Club Talk 10/02/23

Heart for the Lowly

Jesus raises a widow’s son

Luke 7:11-17

Shows Jesus’ compassion for her. He feels emotion with her, and consoles her.

Jesus cleanses a leper

Mark 1:39-45

Moved with compassion, and is willing to help.

Alright welcome again to Club everyone! I’m super stoked to get to talk for just a bit now about Jesus. Cause we all love mucking around and having fun, but for us leaders the whole point of tonight is to get to know you guys, talk to you all, and tell you about Jesus. Not cause we have to or we get punished, and not cause we hate bad people and need everyone to be like us. But because we have met Jesus, we know him - and he’s really good. Really good - so good we want you to know just how good he is.

So, one way I’ll get into it tonight is by talking about people and groups. Because having friends is really cool, right? We can share stories, encourage and help each other, and have fun. But that’s not how it goes with everyone, hey? Some people aren’t your friends, and of course that’s just life, we technically can’t be friends with everyone - there’s not enough time. But there are some people who may not want to be friends with you. And there are often people we actually don’t want to be friends with. This can be awkward, or all the way to painful and hurtful.

I have been on both sides of this feeling a bunch of times. Knowing that you’re the odd one out that’s not quite “in”. Growing up in a big Christian family, a pastors kid, homeschooled, quite nerdy - just a fun mix of attributes that made a distinction clear between me and most other people my age. Whether that was in the groups at sport or work or other situations. But even those are just interests and personality type things - there are other factors that can create a lot more distance between people. Like culture/ethnicity, disabilities, financial situations, and sickness. Stuff like these can make us feel disconnected from other people. As though it’s harder for us to be close to people, or for people to be close with us.

But you can flip it around, hey? Just as we know the feeling of ‘oh man they won’t talk to me’ or ‘they don’t like me’, I’m betting that we all also know the feeling of ‘ugh, that person? I don’t want to talk to them’, ‘they’re pretty weird’, ‘they are just too hard to talk to, I can’t be bothered’. Right? So I’m sure most of us know both ends of this experience.

None of it feels right, does it? It all sucks. As we think about this, can I read just a bit of the Bible here? It’s a quick moment of Jesus interacting with some guy.

Mark 1:39–42 CSB

He went into all of Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons. Then a man with leprosy came to him and, on his knees, begged him, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched him. “I am willing,” he told him. “Be made clean.” Immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean.

Told you it was quick. Now, Jesus was healing sick people and preaching a bunch so lots of people were trying to find him and see him. He was super popular - whole towns of people chasing him. Now as he goes from town to town to teach more people, this poor chap with leprosy comes up to him, begging Jesus to heal him. Now, back then they didn’t have any treatment for leprosy, so if you got it you’re just cooked. And since leprosy was contagious, all lepers are sent outside of the town to live apart from everyone else. You couldn’t go back home anymore. You aren’t going to be close to anyone again. If people saw you, they’re staying as far away from you as they can because everyone knows how devastating getting leprosy is. (It’s a skin condition which often leads to losing appendages/limbs and eventually death from infection). Imagine how alone this guy felt. His relationships were all ripped apart. No one could get close to him.

So here he runs to Jesus, falls on his knees and begs. And it says that Jesus was ‘moved with compassion’. Is that your picture of God? Is the God in your mind one who sees people in suffering and is moved with compassion? When you go through something really hard, when you feel alone, do you think that God is moved with compassion for you? Because that’s the God of the Bible.

Now, Jesus doesn’t jump away and give him a “be healed - aight have a good one” No.

“Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched him.”

Jesus reaches out his hand even before the guy was clean.

“I am willing,” he told him. “Be made clean.” Immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean.

This guy, who everyone else kicked out to the streets, who no one else could handle, no one else could love or be with. All the guy did was go to Jesus. And Jesus moved toward him. Jesus entered into his sickness, weirdness, and loneliness. Jesus comforts him, and values him, and loves him. And Jesus renews him, heals him. All the guy did was go to Jesus.

But just as Jesus is the Firstborn of All Creation, Exalted to the place of honour at God’s right hand, the King of Kings, he became an outcast. He knows what it feels like to be treated wrongly. To be laughed at - beaten up. Shamed. Hauled outside the city - away from the people - to be murdered. But after dying, he was raised up from the grave! And he chose to go through all this to defeat it! Death is defeated! Shame is defeated! Now, in Jesus, we will never be alone again! We will always be loved and welcomed. We will always have community! How cool that when we give our lives to Jesus, as he gave his for us, every other follower of Christ we meet, we will be with for eternity. We never have to say a final goodbye to. Jesus gives life. He’s offering it to you now - whether you’ve known him for a long time or never known him before. He’s moving towards you. All there is for you to do is to call out to him. So, if you’d like to ask more or talk to one of us or pray with one of us, we’ll just be hanging out for a bit now till your parents come. So, if you’d like come grab one of us leaders and we’re all more than happy to listen or pray or whatever.