Untitled Sermon (4)

Mark 8:22-26

Touch me again

Introduction:

God often subject us to a process even after a price has been paid.

God has already pid his price on calvary, shared his blood, so that you and I can be freed from sins. Every now and then God still subject us to a process.

Just because you are going through a process does not mean their is a disconnection between you and the divine. There is no fallicies in your faith or faithfulness.

It does not mean that the devil have something to do with it.

You could be going through a process because God has you going through steps and stages.

I know that this is a contrary to contemporary gospel that God is a right now God. Many of you can testify that God has not always been a right now God. Just because we have a right now faith does not mean that we have a right now God. If God was a right now God he would not be able to vindicate your faith.

As a matter of fact if god was a right now god you would have no need for faith, because faith is the substance of things hoped for , the evidence of things not seen. (Hebrew 11:1).

Sometimes the process is the miracle! Just because God has you in the process does not mean he is not working on your behalf. It mean it is in progress to the process.

Background

The Gospel of Mark is the recording of the shortest biography of Jesus Miracles.

Mark’s Gospel ladies and gentlemen records the shortest biography of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. His theme and the thesis of his book is to describe Jesus not as the Son of God , but the Son of man a servant of humanity addressed to a Roman audience, because his audience is gentile he does not have to spend a lot of time on Jewish Genealogy. Therefore Mark can just get to the point.

He floods his book with 19 Miracles to support his thesis as he is on his way to calvary while serving hurting humanity. So, in documenting his discourse with humanity. Mark set these miracles at a certain frequency by using a certain pace and pulse with the word immediately. It is redundant in Mark’s gospel to the working of Christ. Every time Mark document something Jesus does the pace and pulse is assigned to the word immediately.

Just to name a few:

Mark Chapter 1 verse 18 :Jesus stops by the sea of Galilee and retire some fishermen and recruit them to be his disciples and the bible says they dropped their nets and immediately they drooped their nets and followed him.

Chapter 1:31-Jesus stops by Simon mother-in-law’s house where she was suffering with a fever. He addressed the fever and the bible say immediately the fever left.

Chapter 1 verse 42 there is a man who is suffering with leprosy and the bible says after Jesus had spoken the leper was cleansed immediately.

Mark 2:12 -Jesus is in an disclosed house, it’s crowded and a man with palsy break open the roof, some friend tear off the roof and lift the man down from the roof, while standing in front of Jesus the bible says the leprosy was cleansed and his palsy was immediately he was relieved.

Mark 5:29- There was a woman suffering with the issue of blood and the bible say by touching the hems her fountain of blood dried up immediately.

Mark 5:42 -There’s a little girl whose father’s name Jarius, she dies while they’re walking on the highway. Jesus arrives at Jarius house where the little girl died. Jesus says “Talitha Cum” which means daughter arise and the bible says immediately she arose.

Mark 7:35- There’s a man blind and deaf and the bible says Jesus unstopped his plugs up ears and he was able to hear immediately.

Mark 10:52 Jesus encounters blind Bartimaeus on a road leaving out of Jericho and the bible says he recieved his sight immediately, but in the midst of all of this Mark 8 does not ascribe the same pace and pulse.

Chapter 8”22-26 is an anomaly because everything else in Mark’s gospel was immediate . It’s is an anomaly to mark's gospel because it was the one time in mark's gospel and Christ ministry where miracles did not happen immediately, but in steps and stages. And while this miracles is rare to Mark’s gospel, It has been suggested by scholar it is the most realistic to our reality because the truth of the matter is God doesn’t do it all the time immediately. While you are siting here in the Lord’s House giving God praise knowing that God is an immediately God, but sometimes miracles comes in steps and stages. You need to go home and take your medicine. You need to stop sitting in here saying, I’m waiting on the Lord to heal me. You need to pray and see your doctor. As a matter of fact you need to pray, go get therapy at the same time, Because as much as you want God to do it immediately. God is going to subject you to a process that requires steps and stages.

Exhortation : Do I Have anyone in this room who can testify, I don’t have immediate testimony Rev. I had to go from one doctor to the next, form one counselor to the next, I had to meet with my pastor, and deal with my enemies all at the same time. God did not immediately correct my circumstance, situations or issues. He took me through stages. I have learned that just because I had to deal with steps and stages does not mean Jesus has nothing to do with my healing. If we can just poke our faces in the 8th Chapter of Mark one more time and see what this lesson teaches. This passage would show us the significant of our walk with God.

Point 1: They came to Bethsaida, Some people brought a blind man by the hand to Jesus and begged him to touch him (NRSV 22).

What your bible says verse 22 says and they brought him to Jesus. (And they brought him to Jesus ). This miracle is initiated and launched through the ministry of evangelism.

The good news is that through the ministry of evangelism at the hand of some anonymous people . This blind man is brought to Jesus by some people who started restoration. Some body ought have shout right here!

First and foremost we got to thank God the “somebody” know where Jesus is when we can’t find him. Secondly, the anonymous they is more concern about making a difference than their names being called.

We don’t know their name all they cared about is that they were able to get this man to Jesus. God deliver us from people who can’t serve unless their names get called. God deliver us from people who only want to serve just to get attention so they can get their names on plague, window or pews. God deliver us from people who covet God’s altar just for the personal attention. 

The best servants are folks who serve, but we never know their names. You got to watch those people who always want attention and they are quick to jump up to do something just to have their name called. The anonymous they , care more about making a difference, because their whole ministry is about them bringing people to Jesus.

Point 2 : Jesus led him out of the village(Bethsaida) Why?

After, Jesus touch him , the first thing Jesus did was take him by his hand and lead him away(x3). I need some bible scholars!

when you bring somebody to jesus you can't tell Jesus how to handle them because while you want Jesus to touch him it is highly possible that Jesus used you to bring the person to you just so Jesus could deliver them from you.

God wants to use you so he can bring some people to him just to get them delivered from you, because it’s highly possible and probable that while you are the catalyst to bring them to Jesus. You could be the problem they could not get to Jesus in the first place.

Jesus take the man by his hand while he is still blind, he did not give him his sight, but lead him out of the village. Jesus said walk with while the man is still blind. He did not give the man his sight and then he says walk with me. Watch this now! Jesus took the man by his hand while he is still blind, Jesus take the man by his hand while he is still blind and he does not give him his sight. Walk with me while you are blind.

Ponder point:Before you receive your miracle you're gonna have to spend some time walking with jesus when you can't see it. you don't know where it's coming from you don't know who's going to give it to you. You don't even know why he let you walk.

Exhortation: When walking with Jesus you got to spend some time with jesus while blind because I never want you to receive a miracle from me without walking with me. Walk with e when you don’t have what you need from me. Walk with me when you can’t see where I am taking you! Walk with me when e when I have not met your request, yet i want you to learn how to walk with me.

Pondering Point: Jesus takes him by the hand takes him away from who brought him to Jesus and he has to walk with Jesus while blind all the while the blind man does not realize that Jesus has done him a favor.

The blind man is from Bethsaida, Matthew 11:20-22 is when Jesus curse the village for their refusal to repent. Bethsaida was cursed which mean the blind man was in a cursed situation.

Somebody say Lord thank you for bringing me out of stuff I couldn’t see! bad relationship, bad business, bad friendship just to name a few. God brought you out of it before you even knew you were in . God brought you out of trouble before trouble got you. You could not even see the trouble you was in cause. 29:15