WEBVTT 00:00:04.360 --> 00:00:06.540 You're listening to the Christ Our Cornerstone 00:00:06.540 --> 00:00:09.720 podcast ministry of Christ Our Cornerstone Church 00:00:09.720 --> 00:00:12.419 in O 'Neill, Nebraska. I'm Pastor Logan Merrick, 00:00:12.419 --> 00:00:14.580 and it's our prayer that this message strengthens 00:00:14.580 --> 00:00:17.539 your faith and draws you closer to Christ. Let's 00:00:17.539 --> 00:00:23.019 dive in. All right. If you would turn with me 00:00:23.019 --> 00:00:25.980 to Mark chapter one, we're going to be unpacking 00:00:25.980 --> 00:00:28.839 verses 14 through 31. You don't have a Bible. 00:00:28.879 --> 00:00:31.460 There's one in the back that is free for you 00:00:31.460 --> 00:00:38.359 to take. as our gift to you, or you can follow 00:00:38.359 --> 00:00:42.500 along right up here. So we're gonna be unpacking, 00:00:42.659 --> 00:00:46.460 the title of my sermon today is When Jesus Calls. 00:00:47.780 --> 00:00:51.100 We're gonna look at the ways in which Jesus calls, 00:00:51.219 --> 00:00:54.619 and so the big idea is Jesus' call invites us 00:00:54.619 --> 00:00:58.140 into a transformative journey of faith that requires 00:00:58.140 --> 00:01:03.219 our response, commitment, and reverence. untimely 00:01:03.219 --> 00:01:09.019 reshaping of our lives and community. I have 00:01:09.019 --> 00:01:17.859 to, it's kind of ironic that my opening was in 00:01:17.859 --> 00:01:20.640 regards to imagining being freed, having someone 00:01:20.640 --> 00:01:25.239 fight on your behalf. And the irony of this is 00:01:25.239 --> 00:01:28.010 that I have that the Greeks So let me let me 00:01:28.010 --> 00:01:29.890 back up. Let me have me to read to you what I 00:01:29.890 --> 00:01:32.189 have. Imagine waking up every morning knowing 00:01:32.189 --> 00:01:36.269 that your future was not your own. Your crops 00:01:36.269 --> 00:01:40.370 were not yours. Your sons could be called at 00:01:40.370 --> 00:01:43.549 any time to fight on behalf of a nation that 00:01:43.549 --> 00:01:48.510 is not yours. Your daughters could be taken and 00:01:48.510 --> 00:01:52.310 used as property of the king and your wealth 00:01:52.310 --> 00:01:57.150 was taxed into poverty. Your land belonged to 00:01:57.150 --> 00:02:01.189 a foreign empire. And this was the life for many 00:02:01.189 --> 00:02:04.790 Greek cities under the shadow of Persia. The 00:02:04.790 --> 00:02:09.110 irony of me starting that way is before I actually, 00:02:11.789 --> 00:02:13.669 I started putting the sermon together on Monday, 00:02:13.750 --> 00:02:16.030 I finished it on Wednesday, and what happened 00:02:16.030 --> 00:02:18.490 Wednesday night into early Thursday morning. 00:02:21.930 --> 00:02:26.750 Yeah, we started our attack with Israel on Iran. 00:02:28.090 --> 00:02:37.050 Who is ancient Iran? The Persians. And so I've 00:02:37.050 --> 00:02:43.949 seen so many videos and pictures of Iranians, 00:02:45.110 --> 00:02:48.310 whether here in the States or in Iran or anywhere 00:02:48.310 --> 00:02:54.939 else celebrating. having a dictator, an evil 00:02:54.939 --> 00:03:00.960 one at that, taken down. And you can be upset 00:03:00.960 --> 00:03:04.259 about being at war and all those things, you 00:03:04.259 --> 00:03:09.560 know, fine. The point I'm trying to make is, 00:03:09.580 --> 00:03:13.560 though, when you see cities like Chicago, Washington, 00:03:14.099 --> 00:03:17.020 DC, San Francisco, California, you know, the 00:03:17.020 --> 00:03:21.000 strongholds of conservatism, When you see those 00:03:21.000 --> 00:03:26.400 cities filled with Iranians celebrating Donald 00:03:26.400 --> 00:03:33.740 Trump, something serious has happened. I read 00:03:33.740 --> 00:03:40.780 a story of a young woman whose grandfather was 00:03:40.780 --> 00:03:48.349 taken by the Ayatollah. He and five other men 00:03:48.349 --> 00:03:52.669 were abducted. They were tied up for being against 00:03:52.669 --> 00:04:00.189 the regime. Their courtroom session lasted 30 00:04:00.189 --> 00:04:04.810 minutes and then they were executed. That woman 00:04:04.810 --> 00:04:07.750 is celebrating the execution of an evil man. 00:04:09.129 --> 00:04:15.310 50 ,000 people just right in the last couple 00:04:15.310 --> 00:04:17.990 of years have all been murdered under this regime. 00:04:19.689 --> 00:04:24.509 So whenever they see the United States and Israel 00:04:24.509 --> 00:04:33.930 flying over and dropping bombs and they feel 00:04:33.930 --> 00:04:38.230 their freedom, it kind of sits a little bit different. 00:04:39.509 --> 00:04:43.589 Does that make sense? And I found it just so 00:04:43.589 --> 00:04:45.189 ironic that I was going to be preaching this 00:04:45.189 --> 00:04:49.509 sermon and talking about this. And I'm like, 00:04:49.509 --> 00:04:54.790 man, what a what a beautiful. Analogy, an illustration 00:04:54.790 --> 00:04:58.310 of what I'm trying to drive home of the celebration 00:04:58.310 --> 00:05:04.449 of being of an enslavement being broken. And 00:05:04.449 --> 00:05:10.470 so. The life of Greeks under the shadow of Persia. 00:05:10.680 --> 00:05:12.980 The greatest superpower the world had ever known 00:05:12.980 --> 00:05:15.920 up until that point, to resist Persia was to 00:05:15.920 --> 00:05:18.439 invite annihilation, and they were vast, they 00:05:18.439 --> 00:05:22.000 were ruthless, and they were unstoppable, or 00:05:22.000 --> 00:05:25.220 so it seemed. And then against all odds, the 00:05:25.220 --> 00:05:28.180 Greeks fought back. You've heard of a marathon. 00:05:28.980 --> 00:05:32.680 Do you know why it's called a marathon? Because 00:05:32.680 --> 00:05:35.959 the very marathon that we run was run first by 00:05:35.959 --> 00:05:42.790 the Greeks. for the Battle of Marathon. And so 00:05:42.790 --> 00:05:47.149 here's what's interesting. Small city states 00:05:47.149 --> 00:05:51.009 and places like Marathon and Solanus, you had 00:05:51.009 --> 00:05:53.629 farmers, fishermen, craftsmen, all stood toe 00:05:53.629 --> 00:05:57.470 to toe with the might of Persia and miraculously 00:05:57.470 --> 00:06:01.550 they won. But in a world without social media, 00:06:01.629 --> 00:06:04.889 in a world without phones, in a world without 00:06:04.889 --> 00:06:10.759 news, how does this story spread? How does the 00:06:10.759 --> 00:06:15.139 victory of overcoming an enslavement, how does 00:06:15.139 --> 00:06:23.660 it spread? What's that? Messengers, it's exactly 00:06:23.660 --> 00:06:29.360 right. They would run from the battlefields up 00:06:29.360 --> 00:06:35.800 to 25 miles. They also, back then they were called 00:06:35.800 --> 00:06:41.660 evangelists. That's pretty cool, right? But they 00:06:41.660 --> 00:06:44.040 always had a single announcement and this is 00:06:44.040 --> 00:06:48.500 the announcement We have fought for you. We have 00:06:48.500 --> 00:06:52.100 won and you are no longer slaves. You are free 00:06:52.100 --> 00:06:57.620 Again a beautiful illustration of what has Come 00:06:57.620 --> 00:07:01.040 to pass this past week And so could you imagine 00:07:01.040 --> 00:07:03.439 hearing those words for the first time the shock 00:07:03.439 --> 00:07:06.819 the disbelief the joy the tears? Generations 00:07:06.819 --> 00:07:09.519 born into fear, suddenly discovering that they 00:07:09.519 --> 00:07:12.620 were free. Chains were being shattered not only 00:07:12.620 --> 00:07:14.980 by their strength, but by the victory won somewhere 00:07:14.980 --> 00:07:18.480 else on their behalf. That message in the name 00:07:18.480 --> 00:07:24.000 and had a name in Greek. You and Gellion. Which 00:07:24.000 --> 00:07:28.240 means good news, which is where we get our term 00:07:28.240 --> 00:07:32.480 gospel. And that is exactly the word that Mark 00:07:32.480 --> 00:07:35.399 uses when he introduces the public words of Jesus. 00:07:35.639 --> 00:07:38.680 After the wilderness and after temptation, after 00:07:38.680 --> 00:07:42.420 spiritual warfare and after unseen victory, we 00:07:42.420 --> 00:07:45.300 see Jesus speak for the first time in Mark's 00:07:45.300 --> 00:07:48.360 gospel. So let's go there now, starting in verse 00:07:48.360 --> 00:07:53.339 14. I will read through verse 31 and then pick 00:07:53.339 --> 00:07:57.439 back up. So here we go. Now, after John was arrested, 00:07:57.560 --> 00:08:01.019 John the Baptist, Jesus came into Galilee proclaiming 00:08:01.019 --> 00:08:04.639 the gospel of God and saying the time is fulfilled. 00:08:05.040 --> 00:08:09.300 and the kingdom of God is at hand, repent and 00:08:09.300 --> 00:08:15.379 believe in the what? The gospel. Passing alongside 00:08:15.379 --> 00:08:17.860 the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew, 00:08:18.000 --> 00:08:21.560 the brother of Simon, casting a net into the 00:08:21.560 --> 00:08:23.639 sea, for they were fishermen. And Jesus said 00:08:23.639 --> 00:08:26.439 to them, follow me and I will make you fishers 00:08:26.439 --> 00:08:28.959 of men. And immediately they left their nets 00:08:28.959 --> 00:08:32.240 and followed him. And going on a little farther, 00:08:32.409 --> 00:08:37.629 He saw James, the son of Zebedee and and John, 00:08:37.750 --> 00:08:39.809 his brother, who were in their boat, mending 00:08:39.809 --> 00:08:42.330 their nets. And immediately he called them and 00:08:42.330 --> 00:08:45.649 they left their father Zebedee in the boat with 00:08:45.649 --> 00:08:50.149 the hired servants and followed him. And they 00:08:50.149 --> 00:08:53.009 went into Capernaum and immediately on the Sabbath, 00:08:53.070 --> 00:08:55.570 he entered a synagogue and was teaching and they 00:08:55.570 --> 00:08:58.309 were astonished at his teaching, for he taught 00:08:58.309 --> 00:09:03.039 them as one who had what does it say? authority 00:09:03.039 --> 00:09:07.799 and not as the scribes, the teachers. And immediately 00:09:07.799 --> 00:09:11.379 there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean 00:09:11.379 --> 00:09:13.399 spirit and he cried out, what have you to do 00:09:13.399 --> 00:09:16.240 with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to 00:09:16.240 --> 00:09:19.240 destroy us? I know who you are, the holy one 00:09:19.240 --> 00:09:22.799 of God. But Jesus rebuked him saying, be silent 00:09:22.799 --> 00:09:26.440 and come out of him. And the unclean spirit convulsing 00:09:26.440 --> 00:09:29.740 him and crying out with a loud voice came out 00:09:29.740 --> 00:09:33.980 of him. and they were all amazed. So that they 00:09:33.980 --> 00:09:36.559 questioned among themselves saying, what is this? 00:09:36.820 --> 00:09:41.519 A new teaching with authority? He commands even 00:09:41.519 --> 00:09:44.720 the unclean spirits and they obey him. And at 00:09:44.720 --> 00:09:48.080 once his fame spread everywhere throughout all 00:09:48.080 --> 00:09:52.480 the surrounding regions of Galilee. And immediately 00:09:52.480 --> 00:09:55.779 he left the synagogue and entered the house of 00:09:55.779 --> 00:09:59.840 Simon and Andrew with James and John, now Simon's 00:09:59.840 --> 00:10:02.279 mother -in -law lay ill with a fever and immediately 00:10:02.279 --> 00:10:05.899 they told him about her. And he came and took 00:10:05.899 --> 00:10:09.740 her hand and lifted her up. And the fever left 00:10:09.740 --> 00:10:17.759 her and she began to serve them. So thus says 00:10:17.759 --> 00:10:20.559 the word of the Lord. What are some things that 00:10:20.559 --> 00:10:23.179 you pick up right here? Just reading this text, 00:10:23.879 --> 00:10:25.539 what are some things that kind of stand out to 00:10:25.539 --> 00:10:27.620 you? Maybe something that hasn't stood out to 00:10:27.620 --> 00:10:31.250 you before or always stands out to you. What 00:10:31.250 --> 00:10:33.009 did we say, while you guys are looking at that, 00:10:33.049 --> 00:10:36.870 what did we say was the reason why Mark is always 00:10:36.870 --> 00:10:43.049 saying the word immediately? You guys remember? 00:10:45.370 --> 00:10:50.289 That the kingdom of God is always moving forward, 00:10:50.429 --> 00:10:53.649 it cannot be stopped. It takes no prisoners, 00:10:53.769 --> 00:10:59.139 it just continues to keep going. And so you see 00:10:59.139 --> 00:11:02.419 that in this text with immediately, immediately, 00:11:02.679 --> 00:11:04.899 immediately, it's like thing after thing after 00:11:04.899 --> 00:11:10.559 thing after thing, he's hitting us. So does anything 00:11:10.559 --> 00:11:23.580 stand out to you guys? That's good, Wesley, good 00:11:23.580 --> 00:11:28.970 job. You didn't hear him? He said, what did I 00:11:28.970 --> 00:11:31.470 say? Did I say Wesley? My bad, Weston. I know 00:11:31.470 --> 00:11:35.330 your name. I've said it a thousand times. But 00:11:35.330 --> 00:11:39.370 he said they don't even ask who he is. They just 00:11:39.370 --> 00:11:41.690 follow when he calls them. That's good. Anybody 00:11:41.690 --> 00:11:57.879 else? And last week, We talked about how he went 00:11:57.879 --> 00:12:02.700 from baptism into temptation. The enemy, every 00:12:02.700 --> 00:12:05.360 time God does something, the enemy immediately 00:12:05.360 --> 00:12:08.360 counterattacks, right? And we see that continuing 00:12:08.360 --> 00:12:10.539 to flow through. That's good, Scott. Anybody 00:12:10.539 --> 00:12:19.620 else? So before Jesus heals a disease, before 00:12:19.620 --> 00:12:22.379 he cast out a demon, before he calms a storm, 00:12:22.779 --> 00:12:26.179 the first time we hear his voice in Mark's gospel, 00:12:26.220 --> 00:12:29.379 it is not gentle. It is actually triumphant. 00:12:29.480 --> 00:12:32.539 It is the voice of a herald, of an evangelist. 00:12:33.460 --> 00:12:35.440 So this morning we're going to start unpacking 00:12:35.440 --> 00:12:38.700 what it is to be called of Jesus and the call 00:12:38.700 --> 00:12:41.899 of Jesus and the steps we see the call takes 00:12:41.899 --> 00:12:45.259 on us too. So the first point that I have this 00:12:45.259 --> 00:12:51.850 morning is the call. to respond. So the gospel 00:12:51.850 --> 00:12:56.610 is an announcement. It's not advice. This is 00:12:56.610 --> 00:13:00.029 crucial for you to understand this, that the 00:13:00.029 --> 00:13:03.970 gospel isn't just this is to make you feel good 00:13:03.970 --> 00:13:07.750 or to have a healthy, stronger life or how to 00:13:07.750 --> 00:13:12.289 make money. That's not the gospel. Any idea on 00:13:12.289 --> 00:13:20.820 why that's not the gospel? Why is it not the 00:13:20.820 --> 00:13:31.320 gospel? Okay, to make us feel good, it's temporary. 00:13:31.539 --> 00:13:37.480 Yeah, that's good. Anybody else? How about it 00:13:37.480 --> 00:13:42.159 just doesn't bring hope? Advice doesn't bring 00:13:42.159 --> 00:13:45.340 hope. It may bring temporary relief. It may challenge 00:13:45.340 --> 00:13:49.490 you, but it's not hope. And so it is news of 00:13:49.490 --> 00:13:51.590 something that has happened in history, something 00:13:51.590 --> 00:13:54.509 that has been done for you that changes your 00:13:54.509 --> 00:13:57.990 status forever. And so right here, we see the 00:13:57.990 --> 00:14:00.330 difference between Christianity and every other 00:14:00.330 --> 00:14:03.950 religion, including having no religion at all. 00:14:04.750 --> 00:14:07.350 And so you can write this down, bless you. The 00:14:07.350 --> 00:14:12.009 essence of other religions is advice. This is 00:14:12.009 --> 00:14:14.559 what it says. This is what you must do to connect 00:14:14.559 --> 00:14:18.879 with God or a God or whatever. This is how you 00:14:18.879 --> 00:14:24.559 must live to earn your way to Him. That's not 00:14:24.559 --> 00:14:29.059 the gospel. By the way, something that would 00:14:29.059 --> 00:14:32.200 would claim to be Christianity and the gospel 00:14:32.200 --> 00:14:36.860 would would say this. What am I talking about? 00:14:37.080 --> 00:14:40.460 Mormonism. This is why Mormons are not Christians. 00:14:43.540 --> 00:14:47.700 But Christianity is news. This is what we declare 00:14:47.700 --> 00:14:50.379 as believers. This is what has been done in history. 00:14:50.720 --> 00:14:53.879 This is how Jesus lived and died to earn your 00:14:53.879 --> 00:14:57.919 way to God for you. It has been done for you 00:14:57.919 --> 00:15:00.840 and that's what changes everything. And so think 00:15:00.840 --> 00:15:05.179 about it. When you hear an inspiring story or 00:15:05.179 --> 00:15:07.679 you receive advice about how to live better, 00:15:08.120 --> 00:15:10.320 maybe have higher morals, stronger discipline, 00:15:10.820 --> 00:15:16.519 deeper integrity, Does it inspire you? Does it? 00:15:17.539 --> 00:15:19.799 Oh, yeah, I can. It can inspire you, right? Like 00:15:19.799 --> 00:15:25.059 what I mean by that is is is. Yeah, it's temporary, 00:15:25.139 --> 00:15:28.980 right? So so Jaco Willink is a former Navy SEAL, 00:15:29.019 --> 00:15:32.480 and he has a whole podcast and books on disciplining 00:15:32.480 --> 00:15:36.399 your body, right? And I listen to Jaco Willink 00:15:36.399 --> 00:15:39.220 and I'm like inspired to want to like get in 00:15:39.220 --> 00:15:43.000 shape to be a man. to like get up early at four 00:15:43.000 --> 00:15:45.220 o 'clock in the morning and start my day with 00:15:45.220 --> 00:15:47.340 working out and sweating hard and doing the hard 00:15:47.340 --> 00:15:49.539 things. And then 4 a .m. comes around and I'm 00:15:49.539 --> 00:15:53.480 like, oh, not today. But I will listen to the 00:15:53.480 --> 00:15:55.580 podcast later and be inspired once again to start 00:15:55.580 --> 00:16:00.259 again, you know. So does it inspire? Do do do 00:16:00.259 --> 00:16:02.919 things like this type of advice and these stories? 00:16:03.080 --> 00:16:08.500 Yeah, of course, it inspires. That's good. But 00:16:08.500 --> 00:16:11.460 does it feel like chains falling off? Does it 00:16:11.460 --> 00:16:14.820 feel like slavery ending? Does it feel like victory 00:16:14.820 --> 00:16:17.480 announced on your behalf? No to all of that. 00:16:19.159 --> 00:16:21.519 More often, it actually weighs us down. Why? 00:16:21.580 --> 00:16:23.759 Because it shows us how we aren't measuring up 00:16:23.759 --> 00:16:26.440 and it tells us to try harder, to do better and 00:16:26.440 --> 00:16:30.340 work more. And that may be motivating before 00:16:30.340 --> 00:16:32.980 a moment, but it is not the gospel. It is not 00:16:32.980 --> 00:16:36.779 good news. When we take the gospel message and 00:16:36.779 --> 00:16:42.529 we begin to put it on people to be better, That's 00:16:42.529 --> 00:16:47.289 not the gospel. That's the law Now does the law 00:16:47.289 --> 00:16:50.149 have a purpose yes to show us that I'm missing 00:16:50.149 --> 00:16:53.690 the mark To show me how much I need a savior, 00:16:53.750 --> 00:16:58.610 but if I I know that I can't add up So the gospel 00:16:58.610 --> 00:17:02.789 is it's been done for me So we have to be careful 00:17:02.789 --> 00:17:05.430 as brothers and sisters in Christ when we are 00:17:05.430 --> 00:17:08.970 telling people you got to do better You got to 00:17:08.970 --> 00:17:15.069 have more faith You gotta pray more. Should we 00:17:15.069 --> 00:17:22.950 do this? Sure. Is that the gospel? No. So, is 00:17:22.950 --> 00:17:26.309 encouragement bad? Of course not. Is challenge 00:17:26.309 --> 00:17:29.650 bad? Certainly not, but it doesn't lift burdens. 00:17:29.730 --> 00:17:32.089 It doesn't free captives and it doesn't raise 00:17:32.089 --> 00:17:34.369 the dead. It does none of those things. That's 00:17:34.369 --> 00:17:37.890 what the gospel does. It makes dead men and women 00:17:37.890 --> 00:17:40.769 alive. And that's the declaration of war that 00:17:40.769 --> 00:17:44.890 Jesus is putting out before us. He is telling 00:17:44.890 --> 00:17:47.789 everyone in this moment, the words that he speaks 00:17:47.789 --> 00:17:51.490 now that he has been baptized and now that he 00:17:51.490 --> 00:17:53.990 has been tempted in the wilderness, he's now 00:17:53.990 --> 00:17:56.910 coming out and he's declaring war and he's saying, 00:17:57.049 --> 00:18:02.219 repent. What does the word repent mean? Turn 00:18:02.219 --> 00:18:05.660 around. Change direction. Change your allegiance. 00:18:06.220 --> 00:18:11.180 Change who sits on the throne of your life. Jesus 00:18:11.180 --> 00:18:15.640 is declaring a war on sin, on Satan, and on a 00:18:15.640 --> 00:18:19.380 self -centered worldview. He is saying, you are 00:18:19.380 --> 00:18:22.579 not the sinner of your world. I am. And that 00:18:22.579 --> 00:18:26.660 is not oppression. That is freedom. Because only 00:18:26.660 --> 00:18:28.680 Jesus can bear the weight of the world. Only 00:18:28.680 --> 00:18:31.710 Jesus can heal broken relationships. Only Jesus 00:18:31.710 --> 00:18:35.789 can restore shattered hearts. Our self -centeredness 00:18:35.789 --> 00:18:41.269 destroys, but his kingship heals. So I want you 00:18:41.269 --> 00:18:43.809 to think about it this way. Why do we have wars? 00:18:45.349 --> 00:18:48.910 Why do we see class struggles and racial hatred 00:18:48.910 --> 00:18:51.130 and family brokenness and division and despair? 00:18:51.690 --> 00:18:57.049 Why do we have those things? At the core of all 00:18:57.049 --> 00:18:59.519 of this, at the root of all of those, We can 00:18:59.519 --> 00:19:02.980 find in itself centeredness, everyone demanding 00:19:02.980 --> 00:19:07.259 to be king. You can write this down, it'll be 00:19:07.259 --> 00:19:10.299 right up here. And the true king has come saying, 00:19:10.319 --> 00:19:15.099 repent, turn around, lay down your crown and 00:19:15.099 --> 00:19:19.839 come find wholeness under my rule. Every story 00:19:19.839 --> 00:19:25.539 we love tells the same truth. So this week, I 00:19:25.539 --> 00:19:27.859 got the chance to go speak at Omaha Christian 00:19:27.859 --> 00:19:31.670 Academy. And because I've noticed that when I'm 00:19:31.670 --> 00:19:33.930 like going and reading to kids and things, these 00:19:33.930 --> 00:19:36.630 books that I'm writing, the common question always 00:19:36.630 --> 00:19:39.950 gets asked, how do you come up with these stories? 00:19:40.930 --> 00:19:45.569 And so I went to speak and teach them how I write 00:19:45.569 --> 00:19:47.990 stories and things like that. But the biggest 00:19:47.990 --> 00:19:51.309 overall thing that I shared with them was all 00:19:51.309 --> 00:19:54.630 of us, all stories steal from the greatest story. 00:19:55.809 --> 00:20:00.289 And so it starts with a character. then we have 00:20:00.289 --> 00:20:03.750 brokenness, then we have to have someone make 00:20:03.750 --> 00:20:08.210 it right, and then we have the conclusion, right? 00:20:08.690 --> 00:20:13.509 So that sounds like we have Adam and Eve, we 00:20:13.509 --> 00:20:16.650 have brokenness, we have the rest of the Bible 00:20:16.650 --> 00:20:20.170 screaming out for a savior, Jesus comes, he saves 00:20:20.170 --> 00:20:23.549 the day as the hero, and then it continues on 00:20:23.549 --> 00:20:26.210 that we're waiting for the future redemption 00:20:26.210 --> 00:20:30.779 of the world. All other stories steal from this. 00:20:31.980 --> 00:20:36.440 It looks like this. A true king will come. He 00:20:36.440 --> 00:20:39.400 will slay the dragon. He will wake us up from 00:20:39.400 --> 00:20:42.299 the sleep of death. He will rescue us from the 00:20:42.299 --> 00:20:46.059 tower. And he will lead us back into the dance. 00:20:47.200 --> 00:20:54.900 You can see that. Cinderella. You want some The 00:20:54.900 --> 00:20:58.650 Matrix? I'm sure all of you guys are big Matrix 00:20:58.650 --> 00:21:02.309 fans. I say that tongue in cheek, because all 00:21:02.309 --> 00:21:04.269 of my Lord of the Rings stuff and Chronicles 00:21:04.269 --> 00:21:09.309 and I, it goes right over everybody. But here's 00:21:09.309 --> 00:21:13.150 the good news. Jesus is that King. And speaking 00:21:13.150 --> 00:21:14.950 of Lord of the Rings, I have to have a quote 00:21:14.950 --> 00:21:16.930 from it. So Tolkien captured this beautifully 00:21:16.930 --> 00:21:19.130 in the return of the King, which is the last 00:21:19.130 --> 00:21:21.490 book of the Lord of the Rings. And it says this. 00:21:21.660 --> 00:21:24.779 The hands of the king are healing hands, and 00:21:24.779 --> 00:21:30.339 thus shall be the rightful king be known. Everyone 00:21:30.339 --> 00:21:36.720 flourishes under good leadership. Children flourish 00:21:36.720 --> 00:21:40.839 under loving parents. Players play better under 00:21:40.839 --> 00:21:44.039 servant -hearted coaches. People under leaders 00:21:44.039 --> 00:21:46.839 who seek their good, and Jesus is the perfect 00:21:46.839 --> 00:21:49.319 king. He's healing, restoring, and renewing. 00:21:50.640 --> 00:21:53.539 But to experience his kingship, you first must 00:21:53.539 --> 00:21:56.400 answer the call to repent. And that means stepping 00:21:56.400 --> 00:21:59.240 off the throne of your life. It means surrendering 00:21:59.240 --> 00:22:02.000 control. And it means placing Jesus back where 00:22:02.000 --> 00:22:06.539 he belongs, at the center. And only then do we 00:22:06.539 --> 00:22:08.660 discover that his rule is not heavy, but it is 00:22:08.660 --> 00:22:13.700 healing. Now we get to point number two, the 00:22:13.700 --> 00:22:21.380 call to follow. So next in our text, so we see 00:22:21.380 --> 00:22:25.039 Jesus comes out. He declares the gospel is good 00:22:25.039 --> 00:22:29.279 news. Repent, turn around, follow me. And then 00:22:29.279 --> 00:22:33.480 we see him go directly to start calling disciples. 00:22:33.579 --> 00:22:36.420 And so Jesus doesn't proclaim the kingdom. He 00:22:36.420 --> 00:22:38.519 immediately begins, or doesn't just proclaim 00:22:38.519 --> 00:22:40.859 the kingdom. He immediately begins calling followers. 00:22:41.660 --> 00:22:45.059 And so in our text, he calls Andrew, Peter, James, 00:22:45.079 --> 00:22:48.809 and John. And he calls them out not only from 00:22:48.809 --> 00:22:50.890 their work, but he calls them away from their 00:22:50.890 --> 00:22:53.609 families. Did you notice that that's what it 00:22:53.609 --> 00:22:55.690 said? Let's go back to the text just so you see 00:22:55.690 --> 00:23:00.549 it. Verse 20, and immediately he called them 00:23:00.549 --> 00:23:05.109 and they left their father Zebedee in the boat 00:23:05.109 --> 00:23:09.430 with the hired servants and followed him. You 00:23:09.430 --> 00:23:11.809 may not think that that's a big deal because 00:23:11.809 --> 00:23:16.160 we live in a very individualistic society. but 00:23:16.160 --> 00:23:19.799 it actually is pretty crucial. It's actually 00:23:19.799 --> 00:23:22.839 really shocking. Because in their world, this 00:23:22.839 --> 00:23:24.920 was radical. It was actually even offensive. 00:23:25.079 --> 00:23:29.500 And let me give you two reasons why. First, notice 00:23:29.500 --> 00:23:33.339 that Jesus is the one who calls. Where back then, 00:23:33.619 --> 00:23:36.819 rabbis didn't call disciples. Disciples sought 00:23:36.819 --> 00:23:40.819 out rabbis. Students chose their teachers. They 00:23:40.819 --> 00:23:44.559 pursued the ones they admired. but Jesus reverses 00:23:44.559 --> 00:23:46.960 the entire system he initiates, he calls, he 00:23:46.960 --> 00:23:52.220 chooses. And so instead of the pupil seeking 00:23:52.220 --> 00:23:55.759 out the one that they want to be discipled by, 00:23:56.380 --> 00:23:59.079 Jesus flips the scripts and he immediately starts 00:23:59.079 --> 00:24:05.140 calling his followers. And so what does that 00:24:05.140 --> 00:24:08.779 tell us about Jesus right off the bat? If we 00:24:08.779 --> 00:24:11.539 look at that this way, what does that tell us? 00:24:16.809 --> 00:24:21.529 What does it tell us about us? Was Peter, James, 00:24:21.630 --> 00:24:26.609 John, Andrew, were they looking for Jesus? No, 00:24:26.750 --> 00:24:31.269 they weren't looking for Jesus. You aren't either. 00:24:32.630 --> 00:24:35.849 You are naturally always searching for what makes 00:24:35.849 --> 00:24:40.730 your heart feel good and happy and joyous. You 00:24:40.730 --> 00:24:43.250 live a self -centered life. It's Jesus who finds 00:24:43.250 --> 00:24:48.759 you first. There's the message finds you first 00:24:48.759 --> 00:24:54.079 So we're not seeking him He calls us and we are 00:24:54.079 --> 00:24:56.720 sitting on the thrones of our lives ruling tiny 00:24:56.720 --> 00:24:58.900 chaotic little kingdoms that are falling apart 00:24:58.900 --> 00:25:02.220 but then he calls and suddenly something happens 00:25:02.220 --> 00:25:05.640 our ears perk up our spirits awaken and our hearts 00:25:05.640 --> 00:25:10.599 stir and Now we have a choice respond to the 00:25:10.599 --> 00:25:13.720 call or remain bad kings of a very small kingdom. 00:25:13.740 --> 00:25:17.420 So notice For any of my Calvinist friends in 00:25:17.420 --> 00:25:21.099 the congregation, yes, Jesus does the calling, 00:25:21.160 --> 00:25:23.799 but you see that Peter, James, and John have 00:25:23.799 --> 00:25:28.500 a choice to follow. So it's not one or the other. 00:25:28.599 --> 00:25:31.900 It's a beautiful dovetail together. So here's 00:25:31.900 --> 00:25:33.539 the second thing. I told you there were two reasons 00:25:33.539 --> 00:25:36.000 why this is important. He calls them away from 00:25:36.000 --> 00:25:38.359 their families. And in this culture, your identity 00:25:38.359 --> 00:25:42.289 came from your family. Your name your honor your 00:25:42.289 --> 00:25:44.769 future your meaning all of it flowed from your 00:25:44.769 --> 00:25:47.369 household and Jesus says I want priority over 00:25:47.369 --> 00:25:50.009 that now Here's something that's that's really 00:25:50.009 --> 00:25:52.829 interesting that I'm learning about O 'Neill 00:25:52.829 --> 00:25:55.509 and a lot of this the smaller rural towns of 00:25:55.509 --> 00:25:59.309 Nebraska This is actually pretty You guys are 00:25:59.309 --> 00:26:01.230 pretty kind of close to this. I noticed that 00:26:01.230 --> 00:26:03.470 there's so many family connections I mean for 00:26:03.470 --> 00:26:06.049 crying out loud the majority of our congregation 00:26:06.049 --> 00:26:10.470 are Krieger's are somehow related to the Kriegers. 00:26:10.650 --> 00:26:13.150 And you can't go out to eat with Lowell and Vicki 00:26:13.150 --> 00:26:18.029 without them knowing somebody. But so much of 00:26:18.029 --> 00:26:22.650 the culture here is tied to family, land, right? 00:26:23.230 --> 00:26:25.970 The job you do, all of these things are very 00:26:25.970 --> 00:26:29.490 family oriented and intertwined. And so you guys 00:26:29.490 --> 00:26:33.230 kind of understand that a little bit better than 00:26:33.230 --> 00:26:38.109 someone like me, who I don't even live 2 ,500, 00:26:38.299 --> 00:26:41.880 miles from my family. Like I live much farther. 00:26:42.519 --> 00:26:47.119 So. It's not the same thing, but you understand 00:26:47.119 --> 00:26:50.500 it a little bit better than me. And so for us 00:26:50.500 --> 00:26:52.519 in this individualistic culture, the call sounds 00:26:52.519 --> 00:26:55.039 different. Maybe it's not leave your family. 00:26:55.180 --> 00:26:57.539 Maybe it's I want priority over your career. 00:26:57.920 --> 00:27:00.500 I want priority over your success, or I want 00:27:00.500 --> 00:27:04.140 priority over your reputation. Honestly, he just 00:27:04.140 --> 00:27:07.420 wants priority over your dreams. Write this down. 00:27:08.529 --> 00:27:11.910 Knowing me and loving me must be the supreme 00:27:11.910 --> 00:27:14.750 thing in your life, the deepest allegiance, the 00:27:14.750 --> 00:27:17.789 central passion and the very air that you breathe. 00:27:18.490 --> 00:27:22.130 That's what Jesus is saying here. So when he 00:27:22.130 --> 00:27:26.009 calls them and they respond, this is ultimately 00:27:26.009 --> 00:27:31.150 what he is saying. And when you hear that, I'm 00:27:31.150 --> 00:27:33.789 gonna like read it up here and then I want you 00:27:33.789 --> 00:27:36.650 to think about it. Knowing me and loving me must 00:27:36.650 --> 00:27:39.289 be the supreme thing in your life the deepest 00:27:39.289 --> 00:27:42.230 allegiance the central passion the very air that 00:27:42.230 --> 00:27:46.049 you breathe Does that thought hit a little different 00:27:46.049 --> 00:27:49.009 than just I'm gonna make a decision to follow 00:27:49.009 --> 00:27:50.990 Jesus and I'm gonna go to church on a Sunday 00:27:50.990 --> 00:27:56.150 and Live my life Just hearing that sound a little 00:27:56.150 --> 00:27:58.049 bit different than what we typically think of 00:27:58.049 --> 00:28:01.690 as Christianity and following Jesus Absolutely, 00:28:01.690 --> 00:28:06.339 it does because in our world What we do defines 00:28:06.339 --> 00:28:10.460 who we are. And so now I can already hear some 00:28:10.460 --> 00:28:13.400 pushback in some minds. Pastor Logan, I hear 00:28:13.400 --> 00:28:16.859 you. I hear you that you want us to, to follow 00:28:16.859 --> 00:28:19.839 Jesus. Jesus wants us to follow him and, and 00:28:19.839 --> 00:28:23.279 all this stuff and, you know, family and yada, 00:28:23.319 --> 00:28:26.039 yada, yada and careers and being defined like 00:28:26.039 --> 00:28:27.920 that. Yeah, I hear that, but we're not meant 00:28:27.920 --> 00:28:31.140 to be fanatics, right? And we're not meant to 00:28:31.140 --> 00:28:33.759 paint our faces and, and show up and be crazy, 00:28:33.779 --> 00:28:38.910 right? Or we have this this saying that's pretty 00:28:38.910 --> 00:28:41.849 you guys can probably finish it moderation in 00:28:41.849 --> 00:28:47.829 all Things Because like that's that's healthy 00:28:47.829 --> 00:28:53.269 boundaries, but I'm gonna ask you something We 00:28:53.269 --> 00:28:58.529 read this morning our verse of the week Jesus 00:28:58.529 --> 00:29:00.789 said you cannot be my disciples unless you hate 00:29:00.789 --> 00:29:04.309 your father and your mother Does that sound like 00:29:04.309 --> 00:29:11.950 moderation? It's not But I want to be clear about 00:29:11.950 --> 00:29:14.630 something Jesus is not commanding emotional hatred 00:29:14.630 --> 00:29:19.390 He's speaking comparatively He's saying if allegiance 00:29:19.390 --> 00:29:22.670 to your family and allegiance to me ever collide 00:29:22.670 --> 00:29:29.450 guess who wins or should win me This isn't the 00:29:29.450 --> 00:29:33.809 godfather this isn't Don Corleone You don't protect 00:29:33.809 --> 00:29:36.390 the family at all costs. You obey Jesus at all 00:29:36.390 --> 00:29:37.990 costs. Has anybody seen the Godfather? Please 00:29:37.990 --> 00:29:39.250 tell me there's people in here that have seen 00:29:39.250 --> 00:29:42.630 the guy. I got one, I got two, I got three. All 00:29:42.630 --> 00:29:44.450 right, so that one didn't go over people's head, 00:29:44.490 --> 00:29:49.089 cool. But here's the uncomfortable truth. Many 00:29:49.089 --> 00:29:52.309 of us love these passages in theory, but when 00:29:52.309 --> 00:29:55.509 it comes to the practice of it, not so much. 00:29:56.970 --> 00:30:00.789 We say things like, Jesus, I'll follow you passionately 00:30:00.789 --> 00:30:04.109 as long as my career is thriving, or as long 00:30:04.109 --> 00:30:07.170 as my health is good, or as long as my family 00:30:07.170 --> 00:30:10.630 is doing well, or as long as my plans are intact, 00:30:10.809 --> 00:30:14.190 I'll follow you. But that's not following Jesus, 00:30:14.250 --> 00:30:21.230 that's using Jesus. Jesus isn't a talisman. That's 00:30:21.230 --> 00:30:23.630 not discipleship. That's American Christianity 00:30:23.630 --> 00:30:26.250 with a Jesus sticker slapped on it. It's believing 00:30:26.250 --> 00:30:29.609 God exists to serve you, not we exist to serve 00:30:29.609 --> 00:30:33.730 him. And so let's be honest about what the gospel 00:30:33.730 --> 00:30:37.509 actually is. The gospel is not choosing to follow 00:30:37.509 --> 00:30:40.269 advice. This will be right up here. The gospel 00:30:40.269 --> 00:30:45.690 is being called to follow a king. Not just someone 00:30:45.690 --> 00:30:48.230 with authority to tell you what needs to be done 00:30:48.230 --> 00:30:51.910 But someone with authority and power to do what 00:30:51.910 --> 00:30:54.190 needs to be done. There's a difference I'm gonna 00:30:54.190 --> 00:30:56.289 say it again Not just someone with authority 00:30:56.289 --> 00:30:58.390 to tell you what needs to be done But someone 00:30:58.390 --> 00:31:01.250 with the authority and power to do what has already 00:31:01.250 --> 00:31:05.869 been done He's already won the battle he's already 00:31:05.869 --> 00:31:09.589 secured the victory and Then he offers it to 00:31:09.589 --> 00:31:15.279 you as good news To walk in this will be right 00:31:15.279 --> 00:31:19.039 up here for you So when the king says follow 00:31:19.039 --> 00:31:22.940 me he's not inviting you into self -improvement 00:31:22.940 --> 00:31:26.180 He's calling you into surrendered allegiance 00:31:26.180 --> 00:31:31.220 This isn't Joel Olsteen smiling politely with 00:31:31.220 --> 00:31:34.500 beautiful white teeth Telling you to just give 00:31:34.500 --> 00:31:38.900 your seed You'll be a millionaire Live your best 00:31:38.900 --> 00:31:43.910 life now I saw a clip, I'm going off script here, 00:31:43.990 --> 00:31:46.710 Gennaro, I apologize. I saw a clip of Paula White. 00:31:46.789 --> 00:31:51.210 Do you guys know who Paula White is? Yikes, yikes. 00:31:52.049 --> 00:31:54.789 And it crawls my skin that she's the spiritual 00:31:54.789 --> 00:31:57.569 advisor to Donald Trump, which lets me know that 00:31:57.569 --> 00:32:01.990 Donald Trump is not saved, by the way. And let 00:32:01.990 --> 00:32:03.650 me just say this, not that you guys are gonna 00:32:03.650 --> 00:32:05.450 disagree, but I just have to say this so you 00:32:05.450 --> 00:32:09.839 guys know. I've seen some posts by some people, 00:32:09.859 --> 00:32:13.980 not in our church, but people I know that legitimately 00:32:13.980 --> 00:32:19.099 are putting Donald Trump even with Jesus, like 00:32:19.099 --> 00:32:22.099 he's Joseph Smith of the Mormon Church. Donald 00:32:22.099 --> 00:32:24.619 Trump is not our savior, people. He is a fallen, 00:32:24.680 --> 00:32:27.019 broken man. And if anything, if we're going to 00:32:27.019 --> 00:32:30.759 place him in an alliance with somebody, he's 00:32:30.759 --> 00:32:33.039 more like the ruler of Babylon than he is Jesus. 00:32:33.140 --> 00:32:35.180 OK, so let's just make sure that we put those 00:32:35.180 --> 00:32:39.079 two things into perspective. back to my regularly 00:32:39.079 --> 00:32:43.680 scheduled program. But I saw a video for Paula 00:32:43.680 --> 00:32:47.480 White this week where she was holding a revival. 00:32:48.819 --> 00:32:51.240 And she is saying that they took an offering 00:32:51.240 --> 00:32:54.599 and the offering only equaled $40 ,000, which 00:32:54.599 --> 00:33:00.859 was the lowest it had been in weeks. And she 00:33:00.859 --> 00:33:03.460 says, we're gonna continue to pass these buckets 00:33:03.460 --> 00:33:07.779 around until it gets to a specific place or I'm 00:33:07.779 --> 00:33:09.759 not laying hands on anybody. No one's getting 00:33:09.759 --> 00:33:13.819 healed by sickness today unless we get to a specific 00:33:13.819 --> 00:33:18.119 number. Because God wants you to give a seed, 00:33:18.200 --> 00:33:21.380 give a seed, give a seed. I'm not healing anyone. 00:33:22.920 --> 00:33:27.059 Brothers and sisters, that's demonic. That's 00:33:27.059 --> 00:33:33.599 not the gospel. I just need to say that because 00:33:33.599 --> 00:33:36.700 you should not follow anyone that says, But you 00:33:36.700 --> 00:33:42.599 know what? That sounds less like Jesus or the 00:33:42.599 --> 00:33:46.740 apostles and more like, I don't know, maybe say 00:33:46.740 --> 00:33:50.460 Simon, who thought he could buy the Holy Spirit. 00:33:52.180 --> 00:33:55.119 That's not the gospel. Don't follow people. Don't 00:33:55.119 --> 00:33:57.259 read their books. Don't listen to their podcasts. 00:33:57.319 --> 00:34:04.660 All of that is demonic garbage. OK, I got that 00:34:04.660 --> 00:34:07.380 off. So when the king says, follow me, he's not 00:34:07.380 --> 00:34:09.139 inviting us to self -improvement. He's calling 00:34:09.139 --> 00:34:11.820 you into surrendered allegiance. Point number 00:34:11.820 --> 00:34:17.599 three. The call to Marvel. So in our text, Mark 00:34:17.599 --> 00:34:25.360 uses the word authority. Here's what's cool about 00:34:25.360 --> 00:34:28.500 that word authority. That word literally means 00:34:28.500 --> 00:34:33.820 out of the original stuff. Out of the original 00:34:33.820 --> 00:34:41.019 stuff. What word is in the word authority? Author. 00:34:42.420 --> 00:34:44.739 That's where we derive our word author. It comes 00:34:44.739 --> 00:34:47.800 from the same root word as author. So Mark is 00:34:47.800 --> 00:34:50.079 telling us something really incredible. Jesus 00:34:50.079 --> 00:34:53.380 taught not from secondhand authority. Pastor 00:34:53.380 --> 00:34:58.619 Logan has secondhand authority, but Jesus has 00:34:58.619 --> 00:35:01.440 firsthand authority. He is the root of all of 00:35:01.440 --> 00:35:04.420 it. And so not by repeating a bunch of rules 00:35:04.420 --> 00:35:08.130 from scribes, Jesus is the original authority. 00:35:08.550 --> 00:35:11.530 He spoke as the author of life itself because 00:35:11.530 --> 00:35:15.510 he is the author of life itself. He didn't just 00:35:15.510 --> 00:35:18.150 clarify something they already knew. He interpreted 00:35:18.150 --> 00:35:22.250 scripture like the teachers of the law. His listeners 00:35:22.250 --> 00:35:24.849 sensed that he was explaining the story of their 00:35:24.849 --> 00:35:28.230 own lives, not as a commentator, but as the one 00:35:28.230 --> 00:35:31.070 who wrote it. And this left them dumbfounded. 00:35:32.289 --> 00:35:35.940 So think about that for a moment. the very one 00:35:35.940 --> 00:35:40.880 who the text is about, steps into a church service, 00:35:41.099 --> 00:35:43.480 gets out the scroll, begins to read it, and then 00:35:43.480 --> 00:35:45.179 he's like, yep, this has now been fulfilled. 00:35:46.960 --> 00:35:54.559 And everybody's like, what? Right? And then what 00:35:54.559 --> 00:36:00.199 happens? Scott already pointed it out. Jesus 00:36:00.199 --> 00:36:04.940 comes in teaching with authority. blowing their 00:36:04.940 --> 00:36:10.360 wigs off with interpretation. They're dumbfounded. 00:36:10.440 --> 00:36:13.380 They're like, he's reading my mail. And then 00:36:13.380 --> 00:36:20.300 what happens? Satan shows up. Satan is the little 00:36:20.300 --> 00:36:24.099 brother that can't stand when anybody else gets 00:36:24.099 --> 00:36:28.360 any sort of like acknowledgement, right? No, 00:36:28.400 --> 00:36:30.539 no, no, God, you're not, no. And so he enters 00:36:30.539 --> 00:36:34.400 the scene. Like some crazy. He is a crazy man, 00:36:34.539 --> 00:36:40.619 literally filled with demons. And he's like, 00:36:40.820 --> 00:36:49.079 hold up. So. Can you imagine the one who wrote 00:36:49.079 --> 00:36:51.360 the text, the creator himself standing in front 00:36:51.360 --> 00:36:53.639 of you, explaining it, showing you what it means 00:36:53.639 --> 00:36:56.639 for your life? That is true authority. That is 00:36:56.639 --> 00:36:59.590 the authority that Mark is pointing to. But Mark 00:36:59.590 --> 00:37:02.110 doesn't stop with teaching. Jesus demonstrates 00:37:02.110 --> 00:37:04.989 his authority in our passage. We see it wielded 00:37:04.989 --> 00:37:07.469 in real time. That's what's really cool is he 00:37:07.469 --> 00:37:09.909 doesn't just preach about it. We then see this 00:37:09.909 --> 00:37:14.329 authority put in an action immediately. The demon 00:37:14.329 --> 00:37:17.250 possessed man shows up as he said in the synagogue. 00:37:19.429 --> 00:37:23.269 So you're already blown away by his teaching 00:37:23.269 --> 00:37:25.590 and now you get to watch him command evil spirits 00:37:25.590 --> 00:37:29.050 and they obey. So notice carefully the demons 00:37:29.050 --> 00:37:33.210 know who Jesus is they call him the holy one 00:37:33.210 --> 00:37:38.989 of God But do they surrender? Do they bow the 00:37:38.989 --> 00:37:45.469 knee no So why do I need to point this out that 00:37:45.469 --> 00:37:52.889 this is a crucial part of the story Notice that 00:37:52.889 --> 00:37:54.829 the evil man enters into a church, you know how 00:37:54.829 --> 00:37:56.920 many times I've heard people say or you see it 00:37:56.920 --> 00:38:00.460 in movies, go into a church. The devil can't 00:38:00.460 --> 00:38:04.539 go in there. Yeah, he can. There's devils all 00:38:04.539 --> 00:38:12.739 in the church. So James says it plainly, even 00:38:12.739 --> 00:38:15.260 the demons know God and they tremble, but they 00:38:15.260 --> 00:38:18.000 do not follow him. And so there are people in 00:38:18.000 --> 00:38:21.579 churches all across America, even right here, 00:38:22.280 --> 00:38:25.400 who will say Jesus is God, but they are not surrendered 00:38:25.400 --> 00:38:28.670 to him. They are still operating under the illusion 00:38:28.670 --> 00:38:31.429 of their own small kingship. They know him, but 00:38:31.429 --> 00:38:34.570 they do not submit to him. And then Mark shows 00:38:34.570 --> 00:38:37.110 us Jesus's authority over the physical world 00:38:37.110 --> 00:38:40.489 as well. So we see his authority in the text, 00:38:40.570 --> 00:38:42.710 and then we see his authority in the spiritual 00:38:42.710 --> 00:38:45.289 realm, and now we're going to see it in the physical 00:38:45.289 --> 00:38:49.769 realm by doing what? He heals Peter's mother 00:38:49.769 --> 00:38:53.210 -in -law. He just grabs her by the hand and lifts 00:38:53.210 --> 00:38:56.889 her up, and the fever leaves her. She's immediately 00:38:56.889 --> 00:39:00.369 made whole. But what is her immediate response? 00:39:02.170 --> 00:39:06.389 Service. She rises and begins to minister to 00:39:06.389 --> 00:39:10.070 them. And brothers and sisters, this is the proper 00:39:10.070 --> 00:39:12.889 response to encountering the authority of Jesus. 00:39:13.289 --> 00:39:16.909 When Christ restores you, he heals you. He makes 00:39:16.909 --> 00:39:20.070 you whole. Your only right response in that moment 00:39:20.070 --> 00:39:24.619 is service to his kingdom. to stand amazed, to 00:39:24.619 --> 00:39:29.639 marvel, then to obey. The call to marvel is the 00:39:29.639 --> 00:39:32.980 call to recognize who Jesus is, not just in our 00:39:32.980 --> 00:39:35.079 minds, but in our hearts, in our lives, and in 00:39:35.079 --> 00:39:38.579 the way that we live. The one who created, redeems, 00:39:38.659 --> 00:39:41.900 and commands, he is worthy of wonder, worship, 00:39:42.039 --> 00:39:46.820 and wholehearted surrender. So I'm gonna close 00:39:46.820 --> 00:39:49.679 with this. Have any of you guys ever read the 00:39:49.679 --> 00:39:54.789 story, The Princess and the Goblin? One person. 00:39:56.130 --> 00:39:59.110 Well, yeah, my outside of my family. OK, you 00:39:59.110 --> 00:40:03.849 guys don't count. Sorry. I would recommend the 00:40:03.849 --> 00:40:06.150 book is not an easy read. I already told my wife, 00:40:06.150 --> 00:40:09.210 I was like, because I read it and I'm like, I 00:40:09.210 --> 00:40:11.510 didn't like the reading, but the story itself 00:40:11.510 --> 00:40:14.750 is a cool story. It's by George McDonald, who 00:40:14.750 --> 00:40:17.389 was a Scottish Christian. He wrote many books. 00:40:18.170 --> 00:40:20.710 He talks a lot about imagination and fantasy 00:40:20.710 --> 00:40:22.670 and why they come from God and all that stuff. 00:40:22.690 --> 00:40:25.500 But He's famous for The Princess and the Goblin. 00:40:25.840 --> 00:40:28.360 And so I'm going to kind of lay out to you The 00:40:28.360 --> 00:40:31.079 Princess and the Goblin really quickly. So in 00:40:31.079 --> 00:40:33.480 the story, you have a little girl, her name is 00:40:33.480 --> 00:40:37.739 Irene. And Irene is given a ring and a thread 00:40:37.739 --> 00:40:42.019 by her fairy godmother. Irene is told whenever 00:40:42.019 --> 00:40:44.800 she feels lost, she should place the ring under 00:40:44.800 --> 00:40:49.099 her head and feel for the thread. But Irene says, 00:40:49.159 --> 00:40:53.309 but I can't see the thread. Her godmother replies, 00:40:53.429 --> 00:40:56.789 no, you can't see it, but you can feel it. And 00:40:56.789 --> 00:40:58.909 as long as you feel it, you will always find 00:40:58.909 --> 00:41:01.949 your way back to me. No matter where the thread 00:41:01.949 --> 00:41:04.989 takes you, it may feel like you are going the 00:41:04.989 --> 00:41:08.449 wrong direction, but trust it because you trust 00:41:08.449 --> 00:41:12.489 me and never go backwards. Did you catch that? 00:41:12.949 --> 00:41:15.630 I'll read it one more time. Though you can't 00:41:15.630 --> 00:41:18.309 see it, you can feel it. And as long as you feel 00:41:18.309 --> 00:41:20.289 it, you will always find your way back to me. 00:41:20.510 --> 00:41:24.030 No matter where the thread takes you, it may 00:41:24.030 --> 00:41:26.329 feel like you're going the wrong direction, but 00:41:26.329 --> 00:41:30.570 trust it because you trust me and never go backwards. 00:41:31.909 --> 00:41:36.969 Later, goblins invade Irene's home. She escapes 00:41:36.969 --> 00:41:39.389 using the thread, but she finds herself taking 00:41:39.389 --> 00:41:42.550 a long way around. The thread takes her all around 00:41:42.550 --> 00:41:44.429 the house and all around the yard and all over 00:41:44.429 --> 00:41:47.650 the place. And then she goes to where the goblins 00:41:47.650 --> 00:41:50.699 live, which they live in a cave. And as she's 00:41:50.699 --> 00:41:52.800 going into this cave, she becomes to get afraid 00:41:52.800 --> 00:41:54.920 because she knows the goblins live in the cave. 00:41:56.579 --> 00:42:00.519 So she continues to follow the thread, but the 00:42:00.519 --> 00:42:03.719 thread leaves to a dead end. There's nothing 00:42:03.719 --> 00:42:07.380 but rock stacked up high. So she tries to go 00:42:07.380 --> 00:42:10.699 backwards. But what was the thing that the Fairy 00:42:10.699 --> 00:42:16.300 Godmother said? Never go backwards. but the thread 00:42:16.300 --> 00:42:19.019 will not allow her to go backwards, so she begins 00:42:19.019 --> 00:42:21.280 to cry. Have you ever been there, by the way? 00:42:21.380 --> 00:42:23.059 Have you ever been to a place where you feel 00:42:23.059 --> 00:42:25.619 like God has taken you to a dead end, you're 00:42:25.619 --> 00:42:28.619 exhausted, and then you're like, well, I can't 00:42:28.619 --> 00:42:31.199 go backwards, I can't go back, and then you just, 00:42:31.219 --> 00:42:33.139 you don't know what you're supposed to do, and 00:42:33.139 --> 00:42:34.780 maybe you just sit down and have a good cry. 00:42:35.119 --> 00:42:38.400 You ever been there? Oh, I have, many times. 00:42:40.099 --> 00:42:42.519 She begins to cry, but then she pulls herself 00:42:42.519 --> 00:42:45.550 together. She starts taking the rocks down one 00:42:45.550 --> 00:42:48.829 by one. Her hands begin to hurt and bleed, but 00:42:48.829 --> 00:42:51.510 she doesn't stop. And then she hears the voice 00:42:51.510 --> 00:42:54.449 of her friend, Curdie, who has been captured 00:42:54.449 --> 00:42:59.050 by the goblins. And Curdie says, why, however, 00:42:59.349 --> 00:43:02.929 did you come here and know that I was here? She 00:43:02.929 --> 00:43:06.130 asked him. Irene responds, my grandmother sent 00:43:06.130 --> 00:43:09.630 me. And then she says, and I think I found out 00:43:09.630 --> 00:43:14.380 why. And so when she releases Kurti, Kurti begins 00:43:14.380 --> 00:43:17.119 to, she knows the way out. So she starts going 00:43:17.119 --> 00:43:20.059 in that direction, but Irene is going the opposite 00:43:20.059 --> 00:43:23.920 direction. And so Kurti says, you're going the 00:43:23.920 --> 00:43:26.119 wrong way. The way out is this way. And Kurti 00:43:26.119 --> 00:43:30.920 and Irene says, yeah, no, but my thread for my 00:43:30.920 --> 00:43:33.539 fairy godmother is leading me the opposite direction. 00:43:34.940 --> 00:43:37.280 And Kurti says, but that's not the obvious path. 00:43:38.349 --> 00:43:41.030 And Irene says, it's the path of the thread. 00:43:42.110 --> 00:43:44.469 It's unpredictable, it's difficult, it's painful, 00:43:44.469 --> 00:43:49.150 but it's leading me to safety. And it does. It 00:43:49.150 --> 00:43:51.329 ultimately leads her to her fairy godmother. 00:43:52.429 --> 00:43:58.090 And how could Irene know that she could trust 00:43:58.090 --> 00:44:03.829 the thread? Because her fairy godmother was trustworthy. 00:44:05.690 --> 00:44:08.210 So brothers and sisters, I'm begging you today 00:44:08.210 --> 00:44:12.789 to follow the thread. Jesus is calling you to 00:44:12.789 --> 00:44:15.989 follow him. The thread may take you on a path 00:44:15.989 --> 00:44:18.949 that seems crazy, that doesn't make sense, that 00:44:18.949 --> 00:44:21.550 feels like it's a dead end or it's up, it's down, 00:44:21.550 --> 00:44:24.869 you're high, you're low. But I'm asking you, 00:44:25.030 --> 00:44:27.489 I'm pleading with you to trust the thread because 00:44:27.489 --> 00:44:32.050 the threads leader and owner and maker is trustworthy. 00:44:34.039 --> 00:44:37.579 Yes, following the thread is hard, and yes, it 00:44:37.579 --> 00:44:40.599 will hurt. You will bleed at times, but somehow, 00:44:42.139 --> 00:44:46.340 or how can we possibly say no? We can't. So when 00:44:46.340 --> 00:44:48.800 Jesus called James and John to leave their father 00:44:48.800 --> 00:44:52.480 in the boat, he had already left his father's 00:44:52.480 --> 00:44:56.559 throne. I want you to see that. Jesus is not 00:44:56.559 --> 00:44:58.599 asking you to do anything he has not already 00:44:58.599 --> 00:45:04.449 done. He left his father's throne. He later would 00:45:04.449 --> 00:45:07.130 be ripped from his father's presence on the cross. 00:45:08.409 --> 00:45:10.969 Your thread may seem to lead into dead ends, 00:45:11.250 --> 00:45:13.610 places that will cause pain and trials that will 00:45:13.610 --> 00:45:17.789 make you bleed, but do not go backwards. Christ's 00:45:17.789 --> 00:45:20.170 kingship will not crush you because he was crushed 00:45:20.170 --> 00:45:24.030 for you. So follow the thread, follow it to the 00:45:24.030 --> 00:45:26.949 cross, and then you can continue to follow it 00:45:26.949 --> 00:45:28.710 into his arms. Let's pray.