Gospel Living

31  Then he returned from the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. 32  And they brought to him a man who was deaf and had a speech impediment, and they begged him to lay his hand on him. 33  And taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and after spitting touched his tongue. 34  And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.” 35  And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. 36  And Jesus charged them to tell no one. But the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. 37  And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.” Jesus remains in Gentile territory as He heads back southward.  This would have been an odd route, apparently avoiding Galilee.  He arrives in the region of Decapolis, the...

53  When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored to the shore. 54  And when they got out of the boat, the people immediately recognized him 55  and ran about the whole region and began to bring the sick people on their beds to wherever they heard he was. 56  And wherever he came, in villages, cities, or countryside, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and implored him that they might touch even the fringe of his garment. And as many as touched it were made well. Chapter 6 began with Jesus’s rejection at Nazareth.  We read in v. 3 that “they took offense at him.”  We also read that “he could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them” (v. 5).  Here, however, the people rush to get to Jesus, to touch Him , and they were healed.  What do we see in the midst of this excitement? We see a picture of evangelism.  They’re rushing to bring their sick to Christ....

The Lord and His Sabbath | Mark 3:1–6 Shaun Marksbury | Morning Service | 9 April, 2017 The Lord Jesus built the church and has directed it, and we call Sunday “the Lord's Day.”  So, as we think about the Lord of the Sabbath in this passage, we are thinking about how He leads, heals, and reveals on His day of worship.   Video: Audio:  http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=41617135330 (Embed is not functioning at time of posting) Notes ( PDF ): Sermon Notes The Lord and His Sabbath | Mark 3:1–6 Shaun Marksbury | Morning Service | 9 April, 2017 I.                Introduction Last time, we saw the Lord face down the traditionalism of the scribes and Pharisees.  They had confused their external convictions with God’s Word.  They had weighed the Sabbath command with so many requirements that it became a heavy burden to God’s people.  Yet, here come...

And he called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. … 12  So they went out and proclaimed that people should repent. 13  And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them. God announced His message with miracles, both in Jesus Christ and in His apostles.  Jesus appointed these twelve back in chapter three, and now we come to the reason He originally called them (3:13–15).  They’ll be His “sent ones” (or the apostles from the Greek).  While other apostles appear in Scripture, these are in that special category of specifically being sent by Jesus Christ, those who would later be witnesses of His resurrection (Acts 1:22).  As such, Jesus would give them authority that no other disciple would have.  His apostles could work supernaturally.   Throughout the Book of Mark, we’ve seen the wonders of Jesus, but the idea that He could distribute His p...

Healing the Unhealable | Mark 1:40–45 So, when we read about the leper here, we encounter a man on a desperate mission. Enigmatically, the Law gives a provision for those cleansed of their leprosy, and he’s heard about the healing power of Jesus—though he must enter a populated town and find the Lord. In their encounter, we see the Lord’s heart concerning those suffering, but we also see an image of the sinner coming to Jesus. So, what we see is the Great Physician healing the unhealable. We’re going to see both His compassion as He heals and His command after He heals. Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFCPzJVyRbQ Audio: http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=2281718612 Notes PDF:  http://playpdf.sa-media.com/media/2281718612/2281718612.pdf Healing the Unhealable | Mark 1:40–45 Shaun Marksbury | Morning Service | 26 February, 2017 Heavenly Father, • We thank You that You take the wretched and transform us.  I pray that we would ...

And a great crowd followed him and thronged about him. 25  And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, 26  and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse. 27  She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. 28  For she said, “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.” 29  And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. 30  And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone out from him, immediately turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my garments?” 31  And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, ‘Who touched me?’ ” 32  And he looked around to see who had done it. 33  But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before h...

The Healing Ministry of Christ | Mark 1:29–39 This morning we’re going to look at the healing ministry of Christ. What did it look like? What did He model in it? What was the point behind it? His Power in His Healing Ministry His Prayer in His Healing Ministry His Purpose in His Healing Ministry Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrBToV4VmLI Audio: http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=220172020491 Notes: PDF:  http://playpdf.sa-media.com/media/220172020491/220172020491.pdf The Healing Ministry of Christ | Mark 1:29–39 Shaun Marksbury | Morning Service | 19 February, 2017 Heavenly Father, • We thank You for Your healing ministry, and I pray that we would see it with greater clarity as we study. I. Introduction A fifth-century church was constructed over the supposed residence of Peter, based on second-century graffiti, and excavations have uncovered a residence there.  One commentary notes the following: “In the 1970s and ...

Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. 2  And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. 3  And he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come here.” 4  And he said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. 5  And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. 6  The Pharisees went out and immediately held counsel with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him. Jesus faithfully returns to the synagogue on the Sabbath, and a man with perhaps a physical handicap from birth sits there.  It’s possible that the Pharisees brought this man to the synagogue, setting up a trap for the Lord—as the text states that they sought opportunity to accuse the Lord.  Even so, we gain a...

8  And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts? 9  Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’? 10  But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the paralytic— 11  “I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.” 12  And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!” The scribes rightly questioned, for only God could do what Jesus claimed to do.  He claims to forgive sins, and then he tells the lame to walk.  Both statements are easy to say for the liar or for the fool.  Yet, Jesus reveals exactly Who He is, backing up the claim with evidence.    Jesus says He has divine authority....

“ 3  And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. 4  And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. 5  And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic,  ‘Son, your sins are forgiven.’ ” News of a cured leper spreads exponentially.  So, it’s unclear what this crowd expects when gathering around Jesus.  Since a paralytic is brought to our Lord, it is safe to say many expected their own healings.  What they received was Jesus’s own preaching, and more walked away with His knowledge than walked into the house. They learned that faith saves.   Jesus sees the collective faith of the five friends as they executed their plan.  Consider the trust of the paralytic, bound to his bed, as his friends lower him into a crowded room through a fresh hole in the roof; he brought nothing to Jesus...

40  And a leper came to him, imploring him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean.” 41  Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.” 42  And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. 43  And Jesus sternly charged him and sent him away at once, 44  and said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to them.” Leprosy was feared for good reason.  The Romans and the Jews knew it to be incurable, deadly, and highly infectious.  So, in Leviticus 13:11, the leper was “unclean,” a social outcast not to be touched.  Throughout Scripture, this debilitating and life-consuming illness becomes a picture of our sin.  What learn about the Lord in His interaction with this leper? The Lord is willing to heal.  The leper approaches in faith that Christ can ...

To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments; according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David. 1            O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger,             nor discipline me in your wrath. 2            Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am languishing;             heal me, O LORD, for my bones are troubled. 3            My soul also is greatly troubled.             But you, O LORD—how long? We’re not certain when David penned this, but he’s clearly sorrowful.  He faces enemies at a point of personal weakness, and he’s riddled with guilt.  He writes that it should be played according to “The Sheminith,” possibly meaning that it would be sung in a lower o...

“That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or oppressed by demons. 33  And the whole city was gathered together at the door. 34  And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. And he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.” Our new day starts at midnight, but the Jewish culture marked it at sunset.  In this case, the evening marks the end of this long Sabbath day, but there’s still no rest for the Lord.  The news of the healing had went through the area (v. 28), so now that the Sabbath had ended, the people now come carrying their infirmed. Maybe coming in intervals, “the whole city was gathered.”  This means that Jesus eliminated sickness in Capernaum that night!  If someone truly healed like Jesus today, he would empty hospitals.  It’s amazing to see the Great Physician destroying every kind of disease, especially knowing He can do the same with sin and death. It...

“And immediately he left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. 30  Now Simon’s mother-in-law lay ill with a fever, and immediately they told him about her. 31  And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them.” We’re tracking Jesus and His disciples on this long Sabbath day, and here we learn about Peter and Andrew’s home life.  This has been their dwelling since they followed Jesus north to Capernaum (cf. John 1:44).  Peter’s mother-in-law also lives with them, which means that Peter was married, and possibly also Andrew (cf. 1 Cor 9:5).  As an aside, a fifth-century church was constructed over the supposed residence of Peter, based on second-century graffiti, and excavations have uncovered a residence there.  She was bed-ridden, so it appears that the condition was serious.  Luke the physician notes that she had a “high fever” (Lk 4:38), so the...