Category: Sermon

[audioplayer file=”http://thegatheringcommunity.in/wp-content/uploads/make-much-of-christ-in-the-year-2018-audio.mp3″]

The reality of life is its slipping away from our hands, every passing day is a day less in our lives, our lives are limited on this earth, we don’t even know how many days are left for us to live on this earth.

When I look at my own days from the time I was born, until today. I don’t even know how the first 20 years of my life just went by, the next 10 years I spent figuring out what life is all about, fighting to get a college degree, trying to figure out what I want to do in life and getting married.

The next 9 years were spent looking after the family, providing for my children, serving in the church in whatever measure I could invest my time & energy.

This month I’ll turn 39, almost touching 40.

When I look back at my life, I’m definitely thankful to God that he led me, provided for me, and still takes care of me. I feel good that I found my purpose, my passion, the right place and the right people in my life that I feel good about.

But one thing that makes me feel sad is when I think why it took such a long time for me to arrive at this stage in my spiritual life, where I feel I’m now steady and stable. I know what I need from life and where I need to focus.

But I wish I was here when I was 25, I wish I had the energy and youthfulness I had when I was 25 to do more and achieve more for the Kingdom. Because I feel I wasted a lot of time chasing after the world and deprived myself of God and Seeking His Kingdom first in my life.

As I had these thoughts running through my mind while preparing today’s sermon I was also encouraged in my spirit that it is not too late. God will use the remaining years of my life for his glory and I want to be obedient and crazy from him then I’ve ever been before.

Similarly, I now want you all to think about your lives. And I want you to do it by answering the following questions in your mind.

Q1. How old are you?
Q2. How many years do you think you have in hand?
Q3. What is the immediate need in your life that you think will bring instant joy in your life?
Q4. To what extend are you willing to go to achieve that immediate need in your life?

A1. Obviously, You know your age.
A2. You don’t have any clue on how many days you have in hand. Only God does. Today can be the last day of your life.
A3. The thing that you are seeking for right now (it could be a job, a life-partner, a particular sum of money, an educational qualification, an inheritance from your parents, a business contract, promotion etc). Trust me, I say this out of my experience, these things will never bring lasting joy, the joy your soul is longing for. Once you have it, your heart will desire for more… it is a never-ending saga.

Think about the different kinds of people in our world.
– People who have money, yearn for relationships.
– People who have relationships, yearn for money.
– People who have jobs, yearn for promotion.
– People who have huge business contracts and good paying jobs, yearn for peace of mind.
– People who have a good educational qualification, yearn for a good job.

A4. If your answer to Q4 is “I’m willing to give and do anything to have my immediate desire been fulfilled”, then I want to ask you why is it that you want to give your all to achieve something that is not a source of real joy and satisfaction for life, maybe it can give momentary joy.

I’m not saying that you shouldn’t give your best to achieve things in life, my question is why would you give all of yourself to something that, at the end of your life will be of zero value.

Wouldn’t you like to give your time, money, strength to something that is of true value, and a source of everlasting & eternal joy?

So, my job today as we begin this New Year is to point our hearts to the only true source of joy and fulfillment, an eternal one.

Brother & sisters, it is CHRIST and only Christ who is, and will ever be our true source of joy, happiness, and fulfillment.

It is not just about been happy on earth. The new testament indicates, that there’s another reason we need Jesus. There is a God who is altogether holy, who is perfectly just, and who declares that he is going to judge the world and hold every human being accountable for their life.

As a perfectly holy and just God, he requires for each one of us a life of perfect obedience and of perfect justness.

And it is only through Jesus and his sacrifice on the cross that we can receive acceptance from our creator God, which we can never achieve ourselves.

Jesus lived the perfect life of obedience and justness on our behalf and took our sins on himself and died in our place. When we believe this truth and put our faith in him, our sins are forgiven and the righteousness of Christ comes upon us, and we become holy and acceptable to God.

And therefore, I want to begin this new year by encouraging you to Make much of Christ in the year 2018. The passage that I want to point our hearts to is John 15:1-11 where Jesus saying…

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”

Here are a couple of things I want our hearts to remember and we make much of Christ in this coming year.

1. Always remember that Jesus is the true vine (v.1), the only source that connects us with the vinedresser, God, the creator who made, knows us, loves us, cares for us and sent us to this earth for a purpose.
2. As we continue to make much of Christ, we will be pruned every day (v.2). Through sufferings, struggles, pain, loss, discouragements, so we can bear much fruit. Romans 5:3-5 Pauls reminds us to rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
3. We will fail to see & produce fruit if we fail to abide in Christ (v.4-5)
4. There is a consequence if we fail to Abide in Christ (v.6)
5. As you make much of Christ and abide in him, you can ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. Obviously, it has to be God’s will for your life as well. (v.7)
6. When you make much of Christ by abiding in him and bear fruit for him and prove to be the disciples of Jesus, God is glorified.
7. Obedience is the main thing, if you are unwilling to change and obey his commandments then nobody can help you in anyways. (v.10)

Here are some practical ways in which we can make much about Christ in this coming year.

As an individual…

– By seeking him daily through prayer and devotion
– By loving him more than anything or anybody in life
– By doing our best to present ourselves to him as one approved, unashamed and able to rightly handle the word of truth.

As a family…

– By trusting him for your needs, whether financial, health or whatever your need in life
– By seeking him as a family in devotion and prayer
– By serving him as a family in whatever capacity each one of you can contribute. Just like Joshua who said me and my household will serve the Lord.

At our workplace…

– By acknowledging him and his presence and having fellowship with him while at work
– By joyfully submitting to our earthly master as unto the Lord, giving your best at all times
– By trusting him as your provider and guide.

As you make much of Christ in the year 2018, my desire and prayer is that you are blessed abundantly and bountifully, that God would enlarge your territories and make your face shine, and even use you in unspeakable and unimaginable ways for his glory.

[audioplayer file=”http://thegatheringcommunity.in/wp-content/uploads/The-Hope-for-the-Lost-Unlikely-and-Unloved-in-Gods-Kingdom-Mark-2-13-17-audio.mp3″]

Good morning church! And a happy new year in advance. What a year 2017 has been! We praise God for his mercy and faithfulness toward us on the last day of this year. As Saju and I were discussing what to preach on this week, I was wondering if I had to take another passage on account of the new year. However, as I read this passage I realized how apt this message was for us as we move into the new year. So before we jump into the passage, I wanted to ask all of you some questions. How many of us would like to really experience the joy of following Jesus? How many of us would like to understand God’s economy in terms of who is accepted and who is rejected? How many of us really want to see God use us this year for His glory? I believe this passage answers all of those questions.

13 He went out again beside the sea, and all the crowd was coming to him, and he was teaching them. 14 And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him.

15 And as he reclined at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners were reclining with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. 16 And the scribes of[a] the Pharisees, when they saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, said to his disciples, “Why does he eat[b] with tax collectors and sinners?” 17 And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”

There are three things we understand about the heart and character of Jesus from this passage. The first thing is:

1. Christ pursues the lost

14 And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him. (v14)

Especially in our church circles we’ve heard the word “lost” so many times that now we’ve lost the meaning of lost. The word “lost” doesn’t have too much of an impact on us anymore. When the Bible uses the word “lost”, it’s always in a sense where God is searching for his “lost sheep, lost Son, lost coin”. So how do we understand “lost” when we think about Levi/Matthew. This verse tells us that Levi was a tax collector. Now tax collectors in the Roman empire were hated by the Jews in Jesus’ day.

They were seen as people who were greedy and partnered with the Roman government which the people never liked anyway. These tax collectors would amass a lot of wealth by cheating people and charging high interests much more than what the Roman government would ask for. They were also known to be very harsh with the people.

Therefore, tax collectors had a very bad reputation among the Jews in those days. Nobody liked them. They were unloved and plus I’m sure they carried around the guilt of cheating several people. It’s interesting and humbling to see that Levi was even noticed by Jesus! The movie “Son of God” had a wonderful scene picturing this story.

They showed it as when Jesus passes by, he notices Levi at the tax booth. Jesus looks intently into his eyes, and calls him to follow him. You can see tears flow down Levi’s face because he can’t believe that Jesus – being so Holy and Powerful instead of judging him actually invites him to be his disciple!

If you’re probably thinking today, “I don’t think God can love me after all that I’ve done. Nobody could possibly forgive me for all the wrongs I’ve committed”. Or probably you’re thinking “I’ve not really seen true commitment and devotion to God in my life so far.” Or you’re thinking “I’m the last person for God to approach me because I am an unlikely and unfit candidate”. Let me tell you on the basis of the Word, that in God’s economy the worst, most unlikely, most unloved in world can actually be accepted and transformed!

Why would God show mercy and not judgement? It’s because Christ himself took the punishment for sins and open the doors of God’s mercy and love to flow toward us. It’s not on the basis of what any human has done or will ever do. Our acceptance before God is totally on the basis of Christ’s perfect life and perfect sacrifice and perfect triumph over death on our behalf.

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Eph 2:8,9)

Another application could also be in terms of evangelism. When was the last time we shared the gospel with someone who was hated, an unloved and unlikely person to respond to the gospel? Let’s not write off certain people because they don’t fit our expectations. This understanding of Christ pursuing the lost, the unlikely, the unloved should remove any barriers or thoughts to reach out to certain groups of people that we may be uncomfortable with.

2. Christ desires followers and not crowds

13 He went out again beside the sea, and all the crowd was coming to him, and he was teaching them. 14 And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him.

15 And as he reclined at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners were reclining with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. (v13-15)

One thing we notice as we are reading through the book of Mark is that crowds – people in large numbers come to Jesus. Right from the moment Jesus cast out that demon from the man in the synagogue you find multitudes of people coming to Jesus to witness these miracles. But you never find them being described as followers except for Simon, Andrew, James and John. The majority of the people are always referred to as “the crowd” or as many people gathered together or as people coming to him. Here with Levi and the tax collectors and sinners in v15: we see them “following Jesus”. My immediate question is what’s the difference between followers of Jesus and just being in the crowd?

Two things we can see in this passage:

1) Willing and total surrender of everything that his life was built upon

Or as Saju put it a few weeks back…it’s an exchange of dreams and pursuits. Think about this…Levi till that point probably made a lot of money by cheating people. His life was probably built on wealth and his identity as a tax collector. As soon as Jesus invited him to follow him, he didn’t think twice, he didn’t take days to discuss with his family and decide if he wanted to follow Jesus.

The Bible says that he rose and followed him. It meant that Levi had to give up his identity, his wealth, his purpose in life, his pleasures in life and most importantly the control of his life. He gave it up to follow Jesus and become like Him. And that’s a radical decision not just for him personally but it would’ve impacted even his family.

2) Close fellowship with the Savior

15 And as he reclined at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners were reclining with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him.

Being welcomed into a person’s house and reclining at the table meant close friendship in those days. It was a big deal for Jesus to go to his home and eat with him. That’s what made the Pharisees unhappy…they couldn’t figure why Jesus would want to become friends with men of bad reputation. When Jesus invited Levi to follow him, he didn’t just invite him to be his companion while he went and preached in different cities – that would’ve been just a work relationship. This was far more deeper. Jesus intended to have a close relationship with Levi and change him through that.

These two things: willing surrender and close fellowship with Jesus is what makes you a follower of Jesus. And that was something that the crowd didn’t have. They would’ve been satisfied just seeing Jesus as a chamatkari baba but Jesus wanted to reveal Himself as the everlasting God, Mighty King, Creator of heaven and earth, sustainer of everything and Savior of the world. And you can only know that through willing surrender of your life and close fellowship with Him.

If you’re not wanting to do that, you can’t be a follower and you’re merely a person in the crowd. It’s like going to a Hillsong concert totally singing all the songs and having a great time but you’re just the crowd and not a follower of Jesus. And the same thing can happen on a Sunday morning where we can be part of the crowd and still not followers. What are we to do? Willing surrender and come to Jesus for fellowship with Him and not the benefits that Jesus offers.

Let your cry each morning be: Lord, I want to know you more! Lord, I want to love you more. Lord, I want close fellowship with you as I read the Bible today. I want to willingly surrender everything that my life is built on for the sake of your glory.

3. Christ responds to those who truly need Him

16 And the scribes of[a] the Pharisees, when they saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, said to his disciples, “Why does he eat[b] with tax collectors and sinners?” 17 And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Jesus’ response to the Pharisees/teachers question was that he has come for the spiritually sick and sinners and not the righteous. What?

When Jesus said he has not come to call the righteous he was referring to those who were self-righteous. They thought they would be made right with God on the basis of their external religion and their own efforts. They thought “if I try to follow all these commands and the law by my own strength, then I can be accepted by God”. And what is God response? “Your righteous acts are like filthy rags”. (Isa 64:6)

On the basis of Rom 3:23, we know that both the Pharisees and the tax collectors needed Jesus to save them. But what was the problem? The Pharisees didn’t recognize that they had a disease – a destructive spiritual disease that separated them from God and they couldn’t do anything to remove that from them. They didn’t understand their need for Jesus – the Savior because they thought they were already right and accepted before God. They couldn’t have been more wrong about their position and condition before God.

We end up reflecting this self-righteous nature whenever we end up being critical of someone else’s walk with Jesus and ignore our own need for Jesus or the issues that take place in our own heart which needs to be confessed. In other words, you spend more time talking about the other person’s sins than confessing your own. You will do all the Christian stuff and attend all Christian events but there’s no desperate cry for repentance and change in your individual life. Why? We’ve concealed all those sins with our self-righteous deeds (filthy rags).

If we’re in that position today, we need to repent of our self-reliance and desperately seek and ask for Christ’s help and perfect sacrifice to make us acceptable before God. I find it a good exercise to ask myself when was the last time I repented openly and humbly before God. The more frequent and authentic your repentance is, the more precious Jesus seems to you.

The tax collectors and sinners on the other hand already knew how condemned and sinful they were. They were more open to receiving salvation because they understood their helplessness. Only a miracle could save them. And Jesus Christ performed that miracle when he died on the cross for our sins! If you relate more to the “tax collector” than the Pharisee, let me still remind you that that even though you know you are a condemned sinner – it still requires humility to repent before God.

You could still be arrogant and not change your ways – continue sinning as you always have. The humility part is in acknowledging that you have been living a life against the will and character of God. Furthermore, the humility is in helplessly running toward Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross to rescue you from your life of rebellion. What would you do if you were caught in a building that has caught fire? You will shout and scream for “help”. If a fireman comes to save you, will you run away from him? Absolutely not! You would run to him, hold onto him until he brings you to safety.

Would you dare to come up with their own plans or defy the instructions of the fireman? No, it would cost you your life. It requires your humility in those moments to trust in the fireman and not yourself to bring you to safety. How much more humility should we show to our Creator who made us and then who saved us with His own precious blood?

[audioplayer file=”http://thegatheringcommunity.in/wp-content/uploads/christmas-message.mp3″]

Everyone around the world is celebrating Christmas and so are we. Christmas brings a special feeling to all of us. It’s the decorations, the lights, the energy, the celebration, the ambiance, Santa Claus, the jingle bell song, good food, friends & families getting together etc.

But it is also about the hype created by the media & the politicians to get attention, offers created by the business world to sell their products and services, people getting drunk and creating ruckus, loud noise disturbing the old and sick people, rich people lavishly spending money in self-indulgence flaunting their wealth, poor people suffering and struggling to find their identity in this loud and noisy celebration.

In all this hype and drama most people either don’t know what exactly Christmas is, but like to go with the flow and have a good time. Or there are people who sit on the other side criticizing and complaining.

And therefore my job today is to share the True Purpose of Christmas.

Mind you, it is not my perspective on Christmas, it is the ultimate truth about Christmas that is recorded in history & experienced by millions whose life has been changed and transformed.

I don’t have to hype it up like the media and the politicians because there is nothing that I am trying to achieve from it. I don’t have to make it sound attractive with my well-crafted words because I’m not trying to sell anything to you.

I’m doing it because I have personally seen and experienced the transforming power of this Christmas message in mine and in my family’s life.

Even though I was born in a Christian family, till the age of 17 I never understood this truth. It was at the age of 17 when an old uncle took me to a park and shared this amazing story of God’s love with me, that I so treasure till this day and am even willing to die for it.

Since then, I’ve been thoroughly blessed, not just with the material things of this world but blessed with this amazing peace in my heart, a joy beyond measure, a fulfilling life that every man on this earth desires.

And unless I’m selfish, why would I want to keep this transformative truth to just myself and my family.

It is truly my joy and pleasure to be able to share this truth with all of you this evening.

So, here we go…

The True Purpose of Christmas is to remind ourselves the reason behind the birth of a man called Jesus about whom a great French general, politician and emperor Napoleon Bonaparte once said

“I know men and I tell you that Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between Him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and myself founded empires; but what foundation did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded an empire upon love; and at this hour millions of men would die for Him.”

The famous scientist Albert Einstein said

“I am a Jew, but I am enthralled by the luminous figure of Jesus. Jesus is too colossal for the pen of phrase-mongers, however artful¨. “No man can read the story of Jesus without feeling the actual presence of Jesus. His personality pulsates in every word. No myth is filled with such life. Theseus and other heroes of his type lack the authentic vitality of Jesus.”

Have you ever wondered what makes Jesus and his birth so special?
Why is he such a hero to the world?

Compared to the standards and norms of our system…

– He wasn’t rich – In fact he was born as the son of a carpenter called Joseph
– He wasn’t a businessman – As he never founded any organization
– He wasn’t a politician – As he never formed a party or rallied around
– He wasn’t a thug – As he never stole or cheated anyone

Here are some facts about Jesus while he was on this earth…

Fact#1

Jesus was born of a virgin birth: He was not born because of the sexual relationship between Joseph and Mary. Mary conceived Jesus before she got married to Joseph. The bible says she was conceived by the Holy Spirit. An angel came to her and gave her the good news.

Fact #2

Jesus lived a 100% righteous life – There was no one who could put any kind of blame on him while he walked on the earth. And it is a known fact that you will hear even from the intellectuals of this generation speak about. Jesus was not hanged on the cross for any criminal activity.

Fact #3

Jesus, while he walked on this earth healed people of their sickness, he made the deaf hear, a blind see, a leper walk free, raised the dead and many more miracles no man has ever experienced, because of which multitude of people would follow and gather around him.

Fact #4

Jesus was crucified on the cross because of the false allegation put on him and was buried in a tomb. And three days after his burial he rose again from the dead and was taken up in heaven in the presence of multitudes of people. His empty tomb in Jerusalem still stands as a witness to that incident.

Fact#5

Even today, in his name people receive healing and freedom from their oppression.

So… Who is this Jesus? What does all this mean? and What is the purpose of Jesus’s Life?

3000 years before Jesus was born his birth was predicted in the Vedas (The Vedic Literature), specifically the Bhavishya Purana which states about the appearance of Isha Putra (the son of God), born of an unmarried woman.

700 years before Jesus was born on this earth a man called Isaiah prophesied about him and said

“Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” (Immanuel means God with us)

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

A couple of years later a man called Daniel predicted the coming of Jesus and said

“There before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven . . . He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.”

There is no man who can exhibit the qualities and abilities like Jesus did simply because Jesus is God himself. The bible talks about a triune God – God the Father, God the Son & God the Spirit.

Jesus is the son who came down to this earth.

Jesus himself claimed he was God..

In John 10:30 Jesus said “I and the Father are one”
In John 14:9 Jesus said “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father”

Jesus is the son who came down to this earth to rescue us from our own foolishness, sin, lack of purpose and eternal death.

Look at the world today, I don’t know if you are looking carefully. But look at it. It’s a chaos.
The earth is dying, everything in it is perishing. Our selfish desires to gain money, power and freedom have made us animals.

– We don’t think twice before killing someone just like us.
– We don’t care about the people just like us suffering because of poverty and lack of basic necessities.
– We are destroying our natural resources, the trees that give us oxygen, the minerals that sustain our ecosystem.
– All of this leading us to Global warming and end of everything. Just because we are selfish and our hearts hardened.

The scientists and researchers say that if this continues then it is not too late that we will be extinct. Everything we value in our lifetime, everything we treasure for our children, they will be gone.

But how did all this happen?

When God created the first man and women, he wanted them to flourish and multiply. He wanted them to inhabit this earth and enjoy the beautiful, resourceful earth that he created.

But instead of living righteously and living in God’s terms, the man became disobedient, unrighteous and ungodly. And we continue to be so even to this day.

Because of our sinfulness, the bible says

“For the wrath (anger) of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.

Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever!”

The bible says that every single man is sinful. We all are born sinful and the only way to relate with God is through a sacrifice.

The Vedas reveal this truth…

“Yagne Sarvam Pratishthitam” – “It is sacrifice that bestows all things”.
“Yagnovai Sutarmanowh”- “Sacrifice is the bark (boat) that enables one to live well”.
“Yagnena Va Deva Divangatah” – “Only by means of sacrifice, the gods attained heaven”
“Rutasyanah Pathanaya Ati Viswani Durita”- “Deliverance through sacrifice”

For years men continued to offer sacrifices to God for the forgiveness of their sins, even today in some cultures they still offer sacrifices in various forms. The only norm is that the sacrifice needs to be perfect and blameless.

Jesus, who is God himself, even though he was a man he was not born of man, came to this earth, lived a perfect and blameless life, to deliver us from the wrath of the Father and from eternal death by offering himself as the perfect sacrifice that will suffice every requirement for us to enjoy a perfect relationship back with our Creator God and live eternally with him in the heavenly places.

Jesus did not come to establish a religion; in fact, he spoke against and criticized the religious people of his time. He is above and beyond all our man-made cultural and traditional myths that only leads us to deep bondage and frustration.

John 3:16 says “For God so loved the world that he sent his only son Jesus to die for us as a perfect sacrifice, and whoever believes in him will not perish but will have eternal life”

After suffering a terrible death for our sake, Jesus, because he was God, rose again from the dead and was taken up in the heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father. And the Bible tells us that one day he will return back and judge the world. Those who are his will be taken up with him and rest will be thrown into hell and eternal death.

You may ask after God sent his son Jesus to die for us and for sinfulness what does he expect from us to receive him and become part of his great big family?

All God requires from us is to believe and put our faith in Jesus’s finished work on the cross. And how do we do that?

We simply turning away from our sinful ways and put our faith in Christ. Trust me, you too will experience this transformative power that most of us have already experienced in this room.

This is the message of Christmas and if you want to experience the joy of knowing your creator God then you need to put your faith in Christ and his work on the cross. Or else this Christmas would mean nothing to you.

I hope and pray that you receive your savior today and see your life transformed forever.

[audioplayer file=”http://thegatheringcommunity.in/wp-content/uploads/saju-10-december-new.mp3″]

Our current preaching series is from the Gospel of Mark and the today’s passage is Mark 1:35-45.

Read Mark 1:35-45 (Link)

Jesus wakes up early in the morning while it is still dark and goes to a desolate place to pray. Simon and some others come searching for him because there were people looking for him to get their needs met.

Instead, Jesus replies saying “Let us go to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came”. And then he went to throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.

When a leper comes to him, he is moved with compassion and heals him but also tells him not to go out and tell people about it. But the leper does the opposite and goes out telling everyone about Jesus and the healing he performed because of which Jesus is unable to enter the town and had to stay outside in a deserted place.

The Main purpose of the passage

Since it is important to understand the passage in its original context we need to pay attention to what the author is trying to communicate to us.

If you pay close attention you will understand that in this passage what Mark is trying to say is that Jesus was determined and focused to preach the message of the Kingdom of God more than just meeting the needs and wants of the people by performing healing & miracles.

How do we know that?

1. His reply to Simon

When Simon came and told him that there were people waiting for him, and we all know the number the people who’d gather around Jesus, they might have been in hundreds or thousands.

Jesus instead of attending to their needs goes to the neighboring villages to preach in their synagogues saying “that is what he came to do”.

2. The reason why he asked the leper not to speak

The reason Jesus told the leper not to go and talk about the miracle is because he knew there would be more people gathering around him for the wrong reasons, which is what eventually happens when the leper goes around proclaiming.

Because of which Jesus couldn’t enter the town and had to stay in a deserted place where people came to him.

Jesus’s expectation from the people was not just to come to him for healing and miracles but more so that they listen to his preaching of the Kingdom of God.

What was Jesus preaching?

In Matthew 4:17 we see Jesus was preaching “Repent because the Kingdom of heaven has come near”

Jesus wanted the people to know that the fulfillment of the old testament prophesies about the Messiah is happening.

That he was the one whom God the Father sent for the redemption of mankind.

Jesus wanted them to know that He is the only way, truth, and life and that no one can go to the Father except through him, through his sacrifice on the cross.

He wanted to know the Father’s love for them, so much so that he sent his only son to die for their sake, in their place, and anyone who believes in him are the only ones who will enjoy eternal life in heaven.

He wanted them to know the TRUTH that will set them free from their bondage, curses, and infirmities.

He wanted them to know that the way to restore their relationship back with God was only through him.

But instead, people were flocking to him just to meet their temporary needs and wants. And we see that Jesus would withdraw himself from them.

What does it teach us?

It teaches us that every time we go to Jesus with our concerns about life for the sake of a healing or a miracle or a financial breakthrough. Jesus’s concern for us whether we’ve know him – the true source of all joy and fulfillment.

Jesus’s concern is whether we’ve understood the message of the Kingdom of heaven. Whether we are consistently aligning our lives, our goals, our affections, our dreams, our pursuits to towards the Kingdom and for the sake of God’s glory.

Sadly, we all know that is not the picture of our lives. Isn’t it!

Every day when we get up in the morning our minds and hearts and filled with worries & anxiousness about our circumstances. We are perplexed and confused all the time because we don’t know what to do and where to go to fulfill our needs and wants.

We want to hang out with Jesus only to receive his blessings and to see our prayers answered. We go to church to get something out of it.

What if I told you that there is a possibility that Jesus might not meet your need and that he has bigger agenda for your life then to just meet your needs and wants.

Would you still like to hang out with him?

You might say doesn’t God care about the situation I’m going through.

Of course, he cares about us but he cares more about His glory been manifested in and through our lives when we walk in obedience to his word.

Jesus wants us to see him and know him.

When we look at the story of Job – after he’s gone through all the sufferings and trails and accusations from his friends. When God speaks to him and reveals himself to him Job speaks to God and says in 42:5-6 “I had heard of you by hearing of the ear, but now my eyes sees you; therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.”

But that’s not the end

In Job 42:10 we see God restores everything back to Job in double measure.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:33 “Seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all things will be added to you.”

Now that we know that Jesus’s focus is on our spiritual well-being and not just meeting our needs, and we also know that the problem with us is that we are constantly distracted with our needs and wants, our painful circumstances, with our desires for the things of the world.

What do we do to stay focused on the main thing?

The answer I believe is right there in the passage itself.

“We do what Jesus did”

Jesus, when he was surrounded by people trying to gain his attention and distract him from doing God’s will, he withdrew himself and went out to spend time with God in prayer all alone.

And that was Jesus’s regular pattern, he would often withdraw himself from the chaos around him to pray and re-align his thoughts and mind to focus on the main thing.

And what did he pray?

Look at the pray model Jesus gave us.

He asked us to pray that God would let his Kingdom come and let his will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Jesus himself in the most painful time when he was about to be crucified prayed if God could take the cup of suffering away from him but then he says but not my will but your will be done.

What are some of the distractions in our generation that we need to get rid so we can chase after the real thing?

1. Mobiles & Social Media Sites

Number one on my list is our mobile phones. I’m sure you didn’t see that coming.

Yes, it is!

Researchers have found that the mere presence of a handset is distracting – even if it is not your own. And the devices are likely to sidetrack you, even if they are not ringing or ‘pinging’ with text messages. (Read more)

In today’s generation, mobile phones are the number one distraction for us to spend time with God and his word. Our minds are constantly been bombarded with unwanted information and irrelevant thoughts all because of the easy access through our mobile phones.

If you think your mobile is a distraction for you to pursuing God for the right reasons then it’s time we act upon it and withdraw from it as far as possible. Use it only when it is needed.

Don’t let the phone dictate what you need to do and when you need to do. Instead, use it on your own terms.

My way of getting rid of the phone is to switch off all my notifications and keep it on silent all the time. I don’t take immediate calls cause I’m away from it most of the time. I only check my phone a couple of times during the day.

It’s a weird thing to do especially when you are into business, I get to hear that all the time.

But I’ve made my choice. This is how I want to stay focused on what God has called me to do. Do keep me in prayer.

2. Demands of Life

The other distraction could be the daily demands of our life.

Rushing to go to work in the morning, rushing to doing the work assigned to us, rushing to catch the train, the bus, the rickshaw.

The day goes by just attending to the immediate demands and we totally forget that we need strength to go on, we need hope to press on, we need guidance to stay on course.

It’s time that we realize how the demands of life are stealing our time with God which leads us in totally different directions, away from God.

3. TV/Entertainment

For some its entertainment that’s distracting them from spending time with God

4. Family/Children/Friends

Sometimes, it could also be our family, children, friends that can be a distraction for us to be able to spend time in devotion.

… the list goes on.

You need to identify what’s the distraction in your life that keeps you away from growing spiritually and mature in your faith.

Remember, Jesus is interested in your spiritual maturity and not just meet your needs and wants. It happens when you spend time in prayer and meditate on his word day and night.

Psalms 1 promises that when we meditate on his word day and night we will be like the tree planted by the streams of water whose leaves will never wither and will be fruitful all the time.

And in the end of our lives we will find greater satisfaction when we live for God and for his purposes, more than the satisfaction we receive when our temporary needs are met.

So, lets gear up and chase after the main thing in life.

Let’s pray!

[audioplayer file=”http://thegatheringcommunity.in/wp-content/uploads/knowing-jesus-through-biblical-expectations.mp3″]

Good morning church! We have been going through a series titled “The Gospel of Mark: the story of Jesus”. I’ve personally being encouraged by this study of the gospel. A couple of weeks back we read on the passage that spoke about the “Calling of the First disciples” (READ). We learnt how following Jesus meant more than just having new religious ideas. A heart transformation needs to take place. And the three signs of transformation are:

1. Exchange of Affections: Greater affections for Christ rather than family, friends or things
2. Exchange of Dreams: Greater dreams for Christ’s mission rather than our personal professional ambitions
3. Exchange of Pursuits: Greater pursuits for Christ and His glory rather than pursuing our own goals.

And these are key to understanding what it means to be a believer. So even though we’ve already read through it last time, I’d encourage you to be reminded every single day, every week, every year of what it means to follow Jesus. When you believed and trusted in Christ’s work for you on the cross, you declared that you were exchanging your affections, dreams and pursuits for greater, glorious and life-giving purposes of Christ.

Today’s passage is the start of Jesus’ ministry along with his first 4 disciples. You can imagine what it must’ve been for them to start with their new life and their new mission! Think along with me what they would’ve thought and expected from Jesus. The context of the Gospel of Mark is that Israelites for hundreds of years have been waiting for the coming of the Messiah. All of them had expectations. Who is he going to be? What is he going to be like? What will he be wearing? Where is he going to stay? How many people will be around him? Let’s read Mark 1:21 on-wards to find out.

Mark 1:21-34: [21] And they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue and was teaching. [22] And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes. [23] And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, [24] “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God.” [25] But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!” [26] And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him. [27] And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.” [28] And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee. [29] And immediately he left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. [30] Now Simon’s mother-in-law lay ill with a fever, and immediately they told him about her. [31] And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them. [32] That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or oppressed by demons. [33] And the whole city was gathered together at the door. [34] And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. And he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.

Wow! This is a powerful passage. The whole passage talks about Jesus revealing his identity. He does it in three ways:

1. Jesus’ authority in teaching

Mark 1: [21] And they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue and was teaching. [22] And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.

The very first thing that Jesus does is that he goes to a synagogue in Capernaum on the Sabbath and begins teaching. The synagogue was a Jewish assembly where Jews gathered to offer prayers and listen to the reading and expositions of OT Scriptures.

Jesus enters and he begins teaching the Scriptures! As Jesus shares about the fulfillment of the OT prophecies, as He preaches about the coming of the kingdom of God, as He talks about the good news and how they need to repent and believe in the good news – they are astonished and blown away. The reason for that is because they were able to recognize authority in His teaching. In contrast to this was the teaching of the scribes.

Now these scribes were the Scripture experts of that day. They were approached for difficult issues or decisions with respect to the Mosaic law. No doubt these were very smart people but there was no authority in their teaching. Do note that the writer didn’t focus on the style of teaching or on Jesus’ eloquence.

He focused on His authority. Jesus taught with authority not only because He knew what He was talking about but because He was the author of Life and truth! I always wonder what that might have looked like to have the Creator of the universe, the pre-existent God, the One who sustains the universe to teach people and explain the Scriptures to them! Wasn’t that an amazing privilege? At the same time I realize that all of written Scripture that we have with us is talking about Jesus and is communicating his words to us (John 5:39).

[39] You study[c] the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me.

Whenever we read the Bible or hear it being preached in its context and according to the original intent and apply it to our lives, we should realize that the Word is coming to us with the same weight and authority that it had when Jesus spoke these words. We have an amazing privilege!

2. Jesus’ power over demons

Mark 1: [23] And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, [24] “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God.” [25] But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!” [26] And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him. [27] And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.” [28] And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee.

While Jesus was teaching, a man with a demonic spirit cries out. Obviously, this is disturbing and distracting people from what Jesus was teaching. Jesus rebukes the spirit and casts it out of the man! Just imagine if this were happening at the Gathering right now. Wouldn’t you be frightened to witness this happen in front of you? The people knew they couldn’t control the man with a demon spirit.

In fact this demonic spirit affected the man so violently that in v26 it says it “convulsed him” or it tore him apart. And Jesus commanded the spirit to come out of the man…and it did! They realize that Jesus isn’t an ordinary person. He not only teaches with authority but He commands the demonic spirits and they obey him. We aren’t just seeing authority in His teaching but also authority over the spiritual realm!

How great and powerful must He be?

3. Jesus’ cure for sicknesses

Mark 1: [29] And immediately he left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. [30] Now Simon’s mother-in-law lay ill with a fever, and immediately they told him about her. [31] And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them. [32] That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or oppressed by demons. [33] And the whole city was gathered together at the door. [34] And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. And he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.

Just after the amazing story at the synagogue, the focus shifts to Peter and Andrews home where Peter’s mother in law is ill and is lying on the bed. Jesus comes to her, picks her hand and immediately the fever leaves her! She becomes physically fit instantly, so much so that she begins to serve them.

Probably prepare a meal for them. In the evening, all people who were sick with various diseases and oppressed by demons are brought to Jesus and He instantly and miraculously restores them. The whole city gathered outside at the door.

Imagine being one of the onlookers trying to look inside and see how lepers, blind, lame, deaf are being healed. Who is this man who has the power to renew our physical bodies? These miracles are definitely witnessing to the Messianic age but also reveal the identity of our Savior who has the power to heal us because He himself fashioned us in our mother’s womb!

But in this whole passage there is one thing that messes with my mind. It’s v34 where it says “Jesus would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.” What? Why would Jesus do that? When we see the man with the demonic spirit in v24 – the demonic spirit actually utters the correct identity of Jesus – He is Jesus of Nazareth and He is the Holy One of God! And Jesus tells him to “be silent”. It doesn’t make sense! Why would Jesus miss on this opportunity to reveal who He was? In today’s marketing and PR strategy, this would’ve been a major mistake.

There is a phrase in media that says – any publicity is good publicity. Why can’t Jesus allow the demons to speak? Wouldn’t this help Jesus’ name to grow quicker and wider? The reason why Jesus didn’t want to reveal his identity yet is due to people’s wrong expectations from the Messiah.

They were experiencing oppression under the Roman rule and wanted a military king to come and remove the Roman emperor from his throne and have this descendant of David sit upon the throne! That’s why Jesus didn’t permit the demons to reveal His identity because that expectation was totally opposite to who He was and why He came into the world.

However, Jesus still revealed who was through His actions – his authority in teaching, his power over demons and his cure for sicknesses.

If we were totally honest, what would we say are our expectations from Jesus? Our expectations and perceptions about Jesus form an important part of our faith. It’s the lens through which we see Jesus, approach Him and even talk about Him.

Are we really prepared to receive Jesus for who He is? Most of the time Jesus’ identity doesn’t match our natural expectations. Why? Because our expectations from Him are self-centered and temporary. But Jesus’ desire is to reveal the glory of God for our complete joy in Christ.

• Sometimes we think – If God gave me this job, then I would be more devoted to him
• If God gives me this person to marry, then I will love Him more
• If God frees me from this sin struggle, then I will be more obedient to him
• If God gives me this role or position in the church, then I will be a stronger believer
• If God makes my life more comfortable and convenient, then I will spend more time with him
• If God reduces the troubles in my life, then I will be able to trust Him more
• Also, sometimes we end up being selective in our reading of Scripture also. We love reading the feel-good verses again and again: I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. But let me not read and obey the verses that say – If anyone wants to follow me, let him die to himself daily, pick up his cross and follow me.

Do you see the issues with this type of expectations from Christ?

1. It’s not true of who Christ is. This resembles a god that looks more like us and not like our Savior Jesus. It’s deeply self-centered
2. We see Christ as only the Gift-giver rather than the Gift Himself
3. Jesus Christ wants to give us so much more, but we want to settle with the least. By more I’m not talking about prosperity but I’m talking about knowing, loving and becoming like our Savior and Master – Jesus.

So how does this passage, provide us with hope?

Even though we’ve got all our expectations misplaced due to our sin, the encouragement is that Christ came to us and revealed the true picture of himself. He possesses all authority and is full of power! He is way beyond what our minds can comprehend and yet He chooses to show Himself to us.

Most importantly, He opened our eyes to see who He is through His sacrifice on the cross in our place. And He invites us to know him more intimately as we fellowship with him through the Word, prayer and his church.

So let’s throw off every idea or belief or lifestyle that is based on wrong expectations of Christ. And let’s receive and embrace and treasure this Jesus as He reveals in Scripture. We embrace Jesus by loving, obeying and praising Him.

[audioplayer file=”http://thegatheringcommunity.in/wp-content/uploads/edited-saju-preaching.mp3″]

We are going through our series on the Gospel of Mark and last two weeks we heard sermons about coming before the Lord with a Repentant preparation & Humble submission.

We learned about Jesus’s obedient heart towards the Father’s will and how through his act of obedience we were made righteous by grace through faith.

Today our passage will be Mark 1:16-20: [16] Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. [17] And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.”[a] [18] And immediately they left their nets and followed him. [19] And going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets. [20] And immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him.

In Mark, we read a very short narrative of Jesus calling out his first couple of Disciples. We see a more elaborate narrative in the Gospel of Luke and John.

So, here how the story goes…

In the gospel of John, we read an incident where Andrew the brother of Peter comes and tells them that they heard from John the Baptist about the Messiah and they found him.

Now while Jesus was walking by the sea of Genesareth, he saw two boats at the shore and some fishermen washing their nets. I suppose Peter and Andrew were also there washing their nets.

Jesus then gets into one of the boats and starts teaching. After finishing his teaching he asks Peter to put out the boats into the deep and to let down their nets. To which Peter says “We toiled all night and caught nothing, but at your word, I will let down the nets”.

On Jesus’s word when Peter casts his net into the deep they catch a large number of fishes, so much that they were unable to carry it on their boat and calls other fellow fishermen for help.

And then a remarkable incident happens …

Peter falls to Jesus’s knees, saying “Depart from me, for I am sinful man, O Lord.”

Peter’s response is almost like the response of John the Baptist when he speaks about Christ saying “I am unworthy to untie his sandals.”

Here’s what I believe happened to Peter at that moment.

When he saw Jesus performing the miracle and also recollecting the words of his brother Andrew about the Messiah, he immediately realized that he was in the presence of the most High God. His blinded eyes opened, he could see how unworthy and wretched he looked in the presence of the promised Messiah.

He wanted Jesus to depart from him, to depart and stay away from an unholy man like him.

But instead, Jesus looks at Peter and says “Do not be afraid, follow me and I will make you fishers of men.” And immediately Peter and John left their nets and followed him.

Going further away Jesus meets James and John and calls them out too. They left their father on the boat and followed Jesus.

Becoming a True Believer

When I read about Peter’s conversion that day I don’t see him making a sinner prayer as we do these days. I learned that it takes much more than just saying a prayer to become a true believer and a follower of Jesus. There is a true heart transformation that happens when we encounter Jesus in our lives.

The manifestation of that heart transformation is the realization of being an unworthy, sinful, wretched human being, which then leads us to embrace the grace of God manifested through his son Jesus.

When we refer to people as ‘believers’ and ‘followers of Jesus’ just because they said a prayer after you, it gives a totally different understanding of true heart transformation. We end up producing professing Christians who never really understood the gospel and never experienced the transforming power of the gospel.

And that is why there are several so-called Christians, as James describes as professing Christians but whose lifestyle is still worldly and tongue untamed.

Invitation to participate in the Kingdom work

The other things that stand out to me is the invitation of Jesus to participate in his glorious work of building His Kingdom from day one.

Isn’t that beautiful to hear that Jesus counts us trustworthy to be partnered with him the day we repent and respond to his call.

Wrong application

Jesus called them and they immediately left their nets, their businesses to follow him.

I’ve heard many preachers use this text and ask people to leave their jobs and businesses to follow Jesus into full-time ministries, however that is a misinterpretation of the text as it is taken out of context.

Imagine Jesus himself, the son of God, the creator God was on the earth and calling out these people. At that moment I couldn’t think of a different response than to throw away everything and follow him. I would have done that too.

In Mark 2:19 when the Pharisees were complaining to Jesus that his disciples were not fasting like the disciples of John, Jesus said, “Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast”

It was a different moment in history and now we are in a different moment and context. Jesus has sent us into the world, amongst our colleagues, amongst the unbelieving friends, to use our talents and skills to reach out to this dying world in every possible way and in every possible direction to preach the gospel.

For us, it may not be a literal throwing of our nets to follow Jesus but I believe there is a principle we learn from Peter, Andrew, James & John’s responses to Jesus’s call. And that is what I want to highlight to you from this passage, highlight the exchange that happens in our heart when we encounter Jesus

Signs of true heart transformation

1. Exchange of Affections

What we learn from the responses of these brothers is that all of a sudden their affections were changed. They once loved their life, their family, their business, their boats etc. But now we see how they were willing to let them go just because their affections for Christ and his Kingdom took prime importance in their lives.

In Luke 14:26 Jesus said “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, cannot be my disciple.”

For some, it’s an immediate change and for some, it gradually changes. But the point is a true heart transformation always leads us to love Christ more than anything and anyone in life.

And if that is not evident then we need to seriously reconsider whether we’ve really understood the true gospel and whether we’ve responded well.

2. Exchange of Dreams

I’m sure Peter, Andrew, James and John had dreams in life. Dreams of taking their business to the next level, Dreams of making it big, Dreams of moving to a new place and enjoying life to the fullest.

Not that these dreams are bad, but they exchanged them for a better one. And the better one was to pursue Gods dream; God’s dream to see people from all nations, tribes, language bow down and worship Him.

When we look at our lives lets ask what’s been our greatest pursuit especially after we became Christians. Is it still those worldly dreams of making it big for yourselves, achieve great wealth, pursuing fame and prosperity? Or is our heart equally or even more passionate about the Kingdom pursuit. There can’t be a greater fulfillment than to be able to be used as instruments in God’s hand and there can’t be a greater joy than to be able to live for the glory of God.

Let’s think about it seriously.

3. Exchange of Pursuit

All of a sudden these guys stopped pursuing the things they were doing until that moment and started pursuing Jesus and the things He asked them to do. They followed him, listened to him speaking and talking about the Kingdom, they obeyed his commandments and instructions to the point of death.

Let’s evaluate our lives as we read this encounter and think of areas where we’ve fallen short in pursuing Jesus, pursuing the heavenly things, pursuing righteousness, pursuing his words of instruction when we hear a sermon or a passage that convicts our hearts of our sins.

A genuine Jesus follower will always inhabit this quality. You will see him always pursuing the right things in life, whether he is working in a company, or involved in business, our leading a family, or bringing up his children.

Our pursuits determine what is more important to us in Life.

My prayer this morning for all of you is to truly understand what a genuine heart transformation looks like and that you may be able to exchange your affections, your dreams and your pursuits for a greater cause and that is to participate in the Father’s business of winning souls for which we were called the day we became believers.

[audioplayer file=”http://thegatheringcommunity.in/wp-content/uploads/edited-jeff-preaching.mp3″]

Good morning Gathering! Can I just say this, before we jump into our text this morning: isn’t it a gift to gather like this? Just think about it for a moment. The fact that we can come together as the people of God, as family, from across the world, and we can sing together, and lift Jesus’ name together, and be shaped by God’s Word TOGETHER is such an incredible privilege.

Every time we get to gather like this as family (every time we get to be with you) my heart is full with the Joy of The Lord. And, I always feel compelled to point that out because I never want to take that for granted. God is extravagant in His provision for His people and we get to experience the fruit of that this morning.

If you have a Bible, I’d encourage you to grab that and turn to The Gospel of Mark. Our text this morning will be Mark 1:9-15. As you’re turning there in your Bibles, I’ll pray for our time together in God’s word.

Last weekend all of our churches (all 3 of which are represented in this room right now, which is amazing) we all kicked off a series in The Gospel of Mark that will take us on a long and beautiful journey.

The more I’ve read, and studied, and prayed through Mark, the more strongly I believe that this study is going to be an incredible gift to our body of churches. And I believe that for several different reasons. One of the primary reasons is because The Gospel of Mark gives us such a unique perspective on Jesus.

It’s a defining characteristic of Mark’s gospel to highlight Jesus as the fulfillment of things promised in the Old Testament. Which is really important for us because it allows us to more clearly understand that the whole of Scripture is about Jesus. Which is an important thing to know, isn’t it?

That the entire Bible is one perfect, seamless story of God’s redemptive work throughout history. And that redemptive work centers on the person of Jesus Christ.

This is why we must read the entire Bible christocentrically (with the gospel as the focal point). Now just the New Testament, but the Old Testament as well. Because the Old Testament is the history of God building the longing the anticipation of the coming Christ.

Think about this: When you read the Old Testament, starting with the account of the fall in the garden (sin entering the picture separating us from God). And you move through how God formed a people through Abraham, and their 400 year captivity in Egypt. And you move through the freedom that God secured for them in the Exodus, and then through the 40 years of wandering in the desert, up until they take possession of the Promised Land.

And then you read about the cycle that kept repeating through all of the judges the constant 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, it was all intended by God to build anticipation of the coming Christ. It was all intended to build anticipation and hope that God would do something that PERMANENTLY dealt with the problem of sin & separation from Him. It was intended to create the hope of redemption and to set the stage for permanence through Christ.

That’s why I say that 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.

That’s why, as we sit here today, under the New Covenant, we don’t need the type of judges in the Old Testament, Christ will judge the living & the dead. There’s no need to offer sacrifices for sin Christ offered Himself as a sacrifice for all sin. We don’t worship in Temples we are temples of the Holy Spirit because of what Christ has done.

He is our prophet, priest and king. And, we certainly aren’t tied to a piece of real estate, our promised land is in Heaven with Him that’s where our citizenship lies.

This is one of the things that excites me most about this study in Mark. It will help us practice seeing Jesus as the point of all of Scripture. So, that’s the journey that we began last weekend. And, because this is a continuation of that discussion, I took some time to review Jinson’s message last weekend.

I have to say that my soul just came alive hearing the themes that Jinson highlighted from last weekend’s text (Read). What he talked about gets to the very heart of what it looks like to walk in the newness of life that Christ has purchased for us.

He talked about REPENTANCE & HUMBLE SUBMISSION. We have this picture that Mark paints, in the opening verses, of John the Baptist as he comes to prepare the way for Christ. He’s preaching a message of repentance, and he’s preaching that message out of humble submission.

In other words, John’s posture and his message both come from a place of understanding that he was created, and that he was preparing the way for the Creator. That he wasn’t even fit to untie Jesus’ shoes. That the aim of his life was to point to the excellencies of Jesus Christ.

In one of the other gospels John the Baptist is recording as saying, “this joy of mine is now complete. Jesus must increase, but I must decrease.” That’s it, you see? It’s the message of repentance, being proclaimed by a man who is displaying humble submission to God. And, here’s what I think is just beautiful, as I look at the flow of this 1st chapter.

The things that we see highlighted in John’s life and message are the same things that Jesus puts on display with his life and message. And, He does it in a way that beckons these things from our lives as well.

And so, that’s where I want to end our discussion this morning. I want to come back full circle to these themes of repentance and humble submission. That we all might be reminded this morning that these are things that will be displayed in the life of every believer in increasing measure.

We’ll get to all of that in a few minutes. But first, let’s read our text together.

READ MARK 1:9-15.

This is fascinating! There are 3 major events described in these 7 short verses. Instead of devoting a lot of time and detail to each one of these events, like the other gospels might do, Mark just bullet points them.

Which is interesting because this is something that Mark does strategically in his writing. He’s not concerned with giving us a historical timeline or an abundance of facts. Mark is more concerned that his readers understand who Jesus actually is. That they would understand His character & His message.

So, instead of distracting you with details & timelines, Mark lists these 3 events in a way that causes us to interpret each of them through the lens of the others.

That’s beautiful because it pushes us, urgently, into an understanding that the Kingdom is at hand, that the time is now, that all of this anticipation and longing that has been building for God to make things new is finally here!

And so he gives us these things very quickly:

• Jesus’ baptism
• Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness
• The beginning of His ministry.

He doesn’t want us to be overly concerned with the history or the details of these events. He wants us to understand what these things tell us about the character and the message of Jesus Christ.

So, in light of that, here’s how I’d like to structure our time this morning. I want to look at these events and show you what stands out to me as I’ve studied them. And, as we discuss this, I want you to listen for these same themes REPENTANCE & HUMBLE SUBMISSION.

And then, at the end, I want to bring us back to a discussion about what this looks like for our lives. How are we called to live in light of who Jesus Is and what He has done.

So, look again at verses 9 – 11: “In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

So, right off the bat, we have a very clear and beautiful expression of the Doctrine of the Trinity right here. don’t we? The fact that God is 3 distinct persons, AND YET, 1 God. We see that clearly on display in this text.

You have Jesus the Son of God standing in the Jordan River with John the Baptist. And, as He comes up out of the water, The Spirit descends upon Him and The Father speaks “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

It’s about as clear a picture of The Trinity as you’re going to get in Scripture. And, actually, that brings my mind to a really important point that must be stated explicitly every chance we get. JESUS CHRIST IS THE SON OF GOD.

He is the un-created one. He is the One through whom everything was created. He is God with the Father & Holy Spirit into eternity past and into eternity future. He is currently upholding the Universe by the word of His power.

And Jesus Christ is the Only Name by which man can be saved. Because, it was His sacrifice taking our place, paying the price for our sin that allows us to be reconciled to God. And, it’s only by submitting your life to Him through faith that you enter into that new life.

Jesus is God! Which brings us to an interesting question. If Jesus is God, WHY DID HE NEED TO BE BAPTIZED? I think there are several answers to that question. Let me give you a couple of the most important ones. Jesus is sinless, so there’s no need for any repentance. But, we have to remember the work that Jesus came to do AS OUR SUBSTITUTE.

I believe that this event is pointing to what Jesus would do to take our sin upon Himself as our substitute. We often say that Jesus was the better Moses, the better Abraham, the better Jonah, etc. The truth is that He’s the better everything.

Paul details in Romans 5 how Jesus is the better Adam. He came to fulfill what Adam could not. He came to remedy the problem of sin that was ushered in through Adam’s disobedience. And, Jesus accomplished that through His own obedience.

Submitting Himself to baptism is a part of that. It’s also the way (culturally) that Jesus would put His stamp of approval on the message that John the Baptist was preaching. We don’t have a lot of time to get into this but baptism finds it’s root in the ceremonial washing / cleansing that people would perform when they were becoming Jewish.

They were essentially saying that I associate my life with this teaching. That’s what Jesus is doing here. He’s associating Himself with John’s message the message that the Kingdom of God was at hand.

An incredible thing happens as a part of Jesus’ baptism. Mark says that the heavens are “torn open”. This would be incredible in & of itself, but it gets even more beautiful when you realize that Isaiah talked about this happening.

In Isaiah 64, the prophet talks about the heavens being rent open or torn apart and God descending. Here’s what it says exactly “Oh that you would rend the heavens and come down.”

Mark 1 is a picture of the fulfillment of that prophecy. God tears the heavens open and comes down in His Spirit. But, where it gets even more beautiful is when you look to the end of Jesus’ life on earth.

This Greek phrase for “being torn open” is only used 1 other time in Mark’s Gospel and it’s near the end of the book in Mark chapter 15. It’s the picture that Mark paints of Jesus hanging on the Cross. He has been falsely accused, falsely tried, lied about, mocked, brutally beaten and whipped, and now He’s hanging on the Cross (and it’s all happening in our place).

And, as He dies, it says that “Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last and the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.” (Verse 37)

Get this: you have the heavens being torn open and the Spirit of God descending to rest upon Jesus at the beginning of His public ministry. And, you have the curtain (the thing that was symbolic of the separation between God & man caused by sin) torn in 2 as Jesus takes our sin with Him into the grave. And, it’s all what God promised to do from the beginning. ONE SEAMLESS STORY of redemption through Jesus Christ. How amazing is our God?

Look again at verses 12 & 13.“The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him.”

There are a couple of things here. First, the language that Mark uses fascinates me. Jesus was “driven out by the Spirit.” This brings my mind back to the topic of SUBMISSION.

Jesus had submitted Himself to the Will of the Father and the leading of The Holy Spirit. He chose to be dependent upon the Holy Spirit. I love how Paul frames this dynamic in Philippians chapter 2.

He says that, “Jesus though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant.” That’s the same idea that Jesus declares in Mark 10:45 “I did not come to be served but to serve, and to give my life as a ransom for many.”

If anyone should have been served, it’s Jesus. If anyone should have been exalted, it’s Jesus. If anyone deserved to be worshiped, it’s Jesus. And yet, to buy us back from Sin & Death, He emptied Himself, He became a servant, and He died in our place.

There it is, you see? HUMBLE SUBMISSION.

The second thing I would point to here is to highlight something I’ve already said. Jesus is the better Adam. Where Adam failed, where we fail, Jesus succeeds. Jesus was tempted, as we are tempted, and yet He is without Sin.

That’s amazing news! It’s amazing because Jesus knows what it’s like to face temptation. This is the beauty of Hebrews 4:15-16 “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

Jesus is the better Adam. He is the One that the pleasures of the Father rest on. He is the One who overcame temptation in the wilderness. Every area where Adam failed, Jesus succeeds. Every area where we fail, Jesus succeeds. And now He is able to sympathize with us as He intercedes for us.

Finally, look again at verses 14-15. This is where we’ll bring everything back together to the implications for our lives. “Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

Here’s what I would point us to as we wrap this up: The humble submission of Jesus Christ. In taking on the form of His creation, in experiencing temptation and pain, in taking our place and dying the death we deserved to die, it was His humble submission that made a way for our repentance.

This is the message of the gospel! That where we were separated from God, where we were under condemnation and wrath, where we were spiritually dead, Christ has made a way for us to be made alive. And, not just for us to be made alive, but for us to be adopted into the family of God.

Think about it like this: When you & I repent and believe the gospel, we get to hear the same thing that Jesus heard as He came out of the water “You are my Son, with you I am well pleased.” “You are my daughter, with you I am well pleased.”

When we repent & believe the gospel, we receive the affirmation of the Father and the presence of the Holy Spirit. We receive the same things that Jesus received at His baptism. That is amazing!

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Good morning church! I know we all are excited as we jump into a new series which is titled “The Story of Jesus from the Gospel of Mark.” I really liked the video intro that Saju gave to our series (Watch the video). He said that many times we have many misconceptions about who Jesus is – either from our experience or what we’ve been told or what we see in the media. The Bible accurately and clearly presents Jesus as He is. So that’s going to be our goal over the next few months – knowing and understanding Him closely through the gospel of Mark!

So before we delve into our main text passage, I think it’ll be helpful for us to understand key aspects about this gospel, the author and the purpose of this book. This gospel was written somewhere between 55-60 AD. Who was the writer? John Mark. There are quite a few things we can know about John Mark from the New Testament.

• There was a house church that met at his home. In Acts 12:12 right after Peter was miraculously released from prison by an angel he goes to the home of Mary, the mother of Mark where the church was gathered and praying together
• He was the cousin of Barnabas. (Col 4:10) We already see his spiritual heritage through his family and the church that met in his home
• Paul and Barnabas took Mark along with them on their first missionary journey. (Acts 13:5) Unfortunately, we don’t know why but Scripture records that Mark left them mid-way and returned back to Jerusalem (Acts 13:13)
• Later on Mark becomes the reason for the separation between Paul and Barnabas. Paul and Barnabas later on decided to go back to the churches they planted in every city and strengthen them. Barnabas wanted to bring Mark along but Paul thought it wasn’t wise because he deserted them earlier. They got into such a sharp agreement that Paul and Barnabas parted ways. Paul took Silas along with him and went to Syria and Cilicia and Barnabas took Mark and went to Cyprus which was his hometown (Acts 15:36-41)
• Interestingly when we come to the end of Paul’s life…we read this a few weeks back in the final chapter of 2 Timothy. During Paul’s final stages in life when he is all alone, he tells Timothy to come to him quickly and to bring Mark along because he is “very useful to him in ministry”. What changed? How was an uncommitted believer become radically changed into a powerful witness for Jesus?
• I think we may find the answer in 1 Peter 5. In v13 where Peter is providing his signature to the letter, he mentions the name of Mark whom he refers to as his son who is there along with him. It’s quite likely that during “in between” years, Peter discipled Mark. He told him about the amazing things that happened when Jesus Christ was on earth, he probably reminded him about the beautiful gospel and shared how Jesus strengthened him even though he was unfaithful to Jesus. Peter himself would say a lot of things impulsively but wouldn’t keep up him promise when things got tough. Still Jesus gave him hope, strengthened him and turned him around so that he could not only live for Jesus but also die as a martyr for Jesus! If you are at that place today, where you look at your life and see there’s very little commitment to Christ. Go back to the gospel and trust in what Christ is able to do in and through you. If Jesus Christ can do that for Peter and for Mark, he can do that even in your life
• So Mark’s gospel is the story of Jesus through the eye witness account of Peter.

What’s the main purpose for writing the gospel of Mark? I think there are two purposes:

1. To show how Jesus through his impeccable life, prophecies, astonishing miracles, deep perception of the hidden thoughts of the heart, authoritative teaching and the amazing victory over sin, Satan and death is truly the Son of God. And if he is the Son of God, then you must repent and believe in the gospel. If you are a student in a school, the moment your principal calls you and gives you a command, you know it’s serious. You can’t play around with the command or take it lightly. The principal of the school has full authority within the premises. How much more seriously should we take Jesus’ command to repent and believe because He is the Son of God?
2. To remind us that believing in Jesus is a call to discipleship. It is a call to die to your desires, your goals and your dependence on yourself. Die to yourself and follow Jesus. Also, following Jesus would involve a life of sacrifice, trouble and persecution! But for those who live a life of sacrifice for Jesus will receive the biggest reward…which is Christ Himself. And the gospel of Mark re-affirms the truth that all the sacrifices and troubles and persecutions for the sake of Jesus and the gospel are worth it. How excited are you already? With that background on the author and the purpose of the book, I invite you all to join me as we discover the story of Jesus in Mark.

Mark 1:1-8: 1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. 2 As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, “Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way, 3 the voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare[c] the way of the Lord, make his paths straight,’” 4 John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5 And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. 6 Now John was clothed with camel’s hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey. 7 And he preached, saying, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. 8 I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

Mark directly gets to point from the get go. He says here is the beginning of the gospel – “good news” of Jesus “the Anointed King”, the Son of God. And he talks about an Old testament prophecy in v2 and 3. The Old testament prophet spoke of the timing of the coming of Christ. He said that a messenger would come and prepare the way of the Lord.

If any important person…be it the President of a country or a King would never just land up in a new place directly. They will always send a messenger or a secretary to first go to the place, make arrangements, make announcements and then arrive.

John the Baptist could’ve come and booked the best hall, laid out a great stage, published the coming of the Lord in the newspaper in terms of preparation. It’s interesting that the preparations for Jesus the Son of God is of a very different kind.

4 John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5 And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.

Repentant preparation

The way he prepared the way of the Lord is by preaching a baptism of repentance. Repentance is a change of mind and a reversal of decision to receive pardon from sin. Pardon meaning being let off as though they didn’t commit the crime.

Now we know that God cannot overlook sin, the only way in which God can pardon people is through the sacrifice of His Son Jesus. Jesus died on the cross for your sins and mine so that by believing in Him we can be fully forgiven and have a clean slate before God.

Let me ask you is repentance a one-time activity or a life-long event? Sometimes some people say that “we’ve already been forgiven in Christ, so why do we need to repent?” When we put our faith in Jesus, we are positionally made right before God. So there’s no wrath, no condemnation for those who are in Christ. But we still have to reckon with sin until Christ comes back and takes us with Him. We see the effects and presence of sin in our lives until Christ comes back, and so we need to continually and perpetually repent so that we may relationally be made right with Jesus.

Here’s the application point: how do you prepare yourself to meet with Christ every day? Is it by planning different spiritual events like listening to gospel songs, making an elaborate list of all the Christian activities you will do (not that any of this is bad) or is it by continual repentance? How do we prepare ourselves to meet with Jesus on a Sunday morning? Is it by putting on the best clothes, putting on the happiest face or is it by repentance? If continual repentance doesn’t define you as a believer, then something is wrong. Here’s what 1 John has to say about this:

8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. (1 John 1:8-10)

A true believer wants to repent frequently because he delights in a close relationship with Jesus.

Humble submission

7 And he preached, saying, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. 8 I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

In NT times, they didn’t have the kind of roads and foot paths that we have in the city today. Most people traveled by walking and the roads were dusty and dirty. The kind of sandals they wore also would be equally dirty due to the places they traveled on.

Therefore, even touching or untying the strap of a sandal was the job of the lowest slave in the household. It wasn’t a pleasant thing to do. It wasn’t an honorable thing to do. And yet, John the Baptist says that he isn’t fit or worthy to untie Jesus’ sandals. Wow! John was himself very eloquent and respected by the people but he understood his position before God. He understood he was mere man but Jesus is the Son of God. He understood he was a creature – created thing but Jesus is the Creator.

He understood that he baptized people with water, but Jesus would change and transform people by the Holy Spirit so that they would now obey and want to obey God. None of us would even think of having a casual attitude toward the President of the country. Even though the President might be a friend, we would still speak and respond in a manner that is worthy of the President. How much more humbled must we be toward Christ? You want to know how mature you are in the faith? Check out your humility.

Your maturity will be revealed by the level of your humility. If your biblical knowledge is causing you think more about yourself than God, then you are struggling with pride. If your biblical knowledge is causing you to look down on other people and criticize other people, then you aren’t being humble. If your biblical knowledge is not leading you to depend on Christ, then you are struggling with self-righteousness.

If your biblical knowledge isn’t bringing you closer to other believers, then you a struggling with self-reliance. And the sad part is a prideful person would never understand the need for the gospel. In pride we wouldn’t care about the sacrifice that was done for us. We need humility to accept, believe and value Jesus and His work for us!

Again my intent was not to bring condemnation but to help us realize 1) that we need repentance more than ever because the more we know Christ the more clearly we see our sin. 2) Our lives require more humility than ever in order to live to glory of Jesus.

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In this sermon we are looking at the final passage from our series “God Alive Church,” it is Titus 3:8-15

In verse 8 Paul writes “This saying is trustworthy.”

Since it is essential to understand the context of this passage, we need to know what ‘saying’ is Paul referring to.

The ‘saying’ that Paul is refereeing to is verse 4 to 7. Let read that again.

Paul is saying that whatever I said about the Goodness of God, his loving kindness, his saving power, his mercy which was poured out on us richly through his son Jesus Christ is TRUSTWORTHY, it is authentic, it is truthful. Please do not have any doubt in your mind.

We are not, and cannot be saved by any of our good works on this earth. What can save us – is only Jesus who justifies us by his grace and therefore makes us heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

It is not a fable. It is not a Myth. For Paul, his whole life and message and purpose of his letters were anchored on this truth.

Everything we’ve learned from this series, going through 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus are essential because what motivated Paul to write them down and pass it on to us is the message of the Gospel (By the Gospel I mean what Christ accomplished for us on the cross). We cannot take out the truth of the Gospel out of anything we’ve learned.

Without the Gospel, all of Paul’s instructions will sound like acts of self-righteousness and good work and lessons on being good human beings. But good works are not what saves us; our self-righteousness is filthy rags in comparison to God’s Holiness.

Think about it – The Gospel being at the center, everything Paul wrote in 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus is a Trustworthy saying, which means it is Authentic, it is Truthful.

Paul then goes on to say in Titus 3:8 “I want you to insist on these things”. Paul is telling Titus that I want you to INSIST on these things. We can’t miss this. No one should miss this. It is important.

And therefore as we are ending this series today I want to once again insist on the things that we’ve learned so far from 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus as a reminder. I want to quickly list down some of the critical things we’ve discovered so far

• We learned that the TRUE TREASURE is the Gospel of the Glory and grace of God manifested through his son
• We learned that as we progress in our Christian life, there will be a growing awareness of God’s holiness and also a growing awareness of our sinfulness. And the only thing that can bridge the gap between those two is when we daily appreciate the cross on which our Lord and savior died so that we can have a relationship with the Father
• We learned that we need to guard this Gospel truth from False doctrine. We need to refute false teachers and false teaching by continually filling our hearts and minds with the true Gospel
• We learned about God’s provision of Elders within the church body to preach, teach, serve and guard our hearts
• We learned that we ought to Pray always, in season and out of season. For the church, for our elders, for one another, for the lost, for people in authority
• We learned that Christ’s strength is displayed in our weakness
• We learned that we ought to serve faithfully in the Kingdom of God
• We learned that we need to stay away from youthful passions that distract us from serving him faithfully
• We learned the importance of strong and healthy relationships, submitting to one another, appreciating and encouraging one another
• We learned that we need to be bold and Strong in the Lord, prepared to preach, teach & share the Gospel with authority
• We learned that we ought to fight the good fight, finish the race and keep the Faith until the end of our lives.

I believe you remembered those sermons that were preached, the ones that convicted our hearts, lead us to repentance. Today I want to once again insist brothers and sisters, what you’ve heard and learned and have applied in your lives are trustworthy sayings. Do not deviate from them.

While I was writing this down, I could imagine my childhood days when my mom would keep repeating and insisting on the same things to us every day to discipline us in Godly ways. There were times when I would get irritated by those repeated words.

The problem with me was that I couldn’t see how excellent and profitable those words were at that point but my Mom knew it, and that is why she kept insisting and repeating it again and again and again.

It’s only when I look at my life today, the person I am today I realize it is mostly because of my Mother’s consistent, never give up attitude to keep repeating the same things over and over again apart from her tearful prayers for us. I believe that is what eventually even led me to give my life to Christ and serve him.

Here’s why Paul tells Titus to insist on these things. Verse 8 “so that those who believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people.”

Verse 9 he says instead of getting involved in foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrel about the law, which is unprofitable and worthless, Paul is saying insist on these good teachings that are excellent and profitable.

We have to identify the times and places where we’re spending too much of our time and energy in quarreling and debating and fighting instead of focusing on the right things.

In verse 10 Paul calls those who were getting involved in foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions and quarrels as people who were stirring up division and are warped in sin. He says warn them once and then twice and even after that if they refuse to change, have nothing to do with him.

I hope that none of you like to be called under that category of people.

The church of Create was an unhealthy church; it was on the verge of breaking up. They had a bad reputation; they were wasting their time, money and energy on worthless things.

Paul had to remind them of how the Church should look like. As the Church, and as a people of the Kingdom we should look like true Christians by others by our good works motivated by the Gospel.

We are the hope of the world, we are the light in the darkness, we are the salt of this earth.

Verse 14 – Paul writes “Let our people learn to devote themselves to good works, so as to help cases of urgent need, and not be unfruitful”

And the only thing that can help us look like good Christians, and to be fruitful as described in Psalms 1:3 which says

“He is like a tree
planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.”

is when we “delight in the law of the Lord (the Trustworthy sayings of the scriptures), (is when we) meditate on it day and night” Psalms 1:2 – Consistently reminding ourselves of these Gospel truths, loving God for all that he is and for all that he has done, growing in intimate relationship with him, and learning to walk according to his precepts every single day of our lives.

As Elders, we will continue to insist on these things through our sermons, through our conversations, and through our lives. It may sound repetitive; it may sound hard to digest, to may sound difficult to believe.

But remember this – They are excellent, profitable and trustworthy in every sense.

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Good morning church! Two of the most important questions in any person’s life is: Who am I and what am I supposed to do on earth? Wouldn’t you agree that these are two very important questions every person is looking to answer. It’s is true that people have very different answers to these questions. What we will look to do in the next half hour is to see how the gospel perfectly answers and fulfils the purpose of our existence. If there are any questions, please don’t hesitate to come and discuss with me and Saju after the Gathering.

Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, 2 to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. 3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. 4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

In today’s passage, I believe Paul is telling Titus who is overseeing the church at Crete to remind them of a few things. Why do we need to be reminded? I mean if we’ve already heard it once, shouldn’t that be enough for the church? That’s because we are “professional forgetters”. We may be smart and clever but let me tell you it’s not difficult for us to forget the gospel when we are facing times of trouble, persecution, temptations, comfort and suffering. And what we truly believe in those moments are revealed by our actions. It’s important for us to first admit that we are forgetful in order to receive help. We need each other to be reminded of the gospel – that’s why we stress on community. And we also need elders and leaders to constantly “remind and help us recollect” the gospel day in and day out. If you’ve been following our messages closely over the last two years, you’ll see one common thread and one common message throughout. In fact it is the same message that we continue to preach and teach every week on our Sunday Gatherings and GC’s. And it’s not because we cannot make new creative messages. We want to stay true to what God has called us to do as elders which is to “remind people of the gospel”.

So we are going to be reminded this morning about four important questions:

1. What are we supposed to do?
2. Who were we?
3. What has God done in Christ?
4. Who are we now?

What are we supposed to do?

Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, 2 to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. (v1-2)

We are commanded and urged to submit to our earthly rulers and authorities specifically referring to the government who is ruling over your country/nation. The Word tells us to be obedient to the people who rule over us. It doesn’t matter if the political party is for Christians or against Christians, we are still called to obey them. Now if the government tells us to bow down to an idol or forces us to do something illegal or immoral, we have every right to disobey because our allegiance and loyalty remains toward Christ. However, barring this exception of sinning against the Lord, in every other case we need to submit to them out of our honor to God. Let’s remember the context. Emperor Nero was the king of the Roman empire at the time. Christians were being burnt alive and tortured. It was the most unpopular time to be a Christian. It wasn’t cool at all because a person would most likely face a death threat as soon as he decided to follow Jesus. I find it interesting that Paul would still tell the church to submit to the rulers and authorities.

Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 2 Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves (Rom 13:1,2)

Also, what is the type of behavior that we should have among unbelievers? We should be always prepared to do acts and deeds which will benefit others. We should not criticize abusively and in anger insult others. We should not be people who always get into arguments. In fact, we should be known for our mild temperament and being polite and gentle to all people. If your work colleagues, college mates, neighbours and other acquaintances were to rate you on your behavior, what would they say? Would they say that you’re always ready to do good work? Would they say that you speak evil of no one? Would they say that you don’t quarrel but are gentle and courteous toward everyone? Would the people who spend 40+ hours with you each week say that you are known for your gentleness and good deeds?

And this isn’t a moral science class! Christ doesn’t call you to do these things just because these are good things to do in life. He tells us to do these things in the light of the next three points:

Who we were earlier?

3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. (v3)

You know many times parents tend to tell their kids about how they had a tough life earlier. How they grew up in humble circumstances…why do they do that? So that the kids will appreciate and value what they have right now. Similarly, in v3 we are being reminded of our past identity. The purpose is not to be sad and disappointed thinking about our past but to appreciate what has been done by God. It says that we were foolish (we had no understanding of what was right for our life), disobedient (we weren’t willing to listen and obey to anything that God wanted us to do), led astray (we were deceived by our sins, taken away…pulled astray), we were in bondage to serve many kinds of forbidden desires, spending our time and energy hurting other people and being hurt in the same process.

When we look at the list, do we like what we see there? I’m sure we don’t. We wouldn’t allow our family to be around anyone who claims to have these qualities and yet this is a description of our own lives. Would you put this up on your Facebook profile? Would you put this on your resume? It’s something that is shameful, right? What I want us to realize is…that our old self separated from God was a terrible place! It wasn’t something to be proud of because we were on the fast lane to destruction. That’s why the Bible accurately portrays it as “spiritual death” – we were dead! (Eph 2:1)

What has God done in Christ?

4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, (v4-6)

Brothers and sisters, Here is the good news…the amazing news! What we deserved was judgment, condemnation and death for our thoughts, words and actions. An illustration could be imagine you were driving a car rashly and lose control of the brakes and fall off a steep hill. What do we deserve because of our rash driving? Death. Now think about v4…but God our Savior (he delivers) showed his goodness and loving kindness to us by protecting you and me from perishing. God rescued you from the wrath that comes upon everyone who sins! God’s goodness and kindness is shown by the fact that even though we lived a reckless and disastrous life, he wants to and keeps us safe from final judgment and eternal separation from Him! And why does He do that? Is it because you or me are talented? Is it because you or me are smart and capable? Is it because we are good people? Is it because we prayed a prayer? Is it because we are knowledgeable in the Bible? Absolutely not! We just saw in the previous point how bad our condition is. If God judged us without giving us any hope for salvation, He would still be just and wise. No one can approach God and say “He is unjust by not providing another way”! Because we are utterly sinful people who deserve total condemnation. So if God does not save us due to our background, qualifications, money, talents, intelligence and good works…then on what basis does he save us? According to his mercy. God saves people out of His mercy!

How does He do it? by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit. The term washing means “bathing”. The Holy Spirit cleanses and purifies you. “Regeneration and renewal” means “spiritual renovation”. Have you ever seen a renovated flat? Does it look the same as an old flat? Everything from the painting to the interiors have been changed. It’s brand new. It’s as good as buying a brand new flat in a new building. If we as humans know how to renovate an old flat and make it new…do you think the powerful Spirit of God doesn’t know how to make a dead person’s life alive and brand new?

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.[b] The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. (2 Cor 5:17,18)

When you believed in Jesus, it’s not just your thoughts that changed that day. A miracle took place due to which your life became spiritually renovated! Immediately your affections, your desires, your will, your thought patterns, your pleasures changed, your mission changed! Miraculously you were given affections for Christ, desires for Christ, a will to please Christ, thoughts to magnify Christ, pleasures in Christ and love for the people in Christ and a burden for those not in Christ! And this was done how: it was poured abundantly on us through Jesus Christ. God’s only Son had to be crucified for your sins and mine to make full payment for the punishment deserving of sins. You want to know how bad was our condition? Look at the amount that was paid as ransom. If something happens to your phone, when do you know that the damage is quite bad? When you have to pay a huge amount for the repairs. Jesus willingly shed his blood to meet God’s justice and bring God to us. It wasn’t gold or silver but the precious blood of the Son of God who became our Saviour.

Who are we now?

so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. (v7)

Brothers and sisters, it’s something we must not just today but continuously remind ourselves of this identity! We are declared righteous before God. We are fully accepted by Him. By what? His grace – his unmerited favor through Jesus Christ. For what purpose? So that we might become “heirs”. Whose an heir? A person who inherits something from someone. Usually it is the child of the owner. And we know that by repenting and trusting in the finished work of Jesus, we are adopted as His very own. So we are heirs according to the hope of eternal life! You know Christian biblical hope is not just being positive. It is a confident and joyful expectation in God fulfilling His promise to give us everlasting life. Eternal life as John 17:3 says And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. Knowing Jesus, becoming like Jesus in every way to the extent of getting a glorified body like His (1 John 3:2) and finally being with Jesus forever (John 14:3)!