The Church -is forever December 16, 2012

There are several passages in the Bible that talk about the church, not the structure or the building, but what the church really is –people.  That is often something that we get a little confused about.  When we talk about going to church we often mean we are going to a building.  But when the Bible speaks of going to church it is talking about being with the people of God, those who have given their lives to Jesus Christ and come together to worship their Lord.

And this building is something that is temporary, but this people is forever.  Did you ever stop to think about that?  Well, maybe we have in some idealistic, mystical way, but the reality is that the body, the church, the people are forever.  Last week we look mankind, that we are created beings.  We are made by, designed by, breathed into by and created in the image of the immortal incredible, eternal God, the great I AM.  And we are created with eternity in our hearts (Ecclesiastes 3). 

When we accept the gift of life offered by God through Jesus Christ, and become His Child, we become part of something much larger than ourselves.  Yes, we have that personal relationship, but much, much more, we have a relationship with all others who have become part of the family of God as well. 

This morning I would like to look at 4 passages that give us a picture of becoming and being a part of this body which not only exists here on earth, but will last into eternity.

First is the familiar passage of Matthew 1618 where Jesus says, “I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.”  There is a sense of permanency, lastingness in this statement.  The focus for me it this, I will build my church.  The church, the people who make up the church, are Christ’s.  We are His sheep, his people, his friends, his own.  We are His church and the strong implication here and the definite statement elsewhere is that nothing will take it from him.  He means to keep his church.  Elsewhere we read that what the Father has given to Jesus, he will not let go of.  And then in John 14, Jesus give this beautiful image of his going to prepare a place for us.

John 14:1-4.  I have spoken on this passage several times but I wanted for us to recapture this image of our being the bride of Christ.  The hearers of this statement, as Jewish people, would instantly know that Jesus is talking about the bridegroom and the bride.  The bridegroom would go away from the bride and prepare a house for her.  When everything was ready he would come back for her.  He used this image in several parable including the one about the 10 virgins in Matthew 25 (1-10).

I want for us to be clear here on the image of the church being the bride of Christ.  This image is carried on by the apostle Paul in Ephesians 5 where he talks about the church being the bride of Christ.  Let me read verses 23-25, 32.  This image of the bride, the wife of Christ, if you will, is a powerful image for our understanding the relationship between Christ and the church.  yes he is the head, but there is also an intimate love, a deep joy, a pride and lifting of his church.  He will build his church.  he will come back to take us to be with him.  But capture this, He will present us before the throne of the Father!

When the bridegroom goes to get his bride he brings her to his father.  Our tradition has the father of the bride bringing the bride to the bridegroom.   So see the difference.  See the pride, see the power of this image of the groom proudly, reverently, with joy taking this radiant love of his life –the love he has so much of he overflows with it.  The love he has so much of that he even gave his life for her, for us, his bride!  He presents her as radiant!  Without stain or wrinkle or other blemish.  IN large part because he has died to remove the stains, he has given his blood to remove the blemishes.  He has given his body to smooth out the wrinkles. 

Back to John 14.  Verse 6-7.  The only way to the father is through the son.  The only way to the Father is to be presented as the bride.  And he will then take us, his church, his people, his sheep, his bride , verse 3, to be with him –permanently. 

To me it is an awesome, incredible thing.  The church, the bride, with the bridegroom, presented spotless, fully cleansed and perfect because of the groom, by the groom to the Father. 

And now lets turn to Revelation 21:1-4.  Did you catch it?  So often we look at the final part of that section –no more tears, no more death or mourning or sorrow.  But note the context –The bride presented.  The church is something that is made by Christ, for Christ to be with Christ forever!

And how we live together as the body here on earth is important –because it is something that will go on.  We are created by God and we are saved by Christ and we are united by the Spirit into the body of Christ.  It is his design, His plan, His church.  And as His church, he brings us to be a part of it not just here on earth, but into eternity.  Yes, the church, this body of believers past present and future (should the Lord tarry long), will carry on into eternity.

Being the body of Christ which will continue into eternity has some very serious implications for us today. First, are we actively involved and giving and doing all we can for the body?  Paul challenges us in Ephesians 4, just after the part of being one body, that we all do our part.  Can we do our part is we are not a part?

Second, it means we are to be living in the unity and oneness He brings –that by implication being one body entails.  We know what happens when part of our body begins to fight another –cancer, disease, -it fails, it falls apart, it dies.  The body, to be healthy, is given some serious instructions.  Let me focus just for a moment on something we are familiar with –the one anothers.

            Over 50 times we read in Scritpure the term “one another.”  Some are repeated and all the more to pay attention too, like the last one I will share, given in the NT.  Most of them are in the letters of Paul, but we also find them in the words of Jesus and the letters of John and Peter and the writer of Hebrews.  Let’s just list a few of them.

1.     “…Be at peace with each other.” (Mark 9:50)
“Be devoted to one another in brotherly love…” (Romans 12:10)
“…Honor one another above yourselves. (Romans 12:10)
“Live in harmony with one another…” (Romans 12:16)
“…Stop passing judgment on one another.” (Romans 14:13)
“Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you…” (Romans 15:7)
“…Instruct one another.” (Romans 15:14)
1 “Greet one another with a holy kiss…” (Romans 16:16)
“…Have equal concern for each other.” (I Corinthians 12:25)
“…Serve one another in love.” (Galatians 5:13)
“Carry each other’s burdens…” (Galatians 6:2)
“…Be patient, bearing with one another in love.” (Ephesians 4:2)
“Be kind and compassionate to one another…” (Ephesians 4:32)
“…Forgiving each other…” (Ephesians 4:32)
“Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.” (Ephesians 5:19)
“Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” (Ephesians 5:21)
“Bear with each other…” (Colossians 3:13)
“…Forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another.” (Colossians 3:13)
“Teach…[one another]” (Colossians 3:16)
“…Admonish one another (Colossians 3:16)
“…Build each other up…” (I Thessalonians 5:11)
“Encourage one another daily…” Hebrews 3:13)
“…Pray for each other.” (James 5:16)

2.     . “…Live in harmony with one another…” (I Peter 3:8)
“Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.” (I Peter 4:9)
“Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others…” (I Peter 4:10)
“…Clothe yourselves with humility toward one another…”(I Peter 5:5)
“…Love one another.” (I John 3:11)
“…Love one another.” (I John 3:23)
“…Love one another.” (I John 4:7)
“…Love one another.” (I John 4:11)
“…Love one another.” (I John 4:12)

3.      “…Love one another.” (II John 5)

4.      “…Love one another…” (John 13:34)
“…Love one another…” (John 13:34)
“…Love one another…” (John 13:35)
“…Love one another…” (John 15:12)
“…Love one another” (John 15:17)

5.      “…Love one another…” (Romans 13:8)

6.              Of these is reflective of the nature and character of God.  Each of these will be carried on in eternity as a part of His Kingdom.  They bring unity, peace, harmony.  Each of these prepares us in how it will be in eternity. 

7.               

8.              And third, the church keeps its focus on one and one alone –Jesus.  We are his church, that he envisioned, His flock that he is the Great Shepherd for, his bride that he has washed with His blood, His body that he has bought with a price.  He is the head, he is our Lord, He s our ruler, He is the son of God, the one we are to cherish, honor and hold in highest adoration.  Now and forever more.

We are His church, and as His church we can be assured that He is able to work what he will. He is able to build it, use it and move it as He will.  As His church He is able to do so much more than we can ever ask or imagine in it and through it.  Here in this little corner of Canada, we may think, oh the church is not doing much.  But look at the church –THE CHURCH, and see that He is doing so much.  IN Africa, Asia, the Middle East, around the world he is building His church.  Do not forget, it is His church, his body, His bride and he will present it as a beautiful bride to the Father.  Oh, he is able to meet our concerns, our needs, and make us what he wants u to be as his church and as his people.

This closing thought.  Seeking to live together, serve together, grow together, worship together, love, forgive, care for and live in harmony together is of great value here on earth because, well, we will be together for a very long time hereafter!

Beloved, love one another.

Know, Show, and Grow in Christ January 6, 2013

Well, the regular season for US football has ended and the playoffs have begun.  I watched some of the last games of the season and they were pointing out a lot of the season records, the records that could be broken, the records that were broken or tied. Statistics aside I noticed that often the players who were ending the season well were almost always compared to players of the past.  He runs like…, he has the skills of… he leads like…  and we see this in many sports or other things like dance, music, acting, news casting, writing or a host of other things that catch the public eye.

Even in our own small worlds we see this encapsulated –oh, you’re just like your mother, he looks like his dad, he has the same humor as his grandpa.  The traits and characteristics that we take on are sometimes by genetics, sometimes by environment, often by choice.  The people we admire, the people we hang around with, the sport stars or musician or world leader we want to be like. 

I present to you this morning, one life that is worth emulating, worth investigating and worthy of our seeking to admire –it is the life of someone who never stared on his schools sport team, never ran for political office, never won a Pulitzer prize, a golden globe or a peoples choice.  He was never voted the person of the year by Time magazine or won an Olympic event.  In fact, his life up to the last few years he lived was extraordinarily ordinary. 500 years before he was born, the prophet Isaiah wrote, “He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.” (53:2)  And yet, his life, his attitude, his person and teaching are worthy of examining, adopting and living out in our own lives.

He is of course, Jesus of Nazareth.  Over this last summer and into the fall we looked at the first 10 chapters of the gospel of Mark and began to discover and rediscover some of the wealth, depth and passion of this life worth knowing.  Other than his birth and a couple of other events in his first 30 years of life, he lived a rather ordinary life.  So much so that we are told nothing by his biographers.  But the last three years jump out in extraordinary splendor as we are shown a man of deep compassion, conviction, patience and love; a man of incredible depth of insight into the human soul and need; a man of spiritual passion and a focus for the glory of God the Father in all things; and, a man of timeless teaching about living a life that is worthwhile, meaningful, fruitful and winsome.  That is a word you don’t hear often today –winsome.  It means attractive or pleasing.   In Mark 4 Jesus teaches that our lives are to bear fruit, to shine as a lamp on a stand (20-21).  In chapter 7 he teaches that we are to live lives that are clean not unclean with evil thoughts, slander, malice, deceit and a host of other things that are not winsome.  We will see in the coming weeks that he teaches that love is the ultimate quality and characteristic to which we are to aspire –love of god and love of others (12:29-31). 

He not only taught that we should be winsome and fruitful and loving but he demonstrated it.  He taught respect for women, the care and compassion for children, the acceptance of others who were different, the care for those who were hurting, compassion for those who were often sidelined, and ultimately showing no greater love than giving his own life for us. Jesus’ life and teaching were so winsome at the time that crowds of thousands came to see, hear and touch him.  And his life is still winsome today attracting people from all races and nations to discover more of his life and to know more about him.

But know is not enough.  As Christians, as people of faith, we are not just to know about him but to grow in our understanding and application of his teachings to our lives.  Whether we spend a little time or a lot of time studying the life and teaching of Jesus, it really does little good unless we begin to apply it, to mimic and to do as He did.  That is what being a follower is, a disciple, even a servant.  Each of these words , or descriptions of a Christian –even the name Christian for that matter, means we seek to become more like Jesus.  A follower is one who walks where he walks.  To literally take the same steps as Jesus.  A disciple is one who listens to and applies the teachings and then goes and does what the teacher or master did.  A servant is one who does things for and on behalf of the master.  The servant represents the master and seeks the best for the master in in actions.  The reputation of the master is found in the servant.  When Jesus says in Matthew 25, well done good and faithful servant, he is not only commending the actions of the servant but the way the servant represented the master. 

But even more than just the names Christians are called –followers, disciples, servants, the bible, even Jesus himself, commands us to do as he has done (John 13 –as you have seen me do, go and do likewise).  We are not just to be hearers of the word, hearers of the teachings, to know him more and more, but also to be doers, to live as he lived, to take on the attitude and actions of Christ. 

The life of Jesus is not only worth knowing, but worth growing in, worth emulating.  Ask yourself, seriously, ask yourself, with what I know of Jesus, am I growing in my being like him? 

And third, the life of Jesus is worth showing.  Getting back to the introduction about emulating others, what would people see in you to have them say, that is just like Jesus would do, that is the same attitude as Christ.  He has the same compassion Jesus showed to children, she has the same mercy or patience or grace as Jesus.  Are we, as Paul says in Romans 8:29, conforming more and more to the likeness of the Son?  Are we showing, are we living out what we know and what we are growing in about Jesus to others. 

This involves many things –our attitude, our compassion, our passion.  But also our actions, our use of our gifts, talents and abilities.  Our seeking to build up the body of Christ –the church, by applying and using what we have and who we are to grow His body (Ephesians 4).  Are our works, our living out the things of Jesus and our showing others, are our lives being lived in such a way that others will glorify God on the day he returns? (I Peter 2:12)

And more, are we telling others about this life worth knowing?  We will talk about Mandela and his work in abolishing apartheid in SA, we will talk about Oprah and her charity work.  We will talk about some sports figure and their latest achievement, or some pop star and their latest twitter or a host of other things, but what of Jesus and his love, his healing, his compassion, his teaching, his example, his sacrifice, his death his resurrection, his seeking first foremost and only the glory of the father, his hope, his return, his rule, his life and life eternal? 

The last words Jesus gave his followers were go and tell.  Show the world you are mine by loving one anther.  Show the world you know me by living out what I have shown you. For I am with you even to the ends of the earth.

Indeed the life of Jesus is worth knowing, and growing in and showing.   I believe that his life is the only one worthy of such.  This morning there is a challenge for each one of us.  It may hit us a one level or at several.  For everyone, there is the challenge to know him more.  His is a life worth knowing and I don’t think we can ever know enough.  To read, study, meditate on his life.  His word.  His truth.  Discover more about Jesus.  And then, apply what he teaches.  Many people know about Jesus, but how many are applying his truth, his teaching, his example to their own lives?  Allow the Spirit of the living God to work in you and conform you to the image of the Son.  And third, to show him to others through word and deed. 

Know, grow and show.  Three key words that express really the core of us as a church, our purpose, our vision, our values.  Three words that challenge us in our walk as Christians –to know him more, to grow and mature in him more, to show him to others more.  Three words that move us towards a life that is worth knowing, is worth growing in and is worth showing.  

These Three Things -a pre-Christmas message

What is the power of three words?  Three little words.  Words like, We are home.  Or, I love you.  Or, It is finished.  Or, God bless you.  There is power and depth in just three words.  On the other side, I hate you.  You are ugly.  He died instantly.  Three words can lift you up, calm you down, stir your heart, crumble your world. 

There are three words in scripture that are often repeated, sometimes all together, sometimes separately or in pairs.  But they are words that inspire, comfort, confront, lift, challenge, give purpose and meaning and value to us.  They are simple words, yet they carry so much.  They are words not just of language, but of heart and soul. They are words which define us and give us purpose.  They are words which describe something that is so needed in each of our lives and will last into eternity.

What are these words?  Well, some of you may already have guessed, others will know by the passage I am about to read.  But all of us deeply need in our lives.  Let me read for you I Corinthians 13:13; now these three things remain –faith, hope and love. 

These are deep and enduring needs that are in each of us.  The need to believe, the need to become, the need to belong.  Even deeper than the physiological needs of food, water, shelter, if we remove the ability or possibility of meeting these deep needs, we see that people will give up, despair, even giving up eating and drinking.  With no hope of rescue, people curl up and die.  With no input of love we see children perish.  With no living faith, we stumble, fall and quit. 

Faith hope and love are intimately entwined with God.  We put our faith in Jesus Christ.  Romans 3:22-26 (read).  Faith, trust, belief in the Lord Jesus Christ, in His finished work on the cross, in his perfect sacrifice, in his being our redeemer, our Savior is what gives us life here on earth and life in eternity.  We live by faith, we are justified by faith, we stand firm in faith, we have salvation through faith in Christ.  Hebrews 12:2 says, “Let us fix or eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame and sat down at the right hand of God.” And Jesus will continue to be the center of our faith long into eternity. 

Hope it tied with the Holy Spirit.  Hope looks to the future, to something we can strive for, cling to.  Ephesians 1:11-14 (read).  Hope is the absolute confidence that God will do what he said he will do!  When we put our faith in Jesus Christ the Spirit comes and marks us, seals us with a promise, a deposit, a guarantee of our inheritance!  And we continue to read in Ephesians 1:15-21 the power of the Spirit at work in us to have the eyes of our heart enlightened to know the hope to which he has called us.  AWESOME!

And of course, love is tied to the Father.  For God the Father so loved the world that he gave his only Son, Jesus…  God is love.  This is the defining description of God given in I John 4:8.  Let’s read that in context from I John 4, beginning at verse 7 (through 12) 

John goes on in chapter 4 and ties in all three of the Godhead. Continue to read 13-17.  Is it any wonder that Paul would write, and these three things remain –faith, hope and love?!  They are so intimately connected with the eternality of God! 

And this has strong implications for us today and for tomorrow.  For today, God can and will meet our deepest needs –to believe, to become and to belong.  By faith in Christ we can have that assurance of his complete works, that our sins are forgiven through the shedding of his blood, that we are given life and are the children of God.  Through the presence of the Spirit we can be confident in our future, in his working to make us into the image of the one he loves best the Son.  We can have confidence in the promises of God being fulfilled.  And through the love of the Father we can know we belong to someone who loves us with an unending, unconditional love.  We are going to come back to this on Christmas eve in our service offered here at 7:00 PM. 

These three things also continue to move us through each day.  Paul writes in I Thessalonians 1:3 “We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love and you endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.”  Faith, hope and love are active words, active moving forces in our lives.  Notice the tie Paul gives to each of these three things –work produced by faith –labor prompted by love –endurance inspired by hope. 

The word for “work” that Paul uses here is a result of faith.  We do not work or gain our salvation by works, (Ephesians 2:1-10), but our works come from our faith.  This work is obedience to the commands of Jesus –love one another, forgive one another.  This work resulting from faith has a purpose of perfecting our faith (James 2:22-24).  This work resulting from faith will also be judged in heaven.  Romans 2:6.  These works are a part of our being the body of Christ and building the body up (Ephesians 4:12-13,16).  Faith produces works because of Christ, for Christ and his body.

The word Paul ties with love is labor.  It refers to the daily toil and labor, usually connected with working in the fields or harvesting.  It is a word that is often connected with the kingdom of God.  And it is a word that means working to the point of weariness.  It is love that keeps us going –the love of God working in and through us to do the work of the kingdom, to see that the harvest is brought in –that people are brought to Christ, encouraged in Christ, built up in Christ, growing in Christ.  Again the image of the body, the church, as every part does its work.  There is not sense of giving up until the job is done.  Paul, we read, labored to present every person complete in Christ before God (Colossians 1:28-29).  Jesus said, if you love me obey my commands, this is my command that you love one another.  Love is an action word which empowers us and moves us to build up the body, even to the point of weariness.

Hope is tied with the word endurance.  Just as our labor to the point of weariness is prompted by love, our hope gives us endurance.  We have a goal, we have a purpose, we have a future, we have a promise, we have an eternal home.  We are doing this all for something that is lasting, something forever.  Building up the body in love.  This word, endurance, or perseverance, is a quality that lives to please God   In our works we will be judged (Romans 2:6 quoted earlier) and in our endurance we will be rewarded (Romans 2:7).  We endure through suffering and trials, we are steadfast in our faith in the face of persecution.  We continue to grow in our character and faith through trials of many kinds.  The writer of Hebrews further encourages the church to continue with these words, Hebrews 12:2-3.

And these words carry into eternity.  Love we can understand because we will be in the presence of the Father and experience and express our love forever.  Faith in Jesus, well, he is the object of our faith and our eyes will always be on Him.  But the foreverness of hope?   Will we not have attained the hope, the prize, the goal or our faith?  Hope looks forward to the things yet to come.  And folks, just cause we get to heaven don’t mean God is finished showing us things!  Romans 8:18 and other texts carry the idea that God will show us more and more of his glory.  I just have one question about this, when will an infinite, forever, eternal God run out of things to show of himself?  Hope remains because God remains and is eternal!

Beloved in Christ, we have an incredible, awesome, forever, eternal God Who wants to have us with Him in eternity.  He offers to meet our deepest needs both now and forever more.  Because he loves us with an everlasting love and has given us the complete work of Christ in who we can have faith and through the promise and work of His Holy Spirit the hope of eternal life. We can experience come to know Him, grow in Him and show Him through our work produced by faith, our labor prompted by love and our endurance inspired by hope. We can believe in the Son who gave his life, we can become the children of God here and forever and we can belong to the Father who loves us with an everlasting love.  These three things remain –faith, hope and love.  They remains because God is eternal.

Jesus Lord of All -his incredible acts July 8, 2012

This morning’s passage is found in Mark 4 beginning at verse 35. I will read from the NIV.


The focus verse for me in this passage beginning with 4:35 and going through to the end of chapter 5 is in verse 41. The Disciples asked each other, “Who is this?” It is a question and a quest that has been asked for 2000 years. The answers we seek to this question are found in the scriptures. We need go no further than the inspired word of God to discover all we need to know about Jesus. The problem is that often we do not want to accept the answer.

We see this earlier in the Gospel of Mark when Jesus identifies himself as the Son of Man (2:10). That he and he alone has authority to forgive sins. The teachers of the law sought to find fault, to make Jesus into someone else –a liar, a demon possessed person. His family did not accept at first and saw him as delusional or crazy. Many sought to see Jesus just as a miracle worker or a good teacher. The question, Who is this? Is answered quickly and clearly in all of the gospels.

Matthew 1 –the messiah, Immanuel, Jesus, savior.

Luke 1 –the son of the most high God who will reign forever

John 1 –the word was god and became flesh

Here in Mark 1 –You are my son, whom I love, the bringer of Good News –THE good news!

And here in this passage today 4:35-5:43, we have the clear picture of Jesus Christ being Lord of all, that he is the Son of Man spoken of in the prophesy of Daniel 7. Let me read it for you beginning with verse 13.

Who is this? He is Jesus Christ, Lord. Although it does not say the word Lord in this passage he earlier declares that he is Lord of the Sabbath (2:28), the actions of Jesus certainly show his lordship and authority over all aspects of creation.

Here in the passage we read, we can see that Jesus is Lord of creation. The Sea of Galilee is actually quite a small lake. It measures only about 7 miles at its widest and 13 miles at its longest. If you stand on a hillside just above the water you can see the entire lake on a clear day. It is situated in a valley and the winds can come up quite quickly and cause the water to get quite rough. How could experienced fishermen who knew this lake so well get caught in the open?

On our first trip to Israel, Jodi and I stayed in a place right on the shore. Within an hour the water went from calm and quiet to whitecaps and rough as the wind picked up and wept into the valley of the lake.

Jesus is asleep in the stern when the storm comes up. It was terrifying, even for these seasoned, experienced men. Jesus stands and rebukes the wind (the cause of the storm and waves). The word rebuke is used when one has authority to command.

The calming of the storm is a great picture not just of the power of Jesus but the authority of Jesus. He is Lord of the natural elements. We read in Colossians 1:15-19…

The second part of the narrative has Jesus and the disciples landing on the east side of the lake. There they encounter a man, likely well known in the area, who is possessed and comes running down the hill yelling, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the most high God. Swear you won’t torture me.” The words of the man communicate to us several things –the recognition of who Jesus is, the power Jesus has, and the fear Jesus brings to the demons.

I can imagine the scene as the disciples had just come out of the fearful experience of the storm and now this wild man, whom we read, was so strong he broke chains and no one could subdue him. Imagine seeing this man running don the hill towards you as you are just getting off the boat, still shaking from the storm! And Jesus, as calmly as he speaks to the wind and the waves, speaks to this man.

We read that Jesus said to the demons get out, and then they asked, they ASKED, to be sent into the herd of pigs and Jesus gave permission! Again, the authority of Jesus is brought to light.

Earlier Jesus had been accused by those who opposed him of being possessed by Beelzabub (Mark 3:20-30). The power of Jesus in casting out the demons cannot be lost on the disciples as they hear the echoes of Jesus own words, “Satan cannot drive out Satan.”

Although this is not the first time Jesus has cast out demons, it is by far the most potent. He has the authority to command not one or two, but a legion! In this case at least 2000 demons!

In I John 3:8 we read that Jesus came to destroy the Devil’s works. John, who wrote these words, stood on that shore and watched Jesus free a man from the oppressive, seeming mighty power of Satan with a word –come out. And then he gave permission, permission! The word in greek is always used of one who has authority to do so, to grant. Even the spiritual world must obey, for Jesus Christ is Lord of heaven and of earth!

The third scene is two stories wrapped in one. Jesus returns to the western shore near Capernaum. There he is met by a crowd, one of whom is a ruler of the synagogue. Remember, the religious leaders were largely against Jesus, but we see this man coming to Jesus falling at his feet and pleading for Jesus to come and heal his daughter. As they make their way into the village, the crowd presses in and a woman who had been bleeding for 12 years reaches out and touches the cloak of Jesus. She is immediately healed.

Felling the power leave him, Jesus wants to know who touched him. Not just any touch because many were touching him (v 31). The woman then falls at Jesus feet knowing she could be punished for what she had done. You see, she was bleeding as a part of her menstrual cycle and was considered unclean. She had just made Jesus unclean and he would not be able to proceed and he would be unclean until evening. Since time was of the essence, this could mean the death of the little girl. And we see that indeed the girl had died.

But for the moment, Jesus deals with the woman. His response to here and her actions is, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.” I want to come back to this later, but for now begin to see that Jesus has authority over the physical realm of our lives. Again this is nothing new. Jesus has been healing people for maybe a year or more from al kinds of things –lameness, blindness, all kinds of diseases. What makes this more impacting is the declaration that it is her faith that has healed her. Faith in what? Rather faith in who? In Jesus Christ.

Faith plays a huge part in the follower of Jesus. It is faith that makes one be good soil. Paul says it is by grace we are saved through faith. In Galatians we read that we are justified by faith and are to live by faith in the Son of God. Faith is being sure of what we hope for! And never has this been more clearly shown than in the act of the woman here. She desperately hoped in the simple touch of Jesus that she would be healed.

You can imagine the great hope, the great resolve this woman had, just to touch his garment! And her faith healed her. Her faith in Christ, the one who has authority over the wind, the waves the demon possessed. Jesus is Lord of our physical world.

I must note, but cannot explain, that there were many who touched Jesus at that time but did not get healed. Why? I do not know. But this I know, this woman was. And by faith she received not only healing but the blessing of peace. Go in peace!

It I perhaps this peace that is more important than the healing. This troubled woman, this fear fraught woman, this desperate woman received something we all need –the peace of Christ. The prince of peace, who is peace and brings peace between God and man, gives peace even in our struggles.

Jesus would later bless his followers with his peace, not as the world gives, but as he gives. (John 14:27) A peace that guards our hearts and minds in Christ. (Philippians 4:7)

And in the middle of this blessing, the news comes. The girl is dead. There is no peace no in the life of this man. But Jesus says, “Do not be afraid, just believe.”

Faith in the midst of tragedy can be really hard. I can imagine the father, giving in to the temptation to blame God/Jesus. If only you had not delayed, if only you had not stopped to deal with this unclean woman! He could have blamed and lashed out at the woman who delayed Jesus, or the crowds who slowed him down.

He could have given in to the crowds who had already given up –don’t bother the teacher, she is already gone. He could have given in to the crying of the mourners. They were already crying over the death. And then when Jesus said she was only sleeping he could have joined them in their disbelief.

But this man came to Jesus in faith at the start. And I think that, in part, the incident of the woman being healed was meant to bolster the faith of the man. We read nothing of his faith, nothing of his belief, only words of Jesus, “do not be afraid, just believe.” Perhaps seeing the woman healed, knowing her and knowing she was perpetually unclean, not only being unclean for 12 years, but unable to even go to the synagogue to pray.

We read simply that he went with Jesus, past the mourners turned scoffers, and with his wife went up to the room and witnessed the extraordinary event of the return of life to his daughter.

Who is this? This is Jesus. The son of man who has been given authority over all things. He is Lord of the Sabbath. He has authority to forgive sins. He commands the wind and the waves. He gives permission to demons. He heals and brings peace. He raises the dead. He is lord of heaven and earth.

Do you want to know Jesus? You do not need go any further than the gospel accounts. They proclaim and Jesus jumps out at us as Lord of all –he has the authority to do what he says, to be who he is and to offer us what we need –good news!

Jesus Christ -Lord of All (rejection by his own) JUly 15, 2012

Our passage this morning is found in Mark 6:1-6. I will be reading from the NIV.


Last week we looked at the question, “Who is this?” from Mark 4:41. A question that still we seek an answer to today. Who is this person, Jesus? We see, in reading the accounts of the 4 miracles found in chapters 4-5 that he is Lord over creation –even the wind and the waves obey him. He is the Lord over the spiritual realm, that the demons recognize who he is and even ask his permission for things. In the healing of the woman who had a bleeding problem for 12 years we see he is Lord over our physical world and in the raising of the little girl from the dead that Jesus is Lord over life and death. He is Lord!

And now in contrast to that power and authority and demonstration of who he is, that by his miracles and actions that he fulfills the prophecy of Daniel that he is the Son of Man who has authority and glory and sovereign power, stop at this word for a moment, sovereign.

This word means that he has absolute and final authority over all. Stop and think about this because it is a key part of understanding some of the tension we see in Mark 6. I’ll come back to this in a moment. Jesus is Lord, He has absolute authority over all peoples. He has dominion that is everlasting and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed. He is sovereign. Listen to the words and the language used here –authority, glory, sovereign power, and he will be worshipped, dominion and kingdom. When Jesus declares he is the son of man he is declaring himself to be the Son of God, God come in flesh. Listen to the words of Paul later in Philippians 2:9-11. And then John, in Revelation 19:11-16. He is sovereign. He is the Son of Man and is Lord of all.

Jesus has healed the sick, calmed the storm, set the captive free, raised the dead, to show that he is the son of man and has the authority to forgive sin (2:10). And then Jesus goes home, to Nazareth and brings the same message –the good news, brings the same power in healing the sick. And as he speaks in the synagogue we read the people we amazed. Nothing new there. We see earlier when Jesus spoke and healed that people were amazed. But here the amazement is different. It is not one of Wow, look at that! Isn’t that incredible, are not the things he says and does wonderful and amazing! But it is one of almost incredulity. Really? Jesus? I know his parents, how could he do this? I went to school with him, really? I bought a chair from him, he did work for my father. Look, there is his family! And we read in verse 3, they took offense at him. Why? Well, Jesus answers the question in verse 4. (READ)

Many people who grow up in the church or in a Christian environment face a similar mindset –familiarity can breed contempt, as the saying goes. Like me, you grow up in a family that has been going to church forever. Sunday School, VBS, church 1-3 times a week. Familiarity with Jesus can, at times make the stories of Jesus humdrum. We lose our sense of awe.

Another aspect of this is that we often try to bring Jesus down to our level. What if God was one of us? We humanize Jesus to the point where we lose the godhood, the power and majesty and glory and yes, sovereignty. He went fishing with my boys, he sat in class with me, he is just one of us.

The third is, well, pride. The class system of the day was very set. Carpenters were carpenters. Potters were potters. Teachers were teachers. Upper class was upper class. You did not cross the line. Even into our own recent history and culture we see this in such movies as the Titanic where one did not go above ones station. In many cultures we still see this as in India with the caste system.

Here was Jesus, a carpenter, son of a carpenter, brother to carpenters. And now he comes in with these teachings and claims which set him above us? How dare he come and lecture us! They were offended!

And this pride lead into an area that I mentioned earlier about the tension that comes with Jesus as being sovereign, having authority, being the son of man. Because, if Jesus is who he said he is, Lord –if Jesus is indeed Lord of creation, Lord of the spiritual realm, lord of life and lord over death –if Jesus is who he claims and who he has demonstrated himself to be, then they faced a really tough choice –accept him or reject him –bow down or put down.

Because if he is who he claims to be, if he is who he demonstrates himself to be then they would have to bow down to him –He is Lord! But no! He is a carpenter, one of us, the son of Mary. I am not going to trust in this –this snot nosed kid who used to run around the village with my kids! I will not bow to this person who is no better than me!

If He is who he claims and shows himself to be then I must submit to him. Or I reject him. He is a liar, possessed by Beelzebub. He is crazy, delusional and we need to control him. Remember, the family that is mentioned here –Mary, James, Joseph, Simon, Judas, the sisters all not too long ago sought to take charge of him because they thought he was out of his mind. Do you think this was not known amoung the people of Nazareth, that even his own family did not believe?

The people of Nazareth were very much like so many people today –they thought they knew Jesus, but really did not. And would not, because if Jesus is who he said he was then we are held to a position of accountability.

Oh, we like a manageable god, we like a god who is our magic Jeanie who gives us what we want, and helps us when we need, but a sovereign God? A lord who is LORD, who has authority, glory, sovereign power, an everlasting dominion, a kingdom that will never be destroyed? We want the friend Jesus –and he is our friend. We want the provider Jesus and he is our provider, the account that followers soon after this is the one of the feeding of the 5000. We want the helper Jesus, the giving Jesus, the saving, healing and teaching Jesus. And he is all of those. But he is more, so much more. He is Lord! He is sovereign and has absolute and final authority over all. And to this Jesus, every knee will bow!

But this Jesus, we struggle with. This Jesus we have trouble accepting. Oh, people today will believe in Jesus –the healer, the teacher, the provider. But Lord? Because if he is Lord, then we are in a position of submission, surrender, trust, faith and obedience.

And I wonder if the words of Jesus and the comment of Mark in 6:4-6 are not very applicable to the church today. As I mentioned, many of us here today, and in many churches in our nation, are familiar with Jesus. We know about Jesus, are even familiar with Jesus, but do we lack the trust in Jesus –do we see him as he truly is –Lord of all. Oh, we sing about it and we even may pray with that in mind, but really do we take our familiarity with Jesus for granted? Is he, in a real sense, a prophet without honor?

And I look at several things that parallel the people of Nazareth in regards to Jesus with the church today. A prophet is someone who comes and brings the message of God. Do we listen to and follow the words he brings? What about obeying the directives he gives? Love, serve, repent, use your talents, care for the poor, love God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength?

Do we recognize that He is Lord –and live according to His law, his teaching? Does his lordship penetrate every area and every aspect of our lives? Does he have lordship over our relationships, our sexual activities, our business, our tongue? Does he have lordship over our money, our time, our worship? Or are we so familiar with Jesus, the gentle Jesus, the kind Jesus, that when we hear the commands of Jesus that we say, “That is not the Jesus I know!” and fail to recognize that he has the right, he has the authority, he has the lordship over all.

Several years ago I gave a study on the passage I read earlier from Revelation 19. One man became very indignant with the statement “out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike done the nations. ‘He will rule them with an iron scepter.’ He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.” That is not the Jesus I know, he said. I cannot accept that the Jesus who said, “Let the little children come to me” the Jesus who had compassion is the Jesus of wrath!”

And yet, what does this passage say? What does scripture say? He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He is sovereign, he is judge. He has the authority.

If the church, if the church, were to recognize and live out 24/7 the Lordship of Jesus, the sovereignty of Jesus, the authority of Jesus, what a difference it would make. But sadly, so sadly, we live not much different from the world around us.

And this failure to recognize and live in true faith (I’ll come back to that in a moment), in Jesus results in the lack of evidence of His working in and through His church. Look at verse 5. Why was Jesus not able to do any miracles in his home town? Why do we see so few miracles in our churches today? Oh, there are some and we praise God for them. Perhaps, perhaps, it is because, like the hometown of Jesus, Jesus looks and sees our lack of faith.

This faith is the confidence, trust and surrender to Jesus Christ as Lord. He is the one, the only one who can save us, he is the one, the only one who can forgive sins, he is the one, the only one who is the perfect lamb of God and takes away our sins. He is the one, the only one who redeems us, saves us, is sacrificed for us, it is by His blood that we are saved.

Faith puts us in the position of submission –it is a trust in someone bigger than us, over us, superior to us. We trust in Him for our salvation, he is our hope! He and he alone is given authority to forgive sins, and he and he alone has died in our place to offer this forgiveness, to cleans us from our iniquity, it is by his wounds we are healed. He is Lord.

I wonder, I fear, that we who know Jesus so well, that we who sing of him, read of him, hear of him, have grown up with him, I wonder and I fear if Jesus is amazed at our lack of faith?

Who is this that the wind and the waves obey? Who is this that demons obey? Who is this that sickness is cast out and death conquered? Who is this that speaks with authority and acts in power? Who is this? He is Jesus, Lord of all, worthy of our praise and worship. He is Jesus, Lord of heaven and earth. He is Jesus, sovereign and his dominion is an everlasting dominion.

Friends I encourage, I seriously challenge you to look at this question for yourself, “who is this?” He is Lord. Knowing all you know about Him, would he be amazed at your lack of faith?

I encourage, you too seriously look at Jesus again. Rediscover Him as He is, Lord! And as you discover or rediscover who he really is, not the Sunday School Jesus, not the familiar Jesus, not the comfortable Jesus but the sovereign Jesus, then bring yourself under his leadership, his Lordship.

It was James, the very half brother of Jesus mentioned here, James who knew Jesus better than almost anyone in having grown up with him, it was James who later did come to faith in Jesus who challenged u, Faith without works is dead! That is to say, if you are not backing up your faith with your life, your deeds, you submission and surrender to the Lordship of Jesus, then your faith is dead, but if you have faith and live it, then your faith is complete.

Palm Sunday, April 1, 2012 Jesus the bread of Life

There is an event in the life of Jesus that I want to touch on this morning that I wasn’t going to speak on, but as I reflected on it through the week it impacted me more and more. Turn with me in your Bible first to Matthew 14:13-21.


This event happened maybe two years before the event of Palm Sunday. And it wasn’t until I read the parallel passage about the feeding of the 5,000 in John 6 that something clicked in my head. This is the wonder and majesty of God’ word coming to life, why he gave us 4 accounts of Jesus life and ministry and in particular 4 accounts of this miracle (only miracle recorded in all 4 gospels besides the resurrection) –each adding to the majestic picture of Jesus’ life. I read from Mathew because it is a shorter account of the event. But it is in the gospel of John, we read a much more detailed account of the event and teaching surrounding the feeding of the 5,000. What struck me was verse 4 –“The Jewish Passover was near.” I believe this event happened within a week of Passover. Jesus, probably was preparing to head to Jerusalem, as any good Jewish man would, to celebrate the Passover. We do not read that he went, in this account, but it is highly probable. In any event, the proximately to Passover must be noted –as John does here.

And there are several aspects of this miracle that may pass us by if we do not take note of the time in which it happens.

This miracle of the bread would bring so much to mind in the lives of the Jewish people that reflect back upon the Passover account in the OT. We know that Passover is a foretelling of Christ and the perfect sacrifice He would make. But for them it was yet to come.

The importance of bread in the Passover must not be short changed. Bread was and is considered the most basic and important form of food and often in literature, including the NT, is simply translated as “food.” It was simply made of flour and water, then baked. It was, usually what we would consider unleavened, and was a quick, easy subsistence food. The proximity of this miracle to the time of Passover should not be lost to us. The connection with what Jesus did and with the account of Moses, the exodus and the giving of bread was not lost on the people. In fact, in verses 30-31 they even refer to it.

Let us look back for a moment to Exodus 12, where Moses is given the instructions regarding the bread for Passover.

Highlight some verses here (I know there is much to read and teach and understand about Passover itself, but this morning just looking at the aspect of bread): verse 8, verse 11, verses 14-20.

Getting back now to the event in the NT. As Jesus is preparing and enacting this event there would be bells ringing in the minds of the people. They were deeply aware of the account of Passover through years of celebration and reading (This passage in Exodus would be read each year). As you can see, bread played a significant role in the celebration of Passover, the Feast of unleavened bread which happens the 7 days following Passover, and later the giving of Manna during the time of the Exodus.

Even in the modern observance of Passover, one of the questions asked is “Why on this night do we eat only unleavened bread?” Later the bread is taken and broken and passed out with the blessing “Blessed are you, O Lord our God, King of the Universe, who satisfies us with His commands and commanded us concerning the eating of unleavened bread.”

So we see the importance of bread for the Jewish people, particularly around this time of Passover. Another note about Passover is that as Passover approached, the Jewish people would slowly be getting rid of any bread and leavening so there would be little or no bread available. This adds to the drama and power of the miracle.

We see that the area is remote. Matthew records tat they were in a remote area. The villages within walking distance could not have supplied enough for that many people. Most villages around there would have from 50 -200 people. It would remind the people of their history and being in the desert and in need of food.

Another aspect of the Passover and the Exodus would be the provision of bread from heaven. This is brought up later in the chapter of John. This continued provision of what the people needed is a something that they called for as Jesus responded to in verses 26 and on.

Jesus, in the account of the feeding of the 5000, is acutely aware of the needs of the people. Their immediate need is bread. And Jesus meets that need –he takes 5 loaves and 2 fish and prays thanks to the Father and then distributes the bread and fish. Verse 12, “they all had enough.” And there was more than enough, because we read that there were still 12 full baskets left!

God provides for our needs –more than enough. He knows what we need for today –the strength, the provision, the care, the healing, the forgiveness, the love. As the prayer of the Passover Haggadah says, He satisfies us.

As the miracle occurs and everyone is satisfied, we should also note the disciples are commanded to gather up what is left. There was just enough for each of the disciples. Again, this would bring out the remembrance of Passover where they were commanded to not leave any of the meal till morning.

All of these and more, are woven into the drama of the account of the miracle, and it makes it so much more of a powerful event. Aware of these things, the people, we read in verse14, began to say he was “the” prophet. Not a prophet, but the prophet. Who is this prophet? Again we go back to the account of the Exodus and Moses saying, “The Lord, your God, will raise up a prophet like me from among your own brothers.” (Deut 18:15) The people equated this prophet as a leader or king who would come and free them from their bondage, just as Moses freed them from Egypt. Knowing this, that they intended to make him king, Jesus withdrew.

The people then went searching for Jesus and found him, probably in the town of Capernaum. There he gives some deeper teaching on the significance of the bread. Let me read some of the verses from later in John 10. 32-33, 35-40, skip down to 48, 51, then 53-55.

On the surface this may appear (and it has been accused of Christians in the early church) to be rather gruesome, even cannibalistic. But we need to step into the people and the culture of the time. This idea of eating and drinking as a metaphor is not new –it was used by the rabbi’s of that time and later as a symbolic description of following the Law, the Torah, and doing good works.

What Jesus is calling them to is and intimate and dynamic relationship with God through Himself, as God come in flesh. David Stern in the Jewish NT Commentary writes,

By referring to his flesh, Yeshua wants us to live feel, think and act like Him and the power of the [spirit of God] allows us to do so. Likewise, to drink his blood is to absorb his self-sacrificing, life-motivation and indeed his very life since “the life of the flesh is in the blood.” (Lev. 17:11)

Again, Jesus us calling us not to follow the law but to follow him. Not to eat and drink the law but to eat and drink himself, so that we can have an intimate and dynamic relationship with God, not based on works but grace through faith.

This last Friday I was at a conference in which the speaker challenged us with the statement, “Are you a fan or a follower of Jesus?” How do you know if you are a fan or a follower? Well, it is the difference between admiration and devotion, convenience or commitment, holding back or giving all. Wanting bread or wanting Jesus.

What he is establishing is a new covenant, a new relationship between God and man, a relationship based not on the law but on himself. And that was tough for many to handle and we read in verse 66 many turned away from Him. Jesus calls us not to be casual or convenient Christians, not cultural or Sunday only Christians, but 24/7 commitment to Him. Eat and drink “ME” He says –I am the living bread, and if anyone eats this bread, he has eternal life! (51) The fans left –the followers remained!

And then we move ahead to a time, in just a year or two, when Jesus sits with his followers, his disciples and clearly invites them into this dynamic relationship, this new covenant –this is my body, broken for you, this is my blood, a new covenant, given for you –take and eat it all!

At the feeding of the 5000, Jesus sets the stage for the coming Passover when he would offer himself as the perfect, sinless, sacrifice given for us. When he would offer his body to be broken, when he would shed his blood for us. His blood which would cover the sins of all as a lasting sacrifice and payment. And the words he offers to the crowds then are the same words he offers today:

I tell you the truth, he who believes in me will have everlasting life. I am the bread of life! (6:47-48)

And Jesus invites us to have an intimate and dynamic relationship with the eternal God by believing in him, the bread of life.

Jesus, His authority proclaimed

From the sermon given June 3, 2012 on Mark 1:21-2:12

Our passage this morning is a lengthy and extensive one focusing on the healing and teaching ministry of Jesus. Let’s catch a glimpse of this important area of Jesus’ ministry in Mark 1:27-34.

As Jesus begins his ministry he teaches and proclaims that “the time has come. The Kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news.” He then begins to gather followers, some he calls directly to follow him. This we looked at last week. Just to note, all sermons on this series will be posted through the church website so you can go and catch up on them if you want.

We read in verse 21-22 of Mark 1 that Jesus goes to Capernaum and taught in the Synagogue. Here he encounters a demon possessed man and Jesus commands the demon to leave the man and in verse 26 we read the demon, evil spirit, shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek. It was with this backdrop that the authority of Jesus is questioned (the passage read at the beginning of the message).
An important thing for us to note here is this aspect of authority. You see, the teachers of the time, the scribes and the Pharisees and the rabbi’s all taught and acted on the authority of other rabbi’s -their teachers. No rabbi, or teacher, would teach against the halakhah or oral tradition passed down from his own teachers. They taught under the authority of the one who taught them.
If you have ever seen the movie, "Yentle," you get an idea of this when the young scholars would argue over the meaning of a law and would quote rabbi so-and-so, or rabbi such-and-such. They relied on the authority of those who taught them.
And that is why the teaching and actions of Jesus were so amazing to the people and caused a stir among the scribes, Pharisees and religious leaders.

Later in Mark (chapter 11) the religious leaders would demand, “By who’s authority do you do this?” They were asking, Who is your teacher that said you could do this?
Jesus, we read between the lines, was known. And it was known that he did not go to any of the rabbinic schools, he and not sat under any rabbinic teacher and to them he had no authority passed on to him to teach or even command demons. To them, he had no authority –no teacher or school to say “I have the authority of rabbi so and so.

And yet, to all it could be seen that he taught as one who had authority. He was bringing a new teaching, a fresh teaching about God, His word and His kingdom –a teaching that he was not quoting from some past teacher or a rabbi he studied under –Jesus was bringing a teaching from himself not based on someone else. This was radical, this was new –at least new to those who were so used to hearing about Rabbi this or Rabbi that.

But we must also see that Jesus was not teaching a whole new law or tradition –he based his teaching, his message on something that had come before the halakhah. It was the Law and prophets –the OT. Right at the beginning of this gospel, we see the coming of John the Baptizer and of Jesus deeply embedded in the OT and prophetically fulfilled. While not here in the gospel of Mark, when Jesus was tempted in the desert he dealt with Satan with Scripture –Matthew 4:1-11. Jesus and His new teaching brought them back to the scripture –not the thoughts and traditions of men. This was new, this was amazing!

And where did this authority of Jesus come from? We are given a clue –a big bright clue in 10-12. Luke further adds in hi gospel, Jesus, being full of the Spirit was led by the Spirit into the desert (1) and then in verse 14, “Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit…”

In the gospel of John, as Jesus is praying for the church, he says, “For you [father] granted him [Jesus] authority over all people…” (17:2). The authority of Jesus comes not through man but through the Father, not by the power of tradition but the power of the Spirit. His “new teaching” is not a new teaching because the content is new or even the ideas are new but because Jesus did not teach the teachings of others, the authority of others or the traditions of the past. He comes to speak not what others have spoken but what the Father tells him to speak.
John the beloved writes in his gospel that Jesus said, “For I did not come to speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it. I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.” (12:49-50)

And the authority of Jesus is then demonstrated in his healing and in his casting out of demons. In these early chapters we see Jesus casting out the demon from the man in the synagogue (it is interesting that this man seems to have been coming there for a while and the leaders could not or did not do anything about it). Jesus comes and deals with the authority given to Him by the Father. Jesus heals Peter’s mother-in-law and many other sick and demon possessed. He heals a man with leprosy and then a paralytic. And it is here, in this event, that Jesus proclaims and demonstrates where his power comes from, his authority.

Jesus is again in Capernaum and this paralytic is brought to him. Well, let me read the account (2:1-5). Jesus does not heal the man physically, but on a much deeper level –the good news level, the seek and save the lost level. Jesus says, “your sins are forgiven.”

In this statement, “Your sins are forgiven,” Jesus sets up an unexpected and dynamic exchange between himself and the authorities. In it he announces his purpose, his identity and his authority.

Your sins are forgiven. They know and we know through scripture that forgiveness only comes through the shedding of blood (Leviticus 17:11; Hebrews 9:22). And in this only God can forgive sins by announcing or accepting the sacrifice as sufficient. John the Baptizer announced just months, if not weeks earlier, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” (John 1:29) And now Jesus intimates that he is the perfect sacrifice, the one who will shed his blood once and for all –that through His blood there is forgiveness of sins (Ephesians 1:7), that believing in him there is forgiveness of sin (Acts 10:43) that indeed he has come to offer forgiveness.

Jesus is not only announcing that sin is forgiven but claiming the divine right to forgive sin. And that is why the teachers of the law reacted the way they did. His purpose was to come and be the perfect lamb, the perfect sacrifice, the only acceptable offering for the forgiveness of sins and that he had the right to forgive –now and forever!

And then he goes on to say, “Which is easier to say, to the paralytic, ‘your sins are forgiven’ or ‘get up, take you mat and walk?’ But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority…”

Up to this point Jesus has been ordering people to keep quiet about him. He orders demons to keep silent when they announce who he is. (1:25, 34) He tells those he heals to not tell anyone. (1:44) He retreats to quiet places and the lonely places. But now he makes it clear who he is by identifying himself as the Son of Man.
We look back to Daniel 7:13-14 to realize the impact of this name, this title, Son of Man. Jesus is now further identifying himself as the prophesied messiah. He is no longer keeping his identity a secret but is now himself declaring, I am the messiah, the Son of Man.

But even more, listen again to Daniel 7:14. When Jesus made this pronouncement, the son of man, each teacher, each scribe, even those who had been paying attention in Sunday School (well the equivalent back then) would have drawn a breath because here was Jesus saying, I indeed am the one who has approached the ancient of days (God the father, the creator, the holy great One) and am given, -what? Authority, glory, and sovereign power! Jesus is clearly identifying who he is and his purpose in coming.

And then to show his authority, authority derived not from the teachings of past scholars, not from traditions, not from some rabbinic school, but from himself as the lamb of God, as the Son of Man, as one who, as the scriptures say, has authority, Jesus announces –“that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins…” [PAUSE, TURN] -he looks at the paralytic and says “I tell you, “I” tell you, get up take your mat and go home!”

And what was the reaction of the people? Verse 12. The purpose and identity and authority of Jesus is now boldly declared. And they were amazed! Not that the man was healed, although that is an amazing thing, but they had seen this already. Jesus, remember had healed many, including Simon's mother in law, he had driven out demons, already in Capernaum.

The truly amazing thing, I believe was the authority he showed which was his own, his identity as the son of man and the great news of the gospel –believe, repent and you will be forgiven! I CAN FORGIVE!
Jesus stands on the authority given to Him by the father and He has authority to bring the good news, to call for belief in himself and repentance, to heal and to forgive. Jesus is the Son of Man who has all authority given to him in heaven and in earth. Let there be no doubt that he is the Christ, the son of the living God, the Lamb who will take away the sins of those who believe and repent. Praise God for His extraordinary grace. Let me read Ephesians 1:3-10.

Introduction to Communion
What can wash away my sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus! The blood of Jesus as the lamb of God come to take away the sins of the world. By whose authority? That given by the Father to Christ. He alone is worthy. Colossians 1:13-20.
As we come to communion, let us keep this full in our minds –when Jesus says this is my body broken, this is my blood shed, he speaks with the power authority and purpose of God the Father to declare indeed “Your sins are forgiven!”