepherd. 00:03:25.719 --> 00:03:34.560 And that's why at the start of our church merger, we have been essentially taking a very slow walk through the beginning of Mark's gospel. 00:03:35.819 --> 00:03:45.240 We're doing that because we want to remind ourselves right at the outset of our life together as a church is that, listen, Jesus is in charge of all this. 00:03:46.259 --> 00:03:50.919 Jesus is the one who we should be looking to, thinking on, pondering. 00:03:51.560 --> 00:03:53.759 He is the one that we need to listen to. 00:03:53.759 --> 00:03:56.719 We are here for his glory and not for ours. 00:03:57.620 --> 00:04:05.639 I don't think really there's a better way for us to start our merged church life together than to take an unhurried look at the person of Jesus. 00:04:06.280 --> 00:04:08.159 It's the foundation of everything else. 00:04:08.919 --> 00:04:13.659 And I want this morning just to show you essentially three things that Jesus does in our passage. 00:04:13.659 --> 00:04:15.979 So you'll notice that Jesus prays. 00:04:16.379 --> 00:04:17.959 You'll notice that Jesus preaches. 00:04:18.620 --> 00:04:21.459 And you'll notice that Jesus purifies. 00:04:22.519 --> 00:04:23.360 He prays. 00:04:23.560 --> 00:04:24.459 He preaches. 00:04:24.759 --> 00:04:25.860 And he purifies. 00:04:26.000 --> 00:04:30.240 And I just want to take each of those in turn and we'll consider them together. 00:04:30.439 --> 00:04:32.079 Firstly, Jesus prays. 00:04:32.500 --> 00:04:34.279 Look down at verse 35 again. 00:04:34.279 --> 00:04:42.579 Very early in the morning while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place where he prayed. 00:04:44.139 --> 00:04:48.819 Now notice, just look at the words because Mark wants you to be very clear on exactly what's happening here. 00:04:48.919 --> 00:04:50.939 Notice he says that it's early. 00:04:50.939 --> 00:04:53.459 But it's not just early. 00:04:53.680 --> 00:04:55.339 It is very early. 00:04:56.120 --> 00:04:59.500 Literally something like it is muchly early morning. 00:04:59.939 --> 00:05:00.060 Right? 00:05:00.759 --> 00:05:03.300 And it's not just muchly early morning. 00:05:03.439 --> 00:05:04.120 Look down again. 00:05:04.259 --> 00:05:05.420 It is what? 00:05:05.680 --> 00:05:06.759 Still dark. 00:05:07.259 --> 00:05:08.180 It's before dawn. 00:05:09.199 --> 00:05:11.819 And here's the image for us at the outset of our passage. 00:05:12.279 --> 00:05:13.420 Jesus is there. 00:05:13.519 --> 00:05:14.639 He's exhausted. 00:05:14.920 --> 00:05:15.040 Right? 00:05:15.120 --> 00:05:18.220 He's had a busy day responding to the needs of Capernaum. 00:05:18.220 --> 00:05:24.300 If you look back at verse 33, the whole town turned up at the house and he has met all of their needs. 00:05:24.480 --> 00:05:27.500 And then he's gone to sleep with the rest of the disciples in the house. 00:05:27.700 --> 00:05:34.980 But now we find he's woken up, got up, left the house to a solitary place, leaving the others behind to pray. 00:05:37.420 --> 00:05:38.340 So here it is. 00:05:38.380 --> 00:05:40.900 It's probably, I don't know, 4, 4.30 in the morning. 00:05:41.840 --> 00:05:46.000 Jesus is on his knees praying to his Father in heaven. 00:05:48.220 --> 00:05:50.320 What would you get up at 4 a.m. for? 00:05:53.400 --> 00:05:54.580 Maybe work. 00:05:54.920 --> 00:05:55.060 Right? 00:05:55.220 --> 00:05:56.780 Some of you have to do that, don't you? 00:05:57.600 --> 00:05:59.100 An international flight. 00:06:01.300 --> 00:06:02.560 Crying baby, maybe. 00:06:04.300 --> 00:06:06.520 A sports game in a different time zone. 00:06:06.600 --> 00:06:07.640 I know some of you have done that. 00:06:08.840 --> 00:06:10.740 A box set that you can't stop watching. 00:06:10.740 --> 00:06:15.100 But here we find Jesus, and it's not because he can't sleep, right? 00:06:15.139 --> 00:06:15.939 It's not insomnia. 00:06:16.379 --> 00:06:19.439 Nor is it the demands of somebody else placed upon him. 00:06:19.920 --> 00:06:21.100 No, it's not that at all, is it? 00:06:21.160 --> 00:06:28.920 Jesus, in a deliberate action, wakes up early, very early, while it's still dark. 00:06:29.660 --> 00:06:33.120 Leaves the house and goes to a quiet, barren place to pray. 00:06:33.120 --> 00:06:41.139 In other words, that desire that you or I might feel to watch a game or to catch a flight or to get to work on time. 00:06:41.579 --> 00:06:45.620 Jesus had that level of desire to speak to his Father in heaven. 00:06:46.240 --> 00:06:48.040 To have communion with his Father. 00:06:49.439 --> 00:06:52.379 Now I know, and you know, because you've maybe heard this preached before. 00:06:52.480 --> 00:06:54.860 This is what happens now at this point in the sermon, isn't it? 00:06:54.939 --> 00:06:55.959 Lots of preachers saying, 00:06:55.959 --> 00:06:58.379 Why don't you do that? 00:06:59.180 --> 00:07:00.979 You complete waste of space as a Christian. 00:07:01.560 --> 00:07:04.319 Why are you not up at 4.30am praying in the wilderness? 00:07:05.439 --> 00:07:07.919 But of course that's not really the application of the passage, is it? 00:07:07.939 --> 00:07:11.139 Because the application of the passage is not about you or me. 00:07:11.259 --> 00:07:12.620 It's about Jesus, isn't it? 00:07:12.859 --> 00:07:15.620 And actually Mark wants us to notice something about him. 00:07:15.679 --> 00:07:17.339 He's not trying to beat us with a stick. 00:07:17.339 --> 00:07:20.839 He's trying to show us something important about who Jesus is. 00:07:22.299 --> 00:07:23.659 He's painting a portrait. 00:07:23.660 --> 00:07:28.240 What he wants you to know is that Jesus, while fully man, 00:07:28.900 --> 00:07:33.180 still his desire to be with his Father is greater than his urge to sleep. 00:07:33.680 --> 00:07:35.800 So that even after an exhausting day, 00:07:36.180 --> 00:07:39.620 Jesus got up early and was on his knees with his Father. 00:07:41.580 --> 00:07:42.740 Now let's not rush through, right? 00:07:43.080 --> 00:07:47.140 Let me just show you some of the implications of what Mark is saying here. 00:07:47.240 --> 00:07:49.060 I think there are, I mean there are at least three. 00:07:49.180 --> 00:07:49.640 I've got three. 00:07:51.580 --> 00:07:52.180 Notice this. 00:07:52.180 --> 00:07:58.720 I think this implies that Jesus and the Father know something that at this stage is still hidden from the other disciples. 00:07:59.920 --> 00:08:00.759 You know that, don't you? 00:08:00.900 --> 00:08:04.060 You know when two people sneak off for a private conversation, 00:08:04.360 --> 00:08:06.460 it's because those two know something that you don't know? 00:08:06.620 --> 00:08:07.639 That's why they do it, isn't it? 00:08:09.420 --> 00:08:10.579 There's a plan. 00:08:11.000 --> 00:08:12.000 And that's what's going on here. 00:08:12.160 --> 00:08:14.840 It's why in verses 36 and 37, if you look down at them, 00:08:15.100 --> 00:08:19.060 when his disciples wake up and they realize Jesus is gone and they're concerned that he's lost the plot, 00:08:19.060 --> 00:08:21.899 they go and find him and they go, everybody's looking for you. 00:08:22.560 --> 00:08:23.480 Have you gone crazy? 00:08:24.100 --> 00:08:25.600 We've got work to do in Capernaum. 00:08:26.139 --> 00:08:28.019 There's more people here who want to see you. 00:08:28.240 --> 00:08:30.699 There are loads of people with stuff for you to do, Jesus. 00:08:30.780 --> 00:08:32.600 And what are you doing out here in the wilderness? 00:08:34.179 --> 00:08:35.779 But that doesn't cut it for Jesus, does it? 00:08:35.799 --> 00:08:38.919 Because he's not here to do the will of the people, but the will of his Father. 00:08:38.919 --> 00:08:42.919 The will of his Father has not yet been fully disclosed to the disciples, 00:08:43.139 --> 00:08:45.459 even though the Father and the Son know what it is. 00:08:46.879 --> 00:08:48.179 You could perhaps put it like this. 00:08:48.479 --> 00:08:50.379 You know, God has a surprising plan. 00:08:51.139 --> 00:08:53.879 A surprising plan that the disciples are yet unaware of. 00:08:54.299 --> 00:08:57.419 And their idea that they could tell Jesus what to do 00:08:57.419 --> 00:09:01.379 and tell him off for praying was ludicrous, wasn't it? 00:09:01.559 --> 00:09:02.319 They're missing the point. 00:09:03.759 --> 00:09:06.959 In fact, Mark underlines this in a way that you might not notice initially. 00:09:06.960 --> 00:09:09.120 The word translated there, solitary place, 00:09:09.160 --> 00:09:13.040 is the same word that he's used already for desert or wilderness. 00:09:13.280 --> 00:09:16.720 It's the same word as in Mark 1, verse 13, where Jesus is being tested. 00:09:17.300 --> 00:09:20.800 So Jesus has, if you like, retreated to the wilderness of testing. 00:09:21.360 --> 00:09:25.280 He's gone behind enemy lines in the midst of a company of people 00:09:25.280 --> 00:09:28.900 who have a plan for his glory that doesn't involve the suffering of the cross. 00:09:29.120 --> 00:09:33.639 He's gone there to pray, to speak to his Father, 00:09:33.639 --> 00:09:38.059 the author of the true plan, the one who really knows 00:09:38.059 --> 00:09:41.659 that the plan for the Son is to go to the cross, 00:09:42.019 --> 00:09:44.740 not to receive the glory of the people of Capernaum. 00:09:46.740 --> 00:09:50.679 I think we can put it more deeply and more clearly than we've been doing so far. 00:09:50.799 --> 00:09:51.980 I said to you before, didn't I, 00:09:52.019 --> 00:09:56.740 that Jesus' desire to pray was greater than his desire to sleep. 00:09:56.740 --> 00:09:59.200 I think it's more than that, isn't it? 00:09:59.899 --> 00:10:04.460 It's more like Jesus' desire to accomplish his Father's plan 00:10:04.460 --> 00:10:08.159 was greater and more significant than his desire 00:10:08.159 --> 00:10:12.060 or his right desire for the human instinct to sleep. 00:10:12.059 --> 00:10:17.000 If you like, to Jesus, salvation mattered more than sleep. 00:10:18.919 --> 00:10:21.079 Let me just ask you whether you've ever reckoned with that this morning. 00:10:22.399 --> 00:10:25.239 That Jesus here, by the fact that he retreats and prays, 00:10:25.279 --> 00:10:28.879 is pointing to the fact that there is a bigger reality in the world 00:10:28.879 --> 00:10:30.819 than human satisfaction and desire. 00:10:31.679 --> 00:10:34.679 There is something more important in the world than a good night's sleep. 00:10:35.519 --> 00:10:40.000 There's something more important in the world than a good meal 00:10:40.000 --> 00:10:42.220 or even to be with your family 00:10:42.220 --> 00:10:44.440 or even to live a comfortable life, 00:10:44.600 --> 00:10:46.960 to accomplish academic or business success. 00:10:47.399 --> 00:10:51.399 There's something more important than the city of your dreams 00:10:51.399 --> 00:10:53.639 or marrying the man or woman of your dreams. 00:10:54.159 --> 00:10:58.299 There's a bigger plan in the world than just the satisfaction of human desire. 00:10:59.379 --> 00:11:00.080 What is it? 00:11:00.799 --> 00:11:03.220 It's seen in the plan of the Father and the Son 00:11:03.220 --> 00:11:06.379 to send Christ to the cross for the salvation of the world. 00:11:06.379 --> 00:11:11.700 Now, it doesn't mean that any of those other desires are wrong. 00:11:12.759 --> 00:11:15.340 It mustn't mean that we shouldn't, under any circumstances, 00:11:15.519 --> 00:11:17.080 acquire those things either, does it? 00:11:17.539 --> 00:11:20.419 But it does mean that God the Son in human flesh 00:11:20.419 --> 00:11:25.080 is about something bigger and greater than just human desire and satisfaction. 00:11:26.600 --> 00:11:28.519 The second implication is this, though, I think, 00:11:28.600 --> 00:11:32.279 that Jesus, in his humanity, enjoys communion with the Father. 00:11:32.279 --> 00:11:35.899 So not only are they in on a secret plan, 00:11:36.199 --> 00:11:39.220 but also that Jesus loves to spend time with his Father. 00:11:40.419 --> 00:11:43.339 We try to be really clear in these early weeks in Mark's Gospel 00:11:43.339 --> 00:11:47.199 that Mark is just perpetually underlining the divinity of Jesus, right? 00:11:47.579 --> 00:11:48.799 He's the Son of God. 00:11:48.879 --> 00:11:49.899 He's God in flesh. 00:11:50.319 --> 00:11:53.799 But what's also really clear is that Jesus is an ordinary man. 00:11:54.659 --> 00:11:58.480 He sleeps, eats, works, and rests like the other disciples. 00:11:58.480 --> 00:12:01.379 And yet, for the man, Christ Jesus, 00:12:02.000 --> 00:12:04.759 his joy in communion with the Father 00:12:04.759 --> 00:12:06.800 trumps this natural desire for sleep. 00:12:06.960 --> 00:12:08.840 He wants to pray. 00:12:09.980 --> 00:12:11.360 It's rather like in John 4. 00:12:11.420 --> 00:12:13.080 I don't know whether you know the story in John 4. 00:12:13.320 --> 00:12:15.759 His disciples go off to find some food to eat. 00:12:16.019 --> 00:12:19.039 And they come back, and Jesus isn't really interested in food anymore. 00:12:19.220 --> 00:12:21.980 And he says, no, in some ways, I've got something better than food. 00:12:22.060 --> 00:12:24.480 My food is to do the Father's will, he says. 00:12:24.480 --> 00:12:28.899 And of course, we know that this is right, don't we? 00:12:28.940 --> 00:12:32.500 We know that the highest joy that even we experience 00:12:32.500 --> 00:12:35.700 is not just acquiring stuff, is it? 00:12:36.639 --> 00:12:39.620 You know, the great joy of a lovely meal 00:12:39.620 --> 00:12:41.480 is not just the food itself. 00:12:41.519 --> 00:12:43.200 It's the person you're eating it with. 00:12:43.259 --> 00:12:45.320 You're enjoying their company. 00:12:46.279 --> 00:12:48.800 Love, friendship, communion, if you like, 00:12:48.899 --> 00:12:50.519 is the highest human good. 00:12:50.519 --> 00:12:53.980 It's to enjoy the blessing of being with one another. 00:12:55.399 --> 00:12:58.000 You know, even an introvert who loves their own company 00:12:58.000 --> 00:12:59.620 still does not want to be alone 00:12:59.620 --> 00:13:03.300 or in a loveless friendship or a cold marriage. 00:13:04.019 --> 00:13:07.100 And here, Jesus the man seems to enjoy 00:13:07.100 --> 00:13:10.080 that kind of communion with his Father in heaven. 00:13:10.620 --> 00:13:12.060 It's extraordinary, isn't it? 00:13:13.659 --> 00:13:16.860 It seems, in fact, that that communion that he enjoys 00:13:16.860 --> 00:13:19.960 with the Father in heaven is actually the fuel for his ministry. 00:13:20.860 --> 00:13:22.259 Three times in Mark's Gospel, 00:13:22.480 --> 00:13:24.120 at points of testing and difficulty, 00:13:24.120 --> 00:13:27.860 we find Jesus retreating into a place of prayer, 00:13:28.500 --> 00:13:31.139 coming with his Father away from everyone else 00:13:31.139 --> 00:13:32.480 to enable him to face what's coming. 00:13:33.759 --> 00:13:35.420 Same idea in Mark 9, 00:13:35.500 --> 00:13:36.780 when the disciples are frustrated 00:13:36.780 --> 00:13:38.379 that they've not been able to cast out a demon, 00:13:38.519 --> 00:13:39.280 and Jesus tells them, 00:13:39.720 --> 00:13:41.860 this kind can only come out by prayer. 00:13:43.100 --> 00:13:45.740 Prayer is the fuel for Jesus' ministry. 00:13:45.740 --> 00:13:48.600 Communion with God is where the power and the strength flow from. 00:13:50.560 --> 00:13:52.159 This is so challenging to me, right? 00:13:52.279 --> 00:13:53.440 Think about it like this. 00:13:54.560 --> 00:13:57.460 Jesus, the perfect man, 00:13:58.820 --> 00:13:59.919 the saviour of the world, 00:14:00.060 --> 00:14:01.080 God in flesh, 00:14:01.899 --> 00:14:03.200 the one with the power to heal, 00:14:03.299 --> 00:14:04.659 the one who can cast out demons, 00:14:04.799 --> 00:14:06.379 the one who can walk on water, 00:14:06.480 --> 00:14:08.139 the one who can calm the storm, 00:14:08.220 --> 00:14:10.120 the one who can feed the crowd, 00:14:10.659 --> 00:14:13.399 he is not first an activist. 00:14:13.399 --> 00:14:14.519 Notice that. 00:14:16.259 --> 00:14:19.139 He's not up early in the morning to engage in manic activity. 00:14:19.459 --> 00:14:20.779 Instead, he's praying, 00:14:21.459 --> 00:14:23.100 on his knees, 00:14:23.259 --> 00:14:24.679 communing with his Father in heaven. 00:14:26.860 --> 00:14:28.899 Think about what that means for the Christian life. 00:14:29.159 --> 00:14:29.840 It means, doesn't it, 00:14:29.860 --> 00:14:31.240 that the goal of the Christian Gospel 00:14:31.240 --> 00:14:34.720 is not to set you about manic activity, 00:14:35.220 --> 00:14:38.519 for you to do just a little bit more than is humanly possible. 00:14:40.039 --> 00:14:41.759 No, instead, the goal of the Gospel, 00:14:41.759 --> 00:14:44.059 the goal of the mission of Christ 00:14:44.059 --> 00:14:46.259 is to invite you and I, 00:14:46.480 --> 00:14:47.899 through his blood on the cross, 00:14:48.019 --> 00:14:50.580 into a relationship with the Father in heaven 00:14:50.580 --> 00:14:53.799 that is rich and deep 00:14:53.799 --> 00:14:56.019 and the fuel for our lives. 00:14:57.539 --> 00:14:59.620 You know, in enjoying communion with him, 00:15:00.659 --> 00:15:02.879 the Father through the Son by the Spirit, 00:15:03.740 --> 00:15:05.220 is more life-giving, 00:15:05.799 --> 00:15:07.000 more strength-giving, 00:15:07.319 --> 00:15:09.100 than even a good meal or a good night's sleep. 00:15:09.100 --> 00:15:12.659 If you're not a Christian this morning, 00:15:12.720 --> 00:15:13.960 what you need to know is really that, 00:15:14.040 --> 00:15:15.139 essentially, becoming a Christian 00:15:15.139 --> 00:15:16.320 is rather like being adopted. 00:15:17.100 --> 00:15:18.480 In fact, that's the word the Bible uses. 00:15:19.259 --> 00:15:21.820 We are adopted into the family of God. 00:15:22.259 --> 00:15:25.220 We get to share in what we see going on here. 00:15:25.540 --> 00:15:27.920 It's an invitation to join a new family, 00:15:28.200 --> 00:15:30.460 a family whose communion is so deep, 00:15:30.779 --> 00:15:31.659 so rich, 00:15:32.000 --> 00:15:32.899 so refreshing, 00:15:33.300 --> 00:15:34.320 so life-giving, 00:15:34.320 --> 00:15:36.360 you would wake yourself up at 4am, 00:15:36.400 --> 00:15:37.420 even if you were exhausted, 00:15:37.600 --> 00:15:39.980 just so you could enjoy it and delight in it. 00:15:42.420 --> 00:15:44.040 I think the third implication here, though, 00:15:44.060 --> 00:15:45.800 is that the agony of the cross 00:15:45.800 --> 00:15:47.280 will not be mostly physical. 00:15:49.060 --> 00:15:49.780 It's easy, isn't it, 00:15:49.780 --> 00:15:50.520 for us to imagine 00:15:50.520 --> 00:15:52.900 the physical suffering of Christ on the cross, 00:15:52.920 --> 00:15:55.120 and I know that it's a good thing 00:15:55.120 --> 00:15:55.940 for us to know that 00:15:55.940 --> 00:15:57.500 and to see it and to think in it. 00:15:58.320 --> 00:16:00.260 You know, the nails in the wrists 00:16:00.260 --> 00:16:01.160 and in the feet, 00:16:01.160 --> 00:16:03.400 the crown of thorns pushed onto his head. 00:16:04.319 --> 00:16:06.319 The idea that Jesus is breathless 00:16:06.319 --> 00:16:08.120 and essentially dies by suffocation 00:16:08.120 --> 00:16:08.939 in his own blood 00:16:08.939 --> 00:16:11.220 as he hangs naked on the cross. 00:16:12.740 --> 00:16:15.360 It's an awful form of human torture, 00:16:15.480 --> 00:16:16.279 isn't it, the cross? 00:16:17.120 --> 00:16:17.860 It's unthinkable. 00:16:18.860 --> 00:16:20.819 But this verse here shows you 00:16:20.819 --> 00:16:22.220 that's not actually the greatest suffering 00:16:22.220 --> 00:16:22.939 of the cross at all. 00:16:24.059 --> 00:16:25.699 Instead, to see the pain of the cross, 00:16:25.779 --> 00:16:27.779 you need to see the severing of this communion 00:16:27.779 --> 00:16:29.179 between the Father and the Son, 00:16:29.720 --> 00:16:31.439 as in the darkness at the middle of the day, 00:16:31.439 --> 00:16:33.159 Jesus cries out in a loud voice, 00:16:33.159 --> 00:16:34.759 my God, my God, 00:16:34.839 --> 00:16:35.939 why have you forsaken me? 00:16:37.339 --> 00:16:39.299 Jesus, bearing the sins of his people, 00:16:39.679 --> 00:16:41.699 is now unable to access 00:16:41.699 --> 00:16:42.919 the presence of his Father. 00:16:43.860 --> 00:16:45.659 The Father, for the first time in eternity, 00:16:45.799 --> 00:16:46.819 is hostile to his Son 00:16:46.819 --> 00:16:48.759 as he's clothed in the stench of our sin 00:16:48.759 --> 00:16:49.899 and dies for its punishment. 00:16:50.480 --> 00:16:52.339 God in flesh cut off 00:16:52.339 --> 00:16:53.339 from his Father in heaven. 00:16:55.100 --> 00:16:55.539 Now, of course, 00:16:55.579 --> 00:16:57.500 that's the secret of the Father and the Son 00:16:57.500 --> 00:16:59.399 here in Mark 1. 00:16:59.879 --> 00:17:00.659 It's the wilderness 00:17:00.659 --> 00:17:02.759 that the wilderness is pointing to, isn't it? 00:17:03.500 --> 00:17:04.839 And the agony of the cross 00:17:04.839 --> 00:17:06.859 is that it severs the very thing 00:17:06.859 --> 00:17:08.259 that brings Jesus strength 00:17:08.259 --> 00:17:10.299 and joy and courage and purpose. 00:17:10.779 --> 00:17:12.099 The communion with his Father, 00:17:12.200 --> 00:17:13.920 which is at the centre of who he is, 00:17:14.180 --> 00:17:15.500 is broken at the cross. 00:17:15.720 --> 00:17:16.259 And why? 00:17:16.259 --> 00:17:19.200 So that you and I might enjoy it. 00:17:19.720 --> 00:17:20.599 It's incredible, isn't it? 00:17:21.420 --> 00:17:23.740 Jesus is clothed in our sin 00:17:23.740 --> 00:17:26.319 and cut off from his Father 00:17:26.319 --> 00:17:27.879 so that you and I might be clothed 00:17:27.879 --> 00:17:28.720 in his righteousness 00:17:28.720 --> 00:17:30.559 and enjoy communion with the Father. 00:17:31.420 --> 00:17:33.200 We get what Jesus had 00:17:33.200 --> 00:17:34.720 because he takes what we have. 00:17:35.039 --> 00:17:36.019 He is put out 00:17:36.019 --> 00:17:37.519 so that we might be brought in. 00:17:38.519 --> 00:17:40.420 And Jesus prays here 00:17:40.420 --> 00:17:43.039 so that you and I might pray now. 00:17:44.639 --> 00:17:45.619 Jesus prays. 00:17:45.660 --> 00:17:46.480 That's the first thing to me. 00:17:46.519 --> 00:17:47.359 Jesus prays. 00:17:47.480 --> 00:17:49.139 Second is that Jesus preaches. 00:17:49.819 --> 00:17:51.180 I know we looked at this with the kids, 00:17:51.279 --> 00:17:52.980 but there is a double emphasis on this 00:17:52.980 --> 00:17:53.619 in verse 38. 00:17:53.700 --> 00:17:54.599 Look down at verse 38. 00:17:55.119 --> 00:17:55.920 Jesus replied, 00:17:56.440 --> 00:17:57.720 let us go somewhere else 00:17:57.720 --> 00:17:58.680 to the nearby villages 00:17:58.680 --> 00:18:00.539 so I can preach there also. 00:18:00.700 --> 00:18:01.720 That is why I've come. 00:18:02.720 --> 00:18:04.379 So he travelled throughout Galilee 00:18:04.379 --> 00:18:06.259 preaching in their synagogues 00:18:06.259 --> 00:18:08.480 and driving out demons. 00:18:09.759 --> 00:18:10.279 Here it is. 00:18:10.339 --> 00:18:10.660 You see it. 00:18:10.940 --> 00:18:12.079 This is why I've come, 00:18:12.200 --> 00:18:12.839 verse 38. 00:18:13.440 --> 00:18:14.640 Preaching is what I'm doing. 00:18:14.740 --> 00:18:15.839 It's who I'm about, right? 00:18:16.319 --> 00:18:16.720 Everywhere. 00:18:16.879 --> 00:18:17.980 I need to go everywhere. 00:18:18.200 --> 00:18:19.619 Even as he drives out 00:18:19.619 --> 00:18:20.440 the devil's opposition 00:18:20.440 --> 00:18:21.279 in verse 39. 00:18:22.079 --> 00:18:22.579 Of course, 00:18:22.619 --> 00:18:23.720 this is a massive surprise 00:18:23.720 --> 00:18:24.279 to the disciples. 00:18:24.420 --> 00:18:25.200 They thought they had a good thing 00:18:25.200 --> 00:18:26.079 going in Capernaum. 00:18:26.500 --> 00:18:26.680 You know, 00:18:27.059 --> 00:18:28.019 Peter's mother-in-law's 00:18:28.019 --> 00:18:28.579 in the kitchen 00:18:28.579 --> 00:18:29.660 cooking up the food. 00:18:30.059 --> 00:18:31.140 People are coming to them. 00:18:31.240 --> 00:18:32.359 They're not having to go anywhere. 00:18:33.140 --> 00:18:34.220 Sick people turning up 00:18:34.220 --> 00:18:34.799 and being healed. 00:18:34.980 --> 00:18:35.819 Fame and fortune 00:18:35.819 --> 00:18:36.599 was theirs, right? 00:18:36.639 --> 00:18:37.319 They got it sorted. 00:18:37.419 --> 00:18:39.220 They got the program sorted. 00:18:39.460 --> 00:18:40.119 But Jesus says, 00:18:40.179 --> 00:18:40.500 no, no, no. 00:18:40.519 --> 00:18:41.179 That's not why I've come. 00:18:41.240 --> 00:18:41.879 I've come to preach 00:18:41.879 --> 00:18:43.159 and I've come to preach everywhere. 00:18:43.379 --> 00:18:43.879 Let's leave. 00:18:43.980 --> 00:18:44.500 I've got to go. 00:18:46.960 --> 00:18:47.279 Again, 00:18:47.339 --> 00:18:48.259 and I know we mentioned this 00:18:48.259 --> 00:18:48.599 with the kids, 00:18:48.659 --> 00:18:49.519 but this is so important. 00:18:49.659 --> 00:18:50.259 You can know 00:18:50.259 --> 00:18:51.899 you've understood Jesus. 00:18:52.639 --> 00:18:53.899 Not because you like 00:18:53.899 --> 00:18:55.359 the idea of him. 00:18:56.259 --> 00:18:57.720 You know you know Jesus. 00:18:57.720 --> 00:18:58.559 Not when you've had 00:18:58.559 --> 00:18:59.639 some kind of emotional 00:18:59.639 --> 00:19:01.279 experience of Jesus. 00:19:02.659 --> 00:19:03.319 You know, don't you, 00:19:03.319 --> 00:19:04.439 that's the route 00:19:04.439 --> 00:19:05.659 to shallow Christianity. 00:19:06.539 --> 00:19:07.659 It might not even be 00:19:07.659 --> 00:19:08.220 Christianity, 00:19:08.500 --> 00:19:09.179 but it's extreme. 00:19:09.759 --> 00:19:11.359 If the predominant dynamic 00:19:11.359 --> 00:19:12.539 of your Christian life 00:19:12.539 --> 00:19:14.799 is feeling around for Jesus 00:19:14.799 --> 00:19:15.639 in some kind of 00:19:15.639 --> 00:19:17.019 emotional experience, 00:19:17.619 --> 00:19:19.220 maybe in singing songs 00:19:19.220 --> 00:19:20.139 or in going to a place 00:19:20.139 --> 00:19:20.579 where you think 00:19:20.579 --> 00:19:21.240 you might sense 00:19:21.240 --> 00:19:21.980 his presence, 00:19:22.539 --> 00:19:23.359 if that's what 00:19:23.359 --> 00:19:24.419 your Christian life is like, 00:19:24.460 --> 00:19:25.000 you haven't met 00:19:25.000 --> 00:19:26.139 the Jesus of Mark's Gospel 00:19:26.139 --> 00:19:28.179 because the Jesus 00:19:28.179 --> 00:19:28.980 of Mark's Gospel 00:19:28.980 --> 00:19:29.619 is a preacher 00:19:29.619 --> 00:19:31.219 and you know 00:19:31.219 --> 00:19:31.939 you've met him 00:19:31.939 --> 00:19:33.799 when you listen to him 00:19:33.799 --> 00:19:35.059 and you listen 00:19:35.059 --> 00:19:35.959 to what he says. 00:19:36.919 --> 00:19:37.239 You know, 00:19:37.259 --> 00:19:38.199 it's the point of Mark, 00:19:38.279 --> 00:19:38.459 isn't it? 00:19:38.459 --> 00:19:39.659 We don't scrabble around 00:19:39.659 --> 00:19:40.599 in the dark for Jesus. 00:19:41.099 --> 00:19:41.939 We don't hope 00:19:41.939 --> 00:19:42.559 that if we attend 00:19:42.559 --> 00:19:43.479 the right kind of service 00:19:43.479 --> 00:19:44.500 with the right kind of vibe, 00:19:44.579 --> 00:19:45.079 we'll meet him 00:19:45.079 --> 00:19:46.059 somewhere in our guts. 00:19:46.219 --> 00:19:46.319 No, 00:19:46.799 --> 00:19:47.479 that's the road 00:19:47.479 --> 00:19:48.679 of all sorts of dire mistakes. 00:19:48.859 --> 00:19:49.259 Instead, 00:19:49.759 --> 00:19:50.779 Jesus is a preacher 00:19:50.779 --> 00:19:51.679 who demands, 00:19:52.639 --> 00:19:53.079 listen, 00:19:54.000 --> 00:19:55.259 listen to me, 00:19:55.339 --> 00:19:55.779 says Jesus. 00:19:57.399 --> 00:19:58.659 And that was the case 00:19:58.660 --> 00:19:59.620 even when you could 00:19:59.620 --> 00:20:00.259 reach out your hand 00:20:00.259 --> 00:20:00.820 and touch him 00:20:00.820 --> 00:20:01.580 because he was there. 00:20:03.640 --> 00:20:04.440 And why do you think 00:20:04.440 --> 00:20:05.279 that's the case? 00:20:05.920 --> 00:20:06.460 Why do you think 00:20:06.460 --> 00:20:07.320 the saviour of the world 00:20:07.320 --> 00:20:08.279 has come as a preacher 00:20:08.279 --> 00:20:08.980 and not a therapist 00:20:08.980 --> 00:20:10.560 or a magician 00:20:10.560 --> 00:20:11.820 or a spirit? 00:20:13.019 --> 00:20:14.259 Why do we meet Jesus 00:20:14.259 --> 00:20:15.360 in listening to his word 00:20:15.360 --> 00:20:17.440 and not sitting in silence, 00:20:18.220 --> 00:20:19.800 waiting to hear his voice 00:20:19.800 --> 00:20:20.900 somehow in our heads? 00:20:22.440 --> 00:20:22.600 Well, 00:20:22.640 --> 00:20:23.440 surely that's because 00:20:23.440 --> 00:20:24.340 it explains, 00:20:24.460 --> 00:20:24.720 doesn't it, 00:20:24.740 --> 00:20:25.600 that the problem in the world 00:20:25.600 --> 00:20:26.340 is not the absence 00:20:26.340 --> 00:20:27.519 of spiritual experience. 00:20:28.660 --> 00:20:29.700 You know that, 00:20:29.779 --> 00:20:29.980 don't you? 00:20:30.220 --> 00:20:31.420 The problem in the world 00:20:31.420 --> 00:20:32.060 is not the absence 00:20:32.060 --> 00:20:32.880 of spiritual experience. 00:20:32.940 --> 00:20:34.100 You can get spiritual experiences 00:20:34.100 --> 00:20:35.420 all over the place. 00:20:36.259 --> 00:20:37.800 You can get it 00:20:37.800 --> 00:20:39.040 watching Liverpool Football Club 00:20:39.040 --> 00:20:39.500 right now. 00:20:39.980 --> 00:20:40.500 Believe me. 00:20:41.320 --> 00:20:41.460 Right? 00:20:42.519 --> 00:20:43.700 Probably not watching Arsenal, 00:20:43.779 --> 00:20:44.480 but you could definitely 00:20:44.480 --> 00:20:45.300 get it watching Liverpool. 00:20:47.320 --> 00:20:48.600 The problem in the world 00:20:48.600 --> 00:20:49.540 is not the absence 00:20:49.540 --> 00:20:50.540 of sort of deep 00:20:50.540 --> 00:20:51.080 spiritual, 00:20:51.220 --> 00:20:52.100 emotional experiences. 00:20:52.519 --> 00:20:52.640 No, 00:20:52.680 --> 00:20:53.740 the problem in the world 00:20:53.740 --> 00:20:54.440 is that we have 00:20:54.440 --> 00:20:55.460 turned our back 00:20:55.460 --> 00:20:56.160 on God 00:20:56.160 --> 00:20:57.600 and what he says. 00:20:57.599 --> 00:20:59.819 and the saviour 00:20:59.819 --> 00:21:01.099 comes to preach 00:21:01.099 --> 00:21:01.779 God's word 00:21:01.779 --> 00:21:02.579 that we might 00:21:02.579 --> 00:21:03.839 listen to him. 00:21:05.559 --> 00:21:05.839 You know, 00:21:05.879 --> 00:21:06.359 by nature, 00:21:06.480 --> 00:21:07.259 we block our ears 00:21:07.259 --> 00:21:07.879 to his word. 00:21:08.019 --> 00:21:08.299 We say, 00:21:08.399 --> 00:21:08.480 well, 00:21:08.539 --> 00:21:09.799 we don't want to listen 00:21:09.799 --> 00:21:10.119 to you. 00:21:10.199 --> 00:21:10.339 I know, 00:21:10.419 --> 00:21:10.519 okay, 00:21:10.579 --> 00:21:10.779 God, 00:21:10.819 --> 00:21:11.539 you've got some ideas 00:21:11.539 --> 00:21:12.740 about what my life is for, 00:21:12.799 --> 00:21:13.419 about what this world 00:21:13.419 --> 00:21:13.879 is about. 00:21:14.319 --> 00:21:14.939 But to be honest, 00:21:15.039 --> 00:21:15.319 frankly, 00:21:15.459 --> 00:21:16.359 I'm just going to 00:21:16.359 --> 00:21:17.099 listen to myself. 00:21:18.139 --> 00:21:19.059 And Jesus comes 00:21:19.059 --> 00:21:19.559 and preaches 00:21:19.559 --> 00:21:20.079 and says, 00:21:20.240 --> 00:21:20.619 repent, 00:21:21.299 --> 00:21:22.179 listen up. 00:21:22.939 --> 00:21:24.079 I've got a message. 00:21:24.079 --> 00:21:27.679 Let's just think 00:21:27.679 --> 00:21:28.000 about this 00:21:28.000 --> 00:21:28.699 for a little bit longer. 00:21:28.839 --> 00:21:29.839 I want to just 00:21:29.839 --> 00:21:30.539 grapple with this. 00:21:30.639 --> 00:21:31.099 If Jesus 00:21:31.099 --> 00:21:33.259 self-identifies 00:21:33.259 --> 00:21:33.879 as a preacher, 00:21:34.039 --> 00:21:34.819 a preacher for whom 00:21:34.819 --> 00:21:35.599 it's more important 00:21:35.599 --> 00:21:36.159 that people 00:21:36.159 --> 00:21:37.039 across the region 00:21:37.039 --> 00:21:38.079 hear his message 00:21:38.079 --> 00:21:38.879 than it is 00:21:38.879 --> 00:21:39.819 that people are healed 00:21:39.819 --> 00:21:41.779 in one particular city. 00:21:42.720 --> 00:21:43.579 If that's the case, 00:21:43.619 --> 00:21:44.039 there's something 00:21:44.039 --> 00:21:44.960 really surprising 00:21:44.960 --> 00:21:45.500 going on 00:21:45.500 --> 00:21:46.259 in these early chapters 00:21:46.259 --> 00:21:46.659 of Mark. 00:21:46.720 --> 00:21:47.000 I don't know 00:21:47.000 --> 00:21:47.859 whether you've noticed it. 00:21:49.179 --> 00:21:50.019 The surprising thing, 00:21:50.139 --> 00:21:50.899 if Mark says, 00:21:50.980 --> 00:21:51.099 listen, 00:21:51.199 --> 00:21:52.019 Jesus is a preacher, 00:21:52.099 --> 00:21:52.919 before anything else, 00:21:52.920 --> 00:21:53.840 he's a preacher. 00:21:53.960 --> 00:21:55.360 He can heal 00:21:55.360 --> 00:21:56.039 and that's important. 00:21:56.120 --> 00:21:57.019 He has power over sickness 00:21:57.019 --> 00:21:58.120 and he has power over death. 00:21:58.500 --> 00:21:59.840 He has power to conquer Satan. 00:22:00.320 --> 00:22:01.600 But he's here as a preacher 00:22:01.600 --> 00:22:02.279 with a message 00:22:02.279 --> 00:22:03.200 that you've got to listen to. 00:22:03.519 --> 00:22:04.320 What would you expect 00:22:04.320 --> 00:22:05.019 the contents 00:22:05.019 --> 00:22:06.620 of Mark 1-3 to be? 00:22:07.480 --> 00:22:08.259 Surely you'd expect them 00:22:08.259 --> 00:22:09.620 to be just transcripts 00:22:09.620 --> 00:22:10.800 of Jesus' sermons, right? 00:22:11.580 --> 00:22:12.340 But what happens 00:22:12.340 --> 00:22:12.900 as you look down 00:22:12.900 --> 00:22:14.480 at chapters 1-3 00:22:14.480 --> 00:22:15.180 of Mark's gospel? 00:22:15.600 --> 00:22:16.160 Well, you notice 00:22:16.160 --> 00:22:17.000 there's hardly anything 00:22:17.000 --> 00:22:17.820 of Jesus' preaching 00:22:17.820 --> 00:22:19.039 in Mark 1-3. 00:22:19.460 --> 00:22:19.880 It's not really 00:22:19.880 --> 00:22:21.039 until you get to Mark 4 00:22:21.039 --> 00:22:21.519 that you're given 00:22:21.519 --> 00:22:22.900 any sustained account 00:22:22.900 --> 00:22:23.580 of what Jesus 00:22:23.580 --> 00:22:24.380 is actually saying 00:22:24.380 --> 00:22:24.880 and teaching. 00:22:25.340 --> 00:22:25.840 Yet still, 00:22:25.960 --> 00:22:26.800 right here at the beginning, 00:22:26.920 --> 00:22:27.560 Mark is telling you 00:22:27.560 --> 00:22:28.420 that Jesus is a preacher. 00:22:29.280 --> 00:22:31.000 Why would he do that? 00:22:31.620 --> 00:22:32.560 Why say preaching 00:22:32.560 --> 00:22:33.120 is the thing 00:22:33.120 --> 00:22:34.180 and listening is the priority 00:22:34.180 --> 00:22:35.280 and then not say 00:22:35.280 --> 00:22:36.300 what's being preached? 00:22:37.759 --> 00:22:38.600 Well, let me give you 00:22:38.600 --> 00:22:39.700 two reasons for that. 00:22:40.040 --> 00:22:40.780 The first reason 00:22:40.780 --> 00:22:41.600 is that Mark wants you 00:22:41.600 --> 00:22:42.240 to see that Jesus 00:22:42.240 --> 00:22:43.480 is no ordinary preacher. 00:22:44.600 --> 00:22:45.400 Jesus is a preacher 00:22:45.400 --> 00:22:46.160 with authority. 00:22:46.620 --> 00:22:47.180 You know he's said 00:22:47.180 --> 00:22:47.620 that already, 00:22:47.700 --> 00:22:47.880 don't you? 00:22:47.920 --> 00:22:48.720 You've noticed that before. 00:22:48.720 --> 00:22:49.980 In chapter 1-22 00:22:49.980 --> 00:22:52.539 and again in chapter 1-27 00:22:52.539 --> 00:22:54.019 we are told 00:22:54.019 --> 00:22:55.480 that Jesus is a teacher 00:22:55.480 --> 00:22:56.319 with authority, 00:22:56.460 --> 00:22:57.640 a preacher of authority. 00:22:58.680 --> 00:22:59.779 Jesus' sermons 00:22:59.779 --> 00:23:00.319 are not like 00:23:00.319 --> 00:23:01.759 a kind of TED talk 00:23:01.759 --> 00:23:02.180 that gives you 00:23:02.180 --> 00:23:03.420 a few interesting facts 00:23:03.420 --> 00:23:04.579 or a management book 00:23:04.579 --> 00:23:06.120 or a GCSE revision guide 00:23:06.120 --> 00:23:06.400 or whatever. 00:23:06.900 --> 00:23:07.880 Jesus is preaching 00:23:07.880 --> 00:23:09.000 not just a few things 00:23:09.000 --> 00:23:10.400 that you might need to know 00:23:10.400 --> 00:23:11.400 of which you would 00:23:11.400 --> 00:23:12.220 otherwise be ignorant. 00:23:12.400 --> 00:23:13.940 No, Jesus is preaching 00:23:13.940 --> 00:23:14.500 and his preaching 00:23:14.500 --> 00:23:15.360 is powerful. 00:23:15.359 --> 00:23:17.379 And you know that 00:23:17.379 --> 00:23:18.559 because all of these miracles 00:23:18.559 --> 00:23:19.339 in Mark 1 00:23:19.339 --> 00:23:20.579 flow out of 00:23:20.579 --> 00:23:21.659 the preaching of Jesus. 00:23:22.799 --> 00:23:23.339 In other words, 00:23:23.500 --> 00:23:24.459 it is the presence 00:23:24.459 --> 00:23:25.759 of God's word 00:23:25.759 --> 00:23:27.419 that leads to the absence 00:23:27.419 --> 00:23:28.479 of sickness. 00:23:28.759 --> 00:23:29.439 It is the presence 00:23:29.439 --> 00:23:30.459 of God's word 00:23:30.459 --> 00:23:31.799 that leads to the absence 00:23:31.799 --> 00:23:33.000 of demons. 00:23:33.659 --> 00:23:34.579 It is the presence 00:23:34.579 --> 00:23:35.579 of God's word 00:23:35.579 --> 00:23:36.639 that leads to the calling 00:23:36.639 --> 00:23:37.399 of the disciples. 00:23:38.699 --> 00:23:39.259 This is where 00:23:39.259 --> 00:23:40.579 the third P comes in 00:23:40.579 --> 00:23:41.119 if you can remember 00:23:41.119 --> 00:23:41.959 by praying, 00:23:42.119 --> 00:23:43.399 preach and purify. 00:23:44.599 --> 00:23:44.799 Okay? 00:23:45.200 --> 00:23:47.119 Here Jesus makes people pure. 00:23:47.639 --> 00:23:48.259 Notice this with me. 00:23:48.319 --> 00:23:49.539 He cleans and cleanses. 00:23:49.839 --> 00:23:50.339 If you look down 00:23:50.339 --> 00:23:51.659 at verses 40 to 42, 00:23:51.799 --> 00:23:52.519 you see that Jesus 00:23:52.519 --> 00:23:53.919 meets a man with leprosy. 00:23:54.720 --> 00:23:55.599 A man with leprosy, 00:23:55.659 --> 00:23:56.240 verse 40, 00:23:56.359 --> 00:23:57.119 came to see him 00:23:57.119 --> 00:23:58.039 and begged him 00:23:58.039 --> 00:23:58.779 on his knees, 00:23:59.279 --> 00:24:00.139 if you are willing, 00:24:00.259 --> 00:24:01.720 you can make me clean. 00:24:02.579 --> 00:24:04.139 Jesus was indignant, 00:24:04.839 --> 00:24:05.940 probably with the disease. 00:24:06.259 --> 00:24:07.599 He reached out his hand 00:24:07.599 --> 00:24:08.619 and touched the man. 00:24:08.960 --> 00:24:09.819 I am willing, 00:24:09.960 --> 00:24:10.379 he said, 00:24:10.480 --> 00:24:11.339 be clean. 00:24:12.200 --> 00:24:13.359 Immediately the leprosy 00:24:13.359 --> 00:24:13.819 left him 00:24:13.819 --> 00:24:14.519 and he was clean. 00:24:14.799 --> 00:24:15.279 Now, 00:24:16.559 --> 00:24:17.259 the point here, 00:24:17.319 --> 00:24:18.259 the distinction that Mark 00:24:18.259 --> 00:24:19.000 is wanting to make 00:24:19.000 --> 00:24:19.659 is that leprosy 00:24:19.659 --> 00:24:20.859 is no ordinary disease. 00:24:21.019 --> 00:24:21.159 Okay? 00:24:21.740 --> 00:24:23.659 Leposy is a skin disease 00:24:23.659 --> 00:24:25.180 that needs not only healing, 00:24:25.319 --> 00:24:26.859 but it needs purification. 00:24:27.980 --> 00:24:29.180 Leviticus in the Old Testament 00:24:29.180 --> 00:24:30.220 was full of rules 00:24:30.220 --> 00:24:30.799 and regulations 00:24:30.799 --> 00:24:32.200 about what to do 00:24:32.200 --> 00:24:32.700 with someone 00:24:32.700 --> 00:24:34.819 with a contagious skin disease. 00:24:35.079 --> 00:24:36.379 A contagious skin disease 00:24:36.379 --> 00:24:37.500 excluded you 00:24:37.500 --> 00:24:38.139 from God's people, 00:24:38.240 --> 00:24:39.599 put you out of the temple 00:24:39.599 --> 00:24:40.839 and meant that you could not 00:24:40.839 --> 00:24:42.139 worship with God's people anymore. 00:24:42.140 --> 00:24:43.060 You had to be outside 00:24:43.060 --> 00:24:43.640 of the camp. 00:24:44.640 --> 00:24:46.380 And Jesus here 00:24:46.380 --> 00:24:48.240 does the scandalous thing 00:24:48.240 --> 00:24:49.520 of doing what? 00:24:50.600 --> 00:24:51.680 Touching the guy 00:24:51.680 --> 00:24:52.759 with leprosy. 00:24:53.540 --> 00:24:54.280 The thought was, 00:24:54.340 --> 00:24:55.380 if you touch someone 00:24:55.380 --> 00:24:56.640 with that kind of uncleanness, 00:24:57.020 --> 00:24:58.700 that not just the leprosy itself 00:24:58.700 --> 00:24:59.420 as a disease 00:24:59.420 --> 00:25:00.020 was contagious, 00:25:00.160 --> 00:25:02.280 but the uncleanness itself 00:25:02.280 --> 00:25:02.980 was contagious. 00:25:03.140 --> 00:25:04.380 If you reached out 00:25:04.380 --> 00:25:05.380 and touched the person, 00:25:05.520 --> 00:25:06.320 you would not only 00:25:06.320 --> 00:25:07.680 probably be infected 00:25:07.680 --> 00:25:08.460 with leprosy, 00:25:08.539 --> 00:25:09.700 but you would receive 00:25:09.700 --> 00:25:11.759 their ceremonial uncleanness. 00:25:12.140 --> 00:25:12.880 So Jesus here 00:25:12.880 --> 00:25:13.880 was being crazy. 00:25:14.019 --> 00:25:14.600 He was doing something 00:25:14.600 --> 00:25:15.140 that no one 00:25:15.140 --> 00:25:16.080 would ever dream of doing. 00:25:16.600 --> 00:25:17.560 And he reaches out 00:25:17.560 --> 00:25:18.519 and touches the leper. 00:25:19.160 --> 00:25:20.220 But what happens? 00:25:23.200 --> 00:25:24.640 It's incredible, isn't it? 00:25:24.860 --> 00:25:26.360 Jesus reaches out, 00:25:26.519 --> 00:25:27.100 touches him, 00:25:27.200 --> 00:25:28.259 and says the words, 00:25:29.160 --> 00:25:30.320 be clean. 00:25:31.340 --> 00:25:32.279 And the leper 00:25:32.279 --> 00:25:33.799 is infected 00:25:33.799 --> 00:25:35.640 with the cleanness 00:25:35.640 --> 00:25:36.120 of Jesus. 00:25:37.380 --> 00:25:38.300 It's astonishing. 00:25:39.300 --> 00:25:40.800 The point to you and me 00:25:40.800 --> 00:25:42.160 is, as we read Mark's gospel, 00:25:42.320 --> 00:25:43.720 is Jesus' word 00:25:43.720 --> 00:25:45.440 is able to make people clean. 00:25:46.360 --> 00:25:47.540 Jesus' word 00:25:47.540 --> 00:25:49.220 can do what temple worship 00:25:49.220 --> 00:25:50.400 could never do. 00:25:51.980 --> 00:25:52.540 The leper 00:25:52.540 --> 00:25:54.380 is not only healed, 00:25:54.500 --> 00:25:55.460 but made fit 00:25:55.460 --> 00:25:56.759 for God's presence. 00:25:57.900 --> 00:25:58.660 He is made clean. 00:26:01.280 --> 00:26:02.420 The unclean 00:26:02.420 --> 00:26:03.460 who are kept away 00:26:03.460 --> 00:26:04.400 and excluded 00:26:04.400 --> 00:26:05.220 and untouched 00:26:05.220 --> 00:26:06.700 are brought in now 00:26:06.700 --> 00:26:07.960 by the words of Jesus. 00:26:09.319 --> 00:26:10.240 And verse 44, 00:26:10.380 --> 00:26:11.339 they have to go to the priest 00:26:11.339 --> 00:26:12.039 to be accepted 00:26:12.039 --> 00:26:13.039 back into the fold 00:26:13.039 --> 00:26:13.880 of the people of God. 00:26:15.400 --> 00:26:16.220 See, this is why 00:26:16.220 --> 00:26:17.420 there aren't long transcripts 00:26:17.420 --> 00:26:18.440 in Mark 1-3, 00:26:18.579 --> 00:26:19.539 because Mark is not 00:26:19.539 --> 00:26:21.200 starting by recording 00:26:21.200 --> 00:26:22.600 the detail of Jesus' preaching, 00:26:22.700 --> 00:26:23.319 but showing you 00:26:23.319 --> 00:26:24.500 the miraculous effect 00:26:24.500 --> 00:26:25.140 of his preaching. 00:26:25.860 --> 00:26:26.779 This is his introduction, 00:26:26.960 --> 00:26:27.420 if you like. 00:26:28.059 --> 00:26:29.180 Let me show you 00:26:29.180 --> 00:26:31.539 that the messages of Jesus 00:26:31.539 --> 00:26:33.600 have life-changing power. 00:26:33.599 --> 00:26:35.539 Let me show you. 00:26:36.039 --> 00:26:37.159 And over and over again 00:26:37.159 --> 00:26:37.959 he shows it to you. 00:26:39.259 --> 00:26:40.519 This is why this instruction 00:26:40.519 --> 00:26:41.379 to listen to Jesus 00:26:41.379 --> 00:26:42.299 is so life-giving 00:26:42.299 --> 00:26:42.839 this morning. 00:26:44.019 --> 00:26:44.219 You see, 00:26:44.359 --> 00:26:45.240 if being a Christian 00:26:45.240 --> 00:26:46.319 is sort of 00:26:46.319 --> 00:26:48.059 feeling for Jesus 00:26:48.059 --> 00:26:48.980 rather than listening 00:26:48.980 --> 00:26:49.519 to Jesus, 00:26:50.659 --> 00:26:51.459 you miss out 00:26:51.459 --> 00:26:52.059 on this power, 00:26:52.059 --> 00:26:53.980 because it is listening 00:26:53.980 --> 00:26:55.240 to the word of Jesus 00:26:55.240 --> 00:26:56.279 that has the power 00:26:56.279 --> 00:26:57.200 to do what no other 00:26:57.200 --> 00:26:57.879 religious action 00:26:57.879 --> 00:26:58.339 or activity 00:26:58.339 --> 00:26:59.139 could ever do. 00:27:00.440 --> 00:27:01.599 Because Jesus' word 00:27:01.599 --> 00:27:02.359 can drive out 00:27:02.359 --> 00:27:03.079 and clean us. 00:27:03.220 --> 00:27:03.779 Jesus' word 00:27:03.779 --> 00:27:04.720 can forgive sin. 00:27:05.200 --> 00:27:05.759 Jesus' word 00:27:05.759 --> 00:27:06.279 can bring you 00:27:06.279 --> 00:27:07.079 into an eternal, 00:27:07.619 --> 00:27:08.299 beyond death, 00:27:08.419 --> 00:27:09.579 kingdom full of truth 00:27:09.579 --> 00:27:10.220 and goodness 00:27:10.220 --> 00:27:10.960 and wholeness 00:27:10.960 --> 00:27:11.440 and healing. 00:27:12.899 --> 00:27:13.799 You'd be a fool 00:27:13.799 --> 00:27:14.339 not to listen 00:27:14.339 --> 00:27:15.240 to that kind of word. 00:27:17.359 --> 00:27:18.480 But here's the second reason 00:27:18.480 --> 00:27:19.419 I think that we're not 00:27:19.419 --> 00:27:20.259 reading transcripts 00:27:20.259 --> 00:27:21.000 of Jesus' sermons 00:27:21.000 --> 00:27:21.660 even though he's come 00:27:21.660 --> 00:27:22.039 as a preacher. 00:27:22.160 --> 00:27:23.259 This I think is mind-blowing. 00:27:24.500 --> 00:27:25.980 Because Mark's conviction 00:27:25.980 --> 00:27:28.059 is that as he records 00:27:28.059 --> 00:27:29.940 the events of Jesus' life, 00:27:30.660 --> 00:27:31.519 he is preaching 00:27:31.519 --> 00:27:32.940 the words of Jesus to you. 00:27:33.339 --> 00:27:34.359 That's what he thinks. 00:27:35.140 --> 00:27:35.859 In other words, 00:27:35.960 --> 00:27:36.759 Mark thinks that 00:27:36.759 --> 00:27:38.500 as you read his account 00:27:38.500 --> 00:27:39.660 of what happened, 00:27:40.099 --> 00:27:41.299 you are not reading 00:27:41.299 --> 00:27:42.980 just his words, 00:27:43.299 --> 00:27:44.400 but you are reading 00:27:44.400 --> 00:27:45.740 the word of God 00:27:45.740 --> 00:27:48.240 carried by the spirit of God. 00:27:48.680 --> 00:27:49.859 You are reading 00:27:49.859 --> 00:27:51.039 Jesus' words. 00:27:51.799 --> 00:27:52.719 Mark is writing 00:27:52.719 --> 00:27:53.779 what Jesus is saying 00:27:53.779 --> 00:27:54.259 to you. 00:27:54.779 --> 00:27:55.439 So that our job 00:27:55.439 --> 00:27:56.679 as we read Mark's book 00:27:56.679 --> 00:27:57.419 is not to kind of 00:27:57.419 --> 00:27:58.679 work our way through it 00:27:58.679 --> 00:27:59.639 and try and discern 00:27:59.639 --> 00:28:00.979 where the words of Jesus 00:28:00.979 --> 00:28:02.279 are in Mark's gospel. 00:28:02.679 --> 00:28:03.619 No, we're to read 00:28:03.619 --> 00:28:04.240 Mark's gospel 00:28:04.240 --> 00:28:05.759 as the word of Jesus, 00:28:06.979 --> 00:28:08.159 listening to it. 00:28:09.799 --> 00:28:10.819 Mark isn't writing 00:28:10.819 --> 00:28:11.519 to tell you 00:28:11.519 --> 00:28:13.240 about God's word, right? 00:28:13.819 --> 00:28:14.659 He is writing 00:28:14.659 --> 00:28:15.919 God's word. 00:28:16.059 --> 00:28:16.719 He is preaching 00:28:16.719 --> 00:28:17.479 to you. 00:28:17.480 --> 00:28:19.500 And we saw that, 00:28:19.539 --> 00:28:19.759 didn't we, 00:28:20.000 --> 00:28:21.180 in the very first week. 00:28:21.259 --> 00:28:22.480 He knows he's writing 00:28:22.480 --> 00:28:24.160 like a new Genesis 1 account. 00:28:24.559 --> 00:28:25.319 In the beginning, 00:28:25.900 --> 00:28:27.140 a new creation story 00:28:27.140 --> 00:28:28.180 about a new kingdom, 00:28:28.279 --> 00:28:29.339 a kingdom of life 00:28:29.339 --> 00:28:30.059 and forgiveness 00:28:30.059 --> 00:28:31.299 and healing 00:28:31.299 --> 00:28:33.440 and glory to God 00:28:33.440 --> 00:28:36.559 instead of this creation story 00:28:36.559 --> 00:28:37.980 of darkness 00:28:37.980 --> 00:28:38.759 and death 00:28:38.759 --> 00:28:39.460 and destruction. 00:28:39.460 --> 00:28:41.240 and he believes 00:28:41.240 --> 00:28:42.640 that as he writes, 00:28:42.740 --> 00:28:43.740 you are reading 00:28:43.740 --> 00:28:45.019 under the inspiration 00:28:45.019 --> 00:28:45.920 of the Holy Spirit 00:28:45.920 --> 00:28:47.980 God's words. 00:28:49.720 --> 00:28:50.799 I think this is perhaps 00:28:50.799 --> 00:28:52.019 one of the most important 00:28:52.019 --> 00:28:53.600 lessons about the application 00:28:53.600 --> 00:28:54.100 of the Bible 00:28:54.100 --> 00:28:54.880 for us this morning. 00:28:56.400 --> 00:28:57.059 It's difficult, 00:28:57.160 --> 00:28:57.319 isn't it, 00:28:57.340 --> 00:28:58.319 sometimes with the historical 00:28:58.319 --> 00:28:59.240 documents of the Bible 00:28:59.240 --> 00:28:59.500 to go, 00:28:59.579 --> 00:29:00.380 well, that's all very well 00:29:00.380 --> 00:29:02.120 and it means it would have 00:29:02.120 --> 00:29:03.120 been great to be there 00:29:03.120 --> 00:29:04.059 when Jesus was preaching. 00:29:04.180 --> 00:29:04.860 Imagine that. 00:29:04.859 --> 00:29:07.199 But actually, 00:29:07.639 --> 00:29:09.139 what we're realising now 00:29:09.139 --> 00:29:10.099 is that it's not 00:29:10.099 --> 00:29:12.199 so much that it was cool 00:29:12.199 --> 00:29:13.079 to be there then, 00:29:13.099 --> 00:29:13.979 but it's really cool 00:29:13.979 --> 00:29:14.919 to be here now. 00:29:16.240 --> 00:29:16.399 You know, 00:29:16.439 --> 00:29:17.559 Mark is not really 00:29:17.559 --> 00:29:18.759 a biography of Jesus. 00:29:19.199 --> 00:29:20.099 I know that that's sometimes 00:29:20.099 --> 00:29:20.579 how we talk 00:29:20.579 --> 00:29:21.419 because it kind of explains 00:29:21.419 --> 00:29:22.319 a little bit about what it is, 00:29:22.719 --> 00:29:24.319 but Mark is not a biographer. 00:29:24.919 --> 00:29:26.319 Mark's a preacher, right? 00:29:27.279 --> 00:29:27.939 He's a prophet. 00:29:28.899 --> 00:29:30.059 He thinks that you engage 00:29:30.059 --> 00:29:30.539 with Jesus, 00:29:30.679 --> 00:29:31.319 you meet Jesus 00:29:31.319 --> 00:29:32.500 as he walks off the pages 00:29:32.500 --> 00:29:33.099 of this book 00:29:33.099 --> 00:29:34.199 into your life. 00:29:35.679 --> 00:29:36.339 Let me say, 00:29:36.399 --> 00:29:38.359 this is why God's written word 00:29:38.359 --> 00:29:39.699 is always at the centre 00:29:39.699 --> 00:29:40.339 of the gatherings 00:29:40.339 --> 00:29:41.819 of God's people. 00:29:42.179 --> 00:29:43.039 It's always at the centre 00:29:43.039 --> 00:29:44.119 of our worship services. 00:29:45.179 --> 00:29:46.319 God's word will be the content 00:29:46.319 --> 00:29:47.459 of the songs that we sing 00:29:47.459 --> 00:29:48.579 because the musicians 00:29:48.579 --> 00:29:49.079 are not here 00:29:49.079 --> 00:29:50.379 to kind of hype us up 00:29:50.379 --> 00:29:52.059 for some kind of emotional experience 00:29:52.059 --> 00:29:53.099 outside of the truth 00:29:53.099 --> 00:29:53.639 of God's word. 00:29:54.019 --> 00:29:54.119 No, 00:29:54.299 --> 00:29:55.240 they are here 00:29:55.240 --> 00:29:55.979 to help us 00:29:55.979 --> 00:29:57.799 enjoy and express 00:29:57.799 --> 00:29:58.639 the beauty 00:29:58.639 --> 00:29:59.419 and the wonder 00:29:59.419 --> 00:30:00.159 of God's word 00:30:00.159 --> 00:30:00.779 and God's truth 00:30:00.779 --> 00:30:02.899 as we sing to one another 00:30:02.899 --> 00:30:04.000 to the glory of his name. 00:30:04.000 --> 00:30:05.380 It's why we believe 00:30:05.380 --> 00:30:06.019 in preaching 00:30:06.019 --> 00:30:07.980 because we believe 00:30:07.980 --> 00:30:09.359 that the spirit of God 00:30:09.359 --> 00:30:10.519 who inspired these words 00:30:10.519 --> 00:30:11.759 has been at work today 00:30:11.759 --> 00:30:12.400 when these words 00:30:12.400 --> 00:30:13.539 are read and considered. 00:30:14.980 --> 00:30:15.839 It's why our church 00:30:15.839 --> 00:30:16.960 is kind of both 00:30:16.960 --> 00:30:18.339 hopefully historic 00:30:18.339 --> 00:30:19.579 but also contemporary. 00:30:19.579 --> 00:30:21.359 we meet here today, 00:30:21.519 --> 00:30:22.179 we meet here now, 00:30:22.259 --> 00:30:22.919 we don't all dress 00:30:22.919 --> 00:30:23.639 as if it's still 00:30:23.639 --> 00:30:24.619 the 19th century. 00:30:25.359 --> 00:30:26.579 We don't talk like that, 00:30:26.939 --> 00:30:28.240 we don't read a Bible version 00:30:28.240 --> 00:30:29.059 that's full of words 00:30:29.059 --> 00:30:30.079 that are written 00:30:30.079 --> 00:30:30.579 like they were written 00:30:30.579 --> 00:30:31.220 by someone hundreds 00:30:31.220 --> 00:30:32.179 and hundreds of years ago. 00:30:33.179 --> 00:30:33.960 We're contemporary, 00:30:34.119 --> 00:30:34.899 we're based here 00:30:34.899 --> 00:30:35.919 and now in 2025 00:30:35.919 --> 00:30:38.139 but we're also historic 00:30:38.139 --> 00:30:40.699 because God has been preaching 00:30:40.699 --> 00:30:41.559 this same book 00:30:41.559 --> 00:30:42.279 for centuries 00:30:42.279 --> 00:30:43.819 and we stand 00:30:43.819 --> 00:30:44.480 on the shoulders 00:30:44.480 --> 00:30:45.379 of men and women 00:30:45.379 --> 00:30:46.519 who have heard it 00:30:46.519 --> 00:30:47.339 before us. 00:30:47.339 --> 00:30:49.439 And so the invitation 00:30:49.439 --> 00:30:50.539 each week here 00:30:50.539 --> 00:30:51.319 as we come to church 00:30:51.319 --> 00:30:52.399 is come and meet with God. 00:30:53.099 --> 00:30:53.899 Come here 00:30:53.899 --> 00:30:55.359 and meet with God. 00:30:55.839 --> 00:30:56.539 Hear from him. 00:30:57.159 --> 00:30:58.399 Come and be fed by him. 00:30:58.500 --> 00:30:59.379 Come and listen to him. 00:31:01.740 --> 00:31:02.500 Let me finish 00:31:02.500 --> 00:31:04.099 with a little story 00:31:04.099 --> 00:31:05.019 about myself 00:31:05.019 --> 00:31:06.199 and how this kind of 00:31:06.199 --> 00:31:07.799 came home to me. 00:31:07.919 --> 00:31:09.519 I can remember clearly 00:31:09.519 --> 00:31:10.759 when I started to learn this 00:31:10.759 --> 00:31:11.899 about God's word 00:31:11.899 --> 00:31:12.559 and how it worked. 00:31:12.599 --> 00:31:13.319 I was a student 00:31:13.319 --> 00:31:15.659 at university in Sheffield. 00:31:15.660 --> 00:31:17.920 I was a Christian 00:31:17.920 --> 00:31:18.920 when I went to university 00:31:18.920 --> 00:31:20.340 but I was really 00:31:20.340 --> 00:31:21.040 a baby Christian 00:31:21.040 --> 00:31:21.960 and I was the worst 00:31:21.960 --> 00:31:22.860 kind of baby Christian 00:31:22.860 --> 00:31:24.660 because I was a baby Christian 00:31:24.660 --> 00:31:25.240 who thought they were 00:31:25.240 --> 00:31:26.019 a mature Christian. 00:31:26.300 --> 00:31:27.140 That's the worst 00:31:27.140 --> 00:31:28.040 kind of baby Christian. 00:31:28.400 --> 00:31:29.519 It's okay to be a baby Christian 00:31:29.519 --> 00:31:30.340 if you know 00:31:30.340 --> 00:31:31.540 you're a baby Christian 00:31:31.540 --> 00:31:32.040 but if you think 00:31:32.040 --> 00:31:32.860 you're a mature Christian 00:31:32.860 --> 00:31:34.200 what you actually are 00:31:34.200 --> 00:31:34.940 is a bit of a fool. 00:31:35.240 --> 00:31:35.820 That was me 00:31:35.820 --> 00:31:36.900 at university. 00:31:37.500 --> 00:31:38.040 I thought I knew 00:31:38.040 --> 00:31:38.800 a lot more than I did. 00:31:39.920 --> 00:31:41.080 And I went to church 00:31:41.080 --> 00:31:41.759 which was a little bit 00:31:41.759 --> 00:31:42.460 different to the church 00:31:42.460 --> 00:31:43.519 I'd been to back home 00:31:43.519 --> 00:31:45.779 and it was very ordinary 00:31:45.779 --> 00:31:46.299 though really 00:31:46.299 --> 00:31:46.940 in lots of places. 00:31:47.059 --> 00:31:48.059 It was very straightforward 00:31:48.059 --> 00:31:48.539 and ordinary. 00:31:48.700 --> 00:31:49.859 It was a parish church 00:31:49.859 --> 00:31:50.819 just outside Sheffield. 00:31:51.900 --> 00:31:52.819 But at the centre 00:31:52.819 --> 00:31:53.299 of the services 00:31:53.299 --> 00:31:54.720 was a pastor 00:31:54.720 --> 00:31:55.400 who would just 00:31:55.400 --> 00:31:56.759 open up the Bible 00:31:56.759 --> 00:31:58.480 and explain it. 00:31:59.119 --> 00:31:59.460 I don't think 00:31:59.460 --> 00:32:00.559 I'd ever really experienced 00:32:00.559 --> 00:32:02.900 anything so ordinary really. 00:32:03.599 --> 00:32:04.200 And I remember 00:32:04.200 --> 00:32:04.879 sitting there thinking 00:32:04.879 --> 00:32:06.079 as he preached about 00:32:06.079 --> 00:32:08.359 I could have seen that. 00:32:08.859 --> 00:32:11.279 Like what's the big deal here? 00:32:12.079 --> 00:32:13.039 But as I went 00:32:13.039 --> 00:32:14.059 week by week 00:32:14.059 --> 00:32:15.460 slowly but surely 00:32:15.460 --> 00:32:16.859 my life was being changed. 00:32:17.859 --> 00:32:19.559 And I had this new 00:32:19.559 --> 00:32:21.160 hunger for God's word 00:32:21.160 --> 00:32:22.519 that I'd never experienced before 00:32:22.519 --> 00:32:23.660 and I'd go back 00:32:23.660 --> 00:32:24.700 to my room at university 00:32:24.700 --> 00:32:25.319 and would just 00:32:25.319 --> 00:32:26.700 read and read 00:32:26.700 --> 00:32:27.779 and read and read. 00:32:28.039 --> 00:32:29.119 Couldn't get enough of it. 00:32:30.039 --> 00:32:31.039 And slowly but surely 00:32:31.039 --> 00:32:31.819 the things that I was 00:32:31.819 --> 00:32:33.420 really interested in 00:32:33.420 --> 00:32:34.139 and keen on 00:32:34.139 --> 00:32:34.879 and wanted to do 00:32:34.879 --> 00:32:35.319 with my life 00:32:35.319 --> 00:32:35.819 they were being 00:32:35.819 --> 00:32:37.259 shaped and transformed. 00:32:37.399 --> 00:32:37.599 How? 00:32:37.700 --> 00:32:38.920 By a very 00:32:38.920 --> 00:32:40.619 very ordinary process. 00:32:41.279 --> 00:32:42.720 of someone standing up 00:32:42.720 --> 00:32:43.779 and explaining God's word. 00:32:45.059 --> 00:32:45.859 It turns out 00:32:45.859 --> 00:32:46.460 that God does 00:32:46.460 --> 00:32:48.059 extraordinary things 00:32:48.059 --> 00:32:50.099 through ordinary means 00:32:50.099 --> 00:32:51.759 in our lives. 00:32:52.500 --> 00:32:53.720 And that was my experience 00:32:53.720 --> 00:32:55.240 and I hope and pray 00:32:55.240 --> 00:32:56.099 that's our experience 00:32:56.099 --> 00:32:56.859 as a church 00:32:56.859 --> 00:32:58.220 that as God's word 00:32:58.220 --> 00:32:58.799 is opened up 00:32:58.799 --> 00:32:59.480 week by week 00:32:59.480 --> 00:33:01.240 you find that God 00:33:01.240 --> 00:33:01.899 is doing something 00:33:01.899 --> 00:33:03.319 extraordinary in your life. 00:33:04.299 --> 00:33:05.759 Growing your love for him. 00:33:06.440 --> 00:33:07.519 Your trust in him. 00:33:08.220 --> 00:33:09.200 Your experience 00:33:09.200 --> 00:33:10.200 is the greatest 00:33:10.200 --> 00:33:10.440 of this great communion 00:33:10.440 --> 00:33:12.019 with Father, Son and Spirit 00:33:12.019 --> 00:33:13.299 that is greater 00:33:13.299 --> 00:33:14.420 than any other desire 00:33:14.420 --> 00:33:15.259 you might have 00:33:15.259 --> 00:33:16.900 as you too 00:33:16.900 --> 00:33:18.160 take this message 00:33:18.160 --> 00:33:19.160 to the world 00:33:19.160 --> 00:33:20.259 that others might hear 00:33:20.259 --> 00:33:21.420 this great news 00:33:21.420 --> 00:33:23.700 that Jesus speaks today 00:33:23.700 --> 00:33:25.819 and you can hear him 00:33:25.819 --> 00:33:27.299 if you will open 00:33:27.299 --> 00:33:28.080 a Bible and listen. 00:33:29.220 --> 00:33:29.960 Let's have a moment 00:33:29.960 --> 00:33:30.539 of quiet 00:33:30.539 --> 00:33:31.680 as we think 00:33:31.680 --> 00:33:32.700 and ponder in our hearts 00:33:32.700 --> 00:33:34.059 and then I'll pray for us. 00:33:34.059 --> 00:34:04.039 Let's have a moment 00:34:04.059 --> 00:34:05.419 to the world 00:34:05.419 --> 00:34:06.500 and thank you 00:34:06.500 --> 00:34:07.119 for your love for you 00:34:07.119 --> 00:34:09.279 and thank you 00:34:09.279 --> 00:34:09.279 00:34:09.279 --> 00:34:10.559 and thank you 00:34:10.559 --> 00:34:11.099 for your love for you 00:34:11.099 --> 00:34:12.039 loving Heavenly Father 00:34:12.039 --> 00:34:13.139 thank you that you 00:34:13.139 --> 00:34:14.320 speak to us today 00:34:14.320 --> 00:34:17.239 that these words 00:34:17.239 --> 00:34:17.960 that we have read 00:34:17.960 --> 00:34:19.079 are not simply 00:34:19.079 --> 00:34:21.199 what Jesus did 00:34:21.199 --> 00:34:21.980 in the past 00:34:21.980 --> 00:34:23.179 but are what you are 00:34:23.179 --> 00:34:24.320 saying to us today. 00:34:26.099 --> 00:34:27.340 Thank you that your word 00:34:27.340 --> 00:34:28.279 today carries 00:34:28.279 --> 00:34:29.400 the same power 00:34:29.400 --> 00:34:30.380 as it ever did 00:34:30.380 --> 00:34:32.599 the power 00:34:32.599 --> 00:34:33.579 to bring life 00:34:33.579 --> 00:34:34.800 the power 00:34:34.800 --> 00:34:35.660 to make clean 00:34:35.660 --> 00:34:37.160 the power 00:34:37.160 --> 00:34:37.860 to heal 00:34:37.860 --> 00:34:39.380 the power 00:34:39.380 --> 00:34:40.280 to bring people 00:34:40.280 --> 00:34:41.619 into your eternal kingdom 00:34:41.619 --> 00:34:44.220 and so Lord 00:34:44.220 --> 00:34:44.840 we pray 00:34:44.840 --> 00:34:46.340 please make us 00:34:46.340 --> 00:34:46.980 good listeners 00:34:46.980 --> 00:34:47.960 we ask 00:34:47.960 --> 00:34:49.340 that we might have 00:34:49.340 --> 00:34:50.420 tender hearts 00:34:50.420 --> 00:34:51.960 which are hungry 00:34:51.960 --> 00:34:52.559 to listen 00:34:52.559 --> 00:34:53.300 to what you say 00:34:53.300 --> 00:34:53.920 to us 00:34:53.920 --> 00:34:55.360 that we might 00:34:55.360 --> 00:34:56.380 listen carefully 00:34:56.380 --> 00:34:57.800 for the glory 00:34:57.800 --> 00:34:58.460 of your name 00:34:58.460 --> 00:34:59.900 Amen 00:34:59.900 --> 00:35:00.820 Amen