Mark 3:23-27 - March 5, 2010

23 So Jesus called them and spoke to them in parables: "How can Satan drive out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. 26 And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come. 27 In fact, no one can enter a strong man's house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can rob his house."

This passage is a tremendous demonstration of a wise response under pressure. When the good works that Jesus was doing by the power of the Holy Spirit were labeled by the religious leaders of the day as works that were empowered by Satan, Jesus chooses not to respond to them directly and enter into an argument. Instead He answers generally before the entire audience of those who were witnessing the events in such a way that they could interpret His words for themselves and make a clear and sound judgment. He left no open door for His words to be twisted because of how He chose to communicate. Jesus’ response to the leaders was in the form of a question that revealed the underlying principles that He was demonstrating, in a way that all could grasp for their obviousness and through this the attack of the religious leaders is clearly exposed for what it is, a jealous attempt to discredit the ministry of Christ.

Through the response of Jesus He identifies the true nature of the work that He is doing. He identifies that the miracles of healing and the deliverance from demons that He is bringing forth are in fact a reflection of two kingdoms that are in conflict with one another. Jesus chooses terminology that reflects a strong man who is being bound so that what he has in his possession can be taken from him. What a powerful picture of the work of Christ! The object in the possession of the strongman is the souls of men! Jesus contrasts His work of healing and deliverance as the work of plundering Satan’s house!

In Luke 13:16 in a response to accusations against His work of healing on a Sabbath Jesus reflects on this same principle in regard to the transformation of this woman that He has healed. He boldly identifies the nature of what has taken place in even more direct terms than in the gospel of Mark as He says “should not this woman , a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?" Her sickness has been the work of Satan. She has been bound for 18 years. So instead Christ comes and binds the one who has been binding her! She is now set free to worship the Lord.

The primary principle Jesus emphasizes in his response to the religious leaders in Mark 3 is clearly seen in verse 24 where Jesus says “If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.” With these words Jesus identifies clearly that Satan will never perform a miracle that sets someone free from Satan. Therefore if a spiritual work is taking place that sets men’s free from Satan’s power and awakens a deeper love for and loyalty to Jesus Christ, this work can never be from Satan! This truth puts to rest many wrong arguments over what is of God and what is not.

Oh that the church of our day would walk in both this wisdom and this power. Let a church arise in the earth that can expose false religious thinking for the deception that it is and that can demonstrate a Spirit empowered life that consistently sets people free from the things that bind them. Let us reach into the heart of the Lord for the Spirit of wisdom and revelation that can silence accusers and the Spirit of power and might that can set the prisoners free!

Mark 3:22 - March 4, 2010

Mk. 3:22 “And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, "He is possessed by Beelzebub! By the prince of demons he is driving out demons.".

It is a tragic thing when the people confuse the work of God with the work of the Devil. The whole work of Christ as He came into the religious culture of the day can be encapsulated into a short prophetic utterance from Isaiah that foretold the fact that many would not be able to embrace the ministry of Christ because it did not conform to their preconceived religious expectations. Paul describes the struggle between faith and religion in Rom 9:30-33 when he says “What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith; 31 but Israel, who pursued a law of righteousness, has not attained it. 32 Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the "stumbling stone." 33 As it is written: "See, I lay in Zion a stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame."

Consider the fact that God is not afraid to present himself in such a way, through such means that some will not be able to see past the expression to the good fruit and therefore reject something as not from God. How often have we missed God because of our limited view of what God looks like in action? It is very clear from the contrast of religious history and the scriptures that the pages of scripture are examples of what God can do but the examples are not the limitations of what God can do! The simple test of scripture is found in one of the parables of Jesus. In Matt 7:15-16 Jesus said "Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them.” The clear principle in this passage is that we are not to focus on the appearance of things because a wolf can appear to be a sheep! Examine the fruit!

Jesus taught elsewhere about this ability for people to do the works of God and not be right with God. In Matt 7:22-24 Jesus confronts this problem by saying “Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' 23 Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!' 24 "Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” We are not to be blinded by forms and appearances. Instead we are to examine the lifestyle of those who work for God. In the servants of God good works and quality of life must come together. This is the test of what is from God and of an approved messenger. Does the miracle produce hunger for God and does the one performing the miracle have a Christ like lifestyle? Let this be the measuring rod, not simply the person’s expression of ministry.

In response to the Pharisee’s chronic accusations against God the man who had been healed of blindness answered directly. In John 9:30-33 “The man answered, "Now that is remarkable! You don't know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. 31 We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly man who does his will. 32 Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing." Even an unschooled man was able to see through the religious blindness of Jesus’ accusers with simple logic. Judge things rightly and you will enjoy so much more of what God is doing. The same Holy Spirit expresses Himself in a diversity of ways through a diversity of people. Do not call evil what God calls good and do not rob yourself of the blessings that can be yours as you learn to discern by the Holy Spirit not by the limitations of false preconceptions about God.

Mark 3:20-21 - March 03, 2010

Mk. 3:20-21 “Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. 21 When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, "He is out of his mind." NIV

Has anyone ever thought that you were out of your mind? One of the consistent companions of a radical Christian life is the misunderstanding and negative reaction of well meaning, but misguided people. It seems that one of the tools that God uses to refine us and train us in a life of obedience is the fact that others at times look upon our decisions, whether they be major life choices or even the values that we choose to live by, and conclude that something must be wrong with us because those choices don’t seem to mirror the values system of the world around us. God allows a significant measure of peer pressure to touch our lives and our hearts are sifted by this pressure.

Jesus was no different from us in the basic human dynamics of his earthly ministry. The single greatest contrast was that in everything that He faced, from the fame of public acceptance to the pain of betrayal by intimate companions and the misunderstanding of family members who could not grasp the unique lifestyle that He was called to, the pressures that impacted his life and tried his faith were of greater proportion than we could ever fully understand.

Throughout His ministry Jesus set an example of stability and consistency of response under pressure that speaks volumes to us. When His mother and brothers stood outside the house where He was ministering because they thought He had lost His mind, He redirected the people’s attention to the need for a life of obedience to the heavenly Father as first priority in life. When He was accused by the Pharisees of many heretical practices He stood firmly and confronted the religious spirit that was distorting their interpretation of His ministry. And when Jesus recognized that His own disciples were confused by His actions such as when they found Him speaking to the Samaritan woman in John 4 He steadily directed them to the reality that His consistent life focus was on doing the will of the Father who had sent Him. In this one action, without ever addressing their concern directly, He answers the confusion that He perceives in their heart with a clarity that cannot be overlooked.

Jesus demonstrated a remarkable capacity to stay focused on His mission regardless of the opinions of others. He lived with a mental tenacity that would not allow people’s opinions, religious deceptions, manipulations and temptations to compel Him to abandon His God centered values system and conform to the demands of the multitudes. In the same way the life of Christ calls to us to stand strong against the tide of public opinion. It challenges us to be neither swayed by seasons of fame, nor to be diluted by seasons of opposition. Paul exhorts each one of us in 1 Cor 2:16 that “we have the mind of Christ.” And because we have been given this incredible gift we have the same capacity of focus and the ability through Christ to live in the same peace filled composure that He demonstrated even under the most difficult circumstances. Ask the Lord for this place of strength and peace that is His gift to us. Paul instructed his disciple Timothy in 2 Tim 1:7 “God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, love, and of a sound mind.”KJV You can live with God in a confident peace of mind. That mind is the mind of Christ.

Mark 3:13-19 - March 2, 2010

Mk. 3:13-19 “Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him. 14 He appointed twelve-designating them apostles-that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach 15 and to have authority to drive out demons. 16 These are the twelve he appointed: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter); 17 James son of Zebedee and his brother John (to them he gave the name Boanerges, which means Sons of Thunder); 18 Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.”

Jesus is always watching! Imagine this setting. Jesus has been laboring to minister to the multitudes and to introduce the kingdom of God. Many have been following Him as disciples and now it is time to set a group apart to a new appointed task. Consider the heart of God reflected here in this passage. Jesus withdraws to the mountainside. Lu. 6:12 makes it clear that He spent the whole night in prayer, thoughtfully considering the many disciples who had committed their lives to Him. When morning comes He selects from this group twelve men whom He will commission to a higher purpose. Twelve men who will be sent out before Him to prepare the way in each of the cities that He will visit and who will walk in the authority and power of the Holy Spirit on a different level than the rest, twelve men who will “be with Him” in a way that no one else enjoys.

Does God play favorites no! Does God set apart some men and women for a greater public or private purpose than others and for different times and seasons; absolutely! Why does the Lord call one man to Himself and pass by another? Why does the Lord invite Peter and John to follow and yet send the Gadarene demoniac home to his family even though he asks intensely to be allowed to follow as a disciple? The Lord knows the purpose for which He created each person and He knows the heart and its capacity to follow. Why was Mark a failure in one season of his life; running away in a difficult season, and yet later of such value to Paul that Paul calls for Him in 2 Ti. 4:11, saying that he is useful to Paul? The answer is grace.

John the Baptist understands this principle and states it very directly in response to the inquiry of his disciples and their concerns over the growing popularity of Jesus. John states in John 3:27 "A man can receive only what is given him from heaven.” At the end of the story there is grace. For different times and seasons it is grace. For different callings and ministries the answer is grace! What has been given to us from heaven? Paul writes about the gifts and callings of God and states in 1 Cor 12:11 “All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.” God has determined the gifts and the measure that each one of us receives for His own purposes.

So what is our part? The answer to this question is clear and simple as well: desire and surrender. Paul ends I Co. 12 by clarifying that not all will have all gifts but that we should still eagerly desire the greater gifts! A few verses later in I Co. 14:1 he even restates his exhortation that we should earnestly desire spiritual gifts, “especially the gift of prophecy.” We pursue with a hungry heart and surrender to the will of the Lord in regard to the outcome as He directs our steps. If He has called you to a public ministry, lean on grace. If He has called you to a family or a career, lean on grace. Where there is a call, there is grace! Where there is grace, there is power for success! Seek Him hard for the greatest measure that He will give you do accomplish His will but surrender to the fact that it is His will that will be done, not your own!

Mark 3:7-12 - March 1, 2010

Mk. 3:7-12 “Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lake, and a large crowd from Galilee followed. 8 When they heard all he was doing, many people came to him from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, and the regions across the Jordan and around Tyre and Sidon. 9 Because of the crowd he told his disciples to have a small boat ready for him, to keep the people from crowding him. 10 For he had healed many, so that those with diseases were pushing forward to touch him. 11 Whenever the evil spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, "You are the Son of God." 12 But he gave them strict orders not to tell who he was.”

In Mark 3:7-12 the leadership wisdom of Jesus stands out clearly once again. Jesus recognizes the need for the setting to change within his ministry. The crowds are massing around Him everywhere He goes and He is operating within a very sensitive religious and political climate. Because of this He takes His disciples and withdraws from the town He has been ministering in out to the lakeside areas, away from the confrontational setting of the Synagogue.

For Jesus to be ministering healing on the Sabbath right in the Synagogue had been a very confrontational thing for Him to do. It was clearly intended to provoke opportunity to deal with the issues that He had addressed in response to their accusations but now Jesus moves to where He can minister to the multitudes without the atmospheric tension of the Synagogue. In this setting Jesus demonstrates an awareness of His setting that is insightful. He is not just intently focused on doing ministry. He knows the dangers of crowd frenzy and creates a control mechanism that isn’t dependent upon large numbers of security people for crowd control.

Imagine the message it would have sent if He had a lineup of armed security personnel surrounding him like the president to keep Him safe while He ministered. Jesus identifies a way to create safety and a rapid means of escape if things get out of control without communicating a dictatorial or militaristic style that would have undermined His message. Jesus was consistently creating a certain atmosphere amongst even the crowds that followed Him so that it sent the right message about who He was and what His purpose was. There was never a time when He let others use Him to create a wrong message by the structure, style or response to people that would compete with the message of His words.

When the disciples tried to keep the children away, Jesus called them to himself to send a clear message about who He was and how the Father felt. When the woman in Mt. 26 was criticized by the disciples for pouring out the alabaster jar of perfume over His head Jesus defended her actions for the purity of worship that they represented. The disciples were focused purely on the financial waste that this act represented, but Jesus was able to align them with the act of worship that was at the heart of this extravagance. When it was time to feed the multitudes He had the people sit in relational groups of fifty and served them in an orderly way, establishing a sense of structure and relationship and identifying the role of His disciples as servants of the people. This was such a powerful message to the crowds about who the disciples were.

The wisdom of how Jesus worked in ministry was consistently proven for its effectiveness. Because He created a setting with clear boundaries it also kept His audience in front of Him not surrounding Him and through this structure He was able to minister to large numbers of people. Even in this setting the people pushed forward to touch Him but it created a limitation that would provide safety to the workers and for himself. One of the valuable leadership lessons of this passage is the importance of accurately assessing the situation that you find yourself in. Learn to look not just at the obvious but at the potential within every situation. Jesus learned how to use the natural setting for His advantage. He was able to forecast the negative possibilities in the immediate future and evaluate the best possible structure for success within the setting. Ask the Lord to give you eyes to see both the problems and the possibilities of every situation!

Mark 3:3-6 - February 28, 2010

Mk. 3:3-6 “Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, "Stand up in front of everyone." 4 Then Jesus asked them, "Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?" But they remained silent. 5 He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. 6 Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.”

Can you imagine Jesus angry!? This is the only direct reference in the gospels that describes Jesus being angry that can be found in the Bible. Because of this it is important to notice where that anger was directed. You never see Him express anger at the sinfulness of the people He ministered to. You only see Him reaching out to them with a patient desire to bring them to repentance. The ones who awakened the anger of God were the hard hearted religious leaders who in their hypocrisy to protect the law placed the importance of the law over the value of human life.

Jesus’ ministry on earth was compelled by the love of God and as a result when He encountered these people it caused Him to burn with anger. Verse five states that he was “deeply distressed by their stubborn hearts.” They could not see the need of this man, nor could they see the compassion of God that He wanted to demonstrate towards this hurting man because it was packaged in a way that offended their religious mindsets. This makes me wonder how many miracles have passed us by because we could not let go of our preconceptions about how God works. Could you allow yourself to be late for church, or maybe even miss church because you were responding to a need that God sent your way? Or would your sense of religious duty cause you to miss the point of your religion!

Paul makes a clear and concise statement in his first letter to Timothy to removes any doubt as to Christ’s mission and establishes a significant measure of priority in directing us towards the values that we should elevate. In 1 Tim 1:15 Paul writes; “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” KJV It is hard to miss that simple statement! Jesus came for people! When we elevate adherence to religious tradition and practice above the value of a human life we have significantly missed the point. On numerous occasions Jesus stepped outside of the dictated protocol of religious observance; eating with sinners, talking to a Samaritan woman, healing on the Sabbath and more, all for the sake of rescuing people from darkness! He faced the harassment of those who were bound by their religious convictions all for the sake of changing lives and revealing the true priorities of the Father that had been distorted by centuries of accumulated religious baggage! As Jesus said to the Pharisees in Matt 9:13 “… go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."