Weekend Sermon -- "Mark 6:1-4"

     Thank you for taking time this week to read the message. I am not feeling at all well, so please pray for me. I am also trying to sell my house and I need wisdom on all this. I hope all of you are doing well. Today, the message will not be that long. 

    As we have been going through the Gospel of Mark, we have now made our way to chapter 6. In our verses this week, we learn that Jesus decided to go back to His hometown of Nazareth to teach and to perform miracles. 

    After Jesus' teaching, the people in the town were upset. They said things like He is the carpenter and we know His family right here. They wondered how Jesus came up with His teachings, and they were offended by Him. 

    This all shocked Jesus. He said that a prophet had honor everyone except in his own hometown and amongst his own people including his family. Jesus was not able to perform many miracles in Nazareth, but He did lay hands on a few sick people and heal them. Jesus then went on to the next place where the people were more receptive to what He had to say. 

    I have a personal connection to what Jesus is saying in this passage. When I became a minister, people that I was closely associated with didn't want to listen to me. They tried to discount anything that I might say about theology and the wrongs in the world from a Biblical perspective. I do not really know why this phenomenon exists, but I experienced it and I am well aware of others who have experienced it as well.

    In my case, the biggest pushback always came whenever I tried to provide a Biblical perspective on war, poverty, or nationalism. What do you know about it would be the general retort. Sometimes, like my folks, they just didn't want to listen and kept on doing their thing in their way. I felt in the early days of my ministry, my only real ally was my friend Toby. However, I knew and know what God has called me to do no matter what others think. Because of this, I have persevered.  

    Jesus couldn't believe that people would not want to listen to Him or His message. However, He did not let it get Him down. Not everyone in the town rejected Him. He found some people who did have faith and came to Him in order to be delivered from their infirmities. If a person keeps on spreading the message of love and goodness and the message of the Lord, there will be some who will listen. 

     I want to encourage you today to always do what God has called you to do know matter what your friends or family or people in your hometown say about it. Keep serving the Lord. Don't let their negativity destroy the positive and good things that God wants to do in and through you. 

    Because I did not let others get me down and ruin my ministry, I have been able to preach, teach, write, evangelize and speak up for God and the things of God. Others didn't think I could do it. I received only discouragement. However, I knew and know what Jesus wanted and wants me to do. That is all I can do is follow Him to the best of my ability. That is what you need to do too. Do not be discouraged. 

    When you go full out for the Lord, He will go with you. He will not leave you. Amen. 

Prayer Request

     Please keep praying that I will get to feeling better. As I write this message, I am not doing well at all. I do thank you for your prayers. 

    Keep praying that Venezuela will get the aid and the help that they need to recover from the devastation of the earthquake. 

    Remember to keep praying for the end of the Ebola outbreak. 

    Pray for peace. Things aren't looking great in the Middle East, and Ukraine and Sudan still need our prayers. 

    For our prayer focus countries this week, let us pray for those in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Pray that many will come to know Jesus. 

    Next week, we will continue in Mark. I will post the verses on Tuesday. May God bless you all. 

Verses For The Week

 I Corinthians 2:9 -- "But, as it is written, What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love Him."

Revelation 21:4 -- "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall their be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for all the former things have passed away."

Weekend Sermon -- "Mark 5:25-34"

      I thank the Lord for giving me this chance to post the message once again. I hope that all of you are having a really good week. I am doing pretty good. 

     Last week, we looked into the account in Mark of the healing of Jairus' daughter. Today, we want to look at the healing encounter Jesus had right in the middle of that story. 

     As Jesus was traveling to the house of Jairus to heal his daughter, there was a great crowd around Him, and they were following Him pressing in on Him from all sides. In that crowd was a woman who had a bleeding disorder for twelve years. She had spent all she could spend on the doctors of her day, and all they had accomplished was to make her condition worse. 

    This woman was determined to get to Jesus. She made her way through and touched Jesus' garment. Jesus perceived that healing power had gone from Him, and He wanted to know who touched Him. He located the woman who I am sure was fearful that Jesus might be mad. Of course, He wasn't. He told her to go in peace as her faith had made her whole. 

    What can we learn from this incident in the life of the Lord Jesus?  The first thing I want us to consider is that the Lord is the helper of the helpless and the hope of the hopeless. This woman had exhausted all she knew to do. She was out of money, and she was getting worse and worse. She needed help and hope, so she went to Jesus. In this, she is an example to us. 

    All of us, no matter who we are, need help from time to time. We get to the end of our rope and we don't know what to do. We have done all that we know to do. We need to go to Jesus. He is the one who will help us in our darkest hour. Even when we have given up hope, He is our hope. 

    Jesus is the ultimate help and hope. He helps us by forgiving our sins and giving us abundant life now and in the place that He has gone to prepare for us. He gives us hope letting us know that through the power of His resurrection, death is not the end. All who have died in Christ will be with Him and with those who have placed their faith and trust in Him. 

    The second thing I learn from this is that this woman did not let anything keep her from getting to Jesus. She was going to at least find a way to touch the hem of His garment. She was determined in her faith. That is how we should be. 

    We should not let the cares of this world and the sins that so easily beset us keep us away from the Lord. We need to be with Him, and we need to stay close to Him. We don't want anything to hinder our communion with our Savior and Lord. 

    Finally, I want to point out that Jesus is the one who sees and cares about even those who others have forgotten. Jesus wanted to know who touched Him because He wanted her to know that He cared about her. The disciples were ready to move on. But Jesus wanted the woman to know that she was seen and loved. 

    Jesus cares about you know matter who you are or were you come from. He loves you no matter your race, ethnicity or socio-economic status. He wants you to know that you are special to Him, and that you are dearly loved. 

    This miracle encounter shows us a compassionate Lord. He cares about us and He loves us. Amen. 

Prayer Requests

    I am trying to sell my house. Please pray that all will go according to the Lord's will. 

    Please pray for an end to the Ebola outbreak. 

    Pray that those affected by the earthquake in Venezuela will get the aid and the help that they need. 

    Let us pray for safety at the World Cup. 

    Continue to pray for peace. Pray for the Middle East, Sudan and Ukraine. 

    For our prayer focus countries, this week we will pray for those in Oman and Suriname. Pray that many will come to know Jesus. 

    Next week, I will continue in Mark. I will post the verses on Tuesday. May God bless you all. 

Verses For The Week

 Romans 14:8 -- "If we live, we live for the Lord, and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord."

II Corinthians 5:15 -- "And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for Him who died for them and was raised again."

Weekend Sermon -- "Mark 5:21-43"

      Thank you for reading the message this week. I have been under the weather this week, so please pray for me. I hope that you are all doing well. 

     Today, we are going to be studying in the book of Mark once again. In our passage for the day, there are actually two different healing accounts. There is the account of the healing of Jairus' daughter and the healing of the woman with the bleeding condition. Today, we are going to focus on the first one, and next week we will focus on the second. 

     Jairus was an official with the synagogue who came to Jesus when his daughter was sick and on death's door. He asked Jesus to come to his house and heal her. Jesus agreed to come, but as they were delayed with the other healing, word came to Jairus that his daughter had died. Jesus told him to keep believing and they continued to the house. 

     When they arrived, the mourners were wailing over the loss of the little girl. Jesus told them that she was just sleeping, and they laughed at Him. Jesus went into the little girls room with Peter, James and John. He told the girl to rise, and she did. He then told them to give her something to eat. 

     For our message today, I want us to focus on the fact that they laughed at Jesus. Why did they do it, and why do people do it today? 

    When Jesus said the little girl was asleep, they laughed at Him. They thought He was crazy, but they were not thinking in the spiritual. Jesus knew that death is not the end. Death for those who believe in Him is like going to sleep and then waking up in His presence forever. There is nothing to fear in death for those who are in Christ. Jesus knew that this little girl was just asleep awaiting her transformation to glory, or in this instance, her resurrection at the word of the Lord. 

    Just as the people laughed at Jesus then, there are people that are doing the same thing today. People laugh at the teaching of Jesus. They think that it is foolish to love your neighbor as yourself. They find it unrealistic to not worry about tomorrow but to trust all things to the Lord. They find in laughable that one should turn the other check and love one's enemies as oneself. The teachings of Jesus are laughed at by many and discounted. 

    Many laugh at and disparage Jesus for claiming to be the only way to the God the Father. Jesus said the He was the way, the truth and life. No one can come to the Father except through Him. People find this offensive, and they laugh at Jesus for thinking and teaching this. They think that there are many ways not just His way. 

    I have met people that find it laughable that Jesus died on the cross to save us from our sin. In fact, I encountered one such person today. He laughed when I told him that those who put their faith and trust in the Lord Jesus will be with Him when they pass away. He found that laughable that anyone should believe such a thing in this day and age. 

    These are just a few of the things that cause people to laugh at Jesus or ridicule Him. In spite of that, Jesus still loves them. He loves the whole world and invites any and all to come to Him so that they might experience the abundant life that only He can give. 

    I hope that you will not reject, laugh at or ridicule Jesus. He is the one who has the words of life. He is the one who has come to seek and save that which is lost. Amen. 

Prayer Requests

    As I mentioned, I am not feeling well and need your prayers. Also, they are calling for flooding in my area. Pray that this does not happen. 

    Keep praying for an end to the Ebola outbreak. 

    Pray for peace. Keep Ukraine, Sudan, Myanmar, the Middle East and all areas encountering violence in your prayers. 

    For our prayer focus countries this week, let us pray for those in the nations of Qatar and Bosnia. Pray that many will come to know Jesus. 

    Next week, we will continue in Mark 5. I will post the verses on Tuesday. May God bless you all. 

Verses For The Week

 Psalm 95:3 -- "For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods."

Luke 1:50 -- "And His mercy is for those who fear Him from generation to generation."

Weekend Sermon -- "Mark 5:1-20"

     It is once again time for the Weekend Sermon. Thanks for taking the time to read it. I hope that you are all well. 

     We are in Mark once again this week. We are starting a new chapter, and I have to say, this is a story that has some difficulties in it. I will tell you what I think. Some may not agree. That is OK. 

     As we saw last time, Jesus and His disciples crossed over to the other side of the lake. They had now come to the area of the Gerasenes which was a Gentile area. When Jesus and those with him got out of the boat, they were met by a man who was violently demon possessed. He spent his time among the tombs and could not be contained even when chained up. He/the demons asked not to be tormented. 

    Jesus asked the demon his name, and they said Legion because there were many of them. Jesus commanded them to leave the man. The demons asked to be allowed to go into a herd of pigs grazing nearby. Jesus gave them permission, and when the pigs realized they were possessed they ran themselves off the cliff into the lake. 

    The man was free, but the people of the area didn't care. They asked Jesus to basically get out of town. 

    The man who was freed asked Jesus to let Him follow Him. However, Jesus said no. He told the man to go and tell others what God had done for Him. And that is what the man did. 

    So, what are we to make of all this? What is the lesson for us today? First of all, did this man actually have thousands of demons in him? The Bible is clear that he did, so I will go with that. However, this story is using symbolism to make a much broader point. 

    When Jesus asked the demon its name it said Legion. This is a direct reference to Rome. Rome was introducing the worship of idols into the entire area. That area where Jesus was was a hotbed for idolatrous religious practice which used pigs as a sacrificial animal. 

    By casting out a demon or demons named Legion, the story is letting us know that Jesus and His message is more powerful than the evil forces of the Roman Empire as well as more powerful than even a legion of thousands of demons. No power of evil can withstand the power of the Lord. 

     Now to the pigs. Did Jesus directly send the demons into the pigs? He did not. Also, the demons did not drive the pigs into the sea. The pigs did it themselves to prevent the demons from possessing them. Some will disagree with this interpretation. 

    The pigs are in this story to demonstrate the power of the Lord over the power of the gods worshipped by the Romans and other pagan peoples. They were left with nothing to sacrifice. 

    The reaction of the townspeople is also highly symbolic. Their reaction shows us the attitude of so many who care about profit over people. They were more worried about the bottom line of their loss of profit now that their pigs were gone than the fact that a man was freed from torment. They were also afraid of Jesus, and they wanted Him gone. 

    People today who care more about profit over people have the same attitude. They do not want to be confronted by the Jesus who calls us to care for the least of these. 

    Now, what about the man wanting to follow Jesus? Jesus said no. Why? Jesus wanted him to be His witness to his own people. And who could have been better? He was a walking and talking testimony to the transforming power of God's grace. 

    This account has a lot to teach us. Jesus has more power than any power of darkness. When we are in Christ Jesus, we are safe in Him. No power of hell can separate us from the love of God in Jesus Christ. Jesus will be the ultimate victor over every force of evil and darkness. It cannot and will not stand. 

    Our job as believers in Jesus is to care about people and to love others. We are to tell others about the wonderful things that the Lord has done for us so that their lives might be transformed by His forgiveness, love and grace. Amen

Prayer Requests

    Unless something changes, I am about ready to sell my house. Please pray for me. 

    Please pray for my sister-in-law as she is recovering from an operation. 

    Continue to pray for an end to the Ebola outbreak as well as hantavirus. 

    Keep praying for peace. Pray that peace comes in the Middle East situation and that the peace holds. We need to keep praying for peace in Ukraine and in Sudan. 

    For our prayer focus countries this week, let us pray for those in the nations of Uzbekistan and Cambodia. Pray that many will come to know the love of the Lord. 

    Next week, we will continue in Mark. I will post the verses on Tuesday. May God bless you all.