What Is The Gospel Of The Lord Jesus Christ

"What Is The Gospel According To The Lord Jesus Christ"?

Text:

Rom 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

What is the "Gospel"?

To me the "Gospel" is the "good message", or the "good news" that comes from the knowledge of knowing the Lord Jesus Christ.

The "Gospel" is the truth that the Lord Jesus Christ has taken my place on that cross and paid a debt that I could have never paid!

Like the Apostle Paul, I am not ashamed of the "Gospel" of Jesus Christ. If not for God's mercy and God's grace, I would have surely been in shame, when I would have faced the Lord Jesus at the White Throne of Judgment.

Because of the "Gospel" of the Lord Jesus Christ, I have been pardoned and will not face that judgment!

So when did the "Gospel" of Jesus Christ begin?

God said:

Heb 10:7 Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.

I believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ begins with a personal relationship with My Lord Jesus and it cannot get more personal than at our Creation as written in the Book of Genesis!

Gen 1:26 And God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness": and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

To be created in the image of God is a very special relationship that God Himself decided on before He made anything else.

In fact God decided my entire features before He made me, I was designed!

Psa 139:16 Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them.

To me, this is where my personal relationship with my Lord must begin.

Since I now know the Lord Jesus as my Savior, I want to be more like Him.

I want to be in His "image" and only by the "Gospel" can I truly know Jesus Christ!

It is by the "Gospel" of Jesus Christ that I can be saved!

It is by the "Gospel" of Jesus Christ that I can live on this Earth, no longer in misery but at peace!

It is by the "Gospel" of Jesus Christ that I can make it to my real home which I now know is in Heaven and not on this Earth where I am just a visitor!

God did not make this a hard thing for me to understand!

God made this a simple thing and all He asked me to do was believe on all the things of His Son, the "Gospel"!

And, I now realize that it is the Devil who causes the problems in this world I live in!

2Co 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.

The "Gospel" changed me and I know that whosoever calls upon the Lord Jesus Christ can also be changed!

1) So how can the "Gospel" reach those that do not know the Lord Jesus?

Preaching!

When Jesus preached He said He was God.

Joh 14:1 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.

We must accept this as fact before we can take any other step.

This is what is called "Faith".

Jesus gave these words to a grieving father whose daughter was on the death bed one day. Jesus said "be not afraid, only believe".

Mar 5:36 As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe.

If there 1000 steps between us and the Lord Jesus, Jesus Himself will take 999 of those steps, but we must find enough "faith" to take that last step.

Without this "Faith" we cannot begin to please God and we cannot go any further.

But with 'Faith" we can please the Lord and He will reward us with His free gift of "Grace".

Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

It is by God's Grace that we are saved!

It is by God's "Grace" that He sent the Lord Jesus Christ!

Eph 2:7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

These are free gifts and all that is needed is, to accept them, this is the "Gospel"!

It does not get any easier than that!

2) What was the "Gospel" as taught to the Apostles?

Mar 8:36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

Life is all about the choices we make. Until we know the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior we will never choose life.

Our God is a Tri-Une God. The Father, The Son and The Holy Ghost!

Jesus told all His Apostles to teach this message:

Mat 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

But Jesus also gave them the message they were to teach:

Mat 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things "whatsoever I have commanded you": and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

The message that was to be taught was the Words of Jesus, the Word of God, the "Gospel" of the Lord Jesus Christ!

How can we trust the Word of God?

2Ti 3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
2Ti 3:17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

Every word that is written down and preserved for our knowledge was inspired by God Himself, by His Holy Spirit!

We are created in His image and therefore also tri-une. The physical body, the spirit, and the soul.

While we are living, we must make a choice about our soul because to not choose is rejecting the truth of God.

Rejecting the "Gospel" of the Lord Jesus Christ!

It is the soul that is granted eternal life and it is the soul that is so precious to Our Lord!

It is the "Gospel" of the Lord Jesus Christ that will lead us to make the right choices!

1Ti 4:16 Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.

3) What was the Gospel that was taught to the Church?

Jas 5:20 Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.

Just before Jesus Christ "willingly" got on that cross to pay our sin debt that we could not pay, He said He was going back to Heaven to prepare a home for those sinners that had been converted.

Joh 14:2 In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
Joh 14:3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

Jesus said He has given us His "Gospel" so that we would not be confused and could know the way.

Joh 14:4 And whither I go ye know, "and the way ye know".

And just so we can never be confused thinking that there could be other ways to get to Heaven, Jesus clears that up for us also!

Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Jesus Christ made His "Gospel" simple because He will not tell us anything that will cause confusion.

1Co 14:33 For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.

The church that is confused, is a church that has moved away from the "Gospel of Jesus Christ"!

4) How do I make a personal application of the "Gospel of Jesus Christ?

I must use every means available to me, to spread the "Gospel Seed".

When God created our world He made this statement.

Gen 1:11 And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit "after his kind", whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.

When the "Gospel Seed" is spread, it will also produce fruit after "it's kind".

It is my job to be a "Sower of the Gospel Seed" after the Lord Jesus has been merciful enough to save my soul!

The parable of the "Sower" teaches me that I can only be the Sower. I must cast the seed in every direction and on every soil, realizing that the soil itself must be prepared by the Lord and it is He, and He only who controls the results.

BUT, if I will not sow the "Gospel Seed" then there can be no fruit and no results.

Hag 2:19 Is the seed yet in the barn? yea, as yet the vine, and the fig tree, and the pomegranate, and the olive tree, hath not brought forth: from this day will I bless you.

I must apply all these things to my own life that I may be more like Jesus Christ, who is my example!

5) What are the results of the Christian life?

Only by being like the Lord Jesus Christ can I be a Christian!

Jesus gave me this commandment:

Mat 5:16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

I will not be much of a witness if I cannot honor the Word of God with my life!

I certainly cannot consider myself a Christian unless I am more like Christ Jesus!

And if I walk as the world walks then I do not actually love the Lord.

I must come out from among those of this world, if I am to be in the family of God!

2Co 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
2Co 6:18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

If we consider that we are in the last "Church Age", as all signs show, then this is the only way we can judge church growth.

God says that mankind will become more evil in the last days:

2Ti 3:13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.

God says the last "Church Age" is a time when people will please themselves and forget Our Creator:

Rev 3:17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:

This the time when this world makes God sick:

Rev 3:16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.

These are the days we live in now!

The truth of God may not bring in the great multitudes into the House of God during this time, so those that know the Lord and have a personal relationship with Him should be even more noticeable!

6) How can I know all these things are true!

I must believe in all the Word of God!

I must study the Word of God that I may not only help myself but I may be able to help others!

And I must live what I learn!

I will never be approved of God without these things!

This takes a workman like ethic.
This takes effort on my part.
This will also increase my love for the Lord.

2Ti 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

I must believe that the Bible that God has given me is His truth:

2Ti 3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

This the only method that I have to be more like Jesus:

2Ti 3:17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

7) So what are the facts of the "Gospel"?

Jesus Christ is God in the flesh.
Jesus Christ came to the earth that I might be saved.
Jesus Christ gave His life, (no one could take it from Him), on that cross to pay a debt that I could not pay.
Jesus Christ rose from that grave because not even death could hold Him.
Jesus Christ went back to Heaven to be my advocate before my Father in Heaven.
Jesus Christ sent me His Holy Spirit to keep me in His ways until He returns to take me home.

1Ti 3:16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

And one day I will be like Him. Not as a God but as a part of His family!

1Jn 3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

8) How can you know what I know to be the truth?

You must admit that you are a sinner!

Rom 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

You must know that sin brings death apart from God but Jesus Christ brings life eternal!

Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

You must not be ashamed to confess the Lord Jesus before this evil world!

Rom 10:10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

You must accept the free gift of salvation and you too can be saved!

Rom 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

We cannot only believe all these things are true but we can also know all these things are true!

1Jn 5:13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; 'that ye may know that ye have eternal life', and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

What is the Gospel of Jesus Christ?

Joh 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Why did Jesus come to this Earth, His own creation?

Luk 19:10 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.

Where is Jesus now?

Joh 14:2 In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
Joh 14:3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

Because this is the "Gospel of Jesus Christ"!

Amen!

The Patience Of The Lord Jesus

The Patience Of God's Servant

Teaching, Feeding, and Healing

Book of Mark Chapter 6:32-56

Though we took a quick look at some things last week, let's take a closer look at some things this week in Chapter six.

We have already see many times the compassion of Our Lord and we will see it again in this passage!

There is a saying that goes like this:

“People do not care how much you know, until they know how much you care.”

What we should realize is that the compassion Jesus has for the lost, is a reflection of His incredible love for all humans!

What is compassion?

According to the Webster Dictionary, compassion is suffering along with a sufferer or painful sympathy.

So compassion is hurting along with some one else who is hurting.

What was the ultimate show of compassion by the Lord?

Then said Jesus while He hung on the cross:

Luk 23:34 Then said Jesus, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do". And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.

What is mercy?

Mercy is a tenderness that comes from the heart.

Mercy overlooks the faults of another person by showing love toward them!

What is God's ultimate show of mercy?

1Jn 4:9 In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.
1Jn 4:10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

Mercy can best be understood as God's goodness!

*****Mar 6:32 And they departed into a desert place by ship privately.

Why did Jesus and His chosen 12 depart for a desert place?

Mar 6:30 And the apostles gathered themselves together unto Jesus, and told him all things, both what they had done, and what they had taught.

Jesus had also gotten the word of the murder of John the Baptist and His disciples were preaching the same message that John preached.

It was time for a short rest!

God had already shown us the need for a period of rest at the time of His creation!

Gen 2:2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
Gen 2:3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.

But the world would not allow for God's rest!

Many of our pastors suffer from a lack of rest today!

*****Mar 6:33 And the people saw them departing, and many knew him, and ran afoot thither out of all cities, and outwent them, and came together unto him.

A few weeks ago we saw a picture of the Sea of Galilee and we could see that on a clear day ships and boats on the this sea could be seen from the shoreline.

Jesus and the disciples could take a ship or a boat but they could not hide where they going if traveling by day time.

In some cases, a destination could be reached faster by land than as by sea which happened here in our verse.

This multitude also grew as it traveled toward Jesus!

And, this also proves that most of the religious leaders were too proud or too corrupt to teach the Word of God and no one taught like Jesus!

They were hungry for the Word of God!

But also anxious to see the "Miracle Maker"!

No matter how tired Our Lord was, we can see His "Compassion"!

*****Mar 6:34 And Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things.

A sheep is a symbol of meekness, and gentleness and submissiveness. Sheep require a lot of patience!

We may look but we do not find sheep that exists in the wild state. Sheep were created for man!

That being so, the sheep was the animal first used for sacrifice!

With these thoughts, we can understand the Lord is our shepherd and those that believe on Him, are His flock!

God is very aware of why He chose to use sheep to describe the Church.

Jer 23:1 Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! saith the LORD.
Jer 23:2 Therefore thus saith the LORD God of Israel against the pastors that feed my people; Ye have scattered my flock, and driven them away, and have not visited them: behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings, saith the LORD.

God is very aware when so called Pastors do not properly lead His sheep!

Jehovah God is our Head Shepherd but in order to save His sheep, He had to become a Lamb!

Isa 53:6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Isa 53:7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.

We were introduced to this "Lamb of God" in a recent lesson:

Joh 1:29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

We should also remember the words of Abraham to Isaac:

Gen 22:8 And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.

That sacrificial Lamb, was The Lord Jesus Christ!

But we should always remember something else about Jesus?

Jesus the "Carpenter" was the builder of the entire Cosmos.

But most important, this Jesus this "son of the virgin Mary" was Jesus Christ the Son of God!

Jesus Himself said:

Joh 10:7 Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep.
Joh 10:8 All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them.
Joh 10:9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.

But Jesus also said these words:

Joh 10:27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:

James had this to say:

Jas 1:23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
Jas 1:24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.

The voice of Jesus, is the Word of God and if we are not obedient to God's Word then we have not listened to Our Shepherd!

It was the True Shepherd that began to teach this great multitude!

*****Mar 6:35 And when the day was now far spent, his disciples came unto him, and said, This is a desert place, and now the time is far passed:
Mar 6:36 Send them away, that they may go into the country round about, and into the villages, and buy themselves bread: for they have nothing to eat.

These people that had followed Jesus had not given any thought that Jesus might need some rest.

These people that followed Jesus had not given any thought that the chosen 12 disciples might need some rest.

In fact this great multitude that had followed Jesus had not even thought to pack a lunch and Jesus had intentionally led the disciples to a desert place where there were no towns or villages very close by.

We can see that a desert place is a place where there is very little or no life.

And, these people had no purpose!

The one thing they all had in common was that were all poor and they were all hungry!

But, we have a generous Savior, willing to bless all those that follow Him under any conditions!

The Lord will provide all things but we must be just as willing to receive His "Gifts"!

*****Mar 6:37 He answered and said unto them, Give ye them to eat. And they say unto him, Shall we go and buy two hundred pennyworth of bread, and give them to eat?
Mar 6:38 He saith unto them, How many loaves have ye? go and see. And when they knew, they say, Five, and two fishes.

Philip responded that Judas had only 200 pennyworth in the bag where the money was kept.

Joh 6:7 Philip answered him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little.

This was not enough money to buy a small quantity of perfume:

Joh 12:5 Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor?

And it was certainly not enough money to satisfy the hunger of this great multitude!

So Jesus asked if their were any food available.

Thank God for moms!

There was one mother who had taken the time to prepare her son a lunch.

As I write today, my mom is not expected to live more than a few days, but she was like this mom!

Joh 6:9 There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many?

The 12 disciples would have allowed this multitude of people just to leave hungry and thus unfulfilled but Jesus would not do this.

There is also another lesson our churches need to learn.

If there is not enough "Faith" in the Church, that God will provide, then the multitudes will drift away in search of fulfillment and Satan will take advantage of this!

2Co 2:11 Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.

*****Mar 6:39 And he commanded them to make all sit down by companies upon the green grass.
Mar 6:40 And they sat down in ranks, by hundreds, and by fifties.

Was this count important to the Lord?

Only if we consider that He wanted us to know how many were fed this day!

Our God is a God of order!

1Co 14:33 For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.

It would be impossible to have fed this multitude if God's servants could not pass amongst them!

But what is impossible for man is not even a simple challenge for the Lord!

Can The Lord feed such a multitude as this?

Psa 78:19 Yea, they spake against God; they said, Can God furnish a table in the wilderness?

There had been many miracles of healing every known disease.
There had been miracles showing The Lord's power over nature.
There had even been those that were raised from the dead.

Jesus had already performed many miracles but this miracle would be a miracle of "creation"!

This mighty work of the Lord was the only one that is included in all four of the "Gospels"!

God had spoke our world into existence and He would now speak to Our Father in Heaven and these people would be fed.

And Jesus knew what He was about to do!

Joh 6:6 And this he said to prove him: for he himself knew what he would do.

*****Mar 6:41 And when he had taken the five loaves and the two fishes, he looked up to heaven, and blessed, and brake the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before them; and the two fishes divided he among them all.
Mar 6:42 And they did all eat, and were filled.
Mar 6:43 And they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments, and of the fishes.
Mar 6:44 And they that did eat of the loaves were about five thousand men.

See if we can get this picture.

A young lad trusted the Lord Jesus enough to give Him all the food he had.
Jesus looked up into Heaven.
Jesus blessed this meager meal.
Jesus brake these 5 small loaves but we know they did not diminish.
Jesus brake the two fishes but they fed them all.

As the disciples set a basket before the Lord it was filled and this continued until much more than 5000 were fed.

They were not just given a meal!

They were given a meal that was much as they could hold!

These people were hungry!

These people were filled!

And, from 5 loaves of barley and 2 small sardines, there remained 12 baskets of fragments.

The blood scared hands of Jesus, can still deliver much more than we need with some leftover for those that have not yet come to the knowledge of Christ.

Jesus Christ is the "Bread of Life".
Jesus Christ gives of Himself, that we be nourished.
Jesus Christ gives more than we need so we can show others "His Mercy" and "His Grace".

There is great satisfaction in knowing Jesus Christ as Lord!

Psa 145:16 Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing.

*****Mar 6:45 And straightway he constrained his disciples to get into the ship, and to go to the other side before unto Bethsaida, while he sent away the people.

The disciples were unwilling to leave Jesus alone with this great multitude but as always, The Lord can convince us the right things to do if we just listen to His Words!

God's "Will", will be done!

The Apostle John gives us a better description of what took place:

Joh 6:14 Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world.
Joh 6:15 When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take him by force, to make him a king, he departed again into a mountain himself alone.

There were some of those that had seen the miracle that realized the Jesus was indeed that Prophet that was to be likened unto Moses.

Moses had prayed for the "Manna" that had fed the children of Israel in their escape from Egypt.

This "Manna" had fulfilled God's purpose by preserving God's people in the wilderness for 40 years but it was gathered day by day.

But there was a "hidden Manna" that the Jew did not know and have not found even today.

Rev 2:17 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.

These men realized that only a prophet such as Moses could have brought this bread from Heaven this day.

They looked around at the 5000 men that Jesus had fed and they saw a 5000 men standing army that would have followed Jesus anywhere.

They "saw escape" from the tyranny of Rome and the Rome appointed rulers of Israel.

Christ Jesus knew what was in these men's hearts and He did not want the 12 He had chosen to start the Church, to get caught up in these things.

It was not time for Jesus to be King.!

This would only come after the "Rapture" of the Church!

1Ti 6:15 Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;

This will happen at the "Second Coming" of Our Lord:

Rev 19:16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.

So Jesus sent these people away and He felt the need to pray for them!

*****Mar 6:46 And when he had sent them away, he departed into a mountain to pray.

Did Jesus pray for Himself? No

Jesus prayed for the lost, that they might come to believe on Him!

Jesus prayed for the saved, because He is Our Mediator!

Jesus could have prayed anywhere but He went up on a the mountain!

Though He knew what was going to happen to the 12 disciples, He went up onto the mountain so He could see with His human eyes.

Prayer is the pouring out of the "soul" before God!

Prayer is the drawing nearer to God!

Prayer is the "faith" that there is someone (God) who can do something about our problems!

And "Prayer" must be sincere!

Heb 10:22 Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.
Heb 10:23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)

BUT, "Prayer" must be offered in true "Faith"!

*****Mar 6:48 And he saw them toiling in rowing; for the wind was contrary unto them: and about the fourth watch of the night he cometh unto them, walking upon the sea, and would have passed by them.
Mar 6:49 But when they saw him walking upon the sea, they supposed it had been a spirit, and cried out:
Mar 6:50 For they all saw him, and were troubled. And immediately he talked with them, and saith unto them, Be of good cheer: it is I; be not afraid.

Even while Jesus was praying for the lost, His mind was also on His disciples.

Jesus was on that mountain top but even through the darkness He could see them!

We should be getting a picture of God's Church and the struggles that will happen in this evil world!

Most of our struggles are within our own selves!

Christ has given us a commandment to be like Him, but we are addicted to our own will and this brings with it failure!

Paul wrote:

Rom 7:18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.

We should picture ourselves in this little fishing boat struggling with all our might against against the dark and stormy evil of this world.

We sometimes doubt and even forget God's Grace, His promise of Eternal Life, and even the Power Of God, and this burdens our soul.

These things rob of of our joy and our peace that God wants us to have!

Gal 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
Gal 5:23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

God did not promise us an easy road after salvation, we will toiling while we are rowing in this sea of evil we call Earth.

BUT, God did promise that He would be with us every step of the way!

AND, you see God is watching over us all the time!

If it is getting dark and Jesus has not arrived, we must realize that He may have paused along the way to pray for us!

And if we look hard enough, we may see Jesus coming to stop the storm!

God has promised He will never forsake us for any reason after our name is written in the Lamb's Book Of Life!

Just as these disciples did not understand why Jesus was not with them at this time, we may not understand many of the things we are going through!

We should realize that for every good day, there will be some stormy nights and the darkness of the sin in this world, will magnify our fears.

We must know that we are not alone, every Christian will travel this same path, some more than others:

1Pe 5:9 Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.

All these things are God's training ground to make us better prepared for His purpose for each and every one of us:

1Pe 5:10 But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

There is no force of Nature and no power of man that can come between us and Christ that He cannot, and will not overcome!

Walking on water to the Lord is the same as walking on pavement to us.

Notice that Our Lord never explains His absence, He just says, "It is I, be not afraid" because He knows we have these fears!

When the Lord speaks things happen!

*****Mar 6:51 And he went up unto them into the ship; and the wind ceased: and they were sore amazed in themselves beyond measure, and wondered.

Before Jesus went into the ship there was one more thing that happened that Mark does not mention.

Mat 14:27 But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.
Mat 14:28 And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.
Mat 14:29 And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.
Mat 14:30 But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.
Mat 14:31 And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?

When we add this incident to all these other things we can see why these disciples were so amazed and also another reason their hearts were hardened.

Peter wanted to do the thing that Christ Jesus was doing.

And this impulse of Peter was not some kind of test the Lord Jesus was performing with Peter.

This impulsive act of Peter could have led to his death if not for the Lord Jesus.

Man was never made to walk on water!

If our "faith" is strong enough, there is no sea that is too rough for us to travel.

BUT, It takes a special "faith" to do the things where no human power on this earth can help!

You see, it was not the water that was supporting Peter for that was impossible. It was his "faith"!

We must always be very careful not to try to prove the power of the Lord!

There was no real reason for Peter to walk to the Lord, but the Lord will use our own mistakes did to train us as He did here with Peter!

Peter was corrected by a merciful God!

Peter was allowed to test his own "faith" and then the Lord exposed his error.

"O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt"

I believe Peter got out of the boat for the wrong reasons!

They were so amazed in themselves, they did not know how to express what they had just witnessed!

I believe the other disciples hearts hardened because of this impulse of Peter to go to the Lord but most of all because he failed and this showed the weakness that they all had.

*****Mar 6:52 For they considered not the miracle of the loaves: for their heart was hardened.

It had only been a few hours since Jesus had proved that He was the "Creator" when He had fed many more than 5000 people by making the bread that was eaten out of thin air.

Remember there were 12 baskets of leftovers!

The Lord had not used those 5 loaves nor those 2 fishes!

These 12 were eye witnesses to this great miracle!

This had to be a wonderful time in the lives of these men but Jesus still said, "why do you have these doubts'?

*****Mar 6:53 And when they had passed over, they came into the land of Gennesaret, and drew to the shore.
The Apostle John said while these things were on there mind, the ship just landed on shore.

Joh 6:21 Then they willingly received him into the ship: and immediately the ship was at the land whither they went.

The "Navigator" was back on board.

Gennesaret was on the western shore of Galilee and does not exist today.

This was the same area that was named after the Hebrew name for the Sea of Galilee which was Chinnereth:

Num 34:11 And the coast shall go down from Shepham to Riblah, on the east side of Ain; and the border shall descend, and shall reach unto the side of the [sea of Chinnereth] eastward:

In the Greek is was called the Lake of Gennesaret.

Luk 5:1 And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he stood by the lake of Gennesaret,

And, This is the same sea that politicians had renamed the Sea of Tiberius.

Joh 6:1 After these things Jesus went over the sea of Galilee, which is the sea of Tiberias.

*****Mar 6:54 And when they were come out of the ship, straightway they knew him,
Mar 6:55 And ran through that whole region round about, and began to carry about in beds those that were sick, where they heard he was.

It did not take long for these people to realize that Jesus of Nazareth was in town!

And again prophesy is fulfilled:

Psa 9:10 And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.

A day before Jesus had fed more than 5000 and no matter where Jesus appeared, great crowds would gather and the greater the size of these crowds, the more attention to Jesus came from the elders, the government, and religious system.

And they came from far and wide.

*****Mar 6:56 And whithersoever he entered, into villages, or cities, or country, they laid the sick in the streets, and besought him that they might touch if it were but the border of his garment: and as many as touched him were made whole.

They were from the villages.
They were from the cities.
They were from the country.

They were from all walks of life!

It did not matter where Jesus showed up except, for His home of Nazareth, He was able to some good.

These people had no doubt that Christ Jesus had the power to heal!

Again the garment they were seeking to touch was the fringes of the prayer shawl that Jesus wore.

Each and every Pastor would be overwhelmed with the results that Jesus had obtained!

He drew enormous crowds!

He was popular with all walks of life of the people!

He had unfailing results!

Jesus was becoming famous!

For at the touch of Jesus:

Blinded eyes can see
Broken hearts are mended
Captives are set free

When He speaks,
The mountains move at His command

At the touch of Jesus
Fallen lives can stand

Questions?

Let's Pray!

The Plan Of God's Servant

The Plan Of God's Servant

"Sending Messengers"

Book of Mark Chapter 6

In our last lesson Jesus had calmed the storm on Galilee, showing His power over the elements.

He had showed His power over Satan by removing a Legion of devils from a human being that Satan had used.

Jesus had raised the 12 year old daughter of Jairus back to perfect health after she had died.

This 12 year old was called a Damsel.

A damsel is a young lady not much older than 12.

In our lesson today we will see Jesus show us His intent to send His disciples to spread the "Gospel", but we will also see how Satan can use another young "Damsel", to hinder the work of God!

Many important lessons we will learn as the Holy Ghost guided Mark to write these things down.

Let's begin:

*****Mar 6:1 And he went out from thence, and came into his own country; and his disciples follow him.
Mar 6:2 And when the sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the synagogue: and many hearing him were astonished, saying, From whence hath this man these things? and what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands?

It had not been long since Mary, the "virgin" mother of Jesus had brought the "earthly" family of Jesus to Capernaum trying to get Jesus to just come back home and forget what He was doing.

Jesus had been raised in Nazareth but may not have returned there since John the Baptist had been murdered.

Every Jewish man had a right to address the people of the Synagogue and the ruler of the Synagogue would normally ask if any intended to do so.

The Lord Jesus would always speak at this opportunity!

These people knew Jesus and his family very well and they were astonished at His doctrine.

Jesus had began His ministry at the age of 30 and up until that point in His life, He had not been allowed to speak in any Synagogue.

So what did Jesus teach this day?

The Gospel of Luke says this:

Luk 4:17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,
Luk 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
Luk 4:19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
Luk 4:20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.
Luk 4:21 And he began to say unto them, "This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears".

These people were not prepared to hear this message!
His friends were not prepared to hear this message!
His family was not prepared to hear this message!

Jesus taught with words that they had never heard before, but to them, Jesus was just the son of Mary and Joseph, a local boy that had become famous throughout the region.

And they said:

*****Mar 6:3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at him.

Joseph was not the father of Jesus but he had adopted Him as his son and raised Him in his own profession.

A carpenter of that day was an admired profession and a good one had knowledge of many things. We can see that Jesus was recognized as a "carpenter"!

There was a great lack of wood, so carpenters had to also be stone masons and metal workers to build homes.

Wood was mainly used for furniture, so a good carpenter would also be a cabinet maker and other household furniture and a carpenter would have also made farm equipment such as ploughs and yokes.

We can see a good carpenter was a valuable man to have around, but Jesus Christ was much more than a carpenter!

Luke had written some things about the early years of Jesus but here we do see that from those early years until the age of 30 when Jesus began His ministry, He had built a reputation as a carpenter, "a builder", and a craftsman!

Here again Joseph is not mentioned but only the fact that Jesus was birthed by the virgin Mary.

We can also see that Jesus had 4 brothers and also some sisters who were fathered by Joseph.

"And they were offended at Him"

An old prophet had given Mary and Joseph these words when Jesus was just 8 days old:

Luk 2:34 And Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother, Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign which shall be spoken against;
Luk 2:35 (Yea, a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also,) that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.

Jesus Christ has always been spoken against in this world, but Christianity will continue until the Lord takes us all home!

And Jesus responded:

*****Mar 6:4 But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house.
Mar 6:5 And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them.
Mar 6:6 And he marvelled because of their unbelief. And he went round about the villages, teaching.

Jesus was well known to the people of Nazareth.

Remember Jesus had always kept the Laws of Moses and had always been an upright child.

They had since heard of His great reputation of His teaching and the miracles that He had performed.

Jesus had come to Nazareth in full public display and all they could do was find fault in Him!

They could not believe the truth that stood before them!

Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

They could not believe the things they had heard!

Act 10:38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.

To "marvel" is to "wonder"!

To "wonder" is the effect that truth has on ignorance!

In any court of law with all this evidence, there could have only been one conclusion.

Jesus Christ was exactly who He said He was!

Heb 1:3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and "the express image" of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;

Jesus had unfolded a mystery of the Bible to them and He was rejected without any excuse!

Eph 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, "which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ":

God has always spoken to this world we live in, by His Son Jesus!

"Unbelief" in reference to Jesus Christ is refusing to recognize and receive Him as being what He claims to be!

1) Christ Jesus is God manifested in the flesh.
2) Christ Jesus is God's messenger and teacher.
3) Christ Jesus is Our atoning Sacrifice and Great High Priests.
4) Christ Jesus is God's Authority over this world!

This is the sin that will send all such unbelievers to the Burning Lake of Fire!

He who cannot see the Sun (Son) must be stone blind!

So what did Jesus do?

He went around to all the villages and continued to teach!

If Nazareth wanted no part of Salvation, there was still a whole countryside that had not heard His message!

Jesus was preparing His disciples to multiply His message and there is still only "One Message" today!

*****Mar 6:7 And he called unto him the twelve, and began to send them forth by two and two; and gave them power over unclean spirits;
Mar 6:8 And commanded them that they should take nothing for their journey, save a staff only; no scrip, no bread, no money in their purse:
Mar 6:9 But be shod with sandals; and not put on two coats.
Mar 6:10 And he said unto them, In what place soever ye enter into an house, there abide till ye depart from that place.
Mar 6:11 And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city.

Here again the message would be sent to the Jew first and there was a very good reason to go out in pairs:

Ecc 4:9 Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour.
Ecc 4:10 For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.
Ecc 4:11 Again, if two lie together, then they have heat: but how can one be warm alone?
Ecc 4:12 And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.

You see, God will never go against His Own Word!

We can see it was Jesus who matched these pairs together, for only He knew their strengths and weaknesses.

Jesus gave them the power over unclean spirits!

We should always realize that Jesus always gives what is needed before He commands us to go!

Jesus will never send us into the battlefield unprepared!

Stepping out on "faith" when we are called, is God's way!

They were to travel light!

A staff would not only provide support but would also provide a defensive weapon and spiritually a "staff" gives us the picture of the shepherd and the "staff" also is a "type" of the "Bread of Life", the Word of God.

They were to wear their sandals.

The sandals were to protect their feet.

We should have this thought.

God told Moses at the burning bush to remove his shoes (sandals) because he was on Holy Ground.

God told Solomon to keep his feet when he went into the Temple.

Jesus was telling His disciples to wear their sandals because they were stepping out in this evil, and unholy world!

They were not to take anything else because even though Jesus was not with them, they were to trust in Him to provide for them!

These same disciples were not allowed to make preparations when they sailed to the other side on that trip to Gadara. They had to depend on the Lord even in the storm.

And, these disciples were not allowed to make preparations for their journey this day they were sent by the Lord. They still had to depend on the Lord who sent them.

We should realize that Jesus was training these disciples and these are not universal rules for sending missionaries!

These disciples of Jesus had also become well known and many would be waiting to extend hospitality to them.

They should also be prepared to stay with the meager as well as with the more affluent!

All Jews were taught that "the dust of the Gentiles" was impure and was to be shaken off.

Jesus was telling these disciples that any that did not receive them were to be considered impure and they were to shake the dust off their feet and remember they were sent to the Jews.

The Apostle Paul said it this way:

Act 18:5 And when Silas and Timotheus were come from Macedonia, Paul was pressed in the spirit, and testified to the Jews that Jesus was Christ.
Act 18:6 And when they opposed themselves, and blasphemed, he shook his raiment, and said unto them, Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean: from henceforth I will go unto the Gentiles.

Not everyone in this world will receive the Word of God openly!

The Jewish religious system had already rejected the The Lord as The Messiah and were already plotting to kill Him.

In our day, not everyone is glad to hear the "Gospel" and true preachers are the enemies of most governments of today.

But it is a serious matter to reject the Word of God!

And it is just as serious a matter to reject those that are sent of God!

Pharaoh made this mistake when dealing with Moses!

The city of Sodom made this mistake when dealing with those two angels!

Sodom is mentioned because, immorality that will not change, will be eradicated!

Gomorrah is mentioned to give us the image of eternal fire!

Jud 1:7 Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.

There is indeed a "judgment day coming"!

*****Mar 6:12 And they went out, and preached that men should repent.
Mar 6:13 And they cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them.

What is the order of salvation?

1) Repentance:

The Holy Spirit must be allowed to do His work. It's called Holy Ghost conviction!

Repentance is not just feeling sorry but is a complete change of mind.

Mat 21:28 But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, Son, go work to day in my vineyard.
Mat 21:29 "He answered and said, I will not: but afterward he repented, and went".

Jesus had said a man must realize he is sick before he will seek out the doctor!

These disciples were sent to do some other things but their first job was to preach the "Gospel of Jesus Christ"!

Rom 10:14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

2) Next comes the results of preaching!

What is in Satan's kingdom?

It is full of devils.
It is full of disease and sickness.
It is full of bondage.

Just so we are clear, the anointing of oil had no healing properties!

That "oil" represents the soothing and gentle effect that salvation brings to the lost.

That "oil" represents the work of the Holy Spirit!

Act 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

1Jn 2:20 But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.

Rom 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
Rom 8:3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:

And who do think was keeping up with the things of Jesus?

It was the government!

*****Mar 6:14 And king Herod heard of him; (for his name was spread abroad:) and he said, That John the Baptist was risen from the dead, and therefore mighty works do shew forth themselves in him.
Mar 6:15 Others said, That it is Elias. And others said, That it is a prophet, or as one of the prophets.
Mar 6:16 But when Herod heard thereof, he said, It is John, whom I beheaded: he is risen from the dead.

This is the same Herod Antipas we learned about a few weeks ago. He was the son of Herod the Great. This is the Herod that murdered John the Baptist "for no reason" but to satisfy his illegitimate wife!

Herod did not believe that Christ Jesus was the Messiah!

Herod had a guilty conscience for what he had done to John the Baptist and he had a fear that John had resurrected from the dead and would seek vengeance!

Our conscience and our memory will always make themselves felt in this life we live!

I just heard today that medicine that is sold for stress illness is ten times what it was just two years ago!

Herod had gladly listened to John but he would not obey him!

Herod also knew that miraculous powers were at work in Jesus!

There were also some others that thought of Jesus as the returning Elijah that was prophesied.

Mal 4:5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:

Others said that Jesus was just another prophet.

Deu 18:15 The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken;

The world of that day was at least recognizing that Jesus Christ was a great man!

Jesus Christ is surely that Prophet, but they all missed that part about "unto him ye shall hearken".

In our day the Muslim recognize Jesus as only a prophet, but not one to listen too.

This contradicts the title of prophet.

A true Prophet is a spokesman of God!

SO, Why was Herod so worried about Jesus?

*****Mar 6:17 For Herod himself had sent forth and laid hold upon John, and bound him in prison for Herodias' sake, his brother Philip's wife: for he had married her.
Mar 6:18 For John had said unto Herod, It is not lawful for thee to have thy brother's wife.
Mar 6:19 Therefore Herodias had a quarrel against him, and would have killed him; but she could not:
Mar 6:20 For Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just man and an holy, and observed him; and when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly.

Herodias was the unlawful wife of Herod Antipas. God had given the Jews a specific law that governed the wives of brothers:

Lev 18:16 Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy brother's wife it is thy brother's nakedness.

You see God had said that He would make the rules for the marriage.

God said that the marriage was to be between a man and a woman!

Lev 18:5 Ye shall therefore keep my statutes, and my judgments: which if a man do, he shall live in them: I am the LORD.
Lev 18:6 "None of you shall approach to any that is near of kin to him, to uncover their nakedness": I am the LORD.

Herodias was the granddaughter of Herod the Great. Remember he had had at least 10 wives.

She had been married to Herod Philip of Rome, not to another son Philip the Tetrarch but she had suddenly divorced him under Roman law to marry Herod Antipas, after he had divorced his wife who was the daughter of Aretas the King of Arabia.

It was because of her that John the Baptist was locked up in the prison at Machaerus, known as the Black Fortress.

Herod the Great had built a palace here that overlooked the Dead Sea and this is where Herod Antipas had his birthday party.

Herodias was a wicked woman, much like Jezebel of the Old Testament and she hated John for what he had done and sought every opportunity to have him killed.

But Herod Antipas knew that John was a holy and righteous man and therefore innocent of any wrong doing.

He just preached the truth of God!

When Herod could slip away from Herodias, he would gladly hear the Word that John spoke to him while he was in that prison.

But Herodias had an evil plan to finally be rid of John for good.

Watch as the plan of this evil woman unfolds.

*****Mar 6:21 And when a convenient day was come, that Herod on his birthday made a supper to his lords, high captains, and chief estates of Galilee;
Mar 6:22 And when the daughter of the said Herodias came in, and danced, and pleased Herod and them that sat with him, the king said unto the damsel, Ask of me whatsoever thou wilt, and I will give it thee.
Mar 6:23 And he sware unto her, Whatsoever thou shalt ask of me, I will give it thee, unto the half of my kingdom.

She chose the birthday celebration of Herod to spring her trap!

Mat 14:6 But when Herod's birthday was kept, the daughter of Herodias danced before them, and pleased Herod.

In our last lesson Jesus raised a "damsel" from her death and we saw that she was 12 years old.

A "damsel" was a half grown young lady from 12 to 13 years old.

Many marriages took place by the age of 14 during this time.

This daughter was named Salome and she would have been introduced as a princess but it was a shameful exhibition of lewd, half naked, dancing arranged by her mother who knew how to excite her husband!

Herod was excited enough to make an unreal offer.

A wise man once wrote these words:

Pro 6:2 Thou art snared with the words of thy mouth, thou art taken with the words of thy mouth.

Pro 18:7 A fool's mouth is his destruction, and his lips are the snare of his soul.

Being in a drunken stupor was no excuse for Herod's actions and the preaching of Jesus had brought back memories of this day and was haunting this Herod now.

Herodias's plan had been perfect:

*****Mar 6:24 And she went forth, and said unto her mother, What shall I ask? And she said, The head of John the Baptist.
Mar 6:25 And she came in straightway with haste unto the king, and asked, saying, I will that thou give me by and by in a charger the head of John the Baptist.
Mar 6:26 And the king was exceeding sorry; yet for his oath's sake, and for their sakes which sat with him, he would not reject her.
Mar 6:27 And immediately the king sent an executioner, and commanded his head to be brought: and he went and beheaded him in the prison,
Mar 6:28 And brought his head in a charger, and gave it to the damsel: and the damsel gave it to her mother.

This young damsel went to her mother to see what would be important enough to ask of Herod but she was used by her mother to get what her mother had wanted all along, the death of John the Baptist.

You see Herodias knew that Herod would not easily break an oath but she knew most of all that Herod would never intentionally look bad before his invited guest.

It was they who had been invited to impress Herod on this special birthday!

We are to stand against the devil but we are to flee from sin:

1Ti 6:11 But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.

We should be aware of the companions we surround ourselves with, and learn to say "NO" to any evil way!

Herod felt sorrow for what he was about to do, but he would not reject this child he had made this promise to!

In an brief instant John the Baptist was dead and Herod was damned!

This is the reason that Herod Antipas desired to see Jesus:

Luk 9:9 And Herod said, John have I beheaded: but who is this, of whom I hear such things? And he desired to see him.

He still had this desire even when Jesus was on trial:

Luk 23:8 And when Herod saw Jesus, he was exceeding glad: for he was desirous to see him of a long season, because he had heard many things of him; and he hoped to have seen some miracle done by him.
Luk 23:9 Then he questioned with him in many words; but he answered him nothing.

But we see Jesus had no desire to offer redemption to this Herod!

The Head of John the Baptist was delivered to Herodias:

*****Mar 6:29 And when his disciples heard of it, they came and took up his corpse, and laid it in a tomb.

It was a sad time for the disciples of John and after burying him to stop any further mutilation of his body, they went to Jesus.

What else could they do?

Mat 14:12 And his disciples came, and took up the body, and buried it, and went and told Jesus.

*****Mar 6:30 And the apostles gathered themselves together unto Jesus, and told him all things, both what they had done, and what they had taught.
Mar 6:31 And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat.

It is a fact that the human body needs rest!

Satan had been allowed a small triumph over John the Baptist, but he would never have a victory over The Lord Jesus.

Now we will begin to see just how large these multitudes were that followed Our Lord.

God works in His own time!

God is never in a hurry as we saw in our last lesson when He raised that 12 year old child.

In fact God is on time every time and He does not expect His children to be on the run continuously!

That word "Come" is used more than 3000 times in the KJV Bible.

It is one of the first words Jesus used when He began His ministry with the disciples:

Joh 1:39 He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour.

"Come" will be one of the last words we will hear Him speak before our life in the glory world:

Rev 22:17 And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

Because this is God's message to whosoever will listen to His words:

Mat 11:28 "Come" unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

There can be no peaceful rest without the Lord Jesus!

The 12 had just returned from their first mission trip.

Many of them had known John the Baptist and no doubt the word that he had been executed for preaching the truth, just as they were now, could have been upsetting to them.

They had lost a godly friend.

The Apostle Peter did not forget these days and offers this encouragement:

1Pe 1:7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:
1Pe 1:8 Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:
1Pe 1:9 Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.

Jesus said let's go to a "desert place".

This was not a sandy desert but a place that was thinly populated and away from crowds and cities.

No doubt these same thoughts had come to David:

Psa 23:1 A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
Psa 23:2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
Psa 23:3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Psa 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Psa 23:5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Psa 23:6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

But this time of desperate people, looking for relief of their circumstances would not allow this to happen.

*****Mar 6:32 And they departed into a desert place by ship privately.
Mar 6:33 And the people saw them departing, and many knew him, and ran afoot thither out of all cities, and outwent them, and came together unto him.

It is easy to see the human side of Jesus here. It was time for a holiday!

Remember God is a great believer in taking a holiday to rest:

Gen 2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
Gen 2:2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.

We already know that any ship on the Sea of Galilee could be seen from any shoreline.

As these desperate people followed after Jesus on foot, a great crowd gathered as they proceeded through each village and city.

*****Mar 6:34 And Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things.

Compassion is best described as a suffering with another and as painful sympathy for another human being.

Compassion is a mixture of passion, sorrow, and much love.

But Our Lord and Our God is full of "compassion"!

Psa 78:38 But he, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, and destroyed them not: yea, many a time turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his wrath.
Psa 78:39 For he remembered that they were but flesh; a wind that passeth away, and cometh not again.

They were like sheep that had no shepherd!

They had great needs:

Luk 9:11 And the people, when they knew it, followed him: and he received them, and spake unto them of the kingdom of God, and healed them that had need of healing.

What did Jesus do?

1) He received them.
2) He taught them the truth.
3) He healed them.

But there was much more.

4) He would also feed them with "Bread From Heaven"!

*****Mar 6:35 And when the day was now far spent, his disciples came unto him, and said, This is a desert place, and now the time is far passed:
Mar 6:36 Send them away, that they may go into the country round about, and into the villages, and buy themselves bread: for they have nothing to eat.
Mar 6:37 He answered and said unto them, Give ye them to eat. And they say unto him, Shall we go and buy two hundred pennyworth of bread, and give them to eat?

The 12 chosen of Jesus had not had much of a holiday and the day was now gone.

Jesus had specifically chose this desert place and He will feed His sheep.

We have already said that Our Lord never changes in His ways, so great lessons can be learned from all His miracles.

This was a great crowd of not only men but also women and children and they all wanted to hear what Jesus had to say.

There were no religious leaders here this day, just people with needs.

What did they all have in common?

They were all hungry and they were all poor!

So what would Jesus do?

Jesus gave the invitation!

Jesus provided the meal!

All this great multitude had to do was to "receive what the Lord provides"!

A free gift by the "Grace of God".

A great lesson for the 12 chosen of the Lord to learn and for us all!

They would not be sent away!

God's disciples can only lead the lost to the Lord it is by God's "Grace" that His gifts are offered!

Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

Philip, one of the 12 told of their little power:

Joh 6:7 Philip answered him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little.

Philip knew that they might could feed this multitude but they could not satisfy their hunger, for Jesus could only do that!

And Jesus will not allow His sheep to starve!

*****Mar 6:38 He saith unto them, How many loaves have ye? go and see. And when they knew, they say, Five, and two fishes.

They had the total supply of one lad, whose mother had cared enough to pack him a lunch!

The demand was great.

The supply was little.

But, the Lord Jesus is not caught up in the law of supply and demand!

Jesus said just do as I say.

*****Mar 6:39 And he commanded them to make all sit down by companies upon the green grass.

Psa 23:2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

They were to sit down as they would at a table that was full of food.

They were about to dine at God's table!

*****Mar 6:40 And they sat down in ranks, by hundreds, and by fifties.

1Co 14:33 For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.

They were told to sit down as they would in an orderly fashion at their own table.

Out of disorder Jesus Christ brings order.

What was the miracle?

*****Mar 6:41 And when he had taken the five loaves and the two fishes, he looked up to heaven, and blessed, and brake the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before them; and the two fishes divided he among them all.
Mar 6:42 And they did all eat, and were filled.
Mar 6:43 And they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments, and of the fishes.

This miracle is recorded in all 4 of the "Gospels".

Before Jesus started, He looked up to Heaven.

This world we live in cannot supply our greatest need!

Before Jesus brakes the bread He blesses it.

The food we receive from the Lord is already blessed, so God who gives it, then deserves our thanks.

Man cannot bless the things of God!

They did all eat!

They were all filled!

There were many of them that had not realized that a miracle taken place but the chosen 12 became very aware when they gathered 12 baskets full of fragments!

We can see that the baskets that the 12 carried their own provisions were now filled.

Psa 78:72 So he fed them according to the integrity of his heart; and guided them by the skilfulness of his hands.

The Lord Jesus will always have more than enough for those that call on His name!

*****Mar 6:44 And they that did eat of the loaves were about five thousand men.

Matthew adds:

Mat 14:21 And they that had eaten were about five thousand men, beside women and children.

We see when the word multitude is written it can well mean more than 10,000 people.

It is very obvious that the world of that day was taking a great notice of Jesus of Nazareth!

*****Mar 6:45 And straightway he constrained his disciples to get into the ship, and to go to the other side before unto Bethsaida, while he sent away the people.
Mar 6:46 And when he had sent them away, he departed into a mountain to pray.

Jesus did not force His disciples to sail without Him, He just convinced them that is was the necessary thing to do.

The disciples did not want to leave Jesus behind because there were no more boats left for Him to come later.

They still did not understand the power of God, that was Jesus Christ.

Bethsaida was the native home of Peter, Andrew, and Philip. and Jesus would soon meet a blind man here.

Joh 6:22 The day following, when the people which stood on the other side of the sea saw that there was none other boat there, save that one whereinto his disciples were entered, and that Jesus went not with his disciples into the boat, but that his disciples were gone away alone;

With these things settled Jesus went up alone on the mountain to pray!

Jesus was finally alone with Our Father who is in Heaven!

We can see that Jesus felt it was important to spend some quiet time with His Father!

This is also something that we must all do!

We should also see this as a "type" of the church without the Holy Spirit.

The 12 disciples were launched in the sea of this world without the power of Christ Jesus.

****Mar 6:47 And when even was come, the ship was in the midst of the sea, and he alone on the land.

Remember what Jesus said to them later:

Act 1:7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.
Act 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

But we can also get a picture of the modern day Church tossing in the storms and waves of the Laodicean Church Age patiently waiting on the return of Jesus Christ to get His Church.

1Co 15:57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
1Co 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.

*****Mar 6:48 And he saw them toiling in rowing; for the wind was contrary unto them: and about the fourth watch of the night he cometh unto them, walking upon the sea, and would have passed by them.

Jesus watches over all His disciples as we travel through the storms of life!

That word "toiling" meant that it was like "torture" to row against that contrary wind!

That wind was blowing in the opposite direction from which they were headed.

We know this world we live in is going in the opposite direction from the Word of God!

The fourth watch of the night would have been between 3 AM and 6 AM.

We know that our world is dark and getting darker but we are to continue to do the work the Lord has given us to do!

Mat 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Mat 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

And there are other reasons to continue:

1Co 1:7 So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ:
1Co 1:8 Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ was not going to pass by His disciples, they only thought this!

It may not always appear that the Lord is with us in our time of need but He is keeping a close watch on each and every one of us!

Heb 13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.
Heb 13:6 So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.

Jesus would not say this if it were not true!

*****Mar 6:49 But when they saw him walking upon the sea, they supposed it had been a spirit, and cried out:
Mar 6:50 For they all saw him, and were troubled. And immediately he talked with them, and saith unto them, Be of good cheer: it is I; be not afraid.
Mar 6:51 And he went up unto them into the ship; and the wind ceased: and they were sore amazed in themselves beyond measure, and wondered.

Not only were these experienced fishermen in fear of the storm, they believed they were seeing things and they thought they were seeing a ghost.

After all, they believed that no mortal man can walk on water!

And they also remembered those pigs filled with evil spirits had drowned near this same water not to long ago.

So they cried out to God and as God does, He hears our cries!

" It is I"***** Exo 3:14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.
Exo 3:15 And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.

It is Jehovah that answered:

Rev 1:8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.

It is the Lord that answered "be not afraid"!

And the Lord climbed into the ship and the wind ceased!

We know that Mark was led to the Lord by Peter and after his dispute with the Apostle Paul, Mark spent a great deal of time with Peter.

So maybe Peter did not want Mark to write down how he had himself walked on the water also but had let his faith falter and began to sink:

Mat 14:27 But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.
Mat 14:28 And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.
Mat 14:29 And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.
Mat 14:30 But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.
Mat 14:31 And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?

Again the Lord showed His power over the forces of nature.

But why was their faith weak?

*****Mar 6:52 For they considered not the miracle of the loaves: for their heart was hardened.

Just as the world is today, we just do not consider the full power of the Lord Jesus Christ.

When each miracle is only looked at on it's merits we sometimes miss the big picture.

When Jesus fed that crowd of much more than 5000, they had not understood the full breadth of that power.

They should not have been astonished, that the sea again calmed and that wind ceased.

Today we can say that those that live in the so called Bible Belt are "Gospel Hardened".

When we should know what to expect from the Lord, we allow doubts to interfere with good judgment.

The Lord has said what He will do!

We cannot have our joy in this world until we accept the full truth of the "Gospel" of the Lord Jesus Christ.

After all it is His "Gospel"-------AND, It is Good News not bad news!

1Th 2:19 For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming?

*****Mar 6:53 And when they had passed over, they came into the land of Gennesaret, and drew to the shore.
Mar 6:54 And when they were come out of the ship, straightway they knew him,
Mar 6:55 And ran through that whole region round about, and began to carry about in beds those that were sick, where they heard he was.

The land of Gennesaret has been called "the Paradise of Galilee".

Gennesaret means the "garden of the prince".

But this day would be a day when good things would happen.

It was a day to meet Jesus!

*****Mar 6:56 And whithersoever he entered, into villages, or cities, or country, they laid the sick in the streets, and besought him that they might touch if it were but the border of his garment: and as many as touched him were made whole.

Many of the miracles that Jesus had done were soon forgotten but not His power to heal!

But Jesus was not seeking fame!

Jesus had come for a different reason:

Joh 10:9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
Joh 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
Joh 10:11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.

Questions?

Let's Pray!

The Power Of Jesus Christ

The Power Of God's Servant

Forgiving, Cleansing, Sending

Book of Mark Chapter 5

When we finished last week Christ Jesus had taught a great multitude with parables and He had begun with the most important parable of them all, the parable of the "Sower".

After this Jesus took some time to make sure that the chosen 12 had a clear understanding of what He had taught.

Shortly after this time Jesus informed these 12 that he wanted to go over to the other side of the Sea of Galilee from His location at Capernaum.

They had gotten into a small fishing boat without making any preparations and as happens on Galilee, a great wind caused experienced fishermen to fear for their lives while Christ Jesus slept in the rear of the boat where the Navigator would normally be.

After Jesus had rebuked the wind, and brought peace to the seas, these 12 and the other small boats in this company were all in "awe" of the Master.

With these things on their mind and Jesus continuing to rest, the boat came to Gadara:

*****Mar 5:1 And they came over unto the other side of the sea, into the country of the Gadarenes.

In the Book of Matthew these people are called the Gergesenes but we must not get confused. Gergesa was a small town on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee and it was in the district of Gadara which was a much larger city. Both accounts are correct.

It had been a wild and stormy night and this morning would not be much different!

We have just witnessed that, following Jesus, does not mean we will not have storms in our life, and we will now see, that even though we follow the Lord Jesus, it does not mean we can avoid the wickedness of this world!

What are the three greatest terrors of mankind?

Demons, Disease, and Death!

What makes a family"?

Man, Woman And Child!

Let's see these things unfold:

*****Mar 5:2 And when he was come out of the ship, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit,
Mar 5:3 Who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no man could bind him, no, not with chains:

Again in the Book of Matthew, we see that two possessed men are mentioned, but this is also not a contradiction, because neither Luke nor Mark ever say that there was only one man.

We read that Jesus only dealt with the one that came to Him!

These tombs were natural caverns in the sides of rocks, containing cells in which dead bodies were placed. The entrances to these caverns were not sealed and could have been used for shelter for such a man as this man mentioned with the unclean spirit.

These tombs still exist today!

To understand this more clearly, we need to see the man behind the scenes. Satan had just tried to drown the Lord Jesus while He slept. Now Satan will try to have Him killed by this ferocious demoniac.

This was not just a man of passion and rage because of his circumstances.
This was not a victim of delusion nor criminally insane.
This was not just any man possessed.
This was a man tormented and driven by a vast number of evil spirits!

This man had not always been this way but he was now being used by Satan and he was tormenting this entire community.

The people in the area had tried to protect themselves because they had bound him and they had chained him but he had escaped every time.

*****Mar 5:4 Because that he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces: neither could any man tame him.
Mar 5:5 And always, night and day, he was in the mountains, and in the tombs, crying, and cutting himself with stones.

Even Luke, who was a physician, could only say that this man was possessed and he could not be tamed by any normal means.

He had a supernatural strength and no bindings could hold him.

Again the Holy Spirit described this as a "human being" and not just some man or woman!

It is a fact that demon possession is real in our world and it was real in the days of Jesus.

If we want to see a picture of the torments and a "type" of the death of the unsaved, we have this picture.

This man, this human being, had already been banished from the land of the living!
He had been banished from any human community.
And he had been banished from all human contact which makes human life possible!

The harshest restraints imposed on him by society had failed this man.

This man always cried out making this same society know how they had failed him.

But his cries had only reached the ears of God and only Jesus had come to him!

*****Mar 5:6 But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshipped him,
Mar 5:7 And cried with a loud voice, and said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not.

This man was unclean in every sense of the word!

Satan's work, is a work, that leads to total destruction of every human being he influences!

The body of this man was covered with open sores and scars, from his own doing and from the binds that could not hold him. (wore the filth of this world)
His hair and beard was in a shaggy and a tangled mess. (like an animal)
He had not bathed. (no self respect)
He was naked or wore rags he had stolen from dead bodies. (our righteousness as filthy rags)
He was demon possessed and very dangerous to anyone who came close to him. (a follower of Satan)
He was a Gentile, therefore also unclean by Jewish standards and in all ritual ways. (unclean by the law)

But when he came to Jesus, he immediately bowed before Him!

Psa 66:3 Say unto God, How terrible art thou in thy works! through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies submit themselves unto thee.

But while this "human being" bowed because he had to, these evil spirits within him, became defiant.

The dominant demon within this man began speaking:

"What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the most high God"?

Satan and his demons must always recognize the Deity of Christ and must also obey Him, but we can still see the hatred they have for God as they accused the Lord Jesus of being their Tormentor!

What did James teach us?

Jas 2:19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.
The Bible teaches us how to know when we meet evil spirits. There is a simple test:

1Jn 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
1Jn 4:2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:
1Jn 4:3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.

Many of these evil spirits fill our churches and our pulpits today.

All that deny that Jesus Christ is the Messiah that has come, and will come again are filled with unclean spirits and not the Holy Spirit of God!

The spirit of Antichrist fills our world today and we must use this test to discern the truth of all those that teach us and our children!

This also gives us a picture of what will happen to mankind for that short period after the "Rapture", when the evil spirits come out of the mouth of the Antichrist in the Book of Revelation:

Rev 16:13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.
Rev 16:14 For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.

Those that do not accept the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior "and not as Tormentor", will witness what the 12 Apostles witnessed this day with Jesus but there will be no Savior that day of the Antichrist!

What can Jesus do for every "human being"?

*****Mar 5:8 For he said unto him, Come out of the man, thou unclean spirit.

Jesus can remove that evil spirit and replace it with the Holy Spirit of God, the Spirit of Truth!

Christ Jesus has the absolute authority over God's entire creation!

We see in these scriptures the results, when an evil spirit of Satan has taken physical control over a "human being".

What can Jesus do?

2Ti 2:26 And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.

We will see that Satan never operates under his own name. (Here he will call himself Legion)
We should know that Satan hides where he is least suspicious. (He used that serpent on Eve)
We should realize that Satan has his own twisted version of God's Word. (He will cause confusion)
We will find out that Satan takes our least desirable traits and exploits them for his own use. (Lust, pride, malice, etc.)
We will find out that once in Satan's trap, we will see his cruelty, and live in misery!

Satan's strength is not in his temptations, his strength is in his "snares"!

But, even in all these things Satan must obey God, so God in the flesh said "come out of this human being".

Why was Jesus standing before this possessed man?

1Jn 3:8 He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. "For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil".

*****Mar 5:9 And he asked him, What is thy name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion: for we are many.

We immediately see how Satan will still test Jesus.

Satan was saying, "I am a "legion", and "probably much more powerful that you can handle while you are in that flesh".

But Jesus Christ did not ask for Himself, He asked because He had the 12 chosen with Him!

A Roman Legion at full strength would be around 6000 men. Later we will see a figure of 2000 swine but this may not mean an actual 2000 demons as more than one occupied this man more than one could occupy those swine.

We should also notice that this evil spirit was able to make use of the physical parts of this mans body as it used this mans own voice to answer Christ Jesus.

Jesus was never intimidated by Satan's deception and we cannot be!

Jas 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Satan has no right to claim any of God's creation, especially mankind, he knows this.

So, then we see this mighty Legion become a single begging Satan:

*****Mar 5:10 And he besought him much that he would not send them away out of the country.

Why did these evil spirits not want to leave this country they were in?

The Bible gives us the best explanation.

Eph 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, "but against principalities", against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

A principality is the territory of a prince:

Satan is known as the prince of of this world.
Satan is known as the prince of the power of the air.
And Satan is known as the prince of devils. (and demons)

That word "principalities" is obviously plural!

In the Book of Daniel we find:

Dan 10:13 But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia.

There is a great amount of difference between a prince and a chief prince!

What we should realize, is that these evil spirits must have had assigned territories.

They did not want to be sent out of their assigned territory!

This was a breeding ground for sin, but the first missionary to this territory, would be this once lost Demoniac!

What will be the ending of all of Satan's helpers?

Mat 25:41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:

These demon helpers of Satan know the truth of God's Word:

Jas 2:19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.
They have a "sort of faith" in the sense that they believe and know God, this is not "saving faith"!

But neither their faith nor their fear, can save them from the place God has prepared for them!

They, like the world we live in, just do not know the time that this will take place!

In Matthews "Gospel" we have these words:

Mat 8:29 And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us "before the time"?

They may not know the actual time they will be placed in torment but they do know this time is coming!

In fact these demon did not know what Jesus would do to them, this let's us know that Satan does not know as much as some people thinks he does!

Satan is not omnipotent nor omniscient!

And Satan can only be in one place at a time, he just has many demons that help him! (one third of an enumerable amount of angels)

*****Mar 5:11 Now there was there nigh unto the mountains a great herd of swine feeding.
Mar 5:12 And all the devils besought him, saying, Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them.

This a sure sign that this land was the home of Gentiles and not the Jews. The Jews had no part with swine!

Deu 14:8 And the swine, because it divideth the hoof, yet cheweth not the cud, it is unclean unto you: ye shall not eat of their flesh, nor touch their dead carcase.

We should not miss this important verse that explains the these devils needed God's permission to enter into innocent animals that have "no choice".

But we should also see that God does allow them to do this sometimes.

And what happens?

*****Mar 5:13 And forthwith Jesus gave them leave. And the unclean spirits went out, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea, (they were about two thousand;) and were choked in the sea.

The evil spirits must have thought they could control these animals but they could not!

How smart is a pig?

If a Legion of Roman soldiers is 6000 men, then each of these pigs could have had 3 of these evil spirits that tried to take over them.

Rather than be possessed, these swine decide it would be better to die!

We should hate sin as these swine hated these demon!

We should also remember these words of Jesus as He speaks to believers:

Luk 12:4 And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.
Luk 12:5 But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.

We should also remember these words of the Holy Spirit to Peter:

Act 10:15 And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.

If we have a tendency to have pity on these pigs and for the farmer, we would be wrong.

God has a purpose, for every situation that happens in this world.

Nothing happens by chance!

We must trust the Lord in all things!

Gen 18:25 That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right"?

God does not make any mistakes!

*****Mar 5:14 And they that fed the swine fled, and told it in the city, and in the country. And they went out to see what it was that was done.

Where ever you find domesticated animals you should find someone who takes care of those animals.

Luke said "those that saw" what was done.

Matthew said "they that kept them".

Mark said "those that fed them".

In every case we can see that these were not the owners of these swine.

They had two stories to tell back home.

1) The things that had happened to the Demoniac.
2) The things that happened to the swine.

And they fled from both these things because they did not understand!

The owners came to see what was going on and what did they see?

*****Mar 5:15 And they come to Jesus, and see him that was possessed with the devil, and had the legion, sitting, and clothed, and in his right mind: and they were afraid.
Mar 5:16 And they that saw it told them how it befell to him that was possessed with the devil, and also concerning the swine.

They did not look over the cliff to see if any of their pigs had survived.
They did not go near the Demoniac.
They did not question the 12 disciples.

They went straight to Jesus Christ, and this is when they noticed their old friend who had become their enemy, who would now be their first Chritian missionary.

And they were afraid!

Just as the world is today, they did could not understand how such a man could be transformed by Jesus Christ and they were afraid at the sight of him!

What a shame!

This man was no longer the most evil man in the community and this made them take another look at themselves to see who was the next most evil man in the community.

The power of God is an awesome thing to behold!

They then made a wrong choice!

Mar 5:17 And they began to pray him to depart out of their coasts.

After seeing the supernatural power that can change lives, these people could only think of their personal wealth.

AND, Such is our world today!

In America today the slogan is "Jesus, just go away".

Most of our world is the same, yet it is still obvious that knowing Jesus can still change lives.

The heart of mankind remains cold!

It is a sad fact that people living in misery get dependent, and most governments see this as a way to make them stay that way.

When people get dependant on their governments or on others, they cannot see the freedom of know ing Jesus Christ!

There is nothing wrong with welfare programs but this cannot be allowed to become a permanent lifestyle!

God says:

Mar 14:7 For ye have the poor with you always, and whensoever ye will ye may do them good: but me ye have not always.

The area of Decapolis had been occupied by the Greeks since the time of Alexander and they wanted to remain Greek, refusing to accept the Roman gods and they were not about to accept any Jewish God, their god was a Pantheon of gods!

God will not stay where He is not wanted!

*****Mar 5:18 And when he was come into the ship, he that had been possessed with the devil prayed him that he might be with him.
Mar 5:19 Howbeit Jesus suffered him not, but saith unto him, Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee.
Mar 5:20 And he departed, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him: and all men did marvel.

If there is any doubt that God will leave, once He is rejected, then we miss the importance of this passage!

America was founded on the principles of the Word of God but Satan's people have systematically had God removed from everything they can.

If Jehovah God is told He is not welcome then He will leave!

This foundation of America is trembling and it is being noticed more and more throughout our world!

Jesus promised a second return to Israel, BUT to no one else did He make this promise!

Every "Born Again" child of God wants to be with Jesus as soon as they are saved but here we see the reason we have been left behind for a season.

The old demoniac has become at first a missionary to his old friends and then to this entire region and he is specically told to tell how his new life happened.

Jesus could have took His new child with Him but Jesus has a purpose to fulfill:

1Ti 2:4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

It would the family of this man and his friends that would recognize the change in him and he could explain how it happened to them.

What is the truth of God?

Isa 45:22 Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.
Isa 45:23 I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear.
Isa 45:24 Surely, shall one say, in the LORD have I righteousness and strength: even to him shall men come; and all that are incensed against him shall be ashamed.

This is the message we have for this lost world!

God is still showing His "compassion" on this entire world but the world is not listening!

Decapolis is a place of 10 cities that were mostly Greek and according to ancient historians, Decapolis had their own courts, their own army and even their own coinage.

Ruins found today of their theaters, temples and other buildings indicate that they were an advanced culture for their time.

The reputation of this once called "Demoniac" caused all men to marvel when they met them and he then told them about Jesus.

Jesus showed His compassion on all mankind at the Cross!

If we can be as this once demon possessed man, and show compassion, we can still make a difference in this world!

Jud 1:21 Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.
Jud 1:22 And of some have compassion, making a difference:

*****Mar 5:21 And when Jesus was passed over again by ship unto the other side, much people gathered unto him: and he was nigh unto the sea.
Mar 5:22 And, behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet,
Mar 5:23 And besought him greatly, saying, My little daughter lieth at the point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live.

Jesus may not have been welcomed in the synagogue but He was welcomed by the people as they knew who to turn to.

Jairus had allowed Jesus to read from the scriptures many times.
Jairus had also been an eyewitness to many of the things Jesus had done.
Jairus realized that kind of power could only have come from God.
But, Jairus had not shown his need for Jesus, until he was faced with a tragedy!

We sometimes fight the Holy Spirit, until something tragic happens in our lives!

What are the most important things to do in ever situation and with any tragedy?

1.) Humble ourselves before the Lord.
2) Believe in His power to heal. (A complete healing begins with salvation)!
3) Be bold enough to confess to the Lord before others. (be not ashamed of the Lord)
4) Show your love to the Lord and all others. (the two great commandments)

The touch of Jesus is a precious and a wonderful thing but He must first touch us with His Word!

Jairus did not realize that he was also a part of God's plan!

The rulers of every synagogue were respected in the community.
This ruler and these people had seen many things in healing and providing, by Jesus.
This ruler and these people had thought that Beelzebub held the power of death.
This ruler and these people were about to see "the One" who truly had the power over death!

Again Jesus shows His "compassion", this time on a grieving father.

*****Mar 5:24 And Jesus went with him; and much people followed him, and thronged him.
Mar 5:25 And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years,
Mar 5:26 And had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse,

Notice that the Lord Jesus responds at once, without making a comment.

The home of Jairus was not far from Peter's house nor far from the synagogue.

The throng of people with Him were anxious to see another miracle.

That word "thronged" meant that Jesus was surrounded on all sides which gives meaning to our next passage.

We have a mob of people with a "faith" that Jesus could heal any disease.
We see a certain woman with a blood disease being one of those with this "faith".
Jairus also had this "faith".

Though this is "faith" that is "imperfect faith"!

But here are the facts:

There can be no "faith" so feeble that Jesus Christ will not respond to it!

This certain woman was even more desperate than Jairus but she did not want to hinder the progress of Jesus to the home of this young child.

We see, in this woman, another outcast of Jewish society:

Lev 15:19 And if a woman have an issue, and her issue in her flesh be blood, she shall be put apart seven days: and whosoever toucheth her shall be unclean until the even.

This woman had had this issue of blood for 12 years.

Being a man I cannot imagine what this was like but I'm sure all women can relate to this poor soul.

This woman was not just cut off from society, she was cut off from the house of her God, Jehovah!

Not only had she suffered all these things, she had also trusted in the medical profession of that time, who could not heal her and they knew it but still brought her into financial ruin!

Yes, this woman was desperate!

*****Mar 5:27 When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment.
Mar 5:28 For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.
Mar 5:29 And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague.

When some one tells us the "Good News" of Jesus, the light of "hope" springs up in our souls!

I say again that if there 1000 steps to take to reach Jesus, He would take 999 of those steps, but we have to take that last step on our own!

This is called the step of "faith"!

But we should also realize that God does not allow for "secret Christians"!

This woman was tired of rejection from her friends.
She was tired of searching out for some new doctor or some new medicine, she had tried them all.
She was tired of being rejected by society and if she could have moved to another location, things would not be different because of the Laws of Moses.

This woman only had one option and she knew what it was!

This woman trusted that Jesus Christ could heal her if she could just touch His garment!

She needed the touch of a Savior!

That "Savior" is Jesus Christ!

**We know that Jesus wore a special robe:

Joh 19:23 Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part; and also his coat: now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout.

His robe was woven without a seam.

But Jesus would have also worn a "Tallet".

A "Tallet" is a Jewish prayer shawl.

Num 15:38 Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue:
Num 15:39 And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the LORD, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring:
Num 15:40 That ye may remember, and do all my commandments, and be holy unto your God.

There are 613 Jewish commandments and there would have been 613 fringes on this prayer shawl.

This woman realized that Christ Jesus had supernatural power and maybe this power would even be in His clothes, especially this prayer shawl.

Did Jesus clothes have supernatural powers?

Luke wrote these words:

Luk 9:28 And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, he took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray.
Luk 9:29 And as he prayed, the fashion of his countenance was altered, "and his raiment was white and glistering".

To be honest, these clothes of Jesus had no real power!

It was the Glory of God inside of Jesus that was beneath those clothes that was the location of that power!

In either case this woman touched the hem of this prayer shawl and she was immediately healed.

It is this incident that had caused others to seek to get close enough to Jesus just to touch Him:

Luk 6:19 And the whole multitude sought to touch him: for there went virtue out of him, and healed them all.

She was right, she was healed but she did not know why.

So, Jesus would explain to her that it was not His clothes, it was her own "faith"!

*****Mar 5:30 And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes?
Mar 5:31 And his disciples said unto him, Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me?
Mar 5:32 And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing.
Mar 5:33 But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth.
Mar 5:34 And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.

There were many that had touched Jesus on this day because this crowd had gathered to see if Jesus would heal the daughter of Jairus, the ruler of the synagogue, which Jesus could no longer enter.

Jairus would have been a rich man by the standards of this community. This woman was poor and wretched!

We should not think that Jesus did not know these things until He felt her touch!

Jesus will now use this incident to teach the 12 disciples, who did not understand that to know the Lord is to have a personal relationship with Him.

Christ Jesus was after a public confession of her "faith"!

It should amaze us all, that the Lord Jesus Christ will stop what He is doing, no matter the importance of it, just to meet with a poor lost soul at the first sign of faith!

Rom 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Luk 15:7 I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.

There was only one person in this entire multitude that knew why Jesus had asked this question!

She probably froze in her tracks because we already know she did not run away.

You see no matter what we are doing, and no matter how noisy our world is, when Jesus calls, we will hear Him!

This should remind us of one thing in particular:

1Th 4:16 "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout", with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

We will not be left out of the "Rapture" even if the noise of this sinful world drowns out all other things.

This woman had felt new life, where her old life had been.
This woman had never been this much alive all of her adult life.
But this woman trembled because she had not asked the Lord's permission!
This woman trembled because she thought she might loose her new life!

This woman ran as hard as she could to worship the Lord Jesus who had healed her and the crowd made room.

Then this woman gave her testimony:

Psa 66:16 Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he hath done for my soul.

What did Jesus do?

That word "Daughter" meant she had been accepted into the family of God!

Not only was this woman healed of her bodily illness, imposed on her by Satan, she was healed in her conscience, she was free from the bondage of Satan.

This woman had lived in a despairing state and hopeless condition.

Upon this confession this woman could now live in peace along with joy of a new life!

Joh 8:36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

We may never get to see the book where Our Lord has blotted out all our sin.

But there is great joy knowing our name is written in the Lamb's book Of Life and can never be blotted out of that book!

Rev 3:5 He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.

Thank you Jesus!

There may be another reason why Jesus took the time with this poor woman.

Jesus teaches us that He is always on time!

*****Mar 5:35 While he yet spake, there came from the ruler of the synagogue's house certain which said, Thy daughter is dead: why troublest thou the Master any further?
Mar 5:36 As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe.

Jairus having witnessed all these other things now gets the word that his daughter has passed away.

Time just was not on his side!

Those that came used the title "Master".

Master means instructor or teacher as it is used in this verse.

Jesus must be our "Master" but this will not get you into Heaven.

Jesus Christ must also be our "Lord".

We must learn of Jesus as Lord, and then obey Him as Teacher or "Master".

Jesus said these words:

Mat 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

Jesus must be Lord and Master!

Mat 23:8 But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.

Jesus must be Lord and Master!

Luk 6:46 And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?

Jesus must be Lord and Master!

Judas Iscariot followed Jesus for more than two years.
He was taught everything the other disciples were taught.
He knew our Lord as Master, but Judas never called Christ Jesus his Lord!

Jesus says "I Am" at least 19 times in the Gospels:

Exo 3:14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.

Exo 6:3 And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them.

Again John the Beloved said:

1Jn 2:21 I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth.
1Jn 2:22 Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.
1Jn 2:23 Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father;

We must keep all these things in mind as the modern day church removes Christ Jesus, and His Blood, and then endorses the things of this world!

What can Our Lord and Master accomplish that no one else can?

Our Lord Jesus Christ can do the impossible but He does requires this one thing!

"Be not afraid, only believe"

Rom 5:1 Therefore being "justified by faith", we have peace with God "through our Lord Jesus Christ":

*****Mar 5:37 And he suffered no man to follow him, save Peter, and James, and John the brother of James.
Mar 5:38 And he cometh to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and seeth the tumult, and them that wept and wailed greatly.

We again get to see the "heart" of Jesus.
Jesus has pity on each and every sinner!

The heart of Jesus today is the same as it was this day in the home of Jairus:

Heb 13:8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.

We should quickly notice that Jesus takes His inner circle of disciples with Him, but He does not allow a public display of what is about to take place.

There was already a great disturbance (tumult) in the home of Jairus and a great mourning for this child.

Jesus Christ is serious about His ministry!

*****Mar 5:39 And when he was come in, he saith unto them, Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth.
Mar 5:40 And they laughed him to scorn. But when he had put them all out, he taketh the father and the mother of the damsel, and them that were with him, and entereth in where the damsel was lying.

The flesh may sleep but the soul is eternal!

The very same Creator of this world, who made this flesh from the dirt of His own creation, was not concerned about the condition of the body of this child.

To Christ Jesus she was just taking a nap!

In any case the mourning for the child ceased and these that were crying began laughing, but it was not a joyful thing, it was a scornful thing!

In other words they said: "just who do you think you are to doubt us" and Jesus just puts them all out of the house and He, the parents, and Peter, James, and John, entered into the place where this child was laid.

*****Mar 5:41 And he took the damsel by the hand, and said unto her, Talitha cumi; which is, being interpreted, Damsel, I say unto thee, arise.
Mar 5:42 And straightway the damsel arose, and walked; for she was of the age of twelve years. And they were astonished with a great astonishment.

The Apostle Peter never forgot this day and it was probably Peter who gave these exact words to Mark to write down for us.

Jesus spoke Aramaic this day because this was the language of this city and these words He used had no magical significance!

"Tali" is the word for "a body".
"Talitha" is the word for a girl.
"Cumi" is the word for Arise!

That's all Jesus had to say!

And how long did it take for this child to "Arise"?

"Straightway" means "directly or at once"!

She not only rose up out of that place where she lay, but she walked!

She was only 12 and all she remembered was that she had been sleeping and she was very hungry!

Even today it is not understood why Jesus uses the term "sleep" when we say "death".

Joh 11:11 These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.

But in sleep there is a rest from pain!
There is a rest from the cares of this world!
But to be asleep means there will be an awakening!

The "Born Again" child of God cannot die!

"Sleeping", in the sense of dying is applied to the Christian because we have that sincere hope of "resurrection"!

The soul, at death, has already joined the Lord in Heaven:

2Co 5:8 We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.

The soul will return with the Lord on the day of the "Rapture"!

1Th 4:13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
1Th 4:14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, "even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him".

Then the Lord will "resurrect" that sleeping flesh and join Our Lord with a glorified body!

2Co 4:14 Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall present us with you.

Rom 8:11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

Together again we will always be with The Lord!

1Th 4:17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

What else did Jesus do?

*****Mar 5:43 And he charged them straitly that no man should know it; and commanded that something should be given her to eat.

The Lord Jesus Christ did some mighty great things while He was in the flesh but just as important He never forgot to do the little things that are not mentioned!

By this child eating, it showed that she had not just been returned to life, but she had also been restored to perfect health.

After all there had been a reason she had died at such a young age.

We can sure that this young lady lived to be a great age or this miracle would not have been such a great one!

God will always feed the life He gives by His wonderful "Grace"!

Questions?

Let's Pray!