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Mark Sermon

Knowing and Believing – Mark 8:27-38

Our passage for today is from Mark 8:27-38 (Read)

Last Sunday as we looked at the story from Mark 8, we learned about the unbelief of the Pharisees and the disciples. We looked at the fruit and the root of their unbelief.

In the Pharisees the fruit was their demanding nature and the root was the sin barrier and in the disciples the fruit was lack of discernment and the root was worry.

We saw how Jesus addresses those two issues and now in our passage today Jesus and the disciples are on their way to the villages of Caesarea Philippi.

This moment to me looks like a perfect example of discipleship where Jesus after having a prolonged conversation with the disciples about their unbelief is now digging deep into their hearts to see if they’ve got it all right and have clarity about who he is.

He starts the conversation by asking two questions:
Who do people say that I am?
Who do you say that I am?

It’s like what generally happens in our GC’s (Gospel Community) where the leader starts the conversation by asking what did we think about the sermon this morning? – Then there is a dead silence for a couple of minutes and then one guy starts the conversation giving some bits and pieces here and there and others pick up from there and start sharing their thoughts and convictions.

But every time the  leader asks that question he is expecting a specific answer – He wants to know whether we have understood the overarching essence of the word and whether it has really addressed our unbelief, sin, ignorance of our hearts and have pointed us to the Gospel.

After spending so much time with Jesus and to see him do all the miracles, Jesus wanted to know what the disciples thought about him. Whether they realized who Jesus really is.

Referring to his previous conversation, Jesus wanted to see whether they now have the eyes that can see and ears that can hear.

Like the blind man, who was healed by Jesus in two attempts  – He wanted to know whether they still see trees or men.

The answer to Jesus’s first question which is “Who do people say that I am?“, the disciples said some call you “John the Baptist; and others say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets”

Immediately, Jesus asked them “Who do you say I am?

I don’t know if there was a dead silence at that moment, or whether they started looking at each other’s face. But Peter, the smart guy, always ready to say something, answered , “You are the Christ.

We might not see Peter’s answer as a big deal today because from this side of the Jesus story we know he is Christ. But for Peter to address Jesus as Christ at that time was a big deal.

To an outsider Jesus was a normal looking man just like you and me, the event happens in the midst of a strong religious culture, surrounded by people with super religious sentiments about God. Calling Jesus as Christ would be considered a heresy, Peter could have been beheaded for saying that.

And that is why Jesus strictly charges them not to tell anybody about him.

Following that revelation by Peter, Jesus then teaches them on what’s going to happen next according to the scriptures. He says “Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again.

We see here that Peter got the revelation right but when he heard the facts about whats going to happen next, he couldn’t come to terms with what’s going to happen to Jesus, he did not want to such a terrible thing happen to his master whom he loved the most, maybe he was also worried that along with Jesus they will also be punished.

He valued Jesus’s life and their lives on earth more important.

Instead of setting his mind on the heavenly things – the overarching purpose of God glorifying himself through the sacrifice of his son and bringing redemption to human kind.

Peter is influenced by Satan to think from a worldly perspective. He takes Jesus aside and rebukes him.

I’m assuming Peter must have told Jesus, why are you saying that – nothing will happen to you. You’re doing great – A couple of years more and our ministry will flourish and we can be the most popular people on earth. Why are you talking about death.

But Jesus in the presence of all other disciples rebukes Peter and says “Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.

And immediately after that Jesus calls the crowd to him along with his disciples and says “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.

As I was trying to imagine the expressions on Jesus’s face, I could sense the seriousness in his eyes and the tone of his voice. If I have to paraphrase that statement it would sound like Jesus telling them that I’m not joking about, I’m serious that if you want to come after me, you better be prepared to deny yourself and take up your cross.

If you think this life here on earth is everything and that your goal in life is make much of yourself. Then you better know that “For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.

For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?

For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

Application

This passage has some really good one liner verses that we can pick up and put it on a frame. But its only when we look at the whole passage as a conversation we see what Jesus is actually trying to say to us. They verses are not just meant to be framed and hanged on a wall.

These words of Jesus calls for our serious attention – it changes our perspectives and motives in life.

So, what do we learn from this passage?

I believe in the light of these scriptures the first thing we need to ask ourselves is “Who do we think Jesus is to us?

Now that we are on this other side of the Jesus story where you can see backwards into history, and been in a safe environment we can easily say that “Jesus is Christ”.

But please don’t look at it as a plain statement, anyone on the road can say that along with you if you offer him a price. It’s not just saying or knowing for the matter – it is really about BELIEVING.

But when we talk about believing, does believing Jesus is Christ, the Son of God and believing Donald Trump is the President of America the same thing?

If it is the same thing than Devil himself will say that he believes that Jesus is Christ, the Son of God.

When Jesus came into the world and began to confront the demonic powers of the Devil, they said out loud, “We know who you are. You are the holy one of God. You are the Son of God.”

We don’t say we believe Jesus is Christ because my friend says so, or my parents taught me so. If our belief is based on someone else’s belief than our belief is not a true belief.

Listen.

What is missing is not believing in the fact that Jesus is the Son of God but delighting in that fact, embracing that fact, and making Christ the treasure and the Lord of your life by surrendering to him. Fully putting our faith in Jesus and his finished work on the cross where he offered himself as a sacrifice for our sins, restoring our broken relationship with God the Father against whom we’ve sinned.

True “belief” is seeing him for who he really is, seeing him as infinitely valuable as the Son of God. It’s not just acknowledging the fact that he is the Son but also seeing him as infinitely precious and valuable.

Satan, on the other hand, does not view God as precious and valuable. He hates Christ and Christ is a threat to his own value.

How do we know that we truly believe “Jesus is Christ”?

The answer in is verses 34 – 38

If we truly believe and call ourselves followers of Christ then we will walk by the Spirit and daily deny ourselves, deny to focus on the things of the world, deny to give in to temptations that cause us to stumble – deny ourselves through a lifestyle of repentance and faith.

And endure the pain that comes by denying our self and the world by carrying our cross daily.

It’s on our vision statement, the third point under Jesus.

If we truly believe that Jesus is Christ, the Son of God then we will be willing to lose our lives for the sake of Christ and the Gospel. – Willing to sacrifice everything to take the gospel to those who do not have it. (2 point in our vision statement, under Mission)

If we truly believe that Jesus is Christ, we will not be ashamed of Christ and his words in this adulterous and sinful generation. – we will be distinct from the world in the way we love and serve one another. (2 point in our vision under Family)

If these attributes are absent in our lives. If we only come to church and GC (Gospel Community) because my friend comes here, or my parents brought me here, or because I get to hang out with cool people and spend my Sunday well. Then brothers and sisters, we’ve totally got it wrong.

We are still a blind man and a blind women.

But today as we hear this message Jesus is inviting us, with open arms he is calling us. Calling us to put our trust in him, belief in him. He is willing to fill us with his Spirit that will give us the courage to endure the hardships of this world and to live a life that pleases him.

Lets pray!

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Mark Sermon

The Hope for the unbelieving heart – Mark 8:11-26

Good morning church! If you’ve been tracking with us over the past few months, as a church we’ve been studying the Gospel of Mark. We work through each passage expositionally. We are right in the middle of our Mark study right now in chapter 8.

The first half of the gospel focused on “who this Jesus Is” and the next half of the gospel will focus on “what Jesus Is going to do” by dying and laying down his life for us. As you’re turning to Mark 8 verse 11-26, let me set it up for you by recapping what we read last week. Jesus performs another astonishing miracle…this time in a Gentile territory displaying His power and compassion by feeding 4000 people in the midst of a desolate area.

What a wonderful thing to see God’s heart for not only the Jews but for the Gentiles! Jesus moves on from that place and has an encounter with Pharisees in v11.

[11] The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him. [12] And he sighed deeply in his spirit and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation.” [13] And he left them, got into the boat again, and went to the other side.

[14] Now they had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. [15] And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”[b] [16] And they began discussing with one another the fact that they had no bread. [17] And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? [18] Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember? [19] When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” They said to him, “Twelve.” [20] “And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” And they said to him, “Seven.” [21] And he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?”

[22] And they came to Bethsaida. And some people brought to him a blind man and begged him to touch him. [23] And he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village, and when he had spit on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, “Do you see anything?” [24] And he looked up and said, “I see people, but they look like trees, walking.” [25] Then Jesus[c] laid his hands on his eyes again; and he opened his eyes, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly. [26] And he sent him to his home, saying, “Do not even enter the village.”

Unbelief is a topic that I never heard a lot of preachers preach about in my earlier years as a believer. The assumption was that if you are a believer in Christ, then there shouldn’t be any unbelief. But we all know through that we don’t perfectly believe all the time.

At least not until Christ comes back again. In fact there may be times in a Christian’s life when he or she experiences moments of deep despair and hopelessness where God’s promises may seem blurry and unclear to us. The encouragement for believers is that Jesus understands and He has the might to power through and work in your moments of unbelief. We see two examples of unbelief mentioned in today’s passage:

1. Unbelief of the Pharisees

[11] The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him. [12] And he sighed deeply in his spirit and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation.” (v11-12)

I find it interesting that this event comes right after the encounter with the Gentiles. We saw the Gentiles have a great desire to be with Jesus. So much so that they didn’t think about carrying extra food while they went to spend time with Jesus. Unlike the Gentiles, these Pharisees who were the most religious people of the time came to Jesus and argued with him. A very different approach. A different heart.

Were they unbelieving? Yes. I want us to consider two words that we’ll be using to analyze this text : FRUIT AND ROOT. Fruit is the outward action being displayed and Root is the inward attitude that causes it. So let’s look at the Fruit and Root of this type of unbelief:

FRUIT: Demand Barrier.

They argued with Jesus because they wanted him to show a sign from heaven that proved Him to be the Messiah who was sent by God! The first time I read this I was like “really”? They need more signs to authenticate Jesus? Healing lepers, paralytics, deaf, blind, raising the dead, casting out demons, feeding thousands….are these not enough? What more are they looking for? Sometimes it’s easier for us to judge the Pharisees but it gets a little touchy when we have to ask ourselves the same question.

When it comes to obeying Christ and surrendering ourselves to Him, do we put up demands like “Jesus, if you do this for me then I’ll fully commit myself to you”? Or like “Jesus, if you perform this one miracle in my workplace or marriage or heal me from this disease, then I’ll give up my sinful life”. One of the main problems of this approach is that it seems to make us think that God exists for us. And that’s not the teaching of the Bible. We exist for God!

Isaiah 43:7 says “everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made”. He places the demands, not us. And that brings us to the root

ROOT: Sin barrier.

For the Pharisees it says they did this to “test him”. They were trying to find a way to maliciously trap him by making this demand. If we have to ask ourselves this question today, what’s our motive behind placing demands before God? Do we really think that we’ll be fully committed to God once God performs a miracle? Or is it just an excuse so that we don’t have to surrender? So that we don’t have to give up our way of life? And more often than not, it’s not the lack of evidence that keeps us from believing but it’s the unwillingness to change.

So we’ll keep arguing and debating on issues that are not central to the message of salvation. We’ll talk about spiritually intellectual topics and linger there but not allow it to penetrate through your heart.

Some years back I remember connecting with this one friend who knew a lot about the Bible. He used to listen to the best preachers and I’ve enjoyed some good moments of fellowship with him. One day when we met he openly shared and told me that he didn’t think he was a believer.

He shared about his repeated pattern of sin that he was struggling with. He spent months without reading the Word or prayer and then he commented saying that he was at that point of unbelief that only if he saw Jesus perform a big miracle for him, would he believe. I was quite shocked because we led youth groups together. We had theological discussions but still he was still in place where he was looking for a big miracle to believe.

I know some of us are in this position right so I don’t want you to feel that I’m downplaying this. Jesus Christ has performed the greatest ever miracle by coming down to the earth in the form of man. The Word says that He took the nature of a servant and then humbled Himself by dying on a cross – the worst punishment of that day to rescue you and I from the eternal wrath of God due to our sins.

He rose again and gave us new life – living His life through us unto God. We have the most amazing privilege to know the Almighty Creator God and live for Him every single day. Could there be a bigger miracle than this? Absolutely not.

Please don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong in praying for a miracle in your life. But what we want to resist and repent of the need for a miracle to give us a reason to believe. Christ has given us ample number of reasons right from Creation – heavens declare the glory of God, the Bible that speaks plainly of who God Is and Jesus Christ who suffered and died for you and me to give us Himself. Not only is there unbelief among Pharisees but there is a kind of unbelief of the disciples.

2. Unbelief of the disciples

[14] Now they had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. [15] And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”[b] [16] And they began discussing with one another the fact that they had no bread. [17] And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? [18] Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember? [19] When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” They said to him, “Twelve.” [20] “And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” And they said to him, “Seven.” [21] And he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?”

Just after the encounter with the Pharisees, Jesus cautions his disciples to be careful of the leaven of the Pharisees and Herodians. Leaven is the yeast that was used in the bread. In this context, yeast or the leaven would mean the legalistic teachings & corrupt attitudes of the Pharisees could easily influence the disciples.

Remember the Pharisees were the legalistic, super religious and knowledgeable people of the time. It could be that the disciples looked up to them or were fascinated by them. Jesus warned them to be alert and not allow their teachings and attitudes to affect them.

The disciples on the other hand thought that Jesus was referring to the fact that they didn’t have bread. Now on the exterior it might seem like a simple misunderstanding out of ignorance but Jesus points to their hardened hearts.

FRUIT: Discernment Barrier.

Jesus says that they couldn’t perceive or understand because their hearts were hardened. Then he said they have eyes but can’t see. Ears but can’t hear. What is Jesus talking about? Jesus was referring to the spiritual eyes and spiritual ears which were blocked due to their hardened hearts

You and I could listen to best preacher of all time who’s speaking in the clearest possible manner with the right illustrations and applications but still have difficulty understanding. Not because of the language or vocabulary but because our spiritual capacities aren’t receptive to receive what we need to receive.

Guess what? The disciples were listening to the best preacher ever – Jesus Christ and yet didn’t understand. We need to recognize that our hearts get hardened with sin and that makes it difficult for us to hear and see the glory of Scripture. What could be the root here?

ROOT: Worry Barrier.

The disciples were so concerned about the lack of bread & that was their main discussion among themselves. Their concern for their lack of bread prevented them from understanding and applying spiritual truths. Again, let’s compare them with the 4000 gentiles who were fed and satisfied. They were more concerned about being in the presence of God and didn’t even carry extra bread.

I think this falls in line with what’s described in Matthew 6.

[31] Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ [32] For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. [33] But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

For some of us, it’s anxiety regarding our physical & emotional needs that often prevent us from being concerned about understanding and applying spiritual truths. Ask yourself this question – how many times do I allow my anxieties to reign over my time in the Word and prayer? Like we are sitting in front of the Bible or listening to a sermon but our mind is just all over the place getting worked up about work or home or relationship or finances.

It’s interesting how Jesus responds to this. He makes the disciples introspect and think about the condition of their hearts? He talks about the need to have their spiritual ears and eyes opened. And then he reminds them about what He’s done and what they’ve witnessed in person. There were 12 baskets of left overs left after he fed 5000! There were 7 baskets full of left overs after he fed 4000! Jesus showed who He was through those miracles. He is the Creator God who feeds and satisfies His people. He compassionately cares and looks after their needs. Therefore, he can command his disciples “to not be anxious”.

Strange right? Why didn’t Jesus just make a suggestion? Something like “I think it’ll be good idea if you could not worry for a while”. No, Jesus can command because He knows He will provide. It’s for our hearts to find rest in those promises so that we can focus on understanding and applying Scriptural truths.

Let’s take that as an encouragement personally and even corporately…when we are perplexed, we know we can lean on his promises because He is faithful and we can pursue in prayer because He cares for us!

Finally I believe the healing miracle is a real event but Mark uses it to illustrate the heart condition of the disciples. The same manner in which the blind man was brought to Jesus for healing can be paralleled with the disciples great need for Jesus.

The blind man’s partial sight was similar to the unbelief of the disciples. Inspite of witnessing Jesus’ character, words and works they still weren’t able to acknowledge Him as Lord. But the amazing part is just as Jesus didn’t allow the blind man’s unbelief to prevent him from seeing, Jesus is able to power through the unbelief of the disciples to help them understand, believe and come to know Him as their Savior and Sovereign Lord!

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Mark Sermon

Jesus is Better – Mark 8:1-10; 14-21

Good morning! It’s good to be with you this morning, and it’s always a privilege to open the Bible with you and present the Word of God. We will be continuing our study in The Gospel of Mark this morning. If you have a Bible, I’d invite you to open to Mark chapter 8 and verse 1. We’ll be looking today at a very well known story. In fact, it’s similar to the story that we looked at in Mark chapter 6 several weeks ago where Jesus is feeding a very large crowd of people.

We’ll get to all of that in a few minutes, but first, let’s pray for our time together in God’s Word.

I’ve been assigned verses 1-10, which are the verses that deal specifically with the feeding of the 4,000. But there’s something deeper happening here that I really want to explore with you which means that I have to read a little bit beyond my assigned text. I’ll do my best not to step on toes for next week’s sermon, but there is a larger lesson that Jesus is teaching the disciples here that I think we will benefit from greatly. So, I’ll read the first 10 verses and then I’ll skip down and read verses 14-21. This is what Mark records:

Mark 8:1-10; 14-21
[1] “In those days, when again a great crowd had gathered, and they had nothing to eat, he called his disciples to him and said to them, [2] “I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. [3] And if I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way. And some of them have come from far away.” [4] And his disciples answered him, “How can one feed these people with bread here in this desolate place?” [5] And he asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” They said, “Seven.” [6] And he directed the crowd to sit down on the ground. And he took the seven loaves, and having given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and they set them before the crowd. [7] And they had a few small fish. And having blessed them, he said that these also should be set before them. [8] And they ate and were satisfied. And they took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. [9] And there were about four thousand people. And he sent them away. [10] And immediately he got into the boat with his disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha.”

[14] “Now they had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. [15] And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” [16] And they began discussing with one another the fact that they had no bread. [17] And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? [18] Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember? [19] When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” They said to him, “Twelve.” [20] “And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” And they said to him, “Seven.” [21] And he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?””

Here’s what I’d like to do. First, I want to deal quickly with the proximity of these two accounts because there is a little bit of controversy that has surrounded the placement of these two accounts in Mark’s gospel. I want to speak to that quickly, and then we can get into some of the deeper elements of the text.

There are some people, historically, who have suggested that these two accounts are actually one account that Mark is listing twice for emphasis. On top of that, some people have used that to argue that the Bible has inconsistencies or is inaccurate.

Now, we know that the Bible is not inaccurate and that it’s not inconsistent. We know that it all fits together the way that God designed it to fit together. Therefore, we receive it as it’s presented to us; that these are two separate miracles that Jesus performed. We believe that!

But, even outside of our faith in the Scriptures, there’s logical evidence that these are two separate accounts. One feeding was 5,000 men — which would have been well over 10,000 when you factor in women & children. The other was a feeding of 4,000 people total.

One feeding took place on one side of the Sea of Galilee to a Jewish crowd. While this feeding took place on the other side of the Sea of Galilee to a Gentile crowd. Which is actually an important factor in why I believe Mark lists both of these accounts. We’ll come back to that in a little bit.

And the details are very different. One feeding involved 5 loaves & 2 fish, with 12 baskets of left-over’s. While this feeding involves 7 loaves and a few fish with 7 baskets of left-over’s. But also, as Jesus was instructing His disciples, He references both of these feedings as separate accounts. So, we believe that these are separate accounts and that they have been included in the cannon of Scripture for a reason.

Now, let’s get to the reason. I want to look at what the text says, I want to look at what it teaches us about the gospel and then how it calls us to respond in faith. And, I think the best way to approach this is by looking at this through the eyes of the disciples. The disciples are at a very interesting junction at this point in Mark’s Gospel. There are 16 chapters in Mark and there’s something fascinating that happens almost directly in the middle of the book (we’ll get there in a couple of weeks). In Mark 8:27-30 Peter confesses Jesus as the Christ (the Messiah).

The point at which Peter makes that confession gives us an important dividing line in the Gospel of Mark. Before it, we read a lot about the character and nature of Jesus and how He lived. After it, we read a lot about how His life is really all about His death. Before it, we see Jesus and His disciples going back and forth across the Sea of Galilea a lot (staying in the same region). After it, we see that almost everything in the story is shaped by Jerusalem. Before it, we see everything leading up to the fact that Jesus is the Christ. After it, we see that everything is pointed at what the Christ must do. Before it, we see Jesus introducing the Kingdom. After it, we see Jesus moving toward the Cross. In other words, things shift drastically in Mark chapter 8 verses 27-30.

And we’re almost to that point. But, we’re not there yet. At this point in the narrative the disciples still don’t get it; they don’t really see it. But they do see some things, and that’s what I want us to consider this morning. I want to point out 3 things that the disciples see in this situation and then we’ll land on what I believe we must see this morning. Let me go ahead and list these for you up front and then we’ll unpack them.

  1. They see Jesus’ compassion on the crowd
  2. They see Jesus perform a miracle
  3. They see Jesus expanding the message of the Kingdom.

First, they see Jesus’ compassion on the crowd. Let’s set the scene here to understand this better. These people are in the middle of nowhere; the text calls it a desolate land. It’s a little bit different scenario than with the first crowd. The issue there was money. The people didn’t have enough money to buy food. Here, the issue isn’t money, it’s that there is literally no food available to purchase. They are in the middle of nowhere, which actually tells us something profound about this group of 4,000 people. They had put their own need for food beneath their desire to be with Jesus & to hear Him teach.

I want you to consider how big a deal that is. They were so concerned with hearing Jesus, and following Jesus, and being with Him that they dropped what they were doing and went after Him without any concern for how they would care for themselves. And Jesus didn’t rebuke them for this; isn’t that interesting? We live in a very pragmatic world. I can just imagine people in my life saying, “Why didn’t you bring something to eat?” Jesus didn’t do that. Instead, He had compassion on them. He responded to their devotion with compassion & provision. Now, I want you to take that dynamic and think about how this plays itself out in your life.

Is your primary concern to be with Jesus? That’s a great evaluative question. Do you want to be with Him so much, that everything else pales in comparison, even your own needs? Do you believe that He will have compassion on you? Do you believe that He will provide for you, as you chase after Him?

I think, if we’re going to be honest this morning, there are a couple of things that plague modern Christianity. First, a lot of people don’t really want to be with Jesus, they want things from Jesus. Those two things are vastly different. Second, a lot of people don’t really believe that He will provide perfectly for them as they pursue Him. So, they live their lives trying to control things & making sure they can provide for themselves

My guess is that we can all probably relate to one, if not both, of those two things at times. These are questions that we must consider if we’re going to truly follow Jesus because these are questions that lead to a heart of abandonment.

What else did the disciples see? They see Jesus perform a miracle. I’m not going to spend a lot of time on this one because we recently studied the feeding of the 5,000 and the elements of the miracle itself are very similar. However, I do think it’s worth pointing out one thing. How often do we think, “If I could just see a miracle, I’d believe?” Or, “If Jesus would just provide this one thing (or do this one thing) then I would believe?” In fact the Pharisees, in the portion we didn’t read, asked Jesus for a sign that He was who He said He was.

But here’s the thing, seeing signs and wonders isn’t what fuels belief. The disciples saw countless miracles and didn’t get it much of the time. Jesus knew that showing the Pharisees a sign wouldn’t produce faith. You see, people don’t question the authenticity of Jesus’ miracles. What they question is the authority behind them. This is why you see Jesus, throughout the gospels, working in response to people’s faith. This is why you see Jesus not working many miracles in His hometown; because the people didn’t believe.

And so, I think this is a great opportunity for us to be reminded that our salvation is BY FAITH. Now, it’s not a blind faith. There are plenty of things that have been presented to us as evidence of who Jesus is and what He has done to rescue us. But it is the proclamation of the authority of Christ and the sufficiency of the gospel that calls us to respond. We don’t get to clamor for additional evidence from God. That comes from a heart of disbelief.

Third, the disciples saw Jesus expanding the message of the Kingdom beyond the Jewish people. I found all of this to be really fascinating as I studied over the last couple of weeks. We’ve already said that the feeding of the 5,000 (in Mark 6) took place on the western side of the sea with an audience that would have been almost exclusively Jewish. And here, (in Mark 8), we have a feeding taking place on the eastern side of the sea (which is the area of the Decapolis) with a predominantly Gentile audience.

I believe that Mark has strategically linked these two accounts by the story of the Syro-Phoenician woman in Mark chapter 7. You might remember that interaction. This Gentile woman asked Jesus to cast a demon out of her daughter. Jesus responded in a very Jesus way; He illustrated His answer. He said, “Look, you have to feed the kids first. You don’t take bread from the children and throw it on the floor for the dogs.” Translation: The kingdom (the gospel) is for the Jews. They get it first. It’s not right for it to be taken from them and thrown to the Gentiles.

But this woman was persistent. She pushed back. She said, “Yeah — but the dogs still get the breadcrumbs that fall off the table.” Translation: “There’s enough kingdom to go around. There’s enough gospel to where the Gentiles can feast on this as well.” Jesus commended her and cast the demon out of her daughter. Now, you don’t have to be a Bible scholar to realize how amazing that is in helping us understand the contrast and the context of these 2 feedings. I believe that what we see here is quite literally a manifestation of what that woman said to Jesus. And it shows you just how abundant & extravagant the gospel is. Jesus didn’t just provide crumbs from the table for these Gentiles, He fed 4,000 of them until they were satisfied with enough leftovers to make sandwiches the next day.

Isn’t the intentionality of God amazing & beautiful? Even the precision of God with the leftovers speaks to His intentionality. There were 12 baskets of food left over for the Jewish crowd and there are 12 tribes of Israel. There were 7 baskets of food left over for the Gentile crowd and there are 7 Gentile nations.

So the disciples see a lot. But they don’t yet see the main thing. And this is how I want to end our time together this morning, because we have the gift of perspective (we talked about that a couple of weeks ago).

We know the whole story, we know who Jesus is, we know what He has done. And so we’re able to look at this account and see the gospel narrative clearly and be challenged by it.

We see the curse. They are in a desolate place. They are hungry. There is no provision in sight. The people are experiencing the fruit of a broken world and they need to be rescued. We see the holy desire (the longing for something more). The people have chosen to go after Jesus, to be with Him, without regard to their comfort and their ability to provide for themselves. They’ve created a situation where they have to trust Jesus. We see redemption. Jesus meets the needs of this Gentile audience the same way He met the needs of the Jewish crowd. He did it with dignity, love, and compassion.

That’s the gospel narrative right here in this account. This is what we talked about that a couple of weeks ago. The futility & pain that sin produces, how that creates a longing for something more, and how God uses that to drive us to an end of ourselves & toward dependence upon Christ.

And so, based on that, what must we see as we reflect on this text? Let me give you 3 things briefly to take away:

  1. No matter your circumstances (how desperate), there is hope because God is God. He is Sovereign & He is able
  2. Jesus is better! He is so much better than anything else that the pursuit of anything else must pale in comparison to our pursuit of Him. We literally need Him more than we need food & water
  3. His primary provision for us is Himself. Everything else flows from that. Where you have Him, you must realize that you have been given everything. That’s why our concern is abiding in Him and all life flows from that.
Categories
Sermon

Futility & Hope – Romans 8

Good morning! It’s so good to see each of you and it’s such a privilege to celebrate the gospel this morning with the family of The Gathering. If you have a Bible with you this morning, I’d invite you to turn to Romans chapter 8 (Read).

You are probably thinking, “Romans is not The Gospel of Mark.” And that’s true, Romans is not The Gospel of Mark. We are actually taking a one week break from our study of Mark so that we can stay on pace with our churches in St. Louis (Red Tree & Mid-cities).

They are breaking this weekend to celebrate the 10 year anniversary of Red Tree. Which is great because it gives us the opportunity to talk about something that I believe sets us up well as we move into a season of re-launching the church.

We will end that discussion in Romans chapter 8, but we’ll get started in Zechariah chapter 9. So, go ahead and mark your place in Romans 8, and turn to Zechariah 9.

As you’re turning there, let me tell you what I’d like to do this morning. I want to highlight two words that I think will help us understand the story of God’s redemption, not just in an overall sense, but how it plays out in our individual lives. Those two words are: FUTILITY & HOPE.

I’m going to suggest that every one of our stories has those two themes in them. That God has used both of those things in our lives to awaken us to the truth of Who He Is & to show us how desperately we need Him.

That, no matter your story, there has been futility, and tension, and frustration caused by the problem of sin. That every one of us, no matter where we are spiritually right now, knows what it feels like to long for something greater. We all know what it feels like to be in bondage, to be prisoners, and to long for freedom.

And when we come to know Christ — where He’s revealed Himself to us, and He’s breathed life back into our souls, and He’s captured our worship & affections — that’s where we find freedom because it only comes from Him!

We see this dynamic play out in our individual lives, but there’s also a global outworking of this in the world, isn’t there? Yeah, because all of creation has been subjected to this curse, this death, this prison. The whole of creation (as we’ll see in just a moment) is longing to be set free.

I think it’s really easy to just look at our story (of how God is working in our lives to redeem and restore) and, as beautiful as our stories are, it’s easy to forget that we’re part of the larger story that God is playing out on a global stage. The same narrative (creation, fall, redemption and new creation) is being played out, not just in our lives, but in the entire world.

When we remember that, it causes us to come alive (even more) to the the mission of God. It helps us lay down our lives and live fully surrendered to Him because we realize that we’re a part of something infinitely greater than ourselves. We realize that futility and pain isn’t unique to us. We realize that everyone, throughout the world & throughout history, has experienced those same feelings.

We realize that God is working all these things together, for His glory and for the good of those who love Him. Those reminders do something to the soul. And, my hope this morning is that we would see that, that we would be stirred up by that, and that it would propel us into our relaunch as a church body.

So, let’s look at this short passage in Zechariah chapter 9. These verses are meant to point us to the salvation that would be ushered into the world with the coming of the Messiah — Jesus Christ. As we read these verses, I want you to keep in mind the FUTILITY that the people of God have experienced over the course of centuries. Keep in mind the longing, the frustration, the constant rebellion, the hope for something greater as we read this text.

[9] “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. [10] I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth. [11] As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit. [12] Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; today I declare that I will restore to you double.” – Zechariah 9:9-12

Did you catch that phrase in in verse 12? I was overwhelmed by how beautiful a phrase it is when I read it — “Return to your stronghold… … O prisoners of hope.” When I read that phrase, “prisoners of hope”, it did something to my soul. It stirred, in a fresh way, the conversation about what Jesus’ coming into the world has done for us. I want us to think about this, first, on the global level and then how this plays out in our individual lives. Because the implications of this speak to both.

When you read the Old Testament, and you start with the account of the fall in the garden (sin entering the picture and separating us from God). And you move through God forming a people through Abraham; through their 400 year captivity in Egypt; through the freedom that God secured for them; through the forty years of wandering in the desert; up until they take possession of the Promised Land.

When you read about the cycle that kept repeating through all of the judges (the pattern of rebellion & return to the Lord); through the kings and all of the prophets; woven throughout the giving of the law and the sacrificial system that God established for His people.

When you look at all of it, t was all intended by God to build anticipation of the coming Christ. It was designed to build anticipation and hope that God would do something that permanently dealt with the problem of sin and separation from Him. It was all intended to create the hope of redemption, to set the stage for permanence through Christ.

Everything that God gave His people in the Old Testament was meant to be temporary: From the judges, to the sacrificial system, to the temple, to kings, to the promised land, it was all just pointing to and preparing God’s people for what He would do, permanently, in Jesus Christ.

We don’t need the type of judges we see in the Old Testament because Christ will judge the living & the dead. There’s no longer a need to offer sacrifices for sin because Christ offered Himself as a sacrifice for all sin. We don’t worship in Temples because we are temples of the Holy Spirit. Jesus is our prophet, priest & king. And, we certainly aren’t tied to any piece of land because our promised land is in Heaven with Him (that’s where our citizenship lies).

Everything was meant to point to our great need for Jesus. That’s true on the global stage, but it’s also true of our individual lives. Just think about your life. From birth, you are subjected to futility, you are held captive by the corruption of sin. And, as you grow, you feel that tension increase. There’s something in your soul that knows that this isn’t how it’s supposed to be. It’s like Ecclesiastes 3:11“God put eternity in the heart of man, but an inability to grasp it.” There’s this tension, this futility, that has been ordained by God to create a longing for something more.

If you’re in Christ, you understand exactly how this works because, at some point, the futility and the pain pushed you to an end of yourself. It pushed you to the point where you were awakened to the truth of who Jesus Christ is and what He has done to rescue us. If you are in Christ that understanding is real to you because you lived in that futility and because God used it to produce something beautiful in you. That’s what God does! He’s in the business of bringing beauty from the ashes.

Church, that’s why it’s so important that we remember the story of how God rescued us. We must remember what life was like when we were separated from Him, because it fuels gratitude and an increasing desire to be used by God in His mission.

That’s all about having the right perspective. Can I just say, as an aside, how amazing it is for us to have the perspective that we do? We are living in the end times (between Christ’s ascension & His 2nd coming), and we get to see a much fuller picture of what God has done in the world than anyone else before.

This is what Peter talks about in chapter 1 of his 1st letter. He writes, [10] “Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, [11] inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. [12] It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.”1 Peter 1:10-12

That’s incredible when you think about it. It means that we have some pretty significant advantages over the prophets (if you can imagine that). We have all the writings of the prophets so we can actually compare those things. We also have the New Testament use of those prophecies. And, we have 2,700 years of perspective to see what God has done and what has transpired in His church.

We live in amazing times! And, it’s such a beautiful privilege that God has given us to have the perspective on His redemptive work that we have. But, if we’re going to be honest, I think we take that for granted some of the time. We get so caught up in our own comfort, or entertainment, or our own agenda, or any number of other things, that we forget about the fact that we get to be a part of God’s Redemptive Work in history. We get to be a part of that work as recipients of His Grace.

We tend to forget about the fact that the thing into which angels long to look has been bestowed upon us. If you really want to really consider how beautiful the gospel is, consider how the angels react to all of this. Because their knowledge of the gospel isn’t practical, it’s based on observation. They see it happening to us and Peter says that they long to look at it. I believe that’s true because they are astounded by it.

You see — the angels have an accurate picture of the holiness, and the glory, and the majesty, and the goodness, and the wrath, and the justice, and everything else of God. They see it right now. And I think it astounds them that our response to God’s love is to rebel against Him.

Which is exactly what sin is. It says to God, “I don’t trust you, I don’t need you. I don’t love you.” It says, “I don’t want anything to do with you!” I think the angels probably look at God like, You’re going to instantly destroy them, right? Not only does He not instantly destroy us for our rebellion, He has given us His Son to pay the price for that rebellion. And, not only that, but He credited us His righteousness in return. He bought us back from death! That’s the magnitude of the gospel. And, I think that angels just stare at that like, “WOW!!!!!” And yet, as recipients, we tend to be dismissive of the gospel.

We have the gift of perspective living in these times. We don’t sit here and wonder what these things mean, as Zechariah’s audience did. We see the work of Christ and the glory of the gospel!

Now, let’s look at this dynamic from the perspective of the New Testament. Go ahead and jump over to where I had you mark your place in Romans chapter 8.

What I’d like to do is simply read this text and point out a couple of things that we’ve already talked about. But, this will allow us to see it from the perspective of Christ’s finished work. This is what Paul writes in Romans chapter 8:

[18] “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. [19] For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. [20] For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope [21] that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. [22] For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. [23] And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. [24] For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? [25] But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.”

[28] “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”Romans 8:18-25; 28

Here’s what I want to do. Keeping this phrase from Zechariah, “Prisoners of Hope”, on the forefront of our hearts & minds, I want to point to 3 truths that Paul points to in this text. These are 3 things that we’ve already touched on and explained, but I want to repeat them in light of the fuller perspective of this text.

  1. Creation has been subjected to futility in hope
  2. The pain that futility brings is like the pains of childbirth
  3. God is in absolute & total Sovereign control over the entire thing.

If you are here and you are not a Christian, here’s my encouragement to you: Understand that the futility, the emptiness, the frustration that you feel in your life is not mean to drive you to try harder to find fulfillment and satisfaction in the things of the world. The futility and pain is meant to bring you to an end of yourself so that you realize that life is only found in Jesus Christ.

If you are here and you are a Christian, here’s my encouragement for you: Live with the story of God’s redemption on the forefront of your heart and realize that God’s desire is to use you to accomplish His mission of restoration in the world.