The passage this message was preached from, in full, with every other passage it reached for.
Psalm 30:11quoted during song introduction: 'You've turned my mourning into dancing, and you've taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy'
11 You have turned my mourning into dancing for me. You have removed my sackcloth, and clothed me with gladness,
quoted as the basis for the song 'Nothing I Hold On To': 'Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Don't lean on your own understanding... In all your ways, acknowledge him. And he'll make your path straight'
5 Trust in Yahweh with all your heart, and don’t lean on your own understanding.
6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
the main passage read and discussed throughout the message
14 Now after John was taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the Good News of God’s Kingdom,
15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and God’s Kingdom is at hand! Repent, and believe in the Good News.”
16 Passing along by the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.
17 Jesus said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you into fishers for men.”
18 Immediately they left their nets, and followed him.
19 Going on a little further from there, he saw James the son of Zebedee, and John, his brother, who were also in the boat mending the nets.
20 Immediately he called them, and they left their father, Zebedee, in the boat with the hired servants, and went after him.
21 They went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath day he entered into the synagogue and taught.
22 They were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as having authority, and not as the scribes.
23 Immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, and he cried out,
24 saying, “Ha! What do we have to do with you, Jesus, you Nazarene? Have you come to destroy us? I know you who you are: the Holy One of God!”
25 Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!”
26 The unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him.
27 They were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching? For with authority he commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him!”
28 The report of him went out immediately everywhere into all the region of Galilee and its surrounding area.
29 Immediately, when they had come out of the synagogue, they came into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.
30 Now Simon’s wife’s mother lay sick with a fever, and immediately they told him about her.
31 He came and took her by the hand, and raised her up. The fever left her, and she served them.
32 At evening, when the sun had set, they brought to him all who were sick, and those who were possessed by demons.
33 All the city was gathered together at the door.
34 He healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. He didn’t allow the demons to speak, because they knew him.
35 Early in the morning, while it was still dark, he rose up and went out, and departed into a deserted place, and prayed there.
36 Simon and those who were with him followed after him;
37 and they found him, and told him, “Everyone is looking for you.”
38 He said to them, “Let’s go elsewhere into the next towns, that I may preach there also, because I came out for this reason.”
39 He went into their synagogues throughout all Galilee, preaching and casting out demons.
40 A leper came to him, begging him, kneeling down to him, and saying to him, “If you want to, you can make me clean.”
41 Being moved with compassion, he stretched out his hand, and touched him, and said to him, “I want to. Be made clean.”
42 When he had said this, immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was made clean.
43 He strictly warned him, and immediately sent him out,
44 and said to him, “See you say nothing to anybody, but go show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing the things which Moses commanded, for a testimony to them.”
45 But he went out, and began to proclaim it much, and to spread about the matter, so that Jesus could no more openly enter into a city, but was outside in desert places: and they came to him from everywhere.
quoted as a closing benediction: 'All honor and glory to God forever and ever. He's the eternal king... the unseen one who never dies, he alone is God'
17 Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
The message in order, in a few minutes of reading.
This message worked through Mark 1:14-45, the opening stretch of Jesus' ministry in Galilee. The preacher walked the group through Jesus' first announcement, the calling of his first disciples, and a string of healings and exorcisms, drawing out what those events meant then and what they still mean now.
What was said
Jesus opened his ministry with a two-part message: the time God had promised had finally arrived, and the right response was to repent and believe the good news. The preacher made the point that repentance tends to get left out of how the gospel is talked about today. Belief gets most of the attention, but Jesus led with both. Making room in the heart for God, the preacher said, means turning away from sin, not just adding belief on top of life as it already is. One of the group members extended that thought, noting that if people cannot define sin or see themselves as sinners, the call to repent lands on nothing.
The calling of Simon, Andrew, James, and John looks abrupt on the page, but the preacher argued it was not as sudden as it seems. These were ordinary working men who had likely been passed over by the religious establishment their whole lives. They had also been waiting, along with everyone else, for a promised Messiah. When Jesus showed up and spoke with a authority their own teachers did not have, it was not a bolt from nowhere. It was something they had been prepared for.
That authority showed itself immediately. An evil spirit in the synagogue identified Jesus out loud as the holy one of God and obeyed when Jesus told it to leave. The preacher returned to this several times: the miracles are not decoration around the message. They are the proof that the message is real. The kingdom of God really was near. These events were confirmation, one after another.
The healing of Simon's mother-in-law added a detail the preacher found striking. She was healed completely, and she got up and made a meal. One person in the group pointed out that this was not someone crawling out of bed feeling slightly better. She was thoroughly well, well enough to serve. The preacher drew from that a simple thought: when God shows favor, a fitting response is to serve. The form that takes will differ from person to person.
Before the next day's work began, Jesus slipped away to pray alone. When the disciples found him and said everyone was looking for him, he told them they had to move on to other towns, because that was why he came. The preacher read this as Mark showing the outward movement of God's kingdom from the start. It began small, in a specific place, with specific people, but it was always meant to spread. That same spread, the preacher noted, is still happening, in places where the gospel is arriving for the first time.
The chapter closes with a man with leprosy who knelt before Jesus and said, if you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean. The preacher held that up as a picture of honest, direct faith. Jesus responded with compassion, touched him, which no one else would have done, and healed him. Then he told the man to go to the priest and follow what Moses required. A member of the group observed that this was not sensationalism. Jesus was not rewriting anything. He was fulfilling the law and, in sending the man to the priest, offering a testimony to the religious leaders of the day.
The man told everyone anyway, which the preacher noted with some amusement, and the crowds that followed made it impossible for Jesus to enter towns openly. Even so, people came to him from everywhere. The preacher closed by tying the whole passage together around that single thread: miracle after miracle, the message kept being confirmed as real, the circle kept getting wider, and it has not stopped.
Doing a Bible study?
Here is a guide we have prepared for you: the passages
in order, questions for the group, and room to write.
The message opened with Jesus calling people to repent and believe the good news, and the point was made that we do not hear much about repentance anymore. Why do you think repentance gets left out, and what happens to the gospel message when it does?
Simon, Andrew, James, and John left their nets and even their father to follow Jesus right away. What do you think it was about Jesus that made ordinary people, who had likely been looked past by the religious leaders of their day, respond like that?
Well, hello, friends. Welcome. Glad to see you on a Monday. And, a big thank you to Tracy tonight. Can we just give Tracy a hand?
Tracy, that was so delicious.
It was great comfort food, and I really I really enjoyed the cobbler. Why? I loved everything and the bread. And then that other stuff, the fruit and that cheeseburger pie and the soup. It was all really good.
Thank you. And I I think there's gonna be some leftover soup. You wanna bring some cobbler home and stuff like that. Just getting started in the book of Mark. And so, at the end, there's a little bit of conversation time if you wanna add there.
But before we get there, how about we sing a couple songs together? Here's one. Graves to Gardens. It makes me think of of the verse. Well, this one right here.
You've turned my mourning into dancing, and you've taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy. But that is what God can do and has done. I mean, you think about God parting the Red Seas for a whole nation to cross through and to be rescued from their enemies. But in a very real sense, God does that today too. It's a beautiful thing.
Another song I wanna sing. Nothing I hold on to. Let's let's go to let's go to that one. That's a big one. Proverbs three, five, and six.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Don't lead on your own understanding, oh Lord, how we want to, but you are asking us not to. In all your ways, acknowledge him. And you'll make your path straight.
On to. It's nothing I hold on. It's I hold
Lord, we we sing it, but also, we pray it. Lord, would you help us not to hold too tightly, but... And and not to lean on our own understanding, but truly, to lean on in yours in all of our ways, in every area of life, committing ourselves to you, trusting you, and letting you lead our way. You say that we are created in you to do the good works that you prepared for us in advance. And so, Lord, could we keep walking through life with this mindset?
And when we're holding on too tightly, Lord, may we release our grip. In Jesus' name. Amen. Can I have a seat here for a moment? I'd love to love to get into Mark here together.
Alright. So second week in Mark, and, the good news about Jesus, the messiah, the son of God, even if we've heard the story our entire lives. Let's hear it again. I... What I'm finding here as I'm getting the gospels is that there is something to learn every time I open the book.
Every time I open the word, there's something more to learn. And that's what I'm loving about this study. You notice that Mark is extremely fast paced, And and that was a little bit difficult for me because I like in the other gospels that it's a little more exhaustive. It's more stretched out. You get more details.
Like, Mark just says, and he went out in the wilderness. He was tempted by Satan. Angels attended to him. But in the other gospels, you get how he resisted that temptation, and you get more to it. But Mark's...
He's hitting... It's extremely fast paced. He's hitting all the details. And so, like, right out of the gate, he opens with this prophecy from Isaiah. I'm sending my messenger ahead of you.
And John the Baptist is that messenger. He prepared the way for Jesus, by preparing hearts. His message was repent. Turn from sin. Turn to God.
People show up. They're ready to meet this messiah. It'd been hundreds and hundreds of years waiting for this prophecy to come true. And my favorite verse from last week was John saying this. I'm I'm baptizing you with water.
I'm here to prepare your hearts for Jesus. But when Jesus comes, he's gonna baptize you with the Holy Spirit. And that one really hit me square because the Holy Spirit is the real game changer that we have today. Holy Spirit does the work of convict, convince, lead, guide, comfort, the spirit of Christ. They didn't have this yet.
So let's put ourselves back into their shoes. They're kinda just seeing this stuff unfold. Jesus is just beginning his ministry. And so his baptism marks the beginning of ministry. God shows his approval.
And then it says Jesus is led into the wilderness. He's tempted by Satan, and angels attend to him. So, again, very, very, very fast paced, but everything that Mark is saying here, everything that Mark is saying is important because it shares the story of who Jesus is and what it means for him to be the Messiah and how he became the crucified and risen king. So I'm just just sharing the story, saying what it says. So tonight, we get to hear his message, first disciples, followers, and a few miracles in Galilee.
This one's found in Mark one verses 14 through 45. And we're covering a lot of scripture here. But I wanna say this. We're a small group, and so this is a perfect setting for it. If there's something that grabs ahold of you in these verses, please take note of it so we can we can chat a little bit about it and bounce it off one another, and encourage one another with it.
So here we go. Here's what it says. Thank you, Nick, for for tracking with. So this is after Jesus' baptism, temptation, and it says this later on, after John was arrested. Now I wanna make just a a quick note there.
John got arrested because he told king Herod, hey. You shouldn't sleep with your brother's wife, and so Herod throws him in jail. That's the story there. That's why John was arrested. So Mark doesn't make note of that, but that's why he's in jail.
So Jesus went into Galilee where he preached the good news. The time promised by God has come at last, he announced. The kingdom of God is near. Repent of your sins and believe the good news. One day, as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea Of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew.
They're throwing a net in the water for they fish for a living. And Jesus called out to them. Come and follow me, and I'll show you how to fish for people. And they left their nets at once, and they followed him. A little farther up the shore, Jesus saw Zebedee's son, James and John, in a boat.
They're repairing their nets. And so he called to them at once, and they followed him, leaving their father Zebedee in the boat with hired men. Jesus and his companions went to the town of Capernaum. When the Sabbath day came, he went to the synagogue, and he began to teach. And the people were amazed at his teaching for he taught with real authority, quite unlike the teachers of religious law.
And suddenly, a man in the synagogue who was possessed by an evil spirit cried out, why are you interfering with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the holy one of God. Wow. Verse 25.
But Jesus reprimanded him. Be quiet. Come out of that man, he ordered. At that, the evil spirit screamed and threw the man into the... Into a convulsion and then came out of him.
Can you imagine watching this just for a sec? I I just paused to say, can you imagine watching this happen? Amazement gripped the audience, and they began to discuss what happened. What sort of new teaching is this? They asked excitedly.
As such authority, even evil spirits obey his orders. The news about Jesus spread quickly throughout the entire region of Galilee. After Jesus left the synagogue with James and John, they went to Simon and Andrew's home. Now Simon... So Simon Peter.
We know Peter. This is Simon before Jesus gives him that name. So Simon's mother-in-law was sick in bed with a high fever, and they told Jesus about it right away. So he went to her bedside. He took her by the hand.
He helped her sit up, and then the fever left her. And she prepared a meal for him. That evening, after sunset, many sick and demon possessed people were brought to Jesus. The whole town gathered there at the door to watch. So Jesus healed many people who were sick with various diseases, and he cast out many demons.
But because the demons knew who he was, he did not allow them to speak. Before daybreak, the next morning, Jesus got up and he went to an isolated place to pray. Later, Simon and the others went to find him. When they found him, they said, everybody's looking for you. But Jesus replied, we must go to other towns as well, and I'll preach to them too.
That's why I came. And so he traveled throughout the region of Galilee preaching in the synagogues and casting out demons. A man with leprosy came and knelt before Jesus and begging begging him to be healed. If you are willing, you can heal me and you can make me clean. Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out and he touched them.
I'm willing, he said. Be healed. And instantly, the leprosy disappeared, and the man was healed. Then Jesus sent him on his way with a stern warning. Don't tell anybody about this.
Instead, go to the priest. Let him examine you. Take the offering along required by Moses for those who have been healed of leprosy. This will be a public testimony that you've been cleansed. But the man went and he spread the word anyway, proclaiming everybody what had happened.
And as a result, large crowds soon followed, surrounded Jesus, and he couldn't publicly enter a town anywhere. He had to stay in the... In secluded places, but people from everywhere were coming out to him. So I wanna stop there for now. Pray first, share a few thoughts.
And if there's a few that... If there's some verses... Word of encouragement there from... That you've seen, I'd I'd love you to share it as well. But let's pray first.
Lord, thank you again just for being able to open the word, to hear the good news. And I do pray that it would fall fresh, that when we hear it, it wouldn't just be an old story. It'd be an old story that becomes new and afresh in us, that we would, see things maybe we hadn't seen before, that you'd give us new insight. Do ask for your your blessing on the reading of your word and the conversation afterwards that follows. In Jesus' name.
Amen. So a big chunk of scripture here. I just wanna hit some highlights rather than, discuss every verse. But beginning with, verse 15. So this is the message that that Jesus shared.
When he started speaking, giving the message, starting his ministry, this is what he said. The time promised by God has come at last. The kingdom of God is near. Repent of your sins and believe the good news. And that sounds familiar because that's that's what John had said before, and he's he's preparing the way.
The time had come after hundreds of years of waiting. God was establishing his kingdom in in the hearts of people. This was a a a really big deal. A really, really big deal. And so I guess, lately, I've been trying to just put myself in their shoes where you you you hear a lot of, well, suddenly this happened.
Suddenly that happened, and you think, wow. But these things, it was a long time coming. It was a long time coming for Jesus to come on the scene. They were ready. They were ready.
And John had already been preparing the way. The point I'm trying to make here is that God was establishing his kingdom into the hearts of people. But to make room in the heart means turning from sin and turning to God and believe in the good news, and that good news is Jesus. It's who he is. It's what he would say and do.
And just a little takeaway there is repentance and belief are as important today as it was then. If God is going to rule in our hearts, we've got to make room for him by turning away from sin and what we know is wrong and turning to him. So that was a that was a big takeaway. We don't really hear about repentance that much anymore. We hear a lot about the belief.
Yeah. Believe. Believe in faith. And, yes, that is absolutely important. But God is asking also, hey.
To make room in our hearts, there... We've got to be turning away from sin and and to God. And so I I I think that's a a key takeaway there. And then we get to this section on Jesus' first disciples. So Simon, Andrew, James, and John, these guys are all fishermen.
And it always seemed to me, this is so abrupt. They left their nets at once and they followed him. Oh, okay. You know? Or James and John, they leave their dad in the boat to follow Jesus.
I always thought that was kinda funny. But it all seems so so sudden and so abrupt, but it wasn't. Like, when you are... When you consider... These guys have probably been hearing about this promised messiah their whole lives.
It's part of their culture. It's what they hear that this messiah is coming. And here they are. They're these common everyday ordinary people, which I love. This is what I love about Jesus.
He mix and mingle with common everyday ordinary people. May we always be willing to do that. But these guys were probably passed over by the religious leaders and... Of their day. Right?
And from what we see later, their religious leaders didn't really have a whole lot of authority when they spoke, but Jesus did. So there was something very different about Jesus here. And so much so, like, look here in verse verse 22. The people were amazed at his teaching for he taught with real authority quite unlike the teachers of the religious law. I think Mark's making a little jab here.
Just a little one. But Jesus didn't teach like their religious leaders. He taught with authority and so much authority that evil spirits are saying, I know who you are. You're the holy one of God. These are these are evil spirits indwelling in people going, I know who you are.
You're the holy one of God. They're identifying him as as as as as God. So... And Jesus is is casting him out, and he's going, be quiet. And they're and they're obeying him.
They're listening to him. But a little takeaway here a little takeaway here is the miracles are proof that the message is real. I think that's something that kept coming up to me over and over and over again in the study is those miracles are the proof that Jesus' message is real. It's the real deal. That God's kingdom, it really was near.
It was right in front of their noses. And these miracles keep happening one after another. Here's confirmation after confirmation like like Simon Peter's mom-in-law. Let's see if I'm at the right one. Thirty and thirty one.
That one. So she's in bed with a high fever. Jesus takes her by the hand. He helps her up. Fever goes away, and I love this part.
She makes a meal for him. Like, this was her way of showing gratitude to Jesus was she made a meal for him. And I just think that's that's really neat. And that's... That was a big takeaway for me that when God shows favor toward us, a fitting response is to serve him.
You know, for some, is a meal. But for others, it's it's it's totally different. But I I just think that right there... That one really struck me. God shows favor, so we serve him.
I like it. So that night, the miracles continue. Jesus heals many sick and demon possessed people. I mean, this is a busy day for Jesus. It was a full day.
A full day. One after another. And, again, he's showing us the miracles are proof that the message is real. But I wanna make a a little note here, verse 38. I feel like this is a very...
A key verse in Mark. The next morning, Jesus goes to an isolated place to pray. Everybody's looking for him. Hey. You know, you're doing these miracles.
You you... We got more work to do. There's more people. And Jesus says, well, we've gotta go to other towns as well, and I'll preach to them too because that's why I came. And I think that Mark is showing us here that the circle is spreading.
The God... It's it's starting small here, but God's kingdom is gonna grow and grow and grow and grow. Jesus was to be a light to the the nations, the world. And so he's going, I've I've got other places to go to. The message has got to spread.
And the takeaway that I see here is we're hearing... We're in this room, and those kids are down the hall right now because Jesus stayed true to his mission. He did what he said he was gonna do, and that circle continued to spread, and it's still spreading. There is a ministry called Run Ministry. Eric Watt is the guy that, I guess, is one of our missionaries, but I love to get the podcast every week because he's talking about how the gospel is spreading in some of the darkest parts of the world where there is no Christianity, like zero Christianity at all.
And these people are coming to know Jesus, and it is absolutely changing their lives. They've never heard it before. They've never heard the message. They've never heard the good news of God's love and forgiveness. They know violence and darkness and hatred, and now they're getting the light of the gospel.
It's life changing, but it's still happening. You know? And that's the kind of the point that I wanna make here is there was a beginning right there. The circle is spreading and spreading and spreading, and it still is through the Holy Spirit and through through people, believers in Jesus, just being willing to share just being willing to share the message. It's it's powerful.
I I really like that. Still spanning across the globe. And then chapter n, one ends with, Jesus healing that man of of leprosy. And there's a couple of things that I really love about this miracle. Number one is that man's faith.
That one really strikes me. If you're willing, you can heal me, and you can make me clean. He's going, Jesus, I know you can do this. I've heard. I've heard.
I've... He might have even seen. And he's going, if you... If you're willing, you can heal me and make me clean. He believed it.
And then second was Jesus' response, filled with compassion. So real love. Real love. He reached out and touched him. Nobody else would do that.
Nobody would. You'd be unclean. You'd probably be kicked out. But Jesus does. He does touch him, and he heals him.
He said, I'm willing. Be healed. And the little takeaway that I see there is Jesus wasn't just willing. He was able. Not just willing.
He is able. And he always responds to that call of faith. Always. And that just is something that I love about Jesus. But check out verse 44.
With this stern warning, Jesus says, don't tell anybody. Instead, go to the priest. Let him examine you. Take that offering required by the law of Moses. It'll be a public testimony.
So Jesus right there... I think this was an important part was Jesus is showing us total regard for for the law because Jesus came to fulfill that law, to fulfill all the Old Testament law. He didn't come to abolish it. He came to fulfill it. And I think that's just a little important mark right there of it.
And then 45 ends with, he told everybody anyway. I I I just kinda chuckle. He couldn't help it, and the news spread quickly. But for tonight, the main takeaway that that I wanna see here as we're beginning Jesus' ministry and message is the miracles that Jesus did one after another after another. We're gonna keep reading about them over and over and over again.
But those miracles are proof that the message is real. Like, the time really did come. God was establishing his kingdom on earth in the hearts of people. And he used Jesus, and he used the miracles to show us, hey. This message, it's real.
It's real. Mark's not just making this stuff up. Jesus taught with authority. He gathered his disciples. Obviously, he had credibility.
These guys are leaving their nets. They're leaving their dad in the boat to follow after him. Jesus had credibility, but he showed compassion, and he responded to that call of faith. And he wasn't just willing. He was able to heal.
And that message kept spreading and spreading and spreading, and this was the start of God's kingdom on Earth on a global scale to where it is now and still continuing to grow. So I'm gonna close with that, and I wanna pray again. And if there's something that grabbed ahold of you, from from Mark, I'd love for you to to be able to to share it as well. So, God, I thank you again. I I really do for the privilege of just being able to open the world, the word, and and hear the good news of the gospel.
Lord, there are places, around the globe where this is illegal, where you can be hurt or even killed for proclaiming it, for talking about it, for meeting together. And here we are in in in the freedom and safety of a of a of a building like this to hear it. And so, Lord, may we not take that for granted. It truly is a privilege to be able to hear the good news of the gospel. God, I pray that your Holy Spirit would...
It would confirm and affirm our faith and trust in you. And like Peter and Andrew and James and John, when we hear you calling us to follow you, that we would do so without reservation. It's not always an easy road. We know that, but it is worthwhile. And you'll never lead us astray.
In Jesus' name, amen. So from tonight, and you don't have to comment on it, but if there were any verses that were shared from... It was Mark one fourteen through 45. If there were any verses in there that spoke to you, maybe more so now than ever before or just to comment on them. Please, feel free.
Feel free to share. Jim, you got one?
Oh, you do? Oh, yeah. That's right. Are we live? Mhmm.
Yep. So you started out talking about repentance. Was that tied into some of the verses here? Where... Could you bring that up?
Yeah. So that started at the beginning. Right.
I mean
That was the beginning of Jesus' message right there on repentance.
Yeah. Yeah. Just... I was gonna sort of expand upon that a little bit because it's like... I mean, in this world today, if you ask a lot of people, can you define sin?
I'm not sure if a lot of people can answer that. But in the... But they're living it and brazenly brazenly proclaiming it. Good is bad. Bad is good.
Just talk to a lot of people. You know? Just ask them questions on it. So, you know, brings up the the challenge of repentance because it... That's when you understand sin and grasp that.
But if you don't understand that, what are you repenting from? You know, in the world today, at least in The States.
Why why would we need Jesus if there's nothing wrong?
Right. Well, if you can't admit you're a sinner Mhmm. And you need a savior.
Yep.
That's a stepping point. I like to... That's a... I bump into people and those questions get get it going.
They do.
But they allow them to say, I'm gonna save myself. I can save myself.
Mhmm.
Because they don't understand the the concept of a sinless one being the savior that a sinner can't save a sinner.
Yep. I think that's why we've always got a return to that. Right? Yeah. Every one of us.
We've fallen. We've fallen short every day every day. And for him to lead off with repent and believe the good news, turn from sin, turn to God, and believe in the one who he has sent.
Yeah. And it's also like, don't overcomplicate the gospel Yep. Because it'll get lost. Yep. So it's like that message has to just keep coming forth.
Yeah. Anyway, well, good. Thanks. I mean, I just... That would kinda got me going from the start.
It it is good. I I agree. Because we don't probably talk about repentance a lot. You know, we we wanted the warm fuzzies. God is love.
Believe in him. All is well. But first, we've gotta start at that place of, I'm not well, and I need a savior because I've fallen short. And so I I like that Mark's writing style right to the point. Yeah.
Any other comments from the... Boy, the man with leprosy, the healing of Peter's mom-in-law. Have you got one, Nick?
Yeah. I was just gonna say, I I like how he's not sensational. Like, he's not out there just like, tell your friends. It's like a used car salesman. That's what I imagine, like, some kind of big preacher.
But he's like, he's... Do the do the work of God. Go to the priest. Get washed. Get clean.
Like he said, think I it's important that he he is fulfilling that law. And he's also reaching out to the the religious leaders with that one because it is... Let's see. How how does he say it? Take along the offering required of the law of Moses for those who have been healed of leprosy.
This will be the public testimony that you have been cleansed. I I think that's a nice way he's reaching out to that priest. He's reaching out to the people, God's people in that moment as a testimony to to continue to do those things.
And it's a great point, Nick. I hadn't really considered that this week that that that was a testimony to the religious leaders at the time too.
Yeah. Yeah. And and the people that that were waiting, and they were waiting for the messiah to come to Yep. To pay attention to those things too. I just...
I like that it's not it's not sensational. He's he's not trying to rewrite the book as it were, but he's trying to he's trying to fulfill it. He's trying to to be God's steadfastness. And that's one of the things that, like, keeps coming to mind. It's just that steady, patient God.
You know? He's he's not... He could come into the sky right now, call down on all of us that, like, repent, be baptized, and then go away, and then we'd all have a chance. Let's know. This is his plan.
This is how he works.
No flash. No hype. He's meeting us where we're at.
Yeah. Where we're at at the moment.
And, I I really do believe that for those fishermen that, a relationship with with God probably did feel out of out of out of grasp. And I I do believe they were burnt out on religion and feeling very beat up by it. And and that is very much a thing that happens today too. People are feeling beat up by religion. But Jesus is offering a message that is quite unlike those of, you know, the religious people of the time.
Yeah. And to be under Whatever
it might be today.
And to be under a rabbi's tutelage too, it was a status symbol too. So, like, it it was... Yeah. You're right. They were probably burned out.
They were also probably feeling less than Mhmm. And not capable. And and we all know that's who God uses the most is the people who feel like they're less than. So when... You know, you're the most useful when you're at the least.
It does... It is inspiring, though, for us. If we are believers to feel very much at home with ordinary people. I mean, I pray that we would. That that that is huge.
We we should we should be attainable, not unattainable.
Yeah.
You know? And so I'm I'm grateful for that. And and as first being this church, we're not we're not out of reach. I don't think.
And may
that be true, it help us. Yeah.
I just was thinking just about the mother-in-law that was healed here, just how, you know, her fixing a meal also just shows how, you know, complete and thorough Jesus' healing was. You know? I mean, it's not often you, like, jump out of bed. Okay. I'm ready to fix a meal now.
Right.
You know? I mean, it's just like, you know, that, you know, that takes a lot of effort as we saw tonight. You know? It's it's... Doesn't just happen.
Yeah. You know? Yep. And just that Jesus, when he does something, it's the real deal. Yeah.
It's... She wasn't crawling out of bed. Okay. I think I feel a little better.
Right. Making a meal, getting everybody else sick. She's got the flu. Now everybody else is getting caught like wildfire in the house. No mention of that.
She was, well, thoroughly healed.
Yeah. Which which is awesome.
It is. It is. That's a good point. I like that point.
Yeah.
Yep. Yep. So Any others? Well, good. I I I appreciate your thoughts on this.
It's it's good. And and I think what I love about the gospel conversations is that you'll you'll you'll mention things that I go, oh, I didn't see that this week. You know, there's always something more to learn in the gospel. So I love it. Well, should we close in in one last song here?
Let's sing such an awesome God.
Selfish, so generous, so faithful you are. The living bread. Such an awesome God, mighty. So holy, so wonderful. Such an awesome God.
So selfish, so generous, so faithful you are. Nothing comes close to the door. All mighty and nothing has sweet and sweet and Nothing comes close to the door. Oh, mighty, nothing as sweet as is love. And mercy, oh, nothing comes close to the door.
Oh, mighty, and nothing as sweet as his love and mercy. Jesus, the son of God. On the cross doomed I, but not even death can't sell. Hold you down Oh, you rose to light. Such an awesome God, so mighty, so holy, so wonderful.
Such an awesome God. So selfish, so generous, so faithful you are.
That is a good word. How about this little, benediction here from first Timothy, our all honor and glory to God forever and ever. He's the eternal king. He's he's the one we're we're we're reading about in Mark where he becomes the king, and we're finding out why. It's because of these miracles and the message.
The unseed one who never dies, he alone is God. Amen.
