The Story of Jesus According to Mark, Pt 9: The Parable of Dirt

 

June 2, 2024                 NOTES NOT EDITED
The Story of Jesus According to Mark
The Parable of Dirt
Mark 4:1-20

 SIS—Hearing and obeying God’s word will produce a great harvest of blessings both in and through one’s life.

 Who doesn't know Martha Stewart? Businesswoman, T.V. Personality, felon. She really has "done it all." She's been around the block more than once.  As we used to say back in the holler, "She's older than dirt." (Pun intended as you will see). Recently, she is making the rounds selling . . . you guessed it--dirt! She has a current Ad campaign for Miracle Grow in which her co-actor calls her a "dirt nerd." In one line in this 30 second commercial Martha speaks something that could have come straight out of the Bible. She says, "If people only knew, it really is all about the dirt."

Jesus taught an entire parable about just that--The Parable of the Dirt. 

We are going to look at that parable this morning.

First, a little textual background. In the first thirty-four verses of Mark, chapter 4, the word for “hearing” is used thirteen times.  The first time is in Mark 4, verse 3.  It begins with the imperative, “Listen.”  The theme of “hearing the word” of God runs throughout the parable of the Sower and the Seed, and is repeated again in the following discussion about “putting light under a bushel basket.”

But, Mark is not simply discussing the physical ability for one’s ear to pick up sound.  Often, when the Bible speaks about “hearing” the idea extends first to comprehension and then to “obedience.”  Thus, “hearing the Word of God” is a Biblical expression for “obeying God’s commands.”

Obedience to God’s commands, throughout the Bible, is the key to both having God’s blessing and also sharing the blessings of God.

I’ve been reading through the Book of Leviticus, and these words in chapter represent an oft repeated theme, not only in Leviticus, but also throughout the Bible.  Leviticus 26:3ff says,

“If you follow My statutes and faithfully observe My commands, ⁴ I will give you rain at the right time, and the land will yield its produce, and the trees of the field will bear their fruit. 

Moses continues by contrasting the result of disobedience: 

¹⁴ “But if you do not obey Me and observe all these commands— ¹⁵ if you reject My statutes and despise My ordinances, and do not observe all My commands—and break My covenant, ¹⁶ then I will do this to you: I will bring terror  on you—wasting disease and fever that will cause your eyes to fail and your life to ebb away.. 

 Moses had a bit more to say about the curse of disobedience, but I think you get the point.

Hearing and obeying God’s word will produce a great harvest of blessings both in and through one’s life.  As we read the Parable of the Soils, notice the result of “hearing and obeying”—truly hearing­—the Word of God brings “30, 60, or 100 fold” blessings.

READ:  MARK 4:1-9

According to Jesus, this is the most important parable He ever spoke.  Verse 13 makes that clear.  This parable summarizes the entire “Gospel Story,” or story of redemption.  It has four significant parts:  A sower, seed, four different types of soil, and a promise of a great harvest.  First, notice that

1.  The Sower is ESSENTIAL.  (v3) (“The Farmer sowed”)

Nothing happens in regard to salvation in any person’s life until someone in some way shares the story of God’s love.  Paul emphasized this in Rom 10:

¹³ For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.  ^z14 But how can they call on Him they have not believed in? And how can they believe without hearing about Him?  And how can they hear without a preacher? 

Think about the gospel as taking a trip in the car. The first thing you have to do is start the car. That’s what sowing is: starting the car. 

HUMOR: Starting the car is ESSENTIAL to any road trip, but it can sometime be difficult. I remember a wife calling her husband who was already at work one morning when she had to take a road trip for work. The husband was already very nervous about the trip because he knew his wife was a terrible driver. Anyway, she said to her husband, "The car won't start.” Then she added, “I think there’s water in the engine.” The husband replied, “How would you know if there was water in the engine. You can’t even find the engine.” The wife’s voice was cracking and she said again, “I’m telling you I think there is water in the engine.” The husband was frustrated but said, “OK. I’ll be right over. Where is the car parked?” The woman apologetically replied, “In the swimming pool.”

The gospel is powerful. But in order for the gospel’s power to be applied a “Sower is ESSENTIAL.” That’s where the process starts.

God has decreed and designed that the means by which one is saved is by hearing the gospel message from someone else.  Now, that could be someone else preaching on the radio.  That could be someone else giving out a gospel leaflet.  The gospel could be communicated by any number of people in any number of ways – but the gospel has to be “sown” into the lives of others before it can take root and grow up into eternal salvation.

2.  The Seed, that is God’s Word, is SUFFICIENT (v 14)

In the parable Jesus states clearly, the seed being sown is the Word of God.  (Verse 14)

Make no mistake about this folks:  the most powerful force ever to fall upon humanity is the Word of God. 

For centuries tyrants have tried to wash away the Word of God in a flood of martyrs’s blood.  Copies of the Word of burned.  Secular scholars have tried to discredit it, and modern educators and politicians have tried to marginalize it.  Legislators and law-makers have tried to outlaw it.  Godless scientists scoff at it.

Yet, thousands of years have passed and the Bible is still the number one selling book in the world! Where the Bible is still being preached—lives are being transformed in great numbers, even in Muslim countries where preaching the Bible can result in a death sentence.

Notice something about the preaching of Jesus in verse 1:

4 Again  He began to teach  by the sea, and a very large crowd gathered around Him. 

Everywhere Jesus went His message and ministry drew huge crowds.  Here, it says the crowds a “very large.”  Listen to what Mark said just a few verses ago in chapter three—just months, maybe even days before:   7 and a large crowd followed 

Notice the change in the adjective, “large.”  An adjective has three degrees, the regular degree, such as “large,” the comparative degree such as, “larger,” and the superlative degree, “largest.” 

 

The Word of God is absolutely SUFFICIENT to accomplish everything God wants to accomplish.  Even centuries before Isaiah, the great prophet, recognized the ALL SUFFICIENT power of the Word of God:

^{Isaiah 55:11} so My word that comes from My mouth will not returnto Me empty, but it will accomplish what I please and will prosper in what I send it _⌊to do_⌋.

The Word of God has been accomplishing supernatural feats ever since the Bible says, “³ Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.”

Everything that is or will ever be has come about or will come about as a result of God’s Word.  The Bible you hold in your hand is of the same substance and measure as the Word God used to speak the universe into existence.

So many churches trust in clever programming and Christian entertainment to draw a crowd.  But, Jesus drew the crowds with His Word.  The Parable makes it clear that the essence of the gospel—the very seed of salvation—is the Word of God, the Bible.

3.  The Soil is ELEMENTARY (14-20)

By elementary, I mean that the nature of the soil is the key to everything in regard to the story of redemption.  The sower, or preacher, is indeed essential in the gospel story.  The preacher is so essential to the gospel story that this story is usually called the Parable of the Sower.  Yet, the sower is mentioned only twice, and only as an introduction to the telling of the parable, and then again in the introduction to the explanation of the parable.  The word for “seed” does not even exist in the entire parable.  The seed is assumed to be what the “sower sowed” because that’s what “sower’s sow. 

The real issue in this parable are the four types of soil—especially the fourth type of soil, or the “good soil.”

William Barclay, the pastor—scholar, outlined the key to understanding a parable when he highlighted the difference between an allegory and a parable.  He points out, and rightfully so, that an allegory is a story that is intended to be dissected in writing.  In an allegory, there are many types and symbols.  Each element in an allegory has a one-to-one relationship with something in the real world.  Many of us read Animal House when we were in high school and college. Animal Farm is an allegory describing the turmoil in Russia leading up to WWII with the uprising against Moscow controlled by, Joseph Stalin.  The White Boar, Old Major, for example was an allegory for Karl Marx, and the Berkshire Boar, or pig, was an allegorical description of Joseph Stalin.  The various other farmyard animals likewise represented major players in the rebellion against Stalin.

But, a parable is different from an allegory in many ways. For one, parables were intended to be simple spoken stories with one primary lesson.  William Barclay taught that to understand a parable in the Bible one must ask, “What one idea would flash into a person’s mind when he or she heard the story for the first time?”

Indeed, there may be more than one application that could be made from a parable, but there is only one over-riding lesson that should form the basis for all applications.  One must be careful not to give an allegorical, one-to-one interpretation for every element in a parable.

What is the single, over-riding lesson that would have “flashed into the minds of those hearing this parable for the first time?”  The bulk of the parable—the heart so to speak—relates to the “four types of soil or dirt.”  In fact, the real meat of the story is what happens with the fourth type of soil, or the good soil. I’ll get to that in a moment.  But first, let’s look as the three types of soil that did NOT result in growth from the seed. 

(1)  The Seed sowed on the path (15)

(NIV84) 15 Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them.

Before the Word of God even has a chance to take hold in a person’s life, Satan comes along and “snatches it away.”  In Matthew’s account Satan is represented by “evil birds.”  Make no mistake about this my friend:  Satan will do everything he can do to keep the Word of God from taking root in a person’s life.  He knows He must act quickly (hence, the word, “immediately”). 

Satan’s most effective strategy is to “harden” a person’s heart against the truth of God’s Word.  He does this in any number of ways.  He can harden a person’s heart by letting them be successful, living in comfort and ease.  There simply is no consideration to one’s personal need to repent of one’s sin.  Satan can harden a person’s heart by “breeding an innocuous familiarity” with the things of God.  He will lead a person to “attach” himself or herself with a church that will allow them to think that sitting in a pew, or even giving some money, is all that Christianity is about.  There are even some who are members of this church, but they have no tenderness toward the things of God.  Still, Satan will sometimes harden a heart through despair and discouragement.  Satan will get a person to “blame” God for the misfortunes of life.  Some seeds fell on the hard path.

(2)  And some fell on “rocky soil v 16-17

 (NIV84) 16 Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. 17 But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.

Rocky soil here probably does not mean a field with rocks in it.  Seeds can grow fine between rocks, if the soil between the rocks is good.  This probably refers to the type “shallow” soil that is found in parts of Palestine.  There is a rock shale just inches beneath the surface.  The soil covers the rock shale, but it is not deep enough to support long term growth.  Life springs forth from the seed, but at the first sign of trouble, or call for deeper commitment, the fledgling plant dies.  How often I’ve seen people come forward in a moment of emotion and then, in just a matter of days, perhaps weeks, they are right back to the life they were leading before the emotional moment.

(3)  And some fell among thorns v 18-19

(NIV84) 18 Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; 19 but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.

These seeds are much like the ones on the rocky soil.  They start to take root, but then the ways of the world choke out any spiritual growth.  One thorn specifically mentioned is “worries.”  People hear the Word of God, but they don’t “hear with faith.”  They trust in their circumstances more than in the Savior, and the cares of life snuff out any spiritual growth.  Another thorn mentioned is “wealth.”  You can interpret this broadly as “stuff.”  People love their “stuff” more than they love God.  Yet another thorn is “

One writer refers to this kind of heart as, “The Preoccupied Heart.”  This is the life so filled up with “other stuff and other attitudes” there is no room for God.  In fact, the Word calls these thorns, “desires for other things.”  The word desire is the same word for sexual desire or a desire for food.  Thorny hearts allow “other things” to take the place of God.

All three of these soils represent people who have been exposed to the truth of God’s Word but did not respond with heart-felt, passionate, persevering obedience.  They are like race horses who never get out of the gate.  They show up to the race, but it ends for them even before it gets started.

Wow! That’s depressing!  But that’s the point.  That’s the reaction that Jesus intended in speaking this parable.  That is the “setting” of this story, but it is not the “diamond.”  The part of the story that gives this parable is single, over-riding meaning is the statement in verse 20.  This is the “whole enchilada” as they say in – well, I’m not sure where they say that –

²⁰ But the ones sown on good ground are those who hear the word,  welcome it, and produce a crop:  30, 60, and 100 times _⌊what was sown_⌋.”

4.  Good Soil:  A Great Harvest is INEVITABLE (20)

(NIV84) 20 Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—thirty, sixty or even a hundred times what was sown.”

Here’s the major teaching of this parable condensed down to its most basic lesson:  hearing and obeying the Word of God results in a great harvest.”

Regardless of whatever else might be gleaned as applicable to the Christian life from this parable, one lesson overrides all others:  hearing and obeying the Word of God results in great blessings for believers and through believers.

This is the one lesson that would grab hold of any audience and move them to faith in God.  This verse is to the parable what “bang” is to “dynamite!”

Hearing and obeying the Word of God will not only bring you great blessings, but it will make you a great blessing to others!

Too many Christians never bear much fruit for Jesus because they are “deaf to His Word.” They can’t, or won’t “hear it and obey.”

You know, some scientific experiments are rather cruel, but still can teach us much. “ One scientist conducted an experiment with a frog. He sets the frog down and shouts, "Jump, frog." The frog jumps ten feet. The scientist writes down, FROG JUMPS 10 FEET. Then the scientist removes one of the frogs' legs and says, "Jump, frog." and the frog jumps five feet. The scientist writes CUT OFF ONE FOOT, FROG JUMPS 5 FEET. Then he removes another leg and says, "Jump." and the frog jumps two feet. The scientist writes down CUT OFF TWO LEGS, FROG JUMPS TWO FEET. Then he cuts off all the frogs' legs and says, "Jump." and the frog just lies there. The scientist writes down the conclusions of the test: CUTTING OFF ALL THE FROGS' LEGS MAKES THE SUBJECT GO DEAF.”

Judging by how high and far most of us “jump for Jesus,” I’d conclude “deafness is a real problem in churches.”

The key to “Biblical hearing” is “obedience.”  Faithful, enthusiastic, sacrificial devotion to Jesus Christ as the Lord of Life is what the gospel story is all about.

To say more simply:  If the soil of your heart is obedient, a fruitful life for Christ will be evident.

CONCLUSION: Today would be a very good day to do a “soil check.” Ask yourself a few questions. 1.  Has your life become a path so hardened to God’s Word that the seed lays on the surface until it is quickly snatched away by the Devil? 2. Is the soil of your life simply a shallow, charade of a Christian life without any real evidence God has indwelled you? 3. Is your life so full of the trials and trinkets of this world that there simply is no room for God?  Make a commitment that from this day forward you are going to be “good soil bringing forth 30, 60, or 100 fold” blessings in and through your life.

Be “Good Dirt!”

 

The Story of Jesus According to Mark, Pt 7: How to Make a Disciple

 

May 19, 2024               NOTES NOT EDITED
The Story of Jesus According to Mark, Pt 6
The Making of a Disciple
Mark 3:1-19 

SIS: In His encounter with a crippled man and the appointing of Twelve “official” disciples, called apostles, Jesus gives us an outline of what it takes to make a fully functioning disciple who is engaging the world by spreading the gospel.

Now, that sermon in the sentence is a masterpiece—or, at least a mouthful. It is the basis for what will come to be known at the end of the ministry of Jesus as the “Great Commission” which states,

Matthew 28:19–20 (NIV84) 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

The clear design Jesus has for His church is to “make something,” and that something is “disciples.” This set in motion a Bold Revolution.

In the 18^th and 19^th Centuries, first in England and later in the U.S., there was another world-shaking revolution—and it was indeed “world-shaking” to where the vibrations are still being felt strongly today nearly over 300 years later. That revolution historians call, “The Industrial Revolution.” Basically, this was a dramatic shift in the world from “growing stuff to making stuff.”

The Industrial Revolution is a fantastic study that exceeds the time I have allotted this morning for our discussion. But it changed everything in the fabric of American life down to the thread of the family. Making stuff, selling stuff, and moving stuff became the foundation for creating the great wealth of industrialists like Rockefeller, Vanderbilt, Ford and many others.

The major shift in life moved from the family as the central focus to the factory.

As I said, the Industrial Revolution and its consequences is a fascinating study, but my point in discussing it today is to focus on what the heart of the Industrial Revolution is, and that is it is about “making stuff.” With that as a springboard I want to show today that the foundation for the Church, according to Jesus, is also about “making something.” It is about “making disciples.”

While it will still be many months, perhaps nearly a year, before Jesus gives His definitive statement on “making disciples,” his interaction with the man with a crippled hand and the appointing of the Twelve Apostles gives us an outline of “The Making of a Disciple.”

Let’s pick up reading the Scripture where we left off last week with the healing of the man with a crippled hand. Mark 3:7-15 (NIV84):

7 Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lake, and a large crowd from Galilee followed. 8 When they heard all he was doing, many people came to him from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, and the regions across the Jordan and around Tyre and Sidon. 9 Because of the crowd he told his disciples to have a small boat ready for him, to keep the people from crowding him. 10 For he had healed many, so that those with diseases were pushing forward to touch him. 11 Whenever the evil spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.” 12 But he gave them strict orders not to tell who he was. 13 Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him. 14 He appointed twelve—designating them apostles—that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach 15 and to have authority to drive out demons.

Here is what would become the seeds for a “Diciple-making Revolution” that would sweep the world in the next 60 or so years.

Here’s my observation. In just a few decades after Jesus ascended to heaven after His death and resurrection, a terrible decline began to set into the fabric of the church toward the end of this initial revolution. After an explosive 60 years of “making disciples” Christianity became focused on “debating ideas.”

As the Church, we have lost an appreciation for the explosive power generated by the Person and Work of Jesus Christ. Here in our text that explosive, revolutionary power is represented by everything from healing a crippled hand to casting our demons. This is EXPLOSIVE!

There are four primary phases in the making of a disciple.

1.  The STANDING Phase.  We can call this: MEMBERSHIP (1-3).

(NIV84) 1 Another time he went into the synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. 2 Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath. 3 Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.”

Someone has said, “The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” I’ve always taught that We can not learn to “stand on the promises” if all we do is “sit on the premises.”

Making a Disciple begins by “standing up” for Jesus.

Whether we are talking about making “widgets” or “making disciples” everything starts with “raw materials.” Disciple-making begins with the “rawest” of all the materials in the universe: the lost soul.

This raw material, the lost soul, is represented in this passage by the “shriveled” (paralyzed, weak, useless, powerless, lifeless) hand. All humans, before the revitalizing, renewing infusion of God’s grace are “dead, dried-up, useless limbs.” Ephesians 2:1  describes the lost person as being:

(NIV84) As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins.

This man’s crippled hand serves as a picture of the entirety of humanity apart from the grace of God—“shriveled, dried-up, decaying, dead.” Zero usefulness or vitality. Laid out flat like a decaying corpse at a funeral.

There are actually two types of “shriveled souls” in this passage. The man with the hand represents souls crippled from the sinful trauma of temptations, traumas, and trials. The other group represented by the Pharisees debating with Jesus are crippled, shriveled, useless, and dead because of religion. One man had a crippled hand—the lost Pharisees had crippled hearts.

 In one way or another, all of us without God’s grace being infused into our lives by the Indwelling Christ Controlling All—the Holy Spirit—are as dead and useless as that man’s crippled hand.

Notice the language here (v3): “Stand up in front of everyone.” The man’s hand had sidelined him in life. He likely spent much of his day sitting on the side of the road begging for whatever he could get from passers-by. He was an outcast. Jesus was inviting the man to “stand up and be counted among his followers—the recipients of His grace.” This took place before any visible blessing by Jesus was bestowed on the man. The man stood in obedience to Christ’s command. That started a “new phase” in his life. He was becoming a member of Christ’s family. Phase one is simply, “standing up for Jesus to be counted as among His followers.” It reminds me of what Jesus said:

“Matthew 10:32–33 (NIV84) 32 “Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. 33 But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.

Jesus takes the “raw material” of a sin-crippled soul sitting on the side of life’s road, headed for hell, and invites that person to “stand up and receive the saving grace that only Jesus has to offer.

But, the Making of a Disciple does not end here: The next phase is

2. The STRETCHING Phase  We can call this MATURITY (VERSE 5)

(NIV84) 5 He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored.

Take note that the man who takes a stand for Jesus and with Jesus will do so in a “hostile environment.” Every stand FOR something is a stand AGAINST other things. The first thing that happens with someone “Stands up for Christ,” is the Devil tries to “Knock them down.” This was even true of Jesus after His baptism if you recall. As soon as Jesus rose from the waters of baptism the Word says,

Mk 1:12  At once the Spirit sent him out into the desert,

If that is true of our Master, why should we expect anything less as His followers? The Word tells us:  John 15:18 (NIV84)

18 “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.

This represents the “STRETCHING” phase of Christian devotion. We might also call it the “MATURITY” Phase. It is the time that God allows or even directs the “stretching of our limits and the testing, or proving (in the sense of strengthening) of our faith. James describes this “proving, testing, or STRETCHING phase” of a believer who is becoming a mature follower of Christ. James 1:2-4 (NIV) says:

2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

The word mature comes from the Greek word, “teleiose.” It has a wide range of meaning. A. It can mean “no missing parts; whole; without blemish referring to sacrificial animals. B. It can mean perfect in all stages of learning from initiation to mastery. Aristotle used the word this way when forming a definition:

“Perfect” is that beyond which there is no further advance in excellence or quality in its genus, which lacks nothing of its own excellence. In this sense the word is not primarily ethical; it is purely formal and may ref. to a physician, a flautist, an informer, or a thief”

C. It can refer to something coming to an appropriate end. D. Finally it can refer to biological growth as in, “becoming an adult.”

Most Christians never complete this phase. Instead of embracing this stretching of one’s faith, most just give up and sit back down to spend the rest of their days in life as an “infant in a carnal cradle.” Or as Paul describes it 1 Corinthians 3:1–3 (NIV84)

1 Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly—mere infants in Christ. 2 I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. 3 You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere men?

This stretching phase is not comfortable, nor is it easy. It involves a high degree of openness and vulnerability. In order for the man to begin to grow toward maturity, he had to “expose his weak, lifeless, perhaps even grotesque looking hand. Nobody can “grow and mature” as a Christian “in secret.” God doesn’t have any “secret agents.” Our Christian life, including our struggles, must be lived “out in the open” for all to see. Again, I say, this is unpleasant and uncomfortable.

But, this phase is necessary. Building spiritual muscle is like building physical muscle. We’ve all seen bodybuilders with massive, defined muscles. Getting that look was not comfortable or pleasant—and certainly not easy. In order to build muscle, you have to put it under enough stress to tear it down at the cellular level. This results in a protein synthesis that repairs the muscle making the fibers stronger and thicker. Stretching muscles make them stronger and thicker.

This is equally true of spiritual muscle. In order to grow and mature, we must be stretched by trial and temptation.

3. The SERVING Phase  Also called MINISTRY (7-12)

(NIV84) 7 Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lake, and a large crowd from Galilee followed. 8 When they heard all he was doing, many people came to him from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, and the regions across the Jordan and around Tyre and Sidon. 9 Because of the crowd he told his disciples to have a small boat ready for him, to keep the people from crowding him. 10 For he had healed many, so that those with diseases were pushing forward to touch him. 11 Whenever the evil spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.” 12 But he gave them strict orders not to tell who he was.

I want to drill down this section to verse 8: When they heard all he was doing, many people came to him. Then I want to drill down even further to one word, “doing.”

A disciple is somebody that is “doing something.” In verse 10 it says that Jesus was “healing many.”  In verse 11 it describes Jesus “casting out demons” as Jesus commands authority over them. It is assumed by the context before and after that Jesus cast these demons out of people.

My point is: a disciple is a follower of Jesus and is DOING something. We call this, “MINISTRY.” Ministry means, “service to others” and is the responsibility of every believer and follower of Jesus. Ephesians 4:11-12 (NIV) tells us:

11 It was he [Jesus] who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12 to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.

Other translations use the word, “ministry” instead of “service.” They are synonyms. My point is, to become a disciple of Jesus Christ we must do as Jesus did—serve other people. Jesus is very clear about His ministry to humanity. He says later in Mark 10:45 (NIV):

For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.

Every faithful follower of Jesus must have an identifiable “job” or “ministry” to others through the church.

Being a disciple is all about service. That makes me think of a pregnant woman who ordered a maternity dress. The service was not what she expected. She called customer service: “Hi, I bought a maternity dress through your site and I want to cancel the order.” she says. The service rep says, “Sure, I can do that for you.. but I’d also like to get your feedback; may I ask why?” “Yeah,” says the customer. “My delivery was faster than yours.”

Disciples of Jesus ought to be the “Best in regard to Service.”

4. The SENDING Phase  We call this MISSIONS (VERSE 14)

He appointed twelve—designating them apostles—that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach.

The terms “apostles” and “send”  come from the same Greek word. The meaning of apostle is, ”one sent with the authority of another to deliver a message.” An apostle is like the modern role of being an “ambassador.”

The word, “apostle” is used rarely in the New Testament, only a few times. Here is a “specific” application to the Original Twelve Apostles. In John 17:18, Jesus applies this term to every believer:

As you sent [ἀποστέλλω apostellō] me into the world, I have sent [ἀποστέλλω apostellō] them into the world.

Preaching the gospel to lost people, that is sharing the gospel with others, is EVERY DISCIPLE’S JOB,  not just the pastors and leaders of the church. EVERY DISCIPLE is a MISSIONARY. As I like to say, “Every lost person is a mission field and every believer is a missionary.”

This phase of Making a Disciple is really the sum total of the other three phases: standing, stretching, and serving. The SENDING phase describes the very heart of being a disciple. At the end of the Gospel According to Mark we see summary of the SENDING phase:

Mark 16:15 (NIV84) He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.

I don’t want to lay a guilt trip on anybody, but here is the best data we have: “95% of all people claiming to be a follower of Christ never leads another person to salvation!”

A fully functioning disciple of Jesus Christ is someone who is standing up for Jesus, stretching their spiritual muscles, serving faithfully through the church as one sent with a special message to the world.

It’s not enough to simply put your name on the membership roll of a church, a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ must put his or her life on the line for the Kingdom of God.

Too many people end their discipleship process with MEMBERSHIP. They never move on to MISSIONS.

In our church we have a picture of what it means to move from MEMBERSHIP TO MISSIONS AS A FULLY FUNCTIONING FOLLOWER OF JESUS CHRIST. It looks like this:

The first step is to understand what it means to be a “Member of God’s Church.” I will have more to say about Getting Started in the Life Development of a Disciple over the Summer.  FOR NOW:

Stand up; Stretch; Serve; and let God send you to the world!

The Story of Jesus According to Mark, Pt 6: Guess Who's Coming to Church

 

May 12, 2024               NOTES NOT EDITED
Story of Jesus According to Mark, Pt 5
Guess Who’s Coming to Church
Mark 3:1-6

SIS: People attend church for different reasons and from different situations, so we should regularly evaluate our motivations for coming to church.

Last Sunday at a Jesus Dwelling Place Church in Pennsylvania, Bernard Junior Polite, 26 years old, entered the church and pointed a gun at the pastor as he was delivering a sermon while being LiveStreamed on the Internet. The man pulled the trigger, but the gun jammed. As the pastor dove for cover off stage, the shooter climbed the banister in front of the stage stalking the pastor. A deacon ran up behind the man, put his arms around him and brought him to the ground holding him until police arrived.

It is an understatement to say that the Pastor and congregation were shocked by who came to church last Sunday.

I think that often, churches are equally shocked to discover who’s coming to church, if they take notice. Many people may seem as “unwanted” in church as this gunman, but with no justification. Churches can be notoriously prejudiced and “people-blind” to who is—and even more so—who needs to be in church.

Today, as we see Jesus encounter a “crippled man” we are going to discover three groups of people who attend church—or three reasons why—people attend church on any given Sunday.

Everyone who comes to church does not necessarily have the same agenda, or motivation.   The Scriptures talk about these three groups of people that come to church every Sunday—the HURTING, the HINDERING, and the HELPING.

Let’s read about these three groups of people

 

(Mark 3:1-6)  Another time he went into the synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. {2} Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath. {3} Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, "Stand up in front of everyone." {4} Then Jesus asked them, "Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?" But they remained silent. {5} He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. {6} Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.

This passage clearly outlines the three types of people who come to church, or three reasons people come to church. The contrast between each group is unmistakable. 

1.  Some Come to Church HURTING (v1)

Remember in our last couple messages when the religious leaders, or Pharisees, criticized Jesus for meeting with the needy, sinners of the world? These were people who “needed all manner of healing” from the physical to the spiritual. What did Jesus say about such hurting people?

Mark 2:17 (NIV84) Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

If you look around the room today, everyone you see is someone who is “hurting” to some degree or another. Some mask, or even deny, they are hurting. What we cannot deny is that we ALL NEED JESUS DESPERATELY TODAY! This is the group I call the “Hurting.” Sinners in desperate need of salvation

This HURTING group—you and I—are represented by the man with the “shriveled hand.” This man with the crippled hand was typical of those in the crowd who were hurting: emotionally, physically, and spiritually.  Clearly, the gospels show that the primary purpose of the Lord’s ministry was to create a church that would be a HOSPITAL FOR HURTING PEOPLE.

If you also notice, there was a group of religious leaders called Pharisees. They denied their need and even despised the needs of those hurting around them. We’ll get to this group a little later.

We must try to grasp fully the plight of this man who represents a host of people in the world that are hurting.  The original phrase used to describe this man’s condition is very enlightening.  The original Greek construction suggests that this man was hurt in an accident and was not born with a withered hand.  Literally, the phrase would read, “having been withered.” (A.T. Robertson). Something happened to wither the hand. 

The phrase also suggests that the condition was so bad it could not be helped without miraculous intervention [perfect tense].  Another writing of this time, which has been called the Gospel According to Hebrews (which is not complete and not a part of the Bible) mentions this same man and confirms what the word structure suggests.  This fragment tells us that this man was a stone mason who had made his living with his hands.  Now, he was forced to beg on the streets because of his injury.  He was truly hurting: physically, emotionally, and financially. 

      Here we have a picture of so many people in the world today.  They are truly hurting. Sometimes, like this man with a shriveled hand, we can see they are hurting. Many times, people mask deep inner hurt behind a “socially acceptable fascade.” Sometimes, the most brilliant smile hides the most agonizing pain.

Christians need to constantly remind themselves:

The person next to you in church may be really hurting.

One group of persons who come to church regularly, are those who are hurting. We should always look at others with eyes of compassion. 

Here’s a heartbreaking letter received by a pastor: “Dear Pastor,

Why do churches often ignore the poor, the hurting, the victims of disease and disaster? My son tried to call all the Christian churches in our area to help in supporting me. I’m bedridden and wanted someone to come visit me in my time of illness such as reading inspirational scriptures to uplift my spirit. Not one of them came to see me! Even though I pray about it constantly. We have no family or friends and are very isolated; yes we have read the bible; having one in one with God but we still need Christians on our side for support in a time of need! Where has Christianity gone today when all Churches do is make money; open Cafés; book shops in their churches; lure people into buying their goods when in reality should be going out to all communities to reach out for the needy when they don’t; are too busy with their own Church Conferences and meetings!!! I’ve always believed churches should care about hurting people, but why aren’t they there for me?

Dear brothers and sisters, let’s never forget that our primary mission is to reach a “HURTING” world.

2.  Some Who Come to Church Regularly are HINDERING (V2)

I think those words I just spoke are the most sad and horrible words I’ve ever spoken. But, sadly, too often they are true. Look at verse 2:

²Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath.

The “religious folk,” the Pharisees, could have cared less about the hurting man. All they cared about was the “religion.” 

Again, the original language is very enlightening.

The phrase, “looking for a reason to accuse Jesus,” both identifies and characterizes the group opposing Jesus.  This group had been watching Jesus carefully because of what took place a short time before and is recorded in chapter 2.

²³One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. ²⁴The Pharisees said to him, "Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?" 

Once again, Jesus is confronted

by the Pharisees about His views of the Sabbath.  The previous time it was not Jesus who violated the Pharisaical laws of the Sabbath, but His disciples.  This time they were watching Jesus, Himself.  This is the same group of legalistic, self-righteous, hyper-religious people that Jesus would confront the next 1 and a half years of ministry.  This is the same self-righteous, hyper-religious people that would one day soon demand the Romans crucify Jesus.

 The word structure not only identifies this group at church as the Pharisees, but it characterizes them as well.  The translation we have here is accurate: they were watching with malicious intent.  Of the six times this word appears in the New Testament, five times it refers to “watching with malicious intent,” or “lying in wait to spring a trap.”

How sad it is that some people come to church to point out the faults of others, rather than pointing others to the faultless Christ.  Most people come to church to get into the work, others only to get in the way. Many HINDER the work of the church not because of what they do, but because they DO NOTHING! They are like West Virginia potholes that just sit in the middle of the road slowing traffic and causing damage.

 A group of church people gathered at a Mountain Lodge for a conference on church ministry.  The next morning was very cold and the room heaters did not work well.  The owners started a nice fire in the large fireplace in the dining hall.  A man not associated with the conference, and not a Christian, came into the dining hall, hoping to get warmed by the fire.  He was shivering but could not get close to the fire because the church group blocked the way.  This businessman sat in a chair shivering for a few minutes.  Suddenly, he shouted, “Last night I dreamed I was in hell!”  The church group was naturally startled.  One member asked, “Really?  What was it like?” The businessman responded sarcastically, “Well, it wasn’t much different than right here.  I couldn’t get next to the fire because all the church folks were in the way!” Church folk need to be mindful of which fire they are being warmed by.

This is a sad picture, but often true.

Many church members are so self-centered, and/or so self-righteous that they are in the way, rather than in the work.  They are a hindrance to the work of God, rather than a help.  They are focused upon themselves and their petty agendas without any care or concern for those who are lost and hurting.

 Jesus points out the hypocrisy of this self-righteous group of religious bigots.  Notice the biting words of the Master that pin-pointed the petty agenda of these religious tyrants in verse 4:

 ⁴Then Jesus asked them, "Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?" But they remained silent. 

Jesus spoke with an edge in His voice and a glare in His eye, because He knew what was in their hearts. Look at verse 5:

 ⁵He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. ⁶Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.

 The word stubborn means to “petrify.”Each time the Pharisees refused to submit to the ministry of Jesus their hearts became harder.  The word can also mean to become “calloused.” 

 I see this many times in the lives of Church-goers.Over the years they have allowed their hearts to develop a thick callous.  They stubbornly and rebelliously demand to have church conform to their standards instead of letting the Holy Spirit transform them to Christ’s image.  They expect everyone to conform to their view of Scripture. They defend doctrine to the death while never lending a hand to help someone else.  They develop callouses over their hearts and cannot see a hurting world.

Do not miss the irony of this passage. The greatest hindrance to the man’s wholeness was not the paralysis of his hand, but the hardness of the Pharisees hearts.  The Pharisees had set themselves up as the “keepers of the law.”  It had to be followed to the letter.

Jesus confronts their religious hypocrisy by asking the question in verse 4, “Which is better to do on the Sabbath, help a crippled man or [plan to] kill someone.”  Jesus knew what was in their hearts.  Did you catch the irony of verse 6?  The Pharisees were plotting with the Herodians to kill Jesus for helping a crippled man on the Sabbath.  How ironic—it is OK to plot murder on the Sabbath, but not help a crippled man.

According to Pharisaical law, only the bare medical treatment necessary to save a life was permissable.  You could place a bandage to stop bleeding for example, but you could not add any medicine or ointment that would bring healing.  All elective surgery had to be put off until after the Sabbath.  Jesus showed His con-tempt for such legalistic traditions by violating the law against healing a non-emergency condition. 

Doctrine that denies help and hindersthe flow of God’s love and mercy is not truth–it is dead tradition.  Dead tradition brings burdens and bondage but true love brings wholeness and healing.

The Pharisees were concerned about procedures, Jesus is concerned about people.

Anytime our “procedures come into conflict with helping people” we should change our procedures.

If our tradition becomes a hindrance to reaching hurting people,
we should discard it. 

Now we have viewed snapshots of two groups that regularly attend church: some come hurting; others come hindering.  The group that loves Jesus will come to church

 3.  HELPING (v 5)

 ⁵He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored.

 Jesus came to earth as a “Helper and a Comforter.” When He left He said He would send another (just like Him) to be our Counselor, Comforter, and Helper (Jn. 16).  True followers of Jesus can be identified by their eagerness to help others be whole and happy. 

 Blessed is the hurting person who comes to church and meets a helper, for he will be completely restored.

Years ago, I realized how easy it was to become a Pharisee. I believed it was my duty to defend doctrine.  I still feel the church must stand boldly for truth and defend it at every chance.  However, I do not believe the Christian cause necessitates leaving a trail of bruised and battered people along the way. We must never sacrifice “love” on the altar of “orthodoxy.”  True doctrine rightly practiced is always a help and never a hindrance.

 Too many devils hide beneath the dead carcass of right doctrine and are nothing more than “wolves in sheep’s clothing.”

The church that Jesus established is a “haven for hurting people” with plenty of people willing to help them.”

 Jesus gives us a clear example of the cost of being a helper.  A helper must buck tradition and risk the scorn and condemnation of those who are self-righteous, religious fanatics who defend dead traditions while denying help and healing to hurting people. 

 I believe in following the rules but all rules of faith and order must conform to God’s second great commandment: “love others as you love yourself.”

Think about this for a moment . . . when a person is lonely, spiritually crippled, a social outcast, without a friend in the world–where can they go to find restoration and healing.  This is the mandate God has given to the church.  We see what a mess the government has made in helping the poor.  We’ve created generation after generation of “welfare junkies.”  God has called the church to help the poor, lift up the fallen, and bring freedom to those held captive to drugs, despair, and other deadly vices. 

 God’s people must be HELPERS! 

Guess Who Is Coming to Church?

 

Some come to church to take a walk; Some come to church to laugh and talk;

Some come to meet a friend; Some come their time to spend;

Some come to meet a lover; Some come a fault to cover;

Some come for speculation; Some come for observation;

Some come to doze and nod; The Wise come to worship God.

–adapted

But, Who is Coming to Our Church?

 Some come hurting,

Some come hindering,

True disciples come helping!