The Gospel's Two-Sided Coin

Intro: On monetary coins here in the U.S., we have two-sides to a coin. On one side, it usually has a building or maybe if you have some of those state quarters, something about the state that it is celebrating on that side. But the other side always has what on it? A head. Now, if I were to give you a coin that had two heads, what would be your reaction? Would you use it and try to buy something? If not, why not? And if you tried to use it and someone was paying attention, would it be accepted?

I make this illustration because I have titled this sermon “The Gospel’s Two-Sided Coin,” and this text has two-sides that are necessary to our understanding, living, and proclamation of the gospel. If we are missing one side, the coin is not legitimate. There should be no division here in regards to the gospel.

CTS: Jesus, the gospel of God himself, justifies us and transforms us to be part of his kingdom.

The Gospel requires that we respond in two manners:

I. Repent and Believe (14-15)

“Handed over.”

Mark, after giving the qualifications of Jesus in his baptism and in his battle with Satan in the wilderness then shows the transition. John, the one who prepared the way for Jesus, will move off of the scene. Yet the way that he is moved foreshadows what is to come for Jesus, and even further, for all those that will come for the followers of Jesus. In the ESV and in most translations, the word Greek is translated as arrested. Yet it is literally “handed over.” This word will be used 10 more times in Jesus’ teaching and of his own passion. It is used in his teaching of what believers will experience three times in chapter 13. Mark intentionally uses this word to give meaning and foreshadowing of what is to come. As John is handed over to the authorities to be arrested, revealing that proclamation of God’s truth typically ends not in ease or comfort, but rather, in adversity and suffering. Jesus himself would endure the most difficult of handing over, yet part of God’s plan of redemption of mankind. Yet through the suffering of John, and the attempts to silence the truth by Herod Antipas, its actually a setting of the stage for the proclamation of the gospel, the gospel of God himself comes, and the kingdom of God arrives.

As the baton is passed on to Jesus too, we are given an image that Jesus is center. John and the prophets, and even the disciples and believers after Jesus’ ministry, resurrection, and ascension, are not the focus of the gospel itself. They are either forerunners or witnesses of Christ. This should of be the church itself. Instead of celebritizing and putting preachers, pastors, or anyone else on pedestals, we are to put Christ at the center. Paul expresses this concern for the church at Corinth, where they are divided in a myriad of ways, none greater than their expressed allegiances to certain men rather than Jesus himself. (1 Cor 1:10-17)

Jesus’ Announcement of the Gospel

A message for all: Mark, not one to give great detail, does give a geographical location of the opening ministry of Jesus. Jesus comes triumphantly out of the wilderness, and begins his ministry, which is the proclamation of the gospel in Galilee. This is where Jesus did much of his ministry on the earth, and was widely popular here. Yet, this was the place where much mixture of Jewish and Gentile culture abounded. It was the first place that Gentile invaders would come to attack Israel, and at this time, because of it being outside of Israel, it was a center of multicultural commerce and establishment, much to the chagrin of many of the Jews in Jerusalem. This is another image and confirmation of the ministry of Jesus: his message was for all, Jew and Gentile alike. It was a fulfillment of what was promised in Isaiah 9:1-2. A blessing to all nations. The church must remember its call too, for we are called to bring the gospel message to every tribe, nations and tongue. The gospel is meant for every people.

Now is the time: Jesus declares with great authority, the time has come. Everything that has led up to this point, every prophecy and revelation, is now revealed in himself. The authority of the message is clear, but also, its urgency is evident. The time from the divine side is clear. Yet, the response to this will be seen throughout Mark. As evidenced by the common view of what a kingdom would look like, people would buck against Jesus’ message, for they had an entirely different, physical way of how God’s kingdom would be fully realized. Yet Jesus says the time is fulfilled.

The kingdom of God is at hand: This is a bold and reality-changing truth. Jesus in essence is saying that the time that everyone has been waiting for is here, and the kingdom of God is near. The urgency remains, but also, the claim is incredible. Jesus declares what has been promised for centuries before. (Is 52:7, Dan 2:44, Joel 2:1). The idea of God’s reign was baked into the life of the Israel, but it was hard for many to grasp in the midst of their own history and current Roman oppression. They knew that God is king, and that He reigns. (Ex 15:18, 1 Sam 12:12, Ps 5:2). Yet they were waiting for full freedom from their pagan captors. A physical reign if you will. Jesus instead will show the kingdom has come, that God reigns, to rule spiritually over the hearts of men. The physical reign will come, but first, that which is most important, the spiritual renewal, restoration, and defeat of sin and death must come first, and Jesus brings this. Its about rule itself rather than the realm.

The kingdom comes in three senses: (1) Has already come in the presence of Jesus, fulfilling God’s will perfectly, embodying the obedience that Adam and Israel failed to do. (2) It is gradually coming through lives surrendered to God’s will. (3) God will introduce this kingdom universally at the “last day,” when all things are united in Christ. (Eph 1:10)

Jesus’ Demand of the Gospel

Notice something here. In all of this proclamation, there is nothing here that shows that man brings about this kingdom. God has and always be the initiator and bringer of his kingdom. Man does not bring in God’s reign. God does. He is the creator, the sustainer. Donald English summarizes it this way:

The basis of Jesus’ call to repentance and faith was the announcement of God’s initiative in bringing the kingdom near. The whole of life is based on that fundamental truth. We do not initiate, we respond, both in relation to life, by God’s initiative in creation, and in relation to new life in Christ, by God’s initiative in Jesus. Our sacraments celebrate that; as does the importance of preaching in our worship. The basic question of our daily life is how far we are responding appropriately to God’s initiatives at every level. Since God is in all of life so should our responses be.

So with this in mind, we are to be clear that this is a response to the kingdom coming near. And Jesus tells us what the gospel demands of us, how we respond to God’s work.

REPENT: Turning back, turning around, change of mind, change of direction. Certainly this is a clear communication of our sin, but also, not just a guilt trip. Rather, the gospel shows that our own ways, our own paths, are only paths that ultimately lead to destruction. A good way to maybe put this in modern vernacular is “a change of heart.” It is an acknowledgement and turning away of our own path, and turning to the ways of God, which commends to us in Christ. We turn to Jesus. We need a change, and for many, to be told our ways are wrong and that we need to change is not easy. Our culture has a shallow view of sin, and it has even infiltrated the church. Listen to this satirical rewriting of a prayer from the book of Common Prayer: (David Head)

“Benevolent and easy-going Father: we have occasionally been guilty of errors of judgment. We have live under the deprivations of heredity and the disadvantages of environment. We have sometimes failed to act in accordance with common sense. WE have done the best we could in the circumstances, and have been careful not to ignore the common standards of decency; and we are glad to think that we are fairly normal. Do thou, O Lord, deal lightly with our infrequent lapses. Be thy own sweet Self with those who admit they are not perfect; According to the unlimited tolerances which we have a right to expect from thee. And grant us as indulgent Parent that we may hereafter continue to live a harmless and happy life and keep our self-respect.”

We must not minimize sin, but treat it as the Bible shows it. To show sin as it is and its consequences are needed, but also with great humility, we show the better way of Christ and His gospel. And with that, we are to show what true repentance is: Actual change.

BELIEVE: And with that turning comes also a belief. To believe in the gospel means more than just intellectual assent (though it is part of it), but rather, that assent and trust. To turn away from our own path, our own sin, and turn to Jesus and trust His ways. In other words, a commitment to Him. This is often minimized in easy believism gospels that elevate our eternal state over the call to redemption that begins now. To follow Christ is not just to get you out of hell and into heaven, but rather into the kingdom that is here and is to come in full. We believe in Jesus, who He is, what He has done through his own death on the cross for our sins, to pay our sin debt, and believe he rose from the dead, and believe he ascended to the Father. We believe and put our trust in him for our salvation. We trust his work, not our own or our ways, and commit ourselves to the God-man Jesus who gave his life to redeem us as His children.

Transition: The Greek tense of these verbs are of continual action. This is not just a one time endeavor, but one of continual repentance and belief. We must continue to turn towards Christ daily, looking to Him, trusting Him, and ultimately, following Him, which is the second side of the gospel coin I want you to see this morning.

II. Leave and Follow (16-20)

We come to a new scene. The first two verses we addressed almost act as a purpose statement for the book of Mark. With the gospel at the forefront, we then come to a scene where Jesus begins call out gospel citizens, disciples. We are immediately faced with some truths and realities of discipleship. The natural order of redemption demands what we find here in these five verses. The second side of the coin, and without that side, it really isn’t worth anything. Discipleship is necessary. It is a “following,” but not just of learning knowledge like some would be disciples of certain rabbis of the day. It necessitate a whole life commitment, head and heart, knowledge and ethics, and a transformation.

Jesus initiates the call of discipleship

Before we go further, I do want to do a little background to fishermen of that day. This was a common way of living, and could even be a lucrative way of making money. Fishing not only was important for Israel, they also exported fish to the nations around them. These men weren’t poor. Were they powerful in society? No, they were just normal men making a normal living. Yet Jesus uses their profession to point to a new profession that they will have.

Discipleship is the expectation of Jesus. Yet, it is he that initiates that discipleship. Notice here that Peter and Andrew, John and James are not the ones that come to Jesus and ask to be his disciple. He seeks them and calls them. The reality of man is that we don’t naturally seek God, he must seek us and call us. Jesus here embodies the divine initiative, these men embody the right response.

The church is called to this task of discipleship, but we are not making disciples of ourselves. I’m not teaching others to be like Chris Gravning. We make disciples of Jesus, pointing God’s people to Him and His revelation of the Word. We entrust God to this work. We are to be patient and longsuffering, letting the gospel do its work, God convicting and drawing people to himself. We entrust the Word t do that work in the hearts of people.

Jesus’s call has authority and is immediate

Mark is emphasizing a strong authoritative call. We don’t see any background to what Peter, Andrew, John, and James have heard or know about Jesus. Jesus seeks. Jesus calls. Jesus commands. And these men immediately follow. This is contrast to the idea that I’ll follow Jesus when the time is right, when I’m not busy with life. This isn’t optional action for the believer. This is part of the life in the kingdom, to follow Jesus. This also shows the power and authority of Jesus and his message. He completely transforms those that are lost to live a life in following Him.

Jesus’ call doesn’t require preparation

These men are not required to know, look, or act a certain way in order to become a disciple. They are called where they are, ordinary men in need of a Savior. We must remember this as the church. Such were some of us, but remember your lostness and remember that there are those that are in the same position that you were in. We cannot expect people to look and act like us in order to hear and receive the gospel. They don’t need to be religious in order to be saved and to be a disciple.

Jesus’ call shatters our comfort and gives a new purpose

What does it mean to know Jesus and to be His disciple according to this text? It means to leave and follow. It means that life as we know it is completely transformed. Their way of living is now transformed to complete obedience to Jesus. Nothing will stand in the way of Jesus in his call. Not career. Not family. Not friends. We are called to forsake the old way and to look to the new. This flies in the face of much of cultural Christianity today. To be disciple is not relegated to Sunday. Disciples don’t simply fill seats in church, fill out pledge cards, attend occasional Bible studies, and offer to help every once in a while.

Discipleship is absolute obedience and sacrifice to his purpose for us. That purpose is centralized in following him in our lives and in our actions. We must seek what Jesus wants for our lives. It may be that he wants you to stay in your job where you are at, but now your life is his, and wherever you are, we now live in light of his call. Gospel in our homes. Gospel in our work. Gospel in our community.

Discipleship means trusting Jesus for his provision and care. We trust Jesus to provide for our needs. The disciples left their livelihoods for Christ. Jesus breaks our bondage to material, and as Jesus sacrificed himself for us, we are called to be sacrificial and generous. The matters of this world are secondary and ultimately will pass away. The kingdom of God and his work matters. Throw caution to the wind, and give it all for Jesus!

It means knowing Jesus. Discipleship is calling to follow, to know him, hear him, listen to him, obey him. We do that as God’s people today through the disciplines of the Word, prayer, fasting, giving, and seeking him in all aspects of life. And it means not just knowing, but applying the Word in our lives.

It means it is done in community. Notice that this isn’t just one person called to discipleship. Rather, we have Jesus and twelve disciples. This is the embryonic form of what is to come, the church. We are to be disciples together as the church, the means by which God grows us, holds us accountable.

Conclusion:

The ultimate point of all of this is to show us that the typical message that we hear in our churches today is rooted in pop-psychology, feel-good messages about ourselves and the an unbiblical view of God’s love. There’s no sacrifice needed. God is only there to make your life better, not to transform your life to his will. Another false gospel his is that some churches get the initial part right, Jesus died for our sins and to believe and trust in him for our salvation, but that’s it. Say a prayer, fill out a card, and you are a Christian and wil go to heaven one day. No call or expectation is given to a life of discipleship. But what we see here is contrary. Repent and believe, and with the repentance and belief, comes the natural response of true believers.

But we also know and don’t despair, for maybe we come today and think, I haven’t followed Jesus like I should. Sometimes I get wrapped up in my own world, in what I want to do, and forget that this life isn’t mine. Guess what? So did the disciples. Sometimes they got wrapped up in their own views of life, of who Jesus should be, and even abandoned Jesus. But there is grace. This isn’t an instantaneous transformation. Its discipleship. Its learning, growing, killing sin, submitting to Jesus. And because Jesus died for every failure, when we do fail in our discipleship, Jesus gives us forgiveness. We confess. We ask God to empower us to overcome and kill that sin. We ask God for the boldness we need. We go to our church and ask for help and encouragement. We listen to the Word preached and strive to apply it to our lives. We sing loud His praises. We take the Lord’s Supper. We give sacrificially to his work. we fellowship. We love another in community, invited others into the fold of following Jesus through gospel conversations and discipleship.

One tangible way we can do this even within minutes of the sermon is to have conversations about what we did together this morning. Talk about the songs we sang and how they blessed your soul. Talk about what you learned in the sermon together. It may seem awkward at first, but start by simply asking the question around the table, “what did you learn today or were reminded of that blessed you or convicted you?”

The Gospel is a two-sided coin. Jesus justifies us and transforms us, both making us new creatures and sanctifying us to be more like him! Repent and believe. Leave the world behind and follow Jesus!