The Unpardonable Sin (Mark 3:22-30)

Here are the PowerPoint slides for Sunday, February 17th. Enjoy!

The unforgiveable sin mark 3 - 22-30 - feb 17, 2013 from John Smith

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pj

A Cursed Fig Tree

Week 11, Day 5 Reading: Matthew 21:18-22

Matthew 21:18-22  In the morning, as he was returning to the city, he became hungry. And seeing a fig tree by the wayside, he went to it and found nothing on it but only leaves. And he said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you again!” And the fig tree withered at once.
When the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, “How did the fig tree wither at once?” And Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”

Many people read this and have to take pause. "Wow! This sure does not fit the mold of Jesus being the loving savior of the world!" And of course, they are right. It does not fit that mold of Jesus. But the problem is not with Jesus ... but the mold in which we have cast him. And that mold is plainly wrong!

So ... what is going on in this passage? The MacArthur Study Bible offers up this insightful explanation:

"Jesus’ cursing of the tree was a purposeful divine object lesson, not an impetuous act of frustration. The fig tree is often employed in Scripture as a symbol of Israel (Hos. 9:10; Joel 1:7)—and the barren fig tree often symbolizes divine judgment on Israel because of her spiritual fruitlessness despite an abundance of spiritual advantages (Jer. 8:13; Joel 1:12). Jesus’ act therefore illustrates God’s judgment against earthly Israel for shameful fruitlessness, exemplified in the rejection of their Messiah. One of Christ’s parables taught a similar lesson (Luke 13:6–9)."

Wow! This passage should cause every single one of us to pause and take a long, hard look at ourselves. Are we bearing fruit for God? Do we live in such a way that people see and hear Jesus in us? Can I point to a difference I have made in another's life? Hard questions to ask ... but necessary ones to answer! 

Thanks for stopping by . . . 
pj

Doubting Faith

Week 11, Day 4 Reading: Matthew 14:22-33

Matthew 14:27-31  But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

It was a dark and stormy night. Well, at the very least it was a dark and windy night. As a result of these brisk winds, the boat the disciples were in would have been rocking as the howling winds pushed wave after wave up against its sides. And try as they might, the disciples could make little headway toward their destination due to this contrary and powerful wind. Into the midst of this, after quite a few hours of frustration with some fear probably mixed in, Jesus comes to the disciples WALKING ON THE WATER! It's no wonder that the disciples thought they were seeing a ghost. No mere man can do what Jesus was doing!

As soon as Peter sees Jesus coming, he blurts out his desire to walk on the water, too. And so Jesus issues the simple command to him, "Come." Peter gets out of the boat and began his journey. He was doing fine until he notices just how uninviting the weather was ... a fierce wind which was undoubtedly whipping up the surface of the sea into piles of angry waves. He begins to sink. At that point, Jesus reaches out to keep him from going under. Once he has Peter firmly in hand, he gives Peter a rather stern rebuke. “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

There are a number of lessons here for us. Here are just two. Peter got himself into trouble when he got his eyes off of Jesus ... and onto the difficult circumstances he found himself in. Once that happened, he began to sink. This is why Jesus accused him rightly of doubting. If we desire to stay on the path God calls us to walk, we must keep our eyes focused on Jesus! Yet there is comfort here. Even when we doubt, we must remember that Jesus is always near ... in his grace and mercy to rescue us! Ultimately we will stand on the final day ... not because of our strength but HIS. Praise God for such a Savior!

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

Feeding the Crowd!

Week 11, Day 3 Reading: Matthew 14:13-21

Matthew 14:17-21   They said to him, “We have only five loaves here and two fish.” And he said, “Bring them here to me.”  Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass, and taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds.  And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over. And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Here in one of Jesus' most familiar miracles.Sometimes when a story is so familiar as this is, we can tend to miss it's significance. But think with me. Jesus starts out with just five loaves and two fishes. After praying over the meal, he then has the disciples distribute the food. Everyone ate until satisfied. Then the disciples collected the leftovers which "just happened" to fill 12 baskets. I can just imagine Peter and Andrew each carrying a basket full and Andrew saying to Peter, "Hey bro, didn't we start with just a small lunch?" And Peter responding, "We sure did! So where in the world did all this food come from?"  And that was just it! It did not come from "this world." Jesus supernaturally created this food on the spot! How much? Well to feed (until satisfied) 5000 men, along with women and children (so perhaps as many as 15,000 people) -- would have taken approximately 2 1/2 tons of food (which would equate to each one eating the equivalence of a MacDonald's quarter-pounder with cheese)! That's a lot of food. But again, no big deal for the One who spoke this vast universe into existence!

Hallelujah! What a Savior!

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

When Fear is Healthy and Good!

Week 11, Day 2 Reading: Mark 4:35-41

Mark 4:41  And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?

When Jesus silenced a violent storm by speaking a command, the disciples, scared one moment that they were going to die, were now even more afraid. And what caused their fear to escalate? I mean, I would have expected them to be jumping up and down and giving each other high fives! After all, their lives had been spared from almost certain drowning! But no. One moment (when their lives were at risk) they were afraid. The next moment (with their lives no longer threatened) they were EXCEEDINGLY fearful! Why?  

The answer is in their question, "What manner of man is this?" You see, they had met all kinds of men. Tall men, short men, rich men and poor men, Jewish men and Gentile men. Usually they had no problem hanging a label on the people they met. But suddenly, right there in the boat with them was a man who did not fit into any of their categories. And they were scared to death (and beyond!). That, my friend, is a great illustration of what it means to fear God. And since fearing God is the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 9:10), I think all of us could stand a good dose of this kind of fear! Let's pray and ask God to help us to truly fear him (think ... a reverential awe)!

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

Doing Whatever He Says!

Week 11, Day 1 Reading: John 2:1-11

John 2:51-5  On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.”  His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

One of the worst things that could ever happen to a host in Jesus' day was to run out of food or wine. Yet this is exactly what happened at a wedding feast that Jesus and his disciples attended. Mary, Jesus' mother, knew that her son could take care of the problem. And so she went to him to ask for help (notice how she did so ... not by asking but by simply pointing out the need). Then she told the servants to "do whatever he tells you."  They did, and suddenly the host went from having no wine to having the best wine! Not a hard task for the One who spoke the universe into existence!

That advice given by Mary and heeded by the servants ... is good advice for us as well. If we truly claim allegiance to Christ as Lord, then why would we not choose to do whatever he tells us to do? Regrettably, our sinful flesh all too often raises its ugly head and sinks it's teeth into our wills in an attempt to get us to go OUR way vs.going God's way (Isaiah 53:6).  All this to say ... as we continue to focus on Jesus and encounter his commands, let's strive to "do whatever he tells us" to do! As we do, Jesus Christ will be glorified and we will be satisfied.

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj

And the Story Races On . . .

Here are the PowerPoint slides for Sunday, February 10th ... Mark chapter 3. Enjoy!

And the beat goes on . . . mark 3 7-35 - feb 10 2013 from John Smith

Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj