Jesus in Mark

JESUS IN MARK Good morning LEC and those watching online at LEC Online Church. We are so grateful to have you join us this morning. Introduction: Today we are beginning a series that will take us through Easter Sunday. I hope you have already been reading Mark and that you are noticing the person of Jesus. When I was a small boy I used to play hide-n-seek with my dad and while he would always find me very quickly, often times I could not find him and so I would complain and my mother would call out for Dad to let me find him. I thought about that as I have been preparing for this series. I want us to look for Him, to see Him and I want you to know that He can be found because He will make Himself visible to you so you can find Him! The Gospel of Mark is sometimes overlooked and considered the lesser of the four Gospels for several reasons: * It's the shortest of the four Gospels * It's not first in your Bible listing (Matthew), not the last and not the biggest. While it's not listed first, it was the first of the Gospels to be written (believed to be 66-74 AD). The book was written by John Mark, the nephew of Barnabas and a traveling companion of Paul in missionary journey #1. One of the distinctives is that Mark's Gospel is not filled with descriptive words or set up language like Luke or Matthew-Mark gets right to the point as we see in the first line of the book... This is the Good News about Jesus, the Messiah, Son of God (v.1) First lines are important... The first line of the State of the Union, uttered by every President, whether Democrat or Republican is rendered, "...the state of our union is good." The Gettysburg Address spoken by President Abraham Lincoln contains a famous first line that almost all of us learned in school and quote (we may not know the rest)- "Four score and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal." I'm drawn to the first line of the Gospel of Mark- This is Good News about Jesus, the Messiah, the Son of God. Our world need Good News Our world is filled with pessimism, cynicism and animosity. The creed of our day seems to be dread, fear and fatalism-but there is Good News-his name is Jesus, Messiah, Son of God! Jesus, Messiah is a prophetic revelation to a people who had not heard from God in 400 years and whose hopes and expectations were hinged on the promise that Messiah would come and in His coming a New World Order would be established. Son of God is a divine title, held only by one-no one else shall ever hold it- The critical question in life is not who Jesus was but who Jesus is to you? Can you see Him? We interact with God on many levels... * Prayer * The Word But we may not always be as alert to His presence, His engagement with us as we should.. Look for Him in every moment, every space of your life * He's at the intersection of every major decision you've ever made * He's in the anguish of the hardest moments you've ever faced * He's holding you when you don't have strength to take another step Where Bold Faith Exists Today, we look at a powerful story about a BIG need, good friends, and a healing Jesus. (Mark 2:1-12) When Jesus returned to Capernaum several days later, the news spread quickly that he was back home. Soon the house where he was staying was so packed with visitors that there was no more room, even outside the door. While he was preaching God's word to them, four men arrived carrying a paralyzed man on a mat. They couldn't bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, so they dug a hole through the roof above his head. Then they lowered the man on his mat, right down in front of Jesus. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, My child, your sins are forgiven. But some of the teachers of religious law who were sitting there thought to themselves, What is he saying? This is blasphemy! Only God can forgive sins! Jesus knew immediately what they were thinking, so he asked them, "Why do you question this in your hearts? Is it easier to say to the paralyzed man 'Your sins are forgiven,' or 'Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk'? So I will prove to you that the Son of Man has the authority on earth to forgive sins." Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home! And the man jumped up, grabbed his mat, and walked out through the stunned onlookers. They were all amazed and praised God, exclaiming, "We've never seen anything like this before!" Note: When Jesus got back in town "the word spread quickly that he was back home" What word are we spreading? (John 4:29-30)-Samaritan Woman Come and see a man who told me everything I ever did! Could he possibly be the Messiah?" So the people came streaming from the village to see him. (John 1:40-42) --Andrew (Peter's brother) Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, was one of these men who heard what John said and then followed Jesus. Andrew went to find his brother, Simon, and told him, "We have found the Messiah" (which means "Christ"). Then Andrew brought Simon to meet Jesus. (Mark 5:18-20)-Demonic of Gadara As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon possessed begged to go with him. But Jesus said, "No, go home to your family, and tell them everything the Lord has done for you and how merciful he has been. So the man started off to visit the Ten Towns of that region and began to proclaim the great things Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed at what he told them. 6 Notable Things We Find In This Story * The Miracle Occurred In A Full House Where Jesus Was Staying o People are drawn to Jesus-they find Him o It's interesting-the data shows people are turned off to institutions of religion but strongly interested in Jesus-his appeal is still high o When Jesus is in our house-If I am lifted up... * There Were Obstacles To Overcome o They could not get their friend to Jesus o Your obstacles * Church hurt * What someone told you? * How you were raised? * Your shame and guilt o How bad do you want to see Jesus? o How hungry are you for the Glory of God? o Ex-Diane Owensby * Your Faith Can Be Loaned To Another o We don't know what the condition of his believing was-we don't even know if he knew who Jesus was-but his friends did! o He could not get to Jesus without help o "seeing THEIR faith" o Who is available for you to believe for them? * There Is A Reason Religious People Can't Get A Miracle o We don't think we are religious but we are! o We are religious when...we know the rules but we don't value the relationship o We are religious when...we speak condemnation instead of grace. o We are religious when...we want forgiveness for our sins but judgment for other people's sins. * The Son Of Man Has All Authority o To forgive sins o To heal a lame man o What else does He have authority to do? * Moments Of Anticipation Sometimes Create Unexpected Miracles o When was the last time you came to church expecting something to happen that amazed you o Ex-Tommy Tenney meeting Conclusion: The Presence and Power of Jesus Christ is available at any moment, in any place to do INCREDIBLE things!