An Un-natural Reaction

Mark 1:29-39

1.                  People around Jesus act in an un-natural way.

1.                  Simon’s mother-in-law

1.                  She wasn’t week after being sick

2.                  She immediately started to serve

3.                  There was no whooping and hollering

2.                  The people in the town

1.                  Didn’t go to a doctor

2.                  Didn’t try home remedies

3.                  The disciples acted in strange ways

1.                  James, John, Andrew and Peter–left their fishing boats to follow a total stranger

2.                  Peter wanted to walk on water

3.                  Matthew gave up his business

2.                  We act in an un-natural way

1.                  Even with the knowledge of God’s grace, we continue to rebel

1.                  God says love one another, and we pick our friends and exclude some

2.                  God says forgive and we hold grudges

3.                  God says be chaste and pure and faithful to our spouses and we lust and chase after our physical pleasures

4.                  God says to honor our body as a gift and we destroy it by drugs and alcohol and poor eating habits

5.                  God says pray and study his word and we forget and chose to put other things before Him

2.                  Our faith is un-natural

1.                  We trust something we’ve never seen

2.                  We believe that water and a few words creates a new person

3.                  We eat flesh and drink blood

4.                  We claim life after death even though no one has ever been there and come back to tell us about it.

3.                  Jesus acted in an un-natural way

1.                  He left the realms of heaven to come to earth

2.                  He humbled himself to become a man

3.                  He love the un-lovable

4.                  He associated with the undesirables

1.                  The tax collectors

2.                  The prostitutes

3.                  The lepers

4.                  The Gentiles

5.                  He gave no defense at his trial

6.                  He forgave those who crucified him

7.                  He loved those who hated him

8.                  He gave life to those who truly deserve death

4.                  We are called to follow His un-natural way.

1.                  “Any one who lives, will surely die, and the one who dies to this world will live forever in heaven.”

2.                  Jesus said, “Deny yourself and follow me”

1.                  Empowered by the Holy Spirit, we can love as he loves

2.                  Who is lonely in you world? – Befriend them!

3.                  Who is hurting in your world?  – Share your time and heart.

4.                  Is there any body that you’ve been unwilling to forgive, let Christ’s forgiveness strengthen you

5.                  Have you been putting off telling a friend or colleague about Jesus’s love, now is the time to invite them to follow you to worship

6.                  Is your personal devotional life weak or non-existent?  Let the Spirit guide you into a new way of living.

There are some things in our life that feel un-natural and different.  Living out our faith in Jesus Christ, for some may feel unusual, or even un-natural.  But that is exactly what being a Christian is all about.  God does not call us to faith to remain the same, but to lead us into a new and fuller life.  We are going to be compelled by our love for Jesus, to behave in ways the rest of the world may find strange and even un-natural.  This is the example that Jesus set for us and it is His Word and Sacraments that give us the faith, courage and strength to live the un-natural life.  Amen.