Sunday Sermon
sunday morning sermons 7th Feb 2010
Mark 1v35-45
1) Prayer and preaching, v35-39
a) Prayer: After a long night of healing Jesus then gets up early in the morning!!
V35 gives us an insight into the “personal life” of Jesus.
What he was all about when he was not in the public eye.
The private life is the key to the public life!
For all of us who we are in private is what will mould and shape us for what we are in public.
We live in a society that tries to separate these two areas and says one has nothing to do with the other, but the recent John Terry story shows that both parts are intrinsically linked!
What marked Jesus’ private life? PRAYER:
In the verse we see he needed two things to get to prayer.
I. An early start.
In getting up early he was sacrificing sleep, and training his body to be under his control.
So often with us our bodies control us! The spirit is willing but the body is weak (Mk14v38).
Jesus shows here that he was a man of discipline. He disciplined himself so that he could engage in prayer.
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When we think of our private life, what role does prayer play?
Are our bodies at the command of our will, or the other way round?
II. A solitary place.
Jesus also required to be alone on this occasion when he prayed.
So that there were no distractions. He was a man who was constantly being called upon. And always he brought people good.
But he was not willing to let his prayer life suffer, at the demands of people’s needs.
This shows above all the priority that Jesus placed on prayer.
He was willing to let people continue in their great needs so that he could pray.
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Perhaps we allow too many “justifiable” reasons curtail our prayer times.
What can be done? set apart time, go to the solitary place, switch off the phone ......
b) Preaching v38-39
Following the priority of prayer Jesus shows us the priority of preaching.
The disciples finally find Jesus and they are a bit annoyed I think, saying “everyone is looking for you”!! then Jesus lets them into a secret: He has come to preach!!
Thus, Jesus then sets off on a preaching tour v38-39.
Again he is obviously leaving behind many who needed his help!
But he had come to preach, and preaching was the best thing in the long run for everyone.
See here the determination of Jesus.
He knew who he was and what he was about.
I. He knew he had been sent.
He recognises his Divine origin: v38 “for this purpose I have come forth”
II. He knew his mission: v38“that I may preach”
He was here to preach! That is to tell the Good News of Gods salvation.
He had come to bring that salvation and preach that salvation.
He came to seek and to save the lost and that would be done through preaching!!
So he sets off on a preaching tour, v39.
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A) Note that Jesus is teaching the disciples here.
He taught by example and precept.
They would have seen his early morning prayer habits and followed.
And they heard him tell his commission to preach!
To be modern day disciples we need to watch and listen to the Master also.
Follow Jesus in his prayer life and prioritize preaching!
B) Both went hand in hand for Jesus and created a balanced life:
He looked after self: prayer life. So that he could then go out and look after others: preach.
We need to make sure that both areas of our lives are well looked after.
The private life needs to be disciplined, a close walk with Jesus kept.
And the public life needs to be equally disciplined and appropriate.
Both areas need to be fed or we become weak and ineffective servants in the kingdom.
Without prayer we should never mission, but we need to mission in order to pray!!
2) Healing and hiding! V40-45.
A) Healing: As Jesus goes around on his preaching tour he also casts out demons and heals.
On one occasion a man with leprosy comes to him for help v40.
The man is in desperate need and pleads with Jesus to help.
He falls on his knees “if you are willing”!
Then we see our Great Lords heart of compassion pour out for this man v41 Jesus was moved at the sight of this man, and he does what you never should do with a leper, he touches him! then heals him.
b) v45 Hiding
following the healing Jesus tells the man not to say anything but to just carry on as normal doing all that was required to be done when ones leprosy was cured!
But the man instead went and told everyone!
So Jesus could no longer go into the towns to preach!!
His preaching ministry was curtailed because of the wonder he had performed!
So he hides in lonely places!! why?
So that only those who really wanted him would find him!
And Mark notes that many still went to him, from everywhere.
So we finish this section where we started, Jesus in the Desert, lonely place, the wilderness.
And there people searching for him!
The one who came to seek and to save the lost is also sought out by the lost and needy!
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Jesus came to pray and to preach – this was him bringing the Good News.
His desire is to save! Gods desire is that all men everywhere would be saved (1Tim2v3-4).
Jesus shows us what God is like, he longs for your salvation.
But note the picture of Him in the wilderness, unable to go directly into the towns.
The people have to come out to him!
What about you?
Perhaps you are waiting for Jesus to come to you? He is waiting for you to go to him!
sunday evening sermons 7th Feb 2010
Mark 2 v13-28
A Revelation of the Holy.
The holy is that which is separate and apart from us, that which we do not fully understand. It is mysterious and unexpected. In this passage we see the Holy One in operation, doing that which we would never expect!
1) Jesus the Saviour: he transforms the unworthy! V13-17
a) to begin with we have the calling of another disciples v13-15.
This time not a fisherman but a tax collector.
But the pattern is the same. Jesus is walking and observing, then calls Levi “follow me”, and Levi simply obeys! Then as before Jesus goes to eat with the new disciple.
b) The Pharisees however are not happy and ask what he thinks he is up to v16!!
(They have already began to grumble at Jesus commanding forgiveness v7).
Now he is sharing fellowship with Sinners and Tax Collectors!! The despised and outcast.
c) Why? The sick need doctors, sinners need salvation v17.
Jesus is with these people because these are the very people he has come for v17
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See the good news here!
The actions of Jesus show forth the message he came to deliver.
· His actions:
Calling a Tax Collector! A despised outcast.
Eating with Levi and other notorious sinners!
These are actions that any self respecting rabbi would never engage in.
These actions tainted Jesus. By being with the people and having fellowship with them, Jesus was making himself like them!
So what was he doing? He was recognising their value, he was loving them.
Actions, as they say “speak louder than words!!”
· His message v17:
These notorious sinners and betrayers of Israel were the very one Jesus came to save!!
That is the message of God! He has come to save sinners. That’s His purpose.
His actions and his message are the same today.
Yet how inexplicable! This is the Holy God, coming amongst the lowest of the low!
Yet His love for sinners is the very essence of His holiness!!
2) Jesus the Revolutionary Reformer: he transforms codes of practice.
a) Fasting v18-22
Fasting was a big part of the religious way of life in those days.
The Pharisees and Johns disciples fasted. And one day the disciples of Jesus would fast.
But not now! Indeed they may still have been feasting with Levi at this point!
It would make no sense to fast while Jesus was around!
Having him around was a time of celebration! V19, like a wedding.
· His very presence marked a decisive advancement of the Kingdom on earth.
Jesus is bringing something new, he will not simply fit into the old ways of doing things!
The new cloth and the old cloth cannot be used together, the new wine and the old wine skins cannot be matched!
Attempting to fit Jesus into the old ways and traditions simply will not work!!
The old has to be done away with for Jesus brings something altogether new.
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1. be willing to change our religious practices!!
We must always be careful that we don’t keep doing things just because it is the way they have always been done. E.g. the fasting practices had to be adapted.
Following Jesus means that we have to be vigilant in applying our minds to the great question: how can I apply the Gospel to my life and my culture today!
All our practices are to be reviewed, nothing is sacrosanct.
2. be willing to change personally.
Everything changes in Christ’s presence.
Old clothes and old wineskins have to be thrown out to make way for the Presence of Jesus.
What do we do to accommodate Jesus into our lives on a daily basis?
To easily we compromise with the world, accommodating the world, at the expense of Jesus.
b) Sabbath v23-28
Here we have the disciples doing some harvesting and eating on the Sabbath. V23
The Pharisees claim this is unlawful, from their interpretation of the law! V24
Jesus points out the story of David from their own history v25-26.
Then he points out the reason for the Sabbath in the first place v27.
Then, he points to his authority over the Sabbath v28!!
· Note what Jesus is doing:
a. “have you never read” – picks them up on their biblical literacy!
b. “the Sabbath was made for man” – picks them up on their theology!
c. “I am Lord of the Sabbath” – picks them up on their belief!
App:
Disciples of Jesus need 3 things:
1) We need to simply read the bible. Getting to know its stories.
The question “have you never read”, is a challenging one!
2) This leads to the second thing: theology. Knowledge of God.
We read in order to get to know God. Theology for theologies sake can be cold and misleading. We should read humbly with penitent hearts, desiring to know the Lord.
3) Which leads to belief in Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath.
Knowing Jesus and relying on Him from day to day is the outcome of all this.
Our trust in Jesus as the Saviour Lord, has to come from what we learn of him in scripture and then apply in our lives.
Without that we are on sandy ground liable to collapse!
