Jesus Offers Forgiveness to the Broken
Notes
Transcript
Turn in your Bibles to Mark 2. As you are turning, I am always humbled and thankful to bring the message to God’s people.
Our message tonight is not an unfamiliar story. I’m sure that many messages have been preached about mark 2. I know I will probably not do it justice. But I believe that God lead me here with this thought. That Jesus offers forgiveness to broken and sinful people.
I work for an Elementary school. In Elementary they do what is called field day. usually, it is a day towards the last day of school as just a fun day of outdoor games. This year at South was no different that any other field day. They had many different outdoor stations that the kids went through. They had blow-up bounce houses, they had a bean bag toss game, flag tag, they had what they call trash in the yard. They also had some water games like a sponge relay, and a slip-in-slide. It is usually a peaceful day for me so I just go around and have fun with the kids.
This year I was helping out at the slip-in-slide when a second grade class came out and they all began to get wet and have fun sliding down this little hill outside the school. As you may know when kids play the tend to get louder and louder. But suddenly over the noise of the kids having fun I hear a scream of pain and agony. I look over see a little girl come down on her leg hard backward. It was her turn to go down and she had got her leg caught under the tarp we were using for the slide and came down fully on her leg. when she turned over she already had a knot the size of baseball on the leg. She had broken her femur and it was very close to coming through the skin.
Medically, when a bone is broken and reset, we are told that the place where the bone was previously broken becomes stronger than it was originally. While we would think that just the opposite would be the case, a broken bone can become better than it was before! Isn’t that exactly what God does with our lives as well? Perhaps that is why God says in
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: A broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.
God loves a broken heart because He knows that when we come to Him in that condition, He can make all things new. He can give us a new heart and a new spirit that will be better and stronger than before. Look around today. Do you see any broken lives? God can and desires to use us to “heal the broken-hearted.”
Maybe tonight, you are broken. Maybe its a physical need like the man with palsy in our text. Maybe its an emotional brokenness, or maybe its a spiritual brokenness. Maybe tonight, you are battling a deep Sin that you just can’t get out of. Whatever it is, Jesus offers grace and forgiveness to you tonight.
Tonight I stand before many that know me and my story. I stand here tonight, knowing what it is to live through real emotional brokenness. As many know that I am a bus kid. I can testify tonight that the bus ministry works!
Let me say first that I am not here to tell you how bad I had it. I will not talk about how terrible my home was, but I will say by the grace of God, through the help, prayer, and leadership of HBC I got away from home of drugs, alcohol, and many other things, ever once trying any of those things myself. I owe everything I am and that I have today to this Church and to my Lord.
There are many tonight who live in a state of brokenness. who either has never heard, or who doesn’t have help to find Jesus. Who is the answer to whatever you may be going through. There are many “Churches” tonight that will never go to the broken and bring them to Jesus. May we never be that way.
So, how to we reach broken people? Because let’s face it, we are all broken in some way, because of our Sin. It doesn’t take long in Springfield MO to find people who desperately need the Lord. How do we minister to these people? I just have a few short points tonight, and I’ll be done.
Read: Mark 2:1-12
Report He is in the House
Report He is in the House
V.1
The Bible tells us in verse 1 that it was noised that Jesus was in the house. The word noised in the Greek means “to hear, to give audience, to come, to report.” the idea is that word quickly spread that Jesus was here.
I pray that we be the Church that makes it known that Jesus is in the house! Being in Church tonight isn’t about me, it isn’t for Pastor, it isn’t or shouldn’t even be about people. Its about Jesus. It’s about worshiping our God and Saviour Jesus Christ.
It’s about
Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
It’s about remembering
For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.
Are you broken tonight? Are you living in a state battling sin? Do you need restoration? be in the house of God! Why? Because Jesus is in the house.
Preach the Word
Preach the Word
V.2
in our Text Jesus had returned to Capernaum after many months of preaching throughout Galilee. He returns and apparently enters into Peter’s house; and as always the news spreads quickly, the crowds gather and flood the house.
Note what Jesus did. He preached the Word to them. No doubt some had come just to have some need met, some had come out curiosity. However, What Jesus did first of all is proclaimed the Word of God to those who were lost eternally.
I am sure there were some that got up in their pulpit tonight, or not at all tonight but this morning to just told a nice feel good story. But am Thankful that we have a church, we have a pastor that isn’t going to tell us a story to make us feel all warm inside but He’s going to preach the Word of God.
Because it is only the Word of God that changes lives! It’s not the word of Pastor Bingham, it’s not the word of Travis. It’s God’s Word that changes and heals broken people.
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
NUN. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, And a light unto my path.
But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
BETH. Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed thereto according to thy word.
But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.
And the list could go on and on. Do you want help to get out of the state of brokenness and sin? Do you want to help someone else? Go to the Word of God.
Be Desperate
Be Desperate
V.3-5
Something I have learned is you can’t get help if you don’t seek it.
I remember when I was a student Ms. Linda would make the guys pants out the same material as culottes. One year the guys asked her to make us some. while the girls never asked. At camp that year some of the girls were upset that she didn’t make them anything. You know what she said? “Ye have not because ye ask not.”
But also, I’ve learned the hard way in the past month that you can’t force someone to seek help if they don’t want it.
At the end of may I took my mom to rehab to get her some real help. Within two weeks, on my birthday she left. Why? because she didn’t really want help.
The man came to Jesus. Actually, this man was brought to Jesus by four men carrying him on a cot-like pallet.
Note two significant things.
The man was desperate for help and very hopeful that Jesus could give it.
The man was desperate for help and very hopeful that Jesus could give it.
The man was counted a dear friend by the four who brought him.
The man was counted a dear friend by the four who brought him.
The point is clear: the first thing we need in forgiveness and brokenness is to come to Jesus. A person must come to Jesus even if he had to be brought.
How desperate are we to get to Jesus? Are we willing to tear the roof off the place to do it?
You may be sitting there thinking but COVID won’t allow me to bring others to Jesus. May I just simply say how desperate are you to get others to Jesus.
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
God doesn’t give us a spirit of fear and He tells us to go.
Don’t be like the Religious
Don’t be like the Religious
V.6-12
These men were the scribes they were the teachers of the law. They knew all about the law. They we the religious people of the day.
They didn’t give men like this man the time of day. To them they were just sinners! They looked down there noses at the broken and sinners of the world as if they were beneath them.
I like what Bro. Dean said this week. “How dare us as Christians shun those who God has forgiven.” Don’t be like the religious who push the sinner or the broken away as if they might catch something from them.
And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples.
And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners?
Not only did they have the problem pushing away people from God. But they couldn’t he past their own reasoning.
They saw at once down the theological roots of the matter, that was none but God could forgive sin; how dare a mere human like Jesus claim such authority?
Again and again during the life of Jesus the same dilemma was to reappear. If he were not divine, then he was indeed a blasphemer: for he must be either God, or mad.
Jesus is either God or a liar, and if we were to be honest there are many sitting on the fence not knowing what to do with Jesus. But all you need to do is pick one. He is who he says he was or he’s not. What will you do?